The Urban Nomad

Nomad.

2010-11-16T12:34:00.002-06:00

You can take the Nomad away from traveling, but you can't ever take the travel bug out of the nomad.

I decided today that I miss my old life. While I do not miss Korea, teaching, or being far away from familiar things, I miss trips, culture, traveling, airplanes, photos, etc.

My friend Ivania teaches in Turkey and is currently traveling in Egypt. My friend Laura teaches in Germany and is spending Christmas in Egypt. My friend Jennifer lives in American Samoa and is probably off to New Zealand. Other friends are living in China, Japan, Costa Rica, Austria, and Vietnam. I just have this itch to live abroad again, travel again, be free... again.

Decompress.

2010-10-27T17:37:00.003-05:00

In order to simplify my life, there are many steps I need to take.

Step 1: Cut up my credit cards

I will start there.

October.awesome.ness.

2010-10-25T02:08:00.001-05:00

October has been a great month full of good food, concerts, volunteering, film festivals, trips, boyfriend, and more.

We go to San Fran next Saturday.

I.can't.freaking.wait.

le sigh:

2010-08-24T02:28:00.001-05:00

I've recently self diagnosed myself with insomnia. I want sleep. hmm.

Yesteryear:

2010-08-13T02:33:00.003-05:00

We all find time during the course of the day to actually breathe, relax, forget about work, and do something to treat ourselves. Typically, I reach my "peaceful" moment right before bed. There is nothing better to me then bringing a book or some magazines to bed with me along with some tea. I turn on a dim light, I fluff the pillows, and I read and sip my tea. Lately I've been reading National Geographic Traveler, because quite frankly, I am desperately yearning for a trip. I miss the days of packing my back pack for Thailand, climbing temples in Cambodia, and frolicking in the streets of Paris. Now, my life is comprised of bills, work, and stress. The thought of an exiting getaway is less than realistic at the present time. What happened to that simple life that I use to love so much? Unfortunately, every night before I go to bed, this is the time that I dream a little too big.

I've been thinking a lot lately about who I am, where I came from, and how much I've changed over the past few years. I've always been an advocate that "change" is good and sometimes even necessary. Although I'm constantly working toward reaching my happy place, I still don't think I'm actually there. Living abroad for three years definitely helped me make progress, but I want more. I need more time out of my comfort zone.

I continuously think about what I want long term: a house, a companion, a dog, a family. It's during my peaceful moment before bed that I wish I had someone to look over at, to kiss good night, and to wake up next to. As cliche as it all sounds, maybe my peaceful place is just a reminder of where I am right now in my life.

However, I also continuously think about where I want to be right now: in a hammock on the beach in Fiji, on a safari in Africa, hiking in South America. I think about quitting my job, maxing out my credit cards, and just traveling for a year or more. I know that I lived abroad for 3 years, and I was able to travel extensively, but I feel like I only saw a fraction of what is out there. Once you start traveling it is so hard to stop. Once you discover that there is so much more out there then the town you grew up in, it's difficult to not want to see those places. I have never been a small town boy, and I always knew that I wouldn't stay where I grew up. Even though I've had the chance to see places that most people only read about, I still have a list a mile along of places I want to go.. things I want to see..

Maybe I need to embrace change even more. Take advantage of my new surroundings and live here in Seattle. In the meantime, I'm still yearning for so much.

Not so long ago...

2010-08-05T11:37:00.001-05:00

It is crazy to think how fast the last five months have just flown by. It wasn't even that long ago that I was packing up, saying goodbyes, and making to-do lists in my final days of being a resident of Seoul, South Korea. I have lived in Seattle now for 5 months, and each day I learn something new either about my job or about life in Washington.

It is also equally crazy that my three years in Seoul still seem like a long lost memory. They went by so fast (at times) and now when I think about Korea, it always seems so long ago. It is exciting though, that as part of my job, I train new teachers who are on their way to Korea- so I always get to share my memories and thoughts with them.

I've stopped telling stories about my time there, my travels throughout Asia, and my daily life routine while working there because my friends and family are just not interested. For a long time I thought that living abroad and traveling the world was something that most people would be interested to talk about, but it seems when it comes up, that most people just don't want to hear it.

I guess what I chalk the experience up as is something that everyone has to experience for themselves. I guess if you've lived in the same house your whole life and never left the state you were born, then you probably wouldn't understand my perspective on the world anyways.

All I know is that the old blog posts, pictures, and stories need to be updated with new stories and pictures. I yearn for travel, simplicity, and culture. Now my biggest job is to figure out how to make these thoughts happen. I did it once, I can do it again, right?

On Being an Adult...

2010-07-26T13:21:00.005-05:00

I really never realized how much I took growing up under my parents roof for granted until it was time to put a roof over my own head. College, while it may give us the knowledge to succeed in a career, definitely did not prepare me for all the bills that come after college. Heck, why did life have to get so hard?

When you're a student, you're most likely living in the residence halls, eating cafeteria meals, and working part time to pay for outings to the mall or for beer for a Friday night party. You didn't have to worry about student loans, insurance, or a mortgage. When it came time for Spring Break, you booked your tickets to Florida and Mexico using your credit card or left over loan money and you thought "have fun now and pay later." Well, let me tell you, it's no fun to pay later. When you decide to "pay later" then that trip to Mexico your senior year of college is probably the last trip you'll see for a long time. Five years later, you're still probably paying it off :)

Because of the recent recession coupled with the fact that almost all markets suck right now, interest rates are higher than ever, APR's on credit cards are at a freeze, etc. It's becoming even more difficult to pay back the loans and debt that you created while having "fun" in college. And do not forget that the job market, while improving, probably has not provided that full time job making six figures a year. Even though you may have paid 40,000 dollar a year for your private education, you definitely didn't get the big shot job that you thought you would. Instead, you're working hard to pay the bills month to month and you're lucky to budget enough to order take out once a week.

I wish I could go back to the days where I had it good. I didn't have to pay an electric bill, cable and Internet were free, and the fridge and pantry were always stuffed with delicious food. I never had to write a monthly check for rent or a mortgage, and my dad would throw me a $20 every now and again for a movie or dinner with friends.

Even though I've been on my own since 2002, and I never ask my parents for money, sometimes I do wish that I could just move back "home" and reap the benefits of the "good life." ha!

Travel Lusting:

2010-07-15T15:58:00.003-05:00

Although my time abroad has come to an end, and I've adjusted to life back in the U.S. I can't help but constantly wonder "where next?"

Even though I am very ready to settle down, buy a condo, find my soul mate, and have a cute dog, I know that there are other adventures in my future. As great as "settling" down sounds, I know that given the opportunity I'd pack my bag and head out on the first place to "anywhere...."

Today I was thinking about the things I still want to do. I know that I have a lifetime to do them, but I like to live my life day to day. I've yet to hike the Inca Trail to Machu Pichu, to ride a camel in Cairo and watch the sunset over the pyramids, to wear a safari hat and snap photos in Kenya, or to sail past a glacier in New Zealand.

Maybe it's hard to settle down when my friends are still on new adventures. Today, one of my great friends Jen, embarked on a year in American Samoa as a Worldteach volunteer. In a few weeks, Ivania, heads to Istanbul to teach kindergarten for a year. I remember the excitement that moving somewhere new engrosses you with. I am ready to feel that excitement again. I guess you can call me the wanderer.

Portland!

2010-07-12T12:26:00.003-05:00

Aside from being known as the "meth" lab of the U.S., Portland is known to be a city full of hippies, liberals, and avid bike riders. This upcoming weekend, I'm going to revisit my inner hippie/liberal side and partake in Beerfest! My cousin and his wife are visiting Portland from Chicago, and have given me a reason to make the 2.5 drive down from Seattle. I'm starting to love the Pacific Northwest summers, now if only I could make a good group of friends!

I'm going to be a BIG brother!

2010-07-09T11:26:00.004-05:00

Three months ago I interviewed for a volunteer position with Big Brothers/Big Sisters. This is an organization that I have always been fond of, and now that I have the extra time there wasn't anything keeping me from getting involved. After my interview, I was told that they would get in contact with me after they found me a match. I guess they really are cautious and considerate of everything that goes into the process, because three months later, they finally found a match for me!

Next Friday, July 16th, I get to meet my new little Brother. He's 8 years old and he seems pretty great. Katie, the match coordinator, told me that he's a bit shy at the get-go, but once he gets to know you he will talk to your ear off. I giggled and told her that I am the same way, and she told me that it'll be fun to see us fight for the stage. HA! He wears glasses and one of his wishes is that he could have windshield wipers on his glasses. Ahh! So creative!

Either way, I'm very excited to meet him and I will definitely blog about him, too!

Happy Friday!

Things Change.

2010-06-29T11:04:00.004-05:00

Almost 5 years ago, on my 21st birthday, my parents mailed me a case of bud light to the house I was living at in Decatur while a University student. Then, I thought that Bud Light was the single, greatest beer that ever existed. It was my beer of choice at all social gatherings, events, etc.

After I graduated and started working, I discovered my love for blue moon, wheat ales, and any type of micro brew out there. I guess I became a beer snob, and Bud Light became a beer of "my" past. I didn't even give it a second thought when I would run to the store after work to buy a six pack or when I'd ordered a beer to go with my tacos at Mi Pueb. Bud Light just didn't do it for me anymore.

Last night, in an attempt to have a drink but not leave my house, I cracked open a Bud Light that was left over from my dad's visit in April. My first impression after taking a large gulp a few years later, YUCK! How did I ever drink this stuff? That probably sounds ridiculous, but I didn't even finish the can and half of it went down the sink.

It's weird how beer can taste so different. While it has the same effect on you, wouldn't you rather drink something that tastes delicious?

I think I'll be sticking to Blue Moon and Micro brews from now on, but it was nice to dip my toes into the past just a little bit.

Every Second Counts...

2010-05-24T13:36:00.001-05:00

So much to look forward to!

Kayla visits Seattle- May 27th-May 31st

Lennie visits Seattle- June 10th- June 13th

My sister visits!!! June 18th-26th

Lots of fun stuff coming up!

I Didn't Forget About You....

2010-05-21T14:59:00.000-05:00

I've just been very busy trying to make my life here in Seattle work out. Lots of updates to come soon!

Wallace Falls:

2010-05-09T00:38:00.004-05:00

The weekend before I moved to Seattle from Seoul, I was roaming the local used book store and came across a book called, "Beyond Mt. Si: The Best Hikes within 85 miles of Seattle." The book definitely was a little outdated, and I wiped away the dust on the cover and read through the first few pages. I thought it was odd that there was an early 1990's hiking book at a small local bookstore in Seoul (but then again, I knew that it was a sign- this book was meant for me!) Either way, I bought the book and told myself that I would try to get through as many of these hikes as I could.

I've been living in Seattle since March (so not that long, but long enough that I've had plenty of weekends to crack open the book and get going on the hiking.) I woke up today, saw that the sky was pristine blue, and decided to head to Wallace Falls. I packed my backup, grabbed some water, and started on my way. My GPS led me toward the Cascade Mountains and onto highway 2 to get to Wallace Falls. When I got to Highway 2, it was blocked off by officers and cop cars. I guess there was a huge accident just up the road. Hmm. Since I'm fairly new to town, I still do not know my way around at all. I had to stop and get directions that would get me around the accident and blocked off road and somehow back onto highway 2. It all worked out, and 30 minutes later than I anticipated, I made it to Wallace Falls.

I've always thought hiking would be more fun in a group. Boy, was I so wrong. After having now done it in a group and on my own, it is most certainly a great activity on your own. I felt relaxed, was able to go my own pace, took time to reflect and think at certain points along the trail. All in all it was a perfect day. The weather was great, the view of the Falls was amazing, and I drove home feeling happy, sweaty, and accomplished. My new goal is to go on one hike a week- it'll be a great mind and body tool.

Some of my favorite shots from the day:

Seattle Slump..

2010-05-05T11:21:00.002-05:00

Just like the Seattle Mariners, I find myself in a slump. While the Mariners lose game after game at Safeco Field, I waste weekend by weekend in lovely Kirkland, WA. Maybe it's because we've yet to see Spring here in the state of Washington, but I definitely have to do something other than go to Target and sit in my apartment on the computer all day.

I have a list a mile long of things I want to do and see here this summer. Of course, I have some lovely visitors coming in the upcoming weeks (so maybe I'm secretly waiting for them to come to get my ass in gear!) I want to go to the mountains, to the beach, on numerous hikes to waterfalls, to the San Juan islands, I want to take the Ferry Across the Pugent Sound (however, all of these activities are WEATHER permitting!) It's still snowing in the mountains and raining here on land. Who wants to be outside when it's 48 and raining?! Welcome to Seattle, right?!

Now that my apartment is the way I want it, and I finally have things how they need to be, it's time to find friends, to socialize, to network. I am determined to get myself out there (or at least I am today, we'll see if I feel the same way next week!)

Have you moved to a new city before? What advice do you have to offer to help me meet new people? It's different to move to a new city compared to moving away for college, or summer camp, or graduate school, or even Korea (where there were hundreds of people who also needed to make friends.) Moving to Seattle and living in the suburbs does not equate to "immediate friends and fun!" Who would have thought?!

All in all, things will get better. They have to get better, right?!

Watch out! Spill on Aisle 5.

2010-04-27T15:31:00.004-05:00

Regardless of where we work, live, and what we do with our lives, we all have to eat. In order to eat, we all must go to the supermarket, yes? If you have ever been to the supermarket, you no doubt know how to do the Supermarket Shuffle.

First, depending on when you go, you have to find a parking spot, which can be, in short, a pain in the ass. You circle the parking lot 3 times, and have to wait for slow people to move the heck out of your way. Dear people, there is such a thing as walking toward the LEFT or the RIGHT of the aisle – I do need to maneuver my car through here, and I can’t do that if you and your 15 kids are walking in the middle of the aisle. Thanks.

Once you find your parking spot, 100 miles away from the store, it’s time to truck up to the store in 100 degree heat, which feels much hotter on asphalt. By the time you get to the store front, you have huge pit stains, the soles of your shoes have melted off, and your hair is immediately in an uproar.

You get a cart, but it has a broken wheel. You grab another one – but that one has sticky residue on the handle. You grab a third one, but it has a used Kleenex in it. You go back and grab the first one, but some big breasted bimbo in stilettos grabs it and gives you a smug smile. Bite me.

Once you have your cart, whatever may be wrong with it, it’s time to maneuver the store. Now, I am a planner, so I make my shopping list according to where things are in the store. It is very difficult for me to continue my shopping if YOU MOVE THINGS IN THE STORE. Let’s just say, in a perfect world, you don’t move things – do you know how much easier that would be for the planners of the world? I would love to get in and out quickly. Thanks.

Once you are going up and down the aisles, you find that they are clogged with people. And by clogged, I mean not even a small amount of Liquid Plumber could penetrate it. You have the elderly gentleman trying to get through with his cart; but he can’t do so because jock strap to his right is trying to figure out what his wife wrote on the list she gave him, and bimbo that stole your cart is on his right gabbering on the phone. On top of it all, you have Michelle Dugger and her 19 kids running up and down the aisle screaming “I want THIS!”. People? PEOPLE! First, please let this poor gentleman in the scooter out, and please move your ass so I can grab ONE can of black beans, which is conveniently located in the middle of the aisle. Maybe I’ll just forgo the black beans this week.

Not only are the aisles crowded, everyone looks PISSED. No one likes the Supermarket Shuffle. Let’s all stop being so mad, shall we? Sure, everyone in the aisle over turns me into a raging lunatic, but in the end, let’s at least throw out a smile or two. We’re all shuffling, after all.

Finally, FINALLY, you make it to the checkout counter. Although there are 150 checkout counters, there are only 4 open. On a Saturday Afternoon. Are we serious? You find a line, behind 4 people with large carts, and once you are finally up next, the person in front of you needs something special that only a manager can do (override a code, ring up something, etc). The checker flips the little switch to blink their freaking light, and we wait 10 minutes. You look at all of the other lines and notice that if you had chosen one of them, you would have been out of their 20 minutes ago. Once you are finally up, the checker talks your ear off – not just little conversation, but unable to ring you up and talk at the same time. It’s another 20 minutes before you are out the door.

You get back out to the parking lot, your soles melt a little more, and you finally get to your car – and you notice that there are NO cart corrals around. This causes you to go searching for the nearest one, because you hate it when lazy people just leave them out. You finally try to back out of your spot, only to be waited on by 3 different cars who all insist that they were there first, and want your spot. Once you have pulled out, you hear normal people yelling at each other and throwing the bird.

And that, my friends, is the Supermarket Shuffle. And it’s a huge pain in the ass. It would just be so much easier if everyone just got out of my way, everyone just throw each other a smile, and go about your day.

I’m going to go make a meal with those black beans that I worked so hard for.

LOL funny, right?!

Life in the Pacific Northwest.

2010-04-22T01:12:00.006-05:00

My new life, through the lens of my Nikon.

Canon Beach, Oregon

The Space Needle- Seattle, Washington

View of the Pugent Sound- Seattle, Washington

Snoqualmie Falls, WA

View down the river at Snoqualmie Falls

Canon Beach, Oregon

Seaside Beach, Oregon

Canon Beach, Oregon

Who Says I Can't...

2010-04-21T12:23:00.007-05:00

The past month has flown by. I can't believe that I've been back in the U.S. for over 4 weeks now. Things have really started to come together, and I'm making progress on projects I've started. All in all, I thought it was time for a full update.

On Adjusting....
When you move to a new country, you are most likely to experience some sort of "culture shock." This happens because you are immersed in a culture that you have never experienced. The food you eat, the people you meet, and the language you hear are all different from what you are used to. At times this can be exciting, but it can lead to a huge headache and frustration.

However, they say when you move back to your country of origin you will experience "reserve culture shock." Part of me was expecting to experience some culture shock coming back to the U.S. but in general I think this has passed. I am usually pretty good at adjusting to new surroundings. The past 5 years or so I had moved a lot and lived in a few different places, so maybe things are not as 'surprising' to me as some. Some of the things I've noticed that stand out to me are very simple: larger selections of foods in the grocery store, larger people in general, and less noise on the streets. Even though I'm living and working in a city, it's not nearly as big, dirty, or crowded as Seoul. I almost had forgotten what "fresh" air was like to breathe, and how nice it is to shower without the entire bathroom getting soaked with water. I definitely missed everyday conveniences that many wouldn't even think about until they didn't have them available- ovens, dryers, a car. Believe me, these are definitely things we take for granted, but I'm happy to have them again!

To get myself out there a bit, I've decided to start volunteering. I chose Big Brothers Big Sisters and I am excited for the opportunity to get a little brother who I can mentor for the next year. I go tomorrow to meet with the lady and finish up the process. I look forward to being able to have a positive effect on someones life. I'm starting to miss teaching and I miss the great feelings that sharing knowledge with kids gave me.

On Working too much and too hard...
Work is definitely.... work. Starting a new office is never easy and the first couple of weeks took time, patience, and a positive attitude. My company just relocated to Seattle and on day 1 we had a very empty office building. Furniture, computers, and desks slowly trickled in before the start of business on April 1st. I was excited to start work, as the office here is much nicer than the 15 story building I was working from in Seoul. The atmosphere is calm and soothing as the office sits directly on Lake Bellevue. I have views of the lake and on nice days we open the doors and get a breeze. It's refreshing and makes work seem just a tad bit more enjoyable. I'm still plugging away at my reading strategies project that was started back in February. As it is now the project should be finished and ready to go to the printers by June 18th. It'll be nice to finish it and see the final project in print. We have also conducted two teacher trainings here in the Seattle office which were both successful. It's comforting to be able to teach others what I already know and love about teaching. It's nice to share my experiences that I had in Seoul, while being able to serve as a mentor before they head out to start the process that I started 3 years ago. All in all, it seems like this job is going to work out just fine, but I'm excited to see where the future will take me.

On living in a new city...
Seattle and the Pacific Northwest are absolutely beautiful. This is definitely a haven for those who love nature, natural beauty, and the earth. Seattle has a little bit of everything: a city life, (for those who consider themselves "city boys") live music and local coffee shops, (for those who have held on to their hippie/urban retro years) mountains, oceans, lakes, and rivers, (for those who aren't afraid to get a little wet and dirty) and a business environment too. (for those who live, eat, and shit "work") There are plenty of day trips to take in and out of the city, plenty of hikes, and a chance to really take some amazing photographs.

Other observations are that the roads here REALLY need to be prepared. Their interstates (which are referred to as freeways) are in bad shape in places. They are rough on the tires and as bumpy as my face was pre-puberty. ha! Sometimes I feel like the freeway signs are misleading/backwards, and you can always expect traffic. In general, the weather here has been gray and misty at times, but let me put the rumor to rest- It does not rain every day here. I've actually seen the sun quite a bit the past month.

My apartment is coming together nicely, too. While my dad was here I was able to get almost everything I needed minus a few bigger purchases. A few weeks back I did get a dresser, and this weekend I will finally purchase a sofa. I'm planning to get some art and photography up on the walls. Once everything is a little more together I'll post some pictures of my new digs for everyone to see. I am very happy in my new place, but I do wish there was more storage. I really want to buy a bike (to get in better shape and just to be more active) however, there is no where to put it. Having a bike in the middle of your kitchen or living room would definitely be an eye sore. I doubt Martha Stewart Living or Pottery Barn Magazine would be too impressed with those tactics.

On adventures and things to look forward to...
Two weekends ago my friend Bruce and I took a quick car trip to Snoqulamie Falls. The waterfalls are higher than those at Niagara Falls, but not as wide. The view was absolutely beautiful. We hiked down to the bottom of the Falls and we were able to get some great pictures. It was also a beautiful day to be outside. I'm looking forward to doing some more outside activities with him this summer. I'll definitely continue to post pics as I take them.

Last weekend I drove 3 hours south to a town called Astoria, Oregon. My friend Susan (who I met while in Cambodia, became great friends with while living in Seoul, and traveled through Europe with) lives in Oregon. It's a quick trip down and I was quite excited to see her. Despite some rain on Saturday, we went for a hike and she took me to the coast. Oregon is quite lush and green and is definitely a place I'd like to explore more in the future. Thankfully the sun came out on Sunday, and we enjoyed a nice lunch and some more beach time before I headed back to Seattle on Sunday afternoon.

In May, I have a three day weekend and my adventurous side is really itching for a trip. After living abroad and traveling for three years, it's hard to just stay in one place for a long amount of time. Even though I just arrived and there is plenty to do and see here, I'm itching to see more. I've only ever been to the San Francisco airport (I believe on 3 different occasions) so I'm planning to take a trip to San Fran for Memorial Day. I might rent a car and drive up to the Redwood forest as well. Then again, this is all tentative, and I should wait to see how money plays out in the next few weeks.

In June, my sister is coming to visit for an entire week! I've been planning the things we're going to do. (but I want to keep them a secret) I have a bunch of neat stuff up my sleeves, but I want to surprise her when she gets here! It'll be nice to have her here and show her around. I also plan to show her around the University of Washington campus, and convince her to come here for University. We'll see how successful I am in my efforts.

Overall, I am excited to be where I am and I am looking forward to making some new friends and exploring all that Washington has to offer- from the vineyards, forests, food, music, ocean, etc. I want to see and do it all. I am hoping to start reconnecting with some of my friends that I lost touch with while I lived abroad, and I am looking forward to visitors here in Seattle.

Did I Really Live There!?

2010-04-10T12:05:00.004-05:00

I've been living back in the U.S. now for almost three weeks. When I think about how I was in Korea 3 weeks ago, and my life was much different, it all just seems like a blur to me. The time I spent living in Korea seems like just a faint memory. I thought I would miss the thrill of being abroad, but I honestly haven't. While I enjoyed my time in Korea, I definitely think it was time to come "home." I still feel very lucky for my time there, but I'm happy to be in Seattle. I'm ready to write the next chapter in my life story.

Adjusting back to life here was exciting and easier than I imagined. I was excited to get an apartment where I could cook and do laundry. Also, where I could have a separate bedroom. I was excited to take a real shower, as opposed to my shower in Seoul where my entire bathroom floor would get soaked by water. I was excited to get in a car and go, and not rely solely on public transportation. In Seoul it always took 30-90 minutes to get where I wanted to go. Now, I can just hop in my car and be to Seattle in 15 minutes or to my work in 10 minutes. It's a great feeling.

It was nice having my dad here the first week that I lived here. I don't think I would have been able to adjust as easily. I will admit, since he left, it's been pretty lonely here. I am usually pretty proactive about making friends, but it's been difficult. I'm living in a suburb of Seattle, and it's very family oriented. I didn't know anyone prior to moving here, and I'm worried that I'm not going to make a group of friends. I know what you're thinking, "get out there and make some friends!" But let's be realistic, it's easier said than done. I'm sure as time goes by, and as I get more comfortable with my surroundings, I'll make friends easily.

I guess life is good if my only complaint is that I need more friends.

iPad, whatev.

2010-04-06T16:00:00.003-05:00

It always amuses me when people line up outside a store to get the newest, hightec toy that is being sold. These people pay the premium price to be the first ones to try out the toy. What never seems to surprise me is how these people BITCH about the glitches of their new product CONTINUOUSLY.

Newsflash bitches, you should know that when you buy a first generation product that there is going to be a chance that it may not function 100 percent properly. While I know that you spent $499+ dollars on your toy, it's not going to be perfect.

My rant stems from the newest apple product the iPad. Honestly, I'd love to spend $500 dollars on an iPad, but I already have a Macbook, a new iPod, and an iPhone. Do I really need the iPad? Probably not. I am happy with my products that I have, but I also didn't rush out to be the first ones to own them. I waited until the price lowered, a second generation came about, and the hype was gone.

I signed onto cnn.com to read some news, but of course the only news they have is "iPad has Wi-Fi problems!" People are writing comment after comment about how they should get a refund, etc. etc. For starters, why not try to troubleshoot on your own? Also, why not just deal with the realization that you shouldn't spend $500 dollars on a pilot product, because guess what, that is what this is!

Sigh, what's next? An iCar? I better pitch the idea to apple before someone else does.

Big Dreams:

2010-04-04T03:20:00.003-05:00

I want to work for Microsoft. Should I make it my 2010 goal?

I also need a sofa for my new apartment, but instead I spent 200 dollars at GAP on clothes I didn't need.

I could continue to ramble, but I won't. I need inspiration to write more!

Seattle:

2010-04-01T02:00:00.002-05:00

I'm here! It's been a week. I have an apartment, a new car, and I've started to work.

More to come soon.

My bags are packed, I'm ready to go...

2010-03-23T09:28:00.002-05:00

3 years of my life all packed up. I didn't think I was going to get them to close! Damn!

Pour me a heavy dose of atmosphere.

2010-03-23T04:39:00.002-05:00

Nearly 3 years ago I finished my MA in Public Administration and decided to move to South Korea to teach English for a year of my life. After 5 years of pure academia, I couldn't imagine jumping right into an "office job." I was the youngest graduate in my MA class, and at 22 years of age, I was ready to tackle Asia and find out about "me."

2 years ago, I made the decision to quit my first job in Korea and move to Seoul. Not only did I make this move to to make more money and meet new people, but I just wanted to try something new. My "new" job had longer hours, some of my co-workers were difficult to deal with, and most times I was tired. 2 years ago is when I started to challenge myself in ways I never had. I started giving people the benefit of the doubt, and I tried to relax as much as I could. I learned what it meant to "breathe." I started to enjoy being abroad and thought about never leaving.

Last March I was contemplating what to do "next". I had already been in Korea for nearly two years and I wasn't sure what to do. I decided to re-sign my teaching contract and give it another chance. At this point I had seniority at my job, felt respected among my peers, and loved teaching. I had made some of my best friends, went on many awesome trips, and felt comfortable in my day to day routine.

This fall, after visiting my parents in Chicago, I decided that it was my time to leave Korea. I didn't feel inspired anymore, and I was ready for a new challenge. It wasn't even a month after my vacation that I had the opportunity to interview for a promotion in the company I was working for. The company was going to open up an R&D office in Seattle and were looking for qualified individuals to become supervisors in the office. At first I didn't think I had much of a chance. Yes, I'm 25 and I have an MA, and I did have over 2 years of practical work experience, but I still doubted my chances. I applied on a whim, had a fantastic interview, and this past January I started training in the Seoul office.

I knew when I stopped teaching in December that my life was going to start changing. I needed to start saving as much money as I could to prepare for the move, and I needed to start thinking about what I wanted to do with my remaining time in Korea. Three months ago, I was completely immersed in everything Korean. I was working in an office, as a writer with many other Korean speakers, eating Korean food for dinner almost every night, and for the first time in a very long time, actually enjoying my time living in Seoul. Of course, as my time started to wind down and get closer to my departure date, part of me really didn't want to leave anymore. I have really enjoyed working in an office, I have met a lot of great people, and for the first time had GREAT supportive co-workers. Also, I really liked the area of Seoul I was living in and my apartment was just right for me.

This past week at work I have been thinking a lot about my job and how I spend 45 hours a week sitting at a computer. I think about how, this will all change next week. My day-to-day life will change drastically. Yes, I'll be doing the same work in Seattle, but it's the fact that I'm going to be in Seattle and not Seoul. I won't wake up in my bed here anymore, and I won't take the bus to work, etc. It's going to take a bit to adjust to the new changes, but I am really excited for what is coming next.

Living abroad for the past three years has changed me in so many good ways. The people I have met here have challenged me to be a better me. I learned about a country that I knew nothing about coming in. I learned to speak a lot of Korean, and to eat new foods (I would have never put Tofu or octopus near my mouth three years ago.) Like I said before, I've learned to breathe. To look at the fact value of situations, and to be confident in all that I do. I feel happier, more patient, and more ready for the next step than I ever have.

It's weird to be sitting in my apartment now. Almost everything is gone except for my three suit cases and a back pack. I sit alone in the dark right now and I just wonder "where has the time gone?" I am going to miss a lot about living here, and I'm definitely going to miss many people. I hope that everyone knows what a positive affect they have had on my life, and I look forward to seeing these people back in the states or anywhere else around the world.

What I've drawn from my experience here is that Seattle is the next necessary challenge, the next step for me to grow and become the person I have been working on for the past three years.

South Korea, it's been quite fun, but Seattle is waiting......

Seoul stop stealing my sunshine....

2010-03-14T21:07:00.004-05:00

It never fails. When I'm stuck in the office all day and night the weather is gorgeous- warm, sunny, pollution and yellow dust free. When I have weekends to myself to get out and explore it's just the opposite- cold, windy, and the air is full of pollutants that make it near impossible to breathe.

This past weekend I had made a list of things I wanted to see and do in Seoul before I move to Seattle on the 24th. One of activities on the list included the secret garden at one of the palaces here that I have yet to visit. The weather report for the weekend called for blue skies and gorgeous temperatures. Seemed to me like a perfect time to go to a secret garden because honestly who wants to roam through gardens and palaces in the rain? Sunday morning rolled around and although I wanted to pull the covers over my head, I woke up to a blue sky. I ate lunch, took the subway to the other side of the city, realized I was too early for my 3:30 pm tour and decided to check out some other things while I waited.

3:00 pm rolls around and I am walking back to the palace for my tour and guess what? It starts raining, and the sky turns a dull grey. I put my head phones back on, run to seek shelter, and sip a latte as I wait for the rain to pass. As the rain continued, I realized I missed my tour and took the long, dreaded subway ride back to my apartment.

Holy Snow, Batman!

2010-03-10T09:18:00.002-06:00

I think Amanda said it best herself, "I cursed the weather!"

Yesterday, Jenn donated her winter boots to charity. Last night I packed away my winter coat at the bottom of my very large suit case. Amanda made a spring tree with her little ones at school. Some will probably say it's coincidence, but I think we all jinxed the arrival of spring. I guess spring was on all of our minds, especially since about two weeks ago we got a little taste of spring and it was fabulous.

Instead of warm weather, sunshine, and cherry blossoms, I woke up to freezing temperatures, snow, and traffic. Happy March 10th!

안녕, 한국...그리울거야

2010-03-08T08:25:00.003-06:00

I think the one thing that I will regret once I'm settled in Seattle is that I did not learn to speak Korean, or at least not well.

I tried self studying. I tried to take a class. I tried to learn through my Korean friends and acquaintances. I bought a book, a phrase book, a CD. Unfortunately, however, I just never found the time to sit down and practice.

Three years later, I'm leaving Korea with just my survival phrases, words, and numbers that I've learned and used repeatedly. Maybe one day I'll revisit Korea and I'll actually have the time to study and speak the language.

Seoul, I'm going to miss you.

2010-03-07T04:41:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, while having lunch with Jenn we both came to the realization that as much as we are exited to move on and move to the next place, we are both going to miss Seoul and the life that we've lived here. It's been a whirlwind three years and I'm not sure that I'll ever be able to relive the life I have had here.

It's starting to feel real. I am REALLY moving. In a little over 2 weeks I will buying furniture, a car, moving into a new apartment and starting a job in a city that I've never even been to before.

I thought moving to Seoul was going to be the "big" life change that I did in my life. Who would have known that moving to Seoul was going to lead into my new job, and my next big move to SEATTLE.

Things are starting to come together. I'm starting to sell lots of my big things, and I've taken out the suit cases and bought a new bag to help with the packing process.

I'm working hard at work to get all my projects done and get things ready for the spring workshop, and I am starting to slowly process the "changes" in my mind.

Soon, I'll start writing and reflecting more about the past three years in Asia, but for now, Men's Health magazine is calling my name.

Only in Korea...

2010-03-02T06:29:00.003-06:00

The other night I was up late and decided to call the US Korean Airlines reservation desk to add my frequent flier number to my reservation. I usually can do this online easily, but for some reason Koreanair.com couldn't locate my reservation.

I waited on hold for quite sometime when finally a lady helped me! I gave her my reservation number and was surprised when was like, "Oh, yes, 1 ticket to Seattle for Mr. Ramon. I kindly said, "huh?" She then repeated it back to me. At first I thought I heard wrong, but she definitely said my first name as my last name and vice versus. The travel agent who booked my ticket wrote my name backward. I have to wonder how a travel agent who was in possession of a scan of my passport could have done such a thing! Thank god I was able to catch this on my own. I can't imagine the craziness that would have happened at Incheon Airport as I went to check-in for my flight. The last thing I want is to be denied boarding on my flight OUT of KOREA! Either way, things should have been fixed today.

In other news, I have been going crazy for chocolate milk the past few days. I don't know what my deal is, but the thought of cold chocolate milk is just super satisfying to me. The weird thing is though that I don't even like milk! I guess if you stir in my chocolate deliciousness it makes it a little better.

It's only Tuesday night, but I'm already looking forward to the weekend. As of now I don't have any plans, but the thought of sleeping in and doing nothing always sounds GREAT. Maybe this weekend I'll have time and energy to read the stack of magazines that I picked up at the book store last night. ha!

One of these days I'm going to get my mo jo back and blog about something totally interesting and witty, however, until then it's just me and my chocolate milk.

PS. I have to pay Korean taxes this year, what kind of BS is that!?

Craigslist, you're my hero.

2010-03-01T09:00:00.003-06:00

I am starting to get lucky with selling my stuff on Craigslist. I've already sold my TV and DVD player and I'm selling a bunch of odds and ends tomorrow. I think maybe I priced my stuff too low. Tomorrow this girl is getting 2 awesome square plates, 3 cute bowls, and 2 wine glasses for $12. Hmm, yes, I priced things too low. As long as I can sell my couch I will be a happy man.

I can't believe that I am moving to Seattle in 3 weeks. It's a fresh start, a new beginning, and most importantly a new chapter in my life. I am nervous, anxious, and excited all at once. Before I know it my apartment is going to be empty, and my life will be packed into the same 3 suit cases that moved me here 3 years ago. When I think back on it, the time has gone so incredibly fast. wow.

In other news, I've been buying too many magazines lately and all of a sudden I am obsessed with chocolate milk. Enough said.

Watch out Annie Oakley!

2010-02-28T06:38:00.004-06:00

Today, my friend John convinced me to go to a shooting range with him. It was the first time I shot a gun, and actually, the first time I even held a gun. I scored a whole 45 points out of 100 while aiming for the target. Watch out Annie Oakley, I'm a "sure shot." Don't worry mom, you definitely won't be seeing me signing up for a membership with the NRA anytime soon!

Travel Lusting...

2010-02-27T06:55:00.004-06:00

If I could go anywhere in the world right this second.... Where would I go?!

Peru

Morocco

New Zealand

Where would you go?!

Add "homeless" to the bucket list...

2010-02-25T06:30:00.004-06:00

Being stranded in a foreign country is one of those things that you joke about while planning your trip, but never really expect to happen while you're traveling in a foreign country. However, a few weeks back during my trip to Japan, I got to experience being "homeless" first hand. Let's just add that to the bucket list. ha.

It all started the Friday before Lunar New Year, when my boss gave everyone in the R&D office a nice little "new years" bonus. I wasn't expecting the monetary gift and therefore decided to put it to use the best way I could. Two hours later and 400 dollars poorer, I was booked on a flight to Japan for the next morning. I usually am a planner and plan out the major things I want to do during my stay in a country. I always use trip advisor to find the best hotel that I can for my money, and I always print a map or some type of directions to get around.

This time I convinced my friend Jenn to accompanying me, we packed our backpacks, and met to hop on the airport bus at 5:30 am. It was snowing when we boarded the bus here in Seoul, but we were pumped to get to Japan. Once we got to the airport, had some breakfast, and were all checked in, we both looked at each other and said, "what the heck are we going to do when we land!?" We decided since we were close to Mt. Fuji that we were going to take the train there first and try to see this huge mountain that Japan is known for.

We landed, hopped on a bus, took a train, transferred to another train, and sometime about 3 hours later we were at the base of Mt. Fuji. We got off the bus, cameras in tow, and looked around. Everything was awesome, except something was missing. We couldn't find Mt. Fuji! You would think that a mountain as large as Fuji would be easy to find, but unfortunately due to heavy cloud cover we couldn't see it. Instead, we decided to take another bus that brought us to the natural water falls from Mt. Fuji. We saw them, snapped some photos, and decided what to do next. Jenn pulled out the map that we got at the airport, and we kinda decided to travel north to Nagano, Japan in lieu of the Vancouver Olympics starting the same day we arrived in Japan. We thought maybe we'd get to do some winter sports, such as sledding or skiing, too.

5 trains, 6 hours, a nights sleep at a hotel, and a quick breakfast later we were finally in Nagano. Along the way we stopped in a town called Matsumoto where we saw the Northern Japanese Alps (which we were beautiful) and the oldest Japanese castle in it's original form (which was also beautiful.) There was a mote around the castle that aided in taking some awesome reflection shots of the castle in the water. We also crashed in a pretty nice hotel that provided a hot shower and a cozy bed after a long day of trains and sightseeing.

In Nagano we ate a delicious lunch of fried dumplings and fried rice.We found our way to the Olympic venues from the 1998 winter Olympics, and we snapped some fun photos along the way. When we realized that we weren't going to be able to do any winter sports like anticipated, we sorted out a plan b. Plan B included finding this crepes place that we saw on the map, and eating one of two things: terriyaki or tempura (the only two Japanese food words that either of us really knew.) The night before we had a terrible eating experience that involved Yaki Saba noodles. Let me tell you, the "yaki" was definitely "yucky!" What we thought was going to taste like the Japanese version of Lo Mien, ended up being what you'd anticipate fish food flakes to taste like. We quickly swallowed as much yaki saba as we could and found the nearest 7-11 to cleanse our pallets before our bus ride. We did agree though that we wouldn't eat at a restaurant unless it had a picture menu and that anything with the word "yaki" in front of it was probably not meant for us.

It quickly became dark and we didn't have a plan for the next day. Since we couldn't go skiing we decided we'd try our luck at Mt. Fuji one more time. Our plan was to take the train back south as far as we could that night, so that we could wake up early and get to Mt. Fuji just after sunrise (when we thought the sky would be clear and blue and Fuji would be visible.) We purchased our tickets to Fujinamaya, but were not entirely sure we were going to get a train to take us all the way back. After a while we decided that if worse came to worse, wherever the train stopped we'd get out and find a hotel to crash at for the night. We shared stories about missed flights, being stranded, left in airports, etc. Neither of us anticipated that the same night we'd be nearly homeless in the dead of winter in Japan.

Around 12:20 am our train came to a screeching halt and we figured that meant that we had no choice but to get out. We left the station and were surprised by the pitch black streets that met our eye. Where were we again? This definitely couldn't be Japan, right? Oh, quite the opposite, we were definitely still in Japan, just unfortunately literally in the middle of nowhere. We walked over to the train conductor and tried to use our hand gestures to explain that were tired and wanted to find a hotel. He quickly crossed his arms and said, "no!" I looked at Jenn and said, "There's the f'ing hotels for us to go to!" Let me reiterate that it was February, we were close to mountains, and it was COLD. We decided to brave the dark streets in search of a hotel or a taxi. We were able to flag down a taxi, but he told us it would cost us 150 dollars to get where we wanted to go. When we showed him our visa card, he shook his head no and drew the yen sign on paper for us. I better write to Visa and tell them that their commercials are lies, "for everything else there's visa." Too bad in emergency situations my visa did me no damn good!

Again, not speaking a lick of Japanese we tried to ask this taxi driver about a hotel. We wrote 80 dollars on a piece of paper and handed it to us. We were sure that this meant that it would cost 80 dollars to get to the hotel or if the hotel was 80 dollars a night. Let me remind you that we were leaving to head back to Seoul the next morning and between the two of us we didn't even have 80 dollars. Feeling shit out of luck, we walked back to the small train station. In the end we decided to crash at the train station for the night, because we had a plan to take the 5:30 am train back to Mt. Fuji. You would think that we'd easily be able to handle 5 hours in the cold before our train. Unfortunately the train station was not heated, and half of it was exposed to the outside. There was a tiny bench that we tried to sleep on, and hot coffee in a can that we bought once from a machine to keep our hands warm. 5 long hours later, we were on a warm train the hell out of Minabu, thank god!

Thankfully Jenn had packed some rain ponchos in her backpack that served well as insulation and also assisted in tying my extra sweaters around my legs. Even though we spent the whole night in a freezing train station, we were still pumped to see Mt. Fuji. A few hours later and 2 trains later, we were back where we started. One thing didn't change though, we still couldn't see Mt. Fuji. We gave up on our chance to see the mountain and headed to the airport early to refuel, wash, and stay warm before our quick flight back to Seoul.

Overall, it was a fun and fast paced trip even though we were homeless, cold, and a little bit disappointed. One of these days I'm going to see Mt. Fuji since I've ye

t to see it on 3 separate occasions to Japan!

Lunar New Year!

2010-02-12T09:36:00.001-06:00

So today I decided to be a little random and book a trip for the three day lunar new year.

Tomorrow I'm off to Shizouka, Japan. I'll hop on a bullet train to Mt. Fuji, speed on over to Nagano (in lieu of the winter Olympics), and then the rest is TBD!

I'll be back on Monday night!

Getting Crafty:

2010-02-08T05:28:00.002-06:00

Recently I realized how wasteful I can be sometimes. Whether it's putting way more than necessary amounts of toothpaste on my toothbrush, leaving the water running while I'm brushing my teeth, leaving the lights on when I leave, using too much soap when I'm washing my body... All of these things are wasteful and sometimes subconscious things we do without thinking about it.

It makes me think back to the times where my dad would scream because all the lights in the house were on, or when my mom would tell me that I didn't need to use 1/2 the bottle of ketchup for my burger, or use a squirt of shampoo the size of 10 quarters instead of one to wash my super short hair.

Lately, however, I have become very thrifty. I use every drop of toothpaste I can squeeze out of the tube and I never use more than a penny size blob of shampoo to wash my hair. I don't know whether it's because I'm cheap, poor, or just more aware of the world around me. I am tired of being wasteful, tired of throwing away food because I never got around to cooking it, and sick of not doing my part to be greener.

This week, for example, instead of going to the store and buying groceries, I'm clearing out my refrigerator before buying anything new.

I had 6 eggs, 4 pieces of bread, 3 oranges, 2 potatoes, a green pepper, two onions, a little pasta sauce, fresh asparagus, and one small package of ground lean pork. When I thought about it, this was enough food to last half the week!

Last night I cut up the green pepper, scrambled some eggs, and made toast for dinner. I cooked the asparagus, ground pork, and potatoes and brought them for lunch today. Tomorrow I'll have the rest of the eggs for breakfast, and pasta and an orange for lunch. Either way, now I don't have to throw these things away because I never got to them. I have really been enjoying budgeting so much money every week for food, eating out less, and cooking at home more.

It's the little things lately that I'm paying more attention too.

It's All Been Done:

2010-02-05T08:28:00.006-06:00

March 27th is going to be here before I know it, and I'll be in Seattle wishing that I had done everything left on my "to do" list in Seoul.

I finally got around to jotting down some of the things I want to see/do before I leave. This is an ongoing list and I will probably add to it as I give more thought to actually "leaving." If you want to join me on my journey to check these off the list, do let me know!

1. Changdeokgung Palace has a secret garden. I've probably at some point walked past this garden and didn't even notice it. Either way, sometime in March, when the flowers start to bloom, I will go here for a morning/afternoon with my Nikon.

2. Spend an afternoon reading and drinking coffee in my favorite area of Seoul, Samcheongdong. I love this little cafe called "Book Cafe." The place has floor to ceiling book shelves stuffed with all types of books. It truly is a nerd haven. They also have great lattes.

3. I'm almost embarrassed to admit this, but as much as I love art, I've yet to visit the Samsung Leeum Museum of Art. Everyone says if you can only make it to one gallery while you're in Seoul, then this is the one to check out. I have been to many galleries, but I've yet to check this one out.

4. Special exhibits: There are 2 in particular that I am looking forward to seeing. One being at the National Museum of Korea, which is hosting an exhibition on ancient Peruvian Civilization. In addition, there is a Monet/Picasso exhibit that I still want to see.

5. Visit Ivania in Daejeon and see what life is really like outside of "Seoul" for a foreigner, or just GET out of Seoul for the weekend. I can't remember the last time I took a weekend trip out of Seoul, it had to have been over the summer. Hmm.

6. Experience a natural "hot spring" bath on the side of a mountain up north.

This weekend, however, I've already made a promise with my body that I'm staying in, reading The Economist, and catching up on sleep.

Old Man Friday's:

2010-02-05T07:21:00.003-06:00

My perfect Friday night:

1. 3 cold Hoegaardens in the fridge

2. My comfy sweat pants

3. My favorite songs from itunes on repeat

4. Wednesday nights episode of Ugly Betty

5. The Economist and Men's Health magazine

Who needs sex, clubs, and expensive food? Not I......

Hello Seattle.

2010-02-04T06:15:00.003-06:00

Dear fellow reader who already lives in Seattle who is willing to help me find my new "home",

I'm moving to Seattle, Washington on March 27th and I never imagined finding a place to live would be as difficult as it has been. Then again, I think at some point I forgot that I live 6,000 miles from Seattle and I have to base everything from emails and pictures. I've spent countless hours on craigslist and other apartment websites looking for a place that suits my needs.

I've been looking for a large studio or a one bedroom/one bathroom. The only real requests I have is that it has a washer/dryer in unit and a parking spot. Of course all the other stuff like nice appliances, hardwood floors, and a fireplace sound good, but they are not necessary.

I have been centering my search around the suburb of Bellevue (where my office is,) but I wouldn't mind living in the city around the Capital Hill district. Cap Hill in Seattle is like DC's DuPont Circle. Yess. Rent ranging from 700-900 a month is preferred.

If anyone reading this has any ideas, knows someone in Seattle, knows a place for me to live, etc. Please contact me!

Good Bye 2009 "Me".....Hello 2010 "Me".....

2010-01-30T08:54:00.004-06:00

As I flew back to Seoul from my European adventure this past Christmas, I took the time to jot down a few short term goals in my notebook. I realized that once I returned to Seoul, I had roughly 10 weeks left before my big move to Seattle. I wanted to think about what I had left to do, see, and accomplish before the big move.

I. My Body: In an attempt to be more active, lean, and happy with my "outer" self, I have decided to cook a lot more. I'm saying "no" to fried foods, red meat, soda, and take out, while saying hello to "fish, chicken, and organic vegetables." Friday's are now, "walk to work days" and I've vowed to walk home twice a week in place of taking a cab or the bus. This week I started my long Sunday morning walk through Olympic Park. Jenn and I take turns twice a week cooking healthy dinners together. I hope that by the end of March I can be 15 lbs. lighter.

II. Money and Saving for the Future: With my move to Seattle happening in about 7 weeks, I really needed to sit down and think about what moving from Seoul to Seattle was going to entail. The past 2.5 years I have lived rent free in my studio apartment in Seoul, and relied on public transportation to get me from point A to B. Seattle is going to be a new world for me filled with new financial responsibilities that I am not use to: rent, car insurance, car payments, cell phone bills, etc. In order to bulk my savings account up just a bit more, I have set a goal of putting $1500 dollars into savings from January 10th-March 10th. So far I have contributed $700, so I am almost half way there!

III. Personal Goals that are Good for the Soul: I want to make a list of the 5 things that I still have to see/do in Korea before I go. After I make this list I want to check each off one by one. I want to make a new friendship that will last a lifetime, and reconnect with one friend from my past. I want to pack my lunch ten days out of the month, and eat out only once a week for dinner. My plan is to read 3 new books a month, read the economist weekly, and blog at least twice a week. Improve my relationship with others, build my self confidence, and practice optimism are also top on my list.

Loose Lips, Sink Ships...

2010-01-26T22:43:00.006-06:00

For some reason my web browser at work always directs me to the UK addition of the MSN homepage instead of US one. I usually quickly browse through it, and then hop over to the US page. Today a picture and article titled, "Loose Lips, Sink Ships" got my attention, however, when I clicked on it the page could not be displayed. Don't you hate that? UK MSN get it together, seriously!

Anyways, I decided to steal the idea and make my own 5 Things to Not Say/Share in the office.

1. "That's not my job!"

Sometimes I find myself wanting to shout this out, but then I have to remember that chances are "it is my job!" and I just didn't read all the small print in my contract.

2. "Don't repeat this, but..."

Chances are the person you're telling this to is going to have the same conversation on the way to work, at lunch, or after hours with someone else in the office. I've learned the hard way! Keep your business to yourself!

3. "Did you see this picture of me TRASHED on facebook?"

I don't really have TRASHED pictures of myself on facebook, but I do constantly read articles on blogs where employers are using social media tools when they look for candidates for jobs. Having a picture of yourself wasted and exposed as your default picture, is probably NOT going to get you the dream job you've been hunting for!

4. "I just didn't have enough time to finish it."

Again, if you weren't facebooking, youtubing, and googling, you probably would have had plenty of time to get to it. I find myself sucked into browsing the web at work. Rule of thumb, for every 60 minutes of work, give yourself a 5 minute breather. I have definitely increased productivity since I took my own advice!

5. "Yeah, not a problem at all!"

We're all quick to tell a team mate of colleague, "no problem" but chances are you did not really listen to what they said, or you really don't have the extra time to finish it. If you're not going to complete the project, say, NO! Don't get over your head, which in turn, burns you out early in your career!

Don't be the BIG mouth at work!

Makes Me Wonder...

2010-01-25T20:04:00.004-06:00

Sometimes I really think about my life, where I have been, and where I am going. If you would have asked me five years ago where I saw myself at the age of 25, I probably would have told you living in Washington D.C., working for a Non-profit, and being completely "in" with anything and everything "political". Now, at 25, I can tell you that I live in Seoul, South Korea, I have been an English teacher for the past 2.5 years, I have traveled to places most people only read about, and I am in the midst of starting a new career as a "writer" for ESL (English as a second language) books, programs, and supplemental materials.

Some days I still wonder why I did not go to law school, or why I earned a Master of Arts degree in Political Science, and even why I have lived in Korea for the past 3 years. The reasons I came to Korea and the reasons why I have stayed are completely different. I originally came because I feared that I would never get a job, and I was hungry to make a real "pay-check" that didn't involve asking "Paper or Plastic?" or "Would you like to biggie-size that?" However, I have stayed for the experience, the chance to travel, and the opportunity to explore this idea of "Who Am I?"

I see myself as a changed person in so many ways, and some days I wonder whether these changes have been positive or negative. I am happy to say that I am a more active person, although I am still lazy when it comes to exercise. However, I am thirty-five lbs. lighter than I was when I moved to Korea in the summer of 2007. Overall, I think I am a stronger and more confident "me". Although I still doubt myself and my capabilities at times, I take pride in everything that I do and set out to do. I still set goals, both long and short term, and achieve them. I still struggle with saving money, even though I have made progress toward building up a savings account and paying off my student loans. If anything, my time in Korea has taught me that I am not willing to settle for just "anything". I want to be enriched in culture, to experience new things, to be challenged, to be immersed with genuine and caring people. I think while I have been here I realized that I am an adult, and I have to make decisions that are best for me. I have to care less about what others think and at the end of the day worry about me.

I feel privileged and lucky for the experiences that I have had while living in Korea. Even though some days I wanted to rip my hair out, jump back on the first plane to the U.S., and scream in the face of ignorant people, I would not change this experience at all. Aside from all the inner changes I have made as a person, I have lived life and done some pretty extraordinary things. In the past three years, I have: bungee jumped from a bridge 100 meters above a river, ice-fished with my bare hands, learned to rock-climb and propel backwards down a mountain, climbed to the peak of several mountains and to the top of an inactive Volcano, lived life as a Buddhist for a weekend, and stepped foot into North Korea. I have cliff-jumped, snorkeled, and rode elephants in Thailand. Climbed through small tunnels used during the Vietnam War, rode a boat on the Mekong Delta, and experienced my first jelly fish sting on the beaches of Vietnam. I have para sailed, explored the jungle, and walked on a canopy on top of the trees in Malaysia. I pretended to be Lara Croft Tomb Raider as I braved the country of Cambodia alone. I climbed to the top of shrines, tombs, and ruins as I pondered life in Cambodia. I saw amazing futuristic cities like Shanghai, China and Hong Kong. I climbed to the top of the Tokyo Tower, ate sushi like Japanese, and drank the best tea of my life in Tokyo, Japan. I've run around Taipei, Taiwan and rode the fastest elevator to the top of the World's Largest Building. I went to Beijing, where I hiked the Great Wall of China on my 24th birthday. My latest trip included eating pumpkin soup and checking out the best art exhibits in Amsterdam, sipping wine and ringing in 2010 in France, and enjoying delicious German food and European architecture in Cologne, Germany.

In 8 weeks I am going to jump, full force, back into living in the U.S. I am sure that it is going to take some time to adjust; however, I hope that I can make my new life in Seattle as comfortable as the one I have lived here. I am excited to be closer to my family and friends, and I am looking forward to having visitors all the time.

Europe 09-10

2010-01-24T09:36:00.004-06:00

Some of my favorite shots from my trip to Europe:

Cologne, Germany

Paris, France

Notre Dame

Sacre Coeur and Montmarte in the background

Arc De Triomph

Amsterdam, Netherlands

One of the Canals in Amsterdam

2009:

2010-01-10T09:03:00.009-06:00

2009 was a great travel year for me.

I was lucky enough to visit my family in Chicago twice, and also head to Malaysia, Japan, Hong Kong, Cambodia, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Taiwan, and travel all around South Korea.

I feel fortunate for the experience that I've had the past few years, but I feel at a lose for words these days. I don't know whether I am just preoccupied or if I've lost my way with words, however, blogging used to be so easy for me. Hopefully one day soon I'll find my way back to it.

I just started training for my new job, and in March I will be heading to Seattle to start as the Research and Development Supervisor for an education publication office.

I'm excited that this chapter of my life is coming to an end, and I am looking forward too and anxious for my new adventure in Seattle.

I'll leave you with a few pictures of my travels from this past year:

My sis and I- Chicago, Illinois- September 2009

Chicago, IL - September 2009

Me overlooking the city of Chicago- September 2009

Beautiful flowers in Korea- Summer 2009

Amsterdam, Netherlands- Winter 2009

Champagne breakfast on the train from Paris, December 2009

Hong Kong, Spring 2009

Taipei, Taiwan- Spring 2009

Climbing the Tokyo Tower- Spring 2009

Paris, France- December 2009

Borneo, Malaysia- January 2009

New Years Eve- January 1st 2009

Cologne, Germany- December 2009

Bulkhansan Mountain, Seoul South Korea - Fall 2009

Busan, South Korea - August 2009

Siem Reap, Cambodia- July 2009

Siem Reap, Cambodia - August 2009

Siem Reap, Cambodia- August 2009

Phnom Penh, Cambodia- July 2009

Bulgaska Temple, Gweongju, South Korea- June 2009

Taiwan- Spring 2009

Hong Kong Spring 2009

Hong Kong- Spring 2009

Christmas in Europe:

2009-12-08T22:01:00.004-06:00

In just about 2 weeks or so, I will be boarding a plane bound from Seoul, South Korea to Amsterdam, Netherlands with my friend Susan! It's interesting how Christmas has panned out the past few years.

In 2007, I spent Christmas in Jeju Island, South Korea.

In 2008, I spent the morning of Christmas in Seoul, South Korea and then flew 14 hours, and spent Christmas again in Chicago, IL.

In 2009, I will again spend my morning in Seoul and then spend Christmas night in Amsterdam!

Our Europe trip will consist of 4 countries, as many cities as possible, all in a quick 9 days.

We start in Amsterdam, spend a few days in Paris, hop on over to Cologne, Germany, stop through Brussels and make our way back to Amsterdam!

Christmas in Amsterdam, New Years Eve in Paris, New Years Day in Cologne! I'm stoked.

Next year, I'm definitely spending Christmas with my family in Chicago though. Hold me to it now!

Smitten:

2009-11-30T20:17:00.004-06:00

I feel happier than I have in a long time.

Maybe it's rather childish, but I want to jump through puddles, and sing in the rain, and dance in the streets.

Giving Thanks:

2009-11-29T05:12:00.002-06:00

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. This being my third Thanksgiving here in Korea, I was bound to make it the best, and I believe that I have succeeded. I even got to eat Turkey on 2 separate occasions (which is more than the last two years combined).

Thanksgiving is more than just turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing. It's a time that we actually slow down our hectic lives and give thanks to the ones we love. We share good food, good times, and good laughs. Even if you can't spend the actual day with your family, your own traditions still live on, and at the end of the day they are still on your mind and in your hearts.

This year I have a lot to be thankful for:

1. As always, I am thankful to have a loving and supportive family who have never stood in my way when it came to finding myself. They have pushed me to be the best person I could be, and I am forever grateful.

2. I am extremely thankful for the independence I have gained living abroad for the past two years. It has helped me to see that there is so much more to life than I ever thought was imaginable. It has helped me to grow and find myself.

3. I am thankful for the people who I have met here in Korea that have made this experience special in many ways and for always watching out for me.

4. I am thankful that I have had the chance to see some amazing places, learn about cultures I never knew about before, and eat traditional foods from all around the world that would have scared me two years ago.

5. I am thankful and excited for the future and the endless opportunities that I now know exist.

Non-Stop November:

2009-11-15T01:35:00.004-06:00

Shinsaegae Department Store decked out for Christmas:

Pond inside Seoul Forest:

Suspension Bridge in Seoul Forest:

Follow the yellow brick road:

The Big Man in Seoul Forest:

King Sejong standing his ground in front of the Palace Entrance:

Ideal Self Project & The Bucket List

2009-11-13T02:24:00.004-06:00

First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do. - Epictetus

Sometimes I read strangers blogs, and today I came across one entitled: "Ideal Self Project", and since I've been doing a lot of thinking about my own life these days, I decided to steal her idea. I really hope that The Martini Backpacker will not mind.

Starting today I am going to work hard to become the ideal self that I have envisioned for a long time, but never quite reached.

My Ideal Self:

1. Having a full time job in the United States
2. Not living pay check to pay check
3. Debt Free
4. Being healthy - eating right, exercising, cooking more
5. Enjoying people and things around me
6. Staying positive- loving me for me
7. Reflecting on life and writing about it more
8. Volunteering and helping others on a regular basis

My Bucket List:

1. Finish my teaching contract on February 28th and MOVE on with my life
2. Buy something that will turn into an investment- condo, house, etc.
3. Visit Australia, Turkey, Egypt, Greece, Antarctica, Hawaii, and Alaska
4. Form a good relationship with my brother and teach him the values of life

I'll add more as it comes to me, and keep you updated on my progress. What's on your bucket list?

Addict:

2009-11-09T06:44:00.003-06:00

My name is Ray, and I am an itunes addict. It took the fact that I was dirt poor this month, but used my credit card to charge itune purchases over buying food for the refrigerator for me to see that I had a problem.

I can't stream my favorite TV shows on major network websites because of copyright infringements, and YouTube rarely has the full episodes available. American television is my only vice, and I miss it dearly.

There is nothing I look forward to more than downloading the latest episode of Brother's and Sister's, Glee, or Ugly Betty.

I have come to the conclusion that I either need to win the lottery, or simply find a new hobby.

Kinochio Sudaimas:

2009-11-08T01:37:00.005-06:00

Close your eyes and think about a time that you can remember an extreme rush of adrenaline through the core of your body. Some of you may have imagined sex, bungee jumping, cliff diving, sky diving, etc. I, however, envision my newest obsession/hobby: Taiko Drum Master.

Taiko Drum Master is a drumming game based on the popular Japanese arcade game. You can now buy this game for your Nintendo Wii and Sony Playstation, but I doubt that it will compare to the actual arcade game.

The game has two main characters- WadaDon, a red-faced and blue body taiko, and WadaKatsu, a blue-faced and red body taiko. I am always WadaKatsu and Jen is always WadaDon.

The point of the game is to drum to the beat of the song by following symbols that move horizontally along a timeline. These symbols show you what to hit and when. Sometimes you have a single strike and sometimes a double strike, but you have to know which and when.

As you hit each symbol successfully you build up your life meter. If the meter is past a certain point by the end of the song, then you have passed the song. Usually the taiko's throw some confetti and give you a ribbon.

There are many levels to this game, and we've figured out that you need to get at least 75 percent accuracy to pass the song. This gets more difficult with the harder levels, but so far we've mastered the beginner and intermediate levels.

Last night I got a complete rush through my whole body as I got 100 percent accuracy on a song. Jen and I both were kicking butt, so much that a few koreans and Japanese gathered around us to watch. We thought we were the shit, until a Japanese guy went after us and was able to do the hardest level like it was nothing at all.

All in all it was a fun way to spend an hour, but today I can barely make a fist.

November, Already?

2009-11-05T18:56:00.003-06:00

Just a little fall update for all my dedicated readers:

On Fall in Seoul:

It's finally fall in Seoul, it is only about 6 weeks late, but it is finally here. Sometimes I'm convinced that we only have 2 seasons here: summer and winter. It seems that it stays warm for a very long time and then it just immediately gets cold and vice versus. The trees are finally turning colors and the leaves are slowly making their way to the side walk. Unlike in the states, the leaves are only on the streets for a small amount of time. Almost daily I see lines of women sweeping the leaves on the sidewalks into piles and disposing of them immediately. One great thing about fall though is that Seoul turns into this beautiful array of colors. Every tree turns bright orange or bright red. It makes for many amazing photo opportunities, and a nice view from my office at work or from the luxury of my own apartment. Those in warm climates now, be jealous!

Just this past weekend, my friend Jennifer and I were eating Italian food for dinner. We were sitting in this restaurant on the second floor and the windows were opened. I took a deep breath and breathed in this smell of a camp fire. Immediately I had flashbacks from childhood and life in America and it left a warm feeling in both of our hearts. It's nice to see and smell familiar things, especially when you live 7,000+ miles away from home. With the changing of the weather brings about lots of fun activities. Fall is definitely my favorite time of the year. I am always excited to take out scarves, sweaters, and jackets and put away the shorts and t-shirts. Maybe I'm a little more excited this year since I have lived in an apartment where I couldn't control the air conditioning and it was shut off before I would return home from work, but I'm not complaining as I do live in a nice apartment that is RENT free.

Oot and Aboot:

I have been taking advantage of my weekends lately. They have been filled with delicious food, hiking, movies, and friends. Last weekend I finally got around to seeing the Time Traveler's Wife- as it finally came to Seoul. Recently I've also been going to a lot of arcades. OK, you might have read that and said, "WHAT A DORK!" --- yes, I already know I am a huge dork, it's fine :)

In Korea, arcades and game rooms are really popular. My friend Jen and I realized that arcades are a great way to relieve the stress from the work week. We found this Japanese drumming game called "taiko drumming master" last weekend. After about 10 dollars in quarters and 2 hours of our Saturday night, we put the drumming sticks down to prevent further blisters from forming on our fingers. But wow, I felt awesome afterwards :) Last Friday was also Halloween. Most Koreans do not celebrate Halloween, but since I work at a school that teaches and promotes North American education, we did celebrate. All the teachers came up with their own activity to have in their classroom, and classes rotated to each activity in 15 minute intervals. Aside from the classroom activities, our directors put together a Haunted Cave- it was actually a really neat idea. Before entering the cave, the students went into a room where they watched a short video. Batman appears on the screen to tell the children about the mission they are about to embark on. The students find out that the evil villain has taken Robin, and Batman needs their help to find him. Batman thinks that Robin is lost in the haunted cave, and the students are responsible to find clues to help Batman. I think the concept was terrific, and aside from it being a bit spooky, the kids LOVED it. I dressed up as the Cat in the Hat, and it was a hit! If you want to see pictures check out facebook-- if you're not facebook- I'll send you some! Just ask!

Two weeks ago, I did a little hiking to see the beginning of the fall foliage. I used to do a lot of hiking when I first came to Korea, but I have definitely been lazy this year. We ventured about an hour north of Seoul to tackle Mt. Bukhansan (the tallest mountain in Seoul, but not nearly the tallest mountain in all of Korea) -- only standing at 985 meters it was a strenuous hike with a nice pay off at the end. The view of Seoul and the beauty of the trees made the 3 hour hike up well worth it. The

On the Future:

With my teaching contract coming down the final few months, and my contract ending on February 28th. I had to start asking myself- what I am going to do? When I first came back to Korea I started to apply for jobs in the US. I thought that I had a good idea that I wanted to work at a University. My master's degree coupled with the experience I have abroad would make me a good candidate for a job in Study Abroad/ International Student office. I applied for about ten jobs, before I finally heard back from one. The one generic email informed me that I was part of the candidate pool of 500. And that they would select roughly 25 percent for phone interview, and then select 3-4 to interview on campus. "Wow, wonderful chances I thought to myself".

Recently I decided to explore some other options. As some of you already know, I recently applied for a job in Seattle, Washington. My company here in Seoul, is opening up a full research and development office in Seattle starting in March. They are looking to hire roughly 3-4 experienced teachers to move from Seoul to Seattle to set up shop in WA and to serve as R&D supervisors. About 3 weeks ago I was informed of the opportunity and told that I would be a suitable candidate. After thinking about the job for a bit, I decided to apply. I figured the fact that I have little "managerial" experience would hinder my chances. Luckily, my resume and essay proved that I had the skills and potential. After corresponding back and forth, I was assigned a project to work on. After completing the project successfully, I was invited to interview with the Chief Curriculum Advisor of our company. Last night I had the interview and it went very well. I should known in 2-3 weeks whether or not they are going to offer the position to me. If I don't get it, I have to know that there was someone out there that was more experienced or better for that job. I know deep down that I did my absolute best, and I look forward to positive feedback. Please keep your fingers and toes crossed for me! I do, however, hope that you all would come visit out in Seattle if I did get the chance to move there. It'd be wonderful to see familiar faces in my potential new home.

On Trips and Fun:

Christmas is just around the corner, and that means one thing to me: VACATION. Instead of visiting the beaches of South East Asia like I have in the past, I'm headed back to Europe. It's been a few years since I've been to Europe, so I'm happy to go back. While it'll be cold, I'll have good food, friends, and beer to keep me content! I'm flying to Amsterdam, Netherlands directly from Seoul on December 25th. After spending 3 days in Amsterdam, we'll be taking a bullet train to Paris-- where we'll be for 4 nights. We'll be spending New Years hopefully drinking champagne and seeing a cabaret show. After Paris we're heading by train to Koln, Germany. I'll hopefully be meeting up with my friend Laura (who I met on a habitat for humanity trip in Louisiana). After Koln, we're off to Brussels, Belgium for an afternoon before heading back to Amsterdam.

2009-11-02T02:36:00.003-06:00

Déjà vu:

2009-10-25T21:37:00.003-05:00

I really do not like living in the past when it reminds me of people I used to love, who have now broken my heart.

It is always hard to go someplace where you used to go with a past ex with someone "new". This past weekend this happened to me. I was with one of my friends and we happened to eat dinner at the same place that I had a first date with my most recent ex. I remembered the table that we sat at, the food that we ate, and the cute smile on his face.

Moving on from previous relationships is tough, but I guess that is why they say "tough love", ah?

48 hours in Seoul: Your essential guide

2009-10-21T19:52:00.001-05:00

Do you want to come to Seoul? Have only 48 Hours to cover 234 square miles?

Check out CNN's 48 hour guide to Seoul.

http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/none/48-hours-seoul-321258#

Dust Storms.. Not Just a Desert Phenomenon.

2009-10-19T07:39:00.005-05:00

When you picture a dust storm you probably also picture sand dunes, hot weather, and a dry desert. What you probably do not think of is South Korea, yellow dust, and the "fall" season.

That's right folks, South Korea experiences a rare type of dust storm called "Asian Dust". Usually in the spring, in Seoul, there will be a low haze in the sky. One can usually assume this means that the yellow dust has crossed over from China, and we have to break out our masks when we go outside. During severe yellow dust storms you can see a residue left on the street, cars, etc.

The problem with the dust is that it's full of pollutants that are obviously bad for our health. The Yellow dust starts out in the Gobi desert in Mongolia and because of the lack of trees in China creates a dust storm. The sand combined with pollutants that include hard metals and carcinogens plague our skies here in Seoul.

This post comes after I received a text from my boss that read: "Tomorrow a yellow dust storm is coming in. Please wear a mask or scarf!" I guess it's unusual to see a yellow dust storm in the fall, but we will see what happens tomorrow. You best believe I will be breaking out the scarf and/or mask.

If living in a city with 12 million other people doesn't produce enough pollution and smog already, yellow dust is just an added bonus.

See below: The dust as it approaches Korea.

Winter Routine:

2009-10-19T02:28:00.001-05:00

I think I've fallen under the winter "lazy" spell a bit early this year.

My days are filled with teaching and grading and my nights are filled with take out and downloading my favorite shows on itunes.

I need to get out and enjoy the fall-ish weather before it's too late.

Rough Month:

2009-10-08T04:04:00.001-05:00

You know it's been a rough month when you bring your checking account down to .16 cents.

It didn't help that I only got paid for 2 weeks, instead of 4 in the month of September.

I'm VERY thankful that Friday is PAY DAY!

I Just Can't:

2009-10-03T11:57:00.003-05:00

I don't know how much longer I can be here for.

Christmas Bliss:

2009-09-29T21:32:00.003-05:00

With just under three months until Christmas vacation here in Korea, it is time to get my plans together. Having visited most of the countries in Asia, I decided it was time to get back to Europe. It's been almost five years since I've been to Europe and I'm ready for a change.

Christmas plans are finalized and booked. Let me know if you'll be in the area.

Friday, December 25th: Direct flight from Seoul to Amsterdam, Netherlands!

Saturday, December 26th: Full day in Amsterdam

Sunday, December 27th: Full day in Amsterdam

Monday, December 28th: Train from Amsterdam to PARIS, France!

Tuesday, December 29th: Full day in Paris

Wednesday, December 30th: Full day in Paris

Thursday, December 31st: New Years Eve in Paris!

Friday, January 1st: Train from Paris to Cologne, Germany - Full day in Germany

Saturday, January 2nd: Cologne to Brussels, Belgium and then back to Amsterdam

I think we're spending too long in Paris, but it'll be good!

The 23rd hour of the 24th year:

2009-09-28T21:36:00.007-05:00

This time last year, I turned twenty four while climbing the Great Wall of China. I was hopeful for my future and excited for what I was going to accomplish over the next year. Well here I am a year later and nothing has changed - except now I am 25. Two weeks ago, the day before I turned 25, I was still freaking out a bit, as my friends are getting married, having babies, buying houses, and I am no where near prepared for any of that! However, I know that my life is blessed as it is and I still have a lot to look forward to.

With each year, life gets better and we become more wise, right? I think with age that life gets a little more complicated, and we are faced with more twists and turns. Growing up we have no cares in the world. Our major responsibility is to go to school and perhaps do some daily chores that your mom has set for you. At the end of the day you probably do not know what "stress" is at the age of ten, and you're a ways away from experiencing it. Being a kid was fun, but now as adult we are faced to make choices that are going to affect the rest of our life. Even though life is more complicated now than it was fifteen years ago, I feel semi-ready to start making these decisions. I do not want to go back to being a kid, so I am grateful for the opportunities that I have had.

Between 24 and 25, I lost some weight (around 15 pounds), joined my first gym on my own, joined a book club and started reading again, experienced heart break, healed, fell in love, embraced change, travelled (more than I should have probably), made amazing new friends (but lost some on the way), moved to a better apartment, earned respect at work, became more comfortable in my own skin, and figured out what I want to do with the rest of my life (run an international study abroad program at any University). While the year had its ups and downs, I feel like it was a good year overall.

I don't know where my 25th year will take me, but I hope that when it's over and done with that I will still be "me". I'm constantly working at becoming a better "Ray" and with that takes time and patience. I am on a new path now, and I am excited to see where in the world I will be at this time next year.

Thanks to those who participated in the 25th birthday celebrations. It was a great night.

Me, Me, Me:

2009-09-21T23:37:00.002-05:00

For the past two weeks I've been having a really hard time, without getting into all the details, I've come to the conclusion that there is only one way to fix it.

I need to do something for ME.

So I'm going to Australia.

Debt Diet:

2009-09-16T09:07:00.002-05:00

Starting on pay day, October 10th 2009, I am officially on a debt diet.

I plan to knock this debt out one by one, so that come June I can leave Korea forever.

This week has challenged me in ways that I am not used to. I know that I am strong, but I'm being put up to the ultimate test.

Only time will tell what is suppose to happen next, but in the meantime I'm cutting up my credit cards, except for one, which will be used in my great escape.

Ten Facts:

2009-09-13T06:38:00.007-05:00

1. Tomorrow is, indeed, my 25th birthday.

2. I do have ridiculous allergies in the late summer/early fall seasons. Watch out as I sneeze!

3. I finally, seven days later, unpacked my suit cases from my trip to Chicago.

4. My air conditioning is controlled by the building manager and hasn't been on in three days. Today it was 80 degrees and I am a sweating-mess disaster.

5. I whole heartedly miss Jin and wonder daily if he's alive and well in Khazakstan.

6. I have zero plans to celebrate my birthday.

7. I did buy a gnarly world map and posted it on my blank off-white wall.

8. I have not worked in three weeks. I resume work tomorrow, and I haven't missed it a bit.

9. I saw and wept like a baby through the movie "My Sister's Keeper".

10. I ate at Smokey Saloon's two days in a row!

The Quarantined Life: Day 5

2009-09-11T04:34:00.007-05:00

The day really started after I had a two and a half hour facebook chat with my mom. We talked about everything from my potential marriage to Kayla, to my future as a government employee. After we said goodbye, I came to a few conclusions:

I. I wasted the majority of the week eating, sleeping, and watching re-runs of shows I didn't even like.

II. If I was going to find a job out of Korea, I really needed to look for one.

III. If I was going to get anything done, I needed to do it OUTSIDE of the four walls of my apartment.

With that being said- I took a shower, packed my backpack, and took the bus about thirty minutes to a part of Seoul called "Hapjeong". For those of you sandwich lovers, much like myself, I found my way to the local Au Bon Pan. I scoped the place out for a large table, as I would be setting up shop for the day and needed my space. Once found, I set up my laptop, my external hard drive, moleskin notebook, water, and ipod.

I opened my notebook and I made a "to-do" list. First on my list being restructuring my resume so that I can convince potential employers that my experience as a teacher in South Korea has been relevant to almost any job out there. Next, I wrote out some websites I knew could be useful to my job hunt. After a while of searching I found three potential jobs in Illinois that I might have a fighting chance for. I wrote down in my notebook some of the info- contact person, email addresses, requirements, and job qualifications.

At this point I was high in energy. I could feel the hairs standing up on my arms and I knew that I should apply for these jobs. So what if I don't get an interview, applying for these jobs is a step in the direction I need. I know that after two years of living and working abroad, I am a strong candidate for any job that I want to apply for.

Once I brought myself back down to reality, I worked on three separate cover letters. Let me tell you, writing a cover letter is such a tedious task. Not only do you have to sell yourself to your potential employer, you have to make sure that you highlight your skills as they are going to benefit them. After I sketched out what I wanted to highlight, I wrote three convincing cover letters. Before I sent them, however, I had a friend look over them via email and she gave me the green light to go ahead and send them.

I wrote a list of professional references, attached my cover letter and resume, and with the click of "send" applied for three jobs in the US. What a great feeling! I wanted to share the experience with you all because it's hard to take that step, especially when you already make decent money and live rent free.

As Friday, day five of my quarantine comes to a close, I really feel like I did get something accomplished. I still have the whole weekend ahead of me to even do more. For now, however, I have applied for:

I. Assistant Director- Student International Academic Affairs at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign - a job that works with students to organize study abroad opportunities while research and preparing materials for scholarships, grants, etc. to assist students in their semesters away.

II. International Services Coordinator at UIC- a job where I'd work with incoming international students as they prepare to move from abroad to the US to start their own studies.

III. Coordinator, Office of Study Abroad at Eastern Illinois University.

I think my Political Science background coupled with my experience abroad make these good job choices to focus on for now. I really can see myself back on a college campus working with students. The best part of these jobs is that I can also work on my Ph.D. at the same time, so that I can somewhere down the road teach at the University level.

How did you spend your Friday afternoon?

The Quarantined Life: Day 4

2009-09-10T02:27:00.005-05:00

In an attempt to keep my mind off the future, my job, and my best friend now living in Khazakstan; I have tried to stay busy today.

Some of today's mishaps:

1. A simple, yet delicious breakfast comprised of Raisin Brand Crunch, bread with jam, and orange juice in bed.

2. A long, hot shower

3. A trip to the bank (yay, I got paid and sent money to my account in the US)

4. A trip to the grocery store for some essentials

5. A nice facebook chat with mom

6. Rented and watched Nights in Rodanthe through itunes

7. Made chicken parmigiana for dinner.

What am I going to do next week when I have to work 11 hour days again with kids? I guess the quarantined life isn't that bad after all :)

The Quarantined Life: Days 1-3

2009-09-09T04:48:00.009-05:00

The Quarantined Life: Day I

I arrived back to Seoul on Monday, September 7th at 4:40 am via Asiana Airlines. Since I knew that I didn't have to go to work, I wasn't in such a rush to get through customs, get my luggage, and find my bus. The customs lines were much shorter than they have been in the past, and I was on my way to get my luggage less than fifteen minutes after departing the air craft.

My luggage was surprisingly one of the first off the plane. This is probably because we checked in only about an hour before the flight. I figured since my flight left at 1 am, we could totally get to the airport at 11:30 pm and be fine! I had no trouble! I got on the 5:24 am bus to Mokdong and was back inside my apartment by 6:30.

As I came in I left my bags by the door and booted up my computer. After calling my mom on skype, I thought to myself, "What the hell am I going to do for the next 7 days in my apartment!?" If I had extra money I would definitely go and explore since the weather has been nice this week, however, in an attempt to not bankrupt myself I decided to hang out here and do some things around my apartment.

Here's a glimpse at how day #1 turned out:

8:00 am --- I was in bed watching High School Musical

10:00 am --- Still in bed.....

12:00 pm --- I went to buy water, juice, and a breakfast sandwich which I ended up eating in bed.

2:00 pm --- I was definitely on facebook and watching TV.

4:00 pm --- still in bed....

6:00 pm ----- bed....

8:00 pm ---- bed....

10:00 pm ---- fast asleep in bed!

Day one, as you can see, was quite productive!

The Quarantined Life: Day II

Day two started out very similar to day 1, minus the fact that I didn't start at the airport. I woke up at 4:30 am and went on to my computer to check my email. After twenty minutes or so I decided to give sleep another chance and finally woke up at 7:30 ready to start my day. To my surprise, I turned on the TV and High School Musical 2 was on. I watched it until it finished and decided to eat Mc Donald's breakfast (I was starving since I didn't eat dinner the night before).

Day 2's events:

10:00 am --- breakfast of champions in bed.

12:00 pm --- Oprah and other shows in bed

2:00 pm ---- Skype with Eric (my friend from home)

4:00 pm --- Still on skype (and while on Skype my BOSS called)

6:00 pm --- Skypeee

7:00 pm --- I made fettuccine for dinner!

8:00 pm --- TV in BED

10:00 pm --- PASSED out in BED!

The Quarantined Life: Day III

I definitely took advantage of my time off the first two days. As you can see I did absolutely nothing. Part of me felt like "hey, I could possibly have gotten sick from being on the airplane... so why not do NOTHING!" By the morning of day three I was feeling much more energetic as I am now back on "Seoul time" and feeling acclimated to Korea. I guess that's what living in the "future" does to one!

Day three has gone a little differently. I woke up and checked my email and watched TV until about 11. I ate breakfast, showered, and played online a little more. At about 12:30 I decided that I was going to finally get some pictures on my walls. I went down to the Kodak shop and developed pictures from my trip home. I've had these black card-board frames in my apartment for a while now and I've been meaning to put pictures in them. As I waited for my pictures to be finished I walked to the department store and had a cheeseburger for lunch. The walk was nice as it's about a 15 minute walk and the weather is quite nice right now! After lunch I hit up Coffee Bean for a caramel ice blend and walked back to get my pictures.

Pictures and coffee in hand, I spread my materials on the floor. An hour later I was finished and pretty happy with the results:

It's nice to finally have a focal point on the wall and something neat to look at. After putting the pictures on the wall I decided to start to unpack and clean the remainder of my apartment. I didn't end up touching my suit case, but I did clean my apartment top to bottom. I even took pictures of my apartment to finally share with my friends and family at home. So many people asked about where I lived, so now they can see for themselves!

It's now 7:35 and my plan for the rest of the night is to cook some dinner, shower, and read! Who knows what will happen on day 4 of my "quarantine!"

The Quarantined Life:

2009-09-09T00:46:00.004-05:00

About half way through my vacation in Chicago I received an email from my boss. Getting an email from the boss while on vacation can only mean 2 things: Get your ass back to work because there is a problem, or simply don't come back at all.

I opened the email and read through it quickly. My mouth fell to the floor by the end of it as I couldn't really believe the situation. He went on to talk about the H1N1 virus and how it finally found it's way to Korea. Honestly I didn't really read much into that as I skipped to the part in bold that said, "How this affects you:"

This is the part that made my mouth drop to the floor as I wasn't sure whether to be excited or pissed. Read below:

"Unfortunately, you may not return to work until seven day after you arrive in Korea and you show no flu like symptoms. As of now, I have you arriving on September 7th, and so you may return to work on September 14th. At this time, there is no way around this even if you are healthy. I know this sounds unfair, and believe me it really screws things up for operations here as well."

Most people would be ecstatic to have an extra week off of work, but considering I had to use unpaid vacation to go visit my family in Chicago, I was ready to get back on the payroll ASAP! Having already went on vacation to Cambodia in July, and still struggling to pay off credit cards and student loans for my BA and MA degrees, it's just not feasible to have yet another unpaid week off of work!

After trying to argue the situation over email with my boss and demanding to be paid, I finally decided that I was not going to win the war and I looked at the extra week off as a gift. Instead of arriving at 5 am on Monday morning and having to go right to work by 9, I now could relax, sleep, adjust and acclimate to being back in Korea, and unpack without the stress of going back to the office!

I decided it'd be fun for all to keep a little daily journal of my daily happenings during my quarantine. Let me just say that quarantine does not mean I am barred from society, I simply just can't go to work. Some might use the week to get drunk and go visit things around the city, but I had some other ideas up my sleeve.

Until then.....

16+ Reasons Why my STOMACH Can't Handle Chicago:

2009-09-08T22:14:00.006-05:00

I'm back in Seoul after spending a much needed two weeks in the US with family and friends. Overall, the trip went by quickly; but I got to see so many people this time around! This will be the first of many blogs to retell the tales of my life back in the US.

Interesting fact number 1: At 5:40 p.m. on Wednesday, August 26th 2009 I hugged and said good-bye to Jin at Incheon International Airport in Seoul. After a 12.5 hour flight, I said hello to my mom and sister at O'Hare International airport in Chicago at exactly 5:40 pm the SAME day. Cool, ah?

As much as I loved being home, my stomach did not. Here's some reasons why Ray shouldn't live in the US:

Restaurants I ate at during my two-week stink in Chicago:

1. Chili's

2. Olive Garden

3. Subway

4. Mimi's Cafe

5. Ruby Tuesday's

6. Park Grill Chicago

7. Jimmy Johns

8. Chipotle

9. Houlihan's

10. Ed and Joe's Pizzeria

11. Connie's Pizza and Ball Park Franks courtesy of Wrigley Field

12. Pancho Pistola's (Mexican)

13. Destihl Brewery

14. Buffalo Wild Wings

15. Arby's (the only real fast food I had, but I was driving 3 hours and I was starving!)

16. Blackberries Pancake House

Let's not forget the delicious homemade food I ate that my mom cooked or we had at our bbq!

Seoul-Chicago

2009-08-21T06:17:00.005-05:00

I'm about to finish my last day of work for the next two weeks. I am very happy to be heading to Chicago to see friends and family, to eat familiar foods, to find clothes at the mall that actually fit me, and to indulge on some good tasting beer.

I am, however, not looking forward to saying good-bye to Jin. He's leaving for Kazakhstan on September 4th for the next twelve months for work. When I come back to Seoul he won't be here, and my life is going to be really different.

I know that I am a strong person. I know that I will be fine. I am aware that everything happens for a reason and if it's meant to be it'll work out in the end. I don't need to be reminded that I'm strong. I'm going to be blunt, it just really sucks. No one really wants to have to say good bye to the person that they care about. It's one thing to say good bye to someone when it's not working out and you're not happy, however; that's not the case.

The best I can hope for is that things will work out, and if everything goes as planned we will see each other at Christmas.

Until then, I'm off to the airport tomorrow and then on my way to Chicago. Here's to hopefully a fabulous last night together.

Part II: Siem Reap

2009-08-16T09:46:00.003-05:00

Siem Reap had a great feeling to it. It was so different from Phnom Penh, Saigon, Seoul, Tokyo, etc. As I sat in my tuk tuk as he drove me to the hotel from the airport, I noticed that the streets were dusty brown, the smell was crisp, and the sky was as blue as ever.

At this point I was already four days into my trip. I was finally feeling comfortable being alone, and I was enjoying the freedom to do things at my own pace. Siem Reap, as a city, is quite small. There are no large buildings, no hustle and bustle, and barely any cars on the road. What made it unique were the tuk tuk drivers lined up along the road, the river that ran down the center of the city, and the cozy pubs and restaurants where the foreigners spent their time. As small as the city was, I felt like I could get lost for hours and never get bored.

Outside the city limits, scattered over a large area of land, are the temples of Angkor. Having been to many places in Asia, I was not sure how Angkor was going to compare. The temples were amazing, as cliche as it may sound, there really is no other way to describe them. Each temple was so different, and I could imagine what life was like hundreds of years ago. Between the information from my guide book and the stories from the local tour guides, it was hard to not have a sense of what life was like. The stones, most which have holes in them, were pulled from the mountains by elephants. They would put bamboo wood in each hole in order for the elephants to pull the massive stones. From here they were sent down the river to the area where they were used for building. Thousands upon thousands of stones were used for each temple and most of these temples took 10-15+ years to build. Some of the temples were still not completed and the tour guides showed areas around the temple which so incomplete carvings, etc.

It's hard to believe that eventually all of these temples were abandoned and left for years and years until a french explorer discovered them a hundred years ago. It makes me wonder what else is out there to be found. Or have we discovered all that was left for us to discover? After these temples were abandoned, some were destroyed while others were left to rot away. The jungle took over and many starting to fall apart as trees and weeds took over. It is all sad, but it made for some beautiful photography.

By the end of the week I was starting to get tired from all the hiking and climbing. It was a rainy Friday morning and I decided to take a Khmer Cooking class. Khmer is the name of the language and food of the Cambodian people. Cooking is really relaxing and it is something that I do not do enough of. When you live alone in a studio apartment there isn't much room for cooking, and I really do not like cooking for myself. The cooking class was made up of four of us. There was Josanna, an American from San Francisco, Jayne, a Canadian French teacher, Caroline, a Canadian who was teaching South Korea, and myself. We were a great group. The morning started at the restaurant (Le Tigre) where we were given the task of deciding what we were going to make. We could choose to make one main course entree and one starter. I chose to make fresh spring rolls with shrimp, and chicken Amok (a curry like dish, but made inside of a banana plant. For desert we decided to make sticky rice with mango. After choosing our meals, we made a pit stop at the fresh market to pick up the necessary ingredients. Back at the kitchen we each had our own cooking stations where we carefully made our meals. After three hours of cooking, we finally were able to eat our meals. It was quite the feast!

Cambodia, overall, was a just what the doctor ordered.

Park Hyatt:

2009-08-16T07:14:00.004-05:00

It was a great weekend, and we didn't even have to go too far from home. We decided it would be great to spend a weekend at a nice hotel in Gangnam. Gangnam is an area in Seoul that is rather far from where I live in Seoul. Seoul is quite a large city, so it was nice to explore a new place.

The Park Hyatt was amazing. From its simple, yet modern design, it really had everything that you would want in a hotel room. We enjoyed everything from the Egyptian cotton sheets to the large bathtub and even the 24th floor swimming pool.

The Cornerstone restaurant on the 2nd floor of the hotel was delicious. We shared rack of lamb and king prawns with mango salsa. It was accompanied with creamy mashed potatoes and asparagus wrapped in bacon. It was probably one of the most delicious meals I have had in Seoul in the past two years.

Our mini weekend trip showed me that you do not have to go too far from home to have an enjoyable and relaxing time. It was nice to get out of my apartment for the weekend and enjoy a new surrounding and new foods.

I am looking forward to heading to Busan next weekend :)

Sum 41:

2009-08-13T18:22:00.001-05:00

Time is going by too quickly, and this song is so fitting:

I don't want this moment to ever end
Where everything's nothing without you
I'll wait here forever just to, to see you smile
'Cause it's true, I am nothing without you

Through it all, I made my mistakes
I stumble and fall, but I mean these words

I want you to know
With everything I won't let this go, these words are my heart and soul
I'll hold on to this moment you know, 'cause I'll bleed my heart out to show
That I won't let go

Thoughts read unspoken, forever in doubt
Pieces of memories fall to the ground
I know what I didn't have so, I won't let this go
'Cause it's true, I am nothing without you

All the streets where I walked alone, with nowhere to go
have come to an end

I want you to know
With everything I won't let this go, these words are my heart and soul
I'll hold on to this moment you know, 'cause I'll bleed my heart out to show
And I won't let go

In front of your eyes, it falls from the skies
When you don't know what you're looking to find
In front of your eyes, it falls from the skies
When you just never know what you will find (what you will find)

I don't want this moment to ever end
Where everything's nothing without you

I want you to know
With everything I won't let this go, these words are my heart and soul
I'll hold on to this moment you know, 'cause I'll bleed my heart out to show
that I won't let go (I want you to know)
With everything I won't let this go, these words are my soul
I'll hold on to this moment you know, 'cause I'll bleed my heart out to show
that I won't let go

Midnight Runner:

2009-08-09T07:46:00.003-05:00

I should probably blog about the rest of my trip to Cambodia, as I have promised many people a full update with more pictures; however, I've been wanting to write about something else for a while.

Midnight Runner: It's a term that we've become so very familiar with here in Korea. The term is coined from the idea of those who come to Korea, but then disappear into the night. They leave no trace, no evidence, but somehow find their way back to America without informing a soul.

Recently a whole swarm of new teachers arrived at our school. We had a large group of people who all finished their contracts around the same time, but we also had two newbies who quit after a month or two. Needless to say we were short teachers- so now we had seven new smiling faces in the staff room who all seemed excited for their journey.

Some of the teachers hailed from the great state of Minnesota. One in particular I took an immediate liking to. She was fresh out of college, and we seemed to actually have a lot in common. Her first weekend in Seoul, I took her all around to make her feel welcomed. We started out with breakfast at Suji's (one of my favorite breakfast places in Itaewon) we went to the folk museum, walked around a palace, and had coffee in Samchungdong. We ended the night with Indian for dinner. I thought she was adjusting well and would be here for the long haul.

Last week we were all on vacation, and one night I signed online while in Cambodia to check my email. I got a message from a co-worker who informed me that our fellow Minnesotan hopped on a plane back to America during the vacation. Her apartment was cleared out except for a suitcase full of useless items. She was gone. Part of me was curious why she didn't even email me when she got back to the states. A simple, "Thank you for making me feel welcomed my month my Korea" would have sufficed. Instead this person blocked me from facebook. What a great thank you if you ask me.

Coming to teach in Korea is quite the process and it usually takes two to three solid months from the time you get hired until the time you actually touch down in Seoul. This is the reason why I am completely shocked when people up and leave without any notification. You have to apply for jobs, interview for jobs, and start gathering your paperwork. In order to get a visa number from Korea you need to submit your original college diploma, unsealed transcripts, a state notorized criminal background check, and other documents. Once these are in the hands of the Korean government they issue you a visa number. Once you have your visa number you have to apply for your visa at your nearest consulate and schedule an interview, too. Once you apply, you leave your passport over night, and can return to pick it up the next day.

After you have your visa, you spend the next two weeks packing up your life into two (50) pound suitcases. Finally, you board an airplane that may take anywhere between 10-16 hours depending where in the US you live. Most of us stay a year or more, while others run like the wind in the opposite direction.

Cambodia: Part I

2009-08-05T03:58:00.012-05:00

Cambodia: 7/25-8/2

Cambodia was hot, refreshing, and wonderful. Although my trip was busy, it gave me the relaxation and reflection that I was long over due for. It was refreshing being somewhere new and away from not only the hustle and bustle of Seoul, but also the every day mundane tasks of having a full time job. At first I was uncomfortable with the idea of being alone on this trip. While it took a few days to "warm" up, I finally felt comfortable with my solitude, and learned not only a lot of Cambodia but about myself too. Overall, I tested my limits, and I am glad that I had this life experience.

I started my trip in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. I had a game plan for the things that I wanted to see and do, and decided I'd stay for 3 nights.

The first full day I had in Cambodia was really busy. I woke up and had breakfast at 8 am and then headed out to see all the tourist spots: The Royal Palace, The National Museum (full of Khmer sculptures and beautiful lush garden), Tuol Sleng Museum (this is where Pol Pat (think Hitler, but the Cambodian version) arrested and held over 20,000 innocent civilians before torturing and eventually killing them. The sad thing is is that this prison was a school before the government took over in the 70's. It was a somber experience, but I'm enjoying learning about the history. What this government did is on par to what Hitler did to the Jews. Why do we not learn more about genocide, and specifically the Cambodian genocide in the 70's during our American education? The former classrooms were turned into cells or torture chambers. As you walk through the cells, you can see the instruments used to torture victims and unfortunately you can even see the victims faces. Each person who was held at S-21 had a biography and their picture attached. They were numbered and wore the date on entrance on their shirts. You can see the fear in most of their faces, especially women who were holding their babies in their arms. The pictures were disturbing. The expressions on the faces of these people are etched in my mind forever. Some looked as though they knew they were going to die. They looked frightened, or resigned or defiant. And then there were those who seemed to have no idea of what was about to happen. They were smiling at the camera. Although heart wrenching, this museum was amazing and probably the best one I've been to in Asia. After the hell that was the museum, I had a delicious lunch before heading to Wat Phnom (Wat means Temple). Wat Phnom is one of the most important pagodas in Phnom Pneh. It was built in 1373, making it the oldest pagoda in the city.

Later in the day, I enjoyed happy hour at the Foreign Correspondence Club with an older french couple that I met at the hotel. The husband spoke a lot of English and the wife spoke zero. I put my non-existent french skills to work... I think I was able to say correctly, "Hello, my name is Ray. I'm from the US, but I live in Korea and nice to meet you!" I saw them again at the pool the next day, and the wife said "hello" and giggled. Maybe she thinks I'm cute? After happy hour, I enjoyed the sunset over the National Museum and was able to snap a few photos. I came back to my hotel early, as I was so exhausted and asleep before 9 pm.

On my second full day, after my delicious breakfast, my tuk tuk driver (carriage pulled by a motor bike) took me to the killing fields. Here is where those who didn't die in the S-21 prison were exonerated. When I arrived here at the Choeung Ek Killing Fields, the first thing I saw was a great pagoda. At first, I actually just took a picture and went on my way. However, as I was drawing near it again I realized there was something much different about this pagoda. I walked closer to see that it was filled with human skulls. We are not talking about one or two... I'm talking 62 meters high filled to the brim with human skulls. There also was clothing that was found in the trenches, and human jaw bones that weren't connected to any skulls. These skulls were just some of the victims from Pol Pots regime and the genocide. Over 8,000 people were executed here at Choeong Ek, and that doesn't include those that died in the S-21 prison. Thankfully Pol Pots regime was put to rest in 1979. Choeung Ek was a somber experience. There were mass graves which most of these bodies were found, however, there are still graves here that have not been excavated. I was surprised how rich and heart breaking the history of Cambodia truly is.

After two full days of being in Phnom Penh, I was excited to head to the temples that surround Siem Reap.

Adios July:

2009-07-31T13:33:00.002-05:00

My vacation is officially over tomorrow. I'm boarding a flight to Seoul, and I'll be back at 6:40 am on Sunday.

While this trip has been great in many ways, it's really hard to be away from the ones you care about most. You know who you are :)

Lots of updates and pictures to come soon.

TOMORROW:

2009-07-24T01:44:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow is the day! I'm finally leaving for my 8 day backpacking trip through Cambodia.

I'm flying into Phnom Penh where I'll be from Saturday-Tuesday.

Tuesday I'm boarding a flight to Siem Reap where I'll be until Sunday. I have some day trips planned out of Siem Reap-- but most time will be spent at Angkor Wat and poolside if the weather cooperates!

I'm going to blog a lot about my trip either nightly or upon my return August 2nd!

It's almost AUGUST! I get to see my family on August 26th! Sweet!

Peace, love, and Rock and Roll!

RENT: The Broadway Tour

2009-07-20T05:33:00.003-05:00

Last year I climbed the Great Wall of China for my 24th birthday. This year, however, I wasn't sure that I was going to be doing anything special to celebrate my 25th. However, today Jin and I got tickets to see the Broadway Tour of Rent here in Seoul! I'm not a HUGE musical freak, but I do enjoy them. Rent is among my favorites :)

So, September 12th at 3 pm, I'll be in the VIP section, center stage, to see it!

A Little Light Reading:

2009-07-19T10:35:00.007-05:00

I picked up three new books for my summer vacation trip to Cambodia. Reviews and thoughts on the books after I return in August.

But for now, a glimpse at what I'm reading. Have you read any of these? Let me know!

1. A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon (or that book with the little people on top of the cake)

2. The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton

3. If Minds Had Toes by Lucy Eyre (it's her first book, I'm excited to read it!)

Weekend Bliss:

2009-07-19T10:03:00.004-05:00

Lately I have really lived for my weekends. With the pressures of work always on the rise and the fact that I haven't had any vacation time since December; it is essential to take full advantage of the 2 days I have to myself.

For quite a while you could say I was a hermit. Friday nights were full of pizza and movies, while Saturday and Sundays were usually filled with coffee, blogs, and reruns of TV shows. However, now that I'm out of that funk, I'm back to enjoying Seoul and all that it has to offer.

Friday night I enjoyed Shabu Shabu with Jin. Shabu Shabu is one of my favorite Korean meals: it's a bubbling, boiling pot of delicious spicy broth and vegetables. After you eat all the vegetables, you then can add in the meat, which cooks almost instantly. The thinly sliced beef is dipped into a sweet soy and lemon mixture and could please any palate. After the meat is finished, udong noodles are usually added to the remaining broth. Udong is a thick type of noodle and even though you may be stuffed; you'll still want to indulge. After dinner we enjoyed ice cream, which was a great way to end the night.

Saturday after a delicious thai food lunch and lounging, we headed to the opera. I saw Madame Butterfly for the first time and loved it. Although it was a bit slow at points, I thought it was sung beautifully. I wasn't sure how well the Koreans were going to sing in Italian, but considering they are classically trained, I should have expected it to be amazing. (which it was!)

Madame Butterfly is staged in Japan in the early 20th century. The US Navy has docked in Japan and Pinkerton, the main male character, has just procured three servants and a geisha wife. Cio-Cio-San, known as Madame Butterfly, shares her life with Pinkerton and explains to him how she had to help her family with money and therefore earned the money by being a geisha. Her family is unhappy with the marriage to Pinkerton and at the end of Act 1 he leaves to go back to America.

Three years later and in Act 2, Pinkerton finally comes back to Japan. However, he has not only come back, but he has brought his new American wife-Kate. What he doesn't know is that Madame Butterfly bared his child while he was away. She is convinced that once Pinkerton knows of their son, Dolore, that he surely will come back.

Unfortunately in the end Pinkerton says goodbye to Madame Butterfly and his life in Japan. Cio-Cio-San, unable to live with the pain, decides to take her own life. It was a sad ending, but a beautiful opera overall.

After the opera, we made our way to Myeong-dong to pick up some new kicks for me to wear to Cambodia and enjoyed a scrumptious dinner at California Pizza Kitchen.

Today, I slept until 12. I cannot even remember a time in the past 6 months were I have even slept until 10- it was a surprising treat and a great way to start the day. After a few hours of emails, TV watching, and lounging- I finally got out of my apartment for the day. After Jin and I made our way Itaewon via subway, we enjoyed stuffed pitas from Pita Time (imagine subway, but replace the bread with pitas :)) After our late lunch, I bought some new books for my trip to Cambodia and ran into an old friend. We indulged on delicious iced coffees from Coffee Bean and I made it home in time to get a hair cut at my favorite salon.

It's always fun to reflect on a busy weekend.. especially my last one before vacation. Next Saturday it's off to Cambodia! The adventures await me.

New haircut, what do you think?

The Half Blood Prince:

2009-07-15T21:22:00.003-05:00

As I am about to turn 25, I really believe that you can never grow too old for Harry Potter. At this point in my life it's more than just a book or a movie, it's this other world that we secretly wish that we could be part of. I have been hooked on Harry Potter ever since I had to read it in my freshman English class in high school.

The friendships, quidditch matches, adventures, and mysteries are just small parts of the treasures that HP has given us. Maybe I lead a very boring life, but every time I see a new Harry Potter movie all I can envision is myself running through the wall at platform 9 and 3/4 to board the train to Hogwarts.

Last night I saw the 6th movie in this seven part magical experience. This movie was definitely smaller when it came to "action", but the story itself was more intimate than any of the others. If you haven't read the books or at least seen the first five movies, you may walk away from Half Blood Prince almost confused. I sat in my chair at the end thinking that nothing major really happens in the Half-Blood Prince. It wasn't until I was walking home from the movie that all the pieces kind of fell together. Half-Blood Prince sets all of the pivotal events that need resolution in the final book and two films.

Was it the best film out of the 6? Some may argue yes, some may argue no. While I definitely did enjoy the movie, and I believe it probably portrayed the book the closest out of others; I still think that nothing can top the Prisoner of Azkaban.

A Typical Month in Korea:

2009-07-14T10:50:00.007-05:00

Lately the days have turned into weeks and the weeks have turned into months. In less than 2 weeks I'm off to Cambodia for my first bit of vacation since Christmas! I can't tell you how ready I am to get out of Korea and away from my job.... Upon my return from Cambodia, I have a mere three weeks before I'm off to Chicago for 2 weeks to spend time with friends and family. Yes!

So you've been wanting to know.... What consumes a typical month here....

4 lazy Sundays filled with TV.

20+ loads of laundry, but only the washing part as I don't have a dryer.

Not nearly enough jogs around Paris Park.

31 trips to Starbucks before work

20+ days of working 11 hours or more

10 bagels with cream cheese

20 new downloads on itunes

2,678,400 seconds

16 nights cuddling with a cutie :)

31 Showers

1 Internet bill

1 electric bill and gas bill

1 pay check on the 10th

4 new episodes of True Blood

62 liters of water.. or more.

500+ emails

100+ gmail chats

31 mornings waking up wishing I was somewhere else

31 nights without air conditioning as it's controlled by my building and shut off by 9 pm

1 night out for beers

And definitely at least 1 sore throat.

How do you spend your months?

Fernando Botero:

2009-07-06T07:24:00.006-05:00

This Sunday I had the chance to check out an art exhibit at the National Museum of Art which is housed inside of the Deoksugung Palace here in Seoul, South Korea. I'll have to admit, even though I enjoy art, I hadn't heard of Botero. Once I saw his work, however, I was almost certain that I had seen it before.

It was a hazy and warm Sunday afternoon and after enjoying some delicious waffles at Cafe Ima, Jin and I were off to see the 92 piece collection. It was an enjoyable afternoon at the gallery.

Botero is a Colombian artist who got his foot into the door at a young age. At first glance his paintings (mostly oil on canvas) seem quite simplistic. After leaving the exhibit, I realized that the simplicity in his paintings are what makes them so perfect. Botero paints the human body like I have never seen before. Each character takes on the rotund shape, and shows that even big characters can be beautiful.

Although the faces on his characters are difficult to read, his paintings definitely do not lack emotion. Each painting told it's own story. The series really shares Latin people and their culture in a realistic light. The paintings tell us about politics, society, and religion- all pressing issues in South America.

Botero's work was shown through his five major themes:

1. Still Life and Versions-- Interesting because Botero recreated the works of famous masters such as Da Vinci, Raphael, Goya, Rubens, Velazquez and Picasso.

2. Latin Life- Enjoyable because it's painted through his eyes based on things he has seen and experienced throughout his life. Shows the simplicity of life in South America-- from bathers to picnics.

3. Latin People- Shows the free spirit of Latin Americans. While they enjoyed drinking, smoking, and having sex - they also enjoyed putting on make-up, jewelry, and going dancing.

4. Bullfight and Circus- Life and Death really was portrayed here. As well as the relationship between the bull and the bullfighter. Botero's paintings in this theme once again show a side of happiness even in odd scenarios. The circus paintings show a side of solitude that we don't see in the other paintings.

5. Sculpture- The sculptures are massive in size, but you almost have to expect that as Botero portrays volume in ways we haven't seen before. "Cat" is one of his famous sculptures, and really shows that there is no limit when it comes to space and time.

BBQ in August, p-lease!

2009-07-01T05:32:00.003-05:00

There is one thing that I am definitely looking forward to upon my return to the states. Are you ready for it?

Drum roll please......

BBQ food.

I really do not care what my mom cooks up, but it MUST come from the BBQ grill. I want to have all my family over and have a thousand different side dishes and condiments all over the table. I want my mouth to water as I decide what else I can cram onto my plastic plate. I want to eat outside in the sun and drink a cold beer or lemonade. I can't wait to catch up with those I didn't get to see while I was home at Christmas, too.

Right now I would love some: BBQ ribs, a cheeseburger, some wedge fries, coleslaw, corn on the cob, potato salad, and some fruit salad.

Many of you may be reading this and saying "cook yourself some BBQ hun" but in Korea the closest I can get to BBQ is a whopper from Burger King.

Either way, I am geeked for my trip home in August. My mouth and taste buds just can't wait!

Go Away Swine Flu:

2009-06-29T20:56:00.005-05:00

Last week we got word that our company, which has thirty locations across Korea, was going to limit traveling out of Korea during our summer vacation this year. Actually, let me rephrase that, they want us to cancel our trips out of Korea this summer. Their response being, "it's better to be safe, than sorry".

Unfortunately a few weeks back, when the Swine Flu was at its prime, a teacher from the US brought the disease to Korea. She had recently been to Mexico, and had been in a training session with around thirty other Westerners. This brought upon fear that she gave the flu to the other thirty teachers and they were all locked away together for a seven day quarantine. It was interesting to read their blogs and hear their personal account of the quarantine. Many of them had no clue what was going on, but knew they couldn't leave and had to wear a mask at all times. Some compared the seven days to being locked in cell as they described the hard bed and white walls.

This pandemic turned into one of the largest English schools in Korea closing down for 2 weeks and resulting in them losing millions of dollars.

I think my company is fearing that if we all go on vacation this summer, our company will, in turn, have to close down too. But here is my question-- if I can't go on vacation, can the kids still go on vacation? Unfortunately, Korea has a really bad way of announcing things. What I gather from what I read is that Koreans believe that ONLY white people can actually get the swine flu. Or that we are more prone then they are.

Either way, I am still planning to travel to Cambodia during summer vacation. Maybe I'm not taking the swine flu seriously, but I can't imagine cancelling my trip over something that isn't as prevalent as it was two months ago.

It's Raining Men!

2009-06-28T20:07:00.003-05:00

This morning I woke up to the sound of rain hitting my window. I don't mind rain and I especially enjoy it when I can roll over and go back to sleep. However, when it's time to get up and commute to work- rain is a commuters worst enemy.

I couldn't find my umbrella, so I grabbed a sweatshirt and braved the rain. When I got to the bottom of my building, I realized that I was going to need an umbrella. I darted into the convenient store across the street and to my surprise the song "It's Raining Men" was blaring. I kinda giggled, purchased my new umbrella, and was on my way to work.

As I splashed in the puddles in a hurry to get to work, I wondered just how many of us really wished that it did rain men!

3 days:

2009-06-25T03:10:00.003-05:00

That's right folks, this is the third day that I've had an "on and off" again fever. My fevers have fluctuated between 100.1 and 102.4 since Tuesday.

I finally was able to get in to see a doctor today. She claimed that the fevers were being caused by a bacterial infection in my tonsils. Since I've had a bacterial infection in my tonsils more than 3 times already this year, she recommends that I get my tonsils OUT. eek! I'm sure that is going to go over well with my boss.

Either way, she gave me a shot in the bum and a prescription for five days. Here I thought I was on my way to recovery. I took the pills three times already today, and guess who still has a fever at 5:14 pm?! Yep, that's me.

Maybe it's more serious than just a tonsil infection?? I see a weekend full of rest and sleep in the near future.

Former D.C. intern failure...

2009-06-19T09:32:00.010-05:00

At one point in my life I was on this fast track to being an adult. I wanted to grow up, finish college, and move on to law school. I had big dreams and hopes for my future and nothing was going to stand in my way.

I decided that I was going to move to Washington D.C. for at least one semester in college to network. I was determined and thought the experience would assure myself a job for when I graduated from my small, private Liberal Arts University. I assumed moving to D.C. and interning was going to give me the "golden ticket" to a bright and promising political career.

I was twenty years old, a sophomore in college, and probably a little too cocky for my own good. I applied for a few internship programs that I found online. One afternoon I came across one through the Fund For American Studies. I read their headline "Live. Learn. Intern In DC for a Semester".

I applied immediately without any thought. How could I turn this opportunity down: Spend a semester in Washington, D.C. and gain the experience and insight you need to succeed. Serve as an intern in the nation's capital in the fall or spring while taking classes at Georgetown University. Designed for undergraduate students interested in U.S. politics and American government, Capital Semester can serve as a great way to kick-off your career in politics.

Three weeks after applying, I was notified via mail and email that I was part of a select group of twenty students who would be moving into the furnished apartment in our Nation's capital for the spring 2005 semester. Who knew that the other twenty students would be some of the brightest minds I've ever met and representing some of the top schools in the US: Brown, Boston College, University of Texas, and William & Mary to name a few.

The only downfall to the whole process was that we had to decide where we wanted to intern. The program would set up our interviews, and all we had to do was seal the deal. I was about to backpack in Europe with a friend from high school two weeks before my big move to DC. I needed to find an internship, have my interview over the phone, and pack for both DC and Europe! With that said, finding my internship was the least of my concerns (unfortunately) At the end of the day, I decided to take a job with the Association of Manufacturer's- the nation's oldest and largest broad-based industrial trade association. I had a feeling it wasn't going to be the right fit for me, but was sucked in during my phone interview.

The point I'm trying to get at is that this semester in D.C. was suppose to open big doors for me. Without saying too much, I guess I didn't take my semester there as seriously as I should have. While I could say that a big part of it was me being twenty and that being my first internship, I'll save the excuses for another rainy day.

I still get emails and updates from the Fund For American Studies. When I first graduated college, I sent them a small donation as I genuinely enjoyed my time in D.C, at Georgetown, and in my internship.

Today I was reading the most recent article from TFAS. It was about a 2007 University of Oklahoma graduate who participated in one of the programs through TFAS in 2006. Her internship experience at the National Association of Chained Drug Stores led to a real job after graduation as an advance representative for former Secretary Michael Chertoff at the Department of Homeland Security. After that, she interned in the former First Lady Laura Bush's office. This experience gave her the opportunity to go on to actually work for George Bush.

I'm not jealous of this girl, but it does make me wish that I could go back and do things again. I know it's not healthy to live with regret, but knowing what I know now, I'd be more concerned with my internship and my classes and less concerned with who was going to happy hour after work.

Sigh, such is life.

Shh, It's a Secret.

2009-06-18T10:14:00.007-05:00

I've been cheating, and it's not what you think. For the past few years I've been an avid coffee drinker. Especially the past two years as I work ten and eleven hour work days week after week- coffee is the key ingredient to me getting through each day. I love Starbucks and even after a visit home at Christmas where my mom bought me a french press, I still couldn't cheat on my beloved Starbucks.

I used my french press for about a month, until I realized "Hey! I don't smoke, I hardly drink, I'm allowed to spend $5 a day at Starbucks!" I carefully put my french press back into the box, and into the cabinet where it's been since February.

Recently, I've been a cheater. I think I've made the switch from Starbucks to The Coffee Bean. I think there is a chain of Coffee Bean's on the West coast, but we don't have them in Chicago (at least that I am aware of!) However, they are all over Seoul. Seoul has more chain coffee shops then any other city I've ever been too.

I don't know whether their coffee beans are covered in gold or what, but their coffee (iced or hot) is delicious. I definitely recommend their ice blended coffee for a hot summer day.

With nineteen international locations, I can enjoy The Coffee Bean all throughout Asia- from Seoul all the way to Dubai!

Which do you prefer?

What Are you Doing?

2009-06-16T11:09:00.003-05:00

One word: Twitter.

While it's a catchy little word, and makes me think of the lyrics "all the little birdies going tweet, tweet, tweet"- I do not think that Ray is going to be tweeting anytime soon.

In an attempt to phase out social networking in order to focus more on my future and life decisions, I shouldn't add twitter to my list of obsessions.

I've held off this long, I think I've convinced myself that I don't need it.

Are you on twitter? Maybe it'd help me network?

WANTED:

2009-06-08T09:04:00.006-05:00

I have been wanting a puppy for the longest time-which may come as a surprise to most. If you've ever been around me while a dog is present, I usually run in the other direction. It's no secret, I am terrified of large dogs. I have narrowed it down to two possible incidents that have scarred me for life.

When I was in kindergarten I had this best friend named Chris. If I remember correctly, Chris had a dog- either that or Chris' neighbor had a dog. One summer day I spent the night at his house. I remember that we were making smores and we were going to camp in the backyard at his house. One of us thought it was a good idea to climb the fence and before I knew it, a huge dog sunk his teeth into my beefy butt. It was painful and I cried.

Growing up my next door neighbor and I were best friends. Many may remember us as "peas and carrots" as her grandparents always referred to us. She had a very friendly dog growing up named Sandy. Annie also had the coolest tire swing known to man in her back yard. Annie and I would play on the tire swing all the time. It was connected to this huge tree house that she had in her back yard. Think about the cool tree houses that you see in the movies, etc. - that's the kind Annie had. Wow, now that I'm writing about it- that tree house is a huge part of my childhood. I had my first kiss there, my second kiss there, and probably my third. Anyways, the point of the story is that Annie would tell her dog Sandy to "sick" me while I was turning and turning on the tire swing. It would go so fast and I just remember the blurred image of the dogs growling teeth at me.

Although I have always been afraid of dogs, I really want my very own. I think I may go and look for one this weekend. My ideal situation would be to rescue one from an animal hospital. I want to adopt a little dachshund and I want to name him Maxwell.

I hope that he'll be as cute as this:

Just in Case You Were Curious:

2009-06-07T07:18:00.008-05:00

Last week I had to take a double look at the calendar. Was it really June already, and if so; how did that happen? After asking my co-worker if it were really June, I sighed and went back to planning for my day. Either way, after a nice weekend, I am out of my funk and ready to update.

Some Updates:

I. Life: Overall, life is good. The weather has been nice and I've been getting out and about more than normal. Nothing makes me happier than the smell of flowers in the air, sunshine, and being able to wear shorts and sandals outside.

This past weekend I went to a small GLBT film festival here in Seoul. I saw the movie "Ciao" which was a really great film about loss, bonding, and love. I don't want to give away the movie, but more or less a man dies unexpectedly and leaves behind two men: One being his best friend Jeff and the other Andrea, an Italian man that he fell in love with over the Internet. It's worth watching if you can get your hands on it.

Other than enjoying the scenes in and around Seoul, I have been catching up on some reading and downloading some new music.

II. Work: Work is work. I still work over 50+ hours a week, and it never gets easier. Even though I go to work Monday with a positive attitude, it's usually down hill from there. I don't know what is more difficult- working with 15 other North Americans who butt heads on a constant basis, or teaching six years old! However, at the end of the day I love the kids I teach- I love teaching, I love being in the classroom, I love challenging myself through challenging the kids. I think most days I am good at what I do, and perhaps I've found my calling. However, other days I doubt myself and my abilities, but then again, who doesn't!?

Last March I re-signed my contract for an extra semester. Right now I am contracted to stay through the end of the semester in August. Recently, my boss asked me to stay throughout the remainder of the school year (so until the end of August). At first I really didn't think I wanted to stay. Part of me knows that I can find a job making more money and working less hours a week, but part of me is already attached to my students and the school I am working at. After talking it over with my best friend here in Seoul, Ivania, and my mom, I think I've decided to stay. It was a tough decision to make, but maybe it's the best one for me right now. Hopefully, with some upcoming changes that are going to happen soon at work; I will feel better, relaxed, and ready for the rest of the year!

III. Love: As some of you know, JH and I broke up in the beginning of April. I'm sure many of you saw it coming, as did I. I wasn't sure how long it would take me to get over him and us, but today I feel very good about it. Breaking up was the best thing for us, and I am sure we are both happier in our lives now. After spending a year and a half with someone, it's tough to just not talk to them any more. While we haven't seen each other since the breakup, we have talked on the phone a few times. At one point we had something truly special, and I will never forget that.

Recently I started dating again. I wasn't sure if I was ready, but I am now convinced that I am. I met someone recently who I really enjoy spending time with. We've gone to a few movies together, out to eat a few times, and have spent a few romantic nights just at home watching TV or movies. I like that "feeling" you get on the inside when you meet someone new, and the silly grin left on your face after the first kiss. *sigh* I'm a hopeless romantic, I can't help it :)

IV: Travel: In May, I spent a weekend in Taiwan. We only had enough time to check out the capital city, Taipei. Taipei is interesting in the fact that it housed many temples that were different from others I've seen in Asia. They were colorful and detailed- each temple told it's own story. We went to a Confucius temple, and it was by far my favorite. However, I wasn't too impressed with the smell at times and the lack of community. One thing I really like about Seoul is that each neighborhood has its own "vibe". I definitely couldn't see myself living in Taipei, and it made me glad that I live in Seoul.

I'm spending June in Korea. I am hoping to hit up the beach in Busan for some reading and relaxing, but I have no expectations for this month.

In July I'm heading to Cambodia. I am getting quite excited for this trip. I leave on July 25th and have a direct flight from Seoul to Phnom Penh. I'll spend Saturday, Sunday, and Monday in Phnom Penh seeing the sites and hopefully doing some volunteer work. I'm staying at this really cute boutique hotel in the center of the city. Check out the link here: http://www.thepavilion.asia/homeeng.htm

Anyways, on Tuesday the 28th I'm taking a quick flight from PP to Siem Reap where I'll be the rest of my trip. Aside from hanging out at my hotel, I plan to check out Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples. Also, I am going to take a cooking class or two. I have zero expectations for this trip, and I am going to just go with the flow. I'm going to write in my leather bound journal each day, take as many pictures as possible, and do some much needed reading and reflecting. I'm hoping the rain storms stay away and I'll get to see the sun rise over Angkor Wat at least once.

In addition, I'll be making a VISIT to Chicago on August 26th. I can't wait to catch up with family and friends. More to come on this in a later post.

V: The Future: Sometimes I still do not know what the future holds for me. However, I am starting to have a clearer vision of what I want to do with my life, where I want to live, and what I want to be when I finally "grow up". I know that I can't stay in Korea forever, but each day I remind myself that I am still young and I still have a long life ahead of me. I know that I want to settle down soon, I know that I want a family, and I know that I want to go back to school to be a teacher in the US. Each day I have to remind myself of my goals, and I am working toward making them a reality in the very near future.

VI: Odds and Ends: Yesterday, while I was having some coffee at Coffee Bean with Jin, a lady approached me and asked if she could interview me. Her name was Julia Kim and she works for TBS eFM, a radio station here in Seoul. At first I wanted to say no, however, after giggling to myself I decided to go ahead with it. Each week Julia has to interview four foreigners for a segment of a radio show that is aired on Thursday mornings at 10 am (Seoul time). Her interview took about 5 minutes and it was quite pain-less. I had to say hello, who I was, and I had to ask a question and put in a song request. My question was: "Where can I take a traditional Korean cooking class that is in English?" but today after thinking about it I wish I had asked about volunteer opportunities here in Seoul for foreigners. Ah well, I'll have to put my googling skills to good use. Oh yeah, my song quest was "Happiness" by The Fray.

In other recent news: I was accepted to both programs I applied to in the states for a second Master's degree in Education. I was accepted into St. Xavier's Elementary Education program as well as the University of Illinois' Master's of Teaching History program. I decided early last week though that I will decline St. Xavier and defer U of I until Fall 2010, if possible.

Lately, I've really wanted to do some volunteer work. I was hoping there would be a program like Big Brother's Big Sister's here in Seoul, but I've yet to find one. Maybe this is a sign that I should start one here?!?! I wonder if I could. I should get looking into logistics for this.

And with ALL that said, until next time......

Funk:

2009-06-01T20:47:00.000-05:00

I'm in a funk. again.

Help me get out of it.

Lonely Boy:

2009-05-30T10:09:00.002-05:00

Sometimes it's a little lonely here in Seoul. Sometimes I blame myself, and other times I put the blame on a million and one other things.

You'd think that living in a foreign country it'd be easy to make friends..... I'm sure it's easy for most to make friends, but for me, it's always been hard (at least the past two years).

I've always considered myself a nice, social, and genuine guy, but I have a hard time trusting people and I question every one's intentions. Maybe because of this, I sabotage my relationships with people. Is it intentional? No, not one bit. Unfortunately, I tend to come across a lot of foreigners who are just not genuine here in Korea. Everyone is here for a different reason, and sometimes I have to remind myself why I am still here.

Either way, it's never fun to spend Saturday night at home alone. Especially when it's the beginning of summer and the nights are breezy and beautiful.

I need to fix this.

Signing out....

-Lonely Boy

Taipei: Thru My Lens

2009-05-26T21:26:00.007-05:00

Just a few snaps from my recent trip to Taipei, Taiwan:

Picture 1: Jen found in the lonely planet this little cafe called Chocoholic. It was sensational and I definitely recommend you find it if you are ever in Taipei.

Picture 2: One of the trees at the Confucius temple. It's a pretty cool shot and makes me excited for Cambodia!

Picture 3: Inside the Confucius Temple- it was my favorite, actually.

Picture 4: A snap from the Taipei Eye -- an acrobatic show and Peking Opera

Picture 5: One of the characters in the Peking Opera. He reminded me of a character from something else, but I couldn't put my finger on who!

Picture 6: Me at the Opera wearing a traditional Taiwanese hat.

Picture 7: Longshan Temple. One of the more famous ones in Taipei. We went at 5 pm when it was super busy. This is when people bring offerings of: food, flowers, money, etc.

Picture 8: Inside the Taipei 101. This picture was taken with the wind damper. Yes, you may ask "What the heck is that" -- it's used to offset movements in the building caused by strong gusts of wind.

Picture 9: A view of the busy street from the world's tallest building.

Picture 10: Taipei 101 from a distance. The World's tallest building since 2004.

Picture 11: Memorial Hall

Picture 12: Tien-Ho Temple. It said in the lonely planet that "if you blinked your eyes, you might miss out on Tien-Ho". We loved it!

Smorgasbord:

2009-05-25T10:40:00.002-05:00

I'm back from Taipei and I am ecstatic that I went. I had a great time and took a lot of snazzy snaps with the ol' Nikon.

In other news, Korea is really racking up the news links on CNN. Between the former President committing suicide, another missile test in North Korea, tons of protests here in Seoul, and 30+ ENGLISH teachers being quarantined because of swine flu--- I just do not know what to think!

I will say that if I came over to teach English here in Korea and I were quarantined only after a week, that would be the "end all be all" for me. I'd definitely be on a plane home after being in a white, four wall room for 7+ days. It's interesting how they've publicly released some of the teacher's blogs. I like how they retell their own side of the story leading up to the actual quarantine. What they assumed was merely a random check up as a precautionary measure, turned into something much larger. The sad thing is that most of these people are innocent bystanders that were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Read more here (It's definitely worth it): http://therubycanary.wordpress.com/

More to come later.

Season Finales: 2009

2009-05-22T09:55:00.007-05:00

It's what we live for- 23 or so episodes back to back, except on holidays and nights where major award nights are held. These 23 episodes make up one season of our favorite television shows. Whether your first pick is a comedy, a drama, or a reality show, we all find ourselves glued to our huge plasma TVs at least for one hour a night.

My favorites come in an assortment of genres- comedies, dramas, and reality. Without much further ado, my first ever critique of the season finales of some of the best shows on prime time. Beware, if you've yet to see the season finales- you may want to stop reading now:

*SPOILER'S ALERT*:

Brother's and Sister's:

Leading up the finale, I thought this season was the best yet. Between Kitty and Robert adopting a baby, Robert having a heart attack, Sarah trying to launch a small Internet company called "Greenatopia", and the introduction of Ryan Lafferty- this season never disappointed. What I love about Brother's and Sister's is how smart it is and how relate-able the characters are. While you may think that no family can be as crazy as the Walker's, I think all our families are a little bit like the Walker's.

However, I never was fond of Tommy and what he did with the money at Ojai to get Holly out. I hated that he left Julia and their child and went to Mexico. It was all a little too fantasy if you ask me. This is primarily the reason why I was not a huge fan of the finale. For starters, why wasn't it two hours long?! It was noble of Nora to go to Mexico to try to rescue her adult son from whatever mess he created, however, it was unrealistic when the entire Walker clan hopped on a plane and headed to Mexico.

I was hoping to see something more dramatic happen with Kitty and Robert. I was hoping that Kitty would come to her senses and leave Robert. He is never going to love her the way that he loves his job in the political world. Can a politician really love anything more than his career? The character of Alex was perfect, and the bond that he and Kitty shared was so special. I couldn't help but fall in love with him, just as Kitty was beginning to. It will be interesting to see how things pan out.

Overall, the season finale fell short compared to others. I was hoping for more, and I was left disappointed. The season as a whole definitely gets an "A", but this finale barely scores a "C".

Ugly Betty:

It's crazy to think that when Ugly Betty first aired, I hated the show. I couldn't stand MODE magazine and the cheesy characters. I never gave Ugly Betty a chance, and when I finally did, I could never turn back. Betty is one of the most real characters out there. I think we all wish we could be more like Betty, but are afraid to say it out loud.

The 2 hour season finale definitely didn't disappoint. I think the first half was better than the second half- but that is just my critique.

I was thrilled when Betty decided to move on from Henry. While I secretly loved Henry and never wanted him to move to Tucson, I also rooted for Gio in season 2. I was sad to see them both go. When Betty met Matt at YETI in season 3, I saw the sparks before they even existed-- although for a short time I thought she was going to have a fling with the musician who lived across the hall. Anyways, her and Matt were so right for each other, even when the truth started to come out- him being rich, having a famous father, having sex issues, etc.

When Daniel met Molly I never expected her to get cancer. But then again, we never expect any of the drama to happen. I was happy that Molly went after Daniel, and I was even happier that they got married the night of Betty's YETI project. However, I am terrified to see what happens next. Is she really gone or was it a crazy mix up? What will happen to Daniel?

More importantly, what is going to happen to Betty?! I really want things to work out with her and Matt. Is it fair for Matt to end it with her because he's not her first love? Having been in love more than once myself, I can completely relate to how Betty feels. It is possible to still love your first love even when you're in love with someone else. I'm glad Betty got the Feature's Editor job and I surely hope she gets the boy too.

Overall, two thumbs up.

Grey's Anatomy:

I will admit that there was a point in this season where I stopped watching Grey's- so I missed a few episodes here and there, however, toward the end of the season I was back to downloading it weekly on itunes. Let's simply focus on the finale. Wow.

I had read an article in February about the chance of Katherine Heigl and T.R. Knight leaving the show. Being two of my favorite characters on Grey's, I was horrified to see what would happen to the show without there being Izzie and George. Unfortunately, since I read that article I knew that the writers were going to have to do something out of the ordinary to write both of them off the show. First, Izzie gets cancer and it continues to spread despite surgeries and then George decides to join the Army. At the end of the finale though, there were no time of deaths called. There is still hope that our leading couple will be back for the next season.

I was blown away when Meredith realized that George was the "John Doe". It didn't really hit me that it could possibly be him until Dr. Bailey went to the chief to find out where George went. She shares her plan of action with the Chief and he tells Bailey that he let George go home to spend time with his mother. This is where it started to make sense for me. Right as George wrote 007 into Meredith's palm, my heart beat faster and tears rolled down my face.

On a happier note, Meredith decides to marry Derek (something we've wanted since they met at the bar in the first episode of season 1). Her and Derek exchanged vows over a Post-it note as a cheesy song played in the background. Simple and beautiful, maybe this is a new beginning for the both of them. Even Christina got a happy ending?!

Other than leaving us shocked with the ending, I thought the finale was a success. I really liked the play back to Izzie in the prom dress from the night Denny dies. I was expecting the door to open and it be Denny, but as you know, we see George instead. What this means is still to be determined, but we know that Izzie didn't get off the elevator. She, very much like Meredith, is a fighter. With that said, I'm not patient enough to wait to see what happens next.

Also, did anyone see the Pilot episode of Glee!? I enjoyed it, what did you all think?

70 percent is enough for me:

2009-05-21T20:10:00.003-05:00

I am feeling a little bit better today, so I will be getting on the plane tomorrow morning for Taipei!

It's going to be an exciting, jam-packed weekend!

I hope the weather holds up!

Bad News Bears:

2009-05-20T22:55:00.002-05:00

It seems like anytime I plan a trip, something goes wrong. Either the weather calls for a 100 percent chance of thunderstorms for every day that I'll be in that city, or there is a terrible plane wreck the day before somewhere in the world, or I get sick! This time around, it's the later.

On Monday I woke up with a very sore throat. I didn't think much of it, thinking that perhaps I got a cold from sleeping with my windows open. I took some dayquil and went to work. Tuesday morning I woke up and could hardly swallow. I felt like I was going to die, but went to work anyways. Half way through the day, I was burning up. After spending my 40 minute lunch break asleep in my bed at home, I decided to use my prep time to go to the doctor. I didn't even have my mouth open for 2 seconds, when he was like, "Ray, you definitely have tonsillitis". Maybe it was the white pus sacks that gave it away, ah? Either way, he gave me a nice injection in my bum to relieve the pain and prescribed a three day prescription. I was told to come back on Friday to determine my fate.

So it is now Thursday. I currently do not have a fever (although I did have a slight one last night before bed) but I do still have pus sacks on my tonsils and I still cannot swallow solid foods. I have to get on a plane at 9 am on Saturday morning for Taipei. The question of the day is- Do I go? Obviously there is a chance I might feel better come Saturday morning, but what if I don't? While I can still play tourist with a sore throat, what are the chances that I might get quarantined at the airport? I just do not want to spend my weekend in the Taipei airport because they are still doing screening for the swine flu.

Part of me wants to go regardless. If I can get through customs, at least I'll be out of Seoul (which is the whole point of the trip). If I have to spend the weekend in a hotel bed, that is better than nothing!

That's my rant for today. What do you guys think? Sink or swim?

Children's Day

2009-05-18T10:58:00.006-05:00

In South Korea, May 5th is officially recognized as Children's Day. While this is an important holiday for children, it's also important to us teachers. It meant that we were going to have our first day off of work since January. YES!

On Children's Day parents give presents to their children,

take the day off work, and spend as much time with them as possible. Obviously this is make up for the fact that they never see their fathers because they're always "working" and their mothers put them in academies from as early as 7 am until as late as midnight.

Many of my students went to the zoo, or took an extra day off and went to Jeju Island (Korea's Hawaii). Poly had a sports day for the kids and it was actually an awesome time.

Check out the photos, they speak for themselves.

Teacher's Day:

2009-05-18T10:17:00.002-05:00

Last Friday was Teacher's Day in Korea. Teacher's Day at Poly is almost like Christmas morning when you were a kid. The gifts pour in, the kids love you all day, and you have a silly grin on your face from 9-7 (at least I did).

Like I mentioned before, I love teaching kindergarten. 9:35-1:50 is the best part of my day, and even though many days I'm ready to put those kids on the bus at 1:50, I am always very happy to see them on Monday morning. They welcome me with a big "good morning" and a huge grin on their little six year old faces. I feel like Superman five mornings a week.

Friday, at first, was like any other day. I grabbed Starbucks and yogurt on my short 60 second walk to work. I prepped for my classes and did some marking, and then I made my way down the stairs to my class. I was greeted by three familiar faces: Johnny's Mom, Sean's Mom, and Stella's Mom! To my surprise they had a cake for me (a whole CAKE, who do they think I am!?) In addition, they had an envelope for me and a card. They all hugged me and told me how much they appreciated my hard work, etc. etc. You know, I'm not going to lie, I felt good. I waited until break time to open my gift, but I was shocked. The moms put a collection together and gave me a 200 dollar gift certificate to one of the department stores here in Seoul. I also got a 50 dollar gift card to Starbucks. You would think that was the end of it, right? My other kindergarten class gave me a 100 dollar gift certificate, a jacket from Zara, and Bulgari cologne. See, I told you it was like Christmas! Thanks to the generosity of my kindy moms, I happened to spend all my gift cards this weekend. I'm now the proud owner of some new running shoes (courtesy of Puma) a new watch from Levi's, and a few clothing purchases from the Gap.

I don't need gifts from the parents in order to know that I am doing a good job. Most days I love what I am doing, but the gifts are always a nice bonus.