How it started & how it's going
Hello friend, I'm moving to Ireland!
Hello friend,
A lot can change in a week. You can be restructured out of a job. You can lose family members. You can say goodbye to a seven-year relationship. You can crash on your friend’s couch and forget to eat for a few days while staring out into the open expanse of your life with your plans in tatters on the ground, not knowing what comes next. I guess what I’m trying to say is that September was a lot.
It’s not like I’m a stranger to starting over. To be honest, Chaos Elmo is probably the closest thing I have to a mascot.
When I was 16, I absconded to Vancouver fuelled by fear and a special sort of delusion inspired by every teen movie featuring a new girl in town.
At 26, I sold every part of my life that didn’t fit into two suitcases, had a farewell tour, and moved to Australia in search of sunshine, warm water surfing, bold wines, and briny oysters. And I started sending emails to friends about my new life:
February 2017
Hi ladies,
First few days have been awesome. I have a bank account, a phone, and am sorting out my tax number right now. Very grown up. I spent yesterday touring with a friend from YVR who moved here to Sydney literally the day before me. She lives in Manly beach (which costs a million) but is absolutely incredible.
Australians are beautiful and we are resigned to being proud 7+s. (The plus is for our exotic, foreign accents.)
I love it here, and I've been lucky the weather has been cooler than usual, so I’m easing into the climate.
Australia is amazing.
Now, I’m 34. The ashes of my life are still settling on the ground around me like fresh snowfall and the newsletter will once again include updates on my life abroad. (Although, hopefully there will be a few less farm updates—I don’t think my knees could handle tending to an orchard these days.)
So, what next?
Before that, here’s the best thing I’ve heard lately
“It’s either the hippo or climate change. There’s nothing in between.”
A discussion over cocktails about a man who told a woman that he didn’t have Moo Deng in his feed because he only consumed high-brow information about the state of the world.
I’m doublin’ down on Dublin
In a decision that has baffled my father, who believes no place worth living is devoid of trade winds and palm trees, I am moving to Ireland.
“I think you need to do something very in character. Moving across the world for a guy was never really in your character. Fucking off to Ireland? Now, that tracks.”
- My very supportive brother
Why Ireland?
They’ll let me in. I’m still eligible for the two year working holiday visa.
Coastal living is key. I want to learn how to sail properly, surf on the west coast, and take a dip in the ocean any day that catches my fancy. Living on an island in the North Atlantic seems like a good way to do that.
Cheap flights to Europe. Here’s looking at you (and your couches), Euro-friends.
The literary scene. Hoping sharing a continent with the likes of Sally Rooney and Kevin Barry will help inspire me to finish the book(s).
Something new. I’ve never visited Ireland. I know almost no one there. I’d like to prove to myself that I can still do that thing where I start over fresh and build a life.
Before you ask:
No, I don’t know how long I’ll be there for.
No, I don’t know what I’ll do after.
No, I don’t have family there or any real ties to the country.
Yes, I am a bit scared. (This is the most anxious I’ve ever been sending you an email.)
The last few weeks of packing up and selling things off have been exhausting. Lining up a new life in a very bureaucratic country is already proving a bit tricky. I won’t be able to work in Ireland until the powers that be give me a resident’s card, which might not happen until January, and the whole process is making Australia look easy. (Reach out for all of your freelance marketing needs lol.)
With that in mind, there will be a few changes around here.
What’s changing?
This is going to be a bit more organized going forward. The first Friday of every month, you can expect an email of Recommended Reading—a round up of the books, shows, articles, and other content I usually bury at the bottom of these emails.
Mid-month-ish, I’ll send you an update—a little Hello Friend email with what’s going on in my life, a la 2017 style. These emails will dive into things like burning down your life, adventures abroad, starting over in your mid-30s, and general proof of life notifications.
Finally—and trust me, this feels very strange to share—you can now support me both emotionally and financially if you so choose. For less than a coffee (without nut milk) per month, you can help support my writing by paying for a subscription.
This will also get you access to a fun new section I’m adding to the newsletter called Dear Chaos Demon. It’s a monthly advice column where I will give the kind of chaotic ‘what’s the most interesting outcome’ advice that real-life friends have come to know and sometimes appreciate. Very mindful, but not at all demure. Aside from that, a special New Years Letter, and audio versions of posts, nothing else is going to be hidden behind a paywall.
As always, the best way to support me and my writing is just to hit share, and even now that will get you free months of the paid stuff. I promise, you will not hurt my feelings if you don’t upgrade to a paid subscription.
In the New Quarterly
The New Quarterly asked me to share some context around my recently published short story, Rushing the Landing.
“Rushing the Landing was kindled by the stories I’ve heard pilots tell my whole life, the gossip that comes from living in a small town, and the overwhelming sense of ‘it’s a damn shame’ that I find pervasive in fading communities abandoned by industry and youth. It’s not based on any particular incident, though I’m sure those from communities like my hometown will be able to draw many parallels with the boy and his potential, Troy and his futility, and the obvious fallout to come.”
There you have it. I’m moving to Ireland in a matter of days and I have a lot of feelings that you’re going to hear about over the coming months. But for now, all I want to say is thank you for being a friend, and apologies in advance for being Emily in Paris level annoying about being Trish in Dublin.
Your friend,
Trish