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Utopian Cow Mothership
Приєднався 21 кві 2012
Follow in the way, the tao of cow.
Nearing the end of a long, hard summer
The heat, the bugs, the hail storms, and all the daily challenges have certainly brought me to my knees more than once this summer. I'm just trying to stay grateful, work as hard as I possibly can, and learn the lessons of the desert.
Переглядів: 77
Відео
If I can do it, so can YOU!
Переглядів 193Місяць тому
Trying to patiently move through the heat...the garden is growing and taking shape! It's incredibly hard to adopt to this way of life, but everything that I accomplish I just want to pass on to others - and so the community grows!
Working in the dog days of summer
Переглядів 56Місяць тому
Due to the relentless heat, I've had to adjust my schedule to work only in the early mornings or late evenings. Slow and steady...
This sweet little mini Jeep makes life...extra fun!!!
Переглядів 1,7 тис.Місяць тому
Here's the link to the X Pro Mini Jeep on Amazon: www.amazon.com/X-PRO-3-Speed-Semi-Automatic-Transmission-Aluminium/dp/B09XC7JWSL/ref=asc_df_B09XC7JWSL/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=692875362841&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=7855035742636247746&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1022580&hvtargid=pla-2281435180938&psc=1&mcid=71a7dc7e161a390a89fed35fe727a373&hvocijid=78550...
Slowing down, moving forward
Переглядів 82Місяць тому
Here’s the ending of Voltaire’s Candide: “All events are linked together in the best of all possible worlds. For after all, if you had not been expelled from a fine castle with kicks in the backside for love of Mademoiselle Cunegonde, if you had not been subjected to the Inquisition, if you had not traveled about America on foot, if you had not given the great Baron your sword, if you ad not lo...
A side project to beat the heat
Переглядів 612 місяці тому
Triple digit temps have forced me inside. In the end, I'm very happy they did.
It's functional, but is it beautiful?
Переглядів 722 місяці тому
I don't build like a normal person. Building my home, to me anyway, is merely an extension of a creative process as an artist. Why would it be anything else? So, in this video, I'm ruminating on slowing the process and incorporating beauty into the overall build.
A dramatic hail storm, monsoon rains are really testing my resolve
Переглядів 7982 місяці тому
A hail storm like no other thundered in and did a good amount of damage. Now it's time to build back.
Building an ancient calendar / the healing power of blue glass
Переглядів 1233 місяці тому
The building process continues - despite monsoons and triple-digit heat. And other random things happening...like Stanley finding his first rat to "play" with.
Stanley lovingly mauls a baby rat
Переглядів 143 місяці тому
The audio in the background was randomly playing - some UA-cam Livestream from Jake the Asshole.
The first water fountain collapsed...so I had to do it all over again. But it was worth it!
Переглядів 533 місяці тому
I've built a few ponds and water features before, but building one off grid in the desert is by far the most satisfying. The sound of the flowing water alone is worth all the effort.
Back to Work! + The mini-saga of the sliding glass door
Переглядів 793 місяці тому
Just returned from a two-week excursion. Time to get back at it before the summer heat gets to me!
My One Year Anniversary Living Off Grid in New Mexico
Переглядів 5324 місяці тому
I'm eternally grateful to be living here and forging a completely new way of life. To all of you who have documented your own off grid journeys and posted your videos on UA-cam - thank you! I have learned so much by watching them. I hope that by chronicling my own journey I'm able to - in my own small way - give back to this community and help others who are moving in that direction.
Irrigating my Desert Garden (and other ways of bringing water to the land)
Переглядів 725 місяців тому
Now that Spring is here I'm getting everything planted and irrigated so that I can leave for road trips and still have everything taken care of while I'm away. Here is the one irrigation system that works really well: www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CQ2MCGKT?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title
Building an Observation Studio for Stargazing
Переглядів 485 місяців тому
Building an Observation Studio for Stargazing
From Raw Land to This - in 11 months!
Переглядів 1065 місяців тому
From Raw Land to This - in 11 months!
Off-gridders: Are you just building, or is there a higher purpose?
Переглядів 1866 місяців тому
Off-gridders: Are you just building, or is there a higher purpose?
The bath house, puppies, and David Bowie in the desert
Переглядів 1816 місяців тому
The bath house, puppies, and David Bowie in the desert
sculpting my house with ferrocrete, adding a human charging station and bathhouse
Переглядів 3,1 тис.7 місяців тому
sculpting my house with ferrocrete, adding a human charging station and bathhouse
How to Build a Simple Off-Grid Bathroom
Переглядів 1 тис.9 місяців тому
How to Build a Simple Off-Grid Bathroom
Mr. Buddy Heater Update, Embracing the Cold, and How to Dream Better (Thank You Jimmy Dore)
Переглядів 1179 місяців тому
Mr. Buddy Heater Update, Embracing the Cold, and How to Dream Better (Thank You Jimmy Dore)
It's Fa-reeeeezing Cold and Mr. Buddy is NOT my Buddy!
Переглядів 1 тис.9 місяців тому
It's Fa-reeeeezing Cold and Mr. Buddy is NOT my Buddy!
Rats, rats, and more rats - charting this week's progress with help from the I Ching
Переглядів 14410 місяців тому
Rats, rats, and more rats - charting this week's progress with help from the I Ching
All was going so well and then the cat disappears
Переглядів 19510 місяців тому
All was going so well and then the cat disappears
So why the hell am I out here again?
Переглядів 8111 місяців тому
So why the hell am I out here again?
You so get it. Enjoy, there's no rules. Congratulations. It is a beautiful piece of glass
I just got my tiny home liveable state! SMALL STEPS! Meet up in CALI! SENDING LIGHT!
oh yeah, that foam is beastly. Are you considering placing that large upper jar into the wall?
You sound happy in your creative place
I am. Despite all of the challenges, this place brings me immense peace and happiness for sure.
I hope you checked the welds in the steering system…
I haven’t. But I will now. Thanks!
beautifully sculpted interior
I got the same exact Jeep love it it's fun as hell
Just like Trump.
We started full time RVing in 2017. Made our way up to WA where we work camped for 6 years. My Rheumatoid arthritis was off the chain from the moisture and finally realized I was suffering from seasonal depression from the 8 mos of rain. We too have made our way down to New Mexico where the low humidity has put my RA into remission without meds for 2 years now. We started looking for off grid property outside Taos but my wife really needs to be closer population center for her work. New Sub, look forward to future videos.
@@RV_Chef_Life Glad to hear the move has improved your health! That’s amazing! I looked in the Taos area for years, even made offers that mysteriously fell through. Guess it wasn’t meant to be. I finally found land in Cerrillos, almost dead center between ABQ and Santa Fe - a half hour in either direction. I really love it out here. When I’m home I feel the immense desert solitude, but when I need to go to the city I’m not far at all.
sick bro...
Very inspiring. Thanks.
Nice work!
Thank you! ❤
www.youtube.com/@VitalaVita-UA
You should stay inside more often! That's beautiful! I have a friend that moved out to Grant's NM to do off grid. They really love it there
Hi thanks for your content. May I ask what county you’re in? Thanks
Excellent video, thanks so much for making it. Walk in beauty.
THATS where my pole went!!! World class view! The fry'n pan finial atop the solar calendar. Dude!🤌Bravo!
You seem like someone to chill and create shit with!!!
Thanks - my favorite things to do! “Chill and create shit” seems like a great title!!!
Nice looking fountain. I was hoping to hear what you learned why the first one collapsed? I thought you were supposed to keep concrete wet, for hydration curing, for 30 days. Could it have something to do with adding wet new concrete to concrete that is visibly dry? Did it delaminate? Thanks. Blessings.
Thanks! I posted a previous video about the collapse, but basically I did it too hastily the first time around, didn't properly lay the metal lath for the concrete to adhere to. That was the biggest issue. I also played with different mixtures this time around to be sure of its strength.
@@utopiancow Thanks for sharing your experience & wisdom
The conversations came up enough for me to recognize I wasn't the only one thinking about it.ua-cam.com/video/ljViY7fHo48/v-deo.htmlsi=sZ1W_XIv61hp_GRa
Im going off grid in northern az. Just found your channel. Ill definitely be using Ferro cement in the mix. 😊
Ferrocement changed just about everything for me - strong, lightweight, sculptural. Good luck on your build!
Holding the water up from running off will also recharge the ground water. For sculpture with cement mixture, it was a wire frame packed with scrunched up paper inside the frame then cement. I think people just use spray foam and not paper now. Some really nice homes have been sculptured the way you are trying to do things with cement. You even have ferro cement boats.
I appreciate the comment. I've been working with/experimenting with ferrocement for about 20 years. It's amazing how versatile it is. But one thing still eludes me: getting the strongest mix possible. I know that the ancient builders made cement that was stronger than stone - way stronger than Portland cement nowadays. Once I find that optimal mix, I think I will have found the holy grail!
@@utopiancow like Roman cement. I like that sea water was the hidden ingredient.
Hey your videos are getting better and better too, Mr. Cow. Be sure to share the links to the videos that helped you in the description - to really pay back, cite, share. But I'll say for myself, though at the moment I have no interest in doing what you're doing, this gives me some feeling for how I could share what I'm doing. So thank you brother.
I’d really love to see what you’re up to, so I hope you’ll do a little chronicling of what that is. Great suggestion on including more links. Here’s a recent one: ua-cam.com/video/cc3-3s115mM/v-deo.htmlsi=d4OCnCBrf1E2fTyR - but there are so many more. Right now I’m doing hands-on research on how to garden and bring water to the desert. The above link shows one way, one of the best that I’ve seen, on how to that’s done. I’m learning…even how to make these little videos better, more informative, maybe even a little more entertaining. Cheers, my friend.
i like your choice of tube amp. currently visiting El Salvador for affordable safe dental and medical work but you have inspired the dickens out of me. Have 2 40' containers i haven't been healthy enough to work on but that's past tense. Rock on Brother. we're in rural upstate ny
I'm very happy to have inspired others, in my own little way. Good luck with your shipping containers! And yes, those Bugera amps are sweet little units. I have two of them - one for the studio and one for gigging. El Salvador, huh? Isn't that where everything runs on crypto currency now? I'm intrigued.
Who do you got in March Madness?
After many attempts to live off grid throughout my life I am closer than ever to buying some acreage. Still not sure where but the Ozarks are number one on the list. I love alternative building. I love working with bamboo. I am dreaming up and designing my future homestead buildings as I wait to purchase land. One reason I desire off grid life is being awake. I paused your video and watched a few clips of John Trudell. One of the things he said is something I have been saying for 20 years... "Civil"ization has never been accomplished here on Earth yet. I see no one culture being civil. Another desire is solitude and the silence that comes from that. I love free diving because of the silence down deep. I lived in Sedona for 3 years and it really stirred up my desire for it due to being able to hike for hours and hours and see and hear nothing from the human world. I also love having space to create. I have lived off grid for months at a time. I have built outdoor showers, outhouses, and bamboo structures on these properties but it wasn't mine and eventually had to leave my creations behind. I create with form and function dancing with one another. I need the function to slightly edge out the form in overall dynamics. I find it impossible to build boring structures. I love geometric structures that are not boxes. I also love organic shapes from the natural world as my design inspiration. My last outdoor shower was gravity and air pressure fed to my cedar pentagonal deck. I had two low flow shower heads so you could be enveloped in water or share a shower with a partner. I will not build another shower with a single head ever again. My outhouse was made with timber bamboo poles. I got an old tire and drilled large holes in at angles and stuck the bamboo in to form the roof of the outhouse. I ended up screening half of the structure because it was in such a private place I didnt need walls. I also never had to deal with cold temperatures so this was a luxury I could explore. I am a firm believer in pooping with a view. It relaxes the mind and the ass follows. I remember every poop that had an amazing view even my all time favorite which was on the coast of California north of Santa Cruz. Staring at nothing but ocean and not a single soul for miles... Perfect. Pooping is not something I wish we had to do so since we have to how do I make it an enjoyable experience. This is another one of my design philosophies I see. Taking the mundane and designing in some features that turn it extraordinary.
Beautiful narrative. I loved reading about your journey - past and present, even citing John Trudell and George Clinton "Where the ass goes the mind will follow"! Indeed. I would even add one more: I believe it was Dr. Andrew Weil who said that "every attempt counts". We don't usually get anything right the first go around. It takes multiple tries to hone the practice. That's what I'm in the process of accepting. So good luck and many blessings on your journey. Btw I love the Ozarks. My grandparents were from there and I spent many boyhood summers there.
Don't let these potential felons fool you. They are extremely dangerous and law enforcement needs to deal with them as soon as possible. These people contribute little to Wall Street and the financial system. The wealthy contribute to society. So should they.
Albuquerque: Some glimpses of New York appear in the film as Newton’s techie empire is being set up.
The 1976 film “The Man Who Fell to Earth” was primarily shot in New Mexico, capturing the stark beauty of its desert landscapes. Here are some of the specific locations where filming took place: White Sands National Monument, Artesia, Fenton Lake State Park.
And the opening scene (which recurs through the movie) in Madrid, NM.
Lyn Hejinian 1941-2024 RIP
Applause 👏 ❤
Use a notched trowel next time so the tile mosaic lays flat and even.
I've been here over 4 years and it's tough.....I love it! I have all the stuff to build and only two arms and legs. Other than my parrot, who tells me I'm gorgeous and he loves me every day, and my little furry dog that just loves to escape and run away in the high desert!
Are you in New Mexico?
@@utopiancow rural Nevada.
@@utopiancow I got some 3/8 inch basalt Rebar, and going to get some pumas from California to make my "grotto"....cave like structure, as well as light weight concrete blocks. You have given me inspiration! Thanks. Stay warm out there. It's 12°f I think tonight.....it was 22°f this day, and the sun was shining. Happy 2024!
OK I see, New Mexico!
Where are you? Im at 6540ft elevation in Rural Nevada.
We’re at about the same elevation. Lots of snow here, and I really should’ve bought a 4-wheel drive! Oh well. Do you get much snow where you are?
@@utopiancow Yes we do....months of it. Luckily I do have a four wheel drive. I live 65 miles from the closest town, Tonopah.
Second awesome!
I see this all the time you have to put insulation around your tanks.keep them from freezing. Or keep them warm when propane turns to ice not good. Second no offense second heater in box un tested rookie mistake. 😂 Any thing can happen from shipping damage to factory issues buy and test . Make sure it's good
I have studied soil science and have a great deal of experience with compost. I can tell you with absolute certainty that human waste will not be 100% safe for growing vegetables using the process you have described. I'm all for keeping human feces out of the waste stream, but making it safe is a lot more complicated than the handbook suggests. For starters, you need to track time at temperature, number of turns and isolate tools used in the process. Making your bin 4 feet in diameter by 4 feet tall will make it a lot easier to control the procees. I recommend keeping your bins at least 150 yards from your home.
Have you read Joseph Jenkins’ book? I’ve been following his lead for many years. It works.
I re-read your comment, and would politely suggest that you incorporate a little more historical perspective into your argument. What do you think people have done for thousands of years before they turned human “waste” into a multi-billion dollar industry and codified our society into believing - as you do - that our naturally occurring byproduct is somehow that toxic (“keep it at least 150 feet from your home”). That kind of paranoia exists in the nuclear industry as well, but Galen Windsor (a nuclear scientist in the 40s and 50s debunked that long ago by swimming in and even drinking water from nuclear reactor with no negative side effects). Any kind of fear-based belief seems to nullify the prospect that any alternatives are possible. The truth is that societies had thrived long before plastic septic tanks and processing plants and landfills that are indeed toxic. Jenkins isn’t the only one who has written books on it, others have too and they have been practicing this process for many years. Seriously, if it was as toxic as you believe, I would’ve been dead long ago. I appreciate you taking the time to comment, but would implore you to dig (pun intended) a little deeper.
i like it! My friend uses planer shavings vs the straw as its easier to work with when u do anything to the pile. Also no smell. I would have liked to see the urine diverter inside the mode but thats ok too. Thanks for sharing.
You make me wanna stay far.. away from anykind of brain altering subtances
Hopefully that’s a good thing. Clarity doesn’t come from short cuts or external means.
You need to learn how to use a Mr. heater with a 15 pound to 20 pound propane tank which is what you have you can fire up that buddy heater or the big buddy heater either one and run it on low for 96 hours straight
I see you got it, good deal. Yes, when you need it most, freezing ur azz, propane won't work. You need to heat it up but you can't because the propane heater won't work because the propane won't work....argh. You can buy electric heaters for the tank they work fine but you have to have 120 volt power. The heater blankets are a little pricey, you could also use heat tape which is cheaper.
Snoop Dogg Is Actually Not Giving Up Smoking Weed - He's Collaborating With a Smokeless Fire Pit Brand
www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/snoop-dogg-says-s-giving-smoking-years-marijuana-use-rcna125559
@@utopiancow I will believe it when I see it.
you really should run both the tanks on the same heater propane when it gets cold cant vaporize you can beat it by increasing surface area. a $50 dual tank hose kit they have them at Lowes. also a deisal heater cheaper to run for you just dependes on how much deisal cost where you live. good luck.
Thanks! I’ll give this a try.
Your propane froze
It did indeed! I’ve made some upgrades (thanks in part to other comments here) and I’m in a much better place with it all. I’m new at this off grid living sitch. Day by day I’m starting to figure it out.
@@utopiancow stay warm,what part of the world are you in
@@derekduchamp4603 northern New Mexico
The vapor pressure for LP gasses drops when cold. I bet you would have trouble lighting a butane lighter as well You need to SAFELY warm the propane canister. When sufficiently warm the propane will change states from liquid to gaseous state. During the TEXAS freeze my diesel genset was too cold to start, so I tried using my propane torch to warm the intake manifold, the torch barely had a half inch flame since it was too cold. Eventually it did start. You might want to build a solar greenhouse contraption to store your tank in, cover it up at night so it'll stay warm, maybe even an electric heating pad would work. Also, 12 volt electric blankets are inexpensive on Amazon or most truck stops. You might appreciate having it warm your bed, my daughter uses one when camping, uses 12 volt extension from her car to the tent. Take care and hang in there
Thank you! I was going to make a follow up video (and I probably will). I managed to figure out the igniter problem, and it turned out to be the smallest of things: I shaved off the plastic coating around the positive end of the aaa battery, and just that little bit more contact area made the difference, and the heater started right up. I was amazed. And yes, the propane tank froze. I simply wrapped a space blanket around the tank and it’s worked like a charm. I think my lack of sleep and the utter cold made my brain freeze, too. When I was able to step back, think logically, and try a few things, I was able to figure it out. I appreciate you taking the time to comment and help out. This is why I love the UA-cam diy community!
I always thought it would be neat to embed & finish a floor with records! ... or a wall 🤔
Yeah, I'd run, too!! Haha! I "saw dust" on his/her bed! 😂 I love the cats name =)
Life in the construction zone! Gotta keep Floyd on his toes (claws?)!
Hey Don…thanks for the share. Glad you are prepared and can stay warm!
Good luck, man. Looks like you're doing pretty good so far. I'm in the chilly and wet south west of Scotland, similarly trying to prepare for winter and learning a relationship with the land, a revelation and inspiration given by the land.
Good luck to you. It may be a lot to do, but the freedom it affords is precious!