you probably shouldn't move here

Because this isn't going to fit on twitter...


Last week was my final Christmas in Korea, and I have to say honestly, I'm glad for it and I can't wait for next year! Working on Christmas Eve is rough. It's sad. It makes me sad. And the lack of Christmas commercials on TV makes me sad, though yesterday I saw a Coca Cola holiday ad. I'm suspicious that my co-teacher for whatever reason is harboring negative feelings towards me. He was never great with keeping me informed on his own, and then about a month ago it seemed like he just absolutely quit bothering to let me know anything. It's the things he's choosing not to tell me which makes me paranoid. During finals, teachers at this school usually get to leave early for a couple of the test days. I got permission to go to the bank to replace a debit card I lost... 7 months ago. This semester, he didn't mention anything about early outs, but he peaced out just about every day. So Friday he slipped out after lunch, and I sat alone in the English zone for the rest of the afternoon. Come 4:45 when I decide to "rebel" by sneaking out 15 minutes early, I see that the entire teachers' office and administration office has already cleared out. Okay.


Christmas Eve. My teacher walks out of the classroom at 2 without saying goodbye. Sometimes he does, sometimes he runs out, whatever. But it was Christmas! I mean, seriously? Last year I worked until 5. Alone in the English zone on the third floor with no one stopping by means I feel I can take risks and slip out a little early sometimes. Come 2:30, and I saw more teachers leave, at which point I figured Ef this, I have things I need to do, and I left, went to the gate behind the school and jumped over it. There used to be a key... but it's gone, and it's annoying to walk a massive loop to get to Homeplus when Homeplus is 30 seconds away when you go through the gate. So I usually jump over it when I want to go there after work. 


Besides, all my other friends got to leave after or before lunch. No way I was going to stay if no one even knew I was there. It'd be different if I had work. Or responsibilities. But I'm being told to sit at a computer and rot.


Now for winter vacation. School vacation. It's a joke. At least compared to what winter vacation means for American schools. There are English camps which my friends are all working at- they're teaching half days for 2 weeks or more- depending on what their schools decide they want them to do. My school doesn't do English camp, but this year they are doing winter school for a few students. My co-teacher tells me I have to be at work 9-5 all through break except my 2 weeks of personal vacation. It's weird and it pissed me off because last year they thought making me stay was stupid, so I could stay home. So I'm suspicious that my co-teacher just decided to make me work all winter or maybe it was the  new principal trying to follow the rules. This is not unusual for the foreign teachers here. It's bullshit. It's a way to control us, and keep us reigned in. The contract? They added a clause this year basically saying that schools can make foreigners do whatever they want and we have no say. The contract makes foreigners the schools' bitches. I've done the 9-5 thing all this week... well 9-4:30... because as soon as I see a teacher peace out, I'm gone. My co-teacher has been MIA, my emails are being rejected for whatever reason, and my text has gone unanswered... which I should probably text again. 


I will brawl if I have to waste 40 hours a week for 2 months while the other teachers at this school stay home. So I grew some balls and wrote out a note in Korean- an awesome one if I might say so- and went to the VP to talk with her... but of course I was too nervous to say anything correctly in Korean anyway so I had to just hand her the note. 


I was asking if I could leave at 1 every day instead of staying all day. My reason: the computer at school is in Korean and it's hard to get crap done. Which is true. And the Korean security system destroyed my last computer, so hell no I'm not getting my new Asus anywhere near the school's internet.


She said okay. And then it seemed like she was wondering where my co-teacher was. And she showed my note to the head co-teacher who looked at my note and kind of giggled. But. I have official permission to leave early all winter, which is way better than a full day. I will take this and be content.


I still think my co-teacher is a douche lord. To borrow from Klhoe Kardashian. God oh god, I hope he moves to a new school in March.


I know in the end the whole thing isn't a big deal, and I'm not the only person who has to put up with it, but the requirement that foreigners have to desk warm all day during vacations is just dumb. There isn't a valid reason to keep us here. 


In the meantime, I'm going to China in something like 3 weeks! It's snowed 4 times since Sunday, so it's like once all the roads are clear the next morning there's new snow to melt and freeze. ㅠㅠ
Malaysia IS happening in February, and tonight I'm meeting some friends and our Korean teacher for Korean rice wine (kinda weird) and noraebang (the crazy karaoke rooms)! 

in decline

Here's a small example of my co-teacher undermining anything that I do in the classroom. 


I'm working with a student on the TOEIC test that he'll be taking next month. His vocabulary is low, but he'd probably be considered fluent in English. We have TOEFL vocabulary books printed in braille. I gave him one and told him to look at it during free time for some extra exposure to new words. I figured, either way, this will not hurt his brain. My co-teacher talked to him after class and took the book back. And this is after I checked with him that it's okay to give the kid the book. He didn't tell me why he decided not to let the student hang on to the book, either. Something or any reason would've been nice, because it now comes off as some passive BS.


I mean. Seriously. 


My position in this school is pretty clearly a joke. I like my co-teacher well enough, but I'm seriously hoping that since he's been here at least 2, I think 3 years that he'll leave, and I'll get someone who wants me to do more work. I am dying for work, because right now my MAT is just rotting here. I'm rotting. 

phone talk

Usually when my phone rings with a number I don't have saved in my phone book, I ignore the call because I don't want to try and explain to a Korean that they have the wrong number. It's weird, sometimes they just keep talking even when I'm talking in another language. But today, I took the call, figured out this person was at my apartment for some reason, and I successfully told her where I was and what I was doing. Then she said something else and hung up. 


But. I got a message through. Go me.

Welcome back, me.

Japan happened almost a month ago, birthday season is fast approaching, and I enjoy Twitter. 


Japan. Like Jack from LOST, I have to go back. At least, I really want to should my bank account allow it. Priorities, though: China. Gawd, am I excited for China. 


And fall officially made it's appearance, like 2 weeks ago, but it's amazing. I'm not a sweat monster anymore, the weather is outstanding, it's breezy, and I'm all in this uncomfortably cozy state of nostalgia that is stirred by the wind. 


I'm taking a Korean class now. It's going to be good for me. 


I need to start cooking again. I also need to locate my apartment key.

change: imminent

12 hours after arriving back in Dajeon, I'm back at work (dies). Things are happening. 
1. John's moving into a new apartment today. 
2. The principal at my school was informed this week that he's being moved to an elementary school. 
3. The above means faculty dinner tonight.
4. My school had a new English Zone built (it's awesome).
5. The above means I'm being moved into the English Zone permanently. 
6. The above means I will no longer see many teachers on a daily basis. 
7. I think that my co-teacher is taking my current desk in the teacher's office. Ulterior motives, anyone? jk
Not sure how I feel about being alone in a classroom from now on, but then that may not even be the case. 
If jet lag works similarly to being at home and when I first arrived here last year, here's hoping I'm awake until 7pm. It's weird thinking that yesterday, whenever that really was, I was nearly 7,000 miles away. 
Also, today marks the start of a second year abroad. Wow!

then came a baby boy with long eyelashes

Woo Chang-choon. Say that one three times fast.

puppy LOVE!

Most everyone I know in Korea already knows that I'm most looking forward to terrorizing my terror puppy. In two days I get to go home to this! (it's a video, if it doesn't load in Buzz.)

racism!

OMG, I can't believe this really happened.
Here's a story about little Tino.

1. Tino is a new classmate and is making friends with Dick, Jane, and 2 ghosts from Asian horror movies. Oh, and a bird is making a nest in Tino's hair.

2. Tino appears wise, as he remains silent and only offers a coy smile for his friends racist and  questions. 

3. Dick, being possessed by the horror movie ghost feels proud for being charitable.

4. And then you find out that Tino wasn't wise, he just sucks at Korean. 

5. And this one is gold.

I hope there's a story about a Korean meeting a hairy westerner! (speaking of this, John met some of my co-teachers, and I finally witnessed the arm hair petting that my friends have talked about)

turn the brain off

Good news, everyone! I have just discovered that my co-teacher agrees that these 100 stories I was supposed to record are magnificent crap, which means I don't have to deal with them any more! 


Yeah, I'll just celebrate in my head. 


I'm still trying to pound through transcribing audio stories, and came across this small bit. 

Don't fix the centipede, you need to friggin' RAID it!  

Of course, thanks to this:

Centipedes have been forever ruined for me. And now I've just ruined this entire post for myself. 

The Magical Ball

A cautionary tale for masturbation. 

overtime

All right, so summer school runs 9-6 every day, and thus far, I have 5 hours of teaching a day, which meant that if I worked a full week, I'd be teaching 3 hours over what's written in our contract, entitling me to 60,000 extra won for overtime pay. 


Except, I'm not getting to work a full freaking week, which keeps me under the 22 hour limit. So, should the schedule change, and more classes get added somewhere in that 3 hour afternoon void, I will in fact, come up with a way to politely say, "give me money for 'x' reason."


Otherwise, I should be getting a whopping $6 a day for the extra hour I'm staying and in my view, it's not worth bothering about. Now, 20,000 an hour. Hell to the yes. And honestly, my relations with my school is far more important than demanding that I leave at the time as is determined by my contract. No matter what, I still have it easier than US teachers so there's no way I'm complaining about an extra hour a day for a week. Though, I recognize that should my school start expecting me to do more extra things, I will have to bring up the contract... 


It'd help, if my co-teacher didn't wait until the day of to tell me important things. Also? It is mother effing hot here. I'm pretty sure VA has the same weather right now, but you guys get to sit in AC! And a pigeon flew into the teacher's office this morning and was too stupid to choose a window that was open.

and summer school begins

I'm almost a week behind everyone else in the city. The semester "ended" yesterday, and summer school starts today. We go an hour longer than normal school days. 2 hours a day with the high schoolers, 2 hours in the afternoon with some mystery group. Absolute YAY that I get out of this early because I'm leaving next week. My co-teacher said that there's nothing scheduled yet for 3 hours in the afternoon. Lame. But whatever, I do this for a week, and then home for 3! 

"that was fun"

One of the audio stories I have to transcribe is called "That Was Fun." I'm so amused, it's about POOPING! Here's a screen cap rundown. 

The apple tree gave everyone the poops! And it didn't even know!

15 hours of mudfest

Okay, I know I know, I was lame and left mudfest early, and that it cleared up and was awesome, and I'm really glad that the weather cleared up for everyone there! And I'm glad to hear/read (thanks, FB!) that everyone also had a blast! :) I'm glad I went, even though I wasn't there for long and only saw the rain, but I had a lot of fun Friday night on the beach and the next morning. I do wish I had gotten to do a little more there, but honestly, I don't regret leaving in the afternoon. 


Here's my brief report of the bit of mudfest that I got to experience for you in the states :)
1. Friday night about 40 people from Daejeon or near Daejeon piled onto a bus and rode 2 hours west to a beach area called Daecheon. We arrived around midnight, checked into our hotels or minbaks (rooms meant for large groups of people). Most everyone went down to the beach. There were two giant sets of blue lights shining out towards the water- it made the beach look really cool because though you could see, it was still dark and shadowy. The beach was seriously windy, and the sound of the waves! I like being on the beach at sundown or at night listening to the waves. While on the beach, there was a downpour. It was awesome.
2. Saturday morning: everyone where I slept was awake by 8:30. I thought it was later because it had been raining heavily off and on for a few hours, and when I cracked my eyes open during the first rain, it was light out. With a few other people, I walked down the beach and towards the mud festival. By the time we got there- around 10 am, it was raining again and super windy. We only did a couple of things- a blow up obstacle course and a giant inflated slide. We were cold and tired of being wet, so we walked back to get a short reprieve. There was a second slide, some mud wrestling rings, a "mud prison" where someone sprayed you down, and some other muddy things. I didn't see a mud pit, or big area of mud like I was expecting due to seeing pictures of past festivals. Maybe that's from everyone being on the beach?
The afternoon is about when I wussed out. I saw some of the others from the group I came with, and some were just going to the festival, an others were going back. I was on the fence about putting my dripping clothes back on and going back, while someone else was already decided about finding a bus back to Daejeon. I could've gone back I think for the rest of the afternoon, and I kind of wish I did to do some more of th inflatable things, but I wasn't sure what I'd do the next day until the bus left in the afternoon because I knew I didn't want to go back down on Sunday. Ideally, I would've liked to hang out Saturday afternoon and leave in the evening, but I either had to leave right then or stay to the end. I'm pretty sure that if I stayed, I'd resent and regret coming at all, and I wanted to leave having had a good time. Also, the 2 people I could count on hanging out with were leaving, so that kind of helped in sealing my decision. 
And honestly, that bathroom really freaked and grossed me out. It was a combination squat toilet and shower complete with spiders, slugs, and mosquitoes floating around. The princess in me couldn't handle that (sorry!). Also, really- even though the weather cleared up, I'm not the type of person who can be wet, dirty, and still happy all day. Sadly, I'm not really a beach person- my attention span for it only lasts half a day, and then I'm craving to leave. 
I'm definitely glad that I went, and should I go back next year, I'd do a day trip if it's possible, or come late at night again and leave at the end of the next day should there be inter city buses running. So, I look forward to hearing the others' stories of their spelunking while I scratch at the 20+ mosquito bites that I got to take back with me. My bug repellent was out by Saturday morning. :(  It's weird, over today, the red welts started appearing and driving me crazy, so I apparently did not escape with a small handful like I first thought. Korean mosquitoes are bitches. 


So now, my school "ends" on Wednesday, and summer school starts Thursday. My co-teacher sent me a email today with a list of things he wants me to do in 2 weeks. 
1. Record phonics, which I can only assume means the lists of words he uses to "teach" students how to read English
2. Record 50 stories. 2 times each. I call BS on this one because I should have had this assignment sooner. I have to restart whenever I screw up, which is often, so it takes forever.
3. Type out other audio stories into text files.
I am definitely happy to have work to keep me occupied though. :D

I will not become that type of person who grows resentful. I will not become a Korea hater. I will not hold grudges here. That being said, I'm gonna bitch for a minute. 


I think I'm going to refuse to feel guilty over being peeved at stupid things my co-teacher does. Like how this week, I've been annoyed at how he's been mocking the way my intonation and inflection in the 100 mp3s I made for him using the crappy reading excerpts in front of the class (seriously, 2 chapters down, 46 more to endure). Um. It's the way most English speakers talk. Today was particularly irritating because he kept playing on repeat a line,  because he thought the way I said it was hilarious. To which, he then mimics my recording by sounding like a chicken. Uh, yeah. Thanks. I made all those files for you because you asked. And just so you know- because you never have to slow down your speech for anyone- it can be difficult to speak slowly and pronounce words individually, so I mean. Duh. Sometimes it won't sound natural. Because it freaking isn't. The just of it is, I don't make fun of the way he says stuff in Korean or the way he butchers my native language. So really, it puts me off when he makes fun of the way I speak in my own language. Same goes for when he mocks me when I read in Korean (which he likes to make me do in front of the class- yeah, thanks jerk). 


Is this unjustified annoyance? Either way, I seriously need a break from my co-teacher. He's nice and all, but sometimes I want to punch him.

oh hey, Google

Did you know that you can customize the background on the Google search homepage? You can use your own photos from your computer, Picasa, or choose from a small pre-existing selection. Neat! Otherwise, I haven't done anything interesting in weeks. This weekend will end that.

on seat belts

Yesterday, the middle school teachers went out to Geumsan (somewhere just outside of Daejeon, and it's famous for ginseng so the Koreans say) for lunch- which turned into a half day affair with driving 30 minutes to some other place for coffee. I sat in the backseat and put the seatbelt on, only to have my co-teacher say that the teacher who was driving is a good driver, and then unfasten my belt. 

Um. This, though a relatively minor incident, was not okay. Okay, sure sure, it's Korean culture/style not to wear seat belts- but that's someone else's safety he was messing with, and if I want to wear it in the car, let me! Please. Besides, I come from a group who refused to drive unless the belts were on. Unless you were my college roommate who was sneaky about not wearing them. On the way back after lunch, I put it on again and got some more chuckles from the Koreans. Though it also spurred the other female teacher who was in the backseat with me to do the same.

At lunch, we had little fish in a pan, covered in chili paste and sizzled until crispy, and the same little fish battered and fried. I ate them, and I surprised myself. Though, I stopped at the heads unlike the others who popped them whole. I figured, that one, I'm eating fish. Two, I'm eating all of their little bones, guts, and poop. So, then for three, excuse me while I stop myself at the brains and tiny eyeballs staring stupidly out at the universe. 

My co-teacher got the leftover fried fish packed up for me to give to John, which I thought was really kind of him. He thought maybe John hadn't had lunch. Although by the time I got back, it was almost 6:30 so they weren't so good anymore.

the week of wtf

So to end the week thoroughly annoyed, a Korean internet imprisonment security system that a teacher installed on my computer when I first arrived suddenly activated to do something without my consent, and cannot be removed without an effing password. I mean. WTF. What the freaking F. This computer is not school property, so don't go installing software on my computer that I have no control over! I don't understand why it took nearly a year for it to start acting up. Unless there's a third party in the school that can get to it through the internet system. In that case, I call bullsh*t.


Oh, you silly silly Koreans.

Florence + the Machine

me being bitter

Did I mention yesterday that my co-teacher and another teacher were in a minor traffic accident? They were. They showed up to school for a while and moped around until they went to the hospital. They looked sore from the impact, but I mean, if they weren't taken away by ambulance at the scene, they ought to be fine within a couple of days. My co-teacher is MIA at school, so I'm assuming he's checked into the hospital. Earlier this year, 2 other teachers have been in car accidents (does this say something about the way Koreans drive?), and each of them stayed in the hospital for a week. 


Things like this you need to plan ahead for. The unforeseen days when you might not be in school. You have a back up folder. Or, in this case, they are not so sick that they can't call the school and give a basic plan of what to do in class. 


The other English teacher came to sub for my co-teacher's classes today, but he has no materials. He's also blind, so he'd need computer text files, which I can't access because they're on my co-teacher's password protected computer. He said I could leave, so I'm wondering if it's because he thinks I'm inadequate, the fact that there isn't a lot to do since the class has completed their review sheets (finals next week), or that maybe he's embarrassed because he doesn't know what to do with the class. Any way, I'm annoyed when I should be feeling sympathetic for my co-teacher. 


Also, I'd like to remind you that the students are useless. It's the high school class, and no one has enough English, nor do I have quite enough Korean to meet each other halfway. Even if I could do that, they wouldn't. Useless. Absolutely useless. The rest of the day I can handle. It's just this high school mob that I dread whenever I know I'm on my own. The fact that my computer just gave me a blue screen of impending doom doesn't help my grumpy mood either. I guess I'm seriously going to have to set money aside for a new computer. Stay away from HP and Gateway. They both suck.


By the way, I am really sorry that my co-teacher and teacher whose desk is next to mine were in a car accident. Fruit for them when they come back!

the pull from home

I signed a contract with the Dajeon MOE last week, and instead of the refreshing, reassuring feeling that should come along with the knowledge that I am employed for the next year, I just feel kind of trapped. I'm a mix of happy that I can stay another year so I can travel more, learn Korean in a real class (here's hoping), have more time with the school I'm currently working at, and power save money for the next 14 months, and resigned to the fact that I am in fact staying abroad until 2011. I need to figure out something to keep the sped practices I learned and mildly practiced reasonably fresh. The only data collecting I do is recording reading speeds, but the speed checks are done in an inefficient way (it's how my co-teacher wants it, and the students will refuse to do it in the way for a more accurate speed). 


Lately I've been craving the opportunity to be in charge of my own class or students- in charge of the planning, the data, the IEPs (crazy, right?). All that work that comes with being a sped teacher in the states. I want it. I'm really longing for being able to make better established connections with students- done so much more easily if I could speak the same language. I am grateful for my time and future time in Korea that allows me to learn how to be comfortable in the classroom, in front of students, alone with students, and how to roll with the crazy that often accompanies everyday Korean school life. 


I think a lot of this downer period is coming from the fact that I know I'm going home in a month, and that I haven't left Daejeon in a long time. The mud festival somewhere in Korea is in a few weeks, then I leave for Virginia shortly after (yay!). There are whispers of going to Japan during Korea's Chuseok (totally down, up, and sideways for that- and I'm sure I've talked about this a few times before...), and once it no longer feels like I'm swimming through a hot tub, I'm hoping to start leaving the city more often. I mean, I've yet to see Busan, how pathetic is that? Have I also mentioned this? Evidence that I really do need to get out more often.


Daejeon's EPIK coordinator is getting ready to peace out and leave the dirty job to a woman who seems afraid of her new position- can't blame her with all us foreigners constantly complaining and questioning stuff. So the original coordinator has proposed to hire some EPIK teachers around the city to help filter through emails to lighten up the work load. Extra pay is planned. Hell yes, I have submitted my name into the candidate pool. And yes, I welcome any extra work to keep me busy while I am at work. It's much more fun to tool around on the internet when I know I have crap to do. 


Don't get me wrong here, I've really enjoyed my time in Korea so far, and I honestly do look forward to one more year. I appreciate the things that are weird to me, and the fact that there are things I think are funky. I appreciate the similarities, the people, the lifestyle I'm allowed to have here. I also recognize that I will always be a visitor in a foreign country, and I am not the personality that can re-root into foreign places. My home is USA, and living abroad has also helped me cultivate that cheesy sense of patriotic pride for my home country- hot messes and all. 


In the meantime, I can look forward to re-meeting my freakishly adorable nephew, reunions with the girls from my graduate program and college friends, PLAYING WITH MY DOG!!!, hanging out with mom and dad <3 <3. 


And also turkey meatloaf. Stop gagging, it's freaking delicious.

Dear Futurama, 

How I missed  you! Welcome back!!!
Love, hugs, poops, and giggles, 
Megan

a seriously Happy Friday to you

To add to the week of awesome, the AC is on in the teacher's office. WOO!

the week of awesome

1. Korea advances into the top 16 after managing a tie with Nigeria. 주말 이번에 파이팅 대헌만국!! 
2.  USA friggin' BEATS Algeria within the last 4 minutes of the game, wiping that cocky smirk off Algeria's bastard of a goalie. LOVED IT. Also, this weekend after the Korea vs. Uruguay game, go USA! 
My favorite part? 
Going from this face...

To THIS face. LOVED it. 

3. Futurama officially returns!!!!!! Link cuts to a preview.

your TMI: Megan edition for the day

The store where I buy my bras and underwear is currently running a sale and a discount on top of the sale items. I need these things, and I was shopping online in the teacher's office until the thought that maybe fellow teachers would find it inappropriate to see bras and undies on my screen. Me? I personally don't care, but I will be appropriate and respectful. Now, I just have to fight of the craving to look at all those cute bras for the rest of the day!! :( 

Yeah, probably not the best thing to have in full view of any passerby. 

Me llamo ALMA

A student of mine wants me to tutor her in Spanish. Props to her being able to learn a new language through a foreign language she's been studying. My high school Spanish textbook was kind of awesome, it's a shame I don't have access to it. It'd be so much more fun if I could use visuals... :( Love the students, but I don't have an interest in pursuing a career in teaching people who are blind or have low vision back in the states. I need hands on activities and pictures!


On a side note: GO KOREA!!! I was lame and woke up at 3, and stayed in the apartment to watch the game. I kind of wish that I had actually gone out since I wasn't able to sleep afterwards, but I also saved 20,000 won in cab rides. 대한 민국 파이팅!!

on old people

Gawker has an article re-posted from a blog, which briefly discussing the fact that some old Korean people actually beat or verbally harass others out of the seats that are meant to be priority for elderly, pregnant women, or people with disabilities. It concludes with the fact that usually in American subways, younger or better fit people will generally give up their seats for older people; a subtle implication that the Korean youth have no regard for the country's ancient population. But, living in Korea with a foreigner's perspective, I have to say that I can't blame anyone for not wanting to give up their seat to an old crotch who comes up and immediately starts demanding their spot. 

Old people cut in lines. Everywhere. It pisses me off, and I'm not going to accept this little aspect about Korea even though the culture-sensitive side of me feels obligated to. Efffffff that. Watch out if you're waiting for the bus because they strategize when to sneak up from behind and get in front, or they'll just outright shove you aside to get on first. Then it's a mad dash to any available seats. By a thin margin, I have more understanding for the buses, as the drivers are crazy and you either hang on for dear life or fly. I always have to fight the urge to mow them down when I'm at the door, and then an old broad squeezes in front. I mean... seriously? 


I've never seen anyone fight over seats in Daejeon or during my visits to Seoul- though if you're going to see it, the bigger cities are where to be. I was a witness to an ancient bitch trying to steal the chair from beneath a foreigner during the lantern parade. Repeatedly. I wanted to deck her. So I mean, if you're at home kind of appalled that younger Koreans are in the old people seats and not immediately giving them up, just imagine what you'd be inclined to do if someone with a scary wrinkly old face and little beady angry eyes hobbled over like Smeagol and then started yelling at you. Then, consider American old people. Usually, much more demure, polite, and thankful that you are going to give them your seat. Old Koreans- a lot of them- expect it. Bitches. 


Of course, there are the outliers who are (or do a good job pretending) surprised that someone is being so generous. And if you missed the link earlier, check out the article in it's original home HERE.

Happy Friday!

A newer student in the high school first grade class stopped me to practice English conversation, using one of the two students in the school who has high English language skills as an interpreter. He started by setting himself off like it was a race, "ready, set, go!" And when he got stuck on something he was trying to say, he said, "Pass" and then moved on to some new tangent. 

His topics? Where am I from? Okay, so how is the gold value in Virginia? Something about if he took 100,000 something there be it won or dollars, which he stumbled and ultimately passed on. Then he just barraged me with "Do you like..." questions until I had to run off to do something for my co-teacher. 

On a side note, he's somewhere between the age of 25 and 27 and beautiful. And for whatever reason, he wears scrunchies and bow clips in is relatively short hair. He also occasionally walks down the hallway singing in a falsetto voice... haha. Weekend time!

buh.buh.buh.

There's a man who recently began a "society re-entry" program at my school. He sought me out a while ago to talk to me, explaining why he's here blah blah, and mentioned something about getting a meal together, though at the time, the why was unclear. Last week, he came looking for me again during the school's festival and asked again about getting lunch or dinner or whatever, and I was flaky about it. Yesterday, he called the teacher's office looking for me, and mentioned a specific day to get lunch. I said I didn't know, to which he said he'd call again on Friday. 

Buh. It's because he wants to use me to practice his English. Maybe it's how it comes through translation, but he comes off as your stereotypical older Korean man... he wants to run the conversation, which I guess is fine so I don't actually have to talk that much. Even if I wanted to, his listening skills are terrible- he barely understands anything I say. But he made a comment that put me off- the school held a cooking contest during it's festival thing, and he made me go to his team's tent. They shared some of what they made with me, and I asked him what the dish's name was. His answer: "I don't know the name of it because I don't cook. I'm not a housewife."


Uh, yeah okay, I'm gonna go peace out now. 


Honestly, I'm hoping he won't actually inquire about lunch again, but I'm also thinking if I get it done this weekend, maybe that will be it. Buuuuuh. These people who look at us English speaking foreigners as prime opportunities to exercise their language skills... I'm curious to know if they think it's fun for us. Because I'm gonna say that for me, in situations like this, it's definitely, seriously not. Just a whole lotta awkward. And really now, this scenario: a middle aged man with a 24 year old female out in public alone is just WEIRD and inappropriate! Anyone? Or is that really just me?

string cheese

Yeah, so when I make my students produce their own English (in writing, so it should be easier, right?), this the best they give me. And this is 6th grade level, 2 girls giving me 5 reasons for why I should let them eat string cheese. 

MBLAQ: Y... uh, why?

*this is not a light-hearted post


I saw MBLAQ's "Y" music video on TV a couple days ago, and by the end, "wtf" was scrolling across my brain. It starts out with a guy being emo and heartbroken over an apparently failed relationship. Eventually after a lot of crying and warm-fuzzy-glowy memories, he finds her in a club and shoots her. Then he cries on a bridge about what he just did. How romantic. I don't know, you can tell me to get over it because it's fiction, and just meant to entertain for 4 minutes. You could argue that domestic violence is in movies and TV, so if I don't like it in MBLAQ's new music video, I should also be ranting that it shouldn't exist in entertainment at all. You can tell me that you think it's freaking awesome. Yeah, whatever, tell me whatever you want. It's your opinion, so I can respect that.

I can't exactly verbalize why I don't think it belongs in a music video, it just feels wrong. And with the help of a translated version, you can see that the video takes a very literal interpretation of the lyrics. The music itself is about wanting revenge over a bad romance (Gaga, I hope this isn't the kind that you were rah-rahing about), and so now the message undoubtedly says: "Well, if you hurt my feelings, I'm going to kill you." 


Korean censorship has kicked in, and apparently, it's been requested that an edited version of the video be released (sans gun). However, Korea being prudish also has problems with the sex-related content (kissing and 2 people in a bed under the blanket). Brief article here.


For what I say next, I apologize if I trigger negative feelings in anyone. Click the link if you want to finish reading and/or see the music video.

It's hot in the school, some students ask for the AC to be turned in in class, and my co-teacher says no. Instead, he'll turn on a fan, direct it at them, and then they say it's too windy which results in the fan being turned off or pointed away from them, defeating the fan's purpose. Plus, they're wearing hoodies or sweaters or long sleeve shirts. It's in the 80s here. So then they're fanning themselves, but they won't take off their extra layers. This, I just don't get. But I mean, really. The kids are miserable, so turn on the AC during English class! You get sweaty just from sitting. Totally buying a fan for my desk today. 

신발

It started with this:

And somehow has turned into this:

The dangerous thing is the budget friendly shoe stores are featuring colorful fun summer shoes... ahh! It's love!  <3 구두를 사랑해!!

alas, summer has arrived...

Korea had some great spring weather, cool/warm, breezy, air full of pollen, as is evidenced by the yellow coating that settles on my keyboard every day. Wednesday was the day when spring was massacred by the charging summer heat. Don't get me wrong, Naver 날씨 (weather) reports that it's a balmy 28 degrees celsius, whatever that means. So outside, where it's still breezy, it's nice. Inside, where the windows are open but nothings blowing in, or in the English classroom where my co-teacher likes to keep the windows and blinds closed, it's hot. And you know, a lot of the students live in the dorms here. So being a young kid living without mom and dad, a fair amount come in smelling kind of funky. Then we're all trapped together in a hot, stuffy, funkified room. Joy. 


I would get it if AC wasn't installed in the school. I don't get that it's hot, people are complaining it's hot, kids are sweaty, teachers are sweaty, and still, the AC isn't turned on. So then what was the point of installing it in the first place? When I first got here, back when it was still hot, students had to beg my co-teacher to turn on the AC, and he didn't always do it. Even if he did, he usually turned it off after a few minutes. 


More fascinating is what it's like to ride the buses lately. Last summer, when it was hotter, it was on, so maybe there's a certain time frame when the drivers use it. You know. Vehicles get hot. They're like greenhouses on wheels. And public transportation? You know, that, too; sometimes I feel like livestock packed into a truck for shipment. Here's what I can understand: save some energy and hold off on turning the air on until it's freaking nasty outside. In turn, though, open the windows. I think Koreans are afraid of wind (this could go well with the impression that many are rather vain). That, or easily chilled. These days, it's been hot on the bus without AC. Windows are open, right? No. More often than not, most of the windows are closed, and if they are open, don't let an old person sit down because they will close that window. I find this really weird, as well as incredibly misery inducing. Maybe Koreans are immune to heat, which could also explain the phenomenon of blasting the heater during the winter. I'd love to be immune, sign me up for the vaccination!


And by the way, I don't understand how people can cover their faces in makeup on a daily basis. It's so gross. 

IPL

Okay, so last night I had my face offed by a laser. My IPL (intense pulsed light therapy) appointment was yesterday, the first of 3 visits for my endeavor to rid myself of freckles. It hurt. It felt like a cluster of stings, and I could see a flash of red every time which to me was more disturbing than how it felt. Naturally, my face was on fire during the bus ride home, but by the time I was back in my neighborhood, I felt fine.  The actual IPL treatment only took 5 minutes, and by the time I finished washing the gel off, another patient was already getting her armpit hair removed. I had to sit with a mask for 20 minutes, and then I was done! In and out, no waiting time. That part was awesome. The laser all up on my face part was not so awesome, though obviously the most necessary part.So now, because I was annoyed that I couldn't find in between pictures, I'm going to sacrifice my dignity and post mine. Within an hour, my freckles had already turned dark- kind of as if I'd spent the entire day out in the sun. This, if you were to read about it is normal. This is also what i was dreading the most, as I read that for some people, they turned black. Currently, foundation helps make them look more normal, though still obviously darker (also to note is that the foundation is a beast to wash off). Click to get behind the scenes photos!

how Koreans do noraebang (노래방)

Tuesday right after school, all the teachers hustled over to a nearby restaurant for dinner. There, the practicum teachers all had to get up and sing something. Someone knew how to beatbox! haha. Later, the rounds of showing respect were made by various teachers. This involves an exchange of pouring shots of soju or beer with someone or in serving a bite of food (in some cases actually hand feeding it). 


So all year I thought that there was only a handful of teachers who knew enough English to have any type of conversation. Yeah, so this isn't true. The first week I was here, my co-teacher and 2 others took me out to a mountain where we had lunch. One of them was silent the entire time, and his relaxed face is a cross between blank and seemingly cranky. I've always been a little afraid of him because I thought maybe he has anti-foreigner feelings. Yeah, so this wasn't true, either. I sat next to him at dinner, and then he started talking to me in English. And I think his English is really good! He said he's wanted to talk to me all year but "didn't have the confidence," and during the meal he frequently asked if I wanted or needed anything. Another teacher who I unfortunately forgot I've spoken with- I'm terrible!- said he wants to hear me more because I never say anything when I'm at school. Later in the noraebang he would stumble in with another teacher and request that I sing something... And also? 2 of the practicum students came over and said they wanted to meet me. They're month is almost, or is, up (I'm sad because they're a fun group) so they will be leaving soon. One of the girls immediately dubbed me her onni (older sister) and then it was off to a noraebang (karaoke room)! 


The noraebang is where I found out that even more of the practicum students know a fair amount of English. Remember the classmate that was in the room when I did the interview? He shows up being able to hold a conversation with me! Why didn't he help out with the interview? (by the way, he is super good looking!) Another teacher took to swinging water bottles at everyone, which answered my earlier question of why the floor was suddenly soaked after stepping outside for a minute. 


The faculty here is freaking awesome. 

a English reading sample

The reading experts my co-teacher uses are completely random, and I think often poorly written for a foreign language class. This passage was kind of okay until the last 2 sentences. 



  About one hundred years ago, there was a young man in a small village in Bohemia. He worked in a city nearby. Every day he had to go there by train. The trains were so slow that many people complained. But not this young man. He was glad to close his eyes and 
listen to the sound of the wheels on the rails. He thought the wheels were singing a song - a song of the rails.
  One evening he sat listening to the sound of the wheels. Then, suddenly, he thought the sound was a little strange. "There's something wrong," said the young man to himself.
  He jumped up. "Stop the train," he cried. "Stop the train. There's danger before us!"
  The people of the train thought that the young man was foolish. Then one of them came up to him and said, "What? How do you know?"
  "By the sound of the wheels," answered the young man. Slowly the train stopped. Soon a man came running up with the news. The young man was right. The rail was broken just in front of the train.
  This young man later became a great musician. His name was Anton Dvorak.

signs the earth is rebelling

A tropical storm caused this?

the Last Airbender

I am officially looking forward to this movie, after initially being ticked off that M. Night Shyamalan was in charge of it and also sad that because it was going live action, the voices would be different. I wonder if the actors might seem kind of cheesy the first time around and improve in the later films like Harry Potter. The kid for Aang has little chubby cheeks, it's cute! Click the link to see some The Last Airbender trailers and probably some stuff from the original series. Hopefully this comes to Korea!

tragedy strikes!

One of my big hopes was just massacred and smeared across the floor, so I'm going to take a few minutes to properly mourn and then move on. 


I was really hoping to be able to move this summer into a smaller and newer apartment, in a location that is closer to the middle of Daejeon. It takes FOREVER for me to get anywhere, my apartment is ancient, it never got warm during the winter unless I holed up in 1 room, and I don't even know where to start to make it bug proof for the looming mosquito season. And with the 2 floor gas pipe problems, the busted water pipe, and the recent electric bill that went up 3 times it's normal with no reasonable explanation, I'm not looking forward to seeing what else will go wrong during the next year. 


After talking to my co-teacher, moving isn't an option. When it was confirmed they'd get a native English speaker, the school I guess got overexcited for the future and signed a 2 year contract with the ancient ruins I currently live in. This was so there'd be a home for future teachers. I'm not sure how thrilled those future teachers will be to live here, though. So this is the number one reason that's grounding me to my apartment for a second year, but my co-teacher discussed some other reasons. 


1. For the price, it is extremely difficult to find as much space without it being too expensive. I can appreciate their desire to give me as big a place as possible. Honestly. But I also would've been happier with someplace smaller, newer, and more bug proof. 
2. The vice and main principal "care about my daily life" and think it's better that I live close to the school so I don't have to use public transportation. To this I think, please let me decide that for myself. This location makes the rest of my life extremely difficult. I want to take Korean language classes next fall, and from here, the commute will take at least 1.5 hours. 
3. Key money is an issue. Basically you have to put down an enormous deposit, which my school did apparently, when you sign the contract. It can be hard to find an apartment that accepts monthly rent- an officetel (the type of apartment I was hoping to move into) would've been a good place to check. 
4. All the furniture the school got to fulfill the contract requirements. It'd be a hassle to move, but it wouldn't be the school's... 


I had a fleeting moment of anger after the conversation- not directed at anyone, just the anger that is immediately wiped out with that annoying sad and hopeless feeling. There's nothing that can be done about my living situation, and after hoping for so long that I could move, I'm just really sad about it now. The thought of trying to get my own apartment anyway crossed my mind, but obviously that's not realistic. Now I can just hope that my boyfriend will be able to move (he currently lives in a 1 room, tiny place that has nothing around it), so then there is still a way to live in a better location and escape the bugs and heat during the summer. 


buh. I'm sad about this. :(

homebound!

Lately, I look at my schedule and think, "there's not enough time to do everything!", which in a way is good because I don't feel bad anymore for the moments when I slack, but typically when I do have work I procrastinate... My co-teacher sent me 38 reading passages and I have to do the same 3 things for each one. 38 times. Buuuh. School has also started following me home as a student requested I use MSN to help her with vocabulary. I can't say that I mind it, but it takes a while to get through everything, and I think I froze her computer last night because I sent messages too quickly. 


In other news, I'm coming back July 30th and staying in VA until August 24th! I booked my flight last night; non-stop on Korean Air, 13 hours and some minutes on the plane. Without the layover, the flight is scaled back by 7 hours. Nice! 

the paradox that is me

There's a new development here! Using a little Korean softens the blow that I in fact am not fluent in the language to the people here. I can now correctly say "I don't speak Korean," which the Koreans accept with far more grace than when I said, "Korean language, no." Haha, I'm just like the students with "no eng-gu-lee-she." I was doing some shopping tonight and the store associates were trying to talk when I explained that I couldn't effectively communicate back. They kind of nodded and then asked where I was from (which I understood the first time! or the key words at least...), which I answered. I bought a shirt and got a service wash cloth adorned with teddy bears and the store's name. It's cute because it was free. I like to think I got it for free because I was a sweet foreigner who tried to speak Korean. 


And ironically, after telling them I can't speak Korean, all I did was do just that while shopping. Here's the funny thing that happens now. And it ALWAYS happens. I tell them I don't know the language and they're all: Okay... but... you have a Korean face... So while they can accept the fact that I can only speak English, they have trouble digesting the idea that I can look Korean yet not know the language. They also won't accept any answer other than, "Yes, I am Korean-American." If I say, "I'm American," they add "Korean" to it. Yeah okay, I can be that for you. 


Tomorrow a practicum teacher wants to interview me about being adopted because the class he's working with is reading an adoption story. I wonder how that goes... surely some Korean family reunion by the end or the girl coming back to her ethnic roots. I'm not sure how I feel about it. On one hand I'll answer anything anyone wants to know, it's not something I actively keep secret. The other side of it is that it does feel personal, and it's always a little awkward to explain to people my opinions of the grittier questions they tend to ask. 

thank you, payday

Yeah, thanks to getting a paycheck in my bank account, I got to pay off my bills, pay for an upcoming trip in July, and hesitate about sending money home this month. My won to American dollar converter isn't looking so good on the won side right now... 


Yesterday, one of my students had a seizure in class. It started out with what looked like a loud yawn, and then it totally wasn't. Fortunately (I guess) seeing one isn't new to me, so the foreigner didn't panic! And by the way, should you ever be with someone who has a seizure, it's better to just let them ride it out, don't try to move them, don't touch them, and stay calm (just from what I was told to do in the past- but staying calm is key). Also, don't be surprised if they're exhausted afterwards- the student slept afterwards, and the kids I worked with back in the states often wanted to do the same. 

lunch mess

While eating, I saw a hair in my rice. Not a big deal. I went to separate the hair rice from the rest of it and unearthed a freaking huge bug. The "hair" was the little bastard's leg. Now I'm cranky because I'm still hungry due to the fact that the one thing I could always count on at lunch turned out to be inedible. Today's soup? Mystery seafood swimming in mud water. The sides? Uncooked potato pieces and some fishy mess. 

Korea likes free stuff

a free black coffee attached to my lattes

It's getting more difficult to remember what things were surprising about Korean daily life the longer I'm here, so it's getting to be more of a challenge for me to think of things to note here for you back in the states... 

Here's a difference. Korea likes free stuff! Back in EPIK orientation, we were told that sometimes if you're a good customer to a store or a restaurant, you might start getting stuff for free or "service" as it's called in Konglish. My friends and I have been given food for free with the servers explaining that it's service when we don't understand where it came from. When I bought my electronic dictionary back in the fall, the store associates gave me tupperware as an extra gift. This may have been a fluke, but once when I went shopping in a department store, one of the shirts I got was actually just given to me instead of being rung up. 

the travel cup

Roketship has a cartoon that summarizes what I'm about to say perfectly: Stores like E-mart and Homeplus actually tape stuff to their products. Lately, if you're looking to buy a giant box of instant coffee packets, you could choose between some floral pattern ceramic dishes, a bento box, or a mug as your free thing. From buying cereal, I've gotten a bowl, a fork, and a travel cereal bottle. Awesome. Also something that's common in these stores is seeing freebies strapped to what you're buying so you get more for your money. Take yogurt for example. You might find a 4 pack of yogurt with an extra 2 cups stuck to it. The pictures are some semi-recent purchases that came with the free things. Forget coupons, just look for you're favorite products covered in tape!

Chinese lamb kebabs by Yuseong

Ah, lamb kebabs! I was never a fan of lamb at home. Occasionally my mom would make a lamb roast, and somehow, topped with rosemary and roasting in the oven, it made the house smell like doughnuts. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this place before, but now I have PICTURES! My friends and I were introduced to this place by a Korean man who helped us order our first meal in Daejeon. We went out with him once, and he took us to this magical restaurant that serves awesome, awesome baby sheep on skewers. It's a little dive place a couple of blocks from the Yuseong Spa subway- exit 8 I think, straight down the sidewalk until you eventually take a left into a small area with some places to eat and hofs (bars where you usually have to order food with your alcohol). There's a bar next door with a Marilyn Monroe statue to clue you in that it's the right area. The food here is amazing, and a great option for those days when you want something freaking delicious and not Korean. Plus, it's cheap: 7,000W per 10 skewers- make it a snack or a meal! 

The damage we did.