Of course I'm cheesy...I'm from Wisconsin!

Talk about a sudden turn of events. Vis-à-vis my previous post, I have been a tad bit frustrated lately. There are still a million logistical things I need to get done as a working foreigner that I frankly don't want to deal with. Amidst this crazy . ordeal, I've been feeling all sorts of emotions and I couldn't handle it today. I realized how bad it was when we were leaving school and I realized I would not be able to participate in my base school's kickball game tomorrow because Wednesdays I am at a different school that is 15-20 min away and I have to stay there until 4 (the game is at 2) to wait for my ride back. My coteacher then told me that they have a game every other Wednesday. When I heard this (if you know me, you know I absolutely love kickball), I nearly started crying. Okay, I don't love kickball THAT much but I think it was the breaking point to all of the stress and frustrations I've had lately, from being homesick to the language barrier to the classroom experiences thus far to all of the paperwork and tasks I need to do. Kickball was the one last thing I could look forward to (for the time being). I couldn't wait to get to my apartment to just start bawling. And I knew I had no one to talk to because everyone back home was sleeping and I just met all the people here and it would be too awkward.

The moment I walk in my door, ironically "Seasons of Love" from Rent randomly plays on my Ipod and I suddenly realize what a douchebag I'm being and how lucky I am to be here right now. How so many people are envious of my experiences to come and would gladly give it all away to be where I am right now. I am living it for these people and here I am pitying myself plenty. So I run out the door on a quest to feel the life of the city and to bring me back to reality.

Never before have I been so right. I live downtown where it is full of shops, markets, cars, and people walking to and from. And behind one busy street through a lonely alley I found this:


Intrigued by a random large rock in the middle of the city, I explored further and found myself atop a mountain that oversees a lot of Yeongju. I live on the 4th floor in my building, so I don't have much of a view. I found this little mountainous park and have decided it is going to be my new haven. I know it isn't the most spectacular thing in the world and I've definitely seen better, but it was there when I needed it most...and as cheesy as this sounds,

it spoke to me.

Remember that scene in "The Shawshank Redemption" when Andy played the Italian opera music over the loud speaker? He said, "there are places in this world that aren't made out of stone...that there's something inside that they can't get to, that they can't touch. That's yours." Okay maybe not that dramatic but that's how places like this make me feel amidst the pressures of daily life. I stood over the city atop [what I learned is] Guseong Park and stared at my life for the next year and couldn't have been happier. I'm glad to have found a place I can just go to when I need a break from all of the stress, especially in the city, even if it's a small one.

I took this as a sign, because my mom always calls me Slowpoke:


It was tonight that I truly realized why I chose to come here. And I know this won't really make sense to anyone, but it made total sense to me.




Plus now I can just climb this mountain everyday and save the money I'd be spending with a gym membership (there's a row of treadmills across the street staring me down every time I look out my window).

Also, I was so pleased I stopped at a 7-Eleven and bought myself some good ole fashioned Wisconsin beer. It even came with a little gift!



/Signing off