June 10-17

The week was composed of several new beginnings. On Tuesday, the meter was plugged in to measure the production of our new solar modules and a new era of energy production at camp began. The first week of operation (which was mostly cloudy) generated 265 kilowatt hours. 

One of the cool things about the system is that monitoring information is available online. You can find out more by following this LINK. 

It was also an historic, first time ever week for Indralaya’s Therapeutic Touch programs, as both the mentorship program and a program for beginning practitioners began on Saturday. The two groups were about the same size and there was a wonderful blending of experiences as the program developed.

t.t. students under the apple trees

a dance of universal peace

Finally, on Monday afternoon the San Juan County building inspector signed off on the final inspection of Heather cabin and it is now approved for occupancy. Work on Heather began back in the summer of 2011. It is the third of four south side cabins to be extensively renovated. Next up: Laurel cabin!

Heather cabin, August 2011

Heather cabin today

June 3-9

The week began with Leonie and I celebrating our 18th wedding anniversary and ended with a weekend program on the Kabbalah and meeting of the NW Federation of the Theosophical Society.

mama deer and babies

Program leader Richard Smoley did an excellent job in making the complexities of the Kabbalah accessible. This was also the first Federation meeting at Indralaya in several years and participants really appreciated the opportunity to gather together in community for the weekend. In describing their experience, one participant wrote, “This place stands for all I believe to be important and good about humanity and our reason for being on this earthly plane.” High praise indeed!

chard yellow and red

This was the last of our 2013 Spring programs. Now it is on to Therapeutic Touch and the busy summer season that lies ahead. 

May 27 - June 2

our new solar arrays absorbing the sunlight

This was the week of the long-awaited solar installation at the dining hall. On Thursday, the crew from Whidbey Sun and Wind began arriving along with those attending the program. Work on the installation began Friday morning and continued throughout the weekend.

initial site assessment and set-up

roping up

Throughout the weekend, several of the crew members took short breaks from the work on the roof to make presentations that were informative and enjoyable. Mini-workshops were provided covering the full range of the installation, including safety precautions, site prep and layout, how solar modules work, electrical considerations, a survey of alternative energy technologies, including solar, wind and mini-hydro, and system monitoring.

 Kelly Keilwitz, owner of Whidbey Sun & Wind

 Golda (above) and Mark (below) leading mini-workshops

Lin and Kathy conduct an impromptu brain gym workshop

program participants get some hands on experience

Adam completing installment of the first module

Rolf stopped by to check things out

As the weekend proceeded, it was enjoyable to observe how the project crew and program participants shared the experience of being at Indralaya in common purpose. The sense of community that is an integral aspect of the Indralaya experience developed as it does at most programs.

Jacob with a fresh head of lettuce from the garden

delicious dinner fritatas

Adam and Mark dive into the wash sinks for after-meal cleanup

There are many who have encouraged and supported the installation of solar technology at Indralaya over the years. Particular thanks is due to Steve James. Steve first came to Indralaya in 2004, and helped prepare a report on the potential for solar at Indralaya shortly after that. His perception of the potential for solar here was based on knowledge and relationships that he developed while working for the National Park Service, during which he participated in numerous solar installations at parks in the West. Steve also initiated discussions with Whidbey Sun and Wind and arranged for their site visit last fall. Thanks, Steve, for your efforts and support. Indralaya will reap the benefit for years to come.

Steve

Thanks also to everyone who has supported the project financially and in various other ways. To date we have received direct donations of approximately $8,700; enough to purchase more than 13 of the 34 solar modules that are now collecting the radiating energy of the sun on the dining hall roof. Our goal has been to purchase at least half of the modules through donations and we are almost there!

May 20-26

The week began with preparations for the big Memorial Day work party and ended with a celebration of Leonie’s birthday. Despite the surprise collapse of a bridge section on I-5 in Mt. Vernon that deterred some from making their way to camp, over sixty people were here for the work party weekend, which included the annual meeting of the Friends of Indralaya.

Thirty six people attended the Friends meeting, which was the largest attendance in several years. The agenda included reports from Board chair Meg Sather, Treasurer Kelly Bachman, residents Minor Lile & Leonie Van Gelder. There was also discussion of the upcoming solar installation and opportunity for general questions and comments. A lot of work was completed over the weekend as well, and thanks go out to all who participated.

Thanks also to guest photographers Meg Sather, Jen Moffat, and Ted Johnson for the pictures in this week’s blog:

Carol, Leonie, Lars, Meg & Jen

Saturday night cards with Christopher & Steve

Brett, Irena & Helena

Gary Bachman, father of the garden drip system

Laurie & Sara bring refreshments to the garden

wood splitters Ruby, Lauren & Gabby

Rachel, Bella & Taylor catch some late afternoon sun on the meadow

Orcas Landing

May 13-20

The week began with my birthday (number 57!) and ended with a program that was based on the enneagram, a one-time esoteric method of human typology that is rooted in the teachings of G.I. Gurdjieff and the Sufi tradition, as a means for gaining a deeper awareness of meaning and purpose in our individual lives.

The program was led by N’Shama Sterling. On Saturday night, N’Shama and her husband Cedron performed a concert in the library, which we believe was the first time music has been performed in that space for an audience. It was an engaging weekend and participants expressed deep appreciation for the  open-hearted exploration.

Cedron & N’Shama

Over the weekend, we said good-bye to Emlyn and Tessa, who have been here on staff. Emlyn came to Indralaya as a wwoofer. He is now on neighboring Waldron Island for the next six weeks and then will be returning here for the month of July. Tessa arrived for the silent meditation retreat in April and stayed on as a fellowship staffer. There has been a lot of laughter and fun while they have been here and we look forward to seeing them both again in the future.

Emlyn & Tessa

Solar Project Update

The scheduled solar installation at the dining hall is now less than two weeks away. This program will begin on Thursday evening, May 30 and continue through the weekend. There is still plenty of room to attend. The weekend will feature mini-workshops and other informal opportunities to learn about solar energy use. 

34 photovoltaic solar panels will be installed, with an estimated annual yield of 8,800 KWH, which is roughly equivalent to two months of electrical consumption here at Indralaya. The energy generated will be fed back into the electrical grid and our projections suggest that the return on investment for the project will be approximately 12.5%-13% per year.

Fundraising for the project also continues. To date twenty six people have donated over $7,000 towards the project. This impressive level of support is a much appreciated investment in camp’s future. If you haven’t yet invested in a panel, we hope you will consider doing so. Suggested donation levels are $650 for a panel, $325 for a half panel, $167.50 for a quarter panel, or any other amount of support that feels right and fits your budget. Donations can be made through the Indralaya website. 

May 6-12

It was a lovely week at Indralaya, with a stretch of warm sunny weather that gradually turned to rain as the weekend arrived. The Wisteria was in full bloom, and the weight of the blossoms and the weekend rains brought down some of the framing that holds it up.

fallen wisteria

There are a couple of special fairy beings hiding among the blossoms. Can you see them both?

Mark & Marcy

Late in the week, Mark & Marcy Ray came up to the island for a visit. We hadn’t seen either of them in some time and it was good to share lunch and catch up with each other. Mark couldn’t help crawling under Kunz cabin to see all the foundation work that has been done in recent months.

Friday’s rabbit hole

Mysterious Rabbit Behavior

On Friday, we noticed that rabbits were digging a hole in the ground near the RMC. They were going at it quite steadily and by the end of the day there was a good sized mound of dirt piled up outside the hole. It was rather surprising to see that the hole was filled back in when we came out of the house on Saturday morning. Not only was it filled back in, it seemed as if the rabbits had made some effort to disguise the fact that the hole had ever been dug in the first place. 

the same hole, refilled

Earlier in the day, these two snakes were found under some black plastic in the garden.

soft green Sunday

April 22 - May 5

Back After a Short Break
There was no post last week as I was away attending the 35th reunion of the Whitman College class of ‘78. I left camp on Thursday evening just as the Five Willow retreat was getting underway. This was a return to Indralaya for the Five Willow group, who were last here in 2002.

The Five Willow tai chi retreat was one of the first non-summer programs to be offered at Indralaya as the program year began to expand into the spring & fall in the 1980’s. It was good to see many old friends of Indralaya returning for their “Year of the Snake” weekend retreat.

getting reacquainted with after-meal chores

Comings and Goings

In my absence, Leonie was grateful for the support of fellowship staffer Tessa Zeng and wwoofer Henry Kochanowski. Henry is a 20 year old student from Germany who is traveling during a gap year. He left last Thursday for the next stop on his odyssey. Tessa came to camp with Alia Stevens for the Silent Meditation Retreat and will be here on fellowship through the Enneagram program.

 Tessa

 Henry

This week also saw the return of Jacob Doty, who is back for another summer as kitchen manager. Here he is, getting ready to spray the fruit trees with BT, a fungicide that we are using to combat a significant infestation of tent caterpillars. This is the second year in a row that we have had a major problem with the caterpillars.

 armed and dangerous!

tent caterpillar nest