I suppose I should supply a little back story before continuing with this entry. Nine months ago I acquired a second family in a rather unusual way. Unusual, because up until the end of high school, finding friends via the magic of the internet wasn’t really something I did. But through a series of connections (which I will not list here because it’s actually sort of embarrassing and nerdy) I met a group of amazing people from all over the country, all over the world, and they are more important to me than almost anything else in this weird little thing called life. Some of them I’ve already met prior to leaving on my grand adventure, but the rest I know only in the virtual sense. That changes this Summer, and I am honestly so completely and utterly excited that I might explode into a million tiny little pieces.
The first four days in Los Angeles have been a whirlwind of new faces and new experiences. Chocolate malts, bubbles, beer, dancing in the streets, Koreatown, kimbap, kimchi, the annual Korean Music Festival, karaoke (notice a pattern?). I’ll warn you now that all things South Korean will feature prominently in pretty much everything that I write and do. Call it what you will, but I’d classify it as less of an obsession and more of a fascination. Granted, all cultures everywhere fascinate me as a rule, it’s just SK seems to have captured my interest more than most. The important thing is, is that it has gifted me with more happiness than I know what to do with, which is all that matters.
I’m not really sure how to describe this last weekend in order to do it proper justice. The Korean Music Festival provided an opportunity for several of our “family” members to gather in one location, all but one of us traveling from other cities around the country. Finally meeting Amber, Elisabeth, Kim, Alina, and her mother Romila (who I have already met once) was surreal and incredible in equal parts. There is a very large gap between knowing someone online and knowing them as they are in person. You never quite get the full picture until they’re standing before you, living and breathing. But I can say with confidence that the experience has only strengthened my love for every single one of them. That night at The Hollywood Bowl will stand out in my memory and I will cherish it always. (Long story short, I got drunk. There may also have been excessive amounts of laughing and dancing while sitting down)
The weekend became impossibly more awesome on Sunday evening when I went to a noraebang, or Korean karaoke bar, for the first time with Amber and Elisabeth. I’m not normally a very showy person, so the fact that it became The Samantha Show was just as much a surprise for me as I’m sure it’ll be for a lot of my friends back home. In the beginning, I was nervous, because I almost never sing in front of other people. EVER. But for some strange reason, as I kept belting out song after song, I found that I couldn’t stop. And it was probably one of the most liberating and gratifying experiences I’ve ever had because I forced myself to step outside of my comfort zone. Needless to say, I’m hooked. So watch out, Universe! I’m gonna croon and wail and make you my bitch.
Tomorrow: Why I think Los Angeles is weird and how I always seem to find myself reliving experiences from middle school, only as an adult (which proves that I will most likely never grow up)
We Are the Cloud Runners 