dear blog,
i owe you one blog. it's been too inconsistant. and i have things to say i think. but apathy often prevails in times of exhaustion, or actual sociality. i guess it's not really a bad thing the sociality supercedes an articial world of binary and junk.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Monday, May 21, 2007
Saturday, May 19, 2007
It's Buddha's birthday coming up. It's apparently a huge celebration. I think things such as Buddha's birthday, or Christmas are kinda ironic. Jesus and Buddha are such huge figureheads of 2 prevalent religions, and their foundations are in humility. Yet when we celebrate each of their births, it is ultimately extravagant. Very little piety is displayed, rather mass consumption, and parties. I guess given enough time, nearly anything can be transformed into something else. My compost is a good example. ugh.
The NBA is sucky right now. Maybe it's being sucky because i'm getting too into it, and it's giving me the hint to back off a bit. It's just like a relationship that becomes too obsessive. Anyway, it's sucky because i don't care about any of the 4 teams still playing. And also because Phoenix Suns were cheated by the NBA so bad. I guess double standards are ok when you're playing favourites.
After 6 months of attempting to plan curriculum for this school i'm working for, i've learned so much. Mostly i've learned what not to do, and how to fix it. I've recently started putting together my own curriculum. I only have an outline right now, I think it's a good idea. There are so many school's that need a good curriculum here, and i think i can do that. I'm going to bore you a little more with some explanation. Just recently, as in last year, the TOEFL/TOEIC exams format were changed. The TOEFL/TOEIC exam is a test for english proficiency, and it's invaluable for korean's to do well on it to do well on it to benefit the post-secondary education. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TOEIC . The format has been changed to incorporate a need for more listening and speaking fluency, not just writing. Since this is so recent, private english are now catching onto the trend of making their schools dialogue orientated but curriculum isn't fully formed for this type of teaching yet. That's where I come in, someone that jumps on a trend at the right time. hopefully.
i have other plans that i need to discuss later.
The NBA is sucky right now. Maybe it's being sucky because i'm getting too into it, and it's giving me the hint to back off a bit. It's just like a relationship that becomes too obsessive. Anyway, it's sucky because i don't care about any of the 4 teams still playing. And also because Phoenix Suns were cheated by the NBA so bad. I guess double standards are ok when you're playing favourites.
After 6 months of attempting to plan curriculum for this school i'm working for, i've learned so much. Mostly i've learned what not to do, and how to fix it. I've recently started putting together my own curriculum. I only have an outline right now, I think it's a good idea. There are so many school's that need a good curriculum here, and i think i can do that. I'm going to bore you a little more with some explanation. Just recently, as in last year, the TOEFL/TOEIC exams format were changed. The TOEFL/TOEIC exam is a test for english proficiency, and it's invaluable for korean's to do well on it to do well on it to benefit the post-secondary education. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TOEIC . The format has been changed to incorporate a need for more listening and speaking fluency, not just writing. Since this is so recent, private english are now catching onto the trend of making their schools dialogue orientated but curriculum isn't fully formed for this type of teaching yet. That's where I come in, someone that jumps on a trend at the right time. hopefully.
i have other plans that i need to discuss later.
Thursday, May 10, 2007
sorry i've left that creepy picture up headlining my blog for so long. things have been busy around here. i'm tired, and it's hard to concentrate on any particular thing. the jist of it is that all the korean teachers were let go/fired the other day. it really sucks because they were becoming really good friends of mine, and it also sucks because they taught the students academic. without them here we have to teach twice as much. but i've said to myself that i'm gonna suck it up because being a real teacher is twice as hard anyway.
anyway, here's a new painting i painted. i have another completed, but i don't have a picture of it.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
ok, let's see if i can go through this list about the weekend. I could probably logically arrange this through chronological, or , but that's work that i don't care to do.
-kindergarten disasters
koreans seem to take safety as second place, and hence a kindergarten broke his leg as he tried to get out of a moving ride.
-jeju island
it is an island in the south of korea that has been created by constant volcanic eruptions. however the last time it erupted is out of recent memory. it is known for these little statues, and mermaid women. the whole group of us went there on the weekend.
-shjon's last day
when at jeju i found out that shjon has quit. he started looking for a new job last monday, and found one on wednesday, and now he's done. he was sick of the constant inconsistancy from this school. i however am going to stick this out.
-shjon being violated
as a going away present shjon got violated. korean's have a tendancy to blur the gay lines because "there are no gays in korea". so men are more comfortable acting like how girls act with each other back in canada. at one point, when we were lying down, about to go to bed, this one ambiguous guy (pretty boy) latched onto shjon's back in a spooning action and said to him "girlfriend". jon and i couldn't stop laughing. we were crying. and the kid stayed on him for a good 15 seconds. and after he was received so negatively based on our laughing, he now seems to be afraid of shjon.
-korean words i've learned
i've learned how to say:
it's exciting, it's annoying, it doesn't matter, cute, who, why, what, where, when, and a number of other things. it's motivating me to try harder to learn.
-the older girls
i hung out with them most of the weekend. they stayed away from the politics of work. i liked it. but of course they're older, i'm sure i don't have a chance. sigh. not that knowing girls is about trying to pick'em up.
-the girls that don't speak any english
the two bosses daughters were cute. they're adopted, and they don't speak any english. so i tried to hang out with them a bit. i had some eye-contact with the one. but i lost out to someone that actually spoke korean.
-the korean teacher girls
they were distant the whole weekend from everyone. i don't think they wanted to be there. but along the theme of girls, they teased me that i was hitting on amy anytime i talked to her. but i wasn't really. i guess it's just fun to tease people about liking someone in any culture. by the way, amy has a boyfriend of 5 years, and i've learned my lesson about home wrecking.
i mention the idea of girls these 3 times just because it's always interesting conversation. but really, i'm realistic about dating koreans. none of that for me. i'll strictly stick to making out with them... or just pretending like i have a chance.
-the gash in my back
the second morning i woke up in jeju i stood up. the window was open. the window opens inward. and the window was right over top of where i was. it left this nice mark on my back.
-acclimating to floors
before i came to korea i was used to my super-comfy bed. but since then i 've gotten used to a rock hard bed. it feels great, now i can feel comfortable going to sleep on someone's floor. an example being when i fell asleep on a floor in jeju.
-gayness, or not
as i mentioned before, gay's don't exist in korea. you have to get used to the openness. since no korean is really worried about being accused they're gay.
-interesting dining
they ate the pig the first day.
the second day along the beach front we found these ladies. they have a bunch of fish in buckets. a few of them ate the orange ones. they just sliced them up, washed them and served them on those little stools with lettuce and sauce. i didn't eat any.
-the fake coldsore
i dripped hot syrup. on myself before i went to jeju. it went on my lip and burn me good. and it looked exactly like a coldsore for a week. it's just finally went away today. it was funny, someone that saw right after i burned myself asked me the next day with all honesty how my coldsore was.
-gostop
i played gostop the one night with the koreans. as soon as i joined we started kicking ass. we won about $30 the first hand. and that's huge since most time you only get about $2-$8. so i played it out the a number of more rounds, and then when we quit, the guy that i was playing with gave me $20. it was great. the next day i played with a couple of the westerners. and i didn't want to play for money, but they pull the pressure. and i cracked, and i lost $8. later, i played for no money, and i won a bunch. gah.
-the ways i've changed
i think i've changed in good ways. more mature. more independant. but also i've noticed that i've worked on almost every aspect of myself that i want to improve.
teaching - check
working out - check
basketball - check
painting - check
guitar - check
sociality - check
reading the bible - check
self created projects - check
independance - check
etc.
granted, i'm afraid that this motivation may be temporary based on my situation.
-even steven
i calculated all that i spent this weekend, and it equaled exactly 10 cents.
-unseshy swimmers
it's actually unsexy swimmers, but koreans pronounce sexy, seshy. it's because anytime an "ee" sound follows an "s" sound, the "s" becomes an "sh" sound.
anyway, there were stories that got around about these fantastic women in jeju island that swam and caught immobile sealife like clams. they could swim up to 20 metres deep and hold their breath for about 2 minutes. word of this got to japan, and the japanese thought, wow, these are mermaids, they're probably so sexy. then they got to jeju island and found that these women are the most unsexy women you could imagine. but they can get you some gooood sealife. i saw some of these women there, and yes they are interesting, and yes they are quite the dying breed. i guess girls these days just don't aspire to this type of glory.
-nicknames
there were so many nicknames passed around on the weekend. it was funny. some of the guys were named hot stuff, beefcake, sexyback, and i think stallion. the 3 daughters of the head managers were called cutie, pretty, and sexy.
-reused cups
i've found that koreans have no qualms about reusing any cup they find. they'll simply tap it upside down to empty the last previous drops, and then offer to pour you a drink. i quickly found a new cup, and then accepted. i guess they figured that the alchohol would kill any bacteria.
-understanding korean
the one white dude i was with actually understand korean pretty good. he carries on long conversations in korean actually. anyway, when him and i went through the airport security, apparently a couple of the security check girls said we were handsome men. they didn't realize that he understood korean. and that's why my goal is to understand korean.
-kindergarten disasters
koreans seem to take safety as second place, and hence a kindergarten broke his leg as he tried to get out of a moving ride.
-jeju island
it is an island in the south of korea that has been created by constant volcanic eruptions. however the last time it erupted is out of recent memory. it is known for these little statues, and mermaid women. the whole group of us went there on the weekend.-shjon's last day
when at jeju i found out that shjon has quit. he started looking for a new job last monday, and found one on wednesday, and now he's done. he was sick of the constant inconsistancy from this school. i however am going to stick this out.-shjon being violated
as a going away present shjon got violated. korean's have a tendancy to blur the gay lines because "there are no gays in korea". so men are more comfortable acting like how girls act with each other back in canada. at one point, when we were lying down, about to go to bed, this one ambiguous guy (pretty boy) latched onto shjon's back in a spooning action and said to him "girlfriend". jon and i couldn't stop laughing. we were crying. and the kid stayed on him for a good 15 seconds. and after he was received so negatively based on our laughing, he now seems to be afraid of shjon.
-korean words i've learned
i've learned how to say:
it's exciting, it's annoying, it doesn't matter, cute, who, why, what, where, when, and a number of other things. it's motivating me to try harder to learn.
-the older girls
i hung out with them most of the weekend. they stayed away from the politics of work. i liked it. but of course they're older, i'm sure i don't have a chance. sigh. not that knowing girls is about trying to pick'em up.
-the girls that don't speak any english
the two bosses daughters were cute. they're adopted, and they don't speak any english. so i tried to hang out with them a bit. i had some eye-contact with the one. but i lost out to someone that actually spoke korean.
-the korean teacher girls
they were distant the whole weekend from everyone. i don't think they wanted to be there. but along the theme of girls, they teased me that i was hitting on amy anytime i talked to her. but i wasn't really. i guess it's just fun to tease people about liking someone in any culture. by the way, amy has a boyfriend of 5 years, and i've learned my lesson about home wrecking.
i mention the idea of girls these 3 times just because it's always interesting conversation. but really, i'm realistic about dating koreans. none of that for me. i'll strictly stick to making out with them... or just pretending like i have a chance.
-the gash in my back
the second morning i woke up in jeju i stood up. the window was open. the window opens inward. and the window was right over top of where i was. it left this nice mark on my back.-acclimating to floors
before i came to korea i was used to my super-comfy bed. but since then i 've gotten used to a rock hard bed. it feels great, now i can feel comfortable going to sleep on someone's floor. an example being when i fell asleep on a floor in jeju.
-gayness, or not
as i mentioned before, gay's don't exist in korea. you have to get used to the openness. since no korean is really worried about being accused they're gay.
-interesting dining
they ate the pig the first day.the second day along the beach front we found these ladies. they have a bunch of fish in buckets. a few of them ate the orange ones. they just sliced them up, washed them and served them on those little stools with lettuce and sauce. i didn't eat any.
-the fake coldsore
i dripped hot syrup. on myself before i went to jeju. it went on my lip and burn me good. and it looked exactly like a coldsore for a week. it's just finally went away today. it was funny, someone that saw right after i burned myself asked me the next day with all honesty how my coldsore was.
-gostop
i played gostop the one night with the koreans. as soon as i joined we started kicking ass. we won about $30 the first hand. and that's huge since most time you only get about $2-$8. so i played it out the a number of more rounds, and then when we quit, the guy that i was playing with gave me $20. it was great. the next day i played with a couple of the westerners. and i didn't want to play for money, but they pull the pressure. and i cracked, and i lost $8. later, i played for no money, and i won a bunch. gah.
-the ways i've changed
i think i've changed in good ways. more mature. more independant. but also i've noticed that i've worked on almost every aspect of myself that i want to improve.
teaching - check
working out - check
basketball - check
painting - check
guitar - check
sociality - check
reading the bible - check
self created projects - check
independance - check
etc.
granted, i'm afraid that this motivation may be temporary based on my situation.
-even steven
i calculated all that i spent this weekend, and it equaled exactly 10 cents.
-unseshy swimmers
it's actually unsexy swimmers, but koreans pronounce sexy, seshy. it's because anytime an "ee" sound follows an "s" sound, the "s" becomes an "sh" sound.
anyway, there were stories that got around about these fantastic women in jeju island that swam and caught immobile sealife like clams. they could swim up to 20 metres deep and hold their breath for about 2 minutes. word of this got to japan, and the japanese thought, wow, these are mermaids, they're probably so sexy. then they got to jeju island and found that these women are the most unsexy women you could imagine. but they can get you some gooood sealife. i saw some of these women there, and yes they are interesting, and yes they are quite the dying breed. i guess girls these days just don't aspire to this type of glory.
-nicknames
there were so many nicknames passed around on the weekend. it was funny. some of the guys were named hot stuff, beefcake, sexyback, and i think stallion. the 3 daughters of the head managers were called cutie, pretty, and sexy.
-reused cups
i've found that koreans have no qualms about reusing any cup they find. they'll simply tap it upside down to empty the last previous drops, and then offer to pour you a drink. i quickly found a new cup, and then accepted. i guess they figured that the alchohol would kill any bacteria.
-understanding korean
the one white dude i was with actually understand korean pretty good. he carries on long conversations in korean actually. anyway, when him and i went through the airport security, apparently a couple of the security check girls said we were handsome men. they didn't realize that he understood korean. and that's why my goal is to understand korean.
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