About a week ago I told my boss that in all likelihood I’d be finishing work at the end of May. She already knew I’m going (most of work knows I’m going by now because I can’t help but talk about it) but for the past three years it had always been this nebulous, off-in-the-future thing. Now, the clock is ticking and the end is nigh.

So why the end of May? Let’s say we leave Perth in mid-June to give us a couple of weeks to get our bearings in Toronto, perhaps find a place to live and then settle in before Glen starts work on 1 July. So in order to leave in mid-June, we’ll need about two weeks before that to sort the final few things out and say our goodbyes. That takes us to the end of May.

With a deadline that’s much sooner than previously imagined, we’ve now got to start thinking about what has to happen in the next ten months to get ourselves ready. When we first heard we’d be going, I made a list – love a good list – of things to do to make this happen. Below are the top five things from the list. In total, I’ve got 19 things on it but I’ve condensed for ease and picked only the top.

1. The House

We’re going to rent our townhouse  so we can still pay the mortgage (and then it’s not sitting empty for a year, which would just be strange). I haven’t looked too closely into this but by renting we’re going to have to look into what that means for our tax, our loan and also the cost involved. I want to get a property manager in soon to have a look at the place, see what needs to be done before we can rent it out, do that and then get it sorted well before we leave. This is one of two things making me most anxious.

2. Smudge

This is the second thing that’s got me worried. What to do about the cat? Initially, I’d considered taking her with us but thinking about it a bit more, it’s not the wisest decision. She’d have to go in quarantine on the way out and quarantine on the way back (two months roughly in all), then there’s the flight (not good for a nervous kitty to spend many hours on a plane), finding a place to live that allows pets and finally what do we do with her when we want to travel. It looks like we’ll leave her here but where? And will she remember us when we return? What do you think we should do? Take the poll at the end of the post.

3. Flights

This is an easy one to sort out. We’ve just got to pick the date. Choosing now would be the better way to go so we can book cheap(er) flights. We also need to think about what to do when over there. If we wait until we get to Toronto to make a few plans about places to visit then we’re going to lose time and possibly some opportunities. Not going to stress too much about this one but it’s just something to keep in mind.

4. VISAs

Luckily I’m within the age bracket to get a working visa and Glen is sponsored so this shouldn’t be too difficult to sort out. Just need to make it happen.

5. General House and Living Stuff

This includes where to put all of our stuff, putting our net account on hold (if possible), redirecting mail, setting up bank accounts, various other things…oh, and writing a will.

Grouping the jobs like this actually makes me feel better and not so overwhelmed. There’s plenty to do.

Hmmm….

Maybe I’ll start tomorrow.