YAY

Chris is coming home Friday.  YAY!!!!
 
The last couple of weeks have been less than pleasant.  I didnt have my usual weekend visit from Chris to look forward to, the weather was (and still is) unbelievably hot and clammy, and it seems the neighbors conspired to make my life hell!  Not a day went by where someone didnt get in my face about Oscar and why do  I keep a dog in the apartment etc.  All in Korean and all in the most aggressive tone.  One of two doormen is still a sourpuss, and really I can think of a few more colourful adjectives for him, but I am too polite.
 
Today, however Oscar and I had three great walks without any interruptions (knock on wood).  Maybe the heat was making everyone irritable.  It was me!
 
I havent even been able to go to Yoga and TaeKwon-do because the gym is not air-conditioned and the last time I was there, it didnt smell so great in there and I got seriously light-headed.  I need to go back to the pool.
 
So with all the stress, I needed to put a fresh perspective on life, and that involved getting completely destroyed on Friday night.  The foreign bar "Soul Train" was celebrating its one year anniversary and for 20 dollars it was open bar.  I am told I had 6 Long Island Iced teas and a Baileys.  I only remember counting 4, but then, I also remember losing my cookies three times
:(  Havent done that since that since I lived on Gloucester!
 
Now I feel more like myself!  This week has actually been pretty good.
 
As Allison put it, all I need now is some snow and things will be perfect.  I never thought I would wish for snow.  What's next?

Another anomoly

Every few months, my doorman (actually there are 2 on 24 hour shifts) changes. As soon as they get to know me and I establish a rapport with them, and they save my scooter from being stolen, they are gone.

The two new ones are not so friendly, and though one seems to be warming up to Oscar and me, the other is downright sour and I am pretty sure has it in for me. As Oscar and I came in from our mid-day walk, he was sitting waiting for me by the mailboxes at the front door. He sprang to his feet and ran ahead of me to the elevator. I wasnt sure if he was trying to take the elevator, and leave me behind (wouldnt be surprising) or get the elevator door for me. He stopped in front of the elevators and pointed to a notice on the bulletin board as if it was something I should know. Now keep in mind that everything that goes up on there is in Korean, and uncerstandably so, but I usually do check it b/c they put a notice about water shut offs etc, and I can generally tell from the dates what to expect. This didnt have a date on it but from his zeal, I could tell it pertained to me, and he had a smug gratified look on his face at "showing me". Well, I looked at him and uttered my three most useful words: "Hnagul mal moolayo" "Korean I dont know" (verbs always go at the end of the sentence- try re-programming kids when teaching English grammar), and got in the elevator.

Now I knew this was a note to be addressed so I asked my boss to call the office and ask if this was something I should know. They didnt know what note it was and gave her the number to call the security guard directly. Well, I knew it was "about me" because there were 2 things addressed on there and both were "things I am guily of"! ONE: If you are to have a dog in the apartment, all your neighbors have to agree to your having a dog in your unit. TWO: The hallway is not for garbage. Do not leave your garbage bags in the hallway. Now I admit, I have been guilty of neglect in the garbage department, but I wasnt the one who went away for the weekend with an open bag of compost at my door for five days. Our balconies are open on one side and I could still smell the compost when I got off the elevator. But no that was a month ago, and THEY didnt get a notice!

And so my boss laughed. She said that they owned this unit and there was nothing the management could do. I said: let them try! I was only here for another four months anyway! Like I needed another reason to want to move on. Up up and away..............

Well, when I got home, guess what was no longer by the elevator? That's right my friends- the notice! Which leads me to believe the doorman did it himself, and when the office got wind of it, off it came! WHATEVER!

Tonight Oscar and I proudly pranced in front of that doorman on the way back from our walk. I find ignoring him gets him steamed, so I didnt even look his way- oh was there someone there??Sorry didnt see him!

Sleepy hollow

I am sleepy and my head feels hollow. And it is only 8:30pm. Why you ask? Well my superintendant has knocked on my door at 7:20 am for 2 days in a row. Apparently they have no record of me paying my maintenance bill and so they wanted to have me sign a waver that if I didnt pay it in three days, they would cut off my cold water. Well, I have paid it and I showed the super yesterday, but they change shifts every 24 hours so the one today didnt know-AND the one yesterday had me sign one for apartment 1108 while I live in 1009. I think he was so flabergasted at seeing me at the door that he grabbed the wrong one. To give them a break, it is about 100 degrees here in the shade and so humid, you can drink the air, so I guess we are all at the end of our thether.

On a nicer note, I got a phone call from Chris from Thailand today. That BUM! Off on a beautiful beach drinking Pina Coladas and smoking big fat reefers! I am SO jealous. He did say he is going to take me there in November though. THANK GOD he didnt get the job at Chunnum Univ., and we can get the hell outa here onto greener pastures. He has a scheme and is working something out for us to go there for a while. I cannot wait! Honestly! I am very excited about the prospect. Very excited about leaving Korea. As my friend Allison said: "This place is just not working for you. Stop beating yourself up over it". Yes I have been feeling rather guilty at the hate-on I have for this place presently, but in all fairness, it has a lot to do with being uncomfortable and hot and sticky all the time too. I have VERY low tolerance for heat. I rather be cold ANY DAY! So most of the time I walk around with a scoul on my face and I saw a couple of my students today in that state and felt very bad, so I started smiling and my mood improved! GO FIGURE!

So, I better ween myself off the Kimchi cause there wont be any where I am going. YIPPPPIEEEEE!!!!

OK, folks, off to ride scooty home, and walk my scraggly dog. Poor thing is covered in heat rash, which is slowly going away.
Kat