Hello Dear Readers,
Life has been moving at the speed of sound and I am just now able to hear the whisperings to slow down. I am back in the US after 13 years of being in Korea, and the transition has been, well, it’s been. I miss it everyday. Things here are the same but different. Some generalized realizations: Tipping culture is a terrible way for people to earn money. Food portions are nuts. Food in supermarkets is so cheap. Gas is ridiculous. It’s nice to not have to look at the Air Quality Index every morning, and divine to wake up and complete my Morning Pages by the pool.
I also get a chance to be The Aunt for a year. Which is pretty fun, I must say. I took my niece out driving and gave her pointers on how to drive safely. I have conversations with my nephews and niece that are meaningful, and I get to show two of them some newer things going on in K-Pop.
When I was planning to come back home, I was very conscious of the fact that Mercury Retrograde would be occurring in April, with the preshadow starting around the end of March. i wanted to make the announcement that I was back in the states on April 1st—but with MR, that’s a no-go. One thing I failed to see was that i would be coming home to a household containing a Virgo mother and a Gemini stepfather—both signs ruled by Mercury. Did I mention that I’m also a Virgo. So to say communication has been off even in this preshadow is a serious understatement. That being said, I have been doing my best to take a step back when miscommunications arise, and do my best to say what I mean and mean what I say. We have two more times that Mercury will be in retrograde this year (July 15th - preshadow - September 12th post shadow; Nov 7th - preshadow - Jan 3, 2025 post shadow).
Some may say that having this on one’s calendar is sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy, and that I am basically asking the Universe to put me in that vibration—but to that I say, well, maybe. But it’s still good to not tempt fate and book a trip during. a MR (Did that…got stuck in Greece for 23 hours), and who wants that? Not me.
Anyway~ my office is nearly set up and it will be more so in the beginning of April. We’re still figuring out a sofa bed situation so people who visit can have a place to stay but the things I like are not the same as what my mom likes. We’ll have to seek out a compromise or a concession.
Until then, I’ll be starting my writing schedule and working on this new novel—the one I’ve been wanting to write for a while. So that’s exciting and terrifying at the same time. You know, like life~
Until then. Until then.
~c.m.