The House in Cabot

We went to check out the progress of Dahe and Brook's house today. Holy crap, that boy has been working hard! Sorry, I forgot to take any pictures of the inside. But they're living in it and Dahe has basically built the entire thing all by himself. Jake came and helped him frame for three days, but other than that, Netdahe's done it all. The interior walls are framed so there is now a bedroom, a bathroom, some storage space for his solar batteries and an open area with the woodstove that will eventually also include another bedroom. Next year he'll build the second floor which will be a big open space with a low-ceilinged loft bedroom with a very small half-bathroom. It's impressive and what kills me is not only has he worked his ass off, but he's clearly happy and really enjoying himself with the work. Anything he didn't know how to do he researched in books written before 1975 or by calling friends and acquaintances to ask questions and advice. No internet research for this kid. They're off the grid and will soon be in need of a gas refrigerator and snow blower if anyone has any leads.

Here's a picture of the house as you come up the driveway.













I'm looking forward to being a guest in the shack Netdahe's been living in for the last year or two (even in the winter), which will soon serve as a guest room. It's an awfully sweet little shack. I just love it. It's warm and cozy and there are lots of things to look at. I imagine that if you didn't know Dahe at all and walked into the place, you would quickly have a pretty accurate and oddly thorough sense of who he is. We were sitting in there today talking and I just had to take this picture of my redneck, hickster, dear cousin who I so admire.

















On an unrelated note, last night the kids and I were entertained as Neil caught moths and fed them to the spiders on our front porch. They were beautiful to watch, but didn't photograph as well as I hoped. Here's one: