The old people of Changhua City are a lucky bunch. On Jan 16, the Changhua City “gifts for elderly” were presented for the 15th year. This year more than 18,500 people over 70 benefited as each one of them received a red envelope with NT$6,000, totaling more than NT$110 million. Mayor Chiu Chien-fu said that giving gifts to the elderly and properly managing their welfare has turned Changhua into a compassionate city.
彰化市的老人真幸福!邁入第十五年的彰化市敬老禮金在十六日發放,今年共有一萬八千五百多位年滿七十歲的長者受惠,每人都可以領到六千元紅包,發放總金額高達一億一千多萬元。市長邱建富表示,發放敬老禮金做好老人福利,讓彰化市成為充滿溫暖的城市。
For the press conference announcing the gifts, Changhua City’s Social Affairs Section had prepared a big pot of rice wine chicken to wish a happy new year to a dozen elderly people over the age of 70 and centenarians Lin Ku San-mei and Chen Chao-hai. Chiu presented them with their gifts and served them rice wine chicken, and a great time was had by all.
photo: Tang Shih-ming, Liberty Times
照片:自由時報記者湯世名
市公所社會課在敬老禮金發放記者會場準備了一大鍋燒酒雞,提前向到場的十多位年滿七十歲的長者,以及百歲人瑞林古三妹、陳昭海等人拜年,市長邱建富當場發給他們敬老禮金,並且替他們盛燒酒雞,讓他們吃得笑開懷。
Chiu said that respecting the elderly is a traditional Taiwanese virtue, and that every Lunar New Year the city office shows its concern and respect for old people by giving to the elderly. Chiu also said this measure had been in place for 15 consecutive years, and that the gift was increased from NT$5,000 to NT$6,000 last year.
邱建富說,敬老尊賢是台灣人的傳統美德,為了照顧所有長者,表達敬老之意,每年在農曆春節前夕,市公所都會發放敬老禮金,這項措施到今年已經是連續第十五年了,前年起加碼,由原來的每人五千元增為六千元。
photo: Tang Shih-ming, Liberty Times
照片:自由時報記者湯世名
He went on to say that the Lunar New Year gifts for the elderly were presented on Jan.16, and that the gift giving would be completed in a single day. Eligible elderly people were presented with their gifts at the borough office by the borough warden at a pre-arranged time.
他說,春節敬老禮金在十六日發放,一天發放完畢,資格符合的老人依各里長通知的發放時間,到里辦公處領取。
Chiu also said that the city office does not have ample financial resources, but saves on other expenditures and does all it can to assure good social welfare. Apart from the gift for the elderly, the main measures include gifts at the Chongyang Festival — also called Double Nine Festival — scholarships for low-income families, maternity subsidies, medical subsidies for children and teenagers with cancer, funeral subsidies for the poor, and free food deliveries, trips and Lunar New Year’s Eve gatherings for elderly people living alone. (Liberty Times, Translated by Perry Svennson)
邱建富表示,市公所財政並非充裕,但仍撙節其他開支,全力做好社會福利,主要措施除了春節敬老禮金,還包括重陽節禮金、低收入戶獎助學金、生育補助費、補助癌症兒童及青少年醫療費用、辦理貧困喪葬補助費、為獨居老人免費送餐、旅遊、除夕圍爐等。〔自由時報記者湯世名)
South Korea’s famous kimchi is falling victim to climate change, with scientists, farmers and manufacturers saying the quality and quantity of the napa cabbage that is pickled to make the ubiquitous dish is suffering due to rising temperatures. Napa cabbage thrives in cooler climates, and is usually planted in mountainous regions where temperatures during the key growing summer season once rarely rose above 25 degrees Celsius. Studies show that warmer weather brought about by climate change is now threatening these crops, so much so that South Korea might not be able to grow napa cabbage one day due to the intensifying heat. “We
It’s widely recognized that there are far more right-handed people than left-handed people in the world. Being right-handed simply means preferring to use one’s right hand for tasks that involve only one hand, such as writing and eating. But have you ever wondered about the possible reasons behind the global dominance of the right hand over the left? As with many complex biological questions, multiple factors appear to be at play. First, one reason seems to be genetics. __1__ Therefore, the global dominance of right-handedness is something that has been passed down through many generations of humans. Next,
A: What’s even more horrible is that the five suspects who purposely supplied ketamine to actor Matthew Perry were all his “friends.” B: Who exactly are the five suspects? A: They include Matthew’s two doctors, a broker, a drug dealer, and even his live-in assistant. B: Those scumbags should go to jail. A: Yeah, one of the doctors may be sentenced to up to 120 years in prison. A: 更可怕的是,提供男星馬修派瑞「K他命」的5人全是他的「朋友」。 B: 嫌犯是誰啊? A: 其中包括他的2位醫生、1位仲介、1位毒販、甚至他的同居助理! B: 那些人渣真該去坐牢。 A: 對啊,其中1位醫生可能面臨120年徒刑。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
On blazing hot summer days, fresh ingredients and cool refreshments straight from a refrigerator feel like nothing short of a miracle. However, chilled foods didn’t begin with modern refrigerators. In fact, the origin of refrigeration precedes the invention of this now-indispensable appliance by centuries. Initially, the quest for refrigeration was motivated more by the desire to cool beverages than to preserve food. The ancient Greeks and Romans, for instance, used snow stored in insulated pits to chill wine. Around the fourth century BC, the Persians made a significant stride in refrigeration techniques when they devised the yakhchal. Fashioned from