808s and Heartbreak: My $.02

It's 1:09 am on a Sunday. There are clothes hung up all around me, drying after a long overdue wash. There are seven empty cans of Coke Zero and four empty bottles of Powerade Mountain Blast within my range of vision. The highway that I often look at out my window is surprisingly empty. More importantly, I just gave my third and final listen to Kanye West's fourth and most recent LP, 808s and Heartbreak.

About three months ago, I read an article on pitchforkmedia.com mentioning that Kanye West was planning on releasing a new album in which he was going to sing, not rap, using only Auto-Tune. Needless to say, I was curious. Soon after, Kanye released "Love Lockdown," the first single from the album, and my curiosity quickly turned into disappointment. I disliked the song immediately, and realized that this album was going to be very, very different from anything else in Kanye's catalogue. 

Despite my opinion of "Love Lockdown" I still approached my first listen of 808s and Heartbreak with optimism and a clear mind. After struggling through the first six and a half songs, I had to turn it off. The only song I remotely enjoyed was Paranoid, and I couldn't decide if I legitimately liked it or if it was just good in comparison to the rest of the awful mess of songs. Now, after finishing the album and going through it two more times, I decided that the answer fell somewhere in the middle. 

Regardless the album's content however, I have to give Kanye credit for making an album that is so drastically different from the rest of his music. This may not be his "Bringing It All Back Home" or "Kid A," but at least it shows Kanye's fearless approach to record-making and ability to completely change up his style. I think Rolling Stone hit it right on the money when they called 808s and Heartbreak "Kanye's Noble Failure." The album is indeed a failure, but you have to respect an artist who truly does not cater to the critics, or the even the fans. 

I may never listen to 808s and Heartbreaks again, but I'll still line up to pick up his next album, no matter what that may be.

Which do you prefer?

This week I am teaching a lesson to my grade 2 classes (High School juniors) about preferences - asking others about their preferences and explaining the reasons behind your own. In the beginning of the class, I explain different ways to ask about preferences and the ways that you would answer someone who asked you about your own preferences. Some of the vocabulary includes "Which do you prefer, ... or ...?" and "I prefer ... because ... is more..." Obviously, this is simple stuff, but the students are always much more animated and interested when they understand the concepts easily. 

The highlight of the lesson comes at the end, when I ask the students to create their own preference question and survey the class. We use the outline "Which/Who do you prefer, A or B?" and the students have to insert their own objects into A and B. One interesting aspect about this lesson was that in every class without fail, a student would create the question "Who do you prefer, Mom or Dad?" In a school that is about 80% male, almost every student chose Mom. Can anyone say, "Oedipus?"

I was pleasantly surprised at how much the students enjoyed this activity, since I generally have to bribe them with candy to do anything that involves getting out of their chairs. Here are some of the most amusing survey questions that the students came up with:

Girlfriend or Pizza? (winner: pizza)

Sexy Girl or Pretty Girl (winner: sexy girl)

Money or Family (winner: family...by one vote)

Dogs or Cats (winner: dogs because "dogs are more delicious"....seriously)

Cooper or Homeroom teacher (winner: Cooper, by unanimous decision...yes!)

Crime & Punishment

I try and refrain from plugging or even discussing books in general, as it usually turns into a literary biggest dick competition, but I feel compelled to at least write something about this book.

Yesterday I finished Crime & Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. The book itself has one of those ominous titles, like Tolstoy's War & Peace or Dickens' Bleak House, that suggests a story that almost has to be dry, long and incredibly dull. Despite the title or Dostoyevsky's reputation for heavy philosophical undertones, Crime & Punishment is actually (and surprisingly) a thrilling page-turner. 

I won't go into plot details or my personal interpretation of the novel because nobody really cares what I think. However, I will say that if any novel under the category of "Classic" seems daunting to you, or even boring, consider reading Crime & Punishment. While it isn't 'light' by any means, the novel is one of the most accessible classics hat I have read in a while. It is also one of the most incredibly well-written and beautifully told stories I have ever read, with a truly memorable and unique protagonist. 

"Where was it I read about a man sentenced to death, who, one hour before his execution, says or thinks that if he had to live on some high rock, on a cliff, on a ledge so narrow that there was only room enough for him to stand there, and if there were bottomless chasms all around, the ocean, eternal darkness, eternal solitude, and eternal gales, and if he had to spend all his life on that square yard of space - a thousand years, an eternity - he'd rather live like that than die at once! Oh, only to live, live, live! Live under any circumstances - only to live! How true it is! Good Lord, how true it is!"

Meteor Caught on Video

While driving through Edmonton last Thursday evening, a police officer happened to catch a falling meteor on his dash cam. Maybe it's because I have always been a closet space nerd, but I got chills down my spine when I first saw this video today. Just watch how the meteor makes the sky light up as it burns up. BADASS.

First snow in Seoul

Yesterday I was pleasantly surprised to look out of the window in the Teacher's Office to find that it was snowing outside. It should also be noted that I happened to be listening to lame Christmas music on youtube at the same time. The first snow of the season always puts me in a good mood. There is a certain smell to snow, and a certain calm feeling that comes with a snow flurry that I'm reminded of every year. Luckily, it was no different in Seoul.

Here are some pictures I took:

My Life as a Game Show Host

As previously mentioned, I spend most of my class time playing games or making my students participate in various amusing and somewhat simple activities. Since I had to conduct performance exams last week, and final exams are coming up in a few weeks, I decided that this is a good a time as any to introduce the students of Seoul Robotics High School to the magical world of Jeopardy.

My version ended up as sort of a poor man's Jeopardy only because I try and keep things as simple as possible with my students. So there was no Double Jeopardy or Final Jeopardy or mid-game contestant intros or Trebeck one-liners. Plus, the questions were actual questions, not answers. I did feel the need to add a final Jeopardy round, but then it got too confusing when I tried to explain the concept of a wager. Thus, Final Jeopardy didn't last very long. Essentially, my version of Jeopardy consisted of seven categories with five questions in each one, ranging from 100-500 points each. The categories were America, Capitol Cities, Sports, Spelling, Puzzle, Music, and ?????. The students got really excited about the random category. After I would draw the question marks on the board, the students would all go, "OOOO, WHAT IS THIS?" I would always respond the same way, with an obnoxious shoulder shrug. Then I would get something along the lines of, "OO COOPAH, YOU A TRICKY TRICKY MAN." 

One of the things that really amazes me about my students is the intensity with which they compete for one small piece of candy. All I have to do is say, "Oh yea, and the winning team gets candy" and the place goes absolutely wild. The best part is, I never have to police the classroom. Students will gladly rat on each other if they see the slightest sign of cheating. They also enjoy swearing at each other, screaming, slapping, and falling out of their chairs when they get a wrong answer.

The best part of playing Jeopardy all week has to be the answers that I got from some of these kids. One of the questions was "What is the largest state in America?" Most of the answers I got were either California or New York, mostly because these are the only states that the students could think of on the spot. However, I was really happy when one student shot up from his desk, hand in the air, and shouting, "ME ME I KNOW I KNOW." Based on his reaction, I assumed he had the right answer. So I point to him and he replies "LAS VEGAS" with absolute confidence.

A few weeks ago I was surfing this ESL teacher's forum to try and get some ideas for a class I was teaching on tenses. The only good piece of advice I found was from a guy who suggested that, whenever you play a game involving teams, always allow the students to come up with their own team name, as opposed to just saying "team 1, team 2, team 3, etc.." So I decided to give this a shot and it ended up being very amusing. A lot of my students, especially the younger ones, are shy and/or apathetic. So when I say, "Ok, each team come up with your own name...in English," they often just sit there, staring at me blankly. I quickly put an end to this by deciding that any team that did not create their own name would get a name chosen by me. As soon as I began to write "The Pretty Flowers" or "Team Ajumma (Korean grandmother)" on the board, they changed their tune very quickly.

Some of my favorite names:

Team Spam

The Piccolos

Michael Jackson

Genius Monkey

Team Uhh

Sex Machines (not accepted)

Sexy Team (revised name of the Sex Machines)

Terminator

Cooper Team

Not surprisingly, Jeopardy was a great success, despite the lack of educational value.

A Hard-Knock Life

Last week I was given the unpleasant task of conducting "performance tests" for all 18 of my regular classes. Generally, foreign teachers in Korean public schools do not give graded assignments, but my co-teachers thought it would be good for me to be in charge of the "speaking and pronunciation" aspect of the school-wide English performance tests. So I spent the entire week sitting in the hallway with no heat, wearing a jacket and scarf, and essentially guiding my students to the correct answers. After hearing from my co-teachers that the average grade on English exams for our students is 36%, I decided to give them a chance to boost their scores a little bit. I announced the test during the prior week by saying, "Performance tests next class (cue groans). Very easy. Do not worry." This seemed to translate well.

The lives of Korean High School students can be summed up in one word: STUDY! For most teenagers, their entire existence is spent in preparation for the college entrance exam. This nine-hour test is pretty much what you would imagine the SAT to be like in Nazi Germany. Failure to do well in the college entrance exam means a failure in life, and it is only offered once a year. In America, if you do poorly on the SAT, the sun still rises. You may not get into Harvard or Princeton, but there are about twenty thousand other colleges in the country that would be glad to accept your mediocre ass. Korea is different. There are essentially two different levels of universities: those that are in Seoul (the good ones) and those that aren't (the bad ones). The pressure for students to enter the "good" universities is unrealistically high given the extremely low acceptance rate. As a result, the reality for many of these young kids is one of extreme pressure, disappointment, and stress. It also creates a culture that lacks much of a teen voice, something that, as an American, seems like somewhat of a tragedy to me.

My generalized and, most likely, unfounded opinions on the Korean public school system are reflected in the way I teach my class. First of all, I understand that, in general, my students despise English. You would too if you were tested on material that is way above your ability. Imagine entering High School and being expected to learn Geometry when you are still struggling to understand long division. Translate this analogy to learning English, and this is pretty much the scene that I walked into way back in September. So I decided early on that I am going to ignore the text book and try to trick the kids into enjoying their education. We spend most of our time in class playing games that are (somewhat) educational. The other five English teachers are forced to teach to the national tests, but I'm pretty much given free reign as long as it appears that the kids are learning.

The result has been surprisingly positive. Other teachers are shocked at the increase in level ability and interest in English. Students approach me in the hallway or in class to tell me that they helped a confused American tourist over the weekend, after a lesson about giving directions in the subway. Students, more and more often, are visiting me at my desk to practice their English and attempt conversation. Many times, they are just trying to see if I like beer or if I will take them on a date for Soju and BBQ. But hey, my motto is, "if they're speaking English, it's fine by me." This motto also works when my students blatantly swear at each other in the middle of class. Until the day they swear at me, I'll let it slide.

Basically, all I try and do is to get these kids to relax a little bit and have fun. If I bog them down with vocabulary, grammar, study sheets, and practice exercises, they will lose interest almost immediately. If I disguise a lesson plan in the form of Charades or gambling for candy, they learn without even knowing it, and there are few things I enjoy more than deceiving children.

This Month in K-Pop: November

Ladies and gentlemen.....the Wonder Girls

The Wonder Girls are a wildly popular Korean girl group who have been pumping out hit after hit since their debut on the K-scene in 2007. Their recent hit "Nobody" has been the #1 single on the Korean charts for at least 3 weeks now. Like Davichi's "Love and War" before it, "Nobody" is ubiquitous. It would be impossible to live anywhere near Seoul and not know this song. 

I made the mistake of singing the chorus while talking with two of my students a few weeks ago. Now I receive multiple requests a day: "TEACHA TEACHA... NOBODY SING"

So, here it is for your listening pleasure (read: pain). I was going to post the official music video, but the actual song doesn't begin for about two minutes in order to set up the video's whack plot. Instead, I found this video of some white kid who learned the official "Nobody" dance moves...much better in my opinion.

My first conversation with a legit racist

I was sitting on a bench in the Itaewon subway station, waiting for my train to arrive, when a middle-aged Korean man sat down next to me. He kept glancing over at me but I didn't pay it much attention as I was not really in the mood for small talk. "You look like french man," he said after a few minutes. I looked up at him with a half-smile on my face, surprised that, after considering saying something to me, this was the best he could come up with. Once he found out that I am American, the conversation quickly turned to President Obama (I love saying that). Here is a transcript of our dialogue as I remember it:

Him: American choose black president. I don't understand this.

Me: What don't you understand?

Him: Well, the regular American is white man, no?

Me: Um...most Americans are white, yes.

Him: Well black man is lesser I think, but Americans choose Obama. This does not make sense to me.

Me: I voted for Obama and most Americans believe that all men are the same: white, black....korean

Him: (looking slightly offended by this) But, Obama's grandfather is not from America?

Me: What do you mean?

Him: Obama's grandfather was born in Africa. He is lesser American I think.

Me: Well, my grandfather was born in Ireland, but I am still as much of an American as anyone else born there.

Him: Ireland is fine, but Africa is low place.

Me: Umm....well, I dont think that is true and neither do most Americans.

Him: Yes...I don't understand that.

As far as I know, this was my first encounter with a legitimate and open racist. I had heard that Koreans have a tendency to be racist, mostly because they have such little experience with foreigners and hold backwards and unfounded prejudices against anyone who isn't Korean or white. Talking with this man was frustrating, not only because he was making blatantly racist comments, but because I was limited in my responses 

due to the language barrier. It was obvious that his understanding of English was limited to the point where I couldn't really say what I would have said if I was talking to a native english speaker. My friend Bradford said something interesting while we were talking about this on skype last night. He suggested that part of the Korean prejudice against black people is probably due, at least in part, to the way that black people are often portrayed in American media (tv, movies, most popular rap). If this is their only experience with black people/black culture, then it is not surpising that they would hold inaccurate and prejudice views. So looking back on my conversation with this man makes me see Korea in a different light, but it also makes me reflect on the fact that, even though Obama's victory is a huge moment in American equality, we still have a long way to go.

On a lighter note, here's a sweet picture of our new president:

No matter where I go...

IT follows me.

Top Ten Films of the 90s

I am and always will be a child of the 90s. Saved by the Bell, Sega Genesis, Goosebumps, 90s Nickedodeon, Bill Clinton, Third Eye Blind deep cuts...these are all things I cherish. The 90s was also an incredible decade for the film industry, arguably the best of the century. Being a big advocate of any and all top 10 lists (and I have an absurd amount of free time at work), I decided to make my own for the best films of the 90s. The task was more difficult that I first imagined. Should it be the top 10 most defining films of the 90s? The most influential? Best nude scenes of the 90s? These were all valid topics, but I decided to just stick with the generic word 'best' and see where that takes me. So here is the list, starting with #10 and working my way down. Feel free to criticize.



10. The Nightmare Before Christmas (Henry Selick)



Tim Burton may not have directed this stop-motion masterpiece, but everyone sure gives him credit for it. The Nightmare Before Christmas is without question one of the most well-known and universally loved films of the 1990s. It is also a film I try to watch at least once every year. The animation is breathtaking (especially when you think of all the work that went into it), the songs are great, and the story is brilliant in it's simplicity. This is a film that will only get better with age and will forever remain one of America's most beloved cult classics.



9. Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese)



It would be a sin to leave this quintessential gangster film off of the list. This is De Niro, Pesci, and Liotta at their absolute best. The story has been told many times before: A guy comes from nothing, makes it big, life is good, it goes to his head, things don't work out. Fortunately, Goodfellas never seems formulaic. Every scene is brilliant, memorable, and perfectly acted.

Pesci's performance may be second only to his notorious roll as a member of the Sticky Bandits in Home Alone. 8. Scream (Wes Craven)

Without a doubt the best horror film of the 90s, Scream did for its genre what American Pie did for the Teen Flick. If Halloween gave birth to the Slasher genre, Scream is the film that brought it out of a coma. From the never-ending Friday the 13th series down to b-rate gems like My Bloody Valentine, the 80s saw an overload of blood and boobs and established the Slasher as a genre more formulaic than the Western. Pretty soon, horror was demoted back to its 'cult' status as the movie-going public got tired of the same stories, half-assed dialogue, and low-budget productions. Then Scream came along and everything changed. Adding nothing more than a little tongue-and-cheek, Scream brought horror back to the mainstream, and just like Halloween, managed to inspire a long list of sub-par slashers (though Urban Legend is tragically underrated). Now all we need is the next film to bring this dying genre back to life.

7. Red (Krzysztof Kieslowski)

Red is not only Kieslowski's best film, it was also his last. Red premiered less than two years before he died at the age of 55. Tragically, Kieslowski died at the peak of his career, even though he had been directing features since the 1960s. Red is the final installment of the Three Colors Trilogy, Kieslowski's tribute to France. Though each of the three movies is worth of any top ten list, Red is undoubtedly the best. Like Bergman before him, Kieslowski loves to have beautiful women as the centerpiece of his films. Irene Jacob is brilliant here and manages to perfect the art of looking like she could burst into tears at any moment (a talent found only in French actresses).


6. Fargo (Joel Cohen)

One of the hardest parts about making this list was choosing only one Cohen Brothers film. The Big Lebowski and Miller's Crossing could easily make any 90s top ten. Fargo, however, is simply better. Fargo is one of those movies that you can only watch with a clear conscience. Otherwise everything seems like it's going to come crashing down on you at any moment. Every character in Fargo 'gets what's coming to them' and justice has never been sweeter. Honestly, Fargo would probably have made this list if only for the Minnesota accents.

5. Chungking Express (Wong Kar Wai)

Though it's not even my favorite Wong Kar Wai film, Chungking Express is more definitive of the 1990s than almost anything that came out of America that decade. The film is comprised of two stories that follow a broken-hearted man in search of new love in Hong Kong. Like every Wong Kar Wai film, the plot of Chungking Express is almost impossible to define unless you simplify it to one sentence. Wong Kar Wai is like the Godard of the 90s, creating a loosely-defined story and focusing more on characters and environment to get his point across. The result is subtle and beautiful. After watching Chungking Express, it's easy to see why Time Magazine called Wong Kar Wai "the world's most romantic filmmaker."

4. Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick)

The controversy surrounding Eyes Wide Shut is almost as good as the film itself. The film is so sexually graphic that almost 20 minutes had to be cut for theatrical release so it could get an R rating. People still complained that it was too much. There is also controversy surrounding Kubrick's own thoughts regarding the final product. Some say he hated it. Others say he thought it was the best film of his career. No one will ever know, since Kubrick died a month before the premiere. Regardless of his own opinion, the movie is classic Kubrick: slow, hypnotic, and visually stunning. Tom Cruise gives a great performance and Nicole Kidman has never looked better. It may not be Kubrick's finest hour, but even his excrement would look better on screen than most movies.
3. Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson)

Boogie Nights is like Goodfellas in the way that it tells a cliche "Rise and Fall" story without any of the cliches. It is at once an inside look at the porn industry and an ode to the decadence of California in the '70s and '80s. Mark Wahlberg proves that he could be a great actor if he didn't choose so many bad movies and Burt Reynolds plays one of the best roles of his career as adult film super-director Jack Horn. The ensemble cast doesn't stop there. Don Cheadle, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, Heather Graham, and William H. Macy all give great performances. P.T. Anderson loves the extended shots and Boogie Nights displays some of the most impressive cinematography you will ever see. Plus you get to see Wahlbergs wang at the end, though unfortunately it's fake...DAMMIT.

2. Boyz N The Hood (John Singleton)

Despite its unfortunately spelled name, Boyz N The Hood is one of the most powerful films ever made. It was one of the first films to shed light on life in the inner-city, surrounded by drugs, gangs, and violence. Cuba Gooding Jr, Ice Cube, and Lawrence Fishbourne all give the best performances of their career. The story is both tragic and hopeful, full of memorable scenes and loveable characters. Boyz N The Hood is on a short list of films that should be required viewing for every American.

1. Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino)

Anyone who knows me shouldn't be surprised that Pulp Fiction holds the number one spot on this list. Pulp Fiction is THE film of the 1990s. When I first saw this movie at the age of 14 it literally changed my life. It was more original, more entertaining, and more intelligent than any movie I had ever watched. For years after that I compared everything to Pulp Fiction. Since then, my perceptions of the film world have changed, but my love for Pulp Fiction has not. Everything about this movie is perfect: acting, script, score, cinematography, editing. Tarantino is, without a doubt, the quintessential 90s American director, and Pulp Fiction is his magnum opus.

Everybody needs shoes

I have recently began a new weekly ritual. Every Sunday morning(ish), I wake up, make some strong coffee, sit around in my boxers, and consult my Lonely Planet Guide to Seoul. I pick a random site of interest, hop on the subway, and walk around for a few hours, snapping photos, and just enjoying my surroundings. I tend to be one of those people who gets really grumpy and sad on Sundays, knowing that the weekend went by way too quickly, and I have a whole new work week ahead of me. These little excursions have kept me positive and allowed me to see some beautiful sites, talk to interesting folks, and clear my head after an otherwise hectic week.


Yesterday I decided to head to Anguk Station and wander around the Anguk/Insadong area and just see where it takes me. I wandered through outdoor food markets, parks full of bright leaves and old men playing chess, temples that stood amidst skyscrapers and traffic jams, and eventually ended up at a man-made river that flows through the city center. I had been here once before with my friend Hyo Saeb. He told me the name but I can't remember it now. It's a popular spot for public events, photo ops, and that sort of thing. As I am approaching, I notice a large group of people sitting around tables, coloring shoes with markers. There were hundreds of pairs of shoes set up all around the square in intricate designs, weaving through little streams of water. The funny thing is that I never once stopped to think, "Hmm, why are these people coloring shoes and laying them out on this square?" You get used to seeing weird things pretty quickly in Seoul. A young (and very attractive) woman approached me and asked me if I knew what was going on. I told her I had no idea and she informed me that all of the shoes were being sent to children in Bangladesh. Looking around at all of the people (families, couples, hipsters) having a great time and doing something good for other people really made me feel good. Anyway, here are some pictures I took while I was there.

Night Moves

Night Moves

~Volume II in the Vangelis Presents series~

Surfacing from the underground bulge/trance scene, Vangelis emerges from the other side of town to bring you Volume II of the illustrious Vangelis Presents series. Night Moves finds Vangelis mixing deep drum & bass and big club tracks with a few surprises and old friends thrown in the mix.

Best if used with headphones, sensual make-out sessions, or Sarah Palin rallies.

1.) The Avalanches-Ray of Zdarlight (Wham v. Digitalism)

2.) MC Sultan-Jewel of the Day

3.) Juan Maclean-Give Me Every Little Thing

4.) PFM-One and Only

5.) Waxolutionists-Restored

6.) Jaytech-Pyramid

7.) Flying Lotus-RobertaFlack

8.) Bjork-Hyperballad (Subtle Abuse Mix)

9.) Mylo-Otto's Journey

10.) Dj Shadow-Long Stem/Transmission 2

Download > Disco