house progress
Why is it that when people come out to visit they feel as if they have to tell us how much longer it will take to build the house? “Oh, ya’ll will never be done next month!” “Whew, this is gonna take you guys a while to finish up, isn’t it?” Ahh! I feel like saying “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it at all!”
Anyway, this past week we made a lot of progress on the cordwood. The two walls in the kitchen are completely done, inside and out! I just need to clean up the kitchen floor and we will be ready for cabinets this week!
We also worked on the walls by the front door, and we put our fishy in!!! Isn’t it awesome??!! So, we have 2 walls completely done, 4 walls that just need a small amount of interior work, and 2 walls to finish 1/2 or less in wood. Maybe 3 or 4 more days or cordwooding!! Wooohooo!!
While we worked this weekend, Kaiaflower entertained herself by opening up a Chocolate Lounge and making us all pies!
We found a great serving hutch (use to be used for silverware) that we are going to use as our vanity in the lower bathroom. We are going to put a 2 inch slab of oak on top and set the sink in it. Hope to work on that this week… I’ll post pictures.
We also redid the chicken coop. We took all the trashy chicken wire down and put up 5 foot fencing, made a great little gate, and clipped the chickens wings. Hopefully this will keep them in long enough for me to get some clover seed growing in the field. (I also have some oats to seed so I can harvest them for medicine)
March 24th, 2008 at 6:12 am
I have seen it in person, and it is really fantastic. How wonderful it must feel to know you did this yourself.
However, the chickens gave me a message to give to you,”Let us out!!!!!” By the way, those are the best looking chickens. I did not know they could be so pretty.
March 24th, 2008 at 9:17 am
Howdy,
Your thoughts about people’s negative comments on your lovely home seem to be the norm when building an alternative structure. Just because you are pushing the envelope and trying something new, people seem to think they have the license to comment in any way they see fit. It is almost as if their “id” is having its day (at your expense.)
We had the fellow who delivered the septic tank to our cordwood home (in 1979) say, “What are you going to do when all those logs rot out and you have a home that looks like Swiss Cheese?” Needless to say that was hurtful and somewhat “unclean.”
The best way to counter these comments (in my humble opinion) is to take the negative energy and transform it into positive (or at least change the subject.) Having lived in a beautiful cordwood home now for nearly 30 years, the real proof in the pudding is the longevity of the home and the glowing comments that will come when all the construction clutter is cleaned up and the garden is growing.
You guys are doing a fantastic job and are an inspiration for others. Keep up the good work.
Richard Flatau http://www.daycreek.com/flatau
March 24th, 2008 at 10:08 am
my chickens are quite pissed at me for yanking their flying rights away. no more raiding the garden for them! (of course still let them loose in the afternoon but we’ve been doing it later so they have less time to destroy).
i love the fish and bubbles!
March 24th, 2008 at 11:00 am
I love the pretty blue fishy! It looks neat-o.
March 24th, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Thank you Richard! It can be so frustrating and such a blow to the morale! I’m so sick of hearing about how the termites will eat out house down, and how we will never get our CO. It really is amazing how people feel like they have the right to criticize when they have never done anything remotely like this themselves!
I really appreciate your positive thoughts!
March 25th, 2008 at 8:12 am
I love the fish — and don’t listen to the nay-sayers.
I think, for some people, that tendency to come across as negative is reflective of the ways in which they have talked themselves out of following their own dreams. “Oh, I could never do that…it would take so long!” or “I’d love to try something like this…but of course I couldn’t because _fill_in_the_blank_here.” and those “excuses” just pop out almost automatically when they’re in the presence of someone who really is following their dreams, and perhaps following a dream that the person being negative may really admire and want to follow, too, but may not have found the courage or the personal reserves to say, “Yes…yes I CAN do this!” It’s always much safer to think of a million reasons why you SHOULDN’T do something than to roll up your sleeves, get to work, and perhaps even risk fantastic failure (but also roll the dice on phenomenal success!) in pursuit of your dreams.
March 25th, 2008 at 8:29 am
Thanks Kathy! I totally agree! It’s the naysayers, who are too scared to follow their own dreams, who tend to be the experts on what we can’t accomplish on our house. No one I know has ever done anything like this before, so I don’t see how anyone can comment on what we are up against or how hard it will be or how long it is going to take us. It’s so frustrating. Especially when most of the time I feel like I’m just hanging on by a string, desperate to get this house done, and then I heard, “oh it will be at least June before you all are done!” or “this thing is going to get taken down by termites since you didn’t treat the wood with chemicals!”
Thank you for your positive thoughts!
March 28th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
I love how unique your home is. You have inspired me to make my home my own, without regard for the norm. I have so many ideas that I’ve put aside because it’s not something you would see every day. And even if your home DOES takes a long time to finish, you’ll get to cherish the journey now and later. Most people don’t get the satisfaction of knowing that each piece of their home was lovingly pieced together by their very own hands. How special is that?! It’s my dream to be able to do that, although I’m sure you have moments that you wish it would just be finished. Someone gave me some excellent advice once, Nothing worth having is easily obtained. I’m sending good thoughts and positive feelings your way!!
March 29th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
Lacey,
Thank you for the sweet comment! Yes, our house may take a while to build, but really, what’s 15 months versus 5 or 6 (for a standard house) when everything that goes into it is exactly what you want!? It is a very different house, but it’s uniqueness is what makes it so extremely special. You can feel it when you walk in… it’s a happy, loved place! And I see nothing wrong with making your house different, if it is the way you want it.
March 29th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
I love your home!! It’s wonderful!! You are truly an inspiration. Lacey is so right about cherishing the journey now and in the future. Thank you for posting your ongoing journey for all of us to read. I have had the best time reading from the beginning to the present. Many blessing to you all :).