hite is korean beer, previously mentioned as shite. yup.

my cold has returned with a vengeance. sneezing, coughing, painful sinuses, etc. can't blame it on drinking cuz i haven't. i just realised that i have a really really short fuse right now and i don't want to take itout on anyone. so i am avoiding peopple. maybe that's good. maybe not. i went back to bed after i relised that the hike was off. anna called me to confirm while i was on the phone with teri (thanx for calling back, btw) and they said no can do. anna and i have come to the consenses that we are just going to leave it be unless they get in touch with us. so be it.
back to the involved lessonplan that i am trying so hard to avoid.

correcting an error

i wanted to acknowledge that my little big sis does visit my blog and was going to edit my last post, but blogger is having an error nite. Bridget, thanks for stopping by and for letting me know. just to retiterate, if you want to leave a comment, click comments below the particular posts-all can now leave comments and I will only edit or delete offensive ones. please do leave somments, so I know you read up on me, because sometimes I have no idea. I have had the impresion due to the lack of calls or emails that i was out of site out mind. glad to know that is not entirely true. sorry, bridge. love and miss you. sorry i misssed your call tonight-i had a rather crappy trip to seoul.

my travelling companion was rather against the bus even though we could have gotten home at a reasonable hour. some overly long cab rides and rude cab drivers put me in a bad mood. the promised apple pie that was not made when i wwent back bothered me, and it is hard to get used to being disregarded as a foreigner some days, so, Bridget, i mossed your call becsause U had to wait and hour and a half for the long train home instead of heading to the bus terminal. i missed a dinner i was looking forward to for a an unfulfilling trip. bummer. i had good company and got the second book in the eragon (christopher paolini) trilogy and some pepper jack cheese. i was cranky, though, and I hope I did not turn off a new friend by pretending to feel better than i felt. we'll see.

bad days

before reading, be warned that Reason has taken a day trip and left me. we parted amicably for a while. We both needed a break from each other. Ms. Nice Gal went with Reason. Of course, my mom may read this, though I don't think she remembers how to get here, but Ms. NG left a note that she may stop by...but sometimes Ms. Nice Gal doesn't have a clue. oh, yeah, Ms. Nice Gal is the one who doesn't swear. but I never claimed I don't-just not like i did when i made sunrooms with a bunch of guys.

I am having a I hate Korea day. It will pass. it better pass.

don't care if i am an english teacher today. punctuation, spelling, the impulse to correct runon sentences and all that crap can take the back seat on shitty days. hell, they can walk. i do. the three month slump has hit with ha vengeance. PMS is kicking my ass. if you're a guy reading this, too bad. not that it matters. my regular readers are few, but htey are welcome to leave comments-as all can now do by hitting the comments button. that way i know who stops by. (Edited because my little big sis Bridget does stop by, but I didn't know until noe). no one calls. nope, i have to foot the international phone bill if i want to hear a friendly voice. come on people, is that anyway to treat family?

i can't read the bill. the people at the bank are laughing and the companies are ripping me off charging more than they promised. the koreans that i know and can ask for help seem to be such pushovers they don't seem to expect the company to abide by their promises. what the hell? it's cultural. koreans pay more for stuff here than we pay for the same shit back home in walmart. i have no sympathy, and it's my blog so i'll cry if i want to. you know the tune.

dana-i don't think you will ever read this but, i wrote back, but it was carthatic and you lowered yourself below receiving the well considered response that actually took your feelings into consideration. btw, don't ever tell me you love me in christ-christ does not love people like that-he treated people with respect. to him, their feelings and their souls mattered more than his own desires. he did not respond in anger and he knew people made mistakes. i know i do. but your email implies that you don't care what i think. if some one offers you something thinking you will appreciate it, maybe you should appreciate the thought behind it. i appreciated what you did for me, and tried to pay or do something there because i knew it would be harder once i got here. maybe you don't realize that i can't have a real conversation at the post office. hell, it took me 2 months to find out where the closest one was-my friends used to go half way across town. maybe if someone tells you something doesn't exist in a country because an entire people don't want to wear clothes with their own language on it, and maybe, if you haven't spent any real time there, your should accept that some one who, at the time believing she was still your friend was telling you the truth because she cared about you. i could emphasize past tense, but i do hope you find friends that you think are worthy of you and will treat you as you treat them. obviously you don't think i am worthy of you. after that email, i agree. i don't deserve swearing, disrespect, defamation of my character and insults to my family. DO NOT EVER DISRESPECT MY FAMILY LIKE THAT. Anyone who thinks they can be that way about my family can get the frack outta my life.

if there is one thing i have learned in this world, it is the only ones you stand a chance of keeping close, who might love you, and have your best interest at heart your whole life are the family members you work to maintain a relationship with (including the inlaws that are like blood, the adopted swedish ones, the newly discovered ones or others). there are those in my family who don't, but my brothers and sisters an my mom-just don't go there. EVER. I love my family more than anything and everything, myself included. they are more important than anything to me. if you ever read this i'm sure you can infer what i think of your opinion. no one who loves christ or claims they love christ writes opinions in emails like that no matter how bad they are hating. and opinion it is, not fact. you should film yourself when you are drunk and pole dancing and swearing on your phone or at people who thought you were a friend. do that while you proclaim to love jesus. there are reasons i keep my faith intensely private and do not publicly call myself a christian. it's not shame, it's respect. i don't like organized religion. it inevitably screws up and organized religion screwed me up for many years. i don't live my life by scriptures perse, but i remember those that tried to teach me how to be good and true. i know there is something out there bigger than me. i don't know exactly what it is, but i pray to god because it is a good name. maybe he doesn't hear me or care. maybe because i use the wrong label i don't count. no matter what is beyond this, i try to live my life right and i screw up. everybody does. and i don't want anyone to ever look at me and think i am bad representation of the beliefs of an entire group of people, most of whom are good people.

when my frontal lobe kicks in again, this may be edited or deleted. how about a vote for whether honesty should stand in all it's starkness? Bridgett, my dear, that would be you. Ja/Nine? (nien?)

My third graders may soon find themselves strangled (not all of them, just most) or without an auction. possibly both. they refuse to behave like members of the human race despite either rewards or punishment, such as I am allowed to mete out (not much). there are a few repeat offenders that i would like to ban from class. perhaps i will. and tell them that they are still responsible for the material. not that it matters. in this crazy country, children are not held back-even the kids who do not fill out their tests at all! that's right folks, you can get an absolute zero and still pass through to the next grade with all the pomp and circumstance that koreans may see fit to shower there over indulged children with. And yes, overindulged. Insanely expensive ($400) cell phones are treated like toys. A teacher here even said that-that cellphones are like toys for kids. and they are sooo much more expensive than back home. which is why i have stuck with the free korean script only one that a coworker so kindly gave me. I can barely use it at all, but it was free. i may break down eventually,if i can find a place that will bybass the usual descrimination that demands that foreigners not be given anything nice, like cable, cell phones of a certain caliber, etc.

A more balanced post, or one that highlights something good may follow later. Uuh, I am saving more than back in the US. i thought i was going to add cheap killer internet, but even though mine has never gone down, it is just as expensive as back home. well, mine is. Eddie pays less and so do ralph and anna. go figure.

Reason may return later, but a shite stout and a couple of coronas have just stopped in. I wouldn't want to be a bad hostess, so i shall see if i will add anything to my liquid dinner. wish guiness would make an appearance. that would be brilliant. but my digs are pretty low rent for the cristal of beers. i had a brief talk with guiness at U2 bar a while back, but next time i think a nice GI will have to make introductions. It is a true tragedy that Young's Double Chocolate Stout does not even seem to know that South Korea exists. I think I shall introduce the shite stout to bacon and eggs and tabasco, my staple dinner since I can't get good korean delivered in the sticks, and I can't read the labels at the store too well. getting better..

i have an invite to go to costco in seoul tomorrow. i want to go just to check it out. i also have an invite to outback, time TBD, and they may conflict. both are expensive propositions. i also have to do a detailed (read minute by minute) lesson plan for my least favorite 2nd grade class, TIPS, which is based on a really shitty korean book that masquarades as a social studies type book that is (to my misfortune) incorrectly classified as science. this detailed plan is for the benefit of the parents of my little lovelies-2nd grade. Mostly moms come to observe. perhaps i will do everything i planned this weekend and pull one out of you know where sunday nite, since it is a given that it will be wrong and require many do-overs. anyway. you are probably tired of my rant. to be honest though, if I had a tub, some epsom salts, real pizza, and a BIGASS hug, i'd be so much better. but i will be ok. i have been through worse and pulled through it.

hey, somebody in the family, call me, ok? IT'S YOUR TURN. I sent the number, but if you need it again, just email me. and send deoderant-preferably tom's all natural lavendar, assuming mom hasn't. i asked, but i don't know if she remembered. iam trying to order yarn online and i will send it to you teri, if i do, because mom forget's about the packages. and you are closer to the post office. ok, enough rambling. i am going to sign off and see about food. i wish my fucking school wasn't so cheap and left us out here in the sticks so i could get delivery (not to mention the bus fare and higher utilities). food...and drink and knitting and comfort tv. all will be well. I have bigger 'wish list' but the shite is gone now and the corona and i are becoming acquainted. time to go..........

On the needles

Currently on the needles, a blanket in a very soft and plush poly yarn, light purple. I bought it at Dongdaemun. Blue fingerless mitts from Weekend Knitting and the Skully Sweater from SnB that will bear no skulls. Not necessarily in order.

Blah

Fybromyalgia and isolation are getting the best of me this weekend. I tried to make plans with people who did not call back or who cancelled. I ended up not hiking because I was too tired that early-which was not in fact early, but I just couldn't get myself in gear on time. If, in fact, it is the fibro. I know I am hard on myself, but sometimes I am afraid that I am using it as an excuse. But then, I truly don't know how some people can get so much done and have so much energy all the time. People like I used to be. Ugh. The near constant pain in my foot (sometimes both) does not help. I wonder if what kind of orthopedic help I can get in Korea. I may have to look into that. After all, all of my students are the children of doctors and university professors. There may be the occasional lawyer, but this country is not sue happy like the States.

Well, I have a special class test to write and tons of paperwork to create for my second graders to make, too. Miss Won wanted me to do all kinds of stuff this week. The only reason I am OK with it is because I know she works her butt off too. At the moment, I wish Ilived in Seoul so that I could go out and d stuff with out having to have it be a big to-do. I would love to wander around Dongdaemun today, go to a book store and go to Starbucks. Tere is a bookstore here, but it does not have English books. There is nothing remotely like Dongdaemun.

I need to buy some clothes, too. Another shirt was ruined, though I am not sure how and the band of my sweatpants broke. I have tried some stuff on here, but in addition to being very thin, Korean women's bodies are just different. Not only are they smaller from hip to hip, but not so wide from front to back, and tend to have flatter butts. They have tiny shoulders and even smaller busts than I do, but they wear baggy clothes up top for the most part, with strange layers. Shirts are not lowcut, but have what I think of as old lady style frills on the bodice often times, and are made for layering. The layers are made to lay in diffennet places than the layers that are currently common in western clothing. To me it looks rather messy, although I think that a lot of the current western layering looks messy and is unflattering to a woman's figure as well. Anyway, the point of this is that it is hard to go shopping. Most places do not have fitting rooms, so you have to wear a shirt and tank top to try on clothes, and returns are not possible at a lot of places. It is not unusual to not receive a receipt. Of course, I cannot read most things and it is not unusual for the price to not be posted. And then there is the way sales people here hover. I do not like shopping here.

Ok, enough procrastinatng. Maybe if I get done in time I can go downtown and buy a copy of the Economist or something. So I will add some pictures and elaborate later. Wonju Tatto and some other stuff to, if I have time and the patience.

USAF Band, The army band was on the far side of the stage. Unfortunately, the US did not play on the night I went.



Some cool martial arts diplays thanks to Korean performers.



A great fireworks display lasted quite some time at the end of the show.



Did I mention I had my hair straightened? Now I need to grow it out. It is much cheaper to have that done here.

A Few Changes

Several people have told me that they want to leave comments even though they do not use blogger. I have set the settings so that anyone may leave comments in the hopes that people who check my blog regularly will let me know what they think, and I also hope it won't be abused.

Photos from Wonju Tattoo coming soon! Neither of the American bands performed for the opening ceremony (bummer), but the Kiwis had a great perfomrance, as did the Koreans. Some nice martial arts forms were performed, too. They were definitely for show and not for strength, though, but cool. Especially the parts of the staff/spear form that were part of the forms I was learning.

Wonju Tattoo

Ugh. I hate heartburn. And coughing. And colds. But I love my big sis, Teri and it was great to talk to her last night. Thought I was caught up for school and I got loaded with progress reports today. Uh, scary. What do I say??? Frankly, I couldn't tell you if one child is doing well in reading, but not in conversation, not to mention if (s)he did better in the first part of science, as opposed to the 2nd half of the month. I do not take daily or even weekly notes. It took me at least a couple of weeks to get all their names down!

Upside: I am going to Wonju Tattoo tomorrow with Jane. Since Helen and Sherry could not go, they gave me the tickets, so I asked Jane. Wonju Tattoo is all about music, so you know I jumped on that, right? Wonju invites military bands from all over the world to come and play at their art center. I do not know which countries will be playing on the night that I am going. But I can't wait. I hope I don't have heartburn!

As promised, more pictures:

Sports day at school a couple of weeks ago. Good old fashioned tug of war.

Sherry, Helen's daughter. They are hiking buddies. Anna and I go over on Sundays and head up Beberosan (san=mountain)

They let some of the chicks hatch to add to their coop. This chick is about 10 days old.

Bung Bung, or Bunga, is one of their dogs. She is the only off leash dog. She did not trust me at all, but she is getting used to Anna and I and I give her lots of love and she is starting to like it. She really is a sweetie, an always comes along when we hike.

Some shots from the field trip to the gardens. More later, ok? I promise.

Some of my second graders, a traditional korean farm house, part of a whole valley of pagodas, amd an interior shot of one of the rooms in the traditional house.

Ok, my apologies. I told a lot of people that I would update my blog while on Chusok vacation but I have thus far failed to due so. My excuse, pitiful as it is, is that I am still sick and also (not an excuse) being more than a little lazy. I woke up with a horrible migraine today. So bad that I did not hear the phone ring when Anna said she called. I tried to eat around 1 pm, but failed and took some daytime cold medicine. Daytime or not, it knocked me out unitl 4 pm. I managed to get up and take a very slow walk before it got dark. I should eat something, but seeing as how I live in the middle of nowhere, no restaurants witha na appetizing menu deliver to where I am am. Cook, you say? Ha-and I thought you knew me.

Actually, wuth any luck, I will manage a grilled cheese sandwich before the headache takes over again. In the meanwhile, since I can't really think straight, I am not going to try to construct a third grade test, but watch comfort tv on my computer, and, if I am not too wiped, knit. I did manage to get 8 skeins of a lovely soft poly yarn in a light purple from Dongdaemun while in Seoul on Sun-Tues with Desi this week. I also met some of the ultimate frisbee players and had fun and hoisted a few brews with them. I was invited to go camping this weekend with them, but as I am not big on camping (if you know and love me, you know I love handy facilities), and that much of the talk was all about hooking up (and as yet, I've no one one the horizon in that regard), I decided to pass. Plus, I lived out of my bags for 3 days whilst in Seoul and did not want to do that again. I have lived out of bags quite a bit in the last 2 1/2 months and it;s not something I really enjoy. I always misplace things I really need. Like that pesky wallet. Imageine that. At least I have no keys here. Have I mentioned that you don't need keys for my door? You enter a four digit code. Viola. Varsagod.

Ok, pictures. yep. I know that's what you really wnat, and that's the part that takes forever.