Cob, Anyone?

So we are seriously considering building the PineTop residence out of mud. Well, not exactly mud. Actually, cob. Which is a mix of clay, sand, and straw. So, pretty much mud. Essentially, you stomp together a bunch of clay, sand, and straw with some water then plop it, one batch at a time, onto a foundation. Then you let it dry and plaster over it. No shit. It's really strong, has awesome thermal mass, is fire-resistant, and is about as cheap as you're gonna get. Plastered, it holds up really well to the elements. There are cob buildings that are several centuries old in Great Britain. Our roof is already complete, so our place wouldn't be quite as free form as the house pictured here, but that's fine by me.

One of the coolest things about cob is how sculptural it is. I would love to have little nooks in the walls to store and exhibit things. I would really love to build a cob bench like the one to the right. Anyone feel like cob-stomping at PineTop next summer, let me know!

Oh, and both photos are from housealive.org

'Cause, ya know, it's Thanksgiving

So, in honor of the holiday that gave me a full week off of work (though it could be argued that it's really the start of rifle season that gave me the week off), here are the top ten things that I am thankful for this year:

10. WVU has a shot at the BCS championship. Let's Go Mountaineers!

9. Our new garage door. It significantly lowers the squalor alert level on our current residence.

8. While we're at it, the current residence. Is it a shithole? Yes. Is our mortgage payment less than $150 a month? Also yes. And hopefully we'll eventually be able to sell it and make a little money off it.

7. In the same vein, having a handy husband. He can change the oil on the cars, replace the garage door, and make fabulous homefries, all while I'm still in bed.

6. Used goods. From cars to chairs to sweaters, I'm thankful for the plethora of used-whatever stores in our area. Just yesterday, we bought three t-shirts, a sweater, a dehumidifier, a chair and ottoman, and a figurine of a caterpillar smoking a pipe, all for less than $30.

5. Reasonably secure jobs. Not having to obsess too much about how the bills are going to get paid makes me a much happier girl.

4. Health Insurance. I can now get my lady bits checked out for the low, low price of a $10 co-pay.

3. Our fabulous friends. We went out for drinks on Tuesday night with some friends from the area who now live in New York. We had such a good time and I left with a feeling of warm-fuzziness and general all-is-right-with-the-worldness.

2. My awesome family (In-Laws included!). I have been so unbelievably blessed in the family department. No, really.

1. Having a partner in life. Sappy as it sounds, Fuzzy truly does complete me, and I can't imagine my life without him. I never thought I would be this glad to be married .


Ok, enough with the cheese. Everyone have a Happy Thanksgiving!

She's Crafty, Pt. II

Dude! I made a hat! Like a real, no shit hat. With stitch decreases and circular needles and shit. For real. It was so ridiculously easy that I can't believe I've spent the 15-ish years I've known how to knit making nothing but scarves. Well, I can believe it, because I know that I can stare at a set of directions for 15 years thinking "This is bullshit. This makes no sense. I'm going to go eat some cake batter instead," then look again one day and magically, the clouds part and it all becomes clear. So yeah. A hat. Pictured to the left with our confused rhododendrons that have decided that late November is the perfect time to bloom. I tried to get a picture of our dog with the hat on, but I just ended up embarrassing us both. He still won't look me in the eye.

Stay tuned for building updates!