I did not publish a 2015 goals page and I really did not like the results! While I did get a lot of things done with Mom’s help in 2015. I felt as if I was behind the power curve or like I was always behind by 2-4 weeks in getting stuff done. I have learned that keeping a mental checklist does not work for me. I do much better putting stuff down “in writing” and then checking each job/task off, even if I completely miss getting something done. I learn about what I can accomplish.
- Fix the wood pile roof: The entire roof of the wood stacking area needs to be torn down and re- done so I can stack wood easily and the wood can dry without sending water into my neighbor’s yard creating mud for them. I don’t really know how much stacked wood I need to have on hand during an average winter but I should have a good idea by about February. I want to use 2x4s and some brackets I saw at True Value to create a wood rick that holds a “true” cord of wood and have space to run the little garden wagon along side the wood pile for easy loading.
- Add gutters and a rain barrel/cistern to catch the rain off shop roof area. I’d like to add a solar pump or build a gravity fed system.
- Finish up the kitchen: Replace lighting fixtures, add a ceiling fan and finish up the kitchen ceiling. I need to have a professional square away the wiring to reduce any electrical fire risk as some of the wire runs make me a bit nervous. I want to get a smaller 18 inch wide dishwasher and move the fridge so that I have a “galley kitchen” and a place for a kitchen pantry and a small kitchen table. I would love to replace some of the lower kitchen cabinets that use available space poorly, and I’m not fond of the Formica type counter tops. No, I’m not going for any trendy granite stuff I want Butcher block and perhaps a small chunk of marble for making baked goods.
- Make a “Food Forest” in my yard to take advantage of all the yard’s little Micro-climates and get more equipment for growing vertical and installing a couple of greenhouses to extend the growing season.
- A new roof for the house: This will be tough to pull off without taking out a loan. I figure about $6000 will be the bid and that is about a third of my total yearly income. Pretty tough to pay cash for that project, so I will probably need to take out a loan. I want to add a couple of “solartubes” for natural lighting some darker areas of the house. Nampa city has a 1% loan available for home improvement that I will check out in 2016.
- Start my own pet bill saving plan: Critters never pick a good time to be sick, so I want to create a cash savings plan dedicated to basic upkeep of all critters and a little OMG money for any large vet bills over a few hundred dollars. So far we have been pretty lucky with the older animals but I have had to dip into my little emergency fund just to pay the vet bills of the older dogs.
- Attach a hitch to the mini-van and get a small cargo trailer that will handle trash runs, moving appliances or getting a bit of wood from the orchards around here.
- Get the RV licensed and do a couple of local (120 mile) camping trips. Test out all of my camping equipment, setup and effectiveness.
- Using the Trike more for shopping trips and learning all the bike paths to get around Nampa/Caldwell area.
- Melt more beeswax, make more medicinal salves and make enough beer and mead to store for barter and not just for personal consumption. Start making my own soaps on a regular basis.
That list consist of mostly do-able goals but I shall have to reach for a few of them.
Get a small farm/ranch in Owyhee county with Mom.
Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, Or what’s a heaven for? Robert Browning
My Adventures in selfreliance 