Tiny House Camp. A CAMP, People!!

I had this post just about completed and I accidentally closed the wrong browser page and lost everything.  Sigh.  Hate that.  Let's see how I do recreating it...

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I've been staring at this blank post page, willing all of the words in my head to magically re-format to text and present themselves on the page for me.  [thinking harder]






Drat.  Nothing.

If you read my post yesterday, you read that Jay Shafer, founder of Tumbleweed, sent out his press release yesterday about the formation of his new company, Four Lights Houses and is launching his new website today.  If you haven't been there yet, check it out.  It's beautiful.  I have to believe that the photos and the (sometimes hilarious) text embody his dreams about living small and tiny house communities.  Dreams that he is making come true.

This morning I was at work, in the middle of a project, when I suddenly remembered that Four Lights Houses was supposed to be launched today.  I minimized what I was doing, and opened up Firefox, and cruised to the site to see.  Yay, it's up!

 I took it all in - clicking on links and reading...

First I realized that The Gifford may be my new love.

Then I clicked on "Village" and discovered The Napoleon Complex  (working subtitle, "Co-Housing for the Antisocial" - totally hilarious) It's exactly what I want to create in Dallas!  Tiny... in a City known for big... Ohhh doesn't it need a sister village in Dallas?!  Yes!  Yes it does!

And then I clicked on "Workshop" and read three little words.  No, no, not those three little words - nobody is professing their love for me - these three words:  Tiny House Camp.  My vision blurred.  Tiny.  House.  Camp?!  Whaaaaat?  What is it? (A hands-on workshop) When?? (February 16-20) WHERE?? (Sebastopol, CA)

I read all the tantalizing details and when I reached the bottom of the page, there it was... beckoning me...

Add to Cart.

Without a thought my mouse went there and clicked.  My cursor rested, blinking on the Registration Page.  I took my hand off of my mouse and stared.  Okay actually I took a little day dream trip.  A tiny house camp.  For 5 days.  The sky is blue, we're outside and the speakers are amazing, there's wine (forgive me but I am day dreaming in Sonoma County, you can't blame me) I'm buoyed by being surrounded with like-minded people who share my dream, hammers swinging and...

I texted my friend Kelly in Minneapolis with whom I message all day long:

 b n 12:15 pm

omg he has a tiny house camp 1 day or 5 days...
    http://www.fourlightshouses.com/pages/tiny-house-camp

 Kelly Baltzell 12:15 pm
    really great pictures
    note to you
    don't stint on photography
    you need to go to this camp.

 b n 12:16 pm
    feb in CA

 Kelly Baltzell 12:16 pm
    conflicts?

 b n 12:16 pm
    I'm actually on the buy page...
    my mouse hovering over add to cart...

 Kelly Baltzell 12:16 pm
    yes

 b n 12:16 pm
    I'd only miss 3 days of work

 Kelly Baltzell 12:16 pm
    for five days

 b n 12:16 pm
    it's over a weekend

 Kelly Baltzell 12:16 pm
    Dan will live

 b n 12:16 pm
    I have to do it, right?

 Kelly Baltzell 12:16 pm
    yes

 b n 12:16 pm
    his first one??

 Kelly Baltzell 12:16 pm
    seriously
    AND
    five days, BA
    FIVE DAYS OF RELATIONSHIP building
    five days
    five days of idea swapping
    five days of building a network you are going to need
   AND learning about tiny houses

    all that to me is priceless

 b n 12:17 pm

    omg what is wrong with me, I am CRYING
    everything makes me cry
    holy cow I'm in.  I bought it.

 Kelly Baltzell 12:19 pm
    okay
    you are crying because the energy is right and 

    well you need a stop gap valve for that much energy
    so you cry
    means it is the right choice
    and FANTASTIC
 

 b n 12:20 pm
    I am SO EXCITED
    I don't even know what AP I fly into  lol

 Kelly Baltzell 12:20 pm
    moot point
    you have time to figure that out

 b n 12:21 pm
        my ticket number is 1013 - I bet I'm the 13th person to buy.

 Kelly Baltzell 12:22 pm
    yep and it JUST went live
    I bet it sells out  faster then you think.

 b n 12:23 pm
    yeah it says tickets are limited

But as it turns out, that wasn't the case - I wasn't the 13th person.  Shortly thereafter I got this email from Jay: "Thanks BA!  You're our first-ever workshop subscriber.  See you in February."

He had replied to one of my emails that I had sent to him yesterday in response to his press release.  In my email I had written, "I'm moving out of my house this week!!  I should be in my new tiny house by this time next year - I can't wait for January to start planning it out in earnest.  Hopefully we can meet in the early part of 2013.  I will be one of the first to sign up for the Four Points workshop, wherever it is!"

1)  Yes, it appears that we WILL meet in the early part of 2013.

2)  Yes, I was (one of) the first to sign up for the Four Points workshop.

Hmm.  I don't know -- you tell me -- but I say?  It's another piece of the puzzle, another leg of the journey that is just meant to be.  And another little piece?  I saw a couple of weeks ago that Tumbleweed is holding a weekend workshop in Austin in March, and I had been planning to sign up for it.  I kept forgetting about it, then remembering, and then I'd think, "Oh, yeah, I need to remember to do that," but I never quite got around to it.  Well, now I know why.  I mean, I'm sure it's going to be great and I know there will be people there who I do want to meet - and I will meet still meet them at a Tumbleweed workshop - just not in March.   But I'm going to C A M P.

Happy.