Last week my partner was offered a job in the north Highlands, and we’ve decided to go. At the end of April, we’ll be moving to a town called Wick (well, technically a royal borough).
It was a difficult choice to make, but it’s a great opportunity for him, and, aside from wanting to be wherever he is, we’ve had a look around Wick and the surrounding area, and I want to go on this adventure myself and with him. It’s one of those chances that’s more interesting than the alternative of just sticking with what’s known.
(Talking to my mum this weekend, she asked, “With your brother in Dawson City and you in Wick, I’m starting to get the feeling my boys are trying to get as far away from us as possible!” It’s not true, though!)
I’ve been a city person my whole adult life, but at this point I like the idea of a smaller place and a simpler life. (Oh, and it’ll be a lot cheaper to live there, which will be a relief.)
Everyone we spoke to up there was friendly and open; even simple transactions were conversations. While I have lots of friends in Edinburgh (and moving from Canada taught me that you can move but keep your friends), I don’t actually have any ties to the city itself, which, after nine years, is a bit sad.
It’s scary to contemplate living once more in a place where everyone knows your business — even moreso than growing up in Charlottetown, which is about seven times bigger than Wick — but maybe I’m ready to open my heart, to know and be known by the people around me, rather than slipping efficiently through a city. (Yet with fewer attractions and events taking place there, I also hope to have more time to pursue my creative activities.)
Edinburgh’s wonderful, beautiful; I’m not knocking it. I just like change, and gaining a new source of input is an exciting idea (I did, after all, get a book out of moving to Embra).
So, away we go… in a few months. In the meantime, I’m going to make the best of living in this great old city and being close to the friends I’ve made here. And we’ll be sure to have a guest room up there…
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