i must say, i love how warm it is here. that said, it is the first day in five that it hasn’t rained (i am not holding my breath).

so i arrived here on vancouver island 5 days ago, it is good to be back, but though i am here, i am not sure i have landed. day 1 was an evening arrival, which was spent visiting with my dad. day 2, after getting up late from a headache, i spent the day unloading the living space of the bus in order to actually LIVE in it, and making a big pot of soup to move my cold along. day 3 dad and i got to work figuring out where the woodstove was going to fit, and sawing a hole in the lower ceiling, we then went to town to get some supplies and by the time we got home there was no more work to be done. day 4 was woodstove install! woot! the rain actually held off for all of the morning and most of the afternoon, which i am so thankful for. i lit the first fire last night and it got the place nice and toasty, but it also smoked it up! it however wasn’t woodsmoke, it was whatever chemical they had put on the new uninsulated pipe i bought for the lower portion, so it stunk! blech. i wore a face mask for awhile and had all the windows open and fans on. ah well, i’ll have first fire #2 tonight.

today was spent getting my bikes ready to ride (no more fixed gear now that i live in hill country:(), doing some more fiddly bits for the stove, making a clothesline for inside the bus and sawing up pallets for firewood. so all of that has made it feel like i am not really here yet, in a way. i haven’t gone to just spend time in the woods, and i have seen no friends (nor told anyone i am here yet for that matter) other than carrie who saw me drive by with my bus and stalked me til i stopped! and diana who came by to ask dad a question. it was swell that i got to see them, but i haven’t gone visiting yet. it’s different moving now than when i was younger i guess. now i am spending all of my time getting together the logistics of living here, whereas when i was younger i would get to the new home and almost immediately go looking for friends. there are lots of things to figure this time around. i found out i could transfer and keep my job, but it’s both 45mins and kilometres away in nanaimo. i am SO glad to have a job to go to that pays well, it is just that it’s one more thing to add to the list of what i need to figure, seeing as it’s in another town. i have been working on where i am going to live: if i am going to stay in my bus and keep it here (and if so, WHERE here?), or move it to nanaimo (and if i do that, where there?), or park it somewhere and rent in nanaimo (but park it where, and what happens to khurue?). then there is the move to the wee island to think about and if it happens right away, how to coordinate that with work. i was readying my bike today because i am going over there tomorrow to look at some properties. exciting and it will be my first time getting out since arriving, so that is something to look forward to in itself. a long ride through the forest sounds swell. despite all the time spent working since arriving, i have not failed to notice and revel in the tall tall trees. oh yes, i see you. thank you for being here.

next i need to find a vehicle to buy.