A down-to-earth dwelling
Sitting in Jim and Sharon Smiths sunroom watching cardinals and blue jays flit from the drifts of yellow-and-white daisies in the garden to a nearby tree line, its hard to believe that, 20 years ago, this spot was the middle of a soybean field. That that is no longer the case is a testament to the power of nature to reclaim its own – and the tenacity of two senior citizens who wanted nothing more than to live out their retirement years in close connection to what they love best – the... The Smiths four-bedroom ranch – Jim Smith designed and built it himself over nearly five years with only a little help from his son, Cory, and professional drywall and tiling contractors – is an example of an earth-sheltered structure. Jim, 74, a retired farmer and barn repairman, and Sharon, 69, a retired hospital nurse and massage specialist, have spent the last two decades building an Earth-friendly house that sits on 40 acres of restored wildlife habitat. Its an unusual, and unusually weather-tight, method that Jim picked up from a Mother Earth News demonstration project he and Sharon visited while on a motorcycling vacation in North Carolina.
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette on 30.05.10 | File Under Aerator | Comments
