Everybody's Got a Special Kind of Story

Hearing that Gary Coleman was hospitalized yesterday after an apparent suicide attempt has got me thinking about the strange impact his career has had on my life. Anyone that knows me well knows I often referenced situations his character Arnold Jackson acted out on his hit TV show Diff'rent Strokes to explain what was going around me in the 90's. I learned a lot about life by watching back to back reruns of his TV show Diff'rent Strokes after middle school. Most of it proved to be useful later on. Sure, I was using it to make fun of the absurdity of modern life but the fact remains that I deeply identified with the poor little guy. Just look at that photo and tell me a millennia old soul that knows what life should really be about isn't staring back at you from the karmically challenged body it chose to inhabit.

Gary, your last name is the same as mine except with "man" after it. Peace.

Trip To Jeonju

I was invited by the Korean teacher Mr. Kim and fellow native English speaker J.J. to go on a trip this weekend South of Seoul to the city of Jeonju famous for its authentic food and hanock villages; the traditional housing developments of old Korea. It was interesting to get out of the metropolitan sprawl of Seoul, drive through the countryside, and see what other Korean cities are like.

View from a country side tea house.
J.J. was too big to sit on the floor inside the tea house comfortably and sat outside and smoked.
Mr. Kim and I drunk on Makgeolli, Korean fermented rice wine.
This old eccentric guy drove the streets of Jeonju on his Mini Jazzy tricked out with weird ornaments and blasting what sounded like 80's synthesizer pop music with wailing woman vocals spreading happiness and joy.
Shards of pottery built into an old wall to depict a flowering plant.
Folk art inside a traditional house. Note the third eye.
This guy's drunk on Makgeolli.
Hanok village.
Hanok Village part two.
The base of huge old Ginko tree.
Bibimbap is a bowl of fresh vegetables, minced beef or pork, a raw egg and chili sauce over rice. Nutritionally sound and delicious.
Old Korean statue.

Rubber Ducky

There's a "Western Bar", a bar that emulates a real American drinking hangout by serving Budweiser and chicken strips, called Rhythm and Booze near my apartment and I'll drop by every so often for a drink. I had the day off this past Friday for the Buddha's Birthday, a way better reason not to work than Labor Day in my estimation, so after a rough Thursday after my night class that ends at 8:20pm I headed out to see this girl punk rock band dressed in Catholic schoolgirl's uniforms called Rubber Ducky play. They opened with Nirvana's "Lithium" and I was instantly hit with a blend of attraction and nostalgia. Several songs into the set they played "Um-Bop" by Hansen to the effect that I began to feel nonplussed and homesick for the underground niche I could inhabit in San Diego and L.A. where the filter knows Kurt Cobain's songwriting shouldn't be showcased beside a corporately constructed boy band. The hilarity of it wasn't lost on me though and I look forward to witnessing more bizarre reinterpretations in this establishment where you can drink $2 gin and tonics served by dolled up bartendresses and contemplate cultural absurdities.

You Sunk My Battleship

(A satellite image of the electric lights in North and South Korea. I live within the big white bird lime splat)

A brief yet informative article about what's on my mind tonight.

A good scholarly analysis of the possible causes and effects of the incident.

I found this quote from the second link sort of disquieting:

"One possible interpretation of the sinking of the Cheonan is that the situation in North Korea is so bad and the regime so desperate that it believes risking annihilation is its only option."

I first heard about the sinking of the Cheonan in late March shortly after I arrived while trying to make conversation with my co-workers in the school lounge. I swapped an American cigarette for a Korean with the history teacher when a report came on the TV. I asked for an interpretation and he told me a South Korean battleship cracked in half in the Yellow Sea killing 46 sailors and some people thought North Korea was responsible but in his opinion it was simply a matter of an aging ship that couldn't take the weight of the crew. Knowing little about the physics of iron ships that float on water yet knowing that my new cell phone came installed with an emergency number to call if you witnessed any North Korean spy activity I accepted this as a rational explanation and was impressed that the guy wasn't caught up in nationalistic outrage that could lead to paranoid, hysterical finger pointing. But now that a scientific investigation carried out by a conglomerate of nations including the U.S. has determined that no plausible interpretation of the data can be made other than that a North Korean submarine torpedoed the Cheonan I'm not sure what to believe.

North Korea absolutely denies any responsibility for the ship's sinking. South Korea's moderate president has stated that he will only take prudent actions in response. But what is really going on is hard to figure.

I'm sort of ashamed to admit that if I was reading about this from Southern California some crude Medieval part of me might silently hope for a war just to resolve the weird mystery of North Korea. The fact that I live within artillery striking range of North Korea now changes that. Wandering like an enchanted fool through the life infused thoroughfares that wind between the skyscrapers of Seoul for the past couple of months has given me perspective to really comprehend the horror that would result if death suddenly rained from the sky.

What I find interesting about this is that the two countries are like arguing siblings who each have chosen radically differing paths in personal evolution . The mutual blood-tie connection runs deep and lurking behind South Korea's cheerful good times optimism founded upon getting with the World program and successfully building up a rapidly growing nation enjoying all the benefits of 3rd world development there is a deep sadness over the rift with their self-alienating Northern brother who chose a Stoic life in pursuit of isolated self-sufficiecey to maintain ideals of cultural purity. Strangely the North did this by adopting a political system dreamed up by a German philosopher in an English library in the 1800's. The whole situation is filled with so many paradoxical nuances and complications that it's seems impossible to grasp. The two countries are literally and philosophically polar opposites yet there is an ancient family connection existing that is palpable today and it seems each is somewhat envious of what the other has accomplished. The South admires the cultural fortitude of the North's absolute devotion towards maintaing the pride and cultural identity of the race while the North envies the economic and social success of the South.

From a philosophical standpoint this can be described as a large scale example of the Law of Three in action as described by my favorite philosopher G.I. Gurdjieff. It states that two polar opposites, a positive and a negative, an affirming force and a denying force, throughout all of reality, struggle against one another until a third force develops which neutralizes the interaction. Just what form that third force will take is what I would like to know. I'm almost 100% certain absolute warfare can be ruled out. It would be too devastating for either side.

2001: A Space Odyssey

I just wanted to pay a moment of respect to the most intense moment in this magnificent film.

This Could Be Heaven and This Could Be Hell

This past week students took mid-term exams which meant I didn't have to teach classes. Koreans take education so seriously that flight paths of commercial airlines are rearranged during this time so as not disturb those whose entire future earning potential might be affected by a break of concentration caused by a passing plane. Every school I've seen has areas around the perimeter girded by twenty foot corrugated metal sound proof walls blocking noise from street traffic. Thinking about my 14 year stint at SDSU in comparison cracked me up.

(Path up the first mountain)

Spring has sprung this week and all the dead winter branches are sprouting with baby green leaves. The teachers get sort of stir crazy without anything to do at work so this past Friday was an organized hike over a nearby mountain and down to a restaurant on the other side. We drank bowls of Makgeolli and ate a Korean chicken dish that consists of a whole roasted chicken stuffed with ginseng, garlic and tree roots. Then we hiked up another mountain.

(Korean country chicken restaurant and school staff)

(View of the next town over from the second mountain top)

I was feeling peacefully dazed after the wine, medicinal chicken, and mountain climbing to the degree that I was just looking forward to going home and reading myself to sleep. But earlier I had tried to make a joke with my boss by pointing at the PA system in the restaurant and saying "Ah, karaoke." so I found myself being ushered into a cab once we descended the mountainside to head downtown to a karaoke palace where groups can rent a room, drink beer, and hug each other while singing golden oldies. Mostly the athletic department showed up, an energetic bunch, and they wouldn't take my laid back American brush off of the mic for an answer. It was demanded that I sing "Hotel California" and I surprised myself by doing a pretty good Don Henley. I started getting into it and sang "Whip It" by Devo and "Smells Like Teen Spirit" before the session was over.

(Karaoke stars)

Then phase two of Korean partying kicked into effect. I was admitted into a titanic Las Vegas style night club that took up the entire floor of a large building. The 20 foot high ceilings were covered with a shifting mural of the night sky depicted by altering lights so that galaxies and constellations fluxed above the dark room. A 14 piece band played Korean pop music and I was made to dance against my will, the only move I know is to play theoretical interpretations of the melodies on air guitar, by my well meaning group of co-workers. You dance yourself crazy, then run back to the table to get beer, eat fruit, pretzles, nuts, then get dragged back out on the dance floor. All in all it was insanely fun and I know this is a part of Korean life I never would've experienced if it wasn't for the goodwill and friendship my co-workers have heaped on me.

(Night club ceiling)

Let Us Be Grateful To People Who Make Our Souls Blossom

This inspirational message graced the top of the pizza box holding the potato/bacon pizza I bought for dinner tonight for $11.28. This is pretty expensive for a Korean dinner for one. I guess it's because Pizza is considered an exotic delicacy here. It came with a small container of pickles to sprinkle on top but it remained pretty bland overall. At least it got me to think about the important things in life.