The week was long and arduous. There weird long stretches of chaos that made some of the insanity seem downright blissful. My back is killing me. I found a line on a precious set of escrima sticks ( thank you Master Kim ) and started working on a swordform based on the writing models of the korean alphabet ( cause you knew it was going to happen ). A few points of interest before haning out with the Weygook variety pack aka the SBDC.
Earlier this week the owner of the Dunkin Donuts near one of my bus stops was having back trouble. His well meaning friend was trying to reallign him which led to yells the Marquis DeSade never dreamed of hearing. I went over and fixed his shoulder. The magic hand is back. I got a free coffee.
I bought a pizza for the girls at Dream, cause they are always starving. They think I am the next incarnation of the Bhuddah.
Teaching body parts right after food leads to comedy. I point to my foot and say English name. And four students yelled "Chicken"
Scarlet doesn't think I am learning Korean fast enough and tries to teach me Korean while I teach her English. But she talks away and even though I understand most of what she's saying. It is funny to watch her get flustered.
But my main issue this week has been the casual racism, I expected it when I came here. Being a foreigner, blonde haired, blue eyed, big. Hell I had some of that in the states and learned to play dumb. But the more standard issue insipid racism I have been encountering disturbs me. One of my students can't believe the US president is African American and he asked with a combination of innocense and ignorance "They aren't supposed to be president's", then later in the week teaching a section on Hanukah I asked my advanced students. What do you know of people of the Jewish faith. One answered. " They have alot of money." Shaking it off I crossed by the Bhuddist temple and saw the swastikas on the temples and think about the perversion of meaning. I am spoiled being from a multicultural society. In some ways I pity them, The Koreans. The cult of Han. The one. I hope that teaching my language at least helps a few see the world differently.