fu hua shui yui

That's the name of my apartment complex. It means "Venice" something or other. The names of the apartment complexes here are hilarious... "The W," "Palace Gardens," and other borrowed names from hot European locales. Apartment complexes here are little communities. Thousands of people live in each one, clustered towers around some sort of courtyard or a tiny grassy area for kids to play in. When I was looking for an apartment last year, I saw some pretty incredible places. Some have indoor swimming pools and spas, elaborate gardens with waterfalls, game rooms with pool tables, fitness centers. All this is paid for in your "guard fee"--an extra charge on top of your rent that also pay for the 24-hour guard. Many apartments are not for rent--these are really families' homes so the separate apartments are all owned by different people. Mine is a nice building but more simple... a little library in the lobby, small fitness room with a few machines and pool table, and a courtyard with koi fish in a large pool. Here are some pictures!

courtyard at my building

koi pond

the front entrance of my building

home!

my elevator

sunset + birthday art

View from my rooftop, 16th floor. On a (rare) clear day, I can see Taipei 101 to the northeast, and the Taiwan Strait to the west. And mainland China. (Okay... not really, but it's not so far away!)

My mom is a very talented artist. And she made art for my birthday. And I love it!

Some of the places I've lived in the past ten years... all over Iowa City, the suburbs of Chicago, here...

Home... where my story begins, where I grew my wings

And li'l missy doesn't like it when she is not the center of attention.

do you love her as much as i do?

watching a captivating Mewvie--squirrels and birds playing in real true Nature... not that she ever remembers being in Nature, but her instincts haven't given up yet. i've promised her that someday she'll run free with the chipmunks...

despite various water bowls throughout the house that are refreshed frequently, she still prefers to chill in the sink, her favorite watering hole, hoping i get the urge to brush my teeth or wash my face...

on a chilly morning it's important to find the warmest spot in the house for your pre-lunch nap

she howled the whole time i was opening my birthday gift... as soon as the box was empty she jumped in to stake her claim. territory secured, she stayed inside it for a three-hour nap.

an empty saturday

from my window seat
i inhale the sleep-warmed scent of my kitten's fur
from where she naps in my arms
so far down
the world swirls and spins
cars pixelate from speed
ribbons of terrifying color and light
i watch a monk cross the street
robes flapping in the wind
may i, too, be still

sweets

My 29th birthday was low-key, but nice... I will share more soon, but here is a gem of a birthday card from one of my students (he's around 11 years old). I hope you understand his English--does it reflect poorly on me if you don't?! Anyway, I just thought it was the cutest thing ever!


Dear Ely Teacher:
Thank you for Teaching me so many words and sentences.
Today is your birthday, Happy Birthday to you. wish you have a great time and wish you will be: smart, pretty, young, Happy forever.
P.S. : you give me's candys was very sweet and you is a good teacher.
your students:
Willy

24

Today (Nov. 10th) is my little sister's 24th birthday! For many years, on our birthdays, our dad has written a letter telling us the story of our age in biblical terms. He goes through the Bible and finds where our number is mentioned, and then "interprets" (quite loosely, I may add) what our age means. For example, when I was 8, I might have been told that I would be given power and responsibility in the coming year--after all, Josiah became KING when he turned 8! I'll leave the concordance-sifting to the professional, but I felt inspired to add my 24 cents on the matter. Here's what I came up with!

Wed, November 10

---

Dearest Maria, As Dad has dibs on the Bible-themed numerology, please allow me to expound on some secular references to your new age. I have included links to enhance your learning experience. "24" is a popular (apparently) television drama. I don't know what it's about and have never seen it, but have heard that many people love it. And it fits because, well, you know you have a relationship with the dramatic arts! Plus, a certain Freddie Prinze, Jr. is one of the stars of the show... hubba hubba! He was all the rage when I was a teen! 24 is the atomic number of the element Chromium, which is a steely-gray, lustrous hard metal that takes a high polish and has a high melting point. It is odorless, tasteless and malleable. Most chromium deposits are found in southern Africa and Kazakhstan. File that under "pretty, shiny things!" 24 major and minor keys in Western tonal music! Therefore, for collections of pieces written in each key, it is the number of pieces in the collection, such as Chopin's 24 Preludes! Enjoy part of them now... and I chose this particular player because of his fabulous hair (something you have in common, haha!) 24 is the number you'd see on the following sports stars' uniforms: Willie Mays (baseball), Kobe Bryant (basketball), and the uh, car number of Jeff Gordon (Nascar). Not that you're into sports, but you perhaps have an affinity for the Nascar crowd? They listen to country, right?? 24 is the number of letters in the Greek alphabet. Here are two adorable kids reciting the alphabet for you! A little girl (2 years old) and then a boy (2 1/5 years old). 24 in mathematics is complex and ahem, fascinating. It's the factorial of 4 and the first number of the form 23q, where q is an odd prime. It's the smallest number with exactly 8 divisors. 24 is a highly totient number, having ten solutions to the equation φ(x) = 24. 24 is also a Harshad number and a semi-meandric number. Together with the number one, 24 is one of the few numbers n for which the sum of μ(d)d2 over the divisors d of n is equal to itself. And now I am about to either throw up, or make an urgent call to see a psychiatrist to help me overcome several years of math-class torture. So if you want to learn more about 24's mathematical glory, please do your own research. Twentyfour Wines is a vineyard in Napa Valley, California. Not only do they boast some excellent-sounding cabernet, they also donate $10 of every bottle purchased to a children's hospital (so I'm guessing the wine is... pricey!) Additionally, they have joined the fight against breast cancer by producing 200 pink-label bottles to be sold at $200 apiece with 100% of the profits to be donated to a research hospital! Now that's a hangover with a heart! "24" is a song by Switchfoot. The lyrics point to feelings of desperation and also, to hope, and a surrender to Spirit. 24 is, of course, the number of hours in a day...while we often wish we could have more than that (yet other days seem way too long), it is the perfect amount of time for one rotation of the Earth (see this peaceful and enlightening movie). Remember that only so much can fit inside one day. A day can represent a life cycle, too--we wake up fresh every morning, like babies--with things to learn, opportunities for growth and a world to discover. We finish our business toward the end of the day, pause for reflection, and then return to the darkness. Be grateful for every moment. So there you have it--a brief look at the relevance of the number 24 in the world around us! I hope you learned more about your number for the year. (I also hope you were taking notes--the quiz is on Friday. I'm giving you a few extra days to come down from a cake-sugar high) Scholastically, Elly

countdowns!

8 days till my birthday!
17 days till Parent's Night in my Pre-K Yoga Class (let the nail-biting begin!)
48 days till Christmas... I'm wondering if it's safe to put up a Christmas tree with my cat-monkey running around the house?
68 DAYS TILL I COME HOME TO MEI GUO, THE "BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY" FOR FOUR WEEKS!