Musical Kettles at Pacific Gardens

People at Pacific Gardens like to share, it is true.  And that's a good thing.  But sometimes it can get very confusing.

Take for example, our musical tea kettles.  No, I don't mean that they sing, or anything like that.

It's just that they have been moving around like people in a game of musical chairs.

It all started when Roz moved out of Mia's place to an upstairs apartment (we also have games of musical tenants).

She'd been using Mia's tea kettle when she lived downstairs, but now that she was in a new place, she didn't have one.

No worries, I said.  We have two tea kettles in our dining hall's kitchen; one big one and one small one. Roz could take the small one.

I can't do that, said Roz, horrified.  People use those tea kettles all the time - how could she deprive community members of their use of even one tea kettle!

So Mia let Roz use her tea kettle until she could buy her a new one - actually, a used one from a thrift store, as is Mia's wont.

But that meant Mia wouldn't have a tea kettle of her own to make those all-important cuppas.

So I lent her my stylish stainless steel tea kettle.  But that meant I didn't have one.

In an act of wanton self-interest, I went into the kitchen and took the little tea kettle for myself, community members be damned!

And that's where the game of musical tea kettles now sits.  Roz has Mia's; Mia has mine; and I have the one belonging to the community.

It should get sorted out soon.

Kathryn

Community Sharing

There are many people here with wonderful gifts. Some share their gift of celebration with us, others their gift of growing food. Some share their gift of relaxation with us. Others their gift of music and song. Some share their tools and time. Others their love and affection.

It’s wonderful to walk down the atrium and hear Mia’s music playing in the dining hall.

Or Mykl playing his guitar.

Or to pick herbs and kale from the community gardens.

And when I needed to boost my car, to borrow a neighbour’s car to boost mine.

Earlier this month we talked about giving up our car and adopting a car-free lifestyle. Aside from being good for the environment, it would have also been good for the budget and waistline.

I put out an email to select members of the community and asked them for support in this idea. And we were overwhelmed by the response. Three people offered us their vehicles to use. Even frequently.

As a family we do sort of need a car though. There are appointments at the hospital for Trey and there are unexpected trips to the school to drop off a blood glucose monitor. And there are dentist appointments and big grocery shops and then road trips or drive to go hiking or swimming.

When we added up the many things that we wouldn’t actually bother doing if we had to cycle or borrow vehicles we realized how naive we had been. So, at the end of it all we decided that we would keep our car. But we were so grateful for those people who offered to lend us their vehicles so generously.

Cohousing.



-Myriam