Sunday Afternoon

I’m bad at using free time because I never have it and maybe I never have it because I just don’t know how to use it well. Today when I should have been making worksheets for my lessons this week, I went on a walk to the bus to the other side of town to pick up the necessaries for this blog and many more to come.

On my way, there were the usual street markets, street food vendors, and kids running everywhere.

Street food: Boiled eggs, imitation fish cake on a stick, spicy sticky rice cakes, and a skinny limpy hot dog slinking over to the edge of the stand

Then as I turned the corner of the post office I almost walked all over these guys playing Korean chess,

The models

I actually took this picture on my way back from Electronic Land 21 (where I picked up the cable to connect the digital camera to the computer, a memory stick, and an ethernet cord), which was an hour and a half later. They were still there so I asked to take a picture. The guy on the very right of the first picture was running a vegetable stand and said I’d have to pay 5,000 won (approx $5) per model. "That's all?" I said, then I took the picture and was on my way.

After I left it occurred to me, they were more than willing to chat with me. Most people in Korea are –especially old dudes who are just chilling out on a warm Sunday afternoon. This weekend when Becky and I went to Daeheungsa lots of harabeojis (“grandpas” or if you speak Spanish, a better equivalent is abuelitos) asked us questions and tried to get us to sit on a bench and chat. One lady couldn’t get over the fact at how Becky and I were the same height, and thus had to be sisters.

So then why did I leave and not talk to the chess players? After I left them I replayed what could have happened.

What are you playing?
What do you mean what are we playing?
Well I’m from America, I’m not too familiar.
Yeah! America? No wonder you talk funny. hahahaha….

There would be more talking, and they’d of course give me a picture and I’d have a better story for my picture. Now I’m not just looking for a cool story, but I’m realizing that there’s more potential for taking pictures than just recording my movements and sights. The pictures could be more meaningful to ya’ll who read this and look on. If I would just not be shy and take the time –which could be as little as just a couple minutes—to connect with the people I take a picture of instead of just creepily snatching their picture and running. Even though I asked the second time around and didn’t just snap and run (like the first one, which is why it’s so far away), I still could have spoken to them, like the little scene I just hypothesized. I think that would be more lasting, valuable, and just simply less objectifying. I can’t help but feel like that fetishizing, Western eye catching a very novel, sweet picture of the old men.

Taking the time to talk with the people I take pictures of would also probably also fulfill my need to connect with this world. Like I said, I’m so bad with my free time these days. I usually am, but lately I’m restless and a little lonely. Kristofer left on Sunday and I suddenly had so much free time from work. Free time! My dream fulfilled, but….now what do I do? So instead of just wondering, writing in my journal, and looking out my window, I grabbed my camera and off I went –and you can just see how great that was for my heart and brain. Why be shy? Why be afraid? So what I whore out my cultural difference, I am different, people all are different, when are we going to use it to talk instead of just view, observe, and judge each other?

So that’s my new mission as I fill the restlessness and make something new of my last two months.