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Could you live on a narrow boat?

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When I think of living on a boat, I think of being on the ocean, or on a lake, but there are other waterways, called canals where people live full and part time, on what are called narrow boats, these are long, narrow boats of 7 feet wide (or less) and up to 72 feet long (though usually shorter). The width and length being determined by the locks that allow these boats to rise or be lowered to different depths in the canal systems.

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Looking at these boats, I think I could live on one, though I wonder if I could really pare my belongings down enough to really live in such a small space, especially if I was doing this with my husband. PB could probably do it well enough, he seems to be happy enough with few belongings, me on the other hand, I come from a long line of pack rats, I got the junk gene in spades.

0102Back to our story here, we meet David Johns, a former TV journalist from the UK who quit his job, sold his house, and bought a narrowboat to cruise the canal network, he planned on giving it a year to see how he liked it, apparently it grew on him and he is still doing it. Not only is he doing it, he is documenting it as well. Here is the original video that caught my eye, I’ll include a link to his YouTube page below.

 

https://youtu.be/yMKJR5n4gLw

Here is David Johns’ YouTube page
https://www.youtube.com/c/cruisingthecutuk



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Art in the desert

Amazing see-thru cabin built in California

You can see many things in the desert, some see desolation, others see stark beauty, yet others take what they see and transform it into an even more interesting and ethereal vision. Light is one of the driving forces in the desert, by adding mirrors to this run down shack, this artist took what would be ignored and passed by into a reflection of the surrounding beauty. The wood appears to float, seemingly supported by air. At night it transforms yet again into an ever changing palette of color. Have you been there or seen this?

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https://youtu.be/5rB5K_SS67w



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Late summer 2016 SkyCastle update

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Things are happening at the SkyCastle, as you may or may not know, late last winter I spilled a very large, very sweet cup of coffee (complete with melted marshmallows) into my laptop, I was able to get it rinsed out and dried pretty well, but things did not operate correctly after that, my keyboard pretty much died, I limped by using an external keyboard. Other things quit working or didn’t work right, I really hated to give that computer up, I had it set up just the way I liked it. Fortunately I had a Square Trade drops and spills accident warranty on it (I HIGHLY recommend them), I contacted them and they shot a prepaid return box to me, they had my computer the following day, then a few days later then let me know they couldn’t get parts quick enough so they cut me a check for what I paid for my laptop.

I hung on to the check for a while, not ready to buy another laptop yet and not wanting to take the chance of touching that money, I realized it was getting dangerously close to the time when the check wouldn’t be any good, I deposited it and began the process of picking out another laptop. Fast forward to now, and I’m writing this on my spiffy new laptop, an Acer Aspire E 15, 15.6 Full HD, Intel Core i7, NVIDIA 940MX, 8GB DDR4, 256GB SSD, Windows 10 Home, E5-575G-76YK. Not having my laptop meant I had to do everything on my tablet, that’s why my articles here have been so thin on words, it’s not easy to type on a small screen, especially the amount I like to write. :) I’m still getting this setup like I like it, installing my old software and getting used to Windows 10.

So now to the rest of the update, this will be a video update of the west side of the SkyCastle, PB has been busy working on the roof area over the laundry room, it’s also the deck area (3rd floor) where the round tower is situated. We have wanted to make that a small nook like place where we could sit down and survey the neighborhood, maybe even have some friends over and some meals. The original roof leaked, and leaked badly, whenever it rained we would have to go in there and move things (my clothes mainly), put out buckets and plastic to protect what couldn’t be moved. That is all fixed now, PB used a product called Redguard on the new plywood he laid down, that is a paint on coating that is used in shower pans to waterproof the wood below it, the idea is to keep the wood from rotting should moisture get to it. Then he used wide flashing as the next layer, now we have to …

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Hugelkultur

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Hugelkultur, pronounced hugle (like bugle but with a “h”) culture, it’s really simple, combining raised beds with lots of organic material under and on top of the mound. You take wood logs and twigs, preferably older ones but fresher ones can be used, cut them to the length of the bed you want to create, lay them in a pile then put dirt on top of them, you will be planting in this dirt. The idea is the wood logs decompose and hold lots of water, meaning you don’t have to water as often. It’s a win win situation. Some even work swales into the hugelkultur beds to help capture water that would otherwise run off too quickly.

I know it’s the end of the summer gardens for most of us, but this is the perfect time to begin planning and building our gardens for next summer. I still want to make a keyhole garden, I might incorporate some of the hugelkultur into a keyhole garden by using decaying wood logs and twigs that we have an abundance of around here, putting it in the base of the keyhole garden. Also working with the rocks and wood when the temps are cooler will be safer (for me) from snakes, scorpions and other creepy crawlies that sting and bite.

Here are a couple of videos about hugelkultur gardening.

https://youtu.be/Sso4UWObxXg

and

https://youtu.be/Lkx2JFO0Dhw



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Off-Grid tent living

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This is interesting and unexpected, it’s a 4 season tent,  the video shows it in winter with a blanket of snow.  Unlike a yurt, this really looks like an old style tent,  it reminds me of being in Girl Scouts.

The tent is divided into 4 sections, a sleeping area,  living, kitchen and dining.  It can sleep up to 4 people, though you’d best be good friends or family, there is no privacy to speak of.

The toilet is an outhouse down the trail, one nice thing about an outhouse in winter is less to no odor and no bugs.

https://youtu.be/yq_nJ0T4HV0

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129 square foot apartment

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Here is another take on a tiny NY apartment,  this time in Paris. When architect Julie Nabucet was asked to fit the rooms of a full-sized apartment in a 129-square-foot (12 m2) flat in the center of Paris (Montorgueil quarter), she stacked functions: she elevated the kitchen and rolled a bed-slash-sofa underneath (pulled out halfway, it’s a couch; pulled out fully, it’s a bed). To separate the cooking area from the sleeping/living room she used plywood boxes stacked as a wall. The boxes facing the kitchen are used as cabinets; those facing the bedroom are used as bookshelves.

In the two-square-meter bathroom (21-square-feet), she squeezed an “Italian shower” (wet bath). There wasn’t enough space for a sink so she placed this outside the bathroom. To separate it from the kitchen she created a wooden netting that gives a sense of isolation, but allows light to pass through.

https://youtu.be/vuLJLJZ69zI

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130 square foot apartment

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I like writing about tiny homes and alternative housing,  this is an interesting look at how some people live in South Korea, coming in at 130 square feet,  this is tiny, barely enough room for any furniture, but having everything one would need to live.

I like the bathroom,  being a “wet” bathroom, meaning you take a shower in the middle of the bathroom, no separate shower stall or tub.

The price seems high for what he is getting,  $500 a month,  he explains how rent works there,  the bigger the deposit you can put down (which apparently you get back)  the cheaper your monthly rent is,  he was throwing around numbers in the tens of thousands of dollars, but you can do it with less deposit and pay more rent.

Enjoy this peek into S Korean apartment living.

https://youtu.be/LjTOtO474dI

https://youtu.be/LjTOtO474dI…

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Hard core van living

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In this episode of our Van Life adventure we find a very rare VW mechanic and get to work putting right what “The Mother of All Hills” made wrong. Only the constant battle to keep Co’Pito alive gets to us and we start to go a little Volkswagen Crazy!

If you think that this Season 2 Finale is tough going, wait until you see what the next episode has in store for us…

https://youtu.be/OMpoD_hcvaY

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Woman living full time in an RV…

Jo has realized that the traveling lifestyle can be had for much less cost than most realize. With even a modest budget and plenty of foresight, just about anyone can live and exciting, adventurous life full of happiness and fulfillment. Join us as Bob catches up with her to discuss her 4×4 truck, slide in camper set-up, minimalism plus much more. What a delightful lady!

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Kids and off-grid can work

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Got kids and want to live off-grid? Think it’s not possible? Maybe you should check out this family in Canada,  they are doing it very much on the cheap.  One suggestion I would make is to ditch the upright fridge and replace it with a chest freezer to fridge conversion (https://off-grid.net/kicked-freezer-fridge-conversion/) it is so incredibly efficient, they could cut down tremendously on their power outlay.

Other than that,  I think they are doing a fantastic job!
https://youtu.be/v8Pe_u_4q5M

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