.... is my birthday. And it's been a nice one - schools were closed due to the big storm, so I got to stay warm & snuggly inside. I've baked bread - buttermilk honey white bread... cleaned the house... rearranged parts of the house... and explored the lovely Sony ereader Kee gave me. My wonderful sisters took me out to lunch on Saturday. San gave me a beautiful art candle and fresh flowers, Sue a hip battery-operated pepper grinder - tilt it to grind, and MB a lovely quilt she made herself, plus a ceramic bird feeder. On Sunday, I went shopping with the GGs in the States and got all sorts of things for the cottage - in the B&B vein of shopping... some cotton quilts for beds, some cute duck-footed egg cups, a small rack for brochures of local spots - wineries, parks, etc.
It's been expensive around here lately.... I went to Chatham last week to - what I thought was to - present our business application, pay the $100 fee and become voila Omstead's On Erie Bed & Breakfast. Not so fast. Turns out, this area isn't zoned for such. The zoning includes only single detached homes and group homes... so, theoretically, I could open a halfway house for pedophiles, sex addicts, anger mismanagement antisocials - but no room at the inn for a couple of birders, oeniphiles or butterfly enthusiasts.
Puzzling, because just the other side of the harbour, there operated a ranch-style house B&B for many years... I guess, unofficially.
So, "no" I was told, followed by "I'm afraid you'll need a zoning amendment" and "that'll cost you around $1200", !!!!! this was followed by a business card of the company that does this. Off I reeled, across Chatham to this place, to be told, "yes, we can apply for you", "you've a very good chance of the amendment being granted", and topped off with "no, it's not $1200, I'm sorry to tell you - it's $2015" !!!! and $&*!
And the previous day, I finally broke down and bought a new laptop. So, last week was a $4000+ week, with very little spend-ecstasy to show for it.
The neighbours will be getting a notice of our intentions..... opposition, while it likely wouldn't be fatal to our plan, would be disappointing. We intend on going around fairly soon to our immediate neighbours and explaining our intentions: small operation, no parking/vehicle disturbance on the street, no alterations to the size of the cottage, the quiet clientele our B&B would appeal to, our desire to have an interest/supplementary income as we melt into our early retirement years. Hopefully, there are no objections to a very reasonable small business operation around here.
I hear the groundhog did not see her/his shadow today.... great!, an early spring is what I need.
