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Project Avalon General Discussion Finding safe places, information and resources for building communities, site suggestions. |
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12-31-2009, 04:11 PM | #351 | |
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Quote:
Thanks |
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01-01-2010, 12:24 AM | #352 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Canada
Posts: 443
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Hi Northern Santuary, good to hear from you again. And your news is most encouraging to say the least. I am also interested in hearing more about the "energy source" you mentioned. Best wishes and continued success in the coming year to you and your team.
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01-01-2010, 05:16 PM | #353 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Montreal, Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Hi Sunflower, nice to hear from you too. Here's the information link for the cold fusion product I mentioned:
http://omael.com/!_HydroPlasmol_Tele...ol_Anglais.PDF |
01-01-2010, 05:49 PM | #354 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Montreal, Canada
Posts: 698
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Here's a very good video that exemplifies the sense of a self sustainable community:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...3318053&hl=en# |
01-02-2010, 06:05 AM | #355 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
"Work and leisure are almost one". "This is a timeless life". "Everyone in Ladakh knows how to build a house"
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01-07-2010, 06:50 AM | #356 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Manasota FL
Posts: 114
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Hey Night Light,
Took me a few days to notice your post, good questions. People do always seem focused on communities in nature. And of course I always need some nature time every year. The website of my old friend ( that I forwarded the Compressed Earth Brick info to ) is www.xomox.cn. I don't think he's a big organizer in the Zeitgeist phenom & he has been in Asia for some years. Some of his research/info survived the final edit & got into Addendum and he was doing something for the next one. Not involved with it myself but the Zeitgeist community seems pretty huge. Mi amigo was focusing his current research on established food growing technologies & is currently chasing/creating project opportunities in Cambodia. Any info about growing food in vertical farms would be great, more for him than for ZG. As for the Urban vs. Country thing, I somewhat disagree. For me radiant zones are about the energy/actions of the people present not anything else. I don't think i can really respond to your concerns about martial law, economic collapse, roving hoards and toxic waste individually in detail. These all seem like 'old paradigm' concerns... False Evidence Appearing Real. Personally, I cheer every time the stock market goes down, the sooner this system breaks the better. Martial Law is already a reality and even countryside is toxic now. Also, in times of great crisis people come together. That has been my experience and it seems more so as time goes by. While I do not really feel one approach is inherently better than the other (the answer is always both), I will pretend to argue against the countryside for the sake of conversation. It seems that the country communities are made up of very small groups of people. It also seems like the membership is static or non-fluid. While permanence or survivability (sustainability?) might be valuable to some, should that really be required for radiance? Ok, done with 'devils advocate'. Some things that made me think of my last urban place of residence as a radiant zone (zone-lette?)... Tons of activism, people actively influencing audiences/media & being successful at it Visitors/residents coming, staying and going from around the world - a fluid, changing, large population Everyone living well outside of preconceived normal culture Lots of musicians and artists practicing their crafts Random spontaneous dancing Free food A diverse mixture of people, presence of indigenous tribes people Neighbors that look super scary, but were actually nice Maybe we could all make a list, "you might be in a radiant zone if..." Doing that could clarify what we mean by this phrase. It likely means different things to different people. Recently Kre8ive Lady made a very good comment on another thread about the issues in communal living that she saw coming up over and over in different communities. My interpretation of the points in her comment are : Issues that arise in communal living, 1.) Rules enforced inconsistently and unfairly 2.) Disputes over money and/or ownership (land, property) 3.) Individuals exploiting rules for personal benefit 4.) Whoever has the most money wins 5.) Senior members acting as dictators towards junior members, example: founders turning into 'mini-Hilters' These are issues that I see as important, mostly interpersonal in nature. So while I was thinking about these things I watched a TED presentation, "Barry Schwartz on our loss of wisdom". In it he proposes that rules or bureaucracy cannot solve many problems. He gives examples of practical wisdom that 'saves' situations. So this gave me an epiphany. The solution to these recurring problems is not more rules or even rewards. The solution is creating an environment that nurtures wisdom. Perhaps this could be provoked by choosing members already prone to "doing the right thing, in the right way, for the right reasons". Briefly, on the topic of rules & structure for communities... I do think some rules are required, but minimally. The best legal structure, imo, is an unincorporated non-profit association which then requires all property to be owned by a trust. But these are secondary issues to the interpersonal ones that will come up no matter what structure is used. It can be amazing how few rules are needed when participants are ethical. For radiant zones it seems more appropriate to focus on fostering good than on enforcing conduct. In the end I propose that even physical structures (homes) and locations are less important than altruism or 'practical wisdom'. best wishes, respect, — SS P.S. my debt is a minor annoyance that will be gone before spring. Didn't you (Night Light) say you were doing something in the southern Yucatan? I love that area, good choice. Last edited by Sideshow Shaman; 01-07-2010 at 06:54 AM. |
01-07-2010, 01:38 PM | #357 |
Avalon Spiritual Mother
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: belgium
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Thank you for sharing your insight Sideshow Shaman ,
You come up with interesting points. A radiant Heart will sure put a radiant zone where ever he goes . That's how Earth should be as we all reconnect to our Universal heart .We will then see radiant cities and radiant rural communities flourish and ultimately a radiant globe. Now as a living organisms have several and very different parts to function as a whole I can understand that everyone according to it's unique soul signature and inherent talents will choose to be radiant within a city and others will prefer to settle in nature. In resonance to everyone's inner will there will see small groups emerging or very large ones . Mother Earth gives us room to elaborate many plans to express our inner wisdom and balance. Love Always mudra |
01-08-2010, 01:59 AM | #358 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Hello Mudra,
This makes sense to me. Many smaller radiant communities at least at beginning mixed with larger communities. No fixedness on either large or small. My visions and imagery seem to be unique to myself unlike the usually collective consciousness agreements. |
01-09-2010, 12:55 AM | #359 | |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Left Coast Nomad
Posts: 21
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
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I couldn't agree more, in fact I was really just thinking out loud. Good points you make for sure. |
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01-09-2010, 01:49 AM | #360 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Montreal, Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
With respect to community decisions, the one that has proven to work well is based on consensus. Here's one definition from wiki:
As a decision-making process, consensus decision-making aims to be: Inclusive: As many stakeholders as possible should be involved in the consensus decision-making process. Participatory: The consensus process should actively solicit the input and participation of all decision-makers.[1] Cooperative: Participants in an effective consensus process should strive to reach the best possible decision for the group and all of its members, rather than opt to pursue a majority opinion, potentially to the detriment of a minority.[1] Egalitarian: All members of a consensus decision-making body should be afforded, as much as possible, equal input into the process. All members have the opportunity to present, amend and veto or "block" proposals. Solution-oriented: An effective consensus decision-making body strives to emphasize common agreement over differences and reach effective decisions using compromise and other techniques to avoid or resolve mutually-exclusive positions within the group. Most Logical*: This happens when a solution appears to be impossible to execute because of the lack of support and cooperation.[2] more info at link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consensus_decision-making There is also books written on it, that can apply to large community networks called: We the People, A Guide to Sociocratic Principles, by John Buck. /NS Last edited by NorthernSanctuary; 01-09-2010 at 01:53 AM. Reason: editing change. |
01-10-2010, 01:02 AM | #361 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Manasota FL
Posts: 114
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Yeah, thanks for doing so. I often think, but usually need prodding to make it 'out loud'.
@ Northern Sanctuary, Consensus is the best way to steer a group, imo too. If a group is capable of being a consensus driven unincorporated nonprofit association (UNA) it has gone a long way towards ideal conditions. The place I was speaking of was indeed consensus driven, but not a UNA. Probably should have put consensus on the "you might be in a radiant zone if" list, because it is important. Alas, even in consensus communities, processes can be subverted. ("Did that go before the House Meeting?!" ) |
01-10-2010, 08:11 AM | #362 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Montreal, Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
....Alas, even in consensus communities, processes can be subverted. ("Did that go before the House Meeting?!" )
A disadvantage of consensus is that it takes more time. We have a modified consensus where the person with the blocking vote is given time (3 month) to come up with a better solution, otherwise the decision goes through; this limits the "tyranny" of the minority syndrome. In the community that first used this, it only occur twice in about 7 years. We are also looking into a trust, specifically a sovereign trust. |
01-16-2010, 10:36 PM | #363 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
This Fine Arts and Masonry/Ceramics Engineer can build a small home for about $600US cost for blocks and home withstands tornados and earthquakes, etc.
http://tinyhouseblog.com/dome/peters...te-block-dome/ and here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?ai...&id=1136529319 |
01-16-2010, 11:38 PM | #364 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Beaver Lake, AR
Posts: 402
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
I'm miffed that one cannot access a facebook page unless one signs up for an account! Anyone have an acct that they'd like to share? juz kidding
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01-17-2010, 12:16 AM | #365 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Montreal, Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Hi all,
There will be a Rainbow Community meeting on Feb. 6 at 2:00pm in Montreal . There has been good progress to move ahead on all aspects of the Rainbow Community development. The tentative agenda will be: 1. To update potential members about the latest news/ status and schedule to start construction of the community center this spring. 2. Review the events that are changing very fast on the world stage, and to discuss what the expected outlook is for the coming months for the planetary changes. 3. There are interested members both locally and out of town which have not met, so this will be an opportunity to relax, meet and talk. 4. Q & A on the Rainbow Community. Any interested person is welcome to join. Please pm or email me at wayne49s@gmail.com. Place to be determined. /Wayne |
01-23-2010, 11:41 PM | #366 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Montreal, Canada
Posts: 69
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
REVISED DATE for Montreal Rainbow Community Meeting - FEB. 7/2010
Please note that the Rainbow Community meeting to be held in Montreal, originally scheduled for Sat. Feb. 6 has now been moved to Sunday, Feb. 7 due to the location being available for rental only on the Sunday. The meeting time is still at 2:00 pm. and the location is as follows: YMCA 4585 Sherbrooke St. West Westmount, QC H3Z 1E9 If you'd like to attend, you should inquire at the reception desk at the entrance of the YMCA by letting them know you are with the "Rainbow Community Group" in order to be allowed in. They will let you know how to make your way to the room we're meeting in. If you have questions, or need any additional info, you can PM me or NorthernSanctuary. All are welcome! --Cosmic Dancer Last edited by Cosmic Dancer; 01-23-2010 at 11:44 PM. |
02-08-2010, 03:39 PM | #367 |
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Join Date: Sep 2008
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
We had a very successful meeting. There was a lot more people interested this year than last year (25). I expect this will be even more so as this year progresses. We followed up the meeting with a dinner and talked well into the evening. Here's a group photo and some pictures during the break:
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02-08-2010, 05:11 PM | #368 |
Avalon Spiritual Mother
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: belgium
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Great news NS
Well done No need to say your project with Love and Light. May it be so always. Love from me mudra |
02-20-2010, 08:18 AM | #369 |
Avalon Spiritual Mother
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: belgium
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Symplifying Life
A chapter from the book " Nature of human Thought " by Anil K Rajvanshi read full article here: http://www.nariphaltan.org/simplelife.htm "I live in a small rural town called Phaltan in district Satara, Maharashtra, India where I run a small NGO called Nimbkar Agricultural Research Institute (NARI). We work in the areas of agriculture, renewable energy, animal husbandry and sustainable development. My experiments in sustainable living for the last 25 years are as follows: I live in a house designed by me and constructed in 1984. It is built of stone with 18” thick walls which allow tremendous thermal lag-time so heating and cooling due to ambient atmospheric temperature is delayed. It is passively cooled in the summer by laying old jute gunny sacs on the roof and sprinkling water on them two times a day. These sacs are very cheap and cost Rs. 10/m2 (1US$ = Rs. 47). The evaporating water from the sacs cools the roof from where 80% of thermal load comes into the house. Thus when the outside temperatures are about 40-450C the house is cool in the afternoon with average temperatures of rooms ranging from 25-300C. This is mostly because of thick walls and cool roof. Besides we also close all the windows and draw the drapes over them so that hot air and radiation from outside does not come inside the house. The trees surrounding the house also help. In a couple of years or so the gunny sacs are worn out because of the salts left behind by the evaporating water. These old gunny sacs are either used as mulch in the garden or burned in our hot water boiler, which supplies water for our daily bath. The water boiler is a grate-type multifuel boiler with about a 10 m long chimney attached to it. This chimney height gives an excellent draught and hence burns the wood and other material quite cleanly. In fact the water boiler is used for burning lots of different things as explained below. The ash from this boiler is used as a fertilizer in our garden either by putting it directly or composting it. Phaltan is around 800 m above sea level and is 100 km south-east of Pune or 300 km south-east of Mumbai. Its climate is very mild 109. Still in some years during winters the minimum temperatures can reach 7-8 0C. Our house is not heated. We close the windows at night if needed and wear warm clothes and socks. It keeps us warm and comfortable. All our kitchen waste is fed to rabbits (about 25-30 of them) who are in a cage in our garden. We do not eat them since we are mostly vegetarian. But use these rabbits to produce fertilizer (their droppings) which makes excellent manure in the garden. All other items inedible for rabbits like egg shells, tea waste etc. are put in compost pit (with dimensions of about 1 m X 1 m X 1 m). After 2-3 months the output from this pit is used as a fertilizer in our garden. We never waste any food. Whatever we take on the plate is eaten. The leftovers are either used next day or fed to our two dogs and cats. There is no special food for the pets. They eat whatever we eat. We have a 2-acre plot on which our house is located. It mostly contains trees. Their leaf litter rots in the soil during rainy season and provide nice mulch. The dead branches and trees provide us the wood for heating our bath water in the boiler. In fact we always have surplus of wood so that we sell it and make a nice tidy sum. When we purchased this land in 1981 it was completely barren and the quality of land was so poor that there would be huge cracks – big enough for whole sheep to disappear in them. Today the leaf litter from the trees and the compost fertilizer has really improved the soil quality. The soil has therefore become springy and quite fertile. Most of our groceries and vegetables are grown within 10-15 km of our home. The eggs are from free ranging chickens, milk from cows across the road and vegetables and groceries from the local market. Most of these things are grown in Phaltan area. We use safflower seed produced on our Institute farm for crushing in local mill for oil. Thus the oil is fresh and without any chemicals. Most of the time I still drive a 23-year-old Maruti 800cc car which transports me from point A to B comfortably. It gives me between 13-16 km/liter and is small enough to go in smallest of lanes and by- lanes of Phaltan town. For long distance driving to Pune or Mumbai (300 km from Phaltan) I use Maruti Esteem which gives me 18-20 km/liter. We have few clothes and they are worn till they get torn. They are then used in the house as dusters and wipers and after becoming tatters are used in the water boiler to heat the water. I wear mostly khadi or cotton spun in cottage industries. Thus I buy the cloth for my bush shirts and they are stitched by my tailor in Phaltan. This makes these shirts much cheaper than the ones purchased in the market. Khadi is a very comfortable material to wear and also makes excellent dusters and wipers after the shirts get torn. Similarly all the papers in the office are used for writing on both sides and the used ones are brought to our house to again heat our bath water. Thus everything is recycled. We use electricity sparingly – which is also facilitated by the Government of Maharashtra since we have 4-5 hours of power cut everyday! We have battery-powered inverters both in the offices and at home which supply enough juice for lights, fans and laptops only. So no TV or refrigerators run on them. During electricity cuts we walk, talk or read. This provides a good quality time to catch up on reading and discussions. Sometimes I think this is for the best as 24-hour electricity causes distraction with TV and other electronic media. We do not travel very much but communicate more by phones and internet and believe that this is much more energy-efficient way of keeping in touch. With availability of broad-band internet connection both at home and in the office, it is an excellent communication and information medium. We bring most of our groceries and vegetables in cotton carry bags and hence have little garbage of plastic. Nevertheless we cannot get away from plastic as most things come already packed in it and this is the biggest nuisance we have. We have no way to recycle it. Presently we take the plastic bags and bottles to the local garbage dump from where they ultimately go to the recycling center. Still I feel we use much less plastic than most people. Nevertheless technology for recycling of plastics in rural areas is very much needed. We are teetotalers and drink only water, which is boiled. Thus the plastic bottles and cans of soft drinks do not litter our garden. Drinking only water is not only healthier but also helps the environment by not producing plastic bottle litter. We buy only those things which are needed and since we live simply we do not need to buy too many things. We still use one of our 25-30 years old TV and most of the gadgets are repaired when they stop working rather than being thrown away. This reduces the garbage production and at the same time is easy on the pocket book. The main external inputs we use are electricity, petrol and LPG for cooking. Our per capita energy consumption (from last 2-3 years data) is 15.1 GJ/yr for electricity (both in offices and home), 12.7 GJ/yr in transport (mostly for petrol for 2 cars) and 1.75 GJ/yr in cooking gas. Thus we personally consume ~ 30 GJ/person/year of energy. To this should be added the energy in India’s infrastructure which comes to about 10 GJ/person/year 110. Thus our total commercial energy consumption is 40 GJ/person/yr. Contrast this with about 350 GJ/person/year that an average U.S. citizen uses 108. Thus in 1/9th the energy that is used by an average America citizen we can live quite decently in a modern industrial society. Our low electricity consumption results since we use only fans and CFLs and almost no air conditioning. Even in our offices we use evaporative roof cooling. The low energy usage in transport is because on an average we travel only 15,000 km/yr. Similarly our average water consumption is 150 liters per person/day for household purposes. This is almost one-fourth that used by a U.S. citizen 111. Still we feel that this water usage can be further reduced. Thus a satisfying and decent life style can be maintained in much less energy and water usage as compared to that in western societies and this is a lesson for our leaders who are hell bent on following the Chinese and US patterns which are both very consumptive and unsustainable. We can make the life style even more sustainable by using locally produced ethanol in our cars and scooters and its use as cooking fuel. Similarly production of electricity from locally available agricultural residues can further help in this process 112,113. However both these things will require a community effort together with certain policy changes by the Government of India. Nevertheless if all of us become internally secure through spirituality then it can help us in living sustainably and the pressures on resources of the country can be reduced. " Love Always mudra Last edited by mudra; 02-21-2010 at 09:13 PM. |
02-21-2010, 03:09 AM | #370 |
Avalon Senior Member
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Location: Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
You did excellently, thank you for setting the example.
best, gnosis |
02-21-2010, 09:16 PM | #371 | |
Avalon Spiritual Mother
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: belgium
Posts: 4,919
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Quote:
I wish I could make my life so simple though. I realized I had given a wrong link there and omitted to mention the book this was taken from . I have corrected this now Love from me mudra |
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02-23-2010, 06:55 PM | #372 |
Retired Avalon Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Hudson Valley
Posts: 38
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Greetings,
I am new to this forum and still finding my way around. I am interested in finding others in my area- particularly farms and communities. Love to all. |
02-24-2010, 12:53 AM | #373 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Welcome!!!
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02-24-2010, 12:55 AM | #374 | |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Canada
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
Quote:
Okay, thanks for clarifying that for me. It sounded like a nice lifestyle to chill out for a couple of lifetimes of self-awakening processes, before the Grand Exit :-) |
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02-24-2010, 12:57 PM | #375 |
Retired Avalon Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Hudson Valley
Posts: 38
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Re: Radiant zones and communities building..where are we up to ?
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