chbare Posted January 16, 2012 Posted January 16, 2012 Yeah. At the end of the day, we are talking about Dwayne setting up his own living situation and not fundamentally changing society. It is important to make that differentiation.
Just Plain Ruff Posted January 16, 2012 Posted January 16, 2012 I too am not too keen on communal living. I dont' do well with Roommates. Hell having a wife and 3 kids is hard enough. Put in a bunch of other people who I may or may not like that's a recipe for disaster in my books.
DFIB Posted January 16, 2012 Posted January 16, 2012 (edited) Thanks chbare, I do get off the reservation a little when attempting humor or messing with Dwayne. The need to be precise and accurate is understood and the reminder well taken. Although “blending in” or imitation of certain cultural behavior is indeed a self preservation technique I also think that it is a necessary exercise to properly understand and possibly study, either in a structured or informal study, the practices of a culture in the terms of their own culture. This in some measure might reduce the limitations placed on us by the morays of our own culture as well as keep us safer while living among a different culture group. Who knows, the next time we hear of Dwayne he might be wearing a loin cloth and advocating nose bones. EDITED; To insert second paragraph. Edited January 16, 2012 by DFIB
akflightmedic Posted January 16, 2012 Posted January 16, 2012 Who knows, the next time we hear of Dwayne he might be wearing a loin cloth and advocating nose bones. He already went thru that phase and I unfortunately had to witeness it....
Just Plain Ruff Posted January 16, 2012 Posted January 16, 2012 He already went thru that phase and I unfortunately had to witeness it.... I can imagine you were scarred for life for that one. How's the therapy goin?
DwayneEMTP Posted January 17, 2012 Author Posted January 17, 2012 Millions of comedians out of work and y'all are trying to be funny.... Yeah, though I get the comments, and agree with the effects that selctiveness can have on society, I'm not really looking to create people, only to live near people that are interested in living physically differently. I know many people like myself that, having entered the latter part of their lives have begun to look at things new again, to become interested not just in the location of people, but in sharing their positive energy, trying to become more than we've become so far. Yeti and I give each other shit, but he's seen me at a time when I was perhaps the most lost that I'd been as an adult...and I was an asshole, yet we're friends still. I would gladly live somewhere where I saw him every day. We've had problems, a few times they were kinda ugly, but we worked through them as we shared a common goal, to continue to be friends. This is partially in answer to Wendy regarding problem resolution. I'm not sure why colony problem resolution would be different than other human problem solving techniques at parties, or work? Some people will be a good fit and stay as long as they choose, others not, and will have to either be convinced, or forced to move on. Just like the rest of real life I think. I started down this path thinking of communal money as well, but now wonder if it maybe makes more sense to simply place a value on the place in the colony and have each person responsible for creating that value of themselves each month, as DEFIB suggested. Whether paying it in cash, or providing it in services....Man, I just don't know. To Mike, I think that almost everyone has an issue with communal living in theory, but I think that the reality is much richer. I've been gifted with a career that causes me to spend half of my life living communally, and there are certainly benefits that I don't get at home. (And some really fucking vital ones that I don't get at work!) In fact If I could have taken Babs and Dylan to Mongolia I would have happily worked a year at a time and have been confident that they would have simply been absorbed and welcomed into the culture the same as I was. And c'mon, lets be real, if I can fit into a place, love and be loved, then there is hope for anybody. I miss eating each meal at a table with 15 or so other people, laughing and joking, and sharing food, and the end of the day when everyone would go to a big shed and play full contact ping pong until we just couldn't breath for laughing and sweating. Or sitting in the clinic after it closed at night and have a half dozen of my friends come and visit with some suspicious clear liquid in a Mason jar. We didn't share a language, but we seemed to share a common energy...though I've no idea what form that energy comes in. I never got tired of it, not there, nor in Afg despite having to work with some complete douches there. But more than anything, believe it or not, I miss the peace of mind. There was almost no way to fail in that environment as I was constantly surrounded by at least several people that really wanted to see me succeed. Both as a medic, and employee, and a man. It was very liberating to be able to fly off in any creative direction that I chose without ANY fear because really kind smart people were helping to chart my path, and would appreciate the lessons learned either in success or failure. I remember when I was becoming a basic and became inspired by the good medic teachers of in our class. I thought, "Man, how cool would it be to call them my peers? How amazing to work with them everyday, to learn from them, but also be guided by them, to earn their respect?" Unfortunatley most often I've been disappointed, but the providers that I've come to love and respect, both here and in my real life, have paid that bill...and I continue to be in awe of them. That is who I want to spend my days with now, instead of just a few hours now and then. See....easy! In fact I look at those participating in this thread and am in awe of your kindness of particiapting. I also know that though I wouldn't want to share a room with you, I'd be glad to share a hotel, and your energy, most every day. Dwayne
island emt Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Dwayne: I get where your head is on this notion of brotherhood/sisterhood. Like you , I've had a chance to travel to various parts of the world on the job thanks to uncle sam, and have the opportunity to travel on the job all over this country and most of Canada. We are still close friends with people we were stationed with in Western Australia in the mid 70's at a place, where the next town was 250 km away down a dirt track. We grew into adulthood there in a small close knit group of people. I worked with some really incredible folks along the way and met some blatant assholes at the same time. There are many of these folks over the past 40+ years that I could get along with as neighbors, if I wanted to live in a close contact environment. However as I age through my mid fifties, My wife of 37 years is all the more special and I just want to get away from the rat race and spend time walking down a quite dirt road together and not hearing anything but peace & quiet. Sitting on a rock in the middle of the woods and hearing the wind blow through the tree tops and the birds chirping is such a pleasant sound. May you find whatever it is that will let you find peace and happiness along with satisfaction of a job well done, while at the same time allow you to be home with Babs & Dylan. Don't let their lives pass you by! Peace Brother! By the way if your travel arrangements allow it make a stopover in Christchurch NZ. Incredible city, beautiful country. 1
DFIB Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Millions of comedians out of work and y'all are trying to be funny.... Those other guys should stop by the City, we can give them pointers.
chbare Posted January 17, 2012 Posted January 17, 2012 Dwayne, I am actually not being funny with any of my comments.
DwayneEMTP Posted January 17, 2012 Author Posted January 17, 2012 Nah, Chris, I got that. And I'm grateful for your comments.
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