welcome 2012

HI LAKE NEIGHBORS!!!
Okay, so our new year begins…starting it off with a strong turnout for our annual progressive NY eve party going from house to house, which was really a blast and I think everyone was pretty much blown away by the great effort each host went to. If you didn’t make it this year – plan ahead for 2013 because it is a great experience to be with such warm, kind, fun people that you live beside. I brought some of my visiting family this year and they had a great time, too.

I know Betsy – who is on our event’s crew – has been trying to tie some of our 2012 events down before we meet for the first meeting of the year on January 26. We will try to have something each month (either a meeting or an event) and please feel VERY free to pitch any event you have in mind and we will do all we can to support it. We have around 330 Lake Neighbors gathered sofar that can get involved. More on that in the post-meeting email after 1/26.

This year we decided on 6 meetings in all. They are all Thursdays & are all from 6:30-8:30pm. They will include dinner. : )

In 2011 we met at the Recreation Center @ FM Smith Park (thank you Lois!!!) and it was great in a lot of ways, but we had some problem with noise levels. Prior to that we used to meet in houses and also at Regeneration Church. There were problems with changing locations for each meeting, so we now try for a consistent place each year.

There was talk about not meeting at a church because a few people may have a hesitancy for various personal reasons…BUT we are back again trying things out at Regeneration Church. I want to really encourage anyone who might have reservations about it, Lake Neighbors is not a group affiliated with any any business or center or church – we are only neighbors gathering. Regen is a very comfortable space – very welcoming – it is an old Julia Morgan building, which is interesting in and of itself.

Also…Regen is an amazing neighbor and has never said “no” to any ANY of our needs or requests no matter how odd. Personally, I really appreciate them because they really “walk the talk” – very humbly helping in every way they can and no recruitment – just unconditional respect and support. Please feel greatly welcomed and bring any and all your ideas and needs and concerns, etc. We focus on pro-active, solution focused, positive action oriented ways to continuously grow and improve things here. We are not bound by any area #’s – if you live near the lake, you are a Lake Neighbor.

E-participation – as always – is very much appreciated and encouraged…write in and be involved in that way if that is all you can get to right now. Doing all you can to show up is most important, but we all understand busy-ness & don’t believe in guilt…e-participate and contribute your voice. If you can get involved from home to make things happen & can’t make the meeting just write and offer your time, you are very much needed.

Keep an eye on the Website & your emails for upcoming events we will have and for other important neighborhood developments and news. We now have some new people contributing to our Google email abilities and also the website so you will see some changes and improvements there soon.

OKAY…that is it for the moment. MUCH MORE NEWS TO COME FOLLOWING OUR FIRST MEETING ON JANUARY 26…Hope to see everyone there!

Sasha

New Compost Bins at Funktown Farm

Greetings Gardeners & Composters!

(photoL-R: Devin, Skya & Jonno).

The new compost bins at Funk Town Farm are now COMPLETE and ready for your compost!! A HUGE thank you to my husband, Devin Martin, for the many Saturdays he devoted to this project, and much gratitude to the many others involved in design, construction and tool lending, we couldn't have done it without you!:
Laura Jerrard
Rico
Menyiu
Jess Steiler
Nico & Betsy Johnson
Andy Blackwood
Jonno Norton
Wanda
and others who contributed over the past 3 months and I'm sorry I can't remember all who lent a helping hand!
To point out some of the highlights, these bins:
Are OUTSIDE of the chicken coop (no combo lock once you're inside the garden, no slipping on the coop floor!)
Have lids to keep out excessive moisture in the rainy season
have doors for easier access
include a "turning bin" for easier and more frequent turning (let us know if you'd like to volunteer for a weekly turning shift!)
removable side panels to make it even easier to turn!!
We hope to make a brief instructional video in the coming weeks to demonstrate the use of some of these new features, but until then, please follow these basic guidelines:
Look for the sign with the arrow for "fill this side" and put your compost in that bin
Never fill the center "turning bin"
Absolutely NO PLASTIC!
NO animal products (crushed egg shells ok)
Easy-does-it with paper products (a napkin or two and coffee filters are ok, but no paper plates, food boxes, etc)
Easy-does-it with bread products (a slice or two is ok, but whole loaves promote too much mold and aren't good for the garden)
Close the door and put down the roof if you opened it.
If you have time, remove the wood slats, shovel the compost into the turning bin, shovel back into original bin and replace wood slats. You've just turned the compost!! It will become soil much faster now. Grab some produce from the garden, or take home some compost in exchange for this task :-)
Happy Composting!
Skya (a.k.a. Compost Queen)