I looked on Craigslist for free bricks; using Mike's Toyota convertible, I drove them over the Dunbarton Bridge very carefully.

It's important to use "firebricks", that is, bricks made from clay and fired, as opposed to bricks made of concrete which are just dried. Normal concrete has air pockets which could potentially blow up.

Now I know why I played so much Tetris as a youngster.

500 lbs or so of bricks.

Ready to begin.

The site - on concrete, away from trees, great spot for a party. The foundation is visible.

I made adobe mud mortar from straw and a clay-heavy soil from our garden. Feet are still the best tool to mix it.

Spreading adobe below the main course of bricks.

The oven takes shape - a lot of bricks are needed to build thermal mass.

A steel grate from an old barbecue holds up the ceiling - most ovens use an series of arches to form a round vault, but I don't have enough loose bricks.

Closing up gaps with the remaining mortar.

Enjoying a cold one after all that hard work.

The finished oven. I let it dry in the sun for a day, then fired it up.

The pizzas cooked in 3-5 minutes and were incredibly delicious. They had to be rotated to cook evenly, but the fire was so hot you could see the dough rise as it cooked.

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