Cast your vote!

We've begun to consider some options for the first building. Remember, this first place we want to keep very small and simple -- it will be "studio-like" in nature -- one large room with a bathroom and mini-kitchenette. Some of the options below we found, some were passed along by a friend. Cast your vote and help us decide!

Option #1

Option #2

Option #3

I call this one "tiny cabin".

Sorry I don't know how to resize the image to match the others!

Option #4

So . . . there you go! Hopefully there's still someone out there checking the blog and who'll cast a vote!

Big City Folks Navigate Small Town Life . . .

There's going to be a learning curve here for us -- I won't deny it. Despite the fact that neither Jon nor I were raised in the city, after almost 15 years in Chicago for me and nearly 10 for Jon, it's in our blood now. We would only begrudgingly acknowledge that we are horn honkers who rely too much on our car, that we often let our work take precedence over things we'd rather be doing, or that we have grown to expect the convenience and immediacy of city living. But these things are true. We still try to do our part to live small in the big city -- we try to buy locally, we bike when we can, we make an effort to know our neighbors. But it's hard. For all these reasons, our recent experiences and newly formed relationships on the island just go to show you . . .

Example #1: The island approach is different. And slower. After we returned home from our last trip, Jon had been dealing with a construction company who was going to provide him estimates for excavating a driveway and a clearing for our cabin. He provided his fax number so that he could send along the plans. One day goes by, two, three, then a week. No plans. Jon calls the office.

"Hi. I spoke with Arnie last week, and he was going to send along some plans for excavating our property."
"Let's see here. Oh, yes. Indeed. We sent those right along."
"You did? Hmm. We haven't gotten them. Do you have the right fax number?"
"Oh no, sweetie. I mailed them last week. You should be getting them any day now."

There's no rushing island time.

Example #2: Everyone on this island knows everyone -- or is related to them. It began with our realtor, Tina Nelson. Lovely gal. Found us a gem of a property -- next to her brother-in-law -- Gene Nelson -- now our neighbor. Tina also directed us to Elmer Nelson -- her uncle-in-law -- the local fire marshall to obtain aforementioned burn permit (see previous post). When we looked for construction companies, we found Arnie (Arnie from Example #1). Who, yes, you guessed it, also boasts the surname Nelson. But wait, there's more! Tom Nelson owns two local restaurants downtown -- we've been to both. And finally there's Chuckie Nelson, who in the mixed up web that makes up the Nelson clan, we're not quite sure how to identify. The upside is that each Nelson we've met has been more pleasant and easy going as the last.

We'll meet more Nelsons. I'm sure of it. And I'm not a bit sad about it.

In the meantime, we're heading back up in a week or so. Hoping to meet with Arnie (really) and get this land excavated. There are some existing permits on the land that we're trying to figure out -- hoping to be able to use some of what is already there.

After the noise and confusion of this last weekend's Independence Day celebrations in the city, I'm ready. To breathe deep, slow down and enjoy my neighbors.

And so it begins . . .

890 South Shore -- our first visit . . .

It really began about five years ago. I was spending a rainy afternoon at my in-laws' cottage in northern Michigan reading magazines when I stumbled upon an article claiming that a place called Madeline Island boasted the most budget-friendly opportunities to invest in a summer home. A few days later, I returned to a hot, loud, busy and dirty Chicago (which, no doubt, I love 300 days a year), and my quest for a summer retreat in northern (and I do mean northern) Wisconsin began. Over the course of the next few years, Jon and I made several trips to the Island, worked with Tina our fabulous realtor, and argued over countless decisions about what we should do -- house or land, lakeside or inland, acreage or location, woods or the beach, in town or far out of town. If you know us well -- and I imagine, if you're reading this, you do -- you can probably guess who argued for what. Along the way, we dreamed. I uploaded photos of my favorite place on the Island -- the Town Park Lagoons -- so I could use them as the background on my desktop. Jon subscribed to a feed of Madeline Island images and news. Jon convinced me that we could forgo central air in our Chicago home -- Madeline Island would be our air conditioning. I convinced him that he could build me a cottage -- and I would be patient. For the most part.


So, this past weekend, we visited the Island for the first time as the proud owners of 1.6 acres on Madeline Island, WI -- a 26,880 acre island (14 miles by 3 miles), located two miles by ferry from Bayfield, WI at the very tip of Wisconsin in beautiful (and chilly) Lake Superior. We had an amazing and quite productive weekend -- clearing land, exploring the island, arranging for permitting and excavating and generally having a good time. My in-laws were an amazing help as we battled ticks and mosquitoes, discovered the ins and outs of island living and . . . generally had a good time.


We left the island Monday afternoon with plans for both of us to return later this summer and for Jon to return in the fall with a crew of willing participants to begin our build (watch out, readers -- depending on your ability and or willingness -- you just may be recruited to be a part of that crew!). In the meantime, I've posted below some of the highlights of our visit this past weekend. This is the view of the island from Madeline Island Ferry.

The ferry landing on the island. Welcome to La Pointe, WI!


The cottage where we stayed this weekend, Brittany Cottages -- about 1.5 miles from our property.



Our land, cleared and cleaned up . . . we'll put a small, simple "guest house" up first -- behind the driveway and to the left. Eventually the full cottage will go behind the drive and to the right -- a bit further back.



Our "burn pile". The result of two days of chainsawing, hacking, sawing and weeding which we got a permit to burn ourselves. Cooler heads prevailed (literally) -- and we decided to have someone pick up the debris and burn it for us instead of risking burning down the entire island.

The pick-up we inherited, which is renowned for, literally, hauling a ton of sh*t (my mother in-law is an avid gardener) from Jon's mom and dad. It has already come in handy and will serve us well for island living

There's much more to tell and there will be even more as we continue our journey. I look forward to posting more, and look forward even more to hosting you all at some point for some good old fashioned summer fun on the island!