We have been on the land for 6 months now. We are where we want to be but not where we thought we would be. Expected to be working in our home over the winter. We are where we want to be, in the bush on our land, living life the way we choose.
For Remembrance Day we had snow. A decent amount of snow.
Then we had a warm spell and a lot more wet than desired. Adjusting to the
different climate from 800 km south has been interesting. Tricia had not seen
snow on the ground before her birthday, November 19th, in Southern
Ontario. Rarely some blowing around in the air but never an accumulation. I was
born and raised in Ottawa so am more used to winter weather but moved to
Southern Ontario when I was 18 so can’t recall when it set in there.
Once we knew we were not going to have the shell of our home
built this year and we turned our attention to preparing our shelter for the
winter it was non-stop working. Procuring 10+ cords of cut wood and getting it
here and stacked was a big job. Getting the woodstove refinished and hooked up
in the trailer was a big job. Having an entry built over the stairs into the
trailer was another big job. Thankfully a well-timed visit from our good
friends from Muskoka, Dave our builder friend and his wife, Janine (a long-time
friend of Tricia’s) made the stove and entry projects a breeze. As always we
are thankful. Trying to get all the other projects done before the snowfall was
daunting. We kept our heads down and chipped away at them. The skirting around
the trailer was finished after the snow started. There just never seems to be
time to get everything done and as the months roll on and we approach the
shortest days of the year the loss of daylight is a big factor.
But it is all worth it to be here, 5 km to our closest
resident neighbours. I stand on the roof of the trailer brushing the snow from
our solar panel. It lives on the roof mounted to a neat tracker that I rigged
up and connects directly to our GoalZero Yeti 400 power pack inside. From up
there I get a different perspective, of our clearing, the forest around us, and
of life itself. I hated my job and life in Southern Ontario. I was passionate
in my disgust, despair and self-loathing.
6 months in and I can’t even really remember how bad it was. I listen to the
Chickadees all around while I shovel some snow. Follow rabbit, fox, lynx and
moose tracks through the snow… then shovel some more. I stand on the road at
the end of our driveway on a moon-lit night, brighter than any night in
Hamilton under streetlights. It’s in the -20’s and my breath billows up slowly
above me the air still for once. I listen to the loud cracks and pops around
me, the trees protesting the cold. The glowing moon so beautiful. So many
stars.
When I go inside it’s so warm and dry, the fire crackling away. And
there is my partner in crime, my soul-mate, my lover, my friend. “How about
making a coffee with Carolans Irish Cream” she says…
Life is GOOD!
EH
