Maggie’s doing pretty good so far with the puppy.
Just a couple of bouts of ‘new dog’ jealousy…you know, stealing toys when she’s not looking, carrying the tennis balls upstairs where she can’t get them, scarfing down her tiny bits of puppy chow.
But the puppy is firing back.
Paying rent in Korea is a little different….ok, a lot different.
Korea is a cash environment -Â I told you that already, right?
So what does that mean?…
Well, it means you have to pay in Korean won.
No checks, no automatic payment set-ups, no military allotments.
Cash only…and you wind up counting it over & over to make sure you’ve got it all.
It doesn’t sound like quite a chore, but it is…and it’s a tedious, painful one.
Eric gets paid in US dollars which means we have to exchange it for Korean won.
And depending on which way the dollar is blowing our actual rent varies from month to month.
So while there is a fixed rent cost, we don’t pay a fixed amount.
When the won’s up, our rent is cheaper. When the won’s down, our rent is more expensive.
And unfortunately, Uncle Sam doesn’t compensate for the fluctuations. It’s one of those hidden costs of being stationed in Korea that no one tells you about & it makes budgeting harder.
It also means you walk around with a lot more cash than you’re comfortable carrying – or at least more than I’m comfortable carrying.
IÂ feel like a drug dealer carrying all that cash.
While the snow has all melted & washed away as of last week, it’s still this gray outside.
And rainy.
It’s been a long day of getting absolutely no housework done because I wanted to feel somewhat American today.
Yep, I needed to feel American again. I’m beginning to feel it slipping away from me.
So I did the closest thing I could in Korea…I went to Osan.
I walked through their BX – admiring all the niceties & luxuries they have that we don’t – like sweatpants & garden supplies. I bought Thin Mints from the cute little girl scout in the food court. I stared at the overpriced goldfish for sale & longed for a backyard pond. I wandered through their commissary eyeing all the produce & groceries they carry that Humphrey’s doesn’t. (Did you know they even have a deli counter?)
And then I drove home….
and played with her.
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