Korea Life Blog - Bonnie

I've been so busy with the guitar, there's nothing much new to write about. If anyone's interested I may upload some of the guitar tracks I've recorded. I have no idea what I'm doing with the recording software yet though, so don't expect much...

For now, here's a drawing by Bonnie, my new favorite little girl. She's only 9 years old (Korean age) and so adorable. Look at her drawing talent. I can't even draw this well, and I'm an ajushi.







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written by shawn matthews   -|link

Korea Life Blog - My New Fake Fender Stratocaster!


After looking at this website the other day I got excited. They have Fender Strats listed for 135,000 won, our about $110. I had Julie call and to my surprise, the guy volunteered the fact they are imitation models made in Korea and not licensed by Fender. Still, that's a price that can't be beat. I got my ass out of bed today and made the 90 minute trip to the Nakwon music center (again) where the shop is. To my surprise, the guitar is pretty damn good - especially for the money.



It came with every thing you see here: plug-in cable, computer input adapter, an extra set of strings and the carrying bag. I didn't even haggle with the guy yet he gave it all to me for just 100,000 won, or $85. Amazing! It's better than I thought it would be. I've been playing it all night and it's stayed pretty much in tune. The only things (besides the price) that gives it away as an imitation is the lightness. Also it's hard to bend the strings over the high frets, but that may improve when the frets wear in. The guitar does feel pretty cheap, yet the pickups are good. I played it through a Marshal amp at the shop and it sound sharp and crisp. What a bargain. I'll see how it holds up. If for nothing else, it'll get me back into shape playing and hold me over until I get a real one, at which time I'll be sure to rave about how much better the real thing is.

I stopped short of buying a sound card as the ones there were a little pricey...almost 3xs the price of the guitar! I can play it through the sound card I have for now, though only with a clean sound. This weekend I'm going to an electronics/ music equipment show at Coex where I hope to pick up a nice little recording/ effects machine.

Here's a shot of the real Fender, same model that goes for around $800. Pretty good likeness. Click here!



I just noticed another giveaway that it's a fake. Notice the spelling of Stratocaster. Just what is that last letter eactly? A lower-case h? Way to go, copying the guitar nearly perfectly, then screwing up something as simple as that. No, that's not the way Fender writes it either, take a look here.


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written by shawn matthews   -|link

Korea Life Blog - The Champion



This past weekend Julie and I played pool, or pocket ball as they call it in Korea. It's a fairly popular game with a place to play pretty much everywhere. They aren't too cheap though - generally charging 1000 won per 10 minute increments per person. In other words, if 2 people play for an hour, it'll run 12,000 won.


My friend John from Australia who I used to hang out with in Ulsan was probably the best player in town. He'd take me on as a partner to give the other teams a chance. I hated playing with him though as he took it so seriously, and I always missed key shots. We had a falling out for awhile when, during a small tournament at the local foreigner bar, I missed an easy shot which caused us to lose. I swear John never forgave me for that despite the fact the prize was under 50,000 won. Now that I remember, he was always getting angry when he played, especially when against Koreans. There are a few differences in the rules between countries apparently. The one that John would fly into a rage over was the luck shot, when the ball aimed at fails to sink but another unintended one does. It would crack me up watching our opponents joyful surprise by their luck and John flipping out as they moved in for another shot. In his Australian accent: "No, no, no. Raaack off, you caaaan't taaaiike thaaaat! Are you bloody pissed?" and the clueless look on the Koreans' faces.


Maybe I should be a nice guy and let her win...



Not a chance, baby! After 20 long minutes of missing almost every shot, I finally won the first game! Whoo hoo! We are the champions, my friend. Who's your daddy? I hate to brag again, but even with her luck shot handicap, I ended up winning 3/4 games (the one I lost was by sinking the 8-ball by mistake. I'll give her credit though...she has a mean break! She sunk two balls off one. Hey, did I lose weight? Where's my belt?



Later we went to a board game cafe. I love these toy hammers they give you to bash the loser with. I sometimes use one of these on the students, playfully. John could have used one for whacking wankers who take luck shots.


Julie lost at UNO, but she won 5 out of 7 games of Connect-4 which means I got 5 whacks on my head...

I had some pictures posted here of Julie, but she asked me to remove them and I don't blame her. Though she always looks beautiful to me, she feels she doesn't photograph well and she was embarrassed.


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written by shawn matthews   -|link

Korea Life Blog - The Recycling Haraboji


There's a little old man in town who year round, night after night, into the early morning, goes around town collecting recyclables: cardboard, plastics, glass, metal, etc.

He looks to be in his seventies. I don't know how he does it. I used to see him out there in the middle of the winter when it was freezing cold and windy, tugging his heavy cart. One night I stopped him and gave him a few thousand won. He seemed so taken back and surprised, not so much by the money it seemed to me, but rather by the fact somebody stopped to talk to him.

Now and again I see him around and I always bow and greet him with the formal, Anyong hashimnika, and he smiles brightly and waves to me. You would expect him to be a grouchy old man bitter about his fate but he acts so kind and nice.

He used to pile his take in the lot behind the hagwon. Then whoever owned the land kicked him out. Next he started to pile the goods on the land behind my apartment. Then they kicked him out too.



The old guy now piles everything up in the small area here, on the little side road that runs next to my building. Look at how hard he's been working.There are a couple good things about this, I guess. He's getting a lot of exercise and he's doing a great job keeping all this from being put in a landfill.



It's definitely an eyesore, but it all gets picked up about once a month. I'm guessing he gets less than 100,000 won for his efforts. It's hard to believe a short, frail 70 year old man collected all this. To help him out, I separate my trash and give the reusables to him.



Nearby, where he used to put things, after kicking the poor old guy out they put up this friendly barbed wire fence.



They also put up this thoughtful reminder that says if you put your trash again here we're going to sue you. Is that really necessary? I think just asking the guy to move his recyclables would have been sufficient. Barbed wire? Threatening to sue? That's a little too much considering who they were dealing with. Old age leaves a lot to be desired in Nowhere-dong.


Don't forget to check The Windy Times for an update.


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written by shawn matthews   -|link