It’s been pretty busy around our house lately. We’re getting ready for the holidays, reorganizing and attempting to relax, all at the same time.
We moved in to our new house in August. Life has been upside down for months as we figured out what we wanted to do with the place, sorted out issues with contractors to install some hardwood flooring and finally decided to do it ourselves with help from family.
Throw into the mix my being laid off in September, finally getting my incorrect record of employment this week (still waiting on vacation pay and severance pay) and contract work, and it’s made for a very busy and interesting autumn.
With a couple of solid contracts doing communications work and search engine optimization (SEO) I have been keeping quite busy. I have a nice office to work in at home now, so I can keep organized and be productive. No more working at the coffee table! 
I’ve found that keeping a positive attitude through all of this hasn’t always been easy, but it’s certainly made life a lot better when I can. I’d say the majority of the time my attitude is positive. It’s not always easy, and I completely understand how it would be easy to fall into a negative frame of mind.
Alberta: economy still strong here
Despite the economy heading into recession everywhere else, Edmonton and Alberta are still doing well. The dramatically lower oil prices ought to slow the economy a bit, but I think companies will be able to get some projects done a little more easily now. The oil prices will be heading back up; perhaps not as high as before (at least not immediately) but they will go back up, and probably sooner than we’d hope!
We have a lot to be thankful for in Alberta and I’m glad I’m here. It’s been a beneficial move for me and my family. There have been a few hiccups along the way, but it’s all worked out for the best.
I am working with great people and have been working on a lot of really interesting SEO and social media projects of late. I have continued to meet a lot of talented and nice people here in Edmonton and I’m looking forward to meeting more of you! The Tweetups, Meetups and other events I’ve attended have been great. I really enjoy meeting the people I talk to online.
My hope is that I will be able to get out of Edmonton in 2009 to some conferences and meet more of the SEO and social media people I chat with.
I hope that the Christmas season is positive, happy and fun for you and your family and I hope you have a Happy New Year!
Alain Saffel
