emigrating from uk to Canada or NZ - 10yr plan

If anyone could accurately answer your last question, that person could pretty much work anywhere he or she wants in the world, at his/her demanded salary.

I could ramble on more but the 2nd half of the Handbags at Highbury is starting.

Which "Canada" did you mean to replace "New Zealand" with?

And what part of our government isn't centralized enough for you DC?

Jeez.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/images/400/david10.jpg

Paul Martin, Prime Minster (Liberal): Incapable of avoiding scandal. Extremely proficient at managementspeak. Never writes anything down. Not sure how he got the job in the first place.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/images/400/neil02.jpg

Stephen Harper, Opposition Leader (Conservative Party): The more this lacquer-headed do-gooding marketeer puts the screws to the boss, the more you realize how much the boss is basically a good guy (who really represents socialism's last gasp before the country slides into a bourgeois hell of Efficiency, Profitability, and Turnover). Perfectionism likely a ruse to conceal repressed feelings of desire for small children or animals.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/images/400/finchy.jpg

Gilles Duceppe, Leader (Bloc Québécois): only interested in numero uno. Kind of weasely.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/theoffice/images/400/gareth02.jpg

Jack Layton, Leader (New Democrat Party): hilariously unprepared for the "big boy shit." Impossible to take seriously at any time.

You're right -- alleging paedophilia or bestiality is far too nice for this country-ruiner.

http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/

Bloody Conservative.

- TV awful ('news' = 15 minutes about somebody sawing a log)
- cigarettes outlawed, %100 of population smokes weed
- 15 yrs to fuckin' get anywhere, gas prices like in Mad Max films, auto mandatory for anything above minimal existence
- street aggression absent
- people actually obey laws and fill in paperwork here, unfortunately expecting everyone else to do same
- the weather really is a motherfucker
- extreme socialist, think of it like France except with everybody on E for the first time

- drinking in the street illegal, you have to stick it in a paper bag
- the money is like the old Italian lira (10 pounds = $98)
- you can't talk your way out of shit as easily with the cops here, they're kind of unreasonable, they won't hit you though
- wherever you're at in the country, don't mention the other regions, usually the people you're talking to haven't been there
- recommended viewing - 'FUBAR', 'Trailer Park Boys', 'Videodrome'

* As mentioned before, if you love really cheap mediocre pizza, you'll love larger Canadian cities. Every block has at least three loonie-a-slice mouseholes... and internet cafes, too.

Fuck, I'll just say it. Not only is Vancouver is one of the best cities in North America, it's one of the best cities in the world. It's small, beautiful, quiet, yet there's enough going on (pop) culturally to prevent boredom. Not too many places you can ski and waterski the same day, if either of those things floats your boat, so to speak.

That said, it certainly isn't perfect, but if you have someone to help you through all the mundane shite (where to go to get a health card, a driver's license, etc), it's so worth it it hurts.

The reason it's a 10yr plan is - the place where my business is is probably going to be redeveloped in 10yrs, it's probably quite unlikely that any of our parents will still be around by then, we will have very little in the way of "ties" here. No-where is perfect, I know, but this place is really, really getting me down in so many ways. I feel completely out of step, and miserable. Perhaps things will have improved in 10 years, but it's kind of hard to see how. I posted something on another thread about how Britain reminds me of the bit in IIRC "The Naked Lunch" where a fancy restaurant serves worse and worse food over a period of time, until at the end they are literally serving garbage, and no-body complains.

2 of my good friends are in the process of emigrating to Canada, one of my relatives recently emigrated to Dunedin, NZ. I dunno, it's just something I'm thinking about more and more.

(dave q is so OTM about Canada that it's damn near spooky.)

I feel completely out of step, and miserable.

Yeah, I can completely relate to this. I left when Thatcher was still in power, and England was suffused with an atmosphere of wilful stupidity. I have no idea what it's like over there now. I only follow footy and music and the odd book from an established writer these days. Canada is subtle.

-Nothing to buy in the shops
-Nothing to do after midnight
-Violent when drunk
-Ridiculous overemphasis on sport
-Intractable, tedious race problems
-Lack of job variety available in bigger places

But still, many things make up for this.

Sorry, which country was this?

Canjet Airline staffer proves to be geographically challenged
THUNDER BAY, Ont. (CP) — CanJet airline says it does know where Thunder Bay, Ont., is, but has no immediate plans to fly there.
Geoffrey Hudson wondered if the Halifax-based discount airline would consider offering flights from the city on Lake Superior.
Thunder Bay Airport currently has Air Canada and West Jet as major carriers, “but I just thought it would be great if there was a third option,” Hudson said.
A CanJet staffer suggested to Hudson by e-mail that this was unlikely because “CanJet airlines does not fly anywhere west of Ontario.”
CanJet spokesman Wayne Morrison said the staffer has been informed of her error and feels bad about it.
“All I can do is assure you that we are extremely aware of where Thunder Bay is,” Morrison said Tuesday.
(Thunder Bay Chronicle-Journal)

http://www.savecanadianmusic.com/main.php

That said, it certainly isn't perfect, but if you have someone to help you through all the mundane shite (where to go to get a health card, a driver's license, etc), it's so worth it it hurts.

Well, Vancouver's public transportation, while not the prime in the world, is better than anything else on the Pacific west coast, easily (despite the recent 90 minute PT fee hike to $2.25CAN.. hope you guys have plenty of quarters, or have a pass.). You can pretty much get anywhere in Vancouver city limits by buses, which run frequently, and even to North Van, West Van, and the suburbs and south and east. (whether you WANT to go to parts of those suburbs at your own free will is a different question.. and I'm not counting Langley.) All of this to say: you don't really need a car in Vancouver.. although it helps if you need to go to Ikea or something.

The worst experience i ever had in Van was walking to see friends' band play a headlining show at the Brickyard, and the crackheads/pot guys are really persistent and like to follow you. One woman yelled at me (I was wearing a sweater with a big "63" on it) "HEY NUMBER SIXTY THREE..... WANNA FIGHT?" She smiled as she said "FIGHT". I was like "naaah, that's ok.". And she paused and then went "Fair enough!" and imemdiate took a hit off her crackpipe.

The only other bad thing about Vancouver is theft. House burglaries and car/touring van break-ins are a little more common in Van than in other cities.. so always have an alarm system, if you have valuables like records, CDs, DVDs, or anything more. (I've heard of break-ins in Vancouver happening for the stupidest things.. like used paperback books. WTF?)

Otherwise, David A. OTM.

Ottawa, Feb. 2 -- Immigrants struggling to find work in Canada’s largest cities and urban Aboriginal people facing higher unemployment rates are two of the many stories emerging from a report released today on sweeping demographic and social changes reshaping urban Canada.

The report, “Dynamic Societies and Social Change,” produced by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ (FCM) Quality of Life Reporting System (QOLRS), finds that these and other social changes are placing demands on municipal governments that are beyond their jurisdiction and capacity.

Changes in the 20 urban communities studied include an aging population; a growing immigrant population; a rapidly expanding Aboriginal youth population in prairie cities; a shrinking labour force requiring ever-increasing levels of education; and growing demand for childcare.

The report is the second theme report in the 2004 QOLRS Report series. It finds that the 20 urban communities studied face different challenges. Toronto and Vancouver’s growing immigrant populations have trouble finding adequate employment (page 3), as does the expanding population of Aboriginal youth in Saskatoon, Regina, Winnipeg and Edmonton (pages 4-5). Ontario cities, as well as Vancouver and Halifax, are also facing the challenge of growing child poverty (pages 18-20).

The report concludes that no single policy or program will fit all local situations. Finding solutions will require a new intergovernmental partnership with the active participation of municipal governments.

A fact sheet with national and regional trends follows. The full report is available on the FCM website at www.fcm.ca.

Did I make another typo or what is wrong with the character Neil?

Rough Trade = Genesis P. Orridge
Bruce Cockburn = Roy Harper
Joni Mitchell = Christine McVie
Tragically Hip = Oasis
Triumph = Sham 69
BTO = Roxy Music

Chilliwack = Shed 7
Neil Young = Elton John
Avril Lavigne = Franz Ferdinand

Ha ha.

Oh, and donut christ is OTM re both public transit and the fucked-up-ness of people on the streets. But then again, the worst kicking I ever got in my life was from a swarm of strangers on the streets of Northampton, England! So go figure. But, yeah, for all its overall goodness, Vancouver has an underbelly that's as rank and sweaty as any.

I've asked this question in/on several other boards, & general consensus seems to be west coast = more relaxed than east, and vancouver seems to get the best rep. I don't like the sound of the burglary/heavy drug thing there mentioned above, but in any case woul probably be planning on living out of town. I like going to cities, but am not a city dweller.

Plan as it stands at the moment = next week, I am seeing a friend who does industrial electrical contracting work, and attempting to get some spare time work from him (as detailed on the asshole neighbour thread). I'm going to ask him what qualifications I need to get to effectively work in this field. My original idea was to start climbing the vocational ladder w/r/t being a plumber b/c it pays well, and is always in demand, but I'd be starting from 0, and to be honest, don't really fancy the work. I already have some experience working w/electricals. If this works out in 5-6 years, I'll contact Canadian Immigration, and see what quals are recognised over there, and what quals I'll need to try and get, then work towards that. Hopfully then, we'll arrive in canada w/me having a marketable skill, & something worth contributing to the country.

Once we get out of shit street, IE living in a place where I'm not scared to leave the house empty for more than 3 days, we might scrape up have the yearly holiday in Can a few times.

My wife is pretty keen on this idea, and in fact this was one of our creepy mind-meld things where we seem to come up w/the same idea at the same time. (see also the other week, when we both independently decided we wanted to move house)

The only potential problem is Adam, who is seemingly high-functioning, but nevertheless has the autist's problems w/big change. I guess we can talk about this as a family over the coming years. In any case, clever as he is, I suspect he'll do better in another country - my realitive who moved to NZ a few years ago - his kids were going nowhere here, now one of them is starting in a digital animation studio, and one is training as an air traffic controller.

That's where my thoughts are at the moment. I am pretty fucking serious about this.

More like: Tragically Hip = Status Quo

The East Coast is pretty relaxed, don't get us wrong, it's just the economy sucks and has sucked ever since Napoleon got pwned.

In fact today I wish I was in Halifax very much.

I'm going to have to stop looking at estate agent's sites in BC. The contrast between what I could get on Vancouver Island or on the Pacific coast for the money this dump is supposedly worth, and this place is certainly not making me any happier.

Well, okay... you have me on a technicality. There are no Timmies in Amsterdam as far as i know.

I once heard some stand-up on the radio talking about the American propensity for locking people up and going on to say something about how there are 2 million people sitting around doing drugs, having ass sex, and being denied daylight 23 hours a day... but enough about Vancouver... ha ha.

Now we are going from bad to worse.

have started industrial electrician course.

Anyway, I spent almost 3 years in London, which I enjoyed thoroughly, but I am happy to be back here...