Day 255 - New Semester Started

**A few more posts were backdated under this one. Sorry. I'm kind of anal about doing things like that, even though I clearly didn't write on those days.**

I've really been sucking at this blog lately. Don't worry, it's not you, it's me. I've been all kinds of crazy lately. Since it's the start of a new school year here, I've been trying to tie up all my loose ends. Some things on my plate:

--School: curriculum and lesson planning
--Finances: transferring money to the States, making a debit card
--Relationships: reestablishing my Konyang contacts, mailing packages to friends in America
--Personal: printing photos for a Korea scrapbook, working out, studying Korean

The new semester started on March 2nd. I was excited to have a fresh new opportunity with my students. Last year I really had no idea what I was doing and on top of that, I wildly over-estimated the English abilities of my kids. This made for difficult lessons, a really disjointed semester, and frustrations for both me and them. This year, though, I sat down with a text book (Side-By-Side, a conversation-based text) and mapped out what I thought the kids needed to learn and/or practice, as far as conversational English went.

So far, so good, although it's frustrating with the Monday classes. They're low level, large classes, and young, so it makes for a very difficult teaching environment. It's especially frustrating because these Korean students study English for 8, 10 years before they get to me, yet they can't introduce themselves or follow a simple conversation. Hell, some classes don't even understand when I say "Okay, class is finished! Time is finished! I will see you next week! Bye!"

It's bad.


Financially, things are just frustrating because my Korean isn't good enough to carry conversations at the bank. I know some basic words, but if there's a problem or if the teller asks me a question, there is a 50% chance I will have NO IDEA what she's talking about. Since it's money issues, it is pretty important to know what is going on. Same with the post office. I have three packages sitting on my floor right now, but I have to plan for 1-2 hours of free time so I can go to the post office and figure out what to do.


vis-a-vis Relationships: I'm currently trying to reestablish the contacts I had with Konyang students last semester. Things died during vacation while they all went home and enjoyed their break, and I went to Daegu for a month, so I'm trying to get back in touch with all of them.

IN TERRIBLE NEWS: Cute Trainer no longer works at the gym!!! He left and has been replaced with another cute trainer who is also younger but still not Cute Trainer. He is... um... New Trainer? Additionally, Other Guy will be leaving for his mandatory 2-year Army service on Tuesday, so it is sad times at the gym.


Ummm that's about it.