Among the things I love about Sonoma County are the abundance of goats and the willingness of folks to let me photograph them. Continue reading
Author: tara
Septic Stop, Permaculture, and a Bird’s Nest
Hey Friends and Followers,
We’ve been a bit quiet lately, as far as this blog goes, and we don’t have a ton of progress to report on the house. It turns out that we have an issue relating to our septic system planning, that, until sorted out, brings us to a full stop. It’s not clear at this time just how long it will take to resolve, so we’re hanging in there and doing what we can to move things along. Continue reading
Goodbye Charlie
One of my regular routines here at the ranch has been to check on Charlie the Spider and see what she is up to. Most of the time she is not up to anything (other than waiting for something to fly into her web), but all the same, I have found it oddly reassuring to see her in her spot each day, doing her spider thing.
Interview with an Architect
In this, the next installment of our interview series, we’re super excited to be able to talk with Graham Irwin. Graham was one of the first Passive House Consultants certified in the US, as well as a founding board member of Passive House California and the Passive House Alliance, US (PHAUS). He was subsequently trained by the Passivhaus Institut in Darmstadt, Germany as a Passive House project certifier.
Current Events, and I made a GIF
First, a quick note about some upcoming events that may be of interest:
Passive house construction guru Terry Nordbye, a key member of team Gimpy Dog, is speaking about innovative air sealing techniques at the October 25 meeting of Passive House California. It should be really interesting and we’re looking forward to going – more details are here.
Interview with a Spider
Today, in the first installment of our “interview with” series, we’ll be speaking to Charlie, a spider who lives on our porch. Continue reading
Holes!
I am very pleased to announce that the first round of exploratory digging has been completed here at Gimpy Dog Ranch.
Did you think we forgot about holes, and the digging of holes, and the resulting piles that come from the digging of holes? We did not. We had holes, and so much more. There was a ladder, and there was effluent, there was a surprise water heater, and a visit from our neighbor. There was even some septic related education. It was truly an exciting day. Continue reading
220 Pounds of Ivy, and Charlie catches a Wasp
There is a lot of ivy around here, and we are determined to remove it all.
Well, we may both be determined to remove it, but Andy is the one who has been taking action on the issue. In the last week or so, Andy has been removing the ivy from around the fence that surrounds the “yard”, one section at a time.
Where the Wild Things Are
Home decor in the ’70s was a wondrous time of paisley, popcorn ceilings, shag rugs and fearless color combinations. As you may have noticed in the “Interior Before Shots”, we have some fine examples of that ’70s era decorative goodness right here at the ranch.
It would be a shame to let all of that visual history go to waste, so I have been working on a photography project to preserve – at least in images – the various colors, patterns, and textures in the house, before the time comes for demolition. Continue reading
Call Before You Dig
Another week in review, and lets just get this out right at the start – there is no digging to report. I know! I just have to stop promising such exciting developments when there are uncertainties in life. Continue reading
the gimpy dog ranch 