February 17-23

 

Just when it was seeming as if winter might be behind us, the snows came. Over the weekend temperatures dipped down towards freezing and the snow fell steadily all day on Sunday. As a precaution we drained the water from the plumbing cabins just a week after turning it on for last weekend’s work party. Earlier in the week, Bonnie & Craig Paxman arrived for a two week stay on fellowship staff.

Bonnie & Craig

snow-covered solar modules

plum trees

      

  outdoor meditators

a long and winding road ...

... with Spring just around the corner!

February 9-16

And just like that, the 2014 season got underway with the arrival of almost 30 people for the weekend work party. The weather was all over the place: rain, clearing, wind, calm, cold, warm (well, almost warm). The first circle of the season was blessed by the presence of two bald eagles who circled overhead as we joined hands on Saturday morning and considered the beginnings of things. 

outside the dining hall - Saturday morning

The Indralaya Board has asked that renewed emphasis be placed on safe work practices at all our activities and the weekend began with a safety talk by Board member Mark Ray. Note the safety helmet, ear & eye protection, gloves, safety harness and steel-toed boots! 

safety first

Leonie on the roof of the woodshed - where’s her harness?

decking crew at the a-frame (Juniper cabin)

A lot of work was completed too - the green house was loaded up with new starts for the garden, the shower in Kunz cabin was tiled, fruit trees were pruned while fir trees were limbed, the re-wiring of Moss cabin was completed and is now ready for inspection, rounds were cut, wood delivered, and many of the dining hall cupboards and shelves were organized once again. It was something of a family affair in the kitchen, with Kari and Irena Van Gelder sharing head cook duties for dinner and lunch.

Joe and Ruby deliver wood

All in all, it was a great start to the year. And now camp goes back into semi-hibernation until the Easter work party in April - we hope to see you then!

February 2-9

 

Four Score and Seven Years Ago

It has now been 87 years since Indralaya began, just as it was 87 years from 1776 to Abraham Lincoln’s great speech at Gettysburg. Fortunately here at Indralaya we are not engaged in a great civil war testing whether we can long endure. The state of the camp is strong as the 2014 season gets underway. Families that have been involved with camp since its origins continue to be involved, in some cases down to the 5th generation. And whether an individual represents the 1st generation of participation or the 5th, there is room for everyone in this ongoing experiment in theosophical living.

an icy patch on the volleyball court

This was a cold week at Indralaya as temperatures dipped down to the low 20’s through the week before moderating on Sunday. There were also some light snow flurries over the weekend, but not enough to really get excited about.

Andrew Sharp was at camp for several days installing new wiring in Moss Cabin. On Sunday the water was turned back on in the dining room as we began to prepare for the President’s Day work party coming up next weekend.

 Andrew

January 27 - February 2

Go Seahawks!

Yes, even Indralaya was infected by the 12th man fever leading up to Sunday’s huge Superbowl victory. 

After a busy week on Orcas monitoring the new online registration process and coordinating the several onsite projects that are currently underway, we headed to Seattle on Friday for the first camp Board of Directors meeting of the new year. 

The Board met on Saturday. The morning was devoted to a Board retreat and consideration of priorities and intentions for the coming year. In the afternoon there were various reports and adoption of the 2014 operating budget.

One agenda item was the setting of a date for a Seattle town meeting. The town meeting will be held on Sunday, February 23, from 10:00 to noon in the library of the Theosophical Society in Seattle at 717 Broadway Ave E. All are invited to attend. Enjoy the company of other Indralaya folks and hear about current and upcoming activities at camp, including the new Gap Year program. 

Anacortes ferry landing, Mt. Baker in the distance