Evil Spirits: They hate red beans

Yesterday, one of my co-teachers moved into a new apartment with her family. Today, following the Korean custom to ward off evil spirits, she made red bean rice cake [시루떡] for everyone.

According to another teacher, this tradition can be traced back to the Silla dynasty, when Seol Chong [설총], son of the famous monk Wonhyo and princess Yoseok, used red beans to eradicate evil spirits (called dokkaebi in Korean) from his house.

Dokkaebi [도깨비] are mischievous mythical creatures said to be the transformed spirit of inanimate objects. They were traditionally depicted with only one leg, probably because of the belief that they were the embodied spirit of useful objects that had been misused or neglected, like a broom.  Nowadays they have two legs - because a one-legged monster isn't really that scary. They love to play pranks and tricks on people, or challenge wayward travelers to wrestling matches. (A one-legged wrestler isn't too believable now, is it?)

Legend has it that Seol Chong once returned from a battle or something to find that an evil spirit had slept with his wife. (Apparently his broom wasn't the only thing that had been feeling neglected lately!) His first reaction, apparently, was to whip up a batch of red bean rice cake, which scared the...ahem!...mischievous spirit away. As he later bragged about this feat to his neighbors, a legend was born (along with, perhaps, an illegitimate child).

And that, folks, is how traditions begin. Kinda like Christmas!

An Asian Combination

I had one of the most unusual side dishes I've ever seen for lunch today: seaweed and asian pear.

This side dish usually includes radish slices instead of pear, but the school nutritionist is young and apparently quite daring. It turned out exactly as you'd probably expect it to: like bobbing for pears in the ocean at low tide.

The Most Stressful Day in Korea

My high school is conspicuously absent of a third of its students today. They, along with every other high school senior on the peninsula, spent 10 hours yesterday in the most important round of testing they may ever face in their entire lives: the Korean SAT [수능]. Considering that they haven't taken a day - nay, even a waking hour - off from studying in over a year, I think it's well deserved. Though it is probably not very restful for many. This is, after all, suicide season.

Like most Americans, I grew up being told that I could be anything I want to be. There was constant reinforcement of this message from every media; that if you try hard enough, and are dedicated to your dream, that it is achievable. A closed door can be opened with enough force.

There is no such message in Korea. The door simply disappears. Students who score poorly on the K-SAT have to wait another year, when they are allowed take it for a second and last time. If they don't get a "doctor" score - one high enough to get into medical school - they will never be a doctor in Korea. (Of course, they could always move to that great shining beacon across the Pacific, The Land of Opportunity.)

The outcome of yesterday's exam will determine the possibilities for each student's future. It will light a fire under some dreams, propelling one student to a career as a doctor, just as it consumes the hopes of another as they smolder in the ashes of failure.

Though yesterday was an important day for the seniors, one which will make or break their plans for the future, stress wasn't limited to the students. Education is one of the biggest expenditures for Korean households - life savings are spent, debt racked up - and the hopes and dreams of every student are shared as fervently by parents, siblings, friends and teachers.

My senior year of high school was one of the easiest years of my life. It was full of positive messages pointing to endless opportunities in the future. After I was accepted into college, it became a carefree time of utter irresponsibility. I had no cares or worries of my own, much less of others. My parents didn't care what I chose to do, as long as it made me happy.

In Korea, where the lingering tenets of Confucianism make status and title all-important, one day - one test - will decide what that status and title are. It's no wonder that 48% of Korean students have considered suicide. The hopes and dreams of an entire nation rest heavily, tiredly, on 18 year-old shoulders.

Single-serving drip coffee bags

Though tea may be a more traditional Asian drink, coffee popularity is on the rise in Korea. Single-serving sachets of instant coffee are ubiquitous in teachers' offices and lounges across the country, and many restaurants place instant coffee machines by the door for customers to get their fix on their way out. Coffee shops are becoming BIG business - in my neighborhood alone there are about a dozen.

Single-serving drip coffee bags, produced by the ever-inventive Japanese since the 1990's, are a relatively new product in Korea. They must have received a big marketing boost lately. A couple of months ago they were being offered as gifts with the purchase of bags of coffee. Now they're being sold in packages in Family Mart, empty or in pre-filled with a measured amount of coffee grounds. They're a great option for camping aficionados who don't want to pack a french press or deal with grounds in the bottom of their "cowboy coffee" cup.

Though I'm not a fan of the excessive amount of wasteful packaging that goes into most Korean products, this semi-reusable all-paper filter beats the metallic plastic instant-coffee sachets that they could replace.

Alliteration is Awesome!

Today I introduced a new lesson plan called "Alliteration is Awesome!" And it was. Once, at least.

Over the last two weeks the classes have been learning and playing "Scattergories," one of my favorite word games ever. If you don't know about it, go play it now. It's up there with Boggle and Scrabble.

In the classroom, all of my students have loved it - even the lowest level boys go screaming-wild crazy over defending their answers, or attacking the answers of the other teams.

Today, after playing Scattegories for the last two classes, I taught my highest-level freshmen girls' class a new activity called "Alliteration is Awesome." It was one of the most memorable classes that I've ever taught. The girls were as creative, energetic, and enthusiastic as I've ever seen them. Of course, it was a high level class, and they were girls, and they usually have quite good energy anyway. We'll see how it plays out in the other 19 classes I teach. For now, though, I'm enjoying the momentary high.

The point of sharing this with you, though, was not to talk about me and my brilliant new lesson plan. I wanted to share the two-sentence stories that the girls came up with in the activity, to show you just how creative and funny they can be. I gave them points for the number of M's used, creativity, and grammatical correctness. People often say that Korean students have trouble thinking outside the box. I think they just haven't gotten the opportunity.

Here are their stories, to illustrate alliteration with the letter "M" (with only minor edits by yours truly):

Team 1

Mickey Mouse and my model mother ordered more and more medium steak and mustard sauce by mobile phone in the metro on Monday.

Team 2

Miss A and Mighty Mouse met in the membership club to show their music on Monday. Marc Jacobs made marble macaroni and took the metro at midnight. He gave the marble macaroni to male mammoths.

Team 3

Many monsters’ mothers and Magneto’s model mom made a party called “Merry X-Mas in Mexico.” At midnight Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse met a mini monkey’s mama who was eating miracle meat with mushrooms, which was the main menu in Mary’s mild room until next morning.

Team 4

My mother’s monkey, the monkey’s mom, Mickey Mouse and the main male model Mike made a milk shake and a meal in the mountain on Monday morning. The monster and Minnie Mouse met many members of Mickey Mouse’s friends in Mexico City, Mexico on a Monday in March.

Team 5

Mandy Moore and Mary met in the Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse Garden while they were making Monkey Magic bags on Monday morning. Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse marry in the Mama & Papa nightlclub in Pohang in the morning.

Team 6

Many monkeys and their moms meet other mother monkeys and father monkeys at the museum during Merry Christmas season. Min’s mom met Mike at the music shop to go see a musical and enjoy the moment. They went to see the movie “Mission Impossible” in which appear muscle boys.