It Couldn’t Be Done

BY EDGAR ALBERT GUEST

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done

      But he with a chuckle replied

That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one

      Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.

So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin

      On his face. If he worried he hid it.

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

      That couldn’t be done, and he did it!

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;

      At least no one ever has done it;”

But he took off his coat and he took off his hat

      And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.

With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,

      Without any doubting or quiddit,

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

      That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,

      There are thousands to prophesy failure,

There are thousands to point out to you one by one,

      The dangers that wait to assail you.

But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,

      Just take off your coat and go to it;

Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing

      That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

Bursting the Bubble

On Monday April 8th the Village of Homer Illinois, Board of Trustees, met for the last time before the election that would decide the new make-up of the board over the next fiscal year. The mayor chose not to run for re-election but he did put his name on the ballot for trustee. This mayor has served the village first as a trustee and then as mayor for many years. I believe he is a decent man who truly wants what he believes is best for his community. Unfortunately, when it comes to his handling of the requests for water from Sunrise Coal, he seems to have slipped inside a bubble.

The bubble was created by the Coal Company, and the mayor himself. The thin layer of bubble separating him from the outside world kept him from believing the voices of his constituents even though he could see them protesting in record numbers. Inside the bubble the only sound was the soft reassurance from the coal company telling him that the voices of protest were coming from a vocal few.

His trustees wavered back and forth on the issue of selling potable water to the coal company while the mayor resorted to questionable use of village resources in a campaign of misinformation. Inside his bubble, he wasn't doing anything unacceptable; he honestly believed he was doing the right thing. His isolation from reality took on an arrogant tone and his success in changing the vote of one trustee gave him the confidence to wrap himself more tightly in his bubble.

On Monday night, in a precursor of what was to come, the trustees intentionally brought the next request from Sunrise Coal to a vote. This was the raw water request for one half million gallons a day to wash the coal. Without this water the potable water is useless. Who cares if you can take a shower if you can't process the coal? The board unanimously denied the request and asked the mayor to send Sunrise Coal a letter asking them to respect the board's decision and not resubmit another request in the future.

On Tuesday April 9th the village held its election. There were three open seats on the board and five people running for those seats. Of the five, the mayor and the only other known pro-coal candidate received the fewest votes. This man who had served his community for years saw his bubble burst around him.

One of the new trustees on the village board ran specifically on her opposition to the coal mine. The mayor was wrong, the voices of protest at the meetings, in the emails, and on the phone calls to the Town Hall were not a "vocal minority." They were the majority of the people he was elected to represent. His behavior over the issue of cooperation with Sunrise Coal alienated him and cost him the election. 

I hope the mayor's story will serve as a lesson to other politicians who lock themselves inside echo chambers, only hearing the voices that agree with them, believing they represent some "silent majority."

The votes on Monday and Tuesday are major blows for Sunrise Coal and its parent company Hallador Energy. They are stuck in a contract to lay pipe for six miles that will only supply them with hand washing water, not the more important raw water for processing coal. For that they will need to turn elsewhere. Spending more time and more money as technology moves forward making them less relevant with every tick of the clock. In the long run, It may be more cost effective for them to "cut bait" as they say. 

Split Rail Fence

It's that time of year again. Time to clean up the dead fall of winter. Here's a forty foot elm that I was able to cut into three 12 foot lengths.

Once cut into lengths I split them into halves and some larger halves into quarters.

These are the kind of rails Abe Lincoln spent his youth splitting. 

This kind of fence was very common at one time. It's easy to assemble, easy to move and easy to re-purpose if you run low on firewood or rough lumber. Ours won't keep anything in or out, just give hunters a heads-up when crossing our property lines.

The rails are stacked one on top of another in a zig-zag pattern to help with stability. Typically the rails are between 10 and 12 feet long, the ends are overlapped to make the distance between 'points" roughly eight feet. The distance between the zigs or zags is an old measurement called a rod (roughly 16 feet). Old farms used to measure out acreage using rods and these fences helped people estimate the size of their fields.

The Golden Rule

Last night as promised the mayor of the Village of Homer Illinois brought the contract for potable water between the village and Sunrise Coal back up for consideration. He vowed to do this after the last meeting when the contract was rejected. 

The mayor emailed the village attorney and asked him if it would be possible to bring the contract back up for another vote. The village attorney told the mayor that if one of the trustees who voted against the contract made a motion to reconsider, it could be done, but it had to be done at the next meeting. 

The village attorney then contacted a specialized attorney hired with coal company money for the purpose of exploring the legality of the water sale. This attorney told the village attorney that if the mine resubmitted the contract for reconsideration it could be voted on without the need for one of the no voting trustees to make a motion to reconsider. 

The mayor posted an open letter on the village website and facebook page. He called the board's decision misguided and said that the people of the village might see an increase in their water bills because of the board's decision. He claimed that the trustees who voted against the water sale were only doing it to "stop a coal mine." 

Having followed the issue closely since last summer and having attended several meetings on the subject, it is clear to me that this was not the only reason the trustees voted no. The mayor went on to post the contact information for the trustees who voted no and asked that people contact them and ask them to reconsider the contract.

Last night one of the no voting trustees changed his vote to yes and the contract was approved. He said he changed his vote because he thinks the mine is inevitable and that the village should make some money on it.

I could write all about the inappropriateness of having the coal company pay for an attorney who later advises the village attorney, the unprofessional behavior of a mayor who misrepresents his trustees motivations, uses village resources to pursue his own agenda against the official position of the village, writes his opinion in language designed to divide the village along political lines, and threatens villagers with higher water bills, or the circular logic of the trustee who decided that the mine is inevitable so why not make it more inevitable, but instead I'll focus on the message this sends.

The mayor has argued all along that it is inappropriate for the village to grant or deny a business a contract for service based on the nature of the business making the request. While this may sound like the "Golden Rule" on the surface what it really says is that he considers potential profit more important than his constituents will. Over the past year hundreds of villagers have attended meetings, written emails, and made phone calls to let the trustees and mayor know they do not support the water sale. The mayor opposed the idea of a public vote on the issue and has always believed that his own judgement is more important than public consensus. At one point telling a constituent that he didn't think board meetings were an appropriate forum for the public to voice their opposition.

I consider this type of governance wrong. Half the trustees along with the mayor have decided that, in Homer, the "Golden Rule" means he who has the gold rules. The precedent they have set sends the message that the only two questions they have for potential customers of village services are, is it legal, and can you pay for it. If the answer is yes to both of those questions, based on their position on this contract, the mayor and half his trustees are willing to accommodate anything. So bring on the strip clubs, payday loan sharks, and toxic waste landfills. 

While I'm sure the mayor considers himself a very practical businessman his efforts have opened the doors of the village to the most destructive elements in society. Only time will tell if this mine will be built and what effects it will have. Here in the "rust-belt" there's no shortage of depressing communities where unsustainable industries like coal mining once controlled economies under the same belief that the "Golden Rule" means he who has the gold rules.

Earthships

This month I am very pleased to be able to share Earthships. Chris Reynolds was kind enough to send me the following information and give me permission to pass it along here at the House of Fallen Timbers. The photographs are from Wikimedia Commons.


Regardless of whether you're thinking of building a new structure or retrofitting an existing one, the Earthship concept can be designed and adapted to accommodate all climates and situations. The goal of our company is to help you to make your home or building project more energy efficient. We believe in housing that works for people, rather than the other way around. It's our hope that life in an energy efficient home will encourage a more balanced lifestyle that involves less financial stress due to high utility bills. Although the classic Earthship is one that is built primarily out of recycled materials, such as automobile tires, aluminum cans, glass bottles, scrap metal from discarded appliances, etc., the function of an Earthship is not determined by the use of those specific items. Thermal mass, for example can be achieved through concrete, stone, rammed earth, etc. We just find that the simplicity and value of free scrap tires to be a great way to produce what is basically a rammed earth wall without the cost of forms.

You can still have an thermally efficient building as long as you incorporate thermal mass into the walls and floors of the building. Using what is easily available to you is a good idea, and depending on your local climate, you might adjust the amount of solar gain, building orientation, etc. We do implement a water catch systems in most Earthships, but again, if you have easy or existing access to fresh water, and you don't have to get creative with 10 inches of precipitation per year like we do here in the high mountain desert of New Mexico, you don't necessarily have to incorporate this feature into your Earthship. If you have abundant wind, you can augment photovoltaic (solar panels) generated electricity with windmills. The point is, the Earthship is made up of many systems and features that can be incorporated into your design based on your individual needs and tastes.

Some people are intimidated by the idea of pounding dirt into tires. Like everything, a little practice goes a long way. It's more technique than brute strength. The tire walls for an average 2 bedroom home will usually not take longer than 2 weeks to complete with a moderate crew of 6 people. We published Earthship, Volumes I, II and III with the intention of helping people build their own sustainable homes. Many people have done this, and we receive photographs and stories from do-it-yourselfers all over the world.

If you are ready to begin planning your project, the first step would be to contact us regarding the design. What size home, how many rooms, bedrooms, baths, etc. If you have land and funding and can get permission to build in your desired area, you are ready to go forward. With a $1,500 down payment on drawings, we can begin. We have many designs to choose from. The more affordable, Packaged Earthship has a plan book available through the web-site @ www.earthship.com/books as well as a Packaged Earthship Detail Book that takes you through the entire building process of this design.

Approximate square foot cost for a Global Model Earthship, which is our most current design that incorporates the newer double greenhouse feature, is $215/per SF. This price includes all labor, all materials, and all systems. This price is comparable to mid-range conventional housing, but the future utility bills are much less than conventional homes. Please note that this is a turnkey price, that is, a home that is ready to move into and fully functional. If you are looking for ways to build more economically, personally contributing to the labor that goes into building your home can lessen square foot costs. Also, our company does fairly expensive finishes, stone and tile floors, tile baths, all handmade doors and cabinetry, and many custom details. You can choose to do simple concrete slab floors, for example, or purchase manufactured doors and cabinetry, to bring costs down.

If you wish to hire outside help to build for you, we have a skilled crew that goes to any location in the world and builds Earthships. We also enlist the use of Earthship volunteers in these builds. Generally, the size of the crew, with volunteers is between 40 and 50 people. This large work force, and the pre-fabrication and shipping of components allow us to complete a home in 4-6 weeks depending on the size of the building. These buildings can be totally off-grid, having photovoltaic electric systems, catch water systems, and a thermal mass structure that requires no (or very little) back up heat or cooling.

We have very economical standardized building plans available for several time tested models. These plans can be customized @ $200/hr. At present, the price for the plans for the 1, 2, and 3 bedroom Global models are $6000, $7000 and $8000 respectively. Building plans for the Package Earthship and other more economical models are available as well for comparable prices. In comparison, standard drawing fees for architectural drawings generally run from 8-15% of the total cost of the home.

The Earthship has been developed over the last 45 years, and is a very sophisticated and finely tuned sustainable building. Our crew builds these homes year after year, and they have evolved according to feedback from clients, and our own observations. We have built them all over the world, in all types of climates and conditions.

We are currently in the planning stages for upcoming projects in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, and New York City, among others.

For more information, you might be interested in any of the following:

EBook available from amazon.com "Earthship, I want one" - $4.99
Michael Reynolds books, videos, etc. - Available online @ www.earthship.com
Earthship Academy - Hands on and educational instruction in building your own Earthship
Intern program, Taos, NM - One month working with Earthship crew Volunteer program 1 week-6 weeks working on current builds in US and internationally
Spring, summer & fall seminars - 3 day course that includes classroom instruction and hands on experience

Please visit our website for information on any of these programs, or to purchase any of our books and videos. We also offer nightly rentals in newer Earthships in our Greater World Subdivision in Taos, New Mexico. To book a night in an Earthship, or to inquire about the seminars, intern program, etc., you can email us @ reception@earthship.com.

Mr. Reynolds is available for in person or phone/skype consultation @$250/hr or $125/per 1/2 hour session to answer any technical questions. When you are ready to go forward with designing your Earthship, or if you would like to get on the build calendar to have Earthship Biotecture build for you, I would recommend this as a first step in defining your project.

Indiana Humanities - Guest Blogger

I have been inviting people to guest blog here at the House of Fallen Timbers and as Karma would have it I was asked to guest blog for the Indiana Humanities Council blog "Think. Read. Talk." They are featuring articles concerned with rivalry as part of their "Spirit of Competition" program. I wrote about one of my favorite subjects, How Rivalry Shaped Indiana.