Cell Phones

Rie and I are in a new country, and the way these things work, we needed new cell phones. We just wanted basic cell phones for talking and texting, but I got drawn in by the free smart phone. I would have considered the iPhone, but they are tied to SoftBank in Japan. SoftBank does not have good service at Rie's mother's house. Only DoCoMo works down there, so that is where we went for our phones.

Rie and I walked about 30 minutes to our nearest DoCoMo shop and checked out the options. I liked the HT-03A phone, which is free with a two-year contract. In the U.S. it is called the myTouch 3G and its international name is the HTC Magic. It is an Android phone with a touch screen, wi-fi, GPS, Internet, and all sorts of other features and is a Google brand phone.

A few days later, we went back to the DoCoMo shop to get our new phones. The guy helping us did not seem to bright and nothing seemed to be easy. We both wanted the Google phone, but they only had one in stock. The phone comes in black or white. I wanted black, and Rie wanted white. The one in stock was white, so we decided to get Rie's and come back another day for mine.

DoCoMo has a 50+ page magazine with all of their data plans and options in it and we flipped back and forth for a while trying to figure out what we wanted. First, we get to choose how many minutes per month we need. Rie has more friends and family here, so she needs a medium level. Next, the guy explained the Internet usage choices. It is a sliding scale. Internet on the phone costs about $3 per month if you don't use it. The more you use, the more it costs until it plateaus at about $60 per month. We figured we could use it sparingly and not pay too much. We got some papers to sign and the fine print mentioned that the phone receives automatic updates for all of its options. These updates count towards its Internet usage. So, basically, without ever using the Internet, we will reach the maximum price every month.

So, after some more thought, we decided that Rie does not really want Internet. She found a nice pink phone for herself and I decided to take the white Google phone.

Next, the guy mentioned that phones don't come with call waiting or voice mail here. If we want those options, it costs about $5 more per month. We said okay, after which he sold us the extended warranty on the phones. That seemed like a good idea so we got that too.

Eventually, he mentioned that we could put Rie's family on a family plan and have free calls among all of us. That was free, but we did not have Rie's family's phone numbers with us to set it up then.

After 2 1/2 hours and about $30 for Rie's phone, we left with our two new phones.

The next day, Rie went back to add her family to the plan. Unfortunately, the guy forgot to mention that he has to call them to confirm. It was during the day and Rie's brother and mother were at work, so Rie was unable to add them to the plan then.

Two days later, we went back in the evening to add the family members. Also, my voice mail and call waiting were not working. Luckily, we got a different guy this time and he did not look at us like we were stupid every time we did not understand one of their crazy rules, policies or exceptions. He was nice enough to explain to me that the Google phone does not qualify for the reduced price bundle of call waiting and call forwarding. I have to pay about $4 per month for each of these services. An hour later, we were done for the fourth and final time.

There were so many added fees and exceptions and last minute changes, that I have no idea what our phone bill will be. I guess we will find out in a few weeks when it arrives.

In the meantime, I am enjoying my new phone immensely. It has all sorts of useless features like a level and a star chart. I can also surf the Internet and download all sorts of applications and games. It also takes video and pictures. I downloaded an application to read bar codes and search for the product on the Internet. Many advertisements in Japan include 2d bar codes for people who want more information.

Growing up

Airi is almost three months old. Her neck stays straight for a long time and her cheeks are becoming heavier and heavier. She is so cute and is a peaceful baby.

When our daughter grows up, her parents grow up too. Especially her father.
Now Avram goes to bed around 11:00p.m. and he doesn't complain even if he can't eat at his meal time, so I can sleep late these days. Thanks to his friends in Korea, he learned and remembered that he can do them by himself.

We were kind of homeless when we married, but soon we will have a house, cell phone, and car. We feel like we're adults.

When Avram works, I see my friends from pre-school or high school. Avram has given me a good life since we married. Airi and we've been great in Japan too:)

Can you do that?

Three years ago, Avram's girl friends showed me that you can slap your boyfriend or husband when they make fun of you.

Two years ago, Avram's father told me that I can tell what I want to eat and don't have to let Avram do what he wants.

Since last year, Wendy has taught what Avram needs to do for me at home. For example, he can let me take a nap when he's at home. Shopping is good for girls and so on.

I guess women in the U.S. have more rights than men:)

Our new rule

One day I watched a TV show. One comedian was talking about farting.

His wife often farts. It bothers him when he's tired, so he said she must pay $5 for one fart. When she farts, she has to pay $5. She tried not to fart for a few days, but she did eventually. He said she should give $5. After that she gave up to not try to fart. From then she calls him, "Come, come, come and look at this!" She is giving $5 and putting her butt to his face and farts.
Now the comedian saves 100,000 yen from her farts every month.

I told it to Avram. We liked the idea and try it now.
I used to make much money before. I made the most, but now we make almost same. We are good rivals.

When I passed a rose-smell gas, Avram said "It means that you're a part of our family." It made me feel comfortable and happy, but hopefully it won't happen so often.

Yes, I'm back or we are back with Airi and farts.

Goodbye Korea, Hello Japan

Well, as most of you probably already know, we have up and moved again.

Last Friday was my last day of work in Busan, South Korea. The movers took all of our stuff, we sold the car, and moved to a hotel near the beach. During the taxi ride back to the hotel, I got that warm feeling I remember from my 20s. That feeling of having no home, no car, no job. I love that free feeling, even if it will only last three days this time.

On Saturday, we took Airi on her first airplane ride. It was only about two hours, and except for a minute during the diaper change, she did not cry at all. Even the three hour bus ride to our new hotel did not bother her.

After the agent at the immigration counter stamped my passport, I thanked him in Korean. Rie's funny look reminded me that it is time to break my Korean thanking habit and start up my Japanese thanking habit again.

My new boss met us at the airport and helped us get settled in. He has been a great help and very welcoming. He bought food for us and his wife even baked for us. I think we are going to enjoy our three years here.

Tomorrow, I start my new job in Japan, but it won't be too hard yet. We will spend about three weeks doing paperwork and taking orientation classes before I actually go to my new office. In the mean time, we will look for a place to live and a car to buy.

Our goodbye party

We met good people and had a great time with them in Busan. Our friends and Avram's coworkers held a party for us before we left Korea.

Chris and Carol are very nice people. They always think of others. We learn how to entertain and how to involve other people to happiness. We like they take their children to many places to show the world. We'll try to do it for Airi.

Wendy told me many things as a mother and wife. She sometimes gave Avram lectures what he can do for me at home. It worked well. I should call her when I need her help.

Kemmeh who loves Airi's cheeks often gave me good advice with baby stuff. She also encouraged me with shopping for Airi. Now Avram sometimes asks me what I need for raising Airi, not for my fashion:(

Gyong Ah,Young Joo, and Kyung helped us a lot. We were very happy that we had good Korean friends. It made our life in Korea much better.

People in the party and some other friends who couldn't come think of us well, so Avram, Airi, and I were always happy in Korea. We were very lucky to have those nice friends and coworkers. We hope we can keep in touch with them wherever we are in the world.

Shinsegae

We had a bit of a warm day last Saturday and decided to take a walk. I strapped Airi on and we strolled along Gwangan Beach all the way to Shinsegae, the world's largest department store. It was a good two hour walk for all of us. Rie likes Shinsegae because they have a great baby lounge. There is one room full of changing tables, another room for washing up and a third room for breast feeding. Airi ate and I got to play a game in the arcade. After dinner and ice cream and shopping for the adults, we fed and changed Airi again before taking a taxi home. It was a fun Saturday afternoon/evening for all of us.

Airi Turns Two

Happy New Year!!!

Here in Korea, when you tell how old you are, you count the time in your mother's belly. So, when a baby is born, she is already one. Rather than keeping track of people's individual birthdays, everybody adds a year on New Year's Day. So, Airi was one on November 2nd and just turned two today. Time sure is passing quickly.

By the same reckoning, my Korean age is 40, even though my western age is barely 38.