Residence of Random Photos

Hello there, it's been a bit slow here with all the cold weather lately, but I have some new pictures to show off! Unfortunately I just haven't taken a whole lot of pictures since we've been keeping to the indoors. The above picture was from around Christmas time and you can tell that they certainly like their mecha and Power Rangers here!

This one is doubly interesting. Here you can get this cool little VIP window thing from McDonald's, which I understand has some small perks? I just think it's cute. Also, many cars have these little signs with the phone number of the owner on them, some saying "sorry" or other small phrases. I guess they're courteous (if a bit crazy) drivers and parkers?

This is a find at Daiso, which is a small dollar store/cheap item store. You need bowties, you go to Daiso.

This small paragraph was done by one of the older elementary kids, I love reading what kids write.

I mentioned that it was cold, right? It's certainly not uncommon to see frosty windows, but I look forward to the end of all this cold!

There's a small path that leads up to the fields that sit on the side of the hill back behind we live. Recently after it had snowed I saw the chair sitting up there (it's always there) and the tracks nearby, it looked so peaceful. 

That's it for now, I have several topics in mind and things to discuss soon! Hope all is well out there in internetland!

Oh hello, we've been hibernating!

You never know what you're going to get from the Dream Science kits. I got a magnet with hair!

Hello there! It's been a while, hasn't it? Zach and I are still alive over here in South Korea, but it's been a rather quiet month. The cold temperatures have kept us cooped up inside a lot more than we were in the fall, so we haven't really had a lot to report. Fortunately for us, we're slowly finishing up with the coldest (on average) month of the year and hopefully February will provide us with above freezing temperatures so we can actually enjoy being outside again. We're looking forward to a high temperature here of 54F later in the week, I cannot wait! Now having said that, the following week is supposed to have highs of 0C, brrrr. At least I can be optimistic about the fact that the days are getting longer?

We're starting to go into the major transition time here in South Korea where teachers begin to come and go also. February is a BIG time for teachers as hagwons and public schools go into a hiring frenzy for the school year starting up in March. The local Facebook group for Cheongju is full of people that are selling things because they're moving home or moving to Seoul, or some other area, as well as people looking for new contracts and work through people who already live here in Cheongju. With that in mind, it's also a good time of year to pick up things people are selling second hand at pretty good prices. It's exciting to think that new people will soon be coming to teach and start their own adventures, but sad too as you realize that South Korea is really a country of transition (for foreigners in particular) and the people that enter your life will likely leave a year later, maybe a handful of years in some cases, but a majority of people realize that it's "time".

In other news, I have been tutoring a 19 year old female soon-to-be college student (legally, of course since my boss set it up) for a week and will probably continue to do so for another week, possibly more. It's been very interesting and not only have I learned that my drawing skills are bad, but she's told me a lot of interesting things about life as a high school student/college student here. We've talked about high school rules, food (she likes to bake), her sister who goes to college in Baltimore, MD, family, and a variety of other topics. It was initially kind of stressful since it was tossed on me, but she talks and I help her with words and phrases, but she's quite good. I guess that's to be expected since she's been learning English for 12 years (wow!).

In other more boring news, we got a new shower head from Lotte Mart to replace the cheap one we got at Daiso to replace the original one that was falling apart. The bathroom light, which had been burnt out for about two weeks, was finally replaced on Friday with a light that I had found downstairs with a stash of others. We did some cleaning and laundry and had McDonald's for lunch yesterday. Life overseas isn't always exciting, but that's reassuring in some ways. I get a bit anxious at times and the regular routine and everyday things make me feel grounded and like I'm still a part of the real world, despite being so far from home.

Because it's been so quiet here lately, Zach and I did some searching and found a website where we can take online courses through specific colleges called Coursera. We decided it would be in our best interest to keep educating ourselves for personal reasons, professional reasons when we get back home, and to help us through the end of the bitter South Korean winter. Starting January 28th I will be taking a course through the University of Edinburgh called E-Learning and Digital Cultures and Zach is taking a course through the University of Toronto titled The Social Context of Mental Health and Illness. We're hoping it will be an interesting learning experience. If all goes well I'm hoping to take another course starting in March through Wesleyan University called Passion Driven Statistics. I may not be great at math, but statistics are interesting and I want to keep what skills I do have, especially considering I want to go to grad school.

Julia and Sarah with their science projects for the week. Magnets and attraction, as much as I was able to explain it to them anyway. I'm learning how to structure the science lessons to make my life easier.

We went downtown to Shinae recently and found this hoodie. You can find anything under the sun around here really, and this was a funny find for me, being from Indiana and all. Go Pacers?!

Origami paper has recently been a big thing and they will try to make anything and everything. The boys especially enjoy it.

Because I have a different idea, and other supplies, I made a snake! This is Seymour, isn't he precious?

We also recently had the birthday party for the January birthdays. It was a bit early as the boss lady and two kids went to Australia for a week and a half, but still fun. January was James, Kate, Galileo, Carley, and Chris. There were strawberries and blueberries, something we haven't had in months. It's the little things.

Taxes? Taxes! Figuring out US expat tax business

This CD player has a lot of gall.

While the angry Korean CD player echoes my enthusiasm about the process (taxes are taxes, a fact of life) of filing taxes, I like to be prepared. What does that mean? Basically that I like to be one step ahead, especially on things like taxes, and have them done well before they're due to save myself the stress and effort as things approach. Because this will be our first year filing taxes jointly (oh hey, our one year anniversary is coming up February 24th!), I want to be especially on top of it since we have incomes from several states, loan considerations, and various other things.

Admittedly, things are made easier by the fact that Turbotax is my friend and all, but with so many ducks to get in a row, you have to get started earlier. Since I'm a little overly concerned, I have done an ample amount of research and after 30+ minutes of searching I think I finally found a satisfactory answer for the question I had. The tax legalese is generally pretty straight forward and dry, but that doesn't always mean that I get the answer that I'm looking for.

Next year will mean more of the taxes tango, but at least I have helpful links at my service now. From what I've gleaned from the internet there are many things to keep in mind when you're filing taxes for having lived and earned income in a foreign country. Most importantly? File a darn return, else it may come back to haunt you. I know people that have not and I hope that it doesn't come back to bite them. Several things I learned:

- The US has a tax treaty with South Korea to help you out so you're not being taxed in both locations
- Keep an eye out for the terms Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE) and housing exclusion
- There is an income threshold depending on how you're filing for the year (single, jointly, etc)
- The bona fide resident test and physical resident test are important for establishing the finer details
- Some allowances are included depending on housing, utilities, repairs and other expenses
- If you live over here for a year then due to the physical resident test and timing you can update it after your contract is completed (and in time for the next tax year) to let the IRS know that you did live overseas for the allotted time period (330+ consecutive days)
- You should be paying Korean taxes and it should be noted on your pay stubs
- US citizens living abroad are entitled to a two month extension when filing, up until June 15th (although your taxes need to be filed on time in April to avoid any interest charges)
- Korean CD players are clearly superior to my puny foreign electronic skills

That is, in short, what I have learned from browsing the internet and reading up on various websites ranging from the IRS website, tax assistance sites in various shapes and forms, a very helpful blog, and various other things. Maybe not the most exciting thing, but it's hard to go wrong with information just waiting to be found.

For reference for my future use and anyone else, here are the websites and documents that I found most useful.
- Expat IRS Form Checklist
- Taxation of U.S. Expatriates
- Income Taxes Overview (Korea4Expats)
- How to File Your Expatriate Tax Return As an American Living Abroad
- Taxes - Here and at Home (Blog post - US centric)
- National Tax Service (Korea)

In other news, we went ice skating at the Cheongju Ice Rink/Link on Wednesday (1/16), pictures to come soon, hopefully.

Life Above Zero

We got on the best seat on the bus today (sort of) on our way back. But the big surprise was that today the temperature was actually above freezing! So "warm" that we were able to step outside without being hit by cold as we started our shivery walk down toward the bus stop. No, today we were able to walk in the slight sunlight and enjoy the melting snow.

First we stopped to get lunch at the local Subway, then we stopped at Lotte Mart for a new shower head (ours bit the dust and the cheap one we got from Daiso just wasn't cutting it), then I had some spare change so I went and played the game that I so enjoy (those things can be tricky!) and then made a stop at the Korean Craft Museum which is a small store with Korean crafts and keepsakes. We made a few purchases to be sent home and then headed back home.

Not the most exciting day ever, but certainly a pleasant one with the above freezing temperatures. I hope winter will at least give us these slight breaks every now and then. The cold is taking its toll on our bodies and it's not my favorite thing by any means. I've started wearing two pairs of socks when we go out since my toes get so very cold.

Only 7 more weeks until March, are we there yet?

The Fire Adventure!

Or how I learned to stop worrying and trying to explain the concept of a house fire to a random Korean guy.

So picture this, it is cold as heck outside I am walking back from a successful night of badly teaching college students conversational English.  It is snowy and super cold outside, the night is clear and the breath escapes my mouth as a white poof.  Everything is calm and tranquil since it is close to 9pm in the cold cold month of December.  I was admiring the scenery of the 600ft walk from the bus stop to our school when out of the corner of my eye I saw something was a little different then normal.

Part of the walk home

To my right there was a building that has been under construction since before Amanda and I arrived in South Korea, it is a large structure so I assume it is meant to be an apartment complex.  It is shrouded by scaffolding and generally pretty desolate looking, much like the apartment which are going up behind our school (completely ruining the view from our apartment window).  So I looked at the building under construction and wouldn't you know it?  There it was plain as night sky around me there was a freaking fire going on in the top floor of the building.

Oh snap somethings burning on that top floor back there

So I pause for a second, I am in a foreign country, out in the middle of no where, I don't know enough of the language for conversation much less emergency purposes.  What the heck do I do now, I don't particularly want to see a building burn down (though that would be pretty cool to watch in a controlled environment mind you) but what good would I be.  Behind me about 100ft is a road that is rarely traveled and somehow I don't think it would end well if I flagged down a random car filled with a Korea most likely who doesn't speak English and is probably scared of foreigners.

So I did what any sensible adult would do, I ran back to the apartment to get my wife so we can take pictures and gawk at the sight unfolding before me.  So I ran to the apartment, set down the Subway sandwich I picked up for dinner (EAT FRESH) and told Amanda that there was a building on fire and that she should grab her camera.  Then we dashed out the door to watch the burning happen in real time.  We got down to the place, flames danced out the single window now and then, and you could hear the crackling or wood being burned.

Fire baaaad

So I decided I was damned if I wasn't going to do anything about this so I decided I was going to go ask the people at the restaurant by the street for help!  I ran to the restaurant and went inside.  I was sure to wipe my shoes off thoroughly (a fire is not an excuse to be rude).  I went up to the counter and said fire and motioned him to follow me.  The glazed look of confusion on the middle aged mans face behind the counter told me I had made a grave mistake even trying.  I tried to make a motion of fire with my hands and repeated fire a few times, however it did not work, his expression did not change.  I am sure he was either scared of the crazy white person who intruded on his restaurant or was now under the belief that I as my mother enjoys putting it "cognitively sluggish."

I'm sure my cheeks began to glow as I stood there not sure what to do, and probably looking dumber and crazier by the second and I added what I would consider to be fire noises to my already strange show.  "Whoosh!" I said and I had my hands dance wildly upward.  Suddenly I realized I had both a phone and the universal tool that is the internet at my disposal.  I quickly grabbed my phone and tried to access Google, which quickly failed because the signal inside the building was shit.  I turned and walked towards the window as the middle aged Korean man stared at me.  I can still feel his confused stare burning into the back of my skull.

Last picture

I accessed the magical tubes of the internet and attempted to spell out "fire in korean" however due to my massive sausage fingers this effort took me several tries and probably almost a minute of annoyed swearing before I achieved the desired words.  I combed the internet the looking, and finally found a good translation. Proud of my majestic wisdom I strolled back to the middle aged man and repeated the word "BUL" to which the mans expression did not change in the least.  Finally, feeling defeated I shoved my Korean phone in his face and pointed to the actual spelling of fire.  Finally the man looked slightly more interested in what I was trying to say.  I motioned him to follow me and we went outside and around the side of the building.

I pointed happily up to the fire as if I was a dog proudly showing off a stick I had found.  The middle aged Korean man simply looked at me waved me off and walked back inside.  I stood there perplexed what the hell was I supposed to do now?  I felt the cold air come over me as my high about doing the right thing began to fade.  It was cold, it was almost 10pm at this point, and I was tired.  I walked back over to Amanda, and I explained to her what had happened with the man.  Then walked out way back to our apartment.

I wish I had a more exciting ending to the story, but I guess something happened there because the building is still standing, and strangely enough doesn't seem to have sustained any fire damage.  Other nights when I have walked home around the same time a fire isn't present.  My director when I asked about it also waved me off without telling me what was happening with the building.  I'd say I was going insane but the pictures with the obvious fire say otherwise.

So basically the moral of the story is if you see a fire in a foreign country, do as much as you can until an old man shoos you away.

Cold in Korea

It's cold, cold, cold here in South Korea right now. If the frost on the windows wasn't any sort of indication, the frigid outside and the numbers from the weather websites I follow certainly confirm it. In fact, per Yonhap News (in English of course), Record cold snap grips Korean Peninsula.

As of right now, which is 10:52AM here in Korea (that would be 8:52PM in the EST time zone) the temperature is -15 °C and the high is -2 °C. Last night's low temperature was also -18 °C. Needless to say it's extremely cold. 
The bus is a welcome change from the cold temperatures, but we still do a lot of walking to and from certain 
places due to our location. We've also run into issues of frozen pipes downstairs in the school kitchen due to
the temperature. Fortunately, our boiler seems to be doing well enough that we get water for showers and have
water for the upstairs plumbing. It's the little things.

Speaking of little things, a McDonald's opened up near us (a few blocks walk away) which we've visited once
and will probably be frequenting since it's convenient, in addition to being cheaper than back in the US. We think
the quality is better too. :)

Another little thing, for me anyway... I tried these prize machines back when we first got here, but only recently 
have I actually played them more. Basically, in the bottom left corner there is a rod with a white cap on the end
and you use the pink joystick on the left side to move it to the right or left and then use the big white button to 
raise the rod upward from wherever you moved it horizontally. Then you cross your fingers and hope that it
pushes your desired item to the back to drop down at the bottom for you to take home. 

I have come to greatly enjoy these games because they're cheap, have entertaining things in them oftentimes, and 
they're just kind of fun and something kind of neat to do when there isn't much else in winter. I even won this cute 
little husky (also known as Brownie) for 2000won or two tries. 

Otherwise, we've visited the foreigner bars around here for Western food, but have been inside much more. Our
current pastimes? Video games, reading, browsing various websites (I'm on Pinterest a lot lately), and going out 
for things we may need or want. Someone posted a picture in the local Facebook group with the text "Apart 
from drinking, there is absolutely nothing to do here" and it is a sentiment that I feel is pretty accurate. That said, 
if skiing or snowboarding is your thing I know that is something to do. With the frigid temperatures lately I think I
prefer to stay inside though!

On a final note before we head out to do a little bit of shopping. I was given this adorable card(??) by one of my students, James, for the new year. It is adorable and sweet and I will have to get a better picture of it.

Otherwise, I hope everyone's 2013 is off to a good start! We're off to trudge into the snow to pick up a few things, including lunch (and if I'm lucky a play on those fun games, even if it is cold).