Gateway Bridge to the Land

ATTENTION, PLEASE! 

The reason I need you all to go into the online platform for the land project and at least look at the timeline is because that timeline is the skeleton of this project.  If we don’t stay on task with building the skeleton, we’re going to have broken bones, which are going to cause problems to the rest of the structure.  It can cause us delay, but mostly if we don’t stay on track with building the foundation, we don’t have a project.

1.     GOAL:  Get a work-trade person into the bungalow by mid March 2025.  I need Karen to get me at least three different resources that we can put ads in (preferably free) by the first of January so we can run ads and have two months to find someone.  If we don’t have that person by then, we can’t start building the necessary infrastructure.

2.     GOAL:  Get that survey done!  So far we haven’t succeeded with Google Maps.  We now need Noelani to try to find the pink line on her phone, and it needs to be done this weekend because if we can’t succeed with the app, then we need to move to Plan B, which may need to be to pay someone to do it.  This is imperative NOW!

We all have tasks which require us to stay on track with the Timeline.  If you haven’t already oriented yourselves to the project platform, now is the time.  At the very least, you should know your tasks and when they are due to be completed.  At the very most, I would like all of you to not only be familiar with the information that’s on that platform, but preferably are looking into the future to see what else or what next, or what are we not seeing.  I need more eyes on this project besides just mine!

Here is the message of Radiant Reciprocity that the land bestowed on me.  I wrote this three years ago this September after just moving onto the land. It came through to me as a download and an energy that flows like a figure eight symbol.   Noelani (2021)

~Radiant Reciprocity~

This community is built on the foundational principal and spiritual law of RECIPROCITY. When we give and receive freely and without expectation, there is a natural balance that occurs; homeostasis exists where abundance is shared by all~

'Radiant' represents the members of the community. It's a vibration that we carry, one that reverberates outward and is the origin of the energetic infinity symbol that connects us all and to all that is. Our participation in the community is what keeps the Qi (energy) flowing like a gentle yet powerful stream. Radiant is a verb, an action we do from our hearts by giving and receiving freely—this is our currency~

Radiant Reciprocity is a call to the radiant heart-lead beings of the World: Healers, Lightworkers, and the Way-showers; it's for those who know their super power is their heart and through their heart-healing powers have the innate desire to heal themselves, others, and the World; this community is for anyone who knows at a fundamental level that the current-day Patriarchal value system has become over-developed and toxic to life on our planet; it's for those who desire and choose to cultivate a deep and profound relationship with the Divine Feminine to bring balance back to our Home; this container is for those who desire to restore a harmonious and respectful relationship with our Mother, the Earth; it's for those who try to find peace with the immense value society has placed on the present day monetary systems but who also know at a core level that physical money truly holds no value at all and is one of the primary causes for the division of our humanity; this circle is for those who want to deepen into an even more connected place with their own humanity and who want to experience the power in giving and receiving freely without expectation, trusting that by doing so we receive beyond measure; this container is for those desiring a safe and gentle place to shed their past programing and step courageously into their Divinity; for those sharing their authentic gifts, passion, and medicine with the World with intention to alchemize the vibration of our Planet to a higher frequency; it's for those who are on the continued journey of self-discovery, self-acceptance, healing, and self-actualization; this tribe is for those who value deep connection with Self, others, the Earth, Source, and this benevolent Universe—If this is you on any level, you are Home~

The Intention for Radiant Reciprocity is to hold the vision and the space for a new paradigm to emerge, one that does not value a monetary system that is built on the exploitation of our Planet and our People but through honoring all Earth's integral lifeforms with gratitude, harmony, and reciprocity. As we show up in our humanity, in our light, and in our medicine, we trust that the Universe is blessing us with grace and abundance in every precious moment of Our Life and Mission. Divine Magnetism and Sacred Synchronicities will align us with the exact medicine, message, and next piece of the puzzle that guides us on our evolutionary path to restoring our humanity and our World~

Well, there you have it! Radiant Reciprocity! 

Land Project Timeline: 

2024

November to December:  Karen and Ningay will do research on various subjects.  Ningay will create and post a list in Tasks Section.

November to December:  Noelani and David will work to obtain a useable boundary survey so we can start working on a Land Design Plan by the time Ningay gets to the island.

2025

January to February:  Ningay stays in bungalow while doing the necessary groundwork for project, such as mapping out a design plan for placement of structures, observing water and air flow patterns, shopping for windows and doors for panel houses, getting water tank moved to land, if not done, working on infrastructure design.  Working on getting mosquito enzyme treatment up if not already done.

February:  Karen comes for two weeks to get garden started.  ??

Spring - Summer (maybe longer):  Find a skilled person to live in the bungalow on a work-trade basis, to build outdoor shower, outhouse, outdoor kitchen, water catchment system, set up solar hot water panel, clear bamboo, etc.

June-July-Aug.:  Ningay returns to island for construction of panel houses, and hopefully stays at dad’s when Jaz is off-island.  NOTE:  Assuming Daku has had ample time to recover from his medical procedures and will be in good enough physical shape to supervise the building project.

Timing of Karen’s Monies:  Nov. 2024 – Sept. 2025:  We’ll have the bulk of Auntie Karen’s money to work with; $3,000 Nov. 2024, $1,500 Jan. 2025, $1,500 March, $1,500 May, $1,500 July, $1,000, September, 2025. 

Project Phases, Tasks & Timing: 

Phase I:  Purchasing and transferring panels to the land.  (Completed 8-18-2024)

Phase II:   (To be completed before Xmas 2024)

·       Attain a useable boundary survey for the land:  Google Earth or Kyle??  Create a new plat map or create one on graph paper. 

·       Draw up a rough budget for each phase of the project. 

·       Strategically place Bti enzyme on land to kill mosquito larvae.  (Bti is a soil bacterium that produces protein crystals that are toxic to the larvae of mosquitoes.) 

·       Noelani & Jake will walk land to scope out where structures could be placed and what and where clearing is needed.

Phase III:   (January/February 2025)

·       Create Design Plan for the land (on graph paper) mapping out where all structures will be placed. 

·       Integrate Permaculture principles into all infrastructure, garden, and orchard design. 

·       Prepare the land for building infrastructure; clear bamboo, etc., map out plumbing and electrical lines to overlay onto Design Plan.

Phase IV:   (Spring/Summer 2025)

·       Spring:  Find skilled, dependable work-trade person to come live in the bungalow. 

·       Summer:  Work-trade person to build infrastructure and structures, including toilet house, outdoor shower, water tank and water catchment system, run plumbing and electric, move solar inverter shed if necessary. 

Phase V:     (Summer 2025)

·       Summer:  Construction of Panel house #1.  

·       Deconstruct bungalow and construct Panel house #2 in its place (funds permitting).

Phase VI:  2025    (Fall 2025)

·       Construct new outdoor kitchen (funds permitting). 

·       Reconstruct bungalow for outdoor kitchen or greenhouse.

TO BE ANNOUNCED!

The design plan for the land is in the works.  Timing is February 2025.  First, we need a boundary survey and then we can start mapping out where to place all the structures on the land.

BTI Enzyme:

To get mosquitoes to lay larvae in water buckets with BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis), fill a bucket halfway with water, add a small amount of organic material like grass clippings or straw to attract them, and then place a BTI "mosquito dunk" in the water; the organic matter releases carbon dioxide, drawing mosquitoes to lay eggs, while the BTI kills the hatched larvae once they feed on it, effectively preventing them from maturing into adult mosquitoes. 

Key steps:

• Prepare the bucket: Fill a bucket halfway with water and add a handful of grass clippings, straw, or leaf litter. 

• Add BTI dunk: Place a commercially available BTI "mosquito dunk" in the bucket. 

• Position the bucket: Place the bucket in a shaded area where mosquitoes are likely to congregate. 

Important points to remember:

• BTI is safe for other animals:

BTI is specifically designed to target mosquito larvae and is not harmful to fish, birds, or other beneficial insects. 

• Replace dunks regularly:

As the BTI breaks down, you'll need to replace the dunk every few weeks, depending on the water temperature and mosquito activity. 

• Consider a cover:

To prevent other animals from accessing the water, you can cover the bucket with a fine mesh screen. 

Tiny Home Windows & Doors: 

My biggest personal requirement is that the windows are big enough or we have enough that we don’t feel too closed in when inside.

I put the dimensions on graph paper for us to view.  I think 3x6 windows placed on the shortest walls (15 ft.) look okay.  With that said, I wouldn’t want them to be any smaller.

I’ve attached 4 images for you to look at: (1) Short walls with a 3x6 window on a slanted wall 11 ft. x 7.5 ft.   (2) Front wall 20 x 11 with a French door 6.5 x 6.  (3) Back wall 20 x 7.5 with two windows.  (4) Front wall 20 x 11 with door and window.

What you see would be maximum number of windows and doors, which is probably my ideal, but realistically we probably won’t have this many.  Just wanted to give you a visual so you know what we’d be willing to live with.

As I mentioned, I do want the tiny houses to look as aesthetically pleasing as possible, so the windows need to be the same design so they match and the French doors need to blend well.  That’s really my main requirement.

I think the homes will need to be placed with the high 11 ft. side in front where the French door will be mainly because we’ll want runoff water to drain to the back of the house where there’s a gutter and maybe even barrels for water catchment.  So that probably means gutters on three sides of the home if we don’t want water to fall so close to the structure.

Strong Suggestion:  Don’t place French Doors on west side where the sun sets.  We know how hot it is in the main house because the sliding glass doors are right where the afternoon sun beats in.

Noelani, you can stand in your living area in the main house, which is probably about 300 sq.ft. and notice how much window space you have to let light in and breeze in.  You have a lot, and I think we would want that, too, in the tiny homes.  Honestly, I don’t want to have to rely on A/C year round, just summer only.  I’m thinking more windows, more breeze, but…

Composting Toilets Research: (By Ningay)  10-25-24 

In my research, I have found that even when you remove the waste from a composting toilet, that waste is not yet fully composted and has to be put outside in another composting area (separate from food) in order to further break down so that it can one day be thrown onto the land around trees, flowers, plants.  That can take as little as weeks but it can also take months to even a year, which means (1) you need to have space on your property to put the compost pile, (2) it still needs to have more tending, turning, adding of organic material, to break down properly so that it is safe to put in the dirt.

In my search for a solution, I remembered the name, Sun-Mar, the oldest, most well-known composting toilet company in the US.  They’ve been around for 40 years and have a patented technology called Bio-Drum, which no other company has.  That drum will do all the breakdown for us, so that by the time the composted waste is removed from the toilet drawer, it is ready to go straight into the ground (not vegetable gardens.)

So, after much consideration, I think I am leaning toward the Sun-Mar Excel-NE composting toilet as the optimal choice for the land.  The cost is $1,999 at Home Depot.  We could buy it from Sun-Mar for $1,825, but I am told that shipping would be an additional $500-$600.  Lihue HD ships free (hopefully still will when we’re ready to buy).

(Please refer to docs:  Toilet Waste Reality and To Divert or Not to Divert!

Research and information gathered for the design and construction of an outdoor shower.

Components of an Outdoor Shower: 

To build an off-grid outdoor shower, you'll need a variety of materials and components, including: 

• Water heater: You can use a solar-powered or propane water heater. 

• Showerhead: A showerhead with a flow rate of 1.5 gallons per minute is recommended. 

• Showerhead pipe and flange: You'll need these to connect the showerhead to the system. 

• Submersible pump: A pump with a garden hose outlet is needed. 

• Garden hose: You'll need a garden hose to connect the pump to the showerhead. 

• Drainage: You can use stone pavers, cedar flooring, beach pebbles, or marble chips to help with drainage. A dry well system can also help catch excess water. 

• Plumbing: You can run pipes from your house to the shower, or use PEX tubing or buried plumbing to extend the water supply. 

• Wiring: You may need to wire cables for a water switch panel, water pump, and outdoor switch. 

Gather the necessary materials, including a shower enclosure, water source, water pump, shower head, and plumbing accessories. Build the shower enclosure frame and install the walls and roof. Set up a water source by collecting rainwater, digging a well, or connecting to a natural water source.

There are a few ways to build an outdoor shower with gray water drainage, including: 

• Natural drainage

This is the most common and eco-friendly method, where the shower drains into the garden or grass. To do this, build the shower's base slightly above ground level and run a pipe to a flower bed or grass. The water will flow freely from the base to the garden. 

• French drain

This involves digging a hole at least 3 feet deep and filling it with crushed gravel. The gravel bed should extend one foot outside the shower's perimeter. To make the floor easier on bare feet, you can cover the gravel with a wooden grate or stone or tile slabs. 

• Dry well

This is an earthen pit lined with landscape fabric and filled with gravel. It's built under the shower floor to help disperse water flow. 

• Shower to Landscape system

This system diverts water from the shower directly into mulch basins in the garden. The basins are placed near plants that need a lot of water, like young fruit trees. 

Guidelines for Land Project: (Approved by Noelani 10-22-24)

As steward of the land, are you, Noelani, willing to authorize Ningay to manage this project in the most efficient, harmonious, fulfilling manner for all concerned?   YES! 

Structure & Guidelines for Optimal Flow: 

1.     Meeting Agenda Flow:  

·       As Project Manager, I will schedule and facilitate project meetings as needed and keep them brief, on track, and productive.  Agenda categories will be as follows:  Check-ins, Updates, Progress Reports, Ideas, Concerns, Task List & Assignments.  

·       If you have an item for the agenda, please email it to me with any pertinent info and give me a time estimate of how long you need.  

·       We’ll meet on Zoom so we can record and keep a record.  “Meeting Highlights” will be written up and posted online on my Podia platform for “Big Ole Land Project.”  

2.     Communication & Information Flow:  

·       As Project Manager, it will be my job to manage all information, including communications.  For that reason, I will need to be made aware of everything that is happening on the project.  The easiest, most effective way to accomplish this is simply to send all land project communications through me, and I will determine who should be informed of what, when, and what actions to take. 

·       So send pertinent info, updates, ideas, concerns, and agenda items directly to me via email.  If you need to make a communication to another person regarding the project, I request that you cc me so I can stay in the loop.  If you have a phone conversation with someone about the project, relay that to me via email.  (Let’s avoid sending group emails, if possible, as they can get confusing.)  

·       Whenever possible, avoid situations where you have to make a quick decision and don’t have time to consult me, i.e., unapproved purchases.  

·       Following this protocol should help avoid confusion, keep info and communications flowing in an orderly manner, and create a paper trail for our records, since I have no desire to create a formal bookkeeping system for this project. 

3.     Personal Energy Flow:  

·       Simply put:  Energetically speaking, we are either in expansion mode or contraction mode.  So, let’s do our absolute best to keep our energy open, receptive, and expansive.  When we contract emotionally, we constrict the flow of magic, miracles, and new possibilities.   

·       The fastest, easiest way I know to stay in the flow is to STOP being defensive!  It causes contraction and constricts the energy.  Stress also registers as an interference pattern in the Flow.  So, Stop, take a Breath, Drop into your Body, and Feel.  

·       Agree to make it a priority to create space for feelings to be heard, felt, and validated.  Why?  Because that’s what works energetically.  It moves us from contraction to expansion, from fear back into flow. 

·       Be in the habit of asking yourself:  Is my energy expanded or contracted right now?  If it’s contracted, see if you can shift it.  If you can’t, won’t, or you’re stuck, request a check-in ASAP.  Don’t sit on any emotional backlog.  Keep the energy flowing! 

Thank you for being willing to follow these guidelines.  I just know that it will make our journey through this land project much more easeful and enjoyable for all of us.

Ningay, PM

Creative Ideas List: 

Set up a place in Ningay’s W&W platform where we place ideas we come up with, let them sit until we have inspiration and clarity to bring them to the Idea Forum, where we choose and decide on them.  So a big bowl of ideas that we are aware of, but have not acted on or decided on yet.  They’re in our awareness percolating.

K:  Advertise in the European market for a person(s) to come do a work-trade on the land.

N:  Huge permaculture community out there, we could advertise with.

K:  Put Radiant Reciprocity statement on Internet on sites like Go Fund Me or Kickstart.

N:  Put a plaque in each tiny home inviting people to donate.  Vision of pot of gold.  If you build it, they will come.

N:  Apply permaculture to part of land humans dwell on and Agroforestry on the part you will grow food.

This is a collection of inspirational sayings and offerings aimed to support and uplift us along this journey.

In Honor of Feelings by Ningay

In a world too crowded with emotionally armored people, feelings are just crying out to be heard, felt, and validated.

Whether we personally agree with those feelings or deem them truthful, real, and accurate is immaterial, for they are very real to the person experiencing them, and they deserve to be acknowledged with empathy and understanding.

In this one, simple, caring act hearts everywhere are healed and uplifted.

This is a video that Noelani sent me (1.5 hrs.) It's really the essence of intentional community, as I've known it. It's long so I just skimmed through it. Afterwards, you're welcome to read what I wrote as a response. Feel free to comment or add ideas. Time to take the RR vision to a more concrete level.

10-22-24 Meeting Highlights:

Ningay presented Karen’s idea about reaching out to the European community to find a work-trade person to live in the bungalow.  Noelani loved the idea!!   IE:  Six-week vacations, US work VISAS, interacting with other cultures.

Noelani said, “it’s a beautiful idea,” to Karen’s idea to put the Radiant Reciprocity mission statement on KickStart or GoFundMe, to invite monetary support to come in.

Ningay brought up the idea of having a Creative Cauldron of Ideas, a place to hold ideas so they can simmer and percolate.  And when ready, we’ll revisit them, perhaps have a brainstorming session, and bring selected ones to the fore to be brought to life. 

Verbiage:  Noelani feels strongly about a deeply-held foundational principle: she wants to get away from any terms that imply ownership.  She says the land itself needs to be included, because she has a vision, too.  Noelani reserves the right to speak up at any time about the verbiage we use so that we can uplevel our language and terms.  This will take practice.

N (Ningay) reads to ND (Noelani) from Roles & Responsibilities guidelines: 

7.     “As Land steward/Vision holder, you have the final say on everything, nothing will be done on the land that you don’t approve of.  However, you will need to be able to trust that everything I do, as PM, is an extension of what you would do yourself, and that I’m staying on track with your vision.”   Noelani voices a resounding “Yes.”

ND (Noelani) has struck up a conversation with Kyle, the Agroforestry guy she found online on Opendoor.  He’s also a neighbor and ND invited him to come down to the land for an informal “talk story” meet and greet.  He’s an arborist, so maybe he can help with the lichee trees, which ND would like to be able to tend for harvest and perhaps sell.  He has a drone and knows how to survey (for boundary purposes only).  He’s also looking for a project that he can photograph to showcase his work.

ND says Jake wants to get started on some infrastructure projects like getting the 1,000 gallon water tank and solar pumps onto the land.  Where she would like Jake’s input would be walking the land together to see what he thinks about where structures could be placed, and discussing what all they want to include on the land, such as a tool shed (close to truck and concrete parking area), storage shed, greenhouse, chicken coop (N added this), etc. 

Noelani stated that mapping things out on the land gives her security.  (**This aligns with N’s proposal to do a formal land design plan before deciding where to place any of the structures.)

N gives example of why it will be important to follow the chain of command she’s set up for info and communication sharing.  IE:  Because dad was sent an email that referenced something he was not yet aware of, that could potentially cause confusion. 

N:  Need to understand more about Permaculture vs. Agroforestry to find out which may be for fitting for our needs.  (maybe a blend of the two.)

Ningay brings up that Daku is really only officially on board for managing the construction of the two tiny homes.  He may not want to be part of building showers, toilets, etc.  We need to ask him about that.  His various upcoming medical procedures will factor in.

Keeping Jake in the Loop:  Noelani agrees to let Ningay know about any pertinent information she has passed along to Jake about the land project, and Ningay will inform Noelani of any pertinent or timely information she believes should be passed along to Jake.

N brought up the need to keep meetings and communications as brief as possible so that our efforts stay focused and our time, money, and energy is used wisely.  Daku has stated that he doesn’t like being interrupted or redirected and that is a concern for Ningay as we go forward.  Noelani brought up an important point: that while Dad tends to talk long, Ningay tends to talk short and can at times leave out important information.  So this is an area of communication that still needs some sorting out.

Ningay suggested that it might be nice to keep a miracles journal.  Keeping track of the support that has already been showing up for us on this land project will remind us, in times of stress or concern, that we truly are being guided and supported in this endeavor.

Ningay is inspired by the vision that those who never thought they could afford a trip to Hawaii may actually be able to have that dream come true.

Tasks & Next Steps:

N to have a meeting with Daku to update him on all new developments.

K (Karen) and N to begin research on a number of land-related subjects.

Noelani makes a formal communication to Daku that she is in full agreement with what NN has proposed and is passing along the torch with the authority to act as PM for the land.

Noelani meets with Kyle. 

In conclusion, Noelani mentions again how much she loves Auntie Karen’s ideas and that she’s willing to do research.

Future recordings of Zoom meetings will appear here. in Audio and/or video format.

All financial accounting documents for budget and expenses.

Collection of photographs that show the progress on the land.