Ready for anything…

A number of years ago, I fancied myself quite the outdoorsy young woman. I wore a lot of fleece and lived in my hiking boots. I carried a backpack instead of a purse and did a lot of walking. I would bundle up in my lightweight, windproof ski pants and lightweight, fleece-lined parka, put on my moisture-wicking touque and fleece-lined waterproof gloves. And then I would walk to university. I felt intrepid and very counter-culture (which I sort of was considering most of my university classmates drove to school and paid for parking).

And I still own most of these items of clothing and have added to the collection bit by bit over the years. I’ve got amazing gore-tex pants that are waterproof and moisture-wicking and lightweight and are really quite perfect for cross-country skiing or winter walks. I’ve got a very useful hoody that looks like normal fleece-lined piece of clothing except for the fact that it is both water-resistant and wind-proof. And have you ever worn Wigwam socks? You will never use anything else for outdoor activities once you’ve worn a pair. I’ve also got a down-filled vest that is known as “the life jacket” due to one of my favourite school stories involving the aforementioned red vest and a class full of precocious grade one students.

Over the last few years, I’ve had fewer and fewer reasons to don this type of apparel. My style has changed. (At least I think no one would look at me these days and use the term “outdoorsy” to describe my appearance.) My modes of transportation have changed. In fact, my lifestyle has changed. Yet, I haven’t been able to part with any of these items of clothing, unless they have been damaged beyond repair. (My fleece pullovers for example, are a thing of the past.)

And then I moved to the country.

And seriously, I have never been happier to have a variety of outdoorsy type clothes at my disposal. Particularly since getting this dog. The dog likes to go for walks and it doesn’t matter what the weather is like. Since adopting our pup, we’ve had some very beautiful fall weather. But more often it has been awful, gross fall weather. We’ve had vicious wind, driving snow, pouring rain, darkness and everything in between. And despite the fact that I don’t want to go out at all in these conditions, when I finally do get motivated and dressed in the appropriate attire, I have yet to be cold or sopping wet or wind-burned upon arriving home. In fact, once I’m outside, I’ve actually been hard-pressed on a number of occasions to come back inside. It certainly beats shivering in the cold waiting for my dog to do her business.

I guess there is still a little bit of that outdoorsy young woman inside of me yet.

J

Cooperation makes it happen…

Does everyone know what a co-op is? Ok, quick lesson. A co-op is where you pay into something that is owned by a group of people. When you pay in, you become one of the owners. It could be an apartment building or a garden plot.

Here in the country I “own” a grocery store, several gas stations, a restaurant or two, a clothing store and an appliance store. I mean, that’s putting it in VERY simple terms. But my “ownership” of these places of business actually has some rewards. As an “owner” of this co-op, I actually get a small (like tiny) share of the profits. If I shop at these stores, and get my gas at these fuel stations, and eat at these restaurants, every transaction is recorded when I give them my co-op number. And then periodically, I collect dividends. These dividends come to me either as a cheque that I can deposit into my bank account. Or I can actually go the appliance store and get a bit of money off of my new dishwasher, refrigerator, BBQ or TV. It’s really quite brilliant actually. I mean, the more you spend, the more money you get back, but even if you only get gas, you’re going to get a little something back.

And let me tell you, the idea of receiving a reward for going grocery shopping or getting fuel is quite appealing to me. I have to get groceries anyway. I have to put diesel in my car to get to work. (Actually, I have to put diesel in my car to get anywhere. These country roads are unforgiving. Although I have considered using the moped. It’s licensed. We’ll see.) And then to actually be rewarded for doing things I have to do anyway is quite nice. It certainly creates a brand loyalty that many retailers would do many evil things to create.

It doesn’t hurt that it’s a local business as well. You see, even though there are co-ops all over the place in rural Manitoba, my co-op number is only valid at my co-op. I mean, I can use other co-ops but only the local people receive the dividends from the local co-op. So the other thing it does, is get people to spend their money in their community instead of going elsewhere. Thus, helping to stimulate the local economy. (Not that this area really needs any help. It is BUSTLING and growing and there are piles of jobs.)

So for only $10 (or whatever it cost to join), I am an owner of a thriving, growing business that pays me (a little, tiny amount) to use its services. Welcome to the country.

Yep. I’m in – hook, line and sinker.

J.

The Road Trip

It’s a long drive from TO to southern Manitoba. Like 2200 km long. Instead of writing a lot about this, I’m going to show you…

The open road. It was good to be out of TO traffic, but sad to be leaving the city we loved.

You will of course notice that many of these photos are taken from INSIDE the car. We didn’t stop. We just drove.

 

The car was LOADED.

The van was LOADED (even more than the car).

Looks good, eh?

And then we were off…

This view and many like it were common on the drive from Sudbury to Thunder Bay. It is SO BEAUTIFUL. Don’t miss an opportunity to see it…

Every single hotel in Thunder Bay was booked because of forest fire evacuees. We were lucky to find this motel (with it’s AMAZING sign) in Kakabeka Falls.

At this point we’re almost home (only 7 more hours to go!).

The stunning Kakabeka Falls. We didn’t take time to do the hike, but if you’re in the area, stop and take a look.

And then the homestretch…

Feels like home to me…

 

And after all of that driving, we arrived at the farm…

And so I’ve arrived back in MB…with many more tales to come…

J.