Searching for Land

As I mentioned in an earlier post about land, I don't own land, nor do I want to at this point in my life. But I still need a place to setup my tent, and that means renting a spot from a landowner.

I've lived at my current location in Brandy Station for a year-and-a-half now, and I'm getting the itch to move. I want a place that's more secluded, with more wildlife, and a stream or river.

Yesterday, I ran a Craigslist ad:

WANTED: Land to Lease for Off-grid Living (Culpeper County)

Do you own land in Culpeper County, or know someone who does? Do you believe in the benefits of living a simple lifestyle, close to nature? If so, then please read on.

Hi, my name is Dave. I live in a canvas wall tent. I live close to nature and off the grid. I'm 55 years old and have a full-time job that pays well so I don't *need* to live this way. I *want* to live this way.

My current lifestyle started about two years ago as a sort of experiment and is still going strong! You can read all about it at: <link to this blog>

Up until now, I've been staying on about 30 acres. But lately I've been wanting to go deeper into nature. And that's where I need your help.

I'm looking for secluded land in Culpeper County with a stream or river. I'd like a place where I could stay for a year or two. I'm completely self-sufficient and enjoy spending my evenings in solitude.

If you're a landowner, I'll pay you $100/month for the privilege of staying on your land. If you know a landowner that might be interested, I'll pay you $100 for the referral, if things work out.

If you are interested in what I'm doing and have ideas to help me in my quest, then please call me.

Within 24 hours I got over 20 hits on my blog from this ad, so the word is getting out. But how many people need to see the ad before I get results? Hmm

Well, I posted the ad under "real estate wanted", so I'm thinking that a lot of people searching that category already own real estate. And of all the property owners in this area of Virginia, maybe 5% own the type of property I'm looking for. Of those, maybe only 10% are open minded enough to consider letting me stay there. And of those, maybe half will be in a position to offer me occupancy.

And on my side, I'd like to be a little picky. I don't want to settle for the first property that comes along. I'd rather have a few to select from. And I want to be sure that I'll get along with the owners, too. So what would it take to find, let's say, five potential properties? I'm thinking it may take a couple thousand people to see my ad!

But then again, if I already got 20 hits to my blog in 24 hours, does that mean that those 20 people are interested in what I'm doing (the "open minded" segment?) And since I'm offering a $100 referral, might they help me find land, even if they themselves don't own a suitable place? Maybe. At least a few of them might, maybe one or two a day.

So I'm going to let this advertising experiment run for awhile and see what happens.

Fun with Propane

When it comes to controlling temperatures in the tent, there are three season: the Hot Season (Summer), the Cold Season (Winter), and the Damn-It's-Cold-In-The-Morning Season (Spring and Autumn). Spring and Autumn in Virginia can bring morning temperatures down to the 40s. That's still too warm to light up the wood stove, but it's uncomfortably cool when you crawl out of bed in the morning. So from September through November, and again in the Spring, I need some sort of space heater to warm things up.

Last year, I used a kerosene heater to drive out the morning chill. It worked well, but it gave off a lot of fumes when it was first lit so I had to light it outdoors and let it burn for awhile before bringing it into the tent. That made for some uncomfortable mornings since I had to jump out of bed and walk around the cold tent for awhile, dealing with the kerosene heater. And kerosene gives off a lot of fumes, which never really bothered me but seemed to bother some of my friends.

So this year, I replaced my kerosene heater with a propane tank-top heater. I use a Mr. Heater MH15T tank-top heater. It attaches directly to a 20 lbs propane tank and gives off about 15K BTUs. That's a bit less the the 22K BTUs I got from the kerosene heater but it should still do the job. I used a BTU calculator to figure the difference. For a 12' x 14' "poorly insulated room", 15K BTUs will raise the temperature about 30 degrees (compared to 45 degrees for 22K BTUs). That will get me into December, when the temperatures drop down to the 30s and I can finally install the wood stove.

Mr. Heater MH15T tank-top propane heater

A few nights ago, I lit the propane heater for the first time. I brought a new, full propane tank into the tent and attached the heater. Propane tanks have left-hand threads so I struggled a bit getting the heater attached. I'd screw in the connector a few turns, but then it would start to feel like it was cross-threading so I'd take it out and try again. When I finally did get it connected, it still didn't seem quite right, but I thought, "Well, I guess that's just how it connects" (Mistake #1).

It was late in the evening and the temperatures were dropping quickly so I was anxious to fire up the new heater and get things nice and cozy! I opened the tank valve, opened the heater valve, and placed a lighter in front of the heating element. I lit the lighter first, then pushed the safety plunger in to let the gas flow. That's really important because propane is very flammable, so you should always have the ignition flame lit first before turning on the gas! Otherwise, gas can accumulate while you're struggling to light the match or lighter and...Whoof!

As soon as I pushed the safety plunger, gas began to flow to the element and, with my lighter in place, the element lit right up! Nice! I held the plunger in for a few more seconds while the thermal coupler came up to temperature, then let go. Done! A lovely orange glow spread across the element as it hit its stride and began warming up the tent. "Oh, nice", I thought, "this is gonna be great! Propane is so much easier and quicker and cleaner than kerosene."

(And so much more volatile!)

I sat back on my knees on the floor next to the heater and smiled, enjoying the warmth. And it was right about then that I smelled something. Gas. Hmm. Must be a bit of gas escaped from the element while I was lighting it (Mistake #2). Then I remembered the difficulty I had connecting the heater to the tank. Could there be a leak around the connection?

Okay, let's pause for a moment to talk about gas safety. Here's the procedure for checking for a gas leak:

• Step 1. Turn off the gas
• Step 2. Make sure you are in a well ventilated area
• Step 3. Make sure there are no open flames in the area
• Step 4. Pressurize the system (in my case, open the tank valve)
• Step 5. Wet down the suspected parts with a soap solution

Even the smallest of leaks will cause bubbles. Once you find the leak, turn off the gas, fix the leak, and repeat the process to be doubly sure that the leak is gone. Easy, right? And safe, too!

And what you never, ever, ever do is check for leaks using a lighter!


Now, back to the story...



"Hmm, maybe there is a leak around that connection", I thought. But I figured it would have to be a small one (Mistake #3). I still had my lighter in my hand, so I put it next to the connection (No! Mistake #4!) and lit it (oops...that was definitely a mistake!)

Poh...Whrroof!!!

I felt the pain first in my right hand, which was holding the lighter and took a direct hit from the fire ball. Then, I realized my bare feet had been burned, too, due to the large "puddle" of gas that had accumulated around the tank. And the pain continued up both legs to my knees, which is apparently how far the gas had travelled up my pant legs.

Fortunately, they were only first-degree burns, which was good because I didn't really have time to think about the pain. Instead, I had to deal with the propane tank which now had eight-inch flames shooting out around the heater connection. My first instincts were to quickly reach into the flames and shut off the main valve. I did that three or four time, getting in a half-turn on the valve each time I darted my hand in and out. After about the fourth attempt, I realized that I was getting some pretty good burns on the back of my right hand. I paused for a moment, thinking about how I could protect my hand, but then worrying about the flames dancing around the top of the tank, I reached in one more time for a quick turn of the valve. And on that turn, the flames finally reduced a bit. One more quick turn, and the valve was closed. I escaped with only minor burns.

Once the flames were out, I closed the valve good and tight and set the contraption outdoors for the night. The next day, I removed the heater from the tank and looked inside the tank valve. The rubberized o-ring that was normally in place around the check valve was completely missing. I suspected that the tank had been shipped that way. Without that o-ring, gas would have been streaming past the heater connection.

Yeah, I really love my new propane heater! So much nicer than kerosene!

The Meaning of Life

"What is the meaning of life?" That's quite a question. It's intriguing, but something inside me says it's a trick question. I think the word "meaning" gives me problems. What is the meaning of "meaning"? Hmm, now that's a good question!

I don't particularly like the "meaning of life" question, but for some reason I just couldn't leave it alone. I had to explore it a bit further so I Googled it and got some ideas:

• To realize your potential
• To live as long as possible
• To seek wisdom and knowledge
• To do good
• To follow God
• To love
• To enjoy
• To be rich or powerful
• To be happy
• Life has no meaning
• Life is miserable

Okay, that's not a bad list. Let's work with that.

 

I'll discard the last two, "Life has no meaning" and "Life is miserable". There might be some truth there, but I don't feel like going in those directions (and hey, it's my search so I get to pick my direction).

 

The remaining ideas are all pretty appealing, which makes we want to just pick them all. But such a profound question deserves an equally profound answer. Something simple and elegant. So I'll try to cook those initial ideas down into a single nugget of truth. First, I'll try to categorize them:

 

Behaviors

• To seek wisdom and knowledge
• To do good
• To follow God
• To love

Objectives

• To realize your potential
• To live as long as possible
• To enjoy
• To be rich or powerful
• To be happy

I'm naturally drawn to the Behaviors. I guess I'm looking for answers that help me on a daily basis. Some of the other ideas are good, too, but a few just make me want to ask, "Why?" Why be rich and powerful? Or seek wisdom and knowledge? Or realize my potential?

I suppose one common thread there is that we should try to "be all that we can be". But again, why? I think it's about life being precious, and, so far as we know, about having only one life to live. Okay, I like that message. It also ties in with the "live as long as possible" idea.

Another common thread is that these ideas are means to an end. But what is the end? What do I get for being rich and powerful? Or for seeking wisdom and knowledge? I think the answers here are about being happy, or enjoying life more, things like that (which, by the way, are already on the list).

Then there's the notion of living for yourself (enjoy, be happy, and so on) and living for others (do good, love, follow God, things like that). I see the value in both, so the truth about life must incorporate those ideas, too.

So is that profound nugget of truth beginning to appear yet? So far it's something like, "Life is precious, so live for yourself and live for others". Hmm. There's something there that I really like, but it's just too cryptic to be very useful. Let me try another approach.

The "life is precious" portion is the easy part for me since I've already spent a lot of time pondering that idea and have concluded that I should appreciate each and every moment. Life is like a road trip. When you're born, you get into your vehicle and start your journey. Our lives are filled with ups and downs, adventure and routine, happiness and sadness, love and loss. All of these things, the good as well as the bad, are the gifts of life. So appreciate what's going on around you each moment. If you spend too much time thinking about where you'll be tomorrow, or thinking about how far you've already come, then you'll miss the moment you're in right now! Just pay attention, and savor each moment as it passes by.

Okay, great, stay in the moment. Now, what about all of that "enjoy" and "be happy" stuff? And the "live for others" part? What is it we're supposed to be doing in our moments?

Well, it doesn't make sense that we can enjoy and be happy in each moment, because some moments are full of pain and suffering and loss. So there will be sad times, too. But even in those moments, I think life can be rich and full. And certainly we can help others along the way by being loving and compassionate and good.

So is that it? Is the meaning of life something like, "Cherish each moment, and help others"?

Yes, I think maybe it is. I like that. I think I'll stop there.

So what does any of this have to do with tent living? Perhaps nothing at all. Perhaps everything. (But that's another post.)

Home Maintenance

When I lived in a conventional house, I used to spend my weekends working my "to do" list. (Yes, I actually had a "to do" list!) I spent much of my Saturdays and Sundays fixing leaky faucets, repairing broken windows, clearing clogged drains, mowing the grass, cleaning gutters, painting, stuff like that. Then there were those big items on the list that I'd look at and think about, but then find some reason not to do. Like cleaning the garage, or clearing brush, or repairing a broken downspout. Bigger tasks that had to get done someday but could be put off.

As soon as I'd check a few items off the list, more would appear. The dishwasher would break, or the roof would start leaking, or the deck would need repair. It was endless, and I never got ride of my "to do" list.

Until I moved into a tent.

Now, I don't have a lawn. I don't have major appliances. I don't have faucets or plumbing. I don't have anything that requires painting. I do have a door, but no windows or screens. I don't even have a roof (well, I have a tarp, so I suppose that's a roof). And best of all, I don't have a "to do" list! Or maybe I have an empty "to do" list, which is even better!

Home maintenance is an ongoing struggle against Nature. An unmaintained house left to the elements will eventually deteriorate into dust. It's the result of the fundamental relationship between Nature and Life. Nature want to break down, Life wants to build. Nature wants to disintegrate, Life wants to integrate. And so it is with our own bodies, and so it is with all that we construct, including our houses. Without Life, all that we are and all that we have ever created becomes, at some point in time, dust.

To enter into home ownership is therefore to enter into this struggle against Nature. So I don't fight Nature much anymore. Instead, I try to enjoy it and live humbly within its rules. I don't swim upstream, fighting the current. I let go, and go with the flow.

But even my humble tent must be maintained, as all man-made objects must. The rain fly is by far my biggest maintenance item. The tarp has to be replaced every few years at a cost of around $400 and a few hours work. And although I don't try to keep grass from growing and therefore don't mow, I do pull the tall weeds on either side of my path every month or so as they begin to encroach. But that's about it.

Of course, there are still routine chores like fetching water, gathering wood in the winter, cooking, washing dishes, keeping my oil lamps full, emptying my tent toilet, so on. And in fact, I spend a lot of time and effort on these tasks, much more than in a conventional house. But somehow these menial tasks don't bother me. They help remind me that perhaps I'm on the right track, because water is precious and should be used sparingly, and Winter's cold should be respected, and human waste does not just magically disappear with the push of a lever.

Tent living allows me to live in harmony with Nature, and reminds me of the true and direct costs of keeping my body healthy and alive.

Mold and Mildew

It's mildew season again, and this year I'm fighting back! By late-July things get pretty humid in Virginia, and that's means mold and mildew, especially in a canvas tent with a bare plywood floor.

Mildew loves to grow in my tent in July and August. Last year, I just ignored it. I kept thinking that things would dry out on their own and it would go away. But it stayed around until September. I got tired of the musty smell. It was pretty annoying. So this year when the mold started in again, I fought back.

It seems to start under my bed where I store things, so this year I cleared most of my stuff out from under there and soaked the plywood floor with Tilex. And even though my tent was mildew treated at the factory, I still spray the inside with Lysol about once a week.

That seems to do the trick. The musty smell is gone. It's unfortunately that I can't store much under my bed because that was a great place to stash stuff, but that's okay. It has to breath under there.

Going Home

I live in two worlds. From 9am to 5pm, Monday through Friday, I live a typical modern lifestyle, interacting primarily with 21st century humans in an air conditioned, high-tech corporate facility. But when I go home, I live with the birds and trees and insects and grass and deer and other life forms that surround my home.

Over the past year, I've grown more and more comfortable at my place. I really feel at home there now, and I think I've finally been welcomed into the neighborhood. I don't fight with the insects like I used to when I first moved in. And I'm getting to know the habits of the birds around me. I know where the deer live, too. I've visited their beds when they were out for the day, and smiled to myself thinking about how each of them picked out their own little spot to rest.

Over the past several generations, we modern human have progressively separated ourselves from all the other life on this planet. I don't think that we intentionally set out to do that, but that's where we find ourselves nonetheless. We've placed ourselves so far away from other life forms that one might conclude that we are indeed something unique, something really different. But we're not.

A plant cell (left) and an animal cell (right).
All plants and animals, from humans to insects to a blade of grass,
are nearly indistinguishable if you look close enough.

The rest of life on this planet is still there, like it always has been, waiting for us to come back home. We've been gone for a long while now, so it takes some time to get reacquainted, but I think the feeling of belonging that comes from living close to nature is well worth the effort of going back home and getting to know our cousins again.

Staying Cool in the Summer

It's mid-July and it's getting hot in Virginia. July and August are the most uncomfortable months to live in the woods. It's hot and humid. Spring and Autumn are easy, and even on the coldest Winter nights my wood stove keeps me comfortable, but in the dead of Summer there's just no escaping the heat.

So how do I stay cool? I don't. I sweat a lot. But I've acclimated, too, so 90 degrees in the shade feels pretty comfortable now. I spend a lot of time in my living room laying on the hammock or swinging in the shade, sipping a cold beer, wearing just a pair of shorts.

At night just before bed, I take a pot of cool water outside with me and bathe. I go through a lot of water in the Summer but it's well worth it.

Being uncomfortably hot in the Summer is the price one pays for living close to nature. But I'm in good company. All the creatures that I live with are struggling to stay cool, too. Seeking shelter from the mid-day Sun. Sitting quietly, waiting for the cool evening to arrive. It's all part of Summer.