Games.

I got to work today, prepared to show a movie, as one does once exams are finished. Had the God-given sense to get into the EOZ an hour early to set it all up and make sure everything was working, because.... well. You hold a job that expects you to perform during a certain allotted time slot while using technology (whether or not that technology is actually functioning) for nearly two years, and you learn a hard lesson or two.

Had an original problem involving the subtitles not being synced up (which I was only able to notice, thanks to my mad Korean skills -- perks!) and got that all sorted when I realized the TV connected to the computer was fucked. Played with the menu in Korean for a while. Decided that was only going so far. Went and told Co. Watched while Co nodded. Listened while Co told me the tech guy would come fix it. Went back and fucked about with the menu some more. Fucked about with the wires connecting everything. Fucked about with the menu some more.

Forty minutes later, my class started. Five minutes after that, the tech guy came in, fucked about with the menu and wires in much the same manner I had, then said, "Please wait," in Korean, and fucked off, never to be heard from again.

Well fuck me. No computer. No movie, and worse, no back up game, which involved using the computer. Better still? No co-teacher! "선생님! Other 샘 땡땡이?" Yes, boys. I believe so.

So. Me. Thirty teenage boys. A board and a chalk pen. Fuck it. Nothing left to study anyway. Who's ever heard of Heads Up, 7up? They were immediately intrigued.

Now. They got the point of the game right away. We didn't have any issues with comprehension. However. First round of boys do their thing. Heads up, seven up! Nine students stand up. What the fuck? Try again. Heads up, seven up! Six students stand up.

Boys. Kindergarteners play this game on a regular basis. With no issues. What is going on?

Teacher, one person touch same two times. Very sorry.

Again.

They're all standing there innocently when I turn around and say, everyone touched one person? Everyone touched a different person? Everyone ready? Okay, heads up --

"Teacher!" The confession comes out, now. "I mistake! Touch two people! I very sorry!"

They were more amused with my befuddlement at their stupidity than anything, and we had good time. Then we played Do As I Say, Not As I Do, which involved them having to face me while I said, "Touch your elbow!" while I touched my knee, and having to follow my words instead of my actions. Fucking hilarious. Then I put a student in charge. Teacher, what this? Nipple. That's your nipple. A question brought before the class in Korean, and suddenly, Jihwan, one of my besties, shouts out, "DICK!"

"JIHWAN!"

Redder face you've never seen. Good to find out he learned that one from his hagwon teacher, who is not a foreigner.

It's always good to have these occasional classes with no co and no real lesson plan, because the boys feel comfortable enough to really talk to me. And I have the time to let them. Of course, today that resulted in an entire class confronting me with the request to teach them bad words. I had half a second of rationalizing it to myself, before I told them they knew them all already, and if they want to learn that lesson from me, they can come back and visit me after they graduate.

We had a good time. Much better of a time than I would have had watching the first half of School of Rock five times in a row. In fact, I'm thinking of scrapping the movie and doing games all week.

Later, out back behind a coffee shop near the study room, I ran into a flock of high school girls. They came over and were asking all sorts of questions, including where I lived. I told them, and they responded that they lived in the neighboring dong, which is where my school is. I told them my school name. They, in turn, told me my previous students' names. They have been dating a group of my third graders from last year. I told them they were all bad boys and to stay away from them, and they agreed and then sighed about how they were so handsome, though. I told them I could see their point. Then I told them all the unflattering nicknames I had had for those boys last year as sisterly revenge for them being bad, yet handsome.

They all had those weirdo contacts in that make their eyes look like cartoons, and went on endlessly about how my eyes are so big, round and blue, my face so small, my body very S line. I haven't had really any chance at all to interact with female Korean students, and it's always interesting to me when I do. It seems they're always confessing things to me within seconds of meeting -- insecurities about their looks, how often they smoke or drink alcohol, how they're in love with a bad boy. At some point, I really would like to try a girls' school.

The boys at the center almost got the smackdown tonight, because it was fucking hot and I'm exhausted, but they pulled it together at the last minute. The other male teacher there seems to be finally coming around to me a bit, it seems because he popped Woohyeok in the face when he came around a corner for absolutely no reason and I lost my composure and nearly fell over laughing, almost out of sheer shock alone. He actually spoke to me after that.

Oh stuff and things. I'm home early tonight, because the twins ran away from class, took forever to be rounded up, and so we only had time for one session, instead of the regular two. Now I've got to finish the Korean chapter and eat something....

Tired, tired Liz.