Gallery: Breaking Ground on the Green Dream

Carnett on his beloved Kubota tractor, digging holes for the concrete pour.

"Prior to the start of my build, I purchased a sub-compact tractor with a front end loader, backhoe and a mowing deck. My wife gave me that look that ALL men know (the one that says "That is a toy, and you know it"). I’m the sort of guy that stops at construction sites to watch heavy equipment in operation, so owning a tractor, even if it is a tiny one, was a longstanding dream of mine. I knew I was going to use it to cut the lawn, but I had no idea what I’d be doing with the backhoe- until this day…

The machine paid for itself. My steel staircase and structural steel supports will weigh over 4,000 pounds, so my engineer said that I’d need two 4’x3’ by 4’-deep footings. I needed them on this day. I called for concrete and the guy said he would arrive at 3PM. It was 12 noon, and I’d never used the backhoe. No fear; I backed the tractor down and started digging. The space was so tight that I had to keep stopping and moving the dirt- the side walls were caving in and the clock was ticking. I had one hole completed when the concrete arrived. The property was so tight that I continued to dig for another fifteen minutes as the truck driver moved into position. It seems that with concrete you're never ready in time, but we got it all poured in the end."