Men and their cars...

Hyojin has agreed to teach me Korean and I teach him English, but the relation is more than just business. We have become good friends. I went out to eat with him at a bulgogi restaurant (where you cook the meat yourself at a grill inside the table. A fantastic business ploy since the cooks don't have to do anything). He related to me earlier when we were driving that he was a bit depressed because someone hit his car. Hyojin said he loves his car in a monotone voice with little expression or body movement. It was a simple fact.

To try to make him laugh I told him the stereotypes about Asian drivers in the US. I told him that the stereotype is that Asians are terrible drivers! I can see why too. In Korea, people don't always stop for the red lights. When crossing the street you have to be careful. People also pull U-turns out of no where and cut in front of buses and large vehicles. They are crazy! I told him that woman drivers are said to be terrible as well. This is when he turned to me and said, "Yes, I think so. A woman hit my car."

We talked about various things during the meal. I tried to explain to him the phrase, "The girls sitting over there are smoking." The two 'ing' endings confuse him. So I told him that in order to be more specific when describing the girls, you say 'the girls sitting over there' and that the verb is smoking. He seemed to get it after a while. As we were about to go, he turns to me and says, "Thank you for the pleasant conversation. It makes me forget about my car."

I couldn't help but laugh realizing the enormity of his love for his vehicle. I just said, "Yea, sure." I suppose the stereotype about men caring for their cars as much (or more) their own children is true across all countries...

Fellas, do you agree? Ladies, how do you feel about this?