Love story : Dee and Dang

December 01 – December 15: TESL Job Search and Acceptance.

The past couple weeks have been consumed (most of my waking hours) with finding a job as a new teacher of English as a second language, and it has been interesting- to say the least.

After I felt prepared (resume updated, cover-letter written, pictures taken, and personal web site complete), I started not only searching for jobs, but applying to them, as well.

First, it was my hope to go directly to Thailand. I spent about two weeks sending out resumes, replying to emails, etc…. but nothing panned out. The market is much tighter in Thailand than say…. China or South Korea.

After a couple of disappointing weeks of looking for work in Thailand, I decided to start sending some resumes to South Korea (no, not the communist one). I immediately started getting responses, which I found quite encouraging; Thailand was starting to make me feel somewhat inferior.

After a week of replying to emails, I started fielding phone calls from South Korea. It got to the point to where I was having three or four calls a night from schools and recruiters from there.

It wasn’t but about the second or third day of interviews, etc. that I had a job offer…. quite a descent one I might add. After a couple of days of deliberation, and discussion with Noo-Dang, we decided to take the job.

For those of you that don’t know yet, Noo-Dang is the one that I adore. I don’t make any significant decisions in my life without her, especially this particular decision, for it effects her, as well.

I will be teaching children English in Seoul. The hours are good, the pay is great, and the experience will be incalculably valuable.

Things have gone rather smoothly for the most part. The recruiter that has been working with me and the school as a liaison, SoJin, has been great. There have been several hurdles to jump getting my visa, for the laws concerning such things changed on December 15th. So, because of the change, we had to rush to beat that deadline. $135 later, and several head aches for SoJin, all documents were submitted before the deadline.

Although, we beat the deadline, I still may end up going to the Korean consulate for an interview and to get my visa stamped. Right now, we are waiting to find out whether this is the case or not. Either way, I don’t mind. I don’t see any problems, only situations that require solutions- solutions which I’ve already considered.

All-in-all, this has been a good couple of weeks, although a whirlwind. Honestly though, what else could one expect? Working abroad is a complex matter, even under the best of circumstances. If you can’t handle getting the job and doing what is necessary to close the deal, you may want to question whether you can handle the job or not.

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November 05- December 01, 2007: Time to Catch-up.

Yes, it has been quite some time since my last post; I do apologize for that, but life has been as busy as any time that I can remember.

During the past few weeks, I have graduated from the TESL/TESOL program (I am now certified), finished my resume, written cover letters, started applying for jobs, and am getting responses.

For the past few weeks, this has been my life, and I’m o.k. with that, for this is indicative of progress…. of doing what is necessary of reaching my goals. I’m happy and pleased about this.

As I work toward my goals, and as my efforts begin to pay dividends, I experience a great sense of accomplishment. Also, my joy is increasing exponentially.

This next week should be interesting…. I have a potential employer that I am working with (they’ve even made tentative offers), and I expect to be getting to interviews and contract negotiations this week…. I, at least, expect to be nearing those stages. So, keep your fingers crossed, and wish me luck!!!!

Every day draws me nigh to the one I adore.

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