time is something you can't rewind
Mood:  bright
it's been one of those weeks i guess, I feel like i'v accomplished nothing, yet I never have time to update this or write any adaquate emails. I feel so behind, and when I think about how long it will take me to get updated, I feel even less motivated to sit down and start. So I put it off until it's so bad that no one even reads it any more. It could possibly be getting to that point. Maybe it just feels like I haven't written for a long time. It always does, but I always have a lot to say, no matter how far behind I am.

I guess Tuesday...I could start there. How much I remember of Tuesday is questionable...maybe I'll just make some of it up, to keep everyone entertained. (oh no, is rose wearing off on me that much??? eeeyup) haha we have too much fun.

It was an elementary day! horray! we went to a concerty type performance done by the children from different schools. there were some groups that did flutes, all the same song. that got annoying after about the4th time. luckily there were only 4 groups that did flutes. then the samerloni (is that how you'd say it) came on. it was great, at first. but they had 10 groups doing it, and each one was like 5 minutes long! then there was like an hour break and we all hung out at the performance theather with the kids. they are getting nicer. Well, no one tried to bite us this time. and i'v made friends!! sookie is one of my friends. she's also the only one whose name i can remember. she's such a sweet heart though. then the second half were unique performances some individual, some done in groups. they were really cute. i went right home after that, didn't go back to donggang so tuesday was pretty relaxed. I enjoyed not having classes to go to. I brought my guitar to school on wednesday. the music room has 2 huge amps and it kicks so much butt! the music teach. lets us go in when ever we want and play. garreth has some issues with it, he teaches in the next room, but he can shove it. no one asked him. I attended one of his english classes only because dany wanted me to go with her. the entire time he made fun of me being a "yank" and so on. No we don't get along. I printed out amillion guitar tabs but i havent been in school enough since to practice guitar. Besides wednesday we havent been having normal school days, and saturday isnt normal anyways cuz it's only half a day. I'm finally working my callouses back from playing guitar. i'm so impressed with myself.

Thursday was suppose to be an elementary school day, but Donggang was having a sports day. So now we've been to 3 sports days. I was really not that impressed with any of them. But the middle schools was deffinately the best, because we participated with people our own age. There were races and volley ball games, and all sorts of fun stuff. I expected to get sunburned so it was no big surprise. It happens too often for me to get upset about it any more. :( At noon me and the rest of the exchange students went to the Rotarty's Luncheon in seocheon. We are actually part of the Rotary in Seoul, but that's sooo far away, we aren't expected to attend their meetings very often. Maybe some time in November? I have no idea. But this Rotary was very small and organized. we had to introduce myself, and surprisingly my face didn't turn 5 million shades of red, like it usually does when talking infront of people. This could be because of the already present sunburn, maybe you just couldnt tell. But hey I think this is an improvement? haha. After the lunch me and rose, being highly skilled photograpers :D got some really nice pictures of the squatter toilets. I love it! I'm going to scrapbook a whole layout, if not 2 or 3, just on the squatter toilets! and Korean showers! The exchange students were taken bck to donggang but I fell soundly asleep in the deserted classroom while evreyone else ate chicken! I MISSED OUT ON EATING CHICKEN!! REAL FREAKIN CHICKEN! you have absolutely no idea how depressing that is. *sigh* Later me and Julian took a walk around Seocheon, I wanted to search out some new stores, but we didn't come across anything important. We took random sideroads and still ended up on a rice road I knew would take us back to the apartment. That's what I love about being in a 13th floor apartment, besides teh view, I can never get lost in Seochoen cuz there is usually a clear view of the apartment building.

Friday was the picnic. It would have been a lot more fun had I not only gotten 4 or 4.5 hours of sleep. and would you believe I was up all night studying!? yah, i'm deffinately becoming Korean all right. The buses were waiting when we got to school. We were almost late, it was a close call. Mostly my fault *oops* but yah it happens. The picnic was more like a tour to some Really pretty places in Korea. Well the first place was sort of sketchy. I don't know what the significance was but it looked to me like water that was sooo polluted it was green, and had bouyes in it, to absorbe the oil. wow, i could have seen that at sandborn pond! but I took pictures anyways, any excuse is a good excuse to use my camera! The second stop was at anmyeondo. That was so beautiful! As soon as I can I'll put those pictures in my photo album. But who knows when that will be..heh. We stayed there for a while, went down to the 2 islands and found some nice shells. I got a few good pictures too. The whole atmosphere was so nice. So oceany and ahhhh, relaxing. We ate lunch there, then Rose Yea-lim, and me took a walk to the bridge. It was bright orange, and really interesting looking, I wish I had gotten some pictures mainly of the bridges structure itself, but I got some nice pictures of us all together on the bridge. That was the only other stop for the day, not including the quick stop at the store for ice cream! yay! Me and rose talked the whole bus ride back, which was soo entertaining. everyone else who could speak english was sleeping, so we talked about all our memories from the united states, and just, everything! it was almost as fun as the night I stayed at her house! We should write a book. that would be interesting!

then on saturday...the reporters were there, but they are fun. Not scary like the other guy. (Whose entire document had been on dany prety much) perv. haha. We stayed in the classroom all day, and no one came in to teach us class, so we just hung out, and did nothing. Then with about half an hour before we got out of school kim gabin came in and goes, "why arent you at your designated rooms?" we get one day a month where we choose an activity (music art etc) and just do that all day. well aparently saturday was that day, and no one had bothered to inform us. hello, we dont a calender of the school functions. If she doesn't tell us, we have no way of knowing! Nice. I printed out some more guitar tabs and played some guitar. The camera man wanted to get some footage of me playing, but noooo, i'm too shy to play around most of my friends, no way in hell are you gonna put that on national tv! nope. sorry. I dont even remember what happened the rest of saturday. Maybe I went somewheres. I honestly have no recolections after school ended. I studied korean some, which was really no use, the minute I read the word it's already found a way to escape my memory. And Korean is teh only class I'm taking. You'd think I'd be doing alright. Well I'm at teh same level as everyone else in my class. A few steps behind rose, but everyone is always going to be a few steps behind her. I try and get involved in conversations, but unless they are asking what is this what is that? i'm really lost. So I sit and watch Korean tv, which is all in korean, with korean subtitles some times. It is soo exhausting to try and follow that. My brain bleeds...it's trying so hard. haha. but i'm picking up a few words here and there. Nothing fantastic.

On monday the whole family took a trip to CO??'Iharmani's house, (grandmothers house) for the autumn moon festival. The house was in a small village but it was a very nice house. I really want to use the korean style design when I have my own house (it'll happen). If tracy could only see they kind of archecture they use here, it would be so beautiful and space efficient to use in some of the houses in the US. harmani was really nice too. She reminded me a lot of grammy F. I didn't understand most of what she or anyone else was saying. (they could have and probably were, saying I was lazy and stupid because I slept a lot, and didn't know anything that they were saying!!) but they had kind faces and made me eat a lot. So I guess it doesn't matter! haha. Tuesday was the actual day of the festival. We had to get up early, as in 7, (i was teh last person out of bed, and everyone was already there when I woke up) The house was full of family members, and there was a lot of food. The men eat first, then the women. After the ceremony, where you bow twice to the food being served (which is surprisingly difficult in those poofy hanboks!) we went to the next house, another brothers house. we had missed the ceremony there but caught the one at the third brothers house. It was nice, and I got some pictures. None of me in my spiffy hanbok though, which was too bad. :( The day seemed to last forever! But I found a good book, "a widow for a year" that keeps me from going insane. The book itself isnt too great, but it's english, and i'm starved of anything english in the long run, so it will do. I'v been taking naps everyday around 1 or 2 which is pathetic since i haven't done any strenuous activities for so long! I'v put on weight now matter how you look at it, and i'm not at all motivated to work it off.

Today is the last day we have off from school. I'm alright with that. I need the socialization back. My family, especially my host dad, has some what been getting on my nerves. Asking the same stupid questions a million times a day. Even after I answer him he repeated asks. ahh just shut up! haha no i'd never say that, but sometimes after the 3rd 4th time i just stare at him. he gets the picture. host mom isnt nearly as bad, but everything I do she asks me whyyy?? I go to get a cup of water. whyyyy? cuz i'm thirsty. pegonaeyo? go to beeeeed?? no. im just thristy. its laaaaaaaaate? go to beeeeed? later. not right now. whyyyyy? haha my family cracks me up. Ji-eun prolly has the best english. even though her dad is constantly correcting her with his terrible pronunciation. it's a lost cause. But we get along good anyways! I feel terrible about tracy's situation, though. hopefully she will be able to switch families. Maybe to laurie's family. I think they are very nice. Look at how cool laurie is!

alright I am finally done. good luck with that. I will try and update more often so I don't have to go on long speals like that again. Seriously, I just spent a good 3 hours writing that. I get sidetracked easily though. but still.

later -lori-