What would you all think if I told you that election season was not over yet? I can hear the groans now. Thankfully, elections are over in the United States; however, today is election day in South Korea. And by today, I mean my today, Wednesday, December 19.
Elections are a big deal in South Korea. In fact, election day is a national holiday. Businesses are closed, banks and other institutions are shut down, and kids don't go to school. All of this so people can vote.
This year is the year of a presidential election, so it's something that everyone is paying attention to. In South Korea, the president is elected to a single five year term. There are several political parties in South Korea, but only two main parties, just like in the United States. Candidates are given a number to help identify them. The number you get depends on the popularity of your party. So, the candidate from the most popular party gets the number 1, the second most popular gets the number 2, and so on. There are banners all over the place with the candidates' pictures on them and their number. Since I don't watch Korean TV, I don't know if they do television commercials like in the United States, but I would assume they do.
However, South Korean political candidates use a couple other measures that are not seen in the United States. The first is advertising trucks. Trucks drive up and down the streets with an advertisement for a candidate playing. They are bright, colorful neon ads that can be heard from a ways away. Let's just say it's very annoying when they pull right up beside your vehicle when you're on your way to school at 6:30 in the morning while it is still dark.
Another unique advertising technique that is popular is the dance team. Each candidate will have a team that dances, sings, and chants in support of their candidate. These dance teams can frequently be found in downtown areas, on the corners of busy intersections, and in the open markets. They are accompanied by colorful signs telling which candidate they are supporting, and the dancers are all dressed in the colors of the campaign. For instance, the #2 candidate's colors are yellow and green. Therefore, the dance team for his campaign will be dressed in yellow and green. The dances they perform are very coordinated and synchronized (and kind of fun to watch).
The two main candidates in the election are Park Geun-hye from the current ruling party (candidate #1-conservative) and Moon Jae-in (candidate #2-liberal). (Note- In Korea, the last name is given first. Therefore, Park and Moon are the candidates' last names, not their first names.) Right now, Park Geun-hye has a slight advantage over her rival, but it is within the statistical margin of error. This could be a major election for South Korea, as Park Geun-hye could become the first female president of South Korea.
Now, you may be thinking, "This is all very interesting, Jessica. I'm glad you're aware of the political happenings in the country you are living in, but it really has nothing to do with me." While I understand this sentiment, the South Korean presidential election could have a lot to do with you. For one, the United States is allies with South Korea. Therefore, the U.S. needs to maintain a good relationship with the South Korean government, which is headed by the president. Two, the U.S. has a large military presence in South Korea because of its northern neighbor, a closed off communist country who is always threatening to make nuclear weapons and use them against the U.S. or its allies (like South Korea). Such a move could start a major war. Sixty years ago, the Korean War almost turned into World War III. You see, historically, Korea is known as a shrimp amongst whales. The whales were traditionally China and Japan, with both countries wanting to control the Korean peninsula as a launching point to conquering the other. During the Korean War, the U.S. and U.S.S.R. joined that fight. The war left the country divided. Ever since then, a big question is what will happen to the two countries. Will they ever be reunited? How will it happen? Much of the South Korean policy toward North Korea is determined by who is president. And what that policy is affects how the two countries interact. And that interaction will affect what the rest of the world, namely the United States, does. Some administrations have chosen to have nothing to do with North Korea. More recently, some administrations have embraced a "Sunshine Policy" towards North Korea. This policy means the South Korean government is trying to be friends with North Korea. The most notable accomplishment of this policy a few years ago was the opportunity for families separated by the Korean War to meet. However, this policy does not mean that the two countries are at peace. Technically, they are still at war from the '50s. For instance, a couple of years ago, a South Korean ship sank near the sea border with North Korea. The North also recently launched rockets at a border island, killing a few people, both civilian and military. As an ally with South Korea, the United States should care about its interactions with North Korea.
Now, I don't know what each of the candidates or parties think about relations with North Korea. But I do know that it matters who is elected president. I encourage you to pray for the election and for the country of South Korea.
On another note, it is almost Christmas! I will be spending Christmas in Iowa with my family. Yay! I am excited to see my family and hear first hand all about my sister Abby's experience studying abroad in Lithuania. It will be a good time. I will be there for two and a half weeks before returning to Korea to prepare for second semester. If you would like to do something, or even just catch up, I will have some time to do so. You can contact me via facebook, email, or my American cell phone number. I will have my American cell phone and the number is the same. I look forward to seeing many of you and catching up.
In the meantime, I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior!
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Monday, December 3, 2012
Harvest
It's finally time for the much awaited post about harvesting rice. No, the harvest did not just get finished. It's been finished for over a month. I'm just finally getting around to posting about it. It wasn't a time sensitive post describing what I've been doing, so it got pushed back until I finished updating you on the rest of my life. But it is finally time.
I'm going to let my pictures tell most of the story. The farmers harvested the rice using a combination of farm equipment and hand labor. The machines are a lot smaller than I'm used to seeing, but the fields also don't stretch for acres and acres. They are divided up into much smaller sections with little roads between them. Let me tell you, the narrow rice paddy roads can be lots of fun to drive on.
Here's how they actually harvest the rice:
The front end of the combine cuts the rice, then the rice is separated from the stalk, which is fed across the top of the combine before it is spit out the backside. The stalks are then left out to dry before being gathered into bales.
They then cover the bales with a white tarp, so the fields look like they are dotted by giant marshmallows. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the Korean version of the town of Chewandswallow.
The final step is burning some of the remaining detritus. Some fall days the air is very choked with smoke.
I hope you enjoyed your brief tour of the rice harvest. Tune in next spring to learn about planting rice and flooding the rice paddies. In the meantime, your tour guide will see if she likes rice paddies in the winter as much as she likes corn fields in the winter. My favorite time of year to look at the corn fields is during the winter. I just think they look so pretty covered in a light layer of frost, surrounded by the cold, clear air. Now I just have to figure out if the rice paddies look as nice during the winter. I'll let you know what I decide.
I'm going to let my pictures tell most of the story. The farmers harvested the rice using a combination of farm equipment and hand labor. The machines are a lot smaller than I'm used to seeing, but the fields also don't stretch for acres and acres. They are divided up into much smaller sections with little roads between them. Let me tell you, the narrow rice paddy roads can be lots of fun to drive on.
Here's how they actually harvest the rice:
The front end of the combine cuts the rice, then the rice is separated from the stalk, which is fed across the top of the combine before it is spit out the backside. The stalks are then left out to dry before being gathered into bales.
They then cover the bales with a white tarp, so the fields look like they are dotted by giant marshmallows. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the Korean version of the town of Chewandswallow.
The final step is burning some of the remaining detritus. Some fall days the air is very choked with smoke.
I hope you enjoyed your brief tour of the rice harvest. Tune in next spring to learn about planting rice and flooding the rice paddies. In the meantime, your tour guide will see if she likes rice paddies in the winter as much as she likes corn fields in the winter. My favorite time of year to look at the corn fields is during the winter. I just think they look so pretty covered in a light layer of frost, surrounded by the cold, clear air. Now I just have to figure out if the rice paddies look as nice during the winter. I'll let you know what I decide.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone is enjoying their Thanksgiving weekend with family and friends while remembering to give thanks for the many blessings God has given us. I was able to get a traditional Thanksgiving meal several times over the past week, so I'm not lacking in the turkey category. I was also able to watch a little bit of football, which really made it feel like Thanksgiving (my dad did a good job training me in that respect). I'm also thankful that the cold I had this week is starting to get better, due in part to having two days off school. Hallelujah for school breaks! The extra rest has helped a lot.
The thing I am most thankful for right now are many friends to celebrate the holiday with this year, which makes up a little bit for not being able to spend it with family. There are three groups in particular that I am thankful for (yes, there is some overlap among the groups).
Group 1: The PICS community. I am grateful for the staff community that exists at PICS. This group includes the other teachers, the staff members, and all of their families. One of the reasons this year is going so well is because of these people. They all care and are concerned about others. They've helped me when my carpal tunnel has acted up and told me where to find things or how to do something in Korea. It's a very fun group that is able to tease each other but can get serious when the situation calls for it.
Group 2: My church family. One of the things I was concerned about in moving was the kind of church I would be able to find. I have been very blessed to be a part of Mission Baptist Church (MBC). The church is made up of people from around the world, though mainly Americans and Koreans. With Osan Air Base just a few blocks away, there are many people at MBC who in the military. I am very thankful that I've been able to get involved in a wonderful women's Sunday school class. I've also become part of a Sunday "lunch crew." Every week after church I have lunch with the same group. There's usually about 8-10 of us, and sometimes we hang out at other times throughout the week (like we did last night). Because of the nature of the church's situation, the specific people in the group are a little bit in flux, simply because people come and go all the time. One of the members of the lunch crew recently went back to the States. In a few months, a couple more will be gone. But, just as people move on, we also get new people in our group. I'm very grateful that I have found MBC and become a member.
Group 3: My roommates. I am very thankful for my two roommates, Kari and Jennifer. Though we all come from different backgrounds and have different experiences, we all get along well. We have a lot of fun hanging out and talking. These two girls are my closest friends in Korea, the ones I can tell everything I'm think and feeling. I'm very thankful that I have found those kinds of friends here. We spent this afternoon decorating our apartment for Christmas, putting up our tree and listening to Christmas music. Then, we wrapped our presents and put them under our tree. We got most of the shopping for our families done when we were in Seoul a few weeks ago, so we really don't have to worry about it anymore. Now we can just enjoy our festive apartment, like I am doing as I write this post next to our Christmas tree with the lights blinking in the dark.
I am also thankful that in less than 1 month I will be back in Iowa for Christmas! I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends that I haven't seen since July. The new friends I've made here are great, but I'm excited to catch up with the old ones as well. All of your prayers and support have been much appreciated. I couldn't do what I'm doing without them.
Oh, and in case you were wondering, Fall Festival went very well. We raised a lot of money for the school, and there were no issues with Balloon Darts in my room. Everything went very smoothly, including when my roommate Kari got a pie thrown in her face.
The thing I am most thankful for right now are many friends to celebrate the holiday with this year, which makes up a little bit for not being able to spend it with family. There are three groups in particular that I am thankful for (yes, there is some overlap among the groups).
Group 1: The PICS community. I am grateful for the staff community that exists at PICS. This group includes the other teachers, the staff members, and all of their families. One of the reasons this year is going so well is because of these people. They all care and are concerned about others. They've helped me when my carpal tunnel has acted up and told me where to find things or how to do something in Korea. It's a very fun group that is able to tease each other but can get serious when the situation calls for it.
Group 2: My church family. One of the things I was concerned about in moving was the kind of church I would be able to find. I have been very blessed to be a part of Mission Baptist Church (MBC). The church is made up of people from around the world, though mainly Americans and Koreans. With Osan Air Base just a few blocks away, there are many people at MBC who in the military. I am very thankful that I've been able to get involved in a wonderful women's Sunday school class. I've also become part of a Sunday "lunch crew." Every week after church I have lunch with the same group. There's usually about 8-10 of us, and sometimes we hang out at other times throughout the week (like we did last night). Because of the nature of the church's situation, the specific people in the group are a little bit in flux, simply because people come and go all the time. One of the members of the lunch crew recently went back to the States. In a few months, a couple more will be gone. But, just as people move on, we also get new people in our group. I'm very grateful that I have found MBC and become a member.
Group 3: My roommates. I am very thankful for my two roommates, Kari and Jennifer. Though we all come from different backgrounds and have different experiences, we all get along well. We have a lot of fun hanging out and talking. These two girls are my closest friends in Korea, the ones I can tell everything I'm think and feeling. I'm very thankful that I have found those kinds of friends here. We spent this afternoon decorating our apartment for Christmas, putting up our tree and listening to Christmas music. Then, we wrapped our presents and put them under our tree. We got most of the shopping for our families done when we were in Seoul a few weeks ago, so we really don't have to worry about it anymore. Now we can just enjoy our festive apartment, like I am doing as I write this post next to our Christmas tree with the lights blinking in the dark.
I am also thankful that in less than 1 month I will be back in Iowa for Christmas! I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends that I haven't seen since July. The new friends I've made here are great, but I'm excited to catch up with the old ones as well. All of your prayers and support have been much appreciated. I couldn't do what I'm doing without them.
Oh, and in case you were wondering, Fall Festival went very well. We raised a lot of money for the school, and there were no issues with Balloon Darts in my room. Everything went very smoothly, including when my roommate Kari got a pie thrown in her face.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
All Work and No Play...
Where has the time gone? I feel like time is just flying by! I feel like I just got to Korea, but in reality, it's almost Thanksgiving and I've been here for almost 4 months. Life has really settled in over the past 4 months, especially in the past few weeks. While most of my life is pretty boring--wake up, go to school, tutor, come home from school, grade, and go to bed--I have taken the time to do something other than school the past few weeks.
First, I went up to Seoul with my roommates last weekend. We went to Insadong, which is a street in Seoul with lots of shopping. It is known for its art galleries, everything from paintings to pottery. Insadong is also a great place for souvenir type items, which happen to make great Christmas gifts. When we were in Insadong, I also bought a painting/wall hanging. These Korean paintings are painted on a thick, heavy paper and then mounted on a decorative background. There's a wooden rod on the bottom to help it hang straight, plus a ribbon at the top to hang it. I love these paintings! Most of the designs are of the Korean landscape, filled with mountains, trees, flowers, streams, and lakes. They are gorgeous! I bought one when I was here for student teaching, which is still in the States. I promised myself I would buy another one when I got to Korea to hang in my bedroom here, and I finally did it last weekend. Now I really smile every time I walk into my bedroom!
Here are some pictures from Insadong, including one with my roommate Jennifer. It was really crowded the day we went.
Now, before I go any farther, I'd like to take a few minutes to ask a few questions. What is the most commercialized holiday? What holiday was created solely to help a company sell more of its product?
If you answered Christmas or Mother's Day to either of the above questions, then you need to hear about Pepero Day. What is Pepero Day, you may ask? Pepero Day is celebrated on 11/11, and it is a day where you give Pepero to your friends, to your parents, to your teachers, etc. Now, I know most of you are wondering, what is Pepero? Well, Pepero is a Korean treat. It is a cookie stick dipped in chocolate. There a few different kinds: original, which is just regular chocolate; almond, which has pieces of almond stuck in the chocolate; and strawberry, which is strawberry flavored chocolate. The original are my favorite. Pepero Day was created by the company that makes Pepero as a way to sell more Pepero. And it worked! It is a very popular holiday, especially with kids. Student council did a fundraiser selling Peperograms, where students could buy Pepero to give to their friends, with a special note, that student council would deliver on Pepero Day. Since 11/11 was a Sunday this year, they did the deliveries on Friday. And, in case you were wondering, I did get Pepero from several of my students, including some homemade Pepero. It was yummy! Here's a picture of some of it:
Another fun thing going on right now is Fall Festival. Fall Festival is held at school every year, and every class creates and runs a carnival game out of its room. I am the 9th grade class sponsor, and they decided to run a game of Balloon Darts out of my room. Fall Festival is tonight, and they are getting ready right now. They just finished blowing up hundreds of balloons, creating a balloon mountain in one corner of my room.
Hopefully everything goes well tonight and there are no balloon avalanches! Or anymore water balloons like the one I just confiscated...
First, I went up to Seoul with my roommates last weekend. We went to Insadong, which is a street in Seoul with lots of shopping. It is known for its art galleries, everything from paintings to pottery. Insadong is also a great place for souvenir type items, which happen to make great Christmas gifts. When we were in Insadong, I also bought a painting/wall hanging. These Korean paintings are painted on a thick, heavy paper and then mounted on a decorative background. There's a wooden rod on the bottom to help it hang straight, plus a ribbon at the top to hang it. I love these paintings! Most of the designs are of the Korean landscape, filled with mountains, trees, flowers, streams, and lakes. They are gorgeous! I bought one when I was here for student teaching, which is still in the States. I promised myself I would buy another one when I got to Korea to hang in my bedroom here, and I finally did it last weekend. Now I really smile every time I walk into my bedroom!
Here are some pictures from Insadong, including one with my roommate Jennifer. It was really crowded the day we went.
Now, before I go any farther, I'd like to take a few minutes to ask a few questions. What is the most commercialized holiday? What holiday was created solely to help a company sell more of its product?
If you answered Christmas or Mother's Day to either of the above questions, then you need to hear about Pepero Day. What is Pepero Day, you may ask? Pepero Day is celebrated on 11/11, and it is a day where you give Pepero to your friends, to your parents, to your teachers, etc. Now, I know most of you are wondering, what is Pepero? Well, Pepero is a Korean treat. It is a cookie stick dipped in chocolate. There a few different kinds: original, which is just regular chocolate; almond, which has pieces of almond stuck in the chocolate; and strawberry, which is strawberry flavored chocolate. The original are my favorite. Pepero Day was created by the company that makes Pepero as a way to sell more Pepero. And it worked! It is a very popular holiday, especially with kids. Student council did a fundraiser selling Peperograms, where students could buy Pepero to give to their friends, with a special note, that student council would deliver on Pepero Day. Since 11/11 was a Sunday this year, they did the deliveries on Friday. And, in case you were wondering, I did get Pepero from several of my students, including some homemade Pepero. It was yummy! Here's a picture of some of it:
Another fun thing going on right now is Fall Festival. Fall Festival is held at school every year, and every class creates and runs a carnival game out of its room. I am the 9th grade class sponsor, and they decided to run a game of Balloon Darts out of my room. Fall Festival is tonight, and they are getting ready right now. They just finished blowing up hundreds of balloons, creating a balloon mountain in one corner of my room.
Hopefully everything goes well tonight and there are no balloon avalanches! Or anymore water balloons like the one I just confiscated...
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Alien, Fish, Plane
No, this isn't some sort of weird new game my students taught me. This is not a new version of rock, paper, scissors (though that game is very popular for decision making in Korea). No, it's not suggestions for Halloween costumes. Instead, it's a summary of my life for the past three weeks.
You may have noticed my lack of blog posts. Well, I've been busy. And while "alien, fish, plane" doesn't entirely explain the madness, it's a pretty good start.
Alien: I am now officially an alien. While you may be thinking that I've been one for a while, I am now legally acknowledged to be an alien--an alien resident in South Korea, that is. I couple weeks ago I finally got my Alien Registration Card, which is basically my ID card while I live in Korea. This means that all my paperwork is officially done. This is what my big visit to immigration was all about in September. Usually, this is all taken care of within the first few weeks of moving to Korea, but changes in regulations meant we had to wait a little longer to do it this time. But never fear, it was done in plenty of time, and now I am a legal alien.
One of the benefits of having my alien card is that I now have a Korean ID. That means I could get a contract cell phone if I wanted one. It also means that I can get a Costco membership. Yes, Korea has Costco. There are 7 locations in Korea, 4 of which are in the Seoul area. A group from the school goes about every 6-8 weeks to stock up on different items. Costco is nice because, besides allowing us to buy in bulk, it provides us with the opportunity to buy more "American" products. We are able to get products at Costco that we aren't able to get anywhere else in Korea. Some of it is more costly, but it is nice to be able buy some American things. Costco is the best place to go for cheese and sometimes meat. They also have more American brands of cereal, crackers, and candy. There are other items that appeal more to the Korean customer, ones that wouldn't show up in American stores--huge tubs of red pepper paste, for instance. The Koreans use it to season their food (Korean food tends to be spicy), so it is a staple. My Costco membership is also good in the States, so when I'm back in Iowa for Christmas or summer, I can stop by in case my family wants/needs anything.
Fish: The end of first quarter was last week, which meant loads of grading to finish up, plus getting grades done. It definitely kept me busy, especially as we had parent/teacher conferences immediately following the end of the quarter. Normally, the school doesn't have conferences immediately following the end of the quarter (it's usually the following week), but because of the volleyball tournament, they moved conferences up a week. Great so the coaches could be at conferences, but horrible timing for the end of the quarter. But I survived. I had a couple students fail, and I had to give their parents the (expected) bad news at conferences. The parents of all 9th grade students, as well as Ds and Fs were required to attend. It was optional for the other parents. Most of the parents who came were of the required students, but I was still fairly busy and didn't get as much other work done as I expected to.
However, end of the quarter and parent/teacher conferences was a stressful, exhausting time, so some of us decided to do something to celebrate the end of conferences. After conferences on Friday, we went to a salon right off the Strip for pedicures and Dr. Fish. We started with Dr. Fish, which is where you stick your feet in a pool of fish and they eat the dead skin off. It was a lot of fun! They don't tickle nearly as much as you might expect, and once you get used to them, you barely notice them at all. After we cleaned off all the dead skin, most of us also got pedicures to complete the relaxation time. Definitely worth it after a long week!
Plane: Songtan, where I live, is home to Osan Air Base. Osan AB hosts an air show once a year in October, and this year's show was last weekend. Attendance is open to the public, as long as you show ID. For me, this means I had to show my passport in order to get on base. I went with my roommate Kari, and while we had to wait in line for about 45 minutes to get in the gate (lots of people!), we had a blast. The air show had planes on display as well as demonstrations of different types of aircraft. The Black Eagles, the Korean flying demonstration team (equivalent of the Blue Angels), performed. Overall, it was really cool to see the different aircraft and hear about and see their capabilities. Kari's dad was in the Air Force, so she grew up around these planes. As a result, she was really nice to have as a companion, full of knowledge that I otherwise wouldn't have known, like what kinds of missions the different air craft are designed for. The only bad thing about the air show was it made me miss my dad. He really likes airplanes, so I knew he would have loved to be at the air show with me. He would have been much more fascinated by the inner workings of the planes, whereas I thought, "Oh, that one looks cool" and just kept right on walking.
Well, that's the summary of the past few weeks of my life. Start of a new quarter means lots of planning to do as we tend to start new units about this time. This week the 9th graders are starting to read Lord of the Flies, and next week the 12th graders are starting The Scarlet Letter. The grading also starts back up this week, with papers and tests to grade. Oh well. 'Tis the life of an English teacher. My wrist somehow managed to survive end of the quarter and conferences just fine (hooray!), though it's been hurting for the past 24 hours or so. Pray that the pain will subside and I will have no difficulties completing all my grading over the next few days.
You may have noticed my lack of blog posts. Well, I've been busy. And while "alien, fish, plane" doesn't entirely explain the madness, it's a pretty good start.
Alien: I am now officially an alien. While you may be thinking that I've been one for a while, I am now legally acknowledged to be an alien--an alien resident in South Korea, that is. I couple weeks ago I finally got my Alien Registration Card, which is basically my ID card while I live in Korea. This means that all my paperwork is officially done. This is what my big visit to immigration was all about in September. Usually, this is all taken care of within the first few weeks of moving to Korea, but changes in regulations meant we had to wait a little longer to do it this time. But never fear, it was done in plenty of time, and now I am a legal alien.
One of the benefits of having my alien card is that I now have a Korean ID. That means I could get a contract cell phone if I wanted one. It also means that I can get a Costco membership. Yes, Korea has Costco. There are 7 locations in Korea, 4 of which are in the Seoul area. A group from the school goes about every 6-8 weeks to stock up on different items. Costco is nice because, besides allowing us to buy in bulk, it provides us with the opportunity to buy more "American" products. We are able to get products at Costco that we aren't able to get anywhere else in Korea. Some of it is more costly, but it is nice to be able buy some American things. Costco is the best place to go for cheese and sometimes meat. They also have more American brands of cereal, crackers, and candy. There are other items that appeal more to the Korean customer, ones that wouldn't show up in American stores--huge tubs of red pepper paste, for instance. The Koreans use it to season their food (Korean food tends to be spicy), so it is a staple. My Costco membership is also good in the States, so when I'm back in Iowa for Christmas or summer, I can stop by in case my family wants/needs anything.
Fish: The end of first quarter was last week, which meant loads of grading to finish up, plus getting grades done. It definitely kept me busy, especially as we had parent/teacher conferences immediately following the end of the quarter. Normally, the school doesn't have conferences immediately following the end of the quarter (it's usually the following week), but because of the volleyball tournament, they moved conferences up a week. Great so the coaches could be at conferences, but horrible timing for the end of the quarter. But I survived. I had a couple students fail, and I had to give their parents the (expected) bad news at conferences. The parents of all 9th grade students, as well as Ds and Fs were required to attend. It was optional for the other parents. Most of the parents who came were of the required students, but I was still fairly busy and didn't get as much other work done as I expected to.
However, end of the quarter and parent/teacher conferences was a stressful, exhausting time, so some of us decided to do something to celebrate the end of conferences. After conferences on Friday, we went to a salon right off the Strip for pedicures and Dr. Fish. We started with Dr. Fish, which is where you stick your feet in a pool of fish and they eat the dead skin off. It was a lot of fun! They don't tickle nearly as much as you might expect, and once you get used to them, you barely notice them at all. After we cleaned off all the dead skin, most of us also got pedicures to complete the relaxation time. Definitely worth it after a long week!
Plane: Songtan, where I live, is home to Osan Air Base. Osan AB hosts an air show once a year in October, and this year's show was last weekend. Attendance is open to the public, as long as you show ID. For me, this means I had to show my passport in order to get on base. I went with my roommate Kari, and while we had to wait in line for about 45 minutes to get in the gate (lots of people!), we had a blast. The air show had planes on display as well as demonstrations of different types of aircraft. The Black Eagles, the Korean flying demonstration team (equivalent of the Blue Angels), performed. Overall, it was really cool to see the different aircraft and hear about and see their capabilities. Kari's dad was in the Air Force, so she grew up around these planes. As a result, she was really nice to have as a companion, full of knowledge that I otherwise wouldn't have known, like what kinds of missions the different air craft are designed for. The only bad thing about the air show was it made me miss my dad. He really likes airplanes, so I knew he would have loved to be at the air show with me. He would have been much more fascinated by the inner workings of the planes, whereas I thought, "Oh, that one looks cool" and just kept right on walking.
Well, that's the summary of the past few weeks of my life. Start of a new quarter means lots of planning to do as we tend to start new units about this time. This week the 9th graders are starting to read Lord of the Flies, and next week the 12th graders are starting The Scarlet Letter. The grading also starts back up this week, with papers and tests to grade. Oh well. 'Tis the life of an English teacher. My wrist somehow managed to survive end of the quarter and conferences just fine (hooray!), though it's been hurting for the past 24 hours or so. Pray that the pain will subside and I will have no difficulties completing all my grading over the next few days.
Saturday, October 6, 2012
Because of Love
The past few weeks God has really been reminding me to remember the cross and what Christ's death really means. With moving to a new country, I spend a lot of time focused on myself and on what I need to do or figure out. However, God has been tugging at my heart, turning it back to himself, prodding me to seriously meditate on the Cross. So, as part of that meditation, I have written a poem about Christ's sacrifice and God's love. I share it as a reminder to myself and so you can see what I've been struggling with. My prayer is that it points you to Christ and what He's done for all of us.
"Because of Love"
Jesus Christ, Son of God
And Son of Man
Came to earth to die
For my sins
Because of love.
I have done nothing to deserve
This gift, yet here it is.
My sins are piles of trash,
Rotting in the streets, putrid.
But still He came and died
Because of love.
Looming great in my mind,
Ever present and large,
Stands the cross, the cross of Calvary.
How could I forget what God has done
Because of love.
I can only stand in awe and
Amazement because of Christ's sacrifice,
Generous, gracious, and undeserved.
Why would the Son of God humble himself?
Because of love.
Yet, how often do I forget?
How often do I act like
Christ has done nothing,
Like His sacrifice is worthless?
Because of love
He came and died.
Died for me, died for you.
Every day I should remember and praise
His Holy Name for His mercy and grace
Because of love.
This love surpasses all:
It goes beyond what any man
Could measure or comprehend.
God sent His only Son
Because of love.
My life is changed;
I am no longer the same.
I no longer serve myself,
But Christ who lives in me
Because of love.
The power of His love
Far surpasses anything else.
Blind see and lame walk,
Sins are forgiven and washed away
Because of love.
How do I live as a result?
I give my life to Christ,
All of it.
Nothing is my own anymore
Because of love.
My life is given in service to God,
Wherever and whenever it may take me.
Sharing this great gift, never silent,
The entire world needs to hear.
And He gets all the glory
Because of love.
"Because of Love"
Jesus Christ, Son of God
And Son of Man
Came to earth to die
For my sins
Because of love.
I have done nothing to deserve
This gift, yet here it is.
My sins are piles of trash,
Rotting in the streets, putrid.
But still He came and died
Because of love.
Looming great in my mind,
Ever present and large,
Stands the cross, the cross of Calvary.
How could I forget what God has done
Because of love.
I can only stand in awe and
Amazement because of Christ's sacrifice,
Generous, gracious, and undeserved.
Why would the Son of God humble himself?
Because of love.
Yet, how often do I forget?
How often do I act like
Christ has done nothing,
Like His sacrifice is worthless?
Because of love
He came and died.
Died for me, died for you.
Every day I should remember and praise
His Holy Name for His mercy and grace
Because of love.
This love surpasses all:
It goes beyond what any man
Could measure or comprehend.
God sent His only Son
Because of love.
My life is changed;
I am no longer the same.
I no longer serve myself,
But Christ who lives in me
Because of love.
The power of His love
Far surpasses anything else.
Blind see and lame walk,
Sins are forgiven and washed away
Because of love.
How do I live as a result?
I give my life to Christ,
All of it.
Nothing is my own anymore
Because of love.
My life is given in service to God,
Wherever and whenever it may take me.
Sharing this great gift, never silent,
The entire world needs to hear.
And He gets all the glory
Because of love.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Everland
Well, Chusok break is now over, so it's back to school and back to grading papers and tests. However, I had a fantastic break, very restful and relaxing, so I'm okay with that.
I spent all day Monday at Everland, a kind of Korean Disneyland. It even has different characters and parades throughout the day. One of the best parts about Everland, in my opinion, is that it is nestled amongst the Korean mountains. While that unfortunately means the park has a lot of very big hills, it also means that it has gorgeous views of the Korean countryside.
We made a full day of our trip, leaving at 8 a.m. and not getting back until after 11 p.m. Thankfully, we never got stuck in traffic. It normally takes about 45 minutes to get to Everland from Songtan, which is what it took to get there in the morning. That evening it only took us 35 minutes to get back. Hooray for no Chusok traffic! It was a long but fun day. The park itself was only moderately crowded, giving longer waits for the most popular rides, but not enough to be a deterrent.
The park had all sorts of rides, including kids rides, roller coasters, spinning rides, and upside down rides. The park also has some animals and a Safari where you can see lions and tigers and bears, oh my! The most popular ride, however, is the T Express. The T Express is a huge wooden roller coaster that claims to have the steepest drop of a roller coaster in the world. One of the hills drops down at a 70 degree angle, which feels like straight down when you're on it. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to ride, but hopefully next time I will get to.
Doesn't that look like fun?!
We ended our trip to Everland by watching the light parade after dark, where all the floats and characters are covered with lights. After the parade there was a massive light and fireworks show. It was pretty cool. It told a story about how light was created but then a dragon came and threatened the light, only to be defeated by a phoenix rising from the fire created by the fire-breathing dragon. The fireworks went off to celebrate the victory. There's probably much more to the story, but that's all I was able to gather from the action, since the actual story was told in Korean. The lights and fireworks were cool, though, and all set to music.
From the light parade
I spent all day Monday at Everland, a kind of Korean Disneyland. It even has different characters and parades throughout the day. One of the best parts about Everland, in my opinion, is that it is nestled amongst the Korean mountains. While that unfortunately means the park has a lot of very big hills, it also means that it has gorgeous views of the Korean countryside.
We made a full day of our trip, leaving at 8 a.m. and not getting back until after 11 p.m. Thankfully, we never got stuck in traffic. It normally takes about 45 minutes to get to Everland from Songtan, which is what it took to get there in the morning. That evening it only took us 35 minutes to get back. Hooray for no Chusok traffic! It was a long but fun day. The park itself was only moderately crowded, giving longer waits for the most popular rides, but not enough to be a deterrent.
The park had all sorts of rides, including kids rides, roller coasters, spinning rides, and upside down rides. The park also has some animals and a Safari where you can see lions and tigers and bears, oh my! The most popular ride, however, is the T Express. The T Express is a huge wooden roller coaster that claims to have the steepest drop of a roller coaster in the world. One of the hills drops down at a 70 degree angle, which feels like straight down when you're on it. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to ride, but hopefully next time I will get to.
We ended our trip to Everland by watching the light parade after dark, where all the floats and characters are covered with lights. After the parade there was a massive light and fireworks show. It was pretty cool. It told a story about how light was created but then a dragon came and threatened the light, only to be defeated by a phoenix rising from the fire created by the fire-breathing dragon. The fireworks went off to celebrate the victory. There's probably much more to the story, but that's all I was able to gather from the action, since the actual story was told in Korean. The lights and fireworks were cool, though, and all set to music.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Chusok
This week was a rough week at school. I had to give several students a bad grade on a paper because of bad choices they made (no cheating, thankfully), and the effects of that lasted most of the week. Please pray that these students will make wise choices in the future and that there will be no more fallout from this week.
But what's one thing that always makes a rough week look better? How about a 5 day weekend? Thankfully, that's exactly what I am enjoying right now, all thanks to Chusok. Chusok is the Korean thanksgiving holiday. It is one of the biggest holidays in Korea. The celebration takes place over three days. This year the main holiday falls on Sunday, with the celebration extending to Saturday and Monday. However, the school was generous and gave us Monday through Wednesday off. Hooray for a two day week!
Chusok falls sometime at the end of September to the beginning of October each year. The exact date varies from year to year, depending on the lunar calendar. Its celebration corresponds to the harvest. Just like American Thanksgiving, most people travel to visit family for the holiday. Families get together and enjoy a big meal. However, before they can enjoy this meal, the family first offers it to the ancestors. Traditionally, this was part of the ancestor worship and done to honor the ancestors. Another big part of Chusok is gift giving. Traditional Chusok gifts include big boxes of fruit (like apples, grapes, and kiwi), dried seaweed, soap, toothpaste, and Spam. And I'm not talking about a package or two of Spam but about a big box with 12 cans of Spam. People traditionally give gifts to the family they visit, their landlord, their boss, their pastor, and, for children, their teachers. Basically, Koreans generally give Chusok gifts to people who are in a higher position than them, one deserving of respect. While I am a teacher who does have Korean students, I did not get any Chusok presents this year. Generally, more elementary teachers at PICS get Chusok gifts than high school teachers. Last year my roommates received 3 boxes of grapes and couldn't eat them all before they went bad. This year only one of my roommates got one Chusok present from a student: some perfume. And, just to clarify, gifts of soap, toothpaste, or perfume are not trying to send a subtle message that you smell bad or are dirty. It is just tradition.
Since we have 5 days off of school, one might think that it would be a good time to travel and explore. However, because most Koreans travel for the holiday, the roads are a mess. As a result, it is much better to stay put. The only place you can really go and not get stuck in traffic is Seoul because most people leave Seoul to visit family in smaller cities and villages. You may still get stuck in traffic on the way home and be stuck in basically a parking lot for several hours. Using the subway is a much better way to travel since you can at least keep moving.
Yesterday I went with two other teachers, Nicole and Kari, to Seoul to go ice skating. There is an indoor ice skating rink at Lotte World, an indoor amusement park. You can use the skating rink without paying admission to the rest of the park. We took the subway in and out of Seoul and had no problems. It wasn't very crowded, especially for a Saturday. We had a lot of fun skating, though there was definitely some cultural differences between ice skating in the States and ice skating in Korea. First, everyone has to wear gloves in order to be allowed on the rink. If you didn't have gloves, you had to buy some there for 600 won (about 60 cents). Second, many people, adults and children alike, were wearing helmets. At first they were trying to insist that we had to wear helmets, because we were women, but since there were other women not wearing helmets, it is more likely that they wanted us to wear helmets because we were foreigners. However, once we had our skates on and were ready to go out on the ice, we took off the helmets and no one bothered us about them. Apparently the helmet rule was one they were not enforcing. The gloves rule they did enforce, though. Another cultural experience to ice skating was the two safety guys. They skated around the rink, making sure everyone was following the rules and clearing the rink when it was time to clean the ice. They also wore gloves while on the ice. One of the safety guys wore pink gloves (a very Korean thing to do) as well as fuzzy pink ears (also a very Korean thing to do). Definitely not something you would see in the United States.
Nicole and Kari in a very Korean pose.
The safety guy wearing pink gloves and pink fuzzy ears.
After ice skating we went out for frozen yogurt at a place called Snow Spoon Cafe. It is a self-serve yogurt place like Lemon Tree. They had several varieties of frozen yogurt with many different toppings, especially fruit, along with a few different syrup choices, including "pignacolada." I guess Spanish to Korean to English translation doesn't work very well.
Tomorrow I am heading to Everland, which is the Korean version of Disneyland. I'm looking forward to the rides and experiencing the Korean version of an amusement park. Because it's still the Korean holiday, the park shouldn't be that busy. Plus, Everland is offering a discount to foreigners, so I can get in for almost half-price. I am going with about 9 other people from the school, so it should be a fun time. One of the other teachers is driving because it is hard to get to Everland using public transportation. The only downside to this plan is that we might get stuck in traffic on the way home. Thankfully, we will be going in a vehicle that is large enough to qualify for the bus lane, which will move faster than the other lanes of traffic. My plans for Tuesday and Wednesday currently consist of a lot of relaxing, without too much else going on. All in all, it should be a very good break before the final push to the end of the first quarter complete with plenty of tests and papers. But in the meantime, happy Chusok!
But what's one thing that always makes a rough week look better? How about a 5 day weekend? Thankfully, that's exactly what I am enjoying right now, all thanks to Chusok. Chusok is the Korean thanksgiving holiday. It is one of the biggest holidays in Korea. The celebration takes place over three days. This year the main holiday falls on Sunday, with the celebration extending to Saturday and Monday. However, the school was generous and gave us Monday through Wednesday off. Hooray for a two day week!
Chusok falls sometime at the end of September to the beginning of October each year. The exact date varies from year to year, depending on the lunar calendar. Its celebration corresponds to the harvest. Just like American Thanksgiving, most people travel to visit family for the holiday. Families get together and enjoy a big meal. However, before they can enjoy this meal, the family first offers it to the ancestors. Traditionally, this was part of the ancestor worship and done to honor the ancestors. Another big part of Chusok is gift giving. Traditional Chusok gifts include big boxes of fruit (like apples, grapes, and kiwi), dried seaweed, soap, toothpaste, and Spam. And I'm not talking about a package or two of Spam but about a big box with 12 cans of Spam. People traditionally give gifts to the family they visit, their landlord, their boss, their pastor, and, for children, their teachers. Basically, Koreans generally give Chusok gifts to people who are in a higher position than them, one deserving of respect. While I am a teacher who does have Korean students, I did not get any Chusok presents this year. Generally, more elementary teachers at PICS get Chusok gifts than high school teachers. Last year my roommates received 3 boxes of grapes and couldn't eat them all before they went bad. This year only one of my roommates got one Chusok present from a student: some perfume. And, just to clarify, gifts of soap, toothpaste, or perfume are not trying to send a subtle message that you smell bad or are dirty. It is just tradition.
Since we have 5 days off of school, one might think that it would be a good time to travel and explore. However, because most Koreans travel for the holiday, the roads are a mess. As a result, it is much better to stay put. The only place you can really go and not get stuck in traffic is Seoul because most people leave Seoul to visit family in smaller cities and villages. You may still get stuck in traffic on the way home and be stuck in basically a parking lot for several hours. Using the subway is a much better way to travel since you can at least keep moving.
Yesterday I went with two other teachers, Nicole and Kari, to Seoul to go ice skating. There is an indoor ice skating rink at Lotte World, an indoor amusement park. You can use the skating rink without paying admission to the rest of the park. We took the subway in and out of Seoul and had no problems. It wasn't very crowded, especially for a Saturday. We had a lot of fun skating, though there was definitely some cultural differences between ice skating in the States and ice skating in Korea. First, everyone has to wear gloves in order to be allowed on the rink. If you didn't have gloves, you had to buy some there for 600 won (about 60 cents). Second, many people, adults and children alike, were wearing helmets. At first they were trying to insist that we had to wear helmets, because we were women, but since there were other women not wearing helmets, it is more likely that they wanted us to wear helmets because we were foreigners. However, once we had our skates on and were ready to go out on the ice, we took off the helmets and no one bothered us about them. Apparently the helmet rule was one they were not enforcing. The gloves rule they did enforce, though. Another cultural experience to ice skating was the two safety guys. They skated around the rink, making sure everyone was following the rules and clearing the rink when it was time to clean the ice. They also wore gloves while on the ice. One of the safety guys wore pink gloves (a very Korean thing to do) as well as fuzzy pink ears (also a very Korean thing to do). Definitely not something you would see in the United States.
After ice skating we went out for frozen yogurt at a place called Snow Spoon Cafe. It is a self-serve yogurt place like Lemon Tree. They had several varieties of frozen yogurt with many different toppings, especially fruit, along with a few different syrup choices, including "pignacolada." I guess Spanish to Korean to English translation doesn't work very well.
Tomorrow I am heading to Everland, which is the Korean version of Disneyland. I'm looking forward to the rides and experiencing the Korean version of an amusement park. Because it's still the Korean holiday, the park shouldn't be that busy. Plus, Everland is offering a discount to foreigners, so I can get in for almost half-price. I am going with about 9 other people from the school, so it should be a fun time. One of the other teachers is driving because it is hard to get to Everland using public transportation. The only downside to this plan is that we might get stuck in traffic on the way home. Thankfully, we will be going in a vehicle that is large enough to qualify for the bus lane, which will move faster than the other lanes of traffic. My plans for Tuesday and Wednesday currently consist of a lot of relaxing, without too much else going on. All in all, it should be a very good break before the final push to the end of the first quarter complete with plenty of tests and papers. But in the meantime, happy Chusok!
Monday, September 17, 2012
Korean-American Friendship Festival
This weekend was the Korean-American Friendship Festival on the Strip near Osan Air Force Base. The Strip is a walking mall right outside Osan's main gate. It has tons of restaurants and stores of all sorts. Thanks to the Strip, I've had Thai, Mexican, Turkish, Brazilian, Chinese, and Japanese food (in addition to American and Korean) since coming to South Korea. There are also carts and booths set up in the middle, where you can buy more food, souvenirs, and bootleg DVDs. The Strip is kind of a cool downtown area, though one that is best avoided on Friday and Saturday nights when the military personnel are all heading to the bars. Here's some pictures of the Strip on a regular weekday.
The Korean-American Friendship Festival took over the Strip and the surrounding streets on Saturday and Sunday. There were tons of booths set up with food and other items for sale. There were also some rides available for children. It reminded me a little bit of a "mini" state fair.
I went with one of my roommates, Kari, and we had a lot of fun walking around, talking, and eating a lot of food. We went right after church on Sunday, and it wasn't very busy. We had been in the area Saturday night for something else, and it was packed. It was nice to be there without the crowds, as we were able to walk comfortably down the street and we didn't have to wait in line for food. The festival had all sorts of food, including several varieties of Korean and American food. For American food, there was everything from burgers, hot dogs, and brats to snow cones and funnel cakes (yum!). I even found corn on the cob (on a stick, no less).
For Korean food, they had kimchi (of course!), fish, squid, rice, and other tasty treats, including one Korean delicacy: silkworm larvae (see picture below). Most of the Korean food booths had plastic examples of their food displayed, which is typical in Korea. Restaurants in the food court do it too. It can be hard to tell if it is plastic or not, but the food in the display pictured below is plastic.
I had two Korean dishes for lunch, both very tasty. The first was a meat popsicle; it is just meat on a stick. I had one made of chicken that was covered in some sort of sauce.
After that, I had something that I believe could be the next hot food item at the Iowa State Fair. It meets both criteria for popular state fair food: deep fried and on a stick. It is called the Potato Twist.
It starts as a regular potato on a stick that a machine cuts into a spiral pattern. After the potato has been "twisted," it is deep fried. Once it is cooked, the potato twist is rolled in salt and seasoning so that it coats the outside of the twist. It is delicious! It's just a deep-fried potato, so it tastes somewhere between a potato chip and a french fry. Wouldn't that go over wonderfully at the state fair?
The Korean-American Friendship Festival took over the Strip and the surrounding streets on Saturday and Sunday. There were tons of booths set up with food and other items for sale. There were also some rides available for children. It reminded me a little bit of a "mini" state fair.
I went with one of my roommates, Kari, and we had a lot of fun walking around, talking, and eating a lot of food. We went right after church on Sunday, and it wasn't very busy. We had been in the area Saturday night for something else, and it was packed. It was nice to be there without the crowds, as we were able to walk comfortably down the street and we didn't have to wait in line for food. The festival had all sorts of food, including several varieties of Korean and American food. For American food, there was everything from burgers, hot dogs, and brats to snow cones and funnel cakes (yum!). I even found corn on the cob (on a stick, no less).
For Korean food, they had kimchi (of course!), fish, squid, rice, and other tasty treats, including one Korean delicacy: silkworm larvae (see picture below). Most of the Korean food booths had plastic examples of their food displayed, which is typical in Korea. Restaurants in the food court do it too. It can be hard to tell if it is plastic or not, but the food in the display pictured below is plastic.
I had two Korean dishes for lunch, both very tasty. The first was a meat popsicle; it is just meat on a stick. I had one made of chicken that was covered in some sort of sauce.
After that, I had something that I believe could be the next hot food item at the Iowa State Fair. It meets both criteria for popular state fair food: deep fried and on a stick. It is called the Potato Twist.
It starts as a regular potato on a stick that a machine cuts into a spiral pattern. After the potato has been "twisted," it is deep fried. Once it is cooked, the potato twist is rolled in salt and seasoning so that it coats the outside of the twist. It is delicious! It's just a deep-fried potato, so it tastes somewhere between a potato chip and a french fry. Wouldn't that go over wonderfully at the state fair?
Friday, September 14, 2012
Haircuts, Volleyball, and Immigration
Well, after two weeks of not posting, I figured that I should update everyone on what has been going on here. We haven't had any more typhoons or tropical storms, yet. There is one on the way, though. Typhoon Sanba is supposed to hit Korea on Monday; however, the track of the storm seems to be east of Pyongtaek, meaning we will only get minimal rain and that's about it. All in all, probably a lot of hype for nothing.
My last two weeks have been spent doing more than just watching out for possible typhoons. I have been really busy with school things and with other personal things. To start with, school. As crazy as it sounds, we are already halfway through the first quarter. Progress reports come out on Tuesday, which is something both the students and I have a hard time believing. Didn't school just start? Anyway, now that we are 5 weeks into the quarter, units are starting to finish up, resulting and tests and papers and lots of grading. Overall, the students did very well on both their tests and papers. Right now I'm in a bit of a grading lull, which is good because in a few weeks every single class has a test or paper due (or both). I will definitely be grading a lot during that time. In all of this, my carpal tunnel is doing okay. It has been bothering me some, but the pain hasn't been killing me. It is a livable kind of pain, which right now I am glad to get. I've had the "why are you wearing that brace?" talk with all of my students now, so the entire high school knows about my carpal tunnel and have been asking about it. I've been also keeping busy with planning for future units as well as completing my year plans. All teachers have to generally outline what they are doing each month for the entire year, including what standards will be covered. These plans are due at the end of September. I have figured out approximately what I will be doing each month; now I just need to put the standards in. The nice (and sometimes frustrating) thing about English is that you can cover almost any strategy with any unit, it's just a matter of what approach you want to take to analyzing literature and what you want to focus on. Some units lend themselves better to certain standards and strategies than others, but many of the standards could apply for every single unit. The tricky part comes in figuring out which units should cover which standards, which is what I have left to do with my year plans. Thankfully I have a couple more weeks to finish them.
But enough talk about school. Last week I bit the bullet and got my haircut in Korea for the first time. When I was here for student teaching, I just let my hair grow because I was afraid to have someone I couldn't communicate with cut my hair. You see, I really, really, really like my haircut. I've had the same haircut for about 6 years, and it is so easy and looks nice without a lot of effort. People compliment me on it all the time, even complete strangers! So I decided last time not to even mess with it, but just to deal with it until I got back to Iowa and Bridget could cut it. This time I knew that was not going to happen. One, it would be longer until I got back to Iowa. Two, I hate my hair when it gets too long! I absolutely love my short hair, so when it gets to a certain point (long for me), I have to get it cut or it just drives me crazy. Since I was going to have to get it cut in South Korea anyway, I decided to do it before my hair got too long. And as an added bonus, one of my roommates needed to get a haircut, so I was able to go with her. We went to a place across near the main gate of Osan Air Force Base, giving us a good chance that the stylist spoke at least a little English. And she did, enough to explain that I wanted a trim, in the same style, and that the back was kind of layered. She took it from there. I was nervous the entire time. When you have long hair and you don't like the haircut, it's pretty easy to put it up in a ponytail until it grows back. Not so with short hair. It is what it is, and everybody can see it. And I had no idea what I was going to get. When it was done, I looked in the mirror at both the front and the back. It wasn't exactly like how my hair is normally cut, but I still liked it. The back wasn't layered or stacked exactly like it usually is (slightly longer right now), but it is short enough. The sides are cut slightly differently too, but not enough to throw off the entire haircut. Overall, I am very happy with the haircut and am very glad that it is short again! Yippee!
Another "yippee!" moment happened last Saturday at the school's volleyball game. It was the first home game of the season, and the teachers who wanted to go all piled in a van and headed out to the gym, which was about 45 minutes away. Now I know you're all thinking, "I thought you said it was a home game. How can it be 45 minutes away?" Well, PICS doesn't have a gym that they can play sports in, for either games or practice. They have to rent or borrow gyms instead, sometimes from universities. All of my Grandview readers should be familiar with this concept. The gym we used last Saturday was in Anseong at a university. The father of one of last year's graduates is a professor there, and he arranged for us to use the gym for free whenever we need it. Needless to say, they try to hold their games there whenever they can, even though it's not close to the school and there are no bleachers for the spectators to sit on.
Before I move any farther, I should explain something about volleyball. PICS is part of the Korean-American Interscholastic Activities Conference (or KAIAC, pronounced like kayak), which consists of international schools throughout Korea. In KAIAC, schools compete in the sports of volleyball, basketball, cheerleading, and soccer. With the exception of cheerleading, all sports have both a girls and a boys team, including volleyball. While boys volleyball does exist in the United States, I haven't heard of a team in Iowa, and I didn't want to confuse anyone by suddenly talking about boys volleyball.
So last Saturday I went watch both the girls and the boys volleyball teams. The girls played first and won in 3 (best 3 out of 5). Then the boys were up. Now, the girls team at PICS is known to be good, and they have a really good shot at winning the tournament in October. However, the boys team needed a lot of work at the beginning of year. But work they have been doing. Their coach this year is the new science teacher, and he has been pushing them really hard, and they have been improving. And it showed last Saturday when they won in 3. As far as anyone can remember, that is the first time girls and boys have both won in 3 games. Yippee!
Oh, have I ever mentioned what the mascot for PICS is? We are the Conquerors. Yes, I went from being a Defender to being a Conqueror. The emblem is almost the same as Grandview's old helmet and sword emblem. When I first saw it, I had a deja vu kind of moment.
At the volleyball game with a couple other teachers, sporting my new haircut.
This week, specifically yesterday, has also had its share of adventure. Yesterday we had a half day at school for teacher in-service. However, instead of being able to work in my classroom in the afternoon, I, along with the other new teachers, had to go to the immigration office in Suwon about 30 minutes away (depending on traffic). We had to go to finish filing our immigration paperwork and get our ID cards so we can continue to be in the country and get paid (legally). While you can easily spend a couple hours at immigration, especially with 6 people's paperwork to process, we had an appointment, so it wasn't going to be too bad. Well, that was the plan at least. It all started early Friday morning when the woman, Miss Song, who was supposed to take us (and who had the appointment) fell and broke her ankle, requiring surgery. Needless to say, she could no longer take us. And because she was no longer going, we no longer had an appointment. Even though the same people's paperwork was getting processed, we could not fill her appointment time because someone else was taking us. If you don't have an appointment, once you get there you have to take a number and then wait your turn, just like at the DMV. Thankfully, you can have about 3 people per number, so we just needed 2 numbers for the 6 of us. Well, here's the thing with the "take a number" process: you have to be at the office in order to take a number. We left school about 12 and got to the office after 2. 30 minutes turned into 2+ hours fast once we got lost. We tried to take what was supposed to be a faster way, missed our exit, and got lost. Making matters worse was that the navigation program was not working. We also got little to no help from the strangers we asked for help (we did have a Korean speaker with us, so it wasn't a language problem). We eventually got to the immigration office and got our numbers: 455 and 456. They were currently helping #304. So we waited. And we waited. And then we waited some more. Finally, about 4:30, it was our turn. Three of us were easy: we had all the necessary paperwork, photos, and numbers to make it a smooth process. Thankfully, I was in this group. Now all I have to do is wait for them to process my paperwork and then print my ID card, which will be ready in a month. The good news is someone else can pick it up for me, provided they bring the receipt. The other 3 in the group were not so lucky. Their attendant got confused and had some problems processing their paperwork. Further complicating the matter was that they were missing a few pieces of necessary paperwork and their applications didn't have photos on them. But, praise the Lord, there was a photo booth right there where they could take the pictures and the remaining paperwork can be dropped off on Monday. We finally left immigration about 5:30 and made it home shortly after 6, tired and hungry. We're all looking forward to our next trip to immigration in 2 years if we decide to stay in Korea! (NOT!)
All in all, plenty has kept me busy these past two weeks, and I have not been bored. This weekend appears to be no exception. There is a festival happening down by Osan Air Force base this weekend, which we are tentatively planning on attending. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks for all your continued prayers and support!
My last two weeks have been spent doing more than just watching out for possible typhoons. I have been really busy with school things and with other personal things. To start with, school. As crazy as it sounds, we are already halfway through the first quarter. Progress reports come out on Tuesday, which is something both the students and I have a hard time believing. Didn't school just start? Anyway, now that we are 5 weeks into the quarter, units are starting to finish up, resulting and tests and papers and lots of grading. Overall, the students did very well on both their tests and papers. Right now I'm in a bit of a grading lull, which is good because in a few weeks every single class has a test or paper due (or both). I will definitely be grading a lot during that time. In all of this, my carpal tunnel is doing okay. It has been bothering me some, but the pain hasn't been killing me. It is a livable kind of pain, which right now I am glad to get. I've had the "why are you wearing that brace?" talk with all of my students now, so the entire high school knows about my carpal tunnel and have been asking about it. I've been also keeping busy with planning for future units as well as completing my year plans. All teachers have to generally outline what they are doing each month for the entire year, including what standards will be covered. These plans are due at the end of September. I have figured out approximately what I will be doing each month; now I just need to put the standards in. The nice (and sometimes frustrating) thing about English is that you can cover almost any strategy with any unit, it's just a matter of what approach you want to take to analyzing literature and what you want to focus on. Some units lend themselves better to certain standards and strategies than others, but many of the standards could apply for every single unit. The tricky part comes in figuring out which units should cover which standards, which is what I have left to do with my year plans. Thankfully I have a couple more weeks to finish them.
But enough talk about school. Last week I bit the bullet and got my haircut in Korea for the first time. When I was here for student teaching, I just let my hair grow because I was afraid to have someone I couldn't communicate with cut my hair. You see, I really, really, really like my haircut. I've had the same haircut for about 6 years, and it is so easy and looks nice without a lot of effort. People compliment me on it all the time, even complete strangers! So I decided last time not to even mess with it, but just to deal with it until I got back to Iowa and Bridget could cut it. This time I knew that was not going to happen. One, it would be longer until I got back to Iowa. Two, I hate my hair when it gets too long! I absolutely love my short hair, so when it gets to a certain point (long for me), I have to get it cut or it just drives me crazy. Since I was going to have to get it cut in South Korea anyway, I decided to do it before my hair got too long. And as an added bonus, one of my roommates needed to get a haircut, so I was able to go with her. We went to a place across near the main gate of Osan Air Force Base, giving us a good chance that the stylist spoke at least a little English. And she did, enough to explain that I wanted a trim, in the same style, and that the back was kind of layered. She took it from there. I was nervous the entire time. When you have long hair and you don't like the haircut, it's pretty easy to put it up in a ponytail until it grows back. Not so with short hair. It is what it is, and everybody can see it. And I had no idea what I was going to get. When it was done, I looked in the mirror at both the front and the back. It wasn't exactly like how my hair is normally cut, but I still liked it. The back wasn't layered or stacked exactly like it usually is (slightly longer right now), but it is short enough. The sides are cut slightly differently too, but not enough to throw off the entire haircut. Overall, I am very happy with the haircut and am very glad that it is short again! Yippee!
Another "yippee!" moment happened last Saturday at the school's volleyball game. It was the first home game of the season, and the teachers who wanted to go all piled in a van and headed out to the gym, which was about 45 minutes away. Now I know you're all thinking, "I thought you said it was a home game. How can it be 45 minutes away?" Well, PICS doesn't have a gym that they can play sports in, for either games or practice. They have to rent or borrow gyms instead, sometimes from universities. All of my Grandview readers should be familiar with this concept. The gym we used last Saturday was in Anseong at a university. The father of one of last year's graduates is a professor there, and he arranged for us to use the gym for free whenever we need it. Needless to say, they try to hold their games there whenever they can, even though it's not close to the school and there are no bleachers for the spectators to sit on.
Before I move any farther, I should explain something about volleyball. PICS is part of the Korean-American Interscholastic Activities Conference (or KAIAC, pronounced like kayak), which consists of international schools throughout Korea. In KAIAC, schools compete in the sports of volleyball, basketball, cheerleading, and soccer. With the exception of cheerleading, all sports have both a girls and a boys team, including volleyball. While boys volleyball does exist in the United States, I haven't heard of a team in Iowa, and I didn't want to confuse anyone by suddenly talking about boys volleyball.
So last Saturday I went watch both the girls and the boys volleyball teams. The girls played first and won in 3 (best 3 out of 5). Then the boys were up. Now, the girls team at PICS is known to be good, and they have a really good shot at winning the tournament in October. However, the boys team needed a lot of work at the beginning of year. But work they have been doing. Their coach this year is the new science teacher, and he has been pushing them really hard, and they have been improving. And it showed last Saturday when they won in 3. As far as anyone can remember, that is the first time girls and boys have both won in 3 games. Yippee!
Oh, have I ever mentioned what the mascot for PICS is? We are the Conquerors. Yes, I went from being a Defender to being a Conqueror. The emblem is almost the same as Grandview's old helmet and sword emblem. When I first saw it, I had a deja vu kind of moment.
This week, specifically yesterday, has also had its share of adventure. Yesterday we had a half day at school for teacher in-service. However, instead of being able to work in my classroom in the afternoon, I, along with the other new teachers, had to go to the immigration office in Suwon about 30 minutes away (depending on traffic). We had to go to finish filing our immigration paperwork and get our ID cards so we can continue to be in the country and get paid (legally). While you can easily spend a couple hours at immigration, especially with 6 people's paperwork to process, we had an appointment, so it wasn't going to be too bad. Well, that was the plan at least. It all started early Friday morning when the woman, Miss Song, who was supposed to take us (and who had the appointment) fell and broke her ankle, requiring surgery. Needless to say, she could no longer take us. And because she was no longer going, we no longer had an appointment. Even though the same people's paperwork was getting processed, we could not fill her appointment time because someone else was taking us. If you don't have an appointment, once you get there you have to take a number and then wait your turn, just like at the DMV. Thankfully, you can have about 3 people per number, so we just needed 2 numbers for the 6 of us. Well, here's the thing with the "take a number" process: you have to be at the office in order to take a number. We left school about 12 and got to the office after 2. 30 minutes turned into 2+ hours fast once we got lost. We tried to take what was supposed to be a faster way, missed our exit, and got lost. Making matters worse was that the navigation program was not working. We also got little to no help from the strangers we asked for help (we did have a Korean speaker with us, so it wasn't a language problem). We eventually got to the immigration office and got our numbers: 455 and 456. They were currently helping #304. So we waited. And we waited. And then we waited some more. Finally, about 4:30, it was our turn. Three of us were easy: we had all the necessary paperwork, photos, and numbers to make it a smooth process. Thankfully, I was in this group. Now all I have to do is wait for them to process my paperwork and then print my ID card, which will be ready in a month. The good news is someone else can pick it up for me, provided they bring the receipt. The other 3 in the group were not so lucky. Their attendant got confused and had some problems processing their paperwork. Further complicating the matter was that they were missing a few pieces of necessary paperwork and their applications didn't have photos on them. But, praise the Lord, there was a photo booth right there where they could take the pictures and the remaining paperwork can be dropped off on Monday. We finally left immigration about 5:30 and made it home shortly after 6, tired and hungry. We're all looking forward to our next trip to immigration in 2 years if we decide to stay in Korea! (NOT!)
All in all, plenty has kept me busy these past two weeks, and I have not been bored. This weekend appears to be no exception. There is a festival happening down by Osan Air Force base this weekend, which we are tentatively planning on attending. I'll let you know what happens. Thanks for all your continued prayers and support!
Friday, August 31, 2012
Typhoons and Tropical Storms
The weather has been very interesting here this week. I survived my first typhoon and my first tropical storm, both within two days of each other. Typhoon Bolaven came through Korea on Tuesday, and Tropical Storm Tembin hit on Thursday. Typhoon Tuesday and Tropical Storm Thursday. Isn't alliteration great? :)
Bolaven arrived on Tuesday with a lot of wind and a little rain. The eye was about 110 miles north of Pyongtaek, so we did not get the brunt of the storm (our northern neighbor did). Some schools in Seoul canceled school on Tuesday because of the storm. We went to school like normal, but shortly into the school day it was decided that it would not be safe to stay all day. As a result, we had an 11 a.m. dismissal. Bad news: I only had one class that day, and half the students were absent anyway. Definitely not a productive teaching day. Good news: Because we had a half day of school, we don't have to make it up. And that's really good news because our make up days happen on Saturdays.
We made it home safely and stayed inside the rest of the day. My apartment is on the 8th floor, but the only effect from the wind I noticed was the windows rattling. Our apartment building had no damage, and I did not hear of any damage at the school either. I also did not see any trees down in my neighborhood or on the drive to school. Plenty of leaves and sticks were lying all over the place, but no big branches or trees. That could be because Koreans tend to trim trees before a big storm like this (they do the same for winter) in order to prevent downed trees. I do have to say, though, that I've seen worse wind in the Midwest. Yes, it was windy, but I don't think it was windier than the day the remnants of a hurricane hit Ohio and Cedarville was without power for a couple days.
During Bolaven:
The wind was not as much of a problem with Tropical Storm Tembin. All that storm brought was lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of rain. That's what you get when the eye passes only 50 miles from your location. It poured rain all day on Thursday. It started sometime in the middle of the night and went until into the evening. In the afternoon there was some wind, enough to turn umbrellas inside out, but nothing compared to Bolaven. We went to school all day on Thursday, though driving home was a little interesting. After raining all day at a rate of several inches an hour, the roads had acquired numerous puddles. Deep puddles. Puddles so big and so deep that you shouldn't drive through them because, well, you learn in driver's ed never to drive through standing water unless you know how deep it is. We did, however, make it home safely without any car trouble.
This time, however, the storm was not so nice to the school. Water started dripping in the side staircase, coming from a leak in the roof. Some classrooms had water dripping in the windows. And then there's the teacher's lounge. Somehow water got onto the floor (not sure where it came from), and by today about half of the (carpeted) room was sopping wet. The walk to the copier is a little squishy right now. Thankfully, there was no water coming in my classroom or into my apartment. Another praise is that Tembin cooled the temperature down nicely last night, so that it was in the 60s when we went to bed. And it had stopped raining by this point, so we were able to open up all the windows and let the blessedly cool air in. It was heavenly.
Now, knowing that the reading audience of this blog consists predominately of Iowans, I'm sure that some of you are wondering how the rice fared with all these storms. That's right, I know you're wondering about the crops. Hard not to since they're such a part of the state. Well, I was similarly curious (my Grandpa would be so proud), so I studied the rice paddies outside my classroom window and took some pictures of how they looked today. If you want a comparison, check out my "First Week of School" post. It has some pre-typhoon/tropical storm pictures of the rice paddies.
As you can see, the wind definitely did some damage to the rice. Some areas are worse than others, but you can generally see the rice is bent from all the wind. It was interesting to watch the wind ripple the rice just like waves, but it went on for too long, and now there's damage to the rice. The paddies are also pretty waterlogged right now after all the rain yesterday. I didn't get close enough to investigate exactly how much, but even from my 3rd floor classroom window, I can tell there is a lot more water in the paddies than there was last week. Everything still looks kind of "wet" today.
After this very exciting and interesting week, I am definitely hoping for an ordinary boring week of school next week, one without any "Will we have school?" drama. At least now this landlocked Iowan can say she has experienced a typhoon and a tropical storm.
Bolaven arrived on Tuesday with a lot of wind and a little rain. The eye was about 110 miles north of Pyongtaek, so we did not get the brunt of the storm (our northern neighbor did). Some schools in Seoul canceled school on Tuesday because of the storm. We went to school like normal, but shortly into the school day it was decided that it would not be safe to stay all day. As a result, we had an 11 a.m. dismissal. Bad news: I only had one class that day, and half the students were absent anyway. Definitely not a productive teaching day. Good news: Because we had a half day of school, we don't have to make it up. And that's really good news because our make up days happen on Saturdays.
We made it home safely and stayed inside the rest of the day. My apartment is on the 8th floor, but the only effect from the wind I noticed was the windows rattling. Our apartment building had no damage, and I did not hear of any damage at the school either. I also did not see any trees down in my neighborhood or on the drive to school. Plenty of leaves and sticks were lying all over the place, but no big branches or trees. That could be because Koreans tend to trim trees before a big storm like this (they do the same for winter) in order to prevent downed trees. I do have to say, though, that I've seen worse wind in the Midwest. Yes, it was windy, but I don't think it was windier than the day the remnants of a hurricane hit Ohio and Cedarville was without power for a couple days.
During Bolaven:
The wind was not as much of a problem with Tropical Storm Tembin. All that storm brought was lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of rain. That's what you get when the eye passes only 50 miles from your location. It poured rain all day on Thursday. It started sometime in the middle of the night and went until into the evening. In the afternoon there was some wind, enough to turn umbrellas inside out, but nothing compared to Bolaven. We went to school all day on Thursday, though driving home was a little interesting. After raining all day at a rate of several inches an hour, the roads had acquired numerous puddles. Deep puddles. Puddles so big and so deep that you shouldn't drive through them because, well, you learn in driver's ed never to drive through standing water unless you know how deep it is. We did, however, make it home safely without any car trouble.
This time, however, the storm was not so nice to the school. Water started dripping in the side staircase, coming from a leak in the roof. Some classrooms had water dripping in the windows. And then there's the teacher's lounge. Somehow water got onto the floor (not sure where it came from), and by today about half of the (carpeted) room was sopping wet. The walk to the copier is a little squishy right now. Thankfully, there was no water coming in my classroom or into my apartment. Another praise is that Tembin cooled the temperature down nicely last night, so that it was in the 60s when we went to bed. And it had stopped raining by this point, so we were able to open up all the windows and let the blessedly cool air in. It was heavenly.
Now, knowing that the reading audience of this blog consists predominately of Iowans, I'm sure that some of you are wondering how the rice fared with all these storms. That's right, I know you're wondering about the crops. Hard not to since they're such a part of the state. Well, I was similarly curious (my Grandpa would be so proud), so I studied the rice paddies outside my classroom window and took some pictures of how they looked today. If you want a comparison, check out my "First Week of School" post. It has some pre-typhoon/tropical storm pictures of the rice paddies.
As you can see, the wind definitely did some damage to the rice. Some areas are worse than others, but you can generally see the rice is bent from all the wind. It was interesting to watch the wind ripple the rice just like waves, but it went on for too long, and now there's damage to the rice. The paddies are also pretty waterlogged right now after all the rain yesterday. I didn't get close enough to investigate exactly how much, but even from my 3rd floor classroom window, I can tell there is a lot more water in the paddies than there was last week. Everything still looks kind of "wet" today.
After this very exciting and interesting week, I am definitely hoping for an ordinary boring week of school next week, one without any "Will we have school?" drama. At least now this landlocked Iowan can say she has experienced a typhoon and a tropical storm.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
First Week of School
This week we had our open house and our first three days of school. It all went well. I am getting to know my students and already figuring out which ones are going to be the talkers. We didn't really get into much of the material this week but that will start on Monday. I spent most of the time talking about my expectations and procedures while introducing them to their daily journals and the basic overview of the classes.
My schedule this year is a little strange, though that will change next year. It all has to do with the size of the junior class. There are only three juniors, so instead of giving them a separate section, like they have for all the other grades, they combined them with a different class for English and history. Last year they were combined with the class ahead of them, but this year they are combined with the class below. So as sophomores, they took the junior level history and English classes. This year as juniors they are taking the sophomore level history and English classes. This means that instead of teaching for 5 periods of the day (out of 7), I am only teaching 4 periods of the day. That is good because it means I get more prep time, which I think I will definitely need this year. Because we go to school in teacher vans, we have to leave each day at 4. If you're not done with what you need to do, you can either stay and work and then take public transportation back, or you can bring your work home with you. Having the extra prep period will hopefully mean that I get more work done at school and therefore have less to bring home with me. The only bad part of having the extra prep is when I have it. My planning periods were originally 3rd and 4th hours. The extra prep I gained is 2nd hour. So I teach 1st hour, have 3 planning periods in a row, then study hall and lunch, followed by teaching 5th, 6th, and 7th periods in the afternoon. And the way the schedule is set up, I only supervise study hall twice a week. So some days, I don't have any students from 9 a.m. until 12:30 after lunch. Great time to get a lot of work done, and I'm sure that some days will be very productive. However, that gets to be a long morning, and it would be really nice to have prep time in the afternoon. Oh well.
My schedule (in case anyone is wondering) is as follows:
1st hour: American Literature (12th)
2nd hour: Prep
3rd hour: Prep
4th hour: Prep
Study Hall
Lunch
5th hour: World Literature (10th/11th)
6th hour: Speech/Drama
7th hour: 9th Grade Literature and Composition (9th)
I'm excited that speech and drama is my elective this year. I am really looking forward to it. We've already been having fun in speech class. I enjoyed hearing their introductory speeches and where they had all lived and what languages they spoke. Even the students are enjoying themselves. In fact, one of my students said yesterday, "This class is more fun than I thought it would be." Maybe that's what I get for playing charades and pictionary to demonstrate nonverbal communication.
Here are pictures of my classroom and of the view from the windows.
As you can see, there are a lot of windows in my classroom, especially because it is at the end of the hall, so my windows wrap around the corner. The school is situated on the outskirts of the city, so most classrooms have a view of the surrounding rice patties. Right now it's nice and green, but that will change once they start to harvest the rice. I am looking forward to seeing the harvesting process and how that all works.
Thank you for your continued prayers. I know they helped this first week go smoothly. I was reminded this week how much I really do love teaching. The past couple weeks I've been doing a lot of planning, and it felt good to stand up in front of a group of students and teach them. I'm excited for the rest of the school year, but I'll still need your prayers as I know I have a lot to learn yet about teaching and about my students.
My schedule this year is a little strange, though that will change next year. It all has to do with the size of the junior class. There are only three juniors, so instead of giving them a separate section, like they have for all the other grades, they combined them with a different class for English and history. Last year they were combined with the class ahead of them, but this year they are combined with the class below. So as sophomores, they took the junior level history and English classes. This year as juniors they are taking the sophomore level history and English classes. This means that instead of teaching for 5 periods of the day (out of 7), I am only teaching 4 periods of the day. That is good because it means I get more prep time, which I think I will definitely need this year. Because we go to school in teacher vans, we have to leave each day at 4. If you're not done with what you need to do, you can either stay and work and then take public transportation back, or you can bring your work home with you. Having the extra prep period will hopefully mean that I get more work done at school and therefore have less to bring home with me. The only bad part of having the extra prep is when I have it. My planning periods were originally 3rd and 4th hours. The extra prep I gained is 2nd hour. So I teach 1st hour, have 3 planning periods in a row, then study hall and lunch, followed by teaching 5th, 6th, and 7th periods in the afternoon. And the way the schedule is set up, I only supervise study hall twice a week. So some days, I don't have any students from 9 a.m. until 12:30 after lunch. Great time to get a lot of work done, and I'm sure that some days will be very productive. However, that gets to be a long morning, and it would be really nice to have prep time in the afternoon. Oh well.
My schedule (in case anyone is wondering) is as follows:
1st hour: American Literature (12th)
2nd hour: Prep
3rd hour: Prep
4th hour: Prep
Study Hall
Lunch
5th hour: World Literature (10th/11th)
6th hour: Speech/Drama
7th hour: 9th Grade Literature and Composition (9th)
I'm excited that speech and drama is my elective this year. I am really looking forward to it. We've already been having fun in speech class. I enjoyed hearing their introductory speeches and where they had all lived and what languages they spoke. Even the students are enjoying themselves. In fact, one of my students said yesterday, "This class is more fun than I thought it would be." Maybe that's what I get for playing charades and pictionary to demonstrate nonverbal communication.
Here are pictures of my classroom and of the view from the windows.
As you can see, there are a lot of windows in my classroom, especially because it is at the end of the hall, so my windows wrap around the corner. The school is situated on the outskirts of the city, so most classrooms have a view of the surrounding rice patties. Right now it's nice and green, but that will change once they start to harvest the rice. I am looking forward to seeing the harvesting process and how that all works.
Thank you for your continued prayers. I know they helped this first week go smoothly. I was reminded this week how much I really do love teaching. The past couple weeks I've been doing a lot of planning, and it felt good to stand up in front of a group of students and teach them. I'm excited for the rest of the school year, but I'll still need your prayers as I know I have a lot to learn yet about teaching and about my students.
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