Masks. They're a sign of greatness. Zorro. Dr. Doom. Rich Hamilton. Hannibal Lector. Jim Carrey. And now... ME. Sure, mine isn't as mysterious as Zorro's, as form-fitting as Hamilton's, as devilish as Hannibal's, ... but it still draws attention when I wear it at work. Alright, the truth is that I'm wearing a filtering face mask at work so that I don't spread my virus to anyone else - and also so I don't breathe in air that's too cold or dry (from the A/C) that may cause me to break out in uncontrollable hacking and coughing. So far so good.

I feel like a doctor about to perform EDA (Electronic Design Automation) surgery at my computer. There is an undeniable feeling of power -- which, of course, only I feel. Others who see me wearing a mask will have pity on me, and that's necessary to validate the two days I took off work. :D

Bronchitis, not just an extinct lizard.

Went to the doctor today because after getting past my cold, which I was suffering from at the end of last week, I've been coughing plenty, and I have lots of phlegm -- the nice thick kind that sticks to the sink and doesn't let go unless you use a power washer on it.

Anyway, the doctor says I have a little bit of bronchitis -- not too serious now. I have 4 days' medicine to take, and we'll see how it is on Saturday morning... if it's okay, I don't have to eat anymore meds. If not, then I will go back to see him.

In the meantime, it's a day and a bit off work so I can rest up. Sigh...

If I weren't an engineer, I would I want to...

write songs.
write for sitcoms.
create art.
make commercials.
sell Those Little Donuts in Taipei.
be a stuntman in movies.
design clothes.
invent low-tech household items.
cook.
make music videos.
invent game shows.
design logos.
be in advertising.

The dream season is over.

I was on the Phoenix Suns bandwagon from the beginning of the NBA season. My reasons were Canadian Steve Nash and Japanese Yuta Tabuse. I supported Tabuse for being Asian and the first Japanese to play in the NBA. Unfortunately, his stint with Phoenix didn't last very long at all. I don't think he even played a regular season game, and I don't know where they shipped him off to.

Of course, Steve Nash was my main reason for watching the Suns closely. And then I and everyone else came to realize, as the Suns started out with a 31-6 season, that they were a super exciting team to watch. No defense, sure. But offensively amazing. Add up all the stats (best record in the league, most points per game, 3rd largest season-to-season turnaround in NBA history, ...) and the awards (All-Star weekend accolades, MVP Steve Nash, Coach of the Year Mike D'Antoni,...), and you have a pretty successful season!

But, after a first round sweep of the Memphis Grizzlies (haha, those Grizzlies suck!), a 6-game disposal of Nash's old team the Dallas Mavericks, the Suns just couldn't get things going and lost to a more experience Spurs team in five. Maybe if they used more than just seven players in a game, and added some defense, they'd fare better. Although, you have to admit, the starting five were phenomenal. Although Amare Stoudemire is also unbelievably cocky and not very tactful when it comes to post-game comments. Nevertheless, he's 22... so what do you expect?

Anyway, the season is over for Phoenix. Time to wait until next season! Hopefully I'll have an NHL to follow as well. Go Canucks Go!!

Here's a quick observation"

I find when Taiwanese people give a series of digits, such as ID numbers or phone numbers (which range from 8 - 10 digits), they usually blurt out the entire number in rapid-fire fashion. This is as opposed to what I'm used to in English, where we give 3 to 4 digits at a time. What's equally interesting is that the people here who are getting the numbers have no problem understanding it.

Taiwanese way:
"So, what's the number?"
"0939384855"
"Ok, thanks."

Canadian way:
"So, what's the number?"
"6-0-4"
"6-0-4"
"5-5-5"
"5-5-5"
"1-2-3-4"
"1-2-3-4. Ok, thanks."

Me getting a number in Taiwan:
"So, what's the number?"
"0939384855"
"0-9... and then?"

Here's an email just sent by my manager to the entire company. It made me smile because there are a few people that REALLY need to pay attention to this. REALLY.


Sorry for sending to everyone.

In western countries where a good part of population has body odor, they use deodorant soap, and apply deodorant stick to the armpit after shower (to keep it dry and reduce the smell.) Many people even apply cologne or fragrance to make the smell pleasant.

For oriental people, the percentage is quite low. However, the smell can be strong. So for a better working environment, please be aware of this issue. Use deodorant soap, apply deodorant stick, and/or wear fragrance.

As summer is coming, it will become unpleasant in the cubicle, and on 6th and 7th floor where people sweat a lot. Please help make it a pleasant environment.

I don't mean to offend anyone as I don't even know who has it. Please pardon me for being direct.

Thanks, and best regards,
________ _____

The Name Game.

My group at work is involved in developing a new product. So, over the last (long) while, we had a contest to "name that product". The winner gets an iPod (mini? 4GB? 6GB? I don't know.). I came up with a whole slew of names around speed and acceleration in verification, which is what our product provides to customers. Below's the list of some of my suggestions -- some are good, some aren't. I've removed certain acronyms to protect the nature of the product.

1) Farina - driver to win the first Formula One race in 1950 (Italian fellow), indicative of speed
2) Burton - chief of current world record Nascar pit crew, shows speed and allows the driver to get on their way quicker
3) Cheetah - for obvious reasons, fastest land animal
4) Peregrine - for the Peregrine Falcon, the fastest animal on Earth with speeds up to 175 mph
5) Cascade - out ability to speed up verification cascades through to quicker time-to-market
6) FICESS - [acronym]
7) REVE - [acronym] (also means "dream" in French, Reve with ^ accent on first 'e')
8) ICDREE - [acronym]
9) Presto - A direction in sheet music indicating the tempo is to be very fast.
10) Allegro - A direction to play lively and fast. === used by Cadence
11) Glissando - A rapid succession of notes, often played on the piano or harp by sliding the fingers quickly over the keys or strings.
12) Scherzo - Pertaining to the sonata form, a fast movement in triple time.
13) VESPA - [acronym] -- sounds good, but is also the name of a scooter company in the USA
14) VESPAS - [acronym]
15) Protexcel - Excel in Prototyping (pronounced "pro-tex-cel")
16) Delorean - The time travel car in the Back to the Future series of movies
17) Asimov - For Isaac Asimov (1920 - 1992), a Science Fiction novalist and scholar
18) Fortengle - Forte___ (company) + "Engle", Madeleine L'Engle wrote a book called "A Wrinkle in Time" which is about cutting through time via a "wrinkle" (concept better shown in person), thereby getting from point A in time to point B in time much faster
19) Vitesse - French for Speed/Velocity
20) Arrow (System), Archer (Software), Crossbow (Hardware), Target (target board)
21) Derby (System), Stallion (Hardware),
22) RICESS - [acronym]

I think I narrowed this list down to 10 or so before submission. And then with all the suggestions of our group members, we narrowed it down even further before passing it up to the executives for a final decision.

The last word I got was that the race was between Presto (mine) and Forerunner (not mine). The company name that this will be marketed under is Forte____. I didn't even like Presto all that much as a name. So, in the interest of the iPod, I hope I win. But in the interest of the product, Forte____ Forerunner sounds much better.

Ah well, guess we'll just wait until the result is announced and hope I win. :)

Brilliant. Two weekends ago, when I returned to Hsinchu, I realized I had left my keys in Taipei. This left me in the rain until my sister could pick me up from my bus stop. So, with the spare apartment key I left with her, I had a place to stay, but was Scooterless In Hsinchu because, as it turns out, my spare scooter key was in the a locked drawer -- whose key, of course, was also in Taipei -- and whose spare key... was... in the drawer itself (of course).

So, I got my brother to courier my keys to me a couple days later, and I went to pick up my scooter from where I left it (in a parking lot). Low and behold, when I get there, I find that my scooter isn't. I knew it was towed and not stolen because that parking lot has recently been repainted with parking stalls and cleaned up. The way I had parked, squished in with other scooters in car stalls, would have been fine over the weekend, but not fine over the weekdays I left it there keyless. So, I had to walk in 30 degree weather to the Science Park Administration office, just a short 5 minutes, to find out where they would have towed my scooter. Then, I remembered I needed my scooter registration -- so I had to walk home first. In the meantime, I called my sister to pick me up to take me to the tow lot.

20 minutes later, she picked me up and with the map I got from the Science Park Administration office, we were on our way to the tow lot. On the road, something flashes by me, and I didn't immediately clue in. About 30 seconds later, I say "WAS THAT THE MAP?!" Sure enough, it was indeed the map. I had some idea of where the place was, but it still took 15 minutes to get somewhere only 5 minutes away.

The cost of towing was $250nt (about $10 cad), and the parking fine was $600. Wasn't a good day for me.

Here's something I hate. Any time I write a long email or blog, and my application dies, it just drives me up the wall. It's not the same as when I write a document for school or work, and I lose some work because my unsaved file crashes. That's a different kind of worry because the work HAS to be done.

Most emails and blogs are extra-curricular. Time doesn't need to be spent on them. I just write them because it gives me something fun to do. But all of a sudden, when I find myself re-writing the same content, that "funness" seems to disappear. The first time through, it's exciting, it's new, it's merry and gay. The second time through, it's repetitive and blood-boiling. Definitely one of the worst feelings I can have regularly.

Guess it was bound to happen: Adidas becomes the first company to put a computer chip into a shoe for mass marketing. The Adidas 1 analyzes the wearer's weight, speed, and surfaces and adjusts its cushioning support via a worm screw. Perhaps it was a matter of time before a shoe company decided to turn the traditional shoe into an electronic utility. There are only 60 of these shoes in Taiwan. I wonder how the market will take to it. Well... knowing Taiwanese people, in very little time, those 60 will be sold and there will be a line for the next 60. I wonder how much durability testing they've done. They can't claim "no moving parts" and wear and tear are always an issue with mechanical devices. Anyway, interesting stuff!