I have been in catchup mode – up to Day Five and if I get this finished, I will be up-to-date.  It won’t last long. When I look at my list of things I want to do in January, I know I will be pushing hard to make the grade with them all.  I have done the Ultimate Blog Challenge before.  I have been able to get past Day Five on some occasions, but it is a hard slog.

2017 could be a very interesting year for me.  I have a project that I am working on, and I am working on another website to promote it.  Shhh….. it’s not really ready yet, but I will tell you that you can find it here.  It is about housing for senior solo women.

As I am on my own now, and not happy with my current housing, I have been doing some research and came across some exciting ideas.  Co-housing.  While co-housing is not exactly new to Australia, the model I am looking at, certainly is.

The project that I am excited about is in the UK.  In London.  It is a program called OWCH.  Older Women’s Co Housing.

There are many issues that affect senior women.  While many do have the finances to buy their own home, often it can be a lonely existence.  I did have a call from a lady who had worked until retirement, has been alone for many years, and with limited family living nearby, she found retirement very lonely. She has neighbours that she has little to do with.  A couple with children who keep them very busy.

She will be spending time trying to make friends and take on new interests now that she is retired, but the housing situation is of concern.

The idea of a co-housing project where the women in the complex are friendly and committed to a community style of living is of interest to some folk.  The OWCH project has been a long time in the planning stages and the women have been moving in for the last few weeks.  I found another one starting up in Glasgow, Scotland.

What is Co-Housing?

Read here. 

They are to some degree based on programs that have been running in Europe for many years.

I wonder if it can work in Australia?