[Quiet Man Cometh]

I was born down here on the coast. My parents used to live up there for a while but moved down here when my sister and I came along. I moved up there to finish high school in part because I could be finished in one semester instead of two, and to spend time with my dad, since my parents were separated by then. I originally couldn't leave Vancouver because I was getting kidney dialysis here and was too young to move to a community unit. I moved up north after my transplant in 2002 and ended up living there for five years. The original plan was only to be there for six months or so in between high school and university but plans changed, and I ended up staying and going to the local college for my first two years of school. I moved back to Vancouver to finish university in 2007..

I think about moving back sometimes because the job market is so much better and it's a much smaller city. I found it really helped my stress when I moved. However, I do like it a bit more down here, and I have family on both sides of the province. My mom's family is all here, and my dad's family is all there. Truthfully, I'm not 100% satisfied living in either area, but so far I'm doing okay here, though I haven't managed a visit up north this year so far, which is kinda disappointing.

Living here in Van versus up north in FSJ is so radically different from the cities to the social circles I have in each, that it's really hard to compare the two. Everything I lack in one place can be found in the other. Urban versus Rural; large social group versus small; busy versus calm; city venues for entertainment versus outdoor activities.