Lofbomm.com

July arrived, and Adam and I had just spent a month with 90 minutes between him in Seoul and me in Paju. Knowing we had another month of the same ahead of us, we were weary. Feeling especially homesick, we celebrated American Independence Day at an English Village party for Canada Day (July 3) and then with good old American cheeseburgers in Seoul on the 4th.

We went to an incredible Korean drumming concert a few days later. It was our first real encounter with traditional Korean music, and we loved it.

Adam and I prepared for the arrival of my good friend from college, La Tisha, who was coming from Los Angeles to work with Adam as an English teacher with Kyohaksa Publishing Company. That is, she would work with Adam until I finished at English Village at the end of the month and took Adam’s place. We were so happy to have La Tisha arrive, and I spent many of my off days showing her around in Seoul. During the week, Adam hung out with La Tisha while I finished up in Paju.

I was tired and anxious to be in Seoul with Adam and La Tisha, but I had reached the busiest weeks of my entire contract at English Village: the Two Week Program. The TWP is a program in which 700 students stay at the village for, you guessed it, two weeks. I had spent months preparing new activities and materials with my co-workers for the TWP, only to know that I would be leaving in its midst. TWP arrived the third week of July along with tons of new teachers, new classrooms, new everything, and a non-stop busy work schedule. I was enjoying the spunky students and my excellent co-workers, but it was hard to get into new, new, new in the last two weeks of my contract.

Of course, I had Harry Potter to help me through it.

And I had a little perspective in the midst, with the 40-day fast.

Not wanting to have to pack up in a frenzy at the last minute (as is our custom), Adam and I spent a Saturday and Sunday packing everything up, a week before we had to move. It made our wrap-up at English Village a lot easier, with more time for our goodbyes. We closed our time at English Village with a couple of nice farewells. Some of my friends from work brought me to a nice dinner. A few days later, we had a lovely party in our packed apartment. Hours were spent in a classic-rock sing-along with our friend Nolan on guitar.

On Tuesday, July 31, I taught my last class at EV alongside my friend Yu Jin, then I hopped the bus to Seoul to view the apartment that would become home for the next year…

I remember how the week before my high school classes started every August, I would rush to get the Cliff’s Notes versions of my summer reading list. I love reading, but not if I’m told that I have to (kind of how I respond to most things in life, actually…).

Anyway, the Lofbomm.com blog has been a little sparse this summer, and a lot has gone undocumented. Thusly, I now introduce to you the Cliff’s Notes version of our Summer 2007 in three easy-to-read-volumes: June, July, and August.

So, without further ado, June!

I continued working at English Village, but I was changed once again to the weekend shift. Lousy schedule, but nice work, younger children, variety in classes taught, etc. Adam completed another quarter at De Paul with straight A’s and looked toward a summer with an empty schedule wondering, ‘What will I do with my time?’

A friend called, not knowing Adam’s desire for work, and handed him a temporary full-time job piloting a new teaching program in Seoul, affiliated with an English publishing company. Said friend also had a large apartment in Seoul with an empty bedroom for Adam. Adam began two months of work, living with our friends Monday-Friday, coming to Paju on the weekends. I spent my days off, Wednesdays and Thursdays in Seoul with him. We enjoyed the opportunity to miss each other and had a really nice time whenever we were with each other.

Living in Seoul, Adam continued taking his weekly photography class. He took some great photos in the process and learned more about handling his DSLR camera. We spent a bit of time with his photography teacher Giorgia and her husband Luca before they returned to Italy at the end of the month.

Our weekends at English Village were filled with parties including a Mexican Fiesta in the cafeteria (a farewell for several friends departing EV) and our friend Cheryl’s birthday party.

We celebrated our third wedding anniversary at the end of the month with a formal Italian dinner, a view from the top of Seoul’s 63 building, and $12 desserts at the Grand Hyatt, taking taxis the whole way (a treat for the public transit couple that we have become).

The end of June wore on as I prepared for my last and busiest month at English Village, spending all of my spare time commuting 90 minutes to the city to be with my husband. Our families were telling us of the lovely summers and vacations they were having while we were getting the runaround from certain Korean administrations. We were pretty exhausted and homesick for each other and for home by the end of June.

But there was another month to go before any resolution…

-Jessica

Hello from the Mac store in Japan. We’re here on a visa run and having a nice time. It has been so long since I’ve written, but I thought I’d at least say hi.

Hi.

-Jessica

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