NEW VINEYARD – A recent report has marked Maine’s economy as one of the fastest to rebound since the Covid-19 vaccine became available, already operating at 93 percent of its pre-pandemic activity.
The advantages of living rurally through a pandemic have been widely noted, most significantly by the spike in home sales but also by Maine’s quick turn around to go back to business as usual. The statistics go hand in hand with the stereotype of hardworking Mainers, many of whom have multiple jobs.
In Franklin County, it’s not uncommon for people to have a side hustle or two or three. From home-kitchen food production to Airbnbs and photography, many Mainers get creative when it comes to making ends meet.
“I’ve always been passionate about tiny homes,” Lisa Laflin of New Vineyard said. “So, in 2017, my son- who was an aspiring architect at the time— planned a tiny house to be built in our woods, and when it was time to go to school for architecture, he left the dream with us.”
Laflin rents her tiny home, “The Bird’s Nest,” on a popular “glamping” site; the tiny house is completely off-grid with a potable water source and outhouse. It sleeps up to three people, comes with the corkscrews and dishes a tenant might need to be comfortable and is made from recycled materials- another one of Laflin’s side hustles.
“I see beauty in things that others would think to throw away,” Laflin said. “I think we all need to get back to our creative roots.”
Laflin indicated that, while very busy with a fulltime job, the responsibilities of maintaining rental property and being a member of the school board, it’s important to have a good work-life balance and support system.
Jess Beer, a teacher at the Maine Mountain Children’s House in Kingfield, earns extra income from artwork, and originally started out in the area with four different jobs.
“It’s not uncommon; it’s how people live,” Beer said of having multiple jobs. “There’s a lot of seasonal work up here, and it’s hard to piece things together.”
Beer began painting for fun in her free time, building on her skills as an artist, when her work started gathering interest from members of the community. Through word of mouth, she’s been able to supplement her income by doing something that is both relaxing and engaging, and it’s allowed her to slow down— she now only has two jobs.
Though she hopes for some overlap between her main job and her side hustle in the future, Beer recommends those with side hustles find a fulfilling balance and take time to rest. She also thinks it’s important for aspiring artists to take a chance on themselves.
“It’s taken me a long time to get to that point, but over the last year, two years, I’ve kind of found myself in that groove,” Beer said. “The art is moving, which is nice, but it wouldn’t have happened without me putting myself out there.”
Side-hustler Karen Campbell is a school bus driver for the town of Carrabassett Valley, which means driving tuition-paid students to different schools since the town itself doesn’t have one. She also drives for Western Maine Transportation in the winter, is a selectboard member and the curator for the Maine Ski and Snowboard Museum in Kingfield.
But in her spare time, Campbell makes jewelry.
-making business since 1986, and though she doesn’t make much for jewelry at this point, she makes her side-hustle out of experience and helping other people—a self-proclaimed “art enabler.”
“I have a pottery studio and I teach pottery to all different ages and skill levels…I also do matting and framing,” Campbell said. “I hate waste; I recycle everything, and when people come to town and forget their paint brushes or other mediums, people will tell them to come see me; I’ll let them borrow stuff—whatever people need. I love doing it.”
Campbell labels herself as an “art enabler” and tributes her wide network to the many resources that have come her way.
On having so many jobs, Campbell recommends having a good calendar system and not overbooking. She also stresses enjoying what you’re doing.
“If you’re doing a lot of stuff, you have to have fun with it; you have to laugh at yourself,” Campbell said. “There’s a degree of failure; we’re only human.”
