New Shoes

I finally overcame my fear of shoe stores in Korea. I know, it’s silly and maybe a little unfair but I have this irrational fear of shoe stores here. I picture walking into a store and asking to try on a pair of cute shoes. After telling them my size I imagine they will look at me in horror and tell me, in no uncertain terms, do they have shoes in such a size. My shoe size… turns out I’m a little self conscious about it now, it’s a new thing… anyway…

A few weekends ago, backed by the Waygook Team, I successfully tried on and bought a new pair of shoes. And she didn’t even blink an eye when I told her what size I wanted. Woot!

They are a beautiful new pair of shoes!

Converse.

Black.

High tops.

Crisp white shoelaces.

What more could a girl want in life from a pair of shoes?

And yet….

Today when I stood at the door about to put on my shoes to head down to my local coffee shop I had to pause and think. My old pair of Converse were still sitting there.

I can only wear black socks with them because they have huge holes worn in the sides.

They have scuffmarks, grass stains, and coffee spilt on them numerous times.

I think the shoelaces were white… once upon a time.

And yet…

Here I sit in a coffee shop, surrounded by Koreans and their shiny, clean, new shoes (look around next time you’re in Korea… they all wear nice shoes) in my scuffy, dirty, old pair. And I'm happy with that.

Maybe I'm just a creature of habit. Maybe I just prefer what's broken in. Maybe sometimes, when I walk out the door, I need something familiar and comfortable close by. Even if it's just a pair of old shoes.

Happy New Year!

Ok yes, I’m just a bit late with my greeting. Of course, this is the girl that still has Christmas presents laid out in orderly little piles waiting to be shipped. I get around to it.... eventually!

But looking past my late tendencies in the holiday realm I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and wonderful New Years!

The Holidays here in Korea were rather cheerful even with the absence of the normal Christmas festivities. Christmas isn’t the glittering, festive ball of food, family, presents and events that it is back home. We only had the 25th off (it was more than a little odd having a regular teaching day on Christmas Eve) and it’s really seen as more of a day for couples and not so much for families. I started calling it Valentines Day 2.0. All the young folks were out in their finest duds with cakes in hand on Christmas!

It was certainly hard being away from family and the normal Christmas trimmings but I also become very grateful for our little band that has been assembled here. We were able to make it a merry time and I truly enjoyed it!

However, I feel our Christmas festivities paled in comparison to New Years. This time, instead of trying to make the holiday like what we know from back home we decided to embrace our inner Korean. This meant dinner downtown, beer at the local with the ajhussies, purchasing a cake at the neighborhood bakery (any event is seen as reason for cake here!), and of course- karaoke!

Now let’s make something clear upfront- I am not a singer. The idea of spending the evening singing into a microphone for all to hear could not be farther down on my list of enjoyable ways to spend my time! But Korean karaoke.... Best. Thing. Ever.

We wandered over to one of the MANY norebangs (seriously norebangs are to Korea what Starbucks are in the States, one on every corner and two in between). When we walked in they set us up in our own small room with couches, tv, microphones, tambourines, beer/soju if you asked for it (ok the soju does help with the singing bit), and a HUGE book of songs to choose from. I think with the exception of one Alanis Morissette song we found everything we felt like singing, be it Korean or English!

Counting down at midnight with our single candle lit on the cake, confetti poppers ready to go, and dancing to Big Bang’s Fantastic Baby, all with good friends... doesn’t get much better than that folks! It was a night... and morning... to remember.

2012 was truly fantastic. This time last year I was still enjoying being in Salt Lake surrounded by good friends and family close by. I was working an amazing job at an amazing school (that I still love and miss!). Now I find myself fulfilling a dream I’ve had since I was little and loving Korea more and more each day. I can safely say I have absolutely NO idea where I will be this time next year but I’m excited to see where the year takes me.

Life can be such an adventure. The world is so big and there are so many things to experience and love no matter where you are. I hope this year you all have many new adventures, be they on the other side of the world or just down the road. May you have a multitude of new experiences and find more things to love and cherish and enjoy!

Happy New Year!