Whoa that was fast

Just realized its been a while since I've posted anything. I've been homeless for a long time now; but am now feeling the stresses of being broke at the same time. The thing about living a pretty minimalist life is that when you run low on money the only thing to cut back is eating. So, I'm always hungry. Not hungry enough to feel desperate; but hungry enough to appreciate the food I do get to eat. If you want to feel inspired and motivated just cut back how much you eat. It unlocks a weird part of you. You feel passion for life and a certain calmness. A lot of the other stresses in life seem really pointless when you only eat one small meal a day. In other news this is how far we are on our building in school. 

There are more important things in life than feeling comfortable. 

I've been having a pretty frustrating time dealing with things not meeting my expectations. That's more my fault than anyone else's. I spent the day hiking on a remote trail. It felt great to be alone in the woods. I was able to let all stress and frustrations go and let my mind wander. 

Future generation

So my school is holding a natural building extravaganza that started yesterday. A bunch of people will be coming in for the week to learn several natural building techniques. One of the participants is a 13 year old boy who is obsessed with natural building. He has a design and to scale model of the cottage he will start building after this. He is also one of the most knowledgeable students. It's such an inspiration to see young kids actually engaging in trying to change this world. When I was thirteen all I did was skateboard and try to make out with girls. I wasn't half as good at those things as this kid is to building. 

Urban camouflage.

I just had a quick interaction that I thought would be funny to post. I have this idea of urban camouflage where I hide my homelessness through my appearance. Well I was shaving my face hanging out the side of van when some redneck looking guy drives by and gives me some weirded out look. I nodded at him and said "what up brother?" He smiled and nodded back. 

A great lesson in urban camouflage is know your audience. 

A goal without an action plan is just a day dream

Finally a new post. My computer is having issues so I'm posting from my phone. 

My transfer for work has gone through so Ill be living full time in Asheville now. With this exciting news I've become extra motivated to re-design my van. I'm currently living in 24 square feet (take that Jay Shafer) of van that includes a rickety loft bed, a cheap plastic dresser, and a 5 gallon bucket of books. My new design will be built a lot stronger and look a lot less white trash. I've also become quite motivated to get back into fighting shape ( although I don't think I'll be training in Asheville). 

Trying to make everyday my proudest day. LIFE RULES!

This is my life

I'm finally going after my dreams. Its been three weeks in Asheville studying natural building. I can honestly say I've never been happier. We've worked on the design of a cob hut, put down the first layer of cob, and have began the design process of a post and beam structure. It's such a surreal feeling to be here. Natural building is something I've researched and have been obsessed with for years. I'm surrounded by beauty and wonderful people. I'm not even the only person who is intentionally homeless. I'm so excited to be building the knowledge to build the house I've been dreaming of. For those who don't know about natural building; there are several types of natural buildings. Cob, which is made from sand, clay, and straw and then is slopped onto the foundation and built up as one monolithic structure, is my favorite type of natural building for a number of reasons. Strawbale houses which, you guessed it, are built out of strawbales are probably my second favorite. Here are some of my favorite examples: 

Cob House: (This was done by one of my instructors)

 

 Strawbale house: