Darn, I Have a Cold

Apparently, I have a cold. Aside from the pickled crab incident, this is the first time I have been even remotely ill. And like a cold anywhere, it is not fun. However, it is compounded by the fact that it is taboo to blow one's nose in public. So yeah, that is a pretty difficult obstacle to tackle. Other than that, my day has gone well. My second grade middle schoolers were very well behaved today, although it did take some time to get them rounded up and into the English Zone. Once they were there, however, I was able to present my lesson perfectly. This past weekend was pretty eventful. Friday was the big pan-Gangwha teachers meeting. By the way, dog is not as bad as one would suppose. It tastes a little like overcooked beef. I'm sure that brief aside has offended all my friends and family. Oh, well. After dinner, all the Samryang teachers who were not completely toasted and some who were, went to a noribung which is Korea's answer to karaoke. It is completely insane and all the Koreans are really into it. They ham it up really well and belt out all the old classics. Well, all the old classics of Korea which is some of the worst music ever recorded. It is actually pretty entertaining to see all the Korean teachers, most of whom exude a very solemn presence at school, completely pissed and making asses out of themelves. After noribung, everyone was absolutely wasted, except the two westerners, Paul and myself, and we all went back to our homes. It was 10 pm. It is generally an early evening here in Korea. They knock back a a couple bottles of soju and before you know they are absolutely stupid drunk. It's not the best way to spend an evening. They really don't know how to pace themselves. It is a really shame. I've drank decent Scotch with Koreans and they knock it back, not enjoying the taste at all. It's a unfortunate philosophy on drinking. Saturday morning, the guy from KT cable came to set up my internet. It took hours for him to get the bloody thing installed. He was climbing up trees and under things to locate the proper cable which I had shown as soon as he had gotten there. Saturday night was sort of the neighborhood potluck. I made clam chowder, which I have to say, came out very well. The clams from the this region are very good. The Koreans were very impressed by it and divided the extra chowder like crazy. Paul brought his famous pasties (to the uninitiated, those are small meat pies). Altogether, it was a good day. Sunday morning, I went to church in Seoul at the English service at the Anglican Cathedral. It was a good service and it is always good to hear Rev'd Mooney's thick Irish brogue in the heart of Korea. After the service, I went out with a couple of friends for lunch then walked around Hyewha and later Dongdaemun. It was a fine afternoon and morning. Later that day, I went back to my apartment, got some of the chowder I had set aside for Barb's going away party, and went over to her apartment to join the gang. It was a pretty good time. Everyone enjoyed the chowder. We played charades most of the evening and drank cocktail. Bloody Mary's were very popular that evening. After that, I went back to the cozy little hamlet of Naeg-myun, nestled into my covers, and went to bed awaiting the next morning.