My hand was finally well enough after surgery to get back on the roof. We had some flashing customized locally and got the last of it put up this weekend. SOOO happy to have this finished. I won't have to get back on the roof until time to do my quarterly sweeping. :)
When you're living Tiny, it's hard to get through a week without talking about poop! lol We got our ventilation fan installed in the loo cabinet. Again, I hate cutting holes in a perfectly good floor, but . . . I took a 3" AC fan and built a box around it. This will help channel the air going out as well as give us a good seal against the floor to keep out the bugs and critters.
Sorry I didn't get a better picture of it. I'll try with the flash next week. It sits directly between the bucket for the solids and the container for the peat moss. There was only about an 1/8th" to spare on either side. :) I'd like to take credit for planning it that way but if you know me, you know better. We stopped in our favorite organization store (
The Container Store) and found the perfect bucket for solid waste. It fit like a glove into the opening we had left over after installing our diverter and pipes. It's 12 gallons so it'll be able to hold a lot more than the 5 gal homer bucket we were using before. It also fits up under the diverter like it was made for it. Good Find! :)
 |
| Bucket for solids in our composting toilet. |
My 2 criteria for replacing our old bucket were a larger capacity and handles. This fit the bill nicely. I'll have a couple of months before I have to commit to a site to start the compost pile. I'll build it up with some landscape timbers before piling it up with poo. lol Once filled, I can stretch some landscape fabric over it to let it cook. We'll leave it for about a year while we start another compost pile. Then, we can plant directly in it - no need to shovel and move it. Just build it in a location that you'll be happy with some landscaping.
I can't tell you how exciting it is to get down to the last couple of items on our punch list. We'll do some touch-up painting next week as well as add an electrical outlet behind the stove. (I told you I didn't do extensive planning!) There is one there but it's above the top of the stove and we're tired of looking at the extension cord hanging down. I also need to rewire the junction box for the outside lights to try to fix a problem with the LED lights flickering.
I took off a couple of days with my girls to go to the Texas coast (
Rockport) for my mom's 80th birthday. It was a good trip. Went to
Port Aransas to put our toes in the ocean for a bit. We ate fresh seafood every day and brought back lots on top of that. Hard to pass up Red Snapper filets at $6/lb fresh off the boat, especially when they want $24/lb for it here in DFW. Also got lots of shrimp and crab. Still enjoying the gumbo this week! :)
 |
| With the daughters on Padre Island. |
Hard to believe they've pulled multiple 1000+ lb sharks in off of that pier behind us. Amazing that there are hundreds of people swimming and surfing in the area and I've only heard of a couple of shark attacks in the 40 we've been coming here. I swam here many a day when I was living here.
 |
| Tiny Houses for rent on the road to Padre Island |
We've really enjoyed our bird watching area outside the South window. We set up a seed feeder, a suet cage, multiple hummingbird feeders and a solar powered fountain with a birdbath. The constant flow of birds throughout the day offers instant relaxation and enjoyment. We were graced with some fresh faces over the past couple of weeks. Here were the latest to show off their brilliant colors in our little garden.
 |
| Painted Bunting. This is the first year we've seen these. So inspiring! |
 |
| Summer Tanager (male) We saw for just moments last year but we didn't have a fountain up then. Now they're regulars! :) |
 |
| Summer Tanager (female) |
 |
| Fountain with Summer Tanager getting ready to take a dip! :) |
No, these aren't our photos. Our little bird paradise is completely shaded throughout the day. Combine this with our dark window tint and it's impossible. We've taken literally hundreds of photos but they just won't capture the brilliance without sunlight on them. The window tint is nice in a sense that it allows us to sit inches away from the birds without them seeing us but it does restrict the photos we can take.
We're going to play with an app for our iPhones I saw. It lets you use one iPhone as a remote control for the camera features of the other iPhone. You set one up in a location that's nice and close, then you sit inside and hit the remote control to take photos when the birds are merely inches away. We should be able to get some nice shots I believe.
I've created another page here for the blog that shows off the birds that we have entertained here in our little wooded paradise -
Our Birds.
My wife, Kim, is so talented. I was a bit skeptical when she volunteered us to make a sign for the
DFW Tiny House Enthusiasts to gather 'round at the Jamboree next week in Colorado Springs. I must say, she came through and I couldn't be prouder.
 |
| Kim with our new Meetup sign! |
We were having trouble finding someone who could fit the shepherd's hook in their vehicle that was going up on Thursday. We ended up at the metal shop at
Hooten's Hardware in Emory. Tim, their resident metal guru, took a few minutes and come up with a great solution. He cut the shaft in half and threaded both ends with a die and then married the two halves with a long open ended nut. You can easily take it apart for transport and put it back together at your site. :) Again, great job, Honey!! Look for us when you get to Colorado next week!
 |
| Here was the kitten, Bella, that was at Hooten's hanging out with her best friend! :) What a sweetie!! |
