1st Day of Christmas

2 more hours. Yep, 2 more hours and I don’t come back to work until 2011. Everything is practically ready. Got my coworkers a “thank you” Christmas cake and my co-teacher treated me and the exchange students to lunch at the Pizzeria. Actually, my co-teacher, along with my principal, gave me Christmas gifts…FOR MY PARENTS. What’s that about? o_O Because my parents are the ones teaching in Korea, dealing with a real winter, and having to learn new things? Riiiiiiiiight (Dr. Evil voice).

Anyways, I’m excited. Tomorrow is Korea’s Christmas Eve, and even though I’ll spend all day suspended in the air, I get to spend American Christmas Eve at home in LA. How I miss thee and all the people you house.

What’s cool is that packing was easy, just the shopping bags and souvenirs. It’s all stuff I can dump out and not have to repack. Can’t wait to have my American goodies.

It all won’t feel real to me until I have a Starbucks Venti Soy Eggnog Latte in one hand and a Chipotle chicken burrito with medium green and medium corn salsa. It’ll taste like home.

Because my friends are the people (next to my family of course) that I want to see the most, here’s a song that is applicable. The #1 Christmas song for me this year.

#1- Phoebe Buffay’s Christmas Song from “Friends”

The Foreign One

As my niece Julie would say "What the barnacles?" It's August already?! I can scratch month two off. I must admit it is after month three what I am looking forward to the most....as that pay raise kicks in (woo hoo!).

So the concept of the foreign one is an homage to my friend Sarey. Sarey has been labeled as "the foreign girl" "the foreigner" "the Peruvian" and "Ay, Sarey!" for a very long time. She's even been referred to as Bashiba and Sarah Towers. Yes Sarey is a foreigner because she lives in LA and was born in Peru, land of the lamas and guinea pigs. Granted I have friends who were not born in the states as Yaya was born in El Salvador, my twin Etna was born in Mexico, and my friend Phoebe was born in the Phillipines. But for some reason I would never label any of them with the term "foreign." I think I attribute this to the fact (and friends you can agree) that Sarey's assimilation is a working progress, an assimilation that has cracked us up so many times. Case in point: some of her birthday wish list request, wishes that only partially change from year to year. While I'm here, I might as well wish Sarey a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

So the tables have turned. I am now foreign. It's so weird because before I come to the realization that I'm foreign through some comment or gesture I think "I'm not foreign, I'm American!" Right after I have take a look to my left and right and come to terms that I'm the odd man out. It hits me: Oh yeah, I have a work visa and an alien card here. I think it hits me in repeated intervals because of where I live (aka "little America") and all of the English-based services that surround me.

Can't wait til I get back home and chow down some food from Chipotle...the taste of freedom!