Life in Abbotsford, BC

Yes, an update a lot of you have been bugging me about... Lots to update, so let's just start from the beginning of this whole Abbotsford thing (I'll update about our Asia "Wedding Tour" another day). This is what I came "home" to after getting off the plane at the smallest airport I've ever been to in my life (airport with only 1 gate)...

THIS HUGE MESS!


Yes... LP managed to mess up this place within just one week of being here. Now the "after" pics... after I spent some time cleaning it up and redecorating the place...

Couldn't stand the green color of the couch, so had to cover them up with something... doesn't look too nice, but better than what's underneath those sheets.






And... here's the rest of the condo.

Entrance...

Guest bathroom...

Laundry room / storage...
LP's study (書房)

Pretty big balcony...

Master bedroom... by the way, we NEVER make our bed (and everyone knows that!)... but I did it just this once, for the purpose of these photos.




Walk-in closet from the master bedroom to the bathroom...

Bathroom #2...


We are very blessed that the church LP interns at is able to afford such a beautiful condo for us. It is very close to everything like the bank, supermarket, the mall, fast foods, car rentals... everything is within walking distance.

Oh and this is what the previous intern pastor left us in the fridge... what a gift!

It's been exactly a week since I got here. I think I became such a 師奶 "si lie" over night, literally.

All I have been doing is pretty much grocery shopping, cleaning, tidying and cooking three meals a day... Yup, three meals a day and lots of food! At this rate, I think LP will gain weight pretty quickly.
















Calvin and Karen are right... wherever we go, as long as there's Lee Kam Kee, we will have good food! This is what I brought from Montreal...


I'm glad I brought those with me because a Chinese supermarket is a 30-minute drive from where we are, it's not even in Abbotsford anymore, we've to go past Langley to Surrey for a T&T Supermarket. And I can't live without yummy Chinese food. Fastfoods and take-outs are just not my thing. I'm proud to say that we haven't had one single meal out so far! But I should stop depending on Lee Kam Kee and pre-marinated food and really learn how to cook from scratch.

Even though it's 30 minutes away, we still made a trip there and we stocked up gooood! Our super long bill came out to $368.53 + another $100 from another place. We went shopping after lunch, but both of us got really hungry just being in T&T (it's not surprising for me, but it's rare for LP to get hungry just looking at food). We just couldn't resist! Our excuse for buying so much was because we decided not to buy a car, we needed to rent a car to go that distance, so might as well go all out.



Some of you asked me how was church on Sunday. Well I dunno... we had to leave right away after service to buy some more things for the house and had to return our rented car. And I didn't really bother going to church early to meet the people. So I can't really say. Though the people who sat around me were very friendly. And at the beginning of every month, they recognize those whose birthday was that month, so I had to go up on stage... with this other guy who was turning NINETY-EIGHT! But I was pretty much all by myself in front of the whole congregation. There was suppose to be more people, but the rest of them were out-of-town for vacation. As much as I miss MCAC, I do look forward to worshiping at that church on Sundays.

Here's what LP's office looks like...




So far, it is a pretty boring town because there's really nowhere I can go and no one I know to hang out with... all the people are so far away in Vancouver! Though we do plan on visiting Vancouver sometime soon. Well, Joe Choi is right... Abbotsford "is pretty much a white middle-upper class Bible-belt town." Many Christian organization headquarters are here, including Campus for Christ. So next time Joe comes here for a conference or Gloria and Lydia come here for training, I will have someone to hang out with!

Called to Love: Egypt

I have been very excited for Billy as he is in Egypt right now on a short term missions trip. Yup, my little brother on a STM! During the time I was in Hong Kong, I saw Billy run around hunting for ideas and buying materials for the kid's program his STM team is in charge of during their trip. I have never seen him so seriously and "grown up!" I'm so proud of him!

Please keep Billy and Sam in your prayers as they have been in Egypt for a week now. You can read their updates on their blogs:

Billy's Blog | Billy's Bio
Sam's Blog | Sam's Bio

Almost Forgot...

Yes and I almost forgot... LP will carry out his one year intern in Abbotsford, BC, a little less than an hour drive from Vancouver. AC does not fly Abbotsford, only Westjet does. Plane tickets are $1000 during high seasons, which adds to my depression! I take Air Miles donations. Merci!

Refuse to Go

I've been a little depressed lately as the wedding approaches. I realized when I think about wedding planning, I get depressed. How can this be? Who doesn't know I love wedding planning?! I have been avoiding wedding planning not that I don't want to marry LP, but because the more wedding planning I do, it means the closer it comes to the day I have to move away from Montreal. It was definitely easy to always say to myself and tell people that I have no worries and trust that God will watch over me. But I realized that deep down inside, I refuse to obey. I do not want to leave my comfort zone. Montreal and MCAC is my comfort zone. This is my home.

I have been a cry baby lately... every time I think about moving away, I cry. I cry during Sunday Service, I cry during choir practice, I cry when I pray, I cry in prayer meetings (you don't see me cry? I've been doing a good job hiding it, huh?). It definitely doesn't help when Pastor Chan counts down every single day for me and always keep track of "my lasts" at MCAC. "This is the last time you..." I just feel that no one understands how difficult it is for me to take this step. Every time I hint that I don't want to move away, all people say is "everything will be alright. You will start a new life and find new friends." But I don't want a new life, I don't want new friends. I feel that people think I am very independent and I can handle many things myself because I hardly show the other side of me, the very dependent side, the side that wants to be pampered for once. Or maybe... it is the complete opposite. I am WAY too pampered at MCAC.

I wish I can end this post by saying "I know that God will watch over me and all I have to do is to trust and obey." But I can't just yet...

Now I am off to get my gowns altered.

No, I didn't loose or gain weight (unfortunately). They just never fit. They looked like a perfect fit in our wedding portraits, huh? Pastor Chan didn't notice either when he took our photos. I think lately I have been good at hiding things and making things seem perfectly fine even though it just doesn't feel that way deep down inside.