Payphone in Toronto

I found out today that a payphone (Telus) in York, I only need to pay 25 cents.

I used to pay 50 cents when I use the payphone in the downtown.

I searched internet and Bell increased the cost last year from 25 cents to 50 cents.

Does university have any contract with Telus? Or the cost of Telus is 25 cents.

I know almost everyone has cellphone and people are not interested in payphone..

However, I cannot find the reason in the internet. Does anyone know? ^^

Student Lead Discussion: Brand product

Last week, I participated the student lead discussion regarding Branded Product whether we should pay more than other products and whether we would buy branded products.

It was a big issue in Korea few years ago, since young people spent most of mony to buy expensive products. And one of office girl took the money from the company she worked to buy those products. When the police investigated her small apartment, there were full of branded bags, shoes and clothes, and some of them, she did not even open yet.

What makes people crazy about branded products?
I think branded products, it is also kind of drugs... people can be addicted. In the discussion, one of students said that one of his friend was complaining about the price in Canada, food, house, transportation.... things we need. However, when they went for shopping, he bought $100 for a simple T-Shirt. He said, he wanted to kill him. :p

Why do people give a value on these products, especially, well know brand in the world? What drives people purchase these products? I think it's because people also judge other people by their outfit.
When we go to a department store, we can easily find out that the clerk there judges us by our clothes, and my mom used to wear a good dress when she went to the department store.
One of my college, before she got married, she went to the department store with her future mother-in-law with future sisters-in-law, the family is quite rich, but the mother-in-law was typical suburban woman who likes farming. On that day, they went to buy expensive mink coat for her, and went to the shop. Actually, no clerks looked at them and no one tried to sell the products. One of high tempered sister-in-law called the manager, and told her what they were doing, how they judged people by outlook, and she asked the manager that she should teach them from the basic.

Value is changing these days. People used to say that the character of people is important, but thesedays, people tend to think outfit is more important. People also become a commodity rather than humans. How do those contents go? Disappeared. Sometimes, it's so sad that.... I also become one of them... I also prefer a pretty woman to an ugly woman.. -_-;;; I should blame myself first. Humm... it's hard to close this topic. It's still an issue we need to think.

IKEA

Yesterday, I visited IKEA with my husband to check what we need to buy for moving.
We decided to move and rented a one bedroom apartment near school and will move in on September 1st.

We are moving in unfurnished, so we need to buy lots of stuff.
We are going to purchase most of furniture or dishes from used market, but BED.. I want to buy new one. I seems wierd for people in here, but most Korean don't like to buy used BED including me since we do not know who lied down there before and what happened..

I took a subway to Leslie (transport at Sheppard to the east) and there was a Shuttle bus to IKEA. (If you want to go, you should go upstair where buses are coming in and go out to the station and bus comes every 20 minutes)

I really loved it. There are coloful kitchen utensils, cups, waste bin, and others. We spent an hour and went down to eat hot dog, it was only 2 dollar 50 cents for two hot dogs, one small chip and one medium size drink... But it was small of course and my husband had three hot dogs.. ^^

We checked the price and size there, and we will go back after we visit used market.

I think the price in IKEA is relatively reasonable. Since we're looking for temporary use about three years, I think the price there is very good for people like me. Mightbe, if we are looking for furniture for more than 10 years use, I doubt whether it's good enough.
However, some of products, the design was great and I really love to buy it.

It was bit far from home, but I think I'll visit there quite often after I move in.

Broadview - Danforth Greek Fest

I printed the map to teacher's house and change my clothes since it is first time to visit a teacher's house, so I want to give Nathalie good impression. I went to school to pick up my husband and went down to Sheppard and dropped by Dominion to by cookies. Normally, when we visit other person's place, we'd brought something for thanks for inviting.

We went down to Broadview station and I took out my map. OH! MY! GOD!

I didn't realize that I did not bring the apartment number. I did not even have any phone number of classmates. -.-;;;;;; I was so upset about myself... how stupid I am... I really wanted to see Nathalie.... I missed this precious opportunity.... -.-;;;; I could not think of anything... My husband was teasing me.... hey... you alwasy forget something...

I did not know what I could do.... but I wanted to see how Broadview has changed.

Broadview is familiar name for me. It's going back to 12 years ago when I first came to Canada. It was first time being in overseas as well. No one I had here and I was staying at Canadian's house. I arrived at my homestay family's house on Saturday night and I slept. However, I woke up about three am and could not sleep because of Jetlag. Acually, I was forced coming here by my dad, and I was really scrared of being in unknown country.

I woke up so early and started to think of my mom and stared to crying. I was writing a letter to my mom and I hate this country and I want to come back to Korea... I was crying all night - I think it is the longest night I ever had and longest time I ever cried- until I make my homestay mother wake up. Originally, she was from Greece and she was a professor at George Brown College.

She came to my room and asked what's going on.
I was crying again and said "I really miss my mom!"
It again made me cry. I really hated that situation that I had to speak English especially when I really missed my mom....

She took me to Danforth street - her house was close to Danforth, and I normally took a bus to the house from Broadview station- and there was Greek Festival as I remember that was May.
She took me a restaurant and I ate Squid fried which looked very familiar to Korean food.

On the way back to home, she dropped by almost all convenience stores to find any Korean and found one Korean lady running one store. I was crying again and really happy to see a Korean there.......

It was my first day in Canada and the first day was the start date of Greek Festival.

When I heard a station name, "Broadview" from Don, I was thinking the first day and wanted to do there to check how much it has been changed and as well as see a gorgious lady, Nathalie... but I missed.

However, my husband and I decided to enjoy the Fest, and we walked from Broadiew to Pape and enjoyed the sciene. However, as I remember there were so many people packed, but not this time. Unlike before, I could see lots of advertisements from big companies.

Anyway, it is always good to participate festivals in Canada and we had a good time there.

Eventhough I missed a chance to attract (^^;) Nathalie with Cookie, I'll bring them to the class... I hope tomorrow, I'll not forget that.

I envy all of you seeing Nathalie!

Searching for Osama

Yesterday, I was watching News.. I think it was alsmot first time I did since I came to Canada.

One woman from UK had an interview and talked about Osama loves.

She came here to search people whose name are Osama.

She says she wants to change the image of Islam through finding Osama which is notorious name now.

Osama is one of common name in Islam countries like John, and it means little lion representing braveness.

If you see the website http://osamaloves.channel4.com/

You will see there are so many people whose name are Osama and what they are doing.

It was touching when I saw the little boy there.


I remeber the day when the world trade center had crashed down.

It was bit late and I was coming back home from work and my father called me and said the world trade center was attached by plane.

I was feeling like he said some jokes. How come the building in the US could be attacked? ... No way.

But, when I got home, I felt like there would be World War III soon.....

After the incident, the US was prepared the war to Afganistan to find Osama Bin Laden and finally did.

Since then, I think and she also thinks the world has a wrong perception against Islam countries.

I think the US is using Islam country to create new enemy. (The US lost UK (long time ago) and Soviet Union, but North Korea is too small to attack and finally find new big enemy to create a war)

However, anyway, people see the war and innocent people (Soldiers from their own countries-families) are dying.. then cannot stop having bad image about Islam country.

The purpose of looking for Osamas is giving other world the image of smile from Islam country.

It is great to have those events, but she wanted to visit the US, but the visa was refused.

Any way, since I've got here, I has a very good relationship with Saudi Arabian students and learned a lot about them.

Last Friday, my husband and I with other friends were invited by Abdule and Kaosha (bother and sister, both are stuying at YUELI ^^)

They cook dinner for us and we talked about Islam cultures.

I was actually asking about the marriage... I was hesitated.. but asked...

One married woman told me that to get married another woman, there should be always a reason for that.

Like, if a wife cannot deliver baby, is sick or cannot have sexual life, it is allowed to have another woman.

She says, the first wife also allows a husband to get married and gives money to the second wife.
(First wife also gets money from a husband)

It is better to have an official wife than to have an affair by cheating... Before marriage, they should always present Health Inspection Report and it also helps to avoid having bad diseases.

I think it makes sense... some extent... Rather than to see a husband have an affair, having second wife would be better.. ^^

She also says that it only happens in the past since men were so health.. but not now.. ^^;;

But, anyway, I also get rid of one of my misperception about Islam country.

As well, there are a lot of simliar games we have and there are a lot of similarities as well with Korean culture.

They sit and sleep on the floor like us (but thesedays, we prefer sleeping in bed to sleeping on the floor).

They have a special game with black and white stones like us - with finger we kick(tick?) other's stone out of the plate.

Whenever I have time to talk with them, I'm amazed by not only their culture itself, but also similarities.

Sometimes I feel, the World was one at the beginning, and Sons of one Ancestor went to different places and builded up new countries. They had to survive with each country's weather, land and air, so they changed and become different people.

Some of things still all have, but some of things has been changed..

That's why we can find similar culture in a miles away country.

That's my theory. ^^

By the way, I think it is always good to know other culture and I can learn a lot from it.

Final Essay

Finally, finished my final essay-first draft. ^^

I was confused until yesterday how I can write, but finally decided how.

I'm not sure this essay let me get a good mark, but I'm relieved because finally I mange to combine two policies, but actually it's more like the liberal side.

It was very difficult subject for me since I wasn't aware of this issue before.

Actually, when I started, I strongly disagree with taking drugs.

However, when I started to read articles- I choose those articles since I thought those are opponents' opinions, so I was going to collect their opinions to beat them, those fascinated me... fool me..

However, I realize how people tend to try when they were forced not to do.

Remember those days when we were high school students, parents and teachers commended us not to read comic books.... It sounds ridiculous now, but it was serious at that time.

However, almost students as I know went to read comic books.

There is saying in Korea, when a mice is chased by a cat, it bits a cat.

"Even a worm will turn" translated in English Version "When held at bay, cowards will often fight."

People need a room to breath I think.

During the research, I found that the differences between Asian countries and Western Countires. None of article was about Asian countries.

I think when the country is rich and people are afford to buy expensive drugs, there are always drug problems.

I never take drug problems seriously. I always think it is existing only in the movie not in my normal life.

However, it was a good experience.

I have one final curiosity about the US, why not drugs but guns. I think guns are more serious problems than drugs.

Drugs only kill drug users not others, but guns kill others.

Drugs are suiside substences, but guns are homocide substences...

I guess ARM dealers give a lot of money to politicians but not drug dealers...^^;

Anyway, now it's time to go to bed...

I went to harbor front on Saturday night and it was beautiful. I'm going to write about it tomorrow... ^^