[ML-General] Clarifications

Sat Sep 5 11:51:27 CDT 2015

As both public and member, I have never gotten the homeless vibe from
anyone at the shop. Pretty sure Know Huntsville didn't either.

What I do see is compassion taking a back seat to homeowner association
politics. I don't like it. I really hope this is not the prevailing mindset
of this group.

Before things go further, I respect all views and hold no grudges as a
peaceful, thinking adult. My views/concerns are expressed. The topic rides
from here, hopefully to better mindsets.

Respectfully, CJ
On Sep 5, 2015 7:07 AM, "Kirstin DeRosa" <kirstinalexis at gmail.com> wrote:

> I can definitely appreciate someone living their own life and marching to
> their own drum beat.
>
> However, public perception of the shop and its members is important since
> the space relies on donations from the public to run. We need to maintain a
> public face that will continue to attract new innovators, artists, and
> thinkers.
>
> Nobody has suggested that anybody should be treated as a second class
> citizen for their employment status or any other criteria. People who want
> to improve their skills or learn new ones are always welcome at the shop.
>
>
>
> On Sep 5, 2015, at 4:50 AM, Michael Greenway <mgreenway1975 at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> It really is a shame that rather than be free to live your lives as you
> please, and be accepted as a fellow creative/ tinkering enthusiast, you
> have to submit to skewed perceptions and assumptions.  This "what will the
> neighbors think" and and worry over what "could" happen verses clearly
> seeing what is happening, bothers me. We're hackers, thinkers, dreamers,
> techicians, and enthusiasts. So what if another lives in a van for whatever
> reason. Who are we to judge, especially with our own struggles?
>
> Just FWI, I have been jobless since July of last year and have been
> struggling, like many, in a brutal and maddening economy since 2009. I am
> teaching myself robotics via arduino and picking up tech skills to better
> my chances at finding work.  Am I now a second class member as a result?
>
> I can't speak for others, but Josh and Amanda have acted reasonably and
> respectfully around me. Niether they, nor dog interfeared with or hurt my
> productive shop time. They've even been kind enough to offer help on my
> stilt covers. I'm grateful, since Amanda's sewing expertise far exceeds my
> own. I've enjoyed talking with them and can relate to Josh's technical
> curiosity. Bottom line, I see good souls and, to quote another shop member,
> "people I'd want to have a beer with".
>
> Makers Local 256 is a good place with good people and exceptional
> knowledge. It is a huge help to those who seek self-improvement, especially
> in today's crazy, uncertain world. Let's not devolve from the sense of open
> community.
> On Sep 5, 2015 5:06 AM, "joshua carr" <joshuaq.carr at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> In these wee hours of the morning I am my most eloquent self. I've
>> decided to write a bit tonight to clear up some rumors about myself and my
>> fiance that have been recently brought to my attention.
>> When I applied for membership a while back(my 4th application in 6 years)
>> I was unexpectedly and callously denied. The friends I've made in the local
>> maker/hacker community over the years were quick to criticize the reasons
>> that were given for this, but I feel that that if you guys felt strongly
>> enough about them them to turn me down, then I should be just as concerned.
>>
>> (1) It seems that my choice of lifestyle was an issue for most. I read
>> vague assumptions about how a person who lived in a modified vehicle rather
>> than in a house or an apartment MUST be applying for membership so that he
>> can take advantage of the facilities for daily functions like showering and
>> preparing meals. I AGREE that this is not what the shop exists for. I had
>> already established more reliable means of accomplishing those tasks, but
>> there was no way for any of you to know that.
>>
>> There were concerns that the presence of such a vehicle would hurt the
>> image of the shop. It seems that some of the members are very put off by
>> the appearance of poverty(homeless camp). What was insulting was the vapid
>> assumption that, if I was made a member again, I would "live at the shop"
>> and never leave.
>> There were nights that we stayed in the shop driveway and used the shower
>> the next morning rather than driving back to Lacey's spring, but only after
>> we were encouraged for weeks to do so by several members.
>>
>> Ive never been treated like a hobo before, and I'm certainly no bum, so I
>> was quite upset by this, but I hold no grudges against the people who said
>> these things. They were expressing valid concerns based on what they had
>> seen or heard, and that's why makers Local has this process.
>>
>> (2) There were also concerns that Amanda, my girlfriend of 4 years, was
>> "part of the deal" when deciding to allow me back as a member. There were
>> statements that she was irresponsible with, or not to be trusted around
>> other peoples valuables.
>>
>> This is entirely MY FAULT.
>> A year ago, when Amanda and I were going through a sour spot in our
>> relationship, I went on 2 angry drunken tirades, while at the shop, blaming
>> Amanda for the failure of my business and my subsequent stress and misery.
>> These were baseless statements made out of anger and frustration that
>> have since evolved into a bad reputation that Amanda did not earn and does
>> not deserve.
>> Amanda did not steal from my company. My business failed because it was
>> not prepared to grow and I never drew a line between our personal finances
>> and those of the business.
>> So, while she was partly to blame for the misery that drove me to drink
>> so much, the other problems were not her doing.
>> I can't apologize enough for the things I said. I hope each of you can
>> see past this.
>> I had come so far and risked so much, that I couldn't admit to my family
>> and friends that I had failed. I consider most of you my friends. I have
>> respect for each of your individual successes and felt that I owed it to
>> you to be successful as well, so I found a scapegoat in Amanda, and I've
>> been eating crow ever since.
>>
>> It's past time to set the record straight, for her sake.
>> Amanda has been a helpful right hand to me in most of my endeavors and
>> has taken the time to clean various areas of the shop on several occasions,
>> including regularly neglected areas like the bathrooms and the kitchen.
>>
>> Being unable to change the past, I'm focused on the future.
>>
>> I'm pleased to share that our lives are very different now. Since reading
>> your fervent support and damning condemnations of us, we have taken some
>> steps to alleviate your stated reasons for apprehension.
>>
>> (1) We don't live in the van anymore. Amandas aunt owns a 4 bedroom house
>> just over the bridge south of Huntsville, and we are renting one of her
>> spare rooms. The van has been emptied and is now merely a mode of
>> transportation again. This also means that we will no longer have to bring
>> our yappy little dog with us to the shop.
>>
>> (2) We are gainfully employed. Our "hustle and flow" means of supporting
>> ourselves was enough to pay our few bills before, but wasn't something that
>> many of you can relate to, so we went out and got regular jobs. Amanda is
>> managing a pizza joint and I'm a delivery driver. I've been able to put
>> more money into my projects and Amanda has dusted off her sewing machine
>> and done a few of her own.
>>
>> (3) We are no longer attached at the hip. We purchased a second vehicle
>> allowing us individual means of travel, and we now work varying schedules
>> that don't always allow us to both be at the shop at the same time... For
>> whatever that's worth.
>>
>> I'm sending this out to you all because I intend to reapply for
>> membership soon, and would rather be humble than be humiliated... Again.
>>
>> TL/DR
>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>> I'm not homeless or jobless anymore.
>>
>> Amanda is good people, despite what I said when I was drunk a year ago.
>>
>> Amanda has her own car now.
>>
>> Yappy dog stays at home now.
>>
>> I need to be a member again, cuz I got more money than time.
>>
>> Stop treating me like a hobo, and just let me work on my projects.
>>
>> Please.
>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>>
>> Josh Carr
>>
>> Joshuaq.carr at gmail.com
>>
>>
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