Topic Disscussion topics for 7th September (Wed)

[Judy~*]

Hi~ guys~

I’m posting up the discussion topic for 9/7 신촌 meeting as you guys seem very hectic for work. Pls make sure to review all before the meeting so that we can have more interesting and valuable time together. Don’t forget to memorize the Article no. 33(on Study Resources) that brother Kee asks you to do. ( You know how strict he is....ㅎㅎ )

Small talk topic

Dear Annie: I am a teenage girl. I always thought I was heterosexual, but lately, I have been paying a lot more attention to girls. In the locker room, I always find myself staring at their breasts. While all my friends are ogling Brad Pitt, I'm looking at Angelina Jolie.

I don't really consider guys anything more than friends. I've had crushes on a few of them, but that's it. Whenever I hug my girlfriends, though, I feel all warm inside and linger for longer than necessary. I love to bury my head in their hair. Hugging guys is nothing special. I've also had a few erotic dreams about girls.

Girls turn me on, but guys turn me off, and I think muscles on guys are really ugly. I have never wanted to get married, and I think sex with a guy is nasty.

I currently have a crush on my friend, "Jocelyn." I have no idea what my sexual orientation is anymore. To top it off, my parents are not open-minded about gays and lesbians. I know that ultimately the decision is in my hands, but can you help me figure this out? Or am I too young to know my sexual orientation? -- Girl Who Likes Girls

Dear Girl: Here's what we can tell you. It is not uncommon for teenage girls to have crushes on members of the same sex. It is not unusual for girls to be fascinated by women's breasts, to think sex is nasty, to find muscles unappealing and to discover that hugging their friends is enjoyable. Does this make you gay? No.

However, it also doesn't mean you're not. It means you are having powerful sexual feelings and hormonal surges, which is normal for a teenager. Your sexual orientation will solidify as you get older, one way or another. If you need more information, try PFLAG (pflag.org) at 1726 M Street, NW, Suite 400, Washington, D.C. 20036.

Dear Annie: Please let your readers know how much a simple card or phone call means to someone going through a difficult time. It was devastating and scary when I found out I had breast cancer. I had a mastectomy and went through five months of chemotherapy.

I was blessed to have many loving family members and friends who stood by me. Their phone calls, cards, meals, etc., kept me going. I am, however, having a difficult time getting over the hurt I feel from those family members and friends who were not there for me. My husband says to forgive and move on, but this is difficult for me to do, and I have a hard time being around them. How do I get past this? -- Hurt in New York

Dear Hurt: Many people have no idea how to respond when someone is seriously ill. Because of their own discomfort and awkwardness, they choose to do nothing. These friends and relatives no doubt feel guilty about their behavior. Work on forgiving them, but if you cannot, it's perfectly OK to limit your contact

Main Topic

Kim Sam-soon, portrait of single woman in Korea
If Carrie Bradshaw of the "Sex and the City" represents a 30-something-girl in New York, and similarly Bridget Jones in London, here comes Seoul's heroine, with somewhat a boorish name, Kim Sam-soon.

"My Lovely Sam-soon" - "My Name is Kim Sam-soon", a weekday nighttime soap opera airing on MBC, has obviously become the talk of the town, with a hilarious but sympathetic character that eventually talks about a very (and again, very) unsolvable problem - heartache - in her 30s.

The story begins when educated-in-Paris Sam-soon returns to Korea and attempts to kill her ex-boyfriend who announced their official breakup on Christmas Eve. Sam-soon involuntarily falls into a typical after-life of a dumped girl, becoming jobless, fatter due to excessive drinking, and eventually penniless.

However, far from being passive, this valiant lady soon starts a new life working in her counterpart Jin-heon's restaurant. Jin-heon, a selfish, wicked but irresistibly charming restaurant owner, played by rookie Hyun Bin, asks her to be his fake-lover to avoid his mom's pressure on marriage.

The two become closer but the prince's long-time love Hee-jin enters into the ongoing relationship. However, it is too late for Sam-soon, who declares her love for him.

Based on the romance novel of Korean author Ji Soo-hyun with the same title, plot and characters, the TV show has a lot more ingredients to spice up the scenes.

On the TV screen the heroine seems perkier, blunter and somehow more aggressive than the one depicted in the book. However, above anything else, the TV-version gratifies viewers by filling up with incisive scenes. The unprecedented popularity stems from this.

"This is my story," says Kim So-youn, an enthusiastic fan of Sam-soon. She recalls those miserable experiences and indescribable anguish of being a single woman in Korea.

Kim says that women viewers easily project themselves to Sam-soon and finally are relieved from all those bad, unforgiving moments by watching her "reviling those bastards and kicking their ass."

The viewing rate of the drama is roaring near 40 percent, thanks to "S-diary" star Kim Seon-ah, who plays Sam-soon. The actress, returning to TV screen after four years, is being highly praised for her spirited performance, transforming herself into an absolute Sam-soon version, a fat and sexless woman at 30, an age deadline for women who are anxious about getting married. She reportedly gained 7 kilograms just before the shooting to be authentic as the real Sam-soon can look.

The soap is often compared with "Lovers in Paris" which aired on SBS last year, whose story is, once again, about a Prince Charming rescuing a plain girl in trouble. Kang Tae-young, played by Kim Jeong-eun, made all kinds of embarrassing or silly mistakes in the course of nabbing her true love, Han Ki-ju.

Although Sam-soon is also bounded by this cheesy plot, drama critics say the Cinderella story has been transformed, or perhaps progressed. Now the lady reveals her sexual desire, marking the rise of Korean women.

"Sam-soon complains about her sexless life, saying that she's been starved by men's touch. She breaks the rule that a man has to kiss a girl first. She voluntarily made the First Kiss to her counterpart, Jin-heon. This apparently reveals her sexual desire in the most natural way and depicts a turning point for Korean women who now have started to publicize their forbidden desire," said Shin Joo-jin, a drama critic.

Although "My Lovely Sam-soon" - "My Name is Kim Sam-soon" is an unabashedly typical Cinderella story, however, it focuses more on the heroine's desire and passion devoted to her career in patisserie. Remember how Jin-heon started to like Sam-soon (even though it is hard to notice)? It was when he acknowledges her talent, passion and devotion to her dream while tasting Sam-soon's cake, rather than just looking at her adorable smile.

By Cho Chung-un

Questions
1. Korea now suffers ‘Kim Sam-soon Syndrome’ nationwide.
What do you know about that?

2. Recently, there are bunch of Sitcoms & movies about “Old miss”, quite popular to both genders, in & out of the country . What do you think is the reason?

3. Apparently, ‘female singles’ seem to be unfairly treated by the others and have more things to say than ‘male singles’.

Please share any of your opinion about this from your own view.

4. Any related subjects

[Judy~*]

신촌모임 여러분~ 참석 여부.. 댓글 달아주시면 고맙죠~

[Kee淸潭@Mars]

예쁜(?) 주디......보고싶어서.........참석.........에 한표.....ㅎㅎㅎ(ㄴㅡ ㄱ ㄱ ㅣ!?)

[[Ian]Dong-wook]

낼 뵐게여.

[hannah]

내일은 제가 어제 새벽에 꾼 아주 우울하고 기묘한 꿈 얘길 해 드릴께요. 재미난 해석 많이 부탁드립니당.

[화정이]

낼 봐요~

[Hye Won]

저두 가요 ~~ㅋㅋ

[hannah]

앗, 갑자기 일이 생겼네요. 오늘 못갈것 같아요. 죄송합니다.

[Riveca]

참석 합니다.^^

[Kee淸潭@Mars]

문장 외우기 힘들어.........온다고 하고 못오는 사람은 벌금물립시다.

[sarah]

오늘은 저도 참석합니다. 벌써 몇번째 참석하겠다고 해놓고 못갔지만.... ^^

[Clint]

이번에는 저도 갑니다.

[Kevin]

접때 8월초쯤 강남 모임에 갔었구요...kee 님께 연락드렸는데, 오늘 참석하겠습니다~

[최진원]

헉~! 8명!!!! 대단히 많넹... 나까지 가면 9명이 되는거군요... 혹여 여기 글 안남긴 사람이 온다면... 10명이상?!?!

[ㅁ ㅣ ㄴ ㅏ]

좋은 게시물이네요. 스크랩 해갈게요~^^