Living Small - Observations

Having just completed Month 3 in our 16x20 wall tent, thought I'd share some general observations about living in small spaces.

1. *Everything* you own must have a home. Don't purchase anything new until you know exactly where it will live when you get it home. Measure to make sure!

2. You should plan ahead to make sure it has a home somewhere close to where you'd be needing it, too.

3. Before you even think about decorative stuff, think about STORAGE! Trust me, a 2x4 shelving unit that holds 500 lbs of food is way more important than a beautifully crafted cabinet that only holds 100 (and that potted plant doesn't belong unless it provides you some food!). You can worry about decorating and aesthetic appeal after you get your storage plan taken care of.

4. Shelves are good, but cabinets and drawers are better. Why? Because it reduces the visual clutter if you can close a door or drawer, and it keeps things from falling over & out. Being able to close something also helps keep dirt, dust, soot, and ash from getting into and all over everything you own; otherwise, you end up sealing things like towels and linens in plastic bins/bags on the shelf and having to wipe down cans and jars constantly. (If you're a visual organizer and need to see your stuff... get glass/plexi fronts, it still helps with neatness even if not-so-much with the visual clutter)

5. Get some sort of secure/covered outside storage ASAP. This is for things that you need close by, but don't have to be immediately handy. The less stuff that is in your actual living space, the better! We got an 8x10 steel shed, and it's been a blessing for tools and any extra stuff we don't have to worry about freezing. Since you tend to stock up on bulk items out in the bush, having a place to put it all that's out of your way is very very important. Just don't start pack-ratting in your storage room... you have to be able to get to things in there or you simply defeat the purpose! If it's hard to get things from storage, you'll just start keeping it inside.

6. Never underestimate the need for appropriate clear walk ways. It's easy to fill your space wall-to-wall with stuff, but you'll get really tired of stepping over and around stuff all the time. Good space planning is essential. Vertical storage, also essential. Don't be tempted to make really narrow traffic flows... 18" is the MINIMUM, I'd recommend 24" if you can manage it. Folding furniture really helps in this regard... when you need more space to move, just fold up your chairs, etc.

7. Horizontal work surfaces are essential, but they don't need to be permanent! Tables and such have a huge footprint. Folding tables and nesting tables are a really handy solution. For really large work surfaces, consider a door over two stools (or similar). When you don't need it anymore, put the door outside or in the shed and the stools back in their homes.

8. Under-bed storage is a MUST! Beds have a HUGE footprint and you have to keep the top of it clear (or at least each night enough to sleep on). Raising your bed as high as comfortable/reasonable, and then adding storage underneath it can almost double your available interior storage space for awkward, heavy or larger items (like shotguns, ammo or folding tables). Depending on the height of your space, you may also be able to add bed posts and build over-bed canopy storage (probably nothing too heavy though!).

9. If you take it out, put it away immediately when you're done with it. There's just not enough room to leave anything out. This also means that you shouldn't start a project unless you can finish it (or at least one stage) in a single shot.

10. Multi-function is the key. If you're going to keep something inside your space, make sure it can serve more than one purpose... example: a small bench can be used as a seat, a foot rest/coffee table, a (albeit low) work surface for small projects, a desk or counter, and you can store boots and other stuff underneath it.

11. If you share the space, make sure your ogranizational and space plan works for your partner (or kids) as well... otherwise you'll just be working at cross purposes and end up wanting to kill each other.

12. Remember that pets have space needs, too. Is there room for dog beds, scratching posts, kitty huts, food and water dishes? Can your pet move around freely without knocking stuff over? Do you have room to store their food, grooming supplies, leashes, etc?

Mountains of citrus!!

My folks are just awesome! We picked up our mail in Manley this afternoon and there were two boxes full of fresh citrus and other goodies from "down south" waiting for us. Nothing like getting a big ol' box of Texas sunshine when the snow clouds are coming in and it looks like we're in for another week of -40F.

Next year (hopefully) when we get the smokehouse built, I'm sure they'll be happy to send us up some mesquite chips for the red meats in exchange for some homemade alder-smoked salmon and moose steaks. Once we get some feeder hogs, I'm going to have to source some apple wood for the chops and hickory for the bacon. It pays to think ahead and find people who are willing to swap local resources with you when you're homesteading... equitable trading is always better than forking over tons of cash to a big box supplier!

MMMMM... all this talk of food, I must be hungry, better go dig into some of those yummy turkey leftovers :)

Weeeee're baaaaaack!

As you can tell by the plethora of back-dated posts, we're finally back online again!! Now you all won't have to wait so long between installments and then get inundated with a bunch all at once :)

Big, super, mega hugs to our neighbor, Dave, for getting us hooked up with the rest of the world again before he leaves for the season! And even greater hugs to him and his wife, Jordan, for inviting us over tomorrow for a hot shower and Thanksgiving dinner. We are truly blessed to enjoy such luxuries with two really great folks!

Long live the Eurekans!!

(Apparently, we live in Eureka not Manley. Of course, Eureka was just an old mining claim and is now a complete ghost town, and was/is 10 miles north of us... but if the Manleyites won't claim us, I'm more than proud to be a Eurekan!)

11-24-09: Don't bring dead things to bed

The joys of pet parenting are boundless, especially when you live in the bush.

This morning, after letting our darling little Ripley out for a run and a pee, she showed me her love and affection by bursting in the door and dropping some frozen bit of dead animal right in the center of the bed for me and Charlie. Thank goodness it was frozen!! I'm not exactly sure what it was, most likely a hare's leg, but could have been a coyote forepaw. I certainly wasn't going to spend a whole lot of time inspecting it. Of course, you have to praise your animal and thank it for bringing you food… even while you are cringing and trying to find something to get it off the bed with before it starts to thaw. I took it outside on the deck, faked that I had eaten it, and surreptitiously chucked it in the bin when she wasn't looking.

At least we know why Ripley hasn't been chowing down on her kibble with as much abandon as usual lately. Just past 4 months old and already hunting a bit for herself and the family. Aw, isn't that sweet?! It's enough to make a mother proud. Hopefully, she isn't out poaching some trapper's line, but she's pretty good about staying on our property and no one has asked our permission to trap our land this winter. Now if we can just convince her to enjoy her catch outside on the deck and not bring dead things inside (especially not to bed!), things would be so much better. We've got much larger animals in these parts than hares, and she'll soon be big enough to take down most of them… don't want to wake up with a mangled coyote or lynx offering in the middle of the living room one day!

11-21-09: Why Paul is one of my Favorite People

As you all know from G-man's post from John Feeley's earlier, we've been experiencing unseasonably low temps (between -30 and -50F) for almost a week. While he had Internet access, G-man sent a mail to Paul (who works for AK Dept of Transportation) in Manley letting him know that we were still OK, but asking if he had any recommendations for getting Sonja started. We had a full tank of gas in the truck and ATV, but were down to our last 5 gallon tank for the generator and maybe one last fill for the chainsaw from the 5 gallon tank of 2-stroke… not dire straits, but getting a little concerning since we didn't know how long this weather would hold out.

So today, with both of us dreading another 2 mile hike to Feeley's to check our email and the weather liars online, we were pleasantly surprised by a honk in the driveway. And we were surprised since Mark was out in the trees cutting wood, and I was doing some carpentry inside with the generator running… neither of us could hear diddly and Ripley is still too young to properly let us know that someone was coming. Anyway… Paul had sent Pete, one of his co-workers, out to us with a charcoal burner, some charcoal, and a propane weed torch with extension pipe so we could blast the truck out of her frozen cocoon and back to life.

Within 90 minutes we put the battery back in (it's been living inside) and Sonja kicked right over. It took another hour or so for all the ice to melt off enough for us to decide to drive anywhere. Problem was that it was already starting to get dark and it's Saturday. The Trading Post in Manley is normally closed on the weekends and there was no guarantee that they would have gas or that their gas pumps wouldn't be frozen.

Hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst, we loaded up the truck with extra clothes/food/water/blankets and both fur children, banked the firebox, and then struck off into town. If worse came to worse, we could stay at Gladys's cabin for a few days or attempt to make the drive into Fairbanks. We might lose some jars of food and a few water jugs when they froze, but that's better than the possible alternative, right?!?!?

Big snaps and thanks to Bob and Lisa for opening up the store for us. And also to Chuck, who came out and finally got the frozen pumps to start working again! Big hugs to Paul for being awesome and looking out for us, and also for his wife, Penny, who makes the most awesome chocolate cherries!

Now that we know the best way to get Sonja moving again (and we've got her parked right in the sun on the south side of the tent, not in the shade on the north side) we're planning to drive up the road tomorrow to visit with one of our neighbor's, Dave, who is a HughesNet rep, and hopefully get ourselves hooked up with Satellite Internet. Yeah, it's crazy, but we miss the Internet more than anything and it is the most reliable form of communication in this neck of the woods. As long as the sun can shine right on the generator for an hour or two to get the battery bank recharged, we've got plenty of power until after dinner (when the batteries get too cold and the inverter shuts off) to get online for a little bit and let everyone know how we're doing… and to mail order a crap load of stuff when we need it, since it doesn't look like we'll be going into Fairbanks anymore this season (unless we get a freak warm spell or something).

BTW - the weather liars said that it shoud be "really nice" next week… of course, these are the same weather liars who said it would be really nice this week until it dropped below -20F. The Bastahds!!!

11-17-09: Sounds of happy home

5:30 am -- hubby snoring beside me, puppy snoring at my feet, kitty purring in the crook of my arm, and the fire is crackling away.

Ahhhh… life is GOOD!

11-16-09: You know it's cold when...

• The batteries in your remote digital thermometer freeze (freeze, not just go dead)
• All the fluid in the cheap liquid thermometer is in the bulb (only goes down to -20F)
• The snow stops crunching and starts squeaking
• The dog's water dish freezes and her food frosts up even though it's inside but just too close to the door
• The exhaust on the chainsaw and the generator creates vapor which immediately turns to hoar frost
• The Shindaiwa chainsaw (Japanese) has completely packed it in and only runs inside
• The Husqvarna chainsaw (Swedish) blade frosts over if it isn't in constant motion
• The HotSnapz (sodium acetate chemical warmers) actually begin to freeze despite being activated
• The truck won't start even though you've got her plugged in (block heater, etc) AND are trying to jump her directly from the generator
• The snow you track in from outside lies on the floor for 10 minutes before melting
• The wood you bring in from outside is so cold that it robs all the heat from the stove and won't catch fire without assistance (i.e. copious amounts of junk mail)
• Even the snow-loving dog doesn't want to stay out for more than a few minutes and starts limping because there are ice balls stuck in her paws
• The cat will only come out of her kitty hut if the doors are closed and the fire is roaring
• The leather AND Gore-tex on your boots and gloves freezes even though it isn't wet -- there goes the last vestiges of grip and usefulness
• You look like Jack Frost within 5 minutes of being outside because your breath has frozen on your nose, eyelashes, eyebrows, mustache, beard, etc…
• The hood of your truck freezes over even though it's currently running (and was clear at one point)
• Small trees can be removed from your path simply by punting them… they're frozen and break right off
• You're wearing two LavaWool glove liners, your Gumby Gloves with HotSnapz in them, and your fingers still start to freeze within 20 minutes
• You're wearing LavaWool sock liners, two pairs of wool socks, boots with 600 grams of Thinsulate Ultra in them and your toes still start to freeze within 20 minutes
• Your socket wrench freezes to the battery terminal before you can loosen the connection
• The cat pee freezes before the litter can even clump
• Dog bombs in the yard freeze solid within 5 minutes of being dropped
• You have to use soft artists charcoal to write outside because even graphite pencils won't work (just forget about pens or crayons of any sort)
• It takes you longer to get dressed to take the dog out than she actually spends doing her business
• It's only 65F in the house and you think it's piggin' hot when you come back in
• You have to consume 250-500 calories for every hour you're outside, and you're still exhausted after only 3 hours