To Your Health

It doesn't happen very often, but when it does it makes so much sense: seeing the bigger picture, the fact we're all connected and do need each other. No one is an island - even though we sometimes like to think so.

But Thunder Bay's NorWest Community Health Centre gets it and did something about it, too. On August 17 they organized the first Rural Health Fair, offering everyone who somehow works on physical and mental well-being for the folks in our extensive rural area. Anything and anyone from Addiction Counselling to healthy food options and from Community Centres to churches and everything in between was there - all in all 67 different organizations.

Of course we were very happy to accept their invitation to be present; what better place for an environmentally-related organization to be? Living a greener lifestyle is so much healthier and saner, combining both body and mind in one fell swoop.

The busy afternoon provided a good way of introducing that idea to many folks for whom it was all new, or to those who are considering going that route. With almost everyone there it was also the good place to reconnect with others and to get to know some new faces and organizations. Who knew this area was so rich in resources, with so many skilled and community-oriented people?

A big thank-you to Shaun Peirce and Kendra Williams for putting it all together and making it happen. We're already looking forward to next year's edition!

UP!

The weather forecast called for a chilly day of rain and thunder storms, but it turned out to be a gorgeous day after all. A perfect day to lower our wind turbine for its annual inspection - and hopefully repair. It hadn't been performing well since a bad wind storm did some damage to it last April, it was now a matter of finding out how much damage.

Coming down carefully...

As usual, Frank "the Solar Guy" who designed and installed the system was in charge of the operation. Lowering a 306-feet, $9,000 tower is not something you do lightly, it takes thorough planning and smooth team work. Fortunately we had a good group volunteering to help us out, which included a powerful Bobcat to do most of the heavy lifting.

Once the tower had come down we quickly found out what the problem was: a frayed tension wire in the turbine head had overheated and shorted the system. The good news was that we had the skills and the tools to repair it. Other than that there were no further issues or repairs, thank goodness.

Many hands...

Getting the tower back up proved a bit more of a challenge. Because of the slippery tall, moist grass under the Bobcat, its wheels began to spin. The solution proved simple: everybody pile on top of it to give some extra grip - and there we went.

All aboard!

Lowering & raising a turbine, even a relatively small one as ours, is always a hassle and time-consuming. On the other hand, it's also a great exercise in community building, with everyone pulling his/her weight, learning about wind power and adding to a wonderful day. But the end of the afternoon the turbine was back to happily cranking out green energy again.

Thank you, Frank, Jane, Mark, Dana, Paul, Brian, Will, Joey, Mel and Tyler for your help and positive attitude. Oh, and the happy dogs Will & Kate and Amber, too!

Comin' Down!

It's that time of year again: time to lower our wind turbine for its annual check-up. Our solar system has been performing flawlessly since it was hooked up 7 years ago and doesn't need any maintenance, really. But with wind, it's different...
All those moving parts at often high speeds make it a very good idea to make sure those parts are still performing adequately. Right now the wind turbine has some issues since we got hit by that big wind storm last April so we'd better have a look-see and fix what needs fixing.

Last year's wind turbine inspection

The date: this coming Saturday, August 13. Time: 2:30 pm.
Why are we posting this on our blog, you may well ask. Well, lowering a 106-foot steel mast is always a bit of an operation, so we could sure use a few good men and women to help us out (and ideally someone with a truck).

So if you're interested in being part of our annual wind turbine maintenance routine and have an up close & personal experience with green wind energy, give us a quick call and we'd be happy to fill you in on the details. Oh, and we'll provide the drinks, munchies and other goodies - and those dorky yet strangely sexy hard hats!

Supergirls

They were back again last week: the Ontario Junior Rangers, for their 3rd annual visit. A group of positive, fun, hard-working girls who spend their summer working on all kinds of green/environmentally sustainable projects, including ours. 

We kicked the day off with a house tour and cold drinks, but then they got into their gear and unphased stepped outside into the muggy heat.

The previous two years they helped us paint our place (see here and here); this year they cleared trails, weeded and hilled our potato plants, stacked firewood, and sanded down the stucco guest house walls. They worked so hard we almost ran out of chores for them!

It's become a summer highlight to have these girls around with their infectious energy and laughter filling the air. Positive vibes all around.
Thank you so much, gals! Here's looking forward to next summer!

Heat Wave? What Heat Wave?!

Up here in NW Ontario we're never sure if summer's actually here. Winters are crazy long and cold, and it's been known to snow on some Canada Days. But this time there's no doubt about it. The heat wave we've been having lately leaves little room for thoughts of snow, although this stifling heat almost makes you wish for some of the white stuff.

It's just too darn hot to do anything other than trying to keep cool. Stay in the shade, go to a beach, eat ice cream. Crank up that air conditioner and try not to think about your next Hydro bill, not to mention your carbon footprint.

As for us, we stay inside and enjoy our built-in "air conditioner": plenty of heat-absorbing thermal mass, 3-feet overhangs that keep direct sunlight out and especially the thick, super-insulating straw bale walls keep the indoor temps at a very pleasant 20C to 21C. Costing us not one penny.

Outside: pushing 35C.  Inside: a cool 20C - without air conditioning

Yup, life here is good - as long as we don't have to go out and do stuff. Hmm, but the grass needs cutting, there's still lots of firewood to be split and stacked, and the gardens need watering... Guess we'll have a cool one first, though!

B&B Bonus

One of the bonuses of our Eco Bed & Breakfast is we get to meet these wonderful people without having to go anywhere. This week for instance we had Larissa McLean spend a night here as she was travelling from Calgary to Southern Ontario. Larissa plans to one day build an off-grid straw bale home herself, but also turned out to be an accomplished print maker and water colour artist. A lady of many talents!

A summery stroll through our fields full of flowers produced a gorgeous field bouquet, the perfect subject for two water colour paintings she did that same evening (in about the same time we need to do the dishes).
Here's one of them:

water colour by Larissa McLean, July 2011

Most of our guests share sweet, funny or inspiring stories with us and leave delightful comments in our guest book. Not many leave a piece of artwork behind, a delicate souvenir of summer and a reminder of another wonderful guest.

Get Me To The Market!

Have you noticed? Local country markets are sprouting up just about everywhere. More and more people are aware now of the the many benefits locally produced produce and baking offer. Here in Nolalu the local local market went into its second year, with even more vendors than before. It found itself a new place, too, on the Nolalu Community Centre's parking lot, well visible and easy to find, every Friday from 4:00 - 7:00 pm.

So next time you're heading out to the lake or going for a drive in the country, stop by at the Nolalu Country Market for delectable pies, fresh veggies, baking, plants, even some arts and crafts. You'll get to meet the folks who grew/baked/made it all themselves, you know it's as fresh as it can possibly be, and you're supporting the local economy. Oh, and did I mention it's healthier and tastes noticeably better, too?

Buying local is a big part of a greener life style. Everyone benefits of a strong and healthy local community, it's a win-win situation for everyone. And as far as shopping experiences go, buying at a local market sure beats going to any super market, any time.

You'll find the Nolalu Country Market every Friday afternoon from 4:00 - 7:00, until October 1st. And if you're not in this area, go shop at any of the many other local country markets! Enjoy!

(for the latest info, visit the market's Facebook HERE.)

Firewood? Must be summer!

After a long winter that just didn't seem to want to let go, summer's finally here. And with the hot, seemingly endless days, the summer chores kick in: putting in gardens, setting up watering systems (thank you, water barrels!), some basic house maintenance, encouraging a few dozen insecure 3-year old trees using home-made compost, but most of all: getting next winter's firewood bucked, split and stacked.

The distant sound of chainsaws whining is the tell tale sign that we're not the only ones working at it. Common wisdom has it you'd better have your wood bucked and split by Canada Day (July 1st) so it has enough time to dry out before winter rolls around again. It's hard, hot work, yet strangely satisfying. We pretty much hit that target, most of our wood is ready for next winter and it even looks like there's enough left for the winter after - bonus!

Getting your firewood done is one of the bigger chores connected to living in the country. It's also a vital one: no firewood, no heat! And given our long cold winters and temps that routinely hover around the -30C to -40C mark, you'd better have your woodstove going!

Fortunately our large straw bale house proves very well insulated, using only about 3.5 cords of wood each winter - about one half to one third of similar sized homes out here. That saves a lot of work! And as I'm slowly working my way through what seems like a mountain of wood in the summer heat and surrounded by hungry mosquitoes, that's something I'm very grateful for right now...!