Summary update
Hey there,
I'm too busy to write a proper update, but I emailed this to someone earlier and thought it was a good way to catch you up on stuff. It repeats some things I have already told you about, but maybe it'll be good to refresh your memory. I also want to add that Peter and I are still extremely happy living on our own, with our two cats, and we have absolutely no regrets about moving up here so quickly.
Anywho, here's your update:
Pete has a job! Two jobs actually, but one is only for this week. Regularly he has been working as a courier, which makes a good supplemental income to mine, however he has to use our truck, putting miles and wear and tear on it and we have to pay for the gas. He loves it, but I'm praying that he will find something just as fun that will wear less on our only vehicle. This week he is working as a chauffeur for inauguration activities. Right now he is the personal chauffeur for a guy who seems to be in charge of communications for the inauguration. He said that the guy is very nice and doesn't seem to mind that Peter is bluffing his way around D.C. - a city he only began driving in on Sunday. He gets to listen in on phone conversations where the guy keeps calling someone in the oval office and says, "I saw you on the news, you looked great! No, no, really, you were fine." Seems interesting. Our landlord, who helped Peter find this job, was Barbara Bush's chauffeur this past weekend, and now is driving the Secret Service around. Can't wait to hear his stories.
Our entire journey and experiences of living here have been a lesson on just how important our faith is and how many ways the Lord shows his love and takes care of us. I have felt and seen His hand in every aspect of our lives here, and I have to say that it is such a beautiful thing to see.
Being kicked out of our house-share before we arrived was the biggest blessing we have received thus far. Because of that eviction, we were forced to move into an apartment that we really couldn't afford, with a deposit that we definitely couldn't afford, and into a situation that now we know that we couldn't afford to lose. Not only has it pushed us into living on our own - for the first time since we were married almost 3 years ago (March 2!) - but the reason Pete is working these two jobs is because of our landlord. The apartment is owned by this very sweet couple from Turkey who just a few years older than us. They decided to move out into a bigger place and rent out their tiny apartment. The day we moved in, the guy, Kagan, noticed that we didn't have any furniture, so he left his desk, microwave, and a couple of other things.
We found a great website where people list furniture and items that they are selling or giving away, and that is where we found a table, two couches, chairs, kitchen items, towels, storage boxes, an iron, and various other household items - all for free. We also went to pick up a bed that someone claimed to be giving away, but it turns out
that they gave us the wrong address, either as a joke or by mistake. Pete called Kagan, our landlord, who immediately knew of somebody giving away a mattress and boxspring. When Pete went to pick it up, the man offered Pete a job as a courier - and he has been happily working in that job since we arrived. As for the rest of the apartment, we found a few things that we needed in thrift shops, and have managed to furnish the entire apartment for $55. Granted, nothing matches, and the bed is similar to sleeping on a bed of nails, but we now have a home that feels like a home, and I can't tell you how happy I am to see the pride and happiness in Peter.
We have had a little trouble coming up with money for rent (due Jan. 20), and have prayed for some way to be able to pay this. Because everything has to go through the main campus of my employer at their campus 4 and 1/2 hours away in Blacksburg, VA, it has taken a while for them to process me as an employee in the system, and thus, send me a paycheck and process my reimbursement for moving (they stated that they would pay the mileage and a per diem for two days' travel). Also, because our bank account here is brand new, it will take a week for Peter's first paycheck to actually go into our account. So to say the least, we have been worried about being able to pay our rent and other half of our deposit (which our landlord has so kindly allowed us to break up into two months) on time. We went to a church here, Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, where we sat with the Rector's wife, who is from England. During the sermon, the Rector had us turn to our neighbor and tell them about the time when we "experienced God" and to pray for each other. The Rector's wife seemed concerned for us and she said a special prayer to help us make our rent, and took down our names so that she could continue to pray for us during the week.
Finally, on Friday, I received my first paycheck from Virginia Tech, exactly the amount of rent that is due on Thursday. Isn't God Great? Still praying for the car payment to be made, but at least we still have a place to live.
Well I need to get back to work, this job has a never-ending pile of work and the phone never stops ringing, although I still love it.
So there you go. We're still here, fat, and happy. And Missing y'all. Cheerio!
I'm too busy to write a proper update, but I emailed this to someone earlier and thought it was a good way to catch you up on stuff. It repeats some things I have already told you about, but maybe it'll be good to refresh your memory. I also want to add that Peter and I are still extremely happy living on our own, with our two cats, and we have absolutely no regrets about moving up here so quickly.
Anywho, here's your update:
Pete has a job! Two jobs actually, but one is only for this week. Regularly he has been working as a courier, which makes a good supplemental income to mine, however he has to use our truck, putting miles and wear and tear on it and we have to pay for the gas. He loves it, but I'm praying that he will find something just as fun that will wear less on our only vehicle. This week he is working as a chauffeur for inauguration activities. Right now he is the personal chauffeur for a guy who seems to be in charge of communications for the inauguration. He said that the guy is very nice and doesn't seem to mind that Peter is bluffing his way around D.C. - a city he only began driving in on Sunday. He gets to listen in on phone conversations where the guy keeps calling someone in the oval office and says, "I saw you on the news, you looked great! No, no, really, you were fine." Seems interesting. Our landlord, who helped Peter find this job, was Barbara Bush's chauffeur this past weekend, and now is driving the Secret Service around. Can't wait to hear his stories.
Our entire journey and experiences of living here have been a lesson on just how important our faith is and how many ways the Lord shows his love and takes care of us. I have felt and seen His hand in every aspect of our lives here, and I have to say that it is such a beautiful thing to see.
Being kicked out of our house-share before we arrived was the biggest blessing we have received thus far. Because of that eviction, we were forced to move into an apartment that we really couldn't afford, with a deposit that we definitely couldn't afford, and into a situation that now we know that we couldn't afford to lose. Not only has it pushed us into living on our own - for the first time since we were married almost 3 years ago (March 2!) - but the reason Pete is working these two jobs is because of our landlord. The apartment is owned by this very sweet couple from Turkey who just a few years older than us. They decided to move out into a bigger place and rent out their tiny apartment. The day we moved in, the guy, Kagan, noticed that we didn't have any furniture, so he left his desk, microwave, and a couple of other things.
We found a great website where people list furniture and items that they are selling or giving away, and that is where we found a table, two couches, chairs, kitchen items, towels, storage boxes, an iron, and various other household items - all for free. We also went to pick up a bed that someone claimed to be giving away, but it turns out
that they gave us the wrong address, either as a joke or by mistake. Pete called Kagan, our landlord, who immediately knew of somebody giving away a mattress and boxspring. When Pete went to pick it up, the man offered Pete a job as a courier - and he has been happily working in that job since we arrived. As for the rest of the apartment, we found a few things that we needed in thrift shops, and have managed to furnish the entire apartment for $55. Granted, nothing matches, and the bed is similar to sleeping on a bed of nails, but we now have a home that feels like a home, and I can't tell you how happy I am to see the pride and happiness in Peter.
We have had a little trouble coming up with money for rent (due Jan. 20), and have prayed for some way to be able to pay this. Because everything has to go through the main campus of my employer at their campus 4 and 1/2 hours away in Blacksburg, VA, it has taken a while for them to process me as an employee in the system, and thus, send me a paycheck and process my reimbursement for moving (they stated that they would pay the mileage and a per diem for two days' travel). Also, because our bank account here is brand new, it will take a week for Peter's first paycheck to actually go into our account. So to say the least, we have been worried about being able to pay our rent and other half of our deposit (which our landlord has so kindly allowed us to break up into two months) on time. We went to a church here, Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, where we sat with the Rector's wife, who is from England. During the sermon, the Rector had us turn to our neighbor and tell them about the time when we "experienced God" and to pray for each other. The Rector's wife seemed concerned for us and she said a special prayer to help us make our rent, and took down our names so that she could continue to pray for us during the week.
Finally, on Friday, I received my first paycheck from Virginia Tech, exactly the amount of rent that is due on Thursday. Isn't God Great? Still praying for the car payment to be made, but at least we still have a place to live.
Well I need to get back to work, this job has a never-ending pile of work and the phone never stops ringing, although I still love it.
So there you go. We're still here, fat, and happy. And Missing y'all. Cheerio!
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