Welcome to Hornby, of a sort
We’ve actually moved here. It was a few weeks ago already. Tranquil? Not yet. Not by a long shot.
First Night on Hornby
The first few days were calm: getting settled in to the “summer place” (living here while our house is built over the next fifteen months). Then, going for our first bike rides on our new bikes. Getting full grocery loads at the Co-op. Checking out the dry goods section. Ordering wine and liquor from a three-ring binder and giving your slip to the “girl.” A bit of jogging. All good.
Ordering Liquor at Co-op
Our first weekend morning – a tranquil Sunday morning – we were doing our first load of laundry with the new “portable” washing machine and doing various bits of internet work. Suddenly, the lights flickered a bit and then there was a kind of shaking and a bang. “Was that an earthquake?” The lights went out.
It turned out that, by some fluke, our power lines – as they connect to the main system at the pole at the back of the lot – snapped off. The lines were lying across the back yard. Hmmm, what to do. Wait! Are the wires hot? No, they’re disconnected. So, that’s good, I guess. Now what?
John called BC Hydro – the electricity provider hereabouts – and they were very accommodating. However, they couldn’t make it over to the island that very afternoon because they were tied up at a house fire – good excuse – but would come over on the first ferry Monday morning.
In the meantime, being early spring, we knew it would be a chilly house in short order, so it was time to get the fire going and warm things up as much as possible before jumping under the duvet and getting the extra woollen blanket from the top of the closet. Kindling – always in demand – was a bit too much to tackle when there were lots of dry branches and twigs around the road from the windy winter. Soon enough, a cheery fire was laid in the fireplace. Kepler kept close.
We thought they might show up around 9:00 or 10:00 or 11:00am but, sure enough, we heard the beeping sound of the big truck backing down our little lane at 8:00 sharp. Yay!
They had a couple of guys and their little hydraulic bucket was quickly raised and the one guy had things reconnected within fifteen minutes. There was also an old pole that was supposed to have been taken away a year ago by TELUS but he graciously got out his chainsaw and had it down in seconds. Great service!
With the power on, everything fell back into pattern. All our problems were over. Until Tuesday.
One of the nice features of our new bikes is the “grocery bag” that attaches to the bike. Perfect. We went to the Co-op – I was getting confident riding again after forty-odd years – and picked up some items. Now, perhaps the load was a bit heavy for each of us. And maybe this was a bit of foreshadowing.
Returning home along the road – so sunny and pleasant that I neglected to put on my cycling gloves – all was well. Until my memory goes blank.
I think I must have a hit a patch of gravel on a down-hill curve and lost my balance and control. The next thing I recall, the ambulance crew was looking down at me. John was a bit ahead and noticed that I wasn’t behind him. He came back and found me in a heap on the road and flagged down a car to call 911.
It was all a bit of a procedure to transport me from ambulance to ambulance to ambulance (they can’t leave their respective island territories) to hospital in Comox. However, the speed, care and attention was phenomenal.
Darren in St. Joseph's Hospital in Comox
It was the oddest kind of “welcome wagon” I had ever experienced! But, in the end, it was a great experience, too. My few days in the hospital (mainly because of a damaged kidney) were fine, even being kept in an emergency room overflow area… John collected me and brought me home.
Again, I was able to experience first-hand the local medical care by going in to the local clinic to have my dressings changed (not pretty). As it turns out, I was one of the last in the existing clinic. They have just taken possession of a brand new building, and so the next time one of us is in need of immediate care, we can trust our local facility.
Now, having returned from a four-day conference in Vancouver, and another week under our belt, let us now hope that the “living out beyond” can begin. However, perhaps that has already happened, just in a slightly different format than we imagined.
Late Light on Arbutus
Isn’t that always the way?
Welcome gift of flowers from neighbours
Finding Healthcare in Rural Areas
By John McLachlan
A concern many people have when they move to a more remote area is the issue of health services. Finding a doctor or dentist can be a challenge. Actually, finding a doctor in an urban area can be difficult, too.
In many cases, living on Hornby Island will mean making two ferry trips for many services but it could be that when it comes to dentists, we may have the solution close to home.
Now we haven’t made any appointments yet or even spoken to him, but Dr. Peter Walford operates on Hornby Island and Denman Island out of a converted school bus. You can read all about him here and have a look at my video below as I strolled past his “office” where it was parked a short walk from where we will be living.
(If you can’t see the video below, view it here)
