HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!

I know that it has been awhile. It has been a rough couple weeks, for all things on Leah's post, as well as a few more. My brother (who will be subject of a future blog in himself) was engaged to be married in Aug. His fiance (who we all love) decided that there were some things that needed work before she would commit, so called off the wedding. My brother was engaged 2 years ago and his fiance (who we did not all love) called off the wedding...poor guy. So between that and my Aunt and Uncle who were cornerstones in our family, my home home has been shook up.
All this is merely my excuse for being neglectful, not the subject of today's blog. Last week, May 12, was my one year in Taiwan. As it often goes, on one hand it seems like just yesterday I stepped off that plane into the soupie air, and on the other it was a lifetime ago. So much has happened, and I have gotten so much out of this experience so far.
This country has not lost its strangeness at all. A day still does not go by that I don't shake my head, either in amazement or confusion, often both. I can't get over the eagerness in which some people of this fine country attemt to communicate. Although the language barrier is HUGE there are always other ways. Charades is now a way of life, as well as creative interpretation of broken English....Yesterday in a restaurant the waitress asked us if "The food enough so to fill?" and the other day we were staring blankly at an all Chinese menu when they finally sent over the one person in the place who spoke a bit of English. I asked what they had for vegetarian food and he explained "sometimes people that who don't want to eat meat" Yes, I KNOW what vegetarian is, I am one, what do you have for me? "Well, this one...I don't know how to say...you know Cinderella?" Ahh yes pumpkin, that sounds delicious (It wasn't) I'll have that.
Now I have to point out that every other worker in that restaurant avoided us like the plague for fear that we would speak to them.
For every person who shouts "Hello, how are you today?" on the street, there is a person who freezes at the sight of us. At my local tea shop I walked up and proudly ordered "pou tow yo lu cha, bou yow tang" (grapefruit green tea, without sugar). The frightful young thing just stared at me, so I repeated slower and more carefully "pou tow yo lu cha, bou yow tang". He began to look extremely uncomfortable, looked around out of the corner of his eyes and muttered something in Chinese. As I opened my mouth to repeat a third time two other workers, and one other customer literally shouted in unison "POU TOW YO LU CHA, BOU YOW TANG!!" and the customer leaned over to me, patted my arm and said "very good!"
One of the things I appreciate most about being in Taiwan is that it is the first time Leah and I have REALLY got to know each other. It feels a bit like 'our time'. Growing up we always had a connection, but I am that bit older, that seems like so much more when you are kids. The splitting of our families sent us in different directions until my early twenties and her late teens. Now we are cousins, neighbors, friends, and fellow members of the bubble. Friday night, almost on cue to reinforce our one year together we had a big Lea/La night. The boys were going over to Andrew's place for a few beer, so we went for a walk. When we got home we pulled out the Scrabble board, but decided we needed a bottle of red wine. As we cracked our second bottle at about 3 am (boys still not home) the talk turned to drugs and pills, and the fact that the boys had one and well why not! When the boys arrived shortly after 5 am (stolen Starbuck's umbrella and table in hand) we were mostly just drunk, and I am not sure that they really believed us!! They started to pass out close to 6 and after a bit of cajoling, we convinced Dave to give us his hidden pill. Another walk, for 3 hours. Higher than kites, puppy in hand, loving Taiwan. People line dancing to Chinese music in the park. Lady-boy giving 'cha cha cha' dance lessons to a middle aged house wife, music blaring from an amp. Smiling and saying hello to all the early birds, pouring rain, drenched, people looking at us like we were nuts, feeling SO naughty, giggling, bonding, green trees, look up really fast "whoa!" Us getting back to us. It's easy to drift when we both have boys, and jobs, and other friends. It was good, we needed it. It reaffirmed a lot of things. It was FUN!!! Thank God for Lea!!! Thank God for Taiwan!!!