I've Been Sleeping Around

Since October 2008, I've been sleeping around.

I've slept on planes and trains, on boats and in busses, on sticky floors, couches, air-mattresses, no-mattresses, Thai bungalows, African huts, Korean dorm rooms, hostel bunks, fancy hotels, love motels, roach motels, and B&Bs. I've slept out in the sticks in Asia, the suburbs in Canada, the bush in South Africa, and the cul-de-saq where I grew up.

Last night, for the first time in over 27 months, I slept in my own bed.

I finally caved in and went digging through storage to get it.

Let's pause to reflect on the gloriousness of the moment...

... ... ...

You never really feel like you're home until you're sleeping in your own bed.

Ahhh, it's good to FINALLY be home!

..too bad I won't be sleeping here for long...

Time For A Change

Things that I do now, that I never did before Korea:

• squeegee the floor after every shower
• roll up my pants before going into a bathroom
• duck when turning on a bathroom sink
• only eat the inside of grapes and leave behind little purple grape carcases
• contemplate my options at toilet paper vending machines
• hear the difference between "Hyundai" and "Haeundae"
• refer to kimchi as "pretty good"
• drink aloe juice, and like it.
• use words like "pagey" "changey" and "lunchy"
• get annoyed if I have to pay more than 2200 won ($2.20) for a taxi
• consider "hello kitty" socks + flip flops acceptable business footwear
• Push when I want to Pull, Pull when I would Push, Lift when I want to Lower, Twist when I would Close... every instinct is opposite here!
• Alpha-numeric Sudoku. I've become a sudoku wizard! 9x9 puzzles with just numbers no longer cut it. I've moved on to 16x16 with letters and numbers. It's definitely a challenge. They should keep me busy for the next month or so... after that, no idea how I'll entertain myself at work.

so many options... what to choose, what to choose?

Daily Life in Korea

Here is my routine..

5:30am- wake up. Hit snooze. Repeat.

6:45am- snooze is now broken... disassemble battery from alarm clock while still asleep.

7:15am- wake up in a panic wondering why my alarm never went off. Turn on water heater.

7:20am- jump into the shower.

7:35am- squeegy the puddles from the floor into the floor drain

7:40am- get ready for school

8:15am- shove a scoop of peanut butter down my throat (try to convince myself that it's actually a decent breakfast)

8:20am- run out the door. Curse at the elevator for taking so long. Power walk to school.

8:33am- Arrive at school. Only 3 minutes late, hell, that's practically on time!

9:00am- Start classes. Repeat the words: Hi, Hello, Hello, Hi, Hi, Hi, Bye, Hello, Hello, Hi, Hello, about a million times. Sing the damn ABC song just as many times.

12:20pm- Lunch. Push rice around my plate with chopsticks. Try to hide octopus and squid in my soup bowl so no one notices I didn't eat anything.

1:20pm- back to class. Repeat the following phrases over and over: No, I don't speak Korean...Yes, I live at Chong Ho too... No, I don't remember my phone number. (because that's what I need... 4th graders texting me all night long.)

2:20pm- After school classes. Try my damnedest to wrangle these kids who would rather be anywhere but here. Give up and play hangman until their hearts content.

3:30pm- Sit at my desk. Stare aimlessly at the clock. Write silly little blogs and check facebook 350 times.

4:30pm- Walk home. Wave to the people leaning out the hospital windows smoking cigarettes. Stop by the little market and pick up a few veggies and something to drink.

4:50pm- Wash my hands repeatedly. Damn germy little vermon! Must not get sick again!!!

5:00pm- Head out to the trails... running, biking, anything to clear my head.

6:30pm- Come home and shower. Forget that I opened the corridor window earlier and now all my neighbors can see me naked. Hmmm... rig up some contraption so I can keep the window open without people seeing in.

7:00pm- Paint, watch tv, think about what to eat for dinner.

8:00pm- Cook dinner. Usually involving chicken, onions, greenpeppers and garlic (those are the veggies my little market sells!)

10:30pm- Get on Skype and talk to my mom and sis... and anyone else that drops by my mom's house!

11:00pm- Watch episode after episode of CSI.... catch Man vs. Wild if I'm super lucky!

2:00am- Curse at myself for being a tv junkie and force myself to go to bed!

Repeat 5x a week...

except on Wednesdays. That involves me taking a bus 30 min outside town and repeating the phrase "No punching, fighting, kicking, hitting...."