From the Cobwebs: I am the Fury

 01 Sep 06 Friday

I am THE FURY
Current mood: Victorious!! (ROOAARRR)

My superhero alter ego is THE FURY!! I know that this might come as a surprise so quickly on the heels of my last post, but it just goes to show ya that even miserable people can rise to the occasion every now and then. I'll begin where I ought...at the beginning:
It was approximately 2:30 a.m. on Friday the 1st of September, 2006. I was sleeping quite comfortably in my nice, warm, sleep number bed (which was set to 35 which is the most comfortable according to me, to Lindsay Wagner, and to the salesman who sold it to me.) when I was awakened by the sounds of what MUST have been a whole load of bowling balls being dropped on the floor in the room right above mine. In between the huge bangs on the ceiling, I heard the mellifluous sounds of the young couple who live above me fighting. Those two have really great vocabularies, I'll tell ya. Well, they were arguing at what seemed like the top of their lungs, hurling the "F" word helter skelter, stomping around the apartment, throwing bowling balls willy nilly. It was quite an adventure listening to it all. I wondered for a moment if perchance they were rehearsing for some strange rock opera. The man of the house up there is, by the way, a musician, so perhaps that is what was happening. I tried to roll over and go back to sleep. I hoped, momentarily, that they would confine their stomping, fighting, and bowling in the front room and stay out of the room directly above mine, but they didn't. I sighed and unwrapped myself from the sheets and got out of bed. They were getting louder and louder, so I decided it was time to find my trusty broom. Well, my well intentioned pounding on the ceiling was to no avail. In fact, they just got louder. I sighed some more. I really wasn't interested in having to go up there again and knock on the door. The last time I had to do this particular chore, it was 4:00am, so at least today, they had gotten into it a little earlier.
Now, here is the fun part, y'all: Things started changing up there. I don't know if the man of the house realizes, but when it is quiet in my apartment, I can hear whole conversations up there. He was getting mean to her. I started hearing her shout, "Don't you hit me!!!" over and over again. Then I heard her cry out in pain. It was at that point my Superhero alter ego started turning around in circless inside of me (You know... the way Wonder Woman does it?) My blood was boiling!!! I could actually feel my blood pumping in my veins. I didn't really know what to do, so I grabbed the nearest weapon that I felt I could reasonably wield and I dashed up the stairs to the apartment above mine.
I really sorta wish I could have had a video of the moment that followed. I'm sure I must have looked really scary. I pounded on the front door and was just as surprised as they were when the front door flew open!!! (I suppose it was that they just didn't shut the door properly and not the super human mother-like fury that my fists were wielding) I'm sure that if this was a movie, my hair would have been flowing back behind me and a large halo of light would have been encircling my head. As I walked into the entryway of the apartment, I saw her cowering on the couch with her hands covering part of her face (well, to be honest, she was only PARTLY cowering cuz she is one touch chick AND it turned out he hadn't actually HIT her. He had spit whiskey in her face and her eyes were burning like crazy). I looked straight at him and roared (seriously, I roared!!) "WHAT IS GOING ON UP HERE?" He started back-tracking and I heard some nonsense flow out of his mouth...something like, "blah blah blah we'll quiet down up here blah blah blah sorry blah blah blah." He was sounding a lot like Charlie Brown's teachers, and well, I was having none of that!! I brandished the weapon in my right hand (the one I felt I could reasonably wield which would cause some fear in him? It was my telephone) waving it wildly about and roaring, "THAT DOESN'T MATTER! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO HER? DO I HAVE TO CALL THE POLICE?" I even might have slipped in an "I got my eye on you, Buster." However, at that moment, I was so upset that I forgot to do the the thing with the first and second finger where I'm supposed to wave my fingers back and forth between my eyes and his disgusting, sorry, offal-like personage. That would have been pretty cool, but whatever. I must have scared him this time cuz he actually acted like he might behave and he and she must have said something to convince me that he was telling the truth because I found myself walking down the stair back to my apartment. She came down a few minutes later pleading with me not to call the police and then many more minutes later, she came down with the baby and all the baby paraphernalia and she stayed with me down in my apartment for two hours talking and trying to call her mother to come get her. It ended up that she went back upstairs and locked herself and the baby up in the bedroom and told the man of the house they'd talk about it tomorrow. Who knows what will happen, but she promised she'd let me know what she decided. Needless to say, I am one tired superhero. (The Sleepy Fury isn't quite as scary, is it?) I had only slept two or three hours when the bowling balls started flying and I couldn't get back to sleep after it was all said and done, and sadly, very soon, I must report to work. ~~SIIGHHH~~ Man, I sure hope I don't come across any Kryptonite or garlic (or whatever it is that is my weakness) today whilst I'm out and about. I'm not sure I could survive the battle.

Slowly, Autumn (2007)

Slowly, Autumn is drifting this way.

I sensed her yesterday--but just slightly--as the wind playfully blew hair out of my face as I crossed Lamar on my way home from breakfast at Mickey D's.

Slowly, Autumn is strolling this way.

I noticed her last Tuesday morning as I walked down Guadalupe through the crunchy, brown leaves, whilst smelling the crisp, cool air.

Slowly, Autumn is sauntering this way.

I saw her today in the large piles--10 feet high, at least--of multi-colored pumpkins which waited, patiently perhaps, just outside the doors of the Whole Foods Market on 6th.

Slowly, Autumn is heading this way.

I felt the excitement lingering in the air--and in the hearts--of both the 17-year-olds and the 38-year-olds as they sat en masse, under the stadium lights screaming "Go Buffaloes!!! De-bill the Cardinals!!"

Slowly, Autumn is meandering this way.

I wish she'd hurry up, though! I know this is central Texas and the heat makes her a bit lethargic, but...

...Oh Autumn! Run! Come this way!! Oh Autumn! Rush! I'm ready to play!!

Here's a little something I learned (03OCT23)

As most of y'all know, I'm living and working and learning in Korea.  Obviously, one of the things I'm doing (and not well or swiftly enough, in my own personal opinion) is learning Korean. I AM learning, just slowly. One of the first things I learned was:

감사합니다

(Gahm Sah Ham Nee Dah)

which is what Koreans use for ‘Thank You.’  What is interesting to note is that what the word does is to combine 감사 (Gahm sah) which means ‘thank’ or ‘gratitude’ with the verb form 하다 (hah dah). So, in its literal form, what is being said is “I do thanks.”  How interesting!

Some other interesting beginner word(s) I learned were 아녕히 가세요(Ah Nee’Yuhng Hee Kah Say Yoh) and 아녕히계세요  (Ah Nee’Yuhng Hee Kay Say Yo).  They BOTH mean ‘goodbye’; however, you use the first one when you are the one staying behind and the second when you are the one leaving.  They mean, in order, ‘Peacefully, go’ and ‘Peacefully, stay.’    I often wonder, when I say these words as I’m leaving a shop, if the original meanings are something the native Korean thinks about as they say it or if they have just become words with their modern meaning.  

Then I read somewhere very recently about the origins of our English word ‘Bye' and I realized that most Koreans prolly don't think about the original meanins because I certainly haven't internalized the original meaning of our English word with the same meaning.  I’m pretty sure most people realize that 'Bye' is a shortened version of the word ‘Goodbye’.   Didja know that even ‘goodbye’ organically grew, changed, shortened, and lengthened in its own history? 

Descending in history, here is how it seemed to have gone:

–Bye!

–Goodbye!

–Godbwye!

–God be with ye!

‘Goodbye’ is a contraction of ‘God be with you (til we meet again–LOL) in its essence.  How interesting! I know for certain that I don’t think ‘God be with ye!’ whenever I say ‘Goodbye’ (although, certainly, I should!)    

Anyway, y’all–here’s a little something I learned!