Not Everybody Loves Your Doggy Like You Do

Heard it on NPR! It's a funny song and relates to a situation I had in the past. My roommate (also lease holder) had a small dog. She loved her little dog very much, so much that she even wiped his butt after he went to the bathroom. It really disgusted me. Eventually we got into a heated discussion about her dog being smarter than humans. She lamented that the students in her biology course weren't as smart as her dog. I tried to tell that given the chance her dog would roll around in poo. She said, so would humans in some situations.

Sure I think dogs can be smart and great creatures who do wonderful things, but let's not go overboard. This song reminded me of that time I argued about the smartness of dogs.

Asia vs. Asia: A New Look

Two years ago when I was fresh to Korea I wrote a post titled "Asia vs. Asia: (Series: Ugly Korean)" and since then it has been one of my top blog hits. Yet I am not proud of this post and fear that people come onto it in search of reaffirmation of their personal beliefs on Korea. It was my intention to share an experience I had with my ex about his world view amongst other Asian countries. I never really went back to that topic and so now would like to revisit it and offer up my insight after living in Korea for two years.

Issue 1: Asian people comparing themselves amongst other Asian nations.
When I first came to Korea I wanted to find out how Korean people compare themselves against other Asian countries, specifically Japan and China. I have come to discover that generally people tend to center themselves towards their country of origin and then go from there. In other words, Koreans treat Korea as the center of the Universe and their point of reference. We all do this, I believe, when comparing ourselves with other nations.

Yet I do feel Korean people take it to a higher level. To put Korea front and center means that Korean people tend to feel that Korea is always better than their Asian neighbors.

source

Take for example, when I have talked about my Japan travels with my coteachers. One of my coteachers asked me if I felt Japan was better than Korea. I said yes but explained why with details from my trips. I told her that certainly living in another country is different from just visiting it. She concluded with, "Korea is better." But gave no real explanations as to why.

My coteacher was merely just being Nationalistic. Yet their eccentric Nationalism I feel sometimes overlooks the truth and gets in the way with critical thinking.

South Koreans are nationalistic. Part of the nationalism stems from the compulsory national service required of South Korean men. Part of the nationalism stems from the fact that they are still at war with the north. Part of the nationalism stems from a desire to prove they are different from Japan and China.

Take that last part there, "...desire to prove they are different from Japan and China." I for one feel that is very true and why when talking about Japan or China with Korean people it can become a touchy subject. It isn't random, of course, because it stems from a long history of invasion and hibernation from the world.

Korea has been invaded, annexed, occupied, liberated, and sometimes unwillingly protected, by Japan, China, Russia/The Soviet Union, and the United States over the past few centuries.Koreans tend to see themselves as members of a "race" that has been fighting for it's independence from foreign domination for centuries. This can result in Koreans being overly defensive towards anything they see as a threat to their way of life. This also makes many Koreans easily swayed to any point of view that plays upon nationalism.

The examples of this that come from living in South Korea are that you can have a really hard time talking about Korea in a critical thinking way with other Korean people. As an outsider one wants to understand why Korean people do what they do and also what they are thinking. Therefore one tries to find these answers by talking to their Korean colleagues. Yet in the end the result is usually of more confusion and that you possibly just pissed off the people you work with.

In my opinion, I don't think Korea has to change its Nationalistic attitude or all of sudden become a nation of people that don't see themselves as #1 amongst other nations. All I know is that when I come face to face with Korean pride that I have to take a step back and let this person have their moment.

Issue 2: How Korean people embrace and interact with non-Koreans.
When thinking about this issue I feel I need to try and get into the skin of a Korean person. To look at their world through their eyes.


What I see myself doing is when I walk down the street and see a foreign looking person that I slow down and stare at them. Maybe the child holding my hand will point and tell me that there is a foreigner nearby. We both stare and nod in agreement. Then move on.

Can I, the foreigner, really look at the world from a Korean's perspective? 

source

Let's just say that recognizing and gawking at the outsider around you isn't specific to Korea. I believe that in any part of the world where the majority of people surrounding  you are all of the same type of race will lead you to naturally recognize someone who looks different. Small town America is still like this, but I feel most people in America are use to diversity either around them or on their television set. 

For a long time Korea has mostly been full of, yep you guessed it, Koreans. Day-to-day Korean people see dark hair and dark eyes all around them. Then slowly, more and more, people with different color eyes, hair, skin, body shape, speech and so on started to arrive (and stay). 

The reactions of Korean people vary from the subtle staring to shouting and being aggressive either in speech or within an online group that promotes racism. The interaction of Koreans with foreigners and their acceptance of them is at times horrifying and at other times humbling. Take for example this excerpt from the hate group Anti-English Spectrum:

Bothered by this, and gathering our power together, our consciences would not allow us to overlook this tragic story as if we were looking across a river. We are aware that loving your country does not only mean taking up arms and fighting in a war. Against illegal, low-quality English instructors who prevent our land from learning English and against English Spectrum, who debased and degraded the image of Korean women to that of one country's filthy national brand -- this is our strong fight!

hmm...

It goes without saying that I have experienced being treated like an outsider. 

It comes in various ways:

At work:

• There was a recent quarrel where myself and the other foreign worker became fed up of the overly use of Korean in our office. We get it, they are Korean and communicating in Korean is easier than English. But often we hear our names and then laughing or sighing afterward. We wonder what they are talking about and it leads to paranoia, which ends up festering. We tried to make the point that when we hear them use our names while speaking Korean it makes us feel insecure. That they should think about how it makes us feel to speak Korean most of the time in the office with our presence. They didn't get it. They thought we were overreacting and being silly. They told us that they can't help but speak Korean. But they didn't get that they should include us in their group and when they always speak Korean about work or other issues they leave us out. Leaving us out makes us truly feel like the "other". 
• In a nutshell this is an example of how at work you can often feel like the "other" and outsider due to that your Korean collegues don't see you as truly part of their group.

Outside:

• There is the staring. The pointing from children. 
• Parents make their children speak to the foreigner. 
• Whispering about the foreigner. 
• Note that I have never really had a terrible experience outside the house here in Korea. I have gotten use to the staring and forget the reason why. The hardest part seems to be riding the subway when you are in a tight space and anything could happen. I want to note that other foreigners (especially women) have had unsettling experiences.

Media:

• "Talk with Beauties" is a show that puts up beautified foreign women and talks with them in Korean. The conversations are scripted and most of what they talk about is junk. This kind of show takes the foreign woman and makes them exotic. Something that is really not helpful to our street image.
• Contrastingly there are many shows that show the foreign (especially white) man as a sexual predator. Because of this I have come across many Korean women (young and old) that believe foreign men just come to their country to do bad things and be a sexual predator. 

All of these are examples of how Korean people are confronting and dealing with the foreigners around them.

Conclusion and Reflection:

I am curious to know how Koreans embrace others from different cultural backgrounds. For now I believe that I am sure it is of no real big deal over there. That they coexist in a peaceful and sometimes hostile way. But I can't help but think that underneath the surface that some people may still feel some kind of historical and cultural opinion towards an outsider.

Those were my final thoughts from my original post on the subject. I believe I was definitely wearing rose colored glasses. Certainly the Nationalist feeling is strong here and reflects how Korean people see themselves amongst the other Asian nations.

Yet I think it is important to remember that there are millions of Koreans on this peninsula. Young and old I am sure you can find differing opinions than what was presented here.

In the end I keep in mind a philosophy that I use to keep myself sane while living here. That is: It is their stage and if they want to act and present themselves in a certain way in front of me than that is their choice. I am just the observer. And...the critic. 

*I hope you enjoyed this look back on my old post and that I showed how over time one's opinion can develop and change. It has been a while since I brought up politics like this and I hope I wasn't too broad. Thanks!

Readjustments

Public schools are not free of stress or frustrations. In comparison to hagwons I think the job itself is a whole lot different. Sure you are teaching English to kids but the goals of your superiors are different.

What I am talking about really here is how one's idea of how and what to teach often times is very different from the opinions of your coteacher. This is a good example of eastern thought clashing with western thought.

At my last school the mix was like water and oil, meaning we didn't get along. I gave up really and focused on the advanced class, which I was left to my own design. Now at my new school when I try to explain my opinion of why I want to teach selected materials I seem to get a lot of criticism.

Recruiters like to tell you that every public school is the same, and I think they are making this assumption based on the fact that at every elementary school the curriculum is the same. But not every public school is equal.

It comes down to their interpretation of how English should be taught, and there is no changing it. I guess that I still haven't adjusted well to the Korean education system since I find myself up against a wall this time.

Here's the situation:
Winter camp is next month and so all the preparations need to be squared away. I have experience teaching 4 camp sessions, so I know what it is like.  Or I think I know...

I will teach 4th and 6th graders while the other foreign teacher will teach 3rd and 5th grades. We will both teach the same subjects such as "World Culture" and "Sports Day."

The situation I walked into was that the previous teachers made a plan for winter camp but it was very lean and needed more. So I added more to it using stuff from last year.

The problem came today when my coteacher checked it and made the remark that my materials were too difficult for 3rd and 4th grades. There were a few worksheets with sentences and maps on it. I didn't make the material but was borrowing it.

Immediately I tried to explain to her that it doesn't matter what material you use as long as the teacher adjusts the way they teach. Meaning I was handed these same materials last year and said "Go~". So I learned to adjust myself to the students and not adjust the materials. This is a teaching method and philosophy I picked up from experience. Last year at mountain winter camp I used the same materials for the lower grades and it came out fine. They spoke, had fun and learned a thing or two.

But she frowned and said "No." At that point I did the thing that I should not be doing anymore, which is I got upset and took it personally. You would think I have learned by now.

Needless to say I tried to defend my understanding of how to be a teacher. Yet she stood her ground with what she thinks how English should be taught.

In the end, you have to yield to what they want. You are in Korea and it is their court. Logically you would think that they would try to understand where you are coming from but it is more that they want you to adjust to their ways.

So as you can see I need to readjust myself and create an image that they will be pleased with.

How to make this a positive experience:
It is my opinion that I need to stop thinking that they will someday understand it all from my perspective.

I have the choice of just giving up and becoming a non-creative and robotic teacher who doesn't care anymore. Or I could adjust to their ideals, yet find a way to be creative and still teach the "Joy" way.

In other words I understand where my coteacher is coming from. She demands that English be taught to the children with the goal that they speak. So speaking is a priority of theirs. That means my lessons should cater towards speaking as an objective.

They want to teach by talking slowly and clearly, as she put it "This is the most important thing." At first it was a little insulting to hear her ask this of me since I already do this. But I guess she wants to make sure.

An Example of Teaching Differences:
I made the mistake this week of giving out to my 2nd graders "The Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer" song lyrics with Korean next to it. My coteacher and the Korean 2nd grade teachers complained it was too hard for their students.

From my point of view I wanted to teach them the festive holiday song that was accompanied by a fun video. At my old school a similar method was used to learn a song. First you read the words and get use to them. Then you sing the song over and over till you know it.

My coteacher told me that it was too hard for them and suggested instead to focus on teaching them only a few sentences. And to repeat it over and over again. Not from the song, cut that out, but teach them a sentence like "The reindeer is brown" and make a lesson out of that. (You can do it like this: The____ is _____)

Initially, after hearing this I felt as if she wanted me to just be some kind of English Robot babysitter. Then I have thought about it some more and realized that her method is valid.

They are English Foreign Language students and should learn in a simple and easy format. This doesn't mean that my lessons have to be boring or that I as the teacher will end up looking like an English robot. It means I can make fun games and activities to help them reinforce those one sentences they are learning.

Readjustment Realization:
What I am trying to point out here is that I need to change and not them. As a westerner and independent woman this is something that is very hard.

But I know what happens when you don't adjust to what they want, and I don't want that to happen again. I want my coteacher to see me as useful, smart and a darn good teacher.

And so I started to think some more and realized that teaching is not only about relating content and how to say English words, but it involves catering to Multiple Intelligences.

I know they want me to plan for their level, but what about their intelligence? For example, some students may respond well to listen and repeat. While other students need more hands on activities like a craft or role play game.

What I wish I could do is talk to my coteacher about this teaching method and have a lovely conversation. But I am learning now that my coteacher is an older stubborn woman set in her ways. I respect that and so understand there is no point trying to shake up her roots.

Instead I will just plan my classes to teach them to speak a certain phrase or words but use materials and methods that will cater to different intelligences, without her really knowing that is what I am doing.

I feel like I am the only teacher out here who takes their job too seriously (but who knows). Wish I could be the teacher who just goes through it all without really caring and then hitting the bars in the evening. But unfortunately my nature won't let me do that. Yet I am sure I could try to take it a little less seriously~

Well I feel good for getting that out. My other foreign coworker talked to me on the way home about how she is dealing with the same things. I have to say I was skeptical about our relationship at first but now I am seeing that we have a lot in common. I hope we help each other out more ;)

Summer is Heating Up

We don't turn on the air conditioner in my classroom. Thankfully we have 7 fans that circulate above every one's head.

But today it didn't seem like it was getting the job done. I didn't even bother to think or ask my coteacher if we could turn the AC on, considering I know what a hard-ass the Principal is on these matters.

So I trucked through it with my advanced class.

However it was hard not to sweat and get hot inside the room. What made things a bit worse was that I was starting to stress out a bit with everything that is building up lately.

You see we are approaching the end of the semester with the summer vacation on the horizon. This means for my coteacher a lot of extra work is put in her hands for testing and what-not. So she is a bit busier and frantic these days.

For me it means I have some obligations coming my way.

• My school's summer camp.
• The city's Mountain summer camp.
• A fun filled 5 days with the advanced class spending 4 hrs each day with them. (I am being sarcastic, for being with these kids straight for just 3 hrs is killer. But supposedly it is my duty during the summer vacation. I don't get paid extra as it counts towards my normal working hours.)
  

Let's examine those deadlines in more detail:

School's summer camp:
Held for 5 days with grades 3,4,5 & 6. I requested that we split it up where 3 & 4 meet 2.5 days and 5 & 6 meet the rest of the week. She seemed fine with this. But I am still not clear if this is the final deal and how many hours each class will be.

I have to make the plan for the summer camp by the end of the month for it to be approved by the Vice-Principal.

It's not that hard to plan for this, just got to search around for some fun summer things. My coteacher requested I do a lot of speaking activities and games. Since I have planned already a lot for my advanced class I can fill in some things using recycled material.

The backlash is that planning for this cuts into my normal planning time for everything else I plan for. But it is part of the job, right?

The city's Mountain camp:
No biggie! The lesson's are planned for me when I get there I just got to add my pizazz to it. Also I am thinking of what to bring to 1.) make my life comfortable there and 2.) make teaching the kids a bit easier (stickers...candy).

5 days with the Advanced kids:
This is what I am not looking forward to, but will truck through anyways.

Summer vacation lasts a long time for these kids and I am only contracted to have 2 weeks off during this time. So with 2 weeks already going to be spent at the summer camps and 2 weeks spent on my vacation, that left me with 1 week of the unknown.

Today my coteacher told me what I would be doing during that time and it is teaching the advanced kids for 4 hours a day for 5 days.

This will come after my vacation.

Now I have sheepishly already made my flight plans. My return date actually gets me back Monday August 17...a work day. I wanted to be in America with family for as long as selfishly possible. So I told her why don't we start it on Wednesday, saying "I get back late Sunday night and I think I need some rest time." She basically said that is fine as long as I am fine with losing 2 days worth of salary. I said "Sure!". Like I really want to jump back into work after flying for 12 hours and coming from America. Besides who knows if I will be quarantined after I get back?

Anyways, the real problem comes with planning. What will I do with these guys? I have them on a schedule based upon the units in their book. I don't want to get them ahead because I haven't even finished planning into the After-Summer term.

So I am hoping to get them behind in their work...haha.

They have this play thing they have to practice and perform, so I am going to lay aside their normal curriculum so that they can do this work. It helps me have stuff saved up for the long hours later in the summer.

Well there you have it folks. It is like at the end of semester in college. You are cramming to get all your projects ready and studying for finals. Except, I am getting paid for all this work.

What's up with my contract?
I managed to squeeze in the question of my contract today. Asking when abouts do they think they will start to review it. Turns out my coteacher and I are not on the same wavelength.

She said after summer vacation, which is two months before the end of my contract.

However, I think it should be done three months before the end of my contract, making the review to be next month.

I told her this and she was surprised and so said she will consult someone about it.

If it is to be after summer vacation then so be it. In my mind the contract decision time is inevitable so I am trying to be as patient as I can.

But you can bet on this! I am definitely counting down the months till I can get out of my office-tell hell~! As you know.

All right I guess this was a huge-ass update. Gives you a slice of Foreign English Teacher Life.

Through the Grapevine

There are times in life when ignorance is bliss. I had a moment like this on Wednesday when I had dinner with my new coteacher and old coteacher.

We went to Ashley's, which is a salad bar / steak kind of restaurant in my area. We were all speaking English due to that we all had the ability. The two of them got to talking about our Principal and how he isn't the most enlightened man. They told me a story about him from last year, that I wish I could live the rest of my life not knowing.

It turns out our Principal is a bit of naughty man. At a party last year with teachers and parents the Principal, after doing some drinking, managed to touch one of the parents' breast. Sexual Harassment!! The parent's were shocked. But they didn't come to get their apology till the next day, and he did apologize.

At lunch time the teacher's, who do not eat with the children, all meet for lunch in one room. As English teachers we meet with these people and the Principal. The Principal likes to talk during our lunch hour break. Of course I don't really know what he is talking about.

My coteachers tell me his stories aren't exactly ... clean. They involve sexual innuendo and such stuff. They said that during dinner parties with everyone and after he has drunken soju that these kinds of stories flow more.

So it is that I have to see this man at lunch and around the school, and try not to think of the guy he really is underneath his smile.

I am somewhat nervous knowing there is a guy like this at my workplace, especially because there are children.

But I don't see him doing anything over the edge, like that breast incident, again. However, I bet he hasn't learned to censor his words or stories. So it is the Korean teachers and colleagues who suffer most.

Ah well, I just want the guy to give me extra vacation days and uh, I guess not touch anyone.

The Workplace

It comes as a quick reminder to me that I haven't shown you all my new workplace. I took a few pictures during my first week. Well let's take a tour:

View of the front of the classroom and the chalkboard. Using a chalkboard feels like I am in the 1st grade. I am not that skilled at my chalkboard writing either, so it comes out a little ugly. Anyways, to the left is the big screen TV used for lessons and to the right is my coateacher's desk.

Scene of the desks, windows and back of the room. What I have noticed is that they seat the girls in the back and the boys in the front. I want to ask Why...but keep on forgetting. Anyways, the window view is lovely! Sometimes I stare out of it for long moments, because it has the view of the side of a mountain. I can see birds and the wind blowing through the trees. :)

Let's enter my office!

That is my desk with the chunky old Monitor. Behind it is the gigantic window which let's in sunshine. This is also the supply room, as you can see. And we have a lot of supplies, but it seems we don't really know what to do with it all.

View out of my office window:

It is fun to watch the children play on the field. Sometimes you can see who are the outsiders who are left out of the group. On the snow day they were out there gleefully running around without their hats on, I felt like a Mom and wanted to yell at them to put their winter gear on.

Anyways, I hope to take more pics of other parts of the school and possibly the people there. For now this gives you a look into what my daily surroundings are like.

Window found in Office

So I am writing you from my office at my public school, which has a nice big window. It looks out onto the play yard. It kind of makes the room cold, but it is a window and I am greatful for it.

Today there were only 4 classes so the rest of the day I am going to absorb the material and write a few lesson plans for the Advanced class. But my energy is dwindling because my sickness is kind of not going away. I think it is making its way to my lungs. After work I am going to go to the hospital and try to get medical attention.

I asked my coteacher about the windowless home and the response I got was kind of not promising. She said that there were 3 choices and out of the 3 this was the best one. I told her I want to change it but she said they have no money now. I think she didn't understand that I would be willing to move in 1 or 2 months and give them time. Also I would pay for any fees. So my recruiter will get on to it today or tomorrow. Whether I will get a house change is unknown right now. The only real issue I have with no window, is that in the morning it is hard to wake up to a dark room.

But since it is winter, I feel like it is my winter cave.

Really though if worse comes to worse, I don't want the windowless-ness to bring me down all the time. I know it isn't ideal place to live, but there are other aspects of life I want to think about.

Anyways, teaching at a public school has a HUGE amount of differences compared with a hagwon. Here they are briefly:

• You teach the same material over and over.
• The book is super easy and doesn't require huge amounts of planning.
• Children are more behaved (elementary school)
• I get a free Korean lunch. Not the best but it is free.
• My own office.
• Not stuck in a small office with a lot of teachers being all chatty.
• Students bow and say hello to you when you walk through the hallway.

Yep, that is what I am gathering so far. Of course I want to wright a more consice blog about this experience and the differences but I need to work.

:)

Honeymoon stage wearing off

I think that glorious and shiny honeymoon stage you are suppose to experience when living in another country is starting to wear off for me.

Don't get me wrong, I still find myself feeling excited and proud to be over here. But I am starting to miss the American way of life. Basically I think it just comes from the fact that when you are the outsider, well you feel like an outsider. People look at you when you walk down the street, they stare and gawk. Everyone around you speaks but you can't understand what they say.

However, between all this there are some things I can control. For example, the more I learn Korean the more I will understand what people say around me. Also the more I find places I like to go in Seoul the less alienated I will feel.


Anyways, what have I been up to?
Lately it has been a lot of school planning. The first of July is coming up and that means new syllabus'. It feels nuts to plan out my weeks in advance, but I keep it up anyways. Yet, most of the teachers around me at the office just plan it the day they get there. So I feel somewhat foolish for being the goody-goody.

Besides school dominating most of my activities, Bo Kwan and I lounged around yesterday (Saturday) and then went to an area near Insadong and met his friends for beer and chicken. I didn't drink any beer but ate some chicken. It was nice to meet his friends, who come in packs of 10. They were curious about my life here and some of their questions I had a hard time answering. Hopefully after more thought I will think what to say better to a question like: "What is different in living in Korean than in living in America?" Honestly, I knew the answers but froze at how to congeal it all into sentences.

Today it is Emart again and then house stuff. It is raining and I think it helps my mood out a little.

Video + Contract details

I made another video of my home, this time concentrating on how I live in it and have made it my own.



Well, I hope you enjoyed that. :)

Now onto some more serious matters.

Examining my contract:

It saddens me to think I have to take a close look at my contract and not have 100% trust in the people I work for. But having a knowledge base of the rules can help one understand what happens in the workplace.

First I want to make sure that I am working the proper hours and if I am making overtime then I should be rewarded. So far from my calculations I have not been working overtime.

Below are quotes from my contract:

Teaching days will be Monday to Friday, with a maximum 8-hour block teaching schedule excluding lunch breaks. The 8-hour block will be an average calculated based on the 5 day workweek schedule, consisting of approximately 26.25 teaching hours per week.

Further more:

In the event employee receives overtime payment or during the annually scheduled intensive months (coming up next month) consisting of one month in the summer and one month in the winter, the maximum 8-hour block workday may not apply.

And.....

Total teaching hours per session in excess of the base requirement listed above is calculated as overtime payment according to the overtime payment rate... Employee may be required up to a maximum of 5 overtime teaching hours per week.

My impression and digestion of this information is that during the "intensive" month period next month those extra working hours will not be considered as overtime, due to that it mentions in the contract as being "scheduled" and makes the base rate moot.

One of the main points my supervisor made to me last Friday was that my teaching schedule right now is not that intense compared to what it could be, for example during the intensive summer period. When she spoke about this her tone was kind of like it was offensive for me to think that my current schedule is too much when in fact it isn't.

After looking over my schedule and doing the appropriate calculations, she ends up being right. I teach about 6-7 classes each day, which are 45 min long except for two 50 min classes. During the intensive period I could expect to teach 9-10 classes in a day, the increase being in the morning classes with the youngest kids.

To get a better understanding I will outline my current schedule:

Monday, Wednesday and Friday:
*Symbols: Y = youngest M = 9-12 yrs old O = oldest, teens

1. 1:20 - 2:00 Y
   
2. 3:00-3:45 M
   
3. 3:45-4:30 Y
   
4. 4:30 - 5:15 M
   
5. 5:15 - 6:00 M
   
6. 6:00 - 6:55 M
   
7. 6:55 - 7:45 M
   

Tuesday

1. 10:40 - 11:20 Y
   
2. 11:20 - 12:00 Y
   
3. 3:00 - 3:45 Y
   
4. 3:45 - 4:30 M
   
5. 4:30 - 5:15 M
   
6. 5:15 -6:00 M
   
7. 6:00 - 6:50 O
8. Phone teaching = 20 minutes
   

Thursday

1. 10:40 - 11:20 Y
   
2. 11:20 - 12:00 Y
   
3. 2:00 - 2:40 Y
   
4. 3:00 - 3:45 Y
   
5. 3:45 - 4:30 M
   
6. 4:30 - 5:15 M
   
7. 5:15 -6:00 M
   
8. 6:00 - 6:50 M
9. Phone teaching = 20 minutes (not sure if calculated into total hrs)
   

Add up the hours:
Monday = 5.41
Tuesday =5.33
Wednesday = 5.41
Thursday = 6 hrs
Friday = 5.41
Total weekly hours = 27.56

*Now I don't know if that means overtime...because when you go back and read the contract it says something about

The 8-hour block will be an average calculated based on the 5 day workweek schedule, consisting of approximately 26.25 teaching hours per week.

I know I am weak in math, but it boggles my mind what the average is based on and how you calculate it.

So if anyone can figure this out for me that would be great.

I am about 60% giving a crap right now whether my work hours are actually an issue. I know it is going to suck a lot when they increase but I have been forewarned and it is not like on the day of they tell me about it. I expect for my July schedule to have the increased number of classes listed on it. Then I can PLAN appropriately. Since you kind of never know when information is going to be given to you I am going to make sure I ask questions about the schedule ...etc.

Well back to work tomorrow.

In Sickness and in Health

Today was a rotten day. It started with a sore throat and achy body and ended with tears. I didn't know if calling in sick works out here and found out that it doesn't. So my emotions ran high and a few words were exchanged like "I am weak when I sick..." and thus a meeting was held with my supervisor.


It was the usual meeting where your boss overlooks all the good things you have done and focusing solely on the bad: complaining you have to work while sick, not talking enough with coworkers and my health. (They don't know I have Crohn's).

So after a full day of teaching, feeling more sick off the drugs they gave me and coming out of it I came home and cried my eyes out. Yes I am mentioning it to all of you out there..including you ... Mom.

Within the history of my life change has always been difficult. My parent's got divorced, at 15 yrs old I moved to California to live with my Dad, at 25 yrs old I became sick with Crohn's disease or colitis....whichever way you slide and now I am living in a whole other country.

Yet this last change is a change I chose based upon direct forces in my life. So after sobbing for several hours, only eating sliced peaches for dinner and going to bed I came to the realization that hey...this isn't entirely my fault!

For one, they overlooked all the hard work I have been doing. Two it is only my 2nd week of teaching of for Christ's sake (sorry) I am not going to get all perfect. Three I know myself!!!!!

By now in my life I know that I give people the cold shoulder before making a perfect relationship with them because I am a cautious person. I know by now that I focus on organization and planning before I do relationships with other people. And two my body isn't all that strong.

So with these thoughts I now have ammunitation to defend myself instead of becoming insecure and feeling like the world is going to end. I can answer questions about my behaviour that my boss raises with confidence. I can also offer to them that I am good worker and can survive the job, yet would like their support in doing so.

I do not blame what happened today on it being a 'Korean' thing of the bosses being too harsh and cruel. I blame myself. I knew this crap was going to happen yet naively hoped it wouldn't. So I look at the mirror wipe away my tears and shape my fear into something formidable.

HA!

cut it short

With only 7 days left of work to go, my mind and soul thought that was too long. I checked my budget and made the decision. I will end work this Friday instead of next. Essentially cutting myself off from the money I would have earned next week. But I have learned in life that sometimes you need to make such kind of sacrifices to give yourself what you really want.

It has been an interesting past 9 months at this job. For those unaware I have been working at an Insurance brokerage company downtown. It is a small office with just about 6 other employees. To give you a picture of the environment here is an idea: I am the only young worker there in their 20's, they still use typewriters, the computers all run on old PC's and I am often asked to solve a very simple computer problem.

I have my ups and downs at this place. When I first started the job I didn't imagine that 9 months down the road I would be saying goodbye. Last year when I was looking for a job it took a lot of work and was very difficult. I would apply to about 10-15 job postings a day and get about 3-4 interviews a week. The interviews weren't encouraging either. Often I was seen by more than one interviewer at once. In my darkest hour of this time in my life I went to the mall across the street and sought employment at one of the shops. But instead going through with the interview I went back home in tears. I couldn't believe that after 6 years of college and graduating after beingg sseriously ill that I was going to take a sales job at minimum wage. That same day I posted my resume on Craigslist, and a day latter my current boss emailed me. To sum up I obviously got the job. At that time I thought there was some kind of universal magic going on.

So now when I think about my last day, I feel somewhat regretful. My boss had a lot of faith in me that I would strive to become an insurance agent and help his company out. But my heart and soul have their eyes set on a more adventurous future.

All in all this job allowed me to grow and mature. I learned not to take things personally and that when you work hard the reward is a satisfied feeling.

Well time to say goodbye:

Goodbye....

Olympic impressions

Update here on the buzz of the Olympic Torch.

I didn't go out and see it all for myself but I have to say the whole thing is quite impressive. I did see a bit of it from the office window. For those who don't know my office is on Sansome and Jackson street. My building is right in front of the Pyramid building. I believe when at the time when the route was drastically altered there were a large amount of protestors disoriented. At that time they spread out amongst the streets. I saw a large group of protestors go down Jackson street. Some went left and others went right. But it seemed most were lost.

Unfortunately I did not take any pictures of my own of this event. The ones posted here are taken from SF Chronicle online. As we all know there were a lot of protestors. I have been watching it Live on CNN without audio in my cubicle.

Yes, a big part of me wishes I were out there capturing it all. I will try not to fail on the next big event.





*Joy