impressions
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A Young Liberal at the Barbershop
When I say barbershop I am not mistaken. I’m talking about one of those old-fashioned barbershops exclusively for men where an old barber sticks to what he knows: the 50’s clean-cut look, and nothing else. I’m talking about the barbershops that are now going extinct in Seoul;
Job Search
I am now trapped in a tight, borrowed business suit. My hair is tamed into a tidy ponytail. I ditched red lipstick in order to look modest. Such a stereotypical job interviewee. Anyone could tell what I am up to. Today’s destination is a satellite city in Gyeonggi-do. The
Preponderance of Workers
When I’m in South Korea what always surprises me is the number of employees in department store food corners, usually women middle-aged or older. They welcome customers, let them taste dumplings, tofu and so on. It almost seems there is one person for each shelf of goods. I don’
Halmeoni
During my recent research visit to Seoul, I had a long conversation with my halmeoni. No, it was more like a story time, much like the ones we shared years ago when she raised me. I named certain events in her life and she would promptly supply her memories. “
Seoul Train Station
This morning, a middle aged man in tattered clothes sat down in the road at the Seoul Station bus stop. The buses went around him. I asked a woman at the bus stop to call emergency services; the police told her to call welfare. While she did, he got up