Returning Home

Many folks at Burning Man refer to this one-week social experiment as "home" for various reasons. Many say they've never found acceptance or community like the Burn. This video and the accompanying song have been playing on repeat in my head- it seems that each move is awarded a theme song by my random neurons.

On the plane back to Seattle, it occurred to me that I have never moved back anywhere. Every move that I've made has only been to another home in the same area or to a different area. While we'll be in a slightly different area and living a quite different life (student v military/working life), it's nice to come back to an airport you already know, a community you know, friends you know. Now it's nice to hear "Welcome home!" and have it feel very true.

*On a crazy side note, apparently Kim Jung-Il died in the last day or two (the news was held by the NK press). How wild- we moved to Korea right after the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea aka North Korea) sunk the Cheonan submarine and left as the Dear Leader passed. Might have gotten out just in time to avoid some craziness...


Vocab of the day:
Military: HOR= Home of Record

The Joys of Insomnia

Thesis draft due + insomnia= finishing my glass of wine and my work at 7:13 am.

I had the most amusing night at a coffe shop/IHOP (sequentially) which also seems to have stirred my productive vapors. Sitting on the balcony directly above the coffee grinder at Bauhaus made me think crazy thoughts like, "Can I find a coffee shop in Korea to sit and smell grinding beans?" After being booted at 1 am (sad change from the previous 2 am close), I moved to the ever-sketchy but so-much-fun 24-hour IHOP a few blocks away.

After trying unsuccessfully to diagnose the language spoken by the group of rambunctious men across from me, the most creatively dyed and tattooed group I've seen in a while came in and played NASCAR corners in the booth directly at the other end of the restaurant. A cute but silent older Hispanic couple sat across the divider next to me, and as I was finishing my draft up around 3:00, an agitated gent brought me a piece of paper with [10,000/hour seattle attorney] scrawled on it and asked me to google it for him (on the cleverly named "IHOP, yum!" wireless network). He told me at length about his pending case against National Insurance then wandered away without realizing that I still had earphones in listening to interviews, and the friendly server/host came to ask if "that man was bothering me."

Really, an epic way to spend your waking hours if they weren't meant to be waking and are usually far less entertaining. All topped off by the most ridiculous fog I think I've seen while driving home. So I cleverly took a few shots while driving (hey, there was nobody else on the road). 

I'm either going to sleep or run now... but later have some amazing stories about my first real trip onto a military post. Be very excited.

Vocab of the day:
Korean: 불면증 = insomnia
Military: PBS = project breakdown structure

Ode to Seattle

In a conversation with a friend I tonight realized I'm between being pissed that I don't get to see my husband for three months (nearly a new record, even for the two of us) and grieving that I've just gotten to feeling comfortable in Seattle and having to leave.

Thusly, tonight's installation will be (no, I'll spare you my sappy love poems) a list of the beautiful and wonderful things I will miss about Seattle. In no particular order:

• My kitty (anyone want a slightly sweet and slightly crazed little beast? Army says no go) also viewable here!
  
• The ocean
• Clear days when you can see Mt. Rainer and the needle at the same time. Bonus points for sunset/sunrise at the same time
  
• My two roommates (yes, I only have one now but they both still get the label)
• My fantastic, amazing, wonderful friends
• Having figured out a transit system, more or less
• UW
• Cherry blossoms
  
• The UW gym
• The library system. Le sigh.
• Having figured out a grocery store, dry cleaner's, hair salon, etc etc
• Than Brothers Pho (and pho dates with Beth!)
• All the delicious coffee and tea
• Belly dancing in the Fremont Solstice Parade 
• Movie/TV girls nights, wine nights, poker nights, crazy nights out
• My apaaaaaaaaaartment.... (a la Ben Kweller)

I have to be missing a bunch... I'll get back to that. Other suggestions?

Vocab of the day:
Korean:  고양이 = cat
Military: Base, Post=home