Just life

I imagine that some of you have stopped checking this site on a regular basis. I probably would have if I were you. I realize that it's been two months since I've written anything, and I appologize to those of you who have still checked it regularly in hopes of some updates. It seems like the longer I'm here, the less excitement and/or changes happen on a daily/weekly/monthly basis. In January, I had new things to write about daily. In February or March that became weekly. Now, I feel like two months could be summed up in two words... "just life". What began as an adventure has now become daily life. Here are some updates on how life has been over the past couple of months:
I'm still waiting on my RCMP security clearance to come through for my job... I expect to hear sometime very soon. I'm getting anxious to get into the training for the next phase of my job, as what I'm doing right now gets a little redundant after a while. In the last two months that I have been there, I have already seen a number of changes in the team that I work with. I became quite attached to the two women who were on my team in the first month or so of my job... unfortunately one is no longer with the company and the other has already moved into training. I feel very fortunate to be on what, in my opinion, is the best of the four work teams. My supervisor is wonderful and I like the new people working on my team (which is a very good thing, since we are together for long periods of time in a rather small space). I've gotten used to the shiftwork, and although the wacky sleep times still messes with my body, I've learned what works best for me and how to manage my sleeping patterns. I think now that I'm doing this, I actually prefer working twelve hour days on a rotation than five days for eight hours. The four days at work fly by and before you know it you're off again. Nothing beats four days off in a row!
I've been trying to make the most of my time off... enjoying all of the outdoor activities I can... going to beaches, provincial parks, hiking in the mountains, and driving up the coast. Living here, you really could go do something different each weekend and never run out of places to go/things to see. The bonus is that each trip to somewhere new helps familiarize me with a different part of this area (take different highways, cross bridges, etc) which is a very good for work. Looking at a map is one thing, but being able to visualize places in my mind is much more helpful!
I was able to get off one block (four days) this month, which allowed me to take a 10 day trip back to Ontario. Both Kelly and Krista got married on the same weekend. It was so nice to be able to be back for both of their weddings (even though the two hour wait at the US border prevented us from making it to Kelly's ceremony... we did go to the reception). It was really nice to be able to see family and friends again. The trip went by SOOO fast, and it felt like such a short time. I wish I had been able to spend more time visiting people and more time at the cottage, but the time I had was really good. I'm so grateful that I was able to go back. If only I could soak up the sweet times with family and friends and put them in a bottle to bring back with me.
At the begining of this month, my friend Andrea moved back to Ontario (she's also from Ontario). I met Andrea at the home church that I've been attending and we became good friends during the past few months. Life's a little lonlier already with her gone. Although I've been here for almost eight months, I still often feel lonely. I spend a lot of time by myself. There are lots of times when I just want someone to talk to and I don't know who to call (this whole three hour time difference stinks when you have those moments after 8pm). I've met lots of people and have some sort of relationship with some of those people... but I still long for deeper, more meaningful friendships. I am so thankful for Deric, Amber, and Ava - I consider them family.
Reine moved out in the middle of July (a room opened up in a house that some friends are renting). Deric, Amber, and I were hoping to find a new roommate for me by August 1, but were unable to. We did, however, find a really great girl (Jem) who will move in on Sept. 1. She's a Christian and starting a master's at Regent College (the local seminary/Christian university). I'm excited for her to move in and to get to know her better.
I continued volunteering with Urban Promise throughout the summer and plan to get involved with the afterschool program again this year. It's been a while since I've been downtown to help with mom's food ministry because of scheduling issues, but I hope to keep doing that in the fall as well.
So, that's life in a nutshell. I'd be happy to give you more than the nutshell version... but for this blog entry a nutshell will have to do :)