one man guy

my colgate is in chinese

2010-01-17T08:33:00.000-08:00

it's the really small and simple moments sometimes when i realize i'm in a completely foreign country. like when my dentist speaks chinese, or when my toothpaste is 100% in chinese. that never happens. they almost always throw english on there as a status symbol. anyway, i just thought this was funny. maybe it's only when the mundane things in life like dental hygiene are also in chinese that i realize that people aren't just putting it on as entertainment for me.

a 3-day trip to penghu

2009-11-24T07:30:00.001-08:00

erkan fishing village
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005

this past weekend gaz and i went to penghu for a look around. i am on mid-term break right now, and i wanted to do something travel oriented. i couldn't practically leave the country without messing up visa concerns, so instead we went to penghu in the middle of the taiwan strait.

although the naysayers warned of wind and less-than-desirable weather, i was still really excited about being somewhere a bit remote. and for the most part they were right. the temperatures weren't bad, but the wind was indeed fierce. and that made it feel cold some of the time, like traveling 70kph on a scooter. i guess i got the authentic experience.

aside from that, we had such a great time. there is so much history in penghu, mostly from old fishing villages and military outposts. there are also a lot of interesting geological features.

please have a look at my photos by clicking right here. i'm sure you'll be able to tell that i had a great time.

IT MAKES ME CRAZY!!!

2009-09-12T18:33:00.000-07:00

this morning i came to one of my favorite cafés, which happens to be in the first floor of a big office building. normally i come through the back outdoor seating area, but today the door was locked and there was a sign at the door:

H1N1 procedures in effect, Please enter through the front lobby for temperature check.

this makes me so friggen crazy!!! i have to have my temperature checked to get a cup of coffee? are you serious?

the thing that is so damn frustrating for me is this question: how effective is all of this horse and pony show? do i not still ride the subway with thousands of people every day? do i not still walk through a supermarket, touching produce and rubbing elbows with all the elderly grandmas who do the families' shopping? where does it end?

i find it to be a false security blanket, and maybe it's understandable for this region of the world that has dealt with SARS and avian flu. but it just seems so silly. do i really have faith in the thermometers that they point at your head? do those take an accurate temperature? do i really believe all the flimsy, cheap, paper face masks are of the surgical standard that actually stop the transfer of germs? the answer over and over is a resounding NO!!!

it's my main gripe all the time, and i say it to everyone... but i cannot help but say it again now because it's so relevant: maybe i wouldn't find this all so offensive and annoying if the adult population washed their hands with soap after using the toilet. how about we start with some tried and true basics. it's appalling to me to go through all this other BS, and to see the posted notices in washrooms about the proper way to wash your hands, only to then see people casually waltz out of the toilet without stopping at the sink, or pausing only briefly to rinse the tips of their fingers. 幹!!!

impossible information

2009-09-03T08:30:00.001-07:00

i'm just posting this in hopes that if someone googles it, they'll have a lot easier time finding the information than i did. this (location A on the map) is where you can get off the guoguang bus coming from taipei going to sun moon lake.
guoguang kingbus sun moon lake station final stop address shuishe visitor center
國光客運終點站國光日月潭站在水社遊客中心

View Larger Map

a lovely night BBQ in taipei

2009-09-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

the other night i joined some really close, good friends for a bbq at their house. they live on the roof of a building, so they have a really nice terrace/balcony type thing--perfect for barbecuing. it was just a nice night of chatting, drinking, and eating. here are some photos.

sandra prepping the veg. it's funny that her shirt matches the eggplant!

sandra and i making the skewers.

gaz fanning the coals to keep the fire hot. it was a lot harder than it should've been.

gives a bit of the feel for the terrace. there is a built-in table outside,
so it's perfect for this kind of thing--DESTINY!

in the midst of our enjoyment.

belen and i waiting to get our munch on!

belen and kyle have a great view of taipei 101 from their apartment.
the characters on the building are special, in support of the disaster relief after typhoon morakot.

kyle doing what aussies do best: bbq and beer.

life of the unemployed

2009-08-31T00:07:00.000-07:00

Today officially marks my final day as a shane english schools employee. for the entire month of august, i have been filling in for other teachers who have either taken holiday or called in sick. it's been an interesting experience, and i've gotten to experience a different side of working for this company. i'm glad that it only went on for a month though. it's not fun not knowing if you're going to work until the morning of that very day.

today was such a day, a standby day. and there was no work for me, so i ended my run as a teacher for shane quite unremarkably. it feels a bit weird that i'm not working for them anymore. in fact, this was the longest i've held a job in a while. i was there for about a year and 3 months. that sounds pathetic, but outside of the air force and outback, i haven't done anything longer.

but don't worry about me. i filled my day with a bit of morning internet, then a swim, followed by lunch at a cafe--all the while zipping between locations on my bike. it's a beautiful warm day with blue skies and big, billowy white clouds. the strong breeze keeps it from feeling too hot, especially when on the bike. i just ride leisurely from here to there because, after all, that's what you should do when you're unemployed, right?

a drunken epiphany

2009-07-20T08:06:00.000-07:00

the important parts of life are so good and amazing.

score one for taiwan

2009-07-01T06:21:00.000-07:00

most days it seems like i have a huge list of annoyances that i complain about taiwan, or at least stew about them silently. so let me not be so negative all the time, and turn the tide a little bit and praise something awesome about taiwan.

i recently just ran out of a huge supply of contacts that i had stockpiled a few years ago before i got out of the military. i didn't want to worry about my health insurance situation, so i just got a ton that would last me a while until i could get another prescription. with those finally running out this past week (a torn contact wouldn't allow me to stretch out my current pair longer), i realized i'd have to go to the eye doctor.

most people probably think the eye doctor is ok, and the dentist is the one to fear. well, i disagree. i HATE the eye doctor. that puff of air in the eye, the incessant questions of "is this one better? or is this one?" it's all just too much for me to bear.

but in lovely taiwan, one can just waltz into a glasses store and BUY his contacts!!! it was glorious. it took about 15 minutes out of my daily routine.

while most things here are definitely not easier or more streamlined, today i can be happy about at least one thing that is.

clean and clear

2009-06-17T07:24:00.000-07:00

today's beautiful weather really had a positive effect on me. i was so excited by the clear blue skies and the sunshine. even on good days, taipei is really hazy. i'm not sure if it's just the pollution or if weather plays a big part. but anyway, clear days are a real treat.

today was exceptional, and i couldn't stop remarking about it all day. it put me in such a good mood. my kindi class went to the park to play games with the other schools, and on the way there, i saw scenery that i had literally never seen before because the sky had never been clear enough. i got to see all the hills and small mountains that surround taipei, and it was truly remarkable. if every day were like today was, i would be infinitely happier.

typical day

decent day

a blog-inspiring day like today

Gaoxiong day 1

2009-05-28T19:43:00.000-07:00

right now it's dragon boat festival, and so we've got a four-day weekend. i think this is the first holiday i've gotten since chinese new year, except for the vacation i took to go back to the US in march.

gaz and i originally planned to go to vietnam for the four days. neither of us has been there, and so it seemed like a good, inexpensive plan. but then thinking about it later, i decided that four days isn't really enough time to go explore someplace new. so we then decided to go to hong kong. however, we waited too long to buy tickets. see, there was a possibility that i would have to be on standby for saturday, and so i didn't want to invest the money if that was going to be the case. who takes two days off to only go back to work on saturday???? where am i and how retarded are these people?

anyway, we couldn't find tickets online, and even a travel agent told us there was just nothing available. so we decided to come to gaoxiong instead. i was a little upset about it, but then i got more and more excited as the time drew near.

it feels so nice to be on holiday. i've been so stressed out and burned out at work lately. i have to choreograph a stupid little program for the graduation ceremony in two months. ugh. plus, i know i'm done teaching for now because i've got my scholarship, so i don't care anymore. so i just really needed this vacay.

yesterday we set out, coming down here about noon. it was an exciting thing for me because i got to ride the high speed train for the first time. since i'm like a little kid with my fascination with trains, this was a really cool thing. i also got to ride the subway here in GX which just opened less than a year ago, so it's all shiny and new.

the vibe in gx feels just a bit different. it's pretty chill and relaxed. the streets are wider, there seems to be less traffic... i dunno. i suppose some of this is just because it's someplace different, someplace that's not home. but that's the beauty of getting away for a few days. we've got a nice little room that overlooks the main river, which is surprisingly clean, and was right where they had the dragon boat races. so we could look out from our room, out of the rain, and watch the event. nice.

today i think we're going to a small island about an hour boat ride off the coast. in fact... i need to get going.

scholarship!

2009-05-06T08:46:00.001-07:00

third time's a charm, right?

it seems like all my life i have been applying for scholarships, and either not getting them or not meeting some bit of criteria, or, almost more painful, is that i get them, but then i end up having to turn them down.

it first happened to me when i was originally planning to go to the U of I before i went into the af. i applied for a scholarship from the school and got the dean's scholarship, or some such. i think it was a $4000 award? it wasn't going to take care of everything, but it was significant. but of course i turned it down and went into the military.

second time came along several years later when i was done with uncle sam's street gang and was attending unlv. i promised myself that i was going to study abroad, and so i applied to get a scholarship for it. and won it! but then, decided that study abroad was too expensive still, and more importantly, delayed my graduation too much.

i'm totally relieved to say that i've gotten a 3rd scholarship that i've applied for, and this time i'm really going to use it (although there was a period of doubt about it a few weeks ago when i was feeling particularly down about... well... everything).

just 2 days ago i got word that i am going to get the ministry of education's mandarin scholarship. i get an amount, not quite half of my current salary, to go to school here. it's not a degree program, but rather just an "experience" i guess. it's not even a certificate, that i know of. anyway, i'll probably go to class 2 to 3 hours per day, 5 days a week. i think it will do wonders for my chinese, and i'm so excited about it.

at first i was just excited about the news, and i hadn't really taken time to think about things. today it really sunk in what this all means. i'm going to stop working. that's so amazing to me on a day where i left the house at 8am and didn't return until about 10pm. i get enough to live on and go to school from the taiwanese government for basically no reason. it's beautiful.

now, realistically, i will have to work a bit. i'll most likely do some private tutoring on the side to make extra money. the scholarship is enough for me to live on perhaps, but it's very meagre. it's a lucky coincidence that i have set a budget of $25,000nt/month for myself here, and that's what the scholarship is too. so now i just need to work on the other $30,000nt/month that i was making in my teaching job that was all going towards paying off debt. in truth, i understand that i'm probably going to fall a bit shy of that mark. but even if i fall extremely short of that mark, i'm willing to slow down loan repayments for this great opportunity. i'll work toward my big goal of getting better at chinese, and i'll enjoy a more leisurely pace of life. isn't that what living abroad is all about? i think so.

recipe for contentment

2009-04-28T04:23:00.000-07:00

1. favorite jeans, now with huge holes in the knees
2. favorite, old 3/4 length sleeve baseball shirt
3. baguette
4. cheese
5. beer
6. flight of the conchords
7. 30 rock

mix haphazardly and enjoy.

humpday happies

2009-04-22T06:19:00.000-07:00

it's wednesday, and what a long trying wednesday it was. i was really tired after being out a bit too late last night, and it really affected my mood today. it was a long day, and my evening class was really challenging--more so than usual.

after work i went to the gym. i usually do a bit longer workout on wednesday, even though it's a longer work day too. so here i am, it's 9:30, and i've only been home for about an hour. but now i'm happy. nothing left in my night except a bit of wine and the conclusion of rupaul's drag race. and tomorrow, it's a nice easy day that leads me right into friday. so happily, i might make it through this week unscathed afterall.

please tell me what i'm doing

2009-03-03T04:40:00.000-08:00

wow, i'm in a really low place right now. i guess it's nothing extreme or out of the ordinary, but i'm just feeling this overwhelming feeling of uselessness. i don't particularly like my job, but i feel like i'm not very good at what i do like, which is languages. it's probably hard enough to really find something to do with language when you're good at it, but when you're only mediocre, then it becomes that much more deflating. add that to a big bunch of debt that's going to make me feel really poor for the next few years, and i just feel like life is a shit storm that won't abate for a while.

i know that this kind of thinking is really self-defeating. if i'm going to overcome these, i'll admit, rather normal life challenges, then i need to add a bit of mustard and get things done. instead i choose to sit around and mope and feel sorry for myself.

so, with that, i guess i better move on with my life and do something about the problems that seem to be mounting against me.

high pressure sales

2009-02-16T05:44:00.000-08:00

omg, om-fucking-g. tonight i went to this pumped up, crazy, scene-y gym to check out a deal that they supposedly had going on with my company. what a fucking mistake.

i suppose in the end i was only there for an hour or 75 minutes, but they were some of the most painful of my life.

to keep this brief and simple, the salesmanship was just very very high pressure, and even when it should've been totally clear that it wasn't going to be a fit, they still pressured me and asked me retarded questions. example:

me: i can't sign a contract for 24 months because i'll likely only stay another year.
her: so, what part of the conditions aren't you able to accept?
me: well, the price is too high, like i've already said, and.... well, i can't sign a 24 month contract.
her: hmmm, well, why is the price too high?

omg, it just continued like this for too long. i was trying not to be rude, but i was really losing my patience toward the 45 minute mark. they brought a second chick over after a while to talk to me too, and they were just really awful. they were complimenting me on all sorts of stuff, and trying to make chit-chat and be my friend. and, something that is kind of unique to taiwan/chinese culture, is that it's considered really cute to whine or kind of baby talk. disgusting. so they're saying things to me like a kid whining for a new toy in the supermarket.

*sigh* i'm so angry about the whole experience. thing is, i got roped into it, and i didn't know how to get out of it without being rude, so i just went along. finally i just didn't care if i was rude or not. i tried to at least justify it that at least it was all in chinese and was good language practice, which worked for a while. but then i didn't even want to speak chinese after the first 45 minutes or so. i was just so completely over it. and doing all this annoying stuff in your second language can be really ... hm, a good exercise? confidence building? i dunno what... but i didn't even get those feelings. it just felt really hard because with these type of people, you need to be so direct and honest and a bit curt with them to get through their bullshit.

so, feels good to vent. thanks for reading.

nothing too exciting

2009-01-31T23:25:00.000-08:00

today is sunday, the final day of nine consecutive days i've had off for the chinese new year celebration. i had more ambitious hopes for such a nice freebie block of time off, but it was definitely a nice time regardless.

the week started in yilan with gaz at his host family's house, and so i got to see how things go for this holiday the traditional way. well, somewhat traditional i'm sure... i'm not sure people have been watching tv programs akin to taiwan idol for all that many years.

upon returning to taipei i got really really ill with the flu or a cold or something, and that had me bed-ridden for almost two full days. it sucks to lose days from your time off, but i guess all things considered, it's still nice to just be at home and have a full excuse to sleep and watch movies.

after i got well, the weather got beautiful and gaz and i spent quite a bit of time just strolling around the city doing leisure things, like going to second-hand bookstores and the like. it's a hard life, but we were sure to rest appropriately between bouts of activity by sitting down at a cafe and having a beer or two.

one of the really great movies i saw during the break was vicky cristina barcelona. i wasn't sure i really wanted to see it, but it ended up being REALLY good. i like the way there was a narrator throughout the whole thing. it kind of reminded me of those educational videos from the 50s or something.

today, being the last day, i'm just taking care of some household type stuff. i gave myself a haircut and trimmed the scary beard i had allowed to grow during the whole break. i'm taking care of laundry, cleaning, dishes, all that fun stuff. you know, i suppose by tomorrow i'll be ok about going back to work too. it's kind of encouraging to go to work after seeing the big spreadsheet-budget thing i made for myself this morning. it shows me how much i'm going to be able to get out of debt by the end of the year, and it really makes me want to work so i can be on my way with this plan.

香港與台北比較

2009-01-13T04:43:00.000-08:00

top five reasons hong kong is better than taipei:
5) they have zara
4) the victoria peak view of a skyline that doesn't go dark at 10:00pm
3) a beautiful, albeit smoggy, waterfront and trans-harbor ferries
2) british pubs full of british people
1) i have never seen someone clip their fingernails on the hk subway

the english, my friend, is blowin' in the wind....

2008-12-19T04:12:00.000-08:00

it's funny how one can discern his mother tongue, even when it is spoken from far away in a crowded street market, and he sits blogging in his room on the fourth floor. i cannot make out any words, but the specific english cadence and lilt is definitely there.

a trip to yilan

2008-12-07T04:59:00.001-08:00

happily waiting
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

this weekend gaz and i went to yilan so he could sit on a panel for the women's film festival. yilan is the small town to the east of taipei where he spent a year going to high school, so we also got to spend time with his host family who are cool people.

it was really nice to get out of taipei and see something a little bit different. it's embarrassing how little i've been out of this city in the six months since i've been here. i didn't exactly get to see a ton of yilan just because of the busy schedule with the film festival, but i still felt the change in scenery. it was nice to be somewhere that has fresher air, isn't completely paved over, and has a slower pace. i'm looking forward to hopefully going back sometime.

one of the highlights for me, embarrassingly, was that i got to take a train somewhere. the train there was so nice and new and felt really cool. granted, we were unlucky for the return train, but whatever. i got to experience something that i don't experience at home, and that's what living abroad is all about, right?

oh, and speaking of that :) i experienced two new foods this weekend: chicken testicle and frog legs. the latter was quite nice. and the former? well, i took one very small piece just to be polite and prove that i can be as intrepid as the next foreigner.

mes amis

2008-11-25T22:59:00.001-08:00

mes amis
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

the day after discharge from the hospital, gaz, sandra, and i went to have breakfast together. we ended up spending most of the day roaming around the park, having fun, and taking silly pictures. this is one that i especially liked.

hospital stay: taiwanese style

2008-11-21T03:12:00.000-08:00

this past week, not only did i go through my very first experience with general anesthesia and surgery, but i did it in a foreign country. quite interesting.

the story is quite simple, really. odd, maybe, but simple. i finished my workout on tuesday night and had quite a bad stomach ache, like i had a severe case of gas. i got home and felt awful, so i canceled my dinner plans for that night. it didn't take long before i was convinced that i should go to the doctor because the pain just kept getting worse and worse, like nothing i had felt before. i also remembered in the back of my mind that my sister complained of feeling like she had bad gas when she had really had appendicitis.

first i went to a clinic in the neighborhood, and it was pretty bare bones--the kind of place where you go to get cold medicine or something. the doctor there did some prodding and sent me on to a hospital. i went to the ER and waited for a while to get some tests like x-rays. the pain kept getting worse and worse, and the hospital staff slower and slower. i was writhing around in the waiting room, shivering and feeling feverish. people were looking at me and i just wanted to yell at them that, yes, i was sick, so what did they expect? finally they took me upstairs and did a CT scan, and it seems that after that i was officially diagnosed with appendicitis. a bit of time passed, along with a couple instances of vomiting, before i was finally given some antibiotics. i slept and woke up finally feeling some relief in my abdomen.

the hospital was all booked for surgeries, so they referred me to another, and i'm glad they did. this one is much nicer, and i feel like the staff has been much more attentive. i waited at the new hospital for most of the morning and early afternoon, and then at about 3pm they took me up to the OR. it was shocking how fast everything went from there. i was taken into the OR, asked a few questions, had a few things explained, and then the anesthetist did her magic. i woke up in my room later that night and have been here ever since.

i opted to have the laproscopic surgery over the traditional. apparently the national health insurance would've covered traditional, and i might have to pay something for the laproscopic. but i thought it would be worth it. it's quite shocking how three little incisions can hurt so much. i can't imagine if it had been traditional. i will comment, though, that i had a drainage tube left in one of the holes for a while, and they finally took that out this morning. things have felt generally more normal down there since then. i'm eating, drinking, using the toilet, walking around... everything seems to be coming back to normal. i am a little tired of the hospital room, but at least i have my computer to keep me company. and the phone calls from friends and colleagues have been sweet, but i'm honestly so sick of the same questions regarding discharge, pain, etc. i've also had a few visitors, which again is so sweet, but i don't exactly like having people see me in this state.

i don't have much experience with western hospitals either, but i would say the main difference that i notice is that a lot of basic care is left up to the next of kin to manage. i think it's a cultural situation where the family feels it's their duty to care for the family member, so they would feel offended if hospital staff were doing it? and maybe the patient feels more comfortable with family doing certain things? i dunno, whatever it is, it seems weird. things like finding out that we could go get fresh scrubs for me from a closet whenever we wanted, that the nurses weren't really going to deliver them. so luckily, i have had a retinue of very close friends filling in the gaps and keeping me comfortable and entertained.

i'll be getting out tomorrow morning sometime, and then it's back home to finish up my recovery. i'm not sure how many more days i'll stay away from work. not too many i don't think. i didn't expect to miss a ton of work, but my boss informed me that i could likely miss two weeks, as was the situation the last time they dealt with an appendectomy. so i know i don't have to hurry back. but i also can't really afford to not work either.

another big thing to think about post-discharge is how i want to resume running. i am one month away, to the day, from the taipei marathon. i've been training for 14 weeks already, and i'm not that keen to just give up like that. the doctor said i should take about a week off of running, but even then, i'm not sure he meant that i can get right back into marathoning. it's disappointing, but take what life hands to you. maybe this is the perfect excuse to do what i've been wanting to do for a while: run a more leisurely pace and enjoy my marathon experience rather than finishing and wanting to die. call it silly, but i just don't want to give up on my chance to run a marathon in a foreign land.

funny how an odd little bit of, what, intestine? see, i don't even know... but the little bugger has really thrown a stick in my spokes.

my humble abode

2008-10-30T08:14:00.000-07:00

this is my newly-rearranged room, from two different angles. don't get lost on the tour!!!

the dentist, aka 牙醫

2008-10-24T08:10:00.000-07:00

several weeks ago one of my back molars mysteriously chipped and left a jagged surface that was driving me crazy. after a long amount of procrastination, i finally scheduled an appointment to get it sorted out.

good news, it didn't require and restorative procedures, and the dentist just ground it down to a smooth surface (which feels so strange in my mouth now... i hate it when things change on my teeth). also very good news, was that the visit cost me $4.58 (um, can't the US figure out this kind of health care??)

the most interesting thing, though, was that it was such a familiar setting--the dentist--but it was so surreal that those masked faces hovering above me were speaking chinese. it was one of the few experiences where i kind of woke up to the reality that i'm really living in a foreign country. dorothy, this definitely isn't just vacation anymore.

me at the dentist

hillarity in jellyfish class

2008-10-24T08:05:00.000-07:00

today, albeit not halloween, my kindergarten students and i dressed up to go trick-or-treating at a nearby department store (seriously, don't ask why we did... cuz i don't know. we're going next friday too).

when we got back to the school, some of the sweeter students gave me some of their candy since i didn't have my own. i ate it and told them that it wasn't good candy, and that they should give all of it to me. they didn't really get the humor in that, and this one little boy...five years old mind you.... says, "it's bad because it's from china?"

omg, i friggen laughed so hard. i couldn't believe he said it. i couldn't believe he was aware of the milk issue going on. or, i guess since this is taiwan, maybe he just hears a lot of general china-hate at home. either way, so funny.

niiiiiiiiiiice

2008-10-16T04:54:00.000-07:00

lifted from a real website of a language school i'm thinking about going to for chinese lessons. i bet you can't guess the part that i find a little off-putting....

TLI ROOSEVELT CENTER (HQ): TEACHERS WANTED!!

EFL Teachers for children needed at the TLI-Roosevelt Center. Caucasian, North American accent, BA degree, and with at least 2 years of experience in teaching children. Both full-time (every afternoon) and part-time (on Saturday afternoon) positions available.

Part-time Portugese teacher position for afternoon classes.

For those who are interested, please send your resume or CV to tlifld@ms25.hinet.net

jellyfish class

2008-09-10T07:55:00.001-07:00

The Jellyfish Class
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

these are the kiddos that i teach. i kind of like them now. kind of.....

fan club president

2008-08-22T19:29:00.000-07:00

does anyone want to buy and send this book to me and be my biggest hero? i'm not sure i can get it here. or if i can, i'm sure it's like $30.

sore for days

2008-08-04T07:31:00.001-07:00

this weekend i went to a farewell party for a teacher named mercedes. incidentally, she is the teacher that i have taken over for, so i've only had a chance to know her very briefly. anyway, she's my kind of lady, arranging a bowling event for her going away (also how i chose to bid vegas a sweet goodbye).

i had a lot of fun, and part of that might have been the 10.5% belgian beer i was drinking, despite a horrific cold. (hmm, somehow it didn't seem so bad when i was drinking.) plus the venue was pretty cool, with bowling downstairs, billiards upstairs, and then arcade games. much like a D&B.

but what this place had, that no D&B has, which was totally awesome, was a mechanical bull. a few of my friends rode it, and i felt my curiosity rising, yet i felt so embarrassed to do it. finally, with just a smidgin of coaxing, i put on the helmet and threw myself into the ring.

me getting ready to ride

'round and round i go

boy, did i have a surprise coming!! it is so much work!! i think my longest ride was about 18 seconds, and i got thrown a couple of times. afterward, i was so out of breath like i had just been running for hours. and my legs were exhausted like never before. and today? wow... SO sore. my legs, glutes, back...it's all just screaming at me. still a fun time had by all.

me and my good mate, fiona

day 1 jitters

2008-07-31T03:54:00.000-07:00

tomorrow i begin teaching my real kindergarten class, and i have to admit that i'm a bit nervous. i think everything will be fine, and i'm sure after the first week i'll fall right into some really solid habits. still, it makes me a bit nervous to think that tomorrow i'll just be running the whole show in that little classroom. the kids are great though. they seem so interested in me because i'm new, and they are quite cute most of the time.

i'm also happy to have a regular schedule finally. granted, i am sure i'll fondly remember the days when i worked only a few hours per day, but it's about time i be more productive anyway. i have an ok schedule. i will be working basically 9 to 4 on my short days, and 9 to 6:30 on my longer days. that's not too awful. especially considering that i'm not working all the way through; i'll have a 2-hour lunch break every day.

and the money! oh yes, that little thing! i get paid once a month, so that's going to take some getting used to. last month i only got about a half a month of pay, so i ran out kind of quickly. i hate spending money from my US accounts, but lately i've had no other choice. it will be good to stop that habit and start paying down student loans.

the transportation gods smiled

2008-07-18T02:02:00.000-07:00

last night i had the most trying time getting home from work, after the longest day at work. i was at the school from about 8:30am until about 7:45pm. yuck. i'm not saying i'm the hardest worked person in the world, but just that that's a lot of hours compared to my usual 1 1/2 hours per day.

as i waited for the bus last night (which wasn't coming and wasn't coming) i finally took a chance at just getting on a different one. i guess the driver sensed my haphazardness because he asked me where i was going and told me that the bus wasn't going there. embarrassed, i got back off. then i was waiting more, and i felt something rather warm and wet hit my arm. not totally unusual since it was raining; but wait! it was really warm. warm.... like bird shit warm. yes, i looked up and realized that i was standing under a power line and got shit upon (shat upon? help me here).

so yes, last night was trying. but today, as i left that same school, it was a totally different experience. i got to the bus stop, and good ol' number 252 rolled right up. it got me back to my place super fast, like 20 minutes maybe. and i accidentally got off a stop early, but i was ok about the slight walk. but then lucky number 74 rolled up right behind, and so i quick hopped on it and got taken to the closest possible stop to my house. better than the 252 even!

now that's what i call some redemption after a night like last night.

ooooh, ice cream sounds great right now!!! ........awwwww

2008-07-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

every week my roommates and i share the household duties like sweeping and taking the trash out. this week is my week, so boy was i in for a treat.

taking out the trash here is definitely a different experience than at home. no dumpsters, no curbside pickup. what could it possibly be?

every week at established times the trash truck comes around and makes scheduled pick-ups. the good citizens of taipei rush to meet the truck, and once it comes, you heave the trash into it yourself. there is a law, or maybe just a social rule, that trash should never be on the streets or sidewalks, even when contained in a bag. so overall, taipei is very clean, although it's damn near impossible to find a public place to put your trash with the exception of the metro stations. although that's über-annoying, what's super-cool is that those receptacles, even at fast food joints, are designated for general rubbish and recycling.

knowing this, for my first trash duty i was a little apprehensive about how it should work. i wanted to be sure to get there plenty early. it was pretty much what i expected. there were people waiting around, standing watch over their trash. i guess it must not be a very local thing to offer to throw someone's trash for them so they can take off, although the thought crossed my mind. in the end, i'm glad i put on some real clothes (instead of PJs) because there were maybe about 2 dozen people standing by when the truck rolled up. it's quite a ritual, and i can't wait for my first foray into recycling. it was kind of neat to throw the trash into the truck myself after watching it done for so many years, i have to admit. here's what one journalist had to say about her experience on the washington post.

ok, and here's the best part of the whole thing: the truck comes at generally scheduled times. but how do you know exactly when it's rollin' on down your street? it plays music, like an ice cream truck!!! it's the best thing ever! if i weren't so lazy, i'd capture it myself. but i found some really nifty videos on youtube, and they do the job. besides, tonight the truck in my neighborhood didn't play music...but i have seen it in person before. just another reason to love taipei :)

gorilla violence

2008-07-16T07:25:00.001-07:00

gorilla violence
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

so, it's pretty bad that i'm taking so few photos that this has to be one of them that i blog. still, it was a fun outing to danshui, a city just north of taipei on the coast. it is a popular day-get-away and there is quite a lot of activity there.

PETA says:

2008-07-14T03:05:00.000-07:00

don't choke the chicken!

i walked past a, mmm, i'd put him at 60-year-old guy today on the street, and his t-shirt said "don't choke the chicken." i laughed and started smiling, wondering if he knows what it means.

flying off the treadmill

2008-07-11T07:03:00.000-07:00

as i mounted the treadmill for the first time in taiwan, i didn't think about the fact that it would be in km/hr, so all the numbers that i know so well were completely off. i thought i was really hot that i was going along at 8mph and it was feeling like nothing at all. of course it took me very little time to know that it was 8kph because i was barely doing more than a fast walk.

i'm adjusting slowly to running in km/hr, but it still feels funny. i only know what my pace per mile should be, not per km. the more i run (which thankfully i've been doing with some regularity) the more i'm getting used to these new numbers. just add it to having to learn a new currency and celcius.

tragically, however, there are a few treadmills at the gym that are indeed in mph. so as i crank the treadmill up to 9+ just to get started with a warm-up (a 9km/hr warm-up is appropriate, 9mi/hr is ball-busting pace) i almost go flying off of it. i managed to stay on, but what did go flying off was my confidence that i don't look like a novice. :-/

i'm teaching! (or at least trying)

2008-07-07T04:02:00.000-07:00

things have been going fairly well as far as teaching is concerned, but i definitely still struggle a bit. for one, some of the curriculum would leave anyone bored stiff. plus, i haven't perfected the ways to make it fun and exciting! ...i wonder if that is yet possible.

i have one class with this kid who blatantly refuses to do anything that would be considered desirable. he refuses to speak in class unless he says something rude, and whenever other kids get too close, he hits them. and he shoves his book on the floor all the time. i pick it up, and he shoves it off. another student picks it up, and he shoves it off. a real gem of a kid.

so i don't know what to do about all this, but i'm learning. the first class i got one of the taiwanese staff to yell at him/talk to him. that seemed to really piss him off even more. so this time i took to just letting him be himself, and trying to draw him in when possible, but not giving him the satisfaction of getting under my skin. when he's withdrawn, i just ignore him. when i see him with less of a scowl on his face, i invite him to participate. it's slow going, but i think this might be the most effective way of dealing with him. i did get him to do a few small constructive things today.

another thing that i have found challenging is to get the kids to use the language in any sort of meaningful way. i think i have been too tunnel-minded on the set curriculum in our course. like today i had to teach the kids 9 words, but they knew them super fast. so i should've taken one step further and had them use those words in sentences. i know that it's not what is standard, but i think knowing only isolated words is silly. i know it doesn't work for me in chinese. anyway, i know i still have stars in my eyes when it comes to what i want to accomplish, but i think you have to be that way or you'll just fall flat.

one worth writing down

2008-07-03T10:49:00.000-07:00

i can't believe i'm doing this: it's the middle of the night, and i've just woken from a dream that was so whacked-out that i had to write it down. i think i've had part of it before. i already am losing some of the details, but i dreamed that i was at a store or something with some friends, and i ran into regina spektor, and i (in a very cool way of course) told her how much i loved her and her music. and i was so suave, that she totally wanted to hang with me, and it was the most awesome experience ever. and i got pictures and everything, although i noticed that she would always cover her face at least partially which i didn't know if i could attribute to general artistic quirkiness or not wanting to be recognized too much.

anyway, then we were going somewhere, and as we were like leaving the attic of the place, which of course was set up like the very upper balcony of a theater (??wtf??) i remember having to walk over someone who had walked in, who i presumed was the manager of the place, and we were being shooed out. and when i walked past the person, climbing over her as you do in a theater, i realized it was ellen. but i was already so star-struck, i just was like, "well, hello there ellen," and continued walking on, very coolly glancing back to ellen only once.

then the dream dramatically shifts to one i think i've had before. i'm some place hick like kentucky, and i'm going to stay in a hostel type thing. only it's kind of a homeless shelter. kind of. kind of a crack house too. and the first night is fine, but i get wary of it the second night (i always have been somewhat prudent like that!) and so i decide to look for other accommodations. i walk down the road to this one place and check it out. i think it was called the florida. and while i'm there the guy gets really suspicious, and i tell him where i'm staying, and he says i best just go get my things from there, leave town, and look for a room in another town. i decide that's sound advice. but i guess because i've fought with him a little bit about wanting the room for just one night (because he was only willing to rent for two nights at a time...you know... that kind of hotel...again ??wtf??) he has called the police or something. so we have a showdown, and not surprisingly the police come out on top.

so there i am, but at least i'm being taken somewhere safe, even if it is jail or wherever. but then, as they are taking my things to be impounded, if that's the right word, i remember that i have regina spektor's sunglasses and maybe a book of hers in my suitcase. being the solid friend that i want to be to her--and yes, maybe a little bit wanting to retrieve the fun pictures of us so i can brag and show people--i run into the back of the police u-haul thing and rummage through to get my belongings, and when i get out of the trailer, the police pull guns on me. i might get shot right then too because that's when the dream ends.

i can't believe i've just taken the time to type this out at 2am, squirming as i do because i have to pee so bad. and i can't believe i've just shared this with the free world. not china. blogspot is owned by google. ;-)

born on a blue day

2008-06-30T08:48:00.000-07:00

i just finished reading this booked titled born on a blue day by daniel tammet. he is a savant with asperger's syndrome, and he has these amazing abilities to process numbers, much like the rain man character from the movie by the same name. a major difference, however, is that he's able to live independently, and he seems to have conquered a lot of the social challenges that are usually a part of autism.

a few of his most notable feats: he recited pi to 22,514 digits in just over 5 hours, he can speak about 10 languages at the time of publish (although he was set up to learn british sign language soon after), and he gained conversational fluency in icelandic in one week. totally amazing.

i bought this book for nicole having never read it because she works with children who have autism, and obviously the language part was supposed to represent me :) i never got around to reading it, myself, while i was still in the states, but i definitely wanted to so bad. and yo ho ho, there's a great book seller here called eslite that has a huge english section. now, when i bought the book at home, it was like, $8 on amazon. hard cover. here? it ended up being the "suggested retail" price of $24. ouchie. but, i had already gone to the trouble of ordering it from one location to another, so i wasn't going to not buy it.

and let me say, i totally loved it. i think it's probably the fastest i've ever read a book, in just a little over 24 hours. if i didn't have to work today, it would've been a lot less. also, usually i buy a book and let it sit on my shelf for a while (marinating? aging to perfection? i don't know why i do that....) but this one i cracked open at a cafe before i even got home.

so, bottom line (so i can get to bed now), read this book. if you like languages. if you like numbers. if autism interests you. or if you just like a good li'l story about a man who overcomes.

the handsome guest

2008-06-27T19:54:00.000-07:00

i have been blogging more than usual lately, but i know that everyone just likes pictures, so here goes.

for the first two weeks in taiwan, i stayed at a hotel that, translated literally, means the handsome guest. it's a funny little place. let's have a walk-through.

when i first walked it, i knew this place was totally awesome... like it might have been created out of set pieces discarded from the austin powers set. as cool as they are, round beds have just never taken off in popularity. maybe it's that they're a colossal waste of space.
looking into the bathroom, everything looks normal enough. except, what don't we see in this picture? a shower curtain! it was tricky for the first couple of showers not to spray water everywhere, but i quickly got good at it.
you might think i'm just trying to showcase these beautiful mauve-rose fixtures, but no, i'm demonstrating that there was at least a western style toilet, with toilet paper provided. yay! luxurious!
and last we have the sink, and me improvising the washing of my work-out clothes. i was being so ingenious about the whole situation.

so that's all i have to share of the hotel. hope it's been an enjoyable tour.

real internet

2008-06-26T09:52:00.000-07:00

yay! finally. a real house with real internet.

i moved into my apartment today, and it feels like such a good step. i feel a bit awkward about feeling out the roommate situation. but one thing for sure that's good is that i have internet in its fullest and most beautiful capacity!! and i can unpack stuff and not feel bad about it. yay for having a house, even if my room is the size of a closet ;-P

and today we went by taipei 101 in a taxi, which was very exciting for me. i should hurry up and go to it while it's still the tallest building in the world officially.

myriad scooters, dozens of dogs, and one sweaty, sweaty american

2008-06-18T17:48:00.000-07:00

usually i find the scooters here to be totally and completely obnoxious. they always go every which way, and i don't know how they aren't constantly colliding with each other and with pedestrians. i always feel like i'm going to be run down by one, even on the sidewalks. they'll just use the sidewalk to go against traffic to make their trip easier. they are loud, and they totally pollute. it stinks so bad when they go by.

anyway, i was running this morning and i did see something that literally made me laugh aloud. now, let me start by saying i have seen many oddities when it comes to scooters. i have seen up to three people on a scooter, mothers taking their kids to school, women grocery shopping, hauling a load of something, and believe it or not, even mcdonalds delivery!!... you get the idea. well today i saw something new. i was waiting to cross an intersection, and a guy goes whizzing by on his scooter with a big german sheppard, probably 60 pounds, on the floorboard between his feet. the dog was improvising the proverbial window and had his head hanging out to the side with his tongue flopping. it was so adorably cute and totally absurd that i had to laugh.

an afterthought

2008-06-16T04:39:00.001-07:00

i really hope this limeade drink is supposed to be gelatinous, otherwise, i could be very very sick in a little while. ahahahahahahahaha!!!!!

熨衣服

2008-06-15T02:11:00.000-07:00

i have always really hated ironing clothes. imagine my surprise when i found out a way to detest it even more: ironing without an ironing board. and pants weren't so difficult, but it was all the odd little corners that a dress shirt possesses that really made the feat especially impossible. overall, i give myself an A for maintaining calm and going with the flow.

...i just hope the humidity kind of acts like a steamer to get the rest of the wrinkles out tomorrrow.

and, i got to learn the word for iron that i never knew until today.

the first purchase

2008-06-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

it only took me about six seconds after arriving in taiwan to realize that i shouldn't have given all those umbrellas to goodwill. luckily, it's a very readily-available product on the street. i am practically drowning in all the moisture here.

my run this morning was interesting. it's difficult to dodge all the people, bicycles, scooters, traffic lights, cars, etc. i finally found a decent place to run next to the river, but it still takes a bit of working through the other maze to get there. and of course, the wetness still kind of made it miserable. see, i don't mind running in rain, but i do mind soggy shoes. and i suspect that they'll still be soggy tomorrow morning since it's so humid here and they won't have a chance to dry.

i oriented myself a bit to the city courtesy of google maps. i found out that the main school i will teach at is in banqiao city, just across the river from the main part of taibei. so it's actually considered taibei county. it would probably be cheaper to live there, and convenient, but i think i'd rather live in a more lively place, like closer to the city center. then again, a majority of days i'm going to be just going to school and going to home. if it's not difficult to get to the city on the subway, then isn't that good enough? and i mean, really.... we're talking just a couple of stops. it's probably not even as far as the equivalent brooklyn is to manhattan. maybe i'll go out there on the metro today just to check it out.

right now i'm in the coffee shop, and there are two sets of people speaking english near me. they're both comprised of a taiwanese person and a north american. i'm so intrigued by them because i imagine that very soon i'll have the opportunity to meet with people and help them practice their english. plus, from the snippets i've been able to hear, the americans sound like interesting and thoughtful people that i would enjoy knowing. it makes me jealous just a bit ;) tonight my plan is to go to a bar that david, the director from the school, recommended for a good place to go. i guess several of the teachers are known to hang out there.

*smile* what a nice day.

HERE!

2008-06-13T04:12:00.000-07:00

i have arrived! and as i sit here in this coffee shop with my computer, it already feels like this is just normal life.

the flight from honolulu to taiwan was pretty normal, but nice in some ways. i had never really had a flight with individual tvs at each seat. and it's a small detail, but i thought it made it really nice. i watched two movies that i had interest in, and none of the others appealed to me, so i just tried to sleep the rest of the time.

after i landed here a driver brought me into taibei and dropped me off at the hotel where i'm staying. after that i wasn't really sure what i was supposed to do, so that's when i had a short freak-out moment. mostly though, it's been a relatively easy process. i found the headquarters for the school and met some of the staff for the school company at large. i also met fiona, a south african who has just arrived yesterday. there are other brand new teachers starting right around this time too, which is comforting.

my training starts on monday, so i have the weekend to myself. i'm not sure what i'm going to do, but it'll probably just involve walking around since i don't really know anyone yet at this point. i'm in a pretty convenient place as far as sites to see.

my general impression of the city at first was that it's a lot dirtier and older than i expected it to be. however, with that being said, now that i've been inside some of the places, i can see that it's really quite nice almost everywhere. the buildings do look kind of dumpy from afar, but i wonder if some of that has to do with the extreme amount of rain and moisture here (i have TOTALLY been dying.) i have noticed that even in honolulu many of the buildings show signs of age, probably due to the almost daily rain. it already rained very heavily once today, as is projected for every day this week. i guess this will be a really good opportunity to break myself of the horrible habit of wearing flip flops everywhere.

things are nice here. people seem very normal. for example, i could feel the eyes on me all the time when i was in mainland china. and it's kind of novel at first, but then you just want to be left alone. but here in taibei no one pays an iota of attention. in fact, i thought people were looking my way in this coffee shop, maybe because of my beautiful mac, but then i realized there is a tv right behind me. :) hahaha, guess i'm not that interesting after all.

i can feel that life can be very normal here, and that i have a place and can fit in here. i suppose these feelings may be a bit premature, but again to compare it to when i visited in the mainland, it just felt so different. ...no one is trying to make me buy f*ing fake dvds on the street!

for so many years i have tried so hard to find opportunities to speak mandarin and practice, and it's a bit overwhelming to me that i can just hear and see it all around me. sure, it's a little bit different accent than i'm used to, but i think my ear is still adjusting. and the people that i have spoken to today seem to have made themselves more standard because i've had several successful transactions already today. i love that when i go to the 7/11 on the corner, the cashiers just talk to me in chinese. i was afraid they wouldn't do that.

i want to soak everything up about this place. i want to go exploring. i want to learn everything. i want to meet everyone.... it's hard for me to sit here and not want to be involved in all the conversations i hear around me. of course, i'm so tired that i'd be rubbish, and there will be lots of time for those types of things.

hm, i guess that's about all i have to say for now. i really feel myself fading. my goal was to only stay up until 8 or 9pm tonight, and i'm already only a half hour out. maybe i'll just pack up and head back for some good sleep.

mixed mtisoneo

2008-05-27T00:14:00.000-07:00

i am so happy about moving, but i'm so sad. i walk through my house and it doesn't feel like mine anymore. i look at nicole, and i struggle to imagine not sharing our space. i find myself wanting to cry.

packing things up

2008-05-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

i'm pleased to report that i finally started packing things up for storage while i'm in taiwan. i had john's help, so that was good. he's visiting from tucson this weekend, and it's good to have him help me on a project like that because otherwise i dawdle. he forced me into taking care of a lot of it very quickly. it really sucked and stressed me out to just have my whole life handed to me and have to make a decision about it. but in the end, that's what it takes. and as always, i am surprised by how much stuff i have. i didn't think i was going to have quite so many boxes to store. all in all, it's only a couple. but i'm asking my friend lori to hold on to them for me, so i just wanted to be as compact as possible.

last night john and nicole and i went to firefly, one of my favorite restaurants here. it's argentine tapas, and it's sooooo good. it always feels good to go places like that, especially when one is about to move.

this weekend peter & tracy had a garage sale, and they made out really well. they made almost $3000 from that day alone, plus they had already sold a bunch on craigslist prior to that, and i'm sure they were going to sell some on there afterward too. and they sold a palm tree from their front yard. not at the sale, but to a tree/landscaping company. mature palm trees bring quite a bit of cash. they got $1000 for it, but peter says that the company will have no problem turning around and selling that for $5000. ahhh, the middle man.

speaking of the middle man, i have had no luck with my car yet. i hope to not have to take it to a dealer or anything. i would lose some value so the middle man could make money off the sale. in the end, i think that might be what i have to do. so far i have had no bites. i did price it too high, so i think i'm going to lower that now.

kind of boring post today, but everything in my life is topsy-turvey, and not really in a great way. i hate the anxiety and stress of big transitions like this. i'm really feeling it now.

international banking

2008-05-19T00:16:00.000-07:00

i have a question to throw out there:

anyone have any good advice on how to maintain bank accounts in two countries simultaneously? i want to try to avoid high currency exchange and/or wire transfer fees. i will need to be able to access my money in taiwan, of course, but then also have money available to pay residual bills here, like students loans.

i think that big international banks like hsbc could be a good choice. otherwise, wells fargo surprisingly has something that looks promising. if you have any advice, or if you are more well-versed in finance, weigh in with opinions! thanks!

macbook

2008-05-03T01:42:00.000-07:00

i am totally in love with my new macbook. i am up at 1:42am customizing it. it's sick.

marathon photos

2008-04-14T12:13:00.001-07:00

boston marathon
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

i got an offer from marathonfoto.com to complete a survey and receive $10 off a photo order. the 2008 boston marathon is coming up, and they will be deleting all the 2007 photos. anyway, i had always sort of wanted a picture, but they were too expensive. with $10 off, though, they were only about $8, so i got one. it was a tough decision on which to get, but i settled finally.

but then i had a moment of curiosity, wondering if i could use the same coupon code twice. and i could! so i got the other one that i was really interested in.

i love this one. i have never had a good picture of me while i'm running because it's impossible for anyone to get very close, and they just never turn out well. it's a little egotistical, but my legs look absolutely amazing!!! i kinda can't believe it's me.

offers

2008-03-27T23:04:00.000-07:00

i guess this is skipping a step. but i had my interview and it went well, and the company decided that i was a good candidate for placement. so i have accepted that, and just tonight they rang in with the first two offers. i cannot believe it, and i'm so excited. i have only skimmed some of the details, but things look good. i will probably have a tough time picking one over the other, and this will probably be the part of the process when i start to agonize over differences. wish me luck!

interview week

2008-03-09T22:59:00.000-07:00

tomorrow morning bright and early i have an interview with the clark county school district to become a substitute teacher. tracy always mentions that they never have enough of them, and so they are willing to take about anyone :) i have been looking for ways to supplement my income, yet i don't want to take on a proper 2nd job because then i'm looking at some consistent scheduling. so i was thinking of something from home that would maybe just give me a couple extra hundred dollars a month, and thus i came up with subbing. sure, not from the comfort of my home, but whatever. pretty perfect since i normally have monday-wednesday off. the pay is pretty bad, but at least it's something.

well, as it works, i don't really wanna do this anymore because i think i'm finally going to get a full-time position at mgm. it might be only a couple of weeks before i'm working 40 hours. it might still be good to have some extra income if i want, and the experience could be ok considering other things (further in this post). the big thing i'm looking forward to is getting medical benefits finally!

so that's tomorrow. then on tuesday i have a phone interview (being conducted on skype, which i'm finding is AMAZING for int'l communications) with a placement agency for english teachers. i'm really excited about that. hopefully things will move along at a decent pace. if i had my druthers (a word i'll never teach my students since i haven't heard anyone use it since mrs. thomas' 4th grade class), i think i would like to start around the first of june. i would put my notice in at mgm at the beginning of may and hopefully travel around for a couple of weeks before i take the big plunge...ya know... see some of my peeps before i'm thousands of miles away.

so...that's my upcoming week. wish me luck!

hardly better than fox

2008-01-26T22:32:00.000-08:00

i used to really despise fox news, and while that hasn't changed over time, my opinion of cnn has dropped dangerously close to the level of fox. i suppose i see it as a different sort of offense: fox news is wild and crazy and irresponsible with their "reporting." cnn, on the other hand, is just dumb and full of personal drama. the lesser of two evils is a matter of debate, but i still think it's just depressing how cnn chooses to make their "top stories" all surrounding personal drama. it's always someone suing someone, a death or big car accident, investigations, or negligent parents. usually, none of that really has any ramifications in anyone else's life. yet for information on something like the results of the south carolina primary one must dig a bit. sure it's the first thing that you see on the "politics" link, but i think that's awful. maybe i'm way off base; maybe the "top stories" are determined solely by actual internet traffic. i somehow doubt it though. i just think it's too bad that a major new source has to pander to our national obsession with dramatic drivel.

doh!

2008-01-22T14:56:00.000-08:00

i'm so annoyed with myself. i sent back a grey's anatomy disc to netflix because i thought there were only two episodes. but then i put in the 2nd disc and see that i missed 2 episodes on the first disc. so now i've gotta wait for them to get it before i can re-add it to my queue, and then send another one in before i can get it again. annoying!

clever advert

2007-12-03T17:32:00.000-08:00

this was one of the pages in the marathon program. i thought it worthy of a posting.

check one off the list

2007-12-03T16:58:00.000-08:00

yay, it's finally over!

the past few weeks i have been looking forward to the conclusion of two major things: the end of school and the end of this round of marathon training. i can happily check one of those things off the list now.

i can also check off another major goal that i had for my marathoning adventures. after qualifying for the boston marathon, i set my sights on getting under the three-hour mark. i had come really close in my qualifying race...something like 3:04. then boston came and went, and i had come even closer, 3:00.48, but that major bragging right remained elusive.

but now i've checked that off the list, too.

i started the LV marathon really strong this year. i was way back in the crowd, so i think i went out aggressively because i knew i had to make up for what might have been a slower start. and as i started the race, i realized that most of the people i wanted to pace with would probably be ahead of me. it made me even more determined to go out strongly. i felt confident, and although i knew those 6:20-6:35 minute/mile splits were aggressive, i just felt really good and comfortable, so i went with it. who knows? maybe i was in for the race of my life.

around mile 11 i started to feel the fatigue. that's not a good feeling when you're starting the uphill segment of the course and you're not yet half-way done either. i tried to just keep the middle nine miles nice and steady, but that part of the course was the most difficult, and i was really tired.

finally by about mile 18 or so i knew i had pretty much guaranteed myself to break three hours. i only had about 8 miles left, and if i could just keep them under 7 mins/mile, i knew i would be well on my way, i would finish in another hour or less. and my watch time was still under 2 hours at that point. i just needed to survive and be smart and i would do it!

i hit the wall a little early, before the infamous mile 20. by the time i ran through the opening in the inflatable "wall" actually placed on the course, i was feeling it for sure. but i was locked into a little slower and more comfortable pace, maybe about 6:40-6:45. then i got a bit of a second wind, and the course started heading downhill, and i got optimistic that my ending few miles would be ok.

too bad the second wind was short. i struggled through some of those last miles, and by the time i had two left, i felt like i was jogging. those were definitely some of my slowest. i think i noticed one at 7:40. ouch. anyway, i hit the 26 mile marker, and picked it up for a decent finish. i crossed the line and the gun time on the clock read 2:58. my official time was 2:56.02.

sure it would've been nice if the end was not so difficult and i could've been even a few minutes faster. but i should focus on the fact that i made my goal, and i improved my time by almost a full five minutes. not bad, not bad.

today i am full of satisfaction, pride, and lactic acid. i could take some mild pain medication, but i kind of like the bittersweet reminder from a great race.

race day

2007-12-02T04:00:00.000-08:00

well, here we are. it's exactly 4:00am on race morning, and i feel as if i might harf. i'm so nervous. i'm trying to keep my wits about me, but i am really freaking out inside. i don't know why i am doing this to myself. i should feel confident, excited and happy. i do feel those things to an extent, but mostly there is an overwhelming sense of dread. i just hate the unknown. it's cold outside, so should i wear a long-sleeved shirt or no? what kind of hat or headband should i wear? what time exactly should we leave to drive down there? ugh.

(update soon to follow)

me

2007-11-23T10:12:00.000-08:00

hi, haven't posted anything recently...so i just thought i would throw up a picture taken from kimo's iphone at coffee this morning. those are lane's new tom ford sunglasses. whaddya think?

rejection

2007-10-30T09:29:00.000-07:00

you know, i always talk a big game that i can handle rejection like a big kid, and i don't understand why people have to play games and can't just be direct.

then i actually get a good dose of rejection and it feels like being punched in the stomach. *sigh* oh well, sally forth.

the bike ride

2007-10-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

today nicole and i went to have coffee at coffee bean, which was really lovely considering we sat on the patio and the weather today was supreme. nicole recently got a bike, and so we rode there together. afterward we rode around the unlv campus just for fun. and omg, fun it was!!! i think it was the coolest thing i've done in a while. we rode to all parts of the campus, even some places that i had never really been to before. i think it's always really neat when you think you know a place inside and out and then you find something new, or you see something from a different perspective to make it seem new. there is also something very fun about riding a bike with someone. i don't think i've probably done that since i was much much younger. it's nice to just ride along leisurely and chat a bit. i was really sad when nicole said it was time to go back home.

the ductch aroma

2007-10-28T23:59:00.001-07:00

tonight i ran late in the evening, and a couple of times i swear i smelled people smoking weed out on the street. i think i've noticed this a lot lately. it reminds me of days spent in the netherlands. *sigh*

phantom

2007-10-24T23:26:00.000-07:00

tonight i went to phantom of the opera with my sister, and i really enjoyed it. i've had the phantom highlights cd since i was like 13 or something, so it was nice to finally see it on a stage somewhere. the movie didn't really do that much for me when it came out a couple of years ago. and i'm sure the die-hard fans will say that the las vegas version of the show is weak considering it's only 90 minutes long. but all in all....very enjoyable. the stage production part of the show alone made me impressed. i know the theater was built specifically for that show, but still... the sets and some of the stuff they were able to do so seamlessly right on stage was pretty impressive.

red mango

2007-10-17T21:36:00.000-07:00

tonight i tried red mango for the first time. it's a frozen yogurt place from korea, and it's really quite good. it's truly frozen yogurt; it has that tart flavor of plain yogurt. there are just two flavors: original and green tea. then you add toppings, most of which are fresh fruit or cereal. they also have mochi which is nice. and since it's just yogurt, it's pretty low-cal and fat free. i'm not totally into seeking that, but it's nice when it just so happens that something you like has those features. jasmine, of my devoted readership, i think you're probably the only one with a red mango nearby, so you should go! the rest of you, be looking for one soon!

momentus day for an aviation geek

2007-10-17T21:32:00.000-07:00

tonight i was running up eastern, when much to my surprise, a special airplane passed overhead. i always like that part of my running route because i enjoy watching airplanes land. what was so exciting was that this was the first time i saw a virgin america plane landing in las vegas since they began service here on 10 october. it was everything i had hoped for. i could even see the cool bluish-pinkish-purplish mood lighting emanating from all the windows. i can't wait to actually fly to SFO with them sometime!

civil liberties my ass

2007-10-11T03:02:00.000-07:00

sometimes i feel bad about the anti-smoking phenomena that are happening across the country, and the world. but then i come home and peel my clothes off after a night at the club, and i lose all remorse.

so much fast food

2007-10-10T02:01:00.000-07:00

lately i have been a fast food fiend. jack in the box, chipotle, taco bell.... you name it. i have so much fast food waste in my trash can, i think i need to upgrade to 13 gallon.

today's ironies

2007-09-26T19:36:00.001-07:00

some musings from a las vegas road runner:

--a man noticed i was wearing a watch, and tried to stop me and ask for the time, i guess not realizing that someone timing their run is likely not that interested in stopping for a dialogue about the time...

--i approached a woman's stopped car from her right as she continually looked left. as often happens in these situations, the driver doesn't ever look the other way, so i often bang on their hoods a bit with my hand as i run perilously in front of their cars. this particular woman twisted even further to the left to look behind her and find the source of the noise...

--i was caught up a bit in thought, looking to my left at a bus stop advert featuring the dalai lama's tranquil face along with a peace slogan. at that very moment, i was startled back to reality by a passing motorist on my right who yelled something to the effect of "go fuck yourself"...

--the right-most traffic closest to the sidewalk is often the fastest moving, bearing up from behind me like a freight train. well, at least a ridiculously over-sized SUV or truck usually...

--a man sitting at a bus stop with his legs outstretched across the sidewalk watches me approach--mind you, just sitting there--and doesn't pull them in out of my way as i go running past...

--runners will often notice each other, even in the dark, across three lanes of traffic, a median, and then another three lanes of traffic, and they will acknowledge each other with a wave. yet when meeting many pedestrians face to face, some almost bump into me and many will not respond at all to a greeting of "hello" or "good evening"...

--i have often heard people comment about my neighborhood as being "the ghetto," and talk about how it's not very safe in this area. yet, as i cool down from what was actually a very good run (despite all of the aforementioned), i notice all the people out after dark walking dogs, babies in strollers, or just themselves, and i think how lucky i am to live right here among these people--the kind that even return a "hello" when greeted...

a great time of year

2007-09-20T22:05:00.000-07:00

the weather has really taken a turn toward the fabulous lately in las vegas. it's so pleasant to be outside during most times of the day--nice and sunny-warm during the day and just perfect to be outside with a sweater on during hours of darkness.

i always feel like las vegas totally changes when the weather changes like this. i experience the city with no sunshine and it feels different. it might be hard to imagine, but our incessant sunshine gets kind of tiresome at times. but being out at 7:00 or 8:00 at night and seeing the city with lights on is so charming.

today i went up to mt. charleston with tracy and her family, and we had a little picnic. it was nice, but pretty damn cold up on the mountain. upon returning to their home, i took two little cat naps (hehe) and then went to the amazing new fitness center on campus (newly opened this week finally) and had a nice work out.

by the time i was home and eating a little mac & cheese out of the box (a perfect dinner for such a day) it was only about 7:00 and i had so much evening left to myself! i really wanted to do some reading, so i went to the starbucks in the new union on campus and read there for a while. it was such a simple thing, but really so lovely at the same time. it's evenings like this when i really just love hanging out by myself. why can't all the solo moments in life be this pleasing?

the little things that count

2007-09-12T08:04:00.000-07:00

today after my run i was walking a short cool-down in my neighborhood, and i noticed that some water was running down the street into a sewer drain. perched precariously on the edge of the drain was some plastic trash, along with some other trash. so i picked it up; i usually try to police the lawn area around my house, and i like to pick up recyclables when i notice them.

anyway, i hadn't even really noticed that a guy was walking his dog near me, and he said something like, "way to go.... thank you!"

it really made me feel good--not just that i felt appreciated for what i did in that moment--that my behavior may have possibly encouraged him to adopt similar behaviors. i'm not a saint, and i don't even pick up trash every time i run. but if i picked up a little a few times a week, and every other runner did, and every dog walker.... i need not belabor the point.

i feel like a crusader against social apathy!!!

announcing....

2007-09-06T12:41:00.001-07:00

genevieve taylor!!

my newest niece was born yesterday on her parents' 9th wedding anniversary. she was born shortly after noon, weighing in at 8lbs 11oz (that's one ounce bigger than i was even!). she has a shock of nice blond hair. she and mommy are both doing very well, and are probably just about to walk out of the hospital as i write this. tracy can finally stop being angry that her pregnancy was going past the august 31st due date.

december, then, after all

2007-09-04T23:01:00.001-07:00

after some uncertainty surrounding a single, measly credit, i was unsure of whether or not i would graduate this fall or not. i was afraid i would be stuck doing one final class in the spring. but happily today that was all sorted out. i got a petition approved to accept a class i've already done into my degree program. so it looks like december will finish it up after all :)

calloused already?

2007-09-01T22:26:00.001-07:00

tonight was an interesting night at work, to say the least. it is saturday night before labor day, and we were absolutely swamped on the phones for a while. one call in particular stood out to me though.

a lady called, and before i could even spit out the entirety of my greeting, she bluntly demanded, "what's the number to jasmine." notice the period. there was no softening, upward tone. no please. nada.

so i provided it to her, and then said nothing because of the way the call was already going. then she follows with, "what are some other good restaurants." by this point i have clearly determined this woman is punctuationally challenged.

"ma'am, are you looking for a particular type of cuisine?"

"no."

"is there a particular hotel that you would like to dine in?"

"no, just tell me what's good."

"well ma'am, there are literally hundreds of restaurants in the city. i'm merely trying to get a framework for which recommendations are going to be most useful for you."

"i just want to know what's good."

by this point my heart is pounding because it's taking all my focus to not get really snide and bitchy with this lady. she's making me really mad, but i just take a deep breath, and start to randomly name a few different restaurants up and down the strip and why they're nice. then i stopped.

i cannot, unfortunately, remember exactly how the call ended. it was pretty uneventful. i am fairly confident there were no remarks of gratitude or closing salutations. did this bitch go to high school on the moon? or was she just a dumb drunk princess who was never taught how to conduct a social interaction?

one of the things that really annoys me about people in the hospitality industry here is that they forget that not everything is common knowledge to our guests. in fact, there is a whole body of information that is pretty special to las vegas. they get really snide when customers ask what is deemed as a "stupid question." i really focus on having more patience with the guests.

but i just couldn't with this caller. c'mon, any city in the whole world is going to have dozens and dozens of restaurants. you have to throw someone a bone. she was like that annoying friend or family member that just won't give you any clues about where to take them when they're in town.... the ones that make you wish you had a railroad spike that you could drive into their temple.

creepy

2007-08-26T00:24:00.000-07:00

tonight i spent a fair amount of time being a creepy stalker on facebook and myspace. i resisted for so long, but lately i've been browsing through some profiles... but tonight i hit it really hard. see, i do sort of miss the interconnectedness and networking they provide; i like to see what people are up to. and i debated even trying to contact a few people, like my cousins that i NEVER talk to! but in the end, i clammed up and didn't write any messages. i dunno... i mean, what happens next? people will just start demanding a profile from me, and then it'll all be downhill. i like the anonymity of not having one, so i guess i can't have both worlds.

over!

2007-08-20T15:00:00.000-07:00

dammit! i just went over on my cell phone minutes and i still have like 5 days to go before my month starts over. how do i go through 1000 minutes?!

failed night

2007-08-11T00:37:00.000-07:00

last night i went out because my friend waylon is in town, and we didn't really make a big night of it, yet i ended up with a pretty nasty hangover today (i'm not blaming the amount of consumption so much as i fault the low-quality miller lite). so it was pretty difficult for me to convince myself to go out after work tonight, but i was feeling better, so i decided to go for it.

first, i over-committed myself. some people from work invited me out with them, and i really enjoy the people i work with and want to fit in comfortably. but i also agreed to go to voodoo with waylon. so, i cut my time short with the work folks, but that was ok.

then waylon tells me he's no longer going to voodoo as i'm literally driving up to the place. but, that's ok... i actually had some people inside that i had told i was going to be there, and i was really looking forward to seeing them. however, they weren't responding to my texts and calls, but whatever, i was still going to look for them.

i waited in the line, and get up to pay, and i find out it's $30 cover. wtf! i mean, i would've begrudgingly paid $20, even though i think it sucks that you don't even get a drink ticket or whatever.... but i know that is how things work. but thirty bucks?!? and the real shit of it is that i watched two women walk in with no cover because they were local ladies. and i was like, "but i'm local" to which the cashier replied, "but you're a boy." !!!!!!!!!!!!! again, i get it. you let the ladies in so it's not a sausage fest and then guys will be willing to pay to get in. but i don't even like girls!!! not fair! why should i pay the expensive cover when that's not even my motivation?

so, i decided to go home. my friends could've probably gotten me in for free because they work there, and i might've even been able to work some connection with my new job... but neither of those what-ifs helped as i was staring at the cashier. and the $30 issue was especially salient considering i'm changing my lifestyle from one of always using a credit card for everything to always using cash or debit now. i guess it's successful; i may have just whipped out the credit card and paid the cover it were not for me training myself to have to think about actual money in the bank.

so, embittered, i skulked away thinking i might go to the gay bar where i get in free, could get free beer until 1am, and could likely actually get drinks bought for me -- a totally new thing in my world -- after that. plus it's better music and i might meet someone interesting... ie, that i would maybe want to see naked someday.

in the end, i reverted to my lame tendencies and decided it would be prudent to go home and get rest since i was so sick and tired today. i guess i'll have to get loco another night. and i'll have to plan ahead better when i do.

eff-ing eh-holes

2007-08-02T15:46:00.000-07:00

first thing this morning i went out to my car to go meet some friends for coffee, followed by a doctor's appointment, and what do i find? there is strange green stuff on the passenger seat of my car that i don't remember being there when i left it last night. how could that be?

well, that strange green stuff was glass from my busted out passenger window. grrrrrr. luckily, nothing was stolen that i can tell, but i still felt so violated and inconvenienced. now tomorrow i will have to rush around after work to get it fixed, and tonight it will have to sit in the exact same spot where it was vandalized, but completely unsecured. i hope it's there tomorrow morning!

i wonder what happened exactly. did security for the neighborhood come by, and that's why nothing was taken? did the perpetrator see my ipod tape adapter and erroneously think there was an ipod in the car? or does someone just get his or her thrills by being a destructive little cancer to society? i dunno. i do know it's a very shitty way to start one's day, and i've struggled to not let it domino and ruin the rest of my day off. it's not worked great, but some harry potter reading helped :) haha... but really, it's only going to cost $180 to get fixed, and almost everyone i know has a similar story, so i guess i feel like my number just inevitably came up this time.

hairspray

2007-08-01T17:22:00.000-07:00

hairspray is such a good movie!!! go see it if you get a chance. i think i'll even buy it when it comes out on dvd. tonight anna and i are getting together to watch the original john waters' version. should be fun!

mandarin

2007-07-31T18:28:00.000-07:00

today at work i was answering phones in the back when someone came back with the message that i was needed up front. i was pretty surprised by it, and really really curious as to what it was for. so i went up as soon as my call was finished, and i found out that someone needed me to help a mandarin-speaking guest! i was really excited about it because this is what i have been seeking in las vegas ever since i moved here! the ladies needed assistance mailing some documents to china, and i totally choked in the moment. still, they found where they needed to go, and hopefully they successfully got their documents out. i apologized over and over for my failing chinese, but still, i was so proud of myself regardless. haha, they looked pretty surprised when it was me, white ol' me, who walked up to them and said "ni hao." mailing the package was a horrible flash-back to chapter 5 of the CBC...back in about the fourth or fifth month of chinese class. i guess i can't be too hard on myself that words like "postmark" escaped me.

thunderstorm

2007-07-23T22:52:00.001-07:00

we're having a real bona fide thunderstorm tonight, and it's so wonderful!!!!

the 51s

2007-07-18T22:26:00.001-07:00

tonight i did something i never thought i would willingly do again: i went to a baseball game. the local team, the 51s, was playing the portland beavers, and my friend jamee invited me because the beavers are the farm team for her beloved padres. anyway, i wouldn't normally have gone, but because of my new job, i decided i should go have that kind of experience in case i needed to know about it.

i actually ended up having a bit of fun. sure, it was no barrel of monkeys. but i kinda figure any place that you can eat brats and drink beer outside on a lovely summer night has to be good. and now i know to tell people where it is, that it's outdoors, there is a $3 parking fee, and that everything is cash only sales. good information for a concierge to know.

one problem: i'm sure no one is really coming to las vegas to see the 51s play :( oh well, at least i was connecting with a friend and not being boring and lazy at home. oh! and i got to play the inter-inning maze game on the field against jamee and i won a free oil change!

sicko

2007-07-17T23:40:00.000-07:00

tonight i went to sicko with my friend eunice. she pretty much summed up my sentiments when, afterward, she asked, "i find myself asking why i still live here." as someone who has probably had at best low-caliber health insurance at outback, and now with none firmly in place, i find myself asking the same question. i have been concerned about this at other points in my life too, but i hate that it even has to be a concern. what to do though? i guess there isn't much i can do. but i hate that answer more than anything, because that's why we're stuck in the position we're in. so kudos to people like tyler l. who go out and get a job to try and make things better in the areas they are concerned with.

the new job

2007-07-16T22:35:00.000-07:00

so, after some waiting, here is the post about my new job, and i didn't really mean to wait this long, btw.

my new job is as a concierge at mgm grand. i'm super-excited about it for a variety of reasons. if one is to live in las vegas, one might as well work on the strip at least to say one has done it. shouldn't one?

it's nice working for a big big company again too, much like the military. we get discounts across town on things like gym memberships, and there are free meals at the employee cafeteria. on a more substantial level, that also means lots of room for growth, promotion, transfer, etc. there are so many new mgm-mirage properties being built, like the huge city center in las vegas. or there is mgm grand macau, which would be a great way to weasel myself into china. that is really probably the biggest benefit of the job.

also hugely important is that i'm so much more excited about this line of work in comparison to food service. i hated that, and i saw it going nowhere. this concierge job feels like it is a step toward my future career, even if it might be a baby one. i like the daily tasks better, and i will feel more of a sense of accomplishment.

i should also disclose the caveat that i have only worked there for 6 days so far, and so i'm still in training...only getting a taste of what is to come. with that disclosure, though, there are times when things just feel right, you know? and this feels like one of those times for me, and so i'm trusting my instinct.

also worth mention is that i think the pay will be better. i haven't nailed it down yet exactly, but i'm guessing it'll put me closer to $30k whereas i was in the low 20s at outback. not a huge gain, and not much overall money in the scheme of things...i know this. however, it is a pretty substantial percentage difference, and when i'm living on a very tight budget, it will give the room that makes life easier to relax and enjoy. another big plus!: the hotel dry cleans and stores my uniform suit on location for me. AND there is an employee locker room with showers. AND i only live like 2 miles away. so i can continue to ride my bike to work and just get ready there to keep myself living green. :) i should've known it would be a good situation when the building itself is so gorgeously green.

dinner

2007-07-11T22:32:00.001-07:00

anything after 5pm is dinner, right? so this is what i had for dinner tonight:

->2 iced coffees with half and half
->a chocolate cream cheese muffin
->and two stone brand IPAs

man, i'm fab.

wsop

2007-07-11T20:01:00.000-07:00

this summer i had a pretty fun temporary job at the world series of poker being held at the rio. my friend tracy hooked me up with the job, and it was like a gift from above. all i did was cashier at a food stand...much like a convenience store. players walked around the room and picked up stuff like sandwiches, chips, soda, and candy bars, and then i rang them up. for this ultra-demanding task, i got paid a base wage of $15.21 per hour. and the really unbelievable thing is that the customers drop dollar bills into a tip basket like you wouldn't believe. why? i dunno. i would never tip someone for simply ringing things into a register. i don't like tipping even at a place like starbucks, and they even actually make something, do something, provide a service. anyway, i think this underscores how horrible the tipping culture is in the united states, and especially so in las vegas. this is the tip capital of the world. i hate it, but at least i was the benefactor from such ridiculousness.

i met a few cool people there too. i hope to go out with a few of them this weekend, and i think we'll have lots of fun. i didn't really keep up with my promise to myself to be more social this summer. i haven't been horrible, but it hasn't been the action-packed summer that i was expecting.

some other interesting things about the job was that i got to see a few celebrities like norm macdonald, ben affleck, don cheadle, and montel williams. i tried to be too-cool-for-school and care about the celebs, but in the end, i went out into the hall to scope them out. i'm sure i saw and waited on several big poker figures too, but i just simply didn't know who they were. i would only figure out that they were semi-famous when other people were getting their pictures taken with them. seriously, who are these people who follow poker? well, i guess it is a way for people to make a bit of cash. i've heard more than one or two success stories of people my age making at least a million playing poker.

i also got to meet and talk to a lot of foreigners during the tournament, which is always enjoyable for me. there were tons of brits, germans, italians, and aussies there, with a few other europeans thrown in the mix. i think i made these estonians' day when i asked them if they were estonian. the man was wearing a shirt emblazoned with a web address that had the double e that signifies that country (like de for germany or nl for netherlands). they acted completely shocked that i figured that out, and were shocked that i had just been there. for some reason i like that. plus the fun thing about europeans is that there are plenty of quaint accents, cute men, and fabulous man-pris (think mid-calf breeches) :)

the tournament continues on for a few more days, but i am all done working at it because of my new job (teaser for my next post). all in all, i enjoyed my first casino/strip-off-the-strip working experience.

welcome to the desert

2007-07-01T20:10:00.001-07:00

omg, it's 8:10pm, and it's still 108 degrees outside. how is this place for real?

what do you think of my new look?please forgive the myspace-y essence of this photo.

outback finale

2007-06-22T23:26:00.000-07:00

tonight was my last shift at outback, and it became such without even planning it that way. i was scheduled to work tuesday as well, but someone wanted the shift, so i let him have it. easy as that, and i'm done there.

i got a little nostalgic for the place as people were saying how much they were going to miss me and whatnot. truth is, i've grown comfortable there and feel at-home after two years. i guess it's good to remember the things i've liked about working there as i make my final bow.

being officially unemployed is a little frightening. well, i'm not totally unemployed. i'm still working my summer gig as a cashier at the world series of poker, held at the rio. and i am hired and due to start at p.f. chang's this week. hahaha, so i guess i'm being melodramatic about being unemployed. but i have some of that same anxiety, like when will the money start flowing regularly again? and ugh...those fucking insurance woes (we need some universal health care already!)

adding to the mix is that i really want to get a job at the mgm as a concierge. sure, maybe it's not the best job ever, but i've done some rudimentary calculations and i think the pay will be a considerable increase. not to mention that i will like the work better i'm sure. and getting my foot in the door at such a huge company is a big thing too. anyway, let's just hope my drug test goes through and i get offered the job. ;)

so, i better go now. i've finished my beer and some friends from work are waiting for me at the locals bar. i go there for the last time as an outbacker.

amazing linguist

2007-06-10T17:34:00.000-07:00

i just heard about this from my sister yesterday, and it completely amazes me.

my niece, claire, is learning some ASL as part of that new teach-your-baby-sign trend (i take partial credit for that since i gave them the video about how to do sign with your baby.) peter and tracy really like it and have bought a collection of signing time videos to help her (and them) learn more ASL. it has been really successful in piecing together what claire wants, and to help understand the words she's uttering, especially considering the unpredictability of whether she'll use a spanish or an english word; the sign really helps to fill in the gaps.

anyway, peter and tracy really like illuminations candles, and they have several around their house, and they seem to fascinate claire, so she learned the sign for candle. then, and this is the amazing part, she was introduced to the similar sign for tree, which just has a slightly different hand placement and finger movement. she cannot seem to distinguish between the two signs, so now she has bridged the gap in her oral language and is calling trees candles!!! she sees the signs as being "homophones" and logically does the same into the spoken language. it's that hilarious and amazing all at the same time?! being able to see claire acquire languages, and three simultaneously, is so incredibly fascinating to me because that is a particular facet of linguistics that i love.

new low

2007-05-25T06:50:00.000-07:00

omg, this news feature is the reason i hate this city. i know that it's the many people from all over that are doing this, but i still hate being associated with it whenever people, let's say finns for example, ask me where i'm from and their eyes get a little wide when i answer las vegas. i find it so disgusting i couldn't even read the entire article.

home from finland

2007-05-24T01:05:00.000-07:00

i just got back from finland late tonight, and i'm quite happy to be home and getting ready to sleep in my own bed. it was a very very enjoyable and relaxing trip, and i'll be posting more about it later. for now i just want to go through my stack of mail and then go to sleep.

one thing first though....my niece, claire, was asking for me while i was gone. she actually missed me!!! she got really excited today saying "scott....phone....scott....phone" when she realized that i was on the phone with tracy. it sort of melted my heart. i mean, she can barely string words together, yet she was still asking about me. i'll be excited to go over tomorrow morning and see her.

ate shit

2007-05-05T21:30:00.000-07:00

my bike riding adventures of 2007 have been, so-far, wonderful...until tonight. i was riding home from work after getting out pretty early--early enough to shop at sunflower market down the street. so on my way to get some groceries, i was riding along the street and decided to hop up onto the sidewalk. i found a driveway, like i have dozens of other times, and kind of turned onto it. however, there was about a two inch difference between the street and the driveway, and my tire didn't negotiate it very well. i came in at too shallow of an angle, and so my tire just slid along and i, well, ate shit. big time. i was actually very scared as it was happening, concerned about my poor little noggin. however, before i even made contact with the ground, i remembered i always wear a helmet. and any embarrassment and ideas of leaving it behind are gone now because i can see that little accidents can turn into big deals unnecessarily.

so, the outcome: i scraped up my hands just a little (and maybe put a little scratch on my ring, but not terrible), and i scraped up my knee, also ripping a hole in my favorite work pants. my chain came off, and i was about to call for a ride, but then i calmed down from the shock and just put it back on. i even decided that i wasn't actually hurt seriously, so i still grocery shopped. and it was so worth it! i got three nice big grapefruits for a dollar! see why i love sunflower market?

BOSTON!

2007-04-19T23:57:00.000-07:00

it has been forever since i've posted. well, i finally have something that i cannot avoid blogging about.

this past monday i ran the boston marathon, and if you're reading this blog, you probably already knew that via a phone conversation, email, or otherwise. still, here are some of the details.

the weather in boston that weekend was horrible. it was rainy and windy and cold the whole time we were there. i was really getting freaked out about the weather, but finally i just let it go and promised myself to just have a good time running the race despite all other things. well, miraculously, the weather turned out being decent for the race time. it drizzled a bit, and i felt like the finish was windy. but all in all it was really fair weather for running. immediately after i finished, though, i was shivering uncontrollably and thought i was going to freeze to death.

running through all those quaint little new england towns was really fun. it's such a big event in boston, and people came out in droves despite the weather. i really want to see it some year when the weather is more favorable... i bet there are people lining the whole course. still, the energy was pretty awesome, and several times during the run i got goose bumps because the magnitude of it all was so overwhelming.

the race itself was awesome too. it was hard to hold back in the beginning because so many people were flying by me. but i tried to be smart and conservative so i could have a stronger finish. and that's exactly how it worked! i ran a slightly faster half than the first, which was really cool. just now i calculated my 5k splits and they range only from 21:02 at the fastest and 21:34 at the slowest. my miles were similar: my average was 6:54. the slowest i had clocked was 7:17 for the first mile, and then 7:13 at mile 21 (heartbreak hill). the fastest i had was 6:38 at mile 16 followed by 6:39 at mile 24. they're all very tight splits.

it's amazing now to look back at the race and think about it because it seems to have gone by so quickly. it really doesn't feel like 3 hours as i think back on it. that's such a cool feeling to me for some reason.

so, if you're interested in the numbers, you can go to the boston marathon website and enter my name and bib number 3079 to see my splits and stuff. and there are several photos up now on marathonfoto. just select boston marathon 2007 from the drop down menu, and then put my last name and again, 3079. they are only thumbnail sized, but you'll get the idea.

and, aside from the race, and the horrible weather, i loved boston. i thought it was a very charming, lovely city... livable, small, cosmopolitan, historic, and many other good things. kari came up from new york and we had a great time together. perhaps there will be some pictures to follow.

three coins

2007-03-02T11:01:00.000-08:00

i was looking at some foreign coins on my desk, and i noticed i have a .5-, 1-, and 2-pound
coin. i wondered how much 3.50 pound is, and found that it's $6.80!!! aside from that being a horrible exchange rate, i thought it was interesting that i could hold nearly $7 with just three coins in my hand.

p.s. because i'm such a dork about coins and stuff, i also got some of the new g. washington dollar coins. they're pretty snazzy, but i think their fatal flaw is that they're not thick enough, so they don't feel weighty enough like a dollar should.

tree by my house

2007-03-01T14:36:00.001-08:00

last spring when i started going to unlv, i really enjoyed this tree which i passed on my way to school. in fact, it's pretty much right outside my front door. i kept meaning to blog a picture of it, but i never got around to it, and then the blossoms were gone.

this spring, i'm noticing these trees all over las vegas. they're such a small thing that make me really happy.

cold weather

2007-02-28T23:43:00.000-08:00

it snowed today in las vegas. that's all. still seemed slightly blog-worthy.

...and i'm sorry i'm so quiet these days. *sigh* but alas, the same old two words apply: school, work.

quick update

2007-01-31T00:04:00.000-08:00

hi, since so many of my fabulous and loyal readers found my posting about biking so interesting, i thought i would submit an update... about that, and about things in general.

*biking is going so well! i love doing it, and although sometimes i still remind myself that driving would just be easier, i can easily dismiss that because i feel so much better about biking. that damn seat isn't even so awful and uncomfortable to me anymore!

*school is going to whip me this semester. i already dropped one class because it was philosophy, and i f'ing HATE philosophy classes. yet i have another that i'm going to just have to stick through. if someone is a wiz at that crap, please let me know if you can help me out!!!

*my brilliant niece signed for more today for the first time.

*i saw the new pedro almodovar movie last night with tracy, which was cool.

*i started watching weeds on dvd.

*my sister and her daughter just visited las vegas.

*my friend kimo is no longer moving to australia.

*ben & jerry's oatmeal cookie chunk is still the best ice cream in the whole world.

my cozier bedroom

2007-01-18T15:06:00.001-08:00

new colors
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

i FINALLY painted my room after only talking about it for an entire year. i am not totally sure that i picked the best colors ever, but i like them in general, and so i think they look good on the walls too.

i am so proud of myself that i accomplished this goal. i did the entire project solo from start to finish. the sense of completion was really nice. and i no longer have to suffer from my aversion to white walls. i already love being in my room so much more, and it feel so much warmer and cozier like a bedroom ought to be.

there are a few more shots of my room on my flickr account, so just click on the photo to see the others.

a little greener

2007-01-18T15:01:00.001-08:00

be green
Originally uploaded by scottiedog2005.

i used to really pride myself on the fact that i only fill my 14-gallon gas tank once a month. i get so angry thinking about all those big SUVs on the roads that are burning so many fossil fuels, and i felt good that i wasn't contributing so heavily to that problem.

but i conveniently ignored the fact that i was still contributing. so instead of just bitching about the problem, i started to put my money where my mouth was, and i'm now starting to ride a bike almost everywhere i go. granted, this is the first day, but i hope to make a lasting lifestyle change. i estimate that i'll probably decrease my gasoline consumption by about half. i only really currently drive to work, my sister's house, the grocery store, target, etc. (all within 2 miles of home) and now doing that all on bike will leave my car only for visiting people in other parts of town, going to movies, big shopping things, and when people come into town. maybe that's only a net global decrease of 7 gallons of gas a month, but i feel good and excited about even doing this minimal amount. and maybe seeing one more biker on the road will inspire another driver to choose two wheels instead of four.

so much, and so little

2007-01-16T23:35:00.000-08:00

wow, so much has been going on since my last post, and i've been complete rubbish about updating. however, in my defense, i will say that for about 10 days i was without much internet access, and that was hard for me to live through.

so the big BIG news is that john is back safely from afghanistan. yay!!!! i took off a while to spend with him, and we had such an incredible time together. i also managed to squeeze in a road trip with tyler. we had lots of fun in between dodging severe winter weather. we escaped unscathed. and now school has started. so... speaking of, time is what i have so little of at the moment, and i must retire for the evening.

a sigh of relief

2006-12-22T23:04:00.000-08:00

in november, nevada citizens voted to ban smoking in many new areas, most notably restaurants and bars with food-handler's licenses. and then someone sued, or something stupid. so the ban wasn't going into effect, and wasn't going into effect.

but happily, today it started, and work was a nicer place for it.

single parents

2006-12-21T00:44:00.000-08:00

this article about this cute lizard amazed me... self-fertilization. but as my mind works in the late evenings sometimes, then i started to get really freaked out by it. how can they do that? well anyway, at least the lizard is pretty cute.