Hey there,
Soooooo....where are we at these days? With the Boss out of town for an extended trip and the Virus keeping extracurricular activities to a minimum, was able to knock out almost all of the backed up travelogues (and did our taxes and have organized every drawer and closet). How about a little random local update?
We had a trip to Melbourne for late March completely planned and booked and it was going to be a good one. Sadly, our flight there had us transiting HK and while Australia would still let us in (as of this moment), Taiwan would have required us to self-quarantine for 14 days and we could not do that. Have been canceling out all the stuff and with the exception of one night of hotel and a tour to see penguins, have been able to get full refunds/cancellations.
School started back this morning and when I dropped off Babydoll, watched her get into a line to have her temperature taken. I will be doing the same this afternoon as baseball season finally gets going...3 weeks late. All of our offshore tournaments have been wiped out but we'll have fun. There is real fear about schools opening cause it could go wrong fast...as of Tuesday AM, Taiwan has 30 reported cases and it has been going up by 2 each day for the last 6 days. Watching the explosions in Iran and Italy this week adds to the fact it could turn on a dime, and that'd mess up so much.
An interesting by-product of this whole deal was the poll taken this week that shows 83% of the island now identifies as Taiwanese, which is the highest total ever recorded and is attributed to the Chinese handling of the outbreak. In further insult to the mainlanders, Bernie came out on 60 Minutes this week and said he'd intervene if China took action against Taiwan. You know their knives will be out for him. No secret I was a Kamala guy and am firmly a centrist by nature cause that is always the right answer. While it is a bit too early to think he is definitely the guy, it sure feels that way and I am all in with both hands. The Bernie Bros get way too much weight for their on-line antics as I do not believe they are even 1% of his supporters (and suspect that many of those are 4Chan rabble rousers) and the mantra that he is a Communist is sheer propaganda and if you are getting suckered into hating him for that, suspect it is not the first time you have been a useful idiot. Dude is a decent guy and that should be more than enough.
I detest the government in the mainland and got into a discussion the other night about the merits of the "unbroken 5,000 years of history" with my friend dismissing Egypt with that line as that makes the Chinese culture superior. Other than that being a load of crap, this person has taken a big gulp size of the Kool-Aid and while there are some things to be admired, doesn't make it all good nor does it being old mean that continuing something is advisable either. As exhibit A, here is a passage from an NY Times piece on their food culture that makes me want to spew.
I’ve seen snakes and the penises of bulls or horses — great for men, the theory goes — on offer at restaurants in many cities in southern China. Bats, which are thought to be the original source of both the current coronavirus and the SARS virus, are said to be good for restoring eyesight — especially the animals’ granular feces, called “sands of nocturnal shine” (夜明砂). Gallbladders and bile harvested from live bears are good for treating jaundice; tiger bone is for erections.
More mundane yet no less popular is the palm civet (果子狸), a small, wild quadruped suspected of having passed on the SARS virus to humans. When stewed with snake meat, it is said to cure insomnia.
Less wealthy people might turn to dog meat — preferably a dog that has been chased around before being slaughtered, because some people believe that more “jinbu” benefits are reaped from eating an animal whose blood and energy ran high. Similarly, it is thought that animals killed just before serving are more “jinbu” potent, which is one reason the more exotic offerings in wet markets tend to be sold alive — also making them more potent vectors for any virus they might carry.
Time for some yin and yang Taiwan style. I can never remember which one is the good one, but here is the bad...2019 was the hottest year ever recorded in Taiwan. It certainly helps explain my August/September crotch rot. The good...Taiwan was just ranked as having the fastest internet in the world. I guess the frog in the boiling pot will be happily distracted before he becomes lunch.
Saw a decent band the other night and recommend them to you. An Indonesian alternative rock band named Stars and Rabbit. Once you get past the ridiculous name, they record as a duo but tour with a rhythm section, who are solid. The dude is a competent guitarist that leans toward the blues, but it is the lead singer that is mesmerizing. Put them in your Spotify queue.
Regionally, once this virus thing dies down can see a trip to Vietnam in our future and that we will definately be flying on Vietjet as their flight attendants wear bikinis. After reading the article, that isn't what happens, but it was fun to think about.
In Beloved related news, it is the 20th anniversary of their great And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out and saw this love letter to that album in The Ringer of all places. I remember walking the dog every night listening to it on a Discman and going to see them at the long gone long since demolished King Cat Theatre in March of 2000. Those were simpler times
No comments:
Post a Comment