Moving to Vancouver

Our entryway chalkboard – Hello Vancouver. Goodbye Irvine.

My husband has accepted a position as Canada Research Chair in Design and Media Arts at Emily Carr University and we are moving to Vancouver this summer!  It’s super exciting and I’ve been super busy preparing – mentally & physically – for the big move.  We’ve been spending our free time browsing craigslist for rentals and systematically going through our home and getting rid of stuff – it’s been very cathartic. I’ve found myself on several occasions with a drink in one hand and garbage bag in the other, trashing or donating things we don’t need.

The only books left on this shelf? ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ Very fitting.

Over the past several weeks, I’ve developed a strategy for tackling this move.  In terms of the real, material stuff around our home, it’s a lot to process.  It is also all entwined in the emotional process of moving – especially because it is such a big move.  Since we decided to move, I’ve been taking mental notes of things I want to keep and things I want to get rid of.  In this informal process, I’ve encountered a lot of unfinished projects and possible future projects.  Much of these things have been around for awhile and I’m finally realizing that they will probably never materialize.  So, I’ve also been going around thinking about what should be completed before we move, what can be taken with us incomplete and what will never be.

I started this sculpture as an undergraduate art student at UCI. I will finish it at as WAG at Emily Carr.

This separation of my stuff into three categories has really helped me define my original goals of these stalled works in progress and is actually relieving anxiety.  Take, for example, the pile of clothes I’ve been meaning to mend.  Some of the things are actually worth mending, others are simple too old and worn out and/or too difficult and expensive to mend – they simply aren’t worth it.  Finally, with the real, hard deadline of a move, I’ve been able to find the motivation to do what I can and let the rest go.

Old skirt made pretty with beaded fabric – DONE!

Headless skunk needs glue – TO DO!

Old Furby? UP FOR SALE ON EBAY!

This deadline has also given me clarity as to how I envision myself – without a job lined up – spending my time when we arrive in Vancouver.  At least for a little while, my husband will be working full time – which is a maintenance of the status quo – and I will not be working – which is a break from our normal routine.  I have no friends in Vancouver (but I do have a few family members) and my son won’t be in childcare.  My plan right now is to first get settled into our place and then get settled into Vancouver itself as a place.

I’ve been looking at Vancouver blogs, like Miss 604, and I’ve followed a few Twitter accounts, like HuffPostBC.  I’ve even started a few boards on my personal Pinterest account – Vancouver in Summer and Preparing for the Cold.  But, what’s got me most excited is the great things happening with women in arts, entertainment and activism in Vancouver.  A few of the awesome things I’ve found include Women In Film and Television Vancouver (along with their research unit, Please Adjust Your Set, and festival), Papergirl Vancouver, Enterprising Women Making Art, and Women Transforming Cities.

I’ve very optimistic and it seems like there are a lot of inspiring things I can do on my own and with my baby to jump into the city and hack it in Vancouver!