Past, Present, Future

I'm still not quite accustomed to the fact I live in Banff. The other day I said the words, "Here in British Columbia." Nope, this ain't BC. I'm an Alberta boy now.

If you told me a year ago I would be living in Banff, doing what I'm doing, I wouldn't have believed you. I probably would have laughed. A year before that, the idea of living in Singapore would have brought forth the same reaction.

But here I am, living in the Rocky Mountains, working as a manager at the Gap, volunteering as an intern with planning and development in Banff.

Oh, right, I don't think I've mentioned that. I volunteer for the town of Banff! Basically I'm an assistant in the planning department. A few days ago I finished up some policy research, now I'll be compiling said research into various "best practices" case studies, and then the next step is to present this to the stakeholders and engage in constructive discussion. Our timeline ends in November, when the policy is presented to council for approval. Hey, look, I'm involved in the planning world!

All these recent developments make me chuckle when remembering posts like "Done Done Done," in which I mused the abysmal future Canada's number-crunched had forecast, and "Angsty Unemployment Cycle," where I ranted about my lack of gainful employment and workplace challenges. Well, I've got both in plenty, now!

I couldn't be happier with the way things have turned out. Moving was a gamble, and an impulsive decision at that, but I've been dealt a good hand. The social life could be improved, but now that I'm in the groove of my two jobs I'll have some time to dedicate to social pursuits. And it's only been the first month of twelve! Count me excited for the future.

photo (cc) me

I be Moving, Again!

Big news! Sometime next month I'll be moving to Banff, Alberta for an unknown period of time. I announced it on my Facebook and on Twitter earlier, but here's a bit more info.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Banff, it's a resort town located within Banff National Park in Canada's Rocky Mountains. The service population is largely transient, like other resort towns in Canada, with a large number of Aussies and Kiwis on work visas.

I'll be there a little more long term, at least a full year. I've decided to take a gap year and work at the Gap (HAH), which has hired me on as the new logistics manager. Basically that means I'll be in charge of receiving shipments, keeping a clean and organized stockroom, and getting new merchandise onto the sales floor. Behind the scenes stuff.

Suffice to say, I'm stoked!

Banff will be an interesting change of pace for me, as it's a much smaller town than Victoria or Kelowna. I'm talking less than 8000 people. That, and it's located inside the national park. I have to get special permission from the federal government to live there. It's serious business.

Anyway, just wanted to keep people updated!

photos by MarilynJane, afagen, and letsgoeverywhere

Chillin' with the Ogopogo

It's summer! And, oddly enough, summer always tends to be a busy time of year for me. True, I do have plenty of time to fall asleep on the beach and become sunburnt, but I never fail to fill my schedule with other things. This time around? Work, beach volleyball league, blogging for the Grid, scoping out jobs for the fall and winter, and then whatever it is I do over on Protagonize. That will include the Summer Poetry Tournament, and then if I can get the Prose Competition off the ground that will be yet another hat to wear.

Definitely not complaining, though. I enjoy being busy, and being busy with work means the bills will get paid. Whoo! This whole "being an adult" thing isn't too different than what I was doing before, really. The only major difference I can identify so far is that I can't claim student benefits on anything. No student bus pass, no student price rate, no student bank account, no student internships. I'm just a regular person now. Whoo?

One thing will never change, though: I'll still ride any noble steeds I come across in my travels. Such as my buddy the Ogopogo up there. We talk on Twitter sometimes, we're cool like that.

Professional Blogger

Those of you who are friends with me on Facebook may have noticed that I've been posting links to a website called Global Site Plans, a branding consultancy for environmental design, civil engineering, and urban planning firms. For those who read my last post on graduating, you might remember me saying I had more good news to share, but that it deserved a post of its own.

Well, this is that post.

On the day of my grad, I was offered an (unpaid) internship position as a writer for Global Site Plans' blog, the Grid. I've been doing the paperwork and preliminary write-ups (one paragraph autobios are tough!) over the weekend, and soon I'll receive a crash course in WordPress and professional blogging. My internship is set at six months, but I can extend that if I choose. Over those months I'll be contributing 12 posts/articles to the Grid, which may not seem like a lot, but keep in mind that these will need to be researched and revised, not just spur of the moment postings.

So, uhm, that's about it! I'll still be posting on here, and you'll probably see links to my posts for the Grid when they're available. Cheers!

photos by photosteve101 and Global Site Plans

Music Monday: Work Work Work

So this post is gonna be really short, as a lot of the Music Monday posts are. I've been picking up lots of hours at work, so I've been busy busy busy almost everyday. I spend lots of time at the Gap now.

The benefit? Besides a fat paycheck every two weeks, I get to listen to the Gap soundtrack. I'll admit that I cannot stand some of the songs (WHY must we play the Biebs!?), but there are a few gems. One of 'em is "Rock Lobster" by the B-52s. I love those guys. I also love seeing people's reactions when Kate starts screaming after Fred hollers something about a bikini whale (which Wikipedia tells me is not an actual whale, but an overweight woman in a bikini). Video is below!