One of the buildings at Hopkins, my high school. Hopkins fostered my love of words and learning, and each time I teach a literature class, I try to channel the brilliant teachers who taught me. An environment like Hop (or Hop itself) would be my dream teaching job.

I want to teach high school English at an American private school on the East Coast. That’s why I’m pursuing an M.A. in English Literature. Working with high school students to help them figure out the most effective way to express themselves through words, and to unlock the magic that can be hidden away in books, is exciting. And because I love these things, pursuing a career in high school English is the right path.

Wait. Is that true? Is this definitely the right path?

All of the sudden, I’m not so sure. Over the past few years, my certainty about pursuing a career teaching high school English has gone from definitely yes to definitely no and back again, with stops everywhere in between. If I’m perfectly honest with myself, I don’t know for sure that I want to be a career high school teacher. There are parts that wholeheartedly appeal to me (see above), but parts that make me cringe, too (early, early mornings; department politics; an absence of holistic health as prt of my daily life). Then I remind myself that there is no perfect job, and I have to ask if this is perfect enough.

The answer is, I don’t know. Maybe. I do know I’m excited to go back to school and study literature. I do know helping people achieve their goals gets me up in the morning. I do know I am a full on, bona fide, 100% word nerd. I mean, honestly, how many people do you know who have a favorite grammatical construction (using the possessive with a gerund) and favorite form of punctuation (semicolon, of course)? Words are in my blood (Dad’s a brilliant writer) and in my heart (the fiance has mad skills, too). I get excited when it comes to explaining to my students why comma splices are a no-go, and I can never read only one book at a time.

All of this might very well lead me to the front of a classroom at a beautiful school, and if that’s where I end up, I’m sure I’ll be thrilled. But for now, I’m rethinking other options. Community college. Private tutoring. Essay editing as a side business to some holistic health venture. Who knows! It’s an exciting place to be, and I feel incredibly fortunate to be free to choose anything I want, with full support from people I love.

And now I’m opening up the question: What teen-focused, word-centric teaching positions can you think of beyond a high school classroom? I’m eager to hear your thoughts!

[For other posts about my quest for the perfect career, check out my intro to careers in holistic health, and my interview with Ali Shapiro, holistic health counselor. Also stay tuned for a beautiful interview with my yoga-teacher pal, Dana Dabek]

So you can imagine my joy when I walked into the classroom and he broke into a huge smile, followed by:  “Yay! Victoria!”

I laughed and gave him my well-practiced, “Seriously?” teacher look.

“Wait. Something’s wrong,” he said.

I nodded.

A full three minutes later: “Olivia!”

I would get mad, but I still mix up his name, too. We’re all human, right?

- It’s a pretty green city. By which I mean, they’ve got a lot of those basic ecological principles figured out. The heating systems are super efficient and comforting (hot water runs under the floor). Recycling and composting are routine and free, but you have to pay for each bag of trash. We take out the recycling and (sometimes stinky) compost bucket much, much more often than we empty the trash, and it always makes me feel good. Plus, all public trash cans have a green recycling bag attached. See:

Lastly, clothes dryers just don’t really exist here. We hang all our clothes out to dry, which not only saves energy, but preserves the life of the clothing, too. That means less clothing that needs to be replaced, and a lower ecological footprint overall. What a great cycle. (Though I admit, it took a few tries to figure out how to handle adequate circulation in the cold winter months.)

- Korean babies.  Seriously. Have you seen them? Fat little faces, running around saying “Anyong!” and, sometimes, even at age 2, “Hello!” Here’s a little peanut I snapped at the Aquarium earlier this year:

- KIMCHI! Or, more specifically, kimchi jjigae (kimchi soup). The little restaurant below school makes delicious kimchi jjigae, and I’ve ordered it so often, they no longer hand me a menu when I walk in. They just look at me quizzically, I nod, and a few minutes later, out comes my hot, steaming bowl of deliciousness. I’m trying to recreate the dish at home, and think I’m getting closer. The trick is to start with aged kimchi, not the fresh stuff. Here’s a picture from my attempt a few weeks ago:

In addition to the kimchi, it’s got oodles of mushrooms, tofu, ddok (rice dumplings), onions, garlic, and pork, which can obviously be omitted for a vegetarian version. Once I perfect the recipe, I hope to guest post on my dear friend Melinda’s super inspiring recipe blog. It’s chock full of mouth-watering, healthy dishes, punctuated by the occasional can’t-resist-and-oh-so-worth-it indulgence.

- Shabu shabu.  This meal stole my heart when I first arrived, and has held my attention ever since. I wrote a post about it (and some other classic Korean meat meals) way back in June, available here.

- My students. Of course there are times when they drive me nuts or insult me right to my face, but for the most part, I love them to bits. How many people can say they leave work in a better mood than when they arrived? The smart, darling teenagers I work with every day are the reason that happens. And in what other job can a student, on their first day in class, ask you to please stay after because they have a question about your lecture on two factions of empiricism. His query? Under the second principle, which states that empiricists try to use their senses to prove something false when they really want to uncover the truth, could I help solve this dilemma: “If I spend time with someone, and then when they go away, I realize I’m sort of empty on the inside, does…does that mean I like her?” Love it! (And my answer: since you’re trying to prove a situation false, you have to ask if that means you don’t like her. All we can deduce is that you do not not like her. So you probably do like her. But it’s not a strict binary situation.)

- Konglish. I know I haven’t posted a konglish in a while, but I recently found some on my toothpaste, picture pending. I use the 2080 brand (though as soon as it runs out, I’m ordering some Tom’s of Maine through iHerb. Can’t wait.), which has the following (translated) slogan: Keeping the 20 healthy teeth for 80 years. That’s all well and good, but I have more than 20 healthy teeth. What happens to them? I mean really, that’s quite the sales pitch.

- Cost of living. It may not be glamorous, but it’s a big reason I’m here. That amazing kimchi jjigae mentioned above? W4,000, or about $3.25. Our monthly utilities? About W125,000, total — cable, electricity, internet, gas, water, etc. That’s roughly $100, split between two people. Amazing.

- Drunk compliments. I don’t know why, and I don’t agree, but Korean men who are so drunk they can barely stand like to tell me I look like Sophie Marceau.  Ok, ok, it only happened twice, but still! Again, I disagree, but I still like it. Here’s Sophie Marceau in Seoul:(image: http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/2QkLN0x87LX/Sophie+Marceau+Promotes+Shaumet+Seoul/-iedhC91lvl/Sophie+Marceau)

And here’s me in Seoul (at hogwan, just after my haircut on Monday):

(And yes — I searched for the most Sophie Marceau-esque photo I could find. This is what I came up with.)

- Last, but not least, my fellow expats–and a few awesome natives. I have met some amazing people since moving here, and they make the many, many miles away from my friends and family much easier to cope with. Here are some of the lovelies I’ve gotten to meet:

Laughs with friends on Thanksgiving

(A very dark picture of) Thanksgiving Drinks with Friends/Coworkers

Goodbye dinner with Julian and Kathy -- last time together in Seoul

One of my first outings in Seoul -- Mr. Kim's in Apgu

A favorite indulgent meal (Mercado) with some great people

So there you have it. A nice assortment of some of my favorite parts of living here. Next week, part iii.

Him: Did you dye your hair?
Me: Yes.
Him: Most Asian guys would probably tell you that you’re hot, but in fact, actually… [stunted by awkward laughter]

A bit later, he offered to read because “you look so, so tired and bad, teacher.”

And then, in the elevator with both of them, the sister looked at me and said: “The other teacher said you’re ugly!”

Of course, I don’t take insults from pint-sized teenagers to heart, but those two really know how to work them in! Can’t wait for a whole month of this. Delightful.

I was pretty sure what I thought he meant to say, but couldn’t let him off the hook that easily.

“Oh?”

“Yes, very shiny. Very…beautiful.”

Ah, yes. The ol’ shiny/beautiful mix up. I quickly explained that telling a girl she looks “shiny” is usually taken to mean that either her skin looks very oily, or she’s very sweaty. I went on to clarify that most girls do not see these as compliments, and he should stick to words like “beautiful” or “stunning.” Just trying to help the kid out.

Test prep (TOEFL Speaking) is still a big part of what I do, but mostly I have been doing private tutoring with students, working on their college essays. I also teach two small (read: one student per class) “precept” — or introduction to English literature — classes.

Helping students with essays, talking about how to structure a short piece of nonfiction, what a difference it makes when you trim all the fat and choose the most precise words, has been a dream. I know I’m rather spoiled at work, where students are very bright and hardworking, but I’ll take it. The other day, I literally got goosebumps as a student realized how he could restructure his essay to have a much bigger punch.

The lit classes are an absolute treat. I can’t believe I get paid to read and talk about The Giver and The Great Gatsby! My girls are such keen readers, too. (I like to think I have a little something to do with that, but I think they were delivered to me in pretty amazing shape.) The questions they ask and quotes they notice are really sharp, and this is all in their second (or third or fourth) language.

When I came to Korea, I had a few goals that were really important for me to accomplish. Then there were a few things I hoped would happen, but that would take a little more than just effort I put into them. The biggest was the ever-elusive “trying to figure out what the heck I want to do with my life.” It seems, though, that the graces have smiled on me, because I’m rather certain I want to continue doing this — teaching excited students about how truly awesome words are. Stay tuned for more on that.

“Why, do I look that tired?”
“Yes.”
“Fine. But if you’re going to insult me, you better do it with SAT words.”
“You seem lethargic, Olivia. Languid. Fatigued.”
And to think — I actually took the time to put on makeup before class this morning.

I’ve been fighting a nasty cold for a few days now, and had the swollen glands and scratchy voice to prove it today. Fortunately, my classes were more or less cooperative today, and I didn’t have to talk all that much. Plus, on Tuesdays, we get to leave at 5p, a whopping 5 hours earlier than M/W/F schedule.

On our walk home (because MB does try to indulge me with walks home, rather than cabs/buses, from time to time), we stopped at Lotte food mart. Lotte is one of the big fancy department store here, and there’s a giant food court and grocery in the basement. We stopped to see if they had limes, which are for some reason *nonexistent* in this country, and therefore quite a barrier in making delicious gimlets. No go on the limes (zounds! (Alex and I are considering “bringing it back” — I don’t think it’ll work)), but then we decided to try to find some honey for hot water for my throat.

Enter: the organic food section of Lotte. Oh beautiful and dangerous discovery. Still no limes — not even the organic variety — but…what’s that? What do I see? Could it be…? The words:

GLUTEN FREE

on a cereal box. On multiple boxes! EnviroKids Organic Cereal! This may not be so exciting to the average person, but to a Celiac who is still learning the local alphabet, this is nothing short of bliss. I picked up a box of Gorilla Munch, which happens to be my all time favorite (gluten free) cereal, despite the hefty W7,500 price tag. (That’s about $7.) We perused some more, looking for gluten free pasta or something else gf and yummy, but didn’t have any luck. I did, however, see a sign that Gorilla Munch is on sale for only W6,000. Cue another box.

By this point, MB can’t stop cracking up at the absurd grin on my face as I hold two boxes of Gorilla Munch, a giant jar of honey, and 3 lemons. Well who wouldn’t be delighted?

Here’s a shot of me in my jammies with not one, but two boxes of Gorilla Munch:

(No, Enviro Kids is not paying me for this excessive plug. Though if they wanted to…)

Anywho. The point is, I found gluten free cereal, and it put a big cheesy grin on my face. It’s a happy day. Even if it started by being insulted by Korean students wielding big words.

Dear: White Witch

Hello! You’re bad witch! The Narnia is peaceful and Happiness country.  You make a Narniathat covered with white snow. I think you have to learn the manners.  You have to come the Korea, Seoul in Apgujeong. [Apgujeoung is one of Seoul's nicest neighborhoods.] Do you want to know correct address, you have to call in 010-xxxx-xxxx.

Your problem is bad manners. You tricks people, poke the Asian and froze the land. WHen you follow this artcle you can be a kind witch.

First, [ran out of time]
————————–

To: The White Witch in HELL

Hey, you sour old prune! You Double wide backsided women! You D-ltned person! Do you know that what did you did is very cruel for the people of Narnia? Also, did you knew that you are very selfish…??? You won’t unerstand it because you was born like that!!! I’ll tell you why.  Firstly, you killed many lifes just because you want to make them in your side, and make your shrinked body on the chair of the honor!  Just one person, you will be happy but billions of lifes will be feel gross…!  Next, you was very vulgar to make Edmund a betrayer, you devil!  You could’ve do it in 2 other way, not making Edmund a bad person! And also I can’t understand why you are using your damn power [ran out of time]
————————-
Dear, White Witch,

I know that you are black-minded, but you shouldn’t let your servant (the dwarf) to whap at other animals. I don’t like the part, when you make the dward tied Edmund, and whap him. He came to you to just…have some Turkish Delight! [ran out of time]

Here is the first installment of some of the most entertaining examples.
-vulnerable
-butterfly
-celery

Let me know if you have any other good ones…