Back Again

Yes the heat got fixed after being off for some 45 hours, finally. Besides that the computer had a meltdown of some kind....but at least we're up and running. Then the left side of my face went numb and it's been two days of doctors. The first doc said it was Bell's Palsy but the next two said it wasn't.....off to Neurology on Monday.
Oh well, it hasn't been a boring two weeks, but I have missed the old blog. I look at this as some kind of literary ( can I use that word?) therapy.
Through it all, we managed to get our flu shots. I also ran into Julie for the first time in 31 years, what a surprise to finally see somebody that you've wondered about over the decades. She is still cool.
Have a good weeekend all. Manna, Mike

London-bound

Arrived back home today after five days away. The furnace isn't working, looks like I'm going to enjoy my days off! Manna, Mike.

Maps

I feel fortunate that I have some time at home, before my adventure begins. I have been doing things 'Korean' for weeks, especially chopsticks, which I am very comfortable with...I think. A small success in the grand scheme of things, but encouraging because initially they even seemed like a challenge. Rice has become a large part of my diet, starting six months ago. I did go to a Korean restauraunt recently with friends. We had mandu, bulbogi, kimchi, bimbimbap and some other foods. We all really enjoyed it!
My friends spent over three years living in the Anyang area. They returned to Canada to get things put in order here so they can return to Korea and spend most of the rest of their time there. I am very grateful to them for sharing there lives in Korea with me.
Another friend is living in Korea right now. and I am very grateful to her for the e-mails and photos.

Korean Mountains. Thanks Teresa.
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The Forks of the Thames. London, Canada.
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Sarnia Bound Sunset
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Buddha in the Park.
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Dreaming

Last night was finished off with a piece of cake. I hunkered down between the sheets by 9:30. I woke up around 11:30 to discover the dream I was having about heartburn, wasn't a dream, I really did have heartburn. It must have been those two rye and waters, and the two beers. Back in bed by midnight and awake again by 3:30. Oh well, at least the phone didn't ring.

I got to chat with Teresa in Daejon this morning. She had e-mailed everybody some really cool photos of some park she visited. Teresa has been in Daejon for about six months. She has had a few adventures since arriving there. It would be neat if I could get to Korea before she returns to Canada. When I finished high school I hitchhiked to Banff, Alberta. In 1977 I went to Poland for six weeks. These trips were both an adventure of a lifetime for me. So I have had a taste of travel, but apart from the occasional jaunt to Florida, I haven't travelled very much. So hearing Teresa's tales of travel has re-started that travel bug. It has also given me some insight on how things are over there.

Going to Banff and working at the Banff Springs Hotel is like a rite of passage for Canadian kids around 20 years old. It was like Spring Break except it was in the Canadian Rockies instead of Daytona beach and it was longer than a week. It just goes on pretty much most of the time. Hearing about people going to teach in Korea reminds me of that.....but I don't think it will be a rite of passage for me. I hope I'll be able to hang in Korea for a few years at least.

There are disbelievers and doubters among us. Some people think that it's silly that I want to do something like this especially 'at this time of your life'......whatever that means! But many of the people I am close to are very positive and enthusiastic about my upcoming trip. My Mother summed it up best...." if there's something you want to do, do it while you're still able to do it ". So at that point, I decided I wasn't going to wait until I retired to go to Korea.

Frost on the car windows this morning. Winters coming. Thanks for the photos Teresa.

Manna, Mike.

This is called 'Cookies & Creme'. Very delicious, very decadent....very mmmmm.
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The True, North, Strong and Free........???
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Sarnia bound, Oct. 9/04
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Yesterday

Yesterday was a perfect day! Time with the kids, good food, good weather....life is good. We are going to my Mothers place to celebrate Thanksgiving and my sons 16th birthday. We got a cake and Mom got a pumpkin pie, so hopefully we'll have room for dessert!
These are the days I will miss in Korea. Next week it's back to Windsor for five more days of putting my life on hold. I better find more things to keep me busy while I'm there.
The picture of the sunset was taken on the 9th on the way to Sarnia.
Manna, Mike.

Thanksgiving Sunday

An excellent day. Myself and my kids spent the day together, tomorrrow to Mothers to celebrate my sons 16th and Thanksgiving. Mother has pumpkin pie and we picked up a 'cookies and creme cake', sooo it should be good. So what! We had salad for supper....... with the roasted chicken and corn on the cob. Life is good.....I will miss these Canadian days in South Korea. My Mother asked again if I was still going to Korea. I assured her that I am and said that it is a matter of days......but it is more than a hundred days. As things get dealt with for my departure I think the day for leaving will become more predictable, even by my Mom! So within a few months I will have 'all my ducks in a row' and I will be able to depart Canada with peace of mind. I will still be maintaining a home in Canada, so it's necessary to have few months Canadian bills paid, that way whatever I earn there will be spent on seeing how little I can live on. My goal is to save $1000 a month, the question is: ' How long will it take to get to that point'. I would like to be able to spend at least a month looking for a job and getting a feel for the place. Hopefully I'll make some good contacts right from the start.
I have been taking pictures on a daily basis and am becoming accustomed to working with pictures, starting this blog is taking it to the next level. I hope to be able to post some photos soon. Working on this blog is a little more involved than playing solitaire wihich I seem to do a lot. This is a lot more interesting...you can see your progress as it occurs. I found solitaire tough! What a difference a computer makes.

Korea!

So how does one prepare for something they know very little about? Research plays its part. I can see all those pictures on the net......... you know, the really good blogs that are peppered with all those sidewalk shot, man in the street photos. I think those are excellent tools for removing the illusions that I may have, and, those photos are really cool. Can I do enough preparation to get a feel for the place from here? No, I don't think that's possible. Once my feet, (size 13), hit the ground in Korea, I'm sure there will be a whole lot of feel going on. A lot of sights, sounds and smells for sure. Does that mean I have to get culture shock? Is homesickness inevitable? Who cares? If it's part and parcel, then, so be it, pay the price! Will it be worth it? I think it will be priceless. Even if I have to cry in a yeogwan 2 or 3 times a year. Besides, maybe I'll get drunk or get a girlfriend instead.

Motivation plays a big part. Money is 4 or 5 on the list of reasons of why I want to go to Korea. Fun and travel are way more important than money, here comes the catch.... look out, but of course we need money to do both.

The weather is still good here. It is going to rain....I can feel it...honest, most of the time I don't mind the rain. I lost a good pair of glasses outside the other day and even though I retraced my footsteps, I wasn't able to find them. I think if it rains they will get soaked. They are in a hardcase but they''ll still get wet. Not only that now I have to wear the other ones that are dorky as hell. Perhaps it is time for a change.

C'est la vie, n'est pas? Manna, Mike.

Korea?

To think I didn't even have an e-mail address a year ago. I didn't even have a computer then, nor did I want one. Has a computer made a difference in my life? Oh yeah.

I am 49, I have lived and worked in London, Canada most of my live. I am divorced and have two kids, 19 and 16. My nineteen year old daughter lives with me and my son lives with his mother.

In the last year, three things have happened that had an incredible impact. I decided I needed a change and started planning one. Good friends returned after living and working in the Seoul area for three years, with lots to tell and lots of photos. I got a computer that brought Korea into our home.

That is where the Korea-bound Project was born and, hopefully, this will be a good place to keep track of it. I intend to be living and working in Korea within the year. Manna, Mike.

Old South Firehall Turned Residential 

Leopard Head Girl. Cool huh? City Bus, Windsor, On. 

The closest Timmies to our house. Tim Hortons on Horton St. actually. London. 

The John Labatt Centre. Downtown London, lots of concerts, lots of hockey.