Ha! I'm finally done with this horrible bi-monthly task. Six times a year is far too often for this, in my opinion.
We mark all our students (12 classes x ~10 students per class) on 4 categories for Reading class and 5 categories in Presentation (science) class. We have a couple of weeks to grade, then the kids just log on to the (super cute) website and look at it. I doubt many of the parents ever see it and I know they don't receive a printed form. Also, all the comments I'm required to choose from are shown in English - more complicated English than most of my students care to decode. For example, "Good use of vocabulary and sentence structure is correct. Presents to the class adequately." I wish I could at least click on pre-filled comments that would later be translated.
After all this, I fall asleep and dream about students. Gah.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
News
I just got some GREAT news! My college friend, Annie, has booked a ticket to come visit me for a week in August! So I've requested the time off work and will hear back soon if I get all the days I want. I'm already planning what we can do - we have many options.
Hiking, temples, jjimjilbang (see prev. post), beaches, mountains, eating, rock climbing, renting motorbikes at the man-made lake (^^), shopping, eating again, maybe a baseball game...
-------We will hardly have time for sleeping!
On a slightly stranger note, I made an impulse purchase yesterday at Home Plus (like a SuperTarget or something). That's not the strange part. When I walked in, there was a large bin of bras and women's underwear on sale for really cheap. I bought 5 pairs of cute underwear (all the bras were A and AA - no, I'm not kidding) for ~14 dollars. The strange part was that there were plastic produce bags to put your selections into, to keep them clean I guess. Makes sense, but I'd never have thought of it. All these men were sifting through the bin to find things for their tiny little wives, too. I love Korea.
Hiking, temples, jjimjilbang (see prev. post), beaches, mountains, eating, rock climbing, renting motorbikes at the man-made lake (^^), shopping, eating again, maybe a baseball game...
-------We will hardly have time for sleeping!
On a slightly stranger note, I made an impulse purchase yesterday at Home Plus (like a SuperTarget or something). That's not the strange part. When I walked in, there was a large bin of bras and women's underwear on sale for really cheap. I bought 5 pairs of cute underwear (all the bras were A and AA - no, I'm not kidding) for ~14 dollars. The strange part was that there were plastic produce bags to put your selections into, to keep them clean I guess. Makes sense, but I'd never have thought of it. All these men were sifting through the bin to find things for their tiny little wives, too. I love Korea.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Making the art show
...Or at least helping!
I've been trying to save money with the goal of getting to take bigger, more meaningful trips more often. As a result, I jumped at the chance to get a free night out.
My friend is organizing the first ever Korea Amateur Art Exhibition and Competition in the 4th floor of a jazz club downtown Daegu but turns out the 4th floor needs some work.
So, in exchange for 3 hours of taping fixtures and woodwork, sweeping, and pulling wallpaper and nails, I got some beer and 20,000 won (~$20)! This bought me 3 drinks and a taxi ride home after the party. The work is far from over, though. The poetry night and art show will take place May 28-31 so I expect to help out a bit more.
During the cleaning session I met several new people, ever-valuable in this ever-changing, dislocated crowd of temporary residents. I also got in some long-overdue manual labour. I don't often get the chance to do work (besides gym workouts or sport) since I live in a tiny one-room with no option for modification. I found I rather miss the labourious work needed at times to keep a house (mind you I never owned one, just rented - but still I got to do some things to it).
Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera so I'll have to steal pics from someone who was taking pictures.
I've been trying to save money with the goal of getting to take bigger, more meaningful trips more often. As a result, I jumped at the chance to get a free night out.
My friend is organizing the first ever Korea Amateur Art Exhibition and Competition in the 4th floor of a jazz club downtown Daegu but turns out the 4th floor needs some work.
So, in exchange for 3 hours of taping fixtures and woodwork, sweeping, and pulling wallpaper and nails, I got some beer and 20,000 won (~$20)! This bought me 3 drinks and a taxi ride home after the party. The work is far from over, though. The poetry night and art show will take place May 28-31 so I expect to help out a bit more.
During the cleaning session I met several new people, ever-valuable in this ever-changing, dislocated crowd of temporary residents. I also got in some long-overdue manual labour. I don't often get the chance to do work (besides gym workouts or sport) since I live in a tiny one-room with no option for modification. I found I rather miss the labourious work needed at times to keep a house (mind you I never owned one, just rented - but still I got to do some things to it).
Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera so I'll have to steal pics from someone who was taking pictures.
Monday, April 14, 2008
At the Sauna
Today, I went to the jjimjilbang with my coworker and her girlfriend for a scrub.
The jjimjilbang ("jim-jill-bong") is a Korean sauna, spa, public bath. I've been to a few and they're all a bit different. Generally they feature men's/women's separated hot tubs and shower areas which are a naked area. The tubs are different temperatures and sometimes have herbs or flowers added for skin treatment. Then, after soaking and scrubbing yourself (or before if you prefer), you dress in a uniform of loose-fitting shorts and t-shirt to head over to the mixed-gender area. Here you can find hot (dry) rooms of differing temperature, usually an ice room, a cafe, a PC room, sports massage, kids play room, sometimes an exercise room, a general TV area, gender-segregated sleeping areas, etc.
Where they can differ is inside the rooms. Sometimes they're big and spacious or small and cozy. Also, the hot rooms often have different features, like sweet-grass mats, yellow soil (detoxifying) panels, charcoal (air-purifying), or aromatherapy. The overall design is important to noise management. Some are not effective (actually quite noisy), while others have a nice floorplan to maximize relaxation.
Near my new house, there's a sauna (which is only the wet hot tub/shower part) that I've never been to but there's a jimjjilbang 2 subway stops away. I have been there before, but never for the scrub. My co-worker Emma told me about it a while ago but I had no idea how to go about getting one. When we walked in she found tone of the ladies who gives them and introduced me. I gave her 15,000 won (~$15) and Emma told me to soak in the tubs until the lady came for me. After 20 minutes I was led back to a walled off area of the hot tubs where I was rinsed, scrubbed, and washed by this woman. There is not a single dry spot left on my body. I swear if she had scrubbed me any more I'd be bleeding! It included an icy cucumber mask (rocked my world!), mini back massage, and sesame (I think) oil body treatment at the end.
Yeah, I'll be going back for that one.
The jjimjilbang ("jim-jill-bong") is a Korean sauna, spa, public bath. I've been to a few and they're all a bit different. Generally they feature men's/women's separated hot tubs and shower areas which are a naked area. The tubs are different temperatures and sometimes have herbs or flowers added for skin treatment. Then, after soaking and scrubbing yourself (or before if you prefer), you dress in a uniform of loose-fitting shorts and t-shirt to head over to the mixed-gender area. Here you can find hot (dry) rooms of differing temperature, usually an ice room, a cafe, a PC room, sports massage, kids play room, sometimes an exercise room, a general TV area, gender-segregated sleeping areas, etc.
Where they can differ is inside the rooms. Sometimes they're big and spacious or small and cozy. Also, the hot rooms often have different features, like sweet-grass mats, yellow soil (detoxifying) panels, charcoal (air-purifying), or aromatherapy. The overall design is important to noise management. Some are not effective (actually quite noisy), while others have a nice floorplan to maximize relaxation.
Near my new house, there's a sauna (which is only the wet hot tub/shower part) that I've never been to but there's a jimjjilbang 2 subway stops away. I have been there before, but never for the scrub. My co-worker Emma told me about it a while ago but I had no idea how to go about getting one. When we walked in she found tone of the ladies who gives them and introduced me. I gave her 15,000 won (~$15) and Emma told me to soak in the tubs until the lady came for me. After 20 minutes I was led back to a walled off area of the hot tubs where I was rinsed, scrubbed, and washed by this woman. There is not a single dry spot left on my body. I swear if she had scrubbed me any more I'd be bleeding! It included an icy cucumber mask (rocked my world!), mini back massage, and sesame (I think) oil body treatment at the end.
Yeah, I'll be going back for that one.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
On the Rocks
Last week, I kept busy arranging a trip up to the northland to meet some new friends. As some of you know, I got a taste of real (outdoor) rock climbing at the end of last summer in Thailand. Following that experience I joined the Korea On The Rocks climbing club online here. It's mainly foreigners and a few Koreans. I didn't have a chance to go on any trips before the weather turned cold last fall, so I started right away this spring.
Last weekend was the spring Meet & Greet for new and old members to get together and kick off the season. I took a bus for 2 1/2 hours north into the ski resort area of Korea. I was near Wonju in Ganhyun park where there's a nice big crag with a wide variety of routes. On the ride up there, I was surprised by how mountainous the northern province is (Gangwon-do). It was a stark difference at the province border - rolling, tree covered, hilly-style-mountains turned to rocky, sharp, barren peaks.
At Ganhyun, I climbed the easiest ones a few times on Saturday and was surprised at my stamina - especially considering I hadn't climbed, or had a decent work out, since I was back in Bemidji (end of January).
That night we had a campfire and burritos, a well-deserved and long awaited Mexican-in-Korea meal. After the campfire, and sleeping on the ground in early April weather, I came down with a cold :(
So on Sunday, I took it easy and rested up - which resulted in me feeling how sore I was! That night, I rode back to Daejeon with another climber and took the train home from there. It was nice to see another part of the country, and the time has come to enjoy the cherry blossoms along the roads.
Now that I'm back home in Daegu, I've started going to the gym near my school. On Monday I just needed to stretch my locked up back and arms, sore from such a long period of rest. Once I get over my cold, I'll be sure and get out and capture some photos of the beautiful spring weather for you all! Until then.
Last weekend was the spring Meet & Greet for new and old members to get together and kick off the season. I took a bus for 2 1/2 hours north into the ski resort area of Korea. I was near Wonju in Ganhyun park where there's a nice big crag with a wide variety of routes. On the ride up there, I was surprised by how mountainous the northern province is (Gangwon-do). It was a stark difference at the province border - rolling, tree covered, hilly-style-mountains turned to rocky, sharp, barren peaks.At Ganhyun, I climbed the easiest ones a few times on Saturday and was surprised at my stamina - especially considering I hadn't climbed, or had a decent work out, since I was back in Bemidji (end of January).
That night we had a campfire and burritos, a well-deserved and long awaited Mexican-in-Korea meal. After the campfire, and sleeping on the ground in early April weather, I came down with a cold :(
So on Sunday, I took it easy and rested up - which resulted in me feeling how sore I was! That night, I rode back to Daejeon with another climber and took the train home from there. It was nice to see another part of the country, and the time has come to enjoy the cherry blossoms along the roads.
Now that I'm back home in Daegu, I've started going to the gym near my school. On Monday I just needed to stretch my locked up back and arms, sore from such a long period of rest. Once I get over my cold, I'll be sure and get out and capture some photos of the beautiful spring weather for you all! Until then.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Hello Everyone!
Well, welcome to my online journal. Here you will find my latest thoughts and adventures. Also, on the right there is an abbreviated slideshow of my most recent Flickr photos. If you click on it, it will link you to the full website to see all my pictures with the comments. (I'll have it updated soon, I promise.)
And Happy Easter to everybody. I already miss my Marshmallow Peeps!
I have been slow in getting this to you for a few reasons:
1. My school had to jump through a few extra hoops this year to get my visa, which delayed my alien ID card, in turn delaying my internet account, cell phone, and various other things.
2. Since I got my internet set up (last weekend) I've been busy with end/beginning of month things at school. My manager is a bit... different... so dealing with him is demanding at times ;)
3. I'm still catching up from being home - uploading photos and unpacking my things.
My apartment is smaller than it was last year but I have a bigger refrigerator. Unfortunately the bed is really hard and I had some bad mold when I moved in. My school had a wallpaper guy come in to cover it up with a new layer of paper, but that obviously doesn't solve the problem. I've requested to move into a different apartment as soon as one becomes available so the guys at my school are sorting that out. They'll probably just put someone else in my apartment without telling them about the mold. Pretty nice.
Anyway, so I'm not going to fully unpack until I know that I'm settled somewhere. That's putting a slight damper on my life, since I'm living somewhat out of boxes. I'll soon post photos of my house now, although I forgot to get any of the mold. :|
And Happy Easter to everybody. I already miss my Marshmallow Peeps!
I have been slow in getting this to you for a few reasons:
1. My school had to jump through a few extra hoops this year to get my visa, which delayed my alien ID card, in turn delaying my internet account, cell phone, and various other things.
2. Since I got my internet set up (last weekend) I've been busy with end/beginning of month things at school. My manager is a bit... different... so dealing with him is demanding at times ;)
3. I'm still catching up from being home - uploading photos and unpacking my things.
My apartment is smaller than it was last year but I have a bigger refrigerator. Unfortunately the bed is really hard and I had some bad mold when I moved in. My school had a wallpaper guy come in to cover it up with a new layer of paper, but that obviously doesn't solve the problem. I've requested to move into a different apartment as soon as one becomes available so the guys at my school are sorting that out. They'll probably just put someone else in my apartment without telling them about the mold. Pretty nice.
Anyway, so I'm not going to fully unpack until I know that I'm settled somewhere. That's putting a slight damper on my life, since I'm living somewhat out of boxes. I'll soon post photos of my house now, although I forgot to get any of the mold. :|
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