day 125: life in "reel" time

enjoi!






















thumbs up for blogspot for maintaining picture quality!

じゅん せば

i remember when i first heard nujabes' melodic tracks.
it was during the beautiful purple summer of '06,
the sun was shining bright,
the people were smiling about,
and everyone was living easy.

there was always something about his music
that was emphatically soothing.
even the lyrical rhapsodies were crafted
perfectly on top of his harmonious pieces.

you could tell it was his music
just by listening to the first few measures.
he was like a master samurai sword-smith,
his beats made of superlative quality.

indeed, his music was incredibly light..
.. as if it was floating on like a feather in the air...




rip じゅん せば Jun Seba (1974-February 26, 2010)

"Without having to raise the heartbeat again,

took off into the sky."

day 119: no woman no cry

today i met an uzbekistani woman named s-----. she's the first uzbekistani i've ever met in my life. she flew all the way over from uzbekistan to study korean. i could not help but gaze deep into her youthful eyes, puzzled, and wondering why she left uzbekistan for seoul. maybe she was one of the lucky ones able to study abroad i thought. i could not help but ask what brought her out to korea. "i'm married," she tells me nonchalantly. i could see it in her eyes. she was unphased by my foolish question, but remained as focused as ever; her deep brown pupils fixated onto mine. it was at that point i could make out the nonverbal words she was sending telepathically: "that's right," she was telling me. "you heard me correctly - i'm married, now go ahead and ask me this question, how old are you?" she seemed to wield jedi mind-tricking abilities.

flabbergasted - the following words slipped out of my mouth like the cascading water falling from the waitress' pitcher. it was too late. "hold old are you?!" i ask. again with unwavering confidence, and a tinge of amusement, she answers, "i'm twenty." at that point all the nerves in my brain simultaneously synapsed; all the atomic particles colliding in every possible direction. perplexed - i took a brief second to ponder how my life would be.. if i too were from uzbekistan. anyways, before i could ask another imprudent question, in a matter-of-fact-ly tone she says, "in my country it's normal for girls to get married at this age. some get married at 14 or 15..."

as we walk towards the subway station she explains to me how through an international bridal company her husband picked her photo from the website, paid for her dowry (flight ticket to korea), and now she is living in korea with him. she tells me that he's a man of finance, gambling in the stock market, and more than twice her age ( [20 x 2] + 7 years ). did i mention that she's more than halfway through her pregnancy with his child. don't get me wrong, i've read about these online bridal services before, but it was still hard for me to swallow the fact that standing right in front of me was the real deal. here i am in korea, a gigantic ocean away from everything i was comfortable with, and i meet a young, beautiful uzbekistani woman whose also here, BUT not from her own free will, but because of her-very-own-personal-life-circumstances that brought her here. a part of me was shocked, another saddened, and surprisingly i was even a little upset about her situation. yet, on the surface she looked as happy as she could be, doing everything in her power to survive in this world. we smiled, waved goodbye, and went our separate ways.

though i may never see her again,

these are the encounters i yearn for.

and in the brief thirty minutes we shared,

i learned a whole lot about another human-being.

in my experience, the life stories that we share,

are undoubtedly what makes us all human.

no woman no cry,

ev'rythins gonna be alright.

melodic moments mean musical ménage-à-trois

i havn't been much of a useful human-being lately. as productive as i am teaching these young korean students english, i don't think im contributing at all to the intellectual/spiritual/positive growth of humanity. perhaps i am losing a bit of my idealism being out of college. nonetheless it is good to be realistic and understand one's limitations. yet at the same time we're only capable of so much. but so much more. a paradox indeed. no, i have not figured out the purpose of life, nor do i expect to figure it out anytime soon. however, the "figuring-out-one's-future" chapter of one's life is as exhilarating as finding out which college one will be attending in the fall, and as exciting as the day one turn's into a pre-pubescent teenager.

life's full of wonderful surprises, ain't it?

anyways, now that i teach six days a week, i feel like the days are flying by. i don't have time to think at all. (you know! those days where you have all these magnificently philosophical, or intellectually stimulating ideas that may change an entire civilization!) despite the extra hours, the blur between the days seem perfectly natural now. i get it ~ this is the real world! i'm another automaton adult doing work!!! i suppose it's fulfilling my duties as a citizen. err... a global citizen since i have a u.s. passport and im working in korea? don't get me wrong, i enjoy teaching! especially when my twelve year old students and i have a 15-minute conversation about cryonics. or, when a student comes into class one week getting an F on the review test, then getting an A on the next one. it's an amazing feeling to know that one child, one adolescent, or one teenager's perspective (on something as simple as education) has changed, because they finally understand the importance of working hard. whatever your motto may be, it's true... hard work does pay off. in my opinion, there's nothing in it for the get-rich-quick-schemers, or those who try to find the easy way out. perhaps im just making generalizations. i am young, and still too naive. i guess we all have to make a dollar somehow right? but, if you had a million dollars what would you honestly do with it? enlighten me, please.

on a side note: fred falke makes me want to dance!

and rjd2 still bumpin: definitely played a few times throughout the day/night.

enjoi

oh sh*t! & nightdr*gs

wow. i'm all for the 70's-disco-tech-synth-house movement. there's just so much funk between the bar lines! this remix especially hit me on another level. there's a sense of fred falke-ism to this mashup between oh sh*t!(US) and nightdr*gs(FR). i've heard a few of the other remixes of this track, but to be honest this track got my ears ringing from euphoria.

wait for 2:03 pls~
enjoi



oh sh*t! & nightdr*gs: everybody needs (bit funk remix)

day 105: in the heart of seoul

So it has been three months since I traded Costa Mesa, California for Seoul, Korea. In essence, I left behind my family, my friends, my car (which my parents promptly sold after I left), my nishiki, my "stuff" (RIP George Carlin), In-n-out burger, Mexican food, Chaya, (damn. the chicken teriyaki dinner was money! Well so was the beef bowl I suppose), the desert, the mountains, the beach, and of-course the fantastic ~70 degree weather that has graced Southern Californians for centuries.

For what? Minus celcius degree weather, winds that slash your face with invisible ice daggers, and the never-ending coldness. Doesn't sound too pleasant huh?

To be quite honest, it hasn't been all that bad. Having a "season" is definitely something most Southern Californians take for granted. Not because we're all superficial, or need a constant tan, but it's primarily because we never have the opportunity to experience such wonders. About two months ago, Korea was hit with a record breaking snowfall that halted all activities in the country, including schools! That day I left from my Aunt's house in Suwon (about an hour south of Seoul) around 10 AM, and got to my school around 3 PM, only to be told that I could go home because the busses could not shuttle the students to school. What a great break for a Monday I thought! The minute I sneak in a "f*ck yes!" I'm told I would have to make it up that Saturday! -__- Awesome. Anyways, it's March now and Spring should be arriving sooner than later.

Even in Korea I still value my weekends like every other individual in the work-force. Most of that time has been spent hanging out with hj and jungle. With our Nikons strapped, we shoot up every district we go to, and make tourists look like... well tourists. I'm too lazy to repost all the pictures that I've shot, but you can definitely find them on that social networkin g site. You know! (the one that beat out myspace, and is now crawling with creepers and bots). We were also graced with the presence of Jason Kim, and Janice Kang (thanks you two!). Hopefully, we will have more visitors in the coming months. Recently, I have been a home-body, opting to stay in-doors, and playing with my cousins. I can't wait for t-shirt days, and biking along the river.

Some things I've noticed here:

1. Shopping is a national pastime.

2. Drinking is a national hobby.

3. Smoking is a national leisure activity.

4. Passing out on the subway is acceptable.

5. Err... passing out ANYWHERE is acceptable.

6. Korean food is not that expensive.

7. Too bad everything else is!

8. Public transportation is awesome!

9. If you don't mind sitting next to ajushi's that reek of alcohol.

10. Everyone's watching something on their cell phone.

11. I can watch a starcraft match on tv while running on the treadmill.

12. I can simultaneously watch a Big Bang music video while biking.

13. Anything American is 35% over-priced.

14. Need any McDonalds, Burger King, Starbucks, Coffee Bean, Dunkin Donuts, Krispy Kreme, 7-11, Black Angus (wtf?). I know I'm missing more...

15. Being a couple requires matching shoes, or matching winter jackets. Or both.

16. Being single means you're hanging out with friends that are of the same sex.

17. There are a million foreigners here.

18. You either stop abruptly, or the car takes you out. Pedestrians do not have the right of way.

19. PC bang, DVD Room, Karaoke, Billiards, Bar, Cafe - ALL IN ONE BUILDING!

20. Everyone wants to know your age, and if your single or taken.

Oh man. I could go on, but I think it'll be more fun if I made another list later. Maybe 3 months later? Heh. I should definitely blog more often, cause everyday is an adventure for the most part, especially when it comes to teaching. However, my favorite days are those that are interrupted by non-Korean speaking foreigners seeking help. One day while I was heading home after work, an IT consultant (of Indian descent) asked if the seat next to me was taken. I said no, and we talked about what brought us here to Korea. He was on a business trip, and I told him I was teaching English. That turned into a forty minute conversation about absolutes, words, and experiences. Suffice it to say he was an extremely knowledgeable man, and the rationale he provided me that night was invaluable. It is impossible for me to rewrite our script, but I will let you in on a seemingly obvious truth: go and seek your own wisdoms, find your zen master.

Last week I finished up my Winter semester, and I already miss my old kids. Some of them were rascals, many of them were adorable, and a few were straight geniuses. Nonetheless, I am interested in seeing how these new kids will be this semester. I got one kid whose going to be a comedian when he grows up. I literally LOLed in the middle of class today. Fortunately, I have to work on Saturdays now. There go my weekends! Just a little run down of my work schedule incase you were wondering (probably not, but what the heck). I usually leave for work around 2pm, arrive at work around 2:30pm, prep my classwork, teach from 4pm to 10pm (with a 5 minute break every 55 minutes), and finally get home around 10:40-10:45pm (depending on the timing of the busses and subways). What do you think? Regardless of that seemingly hectic lifestyle I am thankful that my co-workers are all fascinating people, who have all come from different walks of life that teach me something new every day. It's a different lifestyle out here, with divergent customs, and new habits; but so far it has given me a lot of insight, and I've come to appreciate more of the simpler things in life, and the things that I had taken for-granted.

an-yeong!