Washed and pressed

Chris went to bed early last night but woke up in the middle of the night. Such is jet lag. He did not wake again in time for church and I let him sleep. So I had breakfast around 10. Then I started ironing my pile of Japanese fabrics. I call them that because I bought them in Japan, but they were made by Hoffman, Kona Bay, etc. Same ones you find in the U.S. I didn't get a lot of e-mail today so I had time to check the supposedly blank recordable CD's I brought home from the thrift shop. Out of 30 only 11 were blank. Some had music and one tried to take over my computer. Two had movies: 'The Cave' and 'Big Fish'. I watched them both, but they were bad copies. 'Big Fish' killed my DVD player. So after that, I watched an old episode of NCIS while ironing all the fabric I bought Friday. For supper Chris baked a hunk of beef. While the rice was cooking, we went to the commissary for groceries.

My family returns

I think I woke up around 8. I exercised and had breakfast. I spent some time clearing out e-mail. I also spent some time picking up the apartment and vaccuming dust. Using a cloth to dust would be like using a sponge to clean up a mudslide. We need power. I don't normally do Michele's room, but today I was brave. I discovered the New York City of dustbunnydom under her bed. I think they were electing representatives to the U.N. so they could apply for nation status. Until THE SWEEPER came along. (cue scary music.) I hope that wasn't some project Michele was doing on emerging cultures. Ooops. I also did some sewing, trying to spice up some donated pillowcases that were not colorful enough.
Todays most memorable link was a video of an interview with Donald Yance, an expert clinical herbalist. He treats cancer patients (and others) with herbs and is often sucessful.
Chris called from the airport to tell me when they expected to arrive at the DHL. So I drove over there and parked where I could see the bus arrive. When it did, I drove up and parked behind it, but Chris didn't see me and carried all the luggage over to the hotel. He called me, but my phone was recharging back at the apartment.
I found him, though, and I picked them both up. We stopped by the office to pick up the mail, then went home. I thought they would go straight to bed after being up for 24 hours, but they both managed to stay up a little longer. Michele made it to 8:30!
Now I alone am awake to tell the tale.

The quilt top Toniette made

I agreed to meet my freinds at gate 19 at 9:45. But in my eagerness to run out, I forgot my fanny pack. That's the thing with my phone and money - and the card to get back into the building! So I had to stand outside the door, waiting for someone to come out so I could go back in. Still, I was only a few minutes late. Then since we could all fit in Toniette's van, she drove us to Dongdaemun. It was cold walking from the engineers parking lot, across the river to the fabric buildings. Yet somehow I detected spring in the air. We decided to do our inside shopping first. I got a pack of size 16 needles for the jeans to skirt class. Then we stopped by our favorite fabric place. Since he won't be at the luncheon, I felt free to stock up now. But I only spent 74,000 won. Then we went to the minki place. I got two yards of pink minki for 1100 won ($10). The others bought some too. Then we went to the Moda guy, whose stall is outside. But he had plastic sheeting over the doorway so it wasn't so bad.
There we saw the perfect print for making baby quilts because we could use it as is. No need to cut and sew back together. But we don't have funding yet. Hopefully it will still be there. LAstly we visited the label guy. But the man there didn't know any of the prices so we will have to go back when the owner is present. Till we drove back and I went home, it was almost 1. I got on my computer to check e-mail. I watched a video on the dangers of Gardisil. But after a while I just had to take a break. I need to make samples for class and was afraid to go in my sewing room because of all the piles of fabric. I spent hours cleaning and organizing all the fabric on the floor and my sewing table ( not to mention the new stuff I bought today). Is there a 12-step program for fabric addicts? A friend e-mailed me to ask if I would be the Thrift shop events coordinator. Gee, hmm, tough question. Tempting, but no. When I got on my computer later, I played Helen Reddy songs on youtube. It was tough to quit long enough to post to my blog. Oops, its midnight.

Long meeting

I got up about 8, with the usual routine. The snow was gone, replaced by black ice. By 9:30 I had walked to post and driven to Starbucks for our board meeting. We met to talk about requesting funds from several organizations on post. We decided to go to Dongdaemun tomorrow morning. This is my kind of group! We put the 'fun' in funding! Anyway, the others left, but Cathi stayed to talk. And we did, 'till 3pm! We have a lot in common.
So then I went home, leaving the car on post. The ice was gone and everything was wet. I had some of my liver soup from yesterday. Yes, I got on my computer and cleared some e-mails, left others for later. I pulled out some fabric to take to class tonight. I was going to cut fabric for pillowcases there since my sewing room seems to get smaller the more fabric I buy. So I packed a number of coordinating sets. I loaded my music-themed bag and headed out. I got there just after 6. The storage room was full of drumset, again. I wanted to move it out of the way, but there was another lady in there looking at tablecloths. So we talked and finally she left. I moved some drums out of the way, just enough to squeeze in and get stuff for the class. When no one had shown up by 6:25 I started to wonder if I was going to be alone, (and very productive). But several girls came with their moms. They worked on the rugs, the moms worked on the sew-and-flip squares and I cut pillowcase strips. Two new people came. I showed them how to make the pillow case and let them make one.
Another lady came late and she wanted to buy some of the fabric I had brought for pillowcases. So I sold it to her. Not like there is any shortage at my house. The lady who made the pillowcase offered to teach a paper-piecing class, maybe in March. That sounded good to me! At 8:30 we packed up, and got out. Some how I carried more out than I carried in. AS I drove back to the apartment, I reached down to grab the clicker to let me into the complex. Somehow that action shifted me into neutral, and the car stopped on the hill. The big taxi behind me blew it's horn. Then it followed me into the apartment complex. Ok, I kept going, down into the garage, and it went down too. It seemed odd to me, but then it turned at the bottom of the ramp. That was good because I didn't want it waiting impatiently behind me while I tried to park. Back in the apartment, I ate some salad and a well-pickled egg. I got on the computer and was able to have a SKYPE conversation with Chris while typing my blog.

The last of the long posts

I woke about 7:30. Then did the usual exercise, eat, shower and dress. I got out the crock pot and put in the liver I defrosted last night, along with some leftover kimchi juice. I thought we were going to Dongdaemun today but the other two ladies couldn't go at the last minute. Maybe we will go Friday. So instead, I went to the thrift shop. It was open for business today, which makes it harder for me to shelve books, etc. I was 2 hours short for this month and no one is coming tomorrow, so this was my last day to get them in. I had done all the books yesterday, so today I finished up the recordable CD's. Ella, the manager, asked me to weed out magazines to get the three baskets down to two. So I did. Then I let the volunteers pick what they wanted from the weeded out ones. Someone had donated a bag of cassette tapes. I checked and sorted them, and put them out on a shelf. I had to rearrange all the tapes so that the titles could easily be seen. We had a few videos, too. Mary Ann came in with some tuna kimbap. It was very good. AFter two hours at the thrift shop, I went to the Chosun to get a scholarship application and look at the silk. But they didn't have any silk. Hmmm. I was certain someone said a new shipment had come in. Then I went home to do laundry. The temp was above 32 so the water wouldn't freeze. While doing laundry, it snowed hard. Well! I emptied all the water from the drain hose after the last load. One white shirt had a small stain on it. I used Spray and Wash, and tried bleach, but it just wouldn't come out. I kept checking on the liver. At one point I tried eating some with the pickled onions, but they were still too strong. So I threw them in with the liver and let it cook some more. (I had to cook it in the bathroom because the cord was so short) During this time I cleared out more e-mail, and tried to find info on how many quilts we've made for QOV and Stork's Nest. The info was not where it should have been, but I discovered that by reading past posts, most of the info is recorded in my blog! Also I cut out the article in the post paper about the longarm opening. It was a nice picture but the article didn't make much sense. There was another article in the paper by the same Korean writer, and it was fine so I don't know what happened. Finally the liver and onions were cooked to my standards, but I wasn't hungry anymore so I put it in the fridge.


** Thursday Jan 21 **
Yesterday's 7:30 wake-up call was not repeated. I guess you have to renew it every day. Finally I got suspicious and checked the time. It was 8:30! I jumped out of bed and started packing. I had to figure out what to mail to Korea and what to take with me on the plane. I could not bear to part with my new fabric so I decided to MPS my dirty clothes and three kimonos to our APO. When C knocked on our door to ask if we wanted to read her magazine on the plane, that woke J up. We ordered breakfast and showered. When I finally finished my packing arrangements, J and I went to the convenience store in the hotel to have our stuff boxed. Then we stopped by the hotel post office. J had to pay to mail hers to the states (she's leaving soon), I used Military Postal Service (MPS) to send mine back to Korean and it was free.
Back in the room, we made sure we had enough yen to get us on the subway, and for the train to the airport. We said goodbye to the hotel (see pic above). A and C joined us as we dragged our baggage to the subway station. We rode to Asakusa to see a temple. Lucky for us there were lockers where we could store our things. They had rickshaws, but at $60 they really take you for a ride. Walking to the temple we passed many vendors selling touristy stuff. Before going inside, many people purified their hands and mouths with water from a fountain just outside. Then they went inside, threw money in a trough, and said a prayer. Some bought a prayer on paper and tied the paper to a rack. After seeing the crowded temple, we went to an Arts and Crafts museum. It was free, small, and in Japanese. Then outside, we saw a 100 yen store (roughly a $1). Nearly was a small restaurant with a staff of one.
He took our orders and prepared them one at a time in a back room. It was both good and inexpensive. After lunch we walked back to claim our things. We weren't short on time and I wanted to explore some of the shops, but had to hurry to keep up with the others. With our stuff we headed into the subway. C's bag was so heavy I helped her carry it up staircases. We caught the subway to Ueno, then the $10 train to the airport. It was a good thing we got on when we did because that train filled quickly and we would have been standing for over an hour. At the airport, there were no steps, only escalators. Yea! We had some trouble getting boarding passes because United wanted everyone to self-check and it just wasn't working. But after that everything went well. We ate some nuts waiting for the plane to board. I had my gum for take-off. This time there was no ear trouble at either end of the trip.
WE landed just after nine, and were at the bus terminal by 10. They were holding the bus, so we took a taxi, which might have been faster. I drove A and C home from the DHL and then went home myself. It had been short-sleeve weather in Tokyo when we left, but still freezing in Korea. I was ready to go back.

Bad moment at the pump

I awoke early again, having slept on the couch in the computer room. Since there are no curtains, the daylight wakes me up. I resolved to re-do the audio file on my theta session, and this time talk much slower. Also I taped the bubblewrap more securely over the open window because I could feel cold air eddying around my face.
Then the usual exercise, breakfast, shower, e-mail. Around 10:20 I left for the thrift shop. Of course I had just missed the bus, so I walked. It was cold, but not so cold that walking wouldn't heat me up. When I got to the thrift shop I was greeted by a pile of books, videos, DVD's, copmuter games, and magazines. I processed them all. Then we had to price some stacks of blank CD's and DVD's. Well, the first two stacks were fine, I think. But the third stack had several different kinds and some didn't look quite new. So I priced the ones that did, and took the rest home to test out. Then one of the Korean volunteers asked me to go to the bank with her and wire some money to her son. She had the cash, just didn't have a military ID or bank account. Then I went to the ACS building to check on our expiring status as a group. I was told I didn't have to do anything until May. I also pickedup a copy of the paper with my picture in it. I wasn't that far from Chris' office, so I walked down there to see if my box had come. Yes. But it was too heavy to carry far so I had to walk back to gate 37 to get the car. Along the way I met Cathy and she gave me a ride. When I came back for the box, I opened it and showed the kimonos to Yuna. I wanted to show them to Mrs. Yi, but she was on the phone. I drove then to the theatre only to find out that the movie starts at 7, not 5. So I went to the commissary, bought raisins, then proceded to the gas station. The car was very low on gas, which was why I didn't drive it in the first place. I had an embarassing moment at the gas pump when I couldn't find a way to open the gas cover. I checked all around the dashboard, the door and the glove box. There was no owner's manual either. In desperation I had to ask the man at the next pump and he knew where it was hidden. Relief! With my full tank of gas I drove back to the gate, parked and walked home. I put some things away and cleared out more e-mail, and ate supper. About 6:30 I walked back through the gate, picked up the car and went to the theatre. I saw a friend there, so I sat with her. The movie made fun of psychic research in the army, so it was kind of comedic. "Men who Stare at Goats" Afterwards we talked and she and Leslie invited me to tap dance class on Friday mornings. Hmm. I drove home. Luckily the guard was watching and let my car in. The clicker is in the other car. I hung up the kimonos, and put the dirty clothes in the laundry. I answered some e-mails, then had to restart my computer because of the Winsock Provider error. I sure wish I knew why that keeps happening. I also got out some liver to thaw for tomorrow since I finished the ground bison for supper.


**Wednesday, Jan. 20th**
The wake-up call came at 7:30am but we stayed in bed for a few extra winks. By the time we got up and showered, it was 8. We called room service for breakfast since we had a $10 off coupon. I got 3 soft-boiled eggs and J got a Belgian waffle. When breakfast arrived, my three eggs were accompanied by 2 pieces of toast and a mound of fried potatoes. I had to peel the eggs, but at least I knew nothing had been added to them. I ate one piece of toast for a few carbs. After breakfast we talked until it was time to meet Ann at the bank. (We had met her yesterday and she offered to take us to the fabric market) C and A weren't there when we arrived, so I went upstairs to get them. They weren't quite ready and I was embarassed because Ann was in a hurry. We had to rush to keep up with her as she led us through the subway, a change of trains, and then Nappori.
It seemed like a bit of a hike then, but it was worth it. There were fabric shops galore. She left us on the 4th floor of the Tomato building. A and I went to the 5th floor where we found quilt fabrics, many American, at stateside prices. But they had a good-sized discount section and we got a yard each of several. We tried to find the others then, but had no luck. So we went to the discount store on the corner. They had the most lovely Asian prints for 315 to 485 yen a meter. WE loaded up, holding back a little because our yen was running short and they don't take credit cards. I guess American Express ISN'T everywhere I want to be. I had a yen for fabric, but that wasn't the kind of yen they wanted. Ha, ha. J did offer to lend me some if I ran out. The fabric was already cut into 1/4, 1/2, 1, and 2 meter pieces. Some packets we bought, agreeing to split later. We hit another store after that, then headed for the subway fully loaded. After we made it back to the hotel, I went to the Nx (like the Px, only for the Navy) to get postcards and peanuts. I wanted a bathing suit too so I could use the pool, but no luck there. So J and I went to the internet room. I used the rest of yesterday's dollar to send an e-mail to Chris and post briefly on Facebook. We hit the gift shop, then we went back to the room and ate some nuts. After awhile the phone rang. It was A and C.
They wanted supper. So after some discussion we went back to the Japanese restaurant in the hotel. I suggested we sit at the grill for a change. Well, the others all ordered Tempura again, so I got a more expensive grilled dish to justify sitting at the grill. Shrimp. The chef didn't put on a show as he prepared it, but he was watching me as I ate it, so I put on one for him. But it really was good. I also learned that you can't pick your teeth with chopsticks.
After supper we went to A and C's room to compare and split fabrics. Oh what fun that was! J regaled us with stories from her younger years. We laughed so hard. Finally at 9 (it felt like 11) we went to our own room. J and I talked some more, then she read while I wrote. We turned down the temperature to 65 (as low as it would go). That made the room more comfortable for sleeping but the sheets were still loud and crackly.

Quilters gone wild

I set my phone alarm to wake me up, but I was awake long before. I think I must have slept really well. I used the Neuroprogrammer software with an HGH session, to be followed by the cat's purr and then the computer on 'hibernate'. But after the HGH session it hibernated, so I ran the purr program when I woke up. I exercised, ate, showered and dressed. I went to the gate to meet Pam but I was early. It was too cold to stand and wait so I started walking and made it almost to the commissary entrance before she came along. My plan was for the group to work on QOV, but there weren't enough steps to keep everyone busy so some people worked on baby quilts. We even got a Thankyou note with pictures from one grateful mother. Several people brought in tops they made from kits. Three got completed. Although we didn't complete any QOV tops, I think we sewed all the strips sets for three or four, and cut maybe half into blocks. We had some show-and-tell, but I didn't have my camera. Sigh. Today was Judy's last day and we will miss her. She goes back to the states on Thursday. Are we jealous? Maybe. But we wish her the best. After I got home, I got on the computer to send out e-mails to handle my presidential duties. We are planning to ask for funding from several groups. So there is some paperwork involved. Then I figured out how to make an audio file of me talking to my subconscious. I had to record it many times to get it just right. I also had to switch microphones. I cued it to run during the theta session. Then I took a break and fell asleep. When I awoke, it was 4:30. Although I could have run to post, driven to the theatre, and been there before the movie started at 5, I was feeling a little groggy so I decided to see the movie tomorrow. I had supper (ground bison and salad) and for dessert, a glass of fiber with cinnamon and honey in it. Then, I went into my sewing room and made two more pillowcases. Judy turned in a really cute one this morning, so I have a total of 45. I think I'll mail them in when we reach 50.
** The continuing saga of Tuesday Jan 19th **
I didn't have my wallet so I went back for it. While there, I searched for my ID, then gave up. I didn't realize until I returned to the restaurant that I STILL didn't have my wallet and I had to go back. My three friends ordered tempura dinners, but I didn't want anything fried so I ordered the cheapest teppanyaki. It came with sashimi (which was a lot like sushi), and miso soup. MMMM! Afterwards we went back to our room and called Ann, to take her up on her offer to show us a place in Nappori where we could buy more blue and white fabric. We made arrangements to meet her the next morning by the bank. J and I had show and tell in our room, trying on our kimonos. We also investigated the game room and the internet room. What can I say? Quilters gone wild. Internet access was $7 an hour, but J showed me how to get in, send an e-mail, and get out for a $1, with credit left over for tomorrow. J and I went back upstairs, talked for quite a while, then went to bed.