"A dream written down with a date becomes a goal. A goal broken down into steps becomes a plan. A plan backed by action makes your dreams come true" ~Gregory Scott Reid



Hey! This site started all about my little Cabin in the Mountains of Western North Carolina. (and now building my new A-Frame) It's off the Blue Ridge Parkway, between Buffalo Cove and Boone, northwest of Charlotte.Deep in the heart or the Blue Ridge Mountains (Jr. Johnson used to "run shine" on a road VERY nearby) After I saw the BRP (Blue Ridge Parkway) flying into Charlotte over 15 years ago, I liked it! I LOVED it! I wanted more of it! I bought a newspaper in the airport, circled a few ads, settled on one, met the guy who showed me a few properties, picked this one, at his suggestion, and bought it. I started with a lawn chair from Wal mart, then bought a trailer, sold that, then slowly built my 20'x25' cabin with very little knowledge of Building or Construction, and ALOT of help from friends. added big Deck for it too! The entire structure is probably out of square, but it was a labor of love. I dragged an HEAVY old iron claw-foot Tub 800 miles up from Ft. Lauderdale in the back of my pickup, Florida and plumbed it in, (ps. if you have a gooseneck for an old iron clawfoot, I need one!)added a Propane water heater, kitchen sink, stove, and pots and pans. I share a 300 foot deep well with my neighbor Jimmy, and and a dug a Septic system. I used to light up my cabin with candles, kerosene lamps, a wind generator, a 2000 watt gas generator that failed often, a solar panel, and 4 marine batteries. many candles and flashlights were used in the process.I recently got underground power run to my property for the new A-frame, now I feel spoiled, in the cabin now I have a small fridge, a microwave, a TV, and a couple of lamps hooked up to the Temp Pole at the new build site.When I arrive at the cabin now, if nobody shows up and talks till dark, I run an extention cord to the temp pole and WA-LA, just like downtown baby!

I'm in the process of building the LEGAL A-Frame Mountain Cabin. My small Cabin was great, but hardly could pass a code inspection, so now I have installed 1000 gallon a legal Septic Tank , my hand drawn blueprints (see southeast domes below) have been approved by Wilkes county for my building, I brought in underground power, and had the footer dug, inspected and poured,and my basement has passed inspection, and now the walls are poured solid to the sill Bolts! Next,pouring my floor, installing plumbing, raising the A-Frame Trusses, and putting the steel roof on, etc. Its all a multi-year plan, with the price of everything going up its harder to buy groceries and gas here, and pay for building materials there, plus the 800 mile, 12-hour drive there from Ft. Lauderdale is a hell of a commute, but, I am moving forward, always moving forward. My new addition is Mike who has vaulted my construction forward by leaps and bounds, and many THANKS to David Martini from South East Domes for the great Blueprints he hand drew to get it all going! And, of course my Neighbor LC, with without whom I would still be wondering how to "legalize" my old out of square Cabin (I took LC's advice about the A-Frame and things got better immediately)! As the current global economic crisis deepens I have begun to feel even more so that this little piece of earth was the best purchase I ever made in my entire life. To all who ever read this, buy your self a little piece of land, even if it's in the middle of nowhere early in life, and keep building on it! It will surprise you what happens as the years unfold! The cheaper the better. The old adage is still true, even in these VERY lean times, "Land is a good investment, they dont make it anymore" Some old smart, (and probably RICH) guy...