MOVING IN PLACE

   THIS WEEK SAW A LOT OF MOVING THINGS AROUND 

As we prepare for the final move from our house in Stockton to our lttle cabin out in the woods, there is need for appropriate spaces to put things. There is NO WAY I could say "everything," because even though we are leaving 2 1/2 acres for 40 acres, the housing size is much, MUCH smaller out here. We wll, of necessity, be downsizing the size and amount of 'things' we must live with.

I must relocate my extra-large shop in Stockton to a much smaller space out here. I will still need the same tools, but I must re-arrange how I work with them.

So, I began with moving stuff out of the shack (deer-shack) to make room for a new work-bench. 

I have been using my 10-inch portable chop saw which I have up on the deck outside the sewing room window. That has been more than 'nasty' as the sawdust makes its way onto Gracie's sewing table.

In this photo you can see my 12-inch 'fixed' chop saw. It is on a much shorter workbench than what I had in Stockton. So, the first time I have to cut a 10-foot board I may have to do some re-design--like cutting an access door out the wall to the right.

I ran into some difficulty working within the parameters I had available to me here. I need to store some of the tools I already had set up on a bench in Stockton. The shelf space is not adequate for a couple of those tools.

Many of the power tools had not been used in more than a year, so the mice had built a couple of cities in them. Talk about STINK! Even though I have cleaned them up, washed what I could, there is still the powerful smell of mouse water permeating the tool shop now. The intense heat is not much help, either. Hopefully, the odor will dissipate over time.

Oh, well. Adapt, accommodate, adjust and activate. I will survive this.

My tools had been stored in a temporary tent shelter. Moving them out of that was necessary in order to have a place to bring most of the gardening supplies we had stored in the garage in Stockton.

I like what I did for the gardening supplies for Gracie much better than what I had for my tools. The floor is much more secure than what I did for myself the first time.

Also, it was out in the yard standing alone. It got blown over during one of our many wind storms. Gracie insisted on better security for her gardening supplies.

I erected the tent shelter next to the IBC storage unit and was able to anchor it to the wall of the building as well as stakes in the ground. Hopefully, it will stand up during the next high-wind event. We'll see.

Gracie's laundry station had been moved out of the shack and put outside against the wall; but the set-up was less than ideal. We decided to move it over closer to the cabin, but still on the ground.

I was able to anchor the tub to the edge of the deck. This keeps it from moving when she is using the wringer, which was giving her a lot of grief before.

The propane burner you see next to the tub is for her to heat the water when she needs to boil some of the laundry.

Some people wonder about why she wanted to do laundry this way, since it is so labor intensive. It is mainly because of the lack of electricity out here, but also because we are looking at trying to slow down to the speed of life. 

The benefit has come in the realm of our whites. All of our white clothing--underwear, socks, shirts, handkerchiefs etc are now a BRIGHT white, instead of an off-gray. This is accomplished without bleach or oxidizers.

She uses Fels Naphtha bar soap and an old-fashioned rub-board to scrub whenever scrubbing is needed. Most of the ime, though, the clothes are simply agitated in the tub of water with a $3 toilet plunger. 

The laundry equipment will eventually be inside next to the shower.

Right now we are very grateful for the outdoor shower. When we are working outside, we are able to soak ourselves down and keep on working a little longer. However, the water from the barrel is quite warm after sitting in the sun all day. My evening shower just before bed is quite warm. I suspect it is around the 95 degree mark straight out of the barrel.

It has been a busy week here on the Hill's homestead.

Just as I wrote that last sentence (2:45pm), Gracie came over and said, "I'm about to cry uncle!" 

This heat is becoming almost unbearable. We don't have A/C, and there are times we think we probably should. But, we both know that A/C could compromise our adapability and our health.

Don't feel sorry for us. We have chosen this path together with much research and discussion. On better days, we cannot adequately express our gratitude for this opportunity the Lord has given us.

Until next time, have fun, play hard, get your work done, and remember to stop and smell the roses.

ABSOLUTE MUST!!!

If you don't use a vapor barrier this is what happens!!

I was told I didn't need a vapor barrier for the type of sub-floor that came with the cabin. It is the Advantech, which is top-of-the-line OSB (Oriented Strand Board). It has been subjected to five years under water (I was told) without daage.

Well, for some reason, my beautiful hickory hardwood floor buckled.

Last night it sounded like a cannon going off inside the house as it raised up more than 4 inches from the sub-floor.

I pulled one of the wall boards away to make sure there was still adequate spacing and there was--at least 3/4inch between the edge of the floor and the wall. So, I repalced the wall board and began the laborious process of removing the tongue-and-groove pieces from the middle.

Have you ever tried to replace the brakes on your car without first removing the tire? I think that would be easier than what I experienced today.

I eventually got it done, and am now ready to begin the re-install next week. It is a nice, clean open space to begin with, but the final row will prove to be more challenging than the removal.

I had installed the boards with a floor nailer bought at Menard's and I believe is their brand--MasterForce. The first machine I bought wouldn't sink the nails. Instead, it shot them back up through the finished board.

Turns out that the boards were not being nailed with the new machine either. Almost every nail was curled up under the board. So, that could also be a reason the boards buckled. There was nothing holding them down in this heat and humidity.

The heat and humidity is a factor, because we do not have air conditioning here. 

I will do the re-install with glue instead of nails. I will most likely have to use nails in some places, but I will try to keep that to a minimum.

INTERESTING SIDENOTE: When the buckling first began to appear a couple of weeks ago, I was heart-broken, disappointed to say the least. I had installed what I thought was a quality floor. It was a beautiful hardwood, and much nicer than what we had originally settled on. To have it buckle was a crushing blow.

After I got it cleaned up today, though, my spirits lifted. I can see light at the end of the tunnel, I guess. I am not nearly as "down" as I was when I got up this morning.

LESSON: When you can do something about a problem facing you DO IT. Just spending time looking at the problem will bring you down quite quickly.

ABOUT THE BLOG: I have not been as diligent as I had hoped in sharing my progress. My desire is to change that. My intention is to try to write something every Saturday afternoon.

This is the first in that direction.

I still need to go back and pick up where I left off, because we have accomplished quite a bit since I last wrote.

I will try to back up with the next posting.

However, the way life seems to take over and mess with my plans...

Until next time,

Be happy; play hard; do your work; and give your love-partner a squeeze.