November 25, 2013

Me, reclining, in front of a cool gate

Gnarly Buddhist Pavilion thing.  It is supposed to be one of the best in Korea.

View from the pavilion

Me, in front of a cool gate

Cool picture on the cool gate

The view from our apartment

I'm so sorry I didn't email last week.  I had hoped that we would have a lot of time to spend on the computer that day but then our plans changed last minute.  One of the missionaries is going home next transfer and we had a zone p-day and climbed a mountain.  We got permission to leave early so we could shop and email but your email hadn't come yet.  I wrote some other emails and got my companion to promise that we would have time later.  We didn't.  There were problems getting back to our area and we couldn't write without breaking rules. I got some cool pictures though.

We do get typhoons here but they aren't anything to be worried about.  The Koreans like to predict typhoons a few times a month that never actually happen.  "Why can't you meet us Saturday?" "Because of the typhoon."  One day we actually got hit but it was super disappointing.  I had found myself missing real storms like in the Midwest and really wanted to be out for the typhoon.  We were.  It wasn't even as good as a thunderstorm.  I guess a few years ago they had one that the missionaries had to stay inside for but that's about it.

We usually teach a few lessons on the weekends but Koreans are too busy the rest of the week to meet usually. We are getting better at teaching lessons on the street.  We can sometimes get one of those a week. That's it.  Some Korean missionaries dislike watching The District DVDs because their stats are so much higher than ours.

Excellent news!  Seung-Hyun is going to get baptized this Saturday!  We practiced for the interview yesterday and he was super confident.  He gets interviewed this Wednesday. We really wanted him to get baptized with his friend Meen-Gwan but we're losing hope that he will actually get baptized so we're just going to go ahead.  Our church building is under construction so we're going to have to go into 창완 for the baptism.  This is perfect timing for me.  I'm probably going to leave the Monday after.

Our two-story church building is getting an elevator.  That's why we are under construction.  The bathrooms will be unusable for the next several weeks.  I sure hope I transfer.

It's not worth it to send a monster package.  I found out you can send by boat and it's cheaper but it takes forever.  Next year that's how I'm going to send you a Christmas package. Sorry but I won't be able to send one this year.  Expect a large letter.  We can't get cheap beef so taco seasoning wouldn't help much.  I have no problems staying warm here. We have some gnarly floor heaters that run through the night.  So I don't really need a blanket.  I remembered I brought my robe anyway:)

I found a note from Mom in my coat pocket last week.  It made me really happy.  It was about your favorite scripture.

I can access lds.org but only on p-day.  If you have good talks to send me I would love them.  I'm sorry that my letters aren't as spiritual.  I am getting less and less time.  I hope to get caught up soon so I can put thought into these.  I'm going to try to write some more in response to the emails I missed.

Elder Stapley

P.S.  A few weeks late I'm going to finish responding to a question in one of your emails.  Bak Hee-Sung is the same as ever.  He isn't making any progress and I still can't understand a word he says.  We try to show our love for him but there isn't much more we can do.  We are cutting back on how often we visit him because of that.

Funny story.  We found a bottle of honey for super cheap in the store.  We have know idea why it was cheap but we bought 900 grams of the stuff.  I was so excited and my companion was excited too but then he got this confused look on his face.  "How do you eat it?"  "You put it on toast or cook with it." "Oh." He went right back to being excited.  I guess he wrote his family about the honey and they did a bunch of research about it.  He is talking about all the health benefits right now.  Now he's got an idea that its some kind of super food.

An English question.  What nouns need the/a in front of them.  Sometimes you don't use either.

Okay so there wasn't that much to talk about here.  Have another picture. This is the view from our apartment.

Love, Elder Stapley

November 11, 2013

Buddhist temple in Miryang

I have very little time today.  The rest of the district isn't as big about email time as I am and every once in a while they have to have a district p-day.  So we went to Miryang and now we have no time.  I won't be able to answer all of your questions well so I might come back to them next week. 
 

That pan is only to be sent if you were going to send a too big package anyway.  It might have been a mistake telling you about that.  Not all the mission houses have ovens and I'm going to transfer soon, anyway.  But the important thing is the glass.

Hope you get my letter soon, Emily.  They said it will be there next week at the latest.  I included a small super cheap birthday present.  Hope you enjoy the English translation on it.

I can print off past emails received and sent.  If I have my way we are going to have a computer p-day sometime soon.  President has loosed the rules on email time.

I took a bunch of pictures today.  I hope they make up for the really short letter.  I also have videos I will try to send.  It's allowed.  These were taken at a Buddhist temple in Miryang.

Love you bye,

Elder Stapley

P.S.  I'm out of time. I guess you're getting a crud ton next week.

November 4, 2013

Hello,

Answers....I honestly don't want you to send anything big in the mail.  It's too expensive.  I would like my mp3 player with music and speakers.  President just barely changed the rules on music and now anything goes as long as it's uplifting.  "I don't want to hear that you're listening to AC/DC though."  So load that thing up with everything.  If you're not sure if it's appropriate put it in anyway.  I'll sit down and delete a bunch when I get it.  Josh Groban, Celtic Woman, soundtracks, classical, religious, Disney, acapella.  Most of what I play will depend on my companion and what we are doing at the time.  Could you also send my small hymn book.  Like I said I don't want you to send anything big.  If your super determined though you could send me a Pyrex pan.  I only tell you that because I'm afraid your going to be stubborn and send me a big package.  I will not be happy with you if you do though.  You could also send me some honey.  Elder Hall got a jar of creamed honey and it was delicious.  If you find any cool extracts think of me as well.  I have root beer extract from one of the office elders and I'm loving it.

Wow that paragraph on things you could send me was way easier to write.  Some missionary I am.

I got your package, thanks so much.  The pictures and letters were awesome.  Thanks for the tie, Emily.  It's my new favorite.

Our investigators still aren't really progressing.  Until they come to sacrament meeting we're not going to try setting another date.  승현 is super excited to be baptized though.  I really want his enthusiasm to be genuine but he is just so eager to please us that I'm not sure he actually believes the stuff he says.  Aargh.  He did bring a friend though and we taught them together.  The friend had a Christian background and understood quite a bit.  He might actually have the most potential.  민권 has finally said that he will get baptized but he has shown even less interest in church than 승현 so that will be hard to help him.  Its difficult because all three are friends and we sometimes meet with them together but they are all at different levels.

We met an old catholic grandpa who invited us in to talk.  He gave us some muffins and challenged me to an arm wrestling match.  He is seventy one but I couldn't beat him.  It ended in a tie at least.  I was actually trying too.  We gave him a Book of Mormon and will go back later.

Today my companion really wanted a hamburger so we and the sisters walked across town and got McDonald's and then went to the ocean and ate there.  There were a ton of jellyfish and we watched some crabs fight over territory or girls or broken promises or something.  We couldn't really tell.  If I don't finish all my letters today that's why.

We don't have daylight saving time here.  My companion thinks it's a stupid idea.

I hate smoke.  In the apartment just under ours, and next to ours, and above ours, there are smokers.  This entire country smells like cigarettes.  It's also one of the highest alcohol consuming countries.  Right behind Russia according to some missionaries.  It's a real problem. 

I have a rather difficult question for you.  When do we use a or the in English.  I really have no idea what the rule is supposed to be.  Our English class is confused about it.

What is that picture of Mom as a missionary about?  Those look like white people.

I found out this week that Koreans consider me blonde.

I left my camera cord home, sorry.  I didn't have any good pictures anyway though.

Love,

Elder Stapley