My colleague asked me if I’m all right because she feels like I look unhappy. I told her that I’m not unhappy and that I was just tired and my body sore. She bought me a Starbucks drink nonetheless (it was on a buy-1-get-1 free promo) to lift up our moods in the afternoon. Awwww.
On Saturday, T and I watched Batman vs Superman (I didn’t like it), went to the Filipino district to make a remittance, ended up walking to Maji Square because apparently it was nearby, decided to go to Shilin night market for dinner, and then went to Jingmei on our way home where I bought shoes, a mason jar, and a cooking spatula.
On Sunday, T’s company had their team building activity, and this year it’s basketball. Last year it was bowling. We went to this school gym in Neihu and spent the entire day there. T played about 4 games with his team, but they weren’t very good so they didn’t win any awards. Their company also provided breakfast (sandwich) and lunch (pizza, fried chicken, and sushi).
For dinner, we ended up in House Bistro which is this brunch/cafe near the MRT. I ordered a pesto pasta and T ordered a hamburger. The food was so-so which was pretty disappointing. We’re not familiar with the area because it’s far from where we live and we don’t go there at all, so we don’t know which restaurants are good. Maybe we can research some for next time.
I had a shipment from Taiwan to Vietnam that was a nomination shipment of a Korea agent, and there were some issues that came up as we were verifying documentation because it was under L/C (letter of credit). There was no actual need to, but I wanted to understand it better so I read up on it. I also saw online that L/Cs are “one of the most widely used ways to reduce risk between importers and exporters… but the process creates a large paper trail and is time consuming.”
We received an announcement from Taiwan’s logistics organization about SOLE’s (The International Society of Logistics) certification class for Demonstrated Logistician (which is the first level). When I first saw/heard about it last year I think, I thought to myself that it’s something I’m interested in taking not only because certificates are very important in the Taiwan market but also because I wanted to be more knowledgeable and proficient in logistics/procurement/supply chain, etc. I just don’t know if I want to take it in Chinese especially because that would mean that everything I’d learn and even the test would be in Chinese. It is an international certification program though, so maybe if I could find one being offered in English or something. We’ll see.
Took down meeting minutes for a meeting between our president, CFO, TH manager, CQ manager, and my manager. It was interesting to hear their opinions and considerations because they are coming from different places and different viewpoints. Being the klutz that I am, I fell down from my chair before the meeting started (the chair rolled away and I didn’t notice) and they saw me fall in slow motion (good thing I sat down slowly) and was amused. I laughed as well so all’s good. It was really embarrassing though!
T and I had dinner with my relatives at this Korean BBQ all-you-can-eat restaurant in Taipei Main station.
On Saturday, I finally found the time to try making chia pudding for breakfast. I topped it with guava and kiwi since those were the only fruits we had at home during that time, and paired that with a banana blueberry smoothie. Yum! In the afternoon, I had afternoon tea at Cafe de Riz with Hana, Joyce, and Jackie. We ordered the 2-person afternoon tea sets because they are more value for your money but overall, I feel like the place is overpriced. Maybe we should try their rice ball meal set instead.
On Sunday, I attended my first spin class with my cousin and her friend. It was sooo tiring and there were times in the middle of class my legs wanted to fall off and I wanted to throw up! According to the instructor, these are all normal reactions and you can choose to slow down or just keep pushing through it. We used the gym equipment after. It’s so interesting because they have a lot of equipment targeting different muscle groups like for example a tricep focused equipment, outer thighs, inner thighs, abs, upper thighs, shoulders, biceps, etc.
After we took a shower and freshened up, we had dinner and played board games at Who’s Tea Shida, and then we went to the night market to shop.
As my ARC is about to expire and I was going to have to extend its validity, I figured that it wouldn’t hurt to prepare the documents in advance. It was a good thing that I did because otherwise I wouldn’t find out that my work permit was also about to expire! Turns out our previous HR personnel didn’t apply for the full 3 years so my work permit was only valid for 2 years. Our current HR personnel applied for an extension (and I even had to have my picture taken, an expensive picture I might add, at a place near our office) so I have to wait for that before I can renew my ARC.
On my way back to the office after having my photo taken, I passed by Haritt’s and I was finally able to buy their cream cheese donut. It was always sold out whenever I’d go there before, which wasn’t often. It’s gooood.
I know someone who will be planting/growing corals this September somewhere in the West Philippine Sea. Sounds so cool!
T and I had lunch at Polleria, this Peruvian restaurant that’s been on my list since I first saw one of my friends eating there. We got small samples of free desserts (Mazamorra Morada and Arroz conLeche) and this drink called ChichaMorada) in celebration of Peruvian Independence. They have really yummy and flavorful food but they don’t have a lot of choices – it’s mainly the Peruvian roasted chicken sets. I was able to speak a liiiitle bit of Spanish with the owner so that was cool. I need to have more confidence. It’s been x years and I’m still telling myself the same thing.
We had dinner at a small Japanese restaurant in Jingmei that we saw online. It’s not super expensive but the servings weren’t that huge either.
T and I watched Central Intelligence, Bad Neighbors 2, and Eddie the Eagle – a movie per day. Haha! We had a Starbucks date session (since we couldn’t decide on which coffee shop to go to) and I finally finished reading The Art of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli.
I read this article that talked about the Positive Lexicography Project, which is this “online glossary of untranslatable words.” The article included some words that are already included in the glossary, and I listed down some of the ones I found more interesting:
– Sisu (Finnish): connotes both determination and bravery, a willingness to act even when the reward seems out of reach.
– Heimat (German, “deep-rooted fondness towards a place to which one has a strong feeling of belonging”)
– ilunga (Tshiluba, “being ready to forgive a first time, tolerate a second time, but never a third time”)
I read this article on Thought Catalog titled “25 Ways To Kill The Toxic Ego That Will Ruin Your Life” and the only thing I wrote down from the article is how philosopher Seneca came up (?) with this word “euthymia“, which means the tranquility of knowing what you are after and not being distracted by others. How wonderful it must be to know what you want or what it is you’re meant to do with your life that you just continuously work towards achieving that thing.
Lastly, I read this article by Robert H. Frank called “The Incalculable Value of Finding a Job You Love” and these are what I took down:
“…you’ll have bills to pay, so salary matters. But social science findings establish clearly that once you have met your basic obligations, it’s possible to live a very satisfying life even if you don’t earn a lot of money. The bottom line: Resist the soul-crushing job’s promise of extra money and savor the more satisfying conditions you’ll find in one that pays a little less.”
I feel like this is in line with what I wrote about in my previous blog entry where I read an article in The Wild Wong.
C'est moi 