Personal questions...

[clochette]

My weekend to Dublin with my mom. So excited

 

Same Q:

[C. When]

I have an internship that may turn into a job, so there's that.

 

What is the strangest thing you have seen in passing?

[Valkyrie]

I was driving to work a few years ago and passed a man mowing his lawn wearing shorts, no shirt, and an honest-to-God tinfoil hat!

 

Same Q

[Cynus]

When I lived in Eastern Seoul and would walk around at night, it was mostly the same as the rest of the city, but one night we walked past the local high school where a number of people were exercising on and around the track. A group of high school students was walking around the track, and one of the young men was completely naked. No one in the park seemed to think this was a strange thing...

 

Same Q

[Defiance19]

My neighbor. Every morning as I'm headed out for my run, I meet him in his robe, hanging open, showing off bikini underwear, getting his paper. He is 70 at least and very well nourished. It's not pretty, and somethings you can't unsee.

 

 

 

Same Q

[Cynus]

I'll do another, also from Korea, in order to get the ball rolling again.

 

There's a man at Yatap station in Bundang, South Korea. We called him the pigeon man, for some very obvious reasons. He was in his sixties, homeless, and would run around in the plaza above the subway station, charging groups of pigeons and screaming wildly. If he saw you watching he'd charge you next, but then he'd pull up short and stick out his tongue, closing one eye and looking you up and down, analyzing you. The man spoke six languages: Korean, English, Japanese, Arabic, Farsi, and Russian, all of which I witnessed him speaking personally with people who spoke that as their native tongue. 

Some days, he'd buy you ice cream with the money people would give him. . .

 

New Question: Have you ever had an unplanned but lengthy conversation with a stranger in a public place, and how did it go?

[Valkyrie]

More than one, I'm sure.  One that sticks out to me wasn't in a public place, but rather at work when I was in college.  A man called asking for a price quote and I asked him to repeat himself because I didn't understand what he said.  He apologized to me and explained that he had Parkinson's disease and had difficulty speaking.  I told him to not apologize and take his time explaining what he wanted, and that I was the perfect person for him to be talking to because I was a student studying speech therapy.  We ended up talking for a long time - probably twenty minutes to a half hour.  He was very upset about the fact that he had Parkinson's.  I told him about my grandpa, who had Parkinson's and lived with it for a long time before succumbing to it my first year of grad school.  He thanked me profusely for taking the time to talk to him, and I think he felt a little better after our conversation. 

 

Same Q

[Parker Owens]

I remember vividly flying home to see my father. He was dying of cancer, and we all knew this would be the last time I saw him before he became bedridden. I was seated on the plane with a stranger, a lovely older woman who turned out to be a Roman Catholic nun. Turned out she ran a very busy shelter for runaway teens in New York called Covenant House. We talked about my dad - she asked if she could pray for him, which she did - and we talked about her work, which I have found compelling and motivating ever since. The flight was supposed to have lasted an hour, but it felt like about five minutes. Both she and my dad are gone now, but I'll never forget the journey or the conversation.

 

Same q

[Cynus]

I had a lot of opportunities for this as a missionary, but there are several which stand out. I think I've finally narrowed it down to one in particular, though.

 

While living in Eastern Seoul, part of our area included a small city just outside of Seoul called Hannam. It was a thirty minute bus ride there, but we would go there sometimes to proselyte (common Mormon spelling of proselytize. Perfectly synonymous). Rules for missionaries were rather strict, and we were expected to be back home by 9:00 pm (21:00). At around 8:25, while heading toward the bus stop to try and make it home in time, we ran into a frantic-looking Caucasian woman who seemed completely lost. Trying to be the good souls we advertised to be, instead of going to catch our bus we doubled back and asked her if she needed any help. We're going to call her Amber (not her real name). Amber told us a long story about how she'd just moved in with her Korean boyfriend, and his mother had just stopped in for a completely surprise visit and announced she was staying the night. This mother was very strict religiously, and could not find out that Amber was living there or there would be hell to pay, and so Amber left for the night with no place to stay. We learned about her as we stayed with her for almost an hour, trying to find somewhere for her to go, until we finally managed to get her a place at the bathhouse for the night. We never saw her again, but she'll always stick in my memory.

 

New Question: How do you feel about your current job?

[Parker Owens]

Like any job held for many years, there are good parts and bad. On the whole, I like what I do. I teach, and try to reach into the minds of students and turn on a few switches, pique some curiosity, stimulate new ideas. Every now and then, I get to connect deeply with a student who I will know and remain friends with for years afterwards. These relationships are a great treasure. So, on the whole, I really love what I do, though there are hard days. But I suppose that's true for everyone.

 

same q

[Defiance19]

I'm with Parker. I absolutely love what I do. My students are young, 5, they are creative, inquisitive little sponges. The way their brains work never cease to blow me away. It's amazing to see them grasp and apply their knowledge and sometimes they teach me a thing or two. I also teach a 5th grade after school program. Just to think that I was in anyway responsible for awakening their curiosity or influenced their choice, gives me the greatest feeling of accomplishment. The rough days don't ever make me not want to wake up and do it all over again.

 

Same Q 

[Valkyrie]

I love my profession and the individuals I provide therapy to...but right now I am not happy in my current job. Unfortunately, my options are limited as far as other employment. 

 

Same Q

[comicfan]

I work retail at the return desk. Do I need to say more?

 

Are you in the holiday mood?

[Valkyrie]

Not really, but then again I'm usually not.  The holidays are a tough time for me.

 

Same Q 

[Cynus]

No. The only holiday I really celebrate at all is Samhain, and this was my first year really doing so. They're usually just like any other day to me, but sometimes I get to hang out with my family.

 

Same Q

[Hunter Thomson]

Sort of. I don't do a whole lot of festive things when it comes to the holidays. But yes, I'm in the mood to see family, even if I want to do everything in my power to never end up in a mall ever again. 

 

What traditions do you uphold during the holidays that you haven't seen other families do?

[Cynus]

My family always has steak for Christmas Eve, but that's about it.

Same Q

[Valkyrie]

I don't think we have any traditions that are all that unique.  A lot of them have fallen by the wayside over the years. 

 

Same Q

[comicfan]

Christmas breakfast - 2 eggs sunny side up, oj, and a slice of stollen.

 

Do you send holiday cards?

[Valkyrie]

I used to have an extensive list of people I sent cards to, then I got sick one year and the following year my computer crashed and I lost all my addresses.  I fell out of the habit, so now I only send cards to a select few individuals.

 

Same Q

[Defiance19]

I do.. I actually enjoy doing it too. I even tuck cute little cards into my students' folders on the last day.. 

 

 

Same Q

[Daddydavek]

Yes, but fewer than I used to.....

 

Same Q:

[Cynus]

No, I don't, but I've thought of taking up letter writing to help preserve the dying art form.

What are your plans for the New Year?

[Dayne Mora]

Sit on my butt.  Read, write, play video games.  Hopefully, I'll be done with my tense shifting. 

Same Q

[Daddydavek]

To write more....I hope!

 

Same Q: