Second trip to Terra Nova: setting up house

Back in Hollywood and it's been nearly two months since I posted. I have been swamped with preparing for and taking my trip back to Terra Nova. And thank goddess, I am even more in love with Ecuador now!

I invited several friends to come down to check out our new space +Rachel Carlson +Sean Hurdle  +Mary Campion +Joseph Bedford +Sophia McFoy  +Guy McPherson & his friend, +Pauline Schneider - not to mention the Harrell family of five, who are the first to be occupying the land.
So we had quite a group.

I offered to help Guy put together his Climate crisis/Economic collapse presentation while he was down there - so he could reach more international folks with his message & perhaps raise some donations to cover his expenses; and also a mini trial run of the grief technique he recently learned with Pauline. I spent several weeks creating flyers and promoting the weekend anywhere I could reach English speakers in Ecuador. Still, the turnout was small (mostly just friends and family), but the passion was high.

My primary purpose for going (and how I was able to justify the $2k expense) was to help get the (non spanish-speaking) family settled in, but also to shoot some footage of the land, for the crowd-funding campaign Pauline offered to help me with, on Dana.io. (Still working on this, but you will be the first to hear!)

We: purchased a refrigerator, a stove, several hammocks; repaired a plumbing leak.
Upcoming projects are:
Install a solar water pump, to supplement the electric & gas powered pumps we have;
Paint the water tank black, to raise the water temperature for showering & washing clothes & dishes;
Give the bathroom a fresh coat of paint;
Install a lip in the shower, to prevent water from running out into the rest of the bathroom;
Put screens in the bathroom window to keep the bats (and their guano) out;
Hang a mosquito curtain around the open-air kitchen, to keep out buggies at night;
Fill the old well, which is currently a hazard for people walking by it;
Get a bed for the guard tower, in case we get any AirBnB guests;
Prepare a massive organic garden, that can feed up to twelve souls (yeah, Ty!);
Install lights in the front gate & a sign reading "Terra Nova de Corazón;"
Move the kitties - India & China - from La Libertad to Manglaralto;
Cover the blue-roofed yoga loft with a thatched palm roof, to reduce internal air temperature, like so:

Getting there at the end of the rainy season, we were disappointed to learn that it had barely rained this year, so stuff was not as lush and green as I had foretold. The riverbed was completely dry! Thank goodness we have deep wells.
I'm not much of a picture taker, and am annoyed by the process of moving my photos from my phone to my blog or FB, so... https://www.facebook.com/TerraNovaDeCorazon/photos_stream (Please "like" us, if you haven't already)

Months ago, I mentioned that I am in the process of becoming a certified death midwife. Part 2 of the 3-part course, through Sacred Crossings is coming up in June:
DEATH MIDWIFERY TRAINING
PART I: Conscious Dying - Preparing for a Peaceful Transision
PART II: After-death care & preservation of the body
PART III: The Funeral Celebration

Anybody dying soon? Would you like to make use of my services? First death is on the house - after that, buy one, get one free. Jajajajaja! But seriously, if the idea of an alternative to toxic cremation or burial in offensively expensive, non-biodegradable caskets is appealing to you; if you want to spend about a grand on the process, rather than the cost of a new car; if you long for a time when death was faced and shared and celebrated in the home, with friends and family rather than being outsourced to the "funeral industry," then let's talk. I'm hoping to begin assisting Olivia as soon as I've completed my training, in the Fall.

I love you all.
How may I be of service to you?

My first workshops!

I've been expressing to people that one of the primary goals of Terra Nova is to create a sacred space for people to host/attend workshops (for growth, healing, living skills, etc.), or simply take a retreat from the daily grind of Industrial Civilization. Our first events, May 16-18, are shown here - Guy McPherson giving his presentation on the Global Climate Crisis, followed by a 2-day workshop on processing and moving through grief. Pauline will be there as a co-facilitator and to document! 
We plan to host a potluck on Friday evening, 5-7pm, before his presentation. If you're in the Manglaralto area, please stop by and introduce yourself. The potluck aims to be zero-waste. Please bring your own plates, cups and utensils to use, and extras, if you can, for those who did not bring. We are moving in a few days before then, so we may not have lots of dishes yet!
If you're coming from out of town, we have a great deal at Hosteria Arandú ($20-25/night per person, including breakfast), or you can camp/hammock on our land.
For more information or to RSVP, please contact me directly. 

Also, I recently joined InterNations. I spent a few hours yesterday searching for and messaging expats in the region, letting them know I will be visiting & hosting the workshops in May, and moving down there next year. The response was tremendous! Almost every soul I reached out to responded, offering connection, community and whatever advice/assistance I might need to make my transition more comfortable. I have a really good feeling we will get a great turnout for the weekend at Terra Nova!

I haven't posted since I returned to Hollywood in January, but a lot has happened since then:
I closed on Terra Nova, got her registered in my name with the regional government (shhh, don't tell the feds), transferred the utilities (actually, only one utility, since we have our own water, and there's no gas, phone, internet, etc.) to my name;
Celebrated (a very gringo) Christmas, followed by (a very Ecuadorean) New Years;
Spent a week in the gorgeous capital city of Quito, with my new friends, Phillip & Imelda Baker (from Venezuela & Colombia, respectively), and their beautiful extended family;
Made friends with a wonderful couple in Quito who run an ad agency and work as voice talent(!);
Celebrated my 42nd at home, with some of my favorite humans;
Joined a book/study club, about Sacred Economics and The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible - both by the amazing Mr. Charles Eisenstein;
Finally launched my Love Nurses show, which is an idea I've had for years - therapeutic entertainment, or Theratainment. Doing another performance of it this Wednesday night, in NoHo;
Booked some fun VO gigs, including a national spot for Harley Davidson (vroom-vroom) that's gonna pay for a solar oven, some goats, chickens and a pig at Terra nova;
Befriended a wonderful man from India - Shree, my new vedic/ayurvedic partner in crime (let me know if you are in need of sanskrit lessons, hatha, panchakarma, etc.);
Met the Rastafarian family from Northern California who will be the first full-time occupants of the orchard: Ty & Christine, and their tres niños perfectos (love them all!);
Camped at Deep Creek Hot Springs with Mark, but wasn't able to hike down to the springs because the chemo treatments from the week before left me feeble. Still had a glorious time;
Started a weekly beginner Spanish meet-up, en mi casa, cada martes. Hit me up if you wanna join in the fun!

My biggest news about Ecuador is that I am planning to return in May already! Originally, this year was to be about focusing on making the Hollywood money while I can, to invest in the property, and I wasn't planning on going back until next winter. Instead, I'm heading down the second week in May, to prep the place a bit more for the family's arrival, as well as hosting my first workshop. I can't help it - I'm homesick for the place!

My friend, Guy McPherson, was instrumental in my fully waking up to the Empire, its inherent oppression, and what it means to continue to benefit from/participate in it. And so, we walk away, as best we know how - embracing the adventure that lies ahead for us. Recently, Guy attended a "life-changing" grief counseling seminar, and became a certified grief counselor. I invited him down to Terra Nova to give his Climate crisis/Economic collapse presentation, followed by a weekend of grief counseling, to soothe the jangled nerves of all of us coming to terms with our hospice situation. He is in Belize the last week of May, so he'll drop down a few degrees latitude the week before that. Workshop is planned for 5/16-18. Any takers?

Documentary filmmaker, Pauline Schneider, is currently shooting a doc about Guy, and she will be joining us down there. I'm hoping to get some great footage to launch an indigogo campaign, to raise some funds to invest in more structures on the land. Anyone with crowdfunding experience have any tips for me? I'd love to consult with someone.

Finally, here is a little photo-tour of Terra Nova de Corazón, taken by Christine's brother, Carlos, who is currently living just a few miles from my orchard:

Y'all come back now, ya hear?

Mi Nuevo hogar!

Before I forget, if you want to receive notifications of updates to this blog, please enter your email address in the field above. This will be my last time zapping all 81 of you via Google+, which no one seems to use anyway.

Encontré mi nuevo hogar! (I found my new home!)

My agent and I negotiated a very fair price last week, the money is on its way and - assuming all goes according to plan - we will be signing the paperwork today or tomorrow. I just got myself my greatest Christmas present ever! The gift that keeps on giving.

About my new finca/farm/orchard, in Manglaralto, Ecuador:
1.1 hectare/11,000 square meters (almost 3 acres, which is nearly three American football fields)
Covered in dozens of mature, productive fruit trees: papaya (the size of footballs), banana, plantain, pear, mango, guava, Chinese plum, apple, avocado, pineapple, cheremoya, cherry, grapefruit/pomelo, orange, mandarin, fig, tree raspberry, lemon, sweet lime, coconut, grenadine, grape, (and the more exotic) guanabana, giant matapalo, mamey, toronja, caimito, pitajaya, vinus, chaya, aracha, achote, etc. & even aloe vera, chile, herbs, sugar cane, yucca, cacao & bamboo! Also, trees for wood: Balsa, rubber, tagua, cedar, guayacan, caoba. I will never have to buy fruit again!
4km from the main road, and...the Pacific Ocean - only much cleaner, bluer and warmer (60s) than we have in SoCal. Manglaralto Beach:

There are two structures already on the land: the blue-roofed one you see in the photo (10x10m open kitchen/dining area with loft/bedroom/yoga studio above); and a 2-story concrete building off to the right (bathroom/shower downstairs, bedroom/recording studio up). My near-term plan is to build another floor or two up on the concrete structure, for additional sleeping space.
The grass you see in the forground is soft, spongy turf, installed years ago by the former owner - for volleyball. (Croquet, anyone?)
Large garden, currently occupied by flowers, but will soon be overflowing with mostly vegetables.
There are already horses on the land (belonging to my caretaker/gardener), which he says we can ride, and a chicken coop with several chickens and room for more. Eggies! Eventually, I hope to add a couple of goats & a piggie - you know, for companionship.
Weather is 60s/70s year-round, moderatley humid (= greeeen!), with a rainier season, December - April.

Here is more about the region, and our neighboring town, Montañita:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montañita,_Ecuador

The Universe, ever conspiring to have everything go my way all of the time, has introduced me to the very first (human) occupants of Terra Nova de Corazón! I met a lovely California family - Ty, Christine, and their three children - who were hoping to rent a home and some land to work, near Montañita - just a few minutes away by car (or bike!) Ty has many years experience in farming, as well as music production; Christine is a midwife. They plan to occupy the land come April. I'm sure they will breathe much life, light and love into our new home.

Another great advantage to this place is there is a beautiful new, inexpensive ($35/night for a room that sleeps 5, including breakfast) beautiful B&B opening across the road from me - with a swimming pool! The owner is most kind and friendly, and (like everyone I have met here) has offered to be at my disposal for anything I should need. He also assures me he will keep an eye on my place whenever I am not there.

Any other takes? I know +Jameson Wiltermoodj  is considering coming down for a spell. And
+Champoy Hate. +Sophia Bonita y +Joseph Bedford (already on their way to Ecuador via motorcycles). +Omo Abode ; +Jeremiah Campion & +Amy Campion ; +Vlad The Retailer (ready to put your money where your mouth is?) +Rachel Carlson (duh) ; +Neil Botticelli (you ever walkin' (ridin'?) the walk?) ; +Bobby Gadda & his new bride may already be on their way via tall bike ; +Sean Hurdle (c'mon, Turtle) ; +Noah Bremer (fresh new start with me?!) ; +Stephanie Molstad (I had a dream last night, with you here in Ecuador with me!) ; +Karen R ; +Sarah Petersen ; +Heidi Tungseth ; +donnie Pepper ; the inimitable +Guy McPherson ; the list goes on and on...
Several of my ladyfriends with kids ( +Laura Koniver +Erin Lehn Floresca +Anita Campion +Susan Campion +Susanna Barkataki +Maureen Campion +Mary Campion ) plan to come down once I have it a little less, um, rustic.

These will be a few of the first new animal additions to the land. Noelia has five kitties, but really needs to downsize. We will get them clipped (all boys) soon, and move them to the finca when the family arrives.

I plan to be back in Hollywood by my birthday (January 6, but we'll celebrate the following weekend), as I have clients waiting on me to record some more commercials. Someone has to earn the green to feed to chickens!

Questions? Comments? Want to book a workshop here? Opinions? Think I'm insane?
Please comment...

Pure Imagination.

If you want to view paradise,
Simply look around and view it.
Anything you want to, do it.
Wanna change the world?
There's nothing to it.

Why can't we retain the wide-eyed wonderment of childhood?
Oh, wait - we can! And I do.

Iiiiii'm leeeeeaving!
I knew back in August that, once I decided to head down there in December, it would feel like a lifetime for the time to come. Sedona seems like a month ago, and I just returned last week. Finally the day is nearly here. I won't miss the blustery 40-degree nights (yeah, I hear you, Minnesotans) we've been experiencing here in Hollywood. I thought I was getting cold feet about this adventure. Turns out it's just the lack of heating and insulation in my Spanish-style home.

I am flying into Guayaquil, where I will receive the First Class Treatment (okay, more like second class, but I usually travel Working Class) - being collected at the airport by a driver, and taken to my suite, where I will awake to a fresh chef-prepared breakfast of local culinary delights. I will likely spend the day wandering the streets of the capital city, before catching a 2-hour bus to La Libertad, where my friend/real estate agent resides.

From there, we will be exploring real estate possibilities within two hours of La Libertad & Guayaquil - mostly ocean-front towns. Still mostly excited about the 3-acre property, with the blue roof (posted last week). And I may have already found a nice family to occupy/improve it while I wrap up things Stateside.

I will attempt to take at least one photo/day (I usually take one per trip), and post to the blog once/week - both of which should automatically upload to my Google+ account, if you're connected to me on there. Damned (anti)social networking.  If anyone needs to reach me, my mobile should work just fine. I can definitely check emails every evening. It's not the stone age down there, people!

Before I go, tomorrow night, I am seeing The Place Beyond the Pines & Lee Camp.

Can we Be Lovers & Not Have Sex?
Yes, please.

Sedona is the Disneyland of the Spiritual World.

That's the feeling I got. Not at all what I expected. I guess I pictured something more like Santa Cruz - a larger, younger, groovier scene than the very old, very wealthy, very white populace we encountered. One of the first things I noticed is that people drive well below the posted speed limit (which is 35 - even on what I would call the highway there), which didn't bother me at all because I drive like an old Asian lady myself - especially since I went car-free last year. The cars and houses are all upper-middle to upper class. Where do the young and working class live there? Oh, they don't.

Don't get me wrong - the trip was fantastic. Some of the highlights:

That photo was taken at the top of Bell Rock. So you can get an idea of just how far Rach & I climbed (do not let anyone tell you you can hike up there), without ropes:

Elevation: 4816 ft.

Neither of us are big picture takers - too busy being in the present - but, I did stage this photo of me being sacrificed to the Grand freakin' Canyon:

Um, have any of you been there? Did you know how BIG it is? I didn't. I mean, I had heard, but you clearly cannot fully comprehend its vastness until you have visited it in person. Another reason not to bother with photography there - it simply cannot do it justice. If water entered the roshambo arena, forget paper - water would clearly trump rock.
And, "some of the cleanest air in the country." So that's why I felt so high the entire time I was there! That, and the fact that I became truly aware of my infinite nature - both huge & minuscule - for the first time in my life.

Speaking of infinity and The Source of All Things/The Great I Am, our host, Edwin Kim (director of Change: The Life Particle Effect, narrated by yours truly), took us up to Sedona Mago Retreat. Where we saw this

Totally.
I have envied the Korean culture for a long time - ever since my swami, Swami Veda, told me his Korean initiates are his favorites, because they're so disciplined. Aww, c'mon - I can't help that I grew up in the brattiest country on the planet, in one of the laziest, most self-absorbed generations ever.

But, I digress.
ECUADOR.
I bought a one-way ticket for next Saturday. I am looking at properties with my Real Estate agent, who has sent me sneak peeks of some beauties, including this one:

Nearly 3 acres (plenty of room for goats, chickens, a piggie & my Chimney Sweep), with fruit trees, and an outdoor kitchen! Alright, stop fighting, and make an orderly, single-file line. There will be room for everybody!
I plan to be back in time for my birthday, on January 6, or at least the weekend after that.
Felices fiestas, y te veré el año que viene!

La misma onda. My favorite phrase in Spanish, "The same wavelength."
I have had a magical two weeks since my last post.

Two weekends ago, I attended Dare to Be Square, an annual Square Dancing workshop/festival on the West Coast. This was the first time LA has hosted, and I have offered to host DtbS 2015 in Ecuador! I really want to continue square dancing down there, so I better keep in practice and putting out the vibration to find other interested folks.

I've also been attending weekly Irish music gatherings, including every Monday night at the Celtic Arts Center, North Hollywood; and a slow/beginners session in Playa del Rey (although it's a struggle for me to get out there with a cello & no car). Both are free, if anyone cares to join me. I'm also hoping to start playing Irish music with my next-door neighbor & some friends, here in Hollywood, when I return from Ecuador in January. Let me know if you want to join the craic!

Yesterday, I rented a car to drive all the way to Santa Clarita for a monthly Irish music session, which turned out to be much smaller than I expected. However, all was not lost when a Peruvian man stood up to share his rendition of El Cóndor Pasa on pan flute, as heard at the beginning of the Simon & Garfunkel cover of it. When he finished, he mentioned he is interested in fusing Irish & South American music. I stood up and excitedly announced that I too was interested in doing the same, in Ecuador. James Torres tells me he has many Ecuadorean friends in LA, so now we are planning a potluck at my house, to introduce me to them! Turns out I went to an Irish meet-up to connect with Ecuadoreans. The Grand Conjunction is stronger than ever with me, now that I have submitted my will to her.

I'd rather be a forest than a street.
Yes I would.
If I could,
I surely woud.

I'd rather feel the earth beneath my feet,
Yes I would.
If I only could,
I surely would.

And so, Ecuador calls...

On the work front, I have voiced over a dozen spots so far this month for United Health (the largest "health" carrier on the planet - creepy), so keep an ear out for me on your TVs, radios & intrawebs. And if you hear a mean girl on the radio, talking about free coffee at McDonald's, that'd be me too. Time to ramp up my charitable giving! (See previous post about working for evil corporations)

On the real estate front, I got two bits of good news. Firstly, I learned that I can cash in my Roth IRA, with no penalty, at any time. This increases my housing budget by $40k!
Secondly, the property I mentioned earlier, which really caught my eye, is still available! Seems the owners only go online a few times a month (can you imagine? what a dream), so I just heard back from them. It is much farther away from my friend and agent, Noelia, than I hoped for (8 hours, not 2 or 3), so I would be more isolated (click to see the satellite of the Amazon), and would have to rent it out to someone to look after it until I move down there full-time in 2014 or 15.

People often ask me what I plan to "do down there." I have many different answers to this question, two of which are, "Retire," and, "Same things I do here in LA - ride my bike, meditate, do yoga, play cello, read books, hang out in my hammock, prepare & eat meals, entertain Chimney Sweep, etc." Another answer I have is that I am feeling called to work in hospice.

As some of you know, I recently dated my first/last alcoholic (and a Marine to boot - ugh) - and it was one of the most traumatic experiences of my life. I grew up around the disease, so I never considered it something I needed to write someone off for. Some of my favorite people are alcoholics! However, they are in recovery - this man was decidedly not, getting black-out drunk on a regular basis. I have also since realized he has some serious sociopathic tendencies, which turns out is not so very rare in America (4%) - especially in the Marines.

Anyway, this alcoholic sociopath claims to be dying young (although, now I'm not so certain anything he ever told me was true). His impending death and complete lack of unwillingness to discuss it reminded me that, many years ago, I once thought I might like to work in hospice. I felt this calling for the first time after meeting Mary Mohs and Ron Valle, of The Awakening Center for Exploring Living & Dying, though my Vedic yoga tradition. Over a decade later, I am hearing the calling again. I want to help people die! Any takers?

Up next, I am flying to Sedona, to visit the director of a documentary I narrated this year, Change: The Life Particle Effect, and spend Thanksgiving week there. Will report more when I return!