All moved in and ready to leave

Things have been so busy the last month I don't even know where to start. About a month ago I had a big fight with my land lord, of which I had only been with for about 3 weeks. They wanted to start making all kind of crazy conditions and asking for more money, and threatening to throw me out if I didn't pay. As it turns out, they are con artists, and I am not the first one they have tried to cheat. Anyway, long story short is that I moved out and bit the bullet, losing my deposit. I could have fought it, but it wasn't worth it...this is just Lebanon. After three more weeks or searching (and being much more careful this time) I finally found a nice place in southern Beirut. The lady who owns it works for USAID, and said she was either going to sell it or rent it to foreigners, because she doesn't trust Lebanese. I got a pretty good deal. It is a fairly large apartment, at least for Middle East standards, about 900 sq. ft. It has two bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, a living room, and a balcony. The neighborhood is decent, but kind of noisy since it full of traffic, but once again that is Beirut. You cannot escape the sound of cars. I also (the also referring to Aaron) recently went to the shops and dropped about 250$ on household items like a blender, iron, cutlery, etc. However, unlike Aaron I wasn't thinking that it would be nice to have a cute little doe around my arm (or a doh, since I already have one, and he isn't cute or little...plus he's kind of annoying if you live with him). I was actually thinking it would be nice to have someone who would just go and do the shopping for me...but then the problem is I don't really trust people to do my shopping for me.

This is the entry. The TV is purely for looks...I don't even have an antenna, and I intend to keep it that way.

This is the Dining room and the Sitting room. If you look close there is a can of A&W Root Beer. The other day I was in the store and found a place that sells Root Beer and Dr. Pepper. I have never found those before in the Middle East, so I bought some.

OK, enough of all that. While searching for the apartment I was living and helping out at the orphanage/shelter the majority of the time. I have gotten pretty attached to the kids, and I would like to think the feeling is mutual (for some of them I know it is). It will be pretty hard to leave them. Perhaps the Lord will allow me to stay involved with them in some way. I have sure learned alot about myself living with them and taking care of them. I've made a few trips to the south of lebanon to visit some people in the refugee camps and do some Distribution. There are so many things I wish I could do here, but don't have the time or energy. My back is feeling better, in general, but if I push it too hard the pain starts to come back. My back is very sore and the muscles are very tight. I started going to Physical Therapy, but it required too much time, so I quit...we'll see what happens.
My flight back to Alaska is in 10 days...I can't believe it. How did it get here so fast?? Whats worse is that I know that my time there will go by even faster, despite the midnight sun. I will be glad to be back in Alaska to visit. I definetly miss it, and all my friends there. In reality, I am glad I haven't had much time to think about coming back, cause it usually only causes me to be sad and confused. Sad because I know it is only a temporary visit, and confused because I have no home, and no real sense of belonging anywhere I am. It is a very strange feeling...

A friend of mine is coming from Syria and I am taking a day or two before I leave Lebanon to go see some of the scenic part of the country. Hopefully I will post some pictures before I travel. Until then, Hasta Luego