Head west middle aged man!!!!

I have pretty much made up my mind to head out west in the spring of 2019.  I've been living in Ottawa since 1983 I absolutely despise living here.  The winters are harsh and the summers are short. I realize it's pretty much the same in Calgary weather wise.  Ottawa is located in eastern Ontario in a valley that spreads pretty far and wide.  So you get damp winters with lots of snow and a lot of rain in the summer which turn out to be hot and muggy.

When I was in Calgary last year, I loved it from the start.  I could see the mountains whenever I wanted.  They were a 45 minute drive.  I'd spend every weekend travelling the mountains exploring what I could.  Photography and shooting footage was an incredible experience.  

I did not make any friends when I was out in Calgary as I was basically working all the time and travelling on weekends.  If I was at home, I'd be FaceTiming with my girlfriend.  I wasn't going to the gym then as I am right now.

I am planning on going to Calgary in late March 2019 or early April 2019.  Hopefully I will have a job in Calgary by then.  I hope the NDP is out of power by then so the economy will pick up and people can start working again.  My plans are to work, work out and get healthy and do more photography and shoot more footage.  That would make me really happy.

Out west

I really, really want to move out west.  Not to Bring Cash British Columbia but somewhere near Calgary, Alberta.  I was there for four month last year on a contract and I fell in love with the ruggedness of the province.  From Calgary, you are about 45 minutes from the mountains.  I absolutely love the Rockies and the lakes within the mountains.  Calgary is also much closer to the American southwest where I was in 2016.  I totally love the wilderness of the western U.S and Canada.  Being in Ottawa is crap.  I've been here for 35 years.  I am so bored here.  There is absolutely nothing to do here.

 

The girlfriend and I will be looking for a place to live and of course jobs out there.  I would love to get a full time photography gig out there.

Just an update on the DJI Spark

The update is that there is no update.  I have to wait 2-3 days for DJI to take a look at the log files to see what happened to the drone.  I hope to hear by Wednesday of this week.  I'm hoping DJI gives me a credit so I can go buy another drone.

On another note, I have a few jobs I'm being submitted for.  I should hear something by Wednesday for a few of them.  Hopefully Wednesday will be a good day.  If I do get a job on Wednesday, and DJI gives me bad news, I'll have to make a decision to see if I'll get the same drone.  I do have the remote controller for the DJI Spark and it's even on sale right now.  I'm hoping everything turns around and does a 180 this week and I can get back to work and I can start flying a drone again.  If I do get a drone again, I know where not to fly it.  LOL

Did not fly yesterday

Met up with an old friend yesterday that I've known for about 12 years now.  We just chatted for a few hours.  Then I went for lunch with the girlfriend.  It had rained during the day so I was unsure of the weather.  If it was going to rain or not.  So instead of flying the drone in the afternoon, I went to a local casino and won $132.50 playing blackjack.  Might have a lead on a job as well so I'm kind of hoping that comes thru by tomorrow so I can start on Monday.  Or my old contract starts again so I can start there again considering it's free parking and I would work 5 minutes from home.

Loyalty

To family and a few friends.  I can count on one hand how many loyal friends I have.  At times I don't think I even need hands to count the amount of friends that are loyal. Today I feel like I can only count on my family and my girlfriend.  I'll pick myself up by doing some photography.  That always cheers me up. Because photography is awesome.

Ottawa tired!

I've lived in Ottawa since 1983 when I was just 8 years old.  I took up photography seriously in 2008 or so.  Started taking classes in 2010 and finished in 2012.  It is now 2016 and I'm tired of photographing Ottawa and the surrounding areas.  I fee like I've done it all in this quaint town of a million plus people.  You have your typical tourist sites like Parliament Hill, the museums, galleries and such.  I've been to Parc Omega more times than I can count.

Don't get me wrong, I like living here in Canada's capital.  It's quiet, relatively cheap and there are jobs here.  I'm just tired.  Tired of the same.  Mind you, I'm not the kind to just pick up and move to a new place.  I have to have things figured out.  Need a job.  Need money to eat and put a head over my head.  I need a place where I can edit my photos and videos.

I've felt the need to move somewhere for the past several years.  I've come to realize that I've spent too much time here.  I'm still finding it hard to be alone after my divorce.  I see no future girlfriend in the near future.  I don't know if I'll get married again.  I'm scared to move to a new place.  But I'm more scared if I don't and things stay in the same place and do the same things.  I don't know if I can keep doing the same job for the next 20+ years.  A job I hardly enjoy.  A job that is just the means to an end.  I'm not overly happy doing the same thing day in day out seeing the same people, doing the same job.  

I love photography.  It's the only hobby/job that keeps me happy.  I don't think about anything else when I'm out photographing the surrounding world.  I think the only other person who would understand is a photographer.  Photography is something that lives in you.  It's more than a feeling.  It's more than a passion.  It's in my DNA.  Honestly it's what I love to do.  Just put me in a national park with a camera or two and I'd be happy as a kid in a candy store.