Don and I have retired from busy careers, Don as a senior manager in health and education settings, me as a nurse specializing in HIV in southern Africa where we lived for many years. We are spending two years being "casa libre" (read: choosing to be home-free, not home-less!) while we see the parts of the world that we a) missed altogether, or b) always hoped to return to. We are very experienced travellers and know how to adapt to new environments, new housing, new customs... We like to be "home", to putter and read, as well as walking, hiking or cycling to get our exercise (even better done with a dog or two!).
I grew up in a ranch in BC (and my Dad was a vet) so I am experienced and happy with animals of all kinds, indoor and outdoor! We have always had cats and dogs, and an African Grey for years, as well as hamsters and rabbits... We deeply miss having our own pets so will give yours lots of love!! Don grew up in the age when guys learned how to fix and maintain things, and built our first home for the ground up. He is strong, fit, handy, practical - the kind of guy that ends up fixing everybody else's stuff! And as a Virgo and a nurse, I am pretty fussy about housekeeping. We are resourceful and independent -- we know how to sort our most things that can happen to a home or a pet, so if you entrust us with the responsibility, we promise to give you the worry-free vacation you so deserve, and a seamless re-entry when you return! References from our first two formal house-sits in 2016 will attest to our pet-care, garden care and general maintenance skills.
Our kids, grandkids and my Mum are in the BC Lower Mainland and on the island. We would like to spend more time with them without being underfoot. We still have our car in BC so we're open to all kinds of locations and plan to be in BC for long stretches -- our dates are flexible. We are also looking for opportunities to see eastern Canada, and to attend the Rogers Cup in either Toronto or Montreal, or Blue Jays home games (Don is a BIG fan!). For the most part, we are looking for house-sitting opportunities that we can settle into -- for at least a month -- and we are happy to contribute to the cost of keeping your home running (paying utility costs, for instance).
As we are currently traveling, we do not have a single reliable cell number to provide but we generally have access to excellent internet -- we check several times a day and can easily set up a date. We would love to discuss any potential opportunities -- no pressure -- to see if there is a fit.