last revised MM0814
Please Check Here to find out about December 6th events.
Special thanks to Matrixt for scanning the inferior quality photographs, and making us look good.
We live in Nova Scotia, Canada, in a converted grainshed we are still renovating.
It is on Vault Road.
We have no closets.
We are on 185 acres of beautiful natural woodland and meadows, the land we share with raccoons, deer, porcupines, skunks, hares, foxes, cows (trespassing from the neighbour), and an amazing variety of birds,the house we share with our dog Buffy, a 12 year old bordercollie/mix.
WHO WE ARE
Branda is a French Canadian, originally from Northern New Brunswick. Jo is English born, emigrated to British Columbia with her parents in 1970. We met in Toronto, and one day we will write the convoluted story of that meeting for all to share. We committed to each other on August 6th 1990. We have been in Nova Scotia sonce 1993.
OUR PHILOSOPHY OF LIFE
We believe in the family of the planet, that we are all here to support one another during a part of a great cosmic journey. We try to return all things to the earth, and to avoid consumerism as much as possible, especially where consumer goods are made at the expense of exploiting our sisters and children around the globe.
We believe in a guiding power of the Universe, and that we can develop and maintain a relationship with that power in ourselves and in others.
We strive to tread softly, on the planet and all of her people. We believe in the Power of Love.
BOOKS THAT HAVE CHANGED OUR LIVES
- Wedlocked Women, Lee Comer
- The Women's Room, Marilyn French
- SlaughterHouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut
- Lives of Girls and Women, Alice Munro
- Make Room, Make Room, Harry Harrison
- Spit Denaley's Island, Jack Hodgins
- The Magic of Findhorn, Hawken
- The Popcorn Report, Faith Popcorn
OTHER BOOKS WE THINK EVERYONE SHOULD READ
- Robert Ludlum...• The Chancellor Manuscript; ...•The Holcroft Covenant
- Jack Hodgins...•The Invention of the World;... •The Barclay Family Theatre;...•The Resurrection of Joseph Bourne
- Alice Munro...•Friend of My Youth; •...The Moons of Jupiter; ...Progress of Love
- Margaret Atwood... Life Before Man•...The Edible Woman
- Aldous Huxley...Island
- Germaine Greer...•The Obstacle Race•...The Change
- Collette Dowling...The Cinderella Complex
- Amy Tan...The Joy Luck Club
- Francis Moore Lappe...Diet for a Small Planet
- Margaret Laurence...The Stone Angel
- Spider Robinson... Mindkiller
- Ray Bradbury...anything he wrote
MOVIES WE WATCH OVER AND OVER
- Born on the Fourth of July
- Widow's Peak
- Passion Fish
- Shirley Valentine
- Educating Rita
- The Wedding Banquet
- Boys on the Side
- Mystic Pizza
- Mississippi Burning
- Soylent Green
- Margaret's Museum
WORKLIFE
Branda continues doing renovations work around the house, and planning ways we can make our living from the land. In the Spring of 2000 she planted 5 acres of market garden, entirely without chemical fertilizers, insecticides or herbicides. As the season progresses, we will have garlic, shallots, many kinds of beans, tomatoes, peppers, squash, melons, and assorted other products.
The remainder of the 12 cleared acres is producing a bumper crop of rye.
As well, in the aftermath of the January 1998 Ice Storm, which brushed through this area, Branda is still spending time pruning and managing the wooded area of the property; taking out the trees which were damaged or uprooted, and making the area more nurturing for the young trees that were being strangled and overshadowed by the neglected growth.
Jo is an adult educator, currently living where adults do not desire education. She spends a lot of time doing unpaid community work.
HOW WE FILL OUR TIME
We have a flock of laying chickens, check them out at their cyber roost. The garden also brings forth sunflowers and seeded grasses to decrease the spending we do on seeds for the wild birds.
We are lucky enough to be visited by BlueJays, Mourning Doves, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Evening Grosbeaks, Goldfinches, Chickadees,Redpolls, Purple Finches, Pine Siskins, and multitudes of sparrows, thrushes, and other birds.
In winter we fill the holes of a post with suet, and enjoy the company of Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, and the occasional Yellow-Shafted Flicker.
Branda is the driving force behind the renovations of the house, being skilled in carpentry, plumbing, and all those other building trades. She maintains our ancient jalopy, and spends long hours with Buffy walking the woods and conversing with the trees.
Jo loves to write. She belongs to the Friends of Middleton Library Writers' Group. Some of her work can be seen here and in her weekly column "Down Memory Lane" in the Middleton Mirror Examiner.
We both love to read. We watch far too much television, although there is no cable in these back woods so we are restricted in what we can see. We loveWest Wing, Third Rock from the Sun, and a lot of the adult cartoons like Futurama.
We have become involved with RuralWomyn, an on-line community which has put us in touch with some amazing wimmin all across the continent.
Blame the existence of this page on Springhead and Girly of WBS MOTTS chatroom who insisted we make a page.