Hello there! Thanks for visiting my blog. I'm Linda, a 20-something from California currently living and working in Taipei, Taiwan. (And no, not as an English teacher, in case you were wondering.)
I started A Glimpse of Wistfulness in January 2011 as a way to keep in touch with my family and friends around the world, but then discovered that a blog is an awesome outlet for self-expression. Where else am I going to dump all the photos and rambling prose I'm too kind to force on my friends? (I swear I never coerced anyone to read my blog. Except for my sister, but she was the one who asked for the blog in the first place, so you see, it's perfectly reasonable.) When inspiration strikes, I'll publish the product - essay, story, article, or photos - on my blog. Some posts are about life in Taiwan, some are reflective pieces about self-discovery, and some are photos of food my sister requested. I do my best to hunt down my muse at least once a week, so if you like what you see, consider subscribing through RSS or email to be updated on new posts.
If you're new to my blog, I recommend starting with my favorite posts. It's a good overview of what my blog is like on a good day, and you can see all the best posts without having to wade through everything in the archives.
Also, I've recently started a writing blog, so if you're interested in following my writing journey, please be sure to check out Wistfully Linda.
I love getting comments and I would love to hear from you! You can also find me on Twitter or email me at aglimpseofwistfulness at gmail dot com.
Story of My Life (Sort Of)
Want to know even more about me? Well you're in luck because I wrote a super fascinating bio, just for you! :) (Ok, maybe not super fascinating - but hopefully it doesn't put you to sleep. Though if it does, you're welcome to use it as a soporific during bouts of insomnia. I won't even charge you for it.)
I was born on the east coast of the United States, where deer or falling snow in our yard could keep me spell-bound as a baby (or so my parents tell me). When I was two years old, my family - Mom, Dad, my little sister Diane, and me - moved to Taiwan. We returned to the States when I was in second grade, but this time we settled in sunny Southern California (oh lovely weather, how I miss you!).
I've loved reading practically since I was born - my parents began teaching me to read (both English and Chinese) when I was just a few months old. My favorites as a kid were YA fantasy novels. I've still got a soft spot for them now, although I no longer pretend to be a magical princess working with my magical sister-princesses (my sister and friend) to defend our kingdom from our evil stepmother.
In high school, I think I was mainly known for being smart. And tall, because I'm 5'9" (yes, I'm an Asian female). I breezed through my classes (well, most of them) and attended UC Berkeley, where I studied Molecular and Cell Biology with an emphasis in genetics. The science classes helped me hone my cramming skills, while my English minor provided the motivation to churn out analytical papers (I quickly learned to maximize efficiency by writing them in a single night).
Other than school, I worked two part-time jobs and counted tiny transparent worms (C. elegans are actually kind of cute!) for research credit. I also tried to convince my friends not to study so much. If I failed, I called a study party. And then I would proceed to snack/nap/knit/watch Asian dramas (Japanese ones are the best!)/distract my friends, all in order to avoid studying.
I managed to graduate anyway and decided to move to Taiwan because the country is awesome and wanted to see what it would be like to live here. And I'm loving it! Being able to read and speak and type Chinese is really helpful for adjusting to life here, and since I've visited in previous summers, there wasn't too much of a culture shock (those Taiwanese dramas helped too). I'm still trying to figure out my future, but for now I'm enjoying myself a lot and taking it one step at a time.
I'm always looking to improve as a writer, photographer, and blogger, so I'd love to hear your feedback and comments. Thank you so much for visiting, and if you enjoy my posts half as much as I enjoyed creating them, I will be absolutely thrilled. :)
with love,
linda
last updated 06.20.2011
