Looking Back:Joy and Beauty in Khyaelitsha

Upon arriving in South Korea we at The Harrington Times worked hard to cover all the bases regarding stories from the Harrington's recent world travels while offering up-to-the-minute reports on their Korean lifestyle. In September and October we presented some 'Looking Back' stories regarding summer 2010 travels. Unfortunately, with the zeal and attention that the Harrington's give toward living their lives to the utmost, many of these 'Looking Back' posts featured home videos captured by the Harrington's during their travels. Well, with a bit of extra time on our hands and a browsing through the YouTube archives of the Harrington's we at THT realize we've left bits and pieces of the summer adventures out of our faithful reporting. So it is, we return to the series 'Looking Back' and hope to fill in the missing pieces and images over the next few weeks or months to properly document the life and times of the Harringtons.

You may recal that the primary reason the Harrington's traveled during the summer of 2010 was spurred by their desire to attend the World Cup in South Africa. Having enjoyed their game and a few sights in and around Cape Town, the couple made their way into a Township for their last night in South Africa. Each township experience the couple had while in South Africa was beautiful and powerful. Two such moments, from one special day, were caught on camera.

During the tour and their night in Khayelitsha the Harrington's had the great pleasure of listening to this group of kiddos sing and learn with great joy and enthusiasm.



The Harrington's also had the opportunity to meet this woman, who goes by the name Beauty. She willingly and humbly shared her story with the Harrington's: her story of AIDS, abandonment, dreams and hopes. She shared her struggles and her joys. She shared her heart. Her story is one the Harrington's were honored to hear and hope to remember for all time. Here, we offer our readers a chance at hearing that same story, from the mouth of Beauty herself.

Stay tuned for additional long over due articles regarding the Harrington's summer travels as well as regular updates regarding life in Korea.

Saturday Morning is Perfect Opportunity for Pancake Joy

On Saturday, February 26th, 2011 Melissa Harrington had a strong desire to rock a Pancake Breakfast in '519' Kitchen and both the Mr. and Mrs. couldn't have been more thrilled with the outcome.

Banana Walnut Pancakes topped with Brown Sugar-Vanilla Yogurt and Maple Syrup. This is one dish the Harrington's kitchen will surely produce again.

Deskwarming: A Photo Collage

Deskwarming is an unfortunate fate for many Guest English Teachers in the South Korean Education System. As westerners teaching in a foreign land, many GETs are sticklers regarding their contracts, particularly those portions which hold the most appeal. Recognizing the westerners 'love' of contracts and need to abide by such Korean public schools have held firm to GETs working 5 days a week for 8 hours a day unless the GET is enjoying their contractual vacation days. That means, out of 30 - 40 weekdays that fall into either winter vacation or spring break, a Guest English teacher will have 10 to vacation, 0-15 may be spent working English camps and the remaining will likely be spent at a desk, looking busy.

For one elementary school teacher in Daejeon, this is what that experience looks like:

Sitting in the science room because it is warmer than the English zone, staring at a computer screen and wishing 4:30 didn't roll around so late in the day.

Capturing Ladies and Love

Back in the swing of the things, the Harrington's are back on track to participate in a weekly photo challenge known as You Capture. The most recent challenge was to capture Things that begin with 'L'. Fortunately, the Harrington's chose to postpone their Valentine's day celebration so this week were able to provide not only a few photos of Lad(ies) but also some images of the Love they share for their annual Valentine meal prepared together, at home.

The Lady: Watching The Man and Wife prepare dinner



The Lady of the house working on dinner preperations and wine consumption





The Man of the house showing his Love by helping prep 'Valentine's' Day Dinner

Head on over to Beth's Place for more images and blogs regarding things that start with 'L'

Tradition Lives on as the Harrington's Celebrate Valentine's Day

For three years now, the Harrington's have carried out a single tradition on Valentine's Day. Melissa, being the gifted cook of the house, lays aside all critical tones and unsure facial expressions while Mike picks up his apron and spice kit to join Melissa in her domain and bless her with his presence while the two prepare a meal together. On February 14th 2011 however, the Harrington's found themselves exhausted from week-end hangouts and first days back at school so traded cooking plans in for a trip to a nearby Toast Restaurant, bottles of Coke and online episodes of Modern Family, postponing the cooking extravaganza for a night where energy could abound and love would easily fill the kitchen.





Valentine's Dinner #1

 


So it was, on February 22, 2011 the Harrington's found themselves ready to conquer a dinner of home cooked Rotissere Chicken, a Pasta Salad, a couple glasses of wine and Browned Butter Brownies to seal the deal. Mike found himself slaving away at oiling and spicing a whole chicken while Melissa reconstituted sun-dried tomatoes, melted butter, and sipped a glass of wine in anticipation of a delicious meal. The couple simply enjoyed one another's presence and the scent of delicious foods wafting through the apartment (as well as a bit of smoke from a chicken which just happened to burn slightly as it rotated around in the mini-convection oven) during the hour or so needed for the meal to come to completion.




Valentine's Day Dinner #2



As each dish came to completion, the couple sat down to a candle lit dinner with a sweet Lady Annyeong lying peacefully under the table. Upon finishing off the first course, the couple prepared to watch a surprisingly pirated version of Fast Food Nation while devouring the deliciousness that was Browned Butter Brownies with Strawberry Sauce and a mug of milk. Although Valentine's Day had to be postponed, the Harrington's household has remained and will continue to remain a household (and most importantly, a marriage) filled with love.

Language Learning: Successes and Failures

The Harrington's have just hit the 6 month mark of their stay in Korea. In just a few days a new semester/school year will begin over in the land of Kimchi which implies a whole new slew of Guest English Teachers will be entering the public schools and taking their turn at teaching English as a Foreign Language. However, English is not the only language being taught here in the Republic of Korea, additional world languages are taught at high school and university level yet the language we at The Harrington Times wish to highlight is noneother than the Korean language.

Six months ago as the Harrington's made their way to Jeonju for EPIK orientation their hearts were set on a number of culture engaging tasks such as learning the language. One would assume that 6 months immeresed in a second-language would provide ample opportunities to acquire this new language with great speed and efficiency. Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, this is not entirely true or common among the expat community (although there are an impressive number of foreigners who do master the language and their efforts should not be overlooked). Regardless, The Harrington Times serves to report on the life and times of the Harrington's who six months into teaching a language have done a relatively poor job acquiring a new language. Not to imply the couple hasn't been trying, and it is regarding such trials that we at THT bring forth this article as a way to assist others pursuing the Korean language. The following is a few language learning avenues taken by the Harrington's, their experience and recommendations.

Korean Lessons from a Korean Teacher/Co-Teachers: In attending a local English Ministry the Harrington's were presented an opportunity to learn the Korean language from volunteer teachers who spoke both Korean and English. The experience of the Harrington's in this situation is that Korean's may (or may not) learn and teach differently than Westerner's are accustomed to. For the Harrington's, Korean lessons were a 30-40 minute session of listening, repeating, reading, and copying. In this way, the Harrington's learned a few vocabulary words and gained a greater understanding of the Hanguel alphabet but often ended the classes feeling overwhelmed and frustrated by the huge amounts of language poured into heads with no solid understanding of when, how or why to use taught phrases. Outside of the church lessons the Harrington's sought advice or phrases instruction from co-workers. If the Harrington's had a better base from which to build, this would likely be effective, however both the Harrington's rarely remembered these new phrases or words beyond the day or week in which they were learned.

KoreanFlashcards.com: This website has proven to be an excellent and quick source for vocabulary building and grammatical understanding. The site offers many choices regarding what level of words and/or specific words the 'student' would like to learn. Each word also comes with example sentences which when scrolled over offer grammatical explanations. In addition, 'students' can sign up for daily newsletters which will include a sentence of the day, random vocabulary and vocabulary currently in the student's personal 'list'.

Talk To Me in Korean: This website is by far the favorite of the Harrington's. TTMIK offers a wide, impressive range of lessons that suit the Harrington's learning styles quite well. In Level 1, students can expect to learn useful Korean phrases that are easy to change and use in various situations. As the Harrington's are not particularly far in their learning of the Korean language they cannot speak to the quality of all lessons but have done enough browsing to realize the value of additional materials. This site provides not only the MP3 versions of 8-10 minute lessons but in addition provides PDF files for additional explanations and even workbook pages so that students can perfect and test their language acquisition. Beyond the basic levels, TTMIK provides listening excercises for both intermediate and advanced level learners of Korean. If that's not enough, TTMIK links a plethora of helpful sites and information regarding the Korean language. But wait! That's not all! These exceptional Korean language lessons are offered free of charge, so if you try it out and love it, you should consider making a donation. Regardless, Talk to Me in Korean is an excellent option for learning the Korean language in bite-sized chunks while sitting in front of your computer.

To those who hope to learn the Korean language to any degree, we here at The Harrington Times wish you the best f luck and welcome any comments regarding your best tips and tricks for language learning or some huge failed attempts.

Teaching Valentine's Day in South Korea

Here in the land of Kimchi and other spicy foods, Valentine's Day comes with a bit less commercialization yet the same funky desire to have somebody to love and receive gifts from. The Harrington's will be celebrating the day in a traditional Harrington manner and of course, we at The Harrington Times will bring the story in due time. Today however, we bring the story of Valentine's Lessons in Middle School and Elementary School settings.

One fabulous aspect to teaching English in a foreign country is the opportunity to have darling or un-motivated students (whichever the case may be, currently in Korea students fall into the latter category as one school year comes to an end and a new one will soon begin) help the Native English Teacher send some love and joy to friends and family back home. So it was, Michael Teacher conducted a weeks worth of Valentine writing requiring his students to write a sweet Valentine to some of the special women in his life before having the opportunity to write a Valentine to a person of their choice.

At the elementary school level, Melissa Teacher strayed from writing Valentine's with her sweet and darling group of 2nd graders and chose instead to do a little Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes action before using this worksheet to have students add a face to their own cupid. Should you find yourself in need of a Valentine activity or an easily adjustable body parts lesson in your own teaching English as a foreign language try this out:

Introduce the 'topic' with this YouTube video. Ask students what they heard, what they saw, etc.
Play or sing the song; Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, use this video if you like.
Lead students in singing the song at increasing/decresing speeds. Quiz them on body parts i.e. Head, Knees, Eyes (they move their hands accordingly).
Make sure students really know Eyes, Ears, Mouth, Nose before passing out this worksheet and viola - easy end of semester lesson for young English Language learners!





Happy Valentine's Day to all our Readers!

With Love from South Korea

February 14th is Valentine's Day, a day celebrated or acknowledged in some form by people throughout the world. For one of the Harrington's, the day is also a day to remember the union of a husband and a wife who chose to dearly love their daughters and faithfully serve as the heads of a household and a family. It was on February 14th the Melissa Harrington (as well as countless others) were blessed by the union of Harland and Brenda Allen. Regardless of the miles separating Melissa Teacher from these two folks whom she dearly cares for, they are never far from her heart and she was only too eager to recruit students from Bongam Elementary School to help her create a special Happy Anniversary message to 'send home'.

Put a Little Big Hit in your Hand

Some things in Korea are simply: brilliant and ingenius. One such aspect of Korea that fits these adjectives is pictured below; Chicken Snack on top, Soda on the bottom - thank you Big Hit Chicken and 2AM.

When Koreans or expats are in need of a little afternoon snacking delight, there are many options. Within a 2 minute or less walking distance depending on the lights, the Harrington's can put a little big hit in their hands, walk the dog, change a song on the iPod, wave to a neighbor, give a little bow, side-step a motorbike all while carrying their chicken and soda in their preferred hand. Brilliant. Truly. And, the chicken's not half-bad especially for the more than fair price of 2,000W (US$2) for the chicken and the soda. Added Bonus: 2AM supports Big Hit Chicken - check them out!

If you've fallen head over heals for these mega-pop stars and just so happen to be living in Daejeon or visiting soon why not consider seeing them live in concert? Head on over to this little bloggy space to find information in Korean or go straight to the Korean source regarding such matters and purchase yourself a ticket. Should you decide to attend, it'd be wise to start learning their songs, why not start with this one?

Pet Adoption in South Korea

Who wouldn't want a little of this in their life?

The Harrington's are not the first to adopt a sweet furry friend after spending a few months while in Korea nor will they be the last. Regardless, for those who are in South Korea who are considering making the big commitment regarding a little fuzzball of a friend, the Harrington's hope to share a bit of insight regarding the process with future articles addressing other pet related issues such as veterinary expenses, traveling home, etc. as the issues present themselves to the Harrington family.

In South Korea, there a few ways to which the Harrington's are aware one can seek out pet adoption, the primary source being Animal Rescue Korea. This organization's website is in English, so Guest English Teachers, have no fear! The site is essentially a network of English speaking animal lovers who are connected and knowledgeable about animal shelters throughout the peninsula. The site is filled with information regarding adoption, fostering, volunteering and even plentiful forums to discuss ALL things pet related.

As to the Harrington's specific experience with ARK and pet adoption: Lady Annyeong (then known as Sylvie) first came to the attention of Melissa Harrington while she was browsing topics posted on http://www.waygook.org/ an extremely helpful place for English teachers in South Korea. After email communications with the original poster, the filling out of an adoption application and much conversing, the Harrington's chose to meet Sylvie on their way through Seoul. The meeting was held between the Harrington's, Sylvie and Sylvie's foster on a Monday afternoon. Although the couple had first heard about Lady Annyeong/Sylvie through http://www.waygook.org/ she was a part of the system that is Animal Rescue Korea. She was being cared for in the home of a Foster Volunteer. The primary benefit of such a set up is that, for potential adopters a Foster can provide adequate information regarding current routines, temperament, potential issues, etc. This information was extremely valuable to the Harrington's who wanted to be quite sure they took in a dog to whom they could serve yet maintain their own routines with. Following this first meeting, the Harrington's took a few days away from Lady Annyeong/Sylvie to make sure it was a commitment they were ready and willing to make for this particular dog. As readers know, the decision was a definite yes.

For others considering adoption or purchasing a pet in South Korea, here are some things to consider/take away from the Harrington's experience: regardless of your choice to buy or adopt, at least look over the application form and pre-adoption information provided on the ARK's site - this is crucial to understanding what is expected of you as a pet owner; if this is your first pet, consider searching for a pet with a foster so as to get any insight you can regarding your specific critter; know the rules and regulations regarding returning to your home country with a pet; consider pet food prices and time commitments in light of your current money needs and social commitments; be prepared to fall in love with a cute ball of fur and teach it new tricks!

And for those considering a pet who need just a bit more convincing or friends and family of the Harrington's who want to see what Lady is capable of, a home video from '519'.

Stories from the Couch: February 2nd-4th 2011

Thanks to the Lunar/Chinese New Year, the Harrington's had the great pleasure of relaxing at home for an entire week with next to no obligations. One obligation that the Harrington's took one with great enthusiasm and joy was to host a couple of CouchSurfers for two nights while they enjoyed a couple of days skiing at nearby Muju Resort. The couple currently resides in Shanghai working in architecture however their homelands were Italy and Turkey. Upon their arrival, the Harrington's ushered the couple to old downtown (Eunhang-dong) for some street food snacking and a Korean bar experience.

With a group of Guest English Teachers the Harrington's and their CouchSurfers enjoyed baguettes filled with sauted cabbage, beef, peppers, mustard and other sauces, bulgogi burgers and chicken on skewers. From street side stands to underground shopping centers, the crew made their way toward the waffle and juice stands to 'top off' their street dining experience. Bellies full, the crew began meandering the streets in pursuit of a nice bar atmosphere to drink a bit of beer and soju. The bar they entered (pictured above) had a glittery, fantastical, arctic atmosphere akin to drinking in an ice cave. The bar also required patrons to order food, not just beverages (something that happens more often than the Harrington's would like). Regardless, the group ordered and were soon enjoying a gorgeous fruit platter, fries, muscles, snails, and cajun-like chicken.

Having done a bit of damage in an underground ice cave, the Harrington's with CouchSurfers in tow returned to their apartment and turned in for a good nights sleep. The next couple of days the CouchSurfers hit the slopes while Mike and Melissa hit books, TV, and cookie dough.

After two great days skiing, the CouchSurfers returned and were eager to try a favorite Korean food of the Harrington's sam-gyeop-sal, thick sliced pork, grilled with kimchi placed in a lettuce wrap, shoved in the mouth to be thoroughly enjoyed. Upon finishing the meal, the four made their way to In-D bar to enjoy a cocktail and conversations about travelling, skiing, eating, and being.

Prior to making their final departure from Daejeon, the CS couple made their way to Expo park before continuing on to Iksan for the continuation of their Korean tour. As always, the Harrington's loved hosting these CouchSurfers and continue to be thrilled that their couch (floor space) is receiving good and semi-constant use.

One Man's Junk, Another Man's Treasure: Furnishing your home in Korea

Those who knew the Harrington's while they lived their Wyoming life will not be surprised to learn that the majority of furniture now gracing their Wookyeong-bill Apartment has been retrieved from the streets of Korea. Koreans love all things shiny and new. The Harrington's love all things cheap and used. (If you're not sure about this, check out our recent article regarding Melissa's love of a local thrift store). Surprisingly, these two worldviews collide in such a way that is highly beneficial to the Harrington's. In pursuit of new and improved, the Harrington's neighbors are constantly throwing furniture out to the streets (because in Korea there is a stellar process of recycling and garbaging and residents need only purchase a tax sticker, place it on the furniture item, throw it out on the street, and allow the powers that be come and take the items away.)

Back to the subject at hand, this discarded furniture then awaits a garbage truck to come and take it off to it's final destination. There tend to be enough days between first being set outside to final pick-up that scavengers have an opportunity to pick up a new piece of furniture to furnish their happy little home, enter the Harrington's. Since settling in their Wookeyongbill Apartment which was furnished with a bed, wardrobe, entertainment center/chest of drawers, dining table, two chairs, tv, microwave, refrigerator and washer the couple has added unto their furnishings by pulling in: a smaller dinning table, three short tables of varying size, three chairs and another entertainment center/chest of drawers. Even now there are two large wardrobes, a bookshelf and an old mattress (sketchy) sitting near the Harrington's apartment waiting for a new home...or disposal.

If you find yourself living in Korea, don't hesitate to pull some things in off the street and offer them new life. Bonus: leave the tax sticker on the item and when you're ready to move on or find a better street item, discard the original item 'free of charge'.

Thrifting in Daejeon: The Beautiful Store

Update: November 7, 2011
This Beautiful Store location no longer exists.
Please check out The Beautiful Store - Youngmun
and The Beautiful Store - Daedong for your thrifting needs.

Those who know Melissa Harrington well know that in order to be well-dressed, she is in desparate need of second-hand and used clothing. Without such, Melissa would likely wear the same outfit daily or cause her loving husband to experience a heart attack as she pursued an acceptable wardrobe (this by no means is to imply Melissa is a fashion diva, however, the girl does enjoy some variety and practicality in her wardrobe).

Regardless of Melissa's personal style or preference for used clothing, the discovery of Korean thrift stores was nothing short of miraculous. Prior to arrival in Korea, Melissa had a conversation with a South Korean student at the University of Wyoming which resulted in Melissa learning that second-hand was not a popular concept in the land of Kimchi. A bit disheartened, Melissa held out hope that regardless of cultural norms, she could find one or two darling second-hand shops.

A bit of digging and investigating was needed, plus a good 'nose' for second-hand shops, before Melissa was able to discover not only one, but multiple thrift shops in Daejeon, South Korea.

Oh the Weather Inside is Frightful

The Harrington's are fully aware of friends and family back home being buried under snow and more painfully, enduring temperatures of -50 Farenheit + wind chill. Having endured a few Laramie winters themselves, they are not in the least bit surprised to hear of the frigid temps being endured by Wyomingites in recent days. And while the temperatures in Korea may not be excruciatingly low, it is enough to encite the government to encourage the citizens to wear long-johns.

Those unfamiliar to the working environment of South Korea, particularly in the public schools, may be surprised to learn that wearing long-johns on a daily basis is just the beginning of maintaining warmth during the winter months on the peninsula. Although temperatures have hardly dipped below 0 degrees Farenheit in the Land of Kimchi, the Harrington's and other Guest English Teachers have taken to wearing their coats indoors, as well as hats, gloves, scarves and of course, long-johns.

Unfortunately, sitting at a computer for hours on end during the winter months with no heating and open windows doesn't provide the heat production necessary to survive regardless of the layers one wears. Fortunately, there are a few options a Guest English Teacher can pursue in order to maintain feeling in the extremeties and enjoy some sense of comfort regarding the continuation of their life into the cherry-blossomed filled spring.

Some tips for staying warm during these cold winter months:

For ladies wishing to enjoy fall skirts without having to sacrifice warmth simply head on into your local Home-plus or sock shop and purchase a pair of fleece lined tights. Not sure that'll keep you quite warm enough in your mini? Why not purchase a set of leg warmers? And a pair of Uggs or 'ugg-a-likes' to add yet another layer of warmth.

Just remembered you can't wear Uggs while sitting at your desk? No problem! Simply pick out a pair of slippers from GMarket and have them delivered to your home, why not try out this pair? Still not warm enough? Why not go for a giant USB-heated slipper, your feet will be toasty warm the whole day through.

Of course, don't forget the simple and always effective blanket, space heater, hand warmers, gloves without fingers (so you can continue to blog and facebook), chunky scarf, and heavy coat.

If all else fails, retreat to the teachers office where the Vice Principal enjoys his days warmer than most, enjoy a cup of coffee and slowly make your way back to your freezing little English hole.

Thanks to: Aunt Phyllis and Uncle Tom for the link to the Koreans and Long Johns article, Mike Harrington for purchasing a USB heated slipper for Melissa Harrington so her winter wouldn't be so miserable, and the plethra of ways to waste time on the internet so winter vacation would only be cold rather than cold and boring.

Seongchon Elementary Winter English Camp

The Harrington Times recently brought you the story of Mike Harrington's Survivor themed English Winter camp. We now continue the report on English Winter Camps by highlighting one of Melissa Harrington's two English camps during the winter holiday, the one conducted at Seongchon Elementary School. With the assistance of a Korean Conversation Teacher, Melissa planned an assortment of activities for 3rd and 4th grade students to enjoy while using the English Language the last week of January. Lacking a theme, Melissa pulled in some activities she hoped would be winners, teamed with her spunky personality and numerous examples from the talented pool of elementary teachers in Laramie, Wyoming to pull off a few lessons which were 'less-than-perfect' in their organization and to generally create an atmosphere of fun and engaging learning for a couple sets of adorable Korean Elementary students. Highlights can be seen in the following videos and photos which showcase Melissa's 'Phonics/Ryhme' teaching style, the Ostrich Game, singing Head Shoulders Knees and Toes - part of the body parts lesson which included the all-time favorite ELL activitiy: Hilarious Body Part game, as well as other exceptional moments in this winters English camp.

Adorable and Fabulous Korean students + Their Fearless Melissa Teacher

Ostrich Game

Odds and Ends of English Camp

Surviving Middle School English Camp

Winter as an English teacher for EPIK means 1-3 (perhaps more) weeks of English Winter Camp. These tend to look different for all teachers, regarding timing, schedule etc. However, one site proves time and time again to be a life-saver for English Teachers in Korea, that site is http://www.waygook.org/ This site provides teachers a great many resources regarding curriculum, culture, games, PPTs and so much more. It was here, Mike Harrington found inspiration to conduct a two-week Survivor-themed Winter English Camp for the students of Nameson Middle School. Following are photos and a video depicting a few moments from the 2 week camp which included activities such as: knot tying, first aid instruction, peanut-butter and jelly sandwich making, tepee making, totem pole design and creation among a great many other activities designed to engage students and encourage a bit of English language use all while maintaining a fun and enjoyable camp atmosphere.

Team Name and Poster Creation

First Aid



Totem Poles and Tepees



Newspaper Tribal Outfit Creation

The Harrington's Capture Red on a Staycation

In the Land of Kimchi and in many other eastern lands the Lunar New Year has just been celebrated. For the Harrington's this has meant a bit of a holiday or vacation. Rather than touring Asia or the peninsula, the couple has enjoyed a staycation involving much TV time, computer time, book time and a bit of cooking/baking time.

Fortunately, the Harrington's '519' home provides a few opportunities to Capture Red as inspired and directed by Beth at I Should Be Foulding Laundry.

So it was that Melissa Harrington spent a bit of time working the flour, eggs and other myriad of ingredients in the 'red' kitchen as well as enjoyed the simple sights of being home, such as this cactus, a Thanksgiving gift from a Korean co-worker.

Happy Lunar New Year

Feburary 3, 2011 is an important day residents of Korea and in much of Asia. Known as the Chinese New Year, Lunar New Year or Seollal (in Korean), this day is a much appreciated break from the daily grind particularly for the expats living in the land of Kimchi.

For the Harrington's the day has been entirely uneventful.

The couple slept in, Melissa until 10 am and Mike until 11:30. Melissa took the lovely Lady Annyeong for a walk before spending too much time on the computer reading blogs, facebook stalking and the like. After showering and such the couple went separate ways, Mike headed out for a long walk and a chance to see a man about a guitar while Melissa held down the fort and caused smells of banana bread and peanut butter blondies to fill their tiny apartment.

The afternoon continued on in slow-relaxed fashion until the couple made their way to a friends house to enjoy treats, games and  good company. The Harrington's and Teacher friends enjoyed an array of desserts including an apple crisp, pineapple rum cake and peanut butter blondies before a rousing game of Phase 10 in which Melissa reigned victorious!

The solar new year's started off well and now the Harrington's can anticipate the lunar year, the year of the rabbit as well.

To learn more about traditional Lunar New Year celebrations in Korea check this out!

In the Kitchen: January 2011

January was a good month for '519' Kitchen that is ran and operated by Melissa Harrington. One lesson Melissa has been learning while cooking in Korea is the art of stretching leftovers and creating new meals from the old. A prime example of such is the snack Melissa Harrington prepared for New Year's Eve - a take on her mother's infamous Tortilla Roll-ups making use of shredded cheese and left over chili to create this edible delight. Her innovation in this dish inspired her friends to list four random ingredients hoping Melissa could propose an edible meal. Melissa relished the challenge and has considered making a blog career out of proposing meal solutions to the general public based on the ingredients they have in their refrigerator which are most in need of being used. For any readers who wish to test Melissa in this, we at The Harrington Times invite you to comment or send a message to Melissa asking her for her 'expert' opinion.

Keeping with the theme of using up what's available and/or leftover the '519' Kitchen was also the location of dishes such as: Mozzarella-Alfredo Sauce (using some leftover whipping cream) for Baked Potatoes and a Pasta Dish, using up some homemade hummus from a friend, the Harrington's also enjoyed Open-Faced Hummus, Tomato and Mozzarellas Sandwiches as well as Skillet Pasta with Spinach, Mushrooms and Hummus and finally, a kitchen highlight that made use of some leftover green chili was a dish of 'mock-juevos rancheros'.

In addition to using up leftovers, Melissa is learning the art of quick and simple dinners such as this Baguette Pizza Sandwich. Another 'simple' concept which is easy to write off as too labor intensive is the process of making Jam at home which Melissa was thrilled to do with leftover persimmons. Finally, to end the month, Melissa Harrington invited a few friends over for this delectable Beer Cheese Soup.

A Walk in the Life of Lady Annyeong

Since welcoming Lady Annyeong into their daily lives, the Harrington's have enjoyed a bit of an increase regarding their daily routine. One of the great pleasures in owning a dog is the near-requirement that owner's 'get outside' to ensure excercise and fitness for their four (or 3.5 legged) friend while at the same time getting in a bit of fresh air themselves. The Harrington's have made a decent habit of walking Lady Annyeong before school, after school and before drifting off to sleep at night. With 3.5 legs Lady Anyeong shows no disadvantage in her walking or running skills. Daily walks are the fuel that keeps Lady's fire burning and her deeply felt love for such assures the Harringtons that upon returning to Wyoming Lady Annyeong will find great happiness and feel right at home in what will be to her, a foreign land.

For those family and friends who find the distance excruciating at times and are particularly anxious to 'know' this new addition to the Harrington family, we at The Harrington Times gladly bring you a video depicting various scenes from one of Lady Annyeong's all time favorite routines: the daily walk.