CHECKING IN

It finally got properly cold here in the Special K, cold enough to snow this morning, or so I was told. I was sleeping at the time and sadly missed out on the wintry spectacle, but later in the day a dusting of white stuff could be seen on the mountains that pop out of this rough-and-tumble town.

I've been sleeping a lot lately. October was such a ball bustin' month that I've been exhausted for much of November. I'm still lightin' the firecracker from both sides and really don't rest too much on the weekends, so once Monday rolls around I find myself sapped of all energy and just in the mood to sleep, when not teaching English or learning Korean. I've been back in Korean class for a couple of months now and some new stuff is sinking in, though I'm pretty lazy about studying hard outside of the four hours a week class time that I actually attend. This makes real concrete progress hard to measure, but I look at the Korean language as a huge mountain, and I'm up against it with a chisel. I'll just keep chipping away as long as I'm here. It's all I can do. I enjoy studying language, but trying to learn this one is a fucking challenge. It's really difficult. Really.

I have a new rock and roll band going on which is always a hoot. We're called "The Headaches," and I'm lucky enough to have both one the best bass players and one of the best guitarists in town on board, along with a hard hitting and very grumpy Kiwi drummer. We're gearing up for the Busan "Battle of the Bands," which kicks off this weekend, so we've been putting together some original songs, and if our Halloween show and last rehearsal are any indicators, we got a rockin' combo. We're sure to lose "The Battle," as we have no friends and will horrify the Korean girls who want to hear sweet pop songs, but rock we shall, muthafuckas.

I'm also just starting prelimary work on a big writing project. I can't go into any more detail about it here, but I'm really excited about it and let's keep our fingers crossed that everything works out.

Winter vacation is coming up. I was going to stick in Korea the whole time to save extra money to pay to take my girlfriend to America next summer, but seeing as how I no longer have a girlfriend, I'll take off to warmer climes to escape the urge to slash my own throat with a steak knife. I think I've settled on The Philippines this year. I'll mainly concentrate on the island of Palawan, where I'll do some serious chilling, as well as get my open water diving certification. I plan to do some dives at some sunken Japanese ships from WWII, along with taking in all varieties of coral, mollusks, and pyschedelic-looking fish. I also hope to get some work done, and figure if I stay in one general area, rather than zipping around the whole country like some meth-addled backpacker, that I'll have a better chance of concentrating.

My contract is up at the end of August, and I'll definitely go to The States in the summer to recharge and see what's left of my family. I've also decided to take a six month hiatus from my job (or just quit and get a new one upon my return) and travel throughout Mexico, Central America and South America. I speak decent Spanish and would like to level it up. But more than that, I've always dreamed of checking out that part of the world, and figure I need to do it soon. I feel the window closing. Though I am single now, I may not be for long, and the older I get, the more attractive the idea of marriage gets. Perhaps this is just because so many Koreans bark at me about it, but I really don't want to be the creepy old guy at the bar.

Come to think of it, I kind of already am.