RE: Have We Entered a Post-Literate Technological Age?

["Al Geist" <al -dot- geist -at- geistassociates -dot- com>]

Leonard C. Porrello wrote:

Ahhh, but would you know how to make the lumber (studs, plywood, and
pressboard) you need to build a house? How about drywall? Could you make
your own plaster? 

If so, where would you get the materials? How about
mining the ore for the nails and making the nails? Could you mine your
own copper for the wire, drill for the oil required to make its plastic
insulation, make the plastic insulation, and then apply it to the wire?
What about windows? How good are you at making window panes? And we
mustn't forget plumbing. Mine any ore and make any pipes from it lately?
Could you cast an iron sink and bathtub? How about weaving carpets
and/or rugs?

The dimensional lumber can be made with a really big tree or two (hopefully
fallen by a storm) using a chainsaw and a really big straightedge. Plywood
is a bid more difficult. If I had to make it myself, I'd use
plaster-and-lathe like they did before sheetrock. To make plaster, all you
need is a nearby talc mine. That should be easy to find...just look for a
big hunk of soft white rock.

Wooden pegs could be used instead of nails (timber frame construction), but
you've got me on the copper wire. While spray foam insulation is petroleum
based, most of it is spun glass. I'd have to think ups something else
besides plastic for the vapor barrier (there would be no thermal envelope).
I could whittle a sink and use the chainsaw to carve out a bathtub from yet
another big tree.

The plumbing and wiring seem to be the big blocks and after enduring a 60
below Alaskan winter, outdoor facilities are not an option.

So, if you come to my owner-built home, you'd have to be careful where you
sit and don't ever walk around the place without slippers...at least until
the splinters are all gone. Don't expect to see huge windows with a grand
view, and don't lean to hard on the walls...they're made of paste because I
couldn't find that mountain of talc.

Oh...and bring a flashlight or at least a dozen or so batteries.


Al Geist
Technical Communicator, Help, Web Design, Video, Photography
Office/Msg: 802-872-9190
Cell: 802-578-3964
E-mail: al -dot- geist -at- geistassociates -dot- com
Website: www.geistassociates.com
See Also:
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Website: www.geistarts.com
 
"...I walked to work, quit my job, and kept walking. Better to be a pilgrim
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