(Day 67) Hwaseong Immigration Detention Center-day 54 C-29

sit-ups	push-ups	chairlifts
2 x 100	40	40

Breakfast	2 hard boiled eggs soy milk caramel flavoured bread
Lunch	rice kimchi stringy french fries fish soup
Dinner	rice kimchi watery noodle soup spicy chicken with potatoes

So, I'm sitting in the sleeping area keeping to myself, hanging out on my bedding, reading and drawing. A couple people going back to bed after breakfast, some are reading, a few are playing cards. Two of the Chinese are having a conversation. These Chinese are incapable of talking at varying volumes. There is only one volume-- loud.

The Filipino comes into the room for a nap. As he gets his bedding down from the top shelf, he says, "If that was you or me talking, they would say 'Jeez, my head hurts. You guys are talking too loud. Shut up!'"

I laughed and replied "I would bet money on that and win."

If either the Filipino or I were to claim their loud talking was giving us a headache and told them to be quiet, even politely, it would be fighting words. Anybody who has lived in Korea knows this to be true.

I drew a picture of the Chinese's kids. It only took 1.5 hours and turned out okay, I guess. The Chinese was grateful. As expected, dream to riches were just that-- dreams. He gave me two boxes of coffee, so I'm flush with coffee for the next week or so. Since all I spend my money on is coffee and phone cards, I guess I saved myself some expenses.

Now we have a 15 year old Russian kid who's mother lives in Korea... What the hell is he doing here?!! He should be home with his mom or in school...apparently he got busted for taking 1700 dollars from a PC room. A crime to be sure, even one that an adult would be deported for, but this is only a kid. What kind of fucked up country is this that they arrest a juvenile, and instead of taking him home or contacting his mother, they try to deport him? That's some fucked up shit! I already have a pretty low opinion of Korea... This makes it even lower.

I talked to Z today. She had a busy weekend with your friends-- or so she claims, because she never goes out. I asked her if there were activities for kids her age on the weekends. She said there are, but she never goes because all the kids are "under the influence," as she puts it. Hearing those words from my 15 year old daughter made me feel extremely proud and incredibly guilty. Proud that she had good common sense, strong will power and confidence to avoid the pressure of her peers, and guilty because I've been pretty much under the influence since I was her age and she knows it.

When people have children we always want them to lead and have better lives in ourselves. I have not had a bad life (present circumstances notwithstanding) however, I never thought I'd learn about moral character from a teenager-- my teenager. I suppose M & G deserve a lot of credit for Z but I know more about them than Z as well. Things are not always roses with those two, but I guess Z will discover that on her own as she gets older, too. Things have a funny way of working out. M and B have the life they wanted and worked hard to get. M and J also worked hard and did well. I can congratulate them both, though I know they don't feel the same about me. I tried to conform. I couldn't do it. Maybe one day they will all understand and accept it. Until then, I wish them all the best and continued success in life.