May 13 Lauriston Hall

Rosie gave us a tour the next morning of the 'public' areas of the hall, mostly in the 1893 addition, where the Community hosts paid events with various themes during the summer season. The early events, in the late 70's, got feedback that the place was too plain, so the group traded with an artist, then implemented her color scheme (not without some grousing by a certain worker named Phil, we hear) and added many artworks by members and guests. Each room had a theme and name. Many groups return year after year and folks return to the same room. Many of the groups, we were glad to hear, were gay or lesbian oriented, such as 'The Gay Gordons' a Scottish dancing group, and the 'Dance Week', devoted to a drag extravaganza. Families gather on other weeks, as do poets and writers. There are four kitchens at Lauriston Hall. One is a small tearoom kitchen with the most efficient dishwashing machine. The large kitchen is for feeding the assembled groups, feeding up to 80 guests. The inset shows the cheeseroom, which was Annie's main responsibility to the Community as a member – starting the squeezed curds fermenting and curing, tending the loaves and record-keeping. The other two kitchens are for the Community members, one of which is now partly a member's business, bread baking. We used the 'Platform Kitchen', tucked in the back of an earlier renovation and used by 'the young people' – those who have come to the community recently. Rosie, even though she spent most of her life here, was in this group, having joined as an adult after college and a bit in the 'real world'.
As we went around, we'd notice unmistakably Annie touches from her 'protest' piece against GM Foods (rather whimsical as a protest we thought), to the big sun smiling down in a saloon area, to the painted chair and table out in the woods in the shack she built to get away – rather like her new oratory. (Now I know why Phil wanted me to build it – even Annie was surprised it was still standing.) Last was Annie's former business, the Pottery, now given over to packaging honey and beeswax products.