On nights like this,

it doesn't feel like my diet's so restrictive.

Today was cooking day, for the week. Then, because when I woke up I saw that I left out a bag of frozen shrimp when going through the freezer last night for the ground beef for today, I realized I'd have to make them too.

I tried this recipe a couple weeks ago, & it was fantastic, until the coconut milk in the mashed potatoes & the veggies in the meat started to sour. So since then (& it had happened often before), I've started freezing the last 3 or so days' worth of lunch so it won't go bad. I didn't use the bacon I used last time on top, & the seasonings were different, but this week will be a repeat of my veggie-filled meatloaf plus mashed potatoes & steamed broccoli & cauliflower (since Lotte Mart out of NOWHERE had cauliflower again after a couple months. I was so happy when I saw it I grabbed 2 heads & walked through the store, no lie, continuously talking to them & calling them, "my precious.").

The difficulty with shrimp is it's ALWAYS cooked with lemon, because it tastes great together, but my skin hates citrus. Luckily a recipe mentioned white wine, & while it's hard to find good wine, & wine that isn't Chardonnay, I found an Argentinian Pinot Grigio or Blanc, & that was good enough for me.

So, lots of cooking done.

Other than that, in all the time I've not posted? Well not much.

I maybe mentioned that when I had knee discomfort the PT noticed my right quad is weaker than my left, so leg day is now a tear-inducing 1.5 hour workout, both legs, & then the right again. So Tues & Thurs are especially awful & taken up solely by the leg workout.

This weekend the burlesque group I'm in with Rin had a show down by the Air Force base Aaron used to work at; 70 people came, which isn't bad. Everything was (to me) falling apart because a girl I knew from wine night said she'd be in the show, then 2 weeks before, dropped out. That left 2 performers. Rin found a girl who does pole dancing, a former stripper from Canada, & Angela, who has been in Korea a long time, a very gregarious lady & a great MC. Honestly I could go into this whole weekend which had me PIIIIIIIIISSED & swearing this was my last show with the Suwon burlesque group, but it was only the one time @ the base, & I've got netflix to watch. There's another girl who helps do the stage stuff, Elizabeth, & she is FAAAAAR better than I because she was in theater for years, but she doesn't get dressed up as much as I, & isn't as comfortable as me in just sone clothes.

Aside from burlesque, to keep me from being bored, I've enrolled in 2 EdX college courses, one which I'll receive a certificate for & can put on my resume. I've also been talking more with a guy who WAS in Korea to expand his family's spas, but went back to Paris before we could meet, & SAYS he's still going to come back here, he's just super busy with work there. In Paris. Partying as well, poor thing. He keeps me entertained when he writes, & that's pretty much all I care about.

Otherwise, life is about as usual. I'm really excited to come home & NOT be in Asia for a week. Already know that whatever else, I'll be back in Chicago by the 27th, & Jason's going to plan on coming about then, & will have surprised the nephews, who are the biggest reasons I wanted/needed to visit home. But sweet JESUS do I have a shopping list! How much do electric blankets cost there? Because HERE, they're over $100. My feeling is, fuck that, I'm bringing a suitcase full of shit back.

Why come back when I still hate Korea & Asia? Because when I leave here, I'll receive $7500 from my pension, plus the $2000 severance. Each year is $2500 pension, so why leave with $5000 when I can leave with $2500? It SUCKS, but it'll help. Plus then I'll have paid off the credit card debt & can then start putting that money strictly toward college loans & MAYBE savings.

So, life goes along as usual here. Figured may as well throw in SOMETHING since it has been so long. I'll stop the double-right-leg workouts after Dec, so hopefully won't be so overwhelmed... except those college courses, & burlesque, & reading, &.... So. 'Til then!