19.02 is a national holiday. On Presidents Day, the US presidents are honored. We didn't work that day either, instead we had a day at home. In the morning, we went for a walk around the Triform grounds and then cooked lunch. The residents learned about American presidents such as Lincoln and Washington at Camphill School. Other houses have watched documentaries about former presidents in the afternoon, but our residents have little interest or understanding of the subject. So I gave the residents several nature documentaries to choose from, and the choice fell on a documentary about Hawaii. As I want to travel to Hawaii in the summer, the show really got me in the mood for my vacation and showed me interesting aspects of the archipelago, which became the 50th state of the United States in 1959. Overall, I think it's a shame that politics and history are not more present in Triform and that there are no courses about it. There is a "Current Affairs" course, but according to the residents, this is not about debating the current world situation, but mainly about dancing. I would like to create something here, such as a low-threshold afternoon course on national or local history. In theory, anyone can suggest activities, but in practice it is the long-term coworkers who have been working in Triform for years who get the chance to create activities here. They have told me how much effort is involved in preparing the courses and convincing the relevant committees with the plans until the proposal goes through and is included in the weekly schedule. I also get to see how much work the course leaders put into the preparation during their lunch break and in the evenings after work, because you don't get time off before your own work in the morning to organize your own courses. As I'm already very busy with fundraising for my support group, filling my weekly blog, sports, housework and farm work, I've put the idea aside for now.

Sometimes the parents give the house some money to enable us to go out together and eat out. Here we have each a budget of 15 dollars, which is covered by the house. The residents are allowed to come along if they follow the agreed rules, such as coming to meals in time, participating in the morning work or reliably taking on household chores. Unfortunately, last time, one resident didn't follow the agreed rules and I had to stay behind as a watch. This time, a coworker had to stay behind again, but I was lucky and was allowed to come along. We went to the Plaza Diner in Hudson, an American diner lit up in bright neon like you see in the movies. The place has a lovely atmosphere and very friendly staff, who were very patient and warm with our residents. With an extensive menu of Mexican dishes, burgers, steaks, sandwiches, wraps, salads, fried chicken and mushrooms, there was something for everyone. It's very liberating for both the residents and us coworkers to leave the Camphill and go out, even if it's only for an hour in a diner. 

We don't have a dessert every day, only about twice a week. Our Sunday lunch is basically a big dessert that everyone looks forward to. We bake delicious waffles with chocolate chips, which we enjoy with either maple syrup, peanut butter, jam or cream cheese. As we usually eat very healthily, there's always a little sugar shock here - but it's well deserved after all that work! Each coworker uses a different recipe, so the waffles taste slightly different every time. I would like to share my favorite recipe for 8 people with you:

• Preheat waffle Iron

• Whisk together in a large bowl: 

4 cups (500g) flour 

4 tablespoons  (31g) sugar 

2 tablespoons (16g) baking powder 

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon nutmeg

1 cup (170g) chocolate chips 

• Thoroughly blend in another medium bowl:

6 eggs

3 cups (734 ml) milk 

1 stick (108g) unsalted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoon honey 

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the wet ingredients. Whisk the wet ingredients into the flour mixture with a few swift strokes. Ladle enough batter into the center of the waffle iron to cover about two- thirds of the grid surface. Close the lid and wait about 4 minutes.When the waffle iron is ready, steam will stop emerging from the cracks of the iron or the machine will beep. If you try to lift the top of the iron and it shows resistance, it probably means the waffle is not quite done. Allow it to cook slightly longer and try again. Finally, you can pour maple syrup onto the waffle for the original Triform taste!

On 3/16 we participated in a St. Patrick's Day Dinner organized by the Churchtown Firehouse. The first company covers Taghkanic, Claverack, Churchtown, Hallowville and Martindale.

The volunteer firefighters prepared corned beef, potatoes, cabbage and carrots at the station just 2.4 kilometers away from us. I was very pleased with the delicious corned beef, extremely tender and tasty! 

All proceeds were donated to Daniel Quinion Jr. He is battling stage four lymphoma, so the disease has spread to other parts of his body. As if that wasn't bad enough, the family are facing huge costs that they cannot bear alone. I hope that he can beat the disease and that his family gets through this crisis well! If you want to support him, please contact the fire department: cfc (at) churchtownfire.com

Unfortunately, while writing this blog entry, I had to read sad news on the fire station's website. The fire station, after 89 years, will now sadly close in July because the cost to operate ($112,000 from the City of Claverack, $58,000 from the City of Taghkanic) was too high. Instead, the perimeter will now be covered by the Claverack and Taghkanic Fire Departments, which the fire station says will result in longer travel distances and greater danger to residents. Thank you for your decades of work! 

In the evening we made a nice campfire behind our house together with the neighbor's house and ate delicious S'more. These consist of a piece of melting Hershey's chocolate and a roasted marshmallow embedded in two graham crackers. The term is a fusion of the two English words "some more". Very tasty and easy to make at home! 

The day after, we went on a hike with our neighbor's house in the Greenport Conservation Area. To celebrate St. Patrick, a bishop from the 5th century and the first Christian missionary in Ireland, we all dressed in green and hiked in good spirits through the beautiful countryside in fine weather. Unfortunately, it was very muddy as it had rained heavily the night before. We therefore struggled a lot with the mud on the way to the Hudson and with helping the residents to cross the puddles. A bit of an adventure, even if we didn't get as far as the river. On the other hand, we could look forward to delicious waffles when we got back! 

A fantastic weekend!

I cook every Friday together with a householder and two residents for two houses. The two residents are very experienced in cooking and have already written cookbooks as their final projects. The householder has taught us a delicious recipe, which I would like to share with you. The quantity is enough for 20 people, so you will have to reduce it accordingly if you want to cook it at home. 

Chicken curry with mashed potatoes and coleslaw salat 

Chicken

First warm up 2 pounds frozen chicken in hot water. When its no longer frozen, cut it with a sharp meat knife in big cubes. 

Put 1 big spoon coconut oil in a high pot on medium. When the coconut oil is melted, you can put the heat down. Now alternately add the sliced chicken cubes and 9 onions, 6 carrots and 5 garlic. 

When its all in, you can put the heat up again and add the following ingredients:

• 2 cups water 

• ½ cup apple cider vinegar

• ¼ cup liquid amino or maggi

• 1 ½ cups paprika seasoning

• 2 teaspoons tumeric

• 3 teaspoons curry

• 1 teaspoon italian seasoning  

• 1 teaspoon salt 

• 1 teaspoon pepper 

• 8 cups of chopped vegetables (6 peppers, 3 zuchini, 1 squash or gherkin) 

When stirring, make sure you stir all the way to the bottom. At the end, the sauce should match the color of the meat. 

Short before the end of cooking, add paprica and corn starch. Mix 3/4 cups cornstarch with water and stir it with a blender, before you add it. Cornstarch helps thicken the liquid ingredients. Paprika should only be added at the end, as it can be eaten raw and therefore does not need to be cooked for long. 

Put the heat on high until its boiling, then turn it off. 

If you want to keep the chicken curry warm, put the pot in the oven and bake it on 200. 

Mashed potatoes 

Clean the potatoes and cut them in wedges, they should all be the same size after cutting. Put them all in a pot on high heat, until it boil. When its starts boling, turn on a timer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, you can turn the heat off and pour out the water. Use the pot lid to protect the potatoes from falling out when draining. 

Now you can add the following ingredients:

• 6 cups (2 quarts) non-dairy milk (ricemilk or almond milk)

• 2 cups coconut oil

• 1 round nutmeg

• 2 teaspoons salt 

Once you have added all the ingredients, you can mash the potatoes. Use a wooden spoon to regularly lift the potatoes from the bottom to the top so that all the potatoes are mashed. At the end you can stir it with a blender. 

Coleslaw salat 

Prepare the cabbage by removing the outer shell and the hard core. Then quarter the cabbage into wedges. Mix 2 cabbage, 4 celery and 1 kale with a mixer. We use a sickle blade for the kale and a round blade for the cabbage in the mixer. We insert the celery through the round opening. 

Put it in a bowl and add the following ingredients:

• 4 teaspoons sea salt

• 1/2 cup flax seed

• 1/4 cup flax oil

• 1 cup olive oil

• sunflower kernels

• 3/4 cup cider vinegar

• 1 pounds hazelnuts 

You must mix the salad immediately afterwards, then press it down with a spatula.

Bon Appétit!

Movie Evenings

Friday evening is different from the other days. When I get home from work on the farm at 17:00, I bathe one of the residents and dress him in pyjamas. As soon as we get downstairs, we eat the leftovers from the week for dinner. It's usually a colorful mixture of meat, vegetables and side dishes. In contrast to dinner on other days, everyone takes a plate and serves themselves, the table is not set and there is no singing. Afterwards, we hurry to clean up and gather in the living room, because Friday night is movie night! 

My job is to prepare the living room for the movie night. I set up the projector, hang the picture from the wall, put the sofas in position and look for a streaming platform where the desired movie is playing. One of the residents has made a plan and someone else is allowed to choose a movie every week. The movies must be rated PG-13 at most, so we mostly watch family and Disney movies. In the past, I've chosen "Moana", "Night at the Museum" and "Enchanted". Once I wanted to show a live-action adaptation of "Asterix and Obelix", but only German and French language versions were available on the streaming platforms. The locals don't know the comic and the film adaptations, it doesn't seem to be as well known here as it is in Europe. 

While the movie is playing, one of us volunteers goes into the kitchen to prepare ice cream for all the residents. A scoop of mint ice cream and a scoop of chocolate ice cream for all the residents, which our residents are always very happy about. At 20:00 the movie ends so that the resident can prepare for bed and have their Quit Time in the living room to wind down and calm down before going to bed. I also finish work at 20:30 and often meet up with volunteers from other homes in our gym to play social and party games with them and ring in the weekend together.

I only work in the garden on Monday afternoons, so I only have a small insight into the many projects that the volunteers and residents carry out every day. But I really enjoy digging up the garden beds, removing weeds, collecting plant seeds, digging in and working in the green house. We have also recently reintroduced bee colonies, which will provide the community with honey in the future.

Each field is 50 feet long and has 10 to 13 beds, each with two ribbons. In the winter garden we have 36 beds, each bed is 15x3 feet. 

Here is a small overview of what we grow in our garden:

Field 1:

• Flowers

• Potatoes

• Sweet potatoes

• Leeks

• Garlic

• Turnips

Field 2:

• Flowers

• Piracicaba broccoli

• Umpqua broccoli

• Black radish

• Frilly kale

• Brussels sprouts

Field 3:

• Flowers

• Cucumbers

• Chilli

• Eggplants

• Melanzani 

• Roma tomatoes

• Paste tomatoes

• Sweet peppers

• Courgettes

Field 4:

• Flowers

• Beans

• Peas

• Leeks

• Onions

Field 5:

• Flowers

• Swiss Chauds

• Pak Choi

• Lettuce mix

• Fennel

• Spinach

• Corn salad

• Parsley

• Radish

• Dill

• Basil

• Batania lettuce

Field 6:

• Butternut

• Flowers

• New England Pie Pumpkin

Greenhouse:

• Herbs

• Peppers

• Tomatoes

• Cucumbers

We have planned the following for this summer:

Field 1:

• Flowers

• Butternut

• Lettuce

• spinach

• zucchini

• herbs

Field 2:

• Brussels sprouts / broccoli 

• Early cabbage

• Kale

• Flowers

Field 3:

• Flowers 

• Sweet potatoes

Field 4:

• Carrots

• Tomatoes Roma

• Beets

• Peppers

• Flowers

Field 5:

• Flowers

• Onion

• Chinese cabbage

• cabbage

• Cucumbers

Field 6:

• Flowers

• Garlic

For the garden, we follow a zodiac calendar, which you can see in my photo.

The garden, like the farm, is Demeter certified. The Demeter Association was founded in Europe in 1928 to support and promote the biodynamic farming methods introduced by Rudolf Steiner in 1924.  Demeter Association Inc. is a national, independent, non-profit corporation that assures people that biodynamic foods in the United States and Mexico are grown and processed with the utmost care and integrity. To ensure the highest level of authenticity, the Demeter Association oversees not only the growing and raising of the food, but also the processing facilities of the certified products. Certified farms and processing plants are visited annually to ensure that they continue to comply with Demeter-certified biodynamic standards. We do not use fertilizers, pesticides and hormones, instead we use alternative methods. For example, we fill cow manure into horns, bury them over the winter and then mix the contents into a biodynamic mixture to spray the fields. We also spray the compost with a biodynamic mixture, which I once had to stir by hand at a set rhythm. This seemed strange to me at first, but I gradually came to understand that it is not about achieving the greatest possible efficiency. Instead, the aim is to achieve a greater connection between the earth, plants and people; alternative methods are not just the way, but the goal of the work with the disabled.

Here is an insight into the guidelines for Demeter certification:

1. No use of chemically synthesized fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides or fumigants, no hormones, growth regulators, GMOs, blood or bone meals, no processings aids or non-agricultural ingredients unless on the national list of appoved products 

2. The basis of crop fertility is compost, manures, green manuring and crop rotations, along with regular application of the Biodynamic compost preparations and sprays, Pfeiffer compost starter and similar preparations

3. The basis of pest control is the balanced farm ecosystem, achived through Biodynamic soil management, Biodynamic sprays and teas, crop rotations, companion planting, crop diversification, animals, bird life, etc

4. Weeds are controlled by cultivation and other mechanical methods

5. Composting materials, transplants and animal feed imported from off the farm are very limited in quantity and must be of good quality

6. Farm are visited and re-evaluated annually. Controcts for use of the certification marks are also annual

7. The farm must be free of prohibited inputs for 36 months and under biodynamic management for 24 months

8. Rights to use of certification mark or language are not transferable to processors and packagers

9. Demeter Association Inc stnadards meet or exceed Demeter International standards 

According to the certificate on the wall, 135 hectares with its livestock (beef and dairy cattle on hooves only), pigs, mixed vegetables, mixed herbs, pasture, straw and hay were certified for the first time in 2007. 

Mettabee Storytime

One Saturday, we went to Mettabee Farm again. A "Storytime" event took place there, where a couple told us an interesting story from Denmark. One of them told the story in a very lively way, while the other played music on their instrument. A wonderful event!

Taylor Swift Concert

The most popular musician among Triform residents is Taylor Swift. Even on the radio, which we turn on during long car journeys, Taylor Swift's music is always playing. With over 200 million records sold, Swift is one of the most successful artists of all time and is the first female singer to simultaneously occupy all ten places in the top ten of the American singles charts. She holds more than 100 Guinness World Records, is the most streamed woman on Spotify and was named Time Magazine's Person of the Year in 2023. I can't listen to it anymore, but the residents love the music. Unfortunately, the concerts are too expensive, tickets cost an average of 1088 dollars! That's why we watched the movie "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour", a concert recording of her tour in California. The residents were delighted to be able to experience the concert! 

Week 32 - 04.04.24 -  Holy Week, Tour in New York City, Red Hook Firetower & Les Misérables

We've been looking forward to this weekend for two months. Our householders had bought tickets for the musical "Les Misérables" for all of us. We drove to Schenectady in our big white van, because in addition to us three volunteers and four residents, we were joined by our householders' two children and the retired former householder of our house (who now lives in an attached apartment), 12 people in all. Proctor's Theatre, which opened in 1926, is a beautiful theater. I've seen one musical live ("Beyond the Horizon") and several as a movie ("Cats", "Little Mermaid"), but never enjoyed it. Nevertheless, as a historian, I was very excited about this musical, as it is about French history. It is based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo from 1862. The original French musical premiered in Paris in 1980. The English-language adaptation has been running in London since October 1985, making it the longest-running musical in the West End and the second longest-running musical in the world. In 2012, the musical was made into a film starring Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Anne Hathaway, but I have yet to see the movie.

Les Misérables is set in early 19th century France and tells the story of Jean Valjean, a French peasant. He was released in 1815 after spending nineteen years in prison for stealing bread for his sister's starving child. Valjean decides to break his parole and start his life anew. But a police inspector refuses to let him escape justice and pursues him for most of the play. Along the way, Valjean and a number of other characters are drawn into a revolutionary period in France, where a group of young idealists are trying to overthrow the government in Paris.

An exciting story, beautifully designed costumes and an atmospheric set ensured that I was completely captivated by the narrative and felt truly transported to early 19th century France for the entire duration. I was amazed at how often the set changed and how action scenes such as the barricade fight were staged with bullets hitting the ground. While the songs in musicals often take me out of the action and I therefore prefer plays, the songs here expressed the revolutionary mood and the emotional conflicts wonderfully. I was particularly touched by the songs sung by the children. Photos and videos were not permitted during the performance, but a few scenes from the film version will give you an insight into the musical. 

Do you hear the people sing:

https://youtu.be/1q82twrdr0U?si=zc-MATxXjAZ8vWcm

There is a castle on a cloud:

https://youtu.be/Dp8sYTlLQRY?si=WzCqVoWPPUMPCVxw

One more day:

https://youtu.be/Sv-BxH3SVS8?si=yssCgDc1dX_3rEnR

 Look down:

https://youtu.be/Gk2WMoxqNQ0?si=dr32R-dj5GCTee7u

When I'm back in Berlin, I'll keep my eyes peeled and invite my family to the next performance! If you've never been into musicals before, you should give "Les Miserables" a chance and at least watch the movie version. When we went into the theater, the weather outside was pleasant. It must have snowed incredibly during the performance, because when we left the theater the whole street was covered in snow. I was very happy about that, it was like in a romantic movie where people are streaming out of a beautiful theater performance and everything outside is shining in a new glow. Our householder didn't find it so romantic, after all, as Estate Workleader he is responsible for clearing snow and ice and had to go out late in the evening and push snow with the car. 

Until now, I've always been forced to ride my bike an hour to the train station in Hudson on my day off to visit New York City. We recently got a new volunteer from Madrid in Triform, who was assigned to my day off. She also has a driver's license, so we can now drive to Poughkeepsie together and take the train from there. Triform pays for the gas to Poughkeepsie, and the train tickets are also 50% cheaper at 20 dollars if you start from Poughkeepsie than if you start from Hudson. She was also very happy because I was able to give her a tour after my many trips to NYC: Grand Central Terminal, Chrysler Building, Empire State Building, New York Public Library , Union Square Park, New York University, Washington Square Park & Arch, Broadway, Civic Center (Manhattan Municipal Building & City Hall) , Financial District , Wall Street Bull, Staten Island Ferry (Governors Island and Statue of Liberty), a little refreshment at 787 Coffeeshop, Central Park (Wollman Rink) and Times Square.She was impressed to have seen so much of New York on her first day. We are both big movie fans, so I was able to point out a lot of movie scenes that were filmed there. For example, the monster wave from "Day after Tomorrow" that races towards the New York Public Library. I'm delighted to be able to share my fascination for New York with someone! I will present my previous and our future highlights for you on the "NYC Highlights" subpage.

In the last week before the Spring Break vacation, the so-called "Holy Week" takes place in Triform. This is not the normal program consisting of work in the morning and afternoon activities in the afternoon, but mainly community activities and larger projects where all residents, volunteers and householders lend a hand. At the same time, a pig gave birth to six piglets, which all the residents and volunteers were keen to see. It's a great start to spring and I'm already looking forward to visiting the animals every day as a farmer and seeing them grow up. Every morning, a work area presented its current projects, giving the residents the chance to proudly present their tasks and work results.

Palm Sunday

• Festival of Offering (anthroposophical service)

• Boundary Walk with baked bread in the shape of roosters

Baking bread in the shape of a rooster on Palm Sunday is a tradition that is all about hope, renewal and the new day. The rooster symbolizes awakening, vigilance and the announcement of something great, which fits in with Palm Sunday, which marks the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. It also recalls the story of Peter in some places and adds a layer of repentance and redemption. The bread is like a tasty reminder of the spiritual food we receive during Lent that prepares us for Easter.  The Easter loaves are attached to a self-made cross to which we stick colorful strips of paper. Still under the impression of "Les Miserables", we designed our paper strips in the colors of the French national flag and walked together as "Team France".  

At Easter, I received a packet from the Easter bunny in Germany. What would Easter be without chocolate bunnies? Thank you so much for the lovely surprise! 

Monday

• Morning meeting with presentation of the "Home Economics" cooking group 

• Workshops in the morning (farm)

• Courses in the afternoon (garden)

Tuesday

• Morning meeting with presentation of the bakery 

• Collecting garbage along the road leading to Triform

• Picking up stones from the field at the Phoenix Center 

Wednesday

• Morning meeting with presentation of the weaving mill

• Collecting stones from the field 

• House afternoon (painting eggs)

• Maundy-Thursday Play (a play with residents of Triform, Copake, Ghent and Copake, a local eurythmy dance group and a pastor about the last days of Jesus of Nazareth) 

We painted the eggs using the Ukrainian Pysanky method. The eggs were first hollowed out with a small pump. Melted wax is applied to the eggshell in a pattern and dipped layer by layer in different dyes. The wax is then melted away to create intricate patterns. The result is beautifully painted eggs that we have hung above the dining table in our dining room. I found it a little difficult to draw these fine motifs symmetrically and instead painted emoji eggs using the method that the residents also liked.

You can also try this method at home if you like this delicate work:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrZ9Tc0I3EU

Thursday

• Morning meeting with presentation of the pottery

• Picking up stones from the field

• Afternoon courses

Friday

• Festival of Offering

• Excursion with the house

 We took the house to the Red Hill Fire Tower. This 60-foot (18.28 m) fire tower was built in 1921 and is listed on the National Historic Lookout Register and has been nominated for the National Register of Historic Places. From the Red Hill Fire Tower you have a wonderful view of the Catskill High Peaks to the west and north and Roundout Reservoir to the southeast. The tower is not for people with a fear of heights, the floor is made of grating and the tower stands on a hill, so you can look down very low from the top. When you reach the top, the tower is still shaking and the wind whistles through the open space at great speed, so I was very surprised that our resident showed no signs of a fear of heights. Unfortunately, there is a tragic story associated with the tower. On November 17, 2008, a family climbed the tower with their dog "Braveheart". During the descent, the dog fell from the tower and died as a result of the fall. A plaque commemorates this tragic incident and warns people not to take their pets with them. 

At the top of the tower we took one last photo together, as the resident is now moving to Camphill Village Copake after 10 years at Triform, as he is now 30 years old. He was my first roommate in Triform and often hugged me and asked how I was doing. Even though we've only known each other for six months, it feels like letting go of a longtime friend. Thanks for the great time together, have a great time in Copake! After the trip, we went out to eat at Yum Yum Noodle Bar in Red Hook, the family's favorite restaurant. I ate a delicious noodle soup with chicken, beef, mixed vegetables and spring onions and drank delicious Peach Bubbletea with it. The resident, who I usually look after, loudly refused to try his bubble tea and shouted "NOOOO!" so loudly that even the waiters looked after us with concern. As it turned out, it was the ice cubes that the resident didn't like. After we took the ice cubes out, he drank the bubble tea and ate the bubbles with great pleasure. 

Saturday

• Residents were picked up by their parents

After the residents were picked up by their parents, we volunteers went to Hudson and had lunch at Applebee's. There I ordered boneless wings with sweet Asian chile sauce - it tasted fantastic! I also ordered a "New Adios Lit", a Blue Long Island Iced Tea with Smirnoff Vodka, Bacardi Superior Rum, Tanqueray Gin, Blue Curaçao and lemon with lemon-lime soda. It was the best cocktail I've had in a long time. When I get back to Germany, I will try to recreate this cocktail. 

On Sunday we went on spring break vacation with three other volunteers, more on that in the next blog post.

After exploring New York City and Washington DC over the Christmas break (read more in the blog posts weeks 18 & 19), I decided to visit the East Coast cities of Philadelphia, Boston and Portland (Maine) for the spring break vacation. Not alone, but together with three colleagues. A volunteer from Brazil, who is in her third year at the Camphill Academy in Copake; a volunteer from Turkey and the volunteer from Madrid, who recently joined my off-day group. The Turkish volunteer is now my neighbor above the pantry again, but now works in a different house.

-⚠️ - 

Thank you for your interest in my blog! Following a talk with my funding organization EOS Erlebnispädagogik e.V., we found out that I am unfortunately still far away from reaching the agreed donation target. I would therefore like to ask you for a favor at this point. Before you continue reading to find out more about my highlights in Philadelphia and Boston, please donate to my funding circle. Even if it is only five dollar, it means a lot to me and shows the sponsoring organization that I am committed to this project.

Why donate? Volunteering as part of the International Youth Volunteer Service (IJFD) incurs a number of costs: for placement and support, seminars, pocket money, insurance, accommodation, meals and much more. The IJFD is a program funded by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Women and Youth. However, the state funding and the participation of the places of assignment are not enough to cover the costs of an assignment. As volunteers, we therefore have to raise a certain amount of donations so that volunteers can continue to be sent to the Triform Camphill Community, the money does not go to me. The volunteers take incredibly valuable experience and perspectives with them into their professional lives after their volunteer year, while the disabled people benefit from the volunteers from a wide variety of cultures, their ideas for new projects and leisure activities and their energy in their daily work and personal care. As the donation does not go to the USA, but to EOS as the sender of volunteers, a donation receipt can also be issued for tax purposes.

Please download the donation form to fill it out by hand or digitally. Then send the donation form to me, as I should forward the collected forms to EOS. Feel free to email me at any time if you have any questions!

damonruhlaender (at) gmx (dot) de

You can find the donation form here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Luv4SYJoSqiREqM8ugNNyDDA5ZrB63Jy/view?usp=sharing

You don't have the financial resources for a donation right now? You can also help by distributing my flyer for the support group as well as the link to my blog and informing friends, family and colleagues about it. 

https://bit.ly/43rS4fj

Thank you for your support! ♥️

-⚠️ -

We set off on Sunday, March 31. We had a 3.5-hour drive ahead of us, but we had stocked up on plenty of snacks and played games like "Who am I?" together during the journey. Surprisingly, my colleagues found it very difficult to guess the name I had chosen: an Austrian who had worked in American politics but had already become world-famous for his work. Who could that be?

Many thanks to the Triform Camphill Community, who kindly provided us with the car and paid for the gas for the trip. We were very happy about this appreciation of our volunteer work! I spent half the journey asleep, exhausted from Holy Week. When I woke up, I saw the famous skyscrapers of Philadelphia in the distance. Not much later, we arrived at our AirBNB, which is located 13km or 15 minutes by car from the city center in the Tacony neighborhood. I haven't had much experience with AirBNBs so far and usually stayed in hostels on vacation, so I was curious to see what our accommodation would be like. We paid 230 dollars for two nights, so just under 30 dollars per person/night. When we arrived, I was very impressed! The apartment was perfect for our group. Two bedrooms, bathroom, open kitchen with living room and an outdoor area with barbecue, benches and beautiful LED's. The open kitchen was perfect so we could cook together, chat and watch American TV. Since we don't have a television in Triform, smartphones shouldn't be used and there are no newspapers, we are pretty much cut off from events outside the community. So, like enthusiastic children, we first threw ourselves at the remote control and watched the various news channels (CNN, Fox News, CNBC, ABC...). Unfortunately, the weather forecast told us that a big storm was coming. Blizzards, tornadoes, heavy rain, flooded roads and snow were announced. The peak of the east coast storm was supposed to be at the time we had planned to stay in our third stop, Portland (Maine). We immediately started communicating with Triform and the landlords in Portland and fortunately got our money refunded for the two nights in Portland. This shortened our vacation from six days to four, but that didn't spoil our mood. We were now able to spend the money we had saved in Philadelphia and Boston! Anyone visiting Philadelphia should keep an eye on the AirBNB, a clear recommendation!

https://www.airbnb.de/rooms/1081060724479023123?source_impression_id=p3_1712267269_6YVs8D7x4ZWqprDp

Hungry from the trip, we made our first excursion to Chinatown on the day of our arrival. Coincidentally, the Honyu Folk Culture Festival was taking place there. The festival celebrated the 1189th birthday of the south-eastern Chinese god General Humin. He brought prosperity to the Chinese province of Fujian in the 10th century by opening the harbors and building schools. The general was celebrated as a god after his death, he and other local gods were celebrated with fireworks, music, beautifully prepared food and burning silver and gold papers as money. We enjoyed the music and then went to the Sang Kee Peking Duck restaurant, where I showed the other volunteers my new dish General Tsos Chicken, which I had discovered in the USA. They tried it and were also very impressed. The volunteer from Spain is a big Rocky fan and was very excited to visit the famous Rocky staircase. As the rest of us hadn't seen "Rocky", we made ourselves comfortable in the evening and watched the movie together. I had expected to see a classic sports movie, with a heroic character who starts small, works his way up and comes out a big winner at the end. But Rocky is not portrayed as a hero, he's a debt collector, lives in a run-down apartment and the scene showing his "romantic" advances towards the pet supply store clerk feels invasive. The chance he is given to make a name for himself in boxing is not a real chance, he is used and ultimately fails. The city looks run down in the movie and seems to warn against visiting the city. Nevertheless, City Commerce Director Dick Doran once said that nobody had done more for the city's image since Benjamin Franklin than Rocky, played by Silvester Stallone.  In fact, in every store you come across an incredible amount of Rocky merchandise. I was pleased to have seen the classic "Rocky" once, but I can't really understand the fascination. If you are a fan, please let me know what Rocky means to you.

The next morning I got up first and went for a jog to explore the neighborhood in "Tacony". The Delaware River Trail runs along the Delaware River with a view of the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge. I really enjoy going jogging on vacation and exploring new places. When I got back, I prepared breakfast and waited for my colleagues to wake up. When asked where I would get the energy to do this, a colleague replied that I was German. This got me thinking about stereotypes and the actual characteristics of different cultures, and how you only become aware of them as soon as someone looks at you from the outside. Apparently the batteries in the fire alarms were empty, so I had to balance a colleague on my shoulders so that she could unscrew the fire alarm. Optimistic as I am, I said that I had probably saved myself the shoulder training for today. The landlords quickly arrived and fixed the fire alarms.

Like in the movie "Rocky", Philadelphia does indeed have some pretty run-down corners, but it also has its beautiful sides. The next day we took the train into the city center and walked from City Hall via Benjamin Franklin Pkwy to the Museum of Modern Art. A beautiful green street, lined with numerous flags and with fountains that gave us spring fever. At the Museum of Modern Art, we recreated the scene from the Rocky movie and ran up the stairs together. At the top, we enjoyed the view of the Philadelphia skyline and the Schuylkill River, after which we made our way to our first appointment, as we had booked a guided tour of Philadelphia. On our tour we saw numerous interesting historical places, which I will present in detail in the "Philadelphia Highlights" subpage. Many thanks to our tour guide Richard Dilullo (Free Tours by Foot), who not only showed us the most important sights of Philadelphia, but also gave us an understanding of the historical significance of the city. After all, the first Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention were held here, the American Declaration of Independence was proclaimed and the Constitution was adopted. At times, the city was the American capital and the second largest English-speaking metropolis after London. Due to the bad weather, only the four of us came, so we enjoyed a private tour and were able to ask all our questions. After the tour, we went to Reading Terminal Market to try Philadelphia's most famous dish: Philly Cheesesteak! "Carmen's Famous Italian Hoagies & Cheesesteaks" was visited by Barack Obama during his presidency, so we were really looking forward to it. It tasted wonderful! A tip from our tour guide that we would like to share: be sure to order "American cheese" because it is not artificially produced, tastes the best and comes from American farms.

After a long day in the rain, we went back to the AirBNB and had another movie night. The tour guide had piqued our interest in the musical "Hamilton". According to him, the musical about Alexander Hamilton has sparked a new interest in American history like no other medium, and many school students have become enthusiastic about the subject. Using hip-hop and R&B, the musical tells the story of the American Revolution and the rise of the emigrant Hamilton to become the first American Secretary of the Treasury and his dramatic social decline and death. As a history teacher, I couldn't wait to see this modern interpretation of American history. I tell you in detail how I enjoyed the musical performance on the "Philadelphia Highlights" subpage.

The next day we packed our bags and drove five hours to Boston. Boston is known as one of the largest intellectual and cultural centers in the USA and is the third largest city on the East Coast after NYC and Philly. Our AirBNB was a little further out in Dedham (Norfolk County) and is 36 km or 40 minutes by car from the city center. We paid 267 dollars and got two bedrooms and a bathroom on the top floor of a detached house, with a shared kitchen downstairs. Unfortunately, the TVs didn't work and there was no shared living room, but it was sufficient for our purposes. We ate at "ChickAFilet", which is basically a chain like "Kentucky Fried Chicken", but in my opinion doesn't come close to its quality. I see KFC much less often here than in Germany, even though it comes from the USA.

On the first evening, we took the car to Fan Pier Park, which offers a wonderful view of the Boston skyline at night. We walked past the Institute of Contemporary Art, where an exhibition opening sponsored by Christie's was taking place. Curious, we walked in and suddenly found ourselves in the middle of a event where we were greeted with free food and drinks. We were delighted with the delicious food, beer and sparkling wine and took a look at the newly opened art exhibition by Firelei Báez. There were many well-dressed ladies and gentlemen, apparently art critics, artists, donors and dignitaries from Boston. Unplanned, we stumbled into one of my highlights of the trip, a great pleasure. 

The next day we drove into Boston by car and had great difficulty finding a parking space. The parking lots are very expensive, but after a long search we found a parking garage where we only had to pay 40 dollars. We then took part in another guided tour, which took us along the Freedom Trail. Our guide was dressed as a British Royalist, i.e. an opponent of the American revolutionaries. He told us about the historical events in Boston from this perspective and showed us the most important sights. We were very impressed that our guide Ben Soloway, in his role as "Dr. Matthew Byles", despite his disability and two crutches, led the huge group through the city so expertly and explained the history of Boston in a very lively way. I present the highlights on the subpage "Boston Highlights". 

After the tour, we had a Mexican meal at the "Chipotles" chain and then made our way to the Boston Tea Party Ship. As a historian, I was particularly looking forward to this, as we were able to see how revolutionaries threw tea from the ship into Griffin's Wharf harbor. I bought gifts for my family in the museum store and then we wanted to make our way to Chinatown. In the meantime, however, the weather had changed so much that it was not only freezing cold, but also very windy and rainy. So we skipped Chinatown and instead headed straight to the Boston Public Garden with warm drinks. As a big fan of the movie "Good Will Hunting", I really wanted to take a photo on the bench where Matt Damon and Robin Williams sat together:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GY3sO47YYo&pp=ygUeR29vZCBXaWxsIEh1bnRpbmcgLSBQYXJrIFNjZW5l

 On the way, we met a very trusting squirrel that even leaned on my outstretched hand in search of food. After the photo, we headed back to the car due to the terrible weather, as we wanted to visit two more places a little further away from the city center. Two of the famous American universities, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University, are located not far from the city center in Cambridge. MIT has played a major role in the development of information technology. MIT professor Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web and many students founded IT companies that play an important role in industry today. Harvard is probably the most renowned university in the USA, eight presidents, 150 Nobel Prize winners and numerous senators and billionaires were educated here. Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Mark Zuckerberg, John F. Kennedy, Henry Kissinger, Matt Damon: the list of alumni is like a Who's Who of American celebrities. MIT is very reminiscent of the natural sciences campus of Humboldt University in Berlin-Adlershof, where I lived in a student dormitory for the last few years. A modern campus with lots of glass buildings, ventilation and cooling systems for the laboratories and very functionally designed buildings that barely have a hint of an elite university. Harvard, on the other hand, looks more like the classic American universities we know from movies, with many old red stone buildings of the university, which opened in 1636, on a fenced but publicly accessible site. The students live in halls of residence on the university grounds, they study here, spend their free time in student clubs and are much more involved in the university community than is usual at German universities (at least the large city universities). Find out more in my Boston Highlights. 

After visiting the two universities, we drove back to our AirBNB, soaked from the rain. On the way, we got hot dogs at 7-Eleven and watched the movie "Fatherhood" in the evening. This is about a father who has to raise their baby alone after the death of his wife. A very nice movie that made us both cry and laugh. The next morning we packed our things and drove just under 3 hours back to Triform. On the way, we made a stop at the "IHOP" chain, a breakfast restaurant. They serve pancakes, waffles and other breakfast dishes. I ordered 2 crepes, filled and rolled with cheesecake mousse, drizzled with cinnamon bun filling, cream cheese icing, fresh strawberries and powdered sugar, served with an Oreo shake. Super tasty, my colleagues also really enjoyed the pancakes and waffles. I saw on the menu that they offer a glass of Pepsi with a scoop of ice cream and maple syrup. That sounded like a lot of sugar for breakfast, but I will definitely give it a try! I kept Friday and Saturday free to write about the highlights of the trip on my blog. On Sunday, I planned to go to New York City with the Turkish and a German colleague to spend the last day of the vacation there. The residents won't be back until next weekend, but we volunteers still have to work every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. during the second week. The horses, cows, pigs and chickens need to be fed, the newborn chicks and piglets need our care, and larger projects are planned that need to be completed before the residents return. 

I really enjoyed my vacation in Philadelphia and Boston! Despite the bad weather and the limited budget we had as volunteers, we made the most of our time and learned a lot of interesting things about American history and the two big cities. I also have the feeling that I've seen enough of the American east coast after my vacation. In the summer, I would like to visit the west coast, especially Los Angeles and the island of Kauai. If you have any tips and recommendations for planning my summer vacation on the West Coast (27.6-18.8), please let me know! 

Week 34 - 18.04.24 -  Spring Break Project Week, Total Solar Eclipse & Forgetful Divas Play at Camphill Hudson 

On Sunday, April 7, I was in New York with three colleagues (Turkey, Spain, Brandenburg). We walked from Grand Central Terminal through Manhattan to Koreatown, where we had a delicious meal, visited Wall Street and crossed the Brooklyn Bridge. After not having so much luck with the weather on our last visit to New York and on vacation, we were able to enjoy wonderful spring weather here. I will be presenting our highlights again on the "NYC Highlights" subpage in the near future. 

After enjoying our vacation in Philadelphia and Boston during the first week of spring break, we had to work during the second week. The residents have two weeks off, but we use the second week to work on larger projects.

I was part of the farm crew, as the cows, goats, pigs, rabbits, ducks, chickens and horses also need to be looked after during the vacations. We also took care of the new piglets and cows, more about that in one of the next blog posts. In addition to the usual tasks, we cleared branches blown down by the storm from the fences, repaired a fence and put up a new fence. My focus was on painting the Pegasus Farm, where the horses are living, and the stewardship fence. While at first I didn't really look forward to work during the second week of the vacation, I had a lot of fun doing it. Without the residents, we were allowed to listen to music with a box and talked a lot while painting. We worked from 9:00 - 16:00, with an hour's lunch break from 12:30 - 13:30.

The cooking crew prepared excellent meals for us, including quiche, curry, nacho bowls and pizza. It was lovely to eat outside together in sun. The garden crew planted a new bed and took care of the vegetables in the garden shed and in the field. The estate crew chopped wood and planted flowers to get Triform ready for the summer. In the afternoon we usually did something together, a campfire on Monday, a baseball game on Tuesday and Viking chess on Wednesday. 

On April 8, we experienced a total solar eclipse together! A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the earth and the sun. It casts a shadow that blocks the sun's light. The sun seemed to disappear behind the moon for a few minutes. The eclipse began on the Pacific coast of Mexico and traveled northeast through more than a dozen states, from Texas to New York to Maine and eastern Canada. The next total solar eclipse won't be seen for another 20 years, on August 22, 2044, so it was very impressive to see this natural spectacle. To see the solar eclipse you need special glasses, which some people had bought. The householders made devices to see it. The best idea came from a volunteer from Hanover who learned the trick at school. He got a first aid kit and took the rescue blanket, which he stretched out. We sat behind it and could see the eclipse perfectly!  

At the end of the working week, we went to Hudson Hall on Friday evening to see the play "Forgetful Divas". The play was prepared by residents, volunteers and staff from Camphill Hudson. Hudson Hall at the Hudson Opera House is a large theater and cultural center for the city of Hudson. The production was directed by Jody Brookes, Creative Director of Camphill Hudson. She was assisted by Michael Hoy, Theater Director of Camphill Hudson. Upon entering, I received a program booklet and was amazed at how many supporters they were able to get for the play, including the Bank of Hudson and numerous foundations such as the Children Foundation of Columbia County. The entire hall was sold out and expectations were high. 

The play is a comedy and deals with the chaos of a live television studio. Things mysteriously disappeared from the actors' fridge, the director despaired with a clueless intern who was placed at his side and the two show hosts argued about who should take over the moderation. This resulted in many funny situations, so that we laughed a lot during the 45 minutes. The TV show also included musical performances with singing and dancing, and I particularly enjoyed the Bollywood dance. It was performed by a volunteer from Triform who has already appeared in six tv shows and two Bollywood movies in India. I was very moved to see how excellently the residents performed on stage despite their disabilities and entertained the audience with their comedy. The multimedia nature of the play was also impressive. As it was about the production of a television program, a camera team was on stage in some scenes and the camera image was projected live onto the screen behind the actors. In one scene, an actor was giving a speech, with a close-up of his face behind him, which further intensified his emotions. Suddenly, the camera turned to an actor a little further back, capturing his reactions to the speech. Numerous video clips were prepared, for example by an actress who now had to go on stage but was still sitting in her room discussing with the director. Or the inner conflict of an actor portrayed with two figures arguing with each other like angels and devils over his shoulders. Many thanks to all the residents, volunteers and staff who took part in "Forgetful Divas" and contributed their many creative ideas. I truly enjoyed the evening!