Family

Our wildlife collection

We aren’t really pet people.  We don’t have a cat, dog, or any other furry creature, but somehow we’ve managed to gather an eclectic collection of wildlife here at home.  We have three tetra fish.  The blue one is named "daddy," the pink one is named "mommy," and the translucent yellowish one is named "baby."  We have a pet spider, a gorgeous golden orb weaver spider outside our door I named "Charlotte," after the fictional spider Charlotte in Charlotte’s web.  Our Charlotte’s web is a bit messier than Charlotte’s web in the children’s classic. 
 
Then we have "Pest," a collection of pesky mosquitoes that have migrated into our home.  Korea has plenty.  It doesn’t help that our home isn’t far from a giant pool near a big city park, a good mosquito breeding ground.  In fact, the mosquito buzzing around my head right now helped me think of this trivial blog entry.  Now that the weather has turned cooler (it’s been a beautiful fall), the mosquitoes are trying to move in full force.  It seems that every night we have at least three mosquitoes in each room.  We won’t be able to root them out until late November or December.  They arrive in early spring and stay with us for about seven months.  I definitely will not miss the mosquitoes when we leave Korea.  I will miss Charlotte and the fish family, though.  We can’t take the fish with us, and we plan to donate them to someone in the neighborhood.  Charlotte will disappear within a few weeks as the frost sets in, her life having run its course.  I will miss the golden orb weaver spiders.  They are absolutely the most beautiful spiders I have ever seen.  I wonder what critters will be waiting for us in Paraguay.  Spiders, mosquitoes, and snakes, I’m sure.  Oh, my!

Getting it all done

Dear Reader, I have not been diligent lately in writing my blog, because life has been pretty hectic for me.  Last Wednesday, I took my Spanish language exam via digital video conference, and I improved my Spanish speaking/reading score from 1/2 to 1+/2.  Althought the improvement was slight, it was still worth the effort.  It’s the best I could expect from difficult testing conditions.  I took the test from 9:30 p.m. until 1:00 a.m., an odd time that accommodated the Spanish testers’ schedules in Washington, D.C.  On Friday, after a long day at work, I attended a dinner welcoming my new boss to Seoul.  Afterwards, I went out with a good friend to wish him well as he returns to the U.S.  Tonight, I ended one year as chair of our community association board.  I spoke to our community and updated them on all that the association has accomplished for them in the past year.  I try not to openly brag about my accomplishments on this blog (although I do hint sometimes, I know).  I do have to write that our board’s advisor, and a high-level official, said that I had done the best job of any association chair he had worked with during his career.  It warmed my heart to hear that.  Serving as chair of our community association was a labor of love.  I’m proud of all we did to improve the community association and the community at large.  I am tired, though, and I’m ready to take a much needed break.  I have to shift gears now and write a report for a conference we recently hosted as well as a magazine article.  I plan to go in early tomorrow, on Sunday, and work on it. 
 
Tomorrow night my parents arrive for their first trip to Asia.  They will spend the night with us here in Seoul and will leave immediately to spend one week in China on tour.  They will return the following week and spend two weeks with us.  I will take them to the airport on Monday morning, work all day Monday, go to one last community association meeting to hand over the chairmanship, and then have dinner with some acquaintances.  Tuesday night we will host a "hail and farewell" party for colleagues who recently arrived or will be departing soon.  Wednesday is our anniversary, and my wife and I are planning a night on the town.  On Thursday, I have Spanish tutoring and a much needed night at home.  The following Friday, I will join my wife for an evening with her colleagues at the symphony.  My parents return the next day, Saturday.
 
*sigh*  That is the way life seems to be right now.  Life is much more hectic than I would like it to be.  So many things are happening that my wife and I had to make a special calendar so that we can keep track of all the things we have to do until we leave Seoul.  I’ve had to turn down some engagements.  We had to say no to a goodbye dinner for some friends, because it conflicts with our anniversary date.  I had to forego joining the community choir, because it would be much too great a time commitment for me.  As it is, we have just four more months here in Seoul.  I have a feeling that life will become even more hectic as our departure date approaches.

Moping around

I went back to work today and lasted all of two hours before returning home to rest and recuperate.  I couldn’t talk very long without hacking and coughing.  Fearing that I would expose others to the nasties I’m fighting, I decided to cut my losses and went for a haircut and short massage (the legit kind) before heading home.  The massage felt really good.  I deserved it after being cooped up in airplanes for over 20 hours and falling ill.  I went home and crashed for about four hours and have since done pretty much nothing but check and respond to e-mail.  I feel pathetic.  I don’t know why I always feel like I need to be doing something.  I guess it’s in my nature to be busy.  I told my wife that I was happy to head to Paraguay, because it appears to be one of the most laid-back places on earth.  Somehow I know I’ll figure out a way to be too busy, even in Paraguay.  Will I get busy and volunteer for too much?  Oh, probably.  I know I shouldn’t feel guilty about doing nothing, but I do.  Is nothing really nothing?  Not really.  Nothing means doing what isn’t really a priority in your life.  I enjoy writing e-mail, but e-mail usually falls somewhere between saving the world and playing video games.  I was home with my son for awhile today, but I didn’t really feel like spending time with him because I don’t want to get him sick.  He also seemed extra whiny and needy today.  Perhaps it’s because he just started pre-school and is adjusting to his new schedule.  My wife says that he’s no worse than normal, so perhaps it’s the illness heightening my sensitivity.  I usually have these severe colds once a year.  I’ll put up with this one and look forward to when I can be productive again.  Probably next week.  I should enjoy the time off, I suppose, but I’m not.  I’d rather be healthy and working, not moping around.