Contemplating Calgree

Recently my best (only?) girlfriend in Calgary wrote a funny and so true note  and I loved it so much (slash really want my sisters to read it to get a view of my life here) that I asked her if I could put it up on  the blog. She’s quite a funny girl, and a beautful writer. In her words, she’s a big FiveBlonde blog fan, but still doesn’t really get blogging in the first place. Give her time people, give her time – I will turn her over to the dark side. She gave the the go-ahead to post her thoughts so here you go! Thanks Natalie.

It’s hard to believe that it’s already been six months that I’ve been here, I can’t decide if it’s flown by or dragged out. While I still consider Guelph my home, Calgary is a very close runner up. There’s definitely some things I miss about Guelph, friends and family being the obvious.  Living in a city of over a million people makes you realize some of the things you take for granted about living in a small town; bumping into people you went to elementary school with at the grocery store, thinking Wal-Mart coming to town is a huge deal, and being able to drive 5 minutes to have Sunday dinner with your parents (or if you were like me, you still lived with your parents and everyday was Sunday dinner).

One thing I love about Calgary is you never get bored here. There is always something to do, and there are always things to learn. I feel like I’ve done a lot since June; walked out of one job  and into another that is absolutely perfect for me. I have formed such an amazing friendship with my best and only girlfriend out here (hi Leah!). And while she and I have tried to make friends with other girls, I think we secretly love our dyadic friendship; it’s like a secret club nobody can get into. I moved into my first apartment, which I transformed from a seafoam green concrete box into my welcoming, warm home. Living right on the Bow River with beautiful walking trails in Kensington couldn’t be any better. I’ve recently taken on a second job of working with an 11-year old boy with autism because I missed working with the kids at ________ so much , and felt I wanted to keep my foot in the door with special needs. My sister had her first baby, whom I live a 10 minute drive away from, and my parents and sister have all come out to see me making it that much easier being away from home.

While many people visit Calgary, there are some things you never learn until you move here. Here’s what I’ve learned over the past six months:

1. Remembrance Day is a stat holiday here. As is Family Day.
2. People drink Starbucks here, not Timmy’s.
3. The Living Room is only for classy people; it’s just “that kind of place”.
4. Joy Convenience Store “A” has great bananas (especially when you’re hungover and on your way to the zoo on your birthday).
5. If you don’t drink water here, you will shrivel up and possibly die.
6. The Calgary Stampede is a metropolitan week-long holiday.
7. The weather can, and often will, change 20 degrees in a matter of hours.
8. School zones are 30 km/h. Don’t go faster.
9. If you don’t have a humidifier, expect daily nosebleeds.
10. The Calgary Zoo has the best poutine in the city.
11. Sitting at the bar is way better than sitting at a table. And results in free Christmas shots.
12. Sunny everyday.
13. Recyclables are considered gold.
14. “I seen him the other day and I says to him…” Enough said.
15. Women love love love fake nails here.
16. Thursday lunches at Earls is becoming one of my favourite traditions.
17. At 8:05am I can see the traffic at my intersection on channel 10.
18. Needing to plug in your car is not a myth. It’s a necessity.
19. You can walk the large majority of downtown and never go outside, thanks to +15
20. They never check your ticket on the c-train.
21. Alberta beef is better beef.
22. If you are working a full day on Friday, you are doing something wrong.
23. It’s pronounced “Cal-gree”. 2 syllables.
24. The mountains never get old, and will take your breath every time you see them.

25. Most men in Calgary are vile, disgusting pigs. With the exception on my family. Just don’t go to Morgans Pub on Tuesday nights unless you suffer from low self-esteem/want to be undressed with 250 of those vile, disgusting pig’s eyes.

26. Don’t let your gas tank run below 3/4 of a tank or it will freeze.

The Bow River AND the Elbow River run right by my house and are both pristine enough to swim and tube in during summertime.

Some great walking trails run by the river and Natalie and I often walk and talk. But mostly talk!

If it wasn’t for these two, I would have spent my 22nd birthday on the couch at home or I would still be in Ontario. I couldn’t survive here without her, and he does the sweetest things to remind me how much he loves me.

If there were any related posts we'd list 'em here...but this one is pretty unique!