Forced highway driving, while my cat pees on the wall as I try to compose a coherent email to the outside world. And a farm report!

Name your top three pet peeves.

Only three?! Alright, Paul’s most recent and most consistent pet peeves, in no particular order:

• Forced 1-day drives to and from our rock farm to downtown Toronto.
• Whenever I send a thoughtfully-crafted email to vendors, acquaintances, or friends… and I get nothing in return. I would appreciate a simple “acknowledged” or use Gmail’s reply-with-an-icon.
• My cat’s litter box habits. If you’ve met Jupiter, our elderly house-panther, you know his awful aim. Tacked-up dog indoor urine-pads only do so much.

November 27, 2024 rock farm report

BTW, that recovered water from the Noma units… we use it to flush our toilets. We put this resource to work for us! Strawbale wall systems do not use a vapour barrier, per say. Our roof’s overhang protects the exterior plaster coating from the elements. It’s also been painted with a mineral-based masonry paint that seals it. As deeper cracks form, it’s up to us to patch it to prevent insect or water ingress. The plaster uses thin bits of fibre (a combination of plastic, metal, and plant) to reinforce its matrix. For the first year of occupancy, we are running dehumidifiers to prevent corrosion of damp material touching metal. And reduce unsightly condensation (and perhaps even mould growth) on our windows.

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