I made a visit to (Image-streamed) *Steve Hinton's Porena* and here are some
of the hilights of what I saw. I was most interested in how industrial
products would interface with a community that was "post-industrial"
First I visited a home. The visible part of the home was a low structure,
hobbit-like, constructed of field stone, small wood and straw-bales covered
in clay. This was used as a mud room and tool storage. Even the pitchfork
was hand made of wood and cloth binding it together. Most of the home was
underground. I went down a flight of wood and stone stairs. It was lit and
heated and the cooking was fueled by "focussed light" Cooking was "triple
focussed" light. Light was "lured" into the downstairs from outside by
shiny pipes, and the effect was bright but softly diffused and the sources
were hard to spot. Everything in the house was homemade or locally made with
available materials. Buckets were wooden with perhaps only a metal handle,
but the bands that held the wood straps together appeared to be some kind of
cloth. Some buckets were waterproof canvas. There was very little metal and
no plastic. The cooking pot was clay. The water supply came into the house
through a long chimney that filtered the water through stone, gravel and
sand and the water descended 25 to 30 ft, becoming available downstairs
through a spigot in the kitchen. This clean water was piped through the
house by the pressure from the height and was available again in the wash up
room through a spigot. The toilet was upstairs, outside, and I don't know
what arrangement, but possibly composting toilet or some such. I was
surprised by the computer in one small room.. it was a screen and it was
operated by placing the hands into and onto a sphere. ..a very Flintstone
feel in the room..hi-tech stone age. The rough wooden dining table was set
with wooden spoons, good knives and chopsticks. The plates were wooden or
clay, the glasses were silver, old glass or clay, The food was home grown
and locally grown veggie stew with a small bit of meat.
The man there was surprising modern looking... physically bright, healthy,
welcoming, friendly, silent.
I understood that the computer was only used to calculate ... how much of
what was needed where. The population was aware that much of our current
material concern was metaphoric in nature and they no longer needed a phone
to communicate at a distance or internet to communicate with a mass of
people. Mind to mind and minds to mind etc was all automatic function of
consciousness. Another feature was that animals were not used or enslaved or
domesticated in any way and the population was horrified by the very thought
of such disrespect to Life. Meat was acquired as a voluntary transaction
between certain types of animals who willingly traded their bodies for the
care and ease of domesticated life. Some animals wandered freely in the
town, but they were not "owned".
All the artifacts of daily life, especially clothing was handmade with great
care and enormous variety. Especially children were dressed wonderfully with
embroidered vests and little jackets with many colours.. every child wore a
different style fanciful little cap. They *all* looked like grandmothers
favourite child. The adults were also dressed in a great variety of softly
coloured clothing.. some as simple as a sack with hole for arms and head.
There were no harsh aniline colours anywhere. The town was full of people
leisurely going about their daily activities, a great deal of laughter from
the kids who could run and play safely everywhere. They could stop and pick
a fruit or veggie to snack on from everywhere.
I was left with some questions... how did the water get into the
purification chimney? How was the light stored so you could use at night?
This heat source did not combust anything. it was focussed and then
refocussed 3 times and this created heat enough to cook. I don't understand
that.
Great town Stephen!! I hope you don't mind having it imprinted by this old
hippie!
love
lal
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