I. Solitude for the sake of art?

Just a thought: does it take isolation to create true, unique pieces of art? 

     I've always wondered where inspiration comes from, you know, for those amazing masterpieces that we conjure up when we think of something great. Do you have to be irrational and radical to create something that challenges and stands out above the rest? Or come from, say, the Netherlands?

     I mean, hey, I wouldn't mind moving to Iceland if that means that I'll come up with some crazy sick ideas and create something original. But is that what it takes?

     Sometimes I think my mind is too simple and constrained. I get so jealous of the geniuses who can break bounds, but in a way that seems natural and authentic. Every effort I make seems too forced.

     Someone fly me North and isolate me. Let's see how crazy things get. 

 

IX. Mmmm. Yes.

So, tonight was amazing. I hosted the teachers in my apartment and we made gingerbread houses and enjoyed the heavy winter snowfall. Nowww, back to reality haha. 

Report cards here are no joke and they sure are stressful. Never would've thought that I would be spending hours of my free time working on posting grades! But, it's ok. One more day of work and then, vacay :) I hear the mountain slopes calling my name...

Oh! And here are the pictures from my old class. The pictures are super old (end of October), but hey, I'm busy over here! Enjoy ;)

The girls- SO sharp. Love them.

The boys are obviously thrilled. Cuties.

My little angels. 

These ladies are SO fashionable.

Makes me look bad. 

Student of the Month. Little smarty :)

This is how we had fun in elementary school, remember?

Bye bye, Junior 6. I miss you. 

VIII. Sad Story

So, the time had come to change classes and all the little angels I was so excited about sharing have left the nest. Now I have a new flock of kiddies to break and mold muah ah ah. But really.

When I first came here, I was so shy to discipline children. As time progressed, the asian in me has been making itself more apparent. Funny how that happened... in Korea...

Anyway, here's proof that I'm turning more asian. A student drew a picture of normal me turning into an old-fashioned asian me. I look happy as I show the picture, but I'm thinking 'I hope this is a good thing...' Wowzers.

VII. Oh!

We had our first "snow" today. ^^

VI. Long time no see...

I'm a terrible blogger. But, hey, we all gotta start somewhere, right?

SO, since I'm teaching, I'm guessing a good topic would be the kids. What are Korean kids like? I bet they're cute...

Well, my classes are not exactly the best representation of Korean kids, considering that they're mostly from the wealthy upper class. However, kids will be kids, so, as is expected, I have some angels and some little devils. 

Classes switch every so often, but these are the ones I have now:

M/W/F

Junior 6: 11-12 year olds who can speak and understand fairly well. This is my favorite class. They understand my humor! I'll share some fun stories eventually, but let's just say, one student, May, is a HOOT.

Senior 3 (slow track): 13-14 year olds who should speak better than my J6s, but don't. This is an essay writing class, but their essays can be frustrating to grade. I think this my least favorite class. They are a handful. I care for the kids, but it is a common occurrence for me to come into the break-room asking someone to shoot me in the face. 

Senior 3 (fast track): All boys. They're like my sons. At first, this class raised hell, but after I taught them Telephone Pictionary, they've become my children. They crack jokes and occasionally misbehave, but we've formed a bond. This is also an essay writing class and some of them are hilaaaarious. If I find some good parts, again, I'll share...

T/Th

Basic 4: My babies and my second favorite class. These are my precious ones, some only 8/9 years old (in Korean age, which is one year older than the International age). They can hardly understand so every lesson is pretty theatrical: I've flopped like a fish, slipped and fell on my rear, snorted like a pig, and much more, all for the sake of Education! And they always laugh. Cuties. 

newHighschool 4: The name speaks for itself, although I don't know why we call it "new". These are the older kids who typically don't care as much and come because their parents tell them to. Pros: talking about life together. Cons: pulling teeth to talk about history. 

So many fun and ridiculous things happen in class. Sometimes they aren't worth sharing, because you have to be there, and sometimes it's super dramatic ie. like the time a student left my class and ran away. Literally. Oi.  Or the time my students came to class with two live fish in her bag- and gave them too me. 

I'll try to keep ya'll updated, but without a camera, it's hard!

I love you and miss you SO much,

LP