That's it, that's all. I have worked my last day of work. I am officially unemployed, and in two days I will be officially homeless. A little scary, but mostly exciting.

My last day of work was good. We had a little party and played games and I got a few really nice gifts. The best part were the cards, though. Some of the kids wrote their own cards, and even though the English is broken and slightly incomprehensible, it was clear that they put a lot of effort and thought into them. I tried hard not to cry, and am prolonging the saying of good-byes. I hate good-byes. I'd much rather say, "see you later" even though we both know there is a good chance we won't.

Today it is pouring rain, and there is a nice strong breeze. It's kind of a refreshing change from the disgusting humidity of the last few days. My Taiwanese family took me to a restaurant high up in the mountains (okay, big hills) where they serve traditional Hakkanese food. The Hakka are one of the nine aboriginal groups in Taiwan, with their own language, own food, own traditions, and own culture. My family is Hakkanese.

My family here has taken care of me in ways that I will never be able to repay them. They have fed me, housed me, transported me, helped me, cared for me, worried about me, and loved me. They did all of this no questions asked, when I was a complete stranger to them. They are incredible.

The restaurant was fantastic. It is a roof, basically. The walls are open, so the breeze blows in and all the tables and chairs are these incredibly carved wood pieces. I was tempted to ask him, "how much?" until I tried to pick one up. Wood? I think maybe marble is a better estimate. Anyway, we made sticky rice, which is a phenomenon all on its own,and too complicated to explain. It's amazing that humour can transcend languages. Everyone in my family can speak a little English, and my Mandarin is alright, but our table was filled with laughter. It was so nice.

Lunch continued, and the owner of the restaurant came out to help us make bamboo whistles. He had me laughing so hard, I was nearly crying. Who knew you didn't need words to be sarcastic?! Whistles blowing, we all sat down for tea. Ummm..... what we got was peanuts, black and white sesame seeds, tea leaves and a bowl. Grind it myself? Are you kidding me? About an hour later when the lady came to check on our progress, she told us to stop talking and get to work. Hmph.

A little bit of elbow grease later we got everything ground and enjoyed a nice hot cup of delicious tea. Honestly though... I'll take the bag next time. Sore arms aside, it was a fantastic morning. I'm glad I got in some quality time with everyone.

The rest of my day will be spent doing the final load of laundry, meeting friends for sushi, and moving my stuff to another friends place for storage. Ahh... I guess if I want to get everything done, I should quit talking and get to work.

Twice in one day, that can't be a good sign.

Posted by Kate at 2:25 AM |

Okay, so I resorted to a little begging to get my comments up...but can you blame me? And it did work, because out of the woodwork came Jody, Roberta and Caroline, so I'm not at all ashamed of my dirty tricks.

As promised, I will tell you what I would do, should I ever get to a point in my life that I am not worried about money. Actually, since reading Andrea's fun ideas, I might have to take her up on her offer of spending some time in B.C doing rafting, whale watching (damn you, for getting the ass joke first!) and hiking. I actually have wanted to go snowboarding out there for a while, but I'm not that good, and after two years of not doing it, I'll probably have to learn all over again. Anyway, just spending loads of time with Andrea, does rank high on my list of priorities.

So, considering that I can't sing, can't dance, can't act (no, lying doesn't count), can't draw or sculpt, or cook, or play any sports I guess doing any of those things. is out....but should I have an infinite amount of time, I would take classes in most of those things. I have long been jealous of people that had "visible" talents. They always seem more rewarding than talents that are hidden inside us. I know...crazy.

So, yeah, I would always be taking classes. I like to learn, and I am bored when I don't learn. Which is part of the reason, I think I am ready to leave this town and this school and this particular experience. I have quit learning enough new things to keep me content.


Aside from taking classes, and lots of fun vacations (I love vacations) I would volunteer my time to work with kids. Not young kids because I am so not a baby person, but teenagers. I love them, even though they can be a pain in the ass. I think it's my way of making up for me being such a pain in the ass myself. And although working in Toronto is most likely where I will end up, considering that money still is an issue, I would love to spend a big chunk of time in developing countries. My heart is in Africa, don't ask me why, and Haiti is on my "to-go" list.

Although Andrea's plan of opening orphanges in Romania is a good one... I have to admit, I have no interest in Romania, and again with the babies!! If you pick another place, maybe we could work it so you do the first 9 years, and I get the next nine. What do you think?

Anyway, what I wanted to tell you was that it was inspiring to see that lots of you would do what you were doing, even if you didn't have to. So thank you for sharing, and for inspiring.

P.S. My girl Chantal has fixed her computer problems, and has returned to the blogging world. Go say hi!!

Posted by Kate at 8:53 AM |

Insomnia has struck again. I can't get myself to fall asleep this last week, no matter what I do. I'm not too worried about it...I figure I'll sleep like a baby when I am shacked up in a hut on the beach after spending the day suntanning, snorkelling and rafting. Mmmmmm....sounds like heaven.

Anyway, what I was thinking about last night was this.

If money was no object and you could spend your time doing anything you wanted, what would you do? I mean, personally I'd spend the first bit on a beach, but even that would get boring after a while, so then what? I know it's a strange question and that lots of people will think, "what the hell? I'll never have to worry about it, because money is always an object," but just for fun...what would you do?

I guess what I'm asking is this....would you still do something worthwhile, even if you didn't have to? Do you love being a nurse, or doctor, or lawyer or teacher so much that you would do it, even if you didn't HAVE to have a job?

I know what I would do...but I'm not telling until you do. So not only is this my attempt to provoke some thoughts in your head, but also an attempt to get the people who read my blog daily to comment. For real....my site meter climbs like thirty people a day and only my amazing friend Andrea, my Mom and Dr. D ever leave a message.

Please...I'm begging!!

Posted by Kate at 9:01 AM |

I am trying to get my shit done, and get packed and moved and tie up all lose ends in the next four days. And in the meantime, I am trying desperatley not to think about me leaving. I know there are going to be some tears shed, and as long as I can postpone them for a while, that'll be okay.

I did get to talk to my Mom and Dad yesterday. A quick, "Happy Mother's Day" phone call. They are too funny. Sometimes I forget that they worry about me, but I can hear it in my Mom's voice as she tells me over and over again to be careful. My Grandma is even worse. In the six minutes that I'm allowed to talk to her, because "she doesn't want to keep me" she tells me to wear a mask, wash my hands, don't talk to strangers, be careful, come home, and a kazillion other things. Too funny.

Anyway though, I don't have much left to do. My money is the biggest stress right now. I can never figure out the best way to travel with cash. And because I'l be in seven different countries, I'd like to avoid exchanging currencies when I don't have to. Oh, whatever....it'll be fine. And did you just read that. My biggest problem is how to take money to seven different countries on my four month vacation. I swear, that's the best problem to have. I'm gonna quit bitching and just go home.

Posted by Kate at 8:22 AM |

I told you yesterday about my favorite place in Taiwan. Let my tell you about my second favorite.

It is a market, three city blocks long. The first block is a collection of lots of different things. Chinese watercolors, wood carvings, silk bags, incense, teas, and every other Chinese thing you can imagine. It is a bargainers heaven.

The second block is a flower market and the smell is unbelievable. Every step you take a new fragance hits your face. And they are all delicious. There's the widest assorment of flowers I have ever seen. I don't know anything about flowers or plants, I don't even own one, but I could spend all day just taking in this market. And the garden accessories....oh, they make me want to be a gardener.

But the third city block is the topper for me. I always save it for last. It's the jade market. And I have got to leave my bankcard at home, because I am addicted to this place. There is jade, and amber, and amethyst and ivory and onyx and so many other gems. My heart beats faster just approaching the entrance. Earrings, bracelets, necklaces, oh my. It is incredible....just table after table filled with jewelry. Venders anxious to sell you their product before you move on to the next table. Buyers trying to find the perfect piece. And me, wishing I could take one of everything, trying to pick my favorite, debating with myself which one will go with more things in my closet. Treasuring each purchase like it cost me the world. Oh how, I love the jade market.

And that was were I spent my day today.

Posted by Kate at 9:41 AM |