Time for Some Home Improvements

I've been living in a 12' x 14' canvas wall tent for 2 1/2 years now, and I love it. I live alone, which has some practical advantages. For example, I've been able to fully explore extreme simplicity with no constraints. I'd use my own personal values as my only guide, with no need to compromise or accommodate anyone else's needs. I'd come upon a problem, pick a solution that made me happy, and that was that.

As a result, I've simplified my lifestyle to my full satisfaction. I've eliminated most modern day comforts from my home like electricity, running water, indoor plumbing, refrigeration, and central heat and air, and I don't miss any of them. I light with oil lamps, carry in water, use a bucket for my toilet, heat with wood, and forgo air conditioning altogether. But throughout this entire experiment, I've only been concerned with myself. And now that I've found my own personal balance, and have experienced the incredible contentment that comes from living this way, I naturally want to spread the good news and share my lifestyle with others. And so I have. I've shared the details of tent living with many people from many different walks of life, and each time I have, I've gotten nearly the same reactions. On the one hand, nearly everyone appreciates my simple, stress-free way of living and wishes that they, too, could simplify their lives. But time and again, they stop short of changing anything in their own lives. And time and again, I hear the same concerns.

Here's a countdown of the top 10 reasons why most people would never explore my style of living:

10. It's just too crazy. Tent living is just too far out there for most people.

9. No electric lighting. Most people want to just flip a light switch and don't like the idea of dealing with candles and oil lamps full-time.

8. No air conditioning. Unlike Winter extremes, which can be controlled with a wood stove, the extreme heat of Summer is quite uncomfortable.

7. No central heat. Although I have a wood stove and am very comfortable in Winter, most people don't want the bother, mess and inconvenience of heating with wood.

6. No electronic entertainment. No TV, no Internet, and no stereo system. Most people believe they would be bored.

5. No refrigeration. That means no convenient leftovers waiting in the frig, and no cold beer in Summer.

6. It's no way to raise children. Many young families with children find my lifestyle completely impractical.

3. Not enough space. My entire home is around 170 square-feet, while in the US, the average per capita residential square footage is over 800.

2. No running water. Especially no running hot water, which means no bubble baths and no hot showers.

1. No flush toilet. This, by far, is the biggest concerns. My tent toilet consists of a bucket of sawdust, and almost nobody is okay with that.

It's also hard to entertain more than a few close friends at my place, especially in Winter when my living space is shutdown. And I can't really accommodate overnight guests.

So I'd like to extend my home to include the following:

• Better toilet facilities. I'm still trying to avoid a flush toilet, but I want to greatly improve my current setup.
• Guest bedroom. I really miss being able to invite guests over for a comfortable overnight stay.
• Room to entertain. I'd like to have eight or ten people over for dinner and drinks, even during the Winter.

My current thinking is to setup another tent to be used as a guest tent, build an outdoor bathroom, and improve my outdoor living space.