Random Things

Here are some random stories that have happened over the last couple of days.

1. Yesterday, I had a break after lunch, when my co-teacher, Mr. Kim, came into my room. I turned around and he was holding a huge black and white bird in his hands. At first, I thought it was fake, but the closer I got to it, the more real it got. His English is somewhat limited, but he said that the bird had been "causing trouble" somewhere in the school. I'm not really sure what that means. I wanted to take a picture but he left to fast. Then, I was looking out my window and Mr. Kim had attracted attention from a bunch of 7th graders down in the courtyard. I grabbed my camera, and snapped a picture real quick. I'll post it soon.

2. At the gym yesterday, I got on the eliptical. I was quickly shooed off by the trainer, who sat me down and went over my BMI, strength results test, and other health related things. Let's just say I scored in the middle for everything. He walked me over to the treadmill after and said "slow, slow today." He had the treadmill turned all the way down to 1- which is slower than I normally walk. He wanted me to walk for 30 minutes like that. Well, I had just spent a half hour on the bus, and there was no way I was going to walk that slow! So after he left, I cranked it up to 7.5 and broke a sweat. It seems that I have a workout plan for each day I come, and next time I go we will work on my shoulders. I wasn't really expecting a workout plan, but maybe that will be a good thing.

3. After the gym, I was walking back to my apartment and passed a few shops. While I was waiting at the cross walk, a young boy stood next to me. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye and wondered, "Is he one of my students?" I work with 525+ students a week, and I don't know many names. And they all look somewhat similar. The boy caught me looking at him, and jumped a few feet in the air and said "Seonsaengnim!! I... uh ...mean... Mara Teacher!" We chatted for a little while we waited for the light. His English was good, so I decided he must be in an advanced class. He told me that he was coming back from his music academy (he's been playing violin for 4 years). He has gone everyday for the last 4 years and absolutely hates the violin. His parents make him play. He said "it's really boring!"

Later, at the grocery store (it's pretty small), I was approached by another student! I was trying to decide on a marinade for some pork, and asked for her advice. Unfortunately, since she's only 7th grade, her mom still cooks for her. Guess I forgot what it's like to be 14. Wasn't much help, but I think I figured it out anyhow.

4. Students at lunch do not sit across from each other. When the kids are done getting their food, they will sit down next to each other in a line. It is strange to see literally one SIDE of the table full with the other seats across from them empty. I haven't quite figured out why that is, but it's interesting.

5. The other day I saw some live octopus in front of a store. They were really creepy and slimy looking. I'm not sure if I'll be able to stomach eating one live...

6. I crave Kimchi. Our region has a Kimchi Festival, and I'm praying it is not cancelled because of Swine Flu. Lots of festivals country-wide have been cancelled. I think it would be tons of fun to check out because there is such a wide variety. Sometimes when I'm sitting in my office, I really just want to eat Kimchi for a snack.

I think those were the some of the things I wanted to post about this week. I'm really excited for Halloween, and it sounds like I'll be hosting the party for my friends at my place. My coteachers are really excited for it too because we are talking about culture in unit 8 after midterms. They keep on asking about it and what they think we should do.

Things are still going well here, except I'm not getting many emails! If you haven't emailed- you should! I'd love to hear from you! :)