Hit the ground running!

I think it is safe to say that I have settled into my new home! I've got a lot of stuff to get you all caught up on so here we go:

Got to Songtan on Sunday afternoon and moved my luggage into the house. What a cute charming shack! I really like it. There seems to be a lot of storage available which is a blessing. The attic has some floor space that is useable, the basement is a bit damp but is all cement so I hope to fix that up some. The shed is ready to be scrubbed as well. I think we'll be able to really take advantage of the non-living space.

Inside, there are plenty of kitchen cupboards. Probably twice as much, if not more, than what we had in San Antonio. And the huge shoe closet in the foyer is another source of ample storage.

Once I got in and poked around a bit, exploring my new digs, Snuffles and I set off for downtown. It is so close and convenient!! As is the main gate for the base. A few things have changed downtown since I was here for a visit a few years ago, but many things remain the same.

Of course, it was mandatory that I re-establish my chosen seat at JJ's Cantina, my favorite place to spend some time. With all the bars here that cater to the meet and greet crowd, JJ's is a haven. It's more of a pub type feel for me. We sit outside on the front patio and watch the people go by in the street. Very relaxing. And the owner is just the nicest guy.

Monday morning was spent on base, getting me checked in and official. We got most of the items on our checklist done so it was a pretty productive day. I spent the rest of Monday afternoon in the house waiting for the water cooler guy to come deliver our cooler and 5-gallon bottles of water. He was to be here at 1:00 PM but he never showed up! I was itching to get out some more and walk around but I did make use of my time by evaluating the living space we have and thinking about how to get all of our piles of stuff into here.

I've decided that the third bedroom will be our in-home theatre room. Oooooo, how fancy!!! The thing is, with the living room laid out the way it is, I couldn't really figure out a way to fit in the 57" tv and media tower. Plus, the third bedroom is farthest away from the master bedroom and that will be a bonus to not have the tv blaring while someone is trying to sleep.

I discovered a pretty little calico kitty in our courtyard. So skinny and obviously had kittens recently. She's very timid but I am slowly working on gaining her trust. Each day is a little better. She knows that I feed her but won't get any closer than about five feet from me. Such a sweet little girl.

On Tuesday, I decided to get busy. While Snuffles was at work, I started at the BX with my shopping. I had lots on my list of things to do but while at the BX, a woman stopped me and asked for some information on the ration card. She is here visiting her husband on his unaccompanied tour. We started talking and just hit it off!! Her name is Penelope and she is an assistant school superintendent in the Grand Rapids, MI area. Her husband is the chaplain at the Suwon post (a primarily ROK military post).

Penelope and I spent the day together and it felt as though we'd been friends forever. She was driving her husband's "hoopdie" (term here for junker car, suitable for driving around locally) and it had a spoiler that was half hanging off. Penelope decided it would be better off the car than on, so she and I pulled it off and set it by my front gate.

Funny follow up to that. Snuffles came home from work and saw the spoiler sitting there. Figuring that our Korean neighbors had dumped it there since we are just lousy Americans, he grabbed it to put it in front of their house. I said, "No! That's ours!"

"What's ours?"

"That!"

"A car spoiler?!?!"

"Yes!"

"Where did you get it?"

"I pulled it off a car."

"What car?!?!?!?!"

"The chaplain's car!"

His face was PRICELESS!!!

The water guy ended up coming around 6:00 PM on Tuesday and got us all set up with a water cooler. It even has instant hot water! Woot!!

On Wednesday, I met up with Penelope in the afternoon and she and I set out for E-mart. It's kind of the Korean equivalent of Wal-Mart. The local E-mart is about 10 minutes away in Osan-Si. Interesting store! The grocery floor is fabulous, with an incredible meat selection. Everything is so fresh and clean. The next floor has housewares, drugstore items and electronics. The top floor is clothing.

We enjoyed shopping and being the ONLY non-Koreans in the place. Little kids were fascinated! Over in the children's book section, we found a book titled "Sex and the City" and flipped through it. Penelope bought a copy immediately. It appears to be some kind of sex ed book for young kids but OMG it is NOT suitable at all for young kids!! Rather interesting illustrations, I must say.

We returned to Songtan and met her husband; Snuffles called me and agreed to meet us at Sam-Il Bulgogi House for dinner. He and Penelope's husband seemed to get along great and we had a very nice dinner and then went to JJ's for an evening beer. There at JJ's, we sat - across from the sex toy shop - while Snuffles translated the children's sex book for us. With the chaplain.

The next day I was going to take the train up to Suwon to meet Penelope and go to Fashion Island, a big outlet store, in the afternoon.

In the morning, my internet friend Ralu came down to Songtan from Yongson Garrison in Seoul. OMG I am forever indebted to Ralu!! She is the BEST EVER. Ralu introduced me to 4-Seasons Quilt, a tiny hole in the wall blanket shop that does quilting for you!! You provide the pieced top, backing and binding and they do the rest. She had two quilts to drop off to be done - one was a small lap-size quilt and one was slightly smaller than a twin size. For both, including the batting, the cost was under $60!! I am going to keep that store in business, to be sure!!

Then Ralu took me to another hidden gem: A purse shop, with a "secret" upstairs room. Where the good stuff is!!! Big Chanel handbags for $89! Coach purses for $30!! Oh my my!!

Afterwards, she and I had lunch and hit the BX for a bit. Then she had to catch the bus back to her base and I came home. Feeling a little crampy, I laid down for a bit. Penelope called to confirm with me but I begged off the afternoon trip so I could deal with the crampiness of it all.

Snuffles came home from work with a gas grill, which he promptly worked on assembling. Took a while but what a nice grill!

Today we bummed around the house and waited for our outdoor swing to be delivered. Once that got here, around 11:00 AM, we put it together (not the quickest item to assemble!) and then rolled out the grill and did some steaks.

Now he is sleeping, because tonight he has "Barf Bus" duty. Not really a bus - well, they used to have a bus - but he will be on patrol on the base getting all the 4th of July drunks home safe and sound.