They were charging for paper bags in Austin. Maybe you’re from less liberal part of the US?
They also charge for bags in California.
You need to go to an actual supermarket for deodorants. Taiwanese don’t use them much, need is much less.
There’s a shortage of bus drivers. So much so that sanchong bus will pay you for hooking them up with a driver! Also a 20,000nt bonus if the driver passes the probational period.
But it’s a hard job though. Taiwanese traffic requires you to multitask better than your phone. I don’t think it’s a good job for people on the spectrum. I’ve seen a lot of stupid behavior coming from scooters when it comes to buses.
They let actual lunatics with multiple infractions keep driving the buses here.
One bus driver with 9 recent speeding tickets just killed 4 ppl on the highway , they wouldn’t fire him because they are so desperate for drivers I guess.
Govt position now is to make public the safety records of all the companies and then you are supposed to choose to take them at your own risk.
But then again, the education system is so effective here, everyone felt it beneath them to drive buses, so only people who will do it is those who have no education.
What I don’t get is why they rather be a security guard than drive buses?
Or why people are content getting some office job for 35,000 a month, which requires a college degree, when they could drive buses for 80,000 a month and no college degree required.
More likely explanation: most people would rather work dead end jobs as office drones than get their hands dirty or be seen as blue collar. Classism is real in Taiwan.
Maybe 1 out of 10 office workers are going to see advancement. And middle managers might make 80,000 a month.
I guess the problem is bus driving has actual responsibilities, and driving sucks.
You have zero responsibility as an office drone.
Nice to know that I could think about being a bus driver if there’s absolutely not much else for me to do (but me being on the spectrum and bad at multitasking, I don’t know if I should be a bus driver when I can barely drive cars).
Grocery bags: So does California and a few other blue states (IIRC Washington state, and I think Minnesota was right on the edge of approving it when I left).
Not sure what the laughing was about, but part of me doubts if it’s related to your misfortune, maybe it was coincidental unless they seemed to specifically refer to you?
I usually don’t get toiletries from c-stores unless it’s an emergency, but I noticed that deodorants are practically impossible to find, as they are almost all antiperspirants (which makes my pits itch and my BO is worse when it wears off); I’ve bought a spray can from Watsons for now, but now that I got my ARC 2 days ago and my EZ Way account is ready now, I’m just gonna order some from Amazon.
Depends on who you’re dealing with; MAYBE it’s lack of English proficiency, but I’ve had decent conversations with the 1-2 cabbies I’ve rode with for the few times I hailed a taxi.
Yes. I’m the type of guy who would drive from one end of a shopping plaza to the other just for being lazy on a hot day, but I REALLY had to adjust to walking everywhere too. However, where I’m at (Zhonghe Dist, NWT but also describes most of the Taipei metro area) is a b***h and a half for car parking (the next open garage is almost 2 km away and you have to pay for parking almost everywhere), but 2-wheelers and public transportation helps bridge the gap.
Also, then again I’m on a weight loss plan and have lost about 11 kg (24 lb) so far, so I make it a point to walk a minimum of 1.5 km a day, so walking long distances stopped bothering me after about 2 weeks, and let’s just say I’m north of 200 lb/90 kg (too ashamed to say the actual number).
Not that much. Usually you drive safest when you go on autopilot. I agree it is multi-tasking and high energy to learn how to drive. But, once you get comfortable you can drive almost without spending any energy. People who do not multi-task will be slow to learn but may ultimately drive really well.
It happens everywhere, had friend who used to drive a bin lorry, he worked 7 till 1 Monday to Friday earned a bloody good wage, over the holidays got double pay and a day in lieu.
People would still look down on him, even thought he was probably better educated and in a better financial position than a lot of them.
But you gotta admit it’s even more of a chore than most other countries; in the US, bikes seem like 1 out of a thousand vehicles and typically try to make themselves as conspicuous as possible unless they’re trying to win a Darwin Award… In Taiwan you’re practically surrounded by them.
To some extent, sure. But it seems particularly bad in Taiwan and some other Asian countries (Japan not so much). The trades seem to earn more respect in the U.S. these days…not surprising considering the high salaries.
I think people are starting to realise they can’t afford a plumber to fix the leaking pipe, but the plumber has I nice house drives a nice car and gets more holidays a year than they do.
As a former trucker, I’m personally as considerate as I can be and try to think of everything from the perspective of a cheap bicycle all the way up to a 53’ tractor-trailer, and I’m gonna hop on a yellow plate Yamaha MT-03 using the IDP loophole (no displacement restrictions) tonight.
My mom is the complete opposite; someone who hasn’t driven in almost exactly 30 years and change, and I’ve actually had to yell at her a few times since she’d do the most inane things that makes me wonder how the hell she hasn’t gotten struck (e.g. fixing things on my grandma’s wheelchair in the middle of the street that can absolutely wait until she’s fully cleared the intersection, crossing the street on a blind corner, etc.)… And then what you said just made me think about how many other clueless people there are walking, riding, and driving among us.