First Guest at the Tiny House

Coincidence: I was taking a walk and talking on the phone when I said to my friend—I’d love to have a guest to test out some of my theories on how I can actually manage hosting with a Tiny House—when lo and behold a few hours later I received a message asking to stay. I’m part of an online hospitality community called Warmshowers for cycle tourists. Melvin was on his way to NYC after an around-the-world tour after finishing high school in Germany last year.

(Around the world tour is merely a concept on a bike since of course somewhere you have to take other forms of transportation. Thus, he mitigated his trip, bypassing the –stan countries after riding from his town in Germany to Istanbul.)

Hosting at the Tiny House is tricky as there is the composting toilet hidden behind a screen—meaning: a lack of privacy. One) I’d have to trust a guest to use the toilet properly and two) I’d have to vacate. The plan was for me to stay in my daughter’s basement and give Melvin the Tiny House. At Christmas I’d bought an inflatable mattress that we blew up so that he could spread out his sleeping bag and sleep on the floor. He was much too tall for the sleeping loft. Most people do not like the idea of a sleeping loft anyway.

He arrived on his 62 cm bike loaded down with about a hundred pounds of gear (total with water, food, etc). I’d stopped after work for a can of crushed tomatoes and had spaghetti and salad ready. We ate on the back porch, finishing with a tea and cookies. I grabbed stuff from the house and left him to settle in. In the morning we had waffle bar around my daughter’s table and he took off. I didn’t need to be at work until noon that day—so everything worked out perfectly.

I’m looking forward to hosting more passing cyclists! That is before I travel to Germany this fall for my Rhine River ride and will have to use Warmshowers to request a floor or couch of my own!

At least I know my plan for hosting now works.