3 Month Anniversary

Well, it's come and gone so quickly so far. Three months since the big flight o'er the sea. There are things that I miss, and things that I'm tired of. Let's take this quarter bench-mark moment and reflect, shall we?
Things Having Been Pined For:

1. Stories: After two months living with foreigners you sort of give up talking as a means of entertainment and strip it down to the bare essentials: communication. Even after being here near the international community, the best I get is effortless communication. I'm not really in a "story telling crowd." It's gotten so bad that I'd forgotten I used to tell stories will all of my social time. My mind has changed to the point where my experiences aren't automatically sorted into story-worthy and garbage. I've not only lost the habit of story telling but lost the mindset of a story teller. I'll be glad to be back in that environment.
2. Cheese: We just don't have it. Sure, I can go to the largest supermarket in Korea and pick up so pricy ass cheese from the foreign section, but effectively gone are the days of bread and Brie, cheese and crackers, Mac & cheese, cordon bleu, four cheese ravioli, nachos, grilled cheese, cheeseburgers, and cheese fries. It's almost torturous that Koreans have chosen one cheese for their diet: American. Of all the cheeses in the world, American cheese is aplenty. Just my luck.
3. Shoes: Not just shoes either, but pants and sleeves. Nothing here is me-sized. Nothing. So it comes down to my shoes falling apart and no store in Korea with accommodating pedestrian equipper on this continent. Not to mention the high water, 3/4 sleeve problem is ridiculous here. What I came with is what I've got.
4. Dryers. I haven't seen a dryer since I got here. Clothes just don't feel the same air drying.
   

Things Having Been Spurned

1. The Question Set: I know we do it, but it's become so painfully obvious what the American stereotypes here are just by the questions every Korean asks you. "It's not too spicy for you??" every time you eat the heat equivalent of gumbo. "What do you think of Korean girls??" Alright, alright already. Will you just let that one die! Not every white guy is here to find a geisha. "Why would you even be interested in Korea?" Aside from the political hot spot this place is, what about the economic miracle and investment possibility this place poses? No, I'm not in the Army. No, I don't have Korean family.
2. "Couples": The whole couple phenomenon just gets old. Youth culture here is geared around the couple. Meals come in "couple sets," every month has a couple holiday, shoes and shirts come in his and hers pairs, the streets are jammed with waltzing, arm in arm lovers. It's fun to be in a relationship, but the suffocating, mushy, predominant dating culture is too much for even the western girls to handle.
   
3. KimChi: If I never eat KimChi again it'll be too soon. And by too soon I mean three times tomorrow. The "national dish" of fermented cabbage marinated in spice is served at every meal. Yeah, it's cool that now I can tell the difference between different qualities of KimChi, but after three months of cabbage morning, noon, and night I could never eat it again and be satisfied.
4. English: Not the real language, the imitation. Everywhere you look there's poorly translated, misspelled English. Often it makes zero sense. Sounds like it could be funny forever, right? Actually the term limit on that is more like three months. After that, it just gets dull. You can predict the errors, translate the nonsensical adages and quips, even catch yourself making similar errors in your speech. Often I just wish that they would stop trying. In fact, it is not possible to find a shirt with and Korean text on it. I've been here three months and I have to say that they just don't exist. Sad for a tourist, I know. Just another example of how this country is cultural-export-reluctant combined with western obsessed.

It could be worse. Other than these few whims and irritants life here is still awesome. The droll school year is winding down to winter break, when I'll get my snow and some much needed relaxation. I have given up trying to expect where my mindset will settle in the next three months. It's futile. There is no rhyme or reason to how something like this changes a person. You just find yourself standing outside an operation room peering through glass as your old personality gets a full blood transfusion, new kidneys, a pacemaker, bone marrow transplant, and facial reconstructive surgery.