Are you a good driver?

OK, I've been trying to get around to writing for a few days now, but I've just been so busy.

The extra work was enough to keep me going all day, but add in having a bunch of extra foreigners around and you can understand why I haven't been able to find much of a free moment.

I'll just give you the basic highlights of the past few days plus a lengthy description of Sunday.

What kind of mood are you in today?

I was super cranky all day.

Well, the first 20 minutes of my day I was pretty aloof... and that's when everything went downhill.

I sort of dawdled when I was getting ready this morning and I ended up not leaving the apartment until 10 minutes before I was supposed to be catching a train.

What would it be like to live alone?

So today began Tess' last week in Taiwan.

It's totally bizarre to think about because not very many people have left since I got here last summer. Which is weird considering this is generally a pretty high turnover job.

When are you absent-minded?

The past week has been insane.

Saturday night we went out for Angela's birthday. Of course we went to our usual club — Search — but this time Angela reserved tables. That put a nice twist on things and we all had a blast. (Except for when that super creepy Taiwanese guy kept following me around the dance floor and literally tried to kiss me at one point...)

Who needs a $200 bill?

So I have apparently been teaching for nine months now, if you take out the vacation time that is.

According to our contract, they hold the first two weeks of our pay. Then when you've stuck it out for nine months, they give you back a week of it. They hold on to that other week to make sure you stick around for the next three months.

What's a tostada?

Yesterday was simply amazing.

I leaped out of bed at 11:30 a.m. which is incredibly early for me, especially once you consider I didn't go to sleep until 5 a.m.

I was so excited I couldn't sleep. All I could think was: "Today, I'm making a Tex-Mex feast."

How do you make aboriginal culture "amusing"?

Having a long weekend is always welcome no matter where you are, but especially when you're the kind of person who works six days a week.

I constantly think of places I want to go but it would take more than a simple day to travel, do the things you go there to do, and then come back home. 

It sucks only having one day a week to yourself.

Where are we going?

So the Tomb-Sweeping Day holiday is this weekend. 

We get a whole three-day weekend out of it — both Saturday and Monday off work — which means that I obviously have to get out of Taoyuan so I can go do some exploring.

How do you do that backwards?

Backwards week just started and I'm already a little tired of it.

In some aspects it's a lot of fun, but it can also be really annoying/frustrating/confusing.

Why don't you speak Chinese more often?

Every day is just back and forth, back and forth.

The weather is crazy. My energy levels are crazy. My level of motivation is also crazy.

Oh well.

Catching Up: What makes someone a real teacher?

OK now that we've gotten health care out of the way, I can talk more about Taiwan. 

Sunday we had a girls' day. A bunch of us got on the bus to Taipei around 11 a.m. and eventually made it to Pinglin by 1:30 p.m. 

There was an incredible amount of traffic.

Catching Up: How do you feel about your health care system?

Saturday night I stayed in.

It was good after a week of craziness and being sick on and off. I haven't had it nearly as bad as other people, but I was seriously not happy about having a cold/allergies/whatever.

Are you wearing green?

I ended up spending the entire day Wednesday in bed so that I could sleep off the headache and the remains of my sickness. The idea was that I would be nice and rested up for the St. Paddy's Day celebration.

I can't miss St. Paddy's Day. I love being around all the people. Everyone is just so darn happy for this holiday.

How's the weather today?

Mother nature has been super bi-polar lately making a simple question about the weather super complicated.

This week we've experience weather typical of every season of the year at least once, some multiple times.

What's in the mail?

Taiwanese people are easily the most honest people I ever met.

Sometimes that can be brutal — like when your students tell you you're fat even though you're pretty comfortable with your weight — and sometimes that can be the best gift ever.

What do you do when you feel tired?

Thankfully it's quite a bit warmer out now. No more of that 6º Celsius crap.

At least I hope not. 

Why is it so cold?

Well, it looked like we were working our way into summer and what would eventually be amazing waterfall/beach weather.

Apparently not though.

Have you ever lost anything important?

This weekend was rather eventful, maybe a little too much even.

Saturday night we went out in Taipei for Jacob's 25th birthday. We started out the night with a reserved table at a super classy nightclub called Barcode. 

Why won't my scooter work?

I woke up super early this morning, rushed to get ready so that I would have time to get breakfast only to get on my scooter and have it not start. 

I tried EVERYTHING but nothing responded. 

What's going on?

By the way, I'm tooling around with the look of the blog. Trying to go for something a bit cleaner.

Let me know what you think.