Back Home Again

Safe and sound. Why do I have so much stuff?

Cold Quesadilla

I am sitting in my apartment eating my dinner of cold quesadilla while a group of Korean workmen knock a hole through the outside wall of my kitchen/entryway. I asked Mr. Lee (a very wonderful man who works at Like) if they couldn't wait until I was gone, and he assured me they had to do it today. I leave in a day and a half.

I'm also getting a new student today. I reminded Mrs. Kim that I'll only be here today and tomorrow, and she just said she knew. [Here I shrug my shoulders and remind myself that the way to make it in Korea is to be the river and not the rock.]

*Sigh*

December 27, 2008

This is what I wrote in my journal on the way to Korea. I read through the whole thing tonight and was blessed to find that it is mostly full of me telling Jesus that I love him. Anyway, I just thought I'd share.

"I noted the snow still covering the ground everywhere here. Fog lay thick over the Columbia River as we drove to the airport this morning. What more is there to say? Maybe going forever isn't for me, at least not by myself, but I am glad to be doing this, because a lifetime of wondering if I have what it takes would be awful. Mostly all I can do is gaze up at my Lord and say, "I love you." (c: Not a bad place to be in reality. *Sigh* We'll see if I really am built for adventure."

Apparently, yes.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this discovery and who supports me to make this truth possible.

*Sigh* Korea is a nice place

Okay, so last night we went out for Korean barbecue. It was really fun. When we were almost done eating these two guys came up to our table holding a pen and a piece of paper. They started talking to Leslie, who was sitting across from me, and I figured they were playing some kind of party game or that one of their friends dared them to come and talk to the foreigners. Yeah, no. They thought Leslie and I were Korean television stars. When I told them that I wasn't Catherine they just said, "REALLY???" incredulously. They then said that I was so beautiful they still wanted to get my picture and autograph.

I have no idea how much soju these guys had last night, but it totally made my day. Their friend Hodong took a picture and came back as we were leaving to get my email address so he could send me the picture.

Hehe.

"There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it."
-Mary Wilson Little

Six days left . . .

Pleading of life

"With the aurora borealis flaming coldly overhead, or the stars leaping in the frost dance, and the land numb and frozen under its pall of snow, this song of the huskies might have been the defiance of life, only it was pitched in minor key, with long-drawn wailings and half-sobs, and was more the pleading of life, the articulate travail of existence. It was an old song, old as the breed itself -- one of the first songs of the younger world in a day when songs were sad."
-Jack London, The Call of the Wild

God is gracious

The Lord is so gracious with me. Last week I was sick (for really the first time in Korea). It was so wonderful to be gently reminded that I need to be kind to my body. I spent the week (and weekend) mostly laying in bed watching movies and napping. My friend Steve, who is now in Seoul, pointed Jesse and I to this really cool coffee shop where they have Dr. Fish. What is that? It's fish that eat the dead skin from your feet. It tickles SO MUCH!!! Don't worry, no one was injured. Anyway, Jesse, Leslie and I ended up going a couple of times last week, it was pretty sweet. I am very blessed in my friends here.

Things I realized in this time for reflection:
I'm not scared anymore. Whatever God has for me, it is what it is, I'm ready.
I am different. I've always felt like the fat girl in any group, and I don't think I am anymore. I realized this when I wimped out on hiking on Sunday because it was too cold. This is the first time I've been the one to wimp out, usually it's someone (or everyone) else, and I just go without them. I am thankful for the freedom of Korea - for the distance from all the conceptions I had built around myself, and a rotating social group that has helped me keep moving.
I'm not a bad teacher. I know I'm not the best, but I can tell some of my students have improved. And they like me, for whatever reason, and I like them! God has definitely used my students to love, encourage and challenge me this year.
I will be sad to leave, and the change will be stressful for me. I even thought (for a split second) about staying. (c: And then I stared working on my grad school application essays! They're almost done, so I will be meeting the "before December" deadline God set for me.
Hospitality is not important to me, it's part of me - I can't help it, I invite people over. And I love it.
More than anything else, I was left with the overwhelming realization that God is enough for me. In and through anything, Jesus keeps me all the way.

By the end of the week I was sick of laying around (and, fortunately, feeling much better). So, I've been loving pilates and going for long walks everyday since then! It has been very good; I was starting to feel like the sluggard in Proverbs 26:14.

Also, as most of you know, it's Thanksgiving. Mrs. Kim provided a lovely Thanksgiving meal this morning, if somewhat unexpected and impromptu. Tomorrow Jesse and Leslie and I are going to have fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy and a big salad with lots of vegetables. The best part is that I don't have to do all the cooking! Yay!!! (Or, more importantly, all the dishes. (c:)

I love you all and am looking forward to seeing you soon.

Woah!

. . . six weeks left . . .

When 'Lady'bugs Go Bad . . .

Friday afternoon I went on a short hike. It was fun. On the way out there I was sitting on the train, and I realized I was having trouble concentrating on my book because . . . wait for it . . . I could understand someone talking on the train. That's right, my brain was on overload because English was being spoken. It's a good thing November starts tomorrow. (By the way, the guy speaking English turned out to be a very nice Colombian man who's here earning money for college in the Philippines. Cool.)

There was a man at the last subway station playing the accordion. I can't even describe how excited I was. I don't think I've ever walked that slowly through a subway station in my life. Magical.

I saw a snake. I actually saw it. I heard the rustling sound through the leaves, and somehow knew it was too steady to be a squirrel, and that's when I saw it! I was extremely excited. That and the accordion guy - wow!

There was a preying mantis carrying away some kind of beetle. Nature's wonders pulled out all the stops for me . . . but no, that's not all!!!

I do not know what was going on (and perhaps still is) but ladybugs attacked me for the last half of my hike. I kept looking down and there would be three or four on me! Now, I have to say, generally I'm not at all opposed to ladybugs, but these seemed to be visiting me in a particularly unladylike way. They were running into me from all different directions, flying at my face, settling on my arms, legs and torso. I had to keep swishing my hair to make sure they weren't building a nest. It was weird. I just thought I'd share. I've never even heard of anything like that before. I think one pooped on my arm. Like I said, not genteel.

(c:

Pictures

As you already know, I am not much of a picture person. However, having recently been gifted pictures of some different places here in Daegu, I thought I'd pass them along to give you (Mom) some sort of visual reference.

The most picturesque photo I've seen of downtown Daegu - truly Luke is a wizard with a camera.

Downtown Daegu at night. This is about 7-10 minutes from where I live (walking).
A picture of the bridge across the river Sincheon that is nearest to our house. You can't tell in the photo, but the lights across the bridge actually shift colors in a continuous spectrum. It's pretty.

Munyang

These are Molly and me at Sky Tower one night we went there to sit at the rotating restaurant and watch the sun set. It was beautiful.

Just me at the beach . . . apparently it's really dirty and all of our (Me, Jesse & Molly's) students were really appalled that we'd waded in. :c/ Live and learn. It was such a good day though, I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

Heinsa

Mrs. Kim took all of us teachers to Heinsa (a temple about 45 minutes from Daegu) and let us walk around. This temple stores a set of wooden prints for the Buddhist scriptures. Once a year people go to the temple and perform a ceremony where they carry each of the thousands of wooden slats on their heads around the temple grounds for hours to dry them out. It was beautiful. Unfortunately, the bus driver wouldn't let us walk . . . I'm not sure why. (?)

추석

This last weekend I had my second-to-last three-day weekend in Korea! On Friday Molly and Jesse and I went to 포항 (Pohang) and laid on the beach all day. I am excited to report that my legs have tanned imperceptibly, an unprecedented event in my life. The rest of the weekend was full of long walks culminating in a huge container of ice cream split by Miss Molly and myself on Sunday evening.

This weekend was the biggest Korean holiday (추석/Chuseok). Koreans get together, eat lots of food, go and visit all their ancestors' graves and tell family histories. Mrs. Kim made us japchae and lots of other good things I don't know the names of to take home on Thursday night after work, so we all had quite a treat.

Other that that I've been having class with my friend 임연정 (Eim, Eyun-jung) pretty much every day, working on college interview skills (which has been awesome) and am starting to think about how I need to pack for my trip home. Happily for me Maija and Terry have decided to drive down to Arizona, so I'll just fly straight to El Paso, TX to be with Heather and then catch up with them for the ride back to Portland. Wow, that sounds like a plan. It's amazing to be close enough that I can really plan it, but I'm SO excited to eat Mexican food!!!!!! And I'll be in the best possible place for it!!!!!!!! *Sigh* now I'll never be able to go to bed . . . I'll have to go check out my new book.

Shadows on the pavement

Luke and I went on the last of our many Korean walks last month. Now he is back in the US harvesting sugar beets. One night just before he left we went out to Munyang and watched the stars come out. We walked out to a little pond and saw a few lightning bugs and then sat down in a clearing and tried to count how many different types of insects we could distinguish from their noises - Munyang is peaceful, but certainly not quiet, at night. (c:

Another thing I'm sure y'all will be interested in is that I got to go to dinner at my friend 현지's (Hyun-ji/Karen) house. It was . . . amazing. Her family was . . . wonderful. Her mom even told me how to make Bulgogi (which is very delicious). If I can get a recipe for japchae and mandu I think I'll be pretty much set as far as Korean food goes. They do have this really spicy soup with tofu that I like, but my stomach is less enthusiastic about the heat. *Sigh* That's life.

Oh, and I read Tuck Everlasting with a student last week, and I found a quote that was kind of where I am: "Things had happened to her that were hers alone, and had nothing to do with them. It was the first time. And no amount of telling about it could help them understand or share what she felt. It was satisfying and lonely, both at once."

I love you guys.

The Voice of Truth

On Sunday the sermon was about hearing God's voice. I made a friend when the guy speaking (Ken - really nice guy, loves the KJV (c: ) asked us to define the verb 'to know' and then called on a really sweet older Korean guy named Huang. My new friend talked about knowing the character and characteristics of something, and warmed up to me when I helped him with a couple of words along the way. (He talked to me afterwards, it was awesome.)

Ken talked about us expecting that the Lord speak to us the way we speak to each other. And I realized that I feel like God does. I feel like He speaks through body language (He speaks through His body) and through His art (Creation) and through His words. I see Him - His character, His fundamentals, clearly. I know that I see but dimly, but I believe I see Him still - I am sure of Him in ways that I'm not even sure of myself.

That's all.

*Sigh* Pictures

As pretty much anyone who knows me well enough to be reading my blog knows, I have a strict no picture policy. However, having somewhat relented about having my picture taken, I have decided to gain points both with Heather and my mother by allowing you to view some pictures taken by others. These were taken right before Steve left for his new job in Seoul. The first is Jesse, me and Molly. The second, left to right: Molly, Steve, Luke, me, Jesse.

*Sigh* You're both welcome. I love you, I hope you know how much. :cP

Episodic

I met a woman yesterday on the train. I have no idea what she was saying, but after I finished drinking my 2 liter bottle of water on my way back from my walk she took the empty bottle from me. She seemed pretty excited to get to keep it. (?)

I went hiking this morning at Munyang (문양). It's so beautiful! My knees are tired from all the downhill though. I think I might've pushed it a little hard since I only had three hours to get there, do the hike and get back, if I wanted a shower before work (which . . . I did - and everyone else wanted for me). Munyang is so differently beautiful than Alaska. Alaskan mountains are . . . indifferent. They are so many, and so tall and remote and, in many ways, unapproachable. Korean mountains are nothing like that. They seem old, like they've seen too much and are tired of it.

Things that count as mountains here in Korea would be considered hills where I'm from, and not even particularly large ones. I would love to be able to make you understand how they're still enough though, but I can't. I can't explain how worthwhile they seem after so much dingy gray and brown in the city. I came outside yesterday and this man stared at me as I walked past him urinating on a garbage pile. This is a first-world country, everything is paved, sanitation is very important to them . . . and there was an available bathroom about 30 feet away. *Sigh* I guess what I feel is a strange dichotomy. People talk about how lush and green Korea is, but in the long, grey-brown winter it's hard to imagine why.

And then you take the subway to Munyang . . . and just before the stop you come above-ground, you see a pond, and valleys full of rice paddies, and the tired mountains looking down. Somehow just wandering through the mountains and adding your weariness of the landscape to their own is refreshing like sitting and talking about everything that's wrong with a friend. Even if nothing gets solved, you're not the only one who sees it, someone else knows.

I also love the people I meet as I wander. Today on the trail I passed two Korean women going the opposite way. One of them wordlessly (this is actually inaccurate, she was speaking in Korean the whole time) managed to tell me she had seen me there the other day with Molly and ask if I was alone today. I also met a man on the subway going back who commented (they almost all do) on my footwear (gourmet sandals are where it is at) and ask me in motions where I had gone walking today. People can say what they want about the world being a dark and lonely place, I felt like God's face shone on me today. People are such a delight to Him, and I am thankful for being blessed by finding delight in them as well.

"Money can change a person's hobby and wives."

I've been grading a lot of essays lately. On the whole it's been alright. Reading college application essays, though somewhat nerve wracking as I feel the immensity of it all, is really fun. I have one student who is a very skilled writer, so skilled that when he gets tangled up, it's in metaphor - which is really hard to unravel! (c: But a delight nonetheless.

Today I also had the unspeakable joy of going to the doctor with Jesse! Since I know I never would have imagined what I would see there, I will assume your imaginations are similarly limited (please take no offense) and come out and say that I have never seen live video feed of a stranger's nasal cavity while sitting in the waiting area at a doctor's office. Indeed, I knew not that nose-cams existed. (I probably could've imagined that far, but let me tell you, the ridges on the inside are difficult to express quite so vividly in words.)

Take care.

Each and All

". . .
As I spoke, beneath my feet
The ground pine curled it's pretty wreath,
Running over the club-moss burrs;
I inhaled the violet's breath;
Around me stood the oaks and firs;
Pine-cones and acorns lay on the ground;
Over me soared the eternal sky,
Full of light and of deity;
Again I saw, again I heard,
The rolling river, the morning bird;
Beauty through my senses stole;
I yielded myself to the perfect whole."

R.W. Emerson

The first question I ask myself when something doesn't seem to be beautiful is why do I think it's not beautiful. And very shortly you discover that there is no reason.
John Cage
US composer of avant-garde music (1912 - 1992)

Sunday Dinner

Yesterday I went on a long hike. It was so good. I found this recreation area that looked like it would be awesome for picnics, and there was a river (read "stream") running down from the mountains you could wade in. Very nice.

I (praise God) had an epiphany for making rice pudding instead of French toast for my cooking class this week, so I tried out my recipe today, it was incredible (I thought). I'm going to try adding raisins and cinnamon next time I think, but it was very orangey. I like.

Jesse and I also made breakfast for dinner for everyone. Things I learned: Chocolate pancakes are the man, and you want to start before dark if you're cooking outside. (c: Next time. I think we may do it again next week. It'll be byob - bring your own bacon, and we'll have fried potatoes and eggs. I think we'll do meatloaf and potatoes some night too, but Leo's going out of town the next couple of weekends to get things ready for his wedding and I'd feel really bad about making something he'd enjoy so much while he was gone. It was really fun though, and I look forward to doing it again.

Hmm . . . what else? I've taken to binge reading (and book-buying). I bought SEVEN books a couple of weeks ago (not all at once . . . but still). I'm about half-way through them and I'm making excellent progress on Les Misérables, so I've decided not to be that upset with myself for spending so much money.

In two weeks "summer intensives" will end and my schedule will get another overhaul. There are also several teachers leaving this month, including Alex and Steve. I'm not sure if they're being replaced, or if they're just going to give more classes to everyone else. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Sorry this is so episodic, but that's how life feels right now - like it happens in brief spurts between sleeping and doing dishes. (c:

God keep you.

Blah

Life continues. I got to walk in monsoon season this week. I went on a long hike last Saturday and over-extended a muscle in my foot. I walked down the river the other day just to listen to the silence and bought corn on the cob at a little market. I think I'll eat it tomorrow for lunch.

I don't lie

To say I have a lot going on right now would seem so unrealistically large an understatement that it might pass into the realm of falsehood.

In other news, I have now successfully breached the six-month barrier of living abroad. It has been 10 weeks since my last 3-day weekend, and I'm feeling it, but look forward to a long hike, a hot shower, and a lot of extra sleep the 11th, 12th and 13th.

The Truth is that I'm only writing this to pacify my sister. As most of the people who've spoken to me can attest, there's not much I have to say that's fit to print. Life gets hard, but I'm really thankful for all the people the Lord has built into mine who make it much easier to handle.

If you want to know what I've been doing lately: (This is complete rubbish, you don't have to read it.)

I've taken (in June especially) to measuring my time in Korea by the other teachers' contracts. Ray just left the end of June, Steve leaves the end of August and Luke is out of here the end of September. Fortunately for me we recently had two new additions to our little set, Jesse and Cassie arrived the end of June! They're both really sweet, wonderful young women, and I look forward to getting to know them better.

On the fourth we all went out and had hamburgers and french fries (because we couldn't come up with anything more American than that) and then while everyone else went off to enjoy their various festivities Luke and I took a walk down the river. It's been pretty (relatively) cold and rainy this last week, so the evening was nice. (When I say, "Evening," you should really read, "Night." On my Korean schedule 'evening' begins at approximately 10 pm.)

These last couple of weeks I've been teaching SAT classes in the evenings. It's really fun and I enjoy the students a lot. Ostensibly this will continue for the next two months until the students are sent back to the US for school, poor things.

Other than that I've been sleeping . . . lots and lots of laying in bed staring at the ceiling and talking to God.

Job 2:13

"Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was."

Please pray for my family.

. . . like with pie

Sometimes people are layered like that. There's something totally different underneath than what's on the surface. But sometimes, there's a third, even deeper level, and that one is the same as the top surface one. Like with pie.

- Joss Whedon, Zach Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, and Jed Whedon

It Has Come

After a couple of weeks of not sleeping very well, I finally turned on my air conditioner this morning at 6 am. I am delighted to have made it until June.

Commitment

It rained this morning, and was, I felt, the perfect day for putting into practice some of Charles Lamb's wisdom from yesterday. A friend of mine is going through a hard time right now, and as my thoughts went with her this morning I was reminded of this hymn by Daniel W. Whittle:

I know not why God’s wondrous grace
To me He hath made known,
Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love
Redeemed me for His own.

Refrain: But “I know Whom I have believed,
And am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed
Unto Him against that day.”

I know not how this saving faith
To me He did impart,
Nor how believing in His Word
Wrought peace within my heart.

I know not how the Spirit moves,
Convincing men of sin,
Revealing Jesus through the Word,
Creating faith in Him.

I know not what of good or ill
May be reserved for me,
Of weary ways or golden days,
Before His face I see.

I know not when my Lord may come,
At night or noonday fair,
Nor if I walk the vale with Him,
Or meet Him in the air.

There is so much that is uncertain in this life, but as I think about my friend I am so thankful that there is a powerful God into whose care I have committed her; He will keep her, so I don't have to worry.

"For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." 2 Timothy 1:12

Charles Lamb

IN THE CHURCHYARD
I continued in the churchyard, reading the various inscriptions, and moralizing on them with that kind of levity which will not unfrequently spring up in the mind, in the midst of deep melancholy. I read of nothing but careful parents, loving husbands, and dutiful children. I said jestingly, Where be all the bad people buried? Bad parents, bad husbands, bad children, what cemeteries are appointed for these? do they not sleep in consecrated ground? or is it but a pious fiction, a generous oversight, in the survivors, which thus tricks out men's epitaphs when dead, who, in their lifetime, discharged the offices of life, perhaps, but lamely? Their failings, with their reproaches, now sleep with them in the grave. Man wars not with the dead. It is a trait of human nature, for which I love it.
. . .

ON RISING WITH THE LARK
At what precise minute that little airy musician doffs his night-gear, and prepares to tune up his unseasonable matins, we are not naturalist enough to determine. But, for a mere human gentleman - that has no orchestra business to call him from his warm bed to such preposterous exercises - we take ten or half after ten (eleven, of course, during this Christmas solstice) to be the earliest hour at which he can begin to think of abandoning his pillow. To think of it, we say, for to do it in earnest requires another half-hour's good consideration.
Not but there are pretty sun-risings, as we are told, and such like gauds, abroad in the world, in summer-time especially, some hours before what we have assigned; which a gentleman may see, as they say, only for getting up. But, having been tempted once or twice, in earlier life, to assist at those ceremonies, we confess our curiosity abated. We are no longer ambitious of being the sun's courtiers, to attend at his morning levees. We hold the good hours of the dawn too sacred to waste them upon such observances, which have in them, besides, something Pagan and Persic. To say truth, we never anticipated our usual hour, or got up with the sun (as it is called) to go a journey, or upon a foolish whole day's pleasuring, but we suffered for it all the long hours after in listlessness and headaches; Nature herself sufficiently declaring here sense of our presumption in aspiring to regulate our frail waking courses by the measures of that celestial and sleepless traveller.

Island Getaway

This weekend my boss invited me to her house on Jeju Island. I was a little nervous because I had NO idea what to expect. There was a little bit of miscommunication about our departure time. Mrs. Kim told me, "We'll leave at 12:40." I thought that meant we'd leave the school at 12:40, since my last class wasn't over until 12:10 - she meant our flight left at 12:40. Long story short, there was a wedding at the airport hotel and we couldn't make it through traffic in time. Although if we'd been just 10 minutes earlier they would have held the flight since the Kims fly there once or twice a week. We left at 2:20.

What can I say, the island was . . . beautiful. It reminded me of a lusher version of central Oregon. Lots of fields, lots of tree farms. The Kims took me by two of their houses (one at their tree farm and one at their fish farm). We ended up staying the night at the fish farm house, which was right across the street from the beach. They have an English class at their home on Sunday evenings, so I got to hear all the students' speeches and judge a contest. You should've seen the students faces when they first saw me. (Apparently there aren't a lot of foreigners who live there.) Anyway, after the competition the students and I went for a walk up a big hill ('mountain') near the Kim's house and then one of the mom's dropped me back off at the house. It was amazing. The air was clean, and it was just before sunset. I could look out at all the farmland neatly packaged in hand-made rock walls. It was really fun and I enjoyed wearing the students out before sending them back to their parents.

When I got back to the house I sat up for a bit and talked to Mr. Kim. (Mrs. Kim had flown back that evening to teach a class Monday morning.) Among the many things I learned from the conversation I discovered that arranged marriages are still popular in Korea and that Mr. Kim was a baseball player in his young life.

The next day Mr. Kim drove me back to the airport and sent me inside. It was very confusing. He stood outside looking expectantly for about 40 minutes and then came inside and said a car was coming to take me to the tour. What wound up happening is that I was driven in a cab(?) to the tour bus and then told I had one hour to look around where we were. So . . . it turns out the first stop was a glass museum. In advance I just want to say that this day was fun and a very interesting experience. I was driven from stop to stop and then told how much time I had to look around and be back at the bus. (Because I really didn't want to be left behind I was usually the first one on.) More than once during the day people started at seeing me. It's funny, in the states I blend in so well, there's nothing about me that's really striking or exceptional, but here . . . nope. It's funny. Anyway, here are my trip highlights:

Glass Museum: There was this sculpture of a woman collapsed on the ground with her legs tucked under her. Something about her position gave the impression of pain. The glass was clear except for a layer of opaque burgundy along the front of her body. You could see the light falling through her. It was very beautiful. Most of the pieces there were just imitations of real things (golf clubs and balls, glass swords, fish, instruments or flowers) which seems pointless to me. I can appreciate the skill required to create something like that, but it's not art, because the conveyance of these ideas has no relation to its media. If you just like fish, I can see why you'd think glass ones were cool, but it's still not really what I would consider art.

Chinese acrobats: This was fine, I met a girl and her mother who also live in Daegu. The girl said she was going to university in Seoul. They drove 4 motorcycles around in a wire cage that kind of resembled a hamster ball.

Orange/Mushroom Place: This one is difficult to describe. An older lady who was sitting in front of me and had scolded me a couple of times in Korean took my hand as we were getting out of the bus and led me along with the group. She was zealous for my care and made sure I was always in a position to see what the guide was talking about. *sigh* Which would've been a lot more helpful if I'd had ANY idea what they were saying at all. Ironically, it just kept me from being able to look around. Anyway, they took us into a little shed-like building with benches and someone came in and talked to us about oranges and mushrooms (the girl from Daegu told me they were mushrooms, they look like the dark yellow kind of foam that they use in construction sometimes) for about half an hour. Approximately ten minutes in I realized that this wouldn't be over anytime soon and started making up a script for myself about all the magical properties of these mushrooms, their misinterpretation by people from other parts of the world and the genetic properties of those raised on Jeju Island and why they were superior to any others. The audience clapped periodically, so I guess my information seemed compelling. (c: Finally we were ushered out of that building and into another, larger one. Here the man introduced us to his lovely assistant and the sales pitch began. Anyway, we sat there for another 15 minutes or so and the woman showed us the powder they make from the insulation mushrooms and how they put gold paper around the jars so that you know it's really good for you. In the end they brought us all some mushroom-drink (which the sweet old woman who was still holding my hand urged down my throat- I've had worse, although when they offered me some of the plain powder to just put in my mouth I played the confused foreigner card and got out of it). While they were making us drink our mushroom tea a bunch of other women came in and started convincing everyone to buy jars of the powder and a little girl (8 years old) who told me to call her 'Sally' explained that it was for good health. I didn't buy any.

Then we were taken to lunch, which was okay. I ate Korean food at the same table as Sally and her parents. There was some kind of spicy soup with chilies, zucchini and tofu, and they gave me a little container of rice. Not bad on the whole. I steered clear of the pork and fish that was sitting around, as well as the many sauce options, but the soup wasn't (on the whole) bad.

Boat trip: As soon as I got off the bus at the next stop Sally ran up to me and asked if we could go together (she was really cute) so she took my hand and led me down to a boat, we got on and waited for about 20 minutes until it was really full and then it took us up and down the island and out to one of the big rocks offshore to see the caves. On our way back to the dock they started doing karaoke downstairs and it was broadcast over the loudspeakers. There was a woman standing near me who just started laughing and asked if I could hear it, I told her, "Yes." And she said, "I'm sorry." It was really funny, we just laughed together for a minute and I told her it could've been worse.

When we got back on the bus the tour guide gave me a couple of "Korean vitamin C" to take. (???)

Waterfall: We stopped at what (for me) seemed like a really small waterfall and walked around for a few minutes. I read something about nymphs coming down to bathe there and a dragon statue (which I didn't find). Sally lost her parents, but we got pineapple on a stick and walked around until we found them.

The last stop: *sigh* I had never known how deprived my life was until I realized I had never seen live performing monkeys before. Wow. To see a monkey walk on stilts! There were also seals who balanced balls on their noses and dolphins who caught rings. What else can I say? The magic was there.

Finally the bus headed back to the main town and started dropping people at their hotels. I got to wave goodbye to Sally's parents (she'd fallen asleep on the way). The woman who'd held my hand at the orange farm said something to me as she left and I told her, "Pangapsamnida," which means, "Nice to meet you." She smiled. When the bus was about two-thirds empty the bus stopped and the guide told me to come with her. I was taken to a van and driven back to the airport. Mr. Kim met me there about 45 minutes later. We got on the 8:10 plane and flew home. At this point, I'm just smiling and shaking my head. It was a fun couple of days.

On another note, last night I gave a presentation to the TOEFL kids about World War I art. It was really fun, and I was excited to do it. I told them they didn't have to write an essay, but they had to write a response paper. A couple of boys asked if they could write poems instead - I'll be very interested to see what they come up with.

Only in Korea . . .

Hehe, I taught a high school class on Sunday. It was pretty fun, I'd never had those students before. One of the students showed me this picture and told me I look like a TV star. Only in Korea!

In other news, life here continues to be chaotic. On Monday one of the guys from school showed up at my door and told me that I needed to come to work early (in about 30 minutes). And when I got there the receptionist said, "Sorry," in her special, indescribable way and told me they needed me to work late as well. So, long story short, they found the point where I was done, and I told them I had to leave at 7:30pm as scheduled.

The students have had testing this week, so they're even more tightly strung than normal, but classes have still been going well. I have a conversation class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, this weeks topic was "Free Time," so I told them to try and imagine what they would do with three months of vacation with no school and no academy. They only came up with five things! I laughed at them and told them three months was a long time and you can't sleep all of it away. We had a pretty good time for the rest of the class filling up the white board with activities and filling everything in with sleep and, a special new word I taught them, "naps!" Seo-Jung (a really sweet girl I have in several classes who is always tired) was delighted.

It's so much better to be tired than weary.

I am tired. Yesterday several of us went out to the arboretum. There are trails all around it and we wandered through the hills, saw a few grave sites and found rice paddies at the end. It was nice. Then today I thought my computer had a virus and skipped out on Korean class to freak out about it. I'm not sure what's going on, but my instant messenger keeps sending links to people . . . if you're one of them - DON'T OPEN IT!

This afternoon was so lovely, Luke and I simultaneously had the idea of walking down the river, we ended up walking about 5 miles along the river trail and then taking a taxi back. There are fountains coming out of the river in the middle (which Luke speculates are powered by pipes bringing water from further up, so as to create pressure without consuming electricity). Anyway, at one point some of the spray washed over us and I couldn't help thinking, "Skin is an amazing thing, it's amazing that I can feel thousands of little droplets individually come in contact with me." Not profound, but that's what I thought. It was a lazy day for inconsequential meditations. Oh! We also met this really cute group of middle aged men who were riding around together on their mopeds. I thought, "Wild Hogs." Hehe (Though Luke didn't look as impressed.) They were really nice.

It's so funny to have people gawk at you wherever you go. One group of young women we passed actually turned to stare at us and started laughing. In the end, the area of town we wound up at was definitely not used to seeing foreigners wander through it. We got lots of looks, and all I had to do to get a cab was look expectantly off the sidewalk. Apparently there's another way to do it, but this has worked for me so far. Sometimes when I'm out somewhere if I'm not walking very fast they just kind of scoot up beside me and slow down, when I keep going they just drive off. I am SO distinguishable. *sigh* But there are perks.

Smitten

I went out with some of the other teachers tonight to this really cute Italian place that's a block from where we live. (c: They also have toasted bagels. I have yet to do any sampling, but am keenly looking forward to it. I didn't eat because I wasn't hungry yet, but we went and walked downtown and got ice cream, and I bought myself flowers. I've been thinking about it for awhile, but finally decided it was worth it.

We walked back through the park and I stopped next to my favorite magnolia tree. The blossoms are deep purple, and just . . . beautiful. I came home and was writing a friend when it just hit me how grateful I am for everything Jesus has done for me. Romans 1:20 comes to mind, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." I think back over my life, the people that I've met, the experiences I've had, the things I've seen and read, known and understood. I am thankful not to have been converted into a belief, but to have been captured by Love. I pray it captures you as well.

God keep you. (Isaiah 26:3-4)

Nonplussed

I was bitten by a student today.

Love and Hate

The banking system here is not my friend. Periodically my cash card just doesn't work. I haven't figured out any pattern either. Sometimes during the day, late at night, at stores, at the bank . . .??? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? I have no idea! But it makes me sad. Maybe it's good because it makes me take cash everywhere I go just to be safe, and if I don't have cash on me then I end up staying home - which is usually cheaper. Still, it's frustrating.

I found Isaiah 58 this week:
"Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD? Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter - when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?" (v. 5-7)

It makes me think about my life and want to be hospitable not only with my heart, but also with my home.

Saturday Korean

So, I've started taking a Korean class with Leo, one of the other teachers here. This is what I learned last week:

조 안 나
룯
우 디

(It's my full name . . . I'm pretty excited about it.)

Palgongsan & Late Night Ice Cream

My feet are very tired. I went on a hike today with Steve, one of the other teachers. Originally there were supposed to be more people going, but I think it was more relaxing because it was just the two of us. The climb wasn't too much, and the way we took down was even more beautiful . . . the light falling through the trees counterpointed the scattering of rocks. It was really lovely. And it was so nice to get out of town! I saw birds and Steve (being an amateur ornithologist) identified them for me. I also saw a squirrel with the funniest tufts of hair coming from his ears. Steve promised to send me a picture, so I'll post that when I get it.

This is a very sweet girl named Hye-Min I met while wandering around downtown. She needed someone to interview for her English class (I was obviously delighted). Anyway, she took a picture of us and sent it to me, so I thought I'd share. What can I say? Mom, Heather, you got SO lucky!

In the Morning

I found this passage this morning, and it really just spoke to my heart:

The desert and the parched land will be glad;
the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.
Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;
it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.
The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;
they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
say to those with fearful hearts,
"Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution
he will come to save you."
Then will the eyes of the blind be opened
and the ears of the deaf unstopped.
Then will the lame leap like a deer,
and the mute tongue shout for joy.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
The burning sand will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
In the haunts where jackals once lay,
grass and reeds and papyrus will grow.
And a highway will be there;
it will be called the Way of Holiness.
The unclean will not journey on it;
it will be for those who walk in that Way;
wicked fools will not go about on it.
No lion will be there,
nor will any ferocious beast get up on it;
they will not be found there.
But only the redeemed will walk there,
and the ransomed of the LORD will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Isaiah 35

On Friendship

I had an epiphany a few years ago where I was out at a celebrity party and it suddenly dawned on me that I had yet to meet a celebrity who is as smart and interesting as any of my friends.
Moby, quoted on CNN.com, March 2005


This does not exactly express my thought, but it does adequately express my sentiments. My "debate" (i.e. conversation) class this week was about friendship . . . this is my favorite class, one I always look forward to. It struck me while preparing for it (I actually have creative control of the lesson plans) what a miraculous thing friendship really is. My mind was taken back to Cicero's joy in contemplating the wonderful power friends have to heighten joys and ease hardships. Even more I thought of the mystery inherent in a relationship which has no natural necessity (as do parent-child or male-female relationships).

I still remember reading what C.S. Lewis had to say about it and thinking, "Man was he smart! I wish I could think so deep or so far." And everyone seems to have something to say about it. There isn't a work of fiction I can think of which doesn't, at some point or on some level, express an opinion about it. Just today I was reading Jane Eyre and came across the child Jane telling her friend, ". . . if others don't love me, I would rather die than live - I cannot bear to be solitary and hated, Helen." My debate class concurred, as would, I believe, anyone I've ever met.

Our need for friendship so elegantly seems to point us toward God that I'm rather stricken at the moment. Here is a relationship which does not meet any evolutionary need. All I can think is how wonderful, and awesome and, I'll say it, magical, it is that the God of the universe wants to be my friend. And that He planted in me a need for a relationship which has no need-love attached to it, and is for the sole purpose of enjoyment. Mmm.

(c: Today I taught three classes in a row which all had the theme of discussing a woman's weight. I attempted, and I believe I was successful, in convincing my students that while we might discuss it in class, they should under no circumstances attempt a practical application.

It was SO funny. One of the books actually had a guy go up to a woman and invite her to join a health club because he didn't think she'd live very long if she didn't lose some weight. I told the students that I was amazed the guy had lived as long as he had. And I made sure to mention that age is another subject which should NEVER be discussed with women, but if pressed, they should always aim low. There were some other more risqué offenses in the dialogues, but some of the students weren't old enough for some of them, and others didn't have a sufficient vocabulary. What is really ironic is that the students said it wasn't appropriate to discuss someone being overweight in Korea either. (???) Oh well.

Hi, My Name is Joanna and I'm an Addict

I made chocolate covered strawberries again tonight. This time I used a slightly darker chocolate. It's not quite as smooth, but it's more firm when you bite into it. I also dipped some of them in chopped almonds. *Sigh* I know that chocolate-covered strawberries aren't, strictly speaking, good for you. But there's something about them that's like baking. There's something deliberate and patient and sumptuous about them.

I've been here two months now, and all I can think is: "Wow, it feels a lot longer than two months. " (c:

The drama classes I taught for the last two months finally had their performance on Saturday night. Afterwards they made me go up onstage and get my picture taken with all the classes and then with all the kids and their parents. I don't really have words for how awful it was. I did reflect that maybe it serves me right - it probably doubled the number of photos that exist of me. It's funny how much I just feel like a white performing monkey. Oh well, it's passed.

I cut my hair today. It came out okay. Miriam did a really good job of giving me a base to work with, so I've just been trimming it periodically, but the ends were really dry and driving me crazy, so Alex (one of the other teachers) cut off about three inches today and then I layered it. I think I'm going to use this time to grow out my bangs and see how I feel about it. Input is always welcome.

Goodnight, please remember how much I love all of you!

Address

Just because I have had requests, my address here in Korea is:

[My Name]
275-7 2-GA Samduk-dong
Chung Gu, Daegu 700 412
South Korea

Please, no exotic animals. Thank you.

Beg Your Pardon

I want to take this opportunity to apologize. I know that I really have been remiss in not writing more. It's just seemed like there's not much to say. I had a really expensive but yummy chicken sandwich at TGI Fridays the other day with Luke. It was pretty fun. We rode the subway to the restaurant and then walked home. I got to see the river running through Daegu for the first time, and Luke got to stop and smell the roses (i.e. polluted, slow-running water) while I took in the view. It looked fairly peaceful at night.

I had two special visitors this week, and am consequently moving upstairs to a room that has no signs of any similar friends and a little porch. Alex argued that it was smaller than my current room, but I don't believe that it is. And with a little creative re-furnishing I think it will feel bigger and have more counter space that is unfriendly to outsiders. Honestly, the second time I found a roach crawling out from under my stove (it's a little gas one about the size of a binder that sits on my counter) I about lost it. It's very convenient for them that they have a room free - because I was moving either way.

I spent 3 1/2 hours this morning sitting and doing nothing at work. I think it'll probably be just as long tomorrow . . . the drama classes are finally giving their presentations on Saturday. Mercifully I have Friday off, so I don't have to sit through them every day until then. I'm also very grateful that the school director has completely taken them over at this point, so my function is to sit there and look foreign for any parents who stop by, confirm the correct pronunciation of words, and try to think up games to amuse the occasional kid who comes and laments to me, "Teacher, bored." I'm especially glad I have Friday off because that's when I'll be moving AND I don't think my book would hold out against so many days of mental oblivion. (c: The Korean teacher that worked with me for the last two months has to be there as well. I felt so sorry for him, he's not a reader and he really had nothing to do. I get the impression that Koreans don't really read for pleasure. All of the books outside the English section at the bookstore look mostly like textbooks to me, even in the kids section. It makes me kind of sad. )c: I don't know what I'd do if I didn't read.

Early Morning Rain

I woke up early this morning and realized it was raining. I opened my window and laid in bed for two hours just listening to it. It was so beautiful. I almost got up and went out for a walk, but I didn't want to risk disappointment. I think maybe anybody who feels that way needs to live in the pacific northwest.

Today wound up being very humid. My hair went crazy and started doing all of its own things. (c: I went to Costco with one of the other teachers and a couple from the church I went to last week. It was really fun AND I came back with both cheese and tortillas. I think I'll make it through this.

Later a few of us went and checked out this park. I assumed it would be a traditional sort of park, but it turned out to be the amusement park previously mentioned. One thing I hadn't realized before was that there's a place there to go bungee jumping. *sigh* Maybe some of my dreams will come true. Because there was a slight drizzle today the park had been closed, but we took a walk around and up to the tower, we tried to get to the observation deck but it was closed, so we wound up having cocktails at this beautiful revolving restaurant one floor higher. I will definitely be doing this again - at night if possible. Then we just went to catch a movie.

And now I sit, eating fresh strawberries and thinking about the rain and Romans 13:8, "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law." God keep you all.

Tuesday Morning Walk

I went for a walk on Tuesday morning. (It was barely morning, but I didn't have to be to work until 2 in the afternoon this week, so everything got pushed back.) I went and checked out this one-acre park near downtown. Apparently it was expanded to one acre. This fact alone supplied me with sufficient fuel to contemplate the differences in concepts of space between the US and Korea for quite a while. It's interesting how slow things seem here, and yet time still passes. I'm finding out what I really do with boredom. I bake. (c: Alas, there is no oven here. I practice my guitar, watch movies on my computer and think about what I'll eat next.

I met a really nice old man on Tuesday during my walk. There was a spire visible from the park, so I went and checked it out. On my way back this old man asked me if I needed help. I told him I was just out for a walk. He ended up walking most of the way back to the school with me, but I steered us to the subway stop one-away from ours and told him I needed to take the train back. (Don't worry mom.) It was a nice walk, and he was a very interesting man. Apparently the Korean CIA put him in prison without trial for a really long time, and now he's out and just "enjoying his life" (he's 73). Like I said, don't worry, I lost him at the subway and gave him the email that doesn't have my name in it.

One Month Down

I haven’t written anything because things have been so uneventful. Last weekend I went to Seoul and got to see my friend Joyce for the first time in about 6 years. It was wonderful. Definitely the highlight of the trip for me. The next day Sandy (the other teacher I went with) and I went and checked out one of the national museums. They were having a modern art exhibition which was, delightfully, free (because of their 60th anniversary). So I wandered around for several hours getting a feel for Korean understanding and development through art. It’s amazing how new everything is here really. There was a picture of the Seoul skyline from the 20s or 30s, and it was almost entirely traditional buildings, and now it boasts as many sky-scrapers as the most enthusiastic city-lover could wish.
Today I start my new schedule, working afternoons and evenings. We’ll see how it goes. I think I’m going to just shift my sleeping and eating schedule, since this will probably be my schedule for the next several months. I’ll be working from about 3 to 9 most days, some days a little bit less, some days more. That’s about it, just wanted to update everyone so my mother doesn’t get nervous.

Seolnal

Well, I'm off to Seoul for the next few days. I have a four-day weekend because of Seolnal (Lunar New Year). I'm not sure what to expect, so we'll see how it goes.

Thoughts on Chemical Dependency

So the last two nights I've gotten a total of 4 hours of sleep (if you count the time while I was pressing 'snooze' on my alarm clock). At about 3 this morning I realized that I'd had tea each of the two nights. May I state just now for the record that I hate green tea, and I'm not sure I'll ever drink it again.

Because I've had plenty of time in the last couple of days to think, I wanted to do something productive, and have hatched several evil schemes which some of you may be enlisted to participate in. (Just a heads up.)

I got to talk to the SAT students today about essay writing. I'm not sure what they teach them at school. It's very funny. They had lots of questions. There is one student who reminds me of Jabez. He keeps bringing up outlandish examples; wanting to use Hitler as an example of good leadership. I told him he's welcome to do that, but he doesn't have time to defend himself in the 25 minutes the SAT gives you. He's also very literal and cuts things down to essentials. I remember being like that about essay writing a long time ago. But they beat it out of me over the years. Maybe that's why I hate formal writing - I feel like it has nothing substantial to it because I never felt free to put any of myself into anything I wrote for school. Hmm.

So my thoughts on chemical dependency are thus: I believe it may be possible to be too independent of chemicals. For example, were I accustomed to drinking soda or coffee, perhaps I would not have spent the last two nights staring at the inside of my eyelids (I actually did that, every little while I would look at the clock to see if I could possibly have been asleep, the results were not encouraging). The thing is, I don't like drugs. They make my head hurt and make me feel all crazy and jittery. I guess I'd get over it eventually, but it just seems like, if I'm happier without, why force myself into those kinds of habits? Sorry, I'm really just rambling at this point. If you have any thoughts though, please let me know.

Also, if you have any evil plans you would like to suggest, or just share, I would be most interested to hear them. Mine mostly include motorcycles and I'd be happy to tell you about them as well.

Movie in the Afternoon

I went to see a movie Sunday afternoon with a couple of the other teachers. It was okay, but I'm not sure I could figure out the movie theatre on my own. There are, I think, 13 stories in the building, and I'm not sure how to figure out which floor the movie I want to see is on. AND the elevators don't stop on all the floors.

I was blessed with wakefulness until 5:30 am yesterday morning, so I put together a list of books I'd like to read. Please let me know if you have any suggestions.

Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow

Today I received the dubious honor of going sledding at an amusement park here in Daegu. It was so funny! When we first walked up to the "ride" all I could see was a small hill so sad and pathetic that none of my family, even those from rainy Portland, would have considered it worth sliding down. There was, however, the promise of real sledding! People were lined up at the top of the hill and the students I was with were chattering excitedly. Oh, my friends and family! I shake my head even as I write. The forlorn answer to their hopes was a hill perhaps a third as steep as my own parent's backyard, and not longer. I couldn't help but reflect on my life as I waited with the rest, huddled, clutching my wet sled. But I should not have thought, when 'twas time for me to pass, that all objects for contemplation had been considered, for no sooner had I sat upon my sled than a nice Korean man began to instruct me on the proper sitting and steering of sleds. Yea, 'tis but too true! I just looked at him and said, "I'm from Alaska!" And apparently he knew some English, because he backed away. I recounted the story for a couple of people later, but they didn't seem to see the irony. Alas! I hope you got a smile out of it. (c:

Tuesday of this week was my worst teaching day so far. (This does not mean it was particularly bad.) The next day I was loathe to go to work, but there was a sweet surprise of light snowfall Wednesday morning. It didn't last any amount of time at all, but it cheered me up, and I'm pretty sure my excitement convinced my students that I'm completely out of my mind.

I feel as if I've been here forever. It was so funny the other day to look at my calendar and realize that it's only been two weeks. Oh well, life passes on. I started getting stressed out the other night about what I'll do when my contract is up, but I still have a ways to go before those bridges must be crossed. Hmm. I shake my head now at my silly self.

Oh, but this was not particularly encouraging today:

This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity . . . Jeremiah 29:10-14

In seventy years . . . nice! It's good to have something to look forward to, eh? I hope you all are well. God keep you. (Is. 26:3-4)

I don't have an English accent because this is what English sounds like when spoken properly.
- James Carr

The Hills are Alive

Today I was given the delightful task of directing not only a traditional Korean drama called Hungbu and Nolbu and The Princess Bride, but also The Sound of Music and The Emperor's New Clothes as well. Why am I so honored some may ask, the answer, "I just don't know."

So far I've pretty much given up on lesson planning. my schedule changes constantly (read, "on a daily basis"). And even when I try to prepare, the class is a different one from what they told me, or they're in a completely different spot in the book (or sometimes in a different book altogether). Some might find this stressful, but I just figure it alleviates the necessity for preparation. If I'm going to be flying by the seat of my pants all the time I figure I might as well be blown where the wind takes me.

I've met a few really nice people here. There are others who I'm sure are equally nice, they just haven't happened accross my path yet. I finally asked a student yesterday why she was studying English. She said she wasn't sure, but she was struggling with that very question. That and who she is and who she wants to be. (It was a good talk.)

That has to be all for now, because I need to go buy a brown purse. Apparently the only color they wear here with any sort of freedom is red. To clarify, they do not wear red accessories, they wear red coats. I've decided that my green coat and purple purse statement should maybe take it easy for a while.

God keep you all. (Isaiah 26:3-4)

Sunday in the Park

Today I scheduled a walk to the park. There were enigmatic wire and what looked like dark bamboo (I have no idea what kind of wood it was) structures which appeared to be supporting the trees, or perhaps organizing them. I stared for awhile, but I didn't want to look completely out of my mind so I had to let them be. What has most impressed me, contrary to anticipation, is not the number of people here, but the number of shops. They seem to exist at a ratio of approximately one per person (or at least one for every two or three people). I just wonder how they survive since they almost always seem to be empty, with a well-dressed and entirely bored shop-person staring at their fingernails or flattening their hair inside.

Other than this mystery the day was entirely uneventful. I made myself steak, sweet potato chips and zucchini for dinner and then worked on my calouses. The Lord blessed me by sending a guitar through one of the other teachers' granddaughters. Apparently she visited last year and left a guitar behind. Now all I need is to know how to make an Em7. Oh! And tortillas! Apparently the mexican food revolution has yet to hit Korea. I think it must be coming though. How can you have a Krispy Kreme and not have some lingering hispanic roots attached to a food stand cranking out tortillas for the good of the people? More reasearch has yet to be done. I haven't been to Costco yet (that's right, boneless, skinless chicken breasts are only a tag-along shopping trip away). Maybe they'll have tortilla chips and I'll make puffy taco meat nachos to my hearts content.

I was thinking today that I might be able to stick this out for two years. College minus responsibility plus payment doesn't sound too bad, you know. But then I thought of my oven at home and thought, "Eh, we'll see." (c:

Post 1

It's difficult to know what to say as I'm feeling extremely existential tonight. For those of you unfortunate enough to have missed the cockroach extravaganza, I am deeply sorry for you - you will have to either contact me personally for an account, or consult with someone who was fortunate enough to receive first-hand information on that subject.

As most of you (hopefully) are aware, I am now in Daegu, South Korea. Most of the other teachers have told me about their initial experiences and how different Korea is. To be honest, it just feels like a big city to me. The market near my house even has cheap yellow mustard. What more could a girl want?