 Christmas dinner of orphaned soldiers here in Korea |
After that I just listened to music and relaxed for the better part of the day. I was able to video chat with my wife for a long time as well. Then the young hawaiian sent me a message via Facebook saying that he was here in Korea. We met up and hung out for quite a while at the food court, then I came back to show him what my room looks like. I also let him borrow a copy of the original Tron movie because we are planning on watching the new one at the movie theatre tomorrow. He was full of questions just like I was when I got here. I answered most of them, but each unit is different and because my job is so different than what I think a normal 25B job is he may find things different when he starts. He's excited though and says he already loves it here. He's already talking about staying for 2 years through AIP. (If a soldier signs up through AIP they agree to stay for a longer term and get paid an extra $300 a month for doing so. You can choose either 2 or 3 years instead of the mandatory 1 year).
Friday (Christmas Eve): It's Christmas Eve…didn't realize it until I saw someone post it on Facebook. Being here in Korea without family makes it just another day, but at least I don't have to work. I met up with the a terminator from basic (who also went to AIT with me…we'll call him PVT Pickle) and also the young hawaiian at the food court. We hung out there for a bit and then went to the movies to go see the new Tron. After watching the original last night it was pretty amazing to see how far movies have come with special effects. They were able to make Jeff Bridges look 20 years younger for one of the characters in the movie. Everything else was well done too. I thought the movie was pretty good, but because of all the hype it's been getting everyone else thought it was just OK because their expectations were set a little too high.
When we left the theatre it was 16 degrees out! We quickly made out way back to the barracks. I ate in mine while the others went to the DFAC. Later on the young hawaiian called and asked if I wanted to play a little basketball. I can never turn down a game of basketball…good PT and it's fun too. I also had to show the kid this old man still has a little game left in him. We ended up playing 21 with a few other guys that were at the gym. It was getting late so there weren't too many people there. I guess that and it happens to be Christmas Eve.
After playing my feet felt like they were on fire. When I got back to the barracks I found out why. I had two big blisters that popped on my feet. It's a little hard to walk around now. I think I may need to get some real basketball shoes instead of playing in my running shoes!
Saturday (Christmas Day): It sure doesn't feel like Christmas. No Christmas music, no tree, no decorations, no family. I can relate to those who get depressed around the holidays. Here in Korea without family it's just another day. Like every other Saturday I woke up and did laundry. I did a little Rosetta Stone and then video chatted with my wife for a while, then took a nap. I woke up and listened to some music, then went to dinner with the young hawaiian and one of his buddies. We decided we should go out and have a nice Christmas dinner since none of us had family here. The dinner was a buffet at the Black Angus on base and it was awesome!
Sunday: A pretty lazy day. I had thought about heading straight to the PX and picking up a space heater. The heat in the barracks just stopped working for some reason yesterday. All it would do was blow out cold air. This morning it started to work again so I'll put off the purchase for now…and it's $42! It's so cold out it just seeps into the room and it gets quite cold, but at least I can layer with my clothing and there is no wind blowing.
I did purchase a pair of basketball shoes though. The running shoes just weren't cutting it. My feet were pretty messed up! I was able to video chat with my wife and her family a bit today and then had the young hawaiian come over and visit for a bit. After that I watched a few movies "Never Back Down" a good flick for any MMA or UFC fans out there...kind of like a modern Karate Kid, then "A Nightmare on Elm Street". I remember seeing the original so many years ago and having it scare the heck out of me. This one goes back to the beginning and shows how Freddy Krueger became the monster he is now. It was OK, but nothing to keep for my collection. Plus my wife doesn't care too much for horror flicks.
My KATUSA roommate came back tonight after going home for the entire four day. He also brought with him a huge stash of Korean snack food. There are all kinds of chips, cookies, and top ramen type dishes. I'm so looking forward to trying them all out, but dinner tonight was a pizza pocket in the microwave…and some licorice for the movies!
Tomorrow is back to work for short days and a short week.
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