Happy Chusok

I got up about 8:30 and washed my hair. I watered the plants, read e-mail and drank water. I listened to an audio until 9:25. I called Nela to see if she was ready to go to the bank. I walked to her house and then we walked to the bank. She turned in rolls of change for cash. I don’t know why she needed me but she said the bank would not have done it if I were not there. We dropped by the post office to see the hours, then went back to her place. I picked some dandelion in her back yard, and then went home. I resumed listening to the audio. It played fine but I could not get to my e-mail, either in Yahoo or Gmail. I kept getting a message saying I wasn’t connected to the internet, but the connection looked strong. I ate seed crackers and kept trying. Then I quit and made breakfast. I refilled the cocoa nibs. I put my empty supplement capsules in water to dissolve. I was planning on going to yoga but it got canceled at the last minute. I did today’s puzzle and somehow messed it up royally. So I put it down until I could draw another grid and start over. Chris came home for lunch with a large pile of boxes. It was like Christmas. But the reason there were so many boxes was that Swansons packed my order in small portions. There still were no Priority Mail boxes for me to send items to the states. I called Myra to see if she were on her way to the community roundup. But she was with a pregnant woman at the hospital in Daegu. Her rendition of the conditions was shocking. I proceeded to the roundup. I sat with Dr. Chu. The ops officer went through the 8-week schedule. I picked up a paper copy for Chris. Afterward, I talked to Tara about my background check (which I submitted in March and hasn’t been sent off yet because background checks for employees take priority over checks for volunteers). I joked with Scott by the elevator and walked home from the FFTC. I laid down, thinking it wasn’t worth a 20 minute walk each way just to get a half hour foot massage. (The regular place was closed and the other place does half hour massages.) But then I decided that I wanted to see Chinhae during Chusok. I heard that although the traffic was bad the day before and the day after, it might be deserted on the day of Chusok. On my way down the hill, I called Chris to tell him where I was going just in case something happened as I walked through the deserted town. But it turned out not to be so deserted. The buses were running, mostly empty. The convenience stores were open. Traffic was visible but light. I walked to the Chinese massage place. I was seated near the back. She brought me a small tray with a glass of hot tea and a treat. She typed something into the translation app on her phone and showed it to me: fall festival for eating treats. I figured it had sugar, so when she wasn’t looking, I put it in my bag for Chris. I drank the tea and relaxed while my feet soaked in Epsom salts. Then she dried my feet and began the massage. There was some kids reality show on the TV and she watched it as she worked. I think because she wasn’t watching the clock, she gave me a longer massage. It was the best one so far. There was no point in going to the market afterward. I walked home. Nela called and asked for Suzanne’s number. I promised to text it to her when I got back, but I forgot. I called Chris on the way up the hill to tell him I was back on post. I read e-mail. I put on an audio and cleaned the kitchen counter. I spread out fabric. I tried to place pattern pieces on the bias. Then I drew and cut a full back piece. I tried a new placement, measured the fabric and realized it was square. So I folded it on the bias. It was hard to get the fold line flat. I arranged the pieces but one always hung over the edge. I folded a square of paper and cut it diagonally and taped it back together to see what the implications were for sewing the selvages together. I googled tips for cutting on the bias. Chris came home, late, and made himself supper. I emoted about all the things that are not being done properly. I cleared a few more e-mails before Chris was ready to watch TV. We watched two episodes of House. He went to bed. I stayed up just long enough to blog.
* holiday snack cake from the massage place *