Day Forty-Seven.

Today is a great day of discovery. I discovered a microwave on the 6th floor when I was doing laundry. There was also a toaster. I discovered the university sends me an email when I get mail in the post, then consequently discovered the mail room, and my giant package from BEST FRIEND EVER, Rob. I discovered my roommates are shy, but a taste of American candy is a good bribe for them to talk to me. I discovered the two quiet ones are actually really nice too. I discovered TWO of my three US television shows air on Wednesday night and are always waiting on me when I get home from class. I also discovered a direct correlation between not speaking to a certain person and the height of my mood--that is to say, I'm happier now that I've been since I arrived. Peace out, Cub Scout. Hello, Discovery.

Only one more day stands between me and Spring Break. I have found several more people who are staying in town and we're going to rock Taipei for the weekend while everyone else is out of town. I'm looking forward to getting out of my room for a day or two before turning my concentration back to the books. Let's cross our fingers for sunshine and cloudless skies.

Day Forty-Six.

I think it is official: I am allergic to Taiwan.

There have only been a few days where I have felt my best here and today is definitely not one of them. I have a runny nose, sore throat, and the beginnings of a cough. On top of that, this week my wisdom teeth decided to all finish breaking through simultaneously. Needless to say, all I want to do is sleep.

I took my one and only midterm exam today. Overall, it went very well, however I forgot three of the acronyms (5 points each) and I am sure I messed up a few concepts. Still yet, it was far better than expected. I can handle a C on my midterm as long as my group does a good job on the project. I am sure I can do well on the final exam with more time to study.

My camera is lonely, gathering dust upon my shelf. It has been a very long time since I last took a photograph here and that saddens me. I want to travel more and get out, but this Chinese class is shackling me to my desk. Even over my small "Spring Break" this weekend I will be tied down studying due to the looming unit exam on the first day back in class. Sometimes I feel like a tired old mule, slaving away at my homework just to have it marked up in red, and tossed aside and the cycle begins again. I did take some leisure time today after my exam; I crawled into my bed with my Kindle and finished the novel I've been working on for quite some time. It is nice to have that familiar feeling of accomplishment at ticking another book off of the list. I will admit though, I am sad the story ended. I guess now the quest begins to pick the next candidate amongst the titles fighting and shuffling to be first in line...

PS. Check out the article Tim wrote!

Day Forty-Five.

Today was exactly what I needed. Chinese class went very well; I can feel myself progressing at last. All that is left is to continue my current level of studying and catch up my writing ability. I really wish I would have taken the time over the past two years to learn to write--if I had, everything would be much less stressful. Outside was sunny and warm, just like I wished for, but I can't bring myself to even contemplate tomorrow's stormy weather. It's going to be a long Wednesday. I have class from 9AM until 1PM at JiHe, then my Marketing midterm exam at 2 to 4PM back on the main campus. I'm going to have to grab something quick to eat on my way to the exam, otherwise the only think I will be able to think about is food.

I received my passport back from the IC office today with my extended Visa. Looks like Taiwan thinks I'm okay to stay until the 12th of June. It seems a little silly that I have to renew it for only fifteen days, but I don't make the rules here. Aye, aye, Cap'n.

Played some football tonight on the field in front of the dorm with Koek, Sönke, a kid from Chinese class and his friend. We picked the one night of football club that was a real game, and therefore created our own mini field and game. It was actually quite a bit of fun, especially since I don't know when I'll get to play again with Spring Break coming up. After all, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

Ps. Yikes! Just something to think about...

Day Forty-Four.

For tonight's homework soundtrack, I'm listening to what many people characterize as "emo music." So with a Silverstein playlist queued on YouTube, I'm putting pen to paper. I missed football tonight because I was in the library studying for my Marketing Midterm on Wednesday; I deem that a worthy cause to miss the one thing that I love more than anything else here. Here I am now, after my delightfully scalding-hot shower I am finishing up the last few sentences of this three day Chinese homework marathon.

I know it hasn't exactly been a secret that the past few days have been hard for me, but I am hoping that this week will be different. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and warm, one day of relief before a week and a half of rain. Needless to say, I'm going to try to make the most of it.

Let's do this.

Day Forty-Three.

There are:

91 days until my 20th birthday.

92 days until I leave Taiwan.

6 hours of homework remaining for tonight.

10 words that need defined and used in sentences.

57 unanswered questions.

But there is only one exhausted, ill, homesick me. Why doesn't this homework ever end?

Day Forty-Two.

I'm pretty sure today couldn't get any worse.

Day Forty-One.

You know your culture shock has worn off when there are octopus legs sticking out of your rice and you're okay with that.

Day Forty...

...and it's raining again...and I saw the second side of my food.

我吃坏肚子了。我頭很疼。 我身體很不舒服。

晚安。現在我去睡覺。

Fun Fact: The word "forty" is the only number that has the linguistic property of its letters being arranged in alphabetical order.

Day Thirty-Nine.

I want to start out by posting something I have been meaning to mention for a week now: Congratulations WVU for our first B&E ranking! [Read the full article here]

The WVU College of Business and Economics has been ranked in the Top 100 Best Undergraduate Business Schools of 2011 in the nation by Bloomberg Businessweek, and you're invited to celebrate!

Please join us for a reception in the 4th Floor Atrium in the College of B&E on Tuesday, March 15, at 1:30 p.m. We're ranked because of the hard work of our students, faculty and staff. So let's eat cake and celebrate! I look forward to seeing you there.

Jose V. Sartarelli, Ph.D.

Milan Puskar Dean

A Taiwanese friend of mine that I met in class was accepted today by MCU for study abroad and is currently awaiting the response of the host institution. If all goes well, Ray Kuo will become part of the Mountaineer family this fall semester! When he first approached me to ask about a few schools in the US, he had no idea where I was from. So, obviously, when he opened his booklet and said his first choice to attend was WVU, I was through the roof in excitement. Keep your fingers crossed for him!

I apologize for the lack of presence of personal thoughts or real writings lately--as I said yesterday, time seems to be moving too quickly for me to keep up. I stayed up very late last night conversing with Tim Terman about the article I mentioned back in December. I'll update with further news as he informs me of what's going on with it. At least I can mark that off of the list of things I need to finish. Sanya stopped me outside class today to remind me to bring my documents in for the Visa renewal, so I will be doing that tomorrow after Chinese class. It feels pretty good to knock two large To-Dos off of my list, but it's a vicious cycle. I have a midterm exam next week for Marketing class that I need to study for as well as a group project looming ever closer. This is no time for procrastination.

Happily, I have already completed my homework for Chinese today! A step in the right direction for getting things done on time. Let's hope I won't be up until 5AM again tonight...granted, judging from how I am feeling now, I don't know if I will make it to 10PM without drooling facedown on my keyboard...

Zzzz....

[post edit: Ray was offered California Long Beach and he took it over WVU.]

Day Thirty-Eight.

I feel like I'm running on a treadmill that is set to a higher speed than I can handle--I am running to keep up, but very slowly losing ground, getting behind. I need to stop time for a little while and just get things together. I am tired of rushing to finish my homework at three in the morning, or pushing someone else's deadline because of my inability to focus for five minutes. I don't know what's gotten into me recently, but I need to kick this habit hard.

Tonight, I am cleaning out the closet of things to do. I have two emails on the queue list left to write that I am hoping to get to tonight, but seeing as it is already 3:11 AM, they may have to wait a little longer. This life is a viscous cycle. I need some peace.

It has been thirty-eight days now, and therefore I have added "Renew Visa" to my list of things to do. If I do not apply and have my visa renewal granted within sixty days of entering the country, I will have to leave and reenter for the new visa to be valid. That sounds like a lot of time and money that I do not have to invest in this. Let's just get it right the first time, shall we?

Day Thirty-Seven.

Yet again I'm up late. Recently I have been a shining example of procrastination. Only now (2AM) have I completed my Chinese homework and I am now beginning to review for the exam in the morning. This behavior is unacceptable, and I do not plan to continue it, however, lately I have had many things on my plate. I will admit to playing futbol again tonight. It was as glorious as ever--definitely a well-deserved break. I left early to shower and begin my homework. Thankfully I have the best trio of girls just down the hall to help me when I can't understand something. I really don't know what I would do without them.

I have sticky notes all over my desk area with TO DO written on them.

1-Prepare my documents to renew my visa.

2-Email Tim back, answering his questions so he may write his article.

3-STUDY STUDY STUDY

Wish me luck on this exam; I am going to need it.

Day Thirty-Six.

I don't really feel like blogging yet again. I woke at 4PM and haven't done anything all day and now I'm settling in to my homework. At least I got in a good mile around 7PM, but countered it with McDonalds around 11. I met the delivery boy at the bottom of the hill and in the process of carrying everything back up the hill, I lost $500NT. Most expensive McDonalds ever.

Crappy day. I need a pickmeup. Goodnight, World.

Day Thirty-Five.

Groceries. Billiards. Manchester United. Friends.

I bought half of Carrefour today...I am tired of eating instant noodles at home when I can't find someone to have dinner with. Afterwards I played billiards during the Man U futbol game with some friends. There was a fantastic goal at the 87th minute. So stoked.

Exhausted and nothing else to write.

Goodnight.

Day Thirty-Four.

Some things go as planned. Most things don't. Willful thinking doesn't even begin to factor into fate. I guess I just need to learn to roll with the punches.

Once again, I am sick. I visited the clinic between classes to get some medicine to break the fever and felt much better by the end of Trade Reg. I was invited to dinner by some classmates and ended up having a great time dining on xiao long bao. Delicious.

I don't know what has gotten into me lately--I haven't been quite acting myself; I feel cloudy inside. It is as if I can't quite find who I am anymore. I say things I would nor normally say, and do things I wouldn't normally do--harmless gestures, but noteworthy nonetheless. One month of chasing the butterfly though the forest and I am no closer to catching it than the day I arrived. Taiwan, who am I?...and who do I want to be?

Day Thirty-Three.

It's easier to list the things that went well today than list the things that didn't.

1. First homework assignment was returned--I only left out a comma.

2. I understood everything my teacher said today in class. Listening and understanding are beginning to feel more natural now.

3. When I needed help today, a friend came through for me. (Thank you so much.)

With all of the negativity surrounding today, I think it would be better not even to mention anything at all and instead, focus on three things that are one hundred percent awesome.

For smiles, I will leave you with a little Taiwanese advice: If you are a male, do not walk alone in 2/28 park after 8PM unless you're looking for a little something more than I think you can handle.

Shalom.

Day Thirty-Two.

A little bit of soul-searching didn't do anyone any good tonight, kids.

Old habits die hard.

Thank you, Mel. You've saved me yet again.

Day Thirty-One.

Day two of the Intensive Mandarin Program, and I must say it is aptly named. Spending four hours a day, just after waking, speaking and hearing nothing but a strange language that you're still not confident in your ability to communicate in is very stressful. For the first time in my life, I have to study every night; I've never had a class quite so challenging as this before. Studying has always been an option, a choice, but now, here I am up late yet again, peering over an internet dictionary and scribbling in my notebook trying to prepare for tomorrow's class. Today's homework was incredibly challenging: Define 5 words and use them in a sentence. Depending on the concept, this is sometimes challenging to do in my native tongue--doing it in a foreign one is even more challenging, especially when the language isn't as descriptive. For example, in English, to define "to prepare" one may say "to make ready," however the problem here is that those two statements would be said the same way, with the vocabulary word I am trying to avoid using. I asked a friend to define the word, and he said the best way was to use an idiom. Lacking in the culture department, Chinese idioms don't just flow through my brain they way they do in English. Different language, different idioms. I will confess, the define column of this word is still blank and I plan to turn it in this way. With my understanding of the word, "to prepare" is like a single atom, yes, it is made up of things, but it is otherwise in its simplest form; there is no non-complex way to define the word in Chinese. Yes, I'm frustrated. I've never appreciated the range, depth, and variation of vocabulary of English until now...but that only drives me to work even harder.

I'm feeling a little under the weather again today, due to the fluctuation in atmospheric pressure, temperature, and weather in general. I napped today for longer than I slept all night and woke with a low grade fever. I feel like I've been hit by a car, but that's because I "got trucked" by some pretty big guys yesterday during the game after they realized I wasn't kidding about play-hard-or-go-home. Brandon prepared me well--Thanks big bro.

Time to try to sleep more and kick this illness. Hopefully I will be well enough to travel this weekend to the mountains and get some fresh air. I'm Elizabeth Butcher, signing off. You stay classy, Planet Earth.

Day Thirty!

I'm bleeding. I have new bruises. I'm exhausted. I hurt. I'm covered in dirt and the sweat of both myself and mine enemies. And I feel better in this moment than I have since I arrived one month ago. One word: football. I had a very interesting moment while sitting out after the game tonight. Try listening to Debussy's Claire de Lune and watching a live game and tell me what you feel. Football is but a dance--the passion is so real, the moments so alive. Men write their stories in blood, sweat, and tears, tearing down those that oppose them until the whistle sounds and they walk off the field as friends to fight a different sort of battle. That moment took my breath away and awakened something within me that I cannot explain.

It is late, 2:45AM (11PM is the time I began to write this post) and I have class tomorrow and must wake at 7:30. Yet here I sit, sacrificing my time for those of you who do read this. I finished my homework to the best of my ability almost an hour ago, but my devotion to this blog won out over sleep. Now, however, I must bid you goodnight. I'm looking forward to waking in the morning with that familiar ache of an evening of fighting it out on the field. Play hard or go home.

Time for some Z's!

Day Twenty-Nine.

Today was a day of great exploration. Jeff and I moseyed around MCU and Shilin until we became bored, then decided to go to Niehu to visit Raohe Street Night Market. I have to admit, Raohe is much better than Shilin; the shops are nicer, and the area is much cleaner as well. While we were there, we visited a traditional temple and he explained each of the gods and their purposes. The temple was absolutely beautiful and I learned much from the visit.

While in the night market, I was finally able to try some vendor food! Unfortunately, I cannot remember what the item was called, but at least I captured a photograph as proof! It was made by frying a batter or sorts on a griddle and placing the meat, cheese and vegetables on top with salad dressing, then neatly folded as such and placed into a cone shaped holder for convenience. It was delicious. I can't wait to eat my way through the rest of the places I visit!

At last, our streak of bleak weather has broken. Today was absolutely beautiful--perfect for exploring. I am not looking forward to the weather returning to it's dreary state on Tuesday. Rain, rain, go away!!!

Day Twenty-Eight.

Another shopping day today, with even more success than previously. Joanna, Aileen, Yvonne, Seralyn, Gana, and I left the dorm around noon today and ate breakfast/lunch in a phenomenal place. This city continues to surprise me with its hidden treasures. We were literally walking down a dirty alleyway and went in a random door, next thing I knew I was standing in a beautiful restaurant complete with plush seats and aesthetic lighting. I almost stepped back out the door to make sure I hadn't gone though a portal to a different world. Not only was the place visually pleasing, the food was inexpensive and delicious; it easily replaced What's Burger as my favorite restaurant. (Sorry, WB.) It is soon to be my usual haunt; I can't wait to take Brian there. After eating, we overtook Tianmu once again for some BestBuy action. B1G2 sale is still going on and we each left with a bag in hand. Not quite having satiated our need to shop, we browsed the second-hand market and found some great treasures. I purchased a few things for myself, and found something for my future roomie, Kamala, as well as my step-father and brother for their birthdays. Hellooooo new place to Christmas shop. I think I'll be needing to mail a few parcels home so I don't have to lug them through the airport...

Such a great day. It feels so good to belong somewhere.

Day Twenty-Seven.

Today has been the longest day in the history of long days. I attended my first mandarin class from 9AM to 1PM, then my law class from 2PM until 5PM. After class Arkadiy and I trekked through the rain to his place so I could fix his computer (that I broke after fixing the first time...turns out accidentally disabling Java at startup stops a lot of other processes from happening too. Who knew?) Thankfully, it only took about five minutes. Don't worry, folks, I'm a professional. Started in the general direction of "home", sidetracked into the night market and purchased the rain boots I've been desperately needing. At last, home to watch the latest episode of Survivor and now writing this so I can go to sleep. Did I mention the fact that there's a tsunami heading my way? Yes, that seems to put a damper on the sweet dreams I was planning to have. Luckily, I am on the top of a mountain in Taipei, which is far enough inland that I should be okay if by some chance the tsunami does impact Taiwan. Keep your fingers crossed nothing bad happens--I'd hate to have to see how well these new rain boots really work.

Day Twenty-Six.

Rain, rain, go away and come again another day. For example, June 28th seems like a prime candidate. You know, after I'm state-side again. Seriously, it has rained all day and made my life absolutely miserable. My placement exam was supposed to be this morning at 8:10AM at Jihe campus about 15 minutes walk from here. I was late. It was raining. I made it on time, but left some blood on the sidewalk and fire hydrant where I busted open my leg getting there. The teachers, being so generous as they are, decided not to show up until 9:00AM so I could have ample time to sit in the hall by the security desk and nurse my busted leg. I should also thank them for leaving me off of the list for the exam so one of the examiners had to come back and test me in the hallway outside a noisy classroom. The test was the highlight of my day, sadly. I left afterwards, instead of going to the orientation like I was supposed to. Forced myself to walk home and up all 300 thousand stairs to my room expecting to nap all evening since the boy's concert was cancelled due to RAIN and feel better when I woke again. Wrong. My roommates decided it was a good idea to blast music and sing along instead of taking two seconds to notice that I was in bed, asleep. I wake, they realize it...and scatter. Thank you for your minimal contribution to my day girls. So here I sit now, wide awake after my delicious instant noodle gourmet dinner with chocolate Oreos for dessert. Seriously, how do I make myself so happy all of the time. Don't you wish you were me??

/end sarcasm.

/end blog post.

Day Twenty-Five.

Just another Wednesday.

Яed Square concert tomorrow to photograph. I hope it doesn't rain too much on the boys or my camera...

Placement exam at 8:10AM--wish me luck.

Day Twenty-Four.

I don't know what's gotten into me, but tonight I've been fervently researching graduate schools. I'm the first in my family to attend college, I have loved learning ever since I was a small child. Now that I'm finally here, achieving more than I ever hoped to, I'm aspiring to achieve even more. I have a dream, and I'm not going to let anything stand in my way. It is one thing to say you want to go to a ranked grad school, and quite another thing to actually do it. Let's see how far this small town girl can go.

Completed my first homework assignment of the semester today. It's been so nice not having real work to do. Unfortunately this ends on Thursday. Let's enjoy tomorrow before I give up my life to learn Chinese.

Day Twenty-Three.

Don't worry, World. I'm holding on. I dedicated today to making friends, or at least working on the relationships I have with the people I've met here. I played billiards with Phillip and we grabbed lunch at What's Burger before killing time in the park just walking and talking and people-watching. He's definitely an interesting character, but I'm thankful for his blunt honesty; it is refreshing. At five, I met Yvonne at the dorm and we had another evening of shopping at Best Buy (clothing store here). Their sale was even better this time with buy-one-get-two-free!!! As a comfort to myself I purchased three pairs of sweatpants (Aero and AE) for 280$NT ($9.54 USD = $3.18 apiece). I never should have left my favorite Morgantown sweats at home, but these will suffice until I return. Wrapped the night up with more billiards with Tiger, Nastia, Edgar, Kirs, Arkadiy, and Phillip a few MRT stations south of MCU.

All in all, a good night. Just one thing missing...and it's somewhere in Cancun, Mexico.

Day Twenty-Two.

And everything I thought I had is falling like sand through the finger-cracks of my unclenched fist. One person, however, can change everything.

Day Twenty-One.

Wonderful brunch of scrambled eggs with green onions and cheese and bacon this morning--definitely felt like home. I'm so happy to have friends with apartments that have kitchens that allow me to commandeer their place for a while. I guess I would too if I got free food in the bargain. Count me in.

I traveled to DanShui today for a while. Unfortunately it was too cloudy for very good photographs...not to mention cold and windy. Regardless, it was still beautiful. Just a short time after arriving, I was asked to take a photo with a group of girls. Hilarious, and awkward. I figure I'm already on someone's facebook by now. Celebrity status: Acquired.

I am still feeling ill, but a little better. I'm trying to drink plenty of fluids to stay hydrated and it seems to be working on the sore throat as well. I think it all just comes down to Taipei's air is absolutely disgusting. With so much motor travel, auto fumes are constantly in the air and even with a breeze there's no where for it all to go. I may try out the masks I see people wearing everywhere. I wonder how much more they'll stare at me then with my blue eyes peeping out from over the mask and my blonde hair blowing in the faux auto fume breeze. Sounds like a scene from a low budget foreign film that people wouldn't watch if they were paid to...

I feel myself procrastinating again...With only two classes, this is pretty bad. I have a marketing group project to being researching for, but somehow can't bring myself to do it. I have been far too long without any proper work that I've settled into it. I need to get it in gear and do my part of the project in case one of the other members needs help. Guh. If only the topic were more interesting. I mean, Newell's Acquisition of Rubbermaid seems interesting and all, but I'd rather be outside exploring than sitting in front of my PC researching this case. It doesn't help that we don't present until week twelve of the class...I still have a while, right? Along with this project, I have a thank you letter to finish up in order to claim one of my scholarships at WVU, and a wonderful second grade class to email about my adventures. [I'll write you as soon as I can Mrs. Graziano!] For now, however, I think it is time I rest.

Goodnight, World.

Day Twenty.

At last it is the weekend again! However, I do not know what is up with the music selection of the dance groups practicing on the field in front of the dorm. This is the second night in a row that they have decided to play Canon in D on loop for three or four hours straight without end. Are they truly trying to make every musician live out their nightmare or simply want to make us move out? Regardless, it was a good enough reason for me to leave after class and meet Kirs' sister and mother who are in visiting from Russia. I only had the pleasure of speaking with them for a short time, but they seemed like lovely people.

Today is day twenty. In honor of this moment, I would like to make a list.

Things I have learned in 20 days:

1) Never leave home without toilet paper. Ever.

2) If you DO happen to leave without toilet paper, I hope you haven't forgotten your hand sanitizer. I have noticed that only a very small percentage of residents in my dorm wash their hands after using the "facilities". Maybe it is because there's no soap.

3) You may think you don't need a mobile phone, but you are sadly mistaken. It has taken me twenty days to get one. Just do it when you arrive. Making friends will be so much easier when they can actually contact you to hang out.

4) Ditch the people you came with and make new friends. Otherwise you're going to sink like the Titanic when your comrades ditch you for their newfound friends who are obviously cooler than you.

5) Don't give up the things you love, incorporate them into your new friendships. If you like music, play it and others who like the same will come. Have a craving for the food you're used to? Go to the store, buy the ingredients, invite some friends, and cook the food yourselves. It will be fun and tasty.

6) Get out of your dorm room/hotel room/apartment and explore. Get lost. Take a taxi home. Do the same tomorrow. Not only will you find some amazing places, you will meet some amazing people, and have fun doing it.

7) Don't let the language barrier stop you from trying to communicate. Locals love nothing more than listening to you stumble through your poorly pronounced Chinese phrases. Some can speak English, but that's not the point. By making an idiot of yourself, you're at least doing more than most of the foreigners and making an attempt to respect the people and their culture. Some shop keepers or vendors may even give you a discount for trying.

8) Never forget that you are the foreigner. This is their country, their home. Respect it.

9) No matter how disgusting a food dish looks, or smells...try it. Ex: Stinky Tofu. Just do it.

10) No matter how much you miss your home, suck it up. This is your home now. No matter how bad it gets, you're going to miss it when you're gone.

Day Nineteen.

I have this undying craving for a West Virginia Summer day. I want to jump in my car, crank the radio up, and drive with the windows down. I want to feel the sun on my face and the wind in my hair. I want to breathe the fresh air, and hear the birds singing and the grass whispering. For the first time in my life, I'm homesick. I miss Morgantown. I miss my life. I miss Brian. I miss home.

There are so many adventures left to be had here, so many things I have yet to discover. I spent the entire day in my room today, and I am finished wasting time. If I have to be here, I am going to make the most of it. Here's to experiencing new things, diving in head first, facing fears, and living. I'm going to live this thing until it's over and I can drop my bags by the door and collapse onto the carpet of my apartment.

Ready, set, live.

Day Eighteen.

Somehow I have managed to be turned into a statistics tutor once again. I fly to the other side of the world, and still yet it follows me. Hello there, Hypothesis Testing! Long time no see. Looks like we're going to become really good friends again...On the bright side, this allows me a chance to jumpstart my weekly dinner parties like I had in the states with my friends. Every Wednesday after Marketing, we're going to hit up Carrefour, cook some delicious food, and study stats. Somehow, I'm okay with this. Tonight I attempted to make American food...but truly, what IS American food. McDonalds? KFC? Hotdogs and apple pie? Why doesn't America have anything delicious that isn't filled to bursting with GMOs?? I made hamburgers. Anyone that knows me, however, knows that my hamburgers are interesting to say the least. I like to dice up fresh spinach and toss it in with some ranch dressing and breadcrumbs and mix it with the burger before frying. Top it off with some pepper jack cheese and you have a delectable burger to dine upon. One problem: I'm in Taiwan. Ground burger? No problem. Spinach, ranch dressing, breadcrumbs, and pepperjack cheese? Problem. So I improvised. Don't let anyone tell you that picking a random vegetable in the leafy section is a bad idea because they're lying. With my ambiguous green leafy prize, dijon mustard dressing, smoked cheddar slices, and baked Lays chips in hand, I made THE Frankenstein of all burgers...and they were DE-LICIOUS. Moral of this story: No one needs a recipe...just some really bad ideas and courage to take the first bite. NOM.

Day Seventeen.

Headache. Sore throat. Sleep. Laundry. Long hot shower. Tired. Sleep. My day in ten words.