Sunday, November 14, 2004

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/index.html

http://www.thestranger.com/current/feature.html

Saturday, November 13, 2004

blah

i'm relatively ok now, just a nagging cough that won't go away. i have been very busy trying to teach (it takes forever for me to prepare), and studying my chinese (i'm not used to being the slowest member of the class, but here i am - i seem to have been cast in the role of guy who asks stupid questions and feels like an idiot - most of the class has lived here for a while and knows the basics already). postings may continue to be about weekly until i get myself a computer. homesickness has become an issue (especially when i was ill), but i'm excited to get my first real paycheck from work. and soon, i will be insured. i have cable set up now, which helps me waste what free time i have.

my complaining for the day will relate to the system of garbage pick up in taiwan. there is no dumpster or garbage can outside of the apartment that a truck picks up here - instead, there is a set time when a truck drives by on a major road (i live in a back alley), playing a loud song like an ice cream truck (beethoven's fifth seems to be popular), and people throw the garbage and recycling in the back of the truck. it's very inconvenient if you happen to be busy when the truck comes by (our garbage seems to pile up quite a bit), and even if you do happen to be free, you have to waste your time waiting by the side of the road. adding to this, the recycling is only picked up on certain nights, and these don't exactly seem to be fixed. basically, the whole thing is a pain in the ass. add in the fact that there are very few (and very small) public garbage cans, and it is no wonder that there is a fair amount of litter here. it also helps to explain the burning of waste on the sidewalks that helps to make the air so challenging here.

Wednesday, November 03, 2004

sick

so now i'm very sick. i have missed my first two days of scheduled work (i worked last saturday as a substitute for another teacher) and i continue to cough with gusto. let me describe my week.

monday - i sleep in short bursts, but i am in bed unconscious or semi-conscious for 20 of 24 hours. i have a fever, i sweat, i'm cold, i feel weak and tired, time moves extremely slowly. i eat nothing but i drink over a gallon of water and a half gallon of juice. and some tea. and some other drinks. i was supposed to work today, but i tell them i can't. in a remarkable case of bad planning, i have no phone number for my work so i walk there. i am covered in sweat when i get there, i get a number, then i have to go home.

tuesday - my fever has gone down, but my cold symptoms are worse. my cough is awful, i go through tissues like mad, i have sinus problems, headache, etc. i'm starting to get a bit lonely stir crazy - i rent some stupid dvd's from a nearby store (challenging) and hope for the best for tomorrow. by the end of the night, i'm coughing up a little bit of blood.

wednesday - i feel a bit better! i've missed 2 days of chinese class, time to get in there. i survive the bus ride, make it to class, and my brain is still not working. it refuses to remember what i learned last week. and my cough is loud and nasty. still, i am a bit better, so i make it through class and go to work afterwards (training only). while there i get very tired and my cough is powerful. a nice woman makes me soup with pork and shitakes and noodles, actually just what i needed. still i can't stay long enough to plan for my class tomorrow. feeling like crap doesn't make it any easier to swallow the fact that my stupid country just re elected our moron president. i'm so ashamed.

thursday - i wake up and have a major coughing fit before i even make it out of bed. thinking i pushed myself too hard yesterday, i decide to skip chinese class. no matter - i still feel like crap right now and i just called in sick for my second day of teaching. which brings me to saturday, when i'm teaching again. i need the money and the experience and this doesn't look good in the first week of the job, but my body is really falling apart right now. i hope this doesn't screw me up here.