With Glowing Hearts????

The tagline from this years Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and a subtle representation of Canada's national anthem, 'With Glowing Hearts' is intended (I presume) to embody the olympic spirit and personify the games centre....?

Being Irish and not too familiar with the Winter Olympics (although we do have a womens bobsleigh team), I assumed that the pride and power associated with summer olympians and backroom staff stood true to those of the winter olympics? And to an extent they do and surely they may often reach higher levels of pride and purpose. It hasto be said, however, that controversy and evidence of indignation are evermore present in these games.

If I did not live in Korea, maybe I would have passed through life unaware of the crazy sport of short track speed skating, a sport that sees more disqualifications than any other. This is no surprise when you see the reasons for such disqualification: impeding, off-track, cross-tracking, team-skating, kicking out, unsportsmanlike conduct, wrong equipment......so on and so on and so on. In a highly competitive sport thats big in the olympic scene, South Korea hold 4 out of 5 men's world records and one womans. It is apparently, not a speed-skating event if there is not a Korean in the medal winners.

This winter olympics saw many South Koreans earning their place on the national team by winning medals but it also saw an array of disqualifications (some debated their worthiness) and a barrage of abuse from some other contestants (namely Apollo Ohno of the US). In response, it is quite evident inside a classroom in Seoul how people feel about Ohno, more than likely repeating their parents sentiments. I am unsure if a lot of the commentary is just and lets face it, he's not exactly a likable character but the back and forth of accusations from both sides seem slightly askew. Maybe, just maybe, the fact that his coach is Japanese might have something to contribute to the hate???

He is referred to as 'king of fouls'. A toilet paper company in Korea even put his face on their packaging, clearly not a positive marketing spin. According to NBC, there is even a video game with a character similar to Ohno that you can shoot in the head.......... This year in the olympics was no different to previous events with high tension between Ohno and Korean skaters, with Ohno being described as 'too agressive' in the lead to two korean skaters falling into each other and giving Ohno a silver medal. But Korea has one athlete who transcends all of these spiteful conflicts, Kim Yu Na, the figure skater who is as much a talented advertiser in Korea as anything else.

Kim Yu Na's face can be seen on everything from supermarkets, to bank slips to buses to cosmetic brands. She is loved and adored by the country but also pressurised to an enormous extent. Her world record and gold medal came at a time when Koreas female speed skaters were disqualified in the relay final, a comforting pillow to ease the blow.

At 19 years of age, she holds the hopes of a country and the advertising contracts that would leave David Beckham in the shade.

The eye of the White Tiger

This weekend saw the celebration of Seollal in South Korea. Seollal is the first day of the lunar calendar and falls on the same day as the more advertised Chinese New Year. Traditionally it is bestowed with a 3 day holiday but due to the fact that it landed on a Sunday this year, we were treated to the less accepted solo Monday off work. That said, a day off is a day off and this lassie is not one to frown at such.

So what should we do?
I'm not sure what 'we' as a pack af foreign gregorian calendar followers should do but traditionally Korean families all get together in their home towns and perform ancestral rites known as charye (차례). They down the traditional clothing of the hanbok and usually eat ricecake soup (tteokguk/떡국).
When asking students what Seollal involves, you'd be forgiven for thinking that it was a commercial money orientated festival. Although many people give each other gifts, the gifts are often functional food and grocery hampers. The money aspect comes into play when the children of the family perform a deep bow and say saehae bok manhi badeuseyo (새해 복 많이 받으세요). Family members would then pass money into the hands of these enthused (but often less than deserving) children.

Tiger eh?
This year is the year of the White Tiger, an auspicious event as this glorious animal only graces these calendars every 60 years. White Tigers have often been seen as positive omen as the chance of stumbling upon one in the wilderness is one in a million. Maybe this white creature is responsible for the unusual amount of snowfall in Korea this year. If so, I'm thankful to him for creating good slopes for this (very) novice snowboarder.

Isn't february 14th also St. Valentines Day?
Yes. Another intriguing custom to be explained here and another interesting holiday in Korea. Growing up in Ireland, it is custom (whether defined by Hallmark or not) that couples, partners etc. give each other gifts and cards on this day. Usually its observed that the poor helpless male half of the couple spends most of the money trying to please his girlfriend and possibly outdo her girlfriends' otherhalfs. In Korea, alas, said boy has nothing to worry about (yet). The girl will buy chocolate for her partner on Valentines Day (note the dropping of the St.). The boy will have no obligations do purchase flowers, choccies, cards etc.....until White Day.

What in the world is White Day?
A month after Valentines day sees White Day (March 14) when it becomes the man's turn to adorn his love in chocolate and whathaveyanots. All is fair in love? But what about the poor souls that have no-one to give or receive chocolate to and from? Where's their holiday........well... Black Day!

Ok, What in living life is Black Day?
If I still have your attention, a month after White Day sees Black Day (April 14). The grim colour attached to this holiday is not an accident it seems. On black day, those who did not participate in either Valentines Day or White Day will go to their local restaurant and continue an informal tradition that developed from .... somewhere. They order jajangmyeon (자장면), a noodle with black bean sauce and 'celebrate' being single. Not for the cynically minded I think.

What next? I await for more colorful days.

Ode to an enigmatic recluse

To be a recluse is not to be known, not to be known of the face or of the mind, of thought, family and belief. To have fame as a recluse surely leads to your enigmatic status. To be famous for being a genius, adored for your writing (not millions of books, but a few select iconic tales) surely leads to public knowledge of your life and world.

To create a literary character that could stand next to Huckleberry Finn or Peter Pan in the fictional hall of fame would lead to global fame and 'cult status'. To identify with generations, to recognise and point out their ales and fears though Holden Caulfield however, enables a quiet voice to be heard from this recluse. It was not that such a man denies his ability or his inspirational thoughts, he simply became sick of seing his own photograph and the banalities associated with such living and reversed slowly out of the limelight and reverred in the murkiness.


To live life with an ironic cynicism eventually leads to an individual life quest that revels in such cynicism. Even to his death, he was more than cynical.

“I hope to hell that when I do die somebody has the sense to just dump me in the river or something. Anything except sticking me in a goddam cemetary. People coming and putting a bunch of flowers on your stomach on Sunday, and all that crap. Who wants flowers when you're dead? Nobody.”

In truth, J.D. Salinger was what he was, he was himself, judged for it and labled as something else. Whoever he was, he was a literary genius. I may respect his writing but not respect him in fear that its truly not what he wanted.

"Who the hell knows, not me"