The trailer has been doing wonderfully for us in this tight stretch. I've managed to rig a few temporary fixes to allow us to make do with what we have until we get caught up. We've got a wonderful spot on the alley, off the street, and hidden behind the old shed in the back yard. There is space around the rig, enough to even build a small yard at some point. (Work has been humbly super busy, so my time to work on house projects has been minimal.) We've only had to make some minimal improvements for it to be relatively comfortable, save on the days of 90 degree heat.
Our improvements so far have included ripping out the bench seat by the door and covering the hole in the carpet with a simple throw rug. It took a few hours, but it wasn't too difficult. I also found a bookshelf up for grabs and placed it above the wheel well where we're storing towels and Half-Pint's toys. Our safe with what the Lady calls "our life" (important paperwork) goes in front of that and doubles as a seat, stool, or short table.
We've also installed a few tarps we had outside, creating an awning-like cover of our little patio between the trailer and the shed. It's tight, but it's cooler out there than it is in the trailer on the hot summer evenings before the sun goes down. We've hung colored lights underneath them and I built a make-shift table from an old, rusty, angle-iron frame to a shop bench and an old door that fell off the shed years ago. On it, I have a citronella candle (damn mosquitos are no joke this year, thank you wet-ass July), and two big 7 gallon jugs of water.
We have electricity piped in from the shed, which powers our radio, lights, clocks, and phone chargers, as well as the swamp cooler and small area heater for the chilly mornings. When it was really cold, I picked up one of those small, propane Buddy heaters, and that thing is fantastic. Can't imagine staying in a cabin in the winter without one now.
My Brother ripped up a super long pallet at work, and I put it in there as a ladder from the first floor to the top bunk for The Boy when he was down this summer. He stayed up there and loved having his own space, his own windows, and a ladder to climb to bed (even though his sister climbed it more often).
Since we have no sewage system, I tore out the toilet that was bolted to the floor and piped out of the trailer and replaced it with a simple porta-potty. My dad had one of these that he'd take everywhere we went camping or road-tripping, and it's awesome. Easy to move around, easy to drain, and easy to clean. Doesn't smell bad, either, unless it gets too full (because The Boy is 5), The gray water goes outside and falls through a rock & sand trap before flowing down a gravel bed toward what will be a flower bed. Honestly, though, our water consumption isn't enough that it's even gotten down to the end of the ditch yet.
For showers, we're borrowing our neighbors (thanks Mom and Dad) for the time being, although the super redneck part of me is going to try to hook up an electric 42-cup coffee pot to the roof and mount a simple gravity-fed hose to the shower to be fully functional with very minimal cost.
At any rate, there's a bunch more going on, but I'll have to get back to you next week. Be well. Do good work. Keep in touch.
-Solitary T
We are super busy this fall, humble and fortunate for the opportunities this community has given us. So many people are in need of our services, and we're honored to help!
You know, when you need a diversion from staring at a computer monitor for hours and hours, this view out the front door is pretty damn good.
