Things I Miss

Couch, or at least armchair. Something to sit on that doesn't require me to put a pillow behind me or under me.

Living in an apartment that doesn't smell like sewage two or three times a day for 30-60 minutes.

The Daily Show, even though I never got to watch it back home. I see commercials for it on CNN sometimes, and man, that show is so funny.

Knowing about company events before they happen, and knowing which days I get off ahead of time. We had an open house kind of event for the parents of our students, and I wasn't told about it until the day before, and was told nothing about what the event was. My boss called it a "seminar" and I thought it was a teacher workshop that involved us learning how to be better teachers. Boy, was I wrong. Additionally, Korea has many "holidays," but we don't get all of them off. I rarely know for certain which upcoming holiday I'm getting off.

Getting Monday off in honor of a holiday that falls on a Saturday or Sunday, or holidays that always fall on a certain day. They don't do that here, so we miss out on a lot of days off.

Being able to buy dairy products at a reasonable price. A quart of milk costs as much as I used to pay for a half gallon. Cheese is so outrageously priced that I get government cheese from Kent. Ice cream is ridiculous, too, and they don't have chocolate, anyway. They do have neopolitan ice cream for a decent price, but the quality isn't very good, and I don't like vanilla, so it makes me angry to buy it. I still do, though.

Wheat bread. They have wheat bread here, but it's like, gourmet. It costs twice as much to get a tiny loaf of wheat bread (not just tiny as in fewer pieces, but tiny as in the size of each slice, too) as it does to get a giant loaf of white bread, which has about three times as much bread.

Really, buying affordable food in general--dairy, bread, peanut butter, jelly, spaghetti sauce, pasta, most fruits and vegetables, butter, eggs, juice, canned soup (which I don't buy), cereal, even all the Korean food I buy like mandu and seafood patties are all two to four times what I'd pay in the US. Pretty much the only food that doesn't cost and arm and a leg is rice. My apartment actually came with rice. I haven't touched it.

Not having to take my work home with me. I've greatly reduced the amount of it I take home with me, so now I only take home homework to correct on Friday, but that usually means I give back homework a day late. Oh, well.

Not having to strongly enunciate in order to be understood.

Bedsheets and pillowcases. They use one thin quilt (not fitted) as a bottom sheet, and the only covering is the bedspread. Pillowcases are replaced by frilly pillow shams.

A dresser and closet. I have to put my clothes on shelves and hang my button down shirts and dresses on my drying rack.

Counter space.

Instant access to hot water. Here, you have to turn on the hot water and wait for it to warm up.

The rest of my wardrobe. I didn't have much room to bring clothing and such, since a lot of my suitcase space was spent on toiletries that they either don't have here, or which are really expensive. Consequently, I'm wearing pretty much the same clothes all the time, even though I have bought a few more shirts since I've been here.

Affordable toiletries. I didn't bring enough facial wash and moisturizer to last me the year. A bottle of Clearasil costs over 13 bucks. Man. Korean products aren't as bad, but are still a bit pricey.

Shower stall or curtain. Korean showers are just part of the rest of the bathroom, and pretty much wet all the time. I have to use a rag to wipe off my toilet seat and cover in case I want to use the toilet in the next five hours.

Trash cans with covers.

My Mac. This PC is bullshit.

Being able to call any number or go anywhere or read any sign without needing a translator. I try to practice my limited Korean skills whenever I can, though.

Dad's massive TV.

My yoga studio in LA. The yoga here just doesn't cut it. I'm changing studios this week, though, to a more traditional hatha yoga studio that Heather found. It's cheaper, too.
Probably more stuff, too, but I'll do this again in a couple months.