Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

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Milord
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by Milord »

Any style you like is OK.

Point form even.

Start small, we can ask questions to flesh it out.

The feedback will help move the story along. :)
taabarang
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by taabarang »

But where to start? I had been teaching English, French, and German in a small town in northern Maine. I loved it because of deer hunting and fly fishing. I still miss fishing in water where you can see the fish. Prior to that I had been in the military stationed in the former West Berlin where I was a Romanian linguist for refugees. So, while I miss the outdoor life of The States the food cravings I develop in Cambodia are European in origin. But enough of that. After leaving Maine, I went to California, but could not get a teaching job because I did not have Californian certification. So, I took a job in Korea at a university where I met the first Cambodian I had ever known. She was the wife of one of the other "professors" as we were called and frankly I think she was tired of the entire staff visiting her and her husband like harpies from Hell, bitching constantly about the country and culture.

So one day she said to no one in particular and everyone in general, " Look if you're unhappy here go to Cambodia; they need teachers and they will respect you." Those words burned a hole in my brain and I thought I'd give it a go. I was getting older, but I still had adventure in my soul. So, I waited for my next paycheck and grabbed the first thing burning fuel for Phnom Penh in 1996. My first job was at a place pretentiously called the American Academy of Language Arts which has since become another larger school.
Then there was the coup in 1997 and I went on a sabbatical throughout SE Asia and ended up teaching for a couple of years in Saigon. Good work though it was, I still missed Cambodia and finally came back first working at dodgy private schools(never for long) and finally got a job at ACE where I stayed until I met my wife, who was working at an NGO for handicapped people and was a student of mine.
To be continued
As my old Cajun bait seller used to say, "I opes you luck.
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Bitte_Kein_Lexus
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by Bitte_Kein_Lexus »

Good first part! Thanks for sharing.
Ex Bitteeinbit/LexusSchmexus
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StroppyChops
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by StroppyChops »

Great writing, happily waiting for the next installment.
Bodge: This ain't Kansas, and the neighbours ate Toto!
Jaap N.
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by Jaap N. »

Thanks, taabarang. Funny, a Khmer guy's nickname in our street is just that: taabarang.
Looking forward to the next bit.
Milord
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by Milord »

Great. Thanks. What was Korea like and why was everyone bitching? Did you get caught in the '97 coup? Saigon?
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frank lee bent
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by frank lee bent »

you had better document this story on your hard drive because it has the makings of a sellable ebook!
i would buy a copy of 300 pages for $5 easy
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Kung-fu Hillbilly
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by Kung-fu Hillbilly »

I know a chap who never thought his writing was up to much and didn't think anyone would be interested in what he had to say. After being introduced ebooks I think he's now onto his sixth title and enjoying retirement getting paid for something he'd be doing anyway.
taabarang
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by taabarang »

Before I continue there are a few holes in the context that need to be elucidated. First, why did I leave the military? I loved Berlin, in those days there was a magical mixture of "Scheisspreusse, Ausgeflippten, and Stinknormalen that created an ambiance I had never before experienced. When it became time to reenlist they told me that I couldn't reenlist for Berlin because i didn't have enough sources to debrief. It was true and so of course I asked, "What do you have planned for me?" to which they answered we're going to send you to a new unit in Ft. Hood, Texas" at which point I laughed and said, "No, no, you don't send soldiers from Berlin to Texas, you send them from Ft. Hood to Berlin." Having no sense of humor we both agreed that it was time for me to get out. The best experience I had in Berlin was learning the language there by ear-an approach that later helped me learn Cambodian. It is highly useful for one learns the words that are needed to navigate one's way through the maze of a new culture.

And why did I leave Maine after ten years. Simple, the winters drove me out. I remember when people would wear short sleeve shirts when the temperature was between 25 and 35 degrees Fahrenheit. It was Spring! Ten years of boring cross country skiing were enough for me.

Korea-well I just don't like the culture and the only Korean friends I had didn't like it either. They're well educated in fact overly so especially in their youth where the parental zeal to succeed replaces the joy of childhood and by the time they are in their late teens their life is a drugefull slogging toward the highest suicide rate in Asia.

So, that should do it for the lacunae. The next installment soon.
As my old Cajun bait seller used to say, "I opes you luck.
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StroppyChops
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Re: Those Living Cheaply Under a Grand

Post by StroppyChops »

:popcorn:
Bodge: This ain't Kansas, and the neighbours ate Toto!
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