The new SSD finally arrived and my home computer is slowly coming back together. I had good backups courtesy of SO haranguing me about it for years, so mostly I just have the annoying process of finding out something is missing, finding it in the backup, and copying it in. (I can't just restore from the backup because we upgraded my OS while fixing the system.)
The issue is, I think, that for me I've had a lifetime of basically visiting the "L" shape from Montreal to Victoria, then north into the high arctic. He's never been outside of China and has never seen, for example, the prairies (where you can look out your window Friday to see who is coming to visit on Saturday) or other things like that. So to him it was all new and exciting and different from anything he's ever experienced, whereas for me ... it was July and August.
And really, even though we took a truly EPIC road trip (the rented SUV recorded well over 3000km of travel), we barely scratched the surface of what we could have gone to see. Like I'd have loved to take him up to the high arctic to see 24-hour sunlight, or see some of the mountains in the Yukon, near the Alaskan border. That kind of thing. Maybe even a ferry trip from Alaska down to Vancouver (recreating a similar trip I made in 1978). We could have filled up six weeks easily enough.
We couldn't have afforded it, though. Canada was EXPENSIVE, yo! And now apparently it's even more expensive. 😮
It's not a huge language barrier for SO. (We're not married: we both resisted the pressure to be married and to procreate.) But he'd face some problems getting employed, starting with his age and with the fact he's educated in a Chinese university. (This latter point is a significant source of amusement for him given that Chinese-educated scientists and engineers have almost 50% of worldwide patents issued in 2024, that China broke into the top 10 on the Global Innovation Index in 2025, and that in world university rankings Chinese universities dominate the top 5 Asian list while Chinese universities feature as high as #14 in the global top 50 list.)
So the real choice is "do we retire in Canada?"
And that's the stronger choice only ... ah ... we're not married so his emigration would be very difficult to work out. I mean by Canadian law we're common-law married, but proving this to the incompetent, lazy, and racist assholes at IRCC would likely be a multi-year aggravating chore.
And as much as I'd love to retire to the semi-rural life of northern B.C. (a place he was profoundly impacted by too!), I'm not going to do it without him, and I'm really not super-strongly motivated to commit to a years-long fight with IRCC.
I already made dinner for tonight so that’s done. I decided to tale the day off from chores and to do gardening instead. It is work but better work. My hands smell like basil now 💚
I had a wonderful lunch with our accountants today. This is a weird statement, I know. But they are genuinely awesome and great business partners. Also, it was gluten free Mexican food. Basically good times all around.
I went to the health clinic and was actually taken seriously yesterday! This is a huge win and I'm glad they didn't brush off my concerns as "aging" (I'm a little young to be experiencing some of these things). Now I've got some labwork to get done and waiting on some referrals. The healthcare system is terrible here so I still have a long wait but at least the wheels have started turning.
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Wednesday wins... what's been going right recently? | Spyke
16 replies
The new SSD finally arrived and my home computer is slowly coming back together. I had good backups courtesy of SO haranguing me about it for years, so mostly I just have the annoying process of finding out something is missing, finding it in the backup, and copying it in. (I can't just restore from the backup because we upgraded my OS while fixing the system.)
No troubles!
It was rendered easier by him installing stuff that makes backups simple instead of a nightmare, though, to be fair.
When I went back to Canada for the big road trip with SO in 2024, by the end of the summer I was champing at the bit to return to China.
SO, weirdly enough, wished he could stay for six months.
I'm a citizen of Canada, let's put it that way. 😅
The issue is, I think, that for me I've had a lifetime of basically visiting the "L" shape from Montreal to Victoria, then north into the high arctic. He's never been outside of China and has never seen, for example, the prairies (where you can look out your window Friday to see who is coming to visit on Saturday) or other things like that. So to him it was all new and exciting and different from anything he's ever experienced, whereas for me ... it was July and August.
And really, even though we took a truly EPIC road trip (the rented SUV recorded well over 3000km of travel), we barely scratched the surface of what we could have gone to see. Like I'd have loved to take him up to the high arctic to see 24-hour sunlight, or see some of the mountains in the Yukon, near the Alaskan border. That kind of thing. Maybe even a ferry trip from Alaska down to Vancouver (recreating a similar trip I made in 1978). We could have filled up six weeks easily enough.
We couldn't have afforded it, though. Canada was EXPENSIVE, yo! And now apparently it's even more expensive. 😮
For visits? Yes. To live? ...
...
...
... honestly? Probably not.
It's not a huge language barrier for SO. (We're not married: we both resisted the pressure to be married and to procreate.) But he'd face some problems getting employed, starting with his age and with the fact he's educated in a Chinese university. (This latter point is a significant source of amusement for him given that Chinese-educated scientists and engineers have almost 50% of worldwide patents issued in 2024, that China broke into the top 10 on the Global Innovation Index in 2025, and that in world university rankings Chinese universities dominate the top 5 Asian list while Chinese universities feature as high as #14 in the global top 50 list.)
So the real choice is "do we retire in Canada?"
And that's the stronger choice only ... ah ... we're not married so his emigration would be very difficult to work out. I mean by Canadian law we're common-law married, but proving this to the incompetent, lazy, and racist assholes at IRCC would likely be a multi-year aggravating chore.
And as much as I'd love to retire to the semi-rural life of northern B.C. (a place he was profoundly impacted by too!), I'm not going to do it without him, and I'm really not super-strongly motivated to commit to a years-long fight with IRCC.
I got 2 new clients in my therapy practice that are my ideal clients (aka they fit my specialty and personality). Super excited about that.
I finished knitting a toque (late for father's day, but oh well) and it looks so luxurious! It turned out perfectly
I already made dinner for tonight so that’s done. I decided to tale the day off from chores and to do gardening instead. It is work but better work. My hands smell like basil now 💚
I had a wonderful lunch with our accountants today. This is a weird statement, I know. But they are genuinely awesome and great business partners. Also, it was gluten free Mexican food. Basically good times all around.
I went to the health clinic and was actually taken seriously yesterday! This is a huge win and I'm glad they didn't brush off my concerns as "aging" (I'm a little young to be experiencing some of these things). Now I've got some labwork to get done and waiting on some referrals. The healthcare system is terrible here so I still have a long wait but at least the wheels have started turning.