My life in Alberta has been quite the transition. I went from having family members a stones throw away, with weekly if not daily conversations with them and lots of quality time together to having a 3 hour time difference and contact through Birthday and Christmas phone calls only (periodic skype dates if I m lucky). I left the crisp moist ocean air for the frigid Alberta winters, the expansive forests for the flat treeless prairies, LIFE IN THE CITY for life in the country. And yes I will admit that for a bit the only thing that kept me here was the promise I made to my cousin who also left home and taught me that it takes a year to adjust and have everything feel normal. With this wisdom I decided to promise to stick it out a year before considering coming home. And oh am I thankful I didn't run when that first urge struck.
Now I know it has only been a little less than 6 months since I moved, but I am already starting to get into a bit of a routine. I am starting to enjoy certain benefits of living in Alberta like the fact I have been sleeping with the window open since mid April, I have enjoyed 25 degree lunch hours late April, the sun is in the sky and smiling at 5:30 am (I love waking up naturally with the sun!), 40% humidity is extremely humid here so no more frizzy curls or mini straighteners in my purse people and then there is the 5% sales tax and for someone with my love of shoes this is a HUGE deal ;)
My routine is busy by I am starting to think I
like love it. I have people I care dearly about, a great group of ladies I work with and I know have my back, my career is challenging and makes me grow a lot every day and feel like I am really making a difference, even though I may not see it today. I have my lovely Christmas family a few towns over who I will miss when I am not so close. I am coming to appreciate my family back home more and more because we really do have something beyond amazing to be proud of. Being away makes me love home more than ever, even though Alberta is feeling more like home every day. I ache for the ocean, cry for the arms of my loved ones and dream of loosing myself in the hustle and bustle of the city, but I know when I go home I will appreciate these things more today than ever.
What I am learning from my time here in Alberta is that making this my new home will never take my love for the coast away (give me fried clams and a hunt for hermit crabs at Aboiteau any day!), it actually deepens it. It makes me want to show off my roots and see people experience the fall colors, spring rains, and summer beaches that I grew up with, and sadly only appreciated once I left. So for everyone back home love what you have around you, it truly is a unique and amazing place to grow and live. For those who have never experienced the Maritimes, I recommend vacationing there this year. You will never experience anything like it anywhere else. We Maritimers are a unique group of people with the best view in the house!
Cheers!
CN
PS I think I will work on a photo blog for next week or the week after. I have been a little slack in the picture taking but if you saw my to do basket at work you would understand why!
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