Happy to Announce!!!

I GOT THE JOB!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!
I can't really begin to explain how excited I am.

Okay, so here's what happened, I was reading The Painted Veil just lying down lazily and didn't think that they'd get back to me on Monday, I mean they did say they'll get back to me early this week but that could be Tuesday or even Wednesday.. anyways, so, not really expecting to get any news from them I opened up my mail account and there it was a new mail from them!!!

I was afraid to open it but knowing what's written is not going to magically change.. I clicked on it and there was a mail that looked very familiar.. yup, not the new message.. just a previous one, the thread was opened so closing that there was the new message.. Usually, if you read the western version of 'you got the job' or 'sorry maybe next time' you'll know which one you are right away just by reading the first line BUT this is an oriental version so.. had to read the general info saying 'Total of 20 people applied to our school and after sending out the interview questions only 4 responded with their answers. Among the 4 yours highly scored in accuracy, effort and sincerity...' and SO.. yes, I sent them a reply mail asking them a bunch of questions like the working hours, how many teachers/students there are.. etcetera.. etcetra

They gave me a choice either to start before the Lunar New Year Holidays or after but since I want to get the feel of the place I told them that I'll start before the holiday.

Though I am excited to go.. I still am sad about leaving.. I know I'm not leaving for good but you know what I mean.

Thank you everyone who wished me good luck..
and Thank you Kristen and Peter for staying up late to help me out with the questions..
I can't tell you how nervous I was about it.. even though I knew they some of them were right.. I began to doubt myself and that was endless.. So, thank you both, I really appreciate it.. and love you both!

XOXO
Veronica

Fingers Crossed!!!

Yes, the past few weeks I've been applying for some new jobs and getting calls of p/t, f/t. all types of jobs: some I liked, some I didn't and some I wasn't sure of.. But I did find something that really peeked my interest... a job teaching in Hanoi, Vietnam.. I finally got an answer from them on Thursday with an attached file of questions since they couldn't interview me in person they wanted me to answer them and send it to them.. which I did send yesterday :)

Yes, it's done and sent and I got a mail saying that they'll get back to me with the result sometime early next week.. I do hope this is something that I do get a chance at.. I do need a new start and I do need to do that soon because even though I am liking all the time off... this girl can't really live off of her savings when she needs to be saving up. AND doing it in a totally different country that I've never been to, I think, would be a good change despite I'd hate to leave all my friends and my beloved book club behind.. which I did consider before applying and which was what I was hesitant about applying.. but then, I did think logically and realistically and thought of myself, which is also one of my resolution: to think of myself first before others.. to be a little more selfish, and the conclusion was that I need to make a change for myself. Even if that means it's leaving my family and friends behind.. I have all these things I want to do.. and learn and I don't know where my path will take me for now.. but though that uncertainty scares the hell out of me I am taking it much better than before..

I guess that's what's growing up is all about.. I've always been living in this secure pond where my parents were always there to look after me.. though I am independent I have never left that pond.. and I think it's about time to detach myself and move on to a bigger pond or explore the ocean. I think I've always been scared but it's that time where I know I need to step out of that.. which does tell me that I've grown a little more than last year..

I know there's a change that I will not get this job.. though I'm wishing and hoping for the best and I do have all my positive thoughts and hopes up.. There's always a chance of the opposite.. and if that's what happens.. I know I'll be all bummed out about it but I know I'll get over it.. and find a better opportunity..
So, friends and fellow bloggers.. wish me LUCK!
AND I'll keep you updated on what happens.. Have a great weekend!

The Sequel to Child 44

It's been out for sometime now but I'm getting around to posting it only now..
Tom Rob Smith a brilliant British writer who wrote his debut book Child 44, which I just LOVED, by the way, has another book out and I did find out it was a sequel to Child 44. It's called The Secret Speech and got 3½ stars in bookmarks magazine.
THE STORY : It is 1956, and a more broad-minded Russia has emerged from the tumultuous days following Stalin's death, prompting his former opponents - the secret police, judges, and others who carried out his orders - to bay for the blood of his collaborators. Guilt-ridden Ministry of State Security agent Leo Demidov, appointed to a special homicide unit after tracking down a serial killer in Child 44, seeks solace in his family, including his long-suffering wife Raisa and adopted daughters Zoya and Elena, but someone has other plans for him. When fellow agents begin turning up dead, the Kremlin turns a blind eye, and Leo finds himself at the center of a dark and twisted plot for revenge.
(excerpt from bookmark magazine Sept/Oct 2009 ed.)


I don't think it's in Korea yet.. hopefully it'll be imported soon :)

OH! and I hear that Child 44 will be out in theatres soon directed by Ridley Scott.

Percy Jackson on Screen!!!

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightening Thief

Percy Jackson Movie Official Site

The one that we read for book club.. it's coming to theatres in February!! by looking at the trailer it looks like a good kid's fantasy movie..

Night by Elie Wiesel

Title: Night

Author: Elie Wiesel

Genre: Autobiography

ISBN:0-553-27253-5

Publisher: Bantam Books

Pages: 109

Rating: ★★★★★

started: Jan. 10th, 2010

finished: Jan. 17th, 2010

This is a memoir of Elie Wiesel, when he was 14 years old, his experience of the concentration camp how he survived the days, his wavering faith and loosing faith, his connection to his father, and the morales of people told through his eyes.

 I like reading books concerning the German occupation period. It always amazes me how people back then had such strength and hope, even though they were in an unbelievably devastating situation. Personally, if I had to live through that period I don't think I would have survived. Even the choice of death, I don't think I'm brave enough to make that choice. Though it is a dark part of our history, I believe that through those stories we learn and are able to become better.

2010 Resolution

2009 was not a good year for reading.. neither was 2008..

I can't remember how many books I've read and what I read and I wasn't really keeping track either.

Though this year... 2010 is going to be different.. I think it's high time I pulled myself together..

I thought I did but I guess I didn't. 2008 was the year I got to find out my dad had severe cancer.. 2009 is when he passed away... it has been rough but I know I'll be okay.. and I know he's in a better place..

I recently took a trip alone to the Philippines, to Boracay.. and it was my first trip alone and my very first trip to just relax.. no touring just sitting or lying on the beach reading.. or not.. and I think it did me good. I did get to have me-time and had time to think and not think ;) to think of the past and reflect myself and think of the future and which road I may choose.. though I did learn through time that making plans is not always the best thing to do.. but you do need a road map that will guide you along..

so here's my 2010 resolution.

1. Be Me : yes, it's very vague but it totally explains everything at the same time.. I think I was too busy working, too busy worrying and didn't really have time to take care of myself. So, this year is going to be all about being me. I'm going to be a little bit selfish and take care of myself better and try to express more and share the burden and not take it up all upon my shoulders. And hopefully, result in being HAPPY and HEALTHY and being ME.

2. READ & WRITE : Reading and writing is something that I LOVE to do and it has been ever since I was little. Always carrying a book where ever I go and keeping a journal.. that was me.. but when things started to get rough and busy I think I let go of that part.. which I regret, but regretting is not the solution so I'm going to move and get back on the track this year. Reading 50 books this year is my goal but I do have high hopes for more than that and writing reviews on all of them!!!

3. Learn SALSA :  This has been on my mind for a long time.. learning not just salsa but dancing.. I learned ballet as a kid and loved dancing ever since.. so I'm going to try to learn salsa this year.

4. Keeping HEALTHY : I managed to loose 17kg last year, I thought I'd never manage but I did and am very proud of myself. I hope to loose 5~8kg more this year and keep it that way.

5. SAVE up : there are things that I've been wanting to do.. especially go back to school so I hope to save up as much as possible at least $10,000 at the end of this year.

I hope there will be a lot of exciting and new changes this year for me and everyone I love!

2010 Resolution for BookLeaves

Hey guys!
well, I'd like to talk about 2010 Resolution for our book club..

1. Introduce Bookleaves to bookmarks magazine
2. get more members
3. have great meetings (we always do, but it's still gonna be on the list)
4. have more social outings (like watching movies or going to place..)
5. Keep it running for ever and ever!

if you have more to add.. you're most welcome..
and also write what you expect of our book club!
Also PLEASE help me with introducing our book club.. 
Some of the questions are...

-How did your group get started?
-How would you describe your group?
-How does your group operate?
-How do you decide which books to read?
-What are some of the group's favorite books?
-What are some of the least popular books you have read?
-What advice do you have for other groups?
-What books have you read?

If you have any suggestions please feel free to write it down... and i'll edit it with my own.. of course I'll show it to everyone before send it in ;)

1st meeting of 2010: Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee

Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee

Written by a South African-born author who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2003, this book was first published in 1999 and won the Booker Prize in 1999. Disgrace was also made into a movie and won the International Critic's Award in Toronto Film Festival in 2008.

Summary: Disgrace is the story of a South African professor of English descent who loses everything: his reputation, his job, his peace of mind, his good looks, his dreams of artistic success, and finally even his ability to protect his cherished daughter.The novel tells the story of David Lurie, twice-divorced and dissatisfied with his job as a Communications professor, teaching one specialized class in Romantic literature at a technical university in Cape Town in post-apartheid South Africa. His "disgrace" comes when he seduces one of his students and he does nothing to protect himself from its consequences. Lurie was working on Lord Byron at the time of his disgrace, and "the irony is that he comes to grief from an escapade that Byron would have thought distinctly timid."^[2] He is dismissed from his teaching position, after which he takes refuge on his daughter's farm in the Eastern Cape. For a time, his daughter's influence and natural rhythms of the farm promise to harmonise his discordant life. But the balance of power in the country is shifting. Shortly after becoming comfortable with rural life, he is forced to come to terms with the aftermath of an attack on the farm in which his daughter is raped and impregnated and he is violently assaulted. In Disgrace, those who feel disgraced are also those who are punished. [from Wikipedia]


January 10th, 2010, 1pm
attendees: Susan, Sandra, Shanna, Bernadette, Jill, and Veronica
main discussion: Why didn't he fight for himself? Why did he just give up on his life? 
How did losing his privilege affect him? Did losing his place as an academic, his white privilege, his good looks give him some sense of humility, or does he just fight against it? How is Lurie's story also the story of post-apartheid S. Africa?

Oh.. thy name is Temptation..

I went out to meet a friend who's came back to Korea for a visit from Japan and buy 'The Painted Veil" by Maugham Somerset. Yes, I went to Kyobo bookstore in Kangnam.. and what do you know.. 30% off on all the foreign books till today.. yup, it was there year end clearance sale and I could not resist but give in the temptation and buy.

Though, you do have that guilty conscience in one corner telling you 'You really shouldn't be spending more money since you've been on a vacation and did spend a lot of money. And besides, remember how many books are shelved at home that are waiting for your attention..' Yes, yes, I know... If I'd been more self-controlling around bookstores and keep my hands right by my sides and my eyes looking straight just searching for the book that I need I actually might have been able to buy the only one book that I came for and walked out..never look back.. no maybe a glance but with pride that I did not misbehave in anyway.... but ooooohhh I can't do that.. looking for 'The Painted Veil" my eyes wandered and searched for some books that I could get cheaper, I mean hey, they're having a sale!!! it's not everyday you get 30% off, right?

So, I piled up about 5 books before I actually saw "The Painted Veil" and by the time I found it well, actually as I found it my eyes were on 3 other books that I wanted.. YES!!! That excitement is actually 1/3 of finding the book that I was looking for and 2/3 for piling up the books that I've wanted ;) Excuse my enthusiasm.. but for the price of about 135,000won I got 10books of which one was actually a present for my sister, I think I got a good deal because without the discount it would have been about 194,000won. so I got about 2 books for free ;)

Here are the ones I got;

• The Glory Field by Walter Dean Myers
• The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham
• The Night Watch by Sarah Waters
• The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski
• The City of Dreaming Books by Walter Moers
• Say you're one of them by Uwem Akpan
• The Character of Rain by Amelie Northomb
• The Life of Hunger by Amelie Northomb
• Sulphuric Acid by Amelie Northomb
• The Architecture of Happiness by Alain De Botton (present for sis)

and yes this year's resolution involves reading lots and lots of books, starting with these ;)