Yukhoe and some Hangul

This week has been really great. I've been writing mostly about Beijing, but in the mean time some awesome things have been happening as well. It was so nice to only work 3 days after I got back from China, and then have another weekend! On Saturday I got my hair highlighted again at Hair & Joy; it looks really good! It was at the point where my kids would ask me "Teacher, why is your hair brown here (points at roots) and yellow here (points at ends)?" In my defense, I think they only noticed it because they are so unused to seeing people with blonde hair. It probably looked like quite a contrast to them, but I don't think other westerners noticed THAT much....

(Korean) Kids Say the Darndest Part II

My kids are just hilarious sometimes. Sometimes they are total pains in the butt, but on the whole I like them. Which is saying something, because I know a few morning (kindergarten) teachers who say they genuinely like approximately 0 of their students. I'm lucky, because I've got some good ones... Since the last time I wrote about their hilarity, I've been attempting to keep a list. Of course, this list has been spread out over probably 5 different scraps of paper, stuffed into various pockets, and subsequently lost. So, I'm going from memory here...

(Korean) Kids Say the Darndest Things

I wish I had begun a log at school, of the things my kids say to me. I'm sure I would have a lot more funny things to tell about, but I did make special note of two things today that made me laugh out loud in class.

Halloween

Well, it's Halloween time in Korea! While this holiday is not exactly celebrated by most Koreans, the English academies take advantage of the day to throw a party and give candy to already hyper kids. Oh Joy! We celebrate on two days - Thursday and Friday - since we have different kids on those days. I was told on Wednesday around 8:30pm that I would need to be in costume for the next two days. Thanks for the heads up... *rolls eyes*

Meetup: Mt. Seoraksan

Still playing catchup from this weekend, so consider this Part II.

As I mentioned before, Tab invited me to do a "meetup" with her. MeetUp is a website that basically facilitates group activities and adventures. You want to go hiking but don't know where to go or how to get there? There is probably a meetup. I think they have them in other locations, but I am registered in Seoul, and I belong to a few different groups. I hadn't done a meetup before, but when Tab invited me I agreed.

An Attempted Korean Wedding

Happy Monday, readers!! I have hardly had time to sit down this weekend, and unfortunately that means I have had no time to write a blog! But, the good news is all that time spent away from the computer translates to better blogs for you :) see, I'm just thinking of you!

My blog about the weekend will be split into 2 parts. This is Part I.

Hand Candy

I keep putting off blogging using the excuse that "I haven't done anything worth blogging about!" Which may in fact be true. But, I feel the need to write something, even if it's not of epic proportions...

Running in Toms

Today was mid-week. It wasn't a bad day, but I did feel kind of down for some or all of the day. On the way to school, it started storming. Fearing to be caught in the rain sans-rain boots or umbrella, I ran the last part of my walk to school. My advice: never run more than a few feet in Toms. By the time I got to work, my arches had cramps and my feet were killing me all day. But, better than getting caught in the downpour which commenced about 5 minutes after I got in the building. Being rained on is a big pet peeve of mine... So, my day could definitely have been worse!

KB Star and Han's Deli

With the horribly long day I had yesterday, I knew today had to be better. And, fortunately, I was proved right! I am updating my blog a little less lately, since now that I am more comfortable with school, the days are not so remarkable. My readers have also tapered off a little, more to what I figured would be my average number of views per blog. I suppose I should try to update more about my kiddos, since the progress in our relationships and their skill levels will surely change and develop by the time I leave Korea. But, the days tend to blur...

Everland: Every Day Is a Holiday

Chuseok continues! Today Tab and I visited the Korean Disney: Everland. No Mickey or Minnie, but plenty of silly cutesy stuff to replace the characters we Americans know and love. This will be mostly photos, since there wasn't a whole lot that happened worth discussing.

Finally Friday!!!!

Today is finally Friday before Chuseok!!!!!!!!! I can't express how happy I am!!!!!!!!!!!! I almost wish it wasn't here yet because all the anticipation for it is now arrived, and the pressure is on to enjoy my 5 days of freedom!!!!

Conjunctivitis, Maybe?

No blog yesterday, sorry folks! Not much of interest happened at work, besides getting a box from my mom, and having a girl's night dinner with Michelle after work. When I got back home, I was so tired I was actually IN BED by 11:30. I read until midnight then couldn't keep my eyes open any longer.

My First Parcel

My Wednesday wasn't too terribly exciting. I made some eggs and toast (made in the pan) for breakfast, and attempted to drink the soymilk I bought at HomePlus the other day. Well, apparently in America I have always drank vanilla soymilk, and this stuff was straight up soy bean juice. It was even slightly green. I don't know, all you hippies: is this normal?! (LOL) Anyway, I couldn't drink it and opted for orange juice instead.

Baseball in Korea

This weekend was absolutely exhausting. It's what I get for complaining last weekend about being stuck in my apartment. My motto this weekend was Go with the Flow! Yes-man style.

Saturday night, I was thankfully holed up in my apartment, blogging and watching a movie (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2, if you must know...). Sunday was so long, though! I woke up at 9am, and had to get out the door by 10am. If you know me, you know that I usually require over an hour (at least!) to get completely ready for my day, including hair, makeup, breakfast, and finishing touches. So, waking up a bit late on Sunday put me in a rush. I skipped breakfast since Tab and I had plans to get an earlier lunch.

Right before I left, I checked my email and saw I had an email from a guy I had contacted from Craigslist about a table. He had previously told me someone was going to buy it already, and I told him to contact me if it falls through. Well, he was emailing to let me know it was back on the market! I gave him my number and we planned to meet in the afternoon to do the deal. And with that, I was off to Itaewon for church...

We had planned to meet at the Itaewon subway station around 10:45, in order to make it to church at 11am. Well, I got there at 10:40, and planted myself on the stairs leading to the exit we had planned to meet at. 10:45... 10:55... 11:00. Where is this girl? Around 11:10, I finally get a text that she is outside waiting on me. Wait, what?! How did she sneak past me?!?!?! I hurry out the exit and see her immediately. Apparently, she had a subway mix-up situation like I did Saturday, and somehow ran right by me on the stairs. I still don't know how this happened, but regardless...

We walk down the road towards the Itaewon Methodist Church. Tab said she had looked up service times, and there was an 11:00am English service. We finally get there, figure out which door to go in, and head up the elevator. I got a little suspicious when we were in the elevator with 6 old Koreans, and no other white people. We walked out, and saw a man in a suit that looked to be a greeter. I think he asked if we were lost? (I could be remembering incorrectly, but he definitely assumed we were not in the right place). Tab asked "English Church?" and he responded "Oh, it's over. It was 9am!" I look at the sign right next to us and see, sure enough, English - 9am. Korean - 11am. Guess the internet is not always our best friend and most accurate source of information!

Tab was upset about this setback, but honestly, we were almost 20 minutes late by now, anyway. I said we will just try again next week; let's get some food. Before we could do that, I needed to go pick up a package Kristen sent me (my ZTA big sister who lives in NYC), and one from my mom. When that was accomplished, we set out to find food! Unfortunately, neither of us had done any research about where to go, so we attempted to find WiFi to get us on the right track. After a brief stint at McDonald's with no luck, we decided to just wing it.

We walked down the street, and I made the impulsive decision to turn down an interesting looking alley. We walked and gawked at the different wares being sold outside the ecclectic neighborhood. It was cute... and then it got residential. I had a vague sense of where we were at, and expected us to come out on the main street. Well, after another 10 minutes of walking, I decided we were definitely not going in the direction. We cut and curved back in the general direction we came from, although going through different streets. Finally we saw familiar sights and knew we were not lost for good. While I was mildly freaking out, Tab was taking photos of the little houses and the view... at least she was in a good mood and not blaming me for having to hike up about 10 hills!

We finally got to the alley which I expected us to originally come out at, and I saw a restaurant whose name I recognized from expat blogs: Wolfhound Irish Pub. We made a beeline, starving and tired. When we were seated at the wooden bench style table, we went over the menu. Tab decided on an English breakfast, and I went with fish and chips. (Interesting we decided on British fare when in an Irish pub in South Korea!) My fish and chips was pretty good, but nothing too special.

When we left, I let the Craigslist seller know that I was available in about 45 min (as long as it would take to get to the station). We chatted back and forth until we decided to meet around 3pm. That left Tab and I about an hour and a half to do whatever, then 30 min to get to the station. Since Itaewon doesn't have much by way of shopping, we headed to Myeong-dong to the Forever 21. I needed some tights to wear under skirts to work, so that was the best place I could think of...

We got there and I ended up getting some great blush-colored tailor pleated pants, some tights, and a couple clearance things. After that, we headed to meet the Craigstlist guy. I asked him would the table be one piece, or broken down. He said it breaks down, and was carriable, but a little awkward. After much debate, Tab and I decided to carry it together to her place. We had plans to go to a baseball game in the evening with some of her friends, so rather than take the table to my place then rush back to go to the game, we would just leave the table at her place during the game, and I could take it back afterwards.


This worked out well enough, but was pretty annoying and cumbersome. We rested for about 30 minutes at Tab's, then headed to the stadium. Luckily, Tab lives very close to the Seoul Sports Complex and we didn't have to trek all over Seoul to get there. One bus ride later, we were at the stadium. We got our tickets ($17) and headed inside.

Apparently, unlike American stadiums which use the health code as an excuse to exploit the hungry and thirsty fans, Korea lets you take your own food and drink into the stadium! There were vendors outside selling pizza and chicken in a box (literally). We passed in favor of getting smaller portions inside the stadium. Tab ended up getting a hotdog (a welcome surprise she wasn't expecting), and we both got some beers (which were also much more affordable than in the states at $2.50 a pop). We got our seats with the rest of the group, and settled in for some great American past time!

A few things popped out at me - 1) Rather than straight up cheering, the fans of each team had songs they sang during the time their players were at bat. 2) Similar to what the Aggies have at Texas A&M, there seemed to be a yell leader who directed the crowds in songs, dances, and other general hooliganisms. 3) There were cheerleaders. Well, not really cheerleaders - more like hybrid dancer-backup singers. They had quite conservative dances (compared to the American standard), and while they showed their stomachs, their necklines were so high even the Pope wouldn't have been able to complain. 4) While I still have not figured out the system on which Korean baseball is based and played, I figured out that anyone can play on these teams. I figured this out when I looked up at the pitcher, then leaned over to Tab and whispered: "Is it just me, or is that pitcher black?!"

Now, you can't call me a racist - there are literally no black Koreans. It just doesn't happen. Some of my American readers may not be able to understand this, since in America you get called a racist for anything. But seriously! It is not possible to be black, and be Korean. While being an "American" is a question of citizenship, being a "Korean" is a matter of race. Therefore, someone being black and being Korean are mutually exclusive. Okay, off my defensive soapbox.

We kicked back and enjoyed the people watching, and of course the sport of baseball. Apparently, we were rooting for the wrong team, since it was a shut out. The other team won, and their fans seemed to have a better time overall as well. If we had not been in a group, Tab and I would have traded allegiances and gone over to the other side. But, alas, we mostly observed.

Halfway through, Tab insisted that I eat something, having had nothing since noon, and been drinking a beer. I agreed to go check out the fare. I ended up deciding on some chicken. I would call them nuggets, but a better word would be pellets. Not like rat droppings, but more like short Cheetos. Does this give you a good idea? They came with a sauce, but I opted to have that on the side.

All of my skeptics who think I should have eaten the dumpling last week, you will be proud. Rather than dissecting the "chicken" to confirm it's variety, I just bit into it. It was cold, but otherwise not bad tasting. I looked at the other side which I still held in my hand. It didn't look like chicken. I smelled it, then had a recollection that Koreans like dark meat chicken, rather than white. I shrugged and popped the other half in my mouth. This was quite an accomplishment. I didn't eat the whole cupful, but I did eat quite a bit. I even tried the sauce, and enjoyed it!

We stayed til the end of the game, then trekked all over creation to find the bus to take us back to Tab's apartment. When we finally got there, it hit me how exhausted I was. And now I have the dilemma of taking this obnoxious large and awkward table back to my apartment on the other side of Seoul. So, my options:

1)Take it on the bus and subway alone (risk bursting into tears spontaneously, hurting myself and/or others, breaking the table)
2)Take an expensive cab ride (between $25-30) with it (benefits would be the ease)
3)Have Tab assist me on the subway then she can turn around without having to pay for an additional ride back home, then take a cab a short distance to my apartment.

This last option seemed to have both the financial and physical aspects under control, so that's what we decided to do. I carried the heavy part this time (Tab had it last time), and we headed out into the rain (which started as soon as we left the baseball game), on the bus, through the subway station, onto the trains, and out. Tab said goodbye, and I was burdened with the entire thing. This consisted of 1 large tabletop (not actually large, but bigger than was comfortable), which bent together but not all the way, only until a 45° angle remained. Also, 2 rectangular sets of metal bars, plus another 2 straight bars in a bag with the hardware. I wish I had a photo, because I must have looked ridiculous carrying this through the subway. It was slow-goings, to be sure.

I was actually kind of disgusted with the lack of assistance. Everyone felt it appropriate to stop and stare at me, but no one felt the need to help me take it even a short ways, up the stairs maybe, or to the end of the hallway. Maybe it's just that I grew up in the South and therefore most men have some sort of gentlemanly blood, but I was not impressed with the Koreans at that point in time.

When I finally got the thing to the top of the subway, I was totally dejected to find there were no cabs waiting at the curb (a frequent habit of empty cabs). I saw a boy, and asked where I could get a cab. He pointed across the street and I headed that way. He was just standing around and I couldn't believe he wouldn't help me, even when he knew I was only going across the street. I hobble over and the one available cab gets taken right before my eyes. I want to cry, but keep it together.

And then, like a ray of sunshine beaming down through the night sky, a yellow cab pulled right up to me and popped it's trunk. I gratefully put the table down into the trunk, and get in the cab. My hands are shaking and my body slumps into the seat. All I can manage is "Kamsahamnida, Kamsahamnida, Kamsahamnida!" (Thank you, thank you, thank you!). He smiles and laughs, and I give him my address. He types it in, and we're off.

I sincerely think God sent this taxi driver straight to me. Every cab driver I've had in Korea so far, no matter how nice, has spoken no more than 2 words of English. This man, while by no means fluent, asks me where I'm from, how long am I in Korea, etc. When I say I am from America, he starts singing Oh Say Can You See. I can't do anything but laugh and clap for him, despite the extreme fatigue making my hands weigh about 10lb each. He goes on to tell me that he loves "America human" because we are so "smile and kind... and beautiful!!" I just laugh and say thank you. He sings for me in Korean and tells me that it's "his song." Wow...

We get to my neighborhood, and I live on a one-way street. This guy goes in the wrong way and pulls me up RIGHT next to my door. I was so happy I could cry. I thanked him profusely and got the table out of the trunk. When he left, I was shuffling up the driveway to the entrance, and saw my landlord. I wouldn't be able to open the door with the table in my hands, so I give him my most desperate eyes and look at the door and back. He gets the hint, comes and opens the door. Then he does one better, and takes the table top from me, gets in the elevator with me, and takes it to my room. I wanted to hug him.

After that, I relaxed and then, I have no idea how I got the energy, but I put that dang table back together. I still don't know how I did it, but it's put together and I love it. It was worth the horrible time transporting it, I'm happy to say.

My Sunday was so exciting and jam-packed that my Monday is utterly boring in comparison. Today,  Typhoon Sanba was supposed to hit. Well, I guess it did. It was pretty rainy and windy this morning. But work was not cancelled, so I sported my rain boots. It was pretty chilly, too. I loved it.

After work, I got some groceries and I am happy to say I found some decent veggies!!! I got home and made some awesome pasta and chicken. Now, my bed is calling me and another day of work is at my door tomorrow. Happy Monday, Blogosphere!

Apartment Decor and Work

This morning was awesome. I slept late, like 8:45, then got to talk to Michael for a little bit. I also spent a lot of time doing some Craig'sList research. I am officially desperate to make my apartment "home." Yes, it's getting there... but it still lacks a lot of homey-ness. Last night at one of the other foreign teachers' apartments, she had an armchair. And she had a western-style desk. It made me realize that, while I like that my furniture is not overpowering the room, I also think my room is very low to the ground. Like, the desk I have is a floor-desk, the hutch is very low as well. And of course the bed is low. I have no chairs, no rug or anything to sit on. I decided I need some things!!

First, I want an armchair. Like, something comfy I can sit in and blog, or read a book, or anything. Nothing too big, just a chair I can put in the corner and have a place of my own. This beats getting a large desk that hogs the room. If I did get the chair, I would give the hutch (that is really not very useful to me) to another teacher in the building.

Second thing I want is an area rug. I have faux-hardwood laminate that is pretty crappy. It's not ugly, but cheap. I want something to draw the room together, give it warmth! I would love a rich color, but honestly I'll take anything at this point.

I also would like some alternate lighting - a floor lamp and desk lamp to be precise. I hate my overhead lighting, plus the switch is on the other side of the room so at night it's annoying to turn off the light before bed.

Finally, I want wall decor. Some floating shelves, or some paintings/art. This is getting out of the "need" and pretty far into the "want," but oh well.

I went on CraigsList this morning to start some research. FIRST - the armchair. I only found 2 currently listed - one for 20,000W (~$20) it was not the prettiest, but it looked leather and wasn't too ugly. Only problem with that one is it was listed back on July 31. It is most likely sold by now, especially for such a low price! The other one I found did not have a price listed, only asking for an offer. It was originally 250,000W (~$225), so I would probably offer maybe 80,000 to 90,000W. The thing with either of these two is transportation! How the heck to get it from one side of Seoul to the other?! I emailed a guy I found on an expat forum about moving, and he quoted me around 70,000 to move it totally (from 1 apartment to the other). Woah! Alternatively, Erin Teacher told me at work I might could find one on the street that someone is getting rid of; several of the teachers have done that. I might just have to go hunting in my neighborhood one day!!

SECOND - the rug. Basically, no one has a decent rug. Awesome. THIRD - a lamp. One, single, solitary floor lamp listed. I emailed the seller, and she was selling it TODAY. Grumble, grumble.... FINALLY - I stumbled upon a pretty cool piece of art and made an offer on it. I think the same person, I made an offer on his kettle, rice cooker, and power converter. I also attempted to get a Brita water pitcher, but that deal fell through :(

Finally, I made it to work. I will summarize my classes:

First - my worst class. Jackie Teacher observed and helped put the kids in line. I made sure to use everyone's name so she sees that I know names!

Second - Belle was surprisingly participatory today. But the entire class seemed to have eaten straight sugar before I came in. They could not stop giggling, chatting, and generally being disruptive. We were talking about emotions, feelings, and how we feel. I was trying to explain "terrible" to them, and got a very sad look on my face. I said "How do I look?" Benny, my most hyper and disruptive student, said "Ugly?" .... I guess I should have clarified better! I got a shocked look on my face, and then he says "Oh, oh, oh... surprised!" Haha... these kids!

Third - Jackie came back again. It was a great class - very participatory, got some great responses, and felt like I generally had a good grasp on the class and the material.

Fourth - 2SAP girls... This class was a fiasco! I was checking homework and realized the girls had the old homework checklist, rather than the updated one that I had. Therefore, today was supposed to be a review, but they had not completed all their vocabulary. So, I made a teacher-decision, and we worked on the homework that should have been done last night, and then took the Word Quiz. Good decision, since I realized the W.Q. had words on it that we did together in class. Oops! Also, I think the girls did better since we had gone over the words immediately before taking the quiz. So, instead of reviewing in class, I sent the review home, and they will test tomorrow, right on schedule. Phew! Crisis averted... except that I had 1 student absent. So, she would be extra behind tomorrow. I had my partner teacher, Hannah Teacher (Korean), call Rachel's mom and explain the homework. So, Rachel will take the exam on Friday, instead of tomorrow. What a confusing and crazy day in that class!

Fifth - Jackie observed again (I was thanking Jesus and my lucky stars she had not chosen the previous class since it was so chaotic). I think I achieved something amazing - when explaining the vocab words with the class, we came to the word "rule" - I had them read the definition and then I asked "do we have rules at school? what are some rules at school?" I could only get 1 reply, "don't talk when teacher talks," so to dig myself out of that one, I said "Right, so here in SLP, we have a rule - don't speak Korean! Remember?!" (All of the kids speak Korean, but we tell them not to so they will practice their English) Well, I looked at Jackie Teacher and she is sitting in the corner just cracking up. I didn't realize it was that funny, but she thought it was hilarious. So, score! Jackie isn't mean, but a true laugh I have yet to see come out of her. Yay!

Sixth - my boys. I am so lazy with them. By the end of the day, I am so tired that I usually just sit and verbally go through everything rather than write it all on the board. They are so smart, anyway. Today I had my first trial run with the creative writing. I had them write about a trip they want to take, to go anywhere. They had to talk about what they would do, what animals they would see, etc. Using their vocab. I had two boys write about going to the Sun, and another to a lost island paradise under the ocean. I thought that was fairly creative. I was proud :)

Really, that is about all that happened today. I made Kraft Original Mac & Cheese when I got home (yay!!!) even though I was really craving a burger (I didn't want to make the trip to Itaewon just for that...).  This week is going by much faster than last week, thankfully. I am also feeling much more in control with my classes, since I am organizing their lesson plans, homework, etc. I am actually starting to enjoy it. I get the most frustrated when I am trying to teach and they won't stop talking!!! I want to shake their little faces until they pay attention!!!!! Haha!

Tonight my goal is to be in bed going to sleep by midnight!!! Looking good so far... Really excited for the Apple announcement tomorrow (well, I'll see it tomorrow. I'm not staying up til 3am to watch it tweeted live!) GOODNIGHT!!!

Rock, Paper, Scissors

A few things hit me today. One, I'm living in Seoul. Like, not just Asia, or South Korea, but SEOUL. It's pretty amazing! I've never lived in a huge city; well, Houston I guess. It is big! But, it felt small. I compare Seoul to New York. I teach kids who are growing up in a city like this. It is absolutely massive. But, the culture, tradition, and homogeneous society all contribute to the distinctly different atmosphere of Seoul compared to a city like New York. I think each day my mind opens a little bit more, and a little bit more to the idea of what I am actually doing here.

Another thing that I realized, even just in a small way, is that I am the TEACHER. Obviously, I stand in front of the class and talk. But, I gave a test in my Leap High class today, and when I was grading their essays, the feeling that I get to decide how tough or lenient I am going to be! I get to make decisions in class. If we are running out of time, I get to choose which item to drop, or if I should assign extra homework. In my mind, it's not necessarily power, but authority. I'm not just controlling the classroom and making the kids do whatever I say. It is legitimately my position to make decisions, which ultimately affect my kids. I think this concept also has a lot of room for growth and development in my time as a teacher.

Today was a really good day. I am learning to love my job. I think I am relatively good at it; I mean, considering I had no formal education in this area and almost zero experience with kids. But, the days go by fast, I feel a great sense of accomplishment after each class (which I LOVE) and I am getting used to the courses and their requirements.

Before classes today, I had a lot of extra time to work. I had prepared for my day's classes, and still had almost 2 hours before my first one. So, Erin Teacher suggested that I work on my lesson plan for 2SAP. This class is my only everyday class, it's the most intense workload, and it's the curriculum that I have to work at the most. Each Unit, the lesson plan in the book must be adapted to our school's specific needs.

I share the class with Sean Teacher (he teaches another group of kids, but we are on the same material at the same time), so we take turns making the lesson plans and homework checklists each Unit. This month was my turn, so I used all my extra time during Office Hours to work on that. It's not needed for another week, but with the time I had I decided to just knock it out.

Erin Teacher walked me through a lot of it, but I also figured it out quickly. I really enjoyed it (despite it being a lot of work) because it required a high level of organization. The lesson plan for that class was something I was quite nervous about doing beforehand, but after I completed it and turned it in for approval from Jackie Teacher, I felt wonderful. Like a real teacher :)

It's too difficult to go into the details of what all I had to do to get this thing just right, but I'll tell you that I had to reference: the Teacher's Guide, the Writing Workbook, the Activity Book, the Student Book, the SLP Writing Workbook (different from the one above), book club workbook, book club storybook, SLP Practice book, and SLP Grammar Practice book. For ONE class... of 7 year olds. My mind cannot grasp the idea that these kids are so organized they actually know the difference in all these books. Most 7 year olds I know can't keep up with 1 book, let alone 9.

Anyway, I also had my 3SAP kids today (similar program as 2SAP, but only T/Th and slightly farther along than 2SAP). They are my best large class. I have 9 or 10 students, and they work as hard as my smaller classes, or sometimes even better. Today was awesome! They read when I asked them to, they all wanted to answer the questions, and almost all of them had memorized the Daily Oral Expression they had for homework.

One part of the lesson involved looking at a poem in their student books. They tried to get me to do some game similar to Rock, Paper, Scissors (which they endearingly called "Po-ta-to!" in the same intonation as R,P,S...) in order to determine the order of which they read aloud. I had no idea how that was supposed to work so I made them all sit down and just went in order down the rows (like any sane teacher would do). They read it through once, each student reading only 1 line. Then, again, with each student reading a paragraph. The poem was very rhyme-y and easy to memorize. It repeated a lot of phrases (the lesson was to understand alliterations...) so the kids got the hang of it quickly. I told them how song lyrics are poems too, so we put the poem to a tune and I got them all singing and participating. I loved it! They were all smiling and happy and learning, too!! Great sense of accomplishment. I also think this is the class that likes me the best. I really try to get animated and involved with them in the lesson. I hope it's working :)

Also, I forgot to mention that yesterday I had a little meeting with Jackie Teacher at the end of the day and she told me her observations from watching my classes. She said she was impressed with my organization and the presence I had in the class. The only real suggestion/criticism was to learn the kids' names. Well, I'm trying! I have 10 classes, many of which are larger with 10 or more students. I feel like I'm doing well, and have almost got all of them memorized. It just so happened that the classes she watched were the classes that I have a hard time memorizing the names of the kids. I think that my lack of having developed prior habits in the classroom (not having gotten an Edu degree or done any student teaching) has actually helped me. The school seems to be pretty set on how things should be done, and without any previous habits, I have none to break! :)

After classes, I graded LH exams. I didn't have much time for anything else, and went home at 9pm. I also got my official work badge! It has my name on it, too! :) I use it to clock in and out. After work, one of the morning teachers made everyone dinner and had a little get together at her apartment. I decided to attempt to be social, and went. It's kind of hard, because while everyone is nice, I don't feel like a connection with anyone. It also doesn't help that there is only one other female teacher in afternoons, so I don't get to know any of the morning teachers at work. I also have a semi-shy personality in that I don't operate well in groups of people I don't know well. I kind of stay quiet, don't want to draw any attention to myself. One-on-one, it's a whole other story! But, I don't know any of these girls in a way where I would feel comfortable. But, I went and stayed for like 30 minutes so it's a start. :)

One final observation: the days go by very quickly, especially once I am in the classroom. I love this! Maybe it's just that I enjoy what I do (for the most part), or it's having to do so much in such a short amount of time, but by 8pm I feel like the day flew by! Tomorrow is mid-week again, and I've got lots to do when I get there in the morning :) And with that, goodnight!

**update: doing some research on the rock, paper, scissors thing. I'm wondering if the kids weren't saying something in Korean, any my American ears just heard "po-ta-to"? I read online some say "kai-bai-bo" which I suppose could sound like "po-ta-to" to the untrained ear. with my students, who knows...**

Moohak, Happy Birthday, and Costco

I can't believe its already Sunday night, and I have to go another 5 days before the weekend comes again. Boo! I definitely appreciate my weekends a lot more now that I have to work so hard for them. Which is why this weekend was so frustrating...

Saturday, I didn't have any definite plans, but Tab and I had decided to meet up in the afternoon, after she went hiking with some other people. I declined the invite since it was still undecided until the moment they left. I figured I would sleep in, get up and clean, then meet up with Tab around 2. Well, 2pm came and went, and still no word from Tab. Around 4pm, I messaged her, thinking maybe she had gotten home and fallen asleep. Around 6pm, I was legitimately worried. She had told me she would be home at 1pm, and this is getting close to 6 hours later... By 7pm, I was mad. I spent my entire day waiting for her to contact me. Finally around 7:45, I got a message from her that she had just gotten home. 

While I know she did not have a phone to call and let me know she was going to be 7 hr late, I was still pretty upset. I value my weekend time so much, and I want to make the most of every moment. I did nothing but clean my apartment, watch movies, and lay around. I know some people would love this, and it was nice, but I also determine the quality of my day by the sense of accomplishment I feel at the end of it. I felt like I had completely wasted my Saturday. When I finally spoke to the outside world around 9pm, I was in tears. 

I am a planner; no, I am an obsessive compulsive maniac planner. I had been trying to reach my friends on the military base in Seoul to try to figure out when we were going to meet up on Sunday, and had gotten no where with that, had spent my Saturday like a hermit, and all that combined made me extremely homesick. The key to not being sad when you're away from home is to do something, go somewhere, experience something awesome and new! I had done zero of that, and felt miserable. (On a side note, I think some hormones were probably a participating factor in my completely distraught state.)  

I finally dried up the tears and went to sleep before midnight (a rarity for me these days...). I woke up today with plans to meet Michelle (my Korean BFF) for church. I left my apartment around 11am and caught a taxi. Have I mentioned how cheap cabs are here? I was in this cab for around 25 minutes, and paid less than $6. I mean... seriously? It's more expensive than public transportation, but when you need a cab, you can be glad it's this affordable!

Looks like a mega-church, right?

When I got to the neighborhood the church was in, I had to ask a little old Korean woman where it was. She sweetly pointed in the direction that the masses of people were walking (duh, should have known!). I followed her family up the slope to the church - Moohak Presbyterian Church. It reminded me of a mega-church in the states with a coffee shop, kids play area, elevators, and sleek contemporary design. I waited for Michelle by the information desk, which I thought was quite unhelpful since they offered no assistance when I was clearly looking around confused. (I mean, obviously I was there for the English service, they could have pointed me in that direction!) 

But I waited for Michelle and when she arrived, we set off for the English service. We headed in the direction of this big sancutary, and I got excited - it reminded me of several churches I'd been to before. When we got to the door, Michelle asked where to go, and we were pointed down a back alley, and told to go in the far building and up to the 4th floor.

Performing Amazing Grace

I couldn't help but laugh; sure, shuffle the foreigners off to the corner! We made our way in that direction, and finally found the room. It was the size of a small classroom, with about 15 people in it. I felt so awkward; I was 1 of 2 white people. They were in the middle of praise and worship when we entered, so we found a seat in the back and joined in. 

Well, at least these guys had a projector... the only musical instrument was an electric piano, and the vocalists... well, let's just say they should probably pursue a non-musical profession. I knew a few of the songs (although at times, between the horrible pronunciation of the words and the skipping around of the verses/chorus, I didn't totally recognize them). After we finished singing, there was a little performance of Amazing Grace by a choir-ish-thing. (A line of 5 people and a violinist). THEN the preacher came up... 

Sneaky photo taken of the pastor

I said I was 1 of 2 white people - he was the other. And he looked about 19. When he said he had a wife, I think my jaw literally dropped. The kid was young. And Canadian. I attempted to take him seriously, but he just didn't have that commanding presence. Plus, the way he talked, I'd be surprised if the audience (all 12 of them) knew what he was talking about. I mean, he didn't have an accent that was hard to understand, but he used phrases that I was fairly certain most intermediate-level English speakers would not know.

After an hour, I asked Michelle if her husband was ready to go (he had gone to the Korean service), and she said yes. We left before the service was over, but I don't think we really missed a whole lot. When we stepped out, a guy followed us. He wanted to put my phone number on a text-messaging list for the people who go to the service. Michelle explained I was just visiting and lived far away, so not sure if I would return (all of this said in Korean), and I was so thankful she saved me! I wouldn't have known how to decline politely :( 

When we were far enough away to speak freely, we both had a little laugh over the situation. She felt bad, because she didn't know it was so small and basic. I told her I didn't mind, but it wasn't what I was used to. She said that the Korean service is much better, and I told her that I actually would be interested to experience that, even if I couldn't understand any of it.

I want to add that, despite the service being lackluster, it was actually really amazing to be with brothers and sisters in Christ all the way on the other side of the world. About half of Korea is Christian, the other half is Buddhist. I didn't realize how much Christianity had permiated their society, but it was amazing to see. And, you could tell they were not there out of obligation or tradition. They wanted to be there. They love Jesus too. Just like me! We don't speak the same language, we come from totally different lives, but we were connected by a savior. Pretty amazing to experience...

We met up with her hubby (I taught her that word - she thinks its hilarious), and set off for lunch. We ended up going to a shopping complex that had a lot of food options. When we were driving into the parking garage (since they have a car! which is awesome!), the attendant was wearing a baby blue sash over his uniform. From the back seat, I couldn't see it too well, but I did see that it said "Happy BirthDay!" then had some Korean underneath it. So, being the friendly American that I am, I yelled, from the backseat of these Koreas' car, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!" .... The guy looked completely bewildered. Michelle and her husband just start laughing so hard, and he quickly rolled up the window and scooted the car inside. Between fits of giggles, Michelle managed to get out, "Chelsea, I think it's the store's anniversary!" Hahahaha!!! Oh man... I explained to her that occasionally, in American, some people wear things like that to celebrate birthdays or bachelorette parties, etc. Not that they usually wear it to work, but I seriously thought this guy was just really excited about his birthday. I was wrong... Later, inside, I got a photo with a mannequin wearing the sash.  

Happy BirthDay!

When we got to the food court, they went through each place and explained what it was to me. I ended up getting some seafood pasta with cream sauce (without the "small fish spawn," please and thank you!). They got Korean hot-pot. We chatted, I taught them the word in-laws (they were going to see her husbands parents after lunch), and got to know each other better. I absolutely love her, and her husband is great, too. He doesn't speak as much English as she does, but he understands some. I just know that they will be friends for life, and hopefully we can all (I'm including Michael in this despite that he has no idea I've volunteered us) meet up once in a while, maybe go to Australia (where Michelle lived for 9 years) or Thailand! Couples vacations! :D

They took me to the lower level of the shopping complex to show me around, but then they had to go meet up with the in-laws, so we said our goodbyes. I called Ed and found out that I could pick up my stuff from him in the evening. Rather than go home and wait, I messaged Tab to see if she wanted to go to Costco, since there was one relatively close to where I was. I waited for her to get ready and catch the subway to where I was at (which ended up being around 1hr 45min...), and we set off for Costco.

I had known I wanted to go Costco, even if only for cheese. But, since they only sell in bulk, I knew Tab and I should go together. When we got to Costco, we split the price of the membership card (~$35), but since she was the only one with an ARC, she got to be the "holder" of the card. We will be going together all the time anyway, so it doesn't really matter. First thing, we got some food. Even though I ate 3-4 hours before, I was hungry again. We went to the food court, and I got the best food I've had in Korea: American style pizza!!!!! It was so good, I took a picture! And, to make it even better, a fountain Coke! (Convenience stores only sell bottles, and the only fast food I'd been to had Pepsi.) It was glorious!!!

While we were sitting, we had a Korean family in front of us. The little baby waved at us, and Tab and I discussed how extremely small children knew how to wave in Korea. Like, babies their age in America can only drool. I decided intelligence is not only a product of constant study and endless schooling, but it must be genetic, too. When we were throwing our trash out in the many different bins ("food waste", "plastic" "plates" "silverware" "cups" "paper" etc), I saw something that both grossed me out and intrigued me. An onion grinder machine. Apparently, Koreans love their onions. I knew I had smelled it while eating, but I didn't realize the mass quantities in which they were consumed. Literally, plates full of onions with mustard. *Shiver*

Onion machine

Each Korean had a plate full of onions.

We finished up and made our way into the insanity that was Costco. There were so many people, and they do not observe the walk-on-the-right rules we Americans stick to. They park their carts wherever they want, and don't take a hint to get out of the way! We stuck to the food floor, since that was what we came for. Both of us had our goals: mine was parmesan cheese and cream sauce for pasta. Tab's was granola and granola bars. We found all of that, and more! I found my pasta sauce and parmesan cheese very quickly, and we got Fiber One bars like in America. I also got some croissants, pancake mix, and eggs. Tab was having a hard time finding granola, so I asked a worker. He motioned me to follow, but the crowds were so thick, I had to leave Tab with the cart behind. I literally ran after the guy, and he took me to 2 different people before they could direct me to the appropriate aisle. But, in the end, we did find it! I also grabbed some frozen chicken breast, and Tab and I decided to split it, since it was all individually packaged. On a side note, I'm kind of proud that I am figuring out how to cook and eat without the use of a microwave. I mean, it sucks in a lot of ways, but I'm sure it's healthier too. 

We realized when we checked out that they don't offer to sell you bags at Costco. This is probably because 90% of what they sell would not fit in a bag. But, neither Tab nor I brought our reusable bags. Thankfully Tab had a backpack, and we were able to cram some stuff in that. The rest we carried. We flagged down a taxi and headed for my place. Walking to the cab, and from the cab to my apartment was ridiculous. I have a photo to prove it, too.

Oh, did I mention, this entire time I've been wearing HEELS?! Yes, my feet are absolutely killing me. When we got to my place, we split up the things we had decided to share. Then, we headed back out to the subway; Tab heading for home, myself for Itaewon to meet Ed with my package from home. 

So, more time on the subway, walking to the gate, and back to the subway loaded down with a backpack full, a bag of groceries, and a box with my foam mattress pad from the sates. I thought about cabbing it back home, but the fare is around $12 from Itaewon, and I'd already spent almost $10 in taxis today. I decided to just hack it on the subway. It wasn't that bad, besides taking a while. 

When I was waiting for my connecting train, a Korean guy came up and asked me how to pronounce something in English. And another word. And just kept talking. He got on the same train as I, and was telling me about how he is studying English, and wants to practice and there is no one to practice with, and would I be willing to talk to him, etc etc. I couldn't be rude; I talked to him for a while and he got my Kakao (Korean text messaging app) name, and wants to meet up sometimes.

He was very nice and I felt guilty telling him no, but I felt slightly uncomfortable with that idea. I politely told him that while he is welcome to text me to practice, when I am not at work, I prefer not to work. I think he understood. On the subway, he jabbered away. He was so excited to talk to an American; wanted to show off his knowledge of American things. He asked me to quiz him on the states and their capitals. Then he asked me one, and embarrassingly I didn't know. Well, no, I just couldn't think of it on a dime. Plus, he pronounced "Vermont" as "Beaumont" and I told him I didn't know that state. He probably thought I was an idiot. But, an English speaking idiot who was nice to him. Poor kid...

I finally made it to my home station, onto the bus, and finally to my apartment. First things first was to put my new mattress pad on my bed. Oh, man... does it make a difference or what!! I love it!! So happy I got something. The Korean mattresses are only slightly better than sleeping on concrete. 

All in all, my day was good but exhausting. I am looking forward to sleeping tonight, and maybe I'll make some pancakes tomorrow!! :)

My amazing, incredible, beautiful Korean BFF!!!

Immigration and Chicken Costumes

Today was a particularly long day. Not so much due to work, just sheer hours on my feet. Just so you know, this is going to be a longer blog than normal (I can just hear you: "wait, it can get longer?!"... yes, it can.) I will discuss: my walk to work, going to apply for my Alien Resident Card, and things that happened at work. Here we go...

This morning, I slept in past my alarm. Not to worry, my alarm is set for 5 hours before I actually need to be at work. So, sleeping in an extra 30 minutes is not an issue. YAY! So, I slept in a little, then got ready for work. I'm loving my own apartment, by the way. It's so nice to have my own little space. Even though the actual physical place is not tooooo much different than the motel, it's wonderful that I can make myself at home. :) 

Heading to work today with my UH cup! Thanks, Dad!

I had to be at work by 12:30 to leave to go to Immigration. I knew I had a few things to prepare for before classes, and I didn't know when we would be back from Immigration. So, I decided to go to work extra early, to make sure I was adequately prepared. This means I left at 11:30. Since I didn't technically need to be at work for an hour (and the walk takes around 15 minutes), I decided to take some photos for my loyal fans. :) I have an interesting walk to work, so I'm going to share some familiar sights with you...

First, my view crossing the street, looking back towards my apartment. 

When I get past the major street (which the photo above is crossing), I enter the neighborhood. I live ~3/4 of a mile to a mile from work. I zig-zag through a neighborhood most of the way, and there are some interesting things to see, and some interesting people who stare at you. My first favorite sight going into the 'hood is this thread store. They open up the wall in the mornings and you see this huge color-arranged wall of thread. The photo is blurry, as I was walking while I took it to avoid looking extra-weird. And there was an old man walking behind me that said something when I took this photo. I smiled and said "pretty!" as if he understood. Which he did not.

Next, I aim for alleyways, since there are fewer people to gawk at you. There is usually a lot of trash piles, which are gross, so I spared you guys a photo of that... You're welcome. After a few blocks, I see a lot of fruit and vegetable shops. They have palettes of their foods in front of tiny stores. A few places you can see old women and their daughters picking the seeds and stems off peppers, or other fruits. The piles of pre- and post- stemmed peppers are oddly beautiful. These women work hard.

Pre-stemmed on the left, stems/seeds in the middle, and ready-for-sale peppers on the right. 

I am nearing the end of my journey when I enter a traditional Korean market. I'm not sure what makes it traditional, because it's just a lot of fresh fruit/veggies stands, and a few small shops selling junk. But the big sign you walk under to go down the street claims it's "traditional." Here, I usually see ajummas (old Korean women, usually with a tight perm and permanently pursed lips) browsing the wares and gossiping (I assume), all while blatently staring at the freakish girl with "yellow" hair. I sneakily snapped a photo, pardon my finger in the frame. :( Oh, did I mention that if you're over 30 in Korea, you permanently have an umbrella in your hand (rain or shine)? These Koreans prize white skin (damn, I must be of more worth than gold!), so they must shield themselves at all times lest the sun rays get you.

After passing through the market, I cross another major road. Today, this little hunched old man with a cart loaded with cardboard and other junk he can sell (which he salvaged from trash piles) piled higher than his head, just started walking across this street. There is a "walk/don't walk" sign, and it was currently red. This little old man was either blind and deaf (the lady next to me started yelling at him) or just felt that he had paid his dues and the cars would stop regardless. All I know is I held my breath for the minute or two it took him to cross the street, grabbed my camera, and snapped a few pics. Brakes were screeching, but this old man just kept hobbling along. I suppose this is Korean culture. This man was old, probably older than anyone I've ever met, and he earned the right to do whatever he pleased. This idea is also seen when little old ladies no more than 4' high push and shove past you to get on the bus first. No one yells or curses or complains (well, that I can hear or make out), they just accept it because she is older and therefore deserves respect. 

When I finally got to work, I was extremely efficient. I like going early, when there are only a few people in the office. It's not crowded and I can work much better. I plugged in some country music on my iPod, and got nearly everything done that I needed to by 12:40 when Sean, Jamie and I left for the Immigration Office. We had to take a cab, and it was only $8 after 30 minutes. Wow! 

Our school had set up an appointment for us with Immigration for 1:40. We arrived around 1:20, and found our way through the office. There was hoards of people, and it looked like if you did not have an appointment, it was a "take a number" system. We found the desk for "Reservation" and waited a while for someone to come and actually sit behind the desk. Finally, though, a woman helped us. I kind of had no idea what was going on, except that she took my paperwork and my health check, stamped some stuff, took $10, and gave me a receipt. It was stamped 9/20, and since today was NOT 9/20, I assume that is the projected day I can get my Alien Resident Card. 

^^The rows of stations to help people, which were
not doing any good for the 100+ people I was
too scared to take a photo of behind me.
<< Sean getting fingerprinted during his turn.

When we finished up like 10 minutes later, I smile apologetically to the masses of people still waiting the multiple hour waiting period (should have gotten an appointment, folks!), and we left. Jamie and Sean wanted lunch, so we figured since the appointment took about 10 minutes, and our school assumed it would take longer, we had some time to spare to get some food. We walked down a large street with many vendors and shops; Sean and Jamie had been here before. It was called Insadong.

Sean stopped in a bakery for a pastry, and the smell of sugar lured me in as well. When I walked in, the woman had just cut this churro in half. It looked, and smelled, heavenly. If I'd have had some money, I would have gotten one. Alas, luck was not with me and I had to settle for a photo.

We walked along the street and there were tons of touristy souvenier shops. I didn't even care how touristy I looked with my camera out, snapping photos of everything.

And then I saw them... 3 chickens walking down the road. Well, one rooster, and two chicks is more accurate. They were passing out flyers or brochures about something or other, and I stopped dead in my tracks. I took a photo, and when they saw me with my camera, they pointed and ran over to me. I just wanted a photo of them, but they crowded around me to take a photo with me, instead. I quickly handed off the camera to Sean, who did some nice spontaneous photography, and I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Of course, we must do a Korean peace sign. Alright!!! 

Apparently, they were advertising 99day Festival.
Who knows what that is, though, because once you
opened the flyer it was all in Korean. Score!

Passing out flyers!

 After 15-20 minutes of walking, we headed for the main road to get a taxi back to school. The ride back had loads of traffic, but since the fare was around the same as the way to Immigration, I assume Korean taxis charge by distance, not time. Good thing! :)

Once we got back, it was 5 minutes til first period. Good thing Tuesday/Thursdays I have break first period! I got to eat lunch and relax until 3:30 when I had class. I won't go into too much detail about my first few classes, since I've already elaborated quite a bit on my morning. We will just say it was a fairly good day :)

During several classes, Jackie Teacher came in or sat in, and I felt like I did a great job in front of her, getting the students talking and repeating and answering questions. Go me!

During my 5th period class, I had a girl tell me she had a loose tooth. I told her "Don't pop it out!"... what does she do? Twenty minutes later,  she raises her hand (the one that is not in her mouth) and asks through slobber and blood, "Teacher, can I go to the bathroom?" Sighing, and not a little grossed out, I send her to the Desk Teacher. She comes back a few minutes later with a tissue in her mouth and proceeds to do the rest of her assignments in such a state. Oh my... little kids.

In my last class, I learned about Koreans' fear of all things bugs. The classroom was hot, so I let the kids open some windows. It was around 7:30pm, and the sun had gone down. We were working on a review and we had the lights on. Suddenly, one of the girls lets out a scream. Of course, even if they don't know why they are screaming, the whole class suddenly has to contribute to the screaming. I finally figure out that a moth had come in the open window. These kids are terrified of this moth. When I grab a rolled up notebook and head over to kill the thing, I hear one girl say in tone which combined amazement and total confusion: "Teacher isn't afraid!"

I turned around "No, I'm not! But if I am going to kill this thing you have to be very quiet!" (As if the bug will let down it's guard if they are silent.) Well, it worked for a few seconds; the kids shut up and I crept toward the moth. Of course, it fluttered away when I got anywhere near it, which prompted more blood curdling screams. I was afraid that Jackie Teacher would hear and come running, and since I had finished early, I did not want her to come in and I have to figure out how to extend the lesson another 15 minutes. I told everyone to pack up and move to the classroom across the hall. If I couldn't kill the moth, I'd just move the kids away from the moth.

Good thing my lesson was over already, because the resulting breathless chatter in Korean - which obviously went something like "Oh my gosh. Can you believe we just survived that death defying ordeal?! I mean, a moth. Can you believe it? I'm going to write about this in my diary tonight!" - could not be quelled.

During my last hour in the office, I had nothing to do. I finished a few things here and there, but was killing time by around 8:20. Michelle Teacher and I talked about food, TV, and other silly things. She asked me to help her with her Phonics class. She has the hardest time saying the sound "Jj" - like in Jet. She kept cracking up when I would say it - she thought it sounded like a Chinese sound (she studied Chinese). And I kept laughing at her pathetic attempts, which came out more like "Ss". It was hilarious. I felt mildly guilty for not doing anything productive during the last 40 minutes, but since I had gotten to work over an hour early, I cut myself some slack.

After work, I went to the bank near me to get some cash out. After I did that, I stopped at the dollar store called Dison. I got some kitchen stuff - another fork (I currently owned 1, and about 5 pairs of chopsticks), a sharp knife, a colander for pasta, a pasta utensil (the kind that looks like a spoon with points at the end), a set of cups, a set of bowls, a few plates which I suspect are actually for kids but were the cheapest and the cutest there, some rubber gloves and scrubbies for washing dishes, and maybe some other things I can't remember. I paid $13 total for everything! Ya, what a great deal!

 I walked home and contemplated going to the crappy grocery store under the BauHaus department store to get some meat to make for dinner, but decided against it. It had been a long day, I'd been out of my apartment for 11 hours, and on my feet for most of them. It was time to get home and write a really long blog with a TON of photos! I hope you enjoyed today's edition. :)

Tomorrow is Friday, and although I don't have any set plans for the weekend, I'm definitely looking forward to it. :)

My Apartment!

Even though I technically moved into my apartment Friday night, today I finally started to "make it my own." I dedicated the whole day to this! I knew I needed to unpack, organize, and probably go get some things from the store for the apartment.

I started my work around 12pm, after sleeping late and talking to Michael in the morning. I so wish I had taken before photos, because I feel like I put a lot of work into getting things arranged the best way possible, and the room looks excellent now.

First thing that I knew I wanted to do was to organize the mess of cords by my bed. There was this huge bundle of cords all tangled and going every which way. I channeled my inner-Dad and got all the cords sorted and wound up so they were neat and tidy. After that, I decided that I really wanted to move my bed. I had heard that if you position the bed to where the headboard is against the wall opposite the entrance to the room, the room looks biggest. So, I pushed and pulled and got my bed turned 90˚, and against the other wall.

Since I was moving furniture, I decided to also move the fridge. Currently, it was kind of in the middle of the entrance walk way. Not terribly in the way, but awkwardly taking up valuable space. I moved it beside my wardrobe, facing the stove. This also makes getting food out to cook easier. The place I put the fridge was currently home to a hutch of sorts. Maggie had had a microwave/convection oven on it, so I guess it suited her needs. She sold that before I moved in, so the hutch was just an awkward short table-thing for me. I put it where the fridge had been, half to cover up the horrible looking floor where the fridge had been, half because that was the only place for it.

Being Chelsea - Homemaker !

My next endeavor was to get rid of the TV. The cable-cord came out right by my bed, but there was no where good to put the TV that the cable could reach. I decided that since TV rots your brains anyway (and I have a terabyte of movies on my harddrive), I would get the TV out of the way. Bonus, this eliminated a few cords that were clogging up that area. I decided to put the TV on top of the fridge, since it wasn't a full size fridge, and had a good 3-4' of space on top before the ceiling. I managed to pick up the TV, but lifting it over my head was not happening. I decided to wait until I could ask Sean to help me move it. (He came by a few hours later and we accomplished getting it up there). I also put the DVD player and remotes up there behind the TV (why would I need those anyway?)

I got some laundry going during this time and had to Google what the washer settings were supposed to be. I think I figured out "quick wash." I don't have a dryer so all the clothes go on the drying rack after the wash. (PS - it's been 8 hours since the first load came out and some clothes are still wet-ish).

Unfortunately, the result of moving furniture that hasn't been moved, let alone cleaned behind, in years is dust. Lots of dust. I began a list of things to get at the store, and the top of the list was some kind of swiffer type dust mop. Other things included: a rug, lamps, some kind of poster/wall art for next to my bed, decent pot/pan, school supplies, clock, new toilet seat (the current one was the kind with foam inside, and had a rip. The foam couldn't dry because my bathroom is a Korean style shower aka gets water everywhere. It was gross to sit on...), and lots of other things!

When I got most of the house-work accomplished that I aimed to, I set off for HomePlus, the Korean version of Target. I'd been before, but this time I had a list and I was on a mission. HomePlus is not very far from me, but I didn't know which bus to take. I contemplated taking a taxi there, but I knew I'd have to take one home with all my purchases. Somehow, I found myself walking the familiar route to school. The one time I'd been to HomePlus, I had left from school, so I knew which bus to take from there. I finally made it and got the bus just in time.

A few minutes after getting on the bus, the driver stopped at a red light... and turned off the bus. He jumped up and said something in Korean, and got off the bus. It was a red light, so there was no immediate danger, but I had no idea what was going on. None of the Koreans looked concerned, so I just kept looking around trying to figure it out. I heard the driver messing around with something in the very back of the bus (engine, maybe?) He raced back around, hopped in his seat, and the light turned green. I still have no idea what happened, but I was very impressed with his timing.

On the way to HomePlus, the bus went over a small river, When we were on the bridge, I looked out the windows and saw the best view I've seen since I got here. It was the mountains to the north of Seoul, and it really made me smile. I'm sure the Koreans thought I looked extra weird (already being weird for being a blonde American), but it reminded me that there is life outside this chaotic city, and it's really beautiful.

Once at HomePlus, I attempted to get some money out at the ATM, but it kept having a read-error. After 5 attempts, I gave up and decided to just make the purchases on the card. The fee would be more, but oh well.

This was one of those shopping trips that even though I had a list, I went down every single aisle. It was a good thing, because I found a few items I had not written down, but did need! Before I went to HomePlus, I had priced a few things at the small "everything-store" next to me, and there was a few things I was surprised were more expensive at HomePlus. Things like pots and pans and surge protectors were much cheaper at the small shop. Other things were better at HomePlus, though. I got the toilet seat replacement!! I splurged a few more dollars for the cute one with polka dots rather than ugly pink or blue.

I got a spatula for making eggs, some wall hooks for my jewelry to hang, a clock (luckily the only one that was contemporary looking, not basic black and white, was the cheapest too!), some batteries for my AC remote control, a lot of school supplies like red pens, some labels, a basket to take my things to class, a pen cup, some scissors, post-its; also, zip ties for the cords I had wrangled earlier, some hangers with grippy material on the shoulders for my tops that fall off the hangers I inherited. I'm sure there was more, but I can't remember now. I also bought some food staples: eggs, bacon, bread, special k cereal, some chips (Korean Pringles), pasta sauce (Maggie left some pasta in the pantry), milk, yogurt, cheese slices, laundry detergent and fabric softener (Maggie had left detergent, but no softener and I made sure to remedy this situation), chip-clips... hmm, I can't think of what else!

I checked-out, and filled up all my reusable bags I had brought. I lugged them out to a taxi nearby and the driver was extremely nice, a rarity in old Korean men who speak no English (in my experience!). I made it home, unpacked my groceries, and went to that small store nearby for the last few items; a non-stick pan for my eggs (Maggie's wasn't non-stick, and messed up my eggs this morning), a pot (the one Maggie left was questionable...), and a surge protector. I already had a surge protector, but it only had 4 plugs, and with all my technology, I need more.

Finally back at the apartment and cleaned up, I snapped some photos. Like I said, I definitely wish I could show you the difference from this morning. The room now feels much more open, bigger, and I've made efficient use of the space while maintaining a simplistic feel (aka: limited clutter!). Now I just need some color. I couldn't find a rug or lamp or poster for the wall. But, I did get magnets and have my photos of my family and Michael on my fridge :)