Memphis Democrat Column Week of 12/22/08
Hi all. This is Alline reporting in for Dancing Rabbit. If it seems like you just read a column by me, you are absolutely correct. However, with many Rabbits traveling for the holiday season our writer’s rotation is extremely short. The list goes something like this: Alline, Alline, Alline and then, Alline. You will be relieved to know that by the middle of January the other writers will have returned (but for now, you’re mine, all mine!)
For those of you reading this elsewhere (not in Northeastern Missouri, fondly referred to as NEMO), we send you greetings from the frozen Midwest. And frozen it is. A week or so ago, we received a fabulous snowstorm. Just to make it interesting, the snow was followed by rain, then a teeny bit of warm weather just to get things melted up a bit. Then the cold wind came - we’ve been waking to temperatures hovering around 4 BELOW zero (hi friends in Florida!). This caused the entire surface of, well, everything, to turn to ice. It looks incredibly beautiful, in an eerie, treacherous sort of way - wide swaths of smooth frozen-ness as far as one can see (and here on the prairie, that’s quite a ways). Walking in not just a job, it’s an adventure - each step takes one through the crunch and tinkling of cracking ice and then a descent of three or four inches through snow before reaching terra firma. Sneaking up on someone is virtually impossible -
we hear the tinkle, crunch, squeak of every step.
There has been a flurry of holiday activity lately - (I really just wrote that because I LOVE the word “flurry.” Flurry, flurry, flurry! It’s in the same league as pickle relish, salubrious, archipelago, brouhaha, reconnoiter, discombobulate, and names like Manu Tuiasosopo. But I digress…). Our annual cookie exchange, held on Tuesday, was graciously hosted by Tereza and Tom, who provided not only their warm and cozy home but mulled apple cider as well. All participants went home with a large assortment of deliciousness - Tereza and I are considering having a cookie swap every day, just because we like it so much.
This week also featured our version of a Secret Santa Gift Exchange. The Gift Exchange lasted for a week - those who wished to participate drew names anonymously, and secretly left small gifts, notes and other tokens for their secret recipient. The kids were wild with curiosity - constantly comparing notes with one another, trying to figure out who was giving gifts to whom. By the end of the week they pretty much had all gift-givers and recipients correctly paired up. As 7-year old Toren confided in me, “Alline, it was obvious. You’re the only one who bakes COOKIES.” While this clearly isn’t true (see cookie exchange, above), the miniature Sherlock Holmeses had recognized my particular brand of cookies (filled with sugar and chocolate) and outed me by day three. Some of the other participants were much sneakier, and at the big “reveal” on Friday evening there were a few surprises. Big thanks for Meadow for arranging the exchange!
As is usual during the holidays, Rabbits are coming and going at a remarkable speed, and this week have headed out on trains to such far-flung destinations as Michigan (Tony), New Jersey (Jeff); and cars to Minnesota (Amy & Juan), upstate New York (the Carleton tribe). We heard reports of the Carletons having to make numerous runs in order to get over the ice-clad hill in Rutledge. We would have gone to cheer them on if we had only known!
One last note: the Milkweed Mercantile is looking for a commercial 6-burner gas range with gas (not convection) oven/s. If you have one to donate or sell, please contact me at alline@milkweedmercantile.com.
With that, I will end for this week. All of us at Dancing Rabbit send you our best wishes for a safe, healthy and warm holiday season.
Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is a nonprofit and a residential community that demonstrates ecological sustainability in Rutledge, MO. Our 2008 tour schedule and Visitor Program have finished for the year and will resume in the spring of 2009. Please call us at (660)883-5511 or visit dancingrabbit.org for more information.
For those of you reading this elsewhere (not in Northeastern Missouri, fondly referred to as NEMO), we send you greetings from the frozen Midwest. And frozen it is. A week or so ago, we received a fabulous snowstorm. Just to make it interesting, the snow was followed by rain, then a teeny bit of warm weather just to get things melted up a bit. Then the cold wind came - we’ve been waking to temperatures hovering around 4 BELOW zero (hi friends in Florida!). This caused the entire surface of, well, everything, to turn to ice. It looks incredibly beautiful, in an eerie, treacherous sort of way - wide swaths of smooth frozen-ness as far as one can see (and here on the prairie, that’s quite a ways). Walking in not just a job, it’s an adventure - each step takes one through the crunch and tinkling of cracking ice and then a descent of three or four inches through snow before reaching terra firma. Sneaking up on someone is virtually impossible -
we hear the tinkle, crunch, squeak of every step.
There has been a flurry of holiday activity lately - (I really just wrote that because I LOVE the word “flurry.” Flurry, flurry, flurry! It’s in the same league as pickle relish, salubrious, archipelago, brouhaha, reconnoiter, discombobulate, and names like Manu Tuiasosopo. But I digress…). Our annual cookie exchange, held on Tuesday, was graciously hosted by Tereza and Tom, who provided not only their warm and cozy home but mulled apple cider as well. All participants went home with a large assortment of deliciousness - Tereza and I are considering having a cookie swap every day, just because we like it so much.
This week also featured our version of a Secret Santa Gift Exchange. The Gift Exchange lasted for a week - those who wished to participate drew names anonymously, and secretly left small gifts, notes and other tokens for their secret recipient. The kids were wild with curiosity - constantly comparing notes with one another, trying to figure out who was giving gifts to whom. By the end of the week they pretty much had all gift-givers and recipients correctly paired up. As 7-year old Toren confided in me, “Alline, it was obvious. You’re the only one who bakes COOKIES.” While this clearly isn’t true (see cookie exchange, above), the miniature Sherlock Holmeses had recognized my particular brand of cookies (filled with sugar and chocolate) and outed me by day three. Some of the other participants were much sneakier, and at the big “reveal” on Friday evening there were a few surprises. Big thanks for Meadow for arranging the exchange!
As is usual during the holidays, Rabbits are coming and going at a remarkable speed, and this week have headed out on trains to such far-flung destinations as Michigan (Tony), New Jersey (Jeff); and cars to Minnesota (Amy & Juan), upstate New York (the Carleton tribe). We heard reports of the Carletons having to make numerous runs in order to get over the ice-clad hill in Rutledge. We would have gone to cheer them on if we had only known!
One last note: the Milkweed Mercantile is looking for a commercial 6-burner gas range with gas (not convection) oven/s. If you have one to donate or sell, please contact me at alline@milkweedmercantile.com.
With that, I will end for this week. All of us at Dancing Rabbit send you our best wishes for a safe, healthy and warm holiday season.
Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage is a nonprofit and a residential community that demonstrates ecological sustainability in Rutledge, MO. Our 2008 tour schedule and Visitor Program have finished for the year and will resume in the spring of 2009. Please call us at (660)883-5511 or visit dancingrabbit.org for more information.