I have started a calendar which everyone can view online. I am calling it the "vacancy calendar"! For anyone who is interested in coming to visit, you can find the calendar using the link on the right and see if our airbed is available on your dates. Then let us know and we will slot you in on the calendar! I still have to work out the kinks, but I think this will work...
Just as an update, the CFIA signed off on Buggy's papers today, so he is almost ready to go!
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Midweek update
I don't have a lot of news to report, but thought I should update the blog so you don't get bored and forget to keep checking!
Today I have an appointment to take Buggy's papers in to the CFIA to have them endorsed by a government vet. Here's hoping everything's in order! Although I can't really imagine what problem there could be, those of you who know me well know that I always anticipate the worst until it is under control.
I'm on holidays for the next 4 days! Originally we had a trip to NYC planned, but now with so much else going on we decided not to go. But I already had the time off, so I will be spending some of it packing! Mom is coming up to visit this weekend, which I think will be the last time she gets to visit me in Ottawa! I'm looking forward to that. Also on the books for the weekend - The Singer has a concert Sunday afternoon which should be excellent.
Last weekend we arranged for a storage unit for the items we are keeping while we're away. We had to get climate controlled (heated and air-conditioned), and checked out the options and sizes. So all our belongings will be piled in to a 5' X 15' space. Which is actually bigger than it sounds. :) The good news is that Noise's company pays for a certain amount of shipping, and if we don't use the maximum allowance we can use it towards the storage. The bottom line being that it looks like the storage will be covered for the 2 years, therefore not coming out of our pocket. We opted to go with storage in Kingston, so that it is accessible for our parents if necessary.
Our new laptop has arrived, and I'm pleased to say that this is the first blog entry written on it! I won't claim to be completely thrilled, as we have had some hiccups with it, and of course every time there's a problem we complain that we should have spent the extra money and gotten the Mac. However, in fairness the major problems have been internet connection, and that has been an ongoing battle with our wireless router, and I don't think it's the laptop's fault. The computer itself is lovely, the screen is excellent and I particularly like the keyboard. It's set up with Vista, which is nice but just different enough to take some getting used to. We were able to easily transfer over files (including itunes playlists!) from our desktop, so now this one is all set to take with us!
One of the features in Vista is Windows Calendar (separate from the Outlook calendars that we will be using for appointments, etc) which we are going to set up as our "booking calendar". So many people have talked about coming to visit that we figured we needed a booking calendar to keep it all straight! We may have to get a vacancy/no vacancy sign for our door. :D All joking aside, that's one of the parts of this move that I'm looking forward to the most - having family and friends come and visit. I can't wait!
Anyway, for someone who said there wasn't much news, I have managed to type quite a bit! Until next time!
Today I have an appointment to take Buggy's papers in to the CFIA to have them endorsed by a government vet. Here's hoping everything's in order! Although I can't really imagine what problem there could be, those of you who know me well know that I always anticipate the worst until it is under control.
I'm on holidays for the next 4 days! Originally we had a trip to NYC planned, but now with so much else going on we decided not to go. But I already had the time off, so I will be spending some of it packing! Mom is coming up to visit this weekend, which I think will be the last time she gets to visit me in Ottawa! I'm looking forward to that. Also on the books for the weekend - The Singer has a concert Sunday afternoon which should be excellent.
Last weekend we arranged for a storage unit for the items we are keeping while we're away. We had to get climate controlled (heated and air-conditioned), and checked out the options and sizes. So all our belongings will be piled in to a 5' X 15' space. Which is actually bigger than it sounds. :) The good news is that Noise's company pays for a certain amount of shipping, and if we don't use the maximum allowance we can use it towards the storage. The bottom line being that it looks like the storage will be covered for the 2 years, therefore not coming out of our pocket. We opted to go with storage in Kingston, so that it is accessible for our parents if necessary.
Our new laptop has arrived, and I'm pleased to say that this is the first blog entry written on it! I won't claim to be completely thrilled, as we have had some hiccups with it, and of course every time there's a problem we complain that we should have spent the extra money and gotten the Mac. However, in fairness the major problems have been internet connection, and that has been an ongoing battle with our wireless router, and I don't think it's the laptop's fault. The computer itself is lovely, the screen is excellent and I particularly like the keyboard. It's set up with Vista, which is nice but just different enough to take some getting used to. We were able to easily transfer over files (including itunes playlists!) from our desktop, so now this one is all set to take with us!
One of the features in Vista is Windows Calendar (separate from the Outlook calendars that we will be using for appointments, etc) which we are going to set up as our "booking calendar". So many people have talked about coming to visit that we figured we needed a booking calendar to keep it all straight! We may have to get a vacancy/no vacancy sign for our door. :D All joking aside, that's one of the parts of this move that I'm looking forward to the most - having family and friends come and visit. I can't wait!
Anyway, for someone who said there wasn't much news, I have managed to type quite a bit! Until next time!
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Moving on
We've officially started packing - I feel better now. I was getting itchy knowing how much needed to be packed and not having started yet. We packed up all the photo albums, CDs, DVDs, and of course the crystal glasses. Next comes the china.
Today was a bit sad when I realized that I only have a few shifts left at one of my clinics. For those of you who don't know, I work between two clinics, one of which I have worked at for two years now (so I think of it as my "home clinic"). I only have six shifts left there, spread out over the next 6 weeks. Today I packed up a box with all my textbooks and notes that I have kept there, as they will go into the pile for the shippers to pack up and send off to England. It definitely felt wrong to be moving out already!
On a brighter note, I received word today that my application had arrived at the RCVS and everything was in order, so now I have an appointment on June 6 to register in person!
I was at the grocery store today and picked up something with an expiry date of June 4, which really threw me off because I realized that by the time the turkey bites expired we would be living in London. Crazy...
We have made the decision now that we will be boarding Buggy for the first week or two when we arrive in London. It is too expensive to get temporary accomodations that allow a dog, plus it would be more stressful to be exploring London at first and worrying about getting home to let him out and how he was settling in. On the other hand, I will not relax until he is in the country and I know he made it through the flight and through immigration and so on. This way we'll know right away that he's in and there won't be any need for further flight scheduling, and he can have a relaxing vacation in the English countryside until he can come settle in at our new place. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself.
I'll be back when I have more updates!
Today was a bit sad when I realized that I only have a few shifts left at one of my clinics. For those of you who don't know, I work between two clinics, one of which I have worked at for two years now (so I think of it as my "home clinic"). I only have six shifts left there, spread out over the next 6 weeks. Today I packed up a box with all my textbooks and notes that I have kept there, as they will go into the pile for the shippers to pack up and send off to England. It definitely felt wrong to be moving out already!
On a brighter note, I received word today that my application had arrived at the RCVS and everything was in order, so now I have an appointment on June 6 to register in person!
I was at the grocery store today and picked up something with an expiry date of June 4, which really threw me off because I realized that by the time the turkey bites expired we would be living in London. Crazy...
We have made the decision now that we will be boarding Buggy for the first week or two when we arrive in London. It is too expensive to get temporary accomodations that allow a dog, plus it would be more stressful to be exploring London at first and worrying about getting home to let him out and how he was settling in. On the other hand, I will not relax until he is in the country and I know he made it through the flight and through immigration and so on. This way we'll know right away that he's in and there won't be any need for further flight scheduling, and he can have a relaxing vacation in the English countryside until he can come settle in at our new place. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself.
I'll be back when I have more updates!
Friday, April 11, 2008
Birthday Traditions
It's my birthday today! For seven years my birthday fell during final exams in university, and was nothing to get excited about. I was either writing an exam on my birthday, or studying for one the next day. So for the last few years it has been a real change to be able to relax on my birthday and enjoy it as one special day for me. Last year and this year I even ended up with the day off, so I can stay home in my pj's all day if I want! What a treat!
For those of you who are interested in the Great Computer Dilemma, I'm happy to report that a decision has been made. We are sticking with the PC world. Although we would love to "go Mac", it would cost us twice as much and considering that we only really use our computer for e-mail, internet, blogging, facebook, etc, it just didn't make sense. Many thanks to Serdic, though, for his useful suggestion. We decided to go with a Dell, and have ordered it and should receive it in a week or so. One of the major considerations is that if we went PC we could afford a larger screen. Anyway, after so much discussion, research, shopping, etc, we are pleased with the decision and looking forward to setting up the new computer!
One of the best things about birthdays are the traditions, and for me there is one constant - it always snows on my birthday. And today is no exception...
For those of you who are interested in the Great Computer Dilemma, I'm happy to report that a decision has been made. We are sticking with the PC world. Although we would love to "go Mac", it would cost us twice as much and considering that we only really use our computer for e-mail, internet, blogging, facebook, etc, it just didn't make sense. Many thanks to Serdic, though, for his useful suggestion. We decided to go with a Dell, and have ordered it and should receive it in a week or so. One of the major considerations is that if we went PC we could afford a larger screen. Anyway, after so much discussion, research, shopping, etc, we are pleased with the decision and looking forward to setting up the new computer!
One of the best things about birthdays are the traditions, and for me there is one constant - it always snows on my birthday. And today is no exception...
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Sold in Two Weeks!
I'm happy to report that the sale of the house has gone through, and we can now officially say that it sold in 2 weeks! We are very pleased with the whole process... we wanted to try selling it ourselves first and potentially save ourselves thousands in agent fees, but figured if it wasn't moving we would have to get an agent involved. But it was easy! We had two open houses in one weekend, then had our buyers come back one evening for a second viewing. All the paperwork with offers, conditions, and so on was handled by our lawyers instead of an agent. The lawyer charges around $600 for that and for handling the closing, the commission for an agent would have cost us over $12,000! We paid $300 to the online listing agency for the listing, the for sale sign, the open house signs, and a package of sample forms, etc. So it cost us $1000 to sell our house instead of $12,000. I guess you could say we're feeling a bit smug about that. :) Plus we are walking away with a significant profit which will definitely help out with much needed funding for the Big Move (as I have taken to calling it).
This week we made the first of several Big Purchases planned over the next few months. We wanted to upgrade our camera before we left for London, figuring two things: 1) No doubt we
will be seeing lots of amazing sights over the next couple of years, and we wanted to have great photos of them, and 2) Having a proper camera might provide a hobby for us, something that we can do together, and a reason to scout out different locations around London in our free time. So we debated for a long time over whether we should buy a better point-and-shoot digital camera, or go that one step further and get into a digital SLR. I have always loved SLR cameras, my parents have one (you remember back when you put film in a camera...) and while I do not profess to know a lot about photography, it is something I have always wanted to learn. So we did a lot of debating, shopping, comparing, etc, and finally decided to go for the DSLR. We had some concerns about carrying around an SLR with us, but decided that was the way we wanted to go! We settled on an entry-level DSLR, the Nikon D40, with two lenses. We are thrilled! Above is a photo of Buggy, one of the first taken on the new camera (admittedly not a very interesting background). Now we need to learn how to use it out of auto mode! Devoted readers, prepare! This blog will eventually be jam-packed with photos from the Nikon, hopefully much more interesting than Buggy lying on the carpet.
The next Big Purchase will be a laptop, and here is where we are running into problems. Noise says we are on an emotional roller coaster about it, which I think is maybe a bit extreme, but it is definitely a difficult decision. The trouble is this: what we really want is a Mac, but without going into all the ins and outs of the discussions, we're not sure we can justify the extra expense of a Mac when a PC would meet our needs. We'll see where we end up. The point of a laptop is to take a computer with us but not have to ship our desktop. Noise will continue to have a laptop provided by his work, but that doesn't help me when I'm at home and he's at work, so we'll buy a laptop to be our home computer. I had thought that we might buy it once we got there, but now I realize there is no need for that, so we will buy it here and transfer all our files off the desktop, and then take the laptop with us. And since I'm sure we won't have an internet connection right away when we get there, I'll be running down the street to the nearest coffee shop with WiFi to keep you all updated!
I think that's all the news for now. Until later!
This week we made the first of several Big Purchases planned over the next few months. We wanted to upgrade our camera before we left for London, figuring two things: 1) No doubt we
will be seeing lots of amazing sights over the next couple of years, and we wanted to have great photos of them, and 2) Having a proper camera might provide a hobby for us, something that we can do together, and a reason to scout out different locations around London in our free time. So we debated for a long time over whether we should buy a better point-and-shoot digital camera, or go that one step further and get into a digital SLR. I have always loved SLR cameras, my parents have one (you remember back when you put film in a camera...) and while I do not profess to know a lot about photography, it is something I have always wanted to learn. So we did a lot of debating, shopping, comparing, etc, and finally decided to go for the DSLR. We had some concerns about carrying around an SLR with us, but decided that was the way we wanted to go! We settled on an entry-level DSLR, the Nikon D40, with two lenses. We are thrilled! Above is a photo of Buggy, one of the first taken on the new camera (admittedly not a very interesting background). Now we need to learn how to use it out of auto mode! Devoted readers, prepare! This blog will eventually be jam-packed with photos from the Nikon, hopefully much more interesting than Buggy lying on the carpet.The next Big Purchase will be a laptop, and here is where we are running into problems. Noise says we are on an emotional roller coaster about it, which I think is maybe a bit extreme, but it is definitely a difficult decision. The trouble is this: what we really want is a Mac, but without going into all the ins and outs of the discussions, we're not sure we can justify the extra expense of a Mac when a PC would meet our needs. We'll see where we end up. The point of a laptop is to take a computer with us but not have to ship our desktop. Noise will continue to have a laptop provided by his work, but that doesn't help me when I'm at home and he's at work, so we'll buy a laptop to be our home computer. I had thought that we might buy it once we got there, but now I realize there is no need for that, so we will buy it here and transfer all our files off the desktop, and then take the laptop with us. And since I'm sure we won't have an internet connection right away when we get there, I'll be running down the street to the nearest coffee shop with WiFi to keep you all updated!
I think that's all the news for now. Until later!
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Back on track
Ok, ok... I know. I swore I wouldn't be one of those bloggers who goes weeks on end without a post and everyone keeps checking and there's nothing new. But over the past week I've been so busy with things that it hasn't left time to blog about them!
I guess the biggest news is that we have conditionally sold our house. So we're not popping the cork on the champagne just yet, but things look good. We were very pleased to have a young couple interested in the house, first-time buyers, as we didn't want to have to an offer conditional on the buyers selling their property. The offer is conditional on a home inspection, which we don't anticipate any trouble with but you never know, and for them to arrange financing. They have 10 days to finalize. If it all goes through as planned it will mean that we sold the house 10 days after it was listed. Not too shabby. And we got what we wanted for it, and they were agreeable to the closing date that we wanted, so it's all working out. Now we just wait to make sure it passes the inspection! Will keep you posted.
If the house sells and we keep the closing date as is, we're looking at closing on May 30, which is a Friday, and therefore doing the actual moving out sometime that week before. We can't move the weekend before because we're going to Toronto for a wedding! So we have picked the Wednesday to move and that does of course mean we'll most likely be doing it ourselves without helpers. ;) What can you do? We don't think we'll have much to move, after all, because we've been selling off our furniture left, right, and centre. We have a truck booked and are looking into booking storage for the things that we'll be leaving behind. The plan is to find storage in Kingston so that our parents will be able to access it if necessary. Must be climate controlled as we will be storing our good leather furniture and our digital piano, and would hate to come back and find it ruined (in which case we should have just sold it and saved the cost of storage!)
So if we move out of the house on Wednesday the 28th, we would then have a few days to hang out with our respective families before we fly off to the great unknown. (Ok, just unknown to us.) We don't know for sure what day we will fly, and all of this depends on when we get our visas, but maybe on the weekend of May 31/June 1, or perhaps early the next week. The hope is still for Buggy to come on the same flight as us, but if we can't find anywhere for him to stay when we first arrive we may opt to leave him here with his grandparents for a week or so, and then I will come back and get him and we'll fly over together. We don't mind the extra cost of the flight for me, as Noise's company will be paying for our flights over, so it's not like I will have to pay for 2.
Of course, these are all the big points - selling the house, moving out, arranging flights, arranging accomodation over there, etc. There are still so many little points to figure out. Bank accounts, what to ship and what to store, what to physically take with us, cancelling any number of things like house and car insurance (once we no longer have a house or cars...), hydro, phone, subscriptions, and so on. And the list just goes on and on. One thing we need to sort out is our drivers licenses. We can use them over there for 12 months, and then need to change to either a UK or an EU license. But the MTO insists on telling them that you've changed your address within 6 days of moving, and I'm pretty sure they won't send me a new license with a UK address on it. So I think I will change it back to my parents' address, just so the MTO doesn't send mail here to the new owners of our house, and then I will just keep that address on it until I get a UK license.
I have mailed off my application for membership with the RCVS, the licensing body for UK vets. Once they receive that and providing everything is in order, I will then have to make an appointment to go in person to the office in London to register.
I have also been contacted by a clinic that is hiring and should be receiving a phone call from them tomorrow to discuss a position that they have. It's all very promising, to have some prospects already, however I will not be taking any job until I have had a chance to see the clinic and see how they operate. I did that once and got burned and will not do it again. I'm not in such a rush to get a job that I will put myself in that position. Also this particular clinic is just outside London and looks like it would be about an hour commute, so I would also want to scope out the travel before I decided if I wanted a job there or not.
Noise has been receiving email after email with all the arrangements, he has filled out all the forms to apply for our UK bank account and credit card, the shipping people will be coming by soon to get an idea of how much we will be shipping, the person who will be helping us find permanent accomodation has been in touch, and so on. Things are really moving along. Every once in awhile I have a little crying jag, as this is all very hard for me to leave my family and go off to another country, but in between I remember how exciting it is and what an amazing experience it is going to be. And it's not forever. And Mom is already planning how many trips she can manage to come over and visit. :)
Next week is my birthday! So for one day I'm going to put it all on hold and just relax. I think. We'll see how that goes. Wish me luck!
I guess the biggest news is that we have conditionally sold our house. So we're not popping the cork on the champagne just yet, but things look good. We were very pleased to have a young couple interested in the house, first-time buyers, as we didn't want to have to an offer conditional on the buyers selling their property. The offer is conditional on a home inspection, which we don't anticipate any trouble with but you never know, and for them to arrange financing. They have 10 days to finalize. If it all goes through as planned it will mean that we sold the house 10 days after it was listed. Not too shabby. And we got what we wanted for it, and they were agreeable to the closing date that we wanted, so it's all working out. Now we just wait to make sure it passes the inspection! Will keep you posted.
If the house sells and we keep the closing date as is, we're looking at closing on May 30, which is a Friday, and therefore doing the actual moving out sometime that week before. We can't move the weekend before because we're going to Toronto for a wedding! So we have picked the Wednesday to move and that does of course mean we'll most likely be doing it ourselves without helpers. ;) What can you do? We don't think we'll have much to move, after all, because we've been selling off our furniture left, right, and centre. We have a truck booked and are looking into booking storage for the things that we'll be leaving behind. The plan is to find storage in Kingston so that our parents will be able to access it if necessary. Must be climate controlled as we will be storing our good leather furniture and our digital piano, and would hate to come back and find it ruined (in which case we should have just sold it and saved the cost of storage!)
So if we move out of the house on Wednesday the 28th, we would then have a few days to hang out with our respective families before we fly off to the great unknown. (Ok, just unknown to us.) We don't know for sure what day we will fly, and all of this depends on when we get our visas, but maybe on the weekend of May 31/June 1, or perhaps early the next week. The hope is still for Buggy to come on the same flight as us, but if we can't find anywhere for him to stay when we first arrive we may opt to leave him here with his grandparents for a week or so, and then I will come back and get him and we'll fly over together. We don't mind the extra cost of the flight for me, as Noise's company will be paying for our flights over, so it's not like I will have to pay for 2.
Of course, these are all the big points - selling the house, moving out, arranging flights, arranging accomodation over there, etc. There are still so many little points to figure out. Bank accounts, what to ship and what to store, what to physically take with us, cancelling any number of things like house and car insurance (once we no longer have a house or cars...), hydro, phone, subscriptions, and so on. And the list just goes on and on. One thing we need to sort out is our drivers licenses. We can use them over there for 12 months, and then need to change to either a UK or an EU license. But the MTO insists on telling them that you've changed your address within 6 days of moving, and I'm pretty sure they won't send me a new license with a UK address on it. So I think I will change it back to my parents' address, just so the MTO doesn't send mail here to the new owners of our house, and then I will just keep that address on it until I get a UK license.
I have mailed off my application for membership with the RCVS, the licensing body for UK vets. Once they receive that and providing everything is in order, I will then have to make an appointment to go in person to the office in London to register.
I have also been contacted by a clinic that is hiring and should be receiving a phone call from them tomorrow to discuss a position that they have. It's all very promising, to have some prospects already, however I will not be taking any job until I have had a chance to see the clinic and see how they operate. I did that once and got burned and will not do it again. I'm not in such a rush to get a job that I will put myself in that position. Also this particular clinic is just outside London and looks like it would be about an hour commute, so I would also want to scope out the travel before I decided if I wanted a job there or not.
Noise has been receiving email after email with all the arrangements, he has filled out all the forms to apply for our UK bank account and credit card, the shipping people will be coming by soon to get an idea of how much we will be shipping, the person who will be helping us find permanent accomodation has been in touch, and so on. Things are really moving along. Every once in awhile I have a little crying jag, as this is all very hard for me to leave my family and go off to another country, but in between I remember how exciting it is and what an amazing experience it is going to be. And it's not forever. And Mom is already planning how many trips she can manage to come over and visit. :)
Next week is my birthday! So for one day I'm going to put it all on hold and just relax. I think. We'll see how that goes. Wish me luck!
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