1st Day of Christmas

2 more hours. Yep, 2 more hours and I don’t come back to work until 2011. Everything is practically ready. Got my coworkers a “thank you” Christmas cake and my co-teacher treated me and the exchange students to lunch at the Pizzeria. Actually, my co-teacher, along with my principal, gave me Christmas gifts…FOR MY PARENTS. What’s that about? o_O Because my parents are the ones teaching in Korea, dealing with a real winter, and having to learn new things? Riiiiiiiiight (Dr. Evil voice).

Anyways, I’m excited. Tomorrow is Korea’s Christmas Eve, and even though I’ll spend all day suspended in the air, I get to spend American Christmas Eve at home in LA. How I miss thee and all the people you house.

What’s cool is that packing was easy, just the shopping bags and souvenirs. It’s all stuff I can dump out and not have to repack. Can’t wait to have my American goodies.

It all won’t feel real to me until I have a Starbucks Venti Soy Eggnog Latte in one hand and a Chipotle chicken burrito with medium green and medium corn salsa. It’ll taste like home.

Because my friends are the people (next to my family of course) that I want to see the most, here’s a song that is applicable. The #1 Christmas song for me this year.

#1- Phoebe Buffay’s Christmas Song from “Friends”

Missions: Accomplished!/ 2nd Day of Christmas

I feel very accomplished! I now get to relax and enjoy my remaining days in SK before my trip home.

I finished planning my winter lessons, including the passages that are getting published for our school book.

Did all my Christmas/souvenir shopping for my family & friends.

Had a great weekend at Mel & Steve's dinner, Mischa's Songtan celebration, Josh & Audrey's Christmas gathering, Osan Lounge post-gathering, shopping up and down the Main Gate like a mad man, and gathering for a calm Sunday with the JAM.

AND, I'm actually almost done packing for my trip.

Given the stress of the prior week, it's nice to know that there is this great comfort here now.

#2- Britney Spears' "My Only Wish (This Year)"

Ho Ho Ho Holy Los Angeles Pt. 2/ 3rd Day of Christmas

So here's what I have worked into my calendar of being in LA thus far. I really want you all (my friends) to come to what you can, I want to soak in as much of you as possible, in the figurative sense of course. This is a once in a 6-month opportunity!

Friday Dec. 24th- It's Christmas Eve, so family time

Saturday Dec. 25th- It's Christmas, more family time

Sunday Dec. 26th- Holiday Dinner @ San Antonio Winery with friends

Monday Dec. 27th- Disneyland (rain or shine) and Downtown Disney at night

Tuesday Dec. 28th- Lunch with Nick and Pati & Dinner at Ra in Torrance for Happy Hour

Wednesday Dec. 29th- Pho with Phoebes

Thursday Dec. 30th- TBA (nothing thus far)

Friday Dec. 31st to Jan. 2nd- Las Vegas

Monday Jan. 3rd- Lunch near DH with Maria & Suzy

Tuesday Jan. 4th- TBA (nothing thus far)

Wednesday Jan. 5th- Lunch at Sylvan

Thursday Jan. 6- Friday Jan. 7th- TBA (nothing thus far)

Saturday Jan. 8th- I've got a flight back to SK to catch!

Like I told Claude, if you thought you were spending time with your family these holidays, CANCEL IT, I'm your family now!
Some of the things I'm planning on doing on this list are short, so I'm sure I'll have time during the rest of the day to do things with you all.
See you next week LA!

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#3- Linkin Park's "My December"

Fes Pt.2/ 4th Day of Christmas

About a month ago one of the French foreign exchange students came to me and said the she wanted to talk to me about something. She felt because I was foreign as well that I would understand and be able to offer her advice. Because at that moment there wasn't enough time for us to meet I told her she could come by during my office hours.

Well I've seen her along with the other exchange students and she never really said anything about the topic (whatever it was). I discussed this with my teacher friends and we came up with an array of answers, as I'm sure you have as well.

So today I saw her with another exchange student from Taiwan and asked her if she ever solved her problem. She told me she hadn't and if I had the time at that moment to talk. So we talked in my classroom and her issue are the other Korean students. This was a relief considering the scenarios me and the other teachers had come up with.

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It all has to do with Korean maturity. Here's my hypothesis (which I talked to Yaya about when we video Skyped). Korean kids go to school non-stop. When they're not in school, they are in the school's study halls, or they are at the hagwons (private institutions), or they're even working a job. Because of this non-stop schedule, Korean kids never get a chance to be just that, kids. They don't have time to play, hang out with friends, and go over each other's house to play video games and such because there are "more important things to do."

This has caused these children to mature at a slower rate than their foreign counterparts. For example, I teach high school, and sometimes these students laugh at things I used to laugh about in middle school and maybe even elementary. Granted, I do have my set of advanced university-bound students who are really mature, act their age and beyond, but that's not the majority or bulk of these students. The bulk of these students look older, but they have such a childlike mentality and laugh at things that if I laughed at those same things in high school, someone would be right behind telling me to grow up. This is the effect of what overworking these kids has led to, and all my colleague friends and I, and now the foreign exchange students, agree.

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So when speaking to her, and the other Taiwan student who joined us later, I got the sense we were on the same wavelength about the teenage culture in Korea. They told me how Korean teenager idea of fun is just dinner, karaoke (called norebong here), and maybe a movie. I told them that yeah, that sounds like normal PG fun, but that I remember going to parties in high school. As soon as I said that, both of them bursts with a big "YES!" that showed their agreement with me. They said how when they got to Korea their host families where going to have a party, but that it was just a dinner. They told me how much they missed going to real parties with their friends, I felt bad for them at this point.

But then after I explained the Korean maturity mentality I mentioned above, I got a sense of sympathy from them so that they're able to meet their classmates halfway. I also told them that a big part is intimidation. When I first got here I blogged about being the "new puppy" everyone was dying to play with, and after that died down I was just a teacher to them. However, there is still a large number of students in the school whom I don't teach, they're not in any of my classes. When I see those students in the halls, they don't know how to speak to me. Heck, some of them have even said I make them nervous. Double heck, even some of the other teachers have said I make them nervous. That's just it though, it's intimidation. Korea is a very homogeneous society where the majority eat Korean food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, only speak in Korean, and many have never left Korea to travel. Given these circumstances you can imagine that it's hard for them to relate to people who are multilingual, come from multicultural hometowns, are of a different ethnicity, and have left home to travel the world. Granted, before I got to Korea I made sure I traveled up and down the east coast, west coast, and even some places in between, including the home countries of my parents. The only reason some of these teens have ever gotten on a plane has been to go somewhere else within Korea, a country that is smaller than many US states. And it's not that I'm saying they don't know any better, but this is because the country is on a tipping point in its westernization, it's going to take some time.

So how is a Korean student who has had to go to school from sunrise to sunset supposed to relate to someone who came from France, speaks English fluently (even though it's not her native language), and has traveled before? It's tough. Granted, I'm very fortunate to live and work in Songtan. This is city that is abundant in foreigners, English-speaking shops, diverse restaurants, and so much more. This was very good for me when I got here, but it's not such good news for the students. Yes, I see them at the Main Gate area, and I see them sometimes getting a McDonald's burger, Baskin Robins ice cream, or some Popeye's chicken, but that doesn't mean I see them interact with the Americans there. The silver lining here is that they have grown up accustomed to seeing people from around the world, but there is still that lack of interaction due to intimidation. It's that same layer of intimidation that I'm covered with when I'm with them or when the four exchange students are with them.

The students I have just think of me as Mr. Navarro, just another teacher, but I do wish that the students I don't have would think the same. Some of them don't want to practice their English skills because of that intimidation. It's strange because talking to the exchange students we all relate to the fact that people from our countries want to be multilingual and cannot wait to practice what they've learned. I remember when my parents went to school, they didn't want any of us to speak Spanish because they wanted to practice their English. And when they did learn English, it was up to my sister and I to retrieve what words we could from our French database so we could continue talking about our parents in a typical offspring fashion. Had the French & Taiwanese students never wanted to speak English to foreigners, they would not have befriended me, the other English teachers at my school, or one another for that matter. So that's another observation we made, that the intimidation layer can never be lifted until these other students see that they are free to want to practice outside the classroom and with me. Granted, they do well when they're with me, but I wish it would go outside the walls of the school. Had I not learned and practiced what little I know in Korean, I would have never learned to read or had gotten home each time I stepped into a cab. I also understand that these kids are in Korea, so why learn a language when you don't need it?

Student back home take many languages. I took French, two years of Russian, Latin, two years of Spanish in HS, and a semester of advanced Spanish in grad school. And I know that honestly Spanish obviously comes easily to me because of my background, but I've also taken it upon myself to want to practice Latin, Russian, and French when I was taking those courses. Have I ever needed Russian to survive in my country or culture? No, but I was curious to learn and I really wanted to be a student of the world. But because of the homogeneous mindset that exist here in Korea, it's going to take some time for this idea to sink into the minds of students.

On a final note, I will give Korea credit for taking a step in the right direction that other countries have yet to do. That is that is has hired native English teachers to teach throughout its country to increase student fluency. This starts in kindergarten and continues in high school. However, because this is a recent trend in the education system here, the students I have now were part of that transition, which means that it will only get better with each passing year because students in high school will emerge who had a native English teacher at a younger and younger age.

All I can do in the meantime is be supportive to these exchange students, be glad that they have one another for support, and hope that they learn what they came to learn from this experience. I'm still learning too.

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#4- David Archuleta's "Riu Riu Chiu"

Making Order in Chaos/5th Day of Christmas

"just made my xmas list! now I need to shop! :p"- Posted on Facebook by my twin Etna

Yeah, I'm not even there yet, not even close. You can ask my sister, usually everything on my end would be wrapped and under the tree before the tree was even up. Not this year. Leaving that for this weekend (truly last minute).

On the bright side, I get the day off work, and I must say that I had managed to get many aspects I had planned to clear before I went home out of the way already. On the other side, there's still much to do and straighten out.

Aside from having a calendar at the moment that is parallel to college finals in terms of stress, I've yet to allot my time in LA all the way, so that calendar is still in the making. Just need to tweek some things and people, and then it shall be posted.

Has a song ever given you goosebumps when you not only heard it the first time, but every time after that still? Well that's this song.

#5- Josh Groban's "Little Drummer Boy"

6th Day of Christmas

Still riding the train to stressville. Finished that Korean teaching course and writing my materials for the winter session book and that's going to be published, now I have to complete my actual lessons, activities, and make edits.

Still planning my time in LA, have to plan wisely to make sure I spend a sufficient amount of time with everyone. Also have to plan what I'm taking. Tons to do

#6- Paulina Rubio's "Joy To The World"

7th Day of Christmas

Been super busy. I have a pile of stuff to get done before I go to LA. There's no way I'm going to work when I'm home with my family and friends. No way.

On a lighter note, I've been blasting Christmas music as my productivity soundtrack.

#7- Fall Out Boy's "What's This?"

Have you hugged your caffeine today? / 8th Day of Christmas

Coffee (especially in the recent present) has been like Homer Simpson's television to me, "teacher, mother, secret lover." Got out of a school-wide meeting today which resulted in me getting a lot done in order to block out what the other school departments were saying and trying to stick it out because the English department wasn't presenting until the dead finish. I must say I was able to get a lot done: Peggle, update my Facebook to continue the support for the missing Sarey campaign, Skype, play a round of Solitaire, Tweet, E-mail, and update my calendar. Maybe the only non-technological thing I did the whole time was refill my coffee cup.

But my energy has been fluctuating recently, given what went on this past weekend. On Friday night one of the local teachers, Lynn, was leaving SK so there was a celebration here in Songtan. This celebration involved me being the flip cup champion.

That was fun. And it happened twice where I "met" people I had never met in real life before, but they recognized me. "You're Oscar!" Yes, that happened back in LA before too. Social networking reels it's abundant head once again. After that Friday night, I had to help a friend out (cosmic karma for something I recently did I'm sure), and I got a whole 3 hours of sleep. I was a trooper and somehow managed to get my butt over the Pyeongtaek city tour bus with other teacher friends at 9 a.m. Other teachers were troopers too for being out at the same place the night before.

I must say I'm really glad I did the tour because it was really a lot of fun. Rode a horse, did two art projects, got to see some cool animals, spent time with really cool people, and got to know the area around me a whole lot better. Who knew so many great things were near me (and it was probably the most traditional Korean thing I've done in a while).

After that, a group of us headed out for some grub, then were Seoul bound (not before stopping at Starbucks of course) for Susanna's last Seoul weekend. I made it to dinner, but then my body was starting to give out. I made it to Itaewon, and that's as far as I got before I had to head back to Pyeongtaek and be in bed at a reasonable hour. Also, at the time I was walking with a bad knee that refused to bend without inflicting pain (it's better now though). I made out, but my old fart self got the best of me at some point. I spent Sunday hibernating, left the house for some ramyen and coffee with our same Pyeongtaek group.

This same group said goodbye to Susanna too, and although I recited random facts from a book my friend Nancy gave me instead of helping with the packing, I still felt like I helped. Bye Susanna, you will be missed buddy. We saw her off to the bus. First person from our usual close-knit clique to go off and back to the US. I wanted to tell her there something was wrong with the left phalange ("Friends" reference).

But alas, I will soon be in the US, with 3 more weeks to go. Your faces! I get to see your faces! My Sarey campaign has got me thinking about the good times I miss spending with my friends back home, there's no one quite like them.

Also, on a note my sister and my brother have brought to my attention recently, I believe that the things some people say about others as resentment or to poke fun at are the same things they hate about themselves. It's textbook.

Here's countdown to song #8 from a band who needs to have a new album I can purchase soon.

#8- No Doubt's "Oi to the World"

The Question Part 3 / 9th Day of Christmas

Today is a very special day. Today marks my sixth month in South Korea. It’s my Koreavesarry! It means a lot. It means that I’m halfway through my contract; it means I’ve made it halfway, but it also means that I have to near a very important decision. To renew or to not renew? My plan is to not make a decision until I get home because one of two things will happen:

1- I will feel that this visit will make me feel that this year will be very much survivable and that visits like these will allow me to catch up with everyone.
2- I will totally miss everything about home and will try to find a job in LA, or California, or somewhere in the continental 48 states,


We shall see. Stay tuned. But of course I am not the only one who thinks about this. Like clockwork about 4 times a week I get asked by different people if I’m going to renew. No joke. These people are from different aspects of my life and they surely enough find a way to ask me. Need proof? Here are two pictures from 2 different IM conversations on my Facebook, one from my friend Lizzy from high school and the other from a friend Carolyn from the US Base here in Songtan. Both were asked within 24 hours.


So yes, stay tuned.

In the meantime here goes song number 9, a holiday classic in many homes and iPods.

#9- Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You"

10th Day of Christmas

Happy December!!!!!

So close to being home, the countdown is now in days!!!

Speaking of countdowns, song #10 is here, a song about a major countdown, New Year's Eve!


#10- Fey's "Un Ano Mas"

11th Day of Christmas

The countdown continues. My 11th favorite Christmas song is coincidentally titled "12 Days of Christmas."

I think everyone in the existence of ever should watch this video, especially what comes after 1:55.

#11- Straight No Chaser's "12 Days of Christmas"

12th Day of Christmas

It's Thanksgiving today, which means that the Christmas music is going on full blast on ye ol' iPod. To honor the time leading to Christmas I have decided to share my 12 favorite Christmas songs, sharing one a time during the period leading up to Christmas.

At #12 is Destiny's Child's "Opera of the Bells"

"Kim Jong Not-So-ILL" -Amy Poehler

So yes, North Korea has launched artillery fire onto South Korea. The dispute is mostly over an island which has a border that has been debated for some time. Right now it's just a small attack, but because it's the North versus the South (sounds like the Civil War), it's a big hoopla. I don't know, maybe I'm just jaded or maybe the 9/11 attacks put world issues into minor perspectives for me. The killing of 2 soldiers just doesn't quite equate to me the loss of 2 towers that were attacked via airplane.

~20 soldiers were injured in this back and forth exchange. My country has lost over 4,000 lives in Iraq alone (not including Afghanistan), so again, I'm just looking at it through that perspective. To give you a visual of the geography of the situation, I have illustrated so on this map:

Because this is the most heavily guarded border in the world, and an issue of world security, I find it that the matter will be resolved soon as many counties would have much to lose from anything remotely war-like.

Quoted from an earlier tweet of mine: "Everything is okay on my end. It's not near me, and remember, the US is in 2 wars."

Now for the video portion of our blog, which sums up the 2 biggest event happening this week:

"We never thought that we'd get caught up stuck in a teenage waste" -N. Furtado

So being a teenager should stop when you’re….geez, I don’t know, A TEENAGER?!!
It’s so funny because people still act like they did when they were in high school, people treat you like you’re still in high school, and high school just has a way of creeping in on you when you least expect it (for instance, halfway across the world, just as a hypothetical situation of course).

So a couple of things have happened to bring this topic to my attention (obviously). First one happened with the only two people that I REALLY still talk to from high school. Granted, I have friends from high school on my Facebook friends list, but aside from and occasional comment back and forth, I don’t ever plan to see them. So these 2 friends of mine and I, along with other involved individuals had altercations with 2 other people during our senior year of high school. Seems like those 2 people just got a Facebook (side note: barely?) and have decided to add us, but not both at the same time. One requested me, while the other requested my other 2 friends. Comprende? Well this led to a big can of teenage worms to open up and even an exchange of countless messages as well as a wall post that hit the 50+ comment mark (I think that’s some kind of record). After talking and evaluating the situation with one another, no action has yet to be taken.

The next thing that has happened came upon and observation made by one of those people from high school I only comment back and forth sporadically as mentioned earlier. (WARNING: this portion of the post gets pretty nostalgic) He went to our high school, which is currently under reconstruction, and mentioned how none of our magnet teachers, except for Mr. Aldrich, are there anymore. Well it seemed weird that his first visit came 8 years after our graduation. But yes, many of the teachers we had are long gone. Ms. Hurst (my Algebra 2 and AP Calculus teacher) left right after I actually interviewed her for a paper during my first semester of college. I can’t remember what quite happened to her. Mr. Cook (Chem and AP Physics) was fired for obvious reasons…..***cough**** rum ***cough***. Mr. Aldrich (World History and AP US History) is still there, Lizzy and I talked to him a great deal when we visited a few times together. Now the English teachers, they hold a special place. Mr. Odegaard (who taught me English in grades 9, 11, and 12th) was an awesome teacher. In retrospect, we probably had too much freedom, but I read a lot of my favorite books in his class. During my undergrad and credential classes I would visit him often to get my observation hours signed off. It was at that time that he was starting a business with his wife to sell a hemp-based fashion line at Fred Seigel’s, not too shabby. So that’s probably why he’s gone, to start that venture. Ms. Pilon, one of the most passionate people for English and my 10th grade teacher, is the one teacher I’ve actually had a strong rapport with. Aside from being my teacher, I was also her service student, and she hired my friend and I for the summer to help her move into the Department Chair classroom because she had been moved up. After high school, I also went to her class for observations during my undergrad and credential classes. THEN, I actually had a graduate course with her while working on my Master’s. She was getting a library concentration in her degree because she wanted to be a librarian (much like her sister). But now she is teaching at another school, and really enjoys it. I’m happy for her.

But there was always one teacher who had a special place in everyone’s backpack in high school. Mr. Footlick, my Bio teacher, and the one teacher who pushed his students, used to tell it like it is, and would joke around with everyone. I used to hear about his retirement when I was 15, and when I recently heard he no longer works there, I wondered if he finally went through with it. Good for him, he’s earned it.

Thirdly and lastly, another event that has tapped into the teenage me has happened with my family. It’s nothing major but it was one of those moments when I always end up saying, “I may still look like a high school student, but you guys do know I’m 26, have 2 degrees, and live in another country because of my job……right?!” In retrospect, this is also pretty hilarious.

Well to the teenage me, I hope to bid you ado, but know that’s impossible.

Vlogging and Rambling

Ho Ho Holy Los Angeles

So here's the deal for my coming to Los Angeles during the holidays. If you are friends, PLEASE feel free to join me in partaking in these events, I want to see your faces!!!!! I'm an A-type control freak so I've gone ahead and decided to give you a quick itinerary:

12/24- I come to LA that morning, it's Christmas Eve, so yeah....I'm going to spending that time with the family.

12/25- This is Christmas Day, which means more face time with the family. From what I hear I'll be in Victorville during this time.

12/26- I'm free to see your faces!!!! Dinner at Ra at Del Amo in Torrance perhaps (??)

12/27- I'm hauling my butt, rain or shine, to DISNEYLAND!!!!!!

12/31 to 1/2- New Year's! I will be in Vegas for this weekend. Family and friends are all welcome. I have a reservation at the La Quinta Inn & Suites Las Vegas Airport & Conv Hotel, approx. 2 blocks from Cesar's Palace.

1/3 to 1/7- TBA (Still brewing, stay tuned)

Going to Holland

So it was about a week ago that I posted a blog about the "Night of Too Many Stars" show download, a show meant to raise funds for autism education programs. I also have an array of books here that I got from a teacher who used to live in Korea but moved back home to Canada with her husband. I started looking through these books for something new to read. Amongst these books was one called The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, a book which has a familiar cover as I'm sure I've seen it at a Barnes & Noble somewhere. I'm sure it would look familiar to you too. Well after reading the back cover's description I was intrigued to find out that it's a story about a teenage boy with autism told through his perspective. The purpose is to allow people into the mindset of someone with the disability.

Having both personally and professionally dealt with people who have autism, a related form of it, and other disorders that impede learning, little did I know that the last blog, the show download, and the book I am currently reading were going to serve as a prophecy of sorts for the events that were to transpire thereafter.

So it turned out that some time ago, lets say about a month since I really can't remember, that I was walking to the air base with my neighbor and we were talking about learning disabilities. The conversation went on to say that a friend of their family is suspect that their son may have autism. I mentioned my experiences with autism and it made the conversation go into a deep discussion.

Fast forward to this week. Well it turned out that my neighbor's friend's child has been diagnosed with autism just a couple of days ago. Just after that, I got a call from my neighbor inviting me to dinner next week over at their friend's house to discuss autism and whatever advice I could offer. Of course I said that I would be more than willing to offer any advice/suggestions that I could. However, the people I am dealing with here are parents, something I clearly have no experience with. So I then decided to go straight to the source and ask the moms in my family who have experience with this. After taking careful notes over our Skype phone conversations, I must say that now I feel like I have a wealth of information to provide this family, as well as what I hope is comfort.

With what I know and with what I have gathered I hope that they are able to take it, apply it, know that they are not alone, and someday be able to be a viable wealth of information themselves for families dealing with this for the first time.

With that said, I want to end this portion of a hopeful note. There is a short story I read once in one of my teaching credential classes, one geared to teach teachers about working with students with different types of disabilities and when the we studied autism this short story came about. It's called "Welcome to Holland." I think it gives people who both have to deal with autism and those that are not familiar with what autism is a sense of what it can be like.

Link to the story: http://www.child-autism-parent-cafe.com/welcome-to-holland.html

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This Thursday (November 11th) was Pepero (빼빼로) Day! What is Pepero Day? It is a day dedicated to that candy that is comprised of thin toasted breadsticks covered in chocolate. I hope I described

the candy well so you can sort of know what I'm talking about here. In wanting to inform myself about this holiday I found out it was created by the Lotte company as a way to push the product. It functions as a somewhat version of Valentine's Day in which

young couples give one another boxes of Pepero. It also functions as students giving chocolate sticks to their parents, neighbors, teachers, and friends. I scored four boxes. Go me! I'm still working on them, they're in the fridge awaiting my inevitable attacks.

Note: the reason Pepero day falls on November 11th is because the lines that make the ones on this day, 11/11, resemble sticks of Pepero. When I told my mom about this she said that she wonders what SK is going to do next year where Pepero day falls on 11/11/11. I hadn't though about that and when I passed along my mother's insight to the people in my school they had never thought about it either. Oh that mother of mine.

So excited that payday is almost here. That plane ticket home sure tapped into the osc funds. I eat like a damn king on payday, like a king I say!

Also, I've been having trouble once again with my stupid fridge and my even more astronomically stupid washing machine. Fridge got fixed and my washing machine got replaced. This is my third washing machine since my moving here. And let's just say three is not the damn charm. It's even less functional than the last one. It shoots water out like a eye dropper, one little drop of water at a time. Just called my coteacher to call my landlord to get that fixed, and pronto I hope.

Aside from that, all is good, I'm good, hope you're good too!

The Sarah Silverman Legends of Autism Award

One of my favorite parts of the "Night of Too Many Stars" event is posted above.

The "Night of Too Many Stars" show is to raise funds for Autism education programs, which are gravely needed.

For a $3 iTunes dowload you can have the two-hour comedy show special in its entirety and the proceeds go to fund programs to help children with autism. Autism is something that is near and dear to me, so seeing a program like this is very encouraging. The show alone is worth the three bucks. You get to see things like:

• Steve Carell's outdated song
• Chris Rock cursing out a bidder's ex-boyfriend
• Tina Fey's exotic calendar
• Jimmy Kimmel's bobble head
• Conan O'Brien's masturbating bear act
• Jimmy Fallon singing a song to Mr. Tommy Hilfiger himself while sitting on Thalia's lap
• and of course, the Sarah Silverman Legends of Autism Award

Please Support!

iTunes Link: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewTVSeason?id=394995472&s=143441

More About the Show: http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/night_of_too_many_stars/index.jhtml

“We’re so weird.” – Sag Dong Min

This quote came from one of my favorite students; in fact he reminds me a lot of my brother. This week the class lesson has been about appearance, which according to my sister’s Facebook reply, “the order of importance is: Hair, Shoes, Clothes and then whatever we're dressing for.” She makes me so proud. The conversation at the time was about skin tones and how people can change their skin tones with things like tanning and make-up. At that point that student pointed out a common thing in the Korean language. For those who don’t know, words in Korean HAVE TO end with a vowel sound, usually some variation of the A or E sound. For example, Burger King would be Burger Kinga in Hangeul (Korean language). So the conversation went like this:

Me: People change their skin color sometimes by using tanning or make-up.
Sag Dong Min: Make-up, make-upa, make-up
Me: Make-upa, are you saying it in Korean?
Sag: Yes, we’re so weird.
(In my head bursting and bursting in laughter)
Me (realistically speaking): No you’re not, it’s just the language

And no, this doesn’t mean the Korean language is weird, I really laughed at his reaction of how he pointed out this difference. Come on, when haven’t you heard the joke about the guy ordering a Yumbo Yack from Yack in the Box? Exactly. We can’t be docking language points here.

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This week has also been about perspective to me. I’ve thought a lot about the expectations people have of one another. We expect people, based on circumstantial evidence, upbringing, background, or even socio-economic class to achieve and to do a limited array of things. This goes from the kid in the projects who is expected to drop out of high school and try to maintain a menial paying job to the trust-fund kid expected to live off of mommy and daddy’s bank account forever and ever. In either scenario, people should not expect anything from people. Many people who come from low-income upbringing use that to motivate their goals of wanting to become something grand. Many people in the trust-fund situation usually feel ashamed of being privileged and want to make their own name for themselves. The point is, don’t expect anything from anyone.

I’ve seen the person who went to the good school say things like “conversate” and “aks (instead of “ask”)” and I’ve seen the person from the slums be on the verge from being a Mensa genius. Things that I’ve personally done in my life, no one ever pressured or expected them from me, I really just expected them from myself. Whatever things I ever put myself through it’s really been because I expected them from myself, and I still do. I admire people who take those expectations others have of them, and instead are empowered by their own expectations, throwing the others into the crapper.
That’s why I surround myself in the company that I do. Many of my friends and family members have become people who have not let their environments faze them, but instead they do what they do because they want to do better and bigger things for themselves, beyond the expectations. I also love the company I’m in because it seems that my friends and family always have an “itch.” They’re either too comfortable or too uneasy about their current positions that they wish to do more. Where most people would have settled, I look at the people around me (figuratively considering that I live on the other side of the world from LA) and see that they always want to do more. They want get a better job, get a better education, travel more, learn more…all in all, have a better life. I like that. I admire that, and chances are that I admire you.

Time Shifts

Today marks 5 months since my arrival to South Korea.



Well Halloween has come and it has now gone. It was a lot of fun. It was fun and mellow. Went to Josh & Audrey’s place for a get-together, headed to the Osan Lounge, then went home. Spent the day with some cool people as the “boy who lived” aka Harry Potter. The day before I was watching Repo: A Genetic Opera, a great movie, and the best thing Paris Hilton has done in her career.

Now it’s November, which means my dad’s birthday will be in some weeks as well as Thanksgiving. I’m considering a Thanksgiving lesson for some of my classes since the Halloween one went so well.

I’ve also gone ahead and have allowed my iPod to now play Christmas music, music that always cheers me up and at the same time is parallel to the weather here. In terms of health, I am so much better now.

I’ve been listening a lot to Shakira’s new CD also, it’s great, that “Gordita” song with Calle 13 is still on repeat. Speaking of music, it was weird because I had a dream the other day, but it was more like a movie. I say this in the sense that it had a soundtrack to it. The song? It was the theme song to “California Dreams.” I thought the dream where I was driving down the road yelled LA, but this one just spelled it out for me in block letters.

So the question keeps coming up, whether or not I’ll renew my contract. I think this week reached a new high at the count of four times, and it’s only Wednesday. IDK. IDK. IDK. I need to go to LA for the holidays first, then when I come back to SK then MAYBE I can make an informed decision. That’s all that’s on my mind for now. Also, I found out my niece got Student of the Month at her school, congratulations!

“Love is Mr. Navarro, because he smiles”

I did not make up that quote in the title; one of my students actually said that. The freshmen had oral exams this week and their topic was L-O-V-E. I’ve gotten some really outstanding responses, and a few not worth mentioning, so let’s dive right in and mention the good ones! These are just excerpts from longer speeches from different students.

Love is fire, it is dangerous and not easily quenched
Love is a mosquito bite, the more we scratch it the itchier we feel
Love is a black hole, we don’t know much about it but we want to explore it
Love is a present from China to Peru, because all people do love (reminded me of Sarey...and David, lol)
Love is a cell phone because I always carry it around
Love is coffee, sweet and bitter
Love is a shoulder bag, happy and light at first, but heavy and exhausting after a long time
Love is being stupid together
Love is poison and betrayal because it causes depression and greed (bitter much?)
Love is a puzzle because you have to adapt and you can easily break
Love is sleep, without it you would be lifeless
Let’s talk about love (I had 2 students from different classes with this opener and it floored me each time)


But out of all of these my favorite one was one I can’t even write about and wish I had recorded.

The kid made awesome gestures detailing the effects love has on his olfactory being. From what I can remember he said this: “Love is great. You can not hear it (points to ears). You can’t see it (points to eyes). You can’t taste it (points to lips). You can’t even smell it (points to nose). But I know love is all around, that’s why it’s so great.” I’m really paraphrasing here and my putting actions into parentheses does not do justice to how he walked around the classroom. These exams are always fun for me to do because all I have to do is “sit back and watch my ass grow.” (I think that’s a Homer Simpson quote)

My sophomores got a taste for Halloween with my Halloween lesson, one of the most fun lessons I’ve done thus far. They enjoyed it, I enjoyed it, it was great. I showed them a picture of my friends and I from last year at the South Bay Brixton and had them guess the costumes. Please tell me why my students can quickly guess that I was CLEARLY Peter Pan yet my friends back home gave me answers like Robin Hood and Link from Zelda???? Hmmmm?

BTW, I told them Pati was Lady GaGa, which some of them guessed. Rainbow Brite isn’t so big over here.

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So it has been super cold this week. A little over 30 degrees farenheit has been the average here. It also included me getting sick. Granted, I’ve been here for almost 5 months and for this to be the first time I’ve gotten sick since I’ve arrived isn’t so bad. Even my cold isn’t so bad. Thanks to some rest, vitamin C, and Korean meds (which are a bargain btw) I am feeling much better now. It doesn’t mean that I’m warmer as I dress up like an Afghan housewife all covered up when I leave my apartment and haul ass to work. On the plus side, I’ve gotten to work earlier this week. Well that’s all for now, enjoy this picture of me while we all wait for me upload the Halloween pics from tomorrow’s party!

In this pic I'm IMing with 2 friends. Concerned face much? Notice my layers in clothing, trying to keep warm.

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This is currently my power song. I recommend it for working out. Move over "Survivor." My favorite part is the chorus with Concha Buika, sounds flawless.

p.s. The student who influenced this blog's title did not receive a high grade. Aside from this opener the rest of the speech was pretty much downhill from there. Flattery got him nowhere.

The Talent, All Hallow's Eve, and the Freeze

So last week was the anniversary of the school where I work. In SK, when a school's anniversary comes around it is a festival followed by a day off of work (school for the students). The festival was not what I expected. I've seen these kids perform in the past, but for the anniversary talent show they really stepped up their game. The funniest thing was one sketch that consisted of about 15 students putting on an Idol-type competition sketch. The show included an awesome 70s type performance with go-go-type backup dancers and le piece de resistance (insert French accent) was a "Single Ladies" performance by three of the boys in the sketch. Here it goes:





I was floored when I saw this. This festival is pretty much a big deal complete with a streamer shooter, smoke machine, pyrotechnics, lighting, and projectors. Quite the spectacle indeed (and my couch is still debatable?). The foreign exchange students participated as well, so everyone was happy to see them get involved in student life here. I was also a judge so it was nice having my hand in who won the prizes.

Had the following day off, it was nice to get mid week off. I was able to go out the night before, sleep in the day off, and run errands as well as run into one student after the other on the street.

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The Halloween season is upon us and I'm very excited. Went to Itaewon on Saturday for a costume/birthday party taking place there. It was a blast, but because we decided to stay later than we had originally anticipated we ended up having to stay at a, and I use the term loosely, hotel. You have to dress in what I could only equate as bad middle school PE uniforms, and sleep in what I could only equate as the Holocaust 2.0. It was hot and hard to sleep there, but we all managed to nap I suppose. We caught the first train out of there and used Sunday as recovery/catch up on sleep day. All in all it was fun, an experience, and in retrospect pretty funny.

I was "emo" for that Halloween party, a costume that was thrown together last minute based on my attire and easy access to guy-liner. However, for Josh & Audrey's costume party this Saturday I have something else planned. Stay tuned.

Also, my neighbors are planning on having a Nightmare Before Christmas viewing on the actual halloween night. Yes!

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Yesterday was Monday October 25, 2010. Yesterday was the first day since I got to SK that I actually felt cold. Like cold cold. Like really cold. It is going to be an average of 35 degrees (f) this week, so pardon me LA, but you don't know what cold is. What I love about cold weather though is that I sleep like a log and it's easier to make yourself warm when you're outside than it is to make yourself cool in when it's hot.

Have You Seen the Ghost of John?

There's a Halloween song that I remember we used to sing in Mr. Cooper's 3rd grade class at Norwood Elementary. It went a little something like this **clearing throat***:

Have you seen the ghost of John?/Long white bones with the skin all gone/OOooooh Ooooooh/Wouldn't it be chilly with no skin on?

So in retrospect that song doesn't deserve a Grammy or anything, but it's one of my favorite things about my favorite (or at least top two when I think of Christmas) holidays ever: HALLOWEEN! I'm really excited to soon be celebrating my first Halloween in another country. I started getting nostalgic over the fun times I used to have in Halloween so I even changed my FB picture to reflect my last Halloween back home. As a kid I used to enjoy Halloween very much. My favorite costume as a child: Beetlejuice! I remember that was the same year Celia (my sister) dressed as Elvira.

My favorite costume as an adult? Well, there have been so many but I think it was the year I was either a mobster or a gravedigger.

My costume is 90% complete for this year, can't wait. I can't believe I haven't dressed up as this sooner!

Here goes the best music video to hit costumes everywhere!

A message from me....IN THE FLESH

I swore I was going to Vlog when I moved to SK and I guess I just never got around to it. But here goes a vlog (hopefully not my last one):

NEWSFLASH!

I'm coming to Los Angeles, for two weeks!

I'm excited about going back home and seeing everyone's faces again.

I've been spreading the news like wildfire the past 24 hours on Twitter, Facebook, through calling, and TONS (and I mean TONS) of Skyping.

I'll be home not only for two weeks, but I get to be home for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, and Epiphany. It made my family especially happy.

Still 2 things I need to do when I get home:

1. Get my hands on a chicken Chipotle burrito with chips and a side of guacamole (this is some serious business folks).

2. Go to Disneyland!

I may be broke as a joke until my next pay check, but it'll totally be worth it. I'm really excited to see everyone, I can't express that enough.

After a long conversation with my sister and a 2-hour long conversation with Phoebe, the possibility of a Vegas New Year's celebration might be in the works at some point as they have both suggested it (conspiracy?). Wouldn't be the first time I spent a winter holiday in Sin City.

I'm sure all those details will get sorted out later, but yes, I'm so stoked I get to go home, I have my flight and everything. There's a bit of a layover in China, but who cares? I would've come back from LA at that point!!!!!!

So block out your calendars friends and family, because I plan on all of you to keep me busy.

Also, today is Lisette's wedding day. I just spoke to her to congratulate her. Very happy for her, she's now an honorary Chapin as she is going to be wed to one soon.

Until I see all of your faces near my face Los Angeles, I shall keep you all posted.

The Question Part 2

Well aren't I in a blogilicious mood today?

Conversation during lunch today led to this:

Mr. Lee: So what's keeping you from wanting to renew your contract?

Loaded question much? So yes, it came up again. It was also followed up by another question asking me what my plans would be if I decided to move back to the USA. Well I've said it before and I'll say again, and this time with capital letters: I-D-K. I really don't know.

Actually, what I plan to do this weekend and later share with you is a decision that will affect this decision once it is played out. Sounds confusing, I know.

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I've noticed my blogs have sequels now. Last time I had this many sequels it was during student-teaching, something that was monumental in me deciding if teaching was something I was built for doing. The 16 year-old in me was right when he decided go into English education.

Ferdinand and the High Road

Michael Vick's hurt? I hope it's not his hold-a-dog-underwater-til-it's-dead muscle. – A Sarah Silverman Retweet originally posted by @thesulk on October 3, 2010.

I remember seeing this tweet because I “follow” @SarahKSilverman and laughing in my head about how spot-on Michael Vick gets addressed nowadays and how everything changed when his dumb-butt got caught staging dog fights. Animal cruelty sucks and it shouldn’t be allowed. Bottom line.

I’m not a vegan and I’m definitely not a vegetarian, but it comforts me more in knowing that an animal gave up its life in order to satisfy a human need, to feed the hungry. That is different from an animal having given up its life in order to fulfill a type of human greed, gambling, and recreation in a manner I can only identify as cruel. Dog fights, cock fights, and even bullfighting I find to be unnecessary, cruel, and downright ignorant.

Did you ever read the story Ferdinand the Bull? I remember reading it in early elementary and completely loving it. If you haven’t you should and you should share it with as many children (and grown-ups too, why not?) as possible because it has an awesome message. Ferdinand is a bull in Spain, and like many bulls in Spain he is destined to become a fighter against a matador (side note: matador is a Spanish word for “killer”—just saying). However, Ferdinand is not like the other bulls. He appreciates things like nature through looking at flowers and enjoying the shade under a big tree. He decides on taking the high road and that he’s a lover not a fighter. Aside from relating to him, I found it to be true of animals.

They may not speak, but they are definitely part of nature and they can be loyal if you treat them right. When I see things on the news like how an underground cock-fighting arena was raided, or how a ground for breeding fighting dogs was evacuated, I can’t help but think of the pets I’ve had in the past. I grew up in a household where we never-not had a pet. And I mean everything: birds, fish, lizards, turtles, dogs, and rabbits. My family is a pet family and I would love to have my own dog as soon as I could room one. But when I see these news reports I just think of the faces of my old pets and my family’s current dog, Patches, looking back at me. What did these animals do to deserve being programmed to fight their own kind? Why should they be tortured for the sake of a bunch of drug-peddling-alcohol-induced-overly-addicted-to-gambling audiences? I never understood this. The only justification for watching pain for sport is if you’re watching people boxing, ultimate fighting, etc. They made a conscious decision to be there.

To make a light situation out of this blog I decided to post this video which is related to my topic, just forward to 3:15 (funny stuff).

"If I Were a Boy, I Would Turn Off my Phone, I'd Tell Everyone it's Broken..." Part 2

In continuing this week’s lesson on scenarios I’ve gone ahead and introduced the idea of scenario planning through the Barenaked Ladies song “If I had a Million Dollars” which is something I learned at the teacher orientation. I keep receiving some great scenario responses from students like so:

• If I were a pop star I would meet many stars like Oprah Winfrey or Rain.
• If I were a superhero I would help sick people to go to the hospital.
• If I were president I would make a happy world.
• If I were a movie star I would buy sunglasses and walk the road because I'm famous.
• If I were a movie star I would shoot a wonderful kiss scene with a top actress.

The last two were written by the same pair of boys, who are obviously ready to be famous. Well the same group of boys who wrote the last two statements on my list did something that totally caught me off guard. As they were finishing up their statements they broke into song and sang....WAIT FOR IT...."If I Were a Boy" by Beyonce. Again, I was thrown off guard and thought to myself "Did these guys read my last blog entry?" Granted, I have not mentioned this Beyonce song in class at all, so I was in awe when these boys started to belt it out. I told them how the song is a good example of an imaginary scenario and how I happened to enjoy that song. Then I carried on.

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In other news it's Lisette's wedding this Saturday! Crazy! I'm very happy for her and I wish I could be there. I was touched when I got her invitation here in SK. Also, Andres' birthday/house party is that same Saturday too, happy birthday in advanced!

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Very excited about what I get to do this weekend, and even more excited to share it with you all soon.

"If I Were a Boy, I Would Turn Off my Phone, I'd Tell Everyone it's Broken..."

In this chart-topping Beyonce song, she presents the scenario of what she would be able to get away with if she were in fact born a male.

Well a big thing I'm doing with my students this week is talking to them about scenarios.

I've presented some scenarios to them that were selected at random by them and they would have to make sentences and present what they would do in the given situations.

Some of these responses I really liked and some of these responses really cracked me up, which made me like them more. Here are some of their examples:

• I were president I would remove the university entrance exam.
• If I had a million dollars I would invest and manage my money to have more than a million dollars.
• If I were a movie star I would buy a middle sized island in the pacific ocean.
• If I were a pop star I would have many super cars, about 100.
• If I had an airplane I would go to Japan because I want to buy comic books.
• If I were president I would make a nuclear weapon to kill every people in the world, except kind people.
• If I were a movie star I would make a scandal with a sexy woman.
• If I were a movie star I would walk the steet enjoying the popularity.

Here is my favorite performance of the song (mainly because it includes an Alanis Morissette cover):

And Here's my favorite spoof:

If I Were a Bro -

"Drink Up Judah Ben-Hur"...."You Truly are the King of Kings"

It's Monday, what else can I say?
It was all in all a good weekend. Had a busy Saturday going from Songtan to Pyeongtaek to Songtan to Pyeongtaek and back to Songtan again (no joke). Went to the air base to catch the air show, at least that's the excuse to use when you want to eat on base. So much food! It was fun, I think I lost my hearing, but it was fun nonetheless.
This upcoming weekend is extremely important to me. Excited!!!!! I got the “green light” that I get to do so and I can’t wait to tell you all once I make the decision. Some already know what the news is, but I shall build the suspense for you…starting now. It’s going to make some people happy, ok, enough said.
The title came from a joke that kept coming up from this weekend, nothing too serious.

"work"

I recently had the week of Chuseok off (only worked 1 day that week)

This week the kids have midterms (I only have to teach one day this week)

Next week classes resume, so it's back on schedule

The week after it is the school's anniversary for there's a festival on Tuesday (no classes) and no work on Wednesday (the day off)

The following week the students have district exams (no classes)

Case in point: My mother was right, I came here to "work" (emphasis on the air quotes)

The Foreign One Pt. 2

So there’s a story my friends back home and I always laugh about these days, but when the story was unfolding we could not have been more worried, scared, and angry…

It was during my junior year of college at CSUDH and I got a call at about 6 in the morning. My friend Sarey’s mom called me asking me if Sarey had spent the night at my place because Sarey had not come home all night. I was worried, and this turned into a series of phone calls between my friends and I in trying to locate Sarey and making sure nothing happened to her. At some point I think Yaya initiated a missing person’s poster campaign. It turned into a squad search event to say the least.

Well things got squared away not too long after. After having noticed an endless amount of texts/voicemail messages on her cell phone, Sarey got back to everyone and the situation was put at ease. She came home late, and left early to go jogging. No one noticed when she came home and no one noticed when she left that morning. That was it.

So why have I decided to write about this event?

I’m glad you asked. Well on Saturday night/Sunday morning I had a “stay-in” night after many other events unfolded. I had been watching movies on iTunes and before heading to bed I thought I’d have Facebook a detour.

Well next thing I knew a fellow teacher, Lexi (who has only been in SK for ~2 weeks) IM’d me in total panic. The conversation asked me to call another new teacher Brooke (because Lexi has yet to get a cell phone in SK, she only has Internet) and to get her to call her mother. Here’s how that went:
1. Brooke left her mom a phone message mentioning the word “hospital”
2. IM from Lexi on Facebook asked me to get a hold of Brooke and to call her mom
3. I call Audrey asking her for Brooke’s number and fill her in
4. It turns out I already had Brooke’s number on my phone
5. I call Brooke twice and leave her two text messages explain the situations
6. 10 minutes go by
7. I get a text response from Brooke
8. We talk
9. Turns out her mom heard “hospital” but Brooke said “HOSTEL,” she had gone to Seoul for the weekend and left her mom a voicemail saying she had checked in at a hostel, not hospital
10. I tell Brooke to call her mom, and lecture her to this time enunciate
11. Brooke is officially embarrassed
12. I fill in Audrey and Lexi on the situation
13. It becomes a conversation topic on Sunday

And because of course this is the second time something like this has happened to me, I can’t help but laugh it off. But you better believe I will use this as ammunition to poke fun at the parties involved.

Before I left for SK, Nick told me that I should be on a mission to find Korean equivalents of all my friends. Even though Brooke is from Colorado…I think I found someone who can somewhat compare to my Peruvian friend.

p.s. Equivalents will never come close to the originals

p.s. HAPPY UPCOMING BIRTHDAY TO MY TWIN ETNA!

The List(s)

My Friday and Saturday in a Checklist

• One of our school’s French exchange students had a grandfather who passed away.
• 
  I turned down a dinner with not one, not two, but three school principals. In retrospect I feel that was big no no.
• 
  After dinner with friends, I found out that my neighbor was hospitalized during his family’s vacation (they hadn’t had a vacation since they arrived from NYC in 2007).
• 
  My house-sitting assignment started earlier than expected.
• 
  Had to unexpectedly ride a bicycle in South Korea. Never in my life have been honked at so much by drivers (and I’ve driven w/ an open trunk in LA freeways).
• 
  I had to walk around with a big bag of Science Diet for the dog in Songtan.
• 
  I ate my weight in mondu.
• 
  I was not able to go to Seoul this weekend as planned (Come to think of it, I haven’t been back in Seoul in a while).
• 
  I found out I’m allergic to at least one of the family’s cats (there are two).
• 
  Made 2 discoveries, one of FB, and one on my own (both weirded me out).
• 
  Had to play “pass along the message” between a fellow teacher and her mother.
  

All in all, big middle finger to you October 2nd, and part of the day before too!

On my Sunday however…

• Had the house sitting routine down to a science
  
  
• Went to Pyeongtaek and enjoyed the rooftop view from the AK Plaza
  
  
• Burst into sudden laughter while Susanna and I were carrying pizza boxes to “Jaudrey’s” place because we heard an instrumental Kpop version of “When a Man Loves a Woman.”
  
  
• Had pizza
  
  
• Played many fun rounds of King’s Cup and BS over soju with great people
  
  
• Laughed hysterically about the "pass the message" occurence, as well as the 2 things that weirded me out.
  
  Verdict: Good Sunday

A letter

Dear Life,

Please erase the last 24 hours, I'd really appreciate. Thank you. Granted I've been here for 4 months already and I was bound to have a bummer sooner or later, but still. I nice big push of the "delete" button would be awesome. Thank you.

Sincerely anticipating a response,

-Osc

Fear of Away

So there have always been two things I have always feared, fears that I’ve acknowledged since I’ve had the sense of reason and memory. These things are death and failure. Today during lunch I found out that one of the French exchange students at our school just had her grandfather pass away. She is of course devastated about it. Understandable. Her experience has tapped into a fear that has developed in me since I first arrived to South Korea: I won’t be there if an emergency were to present itself. I’m currently “knocking on wood” in hopes that nothing bad happens to the people I love. That is honestly the only thing that didn’t sit well with me when I came here, the “What if?”

But I will say that this has been my only concern during my time here (well the only concern of massive proportions). So stay safe, only go when the light turns green, put on your seatbelt, load up on Emegen-C’s and don’t break a bone.

Beautiful in Los Angeles

Have you heard this song by Garrison Star called “Beautiful in Los Angeles”? The temperature is beginning to shift here in South Korea, and it seems that it came just in time as it was perfect during my Chuseok break (Korean Thanksgiving). Well fall is here and before long winter will be here, and as my friend Nancy says, “The holidays are upon us.” But just like the song says about the beauty in LA, and based on what I’ve read from my LA friends’ status updates, it is about one hundred degrees back home (no exaggeration).

I’ve visited other places in the winter time: Mexico, Guatemala, Las Vegas, Big Bear, Lake Arrowhead, and others I’m sure I cannot recall at the moment. But this will be the first time I actually live through an entire season away from So Cal. It’s not just going somewhere for a weekend or a week, this will be weeks and weeks of going through things like cold and another new-fangled type of weather called snow. It would be nice to be in the land of eternal summer, but at the same time its part of the changes I’ve had to get used to the past couple of months since my moving here.

September is almost over, geez, that was a blink of an eye. Wasn’t it just my birthday, like in 2009? Time sure flies by and FAST (with a capital F). It was nice speaking to my niece Jujubeans (aka Julie) on her birthday and glad she enjoyed her gifts and it’s good knowing she’s doing well in school.
Nothing major has really happened except for having enjoyed my week off in a very laid-back way. Other than that, go and download that song, it’s one of my favorites.

Monica and the Light Switch

There’s an episode of Friends in which Monica has a light switch and doesn’t know what it turns on/off. Monica destroys the walls of the apartment trying to figure out what it connects to only to never discover that it turns the TV on/off at the next apartment over, which Phoebe believes she controls telekinetically.

I have such a switch. My classroom has four light switches and three of them correspond to the three lighting sectors in the room. But there’s a fourth switch that does nothing, at least nothing I have been able to pinpoint. After my co-teacher asked me if it was okay to turn off some of the lights in my classrooms, I saw it as the perfect opportunity to ask about that fourth switch. Turns out it used to correspond to an older ceiling fan that used to be in the room, which is now replaced by my ceiling A/C unit.

Well this whole week has been about turning on lights for me. After celebrating my birthday here is Songtan with fellow abroad teachers, neighbors, and new friends I have, I used some of the time after that to reflect. A part of me could not believe I wasn’t spending that day with my friends and family back home in LA. I must admit that I got homesick at one point after my festivities were over. Many saw it coming telling me that I would feel “the slump” especially hard on my birthday because it was my first one here and it is parallel to the time of the third month.

After letting that soak in and being grateful for the wishes and the fact that I actually did have fun on my birthday I then reflected more on the things that used to ease my stress. I used to do a lot of things back to vent out any frustrations I had that made me who I am. Well this week I’ve started tapping into that person again.

It’s like when you stop going to gym and hate the idea of going back, but when you do, you remind yourself of why you did it in the first place. With that said, I’ve started running again, did it three times this week (aren’t you just proud?). I had let myself forget how freeing running can be and how putting on a good jam on in the iPod can make a run go from good to great. I seriously can’t wait for nighttime to get to go run, and plus it helps me discover parts of Songtan I’ve overlooked before.

I’ve also gotten into writing. I don’t mean just writing for this blog, but writing in other forms. I actually used to write into MS Word documents like crazy all the time. I’m back to that habit. Especially as I’m currently reading Timbuktu by Paul Auster, which tells the story of a now-homeless man who is on the brink of death but ever since he was a teenager he was infatuated with writing and literature. As I’m currently working through this book, I’m glad to say that I could relate to the outlet that is writing and the power it can have.

I guess those are the lights that went off in my head; the switch definitely took some time to find.

P.S. Happy Birthday Week to Nick and Pati! Go Team Virgo!

P.S. Hope you were able to see the metaphor in the last sentence of the second paragraph.

Where Were You?

The title says it all. I'd like to take the time to reflect on 3 major events that took place during my lifetime that have resulted in being in history books, novels, movies, and abundantly in television. I shall start with the oldest first and work my way up.

Where were you when Selena died?

I was coming home from school. I attended Norwood Elementary. When I got home my parents were both there watching television. My mom said "Someone killed Selena." At first I didn't really understand what she had said. "Someone killed who?" I thought. Also the idea that "Someone killed Celia," who is my sister, did cross my mind but was immediately scratched out when I heard the uneventful tone in her voice. Had something happened to my sister it would have been full blown emotion, not just my parents sitting around and watching TV. So when I asked my mom for a second delivery, I finally understood what she meant. The singer of "Bidi Bidi Bom Bom" had passed away because her fan club rep had shot her. And yes, I remember sitting around the television as well joining my parents on the edge of my seat wondering what Yolanda was going to do in that car with the police surrounding her. It was like a thriller movie, intense!

Where were you on the events of September 11, 2001 (aka 9/11)?

It was my seventeenth birthday, but that didn't void me from going to school. In fact, I really wanted to go to school. It was my senior year of high school and birthdays had become a big deal within my circle of friends that year. They included pinatas, going out for movies, and having one friend burn her hair because we rigged her birthday cake with trick candles.
Well I woke up that morning with a little pep in my step because I wanted to see what school would be like on my birthday. In the midst of getting ready my father said, "Someone attacked the World Trade Center." Those words. I was like "....Ok, well that's not good." The words he chose to tell me are what triggered that mundane expression. If you recall sometime before someone had walked into the Twin Towers with a gun but was immediately stopped. So when my father said, "someone attacked," I figured someone walked in with a gun, pocketknife, or some pointy object that could be considered a weapon, that is all.
I got to school only to find that with every classroom I walked by the TV was on and that all the students were glued to it like it was a Magic Eye game. I thought it was perculiar but I still didn't think anything of it and figured that I would find out about what they're watching when I get to class. I got to first period, which was US Government, and long behold, one of the towers had been attacked and it was up in smoke! Crazy! After reading the headlines and overhearing what my classmates were saying, I was all caught up.
I was watching these huge monuments just fall into pieces. I got to second period with a quickness because I didn't want to miss what was happening. This is the class I had with all my friends, Mr. Odegaard's AP English class. It was my birthday for a whomping 5 minutes. It was all "Happy Birthday Oscar! Here are your presents, now back to TV!" I was fine with it though. I got it. How could I possibly think about celebrating my birthday when massive amounts of people are dying because airplanes keep crashing in monumental buildings? One gift I remember getting was a sweater from Heidi and Lizzy which they went to pick out from Anchor Blue and had some guy who was of my same physical demeanor try it on to see how it would look on me, I still have it somewhere in my closet in LA. Anyways, I remember being glued to the TV and watching those towers fall as if they nothing, just a couple of Lego buildings some four year-old was knocking down.
The whole day was like that though. It was just me walking around with my gifts from period to period trying to get my eyes to catch every moment of what was going on. It was AP Calculus and we had a substitute teacher. And yes, my memory about this day is just that detailed. The PA system over the whole campus had announced to the Fremont teachers that the events on the TV were too violent and suggested they'd be turned off. Well our sub didn't give a flying fuck about what the PA said and kept it on as his argument was that we were witnessing history unfold before our very eyes. He was right! Once the events subsided it was Tennis class, but by that time everyone was still getting over that initial shock of what transpired that morning. There was no Tennis class, I went home, had dinner with the family, all the while still being attached to TV like a siamese twin.

Where were you when Michael Jackson died?

It was grad school time and I decided to head to the Starbucks at the Barnes & Nobles near the CSULB campus to get some studying done (the one on 2nd street next to the AMC). I found a table all to myself and as soon as I logged on I noticed that some headlines read about Michael Jackson being in a serious condition. I then raced to Facebook to see if any of my friends had posted anything and about three of them had posted that MJ had died. I was in complete shock. But because I hadn't read anything official from news sites I didn't know whether to find any truth in those status updates. I then decide to go to the website that may very well be the fall of the human race, TMZ. Even though I don't support the paparazzi movement, they seem to know things a lot quicker than CNN and KTLA 5. Sure enough, they had reported that Michael Jackson had died. Still in awe, I hit refresh on those news sites and the headline went from "Critical Condition" to "Passed Away." At that very moment I yelled out for all of Starbucks, its cutomers and employees to hear, "Oh my God, Michael Jackson just died!"
The Baristas then turn to me and one of them said, "Really? He did? I've been getting text messages from friends not knowing if he had died or not." I confirmed to her the information I had gotten from my sources. Then about five minutes later I get a call from my mother (as I was expecting) where she told me she was sad and we then briefly spoke about his passing.

I have a picture from the wall that was made for his memorial service at the Staples Center that now stands in the Nokia Theater in LA. It was signed by those fans who attended the memorial. In utter jelousy that I could not go, I am glad to be next to a piece of musical history.

"In The Midnight Hour, I Can Feel Your Power"

Religion....

This topic, much like the last blog, is the result of a single "tweet" posted not too long ago. This blog could not have come at a better time either. This week marks the week of the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, and the end of Ramadan in the Islamic faith, Eid. Without thinking about these two monumental holidays in Western culture, my topic this week with my students has been religion, mainly what I call "The Big Three" (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam). I've been teaching them about the family tree and how Abraham, Jesus, and Muhammad are all rooted in the same family tree.

Granted, anyone that knows anything about me knows that I am not religious, like AT ALL. But I must say I do show my respect to those that decide to follow an organized faith and I would never influence their decision, as I hope they would not do the same to me (It's called respect). However, I do know that all the religions offer valuable tidbits in philosophy and humanity. They are all rooted in the same message, a message I follow: Be a good and decent person, if you do something bad, make it right. That's it. That's what I follow. I feel everything will fall into place if you just follow the golden rule.

I also find interest in relgion, and although I may not agree with its organization, I must say that there is much credit that should be given to relgious literature. The Bible, The Torah, and the Qu'Ran are all well written books that paved the way for other works of Western literature. However, current events do not seem to see it that way.

I will say that I have learned a lot from friends in different religions. I learned a lot about Islam from Zorah, a lot about Christianity from Phoebe, and a lot about Judaism from a great teacher, Mrs. Goldman. I have been very priveleged (dare I say blessed?) to have been exposed to an abundance of information that has allowed me not only to learn about, but to have made an informed decision about my faith and believes, as well as tolerate the faiths of others.

This blog not only emerges from my lesson plan for this week, but also from the fact there is much non-tolerance going on in the USA. Because a mosque is being considered as part of the multicultural memorial (emphasis on MULTICULTURAL) of ground zero, people have found it as an excuse to burn Qu'Rans. Some ministers and imams have made outrageous blanket statements that tell me that they should both take a deep breath and to just sit down and have a conversation. It doesn't do anyone any good to hear these supposed religious leaders yell and belt out outrageous statements that make them look bad and should instead have an informed conversation. Also, and a complaint, they need to remind themselves that the basis for their religions is that we are all the children of God (try and remember that please!).

I kind of felt outraged as well when I got an email in my Spam folder. I SOMEHOW (I really have no clue how) got into some email list for the Tea Party (a party of which makes regular Republicans look lenient). Well I usually don't pay attention to my bulk mail, but I must say that the title, "Ground Zero Imam Blows More Smoke Than Sheds Light---Threatens the American People" caught my eye. Yes, that was in the Subject line of the email. I, of course, opened it and read it. After reading it, it made me more outraged and it made me think that once again, the statements said are making the people who are saying them look worse than the group they are opposing. This is a quote direct from that email (no edits) about Muslims:

"They are perennially violent, 24/7. And, is it the responsibility of the rest of the world to examine each action to determine how it will affect this very unstable and violent group of people?
Any Mom can tell you – don’t reward bad behavior!"

Really? Saying Muslims are violent 24/7? No offense but this email sounds like it comes from people who think about violence 24/7. And don't reward bad behavior? This isn't a group of puppies you are trying to train, this is a religious group you are talking about. "Bad Mulims, bad bad Muslims." <-- That's what I imagine them saying. No offense, but no religion, ethnic group, or social class is perfect, and blaming a large group for individual radical actions is just wrong. It's the same crap that's happening with the Arizona immigration laws and the Don't Ask Don't Tell laws in the military. I bet you anything that there were Muslims in those Twin Towers who did not see those airplanes coming. I also bet that not every German during WWII was a law-abiding Nazi. Just ask the protagonist of my favorite movie of all time, Schindler.

Wow, this rant went on a lot longer than expected. The power of a tweet.