I
have so much to talk about this literally might turn into a novel. I’m
apologizing in advance, but August was a bitch of a month. Yes technically I’ve
been on summer vacation, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t work or that it was any
less crazy. Okay so let’s catch up:
1.
Summer Camp – I worked one week at my school which was actually not bad at all.
I was able to finally work with 1st and 2nd grade. I
realized how much I love working with little ones and also how much I miss my
kinder kids, but I've talked about this camp in my last post so now for the good stuff. I worked two more camps through my
POE (Province of Education). I’ll be honest; I did not
have a good attitude about working these camps. Usually I can choose my
attitude and go with the flow, but lately I’ve had a really rough time accomplishing
this – more on that later. Anyway, POE camp – when I first arrived to Andong I
was told I was required to work two of the three weeks of POE camp. Being naive
about working with public schools I said, “Ok” and went about my business. I
soon found out it was not required
to work the POE camp at all, but they just didn’t have enough teachers. I also learned
the camp was located about 40 minutes outside of the city and buses were rare
so I would probably have to stay during the week. Not finished yet….I was also
told there was NO AIRCON, no hot water so I would have to take cold showers and
I would have to sleep on the floor. Obviously, the more information I was given
the more ecstatic I became. I probably could have had a better time, if my
classes for both weeks weren't fussy 5th and 6th
graders. I wasn’t lucky enough to get the over achievers of the group. They
were more like the class rejects and the “too cool for school” bunch. It was a
very difficult two weeks. Not to mention, the first night of week one the 5th
graders were given energy drinks at 8pm resulting in one student vomiting all
over the hall floor. Did I mention it was a very difficult two weeks? The only
thing that saved me from going crazy was having the weekend off between the two camps. Overall, I do have some good memories including one of a girl named Olivia who
was a riot! I’m pretty sure the other students didn’t like her and she was possibly
known as the smelly weird girl. But I absolutely loved her. At one point all teachers were in the teachers room having a meeting and Olivia decided to walk pass the door not once, but three or four times while imitating various animals. Or maybe they were dinosaurs? Needless to say I lost it right then and there!
2.
Traveling – I can’t believe I’ve traveled the past six weekends. I am so tired.
Between birthdays, Seoul,
Busan and Daegu I’ve been a pretty busy girl. Most of the trips were very
successful, but there were a few that just wouldn’t work out. It was a lot of
running for buses, full buses, no aircon, 100% humidity, no transportation at the time you want, etc. The only thing that
saved me from going insane was seeing my friend’s faces once I made it to my destination.
Wicked
was great! Loved it!
My
friend Ravi from ISU came to visit!
3.
Finally my actual vacation – Since my vacation wasn’t until the end of August I
was REALLY looking forward to relaxing. I planned, a month in advance, to go
camping on Sokcho
Beach August 17th
to whenever. I was so excited to finally have time to just sit on a beautiful
beach and do nothing. I could stay for as long or as short as I wanted. This
was my vacation and I could/will camp for as long as I want, right? The weekend
of my camping trip came and unfortunately so did the rain. Camping was
canceled. It literally rained the entire week. I ended up staying at a Bed and
Breakfast in Yoju for a few days called Vanessa’s (pictured above) Casa. She went to work and I
slept in late, ate pizza and read. I also tried to make Kimchi Chigae, but that
was a fail. After my stay at the B&B I came home and continued my laziness
until the weekend. I tried to reschedule camping for the next weekend, but
according to the forecast there was a 60-70ish% chance of precipitation. Instead
I went to Daegu and ended up having a fabulous time with my fellow Andongers.
It didn’t rain that weekend.
I don't like the hand, but it's the only group photo I have.
4.
I’m sorry – The past 5-6 months have been a little difficult for me. For some reason I’ve been on a roller coaster of emotions.
This roller coaster has not only unfortunately lead me to take things out on others (including ajummas in public restrooms), but also made me into a debbie (or is it debby?) downer. Who wants to be around that? I’m not entirely
sure of the exact reason. Like I've said numerous times, I’m really not
made to handle this heat or humidity. It's made me a very cranky and bitter person. Not only has this summer been really difficult, but there have also been some personal
things happening. With this said, there's still no excuse for the way I've been and I just hope people understand. With THAT said, this semester is looking good. This week was my first week of school and I was not angry, agitated or bitter. I was, gasp, a very happy camper!
It could have been the lack of humidity or even the fact that I didn't teach any classes the entire week! Or maybe because I'm finally letting some things go and realizing people are who they are and I can't change it. I just have to go with it.
It could have been the lack of humidity or even the fact that I didn't teach any classes the entire week! Or maybe because I'm finally letting some things go and realizing people are who they are and I can't change it. I just have to go with it.
The only productive thing I've done all week - Behavior Charts for grades 3 and 4.
