We accepted an offer on our house yesterday. This was one of many concrete pieces of reality on the way towards our idea, our escape to the north. An idea is a strange thing. It is vague and shifting and powerful. This idea made us send a letter to all of our clients and friends and family telling them we were selling the business and moving to Alberta. That was the first real step. Or the first nail in the coffin depending on what mood I’m in. Accepting an offer on our house is just the latest step but maybe the biggest one. The point of no return. Something very real. As of October 28 we will most likely no longer own this house and we will effectively be homeless, crashing with my parents. It’s terrifying and thrilling. Our vague and shifting idea is becoming more real, more defined.

While we are closing this door, another door is opening, a sliver at a time. We finally got the letter we’ve been waiting for from Alberta. Predictably the letter listed a mountain of red tape to wade through but Richard has been plugging away. A notarized copy of his Canadian Citizenship, check. Original O-level and A-level certificates, check. University transcripts, check.

While we were signing our acceptance of the offer with our real estate agent, Richard’s phone rang. The caller ID said “GOVT OF ALBERTA.” We learned that Rich could be teaching in Alberta by April, after a course at the U of A and a 10-week practicum starting in January. The rest of his on-line courses can be done anytime, even after he’s been hired. I can feel our ideas crystallizing as a timeline begins to form.