The Great Pumpkin!

In an effort to do quite a few things, like pollute less, simplify our energy needs, not feed our money to corporate entities that seem to care not at all about our environment, have some fun, be more independent, have some fun, and have some fun, we've gone electric!  Meet "Pumpkin" our new Smarter that the average bear, SmartCar.

Pumpkin, our 2018 Smart fortwo EQ.
All electric, roomy inside, seriously, small outside, seriously.
Plugs in like a cell phone.  Simple

Part of the life style here at Barrel Hoop is not taking, or using, more than is enough.  This car is our latest exercise in that attitude.
We are still adjusting to the limited range and the anxiety of not having the infrastructure to support EV's in our area, but this car should meet over 95% of transportation needs.  It's an exciting experiment. Did I mention that it's really fun to drive.
The p/u truck is no longer useable so we have an adjustment to make on that front.  No more just picking up things on the side of the road when I stumble upon some treasure that others have thrown away, but that may be a good thing.  We can always rent a truck for a day if I need to get oversized supplies.  Or if we want to take a longer trip, we can rent a car.  We should save a lot of money with this car from less maintenance and cheaper energy, so renting when we need it, seems to make sense.

This summers Improvements

No more skating or skiing down the sloping tarmac path

Our room with no walls, well maybe a partial wall on one side.

Stone steps to the Shop.

Looking back down from the shop onto the room with one wall.

Panoramic Morning view

From the sunrise deck

Fall

SunChoke Flowers in the Morning

Some of the last flowers to bloom each season are the Sunchokes (Jerusalem Artichokes).  It seems that to make up for their late arrival the grow extra tall.  The burst of bright sunny yellow flowers is a bit of cheer in the midst of the rust and orange tinge that all the green leaves are now taking.

SunChoke Flowers in the Morning

2016

This year's garden has multi colored corn

Collard Greens

Home

Happy Solstice, Happy Winter!

The latest improvement at the place is this barn that is going up around and over the chicken coop.

Our micro-barn/chicken coop
Still under construction but functional.
The chicken wire behind and above the picket fencing is there, but not visible.

In the past we have just been putting tarps over the pen and the coop during the winter months to keep it clear of snow and a bit warmer, but it has always been ugly, wet anyway, and awkward to work under.
With this structure we have plenty of head room to walk upright and it will keep the area dry.  The barn, as I am calling it, is made from all reclaimed materials and a few posts of downed trees from the woods here, except for the roofing material, which is corrugated fiberglass, which I purchased new.
It's is way expensive but I love the light it lets in.  We have been using it for years around here and so far it has held up well to the heavy snow loads and falling acorns and branches and the UV.
Another nice thing is that the LED rope lights that I have hung in there, solar charged, have their light dispersed and reflected by the fiberglass, so the whole place glows at night.  It helps when we go in there after dark.
We are thinking of using the glass panels from reclaimed sliding doors to close up the sides this winter.  Eventually I think drop down fabric shades will be the choice for the walls.  These can be easily raised and lowered seasonally.
I still have some finish work to do on the barn but it can do it's job as it is.  The mild season so far has allowed me to enjoyably get this job done even though I started it late.
Happy Solstice.