My colleague Vencel loves to play his guitar. In Santa Cruz there is the restaurant “Pono Hawaiian Grill”, an island-style restaurant with a tropical craft cocktail bar. Events are often organized here. Vencel has signed up for the jazz jam session to play on stage with other musicians. A colleague and I dropped by to see him play. A great concert with lots of good musicians, a lovely evening! I livestreamed the concert on Instagram so that the residents and colleagues at Camphill could watch it live. If you want to watch the recording, you can do so here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/C_rWFs1v3S7/

I drank a delicious cocktail there that I really want to make at home. The “Aloha Vibes” cocktail consists of Koloa coconut rum, melon liqueur, peach schnapps, pineapple juice and orange juice. The beer prices (see photo), on the other hand, make you miss the prices on the Berlin student prices.

One evening we watched the movie “Forrest Gump” with the house. My housemates said that Forrest reminded them a lot of me, as I also use every available break to go running. I've seen the movie before, but was able to appreciate other aspects this time. 

I successfully completed the drug training this week. I had already completed the “Approved Medication Administration Personnel” (AMAP) training at Triform. However, as I am now in a different state, I have to repeat the training. It consists of a video course lasting around three hours, a theoretical exam, practical instruction from the householder and a final practical exam.  

The 7 rights when administering medication are important.

1.Right person

Are we giving the medication to the right resident?

2.Right medication

Is the medication on the plan agreed with doctors and pharmacists?

3. Correct dose

Have we measured out the correct amount of medication?

4. Correct time

Are we within the specified time frame for dispensing the medication?

5. Correct route

Is it the right place or the right way to administer the medication?

6. Correct reason

Are we sure the requirements are met to administer medication (PRN: as needed)?

7. Correct documentation

Have we documented the administration of the medication correctly in the MAR folder? 

At Triform, we used to document the dispensing of medication on a paper chart with our initials on it. Here at Camphill, they use a digital system with a computer. The program is called “Extended Care Professional” (ECP) and is very practical. The medication is scanned before it is taken out of the packaging into the medication cup and a second time when the patient has taken the medication. This takes a little longer than the analog version, but provides an additional layer of security. If the wrong medication is picked up, the program warns the patient before dispensing it, and the correct medication is also displayed according to the time of day. 

This week was my first week at the academy. I started with the three classes “Inclusive Social Development”. “Community/Care and Professional Practice” and ‘History, Pillars and Ideals of Camphill’. In “Inclusive Social Development”, we looked at the course of the same name. What do “Inclusive”, “Social” and “Development” mean? What do the terms mean to us? Only then did we look at what the official definition in the charter is. We learned about Karl König's “Curative Educational Approach”:

“A so-called welfare society that is beginning to forget human values - a humanity that denies racial problems and at the same time has invented weapons of mass destruction that can kill millions in a few minutes - a social order that has forgotten the divine order and is searching for a new ethic that can no longer be found because of the loss of faith in God - this generates a new set of tasks: to help the infirm, the handicapped, the lame and the sick and the defenseless and the depressed to regain their human dignity.

Isn't that a great miracle? Humanity on the brink of self-destruction creates something new that grows like a new seed in a declining society. A holistic curative education is like a developing seed in a rotting fruit. We only need to understand the idea of curative education in its broadest sense, then we will be able to recognize its true mission ... it has the potential to become a global force that can counter the “threat to the individual” that is prevalent today.

The “curative education approach” should be expressed in all areas of social work, in pastoral care, in the care of the elderly, in the rehabilitation of the mentally ill and disabled, in the care of orphans and refugees, of suicidal and desperate people, but also in foreign aid, the international Peace Corps and similar efforts. If we really still want to see ourselves as human beings, then this is the only possible response we can give today, while humanity is dancing on the precipice:

Only person-to-person help - the ego-to-ego encounter, the recognition of the other person's individuality without judgment of his or her creed, faith, worldview and political stance - simply the direct and one-to-one encounter of two personalities - can produce the kind of healing pedagogy that can confront the threat to the inner person in a healing way. However, this will only be possible on the basis of a thorough and deeply felt wisdom” 

(“Camphill Letter”, Föhrenbühl and Saint Prex, 1965; Printed in: Karl König the Child with Special Needs, Floris Books 2009)

 In one exercise, we shared our childhood biographies in pairs of two and, after changing partners, presented the biography we had learned to another person. In this way, we were able to get to know each other better and at the same time realize the importance of the biography for the development of the person. We were given the homework assignment to present one of several suggested anthroposophical communities in the next session. 

In the “Community/Care and Professional Practice” course, we dealt with the term “Social Artistry”. Behind the term is primarily the question of how we approach people in order to meet them where they are. This can be done using many creative and artistic methods. Part of our studies will be practical projects, one in the home and one in the workplace. Here we will work 1 to 1 with a resident. We determine the goal together with the resident and it can be in any area where the resident wants to develop. The project must be carefully documented and presented at the end. We have learned about the framework conditions here so that we can start thinking about possible projects. 

We saw a video about Ron Finley, a guerrilla gardener in South Los Angeles. He creates gardens in public spaces to transform urban communities, teach children healthy eating habits and do something about the dangers of food deserts. He says drive-throughs kill more people in Los Angeles than drive-bys. Fast food is everywhere, but there are few healthy alternatives for low-income people. Food is both the problem and the solution. He planted fruit trees in public spaces with other volunteers, but quickly got into trouble with the city council, who gave him a warning. He says that Los Angeles has more than 26 sq miles of vacant lots that could all be planted. He sees the soil as his canvas. To change communities, you have to change the soil. Growing your own food is like printing your own money, Finley says. Gardening is a therapeutic process with strawberries waiting for you at the end! People have asked him if he isn't afraid that people will steal his food. No, because that's exactly why he would plant the plants in public spaces. When children plant kale, they also eat kale. However, many children have lost all connection to food due to fast food and life in the city and will eat anything you put in front of them. Our food not only influences our bodies, but also our minds. The voluntary involvement of the children in the project gets them off the streets, and he has made the work sexy. He has also transformed shipping containers into healthy cafes. An exciting personality who made me realize how important my work in the garden is for the children's development. Be sure to take a look!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzZzZ_qpZ4w&pp=ygUKcm9uIGZpbmxleQ%3D%3D

In the “History, Pillars and Ideals of Camphill” course, we looked at the history of Camphill and the life of its founder Karl König. For the course we read the book “The Spirit of Camphill - Birth of a Movement” by Karl König with commentary by Richard Steel (who I had the pleasure of meeting at the Camphill Copake) and studied the “Stars”, “Pillars” and “Essentials” of Camphill. 

I will be writing up my learning journey at the Academy and invite anyone who is interested to join me. I will summarize the main topics in my own words for better understanding and share them with you on the Academy subpage.

Today I would like to give you an insight into my typical daily routine. If you're interested in the difference to Triform, you can take a look at the blog post from year 1/week 2 for a comparison.

6:00 Wake up

6:30 Go running with a resident

7:20 Reading the Bible and verse of the day together in our house library

7:35 Singing and breakfast

8:00 Cleaning the kitchen

8:15 Helping residents with hygiene

8:45 Leaving the house together and walk to the hall

9:00 Morning Circle, talking about upcoming events and appointments

9:30 - 12:15 Work (garden, cooking, cleaning or SAGE group -> aging in wisdom)

12:30 Lunch

13:00 Clean up the kitchen, medication

13:30 - 14:30 Rest hour or rest hour watch / project (1x week)

14:30 Snacks for residents, medication, helping with getting ready

14:45 Leaving the house together and walk to the workplace

15:00 - 17:00 Afternoon program (garden, art, dancing, walk, running group)

17:30 Helping resident with shower

18:00 - 18:30 Dinner

18:30 Clean up the kitchen

19:00 - 20:00 Evening activities (music, reading, playing games, project or academy study time)

20:00 Medication, helping residents with hygiene, documentation of the day in logbook

20:15 Residents go to bed, Overnight Watch 1-2 days a week, otherwise: End of work, time to meet friends

Once a week I'm on Overnight Watch. We are then the contact person for all residents at night and have to carry out the evacuation in the event of an alarm. I wait in the living room until 22:00 and then take a bell to my room, which wakes me up when a resident leaves his room. He tends to go out at night to look for food, so we have to check on him. That evening I'm not allowed to leave the house and go into town with colleagues, but I like to use the time to write for my blog.

On my day off (Sunday), my house has decided to go to the Santa Cruz County Fair. This is a fair that is organized once a year in the county. The fair was very similar to the Columbia County Fair in New York, where I took my house last year. As we were walking from the parking lot to the fair, staff members noticed our group and offered us a ride to the entrance. Our residents were very happy to be driven there in the buggy! Thank you very much for this support! 

My householder bought seven tickets so that everyone could choose a ride. After the first person from our house got on the ride, no one else was allowed in. The tickets are their own currency, some rides can be visited with one ticket, in others you have to pay for several tickets for one person. But we bought more tickets so that everyone in the house could visit a ride. Some residents from our Camphill are artistically active and were allowed to exhibit their works in the art gallery. I passed by the Republican stand, where I got talking to a woman. Even though I'm not a Donald Trump fan, I found it exciting to get to know her perspective. She said that things were very peaceful under President Trump and now under President Biden several wars have started, which America is pouring tax money into. She also told me about her trip through Europe and Germany, a nice conversation. Our residents were very happy about the magic show, where a magician invited visitors onto the stage to demonstrate magic tricks for them. Like last time, I was less interested in the rides and more interested in the snack stands. We eat very healthily here at Camphill, so I took the opportunity to try lots of things. I started with deep-fried REESE'S Peanut Butter Cups. I know the chocolate cups filled with peanut butter from my time in New York; they don't exist in Germany. In New York, I ate deep-fried Oreos and Chips Ahoi. My favorites are deep-fried Oreos, then peanut butter cups and finally the cookies from Chips Ahoi. Then I tried "funnel cake." According to the internet, "funnel cake" comes from southern Germany, Austria and Tyrol, where it is known as "Strauben." I've never seen or eaten it before, so I was very excited. It is prepared by pouring liquid dough - consisting of flour, butter, milk, eggs and sugar - through a funnel in a spiral shape into a pan of boiling oil and frying it. After draining, the Strauben are sprinkled with powdered sugar. In the USA, funnel cakes were originally associated with the Pennsylvania Dutch Country. It is one of the first fried foods in North America, which came to Pennsylvania with the Pennsylvania Dutch, German immigrants, in the 17th and 18th centuries. For lunch, we had a corn dog, a sausage wrapped in a corn dough and fried in hot oil. A resident who was no longer hungry gave me half a portion of fries with garlic butter. For dessert, we had chocolate ice cream. With it, a large Pepsi and a bag of "birthday popcorn" with icing and colorful sprinkles to take home. We volunteers shared the popcorn that evening at a movie night. I suggested the 2019 film "Us" by Jordan Peele.

In 1986, Ada visited the amusement park in Santa Cruz with her parents. When she is left unattended, she runs to the beach and disappears into a mirror labyrinth. When her parents find her again, she has changed and no longer speaks a word. Thirty years later, she is married and has two children. She only reluctantly comes along when the family wants to go on holiday to Santa Cruz...

We were often happy to recognize familiar places in Santa Cruz and the surrounding area in the film. If you want to get an impression of the place, you should take a look at the film. Regardless, "Us" is an excellent horror film! With worldwide revenues of 255 million US dollars and production costs of 20 million dollars, it is the fourth most successful R-rated horror film. The film has many creative ideas and is not a run-of-the-mill haunted house jumpscare mainstream horror film. I have now seen it for the third time and can appreciate new details and facets each time. The plot twist is one of the best I have ever seen in films and the social criticism it contains invites you to think.

This week was very stressful for me. I had a bad toothache and went to the dentist Seal Rock Dental Care in the neighborhood, where the doctor x-rayed my teeth. Apparently the dentist in Germany, who I had visited at home that week, had placed a filling too deep so that it was pressing on the nerve. So the doctor recommended me to a specialist, John J. Jimenez, who is also in the neighborhood. I had a nice conversation with the dentist, who raved about the German technology he uses as a dentist. I had to pay 157.47 euros for the x-ray, the examination and the referral. On the way to the specialist, I saw very cute huskies looking down from a balcony.

The specialist performed a root canal treatment and removed the filling that was too deep. The dentist was very friendly and sang during the operation, which was very entertaining. During the surgery, he didn't like the song that was playing so he minimized the x-ray on the monitor in front of me and opened Spotify to look through his playlist. In the end, he found a nice song and was able to relieve me of my pain. At least until I held the bill in my hands: 1532.96 euros plus 35.30 euros for antibiotics prescribed by the pharmacy. Fortunately, Camphill pays for my ADAC international health insurance, which covers dental costs. I now have to wait until the follow-up check in November, when I will be issued with the original invoice, which I then have to send by post to Germany. Once the procedure is complete, I will get my money back at some point. I hope it happens quickly, as it's quite a large sum. 

While walking to the dentist, I passed a plaque commemorating the Soquel Fire Department:

"The first ballot by a woman in an American presidential election was cast on this site November 3, 1868, by Charlotte (Charley) Parkhurst who masqueraded as a man for much of her life. She was a stagecoach driver in the mother lode country during the gold rush days and shot and killed at least one bandit. In her later years he drove a stagecoach in this area. She died in 1879. Not until then was she found to be female. She is buried in Watsonville at the pioneer cemetery"

My colleagues baked banana bread at home. Very tasty! When I was invited to dinner in the house next door, I learned about a new tradition. Every evening before dinner, Rudolf Steiner's words on personal development are read aloud:

From time to time one should observe one's own inner activity, even if only for five minutes. In doing this one should sink deeply into oneself and there take stock of oneself, form and test one's basic principles of life. One's knowledge, also the contrary, should be thought through; one's duties should be well considered; the content and purpose of one's life should be well pondered.

One tries to discover the essential, the permanent, and set one's aims accordingly; for example; try earnestly to become virtuous. Don't believe that something has been well done, strive ever onwards, following the highest possible standards. That is the Right Contemplation.

Monday: The Right Word

Moon - Gabriel - Purple

The Speaking. Only what has sense and meaning should come from the lips of one who is striving for higher development. All talking for the sake of talking, is in this sense, harmful.

The usual kind of conversation where everything is jumbled together is better avoided. Because of this one should not eut oneself off from having to do with one's fellow men. Precisely in dealing with others the speaking should develop into something significant. One is always ready to speak and give answers, but then fully thought-out from every direction. One should never speak without reason (remain willingly silent). Try to use neither too many nor too few words, - The Right Word. First listen attentively, then work on it.

Tuesday The Right Deed

Mars - Samael - Red

The Outward deeds. These should not be disturbing for our fellowmen when one acts out of an impulse of one's conscience. Consider with the greatest care how one can make this impulse serve the wellbeing of people, their continual happiness, the eternal.

When one acts out of oneself, from one's own initiative, then one should think out beforehand with the utmost thoroughness what effects this action will have. This is called The Right Deed.

Wednesday: The Right Standpoint

Mercury - Raphael - Yellow

Ordering one's life. Live according to Nature and according to the Spirit. Don't get lost in the superficialities of life. Don't over hurry, but nevertheless, don't be inactive.

Consider life as a means by which one can work and strive for higher development and act according to this.

This is called The Right Standpoint.

Thursday: The Right Habit

Jupiter - Zachariel - Orange

The Human Striving. One should be awake to undertake things that are beyond one's powers, and on the other hand, not to neglect those things that are within one's powers. Look over and beyond the daily routine, things of the moment, and set aims (ideals) that are bound up with the greatest duties that a human being has.

For example: in the sense of these exercises, one should want to develop oneself so as to be able to help and advice one's fellow men all the more, even if this may not be in the immediate future.

The above can be summarized in the following words: All the exercises given here should become a habit. The Right Habit.

Friday: The Right Memory

Venus - Anael - Green

Striving to learn as much from life as possible. Nothing should pass us by that does not give us cause to gather experience that is usefull for our lives. If one has done something wrongly or imperfectly, this should be the reason to do it again later correctly or perfectly.

When one sees others acting, one may observe them with the same aim in mind (but not loveless eyes). One can learn very much from every person, also from children when one observes them intently.

And one should do nothing without looking back to past events that can help one in making decisions and carrying out actions.

The Right memory - that means; remembering one's past experience and what one has learned.

Saturday: Right Opinion

SATURN - Oriphiel - Blue

Attention to one's thinking. Think only meaningful thoughts.

Learn with the time to separate in thoughts the essential from the nonessential - the eternal from the passing - and the truth even from the best opinion.

The so-called 'RIGHT OPINION? While listening to others speaking remain in thinking and also feeling inwardly absolutely quiet, renounce both agreeing or disagreeing (rejecting and criticizing) and all derogatory judgments.

Sunday The Right Judgment

Sun- Michael - White

One should make decisions on only absolutely clear solidly founded thinking, even in the most unimportant matters. Keep the mind free from all thoughtless actions and meaningless doings. Have well thought-out reasons for everything you do, and don't do things unless a definite reason demands it.

The so-called Right Judgment is not dependent on sympathy or antipathy. When one is convinced of the rightness of a decision that one has made, then one should stand firmly by it. Steadfastness.

As in Triform, we also celebrated Michaelmas here and spent the days beforehand studying the 12 virtues and listening to talks on various topics every morning. I found it a little difficult to draw anything for myself from the words. The talks were very short and then we went straight to work. I would have liked to have had the opportunity to discuss the words together in small groups. I didn't attend Michaelmas itself as it fell on my day off. On the Saturday before, there was a nice cultural program in the evening with classical music, the volunteers' choir and a speech about Michaelmas. 

Bible evening, 7pm @ Paloma Hall (14th)

Virgo - courtesy becomes Steadiness of Feeling 

Morning circle Virtue sharing (16th - 20th)

Libra - Contentment becomes Self-Composure 

Scorpio - Patience becomes Understanding

Sagittarius - Control of Speech becomes Feeling for Truth

Capricorn - Courage becomes Power of Redemption 

Aquarius - Discretion becomes Power of Meditation

Bible Supper in Houses (21st)

Pisces - Magnanimity becomes Love

Morning circle Virtue sharing (23rd -27th)

Aries - Devotion becomes Power of Sacrifice 

Taurus - Equilibrium becomes Progress

Gemini - Perseverance becomes Faithfulness 

Cancer - Unselfishness becomes Catharsis 

Leo - Compassion becomes Freedom 

Bible evening, 7pm @ Paloma Hall (28th)

Michaelmas day (29th)

Festival of Offering

Community Lunch, 1 pm

On my day off, I lay on the beach in Santa Cruz in the sun and enjoyed the warmth. Afterwards I went to Nick the Greek, a Greek restaurant that serves gyros. It was delicious, but also quite expensive: 12.50 plus tax. On another day, I visited Little Caesars, the third largest pizza chain in the USA after Pizza Hut and Dominos. I was very surprised at the reasonable price, for 10 dollars I got a large pizza, of which I only managed half and carried the other half home. The special thing about the pizza was the pretzel dough with salt. A nice idea, salty dough and pizza is a good combination. I sat down with the pizza in the picnic area on the Santa Cruz Boardwalk and enjoyed the view of the sea.

On one of our residents' birthdays, we went to his favorite restaurant “Bettys Burgers” and got burgers and fries for the house and invited guests. I'm always very curious and read up a lot, so before our visit I went to the chain's website with three stores and tried to find out more about the place. Over dinner, I was able to tell what I thought was a really interesting story of how it came to be, which even the long-time residents and staff didn't know:

The founder is from the Panhandle region of Teax, and “Big Dutch” Dixon was the only family she ever knew. He raised her since her mom rode along with a surfer passing through to California. She was just five years old when she watched her mom wave goodbye as the red convertible with the Beach Boys on the 8-track sped out of town. She never looked back. As a kid, she watched the old Gidget movies and thought about mom and her boyfriend. Dutch didn't have many talents, but he could ride a Harley and made a wickedly good mesquite burger. Many said they were the best in Texas. At sixteen, she headed west to find her mama. Dutch vowed not to cook another burger until she returned. She found many beach boys, some she even liked. One called her “Gidget gone bad”. But she never found her mom or a burger as good as Dutch's. Dutch died a few years ago and all he left her was his burger recipe. After years on the road, she got tired of cheap motels and even cheaper food. She figured her body deserved better. So she got a car and spent a lot of time driving across the country, cooking and catering to overnight guests, tired souls looking for a good meal and a warm bed. She writes: “My food is not extravagant, just good and cheap like me. Maybe a full belly and a warm bed are the key to happiness”. The burgers and fries were very tasty.

I visited the library in Capitola for the first time with the retiree group after we used to take the house to the library in Aptos. While the library in Aptos looks a little more playful and is kind of a library for the whole family with children's and teen corners, the library in Capitola reminds me more of the inside of my much cherished America Memorial Library. I would love to spend more time here and write for my blog. Unfortunately, it's only open from 10:00 am - 6:00 pm, so I can't go to the library after work or on my day off when it's closed. But I did find some interesting books in the library: “Tarantino: a Retrospective” by Tom Shone, “Siege: Trump under Fire” by Michael Wolff and “Haunted Santa Cruz” by Maryanne Porter. If we go there again, I'll be sure to borrow these. I also read a book about the Waco siege. In February 1993, the ATF (Alcohol, Drugs and Firearms) wanted to investigate the Branch Davidians' compound near Waca. More than a hundred men, women and children live there with their messiah David Koresh. He binds them to him with apocalyptic predictions of the imminent end of the world. He claims all the women for himself and even impregnates young girls. They defend themselves against the Razia by force of arms and kill four officers, six cult members die. The FBI takes over and a 51-day siege of the sect's premises begins. Finally, the officers shoot tear gas into the building and hours later a fire breaks out, killing 76 people. The then Senator Joe Biden does not blame Bill Clinton's government, but claims that the cultists themselves started the fire. A great tragedy, but some ultra-right groups see the event as proof of the need for private citizens to arm themselves. An interesting story, which I will research more on.

We were very active in the garden and planted lettuce, onions and kale. There are many things to pay attention to here, which I had to learn first. The roots of the plants have to be frayed first. A small hole is dug in the irrigation pipe and some water from the watering can is poured in. Then the plant is inserted and buried up to the end of the roots. Make sure that the lower part of the plant above the roots is not covered with soil. The plant must also not be placed in a small valley, otherwise the rainwater will run into it and drown the plant. It must not be too close to other plants so that it can grow well. In front of the entrance gate to our house, I worked with a resident to remove a bush that was covering the footpath when driving in and out. The colleagues and residents were very happy about this and thanked us as we drove in and out. On one day, we transported numerous bricks and stone slabs from one property to the next. We loaded wheelbarrows, drove the heavy bricks to the truck and then loaded the bricks into the truck with a human chain. Just before I reached for a brick, I saw a large black spider sitting on the brick. It seemed unusually large to me, so I asked a long-time gardener if it was a dangerous spider. In fact, it was a black widow! It is so named because after mating it can happen that the male is eaten by the larger female.  The sting feels like a pinprick and often goes unnoticed. Fatalities are rare, but swelling, muscle cramps, sweating and nausea are to be expected. At work, my work supervisor drew my attention to a spot on the compost where you have a beautiful view of the ocean. Camphill California is on a big hill, so we can see the bay from there. When my work supervisor wasn't there, an employed gardener took over our group. She surprised us with a wonderful fruit buffet! 

In my free time, I rode my bike around a bit to explore the area. The old China Beach is located on New Brighton State Beach.

In the 1870s and 1880s, a small village was built at the foot of these cliffs using old timber and driftwood. Known as China Beach or China Cove, it was founded by Chinese fishermen who cast their nets by boat and then hauled their catch of the day by hand to the beach to dry and sell. By 1890, however, the expanding vacation industry and waves of anti-Chinese sentiment had led to the last Chinese fishermen being driven out of Santa Cruz County. Afterwards, I took a look at Souqel Creek in Lions Park. Text panels describe the diversity of flora and fauna at the creek, I have attached one panel to the blog post. 

In the hiking group we went to Nisene Marks State Park one day. I've been here a few times before, but this time we took a different route. Here I saw a sign warning of “New Zealand Mudsnails”. Due to their rapid reproduction, there can be a density of 1 million snails per square meter. A single snail can lead to the production of more than 40 million snails per year. Snails can survive out of water for up to 2 months in a humid environment. They displace and replace native invertebrates that are the preferred food of fish. The snails can cause drastic, detrimental changes to the native plant and animal food web of streams and lakes. Therefore, visitors are encouraged to inspect equipment for debris and brush it after leaving the water. Waders and other equipment should be frozen overnight for at least 6 hours. This is to avoid spreading the snails further. Live fish, aquatic plants and animals should also never be transported from one body of water to another.

Every week on Tuesday I take part in the SAGE group. SAGE stands for “Aging in Wisdom”. We create an offer for the older residents there. At the beginning, we reflect on the weekend together and exchange ideas. We then go to Haus Linden together, where we make granola (muesli). Sometimes we also go on excursions, go shopping or for a walk. Here is the recipe for our muesli:

• 4 cups of oats

• 4 cups almonds

• 3 cups coconut oil 

• 2 cups brown sugar

• 1 cup honey or 1 cup agave syrup

• 3 teaspoons salt 

1. 

Chop 4 cups of nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts, raisins)  

2. 

Put 3 cups of coconut oil in a pot 

3. 

Heat 1 cup of honey with 2 cups of brown sugar and 3 tablespoons of salt in a pot (sugar-free alternative: 1 cup of agave syrup)

4. 

Mix 4 cups of rolled oats with peanut butter, nuts and honey in a bowl (or agave syrup)

5. 

Spread the muesli evenly on the tray 

6. 

Bake in the oven for 4 hours on low heat. 

I cook with one of the SAGE participants on Monday mornings. Every week we prepare quinoa with tofu and carrot salad with mustard dressing. Another task of the SAGE group is to prepare birthdays in the morning circles. We often rewrite favorite songs and adapt them to the person. One resident in our home, Dunkin (name changed), loves the song “Eye of the Tiger”, his iPad and Pavarotti. He closes the gate every evening, sometimes throws his shoes and is a very lovable resident. We adapted the song to his character and routines:

Risin' up back to Camphill 

Did his time,took his chances

Went the distance, now his back to the Sage

 Just a man and his will to survive

So many times, it happens too fast 

He trade his passion to marry

Don't lose his grip on the dreams of a wife 

He must fight just to keep them alive

It's the eye of our Dunkin, it's the thrill of the guy 

Risin' up to the challenge of the rival

And the last thing he does is close the gate in the night 

And he's watching us all with the eye of the tiger

Face to face,out in bathroom

Hangin' tough stayin' in Ishi

They stack the odds still we take to the dirt 

For the fun with the skill to survive

It's the eye of our Dunkin, it's the thrill of the guy 

Risin up to the challenge of his rival

And the last thing he does is close the gate in the night 

And he's watches iPad with the eye of the tiger

Risin' up opened the gate

Had the oats go morning circle

Went the distance, now he's not gonna stop 

Just for fun and his will to survive

It's the eye of our Dunkin, it's the thrill of the guy 

Risin' up to the challenge of Camphill

And the last thing he does is throw his shoes in the air 

And he's watching Pavarote with the eye of the tiger

The eye of the Tiger

We organized a little play for this. He loves the movie “Rocky” and boxing. We went outside during morning circle and dressed him up as a boxer. I dressed up as his trainer. Inside, the whole community was surprised and a boxing match was announced. An older resident went around holding up the round numbers and a long-term coworker introduced the opponents. I then went into the room with Dunkin, prepared him for the fight in the corner of the boxing ring and let him warm up. Then he had an show fight against a householder. During the fight, everyone sang the adapted song, and after two rounds he came out of the fight as the winner and was cheered by all the residents. A great birthday surprise that brought him and the residents a lot of joy. I can show a video privately on request!

Together with other volunteers, I went to the cinema to see the movie “Joker 2”. When I saw the first Joker movie in the cinema, I was a bit disappointed. I was expecting a Joker like the one I knew from the Dark Knight Trilogy. Heath Ledger won the Oscar for this incredibly good performance! However, the movie didn't show Joker fighting Batman, but the background story of how the man became the Joker. Even though I'm still not a big fan of the movie, I can still appreciate the first part much more for its approach and ideas, such as the dance scene in the bathroom: 

https://youtu.be/nTVdN6s3rXY?si=6LJlH4JCzSw7_Q7U

When we walked out of the second part, we all agreed: the movie was a disappointment! After the first movie, anyone expecting a Joker who gathers criminals around him and plans ingenious crimes will be disappointed. The first half of the movie takes place entirely in prison, the second half almost exclusively in the court. Joker falls in love, struggles with his past, is interviewed by journalists and falls in love with Harley Quinn, played by Lady Gaga. Unfortunately, the movie dragged on and didn't live up to the expectations we all had after the first part. If you're interested in Joker, check out the Dark Knight Trilogy. If you are still interested in the background story, the first Joker movie. You can skip Joker 2, because it doesn't add anything interesting to the plot.

In the Academy, we looked at an article about plants. It explored the question: “Are plants intelligent?”. As I work a lot in the garden here, I was very interested in this. I would like to share some interesting thoughts from the authors Craig Holdrege and Jon McAlice with you:

https://www.natureinstitute.org/in-context-51/are-plants-intelligent/craig-holdrege-jon-mcalice

The roots of plants not only absorb water and minerals, but also release substances into the soil. Leaves provide shade for other plants, absorb carbon dioxide and release moisture and oxygen into the atmosphere. Mycorrhizal fungal networks connect different plant species physically and physiologically via their roots. From seed to germination, vegetative growth, flowering, fruit and seed formation, the plant undergoes a continuous transformation, its life is characterized by interactions with the environment. There is no fixed plan for the size and number of leaves or stems; the plant adapts its growth and physiology to the environmental conditions. 

Charles Darwin's son, Francis Darwin, was president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science and made the following statement in a speech in 1908: “We must believe that in plants there exists a faint copy of what we call consciousness in ourselves”. The New York Times criticized the speech as follows: “Few more imaginative and more original speeches have been delivered from the Presidential chair than his, though the scientific audience shook their heads.” It sparked a great deal of controversy, and a day later an article appeared in The Times entitled: “Scoffs at Theory that Plants Think”. The deputy director of the New York Botanical Garden was quoted: “When a true plant performs actions that might seem to imply intelligence and a nervous system, I am inclined to suppose that they have developed powers peculiar to plants and quite distinct from the faculties of animals, even though their results appear similar.” The debate died down, but the question is now being discussed again. 

The scientists Mancuso and Viola write: “Plants are able to receive signals from their environment, process the information, and devise solutions adaptive to their own survival”. Gallusci wrote: “Plants have developed complex molecular networks that allow them to remember, choose, and make decisions depending on the stress stimulus, although they lack a nervous system. Being sessile, plants can exploit these networks to optimize their resources cost-effectively and maximize their fitness in response to multiple environmental stresses…. In this opinion article, we present concepts and perspectives regarding the capabilities of plants to sense, perceive, remember, re-elaborate, respond, and to some extent transmit to their progeny information to adapt more efficiently to climate change.”. The leading proponent of plant intelligence, Anthony Trewavas, writes: “The skill in environmental interpretation, that is learning, determines which seeds will most accurately assess the time of germination and environmental conditions for the young plant. These are clearly the most intelligent”. The authors of the article see this as an approach based on our own self-aware human intelligence. The more intelligent seeds have interpreted the data more accurately, made better decisions, picked the right moment to sprout and therefore have a higher chance of survival. In current research, intelligence is often about survival, as Calvo writes: “The inbuilt driving forces of individual survival and thence to reproduction are fundamental to life of all kinds. In these unpredictable and varying circumstances the aim of intelligence in all individuals is to modify behaviour to improve the probability of survival.” 

This perspective goes back to Charles Darwin's “survival of the fittest” theory, the competition of individual variants of a species in a hostile environment. The authors of the article note that Darwin himself realized that terms such as struggle and competition are sometimes inappropriate: “A plant on the edge of a desert is said to struggle for life against the drought, though more properly it should be said to be dependent upon the moisture.” A statement such as “The plant is dependent on moisture” reveals a relationship between the plant and the environment, “struggle for life” creates an image of an actor facing a hostile world. However, his thinking was generally characterized by the idea of “us against them”. 

What the article is actually trying to say, and what relates to the writing course, is that the language we choose influences the way we see and conceptualize the world. One can emphasize an antagonistic relationship between the plant and the world or the connection between the plant and its environment. Language is the reflection of our way of understanding the world. It influences how we understand and experience the world. Phenomena can have different characteristics if we look at them from a different perspective. Limiting ourselves to just one perspective hides new insights from us. Scientists are currently looking at plants through the lens of what they know about intelligent human behavior and speculating about characteristics that underlie similar behaviors. There are many different definitions of intelligence, including logical reasoning, planning, problem solving, abstract thinking, grasping complex ideas, the ability to learn from experience and the ability to adapt to the environment. However, many things can adapt to the environment; we would not describe water, for example, as intelligent. If the definition is too broad, it ends up encompassing everything. 

The authors say we should not focus on including or excluding different creatures based on one definition of intelligence. All “things” are embedded in the world, they change in relation to changes in nature and can thus also change the environment. Nothing exists in isolation without the world around it. If we want to understand something, we focus on the relationships between the object of study and the world. The authors take the example of a person running through dense bushes. He tries to avoid brambles and find openings. On the other hand, there are processes that take place beneath the surface of consciousness. For example, skin healing processes that start unconsciously and without our decision when we are scratched. But this process is at the core of our existence. Intelligence should therefore not only be defined in terms of reflective human consciousness. According to the authors, the question shifts to: “What are different ways of being in the world and what do they reveal?”. Thus our concept of intelligence can become more differentiated and grow if we take different kinds of living beings and their specific ways of being seriously. Perhaps we need concepts other than intelligence to express the different qualities of the relationships between organism and environment. 

A very exciting article that got me thinking on two levels. The way we write and talk about things has a big influence on how we perceive something. This was already a big topic in my philosophy studies. After six years of essays and papers, I often struggle to use collective terms because I can already see the critical comments from my lecturer, who picks apart all the terms I use. The text was also very exciting as I am now working in the garden with plants after a year of farm work with animals. I know very little about plants, so the text was very eye-opening for me.

There are several police officers in my family and in my studies I wrote a paper about the LA Riots in 1992 and the reforms of the Los Angeles Police Department. If you are interested in the paper, feel free to write to me! That's why I'm also very interested in police work here in Santa Cruz and have done a lot of research. We have a total of four police departments here. The Capitola Police Department (22 sworn police officers) and the Santa Cruz Police Department (94 sworn police officers), which are responsible for the city of Santa Cruz and the city of Capitola, which is even closer. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office (165 patrol officers and 120 correctional officers) is responsible for Santa Cruz County. The sheriff and his deputies are primarily responsible for those areas of the county that do not have their own police force. They are also responsible for the county jails. The state police, who are responsible for the entire state of California, are not called the California State Police (like the New York State Police), but California Highway Patrol (CHP). The 6406 officers are mainly responsible for the highways (the Californian motorcycle cops are known from many movies), for crimes affecting several counties, for protecting the governor and for protests and other situations where the counties need support. What really surprised me when I was researching was the transparency on the website. There were 344 “incidents” in Santa Cruz County last month. Marked on the map are all the places where crimes such as assaults, arson, robberies, burglaries, homicides, fraud, drug abuse, etc. occurred.  You can also view the individual markers in the form of heat maps, where criminal hotspots are marked in red. Fortunately, nothing else has happened in our neighborhood apart from one case of fraud. I once read in the german magazin "Der Spiegel" that these statistics are also used predictively in Santa Cruz to “predict” crime and estimate where and when crimes are more likely to be committed: 

https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/web/in-santa-cruz-sagen-computer-verbrechen-voraus-a-899422.html

"For almost two years now, all of Santa Cruz's almost one hundred police officers have been prepared for their shift every day at the start of their shift not only by their superiors, but also by an algorithm. Fed with all the relevant data that the police force has to offer several times a day, the program calculates in which areas of the city and at what time of day there is the highest probability of a crime - such as a burglary or robbery. Homicides have so far been excluded. The danger areas are divided into 15 squares measuring just around 150 by 150 meters, to which police patrols are then assigned as a precautionary measure. The concept is based on complex data analyses and is called “predictive policing”. It was developed primarily by two professors, the computer scientist George Mohler and the anthropologist Jeffrey Brantingham, who specializes in crime scenarios. The application developed by the two is based on models for predicting aftershocks following earthquakes: According to this, an initial crime always results in subsequent crimes. The deputy police chief of Santa Cruz, Steve Clark, heard about the two scientists' idea by chance at the beginning of 2011. Together they set up a pilot project: they fed the program with eight years' worth of crime statistics and countless other data that could play a role - weather, proximity to parks and bus routes. To do this, every crime has to be correlated with every other crime, resulting in enormous amounts of data. “There were a lot of sceptics at the beginning, including me,” Clark emphasizes right at the start of our conversation at Santa Cruz police headquarters. “But the figures speak for themselves: it works.” In 66 percent of cases, there was a suspicious event in one of the predicted zones. “I would have been happy with ten percent,” says Clark. In the first year that “predictive policing” was used, burglaries fell by eleven percent and car thefts by eight percent, while the number of arrests increased by 56 percent - while, according to Clark, the number of crimes in the surrounding cities increased. Meanwhile, the entire police department has become highly mechanized. In the briefing room, a huge monitor covers half the wall. On it you can see: The Santa Cruz city area in Google Maps with 15 red risk squares for the current shift. All police officers are also equipped with smartphones and tablets so that they can access the web-based forecasting program while on the move. The police officers are encouraged to spend time in the marked areas whenever possible. The aim is not simply to increase the number of arrests, but to stop a crime or deter criminals through presence, emphasizes the police chief" (Spiegel, 2013)

Police patrols are planned accordingly in order to prevent crime at an early stage. Another map shows all 123 sex offenders in the county, many of them in Santa Cruz. Here you can see the name, address, date of birth, eye color, hair color, height, weight, tattoo and ethnicity of everyone who has ever been convicted of a sex crime. Columbia County in New York also had this, with a picture of the person and a breakdown of the crimes and sentences. I am very ambivalent about this. I have dealt with the prison system in several of my term papers. The aim should be that prison time is not primarily used for punishment, but for resocialization. Prisoners should only be released if the experts are certain that they will not reoffend. However, if they are released, they should also be given the chance to make a fresh start. They will not get this chance if they are publicly listed on the internet forever with their name and address as former sex offenders. Of course, I can understand families who want to know whether potential offenders live in their new neighborhood before they move. On the other hand, it does promise the Christian principle of forgiveness: “Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another; for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord; for there remaineth in him the greater sin”. I am also convinced that people can change for the better - but not if their misdeeds are tattooed on their foreheads. The police are also very transparent about current incidents. On one day, the Santa Cruz police published a picture of a man in swimming trunks being led out of the water in handcuffs by five police officers. The man had probably thrown stones at people on the beach near the pier at 13:00. No one was injured, but when the police arrived he fled and jumped from the pier into the water. He remained in the water and refused to be arrested until he finally surrendered voluntarily to the police at 18:11. Very strange! 

One evening we went to the “Eletric Feels” party at Catalyst. A DJ played indie rock and electronic dance music by artists such as Tame Impala, Arctic Monkeys, Two Door Cinema Club, Gorillaz and M83. We danced the night away and then treated ourselves to a nice pizza at “Pizza my Heart”. I really missed dancing in the club, as there was no opportunity to do so near Triform and volunteers under 21 were not allowed in. Here in Santa Cruz there is a closed-off spectator area where over 21s can dance with their cocktails, separate from the under 21s who don't have access to the bar.