Nothing like a good book

On Tuesday I got ambitious. On the way to school, I got off the train at Yuan Shan Station and walked all the way into Taipei. Took about 45 minutes, felt pretty good. After class I got the bright idea to walk back, go across the river, and go all the way to Jian Tan Station. Note to self: next time you decide to walk in stifling, humid weather for over an hour, bring a bottle of water with you. By the time I got to Jian Tan, I was parched and feeling dizzy, so I walked even farther, to the 7-11, and bought a bottle of Pocari Sweat. I don't like the stuff, but when you've been sweating rivers, it's a good idea to replete the body of all the crap you just sweated out. I gulped that down and staggered to the train, gratefully collapsing in an empty seat.

As I dragged my poor, exhausted self up to my front door, I spied a box on the ground by the mailboxes - my Amazon.com order! Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince! Oh joy joy joy! I'd assumed I'd get a notice in the box and have to hoof it to the post office to pick up the package, but I forgot that this is Taiwan, a country where the mail can be left out on the steps and no one will touch it, because it's not theirs. Even the letter boxes have openings wide enough that I can fish my mail out from the outside sometimes. Can't do that in the US because someone would certainly steal your mail. Ah, this is a great place! I'd ordered the book from Amazon, because even with the shipping charges, it was cheaper than buying it here. So funny that it was shipped to me from Germany - but it got here fast, that's for sure.

Of course, I immediately plunked down on the couch with the book and managed to get a couple hours of reading in before I headed back to Taipei and dinner with Betty. I walked more, from Taipei Main Station to Xi Men Ding. Not really that far, but after the walking from earlier, I was pretty wiped out when I arrived. Some damned taxi almost killed me in the crosswalk (note to travellers - just because the little man is green does not mean that cars, especially taxis, will not try to run you down when you're crossing - this is not Hong Kong), and I was so angry that I thumped his trunk HARD with my fist as he barely avoided running over my toes when he passed in front. I hope that shook him up, at least for a second, thinking he'd actually hit someone. Probably not, but one can dream.

I didn't get home until 6:00 last evening, and as soon as I fed the cat and started my laundry, it was back on the couch with Harry and the gang. I finished the book at 11:00. There's always a little bit of a letdown when one wraps up a good read, and with Harry Potter it's rough, because I know it will be a long time before the next one. I know this series will have to end someday, and I dread that! Yeah, I'm just a kid at heart, I know, but I could cheerfully read about Harry's adventures for the next 20 years.

Ah well, am now awaiting the next Amazon order, four new books from some of my favorite authors. The package has been shipped, and let's hope it's arrival is a timely as Harry was.

Question for today: do I walk or not? The knee that I injured the week I got here is still not healed, and after the exertions on Tuesday, it was complaining loudly yesterday. I was nice to it to hush it up, but I think today I need to get my fat self back out there for some serious exercise.....