11월 (November)

So it appears I managed to avoid blogging for the entire length of level 5. With weekly vocab and grammar tests, near-daily writing homework, daily lesson review and preview requirements, I didn't have much time for anything else. Seriously, it was pretty amazing. I heard in level 6 that there are daily vocab (and grammar) quizzes, and lots of newspaper reading (harder Chinese-based vocab), so... that should be fun. But now it's the second week of vacation, and I have a bit of free time to catch up on this thing...

In November (it's only February, ha) for school break, I went back to the US for 17 days. But before getting into that, I also went to Kim Jae Joong's solo show at COEX with H. In January 2013, I went to one of his fan meetings, and I must say, I preferred that to this mini concert, but it was still a good time. As always, no photos allowed during the show (and the staff is very vigilant), but uh... there were some pretty flowers outside, though they were completely unrelated to the show. :)




I also redyed my hair (amazing how much it faded in 3 months), and ate some tasty Korean snacks.... 11/11 was Peppero Day, so chosen because Peppero sticks (crackers dipped in flavored chocolate) look like the number 1... Usually, there are a few flavors... plain (no dip), chocolate, chocolate + almonds. For Peppero Day, there are tons of other flavors... strawberry, Korean melon, cookies and cream. Melon is delicious. I wish I would've bought more. :(





Melon- and sweet potato-flavored ice cream bars. Melon was delicious. Sweet potato was...edible. :)



US I spent the time at my parents' house in PA, minus an overnight trip to VA to visit coworkers/friends. I ate a lot of good food, and saw a lot of family, and just generally relaxed.








Crepes, blue waffles, barbeque, chili, gnocchi, lasagna, sloppy
joes, tomato soup & Ritz crackers, Jioio's pizza, my favorite
beer (Blue Moon) & Korean soju, sushi, our Thanksgiving meal.

Mom and I also made Grandma's chocolate pie for Thanksgiving. The crust was premade, but look how nicely I placed it in the pan for baking! :)





I also used my mom's sewing machine to convert a roommate's broken umbrella into a waterproof shoulder bag. Simplified directions:

Step 1: Remove cloth from frame.
Step 2: Fold cloth in half and cut a square. Extra side pieces can be used for the handles/straps.
Step 3: Pin 3 sides for sewing. Though one side is still connected (from the fold), pin anyway. Leave the side across from the fold open (though I did pin down the pointy edge to make it flat across the top).
Step 4: Sew. I sewed each side twice because it'll probably be used for groceries.
Step 5: Make the handles. I cut the extra cloth into 2 long strips, folded in half and sewed along the length.
Step 6: Attach the handles to the inside of the bag. I sewed a box with an X in the middle for extra support. Make sure the nice side of the handle will be out when you turn the bag right-side out.
Step 7: Turn the bag right-side out.
Step 8: Iron nicely.
Done. :)






Finally, some scenery photos... before and after the snow at my parents' house, the fields nearby, and of the sunset during my takeoff back to Korea.







I was tempted to backpost this in November, but I'll just leave it in February...

Onward to December! heh.

edit: Oops, apparently I never posted my level 4 final grades (not that it really matters, but for the sake of completeness). The final exam was a lot easier than the midterm.


Final level 4 (average) grades. 85% average, 100% attendance.
Rows say writing (of 30), speaking (30), listening (20), reading (20).