It's How You Get There

Nearing the end of my second month here there's a little principle I'm currently internalizing that warrants sharing:  Sanity Requires Flexibility.  Sometimes that looks like buying the 30 pack of toilet paper, because bulk shopping toilet paper is apparently the only way to buy toilet paper and no waiting for a smaller pack to show up will actually make that happen.  It looks like realizing my new debit card doesn't actually work as a bus card and having to decide if I'm going back to the bank to fix it, or see if my phone is compatible with their electronic payment system. Then realizing that because my phone is "pay as you go" and not on a phone contract they may not take the phone option anyways (EVERYTHING is attached to you phone number, EVERYTHING.  Or there's when one of the boys pretends he's Legolas shooting me with an imaginary bow and arrow, and since Legolas primarily shoots orcs I have to decide if that's a point of discipline or shou...

Dating relationships are a hot topic among the kids at English school. It's a reflection of a culture where everyone needs to have someone, even if it's fairly shallow, and not necessarily founded on much of anything. That being the case, it's strange to have people who are single. But sometimes the dating situation at English school rivaled even the most dramatic of Desperate Housewives episodes.  Before R Teacher left almost two months ago, the school whirled with stories of her walking home with T Teacher (highly suspicious, not withstanding that they live in the same apartment building). They also had been seen eating out and they often arrived at work at the same time. To top it off, they both would say when asked "Of course we're dating!". So when R Teacher left to go to Seoul, there was a lot of concern for T Teacher and everyone was all ears on Monday when the youngest of the kindergarten class asked him what would happen now that R Teacher was gone.  ...

“Children make your life important.”   — Erma Bombeck, American humorist Students. They get grumpy, I try to be the bigger person. They fall asleep in class, I'm grateful there's a mask to hide my yawning. I call them the wrong name on accident, they call me by the older teacher's in retaliation. I forget to leave enough time for games at the end of class, they roll their eyes when I use sentences like "The dragon licked the knight.".  They get frustrated with in-class work, and we all feel hopeless when I don't understand the English words they're trying to use. Erasers get chucked across the room, and answers for tests get said out loud. Someone is always either taking off their mask, or chewing on it.  And all at the same time, when I come over to help the little who's dozing off during class, he leans against me and holds my hand while I walk him through the assignment. The boy chewing his mask grins at me as his mask falls down, and I can't he...

"To have another language is to possess a second soul." -Charlemagne I think every teacher or parent has that one phrase that they find themselves saying almost automatically. Like a broken record, the words and sounds wind through their heads and out their mouths almost thoughtlessly, triggered by the behavior they're meant to influence.  As a teacher with a wide variety of students ages, these sayings can vary. For my littles "find you seats" and "wash your hands" are pretty standard. For my early elementary I'm regularly caught saying "Is your name (insert name of child I had actually asked to answer)?". And for my older classes a variation of "really, dude?" is not uncommon. But the phrase most uttered in every class regardless of the situation, is "Is this Korean class?", "It's okay if you whine at me, but it has to be in English.", "Korean? What's that?", and the one to rule them all, ...

There have been so many times lately where I've wanted to do something, and had a crippling wave of fear and doubt come crushing down on me. Grocery shopping was one of those things actually. Going back to "Diagon Alley" with money, to actually buy something, was really difficult for me. All the possible worst case scenarios fought for first place in my mind, and all I could think was that I would fail horribly and never be able to buy anything again. Then of course I would starve to death and die.  Yes, I'm aware my inner thoughts are a titch dramatic.  But I hadn't come this far just to come this far, and it's ridiculous to move to a country where you know you'll be shopping in a foreign language and then be totally put off by it. At this point I've had the COVID test done twice here, taken all the buses everywhere, found my local congregation, successfully handled a drunk ahjussi, bought ice cream at a convenience store, and walked home in the middl...

As of August 4th I'll have been in Korean for a full month, and there have been a lot of things that have been new and exciting to see and experience. That being the case I wanted to list some things that I've learned in coming here that are a little different fro what I'd typically see and experience in the US. This is far from comprehensive, but just some fun things that I've learned and experienced as a new expat.  BYOTP - If you want to use a public bathroom here, be prepared to bring your own toilet paper. Many (if not most) restaurants and businesses don't have their own restrooms in their establishments. This is especially common in the tall high rises that hold a wide assortment of restaurants, officetels, and other businesses. Instead, you'll find a public bathroom out in the hall that is shared between the businesses on that floor. It isn't clear to me who's responsible exactly for their upkeep, but I'll tell you one thing, if you look for ...