you got this, kid

24. Seoul

[elinseoul]

First day without pain meds... wish me luck... 😖

[elinseoul]

I was hospitalized in Korea for the first time!

I know I've been MIA (lol I don't think anyone even realized I've been off of tumblr for ages) but I've been really busy lately. Here's a brief update of what the past two weeks have been like for me: - I got a serious hand injury. I fell while holding a glass which broke my fall, so I got a very deep cut which severed a nerve in my hand. - Spent 5 days in a hospital after getting surgery to repair the nerve. (I got 17 stitches to close up the wound.) - Today marks two weeks since the incident and I'm still wearing an arm splint so as not to move my hand and risk severing the nerve again. It'll come off in two weeks, at which point I'll need to start hand exercises to regain strength in my hand. - I currently have no feeling in my index finger (where the nerve was cut). There's no guarantee that I'll ever get the feeling back. It's a 50/50 chance, but even without feeling I'll most likely regain full mobility eventually. - It's my right hand, so learning to use my left hand for everything has been.... an interesting experience. (It's been annoying as fuck, but apparently it's good for your mind to use your weak hand so SILVER LINING!) - The stitches came out today and it hurt like a bitch but it's done! I've been going to the hospital to get the wound disinfected every other day but now I can ease back to once a week! It's been a hectic, painful, and frustrating two weeks, but I've had a lot of support from friends, coworkers, family (from afar), and especially J. He even washed my hair for me while I was hospitalized and lugging an IV cart along with my free arm. :') I don't know what I would have done without all the support I've had!

[elinseoul]

"How could anyone not love you?"

I don't have strong feelings about Valentine's day. That combined with the fact that J gets home from work on average around 9:00-9:30 every day meant that we didn't plan anything to do. I bought him some stupid little candy stick with a boxing glove on the end more for the entertainment than the candy itself. He goes to a boxing gym so he got a kick out of it. But other than that, we did absolutely nothing but relax and talk when he got home from work, like we do every day. I told him about work and how after two years at my school I finally feel like I've built up a good reputation and it seems like I'm well liked by management. I told him that lately I've felt more comfortable around the Korean teachers and they seem to be more friendly with me than they used to, and I thought that maybe it's because people actually like me after seeing how hard I work and getting to know me. I was happy when I explained it all to him and he grabbed my hand and with the sweetest look on his face, asked me so genuinely, "How could anyone not love you?" Even if he's biased, it was still the nicest thing I could have possibly heard from him. Even if everyone else thinks I'm nothing special, he thinks so highly of me that he can't imagine anyone feeling differently. Hearing those words from him made yesterday the most special Valentine's day for me. It's everything I needed.

[elinseoul]

2017 is going to be the year I start taking travel goals seriously. Since we're getting an amazing 10 day break at Chuseok (!!!), I have three 10+ day vacations in the next year. Plus, as a veteran teacher at my school, I get to ask off for 5 random days at almost anytime during the year, with a few exceptions. So essentially, I could take four international vacations (or extend one and have a really long vacation!) plus little trips on those 3-5 day weekends throughout the year. I'm already planning a trip with my family this summer. My mom and I have been exchanging ideas and we've decided on a San Francisco/Yosemite vacation for the first week of August. After traveling home for Christmas this year, I realized that I need to see my family at least once a year from now on. I'm really excited for this trip because not only will I get to see them again, but we'll also be traveling together to a new place! Originally we tried to plan it so J could come along too. My family loves him and he really wants to hang out with them too, but it just isn't going to work with his schedule. So instead, we figured he can go to America with me the next time I visit home, and instead we are planning a possible trip to Japan during Chuseok! He'll have to spend time with family for the holiday, but since I have so much time off then, we figure we'll still have enough time for a 4-5 day vacation. This leaves me with my winter vacation still open. J won't be able to travel then since he's always really busy at work at the end of the month. So I'm thinking a solo trip somewhere warm! Or maybe a trip with friends. Who knows yet! I was thinking maybe some place like Thailand, Vietnam, or maybe Taiwan, but I still have tons of time to decide. I'm excited to be making plans this far in advance! Before this year, I always let it get too close without planning something. In the back of my mind I always thought I could just go somewhere the next vacation. But after living here for two years, those vacation times have become so precious to me as I've realized how rare they are. I don't want to waste my time away by always saying "next time". I need to take action and make my plans become a reality, and I'm tired of sitting around when I want to travel everywhere!

[elinseoul]

I feel like a new person. This is three days that I've been waking up before 6:00am and getting ready for the day. I actually have time for breakfast???? I forgot how good breakfast was! I haven't eaten breakfast during the week since high school when my mom still insisted on making it for me almost every day. Even after only three days of this I'm in a routine now. I'm hungry as soon as I wake up, whereas the thought of food in the morning used to be so unappealing to me. This is it guys. Big changes in my life. Positivity. 2017: the year of BREAKFAST.

[elinseoul]

@sealbb Thank you! Turned out I crashed around lunch time lol. Today I woke up at 6:30, which is still way earlier than normal but not as ridiculously early so hopefully I don't crash so soon haha. We have a field trip today though so I probably will.....

[elinseoul]

Jet lag has its perks

I woke up around 4:30am, wide awake. I stayed in bed until 5:00am, just soaking everything in. J gets up at 5:40, so by the time he woke up I was already showered and dressed. He looked so disoriented when he saw me all ready for the day lol. Usually I'm still asleep when he leaves. He seemed so excited and happy to be getting ready with me, and he asked if I could do this every day haha. I spent the next few hours slowly doing my hair and makeup, and cleaning up my apartment a bit. At 7:30 I left for Starbucks and now I'm just casually eating breakfast and sipping coffee, whereas I'd normally be just waking up and in a rush to get ready because I hit snooze 10 times already. I'm sure I'll be exhausted by the end of the day, but I could get used to waking up early like this. Maybe not quite this early, but earlier than normal at least!

[elinseoul]

Have a good flight

Thank you!! I just got back yesterday. 😊

[elinseoul]

See ya, USA

Flying back to Korea today and predictably feeling sad and nostalgic. I'm very excited to get back to my life there, but saying goodbye to my parents again is making me feel like I'm on the verge of tears. The one thing I learned from coming back here was that I can't keep going two whole years without coming back or at least seeing my family... So my mom and I are already planning a trip to the west coast (which means a slightly shorter flight for me) for the summer already! It's perfect because I'd get to hang out with family, but also travel somewhere new. Two birds! I'm crossing my fingers that J would be able to get off work and come with, but who knows. Anyway, it feels much better leaving them with a goal to meet again in the near future. Last time we separated I had no idea when I'd see them again and that was really rough. Ahhhh the life of a solo emigrant....

[milkeu]

http://instagram.com/codenamefluff

[allthingsobama]

The Obamas in their final People Magazine interview from the White House.

[kingrudegyalchina]

They are so fucking beautiful

[purplevicereine]

😩😍😭😩😍😭😩😍😭😩😍😭 Idk how to feel

[elinseoul]

That last photo made me realize that Sasha is growing up to look just like Michelle! I almost thought it was Sasha in that pic for a second. What a beautiful family... so sad to say goodbye to them...😢

[theperksofbeingaperk]

sarahfierce66: This is what happens when you give your dad something he’s wanted for about 8 years, but he always thought they made them just for kids. He was wrong … They make them for big kids too.

[sidelinesofcode-deactivated2020]

Pure, wholesome post.

[ordenna-deactivated20181024]

[ivorybigs]

Seriously tho

[elinseoul]

Whoops. Too bad I just went on a shopping spree and unintentionally spent close to $400 on fancy makeup, pretty underwear, and clothes. 🙃

[elinseoul]

This is the first time I've tried drawing for fun since I was in high school. I have never been good at drawing or most art subjects tbh. I just wanted to test out the watercolor pencils I got for my dad for Christmas lol. Things to keep in mind for next time: maybe don't use cheap printer paper and lay the pencil on thicker before painting over it with water. I really wish I could draw well though! I mean like *really* well. Seeing my dad enjoy painting so much after just discovering his love for it two years ago, I feel really inspired to keep trying. I've always considered myself a non-artistic person so maybe I just need to shift my thinking and keep trying. Everyone starts somewhere, and all things take time and practice, right?

[elinseoul]

I've reached the point where I'm overwhelmingly bored and easily agitated, which means going back to Korea is going to be much easier than I thought. I'm trying to focus on enjoying time with my family, but now that the happy glow of Christmas has passed, I'm just reminded of how annoying it is that I feel like a 16 year old whenever I stay in my parents house. Four more days...

[elinseoul]

Me: I'm a bad bitch! I don't take shit from anyone! I'm not nice!

Also me: well I can't just leave this cart in the middle of the parking lot. I have to take it to the cart return. I'm not an animal. Those employees work hard.