Tresaures?

I got a birthday present from a co-worker yesterday... It is a really nice black Calvin Klein T-shirt, but as my friend and I looked a little closer, we surmised that it may be a knock off! I completely missed the typo the first time I looked at the shirt--my mind just rearranged the letters automatically! My friend and I tried to figure out if there was a code to crack or if a tresaures are a kind of dinosaur we didn't know about.

My birthday was on Wednesday. I had a seminar in the day and was finished by 2. I was still feeling sick, so I came home for my daily 2 hour nap (lately, I've been taking lots of naps). For my birthday, Kara took me out for dinner at Tony Romo's (where we occasionally go for our cheeseburger fix) and ice cream at Baskin Robin's! It turned out to be a pretty good birthday despite being sick!

I think I am finally healthy and am not sure what I had, but it wasn't fun. Today, I am meeting a former co-worker for lunch to celebrate our birthdays (hers was 10 days before mine). Should be fun!

"Life is venture..."

Seen on a T-shirt on the subway today: "Life is venture or nothing." I think it is a tribute to Helen Keller's quote at the top of my blog page! :)

USA!

Today I made my way up to the US embassy (American soil) to add some pages to my passport! I have always wanted to have to add pages! :) It doesn't expire for a couple more years and I am running out of space! Since I had the day off anyway, I decided to devote it to taking care of this matter (which I knew would take a long time and would most likely be a frustrating process). It turned out not to be frustrating, but it did take them 6 1/2 hours to tape a chunk of pages into my book! (I think I could have done it in 6 1/2 seconds!) The picture above was taken right in front of the embassy. Notice how many police are guarding with their big sticks--there were at least thirty that I counted surrounding the perimeter. Here is a preview of the new additions (24 in all):


At the top of each page is a patriotic quote. Here's my favorite: "This nation has a banner...it is the banner of Dawn. It means Liberty... Every color means liberty; every thread means liberty." ~Henry Ward Beecher. I like this one too (last one, promise): "It is immigrants who brought to this land the skills of their hands and brains to make of it a beacon of opportunity and hope for all men." ~Herbert H. Lehman. Ahhh... Inspiring...


While I waited for my passport to be finished, I hung out at this coffee shop: SandPresso. I had an onion flavored blueberry bagel (I didn't order it that way) with strange tasting cream cheese alternative and an americano that tasted very Korean somehow. Needless to say, SandPresso failed to impresso me, but they had a great stack of home decor magazines that kept me busy for an hour and a half, dreaming of decorating the house I don't have (and won't have for a looong time).

Update

Ha ha! Last week I posted about wanting to be more positive and then I haven't updated my blog since then! Some people might think the positivity must not be going well (you know, "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all")! Well, the truth is, I have been pretty sick the past few days. I started feeling funny last Thursday and have pretty much been in bed since then (except for work on Friday).

A few updates:

First, I was given both today (Monday) and tomorrow off since I have to attend and present at an all day seminar on Wednesday. Today and tomorrow are testing days for the students and half days for teachers, so my co-teachers felt that it would be a fair exchange. That worked out nicely.

Second, I am getting ready and gearing up for my trip next week! A few posts ago, I mentioned I was going somewhere, but didn't say where. Well, my next destination is Tokyo! I will be gone from Thursday until Monday. We have a lot of random days off work these next few weeks (Parent's Day, Children's Day, Buddha's BDay, etc). This is the third of my three Asian trips planned for this year (Bali, Thailand, Japan). I traveled with Kara for the first two trips (which went really well--we are really compatible travel buddies!), but for the last one, I decided to go solo (also, because Kara and I didn't have the same days off). My last solo trip was Prague and I had an awesome time, so I have high expectations for Tokyo! :)

Third, things have been getting better lately (despite being sick right now)! Mostly because I decided they would, but isn't that how it works? I know that I have under 4 months left here, and I am ready to get on with it! :)

April 21st

My birthday is next week! Good news: it is my school's foundation day and there is no school on my birthday for the whole school! I've been looking forward to it for months and have planned a day-trip for myself! :) Bad news: I found out today that I have to go to a seminar all day and listen to other foreign teachers present examples of their lessons and participate in discussion groups about these lessons. :( This news quickly brought me down this morning and it was hard for me not to let it ruin my day. Especially since it will be my birthday and I have to sit at a boring seminar all day. I am such a whiner! This should NOT be a day ruining piece of information!

A few weeks ago I watched an interview where the person made a comment I have thought about since. She talked about all of her life's trials and how they caused her to exude so much negativity, but how she didn't want that to be her life's contribution to the world. I think that is a good way to look at things. There have been a lot of obstacles in my life here in the past months. I have felt every bump in the road which has been exaggerated by the fact that I am in Korea and not at home. I will use an example from my daily life to illustrate this point: it's like sitting on the back of the bus vs. sitting up in the front. In the back, when the driver hits a bump it feels like you've jumped a mountain and you bounce out of your seat a little and have to hang on for dear life, but in the front, it barely seems like you've even gone over a bump at all. Korea is like riding in the back of the bus for me lately--it's the same bump, but it feels bigger. However, I have to reflect on what the woman said in the interview and stop letting things affect me so much. Even if things are rough sometimes, I have to learn to react differently. I don't want negativity to be my contribution to the world either. I would rather have joy and peace be my contribution. Sounds a little Mother Teresa of me, doesn't it? Ha ha!

Just some thoughts I've been working on...

More pics from today:

Rain or shine! Umbrellas are the way to go in Korea if you are worried about the sun affecting your skin! I personally opt for the Vitamin D and suntan!


This mini-pagoda was on the opposite side of the lake.


View from my spot on the grass. How relaxing! I could hardly even hear the traffic noises!


Note the face mask on the left. I'm not sure if this one is for the yellow sand/pollution or if it is a cosmetic surgery cover. I only saw a few today, so it must be surgery!


And finally, my amputee shot. No arm and no foot! Haha! I've been watching old re-runs of America's Next Top Model and they always have lots to say about the girls who have parts missing! :) I guess I would be eliminated pretty quickly! :)

The past few days...

This is my new favorite drink! I have been craving apple juice lately, but really haven't seen any around until the other day. It was hard for me to decide what it was exactly, but the picture of the apple helped a little! :)


Also, just for fun, Kara and I decided to try out some of these fake eyelashes that are sold everywhere. Actually, we each bought a set, but haven't tried them yet. We are trying to figure out the best way to apply them without damaging our natural ones. When I get them on, I will be sure to post a pic--if they look good, I might occasionally wear them out--they seem extremely popular with celebrities! I have the feeling that these little strips of acrylic hair are going to give me more trouble than they are worth, though! :)


While gym shopping the other day, I spotted some strawberries for sale on the street! I picked up two cartons for three bucks! Not bad! They were so delicious that I ate most of them by the next day. I will have to hunt for some more this week!

These next few weeks for me might be a little long--the students are preparing for midterms and many of my classes have been canceled. The nice thing for me is that I can bring a book to school and sit outside in the sun for a few hours on those days! I am ahead in my lesson planning and can't help out with other duties because of my lack in language. I have to do something other than stare at the computer all day, so I bring my book (and don't feel guilty because my co-workers do it too!).

Ilsan

Today was a really hot, sunny day--in the 80's! My friend and I went to the largest man-made lake in Korea. We took the train really far north to get there, which meant that the park wasn't too crowded and we felt like we weren't in Seoul anymore! It was really medicinal for me to go today since things have been a little rough lately. We walked around for awhile, treated ourselves to ice cream and found a spot on the grass to read and relax for awhile!


The lake was surprisingly clean and loaded with giant koi fish. The atmosphere was wonderful and relaxing, the scenery was beautiful and people were in a good mood all day!

This park has become on of my favorite places in all of Korea so far! The only other place that rivals it is Bukhansan--the mountain I climbed in the fall. I will be back to this park!

Black Day

I forgot to mention that today was Black Day here in Korea. February 14th was the day girls gave gifts to the guys, March 14th was the day guys reciprocated, and April 14th is for the singles who have nobody (as described to me by my Korean co-worker). I guess this is the day that the singles decide to go out and find themselves a boyfriend/girlfriend. We ate some black stew for lunch to commemorate the day (it didn't taste too bad, actually, but I have no idea what it was). A few girls at school have blind dates set up for this weekend... :)

I doused my wrists with a new perfume by Victoria Beckham earlier tonight. Every now and then I get a whiff of it and think, "what smells so good in here...oh, wait, thats me!" I have to admit I am kind of liking the fragrance.

No More California

Korea has been a little bit of a struggle for me this past month and a half--I'm not going to lie. I'm not sure why I have been in this funk, but I've stayed in it longer than I've cared to. I definitely have a respite from my day that has become almost necessary for me: the gym. It has been the place I can be myself and in a culture I know. I have gone nearly every day for a LONG time and have met lots of new friends during my workouts there. Well, today I was hit with a cold, harsh reality: California Wow has gone bankrupt and is closed. They have taken the cash, closed the doors and disappeared. Police, angry crowds and bewildered staff stood around as I arrived at the gym to see this:


I guess this is something that happens now and again in Korea. The owner has more money going out than coming in (which is interesting because the gym has been extremely crowded the past two weeks, and just yesterday, I saw people signing contracts and handing over their credit cards). I guess when this kind of thing happens, it is common for it to go down quietly to reduce shame and save face.


Needless to say, it is quite a shock for me. I have lost 5 months worth of membership money (which I prepaid back in September), but more importantly, I have lost the thing which has kept me grounded here in Korea lately. No more California Wow. I am determined to keep training for my 10K and 1/2 marathon, but am not sure where or how. What a bummer.

Update 4/15: I've started checking around for new gyms, but the prognosis doesn't look good. The best price a gym could give me for a 3 month membership was $450! Unbelievable! This is such a bummer for me and I am really mourning the closing of this gym--I sound like I am overreacting, but really, a gym membership has always been non-negotiable for me as it is my favorite way to release stress. There is no place for me to exercise: the air is toxic outside at the moment due to the yellow dust that is blowing in from China. Help!!!!