I thought I made a friend last week. We exchanged some emails and she seemed interested in our conversation. She was asking a lot of questions and responding to what I was saying. For me, great conversation is the best. I was enjoying it, even though it was just through emails. But this week, she … Read More
Normally, I love our cafeteria food. It is really good. To paraphrase my mother, “Food tastes better when someone else makes it.” However, today’s menu was not my cup of tea. The mushrooms with chives were nice and the rice with lotus was ok, but I didn’t care for the rest of the meal. The … Read More
Detroit Lions Are Bad at Football It has been a difficult year to be a fan of the Detroit Lions. Our team is the only team that hasn’t won a game yet this year. There have been some close games and some really bad losses. Today, the Lions didn’t lose, they tied. But, they say … Read More
Autumn Flowers I love the reds, oranges, and yellows of the falling leaves in autumn. It is my favorite season of the year. Most of the garden flowers are dead or dying, but there is one flower that comes alive during this time, the chrysanthemum (국화). The short form, mum, is much more common and … Read More
I learned a new Korean word today, 짝짝이. It means mismatched. It refers to a pair of items that are different sizes, shapes, or just don’t go together well. I was telling someone about my legs and how they are healing. My injured leg’s muscle is still smaller than the healthy leg. It is growing … Read More
Today I played badminton for a couple hours after playing ping pong for an hour. To make things worse, I didn’t have lunch because of a late meeting. Right now, I am sitting at my desk and I am pooped. My legs are especially tired. But, I also like this feeling. It feels like I … Read More
South Korea is one of the most ethnically homogenous countries in the world. In 1985 it had the most ethnic fractionalization, but saw a 10x increase by 2013. This means that the people living in Korea are more similar than in other countries. But, Korea is becoming more multicultural all the time. The number of … Read More
“I’d be paralyzed if I ran into you. My tongue would seize up if we were to meet again” – Alanis Morrissette You may have heard of the flight or flight response. It occurs when you are faced with a dangerous or harmful situation. Your body automatically responds by fighting back or running … Read More
Raincheck is used to tell someone that you can’t do something with them when they want, but you can do it later. It can be used to say that you want to do something, but the schedule doesn’t work for you. Alternatively, some people use this to decline an invitation in a polite way. They … Read More
Chris, from the MapleNamu podcast, recently uploaded an episode about using L1 (Korean) in the classroom. He also asked what other people thought. Chris did his master’s thesis on this subject and is going to talk more about his subject in future podcasts. For him, speaking in L1 is a tool. I agreed with him, … Read More
