Happy wanderer with B&B experience

More information about this house sitter

I am retired from the work-force and after fifteen years in Faraday and Castlemaine, I moved to Seaford in late June 2021. I am an occasional writer. I love walking beside the sea and occasionally ride short distances on my bike, to keep myself fit.

Prior to my recent move to Carrum, Victoria, I lived in Castlemaine, Faraday, North Melbourne and Port Melbourne. My adult family members live in commuting distance to Melbourne - and in East Gippsland.

My interests include writing, which I usually do most days. I am part of a group of writing friends, who converse via emails and phone. Writing is a stimulating and enriching way to keep in touch.

Prior to moving to Seaford, I was an active member of the Castlemaine Peace Choir. The choir has been running for twelve years and for most of that period, I organised the typing and printing of the choir song books. The choir, before CV-19 had one hundred and twenty members. Unfortunately, the last two years of lock down may result in the choir's demise. I do look forward to finding a great choir somewhere in the local Frankston area.

I love swimming - in the sea or in a pool - anywhere really, where there is water.

I am an avid reader, a member of a number of Victoria local council libraries, which means I always have a ready supply of books to read and DVDs to watch.


Almost every fortnight, I play Scrabble or 500 with two very old friends. We usually meet at each other's home, share dinner and then settle down to one or other game. We have been meeting for years for this purpose and now, because I am living in the same area as them, it is very easy to continue. We're 'average' players of both games, but we all like to win!

I have a love of great buildings, building design and architecture and for twelve years, owned a historic stone building in Faraday, which I converted from its original use as a school to a rather unusual home. It was a labour of love, but the transformation from two almost ruined stone buildings with a fairly unkempt garden, was something which I enjoyed throughout the years I lived there. If you care to look up my name on the web, there are photos of the beautiful renovated Faraday School House.

As a keen gardener. I enjoy planning garden upgrades and am happy to help re-design (or fix up) a tired looking garden. As a house sitter, I enjoyed renovating a rather sad-looking strawberry patch at a home I minded in East Gippsland. The family's beautiful dog loved to sit in the strawberry patch on sunny days, but the consequence of all this sitting, was the ruin of the strawberry patch so with a bit of work and care, the strawberry patch was rejuvenated and with a 'roof' of chicken wire, and was potentially a lovely place, once again, for the strawberries to grow.

My home in Seaford has given me a 'project' which is to renovate the common gardens, which looked fairly ordinary when I moved in. I have created a food garden with citrus trees, a cherry tree, hundreds of strawberry plants, and tomatoes, chives, silver beets, parsley and rosemary. All the produce is available to the unit owners.

A lot of my spare time is spent reading - books, newspapers and magazines. I appreciate seeing a brilliant film and am continually amazed at great cinematography.

I am a grand-mother with three adult children (completely independent), the oldest of whom is fifty-two years. I have four grand children aged 9, 13, 16 and 18 years.

I spend a lot of time with my daughters and their families in their suburban family homes. My son's family lives in East Gippsland. I travel there every couple of months.

My house-sitting clients have in past times, been located in seaside locations, inner city Melbourne and East Gippsland. Because I now live beside the sea, py preference now is to mind homes in the Castlemaine, Kyneton and Bendigo regions.

I'm fortunate to have friends living in Castlemaine, Geelong, East Gippsland, Port Fairy and throughout Melbourne. One of the home owners, whose home I minded when I first joined mindahome, now lives in NSW.

During 2020 and 2021, I did not mind any houses. The various legal prohibitions made it difficult or impossible from the point of view of health and safety for everyone.

I hope 2022 will shape up to being more conducive for me to 'get back into minding' homes once again.

Please contact me if you are looking for a reliable, tidy person to mind your home and/or pets.

My favourite country, outside of Australia, is Greece, where my sister lives.

In Victoria, my favourite walking places are beside the sea (early in the morning) and in winter, in ferny forests.

I am a social being, enjoying the company of other people; cooking, seeing a film, bush-walking, playing scrabble, sharing dinner.... any, or all of the above!

It is many years since I had pets of my own and (because I do spend a lot of time away from home), I currently do not have any pets. However I enjoy walking the various dogs I have minded and watching the antics of cats during their 'witching hours' in their own homes.

Until mid 2017, I ran a small B&B business in my unusual stone house in Faraday, which had previously been a school. That background provided me with the know-how to be able to run a small B&B business. I would be pleased to look after a small B&B, should a mindahome home owner need to take a break away from home for a short time.

I am a non-smoker and a social drinker.

I have minded homes belonging to family and friends in and around Melbourne and in Warrnambool, and have also minded many homes through mindahome. My house sitting experience includes homes and pets located in Frankston, Frankston South, Coburg, Coburg South, Langwarren, Parkdale, Sale (East Gippsland), and South Yarra.

Where possible, I like to go back to mind homes and pets for families whose homes and pets I have minded previously.

I love travel and have travelled extensively throughout Australia, Europe and Asia.

Your home and garden will be very well cared for in your absence. If as a home owner, you would like me to 'really tidy up the place' or do any gardening work, I am happy to do so.

I can provide references, a police check and a working with children certificate.

Thank you. I hope to meet you in the future!
Jill
Carrum Victoria Read more...