Although the lumberjack, who built his own hobbit house, claims he has never read or watched Lord of the Rings, his home attracts thousands of the saga's fans. The man lives in his unusual house without electricity and modern utilities.
Stuart Grant is 89 years old. He has lived in Great Britain and Australia alternately since 1959. In 1984, he bought a 200-year-old ruined cottage with no roof or doors and moved into it while a larger house was being renovated.
Given Grant's travels, his house renovation was very slow.
The first thing Grant did was fix the roof and doors as he wanted to live comfortably in the little bungalow while the main house was being built.
However, working on the quaint outbuilding proved to be so fascinating that he decided to make it a three-bedroom cottage.
Before Grant settled in it, it was a cobbler's cottage and a farmhouse with cows, calves, chickens, and even a donkey.
Grant got wood from fallen trees, gathered stones from the river for masonry, and used leftover building materials.
"It took quite a few years, I never counted. I just really liked doing it. I got into it," says Grant, who doesn't know how much the project cost him.
Although Grant claims he has never watched Lord of the Rings, coincidentally his front door is round and made of oak, just like the door belonging to Frodo Baggins.
"There are stained glass windows on each side," Grant says.
He's lived in the cottage for nearly 40 years, but only recently his home attracted attention of Lord of the Rings fans after a photo of it was posted on a website recommending places to visit in Northern Scotland.
Grant doesn't have a cell phone, doesn't use the Internet and no longer drives due to his age, but he likes to get out and meet people.
For Grant, creative and innovative projects like his home keep him young.
"You get a real kick out of doing interesting things," Grant says. "I've always been an inventor and a designer."
He recalls his mother telling him as a child that he would be creative.
"People think I'm smart because I make original things, but they never even tried," Grant notes.
Although he will soon turn 90, Grant still feels he is a teenager.
"People can't believe I'm 90 years old. "I've traveled all over the world, it's all just a big adventure," the man admits.
Grant believes that the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. For him, "work is great therapy."
Source: epochtimes
You might be interested in:
All organic, no bills: Couple from a city apartment moves to live in the woods