Malaria Outbreak!

I might have malaria. Just kidding! The closest thing you can get to Malaria is Japanese Encephalitis (which is also carried by mosquitoes). But I'm not worried. Japanese Encephalitis only makes your brain swell. Plus, it's only fatal one-third of the time. I guess that's why my doctor didn't think that I needed a vaccination before I left.

Anyways, I have an inordinate number of bug bites. Mosquito bites to be exact. They love me, and I am their main course. (Oh, I must digress!!! In Taiwan, a lot of things revolve around food. I'm picking up on local tradition by peppering my stories with food metaphors.)

So, I have millions of red, itchy welts on my body while nobody else is suffering from these onslaughts. Anneke doesn't get bitten either! Seriously, I walk out the door and come home with a few more. I also think that these mosquitoes have a type of super venom. I still have bites that itch from my shrimp-catching escapade in the creek, and that was three weeks ago! Bug spray has become my perfume; hard books have become my weapon of choice (great for swatting).

But never fear! My friends have given me their spellbinding theories:

1. I prefer sweet foods over salty foods. Therefore, my blood is sweet. Mosquitoes prefer sweet blood over salty blood, so they come find me especially when they are ready for dessert.
2. Mosquitoes are tired of Taiwanese and Chinese blood. They are ready for a change. Accordingly, mosquitoes will always pick me before resorting back to the native population. I wonder what "American" tastes like.
3. I have an exquisite flavor, much like (high, mocking voice) Isabella Swan. This one is my favorite theory, despite my intense dislike of the entire series. The girl that told me this thought she was giving me a compliment. Little did she know...

I just wish all these stupid bugs would leave me alone :(