YOU ARE GOING WHERE?

My very close friend "C" has been making annual business trip every May with a group of about ten colleagues for the past five years to various places around the world. She always agonizes herself with the thought of travelling not for pleasure. Who can blame her - always the most junior person in the group (meaning she has to "take care" of her boss) and the only person to fly economy no matter how long the flight is.

Places "C" had travelled to for the previous four years:

2006 - Bariloche, Argentina
50-hour door-to-door travel for her return trip to Taiwan, ouch!

2007 - Kyoto, Japan
Got sick staying up really late to write business report

2008 - Madrid, Spain
Got many chances to practice her Spanish with the taxi drivers - "El recibo, por favor!"

2009 - Bali, Indonisia
Had her very first full-body massage, and very cheap too - 2 hours for US$18, tips included!

I myself have been to Kyoto and Madrid; never been to Bali yet (by choice) or Argentina, which might be "exotic" enough but at least I know someones (else) who have been there. HOWEVER... Are you ready???

Anyone who has been to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, please raise your hand!

For this trip, lots of money already spent before "C" left Taiwan - the single-entry visa to costs NT$9,900 (about US$300), and the economy round-trip plane ticket fare is NT$130K (or US$4,000). Ouch, feels like the Uzbekistan government is trying to discourage visitors... Of course, "C" did not return empty-handed. She brought back some very beautiful artworks:

Until her next trip, Uzbekistan will remain as No. 1 on the list of "You are going WHERE?".

WHO'S THAT GIRL, PART 2

You know whom I am talking about... and, this is not really a follow-up of my previous blog, but an effort to comfort any Madonna fan that might have been "annoyed". Ha!

Ever since her self-titled debut album in 1983, Madonna has certainly made a name for herself, not only as a singer, but also as a writer, an actress (well...) and a business woman, among other roles. I have to admit that I wasn't that into her music or performance style at the start. In fact, I didn't become interested in her music until her third album "True Blue" (1985). I liked more than half the songs in that album, and I wasn't even a fan then.

Over the past 25+ years, Madonna has displayed her talents as a singer and as an entertainer. She is bold, not afraid to express herself and is always full of surprises. Change is the only constant in her. You might not like what you see, but you are never bored by Madonna.

This week I just bought her latest 2-CD album "Celebration" (36 songs) as well as the DVD set (38 videos). Although I did own quite a few of her album CDs, I have never bought her music DVDs. So it's a big treat for me. I thoroughly enjoy both, and it's really not that expensive (NT$999 before discount, or about US$30), considering all the great songs and videos you are getting. I highly recommend them!

Oh, by the way, did I mention that Madonna is a Leo, just like me!?!

P.S. I thought Madonna gives good to outstanding performance in most of her music videos. How come she sucked in most of her movies???

WHO'S THAT GIRL

No. I am not going to talk about that 1987 movie starting Madonna.

No. I am talking about the deja vu feeling I often gets nowadays (due to old age) when I see a movie/TV actor or actress on the big/small screen but just can't recall his/her name. Don't you just hate that?

That's when this website comes in handy. It's the "Internet Movie Database" - http://www.imdb.com/. It provides all the details of any movie/TV-series that you don't even want to know. BUT, if you are having trouble remembering someone's name you see on TV or the big screen, this is the right place for you.

It also lets the users of this website to vote for the movies/TV programs they have seen - from the scale of 1 (worst) to 10 (best). As of today, the No. 1 movie in IMDB, with a score of 9.1, is "The Shawshank Redemption". By the way, "Who's That Girl" only scored 4.0. Guess the charm of music queen does not extend to the big screen.

QUOTES OF THE DAY

I came across this quote by e.e. Cummings (1894-1962) and would like to share it with you!

"The most wasted of all days is one without laughter."

Here is another quote, by the less well-known Elsa Maxwell (1883-1963), which I try to live by as I am often very clumsy and make a fool of myself...

"Laugh at yourself first, before anyone else can."

Hey, I just noticed these two were both American and lived in the same era. Maybe they knew each other! Who knows?

THE WORLD OF ROMERO BRITTO

Article by Cecilia

Photos by Sue

It happened so fast that Sue and I can only blame the October’s dusk of the evening in Germany, which highlighted Romero Britto’s art works under the bright illuminating rays of the Mensing Gallery, Baden Baden, enchanting us with this artist’s world glowing with childlike essence and sincereness in our first met.

And we had no one to blame but blame on our extremely good luck that our tour leader just asked us to meet in front of the luxury Mensing Gallery after the two-hour free time for random stroll, as well as the perfect timing that we arrived at the meeting place 10 minutes earlier than expected, which was used as the excuse to “take a quick look” at the gallery’s display for killing time. Therefore, when the “take a quick look” turned out to be 40 minutes lingering upon Britto’s brilliant creations, especially the adorable silver based “Good Girl” in the gallery, then what happened next - throwing lots of fortune, delay for dinner, and carrying a cumbersome yellow carton encased with “Good girl” for the rest of the itinerary - were not surprising to us. Now, the “Good Girl” has safely flown with us from Germany to our house, standing on the side table in the living room to watch over the two stray sheep occupied the single-person sofa for eight years.

To laypersons of art like Sue and me, it is the feeling of the first sight to an art work determines that we like it or not, and those with vivid colors and simple strokes can always catch our eyes most. That’s why we were so addicted to the “Good Girl”. In addition to the extraordinary features of colors and strokes, the reason Britto’s works engrossing audience is the ingenuous significance implied in his works, which seems all the flows and troubles in the world have been sifted, only hopes and happiness left.

Through appreciating Britto’s simple and unadorned portrait of daily life, it is like walking into a Utopia without any disturbance, experiencing Britto’s wonderful caring for socio-cultural environment, and all the restraint deeply hidden inside subconscious can easily get its way out. Still don’t believe in it? Go around Britto’s official website: http://www.britto.com/ for a visual and spiritual tour and then, verify.

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN - "THE CALL"

Went to see the movie "The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian" one Friday evening last month. The movie is quite entertaining as I watched Peter, Susan, Edmund & Lucy returned to Narnia and aided Prince Caspian in his struggle for the throne against his corrupt uncle King Miraz.

The music is also very fitting. In particular, the song "The Call", written and performed by Regina Spektor (I have to admit that I didn't know who she is until I heard the song), totally captures the essence of the movie - the melody, the lyrics & Ms. Spektor's voice all come together to form a perfect song. If you have seen the movie, you would know what I mean.

IT REALLY MOVES ME!!!

To listen to the song on YouTube: http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=7qRPURWXfA4

And I am also sharing the lyrics with you...

It started out as a feeling
Which then grew into a hope
Which then turned into a quiet thought
Which then turned into a quiet word

And then that word grew louder and louder
'Til it was a battle cry

I'll come back
When you call me
No need to say goodbye

Just because everything's changing
Doesn't mean it's never
Been this way before

All you can do is try to know
Who your friends are
As you head off to the war

Pick a star on the dark horizon
And follow the light

You'll come back
When it's over
No need to say good bye

You'll come back
When it's over
No need to say good bye

Now we're back to the beginning
It's just a feeling and no one knows yet
But just because they can't feel it too
Doesn't mean that you have to forget

Let your memories grow stronger and stronger
'Til they're before your eyes

You'll come back
When they call you
No need to say good bye

You'll come back
When they call you
No need to say good bye

ONE MAN'S TRASH, ANOTHER MAN'S TREASURE

Last November, I started an internet auction business to sell some junks that seem of no use or giveaways from department stores. Little did I know that I am bound for some surprises.

Of all the things I have sold so far (the auction site is now going on the 8th month, yeah...), one particular item is worth mentioning. It's featured in the photo... That's right - the camouflage jump suit. You may wonder how the hell I had this in my possession! Well, I got it more than two years ago for a company outdoor event, but for some reason, I didn't have a chance to wear it at all. As I looked through the stuffs and tried to decide what I could sell on the internet, I thought I'd give this camouflage jump suit a shot. What do you know... It was sold in 20 days... though not for a huge amount (NT$250, or roughly US$8, plus shipping)... but the fact that some one actually was willing to spend money to buy a piece of no-brand clothing that you can't wear in your normal daily life amazed me...

My trash could be someone else's treasure, for sure.