Normal...

"She took a step and didn't want to take anymore, but she did."

- The Book Thief

    Today when I got home from work I threw my bags on my bed, unpacked my groceries, and starting making tea.  It was then that I realized how normal and easy this felt.  I have been in Korea for over 2 months now and I finally feel settled.  I don't know if I let on when I first came how truly terrified I was to come here.  The quote from The Book Thief couldn't possibly ring more true to how I was feeling.  I had my entire time here planned out and within the first week that entire plan had fallen to pieces.  In the first couple of weeks I was so lonely and had a few mini-panic attacks.  Finally I can say that I truly am enjoying my time here and its slowly starting to feel like home.  With life starting to normalize, it also means that I am doing less exciting things.  So enjoy my normal everyday life photos.

As every American knows last week was Halloween.  Halloween is not really celebrated here unless you work for an English school, which gives the Korean staff an excuse to celebrate a holiday that they feel they missed out on.  I hate Halloween with a passion.  Coming up with a costume is just to much effort and too much pressure.  Unfortunately this year I was commanded to have a costume ready for two days of classes, basically my nightmare.  The night before Jodi, one of my coworkers, and I scoured Toys R Us to try and find costumes.  These handcuffs were in the children's costume bin.

I ended up with the costume that took the least amount of effort a witch with a purple wig.  All it took was black clothes, a hat, and a wig.  My kids were in love with my purple hair.  I would be concentrating on one kid and turn around to find another one petting my hair.  One of my kids even told me that purple hair makes my eyes pretty, maybe I should consider dyeing it?

 These are the 4 female teachers at U-ACE; Madonna, me, Jodi, and Beth.  Beth and Madonna actually did such a good job on their costumes.  Madonna was a voodoo doll and Beth was a puppet.

Only some of the kids dressed up and the ones that did put in about as much effort as I did.  Except for one little girl, Lea.  She came dressed as Heidi, or as she called it the Switzerland girl.

 Isn't this one of the cutest costumes you have ever seen?  I love the long yarn braids!  Her dad brought her the costume back from Switzerland.

The parents were asked to bring candy to give to the kids.  Thankfully the teachers were also given(read stole) some candy.  The angry looking ghost was a gift from a student though.  After I tried it I learned why a child willingly parted with candy.  This sucker tastes about what I imagine Pledge tastes like.

When Jodi and I went to Toys R Us we also stopped at the grocery store and happened upon a meat sale.  Each of us decided we should buy some and attempt to cook at home.  When I got home I was all set to become Julia Childs, it didn't go quite that well.  I though I had bought beef so like all normal people I decided to use my beef flavored ramen season packets to make a sauce.  Then when my sauce was too runny I knew I had to add some thickening.  My mom always adds flour.  I did not have any flour but I did have pancake mix, which I figured was basically flour.  Needless to say I think my cooking days are over.

Jodi and I decided to forgo cooking another meal for ourselves and tried Korean barbecue.  It is so very strange to eat grilled meat without bread, potatoes, or any vegetables.  Eating this much meat at one time kind of makes me feel sick just thinking about it.  

Also Starbucks already has Christmas trees out.  This is not ok not ok at all.

This picture has nothing to do with anything except to say that I feel like a millionaire when I carry cash around.  This whole handful is about $400.

Last weekend I attempted to go to volunteer at the baby orphanage.  I got to the orphanage and then was told that since they were doing renovations they weren't having volunteers.  Before I left though I was able to get a peek in the room.  It was one of the saddest sights I have ever seen.  It was a room full of about 40 babies all in little box cribs on top of tables.  For all of those babies there were four caregivers.  I no longer want to be a social worker working with international adoption but orphans and adoption are still very dear subject to me.  

After we couldn't volunteer with the babies, my friend Nihara, and I decided to check out a cat cafe.  It is exactly what it sounds like a cafe that is filled with cats.  Let me just tell you this has not helped my dislike of cats.  The only cats I liked were the ones who looked really really angry, like the one in the picture on the right.  Look how super angry he looks at the world, I love it. 

 This was my favorite cat seriously just look how angry he looks! I think I have a problem, I shouldn't enjoy angry animals.  Everyone else at the cafe was on the floor playing with the cats.  I don't really know what one does with a cat.  I tried to pet a few but the just kind of walked away.

This was in one of the textbooks I teach!  Just an excellent opportunity to teach the children about the amazing cheese making abilities of Wisconsin.

And finally! Something I am super proud of Beth and I.  On Thursday night we went to our first CrossFit class.  I was terrified to go.  CrossFit sounded so intimidating, especially since watching the CrossFit games at 3:00AM during one of my overnight shifts this past summer.  It made it even more intimidating going to a gym that we knew would probably only have Koreans.  While every one here so far has been polite it hasn't seem to go much beyond that.  It was completely different here.  The guy running the class was so nice and after explaining to the group in Korean he would come over and then explain to us in English.  Even a couple of the other Koreans came over to say hi and to encourage us.  I actually surprised myself and enjoyed the class and will definitely be going back.  

Today about every hour a new muscle group has started hurting.  This morning it started in my thighs, by lunch time it had moved to my butt, and right now my shoulder blades are killing me.  However its a good kind of pain.  A pain that says I have taken another terrifying step forward.  I didn't want, I was scared, but I did it.  That step takes me one step closer to the three goals that I set for myself at the beginning of this journey.