These are some ideas I had for the non dance-non music people---
this is a working farm--- hardly anybody ever does this who lives in the cities-- have you thought of haveng them help with farm chores? I'm talking about easy ones (like feeding the goats and chickens and peacocks) and gathering eggs--just to hold a chicken is a cool thing if you have never done it before---or petting a goat--you could have them currying the horses---tractor driving lessons?

how about a fishing tournament? (some silly\cute\funny prizes for the ugliest fish, biggest, smallest)---

A nature hike through the woods?

Do we have any yoga teachers in the group that wouldn't mind leading a class?

we seem to have a lot of vegetarians in the group---- a discussion on how to make more vegetarian dishes taste good and get the nutrients that we need---(maybe with recipes passed around)
some SCA topics? how to get involved?---you will be coming back from pennsic-- anything there that we could use?
hope this helps----Susan

Merhaba, Chris, and thanks for getting this discussion started!

1) I sure wish there were some music instruction classes in davul / tapan, zurla / zurna / mizmar, kemence, and any other instrument that usually doesn't get covered. Of course, I realize that classes like this would depend not only on finding an accomplished and interested instructor but also on having enough spare davuls and zurlas and kemences, etc, to loan and to sell.

I could conceivably teach an Intro to Kaval class, but getting my hands on a half-dozen loaner kavals could be tricky ...

Also, as more and more Balkan-style music is being played on Darbukastan's main stage, it would be cool if we could have a simple folk dance class (paging Denys ...) and get a 50-person kolo or lesnoto going!

Lastly, I know that this might sound pretty nerdy to some, but I really enjoy lectures and slideshows about any aspect of Balkan, Middle Eastern and Central Asian history and culture ... It's the one aspect of SCA events that I am jealous of, the level of shared scholarship and academic discussion ...

Hell, I'd be psyched if there was a place where people could just show slides of their overseas travels ... I am THAT kind of weirdo that actually enjoys looking at other people's vacation photos, ha ha. Seriously, though, Shari and I have so many pics of amazing places in Bosnia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Turkey, and I'm sure that many other Darbukastanis have travelled the world and would love to share those travels, too.

2) is tricky for me ... While I sympathize with the friends, the significant others and the kids who come to DID who don't do any dancing or music-playing themselves, I'd kinda hate to see DID become too populated with even more non-musicians and non-dancers, ones who don't actually come with other dancers and musicians. What I mean to say is, one of the many amazing aspects of DID is that EVERYBODY is involved ... there are no hangers-on, no gawkers, no scene-sters, no people who are there just for the party or to be seen ... For that first weekend of June, there's no place on Earth with a higher concentration of such talent and artistry ... I'd hate to see it get watered down and become an unmanageably crowded party full of gawking strangers ... This has happened at a twice-yearly dance-and-music event here in Richmond that used to be pretty cool, but the dilution of serious artists with gawkers and partyers has degraded the event considerably, and now fewer and fewer serious musicians and dancers attend.

3) Somebody made the suggestion of having some construction weekends this autumn, some time that interested volunteers could come to help out with improving and rebuilding some of Darbukastan's infrastructure ... a more permanent stage, a pavillion, that kinida thing. I think this is a great idea, and y'all can definitely count Shari and myself in ...

Other than that, I think nailing down the food issue is still pretty important, and I know there are a lot of Darbukastanis with vast culinary experience who are interested in helping out with that.