Hi. I just want to introduce myself to the Moving Back to the UK Forum, though some of you know me from the Canada forums.

I'm in Edmonton. Came here 2006. Going home (thank God, just wish it could be sooner) in 2014. Only 2 more winters after this one. What am I saying. Only 2 more winters. OMG, I'll never make it.

The logistics of our return are fearsome, so I'm starting to plan well in advance. OH is an academic with a massive collection of books -- more than 2,000 when I last counted -- so we'll probably need a 40" container for the books and our furniture. This time round I'll want to do as much packing ourselves as possible, because the "professional" packing we had when we came to Canada was anything but.

We also have 2 cats to bring back, though one is old and might not last till 2014.

OH will be working right up to the point we leave. But then, when we claim our UK pensions, we need to be resident in the UK, because otherwise Canada will tax our lump sums. So, the plan is that within a week or two of his leaving work, we are on a plane back to Blighty, with the Canada house cleared and on the market.

We'll probably settle in Staffordshire, which is where we used to live, but initially we'll head for Sussex. My mum is there, very elderly now, but determined to stay put and not go into a home. I'm part owner of her house, so even if she doesn't manage to stay in the house until 2014, it will still be there as a temporary home for us. As an alternative to North Staffordshire, we've considered Dorset. I have a family connection to Dorset, but my OH isn't so keen.

One of my main worries is house prices. At the moment we are winning because of the the collapse in value of the pound, and the stagnating house market in the UK, but that could change very rapidly. I have a bad RightMove addiction, but I hope I'm not setting myself up for disappointment.

I'm monitoring this forum for people's experiences of shippers, particularly from Alberta, and I've already gleaned some valuable information.


Anyway, that's me.

Hi, Editha,
My hubby`s not an academic but I can probably rival you for books. I applaude the arrival of the Kindle, that has probably cut down on the number, but get the point that academic books are usually textbooks.
Good luck with preparing for the move. We`re hoping to go this summer but the sooner one starts on the preparation the better as far as I can see. Have you had a mild winter so far in Alberta?. We`re in Washington DC and its been like summer some days.The daffs are confused!
Just wanted to say hello, and hope the time flies!

I use a Kindle, and also, with my personal library, I've been operating a one in, one out rule for some time.

However, my husband is more technophobe than I am. I bought him a Kindle for Xmas, in the hope that it will reduce the number of books he buys between now and 2014, but it's had no noticeable effect on his bibliophilia so far.

Sorry, Jemima, didn't report on the weather! Yes, very mild, by Albertan standards; by which I mean that is has been above -20 most of the time. Like summer? No.

Best of luck with your move.

Above -20? Eeeuw! I need to look on a map and find out where Alberta is.
Feel I`ve just reached Palinesque depths of geographical ignorance (Sarah, not Michael).

Ok, I`ve looked, no longer ignorant! That is far north! Did you move there with your husband`s career?

At this moment (4.37 pm) it's -2, expected to drop to -15 overnight, and Weather Canada tells me that it is a few degrees warmer than average for this time of year.

Most people here regard anything above -10 as mild, from -10 to -20 and reasonable, and only complain when it gets to below -20. I think the coldest so far this winter has been -42 if you include the wind chill. Very occasionally Edmonton is the coldest place on the planet.

And people ask me why I want to leave!

I have a grudge against the weather in DC because of the drama it brings in its wake. A bit of snow=power outages, tree limbs crashing on our roof, etc etc. Have done with Snowmaggedon, the earthquake et al. I love UK weather, its so mundane in comparison, and our power lines are underground.

Yes, sort of.

He is a Canadian who grew up in Victoria BC, but he'd spent 30 yrs studying and lecturing in the UK. We weren't planning to come to Canada, but he got made redundant, and there were no jobs going in his field in the UK. Since he was already in his fifties, we thought he was lucky to get a job in Canada.

My own career as a lawyer had been terminated by ill health some years previously. I was doing voluntary work for an environmental charity, and I could probably have got a paid post as a policy officer, but it would not have been enough to keep us both, so emigrating seemed the best option.

I'm still undecided about whether it was the best choice. He likes his job, and the move has enabled him to complete his career. But, for me, living in Edmonton has often felt like serving a life-sentence.

What do you do in Washington DC and why are you returning home?

Hi-I also love the UK weather..never really experienced power outages there, walked to school/college/uni/work and back!! in snow, hail, wind,rain etc no school closings etc, not like here!! I loved the summers back home..not much humidity..even the rain was so lovely. I am dreading the NJ summers...

I only have about 60 or so books plus magazines and about 50 of the kids books and my husband says if we move, the books stay!!!

Actually, we did used to get power outages when we lived in Staffordshire. We were in the Peak District and our power came overground. For a few years we used to lose power almost every time there was a thunderstorm. Then they put some of the cable underground and it improved.

But, I do miss the UK weather a lot.

We came on a job transfer for two years, in 2007. Will have stayed five. Kept our UK house, never intended this move to be permanent, just a change of scene. Stayed longer because I found out I was ill and needed lengthy treatment, and younger son had problems. He joined us and is at uni here. He finishes this summer. It`s been a bumpy ride. I was a teacher but havent worked since being here, which I think has worked out best for the family. It`s all been very complicated. I`m ok now, thank goodness!

Any chance you can coax hubby to let some books go?

We have a lot of books, but we had more. I felt I couldn't let any of them go, but when I really looked at what was on the shelves it became easier. There were ones that were outdated and really of little use. References to basic information that now is readily available on line. Classic fiction that I had just because, and was very unlikely to ever read again, and if I wanted to, easy to replace.

One thing I did was get little stickers, and every time I took a book off a shelf for a purpose I stickered it. After a year or more I looked at the unstickered ones and asked why they were there. Still kept a lot, but I had to have a reason.

The ones I absolutely kept were those I knew I'd have a hard time replacing without paying a fortune.

I was surprised how liberating it was once I got into it.

Bev

I love books but they can take over. I remember seeing an article about the historian AJP Taylor with a photo which showed him with his one bookcase - he said he generally used libraries. I think of him when I need to let go of books.

If he can do it, I guess we all can!
We got rid of a lot before we came here. I had a book stall at a church fair and ended up giving them away or binning them.
Just got rid of the chick lit by putting it by the kerb.
Hubby gets very sentimentally attached, though. Actually, the movers to come here said the books didnt take up as much room as my clothes but that was just them making mischief I suspect! I am working on a capsule wardrobe!