Alina Green

So do you only paint the outside, to protect from the elements, but leave the inside raw wood, so that it will absorb moisture?

Does that mean you could just use treatment with some kind of oil, instead of painting?

Is linseed-based paint the same as oil-based paint?  Do they still sell that in the US?  I thought they went all to acrylic (water-based)?

Ah, I hadn't thought about the glue offgassing!

So unpainted/varnished wood doesn't get overlogged with humidity?

Does it absorb enough moisture that the bees can live all right, without rotting the wood too quickly?

RE: socks that last, have you looked at Darn Tough company?  Their socks have a lifetime guarantee, are very pricey, and they come in different weights and lots of cool patterns.  But they all have synthetic material in them (downside), yet they will last a really long time (upside.)

You can buy some on sale, (GoBros is one company that has sales- -but no returns on clearance items), then decide if you like them, and what styles/weights.  I usually take one pair on trips, so I can wear them multiple times before washing.

Also:  It would be difficult, but do-able, I think, to buy 5 or fewer clothes items in a year, BUT, not for someone like me, who SWORE the last time she lost a lot of weight, that she would not gain it back...and then did...meaning I have been buying things again in larger sizes, since I donated all the stuff I used to wear.  Sigh.

Thank goodness for the thrift stores (and getting a senior discount)!!!  To see the amount of waste that comes in daily, and too see how much still gets thrown away...wow, I cannot imagine that people still buy new clothes (other than underwear).

I mean, I balk [I had written 'gawk'...? No, that's stare at...then thought, 'bawk'? No, that's the chickens...haha] at paying more than $5 for anything, but even the thrift store prices are all up about $10 or more per item now.  I can't imagine how much new clothes cost!

Shoes are different.  I will pay for new shoes, because I like the minimalist ones; I've never seen them at thrift stores.  And I wear them until they cannot be salvaged.

And if you're willing/able to go thrifting often enough, you can find most everything you need...over time.  I've even found zip-off travel pants, which are nearly impossible to find. (so few people have even seen them)

I don't have bees, don't plan to start keeping any (any time soon, at least)...

But I was just wondering, do you think it might be possible to make beehives out of cardboard?  As in layers, alternating the grain, glued together with wood or white glue to make boards, that can then be connected and finished (painted?)

Because people do this to make furniture, and it's lightweight, sturdy, and biodegradable or burnable.  And cardboard is everywhere, discarded, unused...and likely to increase over time, given people's penchant for home-delivery.

So I was just wondering (because beekeeping stuff is expensive, and if a person couldn't afford a flowhive, or to buy hives, or didn't know how to make some out of wood...if this might be a more budget-friendly option?)

I wondered if it might be too light, so it would need to be attached to a post or something, so as to not blow away?

Or if it might not stand up to rain or snow?

Or something else...?

Has anyone tried this?

I hate the acronyms.  If I don't understand it, I usually skip past it, rather than taking the time to look it up.

Also, since all of the alphabet agencies and NGOs these days are let's just say...off-puting...why not just be more direct?

To play off a previous idea, how about:
From dirt to food?

Or,
From Dirt to Food...Cheap.

Dump and splash:  bucket of water, pot to ladle it over your body, standing amidst the plants.

What is that...shower?

All the casters I've taken off office chairs have been like the one in the photo.  Just pull it out.

Umm...I probably should not have read this just as I sat down to dinner...sigh!

Hah, I was just talking to a friend last night about guinea pig...because she said she cannot see me raising sheep or goats or cattle on a homestead.

I said it would likely be small animals, like rabbit, chickens...and we thought of guinea pigs.

She said she had some in Peru.  "Tasted like chicken," she said.

What do you think it tasted like, or why did you have an aversion?  I'm interested, especially since I've gone back to eating flesh foods again after being a vegetarian for decades.