SimpleWeblog

Happy new year

Better get this post in before it is February, right?

I'm not going to try to review my dismal blogging record for 2006, because it does not make sense to spend more time analyzing than it took to create.

I should probably also spend some time discussing the trip to Taiwan, but I will just summarize by saying my whole in-law family is very nice to me, the food in Taiwan is amazing, and for a relatively small island it contains an impressive variety of things. I really wish it were easier to learn the language.

After 3 trips overseas this year, I think the U.S. could learn from other parts of the world by improving the quality of our produce (select for taste rather than appearance and transportability) and creating more situations to encourage interaction between strangers - trains, public squares, shared tables at restaurants, cafes, etc. It seems like the goal for people here is to become rich, which allows you to stop interacting with other people, which may not be a good way to develop perspective.

My personal goals for this year, though, are (in no particular order):

• Seriously begin working on learning Taiwanese


• Make my company be succesful


• Do a better job staying in touch with friends


• Maintain good exercise habits throughout the whole year

There are plenty more I'd like to include, but that list is already too ambitious, I think. And I am not including things that I think I am already doing, like enjoying being married, which I would like to continue doing throughout the year.