wild pond

Pond! and preparing the land con’t . . .

Natural Build

So, the land is cleared, flat and ready for my house to go on top of in the spring.  We’ve had a drought here in the Interlake up until a week ago so I was getting a little scared that the land would not settle as it should.  It needs rain to help compress it, fill in the cracks, allow the clay to merge with the sand and so forth.  Then it needs snow to weigh it down and compress it further.  It has rained here quite a bit in the last week and it looks like we will have some more, so that is a good thing.  My grass and fields are green for the first time all summer.  It is also a good thing to help fill up my pond.

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My wild pond (right now, a hole in the earth filling up with green water, surrounded by clay and sand) is starting to take shape.  It is about 75′ x 110′ and 16′ deep at its deepest.  It is smaller than I originally wanted it to be, but it is quite large and lovely.  I have decided to fill it in with my hose and water from the well.  I am still not sure if that is an ecological choice.  I am pulling a lot of water from the ground, but I am making it accessible for all the critters and perhaps the land or plants in some way.  It is my hope that it will add to the bounty of the ecosystem and be a benefit for all.  My fear is that I am being selfish and ‘wasting’ water because I want a pond.

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It is my hope that the pond becomes a home for a thriving ecosystem, that it creates a place for many different species of all forms and sizes of life to live in balance.  I am not sure how much ‘planning’ I am going to do with it.  I am torn between having to undo some of the effects of the more harmful invasive species and allowing it the time it needs and the natural processes it needs to create a healthy system.  I realize that nature can work slowly (if the desired end is beauty and production) as the plants that recover the earth are usually considered weeds and that process takes some time.  I did spread some bull rush seeds around the outside and I’ve ordered some pollinator friendly ‘lawn’ seeds to spread on the banks, my ‘lawn’ and my new hill.

There are a lot of beautiful pond flora that I can introduce, but I am not sure how heavy handed I want to be.  There is a balance between the amount of energy I want to output and the benefits to the environment.  I can go around next summer (if we are not in a drought again) and collect water plants from the area and transplant them in my pond.  I am not sure yet of what I want to incorporate and why.  I like the idea of weekay growing, but I am not sure.  I will be spending some time this winter planning this.

I am assuming that most of my time and energy will go towards building, decorating and planning the house as soon as the build starts in the spring so I’d like to have some of the planning for the pond done by that time.

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In the meantime, my dad and I built a ramp from rock and patio stone so swimming can happen (top right of photo).  The water should be 3 feet deep there when full.  I’m not that hopeful that I’ll get swimming this fall as it is very chilly right now, but at least it will be possible.  The earth is very thick clay and sand.  When we were building the ramp we got stuck in the muck a lot!  I figured that before the ramp if we wanted to swim, getting out would be something akin to mud wrestling 🙂 The future hope is a floating dock with a ladder, but for now, this will work!

Right now, I am enjoying watching the water (which I can finally see from my current house).  Sitting on the boulders placed around the pond, listening to nature, watching the birds discover it, seeing the clear green water, being enticed to go in, until I touch it and feel how cold it is 🙂 and just soaking in the process.

Next time I will write about the well decision I’ve made and hopefully have something concrete to share.

Foundation Decisions and Repercussions

Natural Build

So, it looks like I am going to have to wait a year to build 😦  Not my favorite plan, but the most intelligent and logical one.  I had a meeting of my contractor (Francesco), my neighbour (Jack) and the heavy duty excavation guy (Robbie) last week.  We looked at the land and discussed the options.  In the end it looks like I am going to build in essentially the same location, maybe 20 feet or so to the west.  We will build up the land, pulling clay out from near by to create my wild pond and help to manage the water on my property.  Robbie will build up the foundation, the driveway, create the pond and clear the yard site.  He will bring in the gravel and spread it on the foundation so next spring all we have to do it build the slab on it,

I am sad that I won’t be in my new house this fall, but I am glad we are doing it right.  I have gotten into too much trouble in my past trying to push things that were not ready to move.  I would rather do this right than fast.  I am excited to see my wild pond take shape literally and figuratively.  This way I will be able to put more time and energy into planning it then if I were juggling both the house and the pond.

There is a lot of benefit in this extra year.  The time to plan the wild pond is one of them. The time to save more money is another one.  Francesco and I have a 3 month deadline (end of Aug.) to have all the finishing details finalized.  This gives me more time to think things through.

Some of the things that I now have to sort out are: my pool.  Where I will store it for the year.  I have to contact Krevco and let them know the change in plans and see what we can do to make it happen next summer, I can store it in my barn if necessary, or maybe I can ‘rent’ some space at their warehouse if it is not too expensive.  I have to talk to several people I was getting on board with the build and sort out the yard clean up, insurance and the financing.  I still have to get an opinion appraisal of the land and the home as the folks I was talking with at Interlake Reality don’t feel they can give an appraisal for a hempcrete build.  I have a number to call of someone who will be able to do so.

I am realizing how some of my limiting beliefs are impacting my decisions and my ability to think about this house. I’ve always made due with what was offered or what I got, I have not had many experiences of feeling like I have a say.  I’ve always believed that other’s opinions were more important than mine, that people should not be put out of their way to please me, that I should not want something with too many details (that I should just settle for the worst version of what I want) and other beliefs that have caused me to not really think about or feel about what I actually want in its fullness.  With this house I knew I wanted several things: the pool, the masonry stove, as much wildlife views as I could, a big pantry and a big closet.  Once those things were in place I felt like I have gotten enough and I should not wish for more.  Now, I get to design the interior, not just making due with what is created as a result of these other choices, but as an intentional design that brings me joy.

I know it seems weird that I would feel like I don’t have a say in these things, or taking the power to have a say challenges me.  This is a good learning to help me work through these false beliefs and get to the root of them.  Why don’t I feel like I deserve to have what I want? Especially when what I want is to be in alignment with the principles of Love, love of self, love of others and love of the environment.  Now I get to dream and create my home interior, have a say (really the final say) in every aspect.  Before I just made snap decisions based on a small picture, now I have the opportunity to look at the big picture and really feel out what I want.  It is kind of daunting and exciting at the same time.  I look forward to what I discover and sharing it as I go.