Our parallel economy is expanding
Building a network based primarily on a system of bartering or trading is not easy. It takes a lot more work than just going to the store for the goods we need. The inland Northwest now has two different freedom exchanges meeting on alternate weekends. The first was established in Spokane in May of 2021. The people of North Idaho have blown us away with their meetups this summer!
A great start
I attended the first one back in April. 50-60 freedom loving people showed up. Many were unsure of even how to barter. The excitement to create something new far and decentralized was more than enough to overcome any butterflies. I served sourdough pancakes and there was an Easter egg hunt for the kids that included silver and copper pieces in some of the eggs.
Keeping the momentum going
The original three who started this new exchange in Idaho were involved in the Spokane exchange. It has more grown to an admin group of 5-6 people. They don't call themselves a board, or vote on rules or things of that nature. They do however work very hard to meet regularly and create and maintain a vision. I have been invited to be involved and do in a limited capacity. This is the beautiful thing about decentralization and real freedom. They are taking something that was born of the covid closures in Washington and expanding on it.
Established and moving along well.
I haven't made all the exchanges in Idaho this summer. The ones I have attended have all had great attendance with at least 60 people attending. The last two occasions I made pizzas with my BBQ grill. It was a big enough hit that I will be going back. Each time I've seen some of what would be regulars now as well as several new faces. One can get survival gear and supplies, goat milk, jams and jellies. medicinal tinctures, plants, tools and even some horticultural/landscaping services.