Help with DIY tasks and enjoy country living on an island in the PNW, USA

Details

• 

  Description

  Greetings,
  
  Autumn is starting to settle in here in the great northwest where my husband and I live on 5 beautiful acres of wooded land that we've carefully and respectfully developed over 30 years.
  
  We share this wonderful maritime area with bald eagles, pileated woodpeckers, hawks, barred owls, great blue heron and a variety of seasonal birds. Bats and dragonflies hunt over the pond, where frogs sing by night from early spring to late summer.
  
  Over the past 36 years of raising our family on this island, 30 of those years on out land, we've integrated into an exceptional community where we continue to build our home and dreams. Now our two sons are grown and married, living their lives elsewhere.
  
  My husband splits his time between finsih carpentry and managing an online business that sells tools for technical analysis of financial markets to individuals. He is an experienced journeyman carpenter who has built many of the large homes on the island and is now working primarily on small remodels, finish work and our home. But his real gift and passion is music. He is an exceptionally talented musician, playing a wide range of percussion instruments as well as keyboards. His primary instrument is the vibraphone, around which he organizes bands, providing great local music for various occasions like weddings, anniversaries, house warmings, gallery openings, funerals and fundraisers.
  
  At one time he spoke Mandarin Chinese, some Dutch and a smattering of Portuguese and German. Its been a LONG time so he's pretty rusty but still willing to try and recapture the basics.
  
  He is looking for carpentry/handyman help at home: grass cutting, fire wood gathering and splitting, house painting help, and tech support, including video work for You Tube music posts.
  
  I am an artist/maker and case manager/caregiver who works privately with people in our community to bring personal care and hospice care into their homes. Thirty years ago I created a moderate sized garden that I was able to maintain beautifully until about 6 years ago. My creative work is in soft textiles and color mechanics. I create one of a soft cloth quilts and hand painted Folk Art wood Barn Quilts that I sell through my website and Etsy shop. For the past 2 years I have been keenly focused on the business side of the creative process and my greatest need this year is tech support: branding, market analysis, and understanding how to increase visibility through social media as well as product photos. I would like help with photographing my art, understanding social media and how to get my product in front of buyers. I also need help in the yard/garden tending my dear garden. If anyone can set up an aeration mechanism for the pond...COME ON OVER! And of course there are other simple maintenance tasks around the house that we could work on.
  
  We joined WorkAway in 2016 as a way to meet people from different areas and cultures, bring new energy and perspectives into our lives and home and have extra hands for projects. We have had many wonderful people come into our lives through this organization and look forward to more new friends each year.
  
  We gladly exchange your tech/labor help for healthy food, good company and a glimpse into a world of self reliance, community, creativity and simple living in a safe and relaxed home. If you are looking for paid work we cannot offer that at this time.
  
  Both my husband and I stay busy with various projects so if you are good at self starting, have great time management skills, a strong work ethic with good follow through, communicate well, want to see some pretty country and meet nice people, come join us for a memorable visit to this haven.
  
  Due to the nature of my work with medically at risk elders, we ask that all visitors be conscious of any possible exposure to contagious illnesses and take a Covid test the morning of your expected arrival to us. We will do the same to keep us all healthy and safe.
  
  We are a smoke free home with one dog and a small tortoise. So no smokers please. We are having fun as hosts: meeting new people, sharing in new experiences and we appreciate the help with our projects. We value family, good friends, hard work and a job well done.
  
  Come join us and listen to the frogs at night.
  
  Heather and Hawk

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance

  Help with Computers/ Internet
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  I am a textile artist and a folk art painter of Wood Barn Quilts. I have a good understanding about gardening as well as the plant and animal life of the island. End of life care is my life's work and I am happy to share my experience.
  
  My husband is a top notch musician who loves to share his talents, a poet and a skilled carpenter.
  
  Our property is bordered by county park land with walking trails and easy access to the beach. We are a 15 minute bike ride from the ferry which is the gateway to three other islands, each with their own individual personality....we encourage you to explore the area.
  
  We are connected with many amazing and skilled people on the island and in the area who are eager to share their knowledge and experience with travelers. We are happy to connect you to our friends to engender greater learning and sharing of common ideas. The island offers a visitor the experience of participating in traditional smelt fishing, a juvenile salmon monitoring program, visiting a state of the art recycle center, local Farmers Market, pay per entry music events and yard or beach parties with our friends during the summer months.
  
  Our home is representative of our values: step lightly on the earth, be kind and helpful, be resourceful and sustainable, have fun. Although we are both busy with full time work, we feel that one of our biggest offerings is a safe comfortable spot for a visitor to see into a small slice of a conscientious rural America, meet new people, explore your own thoughts and see a beautiful part of the US and experience life at a more authentic pace.
  
  We embrace intentional living and personal responsibility as well as the arts and music. We have learned to live creativity and use these skills to improve the quality of our lives and the sustainability of our home and community.

• 

  Help

  Our place is a small homestead that is well established but needing the usual maintenance both inside and out. We have a variety of projects that do not require experience but will be good opportunities to learn a few basic handyperson skills. Due to a neck injury I am no longer able to do all the work alone.
  
  The garden requires typical annual upkeep and care: weeding, mulching and pruning, spring clean up and mulching. Due to structural damage on my body, I am not able to keep up with weeding, spreading chips, etc. I would like help with a good irrigation system that draws from the pond. My garden is a beautiful respite from the cares of the world and I am happy to share my plant knowledge with you.
  
  Our wildlife pond needs an aeration system and some vegetation control, so someone with experience in this area is VERY welcome.
  
  In the yard, there is always firewood collection and processing, grass cutting, weed eating and general yard care.
  
  We replaced the roof and need some ladder work for the touch up painting: exterior trim painting and paint on the music studio. All buildings are one floor but the main house has a tall clear story which requires tall ladder work.
  
  Other dream projects include building a sleeping platform by the pond, a sauna, and eventually another dry storage or extra sleeping room.
  
  Smaller miscellaneous tasks are stripping and refinishing two solid wood dressers, and window washing.
  
  We both need technical support for our artist endeavors: photo/video and social media exposure for my textiles and Hawk's music. I am learning Instagram but I know that I am hopelessly behind in the cyber world!
  
  I would like to learn clothing construction. My husband would like voice lessons.
  
  Most of our projects are outside so weather is a main factor in our hosting season availability. I can teach you quilting, knitting and gardening. My husband can share his carpentry and music knowledge with you. We are both happy to help someone improve their English.
  
  People with a strong work ethic, willing to try a variety of tasks who have an attention to detail and good follow through will be a good match. Anyone looking to learn the basic of basic carpentry, gardening and care of a home. In particular, anyone with experience in building, plumbing, tech, painting and garden skills will be a good match. Because my husband and I work full time and keep busy in community events, our ideal guests will have good self management skills, be able to occupy themselves alone at times and be willing to jump into family life and join the island vibe.
  
  Although Covid has changed much of life here, summer is typically a very busy time on the island and we are social people with a very diverse and talented group of friends. We believe in community and like to share the experience with our visitors so you will have plenty of social opportunities to see what island life is really like. We have a bicycle in good working order for your use and encourage you to see our island as well other nearby islands. Island life is a unique ecosystem and culture!!
  
  In return for your help, along with room, board and friendship, we will gather you into our life on island and introduce you to a world of adventure meeting new people so you can experience the richness of our island life.
  
  We look forward to getting to know people from other places, sharing our culture, our common ideas and our home while getting projects completed.

• 

  Languages spoken

  English: Fluent

• 

  Accommodation

  Accommodations include a comfortable single bed in a private room in the house or glamping in tents in the yard...your choice. Due to size, we only accept one visitor at a time unless you choose to glamp or have a vehicle for sleeping. We have all the amenities of modern living including an Incinolet inside and an outhouse outside. Our home is omnivorous and we have a friendly dog and very low key tortoise.

• 

  What else ...

  We live in a stunningly beautiful area which is a destination spot for year round vacationers who love the outdoors to hike and beach comb. We have a top star rated library, a small museum of local history, an art gallery, a small fabric store and a weekly summertime Farmers' Market. There are pay per class yoga classes and summer workshops for sailing and creative adventures. If you bring a car you can go anywhere. If not, we have a bike to loan.
  Currently, we have room for one person at a time. In future, we hope to be able to invite larger groups as well.
  We are a drug and smoke free home with minimal drinking. Due to my work, we ask that all visitors take precautions before visiting and take a Covid test the morning of expected arrival. We will do the same to keep us all healthy and safe.

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  Space for parking camper vans

  We have a small clearing that accommodates a full sized pick up. We do not have hook up for water or dump facilities for black water waste .

• 

  Can possibly accept pets

  We can have one dog visitor provided they are vaccinated, healthy, well behaved and quiet: no random barkers, no digging, no running. We have deer, otters, and raccoons come through the property regularly so no excessive barking, chasing or running. There is a leash law on Lopez and a law that allows farmers the right to shoot any dog found running loose on their property. Its not nice but it has happened.

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  One

• 

  Hours expected

  5 hours daily 5 days per week.

Feedback (11)