RANTING/VENTING MEGATHREAD 3.0

Spent a lovely long weekend in Japan but as soon as I set foot in the ferry terminal to come back, all those feelings of stress came flooding straight back. 

The incessant noise and shouting, hearing "BALLY WAH" screamed about ten thousand times as loudly as possible.  Getting pushed and shoved in the back, my bag getting knocked over constantly with no apologies etc....

But this annoyed me the most and is something I'd never seen before.  Maybe it's a new phenomenon.  In order to ensure their place at the front of the queue, people would form the queue with their bags first so they could go off and shop, sit down, eat, whatever.  Pics attached.  They were doing it at every check point.

How the hell is that fair?!  I think it got up my nose so much because I'm a Brit and we take queueing very seriously 

No announcements about unattended baggage being removed and possibly destroyed? Shame the security was so lax there.

No announcements about unattended baggage being removed and possibly destroyed? Shame the security was so lax there.

I have a heart attack every time I see unattended baggage left in places without supervision. Can't beat the British security out of me yet 

Can the Koreans I talk to stop saying that the "weather is bad" and "Oh, the dust."

It's not weather. It's pollution. A heavy rain on a Saturday is bad weather. This ain't that.

And it ain't dust. Dust gathers on your mantle and you gotta clean it off. This is pollution. POLLUTION.

It's like renaming a murder to something like.......... Life Taking. Call it what it is. It's pollution!

Can the Koreans I talk to stop saying that the "weather is bad" and "Oh, the dust."

It's not weather. It's pollution. A heavy rain on a Saturday is bad weather. This ain't that.

And it ain't dust. Dust gathers on your mantle and you gotta clean it off. This is pollution. POLLUTION.

It's like renaming a murder to something like.......... Life Taking. Call it what it is. It's pollution!

I was going to make a joke about how dust is just easier to say than pollution, but then I realized they both have the same amount of syllables: 더스트 / 포루션. WELP!

Can the Koreans I talk to stop saying that the "weather is bad" and "Oh, the dust."

It's not weather. It's pollution. A heavy rain on a Saturday is bad weather. This ain't that.

And it ain't dust. Dust gathers on your mantle and you gotta clean it off. This is pollution. POLLUTION.

It's like renaming a murder to something like.......... Life Taking. Call it what it is. It's pollution!

Even if the whole world says otherwise, I still maintain that Confucianism, with it's two favourite principles of saving face and shifting the blame are the reasons air pollution will maintain the euphemism of 'fine dust' and that diddly squat will be done about it.

The last few days I made the decision to renew this year, giving me time to finish my distance learning while earning an income and then move on. Im hoping this toxic poison wont have any long term effects if I leave within the next year or 2.

Best I can do right now is:

- Stay indoors during the bad days
- Litter my apartment with plants
- Stay well hydrated
- Eat lots of veggies
- Keep my air purifier going

Best I can do right now is:

- Stay indoors during the bad days
- Litter my apartment with plants
- Stay well hydrated
- Eat lots of veggies
- Keep my air purifier going

Exactly what I'm doing. I need some plants, though.

Any plants that are good for filtering air specifically?

As some of you might know, I'm a big fan of online shopping, and also saving money.

In the past, I've been a huge proponent of the Gmarket / Auction Smile Club premium membership. You used to get 1.5-2.5% cash back on literally every purchase. Plus extra coupons for even more savings. This was a very good deal, considering the registration fee was basically free.

This lasted for about a year and a half. Maybe two? Times were good.

Now, since the beginning of this month, they completely gutted all the benefits. Cash back is now down to 0.3%, which is the same as it is for regular members using Smile Pay. The coupons are reduced in quantity and discount percent. There is literally almost no reason to register for Smile Club anymore. I saved about 400,000 won last year thanks to Smile Club. It sucks losing those benefits. That's my rant. Guess I'll be switching to Coupang.

Best I can do right now is:

- Stay indoors during the bad days
- Litter my apartment with plants
- Stay well hydrated
- Eat lots of veggies
- Keep my air purifier going

Exactly what I'm doing. I need some plants, though.

Any plants that are good for filtering air specifically?

I'm actually going to hunt down some Spanish moss after work today. I want a couple for my home, but, depending on how much they're going for, I'll get a few for my classroom, too.

EDIT: There are five recommended per this vid that can probably be found easily around Korea. Spanish moss appeals to me the most because it's apparently very low maintenance.

Best I can do right now is:

- Stay indoors during the bad days
- Litter my apartment with plants
- Stay well hydrated
- Eat lots of veggies
- Keep my air purifier going

Exactly what I'm doing. I need some plants, though.

Any plants that are good for filtering air specifically?

Spider Plants, they're cheap, low maintenance and common.
Boston Ferns like high humidity so I put them in my bathroom.

From various lists of air purifying plants I had to narrow down the lists to plants which aren't toxic to cats ( I have 2)
and see what's available in Korea. I bought quite a few off Coupang well, believe it or not. They're well packed and saved me the hassle of hunting specific plants down at different garden centres.

https://greatist.com/connect/houseplants-that-clean-air

As some of you might know, I'm a big fan of online shopping, and also saving money.

In the past, I've been a huge proponent of the Gmarket / Auction Smile Club premium membership. You used to get 1.5-2.5% cash back on literally every purchase. Plus extra coupons for even more savings. This was a very good deal, considering the registration fee was basically free.

This lasted for about a year and a half. Maybe two? Times were good.

Now, since the beginning of this month, they completely gutted all the benefits. Cash back is now down to 0.3%, which is the same as it is for regular members using Smile Pay. The coupons are reduced in quantity and discount percent. There is literally almost no reason to register for Smile Club anymore. I saved about 400,000 won last year thanks to Smile Club. It sucks losing those benefits. That's my rant. Guess I'll be switching to Coupang.

Just curious, is there an English version of the coupang website?
I tried to view it just now after reading your post, but it seems like it's only in Korean. :'(

I'm doing. I need some plants, though.

Do you enjoy saving money? Do you enjoy moonlight strolls through the park? Doesn't everybody?
Next time you go, bring a few small gardening implements and an opaque plastic bag!

Spider Plants, they're cheap, low maintenance and common.

They have the additional benefit of absorbing radon (a radioactive gas even more unhealthy, irritating, and carcinogenic than CO2 ). They're also really easy to propogate (free plants!).



   Also, Devil's Ivy is a really good plant for filtering dust etc. They're also nearly impossible to kill, are tolerant of idiots who forget to water them 3 weeks in a row because of vacation and lazy, and can basically meet their photosynthetic needs from a single stray photon that wanders their way every week or two.

Do you enjoy saving money? Do you enjoy moonlight strolls through the park? Doesn't everybody?
Next time you go, bring a few small gardening implements and an opaque plastic bag!

Has anyone seen Adaptation? That movie is a 10/10.

Just curious, is there an English version of the coupang website?
I tried to view it just now after reading your post, but it seems like it's only in Korean. :'(

There isn't one, unfortunately. However, I found a way around this.

Use google chrome (not the app) when searching for things, I will use the translate feature and so far it has worked well. I signed up to coupang, put in my address and all the information I need. Then downloaded the app and logged in through here (it would be easy to put the card information on the app, less hassle and it saves everything). I use the google to search for anything I need and add it to my account's basket. Then I will go to the app to pay since on the website you always to go through the dumb payment systems and add card details a gazillion times. I cannot be asked but it defo works with translate to English.

Can the Koreans I talk to stop saying that the "weather is bad" and "Oh, the dust."

It's not weather. It's pollution. A heavy rain on a Saturday is bad weather. This ain't that.

And it ain't dust. Dust gathers on your mantle and you gotta clean it off. This is pollution. POLLUTION.

It's like renaming a murder to something like.......... Life Taking. Call it what it is. It's pollution!

Even if the whole world says otherwise, I still maintain that Confucianism, with it's two favourite principles of saving face and shifting the blame are the reasons air pollution will maintain the euphemism of 'fine dust' and that diddly squat will be done about it.

The last few days I made the decision to renew this year, giving me time to finish my distance learning while earning an income and then move on. Im hoping this toxic poison wont have any long term effects if I leave within the next year or 2.

Can someone explain the phenomenon of dust coming from China and ruining the Korean air quality? (I am not being sarcastic, I would like someone to link me to a source which is reliable so I can research please).

I am always hearing bad stuff about China from Koreans and well I sometimes question things, when everything is blaming China...like wut?

Best I can do right now is:

- Stay indoors during the bad days
- Litter my apartment with plants
- Stay well hydrated
- Eat lots of veggies
- Keep my air purifier going

Exactly what I'm doing. I need some plants, though.

Any plants that are good for filtering air specifically?

스페인 이끼 - spanish moss
아이비 - common ivy
백량금 - coral berry
스킨답서스 - scindapsus
관음죽 - bamboo palmo

Can the Koreans I talk to stop saying that the "weather is bad" and "Oh, the dust."

It's not weather. It's pollution. A heavy rain on a Saturday is bad weather. This ain't that.

And it ain't dust. Dust gathers on your mantle and you gotta clean it off. This is pollution. POLLUTION.

It's like renaming a murder to something like.......... Life Taking. Call it what it is. It's pollution!

Even if the whole world says otherwise, I still maintain that Confucianism, with it's two favourite principles of saving face and shifting the blame are the reasons air pollution will maintain the euphemism of 'fine dust' and that diddly squat will be done about it.

The last few days I made the decision to renew this year, giving me time to finish my distance learning while earning an income and then move on. Im hoping this toxic poison wont have any long term effects if I leave within the next year or 2.

Can someone explain the phenomenon of dust coming from China and ruining the Korean air quality? (I am not being sarcastic, I would like someone to link me to a source which is reliable so I can research please).

I am always hearing bad stuff about China from Koreans and well I sometimes question things, when everything is blaming China...like wut?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oovykql-f3o&t=735s
The 2nd part of the video is an interview with Professor Chang, the director of Korea's National Institute of Environmental Research, he explains how the whole thing works and why blaming China is the knee-jerk response.

Some of my students told me that they're taught, in one of the classes that 99% of all air pollution in Korea comes from China.

Watch the video and make up your own mind, should you believe a few contrarian ESL teachers? Nationalistic fervor?
Or, a bona-fide expert with 20yrs experience, in charge of his field and having just completed a study on air pollution in collaboration with NASA?

Just curious, is there an English version of the coupang website?
I tried to view it just now after reading your post, but it seems like it's only in Korean. :'(

There isn't one, unfortunately. However, I found a way around this.

Use google chrome (not the app) when searching for things, I will use the translate feature and so far it has worked well. I signed up to coupang, put in my address and all the information I need. Then downloaded the app and logged in through here (it would be easy to put the card information on the app, less hassle and it saves everything). I use the google to search for anything I need and add it to my account's basket. Then I will go to the app to pay since on the website you always to go through the dumb payment systems and add card details a gazillion times. I cannot be asked but it defo works with translate to English.

Ahh, that's what I done too.
I don't need to buy anything, I just had never used coupang before, so decided to have a look, as I have nothing to do today haha.

I'll probably stick to gmarket, since I have it all set up, and it has an English version :p

Just curious, is there an English version of the coupang website?
I tried to view it just now after reading your post, but it seems like it's only in Korean. :'(

There isn't one, unfortunately. However, I found a way around this.

Use google chrome (not the app) when searching for things, I will use the translate feature and so far it has worked well. I signed up to coupang, put in my address and all the information I need. Then downloaded the app and logged in through here (it would be easy to put the card information on the app, less hassle and it saves everything). I use the google to search for anything I need and add it to my account's basket. Then I will go to the app to pay since on the website you always to go through the dumb payment systems and add card details a gazillion times. I cannot be asked but it defo works with translate to English.

Ahh, that's what I done too.
I don't need to buy anything, I just had never used coupang before, so decided to have a look, as I have nothing to do today haha.

I'll probably stick to gmarket, since I have it all set up, and it has an English version :p

Yikes. Don't do that. The English version of Gmarket is garbage. Never, ever use the English version.

Just curious, is there an English version of the coupang website?
I tried to view it just now after reading your post, but it seems like it's only in Korean. :'(

There isn't one, unfortunately. However, I found a way around this.

Use google chrome (not the app) when searching for things, I will use the translate feature and so far it has worked well. I signed up to coupang, put in my address and all the information I need. Then downloaded the app and logged in through here (it would be easy to put the card information on the app, less hassle and it saves everything). I use the google to search for anything I need and add it to my account's basket. Then I will go to the app to pay since on the website you always to go through the dumb payment systems and add card details a gazillion times. I cannot be asked but it defo works with translate to English.

Ahh, that's what I done too.
I don't need to buy anything, I just had never used coupang before, so decided to have a look, as I have nothing to do today haha.

I'll probably stick to gmarket, since I have it all set up, and it has an English version :p

Yikes. Don't do that. The English version of Gmarket is garbage. Never, ever use the English version.

I only use the English version, and I haven't had any problems :o
For camps, I use it to show the school things I want for camp, but the office lady uses the korean version, and calls the company to get it sent quickly :p

Just curious, is there an English version of the coupang website?
I tried to view it just now after reading your post, but it seems like it's only in Korean. :'(

There isn't one, unfortunately. However, I found a way around this.

Use google chrome (not the app) when searching for things, I will use the translate feature and so far it has worked well. I signed up to coupang, put in my address and all the information I need. Then downloaded the app and logged in through here (it would be easy to put the card information on the app, less hassle and it saves everything). I use the google to search for anything I need and add it to my account's basket. Then I will go to the app to pay since on the website you always to go through the dumb payment systems and add card details a gazillion times. I cannot be asked but it defo works with translate to English.

Ahh, that's what I done too.
I don't need to buy anything, I just had never used coupang before, so decided to have a look, as I have nothing to do today haha.

I'll probably stick to gmarket, since I have it all set up, and it has an English version :p

Yikes. Don't do that. The English version of Gmarket is garbage. Never, ever use the English version.

I only use the English version, and I haven't had any problems :o
For camps, I use it to show the school things I want for camp, but the office lady uses the korean version, and calls the company to get it sent quickly :p

Huh? I don't get the thing about calling the company to get it shipped quickly. Things usually arrive in one, or max two days. Can't get much quicker than that.

Also, it might've changed, but you can't even use Smile Pay on the English version. You have to pay by bank transfer, usually. Which is ridiculous.

But yeah - things you're giving up by using the English version:
- the majority of the sales
- a lot of special promotion coupons
- ability to search for really specific stuff
- access to a large portion of the sellers

Plus, it's really hard to find specific brand names of stuff, since it prioritizes things that translate directly to English. And also it prioritizes things that are available for international shipping. So if you're in Korea, it's prioritizing something that's totally useless to you. There's literally like, no benefit to using English Gmarket.