"Blowin' in the Wind"

I woke up early this morning -- well, that is pretty common for me, so let me rephrase that.

I awoke this morning EXTRA early due to a strange sound bellowing from the corner of my apartment. It sounded like a large truck was parked outside my window on the 13th floor - a feat that is near impossible, even with the resourcefulness and ingenuity of the Korean people.

I looked out the window to see what the fuss was all about, and I noticed that my view of Gunpo looked eerily dark. Not only dark, but the wind was blowing fiercely - so fiercely in fact, that it was swirling around the vent of my air conditioner "closet" creating a vibration so strong that it shook the floor and window.

Yes, I was in the middle of my first typhoon.

Typhoon Kompasu, as it is named - and I refer to it in the present tense as it is still going on as I am typing this - as been in full swing. On my way to the school this morning, I passed onlookers gawking at a tiny branch that fell near the street and was being whisked away by a work crew. You'd think people have never seen a typhoon - they are not that uncommon this time of year from what I am told.

The storm is fairly slow moving, and is expected to cause damage to the coastal areas, but isn't that bad inland as the abundant mountains break up the wind in some areas - and causes it to funnel into others.

On the bright side, I arrived at school and noticed there were only a handful of students. Apparently, the students have a 2 hour delay (something I wasn't informed of) but it didn't matter anyways because teachers still have to be on time.

It stands to be a rainy, windy, gloomy day....

More good news: the new iPod touch is out! I can't wait to get it because it's going to be great here in a country where you can connect to wi-fi almost everywhere. I'll soon be able to use Skype on it, among other things. (which you can do on the older ones anyways, but the new one has a camera for photos and HD Video!) They also revamped the Nano and shuffle, along with an iTunes update and Apple TV.