My first time living in Korea is also my first time living in a dormitory which leads to an array of other ’first-time’ events. Some are exciting, others are upsetting. However, there are definitely incidents of mine that remain big spotlights in the history of CNU’s female dorm.
     The first one is “the undergarment hero” incident. It was a gloomy Monday afternoon during my first week at CNU. The first floor hallway was filled with girls in haste coming in and out. As I was waiting for the elevator, I spotted two pieces of underwear lying in front of the laundry room without anybody acknowledging their existence. At the same time, there was only one brunette Korean holding a basket full of washed laundry. The girl was wearing a headphone so I had to chase her all the way through the hallway in order to poke her on the shoulder with the attempt of returning them to her and being praised as an “underwear saver”. However, I startled her by tapping her shoulder causing her to drop all her laundry, only to find out the underwear was not hers. I took my walk of shame back to the elevator with two pieces of red underwear in my hand while being stared at every passers-by. They must have thought I was either showing them off or carrying them around in case of emergencies. Did I mention they were gigantic bright red panties?
     There is another story; “the fire alarm” incident. This is probably so far the shortest yet most embarrassing story of my time living in CNU. The time was 10 a.m. when I heard fire alarm going off. Jenny’s line from the classic Forrest Gump movie flashed in my head: “Run Forrest, run!” The next thing I knew I was running like my pants were on fire like Forrest out of the dormitory with no shoes, toothpaste foam all over my mouth, toothbrush in my hand, in granny pajama and only to discover when I was outdoor that was just a practice alarm. Until today I still could not forget the giggles and gazes of every witness of my stupidity.
    Then again, I would not trade anything in the world for the time I have spent residing on CNU campus. Only by experiencing social embarrassments will you come to know how important it is to have those incredibly unique stories that you would never forget.

  
By Nguyen Huong, Tribune Reporter