It’s a job that’s never started that takes the longest to finish.” — J.R.R. Tolkien

Do you exist in a pretty constant state of guilt and frustration about the fact that you live a life of consumption and waste?  Do you feel like no matter what you do, you’ll never be able to change your lifestyle drastically enough to significantly reduce your impact on the planet?  Yeah, well, join the club. 

Mike and I live in the city + we have full-time office jobs + we don’t have a lot of spare time= we usually get through daily life doing everything as quickly as possible= we consume a lot, and waste a lot.  Example:  Instead of packing my lunch in a reusable container every morning, I quickly throw it into a plastic baggie and run out the door.  The result of this behavior is a lot of plastic garbage, and a lot of stressful guilt…

So, about  a year ago, we resolved to never throw away a plastic bag until it had been used so many times it had holes in it.  We started washing out the baggies and sticking them right back into the “bag drawer” to be reused.  The result has been amazing– I can’t even remember the last time I’ve had to put ”Ziploc” on my shopping list.  I feel really, really good about the fact that we’ve pretty much eliminated the unnecessary waste of baggies from our lives, just by changing one itty-bitty behavior. 

I will be honest, though…plastic bags do not look cute sitting around all wet and crinkly on your kicthen counter.  We needed a good way to dry the bags…and we don’t have a clothes line outside in the winter months.  So, Mike came up with this really simple drying-rack {and it’s even cute enough to sit on your counter!}:

  Steps:

You will need:  wood glue, 5′ of dowel rod {for a more rustic look, use sticks/branches}, a hand saw, a brace {pictured} or an electric drill, a scrap of wood slightly larger than the finished size {11″ x 3″}.

1. Measure a board to be 3″ wide x 11″ long, and cut the board to those measurements.

2. Prepare the base: sand/plane the board until it is level and smooth, take off any rough edges.

3. Cut dowel rods to five 12″ long pieces.

4. Measure & mark the spots on the base board where your dowel holes will go.

5. Drill holes into the base at the marked spots.

6. Drip wood-glue into each of the holes, and insert the dowels.

7. Let the glue dry, and then you’re all done!  Start saving those baggies!

May you always have walls for the winds, a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire, laughter to cheer you, and those you love near you.”  – Irish Blessing

Sitting by the fire is one of the pleasures we enjoy most during the long Minnesota winters.  The earthy smell of the wood is comforting, the crackle and snap of it burning is soothing, and if we use it enough the gas bill goes down a little bit.  A year ago we splurged and bought ourselves a really efficient little stove.  I hooked up the chimney myself to save some money.  Climbing up onto our steeply sloped roof to put up the exterior part of the chimney was a little scary…If you try this yourself, make sure someone is home with you in case something goes wrong.

Today, in preparation for another long winter, Tonia and I brought a large stack of seasoned firewood inside the house, so that any remaining water will dry out before we use it.  I also needed to clean the chimney to rid it of any creosote that built up last winter.  Creosote is what causes chimney-fires to ignite…and we’re really not interested in having that happen!  After much deliberation, I figured out an easy way to clean the chimney without making an enormous mess.

For those of you heating with wood this winter, feel free to try my technique, or share your own way of doing this dirty job by leaving us a comment.

1: Gather supplies {ladder, duct tape, drop cloths, heavy-duty bag, chimney-brush} and disconnect the chimney from the stove.

2 & 3:  Tape the heavy-duty bag to the base of the chimney, but leave one side of the bag un-taped.  This opening is where you will insert the brush.

4: If your chimney brush is connected to its rod already, unscrew it so the brush head is separate.

5: Insert the brush head through the opening you left in the bag, and push the brush up into the chimney until it is lodged there.  Finish taping the bag securely to the base of the chimney now, so that no soot can escape.

6: Create a very small hole in the bottom of the bag, through which the rod of the brush can fit.  Slide the rod through this hole and connect it to the head of the brush, which should still be lodged up inside the chimney.  You can now begin pushing the brush further up into the chimney.  Hold the bag tightly around the rod as you push it, so that no soot escapes through the small hole.

{OPTIONAL:The exterior part of most chimneys has a cap.  You will feel your brush bump this cap when you push your brush all the way to the top of the chimney.  If you want, you can climb up and open this cap, which will make it easier for you to see into the chimney after cleaning , to make sure it is clean.  It will also be easier to feel whether or not you’ve cleaned the entire length of the chimney if you open the cap.}

{No Mikes were harmed in the openning of this chimney cap.}

7: Push the brush all the way up the chimney, until you feel it bump the cap {or pop up outside if you opened the cap.}  You may need to add a few rods in order to clean the entire length of the chimney.  I used four rods for mine.

It is helpful to have a second person to hand you the rods as you need them, and to take them from you as you detach them again on the way back down.

8: Pull the brush all the way back down, detaching rods as you go.  I used a damp rag to catch the small amount of soot that started to escape through the small hole in the bag.

Repeat steps 7 & 8.

9: Carefully pull the tape off from the base of the chimney.  Use the damp rag to catch any stray soot.  You can now look up the chimney, and it should look shiny and clean.

10: Take your brush, rag, and plastic bag out to the garbage and dispose of the soot-filled bag.

The section of chimney you detached in the beginning also needs to be cleaned.  Run your brush through it {do this part outside} until it looks shiny and clean.  Reattach it to your stove when finished.

Grab a good book, some tea, and go sit by the fire!