Earthship Wisconsin!

Hi!!! Earthship Wisconsin is about to set sail! We have some of the best times hanging out together. It is a dream we are building together. A promise we have made to each other, to our family, to ourselves. Could we have just bought a simple house and lived in that? Of course we could have. We certainly could have...but that house we could get, would it supply us with electricity? Or clean water? Could we live in the Wisconsin winter with no heat? Could we escape the humid summer heat without an air conditioner? Could we grow peppers, tomatoes, beans, strawberries and even pineapple during our Wisconsin winters? In a word, No. Not without our Earthship. Here is the cool thing. The Earthship provides all of that...and more!
Wait...how on earth is that possible (pun intended)? I'll tell you how. I am no expert, by anyone's standards... but am  in the process of building my own Earthship.

Asuka Lynn, from the "Asuka Lynn Show" on Youtube.com shows off a piece of clay she found while  working our first day on the Earthship.

Used automobile tires are used as the basic foundation and load bearing walls. Each tire is used according to size and placed on level ground. Each tire is then 'pounded' or filled with dirt and hit with a sledgehammer.  It is actually a very simple process, needing only the basic of tools....and some tires. You need a sledgehammer, a shovel, a tape measure, some string and marking tools and a level.

For this particular post I will not go into all of the details but keep it to the bare bones essentials. For all of the really technical stuff I will neglect to remember make SURE to visit earthshipbiotecture.com. You will find all of your answers there! I am just letting you guys out there know what I am doing, and will keep you updated on the progress of our build. We are allowing interns this year, 2013, as we are a little more aware of what we are doing. Last year we spent a large majority of our build scratching our heads and talking about what we should do...or could do.

Ok, back on topic. You find your perfect build spot and start building...(AGAIN completely oversimplified) but we are just covering the basics here. The ground will be leveled and your basic walls will be marked out with stakes and string to make sure you are following the right course. Imagine laying a brick wall. If you lay out your bricks haphazardly and expect it to..oh...you know....stay up....Not happening.

You level your ground, place your tires and start filling it with dirt. You put a LOT of dirt in and get it pushed into the side walls of the tires. Once you have a lot of dirt in them you start pounding the dirt into the tire. It can take 45 minutes or longer to just fill one tire...especially when you are a little unsure of what you are doing yet.

If you imagine your tire as a clock...pound the dirt into the tire at the 12:00 position. Hit it a few times and move on to 1:00-repeat and move to 2,3,4...all the way until you came back to where you started. You will need more dirt before you ever get around back to where you started.

It becomes a rammed earth brick. A steel belted, rubber encased brick. By googling rammed earth, you will be able to see that rammed earth buildings have been in existence for a very long time, using the automobile tires simply makes a better and easier brick mold. With a brick that is nearly 3 feet in diameter, the thermal mass these rammed earth bricks hold is phenomenal.

Add more dirt and pound some more, add dirt, pound some more...and keep doing this until the tire is nice and full. A word of advice, when you have a young, tough twenty-something pounding the first tire...THE tire that all of the rest of the tires will be leveled off of, DO NOT let him pound the sidewall to high. Just a nice little bit of bulging of the sidewall is required....Or you WILL do a lot of re-work as you get half way done and realize that pounding a tire to a 25 year old buff guy's specifications. Trust me...just trust me on that one!

Not the 25 year old guy we just talked about, but another intern here at Earthship Wisconsin working to level off a tire on the second row of the U room.

Each room consists of a "U" shape as seen in a photo coming up. The U's are joined together and face to the South. In the winter time from the time the sun rises until the time the sun sets you get the solar heat from the sun coming in through a large 'hallway' that runs in front of all the rooms. You are toasty all winter long without even having to crank your thermostat up...You might even get too hot! In the winter...with NO heat! Now isn't that something!!!

In the summer time, the summer sun rises higher in the sky and the shining rays go right over the top of the Earthship, and while you get tons of light from your large front windows, the sun is so high in the sky it doesn't shine directly into the windows, and you stay cool. You are using the same principals of thermal mass. In the cool nights the tires remain cool and similiar to a battery, it "sends out" cooler air, keeping to nice and cool!

It is actually a very simple idea, and works awesome. In addition you are using automobile tires that would otherwise be thrown into a landfill or burnt up. 

Two little munchkins sit on finished tires. While it is starting to take shape, there is a lot of work to go! Looking forward to an awesome summer meeting incredible people again!

When you have your walls up, that hallway I mentioned before with all the south facing glass...guess what? That becomes an extraordinary greenhouse of Epic proportions! The roof that you put on is especially designed for catching water and funneling that water through a series of water filtration devices to be stored in cisterns for use. Ever wished you had a waterfall right in your house? Make one! No ground water ever needs to be harvested again.

Oh...and speaking of plants...guess what you use to water your plants? Rainwater? Even better! You design your drain system and all of your water from the sinks and the shower will be drained and filtered through rocks, sand, soil, plant roots etc...and comes out the other side clean as a whistle! No joke, it's been tested safe to drink...but you simply take that water that the plants helped you filter and you run that right through the commode! How cool is that? You wash dishes, the water goes through your planters, waters your plants and get filtered right into the commode as the clean water you are used to seeing in there(as you flush- figured I should specify a bit).
Well, what happens to that water? It is simply funneled through an outside filtration system where the nutrients (eww!) get filtered into a 'filtration cell' which is a holding tank and the clean water filtered out feeds and waters the outside trees, hedges, etc. No pollution.

A little off the topic somewhat, but you know what gets me? There are so many regulations regarding waste from a toilet. Many communities want you to have your system checked regularly, show proof of that, have your tank pumped every so often and on and on....but guess what? You know those huge septic truck that spray brown liquid on the fields in rural areas? That POOP! That is from your tanks. Why regulate sewers to the point where a person carefully and safely taking care of their own waste would be frowned upon...and then all the POOP is just collected and thrown out into a field to sit there.
Those who would carefully create their own safe systems wouldn't use harmful chemicals, their trees would die! But again I digress. I do that.

It can take up to 45 minutes to pound a tire, when you don't really know what you are doing...or you are out of shape. There are times though that you go out there and just play in the dirt. There is something calming (yes, and dirty) about just feeling the soil between your toes and fingers. It is actually just healing! It's awesome!

I will keep all updated on how we are going as we get started here this year. Have a great one all!

Two interns from 2012 have an awesome dirt fight. While we at Earthship Wisconsin don't normally condone flinging shovels towards one another...we aren't beneath trying to get a shot before, during or after someone falls down with a shovel imprint on their forehead. For the record, every survived the dirt fight unscathed.

I AM...The Soldier Song

                  I AM....  The Soldier Song

It came to me slow, like a waking dream.

Sunlight beyond the clouds.

I...am the dawn battlefield,

The soldier on distant shore.

In pink and purple sunrise...a soul,

Reluctant...departing.

It came to me slow, the realization.

The awareness that I could be so much more.

A warrior brave, leaving home. 

A single tear...escaping.

I...am the morning dew,

And the first black bird of spring.

It came to me slow, as valley mist....cool, 

Rising into the morning sun.

It was then that I knew, 

Watching the world awaken.

I could be so much more.

I....am the grass unfolding, beneath the melting snow.

I came to me slow, just as the moon, 

Across the summer sky.

I...am the whispering wind,

And the silent winter night.

Forgotten, I am never.

I was....I will always be...

I AM.

I Am a Woman With a Gun

I Am a Woman With a Gun

I am a woman with a gun. Am I wrong? Am I right? Am I paranoid? Should anyone have a gun?

What are the answers to these simple, yet incredibly complex questions?

Let's start with the very first statement. I am a woman with a gun. Yes, yes I am.  I buy  from my local sporting goods store.  I, at times, carry my Ruger P95 9mm with a 3.9 inch- stainless steel barrel, black polymer grip with  a standard 15 round magazine, plus one in the chamber.  Other times I carry my Smith and Wesson model 65 revolver which can hold 6 rounds in either .357 caliber or .38 special. 

What does all of that mean? First of all, it means...I am not a criminal. I went through the criminal background check, through a licensed firearm dealer as per federal regulations. Second, I Open Carry my sidearm...meaning that I wear it on my hip, openly, secured in it's holster. Were I a criminal, I most likely would hide it in the waist band of my jeans. Third, my magazine capacity of holding 15 rounds....is NOT a high capacity magazine...it is simply a standard size. 

Am I wrong? Well, that depends. Am I wrong for knowing and understanding that there truly is evil in the world? That evil really does exist?Am I wrong for noticing one small thing everyone else seems to overlook? Take a few moments one day and go to youtube and watch news videos of reporters interviewing people who have either survived a tragic incident, witnessed a tragic incident or are simply nearby when one occurs. What is the first thing they say? Usually one of three things will ALWAYS occur. As I say to my children...look for the pattern.

They all will say 

1.  I never thought "that" (whatever tragic occurrence they are discussing) could happen here!

OR 2.  Things like that don't happen around here, they happen somewhere else!

OR 3.  It can't really be happening.

Am I one of those people? While I may in fact encounter some horrible occurrence in my lifetime someday and wish it hadn't happened, I will know why it happened. It happened because no matter where we live, or how much money we make, or what we drive, where we work, how we behave, how much we are loved or how much we love...bad things can and do happen.

 People who are morally corrupt, who lack compassion or empathy...or just simple love and respect for their fellow beings on planet Earth also exist. They are, thankfully not common, but they are around...they simply exist. Fortunately, those who would see ALL life as precious and worth saving far outweigh the number of the aforementioned people. 

The simple fact is, evil does exist. Am I wrong to know this? Am I wrong to know that I could be called upon to help save a person, help save people, help save a child, my family or myself. I don't think I am wrong. 

Am I right? That also depends. Am I right for knowing the above? I do believe that I am. I am right in believing that should, heaven forbid I ever need too, I have a God given right to protect myself. Do I ever want to be in a situation where I am forced into an age old battle of "right vs wrong"? Absolutely not. Carrying my gun does not make me want to kill. It does not make me want to commit robbery. It does not make me want to randomly shoot people. What it does make me however, is at least a little safer.

The bottom line is that my sidearm is nothing but a tool. It sits on my belt. It does nothing. It sits there. That is all. Were I a carpenter, and my sidearm a hammer...it still would do nothing. If I needed to pound a nail, I would grab my hammer, use it...and put it away. If I have an accident I would pull my insurance card out and put a call into the agency.  If I NEEDED to use my sidearm to protect me or others...I would grab it and hopefully just the sight of it would stop a would be assassin....and then I would put it away and give my statements to the police when they arrive between 2 and 20 minutes later. 

Am I paranoid? To some the answer would be a unanimous YES!! Maybe even to you. But what is the line between common sense, personal responsibility and liberty and paranoia? I consider the line for paranoia far from where I sit right now. I do not look for trouble, nor do I cause it. I do not WANT anything bad to happen. I do not look around with the eyes of a cornered rabbit expecting imminent demise around every corner.

I DO however, take a second when I step outside from wal-mart. I don't just aim at my car and walk into oncoming traffic as you know you have seen countless others do. I also DO take those few moments to look around me when I walk in a dark parking lot. As a woman, if I have to park in a dark parking lot, I try to be close to the door, close to lights.

That does not make me paranoid, it simply makes me a safer woman. I don't make sure that EVERY time I sit in a restaurant or tavern my back "is to the wall". But I do remain aware of the goings on and the people around me. It behooves every person to be aware. It is simple common sense.

Finally, should anyone have a gun? ABSOLUTELY not...Some people should not own a butter knife, much less a gun.  There are people among us who are a few crayons short of a box, who are a few cards short, lacking in the common sense department, lacking in the morals department, in empathy, in compassion...etc.

Those people as we have discussed, already exist, and the current background check system can and DOES weed those people out. Criminals as well should not have a firearm. I'm not talking a criminal who stole $40 bucks from his mom and got turned in, or who was 17 and his girlfriend was 16 1/2  and got turned in...I'm not even talking about the guy that got caught with a personal bag of weed. 

I'm talking about the criminals who walk free among us, committing the same crimes over and over. The criminals who don't really give a damn who they hurt...and still they are let free by a flawed judicial system. Those kind of people NEED to be incarcerated. 

I am a woman, I own a gun. I am still a woman, I simply have a tool. I am still a woman, and at night I want to snuggle into my man's arms and sleep. I am still a woman and I want to watch my babies grow up and laugh with them. I am still a woman, I want to sleep late on Sunday's, eat cereal and watch cartoons on Saturday with the kids. I want to drink Pabst Blue Ribbon with my man on Friday night.

I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to be hurt by anyone. I don't want to have to make a decision that will impact mine and others lives forever. I also am NOT now and will not be a victim. I will not stand idly by and make my self puke to 'gross someone out' so they will leave me alone. I will not stand there and shit myself for the same reason.

What I will do, as the woman that I am is stand my ground and say NO! I am NOT your victim. I will not stand idly by when a sexual offender is breaking into my home bent on hurting one of my beautiful and precious children. I will not stand idly by when you are being attacked by a thug on a street corner. I will not stand idly by when one of the officers who are sworn to protect us is on  the losing side of a fight with a 'bad guy'. I will not stand idly by while 'heathens' would try to pull your beautiful wife or girlfriend into an alley...and you have been attacked.

I am a woman. A woman of empathy, of compassion, of love. A woman of peace. A woman. A mother. A sister. A friend. A lover. I am a woman, not a victim. Does my gun assure me of this, that I will NEVER be a victim. NO of course not. But it goes a long way to helping, for being a simple tool made of steel and plastic. 

Another Blissful Day in Mommy-ville

Why is it kids can make you laugh, cry, yell and get scared all in the space of about 2 minutes?

The answer...well I don't really know. I mean why do men have to try and fix something that really isn't broken?...Yet. Why do women change their minds constantly? Wait..lets not talk about that...

So there you are happily (not really) vacuuming the crumbs of someones half chewed cookie when a kid, the other one, streaks by you wearing nothing but one sandal, on the wrong foot. You laugh. Then you smell a funny odor. You sniff. It seems to be coming from the streaking kid. You turn him around and sure enough. He's got brown streaks halfway up his back. You backtrack and find used toilet paper hanging out of the toilet and a streak on the seat, and on the roll of paper...and on the doorknob.

Now your cleaning the bathroom.  You hear a muffled cry. You start to panic. Its the baby. You run back into the living room and you cant find the baby, but you can hear her crying. You listen, pinpoint the sound and find that she crawled behind the couch and got lost. You pull the couch out, grab the baby and set her on the floor by the chair(she likes to stand). As you turn to put the couch back you step in the still unvacuumed cookie crumbs from the first kid. Then you have to pee.

You run in the bathroom only to realize (with your pants half down) you still haven't cleaned the streak off the seat. Clean quick, pee then both toddlers come ask you for dinner.  

Just as you realize you  have to go number two... both boys start dancing around because now they too have to go to the bathroom.  You have to hurry or they both will start peeing on the floor. Then they fight over who gets to flush, who gets to go first, who gets to open the door. 

As you put the pot on to boil you hear what suspiciously sounds like dirt from the poor potted plant hitting the carpet. You peek in the living room and there is baby girl with dirty hands, a really dirty face and dirt in a circle around her.

What do you do now? Cook, clean, wipe face, wipe butts, clean the cookie that is now smashed into the carpet, stop the boys from fighting, put the couch back? Well, I don't know either! Its good to know that you didn't get a child-raising manual either.

You hug the baby, and get drooly dirt on your shirt. You put spaghetti in the boiling water and get splashed. You wipe hinders, and have to wash your hands-three times. Push the couch back, stir the food, vacuum the floor, stir the "sketti" and look around.

The boys are sitting next to their little sister trying to teach her how to roll a ball. Unsuccessfully, because she wants to eat it...even  though its 10 times the size of her head.

You have food on the table, you have a roof over your head and three beautiful children who gave you something to do today. You have a drooly kiss stain. For this moment in time, regardless of what else is going on in the world...everything is all right-all is well-life is good.

After all, without them, what would you have done for the afternoon? What fun would you have had alone?

(and wasnt it fun making three babies!!!!)