This Land is Your Land, This Land is My Land!

On July 29, my sister, Nina, Nancy Zastudil (in absentia) and I became co-owners of a small parcel of land! Our dear friend Steve McFarland (see earlier posts about Project:Unknown) encouraged us to attend a land auction during which arid parcels leftover from a World's Fair land scheme were being sold.  Our team of 8 worked hard for days deciphering maps, listings, GPS, and conflicting information to prepare for the two-day long auction.  It was a stressful but exciting few days, at the end of which our team walked away with neighboring plots and smiles all around.

40-some miles from Taos near the village of Tres Piedras sits our own little patch of sage brush and chamisa.  There is not water or electricity.  The road is rough, but not long.  Powerlines loom nearby and the highway is slightly audible.  From our sloping tierra are views of the Sangre de Christos, junked cars, giant sky, a new-ish yurt and a beautiful in-progress dome home.  Most people would think this land a waste of money but for us it presents great possibility.  

It will be a challenge to work together to sketch a plan for the land.  The harsh environs, our lack of funds, the tight-knit community of locals, and the regional vernacular (hand-hewn homes built from cast-off materials) present all kinds of hurdles for the development of our own place.  But if I can speak for our little team of land owners, this acquisition is not about ease or luxury, it's about the process of figuring it out and figuring it out together.  Stay tuned....!