Runaway

.

Runaway is finished. It's the story of our 6 month experience in a traveling carnival, working with drunks, thieves, and ex-cons. Patty and I were in our teens and just out of school - it was a great bonding and maturation experience for us.

I took the photo of this carnival at the old Kmart parking lot here in Atlanta on Sunday. I walked through it for a moment, having just finished my book. The smell of cheap generic cigarettes instantly took me back to our life there.

There were mostly rides and ride jocks with very few games. There were a few joints . . . but it was afternoon, the guys weren't ready to start calling and applying the pressure. They were still setting up their joints and drinking coffee.

Patty and I and the girls are all going up to Tennessee for the entire month of June - it's very exciting. We'll finish the addition, side the building, and either get a roof on the barn or begin plumbing and electrical for the cabin. We have to drive two cars, because I've got 7 huge windows for the addition I need to haul.

Mishka isn't going. He'll be watched by a friend. He's kind of blown it for himself up there for now.

.

The Addition

. The kids and I spent the last 9 days up in Tennessee building the addition for the cabin.

We had perfect weather and it was a highly productive week. I got it semi-dried in with rafters and sheathing and tarpaper on the roof. The only thing left to do is put in the metal, sheathe and wrap the walls, and pop in windows - 4 day's work. I've already bought the windows at Builder's Surplus. 7 windows at $129 a piece - they're large, new, modern . . . 32" x 54". The addition's a combination sunroom/living room, with maybe some greenhouse space.

The first thing we noticed when we pulled up to the property at night were the flowering peach trees covered in large pink flowers. These are the first things we ever planted on the property, 2 years ago. It's nice to see them thriving, even if the fruit is small.

The next day I finished putting in the joists for the cabin floor:

No problems . . . went well. The boards are 2x10's @ 12 feet.

The girls fertilized the apple trees and a few garden beds with the last of the aged humanure compost:

Once the joists were in I put in 2x10 blocking down the middle - this supports and straightens the joists:

The joists tie directly in to the cabin girder. I needed a nailing surface for the edge of the flooring so I run blocking along this side:

At the end of the first day I've finished the frame and put in the first few sheets of flooring with adhesive and 2 1/4" screws:

Here's a shot of one of the flowering peach trees in front of the barn:

On Day 2 I get the rest of the flooring in - Advantech, $20 a 3/4" sheet, heavy-duty, with a 50 year warranty:

Here are some interior shots of the cabin, a lot more comfortable than the early days of sleeping in the tent, gazebo, and the back of the car:



I can't order lumber for the addition till Monday. So I spend Sunday putting up the rest of the posts in the upper story of the barn - these outside walls are the bearing walls for the roof:

Each morning I grade and level a garden bed. There are 9 altogether. It's tough physical work, so I do one a day in the early morning when it's cold. The strawberry and mint had spread everywhere. There's still some debris from the fire, like broken crockery and rusted pieces of metal.

Here a couple of beds are done:

I order lumber Monday morning and it gets delivered around noon.

I build conventional stud walls for the addition. They're not nearly as heavy as I thought they'd be to stand up alone - even the 12' walls with 2x6 studs are no big deal:

The long 25' wall I do in three sections, two at 8', one at 9'. Here's what I've got accomplished as of Monday evening:

Tuesday I stand up the rest of the walls. The 9' section fits perfectly in between the 2 8' outer sections, both at the top and sole plate - a good sign of a square layout and plumb walls:

The rough openings for windows are next. Since it's only one story with a 3' span 2x4 headers are sufficient - I however box them in with an additional horizontal 2x6 to shim against:

I fill the header box with fiberglass insulation before I seal it. Remember the mice that nested in the insulation 2 years ago, and the photo of the baby mice? This is what I used. No mice now - I guess they've moved on.

One of the most amazing sights on the property are the 2 huge autumn olives covered in flowers. They're full of bees and butterflies coming and going. I wish I could order more, but they're now illegal to sell in Tennessee because they're considered invasive. I'll have to order them from outside the state.

Brooke took several photos of the swallowtails in the flowers. Here's one:

One March we went up to camp on Pigeon Mountain, and the autumn olives there were flowering and fragrant and full of butterflies. In fact that photo of me with the butterfly on my hand was taken that trip. It was a beautiful thing to see, and to create that on our own property is pretty awesome.

Once the rough openings are done, I move on to the rafters:

I first run a 25' stretch of 2x6's along the cabin as a cleat to hang them on. This works great and the cleat's screwed in to the studs. This way I don't need to buy hangers for the rafters:

I put in 2x6 blocking between the rafters. I have to shave a 1/2" off the width to keep them from projecting beyond the top of the rafters.

For the rafters I make a seat cut at both ends, as well as a plumb cut where they tie in to the cabin. To make life easy I clamp one 2x6 rafter @14' against the edge of the cleat and cap plates where they'll run. I draw my lines of where it needs cut, and once the rafter fits just right I use it as a template to cut all the rest. It works great and saves a lot of time. For each later rafter I watch how it fits - I fine tune it as a go, modify a seat cut a hair where necessary, and am happy with the results. Also it's expedient. It takes me no more than a day to cut and install all the rafters - much different from the hell I went through with the rafters on the cabin, and each one's custom cut.

Where the rafter ties in to the cabin, I predrill and screw it into the cleat, the blocking, and the cabin for a secure hold.

I use 2x4 blocking at the cap plate, to allow ventilation out the soffit vents:

Here's where I am at the end of the day:

After several days of morning labor the garden beds are leveled and ready to go. Removing the blackberry was much easier than I thought - most of the roots are shallow. But I'm sure there's a taproot somewhere which will keep sending up shoots.

I'd like to buy a tiller and till peat moss into the clayey soil. But the cost of both a tiller and the moss is high. I can get a truckload of topsoil delivered for about $200. We may do that this year.

I'd love to get a fence around the garden - even a cheapo metal one and grow fruiting vines and shrubs all over it. It would help establish and protect the space, as well as shield it from drying winds. It's the intense sun and dryness that we struggle with most in the garden:

Once I have the 20 common rafters in, I put in barge rafters at either end for the 1' roof overhang. I assemble them on my saw table, then hoist them up with the kids.

It's difficult as my ladders are worthless and the girls don't have much muscle. I end up going back to the old methods I used in the barn to hoist joists - rope and bungee cords, then once it's there, clamp and tap it into position:

I use plenty of screws and nails to sister it to the outer rafter, but I think knee braces are necessary if I really want it to be secure. I'll install them after the wall sheathing's up.

Here the frame is finished:
I cut the rafter tails after the rafters are already in. I run a string along the top, mark the tails, then draw plumb lines and make the cuts with a circular saw from the ladder. I end up with a very nice line for my fascia and gutter:

The only hitch is this awful 3 in 1 ladder that no longer works. The locking mechanism is busted, and I can't lock the ladder in any position. So every time I go to move it it buckles. I need to get a regular extension ladder. As usual, the more sophisticated something is, the more likely it is to break down - and soon. We've only had it a year.

Here's another shot of the frame:

Next is the sheathing for the roof. Here's a view out the french doors once I have the first few sheets in:

After the sheathing, I lay down 30lb roofing felt and secure it with button cap nails. I secure it well, as this felt will be left exposed 2 weeks until I can get up there again and put in the metal:

Here's a shot of where it is at the end of the week:

I think it looks good. It's no architectural wonder, but for having no prior construction experience and Patty and I just making it up as we go along I think we've done okay. We plan on ultimately adding on a master bedroom wing on the left side - I've only put in one window on this wall of the addition, as it's north-facing, never gets direct sunlight, and the window is interior door-sized so when the time comes I can pop it out and put in a door. This master bedroom will have it's own stove, bathroom, and patio. Then the girls will have the loft all to themselves, and can divide it up. There's also a large screened-in porch going in on the opposite side of the building from the addition.

Overall it was a great week. I lost 5 lbs working dawn to dusk and eating small meals the girls prepared, like potatoes and oatmeal or spaghetti. I got very tan, my hair bleached blonde in the fierce sun and cloudless sky day after day. We had one short episode of rain Saturday morning.

We took a couple of trips down to the creek to jump in and cool off and bathe. The girls took a few bike rides. They also helped me with mowing and mulching. Our neighbors from Knoxville brought us ice cold lemonade one afternoon, and fresh-baked bread one evening when we were running out of food. It was much appreciated. There may be even some work prospects for me building french drains for a neighbor - something I've done when I built the patio for my parents.

The only big downer was Mishka. He went next door and killed 2 more chickens. They said if he goes over there again they'll shoot him. So we had to tie Mishka up the whole week and he sat beneath the building. We're not going to be able to take him up there for a while, at least the rest of the year.

I'm going back to the property the first week of May to finish the addition. Patty and the girls and I are spending the entire month of June up there. We'll plant the garden, put up the siding, maybe plant some fruit trees, go canoeing and hiking, and have a great time. We've never all spent so much time up there together - only 2 weeks 2 years before, and that was sleeping in the gazebo.
.

The Addition Floor

.
The girls and I drove up Friday morning to work on the cabin. The temperature dropped steadily the whole way. By the time we reached Sunbright it was thirties and gray. There was also a cold wind.

To warm up I began leveling the garden beds:

It's amazing how much loose rich soil there is after 2 years of gardening. The mint and strawberry have spread everywhere.

These beds are still not perfectly level. I'll order a truckload of topsoil and level them with that. One veteran organic gardener recommends tilting the beds slightly to the south - if I have enough soil I'll try it.

Our wood came from Christmas Lumber around noon. I had them drop it off on the gravel pile beside the cabin. I thought this would keep it high and dry . . . but forgot that I need to lay down plastic and gravel on the worksite first, before I begin building.

I'll have to do it later. The addition's high enough on piers that I'll still be able to shovel it in.

I put in my 12"x16" treated sill plates on the piers:

One of the piers was 1/4" lower than the others, so I put down a layer of mortar to get it even with the rest:

Once the piers were done, I built the tripled 25' 2" x 10" girder:

The boards are tripled with screws, as well as 7 carriage bolts, spaced every three feet.

This time the girder went on the outside of the piers, rather than the middle, so rain is shed away from the foundation and the sill plates are protected:

I worry a little about putting all that weight on the edge of the piers, thinking they might eventually tip . . . but the installed floor should anchor them back, they sit on massive footers connected by 1/2" rod, and in conventional foundations the sill plates always go along the outer edge - the weight is not centered. So I guess it's fine.

That night the temperature goes down to 21 degrees. We have a heavy frost:

The kids and I drive to the local hardware store in Wartburg while it's cold. I get a ton of metal connections such as angles and hangers at a great price - the guy there knows me and marks everything down. I'd pay double to triple at a place like Home Depot or Lowe's.

Saturday is hot and sunny without a cloud in the sky. Here's the inside of the cabin:

A shot out over the garden:

The girder is fastened to the sill plates on the inside with staircase angles - heavy-duty metal angles. On the outside where there's no room for angles I use a mending plate where it's flush, and toenail [with screws] where it isn't.

I build the outer band for the joists, consisting of the long 25' band joist and two 12' rim joists. Once it's in position, using the still existing original sitework, I screw the corners down and go on to the joists.

The joists need hung along the cabin's girder. Any time I'm using hangers it slows me down and is tedious work. And where before I'd thought I'd gang-cut the joists all the same length . . . the cabin's girder is not exactly straight so that's not possible. I run a string along the band joist so it's perfectly straight, then cut the joists to length so they fit between the band joist and the cabin girder.

I screw up in one part, getting too dependent on the level, and have to rehang 3 joists. To do it quick I just shim them up in the hangers and refasten them, rather than remove each hanger and reposition it.

At the end of the day I've got a number of joists in, but not all of them as I'd hoped - the hangers and trimming to length are slowing me down:

Here's a look from the front:

I'm so tired of seeing this ugly unfinished side of the building.

My neighbor George stopped by. We patched up the chicken issue, and he asked if I was building a deck. He was pleased to know I was building on to the cabin and going to have it finished and sided this year. And a wood stove and bathtub inside too, I hope.

The next day is rain:

I get a few more joists in, then quit because of rain:

Water is still seeping in beneath the french doors, even though I've caulked everywhere. It'll be nice to have them dried in when the addition's built:

The girls get a wheelbarrow-ful of aged humanure compost. I haul it up to the apple trees for them:

Rachael fertilizes the trees while Brooke takes the picture:

There were lots of baby ticks out on our one sunny day. They don't bother me much, but the girls hate them.

To me that's all part of what homesteading's about - dealing with issues like ticks. We listened to "The Long Winter" - a 'Little House on the Prairie' book - on the drive up. They're all factual accounts of pioneer living. That was some hardcore homesteading in those days . . .
.

Fertilizing with Humanure

.
The newlyweds and I went up to Tennessee this weekend and stayed in the cabin. We had perfect weather - 60's and sunny, till the day we left.

Here's Stacy and Luis in the cabin:

My sister and I:

Luis and I dug out several wheelbarrows-ful of humanure compost from the left bin - it's black and crumbly and lightweight, aged for over a year:

I have almost half of it left, after fertilizing nearly 100 fruiting trees and shrubs across the property. We gave each plant from two to three shovelfuls. I'll lay the rest of the compost down across the garden beds once I've leveled them out.

I also planted some tulips Patty gave me in front of the pumphouse:

Here are two shots of the property:


After fertilizing the shrubs and trees, we took a hike up Frozen Head to the top. It's about 7 miles round-trip, with a climb of at least 1,500 feet.

We hiked up the fire tower at the end, and sat in the wind. It was a tough trip up the stairs for Mishka.

Here's a shot of the view:

The tree on the right is a giant apple tree, that once was full of apples.

Here's Stacy and Luis, snacking on trail mix:

And Mishka, so terrified of the height and the wind and the grate he's standing on, he's shaking and whimpering. He won't even eat a piece of beef jerky:

Tub Springs is a half-mile down from the tower, with good water:

After our hike we opened the french doors on the cabin and sat in the sunlight and drank wine. We had a big fire out in the cinderblock fireplace. The stars weren't as bright as the first night because clouds moved in. But the night was much warmer. Many frogs were calling.

This trip really cemented the drive in me to further develop the property. It is priority #1. It's been a dream of ours for many years . . . having our own place, with a huge garden, and becoming self-sufficient. The reality is much harder than the fantasy of course, and there are ups and downs - but with enough work the place has the potential to be everything we ever wanted.

I'm going up next weekend with the girls to prepare the beds for this year's garden. I'm going to level them out, till peat into the clay, order a truckload of topsoil, and use up the rest of the compost. It's 'cheating' to get the stuff delivered, but we've got to fasttrack having a productive garden, with enough food to feed us and store and maybe even sell.

Once the garden's ready, I move on to the cabin. The addition's first.
.