Is this it?

Well, here I am at 9.20pm on a Friday night having spent the day in Korean lessons and preparing classes and I really have to ask myself: what happened to me? It's really not that long ago that Friday came and I had that giddy sensation all day and ALWAYS did something fun, if not always too crazy, later that night. It's strange how suddenly 'being 28' creeps up on you and it's not something you get much warning of, aside from the other 27 years of your life that is... I think I echo the views of a lot of my peers when I say that the biggest turmoil of this age is the half of you that thinks it's time to 'grow up' battling with the (especially audible on weekends) half that wants to squeeze another few years of craic out of it. My mind tells me not to take life too seriously, live a little, you could be gone tomorrow for all you know. Unfortunately, about a million other things tell me I should be settling down, 'acting my age' and keeping one eye focused firmly on the future. I'm never sure which side is winning.

I really feel like chatting about a million things football right now but I'm aware that I do that a lot on here and it's not everyone's cup of tea so I'm resisting the urge... I will be heading down to Suwon for their home encounter with FC Seoul tomorrow night before coming back up to see Kevin playing with a Rolling Stones cover band at Stompers in Itaewon and whatever else the night holds. Sunday will definitely be the day of rest that it's intended to be because I'll be on duty from 7.30am-9.20pm on Monday. Way to get dropped back in at the deep end.

I continue to read and relish 'David Copperfield' - in fact, I'm still only half way through it's 700-plus pages. I find the fixed social strata of the Victorian period so interesting. Every character seems to know where they stand in relation to the others. Of course, this is very limiting and Britain has gone to great pains to enable us to affect our own class rather than our blood (officially, at least). So many situations in the book require characters to keep the peace and act incredibly patiently even in the face of cruel injustice at the hands of those who, quite often, appear intellectually or morally inferior. In today's 'western' world (although Korea is an exception that I will come to in the future), it seems that everyone you meet has a strong sense of self and it's no longer acceptable to dismiss or talk down to those who may have come from a less-distinguished background, for example. I'm tempted to romanticize the era portrayed by Dickens but I obviously need to check myself. My Dad has worked, at various times, for the water works, as a farmer, a fisher and a bus driver. My Mum started working in a factory at 14 before becoming a 'domestic technician' and latterly an office worker (she has, however, also gone on to attain a 2:1 BA in Community Development in spite of the burden of having five children). If I had been born in Victorian England, my options would be pretty limited. Thankfully, I live at a time where those who are able can open up more and more options through hard work or education. Not that that's the case for everyone, regrettably, although it's a definite improvement on the prospects of even the previous generation.

Alright it's time I started having a life. I'm going to head out to meet either Thomas or Ji for a few sociables locally. Maybe just a couple of chapters of David Copperfield first... Have good weekend everyone.