Well, since there was a fire at my workplace, I had Thursday and Friday off.
For the couple of years, I have been wondering if I should get my wisdom teeth removed. They are a little cramped in my mouth, which has truly been a "money pit" for my parents. My teeth are crooked and have plenty of cavities, even after decades, not years, of braces and my mom trying to keep my teeth healthy.
On Friday, I was bored, so what do I decide to do. I thought, "why not go see my friend's dentist, make an appointment and see if the dentist can fill the cavity or pull my tooth in the future?" More on the "future" part later. It is a wisdom tooth that has a cavity, so the option of pulling isn't too absurd.
My friend gave me a business card of her dentist because I said I needed some work done. She said that the dentist could speak English and was a good dentist that she had seen since she was a young girl. So, that was enough for me to check her out (yes, the dentist is female). It took me a while to find the dental office since Korean addresses are vague. They only give the neighborhood and building name. I ended up walking past the office and having to stop by a local realtor. Even though the realtor didn't speak any English he was able to point to a very detailed map where the building was and where I was at the time.
Once I got to the dental office, I ran into the dreaded receptionist who can't speak any English. I try to use as much Korean as I know and ask to see the dentist who is supposed to speak English. After a little bit the dentist comes out and talks with me. Luckily, the office wasn't too busy. I talked to her and told her I had a cavity that might need fixing, but I didn't bring my x-ray that my American mom took before I left for Korea. (Aside: My American mom is a dental hygienist.)
It is Korea, but they do have very modern dental equipment. So, the dentist suggested I take an x-ray. They took a panoramic x-ray of my mouth and before I knew it she was having me sit in a exam chair. She told me that I had two cavities and that I should get them pulled out. Dumb me, says "ok", I guess we can take one out, but she saw fear in my eyes, so she didn't push to take out more than one. I don't know why, but I was more afraid for this situation than any time in my whole life of seeing a dentist or orthodontist. And yes, I have spent HOURS in a dentists/orthodontists chair.
The "future" ended up being "right now." Getting the anesthetic was probably the worst. I was a little surprised because it didn't actually make my cheek or lip numb, only the top of my mouth, so I was a little worried that she missed the nerve. But, she started working on getting my tooth out and I didn't really feel to much, except her trying to pry out the tooth with the tool levered against the side of my mouth.
After the procedure, the ladies at the front desk tried to give me some precautionary advice. They said "no smoke, no drink alcohol, and no sauna." Those three things maxed out the two ladies English vocabulary. They gave me the bill which was about $10 for x-ray and $70 for tooth pulling, but I got a discount due to telling them my friend is a client, so I only paid $50.
All in all, from beginning to end, it probably took less than 30 minutes in the dental office, but I am not sure if I want to go back and get the three other ones pulled like the dentist recommended. I have already lost enough teeth due to orthodontics if they pull three more, I will have only 24 left of the maximum 32.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Thursday, September 4, 2008
My new apt
Hello everyone,
I just got internet service at my apartment, so I have been delaying on updating my blog.
I moved about a month ago to an "officetel" (read: really small studio apt). My apartment is approximately 8 평(280 sq. ft./26 sq. meters). It is clean and it is in a very convenient location. I am on the 5th floor of a 14 story building. Floors 1-4 and the basement are retail with convenience store, restaurants, coffee shops, hair salon, dry cleaner, and workout center. It's expensive, but I will join this month. The main reason for it being expensive is that it has a swimming pool, practice golf (hit into nets, and maybe a simulator), and squash courts
For those of you who know Seoul, I am located next to Sadang Station, so I have easy access to the Line #2 (green), Line #4 (light blue?) and a lot of buses. I am located only 4 stops from my office near Gangnam Station, so it takes about 15-20 minutes depending on if I have to wait for a subway and how slow I walk. Also, I only live about a 10 minute bus ride from my mom's apartment.
Here are a few pictures of my place.
The entrance is small, but has a small closet for shoes and clothes. On the right, is the bathroom. It is quite nice. I like the shower because it has a regular shower head or flexible shower head, but they can't be used simultaneously. It also has four other nozzles that spray towards the body from the wall that can be used simultaneously with one of the shower heads.
Also, in the first picture, where there are grocery bags, there is a deep closet that I have a rolling clothes rack. The grocery bags are actually holding my recyclables. We have to sort out paper, plastic, glass, and cans. Also, all food waste needs to be collected separately and put into special yellow trash bags. The white bag on the floor is for anything that isn't recyclable.
Here are pictures of my main living space. I have a super single twin bed, futon?? (it came with the apartment), some more cupboards, and air-conditioning. Even though summer is almost over, it is one thing that I missed when I was living with my biological mother. She has a huge, expensive place, but no air-conditioning. The little door behind my bed goes out to the AC unit, so it is noisy from traffic noise since it isn't very insulated. One of the few problems.
You have probably already noticed. I don't have a TV yet. I am hoping to get one in the future, so I can watch TV, but I also have a Nintendo Wii that isn't being used. I won it at a fundraiser for an adoptee organization. At least with the Wii, I can use it as an excuse to say that I am pseudo-exercising when playing Wii sports.
Last but not least, is my kitchen. Hehe, it only takes up a small wall. Underneath my stove, isn't a circular oven. It's my washing machine :). It is very handy to have so I can wash clothes whenever I want. Some apartments have shared washing machines like the States, but my apartment is a little more expensive, so it is included. Very few homes have dryers and most Koreans think that it is a waste of electricity and is hard on clothes. Dishwashers don't seem to be used that often even if homes have them. Right now, I only have a 2 stove gas range, toaster, and hot water pot. Maybe in the future, I will buy an oven or microwave. Ovens are usually quite small compared to American ovens. To the right of my kitchen sink is the refrigerator (big door) and my freezer below it.
It's now much, but enough for now. For now, my Korean mom is being a traditional parent. She is helping with some of the cost of living on my own, partially, because she knows I spent most of my savings in SF and also since it is too difficult for me to live with her.
Here is a picture of my workplace. The reason that I posted this picture is because the building had a fire. I am not exactly sure how much of the building suffered damage, but I don't have to work today.
Pagoda Academy is also the place that I worked at last year. Last year, I was mainly on the 3rd/4th floor teaching Business English in a classroom setting. Now, I am on the 10th floor at Direct English, a separate division of Pagoda Academy. I teach English on a one-to-one setting.
I just got internet service at my apartment, so I have been delaying on updating my blog.
I moved about a month ago to an "officetel" (read: really small studio apt). My apartment is approximately 8 평(280 sq. ft./26 sq. meters). It is clean and it is in a very convenient location. I am on the 5th floor of a 14 story building. Floors 1-4 and the basement are retail with convenience store, restaurants, coffee shops, hair salon, dry cleaner, and workout center. It's expensive, but I will join this month. The main reason for it being expensive is that it has a swimming pool, practice golf (hit into nets, and maybe a simulator), and squash courts
For those of you who know Seoul, I am located next to Sadang Station, so I have easy access to the Line #2 (green), Line #4 (light blue?) and a lot of buses. I am located only 4 stops from my office near Gangnam Station, so it takes about 15-20 minutes depending on if I have to wait for a subway and how slow I walk. Also, I only live about a 10 minute bus ride from my mom's apartment.
Here are a few pictures of my place.
The entrance is small, but has a small closet for shoes and clothes. On the right, is the bathroom. It is quite nice. I like the shower because it has a regular shower head or flexible shower head, but they can't be used simultaneously. It also has four other nozzles that spray towards the body from the wall that can be used simultaneously with one of the shower heads.
Also, in the first picture, where there are grocery bags, there is a deep closet that I have a rolling clothes rack. The grocery bags are actually holding my recyclables. We have to sort out paper, plastic, glass, and cans. Also, all food waste needs to be collected separately and put into special yellow trash bags. The white bag on the floor is for anything that isn't recyclable.
Here are pictures of my main living space. I have a super single twin bed, futon?? (it came with the apartment), some more cupboards, and air-conditioning. Even though summer is almost over, it is one thing that I missed when I was living with my biological mother. She has a huge, expensive place, but no air-conditioning. The little door behind my bed goes out to the AC unit, so it is noisy from traffic noise since it isn't very insulated. One of the few problems.
You have probably already noticed. I don't have a TV yet. I am hoping to get one in the future, so I can watch TV, but I also have a Nintendo Wii that isn't being used. I won it at a fundraiser for an adoptee organization. At least with the Wii, I can use it as an excuse to say that I am pseudo-exercising when playing Wii sports.
Last but not least, is my kitchen. Hehe, it only takes up a small wall. Underneath my stove, isn't a circular oven. It's my washing machine :). It is very handy to have so I can wash clothes whenever I want. Some apartments have shared washing machines like the States, but my apartment is a little more expensive, so it is included. Very few homes have dryers and most Koreans think that it is a waste of electricity and is hard on clothes. Dishwashers don't seem to be used that often even if homes have them. Right now, I only have a 2 stove gas range, toaster, and hot water pot. Maybe in the future, I will buy an oven or microwave. Ovens are usually quite small compared to American ovens. To the right of my kitchen sink is the refrigerator (big door) and my freezer below it.
It's now much, but enough for now. For now, my Korean mom is being a traditional parent. She is helping with some of the cost of living on my own, partially, because she knows I spent most of my savings in SF and also since it is too difficult for me to live with her.
Here is a picture of my workplace. The reason that I posted this picture is because the building had a fire. I am not exactly sure how much of the building suffered damage, but I don't have to work today.
Pagoda Academy is also the place that I worked at last year. Last year, I was mainly on the 3rd/4th floor teaching Business English in a classroom setting. Now, I am on the 10th floor at Direct English, a separate division of Pagoda Academy. I teach English on a one-to-one setting.
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