Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rednblack]

Iv'e had a very unusual life prior to arriving in Korea. I've been wondering for some time now, how many others out there have had the 'not normal ' road to teaching?
Here's my story:
I left school at 15 and became a butcher's apprentice. After 2 years I became a ship's sandblaster and spraypainter. When I was 18 I joined the waterfront and from there a ship, on which I spent 5 years on deck and 12 months down in the engine room. After this, I was a security guard for two years and then bought a general store. After 12 months I sold the store, but kept the building. As I had an income, I decided to learn the nursery trade and painted houses on the side.
In my early thirties I decided to give Uni a crack. Got my Bachelors and started my masters. The went to Education Grad school . Taught for a couple of years, and here I am.
I've had some more than interesting years on the way. Done most you can think of. Not always good or right. But, it's been interesting and I've got a life-time of stories to tell.
What's your story? There must be plenty out there.

[Ya-ta Boy]

I don't see my life as particularly diverse since I've pretty much always been a teacher, but I've had some fun along the way.

For me, I campaigned for McCarthy in '68, went to three different colleges my sophomore year and got chased by cops at one of them and insulted a dean of students at another when he accused me of being in SDS, lived in a commune and then got married, dropped out of college because Janis Joplin died, worked in a turkey hatchery and a newspaper, graduated and taught high school, got divorced along the way, lost a job because someone else lost his temper with his basketball team and had to work at a home for the mentally retarded before getting rehired at the high school, got kicked out of Korea and lived in HK for days with no food or money, been investigated by the Korean gov't for industrial espionage, been head of my department and have a weekly column in the newspaper.

[Dancing Bear]

I grew up in the shadow of the south. My small town had
diversity, controversy and hypocrisy as all communitys do. My mother was a 6th grade graduate of the Great Depression and my father was a bible thumping right wing man of God. My older brother was the extended family's first hippie and my little brother was living in the closet. I tried as always to maintain a low profile.

My first job was working in the attic of a feedstore making produce baskets for $1.60 an hour.

After highschool, I attended three different universites. I dropped out and and hitchhiked to South Palm Beach, Florida ( a haven for midwest hippie wanna-be's) It was a major journey (metaphorically speaking.)
I met more wanna -be's, southern boys who initially wanted to kick my ass, Jesus freaks, sexual predators, transvestites, mean Florida State Troopers, and a lot of really kind good hearted people.

I stayed with my brother a couple of weeks and went back home and got a job working with hanicapped children in a pediactrics ward of a nursing home. I had a night time job driving a tractor for a soybean farmer.

I got married , had two kids and ended up in the food service business. I had a pizza restaurant for almost twenty years (plus a second rate antique business on the side.) After the divorce, I went back to the University and got a B.S. in Intercultural communication.

Came to Korea back in "02" and have been on one big adventure ever since.

Have to cut this short... Ajuma is awake!