The final countdown

Our countdown is finally coming to an end, only 3 days until the boat is finally here. In the meantime, we have been working away at our outhouse which I personally think is better than any regular bathroom I have ever been in. We worked on it all day yesterday, and minus the pounds of dust, sawdust and small evil animal nests we inhaled it went incredibly well. I think Michael sneezed well over a hundred times but he seems to be feeling much better today. Minus the rash he got from a weird gray fuzzy plant.

Yesterday felt like a makeup day for all of the pain in the butt things that have been happening to me lately. I go to the store, and I buy the wrong thing or I forget something and have to go back. I cant find something and spend hours searching for it and end up never finding it. I put something down and immediately forget where I set it. For some reason, nothing has been easy. Yet miraculously, yesterday everything worked. It was bizarre. Michael said, well, we should probably go out and look for some type of shower base. We talked about it for awhile and then went to my grandmothers to stop in and she said, now, if you go in the basement, I think there is a shower down there that we just took out if you need it. And it was perfect, literally. We wanted to find some type of weird bowl for the sink, and we found the perfect one in a dusty cupboard. We talked about how we wanted to get some blue plaid fabric for curtains, and as I went into the bathroom at my grandmothers, there was a plastic tote with 2 types of blue plaid, more than enough for 4 curtains. The whole day went like that. We even cut down this impossibly high branch with a limb hand saw. I really didn't see that working out, but we did it. I hope our luck doesn't fade, we still have a ton of work to do.

Video of the inside!

We have a lot of work to do....but it's awesome! It starts in the kitchen and ends in our bedroom. There is a bunk room at the very front that we are completely taking out and we'll have much more space...well....not much more, but more. Enjoy!

Packing Outhouses and Food

September 27th. Or so we think. I won't even begin to think we can get it moved the 22nd, even though they said there was a good possibility we could. So September 27th will be the day. It seems so far away, but there is plenty to do in the meantime. Michael has started moving out, my stuff is still all packed away in the garage, and I think we're going to be moving everything up to camp next week. (Camp is where the boat is going...for those of you who don't know) During the forever until we actually get the boat, we're going to be working on our beloved outhouse. Crescent moon and all, we are going to be making an old ice shack into our bathroom. There are fish drawn all over the wall, unneeded shelves and benches, and I'm sure there are squirrels, mice, and other things I don't want to think about living in there, but we're going to get it in tip top shape in the next week and a half. We're going to make a toilet seat out of that blue insulating foam board, a friend told us that it never gets cold which makes sense I suppose. It's going to be freezing in there in the winter, so we're going to have an electric heater that we can plug in inside the boat before we go out. We're also installing a shower which will most likely be a summer only deal, unless we can figure out a crazy water system that won't freeze.

In packing news, we recently discovered that over 3/4 of our belongings are kitchen utensils, pans and baking stuff. We've tried to cut down our belongings, but considering how much we love food and cooking, everything in the kitchen is a necessity. I think we're going to have enough soup this winter to last us a lifetime, simply because the atmosphere calls for it. Soup, tea, hot coffee, hot chocolate and ice pops. Just kidding, the closest thing to ice pops in our boat will most likely be us. I think I'm going to become a master of baking sweets over the next few months. Our relationship works primarily because he cooks dinner and I make dessert. Period. He even got a legitimate wok since we both love love love any type of asian vegetable stirfry. Even if we are freezing, we will make up for that discomfort with a constant supply of delicious food. While we're on a food note, we have also been thinking a lot about trying out vegetarianism. We don't eat a lot of meat as it is, so it wouldn't be very difficult. I'll keep you posted on that one, considering my mouth is watering as we speak at a roast chicken my mom took out of the oven. Oh how I love coming home.

Anyway, that's the current update. I feel bad that I haven't written in a week, but I'll be pumping out entries when we finally have our house where it's supposed to be! Feel free to write any ideas, we would appreciate any help we could get! Also, if anyone has or knows anyone who has a small/medium sized wood stove lying around, we have been all over craigslist looking for a decent one, and it's already getting chilly out!

And we wait...

Of course, the morning of the day to move OUR boat, the hydrolics on the trailer blew. I almost felt lucky though when I found out that the boat moved right before ours was still stuck on the trailer as of 5pm. Our boat was supposed to be moved at 1:30. I won't pretend I wasn't disappointed. It was a day of waiting around, bad cell phone reception, and sadly, no boat. Yet on the brighter side, we accomplished a lot and had a pretty good time. We bought all of our blocks, got the area ready, cut(and kicked) down some trees, and had fun riding around on the four wheeler. Michael was abnormally optimistic when we found out that we would have to wait until next week, he cheered me up in no time as we reluctantly took a step back to the excited planning phase. The best thing about this whole situation, is that next week, we will both be done working and we can move up there for good. It would have been hard to leave the boat and drive back to wait tables tonight.

That's all for now, I will write more soon! I will also upload more pictures as soon as I can get them on my computer.

Ode to Bruce

I love Bruce. He's seriously the nicest most excited about everything person I have ever met. Yesterday we encountered a few challenges. We found out that we don't have the boat stands, so we had to come up with something quick before the boat is moved on Tuesday. I talked to a lot of people about it at work yesterday, surely some poor customers who didn't really care at all as I'm rambling on about the electrical work and cutting down trees to use as support beams. You know what though? I listen to them all the time and get them 57 refills of water with extra lemon and still don't get tipped well, so I will talk all I want. I am a waitress, in case you didn't know. Anyway, I have found that talking to every possible person I can is extremely helpful. People are smart. They have connections. They have names and phone numbers. They have ideas. So throughout my eleven hour shift yesterday, I drew up about twenty different plans for a stand for the boat. However, they all involved an extensive amount of lumber which can be super pricey. One of the plans we drew out would cost us $400 in wood alone. I would cut down trees and use those before I would spend that much on wood. Seriously! So today I had planned on going up to camp and cutting down trees. On the way, I called up Bruce to talk about possibly borrowing the stands for a few weeks while we built our permanent frame. Did I mention how much I love Bruce? Not only did he brighten my day, but he saved us a lot of time, energy, and money. All we need to prop the boat up is a whole boatload(hah) of cinderblocks. They cost $1.42 each. I drew it out on the new whiteboard if you can see it. Three blocks underneath the keel, and then three 3ft stacks of blocks on either side to keep it from toppling over. We'll spend about $40. Thats more like it.

We also found a wood stove kindly donated by our friend Mike at work, and as of this morning, everyone in my family is cool with our project. That was super important to us considering it is my whole family's land. I'm sure they are all thinking it is completely crazy(okay...it is...a little) but they have all given me the same kind of response. Its the shaking of the head "Okayy Emily" in that higher tone of voice as if they are saying "You are insane but if its going to make you happy then I guess go ahead and do it.." Which I appreciate. I have just had to promise everyone that we won't freeze to death. Or burn the boat down accidentally.

Michael and I are really excited. This is finally coming to life now. Henry J is seriously all that we have needed. This summer has been pretty hectic, we were both working a alot, Michael especially, and thinking about going through the winter the same way was exhausting. When he first brought up the idea of living in a boat, I was on it. And when I say on it, I mean I talked about it constantly for about three days and put a crazy ad on Craigslist. We both came to life when we were talking about it. Even though it was just an idea at the time, we needed something to think about that wasn't work or bills. When I started getting emails, it became even more real. And now, when I say on it. I mean literally on it. We will be on it, on Tuesday. On our boat. In our new house.

Getting a Whiteboard

I need to buy something for the boat. It's been hard waiting but I really don't have space to store anything nor do I know what to buy. So today, I'm going into town to buy a whiteboard. Michael mentioned it the other day. He thought we should have one to write our plans and phone numbers and things we need to buy. So I'm going to get the biggest one I can find and we'll start writing down our plan of attack. Once the boat gets there of course(which is only 5 days away), the list goes a little something like this:
...keep in mind...there will be many changes and surely more things added in between. Oh the beauty of a dry erase board!

1. Demolition of the interior. We are going to take out the two built in couches and the wall between the main room and the bunk room. We are taking out the bunks too to make room for the woodstove.
2. Powerwash the exterior so we don't have peeling paint all winter, and also check for cracks so we can repair as necessary.
3. Insulate everything. We will attempt to use the insulation blower that we're planning on renting...could get messy
4. Construct a hearth for the woodstove and do carpentry in the interior
5. Paint and such

And that is as far as we've gotten. My mom asked me the other night about our 5 year plan, which is nonexistent. We are on a 5 step plan as of now. After that we will be making it up as we go.

It's a Good Day

Today is a good day. This morning, I did the impossible. I scratched off three bunches of cherries on a Hannaford scratch ticket. Although I only won a dollar (I don't believe that there are any tickets out there where you win more than a dollar, this stupid game is such a waste of paper) I still yelled outloud and called my mom at work, Jackie, and Michael on the phone to tell them. Half of the time I try not to scratch them because it just makes me mad when I lose every single time, but I can't help it. I mean, like the game says, I could win up to $10,000. Which is crap. Anyway, setting aside the love/hate relationship I have with the Hannaford scratch off game, I won. Now I can go to the store and get a few yogurts for free. Because I am a winner. I knew it would be a good day today.

Shortly after this success, I got a call from Michael. He talked to the boat movers, and we are moving the boat next Tuesday at 1:30. Even better, was that the cost was within our price range. This is really happening! Tuesday the 7th, the boat will be in the woods, and one week and one day later both Michael and I will be up there for good. For the time being, we'll be working like crazy to save some extra money. I am in a sort of happy limbo between my parents house and Michael's. It feels good to be home, good to not be paying rent, and good to have food in the refrigerator. I swear there is more food in the house then when I lived here but my dad thinks it's just because there was barely any in my apartment. He could be right.

Anyway, back to the goodness of today. I just made the best cup of coffee I have ever had, my car is clean for the first time in 2 years, and my laundry is almost dry. For the past week or so, I have been in dire need of clean laundry. I've been wearing the underwear that I hate but keep for times when I am running low. So in about an hour, I will be showered and clothed with whatever I choose from my entire wardrobe(which isn't very big, but whatever) all amped up on this delicious cup of coffee, one dollar richer after collecting my bounty from Hannaford, driving back to my old apartment in my sparkling clean car to bid the last chapter of my life farewell. Today is a good day.

Seasick

So it's a good thing we are not putting our boat on the water. Michael and I have been up at camp the past few days and I yesterday especially it was super windy. We were both sitting on the float after jumping in the water and as it is bobbing up and down we both felt seasick. On a lake.

A few great things came out of our visit this week. We changed the location of the boat to make it simpler to move in and easier to power. It is still in the woods, no worries. We also have experienced multiple glimmers of hope with the whole moving a 38ft wooden boat thing. We have talked to maybe a dozen people/companies and everyone has pointed us to one company after laughing at how large the boat is. Michael says that all of the conversations have been the same.
Michael: We are looking for some help moving a boat
Them: Thats what we do, how far?
Michael: Its about an hour drive
Them: No problem, now is the boat fiberglass?
Michael: Wooden
Them: Oh...hmmm.....well how big is it?
Michael: 38 feet
Them: Hah! Thats a big boat! No we can't move that...try CWC
So we called CWC and they are on vacation until the 30th. So we wait. In the meantime, I posted an ad on Craigslist to see if any crazy mainer with a trailer would want to help us out. I feel like I may get a few takers.

Next post: Outhouse Reflections

Extension cords and hoses

So, as everyone knows, we obviously have a few things to work out. The biggest problems so far have been water and electricity. Originally, we figured that we would have a water hookup for the non-frozen months and just have a holding tank for the winter. I'm thinking that this will still be our best bet, but if anyone can think of a better way feel free to give us some direction. Power is becoming the trickier obstacle. Since our plot is about 300 yards away from any power lines, according to CMP, we would have to run power cables underground. Underground means a whole lot of digging, and probably a whole lot of money. Both of which sound unpleasant. We figured that this endeavor could potentially cost us a good chunk of change, but we also wanted to make a point of using recycled, old, preferably free materials. Craigslist has been a fantastic tool so far, as we now have a free boat and can easily fill it with free furniture, a free wood stove, and even a free refrigerator. Unfortunately, people don't seem to want to give away solar panels, wind turbines, or septic tanks. I am eagerly waiting for the day I that I find a post titled "I would love to dig you a well for free Emily!" Or, "I have 12 solar panels and everything you need with it for you to take off my hands Emily!" Yet as I am trying to remain realistic to a degree, I am thinking of extension cords and hoses. How long can you run an extension cord? What about under the snow? I suppose we'll find out. Who needs water anyway...

Our boat, Henry J

We found a boat today. Huge, old, wooden, peeling paint, torn curtains, makeshift stairs and a broken window and its perfect. Bruce said it’s not far from being seaworthy, but that doesn’t matter. The further the better actually. Michael and I aren’t really people of the sea. I am scared of deep water and what’s in it, and salt water makes Michaels eyes hurt. So we are living on the boat, on land. We are driving it into the middle of the woods and making it into our house. It’s small, and we might drive eachother crazy by the end, but it’s worth the risk. We want to do something different. We want to live far away from brick and pavement. We want to be inspired and build and create. It seems like an insane idea, but the more people tell us the things that could and probably will go wrong, the more we want to prove that we can do it. We are both stubborn enough to absolutely let our pride get in the way, and we will live on our boat. Today is Sunday, August 15th 2010 and we are getting ready to set sail.