| Some Photos from Sonnet Drive Shelby NC |
| Our goal will be to use the resources upon this property in a manner which reduces our demand upon this planet's resources. A brief introduction, The physical location of this parcel was not ultimately important, these practices can be implemented in regions much colder than the foothills of western North Carolina. Living near Kings Mountain, NC reminds me of the spirit of the frontier men and women who by carving out small settlements in and across the Appalachian Mountains working with only primitive tools and their own hard labor learned to thrive. Concerned with protecting their hard earned freedoms, these frontiersman stood tall and proud against tyranny and oppression. This spirit of independence, the morality to stand up for your rights, the fortitude to live and thrive from your own efforts and stand free from tyranny are the underlying standards which we will venture forward to carve out our own Recycled America. To read more about this heroic and pivotal battle of the Revolutionary War follow this link : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Kings_Mountain RecycledAmerica has become a way of life for my son and I. Consider my being raised amongst the suburbs of the Northeastern megalopolis stretching from Boston, MA to Washington D.C. If you push the limits a bit, one could consider Richmond, VA the southern tip. Raised amongst the hustle bustle of racing around from place to place always trying to beat traffic, be there on time, hectic schedules and no time to consider what is truly important in life. Living in a shoe box with .16 of an acre of property was the way of life I hope to leave in my past. Our little sanctuary is a whole whopping 4.08 acre with about one acre of open area for gardening. Living on the edges of a nice wooded area is still a thrill beyond words. Wildlife and domestic critters pass by on occasion as squirrels amuse us with their acrobatic displays. I often find myself just gazing out into our small forest trying my best to identify the species of tree I am adoring. I have found a tulip tree (Yellow poplar) that has to be three feet in diameter, think of the history, the majesty, towering easily 100 feet into the sky. My son and I have become the keepers of this treasure. Still when you consider natural selection, I have found there are quite a few blow downs, broken limbs and even trees that did not survive and by whatever reasons they have perished, I have noted at least 4 trees that need to be harvested before they fall over in a direction that could make them potentially dangerous. I have no place at this time to use this for firewood and will mill this dead fall and aged wood lying on the forest floor to be harvested and sawn into craft sized lumber that we may utilize ourselves or sell via this website in the future. In my heart, I despise waste still I am confident these limbs and trees have fallen 10,000 times before renewing the soil for forests long before man walked this planet, Still my mind sees this as wood, that could be useful to others and a product we can provide to pay our bills. A GREEN thought: If you want to do something really green, Plant a tree, now think bigger and plant 100 Consider the turbulent times this nation now faces, who can trust having a job? Which banks will fail? Check the FDIC troubled banks list to see if yours is listed The goal of becoming more self reliant and less dependent upon grocery stores, reducing use of and wise use of potential energy and alternate fuels will help all of us to recycle a way of life from the past. Our goal is to identify and utilize sustainable income and growth by conservation and utilization of this property's renewable resources, be it bio-fuels, solar, wind or water power. Standing free and proud, like the mighty Tulip tree I mentioned above, our mission is to use only what we need, enhance and contribute to the indigenous ecosystem and conserve the potential resources to limit the impact we cause by our use of this property. The RecycledAmerica creed is to re use and recycle any materials or resources that continue to have useful life. We continue to strive to reduce consumption and utilize our renewable resources conservatively. We are a for profit enterprise and plan for continued growth. Growth to expand and to share these values with those less fortunate and selected charities that share our vision. Steven and StevieTownsend |
| Welcome to RecycledAmerica's newest project |
| 114 Sonnet Dr. Shelby NC 28152 |
| A tale of reuse..... Please take a few moments to look at the images. When my son and I purchased this home, there was an unfinished addition at the rear of the home. We could have used the extra space, but having a good look at the piers the previous owner set to support the floor, I felt it was best to detach the addition and convert this space into a storage shed. Thus far I have removed a patio roof that was attached to the Guest House (Rotting mobile home) I carefully removed each 2x4, removed the nails and have reused this lumber to close the wall that was attached to the home. In fact I was already to head to Lowes and purchase new lumber when the light went on and realized I already had purchased lumber when we purchased this property. I was even able to reuse some of the fasteners and nails to erect the wall to close in the storage shed. Cost thus far $ 0.00 and my time. I even have to change my ways of thinking to reuse all that junk wood I used to burn or take to the dump can now be reused over again. As the cut offs grow smaller eventually these pieces may become kindling to start a fire or wind up in my mulch bed. As I recycle the guest house and remove this eyesore, each item of value or item that has usable life remaining, will be stored, sold, recycled or used. Fulfilling the concept of completing the recycling cycle, We will Reduce Reuse Recycle and Create Tell us your tales |
| THE CHALLENGE |
| The purchase of this parcel went through without conducting a phase 1 environmental study. As a foreclosure and cash price of $19,690.00 I felt the quick tour I did across a portion of the property would suffice and allow our initial investment to remain affordable. There is cost involved with having a environmental study performed which does not eliminate any of the findings, it only informs you of environmental concerns you should be aware of prior to purchasing a property. I have eyes, I can probe under leaves, I did walk the property now being bitten by every crawling or flying creature, not to mention a nasty case of poison ivy, oak or sumac or some reaction to a North Carolina entity that persist to keep me scratching and swollen. Guess I should have waited for Winter : ) My findings : It seems every neighbor whose property borders ours felt dumping their waste into our woods was the best practice to return this waste back to the earth. So as I walked the boundary and tried to find corner pins, I noticed Frigidaire, Whirlpool, tin cans, glass, TIRES anybody need TIRES ??? Box spring mattress, you name it, it is here. I am thinking an archaeological dig on these areas could produce some great antique jars, and a good bit of mixed metals to recycle. Of course I did know about the rotting mobile home but felt with my own sweat, I can reduce this shell of a mobile home to just one metal trailer frame which will likely weigh a few tons and can be sold as scrap metal. Prior to our purchasing, someone already felt it was their obligation to recycle the aluminum siding and copper but were kind enough to leave a few scraps. The ultimate goal will be to remove every item deposited onto this property by those souls living or dead who deposited their refuse into our woods. Official notice will be provided to each adjoining property owner of our intent to remove these articles and extend our invitation to help or add to the recyclable materials we intend to claim and recycle. I am not a bean counter but will try to provide values and costs to reclaim this property and allow the reclaimed areas to be planted with beneficial native specimens to aide our cause. Some areas may be cleared to allow more productivity of the land available, but great care and consideration will be our guide to use these areas utilizing both conservation minded practices and still create a profitable productive asset we can use to support ourselves. Ultimately, we wish to use this property to sustain my family, provide growth, and allow us to share this concept with the world. 4.08 Acres is all we have to work with but I am confident we can reduce our demand for outside resources dramatically with sound stewardship and husbandry practices. Our intent is to develop a miniature scale working farm where the products we produce will allow us to pay our bills, eat very well and expand this model for larger operations who waste energy and do not utilize every resource available to them. We are doing this by trail and error and trying to find answers via our web based community of friends who practice environmentally sound practices already and are willing to share their experiences so I do not have to re-invent say a wind mill to pump water. |
| We have TREES I think we have found our first resource to help support our mission and sustain our lifestyle. Trees wonderful trees Please try to understand the thought processes and results we wish to achieve. As I began working around this property, I am seeing scores of naturally planted seedling trees located in areas beneath the mature canopy of our woods that are healthy little trees yet fight to find sufficient light. I often try to not damage any plant life as I wander about but there are those seedling trees that have taken root in or near the edge of long established lawn. Even under the canopy of the woods these poor little guys have taken root where we feel selectively harvesting these naturally planted seedlings will be more beneficial for these trees to be relocated to your yard, where they can grow big and thrive in full sunlight. I also see healthy nursery sized trees that could be harvested as well. To harvest these means we are hoping to turn these precious live trees into a life long difference for others to enjoy. If you have any interest in seeing the wonderful selection of seedlings and tree stock we have available Please visit our Adopt a tree pages Do you have a useful link to share? |