Dear David, Thanks so much for sharing the tales of your journey. At times it made me think of Hesse's tale of brother Lawrence: Journey to the East. Journey on.... Paul Paul Schrijnen 13 Bloemfontein Avenue London W12 7BJ +44 7973 206 766 Pschrijnen@aol.com Skype: paulus.schrijnen
On 25 May 2014, at 22:40, David Zahrt via Dialogue <dialogue@lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:
Dear Climate March Friends,
May 23, Friday,
Overnight it rained and was still raining when we got up today. We had breakfast and made lunches under a roofed-in patio. The route had to be scouted out so the vehicles had to wait. We knew that there was a very steep climb on today’s March. I think it was called The Step. There was a request for a show of hands of those that wanted to be shuttled up the hill. At 10 o’clock we headed east on Hwy 75 and N on Hwy 516. It went over a climb and had a scenic overlook. It is amazing how mountains surround Taos, NM. Our campsite was at a Southern Methodist University outpost. The SMU campsite was at 7300 feet elevation and I think the road over The Step was 8500 ft. I got to talk to a botanist who traveled from SMU in Texas to do a course for students here.
It was overcast all day. There were periodic thundershowers all afternoon and the temperature dropped. Given the weather I decided not to get shuttled back and do the March to the mountaintop. The Marchers had to be very careful because there was very slim shoulder. I set the solar panels up, but we got very little solar energy. The kitchen area behind one of the buildings at the SMU campsite had a large patio with a roof. It had room for us to cook and have our meetings. Immediately before dinner we worked on Objectives. During dinner a steady rain began.
After dinner we had a celebration that was intended to be a send-out for Pablo. He’s leaving the March in Taos. His departure will require finding an alternative for pulling the commode trailer. A fellow who calls himself CB joined us in Santa Fe. He plans to help us find alternatives. We had the celebration but Pablo had left during a rainstorm for dinner in Taos. Kat, the Mistress of Ceremonies, called for volunteer presentations, while we waited for Pablo to return. I introduced my version of The Impossible Dream again and invited the group to sing it with me, and they were delighted. Before I could sit down Izzy insisted that I sing my version of Yesterday. I sang it and when it came to “…one of us must wear Depends…” I pointed to him. Izzy and I ride bikes together and he’s labeled us the Elders’ Bike Brigade. Since Phoenix we’ve regularly been volunteering to do the enablement of driving the Gear truck and the Kitchen truck. It was raining again. Some have tents and sleeping bags that are very damp. I spread out my air mattress and sleeping bag under the roof in the meeting room.
Our Saturday, May 24, campsite was at a Hindu Temple. The beauty of this location is that it’s so close to downtown Taos. We put up a big tent, unloaded our gear into it, and took the Gear truck to a mechanic. Quite a few marchers made a trip out of town to Earthship where we toured the sustainable housing they are creating www.earthship.com. They have an enormous task and are demonstrating what it takes to make housing sustainable. If we had planned way ahead when Lin and I moved from Iowa, we might have built one in Carson City. I suspect the zoning regulations would have required us to build out of town.
By the time we got back to the Visitors’ Center the rain was turning to snow. It didn’t stay as snow, but there was continued precipitation. The Marchers had a plan to join a Taos March demonstrating against Monsanto for chemicals that are killing bees. It was a March I should have been on, but I didn‘t have my rain-gear with me so I caught a ride back to the campsite. I had seen the sign for Dreamcatcher B&B www.dreambb.com very near to where we had dropped the gear off. Given the continued afternoon thundershowers, I inquired about a stay at the B&B. Since it is Memorial Day weekend and there was a Motorcycle Rally, they were full.
Prudy, the owner, called other B & Bs but they were also full. She then offered a room that is not designed for B&B guests—2 single beds in a room down some steps off the kitchen. I took it anticipating that Bob Cook would also appreciate a stay in the B&B. I was correct and he joined me. I went up to the tents and tarps to collect my luggage—a hundred yards away. One bag was in the tent. It was damp. The other bag was under a tarp with other luggage. The covering tarp was collecting puddles of water. I found the bag and brought both bags plus my computer to the B&B. It was a wonderful alternative to sleeping in damp equipment in the rain. The Temple provided us an evening meal. I slept in a real bed!
Peace, David
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