New Barn

This past summer was a whirlwind as they usually are. This year's big project was an 18 X 28' barn that will serve as our summer art studio. The project began with clearing some large trees and bringing in fill and crushed stone for our poured concrete slab foundation. We then opted for 2 X 6" stud walls 16" on center. The walls are 12' high with scissor trusses on top angled at a 12/12 pitch. Inside it is 24' 6" to the ridgeline. This open space feels much bigger than it actually measures in square feet because of the volume created with the open, tall ceiling or actually lack of ceiling. In other words it is open to the roof. The roof is sheeted with 1" rough sawn pine, covered in 30lbs. felt paper, 1 X 3" purlins, and then top of the line metal roofing. The snow ought to slide off this roof nicely. Next summer we will add more windows and sheetrock for a brighter space as it will serve primarily as a painting studio. We hope to add a ten foot, "bump out" addition on the back for a framing room. A solar array to power led lighting is also in the long term plans. Once the rest of the windows are in place we will finish siding the gable ends with cedar shakes.

Tara Nevins - Wood and Stone

Ok music fans trust me on this one. This is a must have.

Review of 'Wood and Stone' in Driftwood Music Magazine: “Those who are familiar with Nevins’s work with Donna the Buffalo will be immediately struck by how at home she sounds, her voice sits astride these arrangements with all the comfort, grace and confidence of a veteran rider on well-trained mount.”

Root Cellaring

Well,.... being that it is winter and all, I tend to do a lot more reading. One of my next projects at Dragonwood is a multi purpose underground building. The primary function will be that of a root cellar, so my latest read was Root Cellaring by Mike and Nancy Bubel. This book is an excellent read, well written and interesting but also full of specific detailed information on planting and growing root cellar crops, to harvesting and winter storage. The book also informs of the history of root cellaring and covers a variety of designs and suggestions on building your own root cellar and then how best to use it. I took this book out from our local library but have decided it is a must for my own library and will refer to it as a point of reference in my own root cellaring endeavors.

I happen to have an ideal spot picked out where I will have to do minimal excavating for a 10' X 12' earthship/cordwood root cellar. My intention is to divide this into two small rooms. One that will have a dirt floor and the other a concrete floor. There are advantages to doing this for different types of storage. The back wall and two side walls will be earthship style in that I intend to recycle tires rammed with dirt. The living roof will be supported by hemlock beams from some trees I need to clear for garden expansion and the front, northeast facing wall will be cordwood masonry. This design should not only function well, but have some aesthetic appeal and the side benefit of allowing me to try out three alternative construction techniques. Earthship construction, living roof and cordwood masonry, all of which I hope to include to varying degrees in other future projects.

The root cellar will a labor intensive project but will also be a good classroom as I get first hand experience in these alternative building methods. As in all of my projects everything is subject to change and the cordwood could easily be interchanged with slip form masonry once I am to that stage of the project.

I am looking forward to this project and Root Cellaring is an invaluable guide for me in this project. If you have any interest in putting food by without the use of electricity this book is for you! Highly recommended!

Mortgage Free by Rob Roy

Here is a must read for anyone who is looking to simplify their life, find that piece of land and build your own place without the burden of a large mortgage. Rob Roy is an outstanding author on a variety of "back to the land" type books. I get a lot people asking about Dragonwood and how we did it. How did we find our land? How can you own something without a mortgage unless you have a lot of money? Trust me it can be done. Until I write my book I recommend this one.

Rob Roy is the author of several excellent books and videos including Cordwood Masonry, The Cordwood Sauna,and his latest book Stoneview: How to Build an Eco- Friendly Little Guest House. Mr. Roy also runs Earthwood Buillding School near Plattsburgh, New York.

http://www.cordwoodmasonry.com/

The Cabin at Dragonwood

Fall 2010

The last week of October we enjoyed three days of "Indian Summer" with temps in the 70's and a lot of sunshine. Here are a few shots taken at Dragonwood over the last couple of days. A look up the driveway with all the autumn leaves. Also a couple of fall garden shots including our fall crop of leaf lettuce, leeks and one of our just planted garlic beds. This year we planted over 150 garlic cloves of six different varieties.

One photo is of a small lake just down the road. Deb has painted this scene a couple of times and sold both originals. She also did a print from one of the paintings that has since sold out.

Will be up this weekend to cut and split more firewood. We will also begin putting things away for winter. Next week will be the beginning of November. Here in the Tug Hill region that means snow will be on the way soon. I will box up the solar panels and put away a lot of the garden tools etc. . I have seen things crushed by the weight of the snow. One year a garden cart was left out. The weight of the snow that winter all but destroyed it.

"Rock Run"

A Good Haul! KII and I never pass an opportunity to grab some good field stones when we have the chance. We have numerous ongoing stone walls and other stone projects as well as some Andy Goldsworthy style sculptures planned for the gardens. You can't have too many rocks. We have several piles in various places around the property. These get sorted every now and then into "rounds",corners,flats, uglies, etc.. This makes it easier to find the right stone for a given need.

We plan to clear about an acre for additional gardens and some fruit trees. Pulling stumps and bulldozing should produce a bounty of choice specimens next spring.

Stone Wall Detail

I thought I would post this close up of one of the many stone walls that I have put up at Dragonwood over the years. This one is a little over 10 years old and look at the moss and lichen. It looks as though it has been there much longer. The stone work at Dragonwood is a never ending project. I hope to do some stone spirals and towers in time.

Summer at Dragonwood

One of the many butterflies and moths that we see daily during the summer. The second photo is a hummingbird moth that likes the Bee Balm or "Oswego Tea" and at the bottom is a Lobelia Cardinalis, a.k.a. Cardinal Flower that grow wild around the pond. This year we have had a real problem with Deer eating our prized Hosta collection. In the past they have browsed the Hosta in the fall at the end of the season, so we really didn't mind, but this year for some reason they started munching in June. Not good. Deb is trying a variety of concoctions to dissuade them from eating our babies. "Senator Muskie" our new resident in the pond this year is a young male muskrat. He ate all of our pickerell and I think most of the arrowhead as we have hardly any this year.

Blue Angel Hosta

Our Hosta collection is ever growing. We now have well over 30 different varieties and Deb is always looking for more. She has become obsessed, a real "Hosta Freak". I even see a series of paintings in the near future.

This Blue Angel above is one of my favorites. I especially like the blue foliage. Other favorites include Orange Marmalade, Yellow River, Dream Weaver, Sum and Substance, Katie Q, June, as well as some of the variegated varieties like Patriot, Minuteman, Whirlwind, Wide Brim and Francis William.

At some point I will photograph and document them all.

Getting Off the Grid by Gwen Caldwell

Getting off the grid and other solutions

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Our country is bankrupt, untold thousands have lost their homes, food and gas prices continue to rise and the good news is?
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by Gwen Caldwell
(libertarian)

My energy feels depleted every time I read the news. I am more thankful than ever that I used the television for target practice...I'd probably be suicidal if I had to actually watch the news!

We live in times unlike this country has ever seen. Hope is dwindling in many areas of the country of ever recovering from the inevitable financial and credit collapse. It's not even a matter of if it will happen, in my humble opinion. It's a matter of when. I struggle to get my arms around what that will really mean to us in our day to day lives. Certainly, it will not afford us the current freedoms we enjoy. I see tell tale signs of martial law knocking on our doors. Chaos at best.

Like many other people I am very concerned, because I have a young child at home. I already struggle to keep food on the table and a roof over head. I know with certainty that it's going to get worse before it gets better. How do we adress cost reduction without compromising standard of living? How do we insure a food source? How do we cut safe on energy, heating and cooling bills.

Sustainable communities have sucessfully been transforming lives for decades. They create community, a food source and good health with organic gardening, small animal husbandry, cost effective, alternative, off the grid, alternative energy living environments. It's about making a committment to participate in your living enviroment. To merge into a total living system for sustainability.

There is just that kind of community currently forming on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. It will serve as a model community and education center that can be duplicated anywhere, with very little money, a bit of hard work, committment to live a life that is not plugged into corporate America to maintain your standard of living.

People call and ask me about debt, the car they're still making payments on, etc. Get out from underneath your debt! Drive an older model car to reduce cost, insurance, etc. Cut up your credit cards. Consolidate them if possible on a zero percent interest rate. Move into a smaller house to reduce cost. Install a wood or pellet stove. Sell your excess. Use it to stock pile esstential food and living items, especially canned and dried meats, staples, dried fruits, nuts, pastas, beans, etc. I don't really recommend stockpiling canned foods, because they have no nutritional value, with the exception of canned tomatoes and beans. Guns, ammo, water and filters. Convert to solar or wind...make your own it's much cheaper. Make sure you have fishing and hunting supplies. If you're in the country get a few chickens, rabbits and goats. Buy heritage or non-hybrid seeds to grow your own food. Food will be your greatest asset! If you have a guns...get ammo..a lot of it, while you still can. If you don't have a gun., get one and a lot of ammo, while you still can. A bow and arrows, and traps will be useful. Learn to dry and can meat in the event that the grids are shut down, so it doesn't spoil.Canning supplies will be helpful.

Make a mental note of the day to day items you and your family currently use. Do an inventory of what you have for storage and canning supplies. What you don't have and will need buy first, then fill in the other non-essential and creature comforts. I would definitely advise you get a lot of hydrogen perioxide, apple cider and regular vinegar, lemon juice, honey, cayenne pepper, olive oil and cinnamon. All of these can be used medicinally for just about anything that ails you and then some!Aslo non-perfumed bleach to purify water. Vitamin, medicines, herbals and a good first aid kit.

Sh*t is going to hit the fan! Get ready! Your beautiful furniture and decor will not feed you, house you, nor will it keep you warm for the winter. Get rid of it! Buy vegetables when they are on sale and dehydrate them. Buy in bulk. Start a food co-op with your neighbors and share in the cost of buying bulk. Buy a book to learn about local edible plants and medicinal herbs that grow in your area. Learn them and use them for better health and to reduce food costs.

For more information visit www.freewebs.com/voiceofwomensustainabiltyproject

Off The Map

OK, so I'm not a film critic and this is a little out of the norm for this site, but............. A movie about a family living off the grid? They just don't make'em like this.

Set in the stunning landscape of rural New Mexico near Taos, this movie is worth a look just for the visuals. Art, sustainable living and great acting make this movie a real gem for folks with these interests.

Movie Overview - Holedigger Studios

It's 1974 and the harshly beautiful wilds of Taos are home to 11-year-old Bo Groden (Valentina de Angelis) and her free-thinking family. While constantly yearning for escape from her sparse environment, Bo passes the time with flair and imagination. She's a crack shot with a rifle and a bow and arrow, an artful plunderer of wallets and briefcases, and the compelling mistress of ceremonies for a moonlit three-ring circus of her own invention. Bo's home is an entrancing, challenging place that she will one day transcend to become the woman she was destined to be. Arlene (Joan Allen), Bo's warm, earthy, and eccentric mother, raises most of the family's food in her vegetable garden -- which she prefers to tend in the nude. Meanwhile, Bo's father, Charley (Sam Elliott), the embodiment of Old West masculinity, is losing the battle with his inner demons. When William Gibbs (Jim True-Frost) arrives, a hapless IRS agent with demons of his own, he soon proves to be a catalyst in the lives of the family during this watershed summer. Embraced by the Grodens' idyllic, peculiar world, Gibbs eventually abandons an investigation into the Groden's tax history and realizes he has fallen in love with both the place and its people. In a surge of creative energy, Gibbs dips a brush in paint and pours his feelings out on canvas, discovering a long hidden talent for artistic expression. The Grodens, too, make their own discoveries over the course of this memorable season -- the mysteries of love and loss, the power of family unity, and the eternal truth that in New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment, anything is possible.

Lloyd's Prayer

I received this in an e-mail. I'm not sure who penned it


In honor of Lloyd Blankfein, Chairman at Government Sachs:

Our Chairman
Who Art At Goldman
Be They Name

The Rally's Come, God's Work Be Done
We Have No Fear Of Correction.

Give Us This Day Our Daily Gain
And Bankrupt Our Nearest Competitors,
Leaving No One Left Standing Against Us.
And Bring Us Not Under Indictment.

For Thine Is The Treasury
And The House And The Senate
Forever and Ever,
Goldman.

Only The Government

Jon Alvarez Radio Show on WFBL 1390

Just back from a tour in Iraq with the US Army Reserve, activist Jon Alvarez is hosting a new local talk show at noon on WFBL 1390 on your AM dial. I encourage everyone in the Central New York area to check out Jon's new show! Topics will include pretty much anything and everything from local to National and even International issues. Jon's show airs daily from noon to 1:00pm.

UPDATE - JON'S RADIO SHOW IS NO LONGER ON THE AIR.

We are disappointed to see Jon go, but he has real estate to sell and his farm will take up whatever time and energy he has left.

Libertarian Gary Nolan is on 105.9 FM from 4-7pm, Monday thru Friday. Sad to lose Jon but Gary has a great program for us liberty minded folks. I encourage everyone to check it out!

Autumn Colors

Yesterday was a beautiful fall day at Dragonwood.

Huge Sale at our Gallery

HUGE RECESSION SALE! This downturn in the economy has really put a pinch on our business. In order to try to get things going we are marking down all prints 50% - 75% and are willing to negotiate on our originals. Take advantage of this opportunity to buy that painting you have been wanting or get a jump on your Christmas shopping! http://www.abbottsstudio.com/

Abbott's Studio, 624 So. Main St., Central Square, NY 13036 315-668-9459 HoursMon - Fri 10 -6 and Saturday 10 -3 or by appointment.

Used Bricks

We all hear the phrase, "Reduce, Reuse and Recycle", and I think most of us try to put this principle into practice to some degree. We definitely are trying to practice what we preach at Dragonwood.

Gleaning, scrounging, dumpster diving is an art form for us. You would be amazed at the things we have picked up over the years. Our cabin is built largely from "recycled" or "salvaged materials. My son and I picked up two mini van loads of red cedar shakes from a building being razed back in 90's. These shakes are very expensive to purchase and last a long, long time. They now are on our cabin. We also used doors and windows picked up on the side of the road.

Palettes picked up for free have made great compost bins. We have developed a nice system that is easy and free. These bins are ideal, the cost is right and they are easily expandable should your needs grow. I expect at some point I will take photos and post a quick piece on here about these easy to build compost bins.

Pictured above is our most recent find. A house burned in our village and before rebuilding, the contractor completely gutted the building to include the old brick chimneys.

Old bricks used to be easy to come by, but as demand has grown they have become hard to come by and actually cost more to purchase than new bricks.

This particular contractor apparently had no use for them or didn't want to bother. He was about to put them in a dumpster and have them hauled off to the landfill. Given that he has to pay by the ton to get rid of the construction/demolition debris he was all too happy to let us take them away.

So far we have filled our truck three times and I estimate there are two to three more loads. Many are broken but a lot of them are whole. We are taking even the rubble as we intend to put that down as hard fill where my son is putting in his driveway.

Nothing goes to waste! Finds like this are out there, you just have to keep your eyes open and not be afraid to ask. You will get turned down sometimes but the times you get a yes make it worth the trouble.

Happy scrounging!

Quote from Ayn Rand

Watch money. Money is the barometer of a society’s virtue. When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion–when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing–when you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors–when you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don’t protect you against them, but protect them against you–when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice–you may know that your society is doomed. Money is so noble a medium that is does not compete with guns and it does not make terms with brutality. It will not permit a country to survive as half-property, half-loot.”– Ayn Rand

To Yurt Or Not To Yurt

Photos - Pacific Yurt Inc. http://www.yurts.com/

Yurts have always intriqued me ever since I first learned of them back in the early 1970's. You see there was this hippy fellow who erected this round insulated tent thingy and he actually lived in it year round. Even through Vermont's cold and snowy winters. In fact he actually lived in that Yurt for the better part of a decade.

I later helped erect several Yurts at the Salmon Hills Cross Country Ski Center in New York's Tug Hill. The Tug Hill gets more snow each winter than any place east of the Rockies. The lake effect snow off the eastern edge of Lake Ontario averages around 300" annually. How can anyone live comfortable in a tent in that kind of weather? How can a tent withstand that kind of snowfall?

Trust me you can and they do.

The first thing most people have to overcome is, that although Yurts have some things in common with tents they are not tents, far from it. They are structurally very strong. They can be insulted, heated, plumbed, wired etc.. They can be made very cozy in even the most extreme weather.

My son Kevin II or K2 as we call him is now planning to put one up on Dragonwood next summer. I will document his progress on the project here and explain the wonders of the Yurt as we go.

Stay tuned!