the Postman, as seen on TV

Well, after an amazingly fast week at work, Saturday (March 30) rolled around. It was time for another balloon launch with North Korea Peace. I arose at the customary 6:45 a.m., met up with everybody at the bus station, and took a quick detour to roust Jon out of bed. Then we rode a succession of rattling buses, shaking subway trains and ludicrous taxicabs to the Hamilton Hotel in Itaewon. The whole affair went down largely as before, only with a great deal more people. Far more expatriates turned up this time than last time, which was quite gratifying to see. There were a lot of cameras around too. The Associated Press attended as usual, but this time a documentary filmmaker came along, as did a Reuters reporter and her cameraman. And guess who volunteered to get some face time?

That's right. Your humble correspondent.

Sunny asked us if anybody wanted to get in front of the camera. She was met with a dull silence. Not a single hand went up. Continuing my campaign to get myself un-shy and commence living dangerously, I raised my hand and said "Sure." I took off my sunglasses, pushed my hat off my forehead, and gave Reuters the straight dope.

Then I went back to my apartment for a quick nap before I met A. Remember A? My old buddy from Geoje Island? Did I fail to mention he's back in Korea now? Teaching in Busan? Yeah, he is. He'd come up to Seoul on the KTX the day before, and was now partying hearty in Hongdae. So I met up with him and we had a high old time. I was in such a state the next morning I couldn't even drag myself to the park for expatriate basketball.

I'm knee-deep in another workweek now (complete with level tests to grade and student evaluations to write). Plans for the ensuing weekend are still nascent, but I shall be penetrating Seoul again ("Penetrating Soul" would be a good name for a rock band) to go to Costco. Yes, they have a Costco in Korea. Several, in fact. I've heard they're excellent places to get foreign food and miscellaneous supplies. There are shadowy rumors going 'round that they have egg-crate mattress pads, and my poor back would like one of those as soon as possible.

Now, I don't know if I mentioned this earlier...

...but I have had a massive, repeat, MASSIVE epiphany about my novel. Suddenly it's all become clear to me: how to improve it, how to rewrite it, how to make it sizzle and pop. And I'm in the process of doing so right now. You thought the last overhaul was major? No way. This one's humongous. This sucker's going to be triple its former size by the time I'm through. I'm pretty much taking the plots of the four sequels I had planned and sticking them into the first book, largely intact. I'm introducing new characters (main and secondary) and a whole host of new adventures and dangers and plot developments. Thought you might like to know. I'll probably do a more detailed post about this later.

Well, I have a to-do list to get through this morning, so I'll let you go. I have to open a second bank account (at a different bank) so I can send money home on the cheap, and I've heard there's a liquor store a couple of blocks west of my apartment building. Speaking of shadowy rumors...I think I'll head over for a look and see if it's really there.

This is the (now televised!) Postman, signing off.

P.S. I'm getting the hang of cooking for myself, too. This is my typical Sunday meal. Boiled octopus and oysters. Seafood is so cheap in Korea. I made this for less than $10. This could get to be a habit...