The past year has been difficult. The pandemic continued; war broke out in Europe; we experienced natural disasters and inflations. It is critical to find new strategies to combat stress in our lives and build psychological resilience. First, you should pay attention to the physical signs of burnout, and understand how burnout differs from depression. To improve your mental health, you can find joy in a workout, or turn to the wilderness for healing. You can also use your anxiety as an asset, as

Kabosu, the internet-famous Shiba Inu who inspired the “doge” meme, is critically ill with leukemia and liver disease. The 17-year-old dog became one of the most recognized animals on the internet when a 2010 photo of her posing with folded paws and a quizzical expression spread across social media. Netizens soon began photoshopping Kabosu’s face onto everything. The meme was made into an alternative cryptocurrency called Dogecoin. Even Elon Musk is a fan.Her owner said the dog was “in a very da

Three traditional artists have been honored as “national living treasures” by the Ministry of Culture for having dedicated their lives to the conservation of traditional culture in recognition of their efforts to preserve Taiwan’s cultural heritage.Hsu Ming-he are awarded for preserving exquisite traditional clay work techniques, while Li Ching-hai and Su Ching-liang were recognized for their excellence at preserving traditional Han and foreign-style building techniques.The title of “national li

A giant aquarium in the lobby of a hotel in Berlin has burst, flooding the hotel and nearby streets. Two people were injured and 1,500 fish were dead.The nearly 16m-high “AquaDom” contains a million liters of water and was described as the largest free-standing cylindrical aquarium in the world. It also contained a clear-walled elevator for visitors. AquaDom was opened in December 2003 and was last modernized in 2020.Berlin Fire Department said more than 100 firefighters were sent to thescene an

Argentina won the World Cup after beating holders France in a penalty shootout. Lionel Messi, who played a career-defining game, is at the center of Argentina’s victory.Argentina scored two goals in the first half. Then, in the space of under two minutes, France scored back-to-back second-half goals. The game ended 2-2 after 90 minutes, and 3-3 after extra time, tying the game. The teams went to a shootout. Argentina won on penalties, 4-2.Thousands of fans flooded the streets of Buenos Aires to

“Goblin mode” has been chosen by the public as the 2022 Oxford word of the year. The slang term refers to a type of behavior that is “unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations.” It’s the first word of the year to have been decided by public vote, and it was a landslide victory – making up 93% of the overall vote.Goblin mode’s winning may be attributed to the fact that it resonates with those who feel overwhelmed at th

The humble baguette, France’s staple bread, is being added to the United Nation’s intangible cultural heritage list by Paris-based U.N. heritage body UNESCO as a cherished tradition to be preserved by humanity for its artisanal know-how and culture of baguette bread.UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay said, this “celebrates the French way of life: the baguette is a daily ritual, a structuring element of the meal, synonymous with sharing and conviviality.”The baguette is a symbol of France around the wor

An exhibition which includes more than 30 years of filmmaking by Taiwan-based Malaysian filmmaker Tsai Ming-liang opened at the Centre Pompidou in Paris. The event screens Tsai’s entire filmography from 1989 to 2022, featuring 35 of his films. Tsai is one of the most celebrated “Second New Wave” film directors of Taiwanese cinema.The exhibition also displays a large 12×6-meter paper poster containing words from Buddhist scriptures. Tsai said it took him four days to make the poster, and the scri

Taiwanese Atayal film director Laha Mebow won the Golden Horse Award for best director for her Taiwanese drama GAGA, while Taiwanese actress Sylvia Chang won best leading actress for the third time after her last win 36 years ago.GAGA depicts conflicts between indigenous traditions and contemporary society. By being named best director, Mebow became the first Taiwanese woman to win in this category.Chang won the award for her compelling performance in the Hong Kong movie A Light Never Goes Out.

Ash Ketchum, the lead character in the Pokemon anime series, has won the Pokemon World Championship, more than 25 years after the first episode of the program aired. The series has run for over 1,200 episodes.Ash‘s quest to become a Pokemon Master started in 1997 when he met electric mouse creature Pikachu on his 10th birthday. Most seasons of the anime follow Ash’s journey across various fictional regions to win eight gym badges to qualify for their Pokemon League. His final battle against form

The annual Christmasland event in Banqiao District started with a laser projection show, featuring the northern lights for the first time in the event’s 12-year history.The event, sponsored by Disney, will continue until Jan. 2, 2023 and features characters from the film franchises, including Frozen, with snowmen from the films displayed around the main Christmas tree.Visitors can see light installations of cartoon characters and figures from Marvel Studios movies as well as icebergs and polar b

Water of Immortality, an iconic nude sculpture created by late Taiwanese artist Huang Tu-shui during the era of Japanese colonial rule in Taiwan, was inducted into the permanent collection of the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts.The statue was lost for more than half a century before its rediscovery in 2021. Its induction has also driven the museum to begun research into Huang and his works, while documenting the works of other seminal local artists.The statue will be displayed to the right o

A team of Taiwanese confectionery chefs has won the Team Spirit award at the Mondial des Arts Sucrés (MDAS), a French confectionery contest, scoring their country’s best-ever performance.For the contest, the contestants are required to complete seven types of confections in 20 hours, including ice cream pie, sugar sculpture, and chocolate. One contestant said that sculpting sugar and making chocolate were both challenging, especially creating sugar sculptures, which require heating sugar to 170

Over 70 percent of companies in Taiwan said they will pay their employees a cash bonus at the end of the lunar year next January. Over 20 percent of them said the payment will be higher than this year’s, while only 6 percent said it will be lower. On average, most companies that will give year-end bonuses plan to give around 1.17 months’ wage, according to a new survey.As for employees’ expectations, the poll found that 72 percent are anticipating a year-end bonus of 1.06 months’ salary on avera

The 29th annual Art Taipei fair brings together 138 exhibitors, 89 from Taiwan and 38 from eight other countries and regions around the world. It is the largest Art Taipei ever held in terms of the number of participating exhibitors and artworks being shown.Two of the highlights at this year’s event include the yellow sculpture Pumpkin and the celluloid installation Kusamatrix by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama.The organizer said that trying to plan an art fair during the pandemic was far from easy