Update

I am still using Windows XP on my 2006 Toshiba Satellite (Intel Dual Core...) and it suits me well. I have an older version of Office and I try not to overload my computer with new programs and junk. I don't do gaming or audio/video/photo editing so I don't put too much strain on my system and it rarely crashes. I use Advanced System Care and AVG Free and defrag every once in a while. I did recently buy a 1TB hard-drive, to supplement by 320 GB external - internet downloading is crazy these days! My apartment is furnished with a nice desktop, but the OS is in Korean, as well as are all the PC's I use at school. I had no problem installing the Korean character recognition and typing software in XP. I put stickers on my keyboard with Roman and Hangeul letters, and I press ALT+SHIFT when I want to change between them. Incidentally, I type in Korean about as fast as my dad types in English!

I am learning the language slowly. I can read and write in hangeul, but pronunciation is very difficult. The phonology of Korean has far less accents than English, but the cadence and whiny sounds are about impossible for me to produce accurately. So I can say things correctly, but not apply them in the right context and not get the total sound right and Koreans won't understand me. As you can imagine, I am swarmed by young kids all day who ask me a blizzard of questions in Korean: Are you Married? How old are you? Where are you from? Why are you here? Why don't you remember my name? Why are you SO hairy and tall? Are you dating the co-teacher? etc... When I get tired of trying to translate, I just answer them in English, afterall, I am here to teach them, right? I am in an ideal situation to learn a language: constantly exposed to its source, with access to lots of internet learning tools. The people in America who rate language difficulty say that Korean is a Level 3 for English speakers, meaning that it takes us, on average, 65? weeks to reach a VERY basic proficiency, so it is considerably more challenging than a European language.

I am doing well with taekwondo: I will be tested for black belt on August 28th. I will be ready for the late June test, but I haven't been in Korea for six months yet! (Actually I won't be able to take the test until October 27th now...) After this, I hope to switch to hapkido, a more harmonious style related to Aikido. My uncle in Olympia was a 3rd degree black belt in this style, so I am following in his steps.

I haven't been saving money yet, but I plan on staying for another 1-2 years. Recently, I bought an electronic drumset, which I could conceivably make money with at some point. I still owe $15,000 on my subsidized college loans, but they are in deferment now, so I pay no interest (6%?) until I start making payments. I make around $24,000 a year here, low taexes, rent-free except utilities and cable, with many of my lunches paid for, so I could really put some money in the bank for grad school, etc. Next year... :)

There is lots of farming in my area. Terraced rice fields everywhere, soaking in a watery mud, harvesting more mosquitoes than people to bite soon... Guys on mopeds ride through every alley with a giant bug-fogging machine, spraying this toxic fragrant stuff in the air, truly disgusting. But I am glad to be here, seeing a much more traditional side of Korea, than the big, Westernizing city view. I have been traveling around to the big cities and some smaller ones. Busses, food and hotels are cheap, and I have plenty of free time and friends in various places to visit. I have a friend going to Beijing and the Great Wall for the summer holiday, so I may consider spending more money, but I have a "girlfriend" now, so we'll see. But more on that story as it develops.