seoul-sucking jerk

Like I said before, you never know how much you’ll...

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 08:14:29 +0900

Like I said before, you never know how much you’ll need.

A Tumblr Dedicated To K-Pop!

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:50:41 +0900

Save for Nobody, I never took a liking to any K-Pop. But I know a lot of you did. This guy is tumbling about it and i don’t think he is even in Korea. Madness.

kellyinkorea: Happy Samgyeopsal Day, y’all! Meat like that...

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 05:28:44 +0900

kellyinkorea:

Happy Samgyeopsal Day, y’all! Meat like that deserves its own holiday, even if it is only for marketing purposes.

Korean retailers compete to cut the prices of pork belly as this Wednesday is the day when the country’s farmers promote consumption of the popular dish, dubbed “samgyeopsal.”

March 3 is picked for the event because samgyeopsal, which means three-layered pork in Korean, is commonly served as an evening meal thanks to its taste and low price.

Lotte Mart, the nation’s third-largest discount chain with 70 outlets, has prepared 200 tons of pork belly for the Samgyeopsal Day and almost halved its prices at 950 won per 100 grams. (Source)

(via fckyeahkrnfood)

I’m a little miffed that I didn’t know about samgyupsal day. Though odds are very high I ate some on this day last year anyway, so I can’t be too mad. For anyone reading this in Korea, mark May 2nd on your calender to eat duck. As Mr. Kim explained it to me; Fifth month (oh), second day (ee). Oh-ree. Duck. “Undah-stand?”

(via roketship) Provided there weren’t too many people...

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 11:06:58 +0900

(via roketship)

Provided there weren’t too many people crowded on them, I rather liked the wild bus rides. It was kind of like you and the driver were engaged in an mildly acknowledged, unspoken game where he would tear-ass all over the city and if he couldn’t knock you over. I learned early on to keep my knees slightly bent and to hold tight on a handle at all times. It was like surfing through the city on a giant mechanical board.

Told You So...

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:17:00 +0900

I once asked a co-worker named Fred why he didn’t get a job with a new company. He’d recently married a Korean girl and planned on being in the ROK for quite a while. Fred looked at me for a second and said “I prefer the devil I know to the devil I don’t”.

In news that is not at all shocking, I just got word that the hagwan I worked for went teets-up. An expert from the e-mail….

“…its caused by bad choices and arrogant stubborn foolish management decisions of the last five years. No less than three different teachers and assorted business degree holders had warned them that unless they changed key factors to meet the demands of the new marketplace their business would fail. They kept acting like it was Korea circa 1990. And they always replied with the same derisive laughter, saying, “were professionals, we know what we are doing!” Followed of course by…. Now SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH and get your ASS BACK IN CLASS and make us OUR FUCKING MONEY!

Well they were NOT professionals and they DIDN’T know what they were doing and they PISSED OFF too many students and school principals so when things were really bad, one of those that had been previously fucked over by BCM decided to return the favor.

The Fuckee became the Fucker and reamed BCM-Nowon/Sanggye in the ass. They waited till the worst possible time for BCM then they kicked them in the teeth…. repeatedly.”

To anyone who had the misfortune of landing a job at my old company, this news is not at all surprising. The writing was on the wall long before I set foot in Korea and frankly, I don’t know how they stayed afloat as long as they did.

I take some measure of pride in knowing that I was able to make it through the entire year with this floundering company who treated it’s teachers and students alike as though they were cattle. Of the four people who arrived at the same time as me, I was the only person to finish out the original contract. Sean wised up and found a new, better company. Jared and Jordan re-negotiated for better conditions. Tim, slack jawed dullard that he is, cut and run about a month in. Anthony, a guy I never talked about, arrived in February and was done by July.

It might have been foolish for me to tough it out, but I was able to endure quite a lot more than I ever thought I might. Endure. Koreans use that word a lot. It seems engrained in them to grit their teeth and get through life, no matter how bad the situation might be. I danced with the devil for a year and I endured. I like the way that sounds.

In this picture you can see my old apartment and Mr. Kim’s...

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 07:47:00 +0900

In this picture you can see my old apartment and Mr. Kim’s and Mr. Park’s restaurants. My Hangook ‘hood.

Did I mention Mr. Kim called me on Christmas? I’m not sure if I did. Had an incoming call from an odd looking number I didn’t recognize. I answered, which is kind of odd cause normally I wouldn’t have taken a call from a number I don’t know. After a brief pause I heard, “Uh, Tyee? Oh, Tyee, too much missee!” Mr. fuckin’ Kim. I couldn’t believe it. We only talked for a second cause his English isn’t good enough that we could have an extended phone conversation, but I made sure to tell him the Korean food in Riverside is “numbah 10!” (that’s a bad thing) compared to his.

This is a cool website I found dedicated to all things Korean American. They have a REALLY good food section. You should check it out.

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 07:28:21 +0900

This is a cool website I found dedicated to all things Korean American. They have a REALLY good food section. You should check it out.:

It’s raining in southern California and I really want some makgeolli. I do not want to spend $12 on a bottle of it though and the women working at the store where I have been buying kimchi didn’t know where I could get any. I’m gonna have to go back to Seoul just for the magkeolli soaked rainy days.

knobthrough: Let me be clear and state for the record I don’t...

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 07:23:03 +0900

knobthrough:

Let me be clear and state for the record I don’t give a shit about figure skating. Or most of the winter olympics, for that matter. But having lived in South Korea for a year I was glad to see this chick win a gold medal. Again, not cause I give a fuck, but you cannot even begin to imagine the kind of pressure she was under to win. They talk about it in the media, the commentators mention it during her programs, but all the talk falls way, way flat in trying to understand how much was riding on Kim Yu Na. She sells everything In Korea, her face is everywhere. People talk about her constantly. Had she lost the whole country would have deflated and crashed. Did I mention she was under a lot of pressure? Cause you still don’t get it. Not even close. Anything less than a gold and they would have handed her a luggage cart the second she stepped off the plane at Incheon and sent her out to the tarmac to work. Forever. That kind of pressure would have collapsed most people’s o-rings.

Yes, I know, “Go USA!” and all, but in this instance I’m glad to see another country get the nod.

A clip from a documentary Vice did on North Korea. The whole...

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 20:14:27 +0900

A clip from a documentary Vice did on North Korea. The whole thing is available on YouTube in 14 separate clips. It’s well worth your time. And if you have the chance, watch the doc they made about Liberia. It will really freak your bean.

Honduras Bound

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 07:10:30 +0900

Next month I’m going to Honduras for a couple of weeks to see my friend Julie. She was the only person who can to visit while I was in Korea, so it’s only fair I return the favor.

We’re gonna go to Copan and see Mayan ruins. Check out some shit on the north coast, hopefully a Garifuna village. Then hopefully go to Guanaja to sit on a beach and drink all their beer. Of course, all of this will not go to plan and we’ll miss something or go some where we hadn’t planned on. But that’s the fun of things, isn’t it?

Whatever the case, I’m sure I’ll come home having once again reaffirmed my stance that Julie and I shouldn’t be in the same country for too long lest we descend into a constant blind-drunk stupor as we are wont to do when put together.

058 – 김치 찌개 « Seoul Sounds

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 06:55:41 +0900

058 – 김치 찌개 « Seoul Sounds:

ayaaai:

Just the sound makes me salivate.

Cool Blog. I know Caitlin will find this particularly mouth watering.

kellyinkorea: Apparently Korean iPhone owners who don’t want to...

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 06:02:10 +0900

kellyinkorea:

Apparently Korean iPhone owners who don’t want to remove their winter gloves in order to use the phone’s touch screen have come up with an interesting stylus solution—sausage. Sales of this prepackaged sausage, which can be found in any convenience store here, have supposedly risen sharply. (Source)

(Reblogged from jegidong)

It’s a good thing they found a use for those sausages, cause they’re certainly not fit for eating.

lauraallover: (via fuckyeahkrnfood) I HAVE MY TICKET TO SEOUL! ...

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 05:59:32 +0900

lauraallover:

(via fuckyeahkrnfood)

I HAVE MY TICKET TO SEOUL! Yay! I will be there in the late afternoon on Saturday. This is exactly what I want to eat when I get there.

I’m pretty well torn to shreds with jealousy right now.

amber-rae: GPOYW: with @colinismyname at the #smw closing party...

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:07:25 +0900

amber-rae:

GPOYW: with @colinismyname at the #smw closing party at kiss & fly in NYC last Friday

honorable mention goes to brilliant photographer brandon king and his photobooth gallery from chrissy & naveen’s prom… i think I enthusiastically posted enough prom photos over the last few days so I decided to switch things up a bit. :)

I started following this girl’s tumblr a while back after happening on something she wrote. I don’t recall what it was, but it struck a chord in me. She writes about life, getting out and doing things rather than sitting around waiting for something to happen—making the life you want a reality. Inspirational stuff.

I wonder if she knows you can see her nipple in this picture.

knobthrough: This bit of graffiti really tickled my fancy for...

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 05:55:44 +0900

knobthrough:

This bit of graffiti really tickled my fancy for some reason.

I got a package of chocolates from Korea today—the...

Sat, 23 Jan 2010 08:45:40 +0900

The box and the letter.

A little shaken up, but good to eat.

I got a package of chocolates from Korea today—the chocolate Monica made. There was a letter from her daughter that said Monica had made these for me before she passed away. Posthumous bonbons, so delicious, I cried when I opened the box—the note and it’s contents might have had something to do with it too.

“I read your blog post today…You know so much about my Mom, her plan, her dreams…I printed it out and put it next to her picture…I translated it into Korean in case of difficult words which she would not know.”

It’s kind of an odd feeling to know when these are gone, there will be no more. I can say definitively this is the last time I will have these chocolates. How often can you say that about something? When do you know, without a doubt, whatever it is you are doing or eating or hearing will be the final call? It’s pretty rare I think and makes eating them a little bitter sweet. But mostly sweet.

Even some months after being home, my Korean experience continues to grow and evolve.

lauraallover: (via fuckyeahkrnfood) I just realized that my...

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 16:51:00 +0900

lauraallover:

(via fuckyeahkrnfood)

I just realized that my birthday is in like, four days? All I want is to eat galmegi sal and kimchi then have a Cass power hour, stay out until six at NB, and get into fights with cab drivers in Gangnam. Instead, I will probably end up at the Olive Garden with my mom.

I found a pretty legit Korean place not too far from my house a couple nights ago. The kimchi was good and I heard authentic Korean people saying “yeh, yeh” on several occasions. It was pretty reassuring, I have to say. Korean meals. They fuck most countries dinners pretty aggressively. Like prison style. Don’t drop the kochoojong.

And Happy Birthday to Ms. All Over. Still not sure about that name. Is it Slavic? Word.

You know, I really should have cut my hair while I was in Seoul....

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:40:00 +0900

This is tak-dong-jib. Chicken assholes.

Uh, I believe I ordered the large Coke?

You know, I really should have cut my hair while I was in Seoul. I’m glad I was able to go the whole year, though, because some how I find that a worthwhile goal.

And a Motorhead shirt to boot. Jesus. I stand behind the shirt, but the hair is one hundred pounds of hessian mess.

And not surprisingly, I thought the chicken butts were pretty delicious.

ayaaai: Face of the Day | Asian Correspondent The caption...

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:19:07 +0900

ayaaai:

Face of the Day | Asian Correspondent

The caption reads, “69-year old Cha Sa-sun, who famously took the driver’s license exam 950 times before passing, took the wheel at a driving hagwon in Jeollabuk-do at the end of last year.” So don’t get down on yourself if you failed say 3 times. You’re still 947 tries away from being on par with this lovely ahjima.

I can remember hearing about this lady months and months ago when I was still in Seoul.

They enjoy the test taking over there, that’s for sure.

Korean lulz of the day: my director thinks I'm fat.

Thu, 14 Jan 2010 17:59:15 +0900

lauraallover:

jgh2:

jessicainkorea:

I had to get another health checkup today because my health checkup last week was just a drug test. So they weighed me, lol.

Right afterwards my director was like, “It’s OK, you can lose the weight quickly in Korea, Americans eat a lot of food.”

I think I’m supposed to be offended, but the cultural difference from America - where a boss could be fired for saying such a thing! - really just made me lol.

The thing about this country is, if you don’t just laugh it off, and instead expect everything to be the way it is back home, you will be disappointed. It’s a completely different culture!

So she got me some “weight loss tea” on the way back. Hopefully it dosen’t contain ephedra. Haha.

“The thing about this country is, if you don’t just laugh it off, and instead expect everything to be the way it is back home, you will be disappointed. It’s a completely different culture!”

This is really important. I’m really glad that you have such an open mind after being there for such a short time. Many people are there for much longer and still don’t get it. You seem to be adjusting very well!

To be overweight in Korea must be a nightmare. I remember when Jared, who is not fat at all, was going to start working for a new elementary school and our director told him to get a hair cut (reasonable), to buy a suit (less reasonable) and to lose some weight (totally unreasonable). In the states, that is a goddamn winning lottery ticket. You can retire on the kind of money that will bring in. There was a time in class when a particularly annoying and most likely insane older woman was telling me about how in Korea, when a girl is fat they call her “raddish calves”—i can’t remember the word she used—and the pointed to a girl who couldn’t have been more than 17 or 18 and said “like her”. Bear in mind, the radishes in Korean are of the enormous daikon variety. Think of an eggplant, like the size of, well, your calf. There was also the time I showed a picture of my friend passed out with a flower pot over his head. Never mind he was asleep on a porch with a giant bowl for growing house plants resting on top his log-sawing cranium, all they said was, “he’s so fat!”. I can remember spending an entire lunch explaining to one of my female co-workers that if I told a girl in the states she was chubby, I’d likely end up getting a wrap in the mouth. To her, it just meant cute. There was another time I saw what had to be the most over weight person in Korea sitting on the subway. He was surrounded by elderly hikers who I could have sworn were planning a trek up his north face.

Like the posts above make clear, things are way different over there. To comment on someone’s physical appearance, height, weight, whatever, is totally accepted.