We're All Asians, and Other Items In My Taipei Times News Roundup

Some scientists (in light of recent archeological discoveries of human-related remains from much older times than Lucy), think that the human species hails from Asia, originally. I guess writers in many disciplines will have to get used to referring to us all as coming from Asia, and not Africa. Clichés change, too. Apparently. If only stupidity, wars, dictators, etc. would as well.

Speaking of dictators, Ban Ki Moon kow-towed to Burma's Tan Shui. A lot of people aren't happy about that, particularly those in the British Home Office, like Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Which is really to bad. Brown is committed to the cause of Burmese freedom.

A tidbit about the instrument I played from when I was ten years old until I was about twenty or twenty one years old. I even first went to University at McGill in the music programme there when I was eighteen. So I have experience with this sort of thing. I can feel/tell what is a good or a bad flute. I owned three modern flutes during my ten or eleven years as a player. The first one I owned was a Gemeinhardt, which, for an inexpensive, no frills, flute, is really good. That flute got stolen, when I left a public washroom for two or three minutes, and then realized it was gone. The next one I got (stupidly, I chose this brand name, without knowing anything about it), was an Artley. It has to be one of the lowest quality flutes out there. The relative tuning of the notes in relation to each other is very, very bad. The sound quality is also horrible, because the keys leak. Even when you press them down really hard (which you should never have to do), the keys leak air. Not only that, the actual accoustic quality is really flat. Even blowing into a beer bottle or a coke bottle has a richer sound. The last modern flute I had was a Yamaha. It was expensive, but very good. If memory serves though (and this was back in about 1986 or '87), it cost about $ 2200 CAD.

By and large, decent flutes (which are still among the cheapest instruments in the orchestra or band, unless you decide to just play the drums in the school bandroom) are very expensive, which is why I think it is excellent that the Taiwanese craftsman, Wong Chung-jeng, is setting out to make a big name for his line of high-quality flutes at affordable prices. It'll be all the more merry the more competition that there is out there with this maker in Kuandu, Taipei County.

Guess what? This small influx of tourists from China Taiwan has been having from the country of Taiwan's distant cousins might have turned out to be more harmful than beneficial for Taiwan's tourists industry. This report certainly reveals some appalling attitudes that the visitors have towards their hotel rooms, their hosts, and...well, just appalling behaviour in general. It is not just the matter of smoking, despite the smoking ban either. The complete lack of discretion when breaking the rules and the outright stealing of items is... Anyway, read the article. By the way, I think the remedy is right there with a desire one hotelier expressed in the article: deposits. Why shouldn't Chinese tourists to Taiwan pay deposits at hotels like the rest of us. At least, if my memory serves, a lot of the hotels I have had to stay out, I've had to pay a deposit. Hong Kong, too. At the Casa Hotel in Kowloon, I was required to pay 300 dollars deposit as well as the hotel's regular rate for one night.

End of May I-Lan Trip and Keelung Trip

A little over a month ago, I went to Hong Kong.

When I came back, Sharon met up and travelled to Ilan.

I will provide more details for the pictures not to long from now!

Above, is a performer in a children's theatre. I don't know what the play was about. A lot (if not all - but I have no idea), was improvised. For instance, at one point, he took a digital camera from someone in the front and reversed the roles, parodying the audience's voyeurism. It was very funny.

Is Canada's Government Really Functional?

...is a question that needs to be asked, in light of this absurd, fruitless meeting (more reporting on this can be found at the CBC website).

The blame might seem as if it should be nearly equally equally distributed amongst both parties (Chairman Colin Kenny makes himself look like an inflexible, pompous ass. However, it is the newly appointed Conservative Senators who really take the cake. The "Honourable" Fabian Manning starts talking trash and treats the Senate Committee room like a neighbourhood pub...and Pamela Wallin (the quite Right-wing, sometime journalist for CBC's The Journal and CBC Newsworld - and CBC has not been known for being Right-wing)...leaves me speechless: She lies about what happened, two seconds after it happened! She claims there was no vote, when, quite clearly, as viewers can see, there was a vote!

Incredible! This brings me to my next point: Is Canadian politics imitating the behaviour on the hockey rink, which so many Canadians (the local machos and politicians and media, as least) idolize?

It certainly begs the question. There is great deal of the identical thuggery and incivility (the hockey player who says he can't believe he actually shook the opposing players' hand is a case in point).

You might say, again that Colin Kenney was pompous. I agree. But he was following the rules. And he was being fast and efficient. And he never lowered himself to name calling, shouting, lying, or similar thuggery that you see from the Conservative Senators. In addition, I get the feeling that the Conservative Senators are resorting to this everyday, to make life unbearable for the Chairman. How would you feel if you were Colin Kenney, having to deal with this everyday? I would want to quit that job too. It would give me anxiety attacks, and maybe eventually, ulcers!

Incidentally, I was once at a meeting like this, as an observer. It was a General Meeting for the Concordia University Student Council. The Council (supposedly left-wing, at the time, and constantly obsessed with the Middle East problem, and not so much with University politics), wanted to stifled the freedom of the press of The Link, the Concordia University. The tactics the Council used was absurd. However, they did seem to have more of an inkling of Robert's rules than the Senate Committee, or, for that matter, the poor, hapless members of the student press!

The Architectural Practice of Michael Jackson

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Check out this fascinating article, which discuss numerous features found in the architecture and interior design of Michael Jackson's sometime home of Neverland.

You Say It's Gelatto, I Say It's Sorbet!

Yesterday (Wednesday), I decided to go to the new ice-cream shop that has been lauded by the Mayor Lin, of Hsinchu. Apparently, it was the mayor who insisted that what the ice-cream shop was doing when they pressed the ice-cream into various shapes, was making Hsinchu-noodle style ice cream. The shop is only about a seven minute drive, by scooter, from my place. It is on Nanda road, almost on the corner of Nanda and Dongda Roads.



The ice cream shop does actually look like a hip ice cream shop that would be highly popular and have lines half-a-block long in my home country!

Nanda road, and near it. is home to many small, innovative shops.

The seating area is comfortable, colorful, and fun.

More Wanderings in Hsinchu...

All these pictures were taken on Tuesday in the late afternoon. Where?

this building is a restaurant in the well-to-do neighbourhood that adjoins the East side of the Science Park.

The restaurant next door to the one on the corner (sorry, I didn't catch the name of the street) looks like an aboriginal establishment.

Here is the pedestrian overpass that cross what I think is Lu Hsin Road, from the side where the town is, to the Science Park side.

The light made it easy for picture-taking.

This is Lu Hsin Road. It really reminds me of NDG in my past hometown of Montreal. Lots of trees, and very wide street help provide this impression. About half a block down from this overpass is a café called the Yukon Café. Yukon...ha. Like the very cold and sparsely populated Yukon Territories in Canada. Anyway, in Hsinchu, you find a lot of names like that. It is a little more sophisticated here.

This really looks like NDG. Uncanny.

As you see, on the residential side, there is not just a 7-11 on the corner. So that makes it five Starbucks that I know of that are in Hsinchu City. That doesn't include Jhubei, which has at least three. I consider Jhubei to be part of Hsinchu City. It isn't, officially, but if Hsinchu county ever has a merger. building an MRT would be ideal. I can even imagine a Science Park stop right on the street where the above overpass is, a Tsing Hua University stop on Guangfu Rd, or a Jongshiao Road Stop right by the RT Mart. In some ways, having an MRT makes almost more sense in Hsinchu than in Taichung, because people are more open to different forms of transportation, and it would be easier to find space, because there are lots of areas (unlike in Taichung) that are natural spots to construct stations, without tearing too much of any neighbourhoods down. After all, if they can build a light rail in Hamilton, Ontario, then they can build one in Hsinchu. Both cities have about the same population.












As you can see, there are lots of serene, pretty views in the residential area near the Science Park.

Out and About in Taiwan's Windy City

current song playing on my iTunes: "Underneath It All," by No Doubt. From the album Boom Box - The Singles 1992-2003.

Hello, all of you. Sorry to have left off blog for such a long time, and for so many times! First of all, let me say how happy I am to be back in a creative mood. I used to find my life here a bit too bland, tedious, etc. Even in my posts from one, thre, or four years ago, I was complaining much too much. This is one of the biggest faults I find with blogging by expats here in Taiwan. The occasional criticism or complaints is okay. However, the majority of writings by expats on blogs here in Taiwan comprise complaints and gripes about how bad people's behaviour is or how you can't find this or that in Taiwan.

I must confess, my blog used to be like this, too. Maybe this is necessary. But I think it is time for our expat community to grow up, or move somewhere else where the people who have been doing this are happier. I certainly have! I live in Hsinchu now, and have been living here for almost two months. I have visited here for much more than a year in the past over three years I've lived in Taiwan.

I love Hsinchu. Some Taiwanese peopel ask me why the heck I love Hsinchu. They seem aghast. I guess if you expect the usual touristy things, or if they expect nightclubs with easy 3-8 girls, then Hsinchu is not really the gold-mine for you. And yes, there are a few tourist things. Hopefully, the pictures that show some of the parts of Hsinchu that I love will prompt some of you to decide that it isn't a boring place and come and visit. However, I hope not too many people come. The reality in Taiwan is that when something becomes well-known for being pretty, interesting, etc., then it isn't really bearable anymore. It becomes a sanitized tourist clone of all other tour-bus destinations that you can find in Taiwan. While the places here are pretty popular, they are not quite as over-saturated with tourists and development. I am happy about that!

Anyway, here is a litte bit about last weekend and the weekend before...


I live in the hills/mountains of Siangshan. I live in a house...that's right, a house. It most definitely is not expensive! In addition, it is surrounded by nature, yet is still reasonably convenient. The closest OK Mart (and then a 7-11, one block further down from that) is about ten minutes (fast) walking distance from here. I always take my scooter to the convenience store though. Anyway, the picture above is not of my street, but is actually from Mortuary Road, about two streets over from my street. You have to drive up to the highway, turn left, and then, immediately, turn right. Then turn left again onto the street where I took this picture. What you see is the skyline of Southern Hsinchu (Siangshan, by the ocean, which you can see in the farthest background), as well as some of Toufen, in Miaoli County. As you can see, the view is pretty spectacular, and the distant ocean water is pure blue. It was a beautiful day.


You might be wondering if there are trails or some such in the midst of the foreground greenery. Not really. This is where the tombstones are, so a lot of people are too scared of ghosts to come here for recreation. But in my country, Canada, people come to cemeteries for any number of reaons, including to have peace and quiet, or to walk around. Personally, I think this stubborn belief in ghosts is absurd. But to each his/her own, I guess.

There is not much in Toufen. In the part you see, there are a lot of roads, rather ordinary looking apartment buildings and houses, etc. Toufen and Jhunan are practically indistinguishable. However, because Jhunan and Toufen are more sparsely developed/populated, you can see the contrast with other views of Hsinchu's environs, where the downtown, East District, and North District provide captivating skylines from above. In fact, I feel like Hsinchu and Montreal are very similar. Except of course, among other things, Montreal is English and French speaking, and things are much, much cheaper in Hsinchu.


Almost identical pictures presented here, of course, which do, however, give subtle alternatives and a fuller sense of the particular experience I am trying to convey. By the way, pollution in Hsinchu is not as bad a problem as you might think. This might be because of the wind. Although, in the two months I've lived here, I haven't felt much wind. Many lovely breezes, yes. Wind, no. Personally, I think the monikker "windy city" is an exaggeration. But the pollution does get pushed aside by the ocean breezes. Not to mention that, where I live, up in Siangshan, the air is cleaner and fresher by virtue of the dirtier air mainly staying at the lower elevations.

Here, the ocean is more distinct.

Almost every day, for shopping, and for excursions to work or to meet up with people, etc., I will go down this road, and then turn right at the bottom, in order to get to Hsinchu East District. The pointy religious-looking building is, in fact, a Buddhist crematorium, or the temple where the bodies go before they are disposed of.

A closer look at the view below me.

As you probably can guess, I took this picture on a different day. Nevertheless, this is the bridge that goes from the Siangshan District to the East District. At the top of this road, you have to make a left in order to get downtown, or to get to Guangfu Road.

After driving up Sihwei/Shihpin Road, I made a right turn one block after Xida Road. Then I made a left turn at Shuifu Road. Keep driving straight, about maybe eight nine blocks (just a rough guestimate), and then I make a right at Bo-ai and Shuifu. Keep going up Bo-ai until it stops. If I want to get to the park at Eighteen Peaks Mountain, I don't go down the scooter road on my left (which goes down to Guangfu Road. Instead, just make a right, and basically I'm there. Just find a parking space, and I'm set! The above picture is one of the many pavilions at Eighteen Peaks Mountain.

This pavilion is the first pavilion you come to after climbing up the innumerable stairs from Bo-ai Road. A lot of people come to this particular area of the park. A side note: At 18 Peaks Mountain, you will see people lying down and getting massaged and people getting their hair cut. Indeed, you can, as you stroll along, purchase a cheap massage or haircut if you so desire.

Here are the stairs I mentioned. I guess there are about the same amount of stairs as the steepest, fastest climb from the pathways to the peak of Mont Royal in Montreal. Maybe somewhat less. More or less the same, I would say.

Here is the view of Hsinchu from the top of the many stairs. Certainly, I'm impressed. I don't mknow about you!

Another view...

A closer view. You might be able to make out certain features in the landscape which indicate a break in the city limits...

And here's what I mean. Just past two-thirds of the way up the top of the picture, you mean see a river flowing horizontally. That is the river which separates Hsinchu City from Jhubei.

I really do think Hsinchu is underrated. It is highly photogenic. And on a clear day like this, it is like heaven. I wouldn't change it for the world!

And some even more details views above, and below!


This photo was taken from the Dr. Sun-yat Sen Pavilion, which sits at pretty much the centre of the park. Here you see a view towards the even less polluted Science Park (at least when you get far enough away from Guangfu Road).


Even more in the distance, although it's unlikely you would be able to see it, as it is slighly beyond the mountain in the background, is Jhudong.

This tower, presumably, was built to have been a lookout point. Some lookout point! Most likely, when it was built, the trees were non-existent, saplings, or just short. I don't know why the designers didn't take such things into account. Anyway, the trees are large. Not B.C. Douglas Fir tree large, but still pretty large.

The previous weekend, Sharon and I not only went to Eighteen Peaks Mountain (to which I went both last weekend and this weekend), but we went further, as you shall see. This is Guangfu Road, right in front of one of the main entrances of Tsing Hua University. It is a beautiful campus. One of these days, I've got to take my camera and do a picture-taking excursion to said campus. It is a prestigious university (unlike some of the ones in Taiwan) and is full of young, hip people. There are a lot of foreign students there for many different countries. I have seen them studying in the nearby Starbucks quite often.

Here is the lake/park Sharon and I found, quite by accident. It is the residential area of the Science Park. The easiest way of which I know to get there is to take a right at Guangfu and Kexueyuan Road and keep going down Kexueyuan Road. Certainly, there are other ways to get there, but they all pretty much lead back to Guangfu Road.
The name of the place is Jingshin Lake, or Jingshin Park.

It has a lot of space and lovely places to walk, as you see. As Sharon and I were walking, we saw very few people. At one point we saw a small boy riding his tricycle around the park.

At this lake, you can see fish - tonnes of them, from what we saw - and water birds. You can even rent small boats at certain times (although that service wasn't available at the time we were there, from what I observed).

There are many lovely places to just stop and sit.

In the background, you can see a lot of picturesque houses...

It is a wealthy neighbourhood to live in, but one that I am sure is quiet and peaceful.

The trees and brass look very healthy...

Here you can see some typic homes that surround the park. The large windows are unusual for Taiwan. Apparently, in a refreshing turn of events, the owners and architects think that it is ideal to have a view, and even to have occasional light seep in. The constructions look solid, and the yards are really pretty, too.

Family Marts are alive and well in this part of town, too. I just don't know how you drive to this part of town. Sharon and I walked up via the Jing Shin park. Even the architecture of this Family Mart is prettier than Family Marts elsewhere!

A great big lotus pond. I saw a photographer taking pictures, so I could resist joining in the fun as well....


Here are Sharon and I posing for the camera. Sharon ambushed a couple who were taking pictures of one another to take our picture, so this one turned out pretty well.

There are lots of Chinese-type gates and constructions in this park. Not all are exactly moon-gates, but I don't know what the term is for the six-sided ones...


Here is Sharon posing for me at said gate...

Here is the overpass of Guangfu Road. I often go to this photocopy shop. There are a lot of photocopy shops in the area, which are decent and cheap.

Here is Guangfu Road going in the direction of downtown Hsinchu.

The night-life around Tsing Hua University is colourful. I have often eaten snacks at these benches surround the statue. Across the street is J.J. Cheers Bar. Both times I have gone there, I have struck up lively conversations with some friendly people. The English level in Hsinchu, or at least in this area, is quite decent.

There are many shops on this street, both local and multinational. You can find delicious noodles and stinky tofu in this area. And when I say delicious, I don't mean simply stinky or simply passable. I mean the food is juicy and refreshing and healthy tasting!

Here is the river that divides East Hsinchu from Siangshan. This area is also quite lovely in parts.

The skyline, returning at night.

The dusks are sweet and colourful.


For a map/guide to where you can get to some of these places, check out the Hsinchu Government's website (just click on the link). Unfortunately, the website doesn't do justice to some of the places. Some of the places that they list as being so interesting to tourists, are in fact nothing to speak of, in this world or the next. Anway, just take what they say with a grain of salt. Trust my pictures!

Update: Good news for Taiwan independence supporters. The botched Yunlin County election victory of a KMT Legislator was overturned by the courts in a decision which can't be appealed.

Various Photos (Mostly Taken in Hsinchu City)

Miaoli Cram School: Last Call

Last week was the end of my contract with the school at which I was working in Houlong, Miaoli. I took pictures of almost all of my classes (and me with them). I am living in Hsinchu now. I moved on Saturday.

This first picture is of my Monday class. The name of the class is See Saw II, based on the student book we use for the class.

The second picture is of See Saw I, a Wednesday class.

The third picture is of another See Saw I class on Wednesday.

The fourth picture is of Mr Bugs, my Thursday class. Really cute kids in this one. Bobo, the little boy at the bottom is incredibly smart. He is far ahead of the other students, and the youngest kid in the class.

Ahem...the title of the post is most certainly not an allusion to the tradition known as last call. I just happen to be listening to the band, Brazilian Girls, and two or three minutes ago, their song, Last Call, was playing, hehe. I love coincidences like that.

The last picture is of Let's Go 3, my incredibly bright students whom I had on Thursdays. Ah, those days are over now. I will miss all these kids!

Dostoyevsky Quote

The dying piece of candle dimly lit up this low-ceilinged room, in which an assassin and a harlot had just read the Book of Books. At most, five minutes elapsed.

Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Crime and Punishment.

I am almost two-thirds into Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment. It really is an inspiring book, without the massive, epic size of some of his other books, like The Possessed and The Brothers Karamazov, and without a lot of the overly-melodramatic flourishes of those books. Mind you, it has them, and it is part of the greatness of his style, but when it is too much, it diminishes the greatness.

As you see from the above quote, the urge to communicate all the contradictions in life, particularly in the unique settings about which he writes (poverty, destitution, madness, and consumption, among other things) add a powerful element to the extraordinary perceptiveness of the author's observations, and his use of style to do that.

Advice for Still Living Bipeds...

1. Don't kill yourself. Live. Know yourself and your responsibilities, who you affect, and who you could affect.

2. Mean something. Do meaningful things. If you aren't doing this, then take more time for yourself, no matter that you make some people mad. Ultimately, maybe not in the short time, mind you, but in the long term, they will thank you for it. You will enrich yourself, physically, mentally, and spiritually.

3. Life is a journey. Take it seriously, but don't take it too seriously. If it becomes a Sisyphean task, then you are either trying too hard, or not trying hard enough. Connect. Intellect must always connect with emotion. The disconnect between the two creates psychopaths: you must not let you, nor your friends, nor your associates, nor, least of all, your children succumb to this malady.

4. Always learn. Don't be intellectually lazy; that is the worst form of laziness.

5. Take account of your sins and follies. Ask yourself every week: Am I honest? That is the way to be honest to yourself. Always take account. If something is amiss, then pine and lies awake at night. But don't let it bother you for to long. Change. Always ask yourself: How can I change. Then ask yourself again whether you have changed enough. Eventually, you will suffer less stress. Honesty will become second-nature to you.

Questions About the 20% Tax Rate for Foreign Workers in Taiwan? Click on the Headline of This Post To Link to the Article and Pertinent Info!

"'The change has made little difference, as most foreign workers continue to retain their resident status as long as their working contracts state they will stay in Taiwan over 183 days in a year,' he said.

Those who cannot predict how long they will stay here will have 20 percent of their income withheld by their local employers whether they like it or not." - The Taipei Times

Reaper is So Cool!

Hello, my name is REAPER.

Have a bad day!

Honestly, I cannot stop watching it, and loving every minute of it!

Where I Live Now (on Google Maps)

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Here is where I live on Googlemaps. The street? Zizhi Road (according to the mapmakers, who don't know their pinyin from their stinky tofu, it is Zijih Road, but that is mixing up two different kinds of pinyin; I just use Hanyu, if I can).

My place is in the building directly across the street from the Family Mart. You will need to scroll down the map very slightly to get my street. Anyway, I am only going to be in this place until next month on the tenth. After that, I will probably be living in Hsinchu (about 99 percent likely).

The Era of the Sprees

We truly live in strange times. Every time I peruse the news, there is another mass-murder or spree killing. Not in a war, but in ordinary cities and towns in the U.S.A. Not simply every year, every month, or every week, nowadays I see headlines about spree killings every day. Truly, we live in scary times!

Friends, Associates, and Accomplices...

Below is a collection of photos of my son, as well as a number of friends with whom I developed a close bond before I left Montreal. I greatly miss all of them!

Above is a photo Mustafa, Trevor, and Dong, classmates and friends of mine in the Film Studies M.A. program at Concordia U. All four of us laughed and shared a lot of ideas together. We also suffered a lot of the same degradations that variously arise from the academic world... Enough said about that for now.

Above is a picture of myself, Mustafa, and Dong taken by Trevor with my camera. Not the odd pose. We look like we are being asked by a cameraman to pose for a Communist propaganda poster from the 1920s.

Above and below are pictures of Maggie (and I). I have known here since 2001, when we both worked at a direct sales company in Montreal. She has gone on to do much more interesting, more rewarding (and better work). She is a really, really good friend, and I miss her a lot. Her boyfriend, Gianni, is from Italy. He is a really good guy, too. I hope they are doing well now.


Above and below is Dong, looking meditative while explicating something about cinema. He is one of the smartest people I know. I hope his studies at the University of Chicago are doing well. Like me, he doesn't immediately blend in. He strongly challenges, not just others, but himself. Many of the friends I have or have had, like to rock the boat. I guess that is because I am the same way.



Dong and Mustafa are in the picture above. Mustafa is extremely friendly and patient. I hope he is still watching as many films as he can fill his mind with (pardon the dangling preposition, which is not my usual writing style)!

Okay, I am cheating a bit. But in actuality, I haven't seen Ranjit, or Range, for about a year. He isn't in Taiwan now. He was when I arrived, but he left in September to continue his Masters degree in Mathematics in Quebec City. He is a prolific blogger and a great guy. I have three more pictures and more to write, so maybe I will save the rest for another post, okay? I feel bad about waiting until now to post his picture (which I took in July). It was a difficult time for me. Actually, 2008 was difficult for me, period.

Above is my dear friend, Yunjin. The picture was taken (in automatic shutter mode) at a karaoke place on St. Catherine's Street in downtown Montreal. I should mention, both Dong and Yunjin are from China (but have since, or are since) become/becoming Canadian citizens. I say this, partly to dispel confusion about the people and places where I am living now. So, no, they aren't Taiwanese. They are Chinese (or should I say, Chinese-born). Yunjin is a very clever computer programmer, and she is just an all-around clever person, too. Lke Maggie, we both worked in the same office, but in Yunjin's case, we both worked at the McGill Digital Collections Libary. I won't forget her. I regret not be able to see her now that I am way over here in Taiwan. She really stuck around for me as a friend (as did Maggie, John Mingolla, and Christen Bartolo - of whom I could never get any good pictures, unfortunately). Now she has a job in Calgary. I hope that she stays comfortably and happily in her job despite this bad economy!

Above and below, are pictures of my son, Jake. I really miss him. I hope he can come visit soon (maybe in Hsinchu)!

Lombroso Types Unite, for You Have Nothing to Lose But Your Gene Splicers!

Five Various Slices:

1. The Zone: In The Zone, we have a Code. Where the drool lands, there one must check his/her fortune. Gerbils might be good as pets, but not as pens. The atmosphere is going out of control: sometimes we evaporate ourselves to resuscitate the environment for a couple of years. Then we solidify for a couple of years, and so it goes... People say that in this year, 2929, we have good reason to suspect that we all humans are descended from Joseph Fritzl and his children. Personally, I think that's a load of you-know-what, but then I am an adherent of intelligent design. God made us yesterday. When we look up, we see down!

2. The Success Industry - I guarantee it! - is Focus Pyramids. People pay Us (my Company) to start a focus group to engage people to start other focus groups.

The real problem is, is, is, is...uh, eh, um, is, um, eh, hmm, I'm just feeling very unfocussed now.

3. A real Lombroso type he is. He misses all the connections, all the stops, all the configurations, and all the garbage days. When he flushes the toilet, the toilet runs out of the place, screaming. I can tell you it's true. I was there! Arch-criminal, bum, no-account accountant, and C.E.O. Psychopath extraordinaire, he has built the fifty-trillion dollar economy around him with smoke and mirrors. Actually, the smoke is just my invention, or his, or mine. Or maybe I'm him. Or maybe he's me. See, the thing is, he is just that good!

4. That's teak! Knowledge is dangerous. Have another slice of steak.

5. Groupthink is for hunks. Groupthunk. Groupstunk. Groupskunk. I am the monk who punks.

Well, I will be packing up and heading off soon - in May, most likely - for Hsinchu! (See below for a sample of that fine city).



It is looking very, very difficult these days. English teachers will have just as much or more difficulty finding a job than anyone else. At least I have experience, and I am not somebody with merely a TESL certificate. I have a Bachelor's (technically a B.F.A., or Bachelor's of Fine Arts). Mind you, I see a lot of jobs out there that ask for both, and I wonder, really, what is the value of it. It seems a little phony to me, particularly considering that someone has has experience teaching is a lot more valuable than a greenhorn with a TESL or TEFL. Such certificates are merely one or one-and-a-half month seminars that not so distantly resemble cult-initiation seminars. Chain Schools have similar programs, but are usually merely one day to one week courses that ground a teacher in the particular school's methodology.
Another thing that really bugs me is the overabundance of recruiters. I wish schools would quit being lazy and naive (with no strong offense intended for schools that do that, just a reminder that other ways are better), and would just post ads for jobs themselves. All it takes is 30 or 45 minutes of your time. Not to mention, in addition, that you will save money, as well!

Good Man Gordon Brown

I am watching Gordon Brown's speech to the American Congress now. His speech is as good, if not better, and more rousing than anything I have seen by Barack Obama. He is truly statesmanlike, unlike "my" (because I am Canadian) Prime Minister, Stephen Harper. I sure wish Canadians had someone like him!

As I have often said, the best Frenchmen are Belgians. Well, here and again, the best British are Scots. The best Americans are Canadians. And the best Canadians are Quebecers.

Gordon Brown is a Scot. And he is a good British Prime Minister and a good man. I wouldn't say he is perfect. But he beats Blair by a long shot. And he is intelligent and far from impulsive. I particularly like what he said about outlawing shadow-banking and offshore tax-havens (like, I suspect he means, secret Swiss bank accounts for criminals, and CEO fraudsters who transfer their money there).

Okay, let me stop drooling now. I will get a room!

The Soundtrack to My So-Called Life

In deference to Magnus Skallagrimsson over at The Shining Path, I have followed up on his tagging those of us who read his blog. I dutifully followed his instructions, which are:
1. Open your music library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc.)
2. Put it on shuffle & press play
3. For the first question, type the song that’s playing
4. When you go to a new question, press the next button TWICE
5. Don’t lie and try to pretend you’re cool... just type it in man!
6. Tag people



OPENING CREDITS: Spooky, Classic IV. (Six Feet Under - Soundtrack Album Soundtrack)

WAKING UP: Out Of The Blue, Roxy Music (Country Life)

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL: Army, Ben Folds Five (The Unauthorized Biography....)

FALLING IN LOVE: Heart Of Glass, Blondie (The Best of Blondie)

FIRST TIME: Desperate Guys, The Faint (Wet from birth)

FIGHT SONG: The Other Side Of Midnight, Bill Evans, Toots Thielemans

BREAKING UP: New Amsterdam, Elvis Costello

PROM: Half Nelson, Miles Davis (Workin' With The Miles Davis Quintet)

LIFE: Shiver, Coldplay (BBC Future Hits 150)

MENTAL BREAKDOWN: The Prince Song, Ghetto Pony

DRIVING: Key, YMO [1984] After Service (Remastered) [Disc-2]

FLASHBACK: Stairway To Heaven (Sic), Camper Van Beethoven (Camper Van Beethoven)

GETTING BACK TOGETHER: Pure & Easy, The Dining Rooms (Six Feet Under - Soundtrack Album)

WEDDING: Where You Lead, Carole King (Tapestry)

BIRTH OF A CHILD: The Gambler, Kenny Rogers.

FINAL BATTLE: Look Sharp!, Joe Jackson (Look Sharp!)

DEATH SCENE: Bang On the Drum All Day, Todd Rundgren (The Very Best of Todd Rundgren)

FUNERAL SONG: Heaven On Earth, The Platters (Best Of Hits)

END CREDITS: Psycho Killer, Talking Heads.