一年又一年

派對結束了。

今晚的年度聚餐，熱鬧依舊，但大夥的笑聲中，卻多了一份傷感。

原因，不外乎別的，是因為大阿姨的美華排骨，在營業二十八年後，將在明天劃上休止符。

大阿姨是一個很稱職的老闆。她對員工，只要是肯賣力的，一定報予等值的待遇。所以跟了她的員工，都跟的久，跟的安心。在美華上班的阿姨、叔叔們，背後幾乎 都有一個故事。但到了這裡，得到了一種安定。今晚，從他們不捨的臉上，我看到一種超越雇主與員工的感情。

我 們家的人，one time or another，都在這裡打過工，包括我（送外賣、洗鍋子），弟弟（剝蛋、裝辣椒、洗碗、堂食），甚至三毛姨丈，四阿姨，跟媽媽。一家店，由因緣而起，因 緣而終，卻也造就了無數的因緣。So many memories revolve around this place. I guess I'm gonna miss it, not just for the chicken leg :).

Counting the Loot (that one in the middle is the bingo jackpot; Johnny Boy is treating dinner :P)

Beauty in the House!

Cousins and Bro: From top left to bottom right - Sophia, Mike, Annie, John, Lily, Danny, and Susanna.

呆子土地公

窮書生又要講古了。

話說許久以前，在一處偏僻的地方，有兩座不大不小的山。南邊的山上，住著一個土地公﹔北邊的山上，也住著一個土地公。南山的土地公廟建的早，所以北山的土地公，見到南山的土地公，都稱他一聲哥哥。

地處偏僻，兩座廟又建在山上，所以兩個土地公公難得吃的到好的。他倆可能是當時比較瘦的土地公吧。

有一天，南山土地公（簡稱＂南公＂）看到一個牧童打廟前經過，靈機一動，就悄悄的對牧童吹了一口氣。牧童回家後，開始了不知名的發燒。他的父母心裡著急，在牧童身旁守了兩天兩夜，就在第三天的晚上，牧童說話了：

＂我是南山上的土地公。你們的小孩再上山的時候，著了妖氣。只要在我廟前的樟樹幹上，刨一片樹皮回來煮湯喝下去，就會好了。＂

牧童的父母照著作，果然，湯一下肚，燒就退了。牧童的父母準備了豐勝的酒菜帶到廟前供奉。當晚，南公邀請了北公一同來打打牙祭。

酒過三巡，菜過五味，北公奈不住好奇心，抹抹嘴上的油，問起大哥。南公一五一十的說了。北公心中酩記，準備事後也來套這麼一招。

只是這北山土地公腦袋不怎麼靈光。過不了多久，另一個牧童打廟前經過。北公如法炮製。只是當牧童的父親拿著柴刀到了廟前時，這個父親抓了抓腦袋，不知如何是好。

－北山土地廟前，看不到樟樹啊！

父親想著在家生病的小孩，正在那發愁的時後，往土地公的神像一睹，突然想到，土地公公的像是樟木作的啊！
＂真是偉大的的土地公公！＂父親在心裏感激的想。但他在神像前看了許久，想在前劈也不是，後也不是，突然靈機一動，把神像翻過來，往屁股上一刀砍下去。

＂唉喲，我的老天爺啊！＂北公在心裡苦叫。但他心想，為那一桌豐盛的酒菜，屁股挨著一下也算值得。那知這家人很窮，買不起酒菜，帶著牧童在土地廟前磕了幾個頭，就走了。

北山土地公公拖著發疼的屁股，一拐一拐的去找南山大哥。南公聽了之後笑的不支倒地。

＂哈哈哈．．．．！你也真是個呆子啊！＂

－－－－

在聽完這個很無聊的故事，我們學到兩件事：
１　土地公是有求必應的，但前提是肚子得餵飽。　：ｐ
２　土地公是會開玩笑的，大有時候玩笑會很呆，因為土地公本身也很呆。　：）

Excellence is not an act, but a habit.

Saw this commercial a few days ago while watching a televised knicks game in grandpa's house, and I was immediately impressed by the simple elegance of the commercial. It also helps that Yao, one of my favorite player, is the subject of the commercial.

An Article on Taiwanese Politics

In my view, one of the potentally gravest pitfalls of democratic political involvement is when the people - the ultimate servee and server of the system - begin to take the system itself for granted. They either take its benefit as given, or they see its flaws as something immutable and attempt nothing to correct it. I see the Taiwanese Political Transformation as one of the greatest social experiment of the modern era. For it has shown, and is still showing, the process by which democracy takes root in a country previous ran by a authoritarian government and whose culture , 5000 years + and counting, is often though of by cynics as unfit for democratization. This article, written by a very well-known Taiwanese political and social thinker, was written in response to the recent controversy surrounding Ma Ying Jiu and the so-called "special purpose fund". One can either agree or disagree with her views and her displeasure with Ma's rash decision to resign (afterall that's what democracy is for), but you cannot doubt that it is written with care, earnesty, and intelligence. It is certainly thought-provoking, and in this day and age, that is of the utmost importance.

路走得寬闊，人顯得從容

【龍應台】自首報告

當2006年底馬英九的特支費成為一個司法事件之後，我才知道，原來首長特支費中不需收據的那一半，可能並非首長薪水的一部分而是公務費，不能匯入個人薪資。英九，可能因此被檢察官起訴。罪名，可能是貪汙。

我太驚訝了。從1999年秋天踏進台北市政府成為台北市的首任文化局長開始，我的特支費的一半，3萬4000元，就是每個月直接匯入薪資帳戶的。秘書作業自動處理，沒問過我，也沒有任何人告訴過我還有其他的可能作法。我倒是記得跟公務員同仁有一段對話。

Continue...

AIDS in China

Imagine yourself a normal farmer living your days pretty much as your father and your grandfather had lived it. Your world consists of essentially your home, your crops and field, your family, and those villagers that you called friends.

Then one day, at the urge of local village officials, you were told to sell your plasma. You weren't sure what procedures are involved, but since life for a rural farmer is hardly poetry, you scrap whatever money opportunity you can find. And hey, village officials and the doctors said it's O.K., so it must be alright, right?

Later, much later, you were told, along with dozens, if not hundreds of your fellow villagers, that you were infected with HIV. No officials came to explain or take responsibility for your affliction; no one, except a few doctors came to the village for treatment. You were forced to stay in the village, forbidden any communication with outsiders, and your existence, along with those of your infected villagers, were seem as an annoyance, an eyesore to that giant capitalist machine we call "China". And soon, you feared, you will die and be forgotten, like those neglected fields not far off in the distance.

......

Read this article last week:
http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=E1_RVVQSSR&login=Y
(if the site asks for login, use "chhpotter@yahoo.com" for username and "chien" for password.)

I've always held a contempt for the Chinese government, or for that matter, a contempt for any government that refuse to admit to its mistakes and chose oppression over communication, secrecy over transparency. I am proud to be a Chinese (for the cultural heritage in my veins), just as I'm proud to be a Taiwanese (for the beautiful land upon which I was born and raised). 我對中國，有著一種泅於血中，深切厚重的情感。但透過這篇報導，我看見這個我懷有深重情感的土地，卻是一個踐踏我所有價值認同的國度。A passage in 龍映台's 《請用文明說服我》came painfully to mind:

"它，把真理當謊言，把謊言當真理，而且把這樣的顛倒制度化。
它，把獨立的知識分子當奴才使用，把奴性的知識分子當家僕使用，把奴才當─啊，它把鞭子、戒尺和鑰匙，交到奴才的手裏。
它面對西方是一個臉孔，面對日本是另一個臉孔，面對台灣是一個臉孔，面對自己，又是一個臉孔。
它面對別人的歷史持一個標準，它面對自己的歷史時─錯了，它根本不面對。它選擇背對自己的歷史。
它擁抱神話，創造假象，恐懼真相。他最怕的，顯然是它自己。"
．．．．

As a part-time economist, I can say without any attempt at exaggeration that China's economic growth for the last 2 decades is one of the most impressive transformations in modern civilization. But no country is respectable until it treats its people with respect, for a country should exist for no other reason than to serve the welfare of its people. Lastly, to again quote Prof. Lung,

"請用文明說服我，我願意誠懇傾聽。＂