Window toward the outside world

LG Play the London Eye

2010-09-08T02:16:00.005+09:00

A man pretends to spin the London Eye. What's going on in London?

The film introduces LG 12x blu-ray rewriter by a fun story.
I think it's great!

Click here: http://www.lg.com/supermulti

Belief

2010-04-14T23:49:00.007+09:00

After my first visit to Osaka, I got to believe that the city always gives me something crucial. It was my 2nd time visit this year and I believe I took something valuable. So what would it be?

The New Chocolate - LG BL40 - Masters from the east Viral AD

2009-10-23T06:04:00.007+09:00

LG Secret KF750 Viral AD

2008-06-25T02:43:00.002+09:00

What the f*ck!!

2005-06-18T03:40:00.000+09:00

Today I'm extremely upset with a company that I've helped to plan a marketing campaign and advised on how to penetrate a market. I tried to call a marketer of the company several times, but he didn't answer at all.

It is last week that he told me that we would sign a contract soon and he asked me about lots of questions related to "its marketing strategies". At that time, I thought that we would sign a contract soon so it was natural for me to accept his request.

That sucks!
Late at night, a staff of the company, who has just been in charge of its marketing department, called me and she started to explain it won't sign a contract with me and it doesn't need my business advises any longer.

Oh dear!
I have never received a retainer from it although I wasted more than 50 hours on helping it.
Hehe, I hope it goes bankrupt!

Hey, guys!
Let me know how to take revenge on it.

I miss my best friends~

2005-04-30T16:16:00.000+09:00

Recently I've got lots of stress from my employees, co-workers and clients. To put it mildly, I feel suffocated by everything around me. Ultimately I thought that I had to find something to relieve my furious feelings. But I didn't know what would work for my symptom.

# # # #

By the way, I took a look at my photos which my best friends are in, and I felt better than before.

Job Interviews

2005-04-11T00:37:00.000+09:00

I'm managing a marketing project that is not small. I thought at least 8 people would be involved in the project before signing its contract, and recruiting 8 associates wouldn't be tough. But the result exceeded my expectations. First of all, there were few good candidates, and their abilities sometimes made me feel disappointed and upset. Even though I've had lots of interviews, my heart have never let me say "Join the project!"

Anyhow, my tomorrow schedule will include several job interviews by 7 p.m. I just hope that I meet a smart, lively person tomorrow.

Burritos remind me of Mexico

2005-02-01T23:29:00.000+09:00

I bought Burritos for my lunch. They weren't quite delicious today.

I purchased frozen, cheap burritos from a big mart like Safeway when I was hungry and hadn't enough money. Anyhow, at that time those were badlly delicious.

OK, Burritos finally remind me of the best Mexican friends, and Mexican food that doesn't agree with me.

Cookies?

2005-02-01T02:26:00.000+09:00

from anonymous

Edible or not?

2005-02-01T02:23:00.000+09:00

Is it really made from flash?

2005-01-28T22:57:00.000+09:00

Hey~ You all must check this out and appreciate this work like good wine.

SAMSUNG MOBILE SGH-Z107

7 Lucky tips for happiness

2005-01-25T01:28:00.000+09:00

There has been a pile of work on my desk since 3 months. And I feel I'm suffocated by that. Of course my biz-partner does.

I already perceived the truth that money isn't happiness and success isn't happiness. Still, I don't know how to control my real life such as getting up early, going to bed early and eating regularly.

Some people seem to be born lucky. What's their secret? The British magazine Focus(August 2004) provides seven handy tips for those seeking better luck in their lives:

1. Build a strong network of people who can open new doors for you. You can easily meet new people by doing things like regularly chatting with people you don't know well.

2. Try to relax physically and mentally so you're more open to happiness and pleasant experiences. Simple relaxation exercises can help. For example, breathe deeply in and out and imagine you're in a peaceful place.

3. Strengthen your intuition through meditation.

4. Learn to expect happiness. Start your day with a positive thought like "I deserve happiness and today, too, my destiny will be with me."

5. Always strive towards particular goals, even if the chance of success is small.

6. If something unfortunate happens, try to focus on the positive. Console yourself by imagining how much worse it could have been. Ask yourself the question: is this really so important?

7. When times turn tough, distract yourself by going to the gym or a movie, meeting up with friends or listening to music.

from Ode

Click the feather!

2005-01-22T19:49:00.000+09:00

It's quite cool!
I think this stuff is made for viral marketing.
Have fun!

from AXE

Hit the sack!

2005-01-20T20:01:00.000+09:00

Hm, I need more sleep!

I'm writing something about "Blog Marketing". I didn't think this job would be a hard one when I accepted that.

If I finish a manuscript, I'll be able to get a contribution fee 250,000Won(about US250$).

Think big!

2005-01-11T19:43:00.000+09:00

I'm getting older day by day! Still, I haven't good enough money to do everything I want. In addition, I don't even know what great happiness would be in my life.

I've recently watched a TV show regarding "a young couple living in the hills". They are high educated but they decided to live there to feel much happier without any stress of city life. They do farming and foster their livestock.

Once I thought over living in rural communities but I just perceived the truth that I'm the very lazy man.

If I were with a lovely girl there, I could live together there enthusiatically, passionately. Believe it or not!

A cute chicken says "Happy New Year 2005"

2005-01-01T23:59:00.000+09:00

If anybody asked me, "How's your day going?"
I would say, "I'm too busy for now."

Since 3 weeks ago, I've felt I should replicate me due to a bunch of work to do by myself. I couldn't recognize when 2004 Christmas left from my town. How sad it was!

A few people like Rbaht suspect what the hell bugged me. OK! I'm gonna tell you what I've done by now. Firstly, I signed up a contract with a new client regarding implementing a marketing project. As soon as I did, I posted a "Help Wanted" notice on the Internet to find great, smart employees for the marketing project and interviewed some candidates for research associates. In the meantime, I several times met the client to have a grasp of his problems and compelling needs. Of course, after every meeting, I drew up terribly thick proposals.

Take 5!! Secondly, I designed a simple system for managing research materials and outsourced the development of the system. You know it's a big deal so I had to work even on Sundays.

Lastly, I discussed and studied with newly employees regarding what to research, how to manage data they'll find and what to extract from the data in order to analyze.

Hey Rbaht! How is my Brazilian coffee? Don't worry. I'll get it soon.

Everybody, "Happy New Year!"

thanks beastgood

Golden Thursday!

2004-12-04T01:39:00.000+09:00

Golden Thursday!

I make a rule to get up late and go to bed late! I know It's one of my bad habits, though. That's not the point of what I want to say by the way.

In the morning of the day, I've got a call from KTF, a Korean mobile communication service provider, to let me know about the fact that I've had a good opportunity to experience its service for free and it will pay me a reward-250,000 Won (around 240 US$).

In the afternoon of the day, I've got a call from LGT, another Korean mobile communication service provider, to let me know about the fact that my simple marketing proposal could be accepted so I will have to visit its office with my full proposal the following day.

What a wonderful Thursday it was!

In addition, there have arrived 5 bottles of expensive "brand new yogurt" in my workplace. They all were freebies. I played a game on the Internet to get the freebies a few weeks ago. Eventually I've got the 5 bottles as a prize.

Rbaht!

2004-12-01T19:28:00.000+09:00

A close ex-coworker of mine flew to Sao Paulo in Brazil a few days ago without notice. You know he is the very man that went to a Turkish restaurant in Itaewon with me almost 2 weeks ago. We celebrated the event that he just got out of his unemployed life. And finally he advanced into the new world Brazil, the opposite side of Korea.

Of course I have no idea of what exactly he's gonna do there and how long he plans to stay there for. Because, as mentioned above, he's never told me about his business trip to Sao Paulo. And I got to know of his trip thru an entry of his blog.

He added in his blog that he will give a presentation regarding KMS(Knowledge Management System) and, afterwards, stop by HOOTERS I'm interested in around there.

"Hey, Rbaht! Do you hear me?
Anyhow, in the depression of Korean economy, I hope that you earn lots of US$ there, post funny and weird stories about Sao Paulo in your blog, and buy me a good souvenir."

Animation Magazine

2004-11-30T13:22:00.001+09:00

I met with Jean, president of Animation Magazine last week when she participated in BCWW. One of my friends, Amber referred her to me so that she may meet a proper person who can help her to publish the Korean edition of Animation Magazine. Anyhow, thanks a million, Amber!

Actually I don't like animation stuff too much except in my childhood. Why? Well, since almost 30 years ago, I've seen a lot of animation movies produced by Hollywood like "The Lion King", "The Little Mermaid" and the like. I know the animation movies are almost perfect and fantastic in terms of their storylines and cutting edge techniques. However, I doubt whether there would be intentionally hidden messages like pro-Capitalism, pro-Americanism and pro-Neo Conservatism in their movies. Plus, I easily feel bored as soon as I start to watch one. I suppose I already got adapted to Hollywood styles and I ended up failing to find out anything intriguing from it.

Back to my work!

Then We talked a lot about how to publish the Korean edition of it. Yet we couldn't find any good solution to do that. In the depression of Korean economy, nobody wants to invest into any risky projects. I emphasized that we would have to find a proper publishing house at first. Alas, it seemed to me that she didn't completely agree with me and she got an interest in how to translate, audit and distribute her future Korean magazines. Okay, I already realized how much different two cultures are. Accordingly one of my work is to be a bridge between two.

A tip:
You should know that, if you want to penetrate your product or service into a Korean market, don't regard it an easy job.

Korean star creates Tokyo frenzy

2004-11-26T14:03:00.000+09:00

Korean star creates Tokyo frenzy

Korean actor Bae Yong-joon has been greeted by 7,000 screaming fans on a visit to the Japanese capital Toyko.

The 32-year-actor, who has starred in hit television dramas shown in Japan, is known as Yong Sama - a name which means "royalty" in Japanese.

The star has become one of the most popular actors in Japan due to a fashion for all things Korean.

Bae has become a household name for his role in Winter Sonata, a soap opera which scored huge ratings.

The actor said he was worried before making the trip to Tokyo.

Love affair

"I could hardly sleep last night. I was worried there would be so many fans that they might hurt themselves," he said.

The thousands of mainly middle-aged female fans who turned out to see Bae either cried or grabbed pictures of him on their mobile phones.

Japan's love affair with Korea follows a tense history between the two nations, after the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula from 1910-45.

But the popularity of recent Korean soap operas has strengthened the sense of cultural affinity between the two countries.

Around 100,000 Japanese women are expected to go on tours of South Korea which feature locations from Winter Sonata.

The dramas usually feature traditional Asian values like repsect for parents, plus romance and nostalgia.

Critics have called the soap operas "soppy", and said that Japanese people should concentrate on changing their attitudes to ethnic Koreans who live in Japan.

link: BBC

# # # # #

I watched Winter Sonata (겨울연가 in Korean) 3 years ago. I liked it much. Also my homestay mother who is from Italy watched it in 2002 when I was in Vancouver. She told me that it was a very sad story but she liked this kind of thing too much.

I've thought about the reasons that many Korea dramas are based on sadness.

One of them could be that Korean people have been suffering from hidden sorrowful memories from the eras of the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsular, Korean War and the ruling of militarists. Thus, perhaps sad stories can touch a string in their heart.

I like Jazz and Blues too. It seems to me that Korean grief would be the same spirit as Blues and negro spirituals.

SALAM and All That Jazz

2004-11-20T02:21:00.000+09:00

Tonight I met with a friend who has been workless for a long time because he started to work again a few months ago and got a salary.

First of all, we went to a Turkish restaurant SALAM in Itaewon. Orignally I was supposed to eat Thai food, however, we changed our plan and decided to eat Turkish food which is less expensive than Thai. Yet we didn't know well about which dishes we should try.

After eating up, we visited a Jazz bar ALL THAT JAZZ near SALAM.

Turkish Restaurant SALAM

The inside of "ALL THAT JAZZ" in Itaewon

A nomad at dawn in Burnaby

2004-11-19T18:01:00.000+09:00

If on a night in the summer, you have missed your last bus in a strange place, what would/should you have done?

I just wandered around there and I took some pictures.

Blue and pink sky of Burnaby

The same day in NYC

2004-11-15T20:02:00.000+09:00

The host looks like a movie actor in Zorro.

Marcello and the host of its guest house

One day in NYC

2004-11-15T19:40:00.000+09:00

What is the wooden stick that a man named Marcello is holding?

John and Marcello in the hallway of a guest house in NYC

Kimchi Noodle I love

2004-11-10T19:56:00.002+09:00

Last night I ate a Kimchi Noodle(Kimchi Udon) at Kisoya, a Korean-Japanese restaurant with my coworkers. Whenever we think of a day as special enough, we go there together. We almost signed a contract for marketing with a web-based education company. We were worth eating out there, right?

However, I have bad memories of the days after I ate the Kimchi Noodle. To me it's too extremely hot and spicy, it's pretty much delicious, though. This morning my vowels were also irregular. Unwillignly, I went to a wash room in a subway on my way to my workplace.

Correlation between IQ and US Presidential Election

2004-11-07T03:29:00.000+09:00

Though I'm off-duty today, I went to my workplace because I would meet with Shawn in front of a KFC of COEX Mall which is adjacent to my workplace.

And after that event, I was just stuck in my workplace. I happened to see my ex-superviser on the friends' list of MSN Messenger. I started sending greeting to him in Vancouver. He said he was even working at midnight thanks to co-working with a client based in Beijing. He's from Birmingham, England and he can speak Chinese a little, I suppose. We naturally began to talk about the result of US Election 2004. He said 'Bush won', I said 'So sad! Who did you support? Kerry?', he said 'I guess', I said 'Even if I have no vote for the US Election, I supported Kerry by using a remote ZEN control in Korea', he said 'haha, check out this site'.

That site is about 'IQ and Politics'. It's funny and logical. Hey just check out your IQ. It's clear that my IQ is more than 100 because of supporting Kerry, right?

	State	Avg. IQ	2004
1	Connecticut	113	Kerry
2	Massachusetts	111	Kerry
3	New Jersey	111	Kerry
4	New York	109	Kerry
5	Rhode Island	107	Kerry
6	Hawaii	106	Kerry
7	Maryland	105	Kerry
8	New Hampshire	105	Kerry
9	Illinois	104	Kerry
10	Delaware	103	Kerry
11	Minnesota	102	Kerry
12	Vermont	102	Kerry
13	Washington	102	Kerry
14	California	101	Kerry
15	Pennsylvania	101	Kerry
16	Maine	100	Kerry
17	Virginia	100	Bush
18	Wisconsin	100	Kerry
19	Colorado	99	Bush
20	Iowa	99	Bush
21	Michigan	99	Kerry
22	Nevada	99	Bush
23	Ohio	99	Bush
24	Oregon	99	Kerry
25	Alaska	98	Bush
26	Florida	98	Bush
27	Missouri	98	Bush
28	Kansas	96	Bush
29	Nebraska	95	Bush
30	Arizona	94	Bush
31	Indiana	94	Bush
32	Tennessee	94	Bush
33	North Carolina	93	Bush
34	West Virginia	93	Bush
35	Arkansas	92	Bush
36	Georgia	92	Bush
37	Kentucky	92	Bush
38	New Mexico	92	Bush
39	North Dakota	92	Bush
40	Texas	92	Bush
41	Alabama	90	Bush
42	Louisiana	90	Bush
43	Montana	90	Bush
44	Oklahoma	90	Bush
45	South Dakota	90	Bush
46	South Carolina	89	Bush
47	Wyoming	89	Bush
48	Idaho	87	Bush
49	Utah	87	Bush
50	Mississippi	85	Bush

Go Kerry!

2004-10-31T02:48:00.000+09:00

I remember I was looking forward to seeing Gore as the newly US President in 2000. As you know, its reality was disappointing me too much at that time.

I forgot telling firstly you about my nationality. I'm not American but Korean. Thus I have no vote in US Election 2004.

Why am I talking seriously about that now by the way? No doubt that the result of US Election will be heavily influencing on most Korean lives in terms of economy, politic, national defense and so on. Especially from the perspective of Korean diplomacy, Kerry will be able to restore the relations between North Korea and the United States. And he is more likely to pacify Iraq quickly than Bush. Um, the international relations would be better under his lead, too.

So I'm supporting Kerry as a man living on the Earth.

I'm beat!

2004-10-08T02:43:00.000+09:00

I'm extremely tired now. I know, in fact, I didn't work too hard today.

Mm, so what the heck did I do today?

Firstly, I bought my lunch at a nearby department store. It was very important for everybody as well as me, right?

Secondly, I printed out a document, proofread the document and discussed with a brilliant founding partner which part of it should be changed or what should be added to it. Then I went to meet a patent attorney and asked him to correct it in his office.

Lastly, I ate junk food and continued to draw up an One-Page proposal related to a patent. To be honest, I tried to make the proposal an One-Page. It was too hard to condense it into only one page. Finally, I made a compromise with condensing it into a Two-Page proposal.

Sorry, the One-Page Proposal!

I believe

2004-10-06T02:49:00.005+09:00

I believe
sung by Soo-Young, Lee in 1999

Ode October 2004

2004-10-05T19:41:00.001+09:00

The very Ode magazine's just arrived on my table. The main topic in it seemed to be "organic" I'm interested in. I glanced roughly at its contents including other themes "Nuclear Power", "Muslim" and the like. I'm dying to read it;however, there are some must-read books "Linked", "The Wisdom of the Crowds" and "Alchemist" in my backpack sorrowfully.

Have you ever heard about Chuseok?

2004-09-28T04:14:00.000+09:00

There are just a few people on the streets in downtown Seoul. While I headed for my workplace, I saw some people that look like foreigners, rather than Korean especially in COEX MALL and as well as McDonald's inside. So I felt as if I were in Burnaby's Metrotown Mall on Thanksgivings Day. You know Koreans are likely to cater for Chuseok Festival each their own place with their family members or drive for their hometown on a long journey. Even though today is a big holiday, I worked in order to create a business plan to apply for a BM patent. Thus, am I allowed to look forward to harvesting great fruits in my industry, Jesus?

Hm, tomorrow it could be a good idea to visit Insadong or Korean palaces after Charye.

Chuseok, which falls on August 15 of the lunar calendar, is perhaps the biggest national holiday in Korea. This year Chuseok will fall on the 28th of September. Chuseok is also called Jungchujeol. This literally means "midautumn" day. Chuseok is a period where separated family members gather to discuss their lives while enjoying the newly harvested grains and fruits. The most important activity done at Chuseok is to give thanks to ancestors and also to give thanks to Mother nature for providing a bountiful harvest. After changing into the hanbok, the family busily prepares dishes with the newly harvested grain. Then this is offered to the ancestors as a way of saying thank you. This rite is called Charye. When offering Charye, you will always find certain kinds of food such as: Kimchi, meat, walnuts, persimmons, dates, pears, apples. And chuseok wouldn't be completed without Songpeyon. After the Charye, all the family members gather to go to the graves of their ancestors. They go there to pay their respects and afterwards they clear up the surrounding area by pulling weeds.

The Wisdom of the Crowds

2004-09-24T03:42:00.000+09:00

Lately I'm reading a book "The Wisdom of the Crowds" written by James Surowiecki on a subway train during my commuting. Although there are only 30 pages of it I read, I think it seems to be awesome. The main reason I'm reading it is that it could be terribly helpful for my business activities.

I forgot telling about what it is about. Hm, its title will be sufficiently able to explain that.

The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies and Nations

I'm just gonna introduce it to you guys right below.

--------------------------------------------------------
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly

While our culture generally trusts experts and distrusts the wisdom of the masses, New Yorker business columnist Surowiecki argues that "under the right circumstances, groups are remarkably intelligent, and are often smarter than the smartest people in them." To support this almost counterintuitive proposition, Surowiecki explores problems involving cognition (we're all trying to identify a correct answer), coordination (we need to synchronize our individual activities with others) and cooperation (we have to act together despite our self-interest). His rubric, then, covers a range of problems, including driving in traffic, competing on TV game shows, maximizing stock market performance, voting for political candidates, navigating busy sidewalks, tracking SARS and designing Internet search engines like Google. If four basic conditions are met, a crowd's "collective intelligence" will produce better outcomes than a small group of experts, Surowiecki says, even if members of the crowd don't know all the facts or choose, individually, to act irrationally. "Wise crowds" need (1) diversity of opinion; (2) independence of members from one another; (3) decentralization; and (4) a good method for aggregating opinions. The diversity brings in different information; independence keeps people from being swayed by a single opinion leader; people's errors balance each other out; and including all opinions guarantees that the results are "smarter" than if a single expert had been in charge. Surowiecki's style is pleasantly informal, a tactical disguise for what might otherwise be rather dense material. He offers a great introduction to applied behavioral economics and game theory.

[from Amazon.com]

Emailed Blogger.com

2004-09-24T03:11:00.000+09:00

I'm now much interested in everything about Blog. That doesn't just mean I like blogging or making a crossing over the ocean of blogs. I would be wondering about RSS, Trackback, Atom, and something else related to blog's technology. Of course, the ideology of blog, too.

Now I'm preparing to create a business plan regarding using blog to make profit.

Ah! I've recently emailed Blogger.com to make inquiry about how to add Trackback to my blog. I'm waiting for the reply of it.

Super soup

2004-09-17T21:19:00.001+09:00

Super soup

JENNIFER BAIN

By this time next year, I predict that any true Toronto food lover will zealously vouch for a favourite pork bone soup joint.

Cheap, filling, sublimely satisfying and spiced just right, the soup also known as gamja-tang is a certified craze in Koreatown, where restaurants use storefront signs and colour menu pictures to boast of their prowess.

"Home of Toronto's best pork bone soup," screams a convincingly bold, bright yellow sign with black and green writing that stretches six feet along the window of Umji Bunsik.

At Seoul Restaurant, the words "pork bone soup" have been scrawled on bristol board, with cute pig faces etched into the first two letter "o's."

So what catapults a soupy stew up into the realm of must-eat Toronto treasures?

A mere $5 to $6 buys a feast of meaty pork neck bones and potato chunks in a wholesome broth spiked with Korean soybean paste and hot red pepper powder.

White rice is always served on the side, and you might be treated to kimchi and other Korean nibblies (panchan). Generous cooks round out their soups with a tangle of fresh bean sprouts, a sprinkling of chopped or shredded green onions, cooked cabbage or dark leafy greens, ginger or even crunchy brown perilla seeds (from a plant that's related to the mint and basil family).

While each rendition springs from the same core ("gamja" means potato and "tang" means soup or stew), subtle differences make each unique.

In other words, a gamja-tang spree is a prerequisite before you can declare which precise bowl best suits your taste. I've already enjoyed six. (And if you're fussed about the setting, the Koreatown restaurants range from cheap and cheerful to slick and trendy.)

The real beauty of pork bone soup is that it demands personalized, mindful eating.

It usually arrives, bubbling fiercely, in a heavy stone bowl set on a tray, with huge bones jutting from the broth. With chopsticks and a long-handled spoon as utensils, how you proceed is your call.

Scenario #1: Pick most of the meat from the bones with chopsticks, then pick up the bones by hand to reach the marrow-filled crevices. Discard the bones in the empty bowl that's always provided, then stir the side dish of rice into the remaining broth and vegetables and eat the rest of the meal with the spoon.

Scenario #2: Spoon broth over the rice, then pull some meat from the bones with chopsticks and scoop up some soupy rice. Enjoy.

The variations are endless. But here are three pork bone soup absolutes: It's not practical to share this soup. You must start with a very empty stomach. It's messy business if you drop a bone.

(And beware of bone fragments.)

Oddly, given the attention and effort required to enjoy gamja-tang, it's considered a Korean hangover helper.

"Believe it or not, a lot of people eat it for breakfast after a night of heavy drinking," says Shaun Park, co-owner of Tasty Restaurant in Koreatown. He's a Korean Canadian who loves gamja-tang and the influx of small Korean eateries — known as bunshiks — along Bloor St. between Christie and Bathurst Sts.

"These little places are becoming popular and are pushing out the bigger ones that frankly were very expensive and not very good."

For background on gamja-tang, you're better off scouring the Internet instead of Korean cookbooks. According to the website What's On Korea, gamja-tang originates from ancient times when people boiled pork bones to treat the sick and elderly. It's said to help children grow, prevent aging and snoring, cure pimples, freckles, liver spots and skin troubles.

In less fanciful terms, Seoul Tourism calls gamja-tang "one of the most perfect accompaniments to drinks."

The Korean city of Daegu boasts a "Gamja-tang Alley" with about seven restaurants featuring the specialty. (Hey, we've got more than that!)

Shigol Gamja-tang — on the "famous Eung-am-dong Gamja-tang street" in Seoul — boils its pork bones twice for extra-tender meat.

Gamja-tang shows up on Korean menus in New York and Los Angeles.

Jonathan Gold, in a February story in L.A. Weekly called "Koreatown's Top 40," writes that "Korean hangover remedies happen to taste really good. Among the best and most restorative of these, as unfortunately we have reason to know, is gamja-tang ..."

As Gold observes, "Korean cooking, at least as it is presented in Los Angeles, is not an especially refined cuisine. Korean restaurants here tend to be either homey or raffish, Mom's cooking or sophisticated bar snacks. Nobody seems especially concerned with royal delicacies from the Koryo empire: Korean restaurants, even the expensive ones, serve people's food."

In Toronto, the people are eating. Although pork bone soup has been served for at least six years in Koreatown, it only recently leapfrogged to the top of menus.

"Pork bone soup is very popular and everybody wants to sell the popular food," observes Younmi Kim, a waitress at Boo Ung Ee, a 24-hour student hangout that's known in English as Owl of Minerva. Minerva was the Roman goddess of wisdom, war and crafts. Boo Ung Ee wisely serves just four dishes on its daytime menu.

Susan Ahn, owner of Umji Bunsik restaurant (the one with the big yellow sign), is effusive about the growing adoration of this dish. "Every customer, from different cultures and different countries, they love it. Especially the people who are familiar not only with the taste but the quality and price. Mostly students, young people and families like to come here."

Bryan You, owner of Mat de Mat restaurant, is pleased Torontonians are catching on to something that Korean and Japanese customers already love.

On his menu, gamja-tang is described as "pork born with potato soup" — a delightful typo. Across the street at Joons restaurant, the dish that supposedly translates as potato soup is spud-free.

"The popular thinking is that gamja means potato, but the pork bone neck part is what we call gamja," offers Joons' waiter, Eugene Lee.

However you translate it, this soup revolves around the meat — from neck and sometimes back bones (procured wholesale, since they're rarely seen in supermarkets) and simmered in broth until it practically falls from the bones.

So what's important to you in a bowl of pork bone soup? Please eat your way to an answer.

From Toronto Star

------------------------------------------------

Hm, it's true that many Japanese people I know really like to eat Gamja-tang.
When I was in Vancouver, my Japanese friends like that better than I do. So they often asked me to eat together at a Korean restaurant 'Jang-Mo-Jip' on Robson St..

Yes, it's delicious but you should know it's hot and spicy. Try it!

Ocarina

2004-09-13T17:38:00.000+09:00

In 1991 I decided to buy a cute, small musical instrument Ocarina that creates a powerful and touching sound. (It looks a little weird.) But I couldn't afford to get one. For 3 months I've worked as a Math tutor. Finally in spring of the year I bought one. And I tried to master Ocarina. I know it was just a hope.

Whenever I travel around, I keep it with me. To perform it to someone who doesn't know about it or who is concerned for it. Hey it's high time to listen!

Gmail Invites

2004-09-10T18:08:00.001+09:00

I adopted a Gmail account. Yet I don't know how to use this better. Because it's way big and its design look doesn't agree with me. Anyway I have 4 Gmail invites left to dispose of. (You know it's not mandatory.) Leave a comment here on this post or email me if you want one. Make sure to write your name and e-mail in.

A scene from my window

2004-09-09T19:56:00.001+09:00

Hey you guys! I'm gonna take off. I just wanted to let you guys know "Say Goodbye!"

Oh! I forgot telling you a scene with my workplace. It's getting dark outside. Still, hot enough. There would be so many cars, buses and people on the streets. I'm so sad I'll be absorbed into there soon. Here is a heart of IT industry in Seoul. The most famous IT companies such as Oracle, HP, MS, Samsung are stuck here, So am I.

See you later!

Listen carefully to Spanish Guitar

2004-09-09T01:27:00.001+09:00

Gary Moore - Spanish Guitar

As I sit here and play

my spanish guitar

underneath the stars,

it passes the time away.

Each note I play

is a memory of Spain,

the melodies they take me

back there again.

So as I sit here and play

on my old spanish guitar,

each note I play

just sails away.

And it brings me closer

to that spanish senorita.

Oh, she's so far away.

As I sit here and play

underneath the stars,

it passes the time away

and brings me closer

to my spanish holiday.

Purple Cow

2004-09-08T05:02:00.001+09:00

I've stayed in NYC for almost 3 weeks. You don't know what I was doing there for the 3 weeks. Oh my God! I was reading some marketing books. Can you imagine? It is in NYC that I didn't do anything funny and intriguing but just read not-so-funny marketing books in a Starbucks or in Central Park. The awful books are below.

Hm, "Permission Markeing" was a little bit more interesting than "Purple Cow" there.
Finally I and my friend decided to publish "Purple Cow" in Korea.

Marcello in Tokyo

2004-09-08T03:30:00.000+09:00

When I travelled in New York City in 2003, I met an Aussie in a guest house. It's sure that he has an awesome personality. Also, he can play a Brazilian musical instrument that looks so weird. During my staying there, we talked about our journeys and future plans. (Hey! I'm straight!) He told me that he would go to Tokyo to meet his girl friend.

Oh~ he's living in Tokyo with that girl.
Here's an email from him 'Marcello'.

Hi there everyone,

Well, the weather is getting better here in Tokyo. It is sunny, and almost warm over here. This weekend thousands of people flocked to the park at the end of our street to view the Sakura - Cherry Blossoms. These parties are called Hanami, or Cherry Blossom viewing parties, and they take place all over Japan when the trees are blooming. The Japanese come in groups of friends, work groups, or as families, bringing with them copious amounts of beer and sake, and basicaly do lots of funny dances, drink and eat a lot, and have a good time.

Yesterday I went by myself to the Tokyo International Anime Fair at the Tokyo Big Sight convention centre. Of course there were plenty of pretty Japanese promo-girls dressed as the latest popular manga and anime cartoon characters handing out flyers and stickers. There were also performances from some popular J-pop stars, and some cool dances from a bunch of people dressed up like the family from the Doraemon cartoon series.

Although it wasnt all fun and glitter. I woke up that morning feeling a little strange, with a not-so-happy tummy. I got the train with Kinu to Shinjuku station, where we departed our train from Kichijoji station to make it to the connecting train. I rushed to the mens toilet, waited for a vacancy, then jumped onto the Japanese style toilet - see "ceramic hole in the ground, with pole in the wall to keep you from falling in"! What came out of my body, squating over that hole, for the next 5 minutes must have come straight from hell, and I dont want to go into too much detail. Any way, feeling a little better, I waved goodbye to Kinu as she made her way to work, then got on the train to Tokyo Big Sight. Upon arriving at my final station, I got off the train, only to get that salty taste in my mouth, you know the one, the one I get a few seconds before I inevitably spew forth the contents of my stomach for all of Tokyo to see!!! I dont know how I did it, but I managed to join the not-so exclusive club of Japanese/nonJapanese men that have vommited on the Tokyo train tracks, without too many innocent bystanders!!!

Anyway, the rest of the day was followed by intermitant recurrances of the brown variety, from both holes. It took me 3 hours to get back home, I got stuck at one station, making about 6 trips back and forth to the toilet, and filled up a plastic bag with vommit on an unsuccesful rush back to the mens room.

I got home, jumped into our ofuro - J-style bathtub, and let the day soak away. having cleansed the demons from my body, I went to sleep in our futon, and waited for Kinu to get home from work...

So anyway, my O-Day for Nova is April 5th, then I start teaching English for them. In the meantime, I have applied for a couple of other part time jobs that start this week.

In other news, I have been teachnig myself Japanese, using a few helpful text books. I now have a J-mobile phone, of couse, it has a digital camera built in.

Soon I will be buying myself a PC, and then updating a website of my adventures.... stay tuned.

FYI: I am currently in Tokyo, Japan. I am living in a small apartment in a nice area of the metropolis that is Tokyo. I am sharing the apartment with my J-girlfriend, Kinu. Her mum and dad live about 7 minutes walk from our place. There is a beautiful park about 4 minutes walk from our apartment. It is filled with Cherry Blossom trees, and has a mystical shrine and small Zoo at one end, in the middle of a magical pond. I have a 6 month Working Holiday Visa, but I plan to extend that to a full-time sponsored Visa.

heres some links to help explain this email........
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2011.html
http://www.att.ne.jp/hamihami/jeff/2nd/
http://www.nephco.com/doraemon/
http://www.bigsight.jp/english/
http://www.taf.metro.tokyo.jp/eng/index.html http://505i.nttdocomo.co.jp/product/n505is/index.html

regards,
Marcello

Ode

2004-09-07T19:25:00.001+09:00

Africa
September 2004

Africa a continent of hunger, disease, corruption, war and lost hope? Wrong, Africa has its own message to bring to the rest of the world.

It's before me. I know I should read it now. I really like to read it.
However, I have no time to spare.

I need something to survive.

2004-09-07T18:46:00.000+09:00

I'm thinking deeply over what language will be helpful for my future.

I have an awful time in terms of my business.
At last I get to know earning money is not easy.
When I was an employee, I didn't care about my monthly paycheck.
Because my company gave me a paycheck on an apponinted time.

I set up a start-up company with my friends 1 year ago.
In a depression it's not likely to be easy to stand all hardships.
So now I'm thinking about what to do for my future and business.

First of all, from a commercial point of view, Korea is small compared with China, Japan and the US. So there are more chances to get in China, Japan as well as the US. Secondly, Japan and China are very geographically, culturally close to Korea. You know especailly 2008 Summer Olympics will be held in Beijing, China. Definitely there will be lots of opportunities in China.

So I'm asking which language will be promising, Japanese or Chinese(Mandarin)?
I don't know how long it takes to master one of them.
Anyway, I should start learning one of them ASAP.

A Korean teacher as a volunteer

2004-09-07T17:47:00.000+09:00

Last Saturday I visited GOA'L office located in Seoul.
GOA'L means "Global Oversees Adoptees' Link" founded by 12 oversees Korean adoptees in 1998.

Why did I visit there by the way?
'Cause I'm a really good person. right?

There are some people (Oversees Korean Adoptees) who want to learn Korean in order to communicate with their real parents without any help. You know they left for new countries such as the US, France, Denmark and the like with their foster parents when they were a child or a baby. So they now can't speak 'Korean' any more. They need a Korean teacher or an interpreter.

You know my Korean ability is good enough to teach someone. I think I must share my ability with others.

Hm, I'm waiting for my student. To be honest, I'm afraid of teaching Korean. Because I've already realized teaching Korean and Speaking Korean are quite different.

Hm, Smirnoff

2004-08-26T04:30:00.001+09:00

On a day like this, I should drink it. Who likes it? Come with me and drink it together.

But I'm afraid that I can't buy it anywhere.

Independent news paper, Salon.com

2004-08-26T02:46:00.001+09:00

One of my ex-coworkers has liked this independent press, so sometimes recommended it to me.

But I hardly visited at Salon.com 'cause the website didn't look cool for me.

Anyway, today finally I stopped by it to look for an article about the men's gymnastics all-around final. Oh~ here it is.

Unfavorable Scoring Denies Gymnasts

2004-08-19T22:34:00.000+09:00

I really freaked out after watching the result of Olympics' gymnastics (Individual All-around). Now I'm reading an article on Yahoo.com about the result.

Do you really think so? Paul Hamm is one of the greatest gymnasts. But the US is the biggest powerful nation in FIG as well as in the world. Any nations can't ignore the US and its people, right?

Why do you think it was fair for him to earn 9.837 and for a Korean gymnast to earn 9.475 on the high bar? You know no Japanese gymnasts didn't earn more than 9.837 on the high bar in men's team competition. Do you really think that Paul's performance was worth getting 9.837?

And you really know the fact that "In usual circumstances, one wouldn’t get a score more than 9.0, but it happened that way on Paul's vault."

What I used to be like?!

2004-08-15T03:18:00.001+09:00

Some people have a precious chance to think about themselves or change their lives when they come across weird experience even they can't explain.

In February of 2001, I was on travel in Japan by myself. Before I went to Japan, I thought I was an expertise in travel. For one month before leaving for Tokyo, I started to study Japanese culture and important places by using a travel guide book; however, I didn't learn the Japanese language. Although I knew only a few Japanese words, I never felt uncertain about traveling there.

So what happened to me then?

I'm gonna tell the story next time. Don't go away. Stick around.

Determine Your Clutter Quotient

2004-08-15T02:42:00.000+09:00

Determine Your Clutter Quotient

My room gets messy. A lot of stuff I don't know when I got is mounting up. So this Clutter Quotient is a good measurement for my life sytle. OK! Let's start!

To what degree does each statement reflect your situation:
1 = seldom or never, 2 = sometimes, 3 = usually, 4 = always

■ When I have free time, I go shopping.
■ I keep bills, bank statements and other mail in piles.
■ I have more than 10 plastic shopping bags in my house.
■ I save magazines with interesting articles or recipes.
■ I get tired just thinking about cleaning up all the clutter around me.
■ I often do two or more small projects at once.
■ My house may seem messy to others, but I know where everything is.
■ I discourage unexpected visitors.
■ I don't clean up certain things because otherewise I forget about them.
■ I don't have time to keep things in order.
■ I don't clean up the mess because if I do it just gets messy again.
■ I have a hard time getting rid of things.
■ The degree of stress in my house is connected with the amount of clutter.

Add up the points.
17: No prolem. You've got your clutter under control.
17 - 25: Clutter is only an occasional problem.
26 - 34: You are at risk of developing a clutter problem, but you're also capable of breaking old habits.
35 - 43: Ok, let's face it, if you don't do something now your clutter problem will only get worse.
44 - 52: Sound the alarm! It's high time you tacked the mess!

from odemagazine.com

Avril Lavigne to perform in Korea Once Again

2004-08-14T04:10:00.000+09:00

20-year-old rocker Avril Lavigne performed in Korea once again. She held a concert in Korea in January 2003 during the peak of her popularity and excited Korean pop fans in their teens and early 20s. Lavigne performed at the Olympic Hall in Olympic Park, Seoul, at 8:00 p.m. August 11.

The main reason why I like Lavigne is that she has rejected teen pop, which is represented by Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Instead, Lavigne shoulders a guitar and bounces on the stage like a tomboy playing her self-composed songs to gain the support from her peer-age fans that are tired of sweet and light songs.

I heard Korean fans were banned from jumping in the hall during Lavigne’s first Korean performance at the Millennium Hall in Central City because the building might have shaken.

I watched her showcase of the new album Under My Skin in Korea through the Internet. She looks so small and cute, however, her voice has lots of power and something to touch people.

And I'm gonna post a clip about the showcase in Seoul ASAP.

A fantastic magazine 'Ode'

2004-08-14T03:43:00.001+09:00

Last year I came across a good magazine on the Internet.
After I've got some issues and read them through, I decided to subscribe to the magazine. That is Ode which is from the Netherlands.
You should check it out at www.odemagazine.com.

Feels So Good, right?

2004-08-14T03:34:00.001+09:00

This is my favorite music. 'Cause the sound of flugel horn in this is so awesome.
I believe you'll like this soon.

Chuck Magione - Feels So Good (with vocals)

Welcome to my world!

2004-08-14T02:32:00.000+09:00

Hey, nomad!
Finally made my world.
I'm gonna try to garden my world with fresh air, cool water as well as sunshine.
Um, I'll be back soon.

See you later, alligator.
Thanks!