Why we always carry flashlights outdoors after dark

This morning Yumin's barking woke me up… nothing new there. He had apparently spotted a snake, and I knew he would not stop barking until I went out to thank him.

When I opened the back door, I found a snake skin draped over the door. I suppose it had just shed its skin when Yumin spotted it. This is probably the skin of a 大頭蛇 square-head snake (Taiwan tree snake, Keelung cat snake, Boiga kraepelini). They’ve been around lately. Fortunately, they are not very poisonous, and they spend most of their time in trees, but you still don't want to get bitten by one. Better to carry a flashlight, no?

泰雅說，很久以前，沒有達彥(泰雅)，只有深山裏的一塊巨石。有一天，巨石裂開，走出了三個人。他們看看，其中一個說，「Yaqeh balay, iyat ku!」就是「不好，我不要！」的意思。他回到石頭裏面去了。他的名字叫做麻布大。另外兩個人，男的叫做麻彥，女的叫做烏禡，他們覺得不錯，所以留下來。因為那塊巨石裂開，所以叫為賓司伯紺，就是「曾經迸裂之地」的意思。留下來的麻彥與烏禡就是最早的人類，達彥的祖先。

但是達彥是個務實的族群，離奇絢異的遐思比較少。我一直覺得很怪，達彥應該很清楚孩子是怎麼生出來的，哪來的石生人？

我扗烏來撿過化石，也扗臺灣其它山巒海岸找到化石。外表看是石頭，打開，裏面有貝殼有魚，實扗很神奇！照理說石頭堅硬，永久不變，怎麼裏面還藏貝殼、魚？

或許bnkis na Tayal達彥的遠祖因為看過化石，認為最早以前，人類的祖先也藏扗石頭裏。

The Dayan (Tayal) say that long ago, before there were people, there was a stone deep in the mountains. The stone broke open, and out walked three people: Mabuta, Mayan, and Uma. Mabuta looked around and said, Yuck! and went back inside the stone. Mayan and Uma liked what they saw, and became the father and mother of the human race. Because the boulder split open, that place has always been called Pinsbkan, which means, the place that split open.

But the Dayan are very practical people, not given to great leaps of fancy or fantasy. I have always thought it strange: the Dayan know all about where kids came from, how'd the stone get involved?

I have found fossils in the mountains and on the shores of Taiwan. You pick up a stone, open it up, and inside you may find a shell or a fish. A stone is hard and solid, how did those get inside?

Maybe ages ago, early Dayan found fossils, and figured that perhaps the earliest human beings had also come from stones.

寅時忽醒、滿室月光、嶺上白月皚皚、破雲而出、穿林以照、遠聞溪中沛水暴渹、近聽溝畔群蛙齊鳴、知斯怪颱風已不為虐、殊喜、以記

The typhoon seems to be gone, good bye, don't come back. We got off lucky, with only about two feet of rain in the last three days. Out on the coast they got over 5 feet, I think.

We may not be very sanitary, but we're honest~~~

(also::)

Bad parenting award

捷運上的爸爸很專心看電子書上的漫畫；推車中未滿兩歲的兒子玩IPod。兒子開口說話，爸爸很明顯不耐煩。都快兩歲了，還不知道，在爸爸心中，漫畫比較重要。

政府獎勵生孩子，可以預期這種場面越來越常見。對孩子沒興趣的人、覺得電視台節目比孩子吸引人的人、覺得漫畫比孩子好看的人，最好還是不要生，預防十幾二十年後的社會問題。

This year's Bad Parenting Award goes to a young father I saw on the subway. His son, at most two years old, was sitting in a stroller playing with his father's IPod. Father was totally immersed in a comic book on an electronic reader. If his son said something, father replied with noticeable impatience: know your place, kid, this comic book is more important than you.

Condoms are cheap and readily available. If you don't want kids, don't have them.

In discussing the war on drugs, drug lords, drug cartels, pirates, and so forth, please take note that the most powerful, most ambitious, most ruthless, and best organized drug cartel in history is the Royal Government of the United Kingdom.

If you don't know what I'm talking about, read up on the Opium Wars.

最近讀唐博著清朝權臣、皇帝、疆臣回憶錄(三冊)；很有意思，站扗清人立場，假設為老年回顧一生，敘述所經歷過的歷史。

看到太平天國的戰役，咬牙切齒。實在可惜；中國人打中國人，耗了偌大精力，屆時外患蒞臨，已無力反抗。

歷史上最大、組織最嚴密、野心最大、行跡最惡劣的毒梟，莫過于英國政府。強迫推銷鴉片，侵佔國土，分列它邦，憑何天理？

英帝軍到華時，清朝精銳軍隊打太平天國已無力；朝廷的銀子都花扗鎮壓太平天國，無法撥銀為軍費。

如果中國人不打中國人，八國聯軍哪得隙縫侵入？

An interesting idea to play with. If the British Royal Navy had not been so deeply involved in selling drugs, the communists might never have come to power, certainly not under Mao.

我看成「鵝脾氣」‧…

All 33 Chilean miners have been safely rescued from the pit. Pause a moment to express gratitude that they can once again see the sun and stars. Pause a moment to express gratitude that we are lucky enough that we don't have to seek our livings hundreds of meters below the surface of the earth (and if a miner reads this, good luck to you! May you never make the headlines.) Pause a moment to express admiration for the mind-boggling bravery of two barely noticed heroes: before the rescue team started pulling the miners out of the pit, a mining engineer and a medic went DOWN into the pit to ensure an orderly rescue for the trapped miners. For me, I can't begin to imagine what kind of courage that took!

康熙曾向西洋傳教士學微積分。值得注意的是，微積分是牛頓發明的。牛頓生于1642年、歿于1727年；康熙生于1654年，1722年駕崩；可見，康熙所學，于時為尖端科學。

The Ch'ing dynasty emperor K'anghsi (Kangxi, 1654 – 1722) studied calculus under European missionaries. It's worth noting that calculus was invented by his contemporary, Isaac Newton (1642 – 1727). In other words, the emperor was studying the most advanced, modern science of his day.

眾所週知，行銷要有個很響喨的標語；要外銷，要有英語標語…

不過，寫英語標語的話，還是找個懂英文的人寫比較好。 Doesn't this just make your mouth water?

(also::)

++

恭賀雙十節，國泰民安，風調雨順

今年國慶大會主題是「惜福感恩、追求卓越、永續國家競爭力」。惜福嘛，要救濟很多需要幫忙的小民(家暴、智障、受刑)就很節儉，要行建破壞生態的馬路、橋樑、各種工程就很大方，要辦花博就大筆大筆地花錢。

但說一句公道話，不能說不惜福；可真惜福，還繼續用「追求卓越」，將近三十年前流行過的老標語。

永續，通常指的是維護生態的生產方式，何謂永續競爭力？

若看倌不擔心國家的競賽，隨便去問教學經驗十年以上的老師，現在臺灣學生好教嗎？有實力嗎？有競爭力嗎？

請幫臺灣加油。我們真的很需要。

子時，一隻小鳥想飛進書房。要報甚麼消息嗎？小朋友。

讓我想到，如果古代有玻璃的話，賈誼就寫不出鵩鳥賦。

發書占之兮讖言其度

曰野鳥入室兮主人將去

請問于鵩兮予去何之

吉乎告我凶言其災…

沒看錯的話，這位小朋友是頭烏線，亦名褐頂雀鶥。

發書占之兮讖言其度

曰雀鶥入室兮主人將睡

請問于鵩兮予去何之

吉乎告我凶言其災

雀鶥曰：吉！吉！吉！

At midnight, a little bird tried to fly into our study. Even though it couldn't get in through the glass, this was a much more pleasant encounter than Poe and his Raven.

I believe this little fellow is a Fulvetta (alcippe brunnea).

Once upon a midnight sleepy, while I pondered weak and bleary,

Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,

While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,

As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber window.

''Tis some visitor,' I muttered, 'tapping at my chamber window -

Only this, and nothing more.'

….quoth the fulvetta, Go to sleep!

Not a dumb bird, you know?

百餘年前，埔里一帶幾乎都講巴宰語。後來被閩南語取代，所以近年來，學者宣佈巴宰語絕響了。

這樣說雖然對一些很了不起的學者很不好意思，但我今天買了一本98年度原住民族語文學創作獎作品集(教育部編印)，裏面有幾篇巴宰語的作品，並且還有人用巴宰語寫評論。看樣子，這個古老語言生命未絕。可喜可賀！

"Niam reten a langat ka Pazih sen." Our tribe is called the Pazih.

Some years ago, scholars and experts proclaimed the death of Pazih, an aboriginal language formally spoken across the plains of central Taiwan. Apparently, as with reports of Mark Twain's death, such claims are an exaggeration. I bought a collection of the prize winning essays and poems from last year's Ministry of Education Aboriginal Language Writing Contest, and not only are there a couple of pieces in Pazih, but there are even commentaries written in the same language! Certainly this is a cause for joy.

論語、子路：子適衛，冉有僕。子曰：庶矣哉。冉有曰：既庶矣，又何加焉。曰：富之。曰：既富矣，又何加焉。曰：教之。

五十年前，國民政府在臺灣施行三七五減租，是人類歷史上難得一次成功、無血的土地改革。美援與華僑投巨資，臺灣開始富裕。國民教育普及，大專聯攷嚴苛但公平，所以到了七十年左右，臺灣的藝術人才開始在國際上展露頭角：諸如朱銘、林懷民、劉家昌、鄧麗君等，都是三十幾歲開始聞名世界。富之教之似乎依軌前進。

問題是，八十年代，無繼者。目前年輕臺灣藝術家能揚名國際者，好像只有許芳宜一人。

為甚麼？若說臺灣已經沒有人才，我決不相信。當然囉，社會風氣影響很大：藝術上要有成就者必須狠狠地紮根，而現在年輕人要享樂、要表現、要好像跟大家同一個模子出來表現自己。教育影響也很大：經過杜部長浩劫，臺灣教育一落千丈。可是我懷疑，關鍵在于十幾年來，臺灣的焦點放在政鬬，政壇日日爭權奪利，不為臺灣謀福，不為大眾設想，只想要執政。因此教育日衰；教育不興，不容易栽培藝術家。

Overheard

她：我的手指很長，我該剪了。

他：？？

她：指甲。

She: My fingers are too long, I should trim them.

He: ??

She: Fingernails.

花博真是強迫推銷。現在的標語是，「愛花博愛臺灣。」這甚麼道理，不重要，因為現在只要喊「愛臺灣！」就悶死一切自由思想。

花博就罷了，現在強迫「花博舞」。一位資深編舞家看了，叱一句：「臺灣的編舞家死光了。」一位專業舞者說，「這個舞有損舞者的氣質。」這個年代嗎，誰管甚麼氣質？可是花博舞，實在不是一個「俗」字可以形容的。現在教育部逼學生學這麼難看的舞蹈。我個人看不出這個舞如何表現臺灣的特色。為甚麼不能編一個優雅、有臺灣特色的舞？

聽說開幕要花五千萬；臺灣很多地方、很多人非常需要幫助，卻沒錢；我個人寧願政府花這個錢幫助這些人。有關單位辯護，稱估計參觀花博將有八百萬人次，所以賺得回來。八百萬人次？說真的，政府單位辦花博，似乎有點走火入魔。

今早還沒六點，Yumin一直吠，熟睡的Yugan終于聽到了，而且聽得出來是在吠蛇。出去看，是大頭蛇，盤在鋁梯上。我用竹竿推走，叫小朋友不要擾攘來訪的鄰居。沒甚麼稀奇，烏來蛇很多。但值得一提的是，今早有兩條在一起，並且有一條很長，我估計至少一百九十公分。查資料，紀錄中大頭蛇最長一百六十公分，今天這位或許是大頭蛇中的巨長大條。

This morning before 6, Yumin's barking finally woke me up. I could tell from his bark that he had his beagly eye on a snake. No big deal, we get lots of snakes. Only worth mentioning for two reasons. First, there were two of these together, which is unusual. Second, the snakes are called Taiwan tree snakes (or 大頭蛇 Square-head snake, Keelung cat snake, Boiga kraepelini). They are only mildly poisonous. One of them seemed pretty long for a TTS. I prodded it off the ladder it had wrapped around, and as it moved into the underbrush, I estimated it to be over 190 cm long. I checked all my material, and the longest recorded length they have is 160 cm. So this one was had quite a long tail. And this is the end of this short tale.