I Have Amazing Friends...

Meet Janelle and Lexi

(and there's me, of course, too)

I think anyone would consider themselves very blessed if they found themselves able to call either one of these women a friend... I have the privilage of calling them both close!

They've stuck with me through thick and thin and now...

THEY'RE BOTH COMING TO VISIT ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!









I'm so happy!

I Have Amazing Friends...

Tug of War and Christmas

New news:

LEXI'S COMING TO VISIT ME.... AAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm so happy!



I played tug of war with my co-workers today. Just before the match started, I betrayed my team and ran over to the other side. Chang Misook called for me to come over to her and I just can't resist her! It caused a big uproar and Jin tried to betray too, but in the end, they had to even out the teams and both Jin and I ended up back on our original team!

We lost! They play tug of war differently here than what I'm used to... they yell out, "PULL, PULL, PULL!" in Korean and when they're not yelling "PULL!" they relax the tension on the rope.

Ridiculous! You NEVER let up on the tension!!! I almost had my arm yanked out of my socket!

Then, we played T-ball! Darn P.E. teacher caught my pop fly! It cracks me up how enthusiastically my co-teachers play these little kid sports! Another group of teachers were playing kick ball and they were getting into it SO much! We played one round and then we quit and went inside for a FEAST! There was chicken and kimchi and juke and fruit and vegetables and beer and soju and on and on and on! I stayed and had dinner with everyone. It felt like Thanksgiving!

I started to tell Jin about all the food and traditions I have at home over Thanksgiving and Christmas. I think it moved her. Maybe the family gathering or the traditions or all the food or maybe just the combination of everything touched her. I'm not sure why, but she started to tear up a little bit in the midst of my remembrance's.

I realized then how blessed I am to have such a strong family. My home has always been filled with so much love and warmth, and it's tangible during these holidays. Seeing Jin tear up and in so much awe of my family traditions made me realize how hollow my life would be without my family and the gifts of love and warmth they have given me since childhood.

I told her about Christmases at Grandma's and the stockings, buckeyes, green bean casserole... just the tangible love in the room... I told her about my yearly tradition of finding the perfect tree for Grandma and our house with Dad... I told her about nut rolls and sugar cookies! I can hardly believe that I'm not going to be a part of it again and I wonder will it ever be how I've remembered. I don't know.

But, I do know that there is a huge amount of solid, immovable, irreplaceable love swirling in my heart because of my family and all of the Christmases, Thanksgivings and love I've had with them before and that I know is waiting for me back home again. I want to share this. I want to give this to Jin. I want her to feel this love and warmth.

When I started telling her about nut rolls and buckeyes we both got so excited we could hardly contain ourselves! I wonder if I could make a nut roll in my little toaster oven.... hmm....

And now I can see that I have a family here in Korea as well. My co-workers, despite our not being able to communicate 100% and all of the cultural differences, have embraced me and filled me with as many traditions as they could give.

Tug of war and T-ball never seemed so precious to me before.

Now this was Hiking!!

I had the day off from work today so I went hiking with Migyeong and Changok. We wanted to climb Gwanak mountain and Changok said we should meet at Sadang station and then go from there.

She had no idea where she was going, but we eventually found it. Yes, it was difficult, but we did find the mountain!

After hiking up these two really steep hills we came upon a Buddhist temple where all of these mothers were praying and bowing. It was quite a sight. I had the day off today, and the women were bowing to Buddha today because it's the national testing day here. The day when all of the high school seniors take the college entrance test. It's a BIG deal! They delay flights and everything.

But, anyway, we went hiking. It was INTENSE! We had to use a rope... I almost died at one point and at another I had to become a "Russian spy" in order to scout out possible routes for our descent...

Yes. We got lost. I think at one point we followed a trail... it could have been an animal path...

I think I wasn't confident of where we were going because there weren't many people on the mountain. Changok said that on the weekends it's so crowded you can't even see the mountain. You just see people. But today, there was no one! It was great!

But, these women are such troopers! I couldn't believe they were so willing to just keep going up this incredibly difficult part of the mountain with me. And they did great! At one point, their legs were too short to make it up and I had to pull them, but other than that they kept right up with me! After a while, I realized that Changok is navigationally challenged so I took the lead and they kept laughing at me cause I kept slipping and almost falling.

I had SO MUCH FUN!!!

Ahh. Such a good day!

H.

Appearances can be deceiving...

While on the subway one day, I couldn't help but notice this strange picture....

What are all of these people so excited, curious or upset about????

Yes. You guessed it; it's the westerner who's had cosmetic surgery to enhance her breast size. As you can see, she's really happy with.... herself.

Yes, this is an actual advertisement here. I'm not making it up.


In OTHER news....


Today I was called 'bouncy' by one of my co-workers. We were walking back towards our desks after lunch and I bumped into her. I meant to do this, of course, but I nearly knocked her over (didn't mean to do that). She said I was so bouncy and explained that this means I'm very young and firm and solid...


I think it just means that I have a lot of flesh... or, at least a lot more than her. There's not much to her... there's not much to many of my co-workers, but I hate talking about appearances now.


This weekend I hung out with some friends from church and learned that one of them calls and considers herself a spinster. She embraces her spinsterhood and has decided to do all she can to live up to the name and image of a spinster. She has given the word spinster a positive connotation.


She's 24. I admire this. It's a confident and humorous outlook on her present life condition. She also called me an old school Marm... I don't know how I feel about that. I'm not quite as cool as she is, so I don't know if I can really pull off calling myself an old school Marm without actually turning into one... the resemblance is too close just now! I'm already wielding a stick around and just recently bought and brown, wool, woven sweater... what more do I need??

Undone

I would consider myself a strong person. I mean, I can lift things. I can, uh... lift a... suitcase full of clothes.

I can also, in my everyday situations, hold my emotions in check. I'm strong. I can take care of myself and I don't need things. And if I do, I can get them myself, thanks.

But, yesterday, I wilted. I came undone at the drop of a hat and hats were falling all over the place. It was ridiculous.

I was amazed at my inability to hold myself together and my confidence in myself was shaken. Why was I such a mess? I think it's precisely because I've been "holding myself together" for so long. My emotions; my will, just gave out.

It turns out that I'm not a very strong person after all. I think that if I were a strong person, I would have been able "hold myself together" for longer. I would have been able to do it for months; perhaps even years. As it is, I'm useless at leading my own life. I absolutely fail at it.

*Sigh*

This becomes a big problem for me because I find within myself a very stubborn will and desire to lead my own life. Again, how ridiculous.

I was being "stubborn" for a little over a month before my emotions all came crashing down around me. At least this time it wasn't 20 years... like the first time. Maybe I am learning things quicker the second time around.

Special shout out to JB, JCrew and Jin for helping to spur this break down on and for sticking with me through it.

I'm thirsty.


H

Lately...

Some pictures over the last couple of days...

It's been rainy lately.

This is my new co-teacher, Jin. She's pretty neat.

We had the annual school festival again last Friday. It was rainy and cold.

Here, I'm trying to stay warm with Misook (on the left) and Changok (on the right).

And yes, once again, I performed in the festival.

This time I didn't make quite the fool out of my self as last time.

Just played the bass (poorly) for a couple of songs.