Car free

Considering that our towns have no local public transit and only occasional (a couple of times a week) inter-village buses, an impressive number of people manage without cars.

Laundry and snowbank

The snowbanks are almost as high as the laundry lines, but spring is in the air.

Compost

Composting is a way of life here. The path to the compost pile at our place is long, deep and snowy. When the snow gets "over the boots" (i.e. more than knee deep) like this no one is keen on making the required deposits.

Small farm

Cell tower

The villages held out for three long years, with petitions, meetings, referendums and advocacy. But finally this fall the cell tower has been turned on. So far life as we know it hasn't ended, but you never can tell, an insidious shift in local culture may be taking shape...

Soap

As a region the BC interior must have a lot of dirty people. There are sure a lot of soapworks companies! (Actually I think it may be that sales of antibacterial plastic-bottled Lever body-cleaning products are lower.) At any rate, I love the look of stacks of natural multi-hued bars of soap. There were several such booths at the Garlic Festival.

Donation Store

It's a thrift store without prices. If you see something you like, you take it home, with a cash donation expected/encouraged, but the amount totally up to you. Often people "borrow" items from the donation store for a few days -- puzzles, dishes, skates, board games, costume clothing -- making a nominal donation, so it also functions like a library for "stuff."

Keeping abreast of things

With the weather keeping people housebound or shovelling much of the time, and regular community activities on hiatus due to weather, the local cafés become important places to meet and catch up on what's happening. Whose chimneys and sheds have collapsed? Who is still without power? Can you tell Mitch I've cleared my roof, so I don't need him after all? Do you think Rod could fit my mom on his plowing list? Is Jim's water still frozen? It all gets sorted out here at the Panini Café.

Woodpile and light snow

Firewood

It's stacked in everyone's yard at this time of year. Whatever is available, especially birch and red cedar, as shown here.

Dark nights

Power failures are common here, especially in the winter months. There are at least several each winter that last longer than 2 or 3 hours. Wood stoves for heat and cooking-in-a-pinch are fairly standard in homes here. Candles are a necessity too, especially now that it's dark by shortly after 4 pm.

Off-grid dojo

The White Pines Aikido Dojo and Retreat Centre welcomes students from the very young to the very old. The facility is a purpose-built timber-frame strawbale building with a huge space for martial arts instruction downstairs and six large bedrooms and a kitchen / great room above. The whole facility is off-grid. Heat and hot water are supplied via wood and propane. Lighting and other low-draw electrical devices are powered by solar panels with a diesel generator for backup.

There are lots of homes built off the electrical grid around here, but not many businesses.