Too Much Stuff

My son called me from my house in Northern California and told me that they were putting in a new air conditioning system. My other son was using the old system and it finally bit the dust. I was surprised because I never used it anyhow. I had air conditioning for each room and used them when I was in the room. Since he has a larger family, that was not possible. The big system finally went out and they were putting in a new system.

Then they told me something else that horrified me. They took a whole truck load of books out of the house. I had a huge collection of books. I loved my books. I was proud of my books. There is still a lot left, but many of them are gone and were taken to either second hand book stores or to the library. They screened them to make sure they were not first editions or out of print books.

Since coming to Korea, I have noticed that I live with a lot less stuff. Many books are in the collections on the Internet. Some are in my Sony Reader. Most of the books, I don't read anymore. I just like to keep them around and they have been gathering dust. Since coming here, my allergies have not been bothering me. I could not have taken those books with me when it was my time to go. What is happening now would have happened after I made my final exit anyhow.

There is a lot more room in my house. I have gotten rid of my clothes. Now, the books have been disappearing. I still would get books that I want to read, but if I am not going to read them right away I won't get them. If I am not going to wear my clothes right away, I won't buy them. I still have two pairs of large jeans I can't wear anymore here in Korea that I don't have the courage to throw them away. (I was able to get belts for them and now I wear them.)

Being healthy means using what you have and not piling stuff around you that you don't need. It's like a rich man with a large vault of gold he never spends. I knew a woman who had a huge number of shoes she never wore. You can only wear one pair at a time, drive one car at a time, sleep in one bed at a time and so on. Healthy is not the body alone but the head too.

But I am still going to miss the books.

No Television

I do not have a television although I do have access to cable. Most of the stations here in Korea are in Korean but there is CNN and a few movies from time to time in English with Korean subtitles. Getting books in English is hard in South Korea unless you like reading the old classics which I do from time to time. Many of the programs from the BBC and the United States are blocked on my Internet connection.

Sometimes, I get tired of reading and writing and want a little television that is not blocked. I have found some web sites that are wonderful and I add new ones all of the time. I have no difficulty in listening to music and listen to many music stations from all over the world although my favorite is Live 365 and I paid their small fee so I would not have to listen to commercials. I had a membership with them before which I had enjoyed and listened to them for a while to make sure they work here in South Korea. Some music stations that I have paid into in the States do not work here in Sourth Korea such as Rhapsody and Pandora.

As for movies, Flex does not work and neither does HULU. But I found one with some old movies especially from the silent era that does work and it is free. It is: http://www.freemooviesonline.com/. There is no cost for this site. Don't look for new movies here. I also do not use the prirate movie sites as they are not only illegal but take advantage of someone's hard work.

I love documentaries and the best site for this is : http://www.topdocumentaryfilms.com/. There is even a place for people to make comments about the movies they have just seen. I really recommend this site. Another site is: http://freeonlinedocumentary.com/. I am a fool for travel videos and you can get one from anywhere at : www.travelistic.com.

Part of the fun is exploring what is out there on the Internet and whether or not it will play here in South Korea. The BBC is always a good bet as long as you don't want to watch the BBC television series. The CNN is also good and The New York Times has some very good and entertaining videos on its front page. I have taken tests to see if I am depressed and what kind of news I should be looking for. C-Span from the USA is now available here in South Korea and everywhere else and it is fun to watch. Just load those terms in your search engines and have fun.

Haunted by a Chicken

I wrote in another blog that I had gone to a small coastal city in Korea on a day trip with a friend over the weekend and ate at a small restaurant located on the beach that was separated by a strand of trees. We were the first customers of the day and the owner and cook said that we had time to walk to the beach and walkway while she prepared our feast. Just as we entered the trees on the pathway, we turned for a moment and saw a chicken running for its life. It was our lunch. The meal was excellent, but I had a terrible time looking at the cooked chicken and knowing we had seen its last few moments of life.

That had never happened to me before. I was blissfully unaware of the connection between the meal and the real cost of what it took for me to have that meal. Please don't laugh at me, Reader. I just never gave it a thought. I have lived in the city all of my life. Milk comes in bottles or cartons. Eggs comes in cartons. Chickens, well they come in plastic bags. I don't eat in fast food restaurants, so I don't know how they get those chickens in KFC restaurants or I didn't know until now.

In Korea, all of the eggs I buy are brown. I don't think they have factory egg farms which is great. Some of my students tell me that they all had to kill chickens at one time or another because there were always some chickens in the back yard if their grandparents lived in the country in a house. Most people live in apartments so no one has to kill chickens in the city anymore.

I did go visit my aunt in Oregon in my childhood and knew that one dug up potatoes, onions and carrots but they don't scream at you when you shovel them up. I picked apples, peaches and plums but no one slaps your hand as the apple tree did to Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz".

I told one of my students today that I think the chicken is haunting me, following me. In reality I don't mean it, but I don't like the reality of some living creature having to die because I was hungry. I also would rather eat a bowl of rice and some cucumbers than eat meat right now which is what I had for lunch. Rice has plenty of protein and I don't need to buy meat anyhow. Tofu is just dandy for a meal anyhow.

Maybe, eating was fun for me because the real cost of it was not evident to me. I did not live around farms or orchards. I did not live around ranches. Veal was veal and not baby beef and I did not have to look into the eyes of a baby calf as it was put to death just to be on my dinner table. And lamb? I did not have to remember that lamb was a baby sheep. And I don't have to remember that there are a lot of people who are going hungry today. I sound morbid, but I think we need to remember this reality.

I don't live in the USA right now. There were times in my life that I did not have enough to eat and times were hard when I first came here. Maybe I am trying to put eating in the right context in my life. The more I think about it, the more I think that is what I am trying to do.

Bear with me as I try to remember why I eat and that is not to make me feel good and secure but to keep my body going and to keep it healthy. That is why I am on this quest in the first place.

Sugar Substitutes

As stated before, I live in Korea. On the 16th of this month, I will have lost close to 40 lbs and I have been here three months. I have gone from a size 22 to a size 18. This is great and it is all due to healthy eating on a Korean diet and lots and lots of walking.

One of the problems I have had here is that I have trouble finding diet drinks. When I do find them they are almost two dollars per small bottle. I nurse them and buy them three or four at a time. There is no such thing as a six pack or a case or at least I have never seen it. People with diabetes must really have a problem. I have been rated as a diabetic, but my sugar level has been normal of late and I have never taken insulin. I ended up buying some lemons and putting them in filtered water with iced cubes.

There is a restaurant that has diet Pepsi called Pepsi Max on the menu but they are always out when I go there. I like the place because it has a great view of the city, a very nice chicken salad and everything is about $7.90 and no tipping is allowed. There are American restaurants in town but I don't know where they are and go only when someone takes me there. The cheapest meal is usually 35 dollars. It is steak and they tell you it is American steak.

The biggest problem I have is there are no sugar substitutes that I can find that one finds readily in the USA in pink, blue or yellow envelopes. There is no Splenda which is alright since it has a bad effect on me; but there is no saccharin and other sugar substitutes. When I am in a social situations I have to drink regular Pepsi or Cola drinks which seem so full of sugar since I am not used to them. In my apartment, I sometimes drink orange juice which is a favorite here and will drink them from the machines. Juice is a favorite drink and it can be apple, pine, pineapple, plum, coconut and others. The candy aisle is stock full of candy from all over the world. I don't eat candy all that much. None of the candy that I have seen is diet.

There is a real problem with diabetes from what I hear from others. Those with the disease continue to drink the sugared colas and juice. I am lucky in that my diabetes was from a stay in the hospital when all they would give me was sugared jello. Now, I seem to be normal. Even if I needed to cut down on sugar, it would be very hard here in Korea. As I said, I drink filtered water with lemon slivers and that is all I can do. I don't like the extra sugar and thank goodness the Korean diet still does not have sugared deserts although the American style deserts are filtering in and I see the younger set munching on pies and candy at the bus stops.

Bullying

I had to check if I wrote about bullies. Since coming to Korea, I have had a problem with someone who is bullying me. In the past, I have had a problem with bullies and never really knew what to do with them. They tie my stomach in knots, freeze my brain so I can't really react or have no idea what to do when these individuals start in with their bullying behavior.

Bullying is an act of repeated aggressive behavior in order to intentionally hurt another person physically or mentally or both. Bullying is characterized by an individual behaviing in a certain way to gain power over onother person. As a child, my father used to bully my mother and us kids. My mother in turn bullied us. It was often physical and mental abuse. In the case of the person here in Korea, it is only mental and not physical.

This person is in the so-called chain of command and has some authority in my employment. If not, I would avoid her. I have no idea why she goes out of her way to be mean, vindictive and to lie to me. Everything this person tells me I have to be very careful about. Why am I writing about it here in my health blog? Because her yelling at me during the first few months here made me physically sick. Luckily, I had other resources such as my journal and relatives in the United States.

Things are better now in that she does not yell at me anymore, but I still have to watch what she tells me. Having my own apartment really helps in that I can close the door and shut this person out. I am learning to stand up for myself. Again, journaling is helping. Here in Korea, those who are aged and I am considered a senior citizen are supposed to be treated with respect. Many people tell you that but will drive down and street not stop for some senior citizen who is standing in the middle of the traffic and that includes the public transit system. They leave them there scared and afraid.

I have not resorted to yelling myself. I can't stop seeing her, but I can stand up for myself. The last time she yelled at me I simply said I did not understand her and left the room. Her English is very poor. I still don't understand what she is angry about. I suspect the real reason she is angry has nothing to do with me. There are things happening in her life and she needs someone to let the steam out. It is not ok for her to take things out on me. She needs to find a more appropriate way.

Being a healthier person means taking better care of myself. I won't let someone mistreat me no matter what is happening to her in her life. It also means letting go of the past and not staying angry at her past behavior but not forgetting what she is capable of. Sometimes I relax because she is treating me better that I forget she is very capable of lying and taking what is not hers. I can't forget to be on my toes and protect myself.

New Room Mate

I finally got paid and the first thing I bought was a fan. It has warmed up considerably in Korea and summer will be here officially on the 21st. What I did not know and have since found out is that Korea has a monsoon climate starting in June. When I first heard this, I thought it was a joke. Oh no, not so. They do have a monsoon period. First the spring season was cold enough for me to layer all of my sweatshirt jackets that I own and the one winter jacket at once and still be cold and then I find out there is a monsoon. Second, once I got used to a very cold spring, I find out about the monsoon. Where is Al Gore and Global Warming when you need him? Then spring finally came.

The promised rains have not materialized as yet. It rained quite a bit during Spring. I was not used to it. My apartment does not have air conditioning and neither does anyone else in the building. So far, it really has not needed it. The university has and even though they changed the filters in the air conditioner in my classroom there does not seem to be any movement towards turning it on. The other university where my special student is enrolled does have air conditioning and it is on.

I bought a fan and it has made all of the difference in my very small apartment. I have a furnished apartment that is really a very tiny studio apartment. When they advertised that it is furnished, they mean it has a stove, fridge and a washing machine. The last appliance was a genuine surprise. No one seems to have a dryer and I hang everything on a rack that dries fairly quick. However, the heat is conducted through the floor. Many people sleep on the floor and I really tried and succeeded at least for a while but I ended up getting a couch that makes into a bed. I got a chair because I can't sit on the floor comfortably and a very small desk. Furniture is very nicely priced here in Korea and I have to give it all away when I leave. I also bought a very small hand held vacuum because what people use just does not work for me. It is kind of a mop you put a cloth on the end and it supposed to pick up the dirt but doesn't. The vaccum which was very cheap is small and nice.

The landlady heard I needed a fan and wanted to give me one after I got one already. Darn. It is working now. I also have a printer which saves me time running around printing handouts at the university where it is very hot. I would rather be here in my apartment where it is much cooler. The university would give me an office but none of the offices have Internet and I have it here. I would rather stay at home and work. I go a little early and make copies of what I download and print.

Korea is a very beautiful country and the people are as nice as can be. I love my landlords and the university, are good to work for although a bit disorganized at times. The students are wonderful. My new room mate, the fan, is fitting very well although it was very difficult to put it together and the instructions were all in Korean.

National Museum of Korea

I visited the National Museum of Korea this last Saturday. It is considered the flagship of Korean history and art in South Korea and is the cultural organization that represents Korea. The museum, itself, opened its doors in its new building in October 2005 and is located in Youngson Family Park in Seoul, South Korea. It is a very impressive looking building.

The museum contains over 220,00 pieces in its collection with about 13, 000 pieces on display at one time. It displays relics and artifacts through six permanent exhibition galleries that are easy to understand and have extensive explanations and even films. Although they had many tools that showed the evolving use of tools in the Korean peninsula they did not have any human or homo type skeletons on display although the signs mentioned that they were found.

The National Museum Is the sixth largest museum in the world in terms of floor space and covers 137,000 square meters or 1,480,000 squares feet. They are arranged in rooms or galleries that are divided into three main floors accessible by stairs or elevators. There were portable translators in other languages including English but many of the signs were in English as well as Korean.

I particularly liked the Buddha collections and the Greek helmet that was a gift from the Greek government to a Korean athlete who done very well in the Olympics.

There was no charge for anyone to enter the museum of Korea and the hours were very nice to accommodate working people. For instance on Saturday, the museum was opened from 9 am and closed at 9pm. There was a charge for parking in the covered parking garage.

Chungcheong’s Beopjusa Temple

Yesterday, I went to a temple complex called the Beopjusa Temple. It was fantastic. My guide was a student and her daughter. The complex is located on the southwestern slopes of Songni Mountain in North Chungcheong Province.


Before getting to the Beopjusa Temple, we visited the very old Jeongipumsong Pine Tree that is supposed to be over 600 years old. My friend explained that when King Sejo in the mid 1500's was going by in his carriage, the tree lifted one of its's branches so that the carriage could pass underneath. The tree was granted a ministerial title. In recent years, tree disease has claimed some of its branches, but it remains a popular tourist distination.

The temple was founded by the monk, Uishinjosa, in 553 during the Silla Kingdom and is part of the Jogye Order. Although the magnificent temple is dedicated to the veneration of the Maitreya Buddha, it was built with the hope the ancient Korea's Three Kingdoms would be reunified. Current events have shown that this dream may not be possible at this time, but there is always hope.

The temple has a tranquil environment you notice right away or at least I did where there seems to be a harmony between nature and the temple. All around the temple you will find ancient inscriptions carved into big boulders that are simply breathtaking. and are near the pine tree covered hills. It must be mentioned that many of the trees that we saw are much older then the ones we had been seeing in Daejeon and elsewhere and they reached high into the crystle clear air of the surrounding area.

After entering the main gate, the Palsangjeon Pagoda stands five stories high with the huge Golden Maitreya Stature to the left. Both structures took my breath away. Inside and outside the pagoda, the artwork was some of the most magnificant I have ever seen.

It does cost money to enter the compound but a free lunch is provided. There are monks who lived there but there is little interaction with the public; but to be fair there were quite a few people there to see the beautiful structures as Buddhists and non-Buddhists. My friend said she comes often with her mother and have seen larger crowds. We were there because it was a holiday because Korea was holding elections. I thought the lunch was pretty good and is supposed to be the same food that the monks eat.

We met what my friend termed "serious Buddhists" who were people were traveling in groups and visiting all the different Buddhist temples in Korea. They were very pleasant and friendly and answered many of our questions about the different things and terms in the complex. They all seemed to be seniors.

I had a grand time and really encourage everyone who comes to South Korea to visit the Beopjusa Temple because I don't think there is anything like it anywhere else. What a wonderful place Korea is. I am so grateful for my friend and her daughter for taking me to this place.