***
Friday
I woke up easily for me, but knew I'd feel the less-than-normally-long-sleep later. I didn't get a chance to get down to breakfast, but luckily I packed a stash of granola bars. I was the first (and only person from my hotel) to get picked up for the tour. We then picked up; one older couple from Sweden, one older couple from Vancouver, and five exotic flight attendants (2 girls, 3 guys) from Dubai Air.
The tours were smooth, the Chinese public toilets were literally holes in the ground- that took me by surprise and I look forward to never using them again. We drove past the Olympic Park (the Bird's Nest) on the way to the Great Wall and the Ming tombs. We went to the Ming tombs first, it was dusty and a little scruffy, but historically interesting. I'm glad I saw the National Geographic special on the tombs or I wouldn't have been very interested. Next we made our mandatory stop at X store that sponsored our tour. This one was a jade place and it had a restaurant where we ate our prepaid lunch, which really wasn't too great, before we finally headed to the Great Wall!
We got dropped off in a dusty parking lot and rode the gondolas up to the main section of the wall. It was CROWDED, mostly on the insanely steep section up to tower 8, the highest tower. We all got stopped and had Chinese people take pictures with us. They even photo bombed our group shots. It was a a very clear day (for China) and strangely surreal. I took more pictures than strictly necessary because it didn't feel real and I wanted to remember I was really there. The mountains and the strange way the wall curved along the tops of them, almost organically, mesmerized me.
After seeing the Great Wall we got on the bus expecting to get dropped off at our hotels. But no, we got taken to a "free" foot massage place where they were going to be pushing herbal medicine on us from the sound of it. I was still trying to get back in time to meet up with Allie and her group to go to dinner together (it was about 5pm at the time) So when the Swedish couple bailed on the massage and Chinese herbal sale pitch, I jumped ship too. We told the guide we had to go and tried to get a cab. there didn't seem to be a single cab in the city. Just when we thought we'd have to take the subway, a cab stopped for us.
We then got to spend an hour in bumper to bumper traffic in hot direct sunlight with no AC. The couple were really nice and paid for the whole cab ride when I finally got dropped off first. I made it upstairs at 6pm only to find a note from Allie saying they left at 5:30pm. ugh. I was too hot and tired and dehydrated to be too upset though. I took a shower and had dinner alone in the hotel restaurant while listening to some of Allie's classmates who stayed behind gossip like 15 year olds. It was really shear force of will that got me downstairs to eat, I would have just skipped dinner and fallen asleep, but I really hadn't eaten more than granola bars all day. I had the peeking duck. It was kind of chewy.
Allie came back as I was getting ready for an early night, it was only about 8pm but I was Tired. She invited me out to a club with her friends, but I was way too tired to go, and knew I'd have a long day tomorrow. So I went to sleep.
(see next entry)
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Beijing, China (Thursday)
I’ll preface this entry with an explanation. A lot of people were a little confused as to the whys and hows of me ending up in Beijing semi by my self. It’s not that confusing, so follow along.
I live in South Korea because this is where my husband is stationed with the Army.
My friend, Allie, is in law school and took a summer abroad trip through her school that went to Shanghai (or similar, I forget where they actually were).
Allie’s group was going to have a weekend in Beijing (a lot of cool China stuff is there).
Beijing is actually not that far away from where I live.
So since it was
a) cheaper than flying to the states to see my friend and
b) there is a lot of cool stuff in Beijing I wanted to see
It made sense for me to plan a long weekend trip to Beijing and mooch off Allie and her school group by staying in her hotel room.
Plus it wasn’t AS scary as going to China all by myself and not having anyone to notice if I went missing until after my trip was supposed to be over. (Justin isn’t really supposed to go to China for security reasons, plus he doesn’t have a passport yet and he really doesn’t have the days-off necessary, so he couldn’t come with me).
So that’s how I ended up in Beijing “alone” while my friend was on her school tours etc.
***
Thursday (6:40pm Hotel Lobby)
"Somewhere beyond the Sea" came on the lobby music stream. It seemed appropriate since I was sitting there (6 hours later) waiting to meet my friend and thinking I could be with my husband instead.
The bus ride to the airport that morning was fine (after I talked myself down from a panic attack), and everything in the giant Seoul airport went smoothly too. I only had to glance at signs a few times, but otherwise everything was basically intuitive. The flight was short, just under 2 hours and easy. The only down side was my chair didn't recline because I was in front of an exit row. China Air: 1. Lucy: 0.
I got out of the Chinese airport which was even bigger than Seoul's international airport and found a taxi (after a few tries) that seemed to understand where I wanted to go. I was SO pleased that I made it to the hotel right in time for lunch, which seemed over priced, but might not have been as I wasn't used to thinking in the new currency I'd have to use yet. The pizza was 98y and bottled water was 45y, I felt like I was paying 150 dollars for lunch. I mean I wasn't, but still.
So I ate pizza and talked to the concierge about tours, since I wasn't sure what Allie's group would be doing or if I could tag along. I had my plans in place, but I had to be checked in before I could book any tours. ugh.
The biggest problem with hanging out in a hotel lobby (for six hours) is not with finding something to do, I'd brought a book (well Kindle). But it was keeping the staff from looking at me like I might be homeless. I moved around a bit, reading in different places in the lobby and sat even sat outside just to shake things up.
I wished Allie had been able to tell me Before I bought my ticket what time she would be arriving in Beijing, so that I could have arrived closer to when she would. She told me last week that they should be due at the airport about 4pm, so they'd be at the hotel by 5pm. But one of the nice concierge people I had talked to came over and told me that a large school group just called from the airport and were running very late. Well, at least I knew.
Allie showed up about 7pm, sans group. She'd heard they were running late and would be taken from the airport to dinner before coming to the hotel. But she didn't want me to wait longer than I had to so she convinced one of her teachers or something to get a taxi with her and they skipped dinner to come meet me and check in. (yay!)
We checked in, caught up a little while having a dinner of granola bars I'd brought. A group from her school wanted to go the the Silk Market. So we all hopped into two cabs and had a surprisingly nice nighttime cab ride. The windows were open and it was late enough that there was no traffic so we got a running breeze. We also unexpectedly drove past the Forbidden city and Tiananmen square lit up with strings of white lights.
The Silk Market was a standard indoor Asian market. Tons of crowded stalls inside a huge multi floor building with knock-off brands and insistent sales people who were really, really pushy. We got to the market at closing time and inadvertently got some better deals though we didn't have time to shop much.
Getting a ride back was another thing. It was now "late" about 9:30pm and the cabbies wanted to bargain with you instead of running the meter. Five of us ended up getting into a small van that was NOT a taxi, just some guy who gave us a better deal (ie not trying to rip us waaaay off). I would have never done this alone or with a small group of just girls… but we had two guys with us, and it was the middle of a crowded city, but still. We did get back safely. I showered and passed out getting every minute of sleep possible before my 7am tour pick up.
(see next entry)
I live in South Korea because this is where my husband is stationed with the Army.
My friend, Allie, is in law school and took a summer abroad trip through her school that went to Shanghai (or similar, I forget where they actually were).
Allie’s group was going to have a weekend in Beijing (a lot of cool China stuff is there).
Beijing is actually not that far away from where I live.
So since it was
a) cheaper than flying to the states to see my friend and
b) there is a lot of cool stuff in Beijing I wanted to see
It made sense for me to plan a long weekend trip to Beijing and mooch off Allie and her school group by staying in her hotel room.
Plus it wasn’t AS scary as going to China all by myself and not having anyone to notice if I went missing until after my trip was supposed to be over. (Justin isn’t really supposed to go to China for security reasons, plus he doesn’t have a passport yet and he really doesn’t have the days-off necessary, so he couldn’t come with me).
So that’s how I ended up in Beijing “alone” while my friend was on her school tours etc.
***
Thursday (6:40pm Hotel Lobby)
"Somewhere beyond the Sea" came on the lobby music stream. It seemed appropriate since I was sitting there (6 hours later) waiting to meet my friend and thinking I could be with my husband instead.
The bus ride to the airport that morning was fine (after I talked myself down from a panic attack), and everything in the giant Seoul airport went smoothly too. I only had to glance at signs a few times, but otherwise everything was basically intuitive. The flight was short, just under 2 hours and easy. The only down side was my chair didn't recline because I was in front of an exit row. China Air: 1. Lucy: 0.
I got out of the Chinese airport which was even bigger than Seoul's international airport and found a taxi (after a few tries) that seemed to understand where I wanted to go. I was SO pleased that I made it to the hotel right in time for lunch, which seemed over priced, but might not have been as I wasn't used to thinking in the new currency I'd have to use yet. The pizza was 98y and bottled water was 45y, I felt like I was paying 150 dollars for lunch. I mean I wasn't, but still.
So I ate pizza and talked to the concierge about tours, since I wasn't sure what Allie's group would be doing or if I could tag along. I had my plans in place, but I had to be checked in before I could book any tours. ugh.
The biggest problem with hanging out in a hotel lobby (for six hours) is not with finding something to do, I'd brought a book (well Kindle). But it was keeping the staff from looking at me like I might be homeless. I moved around a bit, reading in different places in the lobby and sat even sat outside just to shake things up.
I wished Allie had been able to tell me Before I bought my ticket what time she would be arriving in Beijing, so that I could have arrived closer to when she would. She told me last week that they should be due at the airport about 4pm, so they'd be at the hotel by 5pm. But one of the nice concierge people I had talked to came over and told me that a large school group just called from the airport and were running very late. Well, at least I knew.
Allie showed up about 7pm, sans group. She'd heard they were running late and would be taken from the airport to dinner before coming to the hotel. But she didn't want me to wait longer than I had to so she convinced one of her teachers or something to get a taxi with her and they skipped dinner to come meet me and check in. (yay!)
We checked in, caught up a little while having a dinner of granola bars I'd brought. A group from her school wanted to go the the Silk Market. So we all hopped into two cabs and had a surprisingly nice nighttime cab ride. The windows were open and it was late enough that there was no traffic so we got a running breeze. We also unexpectedly drove past the Forbidden city and Tiananmen square lit up with strings of white lights.
The Silk Market was a standard indoor Asian market. Tons of crowded stalls inside a huge multi floor building with knock-off brands and insistent sales people who were really, really pushy. We got to the market at closing time and inadvertently got some better deals though we didn't have time to shop much.
Getting a ride back was another thing. It was now "late" about 9:30pm and the cabbies wanted to bargain with you instead of running the meter. Five of us ended up getting into a small van that was NOT a taxi, just some guy who gave us a better deal (ie not trying to rip us waaaay off). I would have never done this alone or with a small group of just girls… but we had two guys with us, and it was the middle of a crowded city, but still. We did get back safely. I showered and passed out getting every minute of sleep possible before my 7am tour pick up.
(see next entry)
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Collection of Thoughts
I haven't had a coherent set of thoughts or unusual events to write about, so I've put off writing. But these are some thoughts I've had in the past month. I'll be posting something about my China trip soon though. Until then, welcome to my brain when it's drifting.
***
Working out always seems to come to an end for me either when I hurt myself, or talk my self into too many days in a row off and then I just lose momentum.
One of the things I’ve heard since I got here (and people found out that I enjoy dancing) is ‘You should try Zumba!’, convinced that by telling me they’re letting me in on the greatest secret in the world. In truth it’s a cool concept, working out by dancing and Brazilian dancing at that (almost anything Brazilian is cool). But I had to adjust to freezing winter that didn’t make me feel like leaving the house for Any reason. And then the fact that there was either a morning class (I’m not a morning person) or the afternoon class (which would have made me loose time with my husband whom I’d only been married to for a short time and traveled half way around the world to be with). So it finally started getting brighter earlier and I agreed to let a friend pick me up (saving me my third excuse of having to walk to an exercise class).
The class we went to was the morning class, and admittedly Zumba IS fun. It got me going faster than a cup of joe that early (for me) in the morning. Then we stayed for the class immediately after and I got to try Pilates for the first time too. All and all a good work out day. That was a friday so I had all weekend to rest too.
Monday, bright and early, I got picked up and taken to another round of Zumba and Pilates (and hour for each class). Tuesday Zumba was taught by a different instructor in the gym, this class was a little later in the morning and populated by more new moms complete with babies and baby fat. I didn’t catch on as quickly in this new class and so didn’t get as good a workout. But the next day was Zumba/Pilates again, so I took the break where I could.
And then I decided I needed a day off and wasn’t sure how I felt about the Tuesday/Thursday class. Friday I had the satisfaction of feeling more in shape and able to follow almost all the moves.
The current week, Ceci and I decided to step it up a bit and met to walk to class. Then Tuesday arrived and we decided to step it up one more notch and run around base before the later morning Zumba class. We did okay for two people who hadn’t run in a while and I felt like I followed the moves in class Much much better. But as we we stretching at the end of class I notched my knee hurting and didn’t want to kneel on it. I still had to walk home, shower and walk back to base to meet Justin for lunch but luckily it took me so long to get home that I “had” to call a taxi to take me to lunch.
My left knee hurt in a weird way, like it was severely bruised on top of the fact that my legs we just plain tired. Justin said I probably hyper extended it when I was running and that I should stay off it until it felt better.
I needed no further convincing to take the next day off class… and stay on the couch… and eat a bacon and bacon toast sandwich… and red vines…and a coke light. My knee felt much better since I stayed off of it, but I’m hoping it’s better for class by Friday, because if I stay home and rest it much longer, my bacon sandwich will look healthy by comparison to my “get better” foods of choice.
***
I sometimes wonder how my personal perception is different than that of other people. The best example (or simplest example actually) is that of color. I see a red toy. I know it is red. Someone else can look at the toy and tell me that they see red too. But how do I know they are seeing the SAME red that I see? If I were able to take a picture through my eyes and through their eyes and hold them up side by side, would they be the same shade of color? Or would it look like one was blue and the other was red or some other opposites on the color wheel.
The same with feeling or with taste or with… I just lost my train of thought. My point was, how do I know that even though we are all human, we see and experience the world in the same way.
I’m sure there is some scientific study about all this, but that’s not my point. I don’t really care what science has to say about perception. I care about how other people see things. and maybe why it’s hard for other people to see things the way I do.
***
I keep having the strangest dreams. They leave me feeling disoriented and tired when I wake up. I can usually tell they’re not real when I’m in them, and I think something like ‘well, this is odd’ but that doesn’t stop them from draining me of a good nights sleep.
Maybe it’s because the weather has been getting warmer. We slept with the window open a few nights to stay cool and I thought maybe the subconscious fear of someone breaking in our first story apartment was giving me strange dreams and keeping me on the edge of wakefulness. Then we finally broke and started using the AC. The dreams remain.
I’m still stuck in the ‘longing to bundle up for safety’ vs sleeping with no covers because it’s hot at night. I feel compelled to sleep with my back either covered up to my head or with my back to a wall or similar. Either way I’m not sleeping well and I get to wake up to confused thoughts and a sweaty pillow.
***
Working out always seems to come to an end for me either when I hurt myself, or talk my self into too many days in a row off and then I just lose momentum.
One of the things I’ve heard since I got here (and people found out that I enjoy dancing) is ‘You should try Zumba!’, convinced that by telling me they’re letting me in on the greatest secret in the world. In truth it’s a cool concept, working out by dancing and Brazilian dancing at that (almost anything Brazilian is cool). But I had to adjust to freezing winter that didn’t make me feel like leaving the house for Any reason. And then the fact that there was either a morning class (I’m not a morning person) or the afternoon class (which would have made me loose time with my husband whom I’d only been married to for a short time and traveled half way around the world to be with). So it finally started getting brighter earlier and I agreed to let a friend pick me up (saving me my third excuse of having to walk to an exercise class).
The class we went to was the morning class, and admittedly Zumba IS fun. It got me going faster than a cup of joe that early (for me) in the morning. Then we stayed for the class immediately after and I got to try Pilates for the first time too. All and all a good work out day. That was a friday so I had all weekend to rest too.
Monday, bright and early, I got picked up and taken to another round of Zumba and Pilates (and hour for each class). Tuesday Zumba was taught by a different instructor in the gym, this class was a little later in the morning and populated by more new moms complete with babies and baby fat. I didn’t catch on as quickly in this new class and so didn’t get as good a workout. But the next day was Zumba/Pilates again, so I took the break where I could.
And then I decided I needed a day off and wasn’t sure how I felt about the Tuesday/Thursday class. Friday I had the satisfaction of feeling more in shape and able to follow almost all the moves.
The current week, Ceci and I decided to step it up a bit and met to walk to class. Then Tuesday arrived and we decided to step it up one more notch and run around base before the later morning Zumba class. We did okay for two people who hadn’t run in a while and I felt like I followed the moves in class Much much better. But as we we stretching at the end of class I notched my knee hurting and didn’t want to kneel on it. I still had to walk home, shower and walk back to base to meet Justin for lunch but luckily it took me so long to get home that I “had” to call a taxi to take me to lunch.
My left knee hurt in a weird way, like it was severely bruised on top of the fact that my legs we just plain tired. Justin said I probably hyper extended it when I was running and that I should stay off it until it felt better.
I needed no further convincing to take the next day off class… and stay on the couch… and eat a bacon and bacon toast sandwich… and red vines…and a coke light. My knee felt much better since I stayed off of it, but I’m hoping it’s better for class by Friday, because if I stay home and rest it much longer, my bacon sandwich will look healthy by comparison to my “get better” foods of choice.
***
I sometimes wonder how my personal perception is different than that of other people. The best example (or simplest example actually) is that of color. I see a red toy. I know it is red. Someone else can look at the toy and tell me that they see red too. But how do I know they are seeing the SAME red that I see? If I were able to take a picture through my eyes and through their eyes and hold them up side by side, would they be the same shade of color? Or would it look like one was blue and the other was red or some other opposites on the color wheel.
The same with feeling or with taste or with… I just lost my train of thought. My point was, how do I know that even though we are all human, we see and experience the world in the same way.
I’m sure there is some scientific study about all this, but that’s not my point. I don’t really care what science has to say about perception. I care about how other people see things. and maybe why it’s hard for other people to see things the way I do.
***
I keep having the strangest dreams. They leave me feeling disoriented and tired when I wake up. I can usually tell they’re not real when I’m in them, and I think something like ‘well, this is odd’ but that doesn’t stop them from draining me of a good nights sleep.
Maybe it’s because the weather has been getting warmer. We slept with the window open a few nights to stay cool and I thought maybe the subconscious fear of someone breaking in our first story apartment was giving me strange dreams and keeping me on the edge of wakefulness. Then we finally broke and started using the AC. The dreams remain.
I’m still stuck in the ‘longing to bundle up for safety’ vs sleeping with no covers because it’s hot at night. I feel compelled to sleep with my back either covered up to my head or with my back to a wall or similar. Either way I’m not sleeping well and I get to wake up to confused thoughts and a sweaty pillow.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Parallel Reality
There are times when I can almost feel myself in a parallel reality.
It happened the other day when I was walking down the side walk, a man with a bicycle was going in the opposite direction. He had a large chain hanging from his bike, not a bike chain, but a regular chain, it clinked and clanked but with such a defined sound that it cut through all the other street sounds without blending with them.
For one moment I wondered if that was a Real sound and everything else I could hear, see, smell, touch was all part of some world I had made up. My body would be in a different world and I wouldn’t know where I was, what I was doing or what I was saying to whom, because I would think I was here in this world, talking to the person in front of me and interacting with objects and people in this world.
Another example is right now, I’m sitting at my desk typing on my laptop. Or that’s where my senses tell me I am. But what if I’m actually sitting, as if I’m at a desk, arms extended out in front of me, fingers making typing motions but there is no desk and no laptop. What if I’m sitting there and looking insane because no one can see what I think I’m seeing.
There isn’t much I can do with these thoughts. There is no way I can guess what I should be doing if I was in that Real world, so I have to continue as if I live in this one. There is no way for me to get to that body in the Real world either. So should I ignore those thoughts that makes me stop and think, and wonder, is this real? Is any of this life real? Or should I worry myself with thoughts that I’m actually insane and try to figure out a way back.
Those thoughts don’t happen often, and they aren’t on my mind all the time. But when one of those thoughts occurs to me, I put it in the string of thoughts of the Real world and what I’m really seeing or doing.
Times that feel the most real are when I’m with people I care about. Like last night, I was laying with my head on Justin’s chest listening to his heart beat and knew, without a doubt that he was real, that we were real and that we were where we thought we were. Or at the very least, he was a real person who loved me in both worlds and at that moment I was listening to his heart beat in both worlds.
Obviously these real vs non real world thoughts are disconcerting thoughts to have and usually only happen when I’m alone and it’s too quiet or I’m out in a crowd where I don’t know anyone, which is almost the same thing as being alone for me. I promise I’m not crazy, but my mind is always active and sometimes it takes me away with it.
I wonder, briefly during these thoughts if I’m catching a glimpse that's reminding me that this is not the only life I have and that this isn’t the true reality.
post script:
embarrassing times to have this thought process occur are when I’m; in the bathroom, changing clothes, making love, singing when I’m home alone, eating like a slob, etc.
It happened the other day when I was walking down the side walk, a man with a bicycle was going in the opposite direction. He had a large chain hanging from his bike, not a bike chain, but a regular chain, it clinked and clanked but with such a defined sound that it cut through all the other street sounds without blending with them.
For one moment I wondered if that was a Real sound and everything else I could hear, see, smell, touch was all part of some world I had made up. My body would be in a different world and I wouldn’t know where I was, what I was doing or what I was saying to whom, because I would think I was here in this world, talking to the person in front of me and interacting with objects and people in this world.
Another example is right now, I’m sitting at my desk typing on my laptop. Or that’s where my senses tell me I am. But what if I’m actually sitting, as if I’m at a desk, arms extended out in front of me, fingers making typing motions but there is no desk and no laptop. What if I’m sitting there and looking insane because no one can see what I think I’m seeing.
There isn’t much I can do with these thoughts. There is no way I can guess what I should be doing if I was in that Real world, so I have to continue as if I live in this one. There is no way for me to get to that body in the Real world either. So should I ignore those thoughts that makes me stop and think, and wonder, is this real? Is any of this life real? Or should I worry myself with thoughts that I’m actually insane and try to figure out a way back.
Those thoughts don’t happen often, and they aren’t on my mind all the time. But when one of those thoughts occurs to me, I put it in the string of thoughts of the Real world and what I’m really seeing or doing.
Times that feel the most real are when I’m with people I care about. Like last night, I was laying with my head on Justin’s chest listening to his heart beat and knew, without a doubt that he was real, that we were real and that we were where we thought we were. Or at the very least, he was a real person who loved me in both worlds and at that moment I was listening to his heart beat in both worlds.
Obviously these real vs non real world thoughts are disconcerting thoughts to have and usually only happen when I’m alone and it’s too quiet or I’m out in a crowd where I don’t know anyone, which is almost the same thing as being alone for me. I promise I’m not crazy, but my mind is always active and sometimes it takes me away with it.
I wonder, briefly during these thoughts if I’m catching a glimpse that's reminding me that this is not the only life I have and that this isn’t the true reality.
post script:
embarrassing times to have this thought process occur are when I’m; in the bathroom, changing clothes, making love, singing when I’m home alone, eating like a slob, etc.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Hair
The biggest news since I last wrote is I cut my fracking hair. I’m so mad about it. It was past my shoulders in the front and just about 4 inches shorter in the back (left over from the bob I had a year ago). It was starting to bother me, having no style or layers, and I was going to wait to get it cut and layered in September when I was home in the states. But they have a pretty good salon at the Dragon hill lodge (the huge fancy hotel on base where I got my hair done for the Ball) so I went there to get some layers.
The lady spoke good english and seemed to understand that I wanted to keep it long and was growing it out. She gave me a stack of magazines and started cutting. I was reading and when I looked up I realized how short she was cutting my hair, it was too late. There was nothing to be done but let her finish. I was so mad and the stylist could tell just how mad I was and kept trying to convince me that my hair was just as long as it had been. I wanted to cuss them out so much. I am Never that angry.
The front layers are chin length and in truth the back, longest layer is probably only an inch shorter than the back of my hair was before, but this is not the hair cut I wanted and it just pisses me off that I have to wait, probably another year before it’s long enough again. And because my hair is so thick it’s all bouncing and fluffy with the light layers, and when it’s short like this I just feel like it makes my face fat. I have to buy a straightener. It’s the only thing that made me feel semi okay about my short hair last year.
I think I scared Justin a little by how Much I cried about my hair. I cried for at least an hour when I got home. That was maybe two days ago, and really, the cut will probably look fine once it’s longer, but that is going to take a few months. Maybe even the rest of the time I’m in Korea.
I’m never cutting my hair again. I always say that, but I mean it more every time. At least this time I didn’t cut 10-12 inches off at once (like I did last year), only about 5. Maybe I’ll learn and just get trims from now on. At least I remember I still hate bangs, no matter how cute they look on other people.
Note to self:
Dear Lucy,
-you hate bangs. they didn’t work when you were 7 and again when you were 15. some people can rock them, but you hate them and they make your cheeks look big, and get in your eyes and are generally annoying.
-you hate short hair. yes it’s easier to wash, but that’s about the only thing you like about it. you hate short hair. stop getting short hair cuts.
-stop getting hair cuts when you are in an overly emotional mood, it only leads to bad things.
-stop cutting your hair for a while, you really want it to be past your shoulders (at least) so don’t get it cut shorter than that. like, ever.
-tell people when you are going to get a hair cut so they have time to talk you out of it and/or can come and supervise.
I think that’s everything except, remember, you’ve never had a hair cut you liked, so just stop.
Love, Lucy
The lady spoke good english and seemed to understand that I wanted to keep it long and was growing it out. She gave me a stack of magazines and started cutting. I was reading and when I looked up I realized how short she was cutting my hair, it was too late. There was nothing to be done but let her finish. I was so mad and the stylist could tell just how mad I was and kept trying to convince me that my hair was just as long as it had been. I wanted to cuss them out so much. I am Never that angry.
The front layers are chin length and in truth the back, longest layer is probably only an inch shorter than the back of my hair was before, but this is not the hair cut I wanted and it just pisses me off that I have to wait, probably another year before it’s long enough again. And because my hair is so thick it’s all bouncing and fluffy with the light layers, and when it’s short like this I just feel like it makes my face fat. I have to buy a straightener. It’s the only thing that made me feel semi okay about my short hair last year.
I think I scared Justin a little by how Much I cried about my hair. I cried for at least an hour when I got home. That was maybe two days ago, and really, the cut will probably look fine once it’s longer, but that is going to take a few months. Maybe even the rest of the time I’m in Korea.
I’m never cutting my hair again. I always say that, but I mean it more every time. At least this time I didn’t cut 10-12 inches off at once (like I did last year), only about 5. Maybe I’ll learn and just get trims from now on. At least I remember I still hate bangs, no matter how cute they look on other people.
Note to self:
Dear Lucy,
-you hate bangs. they didn’t work when you were 7 and again when you were 15. some people can rock them, but you hate them and they make your cheeks look big, and get in your eyes and are generally annoying.
-you hate short hair. yes it’s easier to wash, but that’s about the only thing you like about it. you hate short hair. stop getting short hair cuts.
-stop getting hair cuts when you are in an overly emotional mood, it only leads to bad things.
-stop cutting your hair for a while, you really want it to be past your shoulders (at least) so don’t get it cut shorter than that. like, ever.
-tell people when you are going to get a hair cut so they have time to talk you out of it and/or can come and supervise.
I think that’s everything except, remember, you’ve never had a hair cut you liked, so just stop.
Love, Lucy
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Daily Life (Spring)
I guess I've finally settled into a routine enough that I noticed I was in Korea and would be here for a while. I was feeling kind of blue, and I didn't know what was wrong, but Justin guessed I might be homesick and it rang a bell when he told me.
True, this is probably the longest time I've ever spent away from my family AND in a foreign country at that. I don't miss them like I did when I went to summer camp when I was 12, but I miss them all the same. And I miss being in America a lot.
Justin and I are trying a new furniture arraignment in the living room. I guess it's more than just a living room, it's the biggest room in our place. Now we have an office area, the dinning table and our couch/tv area. We're probably going to move things around every few months since that seems to be both our styles of living. Also the kitty fort we built from cardboard boxes is kind of big now, and takes up as much floor space as a lazy-boy. Which isn't a problem since we don't have much furniture here, but I'd rather have the lazy-boy.
It's warmer now than it has been all year, I've noticed not just lots of plants and flowers but bugs coming up too. Mostly outside, but there have been a few waterbeetles turning up inside. Luckily we have a little hunter (Gambit) who kills the bugs when he can get his paws on them. We've only had to help him out once. I love cats that are also pest control. Teddy is pretty good at it too.
With the warmer weather also comes the Yellow Dust, Justin is very allergic to it this year, and I'm okay most of the time, but it definitely give me the sniffles.
Yellow dust from the semi-arid and desert areas of China and Mongolia descends on the Korean Peninsula each spring. This yellow dust can reduce visibility and can be harmful to human health. The very young, the elderly, and those who are sick or who suffer from asthma or heart-related illnesses should reduce or eliminate outdoor activity on days when yellow dust levels are above 400 µg/m3 (parts per million per cubic meter of air). In addition, healthy people should avoid outdoor activity, especially if it involves heavy physical exertion, on days when dust levels are predicted to be above 800 µg/m3.
I'm just amazed at the weather still. It's May and I walked like 4 miles (round trip) in jeans and a long sleeve cotton shirt and only got a little hot and sweaty. IT WOULD BE 100 DEGREES(F) AND HUMID LIKE THE JUNGLE SINCE FEBRUARY IN TEXAS, but it's supposedly going to get hot and humid here sometime in June. Summer that doesn't take over the seasons on either side of it is just refreshing.
There is the fact that it WILL be hot and humid (eventually) and the AC are wall units that plug into electrical outlets (it's the main kind of AC here) and electricity is rather expensive. So Justin and I have a lets-not-pay-an-arm-and-a-leg-for-AC-this-summer-plan... we only turn the bedroom AC on at night. The rest of the time, well, we get a nice cross breeze in the living room. Let's see how long we can stick to that plan.
That and I might have just planned our month long 'hell yeah! we're in America! tour for the month with the highest utility bills (September). Aren't we clever. Also my college roommate is getting married and I'm in the wedding, but things have a way of working out.
yes, I realize this entry is a little dry and maybe even boring. But that's how things feel at this moment. I paid our rent today, which is a little more complicated here than other places I've lived. I have to go to our bank on base withdraw X amount of Won, walk the large sum of money down the busiest street to deposit it in a Korean bank. The bank tellers don't speak English, so I have to just hand them the envelope full of money and a deposit book from my landlord and they give me a receipt. Nearly all Korean landlords insist on cash so they don't have to pay taxes.
I also purposely waited to run my errand until after the Civil Defense Drill. Eerily sirens, check. People leaving their cars in the road and going into the subways. Check. Me thinking that not the best place to be IF bombs we actually falling. check. If you happen to be caught out and about when those sirens go off, you have no choice but to follow the drill. It's like a city wide fire drill. Or so I've been told. I have no desire to be out and herded into the subways with a ton of Koreans.
The next thing on my mind is how to pick up a couch I'm in the process of buying second hand from On post and get it to our place here. There are a surprising lack of moving trucks that are allowed on post and aren't like $100 an hour. It wouldn't take long to get the couch, but that's more than I'm going to pay for the couch it's self. Part of the appeal is how little the couch cost. *sigh* I'll think of something..
True, this is probably the longest time I've ever spent away from my family AND in a foreign country at that. I don't miss them like I did when I went to summer camp when I was 12, but I miss them all the same. And I miss being in America a lot.
Justin and I are trying a new furniture arraignment in the living room. I guess it's more than just a living room, it's the biggest room in our place. Now we have an office area, the dinning table and our couch/tv area. We're probably going to move things around every few months since that seems to be both our styles of living. Also the kitty fort we built from cardboard boxes is kind of big now, and takes up as much floor space as a lazy-boy. Which isn't a problem since we don't have much furniture here, but I'd rather have the lazy-boy.
It's warmer now than it has been all year, I've noticed not just lots of plants and flowers but bugs coming up too. Mostly outside, but there have been a few waterbeetles turning up inside. Luckily we have a little hunter (Gambit) who kills the bugs when he can get his paws on them. We've only had to help him out once. I love cats that are also pest control. Teddy is pretty good at it too.
With the warmer weather also comes the Yellow Dust, Justin is very allergic to it this year, and I'm okay most of the time, but it definitely give me the sniffles.
Yellow dust from the semi-arid and desert areas of China and Mongolia descends on the Korean Peninsula each spring. This yellow dust can reduce visibility and can be harmful to human health. The very young, the elderly, and those who are sick or who suffer from asthma or heart-related illnesses should reduce or eliminate outdoor activity on days when yellow dust levels are above 400 µg/m3 (parts per million per cubic meter of air). In addition, healthy people should avoid outdoor activity, especially if it involves heavy physical exertion, on days when dust levels are predicted to be above 800 µg/m3.
I'm just amazed at the weather still. It's May and I walked like 4 miles (round trip) in jeans and a long sleeve cotton shirt and only got a little hot and sweaty. IT WOULD BE 100 DEGREES(F) AND HUMID LIKE THE JUNGLE SINCE FEBRUARY IN TEXAS, but it's supposedly going to get hot and humid here sometime in June. Summer that doesn't take over the seasons on either side of it is just refreshing.
There is the fact that it WILL be hot and humid (eventually) and the AC are wall units that plug into electrical outlets (it's the main kind of AC here) and electricity is rather expensive. So Justin and I have a lets-not-pay-an-arm-and-a-leg-for-AC-this-summer-plan... we only turn the bedroom AC on at night. The rest of the time, well, we get a nice cross breeze in the living room. Let's see how long we can stick to that plan.
That and I might have just planned our month long 'hell yeah! we're in America! tour for the month with the highest utility bills (September). Aren't we clever. Also my college roommate is getting married and I'm in the wedding, but things have a way of working out.
yes, I realize this entry is a little dry and maybe even boring. But that's how things feel at this moment. I paid our rent today, which is a little more complicated here than other places I've lived. I have to go to our bank on base withdraw X amount of Won, walk the large sum of money down the busiest street to deposit it in a Korean bank. The bank tellers don't speak English, so I have to just hand them the envelope full of money and a deposit book from my landlord and they give me a receipt. Nearly all Korean landlords insist on cash so they don't have to pay taxes.
I also purposely waited to run my errand until after the Civil Defense Drill. Eerily sirens, check. People leaving their cars in the road and going into the subways. Check. Me thinking that not the best place to be IF bombs we actually falling. check. If you happen to be caught out and about when those sirens go off, you have no choice but to follow the drill. It's like a city wide fire drill. Or so I've been told. I have no desire to be out and herded into the subways with a ton of Koreans.
The next thing on my mind is how to pick up a couch I'm in the process of buying second hand from On post and get it to our place here. There are a surprising lack of moving trucks that are allowed on post and aren't like $100 an hour. It wouldn't take long to get the couch, but that's more than I'm going to pay for the couch it's self. Part of the appeal is how little the couch cost. *sigh* I'll think of something..
Monday, May 2, 2011
Osama Bin Laden
I found out from my “headlines” app on my google homepage. I didn’t believe it at first. Then Facebook was exploding with rejoicing. And then I talked to my husband that told me they had done DNA testing to confirm it was him, and then I believed. Just call me doubting Thomas I guess.
I’m glad I guess that someone who caused so much pain has been stopped. I would have been just as happy if he had been captured and put in prison or tried, but I’m not as ecstatically happy as some people seem to be about it. Maybe I was lucky enough to not have lost anyone on 9/11. But I guess I’m not as wildly happy because I know it doesn’t really mean anything.
My younger cousin is still in Jordan. My brother is trying to get deployed. My husband is considering re-enlisting. My other cousin and her husband continue living abroad and serving in the military.
His death isn’t going to make us leave Afghanistan. It’s not going to get us out of Iraq. It’s not going to stop things from escalating in Libya and Syria. It’s not going to make the middle east a peaceful place and American soldiers are still going to be in all those places for a long, long time.
That is why, ultimately, it doesn’t matter that one figure head of terrorism is dead. That’s not what the war(s) are about and you know it. I know it. Everyone knows it but just pretends that we’re some noble country going in to free people from tyrants and fear. We’re just protecting our investments. I guess it’s something that a country must do as well, but don’t pretend it’s anything more noble than that. Good job soldiers, job well done. Keep up the good work, but more than that I wish you all home safely.
There should never be lies involved when the price is paid with blood and lives.
I’m glad I guess that someone who caused so much pain has been stopped. I would have been just as happy if he had been captured and put in prison or tried, but I’m not as ecstatically happy as some people seem to be about it. Maybe I was lucky enough to not have lost anyone on 9/11. But I guess I’m not as wildly happy because I know it doesn’t really mean anything.
My younger cousin is still in Jordan. My brother is trying to get deployed. My husband is considering re-enlisting. My other cousin and her husband continue living abroad and serving in the military.
His death isn’t going to make us leave Afghanistan. It’s not going to get us out of Iraq. It’s not going to stop things from escalating in Libya and Syria. It’s not going to make the middle east a peaceful place and American soldiers are still going to be in all those places for a long, long time.
That is why, ultimately, it doesn’t matter that one figure head of terrorism is dead. That’s not what the war(s) are about and you know it. I know it. Everyone knows it but just pretends that we’re some noble country going in to free people from tyrants and fear. We’re just protecting our investments. I guess it’s something that a country must do as well, but don’t pretend it’s anything more noble than that. Good job soldiers, job well done. Keep up the good work, but more than that I wish you all home safely.
There should never be lies involved when the price is paid with blood and lives.
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