Life is still not normal, but it’s getting so close and I’m getting excited about that!

Today, I’m still living in rural village, 2 hours’ drive from wife’s work.
Still squatting in borrowed family home, across the street from in-laws.
My parents’ are now visiting here for a couple weeks.
My kids only seeing mom on weekends has me feeling like a single parent.

How We Feeling?

All this: the very close in-laws, borrowed home, visiting parents, single-parent lifestyle – all help to peg the needle on my stress meter. Am I handling it okay? Of course not. (It’s called stress for a reason, dammit!)
As a result, both kids and I are long for & miss our Prague friends and lifestyle in a huge way. Prague’s big parks & awesome playgrounds, daily meet-ups with friends, frequent communal programs & adventures to new places. I digress…

I can’t say I’m not trying here. Yesterday, I and the kids took my parents to a blueberry festival. I take my daughter to a storytelling hour at the library offered every 3rd week. We go swimming often. Still…replacing old normalcy with new normalcy takes time.

So, Why’s Today Special?

Today is a special day for the kids and me. Today, we drive down to Dartmouth, to see our new place. Mind you, our new home is nothing grand: a 3-bedroom apartment, converted former military housing. (love describing it that way to people – really sets their impression) But it will be Our Home.
Today will be my kids’ first time seeing their new place, their new bedroom — AND all their stuff from our former home in Prague. Talk about exciting for them!!!
So, Today is the end of our transition period from Prague to Dartmouth.
After my parents leave next week, we will actually move into our new place.
Why are we visiting it today? Tomorrow is when we can register my daughter at her new school. School start next week.

Wife’s work will be close by, so we’ll all live together. One kid in school. One kid will start a bit of daycare. Routine will a part of our vocabulary. Normalcy will begin. (whoa, did I just use “routine” as a positive thing?)

So, you see, the way I see it, normalcy isn’t here, but it’s right around the corner. I can taste it, smell it, almost touch it. Oh, I can’t wait!

Making New Expat Friends

**Total sideline here**
Last week, I met up with Andrew and Alison, a married expat couple living in Belgium. They happened to be visiting family in Pugwash (total small world).
Before last week, I only knew Andrew through his comments on this site like here & here & here. So, it was a cool experience to meet them face to face.
Great meeting you both!

Alison manages a cool website for expats in Belgium. By the way, Alison is obviously also a talented photographer. Check it out for yourself at ACM Photography page.

We shared lunch in a sweet corner cafe in the village downtown. Alison and Andrew also got to meet my wife, kids and my parents, which is pretty cool for me.
They are a super nice couple and obviously in a happy place in their lives. And for me, it was therapeutic to talk to fellow expats.

Again – really cool meeting you Andrew & Alison!

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We arrived in Canada 6 freakin’ weeks ago already. Again, sorry for waiting. So much to say… finally I’m writing…

yeah, I finished the Vacation video

First things first, a reminder that we motorhomed around southern Europe. I posted a vacation video Well, it was the first half.
Well, I just posted the second half. Don’t worry, this one’s not as long, because, really, how much can you enjoy somebody else’s vacation videos?? But I do hope it inspires you to do something similar. You so could, and you know it.

Near the video’s end, I give “stats” including our total cost.
Disclaimer: the stats don’t include what we paid for some damage. If you want to know more about that, write me or comment.

Anyway – here’s the second half:

How did our vacation go? Great.
How did our arrival go? Fairly smooth, but only after lengthy explanations to Canadian Customs and Immigration about our intentions.
How’s the transition going here? So so. Some culture shock going on, plus we’re missing Prague friends big-time, plus our role reversal has taken an unexpected twist.

Some Culture Shock

You know what culture shock is, right? In a nutshell, it’s getting used to new surroundings and differences.
What differences you ask? Well, in Prague we had incredible mass transit, breathtaking architecture and a wide range of friends.
Where are we now? Rural Nova Scotia, along the north shore. When I say rural, I mean our road is gravel and the village consists of ~700 people. We live here because we’re essentially squatting in an empty family house near my wife’s parents. Yeah, there’s loads of culture shock going on here. Let me jump to the role reversal thing.

Role Reversal

About a year ago, my wife and I decided, at our next chance, we would reverse our roles of bread-winner & stay-at-home parent.
Leaving Prague for Canada gave us that chance.
The role reversal thing has been great so far, and I’m not just saying that because my wife reads this blog.
But there’s an added twist. My wife’s job is in the (much bigger) city of Halifax. Halifax is two hours’ drive away, not doable for daily commuting.

Yes, that means, I’m a stay-at-home dad all week, while my wife/kids’ mom comes home for the weekends. Culture shock amplified.
Naturally, we’re searching for a place near my wife’s work, but these things take time.

Well, I’m not sure how to end this post. No zingy conclusions or valuable life lessons – hope that’s cool with you today. But at least I’m posting you today and not waiting another 6 weeks.

Cheers mates,
-Jeff

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Answer: Move.

Nothing helps you say “it’s not that important” like moving across the ocean.

We’ve lived in Prague for four years. That’s just four years; it’s not a lifetime. (Unless you’re 4 or younger, right?)

It’s amazing how much crap we’ve accumulated in just these four years.

Now we’re moving to Canada. And so, the sorting, cleaning and digging begins. The packers are scheduled to come on May 30th.
We’re asking each other a dozen times a hour “Do we really need this? Is it important we keep it?”
With everything we touch, dig out, we end with one question: “Keep or Lose?” (and Lose can mean sell, give away or trash)

Our Guidelines for “Keep or Lose”
I figure I’m not alone here, so here are our guidelines how we decide what stays and what doesn’t.

First, is it something we use once a week or more? If yes, keep. Otherwise…see the next questions:

Books
Did I already read it? — “Lose it.”
If no, will I read before 2011? No? — “Lose it.”

Clothing
Does it fit? No? — “Lose it.”
Would I wear it tomorrow (given right weather)? No? — “Lose it.”

Computer stuff * (Guilty, so guilty)
Do we use it today? — “Keep it.”
Do I have more than 2 of them? — “Lose it” (like 7 extra USB cables)
* We switched to Mac 2 years ago, so A LOT was “Lose it.”

Tools
Electrical? (Or “European plug?”) Yes? — “Lose it.”
Use it less than once a year? Yes? — “Lose it.”
Under $10 to replace? Yes? — “Lose it.”
So …the screwdriver set stays. (sorry, duct tape)

Knick-Knacks
Tougher calls here, but…
Did we buy it while vacationing? No? — “Lose it.”

“Oh, But We Can’t Get Rid Of That”
There is one, teensy-weensy exception to this rule. My four-year old daughter’s prized possession, a coconut lady.
See picture “exhibit A” in hideous picture at the bottom of this post.

The coconut lady must stay for two reasons:
1. It’s from a friend who loves giving us the corniest, ugliest gifts on the planet. (And he’s rather good at it)
2. My wife hates it. In fact, she delights in hating it. And, I get some enjoyment out of hearing from her just how much she hates it.

So, in the end, coconut lady stays. For all else, enjoy our guidelines above.

-Jeff

Click for a full-size revolting pic of Francis

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“I want to be an expat” – a dream of over 700 million people.

A survey, which took 3 years to complete, was finally released. The survey asked “Would you like to start a new life abroad?”.
Across 130 countries, 16% of the people answered “Yes.”

What countries were most popular?
Mostly developed western countries, plus Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Where does everyone want to go?
If everyone had their wish, the United States would swell by 165 million people (growing it by 50%)
Canada would bring in 45 million people (a whopping 150% boost!)
France, Thailand and Britain each would grow also by another 40+ million people.

What’s the biggest motivator for all these people?
Jobs. For many folks, the big deciding factor whether to stay or go was employment. Do you want to work abroad?
Last year, HSBC released a report about expats which reported that half of surveyed expats are in their residence country and plan to stay because of a better contract than they could get back home. Another tidbit: more than half had lived outside their home country for longer than 5 years.

Both the HSBC report and the very recent Gallup survey show a growing trend: people are seeking to become expats.

credit: Source article

“I want to be an expat” said by 700 million people. That’s a lot of people. It’s a big dream. Start now, while you’re ahead of the pack.

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Another recent article heralding the top destination for expats. Where do expats consider is the top place – Canada, Australia & Thailand! Another key tidbit from the article: prospect of employment is the top reason for expats.

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