Container Homes/Living Off the grid

Ok. So I'm really into container gardening, but when my sister called to tell me about container homes...that intrigued me. Containers. You know the ones we see at the docks here in Seattle and anywhere that has a sea port. You will also see them trudging up the Mississippi and Illinois rivers.
Check out how creative people can be. They are pretty darn cheap if you don't have to pay for shipping. Hmmmm......
Check out these websites:
Yahoo Green"container homes"
"The house lady" -this CNN site talks about a home that looks just like the others on the block but is made out of steal. Hmmmm.....
I'm liking this!
Now to find the land. Then I want a composting toliet and a rainwater harvesting cistern. I also want a solar powered shower, and a wood stove (like the old days).
I also found a solar powered recharge station for my computer at REI. Someday I will live off the grid.

Sustainable. Green. Folds into a box. 100% Recyclable full-size. Aluminum DESK!

Photos by Tim George (Fusionfurniture on Etsy.com)

I found the perfect desk! (actually my sister found this awesome desk!) This full-sized desk has a sleek design,  is 100% aluminum,  and it folds-into-its-own-self-contained box!  This desk was made for the US.Army for mobile medic units.  It is perfect for my origami-style small apartment.  It is sustainable and recyclable.  It has 3 drawers and is the perfect size (29.5" high x 59"wide x 22"deep), folded up (16.5" high  x 31" wide x 22" deep).

Here is to living the sustainable life!

Oh Rats! Now what do I do?

Ok, so yesterday, I found several tomatoes with bite marks in them!  One of them (a green one no less) was completely sucked dry!  AGH!  Then out of the corner of my eye I saw a little rat (what I believe is a "roof rat") scurry into the corner of the wall of my garden!
OH! RATS! 

For a fun and informative video: "Ratatouille-Your Friend the Rat" 
First thing I did was to pour dirt into the hole in the wall!  Then, as a temporary solution I covered the hole with a piece of wood and secured the wood with a very heavy rock.  This is not a 'real' solution however!  Rats, believe it or not, can squeeze through a space that is only 1/2 an inch wide/high.  They are amazing contortionists and once they find food they (and their friends, neighbors, and offspring) will be back! 
I plan on getting some cement and will fill the hole in the wall this weekend.  The only real way to keep rats out of your garden is to make it less optimimal then other places. 

1.  Remove access to the space.  (Fill holes, make it hard to get to).
2. Remove food sources (this includes fresh vegetable waste --no cucumber peelings or anything like that ...........don't dig this stuff into your urban garden.............put in the yard waste container. 
3.  Turn compost bins daily (if possible).  This keeps things moving and shaking in the compost bin so that rats don't want to live there.
4.  Keep an eye on your garden, watch it, come out at different times during the day (and night) to see what is happening.  If you find other access points, eliminate them right away!

All urban gardens have rats (either Norway rats or Roof rats), it is just a question of whether they are a 'problem' or not.  Rats become a problem when they find food in your garden, house, or other place the rat wishes to dwell. 
Rats won't travel more than 300 feet away from their home den so by making sure that your garden does not have warm, dry, hidden places for them to live is one way to keep them out. 
Tips on how to effectively and safely remove rats from your property