I’m baaaaack

Laurel Jean
Aug 8, 2017 · 5 min read

Everytime I write on here I tell you that I’m going to be better about writing on here. Clearly I am a terrible no good liar. However, I am intending on writing at least once a month so that I can continue to process and record my thoughts while abroad for posterity if nothing else. I reserve the right to not do that. But you know. Imma try.

Anyways! I’m back in Busan and Korea and BFS after being gone for 6 weeks of summer. The summer started with an adventure in Cambodia, continued with an adventure in Minnesota, South Dakota, and Illinois, and finished with a week of chillin in Busan. Cambodia was an amazing time with temples, heat (seriously I nearly melted and then had trouble regulating temperature at home), tuk-tuks, heat, massages, heat, shopping!, and lots and lots of people. I ate well. Slept ok. Drank well. And saw some seriously beautiful things. I also saw some heart wrenching things. Humans capacity for violence and evil seems to know no bounds. It was wonderful to travel with Zach and Megan again and continue to remember why having people who travel the same as you seriously seriously matters. I’ll attempt to put up a full run down later. Mostly just so I remember what I did there.

Anyways! Going home for the summer was so restorative and busy. I did relax but I also ate out nearly every lunch and dinner every day. #foodbaby My 4th of July was a bit of a adventure but having 27 people in one place will do that. Mostly I got to just chill in my amazing hammock and pontoon boat and read. The jet lag was still kicking at that point so I was waking up at 7 and going to bed no later than 10:30. (This is a weirdo time frame for me tbh). I saw amazing amazing friends during the 5 weeks I was home but my favorite was meeting my friend Amanda’s son Oliver. He was so precious and cute and I was just so thankful that he was born when I was home. That felt like such a wonderful gift. I had some really deep conversations about life, identity, and yes politics while I was home as well. All of those things were both exhausting and restorative. On my way with my mom in the car to South Dakota in June I casually mentioned to my mom that I had this half brained idea that I was going to buy a secondary market ticket to Hamilton in Chicago and either drive or fly myself down there to see it and then come back. She was like “That’s a brilliant idea for a birthday gift for you and your father!” and so it was done. Ya’ll. I SAW HAMILTON. As many of you know from my various other social media freaking out. My dad and I went down to Chicago for 36 hours. We saw 2 museums, the Bean, Hamilton, and the riverwalk. We ate amazing food and just spent some quality time together. Since he retired he is fishing like a maniac and I had less time to see him this summer. So it was lovely to be given that time. I had a wonderful birthday and was just reminded through the 5 weeks that I am loved and valued and missed. And that’s a wonderful feeling.

Photos from my chicago adventure. Right-Photo of me doing the Hamilton pose Middle- Photo of the bean in Chicago Left- Photo of me with a statue in Chicago

Getting back to Busan felt amazing as well. It’s been so great to be back in *my* space. I didn’t realize how much I had missed having my own apartment until I got back. It was a luxury to just sit. I spent the first like 4 days casually hanging with people and organizing my space. I kone marie’d (sp?) my drawers and clothes to make room for all the new stuff I bought. I bought a book shelf. I bought boxes for some of my clothes. I bought a box for inside my bathroom cupboard. I just tried to get ready for the year in a somewhat organized fashion. I went to the beach one day. Got mega sunburned because of course I did. Took a full day to just be by myself and catch up on some of the tv I had missed. Actively avoided work. Bought stuff to make pasta salad and like real food. Met some of the new teachers. And just chilled.

This last week has been teacher prep for school. Mostly I’m excited. 2 of the 4 classes I’ve taught before. 1 I’ve sorta taught before. The other I’m panicking about but like it’ll be fine probably. It’s been really amazing getting to know the new staff and reconnecting with the old staff. These are my people too and I missed them. Almost all of the new staff are teaching couples with children 7 and under. Which is beyond me. But they seem to be doing it well. I can’t imagine moving countries with my children that young AND starting a new job in a country where I don’t speak the language. Like #nothanks. (Watch in 10 years I’ll be doing exactly that and all of you will be laughing at me like “remember when you said you wouldn’t do this thing? jokes on you!” and I will be annoyed cause you right) I like all of them so much. I only work directly with 1 of them. Mike is our new computer science teacher and he’s amazing. Otherwise the high school team is pretty much the same which is wonderful. We’ve had a lot of great discussions about teaching this week and I’m enough of a nerd about what I do that I love it. Tomorrow the children show up and we start another year. I’m so excited to see them. I really love these kids and they are wonderful students.

That’s about it for now. I’m making plans for people to visit me and where I’m going to go next. Love to you all ❤

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