tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40755202011-12-23T21:40:04.889+08:00R@ndom ThoughtsLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.comBlogger5371100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-72485308498957839622011-12-21T23:30:00.000+08:002011-12-23T21:40:04.899+08:00RIP A Roadside Tree
When we went through a shortcut on the right of the photo this evening, we noticed that something is missing. The roadside tree was there in the morning, but now gone for reasons I could only guess. It might be that the tree was in the middle of the shortcut, where motorcycles frequently pass through, hence becoming a traffic hazard. It might be that the tree blocked the view of a small store (Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-12184152598506252502011-10-10T23:30:00.000+08:002011-11-01T09:13:47.637+08:00
All of my family members spent the Double Ten Day holidays at Nan Hai Resort, where traditional ceremonies were held for my second sister's engagement and wedding. In the afternoon, when the rain had ceased for a moment, we gathered to witness a ring exchange ceremony under a beautiful pavilion inside the resort.That was a dream came true for her.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0Hualien County, Taiwan23.7568986 121.354163123.2918441 120.72244909999999 24.2219531 121.9858771tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-32262150625211115302011-09-19T08:30:00.000+08:002011-09-19T09:57:16.025+08:00Republic of China is 100 years old this year. This video shows people holding national flags around Taiwan and two adjacent small islands, Orchid Island and Green Island.
Visit their web site (in Chinese): www.100taiwanese.tw
Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-9302618027860140172011-09-18T23:30:00.000+08:002011-09-21T10:15:17.170+08:00What are the chances to be in the presence of two large and withered leaves falling from the same palm tree to the ground? The sound of the first made me turned my head to check what was going on. The second: it just happened right in front of my eyes -- the falling was so quick that I only caught the last phase of its downward motion.
Both were moments of Chan.
Withered leaves are destined toLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-60866821772962980492011-08-31T08:59:00.000+08:002011-09-05T11:50:47.945+08:00A five-minute preview of "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale" that is set for world premier at the 68th Venice International File Festival on September 1st.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-28962568818745444002011-08-29T20:59:00.000+08:002011-09-05T11:10:14.366+08:00I was not really a fan of Japanese television drama, but I found myself eagerly watching through all the ten episodes of Suzuki Sensei in the past two weeks. Each episode gave me some refreshing ideas on education in the junior high school, challenges facing school teachers, classroom dynamics between students and teachers, and even the rarely seen school politics among teachers.
The TV series Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-70020053229331987792011-08-01T23:47:00.017+08:002011-09-05T11:52:07.167+08:00This is the second theatrical trailer of Seediq Bale: The Rainbow Warriors, which has just been selected into the international competition of feature films in the 68th Venice International Film Festival.
Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-73399280338088058092011-07-19T08:42:00.001+08:002011-07-19T08:46:38.743+08:00I had a weird dream last morning.
I was suddenly starting to play basketball and somehow I needed to jump and raise my right hand to block a shot.
The problem was I actually raised my right hand for real and a little piece of skin on the side of my palm was ripped off because I hit the headboard.
I realized I was hurt and I even held my palm just like I would do if I were awake.
Then I went Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-16432578842830398162011-06-29T23:58:00.367+08:002011-07-13T12:25:56.176+08:00
Taitung Trip
Taitung is almost a synonym to nostalgia for me. I spent one year and nine months there fulfilling my military duties, and I had not returned since my retirement from the military ten years ago.
It was not until several days ago when Evania and I embarked on a five-day trip to Taitung that I got the chance to visit this place once again. What initially seemed new and distant Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-68135078237602756062011-06-17T10:31:00.002+08:002011-09-05T11:52:35.449+08:00Considered by many to be an impossible film to make, Seediq Bale is now one of the most anticipated films in Taiwan's film history.
Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-59030413914029077532011-06-10T13:27:00.001+08:002011-06-10T13:31:37.619+08:00Surpreendentemente descobri que esta semana, o público superior deste blog não é mais a partir de Taiwan (ou de mim mesmo), mas do Brasil, o país que é famoso por seu time de futebol de alto nível nacional, o que eu tinha aplaudindo em vários Copa do Mundo Taças. Eu gostaria de estender minhas calorosas boas-vindas ao meu público do Brasil. Eu espero que você vai encontrar algo interessante aqui.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-53284137877007272392011-05-31T23:59:00.127+08:002011-06-11T07:30:07.225+08:00It turns out that I spent exactly one year to finish reading Wolf Hall. As if one year was a deadline I needed to meet, when I was on my way to work yesterday, I sat on a bench at a near-by park, reading the final few pages, determined not to put down the book until the last sentence of the book was read.
Again, this Man Booker Prize winner shows us a memorable snapshot of an instance in time. Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-54985757707564953282011-05-16T17:30:00.000+08:002011-05-16T17:30:00.341+08:00I have trouble determining whether this is a typo or a new killer phrase.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-15801309605656882802011-04-17T23:15:00.128+08:002011-04-29T17:23:19.528+08:00Never had I sat so close to the performance on stage, but I was on the first-row seat when I watched U-Theatre's performance titled "Flower Petals on the Water" at Expo Hall of 2010 Taipei International Flora Exposition. And it was such a blast! The jumping sound of drum rolls accompanied by the low and heavy sound of gong in the background created a harmonious rhythm that was soothing to ears Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-84169808839321884432011-04-10T18:46:00.002+08:002011-04-11T08:20:34.779+08:00
Macau Trip
Our tour guide of the Macau Discover Tour said that Macau has a population about 550,000, but they received more than 20 millions tourists last year. One of the major boots on the tourism is the visitors coming from Mainland China, many of whom are looking for good luck -- in casinos, of course.
Neither Evania nor I consider ourselves to be one of those lucky persons who could win Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-89824036864074004152011-03-28T23:31:00.003+08:002011-03-31T12:02:55.581+08:00
Zhao Yun
In the past few weeks, I found myself engrossed by an e-book version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.
If my memory serves me right, it must be during junior high school that I first read the novel. I have to admit, however, that I read the novel not as a fanatic of history but video games, because knowing the background Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-21068474087194739012011-02-24T23:34:00.035+08:002011-03-01T09:45:33.602+08:00This is probably my first photo with celebrities: Zi-Chen Kuo and Pei-Chen Lee hosted the spring wine party. Mr. Kuo, who impersonated Steve Jobs last year, did a nice job this year in getting the employees one more chance to win the biggest prize of the night.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-62970967544660971112011-02-20T17:24:00.090+08:002011-02-23T08:28:16.058+08:00Nicole and Michael's baby boy, weighted 3519 gram, was born at 4PM on February 12th. It was not an easy delivery for Nicole because the baby has a larger-than-average head. After more than 24 hours and two attempts, Nicole finally pushed the baby out of her and instantly felt relieved.
According to the new parents, they faced a decision point after the first attempt about whether to go with Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-8551635388898893822011-01-31T23:25:00.002+08:002011-02-01T13:42:45.655+08:00A memorable quote from The Human Contract, written and directed by Jada Pinkett Smith:
Julian Wright: So this is your idea of a good night?
Michael: You Americans, I mean, your obsession with goodness.
Julian: What?
Michael: Goodness is only a requirement for acceptance, not greatness.I have been bothered for the past two years about being good enough for somebody, but gradually I found that Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-43500938306276842872011-01-01T23:59:00.255+08:002011-04-01T10:21:56.720+08:00Annie and Terry tied the knot today in a wedding luncheon hosted on the second floor of a traditional market place at Nanzhuang, Miaoli.
It would be a hard-to-forget wedding anniversary, if they did not officially register as a married couple just few days earlier at near by Nanzhuang Household Registration Office. What's more, they are going to have a Buddhist wedding ceremony hosted by Dharma Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-1164122712376661842010-12-31T14:31:00.004+08:002011-01-05T09:14:29.543+08:00The first day of December, a small renovation project was kicked off for the 30+ years old bedroom. The carpenter we hired is the father of my second sister's best friend from junior high school. He is all professional and we are quite satisfied with his work.The collage of photos on the right captured the last images of the furniture inside the old bedroom right before it was taken apart. The Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-65296630557837005752010-12-28T08:35:00.003+08:002010-12-28T08:53:51.398+08:00This little fellow here is old enough to draw a picture that I could stick to my refrigerator. In fact, it was himself who stuck the picture to my refrigerator. He drew three people in there: himself, Evania and me. We were happily playing in a flower garden in front of a little house. In the sky, a rainbow emerged. In the middle, was my nephew's "signature" that Evania asked him to sign.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-45517639524985804822010-11-25T12:00:00.000+08:002010-11-25T12:01:02.191+08:00This is my original design of a room for kids. It has an area of 4 tsubo, or 13.224 square meters. Facing Evania's study is a large bookshelf that forms one side of the walls. Next to it, a four-piece sliding door that completely replaces another wall.The room is located at the center of the apartment, beside the corridor connecting living room at the front and rest of the apartment. The corridorLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-51765333588868815812010-11-04T18:30:00.002+08:002010-11-04T18:30:00.491+08:00Caetano Veloso sings Cucurrucucú Paloma in Talk to Her (Spanish: Hable con ella). Listening to this song also gives me goose bumps.Cucurrucucú Paloma Dicen que por las nochesno más se le iba en puro llorar;dicen que no comía,no más se le iba en puro tomar.Juran que el mismo cielose estremecía al oír su llanto,cómo sufrió por ella,que hasta en su muerte la fue llamando:Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay cantaba,Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-5911700937285032082010-10-23T23:05:00.005+08:002010-10-29T09:21:13.020+08:00Before the 21th season of Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) began, the infamous Black Elephants Scandal saw the expulsion of more than fifteen players from Brother Elephants, leaving the most popular baseball team in Taiwan seriously under-staffed and its fans heart-broken, devastated. People even talked about that it might be the last straw that would bring not only Brother Elephants, Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-78219002593309399622010-10-14T23:40:00.000+08:002010-10-19T11:07:00.518+08:00Uzak ihtimal, which means "remote possibility" in Turkish, is a film centering around a young Muslim muezzin, who is attracted to his neighbor, a young Christian girl, who was raised and now works in a church. The film's international festival title, Wrong Rosary, refers to a scene where the muezzin performs one of his prayers while holding a rosary with a cross (just like the one on the poster).Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-19262983755052965062010-10-10T20:36:00.005+08:002010-10-18T09:23:59.103+08:00"The Tempest of First Love" opened up the 2010 Taipei County Film Festival. The film centered around two young teens investigating and trying to resolve a mysterious affair between the girl's mother and the boy's father, who turned out to be lovers before each formed their individual families. Although it was given a serious title, the overall story was lighthearted and with many humorous scenes.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-91224672154711535262010-09-28T12:10:00.000+08:002010-09-28T12:10:00.107+08:00Several months ago, I started to work on an Android application called "RightOn". It is similar to a stopwatch, but with extended features to support what I call an estimate improvement paradigm: before measuring a certain task, an estimate must be given and then a history of measures could be recorded. The history will give you an idea how to adjust the original estimate.If you happen to own an Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-49890089470611450592010-09-05T20:23:00.003+08:002010-09-17T08:46:10.295+08:00Out of nowhere, three caterpillars appeared on our two small pots of citrus trees, grown from remaining seeds of mandarin oranges we had consumed. Unfortunately, the amount of leaves was too scant to satisfy their appetite. We had to send them away before they ate up all the leaves.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-26960394449905374502010-09-04T16:24:00.004+08:002010-09-14T09:22:05.837+08:00Introducing the younger twin, reproduced by Cerina Liao and Johnny Yen after considerable time and effort. The older twin, however, managed to escape our camera by taking his nap.Every time I hear about couples who took extraordinary measures in order to conceive, a sharp contrast between them and Juno from Juno (2007) would emerge in my head. (Before Juno was released in 2007, I drew reports of Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-90967781775032809802010-08-22T23:59:00.007+08:002010-09-28T12:12:44.416+08:00Hong Kong ReduxWho would have guessed that only after 137 days or four and a half months, Evania and I would return to Hong Kong? It is a true statement that Hong Kong is one of the top travel destinations for people in Taiwan, but we returned in such a short time because of one simple reason--we didn't want to pay the handling fee of HK$7 when refunding our Octopus cards. According to the Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-3962350989749166992010-08-17T20:49:00.005+08:002010-08-31T09:23:12.656+08:00Matsu TripIn Taiwan, any young man who is eligible for obligatory military service probably knows about the formidable "Golden Horse Awards", a pun on the real Golden Horse Awards. Although both of them are named after the islands of Kinmen and Matsu, the former means that those who are "awarded" actually go to serve in Kinmen or Matsu.Serving in these two islands is considered dangerous because Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-61285661825985078382010-07-16T23:24:00.001+08:002010-07-21T09:43:50.748+08:00A speed painting artist was trying to finish a portrait within a song's length. He didn't quite make it though because there was no time for his signature. If time allows, he would sign his signature as a last tough and finish his painting as the song plays its last note.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-36331355648747608152010-07-12T23:46:00.004+08:002010-08-24T11:46:01.366+08:00Probably only those who are interested in both 2010 FIFA World Cup and history of Taiwan would be able to "connect the dots" between these two seemly unrelated topics.Both Spain and Netherlands had their chances to win for their respective country the first ever world cup championship title. It was Spaniard Andrés Iniesta's goal in the extra time at the 116th minute that turned the chance into a Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-30079007840544447132010-07-06T14:13:00.006+08:002010-07-07T16:31:53.451+08:00I stumbled upon Fight For You by Morgan Page on thesixtyone, and became infatuated with the mood it created ever since.Fight For You by morganpageMeeting you here, the night's alight with midnight cheerOur dust still unsettled, I feel the plucking of our petalsI'm drawing circles don't you know, protect the seed that wants to growTo a garden, pardon my territoryI'd fight for youI never knew thatLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-5073855698952966542010-06-29T11:36:00.002+08:002010-06-29T14:27:24.525+08:00The biggest upset so far in the 2010 Wimbledon Championships was pulled off by world No. 82, Yen-Hsun Lu, from Taiwan, beating Andy Roddick, the No.5 seed 4-6, 7-6, 7-6, 6-7, 9-7.Lu is not only the first Taiwanese to ever reach a quarterfinal of a Grand Slam tournament, but also the first Asian to enter the quarterfinals of a Major tournament since Shuzo Matsuoka from Japan played in the Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-61758459487283426322010-06-20T21:53:00.005+08:002010-07-06T08:27:11.177+08:00Notorious for the stylist's directness in speech and manner (aka minimal customer service), but famous for her quick hands and awesome results with incredible low prices, Chien Dai Hair Salon was sui generis.My sister-in-law found out this hair salon before coming back from the States for the Chinese New Year. The sisters and I had our firsthand experiences in Chinese New Year's Eve. We were Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-60679778515846241662010-05-31T23:59:00.006+08:002010-06-15T09:10:56.176+08:00Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel, the winner of the 2009 Man Booker Prize, was one of the birthday presents that Evania gave me. I will be reading it in the following days (probably months). The other gift was a red polo shirt, the missing color in my wardrobe's day-to-day polo shirt lineup. Now I have a blue one for Monday, a pink one for Tuesday, a green with white strips one for Wednesday, a black Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-4950607962674398122010-05-24T08:36:00.004+08:002010-05-27T10:50:49.871+08:00Coincidence or not, the words "smart" and "zen" started to follow me since my graduate school days.In the beginning, there was the SMART: The Service-Oriented Migration and Reuse Technique; and there was Team Zen working on ZEN Tool Project.Later on, I started to work on the Smart Service, more specifically the Smart Assist service for the company's foray into the smartphone market.Finally, my Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-77509865169386896452010-05-15T23:14:00.003+08:002010-06-14T09:56:41.017+08:00Facai CafeIn this rainy season, I once again set foot on the beautiful Hualian city at eastern Taiwan. I tagged along with Taiwan Gender Equity Education Association, TGEEA, for a late spring outing. The group reserved all of the four rooms offered at Facai Cafe + B&B. Evania and I were luck to have the Reading Suite (aka the Yellow Room) for the night. The room was perfect for us: no TV set butLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-27935129687122875782010-04-30T09:41:00.011+08:002010-05-19T09:22:02.664+08:00An alternative view of India is presented in The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga, Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2008, through a serious of letters written by the protagonist, Balram Halwai and addressing to the premier of People's Republic of China (PRC), Wen Jiabao.On hearing the radio announcing the premier's upcoming visit to Bangalore, Balram felt the urge to write down his own experience as aLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-9127750565113707692010-04-11T23:58:00.006+08:002010-05-27T09:56:02.671+08:00Taoyuan International Baseball StadiumOne evening during the Chinese New Year vacation at Kaoshiung, my brother-in-law and I decided to buy tickets to a professional baseball game that would be played at the newly-opened Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium.It was a fine afternoon in the mid-spring when we arrived at the stadium, which seemed to have only a temporary parking lot with subtle Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-19201602893995454822010-04-07T13:46:00.001+08:002010-04-07T13:50:41.130+08:00Amazing Chinese characters:大家嫑氣餒！俗話說恏有好報！嘦我們團結無忈，把巭練好，等到奣時，齊心勥出擊，甭幾分鐘，必能炛那些兲[Courtesy of Aquarious]Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-72102722804714519332010-04-06T21:57:00.009+08:002010-08-31T09:39:26.443+08:00Hong Kong TripEvery city has its unique atmosphere, but Hong Kong feels much like Taipei because their signs are written in traditional Chinese--even though it is now part of People's Republic of China, whose official script is simplified Chinese.A three-minute walk from Yau Ma Tei Station, was The Cityview hotel where we stayed for two nights over the long Tomb Sweeping Day weekend. The Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-48485330174844336972010-03-22T11:29:00.005+08:002010-06-14T10:23:10.415+08:00A blacksmith at Maestro Wu demonstrates the making of an artillery shell knife.This is a video that I shot during my trip to Kinmen and my participation in Let's get video on Wikipedia campaign.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-85178946934767816882010-03-16T21:30:00.003+08:002010-03-16T22:32:34.053+08:00Sunny side up, the kind of fried egg that I would eat for my breakfast. It is so delicious that I even use it all over my body--while taking a bath.This is coincidentally made from two bars of soap: the yellow one is almost used up and we stick it on the white and newer one.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-67039932501119226642010-03-13T22:32:00.003+08:002010-03-13T22:38:54.242+08:00Lawrence Lessig's Speech at Italian Parliament: Internet is FreedomLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-16715171743123965102010-03-12T22:59:00.005+08:002010-03-13T23:46:24.798+08:00A Taiwanese comedian impersonated Steve Jobs and appeared as a surprise guest at Far EasTone Telecom.'s 2010 Employee Kick-Off & Spring Wine Party held tonight at Taipei Show. He presented the latest model of iPhone to the company's chairperson, Douglas Hsu, signifying the selling of the smartphone by the Taiwan's number three mobile operator. Together with Taiwan Mobile, Far EasTone became the Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-80283804537585288872010-02-28T23:59:00.008+08:002010-04-07T14:33:36.355+08:00Today's Lantern Festival marks the end of Chinese New Year celebrations, and what a Chinese New Year vacation I have had! It surpasses all my previous CNY experiences because of a change of my marital status and a change of my surrounding climate.Traditionally, the second day of Chinese New Year is for married daughters to visit their birth parents because they may not have the opportunity to Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-45402040911140272452010-02-23T09:52:00.003+08:002010-02-24T09:04:05.558+08:00Life of Pi by Yann Martel has been one of my favorite Man Booker Prize-winning novels. Recently, I borrowed a copy from Taipei County Library to review the story and imagined how Ang Lee might adapt it into a movie, which according to the Oscar-winning director, "is a hard one to crack". But apparently, Lee had made a breakthrough in cracking the structure of the movie. I am eager to see what Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-78907631708889211212010-01-09T09:46:00.002+08:002010-01-11T10:34:53.820+08:00One speciality at Kinmen's restaurants is stir-fried instant noodles. It has been one of the favorite dishes of the soldiers stationed at the island, and has become an attraction to the tourists.After Evania and I tasted the dish for lunch during our cycling trip at Kinmen, we immediately formed the idea of making it by ourselves. When I came home last night, Evania had prepared it for our dinnerLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-71351976743184736252010-01-04T17:09:00.012+08:002010-02-01T14:38:23.616+08:00Kinmen Cycling TripKinmen, administered by Republic of China, was once a stronghold during the First and Second Taiwan Straight Crisis. The archipelago had been bombarded, many houses destroyed, and precious lives taken, but ultimately it withstood the invasion of People's Liberation Army, turned the tide of Chinese Civil War and forged the status quo in Taiwan Straight.More then 50 years latter,Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-74259656359388374892009-12-18T15:12:00.007+08:002009-12-18T17:27:24.575+08:00Looking down at Zhouzi Park No. 2 through the glass windows of the Zhouzi Car Park, I marvelled at a view that was very different from the one I had from sitting on a bench of the park.This bird's eye view was a result of serendipity after I climbed up eight floors of stairs inside the public parking facility.View Larger MapLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-64645606537306924552009-11-23T23:59:00.008+08:002010-02-11T10:56:08.605+08:00Let the Wind Carry Me, directed by Hsiu-Chiung Chiang and Pung-Leung Kwan, is a documentary about Taiwan's own veteran cinematographer Mark Lee.Evania and I were lucky enough to obtain two free tickets for the documentary's world premier at the 2009 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, of which Mark Lee's works were one of the major focuses. The event was thus the culmination of the focus, or Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-6389183392155170032009-11-12T23:56:00.019+08:002009-12-30T12:03:40.891+08:00Tomorrow at Dawn, directed by Denis Dercourt and featuring Vincent Perez and Jérémie Renier, told a story about two brothers entangled in a conflict between two regiments of Napoleonic army. The story was not set at the early 19th century though, it was a historical reenactment, with which Mathieu, played by Renier, was obsessed to a point that the boundary of fiction and reality was blurred. Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-69647359382927674792009-11-08T17:33:00.007+08:002010-03-10T08:30:07.766+08:00Two brothers coming back from a beach where they just saved two women from drowning found that the elder brother's wife had passed away and his young daughter crying, asking where her father had been.It was the context set for the movie, Quiet Chaos, which was "nominated for an unprecedented 18 David di Donatello awards (the Italian equivalent of The Oscars) and a number one hit in Italy."The Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-67459842092916677812009-10-20T21:45:00.007+08:002009-11-03T00:31:12.824+08:00How Late It Was, How Late by James Kelman is such a peculiar novel that I picked up to read for several times and abandoned also for several times until I had run out of Booker-Prize-winning novels and left with no choice but finishing it.The novel has nothing similar to anything I have read before. Written in Scottish dialect, its phrases seem strange and informal. The jumpy narrative, Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-79810698324492344302009-10-08T08:42:00.001+08:002009-10-13T08:26:32.108+08:00 An amusing instance of hardware redundancy materialized in a meeting room, where we were walking through some SIT test cases. The lamp of the projector at the bottom went out and we switched the video cable to the projector on the top, completing a switchover sequence.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-25926999391469059122009-09-25T08:03:00.003+08:002009-09-25T08:51:08.264+08:00I am sitting in a restaurant called Bread First at Neihu. I thought it was just a bakery, but it turned out to be more then just a bakery. It serves also Chinese dishes during lunch time, and offers free Wi-Fi connection--that's how I am writing this post using just installed BlogPress Blogger Edition.The smell of good bread baking like the sound of my life.- Bread First- Posted using BlogPress Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-20144469930305192202009-09-10T10:13:00.002+08:002009-09-13T23:19:42.260+08:00Among a few advantages of Evania living in Taipei is that it is about one hour way to her brother's family at Taoyuan County. Her nephew would be happy to see his aunt in a regular basis and work on children's poems in Hakka like the following.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-89644396706147019042009-09-06T06:01:00.005+08:002009-09-14T08:04:35.562+08:00My first niece was born at 6:01 AM, on September 6th, 2009. She was 51 cm in height and 3280 gram in weight. Her mother, my first sister, spent about seven hours in labor before giving birth to the first baby girl of our next generation. It was a dream came true for my sister because she always wanted to have a daughter. My youngest sister, a mother of two sons, also wanted her second child to beLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-49339870167945349212009-08-22T09:28:00.005+08:002009-09-01T16:51:57.524+08:00We asked a local Sakura Kitchen Life store to renovate our 30-year-old kitchen. The configuration of the sink, stove and range hood remained the same except that they were upgraded to the latest models. And with a new addition to the kitchen staff: a dish dryer.In a counterclockwise, the photos on the left showed the transformation of our kitchen. The granite counter tops were not mounted until Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-38591862455763253512009-08-20T11:14:00.002+08:002009-08-20T11:29:05.202+08:00Google launches Street View in Taiwan, but initially covers only great Taipei area. The streets I am living are not yet included in the initial launch, but hopefully, one of the five specially designed picture-taking cars from Google Taiwan will find them soon. The view below is the closest I can get. The lane to the right leads to my parents' place. The lane to the left leads to where Evania andLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-23341947604762625612009-08-07T14:52:00.010+08:002009-09-07T08:54:32.473+08:00The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai just moved from the unread list to the read list of my Booker-winning novels.Could fulfillment ever be felt as deeply as loss? Romantically she decided that love must surely reside in the gap between desire and fulfillment, in the lack, not the contentment. Love was the ache, the anticipation, the retreat, everything around it but the emotion itself. (page 3Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-53707170642662323792009-08-03T22:47:00.004+08:002009-08-04T08:50:49.095+08:00My sister-in-law gave us a Creative Labs Vado HD 720p Pocket Video Camcorder with 8 GB Video Storage and 2x Digital Zoom as a wedding gift. Many videos have been shot with it and the video below is the first one uploaded on YouTube.The video was shot during my commute back home on the newly launched but troubled MRT Neihu Line from Songshan Airport Station to Zhongshan Junior High School Station.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-55471710617297525662009-07-30T22:43:00.002+08:002009-08-07T12:40:45.600+08:00Who would imagine that I could participate in a Mac OS X Server training? And trained with a iMac as client and Mac mini as server? The training was fundamental, but I did learn how to remotely install Mac OS X Server, configure DNS service, share files using NFS, FTP, SMB and AFP. The training took place in a training room owned by Apple Taiwan, which located at south-east side of downtown Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-48831852729294226632009-07-19T21:49:00.003+08:002009-07-28T23:23:51.628+08:00Mt. LingtouConfucius once told his student, "The wise find pleasure in water; the compassionate in mountains. The wise are active; the compassionate tranquil. The wise are joyful; the compassionate long-lived." I do find pleasure in mountains. Does that make me one of the compassionate? I sincerely hope so.The day we conquered Mt. Lingtou had the premonition of a typhoon inching toward us. The Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-80368762912012503932009-07-06T23:17:00.003+08:002009-07-08T15:56:28.887+08:00 The MRT Neihu Line officially commenced on July 4th, connecting the MRT Muzha Line at MRT Zhongshan Junior High School Station and making my all-MRT commute to Neihu Technology Park a reality. It was not without any consequences though. The first working day after its commencement, passengers flooded the transferring area at MRT Zhongxiao Fuxing Station, forcing passenger control that could onlyLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-73490399705625152832009-06-30T09:34:00.005+08:002009-06-30T10:32:32.767+08:00Looking out from a cross-shaped window on the wall of Castelgrande, the largest castle of the Three Castles of Bellinzona, an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. Built on a huge rock as its foundation, Castelgrande had been a natural stronghold protecting surrounding area since the late 1st Century BC. Troops stationed in the castle might have used the window to keep watch. An arrow or two Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-72370072170989845372009-06-28T23:56:00.005+08:002009-07-14T16:02:14.321+08:00Song Luo National TrailSong Luo National Trail was once a hunting trial of the Atayal tribe. What was walked by hunters is now walked by tourists. Hunters hunted prey along the trail for survival but now tourists sought scenic views along the trail for pleasure. The way of living of the Atayal tribe has since changed, or modernized according to some, but at a cost that is probably too difficult Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-33215475411116868712009-06-22T12:33:00.003+08:002009-07-03T08:31:33.620+08:00My first homemade bento brought to office was cooked by mother-in-law and prepared by Evania. It consisted of jelly ear fungus, Lady's Fingers, sautéed chop-up meat with dried white radish and rice cooked with several types of grains and red beans.This was a dream came true for I had been drooling over a homemade bento that is full of not only nutrition but also love and care.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-15040737778534249272009-06-18T08:21:00.005+08:002009-07-03T09:31:30.323+08:00In his many years of tour-leading experiences, Larry had yet to encounter a railway breakdown at Switzerland. Now he did, and so did we.On our way from St. Gallen to Chur, the train stopped suddenly, creating a big puzzlement among our tour group. A lady sat on the opposite seat was kind enough to inform us that we had to leave the train. Apparently, the railway had broken down in between St. Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-22016048853495059812009-06-13T23:48:00.006+08:002009-06-25T09:48:03.709+08:00My parents and little sister's family joined me for a visit at Dharma Drum Mountain, where Evania continued her training as a volunteer tour guide. We arrived just in time for lunch, which was served free for everyone. It was close to the end of lunch time, and we found ourselves the only group left in the dining hall. My two nephews took the opportunity wandering, crawling and playing in the Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-83885158579052405072009-06-07T23:39:00.005+08:002009-06-17T10:43:04.255+08:00HoneymoonJust got back from an 11-day trip at Switzerland. There are so many things to write about, but before that, an album proving that we had been there and done that.One of the highlights of the trip was meeting my Swiss classmate from graduate school. We had a little chat over lunch on the last day, before leaving for the Zurich Airport. I had imagined about this kind of meeting before, andLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-54726498973099306272009-05-07T21:10:00.005+08:002009-05-21T08:08:58.707+08:00 The magic mailbox!How could I praise you highly enough?You delivery mail in a hurry--From 114 to 540 in less than 24 hours.That's the speed of light in the standard of postal services!You sometimes reward me by skipping stamps on my postage stamps.That's kindness, albeit accidental, in the uppermost form!The man about to send another mail,I salute you!Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-5451687058335880812009-04-18T23:59:00.010+08:002009-08-07T14:16:34.853+08:00Dated back to 1847, the Lin Family Mansion and Garden at Banqiao is the most complete private garden that is still left in Taiwan. Although I was born and grew up at Banqiao, I have managed to keep myself away from this tourist spot until today. Over the span of more than 160 years, this exquisite Chinese garden has witnessed the ups and downs of the neighborhood. Evania, whose name just got Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-39244065832515698062009-04-18T23:59:00.007+08:002009-07-14T16:04:45.016+08:00How soon is too soon? And waiting for how long is long enough?A voice in my head has been whispering to myself these questions, looking for an answer. Sometimes I am certain that I have the answer, but at other times I am not so sure. It feels like a pendulum oscillating in my heart, eagerly trying to settle on its lowest point. A point that I could find the answer.I imagine that many years from Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-4700128462009385572009-04-10T08:05:00.015+08:002009-04-17T12:14:20.406+08:00Dharma Drum MountainDharma Drum Mountain, founded by Venerable Master Sheng Yen, was the destination of my first solo drive in northern Taiwan. I was nervous, but stayed in control most of the time. Although guided by a GPS device, I still managed to miss a couple of turns, causing the device to recalculate routes and increasing my total driving time. The last straw, however, was my lack of trustLung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-69599483017598618332009-04-01T09:36:00.004+08:002009-04-01T13:30:23.501+08:00Hiko-Ki by Shibusashirazu Orchestra can be heard toward the end of Cherry Blossoms - Hanami (2008). This is the song that brought me to tears when I watched the film for the first time during 2008 Taipei Film Festival--I did not see it coming. The song's lyrics is adapted from Japanese poet Takuboku Ishikawa's poem titled "Airplane", which is quoted below in its original language.飛 行 機石 川 啄 木見よ、Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-91987372853949234482009-03-28T23:59:00.004+08:002009-04-30T22:38:13.018+08:00Knock knock! Who's there?Or more precisely: who's inside? I am sure there was someone inside this public toilet near Dahua Station of Pengsi Line. It's someone whom I want to marry.She said this would be the first trip we took together after she became, officially, my girl friend and me her boy friend. It would also be the last trip before we became wife and husband, if we indeed got married, as Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-51241653122634525712009-03-20T07:04:00.001+08:002009-03-22T09:21:26.856+08:00I ran into a colorful bird squatting at the stairs when I was leaving my apartment for work this morning. It stayed motionless throughout our brief encounter. Why it was there will probably be a mystery that puzzles me for the time to come.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-74464372069149330592009-03-15T20:34:00.009+08:002009-03-31T11:00:17.676+08:00Ciaotou Sugar RefineryIt was a beautiful day to take the KMRT for the first time. I started my journey from the Fongshan Station, made a transfer at the Formosa Boulevard Station and arrived at the Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Built during the Japanese colonial period, Ciaotou Sugar Refinery was the first mechanical sugar refinery in Taiwan. It was the harbinger of the modernization of Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-38524897148515135962009-03-11T21:44:00.017+08:002009-03-30T12:08:54.047+08:00'Money is sacred, as everyone knows,' he said. 'So then must be the hunger for it and the means we use to obtain it. Once a man is in debt he becomes a flesh and blood form of money, a walking investment. You can do what you like with him, you can work him to death or you can sell him. This cannot be called cruelty or greed because we are seeking only to recover our investment and that is a Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-5905176829537956132009-03-06T11:56:00.003+08:002009-03-06T12:00:46.169+08:00Paper Planes - Slumdog Millionaire Lyrics(I Fly Like Paper Get High Like PlanesIf You Catch Me At The Border I Got Visas In My NameIf You Come Around Here I Make ' Em All DayI Get One Down In A Second If You Wait) - 2(Sometimes I Think Sitting On TrainsEvery Stop I Get To I' m Clocking That GameEveryone' s A Winner Now We' re Making That FameBonafide Hustler Making My Name) - 2(All I Wanna Do Is Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-32723881610470355732009-03-05T22:08:00.006+08:002009-03-10T21:39:01.310+08:00My new work station is centered around a notebook, one of the new things that I see with my second tenure at the company. I really enjoy taking the notebook to meetings, to Starbucks downstairs, to a Mos Burger near the office and occasionally back home.See also my previous work stations:Original work stationWork station with Mozo D72Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-15912812661965755662009-03-02T22:37:00.011+08:002009-03-06T14:30:52.291+08:00The apple slices in Evania's Lock&Lock has been consumed with joy and appreciation. It has been a long time since I last brought a lunchbox with me to work. In fact, I don't quite remember when the last time was and what I brought. I even wonder if there was a "last time." It might very well be that this is the first lunchbox I have ever brought to work.Seeing the process of preparing the apple Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-88136273068210736562009-02-25T20:34:00.009+08:002009-02-27T09:28:39.892+08:00It was 7:05 in the morning. I was about to embark on my longest commute to my office at Neihu, Taipei. Standing on the platform of Taiwan High Speed Rail's Taichung Station, my mind felt completely serene in spite of the disturbance from the previous day and the night that followed.Why did I run this errand 200 km away? Among many other reasons, I realized that I was no longer afraid of loving Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-49864374803524639692009-02-17T08:49:00.003+08:002009-02-17T17:29:11.669+08:00Iman and Ben's baby girl, Abby, has arrived. She looks like Iman...and Ben...and a mix of both.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-51524958615226865932009-01-31T22:09:00.009+08:002009-02-11T21:01:43.940+08:00Trip to MeinongI met a Hakka girl on January 29th, which happened to be her birthday.It always amazed me that two individuals who were previously strangers but found a chance to learn and understand each other. The feeling of happiness and fulfillment was so surreal that I questioned myself from time to time if it was actually happening.It did happen on the day that I thought I had met a girl Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-23591733409680983172009-01-27T21:00:00.006+08:002009-02-02T22:42:25.992+08:00Fengkweikou (風櫃口), 581 meters above sea level, is widely known as the holy land of cycling in the great Taipei area, and the touchstone of cyclists who take the activity more serious than a pastime.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-64739047419611648212009-01-18T23:20:00.004+08:002009-01-29T06:28:22.461+08:00Taipei National University of the ArtsThe tasty and almost magical fish couscous in The Secret of the Grain motivated me to look for a restaurant serving couscous dishes. Google did not show me too many promising results, which taught me nonetheless that there was a famous restaurant called Bistro le Casanova that served traditional Moroccan food, including couscous dishes. Regrettably, the Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-75302204234354250202009-01-17T20:11:00.010+08:002009-01-18T22:55:02.786+08:00The 2008 TGHFF series is finally finished. I have to admit that it is not easy to crunch 13 films, either seeing them in the theaters or regurgitating them in the blog posts.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-32483056377104555022009-01-10T20:38:00.004+08:002009-01-12T22:32:30.328+08:00Michael and Nicole have a busy day today. They have been preparing for it for more than three months. Their determination is not deterred by the government's announcement saying that today is a working day; their eagerness is not reduced by the weather forecasts saying that today's temperature is the lowest so far this winter. They triumph over the odds.I am one of the witnesses to their grand Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-31343982869638225612009-01-05T22:45:00.006+08:002009-01-10T21:35:46.893+08:00Cycling at TarokoI had been looking forward to going back to Hualien ever since my last visit, but in what way I could not decide until the New Year's Eve. No, it was in fact after hearing the count down from a group of people near by my home and the sound of fireworks breaking out for the New Year that I decided I would need a new bicycle for the trip.The photo album should tell the story, Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-55278082729453449022008-12-25T08:42:00.003+08:002009-01-21T08:49:02.728+08:00Santa loves Mercedes-Benz, or he just mistook the sign board as a chimney.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-1298086957812615952008-12-17T06:26:00.002+08:002008-12-18T22:22:18.442+08:00A memorable quote from the film "Into the Wild":Some people feel like they don't deserve love. They walk away quietly into empty spaces, trying to close the gaps of the past.- Christopher McCandlessIt is a true statement; I know one of them.Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-58469449595061684202008-11-20T23:38:00.007+08:002009-01-18T08:07:13.411+08:00My 2008 TGHFF ended with a heavier note than expected. 8 by eight notable film directors expressed in the film their views on the progress of the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) adopted by 191 governments in 2000. Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Muhammad Yunus, described MDGs as "the boldest decision mankind ever took on this planet." The film, on the other hand, might not be as bold, but Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-66471414892296828412008-11-20T23:11:00.007+08:002009-01-14T09:10:15.615+08:00If Children of Heaven from Iranian director Majid Majidi has touched you, most likely the director's latest work, The Song of Sparrows, would do the same.The film is full of the director's usual keen observation and humorous interpretation of people living in the rural area. After being let go from an ostrich farm because of a runaway ostrich, our protagonist, Karim, ventures into Tehran and Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-24417132540619851042008-11-19T23:52:00.005+08:002009-01-07T19:58:50.669+08:00It turned out that I had a rather balanced selection of films from the 2008 TGHFF. I saw a masterpiece tonight from another master of the Salute to Masters Programme. The Red Circle by Jean-Pierre Melville, highly regarded as the director's "most sophisticated, most compelling, [and] most perfect film", was a detective thriller that reminded me a lot of John Woo, who, in a matter of fact, was (Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4075520.post-67194779757203703712008-11-16T23:02:00.004+08:002008-12-30T00:00:02.166+08:00It was a blessing to see The Invitation from Cinema Orion by Kenki Saegusa as the last film of my weekend film marathon. After five films in less than 48 hours, anything heavier than this one could be the last straw.The film is about a Platonic love between a young man and a widow. The young man came to the cinema, hoping to see a movie but did not have enough money. The wife, who was then Lung-San Hsuhttps://profiles.google.com/118294722637391600178noreply@blogger.com0