бог хваления !

Slava Bogu! (Praise God - cyrillic via babelfish)Leaha and I now have a place! The "garden suite" on Franklin is now ours -be it horribly tiny, it is clean, warm and bright, which as every Vancouverite knows in the number one priority. It may not snow here regularly or at all some years, but boy does it rain and rain and rain. So while the suite may look fine in the light of August and the floor suitable to the touch now - it won't be when there is permafog, and days of endless bone-chilling rain. Sure it may seem like we get the good end of things - no snow. But spend one winter here and you'll agree there is nothing benign about rain. But regardless, we move in on the 8th because the PNE would just kill any attempt to get around in that area. We are a block from Starbucks (so all housewarming gifts should be Starbucks gift cards - Leaha and I would greatly appreciate that), 2 blocks from the Laughing Bean - which accurately I'm more likely to patron since it's all organic and fair trade, and 3 more blocks to Nanaimo (yah Donalds!) and two bus stops to Commercial Drive or a short walk - which I'm more likely to do on a nice day, it's 4 stops back to the gym (about 10minutes), and to downtown like 20minutes - ya I can sleep in!! It may only work out to an extra 30minutes - shortens the commute home too. The real story behind getting the place - our landlord use to refer patients to Ross - so 10 years working for Dr. K paid off in more ways then one! K, I don't ever want to sound like my mom - but this feels divinely appointed, considering the rent, the place, the landlord and the status of the market in Vancouver.

Fate? Is that a more suitable word for divine appointment? I don't know I find there is something helpless about the word Fate. It's like the stars aligned - no control, all random. I cannot settle with the idea that it's a whirling ball of chance - that I just happen to meet someone on a street corner, like Annie a few years ago downtown - her presence that day was what I need, that we found Max, the whole Mennomeet thing (regardless of whatever becomes of that) that Cheryl and I happened to share a bed for 2 weeks and now look at us... it's funny the two Russia trips have resulted in some of my closest friendships. I guess when you have to share a single bed or share a room with them and 13 other girls - you either love them or hate them. And really who else knows the feeling of jumping on to a moving train while throwing luggage? Huh? Well come around once we get the place together and you'll get an earful of the Red experience - I may even have some of Yarik's (one of my kids) photos to show you guys from his 6 week experience in Siberia/Eastern seaboard of Russia.

Interesting blog for those interested: http://slavabogu.wordpress.com/tag/ukraine/, and re:adoption - http://members.shaohannahshope.org/site/PageServer