"Kindergarten Cop" is called "The Man Who Went to Kindergarten" in Korea

Oofta, I didn't realize it's been so long since my last post but I promise to get on a better schedule.  I can't say my life has been that hectic this last week but it's been an experience.  On Friday (the 28th) we had my welcoming dinner at my school.  I received a bouquet of flowers which made me feel like Ms. America (they forgot to give me a crown but that probably comes later in the mail or something).  After this, all of the teachers and I went out to dinner.  School dinners here differ greatly from any dinner I've previously had with co-workers in the sense that drinking is mandatory.  I'm not just saying that, you have a shot glass with your meal and it is constantly full of SoJu which luckily is starting to taste SoSo and I can tolerate it.  Most teachers were intimidated to talk to me at first but after a little liquid courage everyone wanted to test their English on me.  I received invitations to go rock climbing, play tennis, play billiards, and eat soup with various drunk teachers but when the morning came most were scared to talk to me again.  I'll just wait for the next school function for them to not be scared again.  

Unfortunately my co-teacher Heebok could not make it to the dinner but we did get to go out with a big group of TaLK scholars and their co-teachers on Monday.  Heebok and I finished our lesson planning early so we returned to my apartment to wait for dinner where we were pleasantly surprised by a legendary Arnold movie on.  In Korea they call it "The Man Who Went to Kindergarten" but we all know it as the one and only "Kindergarten Cop".  I have never seen someone become so engulfed in the plot as Heebok was.  We had to leave 20 minutes before the climactic ending and at one point during the night Heebok turned to me and said that he really wished he knew how that movie ended.  Looks like I know what he's getting in his stocking this Christmas.  I'm sure they sell that in a two pack with "Jingle all the Way" so it'll work out perfectly.  It was fun to see everyone and the night ended with Nareybong (I don't know how to spell it but it means Kareoke).  For the second time I felt compelled to rap "Forgot about Dre" just because I know all of Eminem's lines.  I don't do so well during Dre's parts.  Lauren and I also received a perfect score for our "Barbie Girl" duet which proves to all you haters that all the time we spent listening to that Aqua CD on cabin trips paid off.

I'm beginning to get a good feel for the layout of the city I'm living in.  There's a movie theater right down the street and a fire station which serves as a good landmark to tell taxi drivers to take me to.  Eventually they are going to think I either keep getting my cat stuck in a tree or have a fetish for little asian men in uniform.  Either way it belittles my manhood.  There's a nice outlet center near my place which has an English book store but I don't really trust their credentials.  They have a "speacial" way of spelling things and their. punction. isn't. always. the. best.  

I finally began teaching on Tuesday and I love it.  I teach a fourth, fifth, and sixth grade class and have around 30 students total.  The small classes are easy to control and my kids are much smarter than I thought.  I was dissapointed that most already had English names but there were some kids in my fourth grade class that got the pleasure of choosing from the list of my friends names.  Congrats Kevin, John, Dan, Tom, and Kane ... you all have a Korean prodigy.  Everyday I start my classes by showing them a clip from something from America.  So far the Anamaniac's nations song and Kermit the Frogs brilliant melody "rainbow connection" have made it here to Korea but I would love more suggestions.  I can't think of anything too comical that's happened in class but during passing time a little girl introduced herself to me and a student from my class (Steve) came up and told me not to talk to her because she is bad to which she raised her middle finger at him and yelled "Fuck you!" and started chasing him down the hall.  Good job little girl, you sure proved Steve wrong with your lady like behavior.  I need to prepare lesson plans for the week so I'm going to cut this short and I'll try to post again later this week but I end this post with my warmest wishes to all of you in America and a big salute to the red, white, and blue.