creative flexibility

so because i'm working with adults i can exercise some creative flexibility. it's actually pretty cool because i ran it by my head teacher today and he approved. i want to make english more functional so i gave them topics to discuss at the beginning of class. of course when i say topics, i don't mean like...politics etc...but i mean their first topic was vacation. then they have to come up with 3 questions each. i'm thinking about family as the next topic. if anyone else has any suggestions for topics please please please comment!!

as for another idea that i kinda like. (we'll try it tomorrow) is role playing. we're learning about the hand, foot and body. so i thought we could have patient and doctor. so someone talks about symptoms, and the other one will ask what else hurts? how did you get hurt? etc...that way they can use stomach, head, hand, finger, toes, neck, hips, etc...in a functional way. something that might be useful to them in the future. next i'm thinking about ordering food/shopping as another role play. any idea on how i should role play learning shapes? i welcome suggestions!!!

as for the other big news for the day...I found a guitar school!! YAY!! lol it's 1 hour 3x a week. it's between work and home. $100 a month. that's a freaking sweet deal right?! they also teach drums there. i'm like ohhhh man i might think about learning that sometime. so MWF are lessons and TTh are practice times for me. we tried another place this morning. but it was a classical guitar studio. classical guitar is WAY cool, it sounds amazing, people who can play are amazing but it's not for me. i kept thinking about it like...should I spend $120 a month doing something that is SO HARD that it takes 2 hours a day just trying to keep my hands a certain way. Rock guitar is so much cooler. they have a fender strat at my school but i think i'm gonna bring my gibson anyway. my teacher doesn't know much english but i'm assuming music is universal so hopefully it'll go smoothly. he plays funk, jazz, blues, rock, etc... i can't wait to start. tomorrow my first lesson is at 12pm. finally...i'm getting things set up in korea!! :)

an awkward situation

so because i have a few class openings, one of the moms at the school decided she wanted to take my adult class. do you know how awkward that makes me feel? i'm the youngest teacher at the school and i am teaching adults! why?! well probably because i have time in my schedule but still...i can't help but feel a bit awkward. and she drove me home after >.<

what if i'm an awful teacher and she finds out. then she might tell the director and oh god...haha i think i'm just a bit stressed. however i am a little bit excited to get to work with adults. it'll be a fresh change. however i don't get to play stupid games like, omg you have 11 fingers!! i had this kid believing that he had 11 fingers. he counted like 5 times. hahaha it was pretty funny. finally he said "TEACHER!! i only have 10 fingers. i said oh really? did you eat the extra one?" everyone laughed.

oh and 3 of my students tried to kidnap me during my dinner break. they wouldn't let me go! i was like LET GO!! heh...they treat me like a big sister not like a teacher. man...how little respect i get. hahaha but it's ok, they're still learning when they're in class. i got a new class added for tomorrow, i get new students again! YAY!! hopefully they're cute :P today i got a new little boy in my beginning class. he was crying the whole time because he was scared everyone knew the stuff already. and it's true everyone did. so now i have to slow the whole class down to let him catch up. they were doing so well too. my favorite class is actually my 2nd beginner class. i think it's the class i look forward to teaching the most. man...i have this major dilemma. i know i want to continue traveling for the next couple of years. but what am i going to do with ringo? maybe i should have thought about that before i got her, but she makes me so happy when i come home. even though i can't sleep and pick up at least 8 pieces of poop a day. she gives me an excuse to come home, but then i feel like it's such a responsibility and almost like she's going to tie me down. omg...if a dog can tie me down can you imagine what a real family would do to me? man...so many things to think about.

mini cujo

my dog has the worse temper in the world. she attacks my feet and hands. i think she didn't get socialized properly because she was taken away too young. i don't know where to find a specialist in korea that specializes in puppy behavior. she is like...dr. jekyl and mrs. hyde!!! look at her isn't she adorable? but today she scared the living daylights out of a 7 month old dog who we thought was going to be her playmate. she bit her and kept barking and chasing her. you have to know my mini cujo is half the size of kimchi (coworker's dog) but we're hoping that after awhile they'll calm down and become friends and keep each other company. that way maybe his dog can fix mine and teach her to calm down. she does really cute things like sleep under my neck, but i feel like i almost have to keep one eye open in case she goes for the jugular >.< Luke, Kimchi, and the worn out little pup Ringo. Cute eh? she's so tired haha. the only time kimchi would approach her was when she was asleep.

a bit of the homesick blues

so i was lying in bed thinking about the states. i actually found myself missing the streets of berkeley. walking through campus, rollerblading down the hills, waiting for the bus that damn 51 that comes when you don't need it and never comes when you do, going to work on sundays at the bookstore hoping to sell at least $200 worth of books, and walking on durant contemplating what to eat. blondies? noah's? asian ghetto? man...what i'd give to have some naan n' curry or an IB's hogie! Smart Alec's airbaked fries and awesome cornbread. *sigh* the almost endless possibility of food available. at the time i took it for granted now, everyday my life is filled with homecooked frozen dumplings, cereal, ramen, kimchi (actually that sounds like life at the apt) but eating out here...i must say i miss the variety. i miss 168!! and chicken steak rice with an egg. i miss trying to race over to cheeseboard after class only to find that it's closed. i even miss the gym, and the track, and boxing in the smelling underground of the RSF. (believe it or not, i don't just miss the food :P) i think i'll make a trip there before i go to taiwan (if i don't get tired of living abroad) i miss hanging out at my apt, stuffing too many chinese people into a tiny apt. getting drunk, mixing drinks, and making my roommates taste them. i want to rollerblade or bike to richmond through the path by hearst park. i want to go to the farmer's market where vendors speak english and sell awesome cherry tomatoes. i want to take random walks to safeway and continue exploring parts of berkeley i never knew existed while having conversations about nothing and everything. it seems to pass the time much faster. ohh and i forgot about SF, clubbing at night, walking to fisherman's wharf, shopping in union square, *sigh* chinatown dimsum. man...there's certainly a lot to think about.
as for LA...i miss my room and my 7' clive owen poster! i miss ROCK BAND until 5am, going to wood ranch with my friends, hanging out with my sis, clubbing in hollywood. i miss an awesome night out where you hear a few great bands play and enjoy the ringing sensation of losing another decibel of hearing. i miss waiting outside the troubadour in a line that wraps around the side of the building. i miss listening to my music on 5.1 speakers and playing along on my amp. i guess maybe i might just come back and not live abroad for another year. maybe i'll come home and get my music business certificate with the internship. work my way up at a record company...then i can listen to new music all the time. haha i don't know...maybe i'm just having a nostalgic moment, once i realize how much i hate living AT home i will regret coming back. maybe i'll just get my own place, but i won't have a car. i don't want to tell my parents if i go back to the states because they'll just make me live at home. they'll make me take care of that monster dog! (not that ringo is any better right now >.<) but at least she's mine and she's cute! i miss learning new stuff on guitar and feeling inspired to keep playing. i miss speaking english normally! i miss talking to people and having conversations that don't consist of what is your name? how old are you? what's your favorite color? i miss not having to explain everything i say and feeling like people generally understand what i say. i miss talking to adults...i mean i have a few friends here, but we're at work for 30 hours a week, finally when the weekend comes we just want to relax. don't get me wrong, i love my kids, they're amazing and cute and smart. but i think i just need some variety.
i feel like a dam just broke, i just needed to rant and reminisce about a life i won't be able to live again for another...10.5 months. EEEPP!!! and my neighbor/coworker who i like to party with on weekends might be quiting and leaving in march. *cries* i hope they replace her with someone cool.

a kick to your olfactory senses

another package arrived for me today...it was dripping. at first i couldn't figure out what it was. but then i remembered that staci was going to send me fabric softener. the principal told me to open it because it was leaking. so the first chance i had some time, i opened it. sure enough everything in the box was covered in downey. i could even smell it through my snot filled nose. :P the rest of the day my hands smelled like it. finally my only solution was to take one of the shirts and wipe everything down. one of my co-worker's classroom always smells funny so i ended up giving him the empty box that wreaked of fabric softener. i hope it helped.

as for when i came home...i got another kick in the nose. the scent of dog poop floated through the air as i opened the door. windows closed, heater on, all the air enclosed...you have to understand that if i didn't have a stuffy nose...i probably would have tossed my cookies. but it's all good because at least my dog now knows when he is in the room to poop on the mat! i was so proud of her! because now i don't have to scrap dried dog poop off the heated floor. yes tis my life now...dog poop and dog pee. anyway...a plus is when i'm on the computer, she just sleeps by my feet. it's absolutely adorable. and i think she's becoming a little less vicious. less biting of the toes and leg.

in my life...

"there are places i remember
all my life though some have changed
some forever not for better
some have gone and some remain
all these places have their moments
with lovers and friends i still can recall
some are dead and some are living
in my life i've loved them all"
-In My Life (The Beatles)

i figured a beatles song would be appropriate since ringo is getting acquainted to the band that inspired her name. so a quick blurb about my day. i had to go to the doctor's today because i've been having a really bad cold. i mean the kind where i'd actually go and willingly get a shot in the butt for. coughing, stuffy nose, sore throat, the works! so now i'm on this 3 day pill regimen. there are about 6 pills in each individual pack. 3 times a day after meals. i have no idea what's in them but...when in rome...die as romans die :P

an adult class

i just got a college age class today. they decided to pair me up with them to help them with their pronunciation. it's a bit hard because i'm almost the same age as them. they're 3 years younger than me. but their level of english after studying for 10 years is at...maybe the 3rd grade in terms of how much the kids that studied the whole time at our hagwon is at. it's pretty hard talking to them and not being able to communicate as well with them. with the kids at least i can make them say something over and over and over and over again without feeling so bad. here...well it's a bit of an awkward situation. and my class doesn't end till 10pm...which sucks really bad because my poor puppy is at home by herself until then :(

speaking of my puppy...

i decided to call her りんご (which is ringo...like starr and like りんご apple)

ringo...or ramen? midori or soju?

i like the name ringo, after the fruit (japanese for apple), and after the musician ringo starr.

but i also liked midori which is green in japanese also a melon flavored liqueur, or soju because well it's appropriate in korea.

my favorite color is green so midori would be cool. i can't name her soju because if i tell her principal and the kids that name they'll think i'm crazy!!!

as for ramen...i just thought it was kinda cute :) she's like the perfect asian dog...she acts like an angel in front of strangers so she doesn't ruin her image, but is obnoxious at home. hahhaa anyway...she's a cocker spaniel pup that is only 2 months old. as you can tell she is very small. that is the bottom of my computer chair.

the ides of january

as alan and angelina liked to say, "beware of the ides of january" hahaha i must say, do my friends love me or what?! they rock! I got books, oatmeal, granola bars, mac and cheese, gloves, a cami, movies, goldfish, and gum! of course i couldn't fit them all in the picture so here are just a few things they sent me! my package i ordered from yesasia came today too so it was like xmas in january!! THANKS ANGELINA, ALAN, and MS. WENGER (whom i still can't call christina) hahaha. You guys ROCK!!

if when you guys ever come out here to korea i'll be sure to take you out all the time. as for ms. wenger...I will send you something eventually.. my lazy ass has not figured out the postal system here. :P

Classes have been fun so far this week. One of my classes likes to race through reading a book so I pull out my cellphone and we use the stopwatch to time them. Of course I like to join in too so we race to see who can read it the fastest with minimal mistakes. These poor kids spend their morning in regular school and their afternoons with us. They have no childhoods so I try my best to have fun with them while still letting them learn. After we read Big Bird's Copycat Day, I let them play a game of simon says. Sometimes if we finish a book, we play hangman with the words to help them work on spelling and recognizing words. Or we play pictionary with the words in the book, today I tried charades. If I call it a game they enjoy it. The best part is that these kids find amusement in everything.

new hat

i really need to get a hair cut...but i'm scared they're gonna make me look more korean. if that's possible...

i went shopping today. it was a very awful snowy day i was late to work because it was wet and slippery. then after work i went shopping for stuff. bought a hat, 2 shirts, and a coat. i also got a big towel and a bathmat. in total i spent about...$140 :-X however it's better than spending $40 on a shirt at hard rock right? haha my shirt from hard rock in seoul says "all you need is rock!" how sweet is that? :)

cake, scrabble, and too much soju

birthday scrabble...in wonju south korea
we are nerds...3 bottles of soju, 2 bottles of beer, 4 girls, an ice cream cake, and a game of scrabble. (i got 2nd)
peach soju...it's the only way to go!
the end of the game. and grope was my word. someone made it gropes and stole more points from it...bastard *shakes fist*
isn't that the coolest cake ever?! not that you can really tell the details from the picture but it's lady fingers around the cake and there is actually no cake, only cubes of cherry ice cream on top of a chunk of half cherry and half chocolate chip ice cream.
22nd birthday after work with a couple of coworkers. and yes...i am wearing shorts because this is after work and we're at my neighbor's house. :P
i know i look like a slob and i'm in my pjs and a sweatshirt but hey! it's my birthday and i can dress badly if i want to :P and CONNIE IF YOU'RE READING THIS THANKS FOR THE SCARF!! (i'm wearing it in the picture) :)
more details to the cake, see? just cubes of ice cream and ladyfingers around the edges. mmmm....alll we did was dig in with spoon. hahaha

my awesome kids

i wasn't allowed to look until they were done. they're so cute :) they make spending my birthday here worth it. and they make having to buy my own birthday cake worth it too hahha. :P

i had some with them in it but i can't put them online and it's understandable with weird pedos all over the internet. anyway...i'm gonna have a low key birthday and i think we're gonna play some scrabble that's about it.

another year older...

can i have them for my birthday?:

teary eyes

so i made my first boy cry yesterday. i felt really bad because usually he's very playful and nonchalant about everything but he had that guilty face so i thought he took the other boy's eraser. so i told him he'd better not be lying. then he started crying when we found it under the other boy's book he just didn't feel it. i was like omg...damn it. and i told the little boy i was sorry and wrote in the notes for him in the book so he would stop crying. gawwdddd that was awful i can't deal with tears. oh and the other boy was crying (not my fault) because his mom gave him a perm and he hates it (i mean who gives their LITTLE BOY A PERM?!?!) and so he kept his hood on because he was embarrassed. this girl pulled it off and he started crying. so first him and then after was the one i made cry. *sigh* and then i told the class no more crying today!!! it made me all stressed out. at least i had a reading class after with older kids. they're less likely to cry which is great because i don't know how to deal with crying. it makes me uncomfortable.

the good news was that the boy that was a brat last week was an angel after his mom probably scolded him. he read with us and practiced his words. i was like omg...what a change. so yes...the stupid daily rantings of a new teacher. it's actually weird to say i'm a teacher. most of the time i feel like i'm just playing with them. :P

seoul trip #2

national treasure #1 by seoul city hall
an antique market
used to be a city gate, now it's the national treasure #1 in seoul

my first week

i actually found teaching to be quite enjoyable. i'm sure some of the kids hate me since i make them say the same words over and over and over and over again until it's lost all meaning and sounds but in the end they will thank me because they won't sound like fobs when they talk. actually it's kind of fun because i'm trying to think of all the words that i hate when fobs say it and i'm correcting them so that these kids will never sound like they lived in another country. they won't have a weird accent or anything. my reading classes are amazing. they're such smart and cute kids. i have a lot of fun with the beginners too. they're very tiny and they don't understand half of what i say. i tried to make it fun for them though with various ways. sometimes the principal comes over because we're always giggling in class. my kids love to giggle. i have no idea why! i'm not that funny :P however i do like to do stupid stuff to make them laugh. it really is just trying to find the most creative way for them to learn while still enjoying their hour or hour and a half they are required to stay with me.

all in all i think it was a great first week. my last class today was a bit on the bad side but they were ok. they didn't understand as much as my others and they aren't beginner beginners. there is one boy in my science class. omg he's the cutest little boy i've ever seen!!! when he wears his vest he hides half his face in it. he's smaller than everyone else and oh so cute. there's actually another little boy in my first beginner class that is adorable too. i just want to pinch his cheeks and make him laugh. haha i guess i never thought i would enjoy it as much as i do. hopefully next week will go just as well as this week went. we'll have to see though.

i got a cell phone today. i put the number up on the side contact info. maybe in time i can get some pictures of my class up.

Happy New Year!