I am so busy lately that I haven't the time to breathe. or sleep. School is wholly encompassing now. I feel like a real student for the first time since high school and that's fun, but I am just so tired. At the moment I am procrastinating. I should be reading some mind numbing book about literary theory but I am an"English Traditionalist" and Theory makes my brain hurt. So instead I am thinking about farming.
Dave and I have been day dreaming about building an earthship on the farm. For the vast majority of you who don't know what an earthship is you must be thinking that I have lost my mind entirely and plan on taking a first class trip to outer space in a rocket. But an earthship is actually a house. A fully functioning, yet 100% off the grid, self sufficient home. It supplies it's own water from rain and snow, collects wind and sunlight for electricity, and best of all is built from mostly recycled materials - tires, bottles, and cans! It sounds insane and probably hideous but they are actually really beautiful, though certainly unique. Check them out at www.earthship.org or watch the video below... Maybe you'll be daydreaming instead of doing what you should just like me!
4 comments:
Earth ship now that is a sweet idea. Video was very boring but Im hook to this idea. Something I would do on my family's farm. However trying to recycle one’s own water supply sounds to much trouble. Good luck with the Earth ship- peace
Earthships are way rad but I highly recommend purchasing and reading Building Green by Clarke Snell & Tim Callahan. I used the book as a resource to design and build my shed/playhouse outback (I’ll probably post a blog next month detailing its construction). I’m sure this book would help you visualize your daydreams a bit more clearly and bring to light issues you’d really want to consider when planning alternative homes. One point they make about Earthships is that they are designed for a specific climate (dry and sunny in Northern New Mexico) - the authors engage in building an alternative guest house in North Carolina and rule out Earthship design because of waterproofing and other mountain climate problems.
Blurb from the introduction:
“IN PURSUIT OF A DREAM
...this book is ... fundamentally about creating a house that is uniquely yours. Just as the language you grew up with rolls easily off your tongue, just as the clothes you wear reflect your sense of style and comfort, there is a house - a beautiful, healthful, nurturing house - that corresponds to who you are. This real place is often relegated to being a dream, the elusive “dream house” for which so many are forever searching. But why?.. To create a house that is uniquely and specifically yours, you...only need to be in sync with your exact sight and your particular, unique, idiosyncratic human needs. And the know-how and skills and self-awareness to do just that are within your - anyone’s - reach.”
Anyhoo, here’s to day dreams becoming dreams realized!
I think the concept is terrific. Too bad the house reminds me of Fred Sanford! (Does that comment date me?) I would think using stone as a building material could add aesthetic appeal while still enabling you to incorporate the "green" functionality. The added advantage of using native stone is that it almost automatically feels compatible to the landscape and will last for hundreds of years if built right.
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