It is November 28th and it is snowing outside... I am going to hate my life for the next couple of months.
I don't like snow. I do not like snow in Texas. I do not like snow in Colorado. I do not like snow in the Republic of Korea.
Holy Balls this is gonna suck.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Third time... not so charming
I've experienced a significant life moment here in Korea.
I threw up for the third time in my entire existence (that I can remember). Since you are wonder:
The first time I threw up I was eating a red Donald Duck icecream/Popsicle type contraption and I had to be younger than 2nd grade because I was still living in Palestine. I remember being outside and standing by my mom's silver 'rice jet' (Maxima) and just throwing up my red Donald Duck treat.
The second time I threw up was after I had my wisdom teeth removed. I think I was in late High School or early college but the dental surgeon sedated me and I was out cold for over a day. So when I awoke I was really hungry but all I could eat was ice cream and Rice-a-Rony Angel Hair pasta. I ate two boxes of pasta and almost an entire half-gallon of Vanilla with Strawberries Blue Bell ice cream. (Oh that ice cream is delicious...). It didn't take long for my meds, nauseated stomach, and 'Alligator Eyes' to start battling it out in the bathroom.
Then tonight marked a third vomitous experience. One of my bosses took me out to eat dinner since he made me work on Saturday. (Though he said it was because he wanted to spend time with me outside of work. I appreciate the platitude.) We went to eat shabu shabu with his family. When he invited me I thought he was meeting a group of people and I was just going to tag-along but it was just a family dinner. It made me feel part of an more authentic Korea. Inviting people to eat with your family is a nice, warm gesture. If I ever have a family and I am not embarrassed by them, I will invite people to eat with us.
(BTW: Shabu Shabu is a Japanese dish that Koreans have 'Koreanized.' You cook the dish in the center of the table and everyone eats out of the same pan. You first start out with a broth, bring it to a boil and then you add vegetables and beef. The vegetables are an array of mushrooms, carrots, onions, sometimes squash, and then there are other veges that I don't know what they are. You can also add fish and clams or pork. But beef is the best. The beef is cut really thin so it cooks in the boiling broth. At the end of the meal you add noodles. Then rice. -But they are just fillers though.)
Anyway, back to the spewing... I usually don't give into social or cultural norms but I really like this boss so I felt obligated to eat everything he put in my bowl. I will be honest, for my 150 pounds I can really throw back a bunch of food. Not tonight.
I did eat a lot. It surpassed gluttony. (A sin I take pride in committing). Anyway, I was fine throughout the whole meal and the ride home. I was going to go out but I was feeling a little tired so I opted to just stay home and watch 'Bambi' (like most 24 year olds would do on a Saturday night...)
I didn't feel bad in my stomach I just felt full. Really full! Then in my fourth section of 'Bambi' on the youtube I started burping a lot. [I agree this is gross but it is interesting to me]. I usually don't burp so even burping was an unusual and uncomfortable experience. I don't think I eat soup correctly. I think I suck in too much air. And I thought that was the case with the broth from the Sahbu Shabu tonight. Then all of a sudden I realized I need to throw up. A sensation and practice I am not accustom to. So I go to the bath room and start to take out my retainers. Halfway through removing my retainers I just start gagging. And boy did I deliver. Oddly, I was impressed with how much my stomach gave back. Not just once but seven times (divided up into two individual toilet sessions).
What I gathered:
1.It is impressive how our body protects us. I mean, my nonexistent self-discipline didn't stop me from gorging myself on beef and vegetables. Then noodles. Then rice. Then ice cream. But maybe it was punishment for my over eating or maybe my stomach couldn't process all the grub I consumed. Either way, my response was out of my control. So praises to the G.O.D. for knowing what He was doing when he created my digestive system.
2. I feel sorry for my neighbors. Oddly enough the bathroom is the only place in my apartment I ever hear sounds coming from my neighbors. (I don't hear them making 'bathroom noises' I can hear them talking or watching TV. My neighbors also have a little boy that laughs a lot!) Unfortunately for them I'm assuming they can hear me through our shared wall. Most nights they just get to hear me sing along to the soundtrack to 'Spring Awakening' or preform duets with my REBA. However tonight, they got a special performance.
-I hope they don't think I am a drunkard that can't hold my liquor. But since they have heard me sing so much they probably think I'm drunk all the time.
I also thought of something. Do you think the conditions that you eat food affect how the food is digested? Lets assume you didn't like who you were eating with. Would your company enable you body to comfortably digest food. Or is eating with loved-ones a ticket for smooth sailing?
I feel better now. Actually, I never felt bad. Well, the act of throwing up wasn't my favorite but I am glad I did it.
In .love.
Jp
I threw up for the third time in my entire existence (that I can remember). Since you are wonder:
The first time I threw up I was eating a red Donald Duck icecream/Popsicle type contraption and I had to be younger than 2nd grade because I was still living in Palestine. I remember being outside and standing by my mom's silver 'rice jet' (Maxima) and just throwing up my red Donald Duck treat.
The second time I threw up was after I had my wisdom teeth removed. I think I was in late High School or early college but the dental surgeon sedated me and I was out cold for over a day. So when I awoke I was really hungry but all I could eat was ice cream and Rice-a-Rony Angel Hair pasta. I ate two boxes of pasta and almost an entire half-gallon of Vanilla with Strawberries Blue Bell ice cream. (Oh that ice cream is delicious...). It didn't take long for my meds, nauseated stomach, and 'Alligator Eyes' to start battling it out in the bathroom.
Then tonight marked a third vomitous experience. One of my bosses took me out to eat dinner since he made me work on Saturday. (Though he said it was because he wanted to spend time with me outside of work. I appreciate the platitude.) We went to eat shabu shabu with his family. When he invited me I thought he was meeting a group of people and I was just going to tag-along but it was just a family dinner. It made me feel part of an more authentic Korea. Inviting people to eat with your family is a nice, warm gesture. If I ever have a family and I am not embarrassed by them, I will invite people to eat with us.
(BTW: Shabu Shabu is a Japanese dish that Koreans have 'Koreanized.' You cook the dish in the center of the table and everyone eats out of the same pan. You first start out with a broth, bring it to a boil and then you add vegetables and beef. The vegetables are an array of mushrooms, carrots, onions, sometimes squash, and then there are other veges that I don't know what they are. You can also add fish and clams or pork. But beef is the best. The beef is cut really thin so it cooks in the boiling broth. At the end of the meal you add noodles. Then rice. -But they are just fillers though.)
Anyway, back to the spewing... I usually don't give into social or cultural norms but I really like this boss so I felt obligated to eat everything he put in my bowl. I will be honest, for my 150 pounds I can really throw back a bunch of food. Not tonight.
I did eat a lot. It surpassed gluttony. (A sin I take pride in committing). Anyway, I was fine throughout the whole meal and the ride home. I was going to go out but I was feeling a little tired so I opted to just stay home and watch 'Bambi' (like most 24 year olds would do on a Saturday night...)
I didn't feel bad in my stomach I just felt full. Really full! Then in my fourth section of 'Bambi' on the youtube I started burping a lot. [I agree this is gross but it is interesting to me]. I usually don't burp so even burping was an unusual and uncomfortable experience. I don't think I eat soup correctly. I think I suck in too much air. And I thought that was the case with the broth from the Sahbu Shabu tonight. Then all of a sudden I realized I need to throw up. A sensation and practice I am not accustom to. So I go to the bath room and start to take out my retainers. Halfway through removing my retainers I just start gagging. And boy did I deliver. Oddly, I was impressed with how much my stomach gave back. Not just once but seven times (divided up into two individual toilet sessions).
What I gathered:
1.It is impressive how our body protects us. I mean, my nonexistent self-discipline didn't stop me from gorging myself on beef and vegetables. Then noodles. Then rice. Then ice cream. But maybe it was punishment for my over eating or maybe my stomach couldn't process all the grub I consumed. Either way, my response was out of my control. So praises to the G.O.D. for knowing what He was doing when he created my digestive system.
2. I feel sorry for my neighbors. Oddly enough the bathroom is the only place in my apartment I ever hear sounds coming from my neighbors. (I don't hear them making 'bathroom noises' I can hear them talking or watching TV. My neighbors also have a little boy that laughs a lot!) Unfortunately for them I'm assuming they can hear me through our shared wall. Most nights they just get to hear me sing along to the soundtrack to 'Spring Awakening' or preform duets with my REBA. However tonight, they got a special performance.
-I hope they don't think I am a drunkard that can't hold my liquor. But since they have heard me sing so much they probably think I'm drunk all the time.
I also thought of something. Do you think the conditions that you eat food affect how the food is digested? Lets assume you didn't like who you were eating with. Would your company enable you body to comfortably digest food. Or is eating with loved-ones a ticket for smooth sailing?
I feel better now. Actually, I never felt bad. Well, the act of throwing up wasn't my favorite but I am glad I did it.
In .love.
Jp
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Namesake
Today on my way home from work I was looking out over the ocean and my name appeared, almost glistening on top of the water. So I started thinking about my name. I actually don't like my name, never have. It seems like I've hear it my whole life...
"Justin" -How lame and uneventful is that?
But so much of my identity, who I am, is exemplified in that name. In a word. Why is that combination of six letters so significant to me?
One of the first things we do with kids here is give them English names. I actually still feel uneasy with the whole process. I feel like subconsciously I am telling the kids that they aren't good enough using their Korean names. Or that English names are more superior. I also see the practicality of the English names. I mean, they are learning English and it is part of the 'full-immersion' idea. And selfishly, I can't distinguish, much-less pronounce, Korean names. We even started teaching the staff at my school and we asked that they make English names. Thankfully most kids (and adults) are excited to create a new alias.
And you can learn so much about a kid by their choice of name. Usually the most interesting kid's have the most unique names. What do you expect when a prepubescent boy chooses the name 'Monkey.' I've also known a Supermarket, Orange, Bread, People, Ah, Superman, and Madonna (it was a HE that chose that name). It is usually boys who are brave enough to venture into the specialized names. But I've had a Mazinga, Princess, Lucifer, Baby-Jo, and my personal favorite, GaGamell.
I've played with the idea of assuming a Korean alter-ego but I think it is too early for me to commit to a new name.
Contemplating a new name forced me to defend my existing one. 'Justin' has no 'Pop' or 'Bazinga' to it but it is the name my mother unfortunately decided to go with. Though I share the name with thousands of other unlucky guys, it is still mine. It is part of me.
God gives us our past. And our past is part of our testimony. I think our testimony is a beautiful example of God's creativity and grace. If my testimony were a gift to God (which it will be one day). I feel like that gift has to have a "To-From" tag.
My testimony, will be from Justin.
In .love.
Jp
"Justin" -How lame and uneventful is that?
But so much of my identity, who I am, is exemplified in that name. In a word. Why is that combination of six letters so significant to me?
One of the first things we do with kids here is give them English names. I actually still feel uneasy with the whole process. I feel like subconsciously I am telling the kids that they aren't good enough using their Korean names. Or that English names are more superior. I also see the practicality of the English names. I mean, they are learning English and it is part of the 'full-immersion' idea. And selfishly, I can't distinguish, much-less pronounce, Korean names. We even started teaching the staff at my school and we asked that they make English names. Thankfully most kids (and adults) are excited to create a new alias.
And you can learn so much about a kid by their choice of name. Usually the most interesting kid's have the most unique names. What do you expect when a prepubescent boy chooses the name 'Monkey.' I've also known a Supermarket, Orange, Bread, People, Ah, Superman, and Madonna (it was a HE that chose that name). It is usually boys who are brave enough to venture into the specialized names. But I've had a Mazinga, Princess, Lucifer, Baby-Jo, and my personal favorite, GaGamell.
I've played with the idea of assuming a Korean alter-ego but I think it is too early for me to commit to a new name.
Contemplating a new name forced me to defend my existing one. 'Justin' has no 'Pop' or 'Bazinga' to it but it is the name my mother unfortunately decided to go with. Though I share the name with thousands of other unlucky guys, it is still mine. It is part of me.
God gives us our past. And our past is part of our testimony. I think our testimony is a beautiful example of God's creativity and grace. If my testimony were a gift to God (which it will be one day). I feel like that gift has to have a "To-From" tag.
My testimony, will be from Justin.
In .love.
Jp
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