Feeling Silly

Do you every have a song you just can't get out of your head? Well, right now, mine is Jermaine Stewart's "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off." I don't know why I can't stop singing it.

Maybe, it has to do with the knock on the door today. I learned last week that every ajuma (older Korean woman) who appears at your door is not necessarily a church lady. For the past week, I've been having the same ajuma knocking on my door off and on. I've been ignoring her until she left a note. I showed it to my Korean friends and they said that she was with the gas company needing to check if we had any gas leaks. She came a few days later and I let her in. She checked every gas appliance with her digital probe and wrote the readings down on a notepad. I guess they do this routinely every few months.

So today when the doorbell rang, I answered thinking it must be something important. This ajuma came in talking a mile a minute with rubber gloves and a bucket in hand. Oh no! Who is this? She got out her squirt bottle and then I knew, too late! She drenched all of our drains again with the toxic bug killer. I never even thought to try and cancel because I didn't think the bug ladies would be working in the winter. I became really sick the first time she came through so this time, all the windows are open. Here's hoping.

Maedeup Flower Pin

Maedeup class was taking a previous knot called Garakji Maedeup and instead of tightening the knot, you loosen the knot until it is flat.



The flower is made by creating four layers using different diameter cording. Then the layers are outlined in silver cording and glue gunned together to create the pin. It was pretty easy compared to the last few weeks. This week's class Curt is back to accompany me to Seoul and we WILL NOT be taking the 3000 bus. Standing one trip to Seoul was enough for me. You can relive that experience here.

Also this week, the candidates for President of South Korea began campaigning. On my walk to the grocery store, I noticed two sets of "cheerleaders" across the street from each other swinging pompoms to the music of their candidate. The music was blaring from both sides so loud and distorted that it was hard to understand any of it even if I did understand Korean. Candidates are only allowed to campaign publicly 22 days before the election. I wish we had that law in the States!

Dinner with My Friends

I went out last night to dinner with my Korean girlfriends. They came down to Suwon from Seoul after they finished work. The restaurant was quite fancy and the food fabulous. They were dismayed that I took a picture after we had finished eating. Korean food is prepared with a lot of consideration given to presentation. They thought it was awful to take a picture of leftovers. I told them it looks like a colorful abstract painting to me. This was the remainder of three courses.

Some of the food I ate: raw baby crab, tender fish fillets with a red pepper sauce, bulgogi, squash soup, tender pork on a piece of kimchi with red peppered veggies on top, broiled clam with shrimp, garlic and cheese, some type of spicy tofu soup and of course, rice.

Some of the food I couldn't (wouldn't) eat: raw baby squid and jellyfish (I didn't even know you could eat jellyfish).

We talked and laughed well into the night. Whenever I'm eating at a Korean restaurant, I always feel sorry for the dishwasher. We were brought 30-40 side dishes. I should have kept track. A great night in South Korea!

How Fast They Grow!

It's hard to believe that our daughter, Laura, is going to be 23 and our son Luke will be 21 in a few months. The picture of Luke captures his spirit perfectly. He was such a little rascal and fearless. The years have flown by so fast and I wish I had been more diligent in documenting the years. I did manage most of the milestones but Laura's baby book has a lot more entries than Luke's.

I must also confess that I have hundreds if not thousands of photos just waiting to be put into photo albums. I was smart enough to put the month and year on the envelopes when I would pick them up at the photo processing center. But now they sit in boxes in a closet. I've taken a peek into the boxes many times but the task still seems too overwhelming. It's on my "To Do" list. I also have old photos from the 70's and 80's in self-adhesive(peel back) photo albums and I heard years ago that they should be removed or they will ruin the photos. I better stop thinking about it.

Demonstration in Guui

Curt is out of town for nine days so I made the track into Seoul (Guui Station) myself for the very first time. I got onto the bus to Seoul as we do every Saturday only to find that it was standing room only. This has NEVER happened before. If you knew the way Korean bus drivers drive you would understand when I say I was scared for my life. The stops which jar you out of your seat are even more terrifying when standing. When they take a curve, they seem to accelerate and I'm always surprised the bus doesn't end up on it's side. I hung on the overhead bar for dear life and prayed the entire 1 hour and 15 minutes it took to arrive at Gangnum Station. I was also "thrilled" that the bus driver had the heat blasting at 90 degrees so I was also dripping in sweat by the time the ride ended. The windows were so fogged you couldn't see out. There are quite a few stops before my station and I was "lucky" enough to snag a seat two stops before I needed to get off.

Then it was off to the subway. The subway is always packed at Gangnum Station on a Saturday morning but what was unbelievable was that is was packed (like sardines) all the way to Guui Station where I got off. I did again manage a seat about 2-3 stops from where I had to get off. I had to push and shove my way off the subway or I would have missed my stop. Could my luck get any worse?!

I grabbed a bagel sandwich at Dunkin Donuts near the maedeup shop and started walking to class when I saw a pickup truck with a huge sound system in the back with a bunch of Koreans walking across the street from me. The loud speaker was blaring and the demonstrators were chanting. The gray coats in the picture are police.

I snapped a couple of pictures. Never leave your home in Korea without your camera!

A sea of gray down the street caught my eye and I saw at least one hundred police offices in riot gear heading towards the demonstrators.

They were all dressed exactly alike. Koreans came out of their businesses to watch the excitement.

Here the police are moving towards the demonstrators. I thought we would see a riot. Police and demonstrators clashing and here I was with camera in hand to catch all the action. My adrenalin was pumping and I couldn't wait for the confrontation. Would the demonstrators get into a shouting match with the police, would they throw rocks, would they shove the police, would the police use tear gas, would there be arrests...

It ended without incident. Incredibly the demonstrators stopped shouting and chanting and walked off quietly as the police filed by them. I think the message from the police was received loud and clear.

The police than filed into these buses that were waiting around the corner. I was going to be late for class so I left after about 5 minutes.

I thought that this would be my last close encounter with the police but it wasn't. This morning, I was waiting at a busy intersection with two heavy bags of groceries (when will I learn). The light changed and it was our turn to walk. I picked up my bags and proceeded into the intersection along with a host of others. All of the sudden out of the corner of my eye, a car comes zooming around the corner. He slammed on his brakes and I dropped my bags thinking I was going to die. He stopped about 6 inches from me and when I looked to see who the moron was, I was surprised to see it was the police. They shook their heads and gave me a dirty look. Well excuse me! I picked up my two bags and proceeded to walk home. Thank goodness I didn't buy any eggs.

What I Bought Yesterday

What is this? Lipstick? No, I should wear lipstick but I don't. Pencil sharpener? Nope. Give up?
It's a dojong, a Korean name stamp. Curt calls them chops but I think he got name from his travels in Asia.



This is a picture of my friend, Ji Young as we watch the guy design the dojong. First, he types my name in Hangul (Korean written language) into a computer and the program gives me several fonts for me to choose from.


A picture of the different fonts for my donjong. I chose the one in the second row, third in from the left. I thought it was the coolest looking.

This is the machine that laser cut out my name. It took about a minute. The dojong was plastic but you can get them out of wood and even jade.

Here it is done.

This is my name in Hangul. I found it funny that they only use red ink when they stamp their names and since writing your name in red is taboo, I wondered at the contradiction. I asked Ji Young about it and she hadn't thought about it until I mentioned it and she too thought it was strange.

The dojong is how Koreans sign important papers such as bank documents. I did notice when I went to the bank that the counter had red ink pads and now I know why. I also know why the size for a signature even when you use your VISA is so tiny, use your dojong.

Cost for my dojong: 23,000 WON (approximately $23.00 U.S.) but truly priceless for the memories it created. What a great way to spend my Thanksgiving Day! Dinner was Japanese and it made me miss my turkey dinner at least for a little while.

I Got a Job!

My Korean friend, Ji Young, found a polymer clay shop in her neighborhood. Today we visited the shop while a class was in session. They are using air dry clay. I was allowed to take pictures of only the work area. Apparently like the maedeup shop, they have a lot of "secrets." The walls were covered with shelves of clay figurines.



Here a gal was working on a Santa figurine.


She did a great job. I brought a long a few of my books to show the owner and she wanted to hire me to teach. I'm not in possession of a work Visa so it was decided to do a trade. They also teach Hanji. I am going to teach or help a children's class on Wednesdays and on Thursdays, I will be taught Hanji. A win-win situation.

The owner wanted me to start next week but we are flying back to the States for three weeks in December and I'm working on getting things done just for that. We decided that I would start in January. Ji Young thought she should become a headhunter.

How "UnKorean" I Am

A view of a Seoul subway. I'm in the foreground.

How "UnKorean" I Am:

1. Sitting on the floor: It's so hard for me to sit cross-legged on the floor plus my rear end and legs start to hurt before long. Since most Korean restaurants are like this, I try to stretch my legs out under the table if possible.

2. Chopsticks: Korean chopsticks are metal and much harder to master than wooden. I'm still a fork girl.

3. Cutting in line: This makes me crazy and I will cut back if it is done to me.

4. Rice: I love rice but not three times a day.

5. Never leave home with being dressed to the hilt: Yes, I always go out wearing jeans not dress pants and sometimes I don't even bother to put on my makeup. I comb my hair, though and even curl it sometimes. I am knowingly committing a huge faux pas here in Korea.

6. Always wear high heels in public: With the amount of walking one does in Korea, it's insane to me to wear anything other than comfortable shoes. My Korean girlfriends say all Korean women want to be taller. Not me.

7. Side dishes: With Korean meals, expect to be served 6-8 or more side dishes. It's just too much food and you waste so much.

8. Slurping while eating: I just can't. My Korean girlfriends say I'm so quiet when I eat.

9. Driving in Korea: I've never driven in Korea and never will. From getting cut off to being honked at because you are supposedly in someone's way are just two of the many reasons I hung up my car keys.

10. Personal questions: I just can't ask someone how old they are and how much do they weigh. Some things are just too ingrained into me.

How "Korean" I've Become

Fall in Suwon, South Korea

How "Korean" I've Become:

1. When greeting someone, I immediately bow. It's become such a habit that I don't even realize I'm doing it.
2. I never leave the apartment without tissue in my purse. A lot of public bathrooms DO NOT have toilet paper.
3. As soon as I enter an elevator, I press the "close door" button. I'm so impatient (like a Korean).
4. I also never leave the apartment without an umbrella. You never know when you will get caught in a rain shower. It happened the other night when we were out with my Korean girlfriends. It was raining quite hard as we left the restaurant and one of my Korean girlfriends told me she was afraid the acid rain would make her hair fall out. We bought some umbrellas on the street for 3000 WON (3 U.S. dollars).
5. When I see a Westerner (which is extremely rare where we live in Suwon), I stare now too!
6. We are beef-free. Except for the occasional trip to Outback Steakhouse, we don't eat beef. It is very expensive here in Korea.
7. I will never sign my name in red. It is very unlucky and very taboo. Koreans feel it will lead to an early death.
8. When walking by a mirror (they are everywhere including elevators), I check my hair to see if it looks ok.
9. Communal eating - food is always shared in Korea and there is no such thing as double dipping. It has taken me some time to not think about all the germs that are being shared and spread.
10. I don't cringe anymore when my husband proceeds through a red light.
11. When out with a girlfriend, it's very popular to hold hands or be arm-in-arm. This happened to me while shopping with one of my Korean girlfriends. She put her arm through mine as we were walking. I don't even think she realized that she did it.

Tomorrow I will list how unKorean I am.

Two Months of Maedeup

This knot is comprised of the knot used in the bouquet below, but constructing three knots in a row.
The knots are getting quite difficult and I find the hardest part isn't learning the steps of the knot, but
the the tightening you must do finish the knot. I'm forever losing track of where I'm at in the tightening process only to end up with a mess. It was a frustrating week of practice for me and I even got so mad at the maedeup I sent it sailing across the room. Curt came home to one crabby Becky a few times this week.



But then you see what we made in class Saturday and the frustration has been forgotten. This took us about three hours to complete and our fingers were sore from all the work but to see what we had made left us in
awe.



This is a closeup of the necklace. We were so excited and proud of our work today that we went out to dinner at Dos Tacos. Curt and I had been there several times but my Korean girlfriends had never been there. We had a delicious meal and the girls were surprised at all the Westerners there. In fact, that was practically all you saw there.

It was pouring rain when we left, we didn't think we needed an umbrella so we went to a really cute coffee house for coffee. It was so warm inside and the coffee was delicious. We ended up talking until about 11:00 p.m. then Curt and I caught a cab back to Suwon. It was a wonderful day!

Korean Christmas Cards

Why is it whenever I go to our local Home Plus (like a Super Target), I end up buying things I didn't even know I wanted. They had put out a huge Christmas card display and I just couldn't pass it up. I wasn't going to send out cards this year, but as you can see, I changed my mind.



I love the one with the kids in the Hanboks.


Maybe I won't send any out and just keep them all for myself.



I was told that Christmas wasn't really a big holiday for Koreans. Hmmm, maybe they are feeling the
effects of the Western influence.



I really just want to frame these. I think the checkout lady thought I was crazy. She had to count
the number of cards I bought twice.

The Carol Duvall Show

This time of year always makes me think of HGTV's The Carol Duvall Show. I taped quite a few
Christmas segments and was also lucky enough to be on two of her Holiday Shows. It was some of the best times of my life and it was so hard to see it end. Carol and her staff became family to me. In fact, my first producer has become one of my closest and dearest friends.

Carol has a new book out called "Paper Crafting with Carol Duvall." If you want to check it out at Amazon.com. Now, if we can just get her to write her autobiography. She has had a fascinating life.



Behind the scenes, waiting for the taping to begin. The director is giving me some last minute pointers.


This is one of the Holiday Shows and I'm just waiting to begin. The Holiday Shows were so much fun because they included a studio audience. The set was always so beautiful.

Before my segments began and sometimes after, I had a lot of wonderful talks with Carol. She is still such an inspiration to me and a lot of other crafters.

This is just part of the staff that is "behind the scenes." I never realized all the people and work that goes into a television show. They worked such long and hard hours!

I have some old shows that will be on HGTV during the Holiday season:

Snowman Pen on November 28th, 2007 at 8:30 am ET/PT

Exhausted Santa Box on December 12th, 2007 at 8:30 am ET/PT

Cat and Fish Ornament on December 17th, 2007 at 8:30 am ET/PT

A Bouquet of Maedeup

This is a pin I made in Saturday's maedeup class. Our Saturday class is really growing, we had four brand new students. The maedeup shop owner came in and taught the newcomers.

Health Issues in the News

Recently, research company AC Nielsen conducted a survey of 26,486 people in 47 countries including South Korea. South Korea had the largest number of people suffering from colds, headaches, indigestion or toothaches during a month long timeframe.

Surprisingly, 50% of the Koreans polled stated they suffered from a cold while 50% stated they had suffered from headaches and 49% had suffered from digestive problems. But Koreans are not afraid to go to the doctor, 43% stated that they see a doctor when they are sick. This reminds me of when my husband suffered from food poisoning a month ago and missed a day of work. His Korean co-workers asked if he had gone to the hospital to see a doctor and were surprised that he didn't. Apparently, if you are too sick to work, you need to see a doctor.

A big concern with hospitals is a growing lack of surgeons. The Korean Surgical Society reported that 71.4% of hospitals managed to meet the minimum requirements for surgeons this year. They also stated that 34 or 200 residents this year have quit during their internship.

Surgeons, due to government regulations, receive 36% of the patient's fee. Surgeons also run a higher risk of law suits (a lot like the US). The job of a surgeon is also very stressful with long hours and heavy workloads.

I'm learning that even socialized medicine has it's problems.

On other note, we had two more American visitors yesterday: Paris Hilton and Beyonce! I'm not sure why Paris is here but Beyonce is doing two concerts. The Korean paparazzi was all over them.

How NOT to Display Merchandise

Cold weather has arrived and along with the weather, we have found this sock and stockings vendor at one of the busy intersections here in Suwon. Now I don't know about you, but it really creeps me out to see leggings
displayed this way. It looks like a bunch of cut off legs. I think it would be great for Halloween, though!



How's this for displaying slippers? It does get your attention when you walk by. It's too bad they don't
have anything in my size. I have really big feet - 9 1/2.



We had our first U.S. visitor this past weekend. Curt's brother was in town for business so we spent to day together. Of course, we had to take him for budae jjagae.

Crafty Kids in My Building

On the ground floor of our apartment building is a children's arts and crafts school. It's never been open when I passed by but I've peeked in the windows before. Last weekend the school had a sidewalk display of the student's artwork. I even found polymer clay as you can see in the photo above.



This art was created with paper.



More polymer clay along with ceramics.



Amazing paper folding.



This was my favorite. I'm living with a bunch of talented kids. I would love to volunteer at the school so I'm going to try and catch it open. Let's see what happens!

Tae Kwon Do

Today maedeup class was cancelled so I went with Curt to his Tae Kwon Do class. Most weeks, it's just Curt and his instructor, but this week we were thrilled to see lots of kids! The little boy in this picture demonstrated a bunch of Tae Kwon Do moves for us. He was incredibly talented!




Photo op! Can you say "Kimchi?"

This little guy got a thrill and so did Curt.

Getting a Flu Shot in Korea

Last week, I decided to get a flu shot (called an influenza inoculation here in Korea). I've been getting them for the past few years and thought it was a good idea. I talked to Hellena (my Korean friend) and she said we could go before maedeup class on Saturday.

Saturday arrived and I went off with my Korean girlfriends to get a flu shot. We approached a hospital which was only a few blocks from class. As we entered, it reminded me of the stores at Christmastime, there were people everywhere! Right by the front door, I saw a woman lying on a gurney, hooked up to I.V.'s with a nose tube. No doctor or nurse in sight of her which was quite unnerving to me. We went to the reception desk and were directed to another part of the hospital.

As Hellena was talking to the receptionist, a nurse came at me with an ear thermometer. I held up my hands and said alarmingly, "Wait a minute!" They all started laughing as Hellena said they needed my temperature before I could get the shot. Okay, so I'm a little hypersensitive, I'll admit it. She took my temperature and then we returned to the original reception desk for me to pay. It was 25,000 WON ($25.00 US). Hellena questioned it, thinking it was too much to pay. I told her that it was fine.

Then we were directed to the "Injection Room." We stood in the doorway and saw a small boy about 8 years old fighting off a couple of nurses. They closed the door on us which was fine with me. Then a nurse stuck her head out and called out for another nurse who came running. I heard all kinds of screaming and crying coming from the room. There was another little boy the same age waiting to be next and he was already crying. This really didn't look good for me. I hate needles too!

The first little boy came out and sat on the bench next to me with his mom. He was hiccuping and sniffling. The second boy went in, again we heard the screaming and crying. Now, I'm feeling sick to my stomach and a little lightheaded. He came out looking the same way as the first little boy.

Now it was my turn. As I entered the room, I was surprised to see about 6-8 cots filled with Koreans getting I.V.'s. The injection "chair" was in the middle of the room with an audience of these poor souls laying on the cots. I sat down and the nurse drew the injection (I'm used to the injections being ready to go by the time I enter the room). The needle looked about the same size as back home but the barrel of the shot was half the size of any shot I've ever received. It looked awkward to even hold. By then, I was also sweating pretty good and wishing I could scream.

She wiped an alcohol pad on my arm, pinched and gave me the shot. I waited for the sting and I never felt the needle. This has NEVER happened to me. She was quite pleased to hear that! The whole thing took about 15 minutes, unheard of in the States. Whenever you walk into a hospital back home (unless it's life threatening) be prepared for a long wait. We proceeded to class.

A market we ran into near the hospital.

Another view.

A cool looking restaurant we saw on our way back to class.

It had it's menu on a huge poster outside. We sure love picture menus!