I’m a Thousand Winds

Please don't stand at my grave and weep, for I am not there, I do not sleep
I am the sunlight on the ripened grain, I am the gentle autumn rain
I am the swift rush of birds in flight, I am the stars that shine at night
I am a thousand winds,  I am a thousand winds that blow

According to Article 1138, Civil Law, a budget of NT$ 1,110,000 for a funeral is tax free in Taiwan. It's a big sum for ordinary people, but it can actually cost much more if a comprehensive Chinese style funeral takes place, countless ceremonies to be prepared, lengthy prayers to be said, tons of joss papers to be burned, bands and professional mourners to be hired, not to mention food and drinks for visitors. The mourning period can last from 49 to 100 days with designated ceremonies in-between.

At Golden Ladies Toastmasters movie and dinner gatherings in January featuring the movie theme of Life and Death, we saw funerals of different nationalities and cultures, a Jewish funeral in "Nora's Will", a Japanese funeral in "To Live", an English funeral in "Death at a Funeral", an American funeral in "The Bucket List", a Taiwanese funeral in "Seven Days in Heaven" and a Chinese funeral in "If You are the One" Part II.

A funeral is comforting for family and friends to get together to mourn the deceased collectively. For Chinese, it is the obligation to observe filial piety and to devote to ancestors. Family members must consult the Chinese Almanac to determine the best date to hold the Chinese funeral ceremony. In Chinese thinking, if the dead person is well buried, the offspring will be blessed with good fortune in return. Some people search for dragon pits to bury the dead in order to have a king or a zillionair among their children and grandchildren to be.

The job of coordinating and preparing the Chinese funerals of elders falls on children or younger family members. Fortunately and unfortunately, I don't have any children. I don't have to worry about my funeral and the following blessing upon my children and grandchildren. Without a live funeral, a space funeral, or any possible environmental friendly funeral, I'd like to contain my funeral budget to ZERO by donating my body to medical school students for gross anatomy.

After I die, I become a thousand winds. I am in no existence. I shall always be grateful to the body I leave behind for supporting my life journey in the world. If there is a wish I could make, I'd like to leave my body intact for people to study, to examine, and to investigate. So, help me God, I take care of my body when I'm in the secular world.

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost (1874–1963)

Upon Toastmaster Joy Chyr's request, I stayed at her place overnight for the first time after our last movie & dinner gathering in January was over.

It was only nine after when most participants left for home. Joy was eager to show me an array of popular TV stations in China she downloaded on her i-pod. I watched one video clip after another to get a picture of entertainment industry in China. Much to my astonishment, I was overwhelmed with the diversities and varieties of TV shows in China. At home, I don't watch TV except the 7 o'clock evening news over dinner.

Since my husband was out of town, I needed not rush home. I felt elated to stay up late indulged in women's talk at Joy's. We took a bubble bath after we decided to retire for the night, followed by a slumber party for two nudes! Joy certainly had a lot to talk in the dark, my eyes felt heavier and heavier in no time. Before I could hear anything from her, it was late Sunday morning when I woke up.

The last movie & dinner gathering started at 3:55 p.m. Saturday afternoon, January 26th. It was another splendid movie gathering to compare two greatest Japanese movie directors Akira Kurosawa and Itami Juzou!

We watched "To Live (生きる)", a 1952 Japanese film co-written and directed by Akira Kurosawa. It's a story about the struggles of a middle aged government employee and his final quest for meaning.

Kanji Watanabe(Takashi Shimura) is a section chief in the city government. He has worked for thirty years. His wife is dead and his son and daughter-in-law live with him. After learning he has stomach cancer and less than a year to live, he is lost until he meets a young female subordinate who seeks for resignation to start a new life..

Watanabe has a dramatic change in his behavior from passive bureaucrat to passionate advocate. He eventually turns a mosquito-infested cesspool into a children's playground. In the end, Watanabe died sitting on the swing, gazing lovingly at the sparkling snows falling from the sky, singing  ゴンドラの唄 Gondola no Uta.

いのち短し　戀せよ少女 朱き唇　褪せぬ間に(life is brief, fall in love, maidens, before the crimson bloom fades from your lips
熱き血潮の　冷えぬ間に 明日の月日の　ないものを(before the tides of passion cool within you, for those of you who know no tomorrow

いのち短し　戀せよ少女 いざ手をとりて　彼の舟に (life is brief, fall in love, maidens, before his hands take up his boat)
いざ燃ゆる頬を　君が頬に ここには誰れも　來ぬものを (before the flush of his cheeks fades, for those of you who will never return here)

いのち短し　戀せよ少女 波に漂う　舟の様に(life is brief, fall in love, maidens, before the boat drifts away on the waves)
君が柔手を　我が肩に ここには人目も　無いものを(before the hand resting on your shoulder becomes frail for those who will never be seen here again)

いのち短し　戀せよ少女 黒髪の色　褪せぬ間に(life is brief, fall in love, maidens, before the raven tresses begin to fade)
心のほのお　消えぬ間に 今日はふたたび　來ぬものを (before the flame in your hearts flicker and die for those to whom today will never return)

For dinner, Linda donated a big wok of fried noodles, a plate of vegetable pickles, and a plate of scramble eggs with tomato. Mei made a pot of vegetable and mushroom soup. Joy prepared corn on the cob.

After dinner, we watched "The Funeral(お葬式)", a 1984 Japanese comedy film directed by Juzo Itami. The film shows the preparations for a traditional Japanese funeral. It mixes grief at the loss of a husband and father with wry observations of the various characters as they interact during the three days of preparation.

Due to the bad quality of the VCD of "The Funeral", we didn't finish the film. Mr. Hung agreed that I could take the VCD home to watch it. Without delay, we began our chocolate fondue party during our panel discussion. I saw satisfied smiles on ladies when they dipped strawberries, grapes, cheese cake chunks into the pot of chocolate fondue. I was so happy that the chocolate fondue was a triumph to win hearts of our ladies friends.

Joy and I had Sunday brunch at Cafe' a la mode on Yung-ho Street, in the neighborhood of late Liang Shih-chiu. Joy ordered Italian rizo, I had German sausage & scramble eggs with South African black tea. When Joy asked me what I was after in life. I told her my story of the road not taken.

Like the protagonist Watanabe in Ikiru, I was a section chief at Department of Health when I decided to leave the government post two decades ago. For me, life is not for the pension and retirement. Life is to discover new possibilities. Life is to get connected with the world. Life is to realize our full potentials.

Many thanks to Mr. Hung for selecting many inspiring and thought provoking movies for the theme of the month--Life and Death in January! We shall resume our movie & dinner gatherings in March with the theme of month—Love & Sex. See you in March!

PS: I finished watching "the Funeral", the award wining film funeral by Director Juzo Itami the following day. It's educational and entertaining about Japanese funerals. Director Itami played a prank by choosing "the end" to begin his movie career.

A Hearty Breakfast at AFA

It was the second time I visited Anatolia Formosa Association (AFA) this morning, to have a hearty Turkish breakfast with black tea and to fetch a silk scarf Toastmaster LJ Lamb had kept for me. When I arrived, I saw four tables full of guests at AFA lounge. LJ and his wife, Elizabeth, were among them. There were a dozen young and handsome Turkish gentlemen waiting in the room. It was the first time I saw so many Turkish men.

Much to my surprise, I didn't see any young and friendly Turkish ladies I met at the first coffee day in 2013 at AFA two weeks ago. Their lovely smiles and tender looks prompted me to join AFA to study the Turkish language and culture.

It was LJ who posted the Turkish Coffee Day at AFA on Facebook, I began my Turkish adventure  in Taiwan. The moment I walked into AFA, I was greeted warmly by three Turkish ladies and I felt at home immediately. Then I saw Liz accompanied by LJ to AFA. It was the second time I saw Liz. When I complimented her on her crimson silk wrap around her head, Liz promised to give me a silk scarf she bought from Istanbul without any hesitation.

Liz is a super friendly and beautiful Chinese woman with Mongolian heritage. When I first met her at MOFA Toastmasters Club last year, I was attracted to her at once. She told me her family history, her studies in the US, and her romance with LJ. Liz reminded me of the beautiful women I met in Mongolia during the Toastmaster mission trip to Ulaanbaatar in January 2010.

With a view to sitting at the same table with LJ and Liz, I found an empty seat facing them. Serendipitously, my brother and sister-in-law sat next to me. They were invited for breakfast by their Turkish tenant who works at AFA. It was a indeed pleasant encounter to catch up on the news with the couple of my younger sister's in-laws.

During breakfast, there was an entertainment session, featuring a bamboo flute player and a drummer. The first two pieces of music were religious prayers. The third piece of music is for accompanying a lively Turkish dance in 7 beats.

At the same table, there were many interesting strangers. I met a professor of Arabic Calligraphy at National Chengchi University. He talked about his ancestors in Shandong province. President Hu Ya-Fei of KIVAM Junior High School talked about his mother and his son Hu Guan-chung, the protagonist of Jaisal A Gabey on Da-ai Station. After seeing the TV series, I understood the friendly ties between Taiwanese and Turkish people. I knew about the earthquake registering 7.4 on Richter scale in Izmit and Güllük, Turkey on August 17th, 1999. I knew about the kidnap and investigation of Mr. Hu after September 11 attack in US.

As I plan to join AFA to learn more about Turkey, I shall wear the chic silk scarf from Liz as often as possible. Hopefully before I set foot in the mysterious ancient kingdom of Anatolia, I could say a few Turkish greeting words and sing a few Turkish songs.

The Law of Attraction

"The night is still young," Linda gave a big satisfying smile to Lydia and me when we left Toastmaster Joy Chyr's apartment at 11 PM. It was the third consecutive weekly movie and dinner gathering chez Joy's Saturday night, January 19th. We saw two movies about Life & Death--the movie theme of January.

It was warm and sunny Saturday. I arrived early at Joy's place to meet another three earlier birds waiting at the door of Joy's lounge. I knew Mr. Hung, the movie critics, but I didn't know the other two ladies (Maria and Betty) invited by Linda. I did not take the initiative to chat with them as I was totally absorbed in the "Treasure Island" for the radio drama rehearsal scheduled tomorrow afternoon.

After Joy arrived with her Filipina maid Mary, we began watching a recent highly acclaimed French film "Intouchables" with a stunning box office around the world . The film is written and directed by Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano. It's about the friendship between an aristocratic Frenchman Philippe (Francois Cluzet) and a young and lively African Immigrant Driss (Omar Sy). Through their friendship, Driss is able to appreciate the finer things in life while Philippe learns to love life as he did before his devastating paragliding accident which resulted in his quadriplegia.

"The Bucket List" we watched last Saturday and "Intouchables" we watched this Saturday have two protagonists, one is white, the other is black. The white is rich, the black is poor. The protagonists attempted skydiving in "The Bucket List. In "Intouchables", it was the paragliding they enjoyed. Flying in the air seems a dream come true for movie goers! I wish I could ride in a Maserati Quattroporte someday!

After seeing "Intouchables", Linda ran to the kitchen to prepare fried rice noodles and vegetable salads, I was in a rush to put "Bacon and Potato au Gratin" in the oven I brought along from home. Meanwhile, I made the sour napa cabbage hot pot. It felt great to see Toastmasters friends devoted to the craft of feeding, cooking, and creating in the kitchen, and to exchange the recipes. While everybody was pleased with the sour napa cabbage I bought from the traditional market in Hsin-tien, I decided to make the sour napa cabbage at home. And a brass hot pot on coal stove with a chimney is a must-buy on my shopping list.

In order to save time, we watched "Nora's Will" (Five Days Without Nora in Spanish, Cinco días sin Nora) over dinner. It's a touching and award wining Mexican film by First-time writer-director Mariana Chenillo, about love and madness of a Jewish family in Mexico City.

Nora's ex-husband José is an old cynical Jewish atheist. Ever since they broke up, they've lived on the same street, in facing apartments.  Before Nora finally succeeded in committing suicide, she planned an elaborate annual Passover dinner for her family. José resisted Nora's will by ordering a Catholic funereal and by serving guests a ham and sausage pizza. When José discovered a photo of Nora with another man by accident, he began to unearth the infidelity evidence of Nora whom he claimed he loved no more. Nora's funeral eventually brought peace to her family members with her WILL.

"Death at a Funeral" we saw last Saturday and "Nora's Will" we saw this Saturday share the core value of funerals. Funerals of different religions and cultures are expensive in both movies. They reminded me of six seasons of "Six Feet Under" I spent an entire month watching two years ago. When facing life and death, people are given the chance to reconcile with what seemed impossible in the past and to begin a new life! Funerals connect the family members in the end!

There were a total of a dozen participants at the movie and dinner gathering today. People came and people went! After movies, a panel discussion chaired by Joy Chyr began. Joy asked us to name a favorite pastime in life. Some like good food, some like a pleasant walk in the park in the morning, some like reading good books and meeting interesting strangers. Joy likes to open her door to people who are willing to share ideas about life. What a splendid and successful movie and dinner gathering we enjoyed today!

Joy Shared is Joy Doubled

It was after midnight when I left Toastmaster Joy Chyr's apartment. After a full day of movie and dinner gathering on the second Saturday in January, I still lingered for another two hours to watch three episodes of CCTV's "Fall in Love" on Joy's i-pod.

In the rain, I arrived at Joy's place with a bucket of La-ba congee at 3PM sharp just in time to watch the Bucket List 2007, an American film directed by Rob Reiner, written by Justin Zackham, and starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. The movie is about two terminally ill men with a wish list of things to do before they "kick the bucket". It was the opposite attraction between Blue-collar mechanic Carter Chambers (Morgan Freeman) and billionaire hospital magnate Edward Cole (Jack Nicholson).

Carter is a gifted amateur historian and a loving family man with wife, children, and grandchildren. Edward is a four-time divorced health-care tycoon and cultured loner who enjoys nothing more than tormenting his employees. Edward likes drinking Kopi Luwak, one of the most expensive coffees in the world. Carter enjoys Chock full o'Nuts, that heavenly coffee, better coffee Rockefeller's money can't buy.

Carter died on the operating table, Edmund lived up to 81 years old. It was the cruel reality that poor man without money can't afford the state-of-the-art medical technology. I like the ending of the story, two Chock full o'Nuts coffee cans alongside at a summit in the Himalayas. I thought of the Bridges of Madison County.

As I ran in and out of the kitchen to prepare the la-ba congee, I didn't get the chance to see the protagonists travel around the world. I thought I didn't miss anything, because I believe that we should seize the moment and take action when young. Don't procrastinate till the last minute when we become incapable of traveling on our own.

Talking about skydiving, it was the first joint activity on the bucket list of Carter and Edward. If I had the chance to do skydiving, I would definitely have a self-photo taken with me holding a Toastmaster magazine in my hands in the sky and send it to the Toastmaster Magazine to share with traveling Toastmasters all over the world.

Being a translator, it is a habit of mine to compare three Chinese translations, 玩轉身前事 in Hong Kong, 一路玩到掛 in Taiwan, and 遺願清單 in China. Three of them reflected the subtleties of Chinese speaking people in three regions. Of course, I like the translation in Taiwan the best, literally "to have fun till death".

After the Bucket List in the afternoon, we had an early dinner. Toastmaster Linda Chu believes that "Variety is the spice of life!" She loves to try gourmet food of different nationalities. Her wok of curry chicken tempted the tasting buds and satisfied hungry stomachs of seven participants. I look forward to more of her exciting dishes in coming weeks.

After dinner, we saw Death at a Funeral 2007, a British comedy film directed by Frank Oz and written by Dean Craig. It's about a family attempting to resolve a variety of problems while attending the funeral of the patriarch. From the beginning, the wrong casket of Daniel's father was delivered, the hallucinogenic effect of LSD misplaced in the Valium bottle ensued chaos among relatives, till Daniel's perfect eulogy, Joy's living room was full of laughter. When everybody went crazy, the problems were solved themselves magically!

Three Chinese translations of  Death at a Funeral worth discussion. I can't speak Cantonese, therefore I don't understand 倒瀉籮蟹搞喪禮 in Hong Kong. In stead of 超完美告別 (Super perfect Farewell) in Taiwan, I prefer 完美告別式(Perfect Funeral Ceremony). As for 葬禮上的死亡 in China, it was word for word translation of the English title. It's hard to comprehend. If I were the translator, I'd translate the movie into 一了也百了!

After two movies, first timer A-mei, a friend of Linda, stood up to tell us her early retirement as a spicy high school teacher and her struggles with students of juvenile delinquency at school. Her shared sorrow became half a sorrow. A-mei came from Yang-mei and brought along local Hakka delicacies. We were happy to have her among us!

After A-Mei left for the day, I sang a few Taiwanese and Mandarin songs upon the request. The TV celebrity Jing-pong(金澎) encouraged me to sing with feelings. He also told us the story behind a famous popular song "Your Tenderness" (恰似你的溫柔). When I stood up to give it a try to sing Your Tenderness, I had tears in my eyes. Imagination is indeed powerful. Singing with a story in mind makes the performing art of words and melodies soothing and comforting.

Good Things Come in Pairs

Wow, it isn't easy to find a person at a banquet of 100 tables for ten. But, I found her to my surprise. We took a photo together to mark the joyful moment.

I met Stephanie Pan at Grand Toastmasters Club's first meeting in 2013. At the second party after the meeting, we knew that we worked for the same boss. When Stephanie talked this and that of her boss, I was in a cloud. When she mentioned the name of the company, oh, I know who she was talking about, my boss, too!

The company's year-end party was held Friday evening at a huge Banquet Hall in Tao-yuan. I didn't want to venture all the way from Taipei just for a free dinner, were it not to meet with Stephanie. When I arrived at the banquet hall of 1,000 people, I was stunned at the people mountain people sea. The company song was played loudly in the air. It sounded like a Japanese military song. Everybody was moving around greeting one another in the banquet hall. It would be no way for me to find her. Nevertheless, I tried just the same to walk through around ten tables, then I gave up. It's mission impossible to search for a needle in a haystack.

Then I went to the lady's room and I got lost when I returned to the banquet hall. To my surprise, I saw Stephanie waving her hands at me at the far end! What a second serendipity it was! I was as happy as I just won the lottery! The dinner started with the greeting of the President of the company, followed by the lucky draw. The store manager of the pharmacy where I work won NT$20,000 and I walked with lucky encounter with Stephanie Pan.

It was 30 minutes before midnight when I got home. I was excited and exhausted. But I still needed to go to the kitchen to prepare the La-ba congee for dessert at Golden Ladies Toastmaster Movie and Dinner Gathering tomorrow.

It was the first time in my life I peeled a full bowl of peanuts one after another. In order not to give up half way, I forced myself to recite "A-mi-tuo Fo" when I peeled one peanut and broke it into two halves, imagining I held a string of Buddhist rosary of 108 beads to recite the mantra. It is my hope that the La-ba congee 2013 is my token of gratitude to celebrate the auspicious enlightenment day of the Buddha.

New Year Resolutions Rewrite

It's only the second week of year 2013. I need to rewrite my new year resolutions for the second time.

After I visited the Hakka Beiguan Band in Hsin-tien this morning, I had to reconsider my plan to join them. The band started the weekly practice from 8 o'clock in the morning. Before I arrived at the community center next to Carrefour Hsin-tien, I could hear the loud Hakka drum and wind instrument. It was a little too much for my ears in the early morning. After three hours observation, I had to give up the fancy ideas to join any bands at my age. I'd better practice piano at home when I'm free.

As for golden ladies Toastmasters movie gatherings, few goldies have shown their interests in the intensive weekly activity at Toastmaster Joy Chyr's living room so far. I shall see the attendance rate this weekend, hopefully a full house on the Laba Festival, a traditional Chinese holiday celebrated on the eighth day of the twelfth month of the lunar calendar.

No matter what, I need to either enrich  the movie gatherings to connect more Toastmasters and friends, or I need to reschedule the movie gatherings, not weekly, maybe biweekly or monthly! To be honest, I'd rather see movies at the movie theaters with better acoustic effects and bigger silver screens!

For radio drama gatherings at Aveda's Learning Kitchen with  Red Room Radio Redux group, I shall join expatriate talents in Taiwan as often as I can to read aloud to learn more English literature and hopefully I get the chance to participate in 2013 Taipei Fringe Festival.

Traveling is definitely on my 2013 diary, to visit Malaysia with Hsin-tien Women Chrous in April, to join the Toastmasters Spring Conference in Japan in May, and to visit Jiuzhaigou Valley in China in October.

Happy Birthday to Ruth

Ruth gave me a DVD the moment we greeted each other at the souvenir shop of National Museum of History. It's a memorable DVD of an evening of Shakespeare at Red Room Radio Redux on Sept 9, 2012, my debut theater at the 5th Taipei Fringe Festival.

I met Ruth at Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) Toastmasters Club meeting Thursday noon two years ago. After meeting, we took a walk at 228 Memorial Park and enjoyed an easy afternoon coffee break. We've never attended the Toastmasters gatherings together since, but we've become friends, because of the law of attraction.

Ruth and I were born in the same year, in 1955. She was born on the fourth of January, I was on the ninth of October. Being baby boomers, we share many common interests, in arts, books, nature, and life. Throughout the years, Ruth listened to my humorous speeches with patience before I was ready to join the contests. When Ruth invited me to join the Red Room Radio Redux in March, I was delighted to experience another field of performing arts in life.

While touring the museum, Ruth and I took self-photos with her new i-pod, a birthday gift from her husband. When I asked a museum interpreter friend (I used to be a volunteer interpreter at the museum) to take a photo of Ruth and me at a Chinese tea gallery on the 3rd floor, she gave gave us two hand-made pins of the national flag of Republic of China in red, blue and white beads. Ruth was happy to tell me three good news. Her father just celebrated his 100th birthday in November. She and her husband will celebrate their 30th anniversary in February. And her husband will celebrate his 60th birthday in June.

After seeing the exhibitions at the Museum, Ruth invited me for lunch at the Lotus Cafe' on the 2nd floor to celebrate her birthday. It felt blissful to enjoy the moment of tranquility overlooking the lotus pond while birds flying from tress to trees in the drizzle.

After lunch, Ruth left for home. I remained in the cafe' for another half an hour to read. Then I took a walk in the botanical garden before I walked into the 228 Memorial Hall across the street. In the evening, Ruth had a dinner gathering with her husband and friends of Taipei American School, I joined the annual pharmacists dinner party in New Taipei City.

First Saturday in 2013

How was your first Saturday in 2013? I had to rewrite my new year resolutions I made on New Year Eve, because many interesting people changed the course of my life journey on the first Saturday of 2013.

1. To join a Hakka Beiguan Band in Hsin-tien in 2013  Upon the invitation of the Conductor of Hakka Beiguan Band at Hakka singers and Dancers year-end luncheon at noon, I shall join Hakka Beiguan Band to practice three hours every Thursday morning in 2013.


2. To join Anatolia Formosa Association in 2013 When I saw a post of Turkish Coffee Day by Toastmaster LJ Lamb on Facebook, I was eager to join the first session of Coffee Day Series by
Anatolia Formosa Association from 2PM to 4PM. The moment I walked into the meeting room, I was warmly greeted by three lovely young Turkish ladies. I fell immediately at ease in a cozy environment on the 21st floor with a panoramic view of Taipei 101 at far. The delicious Turkish coffee with mouth-watering Turkish pastry was unforgettable. What a delightful time it is  to exchanging ideas among women of different cultures in a super friendly Turkish atmosphere. I shall learn the Turkish language in 2013!


3. To join Golden Ladies Movie & Dinner gatherings chez Joy's Upon the warm invitation of Joy Chyr and Linda Chu, I'm obliged to to take charge of the weekly movie and dinner gatherings among Golden Ladies Toastmasters and friends on Saturdays.

I was late from the Coffee Day to watch the Japanese film "The South Pole Story" of 1983 directed by Koreyoshi Kurahara and starring Ken Takakura. The story was about on the Japanese scientific expedition to the South Pole in 1958 (the year Toastmaster Joy Chyr was born, oops!). The relationship between the scientists and their loyal and hard-working Karafuto Dogs left behind to fend for themselves. "Eight Below" was produced in 2006, based upon the same story.

While watching "The South Pole Story", Linda walked in and out of kitchen several times to watch for the soup on the stove. At dinner, we enjoyed the soup while listening to the CD of Patti Page who passed away on the New Year Day of 2013. And we discussed about "The South Pole Story" with the movie critics Mr. Hung. We talked about the sakura spirit of Japanese, the relationship between human beings and their canine partners, the breeds of Karafuto Dogs, and the Loyal Dog of Akita Hachikou of Professor Ueno Eizaburou. Coincidently, I'm reading "The Empire of Dogs" written by Aaron Herald Skabelund about canines, Japan, and the making of the modern imperial world.

In the evening, we watched Director and Writer Mike Leigh's "Another Year" of 2010. I love Mike's marvelous story telling skills. The movie is about the lives of a happily married couple in London and their relationships with their family and friends in four acts, four seasons of a year, starting in Spring and ending in Winter.

The happily married couple Tom and Gerri Hepple, both in their golden age, have a loving relationship. They entertain family and friends at home generously and grow vegetables together in their garden allotment on weekends. After seeing the movies, I think I'm a happily married woman. My husband grows vegetables on the roof of his office. From time to time, we savor the fresh vegetables he brings home. We appreciate the nature, we save our pockets, we keep our relationship!

201314

What a romantic day it is on January the fourth, 2013! If you could read six numbers of 201314 愛你一生一世 in Chinese, it sounds "I Love U forever" to our ears!

According to hotel managers in Taiwan, not many young people plan to get married and book the wedding banquets on 201314, because it is not an auspicious day according to the Chinese calendar. Yes, Taiwanese are superstitious!

Going on a blind date on 201314 is one thing, but getting married on 201314 is another thing to think twice. It's risky to plan the life journey against the fate. Not only are love and bread  important to sustain a good marriage, but the blessings from all gods and angels who look over us are also substantial .

Marriages aside, in stead of saying "I love U forever" to others on 201314, how about we give ourselves a big treat on 201314 to love ourselves first. Go do whatever you feel like doing on this special romantic day. Kiss and hug yourself. Be romantic to yourself! After all, the true charity begins in us!

New Year's Serendipity

After four days New Year Holidays, most people were obviously tied up with pile of work on desk in the office. The attendance rate at Grand Toastmasters Club's first meeting in 2013 was extremely low Wednesday evening, January 2nd. Only thirteen people came to the meeting, including 10 members and 3 guests.

Dr. Richard Fang arrived early as usual. He has been a regular guest to Grand's bi-weekly meetings after Grand moved to the new meeting venue in 2011. Toastmaster LJ Lamb brought a young lady friend with him to bring a lot of joy and laughter to our meeting.

I was invited to be the joke master the moment I walked in the meeting room to replace our club EVP Sharen Chen who was caught up in her office. Wearing a traditional Hakka Blue loose shirt and a pair of embroidered padded blue trousers, I was more than delighted to take the last-minute assignment to be seen in my new year outfit plus ♥ 2013 written on my manicured fingers! In order to lift up the new year atmosphere, I changed the joke session to variety session. I asked all participants to write down three new year resolutions on a piece of paper.

After pooling 13 slips of new years resolutions in a lucky draw bag, I called upon as many participants as possible to read aloud the new year resolutions of members and guests. It was said that new years resolutions read alout in public would be realized! We could almost figure out who wrote the resolutions before the second resolution was read. Guess who wants to become a billionaire? Guess whose resolutions were hard to read? Guess who wants older whisky, faster cars, younger women, and more money? As for mine, I want to lose 5 kilograms, save NT$500,000, make friends with five handsome young men in 2013!

President May was the Tabletopics Master. She was on the airplane at 12 midnight from India to Taiwan on New Year Eve. She prepared five questions about countdown experiences. Toastmaster Jennie Chen talked about her countdown at Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong in 2012. Ms. Stephanie Pan, the lovely guest accompanied by LJ, talked about her dream countdown at New Year Time Square. Toastmaster LJ wanted to see the fireworks at London Eyes. Toastmaster Gina Cheng wants to take the high speed train directly to see the sunrise in the south after viewing the fireworks at Taipei 101. I would give a voucher of NT$100 to residents in the borough who participated in the community countdown event, to encourage everybody to say "I ♥U" at 12 midnight to family, friends, and strangers in the community, if I were Mayor of Taipei City.

After Grand's first club meeting, LJ, Stephanie, Jennie and I hung around for the second party at McDonald's. Four of us also went to Excellence Toastmasters Club's Christmas Party Friday, December 21st. When Stephanie complimented me again about my sexy long legs in Mrs. Santa Claus' costume at the party, I was thrilled to know about the unforgettable impression I left upon Toastmasters and friends. Maybe I should try on Victoria's Secret to Excellence Christmas Party in 2013!

I didn't know that Stephanie and I actually worked for the same pharmaceutical company till the last minute. What a sweet surprise indeed! Stephanie and I shall definitely meet again at our company year-end party next Friday, January 11th.

Auspicious New Year Day

Be it chilly and rainy,  it's blissful to be surrounded with family members to welcome the first day of the year with a sumptuous feast. On New Year's Day, a tasty fusion cuisine for lunch was the treat with my extended family of six members, including an eight months old niece-in-law, at a famous shop "A Small Bowl of Mutton" in Hsin-tien. We had mutton soup, T-bone lamb steak, beef bibimnba, and sesame oil vermicelli.

After lunch, we headed for a frequently visited picnic area along Hsin-tien River. While my husband served the melon for dessert, I saw the heavy mist descending in the mountains adorned with mottled golden leaves, like a huge scroll of Chinese water painting in the sky, so beautiful and serene in the rain. The unpleasant rain turned to be a blessing in disguise. The raindrops created multiple chiffon layers to cover the mountains with mysterious veils and gave the world a romantic look. It's blissful to be absorbed in the beauty of nature.

In the afternoon, upon Toastmaster Joy Chyr's invitation, five golden ladies Toastmasters joined the karaoke gathering at her apartment near Shida. Even though it took three hours for the repairman to come back and forth to fix the karaoke machine, we gained extra time to share our new year resolutions and made acquaintance with one another. I was excited to make six new friends, including a veteran showbiz celebrity (小黑人金澎), a movie critics (洪光遠), four outstanding karaoke singers.

It was still drizzling when I left Joy's cozy lounge. What an auspicious New Year's Day to have the rain for a good beginning of the spring and a prosperous year ahead. Many thanks to Joy for providing the platform for Toastmasters and friends to exchange ideas and thoughts! I wish everyone a prosperous and happy new year!

小黑人金澎首先開口清唱，湖南《辣椒歌》：「遠方的客人你請坐，聽我唱個辣椒歌。遠方的客人，你莫見笑，湖南人待客愛用辣椒。雖說是鄉下的土產貨，天天可不能少。要問辣椒有哪些好？隨便能說出好幾條。去濕氣、安心跳、健脾胃、醒頭腦，油煎爆炒用火燒，樣樣味道好。沒有辣子不算菜呀，一辣勝佳肴」。唱畢後，立刻引來滿堂彩。

接著小黑人金澎強力推薦林強作詞作曲的平凡的老百姓，道出他單槍匹馬，由澎湖來台灣打拼的心歷路程。藝名金澎的由來是祖父是金門人，父母在澎湖成家立業。

（離開故鄉這多年　我一直在想　有什麼人會凍了解 一個庄腳囝仔　來到都市的心情）

離開故鄉幾落年　不知到底是為什麼 只想趕快要逃避　找一個屬於自己的日子
想起細漢彼當時　別人笑阮父母不識字 是為怎樣　是為什麼　甘說父母教我的　不是道理
長輩勸我少年人　要打拚大賺錢　大漢了後　才不讓看不起
我的親戚　我的厝邊　有錢玩大家樂　我想沒啥意義
我之所以要離開　這個傷心的都市　因為檳榔吐甲滿滿是
希望咱攏會凍出頭天　做給別人看的起 會凍自由說話　無人冤家生氣
台灣有自由的空氣　台灣有熱情的人情味　台灣有現代的老百姓

長輩勸我少年人　要打拚大賺錢　大漢了後　才不讓看不起
我的親戚　我的厝邊　拿錢在猜數字　我想沒啥意義
我之所以要離開　這個傷心的都市　因為檳榔吐甲滿滿是
希望咱攏會凍出頭天　做給別人看的起 會凍自由說話　無人冤家生氣
台灣有自由的空氣　台灣有熱情的人情味　台灣有現代的老百姓
哦　台灣有自由的空氣　台灣有熱情的人情味 台灣有現代的老百姓
離開故鄉這多年　現在知道為什麼

（我想　呷甲這大漢　最大的希望是要做一個 快樂的　平凡的　老百姓）