White Day After Christmas

Well, I almost got it. A dusting of snow this morning appeared. It wasn't especially cold. But it is the day after Christmas in Korea and I got my White Christmas, sorta. It is Christmas today in California.
Just a quick update. I am still here, blog writing, but the business of preparing for the holiday kept me from my laptop. Now for clean up and a big nap. Clean up is mostly done. Nap still in order. Being this is Christmas Night, I hope you had a blessed holiday. Looking forward to the year's end and 2016! Much Love and Smiles, Leticia :)

Snow Flurries

It came upon a winter's day. Snow! My first snow living in snow country. The billowy flakes blew around in pillowy drifts. With so much excitement, I felt like a kid on my first adventure in the snow. Being warm inside the house watching the snow like tiny popcorn float down and cover everything in white was one thing.  Heading out in the cold was another. Bundling up to go outside to play was a process of patience.
On the first day, Miranda and Baby Nathaniel and I went for a snow walk. The excitement of my first snow was so refreshing breathing in the cold air and exhaling frost mist. When the girls came home from preschool, Nate and I stayed inside protected from the cold outside while Aurora and Francesca played in the snow wearing their mittens, snow bibs, jackets, hats and scarves protecting them. I watched from the window with warmth in my heart witnessing mother and daughters joyously playing in the cold snow.
On the second day, two adults, two toddlers and one baby ventured outside for a snow picnic. The bundling process again and I was always the last one ready. The girls were on an adventure to find snow beans. Lola, my grandma name, carried the snow food and a bulky canister of holiday popcorn. The Korean Cultural Center was a short distance down the road and we walked along frozen and melting snow through the neighborhood with houses scattered amongst frozen rice paddies. Everywhere you looked was draped in white. At the Center we set up under an awning with our blanket. The snow beans, a bag of holiday mint M & M's, were found after mom had flung them over the previously green lawn and we ate our picnic snacks. No one sat down because of the cold and because of the lure of expansive snow available to make fresh tracks was irresistible. I couldn't stop running around and trying to make snow hearts with my boots. The Center had holiday music playing and I couldn't have been happier dancing in the snow while the tiny flakes descended on my face. After gleaning the perfect icicle, I was surprised to find the icy treat was sharp when I pierced my tongue. "Could this be the perfect murder weapon?" That was my daughter's input.
While the exhilaration of my first snow was rejuvenating, snow excitement runs it's course. First the snow gets dirty and melts into black ice which makes walking difficult because of the fear of finding my rump in a heap of snow or worse in a puddle of muddy freezing water. Then as the snowing stops its starts to melt making even more mud.  The next day, when the sun came out I began to wonder, if the snow had all been a dream with little reminders of the fun we had had the day before.
No worries for me. I'm in South Korea until January and the hope that I'll get my first White Christmas will be a dream come true.

The Very Beginning

Well where did this all begin? When I was a kid there was a book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorist that was a Garcia family favorite. Alexander's days were so bad he was forever moving to Australia. Evidently problems didn't exist in Australia. In my childhood home, if you voiced you were moving to Australia, everyone knew to stay out of your way, especially mom's. As a mother with my children, I was constantly moving to Australia. Now that I have grandchildren in Korea, I would be moving there. Clearly, problems didn't exist in Korea either. Sometime in October, after a harrowing experience with a frienenemy, in a text, I bemoaned to my daughter, if I could move to Korea. Sure she said. So, I was ready to leave. I had had enough crappy days in California, I thought. The idea of me moving to Korea had been bandied about with my daughter since my grandson was born in Spring, so it wasn't just, "I'm outta here," decision. I couldn't make a permanent move, but I could do two months. So without much hemming and hawing, I put in for a leave of absence from work and gave my 30 day notice to give up my apartment. So that's the beginning. Really life in California was pretty wonderful. The opportunity to live with my grandchildren abroad was a chance in a lifetime according to my other daughter. So here I am just getting into the routine of babies with colds and laughter with Lola, my grandma name. The laughter part you can't just bottle. You have to be here. I'm glad I am.

Inchoeon Airport, Seoul, South Korea

It's December already, if you are in Korea like I am. I made it! (Ignore the above date. I wrote it last night, but I'm posting this today, December 1, 2015. We are a day ahead in Korea.) The trip from San Francisco to Seoul was pretty uneventful. Lost a wheel from my carry-on somewhere on the last leg of the journey. I still managed. The best part was finding out when I arrived in Inchoeon Airport, that my doctor son-in-law was called into the hospital and he would not be able to pick me up from the airport. So I had to take the hour and half long shuttle to Songtan. No problem, I had done it when I was here in September. The fun began when I boarded the bus and a young woman was in my assigned seat. I had to wave my hand in front of her screen to get her attention as my English words would not suffice. I showed her my seat number and she exclaimed in Korean and pointed towards the back of the bus. I had seat number 2 and I really didn’t want to find an unassigned seat in the back. I then had to get the bus driver’s attention flapping my hand in front of his face. I showed him my ticket with the seat number 2. He then exclaimed in Korean to the young woman and she begrudgingly got up. While that was happening, a mother and daughter were trying to get into their seats I was blocking while trying to negotiate my assigned seat. The mother exclaimed in Korean and my inept hand signals did nothing to quell her complaints. A people jam took place. More Korean exclamations! I finally pushed the young woman with all her packages over enough for me to get through; she didn’t seem to take notice that I physically pushed my way through. With the flow of traffic moving again a man who was waiting to board the bus queried the bus driver as to what was the hold up? Even though I don’t understand Korean, I understood the bus driver to say that the women were having issues. The man gave an acknowledgment like he knew full well what was causing all the commotion. Ah, women and their cat fights. I was amused. 

Fly-Fi

I'm up in the clouds and somehow I fancy I'm a writer by blogging somewhere, well I really don't know where. We could be over Africa for all I know. Oh wait! I've got Fly-Fi and it shows a little airplane at the bottom of the screen airborne from left to right moving closer to my destination. It appears I am over halfway to San Francisco where I'll have a 13 hour layover before embarking on my trip abroad. Oh this is hogwash. You don't want to hear about the dog aboard or my snoring seat partner - now where did I put my earplugs? - or my other mate who won't make eye contact. Or how I needed to take off my contacts and flung one over into the seat pocket in front of me and how I actually found it. Now that I have my real eyes, I can see what I am writing. I think I have more astute musings in my head. I keep promising past updates and I shall get to them. In this case, the muse takes time to muse. I shall pick up some of those stories, I promise, in the next blog. Now I'll go back to my movie and look for my ear plugs.

Leaving Boston

Woke up early this morning ready to get ready for my flight on Jet Blue to San Francisco. I think I have everything for the12 hour plane ride to Seoul, South Korea- two movies, more iTunes music, my meds. I've checked in. Figuring out how to get everything in my carry on that I brought will be a fun challenge. My daughter and I went to Burlington Mall and bought my cold weather boots with a consult from Micquie and with the expertise of the shoe doctor Michelle. That was the most important item on my list to procure while on the East coast. Score!

I'm finding this boring to write. I really want to say, "I am ready to go to Korea!"

I'll fly into SFO and my boyfriend will get me on my next flight on Singapore Airlines- I have a 13 hour layover. Then I'm off to South Korea and I will be back in California in January.

I still need to fill in more stories of My New Adventure. My East Coast pics are on Facebook and I need to figure out how to put them on my blog. I have a 12 hour flight to make that happen. Thanks for all the prayers. I am blessed and I am grateful for all the people- family, friends and guardian angels who have gotten me this far. Much Love, Smiles :)

Female Nomad

I'm a nomad now after giving up my apartment. Today i'm in Boston for Thanksgiving with my daughter Micquie. I'll then be in South Korea for the holidays with my daughter Miranda and three grandkids. Then back to California in January for three doctor's appointments and will couch surf with mom in Fremont. Hopefully, I'll find a place to call my own home soon after that and then get my cat back back. "Mijo" is in Castro Valley in a foster home. Life is precious and although this has been hard, it is my new adventure. My doctor said I was brave and made sure I had all my meds for the trip abroad. God is good and my future is in hands. I have so much prayer support from all around. So much more for my story. I am starting my blog today and I will bring it up to date soon. Right now i need to get ready to go to Pilmouth Plantation somewhere in Mass. to celebrate Thanksgiving and then to my daughter's in-laws in Cape Cod for more pumpkin pie and Linda's Chocolate Cream Pie. Happy Thanksgiving and God Bless.