 Hope, the granddaughter, carries a stained glass panel from the Florida
storeroom to the van. Robert Moore, the driver, heads back upstairs to
get another panel. To stabilize the glass panels, we surround them with
paper, boxes, insulation, or any bulk we can find. |
| |
 Sharon
Wells, the grandmother, school director and prime patron of the dome,
shows a panel to Hope, who took the picture. In the background is the
truck, getting ready to drive to The Farm in Tennessee. |
| |
 The
chosen dome site is roughly between the large tree, the school, and the
woods to the left (looking north). Mark Schultz, a guest, and Patrick
Montagne, a resident builder, help unload the van in an hour. We carry
everything into a corner in the school. Because of his involvement, interest
in the dome, and attention to details of the site, I ask Patrick Montagne
to select the best place for the center of the dome. He drives a metal
stake with a red cup cap. |
| |
 The
next day, Mark helps put up the work tent near the site (looking southwest). |
| |
 The Farm newsletter, the Free Press, announces a work party unloading
dome panels. Our quick unloading was not anticipated. It rains and I
work inside, attaching color-coded stickers to the nine different lengths
of struts. Some think the work day is canceled, but Patrick and Vickie
help out. |
| |
 The next day with white snowflakes steadily falling outside, in the
school, Mark helps assemble 10
sections of the dome frame. In the picture,
they are stacked on the desk over the stored glass panels. Before he
leaves, Mark helps link me to Jennifer English, who manages the schedule
for apprentices at the Ecovillage Training Center (ETC). Many thanks
to Mark for getting Wholeo established. |
| |
 Signs announce the Unity Festival, April 16-18. |
| |
 Bikko
Casini, a musician (serious bongo drum player), hauls a piece bamboo.
The rounds that abound at The Farm make Wholeo feel right at home. He
facilitated delivery of 9 tons of gravel for the dome drainage, seen
in the last picture. He got "monkeys" to move and replace concrete blocks
lining the driveway. He had us show the driver pictures of the dome. |
| |
 Stephen Gaskin, original farm founder, tells about being inducted into
the Hall of Fame. |
| |
 Unity banner detail - more of those rounds. |
| |
 Child skipping in the spirit of the place. |
| |
 Dafyd
Rawlings, an architect learning about alternative
building by doing it, consulted on the foundation
of Wholeo dome. Here he is co-hosting an
introduction to permaculture at the ETC with
Mathew. |
| |
 Interior of an ETC building, the hipitat - more rounds. |
| |
 Permaculture ponds at the ETC - more rounds. |
| |
 Back
at the dome site, breaking ground for the french drain is Matthew English
of the ETC. Dafyd has the wheelbarrow. |
| |
 This
event occurred right after the Unity Festival on April 18. People gathered
to watch and help. We first assembled the base tier of the dome frame.
Joel Kachinsky, lawyer, helped from beginning to end and probably was
the only one who understood the geodesic geometry. Francesco (wearing
beret) uses the frame to locate holes for posts for the foundation. The
orange mesh construction fence is to protect the site. |
| |
 The partial geodesic tube frame lifts easily. There's Jennifer back
by the tree. |
| |
 Francesco
saws a pipe for a center post. The guys covering their ears helped greatly
with the fence and foundation. Emily (from ETC) and Jennifer helped with
both frame and drain. |
| |
 This picture shows the two drainage ditches flanking the path into
and out of the dome. |
| |
 Looking from SW: post forms, holes, 7-foot radius measuring board,
tube frame, and school. |
| |
 The
fully assembled frame is stored inside the fence. As I publish this on
April 26, the pile of gravel probably has been put into the drain. |
