Comments Posted By John McCrarey
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Well, oddly enough my wife is not down with me scouring the internets for pictures of beautiful Korean women. Discretion being the better part of valor and all I probably won’t resurrect that particular feature for the time being…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 24/January/2015 @ 12:29 pm
Well, I didn’t mind driving from the commissary to Hannam-dong, but I’d not want to drive to Gireum. And for what they are paying me, I can’t afford a car anyway (still paying for and insuring one in the USA).
Yeah, I may break down and do the cab. I just hate to fritter away the savings I get from shopping on base. It’s a good W15,000 ride. Still, I never blink when I spend twice that on my bar tab. Funny how that works…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 22/January/2015 @ 9:49 pm
Hilarious! Obviously, I missed all that. But I am acutely aware of the “staircase wit” concept your describe. With me, I wake up in the middle of the night and go “damn, why didn’t I say THAT!”
» Posted By John McCrarey On 22/January/2015 @ 7:40 am
Heh. Thanks for sharing…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 19/January/2015 @ 1:12 pm
Excellent insights, Kevin.
I think Williams was the kind of guy I would have enjoyed meeting and chatting with over a few beers. But I still may not have read his books. It’s is indeed a shame that that is all that mattered to him. “A Willy Loman with WiFi”. Ouch.
And I found this to be true as well: “No matter how rich or educated we become, we only have the 24 hours for each of us. And with everybody promoting themselves on every possible social network, all of us so desperate for eyeballs, myself included, with all of us living and dying by our click history, it is kind of an extreme and terrible example of everybody’s feeling of ‘Why aren’t you looking at me?’ ’’
But I expect perhaps more people were looking than Williams realized. I am often amazed at the regularity of my meeting someone who professes to follow my blog. With just a couple of exceptions, no one takes the time to leave a comment. But then, I am writing primarily for me and I don’t presume to have any profound message to share with the world.
I confess that as I read this story I thought of you, because of your walk and your writing. I also thought of Shawn Matthews, someone I only knew through his writing, who also chose premature silence through suicide. I was surprised at how much his death impacted me, a stranger.
Well, it’s a waste and a shame.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 18/January/2015 @ 10:11 am
Thanks for commenting Crystal. My time at K-16 was short lived. Took a job with my old organization on Yongsan, got promoted, and these days I’m down at Camp Humphreys.
That’s life!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/June/2017 @ 9:15 pm
Yes, I can’t imagine anything worse than being in prison and feeling like you’ve been forgotten…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 13/January/2015 @ 9:49 pm
Thanks for the translations.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 08/January/2015 @ 8:10 am
Thanks for the support guys.
No idea what the future holds at this point. Going to take it slow and see what if any options might arise.
I’m glad I found out here in Korea, not sure I could have handled this news in the states where my life already sucked. And Jee Yeun is being sweet and supportive which is her nature, even during this heart-breaking transition. So it could be much worse I suppose.
There’s lots I still don’t understand, although what comfort there may be in understanding is anyone’s guess. I’ll keep keeping on until I find my way.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 02/January/2015 @ 11:23 am
Never had a problem with them till now. Perhaps they are fucking with me because I’m older and they’d like to see me switch providers. To hell with that, I’ll wrack up the bills just to punish them!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 28/December/2014 @ 12:16 am
It’s the inevitable let down at the end of a great adventure
Thanks, and to you and yours as well!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 27/December/2014 @ 3:39 pm
At least once. It was in the original blog post. 🙂
The chapel is actually all the way in the building. It’s like on the tenth floor…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 19/December/2014 @ 3:35 pm
Thanks for the comments, Issa. Been quite sometime since I’ve revisited the sad story of Jeremy’s misfortune. I never doubted that in his misguided way Jeremy was doing what he thought was right. He is not a bad person and is actually quite intelligent. Except when drank. And he drank way too much way too often.
I need to check for updates on his situation. If I recall he was sentenced to six years in prison, so he might be getting close to time for being released.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 11/April/2019 @ 8:26 am
No, no salt. No wounds. In the first paragraph of that first post I was quoting from something Jeremy wrote on his Facebook page two days after the incident. At that point even he wasn’t clear on what happened. He said the police had showed him a photograph of the guy in the ICU, and he made the assumption it was a heart attack I guess.
Anyway, the story has evolved somewhat and I’m hearing some variations from other folks. Some people have told me it was more than shoving and punches were thrown. What remains unclear is whether the guy collapsed immediately or at some point later that morning. I also have heard now that the guy was in his 30s, but I have no way to confirm that. Not that it matters much I suppose.
I’m unable to read the Korean news accounts, the Marmot posted a link to one. I’ve heard they said things like Jeremy was fleeing the scene and the police had to chase him down. I know that’s not true. Jee Yeun said she read about it on Naver but she didn’t really give me any details of what was posted there.
I’m admittedly posting what I’m hearing second or third hand and obviously most folks (me included) are putting things in the best possible light for Jeremy. Another friend has created a Facebook fundraising page. He’s basically taken on the task of managing Jeremy’s affairs during his incarceration. I’m going to update this post with the info from that page, which is mostly consistent with what I wrote, but adds a couple more details.
It’s been interesting to observe how people are reacting to this tragic event. Most of his friends and acquaintances have been supportive in a “hate the sin, love the sinner” kind of way. Other folks have been either unsympathetic or downright hostile. Jeremy has expressed to me that he knows he fucked up but that he certainly had no intention of seriously hurting the guy. He insists he was only trying to protect a female friend. I wasn’t there so I can’t say either way. He’s been in country for over 7 years, so perhaps he should have known better. I’m pretty sure alcohol played a part in what happened as well. But at this point I’d like to see him get a fair shake in court, serve the least amount of time as possible, and then try to salvage what’s left of his life. He’s got a tough road ahead and I hope it makes it out with his sanity intact.
I do appreciate your interest in this situation.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 16/December/2014 @ 9:43 pm
The guy who is managing his affairs took the photo during a visit at the Yongsan jailhouse. It was used in the now defunct Go Fund Me campaign.
Lots of folks say that nothing good is going to happen to you if you stay out after hours in Itaewon. Old Town is one of those places that stay open all all night and into the morning. If there’s gonna be trouble, you are likely to find it there.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 16/December/2014 @ 4:43 pm
Heh, thanks for that Soju! I appreciate your support!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 15/December/2014 @ 5:27 am
I’ll pass on the oxtails! Some ribeyes perhaps…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 12/December/2014 @ 4:14 am
What a long, strange trip it’s been
Thanks, Kevin. It’s good to be back.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 11/December/2014 @ 10:42 am
Nothing like a deadline to get an inveterate procrastinator off his lazy ass….
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/December/2014 @ 1:12 pm
Anytime Jenn. We miss your smiling face!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/December/2014 @ 4:50 am
I just hope I can meet the expectations of competence in such a demanding position!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 04/December/2014 @ 10:09 am
Soju, it’s a job working for a contractor, so I guess I’m good for as long the company holds the contract. My duties appear to require the skills of a Wal-Mart greeter so I’m pretty sure I won’t fook that up enough to get fired.
And yes, access to the commissary and cheap Diet Cokes is definitely a major plus. Thanks for the good wishes!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 04/December/2014 @ 6:14 am
Thanks, Nomad. Looks like I’ll be riding off into depths of a Korean winter, but so be it.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 02/December/2014 @ 10:59 pm
Kamsamnida Mr. Kim!
» Posted By John McCrarey On 02/December/2014 @ 3:07 pm
Yep, that’s exactly how I prepared my “feast”. The pie was good though. And the daughter brought by a plate with all the traditional trimmings so it turned out fine. Thanks for the tip on Williamsburg but I fully intend to be back in Seoul by Christmas. One way or another.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 28/November/2014 @ 11:05 pm
Yeah, it would tie in well with their “eat more chicken” slogan. 🙂
» Posted By John McCrarey On 20/November/2014 @ 1:05 pm
Thanks Duke. Keeping my fingers crossed.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 20/November/2014 @ 8:14 am
Yes, it sounds like fun as well. My concern has been whether they’d require an appropriate visa to perform the work. I know you are not supposed to work on a tourist visa, there may be a little more leeway with a SOFA visas. I’d have to ask about that.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 15/November/2014 @ 10:07 pm
Ha! Yeah, I’ve been making a pig of myself.
» Posted By John McCrarey On 10/November/2014 @ 12:56 pm
«« Back To Stats PageThat’s odd Nomad. I just mix the seasoning, cider vinegar, ketchup, and brown sugar together. Pour it over the meat, set the cooker on low and let it cook 8 hours or so. It always comes out juicy, but never soggy…
» Posted By John McCrarey On 09/November/2014 @ 11:10 pm