I was just rejected from a job application I was really hoping to go through. Although I’m certainly no stranger to rejection, it’s been hitting me rather hard this month. It’s been three months since I returned from South Korea, and I feel like I’ve been going through the motions of life rather than...
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Three months since I flew into San Francisco International, and my mind has been swimming with possibilities. Employment-wise, Craigslist continues to be a constant source of income for me, but as I’m not living in 2006, and with the unemployment rate as high as it is, gigs and jobs are getting scooped up within...
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It’s only been six weeks since I took that flight from Incheon, and already my world is established. I have a job (well, series of jobs, anyway), a girlfriend, a place to stay, food in the fridge, money in the bank. I’d be lying if I said things are exactly the way I wanted...
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And we’ll meet it if it does. I’ve got exactly four teaching days left before my replacement arrives, all green from Dallas, and just under two weeks until my flight to San Francisco. I wish I could say I’m looking forward to returning “home”, but the truth is I’ve been very numb to both...
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With American soil soon to be under my running feet, I’ve been asking myself the same question a lot lately: who will I be when I’m not what I am here, in Korea? It should come as no shock to anyone that we all have different personas for dealing with different stages of our...
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Recently, I asked a friend living in Portland to do some shopping on my behalf and ship said items to Korea. Nothing too fancy: Reese’s, apple sauce, gingerbread, etc. Some things that are next to impossible to find here. As far as my taste buds were concerned, it was a wise decision. My wallet...
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I’m sure even non-Americans were paying attention to the debt crisis unfolding in Washington these past few weeks. As the world’s largest economy, the US defaulting on trillions of dollars in debt would have had repercussions across the globe. As it stands, of course, the crisis has been averted (or rather, pushed back). I’m...
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Make no mistake: learning another language is serious business. I don’t really buy into those arguments claiming once you immerse yourself completely in another culture, you’ll just start picking up words and phrases until you become completely fluent. Whatever “fluent” is, anyway: “Fine”, you say, “let fluency be someone who is fluent to a...
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It’s the 4th of July today, an American holiday celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Rather, the draft of the Declaration was signed on July 2nd, but the parchment which now sits on display in Washington DC is the transcribed copy we now consider the cornerstone of American history. In any case,...
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This one is fresh from Korea. I just finished up two adult classes. As is often the case with these 6:30 AM ones, many students don’t show up. I got four for the beginner class, but only one for the advanced. Since I knew this student to be a fairly competent speaker, I decided...
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