Rainy Day

Rainy Day

Written on 10/19/2011

While my first week and a half in Georgia was sunny weather every day, suddenly the weather started taking a turn for the worse. Now, I’m used to rainy weather from living through three monsoon seasons in Korea. After losing several good pairs of shoes to water damage after my first summer in Korea I discovered that water resistant shoes like Crocs and plastic flip-flops were the way to survive torrential rain storms. Better that your skin gets wet than soaking your shoes and socks for the day.

Here in Georgia I have several pairs of shoes, but none besides my flip flops would survive the torrential downpours outside my window. The temperature was in the 60s˚F and I didn’t think anything of wearing my flip flops out. It was certainly better than soaking my sneakers in the giant puddles I’d have to hurdle to get downtown.

My host aunt found me downtown but was shocked by the fact that I was wearing flip-flops. “Aren’t you cold?! How can you wear that?!” I tried to explain that bare feet dry faster than wet socks and sneakers, but somehow that was lost in translation. She got home before me and apparently informed my whole family that I went out in the rain wearing flip-flops.

Upon my arrival at my house, my host mother and little host sister greeted me at the door shouting in Georgian and pointing to my feet. My host aunt translated the shouting saying that they were sure I’d catch a cold and how cold I must be. They pulled out the space heater trying to convince me I needed to warm up, but I convinced them I was fine.

Now, whenever they see me, they say that “Jo-Anna is never cold” whenever they see me.