George's Odyssey

new address

2008-08-03T04:35:00.000-07:00

My new blog address is

http://joji1909.wordpress.com/ .

Enjoy!

Vacation Time

2008-07-25T20:49:00.000-07:00

I'll be away for about a week, going to climb Mt. Fuji in Japan. Might also go to the suicide forest.

Red Cliff

2008-07-20T01:52:00.000-07:00

Red Cliff was much better than I expected. Every character was as I had imagined; Zhou Yun rescuing Liu Bei's son (who would later destroy all his father had created); Guan Yu being Guan Yu; and Zhang Fei, minus the Changban heroics. For those not in the know, the Battle of Red Cliff marked the beginning of the Three Kingdoms period in China (220 - 280AD). Unfortunately, though rather predictably, Cao Cao is portrayed as a lecher obsessed with making Xiao Qiao his wife/concubine/lover/etc. In the film, Xiao Qiao is played by 林志玲 (Lin Zhiling), a Taiwanese model.
It was disappointing to see no reference to the heroes in the Cao army. My favourite has always been Zhang Liao.

The reason I like this story so much is that, in the novel at least, the characters are portrayed as basically human with conflicting motives. In one incident, Cao Cao's army is passing through a village and realising how important it is to keep the population on his side, he decrees that any soldier trampling crops will be executed. As would happen, his own horse runs wild and tramples a field. Being true to his word, Cao Cao reaches for his sword to slit his own throat only to be stopped by his officers. But as a crime must not go unpunished, he decides to cut off his knotted hair thus bringing shame to his family.
Later in the war, Liu Bei has escaped from Cao Cao's forces with a throng of people following him only to realise that he has no kingdom of his own. It's at this point that he is reminded of his uncle and how cruel he is to his subjects. Does Liu Bei betray his own family to save his followers or does he continue searching for a suitable base?

Clamp down

2008-07-14T17:46:00.000-07:00

China is clamping down on 'dissidents' for the Olympics which are due to start on August 8, 2008 (08/08/08). By clamping down they mean removing vagrants and other undesirables to anywhere but Beijing. Of course, civil rights groups are up in arms on this latest abuse of human rights.

For the Sydney Olympics in 2000, the Australian government did the exact same thing. For two weeks there were no buskers or homeless on Sydney's streets. They were given a taxpayer-funded holiday to rural New South Wales. And yet this abuse was barely mentioned by any media outlets.

Orwell said something about a nationalist's ability to not only condemn heinous human rights abuses by the 'enemy' but to also completely ignore any abuses committed by their own country.

In other news, one of my recent posts got a very interesting comment. Check it out. I love getting the random intelligent comment.

Persian Gold

2008-07-13T03:48:00.000-07:00

The National Museum of Korea(국립백물관) is holding an exhibit called Glory of Persia. It runs until August 31 and is very popular as there are over 200 items ranging in age from 1500 to 4000 years old. Some of the workmanship is amazing, especially considering the tools used. The items range from coins to pieces of statues.

I read that in the US models are in the same category as computer technicians, as far as visa requirements go. Because of the huge demand for foreign techs, there is talk of models being put in a different visa category. At the moment, supermodels are in the same category as those with "extraordinary ability", like Nobel laureates.

Of beaches and beef

2008-07-07T06:28:00.000-07:00

Despite my reservations at what might have been a bad weekend, the beach was great! Even though I'm Australian, and the most common question I get asked is "Do you surf?", it has been years since I had been to the beach. I was never a Bondi bum to begin with (too many tourists) as we had holidays pretty close to an awesome surf beach about two hours out of Sydney. Though most of the holiday was digging trenches and chopping trees, at least two days were spent at the beaches. And Greek-style bbq nearly every night. There's nothing better for keeping mozzies away than throwing some tea tree branches on the fire.

July 4 was also Independence Day for the U.S.A. It galls me that books at my school teach a rosy picture of great patriots rising up against an evil empire. In reality, the whole issue about independence from Great Britain was more about taxation than lofty ideas of freedom. You can read more about it here. In other words, we'll gladly let you fight for us, but don't you dare try to tax us for the service.
That being said;

"Pledges of allegiance are marks of totalitarian states, not democracies," says David Kertzer, a Brown University anthropologist who specializes in political rituals. "I can't think of a single democracy except the United States that has a pledge of allegiance."

The Korean Government will require all restaurants serving beef to specify the country of origin from this week. Some in my area already do, and it's Australian beef. Like I mentioned before, Australia's top importer of beef is the U.S., which exports its own beef to Korea.

Today is also the birthday of Marc Chagall. I was lucky enough to have a friend take me to Seongnam Arts Centre last winter for a Chagall exhibition. The ones I saw had a clear circus theme.

Still, it will be nice to sleep until noon and then laze about this coming Saturday.
And the answer is no.

Coins & Notes

2008-07-02T02:40:00.000-07:00

And that was post #100!!

My newspaper has not turned up for about a week now. At first I thought someone was pinching it but then I realised that maybe my subscription had expired. Though it is hard to say as The Korea Herald office is not the easiest to deal with, even for Koreans.

I'm trying to teach my students how to count using coins. Very annoying as firstly the math book we use does not number the questions. It instead uses colourful symbols. Akin to me teaching these children English in Greek. Also, the coins used in the book are U.S. currency, none of which show the number and only one says the value (the nickel).

Speaking of strange American customs, a space mission to Mars in the 1990s failed because the NASA engineers were using the imperial system rather than the globally accepted metric system so their calculations were way off. Here's a clue guys; If you have ten fingers, you will probably count things in sets of ten. Which makes me wonder...

So, I am making them some Australian coins which are more colourful and actually show the numeric value. Though the American coins do feel pretty nice.

Musical Chairs

2008-06-25T02:41:00.001-07:00

On the way home from the football on Sunday we had to go to Gwanghuamun to get our bus. In front of Yi Sunsin's statue there was a massive protest, or so we thought. It was actually about 20 protesters literally swamped by 200-300 riot police. On each corner of the intersection was a row of police in all their gear ready for action. The scene reminded my of the Myrmidons of old.

The game itself was a little disappointing. Behind us were a group of Japanese students chanting "우리는하나다!" along with the Korean crowd in our section. The phrase means "We are one!" and was shouted any time players helped each other during the game.

Lee Myungbak's government is still under siege. The protests are still raging on but the issues have changed from what was primarily beef imports to criticism of nearly every Lee MB policy. The president's solution? Revamp the Blue House PR machine, whose charge among others is cultivating the image of the president.

I was also reading some interesting articles about Korea, by Korean scholars. Basically, and I feel vindicated to hear this from Koreans, North and South Korea's form of government was identical up until 1987. Koreans also regard their country as relatively poor, which is nearly all economic areas is untrue. Perhaps because Korea's progress was so fast, from a ruined battleground to world leader in 40 years, that the Korean mindset has yet to catch up. As usual, attitudes are always the hardest things to change. Once they do change, it's as if someone has turned the lights on in the Louvre where before all one could see were the outlines and shadows of what could be.

For Me and You + '(wo)man of the moment'

2008-06-19T17:38:00.000-07:00

Today is BBQ Day!! We are lucky that there is a pretty nice park right next to our block. Gonna have a good time.

We went to a new German-style bar near our work yesterday. Very nice place, especially because the first beer was free (Max only, no German beers) AND the tables had a personal beer glass cooler. A brilliant idea so the beer stays cold until the very end.

After that we went to the Beef & Leaf. I used to call this calbi but the new name is so much better for what calbi is.

We'll also be going to the football on Sunday. North Korea play South Korea in a World Cup Qualifier on Sunday night. I'm gonna try get me a DPRK guernsey.

In other news, half 2MB's cabinet have tendered their resignations, including his prime minister. He is expected to accept a few of them. 2MB has also scrapped his canal project.

Finally, this week's 'woman of the moment' is one of the ladies at Kimbap Paradise. Two tools come in and order their meal, saying they want it very quickly. They then both go outside for a smoke. The lady has their food ready only to see they are both outside. She starts to curse them in Korean I could understand. Good one!

You deserve this

2008-06-15T04:52:00.000-07:00

I had a fairly interesting weekend. I watched The Happening on Friday at Express Bus Terminal. I enjoyed it, but my expectations were not very high as I had read an interview in which M. Night Shyamalan says people will be very pleased with his B-grade movie. The gist; people start committing suicide because of a neurotoxin that shuts of their self-preservation switches in their brain. Now, I would think if that were true people would not realise how dangerous actions could kill them rather than actively try to commit suicide. Still, rather good film.

On Saturday we found this cocktail truck in Gangnam. It was one of those blue trucks that cruise around selling fruit/vegetables/electronics/underwear but this one was all set up for a mobile cocktail party. No way this would be possible back home. So much for helping out young entrepreneurs.

Later on, we went to Monkey Beach in Apgujeong. It's a nice place up until 1:30am then everything goes pear-shaped. As expected actually, since they give you whatever drink you order in a bucket.

I was late for the KESS meeting today. I hate being late. Lateness is rude.

Next weekend is the World Cup Qualifier for North Korea and South Korea. I wonder if the northern team will have any supporters in Seoul.

And lastly, to my colleagues in Chicago, this was our target language for 6-2:

How do you like your steak?
Well done, please.

(Medium rare is better actually. The more they cook the meat, the older the meat can be without the diner noticing)

The weekend that was.

2008-06-08T07:20:00.000-07:00

Well, the Memorial Day Long Weekend has come and gone. Some events of note;

1) KESS' original overseer is back. Good to catch up with him.

2) Lee Myungbak (or 2MB, referring to his memory) met with prominant Buddhist and Catholic leaders to discuss his failing popularity. Maybe it's linked to his policies rather than his beliefs.

3) I forgot how good Hoegaarden beer is, and how good the Korean bar scene is. Great for groups. Almost impossible to find an intimate bar though.

Lucky me

2008-06-05T21:09:00.001-07:00

IMG_4058
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

This was a dinner a friend made. Pork chop with a topping of peaches and onions. Greek salad on the left.

I love the colours on this one.

Housewarming Time

2008-06-04T02:12:00.000-07:00

I'm having a housewarming party this weekend. I moved apartment last week to a bigger one. Bigger because it was actually two rooms made into one so I have two bathrooms (one sans window) and two heating control thingamies.

Anyway, come one come all.

Crazy Cows

2008-06-02T17:03:00.000-07:00

Koreans have a propensity for mass action. Take the candle-lit vigils in protest of the government opening up the Korean market to US beef imports. Generally, candle-lit vigils are for when a public figure passes away or to raise awareness of a natural disaster (China earthquake perhaps?). I can understand why people would have these fears, irrational as they are. Mad Cow disease (BSE), or 'crazy cow' as they insist on calling it here, and it's human version, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, are spread when infected brain or spinal cord are ingested. This all began because farmers worked out they could save alot of money by feeding their cattle all the offal and other unsavoury bits and pieces they couldn't sell, despite the fat farming subsidies most Western governments shovel their way. The disease remains undetected as it has a fairly long incubation period. What many people do not understand is how the disease is spread;

"By eating infected brain or spinal cord"

It doesn't help the US case that pieces of spinal cord and some bone fragments were found in the last shipment of beef.

That being said, I did my own research as to why there is such a public outcry for letting US beef back on the market. Apparently, US beef is better as the cattle are grain-fed. I don't know about you, but grain-fed cattle are a human invention. In the US particularly, cattle are kept on a feed lot for the last two weeks and fed hormone-laced grain to fatten them up for slaughter. Conditions are so crowded that if a cow falls it can not get up. Up until two weeks ago, it was accepted practice to slaughter these 'downer' cows along with the others. Personally, I want nothing to do with a cow that has been lying dead in its own filth for two weeks. Besides, bovines don't eat grain in the wild.

I figured if you don't like US beef, be it because you object to US foreign policy or have moral and ethical issues with the treatment of animals, then you vote with your wallet. Simple enough right? WRONG! It seems Koreans do not trust their retailers. Sure, at a supermarket products are required to state their country of origin but when you go to a restaurant what assurances do you have that the advertised Aussie beef isn't actually US beef?

To end, here are some interesting facts about the beef industry;

1) Up until last month, Korea imported 70% of its beef from Australia. That is set to drop to 50% following the resumption of US beef imports.

2) Australia's biggest export market for beef is the USA. One wonders why an exporter of beef would import beef from a country with no record of BSE.

Food for thought, no doubt.

PS, The real mad cows

Sharon Stone says earthquake in China = karma

2008-06-01T01:12:00.001-07:00

Well, about 79,000 people have been killed and a LETTER made her cry!?

Besides, whatever happened to right thought coming before right action? I guess, like any religion, we pick and choose what we like or what is convenient at the time. Eg, In the Old Testament anyone with an eye defect may not approach the altar. Now, find me a priest who doesn't need glasses. This is ignored in favour of 'kill the homosexuals'.

One wonders what Ms. Stone thinks about the karma the "Coalition of the Willing" will incur for their last few excursions.

R-16 B-boy show, France

2008-05-31T08:55:00.003-07:00

IMG_3700
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

Team France

IMG_3478

2008-05-31T08:55:00.001-07:00

IMG_3478
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

Art work

R-16 B-boy show

2008-05-31T08:54:00.001-07:00

IMG_3873
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

Team South africa. So pretty

R-16 B-boy show

2008-05-31T08:53:00.001-07:00

IMG_3495
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

Where once archers stood, we have djs and turntables.

Linkage

2008-05-30T02:00:00.000-07:00

Some links of interest.

http://travelaustralia.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=166837

http://travelaustralia.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=561676

The 300 myth.

2008-05-29T04:57:00.001-07:00

I can't believe I have waited over a year to post this. I watched 300 back when it was released in Korea and I was impressed. However, as that and many other events are part of my heritage I knew there were many liberties taken to make an entertaining film.

1) The Spartans were professional soldiers bred for war. They wore a bronze helm, carried a long spear and large bronze shield emblazoned with a red 'lambda', not for their own protection but for the protection of the man on their left. Demaratus to Xerxes, "The Spartans are equal to any man when fighting individually; fighting together as a collective, they surpass all other men". They also wore bronze greaves on their legs with a spike attached. Along with their short iron sword, this would prove deadly to troops not used to close combat fighting.

2) The majority of Xerxes army consisted of slaves or troops armed for a defensive battle. It is said Persians were taught three things: to ride, use the bow and tell the truth. Their reasoning being if they could shoot their enemies at range what need would there be for heavy armour? They wore little armour and only carried daggers or short spears for hand-to-hand combat. Obviously, they were not monsters.

3) Leonidas was not the last of the 300 to die. There was a struggle for his body, the Spartans fighting with broken spears and short swords. Herodotus writes they resisted with hands and teeth until they were overwhelmed. He was decapitated and his body crucified, contrary to Persian customs.

4) In the film, Leonidas abandons his shield. It was an interesting device for the film but egregiously inaccurate. Abandoning the shield was taboo in Sparta as the shield was the real strength of the phalanx. Also, before departing for battle Spartan mothers would say to their sons 'With this, or on this'.

5) 300 Spartans and 700 Thespians perished, along with about 20,000 Persians, most of which were secretly burned by Xerxes to hide the true number of casualties.

6) There was no room for horses, let alone an elephant or rhinoceros in Thermopylae. Selecting the pass as the battlefield denied the Persians the advantage of numbers and protected the Spartan right flank. In most open battles, the phalanx would stray to the right as each man knows how vulnerable that side is to a flanking maneuver.

In all, I prefer the 1962 '300 Spartans' as it is closer to reality but the newer version is so pretty. And if you understand Greek this might be interesting to you;

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=abZHlik1cWM

Really!?

2008-05-25T09:29:00.000-07:00

No one can understand what the Russians are fussing over. It's a harmless Hollywood film after all. Never mind that it's not quite accurate. Or that it was actually the Nazis who were searching for mystical artifacts.

Imagine if a film was made about the SS running around in Tibet in search of Aryan ancestry or of Andrew Jackson whipping his slaves.

Incidentally, those last two are real. Perhaps Hollywood feels these issues are too much for moviegoers to digest. Still, someone of Mr Spielberg's moral character should hardly have a problem with the complex themes of these subjects.

Alarmist rubbish

2008-05-21T01:48:00.000-07:00

According to this article someone who smokes marijuana daily over long periods has a whopping 200% increased chance of developing schizophrenia!!! What is not mentioned is the general risk of schizophrenia, a paltry 1%. Of course, certain factors do increase the risk;

1) An identical twin of someone with schizophrenia has a 40-50% chance.
2) A child whose parent had schizophrenia has a 10% chance.
3) Schizophrenia is more common among those living in cities, born in winter and in the northern hemisphere. So I guess it's pretty common in Ottawa and Oslo.
4)Complications during birth can also increase a person's chances of developing the condition.
5)Loss of a parent
6) Like most other ailments, it is more prevalent among the lower socioeconomic classes. Though whether schizophrenia is a cause or effect of this is unclear as sometimes sufferers do move down the pecking order.

Well, there you go. Don't believe all the numbers you read. Unless your identical twin and a parent has schizophrenia AND you lost a parent AND you were born in Ottowa in December AND smoke marijuana every day.

50% + 10% + ? + ? + 200% = ???

Otherwise, you have a 1% plus 40% of 1% chance of developing schizophrenia. Or you double your chances (remember, base chance of 1%) if you are a chronic. You'll probably be hit by chain lightning or gored by a wild boar first.

On a side note, Albert Hoffman died last week. He was the chemist that first created LSD-25, or acid. He was a regular user (for scientific purposes obviously) and he lived to 102!

RIP

Temple

2008-05-17T06:16:00.001-07:00

IMG_3378
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

Along with the geisha, this is one of my favourite photos from Kyoto.

Kyoto

2008-05-16T21:10:00.001-07:00

I went to Kyoto with two colleagues last weekend. It was fantastic! It was just as I imagined Kyoto to be, especially when there was light drizzle on the Saturday.

Sunday was exceptional! I can not recall the last day the weather was this good anywhere.

Some highlights were;

1. The geisha: They are everywhere in Kyoto as it was here that the tradition began.

IMG_3375
Originally uploaded by george.deftereos

2. Birdland bar: A tiny jazz bar with a wide selection of drinks. Some are very expensive as we found out. However, any bar with a jazz pianist and bartenders who know the ins and outs of every drink should charge a premium price for premium drinks. I had some very expensive bourbon (cask strength 50% I think) . The bartender/owner also had a chat with us outside when we were leaving. Not because we were foreigners but because he cared for his customers. He would chat with the customers but always be on the lookout to see if your water or snacks needed refilling.

3. Bar Moonwalk: With a cover charge of 400 yen and all drinks at 200 yen, this chain is by far the best casual I've found. Our bartender/manager was from Toronto.

Now, some observations;

1. Taxi drivers: In Japan they are awesome. They always wear white driving gloves. The expensive ones get out of the car and open the door you. The others press a button to open the door. They wait with the back door open so a customer can get in as quickly as possible. In Korea, you ask the driver if he can take you where you want to go. Such a ridiculous system as I would imagine a serious taxi driver would rather go anywhere and get paid instead of sitting idle at an intersection not earning any money. I was refused 3 times to be taken to my home from the airport bus bus stop. And then, because I had given him directions to my home and wanted to get out a block away from where I had said the damn ingrate begrudgingly gave me my change. It's almost as if taxi companies recruit their drivers from all the bigots, racists and uncouth savages available.

2. Politeness: True, in Japan it is overdone. All we heard to every request was 'Hai', meaning yes. Now, that does not mean the interlocutor agrees with you; they are simply saying they hear and understand you. I think it is a cultural trait as Koreans and Chinese do the same thing, just not as much as the Japanese. Also, if someone bumps into you they will always apologise. In Korea, this sometimes happens. In China, it never happens. Not to say that the latter lack manners.

3. Foreigners: There is no zoo mentality in Kyoto. We were largely ignored while on vacation there. Here, random people will say hello to you or point and stare. The random hellos are great. The pointing as if we are animals in a zoo is not. Also, we saw quite a few foreigners working in normal places in Kyoto. Here, you will only find foreigners working in bars in Itaewon.

I will have to go back to Kyoto. The one complaint I have is that people smoke anywhere. Aside from that, it's a fantastic place.

Not yellow dust

2008-05-07T21:13:00.000-07:00

I found out something interesting about the yellow dust yesterday. Apparently, it is not from the Gobi. It is actually pollen that gets blown around during Spring. It's a curious thing how this phenomenon only happens in Korea and nowhere else, as I'm sure Australia has far more flowers than Korea does.

Anyway, I was tempted to argue the point that pollen is many colours while this yellow dust is only yellow (duh). Still, I had to remember what my history teacher said; If you argue with an idiot, you will never win as they have far more experience in idiocy than you do.

And obviously, 40 million Koreans are wrong about something that has been happening for centuries. But of course our foreign experts are correct.

Sigh

More furore

2008-04-28T04:57:00.000-07:00

The Olympic Flame made its way through Seoul on Sunday. On my way to the English club I saw some people dressed in Beijing 2008 T-shirts. Apparently they were Chinese students with a small number having been flown to Seoul from China for the event (as counter-protesters I guess). Not much really happened in Gangnam but at the Olympic Stadium...

There were not only pro-Tibet protesters but also a group campaigning against China's repatriation of North Korean refugees. Obviously, this group did not get anywhere near the media attention they had hoped for even though some members had threatened self-immolation. The worst thing, for the Chinese at least, is that these thugs who attended the relay 'in support' of the Beijing Olympics were hurling stones and bottles at other protesters.

This kind of behaviour is detrimental to the Chinese idea of 'soft power' (think the Korean Wave or Halyu). Though, one must wonder why the Chinese Olympic Commitee insisted on a global relay. Athens held one for the first time, visiting former host cities and finally returning to Greece, home of the Olympics (not the flame, which was a Nazi German innovation). I can see how maybe this global relay is a test of loyalty for China's 'friends'.

Luckily, protesters on both sides in Australia behaved themselves. Kevan Gosper, Australian deputy chair of the IOC, summed it up best when he said "We are an Olympic-minded nation, but also a democratic one". On the Chinese side, there is some regret for conceiving such a fantastic relay. Bear in mind, the Chinese are proud people who are very concious of history. In fact, for a very long time the only way to enter the Emperor's service was through a rigorous examination system which emphasised the importance of history.

What interests me most however is whether governments will boycott the opening ceremony (expect one as historically rich as the Athens ceremony). I venture that any government with important trade deals will not. It also seems rather hypocritical to be in anti-China relays when close to 90% of the clothes on one's back were made in China.

P.S. The Chinese government has agreed to meet a representative of the Dalai Lama to discuss the civil unrest in Tibet. Having agreed to the meeting, the Dalai Lama has essentially accepted responsibility for the riots and looting. This is akin to Korea and Japan going to the International Court to settle the Dokdo Island dispute. Japan insists this is essential to resolve the issue. However, going to the court would suggest there is a case for the Japanese claims to the island. The Korean governement insists Dokdo was Korean territory before the Imperial Japanese government made Korea its protectorate.

Pravda

2008-04-17T07:24:00.000-07:00

This is a link to an opinion piece on the Pravda website. Quite an interesting read as it is not the usual drivel you would expect from an opinion section.

At all times, it is important not to rely on just one source of information.

Tibetan woes

2008-04-12T01:19:00.000-07:00

Read an interesting article on the recent Tibet protests. Tibetans razed Han Chinese and Muslim business in Lhasa. making bonfires of goods from yak sides to toys (with child looters helping themselves to the latter).

Why would the holdings of private citizens and not symbols of the oppressors, like government buildings or CCP monuments be attacked? One can easily conclude that perhaps Tibet's woes are more closely linked to economic development and wealth distribution rather than religious oppression and "cultural genocide".

In Lhasa, the vast majority of shopkeepers are Han Chinese and the meat markets are all but controlled by the Muslim immigrants. Imagine the international outrage if Sydneysiders started looting Korean shops because they had a monopoly on kimchi in Sydney? Or New Yorkers burning Jewish bakeries to protest the latter's control of the bagel industry?

However, the Dalai Lama, and I suppose by extension Tibetan citizens, is internationally regarded as a leader of such lofty moral principles that we mere mortals can do nought but stare in adulation and accept everything as truth.

All this, to me at least, smacks of xenophobia. Opponents of the central government (which exempts Tibet from taxation and provides 90% of Tibet's government expenditure) fear that the Han Chinese and their popular culture will extinguish the local culture. Never mind that they bring in juicy wads of cash to spend on their vacations, albeit at Han Chinese stores. But hey, if you want a slice of that action you go open your own store. After all, the tourists didn't come to see Chinese living in Tibet. They came to see Tibetans and will be more than happy to part with their cash. And obviously one doesn't construct the tallest building in town by burning down the others.

Either way, the Chinese government needs to do something about this situation. The original riots were not handled in typical Chinese style (think Tiananmen) but rioters were left to their own devices with security forces slowly tightening the noose. Perhaps, with Rudd pushing the issue with the central government an understanding can be reached.

Spring Post #1

2008-04-06T03:50:00.000-07:00

Yes, Spring is here. The flowers are growing and blooming. I will try to get some photos up from the flower festival in Yeoido.

This week is also election week in Korea. If I were to vote/allowed to vote, I would vote for the guy bowing to everyone off the back of a moving truck. That's commitment! He is also this week's 'Man of the Moment'. I will try to get his name and maybe even a photograph.

As some of you know, I subscribe to 'The Economist' and 'The Korea Herald'. The Economist this week, in a review of "The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict" reminds the reader that now the world knows for sure that Saddam Hussein can not get his hands on weapons of mass destruction. A repugnant statement as any weapons Hussein had were provided by the US for his war against Iran. I am still surprised that the Americans 'knew' he had chemical and biological weapons when inspectors could not find any. Obviously, he had them under his bed in the palace. And I suppose that even though they still had the receipt for the weapons sales, the US administration forgot they had taken/destroyed any chemical and biological weapons Hussein had during the invasion in 1991.
Curiously, before the quest to restore Kuwaiti democracy (Kuwait didn't have a democratic government at this point but now has the oldest directly elected parliament of any Persian Gulf nation, dating to 1991) nearly everyone had built up Iraq's military to staggering proportions. A country of 17 million people had 500,000 soldiers in arms, 5000 tanks, chemical weapons, a nuclear program (!) and underground airfields (!!). The liberating forces were compensated/thanked to the tune of US$17 billion for their efforts.

Finally, things to do this week:
1. Write to my Russian penfriend. I am a very bad penfriend. Sorry :(
2. Plan something for Tuesday night and Wednesday. Elections here are, unlike in Australia which are on Saturdays, public holidays. A day in the park near my house would be great if the weather permits.
3. Find something cool for my classroom. Preferably Greek.

And, Happy Birthday to my brother and sister. Born on 6th and 7th April a year apart! Miss you guys!

Week Wrap-Up

2008-04-01T06:02:00.000-07:00

Long time since the last post, and much has happened.

There was a protest by Muslim students about the reprinting of that cartoon. They were waving placards saying "Freedom of Speech, not freedom to offend". Curiously, one is a right while the other a choice of the observer. Besides, I'm sure tolerance is one of the tenets of Islam as well as Christianity.

The Olympic Flame was lit in Olympia despite a minor interruption by Tibetan sympathisers. The flame symbolises the fire kept burning in the sanctuary during the games. Obviously, modern times have led to the games becoming politicised (Moscow and Los Angeles, and possibly Beijing) though not so different to what one may think.

One of my students, when I asked him how he was feeling today as we do at the beginning of every class, replied that he was "Flying because my mom gave me ice." I'm sure he meant ice-cream, but who knows with kids and what they get into these days.

I get my new classes tomorrow. The one of particular interest is the 6-2 class. They have had four teachers in just over a year. Three have either been fired or done a midnight run. Curiously, they have all been sitting at the desk across from mine. Now, I am in that seige perilous so whenever one of the supervisors says "See you tomorrow" I always reply with "Maybe".

coffee sans cigarettes

2008-03-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

One of my students had a Ms. Roberts moment this week. During my lunch break I usually go to Cafe Moi to get a fresh latte. In class my student said "Teacher, in here coffee smell" pointing to my mouth.

Ms. Roberts was my high school English teacher. She would always smell like coffee and cigarettes (and could have been in a Jim Jarmusch film I suppose). She was my favourite English teacher at school.

'Man of the Moment'

2008-03-11T06:47:00.000-07:00

....goes to the little legend I saw during lunch.

I was at the Japanese fusion place downstairs from my work because curry was on the menu at school. I love curry, the Indian variety that is. But the first time we had curry at our school only four of us ate it. Three got food poisoning. I didn't get sick but I refuse to eat it. Call it evolution. How else did people work out what plants were good to eat except through trial and error.

Anyway, I ordered my meal and as I was waiting a 5 year old came in and shouted in Korean "Do you have space? My friends are coming!" Sure enough, three of his friends and their mothers came in. These guys even sat on their own table!

Cheers to you mate.

Honorable mention this week is the blue-rinse lady I saw on the train. Except that the only part of her that was blue-rinsed were her eye brows.

Sillim 번게

2008-03-04T05:16:00.000-08:00

I went to have sundae 순대 last week in Sillim-dong. Sillim is famous for sundae and 보신당 which is dog meat soup. And before anyone tries to lynch me, consider how your grain-fed steak is grown or how you get your eggs and poultry. In case you were ignorant of this fact, grain-fed steak is from cows that are fed grain along with growth hormones in feed lots before being sent to the abattoir. Hardly natural. Incidentally, the stem for abattoir comes from the French word 'to beat down' which succinctly describes how cattle are slaughtered.

Anyway, I had sundae once before but even my Korean friends said there was much better available. So I decided to give it another try. At the dinner were the overseer (who coincidentally lives in Sillim) and vice-overseer of the English club which made this 번게 feel like a Politburo meeting. We were later joined by one of our new members who was privy to the workings of the club. Her stock is rising as new members do not usually meet socially once the scheduled meetings are finished. Especially since she had to travel even further than I did to be there.

Here are some photos.

This is eaten in much the same way one eats samgyeopsal 삼겹살. You have some sesame leaves and lettuce leaves with toenjang 된장 and a choice of two hot sauces. The owner of this restaurant was surprised I could eat the extra hot sauce. It tasted better anyway.

The verdict: Glad I tried it again but the company was far greater than the taste.

My microcosm

2008-03-04T04:41:00.000-08:00

I've decided to limit my alcohol consumption which has led to derision from some of the bar flies. I say limit because I like a few drinks and I think I look like a tool if a goo to one of those doof-doof clubs and just stand there. When I go to the salsa bar this isn't even an issue as I'm usually too busy dancing. So you might have gathered that pretending something is forcing its way out of or into your posterior is not what I regard as dancing.

As in any group, there will always be a trendsetter/alpha male/diva. It makes me laugh when I am told who this person is in any given group simply because I don't usually care. Although, if I were to engage in social engineering then it is definitely handy to know who is most likely to influence the group.

Like I said, I'm usually aloof but I always like to listen to people's stories. And when I was told of said alpha male I was somewhat bemused. Everyone has their own agenda and to think that I wasn't on the bandwagon made me feel like I was missing out. But I also realised that I didn't come to Korea to meet foreigners. Inevitably this will happen anyway but surely there is a better way to experience Korean culture. Besides, and this links in with my excess alcohol imbibing, I prefer to spend my time with Koreans. They have shown me such kindness and loyalty in the time I have been here that I sometimes wonder why other foreigners don't try to make more Korean friends.

Far too often am I left to carry people home when the majority of the group has disappeared into the night and somehow ends up in a taxi heading home. Then I am told I need to loosen up (this is probably true but that is how I am). Perhaps I feel duty-bound to look after my friends when they are in need. Yes, I will never be called a fair weather friend.

I guess I will look in and see what is to be seen. Do not expect a dinner invitation any time soon either.

English Festival

2008-02-27T01:46:00.000-08:00

The English Festival is finally over and with it the school year. My students had their graduation ceremony, mortarboard and all. I will try to get a video of the performances since I was backstage all day with my class. They had two performances, which was trying to say the least.

Game over.

2008-02-19T16:47:00.000-08:00

Yikes! Been more than a week since I last posted. Not for lack of anything to write about but rather due to a lackadaisical attitude. Of note;

I went to a steakhouse that boasts unlimited steak. What a concept.

I told my work that I will not be re-signing after my current contract expires. Yelling ensued which sealed the deal.

Job offers have been coming thick and fast. It's funny. Some agents sound like they are doing me a favour when they offer me less money than i get now.

News, news, news

2008-02-12T07:07:00.000-08:00

Namdaemun (the southern gate) in Seoul was burnt down on Sunday night. Arson is suspected but no leads as yet. I was lucky enough to see it last summer when I was looking for a camera. It was also one of the first major tourist spots I visited in Korea. I'm pretty sure this is where you can see the bullet holes the Japanese left during the occupation. There were also pictures of machine-gun posts in front of this gate from that time. It is a very sad day for Koreans as the gate was over 600 years old and it's loss was deliberate. However, I don't feel the public outrage that I would have expected.
Case in point; A few years ago the government built a commemorative walk near my house to honour the soldiers who fought in Papua New Guinea against the Japanese. It also served as official recognition of the Papua New Guinean people who risked their lives tending to wounded Australian soldiers. Barely a fortnight had passed from its opening when some street urchins vandalised the shrine. After that, there was a palpable resentment of all teenagers. In Australia, people respect war monuments as we are a nation of migrants and refugees escaping tyrrany and war and these serve as a reminder of everything that is (fortunately) missing in Australia. Since then, that shrine has been restored and remains the same even to this day.
Here, nothing. But I guess there will be more to come as forensics tears apart the remains of the National Treasure No.1.

In other Australian news, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has announced the Pacific Solution will come to an end. This involved Australia paying Nauru to keep 'illegal' refugees in detention centres until they were declared genuine. This stems from the Norwegian freighter Tampa picking up 400 mainly Afghan refugees in August 2001. And more were to come as the cynically 'Coalition of the Willing' began bombing Afghanistan in October 2001. So after six and a half years one sad and ignominious chapter of Australia's history is over.

Tomorrow is also the day slated for the Australian government's apology to the Aboriginal people for the 'Stolen Generation'. This was an official government policy between 1910 and the 1970s (along with the equally disdainful "White Australia Policy") aimed at 'rescuing' indigeonous children from poverty and abuse. Unofficially, it was designed to 'breed out' the Aboriginal people. With this apology on behalf of the government, Rudd stresses that the Australian people can not be held responsible for the transgressions of others (Orthodoxy anyone?), it is hoped Australia can move forward as a united nation being proud of the great elements of our history but at the same time remembering the terrible moments and declaring "L'olam lo suv".

Dr Jose Ramos-Horta. president, was seriously wounded by gunmen outside his Dili home in Timor Leste. He was treated at an Australian Army base in Dili before being transferred to Royal Darwin Hospital yesterday. He is still in a serious condition.
I was lucky enough to meet the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate when he gave a talk at my alma mater, as the Foreign Minister for the newly free Timor Leste. He let slip he was there to discuss sharing the oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea which Australia claims, illegally. My favourite moment was when he was heckled by a Resistance member about making a deal with the devil (referring to our then Foreign Minister, the stiletto and fishnet wearing Alexander Downer). Ramos-Horta calmly stated that as a relatively small and new nation, one does not make demands of its bigger neigbours. Instead, one tries to find a solution that will be beneficial to both parties. Genius!
On an aside, the Australian government spends about AUS$100 million a year funding the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) which coincidently is the same as the whole annual budget of our closest nighbour. This also means that each gold medal Australia won at the Sydney Olympics (the 'best ever' according to fascist poster child Juan Antonio Samaranch, later made to look like mutton dressed as lamb by the Athens Olympics) cost Australian tax-payers, i.e. me, AUS$20 million over four years.

Of Soju and Soliloquies

2008-02-12T06:12:00.000-08:00

Note to self: I really need to cut back on my excursions to Seoul. Now, I go to Seoul about five times a week (you would too as Jukjeon is lacking of everything except 여생마사지 and 룸끌럽) but when I go there to drink it always ends badly. I really should switch to soju since I usually do not become inebriated when out with my Korean friends.

In other news this week, we had our first ersatz rehearsals for the English Festival. I have the highest level class at this kindergarten and they will be performing a speech and one of two plays. For the speeches
they are dressing up as a Greek god. It surpised me when I first came to Korea and all the elementary students were reading Greek myth comic books. Here they call it 그리스로마문화 (Greek-Roman comics). When I told them I was Greek and that my father was from the same island as Odysseus they freaked out. Of course, we are now related :)
My students each have a page-long speech to memorise, with actions, but today were only allowed to recite the first two lines. As for the plays, one is an adaptation of Lewis Carroll's "The Walrus and the Carpenter" and the other is a mock classroom play. "The Walrus and the Carpenter" was at the behest of one of my American collegues. The school play is entirely my creation. Any play where you can hear a six year old recite Blake and Shelley is worth the price of admission alone.
***Contrary to popular belief, being American and supporting the current administration are two separate things.***

All this preparation for the Festival, which is essentially advertising for the school, got me thinking of exactly how much work we put in compared to teachers at regular hagwons. We work normal hours (10am to 5:30pm or 7pm depending if you teach pre-IBT) five days a week but in that time we have to make spelling tests, make 3 or 4 monthly tests which need to be at least one hour long, write bimonthly reports for all students in our classes, write weekly reports for kindergarten students and occassionally correct lesson plans. Ultimately, I shouldn't need to go through my kindergarten class' target language to check grammar and spelling as it is copied directly from the textbook. Worse, if I miss something the students usually memorise the sentence as they see it. Also, my supervisor has spelt my name incorrectly every month for the last year.
Still, the children appreciate it. Or at least they seem to. Unlike the other teachers, I rarely receive gifts from the parents. By gifts we are talking about Gucci phone bling and Chanel perfume. For my birthday I got post-it notes and thumb-tacks from my kindy class. I understand their fascination with stationery since when I was their age these kinds of things were the coolest things to have, usually because only teachers had them. And we all know teachers are cool!

Searching

2008-02-09T17:49:00.000-08:00

I was searching for a new job this morning as my contract expires in March. My current workplace is pretty good but in all respect I would like more money. SO I'm looking at some websites for jobs when I stumble across ads placed by a Mr. Lee Jung Won. Not a big deal usually except that he has placed several ads under many different company names. Reminds me a little of JIEV and their somewhat dubious practices.

Anyway, I am looking for a job at the moment so if you know of any positions/schools that would benefit from my unique skills then you know how to cointact me.

BTW, 새해복많이받으세요!!!

Game Words

2008-01-30T06:52:00.000-08:00

More words from FF-12

gre·gar·i·ous/[gri-gair-ee-uhs]
–adjective
1. fond of the company of others; sociable.
2. living in flocks or herds, as animals.
3. Botany. growing in open clusters or colonies; not matted together.
4. pertaining to a flock or crowd.
-adverb
5. gre·gar·i·ous·ly
-noun
6. gre·gar·i·ous·ness

per·e·grine[per-i-grin, -green, -grahyn]
–adjective
1. foreign; alien; coming from abroad.
2. wandering, traveling, or migrating.
–noun
3. peregrine falcon.
4. per·e·grin·i·ty
*So I could say I am a peregrine language teacher :)

con·com·i·tant[kon-kom-i-tuhnt, kuhn-]
–adjective
1. existing or occurring with something else, often in a lesser way; accompanying; concurrent: an event and its concomitant circumstances.
–noun
2. a concomitant quality, circumstance, or thing.
-adverb
3. con·com·i·tant·ly
*simply put, together. Though my favourite cartoon would be a bit odd if it were called "Drawn Concomitantly".

gain·say[geyn-sey, geyn-sey] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–verb (used with object), -said, -say·ing.
1. to deny, dispute, or contradict.
2. to speak or act against; oppose.
-noun
3. gainsayer

skein[skeyn]
–noun
1. a length of yarn or thread wound on a reel or swift preparatory for use in manufacturing.
2. anything wound in or resembling such a coil: a skein of hair.
3. something suggestive of the twistings of a skein: an incoherent skein of words.
4. a flock of geese, ducks, or the like, in flight.
5. a succession or series of similar or interrelated things: a skein of tennis victories.
*In context, the senators were referring to the series of events that led to Vayne killing his siblings (I think).

Test Day

2008-01-28T05:25:00.000-08:00

We had our monthly test today, not to be confused with the level test which is every other month. In fact, this one should be called the bimonthly test.

Anyway, while they were doing the test it gave me time to think about my elementary schooling (we call it 'primary school' in the land of plenty). As I recall, we had two tests. One in Year 3 and one in Year 6. I also took another test in Year 3 for the special Orange Class (the original OC). This was for entry into a selective school in 5th Grade I think. One thing I remember is a question asking the colour of milk with 4 choices. Strange.

I also had time to read the paper. The new president's plan is to have classes taught in English in all schools by 2010. Not just English language classes, but other classes like maths, science, history, etc. Obviously, teachers surveyed about these plans are against this as much as I am. To me, it makes little sense to teach regular elementary classes in English. Of course, it is best to teach English classes in English just as it is better for students studying Greek to be taught in Greek.

On the other hand, I taught English at an elementary school but I had each class for one hour a week. They would study another 4 hours per week with the own teacher. Now, I think the main issue here is that many elementary school teachers simply do not have the skills to teach English and only have one contact hour per week with a native speaker (in a class of 35+ students) is just not good enough.

To quote an old adage, where there's a demand there will undoubtedly be a supply. Hence the boom of the English hagwon in Korea. But since there is a massive demand created by the inadequate language teaching system in place surely one must expect tuition fees to be quite hefty. If these plans are implemented then either fees will rise or many more hagwons will open up to keep fees lower. My only hope is for the Ministry of Education (and agriculture or whatever they will be merged with under Lee MB's streamlined government) to set some guidelines for running a hagwon or even to designate certain hagwons that meet these guidelines as 'official' English institutes. These measures protect both students and teachers.

Another remedy to this problem is to simply employ more native speaker teachers at elementary schools. This way, with more contact hours per week, some of the demand on the hagwon industry can be alleviated which in turn will encourage competition among hagwons and, in theory, lower tuition fees.

Only time will tell I guess. I intend to be here to see these changes implemented.

Coffee time

2008-01-27T03:05:00.000-08:00

I came to realise something this week; as long as I have a good coffee shop and a real bakery nearby then most other things fade into the irrelevant. With that said, here are some shots of a small cafe near work, Moi, pronounced 모이.

Fresh made cookies. Cookies, you will notice, are usually round whereas a biscuit tends to have a distinct shape. Hence, a cookie-cutter is actually a biscuit cutter. And Oreo's are biscuits not cookies. Also, biscuits are never soft.

The coffee roaster.

The President and I

2008-01-23T02:51:00.000-08:00

You might have guessed from my previous posts that I don't like Lee MB, the Korean president-elect. To be fair, he seems to be a good businessman and he is fairly popular since he was Seoul's mayor for several years and he did start the clean Seoul campaign. But, what I take issue with are the allegations of corruption (to reference a previous post, corruption would be quite natural) and the strange pledges made during the elections.

Prior to his winning of the election, there was a lot of news about BBK (stock manipulation/fraud) and the (now) president's involvement with key suspects. It comes as no surprise to me that the Korea Herald, an English language rag which is essentially badly translated Korean articles mixed with US editorials, has been strangely quiet about the upcoming investigation. Or that there is no mention of Lee MB's previous promise to donate a large majority of his wealth to charity regardless of the result of last year's election.

These things speak volumes about voters in Korea. Firstly, by winning the election by a comfortable margin either shows that Korean voters are very forgiving or that Lee MB's rivals had worse skeleton's in their collective closets or people just don't care anymore. I take door number 3 as voter turnout was about 62%, barely qualifying as 'rule by the people' in my books. N.B., Australia consistently has over 95% voter turnout helped in part by a nominal fine if one is registered to vote but does not.

While the first gem of the campaign was Lee renouncing his wealth, the second was the claim that Korea will achieve 7% economic growth under his leadership. Global average for 2007 was about 5% largely driven by China and India as the USA is having some serious issues. Korea in 2007 was at about 4.5% so for a huge jump to 7% Lee MB must be the David Copperfield of economics. Though, sometimes I wish I could just make things appear out of thin air. Scarcely a month after he was elected, Lee MB stated 7% might not be achievable and that maybe 6% is a more realistic target. Again, not a word about a back flip that would put Nadia to shame.

On the plus side, Lee Myung Bak was born in Japan which essentially means all that is needed to be Korea's president is citizenship and command of the language. Perhaps there is yet hope for me to change this country.

With that, on to the words for today. All the words come from Final Fantasy 12 which a friend kindly lent me. Not everyone that plays video games runs around in a darkened room listening to repetitive music and chomping pills.

ef·fi·ca·cious[ef-i-key-shuhs]
–adjective
1. capable of having the desired result or effect; effective as a means, measure, remedy, etc.: The medicine is efficacious in stopping a cough.
-adverb
2. ef·fi·ca·cious·ly
noun
3. ef·fi·ca·cious·ness

mod·i·cum[mod-i-kuhm]
–noun
1. a moderate or small amount

vap·id[vap-id]
–adjective
1. lacking or having lost life, sharpness, or flavor; insipid; flat: vapid tea.
2. without liveliness or spirit; dull or tedious: a vapid party; vapid conversation.
-noun
2. va·pid·i·ty
3. vap·id·ness
-adverb
5. vap·id·ly
*one stem for this word means 'stale wine'.

mum·mer[muhm-er]
–noun
1. a person who wears a mask or fantastic costume while merrymaking or taking part in a pantomime, esp. at Christmas and other festive seasons.
2. an actor, esp. a pantomimist.

quid·di·ty[kwid-i-tee]
–noun, plural -ties.
1. the quality that makes a thing what it is; the essential nature of a thing.
2. a trifling nicety of subtle distinction, as in argument.

cav·il[kav-uhl] -illed, -il·ling, noun
–verb (used without object)
1. to raise irritating and trivial objections; find fault with unnecessarily (usually fol. by at or about): He finds something to cavil at in everything I say.
–verb (used with object)
2. to oppose by inconsequential, frivolous, or sham objections: to cavil each item of a proposed agenda.
–noun
3. a trivial and annoying objection.
4. the raising of such objections.
*basically, a synonym of criticise but cooler.

Factors for Success in Korea

2008-01-20T04:02:00.000-08:00

I remember reading an article in the paper about what it takes to be successful in Korea, though I think this mostly applies to Koreans as for most foreigners working as English 'teachers' the fact they are from an English-speaking country is generally enough to guarantee stable employment.

Anyway, the prestige of one's college ranks as most important. We Australians prefer the term 'university' as a college is where you learn to be a plumber/electrician/mechanic/etc. All noble trades and though not as socially desirable as doctor/lawyer their earnings are on par with their more learned colleagues. And no 3am emergency calls either.
I digress. Prestigious universities make life easier for their alumni, of that there is no doubt. But I remember my Chinese Philosophy professor saying that one could have been a student at Harvard but unless a scholarly work was published then one might as well be at any other university.

Next most important is connections(关系), hardly surprising as a recommendation from a third party is always going to be better trusted than a fantastic CV, even if that CV includes sainthood. Again, my Chinese professor said to get anywhere in business in China, and other countries with a Chinese based culture, the people you know are more important than who you are. Emphasis of society over the individual.

Third was wealth, not unusual as wealth is generally an important factor and marker of upward mobility. And as much as the poor despise the rich, most aspire to be rich otherwise this wonderful system called capitalism would collapse. N.B., poorer working class people voting for the conservative that promises huge tax cuts to the rich.

The most controversial, in my opinion anyway, is 'family background' which means if your family (read 'father') is of good social standing and your father has a reputable occupation then you are more likely to succeed. A very Catholic view as we are all guilty of Adam's sins. The Orthodox argue about the consequences of Adam's sin, for how can one be held responsible for the sins of another?
On the other hand, one of Liu Bang's advisors remarks that for what he has done in his life, if his family falls from grace they will never rise again.

Next was 'a good-looking face'. I expected this to be much higher by the way some people carry on about how they look. And of course, the ubiquitous 피부관리 and 비만샌터 suggest it is far more important than people would like to admit.

Lastly, 'bluffing and sugar-coating' round off the top six. I have had, and I'm sure this applies most foreigners working in Korea, lots of exposure to this one. Sometimes it is very difficult to get a straight answer from anyone in a management position. Granted, this trait is almost a prerequisite for any type of managerial position but here it's that to the power 25! Still, my own little revenge is to give as good as I get. Ambiguity can and should be used both ways. It's almost fitting, really.

No mention of 'honesty and integrity' though, or 'capability', 'commitment', 'competence' and 'dedication' either.

As for honesty, we are taught from a young age to always say the truth. Yet if you do something wrong, the truth will not necessarily avail you. You'll still get punished depending on your crime. In some cases, saying the truth even suggests premeditation which in the legal sense will nearly always carry a heavier sentence.

'Capability' is a Napoleonic idea (Cao Cao too!) and we all know what history thinks of Napoleon right? Just in case, try looking up "Napoleon's victories" and you'll be surprised how many times the word 'defeat' comes up. Strange, he must have won some battles/wars to end up ruling most of Europe. As they say, the victor certainly does write history.

I'm not surprised 'commitment' and 'dedication' were left out of the top six as they seem to be expected by the employer. In fact, my first contract in Korea made no mention of the employee terminating the contract under any circumstances. From there end though, there were a thousand and one ways they may terminate my employment.

The omission of 'competence' is just plain frightening.

Anyway, onto the words for today.

Sisyphean task[sis-uh-fee-uhn][task, tahsk]
1. Something resembling the labours of Sisyphus, i.e, unending and futile.
* Sisyphus was condemned to roll a huge boulder up a hill only to halve it roll back down over him when he reached the middle. This was to be repeated throughout eternity. His crime was that of....

hu·bris[hyoo-bris, hoo-]
–noun
1. excessive pride or self-confidence; arrogance.
-adjective
hubristic
*The greatest sin in classical Athens. many a classical hero displays hubris and is punished with an untimely death. It's opposite is sophrosyne

po·grom[puh-gruhm, -grom, poh-]
–noun
1. An organized, often officially encouraged massacre or persecution of a minority group,
*my first word of Russian roots. Means 'destruction, which comes from 'grom', thunder.

ve·nal
–adjective
1. willing to sell one's influence, esp. in return for a bribe; open to bribery; mercenary: a venal judge.
2. able to be purchased, as by a bribe: venal acquittals.
3. associated with or characterized by bribery: a venal administration; venal agreements.
-adverb
venally
*heh, this can apply to journalists (you besmirch all our reputations, grrr) and some politicians/public figures. Comes from the Latin 'vend', to sell.

Burberry Man???

2008-01-19T01:45:00.001-08:00

I found out this week that the word Koreans use to describe a 'flasher' (generally an older man who wears a trenchcoat and publically exposes himself to women) is "Burberry Man". Now, to me this suggests two things:

1, Korean lacks a rich vocabulary to describe modern concepts; and more importantly

2, It suggests that until Korea was opened up to the West the idea of a man publically exposing himself did not exist.

And from this, I will always have a great respect for the Chinese (and the Greeks). Stubborn as they are, linguistically they will always invent a Chinese word to descibe a concept rather than borrow a foreign word.

Anyway, on with this weeks words

his·tri·on·ic[his-tree-on-ik]
–adjective
Also, his·tri·on·i·cal.
1. of or pertaining to actors or acting.
2. deliberately affected or self-consciously emotional; overly dramatic, in behavior or speech.
–noun
3. an actor.
-adverb
4. histrionically

Fa·bi·an tactics[fey-bee-uhn]
–adjective
1. seeking victory by delay and harassment rather than by a decisive battle as in the manner of Fabius Maximus: Fabian policy.
2. of or pertaining to the Fabian Society.
–noun
3. a member of or sympathizer with the Fabian Society

quid pro quo
1. one thing in return for another
2. substitute
*Hannibal Lecter says this a lot.

me·ringue[muh-rang]
–noun
1. a delicate, frothy mixture made with beaten egg whites and sugar or hot syrup, and browned, used as a topping for pies, pastry, etc.
2. a pastry or pastry shell made by baking such a mixture, sometimes filled with fruit, whipped cream, etc.
*So to descibe something as 'meringue' is to say it is delicate and soft. ALso, meringue is the white stuff in the middle of a pavlova, my favourite Australian dessert.

quash[kwosh]
–verb (used with object)
1. to put down or suppress completely; quell; subdue: to quash a rebellion.
2. to make void, annul, or set aside (a law, indictment, decision, etc.).
*squash, crush, etc

chau·vin·ism[shoh-vuh-niz-uhm]
–noun
1. zealous and aggressive patriotism or blind enthusiasm for military glory.
2. biased devotion to any group, attitude, or cause.
adjective
3. chauvinistic
* Named from Napoleons troops, an especially loud-mouthed patriotic soldier.

pil·lo·ry[pil-uh-ree] plural -ries, verb, -ried, -ry·ing.
–noun
1. a wooden framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used to expose an offender to public derision.
–verb (used with object)
2. to set in the pillory.
3. to expose to public derision, ridicule, or abuse: The candidate mercilessly pilloried his opponent.
*You can see this in the first season of Rome. Julius Caesar has Pompey's murderer executed and displayed on the palace gates.

mol·li·fy[mol-uh-fahy]
–verb (used with object), -fied, -fy·ing.
1. to soften in feeling or temper, as a person; pacify; appease.
2. to mitigate or reduce; soften: to mollify one's demands.
*A word I might need to use this week.

loath[lohth, lohth]
–adjective
unwilling; reluctant; disinclined; averse: to be loath to admit a mistake.

also, 'loth'
*Barbossa in Pirates of the Caribbean says "I'm disinclined to acquiesce to your request" meaning "No".

re·cal·ci·trant[ri-kal-si-truhnt]
–adjective
1. resisting authority or control; not obedient or compliant; refractory.
2. hard to deal with, manage, or operate.
–noun
3. a recalcitrant person.

And that's it for this time. I need to eat my noodles.

2008-01-16T07:59:00.001-08:00

Like Super Mario

Weekend Wrap-Up and new words

2008-01-14T03:29:00.000-08:00

Went to Carne Station in Hongdae on Saturday. It was an interesting place as I had not seen such a high concentration of white people in Korea. Mind you, there were plenty of Koreans too.

Though for the longest time I was half-expecting clowns and circus acts as my collegues were calling it 'Carney Station'. Small hands and cabbage in deed.

Been a long time coming but these are some words of interest from what I've read over the last few weeks. I'll try to remember where I got these words too.

mor·i·bund
–adjective
1. in a dying state; near death.
2. on the verge of extinction or termination.
3. not progressing or advancing; stagnant: a moribund political party.

sop·o·rif·ic
–adjective
1. causing or tending to cause sleep.
2. pertaining to or characterized by sleep or sleepiness; sleepy; drowsy.
–noun
3. something that causes sleep, as a medicine or drug.
-adverb
sop·o·rif·i·cal·ly

untrammelled
-adjective
not confined or limited
*comes from Latin macula meaning "mesh"

scarp·er
–verb (used without object) British. to flee or depart suddenly, esp. without having paid one's bills.
*comes from Italian scappare to flee

dep·i·late
–verb (used with object), -lat·ed, -lat·ing. to remove the hair from (hides, skin, etc.).
Vocab Lesson

sty·mie
–noun
1. Golf. (on a putting green) an instance of a ball's lying on a direct line between the cup and the ball of an opponent about to putt.
2. a situation or problem presenting such difficulties as to discourage or defeat any attempt to deal with or resolve it.
–verb (used with object)
3. to hinder, block, or thwart.

flot·sam
–noun
1. the part of the wreckage of a ship and its cargo found floating on the water.
2. material or refuse floating on water.
3. useless or unimportant items; odds and ends.
4. a vagrant, penniless population: the flotsam of the city slums in medieval Europe.

jet·sam
–noun
goods cast overboard deliberately, as to lighten a vessel or improve its stability in an emergency, which sink where jettisoned or are washed ashore.

lag·an
–noun Law.
anything sunk in the sea, but attached to a buoy or the like so that it may be recovered.

pur·view
–noun
1. the range of operation, authority, control, concern, etc.
2. the range of vision, insight, or understanding.
3. Law.
a. that which is provided or enacted in a statute, as distinguished from the preamble.
b. the purpose or scope of a statute.
4. the full scope or compass of any document, statement, subject, book, etc.

'Man of the Moment'

2008-01-09T06:38:00.000-08:00

...goes to the fellow on Saturday night that was eating ddokboki with me. He said my Korean was really good when he heard me order, which is a white lie but it made my day.

Yellow Crane Tower.

2008-01-02T07:14:00.000-08:00

送孟浩然之广陵
sòng Mèng Hàorán zhī Guǎnglíng

故人西辞黄鹤楼,
gùrén xī cí Huánghèlóu

烟花三月下扬州.
yān huā sān yuè xià Yángzhōu

孤帆远影碧空尽,
gū fān yuǎn yǐng bì kōng jìn

惟见长江天际流.
wéi jiàn Chángjiāng tiān jì liú

Beautiful, and now I can say I was there!

New Year's Resolution

2008-01-01T01:20:00.000-08:00

The new year has begun, and I'm happy to say that I have kept all my new year's resolutions. Observe;

1. Study more,
I brought some of my Chinese textbooks with me when I went to Sydney in October. I had almost forgotten how much I enjoyed studying!

2. Exercise more,
Considering I did next to no exercise last year, this should be very easy to keep up.

3. Sleep at a reasonable time,
Heh, this will be very difficult. I'm shooting for 1am but we'll see what happens.

I also remembered that in Korea one does not simply walk onto the street to get across. In Wuhan, people cross the street where ever they like because people drive at a reasonable speed. In Korea, people simply do not stop for pedestrians.

zai Huanghe Lou ta shuo zaijian....

2007-12-30T04:02:00.000-08:00

Well, back from my China trip. First, some numbers

8 million;
population of Wuhan.
2 million;
people stared at us (maybe).
6;
number of Westerners we saw in Wuhan.
14;
hours on the train from Wuhan to Shanghai.
12;
number of Westerners we saw in Shanghai in our first 10 minutes off the train.
8;
people in Wuhan trying to sell us computers.
5;
people offering us massages.
2;
hours spent at a massage.
1;
person offering us sex straight up.

All in all, it was a great trip. My travel buddy had his jaw scraping the ground for most of the Wuhan leg. Definitely an eye-opener. Especially the toilet. I couldn't take a photo of it since there were people inside using it but I'll try to explain what I saw.

Imagine your typical open plan office with the low wall cubicles. Now, pretend that you are squatting on the ground and the cubicle is high enough so you can not see over it. About one metre below you is a long trench that collects all your waste, but there is no water so I imagine it waits for the water to be flushed down the other end before it is washed away.

Again, it is just as I expected in China. And I will definitely go back.

Photos are here.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79605&l=0994b&id=501495005

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79600&l=6e583&id=501495005

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79598&l=a6845&id=501495005

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79595&l=193ce&id=501495005

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=79590&l=18fea&id=501495005

China Time

2007-12-21T01:42:00.000-08:00

I'm finally going back to China, albeit on holiday for a few days since it's so close. I'll be going to see one of Guan Yu's temples and other things around Wuhan and then make my way up to Shanghai, possibly stopping at Nanjing on the way.

Should be great.

Shenanigans!!

2007-12-18T06:23:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is election day. I asked my Korean friends if they think foreigners should have the right to vote in Korean elections. I have to admit that this really was a loaded question because no sovereign nation would let non-citizens participate in elections. If they did, then why not let your neighbours decide who will lead your country (USA does not count and this is hardly South America). I brought that question up at our meeting because I recall reading an article about Koreans in Japan (i.e., foreigners) protesting because the Japanese government was not granting them voting rights even though they quaintly claim they pay taxes.

My other reason for this was because some clown was trying to claim that Korea is becoming more and more cosmopolitan becuase there are up to 1 million foreigners in Korea at any one time. When I read this folderol I laughed out loud (or 'lol'ed). How many of these foreigners are citizens? How many are tourists? How many are here for work purposes? Still, a lie often retold is soon believed. On my trip back to Sydney I heard every language under the sun EXCEPT English because there are so many different peoples in Sydney and Australia as a whole. Obviously, English is the lingua franca used between the different groups of Australian citizens. Here, 99% of the people in Korea are Korean so claiming cosmopolitanism is a sham.

I also realised this week (with a friend's help) that since there are 12 candidates and the president is directly elected then theoretically one only needs to garner 10% of the popular vote to win. Of course, that president's rule would be next to useless since there would not likely be any majority in parliament (or whatever it's called) for him to do anything except what is permitted under the office of the president.

Another quirk of the Korean election scene is the trailers with speakers haranguing anyone and everyone within 100 metres on issues their candidate will address and, far more often, the corruption scandals of all the other candidates. These soapboxes are always accompanied by groups of ajoomas (housewives) clapping and singing.

They also told me one of the presidential hopefuls wants to allow children disobedient to their parents to be hung (not sure about drawn and quartered though). He also promised to move UN headquarters from New York to Panmunjom.

Another candidate is resting his elbows on a table behind a military helmet (looks like a WW2 one though) with his fingers linked together below his chin. At first glance I had visions of Dr. Evil as the helmet looked like a globe. Later, I read the poster carefully. He proclaims "Let's protect Korea!". From whom he doesn't say as all other candidates (save the cracker described above) claim the economy/ecenemy is most important. We all know Koreans are in dire financial straits, according to that grand rag 'The Korea Herald'.

Finally, I am happy to report that Australia has finally signed the Kyoto Protocol leaving the USA as the only developed nation to refuse. Unhappily, I've been told Australia, Japan, Canada and the USA refused the European bloc's suggestion of non-binding targets for emission reduction. I don't understand as in reality all they would have to do is 'pretend' to be reducing emissions. But it seems they don't want to even look like they are doing the just thing for those yet to come.

Personally, I would love my work to feature 'non-binding targets'.

Thought for the Day

2007-12-13T16:51:00.000-08:00

"I'll believe in you if you believe in me" says the Unicorn.

Korean Presidential Election 2007

2007-12-11T20:03:00.000-08:00

President Roh's tenure is about to end and there are no less than 12 candidates for president. This amuses me as Australia recently had it's federal election, but unlike the Koreans (and Americans to a lesser extent) we do not like to delude ourselves by directly choosing a president. We understand that any leader has to deal with his/her party's policies (unsavoury as this may be, it is relatively safe as major parties do not often change their core policies) or in Korea and the USA, exorbitantly funded lobby groups. The latter I feel is far more dangerous as usually the only motivation for these lobby groups is the protection of private interests and profits.

That being said, there was a violent murder on the weekend. Contrary to popular belief, crime as well as other 'western' vices do exist in Korea. This particular incident involved a man in his 30s and two Korean soldiers. On our way to Itaewon, we noticed there were military road blocks set up at all the toll gates into and out of Seoul. We're talking scores of armed troops inspecting vehicles. It was only at the travel agent that I found out why.

Apparently, a man driving a 4WD (SUV for the North Americans) ran over two soldiers walking back to their barracks. Witnesses say he stopped and backed up as though it had been an accident. When the driver was close enough to the prone soldiers he stabbed them both (one later dying in hospital) and stole two K-2 rifles, ammunition and a grenade. The hunt is still on for the assailant who is believed to have served with the unit the attacked soldiers were serrving in. Some also speculate the man wil try to assassinate the presidential candidates.

The leading candidate in the election, Lee Myung Bak, has stated that he will not make any public appearances until the culprit is apprehended. To me, this raises a rather interesting question: Why would you elect a president that shows fear in the face of 'possible' terrorism?

Lee MB has also pledged to donate most of his $34 million wealth to charity regardless if he is ellected as Korea's next president.

The TISSUE-AC Study

2007-12-07T01:27:00.000-08:00

This just in from our correspondent in Kuala Lumpar

"According to the BBC, the average temperatures in Kuala Lumpur for November are 22-32 degrees and the relative humidity averages about 82%. There are also 20 "wet days" which are known as days when there is +0.25mm of rain – For all the Australians yes, you read correctly - more than 20 days in a month of significant rain!!!!

From a practical perspective, what this creates is the KL resident (me) being perpetually wet either from a) sweat or b) rain. Being wet in itself is not an issue because, as the temperatures remain in the high 20s, the dampness is actually quite nice (cooling). Rather, this problem occurs when innocent KL residents (me) are forced to enter air-conditioned buildings.

As early as 1957, Ward [1] identified that perhaps air-conditioning in sub-tropic climates (where people wear skirts and singlets), should be set slightly higher than those in snow-covered arctic landscapes (where people wear several layers of thermals and warm jumpers). Likewise, while the optimum temperature for an air-conditioned room is recognised to be 20.5 degrees, Sham [2] argues that in sub-tropical climates this should be raised to 27.2 (these values are actually given in Fahrenheit but "I hate people who use imperial measurements" so I've converted for you). When air-conditioning in sub-tropical climates is set at standard levels, Ward further argued that humans experience 'enter/exit shocks'.

Expanding on this theory, I have identified what I call the "TIS Subartic Under this Establishment's Air-Conditioning" syndrome, otherwise known as the TISSUE-AC syndrome. The TISSUE-AC syndrome is particularly prevalent in KL. The TISSUE-AC syndrome relates to not only entry and exit shocks, but also to a longstanding feeling of "why the hell is it so cold in here?" The TISSUE-AC syndrome is often heightened by the above mentioned continued dampness. Therefore, not only do innocent KL residents (me) come from 27 degrees into a room "cooled" at 20.5 degrees, they (me) are also wet, and therefore they get colder. The TISSUE-AC syndrome usually culminates in the need for a tissue, aka catching a cold.

Many Malaysians have informed me that this is the season for masuk kedinginan (the cold getting in / catching a cold). In light of the new findings in my TISSUE-AC syndrome study, I have only one response… Turn the freekin' air-con down!!!!!!!!!"

[1] Ward, G.T. (1957), 'The modification of the tropical environment for comfort and efficiency – engineering aspects', Medical Journal of Malaysia, Vol. 11, pp 185-89

[2] Sham, S (1977), 'An index of comfort for Kuala Lumpur – Petailing Jaya and its environs', Sains Malaysiana, Vol. 6, pp 65-83

Many thanks to Siaan Matthews for compiling the report.

North Korea

2007-12-03T02:46:00.000-08:00

I went to North Korea on the weekend.

ooooooooh.

Really, I went to 금강산 (Keumgang Mountain) which is more like a North Korean theme park run by South Koreans (Hyundai specifically).

A poster advertising Hyundai Express Delivery. Not likely anyone in North Korea will be using their services.

Although I had a strange feeling that most of the people working in the "South Korea Town" were probably South Koreans anyway since when we did see a North Korean they would be wearing either a Kim Jong Il lapel pin or one of his father (the latter proving far more common). The strange thing about this mural is that you can not take photos of it yourself. It must be done by a North Korean, one called by the service desk in front of the hotel opposite. We decided that the father is a far better representative of North Korea than the son, who looks a little odd.

We also went to a health spa (온천장). Of course, everything is Korean style so we were stark naked. The funny thing was, and this is something all people who are self-conscious might like to think about, I wasn't too concerned about being naked because everyone else was naked too. Often when people have issues with nudity it's because there are others around who aren't naked. Here, I felt like a polar bear lounging around outside without a care in the world.

We also went to a water spring on our first day. We were told that drinking one cup would take ten years off your life. Which would make sense since they have conducted underground nuclear tests. What they meant was that it would make you look ten years younger. Which would make me 17. Not sure if I want to look like that again.
Of course, none of this is really backed up by evidence except that the Dear Leader said it was so. It therefore must be true. For in North Korea the rain does not irrigate the fields and the sun does not warm the land. Kim Jong Il's tears of joy and his radiant glow provide all a farmer would need for survival. And naturally, all the carvings on the mountain were made by the Dear Leader with his laser eyes.

Finally, this post has been a long time cumming. Here are some gratuitous photos of South Korean products.
In the foreground we have a Mr.Big chocolate bar. For the Aussies, it's just like a Picnic but with fewer peanuts and much less chocolate (rice is cheap here).
In the background we have Dick Sticks. These ones are bulgogi flavour, which literally translates to 'fire meat'.
Lastly, this is 벌떡주 (beol ddeok ju), some kind of alcohol which I assume has potent powers.

Although, what really made my day was seeing two North Korean girls in hanboks running and giggling at night from our hotel room.

Expectations

2007-11-29T05:09:00.000-08:00

This is going to be a little bit of a whinge. SO if you think I might offend you particular sensibilities then just head along to The Brick Testament to rather interesting interpretations of Bible stories. I especially like the 200 foreskins saga.

I had my first blind date today. After over a year living/working in Korea and countless offers of being set-up, and you really are set up like a trap, I finally agreed to one. This might not sound like such a strange thing except that here they have at least three different types of blind dates.

Anyway, she didn't show up. Which didn't really surprise me because

a) I'm a foreigner, so who cares anyway??
b) I had very low expectations.

You see, if you have very low expectations, like almost dragging-in-the-mud low expectations, then anything is bound to exceed those expectations which will make everything that much better.

The other thing I was thinking about was of all the things that one may do to disrespect me, wasting my time is the worst simply because the time wasted will never come again. I don't mind people being tardy if I am to meet them somewhere since I usually have a book to read while I wait or I choose a meeting place with lots of things to do, the latter in the case that I am late. However, a simple phone call or message saying "I'll be late" (I don't even need a 'sorry' with that) would suffice.

At least tonight wasn't a total loss. I bought some novelty pens for my students that got full marks for their spelling tests this month because what is rewarded gets repeated. And I also 한국어를 헸어. I really need a template stylus computer writing thingy because typing in Korean takes forever.

Tomorrow I need to write 8 valedictory letter for my kindergarten class for their graduation albums. Yes, graduating kindergarten is a HUGE achievement in Korea. One of my colleagues read the 'example' letter from a teacher of LCI Gangdong. She, rather accurately, said it read like a eulogy for the Dalai Lama.

Speaking of the Dalai Lama, they show Kungfu on TV here. I didn't realise how anti-Chinese that show was. There was one on last night where the Dalai Lama, played by Uncle Benny from Lethal Weapon 4, asks Caine to 'take over' should he fall. Though I remember the show was set in the old west these ones are set in a city and Caine has a son.

The other thing that irks me about those graduation albums is that two of my students are not buying the album. At 100,000 won it is not cheap. One girl will not be going to kindergarten next year as she is one year too young, yet of the brightest students in my class, while the other girl's parents can't afford to buy the album according to the other students. So what do the enlightened supervisors of my school do? They basically remove all reference to those two girls. It's as if they are all admirers of Stalinism and felt they had to label them as a non-person and deport them to the gulag.

I read an article on Kevin Rudd AGAIN today. The Korea Herald has had an article about Australian politics every day this week. Which is great since usually the only time I hear the word 'Australia' here is in close proximity to the words 'koala', 'kangaroo' and 'Opera House'. It was an interesting article because it was written by a former Indonesian ambassador to Australia and he was reminiscing about Paul Keating. Aside from myself, not many people do that these days. Basically, Keating was trying to move Australia further away from Europe and the USA and closer to Asia, which geographically is the logical choice for both trade and security. At the time, this proved very unpopular (and massive interest rates did not help either, though most of the time there are many other external factors that influence those) and any progress made for closer ties to Asia were turned on their ear for the last 11 years under John Howard, the USA's 'sheriff' in Asia.

Two things from the article which piqued my interest were the author's assertion that Australia has an inflated sense of importance in Asia and his optimism for a new re-engagement with our Asian neighbours. On the former, I have to agree with him. Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said it most succinctly when he said

"This country stands out like a sore thumb trying to impose its European values in Asia as if it is the good old days when people can shoot aborigines without caring about human rights" and

"If Australia wants to be a friend to Asia, it should stop behaving as if it is there to teach us how to run our country. It is a small nation in terms of numbers and it should behave like a small nation and not be a teacher."

I guess only time will tell. But as Kevin Rudd is the first Western leader that can speak fluent Mandarin (he served as a diplomat to China before heading to parliament) perhaps there is hope for us Sinologists.

The weekend is certainly looking interesting. I'll be going to 금강산 Keumgang Mountain for hiking (I guess) over the weekend.

Autumn Rush Premiere

2007-11-19T20:01:00.000-08:00

I went along to the Seoul premiere of Autumn Rush last night in Apgujeong. I highly recommend watching this film especially if you have children.

Here are some photos of the season's first snow from last night. I stated snowing just before we went into the theatre.

Dedicated to Marcus, who did the same for me in Haerbin.

And this is the mountain (hill to non-Koreans) behind my house. It has lights along the path up to the summit. A great place to enjoy an evening drink.

Word of the Day 07.11.20

2007-11-19T19:29:00.000-08:00

flout \FLOWT\, transitive verb:

1. To treat with contempt and disregard; to show contempt for.
2. To mock, to scoff.
3. Mockery, scoffing.

The thorough training in the fine points of lyric writing that he has received from Hammerstein has made Sondheim highly critical of those lyricists who flout the basic techniques of the craft.
-- "Sondheim: Lyricist and Composer", New York Times, March 6, 1966

Seth and Dorothy were completely mystified by Janis's determination to flout as many social conventions as she could.
-- Alice Echols, Scars of Sweet Paradise

Who put your beauty to this flout and scorn
By dressing it in rags.
-- Tennyson, Idylls of the King

Flout comes from Middle English flouten, "to play the flute."

Remembrance Day vs 빼빼로 Day

2007-11-11T02:39:00.000-08:00

Today is November 11, 2007. Today marks the end of hostilities in World War 1, which officially ended with the signing of the Armistice at 11am November 11, 1918. This brought to an end a war spanning four years that claimed the lives of some 8 million people. It did bring about the beginning of teh end of European colonial rule but also ushered in the United States as a global force, having suffered the least of all Allied nations and supplying it's allies with weapons and munitions.

In Australia, we remember the soldiers (the 'digger' myth began with the storming of the beach at Gallipoli for no tactical gain) that died in the First War by observing one minute of silence at 11am. It is not a public holiday, unlike most other countries that commerorate the end of the war.

In Korea, it is Peppero Day. Like Valentine's Day but in November. I am somewhat disappointed (so far) because I only got one Peppero this year. But it was from my best and favourite former student who also won the speaking competition at my school.

Homeward Bound

2007-10-17T01:15:00.000-07:00

After a monumental f*ck-up (yes, there is a monument being planned for what happened yesterday) I am finally on my way home for brotha Jim's wedding. I even bought him a typically Korean souvenir.

You see, the plan was to arrive in Sydney today (Wednesday 17th) at 7:35am and make my way home where I would surprise my mother. I had old her I would be arriving at 7:35am on Thursday 18th. As it turns out, the bus took 3 hours to get from where I work to the airport and I missed check-in. Incidentally, the bus from the airport to my house took just over an hour just to rub salt in my wounds.

In the end, everything worked out fine thanks to my awesome sister. And I still get to see my old uni friends. It has probably been 2 years since the Chinese Studies group got together. I truly believe everything happens for a reason even though I might not be able to understand why these happens.

ciao for now

Word of the Day 07.10.09

2007-10-08T20:15:00.000-07:00

paroxysm \PAIR-uhk-siz-uhm\, noun:

1. (Medicine) A sudden attack, intensification, or recurrence of a disease.
2. Any sudden and violent emotion or action; an outburst; a fit.

But when he's on target -- and more often than not he is -- he can send you into paroxysms of laughter.
-- William Triplett, "Drawing Laughter From a Well of Family Pain", Washington Post, June 13, 2002

Dickens had a paroxysm of rage: 'Bounding up from his chair, and throwing his knife and fork on his plate (which he smashed to atoms), he exclaimed: "Dolby! your infernal caution will be your ruin one of these days!"'
-- Edmund Wilson, "Dickens: The Two Scrooges", The Atlantic, April/May 1940

Mrs. Bumble, seeing at a glance that the decisive moment had now arrived, and that a blow struck for mastership on one side or another, must necessarily be final and conclusive, dropped into a chair, and with a loud scream that Mr. Bumble was a hard-hearted brute, fell into a paroxysm of tears.
-- Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist

Paroxysm is from Greek paroxusmos, from paroxunein, "to irritate, provoke or excite (literally to sharpen excessively)," from para-, "beyond" + oxunein, "to sharpen, to provoke."

Word of the Day 07.10.02

2007-10-01T20:22:00.000-07:00

bouleversement \bool-vair-suh-MAWN\, noun:

Complete overthrow; a reversal; a turning upside down.

For the second time in his life Amory had had a complete bouleversement and was hurrying into line with his generation.
-- F. Scott Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise

Ian Salisbury had his chance yesterday but he tried too hard to give the ball a rip on the dry surface and the old tendency to drop short or overpitch cost 34 from eight overs either side of tea as Rhodes and McMillan threatened a bouleversement worthy of the famous England deliverance against Australia in 1981.
-- Christopher Martin-Jenkins, "Gough takes England to brink", Daily Telegraph, August 10, 1998

It requires a complete bouleversement in your whole attitude, a process of adjustment that anyone who's been in this position understands; but you need to go through it.
-- "Two years' hard Labour", Independent, July 13, 1996

Bouleversement comes from French, from Old French bouleverser, "to overturn," from boule, "ball" (from Latin bulla) + verser, "to overturn" (from Latin versare, from vertere, "to turn").

And that makes post number 40. I really should post an update on the situation in Turkey. That fine nation is turning away from secularism more every day.

Word of the Day 07.09.28

2007-09-27T20:26:00.000-07:00

intrepid \in-TREP-id\, adjective:

Fearless; bold; brave; undaunted; courageous; as, an intrepid soldier; intrepid spirit.

Join the few dozen rich and intrepid souls . . . who have paid hefty deposits to sign up for the first commercial rides into space.
-- Dinesh D'Souza, The Virtue of Prosperity

Less than 70 years earlier, the intrepid James Cook in his ship Resolution had been the first explorer to cross the Antarctic Circle.
-- Lennard Bickel, Shackleton's Forgotten Men

Intrepid comes from Latin intrepidus, "calm," from in-, "not" + trepidus, "anxious, disturbed."

Word of the Day 07.09.27

2007-09-26T17:15:00.000-07:00

Ah, Chuseok is over so after a FIVE day weekend it's back to work.

factotum \fak-TOH-tuhm\, noun:

A person employed to do all kinds of work or business.

Mr. Hersey thus became Mr. Lewis's summertime factotum, copying pages of a play that Lewis was writing about Communism.
-- Richard Severo, "John Hersey, Author of 'Hiroshima,' Is Dead at 78", New York Times, March 25, 1993

She is a blind, paraplegic forensic hypnotist, and he is her brother and general factotum.
-- Newgate Callendar, "Spies & Thrillers", New York Times, July 31, 1994

Factotum is from Medieval Latin, from Latin fac totum, "do everything," from facere, "to do" + totus, "all."

Word of the Day 07.09.21

2007-09-20T21:03:00.000-07:00

recreant \REK-ree-uhnt\, adjective:

1. Cowardly; craven.
2. Unfaithful; disloyal.
3. A coward.
4. An unfaithful or disloyal person.

His recreant companion disappears around the fence, but he remains, smiling affably.
-- Eric J. Segal, "Norman Rockwell and the fashioning of American masculinity", Art Bulletin, December 1, 1996

To any man there may come at times a consciousness that there blows, through all the articulations of his body, the wind of a spirit not wholly his; that his mind rebels; that another girds him and carries him whither he would not. . . . The open door was closed in his recreant face.
-- Genie Babb, "Where the bodies are buried", Narrative, October 1, 2002

Wordsworth compares himself to a truant, a false steward, a recreant, when he does not write poetry, when poetic numbers fail to come spontaneously, when his harp is defrauded and the singer ends in silence.
-- J. Douglas Kneale, "Majestic Indolence: English Romantic Poetry and the Work of Art", Criticism, September 22, 1996

And it appears in the way the review essay was set up: Aronson versus Miliband, the recreant versus the faithful one.
-- Ronald Aronson, "Response to Victor Wallis", Monthly Review, October 1, 1996

But was it worth surrendering your religion, hence your honor, and becoming a recreant?
-- Eugen Weber, "The Ups and Downs of Honor", American Scholar, January 1, 1999

Recreant comes from Old French, from the present participle of recroire, "to yield in a trial by battle," from re-, "re-" + croire, "to believe," from Latin credere.

Wo/Man of the Moment 07.09.19

2007-09-19T02:37:00.000-07:00

Today's Man of the Moment is ME!!!!

It's my birthday. Go here to see the epoch-changing events that happened on this day.

Today is also "International Talk Like A Pirate Day" me hearties!

Word of the Day 08.09.17

2007-09-16T21:05:00.000-07:00

turpitude \TUR-puh-tood; -tyood\, noun:
1. Inherent baseness or vileness of principle, words, or actions; depravity.2. A base act.

In the eyes of the far left, it [the 60s] is the era when revolution was at hand, only to be betrayed by the feebleness of the faithful and the trickery of the enemy; to the radical right, an era of subversion and moral turpitude.
-- Arthur Marwick,The Sixties: Cultural Revolution in Britain, France, Italy, and the United States, c.1958-c.1974

They based their action on a clause in the uniform player contract which says players must "conform to standards of good citizenship and good moral character" and disallows "engaging in acts of moral turpitude."
-- Ira Berkow, "Go Ahead, Choke the Boss -- Only in the N.B.A.", New York Times, March 5, 1998

They were not his misdeeds, his turpitudes; she accused him of nothing--that is, of but one thing, which was not a crime.
-- Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

Turpitude comes from Latin turpitudo, from turpis, "foul, base."

Wo/Man of the Moment 07.09.13

2007-09-13T05:41:00.000-07:00

This week's award goes to one of my students, Sunjae.

I walk in to class at 10am with all but one of my students in their seats. The youngest, April, is outside talking/crying to one of the office ladies. Naturally, I ask what happened and the others said Sunjae did this, that or whatever. Here is teh conversation.

Me: So Sunjae, what happened?

SJ: Well teacher, let me tell you a story.

Me: (laughing uncontrollably)

SJ: Teacher!!! Why are you laaaaaaffing?

Me: Sunjae, when you want someone to believe what you say, you don't start with "Let me tell you a story". It makes it sound like a fairy tale. Anyway, go on.

SJ: We were outside and April pushed me and I had my hand like this (shows me a clenched fist at about face high) and she ran into my hand.

Me: So you're telling me April headbutted your fist!?

SJ: Ummmm, yes.

Here's to you Sunjae! You'd do Tony Lockett proud!

Word of the Day 07.09.13

2007-09-13T05:40:00.000-07:00

roue \roo-AY\, noun:

A man devoted to a life of sensual pleasure; a debauchee; a rake.

I spent some time with Desmond, an old roue who was recovering from a lifetime of excesses in a village near Fontainebleau.
-- Roger Scruton, "Purely medicinal", New Statesman, October 15, 2001

She caught the eye of New York aristocrat Gouverneur Morris, ex-U.S. Minister to France, a one-legged cosmopolitan roue. (Rumor had it that a jealous husband had shot Morris's leg off.)
-- Bill Kauffman, "Unwise Passions", American Enterprise, January 2001

Yet he acted the roue to the end, carrying on an intimate liaison with a girl who worked at the asylum -- he was 74, she was 17.
-- Rex Roberts, "Write Stuff", Insight on the News, December 11, 2000

Roue comes from French, from the past participle of rouer, "to break upon the wheel" (from the feeling that a roue deserves such a punishment), ultimately from Latin rota, "wheel."

Word of the Day 07.09.12

2007-09-11T16:48:00.000-07:00

plangent \PLAN-juhnt\, adjective:

1. Beating with a loud or deep sound, as, "the plangent wave."
2. Expressing sadness; plaintive.

She moans along with the woman who is singing -- wailing, really -- her hands gripping the steering wheel to the plangent cries of the singer and the sobbing of violins.
-- Alice Walker, By the Light of My Father's Smile

What undoubtedly touched those soldiers is the play's plangent nostalgia, the ache for home, for home's rootedness and security.
-- J. D. McClatchy, "Wilder and the Marvels of the Heart", New York Times, April 13, 1997

Plangent derives from the present participle of Latin plangere, to beat, to strike (noisily), especially to strike the breast, head, etc. as a sign of grief.

Word of the Day 07.09.11

2007-09-10T20:10:00.000-07:00

yen \YEN\, noun:

1. A strong desire or inclination; a longing.
2. To have a strong desire or inclination; to long.

But all that duty must have incubated a yen for rebellion.
-- Michael Tomasky, "The Candidate", New York Times, March 26, 2000

Mojo, a fellow who's started a successful ice-cream business, likes to think of himself as "a post-Marxist with a yen for a Porsche."
-- Michiko Kakutani, "Alienated Young and Their Solipsistic Pleasures", New York Times, May 7, 1988

We come into the world with a yen for sweets (newborns can even distinguish among glucose, fructose, lactose, and sucrose) and a weak aversion to bitterness, and after four months develop a fondness for salt.
-- Jeffrey Steingarten, The Man Who Ate Everything

Yen comes from Chinese (Cantonese) yan, "craving."

In case you were wondering, I was playing Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction on this day six years ago.

Word of the Day 07.09.07

2007-09-06T20:31:00.000-07:00

evince \ih-VIN(T)S\, transitive verb:

To show in a clear manner; to manifest; to make evident; to bring to light.

The study showed that girls were better prepared for class, had better attendance records, and evinced more positive academic behavior overall.
-- Christina Hoff Sommers, The War Against Boys

Though his earliest tales are little more than quick, offhand sketches seasoned with slapstick humor, his mature stories evince the psychological complexity and atmospheric detail that distinguish his best-known plays.
-- "Quick Trips Through the Imagination", New York Times, July 12, 2000

Those who supported the war in Vietnam evinced no such fears and no reluctance about new adventures abroad.
-- William M. Leogrande, Our Own Backyard

At no time in her life did Tina evince religious faith, and, a few years later, she would declare outright that she had "[no] belief or religion."
-- Patricia Albers, Shadows, Fire, Snow: The Life of Tina Modotti

Evince is from Latin evincere, "to conquer entirely, to prevail over, to prove irresistibly," from e- (here used intensively) + vincere, "to conquer."

vini vidi vici eh comrades?

Word of the Day 07.09.06

2007-09-05T17:42:00.000-07:00

antiquarian \an-tuh-KWAIR-ee-uhn\, noun:

1. One who collects, studies, or deals in objects or relics from the past.
2. Of or pertaining to antiquarians or objects or relics from the past.
3. Dealing in or concerned with old or rare books.

From the depositions filed with the Loyalist Claims Commission after the Revolution, from a handful of letters gathered by an antiquarian at the beginning of the twentieth century, and from scattered court papers in scattered archives, it is possible to piece together some of the family's history.
-- Linda K. Kerber, No Constitutional Right to Be Ladies

Except to antiquarians and preservationists, silent cinema has little presence on the cultural radar screen, its landmark films unrented on video, its iconic images spotted only as fodder for video collage on MTV.
-- Thomas Doherty, Pre-Code Hollywood

Indeed, the evident attention to detail and studied historicism bore the impress of Truefitt's years with the antiquarian Cottingham.
-- Francis R. Kowsky, Country, Park & City

A friend of mine, the manager of an antiquarian bookshop in Leningrad in the 1960s, told me that he remembered well the twice-monthly visits of a matronly lady from the censorship bureau, who spent hours rifling through the thousands of books on his shelves, checking them against her latest copy of the Summary List (which was always being updated).
-- David King, The Commissar Vanishes

Antiquarian is from Latin antiquarius, "pertaining to antiquity," from antiquus, "ancient."

Crossroads - Elections in Turkey

2007-09-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

I bought "Clash of Civilisations" by Samuel Huntington a few months back. I really should have read it earlier since some of my peers at university had already talked about it. Anyway, what struck me was the cover has a US flag and a green crescent/star flag symbolising Islam (this is a reprint). In his book, he describes Turkey as a 'torn' country meaning that while it is predominantly a single culture in one civilization it's leaders want to shift it to another civilization. In other words, they are saying "We are one people and belong together in one place but we want to change that place" (p138). Mustafa Kemal Ataturk began this transition by first expelling and killing Greeks and Armenians and then establishing a Western style republican system of government. Strangely enough, the dispossessed/murdered Greeks and Armenians had been living in Turkey for nigh on 2000 years, well before any Turkic peoples had migrated to Anatolia.

He states that sooner or later Turkey will come to a crossroads in it's history. A time when a decision must be made in which direction of a possible three the country should be going. Huntington's first road is the one towards Europe. The second is towards the Muslim nations of the Middle-East. And the third is be the central country of a Turkic league of nations.

The road to Europe seems the least likely as Turkey has been trying for years to become a member of the EU but to no avail. Publicly, the EU blames Turkey's poorly developed economy and poor human rights record. Privately, officials on both sides state it is because Turkey is too different and above all, too Muslim, even though Turkey has a secular government and a secular military. Incidentally, the military see themselves as the guardians of Ataturk's legacy and have several times deposed governments they deemed 'too Muslim'. Besides, Europeans have a recurring nightmare of Turkish invaders at the walls of Vienna.

As a Greek, we do not have fond memories of the Ottomans. It is in living memory that relatives were driven from Pontus on the Black Sea at gunpoint (with one death in my family at the least). Even though we were slaves for nearly 400 years our philosophical offspring did little to aid us, save for a few notable individuals. I say Ottomans as opposed to Turks because I like to think things have changed over the course of the last 500 years. Recently, Greece's stance towards Turkey has been softening as I calculate Turkey would be a much better bulwark against the East than Greece. Sad to say, there are no more Spartans left among us.

The second option is for Turkey to move towards the Islamic countries in the Middle-East. This is much more likely now that Abdullah Gul has been elected president. Gul is pro-Islamist, so much so that the military is almost waiting for his wife to wear a head covering in a government building, Ataturk's palace included. This however, will kill any chance of Turkey being accepted by the EU or the USA as a legitimate member of any trade agreements/alliances. This shift is not guaranteed to happen anyway as for many years the other Middle-Eastern countries have viewed Turkey as a betrayer of Islam going back to the days of Ataturk.

Our third option is for Turkey to emerge as the leader of a league of Turkic nations. These countries include Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan as they share a similar culture and speak a similar language. This path is also fraught with it's own obstacles as any attempt to meld these countries into a new bloc will assuredly raise the ire of Russia and China. Russia because the former Soviet Union was their imperial master and China because Xinjiang (making up one sixth of the the PRC's land area) in the west has over 50% of it's population listed as Turkic peoples.

I believe this crossroads is now and all will depend on what happens in Ankara in the next few months. All I can hope for is for the Turkish people to make the best choice for thier nation. A choice that will guarantee their security as well as that of their neighbours.

Wo/Man of the Moment 07.09.04

2007-09-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

This week award goes to a woman on the maeul bus. She asked if she could hold another woman's handbag because that woman didn't have a seat. To me, this is what public transport is all about. Though to me, it is usually the elderly people that offer to hold my bag, whether I gave up my seat to them or not.

An honourable mention goes to the Korean gentleman on the subway. HE HAD MUTTON CHOPS!!! For our non-Australian readers these are mutton chops (mutton is a cheap type of lamb's meat). Second picture top, row.

Marty, this guy would do you proud.

Korean Dream

2007-09-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

I had my first dream in Korean last night.

Although I wasn't in it.

One of the teacher's I work with said one phrase.

Still, it's a start.

Word of the Day 07.09.03

2007-09-02T17:45:00.000-07:00

solecism \SOL-uh-siz-uhm\, noun:

1. A nonstandard usage or grammatical construction; also, a minor blunder in speech.
2. A breach of good manners or etiquette.
3. Any inconsistency, mistake, or impropriety.

An accurate report of anything that has ever been said in any parliament would be blather, solecism, verbiage and nonsense.
-- "Hansard of the Highlands", Times (London), February 17, 2001

Her English is good, apart from a few stubborn idiosyncrasies of preposition and tense, but these are music to me, sung solecisms -- how else to describe "I am already loving you," her first declaration of feeling for me, now two years old?
-- Ronan Bennett, The Catastrophist

In those days smoking in the streets was an unpardonable solecism.
-- Edmund Yates, Recollections

. . .another of her fabrications or flat-footed solecisms or, at any rate, a simple indication of the boundless ineptitude with which she manages Leonardo's affairs.
-- R.M. Berry, Leonardo's Horse

Solecism comes from Latin soloecismus, from Greek soloikizein, "to speak incorrectly," from soloikos, "speaking incorrectly," literally, "an inhabitant of Soloi," a city in ancient Cilicia where a dialect regarded as substandard was spoken.

Yay! A Greek word today!!

More Australian Weirdness

2007-08-30T00:52:00.000-07:00

Not an Australian story per se, but an example of lazy reporting.

Heroin-addict elephant to rejoin herd after rehab
Thursday Aug 30 14:35 AEST
A once drug-addled elephant fed heroin-laced bananas by illegal traders will soon return to the wild after being weaned off his addiction through methadone and round-the-clock care.

"Big Brother", a bull elephant that once "lived peacefully" with his herd near the China-Myanmar border in Yunnan province, was caught by traders in 2005, the China Daily said.

"To control it so that it could lead the herd to where they wanted, the traders kept feeding it bananas laced with drugs," the paper said.

The traders, however, were caught trying to sell Big Brother and his herd after a tip-off to forest police.

By that time Big Brother had developed a raging heroin addiction and posed a danger to people if denied its fix, the paper said, citing police.

A drooling and twitching Big Brother had to be transported to a special park in the neighbouring island province of Hainan for treatment, after cold turkey proved so tortuous at a local centre that "even its iron chain could not contain it", the paper said.

After being diagnosed a heroin addict, park authorities in Hainan spent a year gradually weaning "Big Brother" off its dependence through methadone, regular bathing and massage.

Now clean, Big Brother will soon be returned home, the paper said.

This story appears on several internet news websites. Obviously a very slow news day all over the world.

Word of the Day 07.08.30

2007-08-30T00:41:00.000-07:00

cajole \kuh-JOHL\, transitive:

To persuade with flattery, repeated appeals, or soothing words; to coax.

If Robert had been an ordinary ten-year-old he would have cajoled and whined, asked and asked and asked until I snapped at him to keep quiet.
-- Anna Quindlen, Black and Blue

One of Virgil's great accomplishments was his ability to charm, cajole, weasel people out of their bad moods, especially when their bads moods inconvenienced him.
-- Anthony Tommasini, Virgil Thomson: Composer on the Aisle

Whiz kept to himself and spent long hours every day studying financials and technical charts and reading impenetrable economic publications. Even the warden had tried to cajole him into sharing market tips.
-- Belfry Holdings, The Brethren

Cajole derives from Early Modern French 'cajoler', originally, "to chatter like a bird in a cage, to sing; hence, to amuse with idle talk, to flatter," from Old French 'gaiole', 'jaiole', "a cage," from Medieval Latin caveola, "a small cage," from Latin cavea, "an enclosure, a den for animals, a bird cage," from cavus, "hollow." It is related to cave, cage and jail (British gaol).

Australian Weirdness

2007-08-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

You can tell it's an election year in Australia when the government is alot more active than usual. And not in the usual campaigning sense. Example, the government has been issuing 'survival' packs in the case of natural disaster (other than the annual bushfires which are needed by the environment to help it regenerate) or "eminent" terror attack. It has toilet paper in it at least. It also recommends putting cats in pillow cases, you know for safe-keeping. Though this does smack of a similar tactic the government employed during the last Federal election. Tampa Crisis anyone?

Now John Howard has taken up the environmentalist's cause and will attempt to 'enlighten' our ASEAN neighbours on the planet's plight and how it is 'all their fault. However, I'm sure they will remind us that Australia is one of the few nations not to have signed the Kyoto Protocols in 1997. The claim was that Australia's economy was 'emerging' and was heavily reliant on fossil fuels. My tip: 80% chance of the Malaysians telling us to mind our own business, again. 20% chance of everyone else totally ignoring our Lilliputian leader.

In other news, the usual claims have been made by the government that Labor is "handing power back to the unions". Shock horror.

Word of the Day 07.08.28 - Hubris

2007-08-27T16:51:00.000-07:00

Today's word is hubris. It has a long and colourful history going back to the Trojan War. According to Herodotus, our primary authority of all things in the Ancient Greek world, the Trojan War was not fought for the sake of a woman for he states 'if a woman does not wish herself to be taken, she will not be taken'.

Hubris was a crime in Classical Athens and is described thus by Aristotle (384BC - 322BC)

to cause shame to the victim, not in order that anything may happen to you, nor because anything has happened to you, but merely for your own gratification. Hubris is not the requital of past injuries; this is revenge. As for the pleasure in hubris, its cause is this: men think that by ill-treating others they make their own superiority the greater

This got me thinking about the students in my class. I have noticed students that are the only child in their family tend to have this 'What about me!?' mentality (all except one little girl but there might be other reasons for her behaviour). Then I was thinking about my own childhood. I am the eldest in a family of 3 children. For me to even think about myself first, let alone think that I was better than my brother or sister, would be the ultimate act of hubris and would most assuredly bring with it some form of parental retribution.

Word of the Day 07.08.27

2007-08-26T16:55:00.001-07:00

effrontery \ih-FRUN-tuh-ree\, noun:

Insulting presumptuousness; shameless boldness; insolence.

Who would have the effrontery to treat the chairman in this way?
-- Tom King, The Operator

Passionately she sang of Yoshitsune, her love and yearning for him, and her joy that he had successfully managed to evade his evil half-brother Yoritomo. Yoritomo was torn between rage at such effrontery and pleasure at the exquisite beauty of her voice.
-- Lesley Downer, Women of the Pleasure Quarters

Effrontery is from French effronterie, ultimately from Late Latin effrons, effront-, "shameless," literally "without forehead" (to blush with), from Latin ex-, "out of" + frons, front-, "forehead."

Word of the Day 07.08.24

2007-08-23T16:40:00.000-07:00

amicable \AM-ih-kuh-buhl\, adjective:

Characterized by friendliness and good will; friendly; peaceable.

He is back on amicable terms with his first wife and with his children.
-- Bruce Weber, "Raymond Carver: A Chronicler of Blue-Collar Despair", New York Times, June 24, 1984

While the discussion was very spirited, the most amicable feelings were displayed on all sides.
-- "The Inauguration of the President of the Southern Confederacy", New York Times, February 18, 1861

The stage was set for simmering hostility between the two sects, and the breakdown in amicable relations was hastened by the high-handed attitude of the Maronite emirs towards the Druze barons, who lost many of their ancestral privileges and lands.
-- Robin Waterfield, Prophet: The Life and Times of Kahlil Gibran

Quarrels over property, for example, severed long-amicable bonds between siblings and neighbors.
-- Katherine Verdery, The Political Lives of Dead Bodies

Amicable derives from Latin amicus, "friend," from amare, "to love."

Shibboleth

2007-08-22T16:46:00.000-07:00

There have been some articles in the newspaper concerning racism in the hagwon system here in Korea. According to the Korea Herald, a Korean-American teacher was refused work on the premise that parents preferred their children to learn English from a blonde/white person, 'Aryan' if you will. I feel dirty just saying that word. Apologies. Apparently, she was told in a letter stating why she was refused the position not to feel too bad as 'the blacks have it worse here'.

These allegations come hot on the heels of a recent UN report on racism and discrimination in the Republic of Korea. It concluded that while pride in the homogeneity of the Korean people exists (this in itself is not necessarily a bad thing) if taken to extremes could lead to rampant discrimination based on race. The report recommends the government take steps to reduce this risk, namely legislate against discrimination based on race as it is not exactly illegal for an employer to turn a worker away based on looks (At this time all Korean citizens are equal before the law. This does not extend to foreign workers).

This led me to some theories of my own. Firstly, that Korean parents truly believe the only English speakers are white/blonde English speakers (very bad) OR that Korean parents truly have no idea that it is possible for a non- white/blonde person to be a native speaker of English (not as bad, just ignorant). I'm leaning towards the latter as I have experienced people's ignorance on the racial make-up of Australia first-hand.

On a side note, even I have been discriminated against based on my citizenship. It's a shibboleth of sorts. In Australian/English pronunciation, we say boss as 'bos' where most North Americans say 'baws' and many schools prefer their teachers to speak with a North American accent. I've even seen language books titled "Speak American" which would be fine if they were pronunciation books. However these are standard language books.

N.B., 'American' is not a language any more than 'Australian' is an independent language.

Personally, I find it offensive when a non-native speaker decides to correct me on my 'English' pronunciation, saying it is pronounced the North American way. Although I could go on a crusade and correct all my students on their incorrect pronunciation.

Word of the Day 07.08.23

2007-08-22T16:33:00.000-07:00

manumit \man-yuh-MIT\, transitive verb:

To free from slavery or servitude.

The prime reason, I suspect, will be that we don't need any liberator to manumit our "corporate slaves" because we've never had any.
-- Victor S. Navasky, "Time is money", The Nation, July 17, 1989

Mobilization difficulties led the government to manumit hundreds of slaves and scores of convicts to fight at the front.
-- Peter M. Beattie, "Conscription versus penal servitude", Journal of Social History, June 22, 1999

Possessed of more than one hundred slaves, Tucker resisted the appeals of relatives to manumit in his will even favored household servants.
-- Christopher Doyle, "Judge St. George Tucker and the case of Tom v. Roberts", Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Autumn 1998

It even seemed possible that they could improve the conditions of slaves and persuade ever more planters to manumit their bondsmen.
-- Larry Gragg, "A heavenly visitation", History Today, February 1, 2002

Manumit comes from Latin manumittere, "to emancipate a slave," from manu mittere, "to release from control," from manus, "hand" (hence "power of control") + mittere, "to let go; to send." The noun form is manumission.

Food - Samgyeopsal

2007-08-22T05:45:00.000-07:00

One of my favourite foods here in Korea is Samgyeopsal(). It is pork belly (basically it is uncured bacon) which is cooked at the diner's table. The slices of meat are cooked and then wrapped in a lettuce/sesame leaf. Garlic, onions, gochujang (chili paste), doenjang (soybean paste) and sesame oil can be added according to taste. It is hugely popular here and every restaurant has there own gimmick when selling samkyeopsal.

One of the most interesting places I've been to for samkyeopsal was in Gangnam (forgotten name). Unlike anywhere else, this restaurant is more like a bar with an eclectic choice in music. The strangest part of all this was the pork belly was pre-smoked so it could be eaten without needing to be cooked. However, instead of lettuce/sesame leaves with which to wrap the meat they had thin slices of radish which gave the package an extra tang.

This particular restaurant used a cast iron plate on a slant for cooking. It does not need to be changed during cooking but the meat does not take on the wood flavour of the fire if it is cooked this way.

Of course, no samgyeopsal meal is complete without Soju.

Word of the Day 07.08.22

2007-08-21T17:15:00.000-07:00

indurate \IN-dur-it; -dyur-\, adjective:

1. Physically or morally hardened; unfeeling; stubborn.
2. To make hard; to harden.
3. To harden against; to make hardy; to habituate.
4. To make hardened; to make callous or stubborn.
5. To establish; to fix firmly.
6. To grow hard; to harden.
7. To become established or fixed.

They are completely indurate. They aren't hard-nosed; they live without any sense of malice. There is no time or need for others.
-- John Stone, "Evil in the Early Cinema of Oliver Stone", Journal of Popular Film and Television, Summer 2000

First off, the avoid-terminal-prepositions rule is the invention of one Fr. R. Lowth, an eighteenth-century British preacher and indurate pedant who did things like spend scores of pages arguing for hath over the trendy and degenerate has.
-- David Foster Wallace, "Tense Present", Harper's Magazine, April 2001

New findings in science point toward a buoyant view of our being: one in which life is favored, not improbable, and the universe a welcoming place, not an indurate domain.
-- Gregg Easterbrook, "Science sees the light", New Republic, October 12, 1998

Only an exceptionally strong personality or a criminal indurated by bitter experience can withstand prolonged, skillful interrogation in silence.
-- Charles E. O'Hara and Gregory L. O'Hara, Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation

The terrain he walked over still looked like sand, but the sand was cemented together, firm as concrete. Indurated soil.
-- Geoffrey A. Landis, Mars Crossing

But "hard cheeses indurate, soft cheeses collapse." (Flaubert's Parrot). People don't change, they set in.
-- Antonia Quirke, "Jack of all trades", New Statesman, October 29, 2001

Indurate is derived from the past participle of Latin indurare, from in-, intensive prefix + durare, "to harden," from durus, "hard."

Man of the Moment 07.08.20

2007-08-21T00:33:00.000-07:00

The 'man of the moment' this week was a gentleman in pink waiting for a bus at Gangnam Station. In itself this is not extraordinary as there are always people at Gangnam Station waiting for buses even at 6am as I discovered (they were trying to get home after a long long night). However, this man qualifies for the award as he was standing on the curb when a bus passed him and as it went by he was splashed with water for the rain earlier that day. He was thoroughly soaked but then went to complain to the driver. A few words were exchanged and he went on his way. But I was thinking to myself 'Why would you stand on the curb in front of a puddle when you are at a major bus stop?'. Surely he realised he would get wet if he stood there. And the fact that the other people waiting were in a perfect semi-circle around the puddle should have been warning enough.

So, here's to you 'man in pink'.

He ties with another man on the bus. He was preaching about his version of Christianity and even though I loathe people preaching, for there is a time and place for that as some others discovered earlier this month. However, as Voltaire famously put it, "I may not agree with what you say, but I will fight to the death for your right to say it".

And here's to you my evangelical friend.

Guilty Confession

2007-08-21T00:10:00.000-07:00

It has been a very long time since I last posted here since I bought a new desktop computer. I must confess that I upgraded because I want to see what all the fuss is about with Lineage2. Though I always say I will give my laptop to my brother. Funnily enough, another reason I got a PC here was to be able to type in Korean but the OS they installed on my hard-drive does not have the Korean Language pack. So now I have a laptop with the correct language pack but no Hangeul on the keyboard (I did buy some stickers which I really should put on. It'll make my brother think I can really type Korean too) and a computer with Hangeul on the keyboard but no Korean language programme. The reason I can not download the programme from Microsoft should be obvious.

Lineage2 is a MMORPG designed by a Korean company and translated into English. Of course, it is hugely popular here especially this month as the newest chapter is to be released which introduces a new playable character. Unlike my former MMORPG experience with World of Warcraft, there is new content released for Lineage2 on a monthly basis in the form of 'Chapters' and not nerfs as is the case with WoW. It is also cheaper than WoW. However, the major appealing factor for me is the self-policing that the game allows. Basically, you can be killed by other players anywhere in the game world outside of the towns. If you are killed by another player without fighting back that player gets negative 'karma'. The killer can reduce negative 'karma' by either killing monsters or more likely being killed by other players (supreme justice I guess)since the killer's name changes to red and is broadcast to the server.

And of course there is the crafting race in the game. Though they are dorfs.

광복절 Liberation Day

2007-08-15T05:53:00.000-07:00

Today was Liberation Day here in Korea. It commemorates the liberation from Japan after the second world war. This holiday is observed in North Korea as well, but is known as 조국해방의 날 Jogukhaebang i nal.

Strangely enough, neither North nor South Korea were truly liberated after the war as they were occupied by Soviet and American forces respectively.

I spent the day looking for Hangeul stickers to put on my keyboard so I can type in Korean, though I failed since I was feeling the effects of too much soju and Daepo (a type of soju which has good commercials but a poor taste) from the night before.

Weekend Wrap-up, 07.08.12

2007-08-12T07:02:00.000-07:00

Well, another weekend has come and gone. And I can gladly say it was fantastic. Here is how the day started.

You'll notice the sky is red. There's an old saying that if the sky is red at night there will be fine weather the next day (it's in the Bible). But if the sky is red at dawn then it will rain that day. And sure enough it did. If you would like a scientific explanation for the saying follow this link here.

Other randomness from the past week was this advertisement for Xylitol gum.

Basically it's saying the Xylitol, a tooth-friendly sugar, is from Finland and the gum is made in Greece (yay!!!). And that the two meet right here in Korea!

Seeing this sign made me realise that I'll never be out of work as long as I stay here.

And, I'd hate to be living in a place like this. I pass this building every time I catch the bus to Gangnam. It never fails to bring a smile to my face.

Finally, here is what I saw when I went to Yongsan looking for a laptop. Yongsan is the major electronics market in Seoul.

These are racing girls, though they have other names too. I've heard they are absolutely everywhere here, but this was the first time I saw them. They were modelling in front of a Daewoo car. And out of all the people taking photos of them, and there were a lot of people, this model is looking directly at me.

Until next time, fight the darkness.

PS. my links have been updated.

The World's Factory

2007-08-09T08:32:00.000-07:00

My laptop is about to give up the ghost. It's been making these strange noises lately and I don't recall doing anything different to it. Anyway, it's about time I upgraded. Over the last 4 years it has served me well, even when I was playing World of Warcraft. The fools thought one couldn't play on a laptop. Anyway, this will have to be a short post.

I was reading an article in The Economist dated a few weeks back. Though once I read the article the author could have written it to 10 years ago and it would still be relevant today. Basically, s/he (one does not know the author as The Economist rarely puts names to the articles. Perhaps the infinite monkey theory works and The Economist is the epitome of all those monkeys' work) is at the pulpit admonishing the Chinese for flooding the (mainly US) market with cheaply made and in some cases dangerous products from food to flip flops. The article sums up the situation saying the words 'Made in China' are becoming a slur as safety standards are almost non-existent. Luckily there is a little light at the end of the tunnel for China's manufacturers as in the past the same connotation of shoddiness was attached to the words 'Made in Korea' and 'Made in Japan'. I especially remember this reference in Back to the Future III as Doc is inspecting a microchip and leans over to Marty saying, "No wonder this circuit failed! It says, 'Made in Japan'." Marty corrects him saying, "What do you mean, Doc? All the best stuff's made in Japan." Doc looks incredulously back saying, "Unbelievable." Or more recently, in Transformers where there are several references to Japanese-made products connoting their high quality.

Interestingly enough, we all knew anything that carried the label 'Made in China' was bound to have half the life of an identical product made anywhere else in the world. That was the joke among the Chinese students at high school. I don't find their reaction strange at all since even I would shirk away from something that read 'Made in Australia' if I knew it was likely to self-destruct.

So why all the fuss now? Methinks this nonsense has it's roots in the outsourcing of almost any manufacturing to China. China has had the nickname "The World's Factory" thrust upon it from the simple fact that multinationals, ever keen to reduce labour costs, have moved production offshore. So perhaps these same multinationals are beginning to realise there is a price to pay for keeping labour costs as low as possible. Though one wonders what price can be put on Coca-Cola's or McDonald's reputation.

Locked Fire Escape

2007-08-07T00:32:00.001-07:00

As part of trying to exercise more I usually take the stairs if only going ip a few floors. Though yesterday when I did that I slipped and spilt my coffee all over the staircase. It was dark the the motion sensor on the lights only works when you are standing directly under it. Essentially, it is only useful to you when you are on the landing. It's probably like that because the fire escape has a very high ceiling though it could be any number of things.

So I am walking up the stairs sans coffee this time when I come to the 4th floor landing (which is marked by an "F" not a "4" if you take the elevator/lift) and Itry to open the door only to find that it is locked from the other side. Now, I like to think that any sensible person would be shocked at discovering this, especially since there was a fire in the adjacent building only two months ago and because of the smoke we had to evacuate. My supervisor, as well as other supervisors at our kindergarten, thought I was joking. Which of course led me to ask myself "What kind of sicko do they think I am? Someone that would lock a kindergarten's fire escape??".

To be fair, I have been thought of much worse than that though.

Me vs The Weather

2007-08-06T09:27:00.001-07:00

Have you ever noticed when people complain about something it invariably is the weather. Admittedly, it has been very hot and humid these last few days in Seoul. Though the incessant complaints of how hot/cold/windy/wet it is do grate on the nerves. As if I hadn't noticed myself. You see, I always travel in a hermetically-sealed and temperature controlled bubble that allows me to be impervious when people around me are at the mercy of the elements.
Reminds me of a rugby league game I watched back home. Bulldogs - Roosters game at a time of the season when the top spot open for the taking. Somehow, the Bulldogs scored a miracle try (no doubt aided by the referee) and the guy next to me yells "DID YOU SEE THAT!! PHWOAR!!!". I was stunned, as he obviously hadn't noticed I was reading 'War and Peace'. I always bring a big, thick novel to league games between top teams. Just in case nothing happens. Anyway, I digress.

I had an appointment on the weekend and just as I had walked downstairs from my unit it started to pour down in buckets. So I walked back up and like an esprit d'escalier I start to think if it is really worth going out in such horrid weather. A million things raced through my head until I remembered that it's just water (the acid rain would have already been rained out) and more importantly, the weather is something totally out of my control, for now at least.
It always amazes me that people complain about the things that are beyond their control. Hence the weather becomes the scapegoat for all of life's bigger issues you dare not approach either out of fear, impotence or indifference (but always hoping things will improve on their own). Though what is mostly forgotten is, to quote Shakespeare,

All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players.

There is no mention of anyone being a spectator to life. Just get on with what you're doing and let the weather do what it has been doing since time began.

1st Grade Philosophy

2007-08-05T05:40:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I was teaching one of my smallest classes at the Kindergarten about rules and their importance. We went through the normal procedure of introducing the topic, reading a little about it and asking follow-up questions. Now, one of the questions was "Do you think rules are important? Why?". Only one of my students offered an answer. Mickey, is the little gentleman of the class (as the other two students are both girls). He usually comes to class wearing his soccer boots and always carries in a cup of cold green tea. He also never fails to remind me that Korea beat Greece 1-0 in London. I had to remind him it was a friendly game and didn't mean much as Greece were the last Euro champions.

Me: "Are rules important?"
Mickey: "Yes."
Me: "Why are they important Mickey?"
Mickey: "Because people do bad things if no rules."
Me: "Why will people do bad things?"
Mickey: "Because people are bad."
Me: "Not really. Some people are good and some are bad."
Mickey: "No. People are bad."
Me: "Do you think people are born bad?"
Mickey: "Yes."
Me: "Why do you think like that?"
Mickey: "Because they are."

3000 years of philosophical debate on whether humans are born good, bad or are a blank slate and an 8 year old 'knows' we are born bad. Mind you, this is the same student that says he wants to have a crack party and all he had for lunch was crack. Among elementary school students, they love bringing snacks to school and having a 'snack party'. Somehow he confuses 'crackers' with crack and I end up on the floor laughing.

On the other hand, when I told this story to the teachers I work with a few of them thought 'crackers' were white people dancing.

This conversation came back to me when I finished reading "The Devil and Miss Prym". Though Paulo Coelho is a great writer and the author that set me off on my path that led here, this is not one of his better stories. It does offer a few interesting insights though. My favourite is the idea that terror is our real master. We reason we do anything or don't do something is because of fear. Example, people will not break the law not out of respect for the law but rather from a fear of being punished. So, according to our Lilliputian philosopher if you remove the fear of being punished for breaking the law people will invariably 'do bad things'.

For me, I defeated terror long ago. He dropped this and this.

Tapgol Park

2007-08-05T05:13:00.000-07:00

I was wondering around Seoul during my holiday when I rediscovered Tapgol Park. This is site of the 10 Storied Stone Pagoda of Wongaksa Site. It was built in 1467 but lay in ruins for a very long time until it was restored and brought to this site.

This place is special to me because months ago when I was wondering around here contemplating whether I should find somewhere else to work an elderly man approached me and asked if i could "inspect" his speech. I find this odd as if I'm on a bus the seat next to me will always be the last to be filled (this would happen in Sydney too) and yet I get random people asking me to do things. Anyway, this man had most likely written a speech using a dictionary only since I could barely make any sense of what he was trying to convey. What I did understand was that he had been a worker at a Samsung factory and he was worried that the government's stance (at that time) towards North Korea would endanger his job/life and that of many other Samsung workers. His main problem was that if the two Koreas were unified workers from North Korea would work for much less than he would and thus become more attractive to the chaebols.

In the end he thanked me for my efforts and as I was exiting the park I noticed riot police lining up in front of the police buses (which were not there when I went into the park). These buses are armored and have metal screens on the windows. Luckily for me, the man did not make the speech that day. But one wonders...

D-War and late night news.

2007-08-02T07:36:00.001-07:00

I went along to see D-WAR last night in Gangnam. The storyline, as has been already criticised by all and sundry, is rather weak. Then again, one does not go to see Die Hard 4.0 (yes, four-point-oh) and expect a story line that will shatter the action genre.
Apparently it only cost $30 million to make so it is almost inevitable that it will make good on Shim's investment and perseverence. It was a pity that there were no subtitles for the Korean section of the film (retelling the history of the legend) though in reality the fault lies with me as I am still very much at the beginner level when it comes to reading and listening.
In my opinion, and especially if you are a DragonBall fan, the final scene of the film is worthy of the admission fee alone.

While waiting for the bus at 0030 we were talking about the film and the director's early struggles when we heard this loud crash. A man, aged about 40 or so, had decided that the best way to stop the bus was to put his foot through the back door. Luckily for him all buses here have safety glass installed. Either way, he boarded the bus, which for safety reasons was not allowed to continue it's route, and watched all the other passengers file out. I imagine he was in a rush and desperate to catch this particular bus without realising that the 462 runs out of Gangnam every 10 minutes.