First the link of the day, "I did so because I was hungry."

Last night was the "Retirement and Good-bye" Party. One teacher is retiring and 10(!) are changing schools. Most of the one's changing schools are just moving down the street to Igok Elementary School. It's maybe 10 blocks away from my school.

The party kicked off at five. I was allowed to leave school before two for some reason. I hit the gym and took a shower. I made my way to the party at exactly five o'clock.

It was held at the one big hotel in my neighborhood. The went all out for this. They rented a big hall and hired a DJ. The event was also catered with a massive buffet.

The first 90 minutes was filled with teary eyed speeches and pats on the back. Everyone leaving wanted to cry about it. Then, it was time for the singing contest. That's right. In a room with 100+ of my coworkers, we had a singing contest. Two awards were given out. One for the best singer and one for the best dancer(The Admiral Jason Zwirblis Award). I recieved neither.

They did make me sing. I did Piano Man again. I forgot how long that song was. Also, I was completely out of my league. When I say ,"All Koreans can sing," I mean it. Every single one of my coworkers can fucking wail. Even the Vice Principal that always looks like he's twenty seconds away from passing a kidney stone. They did make me dance. If there is video I will find the person in possession of the tape and give him a savage beating. Let's just say, The Bus Driver made an appearance.

The whole affair ended around 930. I wanted to go home and watch the soccer game. South Korea was playing North Korea(It ended in a 1-1 draw, the new South Korean coach is an idiot). On my way home, I bumped into the various principals again. They invited me for a few beers. I joined them. I can drink these guys under the table. Mind you, Mr. Lee is about 5'5 and 100 lbs. soaking wet, but I can pwn his ass at drinking! After a few rounds of beers with some of my coworkers, they announced they wanted more singing and I was asked to go to a singing room with them. I went, sang two songs(Jailhouse Rock, a lot harder than it looks and 99 Red Balloons) and ran out of there around 1130.

It was an interesting evening from a sociological standpoint. Supposedly an old Chinese word for Korean people translates to, "People who like to sing and dance." I can see why. It was interesting to see some of the most uptight people in our school actually let their hair down and have fun.