Just to lighten the mood a bit... :)
http://www.badmash.org/videos/videos_flv.php?v=drunk-bush512K_Stream.flv&t=Drunk%20Bush%20II
Watch it. It's hilarious. ;)
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Friday, February 17, 2006
Contract signing
Signed my first Korean job contract yesterday with what is arguably the best foreign language high school in Korea. I'm looking forward to working with the students, especially those with the debate team.
Things are starting to get more stable over here, and apart from the occasional blistering-cold days (-8 today), I suppose I'm settling down into a nice flow. My only problem is that I'm so in-demand as a trainer/coach that I'm doing work 7 days a week. I think I'm going to have to start turning down jobs pretty soon, if only to maintain whatever semblance of health I have left.
I'm grateful to all my friends in Korea, those whom I knew before I arrived, and those whom I have only recently met. :) It's always nice to know that there are friendly, decent people wherever you live. It's because of these people that I'm learning to bear my days as a single guy in Seoul.
Later, y'all.
Things are starting to get more stable over here, and apart from the occasional blistering-cold days (-8 today), I suppose I'm settling down into a nice flow. My only problem is that I'm so in-demand as a trainer/coach that I'm doing work 7 days a week. I think I'm going to have to start turning down jobs pretty soon, if only to maintain whatever semblance of health I have left.
I'm grateful to all my friends in Korea, those whom I knew before I arrived, and those whom I have only recently met. :) It's always nice to know that there are friendly, decent people wherever you live. It's because of these people that I'm learning to bear my days as a single guy in Seoul.
Later, y'all.
Thursday, February 09, 2006
What makes good friends stay friends for life?
A good friend of mine is about to get married in a few days, and I was just thinking about the ingredients of a successful friendship.
What makes good friends stay friends for life?
I've mulled over some of the usual comments, from "mutual respect" to "honesty and openness," and I've come to realize that while these are, indeed, important, there is one quality that, in my humble opinion, trumps them all: the willingness to forgive each other.
Friends aren't just the people who pick you up and make you happy. They aren't just the people who buy you birthday presents or help set you up with your crush. They are the people who can hurt you the most... the people who can disappoint you the most. Friends are the people you often expect to always make you smile, so it comes as an extra-painful realization to find out that they are also often the reason you cry the hardest in life.
Friends can say the most hurtful things. They can dash your fondest wishes, shoot down your most lofty ambitions, or even destroy your most secret of dreams.
But in order for me to still be friends with people like these, I often have to take that extra leap of faith that often defines the greatest of love affairs: the knowledge that none of these things were done to deliberately hurt me, and that many of these things were done to help.
I have to have faith that the person who is telling me not to pursue a career in law is doing so because he knows I wouldn't be happy living with the Philippine judicial system, or the person telling me that I'm not athletic enough to make the school basketball team is just helping me focus on my studies, so that I have a better chance in life. I have to have faith that the person who tells me that I'm getting fat isn't worrying about hurting my ego, but rather about protecting my heart. I have to have faith that the person who tells me I am not ready for a commitment to the girl I like isn't trying to discourage me from trying but to encourage me to better myself as a person, so that whatever love I may then be privileged to share will be all the stronger for it.
Unfortunately, the nature of human beings and pain is that we often shun the people we think hurt us, and the understanding that perhaps they were actually helping us doesn't often come until much later. I have had to examine whom I truly considered friends in my life, and have always had to make the choice: to forgive them for constantly "hurting" me, just as I rely on their goodness to forgive me for hurting them.
I'm not, by any measure, a perfect man. I have more flaws than most, in fact. But I do try to forgive those I know were willing to love me well enough to actually NOT give me everything I wanted, or tell me what I always wanted to hear. After all, these are the people who make me a better man, and I strive to be better, in part, because of them.
I will disappoint them; I will hurt them; and I will probably test their patience to the utmost limit... but if my friends and I are to last as friends for the rest of our lives, then nothing is more important than the willingness to forgive each other for all the myriad trials and tribulations we put each other through.
Any clown can make people laugh. It takes a true friend to still embrace those that make you cry the hardest.
So, to my dear, dear friend... please accept my most sincere and heartfelt wishes for a wonderful, wonderful life ahead. May you and your husband always find the time to reflect on what you each mean to each other, so that every tear you shed will not have to dry in vain. Besides, if you've been friends with me THIS long, you certainly have enough patience to deal with marriage anyway. = )
What makes good friends stay friends for life?
I've mulled over some of the usual comments, from "mutual respect" to "honesty and openness," and I've come to realize that while these are, indeed, important, there is one quality that, in my humble opinion, trumps them all: the willingness to forgive each other.
Friends aren't just the people who pick you up and make you happy. They aren't just the people who buy you birthday presents or help set you up with your crush. They are the people who can hurt you the most... the people who can disappoint you the most. Friends are the people you often expect to always make you smile, so it comes as an extra-painful realization to find out that they are also often the reason you cry the hardest in life.
Friends can say the most hurtful things. They can dash your fondest wishes, shoot down your most lofty ambitions, or even destroy your most secret of dreams.
But in order for me to still be friends with people like these, I often have to take that extra leap of faith that often defines the greatest of love affairs: the knowledge that none of these things were done to deliberately hurt me, and that many of these things were done to help.
I have to have faith that the person who is telling me not to pursue a career in law is doing so because he knows I wouldn't be happy living with the Philippine judicial system, or the person telling me that I'm not athletic enough to make the school basketball team is just helping me focus on my studies, so that I have a better chance in life. I have to have faith that the person who tells me that I'm getting fat isn't worrying about hurting my ego, but rather about protecting my heart. I have to have faith that the person who tells me I am not ready for a commitment to the girl I like isn't trying to discourage me from trying but to encourage me to better myself as a person, so that whatever love I may then be privileged to share will be all the stronger for it.
Unfortunately, the nature of human beings and pain is that we often shun the people we think hurt us, and the understanding that perhaps they were actually helping us doesn't often come until much later. I have had to examine whom I truly considered friends in my life, and have always had to make the choice: to forgive them for constantly "hurting" me, just as I rely on their goodness to forgive me for hurting them.
I'm not, by any measure, a perfect man. I have more flaws than most, in fact. But I do try to forgive those I know were willing to love me well enough to actually NOT give me everything I wanted, or tell me what I always wanted to hear. After all, these are the people who make me a better man, and I strive to be better, in part, because of them.
I will disappoint them; I will hurt them; and I will probably test their patience to the utmost limit... but if my friends and I are to last as friends for the rest of our lives, then nothing is more important than the willingness to forgive each other for all the myriad trials and tribulations we put each other through.
Any clown can make people laugh. It takes a true friend to still embrace those that make you cry the hardest.
So, to my dear, dear friend... please accept my most sincere and heartfelt wishes for a wonderful, wonderful life ahead. May you and your husband always find the time to reflect on what you each mean to each other, so that every tear you shed will not have to dry in vain. Besides, if you've been friends with me THIS long, you certainly have enough patience to deal with marriage anyway. = )
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
My first trek through the sludge that is snow...
I woke up yesterday expecting a relatively warm day (-2 degrees instead of -12 degrees Celsius the previous week), so I was actually contemplating going to work in a leather jacket, instead of my usual winter parka.
Thank God I didn't listen to myself.
When I stepped out the door, I was shocked to see the whole world suddenly covered in blinding whiteness. It's amazing to see how an entire landscape can change overnight, but that's what snow will do to you, I suppose. :)
I even took a picture, which I will upload just as soon as I figure out the Korean instructions on my camera phone. ;)
It was, in a word, breathtaking. It was like God decided to let the melancholy clouds kiss the earth a billion times over, one teardrop at a time. It was majestic. :)
Of course, after the initial admiration, I actually had to walk through all this snow (which hadn't yet been cleared from the streets), and let me tell you... doing this in leather shoes more suited to pavement than ice is NOT an easy thing... especially if your apartment is at the top of a small hill. :) It was very slow going to the subway, I can tell you that.... :)
In the end, though, despite the inconvenience of always stepping as if I valued my dignity, I really did have a grand time. I believe I walked throughout the day with a perpetual grin plastered on my face. How could I not? All my life I had seen sun-dappled grains of sand by the beach... this was my first full day's experience with the delicate whispers of winter's breath. :) My ears, cold as they were, for one full day at least, were happy to listen.
=)
Thank God I didn't listen to myself.
When I stepped out the door, I was shocked to see the whole world suddenly covered in blinding whiteness. It's amazing to see how an entire landscape can change overnight, but that's what snow will do to you, I suppose. :)
I even took a picture, which I will upload just as soon as I figure out the Korean instructions on my camera phone. ;)
It was, in a word, breathtaking. It was like God decided to let the melancholy clouds kiss the earth a billion times over, one teardrop at a time. It was majestic. :)
Of course, after the initial admiration, I actually had to walk through all this snow (which hadn't yet been cleared from the streets), and let me tell you... doing this in leather shoes more suited to pavement than ice is NOT an easy thing... especially if your apartment is at the top of a small hill. :) It was very slow going to the subway, I can tell you that.... :)
In the end, though, despite the inconvenience of always stepping as if I valued my dignity, I really did have a grand time. I believe I walked throughout the day with a perpetual grin plastered on my face. How could I not? All my life I had seen sun-dappled grains of sand by the beach... this was my first full day's experience with the delicate whispers of winter's breath. :) My ears, cold as they were, for one full day at least, were happy to listen.
=)
Monday, February 06, 2006
Updates
I finally feel like I'm settled in to Korean life (and the ghastly weather), and I suppose I should start updating my blog (thanks to a little nudge from a dear friend...).
What's happened so far:
1) I arrived in Korea late on January the 20th. The "apartment" I was hooked up with resembled a slightly expanded phone booth... and I'm not exaggerating when I say that. Needless to say, I am sorely disappointed. The hunt for a new apartment begins, even as I still try to figure out where I'm working and what my schedule will be like;
2) I get a cellphone (with the help of a dear friend), and select an apartment in a very pricey neighborhood. I figure I might as well save money by eating in (I can cook, after all) instead of by scrimping on my accommodations. It's my one big "luxury" here in Seoul, after all. I am VERY happy with the place, even though it's about 40% of the size of my old apartment in Bangkok, and about 3 times the price; in the meantime...
3) I start working at this language institute in Seoul (called a "Hakwon"), and begin to teach middle-school kids some debating. The kids are all cool, and I'm enjoying my classes, as well as the camaraderie I feel in the institute;
4) I apply to the top foreign language high school in Korea. I am up against a number of Ivy League grads, so I'm not holding my hopes up (decision to come by this week);
5) I start cooking for myself again. More than at any other point in my life. I mean, I can cook, but I have never actually cooked 4 straight meals for myself before (as I did last week). I'm saving money while doing all this, so I guess that's a major plus. My last dinner? A special chicken dish. :) Basically, I brown some chicken breasts on a pan along with some sliced garlic, adding some soy sauce, straw mushrooms, carrots and some special seaweed, flavored with oyster sauce and extra virgin olive oil. :) Mmmmmmmm... yummy. :)
That's about it for the updates, I guess. I just got paid for my first two weeks' work (payday is the 5th of every month), but I'm saving all this money to pay for rent and other expenses. Life is generally good here in Seoul, and I'm happy I have the opportunity to live and work in this fine country. The only thing I can possibly complain about is the extreme cold. It got to as low as -13 degrees (celsius) just a few days ago. No way is this my idea of paradise. :)
Hope everyone else is doing well. :)
What's happened so far:
1) I arrived in Korea late on January the 20th. The "apartment" I was hooked up with resembled a slightly expanded phone booth... and I'm not exaggerating when I say that. Needless to say, I am sorely disappointed. The hunt for a new apartment begins, even as I still try to figure out where I'm working and what my schedule will be like;
2) I get a cellphone (with the help of a dear friend), and select an apartment in a very pricey neighborhood. I figure I might as well save money by eating in (I can cook, after all) instead of by scrimping on my accommodations. It's my one big "luxury" here in Seoul, after all. I am VERY happy with the place, even though it's about 40% of the size of my old apartment in Bangkok, and about 3 times the price; in the meantime...
3) I start working at this language institute in Seoul (called a "Hakwon"), and begin to teach middle-school kids some debating. The kids are all cool, and I'm enjoying my classes, as well as the camaraderie I feel in the institute;
4) I apply to the top foreign language high school in Korea. I am up against a number of Ivy League grads, so I'm not holding my hopes up (decision to come by this week);
5) I start cooking for myself again. More than at any other point in my life. I mean, I can cook, but I have never actually cooked 4 straight meals for myself before (as I did last week). I'm saving money while doing all this, so I guess that's a major plus. My last dinner? A special chicken dish. :) Basically, I brown some chicken breasts on a pan along with some sliced garlic, adding some soy sauce, straw mushrooms, carrots and some special seaweed, flavored with oyster sauce and extra virgin olive oil. :) Mmmmmmmm... yummy. :)
That's about it for the updates, I guess. I just got paid for my first two weeks' work (payday is the 5th of every month), but I'm saving all this money to pay for rent and other expenses. Life is generally good here in Seoul, and I'm happy I have the opportunity to live and work in this fine country. The only thing I can possibly complain about is the extreme cold. It got to as low as -13 degrees (celsius) just a few days ago. No way is this my idea of paradise. :)
Hope everyone else is doing well. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)