~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Well, Clouds, we were able to arrange the delivery of some goodies to Rain and Sangchu after all, from Cloud USA and Rain’s U.S.A. fans. Below are the goodies they are going to be receiving before the show on Wednesday night.
Many thanks to Ms. Jacobs at The Warner Theater for helping us to arrange everything.
Terri :-}
EDITED TO ADD an important last-minute tip on tickets to the event in D.C. that we have received from multiple Clouds now.
Latasha Jacobs, Sales Director at Warner Theater, has informed the Clouds who have been calling her that the representatives of JiArt are extremely busy, and so they may not be able to handle all of the e-mails they have been receiving. She recommends that people show up at the box office around 1:45 p.m. Tuesday, May 7 to see about picking up tickets. She will be at the table distributing tickets. She said to ask to speak with her IF YOU HAVE NOT RECEIVED AN E-MAIL RESPONSE FROM JIART regarding tickets. Please go earlier than later in case there is a line.
We’ve had three positive confirmations on this information about going to the theater to pick up tickets EVEN IF YOU DIDN’T GET A RESPONSE E-MAIL from JiArt. So, we’re going to take it as fact. That’s the only thing you can do if you want to try to get tickets at this point. So, if you have already planned your trip and you’re going to be there anyway, then what have you got to lose? GO. There are a LOT of things to do in D.C. besides try to see Rain anyway. So, go and have FUN.
For directions to Warner Theater in D.C.: http://warnertheatredc.com/venue-directions/
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
We’ve just been informed that JIART will be sending an e-mail out to those of you who requested tickets for the World Peace Festival Event at Warner Theater in D.C. Rain will be appearing on 5/8. Once notified, you must pick up your tickets at the Warner Theater between 2 and 5 tomorrow afternoon. (That’s 2:00-5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time.
This information came from the Warner Theater Sales Director, so it should be reliable. However, please do remember that this is preliminary news and so details may change. More to follow as the news comes in… Terri :-} And if you hear of any changes, please tweet them to us at @CloudUSA, so we can alert everyone.
To request your tickets from JIART, please see our earlier post here: https://cloudusa.wordpress.com/2013/05/02/ticket-info-updated-contact-for-may-8ths-arirang-world-peace-festival-in-d-c/
Thank you,
Terri :-}
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Isn’t that cool? Thanks to @CloudUnite for the tip. Oh my goodness. I LOVE that photo of him, don’t you?
Terri :-}
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
If you guessed Rain, then you sure are one smart cookie! 😀
[06-May-13]Rain, the soldier with the highest seniority on the public information support services. His discharge is just 65days away.
Singer and actor Rain (his real name, Jung Ji-Hoon) has been the public information services support soldier with the highest seniority on the public information support services of the Defense Media Agency. Sergeant ‘Jung Ji-Hoon’ will leave the army upcoming July 10th.
Rain served as a teaching assistant at the 5th division recruiting training center after joining the army in October, 2011, and he has traveled to different military bases and put on various events and shows since he was transferred to the public information support services in March of last year.
To attend the ‘World Peace Festival Arirang’ to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the alliance between Korea and the United States, Rain left for Washington D.C. via Incheon International Airport on the 6th.
Since ‘Sleepy’ (his real name, Kim Sung-Won) and ‘the Action’ (Park Kyung-Wook) who are Untouchable’s members left the army last 1st, Rain has been the soldier with the highest seniority on the public information support services. He is a sergeant who is expected to be separated from the army in a couple of months.
Currently, ‘Lee Teuk’, ‘KCM’, ‘Jung Joon-Yl’, ‘Kim Moo-Yeol’, ‘Sangchu‘, ’Lee Suk-Hoon’, etc. including Rain, are serving in the public information support services. KCM will leave the army following the discharge of Rain. KCM will return to society upcoming July 31st.
English translation by 화니, on The Cloud. Credit to News24 : http://news.naver.com/main/ranking/read.nhn?mid=etc&sid1=111&rankingType=popular_day&oid=404&aid=0000029684&date=20130506&type=1&rankingSeq=8&rankingSectionId=106
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Well, he is. And my goodness, isn’t he lovely? There’s just something super sexy about a guy who can make a uniform AND an airport look so good, don’t you think?
[Photo credits: I have no idea. All news reporters and all Clouds in the Incheon airport, perhaps? I simply grabbed them from everywhere as fast as I could. If you were one of these photographers, give us a holler in the comments below, so we can thank you properly.]
While there has been a bit of information floating around today about the event in D.C., I’ve been informed (through avenues other than Cloud USA) that tickets and press passes to the Festival were taken care of long ago. This makes sense, seeing as how the festival was even included as part of an alumni organization’s tour package even (http://t.co/BQXFJLEqWf), which had to have been done months ago.
So, it is not a sure thing that any last minute tickets will be available. I was afraid of that when I saw how small the venue for the event was and when I considered that government officials were involved.
That doesn’t mean, however, that I would discourage you from checking out the event if you live in D.C., near the theater. And if you simply want to get away and fly up to D.C. on the off chance that you might get lucky? Well, more power to you. Just don’t be disappointed if things don’t work out, that’s all.
I’d share more information about the actual event and Rain’s schedule if I had any. Unfortunately, I don’t. According to the alumni association’s itinerary, it does look like Rain will be appearing on the 8th—maybe. Since I don’t read Hangul, I can’t really be sure of that—or of anything else on that schedule. If you do read Hangul and have any information to impart, please let us know in the comments below.
Also, those of you who have sent e-mail request for tickets to Jiart, please be sure to check your e-mail accounts regularly, to make sure you don’t miss any last minute responses from them. If they do have any last minute tickets available, then you don’t want to miss out because you missed an e-mail.
We are still excited as all get out that Rain is about to be on U.S. soil again, even if we aren’t traveling to D.C. to try to catch him. Doesn’t take much to make us happy, does it? LOL.
Wishing you all many more Rainy days.
Terri :-}
P.S. And for all of you Sangchu fans, here are a few pics of him too!
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Please enjoy this lovely fanmade video project from Rain’s Latin Clouds, in honor of his promotion to Sergeant.
Thank you, Latin Clouds. There is no other hero like him, indeed.
Terri :-}
[Video Credit: Rain Imyours on YouTube]
The Latin Clouds’ message posted on The Cloud, by Tefi:
My dear Cloud Sisters,
We want to share with you this video we have made to celebrate Rain’s Promotion to Sergeant. Clouds from different parts of Latin America have sent their pictures to show their love for Rain and our continuous support. Also, just to make our dear Sergeant smile a little bit, the admins of some of the fan clubs here have posed like him [in some of his photos]…We truly hope you like it!
Latin America is waiting for Rain!
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Some awesome pics of Rain were posted over on The Cloud awhile ago. I’m cross-posting some of the best of them here, for those of you who might not be able to access The Cloud. (And, of course, because when the cat’s away…well, you know. :-P)
Many thanks to ratoka for gathering up the pics and posting them on The Cloud. To see ALL of the photos, please visit The Cloud’s Data Image Board. Full photo credits go to @loverainumi, @terry0625, @mayu_peach_love, @vividly12blue, @JINJH_2625, uguly62, dc, RAINANGEL, and @zzang523.
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Ah ha ha ha ha! What cute nonsense.
For those of you who missed it, here is one of Rain’s 20s CF’s from his SK Telecom days, in 2009. Just for fun…and well, just because Stephe’s on vacation and she is not around to stop me from posting anything I want. Bwah ha ha ha ha!
I don’t know what they were going for with this CF, exactly. Maybe it all boiled down to hey, it’s Rain, who cares?! As matter of fact, isn’t that all that matters on this blog too?
Yeah. Sounds good to me. :-}
Terri :-}
[Video credit: manloverain8888 on YouTube; SK Telecom]
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
For those of us who missed the live streaming of this performance this morning (in the U.S.A.), here’s Rain performing “Hip Song” and a delightful “Instead of Saying Goodbye” in today’s Consolatory Train at the Family Rock Festival.
[Video credits: vividly12blue on YouTube and ratoka on The Cloud]
All I can say is Rain sure does look like a short-timer to me. :-}
Terri :-}
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
More from the Loyalty! My Friend Is Lee SeokHun show on military FM, this time on 5/2. Kim MuYeol and LeeTeuk (Park SeongJu) are it again, chatting away about our Sarge. 🙂
» You can see that mention, strictly for the visuals, by clicking HERE and going to the clip on Daum TVDepot.
°
Kim Mu Yeoul talks about Rain at the “Salute” radio program
Posted by: huhuhuhu @The Cloud Rain News Board
Source: DC, Twitter
On tonight’s “Salute, My Friend” radio program, Kim Mu Yeoul (he is a good friend of Rain) and {LeeTeuk ^@@^} were guests.
When being asked who treats you the nicest in your squad, both answered: Sergeant Jung Jihoon. When they reported to duty, Sergeant Jung complimented them profusely. Kim said before he was enlisted, and when Sergeant Jung was out for holiday, they met together, had a meal together and had good conversations. When Kim talked about this to his soldier mates, they were all very jealous.^^
Kim also said Sergeant Jung is at the twilight of his years like a toothless tiger (meaning Rain is close to his discharge). “He is full of the smell of a man in the society, so we need to send him back to the society quickly.”^^
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
Rain, Warner Bros., and the Wachowskis bring Ninja Assassin to Hong Kong Harbour City in late 2009, during his Legend of Rainism concert tour, right after they premiered the movie in the U.S.A. Cool.
(clip source: Cloud Taiwan / courtesy of manloverain)
(fan cam credit: friendiibi) “Is this thing on?” 😛 ^@@^
(Images credited as tagged / various Media / Maggie S. / Of course, when he’s shopping, he goes right for the sneakers, haha. ^@@^)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
(Source credit: K-Force Consolatory Train Twitter. English translation by 화니.)
-Military broadcast ‘Consolatory Train’ scheduled for May 4th-
Time : 19:00~2100 / Location : the Bundang-gu Office square / Guest performers : 9Muses, First, Rania, Girl’s Day, Jeockw, Kim Kyung-Hyun (The Cross). Kyunwoo, KCM, {Mighty Mouth ^@@^}, and Rain / This concert is open to public.
(Source credit: Consolatory Train sub-page @DEMA.mil.kr. English translation by 화니.)
The guest list for ‘Consolatory Train’ for the 15th Air Force Special Activity Wing scheduled for May 4th (Sat)
MCs : Leeteuk & Yun Sung Kyung
9Muses
First
Rania
Jeockw
Girl’s Day
Kyunwoo
Kim Kyung-Hyun (The Cross)
KCM
{Mighty Mouth ^@@^}
Rain
(Source credit: The official Seongnam City Twitter. English translation by 화니.)
Family Rock Festival’ will be held at the grass square in front of Bundang office (district office) from May 4 (Sat) to 5 (Sun), for two days, under the sponsorship of ABN TV and the Defense Media Agency, with the support of Seongnam city. Visual show “Consolatory Train” featuring many singers including popular singer Rain (Jung Ji-Hoon) and various event programs will be provided. So bring the whole family and make it a day to remember^^
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
For those of you wanting to obtain tickets to the Arirang World Peace Festival being held in Washington, D.C. at the Warner Theatre on May 7 and/or May 8, we have very good news for you.
We have been given a tip on a new e-mail address and it seems to be working, because replies are being received. The e-mail address you should contact for information about how to obtain tickets to the festival is:
limjiart@yahoo.com
Please include in your email the following information:
I have two additional recommendations for you:
Many thanks to Bi Arashi and NovemberRain from Rain’s Little Cloud for the tip. And please let us know if you do get a positive response to your inquiry and actually get tickets, so that we can pass on that good news too!
ALSO, if you are lucky enough to get tickets and get to see Rain, Stephe and I would really appreciate it if you would take lots of video and pics and send them to us, because we just can’t make it this time around.
Terri :-}
^@@^ Bi, Rain -When I Look At You- rainthetreasure series 7 — (Credit and edit: JJ @Cloud USA / Jess MK / rainthetreasure // CloudUSAChannel @YT / Music: Miley Cyrus, “When I Look At You”)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
This month’s themes are: Back To The Basic, Nikon Cambodia Rain, CosmoMen Rain, Rain in Spain, Road For Rain, and The BEST Show Seoul. Please enjoy! 🙂
(900 x 1140. Cloud USA. Best displayed “centered” rather than “stretched”, but of course, feel free to display it however you like! Big thanks to Cloud USA forum moderator Merrick for the use of her awesome calendars.)
(700 x 700. Courtesy of Rainstorm.)
(1024 x 740. Courtesy of Merrick @Cloud USA.)
(900 x 637. Courtesy of RainBiLove2.)
(450 x 450. Courtesy of sizuku219.)
(900 x 1350. Rain 2002—2011 Concert Career Fan Art courtesy of Rain[eare].)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
Oh my lord, is that LeeTeuk (Super Junior) MCing on stage with Sangchu? Wah! 🙂
I cracked up over that special yell the Hoonie gave when he came out. And again when, even after getting bum-rushed on the 9th, he hopped right off the stage again and strolled right in the middle of EVERYBODY. (Of course, they all freaked! LOL) I cracked up yet again when he started to hip-grind in the crowd. LMAO! Sarge, you are something else.
Enjoy this April 11 performance, as broadcast by KFN TV today, May 2.
(Source credit: Korean Forces Network / courtesy of ratoka @vimeo)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
Congrats, P_Pixxie dear! Thanks for letting us know that you received your new North American version of Rain’s movie A-okay. 🙂
“Look what I got in the mail today!!! Yay! Thank you CloudUSA and CJEntertainment!” ♥ 😀
— PiratePixxie @The CloudUSA Forum
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
Well, go tell ’em! 😀
(Source credit: » Asian Movies n More @FB, 4/28/2013)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
In late spring 2006, Rain was interviewed on SBS News about being selected as a TIME World’s 100 Most Influential person that year. He looked as pleased as punch in that pinstriped suit. I would have too. 🙂
(clip courtesy of sherry hung)
(fan art courtesy of RainAngel)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
The last Consol Train for the month took place in Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do (Province).
(Images credit: mongshari)
~Cloud Cover by Terri :-}, Managing Editor
Isn’t that great? Just trying to spread the word…and the love.
To see Cloud USA’s comment about the project for yourself, you can visit UNICEF USA’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/UNICEF-USA.
Terri :-}
(Rain for past endorser O HUI Skincare. Courtesy of Benamoo and Joyplace.)
*Note: This is a 2-week Open Thread because next week, I’ll be traveling with my Godmother to the ocean for much-needed rest and an important writing sabbatical while my father is well enough for me to go. This trip was already planned and paid for before the news of Rain coming to Washington D.C. hit. If not for that, you know where I’d be! ^@@^
°
» Cloud USA Yellow Ribbon for Rain Calendar: DOWNLOAD it (for free).
» You can visit the previous Open Thread HERE. And of course, don’t forget that our Cloud USA Forum is a most excellent place for Rain love, fan communication, and self-expression. By the way — have you left a message for JiHoon on The Cloud today? Our Project page for newbies on how to register for and USE the Official Cloud Rain Fan Club site in S.Korea is HERE.)
» Cloud USA disclaimer. READ it.
» Visit DramaFever HERE to watch ALL of your favorite Korean dramas, K-Pop music shows, Latin American telenovelas, and Asian TV shows and movies for free, subtitled, and in crystal clarity. It gets no better than this!
»DramaFever BLOG. For news and fun with your Korean, Latin, and Asian stars and their shows.
°
» [results] Our Black Eagle North American DVD Giveaway winners are… (4/22)
» [info][R2B] CJ Entertainment America: Where to BUY the Black Eagle North American DVD. (3/20)
°
By Twitter and/or Facebook: As of this moment, 6702 yellow ribbons for Rain have been added to Twitter and Facebook icons since Rain enlisted in the military. Are you in our Brigade? Thanks for supporting our favorite corporal during his military service and for letting him know you’ll be waiting when he gets home! » For a brief read about the meaning of the Yellow Ribbon, go to our previous post HERE.
By Snail Mail:
For information on where to send handwritten cards and letters to
병장/兵長 (Byeongjang/Petty Officer 2nd Class) Sergeant Jung JiHoon/Rain, please see our previous post HERE (military). For cards, letters, and gifts, do see our post HERE (office admin).
» Rain’s official website. » RAINY Entertainment’s official Twitter.
» R2B: Return To Base official social media sites. » Rain’s official YouTube channel AND » Facebook page.
°
SONG OF THE WEEK: “September 12 (9 Weol 12 Il) 9월 12일”, Track 10 on his Rainism Recollection album (Feb 2009). This TV clip is from a 2009 Japanese fanmeet at ZEPP Tokyo, and I chose it because of THAT VOICE. I mean how does he do that.
(courtesy of eye0rain @YT.)
— ^@@^
eNews World 4/30/2013 — by Grace Danbi Hong
Celebrating his 11th anniversary in the army must be rough, but we bet Rain is smiling up a storm with his fans doing good deeds for the special occasion.
For his 11th anniversary on April 28, Clouds, Rain’s fanclub name, donated a large sum of 11,370,000 won to UNICEF to support children. The donation not only came from the official Cloud fanclub in Korea, but from all around the world, including Canada, Chile, China, France, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Peru, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, USA, Vietnam. The donation was made under the name of ‘Rain Fans United.’
‘Rain Fans United’ stated that it is donating to be even just a little help for children suffering all around the world. 2013 also happens to be United Nations International Year of Water Cooperation, and the fans found it fitting to celebrate Rain’s 11th anniversary, which falls close to World Malaria Day 2013 on April 25.
The fans hoped that the donations will be used to provide clean water as well as medication and supplies for malaria.
Photo Credit: Rainy Entertainment
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
If the numbers would just start flipping themselves over automatically, it would be perfect. LOL! 😛 (*NOTE: You do realize we are right underneath his perfect collarbones at the time of this post.)
(Fan art cedit: BiAlamode / Denita @Facebook)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
» First, it was on one of their Facebook pages. Now, it’s on their official Twitter and official website. Really nice!
(Source credit: UNICEF Korea @Twitter. English translation by 화니 @The Cloud Photo Board.)
Including the membership members of Cloud which is Rain’s official fan club in Korea, his fans from 17 countries such as Canada, Chile, France, Hong Kong, Hungary, Indonesia, etc. have raised funds to make a donation to UNICEF to help poor children.
The coalition of Rain’s fans around the world has contributed ₩ 11,370,000 to the Korean Committee for UNICEF to celebrate the 11th anniversary of his debut.
(Source credit: UNICEF.or.kr / Caps by Cloud USA)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
(Source credit: DC Rain Gall)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
It has been an absolutely wonderful Rain 11th Debut Anniversary week, but alas, with a new Monday upon us, that week is at an end. So let’s send it off with one final hurrah.
See y’all next year, on Rain’s 12th! ^@@^
(…junjun6933)
(…Cerine @RainFanart.)
(…Cloud Indonesia.)
(…Rain[eare].)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
FINALLY, his four-bar promotion is OFFICIAL. Congratulations, JiHoon씨 ! 😀
(Images source credit: DEMA.mil.kr)
And the clear picture from the 25th that finally answered the question, is he or isn’t he? (Image credit: yoppi)
— Posted by: Stephe @CloudUSA.org ^@@^
CLICK image for the UNICEF international site.
» Our previous post announcing the Charitable Donation Project to Celebrate Rain’s 11th Debut Anniversary, back on April 10, is HERE.
The project has come to fruition ( ₩11,370,000 KRW = $10,200. USD), and UNICEF Korea has posted about the donation on their 유니세프 WeAction (UNICEF WeAction) Facebook page. Way to go, Clouds. We did it! Congratulations, Jung JiHoon! Big Thanks to Rain’s official Cloud Fan Community in Korea, of which we are a part, for initiating this very worthy project.
Rain’s philanthropy has been as much a part of his life as his entertaining. He has given to many, many worthy causes over the years, large and small, local and international, personally and professionally, before leaving for his mandatory military service, and in doing so, inspires his fans to always follow his lead. Our hearts go out to all the children of UNICEF, and we hope to have helped them in some way, no matter how small.
Stephe @cloudusa.wordpress.com ^@@^
(Source credit: 유니세프 WeAction @FB. English translation by 화니 @The Cloud Rain News Board)
Applause! To celebrate the 11th anniversary of his debut, Rain’s fans from 17 nations including the USA, China, Peru, Spain, etc. sent a contribution of ₩ 11,370,000 to UNICEF. +_+
It is true that Rain is a very kind-hearted singer who gave 50 wells to Cambodian children as gifts in 2006. Like him, his fans seem to be big-hearted. @_@
The devotion of his fans from around the world will make a valuable gift for both young friends who need support and Rain. 🙂
(CLICK image for larger view.)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
2002 was when it all started in earnest, when JiHun became 비 and pounced on South Korea with a vengeance. He’s been pouncing ever since, not that they—or the world—are complaining. 🙂
Do enjoy this wonderful performance from New Year’s Eve 2002, when an utterly adorable, debut-year Rain received an MBC Top 10 Singers Award, to his delight. You could say he danced and pop/locked his butt off. (Holy cow! Kangta, BoA, and g.o.d. on the same show with him? I would have passed slap out.)
(clip courtesy of manloverain)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
And every last one of his Clouds around the world will follow suit! LOL!
(GIFs courtesy of pollyanna)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
The latest posted by the official Mentholatum China micro-blog on Weibo, 4/27. Gotta start using that protectorant now that the sun is getting revved up, guys!
On the subway in Beijing. (Image credit: 韩剧动态 @Weibo )
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
The most recent beauties from the minds of rainthetreasure, a.k.a JJ @Cloud USA / Jess MK, and harudoful, a.k.a. Naoko @Cloud USA. Feast your eyes! 🙂
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Managing Editor ^@@^
This according to Cloud Pana, who lives there.
If I’m understanding correctly, Pana also mentions that, rather than being in the rental section for films from Korea, Return to Base on DVD and on Blu-ray was stocked up in the section reserved for new releases from the West. Hmm. Wow. 🙂 Thanks for sharing, Pana!^^
R2B fighting!
(Image credit: pana0625 @Twitpic / http://twitpic.com/cm14e4)
— Cloud cover by: Stephe, Co-Founder ^@@^
It was a blast indeed, being in the company of April, Stormy, and Ms. Oddness/Weirdness herself—Erika. Thanks for the invite, my friend. I enjoyed it!
Big ups to the other guest bloggers as well for rounding out the week with some doggone good reading—Nani of Nancakes.org and La Shauna of Asia24/7.
°
Oddness/Weirdness K-Pop & Fashion Blog 4/15/2013— written by Stephe Thornton, CloudUSA.org
March 2012. cr: Kookbang DEMA.mil.kr
The Republic of Korea military forces contain two distinct types of soldiers – the ones who have chosen it as their full-time career for the long haul, and the ones who are interrupting their civilian lives in order to serve the 21- to 24-month mandatory term required of all South Korean males between the ages of 18 and 35.
Think about that for a minute. Really think about it – interrupting your life no matter what you are doing, leaving your place of business, your activities, your loved ones, your freedom, all that you have worked for up to that point, not to mention the salary that feeds you or your family for two whole years, whether you want to or not. I don’t think many people outside of a draft get the impact of it, at all.
Both regular citizens and famous Korean entertainers in South Korea, many of them, face this daunting life change every year, and I commend them all greatly for it. Even if a man is bursting with warrior spirit and loyalty for his country, hurling himself into the unknown of the military is no easy feat. So, just imagine if you’re not soldier material, imagine if learning to slit and gut someone with a bayonet or put a bullet in a head at one hundred paces isn’t something that you aspire to, but you enlist anyway to fulfill your constitutional duty and proudly support those of your countrymen who are career military. (Oh, and to stay out of jail and keep your family or future children from being ostracized.) How can any man not be respected for doing the right thing?
Well, the regular guys do get respect, at least. The celebrities blatantly do not, which makes absolutely no sense….
» You can read this article in its entirety and comment on the Oddness/Weirdness blog HERE.
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Oddness/Weirdness K-Pop & Fashion Blog 4/16/2013 — written by April Jackson, Pink Fashion Ninja
First off a quick message:
Hello everyone, My name is April aka The Pink Fashion Ninja and I run a fashion/kpop blog called the Pink Fashion Ninja. I also Vlog about life in Korea! I wanted to address something before I begin my Kpop rant. 😀
I’ve gotten a quite a few inquires over the past couple years about people wanting to come to Korea for something other than teaching. By now we all know that teaching seems to be the only way to work or even get to Korea (or Asia) for a foreigner. Though this is mostly true, I want to use this time to share some thoughts and give hope to those you have dreams abroad.
Those who follow my blog know about my Fashion degree and about my aspirations to further my career in Asia. It’s been a challenge which is what I expected and…wanted. Sometimes when we really want something we take the more difficult/challenging route to get there. This can be for a lot of reasons but each with the end result of discovering something new about ourselves and achieving our goals. I want to say to those who have aspirations abroad to please go after them. No matter the color or your skin or background, go after what you want in life. There will be boundaries, walls as high as mountains, and language barriers, but don’t let it stop you. It’ll for dang sure be difficult, but if you have the drive, then you can get through it.
Many who’ve written to me have had a concern about being non Asian, specifically a woman of color (black, Hispanic etc.). The whole world can seem against you, but push forward. I can with certainty say this from experience. I’m 1000% glad I moved abroad and went after what I wanted in life. Many family and friends told me I was crazy and for a moment I thought I was. It’s now been 2 years and I am more happy than ever, have discovered new things about myself and my career journey has blossomed beautifully. Sometimes we have to start in an unknown place to get where we want to be. It’s like a board game, you might not start at the start point or anywhere close to but you will eventually get to the finish line. So to those who are scared to travel abroad because of challenges, or nervous to learn an Asian language because of cultural differences, don’t give up. No matter HOW crazy the aspiration is GO AFTER IT (Because I know I have some crazy dreams)….
And 9 times out of 10 the 1st question is???? Wait for it….. “Are they gay?” Even with a decidedly masculine shoot like this one from L’Officiel Hommes Korea earlier this year. Don’t you dare show them a music video or concert footage.
Korea, and most of Asia, has a unique idea of what is beautiful in that it’s mostly the same whether male or female. They like large round eyes, small pointed noses and full luscious lips. A slim body line with long legs and lots of height fills the bill with both sexes too…
Cloud USA 