thought party up in my head

i'm young.

i have time.

i need to chill the fuck out.

i know. i know. i know!

i agree wholeheartedly.

i've been making a valiant (at least what i believe to be valiant) effort to relax, kick back, and just take everything day by day. however, i can't help but feel this certain amount of anxiety. i need to get my ducks in row! or is it line? who knows. i don't like ducks. they're loud, annoying, and they freak me out.

excuse me, i digress ...

anyway ...

it's probably not helping that we're already halfway through 2011 and i still have yet to plan my next move. questions looming ...

where do i move?

when do i move?

where should i go in january?

when am i going to visit london?

should i just stay in korea till after stephany gets married?

why the hell is everyone getting married in 2012?

will i ever get married?

do i really come off as emotionless to everyone?

can i really run that half marathon in june?

what's the big plan?

will i ever finish my portfolio?

do i even want to work on my portfolio?

do i even want to stay in architecture?

do i want to be underpaid and overworked forever?

is it time for a career change?

can i hack it in fashion?

do i want to start all over again?!

does that mean i have to move to new york city?

do i want to live in a tiny cramped apartment with a roommate i'll inevitably hate?

when am i going to have the time to travel the world if i'm starting all over again?!

what's the right thing to do?

just a sampling of the questions hanging out and causing a ruckus up in my brain. they haunt my dreams ... not really. but that's quite a lot to think about. maybe it's time to actually start answering some of them.

don't worry. this isn't me taking a dive into the dark lake of depression. i'm just trying to figure things out. what really makes me happy? after all, that's what i, what everybody, wants in the end. right?

to just be happy. =)

bollocks to adulthood!

hi all.

long time no see.

it's a beautiful saturday afternoon in seoul. it's sunny and warm and it looks like everyone is out enjoying the weather. well, everyone but yours truly. i am currently sitting at my desk, in front of my computer, in my office, and NOT out and about trying to fool myself that it is warm enough to sit outside of my favorite cafe and people watch. i should also mention that one day this week i was at the office till 3am and another night i didn't go home till 8am the next morning. it's just like college but without all your awesome friends to keep you company! what fun! oh adulthood, you suck. a lot. pay attention kiddies, it's not all fun and games, designer shoes, and trips to exotic lands you thought it would be. sad, but true. however, all this hard work is what provides you the resources necessary to fund your trips to fun and exotic places (should you ever get enough vacation days to go). a prime example would be my recent trip to singapore/indonesia!

yes folks, you read right. i ended up going to singapore and indonesia instead of singapore and vietnam. funny story. americans need a visa to get in to the awesomeness that is vietnam. yup, not really a funny story but a story nonetheless. apparently koreans don't need one but americans do. that's where i got confused. i kept telling everyone in korea i was going to vietnam and no one, NO ONE!!!, mentioned that i might need a visa. so, i didn't realize i needed one until i got to singapore and my cousin asked me if i got my visa to get in to vietnam. say what????? uhhhh no ... i had not. i tried to get one last minute but since it was chinese new year the embassy decided it'd take a little holiday for the ENTIRE WEEK!!! those lazy bastards! we only get 1 day off for our stupid new years! apparently asians are not the unrelenting, super-efficient, workaholic robots we thought they were. lame balls.

however, my trip was still awesome. also, korean airlines is awesome. seriously. i've decided that, if given the choice, i will fly the majority of my flights on korean airlines. of course, this is when funds are available. sadly, korean airlines ticket prices match the quality of their impeccable service. it's freaking expensive!!!! however, they were able to reroute my return flight from vietnam-seoul to singapore-seoul free of fees. i only had to pay the $60 dollar ticket fare difference. one word. AWESOME. especially since when i called expedia to inquire about the same thing they said it would be impossible considering i was mid-trip. idiots. bollocks to expedia.com!!

anyway ...

it's almost dinner time and it looks like i actually have some work to do. update on my singapore trip with pictures (yay!) coming soon.

restless

just booked my trip to singapore and ho chi minh city, vietnam to visit my cousin, joanie. i leave in a week! it looks like a week break from the frigid cold. i hear it's hot and humid down where i'm headed! yay! updates with pics and stories when i get back!

i'll be home for christmas

i'm going home!!!!

sadly, not right this minute, but soon enough! i booked my flight outta here! i'll be arriving in chicago on dec, 24th and will stay till jan. 2nd. that's 9 full days in chicago! i'll most likely be busy for a majority of the trip, what with the holidays, family, and whatnot, but i'd like to see everyone at least once during my short stay! i can't wait to go back! i have so many things i want to do, people i want to see, things i want to eat!!! omg i can't wait for some amazing food! i definitely want to go to some of my all-time favorite restaurants with my all-time favorite people! you know who you are!

foods i need to eat:

quartino's
avec
giordano's
portillo's
SUSHI!!!!
kuma's
chipotle
molly's cupcakes
fred's
etc.... (too many to list them all!)

i also can't wait for new year's eve! i'm staying till the 2nd of january so that i can spend new year's eve with you guys! we're going to party all night and then i'll probably have to spend the entire next day getting better for my flight the day after! it'll be short, but sweet! =)

i can't wait to see all of you!

1 month + 1 day and counting till this ...

this is definitely happening again this year ... miss you guys!!!

6 months and counting ...

i got to korea in may, blinked, and it was november. how times flies. this is the first time i've been in korea for more than my summer break. i've actually never even been in korea for the cold weather before and i'm alarmed at how cold it is. it's no better than chicago! i've been duped! one would assume that considering how hot the summers are here winters would be tolerable. apparently not. anyway, i digress. i can't believe it's almost 2011. where did the time go? my mid-20s are approaching at an alarming rate and i still feel like i'm just a kid. maybe listening to this new taylor swift album on repeat all day is making me feel like i'm a 15 yr. old teenage girl again. must stop now! but ... i can't! i won't! I LOVE TAYLOR SWIFT!!!!!

anyway ...

i feel like i've been working here forever but at the same time it also feels like i arrived just yesterday. it's been a little over 6 months since i stepped foot in the motherland and it's been surreal. in the beginning, i thought i'd never be able to call korea my home or even enjoy my time here. i guess when you're open-minded (and you have no other choice), things change. i'm slowly starting to feel like i belong and i look forward to the coming months here. i've managed to make a few close friends and i have actually established a routine here. i have constants in my korean life! it's a miracle! however, no matter how great things are going, i can't help but feel lonely at times.

i am desperately missing all of my friends, family, and my chicago. i especially miss what this season brings back in the states. october through january = ridiculous costumes + food + more food + presents + parties + friends/family + kisses @ midnight + the occasional holiday fling. sadly, the holiday spirit doesn't seem to reside in seoul. i hear he makes a pit stop on christmas day but then he's out of here in the blink of an eye in order to make it back to the states in time for the NYE ball drop. it's actually kind of sad. while everyone in the states are anxiously awaiting thanksgiving, the superbowl, and their fat pants, i'm anxiously awaiting ... nothing (i've already made the transition into my fat pants ... no waiting necessary). i had every intention of making my way back to the states for the holiday season but now i don't know if that's going to happen. if i do come, it'll be from dec. 29th - jan. 7/8. we'll see how this project plays out. i can't wait till i can see all of you again! it's been too long! oh yea, i also can't wait for all of you who are coming to visit in the winter! make plans to see me while i'm here.

till then ...

i have this bear to comfort me. rawr!

well, i'm still at the office at 9 p.m. i should probably get back to finishing this damn campus entrance if i ever want to go home.

hong KHONG phooey

just got back from a 4 day trip to hong kong and macau. one word. AWESOME. seriously, i could see myself living there for a while. it's the perfect fusion of east and west. spent my time eating, shopping, sightseeing, ferry-riding, and dare-devil acts. all in all it was a grand ol' time. here are a few pictures of my trip. just a taste. i'll post more on facebook later.

view of hong kong from victoria peak

mong kok street market
mong kok has entire streets dedicated to goldfish, electronics, sneakers, women's clothing, etc. MADNESS!!! literally a whole street lined with just that specialty item.

cool installation/seating in lan kwai fong and my partners in crime

view of hong kong from tsim tsa tsui
sorry for the blurry/crappy night shots. apparently i suck at taking pictures.

bungee jumping off the macau tower
it's the tallest commercial bungee jump (233 m./765 ft.) in the world!!

there i goooooooo ....


and of course ... polaroids of our trip!

das boot

so ... as many of you know, i'm in a cast and i have to navigate the streets of korea on a pair of crutches. let me tell you, crutches are hard enough in general, add korea's mountains/hilly roads, sweltering heat, 10000% humidity, typhoon winds! (yes, real typhoons), and rude korean pedestrians and it's just that much worse!

the pros:

- i always get a seat when it comes to public transportation,
- my supervisors don't send me on errands to other floors

- i take extra long lunches to go to the doctor's office

- i just get pity from everyone wherever i go.

the cons:

- random people who also use handicap facilities (aka senile old people) always strike up conversation that i don't really care to partake in

- i can't really leave the confines of my desk

- i have to go to the doctor's office instead of the gym during my lunch hour

- i am a leper

basically i got hurt on vacation, just being the idiot that i am. jumping picture FAIL!!!!

this is what the picture should have looked like ...

uhm yea. i'm awesome. i know.

picture fail. foot fail. life fail.

got this damn boot instead. i'm awesome.

hope you all had a good laugh at my expense. on the bright side, i finally signed the lease to my apartment! updates on that soon to come.

fukuoka

i went to fukuoka, japan! a lot of my pictures are up on facebook and can be found at

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2036525&id=54300088&l=9f70297aa6

then again, most of you have facebook. this link is solely for the idiot who won't activate his FB account, my love, david park.

my 3 day trip to fukuoka was amazing. it's not necessarily much different from your other large japanese cities .... however, my friend and i were very lucky in meeting our new friend, tooru. we met him randomly on our first night in fukuoka while eating ramen and having some drinks at a random food stand on the street. we (by we, i mean my friend shinkyung) ended up talking to him (in japanese) for a few hours, had some more drinks, and ate some more. he ended up leaving before us and paid for everything. he also treated us to a very nice sushi restaurant on sunday! and get this, when we were done eating our hearts' desire he made sure to have the sushi chef pack us a little lunchbox with rolls in it in case we got hungry on the plane ride home! how thoughtful is that?

i know what you're thinking ...

seriously, we were thinking the same thing. what does he want? what's the catch? NOTHING! we ended up sitting around for a couple hours afterwards, drinking coffee, shooting the shit, he drove us back to our hotel, and we said our goodbyes! we exchanged e-mail addresses and that was that. end of story.

i will leave you with this ...

karen & shinkyung - fukuoka, japan 2010!