Moving Thee Quarters Closer?? Advice Greatly Needed Please!

[Anolinde]

So I had a crazy Idea and it's quite possible it could work. I currently live in BC, Canada and I am toying with the idea to move to Toronto. This way I'll have closed 3/4 the distance between Erik and I. I made a Pro and Con list....and they are relatively equal. The main thing on the list was that I would only be 10 hours away from Erik instead of 2000 miles away. He lives in Michigan, US if anyones interested in that detail. I have options to move in with a friend or two if I did decided to move there, but I would pretty much be giving up my life- The friends and family I have here, supports, my whole network basically. I'd be forced to start from scratch. Get a job, and right now I haven't finished school, though I suppose the option to do so there could work- though that would just put more stress and pressure on me. Its a very scary thing for me, I've never really moved out on my own, and though I want to, especially if it brings me closer to Erik, I can't help shake the thought that I have so much more to lose than he does, so much more to give up....and he's agreed that it's true. Though he remains to believe he isn't being selfish in that he won't move here to where I currently live- thus pretty much fixing any and all problems of distance, etc. He claims he'd move in with me in Toronto, but he won't move here to BC- his issue, it's his friends ( whom he never sees anyways, never talks to ) I really need advice on this. It's not like I have a complete problem with starting a new life, it's just I can see how this is unfair for me to have to be doing all the work and sacrificing.

I apologize if this is a wall of text but I really need some advice. Maybe you guise can tell me how different ON is from BC....what it's like getting a job there, how expensive it is...I would move NOW if I could I'm just thinking I should finish school here first. I'm very impatient is all- tired of waiting for life to happen, wanting to make things happen myself.

[Riyko]

I live in Toronto and i'm from the US. I don't know what BC is like but i can give you a few pointers about Ontario

1. Tax here is 13%, so everything is a lot more expensive. I pay around $50 a week for food for myself, I don't buy a lot and go to Fresh co or No Frills. Expect to pay a lot for food and entertainment. Movies at AMC are $13.50 a person and Cineplex are $12.75 a person, Eating out ranges from $2 (cheapest but fast aka mcdonalds) to $100 (brazilian steak house), but most are $20 a person.

2. Apartments are also expensive. It depends on what part of Toronto you want to live in. I live at Dundas and Sherbourne which is 3rd most violent intersection in Toronto, but they also have cheaper accomdations. I pay $645 for a furnished bachelor which includes utilities, but I also keep in mind it's cheap for the area otherwise most Bachelor and 1 bedrooms cost anywhere from $700 - $1000 a month, some with utilities and others without.

3. Transportation, expect to pay $121 a month for an Adult monthly pass through the TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) to get around. If you are a student you pay $7 to get a TTC student ID and then you'd pay $99 a month for a post secondary student pass.

4. There are more jobs available here, but a lot harder to get because they want someone with experience or a degree/diploma. The only places you could really get an ok paying job is at the Eaton Center (depends on the store), Shoppers, any of the grocery stores and restaurants.

5. There are lots of schools you can transfer to here in Toronto and depending on what you major in depends on the school and how much you pay. Some schools will charge a little more if you are from out of the province to attend.

6. It'll be hard for Erik to move in with you if you move to Toronto as he'll only be able to stay with you for 6 months at a time and if he leaves every 6 months for a week or two they'll get suspicious and he could be denied entry into Canada. Plus he can't get a job in Canada while he's visiting you unless he gets a Work permit and that can take up to 6 months to get, it's a long process. I went through it and it's not fun at all.