The Deed Is Done

  Jochiwon, Korea Rep.
Saturday, December 29, 2007

· Jochiwon, South Korea
· GMT +8:00 hours

No rest for the wicked
Work continues unabated. We've spent the last two days crafting detailed and complex schedules for the upcoming camps, which has obviously left us little time to put any creativity into our own daily schedules, which have looked something like this -

8:00am:
Alarm sounds and the loosing battle with the alarm snooze button begins
8:45am:
We saunter into the cafeteria and decide if what's on offer is worthy of consumption. Most of the times it is, we're just not hungry. This procedure is repeated at lunch (12 noon) and dinner (6:30pm), assuming we decide to pull ourselves away from the office.
9:00am:
Enter the office, sit down and stare at a computer screen.
11:00pm:
Leave the office, having spent the day (and night) making spreadsheet after spreadsheet, sideshow after sideshow, schedule after schedule.

Yes, we're working long hours and our eyes are wondering what they have done to deserve this punishment. But don't you be worrying - we're still having fun doing what we're doing, the odd disagreement aside. Right Princess?

So long, no more
Right so, the deed is done. I got a hair cut today. I'd been getting hints from all angles recently (I didn't know you all cared so much) but I think the straw that broke the camels back was when I heard Meg's dad confirm over a Christmas Day Skype call that yes indeed, I needed one. So bowing to international pressure I found myself earlier today settling into one of the chairs in the hair salon in the Korea University student union building. There I had my mop tended to by what I can only describe as the human equivalent of a sheep-shearer. The poor girl was on her own, getting through heads at the rate of one every ten minutes. That's not to say she did a rushed job on me. Not at all. When you have as little hair as I have left 10 minutes is all that's needed, even if there was over 5 months of growth to get through (there was). I was happy with the results, which roughly translated means I didn't end up with the Forest Gump, military-style haircut the Koreans seem to favour. And while it's still longer now than it normally is after an 'I'm-at-home' haircut it's a lot tidier than it was 8 hours ago (or 2 months ago for that matter). When all was said and done I expected to waltz back into the Camp Korea office and for everyone to proclaim how dashing I now looked. But not a word. That got me wondering. Maybe I should get another haircut tomorrow. They'd certainly notice a one-blade all over. But that would be a case of cutting off, em, my hair to spite my face, right?

The Unveiling

01 Dave & Meg's CK video

The deed is done with the CK video and here's what you've all been waiting for. Yes, the video masterpiece we made the other day has been uploaded to the Camp Korea website for all to view. It's an 11 minute plus feast for the eyes, but beware - you're likely to cringe so much that you may permanently disfigure your facial muscles. The link to the website changes frequently so I've decided to upload the whole video here (sorry Travelpod) instead of sending you to the CK website where it is housed. So click to the right for the video (you'll need a quick connection as it's 94mb big). We'll leave you to decide if letting it stream/downloading it onto your system is/was worth it. Just be nice in your criticism. Remember, it's our first time (and I've had a haircut since).

Something isn't right
The teachers continued to arrive today. Most of those contracted for the first week are here now, which is good, considering the orientation we've been preparing for them all week begins tomorrow. They seem like a good bunch of guys and they were all heading out for a drink tonight. They asked Meg and I if we wanted to go. That was possibly the stupidest question that has been addressed to me in a long while; of course I wanted to go out, but couldn't (had to work). The fact that we couldn't go out for a drink sort of hit home the fact that I'm on the other side, the unfamiliar, senior staff side, of the CK fence this time around. I mean, aren't I normally the one asking the "you wanna head out?" question in the first place? I know the grass isn't always greener but with a bit more watering on this side of the fence things should improve and I can get back to being myself.

Day 137 Observations (December 28th 2007)

· Only in Korea, part 1
We saw the strangest thing in the hair salon today. Once the patrons ahead of me in the queue for a haircut were finished they went to the till, opened it up, put in their money and took their change. The human sheep-shearer, the only employee in the place, just went about her business at the other end of the salon, cutting & trimming here, shaving there. Do you think you'd ever see that level of trust in Ireland or Canada? No, didn't think so.

· Only in Korea, part 2
Koreans get their hair cut and then they have it washed. Isn't it supposed to be the other way around, assuming there is a correct etiquette for that sort of stuff? Just wondering.