Monday, November 10, 2008

midnight ramblings...

after meeting most of my family within 24 hours of landing in the hermit kingdom, i began my first day at work...at this point i'm am comfortable with resorting to lists. it's all starting to blur together...but we'll make sense of it all somehow:

1) teachers aren't addressed in the same manner as westerners. korean natives address their teachers as name + son sang nim which literally translates, for example, as "chad teacher"

2) matthew teacher is a thin thirty-something who has really been my guide, as far as adjusting to my new work environment...i feel like there's a mutual respect present due to our common interest in politics, even though our ideals lie on opposite sides of the political spectrum.

3) the other foreign teachers consist of 3 canadian females who, though at times may ere on the side of snootery, are well cultured and good-natured folk. i've already had the pleasure of breaking bread over some stimulating conversation: sharing lists of favorite movies, books, american/canadian pop-culture, etc...

4) any pre-conceived notions of my homeland as being a highly hierarchical society have been all but expelled. henceforth...#5

4.5) any pre-conceived notion of korea being an alcohol inspired country has been all but expelled. (ex. i have been drinking most frequently since i arrived).

5) it was a huge secret, that on my fourth night in korea, i was invited by my school's director to attend a dinner party of higher ups. (i have a sneaking suspicion that they were trying to hook me up with one of the korean teachers). henceforth...#6

6) as according to matthew teacher, a single korean female is an oxymoron.

7) life isn't fair...

8) "teach. your children well. your parents hell."

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