All that sort of rot

As part of my attempt to grow a crop of produce this year I needed a compost bin in which to create my own soil enhancing dirt. It thought I wanted one something like these folks

but the cost of material came close to buying a fancy pre-made bin. So a couple weekends ago my doting husband took on the challenge of fashioning one out of some of the scrap wood lying around our little homestead--the previous owners left us a lot of stuff we've yet to pay the garbage man to take away. He measured and sawed and hammered, and that's when things went bad. About 1/3 of the way through the project his pointer finger got between the wood and the hammer. Bless him, only a few of those nasty expletives sneaked out in front of the neighborhood children! Boy, can he swing a hammer: both the nail side and the pad side of the finger were burst open. What a mess.

Needless to say, he was not ready to start up the project again and I didn't want to wait for the finger to heal, so I traded my desire for the bin that would tell the neighbors, "This girl's serious about dirt," for instant gratification. Besides, I'm told, any container will do. So, thanks to these folks, this is what we've got:

We bought a 32 gallon trash can at the local farm store for about $10. My husband fitted his drill with a very large bit and cut numerous holes on the bottom and sides of the container. So far we've added some leaves, shredded paper, coffee grounds, egg shells, and fruit and veggie scraps. Turning it is pretty easy with a pitch fork. Maybe someday I'll get my fancy bins, but for now we'll make due. And who knows, I might decide I like Rubbermaid better.