I know, I know. Updates have been few and far between as of late. It’s not because I’m busy—I’m not. Well, I won’t be after I get moved here tomorrow to my new apartment, where I will be staying for the rest of this year and the next (perhaps longer. Yes, this means I re-signed my contract for another year). Truth is, I’m lazy. Life has become pretty monotonous. That is not to say a lot hasn’t happened, it just isn’t as profound as it was maybe 7 months ago. This is not going to be, however, an attempt to recap [View Full Entry]

---

---

It was Buddha's birthday yesterday. Don't want to brag, but Christ's birthday is a bit more fun. I didn't get any presents yesterday. My boss asked me the other day if I wanted any crack. She meant crackers. I didn't correct her. I might have some fun with this one. Went to Busan this weekend. No joke, just wanted to mention that. I've always wanted to be in a situation where I had to synchronize my watch with someone. I mean, I've done it before, just there was never a valid reason behind it. I have a student who curses like [View Full Entry]

---

---

...and I don't really want to talk about it. Went back to America for a short time. Don't want to talk about it. A couple of good and bad weekends. Don't want to talk about them. What else? Who cares, I'm not going to talk about it. Here are some random photos. Happy Birthday Steve. Happy Easter to the rest. [View Full Entry]

---

---

The ninth of March was my 6 month anniversary since I came to Korea. I think this a good time to reflect on some things. First, I will most likely be coming back for another go around. It’s still too early to know for sure, but I am content here. It beats going back and not having a job, that's for sure. I set out to write this blog to help people who may want to come here themselves. I have found out, however, that no two people will share the same experience. That may seem obvious for anything, but I [View Full Entry]

---

---

Things are well. I am currently nursing a massive hangover (I never learn) so I will make this short. Friday my boss asked if I wanted to go to Busan on Saturday. I wanted to buy a new suit for my upcoming interview, and I thought it would be easier if she helped me get one so I said yes. Dropped close to $400 on a suit. Ouch. Marked down from $800 though. Then I found out that the reason why we were actually going to Busan was to attend a regional teacher's conference for the franchise I work for, E. [View Full Entry]

---

---

a.k.a "Searching Korea for my future ex-wife" You may or may not be aware, but Korea is close to China. Given this fact, it seems only natural that "Chinese New Year" is celebrated here. What does this mean for a waegookin such as myself? It means I get a do-over in the New Year's Eve department. I must say, this one was a bit better, if not a bit hazier, and a whole lot more immoral. I will not go into the most sordid details, let's just say the end of the night I believe I had asked a barmaid to [View Full Entry]

---

---

For Christmas, one of my student's parents bought me a gift. The outside read simply: To: Lion, From: Jason. I opened the package to find socks. Not just any socks, but colorful Korean socks. Here they are not really interested in the plain old white or black (or even the occasional argyle). Even boys wear socks with cute little pictures on them and a myriad of colors. These socks that I received, though interesting, were, fortunately, a bit reserved. They came from a clothing store by the peculiar name, 'Sugar-Free'. Just like Hanes, they brand their clothing with a label [View Full Entry]

---

---

Yup. Can't say that I didn't see it coming. I took it out back and lit it on fire in a ritualistic sacrifice and buried the ashes. Really it's still sitting on my desk, mocking me. It’s rough to see a college buddy pass. Toshiba Satellite 1473, you will be missed. So Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy New Year, (Bastille Day, I don't know) and all the other holidays that have passed since then. Maybe I will have a new computer by Groundhog's day...not bloody likely, but it's important to stay positive. This will not be a real post. [View Full Entry]

---

---

To steal a classic line from Dickens, 'It was the best of times; it was the worst of times'. That very accurately sums up my last two consecutive weekends. As the title to this entry and my opening line suggests, Busan was amazing. The latter, Daejeon, not so much. First, the good weekend. Busan is great city. Almost too good. I can see myself spending a lot of money there every weekend if I don't be careful. The original plan was to go with some teachers from Sacheon, but they backed out. No worries, because Saturday night I was meeting an [View Full Entry]

---

---

For the uninitiated, this is a bit of compliment. 'Rain' is the name of probably the biggest star in K-Pop, gaining a bit of international fame. Regular viewers of the Colbert Report might know what I am talking about. The most common mispronunciation is 'lion', which I have to admit, is sort of bad a**. But come on people, my name isn't that hard. Four letters, two syllables, that's it. Ry-an. Not hard. So I have not posted in awhile. I assure you I am not dead. Though at times in the past few weeks I felt like it. Not only [View Full Entry]

---

---