Cheers to the Green Revolution

               Happy Independence Day everyone (I guess?) I am beyond happy that after the overturning of Roe V Wade and all the other bullship* going on in yeehaw Texas, that I am spending it out in the middle of the desert, inside of a gorgeous Earthship*, where the plants and trees grow as much inside the homes as they do outside of them. The peace I feel here on this, the very first day, is insurmountable.

               I decided to leave Houston Sunday rather than Saturday due to the fact that I was still finishing this large project for an apartment complex called Co-Op. It was comprised of 6 murals and one painted vintage Chevrolet truck. The murals were each seamless and took one try where as the truck had many rewrites. Therefore due to the ‘rewrites’ and the periodic summer showers, I needed more time so I decided to leave Sunday. 

               4:30 am, Sunny and I are in my Jeep that’s packed to the brim because I admittedly am a horrible over packer. I’ve honestly never been away from home for this long, the laundry facilities are 30 minutes away, we’re working in the dirt and heat so I thought, better safe than sorry and packed my whole athletic/muralist wardrobe and some cutie outfits you know… for the weekends. I threw it all in the car like a rockstar smashing his guitar during the pivotal moment of his show and we began our 14 hour trek to Taos, New Mexico. 

              Things were going SPLEDIDLY till about 8 hours in, my tire blows out and the right side of my jeep took a bit of a nose dive. This was fine. I pulled over and began changing my tire till about 8 minutes in, a HUMONGO truck pulls over and a tattooed and slender older gentlemen with an eyepatch pulls over and says ‘No one has stopped to help you yet? They must have all voted for Biden.’ I said nothing and allowed him to continue changing my tire. I could have done it myself but honestly, I just wasn’t feeling it in that moment. The man’s name was Grasshopper and he was on his way to Wyoming. He finished changing my tire and zip tied the dangling part of my bumper. He was very kind despite are differing political views. He asked to take a picture with me and I also took a picture of him, I’ll post the picture in the credits 😉 

               I jaunted on with my little donut tire to Firestone in Amarillo, Texas. I’d like to thank the tire Gods for inspiring them to be open on the weekends because the next day was July 4th and I would have been totally screwed. They fixed it and I rolled along another 6 hours into Taos, New Mexico. 

              Once I arrived in Taos, I unloaded into my hotel and biked to the free Lyle Lovett concert down the street. I met up with another Earthship member, Jonas, who had just taken a 24 hour flight from his home country, Belgium, to be here. He is also here to learn about Carl Ruck who I also…. need to do my research on. He was kind and we had a blast! We drank a couple beers (which is like four in this elevation), watched the show and parted ways. It is so amazing being around like-minded, diverse, environmentally contentious and educated people all in one place. He has his masters in classical studies and is an college professor who teaches Business English.

               The next morning, Sunny and I woke up and went to eat the most delicious breakfast I’ve ever had at a hotel. This was not a continental breakfast, this was a breakfast FEAST! I scarfed down a burrito and gravy biscuits and stashed a few extra burritos for later. I also mixed some hot chocolate with my coffee because I am a God damn adult and I can do whatever I want. I then scooped up Jonas because he is without vehicle and we jaunted our way into the Earthship Biotecture Academy. 

              Orientation was cute. Lara, one of their teacher’s and also runs visitors center (?), went over the rules (there are lots) and the scope of our how our month here would look. She was very funny and it was at ease. She then had each of us introduce ourselves and include our pronouns. They are quite inclusive and intersectional here. I of course introduced myself with a ‘Howdy Ya’ll,’ because I’m an idiot and I’m one of the only people here born native to Texas. 

                   We then drove around to our job sites and then taken to our Earthship dwellings that we will be living in for the month. There are several kinds, The Hive and Castle which are communal and RUI, RU2, simple living units which are individual spaces. I am in RUI which is the bourgeoise princess Earthship and the only one with a bathtub, it’s own kitchen and is the largest open space of them all. How I lucked out with this one NO CLUE because I was the last student and the last to choose her quarters. I am one lucky beach. 

               I am neighbors with four other lovely women. Two, Marlene and Marilou, are from France, one, Isabel, from Canada and one, Lauren, from California. We all bonded instantly and ate hot dogs together because it’s fourth of July and why not. We then went to our Earthships and called it a night. I can’t wait to start class tomorrow and start building on site. I hope to be environmentally brain whipped and body ripped when I return to Houston! :’)