It is holiday season so I've been spending a lot of time with family and less time reading my book. So, NO this is not an update on the book but more so a list of the things I love and what I have to look forward to in 2011...
I love my parents for being the most stable rock I have in my life right now. Sure, we fight and sometimes bring out the worst in each other. But we always find a way to make things work. My dad provides me with the guide book on right and wrong. My mom provides me with the best friend I know will always be there. My step-mom provides me with a shopping buddy, and an extra ear to listen to all the drama that consumes me sometimes. My step-dad provides me with the humor I need on a not-so-good day. I couldn't ask for a better set of grown-ups to look up to....
I love my siblings. Before my step-brothers came into my life, it was just my younger brother and I. We were best buddies and nothing could come between us. Now, I am the happiest girl in the world because I get to share that love with not only 3 other brothers, but 3 sisters. Thomas has been my best friend since the day he was born and always will be. Sammy is my guidance counselor, always there to talk to and I love her with all my heart for it. Ross is a role-model in that he will continue to prove to people he is capable of anything in this world. Leslie is not my closest sister, but I know would always pick up the phone if I needed her. Marcus is my protector, making sure my heart is never given to the wrong person. Mike and I are the closest in age and therefore we will always look out for each other. I see him with Kingston and pray that I can be the type of parent he is. Sam is my dance partner in crime, never afraid to make a fool of herself with me on the dance floor. My siblings mean the world to me....
I love my neices and nephews. Every single one of them! They are the loves of my life and always will be. They are the smiles that keep me going every morning and they are the laughter that fills my heart with sunshine on cloudy days! (Everyone knows they are the cutest things in the world too!)....
I love my friends! I throw around the term "best friend" a lot but those that truly are my best friends are the ones that have made the biggest impacts on my character. I have those that have been my friends forever, and those who have just recently become a big influence to me. My girls (you know who all are but to give specific recognition to Rachel, Ellie, Amanda, Allyson, Treasure, Taylor, Renee, and Amber) you girls are my loves as well. I can always count on you to be there! We all know that I am not a fan of having girl-friends so you are the special few! Rachel, you are by far my best friend. We think on the same wave-length ALL the time and I couldn't ask for Eric to have brought a better person into my life! Ellie, you are my big sis and always will be, no matter how far apart we live. Amanda, you are my little advice giver, my go to girl for any question I might have. Allyson, you are my little firecracker, ready to do whatever to have fun! Treasure, you are my office mate that I miss so much! Taylor, you are my little sis and I am so excited to see you grow into the mom I know you are going to be. Renee, you are my little mom, the mature one making sure the rest of us stay in check. Amber, you are my north star, my light on my pathway through life and I know you are going to be an amazing woman in the future! I love you girls to death!!! To all of my guy friends (and you know who you are and I don't need to pinpoint out each of you since guys do not like this kind of thing anyways but ) thanks for letting me be "one of the guys." I wouldn't trade my time with any of you (especially those of you who have stuck around for longer than a couple of months in my life). Eric, Austin, Chris, Ian, Corey, Drew, Nick, David, Danny, Marshall, Ryan, and Nathan... I love you boys! Thanks for putting up with me and my habits for longer than a week!! =) My friends are the best a girl could ever ask for!.....
As odd as this might sound, I love my ex's and my flings. Thank you for teaching me what a relationship should and shouldn't be. Thank you for showing me what I truly needed to find within myself before allowing my heart to be given to another. Thank you for showing me the difference between love and lust. Thank you for showing me that my heart is the most precious gift I could ever give someone and it should not be taken lightly.....
I love the freedom I have as an American because of the men and women who fight for that freedom on a daily basis. Thank you to those who are currently or who have ever served in the military! (By the way, I will be working starting this semester on a new organization called "Women of War" for Las Vegas. Majority of the services offered for military coming home from war are targeted towards men and I feel that something needs to be done for the women who are giving their time just as equally. If anyone is interested in helping, let me know)......
I love that I have been given the opportunity to travel and see other parts of the world that many people will never even see pictures of in their lifetimes. My adventures will continue throughout the world, as soon as school allows me the time.....
I love the joys of late night movies, cuddling in bed on a rainy day, kisses from my puppies, the New York Yankees, the Arizona Cardinals, my collection of books, being a girly girl and tom boy at the same time, flowers from someone I love on a random day, laughing to the point of crying with a friend when no one else in the room understands whats going on, youtube videos that become inside jokes and ringtones (ding ding ding ding ding ding), the ability to do what I want to do when I want to do it, the accomplishments I thought I would never have, and being an individual so unique that saying I fit the standard is far from the truth....
I love that I have the opportunity to further my education as a female in the U.S. We still do not make nearly as much as we should in the same profession as men but let me tell you, I'm going to be the most badass counselor any one will ever go to!....
I would love it if everyone would comment on here about at least one thing you love! Let's all share things that mean the most to us! I'd love to hear them!...
In closing, I love the person I have become and the person I know I am going to be in the future. My future is bright people so if you are coming along for the journey, make sure to bring your sunglasses!!
"God places the heaviest burden on those who can carry the weight."
- Reggie White
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Chapters 7 and 8
Ok...
So chapter 7 is all about quotes from men that the author thought were extremely important for women to see. She grouped them into categories according to what the men were talking about. Categories are "15 signs that women are needy," "15 reasons men play it cool," "15 male views on keeping the romance alive," "15 things that turn men off," "15 reasons men prefer a fiesty woman," and "the top 10 ways to tell a man is in love." I will give you guys a quote from each section that I felt was the best and then the lessons I took away from the chapter..
Signs that women are needy.... "I think a woman that talks less is more attractive because it makes her more mysterious.It is not a good thing to just ramble on. Communication should be about quality not quantity. If a woman is uncomfortable or bothered, he should be able to feel it without her saying a word."
Reasons men play it cool.... "Men are needier sexually. Women can control their sex drives, whereas men are controlled by theirs."
Keeping the romance alive... "I like a woman who takes the intiative sexually from time to time. Maybe not the first time, but definitely when you are in a relationship. It makes him feel like you want him more."
Turning men off... "I like a woman I can see without any pressure involved. If a guy is under a lot of pressure and she adds to it, he'll immediately shut down."
Preferring a fiesty woman... "When you banter with a woman and she can give it right back to you, it's a turn on."
When a man is in love...."Suddenly he feels like he can stop looking around the corner for someone else."
AND the lessons from Chapter 7.....
~ Many women talk a lot out of nervousness - which is something that men will often perceive as insecurity.
~ Talking about feelings to a man will feel like work. When he's with a woman, he wants it to feel like fun.
~ Forcing him to talk about feelings all the time will not only make you seem needy, it will eventually make him lose respect. And when he loses respect, he'll pay even less attention to your feelings.
~ In the beginning, the only thing you need to pay attention to is whether he keeps coming around, because he'll only be able to suspend or hide his emotions for so long.
~ Men treat women the way they treat other men. They play it cool because they don't want to appear weak or desperate.
~ The element of surprise both inside and outside the bedroom is important to men, and it adds to the excitement.
~ Don't always do the same thing over and over in the bedroom. Vary it so that it doesn't become a predictable routine.
~ Most men tend to disrespect a woman who appears to be too malleable.
~ Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself or speak your mind. It will not only earn his respect, in some cases it will even turn him on.
~ Men automatically assume that a bitchier woman will be more assertive in bed, and that a nice girl will be more timid.
~ When a man falls in love, suddenly he'll go out of his way and think nothing of it. He'll do things for this woman he wouldn't have done for anyone else.
Chapter 8 is about being financially independent so that at any time he can not hold your dependence on him over your head....
~ He'll never respect you as being able to hold your own unless you can stand on your own two feet financially.
~ You have to show that you won't accept mistreatment. Then you will keep his respect.
~ Your pink slip is mantained when you can stand on your own - with him or without him. He should never feel that you are completely at his mercy.
~ When a man views a woman as a "little girl" or a sister he has to take care of, the passion diminishes. He doesn't want to make love to his sister.
~ The ability to choose how you want to live, and the ability to choose how you want to be treated are the two things that will give you more power than any material object ever will.
~ In a relationship of any kind, if one person feels the other person isn't bringing anything to the table, he or she will begin to disrespect that person.
~ Financial neediness is no different than emotional neediness; in both instances, he can still get the feeling that he has 100 percent hold on you.
~ Regardless of how pretty a woman is, looks alone will not sustain his respect. Appearance may pull him in, but it is your independence that will keep him turned on.
~ People will show you they have self-respect simply by virtue of the fact that they want to carry their own weight.
AND... quote for the night....
"When it comes down to it, I let them think what they want. If they care enough to bother with what I do, then I'm already better than them."
- Marilyn Monroe
GOODNIGHT EVERYONE!!
So chapter 7 is all about quotes from men that the author thought were extremely important for women to see. She grouped them into categories according to what the men were talking about. Categories are "15 signs that women are needy," "15 reasons men play it cool," "15 male views on keeping the romance alive," "15 things that turn men off," "15 reasons men prefer a fiesty woman," and "the top 10 ways to tell a man is in love." I will give you guys a quote from each section that I felt was the best and then the lessons I took away from the chapter..
Signs that women are needy.... "I think a woman that talks less is more attractive because it makes her more mysterious.It is not a good thing to just ramble on. Communication should be about quality not quantity. If a woman is uncomfortable or bothered, he should be able to feel it without her saying a word."
Reasons men play it cool.... "Men are needier sexually. Women can control their sex drives, whereas men are controlled by theirs."
Keeping the romance alive... "I like a woman who takes the intiative sexually from time to time. Maybe not the first time, but definitely when you are in a relationship. It makes him feel like you want him more."
Turning men off... "I like a woman I can see without any pressure involved. If a guy is under a lot of pressure and she adds to it, he'll immediately shut down."
Preferring a fiesty woman... "When you banter with a woman and she can give it right back to you, it's a turn on."
When a man is in love...."Suddenly he feels like he can stop looking around the corner for someone else."
AND the lessons from Chapter 7.....
~ Many women talk a lot out of nervousness - which is something that men will often perceive as insecurity.
~ Talking about feelings to a man will feel like work. When he's with a woman, he wants it to feel like fun.
~ Forcing him to talk about feelings all the time will not only make you seem needy, it will eventually make him lose respect. And when he loses respect, he'll pay even less attention to your feelings.
~ In the beginning, the only thing you need to pay attention to is whether he keeps coming around, because he'll only be able to suspend or hide his emotions for so long.
~ Men treat women the way they treat other men. They play it cool because they don't want to appear weak or desperate.
~ The element of surprise both inside and outside the bedroom is important to men, and it adds to the excitement.
~ Don't always do the same thing over and over in the bedroom. Vary it so that it doesn't become a predictable routine.
~ Most men tend to disrespect a woman who appears to be too malleable.
~ Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself or speak your mind. It will not only earn his respect, in some cases it will even turn him on.
~ Men automatically assume that a bitchier woman will be more assertive in bed, and that a nice girl will be more timid.
~ When a man falls in love, suddenly he'll go out of his way and think nothing of it. He'll do things for this woman he wouldn't have done for anyone else.
Chapter 8 is about being financially independent so that at any time he can not hold your dependence on him over your head....
~ He'll never respect you as being able to hold your own unless you can stand on your own two feet financially.
~ You have to show that you won't accept mistreatment. Then you will keep his respect.
~ Your pink slip is mantained when you can stand on your own - with him or without him. He should never feel that you are completely at his mercy.
~ When a man views a woman as a "little girl" or a sister he has to take care of, the passion diminishes. He doesn't want to make love to his sister.
~ The ability to choose how you want to live, and the ability to choose how you want to be treated are the two things that will give you more power than any material object ever will.
~ In a relationship of any kind, if one person feels the other person isn't bringing anything to the table, he or she will begin to disrespect that person.
~ Financial neediness is no different than emotional neediness; in both instances, he can still get the feeling that he has 100 percent hold on you.
~ Regardless of how pretty a woman is, looks alone will not sustain his respect. Appearance may pull him in, but it is your independence that will keep him turned on.
~ People will show you they have self-respect simply by virtue of the fact that they want to carry their own weight.
AND... quote for the night....
"When it comes down to it, I let them think what they want. If they care enough to bother with what I do, then I'm already better than them."
- Marilyn Monroe
GOODNIGHT EVERYONE!!
Chapter 6
Hey guys....
Sorry I haven't updated lately. Things have been kind of crazy the past couple of days and I took some time off reading to figure out what my next steps are going to be in life. But I finished Chapter 6 and it was definitely one of the more serious chapters. It was about nagging and how to get things done without him tuning you out. Here are the lessons from the chapter...
~ When you nag, he tunes you out. But when you speak with your actions, he pays attention.
~ When a man takes a woman for granted, he still looks for reassurance that she is still "right there."
~ When the routine becomes predictable, he's more likely to give you the same type of love he has for his mother - and the odds he will take you for granted increase.
~ Negative attention is still attention. It lets a man know he has you right where he wants you.
~ When you treat him casually as though he is a friend, he'll come your way. Because he wants things to be romantic, but he also "wants" to be your partner.
~ A little distance combined with the appearance of self-control makes him nervous that he may be losing you.
~ A man takes a woman for granted when he's interested, but will no longer go out of his way.
~ When you nag, you become the problem, and he deals with it by tuning you out. But when you don't nag, he deals with the problem.
~ If you take his chores away from him and praise someone else for doing them, he will want his chores back.
~ When you nag, he sees weakness.
~ He sees an emotional woman as more of a pushover.
~ In the same way that familiarity breeds contempt, a slightly aloff demeanor can often renew his prospect.
~ He will forget what he has in you - unless you remind him.
About halfway thru the book and getting so excited to finish it. Hope you all are loving the updates... I will be loaning out the book after I am done if anyone wants to read it! Love you!
And of course... the quote of the night....
"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."
- Marilyn Monroe
Sorry I haven't updated lately. Things have been kind of crazy the past couple of days and I took some time off reading to figure out what my next steps are going to be in life. But I finished Chapter 6 and it was definitely one of the more serious chapters. It was about nagging and how to get things done without him tuning you out. Here are the lessons from the chapter...
~ When you nag, he tunes you out. But when you speak with your actions, he pays attention.
~ When a man takes a woman for granted, he still looks for reassurance that she is still "right there."
~ When the routine becomes predictable, he's more likely to give you the same type of love he has for his mother - and the odds he will take you for granted increase.
~ Negative attention is still attention. It lets a man know he has you right where he wants you.
~ When you treat him casually as though he is a friend, he'll come your way. Because he wants things to be romantic, but he also "wants" to be your partner.
~ A little distance combined with the appearance of self-control makes him nervous that he may be losing you.
~ A man takes a woman for granted when he's interested, but will no longer go out of his way.
~ When you nag, you become the problem, and he deals with it by tuning you out. But when you don't nag, he deals with the problem.
~ If you take his chores away from him and praise someone else for doing them, he will want his chores back.
~ When you nag, he sees weakness.
~ He sees an emotional woman as more of a pushover.
~ In the same way that familiarity breeds contempt, a slightly aloff demeanor can often renew his prospect.
~ He will forget what he has in you - unless you remind him.
About halfway thru the book and getting so excited to finish it. Hope you all are loving the updates... I will be loaning out the book after I am done if anyone wants to read it! Love you!
And of course... the quote of the night....
"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."
- Marilyn Monroe
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Chapters 3, 4, and 5!
Lessons from each....
CHAPTER 3
~ Don't sleep with him right away! You are a "candy store" and you should only give him one piece at a time, not open access after hours!
~ Make him earn you sexual advances.
~ TRICK: Instead of wearing that black lace nightie, hang it on the inside of the bathroom door so that when he is in there, he sees it and then has to imagine you in it for the rest of the night.
~ The longer he has to wait, the more of a challenge it becomes and his competitive nature will kick in to win you over.
~ Red means no, green means yes, and yellow means you are being a tease and pissing him off!
~ Once you become a booty call, he will lose respect for you and will no longer see you in a long term relationship view.
CHAPTER 4
~ Cater to his ego. Let him be the manly man.
~ When you appear softer and more feminine, you appeal to his instinct to protect. When you appear more aggressive, you appeal to his instinct to compete.
~ Use words such as "best" to let him know you think highly of him. Make sure you always tell him he's right or it was his idea.
~ The "dumb fox" makes him feel like King Kong in her world and there are many ways to "stroke his ego"... If you are walking your dog at dusk, ask him to come with because you want him to keep you safe... If he kills a bug, look away and do not turn back until he assures you he has secured the premises.... If you hear a noise at night, act really scared and ask him to check it out... Ask him to open a jar you can't open (even if you can) or unzip your dress (even if you can reach it)... If it's cold outside, crawl under his coat and hold on tight for warmth
~ He'll let a women who becomes his doormat pay for dinner on the first couple of dates, but he wouldn't even think of it with his dreamgirl.
~ Remember that men are very territorial so divide the house to where he doesn't feel like you are controlling when you take over the bathroom (make it clear that the garage, basement, and yard are his domain)
~ Men don't respond to words. They respond to no contact.
~ When you are always HAPPY, and he is always free to GO, he feels lucky.
CHAPTER 5
~ If you allow your rhythm to be interrupted, you'll create a void. Then, to replace what you give up, you'll start to expect and need more from your partner.
~ A woman looks more secure in a man's eyes when he can't pull her away from her life, because she is content in her life.
~ Your true power is marked by: realizing what your rhythm is and moving to it, knowing who you are and what you will or will not accept, having the ability to make a decision without second guessing yourself afterward and without being talked out of how you feel, and having self-control because true power is the control you have over yourself.
~ Don't talk for hours before your first date. Don't discuss deep issues in the beginning. Don't tell him who you were in a past life. Avoid seeing him more than one night in a row for the first month or so (1 or 2 nights per week is perfect). Don't pout or whimper when he doesn't call. Don't try to fix his flaws. Don't accompany him when he goes out with the boys. Don't happily drive over to his house if he calls you late at night after being out with friends. Don't date someone who has an addiction of any kind and offer to go to meetings with him (let him fix his problems first). Avoid last minute dates because you miss him. Don't ask for affection if he isn't showing any.
~ To keep the spark from fizzling, it's sometimes best to stay ever-so-slightly just outside a man's reach, because it charges up his batteries.
MORE UPDATES TOMORROW =)
OOO and can't forget the quote....
"I am good, but not an angel. I do sin, but I am not the devil. I am just a small girl in a big world trying to find someone to love."
-Marilyn Monroe
CHAPTER 3
~ Don't sleep with him right away! You are a "candy store" and you should only give him one piece at a time, not open access after hours!
~ Make him earn you sexual advances.
~ TRICK: Instead of wearing that black lace nightie, hang it on the inside of the bathroom door so that when he is in there, he sees it and then has to imagine you in it for the rest of the night.
~ The longer he has to wait, the more of a challenge it becomes and his competitive nature will kick in to win you over.
~ Red means no, green means yes, and yellow means you are being a tease and pissing him off!
~ Once you become a booty call, he will lose respect for you and will no longer see you in a long term relationship view.
CHAPTER 4
~ Cater to his ego. Let him be the manly man.
~ When you appear softer and more feminine, you appeal to his instinct to protect. When you appear more aggressive, you appeal to his instinct to compete.
~ Use words such as "best" to let him know you think highly of him. Make sure you always tell him he's right or it was his idea.
~ The "dumb fox" makes him feel like King Kong in her world and there are many ways to "stroke his ego"... If you are walking your dog at dusk, ask him to come with because you want him to keep you safe... If he kills a bug, look away and do not turn back until he assures you he has secured the premises.... If you hear a noise at night, act really scared and ask him to check it out... Ask him to open a jar you can't open (even if you can) or unzip your dress (even if you can reach it)... If it's cold outside, crawl under his coat and hold on tight for warmth
~ He'll let a women who becomes his doormat pay for dinner on the first couple of dates, but he wouldn't even think of it with his dreamgirl.
~ Remember that men are very territorial so divide the house to where he doesn't feel like you are controlling when you take over the bathroom (make it clear that the garage, basement, and yard are his domain)
~ Men don't respond to words. They respond to no contact.
~ When you are always HAPPY, and he is always free to GO, he feels lucky.
CHAPTER 5
~ If you allow your rhythm to be interrupted, you'll create a void. Then, to replace what you give up, you'll start to expect and need more from your partner.
~ A woman looks more secure in a man's eyes when he can't pull her away from her life, because she is content in her life.
~ Your true power is marked by: realizing what your rhythm is and moving to it, knowing who you are and what you will or will not accept, having the ability to make a decision without second guessing yourself afterward and without being talked out of how you feel, and having self-control because true power is the control you have over yourself.
~ Don't talk for hours before your first date. Don't discuss deep issues in the beginning. Don't tell him who you were in a past life. Avoid seeing him more than one night in a row for the first month or so (1 or 2 nights per week is perfect). Don't pout or whimper when he doesn't call. Don't try to fix his flaws. Don't accompany him when he goes out with the boys. Don't happily drive over to his house if he calls you late at night after being out with friends. Don't date someone who has an addiction of any kind and offer to go to meetings with him (let him fix his problems first). Avoid last minute dates because you miss him. Don't ask for affection if he isn't showing any.
~ To keep the spark from fizzling, it's sometimes best to stay ever-so-slightly just outside a man's reach, because it charges up his batteries.
MORE UPDATES TOMORROW =)
OOO and can't forget the quote....
"I am good, but not an angel. I do sin, but I am not the devil. I am just a small girl in a big world trying to find someone to love."
-Marilyn Monroe
Lessons learned... so far!
Through chapters 1 and 2, this is the basic break down of what I have been taught...
Don't chase him because giving it up too much while only make him run the other direction.
ALWAYS answering his calls and be there for last minute trips to his place means he has control over you and is going to use you as a doormat. Make sure to never cancel plans you already had.
Act as a prize to be won and he will turn into a believer.
Be the Christmas toy he always wanted but never got.
Sometimes men deliberatly do not call to see how you respond and how far he can push you. Don't sweat and act as if nothing even phased you.
The biggest variable between a bitch and a girl who is too nice is fear. A bitch is not afraid to show she can be without him.
Not giving in all the time makes you more of a challenge to him and more valuable to win over.
I LOVE THIS BOOK!!! More updates to come later!!
"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."
- Marilyn Monroe
Don't chase him because giving it up too much while only make him run the other direction.
ALWAYS answering his calls and be there for last minute trips to his place means he has control over you and is going to use you as a doormat. Make sure to never cancel plans you already had.
Act as a prize to be won and he will turn into a believer.
Be the Christmas toy he always wanted but never got.
Sometimes men deliberatly do not call to see how you respond and how far he can push you. Don't sweat and act as if nothing even phased you.
The biggest variable between a bitch and a girl who is too nice is fear. A bitch is not afraid to show she can be without him.
Not giving in all the time makes you more of a challenge to him and more valuable to win over.
I LOVE THIS BOOK!!! More updates to come later!!
"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."
- Marilyn Monroe
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Best book EVER!!!!!
Okay so completely random before I get started...
Last night was sooo much fun! It was my Dad's 50th birthday party. My step-mom and I managed to organize a 60s themed event complete with dj, disco balls, bartender, taco maker guys, fire pits, and as much dancing as possible! Nothing makes me laugh harder than seeing my dad when he's been drinking. He lets loose and has a good time. Now, if only he could remember the next morning the fact that he tried to pole dance on one of the heat lamps and almost took a tumble into the pool. Everyone made the party so much fun and I'm officially calling this party a success!! Videos can be seen on my flickr account at http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/ ... There are 5 videos (the calm before the storm, the electric slide, the cupid shuffle, the soul train line, and my dad ranting about how cute he was as a baby while we sang happy birthday)! Feel free to comment!
So now back to why I wanted to write this post. I was at Borders the other day buying Christmas presents and came across a serious of books that by the titles, completely caught my eye. The first book is "Why Men Love Bitches." By reading the back, I knew I had to buy it. This is exactly what it says....
"Sherry Argov's Why Men Love Bitches delivers a unique perspective as to why men are attracted to a strong woman who stands up for herself. With saucy detail on every page, this no-nonsense guide reveals why a strong woman is much more desirable than a yes woman who routinely sacrifices herself. The author provides compelling answers to the tough questions women often ask: Why are men so romantice in the beginning and why do they change? Why do men take nice girls for granted? Why does a man respect a woman when she stands up for herself? Full of advice, hilarious real-life relationship scenarios, she says/he thinks tables, and the author's unique Attraction Principles, Why Men Love Bitches gives you bottom line answers. It helps you know who you are, stand your ground, and relate to men on a whole new level. Once you've discovered the feisty attitude men find so magnetic, you'll not only increase the romantic chemistry- you'll gain your man's love and respect with far less effort."
Never in a million years would I have ever seen myself reading this book but I thought it looked like it could be quite interesting. As I read through the book, I will be updating you guys on the chapters and what I'm finding myself thinking about them. Seeing how I am normally "the nice girl" or "one of the guys" to all men who come into my life, I'm going to see what type of attitude develops from this! Just a tease, here's the list of chapter names and the first "attraction principle" listed in the book...
1) From Doormat to Dream Girl (Act Like a Prize and You'll Turn Him Into a Believer)
2) Why Men Prefer Bitches (Cracking the Code: What Every Nice Girl Needs to Know)
3) The Candy Store (How to Make the Most of Your Feminine and Sexual Powers)
4) Dumb Like a Fox (How to Convince Him He's in Control)
5) Jumping Through Hoops Like a Circus Poodle (When Women Give Themselves Away and Become Needy)
6) Nagging No More (What to Do When He Takes You for Granted)
7) The Other Team's Secret "Playbook" (Things You Suspected but Never Heard Him Say)
8) Keeping Your Pink Slip (The Reasons That Your Holding Your Own)
9) How to Renew the Mental Challenge (How to Regain That Spark)
10) Gaining Control on Your Emotions (Q&A Letters from Readers)
11) The New and Improved Bitch (The Survival Guide for Women Who Are Too Nice)
Attraction Principle #1 : Anything a person chases in life runs away.
Aren't you guys so excited to hear the updates on this book!?
I know I'm excited to finish reading it!
Can't forget my quote for the night.... (they will probably all be coming from this book for just brace yourself)
"Sex appeal is 50% what you've got and 50% what people think you've got."
~ Sophia Loren
Last night was sooo much fun! It was my Dad's 50th birthday party. My step-mom and I managed to organize a 60s themed event complete with dj, disco balls, bartender, taco maker guys, fire pits, and as much dancing as possible! Nothing makes me laugh harder than seeing my dad when he's been drinking. He lets loose and has a good time. Now, if only he could remember the next morning the fact that he tried to pole dance on one of the heat lamps and almost took a tumble into the pool. Everyone made the party so much fun and I'm officially calling this party a success!! Videos can be seen on my flickr account at http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/ ... There are 5 videos (the calm before the storm, the electric slide, the cupid shuffle, the soul train line, and my dad ranting about how cute he was as a baby while we sang happy birthday)! Feel free to comment!
So now back to why I wanted to write this post. I was at Borders the other day buying Christmas presents and came across a serious of books that by the titles, completely caught my eye. The first book is "Why Men Love Bitches." By reading the back, I knew I had to buy it. This is exactly what it says....
"Sherry Argov's Why Men Love Bitches delivers a unique perspective as to why men are attracted to a strong woman who stands up for herself. With saucy detail on every page, this no-nonsense guide reveals why a strong woman is much more desirable than a yes woman who routinely sacrifices herself. The author provides compelling answers to the tough questions women often ask: Why are men so romantice in the beginning and why do they change? Why do men take nice girls for granted? Why does a man respect a woman when she stands up for herself? Full of advice, hilarious real-life relationship scenarios, she says/he thinks tables, and the author's unique Attraction Principles, Why Men Love Bitches gives you bottom line answers. It helps you know who you are, stand your ground, and relate to men on a whole new level. Once you've discovered the feisty attitude men find so magnetic, you'll not only increase the romantic chemistry- you'll gain your man's love and respect with far less effort."
Never in a million years would I have ever seen myself reading this book but I thought it looked like it could be quite interesting. As I read through the book, I will be updating you guys on the chapters and what I'm finding myself thinking about them. Seeing how I am normally "the nice girl" or "one of the guys" to all men who come into my life, I'm going to see what type of attitude develops from this! Just a tease, here's the list of chapter names and the first "attraction principle" listed in the book...
1) From Doormat to Dream Girl (Act Like a Prize and You'll Turn Him Into a Believer)
2) Why Men Prefer Bitches (Cracking the Code: What Every Nice Girl Needs to Know)
3) The Candy Store (How to Make the Most of Your Feminine and Sexual Powers)
4) Dumb Like a Fox (How to Convince Him He's in Control)
5) Jumping Through Hoops Like a Circus Poodle (When Women Give Themselves Away and Become Needy)
6) Nagging No More (What to Do When He Takes You for Granted)
7) The Other Team's Secret "Playbook" (Things You Suspected but Never Heard Him Say)
8) Keeping Your Pink Slip (The Reasons That Your Holding Your Own)
9) How to Renew the Mental Challenge (How to Regain That Spark)
10) Gaining Control on Your Emotions (Q&A Letters from Readers)
11) The New and Improved Bitch (The Survival Guide for Women Who Are Too Nice)
Attraction Principle #1 : Anything a person chases in life runs away.
Aren't you guys so excited to hear the updates on this book!?
I know I'm excited to finish reading it!
Can't forget my quote for the night.... (they will probably all be coming from this book for just brace yourself)
"Sex appeal is 50% what you've got and 50% what people think you've got."
~ Sophia Loren
Friday, December 10, 2010
Moving forward...
YAY!! It's officially end of the semester... now if only it were Monday so I knew what those final grades were going to be!
As the end of 2010 rolls around, I've been doing some recapping of the year and how much growth I've made. Not only do I have my Bachelor's degree now, but I have completed my first semester of graduate school without having a single panic attack... GO ME!!! =) I spent an amazing summer in South Korea, teaching English to the most beautiful smiling faces anyone could ever ask for to see first thing in the morning. I watched my little brother grow into a husband as he married the love of his life, giving me another sister to call for advice. I helped my father create an online empire of cooking lessons and lifestyle changes, while supporting our wounded military members. I became accepting of my independence as a strength rather than a character flaw. Of course, I can't forget that I went from a blonde to a brunette!
Many changes have been made these past 12 months, both good and bad. However they may have affected me, they have created stepping stones on the path that God has created for me to follow. I am firm believer in the fact that he knows what is best for me and I trust his judgment.
For those who have been part of my life in 2010, whether still a part or not, I thank you for being part of my growth. Without each of you, who knows where I would be right now. Like always, my family is my rock for stability. They have helped me through some very tough decisions this year and supported me no matter what decision I made. My brothers have been my protectors, making sure my heart does not become broken. My sisters have been my guidance counselors, always awake at night when I can't sleep from all the junk floating around in my head. I couldn't ask for anything more from them.
I've definitely noticed a trend between my friends and relationships in 2010. Both seem to have this bell curve going on, fading in and out. When one door closes, another door opens. While some people have faded out because the relationship between the two of us was not what I thought it was, others have resurfaced to bring back old memories and rekindle what used to be there. Even new relationships that have been made in the past few months have helped me see the light at the end of the tunnel. Again, I know that God knows what is best for me and he has put all of these people in my life for a reason.
We have a few more weeks in 2010 and I am going to make the best of them. I hope everyone has an amazing holiday season and look for more posts to be coming soon!!
I have decided that I am going to end each blog with a new quote... so enjoy!
"Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will lie under the stars and listen to your heartbeat, or will stay awake just to watch you sleep. Wait for the boy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats, who holds your hand in front of your friends, who thinks you are just as pretty without makeup on. One who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares about you and how lucky he is to have you.... the one who turns to his friends and says "that's her!" "
As the end of 2010 rolls around, I've been doing some recapping of the year and how much growth I've made. Not only do I have my Bachelor's degree now, but I have completed my first semester of graduate school without having a single panic attack... GO ME!!! =) I spent an amazing summer in South Korea, teaching English to the most beautiful smiling faces anyone could ever ask for to see first thing in the morning. I watched my little brother grow into a husband as he married the love of his life, giving me another sister to call for advice. I helped my father create an online empire of cooking lessons and lifestyle changes, while supporting our wounded military members. I became accepting of my independence as a strength rather than a character flaw. Of course, I can't forget that I went from a blonde to a brunette!
Many changes have been made these past 12 months, both good and bad. However they may have affected me, they have created stepping stones on the path that God has created for me to follow. I am firm believer in the fact that he knows what is best for me and I trust his judgment.
For those who have been part of my life in 2010, whether still a part or not, I thank you for being part of my growth. Without each of you, who knows where I would be right now. Like always, my family is my rock for stability. They have helped me through some very tough decisions this year and supported me no matter what decision I made. My brothers have been my protectors, making sure my heart does not become broken. My sisters have been my guidance counselors, always awake at night when I can't sleep from all the junk floating around in my head. I couldn't ask for anything more from them.
I've definitely noticed a trend between my friends and relationships in 2010. Both seem to have this bell curve going on, fading in and out. When one door closes, another door opens. While some people have faded out because the relationship between the two of us was not what I thought it was, others have resurfaced to bring back old memories and rekindle what used to be there. Even new relationships that have been made in the past few months have helped me see the light at the end of the tunnel. Again, I know that God knows what is best for me and he has put all of these people in my life for a reason.
We have a few more weeks in 2010 and I am going to make the best of them. I hope everyone has an amazing holiday season and look for more posts to be coming soon!!
I have decided that I am going to end each blog with a new quote... so enjoy!
"Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will lie under the stars and listen to your heartbeat, or will stay awake just to watch you sleep. Wait for the boy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats, who holds your hand in front of your friends, who thinks you are just as pretty without makeup on. One who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares about you and how lucky he is to have you.... the one who turns to his friends and says "that's her!" "
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
End to an AMAZING Trip...
Monday was a light easy day... just got a mani/pedi with my host sister and hung out at home for the night.
On Tuesday, I said goodbye to Changdo Elementary School. At our Farewell Ceremony for our morning students, the principal talked about how much he was going to miss us. He told the students to never forget us and to write us emails all the time. He then handed us this huge bag full of gifts. We didn't think they were getting us anything so we were all very shocked. That's when it hit me hard that we were actually leaving in 2 days. As my students hugged me and took pictures, they shouted "teacher Krista, you can't leave! Stay forever." My heart jumped from my chest as tears fell down my cheeks. I thought it was hard saying goodbye to the older students two weeks ago, but it was even harder saying goodbye to these guys. My favorite student came running up as the last one to say goodbye. She held my hand as tight as she could and wouldn't let go. As I tried to leave the classroom, she kept pulling me back in. Then she said "Teacher Krista, I love you," and started crying. I grabbed the boys as quick as I could and got out of there. I couldn't believe that Zack, Travis, and I had this much of an effect on these students in only a matter of 2 weeks.
Afternoon class was super easy. We helped the children review their colors from the lesson the day before. We then watch some KungFu Panda with them while we handed out some extra snacks and candy that Travis and I brought for them. After break, we helped the children make Thank You Notes for their 4 amazing after school teachers (Zack, Judit, Travis, and myself). They had a white piece of paper that they drew a picture of us on it and then glued it to another piece where they wrote their note. Travis and I gathered them up and I almost started crying again! One little boy really wanted to write his note to me but he was sitting at a table of all boys who were writing their notes for Zack and Travis. So any time one of the other boys or myself would look over, he would cover his paper and just smile. When he was finished, he walked over and handed it to me with the biggest smile I have seen on any of these students. I read it to myself and realized we had just as big of an impact on the younger students as we did on the older! Man, am I going to miss these kids.
Tuesday night, my host family went Downtown. There is an area of the city in between some major buildings, that they created a river. The river is water from the Han River that is filtered in through the city to this area. They built seats around the river so people can come and picnic or play in the water. It's meant to be a hang out place. Of course I was the first one to roll up my pants and hop in. My host sister Lisa was the next to join us and after a little convincing, my host brother John got in. My host mom and dad got in but not for very long. Just enough to take some pictures and then hop back out. Lisa and I saw that the group of teenagers next to us were having a water fight. We decided this would be the perfect chance to get John. We turned around and splashed as hard as we could! He ran out of the water to the other side of seats. He decided he was going to try and be sneaky and kick water at us when we weren't looking! That quickly turned on him! As he went to kick, his other foot slid out from underneath him and he fell in, completely wet head to toe. Game over at that point! Lisa and I won!!!
We tried to dry off a little before hoping in a light up wagon to take a little ride around the area. It was super cute and reminded me of riding horses with Grammy and Choca. We then called it a night.
Wednesday was the DMZ. If you ever come to South Korea, the DMZ is a must to go to. It is the area between North and South Korea where there can be no military action. Each side has 2 kilometers from the border line that they protect with military soldiers. We went up to the observatory where you can look through telescopes to the other side of the line and actually see the North Korean soldiers. We were also taken to the 3rd tunnel. Over the past 40 years, South Koreans have discovered these tunnels that the North Koreans dug under the border line to try and plan a sneak attack on Seoul. As of today, they have found 4 tunnels, with 3 being open to the public to go into. They are estimating that there is at least 15 other tunnels. We strapped on our hard hats with only a warning that it would be very cold down in the tunnel and that it was a far walk. We headed down the steep hill to where the tunnel began. When we finally reached it, we all understood what the hard hats were for. The tunnel was meant for someone who is 5'4" to comfortablely walk through. Me being much taller than that, I had to be completely hunched over. Even being scrunched in half, I still managed to hit my head on the top numerous times. Thank god for the hard hats. We were only allowed to go to the 3rd blockade because beyond that is controlled my military. The hike back up the steep hill was definitely not fun after being hunched over in the tunnel. I bought some cool things, including a plaque with a piece of barb wire from the DMZ.
We went to the Peace Garden were we saw what type of animals are native to the DMZ that are often not found in other areas. This place is almost like a nature preserve more so than a military action zone. It was so pretty to be out away from the city for the first time this trip really. The fresh air made it all worth it. When we got back, we had a farewell ceremony with the mayor, vice-mayor, and both sets of homestay families. I told myself I would not cry because all of these goodbyes are actually "see you laters." When the vice-mayor said his speech, he reassured us that we are welcome back any time. He then said "I hate goodbyes. So this is a see you later speech. I will miss you my sisters and brothers." I felt my tears preparing themselves in my eyes. These people have been sooooo generous to us. All we did was come here and help some others with their English and they are considering us family. In 6 weeks, I gained at least 20 new family members. I love that! They gave us each a present of a traditional Korean mask! Pretty cool! They then presented each of our host stay kids with awards for being part of the program. I thought it was really cool that they recognized the kids for being such a big part in this process.
When we moved into the other room for snacks, we presented some people who have touched our hearts on this trip with pictures of us and City of Henderson pins. Sue Ann was the most influential person in making this trip a success. She started crying when she saw what we had done for her. She latched on to me with the biggest hug I have had since being here. We then gave Sari and the office mayor their pictures. They were all so thankful that we had gotten them gifts. I can't even explain in words the emotions that were running through the room.
Wednesday night I went with Danny and some of his friends out for our last night here. I'm glad I had Danny, John, and Matt to share our last nights together. It made it seem like I wasn't alone. After some awesome dinner and just hanging out with the group, Danny had to start saying some goodbyes. Even though I have only known John and Beth for two or so weeks now, they are people I know I will try to stay in contact. Good people should never be forgotten!! Danny said goodbye to some close friends and his co-teachers. Eyes all teary when he walked back from the train station, I tried to comfort him knowing that if he continued to cry, I would lose it to.
We eventually said our goodbyes to everyone. It was really hard. Even through we said goodbye to these people on Saturday thinking we wouldn't see them again. Knowing this was the "final goodbye" was really hard. At 6:45 this morning I said my goodbye to Danny. He really helped make this trip easier when I was having complications with things. He is a true friend I know I will keep in touch with for quite some time. I couldn't help but cry on my walk home because I knew our contact over the next year will be limited with him travelling. I will be so excited when I sign into my email and see a message from him!!
My host family had a "see you later" breakfast for me this morning, complete with cake and presents. They have been soooooo good to me. They each wrote me a note and I told them I couldn't read them because I didn't want to cry anymore. They understood that this goodbye would be extremely hard on me! It will probably be just as hard on them. As we took our final pictures, I could tell my host mom was crying behind the camera. I will definitely consider myself a lucky girl because I now I have 5 women with motherly insticts to run to. Of course, my mom, my step-mom, bobby's mom, and now my host moms in Korea.
Time to head to the office to turn in my cell phone and get on the bus to the airport. Goodbye John, Lisa, Hera, Julie, and Captain!! Goodbye Elizabeth and her family! Goodbye Danny, John, Beth, Alex, JoYoung, and everyone else I made friends with! Goodbye kimchi, rice for breakfast, hard beds, bathrooms with no shower curtains, and bus/subway systems! Goodbye Dobong, South Korea.... =(
Downtown/Farewell Ceremony: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624632621101/
Randoms from 2nd house: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624757266618/
On Tuesday, I said goodbye to Changdo Elementary School. At our Farewell Ceremony for our morning students, the principal talked about how much he was going to miss us. He told the students to never forget us and to write us emails all the time. He then handed us this huge bag full of gifts. We didn't think they were getting us anything so we were all very shocked. That's when it hit me hard that we were actually leaving in 2 days. As my students hugged me and took pictures, they shouted "teacher Krista, you can't leave! Stay forever." My heart jumped from my chest as tears fell down my cheeks. I thought it was hard saying goodbye to the older students two weeks ago, but it was even harder saying goodbye to these guys. My favorite student came running up as the last one to say goodbye. She held my hand as tight as she could and wouldn't let go. As I tried to leave the classroom, she kept pulling me back in. Then she said "Teacher Krista, I love you," and started crying. I grabbed the boys as quick as I could and got out of there. I couldn't believe that Zack, Travis, and I had this much of an effect on these students in only a matter of 2 weeks.
Afternoon class was super easy. We helped the children review their colors from the lesson the day before. We then watch some KungFu Panda with them while we handed out some extra snacks and candy that Travis and I brought for them. After break, we helped the children make Thank You Notes for their 4 amazing after school teachers (Zack, Judit, Travis, and myself). They had a white piece of paper that they drew a picture of us on it and then glued it to another piece where they wrote their note. Travis and I gathered them up and I almost started crying again! One little boy really wanted to write his note to me but he was sitting at a table of all boys who were writing their notes for Zack and Travis. So any time one of the other boys or myself would look over, he would cover his paper and just smile. When he was finished, he walked over and handed it to me with the biggest smile I have seen on any of these students. I read it to myself and realized we had just as big of an impact on the younger students as we did on the older! Man, am I going to miss these kids.
Tuesday night, my host family went Downtown. There is an area of the city in between some major buildings, that they created a river. The river is water from the Han River that is filtered in through the city to this area. They built seats around the river so people can come and picnic or play in the water. It's meant to be a hang out place. Of course I was the first one to roll up my pants and hop in. My host sister Lisa was the next to join us and after a little convincing, my host brother John got in. My host mom and dad got in but not for very long. Just enough to take some pictures and then hop back out. Lisa and I saw that the group of teenagers next to us were having a water fight. We decided this would be the perfect chance to get John. We turned around and splashed as hard as we could! He ran out of the water to the other side of seats. He decided he was going to try and be sneaky and kick water at us when we weren't looking! That quickly turned on him! As he went to kick, his other foot slid out from underneath him and he fell in, completely wet head to toe. Game over at that point! Lisa and I won!!!
We tried to dry off a little before hoping in a light up wagon to take a little ride around the area. It was super cute and reminded me of riding horses with Grammy and Choca. We then called it a night.
Wednesday was the DMZ. If you ever come to South Korea, the DMZ is a must to go to. It is the area between North and South Korea where there can be no military action. Each side has 2 kilometers from the border line that they protect with military soldiers. We went up to the observatory where you can look through telescopes to the other side of the line and actually see the North Korean soldiers. We were also taken to the 3rd tunnel. Over the past 40 years, South Koreans have discovered these tunnels that the North Koreans dug under the border line to try and plan a sneak attack on Seoul. As of today, they have found 4 tunnels, with 3 being open to the public to go into. They are estimating that there is at least 15 other tunnels. We strapped on our hard hats with only a warning that it would be very cold down in the tunnel and that it was a far walk. We headed down the steep hill to where the tunnel began. When we finally reached it, we all understood what the hard hats were for. The tunnel was meant for someone who is 5'4" to comfortablely walk through. Me being much taller than that, I had to be completely hunched over. Even being scrunched in half, I still managed to hit my head on the top numerous times. Thank god for the hard hats. We were only allowed to go to the 3rd blockade because beyond that is controlled my military. The hike back up the steep hill was definitely not fun after being hunched over in the tunnel. I bought some cool things, including a plaque with a piece of barb wire from the DMZ.
We went to the Peace Garden were we saw what type of animals are native to the DMZ that are often not found in other areas. This place is almost like a nature preserve more so than a military action zone. It was so pretty to be out away from the city for the first time this trip really. The fresh air made it all worth it. When we got back, we had a farewell ceremony with the mayor, vice-mayor, and both sets of homestay families. I told myself I would not cry because all of these goodbyes are actually "see you laters." When the vice-mayor said his speech, he reassured us that we are welcome back any time. He then said "I hate goodbyes. So this is a see you later speech. I will miss you my sisters and brothers." I felt my tears preparing themselves in my eyes. These people have been sooooo generous to us. All we did was come here and help some others with their English and they are considering us family. In 6 weeks, I gained at least 20 new family members. I love that! They gave us each a present of a traditional Korean mask! Pretty cool! They then presented each of our host stay kids with awards for being part of the program. I thought it was really cool that they recognized the kids for being such a big part in this process.
When we moved into the other room for snacks, we presented some people who have touched our hearts on this trip with pictures of us and City of Henderson pins. Sue Ann was the most influential person in making this trip a success. She started crying when she saw what we had done for her. She latched on to me with the biggest hug I have had since being here. We then gave Sari and the office mayor their pictures. They were all so thankful that we had gotten them gifts. I can't even explain in words the emotions that were running through the room.
Wednesday night I went with Danny and some of his friends out for our last night here. I'm glad I had Danny, John, and Matt to share our last nights together. It made it seem like I wasn't alone. After some awesome dinner and just hanging out with the group, Danny had to start saying some goodbyes. Even though I have only known John and Beth for two or so weeks now, they are people I know I will try to stay in contact. Good people should never be forgotten!! Danny said goodbye to some close friends and his co-teachers. Eyes all teary when he walked back from the train station, I tried to comfort him knowing that if he continued to cry, I would lose it to.
We eventually said our goodbyes to everyone. It was really hard. Even through we said goodbye to these people on Saturday thinking we wouldn't see them again. Knowing this was the "final goodbye" was really hard. At 6:45 this morning I said my goodbye to Danny. He really helped make this trip easier when I was having complications with things. He is a true friend I know I will keep in touch with for quite some time. I couldn't help but cry on my walk home because I knew our contact over the next year will be limited with him travelling. I will be so excited when I sign into my email and see a message from him!!
My host family had a "see you later" breakfast for me this morning, complete with cake and presents. They have been soooooo good to me. They each wrote me a note and I told them I couldn't read them because I didn't want to cry anymore. They understood that this goodbye would be extremely hard on me! It will probably be just as hard on them. As we took our final pictures, I could tell my host mom was crying behind the camera. I will definitely consider myself a lucky girl because I now I have 5 women with motherly insticts to run to. Of course, my mom, my step-mom, bobby's mom, and now my host moms in Korea.
Time to head to the office to turn in my cell phone and get on the bus to the airport. Goodbye John, Lisa, Hera, Julie, and Captain!! Goodbye Elizabeth and her family! Goodbye Danny, John, Beth, Alex, JoYoung, and everyone else I made friends with! Goodbye kimchi, rice for breakfast, hard beds, bathrooms with no shower curtains, and bus/subway systems! Goodbye Dobong, South Korea.... =(
Downtown/Farewell Ceremony: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624632621101/
Randoms from 2nd house: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624757266618/
Monday, August 16, 2010
Update from the Weekend
I have definitely been slacking on the blogs lately. It's very hard to sit down at the computer and try to write about everything that is going on when you spend your entire day out and about. I have come home extremely tired every day the past week. I know I will catch up on sleep when I get home....
Friday we took our students ice skating. This time it was complete chaos. A lot of the kids didn't know how to skate so we spent much more time in a lesson than we did actually free skating. However, my students were much cuter this time. When we went with the older students, they had a game going that they got stickers from the native speakers if they said English phrases. So of course, they all only wanted to be by us to get stickers. This time, we had no contest so the students that were skating by our sides, holding our hands, wanted to be there. Their smiling faces always make me laugh... I'm going to miss them after tomorrow (it's our last day!)
Friday night, Danny and I took my host family to Itaewon, the biggest foreigners area of Seoul. My host family has never been so Danny wanted to show us around. It was a lot of fun not being the only person for the Koreans to stare at. My host brother made us laugh because he was constantly saying "OHHH foreigners" when we walked past anyone. Then of course I wanted to show them something they probably don't ever see in Korea...... TACO BELL!!!! It was a brand new one that just opened. I miss American food so much and you can't get better than fake Mexican American food. My host mom loved it so much that she ended up with about 3 orders of food by the end of the meal. I thought it was cute!
After dinner, Danny and I stayed in Itaewon and hung out with some of his friends. They walked me up "Hooker Hill" which is one of Seoul's red light districts. There was definitely nothing there that I hadn't seen before, being from Vegas and all. I called it a night at about 11 and headed home.
Saturday was Danny's going away party. His friend John, who will be travelling with him for the first 3 months of the trip, hosted it at his house. Imagine an apartment about the size of a normal American master bedroom, and cram 30+ people into it for a party! It was fun seeing faces I had already met and even more fun meeting new people. Everyone enjoyed themselves to the best of their ability. I had know curfew so I definitely took advantage of seeing parts of Seoul I hadn't seen yet! It will go down as one of the best nights on the trip.
Sunday morning we went to my host father's mom's house way out in the mountain. It took us about two hours to get there. It was this beautiful log cabin style home surrounded by gardens and a small stream. Just like any other Korean meal we have had, the lunch table was completely covered with food. Only this time, it was pizza, chicken, and all sorts of American style meals. The family chowed down while we joked about things. I taught my host sisters and their cousins how to french braid hair and now they are experts. As we went to leave, the grandma handed me an envelope and told me it was my allowance. More money!!!!!! I cannot believe how gracious this family is with everything they do....
When we got home, instead of having the planned spagetti dinner, we went out for Sam, my favorite meal here. Think super thick chunks of bacon that you cook on a grill in the middle of your table. It cannot be beat!!! Afterwards, we went to karaoke. Thanks to Danny requesting "Barbie Girl" the first time we went to karaoke and then not singing a word of it before handing me the mic and telling me it is too many girl parts! My family requested me to sing that right off the bat. I gave my best attempt again and managed to get a 98 out of 100 score. My host father belted out his usual "Bad Case of Loving You" and "My Way" songs. I am going to record him singing them tomorrow so I can post them and everyone can see how excited he gets during these songs. I will also post video of my host sister playing piano because she is AWESOME! High score of the night went to my host brother and I. We busted out "Sexy Back" and got 100!!! We called it a night after that because we knew there was no way to beat it.
My host family told me last night they are going to save up all of their money so that when I get married some day, they can come to the U.S. for my wedding. It made my night that they want to be there for me on my special day after only knowing me for 3 weeks!!!
Every day more and more I realize how much I am going to miss this place. I had my little moment after my first set of students were done with camp but I sucked it up and told myself I would be okay. It hit me again Saturday night, watching Danny say goodbye to friends he has had his entire stay here in Korea. One of his Korean friend's actually lived with him in Canada 7 years ago and then they rekindled their friendship here in Seoul when Danny moved. I could tell when he walked out of the room to walk them to the train station that he was going to be very sad saying goodbye to them. Little did I know that it would be the scene I saw. He walked back in, completely teary eyed and couldn't say a word to anyone. He just sat in the chair. As JoYoung and I tried to comfort him, I could see how much of an impact Korea had on his life over the past year. That's when I realized how much of an impact it has had on me in just six weeks....
I have made relationships here that will never compare to relationships back home. It says a lot when a woman (my host mom) you don't even really know yet comes in to give you a stomach massage when your sick because she knows your mom isn't there to comfort you. It says a lot when your host sister buys you a present for just being a friend to her over the past few weeks.
There are numerous people here that I am going to miss with all my heart. They know who they are so no need to pinpoint anyone individually. People who have comforted me in times of sickness. People who have made being away from home that much easier by just being a good friend when I needed one. These are people that I know our paths will cross again in the future because I will make sure I head in their direction when I get a glimpse of their trail in the distance. Whether it is them coming to my wedding, or me making a special trip just to visit, I will keep these relationships together for as long as I can...
Enough sentimental stuff.... Tomorrow is last day of classes and then packing! I have been dreading buy my 3rd bag because I know that means it is time to go... but I have to do it! I will probably be a very sad girl tomorrow!!! Wednesday is the trip to the DMZ and dinner with the Mayor and our host families. Wednesday night I am going to hang out with Danny and some of his friends as we wind down our final hours in Korea. If anyone talks to me over the next few days before I come home, expect some water works!!!
I know I am going home to place where I have been missed dearly over the past few weeks so I will be perfectly okay with closing this brief chapter of my life and heading into the next!!
See you all on THURSDAY!!!!
Friday we took our students ice skating. This time it was complete chaos. A lot of the kids didn't know how to skate so we spent much more time in a lesson than we did actually free skating. However, my students were much cuter this time. When we went with the older students, they had a game going that they got stickers from the native speakers if they said English phrases. So of course, they all only wanted to be by us to get stickers. This time, we had no contest so the students that were skating by our sides, holding our hands, wanted to be there. Their smiling faces always make me laugh... I'm going to miss them after tomorrow (it's our last day!)
Friday night, Danny and I took my host family to Itaewon, the biggest foreigners area of Seoul. My host family has never been so Danny wanted to show us around. It was a lot of fun not being the only person for the Koreans to stare at. My host brother made us laugh because he was constantly saying "OHHH foreigners" when we walked past anyone. Then of course I wanted to show them something they probably don't ever see in Korea...... TACO BELL!!!! It was a brand new one that just opened. I miss American food so much and you can't get better than fake Mexican American food. My host mom loved it so much that she ended up with about 3 orders of food by the end of the meal. I thought it was cute!
After dinner, Danny and I stayed in Itaewon and hung out with some of his friends. They walked me up "Hooker Hill" which is one of Seoul's red light districts. There was definitely nothing there that I hadn't seen before, being from Vegas and all. I called it a night at about 11 and headed home.
Saturday was Danny's going away party. His friend John, who will be travelling with him for the first 3 months of the trip, hosted it at his house. Imagine an apartment about the size of a normal American master bedroom, and cram 30+ people into it for a party! It was fun seeing faces I had already met and even more fun meeting new people. Everyone enjoyed themselves to the best of their ability. I had know curfew so I definitely took advantage of seeing parts of Seoul I hadn't seen yet! It will go down as one of the best nights on the trip.
Sunday morning we went to my host father's mom's house way out in the mountain. It took us about two hours to get there. It was this beautiful log cabin style home surrounded by gardens and a small stream. Just like any other Korean meal we have had, the lunch table was completely covered with food. Only this time, it was pizza, chicken, and all sorts of American style meals. The family chowed down while we joked about things. I taught my host sisters and their cousins how to french braid hair and now they are experts. As we went to leave, the grandma handed me an envelope and told me it was my allowance. More money!!!!!! I cannot believe how gracious this family is with everything they do....
When we got home, instead of having the planned spagetti dinner, we went out for Sam, my favorite meal here. Think super thick chunks of bacon that you cook on a grill in the middle of your table. It cannot be beat!!! Afterwards, we went to karaoke. Thanks to Danny requesting "Barbie Girl" the first time we went to karaoke and then not singing a word of it before handing me the mic and telling me it is too many girl parts! My family requested me to sing that right off the bat. I gave my best attempt again and managed to get a 98 out of 100 score. My host father belted out his usual "Bad Case of Loving You" and "My Way" songs. I am going to record him singing them tomorrow so I can post them and everyone can see how excited he gets during these songs. I will also post video of my host sister playing piano because she is AWESOME! High score of the night went to my host brother and I. We busted out "Sexy Back" and got 100!!! We called it a night after that because we knew there was no way to beat it.
My host family told me last night they are going to save up all of their money so that when I get married some day, they can come to the U.S. for my wedding. It made my night that they want to be there for me on my special day after only knowing me for 3 weeks!!!
Every day more and more I realize how much I am going to miss this place. I had my little moment after my first set of students were done with camp but I sucked it up and told myself I would be okay. It hit me again Saturday night, watching Danny say goodbye to friends he has had his entire stay here in Korea. One of his Korean friend's actually lived with him in Canada 7 years ago and then they rekindled their friendship here in Seoul when Danny moved. I could tell when he walked out of the room to walk them to the train station that he was going to be very sad saying goodbye to them. Little did I know that it would be the scene I saw. He walked back in, completely teary eyed and couldn't say a word to anyone. He just sat in the chair. As JoYoung and I tried to comfort him, I could see how much of an impact Korea had on his life over the past year. That's when I realized how much of an impact it has had on me in just six weeks....
I have made relationships here that will never compare to relationships back home. It says a lot when a woman (my host mom) you don't even really know yet comes in to give you a stomach massage when your sick because she knows your mom isn't there to comfort you. It says a lot when your host sister buys you a present for just being a friend to her over the past few weeks.
There are numerous people here that I am going to miss with all my heart. They know who they are so no need to pinpoint anyone individually. People who have comforted me in times of sickness. People who have made being away from home that much easier by just being a good friend when I needed one. These are people that I know our paths will cross again in the future because I will make sure I head in their direction when I get a glimpse of their trail in the distance. Whether it is them coming to my wedding, or me making a special trip just to visit, I will keep these relationships together for as long as I can...
Enough sentimental stuff.... Tomorrow is last day of classes and then packing! I have been dreading buy my 3rd bag because I know that means it is time to go... but I have to do it! I will probably be a very sad girl tomorrow!!! Wednesday is the trip to the DMZ and dinner with the Mayor and our host families. Wednesday night I am going to hang out with Danny and some of his friends as we wind down our final hours in Korea. If anyone talks to me over the next few days before I come home, expect some water works!!!
I know I am going home to place where I have been missed dearly over the past few weeks so I will be perfectly okay with closing this brief chapter of my life and heading into the next!!
See you all on THURSDAY!!!!
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Breaking Boards!
After numerous attempts to make our afternoon teacher have a little more fun on Tuesday, Travis and I decided we were just going to pull out all the stops today. During class, we tried to have as much fun as possible. The TV in the middle of the board is a touch screen and is connected to the computer. Our teacher was trying to do things on the computer with the student and Travis decided he would mess with him by touching all of over the TV screen. Our teacher couldn't figure out why the mouse kept going the opposite way he wanted it to. All the students laughed because they could see what Travis was doing. I tried so hard to keep a straight face.
Then when we got to the powerpoint, the teacher asked Travis to sit at the computer and click through it. Travis clicked through it super quickly and then said "ok done! My turn!" and stood up. Let's just say our teacher didn't find that very funny. When he was asking the kids questions to earn points for their team, I stood in the back. I raised my hand for everything, acting like they anxious kid jumping up and down wanting the teacher to pick them soooooo badly. I think the teacher gave me the dirtiest look I've ever gotten. I know that he wants to be serious about his job but you can't be that serious with 2nd graders! They need to be jumping around having fun or else they get distracted and won't care what you have to say!!
After school, Travis and I met up with Zack at his host family's house. We had plans for the 6 of us to take a Taekwondo lesson. From the way it was described to us, it would be us 6 with one teacher in a private lesson. When we arrived at the location, we realized we were WAY wrong. Sitting in front of us were about 30 black belt students. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into.
They had us change into traditional gear. We sat down on the side of the room and watched the Dobong Champions do a routine choreographed to "Shake that A**" ... yes the American song with cuss words and all. It was super cute though! They were soooooooooo good!!! We then watched the older boys do a few warm up exercises.
Then the Master walked out with a few boards. After watching the older boys break some stuff, Schuyler thought he would jump in to hold the board. He then wanted to break it himself. Zack and I were sitting there thinking "this has bad news written all over it." The Master surprised Schuyler by having one student sit on the shoulders of another and hold the board up really high. I can honestly say I thought Schuyler was either A) going to hurt himself or B) kick one of the boys. However, he successfully broke the board with ease. We each then took turns breaking boards. The boys did kick and they had us girls punch through them. YES! I punched through a board! YES! I kept the board I broke... and YES! I have it on video and is posted on my flickr!
We watched the older boys do some sparring and then they taught us how to do some traditional kicks. We had to stand up and do kicks with our partners just like they did in their warm-up routine. The Master then had the champions show us their Pumse routine. It looked very complicated and all I kept thinking was "there is no way I would be able to memorize that!!!" But of course! They had the girls come over and pick one of us to be their partner. They showed us the first basic steps. Thinking we were only learning how to do it was a bad idea as well. Zack's oldest host sister called us together and informed us that we had 5 minutes to memorize it because the
Master would be testing. We quickly tried to learn it and hoped for the best. By giving us a few breaks and embarrassing us in front of the class, we passed with his approval. (yes, I posted a video of our test too)
I will definitely admit I have a new found respect for those that take up these kinds of things. My mental capacity was just not there to concentrate as hard as these students do!
When you watch the videos, keep in mind we are all always laughing because the younger students were laughing so hard at us that we couldn't keep straight faces. I think they were just laughing that we were even attempting it (or it could be because we were completely messing it up)!!
Skating again with the new students tomorrow... way excited! Goodnight!!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624584972911/
Then when we got to the powerpoint, the teacher asked Travis to sit at the computer and click through it. Travis clicked through it super quickly and then said "ok done! My turn!" and stood up. Let's just say our teacher didn't find that very funny. When he was asking the kids questions to earn points for their team, I stood in the back. I raised my hand for everything, acting like they anxious kid jumping up and down wanting the teacher to pick them soooooo badly. I think the teacher gave me the dirtiest look I've ever gotten. I know that he wants to be serious about his job but you can't be that serious with 2nd graders! They need to be jumping around having fun or else they get distracted and won't care what you have to say!!
After school, Travis and I met up with Zack at his host family's house. We had plans for the 6 of us to take a Taekwondo lesson. From the way it was described to us, it would be us 6 with one teacher in a private lesson. When we arrived at the location, we realized we were WAY wrong. Sitting in front of us were about 30 black belt students. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into.
They had us change into traditional gear. We sat down on the side of the room and watched the Dobong Champions do a routine choreographed to "Shake that A**" ... yes the American song with cuss words and all. It was super cute though! They were soooooooooo good!!! We then watched the older boys do a few warm up exercises.
Then the Master walked out with a few boards. After watching the older boys break some stuff, Schuyler thought he would jump in to hold the board. He then wanted to break it himself. Zack and I were sitting there thinking "this has bad news written all over it." The Master surprised Schuyler by having one student sit on the shoulders of another and hold the board up really high. I can honestly say I thought Schuyler was either A) going to hurt himself or B) kick one of the boys. However, he successfully broke the board with ease. We each then took turns breaking boards. The boys did kick and they had us girls punch through them. YES! I punched through a board! YES! I kept the board I broke... and YES! I have it on video and is posted on my flickr!
We watched the older boys do some sparring and then they taught us how to do some traditional kicks. We had to stand up and do kicks with our partners just like they did in their warm-up routine. The Master then had the champions show us their Pumse routine. It looked very complicated and all I kept thinking was "there is no way I would be able to memorize that!!!" But of course! They had the girls come over and pick one of us to be their partner. They showed us the first basic steps. Thinking we were only learning how to do it was a bad idea as well. Zack's oldest host sister called us together and informed us that we had 5 minutes to memorize it because the
Master would be testing. We quickly tried to learn it and hoped for the best. By giving us a few breaks and embarrassing us in front of the class, we passed with his approval. (yes, I posted a video of our test too)
I will definitely admit I have a new found respect for those that take up these kinds of things. My mental capacity was just not there to concentrate as hard as these students do!
When you watch the videos, keep in mind we are all always laughing because the younger students were laughing so hard at us that we couldn't keep straight faces. I think they were just laughing that we were even attempting it (or it could be because we were completely messing it up)!!
Skating again with the new students tomorrow... way excited! Goodnight!!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624584972911/
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Ranting Blog!!
I know I haven't posted anything in the past couple days and nothing really exciting happened today. I felt I needed to post something to keep everyone's interest! So this blog is just going to be random thoughts...
I'm soooo happy for the Bodines and Tones. Baby Quinn is finally at home with her family like she should be. God granted her family the serenity of knowing they have a healthy baby girl now. It really how showed me the power of prayer because the outreach for Quinn was AMAZING!!!! Miracles really do happen....
I'm still trying to figure out the health habits here. We are asked to wear house slippers because the families often take naps on the ground in their houses! I understand this completely! BUT!!!!! Then you eat dinner from the same plates (everyone picking out of every plate on the table sharing the germs on your chopsticks).... then you shower NOT in the shower but on the ground that you walk on! All I can think every time I go in the shower is if the boys have similar actions that a lot of American boys have and pee in the shower... and I'm standing there on the same floor they just pee'd on!!! I have invested in shower shoes for this reason!! They also do not wash their hands after they go to the bathroom, BUT make you wash your hands and feet when you come in from outside. I DON'T GET IT!!!! You are so concerned about the germs on my feet on your floor, even though I just washed my feet from coming home but you share germs soooooo many other ways.....
Before we came on this trip, we were told that we were going to be amazed at how advanced this country is compared to ours! I was expecting to see gadgets and technology that was beyond comparable. We were also told that the education system was a million times better! After teaching for a couple of weeks now, I can definitely say that there are flaws in the Korean education system that greatly out-number our education flaws. Flaw #1 ) Many of the English teachers are not fluent in English! They speak broken English and are teaching the students bad grammar. Someone teaching a foreign language should be fluent in the language. Flaw #2) During the students 2nd year in high school, they are broken up by what subjects they are good at. If they are better at math and science, they can only take those classes for the rest of high school. Same if they are good at arts and social studies. So... if a student who scores higher on their science test than they do on their arts test and wants to take a journalism class, too bad so sad! Flaw #3) The lesson plans are often way lower than the students intelligence level. I have often seen my advanced students frustrated with the fact that they are learning something they have already learned multiple times. They are not being challenged. Flaw #4) The teachers often have amazing ideas in their head and have just assummed that we would figure out what they want to do by reading their minds. During these weeks of teaching, the 3 of us at my school have often been asked to create powerpoints for the next day's lesson. If I had known before we left that we were going to play such a big part in creating the lesson, I would have planned out some more challenging activities. Instead, we are asked to think on our feet! Kind of hard to do when you're 6,000 miles away from your common resources!
Because of this, I have made the conclusion that even though we lack the funding to have more advancements in our classrooms, our education is still better!
Las rant of the day.... I explained in my "realizations" blog how pedestrians do not have the right-away here.... Tonight made me soooo frustrated!!! As my family and I walked home from dinner, a car pulled up to the crosswalk making a right hand turn. We had the okay to cross and he had a red light. As we were walking across, he inched closer and closer to where we were at. When we got in front of his car, there was still about 30 seconds of time for us to cross, and he had the nerve to honk at us to go quicker! HE HAD A RED LIGHT!!! I really wanted to go knock on his window and say "Sir, You honking at me and inching closer and closer to your turn is not going to make me walk any faster, so now I'm just going to stand in front of your car so you can't move at all!" It's that whole mentality that I have when people cut you off back home... "OMG you are one car closer to your destination! Now you have time to stop for coffee and a doughnut!!" Luckily I only have 8 more days of crazy drivers, ridiculously slow buses, humidity up the ying yang, and kimchi!!!
OOOO and at least 60% chance of rain for the rest of trip.... most days are above 80%!! Lucky us right?
I'm soooo happy for the Bodines and Tones. Baby Quinn is finally at home with her family like she should be. God granted her family the serenity of knowing they have a healthy baby girl now. It really how showed me the power of prayer because the outreach for Quinn was AMAZING!!!! Miracles really do happen....
I'm still trying to figure out the health habits here. We are asked to wear house slippers because the families often take naps on the ground in their houses! I understand this completely! BUT!!!!! Then you eat dinner from the same plates (everyone picking out of every plate on the table sharing the germs on your chopsticks).... then you shower NOT in the shower but on the ground that you walk on! All I can think every time I go in the shower is if the boys have similar actions that a lot of American boys have and pee in the shower... and I'm standing there on the same floor they just pee'd on!!! I have invested in shower shoes for this reason!! They also do not wash their hands after they go to the bathroom, BUT make you wash your hands and feet when you come in from outside. I DON'T GET IT!!!! You are so concerned about the germs on my feet on your floor, even though I just washed my feet from coming home but you share germs soooooo many other ways.....
Before we came on this trip, we were told that we were going to be amazed at how advanced this country is compared to ours! I was expecting to see gadgets and technology that was beyond comparable. We were also told that the education system was a million times better! After teaching for a couple of weeks now, I can definitely say that there are flaws in the Korean education system that greatly out-number our education flaws. Flaw #1 ) Many of the English teachers are not fluent in English! They speak broken English and are teaching the students bad grammar. Someone teaching a foreign language should be fluent in the language. Flaw #2) During the students 2nd year in high school, they are broken up by what subjects they are good at. If they are better at math and science, they can only take those classes for the rest of high school. Same if they are good at arts and social studies. So... if a student who scores higher on their science test than they do on their arts test and wants to take a journalism class, too bad so sad! Flaw #3) The lesson plans are often way lower than the students intelligence level. I have often seen my advanced students frustrated with the fact that they are learning something they have already learned multiple times. They are not being challenged. Flaw #4) The teachers often have amazing ideas in their head and have just assummed that we would figure out what they want to do by reading their minds. During these weeks of teaching, the 3 of us at my school have often been asked to create powerpoints for the next day's lesson. If I had known before we left that we were going to play such a big part in creating the lesson, I would have planned out some more challenging activities. Instead, we are asked to think on our feet! Kind of hard to do when you're 6,000 miles away from your common resources!
Because of this, I have made the conclusion that even though we lack the funding to have more advancements in our classrooms, our education is still better!
Las rant of the day.... I explained in my "realizations" blog how pedestrians do not have the right-away here.... Tonight made me soooo frustrated!!! As my family and I walked home from dinner, a car pulled up to the crosswalk making a right hand turn. We had the okay to cross and he had a red light. As we were walking across, he inched closer and closer to where we were at. When we got in front of his car, there was still about 30 seconds of time for us to cross, and he had the nerve to honk at us to go quicker! HE HAD A RED LIGHT!!! I really wanted to go knock on his window and say "Sir, You honking at me and inching closer and closer to your turn is not going to make me walk any faster, so now I'm just going to stand in front of your car so you can't move at all!" It's that whole mentality that I have when people cut you off back home... "OMG you are one car closer to your destination! Now you have time to stop for coffee and a doughnut!!" Luckily I only have 8 more days of crazy drivers, ridiculously slow buses, humidity up the ying yang, and kimchi!!!
OOOO and at least 60% chance of rain for the rest of trip.... most days are above 80%!! Lucky us right?
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Waterpark in the Rain
Who would have thought that monsoon type rain would not stop a group of American/Canadian kids from going to the waterpark with an entire Korean family!?
We accomplished that feat today. All week we had plans to go to this waterpark that is about an hour and a half away. It's called Caribbean Bay and is supposed to be one of the best in this part of the world. You have to make a reservation to go because they reach their capacity so quickly. It’s an easy way to control the crowd. If you ever come to Korea, don’t try to just walk up to the park. You probably won’t get in. Here is the link if you want to see more about the park before I continue my story…. http://www.everland.com/MultiLanguage/english/caribbean/main.html . My host mom invited Danny and Stacy to join us. I set my alarm last night for 5am (yes! 5am!! we were leaving at 6)... but when I woke up at 4am to the sounds of ridiculous thunder shaking my building and rain pounding on my window, I thought maybe our day plans were ruined. In the U.S., if even the slightest bit of thunder comes, the park is shut down. Here, NO WAY!! I walked out in the living room to find my entire host family already awake because the thunder scared them. We turned on some music and danced around the living room to calm their nerves (my suggestion!). Afterwards, I asked my host mom if we were going to have to make different plans. She responded by saying "of course not! We have more fun when it’s raining!"
We loaded up our cars and headed out. My host mom's sister, brother-in-law, mother, and the new baby joined us. Hera (my oldest host sister) had to stay home because she had to work today. A little while later, we had arrived! Busting out to "Barbie Girl" in the parking lot while the men bought our tickets, we enjoyed our little bit of calmness before the storm. Once we got inside, Stacy and I both realized this was not going to be like any American waterpark. We first had to go into the ladies locker room and get lockers for our stuff. Let me tell you when I say that Korean women have no shame! Women everywhere just stripped right down to change into their bathing suits. It definitely shocked us. Seeing how we both wore our swimsuits under our clothes for the trip up, we got out of there as quickly as we could. On the website it told us that everyone had to wear swim caps. When we got there, we figured out otherwise and were way excited that we did not have to adorn the fashion no-no. We made a "base camp" so we knew where to meet if we got lost from the group. We went on a few slides before heading to the wave pool. For the wave pool, everyone has to wear life jackets. John (my host brother), Danny and I made our way to the deepest part of the pool. We figured “what the heck, we are in life jackets so we won’t drown.” Going into this wave pool thinking it would be like Wet’n’Wild’s with massive waves knocking you down was a very bad idea for me to think. As we floated there, I realized that all this wave pool was going to be was some giant bumps in the water. We gently floated over each one and no matter how big it was, we never got any ounce of a wave feeling. Danny and I looked at each other like “are you kidding me right now.”
We saw where the waves were breaking so we tried to head back there. When we got to that area, we realized that it was blocked off. In the water, there was a thick green line about 10 feet wide. This was the exact area where the waves crashed. However, before every wave, the lifeguards clear that area. You have to either be in the deeper part where you just get bumps or the shallow part where the waves hit you at your knee caps. VERY DISSAPPOINTED. Danny and I made the move to get out as fast as we could. When we got out, it started pouring rain! Everyone wanted to stay under the tree but we all agreed to head up to where our favorite slides were. Standing in the ridiculous rain, telling stories about how we never get this much rain in a year was sooooo much fun! Stacy and I were laughing pretty hard at the fact that no lines got shorter and it seemed like no was affected by the rain. It stopped raining after a little while.
We left John at the wave pool so when we made the decision to wait in the line for the water rollercoaster, we went back to camp to look for him. Nowhere to be found so Danny, Stacy, Lisa (my middle host sister), and I headed up. The sign on the outside said 80 minute wait. We figured maybe it would go fast like our other waits went. Boy, were we wrong!! I think that after about 2 hours, we finally made it to the front. You climb in your 2 person raft and float around the corner to where a conveyor belt pulls you up to the top. You then have to get on a second belt until you reach the starting point of the rollercoaster. The 2 hour wait was definitely worth it. Going down hills to just be pushed back up another by extreme jets was so much fun. Definitely the highlight of the day! For lunch, I had fried shrimp with this tangy Caribbean sauce. It was awesome! Stacy and I discussed how you would never find an actual restaurant like we had in an American waterpark.
After a few more waves in the not so amazing wave pool, we made the decision to head home. Once again, Stacy and I were greeted by naked women all over the place changing back into their regular clothes. Maybe it’s just me but to get naked in a room full of women I don’t know would just be weird. We quickly changed back and met up with the boys to get out of there. My host father’s favorite song is “Bad Case of Loving You” by Robert Palmer and he used to be in a band. On the way home, he asked if he could sing the song to Stacy and I. As he rocked out with the music blasting and hitting every note, we couldn’t help but laugh at how he excited he was to sing to us. He was actually a pretty good singer too!
After a day full of rain, crazy wait times for rides, and a wave pool with no waves, we were all super tired but my host mom insisted on taking us to dinner. We drove up this hill by our house to this gorgeous restaurant. The street it was on was known was a good place to eat out. There were restaurants everywhere but we were going for BBQ duck. Our restaurant was covered in ivy and had a cute little waterfall out front. It was very quant. It really put be me at ease after the chaos that was Caribbean Bay. Dinner was awesome and I couldn’t have asked for a better time with better people. My host mom’s brother-in-law drove me home while she took home Danny and Stacy.
Now it is time to crash because I have never been so tired in my life!
Tomorrow is a light day… maybe some shopping in a new area of town I haven’t explored yet and maybe a movie!
Goodnight!
We accomplished that feat today. All week we had plans to go to this waterpark that is about an hour and a half away. It's called Caribbean Bay and is supposed to be one of the best in this part of the world. You have to make a reservation to go because they reach their capacity so quickly. It’s an easy way to control the crowd. If you ever come to Korea, don’t try to just walk up to the park. You probably won’t get in. Here is the link if you want to see more about the park before I continue my story…. http://www.everland.com/MultiLanguage/english/caribbean/main.html . My host mom invited Danny and Stacy to join us. I set my alarm last night for 5am (yes! 5am!! we were leaving at 6)... but when I woke up at 4am to the sounds of ridiculous thunder shaking my building and rain pounding on my window, I thought maybe our day plans were ruined. In the U.S., if even the slightest bit of thunder comes, the park is shut down. Here, NO WAY!! I walked out in the living room to find my entire host family already awake because the thunder scared them. We turned on some music and danced around the living room to calm their nerves (my suggestion!). Afterwards, I asked my host mom if we were going to have to make different plans. She responded by saying "of course not! We have more fun when it’s raining!"
We loaded up our cars and headed out. My host mom's sister, brother-in-law, mother, and the new baby joined us. Hera (my oldest host sister) had to stay home because she had to work today. A little while later, we had arrived! Busting out to "Barbie Girl" in the parking lot while the men bought our tickets, we enjoyed our little bit of calmness before the storm. Once we got inside, Stacy and I both realized this was not going to be like any American waterpark. We first had to go into the ladies locker room and get lockers for our stuff. Let me tell you when I say that Korean women have no shame! Women everywhere just stripped right down to change into their bathing suits. It definitely shocked us. Seeing how we both wore our swimsuits under our clothes for the trip up, we got out of there as quickly as we could. On the website it told us that everyone had to wear swim caps. When we got there, we figured out otherwise and were way excited that we did not have to adorn the fashion no-no. We made a "base camp" so we knew where to meet if we got lost from the group. We went on a few slides before heading to the wave pool. For the wave pool, everyone has to wear life jackets. John (my host brother), Danny and I made our way to the deepest part of the pool. We figured “what the heck, we are in life jackets so we won’t drown.” Going into this wave pool thinking it would be like Wet’n’Wild’s with massive waves knocking you down was a very bad idea for me to think. As we floated there, I realized that all this wave pool was going to be was some giant bumps in the water. We gently floated over each one and no matter how big it was, we never got any ounce of a wave feeling. Danny and I looked at each other like “are you kidding me right now.”
We saw where the waves were breaking so we tried to head back there. When we got to that area, we realized that it was blocked off. In the water, there was a thick green line about 10 feet wide. This was the exact area where the waves crashed. However, before every wave, the lifeguards clear that area. You have to either be in the deeper part where you just get bumps or the shallow part where the waves hit you at your knee caps. VERY DISSAPPOINTED. Danny and I made the move to get out as fast as we could. When we got out, it started pouring rain! Everyone wanted to stay under the tree but we all agreed to head up to where our favorite slides were. Standing in the ridiculous rain, telling stories about how we never get this much rain in a year was sooooo much fun! Stacy and I were laughing pretty hard at the fact that no lines got shorter and it seemed like no was affected by the rain. It stopped raining after a little while.
We left John at the wave pool so when we made the decision to wait in the line for the water rollercoaster, we went back to camp to look for him. Nowhere to be found so Danny, Stacy, Lisa (my middle host sister), and I headed up. The sign on the outside said 80 minute wait. We figured maybe it would go fast like our other waits went. Boy, were we wrong!! I think that after about 2 hours, we finally made it to the front. You climb in your 2 person raft and float around the corner to where a conveyor belt pulls you up to the top. You then have to get on a second belt until you reach the starting point of the rollercoaster. The 2 hour wait was definitely worth it. Going down hills to just be pushed back up another by extreme jets was so much fun. Definitely the highlight of the day! For lunch, I had fried shrimp with this tangy Caribbean sauce. It was awesome! Stacy and I discussed how you would never find an actual restaurant like we had in an American waterpark.
After a few more waves in the not so amazing wave pool, we made the decision to head home. Once again, Stacy and I were greeted by naked women all over the place changing back into their regular clothes. Maybe it’s just me but to get naked in a room full of women I don’t know would just be weird. We quickly changed back and met up with the boys to get out of there. My host father’s favorite song is “Bad Case of Loving You” by Robert Palmer and he used to be in a band. On the way home, he asked if he could sing the song to Stacy and I. As he rocked out with the music blasting and hitting every note, we couldn’t help but laugh at how he excited he was to sing to us. He was actually a pretty good singer too!
After a day full of rain, crazy wait times for rides, and a wave pool with no waves, we were all super tired but my host mom insisted on taking us to dinner. We drove up this hill by our house to this gorgeous restaurant. The street it was on was known was a good place to eat out. There were restaurants everywhere but we were going for BBQ duck. Our restaurant was covered in ivy and had a cute little waterfall out front. It was very quant. It really put be me at ease after the chaos that was Caribbean Bay. Dinner was awesome and I couldn’t have asked for a better time with better people. My host mom’s brother-in-law drove me home while she took home Danny and Stacy.
Now it is time to crash because I have never been so tired in my life!
Tomorrow is a light day… maybe some shopping in a new area of town I haven’t explored yet and maybe a movie!
Goodnight!
Thursday, August 5, 2010
I will miss this place....
Today was our last day with the 4th and 5th graders. Until today, I didn't think I would miss anything about teaching when I go back home. I always knew that even thought I might have the talent to work with children, I would never be able to work within the teacher's salary. I will be the first to admit that my spending habits would be too much for that position.
However, I found myself leaving school at 12:45, on the verge of tears. Our students had an English contest where they had to answer questions and if they got it wrong, they were out. We combined all 3 classes and of course, the 3 students that won were all advanced students. The winning question was spelling what state or city zach, travis, and I are from. After the contest, we went downstairs for the closing ceremony. Much to our surprise, we were asked to give a closing speech with no warning. The Korean teachers at the school always think about things in their head but never give a warning of whats going on. Since Zach can think off the top of his head, he spoke on behalf of the 3 of us and did an awesome job conveying how much we are going to miss these students.
We then went upstairs back to our classes with our homeroom kids. Even though the orange class (intermediate students) can be a handful sometimes, I saw myself getting upset when they were telling me how much they were going to miss me. The Korean teachers and all of the students make us giant thank you cards. As I read the ones from each class, my eyes definitely started to well up. I would have never expected to have this reaction. I figured it was just another group of relationships that would come in and out of my life. Once the students were dismissed, I had a crowd of girls from the green class (advanced students) come rushing in to take pictures with me and get my email address. There are two girls that Zach, Travis, and I call "the twins" because they are closer friends than sisters will ever be. With bright smiling faces they told me they would be emailing me EVERY DAY!!! They both then hugged me as another one of their friends yelled "Krista teacher... I love you!" That is when I lost it. I tried to stay strong and not show my emotion but a single tear fell down my cheek. I sucked it up and told myself I would be okay.
As Zach, Travis and I started to walk home, the same group of girls were waiting outside. "Teacher, buy me ice cream please." In America, all 3 of us would have been like "HELL NO!" because they just asked. But because we love these girls so much, we politely agreed. They walked us to a small mart and had the biggest grins on their faces while we paid for their treats.
Those smiles have made teaching all worth it. Even though we have 8 more days of teaching, I am fully satisfied with the work we have done here. I really hope that the kids do email me every day because I will glady respond with a huge smile on my face.
The one single tear told me that I will miss this place more than I know yet....
However, I found myself leaving school at 12:45, on the verge of tears. Our students had an English contest where they had to answer questions and if they got it wrong, they were out. We combined all 3 classes and of course, the 3 students that won were all advanced students. The winning question was spelling what state or city zach, travis, and I are from. After the contest, we went downstairs for the closing ceremony. Much to our surprise, we were asked to give a closing speech with no warning. The Korean teachers at the school always think about things in their head but never give a warning of whats going on. Since Zach can think off the top of his head, he spoke on behalf of the 3 of us and did an awesome job conveying how much we are going to miss these students.
We then went upstairs back to our classes with our homeroom kids. Even though the orange class (intermediate students) can be a handful sometimes, I saw myself getting upset when they were telling me how much they were going to miss me. The Korean teachers and all of the students make us giant thank you cards. As I read the ones from each class, my eyes definitely started to well up. I would have never expected to have this reaction. I figured it was just another group of relationships that would come in and out of my life. Once the students were dismissed, I had a crowd of girls from the green class (advanced students) come rushing in to take pictures with me and get my email address. There are two girls that Zach, Travis, and I call "the twins" because they are closer friends than sisters will ever be. With bright smiling faces they told me they would be emailing me EVERY DAY!!! They both then hugged me as another one of their friends yelled "Krista teacher... I love you!" That is when I lost it. I tried to stay strong and not show my emotion but a single tear fell down my cheek. I sucked it up and told myself I would be okay.
As Zach, Travis and I started to walk home, the same group of girls were waiting outside. "Teacher, buy me ice cream please." In America, all 3 of us would have been like "HELL NO!" because they just asked. But because we love these girls so much, we politely agreed. They walked us to a small mart and had the biggest grins on their faces while we paid for their treats.
Those smiles have made teaching all worth it. Even though we have 8 more days of teaching, I am fully satisfied with the work we have done here. I really hope that the kids do email me every day because I will glady respond with a huge smile on my face.
The one single tear told me that I will miss this place more than I know yet....
Sick as a Dog
Today started out what I thought would be okay. I woke up and did not have an ounce of hunger in me. I knew that wasn't right because normally I'm starving when I get up. I told my host mom I didn't want to eat breakfast but she insisted I eat something. I had this little wraps about the size of a half-dollar coin filled with rice. I only ate about three before I told her I could not eat anymore.
Once again, I waited about 30 minutes at my bus stop before the bus finally came. Of course the new route I have to take only has 1 bus so it takes forever to come. Once I got to school, I could definitely tell I wasn't feeling well anymore. 10 minutes into the first class and I was throwing up what little food I ate for breakfast. Dry-heaving the rest of the day, I toughed it out. I tried to put a smile on my face for afternoon class. I'm not sure how that went over.
The instant I got home, I told my host family I was going to lay down. I chugged down my nausea medicine and passed out from 4:30pm until 8pm. At 8 my host mom woke me up to see how I was feeling. She gave me this plum juice that was supposed to help calm my stomach. She also proceeded to give me a 15 minute stomach and hand massage. I think there is a nerve or something that has to do with calming your body down in between your thumb and pointer finger. When Travis was sick, that is where his host dad focused majority of his acupuncture. Tonight, that is where my host mom massaged the most.
Now I am laying in bed, ready to go back to sleep. Tomorrow is my last day with our morning students before we get all new ones next week. I am definitely going to miss them. There are certain students that just brighten my day when I see them.
Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624658911382/
Once again, I waited about 30 minutes at my bus stop before the bus finally came. Of course the new route I have to take only has 1 bus so it takes forever to come. Once I got to school, I could definitely tell I wasn't feeling well anymore. 10 minutes into the first class and I was throwing up what little food I ate for breakfast. Dry-heaving the rest of the day, I toughed it out. I tried to put a smile on my face for afternoon class. I'm not sure how that went over.
The instant I got home, I told my host family I was going to lay down. I chugged down my nausea medicine and passed out from 4:30pm until 8pm. At 8 my host mom woke me up to see how I was feeling. She gave me this plum juice that was supposed to help calm my stomach. She also proceeded to give me a 15 minute stomach and hand massage. I think there is a nerve or something that has to do with calming your body down in between your thumb and pointer finger. When Travis was sick, that is where his host dad focused majority of his acupuncture. Tonight, that is where my host mom massaged the most.
Now I am laying in bed, ready to go back to sleep. Tomorrow is my last day with our morning students before we get all new ones next week. I am definitely going to miss them. There are certain students that just brighten my day when I see them.
Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624658911382/
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
I am not a Kindergarten Student!!
Ok so not a lot happened today, except for the funniest moment ever with my host brother....
Travis and Danny (my new Canadian friend) came over so my host mom could cook dinner for them. She was so excited to meet the people I have been hanging out with. It was amazing dinner but she definitely made too much. After dinner, the three of us went with my 3 host siblings to Karaoke.
I'm not sure if I have explained this already but karaoke is way different here and I am totally thinking I need to find an investor to help me open a business like this in Las Vegas. Every group gets their own room. With brightly colored lights that dance along with your song choice, you have your own flat screen and own sound system. It's amazing because in no way do you have to embarrass yourself in front of 50 people you don't know. You can bring in your own food and drinks or buy from the location. It would absolutely kill in Vegas!!
So we went to the best karaoke room closest to us, The Princess Room. Every room has its own theme. We were in the sailing theme so there were sail boats all over the walls and our couch was boat shaped. It was awesome! I didn't think my host brother would sing but he actually sang a lot, including some American songs like Linkin Park with Danny and Travis. My host sister Hera definitely gets the vote for best singer of the night. Her voice is amazing!!! I could listen to her sing all day. She also taught Travis the dance to a popular Korean song right now. When you look through my pictures, you will see Travis' attempt at it.
Now, to explain the title of this blog post....
At our apartment, you have to use a card key to get in at the bottom of the building or you can call to the apartment you are visiting and they can buzz you in. I had my key on me so I got to the door first and opened it. My host brother didn't see me use my key and goes "WOW how did that open??" and I told him it was magic... and he gave me a funny look. So then I said "OOO the door saw me coming and said oh no krista is coming and opened" and he looked at me and goes "i'm not a kindergarten student. i'm not 5." My host sisters and I cracked up laughing. Hera looked like she was about to cry because she was laughing so hard. Maybe it was a had to be there moment but it definitely made my night.
Tomorrow is exercising with my morning kids (their lesson for the week is "stay in shape" so I'm making them do one of my My Gym warm-ups) and mini-olympics with my afternoon kids.... should be a lot of fun and I will try to take a lot of pictures!!
BTW: Thomas and Sam have all their pictures up on a website. If you go to www.pictage.com ... then register and search for "thomas and sam" on june 26th, 2010... you will be able to see all 1007 pictures!!!
Pictures from tonight: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624527854929/
Travis and Danny (my new Canadian friend) came over so my host mom could cook dinner for them. She was so excited to meet the people I have been hanging out with. It was amazing dinner but she definitely made too much. After dinner, the three of us went with my 3 host siblings to Karaoke.
I'm not sure if I have explained this already but karaoke is way different here and I am totally thinking I need to find an investor to help me open a business like this in Las Vegas. Every group gets their own room. With brightly colored lights that dance along with your song choice, you have your own flat screen and own sound system. It's amazing because in no way do you have to embarrass yourself in front of 50 people you don't know. You can bring in your own food and drinks or buy from the location. It would absolutely kill in Vegas!!
So we went to the best karaoke room closest to us, The Princess Room. Every room has its own theme. We were in the sailing theme so there were sail boats all over the walls and our couch was boat shaped. It was awesome! I didn't think my host brother would sing but he actually sang a lot, including some American songs like Linkin Park with Danny and Travis. My host sister Hera definitely gets the vote for best singer of the night. Her voice is amazing!!! I could listen to her sing all day. She also taught Travis the dance to a popular Korean song right now. When you look through my pictures, you will see Travis' attempt at it.
Now, to explain the title of this blog post....
At our apartment, you have to use a card key to get in at the bottom of the building or you can call to the apartment you are visiting and they can buzz you in. I had my key on me so I got to the door first and opened it. My host brother didn't see me use my key and goes "WOW how did that open??" and I told him it was magic... and he gave me a funny look. So then I said "OOO the door saw me coming and said oh no krista is coming and opened" and he looked at me and goes "i'm not a kindergarten student. i'm not 5." My host sisters and I cracked up laughing. Hera looked like she was about to cry because she was laughing so hard. Maybe it was a had to be there moment but it definitely made my night.
Tomorrow is exercising with my morning kids (their lesson for the week is "stay in shape" so I'm making them do one of my My Gym warm-ups) and mini-olympics with my afternoon kids.... should be a lot of fun and I will try to take a lot of pictures!!
BTW: Thomas and Sam have all their pictures up on a website. If you go to www.pictage.com ... then register and search for "thomas and sam" on june 26th, 2010... you will be able to see all 1007 pictures!!!
Pictures from tonight: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624527854929/
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Pictures from Thomas and Sam's Wedding
This is completely irrelevant to my trip to Korea but Sammy just posted some of the pictures from the wedding and I'm so freaking excited....
Here is the link to my flickr album..
I will add more pictures as she adds them and will keep you posted if new ones go up!!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624525645619/
Here is the link to my flickr album..
I will add more pictures as she adds them and will keep you posted if new ones go up!!!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624525645619/
Longest Day EVER!!!
Today seemed to drag on like no other. Morning session normally goes by quick, but it felt like I had been there all day by the end of second period. Travis and I live further from the school now so we decided to eat lunch closer to school and just not go home. We tried the Lotteria which is one of the big department stores. It was definitely an experience trying to order food from someone who speaks only Korean. Luckily we had a menu we could point at pictures to show them. I ordered ice cream for dessert thinking I was going to get this small bowl of vanilla ice cream. Instead I got this massive bowl filled with shaved ice (that's normally how they serve ice cream) with vanilla soft serve on top, covered in different berries. I definitely had to ask Travis to help me with. Let's just say I won't be ordering that again.
I was excited for afternoon session because we have a new class. We have second graders for the next two weeks. New class means new teacher as well. This one seems a lot more relaxed than the first. Things do not have to be as perfect but I love both teachers equally. The second graders are doing the same lessons that the first graders did so today we taught them animals. I was very confused to see that our first graders knew more English than these second graders. Conversation was definitely difficult but once they got going, they warmed up to us quickly. I'm excited for Thursday's class because not only are we doing body parts again but we are also doing mini olympics like we did with our morning students. I'll take pictures again.
After school, I came home and hung out with my older host sister Hera. She is very funny and is constantly making me laugh. We watched some Korean TV shows. My host mom then left to pick up the new car that they bought on Saturday. During that time, her sister and brother-in-law came over with their 6 month old baby. He is by far the cutest Asian baby I have seen on this trip. The brother-in-law spoke awesome English and was making conversation with me left and right. He also brought over a traditional Korean game for us to play. There are four wooden sticks (one side flat and one side round). Each team gets 4 button-looking game pieces and there is a game board that looks like a square with an X through the middle. Each team takes turns throwing the sticks. Depending on how they land (on their flat side or round side) that is how many spaces you get to move. If you last move is on a corner of the square, you can then use the middle lines to make a short cut to the exit. Each combination of throws has a name but I cannot remember them if my life depended on it. We played my family vs. their family. It was me, my host sister Hera, and my host brother John against the sister, brother-in-law, and the baby (yes, the dad threw for the baby from his walker). It was definitely one of the funnest games I have ever played.
As I watched how excited the brother-in-law got every time the baby made the slightest sound, I realized how precious the life of a baby is. Parents will love their child unconditionally, through thick and thin. It made me think of Quinn Bodine. I have made friends with the youngest Bodine, Amber, over the past year through various classes we have had together and helping each other pass the most difficult class I have taken in college. Quinn is the newest edition to the Bodine clan and is in the hospital battling some infections. Her parents have yet to have the honor of taking her home. I cannot even imagnine what it would be like to be carrying that life around inside of you for 9 months and then not being able to hold her at night when she can't sleep or laugh at the little sounds she makes when she is happy. I have been praying for the Bodine family since hearing about Quinn's condition. I look forward to Amber's constant updates on Facebook about the progress she is making. Every day I get excited to hear good news. I will continue to pray for Quinn until she is a completely healthy baby in the arms of her parents, being amused by the little things her new big sister does for her. I hope that all of you will keep Quinn in your prayers!
I sent Bobby an awesome gift... everyone should bug him to see it!
Tomorrow is just morning school, then shopping with my host sisters. Travis, Schuyler, and Danny are coming to my house for dinner and then everyone is going to karaoke. I will definitely be taking pictures! (Karaoke here is way different! You have your own room with your group so you do not have to be embarrassed trying to sing in front of a ton of people. I'm totally thinking I need to find an investor and opening a place like this in Las Vegas. It would make a killing! It would be crowded every day!!!)
Goodnight for now.....
I was excited for afternoon session because we have a new class. We have second graders for the next two weeks. New class means new teacher as well. This one seems a lot more relaxed than the first. Things do not have to be as perfect but I love both teachers equally. The second graders are doing the same lessons that the first graders did so today we taught them animals. I was very confused to see that our first graders knew more English than these second graders. Conversation was definitely difficult but once they got going, they warmed up to us quickly. I'm excited for Thursday's class because not only are we doing body parts again but we are also doing mini olympics like we did with our morning students. I'll take pictures again.
After school, I came home and hung out with my older host sister Hera. She is very funny and is constantly making me laugh. We watched some Korean TV shows. My host mom then left to pick up the new car that they bought on Saturday. During that time, her sister and brother-in-law came over with their 6 month old baby. He is by far the cutest Asian baby I have seen on this trip. The brother-in-law spoke awesome English and was making conversation with me left and right. He also brought over a traditional Korean game for us to play. There are four wooden sticks (one side flat and one side round). Each team gets 4 button-looking game pieces and there is a game board that looks like a square with an X through the middle. Each team takes turns throwing the sticks. Depending on how they land (on their flat side or round side) that is how many spaces you get to move. If you last move is on a corner of the square, you can then use the middle lines to make a short cut to the exit. Each combination of throws has a name but I cannot remember them if my life depended on it. We played my family vs. their family. It was me, my host sister Hera, and my host brother John against the sister, brother-in-law, and the baby (yes, the dad threw for the baby from his walker). It was definitely one of the funnest games I have ever played.
As I watched how excited the brother-in-law got every time the baby made the slightest sound, I realized how precious the life of a baby is. Parents will love their child unconditionally, through thick and thin. It made me think of Quinn Bodine. I have made friends with the youngest Bodine, Amber, over the past year through various classes we have had together and helping each other pass the most difficult class I have taken in college. Quinn is the newest edition to the Bodine clan and is in the hospital battling some infections. Her parents have yet to have the honor of taking her home. I cannot even imagnine what it would be like to be carrying that life around inside of you for 9 months and then not being able to hold her at night when she can't sleep or laugh at the little sounds she makes when she is happy. I have been praying for the Bodine family since hearing about Quinn's condition. I look forward to Amber's constant updates on Facebook about the progress she is making. Every day I get excited to hear good news. I will continue to pray for Quinn until she is a completely healthy baby in the arms of her parents, being amused by the little things her new big sister does for her. I hope that all of you will keep Quinn in your prayers!
I sent Bobby an awesome gift... everyone should bug him to see it!
Tomorrow is just morning school, then shopping with my host sisters. Travis, Schuyler, and Danny are coming to my house for dinner and then everyone is going to karaoke. I will definitely be taking pictures! (Karaoke here is way different! You have your own room with your group so you do not have to be embarrassed trying to sing in front of a ton of people. I'm totally thinking I need to find an investor and opening a place like this in Las Vegas. It would make a killing! It would be crowded every day!!!)
Goodnight for now.....
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Tale of Two Cities
I'm sure you are all wondering why I would possibly have a blog post titled "Tale of Two Cities." It is not because I have a story referencing the book, but most definitely because with my new host family, I feel like I will have a completely different Dobong experience.
We moved in with our new families yesterday. I was expecting some differences from the first but not to the extent that I got. I walked into an apartment that could probably fit 4 of the first ones inside of it. Lots of rooms and nice wooden floors. Everything was SOOOOO clean! When I say these people are germaphobes, I'm understating it completely. They had me wash my hands and feet when I came inside. I walked into the living room to find a big sign saying "I love you" and posters with all of my family's names in Korean and English. There are three kids; Hera (19), Lisa (16), and John (14). The mom's name is Julie. The best part about the collage on the wall was finding out that my host father's English name is Captain. I LOVE IT!!! The father was at work so I didn't get to meet him. Hera had to leave to go to work in Incadon at her Aunt's cafe so I only got to see her for a little bit. The warmth in the house was so much different than the first. I felt like they truly wanted me there without a doubt.
Julie, John, Lisa and I went out to lunch. They asked me what my favorite food was in Korea so far. I think it is spell Sam Yup San or something close to that. It is like super thick pieces of bacon that you fry on a grill that is in the middle of your table. We had it our second night here and I have been in love with it every since. So they took me to a super cute restaurant where we could get that. By the conversation we were having, you would have thought we had known each other for years! After lunch, we went to Baskin Robbins for ice cream. While we were eating, my host mom was telling me how she is on a diet. She said "All Korean women always on a diet." It made me laugh.
We went home and just hung out, relaxed a little, and watched some Korean game shows. Even thought I had no idea what was going on, it still put a smile on my face. Lisa and I talked about the American TV shows she knows and I introduced her to Glee! They talked a little fast for her to fully understand what was going on, but she laughed the entire time. My mission is to turn her into a Glee-k before I leave!!!
My host father doesn't get home until 9pm. He is a journalist in downtown Seoul and his only day off is Saturday. When he got home, I realized he had bought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. I could tell that the smile on my face made his day. He is the only one in the family that doesn't speak English. He can understand it completely but just doesn't know what words to use.
My host mom made this amazing dinner!! It was almost like fondue. She had a portable heated pot (like a crock pot) that she put on the table and filled with beef stock. Shen then cut up a ton of vegetables and put them in, along with this paper thin sliced beef. You grabbed whatever you wanted out of the pot and dipped it in this chili sauce. It was definitely one of the best things I have had since being here. The conversation at dinner was definitely the best I have had with any Korean since being here! My host father sat there with an "Everyday English Conversation" book, flipping through pages asking me all sorts of questions. I loved that he was making such a good effort to talk to me. When Hera got home from work, I asked her what her hobbies are. She told me her favorite thing to do is eating but her hobby is dieting. I died laughing! My host brother John didn't say much and Julie kept teasing him. Everyone was cracking up laughing and I coudldn't figure out why until Lisa translated for me that John was going through puberty and is being stubborn. That definitely made my night.
After working on some lesson plans for class this week, I watched the Miss Korea pageant with my family. We then watched the news and learned about the North Korean bombs that washed ashore in South Korea yesterday morning and killed 1 person. If you havent heard about this yet, look it up. North Korea has been getting ridiculous rain and some of their mines washed into the river. The South Korean man and his nephew thought it would be a could idea to pick up the boxes and carry them home. They exploded while on them! Not the smartest decision...
I called it a night at about 1am after talking to Dad and Grammy. Every time I talk to someone from home, I miss home more and more.
Today at school, we taught the intermediate kids about the Zoo. I showed them the San Diego Zoo and all the animals there. They loved watching the videos of the new babies. After first period, we had cooking class. We taught all 3 classes how to make rice krispie treats. Even though they don't have the same ingredients here as we do, they still turned out to be pretty good! I was impressed at how much my students loved to cook.
Tonight I am going out with Hera. She said there are some things she wants to show me. It's good to have host siblings that I can relate to more. I'm excited to be in this house..
I uploaded pictures of the signs, flowers, and my new room.
Only 17 more days people!!!
Oh, and by the way, the day I come home (Thursday, August 19th) we are going to have a big dinner at Yardhouse in Town Square at 7pm. I get in at 5:50pm and I know I am going to want to see everyone but will be super tired. This is the easiest way for me to see everyone at once! Let me know if you are coming so we can make a reservation with the right amount of people!!!
Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624634289706/
We moved in with our new families yesterday. I was expecting some differences from the first but not to the extent that I got. I walked into an apartment that could probably fit 4 of the first ones inside of it. Lots of rooms and nice wooden floors. Everything was SOOOOO clean! When I say these people are germaphobes, I'm understating it completely. They had me wash my hands and feet when I came inside. I walked into the living room to find a big sign saying "I love you" and posters with all of my family's names in Korean and English. There are three kids; Hera (19), Lisa (16), and John (14). The mom's name is Julie. The best part about the collage on the wall was finding out that my host father's English name is Captain. I LOVE IT!!! The father was at work so I didn't get to meet him. Hera had to leave to go to work in Incadon at her Aunt's cafe so I only got to see her for a little bit. The warmth in the house was so much different than the first. I felt like they truly wanted me there without a doubt.
Julie, John, Lisa and I went out to lunch. They asked me what my favorite food was in Korea so far. I think it is spell Sam Yup San or something close to that. It is like super thick pieces of bacon that you fry on a grill that is in the middle of your table. We had it our second night here and I have been in love with it every since. So they took me to a super cute restaurant where we could get that. By the conversation we were having, you would have thought we had known each other for years! After lunch, we went to Baskin Robbins for ice cream. While we were eating, my host mom was telling me how she is on a diet. She said "All Korean women always on a diet." It made me laugh.
We went home and just hung out, relaxed a little, and watched some Korean game shows. Even thought I had no idea what was going on, it still put a smile on my face. Lisa and I talked about the American TV shows she knows and I introduced her to Glee! They talked a little fast for her to fully understand what was going on, but she laughed the entire time. My mission is to turn her into a Glee-k before I leave!!!
My host father doesn't get home until 9pm. He is a journalist in downtown Seoul and his only day off is Saturday. When he got home, I realized he had bought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. I could tell that the smile on my face made his day. He is the only one in the family that doesn't speak English. He can understand it completely but just doesn't know what words to use.
My host mom made this amazing dinner!! It was almost like fondue. She had a portable heated pot (like a crock pot) that she put on the table and filled with beef stock. Shen then cut up a ton of vegetables and put them in, along with this paper thin sliced beef. You grabbed whatever you wanted out of the pot and dipped it in this chili sauce. It was definitely one of the best things I have had since being here. The conversation at dinner was definitely the best I have had with any Korean since being here! My host father sat there with an "Everyday English Conversation" book, flipping through pages asking me all sorts of questions. I loved that he was making such a good effort to talk to me. When Hera got home from work, I asked her what her hobbies are. She told me her favorite thing to do is eating but her hobby is dieting. I died laughing! My host brother John didn't say much and Julie kept teasing him. Everyone was cracking up laughing and I coudldn't figure out why until Lisa translated for me that John was going through puberty and is being stubborn. That definitely made my night.
After working on some lesson plans for class this week, I watched the Miss Korea pageant with my family. We then watched the news and learned about the North Korean bombs that washed ashore in South Korea yesterday morning and killed 1 person. If you havent heard about this yet, look it up. North Korea has been getting ridiculous rain and some of their mines washed into the river. The South Korean man and his nephew thought it would be a could idea to pick up the boxes and carry them home. They exploded while on them! Not the smartest decision...
I called it a night at about 1am after talking to Dad and Grammy. Every time I talk to someone from home, I miss home more and more.
Today at school, we taught the intermediate kids about the Zoo. I showed them the San Diego Zoo and all the animals there. They loved watching the videos of the new babies. After first period, we had cooking class. We taught all 3 classes how to make rice krispie treats. Even though they don't have the same ingredients here as we do, they still turned out to be pretty good! I was impressed at how much my students loved to cook.
Tonight I am going out with Hera. She said there are some things she wants to show me. It's good to have host siblings that I can relate to more. I'm excited to be in this house..
I uploaded pictures of the signs, flowers, and my new room.
Only 17 more days people!!!
Oh, and by the way, the day I come home (Thursday, August 19th) we are going to have a big dinner at Yardhouse in Town Square at 7pm. I get in at 5:50pm and I know I am going to want to see everyone but will be super tired. This is the easiest way for me to see everyone at once! Let me know if you are coming so we can make a reservation with the right amount of people!!!
Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624634289706/
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Skating, Baseball Game, and Shopping
I wrote this yesterday (Saturday afternoon)... but for some reason my computer wanted to be stupid...so don't pay attention to the time stamp!
Yesterday, we took our morning students ice skating. Zach, Travis and I all expected the kids to just be okay. Korea is not a place you would expect to see expert skaters. We were completely wrong! 95% of the kids kept up with us. All of the skating teaches that were at the rink were laughing at us because the three of us were in short sleeves! It was sooo much fun though. The most difficult part of the expierence was trying to figure out what size skates we needed. All of us ended up with skates that were probably at least 1 size too small. Needless to say, our feet definitely hurt afterwards.
It was super cute because all of the Korean teachers didn't know how to skate. So they were geared up like the kids, helmet and all, and took lessons with the instructors. I loved seeing our tough teachers be so vulnerable. Luckily the three of us knew how to skate or else the kids would have been by themselves.
After school, I came home and hung out with my family before going to the baseball game. I watched Toy Story on my computer with my host sister. Yes, I took pictures of her watching it and they are posted in the album. ( I also took them because Sam and I agree that she has the cutest hair in the world and I wanted a close up picture of it.) We had to leave at 5 because the stadium is an hour away by subway.
So Danny, Minho (my host brother), and I headed off to meet everyone else there. I am not kidding at all when I say there is nothing better than a baseball game in Korea. First off, we bought beers outside while we were waiting for everyone else to get there. It was a much needed 3,000 won ($2.50) investment after a long week of teaching. Secondly, our tickets (which were upper deck directly behind home plate) were only 8,000 won ($7). Where can you get tickets to a baseball game in the U.S. for a pro-team for 7 dollars!!!!!? Beers/Food were the same price inside as it was outside the stadium. Again, something you will not find in the U.S. ! My host brother told us the team colors so we could all dress up to fit in. I have never seen more spirited fans in my life. Take the student section of a Rebel Basketball game and imagine a whole baseball stadium with that type of craziness! Stacy and I were in love and wished games were like this back home. My host brother could not have been in a better mood. With the baby, he doesn't get to go do a lot of things like that so the smile on his face definitely made it worth it. I called it an early night afterwards and crashed like a baby. Definitely best night of sleep I have had since being here (probably due to the alcohol in my system).
Today, we went to Incadon, which is like the shopping area of the city. I really wanted to start looking for everyone's presents and my host mom wanted to spend more time with me before I move houses tomorrow. We had dinner at this cute little restaurant. We sat on the roof (I took pictures of the view). As we walked back to the main street, I noticed a few things that stood out to me. 1) There was a street sign at one of the lights that looked like a french horn with a big X through it... I asked my host mom what it was and she said it was a "no horn" zone... meaning carsa cannot honk their horn... INTERESTING!!! 2) People in Korea when they walk do not care who they are cutting off.... we were behind a group of girls who would constantly just change direct and walk right in front of us... I almost fell off the sidewalk like five times trying to avoid running into them. 3) The police were out directly traffic on the road. We were right by the Blue House (same as our White House) so security was every where!! But the Police had a HUGE bus parked by them. I asked what it was for and she said at any given time there has to be 10 policemen on the road. So the others sit in the van, watch tv, relax in the air conditioning, and when its time to switch, they do! Thought that was a little out of the ordinary!
Tonight is just going to be dinner with the family and then relaxing. Switching houses at 10AM tomorrow... I'm intrigued to see how the next one goes but I will definitely miss the first one..
Goodnight.....
Pictures: "Skating, Baseball Game, and Shopping" http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624496182959/
Pictures: "Random Pictures from the First House" http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624500398319/
Yesterday, we took our morning students ice skating. Zach, Travis and I all expected the kids to just be okay. Korea is not a place you would expect to see expert skaters. We were completely wrong! 95% of the kids kept up with us. All of the skating teaches that were at the rink were laughing at us because the three of us were in short sleeves! It was sooo much fun though. The most difficult part of the expierence was trying to figure out what size skates we needed. All of us ended up with skates that were probably at least 1 size too small. Needless to say, our feet definitely hurt afterwards.
It was super cute because all of the Korean teachers didn't know how to skate. So they were geared up like the kids, helmet and all, and took lessons with the instructors. I loved seeing our tough teachers be so vulnerable. Luckily the three of us knew how to skate or else the kids would have been by themselves.
After school, I came home and hung out with my family before going to the baseball game. I watched Toy Story on my computer with my host sister. Yes, I took pictures of her watching it and they are posted in the album. ( I also took them because Sam and I agree that she has the cutest hair in the world and I wanted a close up picture of it.) We had to leave at 5 because the stadium is an hour away by subway.
So Danny, Minho (my host brother), and I headed off to meet everyone else there. I am not kidding at all when I say there is nothing better than a baseball game in Korea. First off, we bought beers outside while we were waiting for everyone else to get there. It was a much needed 3,000 won ($2.50) investment after a long week of teaching. Secondly, our tickets (which were upper deck directly behind home plate) were only 8,000 won ($7). Where can you get tickets to a baseball game in the U.S. for a pro-team for 7 dollars!!!!!? Beers/Food were the same price inside as it was outside the stadium. Again, something you will not find in the U.S. ! My host brother told us the team colors so we could all dress up to fit in. I have never seen more spirited fans in my life. Take the student section of a Rebel Basketball game and imagine a whole baseball stadium with that type of craziness! Stacy and I were in love and wished games were like this back home. My host brother could not have been in a better mood. With the baby, he doesn't get to go do a lot of things like that so the smile on his face definitely made it worth it. I called it an early night afterwards and crashed like a baby. Definitely best night of sleep I have had since being here (probably due to the alcohol in my system).
Today, we went to Incadon, which is like the shopping area of the city. I really wanted to start looking for everyone's presents and my host mom wanted to spend more time with me before I move houses tomorrow. We had dinner at this cute little restaurant. We sat on the roof (I took pictures of the view). As we walked back to the main street, I noticed a few things that stood out to me. 1) There was a street sign at one of the lights that looked like a french horn with a big X through it... I asked my host mom what it was and she said it was a "no horn" zone... meaning carsa cannot honk their horn... INTERESTING!!! 2) People in Korea when they walk do not care who they are cutting off.... we were behind a group of girls who would constantly just change direct and walk right in front of us... I almost fell off the sidewalk like five times trying to avoid running into them. 3) The police were out directly traffic on the road. We were right by the Blue House (same as our White House) so security was every where!! But the Police had a HUGE bus parked by them. I asked what it was for and she said at any given time there has to be 10 policemen on the road. So the others sit in the van, watch tv, relax in the air conditioning, and when its time to switch, they do! Thought that was a little out of the ordinary!
Tonight is just going to be dinner with the family and then relaxing. Switching houses at 10AM tomorrow... I'm intrigued to see how the next one goes but I will definitely miss the first one..
Goodnight.....
Pictures: "Skating, Baseball Game, and Shopping" http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624496182959/
Pictures: "Random Pictures from the First House" http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624500398319/
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Mini Olympics, Last Day with First Graders, and Pedicures
Today was such a LONG day... hence why I am writing this blog at 12:06am! I had so much to do that I just got done!
At school, we had Mini Olympics with our older morning kids. We took them outside and they had 4 games. Each class was divided into 2 teams and the teams rotated between games! The first was water balloon toss... we all know what this is! Second was Beanbag Relay. The students had to hold a beanbag on a spoon while weaving in and out of cones and then hand the spoon to their teammate. If they dropped it, they had to start over. Third game was Circle Hula Hoop. It is where everyone holds hands in a circle and you have the get the hula hoop around the circle without letting go of your hands. Its kind of hard to explain in writing but soooo much fun to play. We have played it before in the U.S. . Lastly was the sponge relay (which the kids seemed to like the most). There were 2 buckets full of water and 2 with no water. The teams had to soak their sponge and then run over and drain it in the empty bucket. There was a line they had to fill it up to. However, we made it fun by saying they had to hold the sponge over their head while running so they were all soaking wet.
After all the teams competed each game, medals were handed out and Zach had some tricks up his sleeves. He really wanted to have a water balloon fight so we gave every kid one balloon to fill up and on the count of 3, let them go at it. Thankfully I didn't get as wet as I thought I would, but still wet enough to have to go home and shower during break before our afternoon class.
It was our last day with the first graders so I took lots of pictures. We taught them adjectives such as pretty, tall, funny.... We had them each make a bracelet with one of the words on it. They then had to come up in front of the class, say their word out loud, and then give it to someone in the class that matched that word. It was super funny because one of the girls had "old" and she gave it to our teacher. The last boy to go (who is one of my favorites) had "pretty" and he was soooo embarrassed to give it to someone. He eventually gave it to me. I thought it was cute how embarrassed he was. We practiced all of their songs they have learned over the past 2 weeks and then gave them their graduation certificates. Zach took a video from yesterday of the kids singing so I will post the link to that too. OOOOOO how I am going to miss those kids! But I am definitely excited to meet the 2nd graders next week!!!
After school, I met up with Judit and Stacy to go get pedicures. We knew this would be an experience because we didnt have anyone to translate for us. The nail salon only has two girls working so only two of us could go. When she told me it would be 40,000 won (about $34), I thought that was a little expensive, but I knew how badly I needed a pedicure and went for it. Let me tell you it was definitely the best money I have spent since being here!!! The leg massage part was ridiculous!! She poked and punched and dug with all her might on my calves and I could feel it all the way up my leg. I got out of the chair in complete relaxation! We will definitely be making another trip there before we head home! Pedicures were awesome but I knew it was crunch time. I had to make some things for tomorrow's ice skating field trip with our morning students. SOOOOO after making 6 medal necklaces and cutting 42 wristbands, I am finally getting to relax and write this blog...
But it is definitely time for bed.... ice skating tomorrow and then some exploring with everyone tomorrow night... should be fun!
Goodnight!!!!
Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624484849191/
At school, we had Mini Olympics with our older morning kids. We took them outside and they had 4 games. Each class was divided into 2 teams and the teams rotated between games! The first was water balloon toss... we all know what this is! Second was Beanbag Relay. The students had to hold a beanbag on a spoon while weaving in and out of cones and then hand the spoon to their teammate. If they dropped it, they had to start over. Third game was Circle Hula Hoop. It is where everyone holds hands in a circle and you have the get the hula hoop around the circle without letting go of your hands. Its kind of hard to explain in writing but soooo much fun to play. We have played it before in the U.S. . Lastly was the sponge relay (which the kids seemed to like the most). There were 2 buckets full of water and 2 with no water. The teams had to soak their sponge and then run over and drain it in the empty bucket. There was a line they had to fill it up to. However, we made it fun by saying they had to hold the sponge over their head while running so they were all soaking wet.
After all the teams competed each game, medals were handed out and Zach had some tricks up his sleeves. He really wanted to have a water balloon fight so we gave every kid one balloon to fill up and on the count of 3, let them go at it. Thankfully I didn't get as wet as I thought I would, but still wet enough to have to go home and shower during break before our afternoon class.
It was our last day with the first graders so I took lots of pictures. We taught them adjectives such as pretty, tall, funny.... We had them each make a bracelet with one of the words on it. They then had to come up in front of the class, say their word out loud, and then give it to someone in the class that matched that word. It was super funny because one of the girls had "old" and she gave it to our teacher. The last boy to go (who is one of my favorites) had "pretty" and he was soooo embarrassed to give it to someone. He eventually gave it to me. I thought it was cute how embarrassed he was. We practiced all of their songs they have learned over the past 2 weeks and then gave them their graduation certificates. Zach took a video from yesterday of the kids singing so I will post the link to that too. OOOOOO how I am going to miss those kids! But I am definitely excited to meet the 2nd graders next week!!!
After school, I met up with Judit and Stacy to go get pedicures. We knew this would be an experience because we didnt have anyone to translate for us. The nail salon only has two girls working so only two of us could go. When she told me it would be 40,000 won (about $34), I thought that was a little expensive, but I knew how badly I needed a pedicure and went for it. Let me tell you it was definitely the best money I have spent since being here!!! The leg massage part was ridiculous!! She poked and punched and dug with all her might on my calves and I could feel it all the way up my leg. I got out of the chair in complete relaxation! We will definitely be making another trip there before we head home! Pedicures were awesome but I knew it was crunch time. I had to make some things for tomorrow's ice skating field trip with our morning students. SOOOOO after making 6 medal necklaces and cutting 42 wristbands, I am finally getting to relax and write this blog...
But it is definitely time for bed.... ice skating tomorrow and then some exploring with everyone tomorrow night... should be fun!
Goodnight!!!!
Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624484849191/
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
63rd Building
Just a note - before I get started..
Pictures are way too hard to upload on blogspot, especially when you have 200 and you can only upload 5 at a time. So I have a Flickr account and will be making albums of them on there matching the title of the blog for the day. I will post a link at the beginning of each blog to take you right to the pictures!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624600970492/
Today, my host mom took me to the 63rd building. It used to be the tallest building in Korea but has since been dominated. I still expected to see this monstrosity of a building but was actually quite shocked when it didn’t look so tall. We bought a 3 part pass (the museum on the 60th floor, the aquarium, and the 3D movie). We did the museum first. The sight from the 60th floor was amazing. Luckily it was a clear day so we could see everything. My host mom was telling me how last time they came, it was ridiculously cloudy so it was a pointless trip. There was a ton of amazing art. The theme was “figures” so there were lots of depictions of people doing different things. My favorite was the painting of the subway. It was funny seeing how many different types of personalities these people see. From the soldier, to the man with the rabbit!
After the museum, we went down to the 3D movie. The baby was sleeping so just Minho and I went in. I was given earphones and a walkman so they could translate for me. It was actually pretty cool. It was about the “Wild Coast” which is in South Africa. It is supposed to be the spot in the world with the most abundant sea life. The movie was about protecting our planet so that we can continue to have places like that in world. It wasn’t too bad having to listen to it in both Korean and English too.
Next was the aquarium. It had everything from penguins and otters, to snakes and frogs. It was definitely my favorite part. I loved seeing the otters. They built almost this hamster like unit for them. There were tubes coming out of their main home to across the room to smaller areas. I took pictures. It was really funny when we got to the snake area because the lady in front of me was obviously very scared. Her friend convinced her to go up to the glass of the yellow python cage but when the snake moved ever so slightly, she jumped and screamed and ran as fast as she could out of the room. I couldn’t help but laugh a little. It was also really cool to see all the different fish. But with Minho and I both being tired, we decided to head back home.
We parked the car and walked to a restaurant close by that is supposedly known for its short ribs. It definitely made me miss dad’s ribs ever so much. I knew they were not even going to come close and of course, I was right. They were decent enough to eat but not something I will be requesting for another meal here in Korea. Now we are at home and I am going to call it an early night because I have to make two lesson plans for tomorrow.
Tomorrow is Mini-Olympics so I am way excited to actually get out of the classroom. It is also my last day with my first-graders so like I promised many of you, I am going to take lots of pictures and post them. After school is mani/pedi with Stacy, Judit, and Stacy’s host mom. Friday is ice-skating and then out on the town with everyone!
I hope you all are having an awesome time in the 108 degree weather while I’m soaking up the rain here!!
Goodnight….
On a side note really quickly: Not that I am having kids any time soon, but I am really looking forward to being a mom! My host sister and I have bonded so much over the past week that she won’t do anything without me now. She fell asleep in my arms at dinner and there was this comfort level there that I’m sure everyone in the room could feel. On the walk home, my host mom was telling me that I am going to be the best mom ever and that I better send her pictures when I start having kids!
P.S: We think we found Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory… it’s in Korea! I’m posting pictures!
P.S.S: Everyone in Korea only knows Michael Jackson if you ask them who their favorite American singer is. Even the aquarium had a choreographed routine for their “Aqua Girls” as a tribute to the King of Pop.
Pictures are way too hard to upload on blogspot, especially when you have 200 and you can only upload 5 at a time. So I have a Flickr account and will be making albums of them on there matching the title of the blog for the day. I will post a link at the beginning of each blog to take you right to the pictures!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/46379050@N04/sets/72157624600970492/
Today, my host mom took me to the 63rd building. It used to be the tallest building in Korea but has since been dominated. I still expected to see this monstrosity of a building but was actually quite shocked when it didn’t look so tall. We bought a 3 part pass (the museum on the 60th floor, the aquarium, and the 3D movie). We did the museum first. The sight from the 60th floor was amazing. Luckily it was a clear day so we could see everything. My host mom was telling me how last time they came, it was ridiculously cloudy so it was a pointless trip. There was a ton of amazing art. The theme was “figures” so there were lots of depictions of people doing different things. My favorite was the painting of the subway. It was funny seeing how many different types of personalities these people see. From the soldier, to the man with the rabbit!
After the museum, we went down to the 3D movie. The baby was sleeping so just Minho and I went in. I was given earphones and a walkman so they could translate for me. It was actually pretty cool. It was about the “Wild Coast” which is in South Africa. It is supposed to be the spot in the world with the most abundant sea life. The movie was about protecting our planet so that we can continue to have places like that in world. It wasn’t too bad having to listen to it in both Korean and English too.
Next was the aquarium. It had everything from penguins and otters, to snakes and frogs. It was definitely my favorite part. I loved seeing the otters. They built almost this hamster like unit for them. There were tubes coming out of their main home to across the room to smaller areas. I took pictures. It was really funny when we got to the snake area because the lady in front of me was obviously very scared. Her friend convinced her to go up to the glass of the yellow python cage but when the snake moved ever so slightly, she jumped and screamed and ran as fast as she could out of the room. I couldn’t help but laugh a little. It was also really cool to see all the different fish. But with Minho and I both being tired, we decided to head back home.
We parked the car and walked to a restaurant close by that is supposedly known for its short ribs. It definitely made me miss dad’s ribs ever so much. I knew they were not even going to come close and of course, I was right. They were decent enough to eat but not something I will be requesting for another meal here in Korea. Now we are at home and I am going to call it an early night because I have to make two lesson plans for tomorrow.
Tomorrow is Mini-Olympics so I am way excited to actually get out of the classroom. It is also my last day with my first-graders so like I promised many of you, I am going to take lots of pictures and post them. After school is mani/pedi with Stacy, Judit, and Stacy’s host mom. Friday is ice-skating and then out on the town with everyone!
I hope you all are having an awesome time in the 108 degree weather while I’m soaking up the rain here!!
Goodnight….
On a side note really quickly: Not that I am having kids any time soon, but I am really looking forward to being a mom! My host sister and I have bonded so much over the past week that she won’t do anything without me now. She fell asleep in my arms at dinner and there was this comfort level there that I’m sure everyone in the room could feel. On the walk home, my host mom was telling me that I am going to be the best mom ever and that I better send her pictures when I start having kids!
P.S: We think we found Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory… it’s in Korea! I’m posting pictures!
P.S.S: Everyone in Korea only knows Michael Jackson if you ask them who their favorite American singer is. Even the aquarium had a choreographed routine for their “Aqua Girls” as a tribute to the King of Pop.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Update from the Weekend
Totally spaced talking about Friday with everyone...
We took a second trip to the Silver Center. A Korean newspaper wanted to interview us for a headline story. Think City of Henderson kids on the cover of USA Today. That's how big this newspaper is here in Korea. Instead of having another disasterous go at trying to feed the elderly, we instead helped them make Kim Bop. It is kind of like sushi but not. You take a piece of seaweed and layer it in rice. You then add a strip of egg, hot dog meat, immitation crab, and some vegetables. Then rolled and cut just like sushi! It was so much fun seeing all the elders again because a lot of them remembered us and were so excited to see us. We all helped the same people as last time that we helped during art time. The old man I helped was sooo happy I was there to visit him again. He had a smile on his face from ear to ear. Each person made 3 rolls. After we proceeded to cut them, they insisted on feeding it to us. While they were nice to the boys by just barely putting it on their tongue and letting them control how fast they ate it, they thought it would be funny to shove it in the faces of Judit and I. Not knowing Judit is a vegetarian, the older lady just kept trying to shove it further into her mouth. Eventually she ate it. I ended up with rice all over my lap because the lady was not going to give up making me eat it. It was quite a funny site and I can't wait for the pictures to come out. We have an email into the newspaper to try and see all of them and if we get them, I will post them right away.
Afterwards, we spent some time with a reporter answering questions about our trip and everything. Her English was very good and she was a super cute girl! We had a lot of fun and I'm really glad we got to go again!
I already updated you about saturday... the wedding!
Sunday, my host mom really wanted to go see this city that she has not seen before. It was about two and a half hours outside of Dobong. The government built a replica of a French city, complete with houses and art galleries. The drive up there almost made me car sick because it was such a crazy curvy road. Once we got there, the view was breath-taking, as you can see by my pictures. We walked around into all of the little houses and saw all of the art. There was only one place to have lunch so we headed there. My host father turned to me and started laughing. All he could get out was "This is Italian food, in a French city. WHY!?" It made me laugh. After lunch we walked out to the ampitheater where a band was playing. Picture French men, playing Jazz instruments, singing Spanish songs, but with Korean words. I'm telling you there is nothing like hearing "Tequilia" in Korean coming from French men. It made my day.
We decided it was a little too hot to stay any longer so we left. We drove about an hour back down the road and pulled over to take a quick dip in the river. My host sister is the cutest thing in the world and it was even cuter seeing her face when she stepped into the cold water for the first time. It started raining badly so we didnt stay too long.
After the long ride home, we all were super tired and I think everyone was in bed way earlier than normal.
Last night, Danny (my new Canadian friend that my host mom introduced me to) and I tried to teach my host brother how to play HORSE and half-court basketball. Let's just say, I've never shot so bad in my life! Our game of HORSE took us like 2 hours. I bet Bobby wishes our game of PIG lasted that long. He might have had more of a chance to win if it did (if you don't know this story... ask him.... love you babe)!! It was good to get out and exercise a little but I'm sure I lost another two pounds on sweat during!
This week is going to be a fun week at school. Monday we did plays and face-painting. I had the beginners so we did a play called "I'm the King of the Jungle." They each had to pick an animal and say why they should be the king of the jungle. I ATTEMPTED to draw the animal for them on their hands (none of them wanted it on their face). I say attempted because I am definitely not the best painter in the world. Thursday we have mini olympics. It looks like Ayzia (the Canadian native speaker employeed by the school) has some cool water games for the kids to play. Friday we are taking the kids ice skating to learn key vocab and safety terms. It should be a lot of fun.
Tomorrow, my host mom is taking me to the 63rd building. It used to be the tallest building in Korea and now it is a museum and aquarium. It should be an awesome experience.
Most of all I can't wait until Thursday after the after-school program because Stacy, Judit, and I are going to get pedicures. Much needed pedicures!!! Thursday will be a sad day because it is the last day with my first graders that I love so much but I will happy once pedicure time comes. I will take my camera to school on Thursday and take pictures so you can all see how cute my kids are and why I'm going to miss them!
By The Way: My host sister has started calling me "sister" now instead of Krista. My host mom and I were talking today about how we think she is really going to miss me when I leave on Sunday. She won't do anything without me now! She even started going through my jewelry and plays dress up. One of the pictures I am posting is her in my necklace she got from my bag. She is soooo stinking cute and I am definitely going to miss her.... makes me think about adopting an Asian baby in the future even more!!
Goodnight from Korea...
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