School Dinner

On Tuesday, we had a school dinner (회식) where the school's faculty and staff get together for a marathon of eating and drinking and singing. Last semester, we ate Korean barbecue and went to karaoke (노래방) and my two co-teachers agreed we'd all sing one song for the sake of appearances, excuse ourselves, and call it a night. This semester's 회식 started out similarly: for dinner, we went to a 회집 (a restaurant that specializes in fish which is famous in Pohang since it's a port city) followed by 노래방. However, here's a few things I learned at this 회식:

1. There is always more food coming
I wasn't kidding when I said this was a marathon. When dinner was almost finished, I was surprised because I wasn't quite full. (At these kinds of dinners, I'm usually stuffed even though there are still dishes of food sitting on the table.) So I finished eating most of the sushi until I had my fill. I should have known better... Half an hour later, more soup and rice were served. There were also more snacks and cake at 노래방.

2. It's ok for teachers to flirt with each other (and/ or the vice principal).
The way two of them were acting, I thought they were husband and wife. They're not...

3. I can't sing.
Actually, I knew this before. This was only reinforced at the 회식/노래방.

4. I don't like 노래방.
(See above.)

5. You only attract attention to yourself when you sit down.
During 노래방, I thought I'd take a rest (and escape from the crowd and craziness) by sitting on the side. Another teacher noticed me right away, pulled me back up, and poured me a shot of soju. Until now, I have gotten away at most drinking functions by taking a small sip of whatever alcohol is given me and putting the rest aside. However, this time, the teacher physically took the shot glass and bottoms-upped it for me... and then poured me another shot... and another...

6. I cannot and do not like to drink.
(See #3 and #4.)

Unlike last semester's 회식, we did not leave after one song. We stayed all the way until the end. Yep. but all in all, it was a good time. I got to know a lot of the teachers I otherwise don't interact with at school and got a chance to hang out with them outside of the workplace. I had a little bit of a headache when I got home, but my host mom fixed me a bowl of honey buckwheat tea (?) and I went straight to bed. I'm just glad these things are only once a semester. ^^

How My Taekwondo Kwanjangnim Kicks Butt

My Taekwondo kwanjangnim took my head and cracked the vertebrae in my neck into place on Friday. Yeah. It was kind of awesome.

After the spring semester began last week, I started Taekwondo again at the same gym that I went to last semester. On Friday, I went to Taekwondo class as usual, and we practiced somersaults and flips (which I am not good at at all). At the end of class, the kwanjangnim asked whether anyone's head, neck, or back hurt. He had us pair up with a partner and massage each other's neck/ shoulders. My partner (one of my old students who just started middle school) didn't know how to do it so the kwanjangnim demonstrated on me how to properly massage someone's neck.

1. Lie down flat on the ground.
2. Turn your head to the left.
3. Your partner can use his or her right hand to massage your neck until it hurts.
4. Repeat on the other side.

In the process of demonstrating, he discovered that a muscle in my neck was really tight. He told me to turn my head to the right, but that side didn't hurt. Then he turned my head back to the left and pressed the muscle that hurt, to make sure it still hurt. Turned my head to the right again: "The muscle on this side doesn't hurt right? But this one does?" (OW, yes it does...) Turned my head to face the ceiling: "Hurts right here?" (Yep, same as it did 2 seconds ago...) Then he turned my head to the right... a little more to the right... and then really quickly, snapped it farther than I ever thought my head could go in that direction and cracked all 7 vertebrae in my neck. (At least that's what it sounded like.)

Surprisingly, after all this, when he massaged my neck muscles again, it didn't hurt anymore. He explained (in Korean and hand gestures) that the 3rd vertebra in my neck was not aligned properly which is why the muscle on the left side hurt. It has something to do with my posture and high heels.

While all this had been going on, the other students (who are 12-14 years old) were standing around me saying, "It looks scary! So scary!" Are the kwanjangnim cracked my vertebra back in place, they were like, "Me next! Me next!" and doing rock-paper-scissors to see who would go next...

Oh, the days when we didn't have to worry about uneven vertebrae (did I even know that word in elementary school?) and when all the problems in life were solved with rock-paper-scissors...

How old are you?

High school student?
No?
Middle school?


I thought it was only in America that people confuse me for being 5-6 years younger than I am. You know it's bad when you're in Asia, surrounded by people who look similar to you, and they still underestimate your age...

In Japan, even though I was speaking fluent English with my friend and wearing sweatpants and my crew jacket (NOT Japanese style), two Japanese girls standing near us couldn't tell I wasn't Japanese: "Oh, I just thought you were Japanese and could speak fluent English!" >< Then again, most KG girls aren't exactly the brightest... (no offense)

But in Korea, it's not any better. At an English club meeting one of my students invited me to, one of the Korean members confused me for a Korean so she asked me in Korean, "Are you a high school student?" I answered no (in Korean), but before I could elaborate, she guessed again: "Are you a middle school student?" -_- After she figured out I wasn't Korean, I had to explain that actually, I am neither a high school student nor a middle school student. I graduated from university last year and am working as an English teacher...

Several of my students' moms have told me I look like the elementary school students I teach. One of them straight up told me I looked like I was 12! My 6th grade students are at least 13! :P As I get older, people seem to guess younger...

Ironically, in Korea, I'm now 24 years old. According to the Korean system, when you're born, you're already 1 year old because they count the 10 months in the womb. Then, on January 1 of the new year, everyone adds another year to their age. So even though I'm 22 in the U.S., I say I'm 24 in Korea. Man, it makes me feel old... even though people guess that I'm half my age... So confusing... I can't even keep track of how old I am anymore.

New Year's Resolutions

I spent the last evening of 2008 with a friend in Japan, her husband, and another married couple who are friends of theirs. After celebrating the New Year Japanese style (see "Oops..."), we ate soba at the couple's house and decided to share our New Year's resolutions. For the past couple years, I haven't made a single new year's resolution. Actually, I think the last resolution I made was not to make another new year's resolution - and I think that was in middle school. But this time I was put on the spot so I just said that my resolution was to get a job for this year. (Although now it's looking like I should make it more a priority.) Later, I started thinking more about proper resolutions. (I have to have something to tell people when they ask, right?)

• Think more about what is happening now, at the moment.

I have a tendency to look back on the past and in hindsight, appreciate what I had. I wouldn't be the person I am without the experiences I've had, and I'm glad I can appreciate that now. But I don't want to look back in a couple years and think about what a great experience this was when I should be enjoying it now.

At the same time, we've all been asked since we were young, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I'm still trying to decide what I want to be when I "grow up," but I want to live my life while it's happening instead of constantly trying to figure out what I'm going to do with the rest of it. During senior year at Lehigh, one of my professors asked me what I wanted to do. I said I was thinking about becoming a lawyer which would mean working at a law firm to decide if I really wanted to go into law, taking the LSAT, then going to law school... But then my professor said, "That's great, but what I mean is, what do you want to do now [like in the next year or two]?" I thought about it, because it's a question that no one ever asks me, and I said, "I want to travel." And my professor asked, "Then why don't you do that?"

Oops...

I've been a bad blogger... :(

Korea has made my English suck so it takes me longer to write out my thoughts which makes me reluctant to take the time to sit down and write. Vacation has made me lazy about updating, and so much has happened since it started but as I put off writing, the more I have to write about, the longer it takes to write and the less I want to do it... The vicious cycle of procrastination.

Where should I even start?

I guess I'll try it Memento-style - start from the end and go backwards.

U.S.A. - Home Sweet Home

Came back to the U.S. to do interviews for Teach for America and JET. (Don't ask.) Teach for America's interview was a day-long marathon and JET's interview reminded me of how much my Japanese has deteriorated. Preparing to be part of America's unemployed next year...

Saw a lot of friends that I haven't seen for half a year. (Felt old.) Funny who you end up keeping in touch with. Even met up with a Japanese friend from Kansai Gaidai who happened to be in New York at the same time.

Saw a lot of family including cousins who are now living on the East coast.

Got robbed in New York? Opened my wallet and all my cash was gone but they left me the wallet itself and all my cards...? (Again, don't ask because I don't know either.)

Seoul

Did a 4-week internship at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul. SO much fun. Did a presentation on Black History Month and one on Pocahontas/ Native Americans (except I kept saying Indians, haha) at American Corners in Busan and Gwangju. Went on trips to Paju and Heyri Art Valley with the DCM (who is like the vice-Ambassador).

Met up with some people who studied abroad with me at Kansai Gaidai in Japan and are now teaching in Korea as well. Small world. We're all Americans but haven't even met up in the U.S. yet.

Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year (although I have to be more careful and say Lunar New Year in Korea) was in the middle of my internship. Went back to Pohang to celebrate it with my host family. Celebrated it Korean style. Then watched 꼿보다남자 (Korean drama) with my host brothers (and the rest of country that is in love with that show).

Hong Kong

After a slight mishap in Busan coming back from Japan (see below), made it to Hong Kong to meet up with my mom, dad and aunt. Spent a couple days there seeing the sights (although there wasn't too many touristy things to see besides a laser/ light show at night and the peak tram), did a lot of shopping and A LOT of eating.

Japan

Traveled around Japan after buying a JR pass in Korea (the exchange rate killed my bank account but I figured might as well make the most of it). Arrived in Hakata by ferry, stayed with a friend who just had a baby (SO cute!), went to Osaka where I used to live and spent Christmas with my host family - my host sister just had a baby too. Met up with a lot of friends I'd known while studying abroad and even some Lehigh people in Tokyo. Spent New Year's Eve a friend and her husband. Celebrated Japanese style - went to a shrine, rang the bell and got an おみくじ to tell me how my luck with be in 2009. (It told me I'm supposed to be lucky but with how things have started out so far I guess I am going to be REALLY lucky over the next 10 months to even it out...)

That just about takes me back to where I ended last time! That's the barebones of my vacation although I realize that it would have been a bit more interesting if I had gone a little more in depth about things that happened. More on reflections on 2008, highlights of 2009 (so far) and New Year's Resolutions next time! And I promise it won't take 2 months before I write the next one! (although I think I say something like that every time...)