Just a quick little story about playing Bingo with my first and second graders.
Bingo is a favorite for most of my kids, but there is one boy named Drew who can't sit still for it. It took forever for him to finish making his bingo board, so I did half of it for him so that the rest of us could play. He wouldn't sit in his chair while I called out the names of the fruit and vegetable words we were playing with.
Finally he asked me if he could draw the next slip of paper from the jar for me. Since the rest of the kids were happy playing I figured I'd let him do it once.
He drew the paper and announced to the class, "Apple". Then he raced off to his seat to mark off apple on his board. I looked at the paper he had drawn. It clearly said, "Grape". I looked at Drew's bingo board. Apple was one of the words he needed to get a bingo.
That was it for Drew helping me call out the words.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
My unluckiest night in Korea
It all started with a chair.
My friend Jenny is addicted to the Jeonju hub which is a website for all the English speaking foreigners in Jeonju. It is filled with information about where to go for an English speaking doctor or dentist, transportation, foreigner get togethers, etc. It also has a page for people to advertise the stuff they aren't taking home with them when they leave Korea and want to sell. She found a chair.
A nice, big, comfy looking one. Most of us have no chairs in our apartments so guests sit on the bed or the floor. Was so excited because it even matched her apartment. The problem was she didn't have a way to transport it across town to her home.
I suggested I ask my co-teacher if we could borrow him and his car. Sab agreed, so we went to the guys house to pick up the chair. It broke down into two pieces plus the huge cushion and pillow. I should have taken photos of how we fit it. We moved the passenger seat forward as much as it would go so I had little leg room and Jenny was basically in a cage of chair in the back seat.
We took the chair to Jenny's apartment. Both Jenny and I didn't take out shoes off so we could set the chair up because we knew it would only be a moment and we weren't going very far into the room. Sab was shocked that we would wear shoes inside.
Jenny decided to treat us to pizza as thanks for helping with the chair. We had a great time eating Imshil pizza and talking. Sab had to leave early to meet up with a friend and Jenny and I went back to her apartment to watch some TV for a while. It was only when I was getting ready to leave that I realized I had left my purse in Sab's car. I didn't have my phone or my wallet.
Jenny was nice enough to lend me some money for a cab and I decided I'd call Sab later because I hadn't memorized his phone number.
Halfway home in the taxi, I suddenly remembered that I didn't have my house key either! What the heck would I do for the night? I only know how to get to Jenny's apartment by reading the address off my phone for the taxi driver, so I couldn't go back there. I could try going to my friends who live in the apartment buildings near me in Bukdae and try calling my own cell phone in hopes that Sab would answer.
With at least a bit of a plan I walked through Bukdae to my apartment with only a couple thousand won ($4). I didn't even have enough for another taxi back to Jenny's apartment if could remember how. As I approached my apartment I tripped on the broken pavement where there is some construction and.....
broke my sandal. I almost burst into tears at my unluck right then.
I checked my mailbox just in case Sab had left the key for me or a note. Nope. I checked my door. Locked, no note. I walked over to Casey's apartment wearing one shoe and holding the other. There was a Korean couple chatting in the stairwell. I felt ridiculous walking past holding a shoe. Casey wasn't home. I walked to Joe's apartment. He wasn't there either. It was only 11:00pm. I tried to get into Rira's apartment building, but the front door is locked with a keypad.
I sucked up my embarrassment and went back to the couple in the stairwell. I asked to borrow a cell phone (handpone!). I called my cell, but Sab didn't answer. I tried Casey's apartment again since I was there, but no luck. The couple in the stairwell asked if I was alright. I guess wandering around with a broken shoe, dirty foot and no cell phone was suspicious. I told them but of course none of us had a solution. Just as I was going back to my building to try something else, what I had no idea, I saw Casey and Julie coming home!
Casey offered to let me call my phone again. Julie told me to talk to Rira. I'm sure I sounded quite hysterical as I told them I couldn't get into her building. Julie showed me the code even though she doesn't live there. Rira was home! I knew that even if she couldn't help with anything else, at least I could stay there for the night. Rira told me to try my phone again. No change. She decided she'd try calling my land lord to see if he'd let me into my building.
It's not very safe to walk around barefoot, she told me, so she tried taping and stapling my shoe back together. That really didn't work. She told me to strap it to my foot with a rubber. I don't think I showed any reaction as she handed me a rubber band, but I was laughing inside. At least I could still appreciate her deteriorating English on this horrible night.
She called my land lord and He came down to let me in. He told Rira that he lives in Seoul and was just down visiting to clean up a bit. He's usually not there!! I got into my apartment and breathed a sign of happiness and relief, The land lord gave me his copy of my key to use until I get mine back from Sab.
I was so happy to be home. I took a shower to clean my dirty foot. Skyped Jenny to let her know I got home safely and crashed. All my adrenaline had worn off.
In the end, all of my bad luck was rewarded with a bit of good luck and very helpful people. Thanks so much to Jenny, Casey, Julie, Rira, my landlord and the Korean hallway couple!!
My friend Jenny is addicted to the Jeonju hub which is a website for all the English speaking foreigners in Jeonju. It is filled with information about where to go for an English speaking doctor or dentist, transportation, foreigner get togethers, etc. It also has a page for people to advertise the stuff they aren't taking home with them when they leave Korea and want to sell. She found a chair.A nice, big, comfy looking one. Most of us have no chairs in our apartments so guests sit on the bed or the floor. Was so excited because it even matched her apartment. The problem was she didn't have a way to transport it across town to her home.
I suggested I ask my co-teacher if we could borrow him and his car. Sab agreed, so we went to the guys house to pick up the chair. It broke down into two pieces plus the huge cushion and pillow. I should have taken photos of how we fit it. We moved the passenger seat forward as much as it would go so I had little leg room and Jenny was basically in a cage of chair in the back seat.
We took the chair to Jenny's apartment. Both Jenny and I didn't take out shoes off so we could set the chair up because we knew it would only be a moment and we weren't going very far into the room. Sab was shocked that we would wear shoes inside.
Jenny decided to treat us to pizza as thanks for helping with the chair. We had a great time eating Imshil pizza and talking. Sab had to leave early to meet up with a friend and Jenny and I went back to her apartment to watch some TV for a while. It was only when I was getting ready to leave that I realized I had left my purse in Sab's car. I didn't have my phone or my wallet.
Jenny was nice enough to lend me some money for a cab and I decided I'd call Sab later because I hadn't memorized his phone number.
Halfway home in the taxi, I suddenly remembered that I didn't have my house key either! What the heck would I do for the night? I only know how to get to Jenny's apartment by reading the address off my phone for the taxi driver, so I couldn't go back there. I could try going to my friends who live in the apartment buildings near me in Bukdae and try calling my own cell phone in hopes that Sab would answer.
With at least a bit of a plan I walked through Bukdae to my apartment with only a couple thousand won ($4). I didn't even have enough for another taxi back to Jenny's apartment if could remember how. As I approached my apartment I tripped on the broken pavement where there is some construction and.....
broke my sandal. I almost burst into tears at my unluck right then.
I checked my mailbox just in case Sab had left the key for me or a note. Nope. I checked my door. Locked, no note. I walked over to Casey's apartment wearing one shoe and holding the other. There was a Korean couple chatting in the stairwell. I felt ridiculous walking past holding a shoe. Casey wasn't home. I walked to Joe's apartment. He wasn't there either. It was only 11:00pm. I tried to get into Rira's apartment building, but the front door is locked with a keypad.
I sucked up my embarrassment and went back to the couple in the stairwell. I asked to borrow a cell phone (handpone!). I called my cell, but Sab didn't answer. I tried Casey's apartment again since I was there, but no luck. The couple in the stairwell asked if I was alright. I guess wandering around with a broken shoe, dirty foot and no cell phone was suspicious. I told them but of course none of us had a solution. Just as I was going back to my building to try something else, what I had no idea, I saw Casey and Julie coming home!
Casey offered to let me call my phone again. Julie told me to talk to Rira. I'm sure I sounded quite hysterical as I told them I couldn't get into her building. Julie showed me the code even though she doesn't live there. Rira was home! I knew that even if she couldn't help with anything else, at least I could stay there for the night. Rira told me to try my phone again. No change. She decided she'd try calling my land lord to see if he'd let me into my building.
It's not very safe to walk around barefoot, she told me, so she tried taping and stapling my shoe back together. That really didn't work. She told me to strap it to my foot with a rubber. I don't think I showed any reaction as she handed me a rubber band, but I was laughing inside. At least I could still appreciate her deteriorating English on this horrible night.
She called my land lord and He came down to let me in. He told Rira that he lives in Seoul and was just down visiting to clean up a bit. He's usually not there!! I got into my apartment and breathed a sign of happiness and relief, The land lord gave me his copy of my key to use until I get mine back from Sab.
I was so happy to be home. I took a shower to clean my dirty foot. Skyped Jenny to let her know I got home safely and crashed. All my adrenaline had worn off.In the end, all of my bad luck was rewarded with a bit of good luck and very helpful people. Thanks so much to Jenny, Casey, Julie, Rira, my landlord and the Korean hallway couple!!
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