Extended Absence Due to Dogbite (and job)

It happened on the evening of 5 March 2007, while downrange in Stanleyville to purchase a phone card. I was minding my own business and walking toward the gate after having purchased a phone card. Suddenly a large rottweiler mix dog (largest in the entire ville...maybe in Korea) came running up the hill, trailing a long heavy chain, with his owner in tow. This woman was yelling at the dog in Hongul and running after him.

This dog ran past me, and doubled back, and back again, and was heading back for a fourth trip, wrapping his chain around my legs. In an attempt to prevent this from happening I reached down to grab the chain and step out of it, so I wouldn't be tripped, and here comes the dog! He bites me first on the left elbow slightly and then repositioned his grip on my left forearm. As you may imagine this hurt slightly, and I began to punch the dog in the nose and face.

His owner became irate and began to yell and scream at me in Hongul, and was shaking her fist at me. (all the while her dog was attached to my arm and growling) Well, the dog finally received a sufficient amount of blows to rethink biting me, and allowed his owner to police him up, at which time she begins to attempt to apologize in broken English.

During this entire sequence of events the two Korean National Police standing right there in front of the gate gazed on rather gleefully at the whole situation! (Smiles, cackles and all!) Of course as you might have guessed they made no attempt to offer assistance, nor to fend off the dog who had decided to try to ingest my forearm.

Well, as fate would have it, I rolled up my sleeve to check the damage. The skin was broken and bleeding slightly, and I made the mistake of showing it to a medic who went into panic mode. I have been receiving scheduled rabies injections ever since, which should end on the 11th of May, and of which I will receive one today.

On a lighter note, I am no longer chasing cars, and I've given up milk bones, (which considering the poisoned pet food news of late was none too soon) however I still have the strangest urge to urinate whenever I see a fire hydrant.

Ciao for now!