Dompae is Korean for Potbelly (although the literal translation is not so quaint)

I've always been sensitive about my weight and in that sense coming to Korea was a huge mistake. Koreans are small people in all sorts of ways -- particularly their waistlines.

Case-in-point, the film "200 Pound Beauty" which we were required to watch as part of our Korean educational training. It was an extraordinarily popular romantic comedy about a large young woman with an amazing singing voice. Because she was fat, the record producer (who she was secretly in love with) has a slimmer woman lip sync the large one's songs. Eventually, the large girl has all kinds of plastic surgery making her just as skinny and beautiful as the lip syncer. Great story, eh? Did I mention that the fat girl is a phone sex worker in her spare time?

But the comedy in the movie is almost completely surrounds this 200-pound girl; a weight unimaginable for most Koreans, especially for a woman. While 200-pounds is heavy, the physical comedy in this film would make you think the character was played by the mother in "What's Eating Gilbert Grape." There are your standard jokes like a chair breaking under the girl's weight, and some really extraordinary moments such as four men failing to jointly lift this woman on a stretcher.

And it's not relegated to the movie screen. Nearly every day my students, the people at my gym or some Korean I know looks at or pats my stomach and either sighs with disgust or asks me, "Why?"

What I want to tell them is that any extra weight around my middle is a product of Korean culture, not despite of it. Koreans gorge at meals, eating what I'd assume are 1000-2000 calories in a single sitting. And they aren't even particularly healthy calories; mostly things like white rice, grilled meat, fried bread and lots and lots of sugary alcohol.

One man suggested that Koreans have a longer intestinal track than Westerners and can therefore process food better. But I know I've read that Koreans also suffer more ulcers than most because of all the spice they consume.

Long story short, one of these days I'm going to deck someone who pats my belly.

I am not the Buddha!

... yet.