Come the solstice, I will have been living in my tiny palace for a full year, and I just wanted to give an update about how the diminutive approach to dwelling has been going so far.
I started sleeping in the house this time last year, and despite the fact that the interior was unfinished, I had lights and heat and was pretty cosy parked by the workshop and a stone's throw from the main farmhouse. Still, as spring sprung, I started to think about where on the farm i should park my house.
In April, after considering many sites further from the main farm buildings, I opted to park right on the composted remains of a giant manure pile that just happened to have a panoramic view of orchards, lake and field. The spot we chose for the house was right next to the ruins of an old row house from 1850, only the back stone wall of which still stands.
Site preparation took a lot of time as the area was overgrown with prickley ash, raspberries, grape vine and burdock. Nice combo. There was also a pile of scrap metal and grapevine next to the crumbling stone wall and, well, a giant mountain of aging manure.\
All that aside, it really was the perfect spot to put the house. We moved it without incident in early June, and I have since begun the work of building a tiny farm to go with my little house.
I've learned a lot this year, and adjusted some expectations, but I have no regrets for downsizing so drastically. On the other hand, if I didn't have access to that nice farm house in the background things might not have gone so smoothly. As it is, I have easy access to plumbing, and power comes from the main system via a $600 cable from the barn. I've extended the wireless network from the main house, so I'm fully connected out here too. All in all, it's spartan but civilised. That is if you can overlook the camp toilet in the corner, and the giant pile of manure outside. That's covered in snow right now anyway.
This spring, along with opening a small-scale market garden, I'll be turning that ruined wall area into a summer kitchen so that I can cook and entertain other people. The wee house really is a one-person dwelling. I discovered that when my daughter stayed with me for a week.
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