Farming opportunity in Thailand!

If anyone is interested in exploring the reaches of experimental alternative rural community activism into the lush lands of Thailand, read the letter below from my friend Watjai, whom I was fortunate enough to spend time with as a WWOOF volunteer last February. Him and his wife, Chabaa, are two amazingly generous and openhearted individuals who live on a gorgeous and tranquil piece of land near the Burmese border in southern Thailand. 

Seeking partnership for alternative living project.

Dear Friends,

My name is Wat and I live in Thailand with my wife, Chabaa. WE are a young couple who have a dream of seeking an alternative way of life. We do not believe in the modern mainstream life style under consumerism, because it forces us to work too hard to become wealthy and indulge in natural resources extravagantly for greater happiness. For these reasons, we decided to leave the urban life for the rural area. Two years ago we bought 17 rais (7 acres) of land at Pa-La-U (about 50 km west from Hua Hin) for experimental simple living. Our land is surrounded by beautiful mountains protected by the National Forest and close to Pa-La-U waterfall and Kang Khra Chan National Park. We believe that living simply and close to nature allows us to gain peace within. 

In our two years here we have begun to learn about organic farming and making as much as we can by hand. We grow fruit trees, vegetables, herbs, and forest trees. We make compost and create our own fertilizer with waste and microorganisms we collect from our land. We cook healthy food and eat mainly brown rice, vegetables, legumes, and fruit. Sometimes we also have fish or seafood but no chicken or meat. We love cooking with different styles from around the world using local ingredients. We enjoy making what we use and need by hand. We produce our own natural soap and shampoo. We stuff pillows with Kapok fruit and make things from coconut shell, bamboo, etc. Other interests of ours include permaculture, sustainable technology, holistic healthcare, local wisdom, including religious and spiritual aspects.

For a future dream we would like to build up an alternative community and open this land to become a place of retreat for people to understand themselves and other by learning about living simply with nature. We will share some of our skills such as mud house and bamboo hut construction, Thai vegetarian cooking, hill-tribe weaving style, organic farming, and Thai massage. In doing this we will cultivate the seed of peace within to share with other people. Together we can change the world.

All of this we can not do alone. We are looking for partnerships with people who are interested in contributing to the project. We are looking for people who have ideas to help this project grow and who have English skills that would help us publicize the project in order to connect and bring people here. We need someone to share the long-term responsibility of the project, but we are flexible about the specifics of the partnership. This means a partner wouldn't have to live here year round.

We are currently trying to expand the project to be able to house more people so we can plant more seeds of peace. This means we need to build some more houses and a larger communal area. For this reason, any donation you can give would be very appreciated. 

If you are interested, please contact us and we can work together to outline the details according to your needs. 

For more information, visit our website at: http://mantarniwas.exteen.com/

Our e-mail is: watjai@gmail.com

Sincerely, 

Wat & Chabaa

Whey cool!

A few weeks ago, SAFE hosted a lacto-fermentation workshop on the UC Berkeley campus, led by our very own Monika Roy. Moni spent last semester farming in the Caribbean and developed a fermentation fetish after discovering the book Nourishing Traditions. Upon returning home, Monika continued refining her recipes, trying out new techniques, and incorporating these foods into her diet.

Lacto-fermentation is a process that uses lactobacilli bacteria to preserve foods. While many of the foods at the workshop used whey and other dairy products to facilitate the fermentation, lactobacilli can be cultured in vegan foods as well. Moni explained all of this, plus told us the benefits of eating fermented foods (better digestion, more available vitamins and nutrients, really tasty) and talked about the gaps in nutrition in our current industrially produced diets. Afterwards she let us have a go at sampling at two long tables worth of projects she had ready. These included buttermilk, kefir, curds, fermented ketchup, ginger beer, kraut, and double fermented orange cake. She also gave a short demo on how to set up your oats to ferment overnight for a faster, creamier version of traditional oatmeal. 

Everyone stuck around for a long time eating, asking Monika questions, and just hanging out. I think the best part of this workshop was Monika's ability to appeal to both the beginning fermentation dabbler as well as the seasoned lactobacilli junkies. One woman commented that she even liked Monika better than Sandor Katz! I love them both!

For more info on fermentation please check out:

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz

Also, if interested please stop by the UCB Student Organic Garden (Virginia and Walnut St) on Sunday March 29th around 1pm for a work day and impromtou kimchi making party! Monika and I are both facilitators of the Organic Gardening Decal at UCB and will be in the garden from 12-4 hanging out, doing work, and talking about veggie ferments. 

Travis Meinolf: Interactive Textile Artist

Anya and I were recently brainstorming for our "letter from the editor" for our soon-to-be-published third issue of Lettuce Turnip the Beets. This issue has the theme of Reclamation. Reclamation of land, skills, words, traditions, and more. While we were raving, ranting, jotting notes, and prowling the world wide web, we came across the blog of this wonderful fellow...

If any of you hang out in the Mission, you may have spotted Travis Meinolf perched at the top of one of the sloping hills of Dolores Park with his loom. He is a weaver and a textiles artist who "advocates for alternative economic and pedagogical models through a craft-based relational art practice." The blog is filled with some pretty amazing pictures of things he's made and a few videos of the creative process. I hope that it will inspire you as much as it inspired us!

Forcing Bulbs for Color on A Grey Day

From 2009_2_Forced Bulbs

Forcing many flower bulbs indoors is extremely easy and a great way to bring spring color to your home when those rainy days keep dragging out. It's probably too late this season, but buy bulbs next October or November to brighten your winter kitchen table. The narcissus and hyacinth above are forced in water and pebbles, probably the easiest method.

Clear, glass containers with pebbles work well. Place the pebbles in the bottom third of the vessel, then put the bulb on top to the pebble layer and fill in with more pebbles to the top of the container. Add water to the container to just below the bottom of the bulb. If the bulb is in water, it will rot. The vase is then kept in a cool, dark room (preferably under 50 degrees F) until the root system has developed and a green top elongates. At this point it should be placed in a bright window, where the plant soon will blossom.

Directions say to throw out the bulbs after forcing, as they will never flower well again. I prefer to "let them out to pasture" in a underutilized part of the garden. They might grow and gain strength and some spring years from now you'll be greeted with new blossoms. You never know.