Fighting!

Aw, you guys..it's been forever since I posted! I miss blogging and lots of stuff has been happening, but I have been so busy! And when I'm not busy, I'm super tired (or lazy) and I just want to "take a rest." Korean people have the craziest work ethic I have ever seen so they don't really understand my need for resting. Which, in turn, makes me feel guilty about resting. Do I stop? No. I rested all day today. I took an epic 4 hour nap. But, I did feel guilty because my poor boyfriend (his title for all intents and purposes) had to work all day and then I made him drive me to the beach so I could take a rest there as well.
But yeah, about this work ethic. It's INTENSE. Koreans rarely take vacations and work crazy long hours. It's actually a tad depressing. I need to move to Europe where a six week vacation is the standard. Here, you get a week, two if you're lucky but absolutely not at the same time. More on that later.
It's World Cup time!! I really don't follow soccer any other time but I love the World Cup! I am excited to finally be in a country where they care about soccer! Too bad the games are at all kinds of crazy times. Korea's first game is at 7:00 am this Wednesday! Not really prime game watching time. I really hope they do well...it would be so fun to be a part of that. Of course I always root for the US as well, but that's not as fun. Especially since the US doesn't have organized chants, an awesome nickname (like the Red Devils) and a fantastic war cry....FIGHTING! That is actually what they say all the time, not just for soccer. It basically means you can do it! Koreans say it more like "whiteing," which just makes it even more fantastic.
I have been a little upset with Korea these past few weeks but I am going to out that aside for the World Cup, enjoy the beach and keep on "Fighting!"

Dream big people!

Choices

So I reached a turning point in my life. It's big.

I'm referring to my waist. It's gotten bigger. And it's annoying, because, honestly, I'm alright. I don't feel fat, I don't feel like I look fat and I'm pretty ok with me, myself and my body. However, my clothes don't feel the same way. They have ALL gotten together, formed a coalition and have rebelled by shrinking. They are such jerks! Ugh, stupid pants. I don't know what I did to anger them, but they all got smaller and it is NOT cool. So yeah, now I have to try and lose some weight to appease the pants so we can all live in harmony. As always, it is not easy to bring unity between my pants and my legs.

I really wish you could somehow lose bonus calories based on good decisions you make. Yes, I realize that is the basis of weight lose in general. You choose to eat healthy food and exercise, you lose weight. I know how it works. I'm saying, that if I am presented with a cookie or some other delicious treat (as I often am, at school) and I say, no, thank you, I am going to eat these depressing carrot sticks instead, then I should lose half a pound, just based on will power. I obviously have no idea how this could be a reality, but I would really like for someone to figure it out. You would be able to get more "calorie points" based on what you decide to give up. For example, I pretty much want to eat out every night. I hate cooking and the food other people make is always a million times better than whatever I can make at home. Also, it's easier and I really like delicious food. However, multiple times the past few days, I have said, NO, I am NOT going to eat KFC or something else delicious and easy, and I am going to have something with less calories and more healthy, like salmon or chicken or some lame vegetables. This has worked in my favor to some extent, I think I've lost like 3 pounds. However, I think based on all the energy and willpower it took me to give up the said delicious food, I should have already lost at least 15. Right?! I thought so. Let's figure out how to make that happen, super smart people of the world.

So anyway, that is my life these days. Trying to make good decisions, even though they don't really get the credit they deserve. I have also started making myself go to Zumba class. Everybody knows I love Zumba with the passion of a thousand burning suns, but this class that I go to is FAR from my house (like an hour), which means I have to ride the subway home all sweaty, gross, and cold for an hour, and I get home around 10-10:30, which is my bedtime. However, I've been forcing myself to go because Zumba is the best and it makes me happy. So while I'm getting the calorie burning benefits as is, I feel I should be awarded double since it's far and I'm cold and miserable coming home. Oh, I also did some Zumba at home today and in between videos, YouTube decided to show an ad for Haagen-Daaz. RUDE.

Oh! And my babies from last year will graduate this Wednesday and I am going to cry, cry, cry. I can't believe how grown up they are now! It's so crazy. I also can't believe I have been here for two years. Time flies when you're having fun! I will get a new set of babies next Tuesday and while I'm ready, I also know it is going to be really hard. It is so frustrating to go from talking to your kids to starting over with ones that don't know ANY English. But, I'm a badass and can do anything, so bring it on, babies!

Dream big, people!

These Days

These days are rough. I was  DONE by like, 8:00 pm on Friday. I am SO tired all the time. It takes all my willpower to stay awake.

Winter is HARD. I feel like the cold just sucks all the life out of me. This little light of mine has shriveled up and is just a small little flicker. I want to let it shine but the bitter winter wind is all, NO! You will not have any happiness now. All I want to do these days is get in my bed..and sleep. Usually I have a list of things I want to research, read, look up, etc but now it takes all my energy just to clean my house and wash my face.

However. I have found a cure to the winter blues. It's Jimmy Fallon. I have long expressed my love for him and it has been solidified tonight, after watching all his best of specials. They are just too hilarious and I don't actually feel like death anymore. I have been a fan since forever and I am so pumped he's getting more popular. Maybe now I won't have to argue with people anymore. I also just watched his last episode of Late Night and I just have so much love. He's had like, my dream life. Working on SNL and then having a talk show..I WANT! I think I would make a really good talk show host. Sadly, I cannot do impressions, nor am I really that funny so I would need a really great team of people making me look good. Or, I would also be happy just being a guest one time on a show. People would totally love me, I'm sure of it. Anywho, he's now moving the Late Show, which I don't really understand how it will be that different than the Late Show, but I am not at all versed in the inner workings of late night TV, because it is apparently a huge ass deal. I'm sure he'll be fabulous because he's hilarious and awesome. Hope people don't hate too hard.

Oh! And on tumblr, the Late Night tumblr asked people to send in pictures of their favorite thing Jimmy's done, so I did and they re-blogged it! Exciting!!!! One step closer to being a guest!

Anyway! It was a pretty uneventful weekend. I had all these things I was going to write about, but I have forgotten all of them. My memory has been such shit lately. I don't know if it's because I'm getting old, getting dumber or my brain is literally frozen. I often get up to do things and don't remember why. How early does early onset Alzheimers set in? 30? I should look into that. It's getting bad.

And now I'm back to being super tired. If I ever remember what super important thing I wanted to blog about it, I'll post it. Please, everyone be patient until then.

Dream big people!

Korean Gift Giving

OR: A mystery of the highest confusion.

There are many things I love about Korea. There are many things I dislike about Korea. And there are MANY things that confuse me about Korea. The way they give gifts is perhaps the most confusing of all.

Let me give you some background information. Gift giving is an important part of Korean culture around certain holidays. Unlike in America (and other western cultures), they don't really give gifts on Christmas and birthdays. Christmas is more for couples and I haven't really figured out birthdays. From what I've gathered, they are just not that important. Anyway, the important times for gift giving are the Harvest festival, Chuseok (which is like Thanksgiving) and Lunar New Year, Seollal (which is the new year on the lunar calendar, duh). Ok, and not only do you give gifts to friends and family but your place of employment also gives you a gift.

Now, the gifts. These gifts are completely ridiculous. Last year for both holidays, my school gave us a gift box set of SPAM. That's right, SPAM. The meat that comes in a can. That you can buy at the dollar store at home and is generally regarded as inedible, unappealing and just overall not an acceptable to give as a gift to anyone, under any circumstances. But here, SPAM is a primo gift. Not only do we get a BOX of SPAM, but it comes in like, this fancy gift box, with two bottles of oil (if you like it fried) and the box comes in a fancy bag. I had never tried SPAM before, but I've had it here and it's not the worst thing in the world, as I previously assumed. I would never eat it on my own accord, pay for it, or order in a restaurant, but I have fried it up per a boyfriend's request and when I ate it, it wasn't the worst. It also comes in kimbap, which is Korean style sushi, which I eat frequently, but you don't really taste it since there is a lot of other stuff in there as well.

So, since SPAM isn't the worst thing in the world and people gotta eat, I can see why MAYBE a little tiny bit SPAM is an acceptable gift to give. However. This year, for both holidays, we have received an enormous gift set of bath products. Ok, you're thinking, hey! Bath products are useful and lovely! Yes, they are. But, here's the thing. The most recent box we were given has SIX (6) tubes of toothpaste in it. It also has two bars of soap, two shampoos, two conditioners, and a bottle of what I'm assuming is body wash in the middle. Once again, in list form, for your convenience:

1 person=
2 bars of soap
1 body wash
2 shampoos
2 conditioners
6 tubes of toothpaste

In picture form, in case you're wondering what that looks like:

So much toothpaste

The fancy box for the toothpaste

WHAT?

I can't, I really just can't. I cannot ever imagine myself using that amount of bath products in one year. Especially since for the last holiday, we received, essentially, the EXACT same thing.

The sad part is, no one I know even uses Korean toothpaste. Word on the street is that it doesn't have any fluoride in it. Koreans do brush their teeth more often than most Americans I know, so maybe they actually do go through that many tubes of toothpaste in a year. All the kids brush their teeth after school (it's such a pain) and I frequently see people brushing theirs in public restrooms.

But, my biggest confusion is mainly just, why do I have this? These gifts from my company are going to foreign teachers. Maybe you think it's presumptuous and rude of me to think the Koreans should change their ways for their foreign employees, but it's not really that I want anyone changing traditions, but I really think they just need to stop and think about how much money they are wasting on these products that 95% of the foreign teachers at their company (which is 50% of the company) is not going to use. That is A LOT of money! I saw the SPAM boxes at the grocery store last year and the cheapest one is $45! Just seems like that money could be spent on literally anything else because giving us SPAM and toothpaste is basically throwing the money in the trash.

Plus, it's not just foreigners! My boyfriend just got THREE gift sets from his company and he is planning on giving away all of them. Here's what he got:

A huge box of "seasoned laver," which is dried seaweed and it's actually really good. He gifted it to me. I'm a lucky lady. 

Sadly, the laver is the huge kind (not the bite-size kind I like) and is really only good for making kimbap, which I've done once and never plan on doing again. 

What a fancy box!

FULL OF SPAM. I can't. 

Seriously, the boxes are beautiful. 

These are bottles of ginseng. I was told you mix it into water for a beverage, but it smells awful and I can't imagine ever drinking such a thing.

 I really don't think I will ever be able to understand these boxes. They are the just the epitome of wasteful indulgence and it's depressing. The saddest part is that it's not even cool stuff! I am all for a little indulgence and I LOVE getting fancy gifts but I am forever getting things I will never use here! I hate it! I absolutely hate wasting things (money, food, products, whatever) and I would seriously rather get nothing than keeping getting things that go in the trash. Sometimes I get gifts from parents at school that go to waste as well. It's usually food that I don't want to, or can't, eat OR something random like lipstick. Which is a nice thought, but I don't wear lipstick, nor did it look good on me, haha. People are forever telling me that I can just re-gift them but I don't have anyone to give them to! Most of my friends here are fellow foreigners that don't want it, I'm not going to mail it home and the only Korean people I know (besides my boyfriend) are people are work with, that would know I was re-gifting! I'm doing some research to find a charity to give it to, so we'll see what happens with that.

So anyway, that's whats been going on this week. We have a four day weekend starting tomorrow and I'm currently just sitting at home with my huge box of toiletries. I have been feeling like crap so I'm hoping some sleep will shake my severe case of winter depression. Fingers crossed.

Dream big people!

Puppy Cafe

Oh. My. Goodnes. I cannot believe I have lived in this country for almost two years and just now went to my first puppy cafe. It was THE BEST THING EVER. Basically, you go to a cafe, buy a drink and play with dogs for however long you want. SO FABULOUS. It made me want to adopt a dog SO bad! Or I will go back to the cafe every day for the rest of my life. 

The one I went to was near Gangnam station and was actually very big. There were dogs of all sizes there, and lots of different kinds. We bought a coffee and literally just sat there playing with dogs for like, 2 hours. THE. BEST. I also bought some treats, so then obviously all the dogs flock to you, which was amazing. However, most of them get bored with you if you don't have treats and not all of them were super friendly, so that was a little sad. I did, however, find a few that loved me just as much as I loved them so we hung out and became the best of friends. My favorite was the little brown one in the last picture, but he was having none of it. He didn't really like being touched and I had to persuade him with treats and have my friend snatch him up so I could hold him. We took the picture and then he squirmed off. I still thought he was the cutest, even though he was a total jerkface. Typical.

However, that little tiny one in the first picture did love me (he had on a sweater that said "Hug Me," so I did) and we hung out for quite a bit. Gah, it was just so lovely, I can't even tell you. For the most part, I love dogs, contrary to popular belief. Let me rephrase, I love most dogs, namely, small cute ones. And I really don't like dogs that are super slobberly. The slobber grosses me out. Also, once my step-dad had a boxer and I really didn't like that dog at all. God rest her soul, she was ugly as sin and super annoying. Anyway, it's really on a dog to dog basis, like most things in my life. I'm picky about pretty much everything, dogs are no exception. 

Point is, I loved most of the dogs at this place and now I want one of my own. Financially, logistically and realistically, this would be a horrible decision for my life right now. I am not poor, but I want to spend all my money on traveling, not vets and dog food. Plus I would have to figure out what to do with him/her when I do travel. I also don't always go home right after school and often get home around 10 or 11:00 at night, which would be terrible for an animal.  Also, my apartment is TINY. It's only one room, so that means I wouldn't have anywhere to put a dog if I needed a break from it, or if it needed to stop chewing on all my shit. So yeah, a terrible idea but man oh man, they are so cute and a little tiny puppy would make me SO happy. I might try to foster one and see how it goes. 

So that was my awesome puppy-filled Saturday. All the puppies you can play with by just buying a $6 coffee. YES PLEASE. Come visit! We'll go together!

Dream big people!

Vacay: a Recap

Last year I celebrated Christmas in a hostel in Japan, and this year was spent in the PHILIPPINES!!! Seriously, one of the best vacations I have ever been on! It was so fantastic. I actually enjoyed a lot more than my trip to Thailand. And I really loved Japan last year, but it was also freezing so it was super nice to leave freezing cold Korea and four hours get off a plane in a tropical heat wave. The miracle of flight. Gotta love it.
Anyway, everything in the Philippines, save some of the transportation options (and few AC units), was fantastic. The people were nice, the food was great and the scenery was absolutely gorgeous. We stayed in some shady hotels, but they were super cheap and when all was said and done, not that bad. We (my co-worker and I) got into Cebu super late Friday night and took a ferry to Alona Beach on Bohol Saturday afternoon. If anyone ever has plans to do the same, get your ferry ticket in advance if possible. If not, go early to the ferry terminal (1 seemed to be the best, even though some people said 4 and the taxi driver left us at 3) because there will be a long ass line AND there's a 98% chance the ferry will be delayed because, literally, every mode of transport we took while there was delayed for some reason. They are living on that island time, which is how I want to live for sure, but it's no good for thinking you are going to get anywhere in a timely manner. I was fine because I was on vacation! Also, we were smart and gave ourselves a ton of time to do everything. The Philippines is definitely not a place for someone that needs to be on a tight schedule or wants everything to go as planned. For example, my friend and I went whale shark diving (!!! more later) and the boat was scheduled to leave at 5:30 in the morning. We left more around 6, then the boat broke down, so we went to another island to change boats. 20 minutes later, we are on boat two. 20 minutes after that, we went back to the island because that boat broke down as well. 20 more minutes and we are on boat 3. I was fine, I was on a boat in the Philippines, what is there to be angry about? However, there was another girl on our boat (Swedish maybe?) and she was just the angriest person! She was SO annoyed about our boat changes and looked so grumpy the entire time. We never figured out what was wrong with her (maybe she had an appointment later that afternoon she needed to get to) but point is, don't go to the Philippines with a schedule or any sort of time constraints because you will be angry all the time. Even when you're on a boat, on a beautiful day, going to hang out with whale sharks.

So yea, the whale sharks were awesome. Definitely one of the highlights of the trip. They are called whale sharks because they are these huge sharks that only eat plankton and krill and don't have teeth. So they're sharks, but with whale characteristics. They are really huge and it was actually really scary at first. Also just hilarious because it's the Philippines and they are not as strict about safety, so they were literally like, ok here are the rules: don't touch the animals, that's all. Then they make you put on a life jacket and ask if you're a good swimmer. If you say yes, you can take off the life jacket and get in the water. If you say no, they're like, are you sure? Ok, stay in the boat. Then you get in the water and they throw food close to you so the sharks get all up in your business and you end up touching them because they swim into you. It's pretty awesome. Best part, the 3 hour boat ride, the diving and renting an underwater camera all ended up costing about $50. My taxi ride home from the airport in Korea was twice that. Just as a point of reference.

I highly recommend Alona Beach, should you ever get the chance to go. It was so beautiful! Great weather, friendly people, really laid back and super cheap. The kids run around singing Christmas carols, trying to get  you to give them money, but they usually just wander off if you say no or ignore them. Or, if you do give them money, they sing a cute little thank you song and move on. Also, there are people trying to sell you things, but not quite as intense as Thailand. Plus, unlike Thailand, the people usually just move on if you say no and don't make you feel like you just ruined their lives by not buying anything.

Actual Cebu City was a little more sketch than I was expecting, but not too bad. I never felt unsafe or threatened. Filipinos seem pretty chill and everyone we met was nice, but not in a creepy way. I also felt they weren't trying too hard to scam people, which is how I felt a lot on Thailand. Anyway, both lovely places but I would rather go back to the Philippines, if ever given the chance. That's not to say we never got scammed. For instance, we went "island hopping and snorkeling" (2 islands) and at the first one, they were all, oh the big boat can't go over to the snorkel place, you have to take this other smaller boat (our friends), and also you have to rent the snorkel gear, it's not provided like we implied it was. Here is our other friend, you can rent it from them. But oh well, because it was seriously like $4 to do both, so you deal.

We also ate really good food while we were there. Lots of grilled fish and just really good, simple grilled meats and veggies, which I love. While I was there, I was all, look at me, I'm so healthy, I've been eating veggies and grilled fish all the time, I probably lost weight. Then I got home and put on my pants and was all, nope, definitely didn't. Actually probably gained weight. You're probably assuming it was because of alcohol but NOPE. I hardly drank...I actually don't really enjoy drinking on vacation, seems like a waste to spend a day hungover. It was from all the bread I conveniently forgot about. Most of the hotels had free breakfast and they all gave us like, 8 pieces of toast and I ate them ALL. I love bread and also pretty much everything else made my stomach go crazy. So yeah, so much for that theory.

Anyway, can't say enough good things about the trip. There were a lot of little annoying things, but I try to keep it cool on vacay. However, I did get really angry at the very end of the trip, when we were at the airport. We checked in, and were about to go though immigration and we were told we first had to pay a terminal fee. I don't recall ever having to do this at any other airport, but maybe my memory fails me. Anyway, it was just super annoying because there was NO mention of this anywhere in the airport, or at the check-in counter. We had to pay one at the ferry, but it was the first thing you did when you walked in. Also, they only took cash. It was only like $10, but I didn't have enough Pesos left because I had just spent most of the cash I had left in the airport because I didn't want to take Pesos home with me! But the real kicker...they took American dollars, and my friend had a $100 bill. But the stupid woman was all, oh this one has a tiny rip in it, we don't want it. Also, we don't have change so you'll have to go ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE DOMESTIC TERMINAL to get change and/or go to an ATM. OH MY GOD, I was so angry. Like, what are you even talking about crazy lady?! Not having change is the biggest lie I've ever heard. I had been going with the flow with all the other ridiculousness while there, but this I couldn't deal with. Thank goodness my friend asked if they accepted Won AND I also had enough Won for both of us, because I was seriously about to scream at this woman. So we made it through and got to immigration, where we made it to the front and then they're all, oh? You didn't fill out the paperwork? You don't see that sign in the back corner of the room? You need to do that. ARRGHHH. Best part? Did't even really matter because the flight was delayed an hour. So then we missed the last bus in Korea and had to take a cab for $120. And to think I was upset about the $10 terminal fee. Silly me.

Other than that, everything was fab...here, enjoy some pics:

Seriously, so beautiful. Can you deal? 

I rode on a motorcycle for like, 2 minutes and it was glorious. Should've done more of that. 

Mariah Christmas and the beach? HEAVEN. 

Dream big people!

2014: The Year of Travel

2014 is off to a FANTASTIC start. Here is how I rang it in:

First, my friend I went to a random Japanese restaurant, where we got curry chicken nuggets, french fries and free fish cakes. YUM. 

Then we ordered this, thinking it was alcoholic since it said "Sparkling Cider" on the menu, but it was really just $4 apple juice. So then my boy came to meet us and we made him smuggle in soju. He was very concerned about this, since bringing in outside beverages is "illegal." Don't worry, no one went to jail.

 

That meal sucked, so we went to a second meal, of galbi, which is always a delight. 

When second dinner was over, it was still only 11 and my friend wanted to go home since she was sick, so she did. The boy, like most Koreans, think it is fun and romantic to go to norebang (karaoke in a private room) with just two people and that is what he wanted to do. I personally think it's awful and really only enjoy it when I'm drunk and with at least 6 other people, but I figured I should start the new year being nice and agreeable, so off we went. Plus, it was either that or go home. 

He's really into it. 

Seriously. I'm trying to be cute and he's all, I'm trying to sing, woman!

New Years isn't really a big thing here, so he wasn't concerned about the countdown. So I forgot about it and didn't even realized it had passed until we were 5 minutes into 2014. But whatever, I'm fine with it. I'm old now and things are awesome so far. Then I sang "Crazy" by Britney Spears and had a grand ole time, sober and all. 

Then, Thursday I went back to work and guess what!? It actually made me REALLY happy. I mean, how lucky am I that I actually enjoy going back to work after a holiday? I loved seeing my babies and co-workers, and I can't lie, I like having a schedule and things to do. I had 5 days off when I got back from the Philippines and too much down time makes me hella lazy and then I get restless. Feeling good these days. 

I've also decided this year is going to be the year of travel. I know, you're thinking, Jacky, you traveled a lot last year, what on earth on you talking about? Yes, you're right, I did and it was awesome. However, this year I want to take advantage of ALL the holidays and go somewhere awesome for every one. I also want to plan ahead because last year I did everything last minute and that was stupid. Planning for Buddha's birthday NOW, who's in?!

Speaking of last minute, I am not off to the greatest start on that, but I'm working on it. I thought I found an awesome deal on a trip to Hong Kong, but I had the dates wrong so that was all wrong. Then I tried calling Ethiopian Airlines and it turned into such an annoying hassle because they have the WORST customer service. You suck, Ethiopian Airlines. Kayak, you do too! Quit telling me there is a $200 flight when THERE IS NOT! Doing it pretty last minute is a stupid, and expensive thing to do since the entire country has vacation, so tons of people are booking flights. I stayed up until 5 am Friday night trying to find a ticket on LITERALLY every single airline that flies into Hong Kong, but EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. was sold out. So working on a new plan. Boo. 

But for some good news, this year I have already acquired two things for free that I was thisclose to purchasing. A coat rack and a kettle, if you're interested. I also found a pair of pants that actually fit me in this country! Granted, I feel like a fatty because it was the largest size in the store, but whatever. We'll also see how they hold up because last time I bought pants I thought fit, they actually stretched out too much for me to wear.  Also, this weekend was awesome since I went to a PUPPY CAFE (more in a later post) and cleaned the hell out of my apartment. Feeling so accomplished. Joining the gym tomorrow and am going to make the most out of these last 8 weeks with my babies. I also bought a kindle and a super cute case for it, as well as a new passport and phone case for like $8 on ebay. Who knows what the future has in store! I seriously can't wait. 

Dream big, people! 

(a break between songs)

Grumpy Pants

I'm in my cozy bed now, so the grumpy pants are off and have been replaced by comfy pjs, so feeling a bit better now. However, I was stewing on my way home tonight. I went to Apgujeong (in Seoul) for some Zumba, which usually makes me really happy, but I was NOT feeling this class. There were two instructors and I knew one, and the other I had met at the Zumba certificate training. She didn't remember me, and even though I was like, I met you, she apparently didn't hear me and we literally had the EXACT same conversation we had when I met her. Cool. Also, I ate McDonalds like an hour before and that was a big mistake. Huge. Definitely regretted that. After the class, I said hello to another person I met at the training and he gave me the rudest look ever. So fuck you, Zumba people.

I think my main problem is it's FUCKING COLD AND COLD WEATHER SUCKS MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE IN THE WHOLE WORLD.

I try to be a positive person, for the most part. People that know me probably don't believe this, because I do an awful lot of bitching for the sake of bitching. This is mainly to get it out of my system because, really, in my head I think good thoughts and try to look at the bright side. But, seasonal depression is real, y'all and I get the winter blues real bad. They've started this year. Solutions welcome.

I can't even explain to you how much I hate Korean winters. I thought winters at home were awful, getting down to like, 40 but it is SO much worse here. I experienced my first negative temperatures last year and cried.  And this is not even the coldest place in the world! It blows my mind that people willingly live where it gets insanely cold and stays that way for an extremely long time.

The ONLY good thing about winter is Christmas, but even that is more fun when it's warm. I'd rather just watch it snowing on TV. Or actually, I would just like to pretend snow doesn't exist. Snow can kiss my ass and so can all snow related activities. I cannot understand people that enjoy snow and frankly, I don't need them as friends.

I saw a piece on BuzzFeed that was "Reasons to be Thrilled about Winter." Vomit. This is my rebuttal.
(Skipping the exceptionally boring ones)

1. Inventing new ways to make snowmen.

No. Snowmen are the worst. I hate making them. It makes my hands cold, they never turn out they way you want, they're stupid and they melt. I hate everything to do with snow and snowmen can suck it. Sand sculptures are what's up.

2. Festive long johns.

That no one sees? And make you sweaty when you're inside? And dig into your stomach and leave an indention when you wear them all day long? And take forever to readjust after you go to the bathroom? No Thanks.

3. Peppermint hot cocoa.

Thanks to my awesome new lactose issues, I will not be partaking in cocoa this year. Also, newsflash, you can make that all year round if you have an access to a microwave, stove or hot water.

4. Beautiful, beautiful layers.

Tank top, dress, cardigan = acceptable layers. Tank top, t-shirt, long sleeve shirt, sweater, jacket, coat, scarf = excessive. Layers are sometimes cute in the fall and 3 is max. Once winter hits, the layers stop being cute and start being annoying. As a petite fatty, layers are a pain to adjust constantly. And for everyone, they are a pain to take on and off every time you go in or outside. For anyone that rides the subway, they are a HUGE pain to deal with on the train (or bus) since they always have the heat blasting and if you don't take off some layers, you will be a puddle when you reach your destination.

5. Streets lit up

Yes, pretty. But also totally possible in the summer. Everyone, keep lights up all year long. I do, and it's fabulous.

6. Cool sheets and warm comforters and staying in bed too long. First two, yes. Last one, big problem when you have to show up to work on time, looking acceptable and not a hot mess.

7. Heating up by the fire.

There are no fireplaces in Korea. THANKS ANYWAY. Furthermore, fires suck. Too close, you're melting, too far away, it's freezing. There is no happy medium. Also, major fire hazard.

8. Chili

Nope, chili is gross and also makes my stomach explode. And once again, can be made ANY TIME OF THE YEAR. If you want it to be cold when you eat it, crank up the AC, get on the subway, or sit in a freezer.

9. Sledding

Fun once. Do it longer and you get a huge headache and everything gets soggy from the snow. Plus, I have never seen any sledding here. Also, go sled on some sand. Or a big grassy hill. Way better.

10. The instant, easy elegance of a winter coat.

Yes, if you have hundreds of dollars to spend and also if it's really not that cold. Because anything that is cute and/or elegant is not keeping you warm. Anyone that lives somewhere SUPER cold knows that looking cute goes out the window at zero degrees and you will stop at nothing to make yourself warm. This includes wearing ridiculous hats, nonfunctional mittens, a big puffy coat (you can only afford one, so you wear it every day), two layers of pants, which make you feel like you gained 20 pounds and scarves that cover half your face. If I can find a bank robber-esque mask this year, I'm buying it and wearing it every day.

11. Animals in people hats.

Not a good enough reason to give winter any credit.

12. People in animal hats.

This is getting ridiculous.

13. A nice and natural snack (snow)

Gross. And I live by the 10 second rule

14. Seeing your breath on a walk

WHAT?!?! No, how is that fun? Stupid.

15. Flannel bedding

Sleep in that shit and you're sweating by morning.

16. Boots, the easiest/best/coolest footwear type of all

That is the most untrue thing I have ever read. I can't even.

17. Watching your favorite holiday themed movies, again.

CAN BE DONE AT ANY TIME, AT ANY TEMPERATURE.

18. Poinsettias, the most beautiful and most cherry plant.

Another huge lie. What lunatic wrote this nonsense?

19. The smell of balsam trees

Don't even know what those are, but if it's in candle form, you can once again, smell it ALL YEAR.

The last thing on a list is a picture of snow covered road in a forest. Nope, nope, nope. Beaches are way prettier, snow is beautiful for approximately one day and then it just the worst pile of disgusting sludge, ruining your shoes and making you fall.

Basically, everything that is "great" about winter can be done in warm weather, except for snow related things but fuck snow. And another thing that sucks, when the sun is out but it's freezing so you have to wear all the layers but you're sweating and need sunglasses. EVERYTHING IS HORRIBLE, YOU CAN'T WIN.

In conclusion, I hate winter and all winter things and need to figure out how to move to a tropical country sometime in the near future.

Dream big, people!

PS-Thanks for still reading Mr. Stutts!!! :D

Tiddlebits

I'm not sure if that is a word, but I just made it one and I LIKE IT.

So, I've been super horrible about updating this blog, but zero people have complained so I'm almost positive no one reads it. I'm fine with that. Imma keep posting anyway because I'll do what I want. I'm going to shower you in tiddlebits (those are short stories with a cuter name).

1. My (newish) Korean bf has been kind of sheltered in terms of music. I recently introduced him to Bob Marley (RIGHT?! has he been living under a rock?!) and he was ALL about some "No Woman, No Cry." A few days after listening to it on repeat, he turns to me in the car and asks, "Did you know Bob Marley is dead?" Um, yes, of course. Everyone knows that. He died before the two of us where even born! (1981...I looked it up). He was shocked I knew and also told me he was very sad about this news. He thinks Bob made good music and spread a good message. He's very upset he is no longer living. I mean, I am too, but I have come to terms with it since he's been dead MY ENTIRE LIFETIME. I was a little sad for him, but I still laughed in his face.

2. Halloween! Precious, as always. And a costume fail for me, as always. Every year I'm like, THIS IS THE YEAR I WILL RULE AT HALLOWEEN. I'm a pretty creative and crafty person so you'd think I'd be all over it but seriously every year my costume sucks. I'm not sure why, but I think because I don't really have any motivation to make an awesome one. Well, I don't have it until the DAY of and I feel like a failure because everyone else has a great costume. Also I always want to be something cool and creative, but I can never get my shit together in time and then it's the day of and I'm wearing the same Panda suit as last year. I didn't even go out for Halloween this year, so I only wore it for school. I also wore a blonde wig and had some crazy make-up, so I dubbed myself Lady Panda Gaga but none of the kids knew who Lady Gaga was. Fail. Especially since two of my co-workers were rocking homemade matching shark costumes. F them.

3. I got to eat some AMAZING Thanksgiving food last weekend at a friends church. OMG, it was so delicious. Homemade casseroles, pies, stuffing, mashed potatoes and TURKEY. All of the above are rarities in Korea, so it was a delightful treat. However, first I had to sit through the church service and it was THE WORST. Now is the not the time or place for my rant on how much I hate most all organized religion (yeah, I'm one of those people) but I felt like my ears were being assaulted. I just the love the hypocritical message that was sent. We love everyone! Except people that don't believe what I believe and also do stupid things like get a taro card reading (this pastor was super anti-fortune telling) or even worse, be gay. There was a special service for "People who practice sexual sin." Also, instead of being like, yay, Thanksgiving! Give thanks! Eat food! Togetherness, hooray...the pastor titled his sermon "Thanksgiving in jail" and literally had people in tears with his personal family sob story. THE. WORST. My new life goal is to never sit through a church service again. But, hooray food!

4.I have been stepping it up lately in terms of beauty care. There are beauty shops EVERYWHERE here and most things are pretty cheap. So, I wanted to join the party...plus I have been into makeup more and more these days. I don't know what I'm doing and I'm generally too impatient to do things properly, but I've been trying, The sad part? I look worse. Maybe it's a transitional phase but I currently have two huge zits (which is very unusual for me), my skin in overall gross and my HAIR. Ugh, my hair! It's terrible and I want to shave it all off. I won't, but I'm at my wits end with it. It's depressing. My stomach as also gone crazy lately and I can't really eat anything without a piece of my soul dying and coming out. Lame.

5. I just tried to order some grown-up (and much needed) undergarments from Victoria's Secret and now I'm outraged. I was going to ship them to my lovely mother, who was going to ship them to me because, like most companies, VS sucks and doesn't ship to Korea. Upon checkout, I discovered that shipping was going to be $12. Mmmm, what? I thought pretty much every store did spend $50, get free shipping. Nope! In fact, the more money you spend online at VS, the more your shipping is. Ummm, cool. Fuck you. Cancel order.

Ok, well that's enough for now. In other news, my life is pretty rocking right now. Other than the occasional hiccups, things are awesome. The weather is getting colder and as soon as it snows, that will come to a screeching halt, but I'm ok for now. Fingers crossed everything and everyone in the Philippines is ok, too!

Dream big, people!

The Invention of Korea

Thursday is National Foundation Day in Korea and today a student told me it was when Korean was invented. Precious! I love my job.

I also am still so freaking in love with the fact that Crispix showed up during my Costco visit this weekend. I literally JUST had a dream about buying them the night before and then, just out of the blue, there they were at Costco! I've been to Costco here maybe three times before and they've never had them. Makes me so happy...I (and this blog) have talked about my love for Crispix multiple times before. I've also been chatting them up a lot lately here in Korea because I was desperate to have someone buy them for me at the commissary. But, now I don't have to! SO EXCITING!

Here is what I don't love, though. The fact that you have to be a member of Bally Fitness to go to the ONE Zumba class they offer. Tonight, they let me go to the first class for free, but if I want to go from now on, I have to pay $120 per month, which is what I currently pay for 3 months at my gym. So depressing. I want to take Zumba classes SO BAD. I don't even want to teach, I just want to follow along in the back. Le sign.

But, to end on a good note, I had the BEST hamburger I have possibly ever had last week (and also the week before!!). It is at a place called Salt and Butter (at the Apgujeongrodeo stop, exit 6...turn leftat Paris Crossiant and go down about three blocks, it's on the left) and it was AMAZING. I had the California burger and a ROOT BEER (a rarity in Korea) and I pretty much died of happiness. So, if you're in Korea, go there and eat one as soon as possible. And, if you're not, come visit me and we'll go together!

Ok, well dream big people! Life is so great now. Just FYI.

Happy Chuseok!

I Was Strolling Through the Park One Day...

Actually, I was strolling home today, and I happened upon some awesomeness: 

It was basically an outdoor Tae Kwon Do demonstration...with little kids...and music. It was so fantastic. I stayed and watched for like 30 minutes. I hate so much that I was alone and there was no one to share in the fantastic-ness with me, what oh well. I still enjoyed it. It was a nice little happy break too, from my grumpy afternoon. Seriously, how much do you have to work out before the endorphin's kick in? An hour? Two hours? Because I forced myself to go to the gym, hoping for a pick me up, and I was still angry with the world when I left. Oh well. The outdoor surprise put a smile on my face. But, then, I saw these and I was back to angry: 

Korea has a serious shoe problem. There are lots of normal, lovely shoes here, of course. But, there seem to be an absurd amount of just HEINOUS shoes. Like, the worst ever. And I get super angry because they are on cute girls. Stop it ladies! What are you doing? Why would you buy those? And why is there no one in your life that is like, TAKE THOSE OFF NOW AND NEVER LET THEM SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY AGAIN? Sigh. 

Then I came home and the anger continued since I forced myself into making dinner. I say forced because I HATE cooking. So much. I think I am missing some girl genes...like the ones that make you like cooking and make you want babies. Maybe they'll come later...I didn't really like make-up until college. Anyway, I hate cooking a lot and the only reason I do it is because I keep buying food, telling myself I'm going to cook at home more often. So, now I have all this food and after letting a good portion of it go bad, I decided I needed to cook it so it wouldn't be a complete waste of money. I am also trying to lose some weight and it's a healthier option than allowing myself to eat a restaurant. Even with the best of intentions, I'll end up eating something I told myself I wouldn't. I have ZERO self control. Which is why my clothes don't fit now. Now I'm forcing myself to eat shrimp and broccoli and all I want is some bread. And ice cream. And literally anything besides this horrible broccoli. Why is everything delicious bad for you? Bah. Is popcorn good for you? The package says the entire bag of butter popcorn says it's only like, 150 calories but I feel like that just can't be right. Can anyone confirm this? I'll keep eating it regardless but I need to know if I need to feel guilty. 

Anyway. I did some other strolling, yesterday, in a lovely little park. I have been to this park before but I didn't realize there was a whole other part to it, that included this super awesome pond, some tombs,and just really pretty scenery in general. I had a lovely time just sitting and admiring the view. You can too: 

It was a lovely weekend. I also took a nice long walk on Saturday evening. The weather was perfect this weekend so I tried to take advantage of it because I know the cruel, cruel winter is coming to suck the life out of me soon. It was a really random walk. I happened upon three outdoor concerts, one literally under a bridge. I also saw two nuns, had to bushwhack my way through part of the river path and was nearly killed by a swarm of dragonflies. They are HUGE here!

So that's that. Just wanted to share the recent happenings. Nothing else too exciting going on. I am trying to plan a trip for Christmas, but funds are so low right now. So very sad. I also just checked in on my student loans lately and that a terrible, depressing idea. I thought I had paid so much off and NOPE. It's still a stupid amount of money. More bah. 

More later. I'm sure good things will be happening soon. I'm already feeling slightly optimistic after this broccoli and shrimp dinner. May reward myself with popcorn later. 

Dream big people! 

Golden Birthday!

Happy Birthday to me!

Wooooo, today I turned 28 on the 28th! So that means it's super special and awesome. Mainly because I decided it is. :D But, yeah, I've a really great time, especially since I am also on vacation!

Last week a co-worker and I went to down to Busan, which is the big beach city at the bottom of Korea. We took the "luxury" bus down and it took about 4 hours, and wasn't a bad ride at all. It has seriously been raining here for the last 3 weeks with no breaks, but we finally caught one! It was very lucky, the three days we were down there, the weather was amazing! It wasn't crazy hot, so we had a lovely time laying on the beach. For the first and last days, we were at the really big, popular beach. It was a little too intense for me. It was nice and I enjoyed it, but there were soooo many people...even for a weekday. We got down there Wednesday and also spent Friday at the same beach. It's so different from beach time at home. First off, pretty much everyone sits under an umbrella, which you can rent from 100 different people up and down the beach. You can also rent chairs and tubes, as well as buy chicken, beer, ice cream and an impressive array of other things. The water was super cold, but a ton of people still swim and most of them are in the tubes. It's actually pretty funny. The waves are pretty high so everyone screams from the cold and the waves, so there are tons of people just in these tubes, floating and screaming. Koreans are also interesting with their swim wear choices, so there are a lot of people wearing like, a full set of clothing in the water. Also, for whatever reason, tons of people wear hats and hardly anyone wears sunglasses. But, Busan has been one of the most chill places I've been in Korea. There were lots of people with tattoos, which you rarely see up my way.

Wednesday night there was some sort of outdoor concert on the beach and it was so random. It was basically a deejay outside on a stage with a bunch of people standing around watching. Koreans are pretty terrible at dancing and getting enthusiastic about concerts (from the ones I've been to), so there were only a few people busting a move. And I guess since it was a Wednesday night at 8, there were a lot of young kids there. Even some babies cruising around. I find there are often babies in unexpected places in Korea. Anyway.

Our hotel was SUPER nice in Haeundae (the first beach)...it had a huge bathtub, bathrobes, lots of cute toiletries and our own personal water cooler! Can't beat never running out of water..hot OR cold! When we went to the other beach (Songjeong) the next day, we found a pretty decent hotel a 5 minute walk to the beach for a really good deal. It wasn't as nice, but it was clean and had a huge TV in it. Plus, super close to the beach so I was thrilled. I just love the beach so damn much. It was so fabulous to just lay on it all day, even if there were lots of crazy things going on around me. Songjeong had a lot less going on and there were less people, so I liked it more. You could rent chairs and stuff (we did) but not quite as much craziness as Haeundae. They did have outdoor norebang (karaoke) at night, but overall, pretty quite and peaceful.

When we went back to Haeundae Friday, it was PACKED! The stage that had the deejay Wednesday night was hosting a some sort of beer and sunscreen promotion and it was completely ridiculous. There was a guy in a Psy mask dancing around with some girls and they played his songs, as well as a beer commercial he's in for like, 5 hours straight. I love Gangnam Style probably more than anyone, but it got pretty old after about hour 3. Other things that got old: the same 5 people wandering up and down trying to sell chicken and beer. The girls next to us that took hundreds of pictures of themselves. The girls on the other side that spent an hour putting on makeup and doing their hair with these huge mirrors that they brought TO THE BEACH. The girls in front of us that sprayed an entire bottle of spray on sunscreen on themselves, which got all over us. Basically all the girls we saw at the beach. Things that didn't get old: people watching all the ridiculousness. The super cute kids that were perplexed by my friends and I's foreign-ness. All the super hot men wandering around. Men that weren't super hot, but were hilarious to watch. And basically just being in the sunshiney goodness that is the beach.

On the way home I decided I'll be taking the train from now on. The bus ride isn't bad, but they only stop one time halfway through, and I had to pee so bad I thought I was going to die. I was seriously contemplating how I was going to successfully pee in a bottle when they announced they'd be stopping soon. Then I bolted off the bus and just barely made it to the bathroom. It was horrible.

Anyway. Then I came home and had an epic birthday party that lasted until 5 in the morning last night. A pretty good way to ring in 28. Now I'm going to use the rest of my vacation to recover because I am SO OLD. Then I'll have another party next week, but maybe slightly less crazy since I'll only have one day to recover. We'll see.

So yeah. Thanks if you sent me a birthday wish. There is still time if you haven't! Plus I'd love you anyway...even if it is my super special amazing golden birthday. I'd forgive you.

Dream big people!

Home of the Free...and Frumpy

Heyyyyy Oohhhhh.

Oh my! It has been SO long! Right? How are you friends? Me, I'm doing just dandy. It has been QUITE the interesting last few weeks. I mean, what was even going on last time I posted? Was Lincoln still in office? I don't even know. Sorry for the huge break. I know all of you were heartbroken.

Whoa. I just checked the last post and I skipped over all of May and June! Goodness! Now it's July and it's almost my GOLDEN BIRTHDAY!!! WOOOOO. That means I will be 28 ON the 28th! I am so old! I kind of can't believe this is really happening! I am also a little nervous that it's not going to be epic and awesome. It is over our summer vacation and almost everyone I know here will be out of town...or having babies. I will have to round together a rag tag group to make it awesome. Totally possible, don't worry.

Anyway. So much has happened! I'll rewind and hit the highlights. And then I'll try to start posting more often...I'm sure people need to know things.

I broke up with my boyfriend! I'm the one that did it and I'm ok with it now, but man oh man it was quite the dramatic experience. Seriously, more drama in a week than I think I've ever had. It was a little ridiculous and I was all, "is this real life?" And it was and it sucked. But, that's over now and I'm moving right along. I've never been the one breaking up with someone, I've always been broken up with, so it was a new experience. I didn't really like it, so I'm going to try and avoid it for the rest of my life. My plan is to just do whatever I want and not be called anyone's girlfriend until I think I'm with the person I'm going to marry. Good plan, right? I thought so.

Anyway, I also went home! Dang, I really can't believe it's been that long! A lot happened at home and it was all fascinating, but I'm going to just gloss over it since it really deserves it's own post (but probably won't get one). Main thing, my sister got married. Yay, good for her. Her new husband is very nice and has lots of fun, interesting family and friends. I guess they're my family too now? I actually don't really know how that works. The wedding was very pretty, she looked amazing and I looked pretty awesome as well. I still think my hair looked very 50s mom-ish (I was told repeatedly it didn't), but my make-up was amazing. Basically I was smoking hot. Quite pasty and fat, but my face was looking good.

I also went to my 10 year high school reunion while I was home. It happened to be at the same time, so I figured why not? It wasn't bad, but it was pretty boring and uneventful as well. Sadly, not very many people I was interested in seeing were actually there. I had a fine time in high school and didn't really have any grudges to avenge, but it would have been more fun to see people I was better friends with. I did go with my good group of girlfriends and were (obviously) the life of the party. Seriously, no one else was dancing. No one else as drunk as us, but I hardly doubt the two correlate at all.

My two best college friends came to visit me while I was home, from Florida and Texas and that was an awesome time too. Probably my favorite time. Other than all the time I spent at the beach. There are not even words to express how much I love the beach and how I wish I could be at it all day every day. Sadly, it rained quite a bit while I was home so I didn't get to spend as much time as I wanted there, but I did get a pretty good tan. Which was mentioned literally every time I saw someone for the first time when I got back to Korea. I guess it was kind of a big difference from when I left, but I thought it was pretty funny that it got mentioned all the time. Also, Koreans are more into having very white skin, so I don't think most people were impressed...more shocked I was happy being so dark. And I was! Quite proud of my tan...and very sad now it's fading.

I also ate a ton of good food while in the States. But, because I had some stomach issues while I was there (stress and different water, I think), I didn't eat as much as I wanted. Which, was probably for the best, in the end. I think I would have gained a lot more weight if I could have eaten 3 STP Dippers a day, like I wanted. I am sad that I didn't bring back a proper amount of food (mainly candy) with me, so feel free to send some my way...I have a list. I also didn't buy as many clothes as I wanted either. I got kind of conservative with my money, which I realize now was a stupid decision. However, I did invest in some good quality under garments for the first time in my life and it has made a HUGE difference. So yay for that.

So that was America. Lots of good food, good friends, good driving, amazing beach time, just an overall good time. It was actually quite strange to be home. People are so different! Mainly, in the way they dress. Most of the men here are SO stylish and put together. At home,everyone seems so frumpy because they wear ill fitting clothing. Don't get me wrong, I am pretty frumpy myself, but I like to look at men that aren't. But for some positives, the grocery stores are amazingly huge with so much selection, I almost cried when I for the first time. I also went to Target like, 7 times (in the first week) and spent so much money. I had to put myself on Target restriction. I realize now that was stupid, but at least now I'll maybe have some money saved for a kick ass winter vacation. So, yeah, America was great. But, I was happy to come back to Korea. It was nice to be welcomed back by all my babies and my lovely co-workers. I think that's a good sign...to be happy to go back to work. I was so excited to see my class! I feel so lucky to have a job that I really love and enjoy and am looking forward to the rest of the year!

On that same vein (skipping ahead 3 weeks), we had Parent/Teacher conferences on Friday and it just further solidified my satisfaction with this job. I wasn't really looking forward to them because it means sitting in a chair all day, mainly just listening to my co-teacher and the mom speak Korean while I pretend to look interested. Sometimes the moms can speak English and we chat and my co-teacher translates some as well. But mainly I just sit. BUT, point is, the moms were just so nice and grateful, and it's just another reason I love the job. First off, a lot of them bring us presents, which is AWESOME. All food, since we are not "allowed" to accept real presents, but I love food, so no complaints here. A group of moms brought us peaches, which are crazy expensive in Korea. Also, they told me they brought fruit instead of cake because the students told them I was on a diet. Which I find hilarious....they thought this because I usually eat an apple at lunch and the kids see it. I also eat pizza, fried chicken and a host of other unhealthy dishes, but that one piece of fruit indicates a healthy diet. I love it! They also had lots of good things to say about how much their kids love coming to PSA because they love me and my co-teacher, and how they are all very impressed with how much their kids are learning. I love (and need!) positive feedback, so this is all just fantastic for me. Love it. Then I celebrated with noreabang (Korean karaoke) and we sang all the musical songs they had in the book...'Do You Hear the People Sing,' 'Under the Sea,' 'Do Re Mi,' all the things Korean people want to hear while they're drunk.

Anyway, nothing else exciting going on. Well, that's not all true...but they are not family friendly things. So, in other news, it has been raining like no one's business here, so I've been spending a lot of time indoors. I'm not complaining though because if it's not raining, it's hot as mess.

My vacation starts this week, so I'll be going to Busan (a big beach city) for a few days and then will be back to celebrate my BIG SPECIAL GOLDEN CHAMPAGNE BIRTHDAY!!! It's going to be awesome!

Dream big people!

Spring at last, spring at last!

PEOPLE. I can't even tell you what a difference the sun FINALLY coming out makes. I had a serious case of the winter blues and I think I can finally get rid of them. I have never been in a cold climate like this for so long and the Korean winter was bitchin. Ugh, it was so terrible. I have no idea how people live in places where winter lasts forever. And it didn't even snow that much here..not like in some other places. Like stupid Wyoming..it snowed when I was there in June! Anyway. Point is, I hate the cold and it makes me miserable. But nooowwwww, it is finally getting warm and life is good again.

Things are still crazy go nuts at school, but it's amazing how much easier it is to deal with kids when you're not dragging yourself around like a zombie. Don't get me wrong, they are still quite the handful. This year's kids are WAY rowdier than last years, so it's a whole new set of problems. For instance, yeseterday, one of my kids pooped in his pants. That never happened last year. Luckily, I was not the one to clean him up, but I was the one that had to sniff him out. Oh man, totally ridiculous. He was too embarassed to admit it, but I couldn't let him just sit there! Anyway, that's gross, so lets not talk about it anymore.

Lots of other craziness going on. But, I don't think anyone cares, so I'll just sum up.

School is crazy...everyday is a hectic mess, but it's still so fun. One of my little girls motioned for me to come closer the other day and whispered in my ear: "Jacky teacher, I love you." Oooh my, heart melting. Another little boy gives me kisses all the time. They are in strange places, like my thigh and stomach, but he's so cute because he sneaks them in all quick...like ninja kisses. I had another little girl singing Bieber's "Baby" the other day, which made my life because I totally did not teach it to her. However, I found out there is a KPop cover of it, so maybe not as special as I thought. Oh well. I'll try to post the video later...it's still pretty cute.

For other videos, you should watch Psy's new video "Gentleman" if you haven't already...and then search for his Beyonce "Single Ladies" cover on YouTube, because it is one of the most fantastic things I have ever seen. EVER. I just love Psy so much, I can't stand it. In Korea, it's pretty normal for guys to dress up as woman and do random shit...for the sake of comedy. Koreans find it hilarious. I usually think it's kind of weird, but Psy dressed as Beyonce is pretty fabulous. But the best is that Koreans are like, yeah, ok, this is totally not weird at all. I love cultural differences...they are so fun.

But for the best news...I am going home in  A MONTH!!!! I can hardly stand it. I am so excited to see my sister get married! Also, FOOD. And, the BEACH. Oh my, I am so pumped. Oh, and shopping!!! I shop a lot here, but it's different. For one thing, I have to get the biggest size in most stores here, which is a bit depressing. Also, they don't always let you try things on here, and that's annoying. And lastly, there are always so many people anywhere you go, so it gets to be a bit much. I have mini anxiety attacks if I'm not prepared for it. IE: I haven't eaten enough food. So yeah, anyway, looking forward to less stressful shopping.

Ok, well I will try to put up photos and other fun things soon. Don't hold your breath, I have to go enjoy the sunshine.

Dream big people!

On The Up

Ok, well things have improved a little bit in the last few week. Got a little worse in some ways, but overall, I think things are finally on the up and up.

I finally started teaching Zumba! It is actually much harder than I was hoping. I knew it was going to be hard, but it's something I really want to do. Mainly because I love it and there are no classes in my area. So I had to do it myself. However, being the person everyone follows instead of just being a follower in class is hard! First off, I am not a naturally great dancer. I don't have the best rhythm and latin style dancing is definitely not my dance forte. Actually, I don't think I even have a dance forte. I just like to do it. It's a lot of choreography to remember! Plus it's just really nerve racking to have all eyes on me. Sometimes I'll like, fix my hair or wipe my brow and everyone does it! So weird. I still get pretty nervous right before class, but it's been really fun so far. I hope the people in my classes are having fun. No negative feedback yet, so I guess so!

I canceled this weeks classes, though because whatever sickness I have is just NOT going away. I think it's just allergies gone horribly wrong, but I can't shake. I finally went to the doctor this week and got like, 8 different pills so I'm hoping one of them works. The last few weeks I've tried being Korean and just powering through, but I think I just need some rest...along with 8 different pills. Feeling a bit better today (Wed) but nowhere close to being 100%. Hoping pizza and sleep will help that tonight. Fingers crossed.

Oh, and for anyone freaking out about North Korea...don't! It is literally not even a thing here and not one South Korean gives a shit. This happens all the time and everyone knows NK is all talk, no action. And, if they were to be any kind of action, they would be shut down so fast by like, 10 different countries. Basically, it'd be suicide for them. So, yeah. Don't worry, it's all business as usual over here.

In other news, are people still against gay marriage? Hard to believe that is still a thing. People and their ridiculous opinions against it make me sick. I really can't understand at all. I am just hoping people come to their senses soon and just let people live their lives whatever way they want. Please and thank you.

Nothing else too exciting going on. Really looking forward to going home and stuffing my face with tons of delicious food. I am trying to lose weight now so I can gain it all back at home, but still fit in my clothes. Good plan, eh? The pizza tonight probably won't help that. Oh well.

Ok, well that's all for now. Have more to say, but I don't think anyone reads this anymore.

Dream big people!

Bah

So things went from good to shitty pretty quickly. I mean, things, overall, are ok, but lots of frustrations happening these last few days and I just want to crawl in a hole for a while.

I'm back to being super tired all the time. Not sure what is going on, but I am aiming to go to bed by 10:00 tonight. Last night it was more like 12, so I'm going to try reallly hard. But, even when I do manage to get to sleep, I usually don't sleep well and have some REALLY wack ass dreams. What is going on?!

Also, I got my new class last week and it is a MESS!! These kids are MUCH rowdier than my last group of angels AND my new co-teacher has no idea what is going on, ever. And sadly, I usually don't know what to tell her because the role of the Korean teacher is really different than my role...so I'm not much help. We also have a new assistant teacher who doesn't really seem to be on top of things either, so we are basically falling apart in Cherry class. It's going to be a funnnnn year. We are also already getting "helpful suggestions" from moms..should also be super fun. Most of the kids are cute, but they don't seem that interested in being well behaved. Last year they had a healthy fear of getting punished, and I'm just not really seeing that this year. Good times.

Anyway, lots of other bullshit going on as well, but oh well. I am trying to figure out ways to de-stress myself because I have a really hard time just chilling the fuck out. Suggestions welcome. Preferably that don't involve alcohol because weektime drinking usually makes my life worse. I'm hoping things settle down soon and I find some energy. I'm also hoping this stupid winter will actually end soon and I can get some sunshine and happiness back in my life.

Oh, and I'm super tired of the majority of people in my life being super lame, awkward and just overall buttfaces. So, if you could just cut all that nonsense out, almost everyone, I would appreciate it. Seriously, why do people suck so bad?

For some good news, I bought my plane ticket home! It was cheaper than I thought and it's actually a decent itinerary too! I have flown enough to finally realize the cheapest way is not always the best way. I bit the bullet and opted for the more expensive ticket with shorter travel time. I'm not sure why any airline thinks a 15 hour layover is an acceptable thing to offer people. My beef with airline companies is for another day. Back to the good stuff, I'll be home May 28-June 17 so I hope to some people! Lots of stuff going on then...a wedding, 10 year high school reunion and LOTS of sitting on the beach time. Come join me on the beach!

That's all fro now. It's almost my bed time.