We are the CHAMPIONs: Clubbing with the New Girl (that's me)

Last night was a blast for so many reasons!

First of all, I'd like to thank Emma who absolutely, without a doubt, has made my life suddenly brighter with her presence in it! ♥ I met a lot of very kind people last night, all of whom seem to be absolute dolls. It was the first time that I'd been out in such a big group of foreigners before. To be honest, I was a little worried, because some foreigners here can be kind of ridiculous. You know, what I mean? As in, they get completely plastered and act like complete idiots and make fools of themselves. But, I guess those people are everywhere, no matter where you go.

It's just that, for some reason, I thought that there seemed to be more of them in Korea than normal. I guess I just needed guiding, haha.

Anyway. The people I met last night were lovely. Here's the downlow on what went on.

Around 9:30 Emma came by my apartment and we headed out to 700 club where everyone was met up. Apparently two of the groups really good friends are leaving Korea today (Sunday) so it was some what of their send off. They were funny, and boisterous (but totally not over the top), and sooo friendly!

I was surrounded by couples. I was the only single gal in that group, but I didn't feel uncomfortable at all because everyone was so relaxed. Via a speech made by the 'Man of honor' (the man leaving Korea) I discovered that they'd all made quite good friends over the years and through a few of the people sitting at the table he'd met his future bride (who was sitting right next to him beaming with this gorgeous smile).

This man was big guy, quite tall and broad with a shaved head. He looked like a biker (and he was technically, somewhat, from what I gathered from the speech). He got teary eyed. That's right. I almost cried myself, and I don't even know these people. It's mostly because when men get so emotional that they start to cry (even a little bit) then the situation is pretty serious. I just thought it was so sweet, and I'm a sucker for sweet things.

Anyway... after that we did some shuffling about doing this and that and finally headed out to our destination...

CHAMPION

CHAMPION night club. Now, THAT was an experience. Upon arriving you notice that there are tons of men in black suits running around and ushering people about very formally with ear pieces in. They looked like FBI. Upon entering I noticed how DARK it was. Geez. I could barely see anything except the faint outline of cushy chairs and the tables with little dimly glowing red lamps at the end (I guess so you don't run into them).

Apparently it's a VERY expensive night club. To even enter in the first place you have to purchase 'platters', big plates of fruit, veggies and other little snacks, as well as drinks. The whole place was rather swanky, and set up almost like a dinner theater with a huge stage and dance floor at the front.

A couple of DJ's started playing and when the dance music started everyone would get up and go out onto the floor and dance it up. Most of the dancing was REALLY awkward, and one of my friends said something extremely, and hilariously, accurate.

"They all look miserable, don't they?"

It was true! Almost every person dancing out on that floor looked bored and even upset (like they were doing this grudgingly). We also noticed that most of the Koreans just tended to sway around a bit to the music, there was very little actual 'getting down', if you know what I mean. Though, I can understand that for the girls because some of them were wearing dresses so tight I don't know how they even sat down.

Anyway, the Dj would play for a bit and then stop and everyone would go sit back down. The starting and stopping really disrupted the mood, but it also gave everyone a chance to rest for the next DJ to play. One of the DJ's kept stopping the music to make noise or say something into the microphone so the beat got lost like every four measures. A liiiiiiitle annoying, but fun none the less.

And then....

SURPRISE! MALE STRIPPERS!

Wait... What?

Not really. I'm kidding. There weren't any strippers at this club, though it suddenly became that kind of atmosphere. Korea is obsessed with boy groups here (and I understand the fetish, I'm not knocking it or anything.) CHAMPION night club took that idea and hired a group of handsome guys (all young, all cute for different reasons to appeal to most every girl) and they have them perform on stage. These guys lip-sync and dance to popular songs and drive the girls absolutely nuts. There was literally a horde of girls crowding the stage to touch these guys.

It was pretty entertaining.

In the group there was:

The Show Off: He looked like he would be the leader of the group. Kind of a Bad-ass type with a 'The devil may care" attitude. Lots of suggestive facial expression and gyrating to get the girls to scream and jump up and down.

The Tough Guy: Your token guy who looks like he might have a bit of a mean streak. But may also be a total softie on the inside. Great dancer, looks like he spends his free time smoking cigarettes and riding a motorcycle around town.

The 'Cool' Guy: You know the type. The type that's flirty with everyone, but totally not in a suggestive way. Kind and elusive enough that the girls just can't get enough of him. They want to get to know him and crack his playboy exterior and become 'that girl' that officially steals his heart.

The Cutie And then there's the 'Cutie'. This guy is almost a little awkward, but in a really charming way. While he can dance, he often has a bashful look on his face. His features are boyishly handsome and he looks like the romantic type. Probably sensitive and sweet, a guy who gives flowers, candy, and new little trinkets to his girlfriend, takes her out on picnics, and shyly gives her a kiss in the glowing light of the setting sun. That type.

These four guys cover most bases with what appeals to girls. And they drove them all BONKERS. It was cute, hilarious, and interesting all at the same time to see how these young women were reacting to these untouchable men.

Here comes the whole stripping thing.

At one point during the dancing the lights dim and a vague outline of 'The Show Off' is seen walking behind these moving screens, pulling his shirt off. The girls are already going nuts. The next song starts and the screens raise and there he his, shirtless, with this expression on his face that could have melted a glacier. The girls go even more wild.

A guy having his shirt off is no big deal. But when a guy has a body like that guy had AND when he's dancing the way that guy was it becomes a deal as big as the Trojan war. I know I had this look on my face that was a cross between "This is fun!" and "Uuuuhhh...okay...."

Anyway. 'The Cutie' was the next to take his shirt off, and of course the girls put forth a new screaming wave of enthusiasm. This is another thing about 'The Cutie' that you have to know. 'The Cutie' is SO adorable, that you never guess that he's actually built like Adonis under his graphic T-shirt. This drives the girls even more crazy as it's all part of the 'prince charming' attraction. You know... a sensitive man who can understand a woman and be in tune to her as a female but at the same time be totally masculine.

Guys, this was what I was thinking as a group of shirtless men were dancing on a stage in front of me. Sure I was having a good time, but I was also ANALYZING the entire situation. Do I need to be admitted somewhere? Back into graduate school, that's where.

Wouldn't that be just so much fun? Go around from nightclub to night club and document the scene and then write paper after paper of thoughts on what and why? (But I think someone has already done that, oh well. Fresh perspective!)

I MISS UNIVERSITY!

So...

Sure. CHAMPION was a great time, and the dancing was nice. After a while I left with Emma and her Hubby-to-be and we went out to Gwangali to a place called "Thursday Party", met up with some other people and had a great time.

I was actually kind of worried about going out that night, because I'm not a big drinker and you know... clubbing and bar hopping usually involves a lot of alcohol. So I was a bit concerned, but aside from maybe a beer (and not even a whole one), and a single shot of soju at the beginning of the night (I hate soju, I had the shot handed to me because everyone was doing a toast after their friends speech and I didn't have a drink. UGH. Soju=do not like) I didn't have anything but water. I didn't get tired, I didn't feel exhausted when 3am rolled around. I was totally alert, energetic, and ready for more dancing!

DANCING ANYONE?

For those of you who don't know, I love dancing. Find me a good nightclub and I'll stay there all night, not even joking. I used to hate it back at University when the dance clubs would close at 2am. WHY?! Stay open until 5-6am like the rest of the clubs around the world! People are just getting started at 2am!

Anyway, it's great exercise, and if you really enjoy it and you dance for hours then you burn so many calories. Gals, when going dancing LEAVE THE FLATS AT HOME! You MUST wear heels! Most girls wear what a friend of mine refers to as '2 hour heels', the really spiky stilettos that cram your toes in and really hurt your feet. Why do you even own a pair of shoes like that?

Buy a pair of comfy 'all night' heels. Those would be CLOSED TOED heels with a thick chunky heel instead of a stiletto. The chunky heel gives you more balance, and the closed toe doesn't rub blisters into feet as easily because your feet have nowhere to slide back and forth like with strapped shoes or open toed shoes (which also get uncomfortable because your foot is being semi-shoved through a small opening at the tip of your shoe).

But the reason I say WEAR HEEELS is because, wearing heels while dancing is GREAT exercise for your ab muscles and legs. Having to keep your balance on heels while move your hips and shoulders around at the same time requires more leg and middle body strength than you'd expect.

Anyway the I LOVE DANCING being said, if anyone knows of a good night club out in Busan then give me a holla'. I'm up to trying new places.

I've been to FOXY, WOMB, and now CHAMPION but there's got to be more out there.

So, if you live in BUSAN you should totally give CHAMPION a go. It's fun, entertaining, and really worth the money (which I still owe to someone because we left early. WHO DO I PAY?! )

Well, everyone. I know I keep promising pictures and then don't deliver. But eventually it'll happen, don't you worry your little selves about that.

I'm off for now. More exciting adventure recaps later.

Until next time,

~Auggie

Date Night With Busan

Ugh.

Yeah, that's right. 'Ugh'.

Ever had that feeling? When everything is absolutely great and you should be totally, entirely, and ECSTATICALLY BLISSFUL...but there's still one or two small things that are really bothering you, like the fact that you have to finish laundry sometime in the next millennia? Yeah. That kind of 'ugh'.

Aside from a small emotional breakdown this week was fantastic! I have to add that the breakdown was just par for the course. Living in a foreign country so far away from family gets to you every now and then. I'm surprised that I hadn't had an episode before now. But don't worry, I'm fine. I talked to my mum, ate a lot of Kimchi Jjigae, and then bought a whole bunch of skin/make-up products from "Skin Food" and started to feel better. Thanks for being concerned.

UPDATE ON 'THE ISSUE'

Not really a whole lot of news on what's going on with N and S Korea. However, China has finally decided that they're not going to 'support anyone' in this situation. I'm not really sure what that means yet. I don't really know if anyone is entirely sure what that means yet. We'll just have to wait and see, but life is going on as usual. Lotte isn't getting mobbed for groceries by people who think that other people are going to mob Lotte for groceries and no other major forms of pandemonium have broken out anywhere.

Here's some update for you:

http://www.koreaherald.com/national/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20100529000023

http://www.koreaherald.com/national/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20100529000052

Now for nicer things to think about


I've been wondering lately what my talent is. I actually sat down and thought about it.

After a bit of figuring through all of the jumbled mess that is my mind I came to the following conclusion:

I am a jack of all trades.

You know the saying.. "Jack of all trades, master of none." Yep, that's me for you. I've got my hand in a hundred different interests, but I'm so busy sharing my attention and changing my mind about what I feel like doing that day that I don't have time to become spectacular at anything in particular. Which honestly... is just peachy with me.

Why?

Well, I feel really lucky to have so many interests and opportunities to pursue them. I get to do so many things that people never get to do, and even if I'm not the 'best' at it or not even particularly 'good' at it, at least I'm enjoying it and having a fantastic time.

Photography
Writing
Singing
Fashion
Make-up art
Languages
Dancing
Acting
Music
Movies
Gender Anthro
Blogging
Cooking
Drawing
Biking
Hiking
Frisbee
Puzzles
Teaching
Dog walking
(and so on)

I've got a ton of interests, and honestly a moment should never pass when I'm bored. But I have bored moments all the time, because inevitably there are times when the one thing I want to do is the one thing that I can't do at that moment for some reason or another.

I want to write more, because at the moment I've got a lot to say about nothing in particular. But I'm just about to head out for a 'night on the town' (BTW anybody want to explain to me where this saying came from? Because when I think about it, it just sounds weird. 'On the town'? Does that mean that the town is paying for everything/providing the fun, as one particular meaning of 'on' would be... or what? Someone give me a hint) with some new friends.

Apparently there's a difference between a 'Club' and a 'Korean club'. I'm about to find out what that difference is, and I'm sure it will be nothing short of exciting.

Look forward to more random updates.

I plan to take pictures sometime, of something.

Anyway, to tide you over until then check out these guys:

WONG FU PRODUCTIONS

Until next time,

~Auggie

Monthly Tests: A Form of Emotional Torture.

Hello readers.

I'm not going to beat around the bush with tales of sunshine and butterflies. I've had a hard week.

There. I said it.

Also, I know that a lot of you back home are wondering about this situation going on lately with North and South Korea.

There's the talk of war in the air. I know that's nowhere near a 'small' thing, but there's no use panicking about it when there haven't even been any decisions made yet. As most of you know, on March 26th a South Korean ship was sunk near the disputed North Korea/South Korea sea borders. 46 soldiers lost their lives.

Originally there was a lot of trying to play down the possibility that North Korea was responsible. Now, it's just accepted information. Currently South Korea is working on placing more sanctions on North Korea, and has appealed to the U.N. According to news reports 'anti submarine exercises' are already being engaged by the military in South Korea, and US support is high.

I'm no International Relations expert, and I'm certainly not savvy on politics and war prevention, so I can't even begin to predict what might happen. From what I can tell North Korea is something similar to a dying animal. Its only lifeline is Communist China who apparently still isn't 100% convinced that it was North Korea that sunk the Cheonan.

If North Korea's last lifeline were to be cut off they would be in even worse shape than they already are. Their population and their army are aging, their dictator's health is failing, their economy is practically non-existent. Their means of survival are few, and there's a lot of suggestion that this may turn out to be their 'final stand'.

But, like my mom said, "A rabid dog, even a dying one, is dangerous."

Best case scenario.... North Korea makes a weak 'last battle' effort and fails miserably resulting in a South Korea take over that sheds minimal (if any) blood. The two Korea's will be united after all this time and after (what will probably be years) a while everyone will be happy and well adjusted in their newly reunited country.

Let's all just think about the Best case scenario working out.

That's the update there. I'll keep all of you stateside informed on what's going on as I find out myself.

In other news....

Monthly tests are happening this week, and so far they're been half of a disaster. My younger classes passed with flying colors, the majority of them making quite decent grades. My older students, however, aren't in such good test grade shape. I understand that the majority of them are busy with their regular schools (I work at a private school, which the older students attend AFTER their regular schooling is over for the day). It's stressful for them to have so many classes, and the pressure put on kids here in Korea to do well and study hard is pretty intense. But the society is a competitive one, and to do well you have to work hard.

I don't mind it if my students have tried and still don't do well. If they do their homework, pay attention in class, and then don't exactly Ace their monthly test, I'm kind of okay with that. I don't get upset, because I add in all the other factors.

But when the students don't do their homework, don't pay attention, and then after a test review during which I GIVE THEM the answers for the test and they STILL FAIL... then I'm upset. There's no excuse for that. If that child is so busy that they don't have any time to study for their English class then the parents need to reconsider spending their money on it. It's my responsibility to make sure I do what I can to teach their children English while their IN my class. But I can't control what they do outside of my class. I can't make them do their homework, I can't make them study. And don't you know that is the most FRUSTRATING thing.

I have all of these super intelligent students who could be thriving in English language, but they can barely put together a coherent sentence because they didn't do their homework and have NO idea what's going on in class that day.

Now that I've talked about it, I feel less upset about what happened yesterday with one of my older classes. Two of the six students passed with flying colors. The others? Failed. Failed miserably. After asking them a question they don't even respond "I don't know", they just stare at me.

I ask each of them right out, "Did you study for this test?" and they each replied (bashfully) "No."

After the tests were done I sent the two who had made good grades out of the class. I've raised my voice more times working at this school than I think I ever have in my entire life, but my only other option was to quietly tell them I was disappointed and hope they felt sorry (when there weren't any consequences). So I yelled. I told them that they should be ashamed for disrespecting their parents, me, and themselves by not even trying to do well on their test. I told them that I understand that they're tired, but that there are thousands of other students out there who have heavier work loads than they do and they don't fail their tests. I pulled the whole "What will your parents say when they see your grade?" card.

Thinking back on it, it was pretty harsh. But man... I was upset. Those questions weren't difficult. We'd been on that unit for an entire month and all of the sudden I feel like I'd been wasting my time. That's not a good feeling, people. Not a good feeling at all.

I'm suddenly sorry to my teachers for those times that I didn't study well for my exams, and then didn't make the best grade I possibly could. I'm especially sorry to Senora Pathman from Spanish III in High school for not putting forth my best efforts in class and them complaining when I didn't' make the grade I wanted. I now understand a little bit of what the teachers must have felt when their students didn't even try.

Anyway...

We're doing make-up tests on Friday. They'll take their test again, and they'll have an opportunity for bonus points (I made them write sentences for bonus points). They'll bring home decent grades to their parents and everyone will be happy. That's the plan.

*sigh*

Well,

That's the post for now. I'll put up another one later because I actually recharged my camera battery and took a couple of photos recently. I know all of this text is getting kind of daunting from some of you.

Everyone take care.

Until next time,

~Auggie

It's A Lot Of Something Good

안녕하세요.

It's been a while, hasn't it readers? This past bit of time has been really busy. I've been working quite a lot on top of studying for the TOPIK exam which is coming up in September. I haven't exactly had a whole lot of extra time to type up on the blog.

Ugh, my whole being is tired! It's been 'go go go!' pretty much non-stop since the last post. Open House classes at work made things really stressful for everyone, but thanks to the hard work and all of the effort that everyone put forth we believe that it was a success. Working at this private institute is sometimes really daunting, but I tell you what... I'm proud of it. I'm proud of the school, I'm proud of my co-workers, I'm proud to say that I'm a teacher there. While there are some things that I don't agree with (like some methods of teaching and what not), overall the programs are incredible and I enjoy being a part of it. It's certainly not what I want to spend the rest of my life doing, but for now I'm happy where I am.

This weekend was a holiday here in Korea. Buddha's Birthday. I think about it being kind of on par with Martin L King's Birthday back in the states. It's a holiday, no school, some work places are closed... but there's not really any kind of amazing celebration happening. Everyone just gets a day off. Having a three day weekend gave me the perfect opportunity to head up to SEOUL!

SEOUL SURVIVOR

As for the title, it's actually borrowed from some sign that I and the group I was with saw at a sports bar in Itaewon. Kind of clever, I guess.

Anywho. I had trouble getting online tickets for the KTX trip up to Seoul because I don't have my Alien Registration card yet (by the way... where is my card anyway? The 90 day deadline is approaching and I haven't even heard anything about it since my first week in Busan). Getting to a station to buy tickets was a problem because of my hectic work schedule last week. Luckily my good friend Jeongmin came to the rescue!

Jeongmin is the whole reason I was going to Seoul in the first place. You want to hear a touching story? Well, I'll tell you one....

OUR STORY

Jeongmin and I met in the 10th grade of Highschool. That put us both at about 16 years old. She was an exchange student from Seoul, South Korea. How in the WORLD she managed to find herself studying in Hot Springs, Arkansas is beyond me, but it happened and there she was. My school wasn't exactly diverse, with the majority of the student body being white, middle class and she was the first person I'd ever known from a foreign country. We had an Oral Communications class together and also played the same instrument in band (flute). We started chatting and after a while an awesome friendship formed.

I tell everyone, and this is true, that she's the reason I became interested in Asia in the first place. It was so amazing to me ( as I was this ignorant, unwordly, awkward teenager) that someone could come from such a different environment, surrounded by such different things, and still be so similar to me. That year was the year I really started to think about the differences and similarities in people. People everywhere... are people. Despite culture, religion, upbringing, language... we can all connect to each other. How awesome is that?!

The end of our 10th grade year was pretty sad, because Jeongmin had to go back to Seoul. Her year of study abroad was over. We kept in touch. Before we had facebook we e-mailed and occasionally talked on the phone. Even though we were on separate sides of the world and even though YEARS were going by, it always felt like she'd only been gone for a few days.

I started college hell bent on Asian Studies. I learned Japanese (there was no Korean program, unfortunately), studied abroad in Japan, and worked with students from all over the globe at a language center. Seven years later, and who would have EVER guessed this would happen (I mean, really), I end up in Busan, South Korea.

Friday was the first time in 7 years that I'd seen Jeongmin, and it barely felt like it'd been even seven hours!

BACK TO THE SEOUL SURVIVOR THING

Jeongmin, her boyfriend, and her best friend from college all greeted me at Seoul station. We went around all over the place, and while I can't remember the name of the area exactly, it was pretty fantastic. And it was HOT! HOT HOT HOT! I'd dressed in jeans and a heavy quarter sleeve shirt thinking that since I was going further up NORTH that it would be cooler in Seoul than it was in Busan. WRONG! I thought I was going to melt.

We had an awesome time.

We ended up in Itaewon because I'd told Jeongmin that I wanted to go to "WHAT THE BOOK" a mainly 'used' bookstore that offered all English titles. We all browsed some, and I bought two titles by Haruki Murakami. After that we met up with Jeongmin's friends brother (I would use names but I really don't know if they'd be okay with that. So, you're just going to have to put up with the 'friends friends cousins brothers ex girlfriends goldfish' explanations) and browsed around the area until we found a cozy little sports bar to chill at and talk. It was a good time. :)

The whole night was a good time. When you're with a group of friendly, good, people you can't help but have a good time. You feel safe, you feel comfortable, it's all great.

Jeongmin and a new friend I'd made from the evening out ate lunch together the next day and spent some time shopping around Seoul station before it was time for us to part ways. Even though I only spent a little over 24 hours in Seoul, it was a great time and I definitely know I'll be going back.

And to think.... I was actually DREADING Seoul. The only reason I was going in the first place was to see Jeongmin. That's it. But Seoul turned out to be pretty cool. I guess I can admit that.

Anyway,

It's another busy week looking at me from just over the top of Sunday's head. I can't tell whether it's smiling or scowling... I guess I'll find out starting tomorrow. Monthly tests for the students are at hand! That either means that I'll be glowing with pride or afire with irritation at the end of the week after countless hours of speaking/listening/ and writing tests with students who may or may not have studied for them.

That's all for now. The biggest highlight was Seoul... oh, and yeah, I guess I did emotionally survive the open houses. That's something pretty nifty in and of itself.

Until next time,

~Auggie

Early Mornings and Midweek Posts.

안녕하세요.

Hello readers. Well, it's Thursday, bright and early! And I'm up gazing out the window into a perfectly dreary morning. Cloudy, grey, and rainy it is on this 6th day of May, and I can only remember to be thankful that the weather wasn't like this yesterday on my day off.

Anyway. Not really a whole lot going on in particular. It's just 7:17am and I'm not ready to get down to any kind of business yet, so here I am on Blogger.

Lately I've been making a few lifestyle changes, and I'm proud to say that they're going rather well.

1.) Wake up early

Going to bed super late at night, and then waking up very late in the morning always had me feeling kind of sluggish. I'm not really a night person. I enjoy the daylight and the sunshine. I get very few things done at night, because I feel less motivated. So, I decided that it was about time to start setting my alarm clock back a few hours.

I set my alarm to 6:15am. At first, I couldn't get myself up out of bed on time, so I set two alarms. One at 6:15am to get me out of a sleep, and another at 7:00am to get me out of bed. It went that way for a while, but more recently I've been able to get out of bed at around 6:30am with little problem.

This morning, the alarm went off at 6:15am. I clamored out of bed and crossed the room to where my alarm was, turned it off, then skedaddled back into bed. 10 minutes later I was tossing off the covers, fully awake and ready to start the day. It felt really good!

2.) Exercising

I've always been very interested in exercise. Unfortunately I've never been much with sticking to a routine. The idea of exercise is always a pleasant one, but the actual practice was hard to get into. My family is very athletic/healthy so I've always felt a bit of the odd one out.

My father is a former black belt in Taekwando who is currently a gym junkie at the age of 62.

My older brother is a marathon runner/gym junkie with experience in kick boxing and other such interesting athletics. His wife, my sister-in-law, has 9 month post-baby abs and is also a marathon runner, former rugby player.

My little brother is a cross country runner/biker/marathon runner/gym junkie, with experience in Martial arts, MMA, and is now currently training for a half iron man competition.

My mom doesn't need exercise, she's always been small, petite, and cute. She can lose 10 lbs by just eating properly, no exercise needed.

My 33 year old older sister has the body of a 20 year old.

And then there's ME! I'm not tall and svelt, like my brothers or my dad, and I'm certainly not petite like my mom. I'm quite in between. Am I totally unhappy with myself? No way! Of course I complain from time to time, who doesn't? But I was always content enough to just let things be the way they were and not change them.

However, in the past year and half the tom-boy part of me has come out to play. I love being outside. Biking, hiking, frisbee, swimming... if it's an outdoor activity I'm game. But the hard-core exercise thing has eluded me still. Until now...

Picking up my life and moving to a foreign country has done a lot for my self confidence. I've learned how to function well in a new environment and thrive. So now, the idea of exercise has become more appealing. Routines are hard to get into, sure, but when you have confidence as a beginner it's easier to keep going. Do I feel TOTALLY embarrassed at the jogging track when I can't go more than twice around without having to stop and walk? Well, yeah. But it's not the crippling kind of humiliation that makes me not want to be there. I just keep reminding myself that with time, and dedication, I'll be able to run around that thing without having to stop every quarter mile to wallow in the dirt out of pure exhaustion (not that I do that now...).

A very dear friend of mine, her name is Kalyn (Cavalier Girl),has recently reached some of her fitness goals, and has really served as an inspiration to me! Thank you Kalyn!

Also, little things like... the fact that my jeans are fitting me better now... give me confidence and keep me going. I also continue to think about all of the cute clothes I'll be able to wear in a few months if I keep this exercise thing up! Hey! A big part of me is still a girly girl!!! Don't judge!

Maybe I'll even get brave enough to start a martial art.... hm. (One step at a time, Auggie. One step at a time).

3.) Study Habits

I'm horrible at studying. I never developed good study habits. If the class was one I enjoyed, it was easy for me to retain information and study for it. If it was a class I disliked or thought was boring, I hardly even opened the book and I CERTAINLY didn't listen in class. Not that I made bad grades. I did well. But, I believe now that I certainly could have done better. In all honesty I never really had any GOALS to achieve. Graduating was about it, everything else was kind of up in the air because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with my life. I knew that I wanted to go to Graduate school, but for what? My ambiguous future made it difficult for me to knuckle down and concentrate well because I didn't know what to knuckle down and concentrate ON.

Now that my desires and goals are a little clearer, It's almost fun to sit down and study. Even during the times when I'm not exactly feeling like it, I spread out my books and paper, get a pencil ready, and go to it. I'm getting better.

What am I studying now? Korean mostly. I've got some high reaching goals in mind, and it's going to take a lot of work.

Another study goal? TESOL. I want to be certified just for the heck of it. I think it'll help me a lot in the future. Though I'm not expecting TESOL to be anything that difficult to study for (watch me be totally wrong).

4.) Drink More Water

This might not seem like a big one, but let me tell you, I thoroughly dislike water when I'm not absolutely 100% thirsty. Drinking a healthy amount of it every day is a REAL task for me. BUT, at least I've been drinking it. Diet soda's certainly can't give me the hydration that water can. It's getting easier, little by little, but man... water is hard to drink.

Well, there's a little bit of that.

I actually feel pretty okay about making such a random post in the middle of the week like this. It might happen more often. Maybe. Possibly.

In other new, I think I've caught a cold. BIG surprise there considering I work with a bunch of kindergarten kids who don't cover their mouths when they sneeze or cough.

Well, here's to hoping a healthier life style will help me recover more quickly.

And here's to hoping that I can keep going strong with these goals and lifestyle changes I've set and made for myself.

Thank you readers for your continued interest in my blog. I have NO idea who you are, but I know you're there!!!! My daily counter tells me so!

Family and friends State side: Enjoy Cinco De Mayo! Have some Mexican food for me.

ROK peers: Children's day is over. Back to work! Have a great day!

Your blog host,

~Auggie.

Weekend Post Part II (on Tuesday): Life is Sweet and God is Good.

안녕하세요.

Hello again everyone. I'm keeping good on my word and I'm writing up this "part II" post to the blog I began Saturday.

Beware readers... long post ahead.

Saturday was an... amazing... day.

I had recently begun to feel a bit homesick. I miss my family, and I miss my friends especially around this time of year when the weather is so nice. I began feeling a bit misplaced. Friday night I went to bed thinking about the awesome summers at home, all of the bike trails, the coffee shops, the pool, the lakes, all the other fun things to do.

That feeling of loneliness also started to close in on me. While I have plenty to keep me occupied during the weekdays, and lovely co-workers to chat with during the breaks at work, I didn't really have anyone to bond with. I haven't been able to make any friends due to my hectic schedule. I'd been searching frantically for groups or activities that I could get involved and help me meet people, but let me tell you guys, that's not as easy as it sounds.

I went to sleep Friday night feeling kind of down, but woke up Saturday with some strange kind of strength. I was determined not to feel blue. If I had to be by myself, I would do whatever it took to make that time totally enjoyable. I woke up at 6:30AM Saturday morning (don't call me crazy, it was great!), piddled around the apartment for a bit, then put on my jogging clothes, laced up my shoes, and set out to the park. No way I was going to spend that gorgeous Saturday morning cooped up in my apartment!

I didn't realize HOW gorgeous Saturday really was until I was setting foot in the park. That place is a little piece of paradise. Green grass, trees, big wild bushes, and one of the most breathtaking mountains views I've ever seen. That scenic atmosphere coupled with the warm sun and the cool breeze gave me some serious energy. My first trip to the park on Saturday was great, but it was my second trip that set the mood for what was to be a truly amazing day.

After jogging for a bit (a lot of power walking too, because I'm so out of practice with jogging) I began noticing a lot of guys in uniforms begin to filter into the park. Soccer players. The green grassy part of the park is actually made up of two soccer fields. Neato! I thought to myself "Hm. Soccer. Interesting sport. I need to be interested in a sport of some kind." So, I made up my mind after my exercise to go home, get clean, and then go back to the park to watch the soccer matches.

About 10 minutes after I arrive at my apartment, anxiety sets in. I'm not much of a "Go and do new things by yourself" type of person. Actually, I get quite terrified for the most ridiculous reasons. I began to second guess returning to the park to watch the soccer games.

"What if there's a huge crowd of people there and I can't find a place to watch, I'll just have to turn around and come back home and feel all awkward."

"What if these are actual games of some kind, and it's not just leisurely playing, and I have to pay to get in? I need so save my money."

"I don't know the first thing about soccer, what if I get there and totally hate it?"

Yeah. These were some of the things going through my mind. But, I still had that curious strength that was telling me to 'quit being a baby' and go.

I kept repeating Eleanor Roosevelt's words of wisdom to myself over and over: "Do one thing every day that scares you." ...or at least makes you feel slightly uncomfortable.

That last straw happened when I was just about to decide against going back out to the park. This thought, as obvious as daylight, came stomping into my mind. "You'll move to another country all by yourself but you won't walk to a park to watch a soccer game? That's weird. That's just plain weird."

Alright, I talked myself into it. Out I go again, armed with a book and some study material just incase I get bored. The first thing I notice upon arriving back at the park, is that there are no observers of the soccer games going on (two, one on each field). The only people in the stands are other soccer players waiting their turn. The people who didn't come out to play soccer are strolling, or jogging, or riding their bicycles. Very relaxed atmosphere. No crowds, no yelling, just people enjoying the Saturday. Score!

I scope out seating for optimum comfort/view and then take the long way around to get to the park benches on the other side of the field from where I am. I take a seat. Suddenly, I notice God.

You think I'm kidding? You've got another thing coming. That one moment, settling down on that park bench in the warm sun with the cool breeze and the shady trees, the mountains looming in the distance against a perfectly blue sky... the presence of God was so blazingly obvious that I think my entire mind shut down momentarily with an overload of 'happy'. I just sat there in complete contentment. I was SO content in fact, that I sat there for over an hour doing absolutely nothing but soaking in the sun and the scenery and occasionally watching the soccer matches going on nearby.

Bliss.

At some point an ajushi (older gentleman) strolled past. He had a mask on his face (to prevent from inhaling dust and dirt) and a tool that looked like a pick axe in one hand. As he past me he turned his head, I could tell by his eyes that he was smiling. I smiled back and he raised his free hand to wave at me. I greeted him and he smiled even bigger, and then strolled on by.

Kindness. It's AMAZING what bit of minute kindness can do to your day. Things were only getting better.

A little later another ajushi on a bicycle stopped in front of me rather suddenly. We smiled at each other and exchanged greetings. Then he asked me if I liked to ride bicycles. Of course! I responded. He chatted a bit more and then he told me that he rents bicycles for people to use. He asked me if I would be interested and I had to politely decline and say "Perhaps another time." I found out later that apparently renting a bicycle for a few hours is free. How neat is that?! So it's actually 'borrowing' a bicycle.

Just a few minutes after this I realized that I was starting to get a little bit uncomfortable. That bench wasn't exactly made of down feathers. So I finally gathered my stuff, got up, and made my way into town. I bought some yummy bread (thank you Paris Baguette for having wheat bread!) went to a little stationary shop and then headed home.

All of this was done before 1:00 pm. I LOVE early mornings!

Cup Overflowing


"God is not a 'just enough' God, he's a 'more than you asked for' God. He's not a 'cup half full' God, he's a 'cup overflowing' God. God's timing is perfect, his wisdom and mercy unfathomable. God is not a 'standby' God, waiting until you call on him before he enters your life. He is ever present, with you every moment, ready to give you wisdom, help, and love that you didn't even know you needed."

As I mentioned earlier, I had been battling the inevitable loneliness that creeps up on you when you're in a new place, adjusting to completely new surroundings with no one familiar about to make that adjustment easier. It hasn't been anything serious, just a little blue feeling every now and then. I was handling it quite well, I think.

However, I prayed that God would send me a friend, someone who I could connect with. Meeting people isn't spectacularly easy in a country where you don't know the language.

In answer to my prayers, God sent me Regina (해리).

Last week Regina posted a message up on Koreabridge about a conversation/culture exchange club that was meeting on Saturday nights. There was a phone number posted and an invitation to call.

Those of you who know me well know that I have a bit of anxiety when it comes to making calls to total strangers. There was even a time when I had difficulty ordering pizza! Of course, It's not that bad now. But anyway... I dialed the number a few times and then changed my mind before finally coming up with the brilliant idea to send a text message.

The response to my text message? A phone call! Regina lets me know when and where the club will be meeting and I'm invited to join! 7:30pm on Saturday night.

Am I excited?

ABSOLUTELY!

Saturday comes around and I make the 50 minute trip to Seomyeon where the club meeting will be held. I get kind of lost, so I call Regina for help and she comes all the way out to where I am to find me and take me to her office where the club meeting will be. As I'm waiting I hear someone call my name and I turn to see this young woman waving and smiling at me. My first impression of Regina? SO CUTE! She had such a big smile on, and she even gave me a hug.

The club meeting was fun, hilarious, and fantastic. I met a lot of kind, interesting, and friendly people. I thought that this was what it meant to be blessed beyond what you asked for. I asked for a friend, and God directs me to a whole group of nice people.

God wasn't done.

Apparently Regina, her brother Aaron, and a few other members live in the same city that I do! What are the chances?! One of the foreign teachers (a young man who was born in Korea and adopted by a family in the US) even lives in the apartment building next to me.

Also, over the course of the evening I hear someone talking about a church that they go to with Regina. I'm immediately on alert. I've been looking for a church, but there are so many here and some of them are kind of strange... so I've been really wary. There are a few English ministries around, but for some reason I wasn't feeling right about those. So, I ask Regina about her church and she gives me some info and then invites me to join her the next day at the 2pm service.

Podowan Presbyterian Church

I could write another full post about Podowan Presbyterian church. It was just an amazing experience. This section is going to be long, but not quite epic, I'll leave some stuff out so family and friends, if you're ready for me to talk your ears off, then ask me about everything else!

I attended the 2pm Korean service with Regina (there are something like 4 services, to accommodate everyone that wants to attend. It's the biggest church in Hwamyeong.) I couldn't understand the sermon, but the pastor was animated, passionate, and apparently really funny because there was a lot of laughing. My desire to learn Korean became even stronger.

My goals with Korean? Know it well enough to attend a university in Busan and understand a Korean sermon. Woo! Can I do it? You bet!

Before the service started Regina helped me fill out a 'guest registry' form. At the end of the sermon the pastor took out some papers and Regina turned to me and said "Okay, new members are going to stand up now."

What?

Stand up? As in, in front of hundreds of people stand up? HA! I'm already blushing, but I tell her "No no, maybe next time." thinking that all guests were to stand up together all at once. I was wrong. They called out each person individually. Right after telling Regina I would stand up next week, I hear my name. I freeze. I can feel my face getting red as the pastor calls my name again and looks around. By this time half of the congregation have turned around to look for me, and have found me.... because my name is definitely foreign and I'm the only blonde in the room.

The people who have spotted me are smiling, it's probably impossible to miss that I'm embarrassed with as red as my face must have been. The pastor calls out my name one more time and I stand up half way and give a weird, awkward little wave. I sit back down quickly and take a deep breath... but it's not over! A young woman comes to our pew and hans me a little bag with some things inside and asks Regina and I to follow her. So we stand up, again, and follow the young woman out.

We're ushered to a room where all of the other guests and new members are. The pastor enters and calls everyones name out again and speaks with them a bit, I'm sure asking questions about where they're from and what not. He gets to me and all I can do is smile and try not to look as awkward as I certainly feel. BIG smile from the pastor and he shakes my hand and says "Welcome". He and Regina speak for a bit and then off I go to speak with the people at the English ministry.

The English ministry people are kind. But I can't help but think that the English ministry atmosphere wasn't what I was being lead to. It was nice, at least, to know that they were there. I also got to meet another really sweet girl named Shelly. She's from Chicago originally and her parents are both Korean. She's also here teaching.

After meeting the English ministry people a new group of us all head off to the College meeting which is just like a Sunday School class. Children's Day is on Wednesday, so there was a lot of discussion about children in need throughout the world. I couldn't understand what was being said, but the slide show was pretty self explanatory.

I'm looking at the slide show, the slide changes, and all of the sudden there's my name up on the screen. "Audra from the USA". My reaction? UUUUUHHH?!!!!?!?! I blush five shades of red again as everyone turns in their seats to look back to where I am. All I can do is smile and wave again. This time I don't stand up, I don't think my legs would have supported me. That much unexpected attention is pretty surprising.

But, I enjoyed being there with all of the other young adults. It felt good to be surrounded by people around my same age with a heart for God.

After that meeting we break off into small groups. Regina takes me to her small group where I meet four other young women. They are SO kind!!!!! Go Eun is the group leader. She's a molecular biology major at a University preparing for entering Med-school. Her English is actually pretty good, and she's so sweet. They include me as much as they can in their study, ask me about my prayer requests, and then ask me to pray (I pray in English and Go Eun translates). Close to the end of the small group Regina asks me if I would like to attend the evening service too.

My response. Sure!!!! We have a bit of time after small group before the evening service so some of our small group meet up with Shelly and a young man about our age to go eat.

After dinner we all headed back to church for the evening service. The evening service is full of singing, music, and a variety of praise that really kept me smiling and made me positive that God filled that place and everyone knew it. There was a children's group that came to sing and I recognized one of their songs.

"Oh how he loves you and me.
Oh how he loves you and me.
He gave his life, what more could he give?
Oh how he loves you.
Oh how he loves me,
Oh how he loves you and me."

I almost cried.

Then I almost cried AGAIN when a young woman came up to play the violin. Readers, she MUST have been famous because she was INCREDIBLE! I have never heard, and I mean NEVER, someone play an instrument like this. Even seeing fiddle players and what not in Branson and at shows... they couldn't match her, not even close. She was so passionate, and she moved with the music, it was SO amazing. One of her songs even made people cry. Her tone was perfect, on key, notes crystal clear. Every time she played the high strings I got goose bumps. It was phenomenal.

More singing again, and then the service ended.

Shelly and I say goodbye to everyone. Regina heads home, and Shelly and I go to Lotte Mart. We chat for a bit and express how glad we are to have someone to chat with in English. Then hugs, and Shelly goes home and so do I.

Later that night I get text messages from people telling me that they're glad to have met me. I feel completely happy.

So what about this cup overflowing thing?

Okay, so, I pray and ask God for a friend.

God answers my prayer with:

*Regina
*Aaron
*Go Eun
*Shelly
*The girls from my small group (Their names are hard to remember! But I WILL remember them!)
*The people from the culture club
*And... on top of all of that... a church home for me in Korea.

Consider my cup overflowed! ♥

To my family and friends in the states: I miss you so much! But I'm doing great, so don't worry about me! Smile a lot!

To my new friends here in Korea: I feel so blessed to have you in my life!

To my readers wherever you are: I hope that you're healthy and happy and enjoying life!

Until the next blog!!!

Your blog host,

~Auggie

Runny Noses and Separation Anxiety.

안녕하세요.

Hello readers. It's been a full week since my last post, and part of me actually feels a little guilty about that. So, let me explain.

This last week has been FILLED with blogworthy things. The drama at work has measured an 8.5 on the "Days of our Lives" scale, but unfortunately I care about peoples feelings too much to write up about their problems on a blog... even when their problems DO affect me and the entire office in a negative way.

But, what I can say is that now my school is looking for a new teacher, here at the beginning of a new monthly schedule, and it's got everyone pretty stressed out. Hagwon working is not for the faint of heart or those with a weak stomach. It is busy, at times disgusting (kindergarten children can be really dirty), and always measures a shade of "stressful", even on the days when there's not much going on.

At a Hagwon, or at least at some Hagwons, you are the slave to the children's parents. What the parents want when it comes to their children, the parents get. Already I've had some pretty interesting experiences with selfish, demanding, and totally spoiled Hagwon moms who think that because they're paying for their children to get a better English education that means that the teachers should treat them like royalty.

Do I have a problem with parents being concerned about their childrens educations? No, not at all. I think it's great that they look into it, and give enough of a flyin' flip to stop by and make sure we're treating their children properly. But when the parents watch classes and the criticism is "The teacher didn't cuddle my kid enough."/"The teacher needs to ask my kid more questions (when either that kid is the ONLY kid who talks in class, or when that kid is so absolutely rude and uninterested that they do everything short of throwing up the middle finger at you when you venture to include them in class)."/ "My kid has a runny nose, and the teacher didn't help her blow it!".... Yeah, it gets kind of ridiculous.

That last one... it's true. One of the youngin's moms came to watch the other day. Her child is wild, misbehaved, dirty (puts random stuff in her mouth all the time, blows her nose in her hand and so on), and generally a pain in everyone's rear end. But, she's really smart, she likes to play, and she can be really sweet. She's not a bad kid, she's just really misbehaved in class, and there's nothing we can do about it. Why? Because her mom gets upset when we punish her. We work on a 'sticker' system in the younger classes. If they're good they get so many stickers at the end of the period. If I take away any of this child's stickers her mom will have something to say about it.

The other day, this little girl was feeling kind of ill. I felt sorry for her, because no one likes to feel bad, and I don't want anyone to feel bad (especially not kids). She had a really runny nose, and her mom was watching that day. So what are my instructions?

"Help her blow her nose.".

Excuse me?

Help her blow her nose? Are you kidding me? This little girl is entirely capable of doing that on her own, in fact she ALWAYS does it on her own. She knows how, she's had a lot of practice. Her nose has been runny since I started working there, and I'm sure it was runny before that. She's got the whole "I can blow my own nose" thing down pat. But, since the mom was watching, I had to oblige.

Needless to say, it was disgusting, and I felt slightly used. Some of you reading are probably thinking "And she wants to be a MOM?! HA!".

To that I say "Hush up." Of course I want to be a Mom, I want a lot of kids. I can deal with kid 'icky' just fine when that kid is part of my family, or is a child that I am particularly fond of. Love does a lot to secure courage and almost complete indifference concerning that area, and I'm not worried even a little bit that I'll have a hard time with any of that when it comes to my children.

But someone else's kid? The most appropriate word I can think of is, "Ugh".

Anyway, I helped the little gal blow her nose, and her mom was pleased. So my discomfort brought forth positive feedback that I appreciate... and, I can safely say, worked hard for.

Letting go is hard to do.

When I began teaching, I had no idea how attached I was going to become to some of these students. I knew that I was going to be fond of a few of them, because I like kids, and spending that much time with anyone is going to entail some kind of bonding. But last week, I was given the opportunity to realize how attached I actually was (and without even knowing it!).

My oldest class (a bunch of 13 year olds) is my last class of the day on MWF. It's all boys, and one shy, hardworking, girl that doesn't talk much in class but is totally sweet and the best English speaker in that level. Needless to say, sometimes that class is pandemonium. The boys are chaos. They say bad words, they fight with each other, they speak Korean in class, they don't do their work. But they're all very intelligent, and we usually have a good time. They like to joke around, and their English is good enough to where we can have some interesting conversations.

That class is the biggest pain, but believe it or not it's my favorite. I see a little bit of myself as a teen in the girl, and there's never a dull moment with those boys.

One of the most difficult, yet hilarious, boys was "M". He hardly did his homework, and he fought a lot with the other boys in class, but when he put forth effort he did amazingly. He always had the most interesting things to talk about. His favorite topic? Music and G-dragon (a famous pop/hip hop artist here in Korea. Not exactly what I'd call the most appropriate role model for a 13 year old boy, but hey, could be worse.)

Friday was speaking test day, and everyone but one boy and the girl failed. Failed as in they could have scored better answering the questions in German. I yelled at everyone. I mean, I really made a show of being upset (even though, I really wasn't that mad, just disappointed). I almost made one of them cry, because surprisingly everyone thought they had done well. Pfffft!

Then, about 10 minutes later, I take each one of them out of the class and we have a 'heart-to-heart'. I encourage them and tell them that I know they can do better (because they totally can! They're smart kids!). They promise to study over the weekend and do better on their make-up test on Monday.

I was concerned about "M", because this was our conversation:

Me: "You're way too smart to be failing speaking tests. Did you even study?"
M: "Just a very little."
Me: "Well, you're one of the smartest kids in there (not a lie), so I expect more from you. You can be an awesome English speaker, but you've got to try. Okay?"
M: *still looking upset* "Okay."
Me: "So, are you going to study this weekend?"
M: "Maybe."

MAYBE?! I barely resisted the urge to smack him with the rolled up paper I had in my hand.

Anyway, I didn't have high hopes for him doing much better on the Monday test, but when test time rolled around he aced it. The look on his face when I showed him his grade was absolute pride. THAT kind of thing makes being a teacher totally worth it.

Then, right after the speaking tests were over, I re-enter the class and suddenly the boys are yelling. "M's last day! M's last day!!!".

What?

Apparently M and his family were moving to a new city in Busan, and M was switching Hagwons (same Hagwon, different city). At first my reaction was the same as it had been in the past when students moved with their families and left the Hagwon. I just wished them luck and felt basically indifferent.

But about 2 minutes later I start feeling... sad?! That's right. I was totally getting the urge to shed a tear or two. It was then that I realized, that even though this class was a pain, they were becoming like some weird little cousins of mine. It was my job to teach them, make them laugh, give them a hard time, and encourage them to do their best while using the "tough love" method to get the appropriate results. And it was their job to give me a hard time back, while totally making all the effort worth it in the end by surprising me with their intelligence, and occasional bouts of effort and episodes of maturity.

Do I feel proud of this class? You better believe it. So seeing one of them go was hard.

All of this makes me curious about what sort of "Empty Nester" I'm going to be, but when I start to think about it too much I begin to feel this bubble of anxiety form and I get the urge to swig gin.

Well, there's actually quite a bit more to write about (as my Saturday has been utterly spectacular so far), but I've got to be somewhere pretty soon. So, I'll put forth a valiant effort to write a "Part II" of this blog tonight or tomorrow.

Until then, enjoy my ranting. (And excuse any typos, I don't have time to proof read.)

Toodles.

Your blog host,

Auggie.