well that mockingbird is gonna sail away

This week has been rough, I'm not going to lie. I'm taking it with a grain of salt, though. The bunny situation has been a real downer and to top it off I've felt a little sickly.

But...I don't want to focus on the dreary times. Let's talk about something more fun - like that fact that tomorrow is Halloween! :) I'm so excited - it's my favorite holiday (even better than Christmas and my birthday). David and I are meeting up with some friends in a part of Seoul called Itaewon. It's basically a place where foreigners congregate so that should be a nice change of pace! Two ladies that I met last weekend (who I adore and feel like I've known forever) are coming so that oughta be fun! Then on Saturday a group is getting together at a party near Yoksam Station. Costumes are mandatory so I'm going to have to dig around in my office at work for something nice...ha! :D

This weekend is going to be so nice - I feel it already. Lots of lounging around and napping and catching up and of course a healthy dose of halloweener spirit. Bliss.

I really don't have much to say this time around, but I want to show off some snazzy things I've picked up. Let me set this up for you: When I was in middle school/high school I was a penpal fanatic (Hi Memory!). I had like 6 different penpals and so I was obsessed with stationary and stickers and notebooks. Let's see...I participated in:

FB's (friendship books) - A little booklet full of names and addresses, for pen pals. Mailed from person to person, each person adding their name and address, and sometimes a little byline with interests

Slams - Questionnaires that are sent around to participants to answer, with sign in and sign out pages.

Zines: A self-made publication or mini magazine assembled and distributed by it’s creator(s).

Deco's - A deco is a small handmade booklet, themed or not, circulated throughout the world to decorators who deco a single blank page and then pass it on. These are created in a variety of styles, techniques and materials.

Artist Trading Card (ATC): A 2.5" x 3.5" inch card with artist-representative and/or thematic artwork on the front, and the title, artist's information and date on the back. Other information that may be included on the back is the technique used and a number if they are part of an edition.

LMAO's (land mail art objects): For example, one time I mailed something in a toilet paper roll and another time I mailed a plastic bottle with a letter inside...no joke)

Altered Books (AB): An altered book is an artistic expression which begins with another artist's work--a book--and becomes something else altogether. Pages may be painted, folded, cut, torn, stamped upon, embellished, layered over, embossed, or carved, just to name some possible techniques.

Anyway, my past obsession has begun to creep up on me. I am literally surrounded with stationary stores that contain my ALL TIME FAVORITE BRAND: Morning Glory (Orange Story is a close second).

Nearly every time I walk by a store I'm pulled in by it's illusive ambiance. I took some pictures of a few of my finds! Enjoy:

notebooks


another notebook


more notebooks


stickers that are disgustingly cute


stationary


more stationary


more stationary


pencil case

CLICK TO MAKE THE PICTURES BIGGER!

The best news about all these are that they are RIDICULOUSLY cheap. Normally less than $1!

That's all, <3 Wendy City

All of life is a foreign country.

Last week began with a high and ended very very low for me. It's been a really hard few days and I can only hope that things get easier from here.

Korea in general has been amazing. I've met so many fabulous South Korean's and learned so many things about myself and life in only 1 months time. I've openely accepted the tough times as mini trials and opportunities to grow (such as getting lost on the Subway or not knowing how to turn the hot water on).

I'll start with the high:
Last week I went to a GEPIK orientation. GEPIK stands for Gyeonggi English Program In Korea and is the organization that I am contracted under. My school uses GEPIK and so that is why I work there! It employs 1/3 of all Native English speakers in South Korea and is really a fantastic org. I highly suggest going through GEPIK if you plan to teach in South Korea.

Anyway, I was able to meet people from all over the world (literally). I had 2 roommates, one from South Africa and the other from Australia. It was interesting to hear all the world perspectives on the US of A! In fact, I wrote an article about it, which you can find at Wake Up Nap Town (WUNT).

I also made some friends that I hope will last a lifetime! The people I met this week understand a lot of what I'm going through and because of that it was easy to relate to them. I'm eager to see where else this year takes me! :)

The low (and it's very low):
As I said in the last post, David and I got 2 bunnies last week . We were very excited about them because they were so adorable, so sweet, so loving and cuddly and innocent. We gave them lots and lots of love, made sure they had food and even gave them acceptable treats. They adorned us with kisses and did their little bunny hop all over the apartment.

When I got back from orientation last week David and I noticed that one of the bunnies had diarrhea. We cleaned it up and petted it and gave it lots of kisses and then went to bed. In the morning we woke up and the bunny was dead.

We were so upset - I couldn't stop crying. I checked the other bunny and noticed that she, too had diarrhea like the other one had. We took it straigt to the vet (only 5 minutes away walking) and it got 2 shots and some medicine.

Because we were afraid it was the food, we bought new food, new woodchips for the cage and new hay. We gave the bunny the medicine as prescribed and made sure it got a lot of water by using an oral syringe.

The next morning the bunny fainted and started to have seizures but recovered. She did this a few times and then we thought she was starting to feel better. We literally did not take our eyes off her the whole day - I even got out of the shower inbetween shampoo/conditioner to check.

Anyway, the bunny began to defecate a clear jelly like substance (i'm sorry if this is TMI) and so we did some research and read that this is not uncommon in young bunnies and usually results in death.

We gave her so much love and kisses and let her sit with us all day long. She just nestled against us and looked very sick.

She passed out again at 11:30 and this time I just knew she was about to pass. So David and I laid there with her and talked her through it, telling her we loved her so much and gave her all the kisses you could ever imagine. She fainted again and this time it was much more violent and honestly it was scary and traumatizing to watch. She passed away shortly after and David and I cried our eyes out (as I'm doing now). We just held her for a little longer - it was so hard to say goodbye.

I know that it sounds silly to be so in love with a little bunny after only 1 week, but there is something about the innocence of these little bunnies that is just heartbreaking. Needless to say, we loved them dearly and I hope we provided them with lots of love. Here are a few pictures to commemorate them:

^That's the bunny that passed away after she got the medicine.

To close, I'm sure you can see that this has been a rough weekend for me. I hope the next update is happier.

Love, Wendy City

오늘은 아름다운 일이다!

This week has definitely been eventful! David and I tried on two separate ocassions to get my Korean ID via the subway system and ran into some problems!! The first day the directions were confusing and so we took a wrong turn and it was too late to get anywhere (after traveling for an hour!).

The next day we tried again and this time we found where we needed to go in about 2 hours! Problem was, once we got there they said that we needed to go somewhere else that was about an hour away! So we tried again, but we got confused by the directions and as a result had to turn around.

Needless to say, it was slightly overwhelming. However, I'm looking at it as an experience, haha :D We really did navigate around pretty well and as long as we have an english map we are golden! There are lots of places we want to visit that subway will take us pretty much everywhere we need to go!

Speaking of places to go, Mrs. Ha, a 3rd grade teacher who speaks English very well and likes to practise speaking, bought David and I two tickets to see a place in Seoul called "63City." It's the 3rd biggest building in Korea (63 stories) and has a sea world inside, an imax theatre and an art gallery of sorts in addition to some restaraunts and retail venues. I can't wait to go! It was so nice of her to buy the tickets for us!

63 City - the Building! Doesn't it tower about all the rest?

Other than the exhausting subway ordeal, things have been grand here! David and I bought 2 bunny's yesterday and I am ecstatic. I wrote about seeing the bunnies at E-Mart last weekend and my white one with the chocolate milk stains was still there!! Ohhhh how precious! We went to E-mart only planning to buy one bunny, but there were 2 left and they looked like they were in love! So of course we had to buy them both. I would feel just wretched if I separated them

Anyway, we brought them home yesterday via taxi and let them get used to their surroundings. They are very very young and are smaller than the remote control! Haha...they easily fit into one of our hands and their noses are constantly wiggling back and forth.

One has the chocolate milk splashes and the other has charcoal grey spots. The grey one is feisty! I claimed the brown spotted one and named her "Catarina." I think I'll call her "Cat" for short. They are so cute with their bouncy little butts that I pass out every time I look their direction. I will post pictures later, definitely.

Anyway, before I sign out I have a few pics for you to enjoy (click to see bigger):

This is me at my desk. I was sitting in my office in the morning before I had class (talking to Miss Amber-San at the time), and all of a sudden these girls rushed in and swarmed my desk. They brought with them treats of chocolate and smiles and peace signs! I just sat at my desk and they all crowded around like they are doing in the picture, watching and giggling. I couldn't resist a picture and I was fortunate enough to have my camera at hand!

This is so funny. So David and I were walking along one day and saw these clothes outside being sold. I decided to peruse the brightly colored doodads and happened upon some aprons. This one clearly caught my attention. It just said 'BOOBY' really big with a bunny rabbit on it. At 3,000 Won I couldn't resist snatching it up and bringing it home. I'm proud of my booby apron!

This is our grocery store, about 5 minutes from our apartment. David and I frequent here often for all sorts of foods! Our favorite? Grapes!!

These game machines are everywhere in Korea and I'm addicted to them. They are the ones with cranes where you try to pick up items. David and I have won a lot of stuff! They are so cheap and usually have things in them that are fun to try to win! Like cute candles, ear phones, even MP3 players and lighters and lots of random stuff. One time we saw panties and alcohol in a machine...eeps!

That's all for now. Until next time, <3>

yesterday you told me 'bout the blue blue sky

Today I taught 5th graders all day long! We wrapped up a chapter and so the kiddo's learned a fun song. It just so happens to be one of my favorite songs ever. That's most likley because it leaves me with a sunny disposition and child-like tendencies.

Mrs. Ann and I handed out a worksheet with the lyrics. They listened and filled in blank words. They seriously loved the song. I anticipated they would like it because it's so upbeat, but every time it finished they shouted in unison "ONE MORE TIME!!"
There are about 3 one more times :)

Here's the youtube video I played for them:



New subject! Well, for a while now I've been looking to get my voice lessons back into action. For those of you who don't know, I auditioned for the Indianapolis Opera chorus and was offered a position. Before the season began, however, the whole South Korea thing happened. The opera thing was on my list of pro/con's in the "con" section for "South Korea: should I go?"

Anyway, I finally found someone who lives in Seoul and gives voice lessons!! He is classically trained and it seems as though he specializes in opera singing. At 28 years old he's played the leads in a number of productions and I'm just bubbling with excitement! I can't wait to begin because I am just DYING to sing.

Mmk, on to the pictures of the traditional market here in SK. Like I said, David and I went to it last Friday. I had been craving a visit for quite some time and I can honestly say that it fulfilled all my expectations. It is everything I thought it would be, and more.

The pictures (click to see bigger)




their desserts...eeps! I'm not too fond of them but everyone seems to love 'em!




David and I bought the plate of squids (circled) for 5000 Korean Won. That's less than 5usd for 5 fresh squidderoo's! Yum!


what looks like blood here is actually caviar! They cut open the fish and show what kind of fish eggs are inside. We just might have to buy one of these sometime!


colorful socks and stuff!


a woman buying something


tea cups galore!




Songpyan - very tasty! We bought some and boy is it spicy


i like apples. do you like apples?






all that (cheap) produce!


shoesies among the fruits and fish!


ugh! too cute!






if you look closely you will see that this is a plate full o' fish heads. eeps!


look at all those chili peppers. No wonder everything in South Korea is SO SPICY!




FRESH crab! We so some so fresh it STILL MOVED! Octopus, too!


SQUIDdly friends!




You better believe I bought one of those apples. How could I resist them?


goodbye market!

The whole thing was most definitely an eyeful, as I am sure you can tell. I experienced a sensory overload...but I can't wait to go back!

I have a ton more to write about, I can hardly keep up with my thoughts. Until then, enjoy! :D

<3, Wendy City

Do you like apples apples?

Bon gia!

That's hello in portuguese, fyi! :D

This past weekend was really nice. David and I went to the Korean traditional market on Friday evening after a stop at the hospital (I had to get a check up for my ID card) and on Saturday we lounged around. Sunday was nice because we bought a bunch of groceries at E-Mart and had a delicious supper! Fresh calamari and spaghetti!

Speaking of E-Mart, we found a PET STORE in there! I guess we missed it the last few times we went. You see, it's got all these different levels as I described before, but we kept skipping one! And this level is the BEST so I'm especially glad we found it! It's like a best buy with all the TV's, computers, gadgets and house supplies (washers/refridgerators, etc). It also is like a Bed Bath and Beyond because of all the home goods. Then it's like a cosmetic department with all the different cosmetic booths set up! And, of course, there is a pet area which had me so excited.

David and I found two hedgehogs that we are thinking about buying. They are kind of expensive, but they are SO adorable I can hardly stand it. There are other animals, too. They have the sweetest little bunnies. I found one that looked as if it were made of the softest down-like fur ever. It was pristinely white except for splashes of soft brown that looked like chocolate milk splatters. It was hopping around in its little cage and wiggling its nose better than any thumper I've ever seen. I nearly died from its overwhelming cuteness.

Anyway - the pet thing is something to think about, especially with my first paycheck so close! :)

Next week I have this training session thing. It's for all native english teachers who are teaching in Gyeonggi-do and it lasts from October 21 - 24. Mrs. Lee (who is very good with her English) told me that she thought I'd be staying in a hotel or resort for the duration of the training. I'm excited to meet some more English-speakers and hope that I can learn some great techniques to bring back to the classroom.

Speaking of learning techniques, for our English genius club (for students who excel in speaking English), I am teaching about Newspapers. I am really excited that I can add that to my resume. I think that the fact that I have taught Children in a foreign country the 411 about newspapers (and we'll produce a newspaper or 2 as well) will help give me an edge over my journalist competitors when I come back to the USA. Last week they wrote various articles and for this week they are typing them up and making corrections.

Next subject: Wedding!
That's right. I know I haven't talked about it in FOREVER but David and I are obviously still planning a wedding. The date is October 17th and it's a twilight wedding. Ceremony will be at Shalom Mennonite and the reception of the historic Benton House in Irvington (5 minutes away from Shalom).

The officiant is still Shalom's pastor, Dagne Assefa (born in Ethiopia) and we'll have live performances from my sister (gospel) and my Aunt Grace (classical/opera) while a friend from church plays the piano (Linda!). Another woman from church has offered to play the harp and so that's what we'll do!

Bridesmaids are my sister Jessica (M.O.H), Amy Korbe, Amber Garrison and my cousin Laura Rhine who will be wearing ???! :)

Groomsmen are Josh Mill (B.M), Chris Foster, Kyle Walke and Adam Coppens who will be wearing all black suits (like resevoir dogs). NO TUXES at David's request. :)

The photographer is Sarah Whitfield.
The colors are chocolate and cream with green accents.
My dress is purchased, I'm wearing David's mom's veil and I'm buying some FABULOUS couture shoes from South Korea!

The reception will be a dessert/champagne extravaganza a la 18th century. The cake will be made by Franklin College's VERY own Pat (who makes the desserts at FC) and will be 4 tiers, white on white.

Music inside the Benton house will be live piano and outside for the first 2 hours will be a string quartet, followed by a mix of funky fun. :D

I'm VERY excited, as I'm sure you can imagine! I've got most of the work done, it's just little details now. Hoorah!

Anyway, I promised that I would update with pictures from the market. That will be in the next blog so look forward to that. <3

Have a nice fall!

It's Sunday afternoon and David and I are sitting in a computer lab (on the kids side = no smoke!) right now. It's super nice! In fact, it's our favorite one we've found so far and there are quite a few around here. Anyway, because we like it so much we naturally frequent the place! The owners know us now and they smile really big when we walk in. They also say "BUH-BYE!" when we leave and bring us free drinks while we play on the computer. Yesterday they brought us iced coffee and then this thick, fruity tea. Today they brought iced green tea. Other drinks we've had include hot coffee, simple water and hot cocoa! :D

I'm going to miss coming here when my computer is finally up and running again! After weeks of calling the Apple care center and trying to find a place that speaks English, we've FINALLY made some progress. Looks like some people will come to fix the computer this week! Which means the internet should be up shortly thereafter.

Anyway, back to sitting in the computer lab. In a half hour or so we're going to go to a place called 'E-MART' which is like a department store, really. Kind of like Target, only it's built vertically instead of horizontally. There's like 6 levels or something and one floor is groceries, another is clothes, another is homegoods, etc. David and I will take a Taxi (we're getting oh-so-travel savvy)and get some groceries and then head back home.

My first paycheck comes a week from this Monday (our tomorrow). I am eager to see what it looks like! I teach more than the allotted 22 hours a week and so I get 20,000 won (like 16USD) for each hour over, which is usually 4-6 a week. David and I's goal is to pay off most of our debt which should be relatively easy since we're not drowning in credit cards or anything. We also plan to save at least $10,000 USD.

Money talk = boring.

Ooh, remember the Anime Wendy I promised? Well, I have it for you! Like I said in the last entry, I had my fifth graders write sentences in the present tense. For example, "I am playing on the computer." or "I am reading a book." Here is one that a student made of me:

eeps! I am going to ask her if I can keep it! :D

Here are a few more of my favorites:



This girl is so talented, isn't she?







Remember how I said they like to make violent things? Well I am almost postitive it is because they are highly influenced by the video/computer games they play. Those games are crazy! Anyway, here's an example, although it was most definitely amateur violence compared to some!!



I have a TON of blog topics I need to write about. Next time I will show you a ton of pictures I took at the Korean traditional market. Here's is JUST a taste:



Til then, Wendy City