Fuck it. Who wants to recreate the Isle of the Amazons with me?

[TheABC]

Alternately, I'm open to taking over a castle community. The French have a tradition know as Beguine Communities, where women could retreat into female only spaces without taking vows. After everything I've learned about the rape gangs, Epstein and the problems face Refuge for funding, I think we need something like that here. The Government at every layer has shown it does not care about women. We should stop demanding equality - they don't think us worthy of it. We need a matriachy example. Run by women, for women. Stop asking for scraps.

Growing fruit and veg doesn't have to mean subsistence farming. It can mean lounging on the terrace with a good book and leaning over to pick fresh grapes or figs as a snack, or a few tomatoes to have with lunch.

Cats make lousy construction workers!🙄
The Bluestocking can warmly recommend capybaras, all maintenance work is carried out to a high standard by 'Capability' Capybara and her team.

DBoyCat thanks you (and his manly bollocks are long gone)

We won't need either, with your armed pedalo - or fleet thereof - patrolling night and day.

Oh, hang on... piranhas for the clean-up.

Freedom is the point of this.

There's no "allowed out" to it. Anyone can go out: the trick is to get back in past the shark-infested waters, drunken paddleboarders, vicious geese and the trebuchet.

Also, if there is no coffee and chocolate, does it really qualify for civilisation?

Also, I'm with @CactusSwoonedEnding - we're not doing subsistence farming. I'm up for creating retreats, setting up microbreweries and building out businesses that don't sell your soul or require insane working hours.

Having said that, anyone who wants to rewild an acre or lay out a garden is welcome and will be held in awe by me. I can keep orchids and cacti alive, but that's it.

Y'know what? I'm sure that at least some of you have much nicer pads than I do, so when you all de-camp, just drop the keys off with me. I quite fancy a spot of house-sitting.

Dammit, BiologicalRobot, now I've got it into my head that I have to make a model trebuchet. A working model trebuchet. And it's all your fault😠
😁

Can I bring my dog? He’s an almost-boy, does that count?

An almost-boy?

Sounds like my second ex-husband, who suddenly announced that he was gay after ten years of marriage to me, following which he had an affair with our male church organist.

There is no appropriate emoji to react to that - it's kind-of funny in the context of almost- boy dogs, but it must have been very difficult for you and I hope it is OK for you to take about it now, so I went for the 'support' emoji.

Ileithyia, you are misgendering your dog😧
Almost-boys are more properly referred to as demi-boys, and have their own pride flag. No, really, they do!
Don't let your dog read this, they'll start demanding their own Pride Month😄

My aunt and uncle had a cat move in with them. Their house was always spotless and I don’t think they would have chosen to have any pets, however Tig decided to move in anyway. The terms and conditions were made very clear. Tig was fed in the kitchen. He was allowed in the sitting room, but strictly only if he walked to the beanbag they’d bought him, lay on the beanbag for as long as he wanted, then went outside again. Both parties seemed quite happy with this deal, which always seemed remarkable to me. So there are indeed some well behaved cats.

I see that I have let my annoyance at a certain sex get the better of me and I doubt my view was the OPs view. Considering the sheer amount of women who would want this sanctuary I'm sure everyone could have their favoured area. One that is enclosed by a shark piranha/crocodile infested moat surrounded by meadows with various little villages and shops for those less annoyed with the... idk - if we are the fairer sex are they the darker sex??

There is room for everyone's tastes, and those less bothered but just want a clean and tidy home can live at the borders to give a buffer zone to those who want man eating tigers as their feline pet.

Sorry MarieDeGournay, I hope your working model is coming along nicely.

I'm sorry this happened to you and if it caused you distress and worse.

But the way you wrote it just made me grin.

Hope you new life free of your almost-boy is good.

BiologicalRobot
Sorry MarieDeGournay, I hope your working model is coming along nicely.

It is thank you, I've been online to see how trebuchets work, drawn a rough plan, scavenged in my 'workshop' [spare bedroom, identifying as a workshop😄] for appropriate little bits of wood and little nuts and bolts, and so far I've assembled the A-frame side supports.

Which is a long-winded way of saying 'Isn't retirement great, you can do what you want whenever you want to do it!'😁

if we are the fairer sex are they the darker sex??

Or.simply the unfair sex?

Our local gifts and stuff shop sells tiny build-your-own trebuchet kits. Far too small for defence, but probably about right for firing Dreamies for cats.

I would like there to be women there from every culture in the world. I would love to be able to talk honestly with other women about all our beliefs, cultures and life experiences, free from the eyes and ears of men

Look what you made me do, BiologicalRobot!

It works. It can fire a hazelnut intercontinentally several miles a few feet a couple of inches😏

The only thing in range and in danger would be the moat, so watch out in your scythe-adapted swan-shaped pedalo, Arabella, there just might be a hazelnut with your name on it😁

Bloody brilliant. One can be mounted on the swan pedalo, I take it?

Right, I have reached profound Fuck It levels. I need a cave, I am becoming a hermit in the grounds. Am prepared to don hooded habit and make weird noises and gestures at the tourists if necessary, but the cave must have good wifi and a decent bath.

Thank you,

Good thinking. You are now Rear-Admiral of the Amazonian Fleet.. I must google why Admirals are Rear. Or why Rears have Admirals😄
I'd still wear a helmet in case of friendly fire, Arabella..

Wiki says:
The term originated in the days of naval sailing squadrons and can trace its origins to the British Royal Navy. Each naval squadron was assigned an admiral as its head, who commanded from the centre vessel and directed the squadron's activities. The admiral would in turn be assisted by a vice admiral, who commanded the lead ships that bore the brunt of a battle. In the rear of the squadron, a third admiral commanded the remaining ships and, as this section was considered to be in the least danger, the admiral in command of it was typically the most junior.

Oops I didn't mean to make you the most junior admiral in the Amazonian Fleet You are hereby promoted to Front Admiral

While on the derail topic of naval trivia [naval fluff?] I know that the tradition of all the sailors lining up along the edge of the deck was to show that the ship's guns were not manned, so its intentions were peaceful.

Love the trebuchet, @MarieDeGournay!

messing about in small boats can make one very aware of Newton’s Third Law of motion … I think the effect of discharging a trebuchet from a pedalo could be to propel it from the front of the fleet towards the rear. That’s probably a best case scenario.😬

We can break societal conventions and expectations but we canna’ break the laws of physics!

I wonder if deploying a spiked anchor before discharging the trebuchet might help?

Bloody fantastic trebuchet @MarieDeGournay, do you take commissions? That's an executive desk toy if ever I saw one!