Choi Kang Hee was never the girl next door but occasionally she gets to play one on television and in the movies.

'I've never had a normal life," she said.

While she hasn't lived the kind of life that many fans credit her with, in a way the true story of her life would make a much better kdrama plot.

For a start, she began acting not because it was her dream profession, but rather as a way to earn money for her family.

"I got some awards in my debut year and I was praised for my work, but I basically started acting to pay off some family debts," said the actress, who recently starred in the drama "Level 7 Civil Servant" and now appears in the film "Happiness for Sale."

She made her debut in the 1998 horror film, "Whispering Corridors," but it wasn't until 2008 that she was financially stable.

Achieving that goal made her reconsider whether she wanted to pursue acting.

"I assumed I was far behind my peers in terms of ability," said Choi Kang Hee. "As I'd never properly studied the craft of acting, I considered giving up. But when I watched myself in films and TV dramas, I changed my mind. I began to see that I was, in fact, doing pretty well."

She has done quite well for someone with no formal training, appearing in two-dozen dramas and almost a dozen films. In her new film, "Happiness for Sale," she plays a civil servant who returns to her hometown to sell the stationary shop her father ran. So far, she has played a consort, a secretary, a National Intelligence Service agent and a suicide patient, as well as the girl next door. The girl-next-door roles may be just as foreign to her as playing an NIS agent.

"I've played a lot of young characters on the screen, but in reality I never went to university, and seldom hung out with friends my age," said Choi Kang Hee. "I was a quiet shy child but my personality changed a lot after working as a radio DJ and playing so many colorful characters."

Acting helped her experience ordinary life.

"I've lived an ordinary life through acting, experiencing things like attending college and being an office worker. I could say that all the films and soap operas I've done have made me the person I am now."