I won't do a day-by-day recap of my activities on this blog, but for the first few days I'll give a synopsis because several of you have asked me how things are going. It's 6:14 AM as I type this; I went to bed last night before 8, and woke up for good about 5 this morning. Jet lag is a problem for everybody heading overseas; I'll get over it soon. I'll have to because the Village has me working from 1-9 PM tonight (and every day through Friday). It might have been nice to have a couple of days to get adjusted to the time difference, but frankly, I don't really have a whole lot else to do. I went grocery shopping yesterday, will set up a bank account and have a physical (mandatory) this morning, and then....well, go to work. I cannot recall ever being as tired as I was last night when I went to bad; I was literally aching I was so tired. But, even though I'm still a little tired this morning, I do feel better, at least in that regard. I'll probably fight this depression the rest of my life, but maybe the Koreans can acupuncture or moxa cautery it out of me. What is moxa cautery, you ask? That's where the doctor treats you by applying heat to the diseased area by using mugwort and other herbs. Yes, I can't wait to apply some mugwort to my head...Wait till I tell you what these people eat. I have a feeling I'm going to lose a lot of weight in the next year. And I'll probably break my chocolate habit as well, because a SMALL bag of M&Ms cost about $2.50. Care packages from abroad will be greatly appreciated. South Korea is not a Third World country; it's quite modern. The grocery store I was taken to yesterday was called "E-Mart," and had a good variety of products. Unfortunately, I couldn't tell what most of them were because everything was in Korean. And I couldn't ask the hawkers who were standing around (and there were several) because none of them spoke English. Blasted fereners...anyway, I bought $100 worth of groceries and brought almost nothing home, so it's expensive here, more so than I thought it would be. There is also a Costco not far from here and I'd like to visit there sometime. Maybe I can buy M&Ms in bulk and save some money.
It's "monsoon" season in Korea, which lasts from about now till the end of July. It doesn't rain all the time, but it's very humid--Louisiana-type humidity--and sudden, mighty storms can crop up quickly. The aviary population in this country is quite interesting. I guess I knew this, but I had never heard one before except on a clock--there is actually a "cuckoo" bird, and that's exactly what it sounds like. And if I ever find one, I'm going to shoot the sucker because he starts about 3 AM in the morning and never shuts up. There is also a bird (I don't know what it's called) that sounds exactly like a typewriter. The first time I heard him (her?) I literally thought that someone down the hall was typing something. What other sorts of strange creatures lurk about I know not, but I'll keep you abreast.
Well, that's about all for now. I'm hoping, very soon, to start putting posts on my Bible blogs so keep checking. And whatever current events interest me will show up here. Nothing excites me at the moment, but then I haven't paid much attention, for rather obvious reasons. The whole country of South Korea was in mourning yesterday because their soccer team lost in the World Cup to Uruguay, or some such mud puddle, and that would make anybody mourn. America lost, too, but I wonder if anybody in the states knows it. More later....