Tuesday
Today is my “pack-up” day.
I put away everything that I will not need from my kitchen into the plastic tote boxes in the gazebo. Tomorrow, I will put the stove in the back of the Escape with the generator. I put away all my tools under the shed, and packed up any loose clothes. I watered everything one last time.
I have organized all my lumber (2 x 4 x 8, 2 x 6 x 8, 1 x 6 x 6 cedar fence boards) over at the Ahi lot and hauled two single mattresses over there. I put these on the pile of lumber under the gazebo and covered it all with a tarp, tying it up with ropes. hopefully, this will deter any thefts and keep out some of the rain.
I hauled the generator and the cement mixer back to the Holowai lot. I put the mixer at the back of the driveway with the table saw and covered them both with a large, heavy tarp; again tying it all up with ropes to keep out the rain and deter thefts. I will put the generator in the back of the Ford Escape.
I made one last trip down to the shore to say goodby to the ocean. While I was there, I saw an area on a side road where someone had dug up the dirt on the side of the road with a tractor; it looked like they had scooped out a few scoops to take somewhere else. I had some empty buckets with me, so I filled these with loose dirt to use in my planter boxes. I have picked up eight old used tires that were discarded along the side of the road, and used these as planters; filling them with mulch, leaves, and what dirt I can find. I grew some potatoes in one of these tires. I took the old soft potatoes that have sprouted and put them into the mulch in the tire. Potato plants came up and grew to about 2 and a half feet tall over the course of a couple of months. When I pulled out the plants, I found that I had grown baby potatoes in the roots. I also planted some turnip seeds and actually grew one turnip! I put three tires one on top of the other and I dump the stuff from the composting toilet into here along with some cardboard, grass, leaves, etc. I think that if this all sits in these tires for six months to a year, it will break down all the pathogens and turn it into some good mulch/fertilizer.
On the trip back to the property from the ocean, I filled up about 30 bottles with water.
I pulled the car into the driveway behind the gates and closed them, using a 1 x 4 screwed down across the top of the two gates to secure them closed.
My suitcases are packed, with the exception of the sheets and pillowcases, which I will pull off the bed in the morning. I have one smaller carry-on size suitcase inside of the full sized one. I will stuff the sheets and pillow cases into this in the morning, and will check this one. I will put some snacks along with my journals and computer and tablet and associated cords into my backpack. Anything I take back to AZ, i will have to bring back later. I just want to give the sheets and pillow cases a good washing in the washing machine at home.
I used some water from my “water heater” (2 liter soda bottles of water set out in the sun on a piece of metal roofing) to take a shower. As it was a bit late in the day, the water was beginning to cool, so my shower was a bit on the brisk side!
I heated a can of spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, then took down the solar panels from the roof of the shed.
For better or for worse, I think I’m ready.
TTFN
TropicalCastaway 