Yes, we have now had the very Korean experience to go to a singing room (pronounced No Ray Bahng). Last Saturday we first went to a DVD room and watched the first Harry Potter movie. Michael read all the books over about 6 weeks, and now we plan to make our way through the movies. It's a private room with three-seat or so big couch (legs can stretch out ... what is that called??! ... chaise?). It was $12 US each, which seemed reasonable. We grabbed a quick sandwich in the basement of Hyundai Department Store - a kebob place owned and run by a Turkish man - and then went to the singing room about 5:30 (not the prime time, we could tell). It's private - no glass or anything for anyone to see in. There were two couches and a love seat and room for dancing (if one chose!). The lights were flashing and the music was loud. It was funny that the background video looked like a home movie taken in Paris. Maybe they only want to pay copyright for the music. It took Michael a couple of songs to get into it. We only did about 5 songs - Born in the USA, Hey Jude, and a couple others. The young lady working brought us a soft serve ice cream about 10 minutes into our session ... maybe it's standard. It was about $15 US, which struck me as kind of high for 30 minutes or so. But maybe it's an hourly charge, and if we had other friends, it wouldn't seem so high. I wanted to be able to say I had done it, so that goal has been accomplished. Michael would actually like to go back on his own.
I have also been making my way through sweet potato items. I had a latte, which is delicious. It's mashed sweet potato basically mixed into the steaming hot milk and so like a mild flavor in the milk. Next on the list is pizza, which we will try Monday. I am meeting for English practice 4 afternoons a week right now with up to 7students. 3 are from the fall and asked me a couple weeks ago to do this meeting over brek. We are going out as a group for the pizza. They are looking forward to meeting Michael. We will also try bulgogi pizza - it ought to seem fairly "normal" because it is basically spicy beef.
Michael received a very good report card. The middle of the school year was technically in January, so the reports and teacher-parent meetings were in Feb. I was especially glad to see all the behavior/character items marked "always." I had not met his new math teacher, Mr. MacFarlane, so it was nice to meet him and tell him how much Michael has enjoyed math since he started with them in Jan. He is South African. Michael also has him for P.E. right now, and they played/learned about rugby this week.
I have enjoyed some Friday late afternoon/evening socializing with two of the teachers, Ros (also church friend) and Corleen. They go every Friday and invited me along too. Usually it's a bit of shopping/errands - last couple of times it's been for baby stuff because Ros' daughter and her baby are visiting. We walked around a bit last night and found a place to have grilled duck. A few nights ago we celebrated Ros' birthday at their apartment. They made mac and cheese, chicken taco meat, and a salad. They also picked up Samosas from the Indian restaurant that is our regular Sunday place. Michael ate two Samosas and a lot of mac and cheese. I was going to get a cake, but she had already made cupcakes. So I picked up Baskin Robbins ice cream cake. It was a big hit. It's all ice cream, and there were six kinds - basically they were in separate wedges. I think most of us managed to try all six. It's good we are accustomed to Korean-style sharing. Corleen was there too and also Barbara, a Korean teacher assistant who goes to church with us. At some point we all put on the bow that had been wrapped around the cake. Marick, the baby, is great entertainment, of course. It was a very nice evening. Michael said it was one of the best birthday parties he has attended.
I was glad to meet my work goal of finishing a research paper over break. I am ready to submit it to a journal Monday. Then I will spend next week getting ready to start the semester. My first teaching day is March 5. Prof. Kim will be back from States via China early next week. It will be good to see him. Also, the other instructors who have offices near mine will be around again and occasional lunch companions. I have been very productive the last 6 weeks, but it will be nice to have more interaction at work. The weather is giving hints of Spring too ... just small ones, but highs are staying in mid 40s and higher.
The latest I have heard about my mom is that she has had a few setbacks but that they are continuing to work with her, especially PT. The only sure foundation for whatever life brings us is Jesus Christ and God's word. Please keep my parents in your prayers and also that Michael and I will be faithful witnesses to Jesus Christ in our sphere of influence.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Saturday, February 11, 2012
50th Birthday
Yes, it's my 50th birthday. First, a good update on my mom. She is feeling much better and emotionally and mentally is "back," in the term of my family. She has a way to go physically but is glad to be off IV nutrition and some medicine. She needs strength and stamina to make progress in PT and OT, but it sounds like things are moving in a good direction. She seems to be in good hands in the care center. I continue to pray for her spiritual well-being and my dad too. John Piper has a very good short essay "Don't Waste Your Cancer," which could apply to any serious physical challenge. All of us should spend time thinking about eternity and where we think we will spend it and why.
So ... 50! My first BD present was from Ros and Ralph, friends from church and teachers at Michael's school. It's a Beth Moore book on John, the Beloved Disciple. I was so pleased. I have read a few things by her but had not heard of this book. I started it immediately.
Friday I had asked a few students and the office workers (young gals who look like students!) to go out for lunch. The students are from English language practice. They sort of needed to be there to help us all communicate. I knew it would make the day more festive for me, but I didn't tell them it was my birthday until we were at lunch because I didn't want them to do anything. Two of them disappeared. I thought they were outside talking on their phones. They returned with a lovely Paris Baguette cake sweet potato cheese cake with candles lit. They sang in Korean and English. We had lunch at a very good Western restaurant near campus. Then later when I was toiling away on my research in my office (running a bunch of regressions) the 3 students came by with a box. It is a Univ. of Ulsan pink sweatshirt with a hood. They know I have been dressing warmly and wearing Michael's school sweatshirt. The pink one is great. There was a also pencil case and small credit card/cash holder. These are the students I got to know the best - partly because they came to the sessions regularly and also because their English is pretty good. They are so kind.
Michael was at a BD party FRI after school and got home about 9:30. We had our plan for Saturday: DVD room, dinner, and singing room. The DVD room is a private viewing of your movie of choice. We planned Harry Potter because Michael just read the books. The singing rooms are very popular here. It's private karaoke. We have to do it before we leave. When the MBA students were here, they went almost every night. Well, our plans changed when Prof. Jang called FRI night and asked if we were available SAT night. We don't have a lot of social opportunities, and we both like him and his wife so much. I told him it was my BD so it would feel like a continuing celebration to see them.
We went to their new apartment for the first time. They gave us a gift box with some gingeng teas and also some pretty fancy looking socks. They had a lovely cake from ... Paris Baguette, of course!! These cakes are amazing. They are small and round - enough for 8 or so pieces. This one was blueberry cake. The topping is more like whipped cream than frosting. The top was decorated with some blueberries. Whenever we are in PB for a sandwich or snack, I admire the cakes. Then we drove about 30 minutes out of town to a restaurant near Busan. It's a small compound with zoo/petting animals, green house, antique store and shop. Tradtional rice-stalk roofs are on all the buildings. The most popular main course is duck cooked inside pumpkin. There were several side dishes, ban chan, as usual. They also ordered some beef that Michael likes a lot. The restaurant has Korean-style floor seating and was quite busy. It was great food and a very fun afternoon and evening. Apparently it is one of Prof. Jang's favorites. They have been such good friends to us. We are so thankful to know them. Justin is doing very well in the military and earned time off base this weekend.
So, please stand by for post on singing room! We will have to wait until next weekend to have plenty of time.
God bless you and your families. Jesus wants to enter into everything with us - the highs and the lows. What a friend for sinners. Love, Kim
So ... 50! My first BD present was from Ros and Ralph, friends from church and teachers at Michael's school. It's a Beth Moore book on John, the Beloved Disciple. I was so pleased. I have read a few things by her but had not heard of this book. I started it immediately.
Friday I had asked a few students and the office workers (young gals who look like students!) to go out for lunch. The students are from English language practice. They sort of needed to be there to help us all communicate. I knew it would make the day more festive for me, but I didn't tell them it was my birthday until we were at lunch because I didn't want them to do anything. Two of them disappeared. I thought they were outside talking on their phones. They returned with a lovely Paris Baguette cake sweet potato cheese cake with candles lit. They sang in Korean and English. We had lunch at a very good Western restaurant near campus. Then later when I was toiling away on my research in my office (running a bunch of regressions) the 3 students came by with a box. It is a Univ. of Ulsan pink sweatshirt with a hood. They know I have been dressing warmly and wearing Michael's school sweatshirt. The pink one is great. There was a also pencil case and small credit card/cash holder. These are the students I got to know the best - partly because they came to the sessions regularly and also because their English is pretty good. They are so kind.
Michael was at a BD party FRI after school and got home about 9:30. We had our plan for Saturday: DVD room, dinner, and singing room. The DVD room is a private viewing of your movie of choice. We planned Harry Potter because Michael just read the books. The singing rooms are very popular here. It's private karaoke. We have to do it before we leave. When the MBA students were here, they went almost every night. Well, our plans changed when Prof. Jang called FRI night and asked if we were available SAT night. We don't have a lot of social opportunities, and we both like him and his wife so much. I told him it was my BD so it would feel like a continuing celebration to see them.
We went to their new apartment for the first time. They gave us a gift box with some gingeng teas and also some pretty fancy looking socks. They had a lovely cake from ... Paris Baguette, of course!! These cakes are amazing. They are small and round - enough for 8 or so pieces. This one was blueberry cake. The topping is more like whipped cream than frosting. The top was decorated with some blueberries. Whenever we are in PB for a sandwich or snack, I admire the cakes. Then we drove about 30 minutes out of town to a restaurant near Busan. It's a small compound with zoo/petting animals, green house, antique store and shop. Tradtional rice-stalk roofs are on all the buildings. The most popular main course is duck cooked inside pumpkin. There were several side dishes, ban chan, as usual. They also ordered some beef that Michael likes a lot. The restaurant has Korean-style floor seating and was quite busy. It was great food and a very fun afternoon and evening. Apparently it is one of Prof. Jang's favorites. They have been such good friends to us. We are so thankful to know them. Justin is doing very well in the military and earned time off base this weekend.
So, please stand by for post on singing room! We will have to wait until next weekend to have plenty of time.
God bless you and your families. Jesus wants to enter into everything with us - the highs and the lows. What a friend for sinners. Love, Kim
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Out and About in February
Mom update: My mom has been in the care facility about two weeks. She has OT and PT everyday. There are small improvements, but it sounds like a big marker of progress will be standing on her own. Please pray for encouraging progress.
Michael and I are mostly in the routine of school and work with a few events or travel for fun. His school just had an open house to display science-related projects for a few of the grades. He and his classmates were quite proud of their space information and rockets. They set up an area with a black tarp for visitors to enter. It was a fun afternoon for the kids. i have a couple more weeks to work on my research before the semester gets started and I have to immerse myself in teaching.
Recently we had dinner with a friend from work, Randy, and his wife, Andrea. When Michael and I were in Busan, we ate grilled/baked eel, so we then knew the Korean words for it. The next time I was walking over to the park, I recognized the Korean letters at a place and told Michael as soon as I got home. Maybe I should have figured it out from the eel swimming in the tanks in the window. The place has an old and worn out look including tin roof. I suggested going there, and Randy and were happy to try it out. They'd noticed it too but had never gotten around to going. Michael was a little more comfortable with them along (since Andrea is Korean and so no language problems for us). Once there we all agreed it's a place for socializing and eating. It seems like several neighborhood older guys are in there enjoying the eel and some beer or soju. The owner and also another patron gave us some training and spoke pretty good English - grill the skin side first! There is spot in the middle of the table where they set the fire, and then a metal grilling rack is set over it. We were teasing Michael about the great quantity of accompanying spicy sauce he ate. We all had our fill. A final nice aspect is that the price was very reasonable compared to Busan. Eel is a bit expensive, and at the Busan place we had been paying for being at a nice restaurant. Here, there was definitely no premium to pay for the setting.
We went to Daegu Friday with the primary purpose to see a show called Bibap, short for Bibimbap. The theme was two chefs competing for King of Bibimbap. It was non-verbal with singing, dancing, funny faces, acrobatics and some very impressive break dancing. Two guys did a lot with sound effects/noises. There was audience participation. They "made" other dishes first, and a funny thing was that they would all of a sudden produce the very nice lookig finished dish (sushi and pizza, for example). The finished dish was the plastic type items that we see a lot in restaurant windows to show what food is served. The local grocery store has a pizza-ordering area with plastic models of the pizzas. So that Korean aspect gave us good laugh. We both liked the show a lot. An interesting thing afterwards that we have seen before is that the cast comes out to the lobby and people have their pictures taken with them. A lot of groups queue and wait their turn, and then we keep hearing hana, duel, set (one, two, three) and the pictures are taken quickly.
We stayed at a nice hotel and enjoyed walking around the lively downtown area. Daegu seems fairly cosmoplitan - it has a big textile industry and seems to have related clothing, etc. The weather was warm for this time of year (and more than 15 degrees warmer than a couple days prior), so Saturday we were outside and went to top of viewing tower, a local market (the best pancakes with sweet filling we have had), and a mountain area where we took a cable car to the top. Koreans know how to enjoy a hike. There was a large enclosed viewing room where two guys were cooking a fairly elaborate hot meal. They had hiked up with their gas single burner. There was also a restaurant serving a fairly broad hot menu - even this time of the year - including pacheon, a large pancake with green onions and other things, which is very common at hiking areas. We had an early dinner and headed back to Ulsan. Transportation was so easy. We took the bus, a 1 1/2 hour ride. It leaves each city every 30 minutes. When we arrived in Daegu and got off the bus, a subway stop was right there. Taxis around town were easy and inexpensive too. Our few experiences traveling on our own are making us better at it and more comfortable about planning to go places.
We hope all is well with your families. Love in Christ, Kim
Even local hiking in our park has people really enjoying it. Recently two ladies came along when I was sitting at a bench on the hike. They gave me a small orange (the delicious ones from Jeju Island that are very easy to peel) and a cup of coffee. They had carried hot water in a thermos and had the individual servings of coffee and paper cups with them. I was impressed at the amount of trouble. They were a little older than I am. I know how to ask how old someone is, and the answer is easier to understand than asking someone's name. The kindness of strangers continues.
Michael and I are mostly in the routine of school and work with a few events or travel for fun. His school just had an open house to display science-related projects for a few of the grades. He and his classmates were quite proud of their space information and rockets. They set up an area with a black tarp for visitors to enter. It was a fun afternoon for the kids. i have a couple more weeks to work on my research before the semester gets started and I have to immerse myself in teaching.
Recently we had dinner with a friend from work, Randy, and his wife, Andrea. When Michael and I were in Busan, we ate grilled/baked eel, so we then knew the Korean words for it. The next time I was walking over to the park, I recognized the Korean letters at a place and told Michael as soon as I got home. Maybe I should have figured it out from the eel swimming in the tanks in the window. The place has an old and worn out look including tin roof. I suggested going there, and Randy and were happy to try it out. They'd noticed it too but had never gotten around to going. Michael was a little more comfortable with them along (since Andrea is Korean and so no language problems for us). Once there we all agreed it's a place for socializing and eating. It seems like several neighborhood older guys are in there enjoying the eel and some beer or soju. The owner and also another patron gave us some training and spoke pretty good English - grill the skin side first! There is spot in the middle of the table where they set the fire, and then a metal grilling rack is set over it. We were teasing Michael about the great quantity of accompanying spicy sauce he ate. We all had our fill. A final nice aspect is that the price was very reasonable compared to Busan. Eel is a bit expensive, and at the Busan place we had been paying for being at a nice restaurant. Here, there was definitely no premium to pay for the setting.
We went to Daegu Friday with the primary purpose to see a show called Bibap, short for Bibimbap. The theme was two chefs competing for King of Bibimbap. It was non-verbal with singing, dancing, funny faces, acrobatics and some very impressive break dancing. Two guys did a lot with sound effects/noises. There was audience participation. They "made" other dishes first, and a funny thing was that they would all of a sudden produce the very nice lookig finished dish (sushi and pizza, for example). The finished dish was the plastic type items that we see a lot in restaurant windows to show what food is served. The local grocery store has a pizza-ordering area with plastic models of the pizzas. So that Korean aspect gave us good laugh. We both liked the show a lot. An interesting thing afterwards that we have seen before is that the cast comes out to the lobby and people have their pictures taken with them. A lot of groups queue and wait their turn, and then we keep hearing hana, duel, set (one, two, three) and the pictures are taken quickly.
We stayed at a nice hotel and enjoyed walking around the lively downtown area. Daegu seems fairly cosmoplitan - it has a big textile industry and seems to have related clothing, etc. The weather was warm for this time of year (and more than 15 degrees warmer than a couple days prior), so Saturday we were outside and went to top of viewing tower, a local market (the best pancakes with sweet filling we have had), and a mountain area where we took a cable car to the top. Koreans know how to enjoy a hike. There was a large enclosed viewing room where two guys were cooking a fairly elaborate hot meal. They had hiked up with their gas single burner. There was also a restaurant serving a fairly broad hot menu - even this time of the year - including pacheon, a large pancake with green onions and other things, which is very common at hiking areas. We had an early dinner and headed back to Ulsan. Transportation was so easy. We took the bus, a 1 1/2 hour ride. It leaves each city every 30 minutes. When we arrived in Daegu and got off the bus, a subway stop was right there. Taxis around town were easy and inexpensive too. Our few experiences traveling on our own are making us better at it and more comfortable about planning to go places.
We hope all is well with your families. Love in Christ, Kim
Even local hiking in our park has people really enjoying it. Recently two ladies came along when I was sitting at a bench on the hike. They gave me a small orange (the delicious ones from Jeju Island that are very easy to peel) and a cup of coffee. They had carried hot water in a thermos and had the individual servings of coffee and paper cups with them. I was impressed at the amount of trouble. They were a little older than I am. I know how to ask how old someone is, and the answer is easier to understand than asking someone's name. The kindness of strangers continues.
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