I was at my sisters and she gleefully produced an ad for a Mervyns white sale and a coupon for 20 percent off at Bed, Bath, and Beyond.    And that is how I came to enter a mall for the first time in 15-20 years.    And how I came to own bedding.

I bought a set of jersey sheets, a fleece blanket and a cheap down comforter.

Even though I’m an active sleeper, all my bedding stays in place and my bed is still made when I wake up.   I think it’s because the jersey sheets stretch when you pull on them instead of coming undone.    Also they aren’t slippery so the blankets stay put.

They’re also warm and feel good.

They’re not expensive—I paid less than 20.00 for a top sheet, bottom sheet and 2 pillow cases.

To wring out the piece of clothing, I throw it over a tree branch that hangs over my deck and wring it out by twisting it like the illustration shows.

The illustration is from a book called Living on the Earth.   I’ve had this book since I was twelve.    From baking bread to building a home, nothing takes more than a page to explain.

That’s the way things should be—if something takes more than a page or two to explain you’re probably making it too complicated.

It snowed all day yesterday. But it’s supposed to warm up today so it might turn in to a big slushy mess. I better act fast if I want to harvest all that water.

Yesterday while I was out snowshoeing I saw a guy plowing his road with a big wooden V that he drags behind his pickup. He has a full size pickup but it’s not four-wheel drive. He puts a bunch of weight in the back of his pickup. First he drags the big wooden V going down hill and then drags it back up. It does a good job. It’s a cheap way to plow a road.

So far my road isn’t plowed which is the way I like it. Eventually the guy that lives furthest up the road and has to go to work will pay someone to plow it and I’ll contribute to be neighborly not because I want the road plowed.

Maybe when that guy retires we can stop plowing the road. I doubt it because most people can’t stand staying home.

This is how I run my laptop directly off my DC battery power. I connect a 12 volt cord to a battery. For my solar system I have gel batteries but when I go up to my other cabin I bring a deep cell battery. Red clamp on positive/ black clamp on negative.

Then I plug my DC power adapter for my computer into the socket.

There is a different DC power adapter for every laptop.

If you don’t have a DC power adapter for your computer you can plug a little inverter into the socket and it will run your AC laptop off of DC. They have an annoying little fan that eventually stops working so I don’t like using them.

There are many cheaper ones out there but they aren’t small, quiet, or fuel efficient.  When I see how much gas people with the cheap generators use, I’m so thankful I bought this one. It think it’s supposed to run up to 20 hours on one gallon of gas.

I’ve had it for  5 years.  I use it to charge my batteries on my solar system when the sun doesn’t shine.

For a while now, when it’s cold, it has been starting and then as soon as I go inside it dies.  I have to start it like four times before it stays running.

I always add stabilizer to my fuel because my fuel sits for so long.

Last year I  tried adding some Heat to it.  That improved things a little but not much.

This year I bought some octane booster and added it to the fuel.    I don’t remember what kind but I think it said “barely legal!” on the bottle.     The generator runs perfect now. Problem solved.

That’s the great thing about cabin life, it doesn’t cut you off and protect you from the world as well as a house.   It more enhances life than cut you off from it.

When it’s dark, you know it’s dark.  When it’s cold outside, you know it’s cold.

If you want heat, you go chop wood.  If you want water, you need to melt some snow.

If the cabin burns down, you need to figure out a new shelter.    But that’s all it is—shelter.

Some people think my life is harder than for people who live in a house.   I can tell you, from my house sitting experiences, that I have far more time and far less chores to do than a house dweller.

It takes me like 40 seconds to clear the snow off my porch.

When I house sat for my sister, I had a long walk to shovel, many decks to shovel, and a long driveway to plow.

My toilet is a bucket.   I have two of them.   Once a week I dump them under a big pine tree, rinse them out with my saved gray water, and rake some pine needles over the top. It takes 10 minutes a week at the most.   They work flawlessly, don’t use water, and they make top soil.

At my sisters, not one of her three toilets worked flawlessly.   A half of day was spent cleaning up after one of them overflowed.

Though my cabin is cold in the mornings, some night it’s probably close to 80 degrees.   To be that warm when it’s cold outside feels delicious.

I make a nest on the floor with blankets and pillows and in the dark cabin, stretch out in front of the wood stove and the propane heater, drink tea,  look out at the stars, and think, “There is no where I would rather be.”

At my sisters house she has inlay hot water coils that heat the floor of her large house.   You set it and the house  stays that same temperature all the time.  So it’s too hot when you’re sleeping and too cold when you’re awake.

The one thing I thought that her 3500 sq ft. house would have over my 200 sq. ft. cabin was space.   In my cabin, I carefully lay myself out to do some yoga postures so I have enough room.

The shocker was that because she had filled all her space with stuff, I had the same problem at her house as in my cabin.  She had no more room to stretch out and do yoga as I did.

If I need a new roof—500 dollars.  If she needs a new roof—10,000 dollars.

I can wash all my windows, inside and out in under an hour.  She needs scaffolding to wash her windows.

My shelter serves me; she serves her’s.

I could go on and on but my point is cabin life is easier, more comfortable, more beautiful, and much more sustainable than big house living.

When I had a house it was full of stuff.  It made me tired.   So, I made a rule.  Everyday I had to get rid of at least 10 things.   I did that for months.   Everything I got rid of increased my energy.

Then one day I couldn’t think of anything else to get rid of.   I started feeling so tired.   I told my son and he posted on his geek board that I had beer making supplies to give away for free.  Within hours there were a couple of geeks taking away my brewery and my energy surged.

After my big purge, I was robbed and then I had even less stuff.

Then I sold my house and  I had to get rid of almost everything.   There was no room for sentimentality.

It was so freeing to dump all the pictures of my past into the garbage.  I don’t need pictures; I lived my life; I was there.

Now, I have less stuff but I still try to  get rid of one thing a day.

It’s a good goal to set: by the end of everyday— less stuff.

What’s an uncluttered life worth.   Certainly more than any of the clutter is worth.

Plenty cold here. It was supposed to have got to -4 F (-20 C) overnight. But it’s really sunny this morning.

I think I went in to hibernation mode. I fell asleep on the couch at dark(about 5:30pm). Sometime in the night I woke, the fire had gone out and it was cold. I climbed up to the sleeping loft and slept till after 8:30am.. I never sleep in that late. I’m usually up by 5 am.

I really appreciate the sleeping loft when it gets this cold. It’s about 20 degrees warmer up there and not as drafty as the rest of the cabin.

If you are thinking of building a cabin, I would recommend a sleeping loft with an operatable window. On nights, when it is not in the negatives, it is often so warm up there that I sleep with the window open. Even with the window closed it’s drafty enough to give me fresh air while I sleep.

When it is really cold, I keep my clothes in bed with me so they will be warm and I can put them all on before going down to light a fire.

I appreciate all the windows down in the main floor when on cold mornings the sun pours in and heats up the cabin.

Times like these, I wish I had bought the 5 gallon jugs instead of the 7 gallon jugs.

It’s cold and dark out there, but I have two more to go…..

If I have a guest, I  keep one going all night so they have a night light.

Most nights I don’t even light a candle.   I’m either reading on my laptop or reading a book with my LED headlamp.   Sometimes though,  it’s nice to sit around at night drinking tea, looking at a candle.

Related post: A new era begins—The Age of Light

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The twisty wedge is made by Leborgne and will spit almost anything.   It  a good hard wedge that doesn’t mushroom.   It’s very hard to find.   The only ones online, I can find, ship from Europe.   I bought mine from a chainsaw store in Canada.    Here is a different brand shipped from the UK:   BAHCO SPLITTING WEDGE TWISTED STEEL 8 1/2IN Once I found a more cheaply made twisted wedge at Harbor Freight tools but it doesn’t look they sell them anymore.

Most of my wood this year is Tamarack.  Tamarack is so easy to split an ax would work fine,  but alas,  I whacked the wooden handle of my ax, one to many times and now the handle is broken.

One of the articles in it, I thought might be of particular interest to some readers, is called “Perpetual Camping.”    It’s about a  newsletter called  Dwelling Portably. Dwelling Portably is written by  people who find some unused land and dwell there for awhile or otherwise dwell portably.  Doers report on what works and doesn’t, ask questions, and offer advice.

The people  who produce it say:

While quite young, Bert and I decided (separately, before we even met) that buying property was foolish.  You can’t really own land;the government owns it and can kick you off any time you do something that any of dozens of government agencies disapprove of .

We also noticed that much land, especially in the west was not used or was used infrequently.  That inspired us to become perpetual campers: living in a place while it was desirable; moving on when conditions changed.

Issues vary: some have much about vehicular dwellings and little about backpacables or wickiups.  Or vice versa.  So, for a broad sampling, order several back issues.

Bert and I have built portable dwellings that are as comfortable as houses.  In some ways they are more convenient,  because they are small and well insulated, our body heat keeps them warm during winters—avoiding the labor, mess, pollution, and hazard of a heating stove.

Dwelling Portably is $1 dollar an issue.  add .50 if sending check or M.O.  for less then 6 dollars. (Their prices encourage you to order many back issues) 1/$1; 6/$5; 13/$10; 30/$20 Dwelling Portably, POB 190-hwk, Philomath, OR 97370

Or order online from Microcosm Publishing (Thanks, Pig Monkey, for the link)

In my Grandmother’s primitive cabin, she used two basins: one for washing with soap and then another one for rinsing your hands.   After the soapy water  became too dirty it was thrown out and the rinse basin became the new wash basin. The new rinse water came from the old rinse water we used for rinsing the dishes.

I use an enamel one because it came with the cabin.    But in this mother earth news article the writer suggests using stainless steel because it won’t chip.   Either way it’s nice to have it made of metal so if it gets icy overnight you can heat it up.

I have a pickup, a good chainsaw and a bunch of dead trees on my property to cut down but that is so unpleasant to me.  Picking up sticks is what I really like and the fires they make are so much hotter than what you get from logs.

When I wake up, in winter, my cabin is usually around freezing.   If I make a fire with logs, 4 hours later, sometimes, it’s only 50 degrees F (10C).   If I make a fire with little sticks,  in 1/2 an hour it will be toasty; then I throw a log on the fire and keep it that way.

It’s a joy to walk around picking up sticks  with my pack basket and  I can pretend I’m in training for a big hike.

Related post: Stove thermometer

Last winter I ate “super oats” every day.   My “super oats” are: oatmeal, black-strap molasses, nuts, cut up apple, raisins, cinnamon, soy protein powder, iodized salt.  I also had a grapefruit everyday.

Sometimes that is all I would eat but  often I would also eat some spaghetti sauce, fresh lemon in my cal-mag fizz, a banana, broccoli and a carrot.   That was pretty much my diet for the entire winter.

There is a little log cabin store that is a 2.5 mile walk through the woods where I can get some fresh food  now that a couple of old hippies bought it.    I like the experience of not seeing anyone,  so I try to avoid going to the little store.

I’m kind of tired of oatmeal this year.   This morning I made myself a pot of oats and I didn’t eat it.  Probably because I had lots of other kinds of food besides oatmeal.

Here is what food I have for this winter:

Rice, beans, lentils, oats, pasta, peanut butter, canned beans, canned corn, lots of spaghetti sauce, salsa, nuts, oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, cinnamon, fresh garlic and garlic powder,  fresh ginger, red pepper flakes, black-strap molasses, lots of tea, potatoes, onions, multivitamins and some other supplements , cal-mag fizz, box of apples, grapefruits, lemons,   “Better than bullion” chicken soup base, canned soup,  raisins, eggs, soy protein powder, tuna.   I also have a bunch of broccoli seeds that I thought I would try to sprout.  I wanted some canned pineapple but I forgot it.

I  have some other fruit and veggies but they will have to be replenished often because I don’t have any cold storage.

My son sent me a little lettuce growing kit last winter, everyday I would nibble on some lettuce, maybe I will get that planted again.

Last winter I didn’t eat from 12 noon till dawn the following day.    It’s a Buddhist practice aimed at giving up your attachment to eating but if not done with the right might set can increase your attachment to eating.  Even though I was working on my attachment to eating, I was  really joyous when dawn rolled around and it was time to eat my oatmeal.

I kept that practice up until spring.      This year I’d like to start it up again.  It’s amazing how little food you need if don’t eat after 12 noon.

Related Post: Delicious monotony

There is never any smoke.   The guy who tends the fire says this is because he burns saskatoon(amelanchier) wood.  Saskatoon or serviceberry is native to every state  in the US except Hawaii and it grows on both sides of the Cascades.

One time I ran out of baking soda for awhile so I used wood ash instead–it worked.     To make soap you need grease and lye.  Lye is made from wood ash.  So,  mix the grease from the pan with wood ash and you have essentially  made soap.

Baking soda works under the same principal but it is safer on your skin.  Wood ash in water releases lye so you don’t want it getting in your eyes or sitting on your skin.

When I saw it I said, “Yes! I should get a bunch of this and I can be eating smoked salmon all winter long”    Good thing I had the good sense to buy just one and try it out first.

It’s nothing like smoked salmon; bad flavor and a bad texture.  So bad.

Both of my cabins came furnished:  furniture, dishes, salt, foil, everything.    I never think about replacing anything.    That’s the thing about cabin life it’s not supposed to be perfect, you just do with what you have and it’s good enough.   There is something really settling about that.

When I had a house I was always thinking of things it needed and improvements I could make to it.   The list was endless.   In my cabin, if it works, it’s good enough.

You just do things differently so you don’t waste any water.   Take for example making spaghetti:

So you see, no washing, no wasted water.

Once in awhile I wash a few dishes but for the most part my system is:  1. Eat from pot, 2.  clean with spatula, 3. boil water in pot and use for hot beverage.

Related Post: A Vagabond’s guide to kitchenware and dish washing.

Last year as I was walking around picking up sticks to store for kindling, I saw some dried cow patties and thought, “I think I remember something about people burning cow patties.”

I picked up some and threw it on my fire.  It’s amazing stuff;  burns hot and long.   I think I’d rather have a cord of cow patties than a cord of oak, it burned so well.

I was talking to a friend that just came back from India and she said people pick it up, dry it, and sell it over there for firewood.

I feel better about the cows roaming around my place now that I know they shit firewood.

Water storage. 55 gallon drum in loft gravity feeds to sink below. I fill it using one gallon jugs and a funnel. 3 liter Arrowhead water bottles are much studier.

Hot water heater

Related post: living without running water

In my BC cabin I have a propane refrigerator, propane stove, and a propane hot-water-on-demand water heater.   In my Washington cabin I have  a propane Mr. Heater and a propane cooker.

Besides my propane cooker everyone of my propane appliances have quit working and was fixed by just blowing the dust, spider webs, and food out of it with a can of air.