inspiring notes from a bathroom stall

"teaching is learning the second time around"

"it's not what you know, but how much you use what you know"

What a good idea: putting inspiring quotes on the bathroom stall door. Now if I wasn't so distracted by the huge daddy long-legs waiting upside-down on the the chipped and fading sea green, wooden door frame while I balance myself squatting over the urinal in the ground careful not to get anything on my jeans that are folded up mid-calf, maybe I could ponder these words and the others (Mahatma Gandhi has been quoted as well). Although, as I look back at the waste basket holding all the tissues (only waste gets flushed) I think, maybe the next inspiring quote on the stalls should be, "it could be worse."

I promise I'm not a snob. My students and other teachers agree, the worst part about being at school in this cold weather is when we have to use the bathroom. Since the hallways are an icebox, we all wear three layers that's all gotta get stripped since we're not sitting on toilets but squatting low to the ground. Although, I guess I should be thankful for these flexible hip flexors because squatting is no problem for me, unlike what I've heard from some of the other teaching assistants. One friend, I won't name names...., was demonstrating her technique --half squatting on the balls of her feet (so squatting on tippy-toe) to compensate for not being able to get so low.

Although...getting too low can be scary, too. Then you're even closer to your stuff. It's quite a site seeing all that brown that close.

Ok...enough of the toilet humor.

Ha!

Well, at least at home, the toilet seat comes heated (ahhhhh).

Snowing in Seoul

It's snowing here!, I said

He asked me, What kind of snow does Seoul get?

Feels kind of wet to me.
* * *
Well, it's sticky, too. On my way down to the Ikea-like computer room, from the hostel window, there looked to be about 3 centimeters collecting (a little over an inch).

So at least in Seoul it finally feels like December. My body has been confused with whether to celebrate Mokpo's warm and cool October-like weather or not. I've always said I like it HOT, to be able to wear tank tops and flip flops all day long. But now that I've become increasingly germ conscious (too many traveling stories about people contracting sheep parasites in their feet from walking near sheep dung in flip flops; also, with little control over much in a homestay, I compensate by being OCD over little things: clean feet, clean pjs for lounging around and cleaner pjs for actually sleeping in bed, etc.), flip flops have lost their appeal. Now that I'm starting to get used to my covered up shoulders and neck, the thought of a tank top in public would really make me feel like a hussy (the message I get at the homestay sometimes).

Still. It's almost Christmas...and all I want for Christmas is you know who...and a little bit of snow. For a while I haven't been much of a holiday person --when you don't have your own tree to decorate it's hard to get into the spirit. Though, I've always had plenty of trees to visit at different houses and lots of family. After stopping to admire two "Merry Christmas" trees in a cold and nearly empty subway station today, I realized maybe I am a holiday person and any tree, any bit of whiteness outside, and any amount of family (even if it meant driving here and there) would be wonderful right now. Driving here and there is a lot easier than flying anywhere.

Especially to Ghana when you have to get through the Ghana Embassy in Seoul first. If you plan on doing that make sure you can put aside two weekends in Seoul --which includes a hostel, money for all the "Western" food you didn't realize you'd been craving (tacos, Indian food wait...Western food as in stuff you ate at home "out west" basically, anything not Korean...), and a strong gut so you don't give in to buying everything you see in order to look as fresh to def as everyone else-- as well as $2500 in U.S. dollars because the Ghana Embassy either wants to make sure that you can get back (I guess in case you lose your already purchased ticket) or...maybe so you can spend plenty of tourist money before you use that return ticket you already proved you have.

Well, thank you Ghana Embassy because though Mokpo is a comfy, tiny harbor city, there are sights you can't get there like you can here: Outback Steak House, foreigners of all kinds (white, black, southeast asian), massive mall food courts with an intricate yet very efficient food ordering system (a huge display case filled with plastic replicas of all the dishes available. this is next to several registers where you order and then your food is automatically ready at one of the food booths. so it looks the same as in the states, the difference is instead of ordering at the vendor you want to eat at, there is one register for all. to make it even easier, there are digital screens surrounding the court to let you know when your food is ready). Another plus: the hostel room comes complete with a clean bed, good heating, a fan, private little fridge (perfect for my yogurut--almost like liquidy yoghurt, so yummy and so healthy), and 70 channels of cable tv. I've already watched the end of Ben Affleck's Jersey Girl, Spider Man 1, and lots of Korean Music Television. Ashlee Simpson should try it out here in Korea cuz apparently lipsynching and not knowing the words to your own songs doesn't matter. You just gotta be cute, dance well, and feminine (no matter what your sex. a lot of the male singers look like transgender women!!). I guess that explains the two high school-aged boys I saw on the train today: one ran his fingers through the hair of his friend a few times. I suppose this isn't much to observe and note, but it is here...boys can get close, sit on each other's laps, embrace, hold hands, touch each other's faces, and that is something that you can not see in American high schools.

I just realized that the things that I said you can see in Seoul, you can't see in Mokpo...but you can see in the states (well, except for the straight male intimacy). But still...it feels like yet another foreign world coming to Seoul from Mokpo. I myself want to run up to foreigners and become their friend --no wonder people in Mokpo will scream to me and the white girls I'm with ("HIIII!!!!!"). In Seoul, most of the foreigners are just minding their business, but in Mokpo, I see their faces light up when they notice I speak English or they see me with the other foreign teachers (because remember, I blend in...).