Say Hello to my Little Friend

A wee-man complex is a terrible thing to witness, particularly when that wee-man is Kim Jong-il. Once again he’s hopped atop his enriched-uranium booster chair and is screaming for dinner. While I hate politics of fear, and am usually quick to dismiss the egocentric wailing of North Koreas leader, there is something disconcerting about having a nuclear weapon (reportedly the equivalent size of those dropped in Japan at the end of WWII) detonated a few hundred miles to the north. But, as I was drilling phonics into the already oversaturated brains of 5 year old children, that’s what happened today.

I’m not overly concerned about safety, but it will certainly be interesting to see how this plays out over the next few days/weeks. More than likely this is just another cry for attention, and, unless I miss my guess, he’s going to get plenty of it.

Also in the news, Roh Moo-Hyun, the former President of South Korea, committed suicide this weekend by leaping from a 100 foot cliff in the mountains behind his home. He had recently come under investigation for bribery charges and was expected to be convicted.

If you want to read more about these stories you can follow these links:

Roh : http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/23/roh.dead/index.html
Bomb : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8066861.stm

Unbridled Solicitation

Teaching here, as I'm certain it is everywhere else on the planet, is often a tedious, thankless job. You have no idea how much a simple letter or care package can brighten a bad day or week. If you feel like sending one, I promise I'll write back! (shameless solicitation... I know... I'm sorry)

My address at school is :

YBM Cheongdam ECC

3rd Floor, Mijoon Building,
19-17 Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu,
Seoul, Korea 135-949

The schools phone# 02-581-0509

Letters are cheap but a medium sized package (about the size of a pair of boots) is around $25.

Here are some things that I miss, many of which and are hard to come by here...

1. Chrystal Lite Lemonade (pitcher sized portions)

2. MAC and CHEESE!!! (or shells n cheese)

3. Maple Syrup (it can be found here, but it's around $20 for a bottle the size of coke can)

4. Just-add-water pancake mix /oatmeal / cream of wheat

5. Deodorant

6. Ny-Quil (the knock you out kind)

7. General cold / sinus medicines (and anti-inflammatory meds for my old man knee :-)

8. XL underthings (v-neck t's; cotton boxers; etc...)

9. Cooking Spices

10. Other lil' toiletries and small kitchen items are great too.

11. Used Books in English... I love a good read; (anything on the NYT best seller list)

12... and perhaps most of all, pictures and letters from my family! Oh man I miss my little nieces and nephews.

(fyi: most of the dry food goods can be removed from their boxes and put into baggies; this takes up much less room in a small box)

If you send something, make sure you leave a return address so I can return the favor.

Here are a few more pictures from the past couple months. I'll file a proper update next weekend.

Expressions