Still not a real snow, but I'm certainly not complaining. I'm sure the real deal is on the way.
My Energy Use: Diary of a Grid Defector (21)
I've alluded to my energy setup in the cabin: a mix of solar, battery storage and old-fashioned gasoline generation when necessary (and with this wet July, it's been necessary). There are a bunch of other little solutions I've cobbled together, a kind of fumbling-about towards the goal of having stable power for the very small electricity needs I have.
If you're interested in knowing more, I'd send you over to Utility Dive where I've started writing an occasional column about my off-grid goals as well as energy issues local to the region. The idea is to use my own experience, and what's happening in the Finger Lakes, to give a little perspective on larger utility issues. It's also full of terrible energy humor. Humor-ish.
If nothing else, it is as Bill Moyers put it in The Power of Myth: A journalist enjoys a "license to be educated in public."
I'm not sure I'd say I "enjoy" that part -- frankly, it can be a pretty terrifying proposition. But I will say then when I'm able to write about the things I do, which is somewhat of a rarity for reporters, I'm very grateful for the chance.
Gonzo Gets a Door (22)
After trying to keep the G-Man close to home for about a month, I finally had to give him some space, freedom and his own door. Probably should have gone with a rougher wood than these 2x4s, because the first time he tried to walk down he just slid into the water.
Anyways. Neither one of us have been loving the rain.
Trees & Wood: A New Obsession (20)
I've become obsessed with trees and wood. But a disclaimer: It's really, really hard to make an interesting picture of a bunch of trees (technically called a forest, or “woods”).
They're just … boring photos. Mine seem to be, anyway.
But I'm obsessed. With wood for fires: cutting it, splitting it, getting rid of bad wood, starting to dry out good wood for the winter. With the kinds of trees on the land: pine, oak, fir – whatever those damn Christmas trees were – and I think maple.
On the eastern side I've found a a small grove of cherry trees. But the woods are pretty dense and so the fruit is only growing higher up. There are a couple of apple trees that remind me of my backyard as a kid.
All I see is green, out my windows. Just green.
Ultimately, I'd like to clean up this piece of land. Air it out, let some trees go so others can actually be healthy. And then there's the ridiculous task of the rose bushes. Two things I'll never look at the same way again: Roses and Christmas trees. Awful things, piled up in monstrous clumps that take forever to haul and burn.
Sometimes it stresses me out. Making meaningful progress seems like an impossible, eternal task. But then I think about it like yoga, actually. There's nothing to be achieved, nothing that has to be done. The size of the task, the un-doable-ness of it, is what makes it worthwhile.
This is a really boring photo but a pretty good example of what I've got. Multiply that heap by 1,000. Or so,.
The View
It rained for four days, which isn't fun in an unfinished cabin. I shouldn't complain. I had a friend visiting, who stayed in a tent.
Four days of rain and mud, holed up in an unfinished cabin or down at a bar. So I suppose it could have been worse. But then it quit, threatened again but never did, and the trees started to make their roar, the air dried out (no hope for the ground this week), and my neighbor came out to check on the far end of his farm.
Beautiful evening, and a good reminder of why I'm here.
The Water Problem: Turning an Ikea Dresser into a Kitchen Sink (18)
Ikea's SINKENWATER dresser. Or some funnier joke.
Years ago I was reading a story about evictions – how hard it can be for landlords to remove non-paying renters, because D.C. laws so strongly favor the tenant. I'm paraphrasing this, but here's what I remember:
“You can turn off the electricity. The gas. The phone and heat and air conditioning. But it isn't until you shut off the water that a place becomes uninhabitable.”
For the last few weeks I've been using gallon jugs for my water, which has to be the least efficient method possible. Washing your hands means spilling a half gallon, so developing some kind of a sink was high on my list of wants.
Basically a perfect fit. But now I need a new space for my socks.
This is a simple little project that would probably take a half hour if you had everything lined up – but can also take several hours because nothing fits and you make multiple trips to Home Depot. I'll let you guess which path I took.
I picked up the two-compartment sink at Significant Elements, the salvage and reclamation store in Ithaca. I ordered a small hand pump from Amazon, and got some drain assemblies and pipe, and that was about it.
Total cost is less than $100, but I think the drain pipes may actually be the most expensive part. They're so much more than I needed for a little water, and $4/foot. Each side drains out five feet.
Hand pump sink from Amazon.
A friend gave me a dresser last year that just happened to fit perfectly, so I took a jigsaw to top and dropped in the sink. (Side note: jigsaws are not as fun as chainsaws, but about as useful) … The pump didn't quite fit into the sink so with help from my brother we dremmel-ed it out (another awesome tool, by the way, and I owe him a bunch of bits because we burned through a few doing this).
The water is a five gallon tank stored off to the side. One photo shows it underneath the sink, but I realized I could leave the bottom drawer in for storage.
I wouldn't go so far as saying a lack of running water makes a place uninhabitable, but it is much easier to do dishes.
Two Goats Goes Solar (17)
Two Goat's Dirty Shepherd Brown Ale, and one amazing view.
So I was stopped in at Two Goats Brewing earlier today, because ... Well, because it's awesome. And discovered the place is getting even cooler.
They're installing a 57 Kwh solar system which will provide all of their electricity needs "with room to grow."
