how did you not know the closing date or did they change it?

sorry to hear that.

This sounded like good news up until the closed bit.



Worse luck, old boy.

Canada is overrated, anyway.

randyotter3000 on Jan 18 '10 at 7:53am how did you not know the closing date or did they change it?



There isnt a closing date, they get alocated a certain amount of visa's by the Canadian goverment and when there gone there gone.



I have no idea what to think now because I cant stay here another year, I hate the town I live in, I hate my jobs (there retail) but I'm sick of getting knocked down then having to pick myself up again only to get knocked down yet again.

tough break, dude.

Oh shoot.

I'm so sorry Phil.

I have no idea what to think now because I cant stay here another year, I hate the town I live in, I hate my jobs



What are your other options?



You're still young - next year isn't so far away relatively speaking. I say suck it up, work like a fiend and save a bunch of money, and plan your move for next year. Prepare everything impeccably. Give yourself something to look forward to, and maybe come up with a back up plan just in case.

Yeah, that is tough, but Bramish is right. I know you don't want to be here for the year, but saying you cant stay is just silly.



Maybe try not comparing where you are with where you thought you would be and get on with making the most of where you are for now. You may find that the extra year to save/plan/whatever works out well for you in the long run.

I was in a similar situation before moving to Vienna - I'd planned my moving date, but had to set it back around 6 months because I lost my job in London thanks to my back screwing up, and had to move back to Grimsby and live with my parents while awaiting surgery, and then for a couple of months afterwards to recover. It was gutting and depressing, but I'm here now so in the long run it wasn't such a big deal.

Is Canada the only country you're interested in? There are different programs that offer similar things for other countries... I don't know about many of them but I know some friends of mine found temporary jobs teaching English in Japan. It isn't the best paid job in the world but it sure is a wild experience! In short, I don't know what your fields of interest are, but there are bound to be options out there - and finally as bramish says, you could just prepare for next year and send in your application on the first day when the program reopens. Then they're sure to take you :)

Most of my friends are at university in Canada in regina, but for a lot of them its their last school year after that they'll split up all over Canada.



I love Canada but the main reason I was going was because of my friends and this was the last chance to be with them as a group.



I've already been finding that motivation to move out there has been slipping but so has my motivation to do anything.



I hate my jobs but I've got used to them and I've started to get lazy, I dont want to end up like the people I work with. They all seem to have the same story, I was going to be a graphic designer, I was going to be a web designer or work in film but then I saw my friends struggling to get work so I decided to stay here.



The longer I stay the more I feel like that could happen to me.



but for getting out sometime this year its pretty much impossible.



I mean theres a web design course that I want to take but the total will work out to £13, 607 even with a student loan I £7000 short and thats not including money to live off.



I might just go to New zeland.

I might just go to New zeland.



It's that simple?



The longer I stay the more I feel like that could happen to me.



You're the master of your own destiny. If you can't tolerate another year without giving up on your goals, that'd be pretty sad. At least you know you hate your job and that it's only a means to an end.

your story reminded me of this…





i don't mean to be flippant about your misery though

Oh crap, I'm so sorry dude

There is nothing about the technical side of web design that you can't learn from a book. The creative side of web design is different, but what angle are you approaching. Front or back end design?

Bramish on Jan 18 '10 at 8:51am



I might just go to New zeland.



It's that simple?



Its not and I probably wont do it, its just I was on the bunac website at the time and had just been on the phone with them checking I'd understood.



The NZ program never fills up and you can go any time.



Right now I'm just feeling sorry for myself and the idea that I can just get up and go is pretty appealing, plus it would be nice to do an actual working holiday.



The longer I stay the more I feel like that could happen to me.



You're the master of your own destiny. If you can't tolerate another year without giving up on your goals, that'd be pretty sad. At least you know you hate your job and that it's only a means to an end.



I can tolerate it if theres an end in sight but right now theres nothing.



I mean the plan with the bunac visa was to get a full time job, the fact that the company wouldnt have to fill out paper work meant it would be easier to get through the door (in theory) then once I'd worked with them for a while I could get a year long work visa.



Then I'd apply for the canadian experience class program which says I need to save up two years of full time employment in canada and then I can live in canada for the rest of my life.



I mean I guess I could still do that but its a year away and the canada I went to in university wont be the same one I'm going back to then.

jamesf, star wars refferences are always win.



Gar0, I do want to do web design and I think it will be a big part of my career but I have to admit a big reason for doing the course was to get me back into canada.



Sorry everyone thanks for listening to my pitty party, I'll probably be ok after a few days its just in a 30 seconds my plan for the next 3 years of my life has completely changed.



I guess I just need to work out whats really important to me.

Next 3 years? So you can still go next year?

why not move to London for a year instead? Get a job doing whatever... something media centric



you'll still get the life experience, plus you've done Canada twice now - shit is played out son

Move somewhere and make new friends. My average friend lifetime is 18 months. I can't even remember who I was hanging around with last year.

Bramish on Jan 18 '10 at 9:06am Next 3 years? So you can still go next year?



Yeah I guess.







tesco on Jan 18 '10 at 9:08am why not move to London for a year instead? Get a job doing whatever... something media centric



you'll still get the life experience, plus you've done Canada twice now - shit is played out son



I guess I could do that, at the very least I could do with getting out of a small town, whats london like?



I didnt really like it the last time I visited but that was 4 or 5 years ago and I was doing tourist stuff.

fatheed on Jan 18 '10 at 9:16am

Move somewhere and make new friends. My average friend lifetime is 18 months. I can't even remember who I was hanging around with last year.



Haha - I still have my core group from back home but over here I tend to hang out with whoever comes into the pub. Usually tourists. New friends every week!

Yeah I was just kidding - I do have friends from school and uni - but you have to mix it up, bro. They're getting on with their lives.

london yesterday…

Have you considered adapting that illustration for the purposes of a witty tee design, james?

Tesco, you speak like Canada's a cookie cutter place that's all the same.

Personally I don't think Canada can really be played out.

There are a lot of bad parents in london.

fatheed on Jan 18 '10 at 9:21am

Have you considered adapting that illustration for the purposes of a witty tee design, james?



hmmm, could be an interesting new trend

that really sucks dude.



but take it from someone who hates the town she lives in - you can live in a craphole and still a way to work towards your goals. I did an online course last year that was 10x more useful than anything I learnt in university.

stubby43 on Jan 18 '10 at 9:22am

There are a lot of bad parents in london.



Lulz. But the dog owners are the best!

stubby43 on Jan 18 '10 at 8:47am

Most of my friends are at university in Canada in regina, but for a lot of them its their last school year after that they'll split up all over Canada.



I love Canada but the main reason I was going was because of my friends and this was the last chance to be with them as a group.



making such a move is a big deal... especially if you're mainly doing it because of friends. and especially if your friends would part ways the following year. then what?



i think if you dislike your town and just need a change, and you really have to leave, you can just move to a different town (one that doesn't require a visa) this year, and then figure out what to do from there?



but in any case, that sucks. i would be bummed out if i was planning to do something, then couldn't because of a missed opportunity.

London is awesome. And I've never been to New Zeland but I kinda imagine that could be awesome too. They have these indigenous stick insects that are actually able to fully freeze in winter and then thaw and come to life in the spring. Not that that helps you much.



I did a web design course for 6 months and around 500$ and it taught me everything I needed to know to get started. Once you get the basics down you can work it on your own - there is absolutely no reason to blow so much money on a course. It's not heart surgery :D