I have been thinking a lot about how to use my voice in this space during the Covid 19 outbreak. Initially, I thought it would be nice to write about our ordinary life, and be a space which is mostly Covid 19 free seeing as its all any of us are hearing about.
But then I realised I have the opportunity to document how our family gets through this and to dance around the elephant in the room wouldn't really feel authentic.
So. Here we are.
Due to Covid 19, Grant has been stood down from his full time, permanent truck driving job until further notice. The company is still functioning but has been letting go of staff, I presume as their workload quietens. I have no idea why Grant was let go before some of the others, as a permanent he should have been one of the last to go. He has worked his rear end off for the company, willing to do anything which was asked of him, has a broad range of skills and experience and he did it with a cheerful attitude while giving them his all. We are a bit hurt, confused and angry. He is a bloody hard worker. But, it is what it is and sadly hundreds of thousands of hard-working Aussies have found themselves in our position.
We withdrew our children from school a couple of weeks ago, to do our bit to help flatten the curve and reduce the spread of Covid 19. The thought of learning how to home educate our children with a brand new baby had never crossed my mind yet, like many others we are working it out. I have always loved the idea of homeschooling, but I have never had the courage and trust in my abilities to do it well. So this is an interesting opportunity we hope to make the most of. At least with Grant being home, it spreads the pressure on me to keep house, care for a newborn and homeschool.
Finances. Coming into this we were ahead on all our bills and school fees, which is helpful in reducing immediate financial pressure. We are more fortunate than many in that we own our farm outright. Our yurt may be unconventional, small and half-completed but to know our home is secure amidst this crisis is a real blessing. We have a small amount of personal debt which will be cleared once the sustainable logging happens. It was due to start in January but due to the bushfires late in 2019, the logging contractors have been called to work on clearing forest tracks which is a massive job, we remain next on the list. We have a commercial loan on the shop building in SA as the people who bought the business wanted to buy the business as stage one and then buy the building as stage two. The rent pretty much covers that and there are various government initiated programs we can negotiate with them if they find themselves in the position of being unable to pay their rent as a result of Covid 19. Though being a general store and Post office in a country town they are considered an essential service. Due to the need of people to self-isolate, I suspect they have found themselves quite busy. We have added ourselves to the Centrelink list for government support which has been initiated to get Australia through this health and economic crisis. I'm not sure when our claim will be processed. We have a little money put aside and can survive for now if we are careful.
Moving forward Grant has been busy applying for jobs, not that he expects to get any. We have always worked hard to make our own way in this world and we would much prefer to be independent rather than rely on government handouts, but these are unprecedented times and we will do what we need to get through them.
In the meantime, there is plenty of work to do around the property. Before Covid 19 we had ordered and paid for a basic LPG gas oven and 3 lower cabinets from Bunnings for our little yurt kitchen. The oven has arrived and we are now waiting on the cabinets which will hopefully arrive in the next week or so before everything is totally shut down. Having an indoor kitchen will make a huge difference in our daily lives. We decided to order new cabinets as the kitchen is small and it was simpler with various other projects on the go. We are reusing our current sink and tapware which was salvaged and the upper open shelving will be made from beautiful recycled timber.
The price of fresh produce is currently through the roof and now Grant has time at home getting vegetable gardens started has jumped to the top of our jobs list. The boys are building fences to create a garden bed within the house yard which will contain a small productive tree for shelter along with flowers, herbs and greens. The fence is to keep our diggy dogs out, and it's in the yurt yard to keep the wildlife out. We have also been planting out a large garden bed outside the yard with crops that need more room like zucchini/cucumber/beans/cauliflower/broccoli.
We would never have planned for Grant to lose his job due to Covid 19, but we are doing our best to make the most of this season. We are using this time to consider how to move forward as a family and make a plan about what we can do here on the farm. We hope to not only become more self-sufficient but also to create an income stream moving forward. We have some thoughts which I look forward to sharing in the next post or so.
Go gently in these uncertain times dear readers. How are you holding up?
Much love,
Emma
xx
But then I realised I have the opportunity to document how our family gets through this and to dance around the elephant in the room wouldn't really feel authentic.
So. Here we are.
Due to Covid 19, Grant has been stood down from his full time, permanent truck driving job until further notice. The company is still functioning but has been letting go of staff, I presume as their workload quietens. I have no idea why Grant was let go before some of the others, as a permanent he should have been one of the last to go. He has worked his rear end off for the company, willing to do anything which was asked of him, has a broad range of skills and experience and he did it with a cheerful attitude while giving them his all. We are a bit hurt, confused and angry. He is a bloody hard worker. But, it is what it is and sadly hundreds of thousands of hard-working Aussies have found themselves in our position.
We withdrew our children from school a couple of weeks ago, to do our bit to help flatten the curve and reduce the spread of Covid 19. The thought of learning how to home educate our children with a brand new baby had never crossed my mind yet, like many others we are working it out. I have always loved the idea of homeschooling, but I have never had the courage and trust in my abilities to do it well. So this is an interesting opportunity we hope to make the most of. At least with Grant being home, it spreads the pressure on me to keep house, care for a newborn and homeschool.
Moving forward Grant has been busy applying for jobs, not that he expects to get any. We have always worked hard to make our own way in this world and we would much prefer to be independent rather than rely on government handouts, but these are unprecedented times and we will do what we need to get through them.
In the meantime, there is plenty of work to do around the property. Before Covid 19 we had ordered and paid for a basic LPG gas oven and 3 lower cabinets from Bunnings for our little yurt kitchen. The oven has arrived and we are now waiting on the cabinets which will hopefully arrive in the next week or so before everything is totally shut down. Having an indoor kitchen will make a huge difference in our daily lives. We decided to order new cabinets as the kitchen is small and it was simpler with various other projects on the go. We are reusing our current sink and tapware which was salvaged and the upper open shelving will be made from beautiful recycled timber.
The price of fresh produce is currently through the roof and now Grant has time at home getting vegetable gardens started has jumped to the top of our jobs list. The boys are building fences to create a garden bed within the house yard which will contain a small productive tree for shelter along with flowers, herbs and greens. The fence is to keep our diggy dogs out, and it's in the yurt yard to keep the wildlife out. We have also been planting out a large garden bed outside the yard with crops that need more room like zucchini/cucumber/beans/cauliflower/broccoli.
Then there is the boys' bedroom shelving and safety rails which Grant chips away at when the weather requires him to work inside.
Go gently in these uncertain times dear readers. How are you holding up?
Much love,
Emma
xx
