Category Archives: DINKS on the Farm

DINKS on the Farm

May 2007

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Tuesday, May 1, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

Passed a milestone last night: I cried from all the stress. Brock and I made a list/chart of all the decisions we have to make re: our house, and I was a little overwhelmed by it all. So I called my mom & dad, and dad told me what to do (in-floor heating, powered via wood stove and water heater, concrete floors stamped to make them pretty, etc.).

Our options include:
FLOORING: laminate, hardwood, engineered hardwood, concrete, etc.?
HEATING: wood stove, pellet stove, furnace, etc.?
WATER: on-demand or water heater?
and then we can get to work on the blueprints. Ugh.

Also: I start my new job Monday!!! EEK!!!

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Friday, May 4, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

I’m so excited about the farm. I’m not usually one to regret my decisions (even if I really should), and the farm is no exception. Everytime I see a condo or whatever for $400,000 I think, Why would anyone buy that? Especially when you can get an acreage and a whole new life style instead? I sort of understand that some of you think farming = hell, what with the physical exhaustion and weather-based stress and etc., but I feel more and more that my new life is the right one for me. I suppose we’ll see, once I’m actually a farmer and can’t have my 2 hour naps after work each day . . .

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Sunday, May 6, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

Today Brock is cleaning our apartment. Which is fair, since yesterday I messed it all up by making 3 apple pies (as thanks to my references) and a pumpkin pie (for Brock), and lasagna (which is now in the fridge, waiting to be cooked).

House-wise, I sent Dad Brock’s latest houseplan, discussed geo-thermal heating, and now I’m researching U-Pack. Where the hell is U-Pack in Victoria?? I know it’s out there — I’ve seen the crates in people’s yards. But the only google results I got were American. I suppose I should check the phone book . . . how retro. Brock’s convinced that the best arrangement ever re: storing our crap for June and July (between leaving the penthouse and moving into our new home) is to stick it all at his parents. Poor parents. The very thought of moving our sectional sofa or king-size memory foam mattress (with boxsprings) down from our apt, to Duncan, then into Debbie and Randy’s house and up their stairs to the tv room . . . ugh. What a waste of energy! So I’m committed to making a case for U-Pack. If I can find out how to reach them.

In other news, I start my new job tomorrow!!!! I can’t believe I’ve officially left government employment. I always talked about it, but I suspected that the lure of the Golden Handcuffs might trap me for at least a decade or two. Luckily for me, I met and fell in love with a nutter who wanted a farm . . .

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Tuesday, May 29, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

I’ve been a naughty DINKS On The Farm updater this month. I have no idea why we think we’ll have the “spare time” to actually build & manage a farm . . .

Anyhoo. Things we have accomplished this month include: packing (our condo is a mess of cardboard), we held a garage sale (made $23 and gained a coat rack and bell — I’ll use the bell to call Brock in from the fields for dinner, or something like that), started my new job (the cause of my poor updating — too busy at work!!!), signed the mortgage papers ($300,000), discussed insurance (Banker Nils and I want it, Brock refuses to pay the extra cash), met with our accountant & learned about farm write-offs (yippee!!!!!), got a business GST number, and . . . . lots of other mundane details. It’s freaking exhausting. I’ve been sleeping a lot, whenever I haven’t been commuting on the Malahat or working. We sort of have some vague idea of what needs to be done in order for us to have a home August 1. Here, in case you’re fascinated, is the process:

1. finalize our house plans and where we want to build.
2. get a sanitary permit from the Septic Guy (aka Tony).
3. apply for a “Home Builders Exemption” from some office in Vancouver.
4. wait 10 days until they send us a form. Fill it out and get it notarised.
5. get a statement of land title to show we own the property (June 1).
6. give sanitary permit, land title, Vancouver-office form, and properly-drawn blueprints of our home to the Cowichan Valley Regional District office.
7. Wait for them to say “Okay.”
8. Install a septic field (hi Tony).
9. Excavate and pour the foundation (we still need to find someone to do this).
10. Get my Daddy Bob, Brother Joe & Dylan to build the house.
11. Get hydro and the well hooked up.
12. Move in.
13. Arrange for mail delivery.

Whew. Someone out there (my coworkers for sure) are taking bets as to when we’ll actually be living in the house. My boss has September 1, I have August 1.

Our short-term plans are The Move Up Island. We’ve been packing, as I mentioned, and we take possession of the property June 1. I’ve booked that day off work: we’re going to the farm to sit in lawn chairs, drink champagne and roast smokies on a fire. Saturday is The Move (if we can book a van on the busiest moving weekend of the year). Sunday we’ll clean the apartment, and Monday we’re meeting with Ruth & Neil (the wonderful owners of this beautiful apartment) for the inspection, return of deposit/keys, etc. As of July 5, I am a resident of Duncan.

Not entirely sure how I feel about that yet.

But I’m REALLY excited about our farm.

DINKS on the Farm

April 2007

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Tuesday, April 3, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

My mom and dad have been helping us figure out house plans. FYI, here’s how you build a really cheap (but decent quality) home:

1. Ask your municipality (or regional district, if you aren’t in a municipality, like us) for their building & zoning restrictions. The Cowichan Valley Regional District sent me a whole whack of pdf files with arcane charts, etc. on them, which I forwarded post-haste to my daddy for translation. Also, it helps to have a dad who builds million-dollar homes for a living.

2. To save costs, use pre-made trusses (the thing that makes your roof pointy) so your home will have an “A” shape. Also, use a “slab on grade” foundation instead of a crawlspace/basement/proper foundation. We’re lucky — we live in the enviro-bubble known as the West Coast, which prevents us from having four-foot deep frost levels (or something like that). We can use cheap-ass foundation styles. Yay!

3. Build small. Decks can be added later, and they are super-cheap to build — with outside furniture and the occassional heater, this will add a lot of space to a small house.

Don’t I sound wise???

This week we’re getting the “perc test” done, which determines whether we can have a septic field (cheaper) or need a septic tank (expensiver). Also, Dad is going to help us figure out blueprints, which we’ll need to get our financing figured out. (Oh, and provide a place for us to live as of June 1.)

Yesterday was our 1 year anniversary (from our first date) — we drank champagne and watched the sunset from our penthouse deck, and read garden books, and Brock decided he’s going to be an artsy landscaper.

Any bets on what we’ll be doing in another year?

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Wednesday, April 4, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

Here are some blueprints that Brock designed — essentially Brock measured our king size mattress & couch, then drew walls around them:

[sorry, no image available — imagine a box]

Also: we’ve decided not to do a perc test before we buy the property. Tony (the septic guy) had a look at the farm and decided there wouldn’t be any issue. We save $400 or thereabouts, and get to remove another “subject to” in the contract!

And, upon discussion with mom, I’ve learned that a septic field and a septic tank are not opposites. It’s field + tank, or nothing. So that’s good to know.

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Wednesday, April 11, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

We made a list last night of all the things we have to do over the next 2 months. It was exhausting. Previously simple moving chores, like “change hydro,” have become “install hydro.” We’re planning to rent something (an apartment or hotel room or whatever) in Duncan for June while the septic and foundation is prepared, then build our wee house the first-ist week of July and move in. Also, Brock’s brother Craig suggested we get an old shipping container (the kind that CN Rail carries, then they’re filled with stuff and shipped via boats to China) for storage of all our books, etc. A co-worker of Brock’s did this, and she’s investigating cost & logistics for us.

AND: tomorrow is my 27th birthday 🙂

Here’s a plan my Dad did for us — it’s perfect . . . except that we want the longer (sunny/view) side to have the living room and kitchen:

[again, no image available — imagine a nicer box]

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Saturday, April 14, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

I forgot to mention last time — the landmark attraction that’s existed for eons at our intersection (TransCanada & Bench Road) is a run-down, generally sketchy nightclub called the Galaxy. Last time we visited/stalked our farm, we noticed a huge rezoning sign on the Galaxy property: someone wants to make it a strip mall, with a restaurant and etc! This is WONDERFUL news for us. A strip mall will draw more people off the highway and onto our side of the road. Business hours will certainly be better than a nightclub’s. There’s a restaurant that we’ll be able to sell our farm stuff to, and maybe a convenience store. It’ll be easy to put up a sign: “Stretch your legs! Walk a few metres and visit our farmer’s market!” And it’ll provide a walkable-source of services for us. Hopefully it’s also a sign of development moving south of Duncan — which means more neighbours/customers for us. Anyhoo, that’s exciting.

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Wednesday, April 18, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

Happy Birthday Mom!!

Today I was offered a new job!!! I’m ridiculously excited. Everything’s great about it, but the things that I SHOULD be excited about are: 1. it’s in Duncan, so I won’t have to commute to Victoria from the farm, and 2. the excellent benefits/pay. However, the thing I’m most excited about is that I’ll be exposed to marketing and advertising stuff, which I suspect might be my Calling. My new boss is a really friendly, experienced professional who will teach me everything I don’t know. And it sounds like a perfect balance of individual accountability + team brainstorming . . . perfect.

With Brock in Victoria and me in Duncan, we’re totally going to corner the farm eggs & fresh veggies market on this island.

Today was also the deadline for our last “subject to” — I faxed the form this morning. So from now on we either REALLY own a farm, or we lose our $8,000 deposit.

There’s so much change and excitement in my life these days that I’ve decided to host a Tupperware Party, to ground myself in the practicality of plastic storage products.

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Monday, April 23, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

We spent the weekend driving around Southern Vancouver Island checking out free stuff. Once we were done scouting, we picked up a 16-foot rental van (yay Budget!) and loaded it with free wood, glass, a really heavy desk and a massive wood table, and dropped everything off at Brock’s parents’ house and the farm. (Farmer Matt, the current owner of our dirt, was kind enough to let us store some things there even though we don’t take possession until June 1.)

It was exhausting. Then Sunday we drove out to Metchosin and learned how to make a greenhouse out of sliding glass doors, and then we toured Marigold Nursery, and by then I was too grumpy to continue so we went home and Brock made me tacos.

Not a very relaxing weekend, despite the sunshine, but it was certainly productive! Brock is all excited about building his greenhouse, and I’m in love with our new table — it’s 8×4 or bigger and perfect for my rooting/potting plans. We’ve decided that I will be the seed/rooting person in our operation, and Brock will do everything else farm-ish. And I’m doing compost too. Or Peter is.

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Tuesday, April 24, 2007 – Victoria, BC, Canada (in a condo – BUT WE OWN A FARM!!!!!)

Where do roosters come from? I’ve learned that there are two kinds of chickens: egg layers and meat birds. The egg laying kind are all female (obviously) — the males are “disposed of” at birth. Meat birds are both male and female (I think). So are roosters actually male egg layers that were allowed to live? How were they selected? Or are they a third species altogether? In which case, where are all the female roosters??????

Farming is so complicated.