Repatriate Me!

Well I’ve got a lot accomplished since the last update. Managed to find a three bedroom bungalow to rent without basement tenants – which is really great. The basement is partially finished and will do well for an office for me and a rec room once we’ve got it furnished. The house has a pretty big front lawn but the backyard which is larger is a mess. It’s just a bunch of weeds, packed mud and rocks. Can’t really do much with that and since it’s a rental, I’ll just do enough to make it bearable.

I also went to Ikea for the first time. I was underwhelmed with the experience, but did buy three things just because of the price. Got a TV stand, a rocker and a queen size bed frame. Assembly was not as difficult as I expected but it still bites. Have also purchased a second hand Ikea desk which I disassembled at the guys house and still have to assemble here. Should be fun, NOT.

Have also arranged for contents insurance on the house and purchased some household stuff like cleaning supplies, limited dishes, At this point there’s not much left that I can buy until my wife and kids arrive. Fortunately they arrive this coming Thursday.

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I’ve now been in Canada for just over a week and today is Canada Day. My first Canada day in Country since 1996. It’s just another day, but in any case happy Canada Day everyone.

I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had time to write any updates despite a request or two on facebook. My 365project, a photo a day for a year, has suffered without an update since June 25th. I’ve got a couple of pictures on the camera but there are at least two days where I didn’t take a single picture. It’s much easier to take pictures when you’re walking everywhere or taking public transit than when you’re driving.

General Stuff

I landed on Thursday at 11am, one hour later due to fog in Seoul that resulted in a delayed take off. I got my car rental and made it to my basement suite. After unloading my stuff I went to the bank to talk about getting a visa card and how to best manage my finances. Dan at TD CanadaTrust was very helpful and got me set up with the correct accounts and I now have a visa card on the way. Normal wait time is 6-10 days, but it might be a little longer due to the backlog at Canada Post after the strike. I seem to recall getting my credit card in Korea in less than 2 days, oh well this is Canada.

By this time it was close to 5pm so I found a place to eat, then went to walmart picked up a few groceries and then went back to my basement suite. Sent a couple of emails off to my wife had a shower and then went to bed around 9:30. Woke up at 2:30 – jetlag is fun.

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