...
See, folks, it’s a conspiracy, just like I’ve always said.
:|
Correction: Please don’t go; we love you and we love having you here!
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Hi Randy,
Just letting you know that we've put our place on the market.
We've had an offer conditional on Council permitting the new owners' plans for holiday cabins. If approved, Ari and I will have 120 days to find a new place and make the monumental shift.
We want much less land but a much better house. For the last 18 years living in a one room shack, and giving the best to the horses has taken its toll. I want a room of my own where I can write undisturbed, and less land with just the three favourite horses. The fourth, one the younger ones, will go to the best home I can find for him. Ari and I hope to be closer to town with less costs in travel, preferable shift to solar electric cars.
We had trouble with our finances due to COVID. No interest coming in on investments - had to sell shares to use as income, which dropped us below the amount of capital required for a livable income. Got some advice. Result - we reorganise everything - shift to private super plus an annuity. This means govt permits it, doesn't count the money as taxable and Ari qualifies for a pension. We will end up with about 50% higher income and e able to have a little flexibility in our lifestyle, even go away occasionally for short holidays.
I'm nearing the end of my Creative Writing course, two subjects this semester, and the last one next year. Have been away from the Mug for several weeks mainly due to time devoted to studies.
This summer, I'll start my research for the permaculture novel - hopefully use some of the data for my last subject next year, Writing Place. It's about history - writing all the cultural aspects of a place - in this case the Bundjalung-Githabul-Midjunbul people, the Scottish timber getters, the dairy settlers, the long gone coal miners, and finally the permaculture community started by Bill Mollison. The challenge will be to get up close, re-imagine it so the reader can see and feel it.
We've been lucky with Covid here - zero cases in our area. Everyone being very careful with social distancing, masks and hygiene.
Do hope you're enjoying your retirement, finding plenty to do, and keeping safe from Covid.
warmly,
Manna
P.S. I sent almost the same message to Element - but really this is to all my AM friends, including you, so hence my posting it here like this. Hope you don't mind. ~M
Manna,
Thank you, thank you, thank you for the update on everything that has been happening with you. I wonder if a little bird told you that just yesterday, I wrote about you here:
https://answermug.com/forums/topic/115867/answer-mug-roll-call-by-country-of-residence-all-in-australia-p
Whether or not you responded today based on avian advisement or it was just coincidence, I’m glad to hear from you and to learn that both you and Ari are well.
You plans as far as the property are concerned seem to be advancing in satisfactory fashion. Big changes are coming, and I hope it all works out well. The opportunity to realize the writing environment is the icing on the cake.
You’re absolutely correct that COVID has had its tentacles into just about everything, but with zero cases near you, that’s fantastic news. We’re also doing well here on my end, and even though there are unfortunately positive cases in my county, there is nothing close to home.
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From where I live, it's not within the immediate proximity of the wildfires, they more to the northeast, and the ocean breeze that comes from the west of me has helped to keep a majority of the smokiness away from here, but not all of it. The first week that the fires flared up very badly, we did have murky skies, the sunlight had a red hue to it, the smell of burnt trees hung heavily and ash fell in a thin sheen for about five days.
Many people’s homes were lost as whole communities burned, people have died, but just as bad or even worse is that untold numbers of animals, both wild and tame, also lost their homes/habitats or were killed.
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This was originally posted on June 27, 2020. Stu was active at that time and has been since that time, it’s only more recently that he’s been in silent mode.
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Slartibartfast 