Saturday, September 30, 2006

Prepare to Do Battle

I got conned into working this weekend. That's okay because I find I'm either making money or spending money. There's no real equilibrium there. I'm getting paid overtime for doing this so it ain't so bad. Also, not as many kids are involved in this weekend retreat thing as the school had previously planned so I'm doing a lot less work than I thought I would be doing. Essentially I'm getting paid for 10 hours of work when I really worked 5. It's a pretty good deal. Right now I'm getting paid for blogging. I'm going to have to look for more weekend work.

This coming week incorporates the "Chu-suk" holiday, the Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving. It's an easy holiday name to remember because it consists of both verbs "chew" and "suck". I'm just giving you a nifty mnuemonic way to remember Korean words. We have this next week off so a couple of us are heading to Sok-cho (you're on your own with that one) to do some hiking and experience Korean culture. I'll keep you posted on that one.

I'm curently in battle with the Korean cable company for double billing me. It's hard enough to battle the cable and phone companies at home (Cingular, you still suck) let alone in a foreign land. Good thing I know the Korean phrase for "I don't like you very much." I'm sure it will come in handy. Actually, I sicked one of the Koreans in my school on the cable company and the company's response was to cut my internet access. That's not quite the result I was looking for so we'll work on that. I'll keep all you rapt and anxious readers posted on my adventures as far as hiking Korean hills and battling with Korean conglomerates goes. Stay tuned.

(I can't find the spellcheck on this crazy Korean computer. If your terribly board you can count the grammar and spelling mistakes the english teacher just made.)

(I did thouse last ones on purpose.)

(But not that last one.)

Friday, September 22, 2006

I'll be Damned

It's after work on a Friday and I am looking forward to the weekend. Still, I love my Fridays at school. I show up at 2:40 sit around for four hours, teach two classes and then the day is done. Today I had the kids write out recipes; however I gave each group five flash cards and the items pictured on the cards had to be incorporated in some way into their recipes. The images on the cards ranged from actual foods like cake and noodles, to truly absurd things such as flowers, Santa Claus, teddy bears and grandmothers. It was interesting to see how the kids incorporated these things. One group of boys was stuck on how to make use of the chair flash card, until they thought of tying down the diner of their recipe in the chair and making them finish the concoction. Pretty unique.

Surprisingly, I got hungry between classes with all the talk of food and what not. I was mowing down on a dry piece of bread, wishing I had something else, when magically two pizzas appeared. No joke, a Papa Johns pizza delivery dude walked into the office and asked if we had ordered pizza. My Korean compadre answered no, and then the magical pizza man asked if we wanted the pizzas for free. Now all this was going on in Korean so I didn't understand a damn thing that was said. I haven't gotten to the pizza ordering chapter in my book, although you'd think that'd be the first chapter in any good conversation book. All I know is that at the end we had two free pizzas. This is not a good thing though. There have been many times in the past when I've been laying around the house, starving because I'm to lazy to cook for myself, just hoping that someone will show up and feed me. Now I'll always remember this day and know that on occasions (once in 31 years) that this actually happens. It's just fuel for my laziness. Just remember kids that every once in a while, when you wish really hard, that dreams actually do come true.

Baseball pics of last weekend follow:

Fans


Fans
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
These are the fans for the opposing team, the Kia something or others. In Korea all the pro teams are sponsored by large companies so rather than root for your geographical area you can route for the appliance manufacturer that has failed you the least. We like the Doosan Bears. Doosan makes backhoes and industrial construction equipment. It's a manly team. All seats are seven bucks and tall beers are three. God bless Korean prices.

Excitement


Excitement
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
This doesn't look too exciting, however, this picture was taken right before a player hit a grounder to first with runners on second and third. The runner on thrid took off to home and the first baseman threw the ball to the catcher, however, the ball never made it there because it nailed the first base runner in the head. The catcher then had to scramble after the ball and the pitcher then had to cover home and he was subsquently taken out when the guy on second plowed him over. Did you follow that? It was the most exciting 15 seconds of baseball I've ever seen. The only way this week's game can top last week's is if someone gets nailed in the groin.

Three Stooges


Three Stooges
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
John is preoccupied with looking cool, Kerry seem to be having fun and Scott is in the back doing what he does best.

I Forgot How to Smile


I Forgot how to Smile
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Every now and then, when the camera is pointed at me, I freeze up. Behold one of those moments.

Fun with sparklers


Fun with sparklers
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
At one point everyone had a lit sparkler and some fans were throwing streamers of toilet paper. Talk about the perfect disaster.

Random Koreans


Random Koreans
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Everyone has a good time at the ball game. Baseball- it has the power to bridge cultural divides.

Hood, eye and nose


Hood, eye and nose
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.

Monday, September 11, 2006

Welcome Home

I have welcomed a new member of the family into my home. Two weeks ago I bought a PSP (playstation portable) and I spent all this week getting acquainted with it. Buying the sucker wasn't easy. Sure, the actual purchase wasn't that tough, but justifying the extravagance was. I used every excuse in the book: "I really didn't get anything for my birthday, I travel a lot so I can use it on long trips," and then finally, "Damn it, I'm worth it." I'd like to say that I've played it in moderation so far but I haven't. It begs so much to be played with that my thumbs are now sore. That's an interesting last sentence.

The thing is addictive for sure, so it's been diverting time from posting pictures, blogging, sleeping, eating, typical everyday stuff. On Sunday I decided it was time to take a reprieve from video games and actually step outside. Scott, Alison, Kat and I decided that some hiking would be nice so we headed to Bukhansan National Park. Bukhansan is located outside of Seoul so we were mildly prepared for crowds; especially since the weather has turned fallish. In reality, hiking Bukhansan can be compared to shopping at a mall on Christmas Eve. People were pushing and climbing over one another, and the crowds. It was the single most unpeaceful hike I've ever taken in my life. There's only a few times when the crowds in Korea have driven me crazy, but I believe this one is at the top of my list.

Part of the factor as to why the hike was such hell for me is the Korean mentality towards hiking itself. Here hiking is more like an Olympic sport rather than a leisurely stroll through nature. No self-respecting Korean would go hiking without bonafide hiking boots; polypropylene hiking pants and matching shirt; a quick-dry, rip-stop, nylon parka; graphite hiking poles, hiking gloves, a lightweight backpack, visor, hat, quick-dry polypropylene handkerchief and etc. The only problem with this is if you spend that much money on equipment you feel the need to get the most out of it. This causes people to push each other and jostle for position on the hill. I took a picture of Scott on his camera where he is in shorts and a T-shirt next to a couple wrapped in their winter gear, hoods on, sipping hot chocolate. This truly accentuated how we are from different worlds. Oh how I pined for the wilds of Wyoming, and the ability to transport a few of these people back there with me to give them a taste of nature, minus a few million people.

After a bit of meandering and weaving back and forth on the trails, we lost a majority of the people and then the hike became quite pleasant. To the testament of the Korean race, I'm not very good with crowds (a trait I have acquired from my father) so my perception of any event is ascued when large groups of people are involved. Still, after all was said and done, it was a relief to get back home to the solitude of my apartment and play video games.

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Peace and Tranquilty of the Outdoors

Somtimes it's just nice to get away from it all.

Th Backsides of Koreans


Th Backsides of Koreans
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Welcome to my view for most of the hike.

Waterfall of People


Waterfall of People
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Run, it's a stampede!

Holding Up a Tree


Holding Up a Tree
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
She's stronger than she looks.

Gateway 1


Gateway 1
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.

Contrast


Contrast
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Do you want nature or the city or both?

Korean Outhouse and Yodeling Scott

Scott belts out a Canadian hymn.

Silly Waygooks


Silly Waygooks
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Despite Kat's smile, I feel that her finger is actually doing the talking.

Korean Mountainside


Korean Mountainside
Originally uploaded by karmking1111.
Don't let what appears to be a peaceful picture fool you.