Concerning a pretty darn fine weekend

I actually had a fantastic week. It was fairly uneventful-- I still find myself pretty tired after my longer work days but the paycheck at the end of the month should give me some of that energy back. One of my kids did tell me that he'd seen a suicide in his journal which completely horrified me...it was in response to an autobiographical writing prompt and his two other classmates wrote about being in a car accident and being lost by his parents in the US. Not quite the upbeat learning exercise I was shooting for. Oh dear. I did find out, on a lighter note, that my 38 (but looks much much younger) old boss has a crush on my dad. I put some pictures up at work of my sisters, my family, and friends and she came over and gushed. I wish I could say that it's the first time that this has happened (*cough* Roche Harbor... dad...). Oh well, it certainly won't hurt me, at most we're looking at a smidge of preferential treatment because of good genes. Dad, charm away.

Thursday night, I had two coworkers over for banana pancakes and bacon which was nice. One stayed over for a while and we had a nice long convo. We had friday off which was lovely...I had such a lazy day and adored it. I slept late. I watched movies. I read. I watched TV. I made a BLT. I didn't get out of my PJs until 6 when I realized that I was not fit for public exposure, so I de-grossified and met my boss and another teacher for her English club.

Oh my, what a night. It began with my boss chattering the whole way there because she was nervous that we wouldn't like it or that there wouldn't be anyone there that week. She was so nervous, in fact, that she insisted on going into the room before us to prepare them that foreigners were coming in and to behave. Funny. Even so, when we came in the room everyone stopped talking and jaws dropped. Someone broke the silence with, "Wow! You're pretty!" And so it began. Everyone was definitely shy around us which I found hilarious as I was the youngest person there. Some more people trickled in and the "You're really pretty/you're beautiful/ you look like a doll" moment was repeted FIVE times. Yep, I counted. The club was unexpectedly structured- there were moments for interviews, short answers, speeches and discussing an article. It's pretty much the same every week. It was really fun, I didn't notice that it lasted 2 1/2 hours. Afterwards, we all went out to a bar until 1 am and I felt even more like a rock star than usual- it was truly bizarre, it felt like they were hanging on every word and wanted an American perspetive on everything. There was also a not bad looking guy there which certainly didn't hurt my night. I will probably go back next week, if only because everyone was so nice and it is such an easy way to learn about Korean culture.

The next day, I worked out, soaked in the spa for a bit, got a latte and some groceries and went back home for an early night that was a bit ruined by my late realization that South Korea does not do decaf. I got up way way too early the next morning to meet two of my friends in Seoul. We got lunch before checking out a shrine which was moderately cool and an adjoining palace. It wasn't as impressive as Gyeongbokgong Palace but for a dollar, I was happy to walk around and take pictures of the fall leaves...even if winter decided to arrive in full force, completely stinging my cheeks with the cold. It was not a bad day though. After, I got home chilled and tired and went to bed pretty early.

Work should be fine this week if a little busy, we're preparing for "mother's day" on saturday where moms get to come and observe a class. I did also just find out that ECC will not let me stay in my apartment by myself which blows. Apparently, they don't own it but pay a monthly fee which basically means that either I have to find someone to move in or I have to move out. Ick. To be honest, it does stress me out and I'm trying to decide what that means...though it might already be decided for me because I don't think anyoen wants to move. Well....huh. Not sure what to make of that. I'll keep everyone updated. Bye!!

Love,

B