So I discovered that Mora, NM is 41 miles "as the crow flies" but would take me 3 hours by automobile.  I decided to drive south towards  Santa Fe and then north towards Mora rather than take the Navi-gator into the Carson National Forest assuming the roads would be wider and flatter.   Chugging along in a 9500 pound box on wheels is a challenge in the mountains.  Plus, I wanted to stop at Whole Foods this time for provisions for the weekend.

So in the process of doing all this, I made three rookie mistakes.  First, I left the bike lock draped across the spare tire on the back of my RV rather than re-attaching to the bike and the RV.  I didn't discover it until I got to Santa Fe.  I can't imagine how it stayed hung over the spare with all the typical RV bumpiness.  Second, I forgot to shut the gas cap after fueling up in Las Vegas, NM.  At least I didn't forget to remove the gas nozzle.  Finally, I set my water bottle one quarter full on the table intending to drink it before taking off.  I've been having mild headaches that I'm thinking are related to the high altitude and not enough hydration.  Well, I forgot that I left it there and took off without drinking the water.  Thankfully, it was only one quarter full when it fell off the table onto the new, hickory wood flooring.  At a traffic light, I put the Navi in park and quickly ran back and cleaned it up before the light turned green.

Something happened unexpectedly.  I put the Navi in reverse to back out of the Whole Foods parking lot and the rear view camera turned on the way it is supposed to when the coach is in reverse.  However, when I put the RV into drive, the rear view camera stayed for the next hour or so when I stopped for fuel.  That was great to have the ability to see what's going on back there.  I would love to figure out how to work it so it does that all the time. Does anyone know how to do that?

Other than those three minor details, it was a good day traveling to my second intentional community--the Hummingbird Community.  They've been in existence for 18 years which is impressive.  Many communities are well "intentioned" no pun intended, but don't have the skills to make it work over the long term.   I've been told that like minded individuals come together, usually around ecological, sustainability, and/or social justice issues and feel the common passion will sustain them but they don't have the skills to handle the conflicts that no doubt will arise whenever you people try to live together.  Imagine how difficult it is when two people get married and must learn to live together and multiply that times the number of individuals in the community.

So I traveled the bumpy, dusty, pot-holed dirt road and arrived at the Hummingbird parking lot nearest the Grace and Ease houses and the solar laundry out building.

I was greeted by Norma, a short and feisty woman who gave me a big welcoming hug.

She showed me around the Grace house where many common meals were held.  There were bedrooms off the kitchen where she and 2 others slept.  She showed me the media room and the large living area warmed by a wood burning stove.  She showed me the bathroom that I could use to take showers if I wanted to and asked that I keep them to 5 min to preserve the hot water generated by solar panels on top of Grace house.

So, while I was one of the first to show up, others started dwindling in.  I went to the Navi and prepared a curried chicken salad dish for the potluck at 6pm.

There was a wide range of people at the potluck.  Michael was one of the first people I met.  He was a big man in overalls with long white hair looking to be in his 60's.  Then I met another tall, thin man rough hewn from the elements (forgot his name).  He has lived in many communities over the past 40 years and he had some wisdom to share.  He said he got tired of living in co-housing situations where he was confronted regularly with others' dirty dishes.  He and his partner Sequoia live in their own place not far from Grace house on the surrounding 500 acres.  I heard they built it themselves out of mud and straw bales.

A lovely young couple came in with their their equally beautiful 1 1/2 year old son Iziah.   Iziah had piercing blue eyes.  He looked like an old soul in a babies body.  His parents, Layla and Patrick looked to be in their late twenties.  They had a wonderful earthiness to them.  They came in with skin browned from the sun and dirt covered feet from top to bottom.  Now these were people I'd like to get to know.

We gathered in the kitchen in a circle and held hands as we contemplated the blessing of one another's company and the colorful, healthy food set before us.  We each introduced ourselves and shared whether we were visitors or residents.  Looking around the circle, I saw a mix of old and young--mostly my age and older with a handful of younger faces.

One person's face looked familiar.  It turns out that it was Amanda, who cycled the US in 2008 with her partner Ryan in search of a community to call home.  They filmed the journey and created a video called Within Reach which was a DVD that I purchased from the Fellowship of Intentional Communities web site and found incredibly interesting. They lived in tents and rode 50-100 miles each day.  They had intended to visit 50 communities in a year.  In the end, they visited 100 communities and after doing so chose one where they felt they most belonged.  In the DVD it wasn't clear to me which community they chose but it turns out it was the Hummingbird community in northern New Mexico.  The closing shot shows them riding their bikes down that dusty road with all the members of the community waiting there for them with big smiles and signs and words of welcome and encouragement.

It was fun to visit with Amanda briefly while we washed and rinsed dinner dishes together.  It was interesting to meet so many new people that first night during the potluck but I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and needed to retreat to the Navi for some time to myself.

Friday was the first night in the Navi that I'd be spending with no electrical or water connections.  I had the generator and filled up the water reservoir so I felt I'd be fine.  However, it was so peaceful there, I didn't want to disturb others with the loud RV generator.  It turns out that when I checked my fluid levels in the Navi, the propane was in red zone meaning I didn't have much left.  Since I had never depended on the generator for lights and cooking and heat, I wasn't sure how long it would last.  So, with the dual purpose of wanting to be a quiet guest and not wanting to run out of propane for the weekend, I went to sleep underneath all the blankets I brought and slept in my hat and clothes.

 This is what the thermostat read the next morning inside my Navi...

Why didn't I bring that down comforter?