土曜日, 9月 30, 2006

Hello & Goodbye Taipei City

aSherille, Grace and I swept the whole Taipe City and act like tourists! We visited Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Park, a site dedicated to Taiwan's greatest ruler and hero. We also visited the Loshan Temple, quite famous also in Taipei, primarily a Bhuddist country. We then went to New York New York, near Taipei City Hall and had a very hearty American meal.

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This small but truly boisterous city is quite tourist-friendly. To begin with there's no entrance fee to most of their tourist destination. The MRT fare is cheap compared to other countries, and eating out is a fun thing to do here. Thanks to Sherille, I've got tons of pictures to show off.

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Tomorrow I will go back home. The week has been truly exhausting but it was also a welcome atmosphere change. Frustrating that I'm having such as tough time to open my mailbox and cannot even establish good VPN from this hotel, but this also gave me the opportunity to explore Taipei, enjoy it's food and stroll around. I'm wasn't bothered by the language barrier, "sign language" was OK with me. I didn't know I had that capability and I have learned the word "she she" (thank you in Mandarin). So Taipei, I bid you hello and goodbye.


# posted by Unknown : 11:49 午後

Coming Out Of Taiwanese Gays

I witnessed an interesting rally of Taiwanese gays - male and female alike. I had no idea they were so many in Taipei! 'Twas very lively and entertaining. They were asking me to join them but I kindly refused, I'd rather enjoy the spectacle.
One thing I like about these people is their ability to turn their most unfortunate moment into hilarious ones. You always see them laughing, enjoying the moment and loving whatever life offers them. They're really a tough bunch and I respect them for that. I still believe that marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman, but that doesn't stop me from believing that they too should be given equal rights and not be discriminated against as gays.
There was a 'Come out of the closet' banner and the Sales Guys in one of the outlet stores were pushing one of their colleagues, cheering him to join their cause...for obvious reasons!
Well, cheers to you guys and I do hope you get your message across~

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# posted by Unknown : 4:57 午後

金曜日, 9月 29, 2006

At Home With Myself Lately

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I have been fighting serious depression these past few months. My battle with depression is really one hell of a ride.I've got my ups and downs, my violent mood swings, not to mention sleepless nights.

HB has been taking care of me most of the time lately, and I have fallen in love over again...silly side-effect.

The challenge with me is to hide this deep depression from everybody. But I have accepted that the world will live even without me, so I finally stopped trying very hard and for a while, just hide from it all. Whether Frank approves it or not, I'm taking a week off in October.

The core VBMS module has been released, this is a breather. Things are slowly falling into places for G1G3.

So many challenges lie ahead. I'm still not cured, but I feel a lot peaceful. The world is not perfect and I'm somehow ok with it.


# posted by Unknown : 8:25 午前

水曜日, 9月 27, 2006

Taipei At Last

Most people are surprised that it's my first time to visit Taipei. I had a couple of surprises - food is great and I can actually pretend that I understand Chinese! Ahahaha. It's really tough if one doesn't understand the language and culture. But so far, Taipei has been pleasant...

Of course first thing that I visited was a spa. It was nice and accommodating. Then I went shopping in one of the night markets here. I can say they were good bargain. And then there's Taipei 101, the tallest building in the world. I got a different impression of Taipei from a view from above. Taipei is industrial, proud, illustrious and very Asian.
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# posted by Unknown : 11:55 午後

火曜日, 9月 26, 2006

Thoughts For Keeps
Be prepared today to laugh just as long, just as deep, and just as heartily at yourself.

Learnings & Musings
Some say I think too much, I think too hard. One pondering thought for the last 48 hours was that you never rely your happiness on anything and on anyone. To be happy is a decision you need to make. Happiness starts with feeling good about yourself no matter what your circumstances are.

# posted by Unknown : 8:35 午前

日曜日, 9月 24, 2006

Mantras To Live By
1. TODAY I WILL NOT STRIKE BACK . . .If someone is rude, if someone is impatient, if someone is unkind, Iwill not respond in a like manner.
2. TODAY I WILL ASK GOD TO BLESS MY 'ENEMY'If I come across someone who treats me harshly or unfairly, I willquietly ask God to bless that individual. I understand "enemy" could bea family member, neighbor, co-worker or stranger.
3. TODAY I WILL BE CAREFUL ABOUT WHAT I SAY . . .I will carefully choose and guard my words being certain that I do notspread gossip.
4. TODAY I WILL GO THE EXTRA MILE . . .I will find ways to help share the burden of another person.
5. TODAY I WILL FORGIVE . . .I will forgive any hurts or injuries that come my way.
6. TODAY I WILL DO SOMETHING KIND FOR SOMEONE, (BUT I WILL DO IT INSECRET . . . )I will reach out anonymously and bless the life of another.
7. TODAY I WILL TREAT OTHERS THE WAY I WISH TO BE TREATED . . .I will practice the golden rule. "Do Unto others as I would have themdo unto me"- with EVERYONE I encounter.
8. TODAY I WILL RAISE THE SPIRITS OF SOMEONE WHO IS DISCOURAGED . . .My smile, my words, my __expression of support, can make the differenceto someone who is wrestling with life.
9. TODAY I WILL NURTURE MY BODY . . .I will eat less . . . I will eat only healthy foods. I will thank Godfor my body.10. TODAY I WILL GROW SPIRITUALLY . . .I will spend a little more time in prayer today. I will begin readingsomething spiritual or inspirational; I will find a quiet place (atsome point during this day) and listen to God's voice.
Luke 10:27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and withall your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and,'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"Luke 10:27We learn three principles about loving our neighbor: (1) lack of loveis often easy to justify, even though it is never right; (2) ourneighbor is anyone of any race, creed, or social background who is inneed; and (3) love means acting to meet the person's needs.Wherever you live, there are needy people close by.
There is no goodreason for refusing to help.Remember, today is a gift from God so treat it preciously-- Author Unknown
***
I welcome myself in Taipei! First impressions...? It's a more urban version of Manila, I guess. Only everybody speaks Chinese.

# posted by Unknown : 4:28 午後

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