Life's Little Detour

To say that my life has changed since my last post would be an understatement.  Sometimes, even the best laid plans just don't pan out quite like you hoped they would.  I do not regret contributing to the homestead that Adam now has sole ownership of.  I really hope that it serves him well for as long as he chooses to live there.  I will miss the compost heap and the giant clothesline.  All the fresh produce from the garden and the private backyard.  Those things all made living green so much easier to do.  But just because it isn't as easy to do anymore, doesn't mean that I'm throwing in the towel.  

I am now renting a townhome.  I picked it in part because it has a little fenced patio area that is visually private (it faces the parking lot so it isn't particularly quiet or peaceful). 

I want to incorporate composting, gardening, airdrying clothes, and recycling into my new lifestyle.  Obviously these are all things I've done before, but this time it will be done from the perspective of a renter in a rather strict HOA community.  There will be hurtles to jump but being earth friendly is important enough to me that it is worth whatever aggravation I have to endure.

I already have a few herbs growing but I will be adding a cherry tomato plant or two and more herbs soon.  They all grow nicely in pots so they are great options for people to grow when they can't augment the property they live on.  As you can see in the photo, there is a lot of light in the morning.  From about 8AM-2PM the sun shines warm and bright into the patio area.  Having the plants in pots is an asset because I can move them if I come to realize certain parts of the patio get more light than others.  It's only been a week now, so I am still learning.

I dabbled with the idea of stringing up a clothes line.  I figured I could just untie the line and wrap it up when I wasn't using it.  After living here I realized the orientation of the patio doesn't really lend itself to having something strung across it.  Instead, I found something like this and it worked surprisingly well!  It isn't meant to hold 100 lbs of wet jeans/sweaters but it worked fine for this single floridian hippie.

That was nearly a whole load of laundry, including a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans.  As you can see I brought the whole thing outside and let the sun do its thing.  My only complaint (and I know this is only because I've been spoiled with an awesome clothesline) is that I had to come rotate stuff in order for both sides of the clothing to dry.  I like this rack overall though, because it folds flat for easy storing and it is so easily portable.  I can keep it inside if the weather is bad on wash day or I can bring it outside to utilize the sunshine.  I will have to re-evaluate when it comes time to wash the quilts.  Stringing a clothes line might be the only option.

So, in this first week of habitation I have two things on my earth friendly to-do list checked off.  Growing something, and sun drying on laundry day.  Stay tuned for my next post:  Waste not, want not.