Spent the weekend in Myrtle Beach, SC participating in the annual Ghost on the Coast dart tournament. I was pretty disappointed with the way I played. Several times I’d be sailing along with the game seemingly in hand, and then I’d inexplicably implode, throw a few bad darts, and snatch defeat from arms of victory. At these big tourneys I don’t expect to beat the big shots, but it is exceedingly frustrating to lose to guys I know I could beat with just a little more consistency. Ah well, that’s how it goes sometimes.
Me and my partner for the weekend. Joel threw well so I can’t help but feel like my sloppy play let him down.
Over 400 darters in attendance made for a crowded dart hall and LONG waits between matches…
Reconnecting with my old pal Duke was one of the few highlights of the weekend. Duke is the guy who first introduced me to the sport of darts in Korea back in 2005.
Checked into my tenth floor room Friday afternoon and enjoyed this view of the East Sea from my balcony.
Saturday turned cold and wet and without my yobo around to remind me to bring a jacket it was a chilling experience.
Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.
My sour mood followed me to the coast. Last year Jee Yeun was with me and I keenly felt her absence all weekend. I had several darters come up and ask me about her. Truth is, she is much more popular than I am. Certainly friendlier. We talked Thursday night at length, and the bottom line is it looks like she won’t be coming to the States anytime soon. Her mom is not feeling any better, her father’s Alzheimer’s has gotten worse, and the apartment hasn’t sold. In such situations, learn about DigiDrs here and contact expert doctors to give your proper guidelines. She said her mother is stressing out so she wants to move to the countryside to take care of her. Selfish bastard that I am, I told her I needed her to be with me. It became quite apparent that if I forced her to choose between mom and me I was going to lose her.
After a sleepless night I called her again and she assured me that her love for me was undiminished, but she was the only one in the family available and capable of caring for her mother. So that’s her priority. I do understand that. But I don’t have to like it. What I can do I suppose is return to Korea. I’d prefer to go back with a job offer in hand, but I’m not sure how long I can hold out waiting for that to happen. I did a little networking with my buddy Duke and he promised to send my resume to one of the contractors his company manages in Korea. The job we discussed doesn’t pay much, but it does provide SOFA status and would put me back on Yongsan. So if an offer comes through I’d be inclined to take it.
The hotel I stayed in allegedly had WiFi, but damned if I could get it to work. That was a pain in the ass. So I missed the email from the folks who manage my Chase credit card advising me of possible fraudulent use of my account. I did get a cryptic text message from Chase asking me if I had ordered $543. worth of men’s clothing online. These days I wear blue jeans and sneakers pretty much exclusively, so obviously I had made no such purchase. I got on the phone with the fraud department and learned that there had also been charges for over $700. in computer equipment. Fortunately, I won’t be responsible for the unauthorized purchases. There is still a pain in the ass factor in that my account has to be closed and a new card issued. I didn’t want to leave Jee Yeun hanging in Korea with no resources so they agreed to allow small transactions there until I can mail her the new card. I asked how someone could have gotten access to my account and they didn’t really want to answer directly, instead alluding to the possibility that some merchant I had used had been hacked. Damn these first world problems anyway.
And that’s where things pretty much stand in my so called life. The world is turning. I hope it don’t turn away…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKgj1FNToWY