One of Those Horrible Clip Shows, But in Blog Form

Seeing how this blog called “Adventures in a Strange and Distant Land,” I feel it appropriate to announce that I have been in this weird and far-off place for an entire year. It seems hard to believe that it has been twelve whole months since I was hanging out in our less-than-luxurious apartment just off of 99th Street in Edmonton, listening to the non-stop roar of that busy street’s traffic and trying to finish off that large sack full of corn that Thersesa’s parents had so graciously brought us up from Taber, the Corn Capital of Canada. And me, not being one to shy away from nostalgia, would like to proceed with a brief month-to-month summary of this intrepid adventurer’s journey that has led me to where I am now.

Aug: the night immediately following a Wolf Parde/Frog eyes concert with my good friend and ex-roommate, Petey, our hero and his wife set of on a cross-continent trip that was very shortly interrupted by the hard-working Montana port officials who thought the Canadian wife of a duel-citizen student was much to suspicious of a character to allow across the border without a visa. So, this adventurer was left on his own to face the crushing boredom of Montana and North Dakota, the demoralizing gridlock of Chicago and the suffocating humidity of the mid-Atlantic. And then school began.

Sept-Oct: This adventurer spent probably the loneliest days of his short life holed up in his half-furnished apartment, trying to gain control of that freight train called Law School, wrestling with the immigration department (thanks to the vastly appreciated help of UVa’s international students office and his uncle Roger), and speaking to his dear sweet wife, who had been forced back home, husbandless, years after moving away, every night. Feeling uncomfortable with the couples in his ward, these months also introduced our hero to the frat-like lifestyle of his fellow students, complete with football tailgates, beer-pong, and, of course, softball.

Nov: Finally marshalling enough resources to make another run for the border, Theresa made a daring trip to Toronto, on the hope that the border patrol in this part of the country would be kinder than their Montana brethren, not having any assurance of success and without any concrete plans in case of failure. Fortunately, she proved to be just as valiant as husband and was able to complete her journey to Charlottesville and spend the next month as a visitor to this great capitalist nation.

Dec-Jan: After (barely) surviving his first round of Law School exams, our hero and his wife traveled back to the blistering Alberta winter for a relaxing Christmas break, happy to visit with their families and see many old friends from their college days.

Feb: Having to stay behind once again because of various immigration details that had to be completed in Canada, Theresa set about preparing for her upcoming interview while our hero makes his triumphant return to UVa Law and begins his 1L job search, landing early the position he was most wanted to score: researching for professor Riley in the field of biotech law and bioethics. Meanwhile, Theresa is off to the east once more, this time braving more than one horrendous blizzard in order to attend her Visa interview in Montreal (that lasted no more than 5 minutes – yeah 7 months of waiting for a 5 minute interview) and then continue on to her new home in the Old Dominion as an official US Permanent Resident.

Mar-May: The newly reunited family finally acquaintances themselves with the other couples in the ward and sets about beginning a normal life together, which, for our hero, means actually purchasing such items as a bed and garbage cans etc and finding time amidst the hours that he spends with his wife to actually finish his first year of law school.

Jun-Aug: With Theresa working at the student health center and our hero neck deep in the latest articles on synthetic biology and animal transgenesis, the new family enjoys a relaxing summer visiting their grandparents, exploring Virginia and welcoming their parents and other extended families. And of course, preparing to begin all over again…