Demo! & wind-down.

My timing is anything but good as I hit things off with a delightful woman (pilates and ballet instructor) today and I learned (and forgot) about as many new Korean words as I have all year. We had coffee and tea at Kanghwamun Starbucks and I got to see about a bajillion heavily armoured 기동 경찰 (riot policemen) preparing to 'suppress the demo' as my guide put it.

Yeah, suppress that mofo all the way over to this here Starbucks! I was getting ready for a molotov through the window but it never materialized. Too bad, since this has been the coldest day of the year so far. I haven't bothered to get a real winter jacket yet, so I may have looked a bit odd, but I'm a tough Canadian and I hardly noticed the BITING SIBERIAN WIND (-2) My language-exchange partner even shelled out for some gloves for me! How cool is that?

Too bad I'm going home at Xmas and I have to work the weekend after next. I don't anticipate coming back to Korea in a hurry. I also don't plan on keeping up this blog while I'm in Canada. I don't know how much time I'll have to post new updates while I'm getting ready to leave, and I plan to be too busy to blog afterwards. I will let you know when I stop updating permanently but for now this is goodbye.

To whatever degree my life will be interesting back in Canada, it won't be anything even remotely different from what millions of English language bloggers are already doing. Also this started as a document of my Korean experience or lack thereof, and it will stay that way.

I will continue to update the novel blog and the secret blog at my whim.
Annyeonghi Gaseyo!

White Kurisamasu

It snowed last night and Suwon is freaking out! Its interesting how a layer of snow seems to muffle sound, and it makes a peaceful Sunday morning even more so. Pictures will follow.

Let's go back to my previous post on the subject of my tendency to dissipate my efforts into multiple unrelated endeavours. In the spirit of focusing my energy into a smaller number of initiatives I have decided to learn how to play blackjack and how to build a Neverwinter Night's module. :P =(denotes sarcasm)

One of my life-long goals is to write more, and Bioware is sponsoring a contest to fill the long-vacant writing position on their website. This is actually not great for me since it will increase the competition for something I had intended to do anyway. The benefit is that it gives me a hard deadline and forces me to spring into action.

In order to increase the amount of time that I have to pack and get ready to move back to Canspendalot, and to work on side-projects like writing and websites, I have decided to do this crazy experiment starting next Friday (or should I do it tomorrow since the standing up will help keep me going through the day? I don't want to zone out while I'm teaching). I'm not expecting too much but if it cures me of my oversleeping and gives me an extra 5 hours a day without killing me then it will the BEST THING THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO ME since losing my virginity.

It won't be a cinch working around a hagwon instructors schedule but I worked this out:

Nap Schedule
MWF
7:50-8:20 -30 minute nap
11:50-12:20 -30 minute nap
15:30-16:00 -30 minute nap
19:50-20:05 -15 minute nap
23:45-00:15 -30 minute nap
3:50-4:20 -30 minute nap

TThSS
7:45-8:15-30 minute nap
11:45-12:15-30 minute nap
15:30-16:00-30 minute nap
20:30-20:45-15 minute nap
00:00-00:30-30 minute nap
3:45-4:15-30 minute nap

This should provide for 6 naps with no more than 4.5 hours between any one, and the average being 3.5 hours. (If there are any kind strangers who want to double-check my math so that I don't die that would be swell) Steve Pavlina says it's OK to sneak an extra nap in during the night, especially while adjusting, and that's all good. The real challenge will be taking the required two naps that fall during hours that I need to be at school. I'm allowed to take half an hour off my prep time to do whatever I want, but the question is - where do I sleep? I don't think the lunch room will be very restful and everyone will know I'm a madman (more so). The fifteen minute nap is the longest break between classes and I figure I'll just zip down to the can and put my head down in the stall. It's the best I can do for now, but I'm serious about doing this so I'm getting a countdown timer with a booming alarm today.

I just realized I only have one real weekend to wrap up all the loose ends here (working on Sat. 17th) so how's that going to unfold? Christmas shopping, visit the pension office, turn in the phone, haul junk to the curb, pack and ship extra stuff home. Yeah, I need that extra 5 hours, no doubt.

Nuguya?

So, the other day a wacky S-4 student snuck into my S-1 class the other day, and even crazier, I didn't kick her out immediately. In fact I would have let her stay in the class for the duration, but the teacher whose class she was skipping thought to ask WHERE THE HELL IS MY STUDENT? Another one of my students, released into the hall for a bathroom break, blew the whistle on the refugee. In my defence, I thought she might have a calming influence on the friend she was visiting.

I didn't even ask too many questions when she came in, and it never even dawned on me that she might be skipping. SKIPPING, SWEET JEBUS, this is Korea. Students do NOT skip.

It shows that either 1. I was born without any trace of the common-sense gene or 2. I am completely in overdrive mode and I couldn't give a rats arse what happens between now and Christmas. It might be that and a combination of 3. I like to experiment with my own life and the lives of others, and I don't really worry about the repercussions. I'm the easiest-going mad scientist ever born.

They're going to take my license for this, goddammit! Oh wait...

Initially, the school FREAKED about this, naturally, since their rep is likely to take a hit somewhat along the lines of "Why don't teachers know who is supposed to be in their class? Where was my daughter for an odd hour?"

In the end though, she's been suspended for a month, and since my own remaining term is less than that, I didn't even get a slap on the wrist. Month 12 teacher is invincible. Note to self: steal the videocamera and a few boxes of markers.

It's episodes like this one that make me realize my own career is mostly a sequence of disappointed bosses, funny anecdotes, and hastily burnt (and buried) bridges. Also by spreading myself too thin, trying to do too many things at once (work 9-5, teach privates, make Canadian websites, learn Korean, play video games all night, booze and whore) I don't actually do anything well, and I never will if I keep this up.

The Last Head Teacher (25!) has been with the company for only two years and he's already been offered a University job, a head-office job and he's got a kickazz CV with plenty of kudos cuz he's hella responsible, has a dry professional daytime demeanour and he has little imagination about what he could do with his free time. Admittedly, I think he's naturally a better teacher than I am, but still, I could pick up some tips.

Tip for y'all - if you see a student that isn't yours, kick them to the corridor.