An Exercise in Avoidance

I should be studying for the exam I will be taking on Monday on a subject I should know much about having taught in Korea for 16 months but have discovered I know near nothing when it comes to rules, standards, regulations, etc. with regard to ESL teaching in the United States which is why I am studying and oh, lawd.

So instead I am finally writing a new post after several weeks of working, showering, studying, eating, and sleeping, repeat.  I went to a roller derby match with a friend a while back, and below are pictures.  Please note that my preferred team is kicking ass.  Please also note that before that evening, I had no preferred team whatsoever.  Winners are drawn to other winners, I suppose….

Also, there are some pictures of an Adventure With Stuffies, taken several months ago at my BF’s house in Carbondale, Colorado.  Just thought I’d put them out there so that everyone reading this can understand  just how cute my life is sometimes.

Also, a picture taken in February of the unprecedented snowfall.  The town was near incapacitated.

And finally, a tune.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Jollyville Wildlife

A few days ago I went for a walk and found this scene along Jollyville Road:

Not so jolly.

Yummy, Teacher!

Today one of the kids at our school brought in the coolest show and tell ever:

Not just cute, Korean shit cute

Later, there was a fire downstairs, but the two incidents do not seem to be related–for now.

Thinking

Thinking, originally uploaded by Jake & Kristin.

This little family was hanging out in Tapgol Park enjoying the beautiful fall afternoon last weekend. The dapper fellow in the blue hat was busy contemplating the pigeons, trying out going up and down stairs, and generally looking quite thoughtful.

As miserably hot and sticky as the summer was, autumn has almost made up for it. Today was cloudy, crisp, and a little rainy. Delightful. Maybe tomorrow we’ll trek up the hill to the University and get a few pictures of the fall foliage.

Great Hunter

Seagulls, originally uploaded by Jake & Kristin.

This was one of the many seagulls that were attempting to catch and eat the passengers aboard the ferry we took around Daecheon. We were unaware of the danger when we signed up for the trip. Some of them, like this one, got within feet of us. Fortunately, the Koreans on board knew that the gulls could be fended off by throwing a steady stream of squid-flavored crisps at them.

In spite of the danger, we couldn’t help but be captivated by the sight of these birds flying so close to us alongside of the boat. They’re really quite pretty.

Train Tickets

After being told it was easy to book tickets online for the BIG TRAIN to Daecheon Beach, we were hopeful that we would be able to handle this small task on our own.  And we did–if you consider requiring the help of two different computers, several colleague attempts, and finally the Korean boss doing it for you over the phone on your last day before vacation “on your own.”  Ah. So.  We got the tickets and are heading down there on Friday afternoon, back late on Sunday.  Late.

In other news, it is still bloody HOT here.  We finally got bank accounts and check cards so let the spending spree begin!  Or, OR…we could pay off a credit card or student loan (*yawn*).  But I am trying to consider this expedition as an extended vacation.  So that when we get home and end up not going anywhere for several years I can think back to the year-long vaykay I just returned from and just shut the hell up.

We have so far (hint) received two care packages.  Thank you thank you thank you.  Today, from Jen and Chris and Co. we got soup fixin’s, peppermint soap, Annie’s(!), and organic puddings for Jake’s b-day!  So I’m off the hook which is AWESOME.  Last month we got cookies and flips and paper towels from my Ma and Co. which was also AWESOME.  Next month?  Let’s see…we will need some rice milk to go with those cookies and hoppy beers to with the Mac and Cheese.  Great. Thanks.  Just kidding, people.  We are eternally grateful for the gifts.  We love and miss real cheese you very much!!

O.k. “pizza” just arrived with my husband Jakewhoisalmostthirty so I gotta go.  Besos todo y’all.

p.s. the above picture is a tribute to something we could barely get ourselves to WALK by in America, let alone pause by for a photo op.  Funny, our alliances are completely retarded (in the classic sense) in this country.  As in, “Yea! A f*&#ing Popeyes!”

The Semi-Daily Photo

Pups, originally uploaded by Jake & Kristin.

We’ve been woefully inadequate lately about presenting you, gentle reader, with a daily photo of our lives so that at least one of your senses may be delighted. For this regrettable behavior, we apologize.

However, we would like to point out that on your computer screen, somewhere to the right of these words is a vertical strip of three photos. These photos represent a link to a series of photos that we have placed on a website called Flickr. If you would like to serve your eyes with a bountiful feast, click on one of the images in the strip, or on the semi-daily photo, and peruse our photo album at your leisure. Also, feel free to comment here on our blog or on Flickr.

Subway Ride Home

A Calm Afternoon…, originally uploaded by Jake & Kristin.

Guess what? As of today, we’ve been here for two months. Crazy. More later….

Emergency Footwear

Emergency Footwear, originally uploaded by Jake & Kristin.

So while we were in Seoul we did a lot of walking around. One of us did it in flip-flops, at least for a while. Once again, Converse saved the day. The best part is the FUBU socks someone picked out for someone else. Notice how cute someone’s feet are, even shod. Just saying.

Butterflies and Butt-kicking

Good Sport, originally uploaded by Jake & Kristin.

This is Brian, one of my older students. As you can tell from the belt, he’s at the top level kids can obtain at his Tae Kwon Do school until they get a bit older. He’s a good kid, but very much the tough guy. Further, his class is at that age when, just for example, if you happen to read Sleeping Beauty out loud together as a class and get to the part where the prince kisses the princess, they loose their minds and turn into writhing, giggling, little monkeys for the next five minutes. They put a great deal of effort into being either the most boyish of boys or the most girlish of girls. So I was very proud of him for being a good sport and agreeing to color a butterfly for me.

I want to decorate my classroom a bit, but am too lazy to actually do a lot of work myself, so I had all of my kids color a butterfly. I’m going to stick pictures of their faces over the butterfly heads, cut out the butterflies, laminate ’em, and hang ’em up with fishing wire. It’s going to be totally awesome.