Rainbow families/communities...I need your help?!

Ok for my soc. class, we have to do some sort of creative essay(8-12 pages)and a picture essay to go along with it on any particular sub-culture. I want to do mine on Rainbow families/communities, but I don't have any real resources as of yet. So if anybody would be so gracious as to give me some personal insight, stories, pictures of all sorts of their rainbow families that would be really stellar. Also, I plan on doing some good ole googling, but if anybody knows some sites or places I could visit in the Minneapolis area that have some good info that would be really great too. The project isn't due for quite so time so no rush...and thanks in advance for anybody respondees!

Peace & Good Spirits to all!

 

Have fun with it sister, and I know you'll find a ton of stuff from googling. Minneapolis has its fair share of family, ..., aren't Phat Kids from there?

 

i'm happy to share allican, iadded ya on aim.. i'm way tooooo tired right now, but i'm looking forward to sharing soon

 

I am thinking of doing sometime so similar. I think I might do the history of the Rainbow Family, but I really don't know much at all. Anyone want to hook me up with some info can IM me on aim...knottykitti...or send me an e mail @ sakari1985@hotmail.com. Thanks so much everyone.

 

email me at spinkert@optonline.net and ill send you some really heady photos from my rainbow travels.. i have pics from colorado and purple school bus pics too.

 

iwillll indeed, ilost my camera, with like 300 pics in colorado

 

lucky..you look so familiar..was that you, at umm what campwas it..there was a drum circle.. we hugged eachother..& bothhad tears from the hug..& you borrowed my drum..but it wasnt my drum anymore i gave it to chevy, but u didnt know that so when ileft u tookthe drum withu..& left it at info? maybe that wssnt u..but..i swear u seeem very familiar..

 

Yeah, I havent really started the project yet but Lucky I'm going to be e-mailing you in like two min!

Thanks

Peace and good spirits

 

here are some sites for info: www.welcomehome.org and www.welcomehere.org ... both are good resources for all things Rainbow.

Might want to check out my site at www.barterfair.org - on the photos page I have posted lots of pics from Rainbow gatherings (I went to this year's and 2004).

Best of luck - sounds like a great project!

 

in adition tothose sites theres movies from past gatherings..?& music on www.spunoneproductions.com and music on http://rainbowtribe.net
the movies are not all high quality, but they (most) do give u a real sence of what its all about & even some of the hipstory

depending on how seriusly u wanna look intothe full hipstoryof the family i'm sure theres folks here who can put u in touch with some of the folks who were around from the days when it was just an idea & a dream
i've been goin pretty steadily for like 20 years myself, but thats really not all that long when u meet ppl whove been to every single 1 since the beginning

 

i can share you my stories, but right now i'm own my way out the dorr to class

 

Thanks so much for those sites! I would LOVE to hear some of your adventures, and after 20 years I'm sure you have a few. Sorry, its taken me so long to respond....I didn't even see your post from before, silly me! My AIM is actually samiantha202...I think in my pro its says samiantha101 but thats actually my yahoo.


Barter Mama- thanks for the websites, too. I already had slightly checked out the welcomehome.org site. I really enjoyed looking at your photots, so cool!

Bumble- whenever you can share anything that would awesome. No rush:


Thanks again!

 

well i'm eagle128673 so just add me & we'll talk

 

The 1990 National gathering was in Minnesota. Maybe you could reasearch that.

 

ok here goes. This past gathering was my first gathering and trust me it won't be my last! I was fortunate enough to get a ride with fellow family from PA. We drove out in a pick up truck with a camper in the bed of the truck. we broke down in PA. a stranger pulled over and showed us how to ghetto-rig the starter. it was crazy. we couldn't turn off the truck because if we did then we had to ghetto-rig it again and when we did that it would shock the person. we were driving from PA to Missouri without stopping. We show two brothas walking on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere Missouri, so we pulled over and they hopped into the back. Interesting people to say the least. well the truck overheated. like way overheated to the point where we had fluids flying out of the engine and it was steaming! We were stuck in the middle of nowhere Missouri. We happened to break down in front of a bar. I walked into the bar to find help and I felt like I entered a different time zone. All eyes were on me. Well I’m a dready mama, so I can understand people starring at me, so it’s nothing new. Well I asked if anyone could help us out and this drunk fello stopped what he was doing and started to fix our truck or what I called the “hipster mobile.” I decided to kick it in the bar and drink quite a few drinks and talk with locals. I was warned that the area was the biggest drug busting town in Missouri. We had greens, but hid it in the woods for the time being. The man who was fixing our truck said that he couldn’t finish fixing until tomorrow morning at 6AM. All of us, which were 8 now slept in the truck. 6AM came around the man came back and had a new starter. A couple hours passed and we were on the road again. We broke down AGAIN, but this time we were going up a hill. We have to direct the truck off the road going backwards. At this point I was dying from the heat. There was not a soul for hours. Then finally someone saw our sign and pulled over. He happened to have one of those computer things that connect to your car to test to see what is wrong. Well now it was the alternator. The guy did something and the truck was working again. We were on the road again! Then about 45 mins later we broke down once more. At this point I felt like I was overheating. It was so hot. We had a sign up and no one drove by. Then this military guy pulled over and offered to drive us to a car parts place to get a new alternator. Two people of my crew left and got a new one. I called AAA before this man pulled over to help us. We need a tool of some sort, so when the AAA guys came they drove us to get a tool. They we telling Abe and I the most ridiculous jokes on the way there and back. They were not funny, but at this point anything made me laugh. We return back with the tool. We put the new alternator on and hit the road AGAIN! We finally get to Kansas. We took the southern route because we were supposed to pick a sista up in OK, but the truck was on its last life. While driving through Kansas we spotted two more brothers on the side of the road, so of course we picked them up. The other two got off somewhere. I can’t remember where exactly. Kansas was a scary place. I saw so many anti-abortion billboards that it scared me. I was truly scared in Kansas. I dunno why, but I was. Finally we make it to CO! We were on the road for 4 days!
We pull into the gathering grounds. I felt like I enter a different universe. I was approached with a “WELCOME HOME” by everyone. Every person acknowledged that I was there. I camped out at “Shut up and eat it.” It was amazing. It was a whole community. Everyone worked with each other to make sure everyone was fed and okay. I was camping next to this tree that a brotha carved a bowl into. People were passing by and spreading their green energy. The trading circle was amazing! It reminded me of a money-less mall. People had the most interesting things that they wanted to trade. I got two necklaces that I haven’t taken off since the gather. They mean a lot to me. Main circle was amazing too. All of the kitchens made food for everyone and made sure that everyone was fed. Well July 4 came around and woah is the word to explain it. The 6-hours of silence was so powerful. I can go on and on and on about how powerful this entire experience has been for me. I had an insane spiritual experience. I have learned how to break away from the material world and to love life. I left all of my material things in my tent and no one stole anything from me. When we say that we are family, we mean it! I remember tripping and falling over something and a brotha put everything down and helped me up.

I hope my story has helped. I have soooooooooooooooooooooo much more, but then I would have written a book! I hope one day you too can experience what my family has to offer. You need no money or material things. Forget time. Just join us with a lovin heart and soul. We don’t judge. See you all next year!

 

very well said bumble but you left out ofh so much
she was with mr on this trip, & just the breaking down part onthe way was rainbow magic in action
literaly most of the 25 or so times we broke down wed pull over pop the hood & instantly ppl would stop to help
over 50 ppl helped us cross the state
icluding at least 2 old rainbows

oh & bumbles u forgot the 2 we picked up 1st hopped out on 1 side of an underpass just inside colorado & the others we picked up 200 feet further on the other side of the underpass...& all 4 ended up at the gathering even tho it wasnt theyre intended destinations..lol

but iloved everything else u said about how amazingly youcan just be touched bythe experience of your very 1sdt gathering & just how amazingly powerfulit can be to feel that connected to something as huge & beautiful as a global family....rainbow folks truly are the most beautiful people on this planet..ya just cant help but feelthe love

 

[QUOTE

I hope my story has helped. I have soooooooooooooooooooooo much more, but then I would have written a book! I hope one day you too can experience what my family has to offer. You need no money or material things. Forget time. Just join us with a lovin heart and soul. We don’t judge. See you all next year![/QUOTE]
Oh it sounds like quite the experience, a beautiful one at that. Hopefully, one day I'll be able to see for myself how amazing they are!
I'm taking it you travled with soaringeagle to the gathering? Sounded like you car ride was an adventure in itself! Thanks for sharing you experience with me! I'm actually thinking about switching the picture essay into a collection of short non fiction stories, if I can get enough of them!

Oh and soaringeagle, I'm having a tough time staying connected to AIM. It keeps disconnecting me after a few minutes on it or else it just freezes up so I haven't been able to IM you....but feel free to contribute anything if you are willing?

Thanks again!

 

ya have anything besides aim?

i always like going to az gathering by car with a group, the trip is a big part of the adventure so flying just doesnt seem like real to me..cause soon as i leave the cityi start to smile..& the further we get..(i go clear cross the countrywithoutt sleep) the bigger the grin gets..and as we leave the paved roads behind theres just an energy in the air that u realizre youve felt building over the opast 1000 miles

my 1st gathering i woke up in a pickup bed as we pulled intothe site..i sat up just in time to see an elephant headed upthe trail.. farther up a bus villiage that seemed to go on 10 miles was a viking circus..then after finding where we were gonna camp..a long long 10 mile hike up verymuddy trails up the side of the mountain i was shocked to hear a piano off in the woods..theyd actualy caried a grand piano up that trail just to setup a lil tea kitchen/piano bar
my mind was totaly boggled by the people isaw, i just remember thinking how different they all seemed &? wondering where they all came from..the only way to describve it was blissfull...untouched by all the frustrations ?& crap of the world outside..honnestly my 1st i spent the whole time in amazement, so didnt really start to get what it was i was experiencing till id gone to a couple more
b ut the 1st 1 still holds a sence of wonder..of inrealness..a dreamlike qualityfor me

even today sometimes im amazed that anything so wonderful could possibly exist
tome its like that dream of a utopia everyone has but most people laugh at ya for & sayits a pipe dream..a beautiful idea but (or so they claim) impossible due to human nature
but tous..human nature means to love...

 

oh I have more, it's just i had to go to sleep last night . I didn't forget the 4 hitch hikers. they're in there! I was glad that I was able to be part of the rainbow experience soaringeagle!

 

some rainbow shots from Colorado.

http://s91.photobucket.com/albums/k306/redtailboas/ a few good ones in there.