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I love this video...

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Someday people will look back and wonder, What were they thinking? Why, in the midst of a stalled recovery, with the economy fragile and job creation slowing to a trickle, did the nation’s leaders decide that the thing to do—in order to raise the debt limit, normally a routine matter—was to spend less money, making job creation all the more difficult? 

Lawrence Summers, Obama’s recently resigned chief economic adviser, said onThe Charlie Rose Show in July that he found it “dispiriting” that “all of the energy is on the projected deficits…when the problem right now is that the economy is in danger of stagnating from lack of demand.” The Republicans had made it clear for months that they would use the need to raise the debt ceiling as an instrument for extracting concessions from the Democratic President in the form of more cuts in federal programs. And the President assented to their premise, but only if there should also be some additional revenues. Were they all insane? That’s not a far-fetched question.

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- Jodi ate a whole Yorkshire Pudding but not with Chilli but treacle! I still remember when "Molly" my grandma would make this for me & tonight I brought it back to life much to the delight of my daughter who unfortunately never managed to meet Molly before she passed away. Not a week goes by where I don't think about her(Here we are below).

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 large onion
• 1 red pepper
• 2 garlic cloves , peeled
• 1 heaped tsp hot chilli powder (or 1 level tbsp if you only have mild)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 500g lean minced beef
• 1 beef stock cube
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• ½ tsp dried marjoram
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 410g can red kidney beans
• soured cream and plain boiled long grain rice , to serve
• 1. Prepare your vegetables. Chop your onion into small dice, about 5mm square. The easiest way to do this is to cut the onion in half from root to tip, peel it and slice each half into thick matchsticks lengthways, not quite cutting all the way to the root end so they are still held together. Slice across the matchsticks into neat dice. Cut your pepper in half lengthways, remove stalk and wash the seeds away, then chop.
  2. Start cooking. Put your pan on the hob over a medium heat. Add the oil and leave it for 1-2 minutes until hot (a little longer for an electric hob). Add the onions and cook, stirring fairly frequently, for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft, squidgy and slightly translucent.Tip in the garlic, red pepper, chilli, paprika and cumin. Give it a good stir, then leave it to cook for another 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Brown the mince. Turn the heat up a bit, add the meat to the pan and break it up with your spoon or spatula. The mix should sizzle a bit when you add the mince. Keep stirring and prodding for at least 5 minutes, until all the mince is in uniform, mince-sized lumps and there are no more pink bits. Make sure you keep the heat hot enough for the meat to fry and become brown, rather than just stew.
  4. Making the sauce. Crumble your stock cube into 300ml/1⁄2 pint of hot water. Pour this into the pan with the mince mixture. Open the can of chopped tomatoes and add these as well. Tip in the marjoram and the sugar, if using (see tip left), and add a good shake of salt and pepper. Squirt in about 2 tbsp of tomato purée and stir the sauce well.
  5. Simmer it gently. Bring the whole thing to the boil, give it a good stir and put a lid on the pan. Turn down the heat until it is gently bubbling and leave it for 20 minutes. You should check on the pan occasionally to stir it and make sure the sauce doesn't catch on the bottom of the pan or isn't drying out. If it is, add a couple of tablespoons of water and make sure that the heat really is low enough. After simmering gently, the saucy mince mixture should look thick, moist and juicy.
  6. Bring on the beans. Drain and rinse the beans in a sieve and stir them into the chilli pot. Bring to the boil again, and gently bubble without the lid for another 10 minutes, adding a little more water if it looks too dry. Taste a bit of the chilli and season. It will probably take a lot more seasoning than you think. Now replace the lid, turn off the heat and leave your chilli to stand for 10 minutes before serving, and relax. Leaving your chilli to stand is really important as it allows the flavours to mingle and the meat.

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Let me just say that I hope the enquirer is wrong as Steve is a generational inspiration. The below is a must;

Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address;

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http://tinyurl.com/6g9w87q

The exercise widow often wakes to an empty bed—a sure sign of a morning workout—and may find dinner plans spoiled by a sudden avoidance of anything heavy before a night run. Hoping for an hour of television or catching-up before bedtime? Forget it: All that early-morning exercise takes its toll. Mr. Waxman arrives home from the office after his children, ages 11, 10 and 8, have eaten dinner, and he hits the sack before they do. "I'm out of gas by nine o'clock," Mr. Waxman says.

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http://gallery.me.com/taiwandan/100172 

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Solitude & Leadership by William Deresiewicz...Why "commonplace", "ordinary", "usual", "common" are "typical" adjectives used to describe leaders in a bureaucracy...the problem with Facebook, Twitter & even the NY Times! Got the link from @pkedrosky on twitter...

http://www.theamericanscholar.org/solitude-and-leadership/

Some highlights;

Taken from the last paragraph; I started by noting that solitude and leadership would seem to be contradictory things. But it seems to me that solitude is the very essence of leadership. However many people you may consult, you are the one who has to make the hard decisions. And at such moments, all you really have is yourself.

Note the adjectives when Marlow in the novel "Heart of Darkness" describes the manager of the Central Station: commonplace, ordinary, usual, common...Deresiewicz goes on to say;"the perfect description of the kind of person who tends to prosper in the bureaucratic environment"

The great mystery about bureaucracies. Why is it so often that the best people are stuck in the middle and the people who are running things—the leaders—are the mediocrities? Because excellence isn’t usually what gets you up the greasy pole. What gets you up is a talent for maneuvering. Kissing up to the people above you, kicking down to the people below you. Pleasing your teachers, pleasing your superiors, picking a powerful mentor and riding his coattails until it’s time to stab him in the back.

Here’s the other problem with Facebook and Twitter and even The New York Times. When you expose yourself to those things, especially in the constant way that people do now—older people as well as younger people—you are continuously bombarding yourself with a stream of other people’s thoughts. You are marinating yourself in the conventional wisdom.

Leadership means finding a new direction, not simply putting yourself at the front of the herd that’s heading toward the cliff.

A book has two advantages over a tweet. First, the person who wrote it thought about it a lot more carefully. The book is the result of his solitude, his attempt to think for himself. Second, most books are old. This is not a disadvantage: this is precisely what makes them valuable. They stand against the conventional wisdom of today simply because they’re not from today. They say something different from what you hear all the time.

There’s one more thing I’m going to include as a form of solitude, and it will seem counterintuitive: friendship...the deep friendship of intimate conversation. Long, uninterrupted talk with one other person. Introspection means talking to yourself, and one of the best ways of talking to yourself is by talking to another person. One other person you can trust, one other person to whom you can unfold your soul. One other person you feel safe enough with to allow you to acknowledge things—to acknowledge things to yourself—that you otherwise can’t. Doubts you aren’t supposed to have, questions you aren’t supposed to ask. Feelings or opinions that would get you laughed at by the group or reprimanded by the authorities.

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For 4 people. Cover 12 drum sticks in seasoned flower and brown in a frying pan for 5mins.

Whilst that is happening peel and chop(keep chopped pieces large so they don't disintegrate whilst cooking) 4 large sweet potatoes, 4 large carrots, 2 onions, 4 mixed colour peppers, a medium pack of mushrooms and throw in the casserole pot with a little olive oil and cook through for 5mins.

Add the chicken to the vegetables and cover with a bottle of White wine and 4-5 cups of chicken stock making sure all the ingredients are covered.

After 45mins add a large handful of basil coarsely chopped and cook for a further 10mins. Finally depending on how thick you like it may have to add a 2-3 teaspoons of flower(mixed with water first into a paste) to thicken it up. When you add be sure to stir quick to avoid lumps.

Now eat!

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I rememeber first reading about this before I had children. Now I have 2 of my own the topic sems all the more important. Whilst this study is driven more by analysis of actual crash data and therefore could have it's limitations, it is still something any parent should I hope be interested to read not least given the fact that it concludes that kids 2Yrs+ are no more likely to survive a crash using a car seat as they would wearing a seat belt. Also just as interesting is the statistic that 70-80% of all car seats bought are actually fitted incorrectly (This also seems to be backed up by Volvo in a recent study) and hence any actual perceived benefit of the seat is hugely diminished if not adding risk to your kids.

One last thing. Since having kids of my own I have become a lot more attentive to other parents & kids such as; when I drive by a moving car and the kids have their heads out of the sun roof I almost feel sick (Although do have a distant memory of doing this when I was a kid!). Each to their own and who am I to judge but most statistics agree wearing a seatbelt adds about 70% chance to your survival chances in a serious accident and driving with your kids heads out of the roof is not typically mentioned as a method to increase their odds of survival! I have also realised driving around Taipei that so few kids here appear to be wearing their seat belts and seem free & permitted to roam around the car? To be fair I only notice this maybe 2-3times a day so maybe these are just outliers but it still angers me. I seem to remember as kids we also roamed around the car but then I guess nobody really knew back in the 70's what we know today.

The July 10, 2005, Freakonomics column, “The Seat-Belt Solution: How Much Good Do Car Seats Do?” is about the efficacy of child car seats versus plain old seat belts.

You can read the original article here;

 http://tinyurl.com/oxgdbn 

Also checkout this freakonomics blog which includes many other responses & updates to the data over the years from the freakonomics team & other industry related people/sources;

http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/car-seats/

Alternatively watch the Ted video presented by Steve Levitt;

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'Tiger mother' explains her strict parenting;

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/41005969/ns/today-books/from/toolbar

http://tinyurl.com/35u73lq

And 1 week later;

In Defense of the Guilty, Ambivalent, Preoccupied Western Mom - Ayelet Waldman on the virtues of letting kids quit, have sleepovers and find their own way.

http://tinyurl.com/4rm4pgu

 The link at top of page is taken from a Wall Street journal article by Amy Chua and starts;

A lot of people wonder how Chinese parents raise such stereotypically successful kids. They wonder what these parents do to produce so many math whizzes and music prodigies, what it's like inside the family, and whether they could do it too. Well, I can tell them, because I've done it. Here are some things my daughters, Sophia and Louisa, were never allowed to do:

• attend a sleepover

• have a playdate

• be in a school play

• complain about not being in a school play

• watch TV or play computer games

• choose their own extracurricular activities

• get any grade less than an A

• not be the No. 1 student in every subject except gym and drama

• play any instrument other than the piano or violin

• not play the piano or violin...

My Thoughts;

There is always the risk of stereotytping but this article explains a style of parenting which seems to be selectively practiced in Taiwan(Albeit to a much lesser degree than this crazed woman!). I have only lived here a few years but having read this brief article and spoken to people over the years many of the things in this story (although not all together) have come up in tales of adolescence.  How many Taiwan kids remember enjoying their school years? A lot I am sure but many I have spoken to say the stress they were put under by their parents was unbearable. Many of these people are now very sucessful & well rounded people whom I am glad I have had the chance to know, so whilst it sounds tough it doesnt appear to have affected them & most if not all seem to have changing views on parenting more balanced in their approach. 

My experience in Taiwan has shown that people here are smart, hard working, and above all else very kind, so at the end of the day however they decide to educate and push their kids it seems to be working. This woman strikes me as someone who wrote this book to be sensationalist and to be famous. She reminds me of a Chinese want to be Martha Stewart (I don't dislike Martha but she likes the limelight). 

Whilst I am not advocating that children should only have fun, I am glad that me & Gail (my Taiwanese wife) believe there should be more balance between work & play and ultimately care less about what others think, and more about our kids happiness with no expectations of what they should be, but keen to help them forge their own dreams based off interests and talents they discover along the way..

Long may we live in a culture that values kids happiness above their parents self interest!

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As part  of my New Years resolution to watch what I eat, I have decided to eat more sweet potatoes (Most nutritional vegetable on the planet so I discovered recently and still cant believe I didnt really have one until now age 35!) today I made sweet potato & chicken curry. Pretty awesome albeit when you are buying the curry paste it makes it sooo easy. Has a sourness that at first taste that is almost strange but the more you eat the more you need. Including preparation this will take you about 30mins.

What to do? As below photo fry chicken pieces (I used 4 boned chicken breats with skin removed) &1 red onion (coarsely chopped) until cooked through (7-8 mins~). Same time as chicken is cooking boil the sweet potatoes for 5-6mins until part soft & then drain & leave to stand & chop 2-3 large tomatos or 10-12 cherry tomatoes. 

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/gallery/2010/dec/31/new-year-celebrations?int...?picture=370179311&index=0

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Is it possible to be 35 and to have never eaten a sweet potato? Maybe I did when I was younger but I certainly can't remember. I can remember watching U.S movies where grandma in Alabama would be making "sweet potato pie" but otherwise it's just one of those things that was there but I some how missed it.  My wife is constantly eating them and swears by their ability to help her lose weight but for the last 7 years in Taiwan & for as many years as I can remember before that I have rejected every sweet potato thrown my way until this week. In the spirit of New Year I have been looking for ways to live a healthier lifestyle. Having earlier decided to give up beef in 2011, stop eating any dairy or bread during the week,  I was still looking for other possible changes that could help my overall health as I head into middle age (God how depressing). Anyway the sweet potato is my final dietary change for 2011 i.e. I intend to make this a regular part of my weekly food intake. How to eat it? Check out the attached link;

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/search.do?keywords=sweet+potato

Now For The Health Benefits

Sweet potatoes are excellent sources of plant proteins with very low calories.  Unlike other starchy root vegetables, it is very low in sugar, and in fact is a good blood sugar regulator.

As an anti-oxidant:  Sweet potatoes have been found to contain a high amount of anti-oxidant, making it suitable in combating inflammatory problems like asthma, arthritis, gout, etc.

Diabetes:  This fibrous root is suitable for diabetics' consumption as it is a very good blood sugar regulator, helps to stabilize and lower insulin resistance.

Digestive tract, healthy:  The significant amount of dietary fiber, especially when eaten with the skin, helps to promote a healthy digestive tract, relieving constipation and also helps prevent colon cancer.

Emphysema:  Smokers and people who inhale second-hand smoke should regularly consume foods high in vitamin A as smoke has been found to induce vitamin A deficiency, causing a host of other health problems to the lungs.

Fetal Development:  The high folate content is important and necessary for healthy fetal cell and tissue development.

Immune System:  Regular consumption of sweet potatoes strengthens the body's immune system and develop resistance to infection.

Heart diseases:  Consumption of this high potassium root helps to prevent heart attack and stroke. It helps maintain fluid and electrolyte balance in the body cells, as well as normal heart function and blood pressure.

Muscle Cramps: A deficiency in potassium can cause muscular cramps and greater susceptibility to injury. Make sweet potatoes a regular part of your diet if you exercise a lot, both for an energy boost and to prevent cramps and injuries.

Stress: When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, causing the body potassium levels to be reduced. By snacking on the potassium-packed sweet potato, it helps to rebalance the vital mineral, and helps normalize the heartbeat. This in turn sends oxygen to the brain and regulates the body's water balance.

SWEET POTATO NUTRITION

According to nutritionists at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), the single most important dietary change for most people, including children, would be to replace fatty foods with foods rich in complex carbohydrates, such as sweet potatoes. 

CSPI ranked the sweet potato number one in nutrition of all vegetables. With a score of 184, the sweet potato outscored the next highest vegetable by more than 100 points. Points were given for content of dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars and complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium. Points were deducted for fat content (especially saturated fat), sodium, cholesterol, added refined sugars and caffeine. The higher the score, the more nutritious the food. 

Sweet potato baked 184 
Potato, baked 83 
Spinach 76 
Kale 55 
Mixed Vegetables 52 
Broccoli 52 
Winter Squash, Baked 44 
Brussels Sprouts 37 
Cabbage, Raw 34 
Green Peas 33 
Carrot 30 
Okra 30 
Corn on the Cob 27 
Tomato 27 
Green Pepper 26 
Cauliflower 25 
Artichoke 24 
Romaine Lettuce 24 
The Center for Science in the Public Interest, Washington D.C. copyright 1992

The reasons the sweet potato took first place? Dietary fiber, naturally occurring sugars, complex carbohydrates, protein, vitamins A and C, iron and calcium. The sweet potato received a score of 184; the vegetable ranked in second place was more than 100 points behind with a score of 83. 

The numbers for the nutritional sweet potato speak for themselves: almost twice the recommended daily allowance of vitamin A, 42 percent of the recommendation for vitamin C, four times the RDA for beta carotene, and, when eaten with the skin, sweet potatoes have more fiber than oatmeal. All these benefits with only about 130 to 160 calories! 

Sweet Potato Nutrition Facts
(for one medium size sweet potato) 
Calories 130 
Fat 0.39 g 
Protein 2.15 g 
Net Carbs 31.56 g 
Dietary Fiber 3.9 g 
Calcium 28.6 mg 
Sodium 16.9 mg 
Potassium 265.2 mg 
Folate 18.2 mcg 
Vitamin C 29.51 mg  
Vitamin A 26081.9 IU 
Source: US Department of Agriculture 

Among root vegetables, sweet potatoes offer the lowest glycemic index rating. That's because the sweet potato digests slowly, causing a gradual rise in blood sugar so you feel satisfied longer. It's time to move sweet potatoes to the "good" carb list. Many of the most popular diets these days have already. 

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- 1 Year with an iPhone, 1month with an iPad, 250 apps later and here I am writing a post about 10 game changing apps. Hope they help;

This is so bloody brilliant. Whenever you find a story on the internet but don't have time read it there & then (from your PC/Smartphone/iPad), save the story into Instapaper app which allows you to store & access the story for reading later with on your smartphone, PC or iPad. You simply add a button to all your internet browsers which when hit immediately uploads the story (Simple text format only but original link also saved) to the cloud (Instapapers remote servers). So simple yet so brilliant.

3. PULSE & FLIPBOARD - Making news & networking an artwork. 

Very simply these apps allow you to view several news sources & networking sites on one page in a format that can only be described as beautiful genius. Once you have seen Facebook or Twitter on these apps its unlikely you will ever use the Twitter & Facebook apps ever again at least not to view peoples updates. Whilst both have limited news sources both apps allow you to add sources from RSS or Google Reader. At end of day if you only want to look in one place for all news & social network updates then these are the places. 

See the full gallery on Posterous

 

4. YADAHOME - Family Organizer.

For anyone with kids and a busy social & work calendar this app can be a very useful. It incorporates a task list, grocery list and calendar all of which are synced across any members of the family who have the app downloaded onto their smartphone. Not perfect but its the best I have found so far & given the slightly high cost we can hope the developers keep improving it...

5. SPOTIFY - All the music you could ever want anytime or place you want it.

For GBP9.99/month this service allows you to play millions of tracks (Haven't not been able to find one I wanted so far) & stream them directly to your iPhone over 3G or on your PC. You can create playlists similar to iTunes & allow these these to be played even when your phone is not connected to either 3G or Wi-Fi i.e. for listening on a plane for example. The streaming is quick and seamless and for anyone who loves music and buys 1CD equivalent a month this app is a must. No more clogging up your smartphone with music & no more worries about losing your music collection if your hard drive blows up. Brilliant!

6. POSTEROUS - Blogging for dummies!

Until this year I have to admit I didn't really know anything about what a blog was let alone how to write one. Basically Posterous makes blogging easy. A blog is essentially somewhere you can post anything from text, photos, websites, video etc for others to be able to search & view on the internet or if you prefer just a group of friends. Posterous is an app that downloads to your smartphone and allows you to post directly from your phone without even touching your PC. It's very easy to set up, relatively cheap & quite rewarding and fun once you get into it. Enjoy.

7. SHAZAM - Whats that song?

Seems like this is one of the first apps most people download after facebbok these days but still had to mention it. Launch the app & press the listening button whilst listening to music. The app within 15 seconds will tell you the artist, song & album and even offer you options to buy it from iTunes or share it on Facebook, Twitter etc. Genius.

8. LATITUDE - Where are you!

Google latitude lets you see where your friends are on google maps. You need a google email account and you have to invite or be invited to see/be seen on the map. For obvious reasons you can hide your location or stop GPS tracking whenever you like. This may sound like a vast intrusion of privacy but to follow kids who are old enough to have a phone or to avoid making those calls "where are you, shall I put the pasta on" this is just simple and intriguing. 

9. GOLFSHOT GPS - Feels like cheating!

 This is one of those apps that when you read about it you think sounds amazing but must be a catch (Ex the price) and no way it will work. Thing is when you buy this it not only works it surpasses all expectations. Its truly incredible. You start off by searching for a course and then on each hole it will tell you how far to each major landmark and to front/middle/back of green. It allows you to keep score and also tracks statistics of your round. It is incredibly accurate and a must for any golfer who needs a little help. Golfers should also check out V1 Golf app whcih allows you to video your swing and then play it back frame by frame in comparison to many of the worlds greats. You can make annotations on the screen i.e. for swing planes and is really just amazing considering this is on a phone.

See the full gallery on Posterous

10. Google App - Voice search and now with google goggles!

Google app is a must. Allows voice searches on internet and with addition of google goggles which will search internet from a photo you take and even translate text within pictures into multiple languages its definitely worth a place on your phone.

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Just 40minutes from Taipei you can find amazing views and possibly the best smoked chicken ever! Better during the week or get there before 11am if you are going on a weekend. Nice clean river for kids to paddle in and lots of flowers & plants for the botanists amongst you. After 6Yrs in Taiwan I still reckon this is some of the best food I have ever eaten. See below for map (With GPS co-ordinates) business card & a few pictures of our afternoon out...

<!-- BEGIN INSTAMAPPER CODE -->GPS tracking powered by InstaMapper.com<br><br> 

And checkout pictures of the scenery...and me & Gail!

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The Problem Of Electronic Waste(Wikipedia)

Rapid changes in technology, low initial cost, and planned obsolescence have resulted in a fast-growing surplus of electronic waste around the globe. Dave Kruch, CEO of Cash For Laptops, regards electronic waste as a "rapidly expanding" issue.^[2] Technical solutions are available, but in most cases a legal framework, a collection system, logistics, and other services need to be implemented before a technical solution can be applied. An estimated 50 million tons of E-waste is produced each year^{[citation needed]}. The USA discards 30 million computers each year and 100 million phones are disposed of in Europe each year. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that only 15-20% of e-waste is recycled, the rest of these electronics go directly into landfills and incinerators."EPA estimates for 2006-7". http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/manage.htm.  In the United States, an estimated 70% of heavy metals in landfills comes from discarded electronics.^[3]

My Thoughts on the hypocrisy of Apple.

How many old Apple products that are no longer used do you have in your house? For me its 5 iPods but the list is growing...I love Apple products. In my family of 2 adults & 2 small children we now have 2 iPhones, an IPad, 3 Apple TV's, a Macbook Air, a Macbook & a 27" iMac!! As I write this I realise just how bad it sounds i.e. do I really need them all? Of course the answer is NO. I justify it by saying its my hobby! I have friends who will spend US$5-10K on a bike but that offers no interest to me, both our cars are 3-4Yrs old and run perfectly & I feel no need to change them, where as I would say Apple is probably my main area of weakness...

The big problem I have with Apple is their product strategy. Whilst their website;
( http://www.apple.com/environment/  ) will tell you about all the environmentally friendly things they are doing it does little to mention their product launch strategy which for me is the problem. Last year they launch the iPad. A revolutionary product we are told ( I strongly agree) but why could it not have a camera for video calling? (Remember the original iPhone also had no camera when most other phones had cameras 5years earlier!). The camera is just one of many things this Company strategically omits from its early luanches & I cant find any other reason than to stimulate replacement demand/shorten product cycles so that when they release the same updated products 12months later everyone will discard their old product and buy the new one!

I love Apple products but this strategy creates a culture of "needing" the yearly upgraded products & reducing product life cycles & hence vastly  increasing the environmental impact. Why do they do this? Because a faster CPU or more DRAM etc no longer sells products because most products are small & fast enough for 99% of us even with last years technology. In many cases the actual hardware content/product is now falling for this same reason (less so in smartphones but definitely for PC's & Notebook like devices). So if you cant sell a new product based on a faster CPU/more DRAM etc what is there left? Create products with lifecycles of 12mths~ by constantly leaving out key industry standard technology but slowly adding these industry basics over several yearly product launches. Each time you add something all those with the oririginal products feel the need to get the next generation. You know you have been cheated but the desire to have & be seen with the the latest update overrides this.

I dont know what the answer is but resisting that iPhone5 & iPad2 in 2011 would be a start.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_waste

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<!-- BEGIN INSTAMAPPER CODE -->GPS tracking powered by InstaMapper.com<br><br>

 Few photos from our (My Mum Sue, Stepdad Ted, Wife Gail, Daughters Jodi & Jacquelyn & not to forget our maid Mani) day in Ping Lin near Taipei below (map above with co-ordinates). Great place for walks, amazing green tea (all grown locally) & beautiful rivers & mountain views. People so friendly and one woman came out her house and offered to cook for us. When we asked for chicken she said all she had were vegetables...until she said "well I could kill a chicken for you?". A few minutes later she was seen carrying a very relaxed but alive chicken into the kitchen and one hour later came a wholesome & hearty meal of three cup chicken, chicken soup (best I have ever tasted (sorry Gail!!) and vegetables straight from the garden. Had a great day and for anyone who likes the outdoors its worth a visit...

Business card for local lady who has one table and can cook lunch. Call in advance.

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<!-- BEGIN INSTAMAPPER CODE -->GPS tracking powered by InstaMapper.com<br><br> www.tapashouse.com.tw     

Location  N 25.12075°   E 121.46907°   (See map below)

Try the Snails, Magic Mushrooms, Seafood Salad, Veal Shank...

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