I will be writing a weekly column for Tiny House Listings. You can see the first of these here.
This post is dealing with my reasons for going with a 12v system and the steps I took to get this up and running.
Thank you to Steven at Tiny House Listings for the opportunity to write!
Happy reading and enjoy the weekend!
xo L
Here is an idea…
If you have to buy:
Today, I am not shopping, but I am going to also take some advice from Johnny Cash… I am going to dress in black, in my case to mourn all the wasted resources that the planet gave up because of this crazy consumerism!
Before I left Tiny House Ontario, I took a couple of photos inside the house. It always surprises me how much changes there during the day. Not just out in the forest as one would expect but inside of the house too there is always the flux of change.
My art gallery stays pretty much the same because I very rarely sell a piece of my own work. Still I hang them on tiny nails so I don’t damage the wooden walls very much, so they wobble with the wind and are very rarely level. Too, inside, with the switch and the light that I added this year, the wall looks different than it did earlier this summer when I put them up. Outside the window, the gravel is waiting patiently and settling in. The big change will come next year when the collected rocks are added and this becomes a flag stone patio.
The shelved wall is always fluid. From the season that needs heat to the other seasons there is a huge change because all things that freeze are moved to Hamilton with me. Also there are books that come too, because I can’t live the whole winter without them, namely: Erazim Kohák: The Embers and the Stars, Julia Cameron: The Artist’s Way and all of my own writing. The other change is warmth and peace of mind in the form of the heater and the carbon monoxide/smoke detector.
There are always little changes too because I refer to the books, use the games, light the candles, burn the sage and so on. Every tiny thing moves, because life moves and changes. We too move and change, sometimes these are obvious glaring differences like a move to Australia, finishing a degree, finally finding job security, illness and death.
Most of the time, change is barely perceptible; like the changes I refer to here in the photos. Only those who monitor change can see them clearly. I am the sort of person who notices subtle changes and this is why I know that in my life there is a shift happening. I see this as clearly as I see that I did not put the bag of seeds and the candle away in the right spots on the shelves below. I don’t know the impact of these changes, but I know that they are coming.
“The scariest moment is always just before you start.” ~ Stephen King
I am back in Hamilton and I am sick today. Not sure what it is really. All, I know is that I don’t feel awesome.
It is not all bad! One of the nicest things about having a pet is that they always stand by when you need them. Or lay on top of you… same thing, right?
I am dead pale…
This reminds me of the Irish sunbather. 😀
Have a good day all!
xo L
At Tiny House Ontario how I live is much the same as other people in standard homes, except I don’t collect stuff and I don’t watch TV. Also, I don’t have any running water.
I mean, I eat, cook, clean, sleep, read, entertain, I have hobbies and I also take care of myself, my pets and the land that surrounds me. The main difference really between the way that I live in my Tiny House and the way that most people live is two fold, consumption and the time I need to spend on water and bathing. All aspects of this are more time consuming because I have to fetch it, heat it, and organize for off site bathing.
Next spring a most of this will change! I now have the eves troughs up and the barrels are purchased so early in the year before the spring rain, I will install two barrels on the roof of the WC so that I can catch my wash water. I will be installing an enclosed outdoor shower, and I already have everything hooked up in the in-house for the tap to work.
Life will be nearly as convenient at THO as it is on grid! I only have to bring in drinking cooking and dish rinse water unless we have another drought. Let’s hope we don’t!
I have space up top for four barrels; don’t worry, when I built I planned for the extra weight being on the top of the structure. I am planning on installing only two barrels in the spring, to see if this is enough. If this does not provide enough water for my use, I have a back up plan. It is easy to add to two barrels later and if I have to do this, I will get a water delivery truck to come. Certainly with four roof rain barrels and one ground one if is worth the money to have a truck come and for the short term it is much cheaper than it is to drill a well. Any additional water on the truck can simply be dumped on and around my garden to give it a huge drink.
Here is the roof where the barrels will go.
Tiny House Ontario 