Ugh Squared

Well, I had all of these grand plans to upload the photos from our recent adventures with the family Hosack but alas we have entered into "The Intensive Zone" and it is sucking the life-force out of me for sure. That's right summer in Korea can only mean one thing... more classes! Public schools are out and that means our little Korean workhorses errr I mean students are now taking an extra course in the mornings instead of doing what most of their American counterparts are doing: waking up at noon, playing video games all day, etc.

We switched a few things around schedule-wise as well, so instead of our normal 3-10 schedule we are now working various hours from 9-7. I've gone from teaching just under 19 hours a week to just over 31 hours. Luckily this will decrease some in a couple of weeks when we get another teacher. Then I'll teach 9:30-10:45 and 3-7. Head Teacher Sam teaches wayyyy less, in case you were wondering, so he has no excuse for not updating the blog. Except that he has actually been "working", but whatever :)

So, suffice it to say all I have gotten around to is uploading the 400+ photos we took in Jeju and loading the DMZ pictures to the picture page. I'll give you a couple of "teaser" pics from Jeju where Tom and Laurie climbed a mountain (literally) while Sam and I laid by the pool (literally).

Where to begin

So, I started writing this before Alison posted her most recent blog, but since I have been "working" i just forgot to finish it and post it. So here it is.

It has been 5 1/2 weeks since I posted last. In that time it was finalized that I would be taking over the head foreign teacher position at our campus when the current one would leave, my parents were here, I have assumed the position and responsibilities of my new position(not always fun), and gone on vacation. As Alison wrote, my family has been here since the 9th and they are leaving in the morning. It was great having them here, we did city stuff the first three days, and then they headed east for some hiking for three days, then we all left thursday morning for the resort island of Jeju, of the south coast of Korea, for four days. It truly was a vacation, not a trip. We went to the beach, sat by the pool, ate great food, took taxis everywhere instead of walking, and drank beer on the balcony before we turned in for the night. So now we are back. My job has changed more than I thought it would. I teach less classes(3 MWF, and 2 on TR, as well as covering 1 class for a teacher who will be here next week. The other teachers each teach 4, or in Alison's case, 5, classes every day). While all the other teachers primarily concerned with teaching classes, preparing lessons, and grading quizzes and essays, my primary concern is that this campus doesn't collapse in on itself. I field questions for the 5 new teachers that we have received in the past 3 weeks, as well as numerous issues that pop up every day from the veteran teachers, as well as requests from those who are above me. I haven't decided whether I like it more or less than teaching, but I do like. This campus is still relatively new, and there are still alot of loose ends about protocol and organization that I am attempting to sort out. Ok, back to work.

Sam

Christmas in July

So, Sam's family is finally here and we could not be happier to have them! It has been a whirlwind three days in which the Hosacks have managed to log over 50,000 steps according to Laurie's trusty pedometer, have been all over the city about 3 times, and have been thoroughly enjoying the company :)

The fam. was also nice enough to bring over two extra (bulging!) suitcases with stuff from home. It definitely felt like Christmas in July. Our parents hooked us up with a bunch of Weight Watchers treats, Crystal Light, macaroni and cheese, new shoes, and other various needed/craved items. Thanks to Mama Hughey for filling my "wish list" and then some! The best, though, was that Sam and Laurie worked together to suprise me with a 6 pack of actual-real-authentic Diet Coke! It had been 5 months since I tasted that glorious, chemically goodness (they have Coke Light here, which is just soooo not the same) and Sam asking for it/Laurie risking a carbonation explosion in her suitcase was just about the sweetest thing ever!

I neglected to take my camera anywhere the first 2 days, but today we went to the DMZ so as soon as I upload those pictures you should be getting a nice long post from Sam or myself on a most interesting day involving: our 4:30am wake-up time, a family portrait in North Korea, me breaking every rule they told us to strictly obey, a mini-riot at the City Hall subway station and a delicious galbi dinner. So, stay tuned!

The Death of a Skirt

... the end of an era. (Or, why I should not be allowed to use black dry erase markers ever again.)

Friday afternoon proved to be a tragic day in the life of my wardrobe. Now, this isn't the first time I have managed to get marker all over myself (the running office joke is that I am cursed with the black ones in particular), and normally it wouldn't warrant a blog posting. However, the spontaneous marker explosion (ok, I took the cap off and the tip fell out, so it wasn't quite that dramatic) that took place in first period resulted in this:

That's right... it was THAT skirt. The beautiful Anne Taylor skirt I have owned and worn for TWELVE years! I took my "Parkway School District Star 8th Grader" pictures in that skirt. I also took my High School Senior pictures in that skirt. It was the perfect summer weight and color. I literally shed a single rolling tear, knowing from previous experience that this stuff does not come out of clothing (although, from a bit of on-line research I've heard Murphy's Oil Soap works wonders, if you are ever faced with this delimma in a country that actually sells Murphy's Oil Soap).

However, when I got home and removed it I was faced with this, the ultimate skirt-death irony.

(no, you didn't read that wrong... it says "made in korea")

That's right, people, my skirt lived a long, full life, then came home to die. If that's not mildly hilarious, I don't know what is.