My mother-in-law has tuberculosis. Apparently, she’s not contagious, but has the bacteria. Two more weeks in the hospital for her, but the doctors say she’ll be feeling the effects of the disease for nearly a year.

Yesterday we went down to Busan to go to the hospital. Over the Chuseok weekend, MyeongHee’s mother complained of being overly week. So, after everyone went home, she got checked out and was diagnosed with pneumonia. I’ve had it – twice – and it ain’t fun. It leaves you feeling weak and exhausted with just minor efforts.

In Korea, a visit to the hospital is not just a short visit. Its hours. In the small room she shared with four other older women, I watched sons give massages, daughters change bandages and daughters-in-law change bedpans. Nurses came and went and checked on IV tubes and gave meds here and there, but families did just about everything else. Just as during the holiday, MyeongHee’s older brother wife did most of the work. Apparently, the oldest son’s wife spends her life taking care of his family including holidays, preparing ancestor memorials, and caring for his sick parents.

This was my first visit to a Korean hospital and I must say it was quite shocking. Whether they’re all like this, I have no idea. But the crowded 5-bed room (same size as any two-bed room I’ve seen in America) was just one aspect. We went down to get her a CT and patients lined halls, some ambulatory dragging IV bottles along, some in wheel chairs and some in wheeled beds. And with nearly all of them, was their families. Children ran around and played amoung the patients and visitors. Nurses dodged all manner of things on their various errands. It was a mad jumble of people, beds, carts and wheeled thises and thats. This looked like a scene from a disaster movie, minus the blood and gore.

I can’t say anyone wasn’t being well taken care of or neglected. But it was a very different world from the orderly places most western hospitals seemed to me.

I hope I never have to use one of these places personally.

Yesterday, MyeongHee and I went to the Korean Immigration office to get me a new visa. Mine is still valid until early next year, but it’s an “E” or employment visa. The new one will be an “F” or family visa. Now that we’re married, I have some rights here in this country. With an E visa, one is beholden to the company which brought you over. Now I can work anywhere. Not that I’m thinking of changing, as I like this school, but it gives me options. But, we can live where we want, work where I want and not worry about being deported for some small infraction of the law.

The “E” visa process, has also undergone some strange rules for background checks, and health check-ups. With the “F” visa, I’m free from that red-tape.

On the down side, it probably means I’m going to be liable for more taxes.

Chuseok is over and I can rest easily on my sofa at home again. I really hate the floor and couldn’t wait to get back in a chair. Seriously – I challenge any of you westerners reading this to try and do that. Just sit and sleep on the floor. Small cushions are allowable, but big-ass 6″ sofa style cushions aren’t. Try it. I’d give you 4 hours before giving up in disgust and wondering why you tried it in the first place.

After sitting and sleeping on the floor since Saturday evening, I decided on Monday afternoon to take the kids for a ride in the car. Ostensibly, this was to just see the sights and listen to some modern music (they dig my taste in tunes) and I used it to sit in a real chair for an hour. While we drove along the eastern coastline, I spun the iPod as fast as the wheels on the car. I’ve come to like some of the Korean pop stars, but hte youngsters also know Eminem, Britney Spears and oldies like the Fresh Prince. The kids sang along to the iPod while we drove north from the little fishing village where MyeongHee grew up along the coast to the next big city. Although it wasn’t very large, Goryongpo is a quaint, picturesque town with a bustling crabbing business. Nearly every restaurant boasted crabs and the port was filled with large crab boats. The town itself was nestled among the rocky shore and around a small peninsula. I wish I had brought my camera because it was very pretty, especially from the mountains heights as we drove in towards town. Instead, we inspected the crab boats and walked around the docks briefly. We found two boats named “Dong Hyun,” which MyegonHee’s son Dong Hyun found quite amusing.

Back at the in-laws, it was the same old Thanksgiving. Up at dawn, arrange the food beautifully on a short table, lets the spirits come eat, bow a few times and then put the food all away and eat something else. Afterwards, we visited the gravesite of MyeongHee’s father and had the same, albeit smaller, ceremony. It still is a little disconcerting to eat in a graveyard. Western and Eastern sensibilities are really different in that regard.

I was really feeling out of sorts this weekend. The first time I went there to meet her brothers, they gave me the once over and quizzed me on my intentions, etc. In other words, I was somewhat the center of attention. This year I was old news and they ignored me. Not their fault, since their English and my Korean is good enough only for simple pleasantries. It was Korean food, Korean talk, Korean TV,  Korean customs, minimal English and damn little western anything. Not that that was surprising – I’m in Korea. But at home we speak a good mix of English and Korean, we share watching TV programs in one or the other language and I can read English news on the internet. We also have chairs, a sofa and a real bed. I guess the moral of this story is that while I like it here in Korea, no one should have any illusions about me becoming Korean. I’m still an American boy at heart – and butt.

This week is Chuseok in Korea – Thanksgiving. It’s one of the two biggest holidays (the other being Lunar New Year.)  The official “day” is Sunday and many people were off Friday and will be off tthrough Tuesday. A large portion of the population will be on the road, back to their hometowns for the holiday. The roads will be jammed and a trip that should only take 4-5 hours will be 9-10 hours.

We’ll be going to Pohang again where MyeongHee’s mother lives. We’l probably leave on Saturday evening after MH cuts a hundred heads of hair. She’s been really busy the last few days with lots of folks getting prettied up for grandmother. She’ll likely be busy again tomorrow, so we’ll leave around 6 or 7pm.

I’d personally rather delay going as long as possible. Its not that I don’t like her family – they’re all fine people. Its just that it’ll be an entire weekend of sitting on the floor. The only furniture will be the short table we’ll sit around while we eat. My ass just can’t take that much hardwood. I plan on carting my bicycle up there for the weekend. At least I can sit on the small cushion while I pedal my way around the mountains.

Look how much weight she’s lost

Actually, MyeongHee was just clowing around. While doing laundry, she decided to try on my big-ass jeans. I’m a bigger than average guy, but she’s really just petite.

Yeah, that’s it. She’s real petite. That’s the ticket.

Yup. Haven’t written much here. Not much going on to write about – personally, anyway. This week has been “crunch week” with many of the writers on the Korea Sun sending in their articles. Deadline is this week, so I’ve been busy editing their pieces as well as researching and writing my own. I’m still expecting a couple more articles to be sent in, but once those are in the bulk of the work will be done. At least for me, although I hope to help in the layout and learn more about that process. The final magazine should be completed in two weeks and ready for approval by the Korean Government.