One Week

I blinked and 3 months went by, just like that.

I can't say I'm surprised that this happened, that I've shirked my commitment to this blog. I started the project as a way to organize and make use of what's in my head, all that I've gone through and bottled up for the past 3+ years. That my studies have rapidly consumed the bulk of my free time should not be shocking at all, and on account of that, perhaps I should not have set such an enthusiastic goal for myself back in February. Despite that, I'm here now, and I do sincerely hope you stick around to see what I've been up to.

Now that I have some time to get a few things off my chest, I've decided to share 3 memories from this past week in Taipei. It's nothing big, but I hope these fragments of my daily life can spark some curiosity in you, like they did in me.

The first is this photo from the library at my university.

I am in the process of revising an article that I will submit to an academic journal here in Taiwan. Part of the process involves checking my sources, so I went to the library in search of Pierre Bourdieu's Distinction. According to the library's online portal, their one copy of the book was "lost," so I, of course, decided to go search for it myself in the stacks. I spent 30 minutes and did not find it, but I did find the shelf it was supposed to be on, which had a handwritten sign taped to it that said "bookcase leaning - entry prohibited." Of all the ways I could die, death by bookcase seems too tame, and did not at the moment seem at all likely, so I slid in between the cases, and in exchange for such a daring feat, returned empty handed.

On my way out I wasn't quite ready to give up and was dawdling, and this case of ancient-looking books caught my attention. It seems that anyone can walk up and read these mid-century high school textbooks. They are all labeled, but cannot be checked out. As you can see, most of them appear quite fragile. The blue one in the middle, whose spine is most legible, reads "High School Biology." I'm disappointed to say I did not think to take a peak inside. Maybe I will do so on my next visit and, if I chance on something interesting, share the results here.

Next, I'll remark briefly on this tiny artifact: a piece of chocolate poorly impersonating a 1000 NTD note. Of course we have analogous things to this in the US, and this one is probably just as silly. Edible money seems to be something kids and adults alike derive enjoyment from. Relevant in this case though is also the element of mammonism in Chinese culture, which may endow this genre of candy with another layer of meaning. If you receive these as a gift, perhaps the gifter is wishing you good fortune and future success with your business or investments. For my part, the value is in the chocolate and the awkward looks people give you when you try to pass it off as legal tender.

*Trigger warning: bugs!*

The final photograph I have to share is of this yellow-green moth who has been hiding out in my building for close to a week now. She was perched in the same spot on this wall for 3 days before I saw any signs of life. Now she has moved to another area of the staircase, though she hasn't gone far, and while I'm concerned I may emerge from my apartment one of these days to find her smooshed, I'm also equally hesitant to interfere. Who am I to know whether this is normal behavior?

In preparation for this post, I did some research. According to the Taiwan Encyclopedia of Life, this moth is called Trabala vishnou guttata (青枯葉蛾). I was initially quite confused when looking at this and other websites, as most of the pictures showed a moth that was mostly pale green, and taking this with its other physical characteristics, it looked like a distinct species. However, the encyclopedia states that while the male moth is entirely pale green in color, with curved wing edges, the female's body is chiefly a warm yellow, fading to green at the outer edges of her crinkled wings. Unfortunately for my international readers, this wonderful species is endemic to Taiwan.

This is not my first unusual moth sighting in Taipei. I must have several moth photos on my hard drive that have never seen the light of day, like most photos from my adventures here. Although it seems I can't keep my commitment to maintain this blog these days, with any luck I will continue to share with you all the events of my life in Taiwan, at my own pace. That's it for today; if you've made it this far, thanks for reading. It is an invaluable source of encouragement, just knowing there are people out there who are interested in me and what I do. Thank you.