Wednesday, August 25, 2010

DAY 24 NOTEBOOK

After a long rest, here are Day 24's ideas:

Positive comment 1. From the Korean blog (edited): "Hi Sherrin! Success of your journey is near. You are so great, and your teammate Steve, too. May all Jeju people come to know your struggle. I miss your big smile and nice talking with you. Please keep your pace and health toward a satisfying end. Take care! Kim (JW).

Positive comment 2. Also from the Korean blog (edited):

I am Miran's father. I heard from Miran that you are very interested and trying hard to clean Jeju's environment.

I believe this will be a great opportunity to start letting the islanders know the importance of the natural environment and start protecting nature on their own.

We, the islanders, should start protecting and preserving the beautiful environment. I would like to thank you as part of the island. Although you are a foreigner, you have gone forward cleaning the environment.

I was very moved that foreign English teachers on one side work hard for Jeju English education, but also do a good deed, trying to protect and preserve the environment.

I have sent a small amount of money to be a part of this good-cause project. ... Kim Kyoung-ho.

Blast from the past. Here is Mr. Kang, from the Korean Coast Guard and Marine Police, stationed at Wimi. We have been noticing some of the best English speakers, and all-around good people, on the island are the young men from the Coast Guard. Mr. Kang included.



Negative comments. On Saturday night, after landing in the harbor closest to Seorim Suwonji, I unleashed a vituperative harangue toward Sherrin. We have since moved on. What was said? Young-lim has it on film, at least the first half, and will do with it what she sees fit. When I asked later how much she filmed, she said she stopped midway. She was shocked at what was spewing from my mouth. At the same time of filming this, she was lending her car tools to two policemen, riding in one car, who met us at arrival. Their tire was punctured ("punc"-ed in Konglish), and trying, according to Young-lim, to use the wrong-sized tools, for their tire. She called them something equivalent to the Keystone Cops.

Before the vituperative harangue. Upon arrival, Young-lim presented me with an off-orange plastic bag filled with red and green peppers. I consumed them all within two days.

After the vituperative harangue. With a fractured team, Sung-mi and I met Kim Cheon-dae, head of the island's sea swimming club (my apologies, if that does not translate well into English) and Red Cross member, along with his family, for dinner to discuss an opportunity for members to join the project and possibly swim with us during a portion of the trip, or after the project is completed.

While things were in disarray, the money to pay for dinner was not on Sung-mi or me, so we had to call Young-lim, who 5 minutes later, barged into the restaurant door, and asked (loudly), "Do I look like a postman?" Everyone's head, about 15 total, in the restaurant, turned and looked at the spectacle before their eyes.

Well after the vituperative harangue. I received a ride home to Samyang on Saturday night from Young-lim (driver) and Sung-mi (backseat passenger). During this voyage, I'm not exactly sure what happened. But, these things did occur:

1.) Young-lim started playing some music and belted out Queen's "Somebody to Love" live performance sung by George Michael at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, from the April 2, 1992 show at Wembley Stadium.

2.) I explained the meaning of a few English words. After talking about Queen, Sung-mi was curious what "bi" meant.

3.) All three of us have birthdays in December; and at 49 and 31, Young-lim and I share the same birthday on the 11th, respectively. Sung-mi was amused, thinking this holds great importance.

4.) Sung-mi asked me: "Steve, you get so excited when you talk you Young-lim. Why?" True. Many times when I talk to women, I get excited. I'm a man.

Keys lost. In the midst of all the previous days' logistics, keys for my scooter, scooter wheel lock, and pension went missing. My best guess is I took all three out of my windbreaker and threw them in a plastic bag during transport. Later, I discovered the plastic bag had a large hole(s) in the bottom.

What have we lost at sea? Our tally for the trip so far: Six almost full plastic bottles of water and a near empty sunscreen bottle (due to an early landing just before the typhoon), my original sunglasses (terrible landing at Hwasun), and today, a contaminated plastic bag (from the passenger).

Camera bites the dust. It was only a matter of time. I have taken thousands of pictures with this gem the past 2 years, and it now needs to go back to the factory to be revived.

-Steve

No comments:

Post a Comment