The Fine Art of Falling Apart

My body is a little achy these days, accumulating a collection of small nagging injuries that Korea seems bent on preventing me from properly healing. My trips to the doctor have provided me with strange sorts of remedies, some of which you already know if you've read my entry on the herb-doctor. Since that time, I've developed a possible case of sciatica, bruised/sprained my knee playing hockey, and my shoulder has begun to act up with some sort of weird usage pain. The shoulder is the most annoying one, as it seems to be a result of not being able to sleep on my side properly (from the sciatica and the ol' case of bursitis) plus my school computer has been set up to be used in the most awkward manner possible, straining my arm everyday when I work.

Now, things aren't all bad. I told my doctor here and a friend at home about the sciatica, and that doesn't seems to be going away, and my knee and shoulder are sloooowwwly mending, but I tell you, being overseas and being injured (even slightly) is a giant, giant pain in the neck (or wherever you're hurting). The unfamiliarity of the medical offices and procedures, the language barrier when explaining problems, and the uncertainty as to what's being done to you makes getting treatment a very onerous and daunting experience.

I took the day off school on Wednesday, which is something Koreans don't really ever do. I've missed two days due to "sickness" all year, and that's 2 days more than the rest of the teachers combined (I think, I'm not always sure who's here and who's not). Anyway, the point is, I decided to take the day off for a number of reasons, the main one being - there's now a dog in the house.

You'll notice I didn't say "Shannon and I have a dog now," because we shouldn't quite call him ours yet. He was a stray puppy, who followed a friend of ours home one day, and we've decided to take care of him until we can find him a good home. This means holding onto him until we come to Canada in August, and sending him off with a new family. So, while I don't want to distance myself from the cute little guy, I do need to be wary that he's not "mine".

So, if you know someone who's interested in giving a cute little dog a home, here's what he's like: His name is either "Crunky" or "Miso", we haven't decided which yet. He's a Chipin, a cross between a miniature pincer and a chihuahua - he looks like a miniature pincer except for larger eyes and ears. He's extremely loving, wants nothing more than to curl up in someone's lap, though we're training him to play fetch and to sleep in his own bed, as he likes crawling under the covers when we sleep.

So that's that. He'll be 9 months old in August, so he's still pretty young and impressionable right now. If you know anyone who's interested, send me an email or write a line or two in the comments here.

I'm learning more and more about the priorities at schools here in Korea, and while giving the kids a good environment to work and learn in is a desirable outcome, other things seem to be more important. Paperwork for example, and maybe volleyball. Just now, while photocopying materials for class, I was stopped to make sure my personal attendance forms were filled in correctly. The process took 25 minutes to resolve, because I put things from April and March on one sheet, and I missed 15 minutes of my class. I've had whole classes canceled so I can "train" for volleyball. My extra class that runs three times a week is never questioned, checked up on, and the students are never examined to see if they're learning anything. I must, however, be sure to keep up the work log. Attendance also has to be taken rigourously, though the kids are allowed to be absent with no consequences whatsoever.

Anyway, it's time to get back to work. I've got a class to teach in a few minutes, and while it doesn't matter what I teach them (perhaps today I'll teach them some French), I do need to write down what it is I'm teaching them in the book. Till next week!