Off to Russia!!!

Well, I'm off to Russia in a few hours. I can't believe it's finally time. It only took 14 months. It's been a busy month, wrapping up life and work in Seattle. I had applied for a leave of absence in Microsoft, but it was rejected. Oh well, I guess God thinks I don't need a safety net. After 8.5 years at Microsoft I'm finished. It was a great job and a great company. I won't miss the late nights, though, or commuting over the 520 bridge. I had to move all the stuff out of my apartment into storage in Seattle during a snowstorm that shut down the city. That was fun. I also solidified my living arrangements in Russia (I believe). I'll be renting a small house on the outskirts of Anapa, one that my friend Shawn was renting until he came back to the US 2 weeks ago. Sounds like it's a good place and the rent is a tremendous deal (~$550 a month, plus utilities).I've spent the last week in NH, celebrating Christmas with the family. We had another blizzard here in NH and spent 3 days cooped up in the house. Marcia came out to NH for Christmas, which was a lot of fun, also. It was great having her here before I leave. It was wonderful celebrating Christmas here at home, again. I got to see several friends, too, which was nice. We had a little send off for me with some friends from church. Everyone prayed for me and the English camp and the people in Russia. I had a send off party when I left Seattle, also. God has put some amazing people in my life and I am very blessed. A lot of people have given me financial contributions for my work in Russia. Thank you so much, everyone. It looks like I've got enough for 6-9 months in Russia, now, depending on how much I eat and whether I can find work. I really appreciate it, you guys are awesome. I'll be coming back to the USA at the end of March for a few weeks to reapply for another visa. First Seattle and maybe I'll pass through NH again on the way back to Russia. I'll send out another update after the English camp in a couple weeks. I gotta run, I've still got errands to do.

Please pray:
1) For safe travel for me and the team from Crossroads Bible Church to/from Russia
2) For the Russian people at the English camp and that we would be good witnesses to them
3) That I would get settled in Russia and get moving on the English teaching with the church
4) That I would find work and get a work permit in Russia

Blessings,
Ryan
Russian cell (including country code): 011 7 909 444 4898

Passport and visa have arrived!

Yay! I finally got my passport and 90 day visa back from the Russian consulate. I was getting a little nervous, I was expecting it last week. I was just about to email the travel agency about getting in touch with the consulate when it arrived this morning. Thank you, Lord! I still have many things to do, but it's nice knowing that the Russians will let me into their country.

Last day of work at MSFT

I dropped in to the office for a few hours today. I was hoping that last Wednesday would have been the last day, but I needed to wrap up a few odds and ends. It's a little strange to be finishing at MSFT after 8.5 years. Cleaning out my office was a trip down memory lane, I'd been lugging a bunch of old paperwork around for years and had to clean it all out. Documentation plans from Sep 2000, specs for features/products that never went any where, "moral" gifts (how many clocks and thermometers does a person need), etc... It's been a great time here at MSFT. Working with motivated intelligent people who really get excited about technology has been awesome, playing with multi-billion dollar toys has been a blast. I won't miss the late nights and firedrills, though, and too bad the stock options never really panned out. I'm enjoying my time off before I head to NH and then Russia. Loafing on the couch in my underwear at 11am on a weekday, reading comics, and drinking beer is quite nice. A guy could get used to that. I've still got quite a few things to do in the next week and a half. Anyone want to buy my car?

For sale: 2006 Scion Xa, 18,800 miles

Just one of many things to do in the next two weeks...

Only 2 days of work left

Wednesday will be my last day in the office. Technically, I'll be on vacation until Jan 6. It's really strange. I'm finally leaving after 8.5 years here at the evil empire. I was sort of expecting to be a millionaire by now, but the stock options never really produced. Oh well. I've still got a ton of things to do before I leave for NH on 12/18. Msft has been a great place to work, but it's also a crazy house. I won't miss the pandemonium. Back to work, I've got a ton of things to do in the next two days.