Feels like the O.C., and thinking of T.V.

So I've been in Vancouver a few days now...in Coquitlam, actually. It's really an interesting place; I used to think it was full of Chinese people (not that there's anything wrong with that, but Vancouver's #1 mother tongue is Mandarin/Cantonese, so you'd assume there'd be tons here). Our area is up on a hill in a little bit of paradise, actually. It has started to remind me of Newport in that show The O.C. (O.C. means Orange County). Well, it isn't full of million dollar homes (but there are a few) but the topography is similar (hills, lots of parks, but no beach) and it's really, really white here. I think the only Koreans I've seen have been family and Ensign Harry Kim on Star Trek: Voyager (ya, still have jetlag...watching anything that hits the screen here).

On that note, I think I'm having T.V. overload. Well, with the kids I don't get to see too much of it, but when I do I'm boggled by the 60+ stations (and that's not even satellite!) and all, save one, of them are in ENGLISH! Wow! In Seoul I didn't even bother with cable so all I had was AFN (American Forces Network) (that guy on the homepage is their 6:30 newsanchor...the very reason I like to inline/rollerblade from 6-8PM). Even if you have cable you only get like 2-3 other "B" movie stations...nothing to write home about. Truth be told, though, AFN has a pretty good lineup and I get to learn all about opsec (operational security) and that the U.S. Army in Korea is looking for E-4s and E-5s (enlisted ranks) to be MPs (Military Police). So if you can handle the G.I. ads AFN is pretty cool. Anyways, I didn't remember so many ads for weight-loss programs, get-rich-quick schemes and fantastic kitchen products, but there they were. Of course in Korea most people are pretty fit and they know the best way to get rich is to marry rich or work hard--there are some ads there for kitchen and cleaning product, though, proving that some things truly are universal. One ad that did throw me, though, was one for a 'male enhancement' pill. What?!?!? You take a pill for a bigger willi? One version even had about 30 allusions to 'wood' throughout it. I thought it was a spoof...maybe it was...it was on CNBC during The Dennis Miller Show. If anyone knows, please comment.

Ok, back to my time here. We went down to the clubhouse to have a dip (ya, it's a little swanky...but the pool is outside, so it's not super-swanky) and there were some 18-something gals there sunning themselves and gabbing. Man, this is NOT Seoul. For one thing, no one actually tries to get a tan in Korea. They wear Darth Vader-inspired visors to keep out all the rays they can and everyone is totally covered up. Even when exercising Korean have pants, long-sleeves, even suits. Also, two of the three of them were 'plus size'. They weighed like 2-3 TIMES that of a typical Korean gal. (Not that that's a bad thing...it's just differences...please, no flames.) Then you have to think...if they are 18 aren't they still in school? By that I mean, they have not graduated from college. An 18-year old Korean would be in the library or at a DVD bang, at least. Most likely not at a pool (and I hear they're there everyday for hours on end)...what a different lifestyle. Even after school is finished they'd be working or looking for a husband, or both. Let's face it, many Koreans have little time to be idle (I must say, they do take time to drink and go to the sauna, though). Maybe I'm becoming too Korean now, beating up these gals simply for having a little fun. All I know is if they did that in Korea people might think they are R.S. (room salon, or places where men pay women to drink with them, sing with them and...uh...do other things) girls.

Maybe that's part of the Korean ideal. Women should study and work and find a husband and if they are 'wasting' their time everyday then they must be of low moral fiber. Hmmmm...there could be something to that. Maybe it's part of the reason why so many Korean gals work their butts off (literally, Korean women are usually devoid of a derriere) and seem to push off their own pleasure in some Calvinist tradition. Korean men seem to support this as it not only support the Confucius ideals that many Koreans follow but makes their place as symbolic leader of the home that much more solid (whether it is deserved or not, and we know that in many Korean homes a strong wife controls more than she advertises).