it's december

it's outrageous. it's december and there are still mosquitoes feasting on me in the middle of night, disturbing my already unquiet slumber, and thus making me even more cantankerous in the mornings. lil persistent bastards. it's not very buddhist of me, but, i was not so secretly pleased when i smacked the lil bitch to it's quick and easy exit from this world.

it's december, how t.f. did that happen? i was hoping i would be less busy in the wintertime, but that's definitely not the case, as evidenced by my blog-lessness in the past couple of weeks. where shall i begin?

let's begin with my stomach. i just downed 4 rather well proportioned man-doo (만두) and i decided against eating the 5th, i'll save it for later. they were absolutely delicious! i bought them on my way home from my korean class, and right now, instead of having to get ready to go to work, i'm tickled that i have time to relax...you see, today, until this friday, i'm teaching morning classes in place of my office hours so i get to have a sizeable chunk of the day to myself. (APPLAUSE!) ah, you should know however, that i had to get out of my bed at 5:55am. no joke. before 6 am. my first class started at 6:40, followed by 7:40, and lastly at 8:40. OOOOOOOF! and surprisingly, i was incredibly alert and attentive to my business conversation students, who were quite entertaining.

besides teaching english and learning korean, i've been keeping busy by being what i'd like to call a language buddy slut. now, i'm not really being a slut in the traditional sense of the word, but rather, i've been adventurous in terms of meeting lots of different people for language exchange. it's been fun! it's sort of like internet dating only minus the dating part. i've met three guys so far, at cafes, restaurants and bars. tomorrow night, i'll meet another and i have a few more in process--see what i mean!-- mostly because it's difficult to even find a language buddy match!

just yesterday, my friend read my tarot cards and the cards advised me against any romantic interests. unrequited love from a player may strike...however, not all is hopeless. the card readings are only for a 3 month period and apparently, my work (a new job?!?) should be very very successful! hmm...interesting. interesting, indeed!

temple hike

nice ass

forever 21 opened up a store in myeongdong. good to know that the forever 21 "quality" is the same here as it is in the states! check out this mannequin flaunting her ASSets.





now that the weather has gotten colder, fried green tea cakes with sugary sweet filling has made a return and boy! am i glad they are back!

my friend, fearless shopper and foodie:

in the recording studio...

first korean tv, and now, audio!
these past few mornings, i went to soundworks studios and recorded passages (some short and some long, verrrry long!) for toefl test prep materials. i spoke very clearly and professor-like into the very sensitive mike. professor chong. the chong professor. yes, indeedy, i do like the sound of that!

lotte's favorite day

11.11, aka, pepero day is an excuse to buy pepero snacks. the chocolate covered thin stick-like cookie snacks, known in japan as pocky, are given (lotte, pepero's manufacturer created this day to boost their sales, and what a gimmick! everyone or nearly everyone has fallen for it, suckas!) to your friends, family, significant others, wannabe significant others...sha-la, sha-la.

i had forgotten about pepero day until my sweet korean language classmates presented me with my very own pepero package of yumminess!

happy pepero day!
xo.

then and now

awww, look at me a year ago. i remember exactly when i took this photo. it was in amber's home, in the hallway, outside of ella's/guest aka, my extended stay, room. (thanks so much again amber and ella for adopting me into your lives that blissful summer!) i was beginning my korean job search then and it's commonplace for korean companies to request your photo as part of the job application. now that i'm in korea, i realize that they were probably expecting a more "professional" sort of photograph, something similar to the passport variety, but i preferred my more organic approach.

happy one year anniversary!

i've officially been living and working in korea for a full 365 day cycle. hard to believe that that amount of time can seemingly pass in a blink or drag unnecessarily. it's been just over 2 months since i've changed jobs and while i know that the new gig is a better fit than the former, i know that still, there must be an even better place for me to work. i don't mind teaching adults, especially since i have a few returning students who are delightful. i don't mind the hours, i love that i have time in the mornings to attend korean language classes and to do so conveniently is an added bonus. now...what i do mind, is the typical korean office business culture. the strained, reactive, slightly chauvinistic, resistant to change and time-wasting attitudes unnerve me. and might i find this anywhere? not unlikely. do you ever get that feeling that sometimes you are just very very different from those who surround you?

lately, i've been thinking that perhaps my fierce independence is better suited to freelance private tutorship. i'm gathering information and don't doubt that there will soon be an exhaustive advantages/disadvantages tug of war. until then, i'm definitely relaxing, studying korean and remaining present.



missing you tremendously.
xo.

OBAMA-RAMA!

YES WE CAN! (and we did and we will!)