새해 복 많이 받으세요! I'm Off to Shanghai!

Jan 31- Feb 6, 2011


Having slept away most of the weekend, I was well rested to start the week. I got up Monday around 9am and took care of some laundry and cooking up the last of the food I had so that my fridge would be empty while I was away. Now that intensives were over, I had a lot more time before work to wake up and get ready for the day. Once I was ready, it was out the door, with high hopes that the last two days before our vacation would round out smoothly. The day went by just fine, except for the black eye I was sporting that was was evident every time I blinked. Some of the teachers caught it right away, while others had to take a couple glances. I tried not to call too much attention to it, but once the story was out it was hard to stop it from spreading. As for the kids, they picked up on it immediately. With the majority of them I was able to pass it off as an accident, and told them that I fell out of my bed and hit my eye on Goah's carrying case. Those that didn't buy that I told either a story about the Korean teacher hitting me, or the truth. Before I knew it, it was 10pm and I was on my way home. I through on a playoff game while I folded my laundry and cleaned my apartment, then called it a night around 1am.
Tuesday was similar in nature, except I didn't have anything to cook for myself, so on the way to work I picked up some food instead.  At work I talked with Chrissy about how we were going to get to the airport, and about how I told Frank that we would meet him at the hotel since he was flying in earlier than us. I also, printed off a few maps and lists of things to do, but like a stooge forgot to print off directions to them. I had arranged with John to stop by and feed Goah, so I gave him my apartment code at the end of the day, and let him know that she would most likely hide under the bed while he was there. Before we left ,Mr. Kim the owner gave us all a New Years gift set of cooking oils and tuna. It's always nice to get gifts, but I am only one man, cooking for one person, so I'm not sure what I will do with so much cooking oil. After that I went home to pack, even though I had been invited out for some drinks in Itaewon (because Alex N lost his job). I thought it would be best to not be hungover on the flight the next afternoon. After my things we packed, and I was ready to go, I threw on one more game before falling asleep around 2am.
Wednesday morning I got up just before 9 and made sure I had everything I would need, then I ate some breakfast before heading out to meet Chrissy for 1030. Our flight wasn't until 230, and I suggested taking the subway to the airport since it was the first day of the long holiday, and I really didn't want to get stuck in traffic. Before I met Chrissy I stopped by the pet shop to pick Goah up some more litter, then took it home to refill her box before I left. Chrissy and I met at the station and got on the train to start our trip. We got to the airport by 12, checked in and then went to wait for our flight at the gate. We grabbed a bite to eat while we waited, which killed quite a bit of time before our flight left. Eventually we boarded our plane and were off to Shanghai. The flight was good, and we touched down at 330 local time, grabbed our bags, and headed for the subway, which was the easiest way to get into town. I had spent some time looking at how we would get to our hotel, and was pretty confident in my ability to navigate the distance between the closest subway station and our hotel. Then the beginning of a trip full of funny/disappointing failures started. While on the subway, we reached what we would eventually find out was an end of the line station for the trains coming and going between the airport and the city. Even though it was all the same subway line, the trip form the airport to about 6 stops out was run by one train, and the rest of the inner city circuit was run by a separate train. Now, since we didn't know this, and the process of a train switching directions was different from that in Korea, Chrissy and I stayed on the train and ended up going one stop back towards the airport. We realized the mistake we had made, and quickly got off the train, went back the other way, and then made the transfer as we were intended. Frank was meeting us at our hotel for 430, but having messed up with the trains, we didn't show up until closer to 5. Frank had already checked into the room, but they had given him a single room instead of the double room that we had booked. The hotel quickly changed our rooms, and then we were off to explore the city.
We started out by trying to get a cab driver to take us to the famous Nanjing Road, more importantly, the east end of the road. We showed him the map, and thought we had it figured out, but after only a short ride he pulled over and told us we were there. I had my suspicions, but we got out anyways. As it turned out, we were at the wrong end, and after taking some quick photos of a temple and along the strip, we got in another cab to go to the far end of the street like we wanted. Once we got out of the second taxi, we took a walk along Nanjing road taking pictures and trying to find a place where we could get some food. Things weren't much different in Shanghai than they were in Korea. A good portion of the people were also away visiting family, so naturally most of the restaurants and shops were closed as well. Eventually we found a place to eat down a side street, and for $15 we all ate our fill and had a couple beers. After we finished our dinner, we headed toward the famous river front view known as The Bund. We came out of Nanjing Road right at the point where a large statue of  former Chairman Mao Zedong stood overlooking the river. We continued up onto the promenade and walked north, stopping frequently to take pictures of the incredible buildings, and the lighting surrounding them; and the many scattered firework shows that were going on around the river. The temperature, which was above zero while the sun was up was beginning to drop drastically, and we were sure that we wouldn't last outdoors until midnight. Once we reached a lit bridge over a tributary river to the Bund, we turned and went south towards where we had started. We passed Nanjing Road and went south as far as the marina before we we all pictured out, and cold enough to call it a night. It was only 10pm, but having been up all day, we were all in need of a rest. We hopped in a taxi, and headed back to our hotel.Frank and I grabbed a beer from the store and we all went up to our room. Throughout the day and into the night, we had heard and seen a plethora of fireworks, and now that we were back in our hotel we had a clear view of the entire cityscape and the true magnitude of the fireworks being set off around the city. We watched the city light up in a nonstop show until midnight when it was officially the new year, and at which point the city went insane with their fireworks. Though there was no centralized show, every corner, and in front of every building seemed to light off more fireworks than most cities do for the 4th of July. It was incredible, and lasted longer than than 45 minutes. It was officially The Year of the Rabbit, and time for us to go to sleep.
Thursday morning, we got up at 830 and got ready to get the day started. We had breakfast at the hotel, which was pretty mediocre, but at least we had something in our stomachs before we hit the town.Our first mission was to get to Yuyuan Garden, which was also the location of the famous Old Street, an architectural old area that has become a market these days. We made it there, and found ourselves in a veritable sea of people. We walked around for a few hours, taking pictures, and having our pictures taken by locals. For lunch we decided to get away from the crowd, and walked down some dies streets until we found a small dinner to eat at. The food was good and quite cheap. Once we finished eating we walked to Peoples Square via Nanjing Road. The road that had been so dead the night before was now teeming with people. It was a long walk through all the people, but eventually we made it out of the crowd and to the square. We walked around for a bit and then headed back to the hotel around 6pm to get off our feet for a while. After a few hours we got hungry again and headed out to see what would be open in our area for us to eat. Surprisingly, most things were closed even though it was only 9pm. Even more surprising was the fact that several places let us check their menus for prices,and when we decided to eat there, told us they were closed. Why wold you let us check your menus, if you are closed? Before long we found a hotpot restaurant, where they cooked tofu noodles and meat joints in a pot with some vegetables and other unidentifiable bits. Frank and I thought it was a pretty good meal, most likely due to the caveman in brought out in us; Chrissy however was not as enthused about it, and only ate a little. After dinner we headed back to the hotel around 11pm, grabbed a bottled Jack and Coke, and settled in for the night. I offered to switch out sleeping on the floor with Frank since we only had two beds, but he said he was quite comfortable with it, and we went to bed some time after 12.
Friday morning we got up early again and went to the bakery next to our hotel for breakfast before heading over to the Indoor Stadium to locate one of the tour bus stations. We had planned on going to an old water city, but when we got to the train station, the last train leaving at 1130 was already full. Not being able to go Friday, we booked tickets for the Saturday 1030 bus, and headed to the  Shanghai Science and Technology Museum. Chrissy had wanted to go, and hearing science and technology got Frank and I interested. It turned out however to be the underground shopping centre that she was interested, not the museum. So, with our interests going in different directions, Frank and I went out to walk around the museum grounds, while Chrissy did her shopping. In the end I don't think she made out any better than she would have back in Korea, but to each their own. By 230 Chrissy was done shopping, and Frank and I were done walking around the museum grounds, we all headed to the hotel to drop off what Chrissy had bought then went to the Jade Buddha Temple. We were lucky that it was close to our hotel, because it was getting late and the temple closed at 430. The temple was full of people, both local and tourist alike, some there simply for photos others to pay their respects to and pray to their gods. The air was thick with the smoke and smell of incense, and the temple itself was endearing in it's inner city setting. After leaving the temple Frank and I were lucky enough to find some firecrackers for sale at one of the street vendors. Throughout our entire stay we had heard a constant barrage of  of firecracker strands being lit off around the city, and they were no ordinary fire crackers. It seems that the inventors of the firework pack the biggest punches in those products they keep for themselves, because a single firecracker that usually pops off with a blast that makes you blink and laugh a little were going off with a blast that made you flinch and want to cover your ears. Naturally Frank and I bought a strand, and then we all headed back to the hotel to have a drink and rest before dinner.
For dinner we had plans to meet up with a friends of Chrissy's and his wife who have been living in Shanghai for several years. While we were waiting we started to get a little sleepy, so Frank and I took the strand we bought to some back alley to light it off. We weren't sure if we would get in trouble since everyone else was doing it, but being a foreigner generally brings different rules. A little nervous, as well as excited, we laid out the strand and lit them up. Instantly the air was filled with smoke and the deafening sounds of the firecrackers. Frank made a quick retreat, while I was seemingly paralyzed in place watching the explosion. Within a minute they had all popped, and we laughed our heads off while making a beeline for the store to get one more drink, then it was back to the room to wait. Fully awake, we laughed about it for a good half hour before Chrissy's friend showed up to get us, and we went down the street from our hotel for dinner. It was a very nice place, well out of the range we had been dinning at, and the quality of the food showed. Still being China, it was not overly expensive compared to any comparable meal in other countries, and when the bill came Chrissy's friend picked it up. I usually don't like people paying for me, but it was their city and they wanted to show us a good time, so I offered some money in good faith knowing full well that he wouldn't take it. After diner we hopped in cabs to head to a swanky bar district. We found a spot in a jazz bar with a live band, where the beers were going for 95Yuan a piece, that's nearly $15. I didn't mind paying the price since we were getting a live band, and a foreign atmosphere. By 1am we were all pretty tired, so we said our farewells and headed home for the night.
Saturday morning we all got up early, got ready, and headed back to the bus station to get on the bus to go and see the ancient water city we had read about. Stopping quickly at the bakery to grab a bite, we hit the subway to make our way to the bus station. After several stops we realized that we may not make it on the subway, so we hopped off and got in a cab to make the rest of the journey. It was amazing that we made it on time, because our taxi driver dropped us off on the opposite side of the stadium that we had to be at, and in the end we were a little unhappy that we did make the bus. Getting on with mere seconds to spare, we left the city for the hour long ride out of town. When we arrived at the ancient water town, we were more than disappointed to see that it was no longer a town, but instead a tourist trap of shops and not much more. Aside from a couple of canals that ran through a rather small city, there was not much to it. The crowds were also huge, and it wasn't until we got off the bus that we were told we would have to spend 5 hours there before we could get back on the bus, because that was just how the system worked. Once we were in the city we walked along with the crowd past lots of shops and over some bridges. It was bound to happen, and after the first fork in the road, Chrissy got separated from us. We tried to look for her, but in a sea of thousands of Asian it is hard to pick out one girl. Frank and I went on ourselves, knowing that eventually we would run into her. We wondered the streets and around the shops for a couple of hours before stopping at a coffee shop to have a drink and rest our legs, and then went to see if we could find Chrissy by the entrance. It didn't take long before we found her sitting on a bench near the canal. We laughed about getting separated, and about how shitty the water city turned out to be, then lamented the facts that we still had 2 hours to kill. Feeling that there was nothing left in the city for us, we went out to wait for the bus. Frank and I walked around the outer streets surrounding the city, but in the end it was just a sit and wait thing. Eventually the bus showed up to get us, and we were on our way back into town. Once back in town we took a taxi back over to the Yuyuan garden and Old Street market to pick up some tea for gifts, and then went back to our hotel to back for our flights the next morning. We ate dinner at the hotel, and then grabbed a couple beers to kill the night since we all had to be up and on the go early.
I set the alarm for 6am so that Frank could get up and make his 830 flight. He was flying from the airport closer to our hotel, where as Chrissy and I had flown into the international airport on the outskirts of town. He packed up the last of his things, then head out. I rest the alarm just in case I fell back asleep, and it's a good thing I did. The alarm went off again at 7 and Chrissy and I got up, grabbed our things, then headed to the airport. We thought we had given ourselves plenty of time to get to the airport, and we even made sure to make the proper transfer this time. We didn't account for Chrissy having to use the bathroom however. We had to get off not far from the airport for her to use the washroom, since we had left the hotel in such a hurry and neither of us had used it then. Thinking nothing of it, we got off the subway, found a bathroom then continued our trip. It had however, cost us about 15 minutes, and coupled with train ride that was taking much longer than it had on the way in to town a few days before, we ended up getting to the airport only 30 minutes before our flight was scheduled to leave. We ran to our check-in counter and asked to be let through, but they said we were too late and that we would have to wait for the next plane, and pay an extra $100 for a guaranteed seat. We were having none of that knowing that there are always open seats. After being given the run around for about 20 minutes, we were put on stand by and told to wait until 1130 to see if there would be room on the 1230 flight. We sat down and waited,and when it came time, there was, as we expected, seats on the plane. They gave us boarding passes, and we headed over to get through security. Ironically, we made it through security and to our gate in less than 20 minutes, to find that all planes had been delayed for about 30 minutes due to the volumes of air traffic. This meant that we more than likely could have made our first plane, but instead had to wait even longer to get on the later. Once aboard we sat waiting for another 45 minutes before we even taxied out to the runway. Eventually we were in the air, and back in Seoul by 330. We took the bus back from the airport this time, and were never more relieved to be back in Bongchon. I came home to a whiny cat once again, made my phone call home, then called it a night.


Holiday over, it was nice to be back in Seoul. Though colder than Shanghai, it is more familiar and comforting. Hopefully, everyone else had a good week, and enjoyed whatever adventure they got up to.

Ow, My Eyeball!

Jan 24-30, 2011


Due to the flight time, and the time difference between Canada and Korea, I didn't land in Seoul until 530pm Monday. I quickly grabbed my bag from the luggage claim section and headed for the subway. Having missed another day of work, I text my coworkers to let them know I was home, then enjoyed the long ride back to Bongcheon. I got into my apartment by 730, to see my bedding all piled on the floor, and Goah hiding under the bed. She was quite reluctant to come out and see me, but I can't really blame her. I set my bag down and laid on my blankets on the floor until she stopped being such a sissy and came to see me. I pet her for a while, all the time with her whining at me like I had left her for dead. Eventually she crept back under the bed, and I fell asleep on the floor for a couple hours. Around 10 she came back out and started driving me crazy with her incessant meowing but unwillingness to come near me, until I finally yelled at her and scared her back under the bed. After that I picked the blankets up off the floor, remade my bed, set the alarm, and called it a night.
Suffering from jet lag for the the second time in a week, I was up at 6am to start my day. I spent a bit of time waking up and getting some laundry done, before leaving early so I could make it to the travel agent to restart the process to get my Chinese Visa. I was able to get that done and make it to work by 10am, where everyone was very excited to see me. It always feels good to be missed, and knowing that the teachers and students were happy to have me back put a bright spin on the day. Work went by with relative ease, though trying to figure out who had covered which classes, and what they had done took some time. The day went by quickly, and when the day ended at 730, I headed straight home where I sat with Goah and watched one of the many back logged football games I didn't watch the week before. Before too long however, the heavy call of sleep hit me, and I had to call it a night before it was even midnight.
Having gone to bed so early, I woke up again at 6am, and having not much else to do with the time, I threw on another football game while I cooked myself some food to take to work. I was able to get to work a little bit early in order to get some more paperwork in order, and see what the damage was on the online essay situation. John had really stepped it up in my absence, and marked all the kids online essays himself, despite my insistence on him sending me the login codes I had left on my desk. He didn't want me to worry about anything while I was home, but I really could have used something to occupy some of my time while I was there. Seeing that there were quite a few, I worked during the day to check as many as I could, and put a considerable dent in the list. When the day was over, once again I went home and put on another game while I struggled to keep my eyelids open. In the end, I lost the battle, and sleep took over before it was even 11pm.
Thursday was much the same as Wednesday. I got up again at 6am and cooked my lunch for the day, and then get ready for work, While at work John and I worked on more of the online essays, trying to get them all marked and back to the kids before the end of the week. Thursday being one of the day of the week we get to leave early, I left work and was home by 730, where I enjoyed another half of football before I passed out at 9 o'clock.
Having slept more than my fair share over the past few days, I woke up at 530 Friday morning rearing to go. I put on the football game that I had started watching the night before while I ate some cereal, then cooked my meals for work, and eventually headed to school for our last day of winter intensives. After my first class, I left the school to go pick up mine and Chrissy's passports from the travel agency I had left them with in order to get our Chinese Visas. It was a quick trip to Myeongdong and back, and it wrapped up the last detail for our trip to Shanghai. Once back at work I got a text from both Alex and Louise about meeting in Sincheon for some dinner at Aladdin's Lamb, before going over to Gold Bar for a few drinks. I agreed to meet them, and when I got of at 9 I quickly took my bag home, and got on the subway to go meet them. The dinner was good, and then Rocchi and Garrett showed up for the trip to Gold Bar. Things were going fine, until all of a sudden, in the middle of a conversation.......I had to use the washroom. And when I I say had to, I mean HAD TO. In mid conversation, though to be honest I don't remember much of, my stomach began to turn and I decided I needed to get through to the washroom. Now, instead of trying to get by nicely, in my haste I pushed a guy out of my way , who in turn punched me in the jaw. Having little concern about the punch to the face I continued to the bathroom, avoiding pooping my pants. On my way out the bathroom things in the bar were still pretty heated, I walked right into the crowd and a few more fists. Things were all happening in a blur, but I know I threw a few good punches before I was being swarmed, and having my arms pulled in two different directions. That's when I was suckered from behind. I can't blame the guy who hit me, but he was not involved, only drunk and angry like the rest of us, and decided he wanted to get in some punches. He swung at me from behind and connected pretty good just above my right eye. Being as high on adrenaline as I was, it barely fazed me, but I took a second to turn around and see Rocchi choke slam him on the floor, and then ChaeChul drag him out of the bar. Since I am a regular at the bar, and a good friend to the bar staff, after things calmed down a little, they asked me to stay inside and not go out looking for trouble. I agreed to that, and we all got back to drinking, while I took some time to apologize all the staff for creating a problem. I don't remember much after that, but in the end we stayed until 630 in the morning, and then I took the subway home. According to John, I phoned him when I got off the subway at 8am, but I don't remember that.
Having drank myself stupid the night before, I woke up just after noon feeling far more dehydrated than sore. I quickly started putting together the nights events as my face started to remember the punches it had taken some hours before. I quickly put on some clothes, and then went to the store beside my apartment to get some water and Gatorade so that I could get some liquids in me to try and get rid of my hangover. After that I came back to my apartment, crawled back into bed, and started making some phone calls to my friends who were there to help me to make sure they were all OK. Alex was in worse shape than I was, and was being sick, but everyone else was doing alright, and I was the only one with a sore face, which was good news. The rest of the day I spent in bed, rehydrating, and watching movies. When it is all said and done, I take blame for what happened Friday night. There are always two parties involved, though it is not in my nature to start trouble, to get excessively angry and not walk away is, so the blame is on me. This was a first I started a fight, but I'm sure it won't be the last time I get involved in one.
Sunday was much of the same story. I got up still feeling the effects of the hangover, and sore in the facial region. My jaw on both sides was sore, and above my right eye in the crease of my eyelid was showing signs of bruising. I kept watching movies, and then made my weekly call home before trying to get to sleep before the start of the week.


One week after my family's loss, the process of going through Nan's things has begun, and the women of the family are working hard to sort it all out. I hope everyone is staying strong, and finding the joy in the life Nan lived, instead of dwelling on the sorrow her passing.

She Lived With a Warm Heart, and a Strong Fist

Jan 17 - 23, 2011


Monday morning I woke up early and went with my mom to the funeral home to see Nan one last time. The funeral home was kind enough to hold her body over until I made it home to see her, before she was sent out to be cremated as she wanted. It was nice to have a chance to see her, and even in death she lost none of the character we all loved her for: kind and loving yet stern. Aunt Deb summed it up well when she did pass by telling the pastor that she was a woman who "lived with a warm heart, and a strong fist".
After the quick visitation, mom and I went to the bakery and picked up a cookie and dessert bar latter to take to the nurses in the ward where Nan spent her final days. My family was overwhelmed with how great and supportive the entire staff had been throughout the whole process. After the hospital it was back to the house, where I spent the rest of the day sleeping, still feeling the effects of the jet lag. I slept until dinner, and then after eating sat around with mom and Ed until they went to bed and I headed to my room to watch some more T.V. before calling it a night as well.
Tuesday was a new day, and when I got up at 930 the house was empty. My mom and Ed had gone out to do some running around. I had a bite to eat and called Ash to set up a time to go out to visit our other grandparents. She eventually came by to pick me up in the early afternoon, and we went out to have a visit. it was nice to have a few hours to sit around and talk with them and one of their friends, and around 5 my dad stopped by after work, as he usually does. Ash and I were on our way out, but took a few minutes to let him know about the service arrangements for the end of the week. Dad said he was thinking of taking the next day off work as long as the weather was good, and asked if I would want to go ice fishing. being a guy who enjoys the cold, and not having been ice fishing since last year, I agree and told him to give me a call when he knew for sure. Ash took and dropped me off at home, and after a bit of supper I once again spent most of the night napping. It seems as though, with the time change, the late afternoon and early evening is when it catches up with you the most.
I woke up Wednesday just after 9 and got my things together for when dad called to go fishing. It wasn't until almost 11 when he called from my uncle Ken's house and said they would come to get me as soon as my cousin got back from her doctors appointment and my uncle could stop babysitting. They finally came to pick me up around lunch time, and we drove down to St. Williams, where we always do our fishing. As we were getting our warm clothes on, we were visited by one of the Ministry of Natural Resources staff, who wanted to know how we had been doing, but since we hadn't been out yet she let us be. That was a good thing, because both my father and I didn't have our licenses with us, which can result in a hefty fine. We hit the ice, but it wasn't until the sun started going down that any of us had any luck. Dad was the only lucky one, having walked a few dozen yards from where we were, he took advantage of some holes left by others and pulled out several good sized perch. After the sun was set, we headed off the ice in the dark, and were on our way home by 6pm. Ice fishing is always a good way to get out and enjoy some peace and quiet. It gives one time to think and reflect on anything they wish, add that to the conversations you can have with your company and it makes for a great time.
Once back in town they dropped me off at home so that I could get cleaned up before going over to Ash's house for dinner with her and her boyfriend Lance. She came to pick me up at 8, and we went to her house and had shepherds pie and garlic bread, which was absolutely delicious. After we finished dinner, we sat around talking until Gavin showed up, having just gotten home from a 3 day work trip up north to do some work on a friend of his family's cottage. From Ash's, we went out to a bar to have a few drinks. We had some laughs and a couple drinks, then Gavin drove me home around 1am. I had forgone the jet lag nap, so was very tired when I got home, and went right to bed.

Friday I got up again about mid morning and hung out with mom and Ed for a bit. Then in the afternoon I went back out to my other grandparents house, this time armed with my laptop so I could dhow them some of the pictures of my adventures from the past couple years. Technology is not something they care much about, in fact they still have an old school rotary phone, and they were thrilled that I was able to bring and show them my photos so easily. We spent a couple hours on the couch going through numerous albums, and the stories that go with them. Looking back on it as I write this, and with the passing of my Nan, I realize how important those moments are and am going to make a better effort in the future to spend time doing such things. I was however on a time line, because Russ and Michele and the kids were coming down around dinner time. They had not told the kids that I would be home, because then it would have been a week long "When are we going to see Uncle Mark?" bonanza. In the end my mom had to call me and ask how much longer I would because they had arrived, but I was already putting on my coat so i would be just behind them. I said my good-byes and headed home, and as soon as I walked in I was swarmed by the two of them, Braunwyn and Parker. It was great to see them, and I was amazed at how much change can happen in 9 months. We played for a bit until dinner was ready, then played some more after dinner until it was time for the rug-rats to go to bed. Once they were in bed, Russ and Michele, and I headed over to Gavin's to have a visit with Mike and Jill, and their new puppy Noodles. We got there just after 10, and sat around talking and playing with the dog until Ash and Lance showed up, and then we headed out for some drinks at The Moose. We stayed until last call, which was something I hadn't heard in some time living in Korea and all. The three of us headed back to moms place, and I gave up my room to Russ and Michele, and went and crashed on the floor in Parker's room.

We all got up early Saturday morning, partly because of the kids, and partly to get ready for Nan's service. After sleeping on the floor over night I felt like a million bucks. The mattress on my bed is a little too soft, so after a few days my back was getting sore, and the night on the floor put it all back in order. After some breakfast, Ash came over to hang out with the kids while the rest of us got ready. My mom had to iron the good clothes I had taken home, because I just shoved everything in when I was packing. As we were getting ready, Parker took the chance while his shirt was off to invite me to the gun show, thus prompting and gun show photo, which was hilarious. He is so funny, and quick witted. I try to deny it when the family says it, but he is very much like his Uncle Mark. We all headed over to the funeral home at 1230, and visitations started at 1. It was nice to see the whole family, and talk with them for a bit before it got too hectic. The rest of the afternoon I kept people entertained, telling stories and showing them a funny story one of my students had written. Over time a great number of people came that I hadn't seen in many years. Names were retold, relations brought up, and stories shared. At the end of the day, when it was just family left, my aunt Deb pulled me aside and gave me, my grandfather, Gump's Korean War ring. Nan had been holding onto it, and decided that she would like me to have it since I have spent the last few years of my life living there.  We cleaned up after everything was taken care of, and headed home at 530. We were all so tired that we just laid around until the early evening. Around 9 Adam Welsh called me, he had stopped by the funeral home because him and Lisa were in town for dinner at her parents, and invited me over to Lisa's for some drinks. I got ready and drove over and stayed for a couple hours just talking with the two of them, her sister Deanna and her boyfriend. Lisa's grandfather had recently passed away as well, so we talked about that, and just enjoyed catching up. Knowing that I had to get up early Sunday for the flight back to Korea, I left Lisa's house just after midnight so that I could get home and pack. On my way home I stopped at the grocery store to pick up some spices that are hard to find in Korea, as well as a few toiletries that I was getting low on. After that I went home and packed until 330.
I only slept for an hour before the alarm went off, for me to get up and get ready for dad to come and take me to the airport. I got up and took my bag and laptop to the door, then woke up mom and Ed so I could say good-bye. My dad showed up just after 5 and then together we went to pick up my Uncle Ken, who was going for the ride to keep my dad company on the ride back. We were at the airport by 7, which left me lots of time to check in before my 830 flight. So while I waited I picked up some forms from the Air Canada desk so that I could file them in hopes of getting a partial refund on my flight cost under the bereavement policy. After I checked in I went through security, and as per usual was looked at with suspicion, and inevitably had my laptop bag searched. To the credit of the airport security crew, it was because I had my dread hook in the bag and on the x-ray screen it does look like an ice pick; but when I am asking what the problem is and offering to help they should pay attention and make the process go much faster. After a few minute hang up, I was through and on my way to the plane, which was loading. I wasn't looking forward to the long flight again, but having not slept very much the night before I knew that I could pass out for a good portion of the flight. The first half of the trip to Vancouver went quick, and when we landed in Vancouver, I had only to get off the plane and wait while they refuelled before getting back on and taking off for the 13 hour flight back to Korea. 

For the end of this post I would like to thank all those, both friends and family, who gave their condolences and support to my family during our loss. We appreciate all the calls, visitors, open hearts, and open ears that were there for us. Nan you will be forever missed, and always loved.

The News Gets Worse, and I Head Home

Jan 10-16, 2011


After some bad news last week, which turned a little brighter over the weekend, on Monday I decided to go ahead and book a trip for the Lunar New Year (a.k.a. Chinese New Year, Solar New Year, and in Korea 설날) since we had 5 days off at the start of February. I had been holding off since getting word of Nan's problems, but hearing that she was in the hospital getting good care, and seemed to be getting better, I took the plunge and booked a trip to Shanghai. It wasn't my first choice, but since time was short, and I had waited too long to get in on any of the good deals to places like Hong Kong, Indonesia, or the Philippines, Shanghai it was. I planned to go with my coworker Chrissy, and possibly Frank, who I had talked to about it over the weekend. Chrissy was able to find a pretty good deal using her American Express membership. For a round trip ticket and decent hotel, it would cost only $470. We signed up and hoped for the best, not booking cancellation insurance, which would be a bit of a stresser as the week unfolded. After work I headed home to watch some football playoff action before calling it a night just after 1.
Tuesday morning it was up early again and off to work for 930. Work went by as usual, nothing overly exciting happened, but the day was good and quick. After work I headed to Itaewon with John to hit up Sam Ryan's, a foreigner pub, for their cheap rib and beer night. It was nice to be able to take advantage of activities going on at night that would usually be out of the question given my regular schedule. We stayed for a few hours, and enjoyed some beers with a few of John's friends, and with Wes who showed up a little after we did. Eventually we were among the last people in the bar, at about 1230am, and John bought one more round for us to chug before going home. John and i were able to catch the last bus out of Samgakgi, then walked home from Sillim where it dropped us off. I was able to get home and into bed before 2am, and felt good about not being out too late.
That feeling of not too bad quickly turned to feeling like crap when I woke up at 830 with a hangover. It didn't help that the jerks I share the floor of my apartment building with had the heat turned up to over 30 degrees, which made my apartment a small oven, furthering the dehydrating process I started with alcohol the night before. I forced myself to get out of bed and shower, and then got off to work. Once at work, I revealed in the fact that I wasn't the only one who felt terrible. John also came in feeling crappy, and we both spent a good part of the day with our heads down on our desks whenever we were not engaged in our jobs as roll models. After work, still feeling pretty bad, I went straight home, put on a football game and laid down for the night.
Waking up Thursday, I felt much better, and had no trouble getting ready and off to work with plenty of time to spare. After my first couple classes, I took some time to head to the bank and take care of some transferring, as well as taking out some money to give to Chrissy for the trip we had booked to Shanghai on her credit card. At the end of the day I took some time to try and fix the projection screen in Peters classroom that had come unravelled several weeks ago. I took it all apart with Johns help and then tried rewinding the screen around the spindle and putting it back together. It seemed to go back together alright, but then as I stared coiling and uncoiling it to create tension on the internal spring it became apparent that the pin in place that keeps it from uncoiling after tension has been created had broken, so it could not be pulled too far out before the spring inside it would let go, releasing all the tension it needs to retract when you are done using it. That being the case I took it apart again and rehung just the screen on the wall so Peter could still use his projector. After the failed attempt I headed home to watch some more playoff football and have a bite to eat.
Friday started out as a promising day. I got up and got all the documents Chrissy and I needed for our Chinese visas in order and then headed over to work. After my first class, I hit the subway to make the trip to the travel agent in Myeongdong to get the visa process started. I was there just after 11 which meant the office was closed but the travel agent would be able to get our passports in on Monday. On the way back to work I received a message from Frank saying that he had booked a ticket and would be coming with us to Shanghai. This was good news. Not that I didn't want to spend the whole time alone with Chrissy, but it is always nice to have more people around to talk with and share in the fun. Once back at work I went about the rest of the day as per usual. Just before the end of the day, I called the wine buffet to increase our reservation to 30 people, and then finished out the day so I could go home and take it easy before the big party Saturday. Things seemed to be going well, and then, as I was relaxing and watching a game, I got an urgent message from Ash to tell me Nan had taken a turn for the worse over night, and that it didn't look good. Getting calls like that is never a favourable thing, but when you are on the other side of the world it is, strangely enough, easier to deal with. I quickly called home and talked with Ash and Mom at the hospital to see what was going on. It turned out that Nan had caught pneumonia and pretty much had a complete system crash. We were all very shocked at this turn in condition since she had recently showed such promising signs. The family, along with the doctors decided to discontinue all support systems and simply place her in an induced coma state so that she could live out her last hours in comfort. It was hard to hear the family in such pain over the phone, and not be able to be there, but they did have each other and that mad me feel better. I spent the rest of the night MSN messaging Ash, as well as talking to Gavin and his brothers, and my other grandmother, who in turn called my dad at work to let him know he should head up to the hospital. By the time I could no longer keep my eyes open, it was 530 in the morning, and I went to sleep knowing that the worse call was yet to come.
It was as if I had only shut my eyes for a few moments when my computer buzzed letting me know I had a message. I got up, knowing all to well what it was going to be. It was Ash letting me know that Nan had passed away. It was 530pm Friday January 14th. I sent a message back saying that I would call in a few minutes after everyone had a minute to calm down, and to give myself a minute to breathe about the situation. After about 10 minutes I called Ash and talked to the whole family on speaker phone, before talking to just my mom and then Ash. I let them know that I would be coming home as soon as I could, but it might not be until Sunday. Though I could have threw some things in a bag and been at the airport within a couple hours, being a very work oriented person i felt it was necessary to go to work and make sure things were in place for the teachers that would have to cover my classes while I was gone. That, and in a truly cosmic joke, my passport was at the travel agency I had gone to the day before. I got to work trying to hold it together, which was hit and miss, and explained the situation to my bosses. They were very understanding, and even helped me make the call to the travel agent to get my passport back. the travel agent at first didn't understand the gravity of the situation, and said that I could get it back on Monday because he was in the middle of climbing a mountain. I asked my boss to let him know that one way or another I was getting my passport back Saturday, even if I had to throw a brick through his window and get it myself. I'm sure that's not what she told him, but in the end he agreed to cut his hike short and meet me at his office. I spent a couple hours typing up my lesson plans for the next week before gong to meet him, and then went back to the school and finished what I felt I had to do. After I was done at the school I was exhausted, as well as too late to make it on any flights for the night so i went home to have a nap. I woke up after only sleeping for a couple hours, and decided that it would be best for me to get out of the house and be with those people here that are the closest thing to family you could ask for. Since I had planned the wine buffet thing, I got ready and headed to the mall to meet up with everyone. It wasn't long before the news got around about what had happened, and everyone was really great about keeping me positive for the night. Eventually the buffet was over and people started heading either home or to Gangnam for some more drinks. I thought it would be best to head home, and having held it together pretty well all night and thinking everyone was gone, I had a bit of a breakdown in the hotel lobby. Little did I know, Alex and Louise were still there and weren't about to leave me be. They convinced me to not go home, and to come out for a few more drinks. We went to a bar called Voodoo with a bunch of other friends, where we drank, and I talked with Matei for a while, until 4am. Once I got home I quickly packed a bag to take home for the week and cleaned up, before passing out for a few hours.
I woke up Sunday morning at 9am, said good-bye to Goah and headed to the airport. On the way, I spoke with Wes to see if he could find any deals on tickets while I was on my way to the airport. The prices he found were similar to what I was eventually quoted at the airport, and in the end I bought a ticket on the 630pm flight out. That meant that I had 6 hours to kill before the plane left, so I took out my laptop and phoned home to let them know my flight details, and then sat around killing zombies until my battery was to low to start another game. After that I simply went to the check in counter, laid down on the floor and slept until they started checking people in for my flight, then I went through security and had another nap while waiting to to board. I was so into my nap that I almost missed my flight, but luckily was woken up by another passenger on his way to the plane. During the flight to Vancouver I sat next to a lady on her way home from doing volunteer work in Cambodia, and after a few hour chat I settled in and watched some movies. The flight went by fairly fast, that is until we hit Vancouver and got stuck in the ridiculously long customs line. There was only 6 customs workers trying to process over 1500 passengers. It was so backed up that they forewent he separation of Canadians from foreigners, and put us all in one long snaking line. It took just shy of 100 minutes to get through, and by the time I did, it looked as if I would miss my connecting flight through to Toronto. I was not very happy about this, and along with a dozen other passengers, ran through to the connecting flight check in counter; where we had to wait in another line. Eventually they called for the final boarding of our flight, at which point one of the check in attendants radioed up to see if there were any passengers in line, because there were still seats on the plane. They asked us and then skipped us past the line and told us to run to get on the plane. We did, and after a bit of panic, I was on the last leg of the flight home.
My plane touched down at 930pm, amazingly enough still Sunday night, and bags in hand I went out to find my father and sister who had come to pick me up. I had to walk between the international and domestic arrivals areas a couple of times before I found them, and we could head home in the -25C weather. We got into town just after 11, and Gav came over to visit until around 230. After he left I went to bed, to sleep off some of the impending jet lag.


It is always sad when a family member is lost, but with love and support even the toughest times can be overcome.

Some Bad News From Home

Jan 3-9, 2011

Well this week we were in full swing winter intensives, 930-9, most days of the week. I got up early Monday and headed to work with high hopes of getting some things done after work since we would be getting off an hour earlier than usual. Off work by 9pm and with my gym member ship expired, I immediately went home and started making another batch of chicken soup, then left ti to simmer overnight while I watched a football game, then passed out. I woke up around 430 in the morning to sounds of my soup boiling over, and quickly got up to turn it off so that I didn't burn my apartment down.
I only slept for a few more hours before it was time to get up and head back to work. But instead of taking my soup, I took some pasta that I had made over the weekend, because I wanted to make a second pot so that I would have enough to share with all the teachers. Work went by quickly, and by 730 classes were over and we were allowed to leave. I took advantage and headed home to make my second pot of soup, watch another game, and clean my apartment. It was nice to have a clean place that smelled of delicious soup, instead of the usual dusty place that smelled dank. Off to bed early, I set my alarm to wake up at 3am to turn off the slow cooker so that I wouldn't have the same fright as the night before.
With all the soup made, I added it to the large container I had, then took it to work with me to share with my coworkers. It was a big hit with everyone who had a chance to try some, and seemed to make everyone feel better about being at work for such a long time, generally without having a chance to eat a proper meal. While in class during the afternoon, I had a truly hilarious scenario unfold before my own eyes. As I walked into my Grade 4-5 class of students in our second highest studying level, one boy named Eric told me he needed to call the police. I wasn't sure what to say, so I asked him why, to which he replied "because Sarah won't stop hitting me". I told Sarah that she should not hit him, and then explained to the class how, at their age, girls and boys often hit each other when they like each other. They all recoiled in fear at this, and then another girl named Candy tried to whisper to Sarah, "Sarah next time just kick him", an motioned to the crotch area. Having heard and seen what Candy said, Eric loudly exclaimed, "What! You want to break my horn?" I had no idea what to do, so I simply put down my books and walked out so that they didn't see me laugh at what was going on. While in the hall I looked next door into the teachers office and asked their Korean teacher just what she had been teaching them, and told her the story. Then the whole office was laughing and i went back to try and get a lesson done. Though I couldn't look those students in the face the rest of the class. After work I headed home and once again whipped up some food while I watched a football game. I used some taco mix that Lauren had left for me, and made a type of chili with peppers and steak strips. It smelled and tasted pretty delicious, and I was looking forward to having it for lunch the next day.
Still looking forward to the chili/taco mix creation I had made the night before, on my way to work I picked up a few french loafs so that we, John and I, could make sandwiched out of them. Or at least cut them up to dip in the sauce. i had made an extra large amount because John is still having some money issues and I want to make sure he is still eating regularly. Very big brother of me :) Once at work however, the day took an unexpected drop in morale. Immediately after logging onto my computer I checked Facebook to see what the news of the day was, and too my surprise there was a message from my aunt to call home immediately. Right away I got pretty worried, especially with Nan's health being so poor as of late. I quickly downloaded Skype and called home to talk to my mom. As it turned out, Nan had not responded well to her latest chemotherapy treatment, and had been hospitalized that afternoon, so my morning, and they weren't sure what the future held. The news of Nan's hospitalization put me in a rather down mood for the rest of the day, and since I wasn't very hungry I decided to share my lunch with all the teachers instead of just John. Though when looking back, I don't know if I shared it as much as they attacked it like a bunch of vultures who hadn't eaten since their soup lunch the day before. It made me feel better to know that they were enjoying it, but the rest of the day still dragged on pretty slow and shitty. After work, trying to kill some time so that I wouldn't have to go home and sit in my apartment alone, i headed for the COEX Mall to make some reservations for the following Saturday's wine buffet. We had talked about it over Christmas and New years, and had decided to do it on the following Saturday since it was James', Dino's, and Hayley's birthdays all at the same time. I made reservations for 20 with the probability of raising it to 30 after we got the final attending count. I was back home by 9pm, and then back on the computer, calling dad to let him know what was going on, as well as to some other friends and family. I ended up being up on the computer until 530 in the morning, before I was all talked out, and too tired to think anymore.
Waking up again at 830 Friday, I called home to get the latest news about Nan, and the news was good. They said she was looking better and that her blood cell counts had come under control, and that her colour was coming back. She was still not very responsive, but there was hope that she would pull through. While at work, even with the good news, I let the administration, as well my students know about the situation in case I had to make the tragic trip home, and started getting paperwork in order just in case. After work I headed over to Sincheon to meet Alex and Louise for dinner at Aladdin's Lamb, and then slid over to Gold Bar for some drinks. It was good to be out with friends, and we stayed out until 530 before heading over to McDonald's to get some breakfast, and then I caught the subway home at 7, and was in bed by 8am.
Sleeping in until the early afternoon, I got up and spoke with Ash over MSN to see what the latest news was. Nan was doing better than the day before, was more coherent, and had been started on several drugs to help her get better. On top of that, a doctor specialising in thrush was on hand to help with her condition so that she could breathe more comfortably. It made me feel better to know that she was showing signs of improvement, and I spent the rest of the day lazing about watching movies, and talking to friends like the Davies clan and Lauren online. Eventually I was all movied out and called it a night some time around 230.
Sunday I slept in again until 130 and then talked to Ash some more before getting motivated enough to leave my apartment. i started with a walk over the hill behind my house to Sillim, where it was a fair bit colder and windier than it was on the Bongcheon side of the hill. After reaching Sillim, I walked back towards home on the main street, and then stopped at the grocery store to get my supplies for the next week. Then I picked up a pizza for dinner and walked home. By the time I got home it was just after 7, and John swung by for a few minutes on his way to get some groceries as well. He didn't stay long, and after he left i finished my pizza and watched some more movies while I cleaned up and did laundry before calling home to talk with mom.

Well I have fallen behind with my blogs, but will be getting caught up in the days to come.