The Garden

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."
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Pluto's Child
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Re: The Garden

Post by Pluto's Child »

Hermit wrote:An Update:

I am now a Postulant of the Order of the Franciscans of the Annunciation. Which means I'm taking the first steps towards realizing a calling I've had for 40 years.

Or alternatively I am about to enter the new world order through an Illuminati back door. You can decide. ;O)
Does that mean we will never here from you again ?

Is there a website about that order you could post a link to ?

I wish you all the best with your new vocation, may you find that which you seek. (speaking as a Catholic who would join an order himself if things were different)
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Eelco
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Re: The Garden

Post by Eelco »

My first vipassana teacher was an amazing 70 year old woman who had been a Clarissan Nun for 24 years before she became a buddhist nun.
Her name is Jotika Hermsen. She recieved the Outstanding Woman in Buddhism Award in 2005.
Anyway just wanted to share that there is a life after being a priest for a while.. :lol: :lol: ;) :oops:

With Love
Eelco
~ “for what it's worth”~
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Hermit
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On Building a Hermitage

Post by Hermit »

https://hermitgardener.com/2016/07/02/o ... hermitage/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Image

Every hermit needs a hermitage.

Recently, my neighbour noticed that the lilacs in the back yard were pushing over his fence. Turns out when a lilac lives to be a ripe old age, they lean (much like people) on things to support them. So in a gust and burst of energy, Dave (the guy who’s flipping the house) cut down all the offending branches and put them into the back yard. After getting the rest of the branches from next door, I realized that I had the coppice that I had wanted to build the fencing around the south side of the house.

Except that something moved in me and pushed me towards a bigger project. Every hermit needs a hermitage, a dwelling place that is a somewhat temporary structure where he or she can retreat to in the world. Now the garden in the back yard is definitely becoming a very cloister like, contemplative place in it’s own planted-and-wild sort of way. But an actual structure would not only be a dedicated place to actually just *sit* and *think* but be a decorative aspect to the yard as well, in that hermit-desert father-Franciscan kind of theme that I’m going for.

For the last two days I’ve been stripping leaves off the branches to make them ready, sorting out the smaller branches to fill the spaces in between the bigger branches, and thinking of a plan on how to construct this hut. My first thought was to build a simple small rectangle under 100 square feet with an arched roof on either side, kind of like the arches of gothic cathedrals. The upside would be that the waddle would be consistent up the sides of the arches and provide support for any dob that I’d put on. Dob, by the way, is a mixture of water, clay, grass or straw, and poop from a horse or a cow. When mixed and combined it forms a kind of concrete that adheres between the branches, can be left exposed as is or painted. I was going to white wash it.

Unfortunately, my mind lead me into a different direction. Instead of a rectangle, I’m building a sort of square with one rounded end. I laid out the pattern and marked the ground with my fingers, cut the initial poles for the walls, tried hammering them into the ground (mistake number one: rubber mallets are not for stakes apparently), gave up on trying to hammer them into the ground, and instead dug a hole about a foot deep for each of the stakes, then stomped the earth around them to give them some support.

Then the waddling begins. It’s a kind of peaceful weaving process, but the more sticks and branches you weave in between the posts the more you realize just how much coppicing you need to build a think like this. I realized after getting about 10 inches of wall that I was probably going to have to switch to larger branches, and more than likely going to have to go into both hedges and cut more wood to finish the project. But that wasn’t the biggest problem.

It turns out that soil that is dry doesn’t create much of a support for wattle (or is it waddle? Mental note, post about the Mark the Duck twitter feed at some point) as the walls get higher. The key branches on the south side that I used for foundation poles began to not only bend in the ground, but turn up the soil. Which means I need to possibly rethink my design, definitely dig up and re-pound the poles *or* put in support poles, and take all the woven wood out so I can do this. The foundation poles *have* to be strong and in the ground stably otherwise the entire building, small as it is, could potentially come crashing down…even while someone, someone like me, is in it!

I’m agitated that I basically have to start over from scratch, but the reality is if I do the job well and know that the construction is solid, I’m going got have a hermitage that will that will not only function, but one that may last a lot longer in years than one that is just shoddily assembled. I kind of like the open wood and the spray of branches that jut out everywhere. I know that I could produce an adequate about of dob from the gumbo in my own yard…I’m not sure if that’s the route I want to go. I need to think about it more, and think while I’m working. God knows there’s enough grass clippings available to mix into any kind of dob that I would use.

It’s as meditative as walking in the garden, or pulling weaves, to build with the materials that come from the space you occupy.
Ingressum instruas, progressum dirigas, egressum compleas.
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Naga_Fireball
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Re: The Garden

Post by Naga_Fireball »

Sounds like such a good project.

Last week Hermit I was thinking about my grandfather in Kentucky and the tools they used.

One option Hermit is using cables or ropes or chains connected to stakes or anchor weights to hold your poles taut.

Another option is borrowing a solid iron post driver or a narrow and tubular post hole digger. Its like two long handles holding skinny shovels opposed.

Hardening your poles in fire after sharpening or shoeing them with metal cones would help if you get a better hammer.

Sledge hammer is good with the rope or cable method.

Hug
Brotherhood falls asunder at the touch of fire!
He finds his fellow guilty of a skin
Not coloured like his own, and having power
To enforce the wrong, for such a worthy cause
Dooms and devotes him as his lawful prey.
~William Cowper
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Naga_Fireball
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Re: The Garden

Post by Naga_Fireball »

P.s. getting some rebar or metal fence post to drive and hiding it under wood works too
Brotherhood falls asunder at the touch of fire!
He finds his fellow guilty of a skin
Not coloured like his own, and having power
To enforce the wrong, for such a worthy cause
Dooms and devotes him as his lawful prey.
~William Cowper
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Naga_Fireball
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Re: The Garden

Post by Naga_Fireball »

P.p.s. a native American "asi" lodge might ideal.
It is round and made from smaller more flexible branches.
Brotherhood falls asunder at the touch of fire!
He finds his fellow guilty of a skin
Not coloured like his own, and having power
To enforce the wrong, for such a worthy cause
Dooms and devotes him as his lawful prey.
~William Cowper
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Hermit
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Re: The Garden

Post by Hermit »

I'm going with the good old Native American/First Nations route of a round lodge this time. 12 poles, 2 each cardinal direction, then wadding all around it. You gotta squat to get in, but Hermits are supposed to be Humble. ;)
Ingressum instruas, progressum dirigas, egressum compleas.
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Naga_Fireball
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Re: The Garden

Post by Naga_Fireball »

That sounds 50,000,000x more relaxing than the failure yard sale I just did. Self torture and squatting!!


A wise lady told me, Never Again (considering W2 population much lower than Seattle).


My sisters and I used to build mini huts for those plastic dinosaurs that came in bags.

Ooh Hermit, you brought back a funny memory. We had a large hemlock tree on the property, pretty far up the drive behind our grandparents. Might have been a logging and or gaswell access road.

My two sisters would help me build these funny little huts Lincoln Log style. It was rotten poplar wood so they had to be about 6' or less.

The doors were these ingenious drawer style protrusions that were virtually invisible from the opposing direction.

You had to crouch or roll to get in, lmao.

Kids are amazing, Lol.
Brotherhood falls asunder at the touch of fire!
He finds his fellow guilty of a skin
Not coloured like his own, and having power
To enforce the wrong, for such a worthy cause
Dooms and devotes him as his lawful prey.
~William Cowper
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Naga_Fireball
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Re: The Garden

Post by Naga_Fireball »

P.s. and yes two separate groups of huts, toy size and human size @@
Brotherhood falls asunder at the touch of fire!
He finds his fellow guilty of a skin
Not coloured like his own, and having power
To enforce the wrong, for such a worthy cause
Dooms and devotes him as his lawful prey.
~William Cowper
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Hermit
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Re: The Garden

Post by Hermit »

Pluto! Sorry to delay on this, just caught up with reading replies. I made a pilgrimage to a shrine yesterday that I'm going to post about later today/tomorrow.

This is a link to the church I'm affiliated with:

http://www.eucharisticcatholicchurch.org" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Ingressum instruas, progressum dirigas, egressum compleas.
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