More from the Garden

I'm going to risk sounding like Grandma Shirley here. What keeps impressing me about being back in the United States is how big the sky is. Maybe it's because the land in northern Illinois is really flat. Maybe it's because there are wide open spaces here. Maybe it's the lack of tall apartment and office buildings. Or all of it put together. In any case, the sky just seems so much bigger to me here than in Korea.Here are some more photos from Mom and Dad's garden.

Happy 231st, U.S.A.!

It was a beautiful 4th of July here in the Chicago area, despite forecasts of thunderstorms. We had a picnic with my mom's side of the family--17 out of 21 of us were able to make it. I really miss being a part of family events when I'm in Korea, so it was nice to visit with people. It was fun to answer questions about my life in Korea and also hear what's new in my aunts', uncles', and cousins' lives.

We ate (a lot), talked (a lot), and played a family game of whiffle ball. Actually, they played. My aunt, two littlest cousins, and I watched. Everyone headed home in the early evening, and my parents and I went to the community fireworks display. Here are some photos of the day.

In the Garden

Here are some photos I've taken the past couple days in my parents' garden. Not too bad for a camera without macro capabilities and only a so-so zoom.

LiliesHydrangeas (Look carefully for the Daddy Long Legs! There are two of them in the second photo.)Cone flowersDahliasA daisy
A fancy begoniaI don't know what these are called, but the humming birds really like them. If I sit down near the flowers and hold still, the humming birds will fly within 3 feet of me, but I haven't been able to get a good photo of them . . . yet.A deer wandered into the yard the other day. I wish I had better than a 3x zoom to get a clearer shot, but I guess this one is okay.

Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

To celebrate my parents' 30th wedding anniversary on July 2nd, my Mom, Dad, sister, and I all went to see The Color Purple at the Cadillac Palace Theatre in Chicago. We all enjoyed the show. I'd recommend it, but I think I would have had a hard time following it if I hadn't read the book and/or seen the movie.We went to a matinée performance. It was a beautiful day in Chicago--sunny, windy (it is the Windy City, after all), and 69 degrees--so when the play was over, we went for a walk to the restaurant for dinner. Here we are on one of the bridges over the Chicago River.I'm happy to be home with my family. Happy 30th Anniversary, Mom and Dad! I wish you many, many more healthy and happy years!

Herrick Lake

Mom, Dad, and I took a walk around a local park today. The weather is beautiful in the Chicago area these days. The Herrick Lake Forest Preserve has a lake, forest, marsh, and an area of restored Illinois prairie.An old oak treeA sumac treeA butterflyOne of the 17-year cicadas, partying like it's 2007Herrick Lake itself

From the Land of the Morning Calm to the Land of Lincoln

I am home! Today is the first day of a five-week vacation with my family in Illinois. It's a more than welcome break. As much as I love Korea, I'm glad to be back in Illinois and very happy to see my family again.

I had two good flights between Seoul and Chicago. I was bumped up to Business Class on my flight from Seoul to Tokyo. My bus to the airport was late, so I arrived with less than the requisite 2-hours-before-your-flight check-in time. The line at the United counter was really long, so I got in, sure that by the time I got to the counter, they would tell me there wasn't enough time and I'd have to take another flight. I stood there in line, starting to worry. An airline employee and tapped me on the shoulder. "Do you have your passport?" he asked. I showed him my passport. "Okay, come with me."

I followed him over to the First Class counter (no line), where he proceeded to check me in and then handed me my boarding pass, not in the usual navy blue folder of Economy Class seats but in the shiny gold folder of Business and First Class seats. A little slow on the uptake, I didn't catch on to the fact that I had been bumped up.

I glanced down at my boarding pass and saw that I was in seat 14B, a middle or an aisle seat, and not 19A, the window seat I had requested. "Excuse me," I said. "Is there any way I can have a window seat?"

"I moved you up to Business Class," he said.

Suddenly I felt very stupid and overly demanding. "You did?! Thank you!" I exclaimed. "No complaints."I am here to report that Business Class rocks. I could stretch my legs all the way out and not touch the seat in front of me!The food is better in Business Class, too.Yes, I thoroughly enjoyed my 2.5 hours in the comfortable seats in the airplane. The Business Class travelers around me probably thought I was a little nuts as I played with all the gadgets and took pictures of my own feet, and giggled at the two forks on my tray, but that didn't bother me. I was flying Business Class. Wow, that guy in the airport is my new favorite person.

I had a 4.5 hour layover in Tokyo. I really like the Tokyo-Narita Airport, so I was able to keep myself moderately entertained before boarding my next plane. Here is my airplane at the gate in Tokyo.I had a window seat, but since I was in the Economy Plus section (five extra inches of legroom, baby!), I was directly over the wing. There was still a great view of the sunrise, somewhere over the Pacific, just south of Alaska.After a total 13.5 hours of air travel (and 6 hours of sitting at airports), I looked down and saw a very welcome sight . . . northern Illinois! I'm home.

Sometimes Korea Makes Me Laugh

These ads are on the Seoul subway system. They're for dandruff shampoo with natural ingredients like pine needles and cacti. They make me laugh. I think I'd rather have dandruff than cacti or pine needles coming from my head.

Petting Zoo

The preschool was supposed to take a field trip to a zoo today, but since the weather forecast was bad, they changed plans and brought animals to the school instead. The kids had a great time, and I ended up with a snake around my neck. Oh no!

Mountains and Temples

Here's another post on one of my favorite themes: mountains and temples. Fortunately for me, in Korea, the two always seem to go together. Today I hiked to the top of the mountain that flanks my town. I hadn't been up there in a really long time, and I could feel how out-of-shape I've become as I was huffing and puffing my way to the top. I really enjoyed the hike, despite the exertion, and it made me wonder why I don't go more often. Laziness is my only excuse.

This is the view of my town from the top of the mountain. It's hard to believe that I can look at that mess of concrete and see a place that's become a second (third, fourth, fifth . . . actually, I think I'm up to 14th) home to me.On my way down the mountain, I ran into the family of two of my students. They were surprised to see me out of my usual environment, i.e., the classroom. The little boys had significantly more energy than I had and were running uphill. Good grief. I'm officially going to try to go there more often and get back to the hiking/jogging routine I was pretty disciplined about last summer.

As I continued on my way down, I passed two temples, so I took some time to stroll around the grounds. At the first temple, they had some buried kimchi pots. Most people use special kimchi refrigerators now, especially in cities, so it was kind of exciting to see the pots buried in the ground for refrigeration.There were also a lot of pots that were not buried. I think they're quite pretty in their simplicity.The temple also had its own beehive. This is as close as I was willing to get.The artesian well had these cute little Buddha statues all around it.Here's a shot of the trim of the temple. I love the colors and patterns.They still had some of the lanterns up from Buddha's birthday.Then I continued on my way down the mountain and stopped at another temple.From there it was just a short walk to my apartment. This beautiful park is practically in my backyard. I need to soak in its beauty and tranquility more often.