March 4th, 2021

Hey there,

Quick rehab update...it was 6 weeks since replacement yesterday and the recovery is amazing.  I have pretty much stopped using the cane and you would not even notice the scar if you weren't looking for it.

Still a little swollen and haven't reverted to my natural chicken legs.  Pain is less each day and is almost non-existent and notice it mostly on the first couple of steps and with some tightness.   We were at dinner with a bunch of other North Americans having dinner the other day and one of the topics was whether we think a trip to the States for the summer is possible.  Heard Uncle Joe this morning telling everyone that vaccinations will be available to all by the end of May, and that guy is of the under promise/over deliver mentality.  They haven't started inoculating people here yet and have to guess that white boys from the valley will be towards the end of the queue, so probably being in the states in July would be the fastest in getting the vaccine.  The problem is getting back into Taiwan and not wanting to quarantine for 3 weeks as we surmise that this place will be the last ones to let their guard down.  Thinking that I will try to get the other knee done the first week of June and then if it all shakes out right, accompany B-doll on her journey to college mid-August.  

The other revelation that came out of the party the other night concerns Grey's Anatomy.  Have been looking to see what the new knee is made of as people ask and assumed it is titanium.  Finally found information that identifies it as being made of a cobalt-chromium alloy.  Cobalt is a cool sounding word and learned that it has to be combined with other elements as it does not exist on Earth in pure form.  One of the guests was a girl that is a college Freshman and she asked what it was made from, and when I told her, she laughed and said she just watched an episode of Grey's Anatomy where the patient had gotten cobalt poisoning from his replacement joint.  So now I worry about that.

In news from these parts, we are firmly in the peak of Mosquito season.  There are two seasons in Taiwan: Hell and Mosquito.  The bug zapper is going off non-stop and any area of skin exposed has little red bumps in various stages of itchiness.  

Lantern festival was last Sunday.  Lantern festival is the first full moon after Chinese New Year and marks the end of the two week celebration.  There were tons of fireworks that night but the big festivities around the island were nearly non-existent.  A few days before CNY, there was a doctor that treats Covid patients that was found to have contracted it, and he gave it to his nurse wife and they had been out and about before being diagnosed.  The entire country freaked and they canceled almost all of the large planned gatherings to celebrate the New Year in the entire country to risk spreading the virus.  It's been over two weeks since the New Year and not a single new local transmission.  I mentioned we had a party the other night...one where we all ate together and hugged and stuff.   The economy here grew in 2020. People wear masks.  What the fuck is wrong with America?

In the past, would be skeptical of the traditions and such that I found bizarre here, but now due to their Covid response, I am on board (or at least consider taking the train) with everything they say, including the crazy stuff.  Here is a list of 12 taboos that we were to avoid during Lantern Festival.  I think I nailed 11 out of 12 of them with my only slip up being # 11.

I 

1 - Avoided family strife...did not argue with Betty nor did I hit my children.  Not that it didn't cross my mind.

2 - Didn't get a haircut...easy enough as I only get one every 3-6 months

3 - Didn't see a doctor.  Not as simple with the rehab, but no problemo this week

4 - Kept my tools and equipment in good order.  Add generic dick joke here.

5 - Stayed away from sketchy places.  I woulda thought this was dive bars, but it is more cemetery stuff.  Either way...

6 - Avoided property loss.  Would think this would be an everyday sorta rule.

7 - Didn't lend money.  Never!

8 - Didn't empty out the rice pot.  Lucky we didn't eat rice dishes over the weekend cause I cannot stand leaving food out.

9 - Avoided damaging any clothing.  I am more of a spiller than a ripper.

10 - Didn't slaughter any animals.  Pretty sure I have never slaughtered one.  I ran over a racoon once on accident and still feel bad about it.

11 - I did swear and now will be "prone to misspeaking and starting arguments."  What else is new?

12 - I didn't wear any outfits with black or white stripes.  Does this outfit make me look fat?  No, my fat ass makes me look fat.

The local political scandal this week has to do with the mainland canceling all importations of Taiwanese pineapples.  Those China types say they banned importations cause of some fear of "harmful creatures" coming in with the fruit, which is rich coming from them.  Everyone knows they are just being their typical dickish selves.  It is now a part of national pride to eat a 'Freedom Pineapple' and the local Canadian and American embassy's are supporting this initiative.  The locals rallied and bought all of the pineapples that were to be exported in 4 days.

By the way, the news is getting here about the verbal and physical attacks on Asians in the States.  I would like to think that these are not as widespread as they sound, but the way the piece of shit ex-president continues his baiting, and his easy to join in on the racist stuff cult members zeal to blame others for everything, I do worry about B-doll going to the States in August.  

That said, and I abhor that this sounds like a conspiracy theory, but after reading this report am feeling that the virus got out of that lab in Wuhan and that we have not yet heard the full story.  The German scientist that researched that paper, Roland Wiesendanger, sounds like a sober and serious guy and find his hypothesis very believable.  Regardless, why would people push over an old man?  It'd be like a black guy smacking me cause of slavery.  We (white folks) have some serious karmic atonement coming our way.