I'm around, and I'm alive and kicking. Yes, I have no internet access at home now. So it's the library or school, or any place where I can get my hands on a computer. So it's not surprising that I've not written a piece here for a month now. And I've got bunch of other good reasons (excuses) for that. Of course, if I state those, they'll only prove how busy (lazy) I've been lately. Let me give a quick and dirty on what's been happening during the last month.

Last week of July was a terrible time, I was done with the written exam and was back in school for the flying, and was also looking for a place to live. Ashley and Willy gave me temporary refuge in their home for a week. They're the most humble and caring people I've met here in Canada. I finally settled in a room at Mrs.English home. I moved to get closer to school, that will save me a lot of time commuting, I can be more regular to school, and I also needed to change the lazy life I was living in Richmond, with everything I wanted at my disposal. Now I have to take care of all my needs. So I'm cooking, cleaning, what not. The veggy cooking it turning out to be rather exciting and I'm loving it. I started with spicing up canned beans with fried onions and chillies, then went on to gajar-beans (carrot and beans), vegetable jalfrezi, mixed vegetables in onion and tomato gravy. Unfortunately I've been eating all this with rice or whole wheat bread. I'm yet to get down to the chapatis. But once I'm at it, there's nothing stopping me from reviving my dreams of being a good cook. I'm thinking I can start a part-time side-business operation here - those lazy single desi people around who want some home made veggy stuff can knock on my door - I can cook for them, and get some pocket money for myself. Not a bad idea.

At school, I've been regular, completed all the requirements for the PPL, flown 30 hours in the last month, and I'm going to spend the next week doing solo practice, and then should be the big PPL flight test. Alistair, my new instructor, is a very experienced pilot, and his standards are high, and while I'm not always able to perform to his satisfaction, I'm sure his training will get me where I need to be. It's hard work, and it's getting harder, but that's what I'm out to do. Studying isn't going to stop for another year. I feel better prepared, mentally, for the test this time, compared to the PPl written exam, when I was a wreck. If all goes well, I will have my PPL in the next 7-10 days. That's when the fun starts. The CPL is going to be a tougher, and then the Instrument Rating and the Multi-Engine. It just gets tougher and tougher. Why do I keep repeating these words. Just a tool to drive it into my own head.

So the home I live in now is a wonderful place. There's Mrs.English and her son Jason, there's Salty, another student of ProIFR, and there's me. Oh yeah, there are 2 cats. Sometimes destiny will take you to the right place when you need it the most. That's the way I feel about Mrs.English and her home now.

I managed to upload pictures from the last 2 months here : Canada Part 2

Cheers
Mayur Poddar