This & that but mostly that, lol

Hello all;

March the 9th, wow, it's been a while since I've posted a new post?

I didn't have a lot to write about other than the looong NB Winters that bring depression along for most folks. Sure you can take your fish oils & V-Ds but still. A lot has happened here that would perhaps be best left for in-person meetings.

I've never known or felt the earth's wobble quit like this year with temperatures dropping 20c+ in only 12 hours or -30c one day & -5c the next. We also had a decent amount of rain for a couple of days in February?????

Never in oner 30 years of living in even much warmer zones in Canada had I experience that in February!

This February was also the mildest I have ever experienced in Canada so although no more rain than just those two days, the temperature never dropped below -20c and that is a good 10-20 degrees warmer than we are used to here.

So it's March the 9th today, yay!

Yay because although we just had a storm yesterday, the days are much longer AND brighter(even on the cloudy days). This means that even if we got snow, the milder days melted them off of our panels & we were able to harvest a ton of sun-power :)

And now the storm report.

NB's Winter driving conditions have been the worst and the scariest that I have experienced in three decades of driving but yesterday's toped even that!

We simple had to make the trip to a close-by town. There were whiteouts on many pockets with snow drifts on the road from the open farmer's felids. The drifts were at least a foot hight/deep and 20+ feet long. Islands really.

If you can't picture those measurements, knock on your handy neighbour's house and ask him to use his measuring tape to show you what these island look like.

So what do you do if you catch yourself beached on one of these islands, in the middle of nowhere with visibility of only inches in front of you?

Here are my recommendations for those who care(all three of you, lol).

If you decide to move here you need;

A reliable new/er AWD car. Preferably an SUV because of the added hight,. The million SUVs that you see in the cities are only really justified for this sort of a setting. Let's call them off-road, lol.

You will need a decent set of four Winter tiers,

Work from home. Do not leave you house on bad weather days. About 20? days in total. If you cannot work from home, just don't go out to work on those days. It will NOT pay,

Alternatively, take a good three months off to travel to somewhere with only 3 months of Winter, lol.

Namaste

Update! March the 14th

So if you're wondering why the post's date does not match the date I first wrote the post, it's because of one the other joys? of living in the rural Canada. Low internet speeds, expensive & limited bandwidth,..

So I was hoping to post a picture along with the post and am still waiting for it to upload!

Update #2! March...

While I was waiting to upload that picture, we got hit with more Nor' easter storms. It is still milder for this time of the year so it's only the high winds that are bringing the unstable trees down & leaving thousands of folks without power.

We're not dependent on external power but the roads & the school get shut-down.

Update #3...I know

So while I was still waiting to upload a picture here of the previous Nor' ester.... yet another one BUT at lease finally a chance to upload a few pictures :)

Me again :)

Historically my readers reply to my posts directly & not here on the blog but today, after posting this, I received a reply that I wanted to share with you. I'm obviously changing the name & some of the details to protect the writer's privacy :)

Good day to you Darius,

We first had contact through Kijiji back in August 2017. After years of research, introspective thought, insane City living, last year I took the plunge: 5 acres vacant land outside of ****************. This year I just closed on three small parcels with 2 small houses, in ******** just off the Highway. Not bad for a guy living in a shelter with just the clothes on his back only 10 years ago, but I digress- After reading your recent newsletter regarding this years weather, limited Internet access etc., it all sank in. Now the panic has set in about the incredible extremes from here(Toronto) to there. I fell in love with New Brunswick, can't get around it, no turning back. As a non- resident I have already run into troubles, and realize I have made the first of many hurdles needed to get out there full time. Sure could use some ongoing advice in the foreseeable future. Your website has been quite helpful as well.

Enjoy your day,

John

Hello John,

Hummmm....I'm both glad & sorry to read your email. Glad because the "smartest" folks are leaving the big cities for many reasons. Sorry because you are not the only person to have made the first of many, I hesitate to call it a mistake but.... of purchasing your property site unseen or without having at least some knowledge of the vicinity, climate, property position, location,.....There was recently a TCM who purchased his property here from California only to find-out that it was not so near to us, slop, condition,.... once he arrived here.Thankfully, last month I got word that he may have an offer on it. If the offer does go through, he would be able to move closer to us or even right here!I honestly don't recall our conversations as I have many folks contacting me(345 to be exact) in the past few years. I'm happy to say that my honest advice has kept all of them away. You see, living this sustainable, off-grid,....lifestyle is far from easy or inexpensive. Planing helps with 15%. Allowing for revisions, hurdles & the unexpected helps with another 15%. Have a sizeable amount of savings accounts for 30% but having some money AND being super tough & hardy, would accomplish that same number.But we're only at 60% so far. The other 40% goes to level of one's handiness, resilience, ability to work from home, having at least one reliable car. That is a fairly new vehicle with new/re Winter & all-season tires. And finally the ability to handle or perhaps even love whatever the mother nature throws at you. NB is a beautiful province as is most of this vast country of ours. It comes with it's own set of pluses & minuses but my aforementioned preparedness requirements goes for most places. Now if you should find someone to hold your hand & guide you through the hurdles, you will have a much easier transition to your piece of heaven. I have been asked to tone-down my honest advice by near & distant readers, "friends", family & neighbours as to not sound too negative & personal + no-one really cares about my free advice and they will do what they want in the end anyway. I do however have a handful of readers that love my honesty and only want to hear the truth.So it is for them that I write as I do :)I am also available for help in any way that I can (carpentry, a hand, tools, accommodations, advice, planning, designing, forecasting, estimating, counselling, referrals, consulting, the renewables, land offerings,....) all of which will be fee-based.

Take good care sir,

Darius