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CLARIN

Shipping Container Transformed Into Dream Home

An Argentine couple struggling to afford rising housing prices went down to the dock and took matters into their own hands.

Window on the world
Window on the world

SAN JUAN — Facing skyrocketting housing costs in Argentina, one couple has come up with a, well, resourceful idea.

Together with his geo-physicist girlfriend, engineer Yamil decided to turn a shipping container into a house.

[rebelmouse-image 27087920 alt="""" original_size="1147x860" expand=1]

Within 48 hours of posting their initiative on a blog, hundreds were writing to ask them to show how they could do the same. They did — through a Q&A section giving people technical and legal details on the “adventure” of building your home from this metal box without prior experience.

[rebelmouse-image 27087921 alt="""" original_size="1147x860" expand=1]

The project arose out of a basic need to find a place to live, and a dearth of financial resources, the couple explained. But it was also inspired by the Keetwonen “container city” in the Netherlands.

They decided instead to turn the container into a traditional stand-alone home, complete with bedrooms, bathrooms and a well-equipped kitchen.

[rebelmouse-image 27087922 alt="""" original_size="1147x860" expand=1]

Although the couple purchased the container — and settled — in San Juan, they told their fellow Argentines that this sustainable kind of housing can be reproduced virtually anywhere in the country, as containers can be bought online or in the port area of Buenos Aires.

[rebelmouse-image 27087923 alt="""" original_size="1434x1075" expand=1]

This could turn out to be a providential example of wits making up for a cash shortfall: A study conducted by the Inter-American Development Bank revealed that around 67% of families in the Argentine capital and its suburbs cannot afford housing there.

[rebelmouse-image 27087924 alt="""" original_size="1147x860" expand=1]

Photos: Yamil's blog

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Society

Is Disney's "Wish" Spreading A Subtle Anti-Christian Message To Kids?

Disney's new movie "Wish" is being touted as a new children's blockbuster to celebrate the company's 100th anniversary. But some Christians may see the portrayal of the villain as God-like and turning wishes into prayers as the ultimate denial of the true message of Christmas.

photo of a kid running out of a church

For the Christmas holiday season?

Joseph Holmes

Christians have always had a love-hate relationship with Disney since I can remember. Growing up in the Christian culture of the 1990s and early 2000s, all the Christian parents I knew loved watching Disney movies with their kids – but have always had an uncomfortable relationship with some of its messages. It was due to the constant Disney tropes of “follow your heart philosophy” and “junior knows best” disdain for authority figures like parents that angered so many. Even so, most Christians felt the benefits had outweighed the costs.

That all seems to have changed as of late, with Disney being hit more and more by claims from conservatives (including Christian conservatives) that Disney is pushing more and more radical progressive social agendas, This has coincided with a steep drop at the box office for Disney.

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