Urban Legends about living without water.... LJ idol

[ellenmillion]

There are legends in Alaska, about hippies who live in the taiga, without the luxury of running water, power - unlettered, uncouth and unfettered!

Well, the unlettered part is generally just plain wrong. Most of the wild Alaskan hippies I know have college degrees - many of them have several - and most of them are avid readers. The other parts, those are true. I know - I was* one!

My husband and I built our house ourselves. We contracted out the concrete work in the basement, and the roof when October rolled around and we realized that it wasn't going to get finished before we had a few feet of snow on our 2nd floor. The rest, we built ourselves, and I have a host of interesting scars to prove it. There is still a spot on our unfinished bedroom floor where I can find the starburst of blood that dropped from my smashed finger when we were raising the 2nd floor walls.

But part of doing it yourselves is that things go much more slowly than just hiring someone to do it for you. And part of that slowdown was the running water part of the house. Once we had a heated shell and dsl, the rest wasn't really that important. It was more of a priority to work on my studio and put in bookshelves. So we went 5+ years without plumbing, and there are a lot of assumptions regarding living without water that simply aren't true. I'm here today to dispel some of those sub-arctic-suburban legends.


Outhouses smell bad.

This is actually only about 20% true. In the winter, all of the waste is frozen solid, and there's no smell at all. In the summer, there's often enough breeze that any smell dissipates. This was particularly true of our outhouse, which had no door. Best view of any outhouse ever; why block that with a door?

Outhouses must be cold!

In the summer, they're no colder than any indoor toilet, and I have gotten far more of a shock sitting on a cold porcelain indoor toilet at room temperature than I have using my outhouse at 50 below. No, that is not an exaggeration! Outhouse seats are generally made out of foam - either blue or white sheet insulation. Sitting on them, your butt is instantly insulated to its own temperature - no cold ceramic shock out there. There may be a bit of a breeze up from the hole, but if you're dressed for the weather, you'll find a trip to the outhouse doesn't chill you.

Outhouses are bad for the environment.

Believe me when I say that there is more moose and fox and vole poop generated per inch of our land than we will ever be able to match, even if we ate bran cereal three times a day. Mother nature is set up to handle a certain amount of animal waste and does a fine job of it. You wouldn't want to, say, build a city of outhouses uphill of a water drinking source, of course, but clearly that's not the case here.

You could fall into an outhouse!

Do you fall into your toilet? I thought not. Outhouse holes are generally as small if not smaller.

No running water = bad hygiene.

Not the case at all! Or at least, not necessarily the case. It was just a little more difficult to maintain the same level of hygiene. You still get smelly hippies, no doubt, but that's a lifestyle choice. It's amazing how clean a simple sponge bath will get you, and a partner can be quite happy to dump hot water over you. For a complete description of a patented Ellen-shower, check out this entry: http://ellenmillion.livejournal.com/630210.html

Brushing teeth can happen with a small cupful of water, and washing dishes is still done by hand in many places in the world: you just have to heat the water in pots before doing so, and if you don't have drainage, make sure you don't overflow your slop bucket.

Slop buckets stink.

Slop buckets? A slop bucket is what you have if you don't have drainage. All of your waste water has to go somewhere, and generally you'll find cabin sinks have a short stub down to the ubiquitous 5 gallon bucket. Do not overflow this bucket. And no, they don't have to stink. Once you've finished with your dishes, your bucket has a topping of warm, soapy water. Go dump it now, before it has a chance to congeal, and it rinses out the bucket quite nicely. Keep your bucket from sitting too long, and it should never smell bad. If it starts to get greasy build-up, add a little bleach, or spend another $1.47 on a new bucket.

'I couldn't live without plumbing.'

Baloney! You just don't know what you could live without until you actually have to. It would take a little getting used to, but it's definitely not an insurmountable kind of thing. There are some tricks to figure out, but don't think you wouldn't be able to 'handle' it. None of the habits and tricks require particular intelligence, dexterity or strength, just a little common sense and necessity.



It's particularly eye-opening to live this way for a while, and see how much water you actually need to accomplish tasks, versus how much it is easy to use without thinking.

Now, I think I will go take a nice long, hot shower and do a load of laundry. And maybe flush the toilet once or twice just for fun. These things are still novel for me...




*'was' being relative, as I still tend to wear sandals with socks, don't wear makeup, eat organic food, and am wildly uncouth when artists can't find the submission guidelines...

Comments

[brightling.livejournal.com]

This is such a cool post! All your talk of outhouses totally brought me back to all the camping my family did growing up. And I've known a couple people in northern Alberta who were doing their own house-building as well. We moved before they finished it but I remember it was awesome, and quite the undertaking. You should be very proud! :) And plumbing is so much more incredible when you know how to, and have lived, without it like that.

Hee, I actually think your outdoor shower sounds like it could be a really fun thing (on the very rare occasion anyway). Can't really do the running around naked thing in the cities so much without getting arrested. Though I must ask - do you get many bears wandering through your area? Outdoor shower turns into bear vs. bare! Who will win? D:


(PS You could train a cat to flush the toilet too! Apparently some find it fascinating, and will get dogs to bring them things from around the house to flush.)

[ellenmillion.livejournal.com]

Bear versus bare has never happened to me, fortunately, but there are a few in the area - they've gotten into our trash a time or two. They're generally scared off by loud noises. (And in the winter, of course, they're off snoozin')

[marrael.livejournal.com]

My grandma had an outhouse, and plumbing in my mum's early days was a common tap for the village from which you collected water that you were going to use for the day. If you were feeling lazy but needed a shower, you took one next to the tap, in your undies. Hee. I experienced some of these growing up and while visiting rural China before the country opened its economy up... to tell you the truth, it wasn't bad at all. It was the complaining from other urban sophisticates that was harder to take!

[pixiewildflower.livejournal.com]

Very interesting!

[desert-rose.livejournal.com]

This was both interesting and fun to read! Very well written too! I think we are certainly spoiled with the luxuries of modern plumbing, and those of us who haven't gone without just wouldn't cope. :)

[valdary.livejournal.com]

When my son was a toddler and we were on income support we went on a sponsored "green" camping holiday. The toilets were latrines dug into the ground and when one filled up they planted a willow tree in it and dug another one,(apart from the men's urinals which were hay bales and then composted). The willows were pollarded and used for basketry work.

It was a brilliant place for toddlers because no cars were allowed on site and they could run for half a mile before you had to go fetch them. The carpark was a couple of fields over and they sent a team of large tanned men with wheelbarrows to carry your camping gear to your pitch.

I was so sad to realise that my toddler was nervous of the grass. The only grass he saw at home was a narrow strip alongside the pavements that was generally covered with dog poop, so when he saw a field of the stuff he didn't think he was allowed to walk on it. Once he was reassured you could see his psychic space, just unfolding and expanding because there was room to move safely. Not just a ten foot by twelve foot garden or the inside of a tiny one bedroom flat. He has stretched a long way since then LOL my 6ft 7in 14yr old.

[pers1stence.livejournal.com]

You know, the question I get most when it's mentioned that I'm from Alaska (following hard on the heels of "Wow, I've never met anyone from Alaska before!) is "what was it like growing up in Alaska?"

I have come to loathe that question -- people mean well, but really what is there to say? It's a pretty inane question, really. I mean, how do I compare it to anything else? I didn't experience any other ways of growing up. And it's so vaguely all-encompassing. And I know people don't want to hear, "well, my parents were divorced" or "i played outside when i wasn't inside reading a book" or anything. But because they mean well and many of them wouldn't really get why it's a silly question, my stock answer is to default to "well, I didn't have running water until I went to college." Which usually provides them with the sense of someone having an exotic experience (which meets their expectations, while happening to be true), and allows the conversation to continue, generally.

[spydielives.livejournal.com]

I really like your take on the topic.

And I have spent more than my fair share of time in outhouses. I had an aunt and uncle who decided they were going to squat (no pun intended) on some land to claim it. They built their own house, had horses and llamas and goats, but no running water, other than a stream that ran past the house.

[imafarmgirl.livejournal.com]

This was an absolutely briliant entry. I loved it!

[thundersage.livejournal.com]

Too cool! I can totally relate. We are building out home in the Rockie mountains of CO. We are 10 miles from the nearest power pole. So Off the Grid. And it has been a challenge. Last winter our first winter up here full time we lived in the basement while working on the upstairs. We had to snow shoe in the last 1 1/2 miles to our home and brings supplies in by snow mobile. Out housed can be a bit cold in the middle of the night in the dead of winter but I still use ours quite often even though we know have indoor plumbing. And one can get very clean and have fun with a sponge bath. Yeah-to living the simple life. Great post.

[tulip-in-yellow.livejournal.com]

I never thought outhouses would entertain me so, but you've proven me wrong. I also think it's awesome that you built your home with your own hands. Great entry!

[anchasta.livejournal.com]

I was toilet-trained on an outhouse...woodstove, kerosene... *sigh*

I loved it! :)

[mme-furiosa.livejournal.com]

I only recently discovered the beauty of the out house. It makes a trip to the bathroom an experience. But where did you get your water from? Did I miss that part?

[ellenmillion.livejournal.com]

We finally got all the plumbing finished and installed! We have a holding tank in our (unfinished) basement: 2500 gallons. Jake has a water tank in the back of the truck and every few days he stops by the 'Water Wagon,' which is a fill-up in town - just like a gas station, but with drinking water.

I saw a LOT more auroras when we had a full-time outhouse, that's for sure. Now I have less excuse to go outside and catch them happening!

[mme-furiosa.livejournal.com]

Oh, how lovely! I am obsessed with Aurora Borealis. Was just talking about it at a party tonight, in fact.

[n-decisive.livejournal.com]

I always loved the idea that somehow, Mother Nature hadn't come equipped to handle human excrement.

Oy.

Enjoyed your entry- good job!

[lttledvl.livejournal.com]

Outhouses smell bad. This is actually only about 20% true.

I have first hand experience with that 20%. Of course it was also May in South Carolina, 90-some degrees, humidity of 90%, no breeze. You either held your breath when you went in or held the door cracked open with your foot.

I turn into a hippy at least once a year when we go camping in the woods. Whee!

[n-decisive.livejournal.com]

My grandfather was a Scout Master and had been in both World Wars. I don't know if Boy Scouts still learn the skill of latrine digging and use, but we sure did. (Didn't matter with him if you were a Scout or not. You went out in the woods? You'd learn what to do!)

Hot outhouses do tend to be a bit more aromatic if they aren't well ventilated. That's part of what makes port-a-potties so foul at times.

[baxaphobia.livejournal.com]

From the perspective of a hthouse flower, I am glad I'm just reading about this and not experiencing! hahahaha. This is great though!

[belenen.livejournal.com]

awesome post! very interesting! ;-)

[walkertxkitty.livejournal.com]

Good entry! My husband and I are out here on five acres in Florida trying to make it off the grid and into self sufficiency. Because we're so far out, power is often "optional". Every time there's a storm or a branch somewhere touches the lines (generally about once or twice a week) it disappears, sometimes for days.

You're quite correct about the sponge bath. With a little ingenuity, it's not difficult to get the water up from the well and to bathe in a single pot of water.

We were out here for two weeks once after a hurricane with no power. I don't tend to depend on modern convenience overmuch anyhow but I can indeed verify that living without modern plumbing and other conveniences is not only possible but enriching.

Thanks for reminding me.

[(Anonymous)]

I grew up without running water and with an outhouse until I was 9. I still remember bathing for the first time at home in a bathtub - it was so luxurious! Also:
Baloney! You just don't know what you could live without until you actually have to.

I love that line for this and so many other things. So many people mistake wants with needs myself included. Great entry!

[boundfate.livejournal.com]

Sorry, that was me!

[these-3-remain.livejournal.com]

Hi! I'm a former LJ Idol contestant (I was lilerthkwake back in the day) and I remember being really fond of this entry when I first read it. So fond that I've quoted it several times since then - most recently as my husband and I have recently discussed purchasing a home w/o running water. Now that I've happily revisited your outhouse dissertation, I wonder if you'd mind being friends :-D

[ellenmillion.livejournal.com]

Oh, the things I shall be remembered for...

I'd love to be friends. :P

[these-3-remain.livejournal.com]

LOL! I tried to find your post via google-fu, and one of my keywords was "unwashed hippie." How's that for a friendly misnomer?