Here’s a short video of an “eco-village” that was defined as being “somewhere around Asheville”.

What is going on?  All these little shacks right next to each other….what’s up with that?  I remember seeing videos of field worker’s shacks on the sugar cane plantations that looked more inviting than these.  Are they for the commune members? For the eco-tourists who are sure to flock to this new utopia? I can’t figure it out.

There’s more to the village than these little shacks, but….

what’s up with all of this?

Here’s another video that I found after doing some more “Tubing”….

I have neighbors who quietly have been doing what these people are talking about doing….and they’ve been doing it for years.  They don’t live in yurts…they live in trailers and old houses (houses that were small out of economic necessity and because they could heat them…not small because of some “tiny home” trend).  They grew their own food because they needed to eat. If they grew organically it was because they couldn’t afford chemical fertilizer.

Here’s another video…looks like another tour of what’s going on up in Candler, NC….just outside of Asheville.  That’s where the retreat is located.

I used to be really into communes and alternative ways of living.

Now that I’m a parent I just want my kids to get a decent job that they can live with….and to have a good life.  Big adventure is great…but lets start with the basics, get that aspect covered, and then move into the big adventure.

I guess that’s what “maturity” does for you…turns you into the person on the other side of the conversation when your child is excited about going to live with the hippies on the mountain, the one who says “I don’t think that’s such a good idea…do your own thing, don’t align yourself with a commune…”

I shouldn’t criticize these guys.  They’re actually doing something up there…it’s just kind of weird to hear all the “touchy feely” philosophizing and crystal worshipping strangeness of living on the land while figuring out where to plop down and have a yoga session.

It’s just strange to me.

The thing that makes Asheville cool is the same stuff that makes it kind of weird….so I guess I shouldn’t complain about any of it. Western North Carolina’s a good place to live…I just like my space to be my own….no communes for me right now.

Here a link to their website…sacredmountainsanctuary.org