January 2024 Update
Rain, agenda 2024, and deck planning
This month I’ve been thinking about how to proceed with Montanoso. Momentum kinda fizzled towards the end of 2023 because housing and infrastructure is expensive and we don’t have the budget quite yet.
I had the idea of building a small one bedroom hermit cabin on the far side of the hilltop. If I moved into the cabin, another couple moved their mobile home to Montanoso, and I rented out the main house to another family then we’d have three families living here and could start demonstrating the village life. Unfortunately various circumstances prevent folks from making the commitment at this time.
Looking ahead at 2024 I’m deprioritizing housing in favor of community building, events, and public goods funding. I’d like to create a community development fund that would be used for projects at Montanoso. This would let us experiment with governance and funding structures for the community.
One avenue I’m considering is to make Montanoso into a social club and benevolent association with a land component. Provide amenities and support for community members and make the physical location a benefit. Over time we’d build up the perks at Montanoso and eventually people would consider living here full or part time.
Along those lines I’ve proposed building a schoolhouse for one of the members so that they can start a microschool for people in the area. Then they could move to Montanoso and enjoy zero commute.
Cold and Rainy Month
We had a hard freeze mid-month with temperatures in the teens and wind chill even colder. The bluebonnets sprouts shriveled up but they seem to have bounced back well.
We also had a three or four day period of rain this month. The weather service estimated maybe 2-3 inches but it may have been more. A cool fog hugged the landscape for days. Flat creek filled up and continued to flow for a number of days after the rain.
Seasonal Map Update
I captured and published a new property map for Winter 2024. Not a lot has changed since last season. The red oaks have lost their leaves and there’s a little bit more green ground cover. I’m expecting the Spring update will be substantial as everything turns green and blooms.
Floating Deck
I’m planning a floating deck within the fence line to use for sunbathing and stargazing. I’m in talks to have someone come out and help build it over Presidents Day weekend.
Events
The January 20th event was postponed to wait for better weather. The next event will be a small eclipse festival in April. We’ll have two nights of camping available along with food and activities. Keep an eye out for an announcement if that interests you.