Page 22 RAIN February-March 1979 _______l?aind__.ops_ ____ Lots of you are perhaps wondering what's been going on with us here. Well, of course, lots of metamorphosis in our everchanging panorama of.Rain, ice, hail, sun, snow, life, wind.... Tom and Lane, Rainmakers, have become Babymakers! Skye was born on the Oregon coast at around 5 a.m. right on time for our copy deadline for this issue, Tuesday, January 16! Bloss9mirl.g into this life, he is welcomed by an utterly wqnderful environment lovingly rebuilt out of ashes this year by Tom, Lane, Kip and lots of friends-the • Phoenix House..Rebirth and joy! I Lee, our wonderful, frolicking·dynamo, has recuperated from his trekking and conferencing all over the U.S. and his subsequent "you've-pushed-me.:too- . hard-too-long" winter-cold in time to give Western Sun his gust of energy and a grassroots A.T. reference point to start from. He's working there with Margie Harris and Fred Miller, both formerly with Oregon DOE. Western Sun, on~ of the nation's four regional solar energy centers, has the job of speeding up the commercial use of solar, wind and biomass energy in the 13 western states. Lee can be reached at their teµiporary office in BPA's·building, 503/234-3~61, ext. 4478. He's there from 9 to 5 and then returns to Rainhouse to torment us with wild bureaucratic tales and to attend to his lonely piles of mail. Western Sun, P.O. Box 3621," Portland, OR 97.208. • Steven has just returned from four weeks in his old stomping grounds (Ann Arbor and Toledo) and has finished up a series of energy advocacy workshops for CAP people around the state. We're hoping that he'll do another with Rain as the umbrella so more folks can have access to their good workshop. RUNT's struggles with the city bureaucracy to help supply a house to retrofit a la Integral Urba·n House have been frustrating to Phil and the other good folks involved-lots of learning there ... Napdie and Yale, our. interns, have been. our salvation in keeping abreast of the mass of wotk that's involved in keeping things flowing around here. Besides that, they're excited and working on puttiqg together a workshop series this spring on Where to Plug In! I just realized that Yale hasn't been introduced even though he feels like an old friend by now ... h<:; came in late November from having done lots of environmental work in Amherst, Mass.- coordinating Sun Day, occupying at Seabrook in '77 (one of the 1414), and working on the Toward Tomorrow Fair. As for me, Rain sometimes feels like one BIG PERENNIAL DEADLINE, so I've vowed to slow down after the next• . .. Here's a little promotion update, •as that's been a big part of my focus lately: mailing lists have been steadily coming in and to all of you who've sent them, OµR THANKS! They're wonderful! (We've decided to start "small" and do some sample mailings- at the end of J arruary-we've not had to buy any lists yet!) We've received very few requests from people not wanting their names traded; anyone who wants to be removed from that process can let us know at any time. The following trades have been made so far: Alternative Sources of Energy, The Elements and Seriatim (these and future trades will be one time use only). Attention, people who ordered Stepping Stones poster_s in October and early November: Please let us send you a better copy, since our first printing was too light! Just send me your name and $1 (if you can) for postage and mailing tube. John Coffin, our folding bike friend, where are you? Your Rains are being returned with no forwarding address! All of you itinerants and transientslet us know where you.are; keep those address changes coming! . two things I'm real excited about and would like information; ideas, models of: Landlord/Rental -Insulation Legislation: Leg-islation requiring landlords to insulate rental units OR a way to get .rental dwellings insulated without higher costs to tenants. Oregon SelfReliance is looking for legislative models to aid in drafti'ng legislation to implement this in Oregon. It's a much needed area of energy conservation, 'touching so many of us-that's real difficult to eventuate. Send your ideas to me.· Neighborhood Transportation Pools/ Banks/Lending Library: Neighborhood transportation pools could be an incredible urban scenario that goes something like this: Members would donate any cars; bikes, trucks, vans, buses, that they have to a pool which would entitle that person to use of any vehicle in the pool at perhaps no cost for a length of tim1e that's equitable. Others who have no vehicle to donate would pay mini- •' - mal/affordable fees to use a vehicle for a specific need. For example, a truck would be available for a winter wood pick-up or a spri'ngtime manure run to folks who don't need acces_s to that vehicle a any other time of the year, and a VW would be available to an •urban dweller who wants an economical w_ay to get to the country where mass transit doesn't exist. Bikes could be ·available as well.... Fees would cover maintenance, insurance,.etc. Is anybody doing this? How about other ways of making the c·oncept work-let us bear your ideas and/or realities! - LS Even though our subscription form requests that all orders/subscriptions be paid for in y.s. money, we continue to receive foreign currency. For prompt and speedy processing of your order/subscription, please help us out by sending U.S. currency. Thanks. -YL Stepping Stones arrived today after all the cuckoo mixups were figured out! Whoopee! Apologies for the delay!
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