Boxes in Fields was a blog started to keep my family and friends updated on our crazy life. It was never intended to be anything more than just a form of communication. I know that has been stated before in passing but I am saying again as the last year have been very stressful. No, not stressful but something. Something so something progress was halted at Boxes in Fields. January started off great with the whimsical pantry knobs. With the…
Poor bedroom. Every project started was never finished without stopping at least once. Some projects were started and stopped two or three times before the project was completed. Wall shiplap was started in May but the last three sections were not completed until August. Window trim was started in August and not completed until December. Cabinet was started in June, hung in place in August, and had drawers and door started in December. Now here it is the end of…
Can you believe it? A whole year has gone by since BIF moved out of the Rainstream (still no love loss there) and moved into the Dwelling. A whole year. Since the second or third day after moving in the Planner and I have been using the work platform as a make shift entryway bench. Originally I wanted a full seven foot tall bench with coat rack at top, bench with shoe cubby underneath. Then after the Pontificator bequeathed her…
After much kicking and screaming (by me), the Kid has earned his drivers license. Complaining should not be allowed as we live in a tiny little town with very little traffic. Doesn’t account for teenage stupidity. After making the truck his own, the Kid has removed the camper shell (which I thought he should leave to keep his fishing gear safe), the chrome step guards that were rusted through and through, and has purchased brand new, road safe tires. Travel…
Designing a kitchen is not something not to be done over a weekend. Upon reviewing phone photos, I could say the very first images for my perfect kitchen go back to 2011 when I found a ultra modern, simply galley kitchen with sink, stove, counter on one side and open shelves on the other. From that point there are a half dozen pictures of kitchens inspiring my ultimate perfect kitchen. Every time the house lay out changed, so did the…
Thus far, I cannot think of a more fitting end of the year image than this. This one picture shows everything accomplished. A moment snapped because I was tired of look at the cardboard stuck to the walls. Blue tape was less obnoxious but it was not offering the visuals needed to “see” how I wanted bottom cabinets to look. Looks more than sizes are important. Sizes are never what is needed when needed. Looks because they are seen are…
They, whoever they are, say each year Sherwin William paints for the year follow a theme. Not into art or art trends, I just buy paint based on how it makes me feel. Not on what the trend say I should buy or paint or purchase. No need to rant about trends, been there done that once this year already. Even so, it turns out the both white for the walls and the blue for the pantry are from the…
Beautiful Blistery Sky drawers, doors, and shelves are drying the Shop Box with the dehumidifier running at 40% humidity keeping the moisture from the rain outside at bay. In fact, the world outside is a blistery sky. Am I right or am I right. Blistery Sky. As I was saying while the beautiful blistery sky paint in drying the Work Box, the Planner is working on the pantry floor. First it needs to have the epoxy ground smooth, then the…
Gosh the weather has been so beautiful. Not November or December weather as they are warm, sunny, and dry. Perfect for painting. Instead of painting the Planner and I have spent the last two days sanding. Two days! It took two days of sanding to remove all the fibers from the pantry bases, cabinets, drawers, and doors. Some places looked like they should get a second layer of primer but there is just not enough time or primer. Planner says…
Honestly I have no idea where time goes. When I look back on my calendar I can see all the writing in four different colors representing five different things. Blue for Boxes in Fields and my personal notes, Orange for the Planner, Green for the Kid, Black for work (my 9-5), Red for alternative work (money gigs), Purple for my mom. At the end of the month, most months are void of any days where nothing occurred. Life is just…
Silly things make the world go round. Not work, not money, not possessions, not fame. Silly little things. Boxes in Fields tries to keep the levity when things get crazy. Like work. Work, the paying kind, has been very busy these last few months not allowing much time or energy to make progress on the Dwelling. Design. August was spent designing cabinets for the pantry as the Doubter is going to build them at his house. Once done we will…
All my life I have always wanted to be Betty Homemaker. I know, women’s rights and all that. At least I speak the truth. I wanted to marry a farmer, have a slew of children, dogs, and goats. I wanted to be an accomplished baker, cooker, gardener, and sewer. Don’t cringe, I wanted to be June Cleaver. The mom who never yelled or got carried away, the house where the neighborhood kids hung out, the mom who had everything perfect….
Oh dear lord help us all, the Kid has his learners permit. The Catter knowing this day was coming, and needing to get trade his truck for a wife friendly car, sold the Kid the truck for a STEAL and the occasional use of the truck with teenage strength. I AM NOT READY. If he comes home now with busted knees and gravel in his hands from a bicycle, what is to happen with two extra wheels and more power…
A house divided. With the Doubter inside the Dwelling trying to recover from the not flu (apparently he does not have the flu only all the flu systems, not covid as they tested him, and will cure in 7-10 days), the remaining residents are working on various projects without bothering the Doubter’s space. Giving space to a sick patient when the patient is in the only room with air conditioner, the kitchen, the bathroom is very difficult. Everybody did what…
June. BIF started the year off with a bang. Work was busy, home building was busy. All was good. April stalled with my boat drama and half of May was spent traveling. Now here it is the end of June, and I feel as though BIF has completed nothing. Rationally I can tell myself that projects get completed when projects get completed. Rationally I can tell myself there is no time line as we are completing this massive project ourself….
Every time the tools and materials are moved around in the Dwelling, there are five 48″x48″ sheets of 3/4″ plywood that remain. They are officially in the way and must be moved into the final location. Again, with so many other simple projects, it took longer to set up this project than it did to complete. Unlike most other welds taking place outside, the Planner wanted to use the wire welder instead of the stick welder. This required the entire…
Guess it has been a long time coming to finally admit the fact. Seven years next month. The free roaming Lost Rooster who showed up way back in 2017 is one of my favorite things in life. He cracks me up constantly and helps to keep the levity. Unlike the hens, he greets Boxes in Fields when we come home (much like a dog) and will converse when spoken to. Especially when Chicken! is yelled across the yard. He he…
Another first has happened at BIF. Nothing, I mean absolutely nothing was worked on during the month of April. Not a single screw, not a single board, not a single movement forward. Why, you ask? Not time. Not work (the paying kind). Not physical sickness. None of those were the reasons why progress came to a halt. It was simply life. And drama. Self induced drama at the end of March. Nothing happened. Everyone was safe. Yada, yada, yada. Mentally,…
For the love of everything holy, BIF is digging yet another hole and accompanying trench. Since I kicked out the Kid to return to his box, he is still having to return to the Dwelling to use the bathroom as he does not have a shower, a sink, or a toilet. Worse, is last week the outhouse was removed and now he is funking up my house and leaving toothpaste in the sink. He would have been using his own…
Water collection has been the sole purpose of painting roofs with a potable rubberized coating. Blinded by the Light and Blinded by the Light V2 are the only way BIF is provided with water. For every square foot of surface area, one inch of rain collects just over half gallon of water. SF(0.60)=gallons/inch of rain to be exact. Today the sole reason was rust prevention on the Tractor and Storage Boxes. Done simultaneously while removing the outhouse, the Planner completed…
Almost three years to date, the sunny yellow outhouse is no more. If and when family or friends come over they can use the nice, clean, modern bathroom in the house. None of this backwards ways anymore. All of the salvageable lumber will be stored for later use. The particle board wall, however, will be cut into strips and tossed into the local garbage can a few pieces at a time. Months this will take and having to look at…
Done. Done. Done. Done with the cold Rainstream and all its drama. Done with the condensation wet walls. Done with the leaky windows. Done with the rain being dripped onto my head and feet in the middle of night. Done. Done. Done. After having come back from the Pontificator and her warm, dry house to a cold, wet Rainstream I claimed calmly over dinner one night that I was done. Done. Done. Done. Since I am not one to verbally…
We are bad parents. The Kid has never had a real full on, all American Thanksgiving dinner. Having lived in the Rainstream since he was three and never really visiting family who celebrate turkey day on turkey day, the full experience just slipped away. When the Kid brought this up over dinner the week before turkey day, the Planner and I started plotting. During the holiday break, we would travel to visit the Pontificator and have the full meal deal….
Frame: a structure that surrounds or encloses, that underlies or supports a system, concept, or textFlexible: to be able to be easily modified to respond to altered circumstances or conditions Perspective: a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of viewFrame of Mind: a particular mood that influences one’s attitude or behaviorFrame of Perspective: surrounding ones systems with a modifiable attitude (as defined by me) Life can be dreadfully disgusting or blissfully beautiful. Life can also be severely spicy or sickeningly sweet….
Taking our traditional holiday camping trip allows everyone to unwind. Working full time jobs and building a home is exhausting. Without the reset I think I would go crazy. This year, however, I was waited until the very last minute to decide if the camping trip was a go as I was enjoying the process on the Dwelling Box very much. Somewhere along the way, maybe while hiking or sitting in the chair reading a book while the Kid fly…
Such a classic movie, not for you maybe as it is 80’s cheese (one my favs by the way) but classic all the same. A coming of age movie about one singular day. You have spent the entire last year coming of age. So many new things tried, so many new things come and gone. So many I almost can’t keep with up them and where they lead you. December, just a few days into being 15, and you had…
Loving the look of the ceiling as standard yellow pine, it was very tempting to leave it as it was unsealed, raw boards. Rationally I knew the benefits of applying shellac and I do no want the boards to discolor haphazardly, instead I want the coloring to develop it deeper darker over time with the aide of shellac. Shellac in the Bantry was 90% applied by me. Starting in the bedroom, the Planner thought he give the ceiling a go….
Another month gone. Not in post dates as there are other posts in between but in actual time since starting the ceiling in the rest of the Dwelling. Not a single day gone by without working on the Dwelling. If not just the Planner, then the Planner and somebody else: the Doubter, the Kid, myself. Or the Planner and all three of us. Three people when working on the ceiling is best. Maybe not the first eight rows or the…
If I heard it once, I have heard it a million times. People cannot multi-task. Of course this answer will vary depending upon with whom you are having this discussion. The local bar fly (alcohol, stool, bar not needed) vs the educated, well versed scientist. A short digression. Barflies, what a concept. When the Doubter was in his late 20’s his parents opened an all in one gas station, convenience store with hard liquor available for purchase behind barricaded glass…
Since the end of February upon the completion of the spray foam insulation there has not been one singular project started and completed in sequence. After the spray foam, sheet rock and rockwool insulation was installed in the pantry, bedroom, and kitchen. The pantry was completed. The bedroom was lacking a couple strips of insulation and sheetrock, and the kitchen was a complete sheet rock disaster by the time the Bantry ceiling was started. After the Bantry ceiling was the…
Floor, walls, ceiling, lights, and an almost complete vanity with sink. Bathroom is moving right along. Right along. With the cabinets done, we could return back to the shower. September shower sounds savy, right? If you are into those funny English literature things like that. Four full months have come and gone since installing shower tile. Somewhere around the middle of June all of the ceiling trim was reinstalled covering 99% of the paint overspray. The double layer of trim…
In our endless attempts to collect and reuse water, BIF has come up with a very creative way to capture the most water wasteful item in any house. The washer or maybe the shower. In our case it is the washer as the Planner is constantly reminding; ever so gently; to turn off the water between soaping. His current thinking is that 2.5 gallons of water per people is too much. We need to reduce, reduce, reduce. With the exception…
Hot, hot, hot. There is no other way to describe the dog days of summer. There are no clouds, no wind, no break from the heat of day even at the dark of night. It is hot before the sun comes up and is still hot when the sun goes down. With the Doubter coming to help in the bathroom I decided it was too hot for him to work in these conditions. He would work without complaint but he…
People say that nothing marks the passage of time better than a child. And while that may be true, BIF marks the passage of time with hurricane season. Lasting June 1 – November 30, a full six months of our lives rotates around the weather. Normally, while I take a gander at the hurricane map once a week or so I don’t normally start to worry until the start of August or when the bay water gets above 90 degrees….
WARNING, WARNING, WARNING: the following is a rant. I originally started this as the post title says: Doors, Drawers, and More but as it was being written the soapbox started, then flowed, then gushed. Now with the flood resided I have decided the rant needs its own post so as not to deter from the actual post itself. Read at your own risk. You have been warned. Fashion is for fools, trendy is tricky, and what’s popular today will fade…
Owning a business whose parts are delivered on pallets and building a structure/homestead/compound whose waste cannot be tossed in the local weekly trash collection results in a messiness everywhere. Even when attempting to contain said mess it spills out and ends up taking over the whole property. It happens slowly so that the mess almost goes by unnoticed. Almost. It drives me crazy. I have to see it, mow around it, and be reminded by it that we are living…
Out of the steps in getting electricity, pulling cable is the worst. Too many bends in the PVC, too many pieces of cable for the PVC size, too thick of cable to bend and pull at such long distances. As with all other electrical pulls, we started with a kite string attached to a tiny piece of plastic that was sucked through the PVC with a shop vac. When the tiny kite string and plastic snippet doesn’t want to pull…
I don’t know how you feel about it, but to me ever since The Hole to Nowhere BIF is forever digging holes and shoveling trenches. Planner dug holes, Kid dug holes, and Doggo dug holes. Holes for fun, holes for poles, holes for water. Tractor dug trenches, hand dug trenches, Kid dug trenches. Trenches for electrical, trenches for water/sewer, and trenches for internet. There are so many trenches crisscrossing the property that last year I created a cheat sheet showing…
Time flies. We all know this rationally but mentally is a different story. Day to day living is just busy with the day to day living responsibilities. Two floor shellac test samples were done way back in March when with Bathroom Ceiling Shellac. Three full months have come and gone. Sure there were materials orders, plans laid out, and procedures to procedure. But still! Needing a major step completed to make me feel as though time is not slipping away…
Here it is the of June 2023, just over a year since the Dwelling Box footing #1 hole was dug. A year since the Dwelling boxes were Adjoined and Joined creating one singular living residence. Six months since it was Electrically Watered connecting it to the world as none of the boxes are off the grid. Fourteen months of electrical cords running this way, that way, and always getting in the way. Fourteen months of dragging electrical cords here and…
Trim boards and paint. That was plan for the week. Nothing is ever as it seems. Nothing ever really goes as planned. Nothing. Before trim could be installed windows had to be cleaned of rubber gasket materials encompassing every corner. I guess the manufacturer thinks all window trims are placed at the windows opening but I like the look of trim, window base, then glass. Removing this material was so, so time consuming. Chemicals could not be used as the…
Don’t start I know the above and below pictures are not bead board, they are ceiling boards. Specifically pantry ceiling. Way back in May under the Bantry Rocked and Ceiled, I lead to believe that both the bathroom and the pantry ceilings were completed. And they were with exception to one very little board. See that dark gray flat portion of metal that is not the corrugated wall? That is the mounting bracket running the entire length of the ceiling….
Weather may be warmer than normal for April and May but the rains have been steady and the wildflowers are abundant. Now if Boxes in Fields could just figure out how to remove the biting bugs from the beautiful bugs, everything would be perfect. If pictures are worth a thousand words what are movies worth?
Ooh-wee, tiling the shower took some major time and effort. Or maybe it was effort and time. Either way it was a learning process with trail and errors. Starting on March 23 and ending on April 27, there were times when the Planner thought the job would never be finished (day 1) and there were times that the process proceeded too quickly resulting in more work. Major work. Let is be said, after having every major mistake occur, I feel…
Weeks after having discovered a crack in the second water tank, it was finally that settled the company would compensate $500 towards the purchase of a new tank. $500 would just about cover the costs to drive the five hours, one direction mind you, for the replacement tank. And since it has been a rainy spring meaning thousands of gallons of water had been lost due, there was no time like the present to get the tank. Rain was a…
After hours of reading old home building catalogs, fine craftsman journals, musical instrument repair websites, and of course watching hours of YouTube on the debate, the Planner finally decided upon dewaxed shellac for sealing the ceilings. Since the durability nor the high gloss provided by wax shellac was wanted, Dewaxed Platina Shellac Flakes were purchased. A light amber shade was chosen as to highlight the color of the ceiling without trying to hide that the ceiling is standard yellow southern…
According to silly weather sayings, March is supposed to be “windy”, or “in like a lion out like a lamb” “or if you prefer the quote by Ralph Waldo Emmerson instead “….savage and serene in one hour” which is really about life and nothing really to do with the weather. Whatever cute little saying you like, March is supposed to be the gateway to spring, not the dead of summer. But I guess straight up summer is to be excepted…
Shellac. According to Wikipedia is a resin secreted by the female lac bug on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. It is processed and sold as dry flakes and dissolved in alcohol to make liquid shellac, which is used as a brush-on colorant, food glaze and wood finish. Shellac functions as a tough natural primer, sanding sealant, tannin-blocker, odor-blocker, stain, and high-gloss varnish. With that first paragraph, Wiki tells you everything you need to know about shellac. Wiki tells you the facts about shellac. It does tell you the differences between shellac buttons (waxed) and shellac…
Poor Planner. He had his plans all laid out for when the Doubter came so that there was no wasted helper time. Helper time is hard to come by right now as I have taken a part time job for extra income. This part-time job, while it just helping out a veterinary friend in need, does limit my help to after 4pm during the week. Then there are all the other household duties that require everyday attention such as meals,…
Before insulation and sheetrock could be installed there were some last minute tidying up and finalizing steps. Since the Doubter was coming to help in a few days, the Planner wanted all these little things completed along with all the insulation and sheetrock on hand before his arrival so there was no wasted helper time. More insulation was removed from various locations. First there were electrical wires still covered in plastic and foamed into place. These electrical lines run between…
Two weeks we’ve been waiting for the spray foam crew to arrive thinking we had everything ready. They show up and were like “oh, the electrical wires have to be tucked into the outlets, windows and metal walls that are remaining visible need plastic coverings, and the floors need to be covered.” What! If this had been said at time of quote, it could have been done already. Electrical wires at outlets were left long for ease of working later…
Having all the electrical and water lines, sewer outlets and vents, and metal junction boxes in place the next step is clean up work in preparation for spray foam work. Once the spray foam is installed it will be difficult to make changes. This applies not only to the electrical and water lines but to the location of wall junctions, framework, and any other elements buried. Using the outdoor propane burner, a four foot 2″ PVC was formed into the…
Planning, planning, and planning. When building a home, no matter the size, shape, or materials, the builder needs to plan (or draw) out every single room. This drawing should include the substructure, the framework, the inner and outer wall materials, window to floor height requirements, door easements and trim/molding style around the door, electrical outlets, water sources, washer/dryers/oven/fridge location, appliance loads, a general lay out of where furniture will reside. Essentially the entire home should have a blue print schematic….
Too fast. Another year. Where does the time go? Do you ever feel like time moves too slow to too fast? Or maybe you just need time to stop. What about time travel? Would you go travel back or forward in time? Time is never what you want or need. Let us take a trip. A trip require you travel back in time. Back to a time in elementary school to solve a simple math problem. I know for some…
The Kid has experienced some major changes over the last year. Some good, some bad. Changes that marked the beginning of the new and the end of the old. Changes made by him, changes made by others affecting him. Planned and unplanned changes. Changes occurring so slow it went unnoticed, others that happened in the blink of an eye. At first the year seamed to start out the same as every other year. You ate, you made silly faces, you…
Last year it was decided for me that we (by we I mean me) needed a vacation for sanity reason. So harkening back to days before the Kid, dogs, marriage, the Planner took me camping. An even though last year was cold in the mornings with frost on the tent, the days were beautiful and the hiking was great. With such pleasant memories, Boxes in Fields decided we would take another camping trip over the Thanksgiving holidays. Last year it…
I know I finished the last post by stating how much work gets done when the Doubter is here to help the Planner but words do not always give adequate description. Pictures, are as they say, are worth a thousand words. Last week Tuesday, just shortly after breakfast, the Doubter arrived ready to start the day. By late Tuesday evening, the windows were installed. This would be the last time for a few days the two men actually worked together….
Ever since COVID, construction materials have been difficult to come by. Some more so than others like PVC, framing lumber, and windows. Knowing and planning accordingly are two different things. I knew it would take longer to order windows from a quality window supplier versus off the shelf windows at the local hardware store. Having nothing but water leakage issues on the windows in the Work Box, I decided having to wait for better quality windows was worth the delay….
Six months. It has been six months since the garden was removed and the Dwelling was started. Footings were erected, windows were framed, electrical and water lines were dug, boxes were placed, and inner walls were installed. Six months! For the last two months since the boxes were Adjoined and Joined, entrance into the boxes has been by climbing inside, standing on a chair, or usage of a ladder either through the front door or through the double back doors….
There is something about fall that I just love and this year it seems Texas is going to have a real fall. A real Texas fall but fall all the same. Where the days are warm and the nights are cool. Ok, where the days can still be hot but the wind has cooled making the 90℉ degrees feel much, much cooler. With all the recent rains, the grass is green, the sand has settled, and everything is vibrant in…
RUST! Been living in the coastal environment for over 10 years, six of those here at Boxes in Fields and I am still amazed at how quickly rust appears. Not wanting to chance rust on these freshly installed interior panel walls, the Dwelling was prepped for blasting and painting. Raw steel today, rust tomorrow. Seriously. Bright early Monday morning while discussing the plans for the week, the Planner decided there was one additional step to complete before we could blast…
Where does the time go? It has been a week since the pantry walls were built and ready for install. A week. Yes, I know logically the time was spent on the driveway, roof supports, and other odds and ends that did not get mentioned, but still. From reading this blog, it would seem Boxes in Fields does a lot of nothing. Lest you forget we both work jobs and while those jobs are not the typical 8-5 they do…
Rain, rain, rain. We need it to rain, yet when it rains, we complain. As humans, we just like to complain. Some of the reasons we complain when it rains cannot be easily solved, like the rain on our heads inside the Rainstream. Others can be easily rectified if we would just a lot the small amount of time from all the other projects. Trying to work around the rain can be difficult, especially depending on the amount of rain….
And to think, the inner paneled walls for the pantry and utility rooms were moving along so well. Even with the disassembly of the pantry wall to reinforce the doorway, both walls were done with enough time left in the day to install. Maybe not fully installed but at least one could have been bolted into place. With the forklift ready to carry over the pantry wall, the Planner stopped mid drive to mumble something about holding the roof. Grumble,…
Fueled by the success of the erected bathroom wall, the pantry wall with doorway was started the very same day the bathroom wall was installed. A second salvaged panel was brought over using the forklift sling, edges were trimmed to correct length, framework built, panel installed, and ta-da one pantry wall. Well, sort of. Framework for the pantry was a modified bathroom wall. Square tubing on the bottom, angle across the top. Unlike the bathroom wall, there a small portion…
Last week was a first of many firsts for Boxes in Fields with the Almost a Room. In fact the first thing I did today was take another picture of the almost room. Isn’t it fabulous! Well today was another first. A hatched wall. Fabrication is similar to a window or door hatch, the wall is just larger with combined angle and tubing framework instead of just tubing. The top will be angle, the bottom square tubing, and the sides…
After taking the weekend off for family time, again, and having to actually work for a paying job for a few days, we were back on our heads with door work. Today was the last time an inner wall portion would ever be cut from a box. Today was the day the bathroom door wall would be removed, door frame built, and framework installed. Today marks a first for Boxes in Fields. Removing this last bit of wall was very…
Five years ago this week, Boxes in Fields was forever changed. What started out as a planned, once in a lifetime adventure ended up as an unplanned, hopefully, once in a lifetime experience. On Monday, Aug 21 at 11:42 AM GMT, Boxes in Fields was soaking up the full solar eclipse experience. It was amazing, all consuming, and to date, was one of the best things I have participated in. By Friday, Aug 25 at 11:42 pm CST, Boxes in…
Sweet, sweet rain. Who cares that it rained inside the Rainstream on both ends of myside of the bed, from the roof vent onto the living room floor onto my head when sitting at the table, from a light fixture in the bathroom that collected straight into the toilet, and from three of the five openable windows? Not me. Who cares that the area between the Dwelling front door and the Work Box front door flooded and all inhabitants of…
Don’t you love the English language? How words can sound the same yet are spelled differently: bear/bare, deer/dear, hi/high? How words are spelled the same yet have different definitions: mean, foot, pet? Let me not even get started on is red/read or maybe read/read. Over the last two weeks, the Planner welded the roofs together, boxes corners to the framework, the framework uprights and their transfer points to the boxes bottoms, windows and door frames, and the base layer of…
Above all other lessons learned over the five years, the most critical is paint. Paint now, not later. Not tomorrow, or next week. RIGHT NOW. If the project doesn’t get painted right now in a heavy coat of primer, it may never get painted. Primer will help ward off the rust for sometime but raw metal is doomed from day one. The Shop Box windows and doors were painted red rust primer five years ago and have never been repainted….
Think back, way back, to another time but in the same place. A time before flooding, hurricanes, freezes, and dumpster fires. A time when Boxes in Fields was more of an idea than an actual living and breathing place of peace and tranquility. Peace and tranquility. Ha! That’s funny. There is nothing peaceful or tranquil at Boxes in Fields. Ok, that is not true. If you eliminate all things human, then the birds and bees, wildflowers and trees, sunrises and…
It is never good to start out a work day when your work partner is already this contemplative at the start of the day. Poor Planner. He must have stood there 25 minutes trying to decide what went wrong. He measured, measured, and remeasured and still there was an error. The last window out of 15 of the same size and shape and grief was given. This was not even an one inch measuring error that has been known to…
Moving the Dwelling Boxes will be both easier and harder than any previous boxes. The Dwelling framework to have the correct floor elevation is lower than the Shop Box and Work Box as the location sits higher on the property. It is only a foot or so less but it will make a huge difference when moving a 40′ shipping container into the air. However, unlike the previous boxes, the footings are located against the tree line on the east…
How many windows should one home have? Guess it depends. The house I grew up in was a 1940’s rock home built on pier and beams. It was a three bedroom, two bath both with shower and tub, with an open floor plan living room, dining room, and foyer. There was a front door at the foyer that was only used by unknown visitors, a side door with additional screen door in the third bedroom that opened onto the full…
Before you dig, call 411. In the case of Boxes in Fields, before you dig check the PVC chart. Well, check the PVC chart when its completed. When it is completed next year or the year after that. Right now the chart is more like a series of pictures showing where electrical, internet, sewer, and water lines crisscross the property and how deep the lines are buried. And let me tell you these pictures have come in handy more than…
City water is just down the street. Literally can see the connection point from the end of our driveway. In the five years of living without access to city water, city water has come down the side street to a rental house less than 200′ feet away. The water is still on the wrong side of the street and was not offered to the three residences on our side of the street. Not that BIF would have paid for the…
Let’s play a game. When I say a word you say the first word that pops into your head. The first word is done for you.Hot: ColdCat:Down:Brakes: Let’s play a different game. When I say a word you describe the image that comes to your mind. Again, the first word is described for you.Beach: Warm sands, gentle breezes, salty airCairn:Elephant:Home: These games are as old as time and they are great tools for teaching in elementary school. If tested your…
Can’t believe the year is flying by so quickly. On the day to day basis it seems as though nothing ever gets accomplished and it is a good thing I have this blog and my daily calendar as my reminders of all the work being completed. March was busy with work, busy with moving the Doubter, but most certainly not busy with BIF. April on the other hand was busy with BIF, busy with moving the Doubter, but most certainly…
Compared to all previous boxes, the Dwelling Box and all its various iterations have been drawn in CAD. But before the very first cut from a torch will take place, the Dwelling had to be drawn out to ensure our plans, wishes, and desires would actually work. If not, our plans, wishes, and desires had to be modified to fit accordingly. For example, I wanted NOT to be able to see the toilet from the doorway and I wanted a…
Do you know the yearly season dates? I know the longest/shortest day of the year. I know summer starts on May 26 at 1:10pm and that fall comes earlier this year at August 10 at 8:30am. I know March brings gusty winds, July humid weather, August hurricanes, and October cooler evenings. I know there is always a bitter cold snap around Spring Break no matter how late in the year it is and sometimes there is even a cold snap…
Poor chickees. They have been living the life luxury these last few years in their pent house coop. State of the art design, high tech circulation, and plenty of natural light. Almost five years ago, the first round of flufferbottoms were given the boot from their plastic bucket in the Rainstream to their newly finished 8×4 chicken coop. Then a month later they were allowed to roam free in their newly finished 8×20 chicken run. This lovely bright green coop…
Water. Water. Water. When we started Boxes in Fields, it was not our intention to be obsessed with water. First it was the salt water, then it was the collection of water, now it is the collection of potable water. Two Septembers’ ago, Blinded By The White was the first step to collecting drinkable water. Up until this point all the water collected was simply for showers, gardening, etc… Water collected was not drinkable as the roof was not sealed…
Finally, the fireworks, wind, and, rain (mostly) have stopped. Fireworks banged banged into the wee hours of the morning on New Years Day. Winds howled in the upper 20’s until midday New Years Day and then laid low all the rest of the week. Rain abated for one solid week allowing for all type of work to be done. Late to start the day, once Boxes in Fields was up and moving, the first two weeks of the New Year…
As the saying goes, when it rains it pours cats and dogs. A typical year is about 30″ inches of rain with the heaviest month being June. With this here climate change, 2020 was not a very wet year. In fact, it was recorded as a drier than average year. This year, on the other hand, is being recorded as a wetter than an average year by almost double. Yes, double. To have double the amount of rain is a…
Before the roof can be coated for water collection it must repaired for rust damage. Of all the shipping containers at Boxes in Fields, the first two bought were also the best in quality. They were bought during a slow time in the shipping container market when sales were in the buyers favor and the quantities to choose from were endless. The third and fourth boxes (the Storage and Tractor Boxes) were almost as good but the Work Box boxes…
Sometimes a project comes about in a rash decision and is implemented immediately. Most of these rash decision implemented projects are the result of an immediate need. IE: holes in the ceiling, new chicken door, new water pump lines. Some projects are thought out in advance and done over a relatively short period of time. IE: storage boxes, work desk, outside shower. Sometimes a project is years in the making. Way back in October 2017 when we were building out…
After a very rough start to the fall garden, one box has been salvaged with a row of carrots and two rows of mustard greens and few mounds of rainbow swiss chard. The second box was supposed to be spinach and more chard but between the bugs and the weather it could never get a good footing and the third box was left dormant for prosperity. Ok, not really. Healthy garden box management states all gardens should follow a box…
It has been a busy year but I did not realize how busy until I went to compile the yearly collection of Kid pictures for his birthday post and came to the realization there are months with only one or two pictures containing the Kid himself. Understandably this is due to his lack of presence at Boxes in Fields as he is required to attend school it still saddened my heart I have less pictures to note his changes in…
Home schooling was my choice of education for the Kid for many years. It was flexible, challenging, rewarding. It was yelling matches, planed activities gone wrong, and time consuming. By the time the Kid went back to school halfway through his fifth grade year, he was reading at high school level and working out of a college level pre-algebra book. If he hadn’t been home schooled we never would have been able to travel for the Solar Eclipse in Aug…
With the Work Box fully completed back in August and four years since anything was done to the Shop Box, the Shop Box has now become the focus for repair work. First and foremost, the 18″x40′ beam. During Beam Me Up Outside the W14x22 flange was installed way back in May 2017 and has been sitting as raw steel on top of the Shop Box ever since. Raw metal in the salty, salty air. It was never out intention to…
A few days after the threat of Hurricane Nicholas had passed, a little home maintenance work was done. First there was the never ending road maintenance. Rain plus tires equals potholes. Potholes in the truck is not an issue, just drive slowly. Potholes in the car causes the airflow shield to drag. Shield replacement is expensive especially when the gravel has already been paid for. Potholes are a never ending chore, one shovelful at a time. Or one bucketful at…
If 2020 was the year of the Dumpster Fire, 2021 at Boxes in Fields will be the year of Climate Change. I’m sure it is just the first of many years for climate change, but climate change it will be. Boxes in Fields started off with rain, then tried to freeze in February, then tried to float away in May and June and July. If climate change is bringing this much rain one year and then no rain the next…
Argh, what a way to start a week. Four years and just a few days is not enough time to prepare for another storm. Even if it is just a category one. Hurricane Nicholas was headed towards Boxes in Fields and while a category one storm is nothing, it is something all the same. Of course, Hurricane Harvey was only a category one storm when it started, too. Then it was a category five less than 36 hours later. Not…
Global warming. Have discussed this ad nauseam on this blog. It is the reason for the swing shifty weather that is either hotter/colder than normal, the rising sea level, the bigger and more frequent hurricanes. To think, these are just the elements affecting Boxes in Fields. Not even gonna discuss globally as there are dissertations written way better than I could ever explain. Read them. Watch them. Dissertations too long? Read books/blogs. Watch vlogs. Climate change is real. Well here…
Can you remember the first time you used the new fandango thing called the world wide web? Was it at school or at home? If your mid 40’s, middle of the road America like Boxes in Fields, it was probably at school. Then if you were lucky within a few years there was dial up at home. Dial up used primarily for school related activities as there were no other pages to view on the world wide web except PHD…
It is a sad, sad day here at Boxes in Fields. Our beloved doggo has given up the go go. So long my furry legged friend, princess of the front seat. We will forever carry you in our hearts….
Being tall does have its disadvantages and working under the boxes in one of those. Just six inches shorter than the Planner still makes me above average on the female height spectrum. Six inches shorter when stooped under the boxes makes a huge difference. Way back at the end of June when the Planner was working on the last of the columns, I started on Work Box repairs. Simple things I could do without the Planner assistance such as rust…
“Honey, let’s buy a boat.” It was really went more along the lines of this. The Planner was cleaning up from the column work in his box when I came bounding up the stairs proclaiming “I found a sailboat!!!!” I have been looking and looking for more than year for a sailboat big enough for the three of us to sail together. Sailboats are a dime a dozen unless you have specific requirements. Such as a mast easily removed and…
Stand back everyone the Doubter has arrived. He has come to raise columns, all eight over as few days as possible. Doubter says he staying for two weeks before he heads back home to the land of air conditioner. When he leaves the taking the Kid with him, too. Week One:First thing he did upon arrival was attempt to fix a cutting torch the Planner was gifted from a friend. Several weeks ago when the Planner attempted to use the…