I'm really honored to have been invited to add my voice to this collection of blog posts about Taiwan's presidential election, gathered by the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University. Please read the whole thing - the Taiwan experts have very important insights into many aspects related to the election. Alphabetically I come first,…Read more Taiwan Votes: Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies blog post
TCK
Redux: What makes us Taiwanese?
Last year I wrote an article for TaiwaneseAmerican.org about Taiwanese identity, an article that I'm really proud of. If you haven't seen it yet, you can go read it here: Beyond Boundaries: What makes us Taiwanese? Recently, a website that will remain unnamed reposted that article in full on their new content aggregator, something I…Read more Redux: What makes us Taiwanese?
Too long? Long enough? A long time?
Taiwan Explorer 1, in response to a post on Foreign Sanctuary entitled You Know You've Lived in Taiwan a Long Time When..., called out "taiwanreporter, Love, Dadaocheng, Taiwanvore, The Stinky Tofu, Synapticism, Lao Ren Cha, and any other Taiwan blog to compile a post with the same title, and make a list of good and…Read more Too long? Long enough? A long time?
Ode to my passport
I applied for it in a fit of last minute desperation, expedited as much as possible, during finals week of my sophomore year of college. I trudged through snow to the post office to get my photo taken. Unsurprisingly, it is not a good photo. I look tired and a little lost. My previous passport…Read more Ode to my passport
The Black Bearded Barbarian
I've been thinking about this photo lately, of G.L. Mackay and his family, which I found in The Black Bearded Barbarian by Marian Keith, published in 1912. I wouldn't recommend reading it, mostly because it's written at a children's level with a few too many exclamation points, and also because, as Keith notes in the…Read more The Black Bearded Barbarian
Beyond Boundaries: What makes us Taiwanese?
Excited to share with you that my piece on Taiwaneseamerican.org has posted! What makes you Taiwanese? Is there an answer that’s more right than others? What terms make up that definition? I’m tempted to begin this article by listing what I feel qualifies me to claim Taiwanese identity, as if somewhere out there, there’s a…Read more Beyond Boundaries: What makes us Taiwanese?
My country?
This post started writing itself in my head in Chinese, rather than English, something that's never really happened before. I feel awkward and plodding when writing the language, but here goes. 「自己的國家，自己救。」 我非常喜歡這個口號，可是這個「自己的國家」對我這種怪怪的台灣人有點不配。 從318那天之後每天盡心察跟台灣有關的新聞、臉書、twitter、等等。找到的英文材料po給美國朋友看。有空就獻時間給文播組翻譯現場文字轉播。 如果我在台灣，也應該只能這樣做。拿外國籍參加台灣學生學運可能影響到居留證，下次不能回國，不能回家。 一天24小時都有消息。這有它的優點和缺點。整天為台灣想、煩惱，按照睡眠不好、不專心學業、覺得平時生活中該做的小事都很煩，因為都不像太陽花學運一樣重要。 自己覺得是自己的國家，然而不能救，那不是很無用嗎？ 今天早上，新聞、臉書、twitter 看累了。心煩意亂。 我把電腦給關閉。默默得坐著。想到芝加哥還這麼冷的天氣，強調我現在跟台灣的距離差很遠。太陽花也見不到。 但是我有鉤針，有毛線。鉤了一朵太陽花。手動著鉤針，慢慢靜心了。 至少自己的太陽花，自己能做。 ""My own country, saving it myself" I love this slogan, but that phrase,…Read more My country?
Spirit of Taiwanese Democracy, 1997
A moment of levity. A Taiwan Halloween, 1997.
The view from here (part 2)
Perhaps it looks pretty similar to you, as it's another large East Asian city, but there's a world of difference to me. We've left China behind for a few days in sunny, warm southern Taiwan - Tainan. Last night, relaxing with friends at an adorable bar run by Taiwanese hipsters, it was pointed out that…Read more The view from here (part 2)
From Far Formosa
My roots in Taiwan's fertile soil are both shallow and deep. I was born there, in an industrial city in its south, and grew up playing on dusty streets in sunshine so intense it prickles the skin. Yet I never really looked like I belonged. Though it's where my heart calls home, I am not…Read more From Far Formosa
Far From Formosa 