Not to worry, the crown is back in place.

This morning I went to “sick call” at the dental clinic on post. Use of the medical facilities is for military only, but they will see civilians on an “emergency” basis. The woman on the phone at the clinic, a Ms. Kim (Kim and Lee are like Smith and Jones here), was doubtful if a lost crown qualified, but told me to come on down and they would see if the dentist would have a look. Once there I filled out some paperwork and got in the queue. There was an irate Colonel who had been waiting for 45 minutes and another soldier ahead of me, plus I knew any walk-in military would have preference. So I asked for a list of dentists on the economy. Ms. Kim was even kind enough to call and help me make an appointment with Dr. Choi.

I must say, it was not a bad experience. A warm greeting (although Koreans seem to struggle with McCrarey, too many “r’s” too close together). Filled out the typical forms, and then the receptionist took my picture. It seemed like standard procedure, but I don’t know what the point of that was. Then it was off to the dental chair. One difference I noticed was that the dentists I am use to have private treatment rooms. Here the chairs were in an open area. It is a little degrading under the best circumstances to lie there all vulnerable with your mouth wide open, but seeing as how I was the last patient for the day I had the place to myself.

Dr. Choi came in and he was a very pleasant individual (nearly all the Koreans I have met here are). He spoke pretty good English, but as he looked at my forms he said I don’t understand what you do (I had put Human Resources as my occupation). I tried to explain but I am not sure he got it. I know he couldn’t pronounce it (that r thing again). Anyway, he said where did you get this crown made, and I said Virginia. He said it was pretty worn but that he would attempt to glue it back. If it comes off again it needs to be replaced. Anyway, he got it back on in short order, then a Korean lovely did the clean up job. You know you have been away from home too long when you are actually enjoying having female hands scraping excess glue from your teeth. All that for 50,000 Won (about $51.00 at the current lousy exchange rate).

Dr. Choi says it is time for a cleaning, so I will be going back next Friday. Really, it’s all about dental hygeine people. Seriously.

I spent the day in training learning how to supervise Korean employees. Most of it was pretty familiar stuff, but the majority of the folks in class did not have an HR background so I suppose it was more beneficial for them. Still, I found the part on some cultural differences of interest. Much of Korean culture is grounded in the Confucian traditions that have existed here for hundreds of years. So today I learned about the five elements in the Confucian code of ethics:

1. Subjects must be loyal to the King.
2. There must be a close relationship (love and obedience) between father and son.
3. There must be a distinct differential between man and wife.
4. The must be respect for the aged by the young.
5. There must be a sense of trust and faithfulness among friends.

And also the five virtures leading to proper behavior:

1. Love of humanity–consideration of others’ feelings and emotions.
2. Justice–assigning each person his proper place and duties.
3. Reverence–acknowledging others’ right and duties.
4. Wisdom–learning the difference between good and evil.
5. Sincerity–truthfulness of purpose.

Pretty simple, eh? I am very fortunate to have some outstanding Koreans working for me. Hard working, never complain, and they take pride in their work. Two of the men I supervise are older and have more seniority, two big factors in determining one’s rank and standing. To be supervised by me probably goes a little against the grain. I try very hard to be respectful (I call them Mr. Kim and Mr. Yi) and I always make it point to seek out their opinion. Which they might not offer if I didn’t ask. So I am learning and I do not expect I will have any real trouble in that regard.

Plus I got this nice certificate:

Tonight I had lesson two in my Korean language class. Consonants this time. So, I “know” all ten vowels and all fourteen consonants. Plus we learned to count to twenty. Well learned is a stretch. I would have to open my text book to count to two. Let’s just say I was exposed to these concepts tonight.

And in a bit of tragic news, I lost the crown on my tooth tonight. Didn’t lose it, I mean it came off (damn Milk Duds). So tomorrow I will get to find out if I have access to a dentist on post or if I need to find one on the economy. Hmm, that would be an experience. We shall see.

I am due for a post at The Wide Awakes this week, so I reckon I will start thinking about politics again soon. I just KNOW y’all have missed my rants these past few days, but actually the break has been kinda nice. Not to worry, I WILL NOT BE SILENCED!