Greetings!
I'm 55, grew up in rural New Brunswick, Canada. My husband and I married 27 years ago. We moved around in the US for 7 years, settled in Virginia outside Washington, DC, for 20 years. There, we homeschooled our two kids. With an empty nest, we are moving to a farmhouse with 53 acres in Northern Maine. The property is mostly wooded, and has a brook, spring and pond.
I completed my PDC in December, 2022, with Earth Activist Training.
I'm an enthusiastic student of Live the Off-Grid Dream:
https://www.livetheoffgriddream.com/
I never would have the guts to buy this property if not for that course. We are planning to build short term rentals on the property to get cashflow, and build dwellings to support a permaculture community on the land. Along with glamping sites to start with, we plan to build an outdoor sauna and cold plunge as wow factors to draw visitors.
Right now, the project I want to start with is building a rocket mass heater for our farmhouse, which has no backup heating in case of power outage. I hope I can complete this project by the end of September.
I recently took a Natural Building course at The Deanery in Nova Scotia.
https://thedeaneryproject.com/
They taught us about RMH at the course and I want one so bad! I can consult with one of the teachers of the course, but I'm hoping to find a mason or someone else nearby my to give me advice and guidance.
Other than taking these courses, I'm a newbie at building and gardening. I'm hoping to connect with people nearby and attract one or two people to come and stay with us for a while and help, with the possibility in mind of a long-term partnership.
My husband is working remotely in IT and he's a cheerleader for me, but this isn't his thing.