24 years on Planet earth...(reflections on Day 8761)

After one of the most low key birthdays upon recent memory, I am forced to conclude that:

1) Year 23 was wrought with disappointment, but at the end, flickering lights at the end of the metaphorical tunnel offer a glimmer of hope (no, that's not me flicking a lighter while peering thru a roll of toilet paper).
2) Year 24---the third time that my birthday corresponded my lunar calendar animal: the Rooster. May this be a year where avian bird flu does not claim the lives of many, many people throughout the world.

General directions for the next 365 days:

Location: Taiwan (i.e. the "renegade province")
Occupation: Government employed conscript
Task: To Be Determined

Long term forecast (2007 and beyond):

Partly cloudy.

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Two weeks of traveling (thoughts)

Sunrise
Originally uploaded by ymc47.

I'm recovering (physically) from two weeks of nearly non-stop travel around the central and eastern regions of Taiwan, both of which I have been to, but each trip brings new memories and experiences.

The photo you see here was taken around 5:30 near our lodgings in Puli township, central Taiwan. The mountains are both Taiwan's bane and beauty. Overdevelopment, bad soil preservation, natural disasters (including a monstrous 7.6 earthquake 5 years back) have made monsoon/typhoon seasons here very dangerous. Nonetheless, the beauty of these mountains viewed near or afar is undeniable.

After spending 3 days in central Taiwan, I went with my relatives to see Hualien, Taiwan's largest county (and most sparsely populated region). The highlight of the trip was actually the arrival of a typhoon, which reduced the heat, added water and wind to our rafting adventure (you've gotta try the rafting here) and gave us a sense of verboding as we drove into storm on our way home---viewing the waves from the highway as they crashed down onto the rocks at chilling heights was definitely a first for me.

All in all, two great weeks...it took my mind off of the future, the near future and the recent past, leaving me with just the present. Ah, good times indeed.