Friday, September 09, 2011

Update on the Land!

The Land, AKA Amberfox.  There are many little and not so little projects to enhance the Land and preserve what is there.

Here are some of the projects the caretakers of the Land will be undertaking in the next couple of years...

Turn the Big Barn into a usable performance and play space.  The big barn use to be a Dance and Party space back in the 70's.  Can you imagine what that was like! Since then it has become largely a storage depot and birds have made it a little mucky inside.  To date we have begun mucking out the barn.  The barn has been made bird proof (we hope) and we have gotten rid of a good deal of "junk".

We envision the barn having a structure built inside.  This structure would include a floor, walls and windows.  It would make a large performance, play and dance space.  The added benefit would also see more indoor space for gatherings during inclement weather.

To help extend the season of gatherings we also will need to improve the roadway.  This will mean a little levelling and more gravel.  We expect this to happen over the next couple of years.

We have received a donation of a Wind Turbine.  The turbine will require some additional parts to make it functional.  This will help in keeping the Land off the grid.  The wind turbine could help provide power to the Meditation Hut and or the big barn and new space we are creating there!

Many of you will know of the many trails on the Land.  Sadly this last year the trails were a little neglected.  Next year we hope to change that.  Part of the problem was that we have had a few lawn mower problems, despite the great efforts of Dew Sparkle to keep them going.  That has changed as we now have a three mowers that are ready to go, including one brand new mower.  The Weed whack-er is also fully tuned up and ready to roll.

Painting!  This never really ends but is necessary if we want to keep what we have from rotting and falling apart.  The Erection and Outhouse will require painting next year.  There is also the Departure Lounge art project.  Much remains to be done inside to finish the ceiling mural and special effects lighting.

Of course we are going ahead with the completion of the Meditation Hut in the spring.  This will provide a space many of us have been wanting for some time.  It's location near the "wishing Tree" is perfect and will afford us a place to be spiritual on our own or together.  The space will be multi - use but primarily a spiritualist 'retreat'.

The gate to the Land was fixed this year.  We hope to restore the fence on both sides in the near future. Much of the wood is still there, we just have to put it back together.  This will make the approach to Land that much more inviting.

Our ceremonial fire pit space needs a little TLC.  This is where we hold many of our extravagant fire rituals.  The area needs to be mowed well and need to do some fire proofing to prevent the chance of sparks igniting  in the surrounding areas causing a fire we can not control.    

This year we held the first ever Beltane and the second May Pole event on the Land. You may recall last year we had a may pole at the Victoria Day gathering.  That May Pole has since been moved to the big Fire Space.  At Beltane this year we created a new place for our may pole.  This space has been whipper whacked and mowed a few times.  To keep the space (ie tame it a little) we need to mow it regularly and fill some of the holes in the ground with soil.  Its much easier too go around a may pole when the ground is level.

Finally, a must for next year.  There needs to be a new hole for the out house.  This means we need to DIG! We have moving of the outhouse down to a Ritual you simply must see.  Its fun and of course very spiritual.

The caretakers of the Land will look after much of this list of projects .  Its not the intent to have Fae ones do all of this.  There will be a direct benefit for all of us when these projects are completed.  You may find one or more of the projects of interest.  The goal is to maintain what is there, enhance the space for all of our enjoyment and ensure the Land continues to be a welcoming space for Fae ones into the future.

Don't be daunted by this list, many are simple projects, others will take a few years to happen.

Amberfox has seen a resurgence in the last two years and I am sure many of you are excited about this. Don't forget we have the Thanksgiving gathering October 7 - 10.  We have many squash and pumpkins growing on the Land which should make for great meals and of course a few left over for carving and a ritual  rolling carved pumpkins down the hill event at the end of the gathering!

MEdiTatiON HuT

September 16 - 18, 2011 Work and Play Weekend on The Land, AKA Amberfox

One week to go and we will begin building the floor of the MEdiTatiON HuT. We have all the materials needed. We just need you! We are also accepting donations for the completion of the project in the Spring.

We will take time on the weekend to discuss what materials we will need to complete the project. So if you know where we can get good deals on materials, let us know then.

If you have a particular dish you would like to make for the weekend, bring along the ingredients and or let us know ahead of time so we can be sure to have the stuff there so you can make it.

Looking forward to a fun weekend with all our fae friends.