Ed, Chris and i arrived in Grand Rapids last night for Artprize.  If you have not yet checked out our profile, please do!  The journey from Charlottesville took us about 50 hours, about 15 of which were spent solving a fuel line leak.  The steal line coming from the injection pump going to the combustion chamber broke and started spewing fuel at an incredible rate.  Luckily, Chris, who was driving at the time, needed to switch out.  We pulled over, noticed smoke, noticed tons of fluid, killed the engine and ended up staying the night.

After large amounts of gasket maker, several rolls of electrical tape, and an extra 100 mile driving adventure that took us to Detroit, we aquired a new fuel line, which we estimate to be one of three to exist in America (the bus is an International.  Only one of 5 International parts dealers in Detroit, MI had this part).

We arrived in Grand Rapids around 8:30 pm.  Emily greeted us, cooking up some amazing fried green tomatoes given to us by our host and venue at Artprize: the Newberry Place Co-housing Community.  At Newberry Place, 60 people live in 20 units on 1 acre.  Everyone owns their own house and has privacy, while the land and common house are shared.  Cars are parked to the perimimeter, while people spend time in the center, between the houses.  Kids play together, neighbors share meals, and everyone seems to be very happy with the whole affair.  We are too, as we have been treated with the utmost hospitality, and find this community a blessing and nourishing at the same time.  Its a model for living in community designed in Denmark, one which has proved successful for over 20 years.  Check out more information about cohousing here!

Last night and today we drove downtown to show the bus at a more central location for Artprize.  Artprize is intense!  There are SO many people, so many cameras, and an incredible level of competition.  We should have expected this though, given that a $500,000 in prize money is to be given to artists.  The sights are amazing though, and we have met some truly wonderful people, including the Beerhorst family and the Wonderwagon.  We look forward to what the rest of the week brings.

Nourish(meant) has met wonderful reception, overall.  Response varies from interest to amazement, from liking to absolutely loving what we do.  We have enjoyed a number of fabulous conversations, met genuine people and recorded numerous responses to the central question of our project: “what does nourishment mean to you?”  We look forward to posting these responses on our website in the coming weeks.

Another update will come soon.  Thank you to everyone for their support!