Sick Daze part: the second

Lunch today was yummy. It was a good-banchan day. We had soondae stir-fry, gimchi jjigae, buckwheat mook, and strawberries for dessert. Days like these make me happy. Add to that the fact that my sixth hour class was cancelled and that I'd be free after lunch. Also add to that the fact that I had confiscated water balloons and a water gun, which I immediately employed outside after lunch.

The day was definitely improving.

* * *

About two years ago, before I came to Korea, my mom and I headed to Denver to visit family. When we were there, I ordered naengmyeon, cold noodles in hot pepper sauce. We had it delivered. My mom, my aunt, my grandmother and I ate dinner, then went for a walk.

It was dusk when we arrived home, the air was cool near the mountains, and we sat outside to enjoy the weather. Suddenly I started feeling weird. I was itchy. My throat felt like it was constricting. My face skin felt stretched.

I got scared, and so did everybody else. Even grandma, the woman who beat a huge snake senseless while in her sixties (I was a witness), was worried. It was mostly the whole air flow thing that was really an issue.

My aunt and grandmother don't know how to drive, and for some reason my mother couldn't drive (I think she was on medicine?). Anyhow, I was the only driver in the house, and I was the one who was sick. There was no allergy medicine in the house, but my aunt remembered that she had Benadryl cream.

Half a Benadryl tube and one lathered upper body later, I was feeling much better and everybody was relaxed. I had eaten naengmyeon before and was perfectly fine; we decided there was something wrong with the egg.

* * *

I forgot about that little incident until about a half-hour after lunch. I suddenly started coughing violently and wheezing. True, I'm getting over 'the cold that wouldn't die,' but this coughing was completely different. My throat felt constricted, and my palms itched. I went to the nurse's office, and she gave me some medicine. I think she gave me a pill for a throatache, and I don't question her capabilities in any way; the fault rests entirely on my inability to describe my symptoms. I returned to my desk. After about five more minutes, I glance in the mirror and saw my red, hived face. I grabbed an English teacher and we saw the nurse. She gave me an antihistamine.

When my friend came down from her class, she took me to the hospital. I have a food allergy. Apparently, each reaction gets progressively worse, and they are potentially fatal. It's difficult to determine to what exactly I'm allergic: they'd have to hospitalize me and feed me today's lunch menu ingredient-by-ingredient, and once we find out they'll pump me full of drugs, as I'll be ballooning out and wheezing.

I got my first IV drip. That was exciting. My friend managed to snap a few pictures before the nurse kicked her out.

I feel so much cooler now, just knowing that for over an hour, I was among the number that includes the select few who take stupid risks and are consequently hospitalized.
We are: the IVees.
(There are three syllables in the last word. You'll sound stupid of you mispronounce it. People will point and laugh.)

It took over an hour for the drip to finish. I slept for awhile, but then they moved a man into the bed next to me and he snored. He sounded like those WWII bombers when they dive and pull up. The lady on the left of me snored, too, but she wasn't that bad. And the lady in the bed cattycorner to me had the most annoying phone jingle, and she never managed to turn off the sound on her buttons.

While I was awake and doing nothing but answering text messages, I had time to contemplate life's deep questions. I was just told that my allergy could be fatal, yes, but my focus wasn't on mortality or life's meaning, I was actually more focused on the fluid entering my body. Once it enters my bloodstream, where does it go? It can't stay in there; my veins would burst. I'm assuming that it osmosizes through my vein's cell walls, but where does it go after that? Does it float lazily through my body, as on a river? Or does it speed to my stomach and digestive tract? Is that what made me have to use the washroom so badly, or was it the single cup of coffee I had this morning? Or is it a combination? Friends who are biologists or health-caregivers, (or people who for whatever strange reason 'just know') let me know!

I also had time to notice the little hole in the big toe of my right sock, which would have gone unnoticed had I not been in that particular situation. Which brings me to the age-old question: darn, or purchase? I will test the clothal area around the hole to determine which is the more feasible option.

As we were leaving, my friend and I talked about what could have caused my reaction. I eat all of the food on a regular basis, except for the buckwheat mook. I wonder if the Denver naengmyeon had buckwheat in it, and if so, why did I never experience a reaction during those many many times I've eaten naengmyeon in Korea? Did they not contain buckwheat? And then again, just last month I had buckwheat ddeok & dumpling soup, and I didn't have any adverse reactions. Is it a combination of buckwheat and red pepper paste? I don't really know what to do except avoid buckwheat, and hope that that is, in fact, the cause of my food allergy.

There's really nothing more to say. I have to keep an eye on my health, and if I experience a recurrance, I have to head straight to the emergency room. I guess I can tout about the service and the fee: for over an hour in the hospital, I spent a whopping 5,000won.

The weather's still really great, and I walked home from work. On the way I picked up some ice cream and Pringles. After checking the ingredients list and coming clean, I enjoyed. After all that coughing, the ice cream was especially soothing.

So I got out of school early, took a nap for a half-hour, and ate ice cream; assuming that I don't have another one of these occurrences, I'd say that I'm the winner!



PS: One more thing
5 April, 2009
I believe I've discovered Korea's best Mexican restaurant: Poncho's, in Itaewon. I'd say it's better than On the Border, but I've never been a big fan of OTB, even in the U.S. Also, Poncho's hires authentic employees (Filipino is close enough, right? I mean, it WAS a colony, so it's got the old-World Spanish flavour!). Strangely, it was with, and at the suggestion of, my aunt and cousin, who had never before stepped inside Itaewon. lol

Sick Daze part: the first

According to Mercer's Cost of Living Survey, Seoul is the 5th most expensive city in the world. Although it's ridiculously cheap to visit right now, considering the won's weakness, it's still expensive for those who are getting paid in won. If I wasn't losing so much money in the currency exchange, I'd be seriously at risk of blowing a lot on a shopping spree when I return to the States.

However, there are some oases in this mark-up hell; one is medicine.

After getting over a cold about a week ago, I was dismayed yesterday to feel the symptoms returning. Strangely, though, they were accompanied with another: my left eye felt sticky. To further confuse me, last night I realized that the stuffiness was only in my left nostril. Usually, when you have a cold, the stuffiness will oscillate between the left and right nostrils, but this one wouldn't budge, though I slept on my right side all night.

This morning, it occurred to me that instead of a cold, these might be allergy symptoms. I've been eating a lot of leeks lately, and somehow I remember that when I overdose on them, I tend to have a slight allergic reaction. So I took some benadryl and headed to work.

The stuffiness dissipated, and the sticky feeling in my eye left, but they were replaced with something far worse: drowsiness. I'm a sucker with meds: kids' Tylenol can knock me out. After stumbling through my three classes, losing my train of thought multiple times, I decided to call it a day and go home.

I slept awhile, then went to an ENT clinic for some meds. The waiting room was all granite, with leather chairs. When I walked into the consultation room, though, I knew the place would be costly.

There were two tv screens, one for the doctor to see, and one mounted on the ceiling for the patient. Feeding into the tvs was a camera. The doctor stuck the camera down my swollen throat, then stuck it up my nose. The right nostril first, then the left.

That was embarrassing, watching it on the screen. As the camera captured my enlarged nose hairs and yellow infected mucus, I felt horrified, especially knowing that my friend was probably watching it as well. It's like somebody walking in on you naked...dancing to Shakira...not that I ever do that, of course. EVER.

The doctor, like the other Korean doctors with whom I've come into contact, spoke English. He told me that my something something was infected (pointing it out on the plastic model) and that the infection had spread down into my throat. When I asked if it was a sinus infection (it's my annual visitor), he said no, and pointed out my sinuses, then the something something under my sinuses. (As if I understood any of that. All I got was the gist: 'infection, take pills').

I had my credit card ready. I only had 10,000 won, and somebody has to pay for that fancy equipment, right? Cost: 3,500. Pills: 2,500.

6,000 for a doctor's visit and medicine? My co-pay in the US is $20!

I know it's not just a good insurance program: medicine is just much, much cheaper. I know, because when I had my traveler's shots, which are not covered by insurance, they were still cheap.

Which brings me to the question: why is medicine so much more expensive in the US? Is it because there are too many lawsuits filed against doctors? Is it because too many people visit hospitals to get drugs? Is the US a leader in medical R&D and raises costs to cover research fees? Is it because Korean western medicine needs to offer an affordable alternative to the competing 한약, or Oriental medicine?

I don't know the answer; all I know is that I'm going to try to get as many things fixed as I can before I leave!

팔순

I haven't been to a traditional Korean celebration in years. I think the last time was for my grandma or grandpa's 60th birthday, when I was under 10.

So I didn't really know what to expect when my uncle asked me to come to my grandma's 80th birthday party (팔순). Coming from work and a lunch date with my friend, I was in an oxford, jeans, and a sport coat; I'm so happy that I actually asked my uncle about dress code: church clothes.

Of course I was late. I changed, printed a map of the place, and promptly left it on my desk. Normally, it's about 1 1/2 hours away, but I managed to make it longer. I thought catching a bus to Yeouido would be a quick route. Little did I know that it goes through Gwacheon, Sadang station, and apparently all the side streets in southwestern Seoul. Despite the few cherry blossoms I caught glimpses of, I was not especially thrilled when I arrived in Yeouido an hour and a half after I left.

After another 45 minutes on the subway, I arrived at Galsan Station. Although I didn't have the map, I could remember exit two and something about GM/Daewoo. After emerging from exit 2, I saw some GM plant across the street and started walking. After about 20 minutes, and realizing that I was approaching another subway station (and watching a man vomit on the sidewalk just feet from me--it's 6:45 for crying out loud!), I decided to ask for directions (not from the vomit guy). A man pointed me in the right direction: the direction from which I had come. After about 10 minutes, I stopped some ladies; they told me to keep going. After about five more minutes, I walked into a CVS and asked the cashier; she pointed me in the same direction. Finally I saw the place. There it was, just feet from exit 2... (>_<)

I can pretty much sum up the party with one word: awkwarrrd. Based on my limited Korean and my family's limited English, I was limited to eating (in true Korean fashion, they kept bringing me food) and communicating via...a 9-year old. LOL. I spoke a bit of Korean to my family, and then they rattled off fluency-requiring Korean at the speed of light; the funny part is that after witnessing my blank stare, they had the 9-year old (Minju) translate even simple questions. Between so many relatives I must have said that I'm leaving in July at least 5 times. I also had to keep repeating that mom, dad, and Austin are all doing well, I live in --si, I work at --Jung Hakgyo, and yes, I'm MyongJa's daughter. All through a 9-year old. She's a cute kid, and her English is excellent. I'm considering hiring her.

In addition to wanting to give my grandma her gift, I wanted to see what the ceremony would entail. My aunts wore matching hanbok, while my uncles wore suits. I wish I could have seen what happened in the hour before I arrived, like if there was any ceremony or if they insa'd or anything. Dang. I hate that bus.

the .mp3 to .kmp muddle

When I bought my phone I was excited about incorporating different functions into one device. I had never put music on my old phone because without a miniSD, it would have required the costly process of downloading songs directly to the phone.

However, this excitement was short-lived when I learned that LG CYON, in conjunction with music player dosirak, requires people to buy songs from the dosirak site, or pay to convert mp3 files to the unknown file extension .kmp. I hate this attempted monopolization; this is why I didn't want an iPod*, and why I would never buy a Sony camera: they create certain specifications which require customers to purchase exclusively from them or their lackeys. In a world of growing technological uniformity (phone charger pins, for example), I hope the public realizes that these companies should be avoided lest everybody suffer.

It's not that I'm poor (although I expect to be very, very soon). Nor do I condone pirating songs. But after purchasing the songs, I don't expect to pay extra for a conversion.

To further exacerbate any annoyances with this necessary conversion, .kmp files are virtually worthless: they can only be played on phones, unless one wishes to waste valuable time and precious memory downloading a .kmp player.

Back to my story. Despite this hiccough, things were going swimmingly until I, through unfortunate circumstances, lost my mp3 player in the Philippines. I was left with nothing but the k-pop on my phone, and one can handle only so much girl pop and pretty-boy bands before wanting to hurl the phone (or oneself) from the 24th floor.

I thought a bit about buying a new mp3 player. However, I'm not sure if my phone will work in the States, and if not, I would like to buy a haptic (assuming that phones in the US don't require special file extensions). I decided to put some more music on my phone.

Yesterday was a beautiful day, and I wanted to go for a walk. But as Hanna put it, "What's life without music?" What, indeed? I wanted to update my playlist, and I was so desperate to go outside that I was willing to shell out some cash to convert my songs.

After struggling with the dosirak site (all in Korean), I decided to find my own converter. I'll admit, I'm not the most tech-savvy monkey, but I decided to give it a shot. I google'd in vain. Apparently, while I can convert protected .wma's to mp3s, the .kmp is in a league of its own. Suddenly after hours of fruitless searching, an epiphany screeched into my brain.

When in Korea, do as the Koreans do. Here, in a hub of digital 'legal tolerance' and free downloads, why shouldn't there be converters from .mp3s to .kmp's? I couldn't find a converter simply because I was looking in the wrong place. If these CYON phones are designed to screw Koreans, of course Koreans would have found a way around. It was just a matter of searching in Korean.

My first search on Naver yielded results. I downloaded the converter program, and proceeded to convert my playlist to .kmp files. With a little miniSD action, I was on my way to enjoying my songs from the comfort of my own phone.

Take that, greedy buggers at LG CYON & dosirak!

Today's another beautiful day, and I'm going for a walk.


*The iPod/iTunes consumer cycle isn't the only reason why I didn't want to buy an iPod. I couldn't stand the American public's lemming love affair with a featureless circle. In my mind, it's merely troll dolls, virtual pets, the Spice Girls and Titanic all over again: more hype than substance.
In true American fashion, Apple popularized the mp3 player, leaving it to the Asians to draw in the details.
I've preferred less-hyped brands that offer more features, like my old Samsung K5. With touch controls and slide-out speakers, it was a much better option for an individual who prefers more than a name, or bright preteen colours.

To do list

As my time winds down, I'm confronted by attention-starved checklist items, all screaming for fulfillment. I realize that despite all the living I've done during my stay, there have been too many lazy weekends on the couch watching TV, shopping in Myongdong, or Caribouing in Edae.

Some of the things I haven't done are actually quite ridiculous, as they're things that everybody is supposed to do in Korea, like visiting the folk village or seeing Busan. While, in my defense, I can point out various off-the-beaten-track places I've seen, I do want to visit the on-the-beaten-track places as well.

So without further ado, I present Korealist 2009.

1. Tour the three Seoul palaces I haven't yet visited: 창덕궁, 창경궁 & 경희궁
2. Climb Mt. Bukhan
3. Watch a Bears baseball game in Jamsil
4. Watch an Ilhwa soccer game
5. Buy a nice camera and spend a whole day wandering around Seoul, taking pictures
6. See the giant free-standing Buddha on Songnisan
7. See the parted waters in Jindo
8. Actually visit Busan
9. Actually visit Japan
10. Eat live octopus
11. Do my taxes before August
12. See Dokdo
13. Visit the folk village near Yongin
14. Master past tense
15. Learn future tense
16. Buy a new mp3 player
17. Buy external memory, as my computer is completely out
18. See the Zen Rocks in northern Seoul
19. Visit Seodaemun prison

Updates will be posted as I do these and add others.

On pizza

Today I ate pizza for dinner.

In over 1 1/2 years, I think this is the fourth time I've dined in a pizza restaurant, so I don't really have many opportunities to observe Korean pizza etiquette.

Most westerners (AMERICANS) I know complain about pizza in Korea. Personally, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn on pizza don't disgust me. In fact, I find a crust stuffed with sweet potato and covered in cheddar quite appealing and tasty. And while I don't appreciate the use of Tobasco instead of crushed red pepper flakes, or the insufficient salad bar (what? No shredded cheese? No green peas? Unlabeled dressing spoons?!), I don't believe any of these offend the gods of the marinara. In fact, using a fork and knife to eat pizza doesn't even bother me; it's just something to laugh at!

What bothers me can be summed up in one word: pickles.

Yes, Koreans eat pickles with their pizza. They also eat pickles with their pasta. That's just plain wrong.

As a non-Italian American, I realize that I may not have the last word on what may or may not be consumed with pizza. However, the American pizza, oven-fried in its own grease, is very different from the relatively light Italian pizza, and this is the pizza that has been marketed around the world by home-grown companies like Pizza Hut and Papa John's, and has found its way into the stomachs, butts, thighs, cholesterol levels and hearts of aficionados all over the world. Therefore, I think I can confidently say that as an American, raised on grease-slathered pizza since infancy, I am an expert.

And I condemn the consumption of pickles with pizza.

Why can't Koreans eat pizza like Americans? While my family might not necessarily be the white, 1950s Dick-and-Jane version of the 'All-American family,' we are still, in fact, an all-American family: we lived in the 'burbs with a barbecue on the back patio. Why can't Koreans eat pizza like my family? Our version tastes better, and it's definitely better for one's health.

Korea: drop the pickles! Eat your pizza and pasta as God intended: with kimchi!



Sidenote: the unlabeled dressing spoons really bother me. Today, what was apparently honey mustard ended up being that butter garlic dip for one's crust.

Sidenote 2: I've always been perplexed by the fact that Koreans eat a whole meal for breakfast. To me, coffee is sufficient. A banana if I'm hungry, and real food is only for the weekends when I wake up before noon. I've never understood how Koreans can eat rice, soup & banchan for breakfast. Then I remembered leftover pizza, and suddenly everything made sense.

Things on my mind

For the past few weeks I've been a little stressed. Getting back into the gear of school, creating lesson plans, and a nasty head cold left me crawling willingly into bed around seven pm, and crawling unwillingly out of bed at seven am.

The most stressful thing, gnawing incessantly on the back of my mind, was the thought of the enormonguous debt I will be procuring over the next three years. Add to that the fact that I can't even fill out my loan applications because I need my parents' tax information. Yes, amazingly, even though I'm no longer a dependent, have NEVER had my parents pay for my education, and live halfway across the world from my parents' pocketbooks, law schools somehow expect that my parents are going to be helping me with my education, meaning that I need their tax information.

Sidenote: need-based grants?! When you're talking about a $150,000 debt, who WOULDN'T qualify?

Throw in a faltering economy whose hiring rates may or may not improve in three years. I recently read in the Post that some of the nation's largest law firms are downsizing. Big debt + no job? I could feel my stress compounding continuously.

Factor in yesterday. I knew that I would be receiving an acceptance packet from George Washington, but when the envelopes arrived I found a neat little gem: a scholarship letter! Apparently I'm getting a hefty chunk of tuition paid for, in addition to housing for my first year. I did a silly little dance, hopping moronically around my flat, stylistically reminiscent of Mr. Bean on Christmas, then emailed my parents to tell them that they don't have to feel SO guilty about not donating a red cent to my law school fund. (I jest. Honestly, my mom has offered to help, but I declined. Strangely, dad never offered...)

Factor in this morning. I receive an email from Northwestern telling me that I've been accepted, and that I better fill out my financial aid applications pronto.

And suddenly it dawns on me. In four months, I'm going to drop the life that I've created, and start something completely different.

Already my mind is swimming with melancholy reminders of the things I can't pack up and take: the safe busyness of Seoul, weekend trips to secluded temples and mountain tops, the beautiful people I've befriended and have come to love...

At this point, I'm not sure if I can live the rest of my life without spending more time in this beautiful country. Not just visiting for a week, or a month, but living. As exasperating as Korean society can sometimes be to a westerner, and as much as I miss things like American football, pit barbecue and company softball leagues, this place has truly become...home.

Lists coming up soon.