It snowed last night for the first time. Seems a bit early but, fortunately, we have all the bales, doors, windows in our straw bale house–and we have heat. We also have a full plastic surround which is protecting the outer bales from moisture. The biggest issue we face is living in the small not-made-for-winter trailer. We have decided to do a bit more plugging, set up the systems, and move in. Today I did the first real plastering on the interior. It was pretty exciting for me because I have been waiting to do that for months. It is just like I thought–so much more than simply painting a wall. I am literally putting the wall in when I apply the wet clay mud. I loved it.
The biggest issue from trying to do this so late is all the extra time it takes to make sure our bales stay dry and we stay warm. I spent a lot of time today plugging and mudding the walls and with each hour that passed I felt the interior of the house grow more and more silent and warm. The stillness inside is quite remarkable. That is one of the things that drew us to want to build with bales–those thick, silent walls.
Before too long the winter itself will halt our frenetic pace. I am almost looking forward to a foot or two of snow. We will at last turn our attention to other things. In a few weeks Milt’s film, Video Letters from prison will premiere at a film festival in Lincoln, NE. I will get to see my children and grandchildren and we will have a break.
Until then, I will mud on.
Jamie