Our Commune Idea

[Seshat]

From my perspective from where I work, I don't mind people who aren't able to work as hard, as long as they can contribute in some way. For me it's those who won't contribute.

Agreed in principle: but in practice, the community will have to budget for caring for both the short-term disabled and the long-term disabled.

Many disabled (short or long term) can supervise children, teach the skills they have (to both children and adults), do small amounts of physical labour/do large amounts if given appropriate equipment, and/or retrain to some other skill.

That said, some simply cannot. Or your best harvester might have a nasty accident right at the start of harvest season.

All I can advise here is: budget for it. Allow for rearranging personnel, allow for retraining people, decide what conditions you will have for allowing disabled people to join your commune ('willing to contribute' is a good one), and decide what you will do when, not if, someone already in your commune becomes disabled.

Little ray of sunshine, aren't I?

[Rapscallion]

Little ray of sunshine, aren't I?

I prefer the term 'sensible', or maybe 'experienced'.

Rapscallion

[Seshat]

Let's go with both, shall we?

Build in your disability accomodation right away. It's a hell of a lot cheaper than putting it in later.

Make sure your doorways are wide enough for wheelchairs. Use ramps instead of stairs where practical. Ensure that at least SOME of your housing is single-floor (and that people living in single-floor homes are willing to swap with someone in a two-floor house if that someone becomes wheelchair-dependent).

Use lever taps and lever doorknobs. Ensure that your bathrooms and toilet rooms are designed to enable grip handles to be easily added. Heck, use grip handles for your towel rails, if you can afford it. They can be the same size, and knowing you can grab a towel rail and it WILL take your weight can save even an able-bodied person from a nasty fall.

Hm. Buildings created specifically to be wheelchair accessible tend to have their kitchen sinks and bathroom basins at comfortable wheelchair height, and wheel-in showers, and so forth: those are uncomfortable for most able-bodied people. However, it may be feasible to design your single-floor dwellings to be relatively easily modifiable to that sort of thing.

Your google terms are 'accessibility' and 'independent living'. Also try 'accessible building'. It's up to you how much you want to put in now, and how much you want to wait until it's needed.
I'd suggest building at least one single-floor dwelling to be a 'sick bay' house, and almost fully accessible, if you're going to have a lot of homes. Or perhaps plan to put such a building in, when you have an especially good harvest year.

[Mytical]

If you do build a commune, let me know..might have four who would be interested in joining. Physically only one can do much, but the others do have things to add to a community (all can do small things). One has over 70 years of life experience, and some knowledge of construction. One has years of experience in security, and can help keep people from taking things that they shouldn't be...and makes a good gargoyle. One has 63 years of life experience, and makes a heck of a supervisor (just ask her ). The last though they can not read..is pretty physically healthy.

[LewisLegion]

Well, I am not exactly physically healthy either. I am a big believer that no matter a person's physical ability, there is always SOMETHING they can do.

I know there are a lot of votes for Oregon (and one for Washington?) but sorry, Washington is definately out and Oregon most likely out...that is the climate we are trying to get away from. Southern Oregon MAY be a consideration but most of the people thus far involved in the idea strongly dislike Oregon for several reasons. They may or may not be reasons that can be negotiated if other considerations turn out favorable.

[Mytical]

Utah, Idaho, there are a lot of farm land in those that probably do not cost an arm and a leg.

[Kogarashi]

Utah, Idaho, there are a lot of farm land in those that probably do not cost an arm and a leg.

Ah, but Utah at least is pretty tricky to keep up good farmland without constant irrigation.

[Mytical]

Hmm this looks great, for 33k though. http://www.landandfarm.com/property/...Hunt._-320536/ It is in Utah, not irrigated (which would be a problem), and you might have to talk to the rancher with grazing rights (personally I don't see a problem with them still grazing), but for 151 acre it is a steal.

[Frantic Freddie]

Just thought of something,make sure you have a clear order on who'll get killed & eaten first.

[Jester]

Jester....you just called Fresno and Bakersfield civilization .....I'm so disappointed.

Bite me.

Seriously, though, compared to living out in the sticks, i.e., out of town, they ARE civilization, no matter how uncivilized you may think they are.

Shame on you Jester, didn't you know that Fresno supposedly has the highest percentage of millionaires in it's population of any city its size in the US?

I know jack shit about either city, haven driven through each a total of one time. I was throwing out suggestions only, and I'll be the first to admit that I don't know a damn thing about that area. Nothing. Nada. Squat.

Agreed in principle: but in practice, the community will have to budget for caring for both the short-term disabled and the long-term disabled.

Such a community should have both a slush fund for small emergencies that pop up (Jester's door fell off its hinges, and he needs a new one) as well as a larger emergency fund for more serious things (Rapscallion broke his arm trying to milk the mule, and now he's laid up for weeks). The emergency fund should be something that everyone pays into, both as an initial investment in case anything happens early on, and then continued payments on down the road to keep the emergency fund ready for, well, any emergencies.

[LewisLegion]

Wow, that plot in Utah is gorgeous

[Seshat]

Rapscallion broke his arm trying to milk the mule

If my sig wasn't already full with Important Stuff, I'd ask to use this line as a sig.

[dalesys]

Bite me.

Where? And how hard?

(Rapscallion broke his arm trying to milk the mule, and now he's laid up for weeks).

...to prepare for your fight, the first thing you do is milk your bull...
Maestro, Maestro, you don't milk a bull! You milk a cow.
You fight what you wanna fight...

--- Bill Dana as Jose Jimenez - Bullfighting

[Mytical]

Yes, I loved the Utah plot, and at $219 an acre, makes me wonder what exactly is wrong with it lol. Still it is big enough..151 acres..that is a lot of land.

[Eisa]

Am I the only one who read Jester's post and is now thinking of the Oregon trail game?

"Oh no! Jester got dysentery!" [Sorry Jester... ]