Subject: Re: co-housing

From: [email-masked]
Date: 8 Apr 1994 17:06:55 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] writes:
>Sorry about the "test".  I'm not very good at this.  Has anyone out there tried
>this co-housing stuff.  It sounds like a good idea, but I can see where there
>might be some problems.  What's your experience?. Thanks.

hello
i lived on a communal farm in Washington for a year where i learned not
only alot of farm skills but mostly about social living and community
structure.
valuable lessons
1. competition is a good thing. the garden would have been alot more productive
if it had been divided up, each taking a certain area, or plant type or season
One person doing a whole section of farm life leads to resentment on the part
of all, alot of "well I wouldn't have done it THAT way"
2. someone has to be the decision maker. on our farm the owners were the final
decision makers and there was no two ways about that. whether we all thought
it was good or not. we could give input and discussion, but in the end, they
had the final say so and after that it was done.
3. private space. everyone needs their own space, safe from others.to put
your stuff, to not be bothered for a while, just to be. without it, like
rats, the nit picking gets out of hand.
4.communication. meetings , preferably mediated by someone out of the 
situation, on a regular basis. to figure out projects, direction, personal
conflicts.

that's what comes to the top of my head about the experience most often.
it was a great thing to do, but i wouldn's do it now.
a great book about communal or group living (from the early 70's) called
Getting Back Together where a fellow travels the country staying in
different living situations with groups of people. they are all quite
different from each other!

if i think of more that was important, i might reply if this thread continues
or
if anyone cares!
sarah