Uncle Kevin
My wonderful sister is having a baby. She will be quite be-bellied when I see her in September.
Hua Tao Yao, Miao Li
Sunday, our friends Katrina and Dana took us on a nice day trip to an art refuge created by a Taiwanese couple that loves pottery and nature. It was beautiful, and a lot of fun. We toured the gardens and dabbled in some amateur pottery making. 
Two Videos
>> Thursday, July 26, 2007 –
Current Events,
politics,
videos
The first is a video from a Christians United for Israel conference. It shows a frightening marriage between Christianity. John Hagee calls for a preemptive strike on Iran, and then has a member of the press removed for asking difficult questions. I'm sure there were many good, sincere people at the conference, but they have obviously been led astray by greedy unscrupulous leaders like John Hagee.
And because the first video is so disturbing, I promise that the second one is just funny. I saw it on The Daily Dish. I'll embed it here:
Squid on a Stick
>> –
taiwan,
Taiwan Photos
I finally got the squid on a stick that I've wanted since my first visit to the night market. The stars aligned, and it was every bit as good as I'd imagined.
11 Haircuts
>> –
my life,
taiwan,
Taiwan Photos
My time left in Taiwan could be measured several ways.
1 haircut. As I get my hair cut every month, I'll only have need for one more.
24 more 700ml cups of tea. I'm averaging one a day. Some days its three, some days its zero.
216 horn honks. Contingent on what day I sell my scooter. I calculate that I honk my horn 9 times a day to alert nearby drivers, pedestrians, and potential u-turners that I am in the vicinity.
7 near death encounters on the road.
3 trips to Starbucks. It's true. I go about once a week. Much more than I ever went in the States.
31 more classes taught at Hess, along with the possibility of subbing kindergarten for a couple of weeks.
5 times that I'll smile and nod when requested by a co-teacher to do something in another (their own) way.
3 Chinese classes. 不好
10 lunches with Ariel.
4 sandwiches from my favorite local sandwich shop.
3 bowls of beef noodle soup.
1 turkey rice lunch box.
1 trip to Miao Li.
3 visits to Match Cafe.
15 谢谢's from The Tea Shop ladies. "What is the memory of the tea? The teashop."
I'm sure I'll think of more. I'm not sad. I'm sentimental.
Scooter Madness
>> –
taichung,
taiwan,
Taiwan Photos
A conversation over pizza Tuesday night:
L: What!?
K: Was he on a scooter, or walking.
R: He was walking, you know how people just walk down the street here…
L: Because there is a family of 8 having dinner on the sidewalk.
R: Yeah, well this guy was not paying attention. A car was merging over, so I had to too...and I hit him. My mirror hit his arm. Hard enough to turn my mirror around.
K: Did you stop?
R: I went back. He was pretty angry, but all I could say was dui bu qi. He finally got tired of talking at me and waved me on.
K: Yeah, a blue truck* knocked my mirror off the other day. I had to pull over and run out in traffic to get it.
F: I remember one time, I was driving in the mountains and I forgot to put down my kickstand when I stopped. My scooter fell into a canal. I just stood there like "what happened". I had to wait on a guy in a blue truck to drive by and help me pull it out.
K: Did you hear about Lina’s first wreck? She gave it too much gas and plowed through this table of two guys enjoying their tea at a sidewalk café…
F: I never drive in the scooter lane. It’s just too dangerous.
L: Guys, listen to us. This is not normal…
Laura was right to bring some sense to the conversation.
*Almost without exception, all trucks in
CNN/Youtube Debate
>> Monday, July 23, 2007 –
Current Events,
politics
I love politics because I like to think and talk about ideas. I watched the CNN/YouTube debate this morning. It was such a downer. Maybe it should have made me hopeful, because there is hope for change in the future, but it made me more aware of how much damage has been done to our (U.S.) reputation and effectiveness in the world during this current administration. The reality is that our ability to be effective in places like Darfur has greatly diminished because the world doesn't trust us. There are situations in the world that could really benefit from international intervention, but the mess we have made in Iraq, our diminishing human rights standards, and the administration's arrogance have left America in a place where we are unable and unwelcome to intervene. Domestically, the issues haven't changed, which is also sad. There has been no progress on health care, equality, or care for the poor. Who can lead us out of this? It's hard not to think that anyone of the democrats would be OK just because it would be different. So should we support the one who is most electable?
Tammy Faye
>> –
christianity,
Current Events
At times disgraced, yet somehow always graceful. In her past, she mingled with some of the less appealing leaders of Christianity in America, yet managed to not let that legacy define her. Her life was complicated. She was beautifully imperfect, and I think that's what continued to draw people to her.
Haagen Dazs
>> –
food,
taichung,
taiwan,
Taiwan Photos
It's hard to find good ice cream in the grocery store in Taiwan. What I wouldn't give for a half-gallon of Mayfield's Moose Tracks. But there are a few great places to go out for ice cream if you are willing to pay relatively high prices. On Saturday night, the teachers from our school got together at the Haagen Dazs restaurant near my house. This wasn't the 31nderful flavors of Baskin Robbins. This was a sit down, fancy picture menu experience. I was pleased to find out that my manager would be paying for my $7 milkshake. Here are 2 photos:
Turkey Rice
>> Sunday, July 22, 2007 –
food,
taichung,
taiwan,
Taiwan Photos
When I get tired of the same old chicken, beef, or pork in Taiwan, I head down to the local turkey rice restaurant. Here are some photos:
Sprouts, Greens (Sweet Potato Greens, maybe), and Cabbage
Tofu and Eggs
Turkey Rice w/ pickled radish
Read more...
All Things Go, All Things Go
Could it be that one album will be the biggest deciding factor in the decision of which city to live in upon returning to the U.S.?
Since arriving in Taiwan, every time I listen to Sufjan Steven's "Come on Feel the Illinoise" I have an intense desire to return to Chicago. When I left, I felt good about my decision. Even if I hadn't been moving to Taiwan, it seemed like the right time to say goodbye to the windy city.
I'm already prone to nostalgia, constantly looking back with great fondness (forgetting the frustrations) on past years. Music does it for me. All I have to do is hear a song, and I immediately find myself back in the place I associate with that song. Riding in the car with someone special. Working at a particular clothing store. Sitting in the kitchen while my mom prepares Thanksgiving dinner listening to that overly sentimental christian artist. All of these memories are tied to a particular song, and I immediately find myself in that moment, wishing I were there.
That is what happens every time I listen to "Come on Feel the Illinoise." Not only was it my most listened to cd of that year, but all of the songs are Illinois-themed. I spent a lot of time at my previous job, riding around the south side, the west side, and the suburbs, searching for the homes of pregnant teens while listening to this cd. I find myself back in those neighborhoods while listening to certain songs. Others place me back on a notoriously uncomfortable futon listening to satellite TV music stations.
I will definitely go back to Chicago. I wonder if that would be the case if my Itunes randomizer didn't turn out a Sufjan Stevens song nearly every day.
For Sale
So we posted an ad on TEALIT (Teaching English and Living in Taiwan) and are beginning to sell all of our belongings in Taiwan. I am a bad salesmen, and a worse businessman. I am just always worried that I am ripping someone off, even when I know that I am not trying to.
Last week, a nice couple came by to look at the sofas. The man called back the same day and said "consider them sold." I considered them sold, until I didn't hear from him for a couple of days. I messaged him, and he said he was arranging for someone with a truck to pick them up. I still had not received any money from him. I was very conflicted over what to do if someone else wanted to buy them. Well, today, someone else came by and wanted to pay me for the sofas. As I was working out this deal, the man who originally wanted them calls to say he has arranged a time to pick them up. I told him that someone already payed me for him, and that I was really sorry, but I wasn't sure if he would actually get them or not.
I feel so guilty, and that is only 1 item sold. Tell me I didn't do anything wrong.
Tony Jones on Al Mohler's Radio Show
>> –
christianity
Tony Jones, the national coordinator of Emergent Village was on Al Mohler's daily radio show this weekend. Al Mohler wasn't the host, but had a guest host. You can listen to it here if you're at all interested in the emerging church.
My take:
First off, I think it was great of Al Mohler to invite Tony to be on his show. Many people who are critical of the emergent movement wouldn't sit down to have that conversation. I listened to one of Jerry Falwell's final messages before his death titled "What's Wrong With the Emergent Church" in which he kept claiming to be friends with leaders of the movement, and to have studied it extensively, but no one seems to know whom he was referring to, and it was obvious he didn't put forth any effort to understand the movement.
So kudos for having Tony on your show, but it wasn't a great dialog. The host gave an introduction about how the emerging church is a scattered organization that has no core beliefs. He then brings on Tony Jones, asks him some questions and replies to his answers with rote phrases about truth and the Bible. It's his radio show, his prerogative I guess.
When questioned on truth, Tony points out the political, very human, way through which many of our critical doctrines were reached. (For example, in the Council of Chalcedon, A.D. 451, a vote was taken only after the bishops which did not agree were excommunicated.) The host points out that the Holy Spirit guided the process, and I won't disagree with that. But if something like what happened at the Council of Chalcedon happened today, would we take the result as firm doctrine, or would we question the process in which it was decided. Did the Holy Spirit work in a more direct way thousands of years ago? Was there something magical about the year 451 that makes church decisions unquestionable?
The host asks where the doctrinal boundaries are, since the emergent movement neglects to adopt a creed or confession. Tony points out changing doctrines, such as the Souther Baptists' denial of interracial marriages not so long ago. He uses this to point out that doctrine and belief are ongoing dialogs. The host points out that what actually happened was that the Southern Baptists realized they were liars and repented to reinterpret it (of course he would never admit that this is possible for beliefs held by Baptists today). I think Tony's point was made well.
They move on to inerrancy. Tony points out that the debate in the 20th century was a valid one at the time, "driven by a non-biblical question about whether the Bible was empirically trustworthy." He points out that the bible transcends that kind of truth in that it is so much more than scientifically true and that scripture doesn't need to be put to the test of science. Instead of engaging Tony in dialog about this, the host takes control of his show as the music signals a commercial break and says "I don't think that's the word of God, Tony. I think that's confusion." <
On returning from commercial, the host claims that inerrancy is not a past debate but is essential to believing in Jesus. Then, he changes the subject so that Tony will not respond. Tony goes back to respond that if inerrancy is so essential to salvation, then why did no one talk about it until the middle of the 20th century. "That's just not true" the host breaks in, yet offers no evidence as to why it is not true.
Again, Tony makes a well-spoken thoughtful statement, and the host doesn't respond. We move onto a question from the audience which I won't bother to discuss.
The show ends with a monologue from the host about the nature of truth and the danger of questioning truth. His closing quotes: "I don't think that truth is a what, but that truth is a who." (I think I would agree, but it seems that it is conservative Christians who cling to truth as something that can be laid out in bullet points) And so as not to leave his listeners confused on the nature of the emergent church, he says that "The stakes are high. It is not an old debate, it has been going on since the garden of Eden."
Maybe I am a part of "the far fringe, bringing a liberalizing agenda to Christianity" that this host speaks of, but I would much rather see the two sides get together to discuss these issues in a more thorough way.
Keith Olbermann Comments
>> Thursday, July 12, 2007 –
Current Events,
politics
This is a little old, but worth watching. Is it overstated? Maybe. Exaggerated? Probably. True? Seems so. Angry? Very. But I'm angry too.
Religious Pluralism
>> –
Taiwan Photos
Possible captions:
"All paths lead to 7/11."
"Oh Great Buddha, lead us on the path to enlightenment, and the men's restroom"
Any suggestions?
Sarah
>> –
friends,
taiwan,
Taiwan Photos
Sarah got a job. Congratulations. There is hope for us all returning home from Taiwan. 1 month and 8 days to go.
PostSecret
>> Sunday, July 8, 2007 –
the internet
PostSecret is a blog I enjoy reading every Sunday. If you have never browsed through one of the books at the bookstore, it's a community art project where people mail in their secrets on one side of a homemade postcard. (wikipedia)
Ice Monster
>> –
taichung,
Taiwan Photos
Ice Monster
Mango Ice
Mixed Fruit Ice
This dessert is shaved ice with fresh fruits and sweetened condensed milk. Click each picture for a more appetizing view. The Sandwich Shop
>> Tuesday, July 3, 2007 –
taichung,
Taiwan Photos
Lunch with Ariel, 4 times a week. 
An Accident
Sunday afternoon was really great, an ideal Sunday afternoon. David and I went to a yardsale at his co-teacher, Katrina's house. It may have been the first yardsale in the history of Taiwan. Afterwards, we went to the library, and then to Chung-Yo department store to do some shopping and eating. I hung out at a nice outdoor cafe and read for a while. Later, we were walking to a CD store, and I tripped over these two metal poles sticking up out of the sidewalk about 4 inches. They were spaced perfectly so that I tripped over them both in succession. It was a lot like that old nintendo game, if you remember it, Adventure Island. Sometimes, if the little island hero would trip over one rock, he would then uncontrolably trip over other rocks in succession. I can only assume that's what i looked like.
I immediately blamed David for walking too close to me. It's always someone else's fault. I was okay for a few minutes, but my big toe started hurting more and more. I decided that I better head back home, so I told David I was leaving. About halfway back to my scooter, my foot started hurting so badly, that I wasn't sure if I was going to make it to the parking lot. I couldn't just lay down on the sidewalk and wait on someone to carry me, so I kept limping along. People here stare as it is. "Look, look, a foreigner, and he seems to be injured."
When I got home, I did the absolute worst thing one can do when he is injured, I googled my symptoms. A broken big toe...the forums say I'll not be able to walk normal for 6 months. David found a bilingual hospital, and led me there. An xray confirmed that there is a small fracture in my big toe. I got a splint and some pain medication. (Emergency room visit including medicine = $15)
For the next few days, I'll be here, getting as much couch time as I can out of this.
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