New Addition

As almost anyone on Facebook can tell, this post is going to be about our new bunny, Theodore. I've always wanted a rabbit for as long as I can remember, but when I was a kid my parents always said no. So I never really thought that I would be able to have, or know how to take care of one. But, he's so cute and sweet, and potty trained, I don't think we could've asked for a better rabbit.


Theodore is no pet store bunny, at least not for us. Someone that works in J's office had him, but was sent to a different base down south, and since pets aren't allowed in the barracks she had to leave him behind to find a new home. In all honesty I didn't want a pet while we were here, mainly because it would feel like I was cheating on Luna. My dear, sweet, kitty cat couldn't come with us since we would be unable to get her medication over here, and I was completely heartbroken to leave her behind. I'm pretty sure I cried harder over leaving her than anything else. I mean I've had her for almost twelve years, and she's the most amazing cat in the world. J wanted to get me a kitten but I wasn't having it, and that pretty much put an end to all talks of getting a pet.

All of that changed after seeing how cute this little bunny is, and hearing how if he didn't find a home soon he was going to be released into the wild the next night, I knew we had to take him. And it was instant love after that. He snuggles, and hops back and forth on the couch building up enough static to shock J. He eats treats and carrots right out of your hand (the carrots have to be room temperature). He's not a big fan of lettuce though, and last night J had to remind me that Theodore is in fact a bunny, and not a small dog. I can't help that I find the urge to feed him people food to see what he likes. I mean who doesn't like spaghetti? And he totally chased J around last night for the package of Teddy Grahams, but that might have more to do with the fact that the packaging resembles his treats bag, than the Teddy Grahams themselves. Ok, I'm gushing, but he's just so awesome and sweet, and I love him. =)

Wanna Go?

No, Songtan Sally, my husband would not like to "go" but thanks for asking.


You see, Songtan Sally is a local prostitute here, or rather a pimp. After being here for a month I find myself strangely saddened by the fact that I've only seen this woman twice, and at no time did J allow me to take a photo of her. If only I had a working Blackberry, or perhaps an iPhone so that I could be more conspicuous while trying to take a picture of a living legend. This woman has been around for years, well decades actually, and she goes around approaching men with two small words, "wanna go." 


I really have no idea why I find her so fascinating and well amusing, but I do. I mean I heard about her all the way in North Carolina, long before I ever moved here. Well, not too long before because J was already living here, but still. I'm not going to life though, the thought of standing too close to her does strike a fear in me. I'm terrified that whatever type of STD's she's carrying could mutate and become airborne. Maybe that's why every time I try to get J to go stand outside of Baskin Robbins so I can see her from the safety of the store window he won't do it. All I'm saying is, what's the point in having a husband if he won't lure a hooker close enough for you to see. Obviously, he wouldn't be leaving with her, and I wouldn't want him to get into any kind of trouble for being around her. I just wish I could hear her speak one good time. After all, the first time I really saw her we were at Baskin Robbins with a few friends and I found myself staring at her in amazement as she wandered back and forth looking for someone to take her up on her offer. It wasn't until she started staring back that I got a little creeped out. Can you tell the only place I've ever seen her was Baskin Robbins? 


Anyways, without further delay I'd like to present you with a picture of Ms Songtan Sally that I found on Google images. Yay Google!! This picture is from her myspace page. 

So after all this, I feel like I need to start a Sally watch, just to keep track of how often I see her.  I'll have to call it Sally Watch 2010. It sounds so catchy.

Nesting

Since I've been here all I've really felt is the urge to nest, and to have my own tv. Our apartment is great and it's way more than anything I could've imagined we would be living in, but it didn't really feel like home. I mean it was homey enough but it didn't feel like it was my home. It's amazing what a difference a few belongings will make. And when I say a few, I mean almost all. 

Yesterday all of our stuff finally made it here and after three hours of unpacking it actually looks like we're going to live here rather than just visit. I mean we finally have two tvs and our cabinets are full of pots and pans and various other cooking utensils that I have truly missed. We also have more than one comforter to fit our bed and more dishes and drinking glasses than we know what to do with. But, as is always the case with us things don't always go as smoothly as possible, and we always end up with a great story to tell. 

So, when the movers were bringing our stuff in one of the security guards from our apartment complex came in and was trying to talk to us, but since we don't know Korean we were having a hard time understanding him. He kept taking Jason's hand and smiling and walking him around the apartment. Finally the security guard said something to one of our movers and it turns out he wanted to check our bathroom for something. So he goes in, walks around looks in the toilet, pulls back the shower curtain, and leaves with an empty roll of toilet paper. Um..thanks, sir. I wonder what he was looking for.

Thankfully all of this unpacking business was on trash day, which has to be a whole post of its own. But here are some pics of our boxes as they were bringing them in.

Dance in the Dark

Maybe it wasn't so much a dance as it was a trip, a stumble, and a slip across the cold wood floor. All of these things can only add up to one thing..I woke up to my first power outage. I'll be the first one to admit that it's quite entertaining when you wake up and have no idea what's going on. I was sleeping so peacefully when I heard the shower turn off and my favorite four letter expletive being yelled from the other side of the bathroom door, followed by an unfamiliar light shining in the living room. I'm sure my first thought was probably something along the lines of alien invasion, I mean I don't even believe in aliens so that would've been really crazy. But lucky for me J was yelling something about getting a flash light so I pulled it together enough to make that happen. 


After stumbling around and pulling J's uniform out of the closet we found out it wasn't just us without power, apparently it was the whole complex. Or that the very least the people right around us, because you could see their emergency lights from our laundry room. Who knew we had emergency lights? I mean the thought is kind of exciting, I've never lived in a place with emergency lights before. And the whole time we've lived here J had been trying to find the light switch to this light that sits right above our intercom display. We do have about a million light switches, so it was possible that he never hit the right one.


While we were waiting for J's cab to come the I started to wonder how the door was going to open since you have to push a button for it to work. I mean what would've happened if we were locked in the apartment with no heat (the floors are heated and run off gas, but it has a thermostat which I'm guessing is electric), no internet, and no tv. I'm pretty sure I would be bored and crazy by the end of the day, how could I miss Sex and the City. I mean I have a daily routine now. The sad part is, the main thing I was worried about was how I was going to talk to Avon with no internet. We are on the same schedule, after all, and I no longer have a phone with the greatness of instant messaging programs or the ability to text internationally. And you better believe I took this golden opportunity to remind my wonderful husband of this fact. Lucky for him the door was working just fine, so I'm not really sure how that whole push the button to open it thing works, but shortly after he left the power was back on as I was telling the story to Avon (of course I had to call her and let her know I wasn't abducted by aliens.) 


Here are some pictures from the power outage this morning.

The flash was really bright so I had to turn it off.

And there's out little emergency light. I wish we had two so one could be on the other side of the wall and they would be matching.

Lessons Learned

Well, I've been in Korea for about three weeks now, maybe it's been two, I'm not really sure. But, what I do know, is that in Korea size really does matter, among other things.


Now, before you let your mind wander too far, I'm talking about the fact that I couldn't find a blanket to fit my bed outside of the BX, or that they don't make curtains long enough to cover the whole window, and don't let me forget that my oven is super tiny. I mean Sylvia Plath wouldn't have been able to shove her head in this oven. It's like an Easy Bake Oven but bigger (and not by much).


So the whole blanket situation brought on a full breakdown which had me sitting in bed crying because every time I would move the blanket would fall on the floor, or J would move and take the whole thing with him. Night after night, it was so frustrating having to wake up and search for  the comforter, but at least I had plenty of light because there's definitely a light post outside our bedroom window and since our blinds are only so thick and we didn't have any curtains it was nearly impossible to sleep. Thankfully, the next day we went and got a down comforter, and it covers the whole bed (Yay!!) and curtains with the black out panels. The downside these curtains are about four inches too short and don't cover the whole sliding glass door, and they're the longest length curtains come in. But, I'm not going to complain about it anymore, it's now super dark in my room, and I can snuggle underneath the blankets without them falling on the floor.


So here are a few of the other things I've learned since being here:


Dunkin Donuts in Korea is just as tasty as back home, only they don't have Dunkaccinos.


McDonald's breakfast is super exciting here, too.


Bread that has Hello Kitty's face on the packaging tastes so much better than regular bread.


Winter in North Carolina has not provided me with an accurate perception of cold weather, or snow for that matter. Apparently we had a "dusting" yesterday morning, but my ass was so excited that there was actually snow on the ground I couldn't stop jumping up and down and acting like a five year old, even if it did melt by the end of the day.

Blackberry Fever

I've been without a phone for a while now. My days are all confused from the time change that I don't have an exact number. That's not true it's been one week and five days. Addicts can always remember the last time they used, and that's exactly what I am. There's a reason why a Blackberry is called a Crackberry, and I'm living proof. I only wish there was some sort of gum I could chew or patch I could wear to ease off these cravings.


Let's be honest here, I am what we would call a technology whore. I love all sorts of electronic devices but I'm quite monogamous when it comes down to it. Once I find that lovely device that I deem a perfect fit I'll be forever faithful. That's not to say that I won't trade up when another more appealing member of the family comes around, but I'm brand loyal. I was like that over the Mac. I feel dirty every time I have to use my husband's laptop, or any other Windows based computer. It just feels so wrong. It's sitting in the corner giving me the evil eye right now. I suppose it needs love too, but it won't be getting it from me. My love for my Mac is a story written for the ages. And my love for the Blackberry is one in the same. Our love was a match made in heaven, and suddenly a move around the world has left me heartbroken.


Sure, there are Blackberries available here. Those suckers cost around $600 after a contract. $599 for a one year contract and $569 for two years. I can't even get the one I already own activated here. What are these Koreans trying to do to me? I bought the Blackberry Tour back home for $149 back in August. $149 isn't even enough to get me a phone with a keyboard. All I can get with that is a good laugh and a ridiculous flip phone that makes me feel like I'm back in 2006 with the Motorola Razor which was the must have phone of the year.  I can't go back to a phone that requires me to repeatedly tap a number to make a letter appear, not after I've experienced the greatness of a full keyboard and internet at my fingertips. I'm not trying to complain or be a big cry baby, but I have a disease. A real honest to goodness illness. I'm one step away from carving out my own kidney and selling it out in the Ville to buy this thing. Well, not really. Even I have my limits, and I draw the line at bodily harm.


So, here's where the plot thickens, obviously not owning a Blackberry is the original dilemma. Apparently iPhones are available for free with a two year contract. That sounds great and wonderful and all of that but it's not a Blackberry. I mean it does a lot of the same stuff and the iPhone probably has a million more apps, but it doesn't have bbm (blackberry messenger) and that's a problem for me since a lot of my friends have Blackberries. Oh, what's a girl to do, I mean I've detailed my love affair with Apple and all things Mac, so do I give in and try the iPhone? Decisions..decisions.

Out and About

Well, I've been in Korea for about a week now and I've already had several misadventures. Sadly, there are no photos to document some of these events since the great outdoors isn't always camera friendly (damn rain), and I don't really trust myself enough just yet to fumble around with the camera while wearing gloves (damn cold). Oh, how convenient it would be to have a cell phone that, I don't know, takes pictures and uploads them to various social networking sites with the touch of a button. One with a pink protective silicone cover that would bounce if it were to fall to the ground. Those were the good ole days. I remember them as if they were just last week. I'm sure you can tell I have yet to find a phone, and that has become an adventure in and of itself. But, wait, I'm getting ahead of myself that issue is going to need its own post. So here's a little recap of the few outings I've been on.


Tuesday night, after we made it back to town from the airport we went out to dinner at the Korean Meat Market out in the ville. The ville is this area of shops and restaurants located outside of the main gate to the base and it's about a twenty minute walk from my apartment. It's safe to say that whatever you're looking for you can find it out in the ville, unless it's a cell phone contract (yes, I'm slightly bitter). At the Meat Market you pick out different types of meat and you sit down and cook them on this little grill in the middle of your table. There was something oddly comforting about that place, it must be because it reminded me of the several beach trips I had been on with Avon and her family. 


The next morning we had to head to the base so I could be entered into the system over here. Unfortunately it was raining. It seemed like it was just a little drizzle, but a little drizzle in the cold could be a problem. Not wanting to be a complainer I walked happily along with J, too bad that drizzle started to pick up and by the time we got to the office I was soaking wet and had about an inch of water or so in each of my boots. Apparently those suckers weren't waterproof, and I learned a very valuable lesson: Always make sure there's enough room for rain boots in your luggage. Oh, and the computer system was down, so we walked all that way for nothing. On the bright side I bought two Coach bags and wallet from out in the Ville, and J treated me to lunch at Chilis and a cab ride on the way home. Even though I was cold, I was far from miserable.


Friday night we went to dinner with J's captain and his wife. I've honestly never met anyone as nice or friendly as they were. We ate at this little restaurant a few blocks from our apartment. It was a really cute place. Before you walk in you remove your shoes and put them on a shoe rack and enter in your socks. Once inside you're seated on a little pillow on the floor  and your food is brought out to your table where it's warmed up on a burner similar to the one used at the meat market. We ended up eating Ox tail soup for dinner. It sounds terrible, but it wasn't gross at all. It had a lot of vegetables in it and it was served with two types of kimchi, turnip kimchi and the classic cabbage kimchi. Dinner was a great experience, and I can't wait to find more amazing places to eat at. Hopefully, those places have menus with pictures.


By the time Saturday came around I could hardly contain the excitement I was feeling. This was the day that J was taking me to a nearby Thai restaurant, so I could have food from the motherland. It was a sweet gesture since he knew it would be a little something to remind me of my mom. It really worked too, from the moment we walked in I felt like I was back home. All the little Thai ladies yelling in the kitchen and a menu full of my favorites. It's safe to say that this is my favorite place that I've been to so far. I ordered the chicken panang which is a Thai red curry full of deliciousness and J ordered the cashew chicken something or other. What can I say, I love the motherland, but I hate nuts so why would I remember the name of that? I probably should have remembered though since my husband is usually so picky about trying new food, even when I'm there nudging him along. I was so proud of him though, he really impressed me with his chop stick skills. He really does belong in our little Asian family now. <3