A Comedy of Errors

Yesterday was a day where everything seemed to go wrong.

Ryan and I decided to have lunch before he flew back to Vancouver. We tried out a nice little coffee shop near my house. We ordered two open face-sandwiches. They turned out to be neither open faced nor sandwiches. It was basically a salad with 4 pieces of bread stuck into the bowl. This was your kitchen sink type salad with different types of lettuce, kiwi, 3 or 4 stinky cheeses, salmon, tomatoes, oranges, almonds, Italian dressing, and whipping cream. It was not necessarily bad, but not what I had planned either.

We left lunch not being quite full. We had Jaeyoun call for a taxi to meet Ryan at an intersection near my house. After loading all of Ryan's luggage into the cab, the driver realized that he was not supposed to pick us up, but was intended for a man that had just arrived at the scene. So, we had to unpack all of Ryan's luggage and wait for about 10 more minutes.

I got home around 3pm and choose to clean up the apartment. I have been needing to clean out the coffee maker, so that was my first task. My coffee maker is getting a little old and doesn't work exactly right. You used to be able to remove the pot while the coffee was still dripping and have your first cup while it continued brewing. These days it will not stop dripping when you remove the pot. So, guess what happens when you turn it on and forget to put the pot underneath. I guess I was lucky that it was only a mixture of vinegar and water that I was using to clean the thing, but it was a whole pot's worth.

I cleaned up the water and never noticed that water was pooling underneath our kitchen table. The water actually pooled on, in, around, and on top of the power-bar that most everything in our kitchen is plugged into. I obviously didn't notice this and went on cleaning the house. I did notice when I heard a pop and the saw that the microwave and rice cooker's displays were not showing. Somehow, I threw a breaker and it took me forever to find the magically hidden panel that hides our breakers.

I started to clean up the rest of the house and moved back into the kitchen to put our dishes away. I was putting glasses into one of our cabinets when the damn door come off the hinges and almost on top of me. The only thing keeping it from falling down and shattering was a small thin rod. I was stuck there trying to figure out what to do. If I let go it was going to fall down and there was no screwdriver in reach. Luckily, I was able to unscrew the thing with a butter knife.

I think today will be much better. I am trying to get caught up on some work and Jaeyoun is off getting a perm. I gotta pick up some new glasses and try to get organized for the week. Jaeyoun and I are also talking about going to Thailand or Bali when our contract finishes. We talked about it shortly last night and wanna check some prices for that kind of thing. So, if anyone knows of any great hotels/beaches that we should check out feel free to send me an email. I may also have an interview for a Saturday gig that I am trying to pick up to pay for the trip I also have my eye on a Canon 70-200mm lens that I would really like to buy. I don't think that I can afford either unless I pick up a little Saturday work.

I also want be posting any more of my Korean studies here. I started over at The Learning Dog last week and will be posting all of my notebook, vocabulary lists and struggles over there. I hope this causes me to study a little bit more and to help me with my Korean typing. I am still struggling to make the time commitment that is needed to getting a handle on this language.

Changes, An Important Update

The last two weeks have been a blur. I have been handling my regular workload and been working on some serious paperwork. I have traveled twice to Seoul on Friday mornings to visit the American embassy*. Jaeyoun and I are now officially/legally married. We got engaged during our vacation in North America. Soon after that, we started discussing what kind of wedding we both wanted. I was all in favor of having a Korean ceremony and another one in the Catholic church back home. For a few months, the plan was to have both, but Jaeyoun decided that we could save a lot of money by only having one. We decided to hold the ceremony in November of 2009 in my home parish church. . We are planning to move back to Mississippi and start graduate school at that time. Basically, now we are trying to save up as much money as possible, so that we will not have to work for the first couple of years of graduate school**. We also wanted to have her come into the states on a immigrant or permanent visa and not have to worry about things at the last minute. I also wanted the opportunity to teach some extra classes, i.e, legal private lessons. For these reasons, we went ahead and signed all of the paperwork to make us legally married. And of course we are madly in love and were ready to make the promise legal!!

Our parents have been great. My parents will arrive in Korea next month for a a week and half visit, during which we will travel to Jeju, so that they can meet Jaeyoun's parents. The really made Jaeyoun feel like a part of the family when we visted last year. Her parents have been awesome as well and have really taken me into the family. There is still a huge language barrier between myself and my new parents-in-laws, but I am studying hard everyday and trying to overcome my diffiuculties in learning a new language. I have been here for almost 3 years and honestly I should speak more Korean than I do. I pretty much didn't study for the first 2 years and have only really been studying hard for the past 6 months. I could kick myself for the vast amount of time that I wasted in learning Korean.

We are looking at spending 5-7 years in America before coming back to Korea. The plan as of now is for Jaeyoun to get her M.A. in Math and then to start working on a Ph.D and I will be working on my M.A. in Teaching Languages and hopefully will start working on Ph.D in Linguistics later.

We have almost a year and half to get alot of things done. We both have to take the GRE and Jaeyoun will have to take the TOEFL test. My mother, who works for the Church, will help with all of the wedding plans. It will be interesting to see how many members of Jaeyoun's family make the trip to Mississippi for the wedding***.

The next few weeks will be spent getting the apartment ready for my parent's visit. We will also be trying to figure out what we will do while they are in Korea. I have a list started, but there is so much that I want them to see/do. We will spend a couple of days in Jeju and then after that the schedule is wide open. We do have to make a trip to one of the large markets to have my parents fitted for their Hanboks. We will take a few pictures in Mississippi all decked out in the Korean traditional clothing before the wedding. I really am interested to see how my father handles the food. I think my mother will love all the seafood and spicey food, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed about my dad. I can't wait to show them all of things that I have written about in emails/blogs and spoken about on the phone. My dad is super excited about visiting Jeju and I think that mom will love all the shopping.

I also walked into a new apartment yesterday. Jaeyoun had the day off and rearranged the whole apartment. It looks great and I finally have a real desk where I can study Korean.

I have rambled on for long enough and there is still so much I need to write about, but it will have to wait for another day. I keeping promising myself that I will be better about posting, but we will see.






*I also wanted to note that the staff at the American embassy was great and very helpful. They answered all of my questions and everything went smoothly. It helped that I had filled out all of the paperwork correctly before we arrived. They even commented that most people don't follow the instructions on the website. I hope that they are as accommodating when we apply for Jaeyoun's visa.

** We also want to have enough money to buy a car and to furnish an apartment when we arrive. We are also going to need to buy 2 new computers. My computer is 3 years old, slow and the Caps Lock button has broken off.

*** I can't wait to see how her parents and other family members take to Mississippi. I don't think they are going to enjoy the food. I am sure ,after a couple of meals of fried catfish/cornbread/grease and other fried goodness, they will be asking for some kimchi.

Shrimp and Beer

I didn't have any crab boil, so I had to make my own.

I couldn't live in Korea without Tony's

The finished product.

Jaeyoun enjoying them; notice the gloves!

If you visit this blog regularly, you have seen that I have not been that diligent in posting. I was spending too much time here and actually was spending too much time on the internet itself. I found myself being drug into hours of looking at Korean blogs and basically wasting a lot of time. In the last few weeks, I have fallen in love with google reader and now use it to read all of my favorite blogs. This has cut down a considerable portion of my time on the net. I have also been trying to convert more of my free time into study time. I am still working on the Sogang series and am a few chapters into 1B. I also picked up a couple of other books to use for supplements and review.


I really can't believe that it is already May. My parents are coming in late July, so my dad and I have been busy trying to find the perfect flight for them. We will be spending most of their visit in the Suwon/Seoul area, but will spend a couple of days on Jeju, so that they can meet Jaeyoun's parents. Jaeyoun will be coming to Jeju for the first day, but will have to leave early the next day due to work obligations. Her departure will leave me without a translator and her father has already announced that I have 2 months to study and that I can translate anything he needs to say to my parents.(If you know my Korean level, you know how funny that is) This has been one of the main motivators for studying. Every time I think I am going to surprise him with my improvement, he stumps me on the phone with something that I know, but that is phrased in a different way. 아이구.

I also found a couple of videos on youtube that really want to make me study harder. I am regular reader of his blog as well.

Lately

I just read that my last post was from a week ago Sunday. I have been trying to hit the books lately. I have finally moved on past the 1A book of the Sogang series. I still am having a little trouble with the formal polite style{(스) ㅂ 니다} that is used for news reporting and speeches and other formal situations. I really should practice on this a few more days before moving on to 1B, but I have been stuck on that last chapter of 1A for two weeks now and if I don't move on I am going to be stuck for awhile.

I have been trying to go biking a bit more too. I am trying to lose a little extra weight that I have put on. Saturday's weather was unbelievable great and everyone else in Dongtan must have thought so too. I nearly ran over a bunch of children trying to make my way through Central Park.

Sunday, Jaeyoun and I made our way to Seoul to pick up some Kimchi from her sister.(Welcome to my world...hahaha) We did make a stop at Burger King and Kyobo Book Store on the way back. My backpack was filled with bags of Kimchi and I kept wondering if at any minute was my bag going to give way and spread 100lbs of Kimchi all over the bookstore floor. Surly this happened before.

My brother and his new wife should be returning back to Mississippi after a week in Rome. I guess somebody had to take the Pope's place while he was in the States.

I have also been trying to work on some logistics for my parents visit this July. They are coming in a couple days before my vacation starts. We will have to work on flight plans soon. Jaeyoun and I are both excited about them coming and we will be heading down to Jeju for a couple of days to stay with her parents during my parents visit. This should not only be very interesting, but very entertaining to say the least. I think both of our parents will be fine and I am sure there will be some cultural misunderstandings, but it will sure be interesting.

Have you watched the Jason Beghe videos? Jason got out of the grips of Scientology about 1 year ago and has just completed a series of interviews with Mark Bunker. Very Interesting Stuff. If you follow these kind of things, you will recognize Mark Bunker or as he has been tagged by Anonymous, Wise Beard Man."His words are wise, his face beard" I have been reading about Anonymous's protest of Scientology for a couple of months now and the videos on you tube are great. You can search for any of the above words and find what I am talking about!

Near Meat

Ok...First wow...two and I have fallen behind on Saturday's Super Seven. I guess the topic is not that interesting to me..hahaha......I will get back on track soon!

The boss took the teachers to a restaurant that only severed vegetarian meals, except there were all kind of meat dishes offered that contained something I can only call near-meat. It put a hurting on me. I was pretty much done for Saturday after I took some medicine that knocked me out!


I just finished doing my taxes, could they make those damn forms any more complicated.

I am still working hard on Korean and continue to study about 1 to 2 hours per day. I actually bought a couple of books today to read along with my studies. One of them covers Korean idioms and the other is a Korean story book for children. I will be able to use the story book a little bit further down the road when I know more grammar. The idiom book can be used now, since there is English translation to go along with it. I recently set a goal to finish book 2B of the Sogang series by the end of this year. Since I am just now finishing 1A, I have 3 books to go! That breaks down to about 24 chapters. If I do one chapter a week, I will still have time to take a little longer on the more difficult chapters. I really could make it 1 and half weeks per chapter, but I like the pace that I am going at now and a little built in off time will be nice too.

Last Couple of Weeks

I really don't know what has happened to the last couple of weeks. I have been pretty busy with work and trying to study Korean on a regular basis. I think I should probably cut out all the beer drinking and get back to my normal regular-not-so-many-beer-nights self.

I have been trying to study more and more Korean these days and last week came across a post that Amanda from Amanda Takes Off wrote about her Korean study habits. You can access it here. I was glad to see that she is using the same books as me and she has given me a few ideas to add to the way that I study the language. She is a few books a head of me in the series and sounds like she really has her method of study down, while I am trying something new about everyday.

I just finished Chapter 4 of Book 1A and am finally glad that I can now use all the verbs I know in the past tense. I knew the difference, but had never looked at the style of conjugation, so this week has had a huge impact on the amount of proper conversation that I can have. I never knew exactly how to conjugate the words, so I am taking baby steps, but it is definitely a good feeling.

Man I'm Drained

I had a late night out with the coworkers on Thursday, so it looks like this weekend is going to be a lazy one. Our school is getting two new teachers on Saturday and they will be training this weekend. I am looking forward to seeing what kind of people they are. We found out our vacation times for this summer, so now I can start preparing for my parents trip to Korea. It should be very interesting for both of them. Having never traveled in Asia before, they will surly have a good time. I am trying to complete a mental list of where all to take them. I actually started checking out air tickets and man are they expensive these days.

My Korean torture studies are going slow and steady. I didn't make that much progress this week because of my lack of dedicated time to studying, but I hope to make up for it this week.

Immigration!

Today the boss and I made our hopefully last trip to immigration for the next 6 months or so! I finally got my hospital test results and was able to apply for my foreign identification card. I was thrilled that my boss had a made a reservation. When we arrived at Suwon immigration, there were over 150 people waiting. We walked through all the people straight to the desk and it literally took 5 minutes. Thank goodness the immigration officer turned to my current visa on her first flip through my passport. It would have taken a lot longer explaining the used visa and all that garbage and drama that I went through for the last year....Thank you *** *******

Studying Korean is still as hard as ever. I am getting more used to studying everyday, but I still have not gotten it down to a true habit as of yet. I am still working on the same books and trying to make a chapter a week, but that has slowed down a bit as of late.


I think that this will be a rest up weekend. I got some cleaning I need to do(in other words been ordered to do) and will try save a little money in the process.

Amazing Korean skill : Han-glish

This is probably not funny unless you know how to pronounce Korean. I just took a break from studying and have been meaning to post this for awhile.

Had a tough day?

This is not the answer for a tough day. My students for some reason were super obnoxious today! I was ready to get home and relax when I remembered that I did not study Korean this morning due to an unexpected visitor. I am not disciplined enough to study when I am exhausted and stressed out, so here I am writing a post instead of studying. I am still working on both books. I am using the Sogang University series as my main book. I am also using the Korean Made Easy by Oh Seung Eun. She also worked on the Sogang series and you can see a lot of similarities between the two. Actually, I think that she sat down with the Sogang series when she wrote her book. They both follow each other and explain the same concepts in pretty much the same order.

Since I went to a Birthday party yesterday, It would have been nice if I would have started this lesson a day early at least I would have known. 생일 축하합니다 . (Happy Birthday)

Random Conversation

I was taking a break outside the school today and was finishing up sending a text message when an middle aged guy stopped and starting talking to me. The conversation went something like this. Patience with my Korean please and I am sure that I am leaving out some parts


Random Korean Guy(hereafter known as RK) : 안녕하세요? Hello

ME: 안녕하세요? Hello


RK: 캐나다 사람이에요? Are you Canadian?

ME: 아니요 미국 사람이에요. No, I am American.

RK :아 미국 사람이에요. Ahh you are an American.

ME: 네. Yes (This was when I noticed the smell of soju, I think it was him saying ahh)

RK: 영어 성생님이에요? Are you an English Teacher?

ME: 네. Yes

RK: ㄱㄱㄳㅅㅅㄱㄳㅅㅇㅎㅊ (He starting speaking faster and I had no idea what he said)

ME: 미안함니다. 천천히 말해 주세요. I am sorry. Please speak slower.

RK:ㅗㅗㅗㄹㅇㄴㄴㅁ (He spoke slower, but I have no idea what he said.)

ME: 미안함니다. 한국말 조금해요. I am sorry. I only speak a little Korean.

RK:ㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹ 어디 일해요 Where do you work? (I didn't catch all of it.)

ME: ************ 학원이에요. I work at *********** Academy.

RK: 학원 어디에있어요? Where is your academy?

ME: 요기 질층. Here 7th floor.

RK: 소주 좋아해요? Do you like Soju?

ME: 네. 좋아해요. Yes. I really like it.

RK: 아. ah. sucking the air through his teeth.

I was trying to leave at this time but he had moved in a little closer and was ready to talk to talk some more.

RK: 나이가 어떻게 돼요? How old are you?

ME: Huh?

RK: 나이가 어떻게 돼요? 저는 마흔** How old are you? I'm 40.

ME: 아. 나이가 어떻게 돼요? 삼십일 ahh How old are you. I'm 31.

I realized that I used the wrong number system here, but he then told me his age in the wrong number system as well. I can't really remember what he said though.

RK: ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Laughing

ME: 왜요 Why?

RK: 형이에요. I'm your older brother.

ME: Hahahaha

RK: 이름이 뭐예요? What is your name?

ME: 자는 제이슨 이에요. My name is Jason.

RK: 아 자는 박 *** 이에요 Ah. My name is Park *** ***

ME: 박갑습니다 Nice to meet you.

RK:박갑습니다 Nice to meet you.

RK: 같이 소조 마셔요! Let's go drink soju together.

At this point he was grabbing my arm and trying to pull me towards a bar that was close to the school.

ME: 아저씨 Sir

RK: 아저씨 아니요 형 형 형. Sir....No......Older Brother, Older Brother, Older Brother

ME: 형 지금 일해요 ! Older Brother, Now I am working.

RK:같이 소조 마셔요 같이 소조 마셔요! Lets drink Soju. Let's drink Soju.

ME: 나중에 같이 소조 마셔요 지금 일해요 ! Later, We drink soju together. Now I work.

ME: 미안함니다. I'm Sorry.

At this point I saw our school's bus pulling up and some of my students getting out. Nothing of the students saw me which was a shame.

ME: 형 초기 나 학생 있어요. Older Brother, There are my students.

RK: 친국 없어요. I don't have any friends.

RK: 이십 만 원 있어요. 소조 마셔요!. I have 200,000 won. Let's drink soju!

RK: ㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹㄹ 형형이에요. I'm your older brother. I will pay.(I got a little lost here. I am not sure exactly what he said.)

ME: 미안함니다. I'm sorry.(What do you say to that)

He was still pulling on my jacket at this point I was getting a little annoyed, but at the same time I felt sorry for him. Also, at this time another guy walked up and said hello to him.

ME: 너 친국 이에요? Your friend?

RK: ㅋㅋㅋㅋ 네. Laughing ....Yes.

ME: 지금 일해요. 나중에 같이 소조 마셔요. Now, I have to work. Later we will drink soju.

RK(to other guy) 미국 친국. My America friend.

His friend could tell that I needed to go and pulled his friend away.

ME: 안녕히 가세요! Goodbye

RK: 안녕히 가세요! Goodbye

RK: 소주 나중에. Soju later!

ME:(shaking my head) 아라써요 Ok, I will.(I don't know if this was the right Korean to use)

They left arm in arm singing and walked into the bar next to the building where our school is located.

I told this story to my boss's wife and to some of my other Korean coworkers. They got a big kick out of it. They asked if I didn't have to work, would I have gone with him? I don't think that I would have. My Korean is not strong enough to carry on much of conversation with someone who doesn't speak any Korean. I guess we could have talked about the weather and a few other topics that I can talk about, but I would probably not be that entertaining. There are not that many bars in Dongtan. So, I am sure that he and I will cross paths again. I wonder if he will show up one night at the school and be ready to drink.........

Relaxing Weekend!

After coming back from Japan, I took the bus straight to Youngtong. I headed straight to Pavox. It was nice to see everyone again. I saw a bunch of people that I have not seen in about 4 months. Jaeyoun showed up later and we ate, drank and threw darts for a few hours. I spent Saturday cleaning up the apartment. Jaeyoun's coworker came to stay with us on Saturday night. We went out for chicken and beer and then back to our place to hang out. I tried to follow as much of the conversation as possible. My Korean is improving, but not in leaps and bounds. I gave them my bed and I am trying to get the kinks out of my back from sleeping on the floor. I really think hanging out with Jaeyoun and her coworkers has had the biggest improvement on my vocabulary. I told them to please correct me when I say the wrong thing and they feel comfortable enough to stop and correct me. Since they all work so much, we don't get to do much besides going out for dinner and drinks. Most of the teachers at Jaeyoun's school work 7 days a week. Jaeyoun works only 6 days a week, so she has it easy. I really felt uncomfortable when they found out that I don't work on the weekends at all. Along with Jaeyoun, they have taught me the most about Korea. It is also nice to learn that Jaeyoun's parents are typical Korean parents after hearing about her coworkers families.



Also, I have been meaning to add these four people I know to the the blogroll . All four live and work in Korea. I saw all of them, but Roxy on Friday night. So here they are; Roxy, Shannon, Stephanie, and Dave

Korean Studies

These are the two books I am currently using. The first book is super easy and I already know most of the words that are covered in it. The second book has been my downfall. I like the way the book is set up, but I try to cover the chapters too quickly and there is just too much information in each chapter. I have found a few useful websites and have been trying to use those as well. If anyone has a series of books that they use and are in love with please let me know. I am trying to finish a chapter in the second book per every 4 days. It looks like it maybe closer to a week or two. I am currently on Chapter 4. My level is so screwed up right now. I feel like I am a false beginner, but there is still so much basic words and phrases that I do not know.

I am up to about 2 hours per day of studying. I am trying to find a system that truly works for me. I am trying to think about it like I teach my students. I already have my Korean notebook to write down words that I learn everyday, but there seems to be an endless supply of those. I am tempted to go and buy some kid's books so that I can actually try and read a story. That may be a mission I send Jaeyoun on soon. I don't want to break away from my books, but I really want to learn more verbs and conjugations. I am just trying to decide the best way to do that.