Chaos...success...bliss and blessed.

Chaos is moving into my new place after a week of continuous job searching and interviews. On Friday, my dad, his coworker (Cha) and my cousin came from Busan to help me move in. They came by train but a delivery truck brought a bunch of my dad's furniture, linens, dishes and things for me to use. Most of Friday was spent going back and forth from the grocery store to the apartment, buying essentials such as a coffeemaker, rice cooker, toaster, cleaning supplies...that sorta thing. When we weren't at E-Mart, we were scrubbing the floors and walls and throwing away all the stuff the previous tenant left.

Success is when, after a long day's hard work, things start coming together. Around 8 p.m., the apartment was finally looking like a possible living quarter--the bed was assembled, the bathroom was cleaned and the kitchen was organized. There was still plenty to do but with everyone's help, it was getting done a lot faster than I could have ever done on my own. The following day, I met up with my dad and Cha again at the apartment to get back to work. We put the curtains up, hung the artwork and assembled the desk and dining table. By lunch, it was coming together all so well that I even imagined myself sleeping there that night (even without a mattress).

By Saturday night, it was all bliss. With just a few more additions, the apartment was finally livable so my dad and I met up with my cousins, Jimmy and Ji-Hye, for dinner in Insadong. Cha met up with us later at the restaurant, where we enjoyed delicious bulgogi (shredded beef) and grilled fish. It had been 5 or 6 years since I saw Jimmy last, so it was really nice to see her for the first time since I've been here. After dinner, my dad and Cha went back to Busan and Jimmy, Ji-Hye and I walked through Insadong, Myeongdong and ended up in Hongdae. Because the traditional lantern festival has just begun, people fled the streets last night and we couldn't go anywhere without being shoulder-to-shoulder to the person next to us. The lantern festival was beautiful though and I'd love to go back later this week for some more exploring.

[Jimmy and Ji-Hye in Insadong]

[Me and Ji-Hye]

[Lots n lots of people...]

[The lantern festival brought thousands to the streets]

[Ji-Hye and Jimmy]

[In Hongdae]

Blessed is right now, as I'm sitting in my quiet new apartment after the chaos of this weekend, marveling at how kind and absolutely wonderful everyone has been to me. With my family and Cha dropping their weekend plans to help me move in and my friends offering whatever they can to make my life easier, I feel like this is all a dream. I mean, really, what have I done to deserve such love?

It's a beautiful thing...I choke up thinking about how much outpouring of love there has been in my life. A big fat THANK YOU to everyone!!

I hope you're weekend was wonderful too...I heard it was a hot one there in California :)

Oh, and one more thing...

[This is what happens when you invite friends over for dinner
but you don't have chairs for them to sit on...]