DIY is the way! And..Berare of second hand in South Korea!

I know people who have side businesses repairing computers, smartphones, cars (main business), even selling homemade foods. Most of these people have a do it yourself mentality. They have and are able to make money out of it. I do not have time to use my PC maintaining skills to earn money. Plus I can not fix apple computers. I ONLY know pc. 

However, it is very liberating to know exactly how to fix most common issues with a computer, and know what parts to buy if it can not be done at home with tools on hand. I have the same outlook with my car. I do not do to a mechanic and say my car is doing blah blah… NO I tell them "I need a new radiator this one is leaking." Or I say "How much is it to change a head gasket? I ask for services I need, or want. Very liberating. Once the mechanic broke my clock spring. I smelled something fishy when he blamed it on me. I only went to him for oil changes. So called my long time friend who helped A LOT with my education in car maintenance, and how to diagnosis certain issues. I asked him in English how much is a clock spring for my model of car. He told me it is 180 bucks new from KIA, not OEM. The mechanic seeing me drive a large car quoted 400 bucks. When I told him to stop cheating me. He then said it is 180 for a used unit. He likely could source one for free from a friend or a junk yard. I told him that look you are lying it is 180 for a NEW unit. I never went back there. 

Second hand items are another funny thing here. I will only say this. If prices are dirt cheap by from them you can trust them. If prices are slightly lower than the cheapest new items on the market stay away. Or if they are very cheap but they keep pushing you to buy a "new used item" run away. As for second hand goods you have to know the market. I was looking for a cheap monitor for my boys. I already new for a 24 inch monitor I could grab one for 95,000 won. I go into a shop. The dude sees my note 10 in my hand. He sees me using English with my wife. I ask for a old...very old 27 inch monitor. He said shiiiiiiip chil man won. Basically, he was seeing what I could afford by saying onnnnnneeeee hundred seventy thousand one! I laughed and told him that it is a rip off. I said thank you and left. 

He could have made an honest sale an gained a loyal customer. 

/tata

Coronavirus Korea was complacent.

A few weeks ago I was out with Yogita in our neighborhood having some grilled meat and a drink. We overheard a group of Korean males in their 50's state "Iksan is safe from corona". They went to talk about how life should return to normal, how South Korea handled this pandemic so well. 

Now, we are getting 200+ cases in the past 3 days, today it topped 300! Why? People got too relaxed. It is hot so why wear a mask? One woman saw Yogita and I and basically thanked us for wearing a mask. She then gave excuses as to why she did not want to wear one. As we parted she stated that washing the hands is enough. We both looked at her with dead pan eyes. 

South can not sustain what the USA is going through right now. I take back what I said a couple weeks ago about governments not printing money. Actually they are making out of thin air to make these "bonds" or "IOUs". If Korea did the same the won would tank very fast. I wish I could get 600 bucks a week in benefits during a lockdown. 

So here we are. This is not even the feared fall resurge I have been talking to Yogita about. This is people doing stupid things as if we are not living with a virus that we have no immunity to. People who feel a little under the weather and rather than get tested and self quarantine they go spread it to others. 

We have returned to a limited lockdown for our family. It will last two weeks. It really sucks, but it is needed. Too bad many other people are not following suit. Some teachers treated it like a holiday. Especially public school teachers, and some English "professors". I use that term loosely because to become a professor...basically they are ESL teachers who work for Universities. That is a topic for another day. 

Bottom line they traveled, held parties, basically they did not social distance at all. When a Korean super spreader the virus to 3 or 4 foreigners we all were treated as potential vectors for the virus. There have been reports of some losing jobs over just being in the same area. Lets not mention that the spreaders are in fact Korean. 

Basically, everyone is just taking it easy. If this thing isn't contained....I might be out of work for a few weeks, or out of a job all together. Of course I have backup plans in place. We go over them on a weekly basis. 

People need to keep vigilant!

Ok I need to make some photo copies for my last class!

/TATA

Vacation over...Chusok is around the corner!

This time of year tends to pass so quickly. I had a nice vacation. I chilled at home, and had drinks with Yogita. Our boys studied math, and the dog chilled in my room. Very very laid back and chill. We were invited to another friends birthday party (I think it is this coming Saturday). We declined. First, we are busy that day we will be doing some home cleaning. But, the main reason is that there is a number of small outbreaks in South Korea at the moment. Many people wear masks, while many do not. 

Yet another church this time is to blame. You see church services need to stop, and be moved online. Many churches have violated government orders. Many went to a rally is Seoul, many thousands packed in a small area. We have had almost 1000 new cases in 3 days. 297 being added today. So why this person wants to go to the largest city in our province and spend time in crowded drinking areas.

My vacation is over but I am worried about losing working days. Even if my salary is at 70% of normal if there is a long shut down staying at home in lockdown is nerve racking. If it happens again I WILL and the ENTIRE family will have more computer gaming time. Of course after chores and food is prepared. If I have to stay back there is no reason to just veg out and watch youtube, or Netflix. We will make headway in the games we play. Why not? There is really nothing else to do. We can exercise, prepare food, and do general chores. Problem is we are really good at those things. Now we have a slow cooker so we end looking at each other after 2 hours of being busy. Nah, not this time. If we have to stay home we will make the most of it. 

Well this week is actually almost over. Friday here I come!

/tata

People just don't get it...

While I was getting ready for work day some memories were on my mind. Over the years people have often expressed confusion, or well to be frank they just do not understand why we do things the way we do. 

Ok case in point because examples are needed, homeschooling. This was the best thing that could have happened to me. While I was in public schools in an underfunded district, and that is putting it mildly; teachers did not care. They did not really teach at all. There would be fighting in the class, talking, using bad words. Most teachers did nothing to control the students. When I was bullied I always fought back. This led to more issues. I made up my mind, screw school. I would turn to arcades to spend my time. I got really good at it too. 

Fast forward to high school. You see my mother was suffering from a very difficult to diagnose disease, Lupus. This was of course a major distraction. In and out of hospitals. Doctors visits, all this while suffering strange seizures. You see we did not know that there were different kinds of seizures. Finally in high school my Mom figured out that I was not going to school. I explained everything. I hated going to a place where I feared just getting there. We had a family discussion. It was then that we all learned once we went to public school to build personality, or to learn how to socialize, and exist in society we all changed.

We changed for the worse. We used to care for each other. My parents had five children. We really showed love, kindness, and compassion for each other. Once we went to school we all developed methods of coping with the bullying and teasing that went on. We brought that shit into our house. Teasing each other, tearing each other down rather than building up. 

Where I grew up used to be a nice place. Then drugs were allowed in. Yes that is right it was allowed in. I will not go into detail but that is what happened. 

When I talk of my early years some people just smile and say "Oh look at you now. There is no way it could have been as bad as you say." Usually, no everyone who said this happened to be White. No that is not true there is one man who I consider a part of my family who fully knows what it is like. 

People hear only what they want to hear. What they want to believe. Many people live with blinders on. Instead of listening they judge based on what they have experienced. It is normal but doesn't feel good on the receiving end. 

/tata

Money can't save us for long...

It is funny we live in  world where we can not live a comfortable stable life with out money. For the first time since 2016 we are making the most money we have ever made. Of course I will not put numbers here. This has led me to think about some things. First this money isn't really "worth" anything. Government policy, or some powerful people can change monetary, or banking policy that can lead to money losing value. Take India for example they removed 1000 rupee notes, and old 500 notes. This sudden move reduced the value of the rupee. There is an interesting Indian movie about this. Basically, the people holding illegal funds usually in great amounts, had advance warning. They worked with the banks to launder the money. Common folks lost money, time, and spent many stressful hours in line at banks to turn in old notes. Being in line at an Indian bank is not a pleasant experience. The line moves SLOWLY. 

So if you have 250,000 USD, you have to be so careful. How do you report it on your taxes, invest it safely and how to access it. We have been sending money to overseas accounts for years. In India we have to be careful about which banks to use. Some offer very good interests rates, but do not offer insurance of deposits beyond a certain amount. If you put more money into that account and something happens kiss the money that is over the "insured" amount goodbye. 

When banks went under in the states 401k retirement accounts where wiped out. Some people committed suicide. 

Life is more comfortable, bank accounts grow a bit more. But one major life event can take it all away. 

Only the ones in charge behind the curtain are safe. It is funny my students say that they want to be rich when they grow up. Likely we will all have a universal style income system. This means it will be even harder to become "rich". 

Money is a means to an end. I will quote my bosses father "I do not want to be richest corpse in the graveyard". Enjoy money but do not let it control you. You end up a slave to it, or obsessing about it.

/tata

Yeah no more AC issues and HELLO VACATION!

I saw in friends school she had a really cool window mounted air conditioner. It is pretty compact and very comfortable to use. Yogita and I bought it in a heart beat. The deliveryman got it to us even though it was raining heavily. It is so nice. Of course we do not run our ac's the way we would in the States. We call it pulsing the AC. Our little term. Basically, we let it run for a couple of hours at 26 degrees C. This cools the room and removes the humidity. Then we shut it off for a couple of hours. This works because our electricity bill says so. We some times just put it on a 1.5 hour timer and run it like that. At night they run until the sun comes up. Works great! It is still costly but not a 500 dollar bill. This happened to us years ago. I might have blogged about... 

So Yogi is sleeping and gaming in more comfort. Which is of course very important to me. When we just kept our door open I would still sleep for my 4-6 hours and wake up. Yogi would sometimes toss and turn. It also auto cleans the filter. 

I found out yesterday that due to parents complaining our vacation will be extended. So that is nice. My plans? Stay home basically. MAYBE visit a nearby city.....MAYBE. I will try to get back in to Eve Online.

We basically log in check a few things then log off. 

Ok time to start Tuesday's classes! 

/tata

Air conditioner woes...

Our apartment has one air conditioner. Now many apartments are like this. In the middle of the summer when it is very hot Koreans use fans, and of course an air conditioner. However, many Korean families will sleep in the Livingroom near the main AC. We did this as well when George was younger. But now with two smelly (lets be frank teenagers are ripe), a long with my large frame in our Livingroom? HECK NO! Yogita and I need our space. Also with our two gaming rigs each well yeah it creates a lot heat. Anyone who enjoys gaming on any platform knows that heat is a thing that needs to be managed. 

So, we are going to buy a window mounted AC. The thing is I want a model that we can easily transport with us. For example, lets say we have a job placement in South India (Yogi and I fell in love with south India). We can also arrange housing from Korea and have our computers and air conditioner shipped there. Yes it is expensive but why put down the same money to buy new unit. So we will be shopping for a unit online.

Ah this pandemic has removed our ability to do what we want to do. I am where I have to be, or rather need to be. Korea has handled this pandemic so well. Other nations … well the global reported number is over 700,000 souls. Reported number...so it could be as high as 2 or 3 million lost. 

Ok time to get this Thursday started.

/tata