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Sleepy talks

DH: *mumbles something*..why is it an alligator?

Me: What are you talking about?

DH: See you later, alligator.

Me: Oh, it rhymes. Later. Alligator.

DH: Good night, alligator.

Me: No! See you later, alligator!

DH: Why can't it be good night, alligator?

Me: Well, if that makes you happy..

Highlights from my night w/in-laws, it's FIL's birthday and he is very drunk

These exchanges all happen in Korean which is why I barely speak in any of them

FIL: have you lost weight? (I start to say yes but he cuts me off) you have! I can tell! Wow, you've lost a lot of weight! I can tell. What happened? You got sick? Stressed?

Me: no I've been on a diet..

FIL, acting like I've just insulted him: why?! You don't need to diet!!

Me: f-for h-health reasons..

FIL: AH YES! Health! You must take good care of your health.

FIL: look! She lost a lot of weight! Did you notice? Wow it's really a lot! You can see it in her face. Wow! She's much prettier! (this sounds rude but I am 98% sure he doesn't mean it that way)

FIL: I want to ask you something. How long have you been in Korea now? Five years?

Me: six-

FIL: Six years. You know. This is Korea right? If I went to America I would have to speak English everywhere. I have to study. Right? Or wrong? Right, huh? This is Korea. If you studied Korean it would be much better when you visit.

He goes in circles on this for about ten minutes while I'm trying and failing to think of a way to say "studying isn't the problem, I understand everything you say, it's my crippling social anxiety that makes me second guess everything I say and by the time I convince myself it's the right thing to say I've missed my window and you've started talking again AND I do not in any way go around Korea expecting people to speak English to me, most people give me a chance to get a word out here and there" so instead, I just sit there nodding.

FIL: Danielle wow since you lost weight you got much prettier-

MIL: you can't just say that to a girl

FIL: ah. I'm sorry. Me - Korean style. You - American style. I forgot.

SIL: is that even Korean style though?

MIL: DAD style.

I have been reading your blog and there is so much beneficial info. I am so glad I did. Hope you're well.

This was in my asks for a very long time and you might not be around anymore but: thank you, first of all

And second I'm sorry the helpful info didn't last long into my time in Korea. I'd be happy to answer any questions people have though. I kind of forget what's interesting anymore because I'm just comfortable.

Definitely freaked out by the thought of going back home and dealing with all those emotions. I have a mountain high to do list, too.

So during one of my classes this afternoon I had the dreaded "I turned my back for half a second" experience and during that time I heard a little boy shriek. So I whip around to see what's going on and I ask him what's going on.

He says, "Because [girl] kissed [girl]!" So I look in the direction of the two girls and the one who supposedly kissed the other one is smiling this huge ridiculous grin. All the kids start reacting now, as kids do upon hearing the word "kiss".

So the girl feels the need to defend/explain, "It's okay for a girl to kiss a girl. Just not a boy." Like it was the plainest fact in the universe. Keep in mind, this is my last class of the day on a Friday afternoon. I just said, "I have an equal opportunity NO KISSING policy for my class, girl or boy."

They seemed satisfied enough by that answer. Later though, I saw them holding hands.

I'm just the music teacher people.

It just occurred to me that I’ve been here for so long I should probably look at the blogs I follow and see how many of y’all I’ve inevitably met by now.

Welp

So it’s been six years, and I’m about to start my seventh year teaching in Korea. It’s been interesting and fun and crazy while at the same time sometimes just being boring and normal.

I’ve now made the decision to finally move home in March 2020. It’s a year off, so I have time to make some final memories, get my finances back in shape, and prepare for a massive trip home with a husband and two cats I didn’t have when I came here. I’m very glad he supports me in my decision to leave, as this was very much a “me” decision rather than “we” - but he reacted very well.

I need to be home with my family. I’m scared and not sure if I’m ready for what waits for me at home, but I need to be a better aunt, daughter, sister, and everything else while I still can.

#teaching in korea

Oh boy

A while back, my brother came to visit me here in Korea. By a while back, I mean he got here at the end of January, just left this week.

While he was here, we sang in a choir concert together and did 9 performances of the Wizard of Oz (I stage managed, he played drums in the orchestra). We went to Japan for a four day weekend and nearly walked our feet off with all the stuff we got done. During the time he was here, I was basically go-go-go-go-go without much time to sit down or stop or rest.

He left on Tuesday and I wish I could say I was enjoying all this free time my life suddenly gave me, but I can feel one of my down swings coming in hard. Wednesday was a holiday and I don’t think I left my bed more than two or three times. Everything I do just feels empty, like I want to be excited to have time for Netflix again but it just feels like a time filler.

I know I need to just get back into a routine that doesn’t involve falling into my bed after work and staying there until it’s time to leave 14 hours later. I know sinking into my bed will just make things worse. Sometimes it’s just hard to be away from family, but I think it’s a combination of that + everything I had going on in my life is taking a break and I’m not handling it well. Okay. Time to get some work done.

Daiso

Your lighting is spot on for making products look great and I’m sure the mirrors everywhere serve some purpose in making the space look cleaner and whatnot

but I literally do not want to see myself in that many angles in such perfect lighting, I did not need to know I had that many imperfections thanks

So, did driclor work for you? and can you still buy it in korea? :)

I am so sorry if this is too late but yes it does work for me and yes you can still buy it in Korea.

Only in Korea

KT: Is she in time out?

Me: No, she’s sick but she doesn’t want to go to the nurse. Her head is really warm.

KT: *makes kid get up and look like she’s participating* Well, I need to take a picture...

#teachinginkorea

I went to a dermatologist in Seoul

Anyone who has read my posts over the past several years might remember some posts about my struggles with skincare. I went from “I use this crappy scrub and that’s my only skincare” to “DESTROY ALL THE BLEMISHES” to eventually finally having a respectable routine. I actually read ingredient lists and have an idea of what ingredients to stay away from. I moisturize, I use sunscreen. I never skip morning or nighttime routines. I love my skincare routine and I love the results I get from taking such good care of my skin.

BUT there’s only so much you can put on your face when the problems come from inside (hormones). So finally after all this frustration my face just said “I’m done” and gave up on life, meanwhile I’m left sad and clueless. So I had a week off from work, happened to be out and about with DH, and told him I wanted to see a dermatologist.

It’s interesting how something that is 1) so inaccessible and 2) so expensive back home is neither of those things here. That’s actually what kept me away for so long. I didn’t want the fuss. But it really was as simple for me as just walking into the first clinic I saw (with Korean husband), telling them what I wanted, and walking back out with a prescription.

The consultation itself cost 15,000 won, then I got a cortisone shot for my blemishes (I think I got injections in five different spots and the total was 13,000 won). He wrote me a prescription for Clindamycin (a topical antibiotic) and Stieva-A (tretinoin, similar to Retin-A) .025%. His clinic does not prescribe higher strengths of tretinoin to first-time patients, but I wanted the .025% to start out with anyway. If anyone wanted a lower strength, it exists, I think .01%. The prescription cost just over 40,000 won. The doctor did not speak English but at this point I’d rather go to a place that ignores me and speaks only to my husband if it means the place is nearby. It used to bother me so much that they’d look right past me and speak directly to him over MY health concerns, but to be honest I’m too tired to care anymore, lol.

I've been nursing a migraine since waking up this morning, but on the plus side my cat is aggressively cuddling with me and he just brought me his toy (he wants me to play with him but I'll pretend it was a get well soon gesture). If any of you suffer from migraines that stop responding to normal pain medicine, it might be worth looking into mydrin. It's available otc here for cheap. I've also had luck with taksen (or poksen, same thing smaller pill) and migaphen, both also available otc. Check the ingredients lists and be aware of any sensitivities you may have, for example mydrin has acetaminophen. Also of course, see a doctor if your migraines are really bad and frequent as you probably shouldn't rely on otc medicine in these cases.

It feels like a real vacation when there's time to sit in a coffee shop on a weekday morning. Anyone else get the whole week off? I stayed in bed far too long yesterday thinking it would be nice to sleep in for a change, but my age hit me hard once I finally got out of bed. Apparently I can't sleep in anymore and I walked around all day with a migraine feeling hungover even though I didn't drink anything D: So today, even though I had trouble falling asleep last night, I got up after eight hours and forced myself out of the house. It feels kind of good to see the world this early on an off day. Maybe I should do this more often, lol.

Thanks Korea

For telling me about the airshow before I was caught unawares in front of 14 kids and forced to attempt a poker face

“what do you mean pale this is what I always look like guys! oh those? Just airplanes kicking it in formation right outside our window nbd”

For real though I was wondering if I should stop class and start making phone calls

Anyone else going to Seoul comic-con?

A co-worker let me know about it just before tickets went on sale, so DH and I will be going. I'm just curious if anyone knows about it and plans on going in August. It's been years since my last comic con (in San Diego) so I'm excited for whatever the weekend brings!

Real life problem solving with Little Einsteins:

Oh, no! My student loan debt is out of control! We'd better clap to the beat to remind me to make regular payments. Ready? Clap, clap, clap, clap.. It's working! Keep clapping! Clap, clap, clap, clap.. Good job! I'm debt free! Someone is coming to talk to me, but I only have five minutes left on my lunch break. What should I do? I have to sneeeeeak past so no one can find me. I need to tiptoe verrrryyyy quietly - piano. Tiptoe! Even quieter! Grrreat tiptoeing! Uh oh! It's literally every day of my life and I need to tell someone something across a steep language barrier. I'd better do my super special charades dance so we can understand each other. Will YOU do my super special charades dance with me? Great! Do the charades dance! Look! It's working! Keep dancing! Phew! Thanks to YOUR dancing, another translation crisis has been averted. Excellent job! Here's my special song for when I'm locked out of my apartment: "Hello will you open please, open please, open please, hello will you open please so I can come inside?" Hmm.. it didn't work.. Sing LOUDER! Sing.. FORTE! Now if I can figure out how to conduct a diminuendo for when my cats won't be quiet at night.. I'd better watch more Little Einsteins.

If you are asked to teach a demo class

I’m telling you this because it is painful when the principal asks to borrow my students, and I stand by and watch some unsuspecting teacher come in and tank. Don’t let that be you.

1. Know that this happens and may happen to you. The principal of the school may not tell you this in advance and you might end up in this awkward situation of getting thrown in front of a bunch of students and asked to teach them something.

2. You might not be asked to demo at all. I’ve never been asked to do one, but my school does ask potential teachers to do it often.

3. There may or may not be actual children there. Many people I know have been asked to teach a demo class in front of a group of managers.

4. Prepare just in case. You’ll probably be able to reuse the lesson later on, so don’t think of it as a waste of time.

For the actual class.. The person observing you wants to see, among other things:

You are able to control the class. If the students are young, I would think of a way to get their attention and incorporate teaching it into your lesson. For example, in my music classes I sing, “Who’s sitting, who’s sitting nicely?” and they sing back, “I’m sitting, I’m sitting nicely.” They do not want to see you having to raise your voice to regain control. They are looking to see if you can remain calm and together if the class gets a little noisy.

The students can understand you. You should be talking in a manner that is appropriate for the age and level of the students that you’re teaching. Facial expressions and body language are important, as is the speed and tone of your voice, how many pauses you take, etc.

Your teaching style is energetic and exciting. I don’t always sound like a cartoon character when I teach, but the more energy I put into teaching, the more focus and attention I have from the students.

That said, I’ve seen people tank the demo and still end up with the job. In that case, the worst thing is being slightly embarrassed in front of one of your potential coworkers. Either way, save yourself the stress and be ready for anything.

#teaching in korea

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