South Korea: year two.

Platoon Gallery, night flea market, Hak-dong

James and I at his favorit bar: Rock Day! in Suyu

The Keith Haring retrospective at the Soma Museum of Art, Onlympic Park

The World Peace Gates, Olympic Park South Gate

People out and enjoying the summer rays in the Chongye Stream, Gwangwamun

Ah summer. You are so long coming and yet you persist in flying by, almost without saying hello long enough for us to appreciate how wonderful you are. Summer, you are my favorite of all the seasons, and while it may sound biast to say so, I heartily stand my ground on this one.

I have now been back at work for a week and I have to say that although it is exhausting, I have handled my stress and dissappointments much better this past week than i expected to. I guess you could say that i went into the semester prepared for the absolute random chaos and dissappointing mess I knew I was about to face. Third time's a charm so they say. so it being my third semester at my school, I have a much better understanding of what to and what not to expect from my administration and my co workers. And days of random chaos and severe dissapointment have been the general trend in the past. So this time I was ready for them when they came. And that made it all a bit easier to take.

I guess in some ways I have just gotten used to the way that korean culture functions in these matters, which is like chickens with their heads cut off all to concerned with saving face to really do and say what needs to be done to make things move quickly and end up with efficient results. But hey, when in Rome..... I find that i am using a lot of expressions and saying in my professional philosophy these days. Sayings that I do not strictly believ, but which I have absorbed in order to function with less stress in this particular working environment.

So, here's the week in a nut shell. I showed up first thing on Monday morning ready to sit around and do absolutely nothing... which is what I did. I managed to find out who was the new head of the office and get her permission to move right sharp to a new computer. Which I did. I took JayEuns old computer. Only problem was that all my files from last year were on my old slow as sluggs computer. So I had the new teacher (who unfortunately for her got stuck with that crap box) send me the files through messenger. Then I sat around and waited for people to figure out what i would be teaching and who I would be teaching with. You would think that they would do this during one of the 6 weeks between then end of the last term and the beginning of the new one, but no. Instead it was a frantic and confusing scramble, which in the end produced an even more confusing and convaluted schedule for me than last year in which I teach 4 different grades (and all different sections and lessons of those grades including exactly 1 section of one grade 6 class????). And I also have 5 co-teachers.... yup. FIVE!!!!! My main two co-teachers are new, as in I have never worked with them before even after having been at the school for over a year. You would think that they would want me to, I don't know, develop some sort of teaching relationship with these people instead of building up to nothing every semester, but well that would be too easy I guess.

The rest of the week was spent in a combination of meeting my new co-teachers, trying to figure out some sort of a preparation schedule which is mutually convenient for both of us and sorting all of my lesson plan files from last year. It was, like I said, a pretty tiering week. But I feel that I have at least been given co-teachers who are interested in working with me and actually participating in not only the lesson laning, but the instruction as well!!!!!!!!!!!!! And that, if nothing else should make this year a whole LOT easier than it was last year! That and the combination of being one year more experienced, having students that know me and my teaching style and also being a lot happier in my personal life and in my relationship with Korea. Now, there are many things that i could complain about, but I am trying to deal with them in a way that will get me what I want. I still have a lot of work to do to get to know my new teachers and also make myself a better reputation with my school. I am hoping that they will see that now that I am living in korea and have good co-teachers that my work attitude has also improved. I would like to build a better relationship with my school, my students and my co-teachers this year, because the stress from work and all of those tensions was really stressful last year and I'd rather not carry that load again this year as much as possible.

Like I had said, it is time to reasses my goals in terms of my life in Korea and figure out what to do to make it more organized, balanced and fun. Sometimes, life can get a little messy, but with a little bit of focus and cleaning, things soon come back into line and start to feel less awkward and difficult. So what is needed id the motivation to keep up an optimistic attitude and keep doing the things that will make my life here easier. Time to get started.