The Happy Immigrant 2008 Journal
This is an Immigrant Journal, written by the Happy Immigrant. I have been in Canada more than 35 years, and these are my reflections on life in Canada.
I live in Ontario, not too far from Niagara Falls. On this page I will make regular "immigrant journal" entries about everyday living in Canada the way I see it. No heavy discussions, just my reflexions on life brought to you with a bit of humor.
Entry Date: December 30, 2008
Time for Reflection
The year is just about over, and what a year it has been. In my opinion the most important event has been the election in the USA. Having grown up during the 60's, I am well aware of how much attitudes have changed for African Americans. To have the first African American person take office in a few weeks, is a monumental milestone.
Here in Canada the political plays go on and on. Very disheartening. I wish the politicians would cut ou the crap and party politics and just stick to governing.
And do something about the economy. More than half of what we earn goes to them, we should be able to expect something in return.
On January 27 we expect to hear the budget and we will hear what is in the economic stimulus package. I'll be watching!!!
Entry Date: July 1, 2008
Do you want to know how to buy a house in Canada? Read this page. Three people in our immediate family bought a house in this past year. For some it took longer than for others, but all three are very happy with the purchase.
Three of our children decided to buy a house this past year. All 3 houses are single detached homes, ranging in age from 75 years to 18 years. Two are located in a small village, one is located in the city.
House number 1
A ranch style home with a large backyard and swimming pool and double garage, located in a nice area in the city.
A ranch style home with a large backyard and swimming pool and double garage, located in a nice area in the city.
This couple had been looking for quite a while, trying to find a home both of them could agree on. When they looked at one particular house, they both loved it and knew that was the house they wanted. That evening at 7pm several real estate agents were meeting with the sellers to make several offers.
The real estate agent suggested our kids put in an offer higher than the asking price, however, they did not want to do that. They offered the asking price but were very lenient on the closing date. One advantage they had was that their mortgage was pre-approved and they had nothing to sell.
Apparently that was the determining factor and by 9 pm the seller had accepted their offer. All paper work was done fast and a month later the house was theirs.
House number 2
Our son and his family were renting a house, and got notice that the house was sold. They had 3 months to find another place. They made an offer on a house re-possessed by the bank. It needed quite a bit of repair, however, the bank did not accept their offer.
Our son and his family were renting a house, and got notice that the house was sold. They had 3 months to find another place. They made an offer on a house re-possessed by the bank. It needed quite a bit of repair, however, the bank did not accept their offer.
Then they found an older home in a small village close by. It was completely redone on the inside and it had a huge backyard going up a hill.
The disadvantage was that the closing date would be several months after they had to vacate their rented house. They put in an offer for less than the asking price. It came back, the owners wanted more. So our son offered the askinge price, but added the condition that they wanted to take possession 2 weeks before they had to move out of their rented home.
The owners accepted. For them to have an unconditional sale was more important than the closing date, so they moved in with their parents and our son and his family had to move only once.
Since then our son, with the help of family and friends have done a lot of work outside and improved the value of the property. It is the perfect house for a family and we have enjoyed numerous camp fires and dinners.
House number 3
This house was bought recently. It is located very close to the house of our son. Our daughter had been looking for a house or small farm on and off for several years. A small farm was too expensive, so she concentrated on a house with a big yard.
This house was bought recently. It is located very close to the house of our son. Our daughter had been looking for a house or small farm on and off for several years. A small farm was too expensive, so she concentrated on a house with a big yard.
The minute our daughter saw this house, she knew that was it and never looked any further. For this house there were also several offers. The sellers were an older couple wanting to move into an Old Age Home. The other offers they got all had conditions to it.
Our daughters offer was lower, but because she had her financing pre-approved and had no other house to sell, they liked her offer best.
They accepted her offer and a few weeks later she was the owner of a real nice 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom house. It has a real nice backyard, is completely fenced in, has a beautifull deck and a gazebo. The house is 75 years old and was not updated since the seventies.
For the next few weeks everyone pitched in and now the house is completely updated with air conditioning, new electricity, new carpet and paint and it turned out to be a perfect house.
With older homes you never know what needs to be repaired. It is a good idea when you buy a house to have a home inspection done. All three buyers got an extensive report on the condition of the house.
When you buy a house it is not always the price that closes the deal. The conditions are just as important and being able to make an offer to buy a house without the condition that you have to sell your own house first, might be very attractive to the seller.
All together all 3 buyers are extremely happy with their purchase and it has been a very positive experience.
Entry Date: March 1, 2008
It's enough, when is spring coming?
This has been a record setting winter. We've had lots and lots of snow, locally more than 2 metres of snow since November. The Ottawa area has had more than double, with over 4 metres of snow.
This winter has been like a roller coaster ride, one storm after another, snow, freezing rain, fog, rain and unseasonal warm temperatures. One moment you would have lots of snow, a day later it would rain and melt all the snow again. One day the snow mobiles could enjoy their trails, the next day all the snow would have disappeared.
We get sand and salt at the local township roads department and use it to sand the area around the house. With all the melting there are a lot of ice patches everywhere, and when covered with fresh snow, it becomes quite slippery.
The kids have had numerous snowdays because the school busses are cancelled due to the road conditions.
We had another snow storm this past weekend, and Sunday afternoon was spent shoveling snow from around the house and off the cars. Thankfully someone comes in to clear the laneway.
Although I am more than fed up with the weather, and hoping that spring will arrive soon, there is one good thing about the snow. March break started, the kids are home and the hill behind the house if ideal for sledding. From a kids point of view, what else do you want.
Entry Date: January 10, 2008
It's time for reflections, we're in a new year, 2008. Looking at all the news from around the world, I reflected on life here in Canada. This fall there was a lot of news about one of our former prime ministers, Brian Mulroney, and a lobbyist by the name of Karlheinz Schreiber. Apparently envelopes stuffed full of money exchanged hands, legally or illegally, it is one man's word against another.
Seeing those reports on the news every night, it makes you frustrated with the people in government. Is there anyone whom can be trusted? But then you see what goes on in the rest of the world, was, famine, murders and extreme corruption. Then you realize that there isn't anyplace else you would rather be than in Canada.
We here in Canada are unbelievably lucky, and although we have some problems, compared to the rest of the world we have a lot to be thankful for. We have a stable governmental environment, a good economy, we are ranked 4th in the world as the best country for women. Our kids can get a good education, we don't have to pay for medi-care and most of us own our own house.
