don't get sick in taiwan

I know I have health insurance here. But I'm not going to a doctor for a fucking cold. Having said that, most of your realy interesting cold and flu viruses come from Asia, and I seem to have come down with something.

Most of the time, I get a cold that starts in my nose, then it either goes away or it gets worse by settling in my throat and lungs. A few more days of fluids and sleep takes care of it. Not so here. So many people are sick. It's just normal to be sick for weeks at a time. Plus, I am around kids all day. Cute kids, ugly germs.

My lungs seem to be really good at collecting mucus. I didn't know it was possible to cough up phlegm on a regular basis for a week. I don't feel bad enough to let it stop me from working, so I don't need a doctor, right?

what a slacker

I have officially become really bad about adding new info to this blog. It's not that there aren't interesting things happening or anything. Here is a short grocery list of news items in my life-

1. I am moving- fucking AGAIN !!!- It's okay, because I am going to be saving money. I took the option of leaving my apartment after 6 months and forfeiting half of the deposit. I was never really into the idea of finding another roommate, so I was paying too much rent for this place, but still liking the privacy. The owner of my school came back from England for a few months and offered his house to me while he is away. The rent is less than half of what I pay now, so it was really not too much to think about. I had another option of moving in with some other teachers into a really nice apartment downtown. My only issue with that was with the extra-curricular stuff. This is the group that introduced me to the drugs in Taiwan. I'm not judging them, but rather, I'm judging myself. I can control myself when I can control my environment, meaning I won't go out looking for chemicals that often. But, when the chemicals are readily available, and I do not have enough compelling reasons to refrain, I'm not fooling myself into thinking that I can be a casual user. Maybe I could, but I'm not willing to challenge that theory anyway.

2. I'm pretty sure that I will do another year here. There's a lot to see and do here, the money is too good and I really like teaching kids. Another decision that did not take too much thought.

3. I developed a new analogy for life. This was done during a "Chinese hotpot" lunch. Nutshell- a big, steaming cauldron of soup at your table, in which you put uncooked vegetables and meats of your choosing. Anyway, life is like eating crab from the shell. It's largely a pain in the ass, you often question why you bother doing it, seriously consider quitting at least a few times while you are doing it, but then you stumble onto some really good bits, and it all makes sense. It really is worth the trouble after all. The end.

4. Kids in Taiwan are about the cutest, sweetest things around. This place has really spoiled me. There's no way I want kids of my own now (not that I wanted them too much before), because I cannot conceivably produce, or half-produce, off-spring that would approach the level of beauty in children here. Terribly sorry friends and family. I will not rub your noses in it, but kids here are cuter than your kids.

I guess that's about it for now. I will post more often.