Do Hyun Lim/ 6th Post / Tues 9-11 AM

Task 4.2

After entering the bus, my tense body becomes relaxed again as I feel the warmth in the air. I sit down and close my eyes as planned to do the exercise. The roaring sound of the bus become louder and louder as it accelerates while I feel the backward pressure. To get myself comfortable, I put one of my arm alongside the window. Suddenly, chill enters through my elbow up to my pinky. Nevertheless, I still remain in that position since the coldness is still bearable and other positions will be less comfortable. Then, it seems the bus has met a red light and starts to stop. I could feel the forward thrust for about half a second and it stops. After the stop, the bus starts to quiver as if it is tickling my back. I feel relieved after the bus gets going again, and I still keep my eyes closed hoping to get some sleep for the next hour of the ride.

 

Task 4.4

A ten-minute bike ride from my house through the forest, an incredibly wide asphalt field which could even fit a football field is visible. The place is surrounded by trees and bushes and I could smell the fresh air, particularly after rainfalls. The plants could not penetrate inside to the field though because it was surrounded by wooden plank with a metal fence at the top. I could only guess what it was used for because I could rarely see people even passing by. The broken and torn metal fences and the tainted paint on the wood only makes it more mysterious. The place could be used for various purposes. It made an ideal place for relaxation with the calm mood provided by the plants and birds in the forest. The large field provided me a rare opportunity for great thrill where I could ride the bicycle at high speeds, even with both hands off the handle.

 

HyeonJu Oh/ 6th Post / Tues 9-11 am

4.2

It was freezing cold. I took my cardigan out of my backpack and put it on. I wished I took my wallet from home, because the sweet smell of baked bread made me hungry. The smell was quite familiar to me, and actually I found out that I missed it for about 8 months. One of my dissatisfactions was that I couldn't eat those kinds of breads, which were alike the fish except the winter. In fact, the situation that I had to close my eyes in some public places was quite weird, so I was pretending to fall asleep during the time that I waited my bus arrived. Maybe some guys spent money for buying them. First, I heard clinking coins, and right after that, two boys were giggling, so it might be sure. The seller asked them, "How many Ing-a-pain that you want to buy?" "Six." One of them responded. After the pause, he suddenly shouted. "Wait a minute!" then the other boy told him some cuss words. Shouted boy asked the seller. "Can I change the sort of breads? I wish that 3 of them will be filled by custard cream, not the red bean paste." And the seller said "OK". With a heat wave from the booth, the smell of freshly baked bread made me happy. It was sweet and salty at the same time. I could imagine that the softness and the mellowness of the custard cream. Underneath the crunch, crispy skin, there were fillings flowing like the lava. Anyway, I didn't have money to buy them and it was true that my mother always told me not to eat the food which had made near the driveway.

 

4.4

 

There were never many students in weekend. Maybe only seniors were allowed to enter facilities to exercise in weekend. It was a lovely school, no matter how old it was. I liked to stay somewhere calm, and at least where I can see clouds in the sky. Some kids who seemed to live near this school just showed up and disappeared after they play with a soccer ball. The first time that I came to this school-especially the playground- was 7 years ago. When I had a hard time by some reasons, I wanted to find some places like shelters. And finally I found. This school was a pretty special. It was an organization where raised professional athletes. So there were so huge playground and some facilities for various exercising. Well, I was not a pre-athlete. It was not my school. However, I loved the place so much, because when I went there, all of my senses which were so nervous got being comfortable.

 

First, I sat down on stacked mattress. The mattress was warm because of the sun. Then I lay on it. I could see the whole sky without any interruptions in my sight. It was gorgeous and this landscape is hard to see in Seoul anyway. I just saw clouds which are flowing slowly, and heard sincerely the air blowing. When I felt sorrow, the sunset behind the school was the best consolation for me. Actually I was still a high school student, and even though some facilities had opened before I arrived, sometimes I worried about that the security saw me and evicted me from there. Then I got out of the school, and went home. I walked all the way. It wasn't too far, and I wasn't tired.

Hyeonju Oh 

I sent this essay to the wrong address before :(

Kim Young Woo 201203937 / Task 4.2 and 4.4 / Narrative Composition Tuesday

4.2

I close my eyes, and immediately notice the overflowing smell of fresh coffee in the air. The tranquil music playing in the background adds onto the soothing mood of this place leaving me with a feeling of nostalgia. I know I have felt this kind of peace somewhere before. It is ten before noon and I am the only one here in my favorite cafe just outside my house. The lights dim, the room warm and cozy, the tranquil atmosphere of the place can put me to sleep at any moment. After rushing in from the chilly winds outside, my hands are cuffed around my warm Americano. It is still too hot to drink, but it feels amazing in between my hands. I can remember now why this moment feels so familiar. I have felt it many times in the past and it is the feeling of winter. The feeling of entering into a warm room after enduring the piercing chills and feeling like my whole body melt, winter has begun.

4.4

"Sweet Disposition," I will never be able to forget the moment when I heard this song for the first time. For the 6 hour trip, our guide had allowed each individual to play their favorite 3 songs on the Ipod, so that we could listen to a wide spectrum of music. We were headed to our second destination of the trip and this trip didn't start too well for me. The first place I visited, Paris, had left me feeling disappointed and wasn't what I had expected. I have nothing against Paris, but other than the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower, there wasn't much to experience in Paris other than the gloomy weather.

After just meeting the other members of the trip couple days before, being able to listen to their music taste allowed us to know a little bit more about each other. Right when I was felt that we were never going to reach our destination, the tour guide said "everyone look out the window, we have arrived at our next destination." This was the moment, when the song "Sweet Disposition" by the Temper Traps were playing on the Ipod. This peaceful melody and the calming voice of the singer added to the trance like effect the new destination was going to put me in. Pulling up the curtain rack, I saw mountains covered in white and so tall that our bus was like an ant finding its way in a child's playground. The mountains were steep, rocky, jagged, and it stretched down for miles. The mountains were grand and it reminded me how tiny I was in such a huge planet.  Surrounding me with its majestic presence, I was in awe and remember tears forming in my eyes. We had arrived in the Swiss Alps.

This was so new to me. Everywhere around me was what you expected from a set in the Lord of the Rings. With huge mountains encircling our camp, I couldn't believe what I was waking up to for the next couple days. As soon as I came out of my room, numerous waterfalls were falling on the shelf of the peaks, sheep and cows were grazing on the hills, and the houses were very neat and had triangular roofs. Also, the smell of the place is exactly what nature has to smell like. With the background noise of the city hundreds of miles away, the only noise I was able to hear were the birds chirping, the sound of the animals, and the fall of the water over the mountains. From my whole Europe trip, Switzerland is the most memorable and the magnificent scale of the place is unlike anything I have ever seen.

Alyssa Yoo/Sixth Post/Narrative Composition/Tues. 9-11 a.m.

201300001 유서현

Task 4.2

          I go to the back of the bus. I find a seat and close my eyes. The rays of sunshine gently touch my face and hair. It feels good as it provides warmth on a chilly day. The back seat smells strongly of gasoline, and I hold my breath to not let in the stinky air up my nostrils. Unable to hold it any longer, I just let it all out. It stills smells like gasoline, but the back seat is cozy enough for me to bear with the smell. The announcement says, "The next stop is Kyunghee University, Kyunghee University." I feel the person next to me getting up. She or he hits me on the knee with something that feels like a paper bag. I want to open my eyes and see the person, but I keep them closed. "Ding dong!" Someone must have pressed the red button. The road seems to be very bumpy. My body moves up and down and sideways. The bus suddenly stops, and so do I. I hear the doors open with a screeching sound. I feel the bus shake. It feels like many people are getting off. I can feel the bus lose weight every time someone gets off from their seats. Suddenly, someone sits right next to me with a big thump. I wince a little. Then, I open my eyes.

Task 4.4

          "Alyssa, get in." my friend said. She was sitting inside the car of her mom. There were three other people in the car: one guy friend and two girl friends from middle school. I hopped in and greeted my friend's mom and my friends. It was a Friday night, and we were going to the mall in our neighborhood.

          When we arrived, about five people were waiting for us in front of the Burbank mall. We jumped out of the car excitedly and ran to hug our friends. The Burbank mall came into our sight. It was very big, and people went in and out of the building through a glass door. Friday nights after school were often reserved for the mall.

          I saw a man dressed casually hold the door open for us after seeing us go for the entrance. It was normal for any American to do that, and we walked slowly toward the door and thanked him. "You're welcome," he said.

          There were a lot of people in the mall. Some were going up on the escalators and some were going inside stores. The floor was very glossy, and one could see the reflection of oneself. The air smelled of perfume and food at the same time. There were a lot of teenagers our age, and I liked watching them have fun. It was like seeing a reflection of ourselves. My friend's mom had gone, and we had all the freedom to ourselves.

          We went into a store called Hot Topic. It was one of our favorite places because they sold all kinds of cool stuff there. Inside, it was very dark and almost everything was black and red. The store was very gothic. There were skulls here and there. Although we did not buy anything, we had fun looking around for cool shirts and accessories with spikes on them.

          We were all hungry. We went up to the food court where they sold pizza and some good Chinese food. The air smelled delicious. We waited in line to pick our side dishes from the variety of Chinese food there were in front of us. There were ten of us, and it was always difficult to find adjacent seats. There were seats outside, and we split our group in two and sat with plastic trays in our hands.

          When we were done eating, our last stop was the arcade on the first floor of the building. The guys in our group played DDR(Dance Dance Revolution), and the girls collected tickets to win prizes from small arcade games. There weren't many people at the arcade, and we almost had it to ourselves. We freely walked around the arcade and played any game we wanted.

          My friend's mom came to pick us up after we were done playing. We excitedly talked in the car about how much fun we had. When we arrived at my house, I thanked my friend's mom and got off. Days at the mall were always great. The Burbank mall is a place where I often hung out with my friends, not thinking about anything other than having fun. I really loved my time there, and I miss it so much.

KIM HYUN JEE/Task 4.2 & 4.4 (p. 108-109)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

Task 4.2

 

7am in the morning is quite an early time to wake up or even go to school. However, this is my daily routine. Almost every morning at 7am, I'm in my dad's car going to school. He usually drops me off at Jonggak station. I had about an hour till then, so I closed my eyes and tried to open all my senses. I took some time to concentrate.

Inside the car, I could hear the news reporter reporting about today's weather and traffic. Occasionally, I could hear my dad's frustration and him murmuring few words about the traffic jam. Just by the tone of his voice, I could guess that he wasn't very happy. Outside, I could hear cars honking at each other. I could also hear the sound of cars passing away in a fast speed in the highway. Car smells like a fresh laundry detergent or a scent that you usually smell in the candle store. I could guess that he just changed the air freshener into a new one that I bought him few months ago. It was either the scent called 'blue ocean' or 'morning sunset'. I couldn't tell the exact scent. In my mouth, I could taste the sweet hot chocolate that I have been drinking all morning. It is level of sweetness is too much for me to handle. I love the car ride in the morning due to hot heater on the chair. I can touch the hot air coming from under the seat. It feels warm and cozy making me fall asleep.

Task 4.4

Task 4.4

When I was ten, I used to share my room with my sister. Although we each could have separate rooms, we were just being normal sisters, wanting to do everything together. Our room was at the top floor next to the room where we usually put our clothes. It made me feel like I was living inside Harry Potter's house for some reason. Our room was a special place for me in my childhood because of my memories in that room. Inside the room, it was a typical girl's room filled with Bratz dolls and items anything in pink. Through the window, I could see my neighbors swimming or riding a bicycle. I could hear my neighbors shouting and laughing while they were swimming and riding a bicycle. I was never annoyed at them, but instead was 'fun' to look at what they were doing.

I loved everything that was inside my room except one specific thing. Lizards. Living under the hot tropical weather of South East Asia, it was impossible to escape from the lizards. They were everywhere. Under my bed, on the ceiling, in my closet, in the toilet, they were everywhere. It was a daily routine for us to hear screaming at the sight of lizard. The sound of us laughing at videos of 'Sabrina the Teenage Witch' or 'Lizzie McGuire' was common, but the sound of us screaming at the lizards was unforgettable. Rainy days were the worse. Not only lizards were there, but I could also hear the sound of frogs from outside. I remember one time I touched the trail of lizard without knowing it. That feeling is something that I still remember until this day.

Choi, Won-joon/Task 4.2 & 4.4 (p. 108-109)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

Task 4.2

Ten O'clock in the morning, I felting happiness to finish my presentation in the Culture and Media Translation class and was coming out of the classroom. Since I had an appointment with my friend at eleven, I slowly walked toward the Minerva Square. There, I found something was going wrong. People and cars were crowded, which is really unusual in the place. I made up my mind to guess what was going on in there with my eyes closed. I closed my eyes near wooden benches and concentrated on my senses except sight.

A man's urgent voice was alerting people to get away from the dormitory building through a microphone in a distance. "This is not a drill and everyone get out of the building!" Students were passing by in front of me murmuring, "Is that real? What's happening?" Next to me, the girl with very sleepy tone talked to her friend over her mobile phone. "I don't know… They told me there's something explosive inside the building…" She was so calm and steady with those horrible words that I almost missed the seriousness. However, then, a high pitched sound of the siren waked me up. A car was rushing through the main entrance of HUFS. It stopped nearby me and footsteps got out of it. The footsteps hurried their way toward the dormitory building and as they passed by me, wet and chilly wind sharply touched my face. I felt something was seriously going bad, so opened my eyes and walked away.

 

Task 4.4

This is a street in the countryside near my house where I lived in about four years ago. The narrow sidewalk paved with red blocks is under the gray tone cement bridge. On the bridge, there is a railroad that has been not used for a long period. And on the sidewalk, big pine trees are standing in an interval of long distance. At night, if I stand next to one of the trees, before long, I can find crickets making the loudest sound in the place. Other than those chirping sound, the place is in the silence itself. After ten at night, there are no cars and all the stores are closed. Without yellow feeble street light bulbs, I only have the light of moon and stars. When I look at both sides of the street, there are so many alleys which almost look like an ant's nest or a maze. The alleys are not paved at all and they repeatedly frost and melt in winter, which makes them muddy.

This countryside may sound like no more than a calm and peaceful place. It really was. It was a place where I always walked along with my friends in my childhood after school. It was a place where I used to pass on my bicycles to meet my friends. However, it didn't take long for me to change my mind about this place. It really was a swamp. There, I got caught by police officers and it took really long to solve the problem. I was innocent but nobody in the police station believed in me. Just insisting about my innocence didn't help at all. Driven to the corner through the whole night, I felt the weariest feeling in my life but it didn't ended for a long time. I had really hard time because of the case and I cannot get rid of the bitter taste when I think of the place until now.

Yousun Jung/Task 4.2&4.4/Tues 9-11am

Task 4.2

Go to the subway station named Chongshin Univ. also known as Isu, then take exit 11. There is a small theater named Artnine by Megabox. Megabox is one of the biggest theater franchises in Korea, but they have a small theater for movie lovers. You can watch good movies that take a backseat to large-scale movies. Also, you can enjoy a meal or a drink as you wait for your movie, because there is a restaurant beside the theater.

I take a seat there with a cup of café latte. I close my eyes holding the cup. The cup is so warm that it even makes my heart relieved and comfortable. I can feel the aroma of coffee. When I drink it, the taste of soft milk makes me happy. I hear people talking. A man and a woman who seem like lovers are talking about what they expect from the movie which they are going to watch soon. I also hear what workers talk: "Do I have to make tea first?" "No, café latte first." "The movie is going to start, soon. You go there and check tickets." "Alright."

It is 2:40 and a movie named Things To Come is just finished. I hear footsteps of people coming out of the theater. They talk about the movie they watched, other movies they want to watch, brochures, tickets, toilet, etc. Soon, I hear one of the workers. "Those who came to watch A Bride for Rip Van Winkle, now you can come inside." I open my eyes and follow what I heard.

 

Task 4.4

Nobody told me that I had to be quiet, but I tried to be as quiet as I could. I tied up my hair and wore pink gown. There were five or six women including me, and everyone had same hairstyle and same gown. One of the staffs divided us into different room, and I went inside following her.

What I saw first was more than 20 bassinets. Then I felt sweet smell of babies. It was quite silent until one of the babies woke up. In other words, we started to be busier since then. The room was full of babies' babbling and crying. Women said nothing but soothed them and fed them.

Babies in that room were infants who were around 15-month-old or 18-month-old. They needed help absolutely, but they were the oldest babies in that center. Therefore, only feeding and putting them down was not enough for them. That's why that room was full of shiny colorful things—red swings, blue and yellow Bumbo chairs, rainbow-color toys and animal dolls for infants.

I played with one of the babies using those toys. She didn't let me go far away from her. She wanted me to keep holding her in my arms. I was grabbed by chubby and soft fingers. I couldn't put her down as she always cried aloud whenever I tried. I spent more than an hour holding her and playing with her, and finally I could put her down as she was fed her milk and fell asleep.

After several hours, it was time for me to go home. Closing the door, I looked inside once more. The name cards on bassinets, vivid color of toys, sunshine coming through the window, drawers with Winnie the Pooh stickers, nurses in pink gown who were still busy, babies' babbling, their soft hands, their grabs, and their eyes looking at me but not me, maybe the affection itself. It was sunny day with crystal clear sky, but I felt as if my heart was full of soft, chubby clouds.

That was when I had first thought the adoption would be a good way to be a family. Before, I thought I would never consider adoption as I thought I would not love a baby if I had not gave birth to him or her. But I realized it is more heartbreaking to see a baby deprived from love. I don't mean that I will adopt a baby. I don't have any plan to get married or have babies in a few years for now, and I don't know what would happen in my life. But it was valuable enough to just get to know that adoption is one of the good ways to be family, even though it is not easy.

201003163 Yousun Jung

 

Yukyung Bang/Sixth Post/Narrative Composition Tuesday 9-11 a.m.

201301511 Yukyung Bang

4.2

I sat down on a chair. As soon as I closed my eyes, I felt how hard the chair on which I sat was. I adjusted myself and closed my eyes again. First, I smelled caramel from the bucket in my hands, which were full of freshly popped caramel-coated popcorn. There was a smell of grilled squid with butter coming from the snack bar, too. My mouth began to water and I found myself hard to focus on any other senses. And as there were too many people, I only heard the hum of many voices that I couldn't understand and footsteps at first. But after a while, they became white noise, and I heard the sound from speakers. They were lines and narrations of the previews for upcoming movies. It was when I wanted to open my eyes the most. Then, I heard someone sitting right next to me and I jumped a little. I heard the usual noise that I had heard before whenever I had tried to push a straw through a plastic lid. I heard the noise twice, so I guessed that the person who sat next to me was with someone else. It made me a little thirsty, so I drank my coke. And I felt familiar, but weird feeling on my tongue. It was hard to decide if it was a feeling or a taste. It tasted sweet, but the feeling of a weak twinge was bigger. But it went away quickly, and there remained only sweetness of coke. And then, I put a piece of popcorn into my mouth. I chewed it slowly and somehow it felt like a crunchy sound went from my teeth up to my ears. It was weird to hear the noise from inside of my mouth, not from outside. But it was delicious as always, sweet and salty at the same time.

 

4.4

I opened the heavy door and a huge cross on which Jesus was crucified was hung on the opposite wall. The ceiling was very high and the aisle to the alter was narrow and quite long. Even at midday, the inside of cathedral was dark because of stained glass windows. Only the candles lit the place with a soft glow. Since those white candles were always lit, the smell of burning candles filled the air. As I stepped towards the altar, the smell of the wooden benches became stronger and stronger. When it was not time for a mass, there were only few people praying. They would read a prayer or sing hymns even though there was no instrumental accompaniment. Those soft sounds got magnified and echoed by the high ceiling. The wooden bench was a little cold, but it got warm soon after I sat down at the end of it. It had a round armrest that I enjoyed to feel. I liked to visit the cathedral when it was not time for mass, because it felt bigger, quieter, more solemn, and more peaceful.

Kweonho Lee/Task 4.2 & 4.4 (p. 108-109)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

Task 4.2            There's a famous sushi restaurant near my house. The place is always crowded at night with people who want to enjoy fresh seafood with soju.            When I close my eyes, I can hear a lot of noises mixed together. Sounds from people, kitchen, and other objects are blended at the same time to form an ensemble like an orchestra. People enjoy conversations about all kinds of topics ranging from politics, economy, to daily gossips. Their voices are usually louder than normal because they are drunk and they want to make themselves understood by others in a cocktail party. Also, the sounds of ordering for more dishes and soju from the tables can be heard across the entire restaurant. Other noises include sounds of chopping a fish, washing the dishes, and creaking sound of opening the entrance door.            The unique scent of fishy smell fills the air in the restaurant. Some people call it as the mild fragrance of sea, but it is definitely not a pleasant smell for everyone including me. The smell becomes stronger when you get near to the huge fish tanks which are filled with different kinds of fish and other sea creatures. The smell makes you feel like you are in front of a huge ocean. There are also smells of cigarettes as people frequently go out to smoke. They return to their tables with the musty smell kept in their clothes. The people don't seem irritated by the smells or noises because most of their senses are concentrated on their tongue, enjoying the delicate taste of the foods. The restaurant is just like the taste of a raw fish. It seems weird and not comfortable at first, but it becomes one of your favorite places once you get used to it. The noise in the restaurant makes the place more lively and fishy smell becomes a faint aroma to the regular customers.   Task 4.4            I had never felt so nostalgic just by seeing the old building. Some of the parts were renovated with new paintings but I was able to recognize nearly everything. There was my old school which reminded me of a few memories in the past.            When I entered the entrance gate, the first thing I noticed was the old statue of a child reading a book. The child, who had been sitting in the same place for more than 10 years, greeted me with its artificial, cheesy smile. His rusty body and cracked face was telling me that he got old too, just as I did.            As I turned my eyes to the whole view of my old school, a cool breeze of spring gently touched my face. I inhaled deeply to feel the coolness in my nose and smell the fresh air. The wide open soccer field in front of the school looked peaceful. There were only few kids playing with a ball in the late afternoon and their giggling voices across the field occasionally broke the complete silence.            I stepped inside the school to meet my old teacher. The teacher's room looked busy with work. The scenes of teachers using copy machine, consulting a student, typing documents and doing other office work were quite contradictory to calm and peaceful soccer field. Among the noises in the room, I was able to recognize a familiar voice yelling, "Be quiet in the hallway!" There was my old teacher standing in the door. When our eyes met, she gave me a big smile.            She took me to my old classroom. As I pushed open the front door, I had to put an extra force because the door was old and stiff. I was amazed when I had a look inside the classroom. Although there were some changes, the light green colors on the wall and wooden desks were exactly the same as 10 years ago. The texture of the wall was cold and bumpy when I slowly touched them with the tip of my hands. It made me picture my old school days.            The taste of those memories was bittersweet. I had lots of good memories, but I also had some painful times. I made a few good friends in my first year and enjoyed hanging out with them after school. We often played basketball together or went to PC rooms to play computer games. However, after one year, I decided to go to a famous private high school in my neighborhood. To pass the entrance exam, I spent the rest of my school days sitting in my desk and studying at the expense of losing my friends at the time. I wasn't regretting it, but looking back at the days somehow made me feel pity for myself. At the same time, I was proud of myself for making it through the difficult times.

Changyu Kang/Task 4.2 & 4.4 (p. 108-109)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

Task 4.2 October 29th 4:41 PM I'm at Twosome Place, a café located nearby Seoul City Hall. Now I'm closing my eyes and making use of my other senses. I'm breathing air in café which is little chilly but also fresh. There comes cool air whenever door is opened. And there is a delicate aroma of brewed coffee. I can hear background music in café whose lyrics are not catching, though melody does clearly. I can hear people's voices too. It is not clear what they say but their voices were mixed up with background music making atmosphere in café more vivid. My improved hearing thanks to losing my sight makes me hear people's footstep and sound of dragging their chair. And there is sound of drum outside the café. It seems protest against the incumbent government is about to start.   Task 4.4   When I was high school student, I was mad at basketball. I always played basketball whenever all classes were done. In spring / summer / fall me and my friends played the ball at the park, whereas winter at the gym. I remember for now playing basketball at the park in fall. In fall, I could see a sunset while I was playing basketball with friends. The park was dyed red and orange. We were all in sweat although the weather was really cool. Since it was early evening at weekdays there were not many people at the park. So our voices which were all about basketball filled with the park. When we took a little break, we drank up waters and Gatorades. I can't still forget the taste of them. They were freaking cool and fresh. They relieved all my stresses. And since we are all in sweat, I could smell friends' smell of sweat and mine. Ball was always in my hands. I always felt its grip feeling. At the park with my ball and my friends, there was nothing I wanted at that time.

Moses Choi/ Sixth Post/ Tues 9-11 am

Task 4.2

I am sitting in my room with my eyes closed. It is a semi-basement room right next to a road. That's why even though I am the only one in this room, it is full with all kinds of sounds. As I try to concentrate on the nearest sound, what I notice is the noise generated by my laptop. From the bathroom behind me, I can hear the water running down through the drain. Maybe someone upstairs is taking a shower, I think. Also, through the window, I can hear the kids shouting, laughing, and running around at the small park near my dormitory. They never got tired. Occasionally, motorcycles go by, which make such a noise and thus irritate me.

As a semi-basement, this room is always bit chilly and damp. This makes a unique smell, though it is now covered with the smell of fabric softener from the laundry I hung. It is better than that damp smell, but still it smells too artificial. As time goes by, all those smells are getting weaker, but the chill is getting stronger. I open my eyes to grab some more clothes to put on.

 

 

Task 4.4

A Craziest Place on Subway Line Number One

             Every Korean man should fulfill military duty somehow, and somewhere. For me, it was an interpreting police officer, in Bosan. Bosan, a name of a region in Dongducheon city, is located almost at the end of subway line number one. Anyone who gets there for the first time, I think, will be surprised and say, "I never thought there would be such a place like here in Korea!"

             When I arrived there for the first time, it seemed like a dead village. Although it was only 3 in the afternoon, all I could see were old buildings whose doors are closed and locked, some stray dogs, and a few American soldiers who must have come out of the nearby U.S. army base. Naturally, the place was very quiet, except for occasional barks of the dogs and noises from the subway passing right above my head. I started to doubt what the other police officer told me, "You'll get so busy from now on."

             That night, when I came out there again for my first patrol work, I almost freaked out. It was a totally different place. I couldn't even pull myself together because of all that loud club music. Yes. Those old buildings were all clubs primarily for the American soldiers. The whole street was full of Americans, Filipinos and Filipinas, Nigerians, and some Koreans who were drinking, cheering, singing and dancing. There was an endless stream of all kinds of neon signs which made me dizzy. Inside a club, through a flickering light, I could see a smoke all over the place, but it did not smell like from cigarette. I asked, or shouted, one of the American MPs who were patrolling with me, "Hey, what's this weird smell?" That is when I learned how marijuana smells like. He told me "You'll get used to it." I could not believe him.

             Even in that crazy place, however, there was something that cheered me up. During the break time, the MPs brought me to a small sandwich shop, named 'Dog House'. It was run by an old Korean lady, and on her recommendation, I ordered a cheese bacon sandwich. It was nothing like I ever had eaten before. Between a pair of breads, there were a handful of bacon, a fried egg, and cheese, all fried with butter. It was salty, greasy, and so delicious. After that, every time I had to go on duty, I thought, "At least I can have that bacon sandwich." I actually had it almost every day. If I go Bosan again, it is definitely for that bacon sandwich.

Gitae Shin/Task4.2 & Task4.4 (p.108-109)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

[Task 4.2]

I was walking around the campus after I was done with my mid-term exams. Because it was quite late at night with no exam, there was almost none. I took a seat near the Obama Trail starts and remained still. I closed my eyes with little bit of tiredness and tried to feel the relaxing atmosphere which the empty campus was giving off. As soon as I sat on the bench, the particular smell of a rainy day came to my nostrils along with gentle night breeze. It was a cool and refreshing air which I had not felt for a while. I decided to lie face up to feel other senses except for the sense of sight. I was not able to see the wind, but to hear it blowing. It touched my cheek gently and softly as if I had been her boyfriend. I picked up the faint sound of cars in the distance and I thought that it would be really great if I could drive right now. Remembering moments when I drove seemed pretty nice, but unfortunately I knew that it was impossible at that moment. Leaving the unfulfilled desire behind, I continued focusing on my hearing again. This time I could hear someone singing from the distance. A woman's voice hit and held every note with perfect ease and clarity. Her voice made me imagine how she would look like for a few moments. She sang for about 10 minutes and her voice disappeared without leaving any trace on my ears. Not knowing how much time had passed, I opened my eyes. I went back home.

 

[Task 4.4]

1. Holy's Coffee shop.

[Reason]: The very first place I worked as a part-timer.

2.

Sight	Coffee bean, customers, uniform, managers, etc.
Sound	Blender, grinder, conversations, milk frother, etc.
Smell	Coffee, tea, Croque-monsieur, bagel, and Paner, etc.
Taste	Coffee, tea, cake, etc.
Touch	Ice, coffee, bread, beverages, etc.

3. It was a very big coffee shop considering the size of my city. There were about 20 tables in the shop, so probably it could accommodate more than 60 customers at once. The shop was located on the same floor right next to movie ticket box. During the weekend, numerous people came and ordered countless cups of coffee. A smell from grinded coffee beans prevailed in the shop but it was not annoying at all. Also whenever different types of coffee and tea were served, those gave off their own smells as if they had competed with each other to show off their affluence and uniqueness. Soft music was playing during the entire work hours and songs' slow tempo often seemed isolated from the reality where orders were flooding in and when customers shouted at workers for their precious coffee and beverages. Some people had cakes and bread. The smell of heated and fresh Croque-monsieur, bagel, and Paner led to secretion of gastric juices in part-timers' guts and to burning feeling in their stomach. Hot vapor kept coming out from the milk frother but the coldness from the ice box next to it offset the heat. Dark brown uniform with couple of inerasable stains had part-time workers look shabby and lethargic which seemed totally different from customers who were chilling out and enjoying evening hours and from managers who did nothing but checking on workers. Only blending and grinding sounds always had been next to employees all the time by making huge noise although they looked

Do Hyun Lim/ Fifth Post/ Tues 9-11 AM

Task 3.3

Q3: I liked figurative languages used in this essay where it used lots of personification when describing the rain which gave it vividness and emotion in it. However, the metaphor part, "He is the brother of the rain," seemed ambiguous to me. Throughout the essay, there is no content that relates to that sentence. While I liked the overall feeling of the essay, the use of metaphor was not effective.

 

Task 3.4

Q1: My brother is a leaping frog.

Essay​

"Ding-dong." Finally, there was the doorbell. The beginning of the tiring two hours started like that during my high school years because it was the time my math tutor comes. Usually wearing a hat, he always greeted me bluntly when he came into my house.

"Let's see what you have done, do you have any questions for the exercises?" Lessons almost always started like that and sometimes I was anxious, because I haven't done it. In those cases, he would simply tell me to solve the questions while I would ask some questions while solving it. The classes usually went on as expected, but the stories he told me from time to time was interesting to hear, as he was studying art in university. It was very unusual considering that he dropped out of astronomy department of Seoul National University and pursued a new field in art. He told me stories of how all students gather around an object or a model with a canvas, how to make drawings look 3D, and so on, giving me more detailed knowledge about it other than simple work I did in art class. Also, looking back, I had a feeling that he had his own philosophy in life and makes me wonder about it these days because I didn't know anything about those kinds of ideas at that time and did not ask anything about it. Nevertheless, I remember him saying that learning about outer space makes us realize how little we know about anything. I don't know why but he left me great impression in my memories, perhaps because of his uniqueness.

 

 

Yukyung Bang/Fifth Post/Narrative Composition Tuesday 9-11 a.m.

201301511 방유경

Task 3.3

I think metaphors are effective only when they are properly used. The writer need to carefully pick a specific similarity that can connect two different things so that readers feel the emotions the writer tried to trigger in the first place. In the writing 'Rain,' the writer said that the rain is similar with his/her brother in various ways, which made me a little confused. I thought it would be better if he focused on one aspect of him and the rain and made metaphors based on it.

 

Task 3.4

My friend is an angry bull.

 

My grandfather was a stylish old man. He used to wear a black felt hat with narrow brim and a matching suit. Despite of his all-gray hair and wrinkled face, he looked strong and sharp for his age. He was about 6 feet tall, so when I was little, I had to look all the way up until my neck hurt to make eye contact with him. He was also a heavy smoker. Whenever he was smoking a cigarette in his suits, it was like a scene from a movie. That was why I loved to go to school with him because my friends who saw us on the way to school said to me later, "Wow, I thought he was your father!" They were jealous of me who had such a cool grandfather.

 

But that was not the only cool thing about him. He was like a friend of mine, only 65 years older. There was one more thing he was addicted to besides cigarettes. He was a coffee addict and made me make his coffee after every meal. My mother didn't like this because I kept trying to take a sip of it. She used to watch me while I was making his coffee and let me go after making sure I didn't drink it. But that was fine with me because my grandfather used to share his coffee with me, without my mother knowing. Even though we got caught later, I didn't get scolded thanks to my accomplice.

 

He was also good at playing with us. Back then, there were no smartphones, but only books and nature to play with. He used to sit me on his lap and read a book with his cracking, husky voice from smoking. He tried so hard to keep me entertained. When I started to get bored, he grabbed my hand and took me outside. Then, he would catch all sorts of insects, from butterflies in spring, to cicadas and grasshoppers when it was summer, to dragonflies in fall. He let me observe it for a while and freed it in the grass, saying, "Honey, every life is precious. Don't forget that." For me, he was the best teacher. With him, I learned what I could have never learned at school.

 

Even though he became a star in the night sky, I still remember the feel of his wrinkled hand holding mine, his voice calling me "honey", his warm eyes looking at me, and, above all, how much he loved me.

Yousun Jung/Character sketch(5th post)/Tues 9-11 am

Task 3.3
I think the writer used metaphor very effectively. The writer didn't even mention what the man did or said, but this essay clearly gave an image of him. Reading the essay, it just came to my mind as if it was a scene in a movie. It made me imagine raindrop seen through window glass, grey rug, a woman clasping her knees, and jazz music. It even made me feel blue.

 

Task 3.4
My auntie is like a cup of tea in a rainy day.

 

 

<Character Sketch>

Chandarka, A Wall With Door

She was a high wall. She was always holding her toad-like lips tight. She rarely smiled. She didn't talk much, especially with me. I sometimes saw her talking vividly with others and even smiling to them, but never to me. There was no special reason. We had never fought or quarreled. Actually I didn't even have chances to do so.

She talked in her own mother tongue even though she could speak English. What I can say in her mother tongue was just to say hello and ask someone's name. She said her name was Chandarka and I told her my name. It's done in the first week so I had nothing to talk with her anymore. I tried to ask many things, but she just answered me back as briefly as possible. The thing is that I was the one working with her for a full day, even if it was just once a week.

I helped the pharmacy in clinic for HIV/AIDS people those days. I gathered pills reading the prescription or packed pills and syrups. I liked most people I met there, but she was the most difficult. SHE WAS A HIGH WALL. At the end of the month, I started to dislike her. She is working for PLWA, but she is not even kind to people, especially to me!

One day, a woman came into pharmacy out of sudden, and started to cry like a little child. As there were lots of people with sad stories there, it was not strange to see someone crying. But her blubber was really different. She wept as if it was the end of her hope. I could not understand even a word from her, but I also felt like crying only by seeing her. Later, I heard that a woman lost her mom who was the only one with her husband had kicked her out with an excuse of HIV/AIDS. Chandarke didn't say anything but she was just holding her until she calmed down little bit.

To my surprise, Chandarka just hugged her with one arm. Her toad-like lips were still clamped and the way she hugged a woman was not so friendly. I could not see any change in her face but still there was something that I could call kindness. She was not a wall. She was a wall with door. When there was someone in need, she opened her door and let him or her in. I was ashamed of myself for misunderstanding her only because she was not kind enough in a way I preferred.

I could not talk with her much even after that. Even now, I cannot call her a 'friend' of mine. Still, I sometimes think of her wall-like face when she was holding a woman. It seemed like a strong citadel that I felt secure. Yes, she truly was a wall, but with door open.

201003163 Yousun Jung

 

Gitae Shin/Essay Assignment (p.77)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

Thanks for your incessant and heartfelt support

"Hello? Is this Gitae? How many meals did you have for today? The experts from news articles said that breakfast is the most important meal!"

"But I don't have breakfast everyday because I want to sleep more. Don't worry. I will do it by myself. Just promise me that you will eat healthy food, drink less alcohol, and smoke less!"

His voice is always high on the phone. That high pitch from my cell phone's speaker makes me frown my eye browses still now, but I am really used to it comapred to the past. His hearing, indeed, has been getting worse and worse every year. In my opinion, it seems he probably thinks that he should speak out loud for other people to hear his voice as he cannot hear other people's voice clearly.

Unlike his hearing, considering his age, he has quite affluent hair. His white hair always shines and glitters. It almost covers his hair skin. I think he is quite proud of the fact that he has more hair than any other people around his age. Maybe that is why he always tries to make it look tidy and neat with his precious comb.

A brown cane has been his frind for more than 2 years and it helps him walk. He really liked to walk around. Well I think he still does, but it rarely says to me to go out for walk. As I said, it has been almost 2 years.

He used to be like a big and strong tree. He was always there and ready to give me his his hand if I needed it. He was like a calm lake which made me feel comfortable and feel like taking a rest there. Just like a big tree has its shade and people rest under it, he gave me his shade enough to cover me.

"Son, you gotta go to the hospital. Nobody is available now. I will join there as soon as possible.

I ran to the emergency room in the hospital and found him lying on the bed. He had a few scratches and I could see bloodstain all over his body. He was unconscious. He muttered something like a old and sick dog moaning.

"Grandpa, are you okay? Can you hear me?"

He did not reply but just made a sound that I could not understand.

Although he recovered, after that, he could not be what he used to be. Ever since, my big old tree became a weak and damaged little tree which needed my hands. What makes me even more sad is that he, still now, puts me before him and I cannot do anything for him except me listening to him.

I will not tell a lie. His phone call is annoying from time to time. Nevertheless, I do not hang up the phone until he finishes it. By any chance, if I think it is annoying, I say to my self "You have given me incessant and hearful love so far. I have not had a single chance to repay it. There are so many things I want to give you. My weak and litle tree, please, do not go away until the time comes. It won't take that long."

Gitae Shin/Task3.3(3) & Task3.4(1) (p.76)/Narrative Composition(2) Tuesday & 09:00~11:00

Task 3.3

3.

① Write two or three sentences that describe your reaction to this imaginative essay that makes use of metaphor.

: In my case, easy metaphor is not hard to understand the meaning it implies. However, from time to time it is really difficult. This imaginative essay with a few metaphors make me think of how the guy would be like, but in the latter part, I got lost and confused by the writer's strategy, which means I could not get the picture of him.

② Is the writer's use of metaphor effective?

: Well as I mentioned above, it was very effective until halfway, but it gave me the reverse effect in latter part of essay partly because of my reading comprehension.

③ How does it make you feel?

: The way she described and portrayed him made me think of one girl who might have a similar image like his, so I became calm and bit sad at the same time.

④ What does it make you think about?

: Just what I have said above, it made me think of a girl giving off similar image like his.

 

Task 3.4

1. Write a metaphor about a person you know.

Sometimes I myself act as if I were a woman.

My father is a well-packaged gift as he gives me surprising presents from time to time.

My mother reminds me of a small and calm pond which usually stays still but once a rock is thrown it floods over with anger.

My sister looks like giraffe as she is super tall and has super long legs unlike me.

Kim Young Woo 201203937 / First Draft Essay # 2 / Narrative Comp. Tues

Family Man

August 1st 1997. This was the date one father took his wife and his only son on board Korean airline to move halfway across the world. Without much knowledge nor money, he decided to chase the American dream. Against all odds, he quit his job at the Walker Hill hotel to move to a country that held no certainty. Now that I see it, he was a brave man who risked failure to provide a better life for his family. This is the story of my father.

My earliest memory of my father in America, who did not know how to speak a single word of English, woke up earlier than everyone else to go out to find work for the day to put food on the table for his family. From manual labor to appearing as extras in film, he tried all he could to get by until he was able to get a salary job. Regularly coming home late, unable to fit in some time for a decent dinner, he would come home to my mom's home cooking and drink some beer to end another day. I can only imagine how hard it was for him mentally and physically, let alone having to deal with the language barrier.

He never gave up. He finally got a job as the main chef at a Korean restaurant and began to have a regular paying job. But even then, it barely made the payments for basic living expenses and thus my mom had to begin working to help out. I can only imagine how much this hurt him, having to ask his wife to work in a foreign country while having to take care of a very young version of me. Recently, my father told me that the only reason we were able to get to where we are right now was because my mom helped him out during those hard times. As a man who never expressed any signs of weakness to his family, I knew that he appreciated my mom's help dearly.

My father, he is a very traditional Korean male figure, very conservative, didn't showing his weakness, which all amounted to more pressure to be the leader for his family. He was the backbone of our family and during these few years is when I saw what kind of person my father was. From working strenuous hours in karaokes, in numerous restaurants, and as a starting salesman, my dad was able to find a job that he was good at, talking. With only a rudimentary level English, my father began selling merchandise to convenient stores off his Chrysler mini van. This is how he strated his career as a salesmen.

I didn't know how hard my dad worked until one day when I was suspended from school. He took me out to work with him to show me how hard he was working for me and my mom. As I entered couple of the convenient stores, I saw some of the disparaging treatments from the store owners, probably due to his image, a Asian man with broken English trying to sell merchandise. At this moment, I felt a sudden rush of pain in my chest knowing that he was taking all the gestures of belittlement from these store owners. Being aware that my father was a man with great pride, his choice to swallow his ego to put food on the table and money in my pockets so that I could go out with my friends during the weekend was a very hurtful reality that was difficult to digest.

But, it was his quality of being a family man, that allowed him to persevere through all those hardships to make it in a country that put him at a very huge disadvantage. After living in a studio for five years, was able to move his family to a one bedroom townhouse, and eventually, after graduating middle school, was able to move out of the ghetto streets of Los Angeles into a nicer neighborhood in the suburbs out in the valley. Even with all the sweat and tears, my father never gave up, and eventually grew his sales business into his own successful company. Never giving up and persevering through all the hardships of being a new immigrant in an alien country, he was able to become a successful businessman in America. If anyone knows what it is like to start from the bottom, my father definitely can tell you that if you really have something to live for, in his case, his family, than anything is possible. He will always be my role model, someone I still have a million things to learn from.

Task 3.3

I believe that using metaphors in writing is very helpful to better illustrate what you are trying to say. When they are used effectively, they can show strong emotions and images to explain an event, person, or thoughts. However, in this case of this writing, Rain, the metaphors actually made the essay a lot more confusing. I think writers need to be careful when using metaphors in their essays because, without have a clear connection, the readers can get lost in the message the writer is trying to portray.

Task 3.4

His biceps are huge rocks.

HYUNJEEKIM/Character Description Essay/Narrative Composition/Tues. 9-11a.m.

HYUN JEE KIM 201400916

Task 3.3

The writer's use of metaphor was effective. This tool made me think about and imagine what the writer's brother is like in my head. The metaphors used to describe the brother, made the brother seem mysterious. It could have been a boring paragraph about her brother, but with the use of metaphors, it made the writing interesting to read.

 

 

Task 3.4

Life is a hurricane.

She was a walking dictionary.

 

My Friend, Madeline

"She's very pretty". That's the first thing I said to my mom when I first met my friend Madeline. We first met the school office in 3^rd grade. She was a new student and I was a new student. We instantly became friends.

She had round green eyes and long curly blonde hair, which instantly took my attention when I first saw her. Madeline was like a living Barbie doll that my sister and I used to play with. When people asked her to play jump rope or get a snack during recess, she would always decline. Instead, she would always go to the library, whether its recess and lunch. Even though she never joined my classmates to play jump rope, all the girls liked her. She was nice always helping classmates during spelling time. She loved books so much that I never saw her without a book. Madeline was a definition of bookworm. Madline was a walking book. Whenever she starts reading, she would sometimes smile but most of the time made a serious face with her eyes never leaving her book. Even if it's a hot summer day, she would never tie her hair, but instead letft her hair fall on her book.

Madeline was late to class at least once a week. She would always say, "You can go first. I want to finish this first", even when the lunch time was over. She didn't look worried at all. She never was. She was even reading walking back to the classroom.

Whenever I asked her what she was reading, she would never answer me right away. Instead, she would reply a minute later, showing me the book cover. To other classmates, she was being mean, not answering me. As her friend, I knew her well enough to know that she wasn't being mean. She wasn't very talkative but once she starts to talk about books, she wouldn't stop talking. Whenever she finished the book she was reading, Madeline would always tell me the books that she's been reading. Her descriptions were so detailed that I felt like I was listening to an audio book. I never stopped her. I enjoyed it.

I can still remember the times Madeline explaining her favorite book until today.

HyeonJu Oh/ 5th Post/ Tues 9-11 am

Task 3.3

3. I think that using the metaphor is effective. It makes the essay more interesting and also encourages me to keep read. By making some objects into things that are familiar to general people, it helps readers to imagine objects easily. After reading the expression like "He is the brother of the rain", I could imagine that a man who sacrificed a lot and the writer's sadness about that.

Task 3.4

1. My younger brother is a giraffe






Sun


In the morning, especially when the sun shines like a diamonds, I miss the boy who I really loved in the past. From now on, I call him as 'Tutu'. Tutu was a special one. He was good at every sport and his body took shape like a professional model. His face was rather common, but his smile was the most wonderful thing that I had ever seen. He and I were in the same class when I was 16 years old. But at that time, because he was kind of school-gangster and I was really ordinary student, I didn't even imagine that I fell in love with him.


My class room overlooked the playground. It was a fine after noon, the sand of the ground was glittering. Some students who played soccer during the lunch time were about seemed in a hurry because the bell was ringing. The teacher came to the class and Tutu also did. He was standing up in front of the back door, wearing a short sleeve T-shirts and short pants hardly down to his knees which were soaked in sweat. In his side, there was an old soccer ball. His seat was last low in the class and so did I. Therefore I could hear his puffed breath and have the scent of his dim, weird smell of sweat near my seat. The smell was not bad. Actually his scent was reminding me the smell of dried laundry under the sun. I understood why peoples like him.


Although the teacher started the lecture, he had no will to study. He just flapped his wet shirt. Suddenly he saw me. At that moment, the sunshine that penetrated the window poured over his head. He was lightening like the sun. He told me.
"Can I see your textbook together?"
"Sure." I said.
And he got closer to me. I felt the fever. During that class, we shared some dull jokes, and I was getting defenseless toward his warm voice. He smiled refreshingly. His smile was bright enough to erase all the shade in my mind. Laughing and talking in the back low with small voices, I fell in love.


After the time passed, we were getting the best friend. Like a destiny, we lived in the same village and one of his friends lived in the upper floor of my house. So we could get together easily. He was the real sun. Excepting his external aspects, he helped handicapped friends and tried to protect weak students from school violence. And whenever I walked near the vacant lot, I saw tutu that playing soccer with a lot of kids in our village. He was the sun that I couldn't approach because of its brightness. It was my first love. I told him about my love 5 years ago and still we are the best friend. Even though I failed to realize this old love, I think it was so honor to me to love the person who resembles the sun.

Hyeonju Oh