attended two soccer matches this week:
and what a thrilling experience it was--i loved cheering with the red devils! pil seung korea!

1) south korea versus north korea (in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of korean independence)
won 3 to 0, baby~! 
featured players (more accurately put, players caroline recognized):
park joo young, lee chun soo...and THE lee dong guk--ladies, he is a FINE specimen. 

2) south korea versus saudi arabia (2006 germany fifa world cup qualifiers)
lost 0 to 1. bah! (not to fear--we'll still be competing in germany.)
players i recognized: lee woon jae, cha du ri, and ahn jung hwan (he created quite a sensation with women in 2002).

our 2006 world cup team (looking good, men):


lee dong guk #20: (he's got an uncanny resemblance to hyunbin)




finally, our ugly and much detested coach (with an uncanny resemblance to an ogre):


how ever did i cultivate this appetite for soccer?
maybe, just maybe it has something to do with a past crush.

watched plenty of movies too this summer (primarily on the small screen):
mr. and mrs. smith
gangs of new york
the grudge 2
castaway
the notebook
under the tuscan sun
welcome to dong mak gol
my tutor friend
my sassy girl
100 days with mr. arrogant
little bride
spy girl
...and probably more, but this is as far as i can recall :)

so i'm returning home on the 23rd after two months of the good life in seoul.
i've also got a family excursion to look forward to:
a scenic five day trip with the folks to the canadian rockies, jasper, and lake louise.
(i'm not a big fan of long-distance bus rides, but i will have to make do for my parents' sake.)
ah, the all american pastime: family camping.
and i am finally to partake in this celebrated tradition--joy unspeakable.  

i win the award for "most un-updated xanga."
haha, bow down to your queen! i stand undefeated! ;P
yes, well, time to revert to another indefinite period of xanga abandonment.
(all my discarded childhood diaries are testaments of my inability to maintain a proper journal.)
toodles.

wait, i take that back.
there's an interesting story i want to relate to you, involving an old man and yours truly at the senior recreational center in ilsan, korea.
--is it scary? let's just say, i shudder at the remembrance of it.--
well, my halmani (grandma) regularly partakes in square-dancing at the center, and usually there's a shortage of male partners so some women grudgingly take the mens' role.
what i am trying to stress here is that men are considered rarities and are accordingly hoarded by the women. :)
anyway, i was sitting in a corner of the dance hall, amusing myself with a book, when one of the dancing grandpas swaggered up to me and hollered, "why aren't you dancing, ah-joohm-ma (roughly translates to 'middle-aged woman')?"
not surprisingly, i was shocked by his language and answered, "sir, i'm a highschool student!!!"
i thought i had successfully disposed of him then, and resumed reading my book--unfortunately, i was dead wrong.
when the males had made a full circuit around the dance floor--
there HE was again, ordering me to "come and dance right this instant!" 
what persistence! >:(
(and may i add that this occurred EVERY single time he passed within my view.)
i'm ashamed to admit it, but i was repulsed--REVOLTED--by the special attentions of this old gaffer!
(dangit grandpa, i could be your grandaughter!)
finally, the nagging ceased when he inexplicably left the dance hall (obviously pouting--good grief~!) 
there were so many senior women who would have been glad to dance with him, but he refused to gratify their wishes--
NO, he must have the highschool girl as his dancing partner, and no other ah-joohm-ma would do!
i guess what makes this story especially pathetic is that only a wrinkly, horny grandpa can see anything remotely attractive about me. poo. ;P

my teacher is a pothead. YES or NO.
must i believe such an awful rumor?!
sure, he listens to funky reggae music, is balding, stutters from speaking too fast...
AND is absent from school right now...
but is that enough to accuse him of being a drugee?

you people who are subscribed to me--did you miss me?
haha, that was a surprisingly long hiatus i took from xanga--whew.

this particular girl has been too busy retreating into herself, feeling increasingly awkward around others--even around people whom i've shared many school years with.
why?
i guess the majority of my friendships were just those that you form with people to kill time, have a few laughs with...
once distance becomes a factor, the familiarity fades away. 
i'm pretty sure that if enough contact were permissable, the relationships would casually pick up from where they had left off...
but what kind of a friendship is that? 
hmm, i wish i could regain them, even if they were sorta superficial--
honestly, i miss them.
i think i have put some effort into saving those bonds, but i can't really say the same for the other party.
i feel i've neglected them too at times--i'm so sorry for that. i really am.

i've told myself, focus on school work--nothing could be more important at this stage of life--but sometimes,  i have a certain nagging feeling that i may be wrong in this assumption. who knows if i am missing out on a large share of precious highschool memories!
but HOW exactly does one find a suitable balance? 

i hate pessimistic entries. i hate reading others' too--
so i will make a point of ending on a lighter note.

i must remember...
there will be a way to mend past mistakes.
there will be a way to find the balance i am seeking.
there is always hope--yes, every morning i wake up with it!
tomorrow may be laden with fresh worries, but it is also a clean slate to start upon.

oh it's so lovely out today!
the sky is such a brilliant shade of blue and my little cul de sac looks so cheerful--
i love it when the world is bathed in sunlight!
i think weather plays a huge role in my day-to-day mood.
i feel like i could take on any obstacle, laugh to my heart's content--even write an entry! oh my! 
(this is superhuman determination; i've completely neglected my xanga.)
ahh, i wish someone would just whisk me away if only for this one day!
just pull up my driveway and honk with his head out of the window, grinning:
"get out of your hole, caroline!"
what a stupid fanciful thought! i believe i am drunk on love craziness...
it is the weather that is getting to my head. 
i have a strong urge to ride a couple's bike on a solitary road meandering through some gorgeous scenery...
we could set our bike down on a field and enjoy a picnic on the grass.
i guess it's absurd; most people would think so.
i'm the type of person who dreams about her wedding and her motherhood.
(i think all girls are this way.)
i wish my life could be perfect in every respect--brimming with happiness!
and so what if the million and one dreams i hope for can never all be realized?
 the world would be so dismal without its romantics, so keep on dreaming! 
it's so lovely out today!