Lessons for 2012

Hello.  I’ve made a habit of writing down my lessons learned at the end of each year but truly this year, I don’t think I have any.  Of course there have been little things along the way, but nothing blog worthy. 2011 was a pretty enjoyable year for me.  I have absolutely no complaints.  (I figure after surviving 2009 and 2010 with as much grace as I could possibly muster, Karma owed me a good one.)

Back in Korea Update

I've been ordered to blog.  Apparently, I've been slacking.  My apologies.

In chronological order....

1.  I had the most amazing trip home.  Words cannot even begin to describe it.  I've never been so at peace in St Louis in my 30 years of life.  It was simply perfect. I had two weeks with family there and of course, that still didn't seem like enough.  I could have happily stayed a month.  Other than celebrating Christmas a few weeks early and meeting my nephew for the first time, nothing really of merit happened.  I was just able to enjoy the relaxed company of family, slept, and ate (a lot).  It was bliss.  I love my family.

Birthdays In The Park

I never wrote a blog about this but I really meant to.  A few weeks back we had a birthday party in the park to celebrate all the June birthdays in my little group.  The most important birthday of course being Charles’.

Red, White & Black Days of Korea

Koreans love love.  They love being in love and wearing matching outfits, straight down to matching undies. They love having clothes, and notebooks, and pencil boxes designed in love themes. And they love celebrating love which is evident in their ridiculous amount of holidays created purely in the sake of love.

While everyone is familiar with Valentine’s Day being February 14, Korea has a different take on it. V-Day is also known as Red Day.  This is the day when a woman is expected to give chocolates and gifts to the man in her life.  Simple enough

The Revival of Steak Day

Steak Day is a long lost, but very important, tradition.  It is celebrated each year on February 14 by single women everywhere.  Well, in my small social network anyway.  The concept is simple, Steak Day is the one day each year in which you celebrate the cow and all the wonderful things it brings to our lives.  After all, the cow is a vital part of our daily existence.  They provide us with wonderful groceries from milk and Babybel cheeses, to Big Macs and filet mignon.  All of which are important to survival.

New Year’s Resolution

I’m not a believer in New Year’s.  I don’t even think it’s a real holiday and everyone knows that resolutions are made only to be broken. However, I looked forward to the end of 2010, and more importantly, the beginning to 2011 with more enthusiasm and heart than I have ever wanted anything in my life.  It’s the start of a new year- 2011, the year I turn 30, the year that I spend in South Korea rewriting my life story.  Maybe this is just the year to make a resolution and make sure that I do everything in my power to never break it.  I have no idea what the next 10 months will hold for me, but I was inspired by the restaurant where Marisol and I had lunch today.  

Time Machines and (Re)Potty Training

Me:     “If you could go anywhere in a time machine, where would you go?”

Student:   “Mom.” and she points to her belly.

Me:      “What?”

Student:    “Mom.”  Then makes a pregnant belly shape with her hands.

Me:      “In your mom’s stomach? When she was pregnant?”

Student    “Yes.”

Me:      “Why?”

Student:    “Daddy,” she says with a smile.

Me:       “Not how. Whhhhhyyyyyy?”  As I am barely able to hold myself up from laughing so hard.

Student:    “Oh. It’s warm there.”

Two Months Down…

Has it really been two months already?  That’s seems unbelievable but it’s what the calendar says so I must be true.  I honestly forget on a daily basis that I am living in South Korea.  That’s how normal it is here.  It feels more like Christmas this year than it has for me the last 7 years in Orlando.  The lights decorating store windows, the music playing in  the coffee shops, the snow… It’s Christmas time in SoKo.

On a side note, I think I’m losing my marbles.  Maybe it’s all the snow and Christmas music. Maybe it’s because my class schedule had a complete overhaul this week and my students have been bouncing off the walls. Maybe it’s starting to occur to me just how fast a year abroad can really fly by.  Or maybe just too many English Breakfast tea lattes.  I’m way above my average coffee intake.  Whatever the cause, a few of my classes have come this week expecting me to deliver on promises that I have absolutely no memory of making. 

Bibimbap and the Ballet

What a lovely Sunday.  I love the ballet so when I found out The Nutcracker was in Daejeon, for this weekend only, I had to go.  I had four days to figure out the venue, how to get there, how to buy tickets, and hopefully some people also interested in going. I had a mission. I was not going to miss this show. After spending thirty minutes trying to understand the bus map I gave up and took off on the subway. There is a stop remotely close to the theatre, I’m smart, I’ll figure it out.  A short subway ride and a LONG walk in the cold later I found it.  And thanks to Facebook I was able to find 5 lovely people who also wanted to go.

 

Thanksgiving - Korea Style

Because I’ve been living away from home for so many years the idea of the not being home for holidays isn’t as traumatic as most seem to think. I love my family but I don’t think anyone can truthfully say that holidays are the happiest of times together anyway.  With the great company and great food comes great stress and inevitably great arguments.  (Every family is like this, don’t act like yours is any different.) I made it a point to spend a few good days with everyone in my family before I set off to SoKo a little over a month ago, so I’m ok with spending my holidays with a huge group of foreigners (literally and figuratively.) 

Halloween, in pictures

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Part of this whole Korea idea is to get myself out doing things that I wouldn’t normally do.  Halloween is one of those things.  I love the holiday in concept but I am not the dressing up and going out kind of girl.  I much prefer to help get the kids in costume, then play with trick-or-treaters and eat candy all night.