Oh, Canada

I have spent the last month in Canada. Calgary, to be precise. And I have learned a lot of things about myself while being here.

1) I don't "need" to be at home. I do like to travel. I miss everyone, but I like knowing they'll be there when I get home. In fact, it's almost sweeter when I know they'll be there when I get back, but I don't have to be there all the time.

2) I adapt quickly. My accent, my phrasing, my lifestyle. I take on the characteristics of wherever I am with unusual alacrity. I have always known about myself that I travel easily, but this was good to know. In case I ever decide that I want to do this for long periods of time, I will easily be able to do it.

3) I like to know people where I'm traveling. One of the great joys of going to where your friends live is being able to see them in their environment. While I was here, I got to meet a couple of Keely's friends, and see her apartment, and I also got to see her at work. It's all been very cool. Friends who don't live in my town present a unique challenge in that I don't get to be part of their everyday lives. But I've enjoyed getting to be a part of her everyday life while I was here.

4) I don't "need" to meet people. I have great friends who live all over the country and the world. I don't feel the need to go out and make new friends wherever I go. I'm certainly not going to turn down friends, but my friends are with me whenever I leave. And whenever I return.

5) I like being wherever I am. When I was on the farm, I liked that. When I'm in the city, I like that. When I'm in Bozeman, I generally like that.

6) I like winter when there's less snow. I don't mind the cold. Not even the ice. I don't like the wetness. And I don't like the transfer of dirt and grime through wetness. But when there's less snow (unlike Bozeman), I'm pretty okay with the winteryness of everything.

7) I like to be alone a lot. I've been alone a lot while I was here. And I've spent most of it working, on some level. Working on craft projects, working on my novels, working on my blog and reviewing, working on workshops and critiquing. It's been fantastic. And it's hard to do when you can't spend a lot of time alone.

8) I want to be a writer. I really want to give this whole thing a serious shot. In fact, I think that when my term runs out with unemployment, I'm considering stopping my job search. Granted, this might also be because I haven't even gotten a job interview after months of searching. But I like to think it's because I really want to be a writer. And I think I could do it.

9) I love Canada, but I don't know if I want to live here. I've talked on and off about moving to Canada for most of my life. I do love it here, and I could see myself splitting my time between here and the US at some point. But it is definitely harder to get the places I want to get to. And the systems are very different. It would take a lot of getting used to. The day-to-day living isn't that different. But I think I would miss being in the US. I don't know. We'll see... I do like it here... ;-)