nouns and confusion

well back at work, I hit a certain level of confusion. I am loading up on basic nouns. I still can't remeber the words for basics like door, window etc. I keep confusing Nam Ja ( man ) and Nam o ( tree ) it's very interesting calling a man you just met a tree. But I have a ton of phrases adjective and adverbs. So nouns and verys are my next hit. Had a good day with the feral hobbits. Reading the language has been helping but many of vowells throw me because they look alike. If I had it to do over again. I would have learned to read first.

swordfights and piracy

Had my first really swordmatch in Korea with a Kumdo master. It was about to pour rain and I was training of few of my friends in escrima. It was light sparring but damn it felt good to fight someone of equal or better skill. I've been training on and off with Master Kim and CHul Hee but Tae Kwon Do is not a style I am particularly fond of. We fought to a tie. I'll be contacting him to get my combat fix. I am walking on air. Then the rain came.
I recieved another Korean name Pae Jok last week that loosely translates into Pirate. I was asked to do some Shakespeare and improvise a few sonnets. English speakers lapping up the poetry like hungry sponges. I'm helping a club owner in Suwon with his promotions in English for his new foreigner friendly club. And my Korean which has hit a plateau is progressing again. The glass mountain is in sight. Soon i'll be since months in and halfway home. I now have a full legitimate Korean name that I can write in Korean. Kang Jhang Gun ( Powerful General ) and I started my deeper studies into Korean folktales and warrior culture. The Seonbi ( Scholar ) culture mixed with the knightly warrior spirit. Ki Sa Do , meaning Chivalry. Next month I want to do more cultural exploring. Trying to get further south to Soraksam.

Someone taught my students about "flipping the bird" and asking me to explain it. That I left to the Korean teachers. I do not have enough Korean to explain that in kid's language. But the kids who discovered it had a grand old time flipping each other off. It spread like a disease of misunderstanding.


But after some soul searching I have been letting go, letting go of hurts done to me, and hurts I've caused. I forgive and sometimes hope I am forgiven. Such is the way of things. As I meditate on my pagoda feeling the May heat pour on me I smile. Such is the way of the flow.

the braii or God has a South African accent

A weekend of wonders started , thursday was finally to ill to work. on friday is when I finally called in sick. Dr. Kim saw me on thursday and told me I had a touch of the flu and was suffering from exhaustion. Being an American I rarely go to the hospital unless I am in the process of bleeding out from multiple gn shot wounds and even then I think it can be fixed by Advil. But constant concerned harassment from people, and a voice in Leonine's Saffer accent saying in the back of my head "Go to hospital!!" finally pushed me there. So I became convinced God has a south African accent.
Saturday I took Taryn to a South African Braii ( basically a big cookout ) the food was fantastic. I got to dance. CHill out to good African music. I was often approached and questioned in Africanne being big and blonde. I would respond in Korean. I was just glad to take Taryn who has been so lonely as of late. To be surrounded by her coutrymen and women. She was in heaven. Sunday I brought the coveted screen over to Tanya's and generally took it easy. As Aidn one of my Korean froend says. "You are in Korea, it's a different sky, a different stars, ( said with a small chuckle ) a different God. "
The gods are hard, often cruel, but they aren't blind and sometimes kind.

a walk through the other central park

In Dongtan, there is another big(well big for Korea) Park, called Central Park. Walked home from the Hogwan trying to break through some writers block. My head full of Korean, Swordwork, and Poetry. The Park intself is more of a public recreation center. Soccer fields, Rollerblading rinks , golf course. But there is an artificial stream that runs through the park with some pagados. You can hear the frogs serenading each other in the stream. I sat watched the kids play. I've had some great times in my central park. The one back home. Near another artifical pond. Where I was rescued once upon a time, by my sorceress.I am going to need a nature fix soon. Growing up near several parks and the ocean. I think of the haven they provide.

babysitting

The first Monday back is lng and hard after a short week. My kids were mostly well behaved but my boss is still fighting me with my English only policy. Sice I don't have a Korean co-teacher to fall back on. I am also a little sick. I have been here five months and worked sick through most of that time. I have sick days but I haven't taken them. I just want to get to my sixth month. Then I can make decisions of wehter or not to jump schools because my airfare here will have been paid. If I ever do come back here I'm teaching in public school or one of the adult schools in Seoul. I had a real case of the blues on Sunday missing home and my family and friends. But little blessings like my crew here help. Today in class I had to teach a 40 minutes class with about 30 seconds worth of material. Thank the gods I can improvise.

good times

had a good weekend, relaxed killed time reading. Trained Ed and established the routes of escrima here. I'm a little tired. But wanted to get back into my flow as it were. I had a bout of extreme loneliness but got passed it. Took care of friends for a few weeks. And felt again like the hero. I missed being the go to guy in emergencies. Probably a glorius side effect from cop DNA. I'll keep this post relatively short. Be safe all.