Bikes, Masks, Dogs, and Champions

Dear extremely naughty 7 year old Korean boy,
You are testing my very last nerve; I'm about to bust a cap...it's a good thing you are so darn cute.

Well hello there my faithful readers, you are about to dive into a reading on my wacky weekly adventures. I think if I didn't blog, these crazy situations would become the norm...I hope that never happens..If they do become what's "normal," life back in the states will probably seem like such a drag. Anyways, let me do my best at explaining this week in a few short stories...

Right off the bat, on my Monday morning walk to work, I had a situation. I was walking, headphones in, music blasting, gettin' my walk on when I see out of the corner of my eye a bicyclist coming up behind me. This is normal, usually they just ring their little bell, I step to the side and the 85 year old pulls a wheelie and zips right past me..well after a few short seconds, I notice he is riding at the same pace as my walking..and I feel his stares...So, while I continue walking and he continues riding right next to me, I pull out my left ear bud and say, "Yes?" He says, "How old you?" I thought about not answering him for a second, but then decided this 60 year old man was harmless AND this would make for a good blog story..so i say, "I'm 22." He says, "No, you 18. (then starts spouting Korean for about 30 seconds)." And I say, "Uh, no, I'm 22. Do I look 18?" and he says, "No, you 18. (spouts more Korean)." Then he just rode off into the distance, probably to interrogate the next foreigner about her age.

The SAME night..I was riding home on my bus, again listening to my music..enjoying the 5 minute bus ride that is a 35 minute walk. However, I must have been "hacking" up a storm because this adorable little old lady, walks over to me and says, here, and motions to her mouth. I noticed it was a mask..like a surgical mask..like the masks everyone wore when Swine Flu reared it's ugly head last year...immediately I said, "Im so sorry." She just smiled and sat back in her seat..thankfully my stop was the next stop so I didn't have to break out the mask then and there...and just so you know..the mask was in a sealed package and is actually kinda comfortable. Here's a pic :)


I have a funny notion that she had been riding the bus with me all week and she bought this mask with me in mind..what a sweet way to say, "honey child, you best cover up that mouth and not spread them foreign germs round."

So, classes are going pretty well..but there is this ONE class who I just cant seem to get a handle on..it's actually this ONE student..his name is Subin..he is as cute as can be, but he is as naughty as they come..whoever says Korean children are way more well behaved than American children need to spend 10 minutes with Subin and they will think differently. So, I gave a test this week and I warned them and tried to prepare them all..and everyone did so well..actually they all got A's..well, except Subin..who particularly enjoys taking apart his chair and whistling through the lessons everyday. He did not do so hot..so when he saw all his friends got A's and he didn't even pass, he thought the solution to this problem was to shred his test to tiny pieces and throw them in the air making one loud grunt sound. I was fuming. I was a bit speechless. I was like, "why didn't I take education classes." As firmly as possible I grabbed the piece of chair he was currently taking apart and said, NO!" He didn't really respond..but the little girl across the room says, "Teacha, you strong." I said, "Thanks Sara." and she says, "Teacha, you are Champion." And it kinda made my day..my thoughts were, "Yeah, I am champion, all these kids just passed with A's and even spelled the word veterinarian correctly for pete sake!" Subin and I settled things after class and he picked up every single piece and put it in the trash. He is definitely still a struggle, and I'm sure I'll have more stories from him in the near future.

O.k. last story. This one I couldn't hold in..I just busted up laughing in front of my small adult class. So, this class is an hour long. It's pretty much just a conversation class. My students are from 22 to 31 years old. They are a great class. So, this week we were asking questions like, "Have you ever" So this is exactly how the conversation went:
girl to guy: "Have you ever had a pet?"
guy: "Yes, I had a pet dog"
girl: "When was the last time you had a pet dog."
guy: "The last time I had a pet dog was 13 years ago."
girl: "Why don't you have it now?"
guy: "We ate it."

My jaw immediately dropped, "NO WAY!" And he says, "Yes, of course." And after the initial shock wore off, we all started laughing. But it was true...so true. Different cultures.

So, thus ended my week of happenings. My weekend was pretty wonderful. Saturday, Elizabeth and I spent the whole day on the US airforce base here in Gunsan. We met a couple friends from church to play racquetball and basketball. We went and ate at a restaurant on base where I ate a burger and fries...so so so wonderful, so American..I really hadn't had beef in a month and a half. It was just great being surrounded by other Americans. Understanding their language, their culture, hearing the words "Excuse me," was all just music to my ears. Also, our friend Jon was able to show us inside one of the hangers (maybe it's not called a hanger?) and we got to see an F16..it was pretty awesome..seeing a plane that if war were to break out would be way up their fighting for me. And we topped off the day with watching the movie "Stardust." The company was great, the food was amazing, and the feel of being somewhere familiar was just fantastic.

Well..I hope you are healthy and full of joy today :) God Bless America!