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Read how this Korean samchon fan came to love the girls, and how the girls changed his life.
It's super super long, but it gets interesting the more you read it... this is only part 1 out of 3, so if you guys like it, I'll translate and post up parts 2 and 3 later. ^^
By the way, the notes that are in [the square brackets like this and maybe italicized] are notes by me, they're not part of the original fan account.
NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THIS OUT OF SSF!
THIS WAS A PERSONAL FAN ACCOUNT POSTED BY THE SAMCHON, AND WE GOT HIS CONSENT TO TRANSLATE IT HERE.
FOR HIS PRIVACY, SO THAT PEOPLE WON'T BE STALKING HIM EVERYWHERE, PLEASE DON'T TAKE THIS OUT OF SSF!
THANKS! ^^
************************************************************
When was it? When I first saw the girls…
To be honest, I don’t really remember...
Because I hated SM so much… so I never cared about singers from that company.
(Actually, except for a few artists, I never had interest in the music world at all)
Lee Sooman was the one who brought over this useless concept of “idols” to Korea, made the music world a marketplace, and also exploits children… that’s the SM that I always thought of.
Now, I forgive him for a lot of things because he was the one who let me see the girls… but even now, I don’t have the most positive image of him.. --;;
The reason why my image of him changed at least a little bit, though, was my wife.
My wife… she was an arts university student who studied design with lots of dreams for the future… but then she got married and now she suffers and can’t even see her husband’s face often.
When she was having a hard time raising our baby daughter, the one who consoled her was DBSK’s Junsu.
Yes, he’s an idol, but I guess he’s different from all others because of the way my wife makes great, passionate speeches on his ability to sing. So I thought, “Ah… I guess he’s a bit different…”
Knowing well my wife’s taste in the music area, I never disregarded her judgement.
And so my wife was the first to walk the life of a duhkoo.
[A dukhoo or duhkoo is kind of like a japenese otaku – a “crazy”, or rather very dedicated fan]
Going to Korean performances were obvious, but she would also venture to Japan.
She was having a tough time, but as a husband, I wasn’t even a help to her… so I just let her do whatever she wanted. I thought it would be okay if she took a break from her life as a married woman once in a while.
And I was curious as to exactly how attractive this Junsu was, being able to make my wife do those things… but I never found out ^^;;
At the time, my daughter, Stephanie, who was still very young, followed her to the SM concert, Dream concert, and all those places. Haha
To be honest, I’ve never even seen SNSD’s ITNW performance properly during their debut period because I don’t watch Gayo programs.
I saw them by chance when I was flipping through the channels. That’s how I was able to see Tiffany.
I only remember thinking one thing… her eyesmile!!! It was enough to make me say, “What kind of a girl is this?”
So I totally fell… I even remember watching Kkokko Tour.. ^^;;
But even still, I held on to my stereotype of idols… I just thought, “The kid named Tiffany is so cute and pretty… but 9 members is still too much!!!”
And I was an ahjusshi that was almost 40 years old… I couldn’t imagine liking an idol group of high school girls.
It was the song, “Oppa Nappa,” that I downloaded by chance one day that did it for me…
It was by chance because I didn’t download it because SNSD sang it. When I first listened to it, it was way too cheesy for me.
I never even heard of the group called Roommate, and if it was a SNSD song, I probably would have never downloaded it. --;;
The funny thing is, the lyrics are so disgustingly cheesy, but I started singing along to it at some point, which scared myself.
I listen to music when I’m driving through my iPod. It would be on when I first turn on my iPod, and it’s not easy flipping through songs on my iPod when I’m driving.
So after listening to it a few times, SNSD’s voices engulfed me. --;;
I found out later that it was a project album for Roommate, and that’s how I found Tiffany’s name… T_T
There’s a bar behind the SM office that I used to visit often… and I even saw Lee Sooman at that bar a few times. --;; (They say that he visits from time to time to drink some wine)
Once, for fun, I asked them to turn on “Oppa Nappa”… the manager there asked who’s song it was, and when I told them SNSD…
She said, “Oppa… our bar has a certain type of atmosphere… a SNSD song wouldn’t be all too great..”
I got a little angry for some reason… --;; What, is it low-class to listen to SNSD?
So I said, “Don’t turn it on then, if you want to cut business with me.”
And maybe because I was a regular at the place, they unwillingly turned on the song for me.
The bartender and manager listened and said, “It’s not bad after you listen to it.”
I wasn’t even a fan back then, but I felt a little proud.
And then, I got to hear Taeyeon’s solo songs… “If,” and “Can You Hear”…
That’s when I thought, “Ohh, so this is how my wife fell for Junsu.”
That’s also when I started slowly downloading the girls’ songs and watching their videos.
That was around winter of 2008 to the beginning of 2009. It was a tough time for me, personally.
I dropped out of a project at work, and had to start a new project because it wasn’t going well.
And during December, January, and February, I kept leaving on business trips.
There are a lot of times I spend by myself when I’m on a business trip. So I always brought my iPod and movies downloaded onto my external hard drive.
This is when I started downloading videos of the girls.
It was when SNSD came back with “Gee”.
And I had been into Taeyeon for a while, and WGM even came out.
I would go on business trips for 1 or 2 weeks, and I watched all the videos I brought with me.
My last trip of February was to Kuala Lumpur… and that time, I actually laughed out loud by myself watching the videos. T_T
And I stopped leaving my hotel, ate room-service food… I was a total couch potato, and watching myself search up videos of the girls on youtube… I thought, “What am I doing?”
I thought about it while I was just sitting there in my hotel room having a smoke…
I couldn’t deny the fact that I became a SNSD fan.
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[I skipped a big chunk out of his fan account because it’s wayyyyyyyy tooooo long.
He posted something on some site while he was on a business trip to Kuala Lumpur. He posted there that he was going through a rough patch in his personal married/family life and work life. Basically, he hit a mid-age crisis.
His wife also went to Japan and stuff to watch DBSK, and once he tagged along with their daughter, and while they were touring a few places, his wife would attend the concert. Now, she just goes by herself. His wife was still a big fan of Junsu and helped him with his SNSD fandom.]
[…]
I know… they’re not the world’s best musicians… that it’s just an “illusion” created by “packing” the girls really well.
I know that I’m just falling for SM’s marketing schemes..
But nothing else has ever given me so much energy.
I just like it when I see the girls that are so healthy.
It makes me wish that my daughter grows nicely just like them… Oh no, I do not have any intentions of making my daughter a celebrity (She neither has the looks or talent).
I just hope I could see Taeyeon’s face one day.
My excuse was that I didn’t want to become a “fan” because it was embarrassing for a 40 year old man to follow around kids, and I was busy.. T_T
[…]
===================================================================
Even I cringe when I read that post. [He's referring to all the personal information that he posted on the website]
And that… is how I started my SNSD fandom…
At the beginning, I exprienced difficulty and I also experienced luck…
The difficult part of being in this fandom was that it was my first time in a fandom, and I didn’t know what to do at all.
I actually started by searching online what I should do.. --;;
After I posted my story online, there was a big discussion on SNSD… and they said that there were a lot of samchons (uncles) at the SNSD fansite SSD or Soshidang. (Korean SNSD fansite)
How I got lucky was that after I started liking SNSD, I found that they were actually pretty close to me.. ^^;;
A company that was linked to mine through business was an advertiser for SNSD.
Because of many reasons, that company was in a position where they were trying to gain my [or my company’s] favor. The model for that company was none other than… SNSD!!!
There probably aren’t many other duhkoos out there that share the same luck I had… --;;
The first time I saw the girls was last year, at the opening of the second day of pro baseball… it was the second time Yuri pitched and SNSD also performed that day.
(Actually, there were more chances for me to be able to see them… and even Tiffany… T_T
But I couldn’t go because I was busy.. OTL
At some club in Gangnam, there was an event going on, and I was promised a picture with Tiffany.. T_T
Now that I think about it, I should have gone no matter how busy I was… wahhhh… )
There was also recently a fansign event. If I entered a contest/draw and won, I could have gone to the fansign event…
I went as just a participant.. T_T
Taeyeon, Sica, and Hyoyeon were at the event.
I like Taeyeon at that time… ah… of course, I still like Taeyeon as much as Tiffany now… ^^;;
But even still, I never even thought of registering at Taeyeon’s fansite. --;;
Anyway, I prepared a present for Taeyeon and went to the event.
It was my first time seeing them up close and also my first time at a fansign even, so I was confused and didn’t know what to do.
The last one to sign was Taeyeon, and I randomly said something out of nowhere…
Even if I didn’t get to hear it from the other members, I really wanted to hear Taeyeon call me “Oppa” just once T_T
Taeyeon was about to sign something for me, but without me even thinking about it, I said something…
I said, “I’m not crazy… but can you call me oppa?” --;;
Taeyeon, who was looking down to sign her autograph, looked up and burst out laughing!
She said, “I was just going to do that even if you hadn’t asked… oppa” ^^;;
That’s when I lost my mind...
For a while, I couldn’t even work properly because of Taeyeon T_T
And the moment of fate was finally about to come…
SNSD was chosen for an advertisement shoot.
This was the first turning point for me during this fandom.
I was going to spend a whole day with SNSD crammed in a small space!
This kind of luck came upon me… T_T
In order to take care of the girls, I did so much…
First, I asked my wife for a favor.
My wife picked up crafts as a hobby after we got married, and taught crafts at the mall community center.
My wife personally made ribbon hairpins, headbands, and cards for the girls.
Of course, I thanked her by buying her a brand name handbag... --;;
And I said that I would prepare meals and snacks for the girls, and things to eat for the staff as well…
Now that I think about it, I think I spent as much money as any fan site would.
I had to pay in advance for things like fruits, salad, and other foods that had to be prepared that day.
But… during her sleep at night, Sica got a mosquito bite… and on her eye,too…
So Sica’s eye swelled up and the advertisement shoot was delayed.
Damn mosquito… I’ll curse you for eternity… although you’re probably dead now --;;
So anyway, I gave all that food away untouched to another company because I couldn’t bring it to my own office… and gave them a party… OTL
All that money… augh T_T
But I don’t think all that money went to waste.
The day of the shoot did come, but it was during the time when there was a huge fiasco about the plane on the cover of their Tell Me Your Wish album when they made a comeback. --;;
Worrying about the girls, I went to the photo shoot place extra early and prepared their gifts before they arrived.
I wouldn’t have courage to do so while seeing them, so I wanted to leave the gifts there quietly and leave.
Should I call that the samchon-concept? Taking care of the girls, but not wanting to be seen… --;;
In the waiting room, the girls saw the gifts and liked it ^^;;
They tried on the hairpins and asked each other if it looked okay..
And they were curious as to who left it there.
But a coordinator (stylist), who was already there early, saw me leaving the gifts there… and when the manager came later, he asked where all of the stuff came from.
It was my first time acting as a dukhoo, so I really didn’t know. --;;
I didn’t know there would be a problem if I just quietly left it there and left… but I found out later that leaving gifts was not so simple.
They have to go through a manager or staff first, and they can’t just be left there.
This clueless samchon fan…. What was I to know? T_T
Word spread that there was a situation where a duhkoo sneaked into the tightly-secured photo shoot to leave the presents there.. --;;
I have so many things to say to SM and the manager, but I can’t post these things here so I won’t say it.
The manager started to ask for details.
The stylist pointed to me and I heard her say, “That man over there wearing the black suit”…
I made myself a promise right there and then that I would never wear a suit, and certainly not a black one, in front of the girls ever again.. T_T
Finally, the manager went to ask the advertisers, and not even the advertising agency, what the presents were --;; not even the advertising agency.
I don’t know if you all know this, but… an advertisement is made possible through an advertising agency.
In other words, let’s say the advertiser (the company wanting to make an advertisement) is company A, and that the advertising agency is company B and SM is company C.
The advertiser cannot tell SM what to do or not do…
They have to go through the advertising agency, in order to pass a message to SM. (Or A has to get through B, so that B can relay the message to C).
[So basically, the manager (C ), skipped over B and talked directly to A because he was so worried, and the presents made such a big hassle]
I totally understand that the manager was just making sure because he cared about the girls…
But that’s not what you do in the business world.
Of course, what I did wasn’t sensible, either… T_T
And someone from the advertiser, company A, explained to him carefully…
That there’s one person from the advertiser company that really likes the girls, and he prepared food to eat in thoughtfulness of the girls. They explained this to him very well.
Because the girls were watching this whole scene happen…
The situation and atmosphere became weird --;;
Somebody from the advertising company was a dukhoo T_T
(I’m not even from the advertising company… OTL)
At that moment, all I could think was, “Ah.. I caringly prepared these things for the girls, but I didn’t know the gifts could be burdensome for them.”
I don’t know if it just me being paranoid, but it felt as if the girls became slightly uncomfortable, as well.
I screwed up everything. The nice and heartwarming scene I imagined in my head went out the window… This is so not it T_T
I was so upset I went out for a smoke and came back. I was debating whether I should leave because I gave the girls such a burden… I didn’t want to make them feel uncomfortable T_T
I came back after a smoke, and the girls were lined up after getting ready for the shoot.
At that moment, when I came in, Tiffany saw me and suddenly bowed and said, “We ate the food deliciously~!” so loudly that it rang in the studio. T_T
What should I say of this moment…
It was like I was in hell, and a wonderful white angel came down and grabbed me to take me back up to heaven? T_T
I still think about that moment.
I don’t think Tiffany is the type of person to be calculating or the type to make up words.
She can’t hide her facial expressions well, and says whatever she thinks.
I think that when she says thank you, she really is thankful and isn’t making it up…
So the little things Fany says or does is special to me T_T
That’s how I was saved by Fany.
Of course, Tiffany wouldn’t remember.. ^^;;
But such a small moment to Tiffany became a huge one to me that I will remember forever.
I could see how the girls usually play with each other, and what their personalities are like after watching them for a whole day.
After seeing them for a whole day, I was able to exchange a few words with them here and there, but they’re so insignificant that I’m not going to write them down… ^^;;
P.S. This entry is long, isn’t it?
It might be even more long because I was so hesitant in typing this all out…
[…]
I will post up the next part of my fan account later when I am ready.
The gifts that he prepared:
Cards and hair accessories that his wife handmade:
**************************************
NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THIS OUT OF SSF!
THIS WAS A PERSONAL FAN ACCOUNT POSTED BY THE SAMCHON, AND WE GOT HIS CONSENT TO TRANSLATE IT HERE.
FOR HIS PRIVACY, SO THAT PEOPLE WON'T BE STALKING HIM EVERYWHERE, PLEASE DON'T TAKE THIS OUT OF SSF!
THANKS! ^^
Source: Winelight at TheStephi.com
Translation: [email protected]
Credit: [email protected], [email protected]
>> Part 2 of the account can be found [HERE] <<
