I am in my new home

The move went really well

and God kept me in His peace,

thanks to His mercy and many

people's prayers.

I am tired now,

understandably

but

I can get to my kitchen area,

my bed is set up

and

I am slowly unpacking.

+++

I so thankful to God

that today

I was still able to walk to Church.

I could not be happier

with what I have been given.

I thank and give glory to God!!

Here we go

I got a truck. More km will be driven. The Lord is merciful.

Just had to mention

hahhahaha

UHAUL messed up my order

and I just found out tonight.

Then they tried to give me a 26 foot truck

to which my dear friend

called me

after an email to him and my other friend

who are fearlessly willing to move my sofa-bed couch,

and he explained how BIG that truck is.

So

I have

NO TRUCK

for my move tomorrow.

I will call tomorrow 7 AM to get

I hope

and

pray

a new smaller cargo van for

8 AM tomorrow morning.

The customer service,

when I tried to get their error resolved

(name, email and phone number all imputed wrongly;

and I was told that the truck and all was set

and IT WAS NOT)

was what I would call

fairly shockingly bad.

HOWEVER.

Other calls to them later that night were all Fine and Nice

and I pray that tomorrow morning

that I will have a cargo van

that is not too far away

and

moving will get done.

++

I realize however that:

Its going to be OKAY.

Yep.

My friend who explained the truck problem to me

was most kind.

And my other friends love me too.

And

well, I packed up almost all my Icons and this reminded me

of how I am not alone,

that I am loved cared for

and can be happy I am moving tomorrow.

Prayers requested for a UHAUL cargo van tomorrow

8 AM or something comparable.

Tomorrow I move

Tomorrow I take Cleo to my new place.

Last night I cleaned cupboards,

swept and mopped my new floor.

It is good.

I took my final pictures of my current

box-strewn apartment;

Thanking God that He gave me a good place to live

for the past year.

Soon I will be unpacking,

finding these candles again,

this Bible,

putting up icons.

Getting used to my desk being against a different wall.

Rejoicing in my newly found bright blue home.

*

I will not have Internet access,

that I know of,

from Saturday-Sunday afternoon.

By Sunday evening my phone and Internet should be switched

and usable again.

**

I thank God for His great goodness.

I thank God for each one of you.

Thanksgiving

To all those celebrating Thanksgiving today:

Have a wonderful day!

+++

I am so thankful to God for His goodness

and

that many are going to help me move on Saturday.

+++

God is good to us and tender in His mercy.

Thoughts Amidst Moving

Everything is uprooted

when moving.

I really want to learn French;

I know this.

But I do not know to what end.

*

I have been thinking over the questions I had this summer.

The what do I want to do with my life?

questions.

**

I told my Mom today over the phone

that I am thinking of

applying

to academic programs

for English Lit

and that French would help me to this end.

PhDs need one or two languages.

French is a language.

***

So I told her,

I am going to try to learn French.

Take eight months intensive courses

apply to programs

see what happens.

At the same time French

can open doors to jobs

in government

and

in

libraries.

I am trying to be open to the varied

possibilities

that may become my life.

But the English Lit question

I now declare

is not

a

closed

finished

question.

****

I have questions about the 16th Century

that I want answered.

This century was a pivotal one for Western

society

and began much

that we are seeing

in fruition today,

good things

and

not so good things.

*****

These are some of my thoughts

amidst moving.

I pray that God will help me stay in the present

while seeking to discern

His will for my future.

Glory to God for all things.

Prayers Needed Over Seas

Over seas if you are in North America that is.

*

In case you did not know,

Ukraine is having huge H1N1 problems,

with possible mutations

and the death of many people.

We need to pray for them.

**

We who are in richer countries,

like Canada, the US or Britain,

are so fortunate.

We have vaccines, strong hospital care.

***

It is good for me to remember

how fortunate I am.

Lord have mercy on the many suffering this day.

Moving days are made of many minutes

My new view!

I got my keys yesterday and took some pictures.

The view off of my small new balcony is quite

diverse.

TALL buildings and cute ones like the

picture above.

So retro, I love it.

My new place needs shelves like you would not believe.

Oh the work to be done...

Like the screen being not in the window...

Love the cute little tile window sill though!

+++

It is so tiring to move and pack.

+++

One plodding step in front of the other,

this is all I can do...

+++

I trust in God's mercy to keep me this week, Amen.

Counting the Good Things

I made my first of many phone calls

about my upcoming move.

And my phone provider (I was on hold longish time)

gave me free minutes for my cell

for the needs of moving

and took care of some other matters.

It warmed my heart,

receiving such great customer service.

*

I have been thinking of switching to vonage

but am still unsure.

My friends use them, lots of good services.

But I am uncomfortable with

the long distance service call centre.

They have a script, do not deviate from it,

always make me feel rushed to join them

(I was on the phone more than one hour with them)

and still am not convinced.

Even though they would save me money

the customer service experiences I have had

are all poor, rushed and make me feel like a meaningless number.

They don't know Canada at all.

They wanted me to use the US .com website instead of .ca

they do not know that Ottawa is the Capital of Canada

nor do they even pretend to care.

**

It is not that I think that my current phone provider cares

per say

but the customer service is from somewhere in Canada,

it feels like coming home

after talking with someone from Vonage in Singapore

{I have nothing against Singapore}

but somehow the service gets mistranslated and leaves me

feeling bad for wanting a Canadian

but also really wanting service that is familiar and

that culturally translates kindness and patience to me.

Sorry for the complaint,

goodness this post was to be about

the Good Things,

like increased cell phone minutes

and the customer service person being refreshing,

laughing at my humor

and giving me a break on my cell phone bill.

So,

moving right along;

another good thing today is while I was on hold with vonage

and my current phone provider,

I read new blogs that are on RW's blog list.

Beautiful.

Artistic.

The photographs captured on these blogs

refresh the soul.

Third thing,

my friends are loving me,

being flexible,

and patient.

And, speaking of Asia,

I went to a great restaurant

and had Korean Bibimbap -

have you had this?

It comes in what is called a "stone bowl" that is so hot

that it will

burn your skin and scar it if touched.

Rice, thinly sliced veggies, beef and a fried egg

with the yolk still runny.

Sorry for mentioning non-fasting food,

but I'm on the old calendar and was with church friends

and our fast has not yet started.

Right now I am just grateful for eating good food,

as my kitchen is being dismantled...

so there is my count of some very good things,

not to mention the relief of not moving too far from where I am now.

I can't tell you

WHAT A HUGE RELIEF

it is to stay in the neighbourhood that I know and love.

***

God is so merciful to me.

Sleeping Beauty

In the midst of the drama of my own

blogged about life,

a few weeks ago,

I saw my first ballet

to celebrate my friend's wedding

that

I attended last weekend.

*

When the curtain began to rise

and

the dancers appeared,

I found myself thinking of Ngaio Marsh

and the novel about her detective

seeing a play where the murder in the play

actually happens.

Marsh's description of the players in the back of my mind,

I began to watch the ballet...

It was very beautiful,

perfect in timing, in the use of props, the costumes.

The sense of a former time created through

this art

was wonderful to behold.

I was surprised at how you can hear the feet tapping when the

ballerinas are dancing en pointe.

I could not help wondering about the lives of the dancers

when they are off stage.

My sense is that their world must be very pressurized,

with very long practice periods

and working with each other to create beautiful art

on stage.

The need for perfection on stage

I imagine is very intense.

Any misstep on stage must be gut-wrenching

to the dancer.

I was also struck by how traditional

this ballet was,

and the juxtaposition of living in downtown Ottawa

where gender and politics go hand in hand.

*

Needless to say,

it was very beautiful and I wished the world of

Sleeping Beauty

was more with us.

Many miles to go before I sleep

Cleo is currently hanging out in her cat carrier.

I think she feels the need to hide

from the chaos of the living room.

I don't blame her.

The above is a picture of her

hanging out in an empty bookshelf,

behind the said cat carrier.

+++

As I signed my lease Friday afternoon,

and the rental office of my building closes on noon

on Friday,

and there various moves happening in and out of my building

this weekend,

I was not able to find out what times are available for me to use the elevator.

I admit to feeling stressed about this,

even though God so miraculously provided my apartment for me.

Not being able to tell my friends who are helping me move

when I am moving,

is wearying.

Oh well.

I hope to get this straitened out by tomorrow.

+++

My nerves are on edge from everything

going wrong

for a few weeks...

+++

I move sometime this week;

I have yet to know who will drive the U-Haul truck

that I have yet to reserve.

+++

May the Lord calm and comfort us.

Cleo and I got the apartment! The Lease is Signed!

My lease was signed and dotted today after all!

+++

Thank you all so much for your prayers!

+++

It will be smaller, less cupboard space, smaller bedroom...

but it has everything I need and want:

*new apartment is only a block from where I am now

*wood floors

*separate bedroom

*laundry on site

*Super on site

*small balcony off bedroom with door

*elevators

*windows for Cleo to look out

+++

God really helped me!

First saving me from the potential BAD

landlord / tenant relationship;

Second, this is the apartment I had wanted all along.

It had been listed before and was taken before I saw it;

opposite of my situation, the tenant who wanted it backed out,

so it came up for rent again.

Now it is mine.

All I want to know now is to be sure that the walls can be nailed in

so I can put my Icons up!

One thing at a time!

+++

Thank you all for your prayers and support!

Now I need to move this coming week,

unpack,

look for a new job,

plan my trip DV home for Christmas

and organize myself for future French Classes.

+++

Thanks be to God for His great mercy!

Application Approved

I went to the office of the rental agent

to apply for the apartment I saw last night.

I brought all the paper work needed,

including a reference letter from my landlord.

Because of God's mercy

and the paperwork all being brought with me,

the rental office called me this afternoon

to say I have been approved.

They have my deposit

and I sign the lease next week Monday

late morning.

As I had friends who rented through this company,

it should not turn out poorly.

Once the lease is signed and the keys exchanged,

I will be really happy.

But for now I no reason not to think that I have

been given the apartment that I wanted all along.

When it came up on craigslist, I wanted it

right away.

It is smaller but should still fit my living / dining room furniture,

is downtown,

has wood floors, elevators, laundry

and a superintendent on sight.

I am happy and am now waiting only for what should happen

on Monday when the lease is signed.

Thank God for His mercy.

Here's Hoping My Apartment is Found

The apartment I saw today was good.

Dramatically less cupboard space

but do able.

It had the charm of an older apartment building.

It is super close to where I live now,

which is very ideal.

I am meeting with the current tenant

and the landlord

tomorrow early afternoon

to apply.

As we know,

until the "yes" is said AND the lease is signed,

it is not a done deal.

Prayers requested and thank you.

I feel that I can be happy in this apartment...

déjà vu

The place I almost took before and liked

but that was not downtown

was relisted.

I have emailed to inquire, after

talking with the rental agent and realizing it was

not being done through them.

Tonight I look at the place I wanted but

that was taken before I even saw it

last time.

So I am looking at the two places

that I wanted again,

if I hear from the subletting place.

That apartment I liked better than the other one in the same

building.

+++

I am back at the same thing again but with less time.

I wonder however why the place was let go,

I think it is the exact apartment I almost took

and now it is up for sublet a month later.

May the Lord protect and guide me in all things.

+++

Please keep praying for my friend's friend,

who is Resa, as Margaret pointed out

(since I do not know her personally

I did not blog her name,

but at least two others have;

the Orthodox blog world cares for each other...)

I do not have any further news yet.

Will this be the apartment?

Tomorrow early evening

I am looking at an apartment

that has been relisted; it was one

I was really interested in before.

Near where I live, laundry, wood floors, windows.

+++

Thank you everyone for your prayers

including for my friend's friend.

+++

May the Lord have mercy on us all.

Prayer Request on behalf of a friend

A dear friend of mine has a friend who is in the hospital with pneumonia

and is on a respirator. Doctors do not expect her to live another 24 hours; I think this was complications of swine flu. Please pray for her.

Trying

Well.

I am tired.

No surprise there.

And my Cat decided to wake me at 4 AM.

Thank you Cleo...

+++

I saw a place today.

See two more tomorrow.

Feel a tad discouraged and overwhelmed.

However, it could be worse.

+++

I am seeking to be thankful

and peaceful

in the middle of all this.

It is difficult.

+++

We must all continue to trust in God's mercy.

Going Forward / Moving On

Tomorrow I will get my money back in late afternoon.

+++

I am looking at a place that I looked at before

(different apartment in same building).

It is not downtown,

but with having to move out in 2 weeks,

I don't have the luxury of time to keep looking.

(My landlord cannot keep me on longer as my apartment is already rented).

+++

I have to keep packing.

+++

I have to forgive the landlord who failed me.

My spiritual father told me a good prayer to begin the process of forgiveness is:

Lord, please do not hold any of these things against [him / her] on judgement day.

+++

I am so glad I will not be living in that apartment.

It is not easy to forgive someone and really,

though there has been great unkindness,

there has been much worse

and I must learn to be as God,

gentle, compassionate, slow to anger, slow to speak.

+++

Nativity Fast has begun for many;

my Church begins at the end of this month.

I too need to repent

and seek to prepare my heart of Christ's Nativity.

I am glad I have time DV to move before the fast begins...

May the Lord help and have mercy on us all.

Amen.

Worse But Better

To summarize:

Landlord is being very poor.

I have been told I no longer have the apartment.

The conversation was shockingly bad,

with no care for me

or

the situation it puts me in.

What is better about this?

Well it is quite obvious that this is not the place for me to live

and it is better not to live there.

Moreover, God has His plan for me

and promises to take care of me.

+++

Please pray for me and Cleo that we will have a new home.

+++

Oh, and I am pursuing legal advice.

I must not panic but pray - prayers requested

About that lease.

The landlords told me the person

in the apartment

who gave written notice of her moving out as of TODAY

is now saying she wants to live there 6 more months.

My landlords cashed my deposit.

As mentioned,

I have yet to sign the lease.

I will be calling the appropriate legal channels in the morning.

If the landlords do not evict her,

then I do not have a place to live in two weeks.

I was supposed to have this apartment as of

this coming Friday.

Prayers Requested.

Evening has come

Let Evening Come

Let the light of late afternoon
shine through chinks in the barn, moving
up the bales as the sun moves down.

Let the cricket take up chafing
as a woman takes up her needles
and her yarn. Let evening come.

Let dew collect on the hoe abandoned
in long grass. Let the stars appear
and the moon disclose her silver horn.

Let the fox go back to its sandy den.
Let the wind die down. Let the shed
go black inside. Let evening come.

To the bottle in the ditch, to the scoop
in the oats, to air in the lung let evening come.

Let it come, as it will, and don't
be afraid. God does not leave us
comfortless, so let evening come.

-- Jane Kenyon

Memory Eternal

My friend's Mom died last week.

Friends and I prayed for a man about two years ago

who was not well.

He died this week.

I don't know if I ever met him but I love many who love him.

Memory Eternal.

This life is not what it was supposed to be,

with the soul separating from the body.

One of the most healing things

for me

is the truth that death is not normal

and that

Christ has trampled down death by death.

May God have mercy on all of us,

living and departed this life.

Beautiful Wedding

The wedding I went to was beautiful.

I pray that my newly wedded friends will have a

long and holy life together.

+++

The reception was also lovely.

I had salmon - succulent and with a wonderful sauce.

And a chocolate flourless cake

with a small glass of dark red wine.

+++

After the cake I and some of the other girls joined the bride on the dance floor.

It was a joyous celebration.

+++

The boxes and packing paper was delivered this morning;

even with the promise for packing help if needed.

I have so many boxes and 4 big rolls of used packing paper.

God is providing packing supplies in a super abundant way.

+++

Now I get to rest and be quiet.

Liturgy tomorrow,

Thank God.

On the radar

The lease is not signed.

I have given it to God and will deal with it again on Sunday.

Have asked the prayers of Archangel Michael.

I am schedule to get packing boxes,

including wardrobe boxes and a barrel for my fine china

and packing paper -

from someone I met on the street near where I live,

when I was getting boxes left for recycling.

I am working on a security clearance

form for a job agency.

This does not mean a job in hand

but perhaps in a far off bush.

+++

Tomorrow I am going to a friend's wedding.

+++

My living / dining room and kitchen have turned into a disaster zone.

+++

I am looking to God for my salvation.

Good Thing

I still feel like I am living in a place of many unknowns

tentatively trying to figure out what to do.

Thankfully I have family who encourage me.

I am not sure which way to go yet

but am going to try to find a part time job soon.

I saw a really funny sign yesterday.

I photographed it,

but today my camera would not turn on

to download it.

I am now recharging the battery.

Hopefully I will be able to post this soon.

+++

Lease is not signed yet but I am feeling a bit better.

However, things need to move along...

A New Day

I communicated simply on the phone

that I need the lease done

so I can make other plans.

I am to get a call tomorrow...

+++

Today I have various errands to do,

which is great.

I really do not do well without a schedule and am glad for the errands.

+++

I am slowly thinking on what kind of part-time job I could do.

Any thoughts?

+++

Got lots of boxes yesterday and someone offered me

packing boxes and material.

Have to call them for this.

+++

It is an effort to do what needs to be done

and be at peace.

But God is merciful.

Steady Goes it

Wow.

Packing is hard. Could not do it without friends.

I am a bit concerned about my new apartment.

I really like it.

But I have not signed the lease yet

and feel a bit brushed off when I mention that I want to get

the lease signing

over and done with.

I want to read the lease, I want things to be strait forward.

I want the things fixed that I mentioned.

Basically

a bit of proof that they will respect deadlines.

Please pray for me.

These words help me

"Are you speaking the truth? Well, now, after such a confession, I believe that you are sincere and good at heart. If you do not attain happiness, always remember that you are on the right road, and try not to leave it. Above all, avoid falsehood, every kind of falsehood, especially falseness to yourself. Watch over your own deceitfulness and look into it every hour, every minute. Avoid being scornful, both to others and to yourself. What seems to you bad within you will grow purer from the very fact of your observing it in yourself. Avoid fear, too, though fear is only the consequence of every sort of falsehood. Never be frightened at your own faint-heartedness in attaining love. Don't be frightened overmuch even at your evil actions. I am sorry I can say nothing more consoling to you, for love in action is a harsh and dreadful thing compared with love in dreams. Love in dreams is greedy for immediate action, rapidly performed and in the slight of all. Men, will even give their lives if only the ordeal does not last long but is soon over, with all looking on and applauding as though on the stage. But active love is labour and fortitude, and for some people too, perhaps, a complete science. But I predict that just when you see with horror that in spite of all your efforts you are getting further and further from your goal instead of nearer to it- at that very moment I predict that you will reach it and behold clearly the miraculous power of the Lord who has been all the time loving and mysteriously guiding you. Forgive me for not being able to stay longer with you. They are waiting for me. Good-bye.”
The lady was weeping.

Staretz Zossima, The Brothers Karamazov.

Loving Autumn

There was sunshine again today.

I remembered how much I used to love walking to work on a sunny morning.

That will be good again, one day..

I am packing up my living / dining room!

I will not be making a cake in this pan until after I move...

Today a new friend helped me pack -

friends are such a blessing!

Had to include a picture of Cleo!