Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in nasabaga's LiveJournal:

[ << Previous 20 ]

Thursday, December 8th, 2005
3:42 pm	one of my favorite community sites is changing is policies, and I had to pipe up! Wade from tribe.net wrote: > Hi, > > Following on today's announcement about privacy > controls, we wanted to drop a note to everybody > who currently has a Mature profile. That's > because on or about 12/20, we’ll make the > following changes that affect you: > > 1) We’re implementing Community Flagging. To > ensure that all posts are respectful, and to > respond to concerns from our users about some of > the content on the site being offensive, we’re > going to allow members to flag content (photos > and listings) for removal. In our judgment, at > least some of your photos are likely to be > flagged for removal by other tribe.net members. > > 2) We’re updating our Terms of Use (“TOU”). This > update is to reflect changes in the legal > environment facing us and our members. In > particular, posting content that portrays > obscenity, pornography, or sexually explicit > conduct is for practical purposes illegal for > members like ours under U.S. federal law. So it > will be prohibited in our TOU, and we will drop > the “Mature” designation from your profile and > site wide. Your profile will be viewable to any > visitor or member, except for content that you’ > ve designated Friends Only. > > 3) We’re switching all the photos in your photo > album to Friends Only status. This is to give > you time to decide which ones need to be > removed, and which ones don’t. > > What to do now: we suggest you remove all photos > that you think are likely to be considered in > violation of the new TOU. Then remove the > mature mark (before 12/20) on your profile, at > > http://www.tribe.net/template/account% > 2CMatureProfile.vm > > Doing this now will save you a lot of work down > the road. > > This is an important transition for Tribe, one > we’ve had to think through long and hard. We > appreciate your help and patience as we all get > through this. If you have questions, we’ll be > discussing this online at http://tribeideas. > tribe.net > > Thanks, > > Wade Lagrone > VP Marketing > http://www.tribe.net/template/pub%2CAbout.vm > > P.S. If you have so many photos to remove that > it’s a big chore, let us know and we’ll figure > out a way to help. [and in response to some angry posts about rights and rebelling] You seem angry, and I think you have every right to be. However, I believe your anger to be misplaced. Instead of pointing the finger of wrongdoing at Tribe, go to mirror and point squarely at your own reflection. Yep, that's right [assuming you're american] you are the one to blame. There's so much talk about how rights are being taken away and whatnot, but no one seems to be discussing an important issue: whose Responsibility is it to Maintain the freedoms we take for granted? Now some of those freedoms are being threatened and all some peopel can do is whine and complain at tribe for not doing more. Well, you're an american citizen, and as such isn't it reasonable that you are partly responsible for the political situation in your country? Are you actively doing anything to oppose the current law that is curtailing your freedoms of self-expression? If not, what right do you have to scream at tribe for not doing more!? IMHO, it's the responsibility of every citizen to have a hand in their political process. It might even put a cramp on your free time, and there will be lot's of frustration, but in the end you'll get a system that reflects your needs and right to self-expression. Lobbying, letter-writing, and grassroots organizing is much more preferable to bloodshed to achieve your political aims, don't you think!? Don't forget that historically this level of personal freedom is still quite a new thing, and it's extremely vulnerable. Rather than complaining and bickering on this forum, how about some political action? What tribe has done is done, and as far as the laws go, tribe hasn't much choice but to abide by the laws of simply shuts it's doors. I don't want that! Do you? Don't villify tribe for being a law abiding business. It's a Business with paid workers who, like you, prolly don't love the changes any more than you do. BUt these ppl give their time and sweat to make our lives more interesting with this amazing forum for discussion on all types of topics. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, December 5th, 2005
12:41 pm	wisdom and moving A little bit of wisdom inspired by reading a travel blog: "May your days be long and full of light May your garden grow into a paradise May the stars shine bright and full around May you live your life in the love you have found" I'm also thinking heavily about how I'm going to leave with as little stuff as possible considering I'm coming back in a few short months. What I'd like to have happen is to get rid of all the household stuff I don't need and just leave the essential clothing and whatnot in Sokcho(where i was before) so that whence i return it is somewhere accessible. I *don't* want to be schlepping it back and forth over the pacific with me when i make my 'commute.' the ideal sitch is for me to have a few fair sized boxes sitting in an unused space>>hopefully a friends place. I'll be a lilttle sad to see my house stuff disapear but the tradeoff for replenishing it later will be the ease of missing the headache managing it's storage and yadda-yadda. < [Error: Irreparable invalid markup ('<weather [...] "it's>') in entry. Owner must fix manually. Raw contents below.] A little bit of wisdom inspired by reading a travel blog: "May your days be long and full of light May your garden grow into a paradise May the stars shine bright and full around May you live your life in the love you have found" I'm also thinking heavily about how I'm going to leave with as little stuff as possible considering I'm coming back in a few short months. What I'd like to have happen is to get rid of all the household stuff I don't need and just leave the essential clothing and whatnot in Sokcho(where i was before) so that whence i return it is somewhere accessible. I *don't* want to be schlepping it back and forth over the pacific with me when i make my 'commute.' the ideal sitch is for me to have a few fair sized boxes sitting in an unused space>>hopefully a friends place. I'll be a lilttle sad to see my house stuff disapear but the tradeoff for replenishing it later will be the ease of missing the headache managing it's storage and yadda-yadda. <<weather todday is -7 celcius and sunny- the ppl here say 'cho-wa-yo' and that means "it's cold">> So I'll have to say goodbye to an almost new couch, but hopefully someone will be kind enough to adopt it by donation. But I'm not holding my breath. I guess my parents want to save themselves a few bux and adopt my computer, and i think i'l throw in my digi-cam to sweeten the deal. I'm sure my mom could use it! Current Mood: cold (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, December 2nd, 2005
3:54 pm	by the end of this month I'll be home Hello, friends! I have news about my current situation: I'm coming home at the end of december for about a month and a bit. My current school is losing students and my director can't afford a full time teacher. SO My plans have changed again! I expect to come home, visit with my family and see my friends, and then go off again for a stretch BACK to korea for another intense job experience followed by a possible work/study position which will result in a Master's of TESOL. That's about 3 years in the future or more, depending on if I travel for 8 months between the next contract and the Master's program. Due to the time constraints of this time of the year I'll be coming home probably just after Xmas or just after new years. I'll see how the ticket prices play out. You're all in my thoughts, ttys NathanB Current Mood: chipper (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Thursday, December 1st, 2005
1:43 pm	smaller and smaller my classes at the hogwan just keep getting smaller and smaller. My director blames me for the whole thing but I feel it's at least a mix of my unskilled efforts(i would love some kind of training) and the economy of the area plus the time of year. My director hasn't been in charge long enough to have a grand long term scheme, but the vibe I'm getting from ourr verbal exchanges isn't promising. I just can't shake this feeling that he's a little slimy - like the fact that it's been a month and a half and he's resisting starting up my health insurance. This is something he signed a contract to supply to me. I've kept my side of the bargain, now where is he? So I'm scanning the job sites looking for work now. Let's hope I land something great! (Comment on this)
Saturday, November 12th, 2005
12:01 pm	I scraped this great tidbit from another blog http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/09/national/09bakery.html Now I had some nice stuff to type in here but somehow I lost it. I asked the guy I heard it from to explain it to me. What the hell is a stroller nazi? "A stroller nazi is a parent, and I use that term loosely, who expects the world to stop or adapt just for them because they have kids." "Such as?" I asked "Such as this thing with kids running wild in restraunts. They're yelling at the top of their lungs, running all over the place, climbing on everything. It's a restraunt, not a bl**ping playground." "So you have an issue with parents who refuse to dicipline their kids.." " I have issues when they want to take their unruly kids out in public and subject everyone in the vicinity to them. Where did the civillity go? When we were kids, if you acted up you went home. Your parents left the restraunt or wherever you were. Now they just let them do whatever the hell they want, and god forbid you say anything to them they get hostile." "But that's a small number really, not every parent." "You didn't hear about the mother changing her child's diaper on the table in a mc donald's, and threatening to sue when the manager asked her to leave? Perfect example of a stroller nazi." "Ok, I get your point" (Comment on this)
Sunday, November 6th, 2005
1:19 pm	quitting coffe: day 2 this reply from my friend micheal: Caffine is hard on the kidneys. While your quitting drink green tea much healthier. Coffee is bitter and cold and weakens the spleen cause the spleen like dry and warmth. if the green tea is to cold add some ginger. You'll know if your spleen is happy if you have no teeth marks on your tounge and if your feces are well formed. ?Nathan?B? wrote: > have you come across, in your studies, any info > about the dangers of coffee consumption. i just > gave it up as of yesterday and i'm not looking > forward to the headache that will come. I've > heard of some benefits touted in the news, but > what is *bad* about coffee? Whaddya think? and I'm on my 2nd day without it : thanx to the green tea I'm feeling so much better Current Mood: determined (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Friday, November 4th, 2005
11:19 pm	Disappointing.... :( one of my old friend/acquaintances from back in '01 sent me a mistaken email from one of those ipod marketing companies where they get you to signup five friends and complete 1 free offer thing. I find these things so irritating and honestly: the people who are foolish enough to do them are absolutely desperate. And for what? all that work and effort for an Ipod? it's ridiculous. I may have been a bit harsh with this girl, going so far as to suggest she delete my email from her address book, but that fact that I get this offensive email from her and not so much as any other kind of communication for many years. Very disappointing! And I told her as much. I hope my email hits her in the right place and stings her a bit. my first thought was "Oh, you stupid idiot." I know from tribe of a few situation of ppl desperate enough to get complete strangers to sign up for them on some non-descipt tribe discussion board. It's pretty bad when it gets to that but it is interesting to see how far ppl will honestly go to satisfy some material need. Hmm, Imagine how their lives might be different if they put the same verve into their current job or job-hunt. I wonder if there are any stats that can show a relationship between to how many ppl do these marketing schemes and how many of them have jobs. Silly Monkeys! Current Mood: blank (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 3rd, 2005
3:06 pm	I know I'm late but, I just did my 3rd bikrams yoga routine at home alone. I had my favorite ambient music playing and a 1 minute wav of my voice repeating 1, 2, 3....9, 10, and the routine is getting better. The first couple times i spent about 3 horus going for it. this time i stuck to my guns and actually managed to maintain my focus. I finished the whole routine in under 90 minutes. I skipped the Savasana(dead man's pose) most of the time, and thathelped me get through it. By midday when i get the time for yoga if I do savasana it's helpful for me to have a voice to get me off my rump and back to the next position->instructors are great for that. I relaize it may not sound like much, but you've got to take the little successes as they come. It may be a looong time before i get to join another bikrams class, and I want to get some pointers and be in shape when i do. I love this!! Current Mood: satisfied (Comment on this)
Saturday, October 29th, 2005
3:18 am	ridiculously late but.... My LiveJournal Trick-or-Treat Haul nasabaga goes trick-or-treating, dressed up as Orange. _silent_star_ tricks you! You get an eraser. alextwo tricks you! You get a piece of paper. kaeri gives you 13 tan root beer-flavoured pieces of chewing gum. leifster tricks you! You get a clothespin. luinfalathiel gives you 6 light yellow lime-flavoured pieces of bubblegum. marsnova tricks you! You lose 13 pieces of candy! molasses tricks you! You lose 5 pieces of candy! pi_feathersword tricks you! You get a rotten egg. squeak gives you 8 dark blue lemon-flavoured gummy worms. vicchef gives you 6 yellow orange-flavoured gummy bats. nasabaga ends up with 15 pieces of candy, an eraser, a piece of paper, a clothespin, and a rotten egg. Go trick-or-treating! Username: Another fun meme brought to you by rfreebern. Current Mood: awake (Comment on this)
Thursday, October 20th, 2005
6:25 pm	I'm halfway... It's the 20th today and I'm burning through my course at a good clip. I've got 10 assignments to go, and I'm fairly confident that I can nail them by 3rd week of november. I've stopped going to my korean yogasana class as it just was suiting my yoga needs->I'm going to do bikrams at home. I'm sure the first few times will be a challenge, but I'm committed to getting my yoga routine memorized and done with. I really enojy that style, and it'll be nice to have my own space to do the yoga in. I risk being less social, but at the yoga place no one ever said a word to me, so I won't miss it too much, and I may even save a half million won over the next year in the process->>Whoo-Hoo! ^^ (Comment on this)
Thursday, October 6th, 2005
11:15 pm	it's rather fitting..... You're British Columbia. You're hip and happenin' but also a nice person who isn't a snob. Career is important to you but it isn't your whole life. People assume that your life is perfect and that you have it all, like you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth. But it's not true; you do have your own set of troubles just like everybody else. What Canadian Province Are You? brought to you by Quizilla (Comment on this)
Wednesday, October 5th, 2005
4:29 pm	Bye Mom! Thankyou so much for vacationing with me!! I think this was by far the most enjoyable time I've ever spent with my Mom. We shared a tiny apt. and we spent quite a fair bit of time in eachother's hair. I showed her around My corner of th ROK, and she said many times over how much fun she was having. I love her so much and I'm so blessed/thankful/lucky to have her in my life. It's nothing short of brilliance the love and affection we gave to eachother this time around. I'm happy to have my space back to my ownsome, but still it was really nice to have her around. I noticed quite clearly how we had changed our relation to one another and how I sounded different listening to myself talk with her. thankyou Mom! thankyouTHAnKYOUthankyou! love is wonderful! ^^ I wish Dad could have joined in the fun, but I'll have to wait just that extra bit longer to show him how much I miss him. Current Mood: optimistic (Comment on this)
Wednesday, September 21st, 2005
3:56 pm	I'm going to have a visitor soon! After a year and a half, my mother is finally flying over to South Korea for a long overdue visit. We'll take in the sights, gain some weight with too much korean food, and sweat it all out in some saunas. I'm really looking forward to it. Plus, I hope that my students take advantage of her stay and act as tour guide while I'm working. This should be fun! (Comment on this)
Sunday, September 18th, 2005
2:28 pm	This funny, funny life A little funny reading while I work on my online tesl course. It's a gorgeous day on this chuseok holiday sunday, and I'm whittling away on the keyboard trying to finish my assignment. Sometimes it's inexplicably easy and I ask myself if it's really meant to get me thinking more deeply about the material. Actually, what I've found that it's the effort of doing the assignments that basically teaches you the course. I'm really enjoying it in that respect. Current Mood: optimistic (Comment on this)
12:22 am	My 5 day Japan Visa Run Take a look at Gallery 1 and Gallery 2. ^^ These two links will give you a peak at the 444 pictures I took during my recent trip to Japan. I won't boast about my photography skills; some of the pictures are downright crappy, but I felt taking as many as I could was better than taking fewer. I'm still so amazed that I can take so many pictures in so short a time. I filled up my 512MB card, but it took alot of work. I also tried to take alot of pictures of the people I met and crossed paths with. Most people were game for taking a photo but some people reacted with confusion and perplexity when the people I talked to tried to figure out why a tourist gaijin was taking there picture. Japan is more than just temples and pachinko parlors. It's the people I meet that makes traveling so addicting and soul-broadening. I hope you enjoy these pictures, and I'm sorry if the descriptions are choppy. I'll use a different service next time. Cheers! (Comment on this)
Sunday, August 28th, 2005
5:10 pm	I'm settled in my new job in fresh new digs! Hello, It's been a fairly good long while since I opened this site for an update, and I apologize for the delay. I've been very busy getting used to a new life in the fair city of Bundang. It's a brilliantly designed new city just south of Seoul, and it's as close to immaculate as I've ever seen. Most of the construction is recent within the last 15 years, and the whole area reeks of wealth. At one yoga studio I've been to it costs close to 2.0 million Won for a years' membership. The place I go to 3 times/week is just 10 minutes walk from my officetel apt.[read: cosy shoebox] and costs 600,000 per year. I'm also on good terms with the yoga instructor there and we meet every so often for some friendly language exchange. My boss and my workplace are topnotch. At this particular workplace though I'm the only Foreign teacher, and all the staff are relaxed and friendly. I'm pretty lucky to have great job with variable hours that treats me so well. This next week I'm sorting out some immigration issues with a weekend trip to Osaka, Japan to renew my work visa. I may not have time for much more that a little sightseeing and taking in the culture, but I'm sure it'll be a fantastic mini-trip. It'll also be my first trip to Japan. I'm pretty excited!! I haven't been online at home since I moved, but my director assures me he can get me hooked up within the next few days. Once I'm connected I'll make some new shutterfly galleries for you to take a peek at living in Bundang. It really is a beautiful city, and it's no wonder why the residents take such pride in living here. the weather today is a little overcast, but that hasn't stopped thousands of people from sweating it out in the parks and walkways to enjoy the summer. That includes me!! Current Mood: happy (Comment on this)
Monday, July 4th, 2005
10:56 pm	Wise words from my friend Jason Smith i think this sums it up pretty well..... The Circle of Life A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them. "Not very long," answered the Mexican. "But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American. The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family. The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?" "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs . . I have a full life." The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you!. You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge enterprise." "How long would that take?" asked the Mexican. "Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American. "And after that?" "Afterwards? That's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!" "Millions? Really?" "And after that?" "After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends." ^_^ Current Mood: impressed (Comment on this)
12:47 am	a wet introduction to July, and I'm pretty pleased with the result! E.E. Cummings! You scored 70 Demeanour, 59 Debauchery, 45 Traditionalism, and 70 Expression! You are generally good-natured, but you have a dark side, and your dark side wants to party. You make your own rules and say what's on your mind. You love life, but you don't take shit from anyone. You have strong political opinions, but you probably think about sex more often than just about anything else. Your masterpiece is "Somewhere I have never traveled, gladly beyond". My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 52% on Demeanour You scored higher than 42% on Debauchery You scored higher than 14% on Traditionalism You scored higher than 42% on Expression Link: The Which Famous Poet Are You Test written by Torontop on OkCupid Free Online Dating Current Mood: creative (Comment on this)
Thursday, June 16th, 2005
12:40 pm	Mid June rain Hello again; it's finally raining when everyone in Korea expected it to be wet already by the beginning of the month. Before we got soggy I took some shots from a loooong hike and managed to get down to the next spot far way, albeit a little dehydrated and tired. We started at a high point on a mountain pass, and then got halfway to our goal when we met a hiking club that was coming down. One of their number was down at where we parked our car and was fined by a Forestry Volunteer for hiking on a Deactivated Trail. We didn't see any signs, but apparently ignorance of the law isn't a defence. We decided to hike to another spot, but that made the hike 6X as long, and by the time I stumbled down the hill I was sweaty, almost delirious with dehydration, and in need of some cool cool tea.LUckily there's a teahouse at this particular Buddhist Temple, Hwa-omsa. So now it's midweek, and I'm nearing the completion on an assignment given to the teachers of the Hogwan I'm working for: We've been given the task of creating a grammar course. My partner Teacher, Mrs. Ym, and I have been given the Capitals and Punctuation Unit, and we're nearly finished. I'll be happy once it's done so I can get back to my TESL cert. that I started last month. more info soon Current Mood: cheerful (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, May 30th, 2005
10:44 am	it's a hazy monday morning in Sokcho I'm working on my esl course and in a short while i'll run down the street to get a haircut. I've skipped yoga this morning since there's so many small things that have added up recently. Some new decision have made me change my plans so I'll be moving onto the big city of Bundang just north of Seoul. I'm sure that a shift to the big city with all of it's plusses and minusses will give me a fresh start and many more opportunites. Sokcho has been a fun place to start, and my next step forward will give me even more choices. Summer starts in a few days and I'm really looking forward to it, but here in the country it means a full month of Monsoon Rain. Ah, the joys of Soggy! (Comment on this)