Cobwebs

It's time to clean out the cobwebs.

The corners that are not often visited, the issues that don't require immediate attention, those things that are allowed to gather dust.

What's funny to me is that it can take less than a week for dust to settle on some things. Especially when I consider all the changes since my last post.

Adopted a dog.

Moved back to the USA.

Started working in Rehab again.

A dear friend's spouse passed away.

Met my youngest niece for the first time.

Surprised Mama for her 50th birthday.

Chopped off my hair.

Did a live reading.

And a bunch of other little things in between.

Why didn't I write? Because I didn't know where to start. Then I became overwhelmed because I build up in my head what a post "should" be, and that I have to write about all the little things.

But then I remembered, writers write. Every day. So all I needed to do was start to write.

My husband has been doing BEDIA (Blog Every Day In August). Today we picked up some cards from a local bookstore called a Chat Pack. This one is specifically geared toward stories. There are 156 prompts. My new goal? Write something about each of them.

And there is no better day to start than today. So with that, here goes!

Prompt: Share about forgetting something VERY important.

Oh this is so hard...because I am a forgetter! I forget things all the time! Just ask my husband. This week alone I forgot to turn the stove off and nearly caused us carbon monoxide poisoning, and left a loaf of bread baking in the oven for almost an hour. Obviously those aren't VERY important (well, the stove thing is), but you may be getting my drift. I am a forgetter.

If something isn't written down, or has an alarm set, it doesn't exist. I will have not even the vaguest of inklings that I've even forgotten something, even after someone has brought it up (not always, but it has happened more than once).

Anyway, to get down to telling a story I'll write the one that cropped up first in my overflowing box of "forgotten" memories.

I forgot a razor.

Sounds simple enough, right? Razors aren't that hard to come by. It shouldn't have been that big of a deal.

This razor was a very big deal.

It wasn't forged of titanium, or enchanted to never dull or rust. Just a standard, run-of-the-mill woman's razor (Sidebar: women's razors are a travesty. Much like women's socks. Compared to the "men's" version, they don't hold a candle, and are laughably inferior in quality and durability.).

Why, then, was this particular razor of such great importance?

It was my sister's razor. One she had left in our hometown. The one she asked me to bring to her new home. The one she was going to use the day before her wedding.

But again, it's just a razor.

Well, in Nephi, Utah at 10:30pm on a Thursday night nothing is open. Nor is anything open at 7:30am when you are departing for a neighboring small town. Not only that, but it was the night before the wedding. You know, the night that anything that can go wrong will go wrong. The night when people fight and everyone wonders if this whole event is even worth the stress when it could be as simple as a justice of a peace and a bride and groom.

Well, the straw that broke our stress-camel's back was a razor.

I used to think "if only I had brought the razor..." but time and experience has taught me that if it hadn't been the razor it would have been something else. We were a powder keg waiting to blow, and it just so happened to be a double bladed Venus that ignited a spark.

Service & Bacon Cinnamon Rolls

So I find that doing things for other people makes me happy. Like ridiculously happy. Even better? When I can serve someone I love.

This all goes back to a post my husband made on my Facebook Wall yesterday.

The evidence.

I worked my magic, and made the following reply this morning...

Nothing like results!

Apparently we weren't the only ones who thought these would be fabulous because the requests I've received for the recipe have been pouring in. So, here goes the story (with links to the idea origination, and the actual recipe I used).

I followed the link, and I agreed. These did look amazing. They also looked impossible for South Korea. They don't have Grand's here. And the average package of bacon comes with six strips. So, I had to improvise (as always happens in baking, right?).

First, I needed a cinnamon roll recipe. Since Mama is away at Spring Training in AZ, and the handwritten recipe my sister found at home is indecipherable I was left to the vast interweb to find something. I wanted a quick turnaround, so I spent a whole morning searching for something suitable. Finally, late last night, I finally found this. As you can see, it's a Southern Food recipe. Nobody does unhealthy goodness like the blessed people from the South, and the recipe was a cinch! Plus, it included a recipe for a nice glaze (I'm not a heavy, cream cheese frosting kind of girl after an unfortunate incident in the past).

Because I had to hand-roll all the cinnamon rolls at one time it increased the difficulty of ensuring nice, even rolls with their allotted two strips of bacon each (the end of the roll ended up without bacon, but who's going to turn down "regular old cinnamon rolls"? Um, nobody. That's who). But what's life without a little variety, right? I have a good serrated knife, but I opted for the dental floss method of slicing the rolls, and I'm so glad I did! 

The gentle sawing might not have worked through the bacon, but the dental floss snapped right through it. Not familiar with the method? It's quite simple. Pull out a 12" piece of dental floss. Slide it under your roll, measure about 1 to 1 1/2", cross the floss at the top, and pull tight. It will slice right through the dough and the bacon. It's a lovely thing.

Anyhoo, with two packages of bacon baked to a done-but-flexible state, my oven was preheated, following the Southern Food recipe, and a lot of waiting we ended up with some very tasty bacon cinnamon rolls.

NOTES FOR EASE:

For the easiest rolls, follow the Rainy Day Gal's recipe. It's simple, it's fast, and I'm pretty sure they taste great. Although, as I was waiting out the process of dough rising, I had an idea to make it even easier.

Sometimes, for reasons I'll never fathom, people sprinkle raisins into their cinnamon rolls. Instead of trying to roll up whole strips of bacon, why not sprinkled bacon crumbles? No, not Bac-Os. We all know that's not real bacon. You can either cook and crumble the bacon yourself, or buy those handy bacon crumbles that are already bottled at the store (unless you live in South Korea like some of us...).

But for all the ease in the world, I'd never trade homemade/from-scratch taste.

I'll also make the note that the total time for the cinnamon rolls, from start to finish, was nearly three hours (including rising time). That may sound like a lot. Every single minute was worth it after that first, gooey, sticky bite still warm from the oven.

Whatever route you choose, I hope you enjoy 'cause we sure do!

The Cake

My husband is an introvert. He isn't anti-social, he just has different limits when it comes to people and being the center of attention. Enter me, the antithesis of introvert. I'm not a complete polar opposite, and I wouldn't say he's on the far side of introverted either. But we do balance each other.

Yesterday he said, "I hope you've taken my introverted nature into account for your surprises." The surprises he mentions are in relation to his birthday. It was also yesterday. If he could get away without anyone knowing that he would be just fine with that. Once again, enter me. I love birthdays. Especially my own. I'll tell everybody it's my birthday. I love celebrating life. I love celebrating me. Even more than I love celebrating me, I love celebrating those I love.

My Need to Celebrate - My Husband's Introverted Nature = Pent-Up Energy Looking for Escape

Since I couldn't expend all my energies letting the world know how my incredible husband came into the world yesterday and nothing could make me happier (because he wouldn't like that) I turned all that energy inward into trying to do the things he would like.

He only asked for two things, so I gave both of them to him. He says I spoiled him. I can't see how I did him anything close to justice. I mean, how hard is it to shop? The thing that took the most effort and planning wasn't either of the gifts. It was the cake.

My husband loves chocolate. Lu-uhves the stuff. Milk. Mild. Dark. The man is a regular choco-holic. His favorite treat combines his love of chocolate with peanut butter in the Reese's Dark Peanut Butter Cup. A perfect balance of the bitter with the sweet, the smooth with texture. They aren't easy to come by in the States, so getting them in Korea was unthinkable. But I could...I could make a cake!

 

From Good Gracious Cakes, found here.

This is my vision for a future cake of his because he loves The Wizard of Oz equally as much as chocolate. But, as I think you and I both know, that was so not happening.

When I was searching for recipes for cakes and frostings and how to do what all the different sites have members with rated cooking experience. I would rate my experience at "wishful thinking." I've never made a cake from scratch. I've never made a layer cake. I've never made frosting. Sure, I worked in a bakery where I took the PRE-BAKED cakes out and frosted them with the PRE-MADE frosting, and even learned how to use the fancy piping tips to edge, make roses, and even leaves (I never could get the proper control for writing). The bakery also had the cake plate that rotated for easy control, and actual tools for spreading the frosting.

So here I am in Korea with no experience, no tools, a counter-top convection oven, a whole lot of energy to expend, and this vision of a chocolate cake with a peanut butter center, complete with chunks of actual peanut butter cups, and topped with whole peanut butter cups.

Well...it didn't turn out like that.

But I did achieve (personal) rockstar status with what DID happen.

First, it's nearly impossible to get Reese's in Korea period. So there went that idea. However, they do carry Peanut Butter/Chocolate Creme filled Oreos. Yeah...that'll work! But before I ever got there I trolled the internet recipe sites. I wanted a good chocolate cake, but I also knew that I was coming in with a knowledge deficit, and a $25 hand mixer to make this happen, so it had to be simple enough I could do it. A few months back I found this cake on Pinterest, and I thought I could probably make that (sans the liqueur). But the making of melted chocolate drizzle, and the prohibitive pricing for things like Kit Kats or Twix here (which don't taste the same as the ones at home anyway) led me down a different path.

After lots of searching I ended up going with a very basic recipe from Hershey. It's their "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake. And the site also includes their "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Frosting. I remember he had mentioned something about his mother's peanut butter frosting recipe, so I did some searching online and found this at Allrecipes.com. However, as you can see in the myriad comments there seems to be no agreement about the proper way to make it, but it seems almost no one follows the recipe as it's written.

So here's what I did.

Using my one 9" cake pan I made the cake exactly according to the recipe and baked my cakes one at a time (which is why they are uneven, because I couldn't "equally distribute" the batter as I was just eye-balling the results). And, instead of flouring the sides of the pan after lightly greasing them I dusted them with cocoa powder. After the cakes were baked and cooled (I did this a day ahead) I wrapped them in foil and tossed them in the freezer.

For the frosting I halved both the recipes. I decided to fill the center with peanut butter and top it with peanut butter, then do the sides in chocolate. I followed the measurements for the amount of butter, vanilla, and cocoa/peanut butter to use, but beyond that I didn't measure anything, I just alternated powdered sugar and milk to consistency. No, I've never MADE frosting before, but you can trust me I've spread plenty of it (or...on occasion...eaten it out of the container from a spoon...like everybody does...). I left the peanut butter quite a bit thicker because I wanted it to be more like the center of a Reese's. The chocolate I thinned out quite a bit because I wanted to make sure I had plenty to cover the whole cake. And because I'm short on proper bowls I had to mix one frosting in the mixing bowl, scrape it out into another regular bowl, wash it and the beaters, then do it all over again for the other frosting.

I repeated a mistake I've made in the past and froze the Oreos. The problem when you smash them is that the cream doesn't budge and the entire cookie becomes completely pulverized instead of nicely crushed. Note to self: next time leave the Oreos at room temperature.

I took the cakes out of the freezer (learned this from the baker: if it's frozen it's less likely to fall apart while you're frosting it, and since I was using THICK peanut butter frosting I needed it to stay as in-tact as possible) and placed one, rounded side down, on an upside-down, aluminum-foiled baking sheet (because it's what I had). It made for a slightly uneven cake, but I certainly was not going to attempt to level the sucker with a knife. I spread the peanut butter frosting quite thick, then pulled out the un-pulverized Oreo centers and stuck them on, then spread a thin layer of the icing on the bottom of what would become my upper layer so the Oreos would be nicely sandwiched with icing. Then I spread the remaining peanut butter frosting on the top of the upper layer.

Next, I frosted the sides with the chocolate frosting. The gap between the two layers was rather enormous because the frozen Oreo centers had absolute NO give...nor did my frozen cakes, so I was worried about filling in the gap. But shortly after beginning I saw that it would be fine.

Because I lacked the tools to really trim the cake nicely I decided to stick with the messy look. I placed the remaining Oreo centers on the top (had I been thinking of aesthetics I would have reserved some whole cookies for beautiful cake toppers...but I didn't), and sprinkled the pulverized cookie bits on the top. At which point I decided, wouldn't it be fun to have the bits all around the outside? So I scooped up some and literally threw it at the sides of the cake. It was atrociously messy and decidedly delightful to literally throw cookie dust at the cake. Some of the bigger pieces need a little firm pressing to stay attached, but it was really quite fun.

Voila! The sinfully decadent (and delicious!) result...

Activism

So I'm not really much of an activist. I've never been a sign-toting, pledge-signing kind of person. However, there are a few things that stick very closely to my heart, and I will always fight for. And no, these are not in order of importance.

First, the PRIVILEGE that U.S. citizens have to vote (and, to their everlasting shame, one that they squander). But that is a soap box for another day my friends. This post is reserved for something different.

Two, the neglect, abuse, and/or murder of children. No, I'm not a mother. That does not mean I don't have the instincts of one, and will do my best to protect any child I can regardless of my relation to him/her. The idea that anyone could knowingly or intentionally take advantage of, manipulate, maltreat, or otherwise harm such an innocent, malleable, helpless being deserves whatever judgments the God I believe in has to serve.

Last week was the first time I had heard of/saw anything regarding Joseph Kony, as I'm sure many of you did. My initial reaction after watching was, "Let's get this done!" I wanted to shell out the $30 and buy our Action Kit immediately. But my husband, the prevailing cooler head in our relationship, suggested we wait until it wasn't such a "tight" month. So I waited.

As I waited the rush of doing it cooled. Opposing responses appeared, rebuttals followed, etc. I observed these things and sat back, taking it in. But the fire that ignited inside me to be part of change burned on. I began researching other organizations that work to promote real change. But they all had drawbacks of some kind or another. Reasons why one "shouldn't" donate to them.

So I reflected on what's important to me. What I think "worthy" causes are, and on some of the comments people made that we need to start taking care of our own before we start taking care of the world.

This is what I came up with.

Every month I donate 10% of my earnings as a tithe to my church, which supports causes like humanitarian aid. I believe very much in what they do, and the same group who oversees the spending of that tithing is also in charge of the humanitarian arm of our church. Currently they are receiving donations that go toward the following projects:

• Humanitarian Aid Fund
• Clean Water
• Humanitarian Food Production
• Neonatal Resuscitation Training
• Mobility (wheelchairs, artificial legs, etc)
• Vision Treatment Training 

I can willingly, happily donate to these causes, and I am confident that my money will not be lining pockets, but actually working on the intended cause.

Additionally, I was reminded of something my husband read to me. One of his favorite comic artists posted something on Twitter about not having access to books as a child. Both of us agreed that not having access to books is nothing short of tragedy. So I've been looking into charities that focus on literacy. An excellent list of charities, non-profits, and volunteer organizations who do just that (it has 125 on the list!) can be found at Playing by the Book --a site dedicated to reviewing children's books.

One that I've found, and wouldn't mind supporting, is First Book. According to it's website, "First Book has distributed more than 80 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families throughout the United States and Canada. By making new, high-quality books available on an ongoing basis, First Book is transforming the lives of children in need and the elevating the quality of education." They also receive a 4 star ranking on Charity Navigator which you can find here.

Also, I believe that individuals can be the change. I have the good fortune of knowing a woman who has started the grassroots campaign to "be the change." She encourages people to be the change wherever they are. Her name is Ashley, and it's called The Shine Project.

And last, going back to what I said about children, I feel that children are often neglected when parents get caught up in dangerous, harmful situations. Sometimes the children are not taught what is dangerous and they become those same kinds of parents. It took years for people to figure out smoking was bad for you. Some people are starting to sound advance warning about pornography in the same way, and I support them. Their non-profit organization Fight the New Drug focuses solely on educating people--especially youth--about the harmful effects of pornography. People who stand with them are fighters. I am a Fighter.

Overall, I think people should not be won over by bouts of mass-propaganda. I do think one person makes a difference, and by choosing to make a difference in the lives of others that sphere of influence expands and overlaps with other people. We can make this world a better place. We can shape the future. We just have to find our book, our shine, our fight, and go with it.

Talent Show

So I am terribly remiss in posting this, considering the talent show of which I write occurred in JANUARY. Ahem, that aside, here it finally is and that's what really counts. Right? Right!

It all started with an email recruiting female teachers at the school I work at in South Korea. The guys generally participated, but they felt a little more estrogen was needed. And thus formed the OWP Girls dance troupe (not really, but we did a one night show...so that's something).

ANYWAY...back to the important part of the story, we decided to do a dance number. There were four of us in the group. Mary, Katherine, Lorelei, and me. We had nightly practices for three weeks and learned a K-Pop dance routine using the YouTube dance tutorial.

To get an idea of what we were trying to do you can watch the actual K-Pop group...

...and this is the tutorial we watched to learn the dance (well, one part of it, anyway).

The hours were long. There were room scheduling issues. And sometimes there were curse words (like the night before the performance when I broke my shoe). But in the end it was a lot of fun, and I'd do it all over again.

This video has our dance and the remaining portion of the talent show (don't worry, it's only 6 minutes long so it won't kill you).

Enjoy!

Bread and Soup Recipes

On Pinterest I just uploaded some pins of things I've made, and have received a request for the recipe I used when I made bread bowls and soup the other night. I'm not sure if it was for the bread bowls or the soup--so here are both!

First, the bowls are from a basic bread recipe that my mother uses *all* the time. Yield for this is four loaves; I quartered it for our bread bowls.

4 c warm water
3 T yeast
4 T sugar
2 T salt
1/4 c vegetable oil
10-12 c flour

Combine yeast, water, and sugar. Let sit until yeast proofs. Add salt and oil, and first 3-5 cups of flour. Slowly add the remaining flour about a cup at a time until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl, but is still a little sticky (I always have to touch to tell--if it looks shiny then it needs just a little more flour). Let the dough rest until it has doubled in size (usually an hour; I had other things to do, so I mixed the dough in the morning, covered it, and placed it in the fridge until the afternoon). On a lightly floured surface knead dough. Shape into loaves and place in prepared loaf pans (prepared meaning lightly oiled). Let the loaves rise (again, until doubled in size) then place into an oven preheated to 350 degrees F for 20 minutes.

For the bread bowls I obviously didn't use loaf pans, I just shaped them into round balls. Additionally, to make them more crusty I followed the steps located here. I don't own a baking stone, so I just used my tinfoil lined baking sheet and it worked just fine. I also glazed the dough with egg whites after I had made the slits/just before placing them in the oven.

The soup recipe is something I found here. But with a few modifications. I only add a splash of olive oil because I am not at all health-conscious and saute my onions in my bacon fat. However, it's not quite enough, hence the splash of olive oil. I've also found that the starch in the potatoes is MORE than enough to make the soup creamy, so I nix adding flour as well. One thing I absolutely stick to is adding the salt and pepper after removing the soup from the heat. It makes all the difference in the world.

Happy eating!

Changes

Spring is coming.

I can feel it.

Each morning as the sun rises a little earlier I feel the hope of Spring. I've even noticed the angle of the sun shining into our apartment is changing. I'm sure Adam grows weary with my constant pronouncements of the upcoming season, but I just can't help getting excited about it!

The season is not the only thing changing here in Korea. Last week I was selected to be the new Coordinator for the Special Programs division here at English Village. I feel very overwhelmed by all the things I have responsibility for, but I am hopeful that they will all turn out well. One might ask what a Coordinator does. With my job I'm a little bit scheduler, teacher-trainer, content-coordinator, supply chief, game developer, prize and certificate distributor, and assistant to the program's Head Teacher. Yeah. It's a lot of change.

The position was vacant because many teachers are finishing their contracts and leaving English Village. The change with their departure is palpable.  By the end of this month we will be down to 39 teachers (this may sound like a lot considering we aren't a traditional school, but when you also take into account that it used to be a force of over 100 it puts into clearer perspective how things are going). Many of those going have been the people who have defined life at English Village for me; I call them friends before I call them coworkers. Because I am selfish I am sad to see them go, but I am happy for the opportunities and possibilities that await them with their changes.

One of the benefits of people leaving is they sell stuff they can't/don't want to take with them. It was through such luck that we are now the proud owners of (much larger) small convection oven! I almost feel as though it deserves a name because of the inordinate amount of love I have for the simple little appliance. It was too late last night to make something for dinner after we installed it (read: cleared off space next to the microwave for it to sit), so it's inaugural use tonight was bread bowls for dinner.

Didn't they turn out lovely?

And another picture of them all dressed up!

Don't worry, it's ok to be jealous of how good it looks to eat cause it was divine ;)

I also finally decided I just couldn't take it anymore with the growing of the hair. Nobody but Adam knew I was going (ok, Jamie knew, too). 

Here is the last day with the long (for me!) locks. 

Aren't they awful? Yowza! This was taken just before I left for the salon.

And (drumroll for the big reveal...) the new haircut!

This was the immediate-post salon styling (can I just tell you that the head massage during the shampoo alone is worth the $30 I pay to go there? Mmmm...best part of my week so far). I'll have to pick up some pomade ASAP so I can get the funk back into it. I just about laughed out loud when the stylist finished and said, almost in surprise, "It looks much younger." I heard, "You don't have prematurely old-looking mom hair anymore!"

Hooray for change!

Gettin' Crafty!

FINALLY!

After, literally, months of crafting, waiting, searching for menial things, and eventual problem-solving I can post my living room renovation blog!

In fact, this has been so long in the making I have had to go to three different sources to find all the videos and pictures I have taken to document this process (this, of course, does not include any of the websites I will be referencing).

Ok, so our little apartment in Korea really is a great size for us right now (especially since we don't have all our stuff). But as any woman will tell you, a little bit of nesting has to happen no matter how small the space. Just a little something to make it "homey" and to make it really "ours." Not to mention, the stains on the walls that just won't come off really start to wear on you after a while (especially when they weren't your stains to begin with).

A relatively cheap and easy fix? PAINT! I also like to think of it as tennent-improvement-of-property. As you will see in the following I've made a few other minor additions (that took WAY more time and energy than they should have for how they turned out!), but by far the biggest difference has been made with a simple coat of paint.

My coworker and friend, Jennifer, came over the first Saturday in October (yes, I'm ashamed to admit, it's been THAT long) and in about 4 hours we were finished and I was taking tape back off the walls.

Here is a "before" video with the details...

And another with our "tools of the trade."

We listened to General  Conference, visited a little, and made quick work of it. I did all the edging, and Jennifer did all the rolling.

Here's the finished product!

Can you believe what a difference that made? It's been HUGE! For weeks, and sometimes still, I come out and feel like I've walked into someone else's apartment. Beside the great addition of color, it's so nice to feel like the walls are clean.

For additional accent we also placed a few vinyl clings on the walls.

(And, uh, PLEASE don't mind the mess...)

Another project, which I had actually started before, but did not complete until after the painting, was finding a suitable covering for the main light in our living room. All our lights are fluorescent and it's just a little too bright for the larger area.

While browsing through Pinterest I saw this really cool coffee filter lamp, and I thought, "I could do that!" Except I wasn't so comfortable permanently adhering coffee filters to our light fixtures, so I had to come up with a different way.

The first thing I wanted to do was stain the filters with a variety of colors so it would look more like stained glass. I chose to do green tea, and coffee (leaving the filters in for different amounts of time to let them absorb more or less color for lighter or darker hues).

There was only one problem. Coffee filters in Korea come in the unbleached form. Meaning? They're already brown. I decided to try coloring them anyway. And if it was all for naught, oh well!

Here are the filters in their varying stages.

The coffee water was pretty murky. I used about 10 packets of instant coffee in about 1 1/4 cups of water. Our apartment reeked of it for days.

The unfortunate truth is, it didn't really work. Oh well! Next it was time to figure out how to attach the filters to the fixture. Initially I tried double-sided sticky roll-on (I thought I was buying tape, it was my own fault for not checking more closely). It failed miserably. Especially when facing the air conditioner blowing at full speed.

So the coffee filter light filter came down for a while. Then I followed Adam's idea and chained them together using a stapler. Each chain was fixed to the next in three places. I then taped the chains securely to the fixture. It's both easy to remove when a light bulb burns out, and has a nice canopy/billowy effect (especially when the heat turns on and it blows!).

Next was something for my big wall. It was nice and clean and brown now. And very, very empty. Once again I was perusing Pinterest (see! People actually make stuff happen from that site, it's not just a soul-sucking waste of time!), and I found this...

It was simple, It made a statement. It was perfect. Why is it perfect, you may ask. Because it's made of toilet paper rolls and spray paint! I didn't have access to a cheap canvas from Michael's like the original crafter did, but I figured I could make do. And I knew I had access to spray paint and toilet paper rolls.

So for weeks I meticulously collected our empty rolls (honestly, I still find myself in the habit of wanting to keep them "just in case" I find something else really excellent to do with them) as well as paper towel rolls, since they're the same diameter and a bit longer.

For a background I had the ingenius idea to use the little boxes our packages of noodles came in, along with a couple of cereal boxes, and the final addition was the box our shoe rack came in. They were different lengths, heights, and depths. I figured it could be really cool to have them that way.

Finally, the day came to paint. I was going to spray the boxes white and the flowers/butterflies/what-have-yous brown.

Here are the photos from that day.

I was ready to roll! Until, that is, I realized in a very short period of time that my "white" spray paint was actually just a clear topcoat, and my toilet paper rolls needed much more than a single can of brown, as they quickly absorbed the entire thing.

If I were doing this again (at home, in English, where I know what things are) I would use a primer, as was suggested by the original crafter, to avoid using so much color on the toilet paper rolls. But that didn't solve my problem of the background. If that wasn't white, then there was no white to be found where I do my shopping.

A new plan was needed. And it took until Christmas Eve when Adam and I were wrapping our presents that I realized the embossable foil paper we bought would be perfect. So yesterday I picked up two more rolls at the store, two more cans of brown spray paint, and we were back in business.

I had agonized over the shape and design for a long time when I did the initial layout back in OCTOBER, so I just stuck with it as I was putting things together this time. Now, looking at the completed project, I think I would have played with the space on my wall a little differently. But I still like it.

The only problem was I didn't mirror the picture when I was assembling things from behind, so it actually turned out a reverse of the original design.

Alas here it is!

This last picture is how it looked in the morning light today, and it helped me to like it even more.

That's it! Renovation is complete!

Now, for some lucky little add-ons.

Last VIP Adam and I taught students a Western class where you make a horse's head with your foot, then add googly eyes, a triangle neck, and some yarn for a mane (notice that none of us got that far). I made one with a class, and so did he. Then a student gave her's to Adam, so we had a little horse family! Points if you can guess whose horse is whose!

Also, Christmas this year was pretty low key, but we decided to get a little taste of home (or close to it). Here's a little video of that as well. Enjoy!

The Truth About Bling

I am absolutely infatuated with my wedding ring. Sounds a bit vain and worldly, I know. But the truth is, it's absolutely perfect for me.

Photo courtesy of Ashwood Photography

I also adore my jeweler, Kristy at JK Jewelers. Her and her employee Ashley were wonderful at making sure I got exactly what I wanted and weren't afraid to tell me no, or give me more information so I could make the best decision for me.

Lately I've been receiving lots of compliments about my ring, and getting lots of comments on it as well. Grandma will be so upset I'm telling the world, but it's not something I'm ashamed of; in fact, it's something I think more people should know. So here goes.

I love the fire of a diamond. The way the facets work together to create a brilliance that can be altogether breathtaking. But when it came to getting a ring I knew the cut I wanted was extremely expensive because it's unique and difficult to get right. My solitaire ring features a 7 trillion. Because of it's shape it looks like it could probably be a 1.5 carat, but they're measured differently (again because of the unique shape). I started developing the concept behind my ring when I was 15 years old. That's a story for another time and place. Suffice it to say I wanted a solitaire trillion on a by-pass band (the band doesn't form a complete circle, it passes by the two parts that would complete the band).

As I grew up I was exposed to some seriously disconcerting information. First, I read the book A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah (you can read more about that here). I also watched the film Blood Diamond . What I read and heard stuck with me. So I did more research. 

Blood Diamond is not just a catchy movie title, it's a literal object.

The U.N. has some information, but you can see it hasn't been updated since 2001, and reads somewhat like ancient history. The truth is, the issues with blood diamonds are prevalent today, and are just as much a threat to peace and stability as they have always been. In spite of the Kimberley Certification Process Scheme (you can read more about that in this article on Wikipedia, as well as the on-going history of blood diamonds) of 2000 the blood has not ceased flowing for the sake of diamonds.

If you've bothered following any of these links you have learned that purchasing diamonds from non-certified countries supports drug and war lords who, in turn, run armies of children, cut off the limbs of individuals who will not help them, and use sexual abuse against children and women to gain their goals. Many of them seek for power and use vast stores of weapons and drugs to achieve their means.

You may think, "But I bought my jewelry from _______(insert national chain here)." They verify that their diamonds are conflict free." The sad fact is, diamonds are smuggled across borders from non-certified countries to certified countries, exported as their own (even though the numbers clearly do not add up for numbers mined versus numbers exported), are mixed with the conflict-free stones, and sold on the market. Congratulations, the drug/war-lord has been financed.

I am not saying that jewelers are the enemy, nor are people who purchase and like to wear diamonds. The enemy is greed and power. The enemy is a corrupt system which is willing to sacrifice human lives to line it's pockets with even more money. There are some  articles, like this one, dedicated to helping the concerned consumer try to purchase conflict-free diamonds. Yet there is no guarantee unless you mine the stone yourself (good luck with that).

After I learned all this I could not, in good conscience, buy a diamond ring. So I opted for the truly conflict-free alternative. My ring is set with a cubic zirconia. To any trained jeweler's eye it is easily recognizable. But most people who look at my ring would never know the difference. They are cost effective, they are conflict-free, and they are, for all intents and purposes, a spot on match for a real diamond. My stone has perfect cut, color, and clarity. Not to mention I was able to go big without breaking the bank. A real diamond with a slight inclusion, less-than perfect coloring, and half the size of mine costs over $6,000 USD.

Instead I have a virtually flawless copy that I can replace every one to two years for maybe $40 USD. I could replace it every year for the rest of my life and still not spend a fraction of what a real one would cost. And I know that nobody had to die so I could enjoy my sparkle. There is the age-old retort, "But it's not real." 

Well, here's what's real to me:

I work in a fairly global community. The English Village where I work in South Korea represents at least nine different countries. One co-worker, from a country rife with diamond conflict, overheard me talking about this and seemed surprised that I knew what I do, and cared enough to do something about it.

No. It's not real. And I can sleep with that.

Happenings

*Sorry for the lack of colors and such--I really think they make the blog more fun. But at this rate I was just glad to get it written and posted. Hopefully you will be, too!

Yeah. It's been nearly a month. No, I don't think I'm busier than anyone else. No, I don't have any excuses. I believe that time plays tricks on us all, and moves much faster than it seems.

I even uploaded videos about two weeks ago because I really wanted to post. They're still waiting (and will be dumped at the end of this blog for your viewing pleasure). And no, I still haven't finished my crafting projects. The store where I bought the paint redid their crafting area, and I don't even know if they carry what I need anymore. I'll have to check more closely when I have time and more money in the future (yeah...that distant, nebulous future which so quickly becomes the past).

Anyhoo, I explained how life has been going to a coworker like this today, and I think it sums it up nicely. The last four days have felt like the last four months were crammed into four days (ie, I was freakin' busy). An issue with over committing? Perhaps. It just seems that I'm destined to be busy with a million projects the last week in November whether I'm in school or not.

It's not the slideshow that I spent three hours working on that suddenly ceased to function in the middle of a closing ceremony that took the cake, or the entire day I literally (felt like I) couldn't do anything right. No, no. Not even the day we spoke in church, I forgot my talk at home on the kitchen table, the fire alarm went off during the opening hymn, and we taught a song we hardly knew on the fly to fill up time in primary that is the catalyst for this. Although, in a way, I suppose they are all contributing factors.

No, this can all be traced back to a two hour time slot on Friday night. You see, we're very exciting people.  Friday night we split a cab with our friend Brandon and took off for a neighboring town for a Friday night filled with dinner and...grocery shopping. Like I said, we're very exciting people (no offense, Brandon. You are not included in that "we." Unless, of course, you want to be. Then you are, and you're welcome.). I called a taxi and within a few minutes we were on our way. We talked a little about whether we planned to eat at the Popeye's (which, I have been informed, is not a "real" Popeye's, it's "Korean Popeye's") located inside Emart (the store where we were going shopping) during the drive, but didn't decide anything. Once we arrived Brandon asked what we planned to do, I wanted to check the time to see if we wanted to arrange doing some shopping before eating. My phone wasn't in my coat. It wasn't in my pants pocket. And it dawned on me. It was in the taxi.

I abandoned my cart (and purse) to run outside to see if the taxi was still there (thanks for babysitting it, Brandon!). Alas, it was not. We decided that acting fast would be the most likely thing to get it returned. But Adam didn't have the taxi company phone number. As we were dialing the number we saw on another taxi a kindly man came forward and, I'm guessing, asked us if I left my purse in the taxi. I could understand he asked if the taxi brought us from the English Village and we said yes. He called, I'm assuming, the taxi dispatch and told them what happened. We gave them my number so they knew which cab took the call, and we gave them Adam's number so they could call us back. Except we weren't sure of Adam's number and gave them the wrong one. Fortunately, we were able to correct that minor oversight rather quickly.

The cab driver called back and said that, rather than make an extra trip back to Emart to give us the phone we should call him directly when we were finished shopping, and he would return the phone and take us back. We agreed, and went inside and did our shopping. Apparently he got a little antsy waiting and called Adam two or three times and yelled at him in Korean. Needless to say, it was rather stressful. We finally made it back outside, and Adam declared that he could not speak to the cabbie. So I called. I pieced together what little Korean I know and he said "Nay, nay." and hung up on me (in this sense it means, "yeah, yeah." As in, "Ok, I know.") Our kindly helper was there again and asked if the cab was coming. As he tried to call the other man pulled up. My phone! Our ride! Hooray!

Once we climbed in I searched for my phone. I could not find it. Nor could Adam. Brandon, who was sitting in the front seat found it in the center console between him and the driver. The driver snatched it back and said, "No handepone. You pay." and held up one finger. So I tried to give him 1,000 won (roughly $1). He swore and made a disgusted sound, and said, "No. One hundred!" If I knew how to flatly refuse in Korean I would have, but I didn't. So I offered him 10,000 and he was appeased.

In case you were wondering, cab fare from where we live to Emart is just under 8,000 won. It was highway robbery. On the flip side, it is not unheard of for taxi drivers to take the things they find and sell them to people for money. So, in the long run, I was really lucky.

And now, some videos...

Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to teach a group of 5 and 6 year olds. They were freaking adorable.

Adam took me out for my birthday...this is what he looked like to me all night.

The Bloomin' Onion with a Korean twist.

A mini "choco" cake to round off a birthday feast!