Back to school and get busy again

Today is the second day of this new semester. Yeah I didn’t have enough energy for blogging last night. *chuckles* Now then you know a teacher is also good at finding excuses huh. :P So I am still the homeroom teacher; the only difference is my students are in the 8th grade—too bad they don’t look much taller, and maybe that’s because I am very tall comparing to most Taiwanese. That’s all right…I’ll keep on encouraging them to eat well and exercise more. Well, the only thing that makes me sad is I cannot make as much money as last semester. L Since we teachers get fixed pay, but if we teach extra hours, we can get some extra pay. School doesn’t give me extra hours to teach, and I will lose around 3000 NT a month from now on. *sobbing…*

Anyway, life goes on. But not my favorite series on TV—the Peak of the Forbidden City had its last play last Sunday. The girl Shadow, who couldn’t forget about the guy Scorpio although she misunderstood him, finally left Sunny, the guy who always had a liking for Shadow since long ago, and went for Scorpio. The most touching scene was when Shadow was looking at Scorpio’s picture and missing him badly, Sunny came and consoled her that everything would be fine with his always warm smile. Shadow then cheered up after Sunny told her he’d take her to find Scorpio the next day. Then…Sunny turned and walked away, his facial expression looked so lonely…so sad, for he was the one left out. I am not to sound sentimental, you know. My motto is ‘never give up’, but it’s not to be applied for the romantic field! Just let go, and move on. :D Always something fun and surprising along the way—but I don’t want the ‘pay cut off’ surprise at all!!! :O

Spring Rolls :D~

Time to say goodbye to my summer vacation in 2004. I did have a lot of fun these 2 months, hanging out with good old friends, making new friends--some are nice and others are creepy. Like having adventures, I went out to meet them, and then acknowledge that I do keep high standards and high morals. LOL~ ( you know it's difficult to kick a habit which has been formed long ago. :P )

Last night I got the real estate agent's message with 2 symbols. He would know what I am thinking about ( the relationship stuff ) and how come he cannot call me recently. Well...one thing I can't understand. If he's that good as what he has bragged to me, that he can make big money for he's able to understand what his customers really need, why can't he figure it out that I am sick of 'words- speak- louder- than- actions' guys? I chatted with my mom this afternoon and asked her so. My mom lied on the sofa comfortably and listened to my blah blah...about this boring guy's behavior. Finally she said, it's normal...he is judging and he pretty much doesn't want to invest in 'you'. Ah...to the point, isn't it. As for the 2 symbols, the 1st is 2 big diamond rings--one for you and the other for me, to tie us up. The 2nd is a dozen of chocolate. Very well...how come I never saw such presents while we were meeting? :P LOL~ I wish I could have some nice chocolate, like Godiva--the very famous and expensive ones. So I know, and you know also, that my mom is right. He'd better give the idea up as soon as possible, move on, and find another woman who's desperate enough to be his girl friend. :D Good luck to you, although I don't think you are a nice friend of mine, Martin.

Oh the picture above is our lunch today--spring rolls! My mom is an excellent cook, and the spring rolls ( I got vegetarian ones ) are very tasty! Too bad--the daughter is too dumb to cook well though. :P ( bu hao yi si ah...)

Me and my dear Justy :D

Today is Saturday, and of course we don’t have school on the weekend. So it’s relaxing…I went out for a walk with my family, and I saw my cute baby Justy—the red car my dad gave me when he bought another car. I didn’t buy or rent a parking space near my place, and you know it’s not always easy to find a place to park your car in Taipei. So it’s necessary every time for me to pray like this when I drive home: oh dear Lord…please let me find a good place to park my Justy! :D It costs around 25000 NT to rent a parking place for a year—no cover above, mind you. And no guard to watch the place. That’s why I don’t wanna make my dear Justy look too shining or got some beautification. But I often wash my car to keep it clean and Justy should be happy for that… :P

Mooncake :D~

hey don't look at me but the stuff in my hands! On the right it's a small tea-flavoured mooncake! And the other is a feng4 li2 su1 ( pineapple tart? sorry not sure about the English term for it ). I got them in the vegetarian bakery, where I used to buy buns and cookies. They have many other flavours, and I think it's pretty cool especially as I make some nice hot Chinese tea while eating them. :D~ welcome back to Taiwan! *chuckles*

The cute statue

This is the cute statue I bought only yesterday! :D You see His ears! Very big and they mean ' a lot of good luck'. :D ah...no wonder, I finally understand why I don't like skinny guys now. all my exs were skinny and they didn't bring me any good luck! so yeah...the suitors around me had better figure it out themselves they must try hard to look like a lucky guy first. otherwise I'll just keep a safe distance from them. LOL~

Antique lover?

Well…I went out to meet friends in the early afternoon, and then I decided to pay my SX a visit. He called me earlier and said he’s going to run his own business—to sell tea leaves and teapots and cups. In fact the first day of his business is on Sep. 1st. But I won’t have spare time to visit him there since I have to stay at school and work VERY HARD. :D

So I took MRT again to his place, which is near Taipei Main Station. His place is not big—since it’s in the central area of Taipei City. I saw a lot of cute teapots and cups!!! I love them… *sob sob* You know I would like to buy some if I had a lot of money…too bad, right? SX and I chatted happily while eating the vegetarian Guo Tie ( no idea what the English term for it -_-“ ) I bought. He made some tea but it tasted awful because of the water, which is the side effect of Typhoon Aere. We talked about the things that happened these days in our lives—his colleagues, my suitors, and so on. LOL~ I told him about the latest ones, the architecture and the real estate agent, who are weird and way too desperate. He advised me that I’d better not get involved in a few years, since they are only ‘lousy tao hua’ for me. I nodded. SX also knows that my ‘yuan feng’ is not coming yet. Hehehe~ Finally, I couldn’t resist his charm…I decided to take him home—a very lovely 彌勒佛, which is made of the earth Zi Sha.
The price is 3600 NT. Ahh…. I know, I know. :P

Typhoon Day II

All government offices and schools in Taipei remain closed today because of the typhoon Aere. Banks and financial markets are shut as well. Lucky the place where I live has nothing destructive like flash-floods, landslides, or mud and rock slides. Thanks goodness, and my parents. They did choose a house with good Feng Shui. :D As usual I got up very early, thinking if I should go out to get the newspapers while watching the strong wind and heavy rain outside. Yes, you’re right. I decided to go. Well…maybe ‘sneak out’ is the term. :P For my other family were still sleeping sound because of the cool weather. So I put on my black mini skirt, took my strong umbrella, and walked into the typhoon. I admit that I did feel a bit scared when I saw the gusting winds and torrential rains! My skirt became all wet soon—you know the typhoon rain is not like the normal rain falling down straight. I wandered if I was just too brave walking on the street… I would say I deserve it if I was injured by falling debris. LOL~ Somehow too much courage might not be an advantage I guess… By the way I did regret that I forgot to take my cute BenQ 2300 with me to take some video. Maybe next time. :P ( aiyowei! Daring enough? )

Luckily I came home safely…got to change my clothes fast though. And we didn’t suffer from power outages like some other households in Taiwan. The only bad thing that happened to me today was…I was so careless while cooking lunch that my pinky on the right touched the edge of a very hot wok. -_-“ Very painful…I even got a boil on my pinky! ~~>_<~~ I deserved it too, since I know I am not good in cooking at all. But it’s not convenient to eat out in a typhoon day. That didn’t ruin my good mood for the rest of today, especially when I looked into the mirror and saw my skin’s so smooth and delicate for plenty of time to sleep these days. *chuckles* I don’t think I can sleep that much after school starts! Therefore, it’s a must to take as much R&R as I can, right? Being trapped at home for 2 days, I will go out to have some fun tomorrow! :D

Favorite toys of mine

Yes they are my favorite toys...antique teapots and tea cups, which came from the Jing De Town in China--the most famous place for making teapots and cups. The earth is the key: different earth for different tea leaves. The ones I am using are made of Zi Sha ( 紫砂 ), which are good for making the so-called "old tea", like Pu Er (普洱 ). *chuckles* The temperature of water is important too. If I make Pu Er tea, I'll keep the water in the kettle boiling. Well, the tea tastes real good! Especially after a nice, hearty dinner... It's sort of like a wonderful ending for the night. :D

Typhoon Day

A typhoon’s ( Aere #0417 ) is landing on the north of Taiwan. When I got up in the early morning, I heard the wind and rain, a bit stronger than the rain ( or showers ) we usually have in summer. So… yeah I know it’s better to stay home. *chuckles* But it’s not my style. :P Putting on a short skirt ( a smart choice in rainy days since wet pants always make my legs uncomfortable ) and taking a bigger umbrella ( not the light ones I use to block the burning sun ), I ‘bravely’ walked into the wind and rain. Wow… the streets looked so lonely today! Living in Taipei, everyone knows it’s more like a habit you have to look around and watch out, because of the busy traffic and a lot of pedestrians everywhere. Well…this time I felt relaxed, walking slowly, enjoying the loneliness in my favorite city. I looked up a bit, smiled to the sky, and felt the rain was cool…on my bare arms and feet ( I wore slippers, which are for outdoors ). I didn’t sing, in case I ruined the perfect silence around me…so content I got…

I think of a good friend, who lives in Ilan, the east of Taiwan, and also teaches at a public middle school. We were once colleagues for a few years. The reason we got to know each other better was both of us are vegetarians, and he often gave me a hand as I had some questions about computer stuff. However…what he influenced me most was not about computers, but his attitude toward life. He told me he had a painful childhood, not being loved and suffering from poverty. That’s why he figured out very early that one’s best friend is him/herself, and he seldom wasted money. *chuckles* He always teaches me how to save up money. He does that so well that he has bought a house near his school, and I kept him company when he came up to see the furniture exhibition at Taipei Trade Exhibition Hall. Being single, good-looking, rich…you know he has no gf so far. LOL~ He had an admirer, in fact…a teacher too, not at the same school. I asked him why he turned the lady down, and his reply was ‘urm…I didn’t think it’d better to live with her. It’s so tiring to look after another person. By the way I am studying for my masters…’ His point is living by himself is totally enjoyable, and he doesn’t think a woman would do him any good right now…same here. *chuckles* Neither do I. That’s why we joked around while talking on the phone, that we might get married a few years later since both are so picky, vegetarian, and we don’t want kids.( DINK is my cup of tea! ) We just need to work diligently and then larked around when we are on winter or summer vacation. Perfect match…NOT. Too bad he’s younger than me, and…shorter. *sighs…* :P Nothing is perfect, just like what I used to say.

So I got my favorite traditional Chinese breakfast, and bought newspaper on my way home. It’s nice to spend my day like this… nothing important to do. Eat, drink ( herb tea ), nap, watch some stuff, chat with friends, and so on. Previously my sis and I planned to go shopping today, but cancelled for this typhoon. As for the cell phone which ran out of battery and didn’t get charged, I think I am just too smart… LOL~ I have 3 cell phones, which means I have 3 numbers to use. The first # ( degree 1 ) is only for my family when I go traveling overseas. The second # ( degree 2 ) is for all my acquaintances IRL, including students and their parents. I take this celly with me most of the time and seldom switch if off. ( too troublesome, and I don’t get naughty calls often. I did get some, and I am good at dealing with such things… *winks* ) The third # ( degree 3 ) is only for friends I get to know from the Net. It’s a prepaid card, which can be thrown away anytime if I don’t think it’s necessary for me. So that’s why the 1st and 3rd are off. I am not to leave for another country, and I am sick of getting the 2 guys’ phone calls already. :P Let me live a lonely life for a while first… and I’ll take another new adventure! :D

Trying to get my photo done

My boy students who graduated last summer. we had a gathering at a shabu shabu restaurant. they become more mature! ( I am playing with Hello; see if I can post a photo onto my blog :P )

Chinese Valentine's Day

Here again…not diligent enough to blog last night. LOL~ Yesterday was the Chinese Lovers’ Day, 七夕 ( qi1 xi4 ) in Mandarin. For a woman like me, who got some suitors around IRL, it’s just too difficult to decide which one to go out with. It turned out to be that…urm…I switched off my cell phone and spent a wonderful Sunday with my family! OK I was just kidding… in fact I didn’t switch off my celly, but it ran out of battery and I didn’t charge it, that’s all. :P

I went out in the afternoon for a ‘black mass’, which means a funeral for us catholic. A friend’s father passed away. We practiced in the same choir for a period of time, so I thought I had to go and pray for him and his family. I didn’t feel like crying at such an occasion even as we went forward to spread some petals on the body in the coffin, but I did have the impulse to cry when I saw my friend and his family gave the last look at their family member before they were going to cover it… *sighs* Well I know nothing is permanent. Sorrow and pain are unavoidable sometimes. After saying goodbye to my other friends who were also present at the black mass, I went back home. You know there are some traditions for us in such a situation: someone who just attended a funeral cannot go home directly. A friend told me his knowledge about that was ‘to pick some leaves and throw them away.’ Mine is ‘hang around somewhere else for a while and then go home.’ I even know about another custom: use incense to ‘purify’ the person in front of the gate—let the smoke be around his/her body a while. I guess my western friends would feel :O if I told them so.

Talking about my favorite TV program on Sun. evening, Top of the Forbidden City, I am sorry I spelt it wrong on my last blog. The Chinese title is correct, but not the English translation. I took a careful look last night and found I was wrong. *chuckles* doesn’t matter—this is my blog. In this play there are some romantic scenes too, just like most of the series, no matter what language is used. The main characters, Scorpio, Sunny, and Shadow, are in a so called ‘triangle’ relationship, which is not surprising even in our real life. Sunny is Shadow’s good friend, always caring for her and, of course, having strong feelings toward her. They’ve known each other for long. But later on, Scorpio appeared, and Shadow had an immediate crush on him, even if Scorpio seemed cold to her from time to time… She still couldn’t forget about him. The lucky thing is Scorpio does have a liking to Shadow —he acted cold because of his attempt to accomplish something first. Somehow it’s not so lucky like in the play right? Once I found myself fond of a guy, after we had been good friends for quite a while. Too bad I was not the One he wanted. It was very painful to see him leave for another woman, who he immediately had a strong crush on just like the girl Shadow. Certainly I felt very bad…I trembled while he told me he’s to leave....But I didn’t shed a tear even that's the Fin. ( Sunny didn’t either. *chuckles* He even would like to help…how come so kind-hearted as me huh :P )

So yeah…my point to record this history about my failure in love ( LOL~ ) is we don’t need to feel shameful or whatsoever. It’s not anyone’s fault, but just not something that can be worked out, a relationship which is never meant to be. I feel lucky that I didn’t initiate any action there. Sure I sorrowed over my fate ( awww~ how come I couldn’t get him! ) for a moment, but things would just turn up right since time is the greatest healer. A beautiful young girl, who’s the daughter of 2 celebrities in Taiwan, ended her life by jumping down from a building, for her bf fell in love with other girls. Her bf’s photo was also in the newspaper…hmm…a gorgeous guy. So what? Necessary to kill herself and make her parents feel like hell? ( My mom had some comments like that, you know. :P ) Too bad or very lucky? I never feel it’s the end of the world if a man I like doesn’t like me. I think it’s his loss—doesn’t get a tall, pretty, good-figured, bright-thinking all the time, blah-blah…good woman. LOL~ ok ok being narcissistic again I know. But this is my monologue!!! So…I wish myself, and my good friends who don’t have lovers by now, all the best and good luck. Let us all live our days fully and happily every day! ^_^

Busy on the weekend

I got no energy to blog last night. *chuckles* already 8 p.m. when I came back home. After a shower I read some news and went watch my favorite TV program about ghosts at 11 p.m. Well…I am such a 100% Capricorn, I think…always follow the fixed pattern in my life. Urm…if not always, most of the time, I guess. Like today, Sun. and I will go watch the Taiwanese series: 紫禁之巔 The Peak of the Forbidden Mountains ) at 9:30 p.m. The story is ok, talking about some dancers who would like to win the first prize in the world No.1 dancing contest. Of course they are some nice guys, and bad guys, and they surely fight violently from time to time. They also have romantic scenes… The main character, Scorpio, didn’t really catch my eye at the first beginning, since he’s not gorgeous enough. Hahahaha~ But later on I found his performance is surprisingly good, especially his eyes can reveal exactly what the play asks him to be— lonely, passionate side, yet to show his feelings directly. He looks cool when he’s not smiling or laughing. The other character, Sunny, who acts to be his opponent both in the dancing contest and in the romantic field, looks so cute especially while he has a big smile. So, I am lucky enough to have some eye candy on Sun. evening, you know. :P Either Scorpio or Sunny can make my day, or night? LOL~

We had a farewell party yesterday afternoon. About 2 or 3 hundred people were there. Moreover, there were some shows running…and I was in one of them—to sing 3 songs with the choir. Sure I enjoy standing on the stage, although I did feel a bit nervous seeing a large audience sitting and watching us. The 3 songs are: Let Us Serve Him, 普天下去傳福音, and Hail Holy Queen. The harmony of the music is real enjoyable for sure…( otherwise I wouldn’t waste my time practicing in a choir every Thursday evening. ) Anyway I think our performance was a big success according to the very loud applauding and their happy, excited facial expressions. Too bad I didn’t stay for the dinner after our show because they didn’t prepare vegetarian dishes there. Nowadays we can easily find something vegetarian to get in a restaurant in Taiwan, you know. Like the restaurant we went have lunch yesterday, my friends told me they got veggie set on their menu, and I was curious… so spent around 250 NT to get my lunch. ( a bit expensive though ) I think the set is ok, some vegetables and rice with black sesames on above. Fruit and a soup. The decoration is nice—even got some dried roses and many petals on the middle of our table! Light is not too bright. Transparent curtains. Clean restrooms. Nice cool water. The best, in summer of course…is the air-con!!! So I sat there comfortably, eating my meal, and talked happily with my friends in the choir. The choir leader said he’d like to treat me in a very high class vegetarian restaurant in Taipei City—ain’t I lucky? :P ( But I turned him down nicely already for I don’t think I will have enough free time at the beginning of a new semester, you know. )

What am I eager to do next? *wink*

Today I met the second new student in my office, a boy who has exactly the same name as another student in my class. No idea if school arranged so on purpose…’ Let’s give Flo this kid and see what will happen if she calls the name.’ hehehe that’s why I looked at the boy and my first question was, ‘What’s your English name?’ He said, ‘Eric’, surprisedly. ( Most teachers would ask where a new student came from and why s/he wanna change schools, you know. ) And the first new student is a girl, who looks cute and studied in China before she came here. I met her mom yesterday on my way to a class of year 9, occasionally. Her mom saw me and asked me where she could find her daughter’s new homeroom teacher. After I asked her which one she’d meet, I then said, ‘Urm…it’s me.’ The little girl who seems to be the gal student’s younger sister looked at me and said, ‘wah! Hao piao liang!’ ( I am just too shy to translate it in English. LOL~ ) The mom didn’t know her little daughter did a very nice job of PR. :P I told my class today that they were lucky to have 2 cute new students, and my boy students all went ‘woo~’ ( like ‘colour wolves’ you know. ) *chuckles* And I am very happy also…got 2 more lovely kids to torture…ehh no no, to educate, I mean. :P

Let me bs about another guy, who might have some interest in me. He’s a few years older than me, works as an architect in another city. ( about 3 hours if take a bus ) Well…he’s a vegetarian too. But he used to say something urm…kind of boring or weird, or which made me wonder what’s going on in his mind, although he should be more mature than me. What did he say? *chuckles* Let me translate into English: Oh this picture looks nice. Was it taken recently? ( so far so good right? ) It’s wonderful to be a teacher…you even get paid during summer vacation! ( Sure, it’s the law. If you were not an architect but a teacher in a public school too, you would get the same pay as well. ) The government will support you for the rest of your life. ( what…where got? -_-“ Mr. President didn’t promise me this!!! ) Now you’ve got a stable job. What do you eagerly want to do next? What if your husband is not Mr. Right? ( … ) *falls laughing hard*

Now then I know how come I can always keep so optimistic although I am not a rich person. As soon as I saw such guys around me, those who could make big money, yet to keep an open mind or an interesting attitude toward life, I felt…ah I am definitely very lucky. They don’t know the ‘give and take’ thingy. And worse, their lack of good sense of humour marks their poorness and that does affect my willingness to be their good friends. ( For me, ‘a friend’ and ‘a good friend’ are pretty different by definition. ) Anyway it’s my monologue here…so they can’t defend themselves. LOL~ unfair? Certainly. Nothing is perfect, right? *wink*

Put a stop to it

The students hope I can go on teaching them in the coming semester after I said ‘well it’s the last session I am here with you during summer vacation. Even if we might not be able to get together again, I still want you all to study hard and get better grades on English.’ I teach 2 classes of year 9, and tomorrow I will say the same to the other class. :P ( fun to see some students to be moved by my sentimental statement, you know… awww :D )

The business person came take me to have lunch at noon. I was sort of…err… not that interested when he said he would eat some cheap vegetarian dishes with me on the phone last night. No idea what he’s thinking about, you know. Is that a nice attitude for a guy who’s to woo someone he likes? Anyway I seldom cancel my appointments with friends, so I still agreed to go out with him for a meal. He drove to Bitan, which is a famous scenic spot near my school, and said there’s a nice restaurant where people eat and enjoy watching the beautiful river and mountains ( rather hills ) meanwhile. Too bad he didn’t check in advance—the restaurant is closed today. In fact all stalls there are closed today, unfortunately. So I told him a place to eat our lunch around 10 minutes away from Bitan. That’s a vegetarian restaurant, and 199 NT for each to have buffet. Of course we talked and he would like to make the topic about the ‘relationship’ thingy more or less. And again, he bragged a few times that he has made a lot of money.

Truly…unbearable. 1 movie and 3 meals, around 1000 NT, and he’s thinking of getting me as his girl friend. By the way, he didn't even bother to spend time understanding my life, my habits, interests, and so on. Hahahaha~ I told my sister what happened and she said it’s so disgusting—he sounds like a millionaire yet acts the very stingy way. Worse, he’s trying his best to take advantage—I am not to describe such behavior in details on my blog, in case my eyes would feel uncomfortable later when I come on and read this blog in the future. He told me he understood my points of view and he would not push me hard, since he still wants me to be his friend. And he enjoys the feeling of competition. @_@ What can I say…I think it’s so hard to find such a guy in my other male friends who is as dumb as him… *chuckles* However, I asked him to drive me to school at 2 p.m. after lunch. Previously he asked me to keep him company till 4 p.m. But I told myself if so I would be bored to death really. So I got off his car, happily said goodbye to him, and then drove home to enjoy myself. Shall I switch off this cell phone? *evil grins* However, school is to start soon, and I won’t have so much free time like now. Maybe I can’t keep my blog going on either…who knows? :P

Something boo--Part II

This morning I was the last one who used the toilet, and I thought everything’s all right. Then I went to school and came back home in the afternoon. My parents were not around. Hearing some noise from the toilet, I went check what’s wrong…it’s flushing, though not strongly. Oh my… @@ guess I have to read some more Scriptures or meditate longer???

My bro-in-law was kind enough to treat me lunch after I made a phone call to his wife, my sister. I had 2 sessions at school and did some work in the office, feeling so bored. Previously I would ask my sis if she could go shopping or just take a walk, look around on the street with me. Then my bro-in-law heard us and suggested I went have lunch with them. I didn’t wanna be a fifth tire, but the lovely couple said they really hope I could go. *chuckles* That’s a very high class restaurant, and we had buffet, which costs around 1000 NT per person. Most dishes there are not vegetarian, but I could still found some to enjoy, lucky. And a chef there made me some fried rice, vegetables, and a soup. ( I felt so special…) When I went get ice cream, I found it’s not easy to scoop ( the coffee flavored one ). Then the guy in a suit standing behind me said ‘may I help…’ I took a glance at him and err… not gorgeous enough. I turned him down nicely and tried my best to get 2 scoops of it. :P I am even picky on such stuff… my goodness!

Something boo?

It’s raining cats and dogs. Last night, in fact, this very early morning, I woke up all of a sudden. I was dreaming as usual, but that’s not the point this time. I found it weird since the light in my bedroom was on. But I was sure that I did turn off the light before hitting my pillow…. Confused, I got up, turned it off again, and then went back to bed. I slept till 5:30 a.m.—my time to get up during week days. Then I practiced meditation in the living room for a while ( also my habit in the morning ). Well, I felt a bit too warm, so I went turn on the air-con. It’s so cool and comfortable then….After my meditation I did the laundry in our back balcony. Everything’s fine, except…as I went back to the living room. I found the fan was working. Hey…I didn’t turn on the fan. For me it’s a waste of electricity because I had turned on the air-con. The other family members were sleeping and I was the only one awake. *blinking* I enjoy watching some stuff on TV, not in real life… -_-“

I had 4 sessions to teach this morning. In the afternoon I went to see the dentist, and guess no need to visit him until I have a toothache again. My Shi Jie paid me a visit in the early evening and she had tea ( I made some herb tea, no caffeine ) and listened to my stories which happened these days. She frowned and looked at me worriedly after she knew about the details. Of course she gave me some advice that I think is wise. And it’s what I planned to do also—watch out! *chuckles* My SJ was also a business person before. Thus, I would like to ask her for instructions if I have some problems. So far so good….

Ghost Gate Opened

Talking about the term ‘Tao Hua’, I don’t know if it’s real good for me. Making new friends, especially who work in different fields, is interesting, because I have had more than enough friends from Education. The problem is the other party doesn’t think the same as I do. *chuckles* Well I do know everybody thinks differently. That’s why I always tell those who I go out with for a meeting or a meal, or a movie, that I am glad to make friends with them. But it’s no good to be exclusive, you know…too soon and too tense right? It seems the businessman, who I newly knew from online and went out with twice, doesn’t learn the lesson. :P And I am not to teach him how to make it. Too bad? Sure. By the way it’s not my office time. He made a fatal mistake on our second meeting ( not ‘date’ hehehe ). We talked about our jobs and then bonus…he bragged he did a nice job and got his bonus, around 1 million NT dollars this year. I didn’t even go wow or have any special facial expression. So what? He can make big money. =\= He would spend a lot on his woman. By the way I am able to get everything I would like in Taiwan, or in other countries where I go traveling. Money is something, but not everything. You want me to be smitten only by your money? *chuckles* That’s a great idea. :P I can’t blame him since he’s a business person, whose job is sell houses. After 1 movie and 2 meals he asked me to be his girl friend, I can only say he’s used to being so efficient. LOL~ He shouldn’t have chosen me as his object… But he has, I think I will let him know his way of doing business can’t really work in the romantic field. He will thank me as he meets his next ‘the One’ then. See, I work extra time again…me too kind-hearted. :P

Summer vacation is going to end in 2 weeks. I have slept more and feel my skin getting nicer. Sleep does work much better than any lotion or cream! Oh yeah you know today is the first day of Ghost Gate Open Month. According to Chinese lunar calendar, it’s from lunar July 1st to 30th. Do you guys ‘bai bai’ and get alert? Sometimes parents would tell us not to get near to the rivers or streams, and not to get home too late at night, in case some beings are eager to find their substituents… In class I also told students to be careful, not to act very ‘iron teeth’, you know. It’s better to have some respect and watch the mouth, especially right in the 30 days.

A trip to Danshui

A net friend from IRC invited me to visit Danshui, where he lives and works. We’d like to meet each other and said we should find some time from the beginning of this summer vacation. But sometimes it’s because I am busy, and sometimes he is busy. Finally we met in person today, the very first time. He’s a nice guy, who wouldn’t say anything mushy to me. I really don’t think it’s a good idea to say, ‘Can you be my girl friend?’ or ‘Suddenly I got a thought of getting married…’ you know, only on first ‘dates’. Well, my friend insisted that we should call it ‘date’ since only 2 persons are involved. In fact I prefer to use the term ‘gathering’ because I always think ‘date’ should be more like…someone I wanna get intimate with. But I am not a native speaker of English. My friend said ‘gathering’ is for 3 or more than 3 persons. However, my Danshui friend treated me latte at Starbucks and then dinner at a vegetarian stall, and we chatted happily, mostly about our IRC experiences. I came online chatting only since 2000, and have observed many interesting events that happened in this cyber world. *chuckles* He agreed with me and his even got a girl friend before from IRC. Too bad tho…their relationship didn’t work out, and he’s still single. I wish him good luck. :D

On my way home, I was standing on MRT. There were too many people, so crowded, and first time I couldn’t stand the smell in the carriage. But even in such a unpleasant situation, I still had something funny to report. 1. Three obasans were talking too happily to notice they should get off at Grand Hotel MRT station. When they suddenly realized it’s time to go, only 1 could make it. The other two stayed in the carriage looking outside at the successful obasan, jealously, since the door was already closed. They laughed…me too, but inside my heart. 2. Some teenagers managed to enter the carriage at the last few seconds before the doors were to close, and, hehehe, got zapped. But anyway they made it. They laughed…me too, again. 3. A big-butt obasan standing beside me decided to take some exercise to keep fit all of a sudden. And she kicked my right ankle twice without saying ‘sorry’. My good figure’s fault or what. LOL~ ok I don’t blame her then.

Shopping with my sis

Last night I went to bed late since it was Friday, and had a dream… I dreamed of this friend a few times before. He’s not living in Taipei. In my dream this time his looks changed a bit. ( I mean… not the same as what he looks now, but I still know that guy was him. ) My family visited him and his family, and we chatted happily, went to some places together, to have fun or attend some party there; of course I don’t know where the places are…they looked all strange to me. We even visited a shop where crystals were sold…hmm…can’t remember if I bought anything in there. And in one scene, my friend and I were taking a bus. We sat together. I felt sleepy and leaned on him, put my head on his upper arm. He was wearing a long sleeves white shirt…my cheek touched the white material, and I felt good… a nice dream, isn’t it.

My sis and I had lunch together at Ponderosa Restaurant near NTNU MRT station. My treat today. I cannot get any steak, so I only ate some fruit, salad ( raw vegetables without any dressings ), bread with peanut butter, tea jelly, coke, coffee, and green tea. The mint chocolate ice cream there was awful enough. Pop corn was ok. Oh they got baked potatoes with a piece of butter inside…that’s really something ( for me ). *chuckles* I think I would rather have a meal in a vegetarian restaurant. After lunch we went shopping at Gong Guang, and you know there are many stalls which sell different kinds of interesting stuff. I bought 3 cotton T shirts, which cost 500 NT total. Not bad right? :D Even my mom said it’s a bargain. Lucky we teachers don’t need to wear formally at school. I mean, we are not asked to wear formal suits to work. I can dress casually…maybe they know we sometimes have to chase naughty students? *grins*

Anyway…suddenly it rained heavily in Taipei. We came back home and mom cooked dinner. I will go watch my favourite TV program later. Ah...my eyes are tired now, but I won’t go to bed early. :P

He needs some good luck

We finished watching the 2nd VCD of ‘Paycheck’. Pretty nice the movie is. What if I could foresee the future, which might be somehow tragic or disastrous? I guess I would do the same as Ben, who foresaw the very terrible outcome after the machine started working and he took some actions to prevent what would happen. And, of course, the best is the lotto part right? *chuckles* Being an optimist, I always believe everything is fated, but I still should do my best for my own sake, or for others’ benefits. ( I sound like a saint? Hey you don’t know my idol is Confucius? :P )

This is the forth week for summer school, and we have 5 weeks…so, only a week to go. To be specific, only 5 days left. I have a very busy summer vacation this year, although I don’t go traveling abroad. The guy I met twice kept calling and messaging me. Well…not that I don’t want a boy friend, but I do think ‘haste makes waste.’ A relationship can be terrific only when it’s built up step by step steadily. If I am only a physical object for him, I really won’t know where this relationship can go in the future… He asked me if I could be his girl friend last time, right on the second gathering. I was… :O speechless at first. Then I asked him, ‘Don’t you think it’s way too soon?’ His reply was no, since he told me I am the one he’s looking for. Tall, good looking, qi4 zhi4 ( hard to find an appropriate English term for 氣質 ) excellent, independent, oh, and, a teacher, which is truly a nice career here, you know. I forgot to tell him I can play the piano and the guitar…I can dance too. :P No good to brag too much right? In case I make him fall too deeply to get off the hook safely? *evil grins*

His message said he wouldn’t be in a good mood until he could meet me again. On the phone he asked me when I can go out with him. *chuckles* I told him recently work is just being hectic, and I will see if I have some free time. He told me to call him to let him know. And you know I won’t call. ( No need to call if I don’t have anything that requires a prompt answer to ask. ) So yeah…I think this guy is a bit unfortunate to know me, a woman who is a bit older than him and is neither desperate nor needy in any way. Well I do suggest him to find other girls who are younger than him to meet or date. He has a wide range…so many to choose. Anyway, I guess that’s not my business. :P

Typhoon

I got up early ( as usual ) and turned TV on. wanna know if we had to go to school today since a typhoon was coming to the north of Taiwan. But it seemed the wind was not that strong. Thus, I still drove to school and had my 4 sessions. We finished watching 'The Haunted Mansion' in class. Eddie finally figure out the way to save his wife and kids. The curse upon the big ancient house was gone because the truth was revealed, and everyone got what they deserved--some went down to the hell and others went to the heaven. Not bad for junior high students huh? :P No idea why I got a headache today...the wind became stronger around 10 a.m. and we had heavy rain as well. I don't sneeze or get a sore throat. Well...the weather is fine now. I am leaving for choir practice. In fact I wanna rest at home, but we are going to have a performance soon. Not that I sing so well that I cannot quit practicing, but...friends want me to be there. ( They said I look great standing on the stage. -_-" You guys got the hint? It means I only have the looks, not the voice... ) So sad. :P ( ahh...wo tou tong ah...ai...)

My good friend is fine :)

Today is a nice day for me, though the weather is not nice at all. It’s raining all day and the weather forecast said a typhoon is coming. Maybe it will affect the north of Taiwan badly. I happen to live in Taipei…. Anyway I had no class this morning. I still went to school to sign something for my class, and did some copying for the choir. Everything’s ok except I made a mistake while copying the stuff…guess I was thinking too deeply to notice that in time. That cost me 20 NT.

Then my good friend, the math teacher CZ, and me went to visit our good friend, another math teacher PT, as we planned to earlier. I drove my dear Justy to pick her and then to the hospital. PT stays in a postpartum care centre in Zhong1 Xing1 Hospital, where I had no idea about its location. Yes I live in Taipei, but…this city is so populated and maybe complicated as well that I can easily get lost too. I asked some colleagues for directions first before I left school, and luckily I didn’t get lost. :P The luckier thing was I found a nice parking space near the hospital, right beside the big road…made a U turn and ahh…nice! So I met PT and I am happy to see that she looks fine and seems all right now. She talked about her dead baby, who was a boy....CZ and me then consoled her with the very old Buddhist saying, everything is fated. Maybe not enough yuan2 fen4. Of course they cared about me and my very ‘boring’ love story. Thus I got to ‘report’ on the latest development for my 2 good friends. In fact, that’s all bs I guess…but PT had a good laugh. Ok…it worths my effort . CZ has the sharpest and smartest attitude and always gives me the best, to-the-point comment. She listened, shook her head, and said, ‘childish’. LOL~ Math teachers…you can never fool them. Way too logical.

Better to slow down :P

My God…my SX said there will be a lot of tao2 hua2 in the near future. ( these 2 years? Not sure. ) And it seems so correct. *chuckles*

In the morning I had 4 sessions to teach. Nice! We watched the first VCD of “Paycheck” in the classroom, and students asked me some questions about this movie. Well…I watched it before so I knew what happened to the lotto paper. :P But I wouldn’t tell kids because it’s no fun, right? The idea which they could erase ( or delete?) Ben’s memory by injecting some chemical into his vein was interesting. Wasn’t that fabulous if we could just apply that to those who are heart-broken from losing their love? I don’t know…maybe not. Since it might be good to suffer from something difficult in life and then we can grow our characters better and stronger. ( ahh, a very bright way of thinking again, no? )

After work the guy who I knew from online came pick me up at my school. This is the second time I met him. We drove to a restaurant located on a hill not too far away, called Bruce Kitchen Garden. It’s very lucky that he didn’t make reservations and we could still have a table for two quickly. ( The restaurant was soon full of customers and some people who couldn’t get the tables had to wait outside. ) Their well-known dishes are spaghetti and cheese-baked rice. I ordered the former, with some nice salad and pumpkin soup. I enjoyed the dessert too, a coffee-flavoured jelly and a hot coffee. The only thing ‘imperfect’ was I didn’t finish the main course, and made the waitress came ask me, ‘bu4 hao3 chi1 ma?’ awww~ I was so sorry. :P

Then my friend drove to Wu Lai and we spent some time there. Details are not to be written ( or typed, or blogged ). I just wonder…what if I was passionate? I am used to being…well, if not ‘cold’, but you know I rarely do anything special to lure a guy. So far I have no intention to. He seems to be falling in love too fast. Or it’s just normal for any guy? Men fall in love at the first sight? Or women can fall in love very fast too? Am I the abnormal one? *chuckles* I remember the first lyrics of a song, ‘Love… is a many splendid thing!’ For me…’Love… is a very troublous thing!’ :D

A birthday cake and a movie ( not for me tho )

Yesterday was Father’s Day. My sis, her husband, and her son came back home to have dinner with us. We’d celebrate her son’s 11th birthday by the way. What did the very serious auntie get for her nephew? *chuckles* Yes, you’re right. Books! I got 3 books for him—to be specific, they are all about computer games! Dear nephew told me he loved 2 of them…uh huh, not too bad. After dinner we had this chocolate cake, with cream on the top and egg pudding in between the layers. The only unfortunate thing was I couldn’t eat any of it…not that I wanna keep fit, but I am a strict vegetarian. Well, that’s why they had someone to do the picture taking, cake cutting all the time. :P I don’t mind serving others, you know. If they would like, I can even sing for them I think…( but too bad no one there want me to sing, in case their food cannot stay well in their stomachs? ) Now then you know why I didn’t sing you the happy birthday song myself, my friend…but sent you a pretty chic band to ‘sing’, or rather, play the music for you. It’s so kind of me not to turn your stomach. :D

In class today we watched The Haunted Mansion, not finished yet, will watch the 2nd VCD next class then. I promised kids earlier we would have some fun during summer time. They come to summer school on their own will. We teachers cannot force students to study at school during summer vacation. Of course their parents can. *grins* We don’t have air-con in most of the classrooms here, so both parties, students and teachers do have great courage to stay in here…it’s over 35 C in Taipei you know? I must do something for kids in the English class, and they are so happy to watch something ‘chilling’. The famous actor, Eddie Murphy, acts as a workaholic and happened to visit a haunted house with his family. Certainly he would have to figure out some way to release the ghosts trapped in the mansion and then save his beloved wife and kids. What caught my eye was the old portrait of the master’s lover—pretty much the looks of Eddie Murphy’s wife in this movie. So it bears the very traditional Buddhism idea—people don’t really die, but reincarnate life after life. And karma must be cleared by all means. I think I am getting way too serious again… Anyway, it’s not too bad sitting in the classroom, watching a movie, and listening to kids’ screams. I bet my students love it too, much better than listening to my lecture? Sure!

Relaxing...on a nice Saturday evening

A hot, or burning day as usual in summer. I walked to the stall I used to get traditional Chinese breakfast, and enjoyed looking around in the market. Sweating like hell, I had to take a quick shower after I went back home. Nothing special happened, except the guy who I went out with called me this afternoon. He calls and sends sms almost every day since we went to a movie on Tue. It said he would like to see me and hear my voice every day. Well…no I am not like those who listen to such sweet talk from guys and will be falling desperately. *grins* I don’t believe in anything easily, you know. I like this saying, ‘Actions speak louder than words.’ If a guy does care for me, I am sure I can sense it without his pretty much sweet talk to me. Anyway it’s my style to think bright…that’s why I don’t really mind when he keeps on saying ‘I like teachers.’ ‘You are very pretty.’ ‘You can be my girl friend.’ You see, isn’t it better than: ‘I hate teachers.’ ‘You are very ugly.’ ‘You can be my enemy.’ *winks*

One more thing…I got Wade’s email, and he told me he would study in the best boys’ senior high school in Taipei the coming 3 years! Woo~ congratulations! I am very proud of him, you know. He’s such an intelligent and diligent boy. I believe he can learn more and accomplish better in the future. :)

Wishing you were somehow here again

You were once my one companion
You were all that mattered…
You were once a friend and father; then my world was shattered…
Wishing you were somehow here again
Wishing you were somehow near
Sometimes it seemed if I just dreamed
Somehow you would be here…
Wishing I could hear your voice again, knowing that I never would…
Dreaming of you won’t help me to do all that you dreamed I could…
Passing bells and sculpted angels, cold and monumental, seem, for you, the wrong companions
You were warm and gentle…
Too many years, fighting back tears
Why can’t the past just die?
Wishing you were somehow here again, knowing we must say goodbye…
Try to forgive, teach me to live, give me the strength to try!
No more memories, no more silent tears
No more gazing across the wasted years
Help me…
Say goodbye…

p.s. I sang this song while typing the lyrics, for a very dear friend of mine…it’s his birthday today. He was once very close to me, but left me for another world…My shi1xiong1 told me I had to let go the past. Everything’s fated. Yes I am always moving on, and being optimistic. Well I know my friend would like to see me living my life fully too. *taking a deep breath* I will try my best. :)

Story of spiders

No idea why I felt so tired this morning. I even drank up a bottle of tea in class ( about 530 ml ). Still sleepy. Thus I had to take a rest at my office desk during our short break, 10 minutes for each you know. My lunch is fried rice noodles—I was too tired to finish them, you know…nan2 de2, since all my friends know the last thing I need to do is lose weight. A few days ago I bragged to my friends that I gained 1 kg already—56kg that time. Now back to 55 kg. -_-“ Very hard for me to put on some weight. Guess it’s because I am a strict vegetarian.

Anyway I would record what happened to the spiders at my place here. One day I found a spider at the ceiling of my small bathroom. It’s just like any other spider, staying there quietly waiting for some preys. The other day, another spider came join it! But, you know…a bathroom. How to make a good fortune in a bathroom? Being a homeroom teacher for quite a period of time, I just couldn’t help myself but…preach to the 2 spiders. I said, ‘oh Spider san. ( ‘san’ is used in Japanese very often, you know…to show some respect. Hey don’t you laugh. :P ) I hope you know that I am not to kill you since I try my best to follow the discipline No Killing from Buddhism. And I know you stay there to wait for something that can satisfy your appetite. The thing is, not many insects inside this house. I don’t think you wanna have ants. So yeah…would you ponder over it again that maybe you should make a move? I don’t mean to chase you away or what though. Just…maybe it’s better for your tummy. Have good luck!’

They are gone. No I didn’t kill them, neither did my family. They just packed and left the bathroom without leaving any message. Oh maybe they did. Too bad I just couldn’t get what’s there on the web. If I did, I might be able to understand which the 6 numbers for our Big Lotto were last night and strike a fortune! *sob sob* Spider san…maybe you guys are feeling very sorry for me too I guess? However, doesn’t matter now. What matters is we live happily and eat nicely. ( For me, you know…eat well = be in a good mood. ) Good luck to both of you. No need to miss me or pay me a visit ok. :D

1 billion NT might be mine? *praying hard*

This morning the math teacher sitting in front of me in the office said he would like to treat us a very expensive meal, which costs at least 6000 NT for each person, at Grand Hotel if he biao1 dao4 zhe4 ke hui4. I was confused at first, you know…it’s called ‘狀況外’ in Chinese. Then, according to this part of my personality, being curious and would try my best to figure it out, I asked him and finally knew it’s about the Big Lotto. Oh my goodness! The first prize this time is over 1 billion NT! :O Dear friends…yes, of course. I went out buy some already. I am sitting here blogging and praying that Goddess of Good Luck might happen to drop by and enter my house. By the way, no first prize is ok, you know. Just the second or third or fourth is satisfying too. LOL~ am I day dreaming? But it’s evening now. :P Well…come on, you guys wish me good luck. :D

woo~ 'I, Robot' and Hot Pot!

You know I enjoy watching Will Smith’s movies. So, when the new friend, who I knew from another channel online, called me and asked me out last Tuesday, I didn’t say ‘yes’ at first. *winks* Of course you know I am not playing hard to get. I AM HARD TO GET, that is. I told him my schedule was not to allow me to go out with him until this Tuesday. He had no choice then :P but asked me to go to a movie this Tuesday afternoon. ( yesterday afternoon you know…no energy to blog last night. )

I had 4 sessions to teach yesterday. Then I drove home to have lunch and take a rest since my friend was in a meeting. He called me and said his meeting was to prolong. Doesn’t matter. We teachers have to be tolerant to other people who work in other fields. They may not be able to come and go at fixed time, you know. Finally his meeting was over, and he drove to pick me up near my place. We went to 京華城 and watched ‘I, Robot’. It’s really enjoyable… ( and he’s pretty much the eye candy for me, you know, hey I mean Will Smith, not my friend. :P ) I love the movie! And you know what’s the best…one friend of mine was so glad that he got free tickets and went see this same movie with his colleague. Wei… I watched that for free too. LOL~ Motto for today: want free tickets to watch movies? Sure, either your company is nice enough to get some for you, or you look beautiful enough. ( Of course you know I am too humble to say that I look beautiful, but that friend told me ‘teacher you look pretty’ quite a few times last night…don’t tell me to go hit the wall then. :P )

After the movie it’s almost dinner time. He took me to a high class shabu shabu restaurant near his office, and of course I ordered a vegetarian hot pot. I couldn’t finish the dinner since the food was…too much for me. @@ nan2 de2. I really wasn’t there pretending being lady-like ok. I wanna eat them all! Anyway, I had a nice evening and saw a fantastic movie. My friend asked me as I was to go off his car if I would go out with him next week when he’s off duty. Hehehehe~ What do you think? Shall I? *evil grins*

"She bangs she bangs"...no, this time it's "He banged'

I got a phone call from Gary’s mom. She told me Gary had to take medical leave today. Being a homeroom teacher, I am used to showing my care if something’s wrong…and I asked her what’s wrong with my boy student. The mom told me what happened. This early morning Gary saw a cockroach flying to him. He’s so nervous and frightened maybe…that he BANGED his head onto something. Oh my goodness! Do you know roaches in Taiwan are good at flying? Very scary…especially if some roach touches my skin and if I don’t clean my skin by washing it with a lot of water, I will feel very itchy and even get rash you know. Guess it’s because roaches have quite a lot of bacteria or…? I have no idea.

My friend shouted me lunch today. I had a vegetarian steak, which is more expensive than non-veggie one I think. A drink ( for a better appetite? ), salad, baked bread with garlic-flavoured sauce, main course ( the ‘steak’ hehehe ), and the desserts are fruit, a piece of cake ( no eggs used ), a cup of hot coffee. Oh no I got 2 cups of coffee today then. But I am too tired to get possessive or whatsoever these days. Well I should go hit my bed earlier tonight…In fact I have a spider story to tell. Next time maybe…

Reunion

Time flies. I am not to sigh for it though. It’s great for me since I enjoy meeting something new and surprising day after day. Today one ex-student and her friend, a lovely girl too, came visit me in Taipei. And we had lunch at an Italian restaurant. Nice nowadays they can have some vegetarian option on the menu. Otherwise I might get moody to see them eat? *chuckles* The iced black tea there is cool. Best is you can have as much as you would like. So…if I can’t fall asleep later even I am damn tired, you know it’s because I got too much of it. :P