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.

a Friday's work

Omg, when I watched these, I thought all these people were so much older than me!



This was one of my favorite shows, and I never knew it was so short lived- 2 seasons. 
I watched it for YEARS.

The effing clown STILL terrifies me, I didn't watch because I knew it was coming- 
but I loved this show!

Who loves orange soda!

an argument for new sandals

I fell- fell, not tripped- up the stairs twice today. Once with the SLR camera, and later with my computer. Both times, crushing my toes into the stairs. Later, I tripped- again camera in hand. Not so good. The irony is that I was thinking about how it would suck if I fell... and then I did. The weather is amazing today! I'm thinking about going to Eunhangdong early to take photos before I meet a friend to start our self Korean language studying. Fingers crossed for later success.

disjointed notes

1. Kimchi notes
Kimchi, as I've said before is delicious. Really. I mean, seriously, Koreans loooooooooove their kimchi. But Koreans loooooooooove anything that's originally and wholly Korean, so I first rolled my eyes at it. Surprisingly, or if you've been here long enough, or if you know a lot about Asian ingredients (a la Andrew Zimmern or Anthony Bourdain), it's definitely not vegan friendly.  It's made with fish and fish sauce. See the video for a brief demonstration in making this tasty side. Ripped from an episode of No Reservations. It explains much more eloquently than I could, and you get visual aids!

This version of kimchi, from the ingredients looks like the type I don't like. If it is what it seems, it tastes fresher (in a bad way). The flavor isn't as tart, it's fuller but I can't stand it. I think the chili paste is different, too- or maybe it all has to do with aging.
2. Shopping notes
Yesterday, I went to Uniqlo to look for jeans. I'd never heard of this store before coming to Korea, so for those who are the same, it's a Japanese company. From what I've seen in the shops, it's more casual- kind of Gap-ish where the clothes are for the most part plain and not extraordinary. But there's a decent selection in jeans with cuts and washes- though Korean jeans tend to be tacky- there was only 1 solid dark wash pair, and it looked too much like the pair I was trying to supplement. And the mega bonus is that because it's a chain like Gap or Old Navy, it's bigger than the boutique style shops you usually find in Korean department stores, which means the sales associates leave you alone. I didn't know what size I was, but I know I run on the larger end in this country, so really, the last thing I want is a Korean talking toothpick asking me about "sizey" and me trying to explain "big... BIG!" Buh. I learned that Korean denim sizes are just as wacky and unreliable as American sizes, though. In a shop in Old Downtown (Eunhang Dong), where I did get the balls to inquire about jeans, I was told what size I was there. The associate did this thing where she lifted my shirt to get to my waist line and then slammed a pair of denim against me to estimate size. It was awkward. I ended up with 2 pairs of jeans at Uniqlo, in 2 different sizes- but the straight leg pair I have I found out today really are still too big (after downsizing because the skinny version I had to go big...BIG!)- so I should've tried them on again... and should've tried 2 sizes smaller. Two. Seriously? SERIOUSLY? But at least now I have new jeans :)
3. TV notes
I'm addicted to United States of Tara. A Showtime show. Download it, it's awesome. Toni Collette staring as a woman with Dissociative Identity Disorder. It's fun, it's different, it'll be something to look forward to when LOST eventually ends. 
4. The DSLR camera I bought notes
Yeah, so the LCD screen broke the day after I received it. The guy I bought it from met with me to bring it to the Canon store, and they fixed it. He's paying for the repairs, so I'm not paying any more, in a way I get a better deal since I'm still owing the same amount of money- hopefully it was the LCD that was broken and not a problem with the motherboard... which is a possibility- because I believe that will probably be put on my tab. I get the camera back tonight, and it's also someone's birthday dinner so more photos!
5. I'm going to buy a foax couch after school today. Like, those foam fold out things that you could use as an extra overnight bed. Sitting on the floor sucks when you have no other alternative. 
6. My computer gave me the dangerous blue screen twice today. I think it's because of a website I was trying to access (a Korean food blog)
7. Education notes, and the source for fluffy feelings today- maybe more appropriately professional ego boosters. 
The elementary student I've been working on the alphabet with is making steady progress! 4 letters a day seems to be the maximum. The best way I've found is to have a letter he's already kind of familiar with so he has a sense of success going into it. His own satisfaction in recognizing letters is apparent. Also, breaks between activities. He has a short attention span.

Fray-ed

I automatically associate music with the time I was heavily listening to it or just beginning, which can be annoying sometimes because I can't help but see where I used to be, what the weather was like when I had it on. Spring and fall always bring an odd mixture of sensations- relief that the weather is warming up or cooling down, stirrings of the previous year, a craving to be somewhere else like my parents' living room, a pumpkin patch, or JMU's quad. Music just kind of aenhances it exponentially. It's weird. Like, right now, listening to The Fray, I want to be in Harrisonburg, in my car driving somewhere- to work or Target- on a hot day. 


Today's lunch was a dangerously green crunchy Korean pancake pizza. 
Picture's from a couple years ago when I was getting ready for class.