Some of my students asked me what "etc." meant a few days ago. I told them that it meant "and the rest" or "and the others", in Latin. Stupidly, I tried to explain to them what Latin is. I drew a picture of Italy on the board, and asked, "do you know what country this is"? No one did. Again, stupidly, I tried to explain where Italy was and it's importance. Crickets.
It's twelve midnight on a Monday, and again I find myself in a PC bang, instead of my room. Truth is, if I weren't here, I would be listening to a Korean lesson on my MP3 player and walking around. My life has become extremely regimented. I can tell you exactly what I am going to do tomorrow, and the day after that. I bet you're super curious right? To bad, I'm going to tell you, anyway!
Tomorrow, I am going to sleep through my alarm and get woken up by my Korean language partner calling me at about nine-forty-five. I will throw some crap in my bag, make myself presentable, and go to Tom Tom's coffee to meet Christine we will intermittently chat and go through some pre-constructed dialogues.
I will get to work at about eleven thirty. I will throw together the last few evaluations, I will plug in my i-pod to the school's computer and surf the web for a bit. I will book a hostel for the weekend. Glen will come in at about twelve thirty. Usually, we would go for lunch, I suspect he will go out for lunch with one of the Korean teachers tomorrow, so I will eat a gimbap Nara, get out some money to pay for the next two months of MMA and probably swing at some balls at the batting cage. I will come in shortly before one-thirty. I will read for the majority of the next hour and a half (prep time).
I will easily drift through my classes and I will speedily leave the office to catch the start of the 8:30 MMA class. At 9:45, I will go back to the school to drop of my bag and my scooter. I will walk half way home while listening to a Korean lesson, and take a cab the rest of the way. Once at home I will boil mandu. I will read an evolutionary biologist's opinion about where morality comes from and I will meditate.
The next morning, I will stretch, and I will run ten kilometers to work. I will go to the Sauna to shower, and rejuvenate. I will show up to work at 12:30. Ben, Glen, and I will eat spicy octopus for lunch. I will leave work just before nine, and speedily make my way to the Hapkido gym. At ten, I will go to Lotte Mart and buy foodstuffs. I will drive home and probably refuse to eat more than a handful of almonds. I will go for a walk and listen to a Korean lesson. When I go home I will read the rest of the evolutionary biologist's opinion of evolution. I will meditate some more. I will go to sleep by 1:30, because I will be tired from the run went on in the morning.
Friday, is a wild card.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Dark Days in TY
In the course of three days, one of my friends got attacked with a sign post, another got attacked with a knife, and a third got raped. All incidents happened in or near my friend's apartments. All of them are foreigners.
Wednesday (I think), Arthur heard a racket outside of his place in rural Dosan. Some wacko outside was yelling incomprehensible Hangul and waving around a signpost. While the every Korean within shouting distance had the good sense to stay inside with their doors locked, Arthur decided investigate. Maybe he tried to reason with the fellow, I don't know. Whatever Arthur said resulted in the man lunging at him with the aforementioned sign-post. Arthur escaped inside without incurring bodily damage, but the nutter with the sign did smash a mirror off of his scooter and bashed up his door a bit too.
When the cops got there, they quickly discovered three things: the fellow was drunk to the gills, he was convinced that Arthur had murdered a kitten, and that the man was totally bat-shit insane (he had in fact just been released from a mental institution).
The same day, a female friend decided to go drinking with another one of the foreigners here. They were drinking outside of a Family Mart (think Korean 7-11) in Jungnim (the newest development in Tongyeong). When they decided to go home, a Korean man convinced them to let them share the cab with them. When my friend went into her apartment, apparently the Korean man followed her and forced his way in... she flew back home by the next Friday.
The next day, we all got together for a photo scavenger hunt. It was a big success, and we all had a great time. We drank a lot afterward, so I can sympathise with Krista when she passed out immediately after hitting the pillow. Unfortunately she was only asleep for five minutes until a man woke her up by pressing a knife to her throat, yelling at her to give him her money.
So, Krista gave him her money, asked him why he was doing what he was doing and the man had a sudden change of heart. He put the knife on a table gave the money back and eventually left.
I was under the impression that Korea, and by extension, Korea, was a relatively crime-free place. That's the impression everyone used to jump to give me, anyway. My perspective has changed awfully fast though. Funny how the shit always seems to hit the fan all at once.
Wednesday (I think), Arthur heard a racket outside of his place in rural Dosan. Some wacko outside was yelling incomprehensible Hangul and waving around a signpost. While the every Korean within shouting distance had the good sense to stay inside with their doors locked, Arthur decided investigate. Maybe he tried to reason with the fellow, I don't know. Whatever Arthur said resulted in the man lunging at him with the aforementioned sign-post. Arthur escaped inside without incurring bodily damage, but the nutter with the sign did smash a mirror off of his scooter and bashed up his door a bit too.
When the cops got there, they quickly discovered three things: the fellow was drunk to the gills, he was convinced that Arthur had murdered a kitten, and that the man was totally bat-shit insane (he had in fact just been released from a mental institution).
The same day, a female friend decided to go drinking with another one of the foreigners here. They were drinking outside of a Family Mart (think Korean 7-11) in Jungnim (the newest development in Tongyeong). When they decided to go home, a Korean man convinced them to let them share the cab with them. When my friend went into her apartment, apparently the Korean man followed her and forced his way in... she flew back home by the next Friday.
The next day, we all got together for a photo scavenger hunt. It was a big success, and we all had a great time. We drank a lot afterward, so I can sympathise with Krista when she passed out immediately after hitting the pillow. Unfortunately she was only asleep for five minutes until a man woke her up by pressing a knife to her throat, yelling at her to give him her money.
So, Krista gave him her money, asked him why he was doing what he was doing and the man had a sudden change of heart. He put the knife on a table gave the money back and eventually left.
I was under the impression that Korea, and by extension, Korea, was a relatively crime-free place. That's the impression everyone used to jump to give me, anyway. My perspective has changed awfully fast though. Funny how the shit always seems to hit the fan all at once.
Monday, October 11, 2010
The Great Computer Debacle
It's late at night and once again, I am sitting in a PC bang, when I should be home in bed, writing in comfort, drinking hot green tea instead of cold orange pop. I am desperately trying to remedy this ailment, but as with most things in life less commonplace than clearing my bowels in the morning, getting a computer is proving to be just this side of worth it.
You might be wondering why I don't just buy a computer here. After all, I am in east Asia, and therefore, the computers should be cheap, right? Well, no--not in Korea, anyway. I would spend about three-hundred-fifty dollars more for a computer than for a similar model back home. It seems like the only brands of computer available here are Samsung, LG and the occasional Apple. There are, it would seem, mega-tariffs keeping cheap Taiwanese and Japanese computers out of the country.
As if I weren't frustrated enough while looking at Samsung's prices, I went into the LG store to discover that there were no prices on the machines. What, was I supposed to ask what the price is for each one? Haggle? Way to make computer shopping super-stressful, Korea. Anyways, even if I decided it was worth it to throw down the extra couple-hundred, I would still have to deal with replacing the Korean OS, and worry about hitting the Hangul button all the time. No thank you!
So, after many hours of searching for a website that would deliver SK, I found a United-States based company called Provantage that would accommodate my needs. I found the computer I wanted-- a 14" Asus with a 3i processor, and 4Gs or RAM. My colleague had agreed to pay for it with credit in exchange for cash and I was all set to go. Turns out that Provantage would only accept payment from American Express or by wire transfer. Glenn didn't have an American Express card (who the heck does anyway), but I figured, no big deal, I'll just wire the money.
So I transfer some cash from my Korean account to my Canadian account. The money comes through the next day, and I go online to set up the wire transfer but...it turns out that I can transfer money from one of my accounts to another, I can pay bills, I can set up an Interac E-mail Transfer (whatever that is), but I cannot set up a normal wire transfer to another institution.
Right. So, the next step, my banking website informs me, is to call the international service line. I try calling it and I get an out of order message. So, I call Korean information. They tell me to dial "001" before the number. So, I think to myself, okay-- instead of 1 then the country code, then area code and then the number, I will dial 001, then the country code, then the area code and then the number. I do, and I get another out of service message.
Right, so I decided to e-mail my bank. The following is the resulting e-mail thread:
From: bradyehler@gmail.com
Sent: 09 Oct 10 00:52:57
Hi, I'm trying to phone the international number to set up a wire transfer, but I'm getting a message saying that the number I'm calling is out of service.
The number I'm trying to call is 1-416-223-0263
I'm trying to call from South Korea.
Dear Sir or Madam,
I apologize for the inconvenience.
If you know your 5-digit Telephone Banking password, please call 1-416-223-0263. Collect calls are not accepted. After you have keyed in your card number and password, please select 0 and your call will be transferred to a representative.
If you have forgotten your Telephone Banking password or have not selected one and require assistance, please stay on the line. The recording will repeat a few times and your call will then be transferred to a representative. Assistance is available seven days a week, from 7:00 a.m. to midnight local time across Canada.
Thank you for visiting www.pcfinancial.ca.
Sincerely,
Ewan
Internet Communications Specialist
Ewan (or whoever),
As expressed in my previous e-mail, the problem is that when I try calling the international number (1-416-223-0263) I get an out of service message.
So, if I was able to call the international number (1-416-223-0263), asking the representative how to get on the phone with a representative would be redundant.
Imagine a similar scenario:
You are hungry and want a banana. You look for a banana for a long time, then finally you find a banana.
Do you...
A: Eat the banana
or
B:Ask the banana where you could find a banana (to eat)
?
I hope this rhetorical question has helped to clarify my problem.
Again, I am calling from South Korea.
Regards,
Brady (Mr.Ehler)
As of yet, I haven't gotten a response. Fortunately, another colleague (a Korean) puzzled out the riddle in the meantime. Turns out I had to dial 001 and THEN 1, the country code, area code and number. Stupid me! Anyways, so I get on the line with the representative, and it turns out that the the mailing address is screwy and the money I transfer over might "bounce back"--costing me up to a hundred dollars for nothing. Oh well. Even if all goes swimmingly, between taxes, duties, shipping, wire-transfer fees and long-distance charges, it will have been almost as cost-efficient to have bought a Korean computer. Oh well, at least if this works out I wont have to worry about hitting the damn Hangul button.
You might be wondering why I don't just buy a computer here. After all, I am in east Asia, and therefore, the computers should be cheap, right? Well, no--not in Korea, anyway. I would spend about three-hundred-fifty dollars more for a computer than for a similar model back home. It seems like the only brands of computer available here are Samsung, LG and the occasional Apple. There are, it would seem, mega-tariffs keeping cheap Taiwanese and Japanese computers out of the country.
As if I weren't frustrated enough while looking at Samsung's prices, I went into the LG store to discover that there were no prices on the machines. What, was I supposed to ask what the price is for each one? Haggle? Way to make computer shopping super-stressful, Korea. Anyways, even if I decided it was worth it to throw down the extra couple-hundred, I would still have to deal with replacing the Korean OS, and worry about hitting the Hangul button all the time. No thank you!
So, after many hours of searching for a website that would deliver SK, I found a United-States based company called Provantage that would accommodate my needs. I found the computer I wanted-- a 14" Asus with a 3i processor, and 4Gs or RAM. My colleague had agreed to pay for it with credit in exchange for cash and I was all set to go. Turns out that Provantage would only accept payment from American Express or by wire transfer. Glenn didn't have an American Express card (who the heck does anyway), but I figured, no big deal, I'll just wire the money.
So I transfer some cash from my Korean account to my Canadian account. The money comes through the next day, and I go online to set up the wire transfer but...it turns out that I can transfer money from one of my accounts to another, I can pay bills, I can set up an Interac E-mail Transfer (whatever that is), but I cannot set up a normal wire transfer to another institution.
Right. So, the next step, my banking website informs me, is to call the international service line. I try calling it and I get an out of order message. So, I call Korean information. They tell me to dial "001" before the number. So, I think to myself, okay-- instead of 1 then the country code, then area code and then the number, I will dial 001, then the country code, then the area code and then the number. I do, and I get another out of service message.
Right, so I decided to e-mail my bank. The following is the resulting e-mail thread:
From: bradyehler@gmail.com
Sent: 09 Oct 10 00:52:57
Hi, I'm trying to phone the international number to set up a wire transfer, but I'm getting a message saying that the number I'm calling is out of service.
The number I'm trying to call is 1-416-223-0263
I'm trying to call from South Korea.
Dear Sir or Madam,
I apologize for the inconvenience.
If you know your 5-digit Telephone Banking password, please call 1-416-223-0263. Collect calls are not accepted. After you have keyed in your card number and password, please select 0 and your call will be transferred to a representative.
If you have forgotten your Telephone Banking password or have not selected one and require assistance, please stay on the line. The recording will repeat a few times and your call will then be transferred to a representative. Assistance is available seven days a week, from 7:00 a.m. to midnight local time across Canada.
Thank you for visiting www.pcfinancial.ca.
Sincerely,
Ewan
Internet Communications Specialist
Ewan (or whoever),
As expressed in my previous e-mail, the problem is that when I try calling the international number (1-416-223-0263) I get an out of service message.
So, if I was able to call the international number (1-416-223-0263), asking the representative how to get on the phone with a representative would be redundant.
Imagine a similar scenario:
You are hungry and want a banana. You look for a banana for a long time, then finally you find a banana.
Do you...
A: Eat the banana
or
B:Ask the banana where you could find a banana (to eat)
?
I hope this rhetorical question has helped to clarify my problem.
Again, I am calling from South Korea.
Regards,
Brady (Mr.Ehler)
As of yet, I haven't gotten a response. Fortunately, another colleague (a Korean) puzzled out the riddle in the meantime. Turns out I had to dial 001 and THEN 1, the country code, area code and number. Stupid me! Anyways, so I get on the line with the representative, and it turns out that the the mailing address is screwy and the money I transfer over might "bounce back"--costing me up to a hundred dollars for nothing. Oh well. Even if all goes swimmingly, between taxes, duties, shipping, wire-transfer fees and long-distance charges, it will have been almost as cost-efficient to have bought a Korean computer. Oh well, at least if this works out I wont have to worry about hitting the damn Hangul button.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Me As an Educator
I've been delaying writing about the actual day to day experience of teaching basically since I got here. I've thought about it a hundred times, but now that I'm sitting here I'm not sure what to write.
Sometimes I think my job is a joke. Sometimes I feel like a glorified babysitter. Sometimes I feel like I am doing good work, and that I am teaching these kids English really well for someone with zero training and no previous experience. Our lesson planning is minimal, because we work out of books. All of the students have their own. But we have a leeway--for most classes there is more time than we can fill up with the material in the books. The shitty kids spend way more time as is necessary, and the good kids get through the material early. The result is that I put in effort proportional to what the students put in.
My favorite class has only five students in it. They are keen and quick-witted. They do their work quickly and four of them really enjoy being in the class. I return their enthusiasm in kind. We chat, play games (some of them quite sophisticated) and once a week we read out of Charlotte's Web and answer questions about the story.
I had another class, until recently, and they were real jerks. Again, five students. Most of them would not do their work. Ever. They would constantly chat in Korean, not pay attention. They acted like they were on lunch break at school. Needless to say, I didn't care much about that class. I put in the bare minimum of effort, and even then I felt like it was wasted energy. I would take the worst offenders out of class every day. I would try to reason with them and all I would get in response was whining. From 13-year-olds.
My school is twice as expensive as any other Hagwam in town, so I have to deal with a lot of spoiled brats. To be fair, some of these kids go to as many as five hagwans after school. And that's every day. Every bit of their day is structured, and they never get to spend much time with their parents. The result is that they develop all kinds of skills, but they are often immature for their age. When I ask my kids what they are going to do on the weekend, the most common responses are: sleep and play video games.
I'm not going to complain about my wage, but the teachers at my school have to work twice as hard as the teachers at the other hagwans. Sometimes I hear it suggested that we are overpaid. I don't think that we are. Sometimes I say that the job is easy, but you can spend as much or as little time outside of the classes as you want. Everything considered we work more than eight hours per day. The job can also be very stressful. Not that there is a high level of expectation put on us, but we all want to do a good job regardless, and we don't always get support from out Korean co-teachers, not to mention our director (who still doesn't like answering questions, and still calls me "Bradly"). So even though the most likely reaction to our doing a shitty job is getting less responsibility, we still try to do good work, and we get angry when we are failing. Well, I assume its true about the others--it's certainly true for me.
Sometimes I think my job is a joke. Sometimes I feel like a glorified babysitter. Sometimes I feel like I am doing good work, and that I am teaching these kids English really well for someone with zero training and no previous experience. Our lesson planning is minimal, because we work out of books. All of the students have their own. But we have a leeway--for most classes there is more time than we can fill up with the material in the books. The shitty kids spend way more time as is necessary, and the good kids get through the material early. The result is that I put in effort proportional to what the students put in.
My favorite class has only five students in it. They are keen and quick-witted. They do their work quickly and four of them really enjoy being in the class. I return their enthusiasm in kind. We chat, play games (some of them quite sophisticated) and once a week we read out of Charlotte's Web and answer questions about the story.
I had another class, until recently, and they were real jerks. Again, five students. Most of them would not do their work. Ever. They would constantly chat in Korean, not pay attention. They acted like they were on lunch break at school. Needless to say, I didn't care much about that class. I put in the bare minimum of effort, and even then I felt like it was wasted energy. I would take the worst offenders out of class every day. I would try to reason with them and all I would get in response was whining. From 13-year-olds.
My school is twice as expensive as any other Hagwam in town, so I have to deal with a lot of spoiled brats. To be fair, some of these kids go to as many as five hagwans after school. And that's every day. Every bit of their day is structured, and they never get to spend much time with their parents. The result is that they develop all kinds of skills, but they are often immature for their age. When I ask my kids what they are going to do on the weekend, the most common responses are: sleep and play video games.
I'm not going to complain about my wage, but the teachers at my school have to work twice as hard as the teachers at the other hagwans. Sometimes I hear it suggested that we are overpaid. I don't think that we are. Sometimes I say that the job is easy, but you can spend as much or as little time outside of the classes as you want. Everything considered we work more than eight hours per day. The job can also be very stressful. Not that there is a high level of expectation put on us, but we all want to do a good job regardless, and we don't always get support from out Korean co-teachers, not to mention our director (who still doesn't like answering questions, and still calls me "Bradly"). So even though the most likely reaction to our doing a shitty job is getting less responsibility, we still try to do good work, and we get angry when we are failing. Well, I assume its true about the others--it's certainly true for me.
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