My friend Joshua Samuel Brown (yes, the writer) had an interesting experience in Taipei’s “combat zone” . . . he turned a corner and met a girl with culture. You know, I’ve been doing monthly hypnosis gigs at a club in the combat zone for seven months and I never had an experience like that. Then again, I guess I don’t look like someone who needs some cultural meetings (sorry, Josh). It’s a delightful story. The combat zone used to be THE place for nightlife in Taipei but over the years the nigh center shifted and the area has become more economically depressed and perhaps a bit seedier – yes, seedier even then its heyday when American servicement were all over the place. The club I have been performing at is one of the very very few in the area that doesn’t have b-girls lurking at the entryways. Still, Josh’s story is worth reading . . . he’s back in Taiwan writing a major work for a major publisher so if you see him lurking in some shadowy corner or if he asks you strange bizzarro questions, answer them . . . they may actually be for a good cause (they may also simply be Josh being weird but hey he’s the charming sort of Erisian).