Archive for February, 2006

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One Ticket Down

Tuesday, February 28th, 2006

The first ticket item for my Wood Badge was a Cub Scout Belt Loop Fair for the Hispanic Scouting Council. This was also my diversity ticket, hence the reason I was helping the Hispanic Council. I planned out the event and provided the scheduling. I also made a list of the items required and room requirements to make the event successful. The Council had a great location, a local Church with lots of room for the events I planned.

 

The program consisted of the Cub Scouts working on belt loops, which are awards that reflect the boy’s introduction to a topic and trying things out. The wolf scouts (8 YO) and bear scouts (9 YO) learned about Chess, Marbles, Basketball, and Geography. The Webelos Scouts (10 – 11 YO) worked on activity pins for Readyman and Artist. Readyman is First Aid training for those of you unfamiliar with scouts.

 

They estimated 150 boys would attend. I had no idea what the break down would be so I planned on 90 younger boys and 60 Webelos scouts. With this thought I then planned on each class accommodating 30 boys. The belt loop classes would last one hour, while the activity pins required two hours. This was ideal. It also gave us time for a good opening ceremony, lunch with a speaker, and a closing ceremony.

 

To make it work I bought 15 chess sets and enough marbles for a couple of dozen marble games. I prepared 120 copies of Texas maps and world maps for Geography. One of the leaders provided 10 basketballs for the day. The Hispanic Council bought art supplies and we had a paramedic volunteer his service to teach the first aid classes. I also lined up an artist to speak at lunch, which covered one of the requirements for the artist activity pin.

 

It rained a great deal the day before the event and the weather turned cold. I had been trying to get some boys from my troop to help me with the Fair. I had promised them breakfast, lunch and service hours. A few boys committed to the event. I asked them to meet me at the Scout House at 7 Saturday morning. I was running a bit late, as I stopped to get some donuts for breakfast and chocolate milk. I was 15 minutes late, but most folks are used to me running late. Arrived at the Scout House and no scouts. So my son and I waited and waited. Gave up at 7:30. I needed to make sure the site was ready, so we drove to the church.

 

I was the first person to arrive at the church. This was my first visit to the site and now I was worried if I had come to the correct location. But those fears were short lived. Soon the fellow with keys to the church arrived and he gave me a walk through of the site. They had all the room I needed and more. That was great. I assigned classes to the different areas and then set up tables in a room for chess. Once the tables were set, I left my son to preparing the chess boards. The Hispanic Council leaders started showing up and my main contact arrived with several Boy Scouts. Thank goodness. I needed the boy power.

 

My biggest mistake of the day was not bringing more schedules. Fortunately, we were able to make copies and handed them out to the leaders. Assignments were given out and soon I had a boy scout to lead each den (group of scouts) and teachers for the different topics. Then my son informed me a few of the chess sets I bought had mismatched pieces. Argh! What kind of crap is Toys R Us selling?

 

Boys were arriving with parents and Cub Scout leaders. Lots of energy filling the place. We got everybody in the gym for the opening ceremony. We had a flag ceremony and the Pledge of Allegiance. Next we sang Morning Bells and then the kids were off to their class rotation. For the morning I did not do a lot. I just walked around and peeked in on classes. Everything worked quite smoothly.

 

Around 11 I called the speaker to see if he needed directions. He informed that he was fine and in fact exiting the freeway and not far away at all. Great! Everything was on schedule. So I went out to await him.

 

Actually the speaker had me sweating earlier in the week. No speaker had been found. I had considered my kids art teacher, but I did not want to do something that might be uncomfortable for the kids. Then I remembered there was an artist I use with 12toMidnight called pencillad in the business. He has done drawings for Skinwalker but he had also worked on a children’s book. So I emailed him and he was really worried. He does not like speaking in front of groups. I said I’m really needing someone. So he asked his collaborator for the children’s book. This guy actually speaks professionally, but he owed pencillad a favor, so I got him for free. All pencillad wanted was a chance to watch.

 

The speaker was great. After the kids ate their hot dogs for lunch he spoke with them. I expected just a chat about art and the kinds of jobs there are. He gave the boys that and so much more. He read from one of his books and he is a special person. His mannerism and facial expressions are captivating and he uses them brilliantly while reading his tale. From the youngest boy to the oldest leader, all of us were caught in his story. We hung on every word and looked forward to each nuance. He really met my expectations by 200%. My contact even got the shy pencillad to come out chat with the boys a bit and show some of his portfolio. Just a note, he did not show off any art from Blood Lines or Skinwalker.

 

With that done, I spent the afternoon with the Webelos leading through the artist requirements. It’s kind of funny, thinking of me teaching an art class. I cannot draw a straight line, but I managed to steer those kids through it all. The two hours passed quickly, but the boys finished the tasks satisfactorily.

 

Closing ceremonies consisted of me introducing all of the teachers and the den leaders. Then the den leaders brought their boys forward and they received their belt loops or activity pins. We gave out 96 belt loops and 26 pins. That translates into 38 cub scouts on hand.  The weather really killed the numbers we expected. We also gave out recognition awards to all of the leaders and the parents that helped us. Then we retired the colors and the day was done. Except for clean up, but that was not done.

 

Biggest disappointment of the day. No help from my troop outside of my son. I had even asked one of the leaders to come over with his guitar and he called with regrets that he got tied up. And I had written a belt loop song too, just for this occasion. It follows the tune of If I Had a Hammer and I close with the words posted here.

 

If I Had a Belt Loop

 

(Done to the tune of If I Had a Hammer)

 

If I had a belt loop
I’d put it on my scout belt
I’d wear it round my waist … all over this town,
I’d wear it in the mornin’
I’d wear it in the evenin”
I’d do my best for all my friends and family
All over this town.

If I was an artist
I’d paint an awesome picture
I’d tell you all the colors … all over this town,
I’d paint in the mornin’
I’d paint in the evenin”
I’d do my best for all my friends and family
All over this town.

If I had a basketball
I’d bounce it on the courtside
I’d shoot it in the hoop … all over this town,
I’d bounce it in the mornin’
I’d bounce in the evenin”
I’d do my best for all my friends and family
All over this town.

If I had a chess set
I’d move all my pieces
I’d be like Bobby Fisher … all over this town,
I’d move em in the mornin’
I’d move em the evenin”
I’d do my best for all my friends and family
All over this town.

 

If I had some marbles
I’d play a game of ringers
I’d hit em with my shooter … all over this town,
I’d play em in the mornin’
I’d play em the evenin”
I’d do my best for all my friends and family
All over this town.

 

If I had some band aids
I’d slap em on my patient
I’d check out all his vitals … all over this town,
I’d slap em in the mornin’
I’d slap em the evenin”
I’d do my best for all my friends and family
All over this town.

 

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25 Years Ago Part IV

Monday, February 27th, 2006

Well I’m itching to get back to writing this. So the hiatus is officially over, though taxes may slow my pace of posting a bit.

 

When we left off I had just escaped the girls of VD Hill by going inside the welcoming confines of the New York Club. This was one of the smaller clubs in Itaewan Dong, not much more than a hole in the wall, but I liked the ambience here. The bar was to the left as you entered and it extended long enough for 8 bar stools. To the right a series of four tables were set against the walls with 4 chairs at each table. The place was not too crowded and fortunately for me the girls from VD Hill could not enter. Working girls stayed out of the bars unless they had a date.

 

We sat down at the second table. A quick look around and we saw a couple on the bar stools and another couple at ` table. Behind the bar was an American GI and a Korean woman. The cute girl at the table said something to her date and then she approached us for our order. She had a very pretty round face with the high prominent cheek bones that Koreans tend to have. Her hair was the brown color that black Asian hair transforms to from a perm and her locks fell to the top of her shoulder blades. If the top of her head reached my shoulders I would have been really surprised. She was the younger Kim sister and she took our beer order.

 

I could not remember if we got an OB or a Crown maekju (Korean for beer), as those are prominent choices. I drank both though I prefer OB. Korean beer is not too bad. But they learned the art of distilling hops from Germans. So smart choice there. But the Koreans are very good at taking the best from other cultures and using it. This is evident today as their economy has grown so much since I visited.

 

Watched her go up to the bar and give Bob (the American GI that worked there. I do not remember his name, but Bob the bartender will do). While little Kim was getting the brewskies we watched the other girl working her magic on the GI sitting at the bar. This girl, Miss Jin, usually wore a dark hoodie or sweater and jeans with some sneakers from the ville. She was rail thin, but you hardly noticed that. What you noticed on Miss Jin was her hair, long down to her tailbone and luxurious in its ebon strands. You could get lost in there and someday I would try. But on this day she was working her magic on this fellow.  And I was seriously waiting for them to fall on the floor and get it on right there 

 

Little Kim came back with our beers and we got back to our business of just trying to stay awake until 8 so we could fight the jet lag. That’s when Miss Kim cam and sat at our table. She was the elder sister and as the conversation progressed we learned that she owned the New York Club. New faces interested her and we chatted a bit. This woman would become my good Chingu (Korean for friend) and she watched my back on more than one occasion. Too bad I was so stupid to ignore her almost every time. But she was my Korean mama, even though I doubt she was 30 years of age. The elder Kim was not as pretty as the younger. Her hair was fuller and not perm damaged and she wore it longer then Little Kim. Not as long like that of Miss Jin, who’s hair reminded me of horse’s hair. Miss Kim had a broader face, not unpleasant to look at but not as pretty as the two younger girls.

 

We finished two beers each and then we headed back to the Hotel Crown. Now Itaewon came to life as more GIs came into the ville. I realized now that the alleyway we had walked down earlier was another spot to find hookers. These residences served to house the working girls. Doors stood open revealing stairwells and young girls watching the men pass. Girls trying to keep warm and look inviting. The walk back passed quickly.

 

I don’t remember how well I slept the first night. Probably did not have much trouble. After Basic Training and Infantry School I learned to sleep standing up and walking, so I cannot imagine a strange warm bed keeping me from sleeping. The next day we went to Yongsan and had breakfast at the snack bar. Typical American food, I probably had donuts and coffee. That was always a favorite at an AAFEES (Army and Air Force Exchange Service) snack bar for me. Plus we could buy a Stars and Stripes newspaper there and get news of “The World”. Just to translate “The World” is how a GI refers to stateside, home, the good old USA.

 

After breakfast we went to worksite. We met this Sergeant First Class that was our liaison, as well as the Lieutenant Commander (yeah we had to deal with a squid) who was the Sergeant’s boss. Actually the Navy guy was not too bad and we used to bump into him at some of the clubs carousing. Of course he instructed us to call him Sarge on these occasions. Officers were not supposed to mingle with the Enlisted Men. So we got the lay of the land and caught a cab to our headquarters. We needed to move our tools to the worksite and then we could start work on Monday after using the rest of the weekend to shake any jetlag.

 

The drive across Seoul was really strange. I think I died several times in my mind. I don’t know why they painted lines on the street. No one paid them any attention. And the driving technique were peculiar to me. Floor the gas. Let it coast for a few ticks and then floor again. Repeat. Often. And everybody honking. One of the GI explanations of Korean drivers is a reference to the kimchi brake, which is whoever honks first has the right of way. I’m glad I never had to drive there. I know I would smashed somebody.

 

But we survived our trip to our HQ and back to Yongsan. We locked the tools up and inventoried the materials for our project. Then we decided to call it a day. We had some time and I needed a haircut (by Army standards), so we went to the Barber Shop in Yongsan.

 

The Barbershop in Yongsan was a new experience for me. I went in planning to just get my hair cut, but ended up getting my haircut and a FULL body massage. I had never been to a Barber Shop with all of these services. They tried to sell me on a pedicure too, but I was too macho to consider that. Sarge and the Spec 5 were with me and they both got another good laugh at me from this experience. This little girl that gave me the massage was so cute. My definition of “little bug” cute. She was teeny tiny, but she had these wonderful, beautiful hands and they did things to me that I did not now you could do. Especially while wearing my uniform. She had really cute eyes, though her hair was really extra curly from a perm (I never cared that much for extremely curly hair). Haircut with Full Body Massage for under $10 bucks too, great bargain. The kid that hated hair cuts was considering one everyday. And when I left her a tip, she looked at me with those pretty kitty eyes. Probably the biggest mistake I made was not giving her my room number at the Hotel Crown. The way she looked at me. Haiz…

 

Got back to the hotel and it was too early for dinner. We decided to go to the NCO Club and try out their restaurant later. I chilled out, took a little nap, watched the American Forces Network programs. It was getting about time to go out for dinner. That was when the phone rang. I answered the phone and guess who? Mama-san was calling again.

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Thursday, February 23rd, 2006

My partner flametoad made up this tag a while back. I promised to do it, so I had better. Pay attention folks, because I will be tagging some of you seeing how this is a brand new meme. So look out. No telling who I will infect until we get to the end.

 

Here is how the meme works. Let’s say you are in an alternate universe. One almost exactly like this one, except perhaps you NEVER ever met your significant other. You are a single guy or gal without a any current relationship, and you have just published a New York Times bestseller. A movie studio brought you to Hollywood to talk about a movie deal for three days, and as part of the wooing process they offer to host a one-on-one dinner each night with the celebrity of your choice. Who would you pick? It could be a star you want to have a shot at “hooking up” with, or it could just be someone you admire.

 

Day One I meet with Wes Cravens cause I want my movie done right. No half steppin’ with my story.

 

Day Two I’m gonna meet Lucy Liu cause I’m a dog and she’s Lucy Liu.

 

Day Three I’m going to meet Hsu Qi (she flew in town special for me) cause I’m totally in lust for her. I mean I really respect her work.

 

Okay. I only had three days. But I’m going to make five tags. The lucky 5 are:

 

AhMay because I hope this will get her in a more cheery mood.

 

J cause the nicest thing I can do to a person that introduces herself by tagging me is to tag her back. Hope you agree!

 

JoMel because it’s the closest way I can get her over here, even if it is only a virtual trip.

 

Plink cause I’m interested what she would do in Plinkywood.

 

And my adopted daughter the one and only msfeline cause she was so happy I tagged her last time. Keke

 

So the assignments have been, er, assigned. Also make sure you give flametoad a read. He finds some really interesting techie stuff articles and he has an IPOD. Also he has a direct line to Cthulu and that just scares the hell out of me.

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Tagged by J

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2006

Despite my hiatus the tags keep coming and this one is also short. It also gave me the privilege of meeting J who I had seen about and across bloggoland. Shall we proceed with the meme:

What I am wearing:

I am wearing a blue plaid Oxford shirt that highlights my beautiful blue eyes. Only pretty thing about me. I’m wearing tan Dockers which I have cuffed. A pair of brown loafers with black socks covers my feet.

Something out of the ordinary on my desk:

Jeez I am a geek. I could list a dozen things, but I’ll keep it simple and mention my slinky.

Current favorite song:

Lately I have been listening to the lovely Vienna Teng. I have to choose two of her songs that I listen to over and over. Harbor and The Tower both resonate in my head. In fact the latter helps me define a female character in my screenplay.

Last thing consumed:

I hate an apple for my morning snack.

Last phone call received:

A wrong number. Haiz…

Current annoyance:

Children that do not earn a single penny and gripe about the little things and expect their slaves parents to drop everything to meet their demand.

Plans for the day/evening:

Complete the Pell reconciliation for the College. Need to touch base with my clients. Update the other Scouters about the Cub Scout Fair. I finally found marbles last night. Do some tax research. Go to Boy Scout meeting tonight and get some commitments for Saturday’s Cub Scout Fair. Collapse! I need more than four hours sleep tonight.

(Note this may appear twice. I sent yesterday via email and I have lost patience waiting)

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How Old Meme

Monday, February 20th, 2006

You know its hard to get me to shut up for a long time. Well Miss Plink dun got me meme-atized again and so it’s short and I can do this quick like and still make my deadlines. Which are killing me (and not softly)? Come Sunday I can relax, except for a couple of tax forms I absolutely have to do. Haiz…

Oh yeah. The meme:

1.       Name one of the actor of the old days that you missed the most
Chuck Connors. I used to never miss The Rifleman when I was a boy.

2.       Name a cartoon of the old days
Road Runner was must seeing. Then I would go out and torment my sister with the different tricks I would learn on the show.

3.       Name a singer/group of the old days
Neil Diamond. My friends hated it when I sang Shiloh.

4.       Band of the old days
Cream. They were the first band that got my attention. I loved Sunshine of Your Love. Better get that for my IPOD.

5.       TV Series of the old days
Gunsmoke was a much watch in my house every week. That Sheriff Dillon did not mess around.

6.       Actress of Old Days
Farrah Fawcet  was the first actress to gain my attention in Charlie’s Angels.

7.       Fashion of Old Days that you miss the most
I miss my blue suede 5 inch heels. I was boss baby.

8.       Movie of Old Days
Fantasia really gripped me in the theater. Those dinosaurs were etched in my head for evah!

9.       Music Video of Old Days
They did not have music videos until I was much older. But the first one that really got me was Ronnie James Dio and Rainbow In the Dark. He rocks.

10.    Coolest Song of Old Days
Temptation Eyes. I used to drive everybody nuts cause I would never stop singing this song.

There you go. A minute break from my hiatus. Hope to have normal posting back on Sunday with 25 Years Ago Part IV.

 

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Taking a Couple Weeks Off

Tuesday, February 14th, 2006

Well I have to much going on to blog for the next couple of weeks. That does not mean I will not visit and give my two cents. It just means that my Korean tales are on hiatus as well as any other posts. Though I admit last time I went on hiatus I still managed a post or two.

Why the break? My client is keeping me busy. Plus he referred me to another client so that will keep me busy as well. Then I missed two days of work taking care of my daughter and I need to make up the time. Got writing that needs to be finished yesterday for 12 to Midnight. And the Cub Scout Fair is right around the corner. I still need some donors for that affair. I need 20 chess sets, 2,000 marbles, 10 basketballs, 10 soccer balls and lots of art supplies. Plus my first aid guy wants a golf cart. Thank God someone has taken care of the food to feed all those little guys. Me and 200 boys a week from Saturday. Fortunately I’ll get some boy power and adult leaders to help give these lads a good time.

Valentines Day was just me and the kids. I finally watched Supernatural for the first time this year. Good as always. Daughter watched it with me, while my son hid upstairs on his bed under the covers. Oh well. He’ll grow out of it someday.

Took my daughter to the doctor today (finally got a ding dong appointment) and we picked up some medicine at his advice. These little guys bushwhacked me and forced me to use my credit card in payment. They’ve been good since I brought ‘em home. My son got the little devil, while mt daughter recieved the ape. You get three guesses as to who gets the bear and the first two don’t count.

Be good. I’m watching.

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Valentines Day Tag

Tuesday, February 14th, 2006

This is my Valentines Day tag courtesy of Plink. No subterfuge here, just the facts. ;)

1. What did you do for last Valentine’s?
I worked and then I chased about with the kids until I collapsed. Just another day.

2. What are you planning to do for next Valentine’s?
Planning on taking my daughter to the doctor since I could not get an appointment Monday. Go pick up the kids some chocolate hearts or something. The missus is in Canada and I have no idea where. Hope she calls and she does usually call everyday.

3. What would be the ideal place to celebrate Valentine’s?
I would like to pick one of the romantic cities. San Antonio, TX, New Orleans, or Sante Fe, NM come to mind real quick. Paris for her, though I have no desire to visit, but love is about sacrifices.

4. What qualities in a person would make an ideal Valentine’s date for you?
The ability to roll dice. Can’t we play games on this day, before we play games.

5. What gifts would you buy / have bought for your partner?
Last year I got her a year’s supply of massages. I usually get the card, because usually I buy the wrong thing and get the why you spending money like that rant. Cards are safe, so I get this year and see if their is a jewelry show coming soon. What a damn bore I am.

6. What gifts would you buy / have received from your partner?
If I’m lucky I will get a card. I don’t expect much. The kids may make some cards and give me some sweets too.

7. What is your favourite all-time romantic movie?
Gone With the Wind. That reflects what life should have been like with genteel people. But those days are gone with the wind. I seek a place with gentility in the world of today, but my lens is foggy…

8. If you could choose any person on earth to be your date on Valentine’s, who would it be?
This is the missus, only the missus, and nothing but the missus. But I just missus her.

And then I will tag no one. I have no romance so I dun want to make anybody else suffer. Do if you choose.

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Cuddlies

Saturday, February 11th, 2006

Okay folks post their stuffed animals and I promised to introduce y’all to my fluffy friends as well.


These bears greet everyone that comes to my home. Say hi. They don’t growl.

Don’t be scared when you see the mice hiding in the silk flowers. They are quite nice.

And we always think of our service men and women. These bears help provide us with a little reminder to give thanks for their sacrifice everyday.


These little guys watch us watching TV.


This is hootie. The newest member of the stuffed animal crew. He came home with me during wood badge training. Being an owl patrol member Hootie took to me and my kin rather quickly.


This is my daughter’s bear, Chubby. Chubby is quite a well travelled fellown not to mention camper. He has been to New Mexico and Colorado for high altitude backpacking with my girl. Chubby is popular with all of the girl scouts.


These are my son’s bears. They watch over him as he sleeps and plays in his room. The only one I know the name of is Eager Beaver. He is the first toy I bought the boy when he was 2 days old. The doctor told my wife to stop pushing, but this baby was not stopping and did not. Thank goodness the doctor caught him. And when I saw this critter in the store I could not help but take him to the hospital.


I hope I do not have to introduce this fellow. He is the guardian of my office. He makes sure writing ideas do not escape and he guards the writing book for me. Perhaps a little too well considering some of my writing errors, typos and omissions.

Few things have happened since I last took the time to mention things that I have done. Last Sunday was not only the Super Bowl, but I also finally had dim sum with my brother-in-law and his wife.

The most surprising occurrence is I finally had my first client call. This prospect called from my direct mailing back on July 22nd of last year. I was surprised. But now I am busy helping him with his needs.

My kids were supposed to go camping this weekend but as things were looking like this would not happen after all. Friday afternoon I was meeting my client when daughter called complaing of a sore throat and she had lost her voice. So I had to cut my meeting short and go get her. Also picked up the boy and we went home. I dropped by the drug store and they suggested cough drops and gargling with cough drops. I had her do this and go lay down.

My son did not want to go camping. I though it was because of the cold rainy weather. I told him to call the scoutmaster. As usuall he did not. So he and I ate and then the scoutmaster called looking for the boy. He said they were going to sleep in the scout house tonight and then they would go hiking tomorrow. Then I learned the truth. My son did not want to go because his uniform was dirty. I could choke him sometimes. So I washed his uniform.

Then while the clothes are drying my daughter comes out crying. She is complaining that she cannot breath and now she has a light fever. I call the doctor and he says take her to the emergency room. So I’m thinking I can drop off the boy at scouts and go to the hospital nearby there. I’m wishing I would have taken her to the doctor right after school. Its amazing how quickly her illness grows. So I put the boys backpack in the car. I’m wondering why it seems so light, but they checked the boy’s gear earlier, so I figure he is fine.

Finally, the clothes dry, but my daughter is worrying me and I go to the closest emergency room and my boy can just wait for now. I call my wife and leave her a message. She is flying in from her business trip. She actually calls a few minutes later. She says she will come to the hospital. That will take an hour from where she is at and actually it takes her an hour and a half.

So we waited an hour before we saw the triage nurse and then another 15 minutes for the exam room. I had to turn off my phone in that area too. They examined her and gave her a shot of steriods as well as some Tylenol and Midol. She has to wait 20 minutes and then they will release her. So I walked out to see if the missus has arrived. She had.

I walked her back to the room and let her stay with the girl. I took the lad to the Scout House and dropped him off. Then I went to the drugstore to get Midol and her prescriptions. Also got her a cute get well card. Just to surprise and help cheer her up.

I get home and just as I am going to blog a bit the scoutmaster calls. My son has left his sleeping bag at home. So guess who gets to drive it to him. I did and I then I almost run out of gas. I also visit the drug store again and but the girl some menthol rub to help her breathe easier.

I get home and she is watching The Scorpion King. Its midnight now but she cannot sleep. So I go and blog getting part III out. Look for Part IV on Monday or Tuesday.

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25 Years Ago Part III

Friday, February 10th, 2006

Sarge suggested we try out the hotel’s restaurant. The service in the Hotel Crown was good. And the food in the restaurant was western style and tasty, though expensive. The hotel also had a night club, a bar and a nice gift shop.


Hotel Crown today.

We finished the meal and Sarge suggested we stay up at least until 8. He said that helped cure jet lag faster. So we decided to explore Itaewon dong. We headed outside and it was cold. The first stupid thing I did was not pack a coat. Buddies said you could buy clothes really cheap, so I did not pack one. Figured I would buy one.

Seoul was having quite a cold winter and the snow could come up to your knees if you walked in the wrong places. The wind bit my flesh and I wished I wore more than a t-shirt and flannel shirt. Fortunately, the shops were about a ¼ mile away.

(If you follow the map on the Itaewon link you can follow the route. We started at 34 Hotel Crown and we visited the shops which would be 32 & 33.)

Sarge pointed out this one establishment and there were dozen of jackets on racks. They were in several different colors and they had hoods. I found a dark blue coat that fit and in five minutes they sewed my name on the front. The back had a dragon embroidered on it and a map of Korea. It noted the location of Seoul. The cost was $20 bucks. I could not believe it. I heard the shopping was cheap and it was true.

From there I went and found a shop with sweat suits. I always remember this place as the young woman that worked there, probably my age, helped me write my name in Korean with Hangul characters. This spelling as well as my English name was sewed on the sweatshirt by the girl’s father. Price was under $10. Still cold so I bought a pair of scarves at a buck a piece. One was brown checkered and I put it on first, while the other was cream color and quite long.

The shopping in Korea reminded me of High School trips to Mexico and bartering and haggling over prices. I enjoyed the action. Until we hit another sweat suit shop and this guy would not budge on any of his prices. Plus he had a pretty smug look on his face. I was actually getting a little pissed, but Sarge pointed out the high quality of goods in this shop and I could not argue with that.

By then we were all ready for a drink so we headed toward the clubs. Itaewon has a number of clubs in the neighborhood, though they are a bit of a walk from our hotel. We crossed a bridge that crosses a culvert in the area. There were working class homes built all along the side. They seemed out of place next to the commercial buildings of Itaewon that tended to be 3 or 4 stories tall. We passed the Hotel Hamilton, which is another hotel that American soldiers could use. It was an older facility, but some GIs preferred it because it was closer to the clubs. The area around the clubs had quite a few alley ways. We cut through one of these alley ways on our walk. The clubs were mixed in with what looked like residences. Doors opened on to stairways. There were no windows on the street level, but you could see lights shine out of higher levels. Some had open windows and occasionally you saw a child watching the street.

Hotel Hamilton today
It looks better than I recall

Then we hit the main drag. Brightly hung signs sought to attract customers and they definitely were targeted at Americans. All of the signs were written in Englsih. We went to the biggest club, the King Club, and walked up the wrought iron exterior stairs that led to the front door. Opened the door and the place was not packed, but not exactly empty either. It was a Thursday evening and some couples danced on the large dance floor. We ordered a trio of OB beers and I had my introduction to Korean beer. It was not bad stuff either. Koreans learned how to make beers from Germans and it tasted better than American beer.

(If you follow the map you can see where we left the shops. There was no McDonalds or Burger King then. I cannot identify where the culvert is. We turned right at the present location of Burger King. That black line is the alley we took. I’m surprised the King Club is still there and the Hotel Hamilton for that matter. The alley north of the King club is the one that goes up Hooker Hill)

We downed out beers and decided to walk a bit more. Just around the corner we hit an uphill alley with more residences. Almost all of the residence doors were open and a lot of girls hung out on the street. That’s when Sarge informed us that this was VD Hill also known as Hooker Hill. We walked up the hill with all the prostitutes. And they were not shy and demure, despite being bundled for the cold weather. You could hear them call out from all around.

“Hey GI. You want to love me.”
“Come here. I think you are cherry boy. Me fixie.”
“You come my room. I makey you very happy.”
“Hey you buy me a drink.”

I smiled like a damn fool as these pretty girls tried to lure me in. But in the back of my mind I remembered Sarge calling this VD Hill. You don’t get names like this for no reason. He elaborated that this area got its name because more girls slipped around the health check ups than those that worked closer to the clubs. So there was a better chance of catching the clap here. Just as an aside, we had not even heard of HIV or AIDS at this time.

We decided to turn around and head back down the hill. We’d seen enough. Then this cute little thang grabs my new scarf and pulls it off. I thought what is she doing? But I still have that silly grin on my face. So I ask her to give it back.

She smiles back, “No. I want you love me. Whats you name.”

I’m thinking this bitch is got to have some kind of disease. I don’t want any part of her. So I pull on my scarf and what is happening is I am reeling in my scarf and the girl too just like a fish.

Now she’s in my face and she is hugging me, while maintaining a firm grip on that scarf. She says, “I know you love me. Come on we go have fun.”

Course I am getting angrier. But she is cute too, long black hair, short in height, very clear complexion and bright cat eyes. But bottom line I was not interested in her. Did not want her or any other girl on that hill. So I yanked my scarf and pulled it free. Then I wrapped it around me and headed down the hill with my buddies. They were pretty amused.

This girl chased me. She grabbed the scarf and now she has a pair of girl friends besides her. Her friends were calling me number fucking 10, 10 being the worst number to describe a person as in Korean culture. And I must of looked real funny too. I had this scarf wrapped around me with this little girl holding on for dear life. I walked down the hill dragging her like a sled over the snow. Sarge and the Spec 5 are busting a gut at my expense. I am wondering the whole time. Why don’t they get some of this aggravation? It’s like I had a sign over my head. Single. Lots of money. Stupid.

Finally reached the bottom of the hill and the girl gave up on me. Went back to her friends. We decided one more beer and then back to the hotel. I think the establishment we went to was the New York Club. Mind is foggy on this, but for the purposes of this story it will be referred to as such. This became my favorite bar in Itaewon. For it is here that I met the Kim sisters and Miss Jin. More about them in Part IV.

(The New York Club is located right across the street from the King club close to the alley.)

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25 Years Ago Part II

Thursday, February 9th, 2006

Start off with one correction. I was 22 when I touched the ground in Japan. Apologies to all for the error.

 

Yep mama-san did not waste a minute to call me. Now I had seen a few Korean women in my almost five years of service, but they were all married. So I had stayed away from them. Though I had heard a lot of war stories. Let me stipulate when I refer to war story this has nothing to really do with fighting an enemy, but much more to do with carousing.

 

Most GIs (slang for American soldier) that are overseas and go to the bars frequented by GIs are not meeting sweet college girls. Some of these girls are looking to catch a flight on a Freedom Bird to Golden Mountain. Others are curious and just want to meet an American. Most are poor, maybe an orphaned child kicked out of the orphanage without any job skills, while another is the daughter of a farmer or fisherman with no sons and her father cannot afford to feed her. These girls somehow make it to the ville (slang term for the town outside an American base) and a mama san would take them in. The girl would be given pretty clothes, a bed, a chest of drawers, four walls and a debt she could not hope to pay with most jobs in the ville. These girls had to become whores to pay the rent, buy food, and hopefully knock off some of their debt.

 

And this just is not limited to Korea. It happened in Viet Nam, Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, and Singapore. I have heard the bawdy tales of the old soldiers that had been to the ville in all of these countries. These stories related how beautiful Asian girls were and that the only limits was your money and imagination. The word was out that the girls were good and they did not care what you looked like. An arrogant assertion at best, because when you have a debt, mama san does not let her girls be choosey.

 

So here I stood in downtown Seoul with a real live mama san on the phone. Naïve, jet lagged and horny I pondered my words. Life was so much easier when I joined the US Army at 18, a virgin and dedicated to Christ. Hell that’s what motivated me to join the Army. I wanted to kill Communists for Christ (this was the Cold War, Ronald Reagan was sworn into office during this month). But that boy had slipped, his virginity willingly stripped away at Crazy Sexy in the Frankfurt red light district after surviving two years of temptation.

 

Now I stood phone in hand and somebody knocked on the door. I told mama san I had to go and hung up. Went to the door and my mates were outside ready to go eat dinner. I spoke to them about my phone call and I became the source of jokes for the ride down the elevator.

 

One thing I have to do is commend both of these men. Because they were good husbands. There is an imminent threat of war in Korea, thus soldiers rarely brought their families to Korea. Exceptions were made for Korean wives. Many married men went to the bars as much as the single guys and for the same reason. It was hard to respect them. Not that I was any better. But the Sarge and the Spec5 were good guys and maintained their fidelity throughout the job. I think they got their kicks from all of the stupid things I did. And I did a lot of stupid things. You’ll here more of these as the story continues in Part III.

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