Thank Goodness That's Over With

Greetings all from North Carolina....finally. After a long and hard trip (6 days total), we're here. We left for Modesto on the 16th which was a full day of traveling, then on the 19th, the real fun began. The breaking down 3 times slowed us down a bit. Well, about 2 days. We had a time getting the U-Haul in the first place only to have it break down three times. You'd think they'd make these trucks to go the distance if they are going to allow cross country folks such as ourselves to use it. I guess that's not part of their contract. They'll give us a truck that's DECENT. Decent doesn't have to mean "functional for 6 days". But enough of my complaining. We got here, moved all our stuff in here and we are finally trying to adjust to the three hour time difference. There are still boxes to be sorted through, but atleast I have the INTERNET NOW! It's exciting. One thing I've been looking forward to all week.

Today is Ki Sun's birthday. He's the big 26! Seems really hard to believe since he acts nothing like his age. Well, I guess I don't either at times. He just loves embracing his childlike self. I'll be nice and let him get away with it today:-). Seeing as how I became broke when we finally got here, he'll just have to settle for a nice dinner and some ice cream as I can not afford much more. There is much to do and a lot to see. I can't cover it in one week but I'm sure over the next few months, I should get to know where all the good places to hit are. To all my family and friends, thank you so much for your support I am here safe and sound in my new apartment. Now all I have to do is start work July 5th! We'll see how that goes.

A Quarter of the Way There!

We successfully reached Modesto, California in 9 1/2 hours driving a U-haul that would only go 55 mph tops. We had semi's passing us on the highway going 75 even though it's unsafe to do so. I guess stupid drivers are everywhere ;-).

I'm visiting my father Billy for a family reunion/reception we are having down here for my older sister Sarah and her husband Kevin. That'll be tomorrow. As for now, I'm relaxing, watching "Friends" after a good meal of hot dogs and beans, then I'll head to bed in a few hours.

I'm hoping to get to North Carolina by the 22nd of June. I can do 900 miles in a day right?:-) We'll see how it goes. My next post should be up when I have internet again, or I may sneak one in tomorrow sometime. We'll see. Until next time!

On the West Coast No More

I got a lot of "You did a great job around here", "We're really gonna miss you around here", "You're an excellent worker" ,"Good luck in the future", and "We appreciate you a lot" when I left my retail job on Friday, June 10th. I expressed that I would be leaving about a month in advance and that June 11th would be my last day. So alas, my retail working days are over. A bitter sweet ending to my employment time on the west coast.

I decided to go on a trip with Ki Sun to visit Bandon, Oregon on the coast one last time. I enjoyed my time walking on the beach and listening to the sound of the water washing over the rocks. We walked around downtown and visited the cheese factory and the fudge factory. We also ate dinner at the Wheelhouse. The trip wouldn't have been complete without that. Sometimes, the scenic moments are best captured on the drive out rather than at the destination point. The redwoods were of particular interest to us and we took plenty of pictures to capture that moment. I will miss the long drives and the wind gusts. I will miss the curvy roads that keep me concentrated. I will miss the mountainous beauty that captures the spirit of the redwoods. I will miss it all but I am ready and willing to experience so much more.

I shall leave you with this thought: "You can experience everything that life has to offer and learn nothing, or you can have one experience that opens your mind to all possibilities."

Do Normal People Talk Like This?

Through the years of knowing Ki Sun, I have becomed accustomed to how he phrases things, how he expresses his thoughts, and so forth. I have even been caught using the same phrases that he does. Phrases such as, "to the extent of what my intellect will let me comprehend is...." versus "What I understand is....". Stuff like this I'm so used to hearing. I even catch myself at times hearing the shorter versions of easy explanations and asking for clarification. This has affected my job and my social life. Who would use, "This movie was much to my liking"? Most people would say, "I like this movie". In Ki Sun language, the word "YES"equals "I VERY MUCH AM FAVORABLE TO THIS RESULT". He uses the long way to say almost everything, and funnily enough, I have adapted to it. When I don't know how to express what I'm trying to say, I end up saying the longest version possible and end up confusing anyone beyond the point of comprehension on the receiving end of the conversation. Even in that one sentence, I could have said, "When I say lengthy complicated sentences, I confuse the people I'm talking to". It has become a bad habit and I have my lovely boyfriend Ki Sun to thank for that. Thank you so much Ki Sun for making me sound more confusing than I already do sound to the majority of my family and friends. Maybe now we have the resources to say sentences in english, but just complicated enough to speak in code. This way when the CIA need to hide something from the civilization, they will be able to go through our code so we can confuse everyone around us with a sense of PURPOSE!

I will end this by saying, "I am hopeful that the evening that you will be experiencing shall further on with minimal stressors interfering with the pleasantness of it all".

Ta Ta For Now!

Last Final Over!

Finally, I can say that my last final is over. Maybe not my last test, but definitely the "sitting in a classroom waiting for the tests to be handed out" final. It was bitter sweet. I said goodbye to people whom I had become friends with over the two years that I've gotten to know them. It definitely seemed like a regular day. I never have to see that building anymore. I will no longer walk through those halls and WONDER when it will be over with. I'm finally going to experience something different. I crave variety. I get my chance now. Just packing left to do and settling things with medical insurance, etc. Thanks to all my family and friends for the love and support that I received throughout my journey.

My Lovely Flat Tire

I leave my place to take Ki Sun to work and to do some shopping, and long behold, I have a flat tire. I drive Ki Sun's "boat" of a car for the first time to get him to work so we can take one car home. He works a 2-11 while I work a 6-11. I get the changing started by removing the hubcap with my cheap tools, but the screws that hold the tires on are on too tight for me to unscrew with the crappy wrench that I have. I start questioning what I've already done about three times with my previous car (the crappy car known as a 94 Ford Escort), and I call my mother asking her if I'm missing some step. She then advises me to call AAA to change the tire. Ace towing gets there 20 minutes after I call and unscrewed the screws that I was having a problem with using a bottle wrench shaped like an "X". I don't know if I could have done the same thing, because I flatter myself by thinking that I'm stronger than some people, but I'm sure it would have made the job a little more easier for me to take care of.

My Venting Session:

I hate this sexist stereotype that society has placed on women. I am constantly looked at as someone who would have a hard time lifting something that is only 25 pounds just because of my un-muscular appearance. I am constantly trying to prove my intelligence and life experience to un-important people who think I am only 17. It's exhausting. They are not worth my time or efforts. I feel that my maturity has exceeded my age on more than one occasion, especially if I compare age to how people portray themselves around here. I wish these people would just give me the benefit of the doubt so that I can prove their judgements wrong. Okay enough of my venting. I'm done for the day.

Saturday Morning Television

When one such as I has no cable, I need to find other ways of entertaining myself on the weekends instead of watching television. Remember when Saturday morning television was exciting? I remember wanting to get up at 7 a.m. to watch Garfield, Bonkers, and Looney Tunes. What ever happened to good Saturday morning cartoons? For those of you who work on the weekends, Saturday mornings probably just go by, or you anticipate the work day ahead missing any chance to take a nice relaxing breath before starting another 8 hour work day. For me, I love to relax on the weekends. I try to take it easy before heading to work, but its hard when there is nothing to clear my head. I would love to have a nice laugh before heading to another stressful day on the job, but since the classic cartoons on Saturday morning are no longer in existence, and since I can say all the jokes in "Friends" before they even occur, I find myself missing the days when I had those cartoons available to me. "You never know what you have until it's gone" rings true in this case. That was one of my favorite moments in my younger years.

I'm actually watching a cheap version of what they call football now. I wish they would just keep the sport in its perspective season and not bombard us with this sport. It gives the true football fans a chance to miss it before they actually have the opportunity to watch it again. Its the way it should be. But hence, I can't change the world.

I ended up waking up at 6:30 a.m. after an eventful evening taking a nice long walk to the wonderful Vietnamese Restaurant with Ki Sun for our 7 month. After dinner, we walked around the Klamath County Fair. Not much to see. We walked back and needless to say, he had to work at 7 a.m. that morning. After he left, I was tired so I went to bed for another four hours. Then all of a sudden, he re-appeared! He said it was because he was on his lunch break. I couldn't believe I was asleep for that long. It was as if he never left! You know that feeling when you go to sleep and you think you've only been asleep for 10 minutes and it ends up being 6 hours? That's pretty much how it felt. I'm guessing if my body felt it necessary to have me sleep that long, I must have built up my insomniac nature along the way. But alas, I will have one more of those nights Sunday evening before my final test on Monday. I'm looking forward to that being done with. Then I can celebrate by letting go of all of my aggression and taking a nice long hike, or sleeping. Whichever comes first.

On the walk back, the traffic was so low that all I heard was our footsteps and the bullfrog croaking along the way. The stars were out and the wind was blowing across my face at a soft 60 degrees. At that moment, I realized how fortunate I was to have people who love me. I realized that I came through a lot. I knew I had, but it just hit me at that moment, how much effort I actually put in to get what I wanted and needed to feel the way that I am: Successful. I never quit and I'm so grateful that I had the motivation not to. I could have so easily, but because of my efforts, and because of all the support I received, I now get to experience what I've worked so hard to do. I'm ready for this. It's taken me a while to recognize it, but I'm ready.

Too Relaxed?

A significant amount of packing has been done. Most of the dishes have been packed up aside from a few things here and there, books and nick nacks are put into their perspective boxes, and I still have a reasonable amount of time to get the rest taken care of. Maybe it's because I feel a sense of comfort from packing, or perhaps its just the routine of doing it over and over that has made me less anxious about whether I'll get everything done in time for moving day. Whatever the reason, I am relaxing right now watching a game of tennis (Federer vs. Nadal for all you tennis fans) and am very relieved because I don't have to work tonight! I shall take advantage of this time and take a nice long nap. I've worked hard. I deserve it.

Eventful Day Ahead!

Here are my plans for tomorrow: Going to AAA for map information, packing, fitting studying in somewhere for my test the next day, and working an evening shift starting at 6pm. Now whether or not I get all that done remains to be seen. We'll see if I'm up to the task, or too tired to get out of bed at a decent hour. For now, I plan to wind down with a Zima and await what lies ahead. Until next time folks!

Am I tired yet?

Well after a successful few days with my blog, I convinced yet another person to break down and get a blog. Ki Sun has newly formed a site through my persuasion. Partially because I was bored (or too relaxed?) because my practical was over and needed something to be all hyped up about. I successfully energized myself by exercising too late at night, and am trying to wind down with some nice classical music. Hopefully that'll work within the next 30 minutes. I'll comfort myself with a nice glass of warm milk and head to bed. Another exciting day tomorrow! Hopefully I can drag myself out of bed early enough to enjoy it:-)