Podcast 32

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Podcast about voluntary simplicity – living a simpler life in rural Nova Scotia, Canada through choice (and financial necessity).

We used to have jobs, a mortgage, city life, stress, Ikea, broadband, healthcare, English tea bags, - now we have less of all of those and none of some. We have moved from a 1930’s surburban semi to an 1830’s rural farmhouse.

We are English men in New Scotland.

Soundseeing tour of our garden
Driveway



Pond plans
Formal garden
Old trees – Black Oak, Sycamore and North American Beech
Barbecue garden
Path cleared



Lower meadow and upper meadow
Apple tree maintenance – rejuvenating neglected trees
Baseball pitch
Main meadow and woods(changed our mind now - beds will be dug in Autumn)
Compost bays



Previous buildings on the site



Book on Paradise

Our visitor and how great it is to have met a previous owner – new information – one room school, military store, lots more buildings on the plot. Then we found remnants of two.

TV update – have the post and have the dish.. so have TV.. whoo hoo. Good documentary on CBC about the American war machine.



Dog plans - AJ poor joke. Spencer is high on catnip and playful.

Transplanted trees – probably not the right time of year to be doing it. AJ dug over the herb garden – what will be.

Bad things
AJ – end of the summer
Matt – its chilly

Good things
AJ – Autumn is coming
Matt – TV

Higher quality version may appear in the future - bandwidth and connection allowing.

Podcast 31

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Podcast about downshifting – living a simpler life in rural Nova Scotia, Canada having moved from well paid jobs in the city in the UK.

> We have been tardy. But we have been talking to people, having visitors and visiting.

> More reliable internet connection but we appear quiet to some people on voice calls. May not be us it may be the exchange. Basement is less damp.

> We talked about the thunder and lightning on my birthday - managed to record a little bit of it. AJ fooled by the thunder sounds but not camply apparently.

> Water update – we did our own test - its fine biologically – zero e-coli, zero coliform – next step is the mineral test - $80 to $100 though – not sure where to get that done – will ask at Pharmasave and can phone the lab.

> Satellite TV – 7 weeks without TV but I have missed it – especially the news. Cheap package. We don’t have it as we need to fit a post in the garden, fitted a phone socket.

> Visitors – been great, Spencer has loved it too. Christened the dining room.

> Spencer “autogrooms” noisily then does circuits.

> Plug for Leos in Annapolis Royal

> Went to Mahone Bay and had lunch with Carolyn

> Oak Island – explore Oak Island weekend, New excavations will start soon. Michigan group, Al Capone’s vault. Hope the Blankenships find something as Garnette and David were so nice.

> Had coffee with Flora and Larry and meeting them on Wednesday. Our chicken print was painted by a friend of Flora and Larry’s.

> Anyone know where to buy a telegraph pole in Nova Scotia?

> Annapolis Valley exhibition – agricultural show. AJ likes the sound of Blueberry Grunt.

> Met neighbours – told them we were not property line hermits. They warned about bears – the bears and the bees.

> Had lots of time off – so now we need to get cracking. Need to do a list of tasks.

> Future podcasts
– walking the land
– Carolyn visit

www.acountrylife.com – help out with the fundraising drive to support the virtual smallholders show – give them a few $’s, £’s and €’s

Bad things
Matt – autumn already..

Good things
Matt – nova scotia is a lovely place
AJ – college starting

Higher quality version coming in a few days. Of course the moment I mentioned the phone was OK, have had loads of problems uploading this podcast!

No podcast this week

We wont be producing a podcast this week as we are a bit busy with visitors and our trip down to the south shore as well.

Hopefully we will catch up fully at the weekend.

Been a very social week. We are enjoying having family to talk to and Spencer is enjoying being brushed and stroked a lot by our nephew and nieces.

Had a lovely lunch in Mahone Bay with Carolyn and also met some more neighbours.

Podcast 30

Right click the orange podcast logo above and "save file as" or "save target as" to download (10.8mb)


Now available - higher quality version (thanks Paul). Right click here for the better quality version at 19mb.

This is our weekly Podcast which talks about our journey from being employed, comfortably off urban couple in the UK to jobless country bumpkins in Nova Scotia Canada– through choice.

During the Podcast we have painted and pampered our house in the UK ready to sell, resigned from our jobs, sold the house, packed up our belongings and moved.

En route we have talked about Templar treasure, lots of UK TV programmes, green issues, political correctness, vegetarianism and lots more besides.

We have podcasted twice from the car, from the beach, from the living room floor in Leeds, in the garden in Nova Scotia and now from the living room floor in NS.

Dowshiftme is about downshifting we have made a choice to prioritise life above income and career. We are aiming to live a simpler life in Nova Scotia on less money. It is not necessarily about being green, or even having no luxuries, we are going to try what works for us.

> Eliz from New Brunswick - message

> Basement - leaks and structure,– phone problems related
> Bedroom leak
> Kitchen floor eruption - parquet - pretty but inappropriate

> Mucky water -– filtration systems, Brita, water softener

> Thunder storm
> Electric tree frogs join us (OK they are locusts apparently)
> Need to start getting a structure -– cleaning, shopping, etc

> Anne message

> This week - refitting doors, applied for work permit, cut grass twice, started painting woodwork.

> Had a birthday.

> Drove 20km for some fuses. AJ put nails up in the workshop.

> Paint is different here - gloss is liquid not like cream cheese.

> Crickets are different - sounds like the Mediterranean

> Helicopter flies over - its red and looks like its from Thunderbirds

> Visitor next week

> Going to meet up with Flora and Larry in Annapolis.
> Next week we may have a special guest star for the Podcast.
> Arboreal tasks

Bad things
Matt - our damp basement
AJ - not talking to people

Good things
Matt - voluntary work
AJ - we live in Nova Scotia - our land is 300ft longer