Optimist • Marketer • Mentor
Me, my dogs and some of the wonderful women who have become so important to my life.
I sought out the homes we live in. I had spent ten years living in a Victorian terrace house in Sydney, Australia. I knew the townhouse lifestyle and I wanted it again.
Town or terrace house living isn’t a compromise. It’s the best of both worlds. I wanted a house but without the responsibilities of looking after a large garden. I wanted a dog friendly neighbourhood with space for a BBQ and an outdoor dining area. Inside, I wanted a space for entertaining, for living and for creating. I knew a terrace house is the best of both worlds.
With this in mind, my husband and I started our search. He wanted to live in a condo along the Yonge St corridor. I was working in Richmond Hill at the time and that would add at least another 1 to 2 hours to my transit time. I had landed in Don Mills when I first came to Toronto and loved the convenience. I just had to convince him that it was the lifestyle he wanted too.
It was pure chance that we stumbled upon this neighbourhood. Tucked away as it is, I don’t think any of my neighbours, even today, say they knew about this place until they stumbled upon it themselves.
We weren’t the first owners. We purchased from a couple who found the stairs too difficult. What didn’t work for them, was heaven to my eyes. As soon as we moved in, we began making the house and the neighbourhood our home.
When we moved in, I knew we could turn this house in the home of our dreams, what I didn’t know is that this neighbourhood would become the missing link in my love of Toronto.
Can you imagine what this last year would have been like without the friendships that we have found in this neighbourhood? I can’t. It’s because of the amazing people and support that we have for each other that Covid-19 has not been a long spiral into depression. We have maintained our distance – the number of driveway and drive-by birthday parties are too many to count. The use of our outdoor spaces has allowed for sanity to be maintained. And our proximity to parks and trails has meant that I’ve walked an average of 25 km per week – that’s almost 2,000 km in a year.
What’s the future going to bring? I don’t know. Like many, the pandemic has changed our lives. Joe has chosen to take retirement. Me, I’m not ready yet so I'm looking for a new opportunity. What I do know, is that this neighbourhood and the friends that we’ve made here will be the rock-solid foundation of everything that is to come.