Well, I am trying

I have stated before that I am trying to redeem my poor blogging habits and make it a more frequent occurrence so here is my second blog in the space of two weeks...whoa, is that really possible? Yes indeed, I am actually updating again! Not that anything I have to update about is very interesting or important, but anyhow.

So, I have gotten back into the swing of things after my exciting trip to Seoul a few weekends ago. My, but I was sore from the marathon, though I think my cramps probably made the post-marathon soreness worse. Just the sight of stairs (going up or down) made me cringe and running across the street the next day wasn't an option for me when I needed to cross in a hurry. But it was still worth it and I have since recovered and returned to running.

I have been playing with my newest "baby" since the moment I got home. Her official name is Philomela, which in the Greek means Friend of Song. And she indeed is my friend in song. We have been making some sweet (ok, and not so sweet) music together. I am trying to improve my picking skills and testing out riffs for different songs. I want to bring her back with me when I visit but I have no hard case for her and traveling with a carry-on guitar is not a good activity. I am definitely bring one of my girls back with me though. Can't go a month without playing...and I don't have the luxury of rightys who are able to borrow or pick up any guitar and play.

And speaking of travel, that brings me to my next topic; my visit home! Hooray! Only a little over two months to go and I will be able to see and physically be with the ones I love. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here in Korea and everything I have been able to do and see and experience, but I have also missed all my friends and family immensely as well. And also, I do miss some of the little things that I took for granted back in the states. Like going into the grocery store and being able to find what you're looking for by glancing at the aisle signs instead of scouring the aisles trying to make out the Korean characters (I am half blind because I don't wear glasses and I need them). Or hopping in the car and driving to your destination instead of planning out how you can get there by subway, bus, or walking. Or simply being able to eat things like Chick-Fil-A or Panera Bread (my two favorites) and being offered the plethera of choices that are so lacking here (e.g. smoothies here come in 3-4 flavors, with only one offered for each smoothie, NO MIXING; whereas I used to go into Jamba Juice and order a blended smoothie of about 7-8 different flavors and they wouldn't bat an eye.) Not knocking Korean food AT ALL...it is absolutely fabulous. But when one grows up with their palate adjusted to certain things, its hard to change the cravings you get sometimes. SO, anyways, I am looking forward to the day when I can see all of most of your faces again!<-- (I was proofreading this and I came across this bizarrely written sentence. I decided to leave it as is because its evidence of what living in a non-English speaking country can do to grammar skills.)

And to wrap up this blog entry, I'll recount the most recent events and upcoming ones. Earlier this evening, all of the teachers at my school went together to eat at a Korean restaurant. The dish we ate is called Shabu-Shabu (of Japanese origin) and it is simply delicious. I could eat it every day I think. It's thin strips of pork and beef that you grill or stick into a boiling pot of broth and cook, along with lots of yummy vegetables that you cook in the broth as well. You can wrap the cooked veggies and meat in a wafer like rice cake that you soak in broth too. After you are done with the meat and veggies, they bring out homemade rice noodles and boil them up, and after that, they bring out a mixture of rice, egg, and some flavorful things (not sure) and make a sticky porridge for you. It is my favorite part of the whole meal. I ate so much and am still simply stuffed. Tomorrow, I am going to my Korean lesson in the morning and then heading up help clean the room where we have our English service. We'll start at 1:00 and hopefully knock everything out fairly quickly. There was also a promise of a pizza and chicken break/lunch (yum!). Then, Sunday, we will have our Easter service. I am singing backing vocals in worship without playing any intrument for the first time (strange for me but exciting too). So, it will be another full week-end and then comes the work week after that. Gentlemen, start your engines!

Well, I suppose that's it for now. I have been working on my plan for my next year here in recent weeks. It looks like I may have settled on a university to attend and am trusting that God works out all the little kinks elsewhere. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, I am planning to attend a Korean Language Institute year long course starting in the fall semester. I have visited Keimyung University recently, and their program seemed to be the most advantageous for my situation. Please pray that God opens or closes the way so that I can get clear direction.

In closing, I'll share a funny story (or two) about various cultural and language occurrences. The other day, I went to the track and ran some laps for speed work on it. A group of Korean runners were doing their workouts at the same time and we finished up around the same time. As I was preparing to leave, a woman came up to me and began to speak rapidly to me in Korean. It was rather dark (funfact; Koreans don't light up their tracks or outdoor courts and fields. They just run and play b-ball or soccer in the semi dark) and I don't think she realized at first that I was a "Waykukin" -foreigner. Then, when she got a good look at me, she asked if I spoke Hangul. My response "chunun, hangul mal chogum"-I only speak a little Korean. She then gestured to her son and began telling him to speak to me in English. He shyly said hello and how are you and then I asked "irum muyeyo?"-what's your name? He responded in Korean and his mother chided him "not in Korean, in English!" It was so funny because I was trying to respond in Korean and she kept urging him to speak English! So, after a few moments of awkwardly stumbling around in the linguistics dept., we said good-bye and then she said to me "Pighting!"-which literally means cheer up or keep it up! It was a fun incident. Then, today, I was offered cola by one of my co-teachers. I accepted and she proceeded to pour me a drink. When she poured it, I automatically touched my left hand under my right elbow and she saw it and laughed. I laughed too and thought to myself, is it possible that some of these habits will stick with me for life? Later on this evening, she was sitting beside me at the meal and I heard her tell the others teachers in Korean about what I had done. I turned to her and asked if she just said what I thought. She laughed and said yes and then said to the other teachers "she understood!" Whereupon, they all laughed and then one of them said to me, "you are just so cute!" referring I think to my pitiful attempts to adapt culturally and linguistically. It's funny because even though I am still woefully western in speaking and mannerisms, I noticed a marked difference between the two new ENT teachers who just arrived and myself. I helped them shop the other day and we were getting assistance from a worker in the store. At the end of the exchange, I bowed and said "Kamsahamnida" like I had been doing it all my life. Its weird how the things that you adopt here quickly become like second nature.

Time to cut it off. I have to get some rest for tomorrow.

Until next time, Gruss Gott.