It’s been awhile since I posted here, but I have been busy with the big life changes and whatnot. Here is “Some Chords” by Deadmau5, since he just played here on Saturday and he’s Canadian, so that’s awesome:

The most exciting thing that happened in October, something that I had been looking forward to since returning from Vienna: I went on a 10-day trip to Winnipeg for Di and Jeff’s awesome wedding and to reconnect with old friends. I cried buckets, of course, but that’s pretty standard for me, and there were other surprise weepers revealed that day, including the bride herself. Di chose five of what are potentially the least girly girls possible to be in her bridal party, but we all cleaned up pretty nicely. There was an adorable four-year-old ring-bearer who insisted on racing up the aisle at top speed when we were walking in for the ceremony. There was a flash mob dance performed by the wedding party and friends in various stages of drunkenness, which went off without a hitch. I gave a toast to Dionne in front of 200 people and didn’t pass out – great success. There was an open bar, which meant great success for everyone as we danced the night away. When we picked up the leftover booze from the venue the next day, we figured out that about 200 people drank the equivalent of what 500 people would reasonably drink. In other words – we all had a really good time.

As much as I try to keep an open mind when I visit that city, I can’t help but have The Weakerthans’ “One Great City” playing in my head on repeat, especially that one line – “IIIII hate Winnipeg!” It always rings true. But I love the people there, there’s not a doubt about that. I’m already planning my next trip there — but for sometime in the spring. The winters there are unreal.

A truth revealed: I am not a big planner (if this blog tells you anything about me, that would be it). And this wedding – the third of this year that I attended – was literally the last thing I had on my calendar as any form of “long-term” plan. So, when I returned to New Brunswick a couple of weeks ago, I was bereft and confused beyond very vague ideas of what I wanted the next chapter of my life to look like.

Work-wise, my contract was up at the end of the month as well. I finished writing a draft for a book on my hometown, which is celebrating its 250th anniversary in the summer of 2012. (It’s going to be a party!) I am working on editing it for the next few months, and hopefully there will be a super-fancy book launch in the spring. It’s all about getting the right funding, at this point.

Thus, aside from a couple of other small editing projects, which can be done from anywhere, I was free to leave Sackville and pursue other things… in other places. I love Sackville and the people who live there so much, but it’s the kind of love that is most easily felt when I am far away from it. (Not for the people, of course. That love is unconditional no matter where in the world I live.) Unsurprisingly, sometimes a town with two traffic lights and a downtown “core” that is all of five minutes’ walk long can be claustrophobic. In other words, Sackville and I have a really great long-distance relationship.

And so I left. Last week, I booked a cheap flight on Porter, packed my two suitcases in a couple of days, said a tearful goodbye to my lovelorn dog, who doesn’t understand why anyone would want to leave her, ever. The flight on Saturday afternoon was short and sweet. I got both of my bags without a problem, and then took a cab to the Minkus’s house. Here I am once again, reveling in my first days in a city I know very little about. I am jobless, apartment-less, and plan-less, at least for the time being.

Oh, hello, Toronto. It’s nice to finally get the chance to meet you.