Kay oh Ray: September 2011

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Race fail: the amazing race that wasn't.

We've just returned from Daegu where we ran in the Smiling Dalseo 10km road race this morning. I had pretty high hopes for this one (less than 40 minutes), it being about 12 weeks out from my last race back in June, and close to our departure date from Korea. My training went really well and all of my times showed proof that I was getting fitter.

But! As Usain Bolt has shown us all.... sometimes things get a little bleeped up on race day.
Nothing in particular went awry for me this weekend. It was a beautiful day, a bit hot, but nothing serious. I wasn't nervous, and was actually pretty excited to put myself to the test. All I need were some 4:00 minute kms (ten, to be exact) and maybe one of those under 4 minutes just to make it true.

After a regular warm-up, I headed to the start line for a course that was basically one giant square, all on asphalt. When my watch beeped after the first km, I saw '4:00' and was very much satisfied with my perfect beginning. For whatever reason, the next two kilometres were not so perfect- a little under 4:10- and my mind started doing tricky running things.

In a race, especially when racing alone, your mind is often all you have to focus on, and the mind can be a great buddy, or an evil villain. As you may have guessed from the title of this blog, I ran with the evil villain today. I quickly calculated that I would need a speedy miracle if I was going to pull off my goal of a sub 40 minute 10km and I didn't feel any miracles in me. In short, I gave up.

Chances are that if I had told the little devil in my head to 'shut up' and just focused on doing my best, I probably could have pulled off a pretty decent time, even if it wasn't a record for me. Instead, the race turned into a grueling 'please just end, or let me pass out so I don't have to finish' type race. Not fun!

But! As the kids say ' Teacha! That's ok!'

And it is ok!
Races are never a sure thing, and that's part of their allure. You go in with your training and hope that some magic happens between the start and finish line.
Sometimes it doesn't, and sometimes it does!

It's a sure thing that when that magic does happen, it makes all the other times worth it.
And that, my friends, is why we race.

The day was by no means a total loss. We got to spend time with our dear running friends (one of the last times we will all be together, sadly). Also, in an only-in-Korea kind of way, because I came 5th of the female 10km runners, I netted a cool 100,000 won and got myself a nice new pair of mizunos on the way home.

I'm looking forward to the race next weekend, not just because it's another chance to prove myself but for all the other reasons that I love racing, and especially racing in Korea. It is without a doubt one of the greatest factors that has influenced my life in this country and for that I will always be grateful.

Here's to a magic day on the 'Diamond Bridge' next weekend - and an post-race afternoon of fun with great friends:)

dinner of pig neck, pre race.

On the way to the race.

gettin' psyched up.

ready to go....

Tim is now officially Korean.

my buddy, Minju and her coach.

some pretty flowers.

yeah. i did.

Some great photos, with credit going to the great Mr McCue:)

the little girl asked me (after obvious mom-induced practice)
"what did you think of this day?"

love this guy:)

this guy too! And so does his lady:)

The Great Bailey Collins.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Dinner Party...... Korean style

Yesterday we were invited to our good friend Tracy's house to see her new (and first!) house. Tracy is one of our Korean co-workers who, if you'll recall, also invited us to her nieces' first birthday party back in February.

Tracy in her new kitchen!

Tracy has always been great about including us and explaining Korean intricacies to us. She is also an amazing cook (along with her mother and mother-in-law!).

not one... but TWO really cool fridges. with all the kimchi and fruit you could ever want!

the famous STONE bed.

Last night we got to see a genuine Korean home and were lucky enough to be served an AMAZING meal of jjim -dak (a sort of hearty chicken stew) with all the Korean side dishes we could ask for.

jjim dak.... best ever.

enjoying.

finishee!!!

Tracy then took us to the near by Beomosa temple for a moonlight walk among the bamboo.

It was a super special night and we can't thank Tracy enough for being such a lovely hostess. We'll miss you Tracy Teacher!!

bamboo by streetlight.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

downsizing and upgrading.

Although we now have less than a month left on our contract in Korea, it was not too late for us to try out a new neighbourhood in Busan!

Last week, due to the relocation of our school, Tim and I were moved to a new apartment in an area of Busan a few kilometres away from Jaesong dong, where we spent just over a year in a...... ' well-broken-in apartment' :)

We have been in the (brand) new apartment for a full week now and are really enjoying getting to know a new neighbourhood, while still being close to the same bus routes (and the gym!) that we used before.

The new apartment is a bachelor, and about a third of the size of our old apartment, but with only a few weeks left, it's more than enough, and is just that much easier to keep clean!

The school is also brand new and is not even finished yet, though we have been working there for almost a full week at this point. The walls are clean, classrooms are bright, and it's a good fresh start for the school.

What follows are some pictorial comparisons of our apartments as well as some shots of the new school. Note the giant plants/trees that were given to the school by students and friends, a common occurrence for new businesses in Korea.