News throughout the office spread like wildfire all over our building. People were jealous of all the fun we had. Math and science teachers wanted in on the action, which I can't say I blame them. Company paid food and beverage, the companionship of me, and Meg's singing would drive anybody into fits of jealousy. The other departments pestered management into a repeat of the previous party. When I got word of another party, I screamed A-ssa! Which means YES or is the equivalent of Johnny Drama's "Victory" yell. Instead of just the English department celebrating, the entire building was going to be apart of the festivities. The company owners and the executive team were also going to take part of the happenings! My hagwon (academy) is fairly large, but the owner owns more than just mine. I don't know how many more he owns, but I know he also owns another successful franchise called Avalon. This guy employs a vast amount of foreigners and is worth a cool million dollars easy.
My boss told us that we could not simply repeat what happened the week before, partly because she might of been the drunkest of us all, but mainly because the big bosses were coming to the party. We also had to work the following morning at 12:30 in the afternoon, so it is safe to assume Olympiad didn't want the students saying, "Teacher, why do you smell like my father after a hard night of soju? Why do you look so sleepy?" There was not going to be a trip to the noribong, we were not going to push the call button every thirty seconds, and we certainly were not going to take shots. This was not a loosen up the tie meal. My expression has always been, "When in Korea" so I was just excited for another great meal. I didn't even call Zach (who had the following day off) or John* to partake in what was about to ensue.
*John was aware of the situation. He knew that the CEO was coming, yet he seemed to think that the CEO's presence would not act as a deterrent at all to a great time. He said, "You'll have as much fun as the other night." I didn't agree, in fact, I thought it would be impossible.
The venue was the same pork house. Except this time almost every patron was apart of our party. The English department setup shop in the exact same row, in almost the exact same order too. I am superstitious so I was happy to see that. "Maybe if everyone sits in the same seat, then the night might be like last week." That was my thought process anyway. The math and science departments had other rows lined up about 25 people deep. This was a pig house so the food was the same as before. A minor disappointment until I took my first bite, and remembered how good pig meat (fat) can be. Armed with coke and water, I prepared for a nice relaxing night of good food and exciting Korean friends.
Have I mentioned that Koreans may have an alcohol problem? I am smiling because the first 20 minutes went by and everybody was looking around the room watching everybody else. Then the first penguin jumped in and ordered a beer, and all of a sudden it was a feeding frenzy. Call buttons were being slammed, drinks were being poured, and craziness was upon us. This time was even more special because of the big bosses appreciation towards the foreign workforce. The CEO led the charge by proposing a toast. I have no idea what he said, but I loved it. Remarkably the CEO, flanked by his other executives, walked to all the other tables pouring and taking shot after shot. There must be something about the hierarchy in Korea always overindulging more than anyone else.
Korean men are very touchy feely, and I mean with other men. It is not unusual to see to older men holding hands; they are always hanging on each other. This behaviour is intensified with the consumption of alcohol. The financial officer was smashed. He grabbed my hand from across the table and in broken English said, "If you need anything, let me know." That simple sentence looks easy, but for a drunk person speaking a second language this simple task took a translator and about ten minutes. Keep in mind, I am hanging my lanky frame right over the grill. It was ten minutes of torture, finally I said, "I get it. Thank you!" I think Steve had a similar experience with this guy.
After sharing drinks with the big guy, you would think that everyone would call it a night. If you thought that, then I am not informing you enough about Korean culture. We were at a noribong in ten minutes! Now, I'll just silence your question right now: Meg did not bust out We didn't start the Fire. The only let down of the night was a string of disappointing performances in the noribong. The microphone was in my hand a lot, and that is never a good sign. I can't carry a tune to save my life. In a hypothetical situation, say some perverse killer was holding you over a cliff and would drop you if I could not carry a tune, then you would be falling off that cliff.* After all I am the son of Jan, and lets just face it, our family is not going to win any music awards anytime soon. All of the foreigners tried to serenade the big boss, but I think we needed John. John might of been the glue that held us together, and in his absence our performance dipped.
*That sentence came directly from seeing The Dark Knight, which I will say is better than the original as well. I actually saw the movie after writing the first half of this blog, so that is why it wasn't originally included. It is rumored that Heath Ledger was so in tune with his character, The Joker, that it drove him a little nuts and lead to his demise. I just saw the damn movie, and I am already throwing out hypothetical psychopathic situations! I understand what Heath was going through on a small level. The Joker was a very good villain. I am to tired to think of the top five best villains in Hollywood history, except to include The Joker and the man with the bad haircut in No Country for Old Men.
Learning from the other night, we went our separate ways right after the noribong. The next morning brought little pain. I think that I was saved because of the three pounds of pig I consumed, or it could of been that greasy kimchi. One of the Koreans took a nap in the common room, and she happened to be the same Korean dancing on the sofa singing her heart out to some pop song. I think that the liquid courage rearing its ugly head for her in the morning. Another equally brilliant night paid for by the company has me feeling great about my decision to come here.
Due to the mild success of this blog, Zach has offered up an alternative blog and a challenge to me. It's hard enough to find time to keep up with the posts, so I think the more the merrier. I'm typically about ten days behind posting of when the actual event occurred. I miss some things entirely. I have never even got the chance to post about Guam, which truly deserves time given to it. Even though I could use my first mover's advantage to squash you, Zach, I am not going to do that. Instead, here is a link to Zach's blog
http://zachtime123.blogspot.com/
1 comment:
Hey, son of Jan, being unable to carry a tune never stops me from belting one out when the mood strikes! Call home soon!
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