It tasted as bad as it looks.

I think they are silkworms.  Old ladies always fry them in giant pans on the street.  People buy a cup full and eat them with toothpicks.  They smell awful.

Before I came to Korea, I told myself, "I will try everything at least once because it is okay to not like something if you've tried it, but it is not okay to not like something without trying it."  I ate octopus that was still moving and enjoyed it.  I always walk by these silkworms and gag a little, so I had low expectations for them.

The worst part was the texture.  The outside was hard, and when you crunch down on it an explosion of moist, chalky, dirt-tasting goop fills your mouth.

I hated it.  But, hey! Now I can say that I've tried it.

North Korea, you so crazy.

We all know its true.  Check out this link to see just how crazy they are.  Their attack on Yeonpyeong this week exemplified their craziness.  North Korea unleashed a barrage of artillery shells on the small island injuring many and killing 4.  The attack, which the North vows they won't hesitate to repeat, supposedly occurred because they were pissed that South Koreans were firing near the border during training.

I had never heard of the island, so I immediately Googled it the moment I heard about the attack.  It is relatively far from me, but I say 'relatively' because nothing is really that far away when you consider the whole country is about the size of Indiana.

This is pretty scary stuff, especially considering the nuclear plant that was unveiled earlier this month.  Recently, a Stanford professor, Siegfried Hecker, was taken on a tour of the new uranium enrichment plant in North Korea, which is for *cough* "nuclear power" *cough*

The basketball-loving dictator Kim Jong-Il is crazy and old.  Some people theorized that the attack had something to do with his son, Kim Jong Un, taking over for him soon.  When the first picture of Kim Jong Un since he was an adolescent was released this year, people thought that the baby-faced/plastic-surgery-faced 26 year old didn't look capable of leading the country.  Maybe this attack was to show that he is the real deal.  

Look out world

Halloween at BIS

Halloween is by far my least favorite holiday.  I don't like the idea of getting scared just because it is "fun".  I don't like the evil and darkness associated with the holiday.  It is just stupid, and I've never looked forward to Halloween.  

So, I was glad to hear that it is not a big deal in Korea.  Trick or Treating isn't allowed (which is unfortunate for the kids since they could go to one high rise apartment building and hit up 300 apartments).  

I was, however, excited when the Korean staff told us that class would be canceled so we could have a Halloween party.  Hooray Halloween!!! 

I'll admit I was really excited to see our cute little kids dress up.  We were encouraged to dress up and scare the students.  I've never been one for costumes, so I went as myself.... but with a mustache.  

Convincing kids that my jet black mustache that I "forgot to shave this morning" was real was surprisingly and satisfyingly easy. 

The most pissed off ghost you'll ever see

A dragon picking its nose

A witch? With yellow hair?

Thankful for Life

A year ago today I almost died.

Some friends and I went to see one of my favorite bands, Bishop Allen, in concert about 3 hours away from Hillsdale.  There were six of us packed like sardines into a friend's Ford Escape.  Buried under the seat, the seat belts in the backseat were determined unnecessary for the leisurely drive back to Hillsdale on Michigan's lonely roads.  It was very late.  We were exhausted.  I sat in the middle of the backseat trying to sit in the most comfortable way my disproportionately long legs would allow.  

I drifted asleep.

Suddenly, I felt my body aggressively tossed to one side.  I heard shouting.  I heard more shouting as I flew to the other side.  I felt the car roll.  I heard smashing glass and crushing metal.  My eyes were still sealed shut.  I had no idea where I was in the car, but by this moment I had opened my eyes and saw the ground in a position it shouldn't be when you look out the windshield.  I remember thinking, "Okay, I am going to die now."  Oddly, I was not afraid.  I just accepted that, yes, this is how I was going to die.  It was going to happen any moment.  What was it going to feel like?  Why hadn't it happened yet?  The car kept tumbling.  Finally, we skidded to a stop on its roof. 

Within thirty seconds we were all out of the car miraculously.  Per Hollywood, we dashed away from the upside-down remains of a vehicle that we surely thought would ignite into flames and explode.  I got on the phone with 911, and we were in an ambulance within 15 minutes.  

We had hit a deer, rolled and subsequently totalled the car, and were lucky to be alive.  We spent the night in the hospital and were thankful to only sustain minor injuries.   

All of us were sore for the next few days.  We were pretty shaken up.  It took us awhile to not feel anxious in a car.  But the accident strengthened the bond between all of us.  I am so glad to have these dear friends in my life.  And I am so thankful for life itself!  I wouldn't be here in the Orient if things turned out differently that night.

Everyone who was in the accident: Paige, Joel, Shawn, Britton, and Kaylyn

How could you not be happy to be alive when you hear this song?