Adventures in Korea

Two posts at once?!?!

2008-02-06T21:26:00.000+09:00

I know-- it's a shock.... but it's a holiday

The main networking, blogging, and personal-world-on-the-net is Cyworld (similar to Facebook, MySpace, etc.) Now that they have an English version for the interface, I've jumped on the bandwagon =)

Though I'm not completely killing this blog, my Cyworld page will probably receive most of my random quick thoughts and the picture uploading is more smooth there, so I'll keep albums on that site more.

If you want to take a look, you can see it here: http://us.cyworld.com/giznew/

Happy New Year... Again!

2008-02-06T21:23:00.001+09:00

It's
Lunar New Year time again. January 1 is the new start on the solar
calendar, but if you take the moon into consideration, there's a whole
new holiday ^^
In Korea (and most of Asia) the Lunar New Year celebration is an even bigger deal with almost a week of family celebrations!

This year we mark the transition from the year of the dog to the year of the rat!
ENJOY!!!
We

have 3 days off school and all my Korean friends are off work-- many of
them travel back to their home towns to celebrate with their families,
but others live near their parents, so they are only tied up for parts
of the week and we get to play together the rest of the time!

Everywhere you go during this holiday time, children and adults are dressed in traditional hanbok costume,

people are carrying gift boxes tied up in large pieces of cloth (making ingenious and simple handles for packages that are bulky and awkward)
And
traffic is horrendous with people flooding into town and out of town to
pay homage to elder relatives and enjoy copious amounts of food with
all members of their family from near and far.

Of course, unless
family members have left the peninsula, no one is very far away by
American or Canadian standards. A 10-12 hour drive (in non-holiday
traffic conditions) will take you from the northernmost area (where I
live) to the southern tip of the country-- in the U.S. you could drive
the same area and never leave one state!

So, the rest of the week holds great plans for goofing off with my friends, a pancake breakfast party at my house,

a wedding for a couple of our English Ministry groupies
and scrub my hard drive ~
the poor computer is dropping drivers like crazy and even the big RAM
is getting bogged down with too much gunk in the works... time to give
it a fresh start with the new year.

Christmas is coming!!!!

2007-12-17T17:17:00.000+09:00

I'll be heading to the states to meet Christmas head-on this year =)

check this out for a good chuckle-- they give "medley" a whole new meaning!

pretty amazing!

First snow!

2007-11-19T22:39:00.000+09:00

I was Just heading out to finish some last minute grading when what to my wondering ears should sound, but the giggles and screams of dignified adults completely undone by magical white flakes falling from the sky!

Yes, first snowfall! With an added bonus-- thunder and lightning! Since it was dark, flashes across the sky were even more amazing and the white wonderland lit up for a moment.

In the midst of running around like kids dreaming of a snowday tomorrow, we had snowball fights, made a giant snowman (the middle was bigger than the base, so we decided it was American style-- everyone is so skinny and little here!), and snuck into the cafeteria for some lunch trays to try out as sleds.

What unexpected fun!!! Who knows, maybe that dream of a snowday could come true....
Then again, maybe I should just go to bed!

Happy Winter to you all!

2 months and counting...

2007-10-27T12:34:00.001+09:00

that's how long it's been since I wrote here!

A wise blog reader once said:

Better a short
little blurb to be read
Than leaving it empty
--we might think you're dead.

OK, so maybe I just made it up... we've been studying poetry in AP English-- don't be surprised if you find this little gem in the next literature anthology.

No, I'm not dead. When I returned to school in August, it was a crazy, disoriented month before all the new staff and class schedules were finally in place. Since then, there have been MAJOR policy changes and new programs introduced on a regular basis. Just finishing the first quarter, I think I can now say, we've reached some sort of stasis for a while. My own disorganized randomness in the personal world of my head has added to the chaos, so I hadn't realized how much time passed so quickly! I hit the ground running, after a great (long) summer of visiting and traveling with friends&family-- and haven't stopped yet.

So, I have little that can squeeze through the constricted aperture of a muddled writing-brain right now, but I am alive and I realize some of you still check this page even though I've given you no reason to be so faithful. Thank you for stopping by and I will try to follow the bloggy advice from the poem in future days and weeks.

Here's some pictures until then...

We went to Everland for the Chuseok holiday

We also had our school's Fall Festival, complete with candy, music, games and costumes!

Princess Fiona here.

The view from my window "in the tallest tower"
not so Far, Far Away

Home sweet home...

2007-08-11T12:59:00.000+09:00

**** disclaimer: this post will not even come close to covering all I should have written over the past month and a half, so don't expect too much. Really, I know that my blogging license should be revoked for my lack of communication, but if you've looked around at all, it's pretty obvious that no license is required, so even the slouches like me who can't seem to jot a few words now and then are not apprehended by the blog-police and dragged off to Internet prison, along with all the other electronic miscreants, where Al Gore drones on about the environment for the duration of our well deserved worse-than-prison sentence. So, I hope you'll just accept the apology for my lack of writing and hope that I get my act together as the school routine possibly puts my world into more order-- or not. I'm a repeat offender and there may be no hope of rehabilitation... ****

yes, well, it was a busy summer with lots of travel, tons of catching up with family and friends, and a trip to London & countryside of England. It's been full, long, fast, and fun!!! It's good to be back in my own bed, the suitcases are unpacked and now all I have to do is makes sense of the resulting piles =)

Thank you all for your travel-safety prayers-- God answered them on numerous occasions when things could have gone quite wrong! Diving back into school will be an adventure as we navigate some major changes, joining back in at church will be steady all weekend, and jumping back into Korean life is as smooth as last year at this time...

Life is good, God is always protecting, growing and challenging me, I've received great encouragement and energy from my friends and family, and it's time to start the second year of this big adventure! I'll keep you posted.... really =)

Hello again!

2007-06-28T23:03:00.005+09:00

I promised to update this page very soon... well, it's beyond time now!
After completing one school year in Korea, I'm back in the States for a visit.

As you scroll down, you'll find many updates, some pictures, and stories from life on both sides of the globe as I recall the last few months in Korea and catch up on the previous year in the lives of my family and friends.

For those of you in Korea just joining me on this page, scroll down to be introduced to some people in my world here (more pictures and less English to deal with ^^).

Love you all!

Interviewing myself...

2007-06-28T23:03:00.003+09:00

So you've been gone from the country you've called home all your life for almost a year and I wonder... Have you changed at all?

hmmmm

I can use chopsticks much better now!
I like spicy food and fish (didn't think I liked them a year ago!)
My sense of direction is much better now...
this is due to a heightened consciousness to detail-- when you can't read all the communication we take for granted every day, you can't afford to be oblivious like I have been most of my life =) It's a little like the sense of seeing becoming more acute when the sense of hearing is lost-- except even reading lips won't help me in this language I can't understand =)
I don't see the complicated illegal immigrant issue in the same way I used to-- Some of my good friends are illegal and as their opportunities are even more limited in their home countries, they are willing to take their chances to support thier families with no other hope (and when they are caught, they praise God for His provision and for being restored to their families, and we all pray that God will open a legal way for them to return) I don't venture to say that the issue is parallel to the US problem now, but it used to be so black and white in my head, and now it's not....
I am more comfortable with the ambiguities and mysteries of life, faith, and culture-- The Bible is absolute truth, but there are so many things in the West we consider to be "right" that are really just cultural. Besides that, explaining away a mystery doesn't solve the mystery, it just allows us to be at peace with something we can understand-- even if it's not entirely true.
Now that I'm back in the States, I begin more sentences than I'd like with "In Korea, we..." It's becoming obnoxious to me already, so it must be driving everyone else crazy!
I'm just a tiny bit more decisive. "In Korea I..." ... don't have time to second guess everything and whatever I don't decide on quickly just won't get done, purchased, or whatever. I think this has led to the next one...
I live life more and think it less! I took many journals with me and I've used them to jot down thoughts I don't want to forget, but it's not so much of a survival mechanism anymore. It's good to live in reality instead of so much time spent inside my own mind (scary place =)
I'm a little bit better teacher-- This one is kind of cheating... in the first decade of teaching it's pretty hard not to improve with each year's experience =)
I've been living in a very touchy-feely place. I'm not sure if I'm really changed or if it's just a way to fit into this culture, but we're often packed in so we practically sit on each other, hold hands walking everywhere, and hugs are the natural way to greet each other. I've always been awkward with this stuff, but it seems that some of that barrier is broken down-- the difference is that all the physical connection doesn't mean so much here...with no personal bubble, it's not a big deal to touch someone else-- either shoving or hugging!
I got a little more organized in schoolwork, but most of my world is just as random and haphazard as ever (thus, months between having time with organized thoughts to blog!)
I'm quicker to make friends and less demanding of them in the way of intensity-- I'm still not "casual friend" material, but I can have more than 2 friends at a time and my head doesn't explode =)

Have you missed anything while you've been gone?

My niece was born 3 days after I arrived in Korea, so I had never held her or seen her except on my computer screen-- I do love holding Kaitlyn now! And playing with Logan and hanging out with Mariah-- I've missed months of them growing up and am surprised at how different they are and still much the same... It's the same with everyone, but with children it's so much more obvious!
With the advent of the internet (thanks Kerry!), skype and other international communication, blogs and e-mail, I don't feel that I've entirely lost touch with what is happening for my family and friends across the US, but I am enjoying catching up in person now this summer!
Having transportation parked next to my door-- but the loss of car payments, insurance, maintenance, and needing to be alert while traveling are a good trade-off!
Knowing what drugs I'm taking after getting prescriptions from the doctor =)
Doritoes, Reece's, salad, pizza, and small (normal) spoons
Understanding the language around me! Grocery shopping is so much easier when you can read the labels-- find a foreign food store sometime and try to find the salt, vanilla, mayonnaise, and the kind of toothpaste you like!

All in all, I'm pretty much the same person and while I enjoy being back in my homeland again, I miss Korea at the same time-- it's a GREAT place! Come visit sometime!!

Korean friends, meet my American Friends and family...

2007-06-28T23:03:00.001+09:00

My family: (I obviously need to update the albums! My Dad is missing!)

my sis& a happy big brother

sister,mom,me

niece&nephew

aren't the nephew&niece SOOO cute?!

Like a second family to me!

Friends

my teaching buddy!

superpowers: shopping and teaching me how!

never a dull moment with my Idaho buddies!

American friends and family, meet my Korean Friends...

2007-06-28T23:02:00.001+09:00

Whole School...
My Seniors (co-advising group)

Co workers:

Church Family

Sisters and Brothers

Still here!

2007-05-20T08:20:00.001+09:00

Yesterday I reclaimed my house.

I'm embarrassed to say it was taken over by piles, stuff, dust, school, things, recycling, junk... it looked like a crazy cat lady should live here (except so bad that the cats would have taken off a LONG time ago!) When my schedule began to get so full, I resorted to only barely keeping up with laundry and dishes-- if it didn't stink, I couldn't take time to deal with it.

This isn't really anything new in my world. This cycle is "normal," but when it gets to the out-of-control-stage, I hate it! It makes me lethargic at home so that instead of using the limited time doing all the things I need to do, somehow, I spend hours doing nothing and digging a deeper hole for myself over time.

Sunny weather returning does seem to help me in the motivation department as well as seeing the end of the school year in sight-- and needing to leave this place in a state of organization so I can come back and hit the ground running in August!
So, the desire to fix it was there but if I was a tidy organized person who could figure out how best to clean things up, I wouldn't be in this mess. People like me (and I'm told there are many of us out there!) need someone to show us the way to live like the highly advanced lifeforms that we are; because left to myself, I could be the proof that scientists are looking for that we all evolved from hyenas!

So, thank you Ellie for telling me about flylady I got some tips on how to "crisis clean" and then how to keep up on all the little things that I feel completely helpless to conquer on a regular basis. The bottom line is-- you can do a lot in 15 minutes! (and you can't do everything at once so don't beat yourself up trying)

My encouragement to me today-- enjoy seeing the floor and some table surface areas!
My encouragement to you today-- if you feel helpless, get help! There are people in this world who are good at the things you're not.... and they probably have a website

Have a great day!

Snippets from the Whirlwind

2007-04-21T23:14:00.000+09:00

Things

Spring Break did prove to be a restful time and I came back to school with more motivation and feeling like I could be better at my job again =)
I've got all the travel plans figured out for the summer and I'm really excited to hang out with friends and family again! Now that the tickets have been purchased and we're on the home stretch of the 2nd semester, my excitement is mounting by the day!

A bunch of us from church are pretty excited to go to a Hillsong concert next month! There will be many Korean parts of the concert/worship service, but I'm sure I'll hear more English music all at once than I've heard in a long time!

Music

The school had a Spring Fair on Friday and one part of the event was an art show of all the students' work from this semester. To continue a tradition started 3 years ago, musically inclined teachers play background music at the art show to provide some atmosphere, so my guitar and I got roped in for a time slot. This is much different than my normal playing because, usually, the whole point is for other people to join in and sing along, and it's a basic list of worship songs that I play. Who knew all those years of listening to FM100 (the easy listening station in Idaho) would come in handy 20 years later?! The folk/oldies tunes are fairly easy to find music for, many don't require a great sense of rhythm or many chords, and the voice I have fits this genre quite easily. I had a great time singing and jamming with my fellow teachers-- it didn't even matter to us that the torrential rains made for tiny crowds and all the outdoor events were moved to the gym on other end of campus. BIG fun!

Church

I'm in a discipleship class with 3 other foreigners led by our English ministry leader, Pastor Kang. It's been good to go back to the foundations, memorize Scripture, and find out more about my friends and their backgrounds. There's enough homework to keep me busy, but Pastor Kang is a very understanding teacher, so it's doable =)

After sitting in the pew for a few months, I'm now enjoying the opportunity to sing on the worship team for English ministry, so that adds a practice late Saturday nights, but since I have to leave my house anyway, I now go a little earlier to attend the young adult service. (well, we're not so young, but we are all single =) The music and teaching is all in Korean, but my good friend Lydia translates for me. It's yet another flavor of worship service: a more lively and energetic group, the message is more intimate than the large services, and it's a wonderful time for Lydia and I to be together. The whole group welcomes me with open arms and they don't even seem to mind the constant murmur of a foreign language at the back of the room.

Sundays are full to the brim from pre-service music practice in the morning till the conclusion of English practice before evening service (which I don't attend because by 7:00 I'm pooped and there's always a little school prep. to be done before Monday morning =)

English

My English Bible study for high schoolers has slimmed down to a much more manageable size. It's now only 3-5 students any given week (instead of 20) and I'm still having a blast getting to know them and helping them gain confidence to speak while also diving into God's word!

The desire for English is overwhelming here! There's no way I could help everyone who drops a hint or asks directly and I feel helpless when I have to say that I have no more time to practice with people, but I'm full up right now =) Pastor Kim (see next post), one of the staff pastors who has given us midnight rides home after Friday night service for months, is needing to practice and improve his English for missions ministry; Sunday&Thursday evenings we have conversations with little mini-lessons thrown in here and there.
One of my Bible study students is facing a difficult university application process which includes interviews in English discussing political issues, so he and I are meeting for a little while before our study to converse and prepare him for that.

The school has arranged for a "critical writing" class for students whose parents want them to have extra tutoring from English teachers; we meet 2 afternoons a week for an hour for some concentrated writing instruction and practice. It's a GREAT extra boost in the income and it's fun to work with my students who begin to see their writing improve through one-on-one editing and instruction. It is "one more thing" on the schedule, but highly worth it for the improvement we're seeing in their daily classwork during the day too!

In a Nutshell...

We have a few members from our English ministry planning to return to their home countries (at least semi-permanently) over the next few months and one of these is the main leader of our worship team. Though we've got a good, steady, team, the second leader is up to his neck in seminary coursework, so they're eyeing me as an additional leader and I'm promising to pray about it. Please pray with me for ears to hear His voice, wisdom galore, and willingness to follow wherever God leads.

For those of you playing along at home and doing the math, it's pretty safe to say that, after only 8 months, I'm as busy here as I ever was back in the states and I'll seriously be considering what to drop if anything else comes up.

Life is good!

God is good!

Finally getting all this blogged is good!

Sleep is good from what I remember...

g'night

May you also find God's leading in all your snippets and peace within your whirlwind!

Funny thing happened on the way to English practice...

2007-04-21T17:18:00.000+09:00

Thursday evenings I enjoy a free dinner in exchange for English practice with one of the pastors at my church who needs to improve his English for leading summer mission groups. This week, I met him in front of my school and he asked, "Do you have any plans tonight." Now, I should know by now that this phrase is Korean for "I have a plan that I didn't tell you about yet, but you can expect to be out until late tonight."
Since my plans included things like practicing music, doing a little schoolwork (which are completely flexible in their timing) and then going to bed at an earlier-than-decent hour, like an idiot, I told him I didn't have plans.
One of the praise teams from our church was giving a concert that evening, so we went. It was on the other side of town, so we met up with the group and shared a snack before heading outside to advertise for this concert that would start in an hour! They opened a big box full of promotional Kleenex packages with all our church information on them and we tucked a ticket for the concert in each packet. Then we loaded up with all the packets we could carry and spread out to the surrounding intersections and sidewalks to give them to anyone who happened to be passing by. It took almost no time to pass out 250 of these Kleenex invitations as the area is a popular/busy place and we were there at rush hour. So while the band went back to get ready, Pastor Kim and I grabbed some dinner before the show.
The "concert hall" was like a tiny place you might find in an artsy part of Portland tucked away as a place for small groups to gather for little concerts. It had a trendy/utilitarian feel with the concrete walls painted black and chipped concrete floor with pipes running all directions across the ceiling.
All the music was in Korean, but there were a few songs that I know in English, so I got the gist of the whole thing. Loud, talented, loud, lights&smoke, loud, and generally fun! It took about an hour to get home again at 10:00.
If I had known what I was in for, I probably would have answered that I did have plans for the evening; but I would have missed an adventure that helped me see more of the Korean side of my church and take part in a piece of (possibly evangelism?) encouragement to believers in a surprise mid-week praise time.
So, once again flexibility is the theme of the week (this was just one snapshot in a whole week of "surprises"). Still, I'm so glad this week is over and I can start again next week with a renewed delusion that I have some control over my schedule.

Feast away!

2007-04-20T23:57:00.000+09:00

Just one more Friday Feast and then I promise to put up a blog of more substance soon!

Appetizer
When you were a child, which crayon color was your favorite?

Periwinkle or Cornflower (for some odd reason I HATED orange, so that was always the sharpest while the mamby-pamby purply-blue colors were down to nubs =)

Soup
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being highest), how likely would you be to change jobs if it required you to move?

Well, this has already been answered as a 10 since I'm writing this blog from Korea where moved for a job 8 months ago; but now, it was such a great move that I'm closer to a 1-- an order from God is the only thing that could tear me away from here =)

Salad
Take all the numbers in your birthday and your phone number and add them up, one by one. What’s the total?

85... you want croutons with that?

Main Course
Have you ever “re-gifted” anything? If so, what was it and who did you pass it on to?

Is this a trap?! I'm a firm believer in re-gifting (I think this might actually be a spiritual gift or a fruit of the Spirit that Paul forgot =) Part of what makes it work is that you don't tell-- kinda like birthday wishes! Now, there's a GREAT laugh-till-you-cry story of re-gifting in my family, but it's not mine to tell, so I'll have to quit stalling and actually serve up the answer now even if it means that people reading this find out that I didn't keep the gifts they gave me OR that the gifts I gave them didn't take hours to find in a store (just in my disorganized gift closet)...

Address books have been passed to people who would actually use them; lotions that make me sneeze have been wrapped up for people who don't have allergy problems; and almost anything with a combination of an apple and the word "teacher" on it finds its way to others who might appreciate it more than I

Dessert
Name something you need from the store.

a clicker*

*(noun) [k-lik-ur] miniature flame thrower used for lighting candles inside decorative holders, lighting BBQs when the "sparker" dies, and anything else needing lit on fire yet requiring an extension from the hand. ex. "Where did you put the clicker? does anyone know where the clicker is?! Why can't you put the clicker back where you found it?!?" (note: this can also pertain to the other form of "clicker" which is used for changing channels on the television)

Friday Feast

2007-04-06T13:31:00.000+09:00

{Featured Flickr Feast by Pastor Rob}

Appetizer
When you travel, which mode of transportation do you prefer?

I'd love to take a train sometime (that might be my favorite =) But nothing beats an airplane for long distance and a car with untinted, clean windows for photo ops when on a local tour.

Soup
Have you ever met a blogging friend in person?

Not exactly Blogger, but from the online world, yeah! I met a great Korean woman through SKYPE and we chatted a few times. On my birthday in November, we were chatting and she asked what I was doing to celebrate; I was meeting co-workers at a local restaurant for dinner, so I asked if she could come. She did and we recognized each other from the little headshots we'd seen of each other. Such a great birthday gift (and she brought an amazing cheesecake too!)

Salad
When was the last time you were really, really tired?

The night before leaving for Thailand, I had left WAY to many preparations for the last minute, so I ended up staying up all night to finish and catch our flight early in the morning-- my brain ceased to function long before I found sleep again and I'm afraid I wasn't a real fun travelling companion those first few hours!

Main Course
If you could have dinner with any one fictional character from a book or movie, who would it be?

Beatrix Potter. Her books are imaginative and cute, but the movie Miss Potter really clinched it for me! It seems she was a spunky, creative businesswoman in a time when it was only acceptable to be reliant on marriage and family for happiness and support. Her stories show a little of that spunk and humor, so I'm ready to believe that the movie captured at least partial reality. So, is it dinner with the REAL Miss Potter, or the movie character? Maybe both-- I'd love to listen to the conversation they would have =)

Dessert
Fill in the blank: One day, I hope to see ___the first bound copy of a book with my name in the place reserved for the author-- or better yet, a copy of that book on someone else's bookshelf__!

Breaking into Spring!

2007-03-31T00:44:00.000+09:00

Spring break is here!
About 12 hours from now, I'll be finished proctoring the SAT and be FREE for the week. I'm more excited than my students are to be out of school, I think!
It means sleeping past the alarm (on purpose instead of the accidental sleep-in mornings I've been having!), a little retreat time at a nearby hotel place since they will be doing some construction next door, and... catching up on this blog!

No, I haven't forgotten my home on the internet, but since it didn't have to be graded or require a meeting, I couldn't fit it in these past few weeks.

Here's to catching up with everyone in the States, in blogland, and spring cleaning the recesses of my mind that haven't seen a good dusting of thought for awhile...

For now, I'll have to say goodbye again because it is 1:00 in the morning and my bed is calling me with a thunderstorm soundtrack playing its rumbles and tap-tapping rain on my windows-- perfect sleep music =)

Life: To be continued....

2007-03-18T08:21:00.000+09:00

Eventually, the blackout will lift. I guess it's more of a gray-out now. Here's some interesting numbers from this week:

5-- Delicious Jeju oranges eaten (little canker sores are popping up in my mouth to say I gotta stop now =)
0-- eggs dropped YAY!!!
500 bazillion-- papers graded
200 bazillion-- papers left to grade
1-- PTA meeting attended
2-- classes covered for other teachers
3-- degrees (Fahrenheit) the thermometer seems to rise each day to promise spring!
4-- loads of laundry I probably should have done to catch up
2-- really big loads I did instead (white is such a relative term =)
1-- book I've read
2-- hours spent gathering tax information
3-- amazingly cute pictures of Jason&Tauni's baby received by e-mail
0-- pictures of my own niece and nephew
0-- times the TV has been turned on
1-- meal eaten out
3-- new people I've met (and hope to remember =)
8-- podcasts I found that sound interesting (Prairie Home Companion-- pretty funny stuff!)
6-- sweaters I'm really tired of wearing! Want it to be spring now!
4-- inches of visible surface area combined on 2 cluttered tables and a hopelessly piled desk
1-- desk I found at school hiding under the piles of books and papers (they don't levitate after all!)
1-- Spring play started at Corban College (you still have lots of time to go see it if you live in the Salem area)
47-- blogs/letters I've written in my brain with no time to get them out
1-- letter that broke out for a friend who REALLY needed one
1-- sad little list blog that you've made it to the end of (yes, I'm ending with a preposition =)

Scheduled Blackout...

2007-03-11T22:53:00.000+09:00

Going for days or even weeks without posting happens completely by accident, but this is an official announcement of my intention to completely ignore blogworld for about a week. I'm quite behind on schoolwork; stuff is growing in the corners of my house because I've neglected the simple cleaning tasks needing done; I'm taking a new class at church that has a bit of homework and I need to work up the next unit for my high school English Bible study too; some music tasks are coming up, grade reports due very soon for 3rd quarter report cards (can you believe it?!); other writing to catch up on; and generally emerging from the end-of-winter funk I've been living in-- it's time for a spring cleaning overhaul: mind, body, and laundry!

Because Somewhere in the World, It's still Friday...

2007-03-10T18:33:00.000+09:00

FRIDAY FEAST

Appetizer
What is your usual bedtime? Do you like that, or would you rather it be different?

If I remember where I put the remote, my bedtime is about midnight or one because I find things to watch and just can't seem to pull myself away... if I'm catching up on grading, it's later. Those weeks when I crash early 10-ish, I always think it would be great to make it a habit.

Soup
When it comes to advice, do you give more or receive more?

Overall, I give more than receive, but as a people-watcher, others give me advice without even knowing it all the time!

Salad
Describe a memorable meal you've had.

So many of them here in Korea, but I think one of the best memories would be the first Korean BBQ meal I had with my great friends back in Oregon. We were celebrating my upcoming adventure and trying out the food I would encounter in my new land-- lots of laughs, yummy do-it-yourself food and wonderful company!

Main Course
Name a work of fiction that affected the way you think about something.

The two that come to mind have a common "self-discovery as a castaway" theme, so I'll name both:

Robinson Crusoe

and Life of Pi

When left on their own, these men are forced to do deep thinking, answering the questions that are too important not to ask and making sense of life. I remember being so frustrated with Mr. Crusoe after I read him through to get him off the island only to see him "throw it all away," but in the end I could understand. Then the incredible story that Yann Martel weaves together is turned on it's head at the end-- left with this ambiguity that turns my thinking upside down and inside out, I love to seek truth, yet mystery has it's place too. That also makes me think of Peace Like a River. I love love love the message of mystery and grace in this book. I'll stop now, otherwise there won't be room for dessert!

Dessert
What is your favorite type of fruit juice?

Jeju Island orange juice. It's just the right tangy and sweet!

Living in Snooze

2007-03-10T18:18:00.000+09:00

You know that 9 minutes of waking time between the moment you hit the snooze button and the moment it comes alive again insisting that you throw off the covers and pretend to care about life? (OK, so I'm a night owl-- you morning folks don't have any idea what I'm talking about!) Well, that's all fine and good for the morning routine, but I've been living in that fog 24hrs for about 2 weeks! First because it was difficult to breathe and sleep, but then it was the medication they gave me for allergies. That's the problem with not knowing the language in the medical system here-- they prescribe little packets of pills for something as simple as allergies and something in that little packet made life only seem half real with the little annoyances blowing up into big frustrations and constant shaking in every cell of my body. Of course, I thought I was feeling OK and it was just a mood thing that was out of whack-- funny thing how my mood got back in step when I stopped taking the meds....
I'm back among the living for real and cleaning up the mess left by that crazy, listless person who has been living my life-- at least she didn't blog and make a mess of that too!

On the Mend!

2007-02-27T06:53:00.000+09:00

I got some worried e-mails about my recent posts (sometimes I wonder if anyone even reads this stuff, but then I realize I'd have the drive to write anyway, so it doesn't matter ). It's so nice be loved from across the miles!
Status report: feeling so much better today! Even before any pain meds this morning, my body is almost pain-free! My students will probably wish they had the sick teacher from yesterday; she let so many things go, she didn't talk much, she let them take a break from work the last 15 minutes of class, she was so much easier!
Well, enjoy your ability to breathe today-- I know I will!

Will I Ever Learn?

2007-02-26T07:56:00.000+09:00

You would think I would have made the connection by now!
NO EGGS ON MONDAYS!!!
After the prior Monday-egg-mishap, I should just stay away, but NOOOO, do I listen to that little illogical superstitious voice in my head? of course not!

Today, it was only one egg that met its demise on the counter instead of in the bowl for my french toast pleasure. I knocked it lightly on the counter and it shattered, leaving the contents to ooze down the front of the counter on the floor, etc. As I stared in disbelief, I realized that once again I pushed my luck on a Monday after a not-so-lucky weekend.

I'm looking forward to the end of this day already! I'll make my students do most of the talking to give my achy chest a break and practice smiling when I don't feel like it-- maybe I'll just remember the egg

Have a good Monday when it comes around for you-- and beware the evil eggs!

Deep Breath....

2007-02-25T16:40:00.000+09:00

Tylenol PM is a wonderful invention and I'm glad I brought it along! A half-dose and finding just the right position allowed me to sleep all night. When I woke up, I thought maybe I was all better, but then I took a breath and moved-- 2 very bad ideas =)

I cancelled my English study class for today since I couldn't imagine talking that much, but still went to church. I love my church and the beauty of our unity and care also means that we are very involved in each other's lives (most of the time, a good thing =), so if I was gone and they knew I was sick, there might be a posse showing up at my door with the Korean version of chicken soup and an acupuncture kit . No, not really... but since breathing is what hurts and I have to do that wherever I am, I went to church anyway.

Dr. Yang met me at the door (like I said, news travels fast), and asked me about my condition. I told him about my hospital visit and he wanted a careful description of my symptoms; then he said that since all the tests were negative, he would say it's pleurisy and it will resolve itself, but the symptoms could be helped by anti-inflammatories (couldn't they have told me that last night?!?!) He got me all set up with the pills I need for 5 days and they are already helping the pain a little bit.
Summary? bloodwork, x-rays, EKG, and 3 hours in the emergency room on a Saturday night with no conclusions or ideas for treatment: $70.... A caring doctor who listens and gives medication that helps on a Sunday morning before worshipping: priceless!

I love my church and my friends who pour out so much love; pray so many prayers; use their cars and professions as ministry on their days off; and generally let all of us know that we cannot fall through the cracks-- we will not be left alone. The flip-side is all the attention which I'm not used to, but it feels more like Acts 2 than any body I've been a part of before.

It's good to be weak sometimes, to need help, to see the help that is always there. This has been a very unexpected part of living overseas-- my weaknesses are multiplied and magnified while God covers me and becomes everything I need. I'm pretty sure that's how He planned for life to work!

Fame?

2007-02-25T14:49:00.000+09:00

I had forewarning on Friday night that my picture would be in the Sunday bulletin. The Korean members were really excited! Today, I got a taste of why it was such a big deal... all morning, my face was staring back at me in the halls, in the sanctuary, in the chair next to me... acckkk!
There are around 4,000 people in our church and they print up (I would guess) around 5,000 bulletins each week (the extras are handed out as tracts on the subways for outreach over the coming weeks). I am the back page along with a poetic narrative written by the high school pastor I work with for the English Bible study.

They wanted to send me home with a whole stack of these so I could give them to all my friends, but I think this is better (eventually, this post will archive and we can all forget about it =) So, here it is, (think 8.5"x11" page!) with the English translation I was given:

Jesus is My Cloth of Heaven!

I feel like I'm part of Korea as I wear a Korean traditional costume. I want to be close with the culture and people of Korea. When we believe in Jesus, we shall be clothed with Jesus as a covering. We live this life while experiencing Heaven in Jesus' arms. ~~written by pastor Cha (Lawrence)

As people passed me in the halls or on the sidewalks near the church today, the normal quick-stare because I'm foreign was followed by a double-take and recognition. So many comments, so much attention, so strange...
Last time that there was a small picture with a few of us foreigners tucked inside the bulletin, we met ourselves on the subway a couple weeks later when we were on the same train where the Korean members were evangelizing-- it was strange to have people sitting across from us thumbing through the bulletin and then glance at us and at the picture again and then at us as they realized we were the ones in the paper they were reading. This one is bigger and oh, so solo! I think I'll stay off the subways for a while =)

A True Story in Reverse

2007-02-24T22:08:00.000+09:00

I'm not sure if it makes the suspense worse or better, but if you like a nice, straight timeline, you might want to scroll to the bottom of this post and read your way up so it will all be in order-- but I think it's more fun backwards!

I'll try to sleep and see how it goes tomorrow. Deacon Yang in our English ministry is a physician with a heart the size of Korea and he will look me over if I still have pain.

So, they finally discharged me after about 3 hours in the strangest Emergency Room I've ever stepped foot in. "All the tests were clear, no problems, can't find anything wrong. That will be $70 please." (You'll all be glad to know the pregnancy test was negative too) Overall, there's nothing they could do for my pain and I'd just have to go to a day clinic next week if it persisted.

*** since I'm telling it in reverse, you might think I was alone in my adventure, have no fear, my friends were close-- my friends and church would never let me go-it-alone!***
Looking out the window of my little corner "bay" in the big room full of interesting sick people and their families, I treasured up all the new sights and sounds of this adventure (and finished planning my Bible study for tomorrow). Every 20 minutes or so a new little (or not-so-little) face would peek around the curtain wall to see the white girl sitting in her bed. I couldn't blame them, I was people watching too (ever so sneakily through the reflection of the dark windows )

My friends left to find some dinner after the need for an interpreter was passed and I was just waiting for the next tests. The chest x-ray was not too exciting; but the tech got to ask his one English question "where are you from?" Then my bed was wheeled back down the narrow hall, where after some jockeying and arranging, they landed me in slot 4 of the B section (not where I was b4 =). I got as comfy as I could -- this hospital knows what kind of blankets to use: big, fluffy, and warm! Since it hurt to lie down, I sat there waiting, watching people, reading, texting on my phone, and wondering why no one has figured out a way to warm the IV liquid on the way in so that it doesn't freeze your arm.

It didn't take long to find a nurse who spoke a little English and they quickly had my vital signs recorded, my pee in a cup, and an EKG readout. Giving medical history in broken English is a skill I hope to never have to perfect-- it's hard! While a nurse is taking a blood sample and affixing an I-V, the doctor is trying to ask all these questions and I suddenly realize how much I use my hands for charades to make things understood--universal sign language.

When we finally found the Emergency room (the only part open on a Saturday evening), I was given a bed in the triage section. There were some mementos of previous patients on the sheets: hair, lint, bandage tape... nothing visibly contagious, but strange to see after my years of candystriping and living in germ-aware America.

I knew it would be an adventure as soon as Sue and I walked through the front doors while Yunmo (pronounced Yoon-moe) parked the car. Patients wandering around with lots of family surrounding them, very open wards and gathering rooms where healing happens right out there for everyone to see... "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto!" We're so secretive, quiet, and protective about all this hospital stuff in the states, but here, it's far more open and do-it-yourself.

It would almost seem best to get sick on the weekend (no work to get out of to see a doctor), but since the clinics and Dr. offices are closed, it means you have to take a trip to the hospital. We were told by the doctor in our English ministry that our best chance at finding English speakers was the Catholic hospital in Uijeongbu. Yunmo knows where it is, so when Sue mentioned our plans to him, he got on his white horse (little black car) and came to the rescue! (his shining armor was at the cleaners) Don't get all excited, this is not a romance story.

The pain was getting worse so that it even overcame my normal resistance to doctor/hospital thinking. So, I called Sue back (she was out running errands) and told her I thought I should go to a doctor instead of going to dinner. She said she would go with me and in the course of our phone tag, Yunmo found out what was going on and offered his car as a taxi.

Following a LLLLOOOONNNNGGGGG Friday (school, tutoring, prayer service, and the midnight-4am shift at the school lock-in), I was feeling sore and tired all day while grading papers and doing little things around the house. After making plans with Sue to go for dinner in a couple hours, I got up to get myself ready-- yes, I spent most of Saturday in my bathrobe -- I realized that it wasn't just some back muscles that were sore, it was my whole chest and over the next hour, my lungs were threatening to mutiny with every inhale and exhale. When it hurts to breathe, you find out how often such an action is really necessary-- wow!

Friday Feast

2007-02-23T07:27:00.000+09:00

I just stumbled across this Friday Feast thing in blog world. Each Friday someone puts together a list of questions to answer giving insight into the blogger's mind-- looks kinda fun, I'll give it a try...

Appetizer
Do you button shirts top-to-bottom or bottom-to-top?
I belong to the "only unbutton what you need to get out of it" club-- that's right, my shirts stay buttoned even in the wash! So, I start in the middle and work my way up.

Soup
What is your favorite sandwich?
Ham and swiss. Boring, I know, but in Korea, non-processed ham and cheese is hard to find and very expensive when I do, so this is a delicacy!

Salad
What was a family project you helped work on as a child?
Rebuilding a hi-lo camp trailor that my dad's family wrecked when he was a kid. Dad spent hundreds of hours out in the summer heat ripping that thing apart and putting it back together. Sometimes I would brave the July sun to help, but I always got bored, tired, or cranky long before he finished for the day. This was the summer I learned to measure twice and cut once

Main Course
When have you acted phony?
In middle and high school there were many times that I played dumb a little bit. I didn't want to stand out, and the best way to get lost in the crowd academically was to be mediocre. Most of the time this was convenient because procrastination is my middle name and that makes for mediocre work, but when faced with a point-blank question from friends or teachers, I would sometimes answer "I don't know" when I realized that I might be one of the three people in the room who could answer.
OK, so it didn't end with graduation-- I've pretended ignorance on occasion since then... nobody likes a know-it-all! And I don't know it all! I tell myself it's for the comfort of others in the room, but it's really just me being selfish or lazy.

Dessert
Do you write letters or postcards? If so, to whom?
I write letters to my friends when I think they need encouragement or when God gives me something to say to them. To my friends and family living 5,000 miles away, I usually e-mail these letters.
Post cards should be flowing in a steady stream to folks back home since I'm in a postcard worthy place, but I've never sent the stack I bought when I got here-- does this blog count as a postcard?

Didn't think so

Hanboks-- coming to a runway near you!

2007-02-23T07:17:00.000+09:00

Now we're wearing Korean clothes... do you think we'll blend in?

Say "Kimchee!"

The Gauntlet

Year of the Boar

2007-02-19T13:14:00.000+09:00

No, not the boar

New starts are always fun! With days off work/school and big family celebrations, Lunar New Year is a bigger deal here than the Jan. 1 New Year. We got dressed up in Hanboks (maybe I'll post a picture of this... maybe...) memorized the Korean phrase for "May you have many blessings in this new year" or something like that and greeted the Korean members as they came into church.

Lunar New Year's Eve was spent at Everland (the BIG amusement park near Seoul) where we went on a safari, joggled our post-lunch stomachs with crazy rides, and spent fun time with our very international group from the English ministry at church: a hodge-podge of accents from Korea, Canada, Sri Lanka, USA, Peru, Philippines, and other corners of the globe.

We're also coming up on mid-third-quarter reports and all the grading madness that goes along with it. I should be grading and working right now, but evidently the year of the boar isn't any more organized than the dog we just finished! Oh well, the year just started, so I'll go try to whip this piggy into shape!

Love Gently Falling...

2007-02-14T19:22:00.003+09:00

Happy
Valentine's Day!

V-day was pretty fun here. We had the normal class interruptions for candy deliveries by the student council fundraising team, the school-wide sugar high by 2nd period, and a general holiday buzz amongst the book study and quizzes.
Since my school is very Western, we did acknowledge the holiday, but it's not all-encompassing like in the states. This means that people don't feel the pressure of obligation to give gifts or glittery cards and balloons (they have other holidays for obligated show-you-care-or-else! =) With the pressured tokens of love and friendship out of the way, every little token you receive means a million times more!
Disclaimer: my experience is limited to the "single" world-- those who are married or otherwise attached may be held to a higher level of obligation )

The other difference is that the majority of my middle school and high school students aren't straining for relationships and wishing that they had "someone to share the holiday with." This has brought many a student/friend to tears on this day back home. Though I could empathize, I could never really identify with these feelings, so it follows that I'm much more comfortable with the celebration here. Don't get me wrong, there are MANY single-wishing-I-wasn't friends in my church and school circles here, but since V-day doesn't belong to Korea, it isn't rubbed in their faces so much.

In fact, I saw this movie that I loved for how it dealt with being not-yet-married-or-maybe-ever in a culture that expects marriage to be top priority for every citizen: Miss Potter. It's a chic-flick; but the cinematography is also incredible if you're not into the chicky thing! I found it funny with some great one-liners from spunky single-but-determined-to-live-life-anyway characters. I often find movies "funny" when really they are described by others as "touching" or "sweet," but then, I find most of life funny, so I'm not a reliable movie scale-- see it for yourself =)

I like the heart/love/chocolate/show-u-care day here! It gives us all a chance to breath for a moment and remind each other that "you matter to me and I love you!" I've always wondered if V-day really could be that simple-- in a country without Hallmark, it can. Of course, it helps that the steady stream of sugar entering my body today came in the form of chocolate

In relation to yesterday's blog entry, V-day is also an opportunity remember that I'm not that person anymore: the one who *never* wants to get married. I find myself in those old patterns of thinking (cynical) at times and forget that God has changed my heart to be willing for whatever He has in store-- even giving up being single Since God worked so gradually over the past few years, I forget that this change in thinking renders my knee-jerk responses on the subject useless. The fears that drove me to the "marriage? no thank you!" attitude are still easily roused; however, God only gives good gifts, so I have no need for fear, and only excitement for whatever, wherever, whoever lies in the future.
**I mention this because some of you never knew that my mindset was changed and the last thing you heard from me was a few years ago and it was emphatically against what you know as a wonderful blessing-- yes, you may take this moment to say "I told you so" =)
**and don't get so excited, this is not a sneaky introduction of a "special someone" in my life-- all my chocolate came from students and female co-workers-- no prince charming on the horizon that I am aware of.

So, as we wrap up Valentine's day here in the Asian time zones, enjoy yours just dawning on the other side of the globe. Beyond all the hype, it's a great holiday to remember what/who matters in your world. Hug the ones you love and don't say no to chocolate!

Flashbacks...

2007-02-12T16:41:00.000+09:00

One of my students complained today that he didn't like his reading book because the timeline was "all messed up." Apparently, the author he is reading uses flashbacks to define his main character. My students understand the use of flashbacks as a common practice in movies; however, movies often use visual cues that let the audience know what is happening (screen fades to black, a hazy-dreamlike-filter is applied to the lens, there's a voice over, or an echo in the voices). This is not always the case with books, and when reading in one's second language, it can be even harder to pick up the cues!
Flashbacks are extremely useful for communicating how the present came to be, but we have to read the cues properly. Books and movies are not the only places that we can misread the cues and get frustrated by a "messed up" timeline ... many people's lives are stuck in a flashback. While the past certainly has bearing on the future, it is not the same thing as the present.
Example: I'm afraid of water. I consider plunging into anything deeper than a bathtub and my
whole body reacts with preparations for death. My stomach churns, my vision blurs, my mind races with the knowledge that I will die and at the same time slows to a stop causing an inability to think in a straight line. I've marveled at this phenomenon, tried to overcome it (with swimming lessons and a whole summer spent teaching myself at the health club pool with library books learning the mechanics of swimming and practicing them). Even the ability to swim did not alleviate this irrational fear. There should be a water anxiety anonymous helpline (WAAH) "Hello, my name is Tammi and I'm afraid of water." You can get used to this sort of thing, though chronic, it is not terminal.
But something happened. When I went to Thailand at Christmas, one of our tours found us wearing swimsuits... on a boat... in the ocean... with snorkel gear for all! I was surprised by my lack of fear while cruising on the boat. I told myself that since the fear is irrational anyway, I shouldn't let it stop me from seeing the beautiful fishies in the coral-- after all, I paid for this opportunity and sometimes the fear of wasting money is bigger than any other phobia! So I walked to the edge of the boat's platform expecting the little butterflies to break free from their cocoons in my stomach at any moment. Nothing. I lowered myself into the tepid saltwater. Nothing. I stuck the goggles on my face, adjusted the breathing tube and expected to pry my white knuckles from their hold, but had already drifted away from the boat. I was floating in open water with nothing to grab hold of. Nothing. Wait for the panic. Nothing. Sticking my face in the water and floating along the surface, I saw so many wonders that the Discovery channel can only bring in 2-D. Then the feeling came coursing through my whole body-- elation. I was surrounded by a completely different beauty than can be experienced above water and that was exciting, but I wasn't frozen by fear and THAT was even more incredible! There are 2 other sensations I felt in this experience involving jellyfish and being very,very far from a restroom, but that's a different story.
What's my point? When asked if I want to join in a water activity, my answer has always been (maybe a little too emphatically) "no." Since the rest of the world seems to think that water fun is the best thing since tuna sandwiches, this simple answer is never enough and it's always followed by "why?" My knee-jerk answer: "Hello, my name is Tammi and I'm afraid of water." But now I have to stop and think... I can't live in that flashback-- the innumerable moments that define what I feel about water-- I must live in the present tense, and in the present I'm not afraid of water. I'd have to change my answer to "Hello, my name is Tammi and I'm afraid I might be afraid of water."
So, to live in the present tense, I will have to give myself a chance to enjoy what I never have enjoyed and stop defining myself by the flashbacks in my "book." Fears, worries, mistakes, etc. are powerful enough to make our timelines "all messed up," but we have to leave room for change in ourselves and the people around us.
How about you? Have you stopped yourself from saying goodbye to old fears or worries just because you've always had them? Have you forgotten to live/think like you are a different person than you were 10 years ago? Just a thought...

February already?!?

2007-02-04T19:46:00.000+09:00

Before I turn in early for the night, just thought I'd catch up a little bit on this here blog.... Lots going on right now, and yet I think it's just little things adding up to big lists to keep track of =)

Overall, life is very good! The sun made an amazing appearance today and we were blessed with an early taste of spring after one of the coldest weeks we've had so far! Unfortunately, during that very cold week, the furnace for the 2nd floor where I teach died and required some major repair-- the hard-working support staff at our school made sure we had some gigantic propane space heaters in our classrooms (but the fume headaches were almost worse than the hypothermia =) I'm not complaining, it's just a few of the little things that have added up to a very tired and slightly overwhelmed week.

We also welcomed something like 15 new students to the new semester, the majority being middle schoolers. This required some quick skills testing while re-arranging our class structures to accommodate and get the new students assimilated and keep our classes on track.
I've taken the privilege of sponsoring the middle school spelling bee and the preparation for that is one more little thing that will continue until March 9 when our team of 4 students will pile in a van and take on the teams of other international schools for fun and the chance to spell our way to the top!

Many of our teachers are at the end of their contracts this year and looking to other teaching opportunities all over the world, so the sense of suspense, hope, and a little nervousness is prevailing in the halls. This, I believe, is the nature of second semester in international schools and next year, I will have the question of the following year's plans to deal with. For now, I'm just glad it's not one more thing to add to the list of things swimming through this brain-- there is, however, some brain-space taken up by prayer and thoughts for my good friends who are dealing with all these questions, applications, interviews, and uncertainties.

Along with a new semester at school (and the annual switch from U.S. Government to Economics for senior social studies which always takes me by surprise and stretches a different part of my brain-- you'd think I'd anticipate it after 3 years of practice, but somehow I never learn =), I also have begun a new endeavor at church. The high school group (about 200 students, I think) has been wishing for an English Bible study to help students improve their English skills while studying God's word. The pastor and director of the youth ministry anticipated a small group Bible study of about 10 or 12, but it kind of blew up into a class of 30 students, some adults who teach in the youth ministry, and the youth pastor and director (both of whom have to earn their keep translating some parts for students with limited English ability =)

We just had our first study today and although I was a bit overwhelmed by the task, it is truly where I want to be! With so many students, I wasn't able to really meet them all individually in this first week, but I look forward to finding out who they are and their English levels (I think we have the whole spectrum of early beginners to a few intermediates!)
Have you ever had the opportunity to find yourself smack in the middle of an Ephesians 2:10 moment?

"For we are God's workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Yep, it was kinda like that! It hit me a little bit while I was planning the lesson (see the next post for a synopsis), but it fully hit me while teaching the class today: here I stand in Korea doing something He's been preparing me my whole life to do! The spiritual gifts that He's given me, the Biblical education and spiritual foundation I received growing up, the youth ministry and teaching opportunities, the failures I've learned from, the successes through relying on His power, and even the guitar He placed in my hands-- all these things have been building into exactly what I needed to lead this class today!

When you find yourself in that place of suddenly realizing that you are overflowing with joy and strangely energized while expending lots of energy acting in obedience to the ONE who equipped you to do the thing that is bigger than you, it's a blessing which brings confidence and humility, joy and holy fear, an out-of-body experience at the same time that you're more aware than ever that what you're doing is not in your own power, but you've been chosen to take part in His grand plan to expand His kingdom on earth.

Overstated? I don't think so.

Only meant for a few? I don't think so.

I say "when" you find yourself in that place not "if" because He is faithful to His Word and Ephesians 2:10 is His truth, not mine! Live in courageous faith, stepping into His will at His leading and you'll be amazed how the God of the universe will choose to use little ole you to do the thing you were designed to do!

You might have to go to bed early when it's all said and done though!

Love In Any Language

2007-02-04T19:09:00.000+09:00

Maybe you've read 1 John chapter 1 a lot of times. Maybe you've been struck by the brilliance of God's Word when you weren't expecting it. Maybe you've been able to look at an "old" text with fresh eyes. Maybe you can allow me to guide you on a tour of this very thing happening for me...

Preparing to teach an ESL Bible study, I've begun to look much deeper into the simple grammar than I would need to for a study of my own. John begins 1 John and his Gospel in almost parallel ways! He feels the need to set a foundation: why write this? In 1 Jn, it's simple: we MUST proclaim what we have experienced. Even when translated to English, the grammar is quite telling... he moves from passive verbs in verse 1 to more active verbs and finally a power-verbs =)

1 John 1

The Word of Life

1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.

Think about it. As an apostle, he began as a bystander/watcher and then an active seeker of the truth in all that was happening around him and finally, when he had experienced it all first hand, he saw no alternative but to actively testify and proclaim to everyone!

When he begins his gospel and his letter, John is adamant that we realize Who Christ really is and what God is truly wanting to accomplish. Jesus is the WORD (Jn 1). Words are the parts of language and language is simply the way of communicating. Have you considered what an amazing thing communication is?! Every word is bursting with meaning-- a symbol of SO MUCH MORE THAN a bunch of carefully penned lines and squiggles. Jesus was the same thing-- God's love in a WORD.

OK, just go with me on this... if you find yourself in the midst of a language you can't understand, it doesn't matter how great language is, because you're lost without a translater (take my word on this one =) We learn new languages to communicate effectively. God embodied a "language" to communicate to us.

While I grew up speaking English in America, it was no big deal. Expected. Normal. Not a privilege, just a way of life. Now I find myself in a land where this simple skill I never asked for is sought after and in high demand. Odd. Yet, I feel the same way in wanting to know how to communicate with my Korean neighbors-- they think nothing of their skill, but I'm desperate for it!

This is really no different than people who wander around our world without the saving knowledge of Christ. This world is a confusing place, with rules we can't understand, futures we can't see and we lack the capacity to understand all the signs around us-- our brains can't access the cosmic communication that surrounds us-- even if we know it's there! God is light, Christ was the light to the world, this light is able to make the hidden things visible.

If we have the opportunity to learn the language and live in the knowledge of the WORD who was God and the WORD Who IS God, then we better be lending our translating skills to the foreign travellers in this world who are wandering around the giant subway station of life looking at all the signs of God's love and salvation without understanding. I've been this person wandering around Seoul Station, feeling the helplessness that comes with a complete lack of ability to understand the communication. It's almost worse KNOWING that those signs on the wall would tell me exactly what I need to know if only I could decipher them!

Jesus is the Communication, God is the Communicator, we are the translators-- we MUST proclaim, testify and teach what we've been blessed to learn (some of us without even realizing the incredible privilege we have!)

So, as I encouraged my hi schoolers today.... look for the ways God has blessed you to communicate HIM today. Your mode of communication may be English, Korean, music, mime, hugs, or giving directions to the subway-- but whatever He has prepared you to do, you must know that even the "little things" are a big deal when it gives you the ability to speak God's love in someone else's language!

Go and let Him use you to "talk" to the wandering people around you! And if you ever see a foreigner wandering around with that confused look, just think, in another country, that could be you =)

Are we crazy?!

2007-01-24T21:32:00.000+09:00

If you think about it, the idea of skiing is rather odd. We strap some glorified popsicle sticks to our feet, keep our hands busy with some sticks, ride a plank to the top of a groomed mountainside, and try to make it down to the bottom without killing ourselves.... then there's snowboarding.

The same insane idea, but with a tongue depressor and no poles to even give the misconception of stability! Today, our school took a "snow day" to a local ski resort and in the spirit of trying new things, I strapped a snowboard to my shaky legs and worked my way down the bunny hill repeatedly. It was more like throwing myself down the hill, but the falls became a little more graceful as the day progressed.

I can now say that I've tried snowboarding; and on the final run I managed a couple good turns, and ended with a pleasant back-edge-slow-to-stop instead of the wipe-out-to-stop option I'd been forced to use all day! In return for my day of hard labor at learning a new skill (btw, you can rent snow gear, but not coordination!), I'm now the proud owner of limbs that won't move without complaining violently! The funny thing is, the legs aren't that sore, it's the arms-- each fall equalled a couple mighty push-ups to get me back on my feet again!OOOOWWWWWW!!!!!! Although it was counter to everything my tailbone was telling me, I joined the others in yoga as a finish to the body-thrashing day; I had to sit out a couple of poses, but it was very therapeutic overall.

Tomorrow I'll be heading to Taejon (a couple hours south by bus) with a friend who is having an interview and I'll see a new little piece of Korea after our half-day of concerts and fun to wave good-bye to our first semester. Can you believe it? The school year is half over!

Putting my sore body in bed now... I'll leave the snow sports to others until I can find a bucket of coordination on the black market somewhere!

Instruments of Blessing

2007-01-18T22:16:00.000+09:00

James 1:17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

When I came to Korea, I had to leave my guitar at home, but for the sake of sanity, I knew I would need to find one for "music therapy" sessions on a regular basis. I also knew that God would provide, but, as always, I just figured that He would provide the way and means to buy one.

Much like the bike that found me, God brought a beautiful guitar to me! Looking back at the bike adventure, I see a toungue-in-cheek faith that My Provider would bring a guitar to me when I needed it... Not only did He prove faithful yet again, but with His own tongue-in-cheek plan, for He gave me friends and a church to share music with, put me in proximity to someone who can find good used instruments, blessed me with funds to buy a guitar, and then handed it over for free!

Maybe it's from being without for so long, maybe it's the confidence that comes from being trusted with a blessing so big, maybe it's just another step in this life-adventure of getting over myself, but the GREAT thing is that I'm not as tentative about playing. Not doing anything grand, but just strumming some worship songs in someone's living room, or picking some folk tunes for a sing-along next door-- there's joy in this blessing and freedom in this gift!

May this instrument-child of His be faithful to use HIS instrument for her Father's ultimate glory!

You Know it's a Monday When...

2007-01-15T07:43:00.000+09:00

It's funny how irony and Monday seem to go together. I do clumsy, klutzy things quite often, but lately, the floors of my apartment have been spared the trauma of my butterfingers dropping stuff all over it. For this reason, (and because I'm a lousy housekeeper =) it's been a long time since I really attacked my livingspace with a good mopping.

Yesterday, I did some entertaining at home and it gave me the perfect excuse to get back on top of the clutter and mess that was beginning to close in on me... and I mopped the floor. (If you've read this far, you're wondering where the story is, why I'm inconveniencing so many electrons to write about mopping, and you're looking at your watch-- it gets better, I promise!) One area in front of the refrigerator needed more scrubbing than the rest, but it felt good to have my floors back to their dinged, scuffed, snagged, fake-wood-laminate glory.

After leaving the ice cream out too long, I dropped it on the way to the freezer and all the runny, sticky vanilla yumminess splattered to the floor-- in front of the fridge. While wiping it up, I laughed at my clumsiness and how a carton of ice cream could possibly know that the floor was clean for the first time in a long time.
Now it's a Monday. Eggs sounded good for breakfast... they didn't sound so good as the carton slipped from my fingers and a half dozen splattered to their death-- on the floor in front of the fridge! As I raced the beat the egg-white-dash under the fridge, I had to laugh at Monday's irony-- I also had to cook more eggs than I had planned as they were cracked, but not shattered.

I think that will be my motto for today: cracked, but not destroyed. No use crying over spilled frozen milk or splattered eggs. I think that if we can continue to find the humor in such mundane calamities, then the REAL catastrophes will be easier to handle when they come along too.

So, to all of you a day behind us here in Korea, beware of Monday and get ready to giggle at the ironies... you might want to have a mop handy too!

A little trip through Christmas Vacation:

2007-01-13T09:33:00.000+09:00

Something like 500 photos came home with me from Thailand (with enough souveneirs and gifts to require the a new piece of rolly luggage that I needed anyway ). After sorting and editing all these pics, it's hard to have good perspective on which images are most interesting, but I'll let them babble for themselves:

2007-01-13T02:42:00.000+09:00

Tour the temple ruins of Ayutaya (former capital of Thailand) and a cultural history performance

2007-01-13T02:27:00.000+09:00

Here and there around towns and beaches

2007-01-13T00:07:00.000+09:00

The Floating Market is this amazing collection of canals and the small "shops" that manuever through them to sell their food/goods to passersby on foot or on water!

Back to Life?

2007-01-12T18:59:00.001+09:00

Since I last wrote, I've flown hundreds of miles, received SO much, been baptized, turned to a new year in the calendar, fought with the old procrastination monster, dragged through some bummed-out-in-a-funk-for-no-reason sludge, shopped at Costco, tried more new food, made new friends, clipped my toenails, survived the first week back to school and generally stood in awe of the amazing passage of time as it all happened. How does time go so fast?
I did make one New Year's resolution:

#1 quit apologizing for failure to update the blog at regular intervals.

So that's why I can't go into all the lame "reasons" that this site hasn't been updated with the happenings here in Korea, why I haven't posted any vacation pictures, or even posted a knock-knock joke. I can't tell you that I have felt guilty for not writing and felt even more guilty for not feeling like writing. There will be no mention here of how I know that guilt over something that should just be for fun turns my brain inside out, but I go ahead and let the silly guilt-monger play with my gray-matter anyway. It would probably be OK to tell you that I realized that one reason I didn't want to post was that writing about "what I did on my Christmas vacation" seemed like far more work than it was worth and another quasi-resolution I made was that I won't feel the need to post what I think I "should" but only what has a burning desire to jump out of my head, heart, and spirit; for me, writing tends to be such a time-consuming and weighty activity that if I'm going to expend the care, it should be on something that also really matters. Of course, if I told you that last part without the first part (which I can't--see resolution #1), it would be out of context and probably sound all snooty and artsy-martyr-ish. So, I'm sure you now see why you won't read any of this in my newly guilt-free blog.

May God bless you all as you take a flying leap into this new year with all its mystery and promise of His faithfulness!

Island Times

2006-12-24T11:03:00.000+09:00

All is well, hot, and happy! Strange Christmas time without my family and no snow =)

This blog brought to you by: Internet connection at the local tourism agent's office and funny symbols on the keyboard... and viewers like you =)

My computer has decided for no understandable reason that I need a driver disk to connect my camera to my laptop and download the pictures I've taken. The only thing that is different here is the fact that I don't have the disk, so I'm pretty sure that's why it is insisting that I need it =)

So, wait a bit for pictures, but here are some mental pictures to get you started...

Hot sun, white beaches, fruit galore, strange smells, good hotel, shopping from a chair on the beach, amazing food!, snorkeling, little sunburns, Christmas Eve on the beach and Christmas day moving into Bangkok.

Have a very Merry Christmas one and all! I hope for better connections in Bangkok between some serious sightseeing!

Off to Thailand!

2006-12-18T03:47:00.000+09:00

True to form, I have left all the details for leaving town until the last second (resulting in pulling an all-nighter before departure!) It's hard to believe I'm actually jumping on a plane to go to yet another foreign country. This is normal in my new world where travel is fairly convenient and getting to "faraway" places is not out of the question, the question instead is, "why would you stay home?" I was surprised how it really feels like home here as I say goodbye to church friends and co-workers for a couple weeks-- a little bit sad to be away!

Though I won't see a white Christmas on the beaches of Phuket, Thailand, we did see about 3 inches fall overnight (of course, the snow wouldn't think of falling in inches here, only centimeters are allowed as long as it's below 0 Celsius-- not Fahrenheit =) A few pics from my window show our winter wonderland....

An icy, snowy, slippery commute to church today convinced Sylvia and I that sandy beaches were definitely going to be nice! I have no idea if I'll be able to connect to the Internet while I'm away, but if not, I'll be back just before the end of the year with lots of pictures to post and some fun stories, I hope.

One More Week...

2006-12-11T06:37:00.000+09:00

This is our final week of school before the long Winter break! The week will be filled with drama productions, concerts, and practices to get ready for them. It will be a more laid-back week in the classroom as a result. Our Staff Christmas party was quite fun-- many Korean delicacies prepared by the mothers (my first taste of sushi!) and a fun gift exchange with no rules "because it's Christmas."

One week from today, I'll be boarding a plane to Phuket Thailand where Sylvia and I will relax on the beach, read, catch up on sleep, and generally enjoy the warm weather; Christmas day we'll move from Phuket to Bangkok to spend a few more days being proper tourists taking in all the sights and boosting the local economy ... not too much!

Then I'll have a week at home before school starts again, time to explore yet unvisited corners of Seoul, a New Year's Eve bash with my church, and baptism the first Sunday of the new year. It's true, I've never been baptized-- denominational hazard -- but it's time, and then I will begin to be involved in ministry at my church (music and youth Bible study in English).
Oh! and I'll have a new-to-me guitar by then too! One of the worship leaders at church offered to help me find a good used guitar to buy (he's got connections!), but now, someone is giving him one, so he's passing the free gift along to me!! Again, God has provided beyond my wildest prayer!

This year has flown by with so many new experiences and 2007 already promises to hold more of the same! I'm thankful for some down-time to reflect on the year and make some new goals for the coming year. Goals-- not New Year's Resolutions-- completely different! Goals last a whole week longer than resolutions

Holidays in the new land...

2006-11-30T12:43:00.000+09:00

I love the holiday season! As much as I used to be a humbug (such a moody teenager was I), I now love everything about the celebrations running from Thanksgiving through New Year's Day! Not working in retail anymore, I don't spend the height of my holiday excitement too early and that makes the season even better!

It's a little strange to live in a country that barely blinks at Thanksgiving and doesn't revolve around the glitz, trees, and sacredness OR commercialism of Christmas-- even New Year's day isn't as big as the lunar New Year celebration (February, I think). BUT there is one thing that is wonderful about being here: I won't have to hear that overplayed, cheesy song Christmas in the Northwest!

Today it snowed during first period and melted by second period, the workers are beginning to deck the halls around school and the Christmas socks found their way to the front of my drawer. This is all encouraging after battling the flu on Thanksgiving and some kind of parasite earlier this week. It's good to be alive and listening to holiday music streaming online!

click on the carolers to see the stations I found

We'll celebrate around here, but a little differently than the all-encompassing way that the holiday season takes over in the states. The PTA will give us a Christmas party and dinner, I'll ship gifts home to put under the tree (or maybe they will get there in time for New Year's Eve), and Sylvia will be with me in Thailand to deck the beach and hang stockings from a palm tree

May you all re-discover the joy of Christmas in surprising ways this year!

... and to all a good night!

Giving Thanks with a Jeju Getaway

2006-11-27T18:06:00.000+09:00

Jeju is a dormant volcanic island off the southern tip of the Korean peninsula where a separate Korean province grows amazing tangerines, shows off its art and lava tubes, grows black pigs, and caters to tourists with museums, parks, and shops.
They even shrink all the wonders of the world into a mini-park so we can pretend to be world travelers! Again, many of the pictures can speak for themselves,

so I'll let them

Folk Village and funny folks

In Korea, EVERYTHING is the "perfect" place to take everyone's picture, but if there's a whole in it, you CAN'T pass it up without sticking your head in and saying "cheese!" (or kimchee!)

The coast!

Black lava rock instead of granite or sand!

The Flora and Fauna...

palm tree blooms!

Jeju Man is a symbol of the island from a more tribal time...

and his goofy brothers?!?

Thanks for coming on a little tour of my vacation-- there's more I could tell you and more pictures to see, but it's time to get back to the real world

Marriage Made in Korea

2006-11-27T17:01:00.000+09:00

Ms. Chong, our lovely office manager who is (as all school secretaries are!) often the one thing standing between us and total chaos, just got married last week and we were all invited!

In many ways, it wasn't too much different than a Western wedding-- except for the fact that I couldn't understand a word of it. When we arrived (all dressed up and on our best behavior, of course), I was surprised to see the bride all decked out in her beautiful gown in a room right off the front lobby-- we all took turns taking pictures with her!
Then we went into the ceremony hall and it was set up as a banguet room. We found a our tables and watched the bride and groom grow up before our eyes in a slide show while munching on fancy rice cakes. After the mothers were announced and seated, the groom was announced and walked down the aisle, and then the bride and her father. After that, it was pretty hard to follow as I was seated behind a pillar, could only see part of the screen in the back where the ceremony was projected, and can't understand the language-- so I munched some more rice cakes and soda.
Actually, Korean weddings don't require full attention from even the guests who speak the language! Cell phones were ringing, conversations continued at normal volume throughout the ceremony, and the attention of the guests was rarely focused at the front. But when they were introduced as man and wife, everyone turned their attention to the proceedings again to clap and cheer!
The happy couple had hardly left the room when the servers began bringing out the food. It was all very yummy and quick and before we knew it, dessert was finished and people were beginning to leave.
So, just like that, my first Korean wedding was over and it was time to look forward to next morninging's departure to Jeju Island for Thanksgiving break!

Hakuna Matata!

2006-11-18T00:23:00.000+09:00

This show was incredible! My friend down the hall was given 2 tickets to see The Lion King and we've spent the last 2 weeks looking forward to it. As it turned out, these were prime tickets: middle of the 6th row! It was all in Korean, but it was so close to the Disney cartoon (I watched countless times while babysitting over the years =), following the dialogue was no problem.
I wasn't sure how great it would be since the whole animal kingdom would be played by people, but the costuming and sets were so creative and realistic-- I was wowed and amazed! The music was beautiful and perfectly matched in the choreography-- I actually teared up a few times at the sheer power of it (and if you know me well, you know this is quite out-of-my-ordinary reaction!). The logistics of putting on this show are tricky and I can't even begin to imagine everything that has to happen perfectly to make it work, but one thing that is obvious is the unique character roles. These performers worked some complicated life-size puppets while they were inside of them-- even more, each actor/actress played the character with facial expression and everything WHILE working the puppets. It was like a morphed character where the person and puppet are one-- seamlessly playing the part-- completely lifelike and every emotion/action/mannerism perfectly communicated.
So this is my ringing endorsement: if you EVER get the chance to see a performance of Disney BroadwayThe Lion King, take it! Who knows, maybe you'll have a friend down the hall who knows generous people who have connections... it could happen =)
I'm still on the really-good-art-performance-experience high, so I'm not sure that sleep will come, but It's a long day at our speech meet tomorrow and I gotta go to bed =)

O, I just can't wait to be King!!!

Funny thing happened on the way to class....

2006-11-16T20:26:00.000+09:00

I was walking up the last flight of steps to get to my classroom when I tripped (with my hands firmly and warmly in my coat pockets) and hit the top landing chin-first. My head was ringing quite nicely and I thought I would simply have a headache until I touched my chin and found blood. Luckily, the science teacher next door was already in his classroom and wasn't too squeamish to look-- he said it was more than just a scratch and might need stitches... Well, after resting through the shock and dizziness, arranging for class coverage and writing a quick sub-plan, I was taken by one of the bus drivers to the local "hospital" (clinic). When we arrived in the parking lot, my driver looked very concerned and started to apologize (I didn't even know he spoke English!). He said that the school had wanted me to go to the better hospital a little further away, but it wasn't open this early I said that was fine-- he thought maybe I didn't understand "this one is not, ummm, very pretty." and I had to insist that I had been to this hospital before with another teacher and it had been fine.
All I needed was a trained and sober person with a needle and thread to sew me back together. What I got was even better; a doctor who knows some English fixed me up with some numbing shots, a few stitches, a bandage, and some prescriptions (pain relievers and antibiotics--I think) Not the start to the morning I was expecting!

For the last 3 years, I commuted almost 100 miles a day without so much as a scratch, but now, I can't make it 500 feet and 2 flights of stairs without needing stitches! Oh well, I can now say that Korea has left it's mark on me =) There's a little whip-lash to go along with the sore chin, so I'd say I did a pretty good job.

As injuries usually do, this one came at a rather bad time-- speech meet this weekend hosted by our school, I'm attending a performance of the Lion King in Seoul, our English ministry at church has a presentation before the whole church body on Sunday for a Thanksgiving celebration, and evidently it's hard to concentrate on English when your teacher has a bandage protruding from her chin =)

When in Rome...

2006-11-10T17:26:00.000+09:00

What a day we had!

The social committee at my school (a group of fun-loving, creative party folks) put together a relaxing day trip to places nearby. We first explored a traditional tea ceremony, then wandered through "Herb Island," had the ultimate spa experience, and finished off with a local BBQ place we all love.

The traditional tea ceremony was really educational and made all of us realize that America just has a different kind of history than just about every country in the world! We don't have ceremonial traditions that are unique to our country. Sure, we have certain traditions for weddings, graduations, and holidays, but they are mostly stolen from the respective countries of our ancestors-- we don't have uniquely American traditions that we could hold a class and excitedly share with foreigners to show them the ways of our people. Of course, the melting pot mentality of America which leaves this tradition-void more easily allows for social progress and change (which is a clashing point for families here as the Western mindset takes hold).
We learned to take our shoes off properly at the door, wore the hanbok robes, and had the chance to practice hosting a green tea party! After we clumbsied our way through this ceremonial tea service, we got to munch on tons of little Korean finger foods and delicate snacks!

Then, it was off to herb island where the scent of herbs greeted us as soon as we stepped off the bus. After a quick herb salad (really yummy-- nestertium flowers and all!), we wandered the greenhouses, gardens, and shops. I got enough candles, lotions, and teas to keep me calm for the winter, I think!
Just walking around this place reminded me again how acute and effective the sense of smell can be. It was like smelling soothing music, or inhaling beautiful art, AMAZING.

The relaxing wasn't done yet because we still planned to head to the spa. We ended up going to one just down the street from the local grocery store (a viable option for future visits since it's so close!). This was definitely an experience I hadn't expected! In the interest of mixed company, and the Western insecurity with group nudity, I won't go into great detail; however, I must say that "when in Rome...
the Roman cultureal norms do not offend the the non-Roman's mind as the same practices would in his homeland." Basically, in the gender segregated areas, it's completely a birthday suit affair with washing as a community task and in the mixed areas, the standard issue shirt&shorts gym uniform allows families to hang out together and relax in a community. It's like nothing I've seen or experienced before. The atmosphere was great and in the absence of a bathtub or shower stall in my own bathroom, I'll be visiting the spa again during the long, cold winter months!

After bathing, relaxing, massages for some, and body scrubs, we were all so relaxed we had to work really hard to decide on a dinner plan. We ended up at the BBQ restaurant grilling our own meal and devouring the beef-and-leaf "taco style."

Good times!!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch....

2006-11-10T16:52:00.000+09:00

The cutest little kids in the world are growing up in Oregon!

my niece and nephew: (3 months and almost 4)

New Friends-- like family!

2006-10-17T15:47:00.000+09:00

The last Chuseok details I must write about involve the fun I had with my new Church. Our cell group wanted to show us newbies a few things around Seoul, so they set up a full itinerary and we had a blast seeing new sights, learning new things and getting to know our new brothers and sisters better.
One day held Geyongbokgung palace with a cultural museum on site. It should be noted that the day before was the mountain hike that left me so stiffly sore and this Palace/museum day required lots of walking! I paid about a dollar and gave up my identification card to rent one of those guided tour headsets and went into the exhibit with all my friends. This headset was quite amazing-- it's an mp3 player with a sensor on it so that it doesn't just rattle through explanations in a certain order, instead, the listener walks through the museum and when the MP3 "sees" one of the stickers on the floor, it begins the explanation of the specific part of the exhibit the listener is looking at! Amazing!
I'm sure it works really well, but I only listened to the guide in my ear for a few minutes because one of the Korean members of our group who is learning English, wanted to explain everything instead. We had a hard time understanding each other, but the work was well worth it as I slowly learned some Korean words and concepts that the guided tour wouldn't have been so patient to teach my thick head =)
After the museum, we went back out to the sunshine and walked around the rest of the palace grounds. Though I had been to one of the other palaces the first week I got here, I was still very trigger-happy with the camera-- the colors, lines, and newness of it all makes it fun to find new angles on these old buildings! And since it was a holiday week, multi-generational family groups were together and some even dressed in hanboks! (I heard a rumor that they get in free if they wear the traditional garb =) This made the whole atmosphere feel festive and old-world Korean.

Of course, any outing in Korea is not complete without loads of eating! We began our palace day together with a lunch that filled our tables with side dishes and various entrees as far as the eye could see! Soups, different Korean pancakes, rice dishes, kimchee and veggie varieties, many new flavors and all of them good! After our Palace excursion, we sampled many different rice cake varieties (the only thing they have in common is that the base ingredient is a white, doughy substance that used to be rice before it was beaten to death with a huge wooden mallet), Korean candy (made by vendors on the street-- sort of like taffy, but not) went to a noodle restaurant for the cut noodle soup (clams still in the shell, some veggies, and thick noodles in a clear broth) and steamed mandul (a little bit like won-tons). We were stuffed at lunch and stuffed with snacks throughout and really stuffed with dinner. After rolling ourselves to the subway station, we got on together and left at different stops to go on our way for the evening.

A few days later, the whole English ministry (Filipinos, Peruvians, Americans, Canadians, Indians, and the English speaking Koreans who make up the leadership team) went on an outing to Seoul Land (a big theme park right here in Seoul). It had everything including roller coasters, bumper cars, and another bungee drop ride! We quickly found out how a large Korean group gets around together-- slowly! We had to stop for pictures constantly and we found out the difference between Filipinos and everyone else: we all run away from pictures and they all run into pictures-- their way is really better because they get it over with faster and they look so much happier too! Once we got inside the park, we stayed in our cell groups and ran all over riding, eating and riding some more. Sue and I took the 2 girls who live in our building to give them a fun memory and their mom a break during the LONG vacation in their little apartment. Our Korean friends embraced the girls as their own and showed them a GREAT time! After Seoul Land, we took one more group picture (of course) and then split into 2 groups for an evening activity: ice skating! Yes, after a full day at the theme park, we went ice skating at the rink below LotteWorld (where I took our seniors on the class outing). One of the girls and I got matching battle scars on our knees when we took a spill on the ice, but overall, it was fun to get on ice skates for the first time in forever!
After our icy adventure, some of us went to Friday night service at church. It's not an English service, so Pastor Kang (the English ministry main pastor) translates through a headset for Sue and any other English speakers who come. It was great to be in a Korean service with Korean worship songs and a message from one of the missions ministers about what God is doing all over the world through Korean people! Some of it gets lost in translation, but the experience of worshipping with people who are speaking a different language, yet worshipping the same Lord, well, it's amazing really. The service doesn't get out until almost midnight, so it made for one very full and long day!

As I Was Saying....

2006-10-16T21:04:00.000+09:00

Before being so rudely interrupted by being plunged into the dark ages with no Internet, I was trying to post this latest installment of our Chuseok adventures.
As the holiday drew near, every store-- big and little-- displayed these great gift sets of everything from perfume to crackers. There were a few carefully packaged items that just wouldn't make the translation to Western culture as coveted gift items, but mostly they covered the gamut of expensive fruit, soaps/lotions, sauces, juices, and cookies/candies/rice cakes. Chuseok is a time to give tons of gifts and visit family-- with gifts-- and show appreciation to employees-- with gifts...
Just before the break, our school's PTA mothers set out a feast of snack items foreign (just like home) and domestic (new treats to try) that covered 3 big tables. The leadership team at my church spent one whole day delivering fruit to all the foreign members of our English ministry. And we got a gift from the school-- along with a note of apology for the loud construction over the break (we affectionately named that obnoxious piece of machinery "the rockpecker" )

Here's a peek at the gift from the school:

Enough for a whole army of spam-eaters...
but is it enough for me?!

It even came with its own carrying case!

When I first saw these in the stores, I thought how funny it would be to get Spam in the States-- it's more like a gift you'd give an ex-girlfriend, a mother-in-law, or your accountant after his mistake cost you thousands of dollars in back taxes and overdraft bank fees-- not so in Asia. As you can see on Lon's page, Japan loves this stuff too!
The fruit from Church was really good: loads of Kiwi, peaches, and these gourd-looking things that I didn't know were melons until I cut one open and ate a big bite! Beware of new fruits in foreign lands!
One final word of encouragement:

Have a Spamtastic week!

lost connections....

2006-10-16T15:06:00.000+09:00

When the network goes down, it's a sad, sad day! This weekend we lost the Internet in my building and no one was around to fix it until Monday. Writing this out loud makes the whole thing sound really lame, but it completely changed my weekend: I found myself thoroughly cleaning the house (I had meant to before...), going to bed at a decent hour (it's been a while!), reading a book (thanks Alyssa=), listening to my own music again (Phil Keaggy juxtaposed with Disney!) and even taking out the trash (I'll have to write more about the trash process soon).
That's when I realized I'm a computer junkie! Not that this really comes as a surprise, but I was amazed at what it did inside me. There was some relief that I didn't need to be connected to the global community because I couldn't be; but mostly I felt lost without a world of information and communication at my fingertips. At the same time, the chores I normally do grudgingly were not so hard to get up and do-- and even a little enjoyable.
Back in Oregon, at the house in the woods, we would have power outages a few times every year and alongside the frustration of poor timing, I found peace in a quiet house without the whirring/buzzing/beeping/glaring/etc., freedom from technology, and joy in doing things the "hard way." I couldn't finish the things that would otherwise NEED to be done, I couldn't work late into the night to finish just "one more thing," and I found time for people and projects/chores I hadn't seen time for when the lights were on.
Funny thing, this technology; it makes life much more efficient and me much less efficient as a human being. The Internet brings great comfort as I live halfway around the globe from the place and the people I call home, yet its absence has reminded me of a few Truths too. All in all, I'm glad for the chance to step back and see a clearer perspective again; but if the network is still down when I get home, it's no more miss philosophizer-- I want my connection back!

Catching up

2006-10-14T20:50:00.000+09:00

Have you ever needed a vacation from your vacation? It just sounds WRONG to complain about that sort of thing, but I must say that Chusuk (spelled differently every time because it seems that even the Koreans I know don't agree on a correct spelling!) week really hit me! Run, experience, socialize, run, photograph, laugh, run!

Here are a few of the highlights:

Sylvia and I found a Dunkin' Donuts (they're EVERYWHERE here) that had a cool little cafe area upstairs to sit and relax. The donuts come in tiny donuthole size tasty options so you can try lots of different flavors and still have room for a latte-- the coffee was great-- way better than DD in the States!

Scenes from Insadong, an artsy/cultural district in Seoul....

O to be a centipede!!!

How it would look to a dog

Danger?

2006-10-12T07:58:00.000+09:00

This week North Korea has been center stage again; some of you are wondering if it's really as bad as they make it out to be on the news. Here's the e-mail I received from the US Embassy in Seoul (I'm not just an alien, I'm a registered alien )

"On Monday, October 9, U.S. and South Korean intelligence services detected a
seismic event at a suspected nuclear test site in North Korea. North Korea has
claimed it conducted an underground nuclear test, but these reports are
unconfirmed. The U.S. Embassy in Seoul is monitoring the situation closely and
has been in continuous contact with South Korean government officials. As of the
evening of October 9, the Embassy has received no information from South Korean
officials or any other source indicating that there are health
dangers that
pose a risk to any areas in South Korea.

The U.S. Embassy in Seoul
continues to operate normally and to provide services to the public during
regular business hours. In the event of any type of emergency, the Embassy will
notify the American community immediately."

The government officials here (President Roh, etc.) are not ignoring this possible threat, but they are not rushing into drastic action either. It looks like S. Korea is wanting to stay on good terms with the other world powers (an important move if their guy is going to get head of the UN Security Council =), so although they have a love/hate kind of view of their ancestral countrymen to the North, S. Korea is not going to act without the world's backing and we are not N. Korea's target since much of the aid they need just to survive comes from private and public S. Korean sources.
All in all, I don't know what the news is reporting there, but it seems to be blown (punny!) way out of proportion-- for shock value and ratings perhaps? Besides, I have so much to catch up on this blog from last week that bombs and grumpy governments simply can't interfere =)
If all goes well (N. Korea doesn't have another tantrum or accident), Lon will be coming to Seoul for work one week from today and I'll get to catch up on the news from home and get my care package he's been good enough to haul here from the other side of the globe! Yippee!!

I'll keep you updated on bombs and weather-- news at ll

Take a Hike!

2006-10-07T22:52:00.000+09:00

In general, I value the process more than the goal; the fishing more than the catching; and, for me, the journey is the destination.

The Joy Is In The Journey...
Except when hiking

The view from the top of Ui (oo-ee) mountain was incredible, but the path to get there was breathtaking in the most exhausting form of the word! Yes, the scenery on the way up was photo-worthy, but only as a destination in itself-- after the shutter snapped, the journey started again and all the peace, happiness, and color fell out of it. You might say I'm overstating the matter, but I say I'm still sore
Then I look at the pictures again-- this time, the destination was worth it all the way up and eventually, my muscles will forgive me for the journey.

It was apparent at the base gate that the Autumn colors are a-changing

Smokey and Lil' Smokey-- only YOU can prevent forest fires!

watch that 37,463,847,629,475th step is a doosie!

I MADE IT!!

we had the chance to watch these rock climbers from a perfect angle-- someday I'd love to get up there, but it will require a guide and some rental climbing gear!

pack all these people, cars, and industries on a small peninsula and pollution WILL result!

Mr Anderson: Art teacher and fellow Yoga buddy

Take a rock and stack it-- add your story to the pile

can you see the face?

It's MY "the city!" (ask a Tick fan if you don't get it =)

Some new stuff....

2006-10-03T22:18:00.000+09:00

Got a cell phone! It's quite a nice one, actually. Remember the bicycle purchase? Well, again the first place we went to get a phone was the perfect one! Us foreigners get a used phone and pre-paid minutes instead of a new phone with a contract deal-- it's the easiest way to go when you don't know the language =) This place only had ONE used phone. It had been returned earlier in the day but never used (all the plastic was even still on it!) So although new it would cost hundreds of dollars, I got it for just under $100. Cell phones get pretty fancy around here, so this one is really simple by Korean standards, but I'm impressed with all the features! It can do tricks: phone, camera, menus/texting in both Korean and English, dictionary, MP3, planner... it even has a subway map, but that part isn't in English.

Went to a new section of Seoul yesterday and experienced the gigantic, year-round garage sale =) Of course, the prices they quoted the white girl were quite high and they weren't really interested in bartering (yes, Dad, bickering =) but I got back at them by not buying anything =) I know that normally they do barter, but I'll have to go back with more Korean vocabulary under my belt to be deemed worthy of speaking to.

I ate some spicy stuff-on-a-stick at a street vendor and the lady told Sylvia that I eat Korean food well, for a foreigner-- so I guess I am fitting in quite well when it comes to gastro-intestinal prowess. The stuff we were eating deserves a little mention. It's made of fish, but has all kinds of flavors depending on how it's prepared. It's about a quarter inch thick and kinda spongy. It's cut into strips and used in soup, seasoned&stir-fried, rolled up in gimbop, or cooked on a stick (boiled in broth or simmered in red-hot sauce). I'm sure I even eat it when I don't know I'm eating it in other foods too. I thought it was tofu until recently.

Climbed a mountain today! Really! I'll post the pictures to prove it =) 6 of us headed out for a hike at 10am and returned at 6pm. Some of that time was spent on subways, in lost taxis, and at a local watering hole to take a breather before heading up our hill. While sitting outside resting our bones (...and muscles ...and tendons ...and that little spot on my foot that I'm sure will develop a blister by tomorrow...) we met a group of hikers also just returning from a trek up a different mountain: 4 Koreans and a very outgoing grad student from Prague. We asked how he knew these hikers and he said he just met them on the trail; English is not his first language, he doesn't know Korean and his new friends had a little English vocabulary, but overall the communication was good-natured guessing! His new guides were giving him a taste of the post-hiking formula: sit at a table outside, drink (soju, beer, or a fermented rice drink they insisted we try at our table too), and eat the wonderful things Korea has to offer. They brought kimchee, side dishes, and were working on a Korean pancake when we left. This is an amazing country and it was good to be reminded of how it feels when you first get here.

A Visual Update

2006-10-02T13:01:00.000+09:00

Some views along the river path:

Allergies are easier to handle when these wild flowers are the cause-- beautiful!

Fishing?

Why anyone would fish here is beyond me, the water flowing into the river from town looks and smells like sewage! I've never seen anyone haul one in, but I hope it's catch and release!

That's my black bike -- these concrete things really caught my eye!-- Here's the artsy version:

KNOCK KNOCK!!

2006-09-30T08:04:00.000+09:00

Yes, there's no rest for those construction workers who must begin the rock breaking tap dance at 7:15am even on Saturday and Sunday! Of course, since it's right outside my window, I get to enjoy the dance instead of some silly sleep I thought I wanted.
Here's a little taste of this high quality performance:

Gimme A Break!

2006-09-30T00:52:00.000+09:00

I sit here Friday night with a full 9 day Chusok break ahead of me and lots to write about the past few weeks behind me… so while most of you sleep, I’m just starting to tap this keyboard silly!

A Busy Rest

2006-09-30T00:49:00.000+09:00

When Koreans work—they work long and hard. When Koreans play, they do the same! What I thought was going to be a very quiet week spent at home with a few trips into Seoul to explore has become a major social itinerary with trips, dinners, and plans almost every day! It’s probably just as well—the construction out my back window is into the rock pounding stage again and after a week of it, I want to escape whenever possible!

So far, I think I’ll take part in a hike up the mountain in my back yard, going somewhere in Seoul with a few of my new pals from church, a fun trip to Seoul Land for the whole English ministry congregation on Chusok day, a progressive dinner with all the teachers who are staying here over the break (strictly B.Y.O.Chopstics ), making a Korean dinner with our Korean school cooks for our Korean church friends, exploring and shopping with Sylvia, and maybe pricing out a cell phone and a guitar. Oh yeah, and I need to catch up on grading, new curriculum, lesson planning, grout scrubbing, and correspondence… hmmmm I may need a vacation after this vacation!

Divine Appointments

2006-09-30T00:40:00.000+09:00

I’ve had the joy of God’s perfect planning and timing this week. Being in the “right place at the right time” isn’t always just coincidence—it’s too perfect for that. Who knew that my friend would need a friend to lean on, an ear to listen, and some reasoning conversation after we had already planned to hang out together?

Who knew the next day I’d knock on a door asking for a fellow adventurer for the evening, only to find another friend sick and wishing for a humidifier (one of those things the paperwork said I’d needed to bring since you can’t get them here, but really they’re everywhere and I was grumpy that I wasted the space!) and some sinus meds—I just happened to have them in my apartment. I almost never knock on her door, but this day I obviously needed to.

Who knew my friend down the hall would need a clean-up buddy when a freak-candle accident shattered her glass table top and sent sooty ash and smoke all through her apartment?

HE KNEW!

Sometimes it’s just fun stuff that hits at the right time… a bike ride along the river in perfect weather and a camera to catch some highlights. I spent too long enjoying the scenery so that the sundown mosquito clouds along the river chased me off the path and back into the streets of town near where I live. As I moseyed along the back streets (yes, it really is safe, I promise!) I stumbled on an impromptu market just setting up stalls selling everything from huge slabs of dried seaweed/kelp to pajama sets. I found a cheap shirt, bike gloves (so much easier on the hands), and a vendor who didn’t speak English, but was quite proud of his California driver’s license =)

Basically, I was the only Westerner at a Korean block party with families kicking back to enjoy some dinner, shopping, and conversation with the neighborhood. I was welcome to wander through, but they didn’t make a big deal out of my being very out of place. Camaraderie is the only way I can describe the mood there—I wasn’t a part of it, but they didn’t let me ruin it either. The mystery, wonder, and magic of it was heightened by the twilight hour and the knowledge that I may never stumble on it again.

I Found a Home!

2006-09-30T00:35:00.000+09:00

After a less-than exhaustive (but plenty exhausting) church search, I’ve found a place to belong. One of the teachers here belongs to a church that has welcomed her and become family— so I went along last week to check it out. In fact, she had heard about Onuri (the church I found online) and wanted to see what God was doing there too; so we made a day of it: Seoul Light and Salt Church in the morning and Onuri in the afternoon with a big subway ride in between.

To relieve the suspense for any of you with weak constitutions: I’m attending Seoul L&S Church. Now, back to the story…

Sunday morning we walked and bussed the 20 minutes to Sue’s church and I found that I had been right there one Sunday solo-exploration morning on my bike, but you would never know that it’s a church because it’s a sky scraper like all the others around it. The church is HUGE with thousands of members in 4 services on Sundays, but the English ministry is much smaller with about 100 people in service. The great thing about this ministry is that it is run by Korean nationals and over half of the congregation is Korean English speakers/learners, so the culture is intact. Everyone was very welcoming (they have newcomers come up front and sing a song to them—happily, I was not the only visitor!), very diverse (Filipinos, Peruvians, Americans, Canadians, etc.), and very REAL. We stayed for the study group time after service—who knew Purpose Driven Life would follow me overseas!—and then stayed for lunch. This huge church opens up the cafeteria and feeds everybody! Eating is a major social activity in Korea and so we fellowship while breaking rice and noodles together =)

After a wonderful lunch, we made our way to Onuri -- this church was even huger than the morning one and the English service was probably about 1,000 strong in a big auditorium with an amazing light/sound system, mission statement banners hanging up front, and BIG music. It was polished, trendy, and void of Korean influence—I actually forgot I was in Korea for a while! Even the Korean leaders up front had no accent or Korean worldview. It’s an active church ministering to the community in mighty ways, but it’s not for me. Since I live and work in a fairly sheltered American/Western environment, I’m not looking for that in a church. I’ll attend closer to home (fewer excuses on a busy weekend =), get involved in this body of Christ reaching out to the community (it’s very alive and small, so it’s easier to get into ministry and quite necessary & expected!), and maybe go to Onuri for events and a good USA fix sometimes (like Christmas time =)

Things happen…

2006-09-30T00:29:00.000+09:00

If you’ve never spent time in a culture operating in a language you don’t know, here’s an idea of a few things that can happen:

Just because you’re in a Costco and the package looks like bacon, that doesn’t mean that it is. I now have a very large quantity of uncured, completely plain, thick-sliced piggy in my freezer—pork fried rice anyone?
Usually labels include some kind of picture to aid the shopping process, but once you get it home, 2 spray bottles may look quite similar. One of my favorite shirts needed a shot of Fabreeze-equivalent spray after living in my mothball-essence wardrobe, so I grabbed the bottle off the counter and gave it a few squirts… not Fabreeze. style=""> I hadn’t noticed how similar the tub&tile bottle and label were to the Fabreeze bottle and label until the scented spray came out in a foam that smelled amazingly like bleach which is exactly what the cleaner smells like… tie-dye is not becoming on a dark button-up blouse!

So, we live and learn, spend money on accidental purchases and unintentionally weed out the school clothing simply by not understanding the language

Field Trips!

2006-09-30T00:07:00.000+09:00

Last week we went to Lotte World-- basically a little Disneyland place here in Seoul.

Each class is supposed to plan a day trip to bond and have fun as a group; I’m an adviser for ½ the Senior class. The junior and senior classes picked the same day and same place, so it was an even larger group bonding (though most of the time we were all on separate rides or eating lunch in different places =)

This ride was a distinct experience!

I sat in chair with a shoulder harness, we were raised partway up the column and then let go in a free fall.

An amazing thing happens: an uncontrollable fear seizes your mind and every rational thought is pushed aside by the assurance that you're about to die. I knew that I wouldn't fall out, I knew that the ride catches you before the ground is even close, I knew that I wouldn't puke, and yet, I felt like feel in water (my true irrational fear). After the first plunge, there was no more fear, it was just fun, but the I-just-cheated-death rush doesn't leave right away even though it was fake =)

So, Thursday I was gone from school all day getting my adrenalin fix, and the next day I left right after lunch for our first Speech&Debate meet! I got to judge the events too. The meets cover Friday afternoon through the evening and all day Saturday. Then with church on Sunday, my weekend was almost gone before it even started! So much for all the grading I've got piling up.

ThanksThanksThanksThanksThanks...

2006-09-30T00:01:00.000+09:00

My friends and family took on the task of filling a provisions wish list this week =) There are a few things you just can’t find here (Doritoes, Reese’s, vanilla…) and a friend of mine from SURGE who is coming to Seoul in the near future offered to bring a care package for me. So they scrambled to put it together and I’ll have some fun stuff to unpack in October sometime. Thank you everybody!!

Better Than Nothing?

2006-09-28T08:20:00.000+09:00

2 more days of school, then Chusok holiday-- a week off in which I WILL catch up on this blog! For now, a simple hello and a picture of me and Barbara (with whom I have shared custody of the bike) at our favorite Korean pancake restaurant:
Coming soon to a blog near you:

the church news (you can check out the new link in the right-hand column of this page)
Lost in translation
more pics
Speech&Debate
Lotte World amusement park
Various Chusok holiday destinations
etc

More than just pavement

2006-09-11T17:13:00.001+09:00

Good intentions. That's what I had all last week as I stockpiled the various snippets I wanted to spill out in my blog-- for now, we will still have to deal with a little splurt of news and reviews to await the real writing to come. Life is quite life-y right now. As I'm sure many of you are finding with the start of school and the end of Summer, new projects taking the place of the almost-finished ones, and even the sun is turning against us with fewer hours of light!

I can't believe it, but Friday marks mid-quarter here at school (that's right, we've been at it for 5 weeks!) which means more grading, progress reports, and unit plans due throughout the week. For these and many other little reasons-- like dishes, laundry, etc.-- I don't have time to blog the things I'd love to blog now....

Bug bites! All over my arms and legs and I've only seen ONE mosquito in here!
The weather has cooled dramatically almost overnight (hence, the open window that let in the hungry bug), and now my commute of 100 feet can be accomplished without sweating buckets!
Looks like Bali, Jakarta and various island hopping destinations in Indonesia will be the target for Christmas vacation for Sylvia and I!
I got my 10# box I mailed (ground snail mail) to myself the day before I left for Korea! It was full of notes and letters from all my dear friends who have encouraged me over the years (some notes as far back as high school =), my flannel sheets, hiking boots, a tool kit and a potholder! What fun to unload it all and read the letters again; however, it backfired a little bit because reading them made me miss you all even more!
Took a tour of bookstores on Saturday. One used bookstore-- all in English! I bought an Anthology and am now feeling like a real English teacher again. A gigantic bookstore where I was shopping with 3 billion of my closest Korean friends =) The first Starbucks since I got here ($5 frapacinno!!) and the opportunity to use a coin-0p street-side toilet.
A dinner party Sunday night at a fellow teacher's place rounded off the weekend (Thai food, and lots of laughs, mmmmmm)
The rock-breaking equipment has finally stopped its one-note-staccato week-long symphony! The silence is wonderful!
I've finally perfected the art of skillet toast (lacking toaster oven, toaster, or oven with a broiler) and it's delicious!

All in all, life is good. Teaching is hard. Cable has American movies sometimes. My students are great. I wish for more than 24 hours in a day, but have managed to sleep enough anyway. Still looking for a church. I'm taking my vitamins, eating all manner of foods without problems, drinking plenty of water, and showering regularly =)
And seem to only write in lists...
I should soon be able to gain some time for blogging, mailing, and generally catching up; but if not soon, I'll have a whole week off at the end of September for Chusok (Asian Thanksgiving) and that will be a welcome respite!
g'bye for now...

How Time Flies!

2006-09-05T08:05:00.000+09:00

Yet another of life's ironies: The times when there is the most going on, there is the least amount of time to write about it

This week has been so full, but good.

Had my first kinda homesick day-- VERY tired after school, and every little thing seemed so much bigger because all of you are there and I'm here. Took a nap and that took the exahsted/hopeless/pity-party edge off, but I do miss you guys-- your pictures on my wall don't quite take the place of actually seeing you in person!
Getting a better handle on the learning levels of my students and some idea of how to progress through our material.
Got my checking account, spent big money at Costco to outfit my place a bit more (3 cheers for swiffers, syrup, honey, and of course, the big bag of croutons )
Took a yoga class from one of the teachers in my building. Oh My! It was SO relaxing, but my muscles were quite aware of the work they had accidentally done while I was relaxing!
Rode the bike a whole bunch this weekend (about 10 miles all together) and hopped off the bike path to explore some areas in Uijeongbu and Seoul-- again, so relaxing on the bike path!
Went to Yangsan-- the electronics center of the universe! This place was amazing with outdoor stalls and shops selling cheaper-than-normal computers/parts/cords/DVDs/stereos/cameras/mp3s/TVs/etc. and then a 9 level indoor electronics city lighted and sparkling everywhere like a jewelery store, but the cases were full of cutting edge cameras/mp3's/cellphones/etc.
Baskin Robbin's ice cream-- yum! (all you "chocolate peanutbutter" 31 flavors fans will understand my sadness-- they don't have it here)
The work continues on the mud-slide hill right out my wall of windows, but now, they're getting started on the basketball court they plan to put up there and having to break through rock to flatten the area. This translates to a constant, pulsating, staccato pounding all day from 7am-7pm! It fades into the background, but makes us all a little jittery and edgy by the end of the day.
Had 2 co-workers over for dinner last night-- quite fun cook for other people and just hang out for a while =)
Gonna be late for school if I don't scoot, so I'll update again when I can

Love you all!

A few shots from campus and a walk around town...

2006-08-27T22:39:00.000+09:00

My experience as advisor for the yearbook taught me one thing: not every picture needs a caption-- most should just be left to speak for themselves

If you have questions or want to know about more of any of the pics, just leave a comment at the bottom-- I'll tell the whole story =)

By the way, if you click on any picture in the blog, you can see the full-size version!

Fruit or prepared food for the table--just walk down the street!

It's a subway station park-and-ride =)

The college campus next door...
with their own version of The Thinker for inspiration!

Check out my business cards!

2006-08-27T22:38:00.001+09:00

One Side in English, the other a translation to Korean

Culturally, when you meet someone new, you exchange cards (careful to give it with the information right-side-up for the receiver and with two hands if the other person is older-- there's kind of a bow that gets thrown in there too, I think =).
The day we got the cards we really should have stashed some in our wallets, because that evening Barbara and I had the bike purchase adventure and really could have used some help conveying where we live and work as well as sealing our new friendship!

Still shopping...

2006-08-27T20:10:00.000+09:00

I went to church today and since I'm part of a group church shopping expedition, we didn't go to Onuri yet, but we will in future weeks-- I'll make sure =) Today, was Somang Presbyterian Church English service where some of our teachers attend; they wanted to show us this one first-- not my cup of tea, but it was good to be in a worship service with so many Koreans speaking a language I can understand. The choir was really good, the organ was nice (if you like that sort of thing), the preaching was Bible-based, but not overly insightful (read scripture in pieces, repeat phrases in a very loud voice, and give obvious advice...)

After church, Sylvia and I strolled around the area and made our way to a great coffee place; they had wonderful food, great coffee, and a cozy atmosphere. Then we popped into various shops that caught our eye and generally wasted the afternoon =) There's lots of sales going on right now. It's not a holiday thing, this is just sale season! Even the subway stations get in the act and all the competitively priced stuff is even cheaper-- lots of 5,000 Won racks (about $5), so I got a couple skirts to fill in the gaps of my teacher wardrobe.

Seriously, there's enough shopping in the larger subway stations that you wouldn't really have to come above ground-- ever! After a snooze on the subway ride home, we picked up some groceries (adventure items this week: a pouch of powdered imitation vanilla, tofu for stir-fry, and funny looking mushrooms =) and headed home to finish preparation for teaching this week.

One thing about being a day ahead of most of you: The Monday Blues hit here before you're even done with your Sunday afternoon naps!

T minus WEEKEND!!!

2006-08-26T13:41:00.000+09:00

It's the weekend after the first full week of classes-- we all survived =)

When I realize it's only been 3 weeks since I woke up here for the first time, it's hard to believe all the things I've learned, done, and seen!

Highlights of this week:
~Remembering a tiny percentage of the names I need to know.

~Getting started as a sponsor teacher for the "Insider" student magazine team (published at least twice a year, it's a compilation of student writing and news.)

~Giving my seniors their first "hard" quiz of the year

~Joining the Speech & Debate program to help coach students for upcoming meets.

~Went out alone and walked the town one evening-- explored back roads, people watched, and used my 2 Korean phrases lots of times!

~We had a TGIF BBQ on the school terrace (Western burgers and Korean bulgogi along with a huge pot-luck spread!) with ALL the staff from teachers to office staff to security guards and school board-- here that's a big deal because it also means a mix of Canadians, Americans, Australians, Koreans, etc. and not everyone speaks English; but there are enough interpreters to go around and we even got to know the cleaning ladies =) It was hours of enjoyable time spent with new friends. I was too tired to join the impromptu Nori-Bang trip (that's a place with karaoke rooms for groups to use for entertaining themselves), but I expect they had a lot of fun and I'll go next time...

~I'm now certified as a registered alien and I have the card to prove it. I don't have to hide that third eye anymore!

~We're looking into a Christmas break trip somewhere, maybe Thailand, Japan, somewhere South Korea, or other places unknown.... we'll see!

Two wheeling!

2006-08-22T07:23:00.000+09:00

One of the things I've wanted to look into buying (first paycheck comes the end of this month!) is a bicycle. Barbara-- my 61-year-young friend down the hall wanted one too and since we are both quite short for our ages, we figured we could even share a bike =) On our way to the pancake shop where we decided to eat last night (Korean pancakes are entirely different than IHOP, it's a dinner food), we went by the bike shop to look around.

There was a man getting his bike serviced while we browsed and his English was pretty good, so he interpreted our questions for the shop owner. We found out we'd need about $100 for the bike we were interested in-- nothing fancy, just simple mountain style with some gears to deal with the hills. We said we'd come back when we had money and headed toward dinner. After popping into a sporting goods store where we tried to ask about squash/racquetball courts-- they don't have them here-- our English-speaking friend was waiting outside with another guy who also had a bike. This second guy had heard us talking at the bike shop and he wanted to sell his bike, so he tracked us down with our good-natured interpreter to see if we wanted to buy his for $30 or $40. He said he got a new bike, only has one lock (a bike is the one thing that is readily stolen in Korea), and was planning to sell it to a bike shop before heading into Seoul for a family function.

As we walked home with our $30 21-speed mountain bike, $6 lock, our interpreter-friend's phone number to set up a bike ride some Sunday, and tummies full of spicy pancakes, I found a musical instrument shop. When I left my guitar in the states (thanks guitar-sitter Steve!), I promised myself I'd find a used one here to strum a little when I need to restore some sanity. Most of the guitars on display were foreign brands I've never heard of with Chinese labels inside, but it looks like I can pick one up for about $120 when I get paid-- unless, of course, on my way to the shop someone just happens to be selling a used guitar and there just happens to be an interpreter... Hey, it could happen!

^{Philippians 4:19}And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
^{Luke 12:29}And don't worry about food--what to eat and drink. Don't worry whether God will provide it for you. ³⁰These things dominate the thoughts of most people, but your Father already knows your needs.
... and wants, and desires, and vague wishes for insignificant comforts, and....

I'm just here to point to the fact that it's all TRUE!

Changes!

2006-08-20T12:53:00.000+09:00

Changes to this blog:

new layout
I'm now on the Blogger Beta program, so there are some new features I can play with and some old ones they haven't worked out yet
Still no fix for the Internet Explorer formatting problem...

Changes in plans:

Sylvia and I were planning to try the new church today, but she had a minor family emergency come up (her extended family lives near here), so we're on for next week.
Yesterday was supposed to be a school work day, but it turned out to be only shopping errands, so today I'll work on plans for the coming week.

Changes in clothes:

I need some, so I'm off to do laundry now =)

Just a couple errands?

2006-08-19T23:04:00.000+09:00

As the Saturday morning hallway traffic got going this morning, a bunch of us ended up checking in with each other to see who wanted to join up and go do errands/exploring together. I needed to go to Carrefour (the everything store-- like a Fred Meyer, only bigger =) and 2 of the newbie teachers were going there, so we took off about 11 am. They needed to go to Itaewon (some cities in the US have a Chinatown, well, this is the USA-town in Korea). It's the only place we can withdraw money from banks back home or credit cards. For some reason, it is taking a long time to get all the paperwork through immigration so that we can go open checking accounts here, but hopefully Monday we can!

Anyway, after our quick stop at the ATM about 45 minutes out of our way, meeting some of our giggling students on the subway, and coming out the wrong end of the right station, we finally made it back around to Carrefour. Now it was past time for lunch and we had walked an extra mile because we got turned around at the station, so we stopped at the foodcourt just inside the store before starting our serious shopping.

It's official, no matter what country I'm in, shopping always takes longer than I expect-- especially when there are 3 floors of endless stuff to look through. So we finally finished our shopping and had to pack everything very carefully so we could lug it back on the subway.

I'm thoroughly enjoying not having a car to deal with, someone else doing all the driving for me, and not having to fight with traffic or parking spaces-- except on errand days! We looked like 3 white idiots waddling down the road back to the subway station with our bags bulging (you can only have 2 bags from the store-- and you have to pay for those!), backpacks loaded, and legs bowing under the cumbersome load and hot sun. The short subway ride back to our home-stop was too short to really rest up and before we knew it, the last leg of our journey brought us to the base of the hills leading up to the school. What crazy architect thought it was a good idea to put our school on the top of a hill? There are many ways to get home, but ALL of them are very definitely UP!

When we finally got home at about 5 pm, it was unanimous: #1 we would never do this again and #2 when we do this again (it's inevitable =), we will allow the nice man with the taxi to charge us the $16 to take us to our front door and call it a bargain! The subway ride is less than a dollar, but by the time we got home, we were less than human, so it's a trade-off =)

I won't bore you with my purchases, but let's just say I finally own enough hangers for all my clothes, I have a lamp to see my way to the bed after turning off the light switches at the other end of the apartment, and I don't have to wait on the very unreliable bread-fairy to come for breakfast in the morning (I'm starting to doubt her existence!)

After the rain...

2006-08-19T22:43:00.000+09:00

This evening, just before sunset, the skies opened up and gushed rain. Later, I was walking across campus and saw the mountains glowing with that soft after-rain light with the sunset reflected in suddenly-friendly clouds and blue sky-- and a perfect rainbow.

Old Testament promise meets New Testament promise

** We are not a religious school, but the college right next door gifted this cross to our school and they couldn't turn it down =) It's about 30 feet high and stands between the Elementary and High school buildings-- very hard to miss!

Working out the quirks...

2006-08-17T22:27:00.000+09:00

If you've been trying to play the video of my apartment but couldn't, it should work now (it was on the "private" setting, so blogger couldn't access it).

If you use Internet Explorer instead of Firefox for your browser, the format of the page is off-- I don't know why and still need to figure out how to fix it. the right-hand column shouldn't be squished like it is and the photo captions should show up WITH the pictures. But, if you want to download Firefox, it's free and you don't get nearly as many pop-ups!

Musings from Mozart

2006-08-17T21:23:00.000+09:00

The second day of school was even better than the first and this is quite a surprise since the sleep factor was missing =) We got back from the concert just before midnight and my little sleepy head thinks I should get more sleep than that on a school night.

There were 8 of us from the school who made the hour and a half trip by subway and bus to the Korean Art Center and the Mannes College of Music's Alumni concert. Haewan is the choir teacher here and she played a "world premiere" piece by a composer who sat a couple rows in front of me =) The whole concert was great. Lots of classical Mozart along with some spiced up contemp. jazz arrangements and even a collection of Mozart operas played with percussion instruments (marimba, xylophone, bells, and timpany)-- dry humor, symphony style =) Of course, the MC gave the introductions for each piece in Korean, so I just tried to look mildly interested until Sylvia translated the important stuff for me.

On our long subway trip, I did some great people watching, a little journaling, and even got close to becoming a pillow for the very large Korean next to me (lots of people snooze on the subway to pass the time). There's not really any personal "bubble" here like in America, takes a little getting used to, but I figure as long as no one drools on me while they nap, I'll be fine =)

The time NOT doing school was time well spent as I got to know some of my co-workers better, saw more of Seoul, and got to hear some beautiful music. There's something mysterious that happens in a concert where the music is not just performed, but really communicated-- it hits this strange re-set button deep inside-- makes me more alive, and peaceful at the same time. And it lasts beyond the final note of the strings or even the neon-lighted drive home with graphic rap/R&B coming through the speakers (of all things why does THAT have to be in English?!?). The soul-level harmony lasts for days. Like a kind note from a friend, a Toffee Crunch Haagen-dazs bar on a hot and sticky evening, or a breathtaking sunset after a near-perfect day. All is well with the world.

Of course, reality does inch back in; but even the bad news or the string of frustrations can't completely break the spell, because after beauty resets your internal rhythm, it becomes part of your reality so that all the rest is just bad news or frustration-- nothing peace-altering or able to ruin the order that has been restored inside.

OK, so maybe I'm on "new experience" overload. But you should try a good concert, or at least a Toffee Crunch Haagen-dazs bar. After all, it couldn't hurt!

Which brings us to...

Life's little ironies...

2006-08-17T21:08:00.000+09:00

... You can become more energized and more ready to take on whatever life hands out if you "waste" time with people and take part in the wider world instead of "working" so much on getting everything so prepared that life can't surprise you...

... The computer always works-- until you're in a hurry...

... I always have a camera strapped to my neck until something really picture-worthy comes up-- then it's at home...

... If your roof ever leaks, it never happens to be right over the plant that needs watering...

... The cell phone that tagged along on my journey was only to give me the phone numbers I have stored in it, since I no longer have an account on this phone, I expected nothing more-- now it can't give me the numbers because it can't find a signal...

... The "shower" water is the perfect temerature while washing my hair and face, but when I start to spray the rest of me, it suddenly turns cold until I turn it away from me only to find the warm water is back (rinse and repeat =)...

... When I first got here, I couldn't sleep past 5 am when the sun came up. Slowly that moved to 6 and then 6:30 all those mornings when I didn't have to be anywhere until 10 am-- now that I have to be up, ready, and awake for school, I could probably sleep till noon...

First day of school...

2006-08-16T17:03:00.000+09:00

It was organized chaos as all first days are everywhere. The students are great! My 7th graders are quite cute clear up to the seniors who are a lot of fun to talk with. It's going to be a lot of work, but very fun to teach here!

What I'm teaching : English 7, 8 & 10 all lower English proficiency and some truly ESL
U.S. History 11 and U.S. Government 12. So, I have all grades but 9 and about 50 students all together. It's an iteresting schedule with some block classes (2 periods together) and some singles and every day is different, but throughout the week in all different combinations and times, each class meets for 5 periods. We also have some after school activities and Friday afternoon periods are for organized sports, so there's lots going on and tons to do =)

There's a Mozart concert in Seoul tonight where one of our staff is playing with the grad students at a university there. I'm reisisting the urge to stay home and try to get more ready for school instead of doing the active/social thing and going to the concert. I'll let you know how it all comes out =)

Answer to prayer!!!

2006-08-14T20:46:00.000+09:00

One of the teachers on my floor is going to be my church buddy! She is Korean by blood, but was born and raised in Canada; she came to Korea for international school when she was a teenager and then came back here after college. Anyway, she knows Korean, and fits well in both cultures, so she was asking if there was anything I was having a hard time finding here. I said I wanted to find an international church or English service or something and she said she wanted to try one she had just heard about-- it's the same one I found (see previous post). Isn't God great?!?

Sylvia is excited to show off all Seoul has to offer, so she and I went into town tonight to browse around this huge shopping district with a gigantic department store (the whole store is in little departments that operate separately, but it's not a mall), movie theater, and more food options than you could eat in a month! We had Vietnamese in downtown Korea-- it was delicious! This is her second year here at the school, but she's been all over the world and lived in many places.

Thanks for all your prayers! God is making straight the way and smooth the path for the transition to living here. Classes will be starting in 2 days and my head is spinning with all that needs to be done, can't be done yet, and all that will be added very soon! We'll be changing around class lists and class outlines until next month, I think, so it's a little stressful not knowing exactly how to prepare, yet knowing that there's no time left to prepare for what I can't know yet anyway! It's similar to what we dealt with at my previous school, but this time I'll be teaching second language learners in a culture not my own... this should be good =)

There are a few of us here who realize we can let school eat us alive if we're not careful, so I think we'll be able to supply good support and accountability for each other. My experiences up to this point have prepared me for where I am now, and the place I find myself has been prepared by the ONE who brought me here, so no matter what stress mounts in my little world, the peace that passes understanding is over all of it! It's not only true in Korea-- God is in control of your world too.

Off to church?

2006-08-14T08:11:00.000+09:00

Since all of you back home are having a Sunday today, you might be wondering how my church hunt is going. So far, I haven't gone to church yet, but late Saturday night I did find this one online that I'm going to try (you can check it out at this link: Onnuri) they have English services at 2 campuses in Seoul. I was hoping for something closer, but I think Onnuri is the closest I'm going to find.

I couldn't go this week because I'm not good enough with the subway system yet. You know how I get turned around and lost easily? Well, now I can do it at high speeds in a foreign country =) I'll try to find a subway buddy to go with me and check it out next week.

That's the church scoop; I'll keep you posted!

The Palace

2006-08-13T23:13:00.000+09:00

The old culture and new culture coexist here

Secret Garden Palace

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First week in the new land

2006-08-13T21:49:00.001+09:00

Everything here is new and beautiful in its own way-- I've been snapping pictures like crazy!

A cool phone in our waiting area. They're all over in Seoul.

the crazy pizza man and a happy piggy

No matter where you go, some things never change...

All that power starts somewhere...

The view from here

Cutest baby in the world!!

2006-08-13T11:23:00.000+09:00

Little Kaitlyn Tamara Reimer decided not to join the outside world before I left the country; however, through digital cameras, e-mail, and the internet, I can give her a good start on her modeling career =)
After a VERY quick labor, Kaitlyn popped out red and chubby. Once she decided to come there was barely time to get into the hospital and into a bed-- even her doctor missed the occasion by a few minutes and another doc was pulled in from the hall at the last minute!

Here are the stats:

born August 6, 2006 2:56 PM
8 lbs 2 oz
19.75"
good, easy baby so far!

Flat 305

2006-08-12T09:18:00.000+09:00

Disclaimer: No real directors, actors, videographers, or animals were used in the making of this film-- obviously, they should have been! It's quite possibly the most amateur flick ever =)

Hello from tomorrow...

2006-08-05T22:56:00.000+09:00

This is one cool place! And we're always a day ahead of you guys back home =)

After getting to the school after dark last night, I was led to my studio apartment (I'll try to include pictures as soon as my personal internet connection is set up) and had just enough steam left explore the corners of my new digs and liberate my pillow from the depths of a box. So far, I've had no problem being awake when I should be and sleepy when it's time for that-- like now!

The school has gone to great lengths to make us feel welcome from an international calling card in our packets to baby bannanas on the counter and a new toothbrush in the bathroom. I'll really be unpacking and moving in tomorrow. Somehow, my room has double furniture (2 vanities, 2 freestanding cupboards, 2 wardrobes, 2 coffee tables [only a foot off the floor], 2 short drawers...) Now all I need is a desk and I'll be set!

We took a trip into town today; my school is actually between Seoul and Uijeongbu, but not rural by U.S. standards at all! The neighborhood area has everything a person needs within walking distance; but better deals and more variety calls for a trip on the subway! We discovered Seoul and Uijeongbu today and it was amazing! We all spent our moving-in allowance at this incredible 3 level department/grocery store(100,000 won = $100 usd) and shopped till we dropped =)

Well, actually, we didn't get a chance to drop because we had a dinner outing to Uijeongbu for some "duk"-something: spicy chicken stirfry cooked at the table on a big griddle. So far, there are 7 new teachers and some have families, so it was a fun group experience. We went the long way around to the subway after cooling our burning lips with 7-up, Pepsi, and soju. (Yes, I tried the famous Korean liquor and my untrained alcoholic pallet simply registered NyQuil without the licorice =) Taking the long way brought us into the crazy-busy streets with neon lights, vendors, and people.people.people-- So crowded that a car actually brushed against my leg as we were waiting to get through an intersection.

The funny thing is that even though there are people everywhere, and they all have places they need to go, it's not a hurried/bustling/harried kind of crowding. Hard to explain, but people still have time to be kind to the foreigners =) Usually when I find myself in a sea of people, there seems to be a general sense of urgency and impatience that is contageous even to tourists and innocent bystanders-- not so here. It may have been because it's Saturday, or maybe I'm in a jet-lagged brain oblivion, or maybe it's just that calm; only time will tell.

Many more things to write, but it's just before midnight and I'm feeling the need to plop into bed.

Have a good tomorrow!

The Adventure begins!

2006-07-31T14:10:00.000+09:00

The countdown is now measured in hours. I'm flying out Thursday morning to a completely different life. Funny thing about Thursday... August 3rd just happens to be my sister's due date for delivering my much anticipated neice-- we're hoping for an early appearance!