At 19  I built my cabin

I was a sophomore in college and I was lost. I built a cabin in the woods to find myself.

Pecha Kucha Asheville vol 10 on January 22, 2016

I built the cabin during summer break from college. It was located about 10 miles from Blacksburg, VA in the town of McCoy, VA on the property of my friend Eddie. The agreement I had with Eddie was that I would pay for the cost of building the cabin (about $1,000) and I could live on his property rent free while I was a student. Once I graduated we agreed that I would pay rent if I stayed (I moved to Asheville, NC after graduating). 

The size of the floor was 20x25 feet. I had no electricity (could not afford a generator) or phone. I filled 5 gallon water jugs in Blacksburg and carried them back to the cabin. My refrigerator was an old Coleman ice cooler so I rarely bought ice to fill it (to save on money). Light at night came from a couple of kerosene lanterns and one Coleman lantern. Heat was provided by a barrel wood stove that I built.  My dog, a Weimaraner that my dad bought while I was in high school, was my companion throughout this time.

I returned to check on the cabin a few times over the years. One of Eddie's kids lived in it for a time. Unfortunately a storm blew in one night and a giant limb broke off of a tree and it pierced the roof and no one knew about it. Water poured in every time it rained and that was the source of the demise of the structure. It eventually fell in on itself.