The mystery behind 2%
~~>Tuesday, 14 July 2009<~~
Feeling: thrilled

Introducing the new faces of "2%":



Yes, it's B to the I to the Bang Bang! In apple and peach flavours, and can and bottle sizes, for your drinking pleasure. (Look at peachy Daesung! Yummmmmmmo! Muahaha)

Actually I've always liked drinking 2%, yes, even long before Big Bang debuted, but now this just gives me extra incentive to start hoarding all the bottles and cans. I'm planning to make a windchime out of the cans and hang it up when I move into my new apartment, which is an ingenious idea if I do say so myself. (Although I did say the exact same thing about the cans of Cafe Latte coffee with Jang Geun Seuk printed on them, and look how far I got with that =__=)

Anyway.. For those who are wondering what exactly 2% is (or "ii-puro" as said in Korean), it's a brand of flavoured water produced by the powerhouse Lotte (which produces just about every type of packaged food product under the sun). Actually, way back in my university days, someone once asked me what the 2% meant. Was it 2% peach fruit juice in there? 2% sugar? 2% water? o__O

Needless to say.... I was stumped. So I turned to Gary, who at the time was dating Rebecca (a Korean) and thus was a fountain of knowledge about anything and everything Korean-related. He then explained the reasoning that in life, or love, no matter what you do you can only ever achieve 98% satisfaction -- there will always be 2% missing. Kind of like how there will always be that little bit more that you want, that little bit more you wish you had.

And of course, in comes Lotte's 2% to save the day. The missing 2% to achieving complete satisfaction in life.

Well... I don't know if it really satisfies all the inadequacies in my life, but I do know that it makes for some pretty fun eye candy to ogle. :D

Failure.
~~>Monday, 13 July 2009<~~
Feeling: remorseful

Holy crap, it's been more than two weeks since my "vacation" started and what have I accomplished?

Nothing.

Studying Korean?

FAIL.

It's the beginning of the third week in, and I have nothing to show.

EPIC FAIL.

Although strangely enough, these past two weeks or so have made me wonder: What exactly am I wanting to learn Korean for?

After vacation, I'm probably only going to be here another 5 or 6 months. Which is like nothing, really. 5 or 6 months will fly by at the click of the fingers. And if I could blunder my way through the past two years in Korea with my current craptacular level of Korean, then really, what's another 5 or 6 months really going to matter?

But I guess the main reason is that the people who had been the motivation, the main driving force behind wanting to be able to speak Korean better, have kind of... dissipated from my line of vision. You know how it is. People come and go. "Friends" come and go. "Friends" suddenly seem to lose interest in even bothering to acknowledge your existence. (Another one of those life mysteries, why Korean friendships never seem to last longer than a month or two.)

So really.. What exactly is the point in learning?

Or is this just my laziness speaking?

Hmm.

On another note... I hit my two year anniversary this past Saturday, July the 11th. Yes, it has indeed been two whole years in Korea... Ironically enough, I didn't even realise until Fatima pointed it out.

I guess that's pretty much an indicator of current sentiments about being here.

Dang.. I've really gotta stop being so negative. u__u

Dawning..
~~>Monday, 29 June 2009<~~
Feeling: bland

So this is how things have turned out... Uncle Yenny is sitting in her co-worker's empty apartment with nothing better to do than hunch herself over the computer, cursing and swearing at the crappy wireless internet signal from the neighbouring flat that keeps cutting in and out every few minutes.

Yes, this is how things have turned out. I've moved into Fatima's apartment, work is over, my two month vacation has finally started, and yet somehow I can't seem to get myself excited about anything.

What did I do today?

Caught up with a friend who came back to Korea for vacation, paid bills, ran errands, went grocery shopping, came home, tidied up all my clothes and luggage that was spewing out everywhere, and vaccuumed the apartment... and there's still time left over to sit here and twiddle my thumbs like a bum.

It feels so strange...

Maybe it's because the past few weeks, or months it seems like, have been so crazily busy, and now that I finally have all this time to myself, I don't know what to do with it? I guess I got so used to the rush-rush-rush, go-go-go lifestyle that being idle for extended periods of time now just feels really weird.

So, I've decided to set some goals for these next two months.

1. Study Korean. Tomorrow I'm going to the bookstore with my LEP to pick up a decent textbook to study with. By the end of these two months, I'd like to hope that my Korean will have improved. Somewhat. .__.

2. .....

Umm.. I guess that's it. I really only had one goal in mind.

*cough*

u__u

So.. If I only set myself *ONE* goal... One puny little goal... It shouldn't be too hard to accomplish... Right?

In the end...
~~>Friday, 26 June 2009<~~
Feeling: cold

How is it that a person's heart can change so quickly in just a matter of days? Thoughts, feelings, memories... All of that is so easily erasable? "Love", as you call it, is that easily replaceable?

Or is it because everything that meant something, or that I thought meant something, actually wasn't important at all?

Did I overestimate? Or was I just stupid?

The things you did.. The things you said.. The things we did. The things we said. The things we shared. This is all that it comes down to in the end? This is the extent of "us"? This is how much "we" were really worth all along?

Well... I guess I was right to begin with. Should've known better.

Next time I'll know not to trust anyone but myself.

Bruises and batterings
~~>Thursday, 25 June 2009<~~
Feeling: sore

In the past week or so I've managed to gain several painful injuries.

A burn on my ankle from the exhaust of a maxi-scooter while attempting to dismount.. A sore on my knee after falling during a game of tag with my students.. And a huge bruise on my rear end after hurtling down a hill on rollerblades and meeting in an untimely fashion with a concrete bar.

Yet somehow.. As disgustingly cliche as it sounds.. None of these injuries hurt anywhere near as much as the gaping hole that you left behind.

Rain, rain, stay another day...
~~>Saturday, 17 June 2009<~~
Feeling: calm

Someone said that today was supposed to be the start of the rainy season. Well, I guess they couldn't have been more spot on about that, because it's been raining non-stop since about 6 o'clock this morning.

I used to dislike when it rained on the weekend, because it meant that you couldn't go outdoors and have fun. But today, this rain is a welcome change.. It feels good to be staying indoors, taking it easy. Especially given all the ups and downs that have been happening this week.

Rain is nice when you know you don't have to be anywhere, don't have to go to any place specific, or don't have to get anything done. It's nice when you can just kick back, enjoy it pattering outside your window, and breathe in the clean smell that comes only with freshly falling rain...

Rain, rain, don't go away...
Stay here for just another day..

Rollercoaster..
~~>Saturday, 17 June 2009<~~
Feeling: strange

People often say life is like a rollercoaster ride because of all the ups and downs. In that case, could love be likened to a rollercoaster too?

Ups and downs. Twists and turns. Highs and lows. Loops that send you soaring, exhilaratingly high, only to bring you hurtling back down to the ground... right where you started from.

Is this just another up and down hill? Is this just another loop?

Or could it be that this ride has finally come to an end..

Funny that..
~~>Sunday, 14 June 2009<~~
Feeling: calm

It's funny the way things work out, huh? Maybe not "work out" in the sense where everything is fine and dandy, and life is just peaches and roses. But everything pans out in the end. Sometimes it's a happy ending. Sometimes it's a not-so-happy ending. Sometimes you just have to learn to make the most of things, regardless of how lousy they might seem.

What life throws at you is what you get. What you get is what you have. And that's that.

So deal with it.

I guess it's easy for me to say though, because in this case things have ended up turning out for the better-ish. And right now there are lots of things to look forward to so I should be focusing on the positives rather than the negatives and potential negative 'what if's, 'why not's and the like.(Though maybe I need to psyche myself up a little more, because even though in my head I know I should be excited, somehow my body isn't quite following u__u)

July is going to be one hell of a month. Changes, changes, changes are in store. Surrounding changes.. Material changes.. Physical changes.. Personal changes..

In just two weeks and a day, everything will be different. I'll have moved out (and into Fatima's apartment where I will proceed to infringe on her personal space for the next month, or possibly two).. I'll be on a one (or possibly two) month long vacation.. And so many other things, I just don't even know where to begin. I still don't know what's happening with working for a summer camp, and I'm torn between doing that, or just having a two month long break and maybe finding some private tutoring work on the side. The latter would be much, much lower paying, but probably a lot more enjoyable.

I think I'd probably be more excited right now about everything that's coming up if it wasn't for the arrival of Super Teacher, because my fate is pretty much hanging in her hands... Whether she agrees to transfer to the other branch of our school so that I can remain at this one, or if she says no, and I end up having to transfer. It's a little nerve-wracking when you know that you have no control over a situation, even though it has the potential to turn your life upside down...

My head is swimming. I won't lie. I can't pretend I'm not afraid. But I know that July is going to be revolutionary. I'm determined to turn over a new leaf, pick up some new habits, and start living life more fully. Whether things will end up turning out for the better or worse, I still don't know. But it makes more sense to try focusing on the positive than the negative, so I think that's just what I'll do.

Until next time, stay happy and healthy, sons. :)

Misadventures..
~~>Friday, 22 May 2009<~~
Feeling: random

Alright, so it's been a while so please forgive the crappiness that my video editing "skills" have become. But without further ado, Uncle Yenny presents to you 'The Misadventures of Fatima & Lee', part 2 and part 1. This is what we've been doing for the past month and a half or so.

(Yeeeeah so they're not really "misadventures" as such, since they didn't end badly or anything. But ngeh. The titles sounded more fun that way. :D)

Why does part 2 come before part one? Don't ask. It just does. u__u

Gargh, I hate my voice on camera. =__=

Lost in...
~~>Thursday, 21 May 2009<~~
Feeling: engulfed

There once was a time when I actually used to care about things.. My surroundings.. my health.. my life.. myself.

But these days, it seems like I just... don't. I've been swallowed up in a storm of relentless emotions. Anger, bitterness, sadness, regret... Combined with lack of enthusiasm for anything.

Sleepless.. Appetiteless.. Unmotivated..

Why do I feel lifeless?

It feels like there is no time for anything, even though I am not doing anything productive with my time. All I do is sit around, wasting it away. It's amazing how quickly the hours pass even when you're doing nothing at all. No time to cook, no time to clean, no time to eat properly... Yet not enough time to drown myself in my thoughts.

My thoughts seem to revolve around only two things, one of which I know I should eliminate from my mind, but just can't seem to bring myself to erase. Time is going so fast... yet so slow at the same time. And I feel like I'm losing all ties with the rest of the world.

I don't know what has happened to me. Since when did I become so ridiculous? Since when did I become so pathetic?

Why am I letting such stupid things get the better of me?

Why?

My brain tells me to pull myself together...

But my body just won't obey.

Curious?
~~>Sunday, 17 May 2009<~~
Feeling: frazzled

So.. This is entry is going to be short, and to the point.. And it's purely to update anyone who is curious about what has been happening to crazy old Uncle Yenny lately, and what is going to happen, regarding the near future...

I have decided to renew my contract until August of next year (August was one of the conditions my director insisted upon). Whether I end up staying or not for the entire year and 3 months is a different story. *cough* But it means that I will be in Korea for a few more months at least.

That being said, I'm going to be homeless and jobless come July and August. Because of the whacky situation at the moment involving the new "super teacher" and her arrival at the end of June, there isn't going to be space for me at school until the end of August (at which point, they're supposedly going to ship her off to the other branch of our school). So, long story short, I can either return to Australia for two months (half of my ticket will be paid for), or I can stick around in Korea and find some other job to fill up the time (and put a roof over my head).

I'm leaning more towards the second option, because I know being jobless for two whole months is probably going to put a massive dent in my back account. That, and I hear that intensive English summer camps in Korea pay pretty well.. It's just going to be a bit nerve-wracking getting down and dirty with jobhunting, and then having to start over in an all new school and all new environment once again.

Sooooo. Yes. That's about it. The above is basically what I have been stressing about for the past 3 weeks, only now that I've typed it all out it doesn't quite seem like something worth getting all that stressed over..? But at the time, it was. For me anyway. In fact I'm still kind of edgy, but I guess things will work themselves out. Somehow.

There are also some other personal things going on at the moment that I'm stressed over.. Things that have been the reason why I haven't really been online lately, haven't had time to blog decently.. I haven't even been on any forums in well over a month.. My lifestyle seems to have really changed.. Gargh. I'm not even sure whether I like it or not. @__@

But yes. Stressed as I am, like with other things, I'm slowly learning to say "F*ck it", and just let it all go. Sometimes there are things you need to hold onto.. And sometimes there are things you just need to let go of.. Everything happens for a reason. So if it's meant to be, then it will happen. And if not... then move on.

I'm learning. Slowly.

Until next time... Fare thee well, sons. =3

Help me...
~~>Sunday, 17 May 2009<~~
Feeling: exhausted

Why does it feel like I don't have time for anything these days?? Time is going by so fast.. Tick tock tick tock tick tock tick tock....

The days speed by and before I know it, another whole week is gone.

Work, work, work. Meetings, meetings, meetings. People, people, people.

Everyone is consuming all my time and I don't feel like I have any left to myself. My thoughts, my feelings.. Peoples' thoughts, peoples' feelings.. People's expectations....

I need my space!! Why can't anyone understand that??

He was a boy, she was a girl...
~~>Thursday, 14 May 2009<~~
Feeling: drained

He was a boy.. She was a girl..

Can I make it anymore obvious?

He was the kind of person who put her safety before his own.

The kind of person who still wished her goodnight, even after she treated him like sh*t.

The kind of person who would arrive early, even though he knew she was more than likely to be late.

The kind of person who seemed to care. Genuinely care.

So he seemed to be.

So she thought he was.

But perhaps, just like all those other times... like every other instance, every other encounter, every other experience... She was wrong.

PS: Just for the record, NO, I do not like Avril Lavigne. I just thought those particular lyrics from her song were ironically appropriate for this particular blog.

Urgh.
~~>Wednesday, 13 May 2009 *Happy birthday to Jaclyn*<~~
Feeling: tired

Greetings, sons! Uncle Yenny has returned! >=D

Taiwan was freaking awesome and an absolute blast. Despite my Mandarin speaking skills being as craptacular as ever (since I haven't really spoken it in yeeeears), it was still awesome being able to chat with people, get around without (many) problems, and just enjoy being in a whole other place, away from the usual humdrum.

Pictures, video, etc coming soon. Apologies, sons, as I have been rather slack about using the computer/internet lately.

Crazy, crazy, crazy
~~>Wednesday, 29 April 2009<~~
Feeling: phazed

Words cannot even express how strange and muddled up I am at the moment. I don't quite know what the matter is, but I haven't been able to eat properly for the last fortnight or so, and there's not a single day this week where I've gotten to sleep before 4am. Which I suppose isn't really thaaat bad, considering it's only Wednesday night.. But for some reason the way things have been going lately makes it feel like an absolute eternity.. And despite the fun that's to be had at all odd hours in the night, I do kind of miss having proper sleep =__=

So what has Uncle Yenny's life revolved around this past week? Hmmm... convicts, motorbikes, potentially signing away my soul to the devil, and riding in fast cars with boys (hahaha, just joking. Sort of. *cough* I felt like making a pun out of that movie title.. You know.. The one with Drew Barrymore.)

Aaaaanyway. Steering away from all things speed-related, the weekend is finally starting to approach! (I say "starting" because even though every single day has been crazily busy, somehow it still feels like time is crawling by, and the weekend is just taking its sweet ass time to get here. It's taunting us, I swear. =__=) I am uber excited for Taiwan, but mostly because I can't wait to go shopping and eat (hopefully) uber cheap and uber delicious street/market foods.. Hehehehhhhhh.

I hope the rest of this week goes by smoothly for everyone, and that you all have an awesome-ous weekend. Fare thee well, sons! ^^

Good news, good news
~~>Thursday, 23 April 2009<~~
Feeling: tired

What a crazy ass week-and-a-few-days it's been... In between getting dragged to shifty Korean-style nightclubs, riding in shady black vans with strange guys in suits, tandem-biking, partying at a gay bar, and various other things, there hasn't really been much time to kick back and just.. breathe.

However, despite the craziness, comes good news....

Uncle Yenny is Taipei-bound! w00000t!! *\(^_________^)/*

There's a long weekend coming up next week, so my co-worker and I are headed to Taiwan for four days. Can't friggin' wait! I'm so excited to see familiar things, eat familiar foods, speak a familiar language, be surrounded by a familiar culture... Lol even though I've never been to Taiwan before, so it's not really familiar ground literally.. But.. You get what I mean. =P

Uncle Yenny can also tick another item off her list of "Things to do before leaving Korea"... This one being... riding a motorcycle across Seoul!

Okay, yes, so originally it was supposed to be a scooter, not a motorcycle. And granted, hopping on random strangers' bikes and blasting helmet-less down the freeway at 150km an hour probably isn't the smartest thing to do.. In fact it actually became quite painful after a while. I also don't think I'll ever quite be able to look at bikes, or the Gangbyeon Expressway, the same again... But it was still an awesome-ous experience and I'd do it all over again in a flash if I had the chance. XD (Plus someone very kindly lent me a helmet, gloves and an extra jacket for the ride back home, so at least the second part of it was more enjoyable.)


Rawrrr goes Uncle Yenny! In the helmet that she couldn't put on or take off without someone else's assistance. (Epic fail. u__u)

Note to self: Buy funky-ass helmet ASAP and hijack strangers' bikes more often. XD

Black Day shennanigans
~~>Tuesday, 14 April 2009<~~
Feeling: hungry

Happy Black Day, all! I feel like I successfully did my part by rocking up to school in black, eating jjajangmyeon (black noodles), and educating any of my students who didn't already know about it.. (Alas, how very sad.. Koreans who don't know of Black Day, even though it originated in Korea u__u).

I even gave bowls of jjajangmyeon to the kids in one of my classes, so I dare say if they didn't know about it before, they definitely do now. XD

What can I say..? Just spreading the Black Day spirit! XD

Anyways, I hope everyone had a fantabulous Tuesday, whether or not you were bitter about a lack of romance in your life. =P

Fingers crossed everyone will have an awesome-ous Wednesday as well! ^^

Awash
~~>Monday, 13 April 2009<~~
Feeling: ever-so-slightly-stressed

I woke up this morning thinking it was Black Day. It was only after I'd started sending out SMSes to people proclaiming Black Day in all its glory that my co-worker alerted me it was actually April 13th and not 14th.

=__=

Tomorrow though will be Black Day... And I for one and determined to enjoy it. >=D

Things actually went pretty smoothly today, considering it was Monday and these past few weeks have been tainted with severe cases of Monday-itis. I felt like I got a lot of my energy and zest for being in the classroom back, especially after last week was pretty much just "blah week", and every single day both sucked and blowed at the same time. I did get poked awake today though, by one of my 8 year old students who had somehow wandered into the teacher's room, saw me zonked out on my desk, and took it upon himself to wake me up. When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was a face with an innocent smile plastered over it, peering at me. It took me a few seconds to realise it wasn't my co-teacher, but the little boy in my 3pm class. Good thing I like him so much, otherwise I probably would've thrown my stapler at him.

In other not-so-cheery news, it seems I'm not the only one who's been screwed over by my school and my ever-so-wonderful directors-of-the-year. *cough* sarcasm *cough* Another teacher at the other branch had his contract cut short by 3 months, as did another of my co-workers.. however this co-worker not only had his contract cut short, but is also getting shifted out of his apartment to another one that's another whole district down. What the eff?

It just seems really sad, considering how things seemed to start off so well... Not so long ago, I was so happy to be working at this school. But now... It's a whole different story. Nobody has any idea what to even expect anymore.

There've been a lot of things to stress about lately too, such as the future, work, the possibility of going back to university again, and in particular, my plans for the next six months... Quite frankly my brain feels like it's about to implode. And I think I'm going to have to make a decision really soon, which scares me quite a lot. I've been stalling and putting things off, but the time to start making choices is fast approaching. It's a little hard though... There are so many things I just don't know about.

I don't know where I'm going.

I don't know what I'm doing.

I don't know what I want.

Will I really be able to make it?

Life in itself is kind of a scary thing, huh.

Breakthrough
~~>Sunday, 05 April 2009<~~
Feeling: frustrated

So it's been about just over a month since we started the new academic year, and it's amazing how much progress the kindergarten kids have made in that time. From their first few days, where they spoke literally no English at all and you could only talk to them in a loud, ridiculously slooooow voice, repeating every word about 20 times before they understood what you were saying... To now, where they are actually starting to be able to express themselves.

"Teacher! Me good?"

"Teacher! I'm very, very, veeeeery happy!"

"Teacher! I love you maaaany many many many..."

XD Sure it's not perfect, but I love that they're opening up and now we can actually communicate on a 2-way basis.

I remember saying to Uncle Harry after the first day that it must've been a miracle how they got the students to the level they were at last year when I first arrived at the school.. But now I'm starting to realise that maybe it actually is possible, and that children are indeed very, very fast learners.

And I know I swore black and blue that I would never love another class the way I did my seven year olds from last year, but I thiiiiink my seven year olds from this year are cutting it pretty close. XD They've already started with the tackle hugs and we have a ritual of high-fives before the lesson starts everyday. =3

Unfortunately though it seems things just weren't meant to be.. On Monday everything is going to be jumbled up again because some teachers are leaving and classes are going to be reformed.

=(

Nothing good ever lasts, does it?

Red, red, red.
~~>Saturday, 04 April 2009<~~
Feeling: pleased

Uncle Yenny has red hair now.

Uncle Yenny is pleased. :D

Sum up III.
~~>Saturday, 04 April 2009<~~
Feeling: tired

I don't quite feel like I've achieved very much this week. And right now I'm feeling tired, restless, and just plain unsatisfied with a lot of things.. or perhaps it's with life in general.

Anyway.. The one satisfying (and gratifying.. hah) thing I did this week was go to see 'The Ballerina who fell in Love with a B-Boy'. I didn't realise it earlier, but it was actually a different show to the one I was expecting.. This one was "the second story", which takes place a year later -- not the one most that most people are familiar with when they hear the words "ballerina and B-Boy". While they did have some flashbacks and scenes from the first story, this second story (quite obviously) had an entirely different storyline. Nonetheless, it was an awesome show and I'm really glad I got to go see it.

Afterwards we got to meet the B-Boys and camwhore with them too, which was really cool. Too bad they didn't seem to speak much English though, otherwise I totally would've kidnapped one of them and shipped them back to Brisbane. XD (One guy looked like a taller version of Taeyang from Big Bang, and another one was a total lookalike of Lee Minwoo from Shinhwa.. *nosebleeds*)

Since I have way too much time on my hands, I decided to throw together some clips to make something like a "movie trailer" for the show. Haha yes, it's like free publicity for the show. I'm so generous, they should give me VIP tickets, I swear. XD

And here are some clips of the show meshed together (see if you can spot the Taeyang and Lee Minwoo lookalikes in here ^^):

Awesomeous stuff. I'm still swooning. XD

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