Korean Job Discussion Forums

[wiganer]

I have two parents whose attitude is wholly different to your parents Stalin84. My dad was a 12 years British army veteran who was based in Egypt, Korea and Christmas Island when the British were testing their atom bombs amongst the atolls, then after demob, he joined the merchant navy whose ship route was Liverpool to Valparasio in Chile. My mum left her home in South America to marry my dad in the north of England - it can be a hostile place for foreigners now but imagine 1968 - it was like landing on the moon.

So their attitude to me and my life is like 'good on you - there is a whole world out there to see' last thing they want is myself (of any of my brothers and sisters) on their doorstep. The like the fact I am here and they like the fact that I am living my life. I am going to take a wild guess but I would bet you parents haven't travelled much out of their hometown - they understand it no more than a lion who has lived their life in a cage would understand a lion that has roamed free all their lives. To them, the safe job, the wife and the house is the only option because that is the only option they were willing to take. You don't want it and it is just as well because once you have done a year or two in a place like Korea - you can't go home back to your hometown and be satisfied with what you are going to get. You can force yourself but you will never be happy, you will always be hankering for something else, somewhere else.

As for getting older. It happened when I turned 30, I woke up and realised I wasn't a kid anymore. Your voice has authority, people listen to what you have to say or they expect you to talk some sense at least. You start to look like a man and people pay you respect. If you remember back to when you were 19-23 - no-one took any notice of your opinion - what did you know? It is the same for us all. You gain life experience through living it and it takes some time before you become that someone worth knowing and that someone worth listening to.

It is very liberating, you become happier with what you can or cannot do. If you take care of yourself and exercise and try not to drink, smoke or take drugs then you can look young for your age. I like being my age which is 38 - people have me down for at least 10 years younger.

Coming from a family of immigrants - what I would say to your dad
is this and it would be something along the lines of 'Dad, our ancestors left ******* to come to Canada to find something, to improve their lives and I am doing the same, what I want isn't here, it might be here for you and my brothers and sisters but I want this' and tell him what you want. Tell him you love him and that you will always be there. When Francisco Bejarano left Spain for Peru in 1588 - he never ever saw his family again - he never saw his parents or his hometown as that ship sailed for a new life on the Pacific ocean - that was a permanent break, your's isn't and it can never be unless you want it to. What we are doing is part of our DNA, our family history - it is part of us like the colour of our hair is so why fight it.

Didn't I read somewhere that you are a qualified, licensed teacher? Well, you have so many options open to you out there - not just Korea but Taiwan, Malaysia, Abu Dhabi - you would be a fool to regress back to your hometown. Don't settle for something you don't want.

[SinclairLondon]

Haven't cared much for bars since I was 19 or 20, ten years ago. I don't get it. To each their own. My uncles, who are in their fifties and sixties, are active runnners, most of them doing marathons, and they inspire me with how the handle getting older.

They can athethically do what most twenty-somethings can't, like wake up at 5 and run 20K (of course, that followed by a Grandpa power nap). I thought an hour of running was admirable when I was a teen. Now its a warm-up.

I look foward to that.

And two of my friends, both in their early forties, are regular fighters in Thailand, and didn't get involed in the sport until a few year ago. One of them just competed in this year's Kings Cup.

[Draz]

[DorkothyParker]

There just isn't a blueprint for what success looks like at this age.
A LOT of people I went to HS with are married with at least 2 or 3 kids and a house. This is crazy to me.
On the other end of the spectrum, a handful of people are single with decent jobs & good room mates and they can go out and live young and beautifully and party. Yeah, that's not me either.
I feel very old when I am not amused by flashy people at bars. But I feel very immature when I can't converse on "adult" topics because I find them dull.

I think I would relate best to alcoholic 12 year old boys.

[ESL Milk "Everyday]

[Illysook]

You are not old, you are just experiencing your quarter life crisis.

Now, as for all those creepy things that some have said about women, don't pay too much attention to them. When you find the right one, you will only have to worry about that one. You will know when the time is right and after that, get married to stay married and 20 or 30 years later, she will be the one who loves the old guy that you will inevitably become. It's a pretty good deal too. Married men live longer.

[Stalin84]

[nzbradly78]

Relax, OP. 26 is a great age, and its only uphill for the next 6 years or so. After that, I'm not sure, but I'll let you know. Your not too old to play video games, live free and avoid suites. This is the primo age to see the world, have fun and enjoy yourself!

Ahhh, the days of 26.........

[wiganer]

[silkhighway]

A guy I knew in Korea that was my fathers age was chasing tail and boozing it up on the weekends like he was 30 years younger and didn't appear to have a care in the world. Good on him, I envy him if anything, but it's just not me and at 26 I started to feel 'old'.

By old I really mean I started to feel like I was being left behind. Before then I felt I could live the lifestyle I was living forever, but at that time I started to know I was reaching the end of my expiry date and I was starting to feel like a hobo.

I never really made it off the starting block since then, and now I'm in my early 30's, still single and back in university full-time and noticeably older than everyone else in my class. Most days it doesn't bother me and I'm too busy getting on with things, but other days I worry. What if my career doesn't take off like I"m hoping and I'm in the same position except with more debt on my shoulders? Or what if I'm in my mid 30's without a decent job maybe living in my parents basement? How attractive will that be? Or what if I return to Korea or China or wherever trying to convince myself it's an "adventure" when deep down I know I'm going there because I have no other options? It's a scary thought.

Another thing I haven't quite come to terms with is that I might have to live with my parents for the last year of my program. It makes sense for financial and practical reasons, and it's something I have to seriously consider in the near future, however for someone who's been happily independent since I've been a teenager, it's a bitter pill for me to swallow and I don't know if I can overcome my pride to do that.

Basically, if someone's not confident in themselves, getting old sucks. You only gets so many second chances in life and mistakes accumulate and become harder to correct. However, if you are confident in yourself, in spite or despite if it's "acting your age" or not, then I just think you just need to a grow a pair and do whatever you feel is right for you, and not concern yourself with what other people think.

[metalhead]

What a bizarre (and if I might add, immature) OP.

I'm in my thirties, still get tattoos when I can, grow my hair long, and listen to (real) metal.

It's all in the mindset, and while I wouldn't say life gets better (because it can only get better depending on what you do, not your age), it certainly doesn't feel any worse.

Anyway, I could say more, but what would be the point? You'll find out for yourself, "eventually".

[Koreadays]

you are old compared to someone 10 years younger than you!
or even 6 years younger than you..
but if you are hanging with people your similar age, then no you are not old!
there will always be younger dudes than you, older dudes than you.
people who are doing it for their first time, people who have done it to death

of course you are old compared to 18 year olds

[fromtheuk]

I'm 37. Please be quiet OP.

[Kaypea]

Forever young! Have fun, stay fit, and find someone to frolic with...

http://poorlydressed.failblog.org/2010/12/30/fashion-fail-so-theyre-really-into-potatoes/

[isitts]