Drinkers with a Running problem

I went to Jeonju this past Saturday to participate in the Jeonju Hash Run. It is something the members of the club there do sometimes twice a week.

What is a hash you ask? That was exactly my question and I had only a vague idea of what I was getting myself into, so I thought it was best to experience the hash myself.

However, if you want to get technical, wikipedia describes hashing like this:
The Hash House Harriers (abbreviated to HHH, H3, or referred to simply as Hashing) is an international group of non-competitive running, social, and drinking clubs. An event organized by a club is known as a Hash or Hash Run, with participants calling themselves hashers.

I went with about six people to the Jeonju and we met about 30 other foreigners in front of a store. I was still a little lost, but I paid my 10K won and signed in. The "Hammer" or leader explained that the "Hare" had laid out the course with chalk and that we should follow the arrows and at some spots we would find arrows that led in the wrong direction and there would be a sign telling us that we have hit a dead end. These were then given marks so that the next set of people would know the correct path to take. Then as if we weren't a spectical enough being 30-40 foreigners in one place in Korea, we crossed the street and stood in the middle of the intersection until it was safe to pass :) (No worries mom, it was on the little grassy area!)

Our "Hare" had laid out the course so that we would have to hike up a mountain and then go back down, it was an amazing view! Scott and I proved to ourselves that we should attend the gym more regularly when we quickly realize we were nearing the back of the group and we were panting... sad sad.



The mountain was beautiful and the hike, although tough, was one of the most awesome things I have done while in Korea! The view was spectacular and Jeonju is a wonderful city! Luckily, even though we fell to the back of the group, we were still accompanied by a few experience hashers and a cute little dog. We actually got lost because we were directed by the hash marks to go through a building but the mark inside the building had be erased so we had to phone a friend to get back on track!

Once we arrived at the destination we were greeted by beers and mandu (pot stickers). Then we all circled up and everyone did chants and sang songs. I thought it was odd, but a nice way to meet other foreigners and enjoy a day out walking around. My students even commented that I look darker today :) BONUS TAN!

Because it was my first time, I was labeled a virgin and put to the front to tell who I am, where I came from and who sent me. Luckily I was first and was not asked some of the questions the others in the group were asked to answer such as, what is your favorite sexual position HA!

Here's me in the virgin line with my friends and then the entire group that hashed:


Overall I had a good first weekend back in Korea. I was not ready to go back to work today but that's ok, I'll make it. If you want to know more about hashing or want to go on a hash yourself, they are all over the world and there is actually one in OKC. Visit this website for more info
http://www.gthhh.com/

Heaven of Hell

My senior year of high school Mrs. Shook made us write a paper based on the quote by John Milton- "The mind is its own place, and in itself, can make heaven of Hell, and a hell of Heaven."

I remember the paper I wrote for that class and have always remembered that most of our experiences are about our perception rather than the reality. The past two weeks have felt like a hell of hell.

On April 4th David Delgado, the guy I have been dating for the past seven years, died in a car accident. We were told that he was killed on impact and that it was painless for him. In a way I can see how knowing that it was painless could be comforting, but just knowing that he's not here is the most painful part of the experience. I am glad to know that he did not suffer and that we did not have to see him suffer and then pass, so that is the heaven of that hell.

What happened was tragic to say the least. It is a daily struggle for all of us left here on earth loving and missing him. I have been able to find a few small heaven of hell situations that restore my faith in people and the kindness in their hearts.

When I found out about David, I thought there would be no way for me to return home to attend the funeral. It is in my contract that I am only allowed to leave if it is an immediate family member that passes. I felt helpless and was worried how I was going to deal with everything mostly on my own here in Korea. The next day, two of my co-workers saw me in the hall, red and puffy from 20 hours of crying. They decided there was no way I could not go home.

They took me under their care for two days, first they looked online and found an airline ticket for me and when my credit card wasn't working, Kim let me put it on her card. I still can't believe how amazing she is! For the flight I was going to need and MP3 player and I don't have much music on my iPod so Brandon let me borrow his for my trip! They sat down and figured out my schedule and made sure all of my classes were covered and then talked to my boss and let him know that I was going to be gone. The next day, they walked me to the taxi and gave me a little sack lunch that they had packed along with a notebook and pen and $20USD just in case I got somewhere and only had won :)

Overall, their generosity, giving spirit and willingness to take charge and walk me through everything got me home just in time to attend David's funeral.

Also while in Korea I received a lot of counseling and long talks with my other good friends who have opened up and found it in their hearts to listen to me cry and lean on them when I needed someone to talk to.

When I arrived at the OKC airport I was greeted first by my Dad and my best friend Kate. Just seeing them made it real that I was home and why I was home and it was a good/terrible feeling all at once. Then my mom and my two aunts came over and they were there for me through everything. They will never know how much it meant to me to have them all there to catch me when I came in. I feel so blessed to have such caring and amazing friend and family support.

Kate even stayed with me for the first two nights, just to be there in case I woke up and needed to cry it out on someone :) Love that girl! And of course my mom, an infamous insomniac, was up at all hours to talk with me and cry with me. Stacy hosted a party at her house so that we could all get together with our friends and just hang out while I was in town and I truly appreciated that.

David's family also made me feel so warm and accepted. Although David and I broke up at the end of December and had only a small amount of contact since then, they knew how deeply David and I loved each other and treated me as a part of the family. We are still supporting each other even though the distance is far, it's always comforting to talk about everything with someone who knows exactly what you're going though.

Now back in Korea the administration at my school has been amazingly supportive and have all come to check on me and make sure that I am doing ok. My boss Dr. Yu told me that he had been supportive of the leave all along and his boss, Dr. Sang, was also supportive. Dr. Sang had lost a boyfriend in the past and I was told that she cried when they told her what had happened with David. She is arranging for a few of us to get together and to go to lunch this week. Mind you, this is after I violated my contract and could have lost my job and had my visa revoked. So for them to be so understanding and then to go the extra step to check on me personally made me feel like they see me as a person here and that is something you don't find at every job.

And finally, I have been shown so much support from friends and even acquaintances through myspace, facebook and emails. It meant so much to me know how much everyone loved David and that he was such an influence in peoples lives. Thank you for all the messages and prayers! :)

Dealing with David's loss has been a struggle from the beginning, but was made easier by all of these people and all the support I have received.

Everyday I wake up and it's a new challenge and a new day to get through trying not to lose it and to accept that God had a higher calling for David. Besides, who am I to keep an angel out of heaven?

So thank you all again for all the prayers and just please keep David's memory alive and remember to walk in love in everything that you do, just as David did.

Blog for BLOG SAKE!

Ok, ok, ok, ok, ok! I have been putting off blogging as if it were homework! Now I feel like I am so far behind there would be far too much to talk about in one session so I am lost for where to start or what to talk about.

Scott has arrived!!! He was having a little culture shock for sure, but he came out of the negative horror after about day three. But I noticed some similarities between his experience and mine. I call it the "Pringle Effect". Let me explain, after your first couple of days you are desperate for anything western or familiar and it just so happens that Pringles are in every convenient store here. My first day here I went to the market and bought a can of Pringles and loved every single chip that I ate. I don't event really buy them at home, but it was comforting to buy something and to know what it was going to taste like and to feel normal for just a bite. Scott on his second day bought a can of Pringles and had the same nostalgia for them as I did. It was awesome to see him experience exactly what I had experienced just weeks before. Lovely!

My students... oh my students. I have been battling 8 year olds for as long as I can stand it and they have added even more to my class. I was sitting at 10 kids...now I have 14! It is actually fine and I've just realized that I can't take it too seriously and that if I slam my hand on the desk and yell at them just once, they're terrified for the rest of the hour...magical! :)


If you have noticed in my slideshow I took a couple of pictures of some colorings my students produced. One is a stick figure with boobs, courtesy of a little boy we call Tom. The sad thing is I had just talked to his mom not even a half hour before and told her that he is a good kid and that he tries but needs a little more focus, like any 8 year old! The other is from a kid named Gi Beom, I took a picture because you'll notice between the mans legs there are hands doing a ddong chim. This is where the kids put there hands together with a pointed finger and cram it up someones butt. Interesting I know, but he thought it was sooooo funny that he couldn't even stand up when he handed it to me! He was literally rolling on the floor laughing! I just took it and put it on my desk and ignored him.


Tonight I went to dinner with my free talking (advanced) class and we went to a couple of restaurant/ bar type places and they taught me a lot of helpful Korean and I hope to learn even more! One student, Jinwoo AKA General Jueng as his friends call him was especially helpful. He spent about an hour with me teaching me words and telling me how important it is to listen and apply the words. He is amazing! He has become fluent in english in about 6 months. He is one of my best speakers and he has crazy good listening skills! I'm thankful that I have him in my class and he has offered to teach me more if I am interested, and I am :)

Tonight I also tried the dried squid. I thought it looked and smelled bad and I'll be honest. It's not the best thing that I've ever eaten, but it's a great kind of fish jerky and I enjoyed it!

Last weekend we went to Maisan, a couple of mountains about an hour and a half from here that are shaped like donkey ears. We visited the Buddhist temples and just enjoyed our little day trip. For a hike, it was relaxing. I actually tried some silk worm larva... It wasn't good at all, but it was good enough for me to eat about 10 and be done.

Scott and I have also found two new foods that we LOVE!!! There is this soup and it is prepared at your table, like many Korean foods, and it is a spicy beef broth, and you throw all these veggies and dumplings in and let them cook and then you put in thinly sliced beef and after you have eaten all the beef, you put in handmade noodles - which are AMAZING! The last course of the meal is a porridge made from the remaining broth and what ever small vegetable bits are left in the pot. It's flipping amazing! So amazing in fact that Scott has dubbed it "Korean soup for the soul". And then there's duck... never would I have thought that I would be loving some duck, but I honestly love duck! It's great! It is cooked at your table, whether steamed or roasted. I prefer roasted. It's like little duck fajitas :) The sides at this restaurant are interesting too, they give you a ton and one of them happens to be hard boiled quail eggs. They taste just like regular eggs and are cute.



Tomorrow I am going to have Korean soup for the soul for lunch and then it's the weekend ! Wooty woot!

I promise I will try to blog more often! That way I have a focused blog and not this crap :)