Nothing Really Poignant - James in Taiwan

I was reading online recently and I stumbled upon a website where they talk about converting old tires and plastic into diesel fuel by microwaving the waste materials and converting the cracked petrolium products into vapors that are then cooled down into fuel.

The advantage of this is that you can convert waste materials that were previously thought to be worthless into usable fuel products.  True, this will create more fossil fuels that will add to global warming, but it is a way to reach energy independence.

Visit Global Resource Corp’s video demonstration for more information.

Tar machine
Originally uploaded by Nothing Really Poignant

I saw this bitumen (tar) machine on the way home from visiting the Taipei Story House previously mentioned. To be honest the road construction was so much more interesting than the house and we stayed outside watching the steam roller, paver and tar trucks back up to finish a stretch of road.

The thing that gets me is that this truck is blue on the front but completely black on the back. You can barely make out the license plate numbers under the black tar stalactites. The license plate number is then spray painted on the back, but even that is hard to read.

Stiched image of the Taipei Story House
Originally uploaded by Nothing Really Poignant

Last weekend we were looking for new and interesting places to visit and we stumbled upon a website talking about “Taipei Story House”. Steven convinced me that this is the place where Ivy and Owen had to meet, but after going there I didn’t think this was the case. Steven now claims “I’m not so sure honey”, but I am sure it isn’t the place since I showed Ivy the photo and she has never been there.

Well what is the “Taipei Story House”? Well it isn’t anything I expected. I was hoping to see some colonial house with exhibits on historical Taiwan. I was also hoping I could take photo’s inside like you can do at Filoli, but unfortunately you can’t, and I soon found out that you really wouldn’t want to bother.

The only redeemable thing was the fact that they let you listen to your MP3 player, and I was listening to the director / producer podcast for the Season 3 finale of Doctor Who. This was very entertaining and made up for the drab environment.

So how can I describe the Taipei Story House other than saying it is a nice place to listen to a podcast? Well it is a small 4 room museum about buildings that house museums. Now they don’t talk about famous museums like the one at Bilbao, but instead they talk about old buildings that are converted to museums. This is an homage to museums that really shouldn’t be because it is really boring. Sure they talk about great places like the Tate Museum in London, but the articles look like they were pulled down from Wikipedia. I really didn’t learn anything other than there are quite a few gullible people (including myself) who are willing to part with 50 NTD to see a museum on museum buildings.

They had a gift shop that sold totally unrelated items. They also had a nice cement bench that is so hot from baking in the sun you can lose weight from sitting and sweating on it. To top everything off they have an expensive cafe near by, but after sweating for 10 minutes I wasn’t really hungry. Maybe I will go back if the visit to the cafe, but the 50 NTD cover charge is somewhat steep.

Viewshow Baby
Originally uploaded by Nothing Really Poignant

I was really tired of taking fuzzy photos due to minor hand shakes so I decided to go out and get a new Canon Digital IXUS 950 IS (AKA Powershot SD850 in the US). I was surprised by the detail I could get, especially in the stitching on the chest and pattern on the scarf.

This doll will be a gift for someone who has a name that rhymes with “Viewshow”.

Toys on the back of a truck
Originally uploaded by Nothing Really Poignant

I was so happy that my cellphone was charged and I got a good shot of this. This truck pulled up next to the taxi I was in and I quickly took this shot. The light changed and we sped away soon after, so I am happy it came out as nice as it did.

These toys and the faux Mickey Mouse are destined for “Tom’s World”, a chain of arcade / game stores around Taiwan with games like classic hoops and air hockey.

This weekend Steven and I went to visit Taiwan’s National Museum of History. The main reason we went to this museum was to see the Terra Cotta Warriors from mainland China. Now the entry to the museum is normally 20 NT (under a dollar) but it is 200NT to see the Terra Cotta exhibit.

Unfortunately the museum doesn’t have adequate crowd controls. There were some rooms that were so crowded that no one could move. This really took away from the whole experience and also highlights how inadequate Taiwan’s fire safety standards are, because if there was an emergency, people would definitely be trampled.

Fortunately the more expensive museum pass included a “free” pass to the main exhibit. This part of the museum was a breath of fresh air with an eclectic mixture of both modern and historical pieces. Additionally, since everyone was going to see the Terra Cotta Warriors, the main exhibit halls were relatively open with plenty of space for all of the visitors.

If you have ever had a chance to see the Terra Cotta Warriors before (I saw them when they visited San Francisco in 1994) then I recommend you skip the visiting exhibit and just visit the less crowded / less expensive main exhibit hall.

Early this year I met a few friends in Tokyo before they traveled on to Thailand. I found a bargain basement hotel which was clean and under $100 USD a night. This was a centrally located hotel and provided easy access to the subway.

On our last night before we left, my friend asked “Did you read the instructions on how to use the internet?” Well I didn’t, I just plugged in and it worked, but apparently there were some instructions. Some of the funniest were the disclaimer on the internet usage:

It is the instructions about the use

When it is used this system, responsibility about the following matter asks for the use on having had you understand it before because I cannot carry it on my back.

• Malfunction, the loss that occurred when this system broke down and cannot use it for some reason
• Malfunction of the PC which occurred during this system use

This is just 1/6th of the entire document. You can read the entire scanned document for additional tips on proper internet usage.

A friend and co-worker of mine asked me to give a speech at her wedding. After writing down a bunch of ideas and talking on the phone with Yuyi, I decided to cut it back, make it a little less humorous and a little more heart felt. I have attached my speech below.

When Ivy asked me to come up here and say a little speech at first I was very nervous and I didn’t know what to say. I was married myself in June of last year and only two people attended, but here there are so many people to celebrate the joining of Owen and Ivy. For a second I though that I could just show clips from my wedding video to fill up the time and then I could give Ivy and Owen advice on how to have a happy marriage, but I decided against this because Ivy and Owen are both smart, capable people and they can find this out on their own.

Over the past few years I have had the pleasure of working very closely with Ivy. She is dedicated to her work and she can stand up to the toughest challenges. Many nights Ivy would work late into the evenings so that she can meet her tough deadlines and she would still have energy to overcome new hurdles the very next day.

Ivy appears innocent at work, but she really has a sharp wit and sense of humor and can keep up with my banter. Additionally, Ivy has an air of elegance that doesn’t require pounds of makeup or over dressing. Ivy is both a confident and experienced designer who can work independently and accomplish anything she sets her mind to.

Anyone who works with me knows that they cannot get married until they have my blessing. So when Ivy first met Owen and told me about him I had to ask her as many questions about what he likes, what he does for a living, and what his hobbies are and so on. Ivy told me how artistic and thoughtful he was and pointed me in the direction of his blog where I could see some of his photography.

When I finally had a chance to meet Owen in person, I immediately felt that he was a great person and can take care of Ivy. Many nights while Steven would be waiting downstairs for me to get off of work, Owen would be at his side waiting for Ivy. When Ivy and I would go downstairs he would tell me that he is concerned that Ivy works too hard, but he was still there to wait for her, and that is what really matters. Some nights after work Owen would meet Ivy to play badminton near the office with our other coworkers, and on the nights when Ivy would have to work very late, Owen would show up and bring dinner for ivy. Owen is a patient, sweet guy and I know he will always be at Ivy’s side.

After meeting both Ivy and Owen, I can say that they are both dedicated to one another. Anyone should be happy if they could marry someone remotely like either Owen or Ivy, but the fact that two great people could find each other shows how destiny can reward caring and giving people with one another.

Ok, this note goes out to everyone who reads my blog: I am changing my URL! Yes! Something new for you to read.

So what is my new URL? it is http://www.nothingreallypoignant.com. I figure I never write anything that really is special or noteworthy, so this name is the most applicable.

So be sure to update your links, because I should be talking weekly about Nothing Really Poignant.

By the way, my email address is still the same: james (at) humandesigned (dot) com

Last Friday a couple co-workers shared a cab and headed over to Sababa Pita Bar for some pitas. While in line to order I told Sandra that I am not really a fan of hummus and she told me how much she likes it and that she has been to this restaurant three times already.   I told her “You can eat my hummus anytime you like.” When Laverne overheard that he said it sounded really dirty, although I can’t say why.

Anyway, I had a chicken pita sans yogurt (88 NTD/ea) and two “Moroccan Cigars” (58 NTD/ea). All together as a combo with fries and a Coke my lunch came out to be 200 NTD - not bad.