All Clean Everything

First of all, let me say, I'm alive. Yay. Let's all take a moment to rejoice in that fact.

Now that we've rejoiced sufficiently, let's talk about what's happened since last post.

First, I went to go register for my Alien Registration Card, or as you can tell from the helpful boldface type, my ARC. The ARC is the golden ticket in Korea, for with it, you gain access to that magical chocolate factory we call the internet. Before you ask, yes, I am indeed using the internet now to post these blogs. However, I am doing all of my posting and general interneting from within the confines of a coffee shop, and while it is a lovely and extremely comfortable coffee shop, it is not as awesome as doing all of my interneting from the confines of my home. In my home, I can lay around in my pajamas and check my email. Here I have to get dressed. Not because of a law, but more for my own decency and peace of mind. 

There are other limitations too, but I think you get the gist, yeah? Of course you do. Getting your ARC doesn't really take that long, though I should point out that I have no clue what you have to do. You see, with me, as I was applying for my ARC was a native Korean. His name is Dubeom, and he works for the school I work for. They sent him with me. He handled all the paperwork for myself and two other teachers. We were done in thirty minutes. What exactly did I sign and get fingerprinted for? I don't know. Slavery? Maybe. All I know is if that was signing my freedoms away, it was quick and painless. 

Expat Negro Tip: Find someone who speaks and reads Korean. Take that person with you to get your ARC. You will have no clue what you signed, but it will be over far quicker. However, ensure that the person you choose to assist you isn't a slaver. 

That's the best advice I have to offer on that. Sorry kids. I've heard the horror stories of applying for the ARC in smaller cities, but here in Taejeon, it was relatively painless and quick. But again, that was because of Dubeom. So thank you, Dubeom.

Remember how I was talking about saving money? Yeah? Well, now let's talk about the money you'll have to spend eventually. I want to start off by saying that this is my own experience, but I think maybe you can use it to get an estimate. At the very least, you can use it to realize what you shouldn't do, and then act accordingly. 

When I first arrived in town, I inquired as to where I could find groceries, cleaning supplies, appliances, etc. and I was told one word.

Homeplus.

If you have not heard about the magical land that is Homeplus, please allow me to elaborate. Homeplus IS MAGIC. Imagine, if you will, a world where not only is everything you desire in one location, but is conveniently separated for you into categories that don't make sense to you initially. Now imagaine, after a few moments, you realize that these things are not separated into categories based on the items. No, the items are categorized according to your OWN personal needs for them as they arise. 

Say you want to clean an apartment. First you might wander aimlessly by vacuum cleaners. You'll notice an array of smaller vacuum cleaners, then next to those, the larger more powerful vacuum cleaners. As you continue, you'll find that you're no longer in appliances, but now you have stepped into the world of children's toys. Not because there are no other items to clean with, but simply because you clearly need a distraction from the task at hand. 

After you look at and compare the toys that are offered to Korean children to those that you remember from America, you'll find yourself inexplicably in the art supplies aisle. The next aisle over is school supplies and notebooks. This is GENIUS. If I had a child, I could take him to toys, and then casually walk him over to school supplies. It blends so beautifully from toys (FUN!!) to art supplies (still kind of fun...) to school supplies (...wait, what happened to the fun?) that it caught even me by surprise.

As you admire the transition, you find yourself right back into items for the home, and lo and behold, some more of those instruments of cleanliness that you were first seeking. Before you ask, yes, Homeplus knows what you want BEFORE you even knew that you wanted it. I didn't KNOW that I wanted to look at toys and art supplies before I looked at all of my cleaning options, but Homeplus knew and that's why they organized it that way.

(Side note: I think Korean toys are cooler than American toys. I say I think because I don't understand what any of them do. But they totally look cooler.)

Anyway, now that I'm done dripping sarcasm, at Homeplus, you can find a Scotchbrite sweeper, a floor squeegee and brush (which will come in handy for the bathroom) sponges, a microfiber cleaning glove, toilet cleaner (the chemical water blue kind), multipurpose cleaner, a new food catch for your sink, (it's a giant metal basket. Trust me. Buy a new one) Windex, paper towels, dish detergent, and washing machine cleaner for about (this is an estimate)  70,000 won (64.73 USD).

If you're like me, that's pretty much all you really need to live the clean life you may be accustomed to. The only thing missing from that list is a mini vacuum cleaner (a dustbuster with attachments). You may or may not need that item, depending on your apartment, but if you have any carpet anywhere in your new (ahem previously lived in by people you don't know at all) place, you'll probably want it. It was on sale for about (give or take 2,000 won) 30,000 won (27.65 usd).  The normal price was somewhere north of 50,000 won (46.21 usd). I can't speak on how effective any of the models are, though I've heard they're very good for two to three years from a long time expat that teaches at my school.

The squeegee and brush: most Korean bathrooms do not have a separate shower. Somewhere in the bathroom there is a drain. When you shower, you stand on the bathroom floor. The water runs off of you into the drain. In some cases, you may also have a washing machine which uses the same drain. After you shower, you will probably want to go back into the bathroom. But it'll be wet. The solution to this is purchase a squeegee and after each shower, squeegee the floor. It'll dry quicker, and you'll be able to gain access to your bathroom without having to dry your feet afterwards. The brush part of that squeegee for when you scrub the bathroom down. It's extremely effective, and makes you feel way better about using the shower after you squeegee and realize how much dust and dirt there is on that floor. 

Expat Negro Tip: Clean everything.