Dispatches from Kelowna | Pilot Episode
Adjusting to a new city, provinces away from all our support people, with a toddler and a baby on the way...
We moved to a new city, four provinces away, last summer. Ontario to BC. It was the end of August. My partner had been offered a full-time teaching contract right before our momentous trip to DisneyWorld and when we got home, we had a week to pack up our life before we needed to drive across the country with our 1 year old, two cats, and as much stuff as we could fit in our too-small u-haul.
Eight months later, half our things are still in Ontario.
I miss the instant pot.
(There’s a fine line between breaking down and buying things again, knowing that the things we have will eventually make their way to us.)
The plan was to spend Summer 2025 back in Ontario. We’d refresh our airstream, tidy up the house we bought which is now being rented, maybe return to our fertility clinic to get pregnant again (hello, IVF!), and then drive back with the rest of our things.
But… the plan’s been twarted. It’s okay. It’s a good thwart, by the newest member of our soon-to-be family of 5 (yes, I’m including the cats). I am 33/40ish weeks pregnant (We’re ~82.5% there!). Babe is due in June, so we’re spending the summer in Kelowna.
The summer in Kelowna.
Everyone here says, “Oh, you haven’t spent a summer in Kelowna??? It’s amazing.”
All winter— which was not a long winter compared to the Ontario experience— I saw this far-off, longing gaze for BC sunshine that I have now deemed
“The Kelowna Summer.”
I’m making it a thing, a title, with capitized letters, because that’s how profound it sounds.
I don’t want to make this too long. No one has subscribed and I’m not quite sure how substack works so I’m going to curb my ramblings and get to the point.
I’m starting this, I guess, newsletter, because I’m writing these days. I’m working on things I want to share. Also I miss LiveJournal and this feels like there might be a tiny thread connecting the two platforms across decades of time.
I’m going to use this space to share things like
the blog series I’ve started,
any writing news I have,
things I’ve come across that intruige me (which will probably be related to
books or
film/tv industry content or
parenthood or baby news (ahhhhh!)),
and, of course, anything pertinent or interesting about
“The Kelowna Summer.”
It can feel a little lonely here, I won’t lie. I’m making friends and they’re adults (yay!) but moving to a new place and caring for a toddler full-time is no laughing matter. It’s seriously hard. I have so much respect for anyone who has done this before. And soon we will have two. Two babies. Maybe this means nothing to you. To me, I’m… only a little bit scared.
That’s all for now, save for some writerly updates below:
The blog I’ve started
I’ve started a new blog series made up of personal reflections on the intersection of parenthood, literature, and culture. In a 2004 interview with The Paris Review, the prominent writer Jorge Semprún said when he writes, “I make my memories tangible, and in this way I can get rid of them.” This quote stuck itself in my head and inspired me to “write it out.” As I find myself in the thick of a new life chapter, here, too, I attempt to do some clearing.
Read my first post:
📌 REFRAMING MY CAREER BREAK TO PARENT AS A CHOICE— NOT A SETBACK
The episode of TV I wrote — for Apple TV+
My first TV writing credit landed on Apple TV+ April 18th— Season 3 Episode 2 of “Jane”— and I really encourage you to grab your friends and littles and watch this show! It’s so good. Inspired by the work of the formidable (and a long-time hero of mine) Dr. Jane Goodall, it’s a show about conservation, adventure, and friendship in this tumultuous, often destructive world. Most importantly, it’s filled with hope— and that’s something we could all use right now.
Here’s the trailer:
Mom things
In this moment, I’m feeling very grateful for the womxn (like Liana Finck) who have had their second babies before me, and who are sharing their experiences via their own social media and substack accounts. They are unknowingly (but probably indirectly pleased to be) helping me prepare for this next (unknown) phase of life.
Bless the ones who have come before. I’m learning so much from you!