What a weekend!

Despite such a strong new beginning, loneliness, which I'd forgotten about during Nick's stay, made a reappearance in my life toward the end of last week. I resolved to be extra social on the weekend to compensate. I'm the sort of person that declines invitations to socialize when I think the outing might be too expensive or tiring. But I acted against my lazy brain and went out two nights in a row this weekend. Again, I was so pooped on Sunday that I fell asleep at 5 p.m. and stayed in bed until 5:45 a.m. with the exception of a short wake at midnight or so. Hyunsuk asked me the next morning if I was sick. Said she tried to wake me but had no luck. I got a kick out of the thought of Hyunsuk waking me like she does her kids in the morning before school--first Jihey, then JiMin, then MinWoo.

On Friday night, we took a breather from Bible study and went out to this Japanese restaurant, where we ate okonomiyaki and drank black raspberry wine. Eli told me her oven would be available for me to make brownies. (I'd tried to think of ways to make brownies on a stove top, but the solution escaped me.) So immediately after my Saturday class, I hopped back on the bus for some more fun in Daegu. The brownies were yummy! (So yummy that my Korean teacher ate almost the whole container I'd packed on Sunday morning. Was it the first time you made them? He asked. Said they were way better than the ones you buy at the bakeries in Korea. I wondered if he had any idea how common brownie boxes are in the states.)

Heidi is a friend from Busan who used to belong to Dongshin Church when she lived in Daegu. She comes up for visits quite frequently though, and often ends up sharing Eli's bed with me on those weekends. Heidi pushed for me to visit her, and I suggested Christmas day. She has to work (not kidding) but will finish by 5 or so and wants me to make the effort. Hooray for Christmas day plans! Looks like I might not be alone on Christmas after all.

After baking the brownies, we went out for a night on the town again. For the first time, Eli and Tharine introduced me to a "cocktail in a bag," which can be ordered from an outdoor stand, so that people can drink as they walk around and shop. An ethnic food restaurant called "2nd" was our second stop (no pun intended.) 2nd had a very classy, international menu with an artsy atmosphere. A small pool and fountain in the center of the restaurant was decorated with a staggered display of wine bottles and flowers. The Korean style tables (low to the ground) with small, comfy booths were sectioned off by hanging beads all around the restaurant. When I walked to the bathroom, I felt like an invader of privacy as I fought the temptation to look through the beads at couples and friends enjoying themselves. Dimmed lighting made everyone look beautiful. I doubted other people in the room appreciated their company as much as I appreciated mine. The fruit and cheese sampler with sangria was delicious but the girl talk really hit the spot! It'd been a while since I'd spoken so openly about body image and boys with good friends.

We went to another place after that...then another, but by the next, I was done... My need-for-sleep instinct won out over the social instinct. When I got into a cab and saw that it was 4:20 a.m., I realized that the hundreds of people still out dancing and drinking were the crazy ones.

It wasn't until my Korean teacher Sam said something about how exhausted I looked that I realized I was tired. I trudged through the lesson happily anyway and made my way to church on time. By the grace of God, Ken's sermon about Matthew 6, the "Don't Worry" passage, didn't miss my interest, though my eyes drooped at several points throughout. It helped me to realize how illogical worrying is--how worrying discounts God's faithfulness. However, I wasn't enthralled enough to stick around for small groups. I made a bee-line for the door and didn't stop buzzing until I reached my bed. Zzzzzzz.