Cousin Distribution

In effort to evenly distribute and disperse my family members on the map of the United States, I will be moving to Columbia, South Carolina next month.   I just accepted a job at the Ft. Jackson Army Base library right outside of the city.

Candy Juice

This is Korean plum juice and it was one of my favorite things in Korea.  I knew that I was going to miss it.  But this week, I found a Korean grocery store here.  This juice is very sweet, hence it's nickname in the ward of "candy juice."

Brothers

 This month I've been hanging out with my brothers.  I dropped one off at school, helping him move in.  It was a fun drive and good to see where he'll be going to school.  Notice the shirt.  This brother has a wardrobe with a sense of humor.

I spent an afternoon with my youngest brother at Lagoon before he too started school.  We had fun, the park was empty and there were no lines.

The funny thing about genetics is that we had to add quiet rides between the crazy roller coasters.  Without any lines, I needed time to settle my stomach before going on the next.  This also allowed time for photo shoots with the ham.  Something about being the youngest means that you love the camera in your face.

Family

Moving home has been challenging and rewarding.  We've had 4 generations here.  That means that there is lots going on at any given moment and zero closet space.  But spending time laughing with my siblings is worth it.

Saying Goodbye

 Images from my last month in South Korea... this is the chapel, which is down a small side street in Seoul.

 Packing my apartment.

 Empty apartment.

 Busan beach

Awesome instructions for surviving rip currents at the beach: "1. Learn how to swim."

What's next

I don't know.

Short term, I am consumed with the details of moving my household across the world.  I will move back home, (Thanks Mom and Dad) while I continue the job hunt.

Goodbye faithful steed

This has been my ride in Korea.

I bought it used and it was a wonderful car for the most part until this last month.  On Tuesday I was delivering groceries to Girls Camp when it's little engine gave up the ghost.  Unfortunately I was right in the middle of an intersection... on a hill.  I turned on my hazards and waved the other cars around me.  I also called my insurance agency, who in turn called a tow truck to come.   It was while I was waiting for a tow truck that two very nice Korean cops stopped to help me.  We eventually got the car started again and drove it to the side of the intersection.
         Since I was just 500 yards away from the retreat where the YW were staying they sent another car down to pick up the groceries.  And I continued to wait with the cops. We hung out in their car with the air conditioning set to max, since it was scorching hot.  The tow truck driver arrived and we had a nice conversation, where nobody understood each other and we all resorted to our smart phones and their maps to show each other where we wanted to tow the car.  The cops left and I went with the tow truck driver.
       Koreans are addicted to their smart phones, you'll notice in the previous post that the cop was playing on his phone while we waited.  The tow truck driver played on his phone while driving the entire distance.  I played on my phone so that I wouldn't freak out about all our close calls.  Scariest ride of my life!!
      At the garage I learned that it would cost about $600 dollars to fix my car.  Since I am leaving next month, it wasn't worth it.  I sold it for parts yesterday and will spend my last month walking and taking public transportation.
       So goodbye Korea, I have one less thing tying me here and one less regret about moving home.  And one more awesome, "Oh, Korea!" story.