Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Why I live in cohousing

[Ann Zabaldo (ann.zabaldo]

Patty --

I remember reading some wonderful posts of yours when you were first
moving into your cohousing community.  I've quoted them frequently
over the years because they seem to embody why you or anyone would
choose to live in cohousing.

While you are correct that many of these items in the various posts in
this thread could and often do happen in a "thriving neighborhood or
extended family, where folks talk to one another...etc."  I think the
point is ... they often, sadly, don't.  Otherwise, what would be the
point of cohousing?

I live 700 miles from my family and extended family.  I've lived in
many vibrant neighborhoods in the DC area but none compare to living
at Takoma Village.  While I've often had one or two neighbors I would
call on in any of the neighborhoods I've never had 43 households I
felt I could call on.  And I'm a friendly kind of gal!

My close friend and mentor, Tina, who does NOT live in cohousing or
rather sorta lives in cohousing sometimes (it's kinda unclear ...)
has always said if we put 25% of the effort we put into cohousing into
the neighborhood we're living in it would change the neighborhood
radically.  Maybe so but that 25% always seemed really hard since most
folks really liked their privacy and were looking for something more
along the lines of pot luck socials and garden clubs and walking the
dogs together.

Moving into cohousing rather implies you want to be a good neighbor
and and responsive neighbor.  Moving into a standard neighborhood
doesn't necessarily mean that.  Most people are looking for a home w/
community thrown in.  I find the reverse in cohousing.

My thoughts only ...

-
Ann Zabaldo
Takoma Village Cohousing
Washington, DC
Principal, Cohousing Collaborative, LLC
McLean, VA
Voice 703-663-3911
Fax 202-291-8594
www.cohousingcollaborative.com


AZ

On Fri, Jun 20, 2008 at 2:20 PM, pattymara [at] juno.com <pattymara [at] 
juno.com> wrote:
>
> Dear all,
> I've been reading these posts with interest, and as someone who has lived in 
> Tierra Nueva for our full ten years, I'm wondering how any of these lovely 
> neighborhood stories are simply because you live in cohousing?  All of the 
> comments I've read could be made about a thriving neighborhood or town or 
> extended family, where folks talk to one another, help each other out and 
> play together well.  All of these things are not exclusive to cohousing.
>
> I'd like to hear some thoughts about something unique to living specifically 
> in cohousing that couldn't be found in a lively neighborhood or extended 
> family group.
>
> In thinking about sustainablility and the real environmental and personal 
> costs of designing, building and eventually living in a brand new bunch of 
> houses, I'm not so convinced it is worth the effort when the same benefits 
> could be found in other arenas of connection and good neighboring.
>
> coheartedly,
> PattyMara Gourley
>
> www.pattymara.etsy.com
>
> The goal is not to bring your adversaries to their knees but to their senses. 
> -- Mahatma Gandhi
>
>
>
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