A moment to breathe (at last)

Well im back at home for a few days and hopefully i will get a bit of down time so i can recharge the batteries a little and take some (i think) well deserved rest. Also i can catch up on the emails and updating on here.

Life seems to have gone into overdrive these last few months but thats really the way i planned it. We have had quite a busy summer with buting the house, Claire & Andy coming over, the trip back to UK and also dont forget the immigration.

Ive also taken quite a bit of time off, thats one of the nice things about this job, you take whatever time off you want within reason, ive never been questioned about it anyway, you just have to remember that any holiday pay is paid in your wages so if you aint driving you aint earning.

So when we returned to Canada after the UK trip i decided i was going to burn a little extra rubber to make sure all the expenses were covered and we still had a comfortable christmas, plus we want to have some building work done in the spring and it all costs money.

Well the miles came in thick and fast and i think ive made up for the time off in the summer, trouble is now christmas is coming up a little too fast for comfort and im not having much time to get things done, which is why ive taken these few days off to try and catch up.

I think im going to have to make some changes to the blog too, as you know i have broken camera number 3 and also the computer at home has commited suicide, this means Jan cant update the google map. Also i am trying to avoid spending evenings on the internet when i am on the road because i have discovered that if i leave the computer alone i can be a lot more productive and get home a little sooner.

I think my driving style has changed a little since the summer, i dont hop from Flying J to Flying J so much now and i will tend to press on a little further each day, pushing the envelope if you like, i dont know if my dispatcher has noticed this but now my deadlines seem a little tighter so i get round my routes a little quicker. Even though the distances are the same so in theory the pay is the same, because i get round quicker, i get home quicker, so i have my days off earlier and i get back out on the next run quicker, so overall the pay goes up. And thats basically whats been happening. I always keep a running account of my monthly pay and i have been running this spreadsheet in one form or another since i left the Army.

I like plotting my pay because it is easy to look at the graphs i have plotted and you can see how your income fluctuates seasonally or from job to job, thats how i noticed i was slacking off a little over the summer, it was nice to see those bars shooting straight back up though.

Now this next bit is really for people cotemplating coming over to Canada or have just come over, the advice or hints (call it what you will) is really aimed at families coming over and is really based on our findings and experiencies over the last 12 months (note thats not since we have been here).

Most families are in the same situation as us, one of the adults get the idea to emigrate, speaks to their partner, if they both agree they put the idea to the kid(s) then if everyone agrees then the research beguins.

You get the job offer, get the visas sorted and maybe do a visit, then the house goes on the market and i think most people start selling all their posessions.

Then the big day comes, you pack the suitcases, say your tearfull goodbyes, all your relatives promise to come and visit you, you jump in the hire car, drive to the airport, look over your shoulder and give your last farewell wave to Blighty.

12 hours later you are standing in Canada with your suitcases, passport and Temp Work Permit clutched tightly in your mit and a bank account full of the proceeds of a sold house and posessions.

So far so good.....................................................

Now comes the hard bit, that well stuffed bank account wont stay full very long if you dont plan what you are going to do with it, and that plan should be for the next 3 years at least, its not as easy as you think.

Some (a lot) of people do the obvious thing, they use the money to instantly set themselves up and to be quite honest thats very easy to do in Canada, you get a mortgage and whack down a hefty deposit (to keep the monthly payments down right?) get a brand new car and pay cash, (that is such a fantastic feeling) then go out and order all the furniture you are going to need and again cash is king.

Well you are all set up, new house on a nice estate, shiney new car on the drive, lovely leather suite and the all important 42 " flat screen...........................................

But guess what ???????

Your bank account is now almost empty, and basically you are in the same situation you were in when you were back in UK, all thats changed is the side of the road you drive on, oh yes and back in UK your wife (husband) was allowed to work so you could have 2 wages coming in.

Okay so you have done all that, started work, and everything is going to plan, and then you reach the 6 or 9 or 12 month point and you start applying for that expensive immigration, your car insurance is due, your house insurance is due, your kids need dental work (braces work out at about $4000 per mouth, if you got 3 kids then you do the math)

Now can you see why i said plan for the first 3 years, its the stuff that you dont think about when you first came over.........................................

When we came over we didnt buy a house, we rented, okay we had a new car (6 months old) but it was a small car, a 2 liter automatic but it was an estate wagon so we can still haul stuff around. We did it all in slow time, keeping money back, buying the house when the time was right. Im sharing this information with you to help you make the right decisions (for you) and hopefully help you make it work.

When you have made the decision to make a new life in Canada, most of you will have cash for house sales and when you convert it to Canadian $$$ then it doubles.

This is probably the only time in your life that you will have the opportunity (and financies) to make a complete fresh start, its an exciting time but its also a very dangerous one.

Living the dream can lead to a living nightmare, be sensible and play safe..........................