Re: Diversity, what diversity?
From: Daniel Nachbar (nachbarworld.std.com)
Date: Wed, 3 Jul 1996 11:32:30 -0500
It is a serious mistake to confuse the attitudes of people who say that
they want to live in "cohousing" with the attitudes of people who actually
end up living in such communities.

It took me 4 years and 3 groups before I eventually moved into cohousing
2 years ago.  During that time, I met quite a few "wacks".  They are
actually quite common in the early stages of groups.  But the rigors
of the development process, and the realities of working with other people
almost always weed out wacky attitudes (either the attitude leaves, or
the people with them leave).  To the degree that they do remain, most wacky
suggestions are politely ignored in favor of dealing with the holder's more
sensible side. The key is to obtain a critical mass of common sense within
one's group.  The "weeding" process follows quite naturally.

I considered myself to be quite a tolerant fellow before cohousing.  Boy, was
I in for a shock.  Repeatedly, during my "early days", I found myself
stomping around after meetings mumbling "What is WRONG with these people?"
I came to the point where I could either give up on cohousing,
or learn to live with others' "madness."

I now consider having my own tolerance levels increased to be one of the 
primary, if unexpected, returns on my investment.

Dan Nachbar
Pioneer Valley CoHousing
Amherst, MA

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