Well, when it rains, it pours. I went for (seemingly) weeks receiving no mail. Last week I did receive some. I got a package from my parents: Christmas presents (!), Act I of "Gotterdammerung," my Cure tapes and Rubber Soul, a turtleneck (black), a pair of Levis (black), earmuffs, and a Winnie-the-pooh figurine -- a pretty good haul. I read War of the Worlds last week and Book IV this weekend (though I'll have to read it some more). Then on Saturday I got four letters: [redacted], [redacted], [redacted], and [redacted]. These arrived while I was trying to write a letter to [redacted]. I haven't finished it yet, but must, in order to write more to others. I still haven't sent [redacted] or [redacted] their Christmas presents yet - and I need to write accompanying letters before I can send them.
On Friday, Kim Seong-oen told me that I should take the name Kim as my Korean name - I hadn't even thought of taking a Korean name. But he set me thinking and, in a short while I realized that the family name I have to take (its obvious, really): [[redacted]]. This name becomes [redacted] when speaking English, which is the name of my uncle. So, I've got to get him to assign me a name (of course in Chinese) which I will transliterate phonetically (probably, in that case, "transphoneticate," or "transphonate") into a Korean name. As he named his sons in English, perhaps he will be made happy to name his nephew in Chinese. More later.