"When one door closes, another opens" - Alexander Graham Bell
As generic and over-used this quote may be, it's something that I quite literally did this past weekend. I closed the doors of my downtown home and opened a new one out in the west end.
It's been 5 years since I last lived outside of downtown Toronto. I'm definitely going to miss the hustle and bustle of the streets, and just the absolute convenience of having practically anything and everything within a few minutes of my home. During those years, I failed to realize how privileged I was. To be a student, with no stable income of my own, and be able to live in the core of the city where rent is just skyrocketing to ridiculous numbers year by year. I took it all for granted because of my surroundings. When most of your friends also live downtown, sometimes you forget how privileged you really are. But now I look back and I take in how thankful I am for my parents for supporting the lifestyle I had during university.
I initially had planned to stay downtown for a bit longer but as with all things in life, situations changed. "Why so far west?" is a question I get over and over again. Well, there are a few reasons. I want to be able to support myself independently. And as a current student with 4 more months to go, Toronto rent is not very reasonable. I also think that maybe it's a good break from the crowded hectic streets of downtown. It's only been a few days in my new place, but I already feel more relaxed in my quiet surroundings. The other factor behind my decision was simply due to how unsure I am of my near future. With my current lease ending end of April, I didn't want to sign another year contract in downtown Toronto when I'm not even sure if I'll be here after I graduate. I'm considering working outside of Canada, maybe Japan (who knows!), and the last thing I want is a lease to restrict me from making these decisions. So I'm quite happy to say that I've found myself an ideal solution. I moved in with a friend out west who owns her condo unit, and I plan to live there until the end of August when school ends and then just see what happens. Maybe it'll take a few months to figure out what I want to do, and where I want to be. But at least I have the comfort of knowing that I can stay here until I decide.
I'm excited to see where I'll be in a few months. If anyone actually read through all this until the end, that was a little update of my life. I've been a bit MIA in my social life, and although I can no longer say yes to last minute meet-ups for bubble tea at night, I'd love to catch up on your life as well. Coffee?
Love, Lena
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