Koreazy Life

Access Koreazy

2009-10-25T22:47:00.000-07:00

Here I am

Thanks for stopping by.

FYI: Canadian Professors' Salaries

2007-05-06T06:20:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to share this interesting site. I didn't look up anybody I know yet, but it should be interesting.

http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/english/publications/salarydisclosure/2007/univer07.html

I noticed that Professor Cluett joined Facebook. He's too cool. He works out, he's n-sci chair, and he's on facebook?

wow. maybe i'll look him up first. :P

Facebook as a source of motivation

2007-05-06T00:18:00.000-07:00

The internet's so interesting, cuz it lets u just pursue every train of thought.
This album is powered by BubbleShare - Add to my blog

I had my first club experience in Korea (HongDaeAp - S-Club) at 7am in the morning. Because the public transit stops 12am~5am, ppl stay at the club till 5am. There didn't seem to be last call either. Leaving at 5am, then grabbing some junk food (scraps fish cakes that were probably sitting there for a very long time), I caught the subway and came home. Unfortunately, I woke up too late (1:30pm mmmm :) ) to catch the 2pm English service at SaRang church which I really wanted to go to before attend Matt Redman's concert on Tuesday, but I'm not feeling too bad about since going to the 2pm (3rd English service), 4pm (6th Korean service), 6pm services (college service) , then the 7:30pm meeting (Group Bible Study) felt a little overwhelming. Whelps.. I guess I will have to find some ppl to go to the concert with from GBS, since my 2 friends who are coming with me don't know all the songs.

Since I tend to go all or none, I decided that I'll just stick to my usual 6pm and 7:30pm meetings. This gave me some down time. I wanted to study for my CFA, which is only a month away, but 2 things keep me distracted from this. 1. A manager on my team wants me to learn about interest rate derivatives and swaps as soon as possible so that he can teach me to do some useful things ( then I wonder what I've been doing these past 2 months). 2. Little things like buying a desk lamp, making credit cards, buying a cell phone, uploading photos u took (cuz ppl keep reminding u), checking facebook to reply to urgent messages (since that seems to have become my only reliable method of communication in the absence of a cell phone and lack of use of email in Korea (ppl txt msg on the cell instead).

That's led to the following in the past 2 hours [well, after I finished some left over ho-dduk (pancake filled with brown sugar/honey - I thought the McDonalds McGriddle was a poor imitation of this) and some left over bread from Outback steakhouse (In Korea, they pack the bread/dinner roll for u with their famous honey butter)]:

Download more Matt Redman MP3's since I still don't know all these Christian worship songs by heart
Finding the best photo sharing site to share, since my recent share has created some discontent among the viewers

Korean kids wanna use Cyworld, which I think is really poor, so to not use Cyworld, I felt that I had to offer a better solution. Imagestation was my favorite due to their speed and unlimited use, but they seem to have disabled Original image downloading since I last used it)
Bubbleshare - this seems like an amazing site that works smoothly, lets u d/l zipped album originals, AND record audio on ur photos

I was searching the internet for file limits of bubbleshare, but instead came across some site that said "Toronto-based" which made me wonder who made it. Albert Lai's bio seemed really impressive and motivational, since I always wanted to do something like he did, except my parents were opposed to me dropping out of school and starting something, but that's probably just my excuse.
http://www.bubbleshare.com/about/the_team

I didn't even finish buying the desk lamp, or upload the photos, but this afternoon seems to have been so productive. A burst of inspiration is such a precious feeling, but it's funny where u can get it from.
I also got a gmail notification that an old friend from univ facebook msged me, n when I found out that he's doing a MBA/LAW and will graduate in 2 yrs, I was again impressed.
This things prompted me to post this, and though I have so much more I wanna write, I gotta run to catch the subway to church at 5pm (45 min ride - maybe I can go over the CFA Ethics section on my way). Sometimes running out of time for something can be a good thing, I guess, so that I can make time for other things.

Robert, I hope you see this, because I was trying to let u know about the BubbleShare guys, and ended up writing this blog.

Greg, wassup bro!

Signing out~

2007-02-20T20:18:00.000-08:00

My cousin's daughter has grown so much! She was so cute and fun to play with. People say she looks like my cousin, but I'm not so sure. Anyway, kids are such a joy. She is so funny when we prompt her to sit properly, and also when we let her take hold of the Swiffer as she likes to imitate us cleaning the floor.

Accepting the Job Offer

2007-02-20T20:02:00.000-08:00

I quit my job, and accepted the offer from the bank, in that order, which worried my mother a bit, given the track record of my previous job offers. It was a difficult decision, especially because of the scarcity of time that was given me for considering my options. However, I do believe that this is an unmatched opportunity, and seeking to add value to myself, in preparation to launch great big international projects in the future, I believe that this will be a turning point to be remembered.

The greatest doubt that nagged me was whether I would do as well in Korea as I have here at the nuclear plant. My supervisor was extremely happy about my performance and seemed to have really appreciated me being on the team. Therefore, I was quite surprised when he happily released me. He was incredibly helpful, and provided me with only reassuring words. He explained that he never expected me to stay too long, given my background and the limitations of my current position, and he continued by saying that anyone in my position would accept the new opportunities. The more I work under this person, the more I find myself respecting him, for all the characteristics that are so unlike mine. God has indeed listened to my prayers to allow such an encouraging supervisor during this time of rapid transition.

The recruiter from the bank asked me to send me a photo for the upcoming welcoming presentation, and the photo on this post is the one I sent him.

To and fro Seoul

2007-02-20T19:20:00.000-08:00

Though not quite completely confident, I went to the interview in Korea. An acquaintance warned me that this was not a good idea. Others also raised a brow when they found out that the company was not paying for the travel expenses. Ultimately, though, I knew that the potential advantages were immeasurable. Therefore, I flew to Korea in the cheapest way I could find.

I drove from Port Elgin to Detroit, left my car in the airport parking lot, flew to Tokyo, then flew to Korea. From Incheon (ICN) I was able to find a bus that would take me to the subway network, so that I could quickly and economically get to my destination. For under a $1000, it was a great deal. For what I got out of the trip, it was worth 10 times more than that.

Although the travel time exceeded 26 hours, it felt disappointingly short. The only part that dragged on was the drive from Port Elgin to Detroit (346km), as I was worried that I might be late. The snow on the roads did not help either. 5 hours was all it took, quite a bit more than I expected, so I was grateful for my father's insistence that I an extra hour to get to the airport.

In the flight to Tokyo, I sat next to Lin, and we also had an extra seat between us, thanks to the self check-in service that allowed me to choose exactly where I wanted to sit. He was a Chinese mechanic working in Houston, visiting China for the New Year's. I was eager to talk to him because I was interested in the job market for an engineer in Houston, the MagLev train in ShangHai, the possibility of driving down to Mexico, and a few other things.

In my flight to Seoul, I sat next to a Korean guy studying business at Toyko University. He surprised me with some starting salary figures of Japanese university grads. It differed little from that of Korea. The Canadian salary turns out to doubling the Asian salary for new grads. We also discussed the growth of China, and the position of Korea, Japan, and China. He advised that I learn Chinese, rather than Japan. He's also a big fan of Eric Clapton, and is therefore going to name his future clothing company Crossroads.

I was starving when I was transferring from airport bus to the subway, so I stopped by to buy some soondae on the street. The lady gave me some free fish cakes for my advice for her 30 y/o son who was an engineer. As always, the lady had riches greater than one would first assume from her street business. I should have realized this by considering the probable price of a store of the size of the one she and her husband operated. However, she also told me that she owned additional property within the building, and that she would not hesitate to spending it all, in order to teach her son English, so that he may work internationally.

This post is getting too long so I'll end this post by sticking to my transportation.

I tried to finish watching Marie Antoinette on the place from Seoul to Tokyo, a movie I got through halfway on my flight in the opposite direction. I made use of every minute available, but I could not finish the movie, as we arrived in Tokyo too soon.

I sat next to a sweet Japanese girl who was really smart. She was telling me about the economy of Japan and Asia, and also suggested that I learn Chinese, rather than Japanese.

My drive back was hell. I was falling asleep at the wheel, yet the roads had patches of snow that caused the car to lose traction completely. Only by God's grace did I arrive safely.

God sized dream

2006-12-31T22:08:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to figure out what will be the best job in the whole wide world. Such childish thinking at my age, but I don't give up on dreams, and I have faith in God and all the talents that He's given me.

How did my career goal go from Biomedical Engineer to Project Manager to Financial Analyst to Economist?

Criteria for decision making:

realm of influence
personal effectiveness
creative potential
project lifecycle and time requirements
money
and of course, everything must be conceived, started, and completed through prayer

I have selected to sit on the fence on this one, between economist and financial analyst, as they do not seem differentiate in these preparation stages. Therefore, the questions that still remains are:

Is my CFA sufficient or would an MBA degree from a prestigious school be a probable requirement?
Is my mind going to change 5 years from now, and if so, what will be the effects of leaving engineering and project management to pursue basic education in the new field of economics and finance?
Would it be better to work and study in my current position in Work Management, or to take a big pay cut and work as a CFP since they will also pay for my CFA and MBA, as well as provide me some personal finance experience?
Who do I know that could help?

I know I need to pray about this, but I keep putting that off. I wonder what the differences are between:

prayerfully researching
fervently praying
contemplatively praying

Time is running out, as I will have to put this on hold until my organizing and filing duties have been completed, yet I must return to work in a day.

Korean pastor expelled from Kazakhstan

2006-12-31T22:04:00.000-08:00

This Korean pastor was not doing anything wrong. I guess it's really hard for missionaries to define the boundaries of missionary work and friendship. Either way, Christianity is probably a registered religion of Kazakhstan so such expulsion would not be justified, so I wonder what the real reason was.

South Korean pastor expelled from Kazakhstan

http://www.otherwise.net/?p=363

Another useful article on Koryo Saram

2006-12-31T22:02:00.000-08:00

Same authors, same info, more concise. Decent overview, but hardly sufficient to produce the feelings of connection to the Koryo Saram for Koreans, in comparison to his aforementioned paper.

Ethnic Koreans in Changing Kazakhstan
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200409/kt2004091921121811950.htm

Koryo Saram

2006-12-31T21:06:00.000-08:00

Despite the fact that I knew about our church's Russian ministry for so long, I've been so uninterested in knowing who these Korean looking Kazak people were and where they came from. When describing our church's Russion ministry to a good non-Christian friend of mine, she asked why these people. Once I started elborating on the ministry, I realized that I did not know who these people were.

I had always assumed that they were ethnic Koreans from Russia who have come from difficult backgrounds.

An article by German Kim, an ethnic Korean Russian from Kazakhstan, really transformed the way I perceive Kazak people. I'm really glad I ran into that paper, so I decided to blog this entry for future reference.

It's really amazing how many people I've simply walked by without knowing who they were. If I had, I would have greeted them differently. Whether that's being fair or not, I'm not sure, as it sounds like I am guilty of preferentially approaching people based on my perception of them.

Though totally different, I feel somehow very similar to how I felt when I was told that I had just open my hotel door to find Michael Douglas standing there when I was at Mont Tremblant a couple weeks ago.

I am humbled by these experiences, and ponder on how little I know, and how much potential there is in every little thing that we do.

Here is the link for the article:
Korean Diaspora in Kazakhstan: Question of Topical Problems for Minorities in Post-Soviet Space
http://src-h.slav.hokudai.ac.jp/publictn/89/contents-63.pdf