Mindy and I are reaching the half way point of our stay here in Korea. We think of home often, but in the interim we have been very active and having a blast with our friends and the everything we do.
We have picked up another kitten (see below for the next short post on him) that is the cutest thing since..."cute". He is quite a snuggler (so far) and it looks like he is going to be a long haired one! We are throwing around the name Ziggy because of his small "zig zagging" tail. We have gone bungee jumping! It was my first time and I was terrified, but it was exhilarating. Something I was never sure I would do. To top that off it was a surprise birthday present and I am afraid of heights (or used to be)! For my birthday, and five of my friends with close birthdays, we helped plan a big group birthday party at a bar in Seoul. The band was great and we danced the night away... eventhough Mindy and I left "early" at midnight to grab a burger.
Mindy and I have now gathered a full set of rock climbing equipment and we made some great routes with our friend JP last weekend. We got the climbing bug. I took my first damn big fall that day. It was a 10 foot swinging fall and it managed to scare everyone including the surrounding Koreans. I came to a stop about 5 feet off the ground. If you look at the pictures, you can notice how one of them is blurry. This is because JP took it just as he started running away because, as he told me later, "You weren't looking to steady there and I didn't want to get bowled over." I was yelling for tension and Mindy got pulled right up off the ground. Luckily she was roped to the ground for my climb. It wasn't the vertical fall that was so bad, but the pendulum motion that resulted from me drifting too far right. It was my first big "whipper"! My butt still hurts!
The day before climbing we hit up my Headmaster's daughter's beautiful wedding. It was set in beautiful Olympic Park (site of the '88 Olympics). The food was fantastic and we got to meet some great people.
While I got to go hiking with my school on a day off Mindy's school took her to Everland (Korea's Disneyland). She got the better deal. We have partied all over Seoul, mastered the art of karaoke and met some great new friends.
This weekend I have set up a big group outing for a bunch of our friends for....*drum roll*...more bungee jumping! Thought I would turn jumping 150 feet off a tower into a social gathering. The day before, we will be spending Saturday running through the woods and getting pelted in a fierce game of paintball, or if we change our minds, we will be rock climbing. In early November we want to plan a group camping trip to a great park in Eastern Korea. We might even do some climbing.
As you can see things have been moving pretty fast here and we are thankful for this as we are on the homestretch! Looking forward to seeing you all in six months!
-Scott
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
Katnapping in Korea
Aaaah. My classes are finished for the day. I can finally relax and get some planning done for next week. I think I'll open the window to catch some sunshine and the last of the cool breeze before the real cold hits. I pick up my pen, flip through the textbook, and begin creating the best English lesson ever when....
Meow. Meow. Meoooowww.
What's that? I've heard that tiny, high-pitched sad little sound before. I am reminded of capturing Ninja (our precious, little, rambunctious , scratch-happy, biting, meowing-all-the-time kitty) not so long ago. It's the cry of a kitten who's lost its mother. Oh! What should I do?!
This is where most people would either ignore these tragic meows or simply close the windows. I, on the other hand, am not most people. Instead, I run downstairs, stopping to change into my 'outside' shoes (one of those lovely things about Korea), and head across the street toward the meowing. They have stopped (of course) so I proceed to do my best impression of a mother cat. And...it works (I had plenty of practice with Ninja). Now I know the location of the little guy.
With a little help from my co-teacher, Bruce we are able to go into the neighbors gated yard to find the kitten. You might be wondering, 'Couldn't it be her kitten?' Not likely. Koreans don't really like cats, especially strays and especially black ones (bad luck). She's happy to have us potentially rid her of this kitten. We see the little guy under the stairs and hold out a can of cat food for him. Again, remembering the Ninja ordeal I never thought the scared, little cutie would get anywhere near me. Well...I was wrong. He's so hungry that he barely notices I'm there. So, I take the opportunity to snag him.
Now what am I going to do? I hadn't planned on having another cat, and what's Scott going to say? He's still dealing with his allergic reaction to Ninja. I'm sure another cat will really help that situation! I call Scott and tell him what happened. We decide I should bring the kitten home and we'll take it from there. We can always find someone to take him, or possibly give him a big meal and put him back in the country (ya right).
* * *
Well, it's been almost a week now, and we still have the kitten. He's so adorable. We love him! I'm not sure Ninja feels quite the same way though. We have to keep them separated until Ninja gets neutered, and HOPEFULLY calms down a bit. Until then, Scott and I will try to keep them apart and quiet (nearly impossible), as our landlord doesn't know we have cats (or so we like to think)!
So, that means that Scott and I now have three cats. Two in Korea and, of course Sage back home (who I miss soooo much!). We're about one away from becoming crazy cat people! Luckily, the weather is getting pretty cold here in Korea, so there will be no need to have my windows open. No way to hear the Korean kittens that need rescuing. It's very sad, but we can only do so much!
Meow. Meow. Meoooowww.
What's that? I've heard that tiny, high-pitched sad little sound before. I am reminded of capturing Ninja (our precious, little, rambunctious , scratch-happy, biting, meowing-all-the-time kitty) not so long ago. It's the cry of a kitten who's lost its mother. Oh! What should I do?!
This is where most people would either ignore these tragic meows or simply close the windows. I, on the other hand, am not most people. Instead, I run downstairs, stopping to change into my 'outside' shoes (one of those lovely things about Korea), and head across the street toward the meowing. They have stopped (of course) so I proceed to do my best impression of a mother cat. And...it works (I had plenty of practice with Ninja). Now I know the location of the little guy.
With a little help from my co-teacher, Bruce we are able to go into the neighbors gated yard to find the kitten. You might be wondering, 'Couldn't it be her kitten?' Not likely. Koreans don't really like cats, especially strays and especially black ones (bad luck). She's happy to have us potentially rid her of this kitten. We see the little guy under the stairs and hold out a can of cat food for him. Again, remembering the Ninja ordeal I never thought the scared, little cutie would get anywhere near me. Well...I was wrong. He's so hungry that he barely notices I'm there. So, I take the opportunity to snag him.
Now what am I going to do? I hadn't planned on having another cat, and what's Scott going to say? He's still dealing with his allergic reaction to Ninja. I'm sure another cat will really help that situation! I call Scott and tell him what happened. We decide I should bring the kitten home and we'll take it from there. We can always find someone to take him, or possibly give him a big meal and put him back in the country (ya right).
* * *
Well, it's been almost a week now, and we still have the kitten. He's so adorable. We love him! I'm not sure Ninja feels quite the same way though. We have to keep them separated until Ninja gets neutered, and HOPEFULLY calms down a bit. Until then, Scott and I will try to keep them apart and quiet (nearly impossible), as our landlord doesn't know we have cats (or so we like to think)!
So, that means that Scott and I now have three cats. Two in Korea and, of course Sage back home (who I miss soooo much!). We're about one away from becoming crazy cat people! Luckily, the weather is getting pretty cold here in Korea, so there will be no need to have my windows open. No way to hear the Korean kittens that need rescuing. It's very sad, but we can only do so much!
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