Our home has a lot of dust, in plain speak it’s a dusty home and I plan to free it from dust. It makes me uncomfortable when I think that we have lived with dust in this home since 2003, so for the past 18 years we have eexperiancee dust. It’s time to identify where the dust is coming from, and then remove and eliminate these sources of dust in our home.

The gap in the eves

There is a gap in the eve facia of roof near Catherines window which needs to closed, this will prevent air blowing into the roof and pushing through any gaps in the ceiling, so for example we have trap doors in the roof which do not seal very well, or we have recessed lights in the lounge and air might get is through the edges,

The trap doors

Another obvious source are the trapdoors into the roof,

Motivation

As it turns out I have a tolerable dust allergy, and I know that when I sleep dust free places like hotels etc I clear up a little.

The greywater drains gather grim and eventually block up. Our drains have finally reached a point when they were unusable, and I needed to call someone in to pressure clean them.

It’s always exciting when this sort of thing happens, I called friend who advised me to call a drain specialist based in Maroochydore who because he was busy and the rains were coming advised me to call someone who had similar specials equipment and was based in Beerwah, He advised me to call Clint.  

There are always so many projects and things which either need doing or ought to be done at Havilah House. It’s a handy mans dream home!

• Cleaning out the Clay Grey Water Drains
• Services Map of Havilah House
• Lay new Grey Water Drains
• Clean out the Roof Gutters

I receive frequent requests to purchase Havilah House, and I can see why. Havilah House is comfortably situated on 2 acres of land. It’s central to town and there are some highly developed estates and properties close by. On paper Haviliah House looks like an easy block to develop. The current regulations allow the blocks in this region to be subdivided in 600 sq/m blocks, and if I could use all 7700 sq/m this would allow me to have at least six new blocks and one large block. I would not be at all surprised if a development project might also include some 450 sq/m blocks of land.

I have long had and still have this notion that this land and home will be worth 1 million dollars and of course that is true most homes now days if you leave them long enough they may eventually be worth a million dollars due to inflation and other increases. However that is the wonderful thing about a promise, God exceeds your expectation since he his able to do abundantly more that we can think of or imagine. So a million dollars means at the very least the equivalent of a million at the time of the promise and not a million at the time of fulfilment, which otherwise may only be the equivalent of a much smaller amount at the time of the promise. This is the wonderful thing about God, he exceeds expectations because his Glory fills the heavens.

God gave me this land for a reason, irrespective if it was the wrong purchase. since I have often wondered, thought and sometimes believe that God had something better planned for me and instead I insisted and setteled on this bock. I know that God is my Father and greater, more excellent and more powerful than any mistake I could ever have made by choosing this block. I, therefore, have every confidence that God can make good, fix up, and build on any mistakes I may have made. 

All things work out for the good of those who love the Lord. So when I say I have asked God for at least a Million, I can be confident he may give me much more than a million.

Continuing my thoughts about Havilah House, I have this notion that it would be wonderful to have a few cabins as well as an outside kitchen and shower and a long drop toilet, not literally but in appearance, and connected to the septic tank system.

The Outdoor Shower 

This is something I have often wished for, a hot water shower out in the open, sheltered of course from view, but with a starry sky above, it would be particularly inviting during the long summers, and if located near the pool it can double up as a change room.  While we do have a large house I am reluctant to open that up to guests whom I don’t know very well or would not want roaming about my house unattended. The outdoor shower would solve this problem.

The shower is also a bathroom, connected to hot water with good water pressure, guests staying in the Music Cottage or in the Guest Cabin would be welcome to use the outside bathroom 

In summary, it’s a camp bathroom, it has the essentials and is easy to maintain. It has hot water.

The Nakamal (Camp Kitchen) 

The camp kitchen is easily described as a sheltered outside bathroom, with a little relaxing space, my friend Bert build one to enable him to entertain his guests more easily and it was a wonderful creation, and ever since I have hoped to make one myself   

“A nakamal (a Bislama word from vernacular terms such as Raga gamali) is a traditional meeting place in Vanuatu. It is used for gatherings, ceremonies and the drinking of kava. A nakamal is found in every significant Vanuatu community, but the design of the nakamal and the traditions surrounding it vary between areas”.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nakamal

The Dunny (long drop), 

A typical Australian outside toilet, I’m sure the UK had them as well, It would fit in quite nicely in our garden and I have the septic tank close by, about 3 or 4 meters away so I could easily connect that. 

Havilah House

I have kind of woken up to the fact that this old house in Beerwah may be home for the rest of our lives and it’s not so bad having land on which I can do some much and don’t feel locked up. 

The Swimming Pool

My pool has not been that great since I drained it,  and it now is a third full and filled with tadpoles, we thought they were toads, but it turns out the lovely green frogs so I have been rescuing them putting them where I think they will be happy,  in the hedges, and down by the creek. 

The Music Room 

The music room has been a success, it’s not decorated, it needs pictures and art and guitar hooks, but it is used every day by the family, for sleepovers, and chill sessions and watch TV etc. Julian has been working down there on Zoom during the school lockdown. See Havilah House Music Room and  Notes for Kars the Architect

The Cabin,  

I have made some progress, or let’s say that the base is very nearly complete, and I expect to have the sides and roof structure up this weekend,  ready for the cladding and roof.  If I say so myself it’s pretty well constructed so I reckon I could make another more easily and quicker.  I am being careful to do it as inexpensively as possible but still maintain the quality, also been careful to modularise it. So things, like buying 6m bearers and then cutting them in half, saved some cash and using standard sizes.

Check out our complete cabin here  Building a Small Cabin 2020

Planting Seeds

Yesterday I planted another hundred black bean seeds on the other side of the creek, it will form a think wall of foliage in a few years time. Folks are going to wonder where all these trees came from?  Black bean trees grow tall and in the shape of an oval if they are in the open but they seem to grow extra tall  in the rain forest and amongst other trees, with foliage all the way up the trunk, like the leaning tower of pizza, which is the effect I am hoping for I did some reading on back bean trees and they have anti carcinogenic  HIV properties,  I intend to look into this a bit more. 

The Black Bean is also found in New Caledonia and Vanuatu. … This is a handsome tree with glossy dark green pinnate leaves and low … and it contains alkaloids which have been shown to have anti-HIV and anti –cancer properties. https://www.anbg.gov.au/gnp/interns-2002/castanospermum-australe.html

The Boma

One of these days I’ll get round to making a Boma and the best example I have of a Boma is Scotty’s Boma, Preparing to build a Boma (Outdoor Fire Pit) I’m sure you will like it.

A boma is a livestock enclosure, community enclosure, stockade, corral, small fort or a district government office and community used in many parts of the African Great Lakes region, as well as Central and Southern Africa. It is particularly associated with community decision making. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boma_(enclosure)

A Braai or BBQ?

Mann … so many of the good times I have enjoyed throughout my life have been alongside or close to a BBQ,  in South Africa, this is referred to as a Braai.   While these are very similar the are quite different.

A Braai is done on charcoal, a BBQ can be both on coals or on a gas bbq.  – quite different flavours