It's time to move on
29/07/08 18:21 Filed in: Nanaimo
About ten years ago we
left Edmonton Alberta.
We simply packed up and moved to the west coast on a whim that Beautiful Vancouver on the West Coast of Canada was where we wanted to live the rest of our lives. Hell, we didn’t even care if we lived right in Vancouver, as long as we could smell the ocean, we were happy.
So our journey would begin, renting houses all over the Lower Mainland. We thoroughly enjoyed living in Port Moody then on to Coquitlam, out to Maple Ridge then all the way across the Mainland to Richmond, to the other side of the Airport in Kerrisdale then on to East Van, and then over the bridge to Surrey, followed by an acerage home in Langley. I know...I know...we moved around a lot in a span of five years...and no we’re not with the circus!
Now being the Carnies that we so proudly are, we then moved across a small chunk of the Pacific Ocean, to Victoria, the Capital of British Columbia on the southern most tip of Vancouver Island.
Although we loved the entire experience, the last year we spent there was by far the best. You see, that last year was spent in a beautiful home on View Royal Ave in Victoria. This was definately the best year of our lives.
I can still remember waking up to the vaulted ceilings held high by giant windows stretching from floor to ceiling. As if this house wasn’t nice enough, the view was something out of a Robert Bateman painting. No! Seriously! Straight out in the bay was a lighthouse that sat on the tip of a point of land where a national park happens to also reside. I wish I could remember the name...oh well I’ll add that as a comment later if I remember.
Anyways back to the view. A few times a day we were fortunate enought to see all kinds of Navy Ships, Barges, Float Planes, and occasionally the odd cruise ship effortlessly float by. Frequently we would catch ourselves in the middle of a smirk, glancing at each other then back at the ocean as we simultaneously giggled We’re Sooo Fuc#@ng Lucky...
Why we decided to move back to Alberta is beyond me. Oh yah my wife just reminded me... Family! We felt a bit removed from our parents (both sets) and numerous other relatives that we left behind in Alberta. So back to Alberta we jaunted with Uhaul in tow. We rented a couple of houses back in Edmonton before settling in to our new home (not new to me of course) where I was raised and where my Parents had j ust moved out of.
Everything went well at first! Slowly though, memories of childhood tradgedy starting creeping into my brain. Twenty years had gone by since I lost my brother to a violent murder which I thought I was completely at peace with. But this house held alot of pain inside it’s walls. While a grieving family tried to look ok on the outside, years passed, family healed, good memories replaced bad.
Until now I always thought that time was the major part of the healing process, but have more recently become aware that distance played an important role too. I feel like I am regressing instead of evolving, that suddenly I am seeing life through the eyes of that traumatized 12yr old boy. That obstacles are more focused while dreams are blurring. What happened to that guy that loved life! Where did this old me come from. I thought I changed, infact I know I did.
It’s this damn house, this dirty city, full of energy, only not the good kind. I need to get the hell out of here. I need to get back to the ocean. I can hear it calling. Is this crazy? A bit maybe. I don’t know! What I do know is I can live where ever I want and Edmonton isn’t it. So with this I bid Edmonton farewell. The plan has been written, the map been drawn, the wheels set in motion, WE ARE MOVING BACK TO THE WEST COAST... HOORAY!
In the next weeks and months you will witness a family of 9.5 research, plan, save, pack, map, and finally move our family across the rocky mountains to our new home near the ocean.
We simply packed up and moved to the west coast on a whim that Beautiful Vancouver on the West Coast of Canada was where we wanted to live the rest of our lives. Hell, we didn’t even care if we lived right in Vancouver, as long as we could smell the ocean, we were happy.
So our journey would begin, renting houses all over the Lower Mainland. We thoroughly enjoyed living in Port Moody then on to Coquitlam, out to Maple Ridge then all the way across the Mainland to Richmond, to the other side of the Airport in Kerrisdale then on to East Van, and then over the bridge to Surrey, followed by an acerage home in Langley. I know...I know...we moved around a lot in a span of five years...and no we’re not with the circus!
Now being the Carnies that we so proudly are, we then moved across a small chunk of the Pacific Ocean, to Victoria, the Capital of British Columbia on the southern most tip of Vancouver Island.
Although we loved the entire experience, the last year we spent there was by far the best. You see, that last year was spent in a beautiful home on View Royal Ave in Victoria. This was definately the best year of our lives.
I can still remember waking up to the vaulted ceilings held high by giant windows stretching from floor to ceiling. As if this house wasn’t nice enough, the view was something out of a Robert Bateman painting. No! Seriously! Straight out in the bay was a lighthouse that sat on the tip of a point of land where a national park happens to also reside. I wish I could remember the name...oh well I’ll add that as a comment later if I remember.
Anyways back to the view. A few times a day we were fortunate enought to see all kinds of Navy Ships, Barges, Float Planes, and occasionally the odd cruise ship effortlessly float by. Frequently we would catch ourselves in the middle of a smirk, glancing at each other then back at the ocean as we simultaneously giggled We’re Sooo Fuc#@ng Lucky...
Why we decided to move back to Alberta is beyond me. Oh yah my wife just reminded me... Family! We felt a bit removed from our parents (both sets) and numerous other relatives that we left behind in Alberta. So back to Alberta we jaunted with Uhaul in tow. We rented a couple of houses back in Edmonton before settling in to our new home (not new to me of course) where I was raised and where my Parents had j ust moved out of.
Everything went well at first! Slowly though, memories of childhood tradgedy starting creeping into my brain. Twenty years had gone by since I lost my brother to a violent murder which I thought I was completely at peace with. But this house held alot of pain inside it’s walls. While a grieving family tried to look ok on the outside, years passed, family healed, good memories replaced bad.
Until now I always thought that time was the major part of the healing process, but have more recently become aware that distance played an important role too. I feel like I am regressing instead of evolving, that suddenly I am seeing life through the eyes of that traumatized 12yr old boy. That obstacles are more focused while dreams are blurring. What happened to that guy that loved life! Where did this old me come from. I thought I changed, infact I know I did.
It’s this damn house, this dirty city, full of energy, only not the good kind. I need to get the hell out of here. I need to get back to the ocean. I can hear it calling. Is this crazy? A bit maybe. I don’t know! What I do know is I can live where ever I want and Edmonton isn’t it. So with this I bid Edmonton farewell. The plan has been written, the map been drawn, the wheels set in motion, WE ARE MOVING BACK TO THE WEST COAST... HOORAY!
In the next weeks and months you will witness a family of 9.5 research, plan, save, pack, map, and finally move our family across the rocky mountains to our new home near the ocean.
