sunken mission

with no work today

decided to go watch Mission Impossible 3

nowadays i hardly ever go to the movies

i only go if the movie has good action and sound effects

dramas and comedies…

i’ll just wait until it comes out at blockbuster

so we get to the movie theaters around 5pm

the next showing for m:i:iii is at 6pm in the regular theater and 6:40pm in the VIP theater

both shows only have seats available in the first 3 rows

forget about it

for those who don't know...

seats here are numbered and appointed with your ticket

the next showing?

at 11:40pm

way too late

especially with work tomorrow

forget about it

looking around at the other movies…

didn’t see anything that looked like theater-worth material except for Poseidon

Poseidon it is at 5:40pm

i’ve heard and read some good reviews about it...

so i actually had some high hopes for this movie

maybe i shouldn’t have read those reviews because they raised my expectations

needless to say, usually when you go into a movie with high expectations…

you are bound to get disappointed

but it really wasn’t all that bad

they did as much and as good as they could given the storyline

which was just plain and simple

the cruise ship gets hit with a rogue wave, it’s turned upside down, damages and dead people everywhere…

now, get the fuck out of there and try to survive!

the movie was kinda predictable and short…

it was greatly exaggerated, but then again it is a movie!

the graphics were pretty good tho’ except for a couple scenes which were just really fake…

and the action wasn’t too bad with quite a few suspenseful scenes in there

the one thing i liked was there were no sappy character developments

the movie pretty much gets to the point right away

you are about to die…

now, get the fuck out!

sometimes after watching certain movies, especially disaster movies…

you wonder how you would have done or been able to do the things the characters did in the movie

so, what if i was stuck in Poseidon and tried to get out with that group of people?

R.I.P. andres

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dragon boats & rice dumplings

no work today

it’s a national holiday

"Dragon Boat Festival"

as the name suggests, there are dragon boat races

but in reality, the most vivid and apparent thing about this holiday is…

rice dumplings a.k.a. sticky rice

we eat it

we eat lots of it

for the past week…

it’s been nothing but rice dumplings

i like eating it

it’s pretty good

but when you eat it everyday for a few days…

it just loses its appeal

i’ve had enough to last me until next year’s holiday

no more until then

it’s still pretty good tho'

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internet

the internet at work has been down for a couple days now

causing everything to come to a standstill

or at least moving to the pace of a snail

the internet is a fairly new technology if you think about it

probably being mainstream for only about 10 to 15 years

now i can’t see life without it

i don’t know how people got anything done when there was no internet

especially without email

but most importantly i don’t know how people used to slack off or pretended to look busy

no websites to browse

no games to play

no message boards to kill time

no instant messaging to chat with friends

how did things ever got done without the internet?

but then, come to think of it…

how do things ever get done nowadays with the internet?

with websites to browse

with games to play

with message boards to kill time

with instant message to chat with friends

with so many blogs to read

yea, that's right

with so many blogs to read

yea, that would be YOU

now, get back to work!

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MIT

made in taiwan



yup

proud Taiwanese right here

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a day in pompeii, a night in taipei

went to the "A Day In Pompeii" exhibition yesterday afternoon

was really looking forward to it

ended up being real disappointed

only a few items on display

the video they showed was from the national geographic channel

which i had already seen on tv

the air quality in there was just horrible

i think i almost threw up couple times because it just stank real bad

but then that's really the crowd's fault, not the venue's

stank-ass armpit smelling air

yup, it's summertime in taiwan

overall just not worth the admission

the best thing about exhibit?

there was a starbucks and a burger king right outside the venue

perfect timing as i was feeling sleepy and hungry as we walked out

later on at night, met up with jeff, becky and ivan for beer at the "le ble dor" beer garden

ended drinking about 6 liters of their dark beer

at about midnight, starting to work on a good buzz the girls decided they wanted to go clubbing

it's been a while since i hit a club, so why not?!

ended up going to VS

all you can drink for NT$600 (US$19)

didn't drink all i could tho', since i had to drive later on

the music was OK

the crowd was bad

ivan and becky joined some drinking contest and won!

ivan had to take 8 shots of vodka

and once he finished becky had to spell the brand of the vodka

which was "stolichnaya"

needless to say, ivan was straight up fucked up after those 8 shots of vodka

which just made the night real fun as he started busting moves out on the dance floor

oh, they won a t-shirt and shot glass each

pics...



ivan with the stolichnaya girl





acting the fool inside the club





acting the fool outside the club



ivan and becky wearing the t-shirts and showing off the prize they won

what a night!

ivan ended up sleeping in his car until the morning

not before puking on the sidewalk first and pointing to some street lamp and saying...

"the moon is so bright tonight"

he was dead serious too!

8 shots straight of vodka will do that to ya

what a night!

i'm tired as hell now with a bit of hangover

i'm getting too old to be out like that

but it's still nice to be out like that

especially when the moon is out there so bright

-->> read rest of the post...

getting lost

i've been so hyped about watching these

seen a few episodes on tv

great show

but they are just showing season 1 here

and it's been frustrating having to just watch one show per week

especially knowing the US is already on season 2

got these dvd sets for both seasons from china a couple weeks ago

gonna have a lost marathon and try to watch everything this weekend

gotta love bootlegs

-->> read rest of the post...

just pathetic

mama keeps telling me not to judge and look at others per my own standards

i understand that

i try not to do that

i don't do that

i know everyone is different in their own ways

everyone has different standards

different levels and sets of values

i understand that

but for fuck’s sake

how can someone’s standards be so fucking low???

i’m not saying i’m perfect

i’m not saying i’m the best

but for fuck’s sake

how can someone’s standards be so fucking low???

it’s really pathetic

very pathetic

should i feel sad and sorry or mad and angry?

all of the above

altho' the latter feelings standout stronger than the former

it's like they are going around in a revolving door

just spinning in its place

always self-centered

never moving forward

never advancing

when you spoon-feed a child for life

the child will never learn to feed itself

when you never let a child hold its own spoon

the child will never learn to pick up a spoon

but who's fault is that?

the feeder's or the one being fed?

they say i’m just an asshole

well, if being responsible, caring and mature is being an asshole...

then yea, i'm one big asshole

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typhoon

so it begins

every year taiwan gets hit with quite a few typhoons

some cut right through the island and cause major damage

some pass close enough to still cause some damage

some just pass by and bring much welcomed cool air and rain

some just completely miss us, but unfortunately that means some other place(s) will get the damage

this year's first typhoon is called chanchu (meaning pearl in chinese)

it has already missed us by passing through the south but caused major damage in the philippines

it's currently heading up northeast (see pic above)

still uncertain, but it might swing by taiwan along the west coast

it did bring nice cool weather for the past couple days

the predicted storm for the next couple days are certainly not nice though

some of the damage caused can be pretty devastating

waist-high flooding in the city

landslides in and near the mountains

it's nice if we get a day off due to a typhoon

it's nice when it brings in cool weather during the summer

it's nice when it brings in a lot of rain during a drought and the dam reservoirs are low

but it's unfortunate if there's damage anywhere

the area i live in is notorious for flooding

it's gotten better through the years

but we still get some when the typhoon and rain get bad enough

check out this pic



this is a pic i took of the street in front of my house during a typhoon

the flooding had already gone down drastically

it was almost knee-high at its peak

it's a good thing our first floor is just the garage and the kitchen, so not much damage

in taiwan and my street, most people's first floor's are living rooms or rented out to some business

needless to say, they had some major damage....

anything from sofas to tvs and stereos to whatever else they had lower to the ground

nope, not nice at all

hope there aren't any major typhoons this year

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this one is for mama

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY ma!!!

you're the best

i can never it say enough

THANK YOU for everything

THANK YOU for everyday

love always

*************************

to all the mothers around the world

i wish you a very HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

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cured... for now

finally... finally... FINALLY!

no more fever

no more flu

no more headaches

no more back pains

NO MORE

still coughing a little bit

but that's nothing compared to all the shit and how shitty i felt the past few days

i even went to play basketball tonight

was a bit more fatigued than usual after

but it was great to get out and run and sweat

sweat from exercise

not from fever and while sleeping

soaking up your clothes and your bed

which by the way, is just a gross feeling

i had to go see a second doctor to get better

the first doctor probably diagnosed me correctly

but probably prescribed me the wrong medicine, or it just wasn't strong enough

he did not come highly recommended anyways

so why did i go to him?

because i felt like i was about to die and his office is right next door to my place

i'll probably never go back, unless it's a really really really urgent emergency

but then, if it's such an urgent emergency...

shouldn't i be going to the hospital?!

the second doctor did come highly recommended and now i can see why

my fever reached 40°C (104°F) yesterday morning and i just couldn't take it anymore

went to see the second doctor, ate his medicine, came back, took a short nap and i was already better

the fever and flu were gone for good by the afternoon

i am definitely going to this guy the next time i'm sick

hopefully that's not too soon

-->> read rest of the post...

influenza

it turns out i have influenza (the flu) type A

been in bed for the past couple days

haven't been to work at all

i don't remember the last time i was this sick

it's been up and down

i would get better after taking my medicine

but then my fever rises again after a few hours

this medicine is not working so well

gonna go get shots if it doesn't get any better

i've been sweating like crazy in my sleep

my clothes, bedsheet, cover and pillow get soaking wet from my sweat

been changing everything so often

got a huge pile of laundry to do

back to bed i go

-->> read rest of the post...

feverish

it’s so hot outside right now

33°C (91°F)

the sun hasn't shone this bright in very long time

and i feel like absolute crap

i’ve got a fever

my head feels really dizzy and it hurts too

got a sore throat

my lower back hurts

only got 4 hours sleep last night

to top it all off…

my stomach feels funny

i think i’m gonna get the runs

how lovely

yup, i feel like absolute crap

can’t wait to get off work

yup, i’m at work

i should be home tho’

can’t wait to go home and sleep

been grinding it out all day

feeling really weak

about to fall asleep

a couple more hours and i’m going home

that’s what i get for sleeping shirtless with the air con full blast

oh, did I tell you yet?

i feel like absolute crap

-->> read rest of the post...

bbq

went to ah-ka’s cabin in Guanyin on saturday

something came up last minute, so he wasn’t able to make it but he gave us the keys anyway

was gonna spend the night there, but since he wasn’t there we decided not to

which means, we couldn’t drink too much

ended up drinking 6 beers anyway

which is too much for me these days

we hung out, bbq and drank until about 1am

the beach is only about 5 minutes drive from the cabin

so, we went and sat at the beach for a bit to sober up

good thing we did that too

on the way home, almost 2am, came across 3 road blocks

all of them just let us pass through

no one got checked

lucky

knock on wood

that was odd tho’

who the fuck sets up road blocks out in the middle of nowhere at 2am?

and not just one, but three!

there are some small towns near by but we hardly saw any cars driving around

we did see a group mod’ed cars that look like they were going street racing

i wouldn’t doubt it

the road there were wide, straight and like i said with hardly any cars in sight

perfect for these “2 fast, 2 furious” wannabes

i guess the road blocks were for these rice rockets and not drinking driving

that’s why we were never checked

i guess driving a junk car ain’t too bad after all

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the lakeshow

and it’s all over

the Lakers lost the best of 7 series 4-3 to the Suns

besides game 7, where the Lakers just straight up got stomped and blown out

without a doubt, it was one of the greatest series of all time

well, at least for a first round

i’m upset that they lost but I’m still happy they got this far

this is a team that most people, including the media and all the experts in it, didn’t think would make the playoffs

yet, here they were, playing game 7 with one of the top teams

they should have won game 6 and the series, but Tim Thomas hit a clutch 3 in the final seconds to send the game to overtime

Tim Thomas!

again… Tim “Fugazi” Thomas!?!?

yup, the same overpaid, underachieving Tim Thomas

unreal

it pissed me off even more that of all the guys, Tim Thomas was the one to hit that 3

but then he hits another one in overtime to put the game out of reach and pretty much seal the game and series

unreal

good games, good series

it was great while it lasted

time for the Lakers to move on

Mitch K, time for you to go to work!

and my prediction for NBA champs… the San Antonio Spurs

most people i know who watch the NBA, hate the Lakers

so, why am i a Lakers fan?

i started to follow and watch the NBA in the 80’s

during that time, it was all about the Celtics and the Lakers

i went with the Lakers and the Showtime

and been supporting them ever since

most people i know who watch the NBA, hate Kobe Bryant

i do too, but only off the court

i wouldn’t say i hate him, because i don’t know him personally

but per what i see in the media and the image he portraits, i definitely dislike him

but for the 48 minutes that ball goes up and goes into play, i am a fan of his

regardless if he’s the world’s biggest asshole or if he plays for the Lakers or not…

he got skills

he got game

and as a basketball fan, i appreciate that

-->> read rest of the post...

someone cares

us taiwanese folks are renowned for our hospitality, courtesy and friendliness

but this can be a “cold” town

you can easily get the cold-shoulder or snubbed when you need help

whether it be a car accident, a robbery or just getting your ass kicked

most people become bystanders and spectators

others just turn the other way or suddenly come down with a severe case of blindness

folks just don’t care about others well-being out here

most, not all

driving home last night

stopping at the red light, a kitty suddenly comes out of nowhere

wobbling, kicking and shaking its head all over the place violently

it was obviously in pain and suffering

coming to a sudden stop as it ran against the curve

lying there motionless

it was probably struck by a vehicle some time ago and not by the batch waiting at the red light with me

as it laid there motionless, most folks in their scooters and cars were just staring at the poor kitty

most, not all

a girl parked her scooter and proceeded to pick up the kitty, examined it and placed it on the safety island

the best thing to do was probably to take it to a veterinarian

but at that prompt instant, it was probably the best thing to do

had she not removed the kitty off the road and placed it on the safety island, it was definitely gonna get plastered all over the road

her deed caught me by surprise and i commend her greatly

what do you know?

there is some care in this town after all

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matrimony (continued)

just got these from yingchi and kerix... a.k.a. 直覺氏flair

more photos from our wedding ceremony / reception

3/18

http://www.fotop.net/flair/wed0318photo

more can be found here... matrimony

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