A chocolate-brown poodle in Pingtung named Chang Hsiao-wo who loves to sing has fallen in love with the garbage truck tune, The Maiden’s Prayer. As soon as she hears the melody, she’ll start singing with abandon and charming onlookers. She already has a group of loyal fans who will come to hear her sing.
Digital media student Chang Kai-juo has loved dogs since she was a kid, and three months ago her father brought home a three-month old poodle. Chang named it Hsiao-wo — little snail — in the hope that it would be as calm and quiet as a snail. Unexpectedly, Hsiao-wo was both considerate and understanding of the ways of humans. She only pees on the newspapers put out for her, and she’ll shake paws and sit when told to do so. She will go to sleep on the pillow together with her mistress, and then she’ll sleep with all four legs pointing to the ceiling and showing the whites of her eyes. When her mistress puts on her makeup, she knows she will soon be taken for a walk, and she’ll sit in a coffee shop for five hours without complaining.
Chang likes music, and her room is always filled with different genres of music from classical to blues, rock and modern music, so Hsiao-wo is growing up listening to music. About a month ago, when Chang was carrying Hsiao-wo on her bicycle, they happened upon the garbage truck and Hsiao-wo unexpectedly began to bark along with the music. Her barking, which was sometimes loud and sometimes more subdued, caused an embarrassed Chang to cover Hsiao-wo’s mouth and quickly sneak away. After her escape, she ran into another garbage truck, and Hsiao-wo once again started singing to her heart’s content.
To test whether or not Hsiao-wo really understood music, Chang played a mix of different kinds of music including the song Sorry, Sorry, Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, and a piano version of The Maiden’s Prayer. At first Hsiao-wo lay on the bed without moving, but as soon as she heard The Maiden’s Prayer, she started barking along and looked quite funny. Every time she repeated the test, the result was the same.
A jealous Chang said that these days many of her friends that come over are not looking for her but have been taken in by Hsiao-wo’s performance. She’ll put on a performance at least once a day and is winning an increasing number of fans. Chang’s friends now like to call Hsiao-wo the Singing Dog.
(Liberty Times, Translated by Perry Svensson)
屏東有隻褐紅色貴賓狗「張小蝸」愛唱歌，獨鍾情垃圾車播放的「少女的祈禱」，只要聽到音樂立刻開唱，忘我的表情引人愛憐，已有忠實粉絲專程去聽牠唱歌。
念數位媒體的張楷若從小就愛狗，三個多月前父親從朋友那裡抱回三個月大貴賓狗，張楷若替牠取名「小蝸」，希望牠像隻蝸牛般穩靜，沒想到小蝸不僅體貼又懂人性，如廁一定尿在鋪好的報紙，尿尿時會站三七步，還能聽指令握手或坐下；趁主人入睡後會躺到枕頭共枕眠，睡覺時四腳朝天還翻白眼；看到主人化妝就知道等會要出門，就連到咖啡廳用餐，待上五小時也不會吵鬧。
喜歡音樂的張楷若，房間無時無刻播放音樂，從古典到現代，從藍調到搖滾，小蝸從小聽著音樂長大，沒想到約近一個月前，張楷若騎單車帶小蝸逛街，正好遇上垃圾車，小蝸亢奮應和音樂狂叫，聲音有高有低，讓她窘得摀住狗嘴快閃，逃離現場後，沒想到又在另一個路口遇到垃圾車，小蝸依然興奮的唱個不停。
為測試小蝸是否真的懂音樂，張楷若節錄一段混搭sorry sorry、命運交響曲、鋼琴版「少女的祈禱」等各種不同樂風的樂曲，測試一下小蝸，原本趴在床上的小蝸聽到其他音樂動都不會動，唯獨聽到少女的祈禱時，立刻跟著吠唱，表情逗趣，而且屢試不爽。
張楷若吃味的說，許多朋友現在都不是來找她，而是迷上小蝸專程來看表演，每天至少表演一次，粉絲越來越多，被朋友們戲稱為「狗歌星」。
（自由時報記者侯千絹）
A Cameroon-flagged cargo vessel “Shunxin-39” was believed to have caused damage to an undersea cable of Taiwan telecoms operator Chunghwa Telecom on the morning of Jan. 3. It was suspected that the Chinese merchant ship, which was registered with the nationality of another country, deliberately cut off the cable by dragging the anchor over it. While the incident is still under investigation, China has a long history of using maritime tactics to sabotage Taiwan’s infrastructure. In February last year, two cables linking Taiwan to its outlying Matsu Islands were damaged within days of each other by a Chinese fishing
Have you ever dreamed of using an entire city as your training ground, effortlessly moving across walls, buildings, stairs, and obstacles? This is not just a fantasy from the movies. In cities around the world, a group of enthusiasts practice this seemingly impossible sport — “parkour.” The origins of parkour can be traced back to 20th-century France. A military officer named Georges-Hebert witnessed the incredible physical abilities of local residents in Africa, which inspired him to create the Methode Naturelle, or natural method. This training method cleverly combined climbing, running, and swimming with artificial barriers to mimic nature. Later, David Belle
A: The 21st Century is now entering its 25th year. B: So Billboard has released a list: “The 25 greatest pop stars of the 21st Century.” A: Who are the greatest pop singers? B: No. 25 to 16 are: Katy Perry, Ed Sheeran, Bad Bunny, One Direction, Lil Wayne, Bruno Mars, BTS, The Weeknd, Shakira and Jay-Z. A: Wow, my favorite K-pop supergroup BTS has made it to the list. A: 21世紀正在邁入第25個年頭了。 B: 《告示牌》雜誌特別公布：「21世紀最偉大的25位流行歌手」。 A: 最偉大的歌手有哪些？ B: 第25至16名是：凱蒂佩芮、紅髮艾德、壞痞兔、1世代、小韋恩、火星人布魯諾、防彈少年團（BTS）、威肯、夏奇拉、Jay-Z。 A: 哇，我最愛的韓流天團BTS也上榜了！ （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張聖恩）
A: Who else is on Billboard’s list: “The 25 greatest pop stars of the 21st Century?” B: No. 15 to 6 are: Miley Cyrus, Justin Timberlake, Nicki Minaj, Eminem, Usher, Adele, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Kanye West and Britney Spears. A: I can’t believe that Adele’s only at No. 10. B: No. 5 to 1 are: Lady Gaga, Drake, Rihanna, Taylor Swift and Beyonce. A: Well, they surely deserve the honor. A: 《告示牌》雜誌的「21世紀最偉大的25位流行歌手」，還有誰上榜啊？ B: 第15至6名是：麥莉希拉、大賈斯汀、妮姬米娜、阿姆、亞瑟小子、愛黛兒、亞莉安娜、小賈斯汀、肯伊威斯特、小甜甜布蘭妮。 A: 真不敢相信愛黛兒只排第10名。 B: 第5至1名是：女神卡卡、德瑞克、蕾哈娜、泰勒絲、碧昂絲。 A: 這幾位真是實至名歸！ （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張聖恩）
RSS