Stuff

For the past two days, a very old woman has followed me to work, yelling things at me. Yesterday she started yelling from behind me, so I just turned around every once in awhile and smiled at her as she got further and further away (but raised her voice louder and louder.) Today, I passed her before surpassing her, and I think she may have been screaming at me to wear a hat. She kept pointing at my head, and then to her fashionable huge straw hat with a large piece of cloth hanging from it (kind of like a beach cabana on her head) and up to the sky. Either that, or she is the Korean version of Chicken Little, warning me about the sky falling on our heads.

Similarly, my outside cat Valerie popped out from under parked cars the last two days meowing her head off at me. Holy shit, she's loud. She tried to keep up with me, but I was walking fast. I was in a hurry. There were kids who needed some English learnin' and I, by God, wasn't about to let them down. She caught me again the last three nights, anyhow. She got tuna the first night, a whole flat, grilled and torn in bits squid last night, and some more tuna tonight. I'd like to give her cat food, but the last time I tried she turned her skinny nose up at it. Besides, I have to travel an hour and 20 minutes on the bus to pick it up for Kamikaze, so it's easier to grab some people-food from the supermarket on the way home. Valerie waits outside while I buy it.

Wyatt mentions how he has experienced a drop in attendance lately, which provides for an increase in better behaviour in his classes. I have a similar thing going on. One of my students, Lucy, (mentioned briefly here) has gone for a month long English program in the Philippines, arranged through our school. Tony almost joined her, but his mom saw on the news where some Korean was killed there, so she backed out. The only other student who did go was the one who opened a Love Motel in my apartment last September. Other than a kid who puked, and Willa the Devil (the Lucy link) these two Philippine bound and one almost Philippine bound kids are the only ones I've ever blogged about. Isn't dat veeeeeird?

I know I went totally link-happy in the last paragraph. Sorry about that.

A new Love Hotel may or may not be opened this coming weekend. (Smooth segue!) I've arranged for 2 middle school students to stop in and feed and water my cat while I'm off in Japan. They did a pretty good job last February, with my only complaint being I arrived home to find the balcony door open and a freezing apartment. I'm a little nervous about one of them, Ellie, who's been just downright sullen and moody and, well, bloody rude in class lately. A few weeks ago, during a discussion about pets, Ellie replied "No, I have no pets." When I asked her why, she said "I hate animals." Ahhhh, that's nice!

I considered having the Korean teachers float a rumour I have hidden video cameras installed in my apartment. Yes, I'm a little paranoid. I'm mostly worried they'll try to pet or play with Kamikaze and he's so scared he bites them, and they retaliate by bashing his little skull in. That would be bad.

I'm sure it'll all work out fine. I'm excited about my trip!