Well, I did sleep better last night with Shannon’s camp pad… I still ache quite a bit but in an entirely different way!  Ibuprofin was my friend this morning.  As promised, below is a photo of the women’s sleeping area.  What you see is the main area with two futons.  On the sides, in the slant of the roof, are cubbies that house futons for 6 people.  Being tall, I immediately picked the open space because I tend to get claustrophobic.

I have been setting my alarm for 6:00 a.m. so I could have some quiet moments with my computer.  At around 7:00 this morning, I went down to take a shower.  It turned out to be much colder outside than I’d thought, and it was all I could do to turn the hot water off at the end of my shower.  I figured I had earned a long shower since I hadn’t taken one in a few days.

Tensions are running high on site, and two girls are having a particularly difficult time dealing with the structure of the course.  I admit, I’m not into the touchy feely part, but I understand the value in it for myself and others.  I participate in it to be a good sport and because I know that my participation is of value to the rest of the group.

This morning we talked about soil and how to make it richer.  I was particularly interested in the process to take very poor soil and make it rich.  The process can take years, so I guess I need to start now on my sandy yard.

Then we talked about water and how to catch and store it.

During the 2-hour dinner break, four of us went into town thanks to the generosity of one of our coursemates who drove.  We went to a very cool bike shop so Shannon could pick up the bike she was renting. They had an awesome, bad-ass longtail bicycle that was actually very reasonably priced.  I wonder if they ship.  The rack on this thing carries 100 pounds… oh, the things I could haul with that bike.   Then we all walked down the street and sat down for dinner at a pizza place.  We felt like naughty children as we ordered soda and cheesy-good pizza.  It was very fun!

We’re back at the “ranch” now talking about water again.  Swales, water storage, etc.  I was skimming Craigslist while sitting here and found some 275-gallon food-grade storage totes I could use to collect rainwater.  Also, they are apparently great for raising tilapia.  I think that would be so much fun – especially since their poop is amazing for your plants.

I’m looking forward to perhaps an even better night of sleep tonight.  Fingers crossed.