I have noticed that I am updating this blog less and less often. Partly that is because there hasn't been all that much to write about on a day-to-day basis, as we are well past the initial adjustment-to-life-in-a-foreign-country phase. I have also found myself becoming increasingly busy as time goes on, mostly with extracurricular activities to maintain my professional (i.e. global health) profile. Funny how I always seem to find things to fill my schedule, and as a result to get way too stressed out. Hrm.
This is our second summer in Gwangju, and we are again suffering in the summer heat and humidity. I know our Texas friends are laughing at us for complaining - after all, I think the only place that has summers comparable to Houston is southeast Asia - and I myself wonder why we find it so unbearable. The truth is, though, that here we probably spend much more time in the heat. Back home, everywhere you went had central air, so the only places where you felt the summer heat was on your way from whatever building you were in to your car, or vice versa, or if you were sitting out by the pool (in which case, you could always just get in the pool). Here, we walk almost everywhere (since we don't drive), and there is no central air for the building where we work - the temperature is controlled by classroom, and the AC is tightly regulated by the school owner to save money, so the classrooms are never really all that cool. I have been taking two showers a day since June and I still wake up and come home from work feeling disgusting.
Summer brings its sorrows along with its joys. Unfortunately, some of the plants in Joel's balcony garden have not done very well in the heat. Specifically, the cilantro that he planted was killed by the blast of heat coming from our apartment's AC exhaust unit, as it was positioned right next to the vent. He has also been trying to deal with spider mites infesting his peppers and eggplants. The cosmos also died, and neither the peppermint nor the spearmint wound up doing so well. Luckily, the basil is still thriving, and I am trying to persuade him to use it to make pesto for me (no success on this front yet). Also, 75% of our staff is in the process of turning over: our coworker from Missouri left at the end of June, and we just said goodbye to the Canadian-Minnesotan couple (who got engaged while they were here) and welcomed a couple (one American, one Englishman) last week who are returning after teaching in Korea for a year. The friends from Texas will be leaving at the end of this month, to be replaced by a married couple from Canada, so we will have a lot more non-American representation in the coming year. After that, the current senior-most couple will leave at the end of September. Joel and I will be the last of the (current) old guard. Change can be good, and I am looking forward to meeting new people, but it is always sad to say goodbye to old friends. This year has been a bit of a bumpy ride, but we had some great times with the people we worked with, and I am sad to see them go.
On the bright side, summer brings lots of opportunities for travel. Earlier I mentioned our trips to Seoraksan and Jeju; for our July vacation, we went to Tokyo and just got back on Wednesday. I loved Tokyo almost as much as I loved Kyoto - I remain enchanted by Japanese food, shrines, culture, and just general awesomeness. Joel and I spent four days there with a friend and saw just about everything we could fit into 90.5 hours, including Shibuya (for the massive crossing), Harajuku (to watch the cosplayers), the Meiji shrine, Akihabara (for the maid café experience), the controversial Yasukuni (i.e. imperial war) shrine, Tokyo Sky Tree, Shinjuku (to finally meet my Japanese conversation partner in person!), Tokyo Tower, breakfast sushi at the Tsukiji fish market, the Kyu-Shiba-rikyu garden, and Ginza. Pictures will be available, as usual, on Facebook - when Joel gets around to posting them. We have four days in mid-August (which we haven't decided what to do with yet) and five days mid-September for Chuseok, when we are thinking about going to Ulleung-do. To be honest, I am re-thinking this, since the island (while lovely) is an absolute bitch to get to via public transportation.
We now have six months to go on our contracts, so I have really been starting to think about what comes next. I know that after we finish here, we will be traveling around the world to relax and see family for another six months or so, so it will really be about a year before we need to find jobs...I keep telling myself that it is plenty of time, but somehow I never seem to be able to convince myself. I started looking at jobs in my field again for the first time today, and it is at least a comfort to know that they are there. We have been discussing many options, which are (in no particular order):
1. Go back home, find jobs in DC, and settle in. Alternatively, Joel could go to school in DC while I work.
2. Come back to Korea, where we can get better jobs and Joel can pursue an online Masters degree. This furthers Joel's career ambitions, but not mine.
3. Look for teaching jobs in Japan. Joel could also pursue his Masters online with this option. Again, it doesn't further my career, but it would be a change of scenery at least - and I love Japan.
4. Apply to work for the foreign service. We are both planning to take the FSOT in October, so we will see if we pass and go from there. The drawback to this option is that the hiring process takes forever - if you pass all the stages, it takes 15 to 18 months to be invited to join an A-100 class and start getting paid, so we would be looking at starting sometime in the beginning of 2015.
5. Apply to work for the Peace Corps. This furthers both of our career ambitions, particularly mine, but it pays nothing and we can't have children during the 2+ year commitment.
6. Go back to school. I have been thinking more and more about getting my doctorate, but both of us being in school would put us into massive debt. Not cool.
On top of all of this uncertainty, the question of when, or if, to start a family still looms.
And I swear to God, if one more student asks me why I don't have a baby, I am going to set them on fire.
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