Shopping with T

So one of the things about living here is that you say something like "We should TOTALLY go to Costco together" and then... months pass.  Seriously, like friggin' MONTHS!  It's not like either of you forgot or anything, but suddenly weekends get filled up, people get busy, life happens, and then... it's like the sun breaks thru the clouds... you talk, you realize you both have a free weekend/day, the stars align and IT HAPPENS!  I'm sure this happens a lot in the states, too, but for some reason things seem to be... amplified in Korea.  It's quite strange, but there are so many feels to sort thru and we all do it in different ways and sometimes we just forget to check on each other. 

Anyway, last Saturday I took a bus to T's place, then we got on another bus to Costco.  It was fun to see that big, familiar sign that heralded so many shopping trips with Jess and Doug. 

 Walking into that store was like walking into a time/space warp to back home.

 Except there were more Korean people... lol.

 We went straight to the food part.  T and I both fancied a slice of pizza.

 As you can see, some of the fares are quite the same... some not so much.  I don't know if you can see it, but the soup is abalone, the ice cream is milk ice cream (per T it tastes like... milk), and they have some kind of weird Korean calzone/burrito thing that looked interesting and I'll be getting next time I go.  You can also see the pork cutlets in the curry sauce on the far right side of the screen. 

 I got a 'combination' pizza.  That's what they apparently call their supreme.  It was SO GOOD!!

 And then there are these... as you can see by the lady demonstrating, you crank at one end and fresh, raw onions come out the other end.  As my friend Long told me, they will eat a mound of onions with ketchup and mustard... I saw it myself.

 Christmas already - see, American as can be!

 But then there were things like this that seemed not American at all.

 And you have to be careful of Asian sizing.  Now T and I did find some wonderful jackets.  They are soft on the inside and they were Kirkland brand, so they were American sizes.  She got one in a lovely purple color and I went for - light blue.  J/K, you know I got the black one. 

 Downside of shopping in Korea - we had to take the bus back to T's and then I had to take another bus home.  So all of the purchases had to be carried in Little Buddy and my tote.  The good news?  It worked.  The bad news... no bad news, it worked!  Although T's chicken did leak a bit when she punched a hole in the plastic (not on purpose!). 

 You can see the mound of onions on the plate closest to me.  No clue what was on the sushi they were enjoying, either. 

 A cute little statue outside of the Costco.

So that was our adventure at Costco.  We went to our separate homes, put away our groceries, I froze a bunch of sausages and cheese, secure in the knowledge that I will have stir fry goodness for MONTHS! 

The next day, I went back to meet up with T and go shopping for sweaters for her.  I was also hoping to find jeans, leggings, and/or undies since as previously stated, I've shrunk.  While waiting on T, I went to a store called Art Box and found... HALLOWEEN stuff!!  I have 2 headbands, one with a witch hat and one with bat wings and horns, a mask that looks like Jack Skellington's mouth, nail stickers, temporary tattoos, and a ring holder for the back of my phone so that the chances of me dropping it are slightly less.  Then we went for food.  We went to a curry place that she had been to before. 

The process was, you choose your curry (I went with eggplant and rice) then you choose how spicy (medium spicy) then you choose your add-ons (onions and garlic are free, then I went with a cheese pork cutlet).  I was a little surprised that they had forks, and it also came with miso soup.  The small dishes you are seeing on the side are pickled radishes.  

After this it was your typical shopping trip.  I didn't find any jeans or leggings, but I did find some decent lipstick, clear nail polish, and even a lip ring.  That's right, a simple horseshoe lip ring is WAY CHEAP here, so I got one.  When I got home, I put it right thru the hole in my lip, then I did a happy dance.  I felt a little more like me.  It's the little things that sometimes you have to hold on to when everything else has changed.

So it was a successful day for T, and for me it was nice to hang out with her, so I'm calling it a win as well.  Now I'm psyching myself up for a shopping trip to Seoul on Sat, supplemented with a cat cafe and a Vatos run.  Between Forever 21, H&M, and some small little place in Itaewon that advertises Western sizes, I'm hoping to have some luck.  If not, I'll go for plan C... Amazon.  I'm just nervous about ordering jeans online... after all, we all know women's sizes are regulated and standardized (queue eye roll).  

I must say, I feel much better after posting some of the things I've been dealing with.  I know that these changes are good, and I will learn what angles to take my pix from, and I'll even reassure my friend that my boobs don't look any smaller (it is the mark of a really great friend when she knows your psychosis when it comes to your body and does everything she can to make you feel better/laugh about it).  I'm on orders from her to find a good bra.  LOL.  I will learn how to live in a smaller body... and I may even get back into doing yoga to help burn off the thighs.  S has mentioned training me once or twice, but I think I'd rather join a boxing gym or something around here.  I don't want to have to tell him "oh crap, I forgot to go to the gym again... for the 7th time... this week."  Some people like accountability...  me not so much.  

Anyway, have a great rest of your week, I'll keep you updated on the jeans/leggings situation, and happy October-ween!  Hehehe - iiiiiit's SCHPOOOKAY SEASON!!!