a belated happy new year 2 you all. if i wasn’t so busy being busy over the past 2 weeks then i suspect i might have gotten around 2 wishing you all a happy new year sooner. but i have been busy being busy. very busy. i’m always busy @ ck but for some reason this time around i’m especially busy (okay, that’s 7 times i’ve used the word busy – there’s 8 – already in this entry). the last 12 days have been spent drinking 2 the birth, some 2009 years & a bit ago, of one jc ... preaching all jc like 2 my small army of teachers about where 2 be, when 2 be there & what 2 do once there... drinking 2 excess, especially on new year’s eve (but only cos the gregorian calendar says 2 do so)... answering a silly amount of questions on a daily basis (the majority of them of the common sense kind)... advising ‘real’ teachers, some of them 30+ years my senior, how 2 teach obedient korean children... dealing with sick/retarded/inept teachers/koreans, piss-poor communication, disorganisation & the failure of certain people, koreans & westerners alike, 2 follow the schedules i’ve spent the previous weeks & months drafting. this is my third (pronounced ‘turd’) ck being ‘the boss’ & while my teaching staff may be different each time there are some things about a ck camp that i suspect will never change – for as long as i do this i’ll always wonder why the koreans, with years of experience doing this gig, always seem content with reinventing the wheel camp after camp... & spending the 4 weeks of camp seemingly making it up as they go along, day by day. not that any of that really bothers me all that much, regardless of how much i may bitch & moan about it. i learnt a long time ago 2 just roll with ck, whatever your position may be & whatever that position throws @ you. so i'm treating this latest ck experience like i have done all the others - with a fair degree of laid-backness (i love inventing words)... & a fair degree of alcohol. all of which probably explains why this is my turd ck as boss... & my 7th overall. that said however, i'm still thinking that i should be tired of it all by now.
68 - days i’ve been 'livin' with seoul.'
9 - days ago camp began.
19 - days until camp ends.
34 - days until i go home.
1 – day since i was offered a contract extension. i’ve a decision 2 make.
2 – days i’ve been single.
3 – days until the weekend.
3 – days i had off over christmas.
1 – number of kindergarten students i made cry as bad santa on christmas eve.
190,000 – amount, in korean won, i spent on christmas goodies (crisps, beer, wine, crackers etc) on christmas eve (about €110).
3 – christmas cards i received from home. those who sent them... you know who you are... thanks.
80 – number of lyons teabags i received on christmas day... thanks 2 the floodgates.
0 – number of toasters i owned when i woke up on december 24th.
2 – number of toasters i owned when i woke up on december 25th. i bought myself a toaster... hours before i received another one as a present. wtf.
1 – amount of times i’ve been paid.
5,850,000 – amount, in korean won, of my first pay (about €3,250).
7 – number of business cards i’ve gotten rid of. they’ll find a cure for cancer before i get rid of them all.
6 – days i went last week without a beer (christmas day until new years eve).
5 – consecutive days i drank thereafter. had some catching up 2 do.
3440 – my room number in camp.
34 – number of teachers i get 2 boss around on a daily basis.
2 – number of those 34 that i’ve wanted 2 stab in the eye with a blunt instrument (a chopstick maybe) over the past 9 days.
0 – amount of times i’ve been 2 the onsite gym. busy being busy.
-1 - temperature, in degrees celsius, in seoul right now. unusually warm for this time of year.
2 - temperature, in degrees celsius, in dublin right now.
wrapping up christmas
so, what kind of santa was i on christmas eve? well, you’d really have 2 ask the kids (although i’d appreciate if you didn’t ask the one who cried) but i doubt if i, or any other skinny white irish guy dressed up in a santa costume (not 2 mention one with an accent & the acting ability of a stone), will be asked back next year. given this list i definitely resembled a cross between ‘shitty fake beard santa’ & ‘skinny santa’, despite the coats used in an attempt 2 give me a belly... one ‘like a bowl full of jelly’. oh, & if you happen 2 remember your office party (assuming the economic crisis didn’t kill it altogether) then you might appreciate this article.
nori bang here we come
i’ve yet to make it 2 a korean nori bang (karaoke room) during this latest trip 2 korea but after seeing this i’ll probably be making efforts 2 get 2 one this weekend.
easy boys
good oul koreans. a bit of this in dial eireann might make irish politics a tad more interesting. loosing face is a huge no-no in korean culture, although you wouldn't think so looking @ this.
‘livin’ with seoul’ photo album
check out the blog album. it 2 has finally been updated.
what i’m listenting 2 right now
coldplay, strawberry swing
0 comments:
Post a Comment