Arnold, CA…Thy Bread & Coffee will be sure may not be in the bible but a few minutes outside prepping your wood, building a fire, perking your coffee & making bread for almost zero cost is a rewarding & satisfying way to start your day. On mornings where the birds are singing as you work it is almost a spiritual experience.

Since April 1st (Appropriately Enough to some members of my family ) I have been living in our 120 square foot Chainsaw Cabin. What have I learned? What happens when you strip away almost everything those in modern society deem as “necessities”?

As Henry David Thoreau said, “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”

First, I am actually happier and more relaxed. I grew up on a farm where you couldn’t even see another house from ours. So for me not living in a normal neighborhood is wonderful. I especially don’t think we were meant to be stacked up in high-rise apartments. It gnaws on the soul.

I have spent the last 20 years in the news business and with the flow of stories about housing affordability, homelessness, California having the highest poverty rate in the nation and younger generations having a hard time believing they even have a shot at the American Dream. Many surveys have over 60% of the US population living paycheck to paycheck.

What can we do and why did society reach peak happiness in the 1957? With all of our advancements why are we measurably more miserable and poorer as a society than we were 75 years ago. If the real goal of a society is to help us all and future generations be happier we jumped the shark long ago.

I came to the realization months ago that it was way past time to strip it all away and then gradually add back portions of our modern life and hopefully learn for myself (and hopefully for others) where the correct balance lies. Instead of just thinking…time to do.

In its’ basic form a simple off grid life replaces the modern infrastructure of life with tasks and chores. Want to quickly and easily make coffee and make breakfast? You need to have your kindling already made and your wood at the ready.

So on a typical morning I make coffee & bread. With the fire I built for the coffee there is enough heat to make bread before the fire dies down. My favorite bread is a simple whole wheat flour quick bread with 12 oz flour, 8 oz water, baking powder & salt.

I mix the dough while the coffee is perking and as soon as I pull the coffee I put the cast iron on the stove. By the time the coffee has cooled just enough to drink the fresh bread is ready to go.

Slice the bread, add chunky peanut butter and wash it down with fresh coffee and you are fueled and ready to go for hours.

No power bill, no gas bill as you already paid the bill when you chopped the wood. All is done in under 1/2 an hour.

About The Chainsaw Cabin
The Chainsaw Cabin is our first building, a small 120 square feet shed/cabin on Hewn Hill. All lumber will be hand milled with a small inexpensive electric chainsaw. This is to see if anyone can build a small functional building with literally tools you can find at a garage sale and our only costs will be roofing, fasteners & glass for windows.

The Chainsaw Cabin is single wall construction where the wallboards are a structural component of the build. Many of our primitive and pioneer building were constructed this way. The outside wallboard is also the interior board as well.

Henry David Thoreau’s cabin was only 10 x 15 and not much bigger than you can legally build today without a permit in most counties. For the Chainsaw cabin while it is only 10 x 12 with a sleeping/storage loft. So if you are staying for a night or two at least you will have separate work, living & sleep areas.

In 1845 is cost the tiny home pioneer $28.12 to build his modest abode. With inflation that comes in at $962.80 in todays shrinking dollars. That is our goal to build our small structure with doors, windows and roofing for less adjusting for inflation than Henry did many years ago.

We are starting with outbuildings to get the property functional. Places to store tools, a solar shed & a place to sleep if need be. This is phase one and we hope to get that done this year starting with the Chainsaw Cabin then learning how to build a log structure on our next shed.

Next year, Lord willing we will start on our main two story, traditional log cabin built with logs from the property and probably a few other locally sourced ones as well.

About hewn.co
At Hewn we are going take you on a journey to see if it is still possible to build a functional, small homestead that anyone, even someone making minimum wage can build and own. We are going to try this in California no less. Join us as we attempt to build an off grid, solar powered, rustic, pioneer style homestead.

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