I wish that multi-tasking and completing to-do lists was an Olympic Sport. I would be proud to represent Canada at the Olympic games where I demolish tasks and power through checklists. I would undoubtedly win gold and there would be a parade celebrating my achievements and probably an arena named after me.
But alas, there is no such recognition or organized event. Just the intrinsic reward of completing necessary tasks in a time crunch, with minimal sleep and a headache. We have been absolute machines getting shit done out here. It’s astonishing what we can get done when you have no other option. Our storage unit is full of all the necessary household items with more on the way. We picked up a fridge, washer/dryer unit (which was a monster to move), tv unit, dresser, pantry cabinet, side tables, nightstands, lamps, lightbulbs and so on. We have been everywhere in this city buying things from stores, Marketplace and ordering from Amazon.
We have officially got all 3 pallets from Canada delivered to Mike and Elodie’s. We get the keys for our apartment on Wednesday and booked the moving truck on Wednesday as well. We’ll pick up the moving van, go to storage and load all that up, then head to the apartment to get the keys and do the walkthrough, offload all the storage stuff, go to Mike and Elodie’s and disassemble the totes from the pallets into the truck, them drive them to the apartment and into the unit. I’m not looking forward to hauling a fridge and washing machine up the stairs (well honestly I’m not looking forward to carrying anything up the stairs a billion times but here we go). It’s also forecasted to rain all week, so we’re praying for a break in the clouds on Wednesday.
This final stint of displacement has been ridiculous. The air bnb we had originally booked was quite dirty and gross. We immediately cancelled the booking and were left with very limited options on such short notice. We ended up finding a hotel we could stay at for 12 days and they so graciously gave us the ‘long-stay survival pack’ complete with a microwave and kettle. Needless to say, it’s been a long 12 days.
Between living in a hotel, working full-time and procuring household items, we’ve been able to squeeze in some down time and have a bit of fun. We went to the downtown dumpling market, checked out some rooftop bars and had a great brunch. The work-life balance is all kinds of messed up right now and we hope that once we move into our apartment things will calm down a tad. We can get back into a normal eating schedule, workout routine and finally unpack our suitcases. Yay for closets!
To say we’re tired is an understatement. It’s a combination of emotional exhaustion brought on by being physically drained and mentally overstimulated. There are just so many things that require our immediate attention that you feel paralyzed with all the decision making. Add in the fact that work sucks the lifeblood from you and you’ve got yourself quite the trifecta. We made a massive decision moving here and we can’t judge the success of that decision yet. It’s too premature to know if it’ll all be worth it or not. Stay tuned, as I’m sure the stories will only get better from here.
With love,
Alex & Michael
