Am I really the first to comment on this week’s open thread! 🥳🥳🥳🥰. Hello everyone! I am looking for my next drama if anyone has recommendations. I don’t really want anything that’s still airing, the anticipation kills me. 🙂

Hi Everyone! ..... I hope you are all doing well today.

I've been in bed for about 4 days because I've been super, super ill. It started with a swollen tonsil, which then turned into basic cold symptoms, which then escalated into a bunch of things going wrong ...... or at least I felt that way! I tried to stay hydrated as much as I could but I was super nauseous and I couldn't even keep water down for about two days. It was awful and freaky!! I want to say I'm getting better but I'm still coughing up a storm and nothing is working to calm it down. I've tried honey, ginger, lemon, teas, gargles, coconut oil and nothing! I've burst capillaries under my eyes and throat from the severity and intensity of the coughing. I absolutely have no idea what happened or where I picked up such an aggressive bug from, but it's been an absolute terrible experience.

In between rounds of sleep, I've been trying to keep up with the drama-watching. I may be ill, but I'm a dedicated Beanie!

My Fellow Citizens - This looks like it has the right amount of silly and fun. ..... It's interesting, I've never really warmed up to actress Kim Min-jung until she did Mr. Sunshine, but I look forward to watching her being hilarious in this.

The Fiery Priest - Through my illness-induced haze, all I remember is our hot-tempered priest looking incredibly good in black attire. ...... Maybe that's not a bad thing to remember! Heh!

Doctor Prisoner - I think I could watch Namgoong Min and Kim Byung-chul go head-to-head everyday. Seriously.

Confession - This is just so good. So many questions ..... about everybody! Who knew what when, and who's covering what? ....... Kudos to the actor playing Jong-gu. You certainly don't want to cross paths with a guy like the one he's portraying.

The Banker - So I went into the first episode with the best of intentions and fully convinced that I would like it. But things didn't work out and I'm actually a little surprised about that. It's unfortunate really.

That's all for now. Everyone take care and, have a great Friday and stay healthy!

Hi Everyone and Happy OT!
Thanks for starting OT early this week @mary!

Those of you who read my post some weeks ago may recall that I mentioned I had to change my car. I used to drive a stick shift, fully manual car for years and years. But now I finally got my new car and it's automatic :-D And (*don't laugh*), I had to practise and practise driving in it for the last 1.5 days!!! I mean I took the trouble to go out in it to see if I could negotiate the lack of clutch pedal, the lack of the need to go to neutral gear (do we ever go to neutral?) and since the new car has lower 'horsepower', I tried out climbing up the steep-ish slope of my office carpark late in the evening when it's less busy.

I also tried out the Econ button, the lower 'S' and 'L' gears and worked on remembering which lever was for what since my old car had things the other way around!!! I'm glad to say I only hit the wipers by mistake once (instead of the turning indicator). All in, I'm glad to say I made it out and back without incident and the car was smooth and fine.

Once I get past the stress of figuring out if I'm driving it correctly while not meeting any other traffic physically, I should be able to enjoy the drive. I'm even going to try out cruise control on Sunday, when we hope to find a longish stretch of road that is clear of most traffic ... those who've been here know that this is not an easy feat!

So I'm having fun reading car manuals and watching videos in how to drive an auto car. How's your week been? :-D

This week, I made a mistake about my work schedule, told all my coworkers about being off, then realized I had to go in to work. Went in an hour late, making up a lie. Coworkers were confused anyway. This is what my nightmares are made of.

It ruined my day. Honestly wanted and still want to crawl into a hole. T_T Why am I like this?

I was also sick :// but I’m feeling better. I spend the whole week in my bed :/
I got round1 of my finals next week and I couldn’t open a single book ://

I wasn’t really in the mood for any drama but somehow ended up checking out Doctor Prisoner even though I didn’t initially have any interest in it ... and OMG i love it! 🥰🥰🥰 but now I have to wait a week...

Definitely check this drama out once it’s finished, it is good binging material

Hi all:

Am recovering from an icky fluy cold kinda thing. Ugh. Do not get it. Anyways, with the help of homeopathy and some phytoncides done by forest walking (thank you kdrama for enlightening me) I will be better in a week or so, hopefully.

Dramas:

I picked up a Star on the Road needs to pick up. Now it's turned into just another drama about an actor and a clingy newbie girlfriend who wants him. Ah well. I watched the last episode without subs so many there is something i am missing that will infuse hope into me.

My Fellow Citizens -- This is a surprise. So much fun. I always liked Siwan but never really loved him. But his acting has really grown.

Dr Prisoner -- oh my! Point, counterpoint. Strategy, counter-strategy. Machinations, counter-machinations. And i am so here for it although sometimes i think, "Good grief! This is so over-the-top." NamGoong Min does a good job of making me hate the villainous warden. Villainous warden is just walking the edge of caricature but succeeding as well. And why is rich imprisoned chaebol looking like they're gonna redeem him?

Confession-- I LOVE LOVE LOVE this drama. My drama crack. Yunho is sooo good. And so hot.

The Psychometric Guy -- I didn't give this drama much hope. I figured it'd be a kid show. Then it seemed to be meh. But after the sixth episode, i am liking it a lot. Am getting "Missing" vibes so i hope doensang can save hyung from going full on evil. Hey, just because you're alecythimic (?) doesn't mean you're bound for psychopathdom, does it?

Kill it: Well, let's just say that this drama has yet to show its uniqueness. A drama doesn't have to be unique. It can merely be good or even competent. This drama is both, but i watch it without any great love for it. With NamGoong Min being all passionate, and Yunho being all subdued melancholic indifferent to everything in life except dad, and that psychometric bros being all broey-, it's hard to work up my passion for this. Still watching tho. So there's that.

The Banker: I'm watching. It's good but i have no passion for it. I loved the Japanese version. I think fleshing out the plot diluted the passionate love for numbers and rules that the jdrama had. Plus the jdrama had Masato Sakai. So there's that. I guess the writer had to make it connect to korean banking laws so i understand, i think..but still.

Chinese dramas:

Golden Eye: Oh my lord! Never have i hated and been so addicted to a show. The easy plotting, the late (tragic) backstory that was supposed to make us love the tough-feral female cop and the murderous villainess, the mistaken belief on the part of the writer that we loved her characters, the hokey 70's cop show/moody flute music vibes. I hated watching every minute of it, and yet i could not turn away. I was that addicted. May i never get caught up in a children's show kind of adventure drama ever again! The only way one can enjoy this is to check one's head at the door...

Just read on allkpop that Seungri is most likely to receive only 2 to 3 years' of imprisonment and maybe he can even get away with a probation! I don't know about the law and punishment but this seems like a slap on the wrist for the crimes he has been accused of.

I'm also surprised that no bigger names have been revealed because I am sure there is a few businessmen, politicians and the rich and wealthy connected to this. If the system remains corrupt or invincible, how can real change be brought about?

Hi beanies
This is my very first post ; reason is Jo Jin Mo
What a revelation
Netflix has brought empress Ki and loved him as Wang yu but the currently airing drama Big Issue is phenomenal: really gripping story line; loving the ruthlessness of his boss and mellowing at last , the poignancy of looking at his child through the telescope and the mad train sequence
Absolutely highly recommended
Am rewatching woman with a suitcase and the dialogues between him and Choi Ji won are so witty with superb comebacks and smart ass ness all around ,,
Then caught up on an old drama of his called punch
And am currently watching is queen of the game from a long time ago
This man is emotes such rawness and feeling that he is every character he plays ... seems highly underrated

Good morning fellow Beanies! Hope everyone has had a lovely week and will have a even more lovely weekend :3

Crowned Clown 9.5/10 This drama is phenomenal. Best drama I've seen in a long time. But I am having a hard time finishing this. Because it's so good the drama agitates and worries and stresses me out about where things will go so I only watch like 30 min. at a time before I need a break. I only have a couple episodes left which means more agitation as things are really heating up. I really pray everything turns out as I like these characters too much for anything different.

I Picked Up a Celebrity On The Street 7.5/10 This one is cute but you really need a huge helping of suspension of belief. I wasn't really caring for the first about 5 episodes and I just couldn't get behind the romance since it wouldn't have been a very true romance (he was her victim and it would have felt like Stolkholms). I also got annoyed with how selfish she was and how much she lied. At one point blaming him for her kidnapping him. But once he managed to escape it got much better. I just wish that happened sooner then half way through the series. But now that he isn't actually kidnapped anymore the series has started turning much cuter. All the actors are doing a really good job.

Happy Friday, Beanies! I mentioned my strange interview experience in last week's OT. I hereby present another unpleasant tale of a post-interview experience. I'm sharing this partly because of the strangeness, but also because some of you may benefit from knowing odd things that pop up in a job search.

2 weeks back, I interviewed somewhere (not the same place as last week's story). The hiring manager was friendly, and shared plenty about the company's outlook and the role. I received a verbal offer, but I was hesitant. The company didn't appear to have a long-term plan to adapt to changes in the industry, and my role would involve a stop-gap measure.

So after thinking it over for a few days, I declined the offer, explaining briefly that the work scope didn't fit my career goals. (It was terrifying, by the way—I didn't have, and still don't have, another offer. But I knew I would be miserable there.) I didn't hear from them for a couple of days, but one evening, I find two missed calls from them. The HR manager wants more details on why I rejected, which I supply.

A week passes with no reply, and suddenly I get an email from the HR manager saying she showed my resume to the chairman, and he wants to invite me in for a chat the very next day (in less than 24h). Now, I know that some companies are open to discussing alternative, more suitable opportunities. But I don't recall this being a non-mutual decision. There was no indication prior to this email that they wished to negotiate. I felt uncomfortable that things proceeded this way without clear communication or consent, so I wiggled my way out of it.

Turns out I dodged a bullet, because later I check Glass Door and several reviews indicated the chairman was often distracted during their interviews, taking calls or giving orders to his subordinates. Yikes. This job search may be drawn-out, but I'm getting really savvy at spotting these red flags.

I'm not watching anything right now. I'm re-watching Pretty Noona That Buys Me Food on Netflix when I get bored. I just don't see anything running right now that I'm interested in watching. I am watching the unfolding molka scandal with Seungri and Jung Joon young. Appears there are probably going to be some actors caught up in this video porn sharing thing too. I've always thought the idol system was pretty much designed to torture children and the South Korean government allows them to get away with it. Removing kids from their homes at a young age, starving them, overworking them, denying them a formal education or any meaningful contact with their families sometimes for years. Always a recipe for creating damaged human beings.

Still South Korea has always been horrible on women's rights. Many dramas are so misogynist that I can't even watch them. Even most of the dramas that portray women as strong and independent end up having them relent and give in to the "protection" of their main man. I know it doesn't matter what country where you live women's rights are always in struggle. I just don't know if my patronage of their entertainment is helping Korean women or just another obstacle to their growth.

The Burning Sun scandal continues to slow engulf more celebrities, police officials and the wealthy class. More than 100 new illicit videos were turned over to police. But the story has a new, cringe worthy twist. Investigators have allegedly began tracking some of the charges to two mysterious women.

According to a Taiwanese media outlet, Madam Lin, who used to run a restaurant, opened a casino with retired police officers of Taichung in 1993 and began a gambling business. At the time, she aired live broadcasts of casinos in Las Vegas or the Philippines and created a system that allows gamblers to make bets online.
Since then, Madam Lin made a fortune off of Chinese gamblers by systematically running an ILLEGAL sports gambling website based in the Philippines. She is said to have earned up to $13M USDa day and an accumulated $12.3B USD in 5 years.
According to the Taiwanese press, Madam Lin is also a legendary figure among the social circles of Taiwan. She is said to be obsessed with anything that is labeled “limited edition” and is a VVVIP of luxury brands. She is a big fan of celebrities and likes to mingle with them, including Seungri.
Meanwhile, Madam Lin was recently accused of being an owner in Burning Sun and she used the club for money laundering. Korean police have asked Chinese and Taiwan authorities for help in investigating her.

A second mysterious woman has been identified as one who is known for controlling the media, politicians, and officials in Korea. She goes by the name of Madame Shim, and she is considered one of the most powerful women in all of Korea, due to her connections with politicians, celebrities, news outlets, and CEO’s. She uses her wide range of connections to protect who she needs to, most recently an unconfirmed report linked here with the Burning Sun, Seungri and Jang Ja Yeon‘s cases. Madame Shim has a criminal record but got a light sentence in 2008 for ILLEGAL gambling. Her business model was simple: she supplied gambling to police officers (for protection); drugs to celebrities ($), and prostitutes to CEOs and others ($ and connections). Protection, money and connections equals power.
It was also alleged that Madam Shim was known to be a broker for prostituting rookie and aspiring actresses to wealthy VIP’s, as well as facilitating a gambling ring for these VIPs, who are trying to avoid getting caught by authorities.

This could explain why so many young celebrities have been caught up in this scandal because this culture and illicit business has been going on for a very long time. The tracing of the horrible crimes against women to two powerful women is a twist I was not expecting to happen.

Happy weekend Beanies!
What a week! I got invited for a permanent job contract offer yesterday, but in the end they changed their mind to a temp position for a year. I have one week to consider, and everyone urges me to sign, but I cannot help but be disappointed that it is not a permanent position.

A permanent position offers stability and the luxury to start thinking about future plans, which I now have to postpone again. In the past I used to be overjoyed to be simply working for a short while, to escape the unemployment for a bit, but now I am already dreading the unemployment that is bound to follow after my contract ends next year, and I have not even signed it yet.

I am trying my luck in some other recruitment pools as well, so that I have some a back-up as soon as my contract ends next year, but a lot can change in a year.

I want to get rid of this disappointment feeling by next week, so that I can channel my own Kang Dan-I ;) Which reminds me, I really should continue watching RIABB, before my contract and all the good spring dramas start :p