Today we reversed the schedule. We started with service until lunch. Six of us worked in the earth shelter finishing the painting and cleanup, a few worked on preparing the future garden area, and two of us worked with Dave on the road to the lower field. After lunch, Beth took us to the Lake instead of the mountain top due to snow drifts. It was AWESOME. We had our final reflection. We all loved the trip and having a chance to learn more about each other; we all hope to stay in touch long after the trip. It truly has been a great experience. Thank you TMI Staff, and especially Beth.
Goodnight!
See you tomorrow night.
Jigme and Connor.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Cheese, bread, and yogurt...oh my!
Greetings followers!
It was a cold and foggy morning (not to be confused with a dark and stormy night), but a warm glow was being emitted from the kitchen. This, plus the savory smells, could only mean one thing: BAKING! We're talking breads! We're talking yogurts! We're talking cheeses! Why?! Well because the homesteaders made these foods of course! We split into five groups to concoct these marvelous delicacies. We made a variety of breads including cornbread, oat bread, and potato rolls. As Beth instructed, we dropped the dough for the rolls from great heights to aid in the kneading process and produce a "velvety texture". The cheese was an all day process. Before dinner we hung the curds in cheese cloth to let the whey separate. And there it remains, awaiting our return to season it into a scrumptious morsel. The yogurt also had to cook in a crock pot for most of the day. After dinner, we flavored the set yogurt which we divided into quarters to produce maple, banana, vanilla, and plain yogurt. Bet you wish you were here for breakfast tomorrow ;)
Then over the hills and through the woods back to the Earth shelter for some more service work. Today, we continued scraping and painting. Half the walls are painted with a final coat, and everything else is primed and ready to go! We also started painting the beams on the ceiling with primer. Hopefully, we will finish up painting the walls tomorrow and get everything back in order. We did a fine job moving the furniture around but unfortunately, all of the desks clustered in the middle would not be functional in an office setting.
After a productive afternoon, we went traipsing back over the hills (well I guess mountains) to the yurts. And truly they were alive with the sound of music! Some of the group walked at a faster pace and soon traveled out of sight of their comrades. Little did the second group know, an ambush party awaited their arrival in the shadows of the trees. Snowballs in hand, the warriors leaped from their rocky perches with cries of war upon the sight of the second group. The battle was short lived, but the success warmed the chilled hearts of the first group. Boy there sure is nothing like an impromptu snowball fight!
After a fine dinner of burgers, Sarah, Shawna, and Lizzie led the reflection. The overall theme was overcoming challenges and individual reflection. It was different from previous reflections because it was more meditative and personal. It showed how far we have come as a group.
The hysterical laughter upstairs reminds us that you cannot read this blog all day and must return to your families. As the sun sets,...actually it's already long gone... we return to our bunker with the anticipation of a fantastic tomorrow. Thus, we leave you with the anticipation of a new blog post. In the words of Jigme: Hasta la vista baby!
Sincerely yours,
JS^2, (aka Jess and Jenny)
It was a cold and foggy morning (not to be confused with a dark and stormy night), but a warm glow was being emitted from the kitchen. This, plus the savory smells, could only mean one thing: BAKING! We're talking breads! We're talking yogurts! We're talking cheeses! Why?! Well because the homesteaders made these foods of course! We split into five groups to concoct these marvelous delicacies. We made a variety of breads including cornbread, oat bread, and potato rolls. As Beth instructed, we dropped the dough for the rolls from great heights to aid in the kneading process and produce a "velvety texture". The cheese was an all day process. Before dinner we hung the curds in cheese cloth to let the whey separate. And there it remains, awaiting our return to season it into a scrumptious morsel. The yogurt also had to cook in a crock pot for most of the day. After dinner, we flavored the set yogurt which we divided into quarters to produce maple, banana, vanilla, and plain yogurt. Bet you wish you were here for breakfast tomorrow ;)
Then over the hills and through the woods back to the Earth shelter for some more service work. Today, we continued scraping and painting. Half the walls are painted with a final coat, and everything else is primed and ready to go! We also started painting the beams on the ceiling with primer. Hopefully, we will finish up painting the walls tomorrow and get everything back in order. We did a fine job moving the furniture around but unfortunately, all of the desks clustered in the middle would not be functional in an office setting.
After a productive afternoon, we went traipsing back over the hills (well I guess mountains) to the yurts. And truly they were alive with the sound of music! Some of the group walked at a faster pace and soon traveled out of sight of their comrades. Little did the second group know, an ambush party awaited their arrival in the shadows of the trees. Snowballs in hand, the warriors leaped from their rocky perches with cries of war upon the sight of the second group. The battle was short lived, but the success warmed the chilled hearts of the first group. Boy there sure is nothing like an impromptu snowball fight!
After a fine dinner of burgers, Sarah, Shawna, and Lizzie led the reflection. The overall theme was overcoming challenges and individual reflection. It was different from previous reflections because it was more meditative and personal. It showed how far we have come as a group.
The hysterical laughter upstairs reminds us that you cannot read this blog all day and must return to your families. As the sun sets,...actually it's already long gone... we return to our bunker with the anticipation of a fantastic tomorrow. Thus, we leave you with the anticipation of a new blog post. In the words of Jigme: Hasta la vista baby!
Sincerely yours,
JS^2, (aka Jess and Jenny)
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Sinkhole Adventures!
Hi Family and Friends,
The TMI NAZ group had another fun and happy day. This morning we were given compasses and a brief orienteering lesson. After we got comfortable with our own orientation we set off, like settlers, to find the old foundation of the original homestead on the TMI property. When we reached our destination, we discovered an old spring box, a huge sinkhole, and as always, beautiful scenery.
Our afternoon was filled with more work in the Earth Shelter. Today we continued scraping and even began painting the walls. A brief interruption allowed us the time to work together outside building a structurally-sound log pile. We came together in the evening for reflection on the controversy of utilizing mountain resources, while enjoying delicious cookies!
This was the first day that our fearless leader, Julie, joined us, and we loved showing her everything we had seen since coming to The Mountain Institute. This was a bittersweet moment because we also said "see you later" to Nuala, who needed to return to Rochester this morning. She joined us wholeheartedly in this experience, and we thank you for that. There have also been many opportunities for each of us to share our personal interests and knowledge, bringing us closer together as a community. Tomorrow, we are planning to make bread and cheese from scratch, and our whole group is very excited! Until our next post, let us cowabunga into bed for some much needed rest :)
Take care,
Sarah T & Nicole SBT
The TMI NAZ group had another fun and happy day. This morning we were given compasses and a brief orienteering lesson. After we got comfortable with our own orientation we set off, like settlers, to find the old foundation of the original homestead on the TMI property. When we reached our destination, we discovered an old spring box, a huge sinkhole, and as always, beautiful scenery.
Our afternoon was filled with more work in the Earth Shelter. Today we continued scraping and even began painting the walls. A brief interruption allowed us the time to work together outside building a structurally-sound log pile. We came together in the evening for reflection on the controversy of utilizing mountain resources, while enjoying delicious cookies!
This was the first day that our fearless leader, Julie, joined us, and we loved showing her everything we had seen since coming to The Mountain Institute. This was a bittersweet moment because we also said "see you later" to Nuala, who needed to return to Rochester this morning. She joined us wholeheartedly in this experience, and we thank you for that. There have also been many opportunities for each of us to share our personal interests and knowledge, bringing us closer together as a community. Tomorrow, we are planning to make bread and cheese from scratch, and our whole group is very excited! Until our next post, let us cowabunga into bed for some much needed rest :)
Take care,
Sarah T & Nicole SBT
First Day of Service!!
Monday morning we woke up to the beautiful mountain air. Our wonderful instructor, Beth, started our day with a topography map lesson. This not only taught us about reading maps, but it gave us a glimpse of the TMI land and history. We then made the maps a reality and went on a nature walk through the TMI property. Among our many sights, we saw the largest tree in the TMI area (6ft in diameter), the "awkward because of the heavy snow that holds them down, the oldest man made wind break, made of a long line of trees, and the vastness of the land.
We ended our walk at the Earth Shelter Office, a building built into the hill. Here we began our service work for the day. Our job was to help renovate the space inside. We cleaned and sanded, and made a huge fun mess, all the while, paving the way for the next step in the process.
Our fantastic Go Green club members ended our night with a reflection on the environmental impacts of coal mining in Appalachia. They introduce a photo hunt, which is a fun competition between TMI service members. This was a great time to laugh and bond, until we fell into bed, exhausted from a great day. We can't wait for tomorrows exciting adventures at TMI!
Love,
Lizzie and Lindsey :)
We ended our walk at the Earth Shelter Office, a building built into the hill. Here we began our service work for the day. Our job was to help renovate the space inside. We cleaned and sanded, and made a huge fun mess, all the while, paving the way for the next step in the process.
Our fantastic Go Green club members ended our night with a reflection on the environmental impacts of coal mining in Appalachia. They introduce a photo hunt, which is a fun competition between TMI service members. This was a great time to laugh and bond, until we fell into bed, exhausted from a great day. We can't wait for tomorrows exciting adventures at TMI!
Love,
Lizzie and Lindsey :)
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Mission: Mountain Climb- Complete
After a nice detour into the rolling hills of Pennsylvania (and Maryland), thirteen service-minded Nazareth students and faculty made the journey from Rochester, NY to the mountains of Circleville, WV. Welcome to beautiful Spruce Knob Mountain Center!
While we don't yet know exactly what service projects we are completing, we are excited to learn much more about the Appalachian Mountains and its surrounding splendor! Upon arrival, we received a tour of the grounds and unpacked mounds of groceries to ensure our survival for the week. As one team began dinner preparations, the smoke detectors were set off as the yurt became fogged with smoke. Luckily, no one was hurt :-)
Tonight we are having our first meeting as a group and going to bed early because we have a lot of fun activities planned for tomorrow. Stay tuned for tomorrow's detailed update.
While we don't yet know exactly what service projects we are completing, we are excited to learn much more about the Appalachian Mountains and its surrounding splendor! Upon arrival, we received a tour of the grounds and unpacked mounds of groceries to ensure our survival for the week. As one team began dinner preparations, the smoke detectors were set off as the yurt became fogged with smoke. Luckily, no one was hurt :-)
Tonight we are having our first meeting as a group and going to bed early because we have a lot of fun activities planned for tomorrow. Stay tuned for tomorrow's detailed update.
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