Korean Final

The semester is over!!! For Korean that is.

I’ve just finished 3 straight terms of full-time Korean classes. I am now able to hit on a girl while sounding only slightly like a retard. So I guess it wasn’t a total waste of money. But it is sad when I look at the downward spiral my studies have taken since...well, pretty much since I started studying. Let’s see a breakdown, shall we?

1st   quarter – Midterm: 92%   Final: 96%
2nd quarter – Midterm: 85%   Final: n/a (I didn’t even take it.)
3rd  quarter – Midterm: 82%   Final: 83%

You might think that those grades aren’t that bad, but let me tell ya, these tests were easy and the teachers were EASY graders. Nothing like me. >:-)

I’m taking a semester off to recuperate, try to put my recently learned grammar to use, memorize vocabulary, and – who am I kidding I have no discipline I’m just gonna be lazy and do nothing and forget everything I learned. -_-;;; Oh well...there’s always the spring!

For the Pic of the Day, I instead have a hilarious animated GIF that was used as an avatar on a forum I frequent. Teddy KGB from “Rounders”!



"You will not be pushed around!"

"To Woo Christine"

My posts seem to come in three’s. Here’s one last one for the Music Trilogy.

I’m both embarrassed as well as proud to admit – this is a song I wrote and played for a girl some time ago. Proud because I actually had the guts to lay it all on the line. Embarrassed because...well…who the hell wouldn’t be?


I know this may sound desperate sounding
But I’ll say it still with my heart pounding
That I think we still have a chance
At friendship plus a little romance

I’ll keep on babbling ‘cause I know
That if I stop – then you’ll go
I’ll keep you here as long as possible
I know that what I’m saying’s not logical

I said it before, I’ll say it again
I want to try to be more than friends
So what do you say, take my hand
You’ll be my girl and I’ll be your man

. . . . .

This song is over, now I’m waiting for
You to answer yes or show me the door
So how about it? Let’s take this risk
I won’t ask you for much more than this


* Sorry, I’m too embarrassed to put the recording online. -_-;;;

And Another One

Keeping it old skool, here’s another one, this time from Green Day. Deep. I know.

“In The End” by Green Day

All brawn and no brains
And all those nice things
You finally got what you want
Someone to look good with
And light your cigarette
Is this what you really want?

I figured out what you're all about
And I don't think I like what I see
SOOOOO ...
I hope I won't be there in the end
If you come around

How long will he last
Before he's a creep in the past
And you're alone once again?
Will you pop up again and be my
"Special friend" 'til the end?
And when will that be?

I figured out what you're all about
And I don't think I like what I see
SOOOOO ...
I hope I won't be there in the end
If you come around

I figured out what you're all about
And I don't think I like what I see
SOOOOO ...
I hope I won't be there in the end
If you come around

This Song's For You

Did you ever have a song between you and your girlfriend/boyfriend? You know, like in the old days, when couples would have “their” song that they would always dance to. I think you can almost always find a song that describes your thoughts or accurately portrays your feelings for a person (not necessarily in a romantic sense, but who am I kidding that’s almost always the case and why the hell am I blogging I have my Korean final tomorrow ARGH! STUPID!). Okay, back on topic. Whenever you listen to that song, you think of them, as if it were “dedicated” to them. Does anyone else do this? Ok, maybe I’m just a freak. Well, here’s an old skool that’s been playing on my mp3 player recently.


“Two Princes” by the Spin Doctors

One, two, princes kneel before you (that’s what I said, now)
Princes, princes who adore you (just go ahead, now)
One has diamonds in his pockets (that's some bread, now)
This one, said he wants to buy you rockets (ain’t in his head, now)

This one, he got a princely racket (that’s what I said, now)
Got some big seal upon his jacket (ain’t in his head, now)
Marry him, your father will condone you (how bout that, now)
Marry me, your father will disown you (he’ll eat his hat, now)

Marry him or marry me
I’m the one that loves you baby, can’t you see?
I ain’t got no future or a family tree
But I know what a prince and lover ought to be
I know what a prince and lover ought to be

Said, if you want to call me baby (just go ahead, now)
And if you’d like to tell me maybe (just go ahead, now)
And if you wanna buy me flowers (just go ahead, now)
And if you’d like to talk for hours (just go ahead, now)

One, two, princes kneel before you (that’s what I said, now)
Princes, princes who adore you (just go ahead, now)
One has diamonds in his pockets (that's some bread, now)
This one, said he wants to buy you rockets (ain’t in his head, now)

Marry him or marry me
I’m the one that loves you baby can’t you see?
I ain’t got no future or a family tree
But I know what a prince and lover ought to be
I know what a prince and lover ought to be

Chorus x 3

Ohh baby (just go ahead now)
Ooh just just go ahead now
Ooh your majesty (just go head now)
Come on forget the king and marry me (just go ahead now)
Come on, come on, come on, (just go ahead now)
Go ahead now, yeah (just go ahead now)
If you want to buy me flowers (just go ahead now)
Yeah just go ahead now baby...

Pepero Day

11/11/2005

In celebration of the most important holiday in Korea, students across Korea exchanged boxes of Pepero (also known as Pocky in Japan). I’ve loved these things since I was a little kid, especially the strawberry flavored kind. There are also chocolate, chocolate with nuts, and the huge 2-inch thick Mother of All Pepero, as well as many others.

So what is the deep-seated cultural heritage behind Pepero Day? Well, a long, long time ago (1994), in a land far far away (southeast coast of Korea), a group of warm-hearted middle school girls unknowingly founded a national holiday. As a simple encouragement to each other to grow tall and slim, they exchanged the wonderful gift of Pepero. This sweet and innocent gesture caught on in the surrounding areas and eventually spread across the entire nation. And so, a tradition was born. Adults and kids, young and old, began to exchange the tasty chocolate-covered treat in faith and in love. Conceived out of true friendship, these elegant offerings are worth far more than their actual monetary value may suggest. Heart to heart, they represent the sincere and profound feelings reserved only for one’s most cherished loved ones. It is not a gift given lightly, or without heartfelt consideration.

There are some who doubt the truth of this tale. There are some who say that Pepero Day is merely a marketing creation, spawned by a company's base desire for monetary gain. These heretics should be branded for anti-nationalism and imprisoned immediately without trial. They have no right to call themselves true Koreans. How can one even ponder such a despicable and baseless theory? This holiday was created by love. Anyone who says otherwise is simply blinding themselves to the truth because they have no one to love and are too bitter to accept it.

Hail the Pepero!

Daum news story on Pepero Day

Pic of the Day:


Sunrays over Hongik. Man...these autumn skies...

Episode III

While we’re still on the subject of hair ( three posts in a row about hair!!), you may have been surprised by the fact that I had gone 2 and a half months without a haircut. Strangely, my hair seems to grow at a slower rate in Korea than in America. Or perhaps this is the first sign of baldness setting in? Or maybe my diet is severely lacking in the nutrient necessary for healthy hair growth? (I know my diet is severely lacking in many important nutrients, but let’s try to stay on task here.)

It really could be anything, but I’m convinced it’s because the hair is growing out in other parts of my body. Most noticeably, my chest. Yes, that’s right. I’m completing my de-evolutionary metamorphosis into an ape. I’ve already got the longs arms and a love for bananas. Now comes the rest of the body hair. Click here to see the seeds of life. ** WARNING ** Partial nudity! (aren't you lucky...)

Ugh. I’ve also been growing on my arms. I guess it’s not all that bad, but the day I start seeing some on my back, I’m heading for electrolysis or something. Hairy backs are naaaaasty.

[So ends the third installment to complete the award-winning "Hair Trilogy"]


Pic of the Day: I've decided that instead of just posting any old pic for the Pic of the Day, I'm going to post one that reflects my mood. Heh. This'll be interesting.

Cloudy sunset from campus today

Hair Addendum

There was this one time last year, when I went to this barber shop chain called Blue Club. They might have gotten the idea from Kmart’s blue light specials. I mean, this place was bottom of the barrel. $5. My excuse is that I still didn’t have a job at the time, so I was trying to keep my expenses down. One day I passed by one of these little hell holes, and with half a smile, thought, what the hell, let’s see what happens.

Well, the guy welcomed me in and offered to hang up my coat and take a seat. That was nice enough. He asked me what kind of cut I wanted. I said just a normal cut would be fine. He smiled and said okay. He then proceeded to beat my head with what I believe was a weed whacker, but my memory was so jarred by the repeated impact that I can’t be sure. After I was effectively lobotomized through bludgeoning, he unsheathed his “Scream-like-a-Banshee” shaver and went to town. Five minutes later (seriously), he finally showed mercy and put his torture devices to rest. I stumbled off The Chair in a bit of a dizzy state with my ears still ringing. I fumbled through my wallet to pay The Man the $1/min. job he did on me. And then I ran. I ran as fast as I could, as if hell itself were chasing me. Don’t look back, Cory! Don’t look back!


Pic of the Day:


Sunset from campus today

Two and a half months

Ok, I don’t know where the week went, but it definitely pulled a David Copperfield on me. I didn’t feel that busy, but it was gone before I knew it. It was capped by a very interesting Friday night though, which has been described in unsparing detail with pics and all at suddenlysusan’s blog. After getting home at 6-something in the morning, Saturday was a mess of laziness. Today, I was a little more productive. I got a haircut.

One thing should be said about getting haircuts in Korea: it’s SO much cheaper than the States. And better. I’m not talking about the 12-minute shaver+scissors combo that you get at Supercuts for 15 bucks. No, these places are slick, the stylists got skillz, and they shampoo your hair before and after the cut!

Now, I’m really stoked on this last one. Having someone else wash your hair is a great feeling. Great! In the States, you usually have to pay extra for this. Either that or go to a nicer place.

Now before all the ero jokes start to fly, let me just say it has nothing to do with a girl washing your hair. I’ve had my hair washed by girls, guys, and ajummas. There’s no difference. Although, it is nice if the girl is cute…er, yeah…anyways, that’s not the point. It’s just the feeling of being pampered. Having someone else do what you normally have to do yourself every morning before you go to work. (And yes, I consider this “pampering”. Obviously, I don’t frequent spas, massage parlors, or anything of the sort).

I go to hair salons like some people go to restaurants. I rarely go back to the same one. You know, there are people who just have to go to a different restaurant every time they go out because they want to try everything. Of course, most people stick with a hair salon once they find one they like. I don’t know why I don’t. I guess I always figure the next one I go to might be better (or cheaper =). I do admit to my vanity though; I want a good haircut. And it’s true that I used to be really picky about my hair when I was in high school, but I’ve since realized that nothing’s gonna help my weird-shaped melon, no matter what kind of decoration you put on top of it. So it’s really no big deal if they mess up. Besides, even though I go to a different salon every time, somehow it always turns out the same.

Oh, but this time, the stylist actually cut it differently. The result was still the same, but the method was different. He didn’t use scissors and he didn’t use a shaver. He used a razor. As in the serial killer “I’m gonna take pleasure in cuttin’ ya boy!” kind of razor. He’d level my hair with a comb, bring the blade to a point, and SCHWAT! Just ripped off my hair. It was disconcerting at first, but after a while, started to seem kinda cool. It was like…natural. No electric razor, not even scissors. Like how they must have done it in the old days. It was like, “Welcome to…MEDIEVAL Cuts! We refuse to employ any kind of modern invention in our hair styling practices! However, we do have a full stock of 20 different hair waxes which, by some unknown chemical anomaly, will genetically bond to your hair and refuse to wash out no matter how hard you try. Please sign this liability form before purchasing.”

I had a pleasant chat with the guy cutting my hair and then had my hair washed again by the cute girl. Er, I mean…

She styled it really weird though. Like, Korean style. I came out with this puffy, mushroomy, side-part that made me look half Korean-high-school-boy and half Bruce Lee. I was too embarrassed to take a picture to post online. So I paid my 10,000 won (about $10) and walked out with my nunchuku tucked under my arm, ready for bad guys. My first haircut in two and a half months.

...damn..that was one long entry...

Pic of the Day: Autumn colors at Hongik University