You want me to do what?

My question for you is this: Does weird shit happen at home, but I just don't realize it's weird?

Jae Cheol got a phone call today from an old friend he hadn't seen in ages. This friend needed his help, or more specifically, his wife's help. That would be me.

Apparently, the friend is getting married in July. The thing is, his fiance has an ex-boyfriend who just doesn't get it. This guy has, can you believe it, called her! Why did they need my help, you ask. Well, apparently this guy is Chinese, studying in New Zealand, which is where the girl met him. I had to call this guy to explain in English why he could no longer call the girl. I was required to explain that this message had been passed down from the girl's father. The crazy thing is that it had! Yes, that's right, the father had taken Jae Cheol's friend aside to ask him to speak to the ex-boyfriend because he wanted to "protect his family."

So I called the guy and I felt like a rat the entire time I was talking to him. Jae Cheol tried all night to talk some sense into his "friend", especially after he told us that now he doesn't trust his girlfriend and is getting back at her by having a little something on the side!

This is all too much for me. I'm going to go spend some time reading Us Magazine. Celebrity entertainment is going to be a relaxing walk in the park compared to this lunacy.

Garden variety

Plants, plants, plants. I FINALLY bought some plants. I have been meaning to do it for quite some time now, but I just didn't make it a priority. Well, now I've gone and done it. I went to a lovely greenhouse near my school and bought three plants. I've also got my eye on a dozen more . . . and a tree. I love the smell of a greenhouse. It's not so much a smell as perfect air. A house (or tiny bachelor apartment,) is not a home without plants.

From the Botanical Garden Greenhouse in Montreal.

The Finished Product

Yes, that's right, it's very bare. We didn't have much choice as to where to put the furniture due to drafty windows and cable/electricity outlets. Whatever, it's nice because there's lots of space and I don't feel squished and cramped. Now that we've "unpacked" we're probably going to have to move next weekend. Mark my words, . . .

I just finished reading Beauty Tips from Moose Jaw by Will Ferguson. I really enjoyed it. I haven't seen much of Canada and this book has planted the seeds of an idea. It's fun being a tourist in your own country, especially since Canada is bigger than most countries. The best thing about the book is that it tells you the history of the places that the author writes about. That's exactly what I want to know when I'm traveling. I'm just going to stop talking because I'm not very articulate at 9:13pm. It's time to go to bed. Read this book and read too, The Lizard Cage by Karen Connelly. It will make you cry. I also bought Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood and it is a scary book. The environment's going to hell in a handbasket and this is where we're headed. I couldn't finish it. Too scary.

Any book suggestions? I don't want fluff, I want something intelligent. (This Book Will Change Your Life notwithstanding.)

Found it

A-ha! Mr. I-don't-know-where-it-is-I-didn't-see-it-or-touch-it and I have (finally) unpacked our boxes and decorated (a little bit). It's a wonderful feeling to be able to find all of my stuff but oh my goodness do I have a lot of stuff!

In the process of unpacking etc, we came across our camera cord, surprise, surprise. It "somehow" ended up in a box on the veranda. Here are the long awaited pictures of everything important.



First of all, the ever exciting Dong Jun, 2-year-old extrodinaire!

Then Kumiko and Sung Hyuk who were in Jae Cheol's English class in Canada.

Friends of Jae Cheol's getting married. They didn't know we were back and therefore got a surprised picture of the bride saying, and I quote, "oh, Melanie!"

Just for fun, looking forward to my 31th birthday next year!

(After finding the camera cord, it was then time to look for the actual camera in our newly reorganized apartment. Do you think we could find it? No. Do you think I blamed Jae Cheol? Yes. Do you think it was actually his fault? Not this time. . .)

Random thoughts

In no particular order:

• I love my eyebrows these days
• celebrity news entertainment makes me LAUGH
• we're out of cereal, a point which I only remember when I wake up in the morning so far away from a grocery store
• everything on my computer's in Korean
• I wonder what kind of stuff there is to see and do in Hong Kong for a weekend, . . .

Hayden, glorious Hayden!

I went to visit Melissa, Dong Jin and Hayden yesterday and the baby is absolutely even perfecter in person! Seriously, she's gorgeous, hilarious and smart as a fox. Alas, no camera cord so no pictures.

I want to throw a big, fat, hysterical, kicking, screaming, crying tantrum. I am so angry and it's all my f*#%ing fault.

Our computer died in Canada but before it did, I "copied" all of our pictures onto a cd. Turns out, I didn't. It didn't happen. The cd and my computer lied. I got nothin'. Nothing.

Hence the tantrum.

F2

I forgot to mention that I got my wife-visa with no hassle. All we did was show up and present the required documents. I got the visa and my ID card ten days later. In two years I will automatically become a landed immigrant. Very exciting.

uh oh, I have an idea, . . .

I've been looking at my pictures from Cambodia and Vietnam recently and I'm getting itchy feet again! (Don't tell my mom!!!!!!!) Update: Mom, don't worry. I'm not going anywhere.

It's true, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. Well, not another country that is. We may actually be moving soon. Or at least, that's what I've been led to believe. Jae Cheol and I are currently living in a bachelor apartment again but we've been told that should something bigger become available in the spring, we're going to move then. Well, that IS good, great and wonderful except for the fact that I want to unpack, decorate and make curtains NOW.

When we were in Canada I didn't really decorate cause I knew it was only going to be for a year. I absolutely restrained myself from buying housewares and that wasn't easy because I LOVE buying housewares. It just didn't make sense since I knew we were going to have to come back with all of our stuff packed into baggage restrictions. Well that is no longer the case now and I want to become domestic. I want to buy a comfy chair for reading and put it in the perfect spot. I want to invite people over and serve them delicious drinks or nachos. I want to have a place to put all of my linens and have enough hangers and closet space. The problem is that I'M STILL LIVING OUT OF A FRIGGEN' SUITCASE AND IT'S MAKING ME CRAZY!

I may just go ahead and decorate. TAKE THAT! My sanity's at stake here. And besides, moving from one house to another in the same city only requires putting everything you have into as many boxes as it takes. I can handle that. I won't mind doing it. It's the baggage restrictions and having to carry it all with you at once that's unappealing and will never be repeated, this I vow. (I had to, Jae Cheol made me do it.) Yes, that's right. I will never move all of my stuff from one country to another again! I won't have to, I've discoverd the convenience of international shipping. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Oh yeah, I still can't find the computer cord so there will be no new pictures at this time.

Lazy arse

I haven't been as inspired to blog since I stopped being forced to sit in front of the computer everyday. Well, that's not true, I wrote something truly funny and inspirational with a picture of the grandfather-baby, but apparently Blogger disapproved and destroyed it. Let's try again.

First update: I turned 30, Yippee.

Jae Cheol and I arrived in Korea on the eve of my 30th b.day. We decided to drink immediately after bringing our giant luggage up to the 4th floor walk up. Apparently we were so excited to be back in Korea that we drank ourselves stupid and my actual birthday was spent in my new apartment's bathroom. Happy Birthday to me.


(Please note the thousands of bottles of soju on the table. I'm surprised I'm not blind!)








Well, I've fully recovered and am really enjoying my new job here in Korea. I took this job because I had a feeling that I would enjoy working here and it's all working out swimmingly. Jeff and Julia are both wonderful teachers and really supportive and fun to work with. I have a key to the school and I sometimes come in early to prepare extra stuff for my classes. It's exactly how I thought it would be. *sigh*

Jae Cheol and I have visited the fam at least every weekend and they are a riot. Well, mostly the baby is a riot. I've nicknamed him "screamy baby". That's because every time I visit, the first time he sees me he screams with delight! There's no better sound than that, let me tell you! I have translated it into: "oh goody, the fun is here!" I will post all of the pictures that I have taken of him when I find the camera-computer cord.

Jae Cheol is currently searching for a job. He's had two interviews and is stressed out like I've never seen him. He is also obsessed with keeping our (bachelor) apartment clean. Everytime I leave the house, the stuff I had gets put away in weird places, (hence not being able to find the camera-computer cord.) I only thank him for his cleaning because I'm afraid he may explode otherwise.

I am definitely happy about my decision to come back to Korea. The job says it all. I miss everybody though and you know who you are. Big kisses!