Is There a Tiny House in Your Future?

I've been following the Tiny House movement for a few years.  Jay Shaeffer, one of several leaders in the Tiny House movement, wrote the following:

"At 2,200 square feet, the average American house now emits more greenhouse gases than the average American car, produces seven tons of construction waste, and occupies more than thirty times as much land per inhabitant as a home in China."

I grew up in Northeastern Ohio, in an 880-square-foot house my parents built. It had two bedrooms and a full basement, which had space for a washer and dryer, my father's workbench, and a paneled "rec room." It had a breezeway between the house and garage and a finished attic where my sisters slept. We had a front yard and a back yard.

I bought my first house in Moorhead, Minnesota, a one floor 860-square-foot one story "rambler" with a full finished basement. There were two bedrooms, a one-car garage, and tiny front and back yards. 

I now live in a one bedroom 350-square-foot apartment in Brooklyn. It's tiny (but not by NYC standards), but I have enough space. While following the Tiny House movement, I dream of my own house that fulfills my need for my own place and my environmental values.. I envision a 250-square-foot cottage with lots of windows, surrounded by a garden. My tiny house would have wooden walls and floor, a skylight, and a two-burner stove. I'd hang a flowering plant outside the front door and make curtains for the windows. My only furniture would be my bed and a cherry secretary desk with bookcase. 

As I downsize in preparation for vacating my apartment when my lease expires in May, I dream of my tiny house.   

Embrace the Darkness!

The days are getting shorter and winter's coming. We had unusually warm weather recently (yesterday I went outside in sandals!) but that's over for the season, I fear!

The past two months have gone fast. I've spent them writing and rewriting short stories.  I'm finding writing prose as, if not more satisfying than writing plays. I do still love writing monologues, though.

As usual, my English as a Second Language students are an inspiration to my writing.  I'm entering my 13th year of teaching English as a Second Language (ESOL)/English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) to adult immigrants in Brooklyn, New York.  I also teach Citizenship Exam Preparation classes. Recently, I've begun to think about branching out into immigrant advocacy.

I continue living green in Brooklyn. My community garden has a fall leaf drive where we collect, mulch, and compost neighborhood leaves.  My street has city-sponsored curbside compost recycling, so as well as dropping off vegetable scraps at the garden, I put out vegetable scraps and other compostable material in a container in front of my apartment building. Last week, I cut my hair and put the clippings in there.

My latest project is making my own blouses. I've rounded up old clothing I'd had hidden away,and am cutting fabric squares which I'll sew together over the winter. I'll make a pattern out of recycled paper and hand-sew the blouses. My clothing budget is only for occasional underwear and socks (when needed), one pair of shoes a year, and a pair or two of pants each year. I plan to make skirts when the weather gets warmer.

I'm crocheting an afghan for my bed for this winter and I've recently completed a lap blanket for my favorite reading chair.

Last month, I made dry skin balm for my elbows and feet.  It's not available yet on my business website, but maybe in the future I'll offer it. In the meantime, Anna's Potions and Lotions maintains a website, etsy, Facebook and Twitter presence.

I'm moving in a few months so I've taken the opportunity to de-clutter. Every move is a downsizing, but in this round, I've gotten ruthless in culling out useless stuff.T he tv has been sitting in the closet for a year and a half, so I'm selling it. I get news from the Internet and other sources, so I have no use for a tv. I haven't watched since May of 2013.

I've been on tv "fasts" before and find I get so much writing and creative stuff done when there isn't a tv in my life.  I borrow books, CDs, and movies from the library three blocks away and that suits me fine.

Winter's coming - embrace the darkness!