Electronic Pest Repeller

With beatle and ant problems improving only marginally after sealing, spraying and placing traps everywhere, yesterday at Costco I bought one of those electronic pest repellers for about $15. I have to admit, my "scam" radar was up when I bought it, ie. how can this device differentiate between "good" pets and "bad" pests? But, hey, I hadn't ever bought one or heard anything either positive or negative from anyone who had bought one. It could only help!

Here's what I read this morning while surfing the internet for reviews of similar products: "Those are a total complete rip-off. These devices appeal to the person who is looking for an easy solution that doesn't require any real effort other than throwing away their hard earned cash." Unfortunately, I think that's what I just did.

Trip to CostCo

With the house still having lots of bugs visit from the fields across the way and with some water still leaking from plumbing of the unit next door, after only a few hours of unpacking yesterday I decided to make a run for CostCo down in Kaohsiung. Though a two hour ride, at least I could begin enjoying a few Western food imports in the midst of the mess here. Unfortunately, I went a little overboard.

Having to pay personal mileage and tolls on the mission vehicle, I knew this would probably be the only trip I'd be making for the rest of the year. So I really stocked up on both house furnishings and food, spending WAY more than I thought I'd spend. I bought two shopping baskets crammed full of stuff-- all but one item for me!

At the cash register, 4 girls kept poking their heads into my basket to see all the things the foreigner was buying. Much like my neighbor last week when I was moving in, they wouldn't leave it alone. Thankfully, when I got back to the house, I was able to get it all out of the car and into my kitchen unobserved. :-)

God's Holy Spirit Moving Ahead of Us

God's Holy Spirit is moving ahead of me here in this town. For the last five weeks, I spent a lot of down time chatting with three people who worked the counter at the studio apartment building where I was living in Taiwan's third largest city before my recent move down here. Though the conversations didn't get very deep, I sensed there was potential in continuing to talk to the folks. But I don't think I actually ever told any of them where I was moving to. Today, when I went back for the deposit, the woman in charge asked where I had moved, and I told her. She responded that it was her hometown of long ago and that her parents still live there! (most people here have never even heard of the place). Now I have a whole family to follow-up on at some point since she told me they own a row of houses just across from the big temple here. As it that was not enough, Immediately afterward I jumped in a cab, and the cab driver is from the big town nearest to where I live.