Hi, everyone!! Well, tomorrow is the last day of the summer term. I can't believe I survived! =) Each and every one of us has commented that the three months seemed to absolutely fly by. I guess that's what happens when you do the same thing, day in and day out, for six days a week for three months. It just gets to be repetitive. It just gets to be repetitive.

As you probably know, I am going to be returning to the US next Friday (August 30), and then I am coming back to Korea at the end of September, and staying here for another year. I am really excited about a year in Korea and what that will bring, but for now I am very focused on getting back to the US and enjoying my time there with you guys! Here's my travel schedule: Aug 30 - Sept 3 San Francisco Sept 3 - Sept 8 Connecticut Sept 8(?) - Sept 15 Boston Sept 15 - Sept 25(?) Connecticut After that I guess I'll be flying back to Seoul.

It's been a while since I've sent out a big "what I've been up to" email. I feel like I have no "classic Murphy" stories but here's what's happening...

As I expected, after about two months together it was only natural for cliques to form and for "the group" to stop doing things together. Two couples have formed and I suspect that both are headed for heartache.

As for me, you may remember that I had a bit of a romantic interest for a bit but that ended in a rather ugly fashion. Basically, she told me something about a friend of hers and asked me not to tell anyone. I opened my big mouth, word got around, and one night she hauled off on me in front of everyone. Now she just ignores me when she sees me at school. Oh well, it's better that way. No sad goodbyes at the end of the summer!

For the most part, I hang out with two guys named Rob and Eric. Rob is my best friend here and he is staying in Korea for a year, too. Eric is a great guy and is going to China to study for a year. They're both over 30 and I think it's no surprise that I tend to hang out with the 30+ crowd rather than the under-23 crowd.

We've been spending a lot of time (like, every night) at a bar near us called The Flair. You can check out their website, but it's mostly in Korean. Anyway, the draw to this place is that it is an "American bar" as opposed to a "hof". The difference is that in an "American bar", there is actually a BAR where you can sit and face the bartender, whereas in a "hof" you sit at a table and have a waitress. So we like going and sitting at the bar.

It doesn't hurt that there are three incredibly cute girls who work at the bar, who go by the names Jewel, Red, and Blue. They don't really speak English but I have convinced myself that I am going to learn Korean and marry Red by the end of next summer. =) At 11:30 every night the bartenders do a show that's straight out of the movie "Cocktail": lots of juggling bottles of vodka and lighting things on fire and free booze and lots of fun. I'm admittedly getting a bit bored with it but it's a good place to go at the end of the night.

I've been to about five baseball games, too. I want to go to more but generally don't have anyone to go with. Tickets are $5 and they have cheerleaders and fireworks and it's a good time. Sadly they sell neither beer nor hot dogs at the stadium, but you can get squid and Korean sushi from the vendors. Admittedly a bit weird. You can also get Burger King or Kentucky Fried Chicken. I have a favorite team (Doosan Bears) and a favorite player (Kim Dong Chu) and even bought a baseball cap. Generally we're the only white people in the stadium but I still love to go.

We've also been trying to see live music more often. One of my students is in a Rage Against The Machine-like funk/hip hop/metal band so I've been to see him a few times. His band plays at a really cool club in the university district and when we went on Sunday, one of the other bands started their set with "Smoke on the Water". Eric and I looked at each other and said "why didn't we start coming here back in June??" Monday we went to see The Cranberries, who aren't super popular here but they put on a fantastic show and we had a great time.

Classes are okay. Students and teachers alike are getting burned out from the long summer and my motivation is seriously waning. There are a few good students but for the most part I am just trying to keep the kids entertained (or at least awake) for two hours. For those of you who remmeber Lolita, she is long gone but has been replaced by a girl called Bo Ha, or "the dragon lady" (she has a tattoo of a dragon on her arm). She is quite the tease and always flirts with me in class but generally when I flirt back she doesn't get it. Or she's just playing cool. So I'm kind of bored with her.

Though I am pretty excited about staying in Korea, I am really, really, really looking forward to going back to America for a bit. Not to say that I don't like it here or that I can't stand to be away for more than three months. It's just that all along I have had it in my mind that I am going back in September, and now that time is almost here. I think it will be great to see everyone again because I probably won't see any of my friends for at least a year, so the time will definitely be special.

That's about it! We are having a big "good-bye dinner" on Saturday night and then most people are shipping off on Sunday. A friend of mine from Taiwan is coming to Korea on Sunday afternoon so I'm going to spend a few days hanging out with him, and then I'm off to San Francisco!! I can't wait to see you guys!! I hope everyone is doing well and I'll see you soon!!!!!

Chris