Everyone will be relieved to read that after my crap Monday, today was much better. I had some great classes where I could see the little minds grasping onto the knowledge I was imparting. Best of all, on my way home I saw the sun setting over the Han River and reflecting off the buildings in Yeouido and it was gorgeous. What made it even better was seeing another person whip out her camera to capture it. Gorgeous sunsets don't come that often in Seoul!

Now there's a delicious banana bread in the oven, the cats are chilling out and not fighting each other, and Led Zeppelin II is playing on the big speakers. Ooooh yeah!

P.S. I don't know what's up with this flurry of blog activity but we're just gonna go with it.

I Fought An Adjuma...

...and for the first damn time, the adjuma did NOT win!

Adjumas are older Korean women who are pushy and rude and will not hesitate to cut a bitch on the subway. I have been bullied and bruised by them for over two years now but today I had enough. I had opened my window on the bus because it was stuffy and this woman tried to close it, even though it wasn't even freaking blowing on her. Usually when this happens, I am cowed into submission by their glares but this morning, I said "no!" in Korean and kept it open. She gave me a nasty look and changed seats.

It's a minor victory but my heart soared nonetheless.

It brought up something that has niggled at me for the entire time I've been here. I'll never ever assimilate in Korea, I will always stick out. Even if I live here for 20 years and speak the language perfectly, I'll always stick out and sometimes, it's really freaking exhausting. I hate when locals giggle when I speak Korean, I hate when I ask for a service and I get a blank look and most of all, I HATE HATE HATE when I speak Korean and they look at me blankly because my accent isn't perfect.

On the other hand, it is a very enlightening experience that I think few Caucasians have. I wasn't even aware of how much I took for granted blending in where I lived. When you travel, it's one thing to look different. You're passing through and the whole point of travel is to see new things. When you live in a place, it's frustrating. I've been here for nearly two and a half years and I feel like I shouldn't still have to struggle so much but that's probably what its like for immigrants to the U.S. or other Western countries.

In other news, the weather here is miserable, Ninja has an infection on her tail, and I woke up to a huge pile a cat puke in the living room. Not one of my better Mondays...I'm going to google pictures of places in India to feel better.

My New Flatmate

They say a picture says a thousand words....

Ladies and gentlemen, Joel.

The Ninja

When I moved to my new apartment, I agreed to adopt/foster The Ninja. She's pretty awesome (except when she's trying to eat my food or scratch the sofa) but her and Claude are off to a bit of a rocky start. They're not quite BFFs yet but they're getting there.

An Ode to JJ

My lovely friend Jamie (jamiejenson.blogspot.com) recently wrote a little something about our friendship and I'd like to return the favor as I ease myself back into the blogging.

I met Jamie very early in our freshman year at Rosemont. I'm sorry to say that I don't remember how exactly we met and a lot of my first year of college was a blur of homesickness and seasonal depression. Memories of Jamie really start popping up sophomore year of college. Highlights....

Jamie and I were inspired by Snoop Dogg and procured gin, juice, and ice. On our way up to her dorm room, the ice was tinkling against the gin bottle in a very suspicious manner. We were stopped by an R.A. and when questioned, we said we were doing a science project. We then proceeded to get very drunk and Jamie later tried to drink Ellen's contact solution.

Jamie and I took the WORST art history seminar ever. I've blocked the prof's name from my memory but it was on impressionism and it was the longest hour and a half every Tuesday and Thursday. If it weren't for J.Lo, I would have stabbed myself with a pencil to get out of it.

Jamie once found me passed out in the snow outside Heffernan. Kate Senior and Nicole Pascoe left me there after I decided I wanted to make snow angels. My memories are very fuzzy but apparently, Jamie found me while she was with some hotties. I owe my life to her!

During one of our cig breaks, we saw the Villanova cross country team running past us. Jamie wanted to trip one particularly good looking runner and I made a joke about how instead of doing first aid on him, she'd be humping his leg. She then said "Yeah, the EMTs would get here and I'd say 'wait! I'm almost there!'" It was the birth of our catch phrase.

She showed me a rockin' time around Hancock, NY one Easter. We saw Bridget Jones' Diary and cruised the city in her white pimp car. Good times!

Perfect Ten!

I've only seen Jamie once since graduation but that will be amended once I get back to the states. She is one sassy broad and I miss her tons!