8 Months In the North
Mar. 28th, 2014 01:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
I was reading my old LJ entries (sadly not many as I do like to write these) and I saw one from May last year. Back then I was in a really dark place. I was facing the prospect of having to live on my own again in some place I wouldn't be able to afford while all my good friends had moved elsewhere.
My life kinda turned around a month or so after that post when I was presented with the idea that I move to the North and work from my company's head office in Nelson to progress my career considering there weren't many options down south. I hadn't really considered living in the North before as I thought like most Southerners do and thought it was a backwards place where poverty was common place and everything was stuck in the past. However, the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I knew a number of people who had moved up north and seemed to be getting on OK and house prices were remarkably low compared to the South. So I agreed to do a week's trial where I worked from the head office for a week while staying in a hotel and cap off the week with a Manchester fur meet.
By the time the trial week came up, I had pretty much decided I would move anyway as Lazerus and Telos who lived in Preston were looking to move out and Preston would be one train away from Nelson so I could do the commute. The week went relatively well though I didn't really know anyone in the head office. Regardless, I had decided it would be the way to go as I couldn't see myself affording anything down south living on my own. It didn't take long to find a place we all liked which was relatively near to the train station (25-30min walk) which was also a new build and had 3 double bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, the latter which is very handy when house sharing!
After stressing out with the run up to the move, with a bit of help with some friends and family, I got all my stuff packed up and a friend from work helped drive a van with all my stuff in it to the north, unload at the new house and then drive back the same day. Was a bit of a mental thing to do looking back but it did allow me to get the place cleaned up as best I could after moving all my stuff out before handing over the keys. Despite my best efforts, still got quite a large chunk of the deposit taken in cleaning fees. Anyway, I was just glad to be done with it all and start my life in the north.
So as of the 30th July 2013 I was officially living in the North, something I never foresaw happening. I've now been here for 8 months and I must say the move has improved my life quite a lot. I am regularly socialising with nearby furs and have enough money to pay rent, utilities and pay off debts a bit. I would like to get to a stage financially where I can realistically look into finally learning to drive and getting a car. In the meantime, my commute is OK thanks to a car pool with people from work. Work itself has changed a lot since I moved but still not feeling like it's much of a challenge. There should be opportunities to develop my role however so I don't get stuck in a rut.
So yeah, in summary, the move to the North has been a good one for me. It's not as bad as I had feared! :P
My life kinda turned around a month or so after that post when I was presented with the idea that I move to the North and work from my company's head office in Nelson to progress my career considering there weren't many options down south. I hadn't really considered living in the North before as I thought like most Southerners do and thought it was a backwards place where poverty was common place and everything was stuck in the past. However, the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I knew a number of people who had moved up north and seemed to be getting on OK and house prices were remarkably low compared to the South. So I agreed to do a week's trial where I worked from the head office for a week while staying in a hotel and cap off the week with a Manchester fur meet.
By the time the trial week came up, I had pretty much decided I would move anyway as Lazerus and Telos who lived in Preston were looking to move out and Preston would be one train away from Nelson so I could do the commute. The week went relatively well though I didn't really know anyone in the head office. Regardless, I had decided it would be the way to go as I couldn't see myself affording anything down south living on my own. It didn't take long to find a place we all liked which was relatively near to the train station (25-30min walk) which was also a new build and had 3 double bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, the latter which is very handy when house sharing!
After stressing out with the run up to the move, with a bit of help with some friends and family, I got all my stuff packed up and a friend from work helped drive a van with all my stuff in it to the north, unload at the new house and then drive back the same day. Was a bit of a mental thing to do looking back but it did allow me to get the place cleaned up as best I could after moving all my stuff out before handing over the keys. Despite my best efforts, still got quite a large chunk of the deposit taken in cleaning fees. Anyway, I was just glad to be done with it all and start my life in the north.
So as of the 30th July 2013 I was officially living in the North, something I never foresaw happening. I've now been here for 8 months and I must say the move has improved my life quite a lot. I am regularly socialising with nearby furs and have enough money to pay rent, utilities and pay off debts a bit. I would like to get to a stage financially where I can realistically look into finally learning to drive and getting a car. In the meantime, my commute is OK thanks to a car pool with people from work. Work itself has changed a lot since I moved but still not feeling like it's much of a challenge. There should be opportunities to develop my role however so I don't get stuck in a rut.
So yeah, in summary, the move to the North has been a good one for me. It's not as bad as I had feared! :P
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Date: 2014-03-29 12:00 pm (UTC)It can also be liberating, exciting and more often than not, a change for the better.
So glad things are working out for you up there. I remember well you being down about your situation in the south, but you've taken the change and you sound a lot happier (Well, as happy as text can convey!). Go you! :)