Update #2

The aftermath is heartbreaking. We lost a BSU professor in this fire. I just feel sadness and thankfulness today. Here is how close our home came:





Story here.

Update

10 houses lost and 9 more damaged. It looks like one person lost their life. Our street was spared. If I were standing in my front yard I could see the burning homes up on the rim. I have always admired those homes...very big and lovely. Many times we walked our dog up and down that street admiring the homes. Now it looks like a war zone. This is the worst housing fire Boise has ever seen.
The good news is that the community is rallying to support those who are misplaced from their homes.

One of my greatest fears in leaving my first home was that something disastrous would happen in my absence. I realize that even if I were there, there is nothing I could have done. I do hate being so far away from friends and loved ones and feeling so helpless over here in Korea; I still worry about my neighbors. But I am thankful that we are safe.

4 alarm fire in our neighborhood

Update:
Our street is directly below the ridge that is on fire. All of our neighbors have evacuated. The news mentioned that our homes should be safe. Whew.....keeping my fingers crossed that the winds don't pick up again.


KTVB.COM

I was just informed that my neighborhood in Boise is on fire. It's a very serious 4-alarm fire. My house is not burning as of yet but according to what I can see on the news it is very close to my home.
Please pray for no-one to get hurt and for our home to be spared.

Go fly a kite!

Andy brought a two line 2 meter kite to Korea to polish his flying skills. We hope to one day take up Kite boarding on the snow as a hobby.

This particular kite is .....how shall I put it?....violent to work with. I have seen it drag Andy across a parking lot. I have nightmares that the kite just takes off with me...so needless to say I am a bit scared of it. I am trying to be a good sport though. Here are pictures from a fun kiting day we shared with my cousin Ryan.
Me launching the kite.


Andy and Ryan untangling the kite.
This day was one of the first monsoons we experienced in Korea and as you can see, everything is very wet.
It was also a very windy day which made flying the kite extra challenging.
My arms were getting tired picking up the big wet kite so Ryan took over the launching and he and Andy made a great team.

Yep, that's my cuz!


Yay....it's up and flying!


I couldn't resist including this picture of Ryan and Andy exploring the weird creatures crawling amongst the rock.

Hot and Steamy rain...

Here is a video of a monsoon we had a few weeks back. It rained like this for two days straight and our street was a river.
Personally, I really love rain like this but it didn't do much to alleviate the heat.
It rained like this for a short time today.

We have been in Korea for 3 1/2 months, I can't believe how fast time is flying.
Andy is busy with "War Games" this week so I haven't seen much of him and I miss him.
Our landlord sprayed a ton of pesticides in our yard....without telling us and so consequently Chicane has been sick. I have a very week constitution when it comes to gross and smelly things so incidentally there is a pile of puke waiting to be cleaned up. This happened a few days ago and it literally took me 5 hours to clean it up. Yes, go ahead laugh....just get it out of your system. I may have to leave this one for poor Andy.
I am still fighting some kind of mysterious illness. I am convinced that it is environmental because I was sick like this when we lived in the deep South which has a similar climate. I have been having prolonged headaches and fevers accompanied with extreme fatigue. Gosh darn it all!

Other than that I have been busy with my tatting endeavors. I thank God for the online tatting community. I have so many dear friends looking out for me, it makes me feel so loved!

I am anxiously awaiting cooler weather. I just feel with cooler weather, I might get my energy level back up and will feel like exploring Korea more....which will lead to more posts for you to laugh at.

Oh Dear God....I am MELTING!

Do you want to know what it is like living in S. Korea? It's like living 2 doors down from the SUN! Imagine yourself in a sauna room with your clothes on, lots and lots of pollution and a putrid dead cat thrown in for good measure....WELCOME to my world!
I have had the worst headache ever for the last 4 days. God did not build me for hot climates; I'm a snow angel. Heat literally makes me very ill.. So here we are.
Now that I got that gripe out of my system I will share something much more pleasant.

It's called EVERLAND and it's kinda like Korea's version of Disney Land. It's about a 40 minute drive from where we live. We bought season's passes so that we can go anytime we want. They have roller coasters, a safari, a zoo, a giant movie theatre and lot's of other stuff that we will share over time.
Today I'd like to share our favorite part.....the animals! You can get really close to the animals at this zoo. I especially love the monkey's and the birds. The birds are just out in the open. You can reach out and touch them if you aren't afraid of their beaks. Here is a few pics in no particular order:







Click on picture to read the sign....seriously you can't make this stuff up!