A couple of impressive young men

Middle School is a hard time.  I would know... I went to three different ones, and none of it was easy.  I think that's why I find it most impressive when a middle schooler does something of character.  I think it takes extra strength to push past all of the hormones, self-discovery, and outside forces to shine through by doing something Good.  I want to take a moment to praise two young men who pushed through all of that on the last day before a long weekend.  These might not be impressive at first, but mull them over; I think you'll see what I mean.

The first is the less obvious example.  It requires a quick culture lesson, though.  One of the things that blows my mind in Korea is the relative lack of supervision the kids have here (ok, in my mind, it's more like an absolute lack of supervision).  They're allowed to do whatever they want, which usually means they're running around, screaming in the halls, and beating on each other.  This stops anywhere between 5-10 minutes after the bell rings to start class and is picked up again the moment class is over, although it often occurs more quietly during classes as well.  I know.  It's not at all what you pictured of Korean schools, but I assure you it's true.  Knowing that, it may be less surprising to you that I had noticed a slap fight starting in the back of my classroom, but ignored it in favor of finishing setting up.  I normally break those up pretty early in an effort to maintain a semi-Western-style classroom (in the name of culture lessons - not comfort, of course...), but not last Thursday.  Well, when I looked up again, something felt not quite right about it, but, by the time I processed what it was, it was too late.  The slaps had been getting harder, until one boy started punching the other in the face.  I could hear the impacts from the front of the room.  I kicked my shoes off and ran to the back of the room, bellowing "YAH!" before I grabbed the hitter from behind in a sort of bear hug, pinning his arms to his side.  The impressive part was that, instead of struggling against me, letting his adrenaline push him forward and out of my grasp (which would have been easy, as he's roughly a head taller than me), he went limp in my arms.  We both stood there, breathing heavily for about 30 seconds before I heard him say,

"Teacher, no fight."
"Yeah, I know 'No fight.'  That's exactly right."  I didn't let him go.  I didn't trust him.
"No, teacher.  No fight."
"Okay..." I said, slowly loosening my grip, waiting to see his next move.  I backed up, and still he stayed where he was.  He turned to meet my eyes.
"No fight."

I was proud of him, even in that moment.  I directed him and the other boy to sit at opposing sides of the back of my room, while sending another to go get a Korean teacher who I knew would be fair and would get to the bottom of what had happened.  The hitter was normally pretty quiet, while the hittee is pretty wide open and has a tendency to speak his mind, so I figure there's a decent chance that the hitter was provoked... not that that justifies rearranging someone's face, but it does justify further investigation.
Even in this moment, I glow with pride at the amazing amount of self-control this kid showed as soon as I got involved.  I don't like the situation, but I do like his actions once within it.

The second young man I want to lift up is more classic in the category of praise.  After school on Thursday, I prayed that G-d would provide me with some kids to take next door to the grilled cheese shop and buy a snack.  Well, He's generally more than happy to answer that prayer.  As I came out of the door of the school, there were about 8 kids sitting on the ground, waiting around for an after-school class.  I talked to them a little bit, mostly about their love lives.  One girl had just broken up with her boyfriend; one girl was yelling up to a third floor window to talk with her "husband;" one boy was gushing to me about how pretty his girlfriend was; one girl wanted to tell me about how she was chatting on an instant messaging service with her boyfriend.  All in all, I felt pretty honored to have them let me into their world.  The trick is that most of it was being relayed by the one boy who felt comfortable using English.  They all wanted to talk to me and I to them, but we needed a translator, and he was fully willing to help - never a sigh, never an eye rolled, breaking off mid-conversation when someone beckoned.  What's more, at the sandwich shop, he made a point of making sure the girls all got their food first, saying "Ladies first," when I looked at him in surprise.  You don't see that much anymore, but it was really nice.

And that, my friends, is me publicly praising two of my many amazing young people at my school.  Or, as my friends at Blimey Cow would say, "That is me supporting my local chivalry."

Good, better, best...

Gangnam Style

I was walking along the streets downtown with some friends last night, and we heard it, not in one building, not in two buildings, but in three, blaring out into the night.  Gangnam Style has become a global phenomenon, and I can almost hear my Korean counterparts saying, "It's about time!  Finally the world is realizing how great Korea is."  But, just like in America, these people seem to be listening only to the beat and chuckling at the appearances of famous comedians in the video.  I have not heard one Korean comment on the controversial message the song sends.  The whole song is a commentary on what the singer wants in a woman and why he deserves it, the resounding theme is "I want a sexy woman, and I deserve it because I'm "Gangnam Style'."  Gangnam is a section of Seoul known for it's ritzy style of living.  "Gangnam Style" is applied to, obviously, a person who lives like they're from Gangnam.  But don't take my word for it; check the lyrics yourself:

English Translation:

Oppa [older brother/boyfriend] is Gangnam style

Gangnam style

A girl who is warm and humanle during the day

A classy girl who know how to enjoy the freedom of a cup of coffee

A girl whose heart gets hotter when night comes

A girl with that kind of twist

I’m a guy

A guy who is as warm as you during the day

A guy who one-shots his coffee before it even cools down

A guy whose heart bursts when night comes

That kind of guy

Beautiful, loveable

Yes you, hey, yes you, hey

Beautiful, loveable

Yes you, hey, yes you, hey

Now let’s go until the end

Oppa is Gangnam style, Gangnam style

Oppa is Gangnam style, Gangnam style

Oppa is Gangnam style

Eh- Sexy Lady, Oppa is Gangnam style

Eh- Sexy Lady oh oh oh oh

A girl who looks quiet but plays when she plays

A girl who puts her hair down when the right time comes

A girl who covers herself but is more sexy than a girl who bares it all

A sensable girl like that

I’m a guy

A guy who seems calm but plays when he plays

A guy who goes completely crazy when the right time comes

A guy who has bulging ideas rather than muscles

That kind of guy

Beautiful, loveable

Yes you, hey, yes you, hey

Beautiful, loveable

Yes you, hey, yes you, hey

Now let’s go until the end

Oppa is Gangnam style, Gangnam style

Oppa is Gangnam style, Gangnam style

Oppa is Gangnam style

Eh- Sexy Lady, Oppa is Gangnam style

Eh- Sexy Lady oh oh oh oh

On top of the running man is the flying man, baby baby

I’m a man who knows a thing or two

On top of the running man is the flying man, baby baby

I’m a man who knows a thing or two

You know what I’m saying

Oppa is Gangnam style

Eh- Sexy Lady, Oppa is Gangnam style

Eh- Sexy Lady oh oh oh oh

So, maybe the words themselves aren't all that controversial.  Maybe it causes your heart to flutter a frustrated beat at the materialism it seems to endorse, but what's so new about that theme in pop music? Well, let me direct your attention to the video.  Psy seems to be trying his hardest to make the whole thing look ridiculous as possible - to make the whole world laugh at the concept of Gangnam style, whether through Psy's lounging beach-style on a playground, the trash flying through the air, the girls walking around in the snow with their shorties on, or the over-the-top excitement at being on the tennis court with a couple beautiful girls... and that's all in the first minute.

Are we slaves?

I want to take a moment to acknowledge that my serious thinking about this song was really spurred by the pastor of one of the three churches I'm bouncing between right now.  Pastor Josh wrote a very well thought out post on his blog about how this video seems to be a modern-day version of Ecclesiastes - the material world is meaningless.  Furthermore, he suggests that we are personally enslaving ourselves through our habits.  He doesn't mean the ball and chain kind of enslavement (although that DEFINITELY still happens today around the world, including the USA), he means the soul-sapping, Christ-deferring kind of enslavement.

We live in a world where depression is quickly becoming the number TWO debilitation of people across the globe.  We live in a world where suicide is one of the three leading causes of death in young people, aged 10-24.  We live in a world that chants the mantra at us "Good, better, best, never let it rest..."  Never let it rest?  If that's not slavery mentality, I don't know what is.

The ultimate result

This week, my friends and I have been plagued with the unthinkable.  The equivalent of an American ninth-grade student of one of my friends attempted suicide while at school by jumping out of a third story window.  He survived and underwent surgery on his leg and jaw.  What would prompt such a young person to do that?  I'll answer quite confidently: The unbearable pressure to succeed.  We just started the second semester of school, here in Korea, and our middle-schoolers are busily applying to high school.  Mid-terms are at the end of this month, and finals are right behind them.  There's no rest for them.  They go to school all day and study when they come home, and when I say "all day," I do mean "all the daylight hours."  If I thought I was going to fail under such circumstances, I honestly can't say I wouldn't do the same as him.

"But that's Korea!", you say.  What has this to do with me?  Korea is leading the world in suicide rates, but that does not make the rest of the world immune.  After all, it is America posting the Good, Better, Best poster in its classrooms (believe me, I know - I stared at them day after day, making it my own mantra).  America (and the rest of the Westernized world, for sure, I can't speak for the rest of the Eastern world) puts such an incredible value on academic and financial success, that, even if it isn't a personal value, it's weight it crippling from having it constantly cast onto people.  It's the rolling thunder of inadequacy looming directly overhead.

Avoidance

As Christians, we are called to something more than this mindset that we've had drilled into us.  We've been set apart as holy, living sacrifices.  We've been commanded to refrain from conforming to this world.  One crucial way to do this is to REST.

We cannot focus on other people, let alone G-d and His Kingdom, is we are physically and emotionally exhausted.  This has been proven time and again.  Take Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs - Our most basic human needs are the physiological ones, like food, shelter, and sleep.  It's not until we achieve those and all the other levels of the hierarchy that we can reach the final level, added by Viktor Frankl, of looking beyond ourselves to other people's needs or the existence of a higher being (although some people may argue that being given self-worth by a higher being can fall on the fifth level of the Hierarchy of Needs).

In case you don't want to read all that psycho-babble, the answer is this: We have to take care of ourselves! It's so important that G-d even commands it:

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." -Exodus 20:8-11

Even G-d chose to rest, to take a break from work and stress.  If it's good enough for Him, isn't it good enough for you?

There's no need for the pressure of 24/7 perfection.  You're going to get sick.  You're going to need a break.  You're going to fail.  That's life.  That's humanity.  And, you know what?  That's okay!  Take  break, worship, relax.  Don't get caught up in trying to be the best.  Take it from someone who knows - it's not worth it.

I love you, and I'm praying for you!

Vacation: Istanbul

A long, long time ago, I sat next to Mr. JoshTaylor (of Blimey Cow) in Fine Arts class, where he criticized my eating habits a lot.  Somewhere along the line, his message got through to me, and I now adhere to many of the rules he tried to instill into me, but I wouldn't dare then!  I'm not one to do what I'm told. ;)  But my obnoxious stuborness isn't the point. While JoshTaylor and I were in that Fine Arts class, we were shown pictures of many things that I thought for sure I'd never get to see.

Things like

Westminster Abbey

The Wedding Feast at Cana

The Code of Hammurabi

But, in the end, I clearly saw them, and that realization was so overwhelming that I cried.

So, when my search for plane tickets to the U.S. turned up the chance to stop in Istanbul and see Hagia Sophia, yet another item that made my Bucket List, thanks to Fine Arts, I jumped at the chance (plust the $1,000 cost reduction from what I'd been looking at beforehand).

The results were two new friends I made on the plane and coerced into joining me, an invitation to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, and THIS:

Entering Istanbul at sunrise

My first glimpse of Hagia Sophia

Alman Çeşmesi (German Fountain)

Blue Mosque

Hagia Sophia again

The ceiling of one of the mausoleums in Hagia Sophia

A beautifully spirited street vendor

At this point, I would say that Istanbul is neck and neck with Mainz for my favorite city that I've visited.  I would surely love to try living here sometime.  What a breath of fresh air to start out my journey!

Laminin

"He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." - Colossians 1:17

My words aren't good enough to preface this.  Just watch it, please.

I'm finally finishing off the Blimey Cow photo-a-day thing.  To the left, you will see Day 29. Best song ever - Whatever is stuck in my head/ear at the moment.  To the right is Day 30. Mirror selfie (which I believe I did well, rocking my new sunglasses).  Boom.  I can commit to a project! 

When allergic to ants...

...watch out for ones that fly.

Lesson learned.

I'm currently at the "muchies" stage of the two Bendryl I took, which means that the coma stage is not far now.  I'm already getting pretty clumsy (good thing I made biscuits before that really took hold), so it must be pretty soon.

Therefore,

I will give you my June goals report card and the last Blimey Cow photos (and, perhaps, a more hilarious version of this story) tomorrow.  Have a good night/day.

Life and Third Graders

Today, some of my third graders stopped by to see me during their lunch. Normally, at that time of the day, I'm pretty tired and grumpy, but a fervent prayer in the morning to put me in a better attitude to minister to these kids kept me in stitches at all of their antics all day long. My sixth graders stole my heart (we did one-on-one testing today, so I got a chance to know them as humans and not just students), and then these kids did, too.

The one little girl, 서영, has Down's Syndrome, as does her twin, and they've taken a real liking to me. This one is constantly babbling, whenever I see her. Today, I realized that she's saying, over and over, "영어 선생님!" (English teacher.) She got right up in my face to say this to me, today. I usually just let her do her thing, but the question is always there, "What am I going to do if she kisses me? What is the correct course of action?" I'm thinking I'm just going to let it slide, but I don't know what my co-workers will think is and isn't acceptable.

So, they stopped by to talk, and I brought out some stickers. Well, 서영 thought they were just the snazziest things she'd ever seen, and she didn't want me to be left out, meaning that, after I put her sticker on her hand, she grabbed the sheet from me and proceeded to empty it onto my arms and face. I returned the favor by decorating her glasses. She then removed some from my arms to do my glasses. It was very cute.

Then, I had a brilliant idea. "Teachable moment!" I said.

"Girls, how would you like to make a video for America?"
- "For America?"
"Yes. I can put it online."
- "All of America would see?"
"Well, they could if they wanted."
- "Would Obama see?"
"Maybe. If he wanted."
- "Okay."

They were hooked, and I think you will be, too, because they're so stinking adorable. This is what I got out of it. (Interestingly enough, it kind of fits what I'm sure a lot of people are thinking right now. Please note, I'm keeping my opinions on that subject entirely separate from this blog.)

"Hi Obama! I'm Korean people, and you is... uh... You name is Obama. And you is too tall and ugly."

Me: "What?! You should not tell Mr. Obama that!"

"No! It's you're handsome!"

Me: "Oh, ok. Good."

"이명박 [Korea's president], too."

Me: "All right, tell Mr. Obama bye-bye."

"Bye-bye!"

"No! No, no!"

Me: "No?"

"No bye-bye!"

Me: "No bye-bye... Do you have more to say?"

"No, no. Byeee!"

Me: "No? Oh, ok. Bye."

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 28. Joyous news!

I think this one speaks for itself.  ^_^

All right, friends, No bye-bye to you, too. ^_^ I've got to hit the sack. Goodnight!

The highest

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 27. A favorite quote

Since I first read this quote in Nate Kerr's Christian Tradition class (the class that is responsible for the destruction of my faith), I have not been able to shake it.  Morning, noon, or night, it will creep into my head, and I will find myself meditating on it.  No matter where I am when it hits, a quick prayer, even uttered by my heart in the spirit of the quote, will never fail to bring me back to the feet of Christ.

I don't know if it's because I'm finally fulfilling my purpose as a creation to praise the Creator...

I don't know if it's because, in praying this, I must fully turn my attention to G-d...

I don't know if it's just because I resonate so deeply with Augustine here...

But I do know that I never feel more right than when I'm acting with this quote at the forefront of my plans.

I would strongly, strongly recommend that you read a copy of Augustine's Confessions, which happens to be my favorite book.  I've linked an online preview of it for you, to make my point for me.  This book has entirely shaped the way that I write about faith and G-d (if you read it and read some of my such writings, I promise you, the influence will be unmistakable).  Seriously, check it out.  You won't be sorry you did.

Beyond that, I would encourage you to start praying this, as Augustine (and, to an extent, Paul) prayed.  I guarantee you, it will change your life.

Keep loving.

And the winner is...

So, this was a really hard choice for me, because y'all did a far better job than I had been doing and strayed far away from J.K. Rowling's choice of character names.  (Although, apparently I forgot to rule out Madeleine L'engle's character names?)  Thank you.  You accomplished my goal.  But then, you all did well.  Seriously, everyone left me pondering the correct answer.  Which means that some of the other names may show up... Maybe even in reference to Charity... as in, I may or may not already have some ideas for how to use all of my favorites.  (Don't worry, if that happens, I'll be sure to send you some love.)

That being said, I'm doubting you want to read my babble today, so... on with the show.

The winning name was, I think, entered as a joke. However, it turned out to work on many levels for everything that I want Charity to be. It includes foreshadowing and symbolism... so, if it really was a joke, that's pretty awesome. Now, I will leave you to ponder who and what Charity could possibly be, as I announce that her name will be:

The actually entry was Charity Steward, submitted by Greg Steward (see why I think it was a joke?), but subtle differences in meaning, based on spelling, led me to change the "d" to a "t."

Greg, go ahead and contact me, and we'll talk about what you want and how to get it to you.

Where you go to subscribe

Meanwhile, everyone else can check out his blog here.

Make sure you subscribe so you don't miss any further possibilities to be a winner!

Blimey Cow photo of the day 26.  Big Head Kid impression

Big Head Kid shows up in a lot of the Blimey Cow videos.  He's pretty awesome, in that he vocalizes what my brain often thinks.  This is my 5-minute impression of him.  Luckily, we have the same hair color... ish.

Get ready...

...because I just epically shot 3 Blimey Cow photos in one.

23. Pajamas - I've been wearing this shirt to bed for several nights now. I also wore it to church on Sunday. Go ahead, judge me. But, when zombie polar bears come for your souls, I will rest easy knowing that they're not looking for mine.

24. Your best friend - Not the easiest question to photograph (I do live in Korea, for crying out loud), and the topic incredibly loaded. So, I took the entire stack of photos I had printed from last year and threw it next to me. Of course, the friends who are on top are the ones I've heard from recently, but, trust me, If you've met me, your photo is most likely in that stack somewhere.

25. Messy - My hair is wet. I'm not wearing make-up. There's a tissue next to my un-matched pillows. If you look closely enough, you'll notice that the bottom pillow has no case. It took me five tries to overcome the need for a duck face (I'm just going to blame it on exhaustion.  This is honestly the first time I've ever done it).  Yeah.  I think this photo counts as messy.

Now, I'm going to go get all this crap off my bed, and go to sleep.  Just try to stop me.  Okay, don't; I really want to sleep.

I'll talk to you tomorrow...

... When I announce who's winning the giveaway.  Not to worry, you still have roughly 24 hours to get in on this action.

Right here for your very much wish-fulfillment.

Way back in my freshman year of college, I was in Covenant Choir, which took a trip to Orlando, Florida.  My friend Kara and I ended up being rooming partners, and we stayed with an absolutely amazing family (Andy, Lorri, Sydney, and Carter); I still think about them sometimes, actually.  We had so much fun.

For example, I think this is one of the most adorable dogs ever.

Well, the amazing family came with their crazy dog, Ziggy, who just felt too much of a need to exert his dominance.  After watching him chase Kara's legs around the house for a half hour or so, I, half jokingly, half seriously, said I wanted a similarly awkward dog when I got older.  (Actually I want a more awkward dog, because not only do I want a dog that exerts his dominance, I want him to be so ugly it's cute.  It's okay.  You can go ahead and call the people with the jackets that help you hug yourself.  I won't hold it against you.)

For some reason, I feel like the more awkward a dog is, the more endearing it is.  I can't explain it.  Maybe I shouldn't think that absolutely awkward things are cute.  Maybe that will lead to uncomfortable situations.  Or... maybe it will make for excellent stories later.  I guess it just depends on how you see the glass.

So, yes, I challenged G-d and/or life to give me a dog with a need to exert its dominance. May I just throw it out there that you shouldn't put those kind of challenges out there without expecting them to happen.

Kara and Ziggy

Tonight, I had my friends Thomas and Bethany over for a long over-due dinner/hang-out time.  The food was delicious, thanks to The Awkward Chef.  (I made her veggie burgers again, and I finally got them all to turn out correctly!  It was a momentous occasion.)  Manila was out and running around when they came in.  (To be technical, she was the only one here to greet them; I had to run to the store for a second.)  They hit it off to begin with, but Manila must have felt threatened by Thomas' masculinity, because, by halfway through the evening, she had felt the need to mark a corner as her own.

Manila, trying to figure out her species

But that wasn't enough; she had to move on to his arm, and she didn't just chin it or something.  No, she had to go and exert her dominance.  But she wasn't too good at it, though, because he couldn't figure out what was going on.  It was pretty amusing, but I put her away anyway.  Poor, over-stimulated bunny.  We'll try again anyway.

Be careful what you wish for, I guess.

In spite of the weirdness of having a rabbit that thinks she's anything but a rabbit, we had a great night (and it's been good to see her acting fully healthy again - she's even eating her pellets... occasionally).  We had veggie burgers (yum).  We had watermelon (yum yum).  We had Oreos and peanut butter (yum yum yum!).  We found the faces of Mary, Jesus, and Satan in the peanut butter.  We played Fluxx until we were laughing so hard it hurt.  I don't think anyone can deny the quality of the night, and I can't wait to have Bethany and Thomas over again.  :)


PS. Identify the quote from the title of this post.  Why?  Because life it more fun when you realize how much of what I say is actually quoting something.

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 22. Your favorite superhero (AKA Batman).
Lucky for Blimey Cow, my favorite superhero generally is Batman, although he is occasionally challenged by Wolverine.  

Today had all sorts of fun candids.

Here are the highlights:

• The sixth graders are getting ready to take this majorly important test on Tuesday (please keep them in your prayers), so we spent class time this week playing a review game.  My favorite class was one that went from being a very high-scoring game, to two of the teams losing all their points, due to some unfortunate choices.  Then, when it seemed like a lock for Team B, Team C found a "switch points with another team" option.  Not even Team B could keep from laughing, so you know I lost it (so did my co-teacher, so I don't feel bad).  It was a situation that could have turned ugly, but the kids were having so much fun; I really appreciated it.

• Korea had a blackout drill today.  All of it.  The government shut down the power to certain key buildings, and everyone else was on the honor system to turn it off on their own.  Honestly, I don't know how that helps anyone be prepared for anything, since all it changed was how hot we felt, but maybe my Korean counterparts got something from it.  (Or maybe, possibly the government just saved a TON of money today?  Maybe the U.S. should try it...)

• Somehow a massive wooden structure got ripped out of the solid wood floor to which it was screwed.  The group of students blamed it on the one autistic child in their midst, but, somehow I get the feeling that they weren't being entirely truthful.  Call me crazy.

• In telling my friend Cameron about that, we decided that the child must be the daughter of the Hulk, and is, therefore, genetically mutated.  We concluded that it's very irresponsible to have mutant children and not send them to Dr. Xavier for proper responsibility training.  (These are the things I talk about in real life.)

• We all got together for our quarterly dinner with everyone in the program through KNU.  I remembered tonight how I thought I was going to hate all of those after the first one I went to.  Now, I realized that I very much look forward to them.

All in all, I'd call today quite successful.  Tomorrow, I don't have to teach, so I'm attempting to get ahead on my summer camp planning.  Wish me luck.

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 21. Something you NEED.

I NEED to get back in my Bible more.

All right y'all.  Bedtime.  Have fun with whatever it is that you're doing.

I think the purpose of the "Dead Man" pose at the end of the yoga routine is to allow for adult nap time.

Today, the yoga class at my school started, and yes, I was in attendance.  I was pretty excited about it, and even made it through mostly in Korean.  Problem is, it went for an hour and forty minutes.  Yoga isn't too strenuous, as you can probably guess, but doing weird stretches for that long is really tiring.  I'm exhausted.

That's also probably in part because I stayed up so late talking to Alex and Meret last night, but I really like talking to them, so exhaust myself I will.  Luckily, tomorrow I'm just playing a review bomb game with my sixth graders and getting the advanced kids started on The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.  My boss is so excited about it that she wants to go through it, too.  I say, "Hey, go for it.  Just let me get the copies handed out to the kids first."  Yes, I photocopied the first chapter, which is perfectly legal, but it's not going to take them long to get through that, soooo:

It's looking like I'm going to need some copies of that book set aside for me... 24 to be exact.  Is anyone willing to help out on that front?  Contact me via any method if you are.

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 20.  Something you want.
I want to finish this journal off, because it's literally split into three parts:
Cover, paper, and bookmark.
My own fault.  I dropped it too many times.
Although, the last drop was in my sleep, so I'm considering blaming anything else.

Don't forget to enter your name idea on my giveaway!

The dirt on the giveaway

I need a good last name for a character in my story.  First name: Charity.  She's kind of a third-party plot-line.  (For those of you who read Stephenie Meyer, think Bree Tanner.)  I want her name to feel older and more sophisticated than the character does herself... if that makes any sense.

The person who comes up with the best name will win a giveaway.


Here's how this is going to work:

1. Make sure you leave your name in the comment section.
2. Make sure you leave your surname ideas for Charity.
3. Make sure you pop back in next Tuesday to see if you've won.
4. If you win, I will send you something cool and exciting from Korea.  AKA - your choice of a sampling of my favorite beauty supplies from here (and trust me, if there's one country in the world that knows skin, it's Korea), a sampling of my favorite snacks from here, or a combo of both.

Beauty is sure to include some of these:

Snackage is sure to include some of these:

Ready?  Go.


(I'm not really sure how to fulfill the photo of the day for today <21st Century America>, soooo... we'll go with some 21st Century Korea.  I'm picking the Barbie beauty supplies to cover that shot.)

Until they're gone.

You may or may not know that I lost my grandfather.  I mentioned him in my Thanksgiving post  this year (sorry... all the pictures have somehow bitten the dust), talking briefly about the kind of legacy he left for our family.  What you probably don't know is that my eldest cousin and I spent a decent amount of time stepping into his shoes and composing the sermonette for our family's Thanksgiving service, focusing entirely on the kind of legacy we want to leave, based on his example.


Today, my uncle posted links to what I think was my grandfather's last sermon, and I'd like to share it with you.  If you aren't sure if you should watch it, I will list all my reasons as to why you should below it.

First and foremost, my grandfather was a man of G-d, unwavering in his faith.

My grandfather was such an outstanding man that I'm still seeing messages from people I have never before met, telling me how he touched their lives, sometimes even saving them, which amazes me, since it was never his personal intention to enter the ministry; that was entirely G-d's doing.

My grandfather was our gentle patriarch.  He didn't fit the demanding description that word entails, and, quite honestly, my grandmother fit the bill of "running the house," but my grandfather was, without a doubt, our spiritual head.  Without him, I often feel like I'm floundering out in the seas of faith.

I want to reprint for you what I published on Facebook, shortly after his death:

I remember when Sarah asked you who your favorite grandkid was, and you responded that it was her.  (I thought Mom-mom was going to hit you.)  But then you clarified, "Whichever grandkid is on my lap is my favorite."  Of course, we all scrambled to be on your lap then - I'm sure you planned it that way.

I remember getting up to sing whenever we were at your church.  You'd always cringe when we'd start playing with the communion railing.  That made us want to do it all the more, by the way.  But I'm glad we got to sing; it always made you so happy - we could tell, even then.

I remember playing with marbles on your living room floor.  You always complained that someone was going to fall and get hurt.  I'm sure you meant it, but, now, I'm also sure that you were secretly glad that we wanted to be at your house - even if it was because you had all the marbles.

I remember all the Fourth of July's at your house.  (I never did understand why you didn't want to go see the fireworks.)  I remember how all of the grandkids would spend the day of trying to build a "chair swing" in the old tree out back.  We were convinced you knew how to do it but weren't about to tell us.  You clearly wanted to keep the knowledge to yourself. ;)

I remember wanting desperately to play with the typewriter in your office.  I think it was only one time that you let me.  When I finally got the chance, I was so excited, but I had never decided what I would write if the opportunity presented itself, so I just wrote, "I love you Pop-pop!"  And then, in order to make it to the next line and hear it ding, I wrote "aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa."  :)

I remember being on a road trip with you and Mom-mom, and you convinced me that it was okay to have ice cream for dinner.  I still am okay with claiming that to this day.

I remember the time you were taking me to an evening service at church and you hit a deer with your car.  Listening to your response to the people who yelled at you for it was classic: "YOU JUST HIT A DEER!"  "Yes, I know!" and then you muttered, "obviously."

I remember cramming into your room at Thanksgiving at Willow Valley for our worship service.  You'd lead us through hymns, and by "lead" I mean that you would barely have the title of it out of your mouth before you'd boom out the first line of the song.  Sometimes it annoyed me, but now I look back on it and smile.

I also remember you watching football on Thanksgiving after we ate.  I always have wondered why... you would fall asleep as soon as you turned it on, but oh, if we changed the channel, you most certainly would wake up and put it back.

I remember when I found out you were sick.  I was at my other grandmother's house.  I cried all night.

I remember when we spent the afternoon in your kitchen.  You told every story of your life that I've heard before, and added some more to the cannon.  The meant so much to me.  You told me over and over how glad you were that I listened, but I'm not sure that you ever realized that it meant just as much to me that you trusted me with them.

I remember the last time I saw you - you looked so different.  Your voice was so much quieter, but your words will always ring loudly in my ear until I see you again.  "I love you so so much," you said.  I don't think anything will ever mean as much to me as that did.  I love you so so much too, Pop-pop.

I still love you so, so much, Pop-pop.

Looking forward to seeing you again.

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 18. Messy - My face, stained with tears after finishing this post.

So, I messed up.

Yup.  I called both of my parents a week early for their respective holidays.  Which means that the photos of the day thing was right, and I should have had a photo of my mom last week and my dad this one.  However, I'm out of money on my Skype account, so a new photo will not be happening.  However, you can enjoy this lovely photo of my family:

A very merry Father's Day to you!

16. Inspiration

I was in the middle of writing an entirely different blog post to you, when, suddenly, I got up, changed into jeans and just left my apartment.  I had no intention of doing it; it jut happened.  I started by stopping by the kitten area from yesterday's photo.  I hadn't seen a mom with them, so, as per my friend Nick's request, I went to see if they had someone/something caring for them.  I'm pretty sure I saw a momma cat today.  But, instead of coming back home, I started wandering around aimlessly.  I'm pretty sure I saw the Korean version of the mob, but I kept on moving.  I didn't stay around long enough to confirm it for you.

Blimey Cow photo-a-day 16. Inspiration
This is a photo of my receipt from Applebee.

I didn't know where I was headed, but my feet beelined for the most expensive restaurant I know here: Applebee (not to be confused with America's Applebee's).  It's this expensive buffet place that offers some high class food as well.  They're really good, and my pastor is always desperate to take people there.  But, in being there, I broke almost every rule I'd set for myself.  I broke my budget (the meal was roughly $25), I broke my water rule (I couldn't find the water filter at first, but was surprised to find that I didn't like the pop I had at all {as KelliTaylor said would happen} -too sweet!), I broke my unwritten "no eating out alone" rule, and I actually even broke my kosher rule (I'll come back to that).  To tell you the rather embarrassing truth, I didn't even have on socks, makeup, or deodorant.  My brain hadn't intended on going there, but, surprisingly, it was really refreshing and just what I needed.  Go figure, the introvert had an almost extroverted night.  Almost.

The entire staff there went out of their way to help me out.  We played charades for a bit, because Applebee has this not-so-complicated-but-feels-complicated-at-first system of placing plastic coins in the receiving bucket of your choice to order the food item of the corresponding picture above the bucket.  I knew this, but they really wanted to explain it to me, so I let them, first in Korean, then by a guy grabbing me by the hand and leading me across the restaurant to pantomime the whole process not one, but two times.  I later found out that one of the bus boys studying English in the US for 8 months, and, consequently, spent the rest of my meal pondering why they hadn't just grabbed him.  Either way, the directions were given and understood, so I grabbed one of the coins and went to place an order.  My mime, however, came running after me with my other coin, saying "Two!  Two coin!"  As it was the only thing he had worked up the courage to say to me, I figured it must be important to him.  Thus, I read through the Korean names, only recognizing one word: Creme.  I figured that was a pasta dish and ordered it.  Everything else looked to be meat, but I selected one that looked like it had the possibility of not being so.  I was right and wrong at the same time; it was shrimp.  Thinking of what Paul would say if he was there, I ate every last bite of that shrimp, and it was surprisingly delicious.

I was also surprised to find myself writing more of my novel in my head while sitting at my table.  I rather wished I had brought it with me.  For some reason, sitting and people watching gave birth to a new character, who I think will help get everything moving.  Well, I guess it's not really "for some reason."  When you meet her in the story, she'll be exactly where I was, doing exactly what I was doing.  She's just going to have a slightly different motivation.  She's going to be a lot of fun to write.  I

I'm thinking of naming her Charity, but I need a good last name for her.  My gut is saying Cambridge, but I'm thinking that's more of because J.K. Rowling named one of her characters Charity Burbage.  I'm thinking it would be better to not copy her so much, so, if you can think of a sophisticated, older-sounding, somewhat cooly intimidating surname for her, please list them off below.

In fact, how about this?: The person who comes up with the best name will win a giveaway.


Here's how this is going to work:

1. Make sure you leave your name in the comment section.
2. Make sure you leave your surname ideas for Charity.
3. Make sure you pop back in to see if you've won.  I plan to introduce her in the next chapter, so, I should be needing a name by next week.
4. If you win, I will send you something cool and exciting from Korea.  I haven't decided what yet, as I just decided to have this giveaway, but I'll go out soon and browse for the perfect prize.

Looking forward to your names!

Challenge Accepted.

Today, Blimey Cow asked us to take a photo of a sunset and/or cat.  I, being who I am, saw this as a challenge to do the "and," of course.  So, this is my "and" photo:

I know it's not easy to see, but the sun really is setting in this photo.
I just live in a city, so natural light gets drowned. 

See?  I live in a city.
This is the view from my window.  It's pretty amazing, is it not?

P.S.  I want to thank those of you who were clearly praying for me today.  Before I went under the laser, I noticed that the numbing creme hadn't been applied over the full area, so I got them to add more.  As a result, I only felt about one second of the procedure, and it was finished in record time.  The doctor thinks we won't have to do another one, but I'm probably going to go next week just to make sure.  Oh, what's more: They gave me this round for free.  :)

More video updating

As promised, the Blimey Cow photo-a-day from yesterday (#13. eyebrows):
One of my students learned the word "eyebrow" from the recently implemented self-study advanced-student reading program at my school.  I'm crazy proud of how well she did on her checkup worksheet.

14. Your siblings.
I have one, and I used the last of my Skype money to call him tonight.  I now need to suck it up and reload my account.