Episode 3

A Brief History of the Last Three Years

Published on: 5th May, 2023

Well, it's been a while, hasn't it? February 2020, in fact, was the previous episode. Over three years ago - where does time go? I think we all know the answer to that one... So this episode is going to be a bit of a catch up, in readiness for new ones coming your way.

So, what's happened in the three years since we last connected?

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Transcript
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(upbeat music)

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- Welcome to A Downsized Life.

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I'm your host, Danny Brown.

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And in the winter of 2019, my wife and I moved our family

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from a sprawling city in Southern Ontario, Canada

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to a small town three hours north.

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This podcast is about our journey to downsizing our lives.

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Lessons learned, successes earned,

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and everything in between.

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If you're looking to downsize your life,

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join us and listen for free at downsizedpod.com or wherever you relax with podcasts.

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Well, in the words of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Hello there! It's been a while, hasn't it? February

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2020, in fact, was the previous episode. That's over three years ago. We're in May 2023, as I

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record this, and where does time go? Well, I mean, I think we all know the answer to that one if we

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think back to 2020 and especially February 2020. So this episode is going to be a bit of a catch up

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as I prepare new ones to come your way and continue our journey on downsizing our life.

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So what's happened in the three years since we last connected? Well I think the big elephant in

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the room let's get out of the way now is Covid. No one expected that and obviously there's no

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explanation needed about Covid but no one expected that to happen. No one saw that coming and it was

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just it was a weird time wasn't it and I guess it's still kind of a weird time now but that

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really was a weird time, where just the whole world came to a standstill when it originally happened

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and there was lockdowns.

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Obviously there was a lot of people got very sick and unfortunately died and passed away.

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It's one of these once in a lifetime things I think or certainly one of the once in a

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lifetime things.

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We've had pandemics before but I think this is one that's really that really affected

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the world and and kind of for a while actually brought us all together which

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was nice to see. That's kind of disappeared now and I'm not going to get

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into that, there's you know, everybody's got their own point of view on on COVID

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etc but it was a strange time and we were fortunate we had just moved up here

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in November of the year before so we were away from the big city to a

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really small village as I mentioned in previous episodes, and that worked for us

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when it came to COVID. We didn't have to worry about self-isolation because it's a

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small village with only 800 families, we're already pretty isolated anyway so

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that was lucky. If we'd still been in Burlington where everybody was, you know,

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not jam-packed together but very much closer to each other, that would have been

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a different story I think and I know a lot of my friends and their families and

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friends etc they had a harder time with Covid than we did so we were very

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fortunate but the kids hated it especially Ewan. They just started making

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friends at school because they'd come into the school year halfway through in

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November, so come February/March of 2020 they'd maybe been there just about

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three months, just over three months when you take into account the Christmas

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holidays and March break. But March break turned into an extended break that

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turned into right up to summer and then turned into a whole year of the school

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being closed, online learning and all that stuff because of Covid and

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everybody taking precautions. So everybody moved over to online learning

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and Salem enjoyed it. She was fine, she got online, she just did her thing, chatted

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with her friends as usual, got on with her schoolwork etc. But Ewan really needs

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social interaction. So online for him was a big negative and it resulted in him

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drifting and losing interest in school and I don't blame him. He had five

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teachers in the space of a year because of supply teachers, one teacher was

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leaving, a new teacher came in etc. It was just a whole bunch of stuff that really

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affected him and really impacted his state of mind. So all that came to head

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in 2021 as we continued into the the lockdowns. Lockdowns were easing and

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schools were starting to think about going back from online learning to

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physical in the class learning, but that wasn't quite there yet and it all came to

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head in 2021 when I was speaking to Ewan. I could see him really struggling

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with school. He wasn't sleeping, he had really bad bags under his eyes, he was

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just looking so tired and not happy. And I sat down and we spoke and he just

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burst out a really horrible sob that he just wanted a friend and that broke my

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heart, to see my son struggle like that. That all he wanted to do was have a

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friend that was physical that he could play with and have fun with and that

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just broke my heart. So I reached out to a private Facebook group that we are

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part of up here, where it's for the local community and just reached out and

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asked if there was any parents of kids that were in Ewan's class at his age and his

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grade and two replied and that was just the best thing that happened. Because

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from there we arranged a play date with their kids, James and Adam, and that

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really made a huge difference with Ewan. It pulled him back from what I believe

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would have been a serious mental wellness issue and I am just so thankful

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that these two parents replied to my cry for help on behalf of my son's cry for help.

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And now he's thriving, he's just so good, he's in grade seven now approaching

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the end of that year ready to be in the final year of elementary before going to

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high school, so he's really thriving which is awesome. In other news I lost my

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job. Covid cutbacks at the agency I worked at because of client cutbacks

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resulted in me losing my job in March, end of March I think of 2020. So

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everything happened in March basically. Covid really kicked off, the schools went

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into lockdown after the March break and I lost my job at the agency. And because

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no one was hiring, because there was a lot of uncertainty about what was

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happening in the workplace, nobody was hiring. So times were really tough.

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Thankfully the Canadian federal government helped with their CERB

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package and that was for non-workers during Covid which gave you a minimum

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amount of dollars every month for a period of up to five or six months I

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think it was, if you needed it. Now that did have to be paid back at some stage

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but this was tax-free, interest-free, not like a loan but it was a help package, an

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aid package that was to tide Canadians over until, you know, things kind of

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hopefully got back to normal, work was picking up, places were hiring again etc

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the country was opening up. That really helped, that kept us going through what

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would have been a really tough time if we'd just been living on Jaclyn's

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wage. But it all turned out for the best. In September of 2020 I got a job with

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Captivate which is a podcast hosting and distribution platform and I love it.

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The people are so nice, they're so good from the top down. It's a small team:

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there may be 10 of us in Captivate all told so it's a very close tight-knit

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team. All 100% remote so that benefited me obviously, and they're based in the UK

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so it would have had to have been remote - that would have been a long long commute!

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But, yeah, Captivate just... they've helped me rediscover my love for media, for

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creation and podcasting. I've been podcasting for a few years but on and

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off for all of the time, they really helped me get my love back for it and I

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love the job that I do, it's awesome, so I was very fortunate there. At Jaclyn's

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company they moved to 100% remote. All offices closed down temporarily and

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slowly reopened up to whoever wants to go back, but the people that want to stay

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remote working can continue to be remote working so this is what Jaclyn's doing,

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she's 100% remote. She's at home full-time working, obviously full-time,

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at the same job but able to do that from home which she loves. It allows her to do

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so much more, be much more productive and she gets to spend more time with the

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family, because she was commuting down to Burlington every now and again and maybe

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spending a few days during the week down in Burlington. So she was spending time

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away from the family. That is now over, if you like, and she's 100% here so that's

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been really good. It's also been bad, not bad but different I guess, et me

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rephrase that, having both Jaclyn and I at home all day. On the plus side, we're

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both lucky to work from home and that's enabled us to help kids with school

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during lockdown, obviously, but also get more stuff done around the house as

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opposed to leaving until weekends, which normally would have been our free time,

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and that's made us feel less pressured to get a whole bunch of stuff done at

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the weekend, which then makes us tired for the start of the week/back to work

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etc not a good mix. So it's really positive we could both work from home

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100% remote of the time. Different in that we're always around each other now

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and anybody, any couple that's always around each other 24/7 you know there

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can be times when it's not ideal. That's not to say that, you know, we've been

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shouting and throwing stuff at each other that's not our style, but it has

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been a little fraught at times. Just the basics of not feeling like you have your

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own space where you can just disappear, and you don't have to worry about

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someone else needing something or whatever. And that's a really poor way of

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trying to describe it but that's the kind of thing that we've been finding

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was a bit of a mindset change to get used to, both of us being in the same

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place all day. But you know what, it's been fun getting used to that change.

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She's also found her niche in crafting and making stuff with her Cricut which

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is a machine that lets you create designs for wood, metal, etc as well as

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make badges, pins, ornaments, wooden gnomes, a whole bunch of stuff, door signs etc and

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it's been really cool to see her find this and really go with it. She's super

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creative, which I knew she was creative but I never knew she was this creative

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so it's been really cool to watch her designs and that come to life and we've

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got a whole bunch of them around the home. She's sold some to friends, family and

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work colleagues and I'm currently helping her build a website to sell

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locally at crafts events etc so it's been really good to see her take that

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and run with it and I know it's something she's super passionate about

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and it'll be cool to see where she can take it. Ewan and Salem's also grown so much

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in the last few years which is to be expected, but they've really grown and

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not just in age or height or anything. Although Ewan is now a teenager, where

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did that come from? But they've just developed personally in so many ways.

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They're both super active athletes - Ewan's got his soccer now, he had soccer

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before he moved from Burlington and he's continued that up here, but now he's

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playing for a proper rec team, a development team which is the next stage

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between playing as a hobby game and hopefully going to the pro leagues. And I know

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that's really something Ewan wants to do, and currently to make that happen he has

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to travel two hours for games and practices etc which is a big commitment.

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But it's something he really wants to do and he's doing it really well. He's off

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to Florida at the end of the month, at the end of May, to compete in an

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international tournament at Disney so that's gonna be super exciting for him

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and I know he can't wait for that. Speaking of Disney, Salem's already there -

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she went to Orlando earlier this week with her mum and she's with her

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cheerleading team competing at the World International All-Stars at Disney, and

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this brings together over a thousand teams from across the globe that compete

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in the cheerleading competition. Salem's group performs tomorrow which is Saturday

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as I record this, so I'll be sure to update you in the next episode how she got on

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but she's super excited. Jaclyn's been sharing lots of photos and pictures of

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the trip and Salem looks in her element so that's awesome. We've also been able

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to spend a lot more time going around the neighborhood getting to know people

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after a delayed start. That includes spending days and evenings at the lake

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which is always nice, and with friends who have a cottage up here. The scenery, nature and

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just everything around us continues to blow us away. There's always something

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that makes us catch our breath, whether that's a deer coming up to the house to get

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some food or just the natural world around us. It really is, I can't put into

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words how stunning it is and we are so fortunate to live here and be able to

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experience this and we're grateful for that. Part of that is allowing our garden to

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grow and turn into a little nature reserve. Back in Burlington I used to

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really look after the lawn and I'd get my little strimmer out and cut straight

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edges all down the edges and and make it super prim and pristine, and that's gone

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out the window. We don't want to do that. We want to make it as nature intended. So

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there's no beautiful lawn, we've not got a messy lawn, but there's no beautiful

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lawns. I don't cut it, you know, once twice a week or whatever, I leave it at least

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two, three, four weeks maybe at a tim,e and the same with our flower beds and bushes

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etc and we allow them to grow out, and that's allowed a very cool ecosystem of

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nature to live in our yard. We have all sorts of birds, little animals, chipmunks,

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deer and a lot more. It does help that the warmer weather is finally here after

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a particularly heavy winter and the plan is to expand time on the lake. I've got a

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kayak and Jaclyn got a paddleboard last year and we just need the kids to

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get their own and then we can go at any time, with the lake less than a 15 minute

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walk from our house. They do have a little plastic kayak but that's probably a

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little bit too small for them now. Certainly too small for Ewan and maybe

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Salem I'm not sure. So that's something that we want to get this year. Salem

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really enjoyed testing out Jaclyn's paddleboard last year, so we may get that

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for her, and I know Ewan prefers the kayak so we'll see how it goes. I know I've

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probably forgotten a few things but so much has happened that that's

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understandable. I'm looking forward to getting back in the saddle so to speak

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with this podcast, and also bringing on Jaclyn and hopefully the kids to

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talk about their own experiences and thoughts since moving here, given all

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that's happened in the last few years. There's a lot to catch up on. Until next

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time, live happily.

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If you enjoy A Downsized Life be sure to share it with friends and family and

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others who might enjoy it too. And we'll see you next time.

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(upbeat music)

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About the Podcast

A Downsized Life
adventures in downsizing and starting over
Welcome to A Downsized Life, where we explore the joys and challenges of moving from a big city to a small village to lead a quieter, simpler life. Join your host Danny Brown and occasionally his wife Jaclyn, as well as their kids Ewan and Salem, as they share their experiences about the transition and offer tips and insights for those looking to downsize their lives.

We'll discuss the benefits of downsizing, including less stress, more time for hobbies and passions, and a stronger sense of community. We'll also talk about the experience of leaving behind the hustle and bustle of the city and discovering the peace and quiet of a small village.

Listen as we open up about the challenges of downsizing, such as finding a new home, adjusting to a slower pace of life, and building new social connections. Every episode will provide practical advice on how to make the move, downsize possessions, and adjust to a simpler lifestyle.

Whether you're considering a move to a small village, or simply looking for ways to simplify your life, A Downsized Life has something for you. Tune in for inspiration, advice, and how you can also find happiness in a quieter, more meaningful way of living.

About your host

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Danny Brown

Danny Brown is the host of One Minute Podcast Tips, the show that helps you be a better podcaster in just a minute a week. He's also hosted, and co-hosted, several other podcasts - if you called him a serial podcaster, you wouldn't be wrong! He's been in the podcasting space for over 10 years, and has the scars to prove it.

He's the Head of Podcaster Support and Experience at Captivate.fm, the world's only growth-oriented podcast hosting, distribution, analytics, and monetization platform for the serious indie podcaster.

He lives in beautiful Muskoka, Ontario, Canada with his wife and two kids, where he spends winters in front of a cozy fire and summers by the lake. Well, when he finds time away from podcasting, of course...