Happy, Happy… 2010! Now shut up, and pass the Plasma Cutter!

Greetings, Corten Campers!

Happy Freakin’ New Year!

Hey, at the very least, I can say that it’s been pretty exciting here at Renaissance Ronin over the last year!  In looking back at the blog post statistics, I have to tell you that I was surprised at the posts that actually made it into the Top Ten.

As we move into 2010, I can’t wait to see what is yet to come! Corten Container Homes are springing up across the land! I can almost hear it now;

ISBU Homes in Indianapolis!

“Metal Mini-Mansions” in Madison!

Corten Communities clustering in Columbus!

Shipping Container Suburbia’s in Shreveport!

Okay, so I wasn’t completely shocked at the posts on the top of the pile, because the truth is that some of those posts represent what I think was my best work! (I know, I know… I have really low standards!  Man, you guys are tough!)  😉

And in 2010, the best is yet to come! I have some tricks up my sleeve…

Muwahahahah!

To recap 2009, here’s a look at what happened here;

In 2009 RenaissanceRonin (thru the WordPress servers alone) had visitors from 197 countries, over 61,000 New Visitors in America alone (acquired by recording “unique” IP addresses) and 135,628 Pageviews as I type this.

Currently, Renaissance Ronin has over 20,000 RSS Feed subscribers.

Renaissance Ronin is “syndicated” (meaning that other people run my blog posts on their sites as well), and my posts appear on many other blogs and websites as well. Those view numbers ran conservatively over 400,000 pageviews.

That means that over a half million times, I made people reach for the Tylenol Extra Strength! Man, Mom would be so proud! 😉

I want to wish each and every one of you a Happy New Year, one filled with prosperity, and love, and joy! Thank you again for all your support and it’s my hope that you will continue to read Renaissance Ronin!!

Happy New Year!!!!

Here, in a nutshell, are the top 10 posts of 2009:

10. I ain’t the Energizer Bunny…

“As we build our new “Shipping Container Casa” we’re taking a hard look at ways to cut our power consumption.

You see, we’re planning on using photovoltaic systems to make power the house will run on. And since  we’re gonna be responsible for that power, we need to start looking at ways to manage it.

This is NOT our house, but it’s a nice one, huh?

Now, a while back, I wrote a post about ways you can actually save energy. But, now that we’re starting to get serious about this house, it’s time to get serious about our power consumption. And we’re not the only ones, I’m sure. With heating and electricity costs soaring, and the economy teetering on the edge of disaster, it makes sense to muster a few troops, and start looking at ways to make energy-saving efforts around the house.”…

Container House - Main Floor

9. Look! It’s a “recycled house,” Martha! I think they used GARBAGE!

“Welcome to ALTERNATIVE HOUSING 101.6 and a half…:

Okay, I think I have it all figured out. (Kings “X”!)

The goal is to build housing, El Rapido!

And, it has to be “semi-conventional,” and provide all the usual amenities.

Now, I’ll warn you in advance that this is going to be a long “post,” because I’m going to discuss the house I‘m building out of “aircraft hangar parts, and shipping containers,” specifically.

It’s my hope that by the end of this post, you’ll start to be able to picture exactly what we’re about to do.

Now obviously, you’re going to have to use your “mind’s eye,” so use your “nice” crayons, okay? We have enough obstacles as it is! LOL!”…

8. The Many Faces of a Shipping Container – “Recording Studio in a Box”

“When last we met, I told you all about “living in a box, underground.”

This time, I’m gonna tell you the story of a life “recording underground” (well, nearly… It IS Australia, after all… It’s “under ground…” from here!), in a box we call an ISBU, to MAKE a living!!

(I know, I know… stop groaning!)

As my family slowly builds our new home out of Shipping Containers and other recycled materials, some guys are making a living, by turning the same boxes into businesses.

Pay attention folks! Thanks to the President, there’s about eleventy-gazillion dollars in Stimulus money out there floating around waiting for people to grab it.  And, this falls into about three categories I can think of off the top of my head; New (small) business, “Green” application, recycling materials… and I bet there’s more!  I wanna be one of those guys!

“Ronin like money. Money goooood!”

You should wanna be one of those guys, too!”…

7. “Mi Casa Es Su Container!!!” It is too! Honest!

I get all kinds of email. Some of it is interesting, some of it is inflammatory, and some of it is downright entertaining…

“People get really emotional when you start talking about houses. They start to draw mental pictures, and depending on their “special talents,” some of those pictures can start really interesting dialogs.

As I read my email each day, I get to reflect on those images. Hey, some are really nice, “Mental Monets,” that sooth my soul. But some of them are “Industrial nightmares, right out of Freddy Kruger movies…” Brrrr!…

6. Drumroll please! Welcome the $8,000 Shipping Container Home!!!

While out scouring the web for porn… um… er… news, I came across this little gem…

“It seems that the idea of using Shipping Containers as housing is picking up steam!

Rather than recap an already good journalistic piece, I’ll just butt in from time to time, okay? Hot off the AP Wire:

CORRALES, New Mexico (AP) – It was a side trip through a destitute, ramshackle neighborhood in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, that detoured Brian McCarthy from building houses in Albuquerque to an idea to offer the very poor a chance to own a home.

His answer lies in a humble steel shipping container 40 feet long, 8 feet wide and 8½ feet tall.

See, it ain’t just moi!”…

5. Doctor, Doctor! All this “Wind Power” is making me sick!

“Those of you that have been faithfully following along (and shame on you if you haven’t!) know that my family is building a home in Southern Mississippi, out of junk, rubbish, flotsam, jetsam, and even some old garbage. Yes, we are!

At least, that’s what the neighbors are saying…

The reality is that my family is one of those that got caught between the “fine lines of insurance litigation,” and we have to find our own way through the “we don’t have a house anymore” maze, seemingly without any real assistance, after Hurricane Katrina ate our old house!

So, we’re building an “alternative” home. Now, that doesn’t mean it’s an “extra” one, or that there will be punk rock music screaming out of it at all hours while Ronin and scantily clad girls gyrate on the front lawn”…

4. While my IQ gently creeps…

“And now, for something completely different;

While we struggle and toil, down that garbage strewn path that will lead us to “Container Home Ownership,” my brain is starting to hurt!

Now, according to my wife, that’s not surprising, since I’m operating at a “diminished capacity” anyway.

Well, I suppose that’s true, I have lost a few IQ points, since I got married… In fact, it may have happened while we were dating… Hmmmm…

As this goes to post, I’m writing  “An Idiot’s guide to Geothermal Activity.’” It’s heady stuff, and I’m operating at a deficit, so you’re gonna get what you get, huh?  As I struggle through a “Do It Yourself” Geothermal Heating and Cooling series, try this one on”…

3. “The Stimulus” has stimulated my brain…

You know… it’s funny…

“All things really do come back around!

When I was a kid, my parents (“Gawd fearin’, man-killin’, shoot–em-up and eat the entrails”)  US Marines, had us convinced that the world was going to come to an end in our lifetimes.

So, while most kids grew up on Bambi movies and trips to the Ice Cream Shop (does anybody remember “Foster’s Freeze?”) we grew up on “Bambi Burgers” and instead of settling down in front of the TV every Sunday night to watch Walt Disney”…

2. Like it or not – Shipping Container Homes are coming to a lot near you!

“My family is building a home using shipping containers as structure. When I started this project, I thought I’d just throw up a picture from time to time, interspersed with whatever rant I was currently on, to demonstrate “what a nut-case that idiot “Ronin” is.” But”…

And the number one post for 2009 was (fanfare please!);

1. I’d like a Number 3, extras Won-Tons and hold the sulphur!

“Where we live, here in Mississippi, it seems that as the heat of summer comes on, the reports of odors, respiratory complaints and corrosion are surfacing.  Now you’d think that was normal, because this part of the woods is filled with crusty, cantankerous old b@st@rds that have been alive since the Civil War. Just ask ‘em… boy, will you get an earful!

But, it’s not the “cranks” this time. It’s Ma and Pa Normal (okay… okay… “nearly-normal”), in their newly rebuilt Bayou Bunkers!…”

Well, there you have it, Boys and Girls!

An entire year of psychosis, neurosis, and even nostalgia… wrapped up in one page.  Hundreds of posts, scores of rants, and even a pretty picture or two!  🙂

And there’s more to come! You see, I got this”Crazy Med’s”  medication refill, that guarantees…. we.ll… um… never mind! 🙂

C’mon, admit it… Where else would you see Captain America, Walt Disney, Paul McCartney, and Charles Manson all woven skillfully into the same post? Hmmm?

I look forward to meeting you here (man, some of you should at least dress up a little bit  before you park yourself in front of that computer! Brrrrrr!) as we share good times, hard times, and CONTAINER HOME BUILDING!

HAVE A GREAT NEW YEAR!

Stay tuned!

As my family recycles, reclaims, and even BEGS for building materials (sometimes “on my knees”) I write this blog, because like many other families in America and beyond right now…  my family’s SURVIVAL is at stake.

I’m asking you to get involved.

If I’ve helped you, informed you, educated you, or just entertained you with the hundreds of posts we written… please consider donating a few bucks to the blog, to help us survive and rebuild OUR home. Every dollar counts, and  every penny gets carefully spent. There’s a Paypal button right up there at the top of the page. It’s easy, it’s SAFE, and it’s SECURE. Every family deserves a home, and ours is no different. Our family needs a home. Our situation is dire. I’m not going to waste bandwidth plastering pictures up of my wife in her sickbed… or my 2 year old little boy who orbits it. I’ve written about the circumstances here, already. If you can spare “a donation to the cause”, we’d appreciate it.

Okay, ONE picture… Santa came!

We want THIS YEAR to be the year that we heal, and become a family again, living safely, warmly, and productively.

We want that for each and every one of your families, too!  And working together, I know that we can accomplish that. Thanks!