8 a.m. — Two of my students give me cards and a gift card to a bookstore for Christmas! I'm excited, because these are my first teacher presents, and because now I can buy a book for my plane ride to New York City this weekend. We're going home to see our families for Christmas. (Mine is in New York, and T.'s is in the east, too.) I grew up in New York, London, and Geneva, but went to Montreal for university where I met T. An internship with his current company brought us to B.C. The small-town life has been a big adjustment, and I sometimes miss being closer to an airport, but it’s been nice to feel like a local in a small place after years of moving around and being anonymous in large cities.