To the left is a picture (not one I took) of Sundae. Pronounced soon-day, it is the first food I have encountered here in SoKo that I'd rather not eat. Now, I won't go as far as to say that I don't like it, but I will say that if ever I find myself faced with Sundae and some other option, it is quite likely that I will take the 'other option.'If you've yet to Google Sundae, than you don't yet know that it is a sausage filled with glass-noodles and pigs blood. Yep, as the sausage cooks, the noodles get saturated in the pigs blood, the blood itself coagulates, and voila, the sausage turns into a semi-solid mass.
An unsuspecting victim, or someone near starving might gobble down quite a bit of this Korean specialty before even thinking to ask about its contents, and admittedly, I ate a couple of bites before asking my co-teacher about what I had just consumed. However, and I'm somewhat embarrassed to write this, as soon as I knew what I was eating, I no longer fancied the dish.
The moral of this story is that mind can conquer matter. Quite simply put, had you told me that Sundae was made of something I considered appetizing, I likely would have eaten the entire dish and asked for more, but the notion of gobbling down loads of coagulated pig-blood sausage, well, just turned my stomach.
So, I'll check that off the list of "strange things I've eaten." I'm still trying to get my paws on some dog (pun intended), and I'll report back on that as soon as I've barked up that tree (pun intended again).
Also, and this next piece is totally unrelated to the above post, I've come to discover a pet-peeve I didn't realize I had: Flakiness. I'm not talking about the type that comes from filo dough, or the white ones that come from a dandruff ridden scalp, I'm talking about flakiness in people.
I think it is of the utmost importance to "say what you mean and mean what you say." And yes, I know that is super cliche, but it's also super important. I try to be a person of my word. If I say something, I do it. If I don't think I can do something, I don't say it, or at the very least, I'll always tend to under-promise and over perform.
In any case, I think being good to your word is the first way to communicate to the world that you are a dependable, trustworthy, mature, even-keeled, well put together person, and as simple as it may sound, I sometimes have to put in a concerted effort to not be a flake. Commitment, in any form, be it in a romantic relationship or friendship, be it about agreeing to meet your friend at a coffee shop, or be it about agreeing to take a hike, is something that takes work. By definition, actually DOING what you say you are going to do requires energy. Heck, doing anything requires energy. But, what I've discovered from trying to live by my own advice and doing what I say I'm going to do (and believe me, I have definitely broken some of my commitments before), is that it makes me happier, it makes me more confident in myself, and I think people around me pick up on that vibe too.
I didn't have a particular point to make but rather the desire to just express that thought. And now come to think of it, maybe this is the point. There's no to commit to anything to which you don't think you can come good on. The trick is knowing before you commit to saying something, and thus feeling obliged to follow through with action, your own personal boundaries and will to do the thing to which you have just verbally committed. Or, in more simple terms, you don't have to commit to anything you don't want to do.
I firmly believe that. And here might be the larger point. I think life is WAAAAAYYYYY too short to live for the next moment. I think life is way to short to commit to something that you detest right now with the hope of enjoying yourself later, and I'm not trying to argue against deferred gratification. In fact, I believe strongly in the notion that oftentimes enjoyable things come after some of the upfront "grunt work." But, I also believe that enjoyable things can also come after some upfront work that does not seem like "grunt work" and which is enjoyable in and of itself. I guess what I'm trying to say is that, I don't necessarily believe in the notion of "no pain, no gain." I think often times you can gain even more if along the journey you aren't in pain.
To try to tie this all up for your sake (and frankly, for my own), I think it is extremely important to realize that it is not necessary to commit to things that you do not enjoy. Avoiding such commitments will allow you to engage in activities and experiences that lead you down the road to more enjoyable experiences, and additionally will have given you a great ride along the way.
And I think the big realization I'm having is this. You are the only one who can decided to what particular path you are going to explore. Again, the trick is knowing before you commit to saying something, and thus feeling obliged to follow through with action, your own personal boundaries and will to do the thing to which you have just committed.
Completely distilled: Discover what you love, and commit to doing what you love. If you commit to things you love doing, it is easy to keep your word.
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