Anxiety has set it...

Along with apprehension, excitement and more than a little bit of fear. The knot in my stomach is growing and my body is declaring mutiny on my face. I think I need some sedatives and a big 'ol bottle of Proactive.

His mom and dad made him do it.

korean baby singing hey jude

Koreans are really into education and apparently this also applies to karaoke. Check his timing though, it's impeccable. Way to go Korea!

A Traveling Ruckus

So I've made it to Portland safely AND managed to  stop at DSW for new shoes before I even set foot within P-Town city limits.  YES!  At least I'm doing my American duty to BUY, BUY, BUY before I leave the country...  Dubya would be proud.  Anyway, Steph planned a night out for me and the girls, complete with mac n' cheese at Montage (where last I dined with the Beastie Boys, no joke!) and some sweet Rasberry Lambic at bar XV.  It was good times.  

This morning (or afternoon, who knows) finds us on her back patio shaking off a slight hangover and bonding over Mac euphoria.  I'm glad we're friends. 

NOT visiting Kim Jong Il

Oh, and I inadvertently told the lady at Wal*Mart I was going to North Korea. She didn't even blink. Yeah, not so much.

Pokemon on a plane.

You all must have been crossin' yer fingers 'cause I'm going to Tokyo! And now I'm freaking out. Did you know Tokyo International Airport, also known as Haneda (to distinguish it from the TWO other airports) ranks fourth in the WORLD for air traffic? And it mostly just services South Korea, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Damn. Umm, Boise doesn't even rank. Yeah, it's big. Hopefully the two hour layover is enough time for me to pick up some Hello Kitty stuff for Trishia AND find my gate!

Also, my friend Chris says Skype is the way to go to make free international calls. You can download it for free. I love free. And in case yer really crazy and think you actually want to pay to make that international call, here's how: http://www.howtocallabroad.com/south-korea/

Good luck!

Update:  Not Haneda, Narita, and yeah, it's big too.  At least their site is in English.  Sweet.

The checklist is complete AND how to pack for a year

Visa is in hand! Checklist is complete. Now I can focus on more pressing issues, like packing. Bleh.

Some important conundrums have arisen whilst packing (I'm setting you up with the vocab here, are you catchin' that?) Can I pack the Hogwarts gang along for the trip? Is that weird? And perhaps more importantly, do I leave all my "Friends" at home? The ones I know by heart and have watched incessantly since I was about 14. Don't judge. These are pressing questions. And furthermore, how is one woman expected to know which shoes she MIGHT wear over the course of the next year? Hell, I wear a different pair of shoes everyday. I've prolly got 20 and I wear them ALL. And jeans. Ah snap, here I go...

Dawn says take the cannoli and leave the gun. Whatever. I say pack a LOT of tampons, take yer own sheets and as long as I have the Mac, all is right in the world. Mom will send the rest.

And furthermore...

I'm going to make it a point to NOT to be that girl (or guy, or goat or any other living, breathing creature who can create a blog) who posts once, leaves you hanging and NEVER POSTS AGAIN. Do you know how many random Korean teacher blogs are out there with just a handful of posts and no good info? Gazillions. Literally.

That being said, I did find one really good blog. Check it out!

Calming my mother's fears.

Mom: "So, you'll keep in touch and keep me posted and email me as soon as you can, right?"
Me: "Yeah, Mom. Korea is supposedly the most wired country in the world. I'll keep in touch."
Mom: "Maybe we should get webcams."
Me: "Yeah, that's an idea..."
Mom: "Or maybe you could start a blog." So I can stalk you night and day and make sure you're not starving to death and wasting away and you haven't been mugged and you're safe and you're making friends and you're still alive. (Okay, I added that last part, but I'm pretty sure my mom was thinking all those things when she suggested a blog.)

So I'm blogging. Hopefully this serves as a great way for me to share my amazing and funny experiences with friends and family and of course, my mom, and NOT a personal bitch session about all the things I miss from home. If this happens, feel free to keep me in line. I have a tendency to bitch.

Whew. So the countdown is almost complete! I leave the great (red) state of Idaho Saturday, April 26th for Portland. My journey stops there for a few days so I can visit (more) friends and family AND continue to justify spending $$ on "food I'll miss" and "clothes I won't be able to buy." Sweet. From there, I'm not quite sure. As of today I'm still waiting on my Visa. Once I have that, I'll get my flight itinerary from Portland to Seoul. I'm crossing my fingers for a layover in Tokyo and not L.A. Cross yer finger for me...