Hello From a PC Bong and some New Year's resolutions

It seems my Korean phone not working has been a negative this weekend already.  The family I was living with is out of town.  I saw one of the aunts walking out of the house, and she asked me if I had eaten already.  I kind of lied and said "just a little" in Korean to her.  So I walked into the house (without anyone knowing I was even in the country), sat down just like I'd been there forever and was fed and fed, and fed some more (cause Grandma doesn't understand that when I say I am full, that I am actually full.)  At least, I know I'm gonna get my fruits and veggies when she's around. The others in the family are out of town, visiting the mom's parents.  I'll get to see them next weekend though.

Now for the main purpose of this post: New Year's Resolutions.  Some of us make these, and then forget about them.  Others don't ever make them.  Then there are some that make them, keep them, and even make it the whole year doing what they resolved to do -- I personally think they are in the majority.  This year I decided that I'd make some resolutions of my own.

Disclaimer: Since my Ipod contains the resolutions this post may not be complete, as a result of the battery not having been charged for a few days.
And here they are, just not in any particular order:

1. Respect my body more -- this year I just didn't take care of my body like I had in the past -- as a result - I wasn't myself mentally and physically like I've been in recent years.
2. Show more respect to people, no matter who they are, what their lifestyle choices are, and what they've done to me in the past. 
3.  Travel -- Last year, I saw  four new countries -- this year I will attempt to do the same, and also hit three new states up as well.  http://www.biosphere-expeditions.org/ -- there's one travel idea that I have.
4.  Love the world -- this kind of relates to no.2 a little bit.  Instead of worrying about finding the one  -- I will just learn to love everyone, and share myslf with the world.  I do prefer to have my alone time, and will still have it, but I will choose to be around others more.
5.  Cut the drinking to a minimum.  I did well with this during certain parts of last year -- but I  was a little inconsistent with it. 
6. Last but not least, always be willing to learn something new about someone, or something.  Learning is gaining knowledge and we all know I could use a little knowledge (since a majority of mine relates to UFC and other sports).

That's it for now -- I hope some of you out there are willing to share your resolution(s) with me -- If you don't to put them on my commnent page, then at least email them to me.  Happy New Year once again, and I hope this year is the best one yet for all of you.

Happy New Year Everyone

I'm awake too early, but at least I was able to sleep a little bit.  I had some crazy strange dreams, but at least in one of them I was working for Dana White and the UFC.  That was cool.  I hope everyone is doing well.  It's 8:15 in the morning over here.  I did miss midnight by just a few minutes -- I probably did last year too, and it's no big deal, sometimes it's better that way. 

By the time it's midnight over there in the USA, there should be a post about New Year's resolutions.
Time for some yummy Korean food.

Made it (well almost)

I am in Busan -- I got my bags and didn't realize I could have made it on the last bus to Pohang.  It didn't help that the coworker I was supposed to meet didn't show up either though.  His girlfriend missed a connecting flight on her way over, so he'll be a day or two behind.  I'll wake up in the morning and go back to the airport, so I can get on the bus to Pohang.  I have a feeling I may be jetlagged for a few days.  I should have been sleep an hour or so ago, but I've got the jitters -- jetlag jitters, I guess.

Ya'll have a good day back in the USA.  This guy is gonna try and get some sleep for now.

Hello from Tokyo/Narita Airport

I need sleep -- really really bad.  I can at least say I was comfortable in Economy class for the 12+ hours I was on the plane from Detroit to Japan.  The one thing that sucks is having to go from being spoiled in first class on a domestic flight, connecting over and losing my "cool" status.  The service on this flight was some of the best I have ever had though.

Since 6 am, Memphis time on Wednesday morning, I've had maybe 1 1/2 hours of sleep -- gotta let the body re-adjust.  I think I am sleep deprived, because I feel like I am slurring my words.  So we'll end this post with a book review -- using the KISS method.

Siddhartha by Herman Hesse


Anyone ever read this book?  A former acquaintance sent me this book last week, and I thought "oh great there's a picture of Buddha on the cover".  My adopted Korean family is Buddhist so it didn't really bother me.  I just recall in college that books like this were difficult for me -- I didn't do so hot in Religious Studies (the professor was an outstanding man though, who walked in Freedom Marches with Dr. King, and he was a white man).

Anyway, this is pretty much a self-help book for those needing guidance in their lives.  It's mostly about the ways we going about finding our meaning, or purpose in life.  On the flip side, it's also about finding yourself.  There's a Brad Paisley song called Find Yourself, which I really prefer.  The story about Siddhartha, the main character is kind of delightful, and I appreciated reading the book and there are definitely some lessons to learn from it.

I still prefer Mr. Joseph Marshall, and the stories passed down through the Lakota Indian culture, that have taught me a lot.  His books teach me about how to live, maybe not so much for myself, but to live a life of honor and humility.  That's what I strive for.  If anyone has ever read this Siddhartha please feel free to comment.  I know I didn't say much, but I did mark a few pages that I thought were somewhat meaningful.

Welcome

Hello everyone. It feels good to be back doing something I love -- blogging. My writing skills may be a little rusty at first, but don't worry, you'll soon be able to smile, laugh, hopefully not cry, and possibly even be inspired, by what you read, see or maybe even hear.

  I've enjoyed being  back in the USA since July 1.  Heck, I even had a job for a few months.  I worked on a political campaign in South Louisiana for about two months.  It was a wonderful experience, and I am blessed to have been surrounded by a bunch of good folks. Honestly, I felt a bit of culture shock since it was my first job in the USA since Summer of '07.  I was definitely out of my usual comfort zone, but I think I did a decent job as a field organizer.  I was working with a bunch of really smart folks, so I felt somewhat inferior at times.  Then again my energy level is superior to 95% of the folks in the world (without use of caffeine).

 Now, on to the purpose of this blog.  I am going back to work in South Korea, only this will be for a short time though.   I'll be at Winter Camp, this time in Pohang, South Korea.  I will work six days a week, from 9 am - 4 pm.  On the days I'm not working I'll be in Daegu, the place I called home for a period of almost 15 months.  I'll be visiting my English Club friends,  the family I lived for part of this year, the guys from my MMA gym, and of course the old men at the health club.

As many of you know, I enjoy sharing my adventures with folks through this blogging thing.  Sharing my life with others has always been a priority of mine.Please feel free to share this blog with others.  This my way of showing folks a different side of the world, a different culture, a different education system, a different style of food, and a different language as well.

I don't usually boast about myself very much,  Four paragraphs about myself and my life is enough for now.  Feel free to become a fan of this blog, but more importantly add some comments.  I want the comments to be about something with your life, your day, your week.  I want you to share with me as well. If you don't want to share on here, email me (jtower27@gmail.com, or jtowerpte@yahoo.com).  You can also skype me if you want to chat, or do a video call  my skype address is john.s.tower.

One Disclaimer -- My writing is raw ( ha ha).  I do not spell check, or grammar check.  If there are errors, just laugh about it -- see I can make you laugh with this blog -- If my writing skills are so bad they make you cry -- I don't want to hear it. Next entry will be before I board my plane on Wednesday morning.  Happy Monday everyone.