New Job

Today I started my new job as the Morning Show host on our radio station. I've been in the section for a week now, and I'm already in the #1 position on the air. I doubt they did it because of my talent, so I'm a little worried, but I'll do my best to show the powers that be that I can handle it. My hours are 4:00am - 2:00pm. Thank GOD for Vanessa. She calls me at 2am to talk to me befor eI get ready for work. It makes the day great from the get-go. There's no one at work fo the first few hours I'm there, so I'm pretty much alone in the studio for my show. SO, talking to Vanessa in the morning sets my day up for success, because I can imagine her listening, and I sound better (it's an old radio trick to picture one person, and talk to your audience through that one person).
We'll have to see how it goes. The only real difference in my life, is I go to bed EARLY, and wake up at around the same time I used to go to bed.

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Vanessa is in Germany, and she loves it there. I can't wait to join her, and these next six months are going to be difficult as we wait to get together. The wait, I know, will be worth it, and we're already using this time to strengthen our conversational skills. Still, I miss her more and more every day. The phone calls keep me going though. Stop by her blog to see photos of her and her AFN crew on Halloween.

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Speaking of Halloween, here's a picture of me at the AFN Korea Halloween Party for the kids. Same old costume, same old fangs..the only thing different is the location I wear them in. I still like the reaction I get when people see me bite through a soda can for the first time!


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Vanessa asked me what I wanted for Christmas this year, and I honestly couldn't come up with anything. Sure, I could put up a long list of things that I'd like to have, but none of them are worth buying at the time being. I'm so focused on getting out of debt, that presents seem trivial to me. I don't know if it's the kid in me stepping aside to let the adult in me handle business, or if I'm truly becoming less interested in toys and games. I'm willing to bet it's the former, as I still window shop at rpgshop.com and bigbadtoystore.com for stuff I like. I just don't buy it.
So, if anyone out there is thinking of asking me what I want for Christmas, here's the answer: I want you to save your money! Write me a letter or send a post card (don't put money in the dard or envelope) that tells me you Love me. That's all I want or need. I have 7 months to go until I'm out of debt. After that, I'll think about being selfish again. Maybe it's God teaching me a lesson the only way I'll learn it. But, when you have to choose between a neat toy, or food for the week...the answer comes pretty easily. Thanks Mom and Dad. We weren't exactly rich when I was growing up, but we never had a day without food on the table - unless we ate in the living room.

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Well, it's off to bed for me, I have to get up in 6 hours.
Respond if you like, I do enjoy reading them.




ULI

Happy Halloween, Dia De Los Muertos, All Souls' Day

Life is Good.

I get to talk to Vanessa every morning before work. That kickes off my day!
Working in radio is so much less stressful or demanding. Basically, I come to work, get ready for my show, do my show, then leave. There's no staying late, and no need to work weekends unless we're all working a remote broadcast (rare in the Winter).
Then, I go home, and rest. I have actually been able to watch some television in the past week! That's nothing to get excited about, unless you realize that I haven't watched television since my trip to Japan, and that was only for a couple of days. I was feeling unplugged from the world. Add to that, I've been paying for cable since I arrived, and only now am I able to get my money out of it.

Life is Good.

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My favorite holiday is over. I truly like Halloween, not just because it's free candy day (for the kid in me) but also because it's a day when people get to be themselves. Themselves? you ask...yes. I have observed that when people dress up in a costume, they allow themselves the freedome to do things they wouldn't normally do, and they do it because "it wasn't me, it was the character." I can cite examples to prove my point, but not here, not on this blog.
Also, since I wear black 366 days a year, it's one of the only days people don't bug me about it. Black on Halloween is like Red and Green on Christmas. It's pretty much just accepted people will wear it. Speaking of, I got to come in to work in costume yesterday. I felt more like a human than I ever have before in Korea. I was doing MY JOB, in MY CLOTHES. It was great!

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Sleep is good, but talking to Vanessa is better. Each night she calls, or I call. With the time difference, the only time that's possible right now is 2am. Were I still in News, I'd be at work when she called, but sinc eI'm actually free from bondage in radio, I get to go home and take these calls. They are my lifeblood right now. I miss her so much! We can talk about anyhting, from how silly a movie was, to thoughts on where to live after retirement, and it's all important. We don't have "blow off" conversations, where we talk, just to say we talked. I hope we never get to that point. I have a coworker that has those with his wife all the time. He calls her just so she won't say, "we never talk." The News monster has destroyed his marriage. He stays the same hours I used to. Since my epiphany, I've told him to go home every evening, and to realize that it's just a job. I tell him how I used to feel, and how I see him feeling, and that I don't want him to become the new News Beyotch.
Back to My Darling; the next time you talk to her, have her say, "BAD ROBOT." It's the cutest thing. She says it with the "w" lisp of a child, and it's adorable.
ULI

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That's it for me. Feel free to send me photos from your halloween.

Ray - good to hear from you, what's your amail address?


-Lance