To experiment with cooperative living as manifested through an Interdependence with all life forms and the Earth, to experiment with an alternative political system (consensus and direct involvement rather than majority and representation), to network and socialize. Within Rainbow are individuals who belong to numerous and diverse private groups, but are NOT a private group by any stretch of the imagi-Nation.
Hand washing is the single most important procedure for preventing the spread of infections, by far the most important thing to understand about serving the public. For everyone's sake, please consider hand-washing to be SACRED. Hand washing is defined as a vigorous, brief rubbing together of all surfaces of lathered hands, followed by rinsing under a stream of water as described below:
In alternative settings where nudity is accepted, anyone in the kitchen is reminded to cover the groin area. Long hair may be contained in any manner that suits you, be it pony tail, braids, scarves or caps.
What to watch for: coughing, sneezing, open cuts, wounds, open (oozing or weeping) sores. Consider the weakest person because we do know the strongest will be fine. Please take care of yourself and others.
Boiling Water is another way to purify it. Bring a covered pot of water to a hard, rapid rolling boil and maintain the boil for 10 minutes. When the boiling begins ask a smoker to sit and roll a cigarette and smoke it or have a long leisurely beverage break while watching it boil until at least 10 minutes has probably passed. Keep the cover on while it cools! If storing purified water in a different container, use one recently, thoroughly sanitized. Take care to turn the lid upside down when removing and not touch or place the part that covers the water on anything else.
Don't try any shortcuts. The few minutes you spend purifying your water may save you, or those you love, weeks of illness.
Chemical purification doesn't kill all of the germs that make you sick, is tricky and can be dangerous.
To make a bleach water rinse to use for sterilizing hands, dishes, pots, pans and utensils, use 1 Tablespoon 5.25% bleach per 1 Gallon of water. See Part II for a complete discussion.
Very few bleach bottle caps equal a tablespoon measure. Tip: Fasten a measuring spoon to the bleach bottle with a piece of string.
Heat inactivates bleach and in very cold water it takes longer to work. The impact of bleach on the environment isn't near the impact of sick people.
Too much soap residue left on washed dishes can also cause diarrhea, if not rinsed well.
The ideal Dish Wash Station for use in the wilderness hasn't been invented yet but the foot pedal model is preferred by many.
The most common method used in kitchens is the 3 bucket system starting from left to right:
1-warm soapy wash water, 2-warm water rinse 3-final cool water bleach rinse. An expanded version uses a 5 bucket system: 1-compost 2-prerinse 3-soapy wash 4-clear rinse 5-final bleach dip
Get buckets up off of ground to keep animals and small kids out of them. Monitor the water and change it when it gets full of grease and food residue. If the first rinse used in the beginning is leaving a lot of suds, dilute the wash water so you don't have to change the rinse waters as often.
Tip: Get wash station ready before preparing food. That way you can wash kitchen utensils as you go and It can be refreshed quickly when ready to serve.
Boiling water if items are submersed for 10 minutes is another way.
Strongly encourage everyone to =B3Pack it out if you pack it in.=B2 Try to get people to pack out trash as soon as a bag is full. Don=B9t be shy. Many people will be glad to help if you will tell them what needs doing!
It also helps keep the kitchen clean and reduces risks of infections from unknown sources. The rails should be kept clear of personal clothing and bedding to minimize the potential spread of infections.
Tip: use rails to hang artwork(tydysheets/banners) and establish a drying area for folks to use away from the kitchen.
TIP: Keep kitchen tools (shovels, rakes, picks, etc) outside of the controlled access area. Mark them with your kitchen name. Some think that marking and setting aside those used for shitter maintenance is also a good idea.
Dry foods and liquids (beans, rice, flour, herbs; oils, sauces, beverages) are best kept in rodent proof containers with lids. Fresh produce should be kept off the ground, preferably in such a way that air can circulate and covered with netting if possible. Some just hang the food from trees.
Tip: A circle of fresh or fresh dried mint leaves around storage area can help keep mice out of supply tents.
The food or beverage should be poured or flipped or dumped into the personal dishes without touching the serving equipment to the personal equipment. Some kitchens use a plastic funnel with the bottom cut out to facilitate getting the food into the narrow cups many bring to the serving line. (being careful not to touch the funnel to the personal bowl/cup)
Serving container should be kept covered when not serving and the serving utensil should be kept in a different container than the cooling food because organisms will travel down the handle into the pot. Once there they can then multiply in the friendly environment of warm food cooling down. Cover prepared foods already cooked to keep out contaminants. When taste testing food for seasoning, drop a sample into a personal bowl and avoid tasting off of the cooking/serving utensil directly.
Cooked food with tomatoes, vinegar or peppers will keep fairly well. Other cooked foods do not keep well without refrigeration. Rice and beans, in particular, can produce toxins that are not killed by reheating. Prepared foods, raw or cooked, should be served promptly.
Clearly mark both pits and make them safe, to prevent children from playing in them or people falling in them. They must be watched by the kitchen and will need a thin layer of lime applied from time to time.
Remember with these pits, as with shitters, it's important to close them down before they are too full, which means around 10-12 inches from the top When filling them in to cover and mound the dirt up above surrounding ground for the settling where the pits had been.
Shitter maintenance means keep it supplied with(not agricultural) "quick" lime in a sprinkling can, ashes, protected toilet paper(in coffee cans) and a bleach hand wash. Check and refill: the lime jar, toilet paper, hand wash and applying a thin layer of lime to stop flies from landing on it.
Remember the the Feces-Fly-Food-You connection and Break the cycle.
It is time to close the latrine when waste material is about 12 inches from the top and dig a new one. Fill the shitters in with dirt and mound it about 6-8 inches above surrounding ground, so a depression is not left when the dirt settles.
For the minimal or basic needs of a first aid kit should include: hydrogen 3% peroxide, rubbing alcohol, tweezers, anti-infection ointment, soothing burn ointment/spray, a small bottle or container set aside of purified or sterile water to flush eyes, matches, band aides, 3x3 gauze pads, gauze roll, tape, and scissors.
The above was written and consensed to by a circle of concerned and experienced Individuals calling themselves Rainbow folks comprised of volunteers from several Rainbow Kitchens, CALM, Licensed Medical Professionals, Food Service and Shanti Sena.