It has been an exciting last few months for the family and I. Elizabeth is currently working a 90 day casual for the Canadian Forest Service doing climate change models. It is a great opportunity for her, looks good on her resume, and will help as she applies for other research opportunities and university positions down the road. She also had an offer on a job interview in Saskatchewan, but we declined as we both felt the community simply was not where we wanted to raise our children-extremely high crime rates and an isolated community. And I got an offer out of the blue from a company-a large, very successful, well-respected consulting company-to come work for them as a wildlife biologist in Calgary. A permanent job. The first permanent job I have ever been offered since finishing my Masters degree in 2013. I could hardly believe it.
The offer came as a result of my name and resume being forwarded to their office from someone in a branch back east that I emailed in the fall. I received an email end of February asking me to interview for a 4 month intern position; there was no way I was going to pack up my family and move out west for 4 months, but I thought, "why not just do the interview and see what happens", and boy, was I glad I did! Right off the bat during the phone interview, they said "look, we know you are more than an intern, so we aren't hiring you for that. But we might have something coming up in the new few months. There is some shuffling going on in our office. A team lead position might be available, but it would have to advertised". Then, I find out a recruiter was chasing down my references only a day or two later, and I was being asked what I would need to have for salary and other expectations for a formal offer. Something was drafted up, and after talking with the company supervisors, and, after discussing with my wife, we decided to accept.
The girls were pretty upset when we told them the news, as was the rest of our family. We are taking the girls away from everyone and everything they know, upsetting their routines, changing their lives. But we are selling this, for them and for us, as an adventure.
So, that has resulted in some big changes happening. Originally, they wanted a start date of mid-April, which I told them was impossible. I had hoped for end of June so that we could all go out at once, but we worked out a compromise; I start May 5th, and they allow me to take 2 weeks of vacation off at the end of July to help move my family here.
Elizabeth and I had a lot to square away before I could head out. We decided to trade in our smaller car (a 2009 Hyundai Accent) for a larger, newer vehicle so that I was comfortable driving on the road and could bring everything I thought I would need for the 3 months I would be living alone. We wanted an SUV, but settled on a fully-loaded Ford Focus Titanium Hatchback, and I have been pleasantly surprised by the roominess and gas mileage.
We arranged for child care for Emeline and after school programs for Hannah and Lily. The biggest hurdle was finding a place to live in Calgary. The rental markets are so tight it is really hard to find a place on the budget Elizabeth and I set, so we came up with a compromise where I would live cheaply in the Polytechnical Institute residence for 3 months (they rent to non-students during the summer), giving us more time and flexibility to look for a place for all of us later on. |The bonus is that I get an actual bed to sleep in, a table to eat at, and a TV to watch. Score!
The weeks leading up to my leaving were rough. I had a lot of errands that I wanted to take care to make it as easy as possible on Elizabeth while I was gone. I had the month off with the ending of my contract with Environment and Local Government and the start of this new job, so it was nice to spend the time with the girls, knowing I wouldn't be seeing them for another 3 months. We spent a weekend in Bathurst and then the Easter Weekend in Pennfield visiting family and friends. I resigned from the Board of Directors at my church, something that I loved and enjoyed, something which I felt gave me a connection and better appreciation to the volunteer work and helping nature my father had. I visited a number of friends, having coffee, chatting, giving away some of my handcrafted hiking sticks I have been holding onto. No point in taking them out west with me. There was a lot of happiness and a lot of sadness mixed together this last week.
The girls wanted my last night home with them (Saturday April 27th) doing things I wanted to do. We went to the Farmers Market, did a bit of geocaching, then homemade pizza and cheesecake followed by an Avatar: the Last Airbender marathon.
Sunday was the hardest. It was my last service at the church Elizabeth and I have attended for over 12 years. The Pastor and other members prayed for us and gave us warm wishes on our new journey. My Mom came up from Pennfield to see me off and she was crying. I even managed to get my little sister weepy when I gave her a hug and said goodbye to her and her kids.
But the absolute worse was saying goodbye to Elizabeth and the girls. They have all been upset off and on in the days leading up to my leaving. It was incredibly tough driving out of the yard knowing I wouldn't be seeing them again until the end of July. I worry about them constantly. I worry about Elizabeth getting overwhelmed with work and home and getting burned out.
So, I am currently on the way to Calgary, missing my girls, feeling anxious, nervous, and excited. I hope things work out for me here.
I plan to provide an update on the drive out, some details of each day, the stops, locations, as well as some photos, once I get settled into the city.
Mark.
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