this time around...

and we're back!

it's honestly hard to believe i'm doing this again...same school, same city.
everything is so familiar. but it feels so foreign.

i have been here a bit over a week and am slowly adjusting. i think i've been through all the stages of culture shock already. heck, i went through them all the first day of school. extreme highs and lows. but i know once i get back into the groove things will level out and become "normal" again.

the reunions (with co-workers and students) have been wonderful. and surreal. a lot of fantastic people are still around and i couldn't be more grateful for that. there are MANY students who have moved on, however, and i hope to see a lot of them in the coming months.

mind-playing-tricks-like-a-boss #1: i think i have PSS - phantom student syndrome. i think i see a student from two years back roaming the hallways, but before i call out their name, realize it's someone else. from the back, high school kids in uniform can do that to you, i guess.

as for classes, i am teaching 9-3 writing and grammar, 8-2 speech, 8-1 conversation (an ACTUAL esl class...weird), 7-2 debate, and (as of yesterday) 12th grade after school ACT reading (so they won't fail their ACT test in august). it's a weird mix of english-y things. i really miss teaching geography already because i grew to love the subject, but this will be a new and good challenge. so far, things have gone smoothly and my TESOL class is sure coming in handy. i also have significantly less teaching hours than before (from 25 a week to 16) so my at-school time is less, leaving opportunity for more korea-seeing this year. i'm excited about that.


however, this week they made me go to their hagwon - after school english program - so i worked from 8-730 everyday. so this week has been interesting.



mind-playing-tricks-like-a-boss #2: everyday when i go home and everything is silent, i get these daymares of deafening korean phrases in my head. it's basically a jumble of the oft-heard korean that is around me everyday, but since i don't know what it means it's really strange. and really loud. and i can't make it stop. so i turn on some music. that helps.

my thoughts are somewhat scattered but i hope to keep this blog at about the same pace as before - once every week or two.

i hope to keep in touch with you as well! i'm on skype at karikut - if you have a calling card you can even call my cell here. i also love penpals:

382-3 Songnae-dong Sosa-gu
Bucheon-si, Gyeonggi-do
South Korea 422-040