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Haraksha posted:Yeah, is anyone going to attend who isn't posting on the FB event page? 7 seems a bit excessive for an 8'o'clock reservation in walking distance from the station. Yeah, I'll be at Ximen Exit 6 hanging out at 7:30pm. I suggest everyone who wants to walk to the place with us be there by 7:45pm, please!
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Jun 29, 2012 19:24
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mad carl posted:Yeah, I'll be at Ximen Exit 6 hanging out at 7:30pm. I suggest everyone who wants to walk to the place with us be there by 7:45pm, please! Sounds like a plan.
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Jun 30, 2012 03:31
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I noticed not many people have signed up for the facebook thing.
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Jun 30, 2012 03:40
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mad carl posted:Yeah, I'll be at Ximen Exit 6 hanging out at 7:30pm. I suggest everyone who wants to walk to the place with us be there by 7:45pm, please!
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Jun 30, 2012 03:51
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Well, mad carl has invited his other, non-goon friends. URL isn't on FB. and I don't think USDA Choice is either. So, it's at least 6 goons, plus url is bringing his girlfriend and I think mad carl might to dinner at least as well. That puts us at 8 assuming USDA Choice goes, 9 if he brings his girl to dinner too.
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Jun 30, 2012 04:28
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I'm on facebook (Eric) but I don't see any event or the like to sign up for unless you're talking about the Brian/Frank/Max exchange. Anyhow yeah I'll be going but GF probably still isn't. See you all by exit 6 ~7:30-7:45. edit- Looks like she will be coming. Also I'm wearing a blue shirt that says Piranhas on it for what that's worth but I don't imagine you folks will be hard to spot. USDA Choice fucked around with this message at 08:19 on Jun 30, 2012 |
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Jun 30, 2012 07:37
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Are you guys eating spicy food and drinking beer tonight? I want to do that, too.
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Jun 30, 2012 07:39
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Oz_Bonus posted:Are you guys eating spicy food and drinking beer tonight? I want to do that, too. Hell yeah. Man that sentence just about sums up the whole thing.
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Jun 30, 2012 10:22
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mad carl posted:Hell yeah. Man that sentence just about sums up the whole thing. you may have overlooked the being obnoxious and loud part, but yeah otherwise it seemed like a fair summary. fake edit: as a brit I'm just gonna go ahead and apologise in advance. 
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Jun 30, 2012 10:29
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While I"m here i should pass this on. hi please reply to me if you are looking for a part time English teacher position every Wednesday and Thursday after 6 o'clock. Best Regards Best Regards GRAM English Center http://www.gram.com.tw Terry Chen 格蘭英語中港校 0423261800 I assume it's a widespread email since I haven't used 104 for a while.
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Jun 30, 2012 10:35
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...and then the thread went quiet... I'll assume this is due to hangovers, and mondayitis. Apologies for splitting off before midnight - lame I know - though tbh, sitting at a family mart and chilling was just what the doctor ordered. My saturday was: Xinzhuang - TMS - Zhongxiao Fuxing Zhongxiao Fuxing - Wan Hua Wan hua - Xinzhuang Xinzhuang - Carniegies Carniegies - Calcutta So yeah, by that point I was kinda shattered and a drinking expedition (though sorely needed) was beyond the pale. I did like the food at Calcutta, it was pretty drat close to what I'd get in the UK for a curry with only very minor differences. It was nice to be able to faces to names at long last. This weather is gorgeous - more heat please!
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Jul 3, 2012 02:23
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I was busy painting dungeon tiles :| I came here thinking I'll change everything, I'll be Mr. Cool. That lasted about a year. Now, I make dungeon tiles, draw maps and write up campaigns in my free time. More of a geek than I was previously. At least I'm married now, so it's not so bad.
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Jul 3, 2012 12:19
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url posted:This weather is gorgeous - more heat please!
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Jul 3, 2012 12:37
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Seriously I just wanted to quote that and say "gently caress you" but I was too stuck to my desk chair to do so. My bedroom A/C killed itself on Sunday, too. Thinking of sleeping in the guest room (with working A/C) until I bother to get someone out here to fix it. And yeah, Tetsuo, I'm exactly the same as you. Saturday was mind-bogglingly beautiful outside, but after spending like 30 minutes just driving around and doing various errands I decided to spend all day indoors. It's a shame but seriously gently caress the heat.
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Jul 3, 2012 16:02
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TetsuoTW posted:You're out of your goddamned mind. I keep thinking "Oh, it's summer(ish), and I've got the day off work, I should go to the beach." Then I step outside and remember how much I love air-conditioning. I honestly think the best way to beat the heat is to never use A/C. Get a size-able fan and use that instead. That way as the year goes from Spring to Summer you build up a tolerance for the heat. It also helps keep the mosquitoes off you because undoubtedly you will have the fan sitting a few feet away blasting air on you all the time. Plus it saves you a chunk cash every month on your electricity bill.
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Jul 3, 2012 16:59
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That is true. I've got to get a new fan.
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Jul 3, 2012 19:03
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My boss informed me that I have no classes to teach this summer! So, if anybody is looking for a substitute teachers from now until July 18, I am available at any time, anywhere in Taipei.
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Jul 3, 2012 20:02
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HappyHelmet posted:I honestly think the best way to beat the heat is to never use A/C. Get a size-able fan and use that instead. That way as the year goes from Spring to Summer you build up a tolerance for the heat. It also helps keep the mosquitoes off you because undoubtedly you will have the fan sitting a few feet away blasting air on you all the time. Plus it saves you a chunk cash every month on your electricity bill. I should probably start doing this. My somehow added another 0 to my electricity bill last month.
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Jul 4, 2012 01:35
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GoutPatrol posted:I should probably start doing this. My somehow added another 0 to my electricity bill last month. A/C uses a lot of electricity, and fans use surprisingly little even when you run them all time. So yeah, it should save you some cash. I like the big ones you can get at hardware stores here that are usually blue and white. They are a bit noisy, but are usually pretty cheap and they kick out quite a bit of wind.
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Jul 4, 2012 01:42
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HappyHelmet posted:I honestly think the best way to beat the heat is to never use A/C. Get a size-able fan and use that instead. That way as the year goes from Spring to Summer you build up a tolerance for the heat. It also helps keep the mosquitoes off you because undoubtedly you will have the fan sitting a few feet away blasting air on you all the time. Plus it saves you a chunk cash every month on your electricity bill. sub supau fucked around with this message at 06:10 on Jul 4, 2012 |
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Jul 4, 2012 06:06
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I tend to only run it at night. I can't sleep when I'm covered in sweat.
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Jul 4, 2012 08:48
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30 odd years of UK, and yeah, heat owns bones! Fans are okay and all, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel your pain. But, I'm still FOB so I still relish the heat as if it were a rare treat. That email I pasted on the last page was genuine, use it. Otherwise, knock up a 104 profile and the offers will roll in thick and fast ime. Imo -> ime
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Jul 4, 2012 16:03
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Hey Taiwan goons. I was wondering if anyone knew how quickly you can lock down a 1-year contract for teaching. I'll be going to grad school September 2013 so I need to get back home before then, but I'd love to do another year of overseas teaching until then (did the korea thing a year ago, was good times). Anyway is it possible to get a contract within the next month/before September? I'd prefer to have a job before heading over and avoiding the whole door-to-door resume thing.
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Jul 4, 2012 17:18
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The start of August is usually the new contract cycle, the biggest of the year for Hess at least (the biggest chain on the island). New teachers are supposed to fly in late July and be out and teaching the first week of August. You might be a touch late, but you could try right now.
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Jul 5, 2012 04:27
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Haraksha posted:I have yet to turn down a goon who has offered me free booze. If you get here early enough on the 14th(?) then we can get hammered on a boat. Thanks for the offer, but I don't think I fly in until later in the afternoon... Free booze offer still stands, though. Booked a room for four nights in Taipei; can't remember where it is off the top my head, but any goons up for a meet can feel free to PM me.
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Jul 5, 2012 06:41
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I am off to travel in Sri Lanka for five weeks, so my spacious bedroom in central Taipei is available to sublet from July 18 to August 25. Location: * Da'an district * Next to Technology Building MRT Station * Just down the street from Shida (NTNU, MTU) * Near a bazillion restaurants and other cool places The Room: * Spacious bedroom with a large bed (and clean, new sheets!) * Private bathroom (Wow!) * Air conditioner * Desk and closet space The Apartment: * Wireless internet * Large, fully furnished living room * Full kitchen, microwave, fridge * Washing machine * Two very nice, very quiet room mates Money: * NT$11,000 (Approximately USD$370, AUD$360, GPBŁ235) * You can leave before August 25th, but you have to pay me and get the keys on or before July 18, because I will leave the country the following morning. Contact: * Chris * ozbonus@gmail.com (This is the best way to contact me.) * 0975037687 (Use this number inside of Taiwan.) * 886975037687 (Use this number outside of Taiwan.) * I'm not busy recently, so I'll be available to show you the place at almost any time. This is the perfect place for somebody who's coming here to look for a job. Stay here for your first month and then look for a permanent place after you know exactly where you're going to work.
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Jul 5, 2012 07:18
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Just FYI, Carrefour is now selling Waffle Crisp.
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Jul 6, 2012 17:49
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Also the one near me now has "Lady Liberty" brand knockoff Doritos in Cool Ranch flavor. Which came first, Ranch or Cool Ranch? (I ate the whole bag in one sitting)
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Jul 6, 2012 17:52
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I heard this question on the radio the other day, but I couldn't stick around long enough for the answer. As an American, am I still gonna have to pay the uninsured tax back home if I'm signed up for NHI? I found this on some random law firm's website: quote:If a person subject to the individual mandate has a health coverage from a non-U.S. issuer, will this coverage satisfy the individual mandate’s requirements? This tells me nothing.
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Jul 7, 2012 18:20
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You are already considered to have the minimum required coverage if you are officially a foreign resident by the US code. You qualify for this if you were outside the US for 330 full days of the past year, or if you are a "bona fide" foreign resident, see below. Healthcare law ctrl-f for 911(d) Said 911(d), ctrl-f for qualified indvidual What is bona fide?
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Jul 7, 2012 18:58
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The easiest answer to this is that Taiwanese national health care is miles better than anything in the US, so would have no trouble meeting and exceeding any guidelines set in a US law. So you can consider it employer provides healthcare, and the IRS will never check up on it anyway. US government institutions are almost pathologically averse to dealing with anything foreign. I haven't paid student loans in FOREVER. But actually bugging me about them would require dealing with *shudder* foreigners. So my providers have basically stopped pestering me about them completely.
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Jul 7, 2012 19:02
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USDA Choice posted:You are already considered to have the minimum required coverage if you are officially a foreign resident by the US code. Heh, am I reading this wrong, or is this basically the US government saying "well if you're an expat you probably have better coverage than our lovely country can offer you anyway"
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Jul 7, 2012 19:05
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Entirely speculation, but to me it seems they don't want to bother rather than actually making any judgment about coverage. Actual enforcement and oversight would be quite expensive if they wanted to do a good job of checking up on foreigners. I suspect that income taxes are reasoned the same way; if you're making less than ~$90k a year, is it worth IRS time to go after comparatively little fish? I doubt it, I think they're more concerned about taxpayers who make seven figures and move to Singapore. And even if they are deciding it based on the coverage, it's still probably a wise decision. People who are able to stay abroad long enough to qualify under that definition probably aren't hurting for money even if we aren't exactly Bill Gates. The criteria provided are stringent enough that someone just visiting relatives in Mexico for an extended time or even a full academic-year student studying in Paris still wouldn't qualify.
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Jul 7, 2012 19:19
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Speaking of health coverage, I got my first ride in a Taiwanese ambulance this weekend and it was far and away the most dangerous thing I've ever participated in. I went to Yilan on Saturday to go swimming with some students and their families because one of the parents is a scuba instructor. He knew a good place to go snorkeling and thought it would be fun for me to come along (ie: they all wanted to get drunk with me later). When it came time to hand out gear, everyone got a pair of hard rubber swimming boots except for me. They didn't have any that fit, but I was assured a pair of sandals would be fine. They weren't! My toes and heels were exposed, so as I was stumbling around the slippery rocks, I went right into a couple of sea urchins. It was practically out of a slapstick comedy. I stubbed my toe on one foot on the first urchin and then jumped backwards into the one behind me. I got out of the water and had a mob of people around me in an instant wanting to know why I was suddenly unhappy. Then there came much debate as to what to do with me. It seems no one really knew where the hospital was, but everyone agreed I should go just in case. It didn't feel like I'd been poisoned, but gently caress the ocean. So, they called up the hospital and asked what an ambulance would cost. "Free!" And so they ordered one of those. Now, the EMTs here are trained to treat every situation like an actual emergency, even when it's apparent that they're not in the middle of one. This meant I had one guy taking my blood pressure every minute to make sure I wasn't going into shock and the other driving like the gates of hell had opened and Satan's legions were in hot pursuit. We almost died! The driver was trying to pass just about everyone, but being up near Daxi, everything is a one lane country road. At one point, the road split around an obstacle, oncoming traffic branching one way and our lane branching the other. The driver had spent most of the time in the oncoming lane because the traffic was lighter and so that's where we were when the fork approached. A semi-truck in the other lane just didn't understand what sirens meant. The ambulance driver was pounding on the horns and riding side by side with the truck trying to get in front of it so we wouldn't shoot off into the oncoming branch or collide into the barrier. The truck wouldn't budge, so at the last second the driver slammed on the breaks and we stopped inches from a giant rock. I was not strapped into anything and so went flying through the back of the ambulance and hit a wall. That was fun. When we finally got to the hospital, there was a team of paramedics waiting for us with a gurney, but I just sort of limped into the place alongside it. This was more of a large clinic than a hospital proper, so there wasn't a separate emergency entrance. When the ambulance arrived, the entire lobby turned to watch the doors to see what bloody mess of a person was coming in. It was just a foreigner in a wet suit looking about as embarrassed as possible. We asked the EMT if this was the easiest case he'd had to deal with. Apparently it wasn't. There was at least some risk that I'd drop over dead from the stings so he had to actually pay attention to me. He preferred when they had to pick up mental patients because they were rarely actually injured. The doctors weren't quite sure what to do with me. I got a tetanus and allergy shot as precautions and then they debated if they should dig the barbs out or leave them in. They settled on the latter and sent me up to the OR. This ended up being less terrifying than the ambulance ride, but far more surreal. They pumped my feet full of local anesthetic and began digging through my calluses to get to the spikes buried in my flesh. It turns out this was a fairly difficult task because the spikes were actually soft and nearly impossible to get a hold of. Meanwhile, we had every bad English KTV song on and the nurse was practicing her ballroom dancing in the corner between giving the surgeon his various surgical tweezers. Towards the end of the procedure, while the the surgeon was using an electric needle to cauterize my heel shut, I overheard a choice bit of conversation. "你要吃什麼?" "大辣雞排." While the surgeon was barbecuing my bloody foot, I at least got to practice talking about why spicy chicken was the best chicken.
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Jul 8, 2012 02:30
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Thanks for letting me know exactly what would have happened had I touched those urchins that I almost ran into barehanded the one time I went scuba diving! Good lord. At least you aren't now destitute due to a random accident. Though I heard in Taipei an ambulance ride costs ~1,000nt.
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Jul 8, 2012 04:59
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Spanish Matlock posted:... Pretty much any organisations that use Human labour are pathologically averse to dealing with anything foreign. I haven't paid student loans in FOREVER. But actually bugging me about them would require dealing with *shudder* foreigners. So my providers have basically stopped pestering me about them completely. FTFY, and a handy thing to keep in mind. Hahaha, that's ouchy! I did the same thing in Thailand. I didn't use any local medical thing as I was only on vacation. Local advice was to basically pound on your foot where the barbs are to encourage them to break up a bit making it easier for your body to dissolve them. ymmv
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Jul 8, 2012 07:44
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For a different kind of surreal, the last time I went to a dentist here, I had my gums lasered a bit to move them off of my wisdom tooth some, and smoke started coming out of my mouth. I realized I was inhaling my gums. 
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Jul 8, 2012 08:27
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I just went to a clinic to get my wounds dressed and was able to get my first look at the injuries on my toe and heel. The reason I didn't get stitches has nothing to do with depth. These things are goddamn deep. It's actually because they're too loving wide to sew together. I look like I got hit with buckshot. I'm going to bring a camera when I get them cleaned tomorrow.
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Jul 8, 2012 08:55
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How long is the process to get a teaching job in Taiwan? Going to start looking for a new job in Korea but I want another option in case Korea gets a bit too old. Will be a free man on October 9th and want to spend as little time as possible in that free state. Would probably want to avoid Taipei, I hate rain and prefer hot weather. Is Saturday a universal thing or a Hess thing? For the record, I'm far too neurotic to just show up in country and look for a job in person. Man, gently caress Korean winters, for real. Eifert Posting fucked around with this message at 17:46 on Jul 8, 2012 |
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Jul 8, 2012 15:49
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The process is not very long. You just have to spam your application and hope for a bite. It is possible to get a job from out of the country; I did. There will be less opportunities to teach outside of Taipei, but you should be alright if you focus on Kaohsiung. Saturday is pretty common. I think most chain schools require it.
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Jul 9, 2012 02:04
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