November 2008
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weekend update
Friday: After work, a bunch of us went to Cheonho, which is one stop away, and got dak galbi. Galbi is usually just when you cook beef in a big pan on your table, but with dak galbi, they throw in a ton of rice, hot stuff, scallions, chicken (which I picked out), etc. So they put everything in and mix it all up and it cooks, then they flatten it, and we got it with cheese, so they pour in the...
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“i already went another place. there were a little people”
– from a text. If I weren’t used to how Koreans speak English, I might have thought the bar he had been at was full of midgets.
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Some days (yesterday) I hate my students. Today I actually kind of liked them.
In Kindergarten, my new co-teacher Grace/Sakura had them make little drawings of themselves and make up a Native American name. So in the afternoon I know longer had Elena, but “Pretty Girl” (sooo conceited, haha); Jeri was “The Smallest Girl”; Richard was “The Boy Who Likes...
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i had no water this morning
Again. So I called Kwon at like 9 am telling him and he’s like “Again?!” Yeah, it sucks. Then he calls my maintenance guy and he comes over and turns it back on and tells me, “toilet—no good.” So, if my toilet is screwed up, why couldn’t you have just told me that in the first place and not turned off my water? I need to shower, and in Korea our heat...
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Today when we had our later classes, and I had to go teach my new classes, some of my old students ran towards me asking why I wasn’t teaching them anymore. I told them I didn’t know and was sad. They were like “It’s no good! No good!” Then later, a couple more girls ran up to me and one gave me a shell she got in the Philippines, haha. I’m seriously so...
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So today a new session started and since two teachers left, I ended up getting screwed and they switched me so that I’m no longer teaching my favorite classes. Instead, I have two super quiet and awkward ones and the third doesn’t have a very good reputation because it’s like twelves boys and two girls and they’re like 11-13 years old I think, which is pretty old. In each...
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dear dad & other american friends & family,
I thiiiink this is how you can call me:
011 82 10 8388 9796
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crazy crazy
Bethany (the pregnant one) said awhile ago how it is illegal in Korea for a doctor to tell a mother the sex of her unborn baby because there is such a strong “son preference” here that abortions are ridiculously common. I would imagine this is why I haven’t seen one handicapped person since being here. If parents find out their baby has any undesirable traits, they’ll probably get rid of...
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i survived
I just got done with Open House and it was easy-peasy. I came into work and the Kindergarten director (who is crazy) was freaking out, like normal. She asked me if I had taught in front of parents before and expressed that she was “worried.” Lol, thanks. But the dads came and a couple moms and they all sat in the back in their suits either falling asleep or looking on their cell...
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today
As I was leaving Kindergarten, I was assaulted by math questions from the boys.
Andy: Teacher, one plus one.
Me: Two. Three plus two?
Andy: Five.
Ryon: Teacher! One hundred plus... ten!
Me: One hundred and ten!
The boys: Ahhhh!!!
Andy: Teacher! (Trying to think of the biggest number he knows) One thousand plus... one thousand!
Me: Two thousand.
The boys: Wowwww!
Hahaha, I'm so smart!
Then later,
Sally: Teacher... so tall!!
Me: Well, Sally, maybe you're just short.
Sally: ... ahhhh! (Laughs a lot).
Then in my later classes, they had their end-of-the-session Super Kid Test and so the first hour was spent studying. They have to memorize a ton of questions and answers, it's really dumb. Most of them make no sense and aren't even grammatically correct. Then during the test, we have to call them out into the hall one at a time and quiz them on four of the sentences. For example, one went something like this
Q: What can you tell me about our planet?
A: Earth is the third planet from the sun. The sky is blue because of the gasses in the atmosphere.
???
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one bad thing
Tomorrow I must be out of my apartment from 8:30am - 5pm so that they can install new pipes.
My landlord had attempted to tell me this a few days ago, but all I got was “25 days” and him pointing at this pipe thing and at my key. So = By the 25th of November, I was supposed to have given him a spare key so they could install new pipes in my apartment. I’m thankful that my...
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more good things
Tomorrow is an Open House. This means I have to meet parents. Do not want.
Every year, they have an Open House for the dads and one for the moms. This one is for the dads, which is better because I’ve heard about so many of the moms being psycho. The theme is Thanksgiving, which means I have to somehow force the concept into their brains tomorrow so that they can present what they are...
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Like with any job I’ve had, I always wake up dreading going to work. I hit snooze for like an hour and don’t leave my apartment until 9:55 when class starts at 10. But then with this job, I get to work and have 18 adorable Korean kids jumping on me and giving me hugs and candy. So it’s pretty sweet.
Some days, though, I just want to strangle them. Lately, for whatever...
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i will seriously stop posting now. i swear. just...
I was on AIM and saw that Ben had come back from being idle all night, and I was anxious to talk to people from home, but it was 7 am at there, so..
Me: why are you awake??!
a couple minutes pass
Ben: it's Ben's mom
Ahh so Ben is visiting the fam. I said something dumb and didn't think she'd reply, but we had a nice little chat.
Ben's Mom: well, I have to get ready for church...good talking to you..take care and enjoy your experience there
Ben's Mom: Hugs, Mrs T.
Ben, your mom is so cute.
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“i’m so lucky to meet you. take care of going home coz you are half...”
– Ha. Text message referring to the contact that somehow fell out of my eye last night. So happy I have a phone!
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This is always the first song I listen to on my...
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Katie retold us a story about a kid (I'll call him Tommy) in her kindie class who is really fat, but never wants to eat his food. Some kindie teachers like Katie and Agatha have to feed their kids lunch, luckily I do not.
*She added in the swearing. I imagine she doesn't talk to her kids like this, but I'm sure they wouldn't have any idea what she was saying if she did.*
Katie: Tommy you will eat your fucking gimbap.
Tommy sits there not eating.
Katie: Tommy eat your fucking gimbap. I will make you eat your gimbap. Eat it.
Tommy: Teacher, nooooo.
Katie: Eat your gimbap! Eat it now.
Tommy: Teacher, no no no noooo...
Then he pukes all over himself.
One of my co-teachers, Karissa, has to feed her kindies too. She told me about one day when she had to serve them baby octopi and she literally gagged because they were so gross. Then the kids were loving it and pulling off their wiggly legs with their teeth and eating the heads. The school food is so disgusting and when I come back from my lunch break the smell is always nauseating, but these kids love it. Barf.
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last night when we were sitting on a curb drinking
Drunk white guy comes up to us.
Drunk white guy: Can you tell me where to find Ho Bar III?
Us: No, sorry.
Drunk white guy was clearly upset that he can't find Ho Bar III. For some unnecessary reason, there are at least 5 Ho Bars in Hongdae.
Katie: You will find that Ho Bar!!!
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hongdae, take 3.
Agatha, Katie, and I have a very good Saturday night ritual. Meet up in Sinchon, drink, take a cab to Hongdae, buy beers and walk around for a bit, then go to a few bars and stay out really late.
This time at the park, there was a band playing.
Before we decided on a bar and were still in the “walking around with beer (and eating waffles and ice cream)” phase, we stopped into this...
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Yesterday at COEX, there was this big food exhibition. One of my co-teachers, Garnet, had somehow ended up in this cooking competition with a couple of her friends. There were about 9 foreigners who had to cook Korean food, and it was all on TV. So a lot of us from school went to support her, and we found seats near the front. Pretty soon, though, an organizer for the show had grabbed us and...
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WatchI went back to Gangnam to finish setting up my phone, and right outside the subway station, there were these guys doing a choreographed dance for Fubu. I do not understand at all how Fubu is even relevant here.
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WatchI think I’m turning Korean.
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my favorite classes
My late afternoon classes pretty much go like this:
1st class
John raises his hand. ”What, John?” He points to James H. who is sleeping in class. ”James… sit up…”
Steve raises his hand several times to say something seemingly completely unrelated to anything. Today:
Me: Yes, Steve?
Steve: I know your grandfather.
Me: Oh really. Who is my grandfather.
Steve: Mickey Mouse.
Me: Lol no....
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Before I start: My Alligator co-teacher, Josh, is going back to America next week and next Friday will be his last day.
So, Friday afternoon is art project time and since this week we were learning about rocks, I had them draw on black paper with chalk. In the first class (Blue Team), everyone pretty much just copied each other and rubbed the chalk all over the paper (causing it to get all over...
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i have good friends
Even if you all are half-way around the world.
What would it take for me to convince you guys to come live in Korea????
Or to at least come visit. :D
Lolol Ben I’ll even let you sleep on my floor (again). They’re heated here!
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i'm so ashamed to like them →
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It snowed today for like 20 minutes. I was in Kindergarten at the time and the kids ran to the windows and were saying “It’s Christmas!” and “Teacher, look! Many snow!”
I want it to actually snow so that I can go sledding/rolling down hills at Olympic Park!
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WatchHere’s the second class.