P*ngsan

Cutsie Culture #5

The "I Can't Do It" notebook. I'm not quite sure if this is a bad translation, a misspelling, or the intended message. Perhaps it was meant as a challenge. You know, an in-your-face type of incentive to learn your fractions. I mean, I would have loved to have had a semi-creepy cartoon with dilated eyes reminding me of my intellectual inferiority...just so I could prove it wrong. Oddly, the cartoon would never seem as utterly defeated when proven wrong as I would when failing to correctly compute the surface area of a sphere.

The message is on every page.

A good day for a democrat

Take the reigns Pelosi!

Keith Olbermann rocks my socks.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3592217964261572444&q=keith+olbermann+clinton

Scum

I taught my English Club how to play "Scum" today. "What is scum?" they asked. Hmmm, I hadn't thought that definition through, so I replied, "You know that stuff at the bottom of ponds?" They seemed to get the drift, but for all I know, they may now think scum is a synonym for mud...or fish. So, in the future, if you meet a young person from Andong who responds with "scum" when you're pointing at koi...uhhh blame the Japanese.

An Actual Korean Friend

Friday night, I invited over Ji-won (Josepina) for a real birthday party. Ji-won works at the local Paris Baguette bakery, the one which I frequent on my way home from the bus stop. I average about 2.5 visits to that bakery a week. Thus, Ji-won and her sister know me quite well. They are the only Koreans I really talk to close to my age. They also make cake, so it was obvious to invite them to my birthday party. Unfortunately, Ji-won's older sister Michaela (I don't know her Korean name yet) was too busy baking to make it to the party, but Ji-won did! The cake was delicious! She made it that morning.

I learned that their store is family run and they work everyday-no days off. Ji-won is so sweet. She showed me her Cyworld website (similar to myspace, but more Korean, and better). Her pictures were professional photography quality. Coincidentally, she used to work at Seattle's Best Coffee in Daegu. She even gave me a Seattle's Best Coffee cell phone charm. I told Ji-won she'd have to take a day off work and give me a tour of Daegu. I can hope, can't I?

My host family was too funny on Friday. Oni cooked bibimbap, my favorite, and they all presented me with gifts after dinner. Hyon-oo gave me a White Angel chocolate bar, Hye-min gave me awesome ape socks that say "A Bathing Ape," Samchon gifted a Kim Jong Kook cd, and Oni (in her infinite wisdom and sense of humor) presented me with a poster of Bi (Rain). Chocolate is always a welcomed gift, and ape socks are beyond exciting to wear. Kim Jong Kook is one of the most beautiful human beings on the planet. Just look at the album cover. The Bi (translated to 'Rain' in English) was a little unexpected. I mean, I never thought my 40 something host mother would buy such an obviously pre-teen oriented poster in public. hahaha She surprises me everyday. I think it is hilarious and have therefore put it on my wall above my desk. Teehee.

More Halloween Fun