Dear Readers,
Please join me in welcoming Abby Holt! Our first guest writer on Sustaining Tree, Abby is the creator of Craftability~ a website made to inspire readers to put their own crafting abilities to good use, whether it’s painting, jewelry-making, quilting, or calligraphy.
Dear Readers,
I would like to introduce you to a residential wind turbine manufacturer located right in Lebanon, Pennsylvania: Harmony Turbines. Christopher Moore and his wife, Cheryl, are in the research and development phase of bringing these pieces of art (and means of energy generation…) right to everyday homeowners.
The revolutionary aspect of these turbines is that they have the potential to generate electricity in both low and high wind speeds.
In the videos above, you are watching them spin in only 4-6 mph winds (with occasional gusts of 13). If you look closely in the videos, you will notice that neither of these turbines are currently hooked up to a generator. That’s because Moore could not find a generator on today’s market which enables Harmony turbines to spin this fast in only 4 to 6 mph winds. All the generators Moore has tried, only slow the turbines down. So, Moore is now developing his own generator complimentary to the turbines.
Not only are these turbines being perfected to generate electricity at low wind speeds, they are also designed to continue generating energy in high wind speeds.
Dear Readers,
The title of this blog makes me chuckle…our whole house is one large problem. And the reason we are trying to build it, is to solve environmental and social problems. We are facing a problem, so to conquer another problem. Problems, problems, problems. The funny thing about it, is that the more William and I say the word “problem” to one another, the less it sounds like an actual word, and more like something that is just there. And we need to have fun navigating it.
Ready? Try it with me: Problem. Problem. Problem. Problem. Problem. Problem. Problem. Problem.
And now that you have thoroughly realized that you have wasted your time repeating something that initially invokes large amounts of stress…and in reality, it is just a ‘problem,’ we take a deeeeeeeeepppppp breattthhhhh….
….and we move forward.
So! What are William and I’s problems? More specifically, what are the large problems we need to solve before we begin to build The Seed? Well, large problems that don’t include funding…that’s a whole other problem on its own. Problems. Ten of them, for now, to be exact.
Dear Readers,
First came place, then came water. Now, comes energy…dun, dun, dun! The Energy Petal is the third of the seven petals for the Living Building Challenge.
Ha! I was going to say that we have high hopes for this one…but we have high hopes for the Water Petal and the Petal of Place, too. There are just way too many high hopes floating around this joint! But. If you are willing to stick with us (whether you are amused or annoyed by our ideas…), then William and I would be most honored to share our highness of hope with you!
To refresh your memory, here is a chart with all seven petals and their imperatives. In this blog, we are going to be focusing on Energy!
Dear Readers,
Alligators! Cottonmouths! Sharks! Oh my!!
Our honeymoon 3.0 (celebrating our two year anniversary!) was certainly filled with all three…all thanks to the beautiful, nature-loving, audacious and adventurous, Farren (oh, and her fellow partner in wildlife and everyday life endeavors, Tom!). The two of them introduced William and I to the gulf of Alabama in a bold and very real way. Within an hour of being there, I already had a full-out biology lesson on seashells and their former inhabitants…especially about who eats who…I never knew snails were responsible for that lil’ perfectly formed hole you sometimes see on small seashells (which I always thought was just a convenience for making seashell jewelry)…they just drill their little snail tongues right on in there and suck up the insides…
Beyond the seashells, Farren and Tom, both working for the environmental integrity of Gulf Shores, Alabama, took us on many adventures. We went on excursions through the park and conservation areas, unintentional swims with blacktip sharks, alligator sightings, and a personal tour of a real-life Living Building Challenge certified building: Alabama’s Gulf State Park Interpretive Center…