Reflections

 This was a mighty project, and a mighty project to put down into a report like this. I quickly became aware that I hadn't been documenting my process very well until the last few months when I began a Facebook page for the house, Pay It Forward Farm (purchasing a smart phone certainly made taking photos easier). 

On the other hand, the beautiful irony is that today, June 1st 2014, the due date for this report, I have my first two interns arriving. This serves as a closing, though the project will never be finished. There are still pieces of sheetrock with to do lists written on them. There is no downstairs bathroom. My faucet leaks. 

Reading the comments from my visitors proves that I have succeeded in this project. I have taught others the complexities of home ownership and renovation. I have provided examples of both green technology and back-to-basics living.

What would I do differently next time? Absolutely nothing. Every valuable thing I harnessed from this project came from acting blindly, whimsically, expensively. I honestly cannot think of any "failures"--each one was fixed only by changing my mindset. Like the time I tried to sell a toilet from my front yard and someone stole just the top of it (while I was here, nonetheless). I just decided the person needed the top and used the toilet as a urine collector. Or the time I sump-pumped all the water out of my open well in the basement because of the moisture problems and filled it with concrete, only to discover that ground pressure water is quite powerful. The well filled right back up, and so I gave up. By doing so, I allowed a space for creativity. I needed to accept that this well was going to stay. I had just begun learning about Permaculture, and my favorite saying had quickly become "Within the Problem Lies the Solution." From this positive viewpoint, my well problem turned into a benefit: Why would I ruin this source of fresh water that requires no energy to deliver to my home?

So many learnings, and so many more to be had. This report even taught me how to be a more effective documentor. I created the Ethical Home Decision Making worksheet because I regretted not being organized with my research and filing the elements I had chosen or the reasons why.

I hope the tools I provided are useful to others. I'm excited to have this document for me and my visitors, my friends and family and volunteers, as well as future owners of the home. It is quickly becoming history. Now that the walls are painted and the beds are untidy and the dishes are drying in the rack, it's almost impossible to picture the studs, the veiny wiring and green insulation. It is no longer just a house, it's my home.