Thomas journals

Attending new staff orientation all this week.  Tech Tuesday includes a self-made photo-tour that allows us to use the school's cameras with the school's MacBooks and iPhoto, to make this slideshow

Friday around Seoul, with our tour guide Asst.Principal Garman.  He relished the opportunity to show people around the neighborhood, and guided us to the office of Santa Fe Relocation – the company shipping our household goods from Saudi and from Ossining – so we could sign the papers.  Then a walk down InSaDong shopping street, an upscale pedestrian mall of art galleries, handicrafts, and street vendors. We watched young vendors demonstrate the making of spun-honey sweets, called Dragon's Beard. They were very cute, so we bought a 7-dollar box of sweets, not that delicious, but it was a great performance!    He also took us to our new apartment: 3 (small) bedrooms, 1 and a half bathrooms, a tiny laundry room, and a large central kitchen/family space.  It is a "floor-through" apartment, with glassed-in balconies on both sides so we get good cross-ventilation.  The weather is pretty hot and sticky these days.  We will move in tomorrow.

Arrived at Seoul, after helpful and happy times with various family and friends in Texas, New York, and California.  We departed Seal Beach at the crack o'dawn for a quick van ride before rush-hour to Santa Ana airport, then a short flight to San Francisco to take United's flight 93 to Incheon Airport at Seoul.  School administrators met us, and some other new staff all arrived around the same time, so we could together ride in to town, to the Capital Hotel for a brief debriefing and lots of rest.  A few of us new folks joined for dinner at a nearby Korean Noodle restaurant.   No pictures yet.

A few days stopover with Barb's parents in Seal Beach, for some final touches of shopping and packing. Dinner with Luke and Grace Kim, receiving gratefully their good wishes, and their lists of contacts in Seoul.  Meeting with Meg and Lyle at The Hangout and Wahoo Fish Tacos for farewells. To Fry's for a quick purchase of an Obi100 phone router that allows me to connect a telephone to answer my Google-Phone from any internet connection.  It really works! Departing early tomorrow for real.

The Ogden family arrived for a weekend at SpringHill Suites in Tarrytown-- sisters came to help sort and view the fashion show of winter clothing. Sister Jaime is famous for the expression “It'll be fun!” – in this case, it was fun gathering together for meals and family stories. We also treasured worship at  Pleasantville Presbyterian Church  -- Jeff and Cole sang in the summer choir, too.  Pastor Debbie commissioned us for our upcoming mission service in Korea.

Bible Study at Lake Stahahe (A journal entry from a day at Camp Jefferson) It was HOT in the cabin when we arrived, 80 degrees outside and humid. I opened up all openable windows, ran the fan, and slept out on the covered porch very comfortably. We woke at first light, put towels over our faces and dozed until 9 AM, when wakened by a cell phone call! Breakfast, more phone calls, then down the new shorter dock. Jeff swam while Barb sunbathed and enjoyed some time "in the Word." The shorter dock now puts water entrance in tall lake weeds and "gunk" from decaying lilypads. (sad face) Lots of fish jumping and one turtle sighting (I swear he was checking US out.) Canada geese swimming past Blueberry Island and tons of mating dragonflies. The daycamp kids are having a ball at former Camp Wabinaki. We'll see what other camps are in use on a boat ride later when it cools off. The hills are verdant and lush. Clouds rolling in - rain later? Toni Tucker Hearn called - ...

July 5 th Ossining waterfront featured a sunset concert where we enjoyed a picnic. Jazz combo with KJ Denhert played wonderfully, illustrating the pleasant weather and sunset over the Hudson River. We saw some old acquaintances, and shared dinner with the D'attores.  Afterward the village showed an outdoor movie at the fence of SingSing Prison 20000 years in SingSing .  We watched for a while;  it was a bit eerie to see a watchtower in the 80-year-old movie, then turn to see the original watchtower in real life. Days in Ossining packing and repacking suitcases, retrieving and organizing boxes in the attic at Hudson View Hill – fortunately the renters went away for the weekend, so we spend Saturday and much of Sunday in the hot hot attic.  Winter clothes were our primary target, but it gave us opportunity to sort and discard other papers and photos and books, as well as select more items to ship to Korea.   In the end, we relieved the attic of a dozen bo...

Fourth of July came and went.  We missed the fireworks.  But Jan favored us with her famous federal-holiday homemade-ice-cream treat the night before -- what a nice sendoff!  (I added the photo to the album linked to the previous posting) We flew to White Plains by 9pm, got rental car, drove to our one-night-stand at Marriott Courtyard (thank you, Priceline.com!); the next day we went to friends' house at Pleasantville, for their hospitable in-law apartment.  Interestingly, we forgot to ask for their house wi-fi password, so we went to the local library to review e-mail!

Friday we drove with my father and Cole up to Austin to visit Chris at his nice new apartment. The adults stayed over with family friends Kohos and reminisced about old times in Israel and Beavercreek. Click to see some photos Saturday we returned to San Antonio in order to get Father back for his Sunday church service at Castle Hills First Baptist, as it would be the patriotic JulyFourth service. We were happy to get him out of the house for his first overnight-away in many years. It was also a chance to get Chris back to San Antonio for an overnight, as he has spent all summer studying in Austin. We all returned to Austin Sunday morning in time for breakfast at famous Kerbey Lane Cafe, and then to attend St.Austin Catholic Church with Chris, noting the similarities in the liturgy particularly to our recent Episcopal services.