Category Archives: Allgemein

Sustainable development – a contradiction

Allgemein, HU Virtual, UNIIE
sustainable development - a contradiction - Ronny in his storage
sustainable development – a contradiction – Ronny in his storage

This is a story about the word sustainable. It’s a story about Game A and Game B, about the will to do things differently and at the same time to belong. It’s a story about this time, from the perspective of this time. It’s also the story of the digital Forum Romanum and its narrowing. And it’s actually just one story: yours.

“I was asked what the essence of Familiafeliz’s activities was. My answer, as always, was based on the first sentences on our website: to create a social space for personal happiness. The question came immediately: Where would we create these spaces and invite people to use them? The answer was again: Where we are right now. (Juan Petry)”

A networking meeting in Halle an der Saale, Germany, provided the framework for this dialogue, which was to be followed by many others. Ronny runs Öpunkt – Nachhaltige Haushaltsauflösungen, a socially and non-profit-oriented, owner-managed enterprise whose mission is to reduce the amount of waste generated by affluence, through reuse where possible, or to find some other form of further use. Only the truly unusable residue should be separated as accurately as possible and sent for traditional recycling. Finally, it is thermally recycled, but that will come later.

Familiafeliz visits places like Ronny’s. On the one hand, recycling and upcycling are often a more cost-effective solution, and on the other hand, networking events are important for bringing together stakeholders in new circular economies, just as was the case back then with the hunting club, the carnival club, the charity club, or the meeting of the guild of master craftsmen. People know each other, they help each other, but only if they know each other. New generations engage in different activities, and so they also try out other forms of gathering. The goal of the actors is modern: to establish a sustainable form of resource use oriented toward the common good and, through this, to create true social justice.

It is by no means the case that these kinds of thoughts and ideas exist only in the minds of members of a living community. Analogous to compost in the garden, an entire subculture oriented toward the common good has emerged, often driven by public funds and willing self-exploitation, seeking to utilize for good what, in established turbo-capitalism, appears to be no longer usable. The up-cycling of household goods intertwines with the up-cycling of brownfield sites and old living and utility spaces. For the property owners, this often means recycling leftovers at the scrap heap. In the end, it is thermally recycled, but that will come later.

When the old no longer works, and the new is not yet fully recognizable, it is important to persevere and save oneself and one’s assets into the new era. This is also motivated by the hope that these resources will still have value in the new. Game A – the traditional economy – is sleepwalking into its own downfall, traveling further into the abyss than some would like, and at the same time less than others would like. In the end, it will be thermally recycled, but that will come later.

The protagonists see meaning in their actions and regularly confirm this in their exchange of code words. The common good and sustainability are highly valued. Finding a common language has always been a good thing, in every hunting party, whether in front of a pig in the forest or in front of a canned food in a container. Those who cultivate a common language can understand each other in a smart way… in the smart city.

So some people set out to ponder Game B. Everyone agrees. It will be a different game, much bigger, more fundamental, and it’s long overdue. Game A was results-oriented and ignored the time after the quarterly financial statements. Game B sees everything more in terms of movement, in the process. You start running differently when it’s definitely only 100 meters than when it could be a half marathon. The next 100 meters don’t come suddenly and unexpectedly. Or not?

sustainable development - a contradiction - Industrial wasteland in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
sustainable development – a contradiction – Industrial wasteland in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

In the chain, after the household clearance comes recycling and further use: secondhand, flea market, further processing, or even metabolization. But the question does arise: what is sustainable? In the end, it is thermally recycled, but that will come later.

The delicate thesis that sustainability is bad requires a good foundation, especially among the hunting party in front of the dumpster. It all probably starts with recognizing that terms from classic Game A are reused and reinterpreted, loaded with different conceptual concepts, and then, unfortunately—upon closer inspection—are no longer of much use in Game B.

As a young boy, I quickly realized that becoming an adult would also involve displacing old ideas and their protagonists and making room for my own, new ideas, namely, innovation. There was little desire or interest in preserving the old, tried-and-tested. As a young person, one saw all too clearly the finite usefulness of these old concepts. In the end, it ends up being thermally recycled, but that will come later.

So we turn the thesis into a mantra: Sustainability hinders innovation. And that’s not a bad thing. A counter-force can motivate, sort things out, and point the way.

As a young person, I wished for older people who would encourage my drive to bring the innovations I had in mind to life by simply clearing away what they themselves needed for their existence. There is no such thing as sustainable fashion. What should – and can – be sustainable when clearing out a household? The ice quickly becomes very thin when the terminology is strained by the demand for the content it conveys. The repetition of the term in a group promotes social interaction, and with clever placement, even one’s own status. But does that bring us closer to Game B?

This article first appeared in the blog of our decentralized community. Perhaps it is being read there right now, in its first life. It could have gained a second life in the form of a compendium in book form, as part of a common thread in the endeavor to rethink the concept of the term “community” – albeit with old brains. The article could gain a third life in constant citation, as a source for a story about Game B, perhaps written in C. For now, it remains digital. This article has no physical representation, apart from the accumulation of electrons in the RAM on your device at this moment. That is very fleeting. This website is attacked by 1,000 bots every day. The battle in the digital debate space claims its victims. The promise that better digital surveillance of citizens can put an end to this activity is absurd; even more absurd is to consider it possible, and even more absurd to believe it.

Perhaps this article will disappear altogether. The overhead costs of defense rise with the real threat. AI is helpful. The publication has no profit motive, but the use of bots does. It then looks as if a small community is losing access to the digital Roman Forum. The real loser is somewhere else. Do you have any ideas?

The landlords of leaky, poorly heated old industrial buildings are the recyclers of a declining industrial culture. They are still firmly entrenched in Game A. Ronny has somehow stepped out and changed gears and is searching for new relative equilibria in the chaotic system of life. With the sword of Damocles of constant rent payments, fixed costs, and the venture of being a sole proprietor in a post-factual society on the Magic Mountain, he is also firmly entrenched in the old Game A. In the end, it will be thermally recycled, but that will come later.

sustainable development - a contradiction - Industrial wasteland in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
sustainable development – a contradiction – Industrial wasteland in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

Nature, on which all these games are based, appears to be the only sustainable thing. As subsystems, however, they can represent neither meaning nor sustainability. They come and go in the process of life. The sad thesis of the second law of thermodynamics will come to an end with the same prophecy. The process heat while reading this article provides a clue.

Ronny has quit his job in the public sector. After more than 10 years, he could no longer stand this working situation. He is committed to the common good. He himself speaks of his mission. Ronny left the civil service and landed in the public service. Now it is his self-determined service to and for the public.

As in so-called science, every attempt at a definition ends with a declaration of faith. Define sustainable. Define common good. Why the Indian mother sends her six children to the dye factory as child slaves is examined from a moral perspective, why she has so many children, fewer, and what her real alternative would be, probably not at all. As always, it gets complicated.

sustainable development - a contradiction - Industrial wasteland in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany
sustainable development – a contradiction – Industrial wasteland in Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

Meanwhile, investors are buying up old debt securities cheaply so they can auction off attractive real estate even more cheaply. That’s totally Game A. Or not?

At the end, it will be thermally recycled, but that will come later. Or not?

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Allgemein, Bio garden, HU Windeck, Poultry keeping
One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - in-sights of a community - coming home
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – in-sights of a community – coming home

This is the story of someone who set out into the world to find what was within him from the beginning. It is the story of a conquest in two steps, with almost 30 years in between. It is the story of a great love and it is the story of a humanitarian who couldn’t decide between cynic and hermit. And it is the story of people like Rachel, who wants to control a group by creating dependence on her. And above all, it is your story.

“Those who talk most about the system are those who want to step out.”

Some people know the famous film “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” by director Miloš Forman, starring Jack Nicholson as Randle Patrick McMurphy. 30 years ago, I would have written “everyone,” but the fragmentation of society has already progressed far.

In all ages, people set out to leave old communities and seek new ones. Some then find them. The old communities are often their own families, the neighbors’ kids down the street, colleagues at school and university. The many people who also knocked on our door in search of the right community often initially describe a longing for peace and quiet and a rejection of the intrusive norms and rules of a post-capitalist – now already post-factual – society. They are drawn to places where people meet without a sense of roles and devote their attention to what truly interests them – at that particular moment. After a short time, a sense of lack often sets in. On the one hand, they recognize that this way of life promises no security – nor does it contain any; on the other hand, it is laborious to recognize the new modes of real coexistence that arise from the composition of the group. A clear structure, the formulation of goals, milestones along the way, and, above all, good planning – against entropy and senseless redundancy – would be a much better endeavor. Instead of a “better” life, they are offered only a “different” life. In Familiafeliz and many other communities, we sometimes call these seekers “community tourists.” In fact, these people set out to find something ideal, put in a lot of effort, and are often very helpful and friendly. Some exploit themselves, others are happy to be exploited. Sometimes one gets the impression that failure is anticipated, and that the real reason for the visit is the search for proof that one’s own wish cannot be realized.

Then tension sets in. What was initially the tension of realizing that one’s own expectations and wishes are not adequately accepted and realized by the group of people one meets at Familiafeliz expands into tension with this group of “others.” And once again, one is left with the realization that one has not found the right thing, even though one had given so much and contributed so much to its success.

One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - in-sights of a community - post - industrial
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – in-sights of a community – post – industrial

What began as a spatial journey always ends as a journey within oneself. It is not new to realize that one always brings oneself with oneself to the new place. Whoever wants to be happy will find this happiness within themselves. Circumstances may or may not contribute to the amplification, but ultimately it doesn’t matter: Ukraine, Gaza, Yemen, or Al-Andaluz. This was a list, by the way, not a comparison. Today’s arts pages often denounce what appears to be a list and is intended to convey to the viewer as an outrageous comparison.

“Sovereign is someone who says no without justification.”

The beginning of Familiafeliz also has something to do with the reconstruction of a ruin in eastern Spain. The deliberate dedication of one’s life to rebuilding a ruin in a small mountain village and thus revitalizing the village is simply presumptuous because its effects are unforeseeable. Starting something without being able to assess the consequences—and knowing them—is a building block for one’s own happiness. Seeing failure as an opportunity is also helpful. With the purchase of the garden land, we were able to express that this desire to settle down goes much further. However, it was not intended as an appropriation and accumulation of values; rather, the acquisition of land was intended to contribute to one’s own nutrition and, above all, to offer future generations space for settlement and activity.

One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - in-sights of a community - trees falling
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – in-sights of a community – trees falling

There were also magical moments: the first bag of cement in the house, which was mixed with sand and water on the floor with shovels, just as we had started with Lilli and Karl Heinz in France. And there was an iron rod that we had driven into the garden as a reference for all the flowerbeds and infrastructure. Every measurement begins with arbitrariness. And thus every measure also begins with arbitrariness.

A visitor once remarked that this weak community with such strong members must recognize that there are many weak people who are incapable of such arbitrariness and who nevertheless also need space, affection, and love, and who also deserve a chance. She’s right. But where this space lies is up to each individual.

In the face of the ignorance—even among friends—that is evident in decaying societies, one can become a cynic. If you’re also extroverted, the doors to the world’s stages are wide open, once at the theater on stage, now YouTube and Tic-toc. In these antisocial media, these cynics struggle for clicks, likes, and reach, yet, like all social beings, they lose themselves in the quest to be heard, if not listened to.

An alternative community then becomes the stage for their own performance, the audience claps because they think just as alternatively, and for a moment, there’s satisfaction that they’re not so alone after all. When the minority fantasizes about the future in the back room, the brave new world is possible, at least for a moment.

“Anyone who says it can’t be done without money wants to make a difference.”

Alternatively, you can seek the open spaces, distance yourself as far as possible from the structures of these societies. A community away from the villages, in a sparsely populated area, might be just the thing. There, nature touches you. The interfaces of society no longer hurt as much. That’s where you want to stay, with an in-house job on the field, with your own chickens, and only with your friends around you, who are also fed up with a society that is clearly falling apart, that dances on its own magic mountain, calls to arms, and already looks at the culprit. Anyone who doesn’t go along with it is an enemy. They are met with contempt and hatred, driven by their own insecurity. The cave becomes a comforting place of rest, and the shadows on the wall fade in the circle of fire.

In the showdown, these two groups meet in the alternative communities. The stage is set by the strong pioneers who begin without knowing where their journey really leads. They invite people with the desire to find like-minded people who also want to set out, who can lend a hand, who know about the hardship and aren’t afraid of it. And then come the cynics, who have chosen language and writing to get out and don’t understand that you build toilets first, then libraries. And then there are the dropouts who can’t leave and who want a safe space of peace. They all sit together, and it feels like a community, but not at all like the community one would like to be part of.

One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - in-sights of a community - trees
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – in-sights of a community – trees

Randle Patrick McMurphy wants to escape forced labor in prison (the system). He simulates a mental illness. The system (society) reacts as expected. He is forcibly admitted to a clinic. There, however, he isn’t supposed to receive treatment in the sense of recovery; rather, he is supposed to learn the rules of the system. Don’t stand out, stay calm, adapt, take your pill. Efficiency then also requires conformity. The individual only gets in the way. And having fun is certainly not on the agenda. Humor is disruptive. Randle provokes and pulls some out of their lethargy. The consequences are catastrophic, for his fellow sufferers, and ultimately for him as well. The so-called system always reacts the same way. It treats the symptoms and is efficient in defending the status quo. Although these conditions may be described as “unsustainable,” they are perceived as fairly solid and lasting. But more than that, they are the recurrence of similar processes that build on one another and alternate. Every empire has its heyday, but also its before and after.

The people who gather on the hill at the edge of the wall, far from the village and the city, want to escape exploitation and arbitrary rule. But they are preparing the ground for even greater arbitrary rule.

“It’s the people who should be loved who can do something and don’t do it.”

The village of Cervera del Maestre in Castellon has always been a special place. Under the Moors, it was a strategic military pillar for occupation and defense. With its fall, a void was created that was filled by migrants from Cervera near Igualada in Catalonia. The poor families set out, quarried stones from the ruins, and used them to build the village we know today. They reclaimed the fallow land and, amazed, restarted the water management system of the old lords. These were pioneers who had no idea where their journey would lead. A community certainly also formed, one that spawned such clever initiatives as a “poor man’s bank.” It was also enough to build and fortify a mountain village, a safe place to harvest the crops despite the cold. The village was a village of Catalans in the diaspora. Surrounded by Valencians, they retained their language and culture and were successful in agriculture and trade. The Cerverinos—as they still proudly call themselves today—were so successful that one night the residents of Traguera came by and slaughtered most of the men to dampen their success somewhat. That’s how the old folks tell it.

All of this is history. All of this is a process. These processes follow one another, merge into one another, and alternate. At some point, it appears as a pattern, becomes obvious. And the thought arises that it is a kind of repetition.

Here, one read about the introverts, the extroverts, the doers, and the participants. A bridge was drawn from the old to the new history, and from the communities of yesteryear to the alternative ones of today. It was a journey through the thoughts of a person living in community. One might get the impression that all the protagonists of this story are the many, and that oneself is the individual. But isn’t it also the story of oneself, one’s own soul, inhabited by all the players with their roles, struggling for the best path through life.

When you watch a small child play, you can enjoy how one moment they are a construction worker, the next a policeman, the next a bus driver, and then a child in the sandbox. The child switches roles so quickly, seamlessly, without the weight of adults. They try things out, or they are tried out. Perhaps all these individuals live as memes in the soul and are nothing other than the archetypes of societies. And in the child, they try things out and take on this essence. In the end, one often gains the upper hand. The others sink back into the unconscious.

One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - in-sights of a community - climate change
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – in-sights of a community – climate change

When all these role models meet in the subconscious soul of each person, and when all these archetypes find themselves reflected in life around the fire circle, then the soul is the place of the event. Then the first great love would be love for oneself—and for one’s strengths and weaknesses. Then the first peace would be peace with oneself.

“Sinnhaft ist auch Haft. (A play on the words in German, meaning: whoever seeks meaning also locks himself in.)”

Coming from the Savannah, we are able to find our way in manageable groups. Two hundred people are too many; a clan of 64 is still manageable.

According to Bernstein and Lowy, the life of a group can be divided into several phases: orientation, power struggles, familiarity, differentiation, and separation. What would a world look like in which these phases find space simultaneously, within oneself and within one’s own group? What would happen if one allowed all these phases to exist within oneself and within one’s own group?

“It will be as it is.”

The photos in this article are impressions from our home in Windeck near Cologne. They tell many stories that are only revealed to those who ask. They were taken at the same time as this article was written. The quotes are from encounters with people in the Familiafeliz community.

One flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - in-sights of a community - the bird flu control group
One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest – in-sights of a community – the bird flu control group

“The best thing we can do is go on with our daily routine,” says the repressive Head Nurse Ratched in the famous film “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”. Most people seek support in structures and then lose themselves to those who provide them. The price is sometimes their own life.

Zeitgeist – a reply

Allgemein, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Today you are reading pretty much the opposite of yesterday – as described yesterday, this is part of the Zeitgeist that manifests itself in the sum of subjective views when they are published. So this article is also about trust and confidence, ownership and possession. It’s a contrarian view, so if you liked the version you read yesterday, you should consider to stop reading here to avoid bad feelings. However, the article might also raise the question of why this feels bad and you might get to know new ideas. So let’s start with that right away.
Yesterday’s article concluded that a world in which trust is rejected and confidence prevails, in which ownership is discarded as a concept and possession takes its place, would be a better world.

 
When it come to trust and confidence lets take a look at the definitions. Trust is a firm belief in a deep truth. Confidence is the belief that people or processes will produce a certain
result. The definition reveals why broken trust hurts so bad, someone who beliefs
in a deep truth in something or somebody will, when it turns against him, easily question his belief system or why the disappointment might have happened to him.
 
Why trust is better than confidence?
Because trust goes deeper. Trust rather has to be earned than granted. Its a long and often hurtful process as described above.
 
The only exception may be faith in God. Trusting God is the basis of life
for countless people. Why do so many people trust in god although they cannot see him or did not have special occurrences? Because they see him do good elsewhere and trust that he will be there when needed. No miracle would ever have happened without this trust that thereby was proven countless times.

A world of trust is a world of miracles and wonders. A world of confidence is a positive world, no doubt, but would you rather enter a plane saying you are quite confident that this pilot can fly the plane or that you really trust him or her?
 
Confidence is the little sister of trust, at best, its the word to use when you want to avoid disappointment and don’t want to put up big hurdles. For real progress though, you need trust.

 
Its quite similar with possession and ownership.
 
Let’s take a look at the definitions as well. Possession is the de facto control over a thing, whereas ownership is the legal control over the thing. Conversely, this means that you can take possession, but you can only acquire ownership.

Even receiving something as a gift is not enough.
A German proverb reads “What you inherit from your fathers, acquire it in order to possess it.”
 
This refers to legal possession, i.e. ownership. The proverb means that simply taking or accepting something is not enough to morally justify why you have it. Ownership, i.e. rightful possession, presupposes a service rendered to who gives up or relinquishes ownership.
 

There seem to be places in the world that belong to no one or to everyone. Can one simply take possession of them?

Here, too, there is an obligation, if not a legal one, then a moral one, as to how one deals with these things that have not been acquired through one’s own actions.
 
Ownership always entails responsibility. An possessor is more of a user.

The possessor of a pub can move after water damage, the owner (of the house) has to renovate it or is left with the depreciation.

Those who simply take possession of something often have a temporary attitude towards it, be it a space that can be used for this or that project, then move on.
 
If there is no ownership, only possession, who actually provides the infrastructure?  Without responsible owners, most owners probably have no impulse to do much about what they don’t own. Ownership may sometimes bring wealth, but it always brings responsibility.
As an owner, I must also protect others from harm caused by my property. As the possessor, I can always say that it doesn’t belong to me. And move on.

That may sound tempting, but it doesn’t work, as Kant explained early on with the Categorical Imperative, Basically, he says, do not do to others what you would not want have done
to yourself. Kant phrases it Act in such a way that the maxim of your actions can become
the maxim of all.

The legal right of possession, i.e. ownership, is the foundation of a protective society.

Where the law counts for nothing and pure possession prevails, the law of the strongest prevails. Admittedly, this is often the case even in today’s society, which is generally considered to be based on the rule of law. Disappointed owners also blow this horn and say, for example, that their property does not belong to them even after full payment, as they would be
expropriated if they did not pay their taxes. However, it is part of the social contract that the state, as the representative of all citizens, has a monopoly on the use of force, ideally protects the weak members of this group of people and needs an infrastructure to do so. The owner has also agreed to this approach, if not individually, then through the normative power of the factual. There are high hurdles to expropriation and even an unwanted visit to your home only has to be endured in the event of imminent danger or by court order.
 
So a protected life for the wast majority of people needs rules that have to be obeyed. Does not sound appealing to people who do not like rules, I know. A plausible explanation for why so many people think that the world would be a better place when rules fade, is the desire for individual freedom, which stems from the desire of the individual to be seen and
perceived as something special. He, the individual, is entitled to this, from birth and without further action.

That is a nice idea, but it ends with the question of who produced or paid for the one thing that would like to be taken possession of.  In a world of people who collectively take possession of everything they want without paying for it properly, no one will want to produce anything.

Money is often seen as something diabolical, base and evil, but there is no better medium of exchange. The German TV entertainer Harald Schmidt, who is known for his rather cynical sense of humor, answered the question from Sarah Wagenknecht, a German communist politician, as to what he thought was good about capitalism, by saying that his way of life was good. And he didn’t mean it as humorously as usual.
It is to admit  that  we are now experiencing the final phase of an exuberant, rampant turbo-capitalism in the western world that is no longer based on any (f)actual performance and are therefore facing an unprecedented devaluation of money,
 
This  statement aligns well with G Edward Griffins famous book The Creature from Jekyll Island. The Federal Reserve Bank, through its capacity to create money from nothing, Griffin argues, is not only incapable of achieving its stated objectives, but instead creates economic instability,
encourages war, and ultimately acts as an instrument of totalitarianism. To say the least that might be the real reason of the instabilities that we witness worldwide now.
Nevertheless, Money and capitalism, even if in a bad state right now, are still the most successful systems to date when it comes to combating poverty, disease and other challenges facing humanity.

Anyone who doesn’t even want that and advocates genuine freedom from domination is by definition an anarchist. Anarchy is not the chaos of some punk (incidentally, the punk is the most blatantly individualized single phenomenon that nevertheless looks the same everywhere in the world), anarchy is the absence of domination. In most cases, however, it also means
the absence of security; at the very least, the law of the jungle, meaning, the strongest wins, quickly comes into play here too.

I came across an essay entitled The chasm by G. Edward Griffin. Griffin, the mentioned author of the world-famous book The Creature from Jekyll Island,describes in the Essay The Chasm how two social systems are at war: collectivism and individualism.
 
Collectivism plays a crucial role here. State leaders, political actors, NGOs, and other influential groups claim that the stated goals serve a higher, greater purpose that is very beneficial to the common good. However, with the consent, or the illusion of consent, of a large part of
an organizational group, it is easier to exploit them or rob them of their assets than to argue with individuals who vehemently defend their property or possessions—in this case, the distinction is not so important.

G. Edward Griffin’s essay called The Chasm is free to download here for everyone, and Griffin explains why groups of people and systems of government can be divided into two groups: individualists and collectivists. Griffin’s view is somewhat one-sided on the right-wing conservative side, but the basic observation is correct. In recent decades, we have witnessed both an individualization of the individual, especially in the Western world, and at the same time a collectivization of state and organizational action in the same regions.

Meanwhile, the group setting or dictating the topics doesn’t even seem to be the largest group in society. This is now irritating not only die-hard individualists and lateral thinkers, but also the middle class, which feels at the mercy of the situation but nevertheless doesn’t want to rebel
against the apparent majority.
 
Collectivism plays a decisive role in this. State leaders, political actors, NGOs and other influential groups claim that the stated goals serve a higher, greater purpose that is of great benefit to the general public. But with the consent or the illusion of consent of a large part of an
organizational group, it is easier to exploit or rob them of their assets than to argue with individuals who vehemently defend their property or possessions, in which case the subordination is not so important.

Similar to communist countries, a kind of five-year plan is issued, guidelines for the actions and thoughts that the defined group expects of the individual from now on.

Dissenting opinions are increasingly perceived as disturbing rather than enriching or worthy of consideration, and are often waved away, not listened to and often censored. Struggles to reverse this movement appear to be underway in America, but there have always been only two political currents there, which essentially cements the division in society. Many
areas, such as alternative medicine or alternative lifestyles, are censored and blocked even in free America.
 
The way out is through personal responsibility, which in the best sense always means taking responsibility not only for one’s own well-being, but also for one’s actions, which means that I have an interest in not harming others so that I don’t have to take responsibility for this harm.
 
Earned Trust and responsible ownership are part of the process.
 
Perhaps humanity is already ready to live in peaceful anarchy, to live independently and thus with consideration for others. Maybe it just seems as if we need all the rules and infrastructure, the future will tell.

(Welcome) guest author Andreas wrote this article. If you would also like to publish a guest post—perhaps as a response to an article here—please contact the editorial team.

Just for You!

Allgemein, CASAdelDRAGON, HU Cervera del Maestre, sculpture garden
buenavista cervera cologne - cathedral - bench communication
buenavista cervera cologne – cathedral – bench communication

This is an article just for you. Yes. It’s published here on the Familiafeliz community website. This website is accessed from time to time by many friends. We keep them up to date on current developments and projects. Thus, most articles, written and edited by one or a few, are aimed at the many out there who use the media to learn about what’s happening here.

But this article is only aimed at one person. So, it may be that you are that person, but it would also not be unlikely if you were not the recipient of this message. What would then be a good reason to continue reading? A good reason might be to continue reading to find out if you could be the person addressed here. And if, at the end, you think you aren’t, to ask yourself why not.

When we founded the Familiafeliz community many years ago, we wanted to bring to life an idea of how people could organize themselves beyond economics, without hierarchies, without power constellations, without profit-taking, without fear.

We wanted to establish a holistic, open idea that would find its own way through people’s minds and hearts.

Above all, we also wanted to create a community characterized by the fact that the places (of this community) woo people, and not the other way around.

Historically, our community grew out of the experience of a temporary international community whose goal was to rebuild CASAdelDRAGON. And life in this temporary community—usually around Easter and for 1-2 months in the summer of each year—was strongly influenced by the life partnership of two founding members.

buenavista cervera cologne - cathedral - bench alter ego
buenavista cervera cologne – cathedral – bench alter ego

Along the way, there were far fewer decisions to be made than one would like to claim in retrospect. The ego wants recognition, but in doing so, it often obscures the fact that success is always something for the many, and rarely something for the individual.

And success is always about timing. Sometimes it was right, but often it wasn’t. In retrospect, it’s always easy to find a common thread running through a story. Then everything makes sense. Anecdotes follow one another in an entertaining way, and in the end, everyone comes to the conclusion that – in this case – things couldn’t have turned out any other way.

It’s not just the temporary victors who practice falsifying history; people as a whole also tend to repeatedly tell history in such a way that they come out looking good, and that they couldn’t have acted any differently and thus essentially did the best they could.

It’s more likely, however, that everyone involved would have told this story differently, had they only been willing to publish their perspective here. They were always and still are invited to do so. While some viewed this platform as a news blog for a decentralized community, it is much more a document of the Zeitgeist, which manifests itself in the sum of subjective views, when they are published.

There we have it again, the difference between public opinion and publicly published opinion. Only in this case, it’s up to the actors and auditors themselves to decide whether they want to publish something.

This article is about the words trust and confidence, and about the words property and ownership. And it’s about what connects these two pairs of words.

Many people use the word trust very often. They usually also express appreciation. This appreciation also signals openness, a willingness to disarm, a willingness to abandon lines of resistance in order to be more receptive to the social, human, and interpersonal. I have the impression that this trust is mentioned and named, but that there is always a fear or anxiety about possible misuse, and that the person in whom the trust is placed is being granted an advance. This word thus extends into the realm of expectations.

Expectations are describable notions of expected behavior, in light of one’s own prior commitment.

buenavista cervera cologne - cathedral - bench shopping tour
buenavista cervera cologne – cathedral – bench shopping tour

I consciously tend to use the word confidence in my communication. I often receive special attention during conversations. Especially people who like to trust are irritated by the use of this other word. I like to use this attention to emphasize the essential difference for me and then explain why I prefer this word much better at this point in the communication.

Like trust, confidence is a mental concept that simulates the future. With trust, its occurrence is not only expected; it is practically morally required. Failure to fulfill it is often described as a breach of trust. After one’s initial effort, the expected result must occur; otherwise, one has been betrayed, is the often-argued argument. People who often use trust explicitly have also often been disappointed. Thus, the mental reward system pre-programmed the release of endophene even when disappointment occurs again. Then it happens again, and the victim remains comfortably in their comfort zone.

Confidence as a co-player—not as an adversary—releases the person so described into a freedom of action. When I trust someone to do something, I am only describing my simulation of their ability, but I am not saying anything about whether the application of that ability—which is positive for me—will then occur in the future.

I trust you to make me happy. That is a gift without a double bottom. It is not a Trojan horse as a vehicle for my wishes and desires. It does not restrict. It leaves the future open, for both. The person addressed in this way is capable of behaving exactly as he or she wishes or differently. They remain free in their reactions. I myself do not create expectations that, on the one hand, cast a veil over the reality of the reaction of the person so addressed, as I observe it; on the other hand, I remain open to neutrally observe and accept the predictable consequences of the other person’s reaction. I relieve the other person of burdens, and I relieve myself of burdens, when I communicate confidence instead of trust.

The tiger in the Savannah owns the hunted game. It drags it back to the tribe, takes its share, and leaves the rest to the clan, especially its close relatives. It marks the territory in which it currently resides. It claims the portion of the prey it consumes as its own property.

Early humans also knew something like possession. The voluntary, consensual or non-consensual claim to immediate, autonomous, and unrestricted use.

buenavista cervera cologne - cathedral - bench blooming landscape
buenavista cervera cologne – cathedral – bench blooming landscape

How the word “property” may have found its way into human thought structures is not so easy to discern. It appears to be an intermediate level, intentionally inserted between natural law and the moral idea of taking possession as a socially accepted act within the clan and community. This begs the question: by whom? Was it the chief, who, via the detour of religion and his authority to explain, interpret, and apply it based on religion, who created the idea that there was something more fundamental than ownership? And if so, what was his intention?

If property, as stated in the law, obligates and grants in return the sovereignty to temporarily lend one’s possessions – often in exchange – it declares a levy to the owner as legitimate. This explains why the introduction of the concept of property had value for a small segment of a community that, as stewards of the greater good, felt called upon to allocate or even withdraw this property.

Property as an idea is therefore an instrument of domination. And it is associated with expectations that it is the owner’s responsibility to fulfill.

In many so-called Western countries, the concepts of possession and ownership are unclearly defined and often confused, not least to obscure the true balance of power. Anyone who loses their home because they don’t pay taxes is probably just an owner, even if they are persuaded that they own it so that they can then be held morally responsible.

In international law, a state is considered sovereign if it can declare a state of emergency. In so-called democracies, the people are often referred to as sovereign. In recent years, this has seemed more like a misnomer. In ancient Greece, democracy was the cultural response to the ongoing murders within the ranks of the elite in the struggle for power. Back then, 1% of the population had granted themselves a kind of arena for intellect so as not to constantly be at each other’s throats. 99% of the population, mostly slaves, were never part of this opinion-forming process.

In ancient law, anyone who was allowed to carry weapons in public was free.

A true owner can be assumed if their availability is considered unrestricted, their destruction is permitted, and their continued use requires neither an explanation nor justification, nor a tax payment.

Squatting is thus a second-order seizure, since even the so-called owner is in reality merely a possessor who loses the property if they fail to pay taxes. In this way, only the state is actually the owner, and as an immature lackey, a guardian is required, which the respective elite is happy to provide.

In the tension between possession and ownership, just as with the concept of trust, expectations operate. The notarized transfer of ownership expects tax payment and the maintenance and preservation of a temporary right granted to the public (which generally also secures the right of first refusal). The temporary transfer of ownership to the tenant of the property is organized contractually and formulates a host of expectations associated with the transfer. Likewise, the owner expects the owner to maintain the property taken into possession.

Possession as a mental concept can still be imagined without expectations. Ownership, not so much. A child running across a meadow reaches for a flower. Without the concepts of possession and ownership, it grasps and appropriates the flower. Subdue the world as a mandate; know the unexpecting taking of possession, but not ownership.

buenavista cervera cologne - cathedral - bench silkroad
buenavista cervera cologne – cathedral – bench silkroad

This is not a call to violence. This is not a critique of capitalism. This is not a fact-checked narrative for or against anything. It’s nothing more—but also nothing less—than a mind game about the dominance of thought concepts in our heads, the consequences for their creators, for their carriers, and for the target audience, who—reflectively or not—adopt it and pass it on as a meme to future generations.

The thesis is bold. What would it be like in a world where trust is rejected and confidence prevails, where property as a concept is discarded and possession takes its place, accompanied by the moral appreciation of one’s own clan? It would be a better world!

But, and this is where things come to a full circle for you. Would it be your world?

… read also the reply to this article from Andreas here.

Community for dummies – Update

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WE DID IT!!

The 5 of us, standing in front of our new home in Spain

But let me rewind a bit so you get the whole story. If you have read my previous blog posts, you may know that we, as a family of 5, are looking for a new life. Preferably outside the 9-5 matrix as much as possible. Last year (2024) in February we came to FamiliaFeliz for the first time to see if a community life in Spain would be something for us (read about our journey here). Now, a year later, we have just returned from our 5th visit to Spain and we returned as homeowners!

This time we went to Spain to buy our house. After the summer, back in Belgium, we thought carefully about what we wanted. The house in Cervera that we were interested in turned out to be sold. And there was no other house in Cervera that matched our wishes (and budget). In the end we came to the conclusion that we wanted to move to Spain. And if not in Cervera, than we could also broaden the radius in which we were looking for a house. So that’s what we did. In November we flew to Spain for a few days to visit a number of houses. And this was when we found it, our home. It is located 25 minutes drive from Cervera in the lovely village of Rossell.

We bought an old house that the previous owners had already started renovating but were far from finished. The advantage of this is that the house is now technically habitable. It has a new roof, new terraces, a bathroom and a kitchen. On the other hand, we still have to do some work with the electrics, a beam or 2 in the ceiling of the ground floor and a lot of finishing touches.

One of the nice things about buying a house in Spain is that you often buy the house with all the furniture still there. We have already found some hidden treasures including an old wood stove, a small old bible, 2 cupboards with small drawers and a cement mixer 😉

There is stil A LOT of work to be done but this house has such a lot of potential and it is still a blanc canvas we can make into our dream home.

How we will be part of FamiliaFeliz from this distance, that will be elaborated in the future. We are at least close, I mean, half an hour drive vs 16 hours is an improvement anyway. So, the first step towards our new future has been taken. It was the most important, but certainly not the biggest step. Now we will gradually make the transition from Belgium to Spain. And that, that is going to be the biggest step. Everything is going to change. The simple things like where do you do your shopping and what time do we eat? The way we spend our time. We are half an hour from the beach and half an hour from a nature park. But also, where will our income come from? Can my husband continue his job part-time as a freelancer or will we have to find something else in Spain. In addition, we have to figure out so much. How do we move our stuff? How do you renovate a house? How do we arrange insurance? Can we rent a piece of land nearby? What are the customs of the country and the village? AND, of course, we also have to master the language. We practice every day, but it’s not going that fast. I think we’ll practice a bit more fanatically in the coming weeks so that in about 10 weeks, when we return to Spain, we’ll be able to express ourselves better in Spanish. A conversation with our new neighbours is still quite a lot of hands and feet. It would be nice if we could have a conversation with them without too much effort.

Ultimately, we want to spend as much time as possible in Spain during the holidays for the next year and a half, so that we can actually move in the summer of 2026. For our children, this means that they can quietly say goodbye to their familiar life here while they can slowly build a life in Spain. We hope to make our house more and more a home with every visit, so that the transition for them, but also for us, will be as gradual as possible.

Still… I actually want to go back now and get started. So I’m curious how much patience it will require from us. Plans are there to be changed, so who knows… 🙂

Game B – the infinite game of life

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game b - the infinite game of life - finca vericuta
game b – the infinite game of life – finca vericuta

What makes us different? Well, I wrote this text. You read it. I have control over the content, you have control over the interpretation. I limit it to what is written, you expand it to include what you think about it.

I broadcast. You open the dialogue.

What unites us? We use public space. We seek proximity to others. We use the medium. Communication is our tool. I was free to carry on writing, you are free to carry on reading.

Given the censorship, manipulation and experience with media, it is not easy to assess. Can I attribute relevance? Who benefits from accepting this information? One question unites us, especially now. I do not want to guess your answer to that. “What does that have to do with me?” We both know our answers to that.

In some circles, Game A and Game B have been discussed for some time. Even if no one has the authority to interpret the word, there seems to be a general consensus that Game A is intended to describe the classic games that people play for power, influence, reputation, resources and dominance of opinion. Game A is a collective term for the old, classic and for the one that needs to be overcome. Game A has weaknesses, the players suffer or at least some are left behind. There are few winners and many losers. Game A describes the group of classic games.

Game B is the presumed innovation. It defines itself more by “not being like Game A” than by concrete attributions. Game B is a myth of the better, the different, and generates new word creations because its scope reaches the limits of what has been conceptualized up to now. For some, Game B is a projection, for others simply a new field to play. It assumes the influence of the game on the player. Game B does not exclude. Game B is open.

In game theory, a distinction is made between finite games (the match, the competition) and infinite games (life). Game A is the collective term for finite games, and more specifically for players who want to maximize their success in finite games in a profit-oriented manner. It is part of the demagogy to describe games as finite and to derive rights (profit-taking) from this. In the world of Game A there are losers because they believe in the comprehensiveness of the game. The social relevance is derived from the decision trees that players go through in supposed Game A games. At a certain point, so-called fair competition turns into antisocial behavior. The boundaries in the evaluation are fluid. They are set by moral concepts.

The protagonists, who think aloud about Game B and are recognized as pioneers in a good cause, now ask themselves what happens to players who realize that they have been deceived about the finiteness of their game. What does it do to players when a game has to be viewed as infinite? How does the strategy change? Is something like strategy even a meaningful term anymore?

game b - the infinite game of life - sculpture from Nora Valdez in the art camp CASAdelDRAGON
game b – the infinite game of life – sculpture from Nora Valdez in the art camp CASAdelDRAGON

In the age of post-factual, the committed discourse on the matter has lost ground and the morally charged value judgments simplify communication. For the delegations negotiating the Peace of Westphalia in Osnabrück (October 1648), it was clear that only those who were willing to engage in purely factual arguments in politics, beyond religious or moral categories and value judgments, would be granted access to the negotiations.

Games in the Game A category are often accompanied by dogmas, fixed rules and sanctions. The idea behind the dogmas is the attempt to optimize something that cannot be optimized. A dogma can only make sense if one assumes finiteness and there is no further after the balance sheet. If you are in an infinite game, you cannot estimate which assumptions will prove to be sensible in the future. You do not know the future.

Along with the fragmentation of society, there was also the isolation of people themselves. The counter-movement was foreseeable. Where the extended family continued to fall apart, a gap opened up. Some people set out to fill this gap and founded communities.

But even beyond the often desired exclusion, there are differences. People are not the same. And so there are the pioneers who go ahead and build the foundations where there is no house yet, but who can already see the house in their mind’s eye. The others wait and see. They can’t quite imagine it. They can use it better than the builders, but they just can’t build it.

These generations arrive one after the other in one place and sustainable communities emerge. If the first generation is not followed by a second, the prospects are not so good. Europe is littered with new and sometimes very innovative community projects. Most hope for growth and their hopes are in vain. This may be partly due to external circumstances, but often it is also due to the founders.

If they have understood the founding of a community as a finite game, they end up in the background. The word founding is borrowed from the world of Game A. It almost suggests that this founding phase will soon be over. Then growth and dynamism are the order of the day, followed by consolidation. Unfortunately, the period of decadence at the end paves the way for the decline that is necessary in order to be able to redistribute resources.

What would a community based on the idea of ​​Game B look like? Would one even be able to recognize a founding phase? Or would all phases not be present equally and at all times? Would such a community even be a community in the sense of Game A? What strategies would the members of the Game B community use if they even thought in these categories?

game b - the infinite game of life - social sculpture from Juan Petry at the beach of Vinaros Spain
game b – the infinite game of life – social sculpture from Juan Petry at the beach of Vinaros Spain

Anyone who draws up a will has recognized their own finiteness and also that it is a subjective personal finiteness, but not that of the game. So the game is not finite, but the player is.

In many wills, there is a hint of the hubris of wanting to regulate things after one’s death. It is somehow reassuring, and yet I still find it strange to want to subject fellow human beings in the future to my present will.

What kind of community would that be that sees itself as a player in an infinite game? Would that be a kind of “IG Farben” in the social sphere?

Or would such a community be understood more as a form of Game B, and its members would be temporary players.

A peace researcher had established the term “human family”. This includes everyone, even those who did not want to subscribe to this term. In that sense, Familiafeliz is just another name for this holistic view of potential members. Anyone who accepts their humanity, anyone who declares themselves to be part of the community, gains access, free from hierarchies and conditions.

The desired distance from the presumed core of the community remains an individual characteristic of the member. Turning towards this imaginary center is already a movement.

An entity in Game B cannot have a goal in the true sense of the word, or at most temporary goals, milestones. These are supported and promoted by those present.

game b - the infinite game of life - beach at vinaros - Spain
game b – the infinite game of life – beach at vinaros – Spain

What of that? What did I do yesterday do me good? What can I do today based on the knowledge of the answer? What can I prepare for tomorrow? If I see the other players as fellow players and not as opponents, what can I improve about the whole situation by giving gifts without intention? Or to put it another way: “What does that have to do with me?”

buenavistacervera – aftermath

Allgemein

Update 2025-01-16

Today the benches were handed over to the village. They will initially be kept in the community warehouse. The mayor suggested finding a suitable setting in which the benches could be presented to the public and then inaugurated in special locations.

Meanwhile, the completion of the remaining pieces of work continues.

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - cervera by night
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – cervera by night

As is often the case in January, the setting sun bathes the landscape in a warm sunset glow. This too is #BUENAVISTACERVERA.

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - banco de verdad lift-up
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – banco de verdad lift-up

The Banco de Verdad hangs on a hook and hovers over Calle Las Parras.

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - banco de verdad - on the way to the storage 3
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – banco de verdad – on the way to the storage 3

The Banco de verdad is on its way to the municipality’s warehouse. As soon as we know the date of the official inauguration of the benches, we will publish it on the website.

…

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - 01
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – 01

over 20 people
over 300 hours of work
over 3000 screws


as a sign of friendship, love and happiness for the residents of this beautiful village
Happy New Year

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - 02
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – 02

At the end we also collected the bad pallet wood and made firewood out of it. The nails are sifted out of the ashes and taken to the scrap dealer.

We will rework some of the nails and use them for a work of art.

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - 03
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – 03

We have not yet been able to process all of the subframes. Today, Tuesday, after the workshop, we were able to complete the shell of another bench. This bench will have a connection to Saxony-Anhalt, the partner region of the Pais Valenciano.

buenavistacervera-workshop - aftermath - 04
buenavistacervera-workshop – aftermath – 04

The finished benches are waiting in Calle Las Parras to be transported to the place where they will be handed over to the municipality. The St. Antonie festival was cancelled due to strong winds and will be rescheduled at short notice. The new branch of the MUARCO museum is ready. We don’t yet know where the municipality will put it. We will report back.

Timeline Day 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | aftermath

buenavistacervera – day 09

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buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - During the workshop, every room in the CasadelDragon becomes a workshop
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – During the workshop, every room in the CasadelDragon becomes a workshop

For the duration of the workshop, several workstations had to be improvised. We used all the terraces, as well as parts of the gallery and the living room of CASAdelDRAGON.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - We use the mother tongue to address the children
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – We use the mother tongue to address the children

In order to make it easier to address the children of the village, we decided to speak to them in their native language, Valenciano, at some of the benches.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - the LED - Laser helps a lot
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – the LED – Laser helps a lot

The LED laser worked for more than 50 hours to produce all the signs and lettering.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - the head of the horse
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – the head of the horse

Dirk is working on attaching the horse’s head.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - SPAX - a constant companion
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – SPAX – a constant companion

SPAX screws have accompanied us in this project from the very beginning.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - children's chairs
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – children’s chairs

A total of 6 child seats were produced. These will be handed over to the municipality of Cervera del Maestre tomorrow, together with the benches.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - Francesca works into the night
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – Francesca works into the night

As always, shortly before the event, everyone works late into the night. “The last few hours before an event seem like an explosion in slow motion, only backwards. Until shortly before, it looks very chaotic, then at the end all the pieces fall into place in an orderly fashion. The guest enjoys the perfect event, and the people behind the stage smile knowingly.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 - The bench of Truth
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-09 – The bench of Truth

What remains is the beauty of the moment. What we all experienced together in this workshop cannot be described. These articles here in the blog are also just a small excerpt of what happened.

Tomorrow we will hand over the social sculptures as a result of this workshop to the municipality of Cervera del Maestre. We are delighted. And we can only thank all the people who made this project possible.

#BUENAVISTACERVERA is a hashtag. But it is also a digital anchor that will remind us of a unique experience in January 2025 in a beautiful place in the mountains of the Maestrazgo.

What can people move when they are moved? Art creates space, builds bridges, brings people together, draws attention to the good and the beautiful.

We thank the residents of this wonderful place for allowing us to live here together. And as a sign of gratitude, we hand over these benches to you, on which we will enjoy this wonderful view together: Happy New Year! Feliç any nou a tots els cerverins!

Timeline Day 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | aftermath

buenavistacervera – day 08

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buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - impregnations without end - make it black today
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – impregnations without end – make it black today

The eighth day of the workshop was attended by Jess and Maria-Isabel. Jess devoted the entire day to painting the benches. We had set this day as the last day to be used for waterproofing. The last ninth day was to be reserved exclusively for remaining work and improvements to the finished objects.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - impregnations without end - make it black today
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – impregnations without end – make it black today

The children’s stools assembled the day before could also be waterproofed.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - impregnations without end - make it black today
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – impregnations without end – make it black today

Jess continued working tirelessly on the benches all day.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - impregnations without end - make it black today
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – impregnations without end – make it black today

The impregnation is always carried out after the boards for the seats have been dismantled. This prevents the dark impregnation from seeping into the mostly untreated wood of the seats.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - impregnations without end - make it black today
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – impregnations without end – make it black today

The MUARCO bench has a seating surface and a flap to protect the works of art in the exhibition space.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - building a drawer - second attempt
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – building a drawer – second attempt

Marie-Isabel is working on her fossil swap bench and adjusting the newly designed drawer.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 - impregnations without end - make it black today
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-08 – impregnations without end – make it black today

In the foreground is Tina and Dirk’s special bench. Without the boards for the seats, it looks almost like a “normal bench”. Tomorrow this secret will be revealed.

Timeline Day 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | aftermath

buenavistacervera – day 07

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buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - Sanding and polishing seat surfaces with the flex
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – Sanding and polishing seat surfaces with the flex

The seats for the benches are sanded and polished. At the same time, sharp edges and splinters are removed. The edges are slightly rounded so that users are not at risk of injuring themselves on chips later.
We use special discs for the angle grinder. The discs are actually intended for metalworking, but they allow us to use the wide pallet wood for longer and – particularly important – they tolerate individual nails or screws that stick out and are then sanded down at the same time.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - construction of a special drawer
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – construction of a special drawer

Marie-Isabel is building a special bank for exchanging fossils – which can be found in many places in the fields here in the Cervera del Maestre area. The archaeologist will also offer rare semi-precious stones for exchange in the bench.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - a special surface design
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – a special surface design

Another bench is prepared for painting. The seating area has already been pre-sorted.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - another special surface design
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – another special surface design

The MUARCO art project is also getting a bench. The new branch will serve the purpose of exchange, just like the wooden box that was inaugurated on January 1, 2025. This branch is already enjoying interested and committed visitors.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - seats for the kids - polished top surfaces
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – seats for the kids – polished top surfaces

There will be special seating for the children. The cubes were made from small special pallets. Today they were cleaned and sharp edges were rounded off with an angle grinder. In the next step, the substructures will be impregnated and the seats will be painted with clear varnish.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - sanding a special toy for the kids
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – sanding a special toy for the kids

Dirk is working on a special children’s toy.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - sanding a box
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – sanding a box

Marie-Isabel makes compartments in the drawer.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - the toy - bench - surprise - surprise
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – the toy – bench – surprise – surprise

The casino has been sanded and is being prepared for painting.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - the next bank ready to paint
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – the next bank ready to paint

Another bench gets its design.

buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 - part of the toy bench
buenavistacervera-workshop-day-07 – part of the toy bench

This piece of equipment will later be mounted on the toy bench, any idea what it could be?

Timeline Day 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | aftermath