Day 7: Half-way!

Quarantine Diary:

4:30 AM…don’t seem to need much sleep these days. I like the quiet and slow beginnings to the day. First light, first bird songs, street sweeping (with the kind of broom I’d like for Halloween), sweeping up cups, cigarette butts, wrappers, this and that. One one those tasks that repeats itself endlessly, like washing dishes, cleaning the house, etc. Keeping us grounded. A Zen saying, “before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water; after enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. Life!

Time flies! Another week to go and I’ll be free to step out the door, hang out with my girl (when she can fit me into her busy schedule) and discover this corner of the universe we call Taiwan. Trip planning, here I come! 🙂 Beaches, mountains, bamboo forests, waterfalls, temples, lakes and rivers… for now I enjoy the images as I cruise the web looking up places. The following are from my previous trip…

My Vancouver roomie calls me – there’s a gas smell in the house and she’s called for service. I walk her through the usual checks (pilot lights on/off?), but she is right, it seems to come from the furnace, so she’s shut it off. Now we just have to wait for the technician. We catch up, chat about this and that – everyone is doing well. So lucky to have these wonderful young women share my Vancouver place. The technician shows up, is able to replace the leaking valves, and everyone feels safe again – no time to pinch pennies when it comes to gas leaks!

An email arrives from my friend Eroca who is yearning for a Papillon puppy and hopes that I might help her find one here. Nothing in Taiwan by the looks of it (so far). Lots in the PRC China, but given the pandemic and its many ripple effects, I don’t see this as an avenue to pursue. Importing anything alive from China these days would involve extra scrutiny. As a visiting foreigner, not something I want to pursue. And I’m open to easy serendipitous ways. So, if any of you dear readers know of any Papillon puppies, please drop me a note so I can pass it on. Btw, this is what they look like. Yeah, super cute!

Kaya is off on a 12 km hike today – what a tease! I do my rounds in the room… I admit, it’s a little harder to accept at this time. I’m itching to get out. Yoga mat time! Then some reading and a nap. I wrestle with WordPress for a little (too long) trying to understand how I can change the design without loosing everything. Watch some tutorials; don’t have the patience. It’s a new web platform for me and a learning curve. The body is not enjoying all this computer time, so I quit, have a shower, turn on some music, change the mood and play with wax crayons on paper. Big smile 🙂

There are a few subjects I would like to write about, but not today – gotta get off this computer!

Another good day in the den. It’s downhill from here folks. 🙂

When we try to control what we experience, our lives shrink. We are born to discover the universe rather than contract from it. (a conversation with Gangaji)