As of Saturday morning, I will no longer be a resident of Toronto. It’s bittersweet, for sure. We’ve had a great life here, filled with the most fabulous friends two people could ask for. But, instead of just feeling sad about leaving them, I’m also managing to feel excited about the life we’re heading to. That’s because I’ve already started to establish that new life, in New Brunswick, from here in Toronto.
Sure, there’re the family ties, the work contract, the house. But it’s more than that. Through Twitter, I’ve managed to find people I enjoy chatting with, people I expect to see on the streets around town and say hello to. I’ve had leads on jobs, made contacts to volunteer with Junior Achievement and might even have helped kick started a Gaelic workshop at this year’s Moncton Highland Games. I’ve asked for and received advice on great places to get Indianfood in Moncton, suggested a Rock Band Jam Night at a pub (a la this) and had info on lights emailed to me. Heck, I’ve even bought a snow blower and set up my new cell phone through Twitter!
It's more than just the practicality of getting things ready in advance of the move. Chatting with folks through Twitter has helped make me feel welcomed to New Brunswick -- long before my actual arrival in the province. I already have a life, a community, a sense of belonging about the Moncton area that I wouldn't have been able to find without using today's technology. It's making it just a little less painful to leave my wonderful friends behind, and that's worth more than any words I can type can explain.
The countdown is on. Three weeks from today we will officially be homeowners. Keys in our hands, boxes in the hallway, car in the driveway homeowners. It’s been a crazy fast trip, and not just in terms of the move (though it’s only been three weeks since we flew to Moncton to check out the real estate first hand).
I realized this morning it’s been exactly two years since my first whirlwind visit to Toronto to visit my ‘old friend’ that I’d been getting reacquainted with. I’d like to be cliché and say, ‘who would’ve thought that two years later we’d be setting into our own home and talking about the future?’ But, honestly, I think more than a few people saw the potential from day one (whether you consider that day two years or 14 years ago, when we first met). All that really matters is that I think I’m the luckiest gal in the world and have never been happier.
I’m even getting more and more excited about the idea of calling Boundary Creek home. Don’t get me wrong; I was never opposed to BC (as our neighbour calls it) or anywhere in NB. I thought long and hard about my choices and was sure in my conviction that the best life for us would be in NB. But each day I find myself slowly discovering elements of the province – its culture, its people, its spirit – that appeals more and more to my nature. It’s important to me that, when the time comes, my kids grow up with the same pride of place that I did. And trust me, that’s a challenge. I grew up living in Cape Breton, standing on the same land my great(Michael Dan)-great(Donald Mor)-great(Rory Mor)-great(Donald)-grandfather fist settled 200 years ago. One of the things that made today a better day to be heading to Moncton: this (which links to this). Oh, and also finding out that the minister of one of the churches is from home and books Cape Breton musicians all the time.
And the best reason of all to be happy today about moving 'home' -- I've got a minimum two-month contract starting April 20th! The job hunt continues for my boyfriend, but this will get us on the ground and back into the community, which hopefully will be the last turning point in this journey for a while.
It was a captive audience. Thousands upon thousands of people looking for work, all gathered in a convention centre in downtown Toronto. And with the downturn in the economy, every media outlet in the country seemed to be looking for a story. What did they find? Almost across the board, the stories focused on the pitch by the province of Saskatchewan. Move to the West, we’ll give you $20,000 – you just need to stay for seven years. And almost across the board, the coverage was positive.
Now, I don’t think the media missed the story. It’s a new plan for Saskatchewan, and it’s an aggressive one that a lot of job seekers were interested in hearing more about – mostly because they’d heard about it first in the media. No, the missed opportunity was for New Brunswick.
New Brunswick was one of four major sponsors of this job fair – Saskatchewan was not. Most of the stories I read, heard or saw only mentioned the province in passing. Even standing there, amid the folks sipping King Cole Tea and Red Whale coffee, no one mentioned any incentive program to move to the province.
I lived in Moncton for several months a few years back. I remembered TV ads about a tuition rebate program, so I went looking online. Imagine my surprise when I found this. Not only is there a program, it was just beefed up during the recent budget. Anyone who graduated from a recognized degree/diploma program since June 2005 is eligible. The government of New Brunswick will reimburse you up to half of the total cost of your tuition, to a maximum of $20,000. Wait, that’s the same amount of money Saskatchewan is offering! How long would you have to live on the Prairies to get that money? Seven years. How long would it take to get the same amount in New Brunswick? Five years.
So … Saskatchewan’s Minister of Labour appeared on national TV news, radio and newspapers extolling the virtues of his province’s monetary incentives. New Brunswick barely got mentioned – and yet the province has the better plan. (Unless your program was less than $20,000. Saskatchewan doesn’t cap their reimbursement at half of what you paid; but looking at their website, it also appears that to get the $20,000 you have to do a four-year program, and I don’t think there are many of those that come in under $20,000.)
I can understand that New Brunswick doesn’t want to appear too aggressive, doesn’t want to be accused of poaching people from Ontario and elsewhere. But even when my boyfriend and I walked up to all the New Brunswick representatives at the job fair, explained he was graduating in two months and we were moving back to our new home outside Moncton, not one person asked if we’d heard of the program. Nowhere was there a pamphlet for us to pick up and learn about it. It was like it didn't even exist.
When you’ve got the better deal but someone else is getting all the attention, you need to rethink the strategy. New Brunswick missed reaching out to a lot of recent grads who might have opted for ocean breezes over wheat fields.
ADDENDUM: The job fair introduced both my boyfriend and me to many wonderful people who were all extremely encouraging about our move home. While no one had a specific job to direct us towards, many offered their help in passing our information along to potential employers. It was a positive experience that increased our belief we've made the right decision in moving to New Brunswick.
“We got the mortgage. Someone else got the house. I got the job interview. Now I'm scared someone else will get the job.”
I was right, someone else got the job. But given the events in the journalism world over the past week, even if I'd gotten the job, I would've lost it already. Nothing gained, nothing lost I guess.
On a brighter note, we did find another dream house — and this time we got it! That's why – for the few of you regularly following this blog – I've been lax lately. It was a whirlwind adventure. Wednesday we booked a flight that left on Saturday. We flew into Moncton, had lunch, met the real estate agent – the same one who sold my boyfriend’s parents their first home! – saw a few houses, made an offer, and before we knew it, we were booking home inspectors and water tests! By the time we flew back to Toronto on Monday night, we’d met most of the conditions placed on our offer. Within one week, we finished all the paperwork and on Friday the sold sign went up on the house. Just one month from today we’ll have the keys in hand. Now it’s a blur of getting moving quotes, packing boxes, and that all-important job search. It looks like we’re going to ‘be in this place’ sooner than expected!
On the job search front, we’re heading out tomorrow to a National Job Fair that’s partly sponsored by the Government of New Brunswick. Now that we have an address in New Brunswick, we’ve been told it should be a bit easier to grab people’s attention. We’ve also stepped up our efforts to reach out to any and every contact we have that might even know someone in the Moncton area looking for a journalist, a communications specialist, a manager, a business analyst or anything we’re remotely qualified to do! The response is always positive – it’s great to have young talent moving back and of course there’s got to be jobs you’d be perfect for … just no one has actually had one of those jobs available yet.
That’s okay, we didn’t think it would be an easy road. I heard from an old high school friend today. She and her family made a similar decision to move home a little over a year ago. Her husband is still trying to find his ‘career position,’ but does have a job – I foresee us being able to say a similar thing in the future. But she assures me that, even though it hasn’t been easy, they still believe it’s the best decision they’ve made. It is nice to share the doubts and fears – and sense of anxious excitement – with others! We’re confident that, despite the uncertainties and the looming mortgage payments, we’ve made the best decision, too. New Brunswick, here we come!
We’ve been watching the housing market around Moncton for about three months. First it was just browsing. Then we bought some books about home buying. Then we came up with our list of wants/needs/hates. Then we started actually tracking a few homes. There was one beauty that really caught our eye. Seemed to fit all our wants and needs, fell into the price range we thought we could afford. Time to ramp it up.
Last week we met with a mortgage counselor. The initial chat went well, she didn’t seem to see anything scary in our answers. Nice, since the $70,000 debt and lack of employment freak us out a bit. But I think we all agreed that – if we can afford almost $2,000 a month in rent in Toronto – we should be able to afford both mortgage and student loan payments in Moncton. But thinking it and knowing it are two different things.
Two days later, we were starting to get a little worried. No word yet from bank. Maybe the computer couldn’t be convinced we were good people who’d work hard to pay back the money. Then, just as we were about to go out for the evening, we got the news. Good news. We’re approved for the amount we thought we could handle.
We turned our dinner out into a celebratory one. Called the folks at home to share the good news. Started making plans to have someone in Moncton go check out the house we’ve been eyeing. Everything was happy. I was pretty much literally skipping down the street.
Fast-forward a few hours. We come out of the movie theatre, and the partner checks his voice mail. A message from home. Watching his face, I know something is wrong. I’m worried about family, thinking there’s an illness or an accident. Nope. Through casual conversation that night, one of his parents met the person who just bought the house we wanted.
The walk home did not include skipping.
The night ended on another high, though. At the end of the evening I checked my email – to find that I’ve got a job interview for my ideal position in Moncton in a little under two weeks.
We got the mortgage. Someone else got the house. I got the job interview. Now I'm scared someone else will get the job.
I watched the East Coast Music Awards Gala last night. It made me more than a little homesick, but it also offered me a hopeful glimpse of my musical future in New Brunswick.
For years I’ve been involved in the music scene, though I can guarantee you I possess no talents you’ll see on stage aside from being a reasonable MC. Usually I’m behind the scenes, stage managing productions at Celtic Colours, organizing shows for Feis an Eilein or even taking part in the ECMA nomination process.
I have to admit, I wasn’t overwhelmed by the music scene in Moncton when I lived there before. It was one of the biggest hurdles for me to try to tackle, and while I wasn’t as proactive as I plan to be this time around, I have to admit to being a little worried that I’ll be using any vacation time I have to head home to Cape Breton concerts and dances.
But New Brunswick made an impressive showing at last night’s ECMA gala. And it’s not just the amount of hardware – though I do have my suspicions this was one of the best, if not THE best year for NB artists bringing home awards. It was the diversity.
Matt Anderson is a fantastic blues player. He took honours for Male Solo Recording of the Year, and Blues Recording of the Year.
Jasper Wood once again snagged the Classical Recording of the Year trophy.
David Myles received the award for Folk Recording of the Year.
Ryan LeBlanc picked up the ECMA for World Recording of the Year.
Moncton-based Hotbox picked up the Rap/Hip-Hop Single Track Recording of the Year.
And – making ECMA history as the first band ever to win this category – Iron Giant took home the award for Loud Recording of the Year.
Oh, and New Brunswick native – although in terms of the ECMA she’s considered a NS artist – Christina Martin took home Pop Recording of the Year.
Now, there are still some downsides. Myles, Martin and Anderson are all Halifax-based these days. And I’m not personally a fan of Loud, Rap or Hip-Hop styles, or really Classical for that matter. So my music opportunities might still be fairly limited in the Moncton area. But knowing there is such a diverse base to the New Brunswick scene does make me feel proud to be adopting this culture – and ready to support it any way I can.
Speaking of which, New Brunswickers also grabbed two of the industry awards handed out earlier in the weekend. The Fredericton Playhouse picked up the ECMA for Venue of the Year and the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival won Event of the Year. Again, not in my soon-to-be-backyard of Moncton. But the communications manager for the Festival told CBC Radio he thinks having Fredericton host the Awards last year helped them garner industry attention, and thus the votes for the award.
Moncton only welcomed the ECMA once, back in 1997.
The event brought 1,500 delegates to the area and injected $3 million into the economy; 7,000 people came to the Gala. Maybe it’s time for Moncton to invite the crowds again. I know Summerside, PEI is looking into a bid for 2011 (Cape Breton has the event for 2010).
Whaddya say, Moncton – February 2012 sounds like a great time for a party to me!
Remember the old rhyme? Winkin’, Blinkin’ and Nod sail off in a wooden shoe, fishing with nets of silver and gold.
Turns out Winkin’ and Blinkin’ are a pair of eyes on Nod’s little head. Now, I’m not going to guess which two are the visionaries and who is the brains (because I don’t really know, and I think anyone would be happy with either role), but I like to imagine the three Maritime premiers as this trio of fishermen, searching for us lost ex-pats who want to be scooped up in those nets of silver and gold and brought home to rest.
I’ve been struck for a while about the similarities between the Maritime premiers. That’s what first made me start thinking of them as some fictional trio.
Shawn Graham was born in 1968. He studied to be a school teacher at UNB. His dad was New Brunswick’s longest serving MLA. He was born the year after his father was first elected. He’s married. He became leader of the NB Liberal Party in 2002. He became premier in 2006.
Rodney MacDonald was born in 1972. He studied to be a school teacher at ST.FX. His dad was a municipal councilor. He’s married with a son. He was first elected in 1999. He became leader of the NS Progressive Conservative Party – and premier – in 2006.
Robert Ghiz was born in 1974. He studied political science at Bishop’s University. His dad was the Premier of PEI. He’d barely started elementary school when his dad was first elected. He’s married and expecting his first child in July. He became leader of the PEI Liberal Party in 2003. He became premier in 2007.
Okay, so they’re not identical. But Shawn Graham, Rodney MacDonald and Robert Ghiz are the three youngest premiers in Canada right now. (Until Graham turned 41 last Sunday, they were all eligible for the Top 40 under 40.) They also share a strong political pedigree, and came to their role as Premier around the same time. I’d like to think that this combination of youth, political experience and family history is the perfect one to face something else they share – the Maritime’s greatest challenge of attracting more people, more entrepreneurs, and more export opportunities.
Those are obviously not the only challenges we share, but I do think focusing on this can have positive ripple effects on other areas. I was happy this week to see that NS and NB are cutting some red tape between the provinces. I also think Nova Scotia's viral marketing campaign and New Brunswick's self-sufficiency plans are a step in that direction. I hope they keep it up. I'd hate to see Wikin', Blinkin' and Nod stop dreaming just when we need a little imagination.
What really keeps you in a certain place? Cost of living, job opportunities, and services are all important. But to really draw someone to a community and keep them there, you need to help them make connections.
I know from experience; in 2003, I moved back to Cape Breton after being away for about six years. Any friends I had in high school were long since scattered or were living lives so dissimilar to mine that I couldn’t find a way to relate again. It was lonely. It was easy to think about leaving again.
But, turns out, I wasn’t alone. There were a lot of people like me, folks who’d grown up in the area, and either went away for a while or just grew apart from their old social circle. People who wanted to make new friends and were willing to welcome anyone into the community and were ready to create events designed to bring people together.
There was a formal group that, among other interests, focused on ways to connect people. I haven’t seen a similar group operating for Moncton, nor for the province. But I did find out that there are five people who work for the provincial government specifically focused on repatriation. Here’s my pitch to them.
Create a social media profile for NB Repatriation. Have a Facebook group where I can discuss what I’ve learned about the real estate market with other house seekers. Have a MySpace page where I can listen to NB artists and find out about the live music scene. Have a LinkedIn profile so I can connect with hundreds of business professionals in the province. Have a Twitter account so I know when there’s a news story about a company hiring, when there’s a new posting on NBJobs.ca.
In addition to all the information this would help me access, it would connect me with other people going through the same experience. We’d follow each other on Twitter, maybe become friends on Facebook, and even help each other out with leads about jobs, neighbourhoods and events. We might even start creating events of our own; just to get to know each other better. And those connections would help us think we’ve made the right choice to move home. Think if it sort of as a Welcome Wagon for the 21st century, but one that you can benefit from before you actually move in.
We’re lucky. We have friends waiting for us to move home. Friends who’ll invite us over for drinks, friends who’ll go out for dinner with us, friends who’ll make sure we feel welcome. But we’d still be happy to make new friends, people who share in our experience of moving back to Moncton, people who would give us even more reason to be happy about being in this place.
So I’ve finally kicked myself out of my rut and updated my resume. Cover letter, too, though I don’t think it’s the type I’ll be able to use for another job. Not only did I tailor it to this position, but also I took some creative liberties with the format. So far it’s trending well with readers; let’s hope that continues when I send it along to the folks who are actually going to make the hiring decision!
This is a big one, folks. I can’t imagine another job this suited for me that’s going to come up for grabs anytime soon – and by anytime, I’m talking within the next five to 10 years.
When we first started seriously looking into moving to the Moncton area, I went and found the provincial Labour Survey. It’s the listing of all the positions in the province, how many vacancies are expected in the next two, five and eight years – and how many people are already trained, ready and waiting to snatch up those jobs. There’s also information about average salaries and wages in the province. A goldmine of information – though not all of it great news for me.
Back in October, it was estimated that only one journalist would be needed in New Brunswick in the next two years. (That’s one hired-as-full-time-full-benefit-staffer; I’ve been making a living at this for years without being hired yet, but there is really something to be said for not having to go looking for work and being able to focus on work and then family and community. But I digress.) The Labour Survey also saw a need for 15 writer/editor positions, and four announcers … with an annual salary of about half of what I’m making without technically having a job, so that wasn’t much comfort.
There are lots of professions that are going to be crying out for people. The province needs about 100 doctors in the next two years, and a total of 400 by 2016. Nurses are even more in demand – about 850 positions open in the next couple of years, with an average wage of $23/hr. But health care isn’t my thing. The next positions most in demand: retail salespeople and clerks (675), secretaries (not medical or legal ones) (474), food service counter attendants (455), elementary and kindergarten teachers (450). Again, nothing I was really looking for.
Then came my dream job. A full-time, on-air journalism job that I’m qualified for, that I’m confident I can be the best candidate for. So I’ve spent some time fine-tuning my paperwork, asking people for advice, letting myself imagine the call saying, “You’re hired!” Now I have to wait … and wait ... and wait … to see if that call will come. I’ve waited before, and it’s been in vain. I’m really hoping for better results this time. C’mon Moncton, help me out, wish with me. Because I do really want to “be … in this place.”
Reporter Vanessa Blanch has more on the Heart & Stroke foundation's study & the price of groceries in Moncton -- including comments from shoppers, retailers and the NB Health Minister -- Friday morning on CBC Radio's Information Morning.
106.1 FM in Moncton, 90.5 FM in Campbellton & 97.9 FM in Bathurst & Miramichi.
And many thanks to Larry for trying to put my mind at ease with a glimpse into this week's flyers!
Can we “be … in this place?” The New Brunswick government says it wants 6,000 people to move to the province in 2009. We’re going to be two of them. I’m a 30-something professional journalist, originally from Cape Breton. He’s a Riverview boy, coming home with an engineering degree and an MBA with the ink still wet. We’re looking to find good jobs, buy a house, build a life, and raise a family. This is our story, and our experiment to see if New Brunswick is as easy to move home to as everyone hopes.
