The Free Cabin: What, Where, How?

 The other day I saw on the local bulletin board, Boreal, that someone was selling/getting rid of a small 13'x17' cabin up by Devil Track Lake.  It was the original cabin on the lakeshore, but now the family has rebuilt and just need the structure out of there.  I called the person and went out to take a look at it and I was really excited by the structure.  Problem is I can't figure out WHERE to put it that would be a good fit!

A little about the structure:
The building is a pretty solidly built stick-framed (2x6) shed-roofed situation.  It has single glazed windows in it, which would likely have to be replaced, but the inside is just WAITING to be stripped down, insulated, paneled, and beautified!  Imagine your own little sauna shack!  But oh, I am getting ahead of myself...

 It has a shed roof on it, meaning that it has one angle to the roof.  Pretty popular with cabin builders of old because it required less wood and hardware than other methods.  It has a nice rustic aesthetic to it as well.  Because of the shed roof we would be able to trailer it without too much trouble, but to where!?

Ok, let's get to the nitty gritty:
I want this thing for a sauna.  It is too big for a sauna i.e. it will NOT fit in my backyard.  Also, in order to get this thing in good enough shape to be a sauna I would have to a.) strip it out b.) insulate it c.) build a drain in the floor d.) put in a chimney (or wire it for electricity, which would likely happen anyway) e.) build a sauna room and changing rooms f.) you get the picture... a lot of work.

What else could it be used for?  Is there anyone out there that needs a project cabin or something to put on some rural land?  I had initially thought that I could put it on a trailer and have it as a "really big tiny house" that I could rent out to people buying land until they have their home built, but it is legally 1 foot 6 inches too wide for that!  I am sure that I could work something out to get that all squared away though!

It is set up on nice square timbers so moving it wouldn't be too much of a problem, but getting it to sit on a trailer and be properly attached?  Umm, that might be a bit of a chore.

Let's talk planning and zoning for a little bit... riveting I know!  You learn a lot about these things when you are living in a yurt... Up here in Cook County you can put a building like this out in the woods without a foundation with only a special use permit.  If you want to live in it full time then you are starting to look at more technicalities (septic, homestead, etc) and thus I think it would be worth your time to put in a foundation and get it registered as a structure.  I am looking for alternatives though!

 So that is the question of the day, friends.  What can this little gem of a historic North Woods cabin be used for?  How can it be reclaimed/repurposed?  If someone comes up with a really good option other than what I mentioned in the blog I would love to help make it happen!

Barn to Barn: Journeys through Southern Minnesota...

Happy Thanksgiving to the world!  I hope that your day will be filled with meaningful family traditions or whatever soon to be traditions fill your heart with happiness and, of course, thankfulness.

Rose and I have once again made the trek south to the homelands of southern Minnesota to spend this holiday with our respective families.  My family on Thanksgiving itself, and Rose's family on Friday.

A wrench was thrown into our plans by the bad news that my last remaining grandparent's health is waning and that the prognosis is potentially not very good.  With the members of the DeCoux side of the family it pretty much comes down to stubborness.  I swear that my Grandpa DeCoux stayed alive for about 8 years longer than he should have simply because my grandma told him to.  My grandma, on the other hand, doesn't have that influence in her life any more.  She does have the affection and concern of her children and grandchildren and great grandchildren, but somehow that doesn't seem to work as well as your spouse for 60+ years... go figure...

Anyway, she is in the hospital and that means that instead of the planned dinner (which is in the middle of the day for those of you who did not grow up on a farm) and hangout will become an abbreviated dinner and a trip to the hospital.  Usually not as fun as the other option, but hey, let's give it a go.

So what does this have to do with anything?

I always feel really sleepy when things like this happen.  When my mom passed away I slept for about 6 hours in the middle of the day, waking up to a house full of family and meat and cheese plates (many, many of them).  When my step-mom had a heart attack I slept for 18 hours straight, through the night and half of the way through the next day.  For those of you that don't know me, this is unusual.  Tonight I was feeling very sleepy and decided to lay down, but I couldn't, despite my best efforts and tricks, get my mind to stop.  I wasn't directly thinking about my grandma though, I was thinking about BARNS.

Yes, BARNS.

Driving down today I saw dozens (yes, dozens) of barns that are falling down, nearly falling down, or that are piles of timbers and lumber.  This always makes me feel sad because I know that these buildings were once the backbone of the agricultural system in their areas and now are in the lurch without a direct use or purpose.

Solution:
Re-purpose them.  This idea came while I was laying sleeplessly in bed and I think that it isn't half bad.  Demolish or disassemble the barn, salvage the usable timbers, wood, siding, tin roofing, hardware, windows, and build a new legacy building from the old materials (and a few new materials to help with stability).  My original idea was to build a garden shed of some kind out of the materials, but the options are really very broad: garden shed, guest house, workshop, ANY kind of outbuilding would work.

There are numerous organizations around the country that are dedicated to saving the history present in American barns and I believe that this could be a great way to assist in doing this.  I have a potential taker on this idea that I could do next spring, so if any of you know of any barns or barn owners in Minnesota or Wisconsin that would be good candidates for this kind of a project, let me know!  I am seriously considering this as a hobby profession!

Alright, coming full circle now: What does this have to do with my grandma?  Things falling apart is not a new concept.  It is part of existing.  My grandma said the other day that if she died tomorrow she would have lived a great life and she would be happy.  She will be gone, but her legacy is almost perpetuated through the teaching, loving, (disciplining for some of us), and living that she has done.  Likewise these once grand structures that are now at the dusk of their lives can be perpetuated in a new way, a way that passes on the beauty and meaning that went into them in the first place.  Repurposing is not a new concept either, and one that could help preserve a big chunk of history.

So, in closing, I am thankful for those that have come before, and for those that will come after me.

*There is another post in here that I will tackle soon having to do with the lowly status of the aged amongst us, which is completely wrong if you ask me.  VALUE the aged and everyone will benefit... Anyway, that is for another day.

Happy Thanksgiving!