July 13, 2021
July 13th
shot through the heart
Getting up at 3:00 on Monday morning to watch England play Italy in the EURO final had a positive that helped balance out the disappointment of the result, as Debbie took the opportunity to check the local hospital's website for the umpteenth time in the past couple of weeks to find they had one slot open - we guess someone must have cancelled - so she booked me in for a vaccine shot. I was number 300 and had to be there before 11:00.
Staying up until six to witness the penalties meant my 20-odd-minute ride to the hospital across town was done in a bit of a daze and it was a bit of a shock to find only a handful queuing up in the makeshift clinic on one floor of a multi-storey parking garage. It only took a few minutes before the paperwork was done and a nurse was sticking a needle into my tattooed bicep. Job done.
After having my first vaccine jab back in early May, I noticed a bike shop very near the hospital on the ride home and decided to call in again to have another look. It's one of those shops that stock low-end components made in China, but sometimes there are items worth buying.
They still had some tubular reflectors that clip on spokes and I bought another two packs of a dozen, together with a cheap, mini mini-tool.
It was a nice surprise to find a rack with those old-school derailleur guards, because I looked for one of these over six months ago to no avail. Only NT$18- about 60 US cents - I considered it an absolute no-brainer, as my commuter bike sometimes gets knocked over while parked outside and the bolt-on gear-hanger can get bent. This has happened a couple of times and has ended up costing me a bit to fix... just a new gear-hanger is around 20 times the price of this metal guard.
The effects of the second jab kick in and this morning my energy level is reading zero and I lay lethargically on the sofa till about 11:00.
Lunch is required and cycling to the nearby university neighborhood - with its array of food options - sounds like a pretty good idea. Another coffee is also required.
It's noon and unsurprisingly hot when my commuter bikes gets wheeled outside.
I veer down the side streets and soon see a couple of simple bikes parked outside people's homes. The first is something of a wreck, with flat tyres, a disintegrating seat and rusting parts. The front wheel is disconnected from the forks and who knows how long it's been standing here.
Across the street is a 'Spalding' model (basketball is very popular in Taiwan) with a wire shopping basket on the front and a rack on the back. It looks like it gets ridden to the local market or wherever and it's the sort of basic bike that costs around NT$1500 here -- maybe US$50 or US$60.
On the corner of the same block is a house - perhaps on alley 25 going by the numbers crudely painted on the wall - which has a robust external rectangular concrete sink. You often see these positioned outside older homes and predate washing machines. A few items of clothing are hanging out to dry on a plastic-covered bamboo pole and it strikes me as a quintessentially Taiwanese street scene.
Just a handful of blocks away is a two-storey house that's up for sale. It's clearly standing empty. The six-foot deep yard in front of the door has a few odds and ends that have been left and what catches my eye is a ceramic storage jar that's been upturned. These were used to store things like rice wine and I have a half a dozen of them, as find their rustic, coil-built construction and rudimentary glaze very attractive.
I wonder how much the old house is. It's definitely a fixer-upper.
After crossing the ring road, I pedal past the university's perimeter wall and its barricaded entrance and notice sunlight lighting up a strip along a narrow alley that leads to a rabbit warren of small passages. This is student territory and most places are rented out to them, but with all schools being currently closed, there are very few people around and most of the shops are shuttered.
When I ride past the nearby kebab place it's good to see that it's open and my plan is to get a bite to eat there on the way back.
I go past a nice coffee shop run by a guy named Jack and his wife. It's closed, with the shutter down. The last time I called in the virus had just been found in Taiwan that very day and I said to Jack that businesses like his would be closed down very soon. They were ordered to do so that week and I wonder how he's coping now.
This week the central government announced that restaurants etc could reopen, but this was overruled by all regional leaders - at least until the end of this month.
I ride up to the charity shop, but there's nothing of interest and I turn around to get an iced latte from Louisa, then pop to the kebab shop on the adjacent block for my takeaway lunch. The German owner isn't around.
Last week when I called in he was carrying the kebab rotisserie to a storage area, telling me business was bad and that he had to downsize, partly blaming the charges from UberEats. He said over 30 percent of his takings were going to the delivery company and his menu is currently limited to pizzas.
I order a mushroom one and stand around waiting in the air conditioning.
The pizza box is balanced on my bars and I ride back across the ring road to the temple where I have the outside area all to myself. It's strange none of the old guys are sat around and my guess is they're having lunch at home. It's just gone 1:00 now.
One guy rolls up on his scooter just as I'm draining the last of my latte and he says hi then I cycle towards home and while the sun is out, a decent breeze keeps me feeling OK.
The online news says the number of COVID cases is low again today - just 28. I just doubt the accuracy, as there are six deaths and the ratio doesn't match that of countries like the UK.
The government has said national parks can reopen this week, so that's good news. It did seem weird that people could go into crowded shops like Decathlon and buy hiking and swimming gear, but not be allowed on a beach or hiking trail.
Today's ride: 6 km (4 miles)
Total: 456 km (283 miles)
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3 years ago
It's given me something to focus on while I've so much time on my hands. It'd be nice to do longer rides - go on a trip - but the hot weather is a bit of a killer.
3 years ago