Monthly Archives: December 2010

“It was only thirty minutes, but it was delightful.”

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The title is a quote taken directly from my always witty and ever charming sister’s latest post on life over the holidays at the Welton household. It is worth a read. Mostly because it talks almost entirely about me.

My dad informed me that I don’t update my blog often enough. Here I was thinking that I did a pretty decent job until he informed me that he checks it every day. Every day? Does he not realize that I have a full time job. I mean, really dad, you don’t even comment. I love comments. Why don’t people comment? I know you read it. I have a stats page (which is super cool).

This is my second post in two days though, you are welcome dad.

It’s still Christmas! (even though my computer says it is 10:45 a.m. on Sunday morning- in actuality it is 8:45 p.m. on Saturday evening)

80% of my pictures from this trip are of these two. They just don't come any cuter.

 

finding america again

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goodbye: 12:30 p.m. saturday, south korea.

hello: 6:40 a.m. sunday, usa.

time elapsed from leaving apartment in seoul and arriving to the baggage claim area in detroit michigan:

32 hours, 10 minutes.

waiting for flight #1 (out of 3) at Incheon Airport!

bag arrives and big brother Josh appears through the windows of the airport pick up zone at 7 a.m. I get in the truck and he offers me a coke. “Josh, I quit drinking coke over seven months ago.”

‘Why would you do that?” Josh, who probably drinks the same amount of coke I used to (which is a BIG feat) shakes his head and mutters something about hearing that a while ago *he obviously doesn’t read my blog or e-mails home. But at least he wakes up really early on a Sunday morning to get me from the airport. Thanks bro. The kit-kats for breakfast were awesome too!

I stayed awake all day and stumbled into my brother’s guest bed around 11:30 that night… over 48 hours after I left my room in Seoul. I was probably jet lagged until today (Friday, Christmas Eve) haha… my body is going to finally adjust and then I head back home… oh well…

I completely forgot that dishwashers existed.

Eight months ago, when I hopped over to Maryland for a friend’s wedding I was talking to every cashier, every random walker, every person who crossed my path. Now, I stare blankly when a stranger says something as if I don’t know English. I was in the post office, mailing letters (as you do in a post office) and someone said something to me-who knows what-I didn’t even do the normal acknowledgement sound or smile… I literally just stared blankly and kept putting stamps on the letters. She probably thought I was mute.

I also forgot mailboxes along the road in the country existed, I got the mail for my family the other day (two letters were actually FOR ME, I don’t even live here!), it was neat.

Coming back to my parents’ house in good ol Middleville, I was really excited to drive for the first time in 16 months. After discovering I left my license in Korea my Dad laughed when I mentioned borrowing the car. Then, we realized I turned 25 in Korea MEANING my license expired anyway. I thought getting it renewed would be the worst hassle (being used to doing paperwork in a foreign country), one piece of paper and a fabulous new license picture later and I can drive!

merry christmas

how do we feel about it? we feel good. really good.

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it was a chaos of red, green, and white. confetti (it ‘snowed’ during the christmas concert) littered the floor, wrapping paper -aimed for the recycle bin but missed by a long shot- stuck to my shoes, pencils under desks, christmas cards crumpled and forgotten, sticky hands saying goodbye (we made marshmallow snowmen at the end of the day), shouts in the hallway, little and big feet stomping out… and then silence.

until the teachers took a breath, stepped out of their classrooms into an empty hall knowing they would not be filled with children (or themselves) again for three weeks, and started to shout and dance. literally. if you thought the students were excited to go home you have not seen the joyous face of a teacher going on break. every time someone walked down the hall from their classroom with their coat on and purse in hand (or backpack in the men’s case) a new chorus of, “WHA-HOOOOO! Have a great Christmas!” was heard from all the teachers still celebrating in each other’s classrooms.

i leave for the airport in one hour and thirty one minutes. the only sadness i am feeling right now is knowing how quickly this time is going to go. but i push that impatiently from my mind and focus on the amazing feeling i will have being surround by friends and family that i have been separated from for a year and a half now, 16 months, 455 days (not that i have been counting) and i think “EEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!!!!”

i had a friend already request a blog post from me on reverse culture shock. i will let you know how it goes^^.

and as i sit here waiting (why did i pack so early?!) to leave for home (BECAUSE I AM GOING HOME!), i want to share this video with you. i made it for one of my students who is leaving my school to go live with his mother in another country. why it had to be him to leave i don’t know, and i am sad. he was the best behaved, has the kindest heart, and leads the class without them knowing it, in that silent way.

when i played this for the class i heard from one student, “oh, i don’t like this song, it makes me feel sad!” gosh I love second graders…

to be honest. i am not sure how this happened…

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I tested for my blue belt in taekwondo last week. And I got it. Me. Who can’t walk up the stairs without tripping 50% of the time… FINE, there doesn’t even need to be stairs. I feel pretty good about myself. I am proud of me. Everyone should do something that makes them feel good about themselves. It’s really refreshing.

 

Just in case you are color blind, that's a BLUE BELT I am wearing^^

 

In other news I am going home in FIVE DAYS. After sixteen months of being away from Michigan (you all thought I was never coming back didn’t ya?) I am finally making my way back to my home state. I am ready to burst, the amount of excitement I contain and portray for life on a daily basis will continue to mount and increase as Saturday draws closer, consider this a warning. If you thought I had too much enthusiasm before, stay clear of this chica Friday night! but really…