What the heck is up with all the dang Korean?

So, yeah.  Korean.  I like it.  I like the language.  I like the culture(s).  I like the people.  I like the history.  I even like some of the food.  Oh, and I like the technology, but that's a different kettle of fish.  Anyway....why Korean?  I'll tell you, but I warn you that it's a little circuitous...so you might want to bail now before you get sucked into the explanation.

Here goes....

Right...

Here.

A long time ago....in a galaxy far, far away....there was a librarian who'd been briefly introduced to anime by a young Brit (Akira was the anime, if you're interested....it's an anime classic).  Being a brief fine arts major and a lifelong lover of comic books and graphic arts, this librarian fell into an infatuous relationship with Japanese anime and began to consume it voraciously.  Over the course of a few years, she watched thousands of episodes from hundreds of series.  And then it was over.  Like any infatuation, it runs out unless something deeper has formed.  She was no longer mesmerized by the artwork (okay, there were exceptions).  She was no longer surprised by the twists and turns of the story line.  She was tired of exaggerated and shallow characters. 

She'd fallen out of love....but she knew that the relationship hadn't been all bad.  During her time with anime, the librarian had become enthralled by the cultures of the Far East.  Beneath the pen and ink (and digital media), she'd seen a beauty that only drew her further in even as anime was pushing her away.  Not willing to let go of that beauty, the librarian then began looking for live-action programs from the Far East that could shed a more realistic light on the region.  She didn't know what she was looking for, but she eventually happened upon something called kdrama (Korean drama).  In fact, she began watching "Snow Queen."  It was a tragic love story (as so many kdramas are) that fascinated the librarian.  She knew she'd found something that was better than the anime that she'd chased after for so long.  The first days with kdrama weren't as exciting as they'd been with anime, but there was something more tangible...more imperative.  Even so, it wasn't until the librarian watched "Deep Rooted Tree" about the Great King Sejong of Choseon (before modern-day Korea) who developed and introduced the Korean alphabet, 한글 (hangul), that she knew that she'd fallen irrevocably in love.  

So, what is there to love about Korea?  First, I love the language and am slowly.......s....l.....o....w.....l....y....learning it.  Second, and much more importantly, are the people.  I'll say more about it later, I'm sure, but I love how deeply they feel things....how hard they try....how silly they act....how loud they live....how lightly they walk....how proud and how humble they can be in one moment.  I love the ridiculous....and I love the gravity.

So, anime....thank you.  Thank you for introducing me to Korea (South Korea, specifically...but also North Korea briefly).  Yes, you and I can still be friends.  My heart, however, belongs to another....that little peninsula to the west of you.