This is me taking a giant dive into the deep end of commitment. I’m building myself a house, yo. I can’t guarantee it will be the world’s greatest tiny house. I can’t guarantee I will be the world’s most diligent blogger. But I can guarantee that this is fodder for the many stories 75-year-old me will tell and re-tell. Read about the adventure in the posts below and if you feel like helping me build, I won’t argue.
Let’s talk tiny houses for a second. Living in a tiny house is not for the faint of heart. When people ask me what it is like to live in a tiny house I usually reply, “It is like living in a shoe box. With the shoes.” For the record, I have zero regrets about building Midge. When people ask about what it is like to “go tiny” I always laugh. I didn’t downsize at all. I gained my very own bathroom and my very own kitchen. In my life I have only ever occupied a single bedroom. I … [Read more...]
It’s been one year since I purchased a 14’ x 8’ trailer and had it towed to my sister’s driveway. One year since emptying my bank account for the foundation-on-wheels under a new way of life. I have so much to say about my little house, but I don’t yet have the language. Talking about my house feels like being 7 years old and needing to clean my room—Where do I start? What is most important? Should I organize as I go? If I leave it alone will it get better on its own? So there’s … [Read more...]
So much has happened since I posted about my house last month. First of all, thank you to all my friends who suggested names for my house. My wonderful friend Karen dropped Midge into the Facebook comments and I knew it. was. perfect. So #midgethetinyhouse is official. It is the redemption of a former Midge in my life. A person I thought I was before I grew into my own skin. If that doesn't make sense to you, read this Midge blog post from my former life and see how different I was … [Read more...]
Oh boy. Sometimes when I have TOO MANY things to say I end up getting quiet. It is the lamest way to handle stress, but there you have it. I want to blog about all my Tiny House progress, but there is SO MUCH. Short story: The exterior is complete. And I have a skylight and wicked cool sink that needs to be installed. I have a half-finished bathroom with a wine barrel shower basin and I HAVE SO MANY STORIES. I want to write out giant, emotional thank you blog posts to the women at … [Read more...]
{ Originally Posted at SheLoves Magazine } My personal motto is, “Live all the way.” And, girl, do I ever. I have made it my mission to live a life that is full and adventurous and BIG. I scrape together enough money to travel whenever possible. I take on hundreds (okay, maybe only dozens) of projects at a time. I explore new foods and meet new people and attempt to experience as much as I can of the world around me. But I also live a life that is small—I try not to collect too … [Read more...]
Sometimes I'm such a bad blogger. I should have written about how a month ago my incredibly talented brother spent two 10-hour days teaching me how to frame my tiny house. My amazing sister Adina also worked her butt off building with us. Early on Saturday, Sept 20 Adina and I drove over to Gray Lumber to pick up a couple dozen 2x4s and 2x6s. Gray is a little more expensive than Home Depot, but guys, local business. I decided if I really believe in this whole sustainable living experiment, … [Read more...]
Sometimes your DIY project turns into an RYSTDIFY project. In case you haven't learned that one yet, it stands for Recruit Your Sister To Do It For You. So my tiny house is pretty much going to be a RYSTDIFY. Because my sister is stronger than me and knows a little about everything. But mostly SHE'S SO STRONG. My last tiny house blog post was about sanding and stuck boards. There were 12 boards stuck to my trailer. That was in June. Until two weeks ago there were still eight boards … [Read more...]
Sanding. Oy. My tiny trailer for my tiny house is really NOT that tiny. Not in terms of HOW MUCH SANDING NEEDS TO BE DONE. You see, I bought my trailer used. She's 16 years old. She's been the foundation for a mobile office (like the kind you see on large construction sites) and for the past decade she's hauled freight from dock to dock by a very sweet old man whose name entirely escapes me right now. (I'm sad about that, because remembering people is sort of one of my gifts.) Anyway, … [Read more...]
Three days after bringing my beautiful trailer home to my sister's driveway (where I can see it from my current bedroom window) I bought some insulation. I don't even have a frame yet, but I have a whole lot of insulation. Here's how it goes down: Gardening with my sister (read: my sister is gardening. I am probably making a mess with dirt). She checks her phone and sees that a friend was selling a bunch of doors and lumber and other bits and parts for building projects. So we head over to … [Read more...]
That's right, she's here! My very own foundation for the home-on-wheels I'll be building for the next year or two. You know how I know she's a she? She's stunning and sturdy. She isn't afraid of hard work and carrying a heavy load for those she cares for. She's glorious. She might need a name. But for now, Instagram knows her as #joslyntinyhouse. I spent ALL MY MONEY. No for real, all of it. And I have never been happier! Stalked this trailer on Craigslist for a couple months. I saw the … [Read more...]
This year I've learned how much community matters. I've learned how incredibly generous people can be when you share your dreams with them. My coworker at the cafe, Tony, was listening to me ramble about all the things I plan to do when I start building my tiny house and he interrupted my wild soliloquy, "Hey, I've got a ton of tools in my garage that you can have if you need." I looked over at him. "Really?" "Oh yeah, I've collected all kinds of things from the property maintenance … [Read more...]
I've dreamed of building myself a tiny house for three years. I've dreamed of it ever since stumbling upon an article about a woman somewhere in our great Pacific Northwest who built herself a teeny tiny cabin in the woods and lived a relatively sustainable and nearly rent-free existence. (I wish I could remember the name of the woman or the city she lived in. Sadly, I've never found it again.) I tucked the idea away, because I was pretty sure it was NEVER going to happen. If you know … [Read more...]
I am 28 years, 2 months and 5 days old. By the time I'm 30 I want to have my memoir in the hands of a publisher (maybe not published, but just with the promise that it's going to happen) and I want to be living in my very own built-with-my-own-hands-drenched-in-my-own-sweat house. I have one year, 9 months and 25 days to figure out how to pull that off. Deep breath. Here's the thing: I have wanted to write a memoir for the past 6 years. I have said I'm starting it for the past 5 … [Read more...]