Kimchi, not for me

I have been incredibly busy. Last week I had a meeting with my boss to iron out some details - when I woudl be leaving my current apartment, when they would be giving me my severence pay, etc. Long (and I do mean L-O-N-G) story short, I ended up having to move 99% of my possessions yesterday, because I have to be out of my apartment Friday evening. This was rather frustrating, not to mention short-notice, but flexibility and adaptability are two major things I am continuing to learn. My friend had to call and reschedule the movers for me, and then I thought maybe she had reserved a vehicle too small for me to take the bookshelf and chair I wanted to take. But that was okay...she was doing SO much to help me, and really it's just furniture. Not a big deal. Thanks to Kylie, I got nearly everything packed Wednesday night. I had to keep back a few pairs of clothes, the dog's kennel, and a few other small things. So the movers were to come Saturday at 11:00. At 10:15 my friend called and said that I had to have all my stuff downstairs and outside at 11:00. It would cost more for the guy to actually help me carry stuff downstairs. And so began the trips up and down the stairs. I live on the fourth floor. I had maybe six boxes (most of them small-ish, full of books, and heavy), one of my suitcases (the other one died), two Costco bags of loose stuff too bulky for boxes, and four kitchen-sized garbage bags full of clothes. (I know, ghetto packing.) I dunno exactly how many trips it took, but I had to stop in the middle and eat some tuna, as I hadn't eaten anything and my body had no fuel and I was starting to become shaky. The guy arrived right at 11:00, we loaded up, and headed out. Christine and Natalie were there to help unload and (miracle of miracles!) there's an elevator at the new apartment, so we just put everything in the elevator and then dumped it all out on the third floor and carried it into the apartment.

And so my new apartment...first of all, it has a bathtub. (And there was much rejoicing.) There's a real chance that that is where I'll spend the next two weeks and start my new job looking like an overgrown white raisin.

Anyway, the apartment is great. I'm really excited about living there. It's a much more residential area than where I currently live. The actual area is impossible to explain, so you'll just have to wait until I finish moving everything over (this coming Friday) and I'll take some pics and upload them. Of course...I don't know exactly when I'll be getting internet at the new place. I need to find out about that soon.

So my old job is finishing up. This is my last week. I got a two-page letter from my favorite student on Friday that made me cry a little. I'll maybe either take a picture of it, or type it on here later. I still have a lot of work to do (as in paperwork). And this week is so busy. I have to go over to my new job in the morning to sign something, and it takes an hour to get there and back. Then go to my old job. Tuesday I'm going to go to the amusement park about five minutes from my house that I've somehow not gone to up to this point. Wednesday night I was supposed to go to the airport with my boss to pick up my replacement teacher, but I had to change that because the cat-sitters have to come over to pick up the cat, and Wednesday night is the only time I can do it. So we're going to have dinner and talk, then they'll take Claude and all his necessary belongings home with them where he'll live for two weeks. (My future roommate's sister is coming to visit during the next two weeks and she is severely allergic to cats.) Thursday night is a combination goodbye party for me and welcome party for the new teacher. Then Friday, as soon as my K-7 class is finished at 3, I come here, finish packing, and head out around 3:45 to the new place.

Meanwhile, I only got THREE hours of sleep last night, due in part to the pain in my neck and shoulders because of the muscles I pulled moving, and partly because my mind was going a million miles a minute. I'm exhausted right now, but trying to keep myself awake until 8:00, when I'm going to sleep. I'll have to leave my house between 6:30-7:00 tomorrow to get on the subway to go to the new job, and plus I just need the rest. Also the pastor of my church asked me to share a little bit about how the small group I am in has affected my life. There are quite a few people that attend the English ministry I go to, definitely in the multiple hundreds. I was nervous, but did okay. I made people laugh (with me, not at me...I swear).

And that's it for now. I probably won't be able to post again until after I'm moved, but look forward to pictures of the new place!