Showing posts with label Korea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Korea. Show all posts
Monday, December 19, 2011
The man who looked at things.
And to acknowledge the passing of a man who looked at things: http://kimjongillookingatthings.tumblr.com/ (via my good friend WM).
Thursday, February 5, 2009
korea lookback (part 1?)
Originally drafted February 5, 2009.
For the Fulbright program, I was placed at an elementary school with
about 1700 students from grades 1 through 6. I actually taught every
single student at least once during my year there. I was chosen for
that school because they were running a pilot program to begin
teaching English in 1st and 2nd grade. Currently the English
curriculum in Korea begins in 3rd grade. My main responsibility was
preparing and teaching the 1st and 2nd graders. There were 7
homerooms per grade with about 40 students per homeroom. I had to
teach in all English to students with NO previous English experience
with the aid of the native Korean homeroom teacher, who also had
little to no previous English experience.
I was given a provisional textbook created by the school I believe in
the year prior to my arrival and had to use it. There were many
challenges and difficulties in this process. The textbooks had no
logical order in the way things were presented, there was little logic
to the themes of the chapters that I could deduce. This was not
really anyone's fault, as the textbooks were prepared by the same
homeroom teachers I was working with (no previous English
experience!). Nonetheless, I found ways to try and introduce basic
verbs and nouns along with classroom English that would make the
classes flow smoothly.
I had to learn to relax a little and go with the flow. I figured out
the best way to engage my students was to institute a bit of a routine
for the beginning of class (something they could recognize and use to
gain their bearings when we met each week) and also to work with a lot
of visual aids and hands on activities. I tried to keep the materials
relevant to their experiences and relate the lessons to things they
were familiar with (using Korean cartoon characters for a body parts
lesson/puzzle, using ancient Korean artifacts and traditional games
and instruments to learn the "what is this?" "it's a ...").
I also got a lot of experience in showmanship and presentations. We
held open demonstration classes at least once a month. My class was
taped for two different shows on Korea's English education TV station.
And near the end of my year we held a truly open demonstration class
for all the teachers and principals in the province. For several of
these classes (especially in the beginning) I often would come to
class to find that the AV stuff didn't work or they had considerately
taken DOWN my projector and taken it away for cleaning without
accounting for the fact that I would need it back FOR the open class.
It was definitely a year of interesting experiences, I learned to be
patient, creative, to deal with stressful situations, and to make the
best of every moment.
In the end, I think the biggest thing I learned that it wasn't about
me. There was so much of my year there that was about the students
and the school and I was just there to do what was necessary to help
them. I guess this is the thing that is really different from being a
student. In the big sense, students are necessary for college to
work. If NO one showed up for class or paid tuition, colleges would
become obsolete. But, if I personally didn't show up every day ready
to do my part, it really didn't have a big effect. But in Korea, I
guess it was my first real "job" and I realized that I really had to
step up to the plate and always be accountable and responsible and
what it was like to have other people count on me, to be part of a
team. And even if I didn't completely sign on with the things I had
to do or support, that's what being part of a team was. There was
compromise and negotiation and I finally learned what, "I scratch your
back and you scratch mine" applied to.
I guess that turned out to be a lot longer than I meant. I apologize,
but it was kindof therapeutic in a way. I haven't had to digest it
quite like that for someone yet. Other responsibilities in brief,
like I said I came into contact with EVERY student at the school at
least once. They really put me to work. In addition to the 14
regular 1st and 2nd grade classes each week, I taught 2 teacher
classes (1 general to all teachers and 1 intermediate level with the
English subject teachers). And I designed, created, taught an
afterschool English "camp" for 3 hours each week (rotating grades 3
thorugh 6) and also taught advanced language "club" type classes 2x a
week (3-4th grade and 5-6th grade). So, a lot of responsibility. I
came up with and designed all the materials and curricula for all of
the programs.
At Columbia, so far I have been taking a bit of a breather to get back
into the swing of things. Last semester I focused mainly on my
classes. This semester has been a bit busier just by the nature of
the programs I'm involved in. I'm on the Career Symposium committee
for the Columbia Society for International Law. We're puttng together
panel discussions for a 2 day event from attorneys who do
international law 2/18-19. I'm also involved witht the Public
Interest Law Foundation, which grants stipends for alls tudents who
work with nonprofit or governemnt organizations in the summer. I am
involved with their Annual Bid for Justice charity auction (held the
first week of March). The money from the auction helps fund the
summer student stipends and also grant requests from public interest
groups.
I am also a member of a student-faculty committee that is
working on the design for a new reading room in the law library.
there is currently a dearth of space, it's kindof similar to the
before (Perkins library) and after (Bostock) on a smaller scale. I
love libraries but hate the law library because it's the opposite of
everything i think a library should be (inspirational, beautiful, with
a sense of calm and yet energy) and so I applied to be on the reading
room committee to help the library realize its potential. (definitely more on this later...)
For the Fulbright program, I was placed at an elementary school with
about 1700 students from grades 1 through 6. I actually taught every
single student at least once during my year there. I was chosen for
that school because they were running a pilot program to begin
teaching English in 1st and 2nd grade. Currently the English
curriculum in Korea begins in 3rd grade. My main responsibility was
preparing and teaching the 1st and 2nd graders. There were 7
homerooms per grade with about 40 students per homeroom. I had to
teach in all English to students with NO previous English experience
with the aid of the native Korean homeroom teacher, who also had
little to no previous English experience.
I was given a provisional textbook created by the school I believe in
the year prior to my arrival and had to use it. There were many
challenges and difficulties in this process. The textbooks had no
logical order in the way things were presented, there was little logic
to the themes of the chapters that I could deduce. This was not
really anyone's fault, as the textbooks were prepared by the same
homeroom teachers I was working with (no previous English
experience!). Nonetheless, I found ways to try and introduce basic
verbs and nouns along with classroom English that would make the
classes flow smoothly.
I had to learn to relax a little and go with the flow. I figured out
the best way to engage my students was to institute a bit of a routine
for the beginning of class (something they could recognize and use to
gain their bearings when we met each week) and also to work with a lot
of visual aids and hands on activities. I tried to keep the materials
relevant to their experiences and relate the lessons to things they
were familiar with (using Korean cartoon characters for a body parts
lesson/puzzle, using ancient Korean artifacts and traditional games
and instruments to learn the "what is this?" "it's a ...").
I also got a lot of experience in showmanship and presentations. We
held open demonstration classes at least once a month. My class was
taped for two different shows on Korea's English education TV station.
And near the end of my year we held a truly open demonstration class
for all the teachers and principals in the province. For several of
these classes (especially in the beginning) I often would come to
class to find that the AV stuff didn't work or they had considerately
taken DOWN my projector and taken it away for cleaning without
accounting for the fact that I would need it back FOR the open class.
It was definitely a year of interesting experiences, I learned to be
patient, creative, to deal with stressful situations, and to make the
best of every moment.
In the end, I think the biggest thing I learned that it wasn't about
me. There was so much of my year there that was about the students
and the school and I was just there to do what was necessary to help
them. I guess this is the thing that is really different from being a
student. In the big sense, students are necessary for college to
work. If NO one showed up for class or paid tuition, colleges would
become obsolete. But, if I personally didn't show up every day ready
to do my part, it really didn't have a big effect. But in Korea, I
guess it was my first real "job" and I realized that I really had to
step up to the plate and always be accountable and responsible and
what it was like to have other people count on me, to be part of a
team. And even if I didn't completely sign on with the things I had
to do or support, that's what being part of a team was. There was
compromise and negotiation and I finally learned what, "I scratch your
back and you scratch mine" applied to.
I guess that turned out to be a lot longer than I meant. I apologize,
but it was kindof therapeutic in a way. I haven't had to digest it
quite like that for someone yet. Other responsibilities in brief,
like I said I came into contact with EVERY student at the school at
least once. They really put me to work. In addition to the 14
regular 1st and 2nd grade classes each week, I taught 2 teacher
classes (1 general to all teachers and 1 intermediate level with the
English subject teachers). And I designed, created, taught an
afterschool English "camp" for 3 hours each week (rotating grades 3
thorugh 6) and also taught advanced language "club" type classes 2x a
week (3-4th grade and 5-6th grade). So, a lot of responsibility. I
came up with and designed all the materials and curricula for all of
the programs.
At Columbia, so far I have been taking a bit of a breather to get back
into the swing of things. Last semester I focused mainly on my
classes. This semester has been a bit busier just by the nature of
the programs I'm involved in. I'm on the Career Symposium committee
for the Columbia Society for International Law. We're puttng together
panel discussions for a 2 day event from attorneys who do
international law 2/18-19. I'm also involved witht the Public
Interest Law Foundation, which grants stipends for alls tudents who
work with nonprofit or governemnt organizations in the summer. I am
involved with their Annual Bid for Justice charity auction (held the
first week of March). The money from the auction helps fund the
summer student stipends and also grant requests from public interest
groups.
I am also a member of a student-faculty committee that is
working on the design for a new reading room in the law library.
there is currently a dearth of space, it's kindof similar to the
before (Perkins library) and after (Bostock) on a smaller scale. I
love libraries but hate the law library because it's the opposite of
everything i think a library should be (inspirational, beautiful, with
a sense of calm and yet energy) and so I applied to be on the reading
room committee to help the library realize its potential. (definitely more on this later...)
Friday, November 14, 2008
i miss dating.(fake-out)
0r at least i think i do. and i deemed this important enough to get up out of bed, despite a pounding headache (the onset of which had nothing to do with imbibing alcoholic beverages - although i almost wish it had), power on my new baby laptop, drag it in bed with me, log in to blogger and start typing.
so i haven't really written in really, quite a long time. and i've apologized for that over and over again. moreover, even my recent writings have lacked a certain edge, a certain passion, the "soul" if you will has been MIA.
i don't really know how to explain that. i guess i'm no longer sure who my audience is. or maybe i've become TOO aware of who my audience MAY be. now that i'm in law school in ny, among native english speakers, among fellow students, i've lost a sense of anonymity.
surely, as i wrote my blog in korea i did feel safe, insulated somehow. the only ppl i thought i was speaking to were my loved ones an ocean, continent, and miles away. my other audience comprised of ppl in the same country as me, but separated by cities and countless koreans who had no idea what i was writing or talking about. there was definitely a certain sense of insularity and i guess even a feeling of disconnect that ironically made my writing truer and more sincere.
now that i'm back in the states, i've had a million excuses and theories why i don't write: no time, nothing to complain about, not a habit i had in america, etc.
but somehow tonight, as i was lying in bed waiting for sleep to sneak into my mind and blindfold me and claim me as the night's until the morning, i had a fleeting thought. a fleeting thought that turned into a few phrases. then sentences. and finally onto a paragraph and a vague outline for a full entry.
so here i am, blabbing on about absolutely NOT the topic that got me here. maybe this was just what i needed tho. an inroads to starting blogging anew.
so yes, dear readers, it may be too early to declare that i'm back. but let's tentatively make an appointment. say for sometime in the next 2 days. i'll go and write that entry that got me up and typing in the first place, and i promise to post it soon. the contents of that entry promise to be much more entertaining than this one.
and tiny little last aside, maybe i need a tagline. what is she talking about you ask. well let me tell you. so i really got into gossip girls in the past month and the premise of the show is a gossip blog/cell text "ring" if you will and the show's narrator is the blog author. so she starts every episode with some variation of "morning upper east siders..." and ends each episode with "you know you love me xoxo gossip girl." so yea, THAT's what i'm talking about when i say maybe i need a tagline.
maybe i need a cute little signoff signature thing. feel free to suggest some. or you'll have to deal with whatever insipid tagline i dream up. i'll try a few different ones out first. starting with:
legally yours, c.pink (read: c dot pink)
so i haven't really written in really, quite a long time. and i've apologized for that over and over again. moreover, even my recent writings have lacked a certain edge, a certain passion, the "soul" if you will has been MIA.
i don't really know how to explain that. i guess i'm no longer sure who my audience is. or maybe i've become TOO aware of who my audience MAY be. now that i'm in law school in ny, among native english speakers, among fellow students, i've lost a sense of anonymity.
surely, as i wrote my blog in korea i did feel safe, insulated somehow. the only ppl i thought i was speaking to were my loved ones an ocean, continent, and miles away. my other audience comprised of ppl in the same country as me, but separated by cities and countless koreans who had no idea what i was writing or talking about. there was definitely a certain sense of insularity and i guess even a feeling of disconnect that ironically made my writing truer and more sincere.
now that i'm back in the states, i've had a million excuses and theories why i don't write: no time, nothing to complain about, not a habit i had in america, etc.
but somehow tonight, as i was lying in bed waiting for sleep to sneak into my mind and blindfold me and claim me as the night's until the morning, i had a fleeting thought. a fleeting thought that turned into a few phrases. then sentences. and finally onto a paragraph and a vague outline for a full entry.
so here i am, blabbing on about absolutely NOT the topic that got me here. maybe this was just what i needed tho. an inroads to starting blogging anew.
so yes, dear readers, it may be too early to declare that i'm back. but let's tentatively make an appointment. say for sometime in the next 2 days. i'll go and write that entry that got me up and typing in the first place, and i promise to post it soon. the contents of that entry promise to be much more entertaining than this one.
and tiny little last aside, maybe i need a tagline. what is she talking about you ask. well let me tell you. so i really got into gossip girls in the past month and the premise of the show is a gossip blog/cell text "ring" if you will and the show's narrator is the blog author. so she starts every episode with some variation of "morning upper east siders..." and ends each episode with "you know you love me xoxo gossip girl." so yea, THAT's what i'm talking about when i say maybe i need a tagline.
maybe i need a cute little signoff signature thing. feel free to suggest some. or you'll have to deal with whatever insipid tagline i dream up. i'll try a few different ones out first. starting with:
legally yours, c.pink (read: c dot pink)
Monday, September 29, 2008
Flashback: Korea
Byline: The Masseuse Who Tried to Kill Me, and the One I Love
So, since coming home, i've called upon my parents to take me to "Super King Sauna" twice including today.
It's as close to a Korean 찜질방 as I've found in the States. Actually, it was one of the destinations that I NEVER missed out on during my trips from home during college. It was the only place I insisted on going. Even the restaurants stopped mattering, but the sauna did not. Let me tell you why.
Not only is this modeled after Korean-style public bathhouses, but it's also home to the "DDEH massage". A fundamental part of this experience. Basically you're lying naked while an ajumma scrubs/exfoliates all the dead skin off your body. AMAAAAAAAZING. You have NO idea until you've tried it and seriously leave the place feeling light as a feather.
Anyway, this is the main topic of today's post.
But first, a short aside - I had my "Flashback: Korea" moment with an overly friendly stranger in the hottest of the whirlpool tubs. So I'm sitting in there talking to my mom about my weekend (PHILLY W/COLLEGE FRIENDS!!!) when a random Korean woman at least as old as my mom joins us and after looking at me for a minute or two, the following takes place (in Korean):
Strange Woman: Is this your daughter? (to my mom)
Mommy: Yes
SW: She has such beautiful breasts
M: Oh... um, thanks
SW: They're so perky and well-shaped, isn't she lucky? Although, if she were in Korea, she wouldn't want them that big ...
And it only got more ... for the lack of a better word, invasive(?)/interesting(?)/uncomfortable(?) ...
My mom is like me and is not a huge fan of talking to strangers or of fairly intrusive strangers w/no bounds.. so as soon as we could politely end the conversation, she turns to me and is like, WOW IT'S BOILING HOT IN HERE, LET'S GO TO THE STEAM SAUNA... (which makes no sense - if cooling off is the goal...)
Anyway, that was my Korea flashback b/c of the rudeness, and bluntness, and obsession w/others' appearances, and lack of propriety, etc etc etc.
Okay, today's main event, the two different ajummas...
After a few weeks of law school (ok, really just Legal Methods) my parents decided I was too tired and stressed out and took me to the sauna for a ddeh massage. This entails the sloughing off of the skin as previously described PLUS an actual full-body massage at the end.
THE woman who called my number was a new woman who I hadn't seen before. She assured me I would feel 1,000x better after the massage. She started off with the sloughing and it was SO ROUGH that I swear she was tearing off the skin underneath that hadn't even formed yet and some of that fat underneath my skin... NORMALLY gentle but repetitive rubbing does the trick of peeling off only the dead, dull skin and leaving the healthy young skin intact. Anyway, she kept asking me, "Oh, isn't this SO refreshing and relaxing?" with such enthusiasm and confidence I idiotically decided not to hurt her feelings by agreeing as best as I could through gritted teeth.
NEXT, the massage. SO, after ripping off all my skin, she starts to MASSAGE my raw skin. And I kid you not, this is the best way to describe her method of massage. It felt like, she had watched a couple VIDEO tutorials on massaging, knew what the moves LOOKED like, and then decided, confidently, that the key to a good massage was BRUTE STRENGTH. So she gave me horrible towel burn by ripping into my skin w/o taking into account that the towel covering me was supposed to move WITH me, not against me. And she continued to pretty much PUMMEL me and KNEAD me as though I were some dough she were ALLERGIC to and HATED with all her might. All the while, continuing to ask me brightly, "Oh, isn't this SOOOO wonderful?" and I had not the wherewithal to answer because I was concentrating all my might on gritting my teeth, tensing my body, and NOT squealing. It got to the point that any time she took her hands off me, I would exhale and relax for a split second until I felt her hands again and tensed up to defend against the onslaught of pain ...
FLASH FORWARD 3 weeks or so to tonight. Since tomorrow's Rosh Hashanah and two of my profs are Jewish, I only have CivPro in the morning. So I called my mom to ask if I could do dinner w/my parents in NJ, buy some groceries, and we could go to the sauna. I've been on the brink of a cold for a week and my dad's been on my case that a trip to the sauna will fix it.
So, we arrive in the sauna and my mom asks me if I want a DDEH massage. And thinking of what happened last time I'm all like, UM NO. But then she insists and as we near the appointment desk I see it's the woman I love love love!!! So I say yes please and then the receptionist asks if any of the massage ladies is ok and my mom started to say YES when I blurt out, NO, I want THIS ajumma (and thrust my chin shyly at the woman behind her who was smiling at me). So, they're like laughing and like umm ok sure ... and I'm like NO NO she's the best!!
And she is! She was the first ajumma I had here when the place first opened way back when (def at LEAST 2003, I forget if it was even before that ...) and she is SO wonderful. It never hurts, she's so effective, and she does all these little things that make a big difference. After booking for an appt 20 minutes later, I spent the next 20 minutes in expectant happiness (minus the awkward experience w/the lady commenting on my chest).
Long story short, one of my BEST ddeh massages ever!!! So gentle, and the massage was simultaneously soothing and relaxing yet to the point. She did all the little things that matter, remembering to keep me warm, putting my head at the most comfortable angle, tying my hair every time it got loose, covering my eyes securely so water wouldn't get in, etc. She's so great. I heart her. I feel so relaxed and wonderful that I've actually been writing this whilst fighting my droopy eyelids for the past - since I got back ...
So, good night. I will try try TRY to update more often. Just as dedicated as I was in Korea.
Will have to make this my new procrastination/break hobby instead of Amazon.com.
hehe - good luck to all in school/new jobs right now =)
So, since coming home, i've called upon my parents to take me to "Super King Sauna" twice including today.
It's as close to a Korean 찜질방 as I've found in the States. Actually, it was one of the destinations that I NEVER missed out on during my trips from home during college. It was the only place I insisted on going. Even the restaurants stopped mattering, but the sauna did not. Let me tell you why.
Not only is this modeled after Korean-style public bathhouses, but it's also home to the "DDEH massage". A fundamental part of this experience. Basically you're lying naked while an ajumma scrubs/exfoliates all the dead skin off your body. AMAAAAAAAZING. You have NO idea until you've tried it and seriously leave the place feeling light as a feather.
Anyway, this is the main topic of today's post.
But first, a short aside - I had my "Flashback: Korea" moment with an overly friendly stranger in the hottest of the whirlpool tubs. So I'm sitting in there talking to my mom about my weekend (PHILLY W/COLLEGE FRIENDS!!!) when a random Korean woman at least as old as my mom joins us and after looking at me for a minute or two, the following takes place (in Korean):
Strange Woman: Is this your daughter? (to my mom)
Mommy: Yes
SW: She has such beautiful breasts
M: Oh... um, thanks
SW: They're so perky and well-shaped, isn't she lucky? Although, if she were in Korea, she wouldn't want them that big ...
And it only got more ... for the lack of a better word, invasive(?)/interesting(?)/uncomfortable(?) ...
My mom is like me and is not a huge fan of talking to strangers or of fairly intrusive strangers w/no bounds.. so as soon as we could politely end the conversation, she turns to me and is like, WOW IT'S BOILING HOT IN HERE, LET'S GO TO THE STEAM SAUNA... (which makes no sense - if cooling off is the goal...)
Anyway, that was my Korea flashback b/c of the rudeness, and bluntness, and obsession w/others' appearances, and lack of propriety, etc etc etc.
Okay, today's main event, the two different ajummas...
After a few weeks of law school (ok, really just Legal Methods) my parents decided I was too tired and stressed out and took me to the sauna for a ddeh massage. This entails the sloughing off of the skin as previously described PLUS an actual full-body massage at the end.
THE woman who called my number was a new woman who I hadn't seen before. She assured me I would feel 1,000x better after the massage. She started off with the sloughing and it was SO ROUGH that I swear she was tearing off the skin underneath that hadn't even formed yet and some of that fat underneath my skin... NORMALLY gentle but repetitive rubbing does the trick of peeling off only the dead, dull skin and leaving the healthy young skin intact. Anyway, she kept asking me, "Oh, isn't this SO refreshing and relaxing?" with such enthusiasm and confidence I idiotically decided not to hurt her feelings by agreeing as best as I could through gritted teeth.
NEXT, the massage. SO, after ripping off all my skin, she starts to MASSAGE my raw skin. And I kid you not, this is the best way to describe her method of massage. It felt like, she had watched a couple VIDEO tutorials on massaging, knew what the moves LOOKED like, and then decided, confidently, that the key to a good massage was BRUTE STRENGTH. So she gave me horrible towel burn by ripping into my skin w/o taking into account that the towel covering me was supposed to move WITH me, not against me. And she continued to pretty much PUMMEL me and KNEAD me as though I were some dough she were ALLERGIC to and HATED with all her might. All the while, continuing to ask me brightly, "Oh, isn't this SOOOO wonderful?" and I had not the wherewithal to answer because I was concentrating all my might on gritting my teeth, tensing my body, and NOT squealing. It got to the point that any time she took her hands off me, I would exhale and relax for a split second until I felt her hands again and tensed up to defend against the onslaught of pain ...
FLASH FORWARD 3 weeks or so to tonight. Since tomorrow's Rosh Hashanah and two of my profs are Jewish, I only have CivPro in the morning. So I called my mom to ask if I could do dinner w/my parents in NJ, buy some groceries, and we could go to the sauna. I've been on the brink of a cold for a week and my dad's been on my case that a trip to the sauna will fix it.
So, we arrive in the sauna and my mom asks me if I want a DDEH massage. And thinking of what happened last time I'm all like, UM NO. But then she insists and as we near the appointment desk I see it's the woman I love love love!!! So I say yes please and then the receptionist asks if any of the massage ladies is ok and my mom started to say YES when I blurt out, NO, I want THIS ajumma (and thrust my chin shyly at the woman behind her who was smiling at me). So, they're like laughing and like umm ok sure ... and I'm like NO NO she's the best!!
And she is! She was the first ajumma I had here when the place first opened way back when (def at LEAST 2003, I forget if it was even before that ...) and she is SO wonderful. It never hurts, she's so effective, and she does all these little things that make a big difference. After booking for an appt 20 minutes later, I spent the next 20 minutes in expectant happiness (minus the awkward experience w/the lady commenting on my chest).
Long story short, one of my BEST ddeh massages ever!!! So gentle, and the massage was simultaneously soothing and relaxing yet to the point. She did all the little things that matter, remembering to keep me warm, putting my head at the most comfortable angle, tying my hair every time it got loose, covering my eyes securely so water wouldn't get in, etc. She's so great. I heart her. I feel so relaxed and wonderful that I've actually been writing this whilst fighting my droopy eyelids for the past - since I got back ...
So, good night. I will try try TRY to update more often. Just as dedicated as I was in Korea.
Will have to make this my new procrastination/break hobby instead of Amazon.com.
hehe - good luck to all in school/new jobs right now =)
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Apologies.
For the lack of updates.
Been crazy busy. And happy.
My condolences to those of you still in the motherland.
Will be in DC for a week starting Friday.
Will try to post/schedule some entries before I leave.
Been crazy busy. And happy.
My condolences to those of you still in the motherland.
Will be in DC for a week starting Friday.
Will try to post/schedule some entries before I leave.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
The end.
I really felt it. For the first time since I've already known it in my head, I really felt that I'm leaving.
After closing one bank account, and sitting at the next, as the woman across the counter from me was stamping her forms and giving me papers to sign, and I realized I had muchos DOLLARS and no WON anymore, I finally felt that I was going home, going to leave Korea, and going to America.
Isn't that crazy? After all my countdowns and packing and saying goodbye, all it took was some money, and I really felt like I was finally leaving.
On another note, was American money always this LONG? It seems fake to me...
Hoooommm...
After closing one bank account, and sitting at the next, as the woman across the counter from me was stamping her forms and giving me papers to sign, and I realized I had muchos DOLLARS and no WON anymore, I finally felt that I was going home, going to leave Korea, and going to America.
Isn't that crazy? After all my countdowns and packing and saying goodbye, all it took was some money, and I really felt like I was finally leaving.
On another note, was American money always this LONG? It seems fake to me...
Hoooommm...
Monday, June 30, 2008
Thank you. School edition.
(And, yes, I wrote it all by myself. It was edited by my mom, old korean school principal (he's now in Cheongju), and my favorite coteacher).
남성 초등학교 가족 여러분~
떠나는 날이 다가와 마음이 조금 슬퍼지네요.
제가 글씨를 워낙 못써서 컴퓨터로 이 편지를 쓰지만, 손으로 쓴 글씨와 마찬가지로 마음을 담아 쓴다고 믿어주세요.
일년 동안 남성 초등학교에서 지내니, 행복했던 시간들, 약간은 힘들고 어려운 시간들이 꽤 많았네요.
제가 못 알아 보는 선생님들도 청주 시내나 학교 밖에서도 저를 알아보고 인사 해 주셔서 고마웠어요. 우리 나라 이지만 낯선 나라에 와서 혼자있는데, 알아 봐 주는 사람들이 있어서 외롭고 힘겨운 시간들을 따뜻하게 보낼 수 있었어요.
제가 까다롭게 급식소에서 이것 저것 안 먹겠다고 해도 다 이해 해 주셔서 감사했습니다. 제가 체험을 하러 왔는데 너무나 제가 편리한 대로 살았지요?
제가 도움이 필요할 때마다, 그때그때 도움을 준 분들께도 모두 다 너무 너무고맙습니다. 교무실에서 복사하는것 코팅하는것, 다 도와주신 혜정언니. 말은 많이 안 나누었지만, 저를 말없이 많이 도와주셔서 고마웠어요.
홍기성 선생님, 제가 한글로 깔린 컴퓨터 잘 못쓰고 제가 쓰는 Mac 컴퓨터도 학교에서 잘 안되고, 많이 불편하셨죠? 제가 컴퓨터 없이 수업을 못하니, 저 때문에 교실에서 애 많이쓰셨습니다. 제 수업들이 잘 진행 될 수 있었던것도 선생님 덕분이에요.
행정실에 있는 모든분 그리고 기사님들, 제가 알게 모르게 많이 도와주신것 감사합니다. 제가 교실의 불편한 점을 이야기 할때 마다 그때그때 고쳐주시고 해결해 주셔서 감사합니다.
저하고 같이 협력 수업하신 1, 2학년 선생님들, 너무 고마워요. 저하고 workshop하실때 많이 불편하고 답답하셨죠? 안 통할때도 많았지만 제 의견을 꼭 들어주시고, 수업 준비를 도와주셔서 고마워요. 교실에서도, 밖에서도요, 선생님들께서 저를 챙겨주시는 마음을 많이 느꼈어요. 수고많이 하셨습니다.
영어전담 선생님들, 김선혜부장선생님, 서현주선생님, 손민희선생님, 저때문에 많이 힘들으셨죠? 매일 무엇이 필요한지, 불편하지 않은지, 점심은 먹었는지 챙겨 주셔서 고마워요. 선생님들 없이는 정말 남성초등학교에서 무엇을 어떻게 해야 하는지 아무것도 몰랐을거예요. 일년 동안 꾸준히 잘 보살펴 주셔서 감사합니다.
그리고 교장, 교감선생님, 저를 예뻐해 주시고 항상 너그럽게 대해 주셔서 감사합니다. 제가 매일 인사를 드렸어야 하는데…
아침에 원래 잘 못 일어나는데다가 계속 몸이 안 좋아서 조금 게을렀습니다. 인사를 꼬박 꼬박 못 드려서 죄송한 마음으로 늘 수업에 최선을 다 할려고 열심히 노력했습니다.
이제 정이들고, 적응도 왠만큼 되고 하니까 가야하는 것이 아쉽습니다. 제가 일년이란 시간속에 좋은 추억과 경험을 할 수 있도록 기회를 주셔서 감사했습니다. 제가 앞으로 어느 곳에 있던지, 무엇을 하던지 남성초등학교에서 체험했던 좋은 추억과 경험을 잊지 않고 살아가겠습니다.
일년동안 저와 함께한 모든 분들께 다시 한번 감사의 마음을 전하며
남성초 모든 직원과 학생들을 위하여!!!
남성 초등학교 가족 여러분~
떠나는 날이 다가와 마음이 조금 슬퍼지네요.
제가 글씨를 워낙 못써서 컴퓨터로 이 편지를 쓰지만, 손으로 쓴 글씨와 마찬가지로 마음을 담아 쓴다고 믿어주세요.
일년 동안 남성 초등학교에서 지내니, 행복했던 시간들, 약간은 힘들고 어려운 시간들이 꽤 많았네요.
제가 못 알아 보는 선생님들도 청주 시내나 학교 밖에서도 저를 알아보고 인사 해 주셔서 고마웠어요. 우리 나라 이지만 낯선 나라에 와서 혼자있는데, 알아 봐 주는 사람들이 있어서 외롭고 힘겨운 시간들을 따뜻하게 보낼 수 있었어요.
제가 까다롭게 급식소에서 이것 저것 안 먹겠다고 해도 다 이해 해 주셔서 감사했습니다. 제가 체험을 하러 왔는데 너무나 제가 편리한 대로 살았지요?
제가 도움이 필요할 때마다, 그때그때 도움을 준 분들께도 모두 다 너무 너무고맙습니다. 교무실에서 복사하는것 코팅하는것, 다 도와주신 혜정언니. 말은 많이 안 나누었지만, 저를 말없이 많이 도와주셔서 고마웠어요.
홍기성 선생님, 제가 한글로 깔린 컴퓨터 잘 못쓰고 제가 쓰는 Mac 컴퓨터도 학교에서 잘 안되고, 많이 불편하셨죠? 제가 컴퓨터 없이 수업을 못하니, 저 때문에 교실에서 애 많이쓰셨습니다. 제 수업들이 잘 진행 될 수 있었던것도 선생님 덕분이에요.
행정실에 있는 모든분 그리고 기사님들, 제가 알게 모르게 많이 도와주신것 감사합니다. 제가 교실의 불편한 점을 이야기 할때 마다 그때그때 고쳐주시고 해결해 주셔서 감사합니다.
저하고 같이 협력 수업하신 1, 2학년 선생님들, 너무 고마워요. 저하고 workshop하실때 많이 불편하고 답답하셨죠? 안 통할때도 많았지만 제 의견을 꼭 들어주시고, 수업 준비를 도와주셔서 고마워요. 교실에서도, 밖에서도요, 선생님들께서 저를 챙겨주시는 마음을 많이 느꼈어요. 수고많이 하셨습니다.
영어전담 선생님들, 김선혜부장선생님, 서현주선생님, 손민희선생님, 저때문에 많이 힘들으셨죠? 매일 무엇이 필요한지, 불편하지 않은지, 점심은 먹었는지 챙겨 주셔서 고마워요. 선생님들 없이는 정말 남성초등학교에서 무엇을 어떻게 해야 하는지 아무것도 몰랐을거예요. 일년 동안 꾸준히 잘 보살펴 주셔서 감사합니다.
그리고 교장, 교감선생님, 저를 예뻐해 주시고 항상 너그럽게 대해 주셔서 감사합니다. 제가 매일 인사를 드렸어야 하는데…
아침에 원래 잘 못 일어나는데다가 계속 몸이 안 좋아서 조금 게을렀습니다. 인사를 꼬박 꼬박 못 드려서 죄송한 마음으로 늘 수업에 최선을 다 할려고 열심히 노력했습니다.
이제 정이들고, 적응도 왠만큼 되고 하니까 가야하는 것이 아쉽습니다. 제가 일년이란 시간속에 좋은 추억과 경험을 할 수 있도록 기회를 주셔서 감사했습니다. 제가 앞으로 어느 곳에 있던지, 무엇을 하던지 남성초등학교에서 체험했던 좋은 추억과 경험을 잊지 않고 살아가겠습니다.
일년동안 저와 함께한 모든 분들께 다시 한번 감사의 마음을 전하며
남성초 모든 직원과 학생들을 위하여!!!
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Waterworks.
yea, that's pretty much my nickname. Always.
I don't mean to cry. But I've always been somewhat of a crier. Movies, books, TV shows, even commercials. Actually, even songs and national anthems. Sometimes an audience clapping is all it takes. And I start crying.
This time it started on Tuesday. And it was totally unexpected.
But here I am crying again.
Tuesday: Saying my final goodbye to that first class of the week and I started welling up. We took a class picture and I thought I would burst, but I held them back. THEN, out of nowhere, one of the girls comes back to my classroom, manages a "Teacher, I love you!" and then bursts into tears. At which I can't help but start crying also. Did I mention? Other people crying is usually enough to set me off.
Every class after her, I cried a little as they left. I could usually hold it in until they waved their final goodbyes and headed down the stairs, but as soon as I turned back to my empty classroom I no longer had to beam that smile. I felt the realization that I will most likely NEVER see these kids again. And then the tears would come.
Last night was our final hweshik with all the teachers I taught with and the VP and principal and out tech teacher who is in love with me. It was wonderful. I managed not to cry during dinner or at the cafe afterwards. But when I got home and unwrapped the album and earrings they got me, I couldn't help it. Despite all my complaints and whining, I've developed some 정 for these people. The people who kept me afloat during my year abroad.
One of the 2nd grade classes (the worst one, the one that I yelled at 3x on their first day and I wrote about it HERE) wrote me goodbye letters. And although most of them are the same bland "Thank you, we'll miss you, please don't go, I learned a lot of English thanks to you" format, a few were really wonderful and surprising. There were students who I thought never paid attention but then wrote me full-page letters talking about how I made English fun for them. There was one who even thanked me for teaching them so exuberantly to the point of sweating. And another girl who wrote that she would miss me but how happy I must be to be going home. They surprised me with their depth and compassion.
And now I just received a fresh batch of letters from my first 1st grade class. It's not the same, as I've only taught these kids for 2 and a half months, and I've been with my 2nd graders since I first got here in July. But wow, the thought these kids have given me, is so touching and I'm so lucky to have been here.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Geography of thought.
The Geography of Thought : How Asians and Westerners Think Differently...and Why by Richard Nisbett
I bought this book in Seoul in January. I hoped it would do several things for me:
a) I hoped it would quench my thirst for some of the research-based non-fiction books I had to read so many of during undergrad as a social science major.
b) I hoped it would help me make sense of the craziness I perceived as going on all around me here in Korea.
c) I hoped it would explain some of why I sometimes felt SO American and sometimes SO Korean and sometimes SO neither and both at the same time.
Here is a quote that jumped out at me:
Yes, and wow. This jumped out mostly because it described my own confusing and complex internal struggle. While not always, a special occasion, every weekend I was confronted by this choice: visit my family or travel/do something cultural?
Be filially pious (pietous?) and visit my family? One kind of special occasion. Or be independent and add to my experiences by doing something more cultural and intellectually stimulating? Another kind of special occasion.
My dad always pushed for me to spend time with my family (his family) while my mom pushed for me to do what I wanted. Thus fulfilling their stereotyped roles as traditional, ironfisted father and liberal, self-improving mother.
This next quote further got me thinking:
The "Western" way IS, in fact, so much more about individualism and the self. Whereas, clearly, the "Eastern" way is more about the self in relation to others. ALWAYS in relation to others.
Of course ancient Greeks chose self-improvement in the form of music, plays, or other classically intellectual endeavors in their spare time. In a culture where the self is the most important entity, any improvement to the self, especially in terms of being cultured is an improvement to the most important thing in the society.
In the East, where the self does not exist without others, this relationship is seen and treated literally and metaphorically. Literally in terms, of family ties and bonds and blood relationships.
Coming from THIS particular understanding of the self, clearly it makes sense to always foster and nurture these bonds and relationships, THUS strengthening the self. Strong relationships = strong definition of self.
I bought this book in Seoul in January. I hoped it would do several things for me:
a) I hoped it would quench my thirst for some of the research-based non-fiction books I had to read so many of during undergrad as a social science major.
b) I hoped it would help me make sense of the craziness I perceived as going on all around me here in Korea.
c) I hoped it would explain some of why I sometimes felt SO American and sometimes SO Korean and sometimes SO neither and both at the same time.
Here is a quote that jumped out at me:
While a special occasion for the ancient Greek might mean attendance at plays and poetry readings, a special occasion for the Chinese of the same period would be an opportunity to visit with friends and family.
Yes, and wow. This jumped out mostly because it described my own confusing and complex internal struggle. While not always, a special occasion, every weekend I was confronted by this choice: visit my family or travel/do something cultural?
Be filially pious (pietous?) and visit my family? One kind of special occasion. Or be independent and add to my experiences by doing something more cultural and intellectually stimulating? Another kind of special occasion.
My dad always pushed for me to spend time with my family (his family) while my mom pushed for me to do what I wanted. Thus fulfilling their stereotyped roles as traditional, ironfisted father and liberal, self-improving mother.
This next quote further got me thinking:
Philosopher Henry Rosemont has written: “… for the early Confucians, there can be no me in isolation, to be considered abstractly: I am the totality of roles I live in relation to specific others...taken collectively, they weave, for each of us, a unique pattern of personal identity, such that if some of my roles change, the others will of necessity change also, literally making me a different person.
The "Western" way IS, in fact, so much more about individualism and the self. Whereas, clearly, the "Eastern" way is more about the self in relation to others. ALWAYS in relation to others.
Of course ancient Greeks chose self-improvement in the form of music, plays, or other classically intellectual endeavors in their spare time. In a culture where the self is the most important entity, any improvement to the self, especially in terms of being cultured is an improvement to the most important thing in the society.
In the East, where the self does not exist without others, this relationship is seen and treated literally and metaphorically. Literally in terms, of family ties and bonds and blood relationships.
*Literal example: Without my parents, I would not exist. And without my grandparents, my parents would not exist. And thus without (ever-increasing web of) these people I would not be.
*Metaphoric example: The concept of "me/self/I" does not exist outside of my relationships to others. I am Youn's daughter, Jessica's sister, Namsung's English teacher, Ashley's friend, etc. etc. etc. WIthout these relationships/definitions, I am NOTHING.
Coming from THIS particular understanding of the self, clearly it makes sense to always foster and nurture these bonds and relationships, THUS strengthening the self. Strong relationships = strong definition of self.
The book was a bit cheesy and overgeneralized certain things, but in general it was an interesting take on the confusion that is my life. A confusion that has only increased and been in constant tumult since my sojourn to this country of my forefathers (and foremothers - let's not be sexist here). I have often experienced conflict over simple decisions for my friends - conflicted by my ideas of superiority of self (sometimes it's ok to be selfish) and my inbred need to please others and create social harmony (never being able to say "no).
Being in Korea, only confused me all the more. It both challenged and strengthened the Western "ME" parts of me and the Eastern "US" parts of me/us. You can imagine this internal struggle/battle of wills and crazy snippets of voices of advice and random mutterings from my family, friends, society, media, Confucius, Aristotle, etc. that was CONSTANTLY running through my head. ON top of all that, there was the INTERNAL part that's like, I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU SAY, I'M AN AMERICAN AND I DO THINGS MY WAY some days, and other days it's like, I CARE WHAT ALL OF YOU SAY AND I'VE GOTTA JUST SAY YES AND DO WHAT MAKES EVERYONE HAPPY (increase overall utility - that was also kindof the econ/pps nerd part of me, in addition to the Korean and American parts).
I could totally branch out at this point about how the "Asian" perspective helped me understand why Koreans are the way they are. But I think I might've already beaten that topic to death. And back.
So I'll end with how this both enlightened and further confused me. It helped me (us?) understand the two separate camps (usually just two) in my head reasoning opposite arguments for the same cause (strengthen self for self and strengthen community/family for self). And it helped me understand why this place, this country, and these people brought these issues that had only been simmering and occasionally spilling over in America to a boil in Korea.
Western thinking:
+PLUS+
Eastern thinking:
=EQUALS=
Western thinking:
+PLUS+
Eastern thinking:
=EQUALS=
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Smellcome to Korea.
Kimchi, Korea's flagship traditional food
But really, do I want to? Korea has a special smell (in most places) that I think even NYC has a hard time rivaling. In addition to the urine and human waste, there's of course, all the fermentation going on, all the waste of fermented food, and the cooking of fermented foods, and I don't know what else, but Korea has a strange smell. And actually, I think maybe Kipling was right. After smelling Korea, you get it. It's weird, strong, and stubbornly won't leave you alone.
Dwen-jang (soybean paste)
Inside the box: smells exactly like you think it would but worse
“The first condition of understanding a foreign country is to smell it.” ~Rudyard Kipling
But really, do I want to? Korea has a special smell (in most places) that I think even NYC has a hard time rivaling. In addition to the urine and human waste, there's of course, all the fermentation going on, all the waste of fermented food, and the cooking of fermented foods, and I don't know what else, but Korea has a strange smell. And actually, I think maybe Kipling was right. After smelling Korea, you get it. It's weird, strong, and stubbornly won't leave you alone.
Dwen-jang (soybean paste)
Inside the box: smells exactly like you think it would but worse
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
1 full year.
and like i always say, life comes full circle.
I arrived in Korea at dawn on June 16th, 2007 where I was promptly shuttled to my Ansan family's place for some down time (and a long long nap).
So I guess it makes sense that I spent all of June 15th, 2008 in Ansan with them again. (Also involving a pretty long nap).
And although I don't have any other deep insight or anything to mark the full 365-day year, I will say this.
On that morning a year ago, as I sat in their 거실 (a space in Korean homes equivalent purpose to an American living room), I couldn't get over how SMALL their house was. And this past Sunday when I sat there with my family, I kept wondering if they had somehow expanded their house, because it now seemed pretty BIG (I guess now I measure by Korean standards). I was like, "Wow, I remember their house being so small and now that I'm actually here it's so spacey....".
So, yea. A year can and does change a person's perspective.
Like I always say, life is always relative.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
water off my back. (or is it oil?)
So, the zoo/circus is finally coming to an end. Both my time here in Korea, and this final presentation of the year's experimental teaching.
Let me explain. The school I was sent to, and one of the reason's I was sent, was that they were one of three participating schools in our province in this experiment into coteaching with a native English speaker for 1st and 2nd grades. So now at the end of a year they chose one school to host the presenting of the results. And it's us.
The class went over pretty well. There were a few things I would've changed but not much. But it's the aftermath that's starting to piss me off. I know I should let it roll off my back. And I will. Because I'm leaving and nothing I say or think is going to change anything here. And like my mom said, the angrier I get and the more frustrated I get with the system here and try to vent it, it's really just throwing eggs at a mountain. Fruitless and useless.
I could so NOT live here, or at least I would really have to change to live here for a long time. There's just so much that Koreans say and do that annoy me.
*For example, the man who assumes that I speak no Korean and talks about how useless he thinks native speaking teachers are whilst in my classroom.
*The other man who is going through my cabinets and when I ask politely if he's looking for something, he anwers: No, I just want to see what materials you use. (AND I WANT TO SCREAM, WELL THEN ASK ME IF YOU CAN SEE THEM AND DON'T GO THROUGH MY CABINETS, YOU RUDE DONKEY!!)
*The lecturing by Koreans who "know everything" and yet clearly I don't understand how they can be failing so badly at teaching English if they "know everything"
*The man who tells me I should've used magnetic boards instead of velcro on my bulletin boards. (since he knows how I use them and what works in my classroom and how much money I'm allotted to furnish my classroom)
Anyway, I know the English teachers are busy, but I'm just sitting in my classroom and there are two annoying Koreans here discussing the status of English education and what has to change, and I'm wondering if I can leave, if I should lock up before I go, if I should tell them to get out, or what I should be doing. I would normally just leave it all open and go home, but I don't want them going through my desk and personal stuff. Rude monkeys.
BUUUUUUUT I DON'T CAAAAAARE!!!! BECAUSE I'M LEEEEEEAVING!!! I'M GOING HOOOOOME!!! hehe. and THAT's why it'll be water off my back. (or oil). =)
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Fraternité (warm)
Source: Jason Teale Photography
As much as I complain about Korea, there are some things that bring a smile to my face. I guess one of the biggies would be the brotherhood (or fraternité) I've observed and felt here.
Koreans are one of the most adamantly exclusive ethnicities I've ever encountered. There are some cons to this, naturally: perhaps stronger racism than other groups, a ridiculous amount of pride and nationalism, and also a higher than average rate of deformities/handicapped folks due to a smaller and less diverse gene pool.
However, the flip side of this staunch ethnic "solidarity" or whatever you may choose to call it, is that many Koreans consider each other and act as though they were all "family." This contributes to what I sense is rudeness on the street and subway (being bumped into and never apologized to). But it also has some nicer effects.
1. Seated passengers holding standing passengers' bags and parcels. I had never seen this in America but read about it in About Korea guides. Be it the subway or bus, I've seen people who are seated grab at standing people's bags and belongings. This is not theft but rather an offer to ease the discomfort of a standing person carrying heavy items.
The first time this happened to me I was pleasantly surprised. It was my 2nd day going to the pool and I was carrying 2 heavy bags: my usual schoolbag with books and such and my duffel bag with all my toiletries (shampoo and other heavy things included) that I was bringing to put into my pool locker. The elderly gentleman sitting in front of where I stood motioned to me to give him my bags. I hadn't been expecting it but I was glad he did, after a full day of teaching, those bags were so heavy and the bus ride is about 20 minutes on a quick day.
2. This second event happened today and it brought a smile to my face (in a good way). After swimming I was in the locker room shower. The showers at my pool are just a longish rectangular shaped room with showerheads and mirrors every 3 feet or so. There are no curtains or other barriers between people in there. Just the showerheads and the drains.
Anyway, today it was me and a group of 3 little girls (def elementary school-aged). One of the girls walks over to me and politely requests that I please untangle her hairtie from her hair. Apparently she had tried to do it herself and it had gotten horribly tangled. I obliged and told her it might hurt a bit but don't worry I'd get it out. It took about a minute or two and after I had finished she turned and politely thanked me. And as she walked back to her friends I smiled because this was a nice little encounter that I can't really imagine something like this happening in America.
First of all, America's crazy about child sexual predators and abuse and all that and even if such a request were made of me, I'd be nervous about being SEEN helping a naked little girl. I had not really thought about how conscious America is about physical contact between "adults" (I still don't feel like one) and children until my freshman year of college.
I was in an early childhood ed. course where we all interned at various infant and child centers. One of the only boys mentioned during one class that he is VERY careful about his interactions with the children because they climb all over him and want to sit in his lap and give him hugs but he's wary of how the other (female) workers at the center would watch him. This was true, I had never confronted this but he said that people are often suspicious of males who are interested in young children.
Anyway, this event along with the whole priest-sexual abuse scandals heightened my awareness of adult and minor relations in America. As the head coordinator person of our church's youth group, my mom even had to attend and consequently run "Protecting God's Children" seminars to educate and train EVERY and ANYone over 18 working with the youth at our church (this included the PTA parents and the college-aged counselors). This only increased my sensitivity to the delicate matter of adult-minor relations.
So coming from this very cautious background where I've heard stories from friends during their "student teacher" period having to watch little things like ruffling students' hair and giving hugs to crying/injured students, what happened today was kindof heartwarming. It was like a nod to the safe world of yesteryear shown in TV shows like "The Wonder Years" and "Leave it to Beaver" where your neighborhood and community FELT like one and people trusted each other.
This small gesture by a little girl who needed help made me realize that despite it's flaws as a tiny country inhabited by a very strongly defined ethnic group, there is a degree of (default) trust here that I have rarely witnessed in America. I am often surprised by the little displays of trust that I see here everyday. And although it does seem as though this trust is a bit on the decline as urbanization and development chip away at the old community feel, it's nice to know that it's still alive and kicking.
National unity and pride is thrust upon them while they're still young.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
June plans.
P.S. I've just started to know my kids names. WITHOUT their nametags. haha. A little too late...
Okay, so I've already written that I was granted my request to terminate my Fulbright contract early and I'm leaving Korea on July 2nd.
I wrote my mandatory "Thank you" to Mrs. Shim and mailed it off yesterday. I spent all of Monday packing up boxes of books and winter clothes to send home pre-arrival of moi. Yesterday, after school, I had to sign a paper with "사직서" which is like my formal resignation or something for the office that pays me moneys. I'm so out of here, SO soon. I can really feel it.
Anyways, June is gonna fly by, possibly quicklier than May. (And not a moment too soon as my English is deteriorating somewhat horribly...)
This week: Today's my last day of work for the week. YES 2-day workweek. Going to 광주 and then 진도 for my final familial hurrah. Back on Monday.
2nd week: 4 day workweek, probably Seoul on the weekend to say goodbye to friends.
3rd week: 2 day workweek (possibly ONE DAY week), dinner with everyone I've been friends with in Cheongju (FBers, swimming oppa, favorite teachers, family friends). Fulbright final dinner in Seoul, NKSK soccer game with my cousins, and possible templestay.
4th week: 4 day workweek, mostly goodbye parties in every class. Finish packing over the weekend. Go up to Seoul and stay with family for 2 days prob. GO TO ICN AND USAAAAAA!!!!!!!
It's gonna flyyyyyyy byyyyyyyyyyyy.......
Okay, so I've already written that I was granted my request to terminate my Fulbright contract early and I'm leaving Korea on July 2nd.
I wrote my mandatory "Thank you" to Mrs. Shim and mailed it off yesterday. I spent all of Monday packing up boxes of books and winter clothes to send home pre-arrival of moi. Yesterday, after school, I had to sign a paper with "사직서" which is like my formal resignation or something for the office that pays me moneys. I'm so out of here, SO soon. I can really feel it.
Anyways, June is gonna fly by, possibly quicklier than May. (And not a moment too soon as my English is deteriorating somewhat horribly...)
This week: Today's my last day of work for the week. YES 2-day workweek. Going to 광주 and then 진도 for my final familial hurrah. Back on Monday.
2nd week: 4 day workweek, probably Seoul on the weekend to say goodbye to friends.
3rd week: 2 day workweek (possibly ONE DAY week), dinner with everyone I've been friends with in Cheongju (FBers, swimming oppa, favorite teachers, family friends). Fulbright final dinner in Seoul, NKSK soccer game with my cousins, and possible templestay.
4th week: 4 day workweek, mostly goodbye parties in every class. Finish packing over the weekend. Go up to Seoul and stay with family for 2 days prob. GO TO ICN AND USAAAAAA!!!!!!!
It's gonna flyyyyyyy byyyyyyyyyyyy.......
Monday, June 2, 2008
English Translations
So, my school has been CHOSEN to serve as Exhibit A of how teaching English to 1st and 2nd graders looks.
The original English in 1st grade textbook:
Lesson 4. Run, Candy
Goals of this unit: Child feels an intimate feeling in the animals. Specially, from the family it raises it holds with the member of the family and it has the love which is special in the cat. Playing which with consequently like this animals is familiar to side overlook only mind young this each person the bay it knows, There is a possibility becoming the help in emotional growth. In the process Lesson 4, student can learn how to order and response through play a game.
TRANSLATION: MY SCHOOL IS PLAYING HOST TO A BEVY OF TEACHERS FROM ALL OVER MY PROVINCE ON JUNE 17th AND I HAVE TO DO ALL OF THE ENGLISH PREPARATION FOR IT.
Okay. So TECHNICALLY the 1st and 2nd grade teachers are supposed to do all of the English preparation which means that I am the one de facto doing all the work. ALL 11 (READ: ELEVEN) teachers have to prepare lesson plans in ENGLISH and so last week all I did all week was revise and edit English lesson plans. ELEVEN DIFFERENT LESSON PLANS.
And the teachers were actually thinking of me and tried to all teach the same lesson that day so I would have less DIFFERENT things to oversee, but the principal decided that what is the point of ALL doing the same lesson (EXCEPT HMM MAKING SENSE?!?!?). And he decided each teacher is taking a different chapter from the textbook to teach. THIS MAKES NO SENSE SEEING HOW LEADING INTO THAT DAY OF OPEN/DEMONSTRATION CLASSES I AM ONLY ONE PERSON SEEING/TEACHING EACH CLASS ONLY ONCE A WEEK.
Anyway, lesson plans are short and mostly the same. Plus the teachers reused all the English from my lesson plans so there's not much to correct. ON THE OTHER HAND, each chapter has this "introduction section" in the teacher's manual that must be attached to the lesson plan. And THIS section is a HOT HOT mess. The teachers translated this when they made the textbook last year. And it's now my responsibility to "correct" this section (FOR PEOPLE WHO CAN'T TELL THAT IT'S INCORRECT AS IS). How I am supposed to correct something when I'm not sure of it's original intent/meaning is beyond me.
So, I just make it up as I go. I kindof guess what Koreans would've said. And try to approximate it in English. And sometimes the grammar is wrong or awkward, but I don't care. I can't do any more of these. And I think I still have 6 more. I've already done 5. Blech.
An example I think would be most illuminating.
Lesson 4. Run, Candy
Goals of this unit: Child feels an intimate feeling in the animals. Specially, from the family it raises it holds with the member of the family and it has the love which is special in the cat. Playing which with consequently like this animals is familiar to side overlook only mind young this each person the bay it knows, There is a possibility becoming the help in emotional growth. In the process Lesson 4, student can learn how to order and response through play a game.
Google image search result for "ARE YOU KIDDING ME":
HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO "CORRECT" THIS ENGLISH? I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT'S SUPPOSED TO MEAN... They ask me to correct this, and I'm like, "Um, ok yea sure..."
HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO "CORRECT" THIS ENGLISH? I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT'S SUPPOSED TO MEAN... They ask me to correct this, and I'm like, "Um, ok yea sure..."
Christine-ified version:
Goals of this unit: From a young age, children display an interest in animals. A special example of loved animals is pets, who are raised in the family and are treated with a special love. Playing with animals and learning to take care of them and treat them well can help children achieve emotional growth. In Lesson 4, students will learn how to give simple commands by role-playing with pets.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Happy Birthday, Mommy!!!
In lieu of being a good daughter who wrote a card or sent a timely present, I want to talk about the two most important people in my life. I want to tell you, the Internet world, about two of the most amazing people I know. In case you were thinking Senator J. William Fulbright or the first person to make chocolate chip cookies (a close third), you're wrong. The two most amazing people I know are my parents.
Sometimes you never really realize how great your parents are until you hear someone else talking about them. It sometimes comes to me, randomly; the thought will just enter my thinking sphere and flit across my consciousness and just as quickly disappear. But every now and then, I have a moment, something happens, or a light clicks, and I go, "Wow, my parents are so amazing."
Example 1:
Immigrant Family on Ellis Island
In college I took some random classes and somehow ended up working with recent Hispanic immigrants. A lot. I studied them, I spoke with them, I taught them, I volunteered in community centers with them, I called them on behalf of their kids' school. I spent a lot of time observing and interacting with Hispanic immigrants. I saw (kindof) how hard their life was, what kind of roadblocks America threw at them, how difficult it is to sustain yourself and your family while building up a solid foundation for what I would call a fulfilling and satisfying life in America. This was really my first experience with what life was like for recent immigrants.
I mean, I knew my parents were immigrants, it's not like I grew up without the customary
"You have no idea what your dad and I went through. You have no idea what we had to sacrifice and put up with to get here. You're so ungrateful and you're so spoiled."I knew they had "had it rough," that they had started off in a studio apartment in Queens. I knew they had both worked and gone to night school at the same time. But I never really FELT it, I never really SAW it, I never really BELIEVED it. Because of all that they had done and endured, I was so sheltered and far removed from those experiences that they were never REAL to me.
My experiences with the Hispanic community in Durham gave me my first glimpse into the life of a recent immigrant. It gave me a feel for what it's like to not be at home. What it's like to play someone else's game by someone else's rules. You're just an impromptu player. Sure, you wanted to join, but you didn't really know what the game (or sometimes even the stakes) really was. Whenever we had the essay prompt: Who is someone you admire and why? I would always answer with "My parents because they immigrated to America and went through a lot so I could have a better life." But that was so cliche. I didn't REALLY know what I was thankful for. I didn't UNDERSTAND why my parents were defaultly admirable for producing a second generation kid like me. I just knew that was the right answer.
Consequently, doing all the community service and ESL work I did in Durham was one of the FIRST times that the meaning of what my parents had been through even flickered across my consciousness.
Example 2:
When I first got to my placement city in Korea, I was finally striking out on my own. I had left the nest and was supposed to figure out how to do this flying thing without crashing and breaking my little bird skull on the concrete sidewalk (or in Korea, the brick sidewalk). Anyway, I had been playing with the idea of "parallels" in my mom's and my life (I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this in earlier entries).
1. My mom got married when she was 22 years old and immigrated to America.
2. I graduated college when I was 22 years old and accepted a yearlong fellowship in Korea.
Both the same age, moving in opposite directions across the Pacific, and setting upon totally different journeys.
Okay, so I know I've said it before. But yea, this was the first time I realized how difficult exactly it is to try living in another country. Let's not count the benefits I had that she (and my dad) didn't, shan't we...
I had a secure, guaranteed, highly respected job waiting for me. I had room and board supplied for me. I had a 6-week Orientation including foreign language classes. I came with a coterie of compatriots, 70 to be exact, to share my triumphs and sorrows. I had a strong support group in place that I could contact with the click of a mouse or a few buttons on the phone (GOOO 28 years of technology!!!). I had grown up learning the language in context. I had grown up with access to both the culture and the greater Korean community. I LOOKED like I fit in. I knew that if I hated it, I was definitely going to be able to leave after a year.
In short, I had it so much easier, and yet I still felt like I had it so rough. And that only highlighted how much harder it had to have been for my parents, newlyweds with two suitcases and rudimentary English skills. (I've been teaching here for a year, I KNOW the school-learned English they took with them was useful for, um, NOTHING save describing the weather perhaps).
So the fact that I really had come face-to-face with what it's like to LIVE in another country, even one that claims to be my motherland and one whose culture I'd been sampling all my life, really drove the point home, that what my parents (and countless others of their generation) had done, was really quite remarkable, quite admirable, and even completely surprising. I could NOT believe they didn't pack up their bags, call it quits, and come back. (I know enough random families who have).
Realizing that what they did was so much harder than what I was doing and that everything they endured had been so much tougher was another, "Wow, my parents are amazing," moment.
Example 3: The thing that spurred me to write this entry
I had dinner and coffee tonight with some old family friends. They were two Korean priests who had been consecutively sent to our Korean parish in New Jersey. One had been there from 1996 to 1998. The other had been there from 1998 to 2000. They had known me and my family pretty much a decade ago, give or take a few years.
The first notable thing was that after a decade they still remembered me and my parents. They still cared about my parents enough to call me and take me out for a rather expensive and ridiculously delicious dinner. To me, this says something about their estimation of my parents and consequently how my parents treated them.
For nearly all my accessible memory, my parents have been superactive in our church. My mom has served in so many capacities, as a Sunday School teacher, a Korean School teacher, Korean School principal, youth group director, PTA liaison, education director/"provost", and those are only the positions that I remember and can name positions, too. There are so many other things she directed and led and coordinated. Even after my sister and I were no longer active members of the youth community. She both attends and teaches Bible scripture study classes. My dad has always been active, too, though in quieter roles. He would do Sunday readings, he served as an acolyte (my sister and I used to tease him that his specialty was incense-waving), he is often a Mass narrator (I forget what they're called), and he was our 구역 leader and all these other important things where he would go to official-type meetings.
I'm not particularly religious (as of the past 2 or so years) and I know I should be, especially in light of the fact that I really do think God smiles down on my life. But anyway, the point is, my parents are totally active members of our church. Everyone at our church and many people at churches in NJ, NY, PA, VA, and even CA and others know my parents. So, it's not surprising to me that former and current priests that have met and know my parents remember them.
What does surprise me, is how fondly they remember my parents. How much they seem to genuinely respect my parents, and how often this translates into how well they treat me and my sister and the respect they show us, now as young ladies entering society proper.
Tonight, the two family friend priests and I were joined by a third priest from the city of Cheongju that I was meeting for the first time. They continually praised and described my parents (and family) to the third priest. I was struck by all the good things they had to say. I've been surprised and struck by all the things they've told me my parents did for them and how my parents helped them out. I won't bore you with another list of the things that my parents did and the wonderful things they were saying about my parents.
But the things I could hear in their voices, how much they really respected my dad, how much they appreciated my mom's work in the community, and how even they, the priests, admired my parents for everything they've endured and achieved - that meant a lot to me. My eyes welled up as I tried to maintain the illusion of aloofness that is considered polite when a "young'n" is present and privy to grown-ups' conversation.
I am so proud of my parents. For the many things I know about them. And for so many more that I didn't and don't yet know about them.
Whenever I complained that my mom spent more time at church and that I was the one who had to sacrifice playdates and prompt rides to and pickups from places she used to say:
I really believe that the more I give and sacrifice for our church community, the more that will manifest itself as grace and blessings and good fortune for you and your sister. I don't do it for me, I do it for you.I guess you could say she believes in karma. And I'm not going to lie; I definitely believe in it, too. Especially because I seem unfittingly to be on the receiving end of it.
Clearly not following in my parents' footsteps - the kind of gift I normally give to others, exactly those things that I myself want.
And so, at the end of this lengthy diatribe, I guess it's only fitting to conclude by saying: Happy Birthday, Mommy!!! Here's to another year of happiness and health. And my strengthened conviction to make you proud of me, as I am of you. And that's the big present for this year and many to come. (In addition to your new Sony Wii and Wii Fit board).
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
JOYOUS JOY OF LIFE!!!
I'm leaving Korea "early"!!! I'm leaving Korea "early"!!! I'm leaving Korea "early"!!! I'm leaving Korea "early"!!! I'm leaving Korea "early"!!!
YAYYY!!!!! I'm LEAVING KOREA JULY 2ND!!! I KNEW if I wanted it bad enough and kept telling people I was leaving July 2nd, it would come true. It's like all those Disney movies and Thomas the little engine that could said: If you believe in something enough, (and you're clearly in the right) it'll happen!!!
Dear Christine,
After review of your application for early departure, Mrs.
Shim has decided to grant your request.
YAYYY!!!!! I'm LEAVING KOREA JULY 2ND!!! I KNEW if I wanted it bad enough and kept telling people I was leaving July 2nd, it would come true. It's like all those Disney movies and Thomas the little engine that could said: If you believe in something enough, (and you're clearly in the right) it'll happen!!!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Miss. Will and Do.
So, now that the time for me to leave Korea draws near, people here have started asking me that horrible, guiltifying question of, "What will you miss?"
And it's horrible and guiltifying because every time I've been asked, I haven't had an answer. The well-meaning questioner waits, and waits, and waits, and waits some more. All the while I wrack my brain and sputter something about how there's so much I can't really pick something specific or make something up about how life here is so convenient and feel stupid about not being able to give details about what I mean when further prodded.
And so I've decided to ponder this because I KNOW there are things I'll miss. And I know it'll be much easier to make this list from the other side of that ocean, but in the meantime, I feel it's at least being a good sport of me to humor the people who've been so generous and well-meaning towards me these past 10 months. If I had a guest who were leaving my home, I would want to know that there had been some good things to be missed.
Unfortunately, a lot of the things I'll miss in Korea are foods that I can no longer eat (haven't eaten for the past 4 months) so I feel like it's cheating to put them on my list. But I will anyway. (no people on my lists-only things/experiences).
Korean stuff I will miss:
delivery anything. twinberry cheesecake ice cream from baskin robbins. green tea chewisty donuts. green tea lattes. angel-in-us. banana milk. sweet vegemil soymilk. 2,000 won (now 2,300) baskin robbins. 졸졸 hodduk. supersweet lemonade. shoe service. wide shoes. excellent A/S. this yummy fiberlicious apple yogurt. the idea of my students. public transportation. cheap cabs. cheap transportation. super-clean subway. cheap manicures. being a busride away from all my friends. $20 때massage. proliferation of jjimjilbangs. 50 cent or $1 ice cream bars. =)
And to balance out the entry with some Asian-style yin and yang...
American stuff I do miss:
dryers. AC. organic skim milk. BOTTLED WATER. water with lemon at restaurants. granola. any combo of cheese, chicken, and carbs. mexican black beans. ny style thin crust pizza. white wine. pedicures. new yorker magazines. perusing barnes. italian food. chinese take out. mac/apple stores. jcrew stores. trying on shoes. trying on clothes. calling ppl when i feel like it and not worrying about time zones.having a car. (having other people drive me around). personal space. cheesecake factory. non-korean asian food (including fusion).
And it's horrible and guiltifying because every time I've been asked, I haven't had an answer. The well-meaning questioner waits, and waits, and waits, and waits some more. All the while I wrack my brain and sputter something about how there's so much I can't really pick something specific or make something up about how life here is so convenient and feel stupid about not being able to give details about what I mean when further prodded.
And so I've decided to ponder this because I KNOW there are things I'll miss. And I know it'll be much easier to make this list from the other side of that ocean, but in the meantime, I feel it's at least being a good sport of me to humor the people who've been so generous and well-meaning towards me these past 10 months. If I had a guest who were leaving my home, I would want to know that there had been some good things to be missed.
Unfortunately, a lot of the things I'll miss in Korea are foods that I can no longer eat (haven't eaten for the past 4 months) so I feel like it's cheating to put them on my list. But I will anyway. (no people on my lists-only things/experiences).
Korean stuff I will miss:
delivery anything. twinberry cheesecake ice cream from baskin robbins. green tea chewisty donuts. green tea lattes. angel-in-us. banana milk. sweet vegemil soymilk. 2,000 won (now 2,300) baskin robbins. 졸졸 hodduk. supersweet lemonade. shoe service. wide shoes. excellent A/S. this yummy fiberlicious apple yogurt. the idea of my students. public transportation. cheap cabs. cheap transportation. super-clean subway. cheap manicures. being a busride away from all my friends. $20 때massage. proliferation of jjimjilbangs. 50 cent or $1 ice cream bars. =)
And to balance out the entry with some Asian-style yin and yang...
American stuff I do miss:
dryers. AC. organic skim milk. BOTTLED WATER. water with lemon at restaurants. granola. any combo of cheese, chicken, and carbs. mexican black beans. ny style thin crust pizza. white wine. pedicures. new yorker magazines. perusing barnes. italian food. chinese take out. mac/apple stores. jcrew stores. trying on shoes. trying on clothes. calling ppl when i feel like it and not worrying about time zones.having a car. (having other people drive me around). personal space. cheesecake factory. non-korean asian food (including fusion).
Sunday, May 25, 2008
In sickness and in health
I will love myself. Haha.
Okay, so I guess it all came to a boil about 2 months ago at the Jeju Conference. I ate some tomatoes for dinner. I broke out in hives and a fever. I took some Benadryl. And life was better.
Or at least a little bit answered. I started taking Benadryl every day because I was pretty much breaking out in mini-hives or having super skin redness and itchiness after every meal. It turns out, taking the Benadryl actually also cleared up my skin. If you're unaware that I've been having major skin problems in Korea despite having superclear "baby skin" (thank you, Joan unni) in America, then you're a horrible friend and blog reader.
Here's a quick reminder.
Skin in America:
MemDay weekend 2007, T minus 2 weeks until Korea
Skin in Korea:
December 2007, not as bad as it got (un?fortunately, I refrained from taking pics during the worst of it)
On the mend, April 20thish 2007, few weeks into my Benadryl treatment
May 11, 2007: No new problems, just old scars
So, after about a week and a half of my daily Benadryl supplement, it came to this: I had to choose between being drugged and beautiful or clear-headed and ugly. Although the Benadryl was allowing me to eat pretty normally again it was also making me so drowsy and tired I had to nap every day after school. So was it really sad that my quality of life came down to choosing between “drowsy and clear skin” and “less drowsy (but still tired) and looking like Bog and Quagmire”?
For your reference, Bog and Quagmire were the (pink and orange) moat twins from Eureeka's castle with those weird colorful boil things all over them.
I know, it's not as existential as some existential crises get, but for me it was a pretty low point. Anyway, FINALLY I decided I can't take it anymore, between the avoiding all foods because I was no longer on Benadryl and my skin flaring up again, I called Severance's International Health Care Center (IHCC) in Seoul and made an appointment for Monday, April 21.
I met with an allergist who spoke no English. I grew despondent when I couldn't think of the word for "dry skin" in Korean and he and the nurse were both no help. I finally said, "After I eat, my skin is not wet," and I recognized the word for "dry skin" when he said it and noted it. Then I was taken to the testing area where they scheduled me for a food allergy skin-prick test and told me what other tests I needed. One included sticking footlong Qtips up my nose into my brain (I swear that's what happened-SOOOO painful and strange) the other was just a simple blood sample. I was given a prescription for 2 different 2nd gen. antihistamines and told to stop taking them a week prior to my allergy test. Done and done.
I took the meds and my skin cleared up considerably. Apparently allergies (seasonal, food, chemical, etc.) can trigger skin problems. Something about the histamine levels going wild in the body and increased blood flow which opens up pores and welcomes in bacteria and then the histamines mess with your hormones and spur increased sebum production. So, big pores + more bacteria + excess sebum = perfect storm of acne. I was almost scared to stop the antihistamines a week before my test because I didn't want my skin to mess up again.
Anyway, last weekend, GARRRR. I headed up to Seoul to spend time with family and friends before my allergy test on Monday. All went well until Sunday night when I started throwing up everything I'd eaten all day and feeling miserably feverish and getting the chills and body aches, etc. I drag myself to the hospital Monday and explain that I'd been throwing up all night and morning and if my current less than 100% condition would affect my test results. They said as long as you didn't take antihistamines to deal with it don't worry (which I kindof dunno how I feel about) and we did the thing.
Results of the brain-prodding Qtips, blood tests, and skinprick test:
*I have seasonal allergies in Korea to birch, oak, ragweed, and sage.
*I am so so SO allergic to house dust/mites (yea, I knew that from America-I actually wear those construction face masks when I clean/vacuum the house and that's not a joke).
*I am allergic to the following foods: barley grain, corn grain, wheat flour, bananas, oranges, strawberries, celery, crab, lobster, mussel, oyster, shrimp, peanuts, potatoes, and cow's milk.
Oh, the good news: my allergies were not so bad and they hadn't yet caused a sinus infection or inflammation INside my face (just wreaked havoc on the outside). Yayy!!!
In addition to the foods that were tested, the doc confirmed that based on the "pattern" of my food allergies I was probably allergic to the other foods I had had previous problems with (honeydew melon, kiwi, pineapple, chameh, etc.). Anyways, I was a little confused about my allergies. I was allergic to MILK? BANANAS? PEANUTS? POTATOES? WHEAT FLOUR? I loved and ate those things ALL the time in America.
Me: What's the deal, doc? How can I suddenly be allergic to things I always ate?
Dr: Well, based on what you've told me of your family members' allergies, you could just be predisposed to these allergies and they're just latent until something really stressful triggers the allergy
Me: Stress?
Dr: Yes, final exams, family troubles, some external cause of a lot of stress can mess with your immune system and these latent allergies will emerge. Have you experienced any increased stress in your life lately?
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?! Hmm... who knows the answer to this one??? (Aren't you impressed at my Korean skills? The following conversation was necessarily in Korean). Yea, so he also thought my throwing up all night/morning was possibly an allergic reaction to the sushi I had eaten the night before because I don't know how well they're washing the knife/cutting board or what kind of mishmash of seafood is going into every little thing.
Anyway, he gave me a month's prescription for the 2nd generation antihistamines (main difference from 1st gen. is that 2nd is supposedly non-drowsy) and a follow-up appointment in a month. I'm debating not going if things clear up and I don't have to. We'll see.
My mom also wants me to re-get the allergy tests done when I come home. Hopefully I will get unallergic once my stress goes away. I will be forever saddened and seeking revenge if my time here made me allergic to milk and potatoes and bananas and such.
So, after throwing up for 12+ hours last week my body was a mess, I had an open class for parents in addition to teachers and principal/VP on Tuesday. I took like 4 Advil in the morning and smiled and was lovely in class. Luckily though after that one class my coteachers gave me the rest of the week off when they figured out how I was feeling. But not without a caveat. I got the week of in exchange for coming into school TODAY, on a MONDAY, my usual day off to film a class for EBS, Korea's education network. Oh well. It was a good week off from life. I took Advil, my antihistamines, ate porridge, and slept all week. I even missed 2 swim lessons. I'll have to make them up this week. =]
And the drama continues...
Korea is known throughout Asia for one big export (okay, probably more but this is the one that I'm the most aware of). KOREAN DRAMAS. This is the essence of 한류, or the Korean Wave. It's an export of pop culture and TV and music and all that good stuff.
But anyway, since Korea is the originating site of such "drama" as it were, it only makes sense that there is some "drama" in my own life. And here it goes.
Drama #1. So there is pool drama once again. The boss manager at my pool has been apparently harassing our swim instructors again and so this time instead of waiting to be fired they are acting proactively and 4 of the 6 swim instructors have given their two weeks' notice. This time, seeing how the management has sufficient time, the transition to new people is supposed to be seamless. The current instructors will finish out this month and then starting in June 4 new ones will arrive to supplement the 2 that stay behind.
Of COURSE, my instructor is not one of the 2 that is staying on. He's actually moving to the first pool that I looked into closer to my house (but impossible for me to get to using public transportation). And that pool doesn't allow private lessons. So, I will probably not be following him there. Okay, I lied. I will definitely not be following him there as I just paid my June pool fees Saturday morning. I'm now debating if I want to join a general class (which he encourages me to do because he thinks I'm ready) or if I should take more lessons either with a new instructor or one of the ones I know who's staying. Hmm...
Drama #2. Okay, so last week was my allergy appointment at Severance. And of course when I got home I debriefed my hostfam about it. I also complained a bit about the lack of "international" service available to me after all the hullabaloo about how foreigner-friendly Severance would be.
For example, I didn't see one of the "English-speaking" doctors in the International Center, I was referred to an allergy specialist from the first time I went (directed by the dude I spoke to on the phone who asked why I needed to see a doctor) who spoke very minimal English (he knew the names of drugs in English). AND THEY DIDN'T GIVE ME AN INTERPRETER!!! okay, so I LOOK Korean, but clearly if I went through the IHCC that means SOMETHING.
So anyway, imo starts criticizing John Linton (the head doctor guy of the IHCC at Severance). First of all, both my host parents went to Seoul National Med School so they're kindof rival schools with Yonsei (parent to Severance Hospital). It's like Harvard v. Yale, I guess. Anyway, hostmom was like, "scoff, what? after all that bragging about the IHCC and how English-friendly their services are?" and I was like YEA I KNOW GRRR. and she goes on to tell me this story about why she totally doesn't trust John Linton and thinks he's kindof a nutjob.
Apparently, many years ago, there was some bitter rivalry between Yonsei and Seoul National's med schools. And their hospitals had some feuding going on also. At which point, John Linton staged an ambush at Seoul National. He busted into the clinic where imo was working with a bunch of other Yonsei people and they tore up Seoul National's clinic, throwing stuff around and making a huge mess before declaring victory and leaving. I didn't quite understand this whole story and imo seemed very upset about what had happened, so I didn't press her. But, wow. People are so interesting...
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