A Different Kind of Adventure

The Lashes are doing our part to reduce the amount of plastic in the environment by 1) reducing our plastic consumption and 2) making ECOBRICKS out of the plastic that makes it into our home. We have learned and embraced the fact that recycling is not as effective as we would wish. The best thing about recycling here in South Africa is the jobs created for young men who spend their mornings picking through the trash. But there are issues with that, too.

So we are excited about our home EcoBrick factory – where we are repurposing our own used plastic and styrofoam.

Preparation – plastic must be washed and dried thoroughly. We have chosen to use Krush bottles – they are the way we buy our fruit juice, so we have a constant supply.

We have a dedicated cabinet in our kitchen to store completed and in-process EcoBricks. There is a bit of a learning curve when beginning to make EcoBricks – so after a month we only have about two properly packed bricks. They must be 0.33g/mL density, which means smashing out ALL the air bubbles and using a certain ratio of syrofoam to plastic films. Unfortunately even with EcoBricks, styrofoam is very difficult to get rid of – unless you can somehow super pressurize them and squeeze out all the air.

In a few months we will have enough to build something cool. For now we are looking at ideas … e.g. https://za.pinterest.com/2OceansAquarium/ecobrick-building-ideas/

When your shoes turn reddish brown like this, you know you’ve been hiking around Johannesburg!

#faceadrenaline #bungee216

Knysna to Colchester today, along the Garden Route. Impressive bridge with a stunning view of the Indian Ocean – on a sunny day anyway. May have to come back here in a couple of weeks on my 40th birthday and jump.

Our demo crew worked for 5 days tearing out tile, sheetrock, brick, and the old paper insulation in the attic that had been home to all kinds of rodents and critters since 1955. Three guys from Santa Fe with no protective equipment or power tools made an enormous mess of everything. Most impressively, they disassembled the midcentury fireplace structure with chisels, hammers, and their bare hands. We provided water bottles, bandaids, and filtration masks as needed.

In April, 2018, nearly 8 months after Hurricane Harvey hit League city with a sluggish, persistent vengeance, we finally began demolition in earnest. We had made some key big decisions – 1) we would not abandon our property; 2) we would renovate our house into a home we could love forever; and 3) we would use a loan from the Small Business Association to do it. These decisions were the result of countless hours brainstorming, fretting, panicking, crying, screaming, planning, negotiating, drawing, and talking. With decisions finally made, we began finalizing architectural plans, lining up paperwork for our permits, signing and notarizing loan paperwork, and booking contractors.

Much of the initial demolition was carried out by our family – everyone helped. It was cathartic.

What we found under floors and behind walls was always surprising. We had been harboring quite the ecosystem back there, with healthy colonies of termites feeding numerous lizards, and roaches running amok, leaving more evidence of their existence than I care to describe here. Under the Jalousie windows in the playroom was an established honey bee colony – with thousands of drowned bees packed into the space between the brick and the paneling. Between mold, termite damage, and other treats and surprises, it only made sense to strip the house down to its bones and start again.

Our unexpected challenge this week has been to investigate the small but persistent flooding of our camper. At one corner, between the “kitchen” and the bathroom door, we have noticed a recurrent puddle. Inspecting the base of the walls, it’s clear that they have been quite damp for some time, enough time to show evidence of mold. This is incredibly frustrating, as the reason we have been out of our house for almost a full year has been the presence of mold. Of course, the house is gutted now, so there are more than one reason we aren’t currently living in it. But I am not pleased with the idea of our refuge being invaded by mold spores. (The ants I am ok with. Yes, they’re biting us in our sleep, but the solution -poison and ant genocide – is simple. Mold is insidious.) So, here is our wall, carefully pried apart so the very thin plywood does not crack, to dry our camper-studs. Unfortunately, we have yet to locate the source of the water.

It’s exhausting to try to find anything. Living in a 31′ trailer with three kids and a husband means that 98% of our possessions are divided between our garage and the POD decorating our front lawn. Well, 98% of the possessions we have left, after trashing nearly half of what we owned after the flood. Today, I was looking for the essential oil diffuser because, let’s be honest, a small trailer with a septic tank that we need to remember to flush at least every 36 hours sometimes gets a little smelly. But, when you’re packing an apartment full of things, into which box do you put something like an essential oil diffuser? Turns out – in the box of my extra clothes that don’t fit in the camper. Mostly, there aren’t clothes in that box; surprise, surprise.

You’d think it would be easier to find the massive All Clad spaghetti pot. It’s got to be in the one of the larger boxes, so that narrows it down. Not the box marked Legos, or board games, or lovies. Yes, there’s a whole box of lovies that didn’t make it into the camper. Is it in the box marked Kitchen? How about Large Kitchen? Definitely has to be in the Kitchen-Unbreakable box. Nope – none of those. It remains a mystery. When we finally unpack this POD into our beautiful sparkly brand new house, I’ll be kicking myself for not checking in the Bedding box for the spaghetti pot..

 

 

School’s out for the summer! These kids know what’s up. It’s before breakfast and they’re already out filling ditches in the backyard that were left by the plumbing crew. Good start to their summer vacation.