I'm An Alien

My day began with wonderful news.
In the words of Sting, "I'm an Alien, I'm a Legal Alien."

This calls for my theme song

It Goes Up To 11

My Visa number arrived. 

It's now time to take this decision and crank it up to 11. 

Normal decisions only go up to 10, but this one... it goes up to 11.

The paperwork is a little different then what I sent to Korea the first time around and I ended up needing a sealed copy of my college transcript even though I was told I wouldn't.
Good thing I ordered some just in case.

 

I'd like to say that I rocked my interview, but I didn't.

It was a train wreck narrowly averted.

Anytime you show up and pay for your visa in quarters it's not starting well.

All I could think was, "Less is more, less is more".

For example, when she asked me, "Why do you want to live in Korea?"

I did not answer, "Because it's got really good TV."

Let's consider that a win.

 

So, on Monday we will have the final results.

Nuclear Family

I was raised in a traditional Nuclear Family.

Despite generating the power for many wonderful and glorious things - it was created by deadly elements prone to dangerous explosions that left behind widespread destruction and copious amounts of toxic waste.

It took years to clean out the dirty energy and find a new, cleaner burning fuel to power a more energy efficient life. But we did it, a decade ago we built a green-friendly family using recycled materials in innovative ways.

Family Christmas Brunch

Now that we've re-imagined family our energy and our love goes further.

To our Green Family who couldn't be with us this holiday season
we love and we miss you.

Denominations

No matter how much time I've spent studying religion,

I've never been able to understand the value of Denominations.

Each treating human behavior like some sort of spirituality currency. 

Harri-bou and Rebeqa at St. James Mass

For me, I value

- Faith, Love, Relationship -

and these things don't exist within a government structure.

They are shared human experiences.

All American Rejects

In our house, dinner is always fusion.

Main Course:  Brown Sauce Noodles 

(turned out just as amazing as we'd dreamed)

Desert: Mexican Rice Pudding

Beverage: Homemade Mulled Wine

(a holiday gift from our German neighbors)

Craving the Unknown

Harri-bou and I can't stop craving Brown Sauce noodles.  

Day in and day out, our mouths water at the mere thought of this common Korean dish.

We dream of the rich full flavor of the black bean sauce,

Salivate at the light flavor of the fresh scallions and cucumber,

Sigh at the thought of perfectly cooked noodles wrapped around our chopsticks...

There is only one thing - we've never ever actually had it.

I guess it's time to learn how to make it.

http://mykoreankitchen.com/2006/11/02/korean-black-bean-paste-noodles-jajangmyun-in-korean/

Mixed Tape

For my love, while I'm away

We Miss Our Own Lives...

After an exhausting year that challenged me in more ways then I can count, I found myself - through self-determination and unexpected circumstance - with my sister in a private villa in Mexico.

It was an adventure, it was work, it was an unexpected gift from a wonderful friend but mostly it was a life saver for two exhausted women in need of new eyes and new vision.

As we let the beauty sink in, Rebeqa sat down and begin singing my favorite song... as I listened and took in the world around me I saw my life clearly for the first time in years.

After that I made the decision not to miss my own life.

Write Away

I knew who I was at 21, but I can't say I knew what I wanted.

Somehow, along the way, while searching for what I wanted,

I let myself be convinced I wasn't who I am.

"Priority Blocks", Lanae Rivers-Woods 2009

So I wrote it all down on thin little pages 

and I drew it all down on solid wood blocks.

And I re-read my words and I shuffled my vision 

and when I found my direction I realized I was lost.

So, without delay or hesitation, I got down too business write away.  

There is not time to waste, it's time to put my life in order the right way.

Bow. Wow!

It hit me recently, I'm going to have to:

A) sit on the floor

B) bow

I decided I don't want it to be a laughing matter - I mean it's no laughing matter.

So... I'm in training.

Wish me luck!

A Shot In The Dark

Brightly colored drinks and soft jazz float lightly along on Lake Union

and I'm laughing the night away with my sister at her office holiday party.

The best part of the night - she's happy.

She's found a place where she belongs

with people who enjoy living life

and who make a solid effort to balance work,

love, family and jello shots.

Watching the night unfold helps me feel at peace
as I continue to prepare for Korea.

It's a reminder that we can do our best to plan our lives
but - ultimately - it's all just a mysterious
shot in the dark.

BFFs 4 Ever

Seventeen years ago I met my best friend, Hari-bou

sometimes we've loved each other,

sometimes we've hated each other,

but we've always been the best of friends.

It's hard to image us spending 12 months apart, 

but don't ask us how we're going to make it through this little adventure

because we've already made it through far worse things
- not of our own choosing -
over
and
over
and
over
and
over...

Instead, just let us be happy in the crazy little world
we've made just too our liking.

The Earth Goes Round The Sun

Boom, boom, boom went the bombs. 

War, war, war said the headlines.

But nothing really changes, 

and broken hearts don't stop the world from circling the sun.

That's why I'll still get on that airplane and I'll still go to South Korea:

Because I still get in a car

and I still rent apartments

and I still go to work

and I still go to sleep in my own bed

and I still have to do all those things

that my loved ones did
when they died by another's hand.

So let the dice roll and let the world keep turning
'cause I've go a plane to catch -
just as long as the world keeps circling the sun.

Tradition First

Next year my holidays wont look like this.

Not that many have.  

because every family has their own traditions, and in ours it's adventure.

So, although I will miss the smell of pine and the twinkling lights,

I know my family will always put tradition first...

just like they did in Portofino when we found the magical villa under the road...

or in Puerto Vallarta when they hired a guide, a cooler
and a boat to go exploring up the coast...

or when we journeyed to Russia to see our brother,

but forgot to mention when we were arriving... or his contact info...

or when we flew home from Central America on Thanksgiving day 

and arrived just in time 

to host a big Orphan Thanksgiving in Seattle...

Next year it will all be different, and yet so the same

whether it's breaking bread via Skype

swimming in the warm waters of Thailand

stomping through the snows of Sokcho-si

I'm looking forward to honoring tradition.

The Object

Life is like a diagrammed sentence... it's all about finding the object.

For so long my life has just been one run-on sentence.

Time to turn that page.

It's on!

Mending

It seemed appropriate to start with the mending.

A process that starts with sorting, identifying and evaluating broken objects 

to determine if what's worth reviving, archiving or recycling.   

It's not a simply or easy process.  

Many things have been loved beyond repair.  

Other items could be easily fixed, but you ask yourself, 

"Do I really want this around since it never really worked anyway?"  

Of course, you also find those special items that seemed a lost cost, 

but after looking closer, you find it's not so bad after all.  

A little thread, a little love and all is good as new. 

It's just about putting in the effort. 

So here I am. 

Sorting.  Reviewing.  Itemizing.  Clarifying

Today I choose the tangible so I can wrap myself in the warmth of tasks completed 

and draw strength from knowing things mended can be stronger then things unbroken.