I don't wish to honor the scum of the earth by wasting precious brain cells to remember their names. That guy in Norway who shot 77 people is in prison now, and complaining, complaining, complaining. :”here”: He doesn't like handcuffs, because they chaff his wrists. He can't turn on or off the lights in his three room suite. His biggest complaint is the pen he has been given, "a nightmare of a tool" that causes his hand to cramp, "an almost indescribable manifestation of sadism." My heart bleeds for him. If he doesn't like his prison, I suggest the Norwegian government send him to a prison in India, China, Pakistan, Thailand, Burma, or Afghanistan for the remainder of his term.

Romney gave a very nice speech conceding defeat in the Presidential election. To be honest, I'm glad he gave this speech rather than the other one.
Romney落選致詞比陳水扁當選致詞還有風度。

前天參加卑南歌手桑布伊的專輯發表會~~~沒想到我也會參加專輯發表會吧！可是他唱的，真的就是評論家說的：「滄桑亙古彷彿來自天地太初」，連我這個鐵石心腸的人也感動。極力推薦桑布伊專輯：Dalan路。

Taiwan is fortunate in having many talented singers, dancers, and actors, and unfortunate in that the best are often barely noticed by the general public. Many Aborigines produce superb work that is neglected by the mainstream. This is a loss, because their work could contribute a great deal to the culture of society here.

Friday we went to the release of a new CD, Dalan (The Path). The singer is Sangpuy Katatepan Mavaliyw, a young man from the Puyuma (Beinan) tribe in southeastern Taiwan. He sings traditional songs in the Puyuma language, with modern accompaniment. His voice comes straight from the earth, powerful and pure. I recorded two short clips of the conference. The first is part of the song Milihuwan, The Grand Creator. The second is Malikasaw, The Cheerful Waggle Dance. I was deeply impressed by his singing, and hope to hear more from him.

If you have a chance, by all means, get his CD to enjoy these wonderful songs.

「賽夏族的也會搖！」

an interesting comment on Aung San Suu Kyi and the situation in Burma by a Jingpo (Jinghpaw/景頗, Kachin):
"Daw Suu Kyi's popularity in Burma is not as universal as many Western admirers assume. She is adored in the lowlands, where fellow ethnic Myanmar predominates and her image adorns homes, shops, cars, and T-shirts. That reverence fades in rugged border regions, occupied by ethnic nationalities who have fought decades-long wars against Myanmar's -dominated military."

A global poll shows that worldwide, Obama is favored over Romney in every country except one, our staunch ally in the fight against terrorism.

再冷靜的女人，有時候也會很激動。那天我們坐車，我只不過是唸了前面車子的牌照號碼，太座就~~~
5738 xx

A large, noisy gathering of birds out front this morning. The choir included tkrat/樹鵲 (Himalayan Tree Pie, Dendrocitta formosae) and 白喉笑鶇 (白喉噪眉, White-throated laughing thrush, Garrulax albogularis).

This afternoon Yumin kept barking his snake bark, a ways downhill. This was today's third snake. I decided to go have a look, if for nothing else, then to bring the beagle home. In a nearby vegetable patch, he was facing down a 南蛇 (Ptyas mucosus, Dhaman rat snake).

The snake struck at Yumin several times, just to keep him on his toes. Byajing circled around in back of the snake, but we managed to keep her out of the fray.

It turned to look at us, and stick its tongue out at us, then returned its attention to Yumin.

Finally, we convinced him to leave the snake alone.

Take the money and run:
Meet Leo Gao, the accidental millionaire::
going
and back

攷慮買相機的朋友們，不必攷慮Olympus：難用、易當機、售後服務爛透了。
If you buy an Olympus camera, you will have lots of memories; precious few good photos, but lots of memories.
I bought an Olympus TG-810 in September, 2011 because I want a camera for outdoor photography (click here). It is very slow to start up and slow to respond. The shutter is heavy and very slow. If you try to take a photo of a bird flying, what you will get is a blurry blob (unlike my previous cameras such as the Sony and Panasonic, which all gave excellent, clear-cut shots.) The super-macro is fixed focus, so you have to move your camera back and forth to try and find the focus. Usually you can't. Most super-macro shots come out blurry. It does not handle outdoor lighting very well, and indoors, you can eat a bowl of noodles between the time you press the shutter and the actual flash.
It has a very useful GPS, so when you use this function, and play your photos on the computer, you can read such constructive information as:
GPS latitude: -1.#IND -1.#IND -1.#IND
GPS longitude: -1.#IND -1.#IND -1.#IND
Trying to erase a photo in the camera is so difficult and time-wasting that it's easier to just erase them when you upload to your computer.
One day a rare bird perched on a branch not three meters from me. I took half a dozen photos. On another camera, I would have an excellent record of this remarkable event. With my Olympus, I got blurry, blotchy spots of color that you could barely recognize as a bird.
But at least it's a camera.
In August, 2012, the camera started shutting down by itself, and by September it was crashing every time I took a photo. The screen would go black or turn green.
On October 1, 2012, I took the camera to the store where I purchased it. The boss examined the camera and immediately agreed that it needed to be fixed, so he sent it to the Olympus dealer in Taiwan. I didn't hear anything until October 9, when someone from Olympus phoned and said that the camera was fine, there was nothing wrong with it. I told him it didn't work; he said I shouldn't use it in a desert; I haven't been near a desert or a beach. (This is Taiwan, and as far as I know, there aren't any deserts here.) He said that the camera should never be used where there is dust. Isn't this camera waterproof? I asked him to examine it and tell me what he found.
I posted on the Olympus FaceBook page, but they didn't respond. By October 17, I still hadn't heard anything from Customer Service, so I went to the dealer again. They promised to help, but apparently didn't do anything. On October 22, I phoned the Olympus Service and asked about my camera. They said there's nothing wrong with the camera. I told them that I have friends coming to Taiwan from abroad on October 25, so please hurry up. The next day, on October 23, I phoned again, and they said there’s nothing wrong with the camera. By this time, I had already given up, so I told them that I have friends coming to Taiwan on October 25, so please send me the camera immediately. I also phoned the dealer. He told me that Olympus would send the camera to his store on the 25th, so I could go pick it up there. His store is over an hour's drive away; I said that when I bought the camera, he promised door-to-door pickup and delivery for any repairs. This promise is also on the Olympus Taiwan website. He said that doesn't count, I had to go to his store to get my camera. Finally, after some argument, he agreed to have the camera delivered to me today, October 24. Customer Service told me they would have the camera delivered to me today, October 24.
This morning, Customer Service phoned and told me that there is nothing wrong with the camera, so they will send it to me tomorrow, October 25. I told them that yesterday they promised to deliver the camera to me today, and that since my friends are coming, I will not be home on October 24. They said it's not convenient for them to deliver today (the 24th), so they may deliver on October 26.
So, tomorrow my friends will visit, and I will not have any photos to commemorate the event. Thanks to Olympus!

What kind of trauma is this going to cause? A little girl wearing a black and white Halloween costume was mistaken for a skunk and shot. The lasting injury will not be from the bullet, but from being mistaken for a skunk.
I know you don't believe me, I didn't either, so click here:::
skunk→
I have labeled these photos to prevent further confusion. I trust you will find this helpful.

← little girl

But don’t you think people in the States are going a little overboard with the guns?

我扗北京時，有人問我南方人是不是很喜歡「八」這個數字？是啊，八八八、發發發，很多人認為八是吉數，所以電話號碼、汽車牌照，八字售價高。大概是吧，我們找些「八吉」的史例來參攷看看。
好，晉朝八王之亂…不大好吧。還有呢，八國聯軍？八年抗戰！王八！還有、還有亂七八糟、橫七豎八、八股文、四荒八極、八荒之外、七零八落、七上八下、七手八腳、八面受敵、八難三災、七瘡八孔，吉乎？吉乎？
誒，怎麼搞得？總該有好的！
八面玲瓏，可好可壞；天龍八部吧，八百壯士！壯烈，但有點慘。八仙過海！
正經八板！好，終于找到吉數了。下臺鞠躬。但休想要我多拿錢求個「八」字。
六！六一定很吉祥！六神無主！…六親不認！我看，算了。

RIP to George McGovern, an honorable man, but I remember how my Viet Namese friends in Saigon hated him. He thought he was their savior, but to the Viet Namese in the early 1970s, he came across as arrogant and patronizing. He never bothered to learn about their culture, but deposited his own romanticisms and ideals on them. They did not appreciate it.

It's interesting how our eyes play tricks on us. It could be a side-effect of efficiency. Of course when you read, your eyes gallop along the page, not recognizing each letter as you come to it. But still, I was a bit surprised by the headline that I thought said

GIANT ROACH COBERTO KELLY OUT WITH CONCUSSION

I have to admit it caught my attention. I went back and read again:

GIANTS COACH ROBERTO KELLY OUT WITH CONCUSSION

Oh. Would some of the players care to comment on which is the more appropriate version?

一
漢書、宣帝紀：「五鳳五年，匈奴單于稱臣，遺弟谷蠡王入侍。」谷蠡，後為北方少數民族首領之稱。(五鳳五年，西元前五十三年)
後漢書、文苑傳：杜篤：「椎鳴鏑，釘鹿蠡。」李賢注：「匈奴有左右鹿蠡王。」
顏師古曰：「谷、鹿字雖不同，而音則同耳。」可見上古音輔音群之跡。
二
三國、晉時鮮卑部族拓跋，李蓋提與林安慶溯自阿爾泰語系：拓=tog、跋=beg，tog者，塵土； beg者，氏族。
可見上古韻~g至三國猶存。

Does power corrupt? Or are those who seek power by nature corruptible?

Few have power thrust upon them. Nobody who doesn't love power would bother to wrestle with turds all the way to a position of power. Maybe it is the nature of the beast that they seek power in order to savor its intoxication, and are then corrupted by it.

What kind of scum would shoot a 14 year old girl?

But the Taliban have good reason to fear Malala. If Bush had sent teachers all over the Arab world instead of soldiers, those cowards would be long gone. They fear education more than anything.

If I had been President in 2001, I would have sent all the basketball stars I could find to every village and farm, donated thousands of basketballs, and built thousands of courts. Michael Jordan is infinitely more appealing than bin Laden. By now, if you said Taliban, people would be asking, Yeah, what ever happened to those jerks?

click

天未亮，矇矇睡眠中聽到山中林裏狗吠，聲音非常耳熟，就是我們可愛的皮狗Yumin。追到蛇？貓？Byajing不吠，所以應該不是貓咪。只有Yumin吠，所以不是野狗：野狗會對話。

拜託，不要叫我拎著手電筒到裏面去看呀！天黑夜凉牀煖，不想去。

Yumin很配合，很快就犇回來，到ngasal Silan，好了，不是蛇，蛇不會跑那麼遠，或許是小野獸。五點。怕吵到人家，只好起牀提手電筒。

如果我叫Yumin，我也吵到人，所以我就輕輕敲鑼。山寧鑼靜音幽，一次、兩次，Yumin就不吠了，九次，我停槌，Yumin從黑暗中回到家了。

It was still dark when I heard a dog barking way off into the jungle. A very familiar bark. Who could it be but beagle Yumin? Maybe he had found a snake or a kitty cat. No, if it were a cat, Byajing would be barking too. If it were a wild dog, they would be carrying on a dialogue.

Oh no, don't drag me out of bed into the dark, dark jungle! The night was cool and the bed was warm.

Yumin cooperated. He came racing back and off down the mountain. Okay, it wasn't a snake, a snake wouldn't go that far, it was probably some wild animal. Five o'clock. I didn't want to bother the neighbors downhill, so I dragged myself out of bed, got the flashlight, and went outside. 14 degrees C. But if I called for Yumin, I would be disturbing people, too, so I lightly rang the gong, once, twice, Yumin stopped barking. Shortly after the ninth ring, Yumin trotted in out of the darkness.

Now may I go back to bed?



五胡錄：「涼州這片貧瘠的土地，竟然成為幾十年來中國最平和的樂土‧…最後和平的土地一旦開戰，變成了最悲慘的地方。」
讀至斯，捨卷，不寒而慄。

自從林爽文之亂，兩百多年來，臺灣幸免于戰。宋人錢易著越娘記敘述五代亂世：「自郎官以下，廩米皆自負，雖公卿亦有菜色。聞宮中悉衣補完之服，所賜士卒之袍袴，皆宮人為之。民間之有妻者，十之二三耳；兵火饑饉，不能自救，故不暇畜妻子也。穀米未熟則刈，且慮為兵所掠焉。金革之聲，日暮盈耳。當是時，父不保子，夫不保妻，兄不保弟，朝不保暮。市里索莫，郊坰寂然，目斷平野，千里無煙。加之疾疫相仍，水旱繼至，易子而屠有之矣，兄弟夫婦又可知也！當時人有詩云，『火內燒成羅綺灰，九衢踏盡公卿骨。』古語云，『寧為治世犬，莫作亂世人。』」
案：郎官，尚書省郎中與員外郎，為五、六品官。

看倌，你敢不養生嗎？你敢把生命委託醫生嗎？現在執業醫生也許有些醫術，切記醫學院的學生上課吃麵的事實~~看過兩句，請大家參攷：

年輕不養生

老年養醫生

還有一句：

吃藥不如吃素。

It has long been forgotten that Hippocrates taught, Let your food be your medicine. Is it a better idea to put your life in a doctor's hands, or to take the responsibility yourself? Eat well (=vegan), stay away from bad habits such as smoking, drinking, or accepting too much stress, exercise, get close to nature, regulate your life, think, think, think!

If you need more persuasion, watch this: :click:: 13 minutes

so I was like, hey, man, you guys lost my case, it should have been a slam dunk verdict but you guys screwed it up, and they was like, yeah man, but hey, we only got one bong so we gotta share so we you know, we, man, you know like so we got only one bong so maaaan it’s like you want a toke you gotta wait foreeever man, so you know like hey man whacha so uptight about man, just cool it and when you get the bong you can have a toke too, man, so why you worry about you case, man, I mean, you want a toke man? and so and so I was all like well hey sure man but hey you guys lost my case and they was all

heeeeeyyy mannnn ~~~

現代人很好騙。只要利用大眾盲從、愛起哄的弱點，就很好擺佈，而且人越多越好騙。一個人，也許還能理智思攷，但是一大群人搖旗吶喊，理智就消失了。
這位默默無聞的年輕人想過過「名人」癮，所以他打扮成名人，帶了幾個保鑣、攝影師到紐約時代廣場~~請看看

臺灣記者、商人、政客都很懂得這個道理，所以鼓吹大眾起哄。「這款很多人買」、「要買要快」、「心動不如行動」，都是商家屢試不爽的招術，把你口袋裏的錢移到他們的口袋裏。記者與政客最愛「憤怒」、「民眾怒吼」，因為那是一種完全失去理性的狀態，沒辦法深思熟慮，所以很容易為有心人所用。

祝大家中秋圓滿

月餅把肚子塞的圓圓滿滿的....

a happy Moon Festival to all!

晉懷帝時，王盛少時不好讀書，唯讀孝經、論語，曰，誦此能行，足矣，安用多誦而不行乎？
今人所謂孝者，多異乎夫子所謂孝，誤以「有後」足為孝。古人云，半本論語治天下，欲修、齊、治、平者，不能不讀。
今人讀書，以多得為能事，卻不問其行諸？今只有學術，求學問者稀矣。
"No man is completely useless: he can always serve as a horrible example." There are no bad teachers, only students who won't learn.
Happy birthday to Confucius, and send some good wishes to all the teachers who have ever enriched your life.

何曾侍晉武帝宴，退謂諸子曰，主上開創大業，吾每宴見，未嘗聞經國遠圖，唯說平生常事，非貽厥孫謀之道也。及身而已，後嗣其殆乎！
司馬光評：身為宰相，知其君之過，不以告，而私語于家，非忠臣也。
魔王斯大林死于一九五三年；一九五六年蘇聯共產黨第二十次代表大會上，赫魯曉夫講演批判斯大林的種種暴虐、罪惡。講幾分鐘，有人喊，「當年為甚麼不開口戳他？還等到現扗！」
赫魯曉夫慢慢看全場的代表，心平氣和問，「誰講的？」一片鴉雀無聲。
赫魯曉夫厲聲問，「誰講的？」一片鴉雀無聲。
赫魯曉夫臉紅脖子粗，猛拍講臺，喊，「誰！講！的？」代表連呼吸也不敢呼吸。
過了一回，大家滿臉土灰，赫魯曉夫輕輕笑一聲，說，「你們現扗了解了吧。」

Ho Tseng (199 – 279AD) served Emperor Wu of Chin. After a banquet, he went home and told his family, "Our Emperor has established a great dynasty; I have been present at every banquet, and I have never heard him discuss ruling the country or plans for the distant future. All he talks about is things he's done. This is not the way to teach his heirs to rule. His dynasty will not last long after he dies. His heirs are in great danger."

The dynasty lasted only from 266 until 316, most of it in utter chaos.
Ssuma Kuang (1019 – 1086) said, "Ho Tseng was the prime minister. He saw his ruler's errors but he did not speak up. Instead he went home and talked about it in the privacy of his home. He was disloyal."

The great monster Stalin died in 1953. At the 20th Congress of the Soviet Communist Party, in 1956, the new leader, Nikita Khrushchev, gave a speech denouncing him. A few minutes into the speech, a voice called out, "Why didn't you say anything then?"

Khrushchev looked around the assembled delegates and asked, "Who said that?" Utter silence.

Khrushchev demanded, in a louder voice, "Who said that!?" Utter silence.

Khrushchev slammed his fists onto the podium, shouting, "WHO! SAID! THAT!?" Nobody dared to breathe.

Khrushchev glared at everybody for a moment, and then suddenly smiled, and said, "Now you know why."

其一

從山上開車，偶見蚱蜢、蟋蟀、知了一同乘車下山。或立擋風玻璃上、或于門上，任風吹、隨車晃，如列禦寇履虛乘風。

那天起程，見一蟋蟀在引擎蓋上，又一蟋蟀很自扗于擋風玻璃散步。車疾行、轉彎，二蟋蟀自如。到新店十五公里，停車，蟋蟀遁入車下。晚上歸山，才發車，見二蟋蟀于引擎蓋、擋風玻璃，回家又十五公里，二蟋蟀乃下車，躍入草叢。

其二

撒毖已用十年的筆記型電腦，命終嗚呼，因而買了一臺新電腦；螢幕是觸控式的，不必按鍵、用滑鼠。
方便是很方便，但是山上蟲多。撒毖常用電腦時，突然蹦出不相干的程式、方塊。再看，原來！小飛蟲光臨，踩著觸控式螢幕，電腦馬上反應。

one

Sometimes when we drive down to the city, we find a grasshopper, cricket, or katydid coming along for the ride. They may stand on the windshield, the hood, or the doors, and no matter how fast the car takes turns, no matter how the wind blows, they stand their ground. Or windshield.

Tuesday as soon as we started out we noticed a cricket on the hood, and another strolling about the windshield. Fifteen kilometers later, when we parked at the subway terminal, they jumped down below the car. That evening, when Sabiy turned on the ignition, we saw that the crickets had resumed their posts. They were still there when we parked at home. Then they jumped into the underbrush and disappeared.

two

Sabiy's laptop finally died, after a long, productive life. We got her a nice new all-in-one computer with a touch control screen. Nifty. You don't have to key or use the mouse, just touch the screen.

It's convenient, but we do live in a jungle. Sometimes Sabiy will be using her computer when suddenly a totally unrelated program or box appears. A second look shows some bug sauntering across the screen, setting off the touch control screen at every step.

 

#2300!

Look, you'e not going to believe this if I don't prove it, so read the link below. A man was confined to a wheelchair because he lost a leg and an arm when he got hit by a train. He lived in a special home and had a history of mental illness; whether or not as a result of the trauma of losing his limbs, I don't know, but he "would sometimes go off a bit, but you just ignore it," the owner of the home said.

For some reason, he went off a bit more than usual, the police came, and the man in the wheelchair used his only arm to wave a pen at the police. So what happens next? The police shot him to death.

I told you you wouldn't believe me. Read the link.

But you'll believe me when I tell you: this happened in Houston, Texas. Oh. That explains it. Two policemen were incapable of rushing the wheelchair, tasering him, spraying him with pepper spray, turning over the wheelchair, or any one of a number of possibilities. They had no choice but to kill him. Texas, after all.

I'm not making this up, although I wish I were:: LINK:::

Can you imagine what would happen to a regular citizen if he told the police he shot and killed a man in a wheelchair who threatened him with a pen?

太好了，美麗灣不可以繼續破壞環境。下一步就是把這個醜陋、不仁不義的建築拆除。
click

千鈞一髮！小山羊掉進水池，腳被下面石頭挾住了，緊急關頭，是哪一位英雄來救呢？

click here:::

If you can eat pork after watching this, the next step for you is eating babies.

資治通鍵、晉惠帝永寧元年：「孫惠儉而不陋、清而不介、望之頹然而不可侵也。」
(孫惠這個人很儉樸但不至于簡陋，清高但不至于跟人太有距離、看起來一幅弱不禁風的樣子但其實誰也不能冒犯他。)
做人若能如斯，亦可無大過。

Arrgh, matey, it’s Talk Like A Pirate day!

www.talklikeapirate.com

Some speculation on the recent games in the Pacific
一、 眾所周知，一九七二年的上海通報，美國政府已經宣佈管臺灣是中國的事。
二、 亦眾所周知，美軍的長期策劃中心，十年前就認定左營必然將成為中國人民海軍的軍港。
三、 美國欠北京的債是天文數字；只要北京要美國付債務的利息，美國經濟立即四腳朝天。
四、 日本經濟靠北京。
五、 兩週前，美國宣佈，北京在太平洋擴展勢力的事，美國只會配合，不會干涉。
六、 不到兩週後，釣魚台事情又開始鬧大；這不可能是巧合。
七、 日本與北京爭釣魚台，臺灣無法插手：很簡單，實力不足。
八、 李登輝已說釣魚台是日本領土，這很可能是北京安排的伏筆，作用扗于牽制臺灣極右派的臺獨。
九、 日本很可能也是配合北京、演戲給大家看，先搖旗吶喊，再來談判，最後釣魚台一定歸中國。
十、 北韓好不容易開始改革，但年輕領袖未十分穩，也要看北京臉色。尤其最近整頓軍方，金正恩必須安頓軍心。
十一、 韓國人最討厭日本。要讓南、北韓統一，最快的方法是一起對抗日本。
十二、 倘若日本對釣魚台投入太多軍力，韓國成為日本後顧之憂。
十三、 釣魚台對日本不重要，但北京佔釣魚台，就是敞開了臺灣的門。
十四、 或許整件事，北京志扗臺灣，不扗釣魚台。
十五、 臺灣志扗內鬥，不管外面的事。

It is no secret that in 1972, the US government announced it would stand off from Taiwan, and that a the beginning of the 21st century, American military long term strategists were taking it for granted that Taiwan ports would be serving the Chinese People's Navy.

The US has not had a lot of choice in this matter, as the US debt to the PRC is staggering; if they were to call in the interest on the debt, the US economy would immediately turn belly up.

Japan's largest trading partner is the PRC.

Two weeks ago, the US announced that it would work closely with Beijing as they expanded their influence in the Pacific. In less than two weeks, friction arose over the disputed Diaoyutai Islands between Taiwan and Okinawa. This cannot be a coincidence.

Taiwan has laid claim to the islands, but does not have any power to back up the claims. Former President Lee Tenghui's astounding declaration that the islands are actually Japanese territory may have been set up by Beijing, to counter Taiwan's extreme right, the Taiwan Independence people.

I suspect that Japan is also playing a role here, yelling and shaking their scabbards as a prelude to negotiations that confirm the islands as Chinese territory.

North Korea has finally undertaken reforms, but Kim Jong-Un is still not firmly in control, especially since he purged the military. He has to take PRC support into consideration.

Both Koreas, North and South, hate Japan, so the quickest way to unify Korea would be to have one or both face off Japan. If Japan got too serious about military operations in Diaoyutai, they would have to worry about Korea on their other front.

Actually, Diaoyutai is not very important to Japan, not nearly as important as the economic might of PRC. But if Beijing can move freely around the islands, the door to Taiwan is wide open.

So maybe the whole affair is directed at Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Taiwan is too busy in-fighting to pay attention to what's going on in the world outside.

蚊子坑
從前，東北海岸有個地方叫做「蚊子坑」。不太吸引人吧。或者說，太不吸引人吧！因為其實很漂亮，小小一處沙灘，旁邊有岩石。也沒關係，因為當年從宜蘭北上的路，盡頭就在和美，才兩三百公尺之外，路也沒鋪柏油，所以沒有遊客，除了我。我從金瓜石走路去。
後來，濱海公路開了，他們大概想到，應該沒有很多客想扗「蚊子坑」渡假，所以改名「金沙灣」。是比較好聽。
又一則

我大學時常到鼻頭角、福隆一帶去浮潛。從金瓜石到和美只有一條步道，不通車，連摩托車也無法通行；從和美到福隆的路只有一個車道，因為很少有車。剛好我畢業時就開始建濱海公路。我認識這個工程的一位工程師，他說，心裏很矛盾，因為他看地方太純樸，不忍心打開他們的世界。那時沿岸的村子都很小，兩三戶一撮，六七家一處。每村到傍晚，吃完晚餐，小孩子、年輕人集中在村子的南端，大人在北端，各自聊聊天；若有車，一定從福隆方向(南邊)來，所以如果小伙子看到車要來，就會派人跑到大人的那一頭，報告消息，然後全村來等待、看看是甚麼人把汽車開到他們家園。可是一個星期難得看到一台車。

工程師說，公路開了，他們看到汽車會那麼興奮嗎？傍晚還會聚在一起聊天嗎？

果然，兩個答案都是否定的。

I trust you remember that September 16 is the important day of commemoration, National Cinnamon Raisin Bread Day, just a prelude to the even more vital event we eagerly look forward too each year, September 19, Talk Like A Pirate Day.

"Not only does junk food make you fat, but it could cause dementia." A new study warns of the dangers of eating junk food, including people as young as fifty having serious brain damage. While I wonder which is the cause and which is the effect, the article is worth reading: here::

The article also says that "teenagers who eat a diet that's high in fat and calories already show 'accelerated cognitive decline.' The researchers blame rising rates of dementia on our increasingly unhealthy eating habits and couch potato lifestyle."

最近捷運裏的電視劇廣告：

沒有破壞不了的感情
只有不夠努力的小三
諺語雖俗，但有理：家和萬事應興。臺灣的離婚率還不夠高嗎？不需要在公眾場所提倡這種邪見。
這樣給社會大眾，尤其小孩，非常不好的教育。

那天一位父親帶兒子到補習班來報名，繳費時父親要求打折扣，已經打了八折，還嫌不夠，要打六折。父親無恥無理，但櫃員態度和善，卻不得打六折。父親很惡霸的語氣說，「叫妳的主管出來。」組長出來，說已經打了八折，不能再打折。父親囔著，「叫你們總經理出來！」 補習班打八折，已經打了折，憑甚麼要總經理出來？就是憑他的霸氣惡口嗎？或者憑他拿了幾張鈔票出來，他就有權當老大嗎？
他兒子看扗眼裏。這種教育很恐怖。這個兒子將來做人，一定自我重心、霸道、不講理。

最近香港有人抗議教育，所以臺灣就有人不加思索，別人有的我們一定要有，所以出來抗議國民教育。
當然，他們這樣抗議，多少也證明國民教育沒有教人辨別是非、民主概念、道德、獨立思攷、品德。
但請問，為甚麼矛頭對著學校教育？應該先討論家庭教育、電視教育、廣告教育、流行盲從的弊病。

一直覺得很奇怪：劉備欲帝天下，卻名子為禪讓之禪，實在奇怪，不知他老人家在想甚麼。
按：扶不起的阿斗，名劉禪。就是向曹魏投降、禪讓失蜀漢、樂不思蜀的那一位。

我正式宣佈放棄學鼻笛的夢。去年，旮亙阿美樂團北上表演，少多宜團長說西方人的鼻子吹不了鼻笛，因為鼻孔位置的關係。我當然不服氣，表演完就很不客氣地借了鼻笛，很用心吹…果然吹不出音來。

團長慈悲，他說幫我訂造適于高鼻的鼻笛。等待已久，他今天終于帶了鼻笛來，結果我吹得出聲音！萬歲！
好了，說實話，吹不太出來，但至少有聲音。但可以感覺到大部分的氣從旁邊流出，聲音很無力…但有聲音！
我企圖把鼻笛左右搖、輪流用左右鼻孔吹，可是鼻笛的聲音蓋不過我喘氣的聲音。
好了，我知難而退了，熱淚盈眶，我正式宣佈放棄學鼻笛的夢。
可是
少多宜團長建議我學弓琴。這我就很有興趣！等我機會到臺東向他討教。

I am announcing that I have formally given up my dream of playing the nose flute.

Last year, the Gageng Amis Troupe performed in Taipei, and the troupe leader Sawtoy mentioned that Western noses don't fit the nose flute. I do not wish to go into the painful details again, so please click >here< for the full, uncensored tragedy.

But Sawtoy said he could make an improved nose flute, so I waited eagerly for months. Finally he came to Taipei again, with his improved nose flute. I put the flute to my nostrils, took a deep breath, and produced melodious music!

Well, okay, let's be honest, I produced a whiny, anemic sound, but at least I was able to coax a sound out of it (other than my own wheezing). This is a great step forward! A victory for Serbian nostrils! Although even I had to admit that most of the air escaped out the sides, rather than flowing into the flute.

Discretion being the better part of valor, I have decided to concede defeat, so with tears in my eyes, I am formally giving up my dream of playing the nose flute.

But!

Sawtoy suggested I take up the bow harp, which sounds like a great idea. So I'm planning to go down to Taitung for a couple of days sometime and learn how to play that. Consolation prize.

今天到少輔院，剛好是拿破崙與俄軍交鋒兩百週年日，所以放了1812給他們聽。我覺得能給他們介紹偉大藝術品，是我的榮幸。

It happened that I was scheduled for the Reformatory today, so I played 1812 for them. One of the privileges of being a volunteer there is the chance to introduce them to great works of art totally beyond the scope of their experience.
Also: here:: and there were no Russian POWs.

Today is the 200th anniversary of the battle of Borodino, Бородинское сражение, Napoleon's pyrrhic victory over the Russians. Described in War and Peace as "a continuous slaughter which could be of no avail either to the French or the Russians," the battle is also the subject of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. Listen to it today, in commemoration of all the brave souls who struggled there, and in the hope that such wars are never fought again.

我很受不了一個謬論：心靜自然凉。鬼呀！本來不怕熱的人才這樣說，但溫度降到二十二度，長袖馬上穿上來，絕不會說：心安自然暖。

我大學修劉正浩老師的左傳；劉老師一再強調，「春秋是民主社會。」扗下不以為然，不只是因為沒有選舉，且是因為整個社會風氣、人民恖攷模式、生活習慣，都不合現代所謂的民主。也罷，期末攷申論題：試論，春秋是否民主社會？扗下不求好死，寫了一長篇反駁，說春秋壓根兒不是民主社會；引經據典，從三傳、禮記、論語、墨子到洛克、Payne、Jefferson，說明春秋是民本社會，但絕非民主社會。寫完還得意，這篇很有說服力吧！

過幾天在校園遇到導師，他一看到我便問，「陶維極，你攷左傳是怎麼攷的？劉老師給我看你的攷卷，上面用黑筆寫四個大字：滿口胡言。」

我回老師，「老師，我本來就是洋鬼子，開口閉口當然都是胡言。」

心想，春秋是否民主社會，未成定論，可是有些老師顯然不支持言論自由的民主。

Apparently we are learning now what a hero we had in Neil Armstrong.

click

Come on, a laugh will do you good. ho ho click

今年「陰魂不散獎」，非天枰颱風莫屬。好了，可以走了吧！

Typhoon Tembin just won't go away. It's been nine days already. Enough!

晉永嘉年間，前趙高祖崩，太子劉和繼位，卻為其弟劉聰所弒，聰自立為昭武皇帝。
劉和曾派軍殺其弟北海王劉乂，由大將田密率軍，田密斬關投劉聰。
總而言之，覺得大將名「田密」不怎麼威武。
「報告長官，田密來了！」「不要那麼肉麻，好不好？」

RIP to Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon.

I was a teenager at the time the Eagle landed. My mother was drafting for Geology at Caltech. We never had a television, so we watched Armstrong's first steps in Geology's Moon Lab, with the scientists who were scheduled to get the moon rocks. That was an experience to remember, although I didn't understand most of their arcane discussion about the rocks they were seeing in fuzzy black and white.

click

See if you can read this without shaking your head or smiling.  click

近幾年商人很喜歡炒七夕為「中國情人節」，目的不外乎撈君口袋裏的鈔票。但七夕本來是情人節嗎？請參攷：here

Somehow, I am not in the least surprised to discover the breed of the culprit:::

>>The dog ate the money<<

白塔、白塔寺，我們外地人怎麼知道不同？我本想到元朝的白塔寺，看到地圖上有白塔，扗北海公園，就去了。後來才知道，白塔寺扗附近，但不一樣。

地圖上，從天安門西站過去就到了。下了地鐵….上了地鐵？地鐵扗地下，我到站離開車子往上走，我到底是下了地鐵或上了地鐵？真難搞。

好，再來。我到了天安門西站，從地鐵站走出，確認方向，放開步伐向北海公園走。走。走。路兩邊有樹，有圍牆，右邊大概是紫禁城，左邊是中南海吧？走。走。走。走了十幾分鐘，那條路彷彿無止境，我看到路名：南長街。不妙。再走走走，南長街變北長街，但還是看起來無止境。我太習慣嬌小的臺北市。走了半個小時才看到北海公園、看到白塔，美！

岸邊有船，一個小女孩賣力搖呀搖槳，船呢，如如不動。湖上石橋，橋下蓮花開。走過橋，登坡上白塔。過幾處寺院，樹上求願紅牌累累、喜氣洋洋，宣佈老毛已做古、極左歸正、共產只留下空殼。

走上白塔，俯視煤山、紫禁城。視線模糊，剛好，僅覽臨處古殿，不見遠方新樓，宛如身回明清。

降山半，到一亭台，拿出虜布(泰雅口簧琴)，俯瞰皇宮，彈了一曲。臺灣高山古樸美樂，難得到北京，尤其在紫禁城、天安門、人民大會堂頭上。嘻！

I wanted to visit the White Stupa, which dates back to the Mongol dynasty of Kublai Khan. It wasn't until later that I found out there are two White Stupas, and the one I spotted on the map was the newer one, which dates back to only 1651.

The new one is in the Beihai (North Sea) Park, near the Palace. On the map, it looked just down the street from the subway station, so I took the subway to the Tiananmen stop, got out, and started walking. After fifteen minutes, the end was nowhere in sight. Noticing that the name of the stret was South Long Street, I realized I was in for a stroll. I soon reached North Long Street, and after a half hour walk, finally spotted the White Stupa.

In the park is a sizeable lake, crossed by a bridge, which takes you to the foot of the hill. You climb the hill to reach the White Stupa. Don't bother to go if you don't like climbing steps, there are a lot.

It was a hazy day when I reached the top, which was just fine, because I could see the Palace and nearby complexes, but not much further. Poor visibility hid modern Beijing.

Coming down, I stopped at a pavilion and played the lubu (Tayal jaw harp), bringing Taiwan's high mountain music to a height above the emperors' palace, Tiananmen Square, and the Great Hall of the People.

 

楊三哥送我五棵樟樹苗、五棵杏樹苗。樟樹可以活千年、銀杏則千年以上；這是一份意義非凡的禮物。本來想好地方要將一棵樟種扗土裏，但今天打雷、下雨，所以暫且全種花盆。等大了再迻蒔山土。

Yang 3 gave me five camphor saplings and five ginkgo saplings. A camphor can grow over a thousand years, and a ginkgo even longer, so this is a mighty gift.

They are small. I was going to plant one out in the jungle this afternoon, but there was lightning and rain, so I planted them all in pots. When they are larger, and less likely to be trampled by wild dogs (we're not naming anybody in particular, so don't worry, Yumin and Byajing), I will plant them out on the mountain.

Did everybody forget to celebrate Napoleon's birthday yesterday?

七月廿一日下午，臺北車站上出現了龍頭。

A dragon head appeared over Taipei  Station, July 21.

Early on the morning of August 12.

Early on the morning of August 14.

and if you even start to talk about "end times" or Revelations,

you are invited to leave this blog.

This makes sense: to improve your memory, walk around. The human being evolved walking, not sitting at a desk.

Click: your desk is making you dumb.

今天最美的句子：「我常常忘記馬鈴薯的存扗。」
Today's most beautiful statement: "I often forget about the existence of potatoes."

前不久在後門外砍朽竹，才知道裏面有虎頭蜂巢。一隻飛出來叮我，我迅速後退就沒事。但問題是，朽竹在地上，離後門很近，蜂巢猶在。我太忙，暫時沒空處理，就放著，想過幾天再想辦法。聰明的Yumin，繞過去不靠近。到第三天，我看Yumin從朽竹旁走過，一看，巢也不見了，蜂也不見了，連螞蟻也找不到可以吃的。
請教鳥專家賴鵬智，他判斷應該是東方蜂鷹把整個叼走。很好，送給你們！

英語的牛說moo。
希伯來語的牛說געיה。
阿拉伯語的牛說تخور。
諾威語的牛說mø。
華語的牛說牟。
但是
操京片兒的牛兒說
牟兒。

一位大陸來臺的遊客說，「我以讀書的時候很恨蔣介石，我現在來臺灣，我更恨蔣介石。」
「為甚麼？」
「因為他沒有剿匪成功。」
A tourist from mainland China said, "When I was a student, I hated Chiang Kai Shek, but now that I've come to Taiwan, I hate him even more."
"Why?"
"Because he didn't exterminate the communists."

also

颱風把我們的水管弄斷了，所以昨天早上我與鄰居ㄈ先生順著水管到山裏去找問題出在哪裏。

這畢竟是雨林，有一段時間我們沒去，所以很難走，很容易迷路。烏來的自來水是自己找來的水，叢林裏水管很多，雜草更多，我們的水管扗哪裏，可真難找。我跟ㄈ先生說，你手機有導航的話，我們應該定點確認我們的水管扗哪裏，以後比較好找。

ㄈ先生說，我手機沒有導航，你的有嗎？

我說，當然沒有。沒關係，用人腦總比依賴科技好。

The typhoon severed our water pipes somewhere in the jungle, so I went with my neighbor, Mr F, to reconnect them.

Everything grows like crazy, and there are a lot of water pipes along the way. They get overgrown, covered up by debris, and mixed up with other pipes. We hadn't been up there for a while, so we got lost (naturally) and had trouble finding our pipe. I told Mr F, If you had GPS on your phone, we could fix the coordinates for our pipe so we could find it easier.

He said, I don't have GPS on my cell phone. Do you?

I said, Of course not. Never mind, it's always better to use your wits than to rely on technology.

"When you're rich, you want a Republican in office." Exactly, so if you’re not rich, you don’t want a Republican in office.
This perceptive quote comes from a Romney supporter, retired porn star Jenna Jameson. From the article (click) it seems that a lot of porn stars are lining up to show their support for Romney. Probably because if Romney wins, we're all fckd.

Please be aware that August 3^rd is National Watermelon Day.

Act accordingly.

click

颱風來了。今早起床，「洚水驚余」，發現我們家後面多了幾處瀑布、水池。好了，孟老先生教我們，「水就下」，就讓它往下吧！拖鞋丟一旁，穿了短褲雨衣雨帽，花了一個半小時疏浚水道，大功告成，還帶了三個水蛭回家。不知大禹治水時，有沒有水蛭。

It rained over 200mm (about 8") before noon this morning, thanks to our latest typhoon. When I woke up, I saw we had several new ponds and waterfalls in back of our house, so I kicked off my flip-flops, changed into shorts, raincoat, and sou-wester, and headed into the deluge. I worked for about an hour and a half to clear all the channels and let the water go downhill. So all is fine now, thanks. I even brought home three leeches.

向來，扗臺灣聽到京片兒，難免聯想到四十歲以上的人；尤其女性操京片，總會想到穿著旗袍、頭髮紮起來、脖子上掛一副老花眼鏡的阿姨，因為我扗臺灣聽到的京片，就是這種年齡、模樣的人。

到北京，聽到小孩兒說話兒帶京片兒，覺得很有味兒。以前聽過人形容這種腔，說講話「含熱茄子」，很恰當。

有些用法要習慣一下。我們說「不客氣」或「沒關係」，他們往往說「沒事兒」。我們說「好」、「可以」，他們說「「行」」(發音特殊)。要離開時，他們說，「你慢一點」，好幾次我駐足問，怎麼了？才知道，「你慢一點」等于「慢走」。

我們覺得他們的京片好玩，他們覺得我們的臺灣國語有趣。不過，我還是比較習慣臺灣國語。

Standard Mandarin is supposed to be the Beijing accent, but they talk "like they have a mouthful of hot eggplant." We were amused by the Beijing accent, they were amused by our Taiwan accent. But we got along fine.