An ode to Edmonton

When I first came to Edmonton in 2007, I was in a very different place in my life than I am now. At the time I was attempting to rekindle a relationship which had begun in Taiwan a year prior, and had been severed (for the first of many times) just before my return to Canada.
Kristin was from Edmonton and we had both been teaching English in Taipei, where we met in a bar. After dating for a year and very briefly living together, we broke up and she returned to Edmonton, her hometown. I subsequently told her I would follow her there, which I did. I was 27 at the time. We moved in together and were able to maintain a relationship for another year, despite much turmoil. We then went through a cycle of on-again, off-again romance, attempting to live together once more for an entire year, before finally calling it quits.

During this time, as my relationship with Kristin was gradually deteriorating, my relationship with Edmonton was changing as well. I can't say I liked the city very much when I first moved there. I found it drab, lifeless, flat, and cold. Most significantly, it was foreign to me. Having spent 18 consecutive years living outside of Canada, mostly in non-white countries, moving back to a place where everyone spoke English and where I didn't look different due to my skin colour was a reverse culture shock to me. I didn't get along with the people I worked with, I didn't have a convenient method of getting around since I didn't drive yet, I wasn't enjoying my work, and my leisure activities were limited.

This gradually began to change as I acquired more personal freedoms, my mobility increased, and so did my financial comfort. I bought a car, became single, earned more money at my job, and started engaging in activities that stimulated me.

In my fifth year in Edmonton, which was 2011-2012, everything changed. It all started when I lost my job at the cemetery. Instead of searching for a new job, I decided to wait and live on credit for a while. I became involved in a project which had the potential to earn me an income while doing something I enjoyed, with a bunch of like-minded people. This eventually led me to start a non-profit organization whose aim was to collect unwanted items from people, repurpose them, and either donate or recycle them. I became co-owner of a truck, and for the first time in my life, I was self-employed.
The summer of 2012 was the most amazing time I had ever spent in Edmonton, and I truly fell in love with the city then. I spent my days outdoors, riding my bicycle, sitting in parks, driving around, and basically enjoying life without too much worry about work or money.
I discovered organic food, stopped eating meat (for the most part), and generally lived a much healthier lifestyle than ever before.

Before long, the work partnership, together with the non-profit, fell apart, and I was left with a truck in my name. I decided to keep it and use it to earn money. I began to offer people services using the truck as well as any other odd jobs I was able to do. I called it David's Friendly Services, and for two years I very successfully supported myself by helping people move, doing deliveries, and disposing of various junk. I also continued to do translation/interpretation work, as well as the odd landscaping, snow removal, and renovation job.

Seven years later as I leave Edmonton behind, I have a much greater appreciation for this city, as well as increased respect for its people and what they have achieved. Edmonton, though it may not be as culturally and artistically vibrant as Montreal, or as environmentally conscious as Vancouver, is a city which leads the world in various accomplishments and holds the number one spot in Canada in a number of areas. Edmonton has a state-of-the-art waste management system which has served as a model for various other nations. It is in fact the leader in eco-friendly waste management in North America and recently launched the world's first large-scale waste-to-biogas plant.
Edmonton is the largest city in Canada in terms of area, and has the highest amount of green space of any city in Canada. These are just a few examples of why I think Edmonton is a great city, despite the reputation it holds for being backward and boring. One of the more unfortunate names this city has been tagged with is Deadmonton. I'm not sure if this is because it held the title of Canada's murder capital for a few years or if it has to do with how lifeless it appears to those who seek stimulation in the arts and entertainment areas.
I also think that social services and amenities are excellent there, the standard of living is relatively high, the tolerance for diversity is impressive, and the people are friendly and generous.

My personal achievements in the past seven years have also been manifold, and I want to list them here. Some of them are goals which I had waited many years to complete, and being in Edmonton gave me the opportunity to do so.
After coming to Edmonton I completed my high school equivalency upgrade, which had been pending since I left school at the age of 15. I learned to drive, obtained a driver's license, and purchased a car. I became a student pilot and learned to fly a single-engine plane solo. I became owner and operator of a successful business enterprise, and I acted as main organizer for an activist group.
As mentioned previously, my lifestyle changed drastically as I started to think about the food I was consuming and the products I was purchasing. I began to buy only organic food, almost no meat or dairy, and I tried to always support fair trade. I spent my money on environmentally friendly and socially conscious products including detergents, clothes, paper, and a variety of others.
I opened my home to strangers on a regular basis and became a couchsurfing host. This in itself altered my life in a dramatic way, and was a partial inspiration for my current lifestyle.
Some of the activities I discovered and dabbled in include environmental and social activism, anarchist theory, permaculture, slacklining, hand drumming, and most recently, nomadism. Oh, and blogging, of course!
I read countless books, watched many documentaries and TED Talks, engaged in philosophical debates both in person and online, discovered dozens of new bands and expanded my musical interests, learned various skills, tried new foods, experimented with meditation, made many friends, lost some, kept some, played hard, worked hard, thought much, read much, changed much. I've learned a tremendous amount of things about the world and a few about myself. I'm ready for the next chapter in my life.
Goodbye Edmonton, you will remain dear to my heart, and I will miss you once in a while. My friends, you know who you are. Much love.