today my tiny house travels have taken
me somewhere truly unexpected I'm at the
given Conservation Center in Santa
Clarita where I'm about to visit a tiny
house that's found its home among the
eight
[Music]
hello javi hey really lovely to meet you
nice to meet you too I have to say this
is probably one of the most unusual
spaces that I have ever visited a tiny
house so what kind of work do you
actually do here we have 41 Gibbons here
and many of them are in captive breeding
programs so these are endangered species
and are we working to save them and we
also try to learn about them and educate
the public about them describing our one
of the most endangered primates in the
wild one of the rarest animal it's a
haenam Gibbon we don't have any of them
here but it is one species that down to
25 individuals left we work with other
species like the northern white chick
Gibbons it's only about 1000 left in the
wild and Gibbons are still being hunted
and they're losing their forest habitat
some of the reason the Givens are
endangered it's because of the
frustration the forest being cut down
for plantations like harmonix
plantations and many people don't even
know that the things that they buy
Nisour contains power coming from the
rainforest so we are here to educate
people about giving raise awareness
about Herer they are and people when
they learn about something they can
relate to and it's so easy to relate to
Givens because there's so many things
that they are very similar to us how
they raise their offspring had the
siblings interact with each other had a
bond with each other
I love educate people about them and
beside that we teach people how to care
forgiving so this is one Center here it
was funded in - 1976 and we learned so
much about how to care for them and we
can share that with other zoos and other
sanctuaries worldwide so these things
that we already figure out why not share
with others and all those things are so
important so we're here at the
Conservation Center but this is your
home isn't it yes what a beautiful and
creative looking tiny house Lissa's
thank you how did you actually come to
have this home here I've been living
here since 2005 and we have a couple of
travel trailers for volunteers
researchers and I came here as a
volunteer so the first couple years I
said the travel trailers without a one
on peers and after a while I wanted to
have my own space but I wanted to leave
on fine because you will hear it it's
pretty amazing to hear the given singing
in the morning and I just wanted to live
outside in this kind of mixture that
everything is okay at night in the
Gibbons and just enjoy being always
around them not to have to travel to
work and things like that and after a
while I feel like I want to have my own
space and I started looking for
alternative structures and I fall in
love with the tiny houses that are and
will and they can I can take them with
me if one day the whole Center moves to
a different location and they built like
a real house but tiny and I can afford
it so it just started the tiny house
movement it's around 2007-2008 so we
purchase it for five thousand it was
like part donation and part we pay for
it I've been living in the in this
substance Wow and five thousand dollars
been a remarkable price to pay for a
time yeah that was a very good deal how
big is this one actually 14 by 8 feet
like this measure it from outside right
yeah so the things with the porch and
everything yeah especially in a country
where tiny houses are becoming bigger
and bigger yeah this is definitely a
very purist idea of the tiny house
movement and I guess being built in 2008
that make sense yes it was one of the
first tiny house that was good yeah yeah
well I'm so excited to have a look
inside yeah look up great oh look at
this place
this home is just absolutely packed full
of character isn't it yes you've got
your adorable given soft toys there
obviously there's a little bit of a
given theme going on here yeah yes
they're really your life I know you came
to America so that you could actually
work with them you studied them and did
your masters on them when you were still
in Hungary yeah you've been working with
this animal for a really long time
like 14 years or something yes yeah yeah
it's my life for sure and how wonderful
that even when you're surrounded by
these animals you're still able to bring
them in and use them to decorate your
tiny home yes I do I think that's really
lovely and this is really interesting
here what's this this is my desk so it
is open done and I can sit here and work
on my computer when I don't need it I
need to screw this back up after work I
like to read oh look at this now I have
to say for such a tiny house that is
definitely a disproportionately sized
bookshelf isn't it yes I do love to read
and I suppose that's one of the best
things about being in a tiny house isn't
it it's a spaces entirely yours and you
get to fill it with whatever you want
yes and take out whatever it came with
so like most tiny house this is also
came with a shower toilet and a small
kitchen and after having it for a couple
years I decided to just take it out so I
can use the space for what I needed and
I was collecting books and I needed more
space I ended up putting in bookshelves
into the kitchen electro publication
table and then more books I started
using the the bathroom with the storage
and then okay it's time to get rid of
everything and and this way I was able
to bring in more colors because I had
wood paneling everywhere I love wood
it's very peaceful and calming but I
wanted to bring in some color so they
were to put in a dry one and paint in
blue and then put in the bookshelf so it
makes it more like a home having removed
the bathroom in the kitchen normally
that would be problematic if you weren't
in a place like this but because you've
also got access to the kitchen
facilities and the bathroom facilities
here at the Conservation Center it's not
really a problem yeah it's not another
problem for me because a couple of steps
when I'm in the main house we had
bathroom kitchen and that's where we
have our main office so everything is
right close and you have so much storage
space in here as well because I can see
you've also got cameras and audio
equipment and all of that stuff which I
assume is also for your work
yes exactly I'm a biologist and I study
given vocalization and their behavior
and I collect audio recordings and
analyze it on a computer and I have many
like mini DV tapes a lot of data a lot
of information and DVDs and other just
everything in each space besides that I
also need a little bit of space for
clothes and some other things and having
the ability to part your tiny house
right here at the Conservation Center
where you work you don't get to complain
about your commute to work do you no I
just walk outside I'm in the middle of
the center so the given set around me
and I can wake up for this song every
morning and the same time I'm the
director and I feel like I'm the
guardian of the place so and I kind of
like a night owl so everybody already
went to bed giving so sweeping and it's
very peaceful I can just walk outside
and just just listen just the night and
it's very nice or if something happening
at night like something scaring the
given so and just make sure everybody is
alright if we have a Gibbon that's not
feeling well I can check on them at
night and isn't that such a wonderful
feature of your home as well that you
get to choose exactly where you want to
put it yes I think I'm I feel very lucky
that I'm living in something that first
I don't have to pay rent and something
that makes me happy just looking at it
makes me smile and seriously I can put
it wherever I want this it's very
special to to be here yeah you've also
got what looks to be a very small
they're very comfortable chair down here
the compliment the library do I fit in
this yeah you doing I guess I look no
way I can put in a full size I'm chair
or sofa so I I went to a tutor so I got
this and I fit in there but you know
most of the time ended up sitting on the
floor and my captioning in that that's a
good yeah right I could definitely see
myself be comfortably sitting here
though with a cup of tea and a good book
yeah and should we have a look at the
sleeping loft upstairs yeah all right
this space is absolutely
horrible just managed to make this just
so incredibly warm and welcoming up yet
definitely warm and one coming so you've
been living in this house now since 2008
after so long living in a tiny house
how's it working out for you that's
almost 10 years yes while it's working
out pretty well I I love living in it it
makes me happy when I walk in and this
makes me smile and I go outside I love
my little rock collection
couple of plants yeah yes is there
anything that you would want people to
know about tiny house life or anything
that maybe you didn't expect I think
it's perfect for me because I'm kind of
like a solitary soul so I have friends
but I like feeling a lot so if if it for
a couple I think have to be a little bit
bigger so this is not for everybody but
it is perfect for me I absolutely love
it what an incredible space I can just
imagine you resting your head there at
night and listening to all of the gibbon
song as you're just asleep what an
absolutely magical place thank you so
much for sharing it with me Gaby
thank you thank you for coming at only 8
by 14 feet there's no question about it
that this house on wheels is truly tiny
but for Gaby the most important thing
about what this home represents is the
fact that it allows her to be in exactly
the place that she loves most surrounded
by her life's work and passion and they
always say the most important thing
about finding a house is location
location location this one's pretty hard
to do
you