Vintage me.

I recently came across a vintage photograph of me and my former co-teachers... I'm not sure exactly when it was taken, but I'm guessing around 4 1/2 years ago. It was right after work and it was customary that my friends and I would hangout and chat for a while before going home. Whew.. 4 1/2 years ago?! Has it been THAT long???

I treasure photos like this which I fondly call the 'Pre-Chris' era. It was before I met Chris, before KOREA changed my life. It's really hard to think about the past without associating it with him... but when I look at old photos like this, it reminds me how it felt like before I met him. Life then wasn't so bad. I would say I enjoyed my life then than now..

Teaching at the English Academy was my first job ever. I didn't actually apply for the position. To put it in a better perspective, I'd say I was just 'accidentally' hired. Sounds weird I know.. but here's the gist. A friend asked me to accompany him to an English school in Q.C. He applied there but got rejected, and he wanted to get stuff that he passed before as credential. I went to the waiting area to wait for him while he was inside the office talking to a staff. There were two other people there who seemed to be waiting like me.. I was totally oblivious that they were conducting job interviews at that time. Then I saw a middle-aged Korean man who approached me and called my attention motioning me to enter the office. I was baffled at first, making sure it was really me that he called. I was wearing jeans and a pink mickey mouse blouse that matched my headband at that time, and for sure, I didn't look like an applicant in any way. He led me to his office, inattentive to my improper dress code and lack of resume. Before he could say anything, I sheepishly told him that he mistook me for an applicant, and I was there to wait for a friend who was in the office. He laughed at first, but eventually he asked if I was interested to work there. I thought it wasn't a bad idea, I sort of needed some extra cash anyway, and the place looked interesting. He then began asking questions like my educational background, hobbies, and some other random stuff. When our conversation went to 'favorite movie', I blabbed non-stop about the movie "Wicker Park" which I watched the night before. I'm a huge, huge Josh Hartnett fan, and I have a tendency to blab incoherently like a 15 year old whenever I talk about him or his movies... ^^ After 15 minutes, the interview was over... He gave me an offer I couldn't refuse. In the morning, I was a private tutor to his children who were studying in Brent in their house in Valle Verde, and in the afternoon I had to teach at the Academy, transpo and lunch conveniently covered. In that case, I earned much more than the average teacher.

Since I was newbie at the school, nobody talked to me. It was difficult to make friends cause people there had this sort of 'superiority complex' towards the 'new- faces'. But eventually, I wasn't a 'new-face' anymore, and I became friends with a lot of people. It was my first time making friends in a working environment so I enjoyed every minute of it. We'd always have coffee at the coffee shop in front of the school during lunch breaks while talking incessantly about work and love-life.. I enjoyed that the most. Sometimes, we'd go to Noraebang, or just drink beer in those al-fresco style drinking places nearby while playing billiards. I was not
a popular teacher at the school unlike my friends. I was always given old, balding ajussis and irritable kids who had issues dealing with people. Luckily, my friends were always there to comfort me...

A couple of guys - students there (but not mine!), showed interest in me. They asked me out on friendly dates.. At first I was really adamant to go out with a student from school cause I know it's breaking the so-called 'teachers ethics' rule, and gossip will surely be lurking nearby. But I would always insinuate that I'm not up to anything romantic, and I would always bring a friend along (if ever I decided to go out with them). But there were two who I almost considered dating for real. One was J.H., a very tall and painfully handsome guy who showed serious interest in me and offered to visit my house. He actually did, and it was really nice of him to play basketball with those 'tambays' in our village basketball court. I didn't expect anything to progress with him cause I knew he would leave the phil soon. And of course, deep in my head, I never really considered being seriously involved with koreans for that matter. The other guy is B.J., a really nice guy who seemed to be an honest and genuine person. He's cute and persistent so I went out on a friendly date with him. I brought my sister with me to provide constructive criticisms, cause I tend to be blinded with their other unimportant attributes. Unfortunately, I got really turned off when I saw him spit in an ashtray while we were in bar in Timog. What was he thinking? Could he be anymore disgusting than that? My sister was utterly disgusted as well and told me I should never, ever consider going on a second date (eventhough it was purely friendship) with that guy. It was a total disaster and awfully awkward from then on.

I became busier after that... I got another part-time job as Human Anatomy Instructor at a nursing school. I got so busy I didn't have much time to hang out with my friends. That made me sad a bit cause they always seem to have so much free time. But they would always update me with the latest scandals and gossips, making me feel that I still belong to their circle.. It was then when I met Chris... Of course after that meeting, my life wasn't the same anymore. I pursued different dreams, walked on different paths till I reached my present state. Sometimes, I would miss my simple life back then... but of course, I can't bring myself to regret the decisions I made to leave the school and my friends.