Flown from the Nest

Today, Danica wakes up differently than ever before. Yesterday, she moved into what will be her residence for the school year: a room in a house in Ottawa, shared with three other girls women.

You may recall that she commuted to Carlton U for her freshman year. You may also recall that her car got totalled near the very end on last semester when exams were almost finished. Since there will be no possibility of commuting this year, she will be staying in the city, just a bus ride from campus. I think, however, that she would probably have made the move regardless of the car situation, for it seems to be a natural progression.

The semester won't begin for another two weeks, but she has landed a part-time job at the university store where students may purchase books and other paraphernalia. Today is a training day, but she doesn't yet know the rest of her schedule.

She'll be up early, going outside to the bus stop, and travelling to campus. I am not sure if she has been on city bus before, but she will manage because she is a grown woman.

On Sunday, we stopped by to give her this last-minute card because Sue thought of her own experience of standing at bus stops in the rain in Toronto at that age.

A last-minute creation with an AI-generated character.

I forget what else she was given, but I know that we gave her a whistle to blow if she ever felt threatened when walking to or waiting at the bus stop.

I took pictures of both Dani and the cat, but the cat photos can come later. I really like these two candid shots. She's a real gem.

Depending on her work schedule, I think she'll be back and forth between here and there until the 9th when classes begin. At some point, we hope to visit her and see her domicile and also tour campus and her book and merch shop. We haven't seen the campus yet although we have driven by in the more distant past. We'll depend on Shauna to get us there and back when circumstances permit.

Jonathan got a picture of Danica saying goodbye last night from her new front door. But I'm okay. Really, I am.