Canada Bound

It appears the long wait is over. The final tally was Canada: 2, United States: 0. The mounties have done it! Both Canadian universities I applied to -- Simon Fraser and University of British Columbia -- have accepted me and offered gobs of cash to attend. The three US universities told me to get lost. With this not so subtle rejection by the country that raised me it seems that our new baby-to-be will enjoy their first few years on Canadian soil.

Erin and I are looking for an apartment on campus so that during any breaks in my schedule I can be home. I have a guaranteed income for two years as I complete the Masters in History. However, if I show excellent progress on my dissertation project (which I've already begun) I can enter into the PhD program after one year. I will then have an additional four years of guaranteed income. The offer is about as good as the one I had at Duke, plus I'll be researching a topic I genuinely love.

While we're very sad that we have to leave Seattle and the amazing family we've created here, we're also very enthusiastic about this next step in our adventure. With free health care and amazing social services for infants and new mothers, Canada is certainly a wonderful opportunity. Considering that the US is falling off a cliff economically at the moment, fleeing up north will probably become more and more popular as time goes on. So we'll check things out for you and will be very available for any future refugees that hope to experience the beautiful vistas and community oriented culture of our northern neighbors.

Have a nice afternoon, eh.