The New & The Old

Building new stuff is one task. Maintaining old stuff is another. We're doing both at Camp Many Moons on Huron Bay as we build a new house while battling trailer limitations, rain effects, and insects. (They have the right to exist. They feed other forms of life. I know this. I just wish they didn't … Continue reading The New & The Old

Mulch & Countertops

I spent on quartz but saved on mulch. That's how the mind works during pay-as-you-go DIY homebuilding. Always a mental negotiation re. costs. And it is more of a home each week, as we enter our 2nd building summer. The quartz countertops have arrived on Huron Bay, and I love them. (Jeff loves the look … Continue reading Mulch & Countertops

Big Piles & Tiny Birds

Siding done. Yes! Attention now turning outdoors again...to piles of gravel and wood, and the tiniest bird to grace Camp Many Moons. See also, below, a cameo appearance by our domesticated animals.... With siding all on, the Cabin at Many Moons actually looks like a cabin, both from the road... ...and from the water. Notice … Continue reading Big Piles & Tiny Birds

Siding Going Up!

Whew. What a joy to cover up that white plastic sheeting we've been looking at for months. My new cabin is finally getting its skin...brown skin, to help it blend into nature's background. Almost one year after we began this "let's build a house" nuttiness, the outside is starting to look like the vision in … Continue reading Siding Going Up!

Third-Level Effects

Every choice has consequences -- often several levels of them -- and the challenge is to imagine those consequences in advance. This certainly applies to house-building. Less than a year ago, we began building The Cabin at Many Moons. Many choices later, it continues to come alive. The nerves (electrical system) and vital fluids (plumbing) … Continue reading Third-Level Effects

DIY Oopsies

During DIY, mistakes will happen. Things will spill, break and not fit where they should. This post is about those. (For more uplifting views of spring snowfall and dogs, scroll on down.) When Jeff and I were doing The Great Loop, I tried to post occasionally about the challenges of living on a small boat … Continue reading DIY Oopsies

Ceiling’s Up!

Warm and cozy, just as I hoped. It took two guys about five days to get it up. It's a lot of wood. The addition of the ceiling helps the Cabin at Many Moons finally look like a cabin. The wood installation isn't done yet, but I couldn't resist showing some pictures now. For those … Continue reading Ceiling’s Up!

Screw It

When doing a DIY building project, there's the big stuff and the small stuff. The big stuff is rather fun. It's the small stuff, like finding the right screws, that can drive you nuts. So I've given up, for now, on finding the tiny screws to attach the new knobs to my vanity. The knobs … Continue reading Screw It

On Task

It's a phenomenon I haven't felt since retiring, this driving need to stay on task. Set daily priorities, accomplish them, evaluate, adjust. Next? When we set out on this ambitious DIY building process, Jeff promised to give it a year. Is that even possible, I wondered, without a contractor? When I know nothing about building … Continue reading On Task