Lunchtime

Haven't updated in a while, but I've been adding albums to my Picasa gallery. Check them out (link on right hand side of this page.)

Here's an average lunch for me. I eat with the kids at school, and we get a buffet style lunch from a local restaurant. Always Taiwanese style food. In this photo you can see my drink of choice, duo-duo green tea. It's a mix of green tea and Taiwanese sweet yogurt drink (duo duo, 多多). The fish are small somethingorother fish, and they're pregnant with thousands of eggs. A bit gross, but they tase okay. Other days I'll get more average fare such as sweet pork or fried chicken cutlets. there's always veggies and some tofu, and usually some egg and soup.

 

 

A closeup of the fish. This is why I prefer eating a small part of a big fish. as opposed to all of a small fish. Not bad, if you can get past the gore.

Couches

Nick and I got some new couches this weekend. "New" is not exatly right, as these couches were bought from a neighbor, a Canadian fellow who lives across the street from me. They're big, they're black, they're pleather. They are not new. Plenty of cracks and holes (haw) and a bit of dirt, but a lot better than the stiff, lopsided hulk we had until last week.

That thing was a pain to get out of the house. It involved lots of lifting, moderate to severe cursing, removing the hinges of our screen door, and two tall, sweaty foreigners squeezing a piece of furniture down four flights of dark steps.

Well, we got that damn thing out of there, and now we have two comforable (and surprisingly light) replacements that didn't cost but a few dollars.

We left a note saying "please take me" in English and Chinese on the old couch and chair and put them out on the street. They sat there for a few days as merely ornaments for the alrady beautiful building we live in. And then, yesterday they were mysteriously gone.

Also,I got Dad's Sling Box up and running on my TV. Now, via an internet connevted PC, I can control and watch cable TV from at&t cable in Cleveland. It's just for typhoon days, I swear.

Toxic Milk

There's been a big scare in Taiwan recently over tainted powdered milk from China. Apparently, the Chinese were cutting the milk with some other powder containing melamine, which can be toxic.

Babies were getting sick all over Asia, and the powder found its way into products produced in Taiwan, the Phillipines, and Malaysia. Some treats like chocolate and milk tea (photo below) are risky to eat right now.



I'm sick of having to worry about all of these products from China. It seems as though every few months, Chinese manufacturers cut some corner and a bunch of people get sick or die. It's difficult to keep up with all of the forbidden items, and I've been encouraged by many Taiwanese to just avoid buying anything made in mainland China. That's easier said than done, however. They make so damn many of the products I use every day. Even American brands such as Colgate are made in the depths of toxic China.