Say WHAT now?

Today, the weather is beautiful. Warm, sunny, trees with lots of little leaf buds. Just all around cheerful and amazing. So I through on a sundress to match my mood, and rocked out with new do.

(it's an afro. it's kind of amazing.)

I didn't expect anyone to talk to me. Usually, koreans are too shy to do anything other then point, stare, and talk about you in Korean. So I was not prepared to chat in the elevator, trapped between the 12th and 1st floor, by a suspiciously single man in his late 30s (I'm being generous in that age estimate...he looked closer to late 40s).

"Are you American?" he said.

Whoa, whoa, stop the tape. Ok, so, despite the fact that I here to teach English, I find it totally disoreienting when a Korean person can actually speak English. Usually the throw out a mash of Korean, Konglish and unintelligible gestures that are best ignored because they're just too creepy. That's the norm around here. With the exception of the Jesus Freaks, English skills are pretty low.

"Are you an English teacher?" he kept questioning me. I nodded, smiled a little, tried not to engage too much. His piercing interest in my hair, and bosoms, could only mean one thing as far as this conversation was concerned.

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

There it is. The favorite question of creepy, older, men.

"Yes." I lied to him. Let's face it, I wasn't interested in anything besides reaching the first floor ASAP and escaping being trapped in  more awkward conversation with him.

"In Korea?"

"Yes." I almost chuckled at that. If my fictional boyfriend was back home, I wouldn't be looking to two-time him with this guy.

"A Negro?" He asked.

O_O. PARDON??

I tried not to show my surprise. After all, Koreans aren't bashful about race-related words. The korean term for "n*gger" is so commonly used that a student said it to my face last week, no idea that I might take issue with it.

But still.

To have man....who is hitting on me...ask me if I am dating a Negro. I mean... WOW.

Just, wow.