Open Letter to Potential Residents of Rah Rah

by Dave Bonta

Take a look around. Take a hard deep dive into the way you are living. Regardless of how old you are, you are seeing sweeping changes in your life. You might feel like you are losing ground, like your life is not working out the way it was supposed to. It seems as if we can’t find any lasting security in housing, food or employment. If & when you do find a job, you probably can’t keep up with the rising costs of living. You are being asked continually to do more for less. You are being forced to go into debt for the mere basics of housing, food, utilities, transportation and education. Many of us are told and maybe even believe that somehow we are to blame. If we could just try to get the right partner, change some personal weakness, get up earlier, get more education and work faster, harder and/or smarter, we could get our piece of the pie; The American Dream.

Over my life of 65 years, I have become more and more convinced that the old formula of “get a good education, marry the right person, get a good job and you’ll have a good life” is no longer a viable strategy. Over the last four decades and maybe even before, the so called American dream has been vanishing like a mirage for most people not born into the ruling class.

Part of what is working against us is the way the system has been set up. Basically it could be looked at as a caste system. If you are rich and privileged you will do alright. If not, the odds are pretty much stacked against your being able to enjoy the benefits of a pleasurable existence. Money goes to money, it is said, and is true. The wealthy have all of the advantages and have the legal system set up to protect them. Many don’t even pay taxes or pay very little if they do. Most are aware of their entitlements but have not evolved empathically enough to do much or care much about the inherent injustice and inequity of the situation. Part of what is also working against us is our own belief that somehow we can work within the game and beat the odds. We can somehow “have it all”; the great job, the perfect partner, the fine house, the nice car, the clothes, the wonderful kids and other adornments of a great life. We just have to keep waiting and working hard toward it. Some people may resort to a life of crime to “get theirs” some actually may succeed at that, and in some other cases may do well by exploiting a natural talent, like in sports or in the entertainment industry. There are just enough examples of “success stories” in the media to keep everybody wishing and hoping for their “big break”. Shows like Lottery millionaire homebuyers on HGTV promote the idea that buying a Lottery ticket is a viable way to finally “hit the jackpot” . The truth is, for most of us, we will wind up in the ever turning hamster wheel of debt and running furtively to try to get through the days of our lives. Most people don’t even have the time to actually explore the situation they find themselves in. They just don’t have the time to think about it. The ever running “message loops” in their consciousness are concerned with “The Gotta’s” ; I gotta do this, I gotta do that…The rent is due, the dog has to go to the vet, the kids need shoes, the boss is a jerk and that report is due, the muffler is falling off the car and the dentist bill can’t be paid this month. On and on it goes, stress upon stress, ratcheting up worries and aiding serious debilitation in health, further exacerbating opportunities for disease and distressful outcomes.

So….this is what it’s all about? And what happens when we get older? What do we have to look forward to? After all of our life’s struggles? After your life savings has been exhausted, and you are left lying in a nursing home, or strapped to a wheelchair in a smelly hallway, looking plaintively at busy passersby and thinking: “how the hell did this happen to me?”

Life does not have to be this way. Life does not have to turn out this way.

It is time to question some very basic & critical assumptions. After I do, I am going to list an alternative set of conditions that may be appealing to you. Thank you for following along. I hope the rest keeps your interest. It may be the most vital consideration you have ever looked at for you to enjoy a happier set of circumstances.

First of all, you need to break away from the old “Horatio Alger” story. That (poor boy makes good) story goes on to make the case that through “Luck & Pluck” anyone could have all kinds of success in life. The suggestion is the “rugged individual” can do it “their way”. It further posits that everyone has the same opportunity, and if you don’t make it, there is something wrong with you; you didn’t work hard enough. You did not get the right degree. You gave up too soon. You just need to keep on trying. As I mentioned earlier, the odds are not in your favor to “have it all” no matter what you do. Running faster, after the mechanical rabbit on the track is a sure path to burnout and even if you do “make it” most people find they are still not satisfied with the spoils of their efforts. Something still seems to be missing. Reject the whole notion of “having it all. What we are really in want of are the basics.

Second, identify the basics. These are the 5 simple requirements of living. They are, in this order:

1. Air. You need air to live. Even cutting it off for just a few minutes could be fatal. Fresh air is best, healthy and full of oxygen. It regenerates and heals the body. Breathe of it slowly and deeply.

2. Water. We are mostly made up of this stuff. It is vital that we have clean, pure water to drink. We can only last a couple of days without it.

3. Food. It is necessary that we eat, regularly every few hours, as we can only live about a week without nourishment. What we eat is of importance too, it should be healthy and as organic as possible with the vitamins and minerals that support our body’s requirements.

4. Shelter. We all need a roof over our heads. It does not need to be a “Mc Mansion” but ought to be secure and spacious enough for comfort and keeping personal possessions. It ought to allow privacy and offer peace and quiet for sleep and restoration.

5. Love. A Sense of belonging and sense of purpose. A need to be needed. Call it Family, friends, Community or tribe, but it is increasingly understood that interconnectedness with others is an important basic need of life. Our Human connections are the most important kind of therapy.

Beyond these 5 basics there are a few more “essentials” that can help us enjoy our lives, like time with Nature, & animals, healthcare & medicine, leisure time, exercise, travel, art, music and education. Also we desire satisfying work to do that we feel makes a difference for the effort. Desirable too, are power and energy and tools for doing work, and communications for connecting with others. These are desirable for a well rounded and satisfying life. These make life worth living beyond just the basic necessities listed above.

Third, let’s consider some alternative ideas and living arrangements that we have worked out in Rah Rah Community to address the needs of life and the economics of our approach vs. the mainstream methods that people are currently struggling with.

As far as #1, Air, is concerned, we live in a healthy tree filled environment. The air is health giving, clean and oxygen is plentiful. There is no cost for air. We do not see that the World will ever charge for fresh air, but you never know. It was not that long ago that the idea of charging for clean drinking water was laughable. Now it is the reality.

For #2, Water, we have a deep well with a electric pump to drive it up to storage. The pump is powered with solar electricity, so there is no ongoing cost to our water supply beyond the original investment.

The water has been tested and is clean and pure. It is health giving with minerals and no chlorine or fluoride, and filtered through porous sandstone and soapstone. There is a second site for an additional deep well that would become available if we desired to drill it.

Our shared expense charge of $100.00 per person per month covers whatever is needed to maintain and develop our water, wastewater and solar power utility resources.

For #3, Food can cost on average around $200.00 per family, per week, depending on how or where/ what is purchased in a supermarket , restaurant or corner gas station. We have a vegetable garden that can be expanded to provide healthy vegetables that we can store, process and consume year round. We also have a greenhouse that also can be expanded and developed for food security should more people join us. We have enough acres that we should be able to feed 18 people year round if we decided to develop that as a project goal. Food costs are fungible, with the greatest cost in labor expended and processing with fossil fuels. It is possible and desirable to use solar power to dry, cook and process foods with crock pots, solar ovens and cookers and high temperature solar pressure cookers to minimize or eliminate the fossil fuels used. Plans also call for the development of small poultry production and other food husbandry. As seniors and gleaners, we also make use of the local food shelf, where food that would be thrown away after this “last call” fills our pantry with food security. Other treats and libations round out the pantry, wine cellar and beer keep, but are procured personally at the purchaser’s own expense. Our food costs presently are about $100.00 per week for two people, but they could be cut dramatically if we choose to eat from the garden only and barter with others doing the same. The economics of having food, water, and utilities at the scale we envision are incredibly attractive. The health benefits of eating “off the land” are also desirable. Foraging for berries and other wild foods such as mushrooms, fiddleheads, various roots and edible flowers make for an interesting opportunity to find natural health benefits. The potential for hunting deer and turkeys and taking a direct approach for procuring one’s sustenance is an increasingly ethical option to just buying drug laced products from “factory farms”.

Looking at #4, Shelter, which for most people is the most expensive cost of their living we have come to the following strategies;

1. We own our property as an association. There is no mortgage on it. There is no landlord or “bankster” to kick us off. We pay our taxes with the same $100.00 per person shared expense fund that covers water, wastewater, maintenance, electricity and communications. We work together to keep maintenance costs low, and strive to have a natural, pleasant community.

2. The cost of “buy in” to the membership of Rah Rah is at present $15,000.00

3. The cost for building a unit for living is estimated at $15,000.00 as well. Of course this may be higher or lower but in the only examples we have, we were able to build a 1400 SF house, with utilities for $50,000.00 and a 500 SF cottage for about $5,000 originally. That equates to as little as $10.00 per SF and as much as $35.00 per SF- We expect that a comfortable 500 sf cottage can be built for $30.00 to $33.00 per SF if indigenous materials are used from the property.

4. A trailer, yurt or temporary dwelling is allowed while a member or members are planning on building their permanent home. We suggest the use of cordwood and native stones on the property to be the lowest cost and lowest impact materials for energy efficient and cost effective building. While the cordwood is harvested and drying, the rest of the services can be directed to the temporary structure.

5. The cordwood homes we envision would use our native “Cabbage Pines”, poplar and other woods we have in abundance, and could “grow up” vertically in the forest on the land as the needs of the family would desire. Adding an optional second story would be part of the original design, and would be fairly easy to build.

These are just a few of the points of discussion that are hopefully of interest to others of “like mind”’ We certainly cannot claim to have solved all of the problems of living, but we are looking to have a clear discourse with folks who may just get where we are coming from.

If the ideas presented in this article appeal to you and you would like to know more or ask further questions we would truly welcome the opportunity for more dialogue.

No guarantees, no promises, “just talking-that’s all”.

Warm regards,

Dave