附注 NOTATION:
2025-02-11，15:27 UTC+1：
慢遞員官太報告：「我面交完就一路忙+搭飛機，昨天回到荷蘭早上又飛柏林」
COURIER Mrs. GUAN REPORT：Since our handover I've been busy—took the plane and yesterday arrived back in Holland, this morning flew again to Berlin
2025-02-08，between 15:30-16:30 之間：
慢遞員encounters在交接緩件HQL-651那天拍下了追蹤她下落顯示健全的照片；從台北美術館開始，她和緩件下午到達年度一次的台北國際書展，在瀏覽幾個攤位後，穿著黑色羽絨服的她安頓下來坐在前排聽一個關於香港獨立出版的談話；慢遞員官太剛好在15:30前到達，也是去聽這個談話，坐在慢遞員encounters的後面剛好能看到她的腦袋；談話結束時，慢遞員找到彼此並完成交接
Courier ENCOUNTERS leaves a healthy photo trail of her whereabouts on the day of the handover of dispatch HQL-651; starting at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, she and dispatch move in the afternoon to the annual Taipei International Book Fair, where after browsing a few booths, she settles down to listen to a talk on independent publishing in Hong Kong, sitting in the front row in a black down jacket; courier Mrs. GUAN arrives just before 15:30 and heads over to the talk, sitting in the back with a view of the back of courier ENCOUNTERS' head; after the talk ends, couriers find one another and handover successful
It's first time to participate with LIGHT LOGISTICS, but actually I've thought about the cross-border circulation of books for quite some time already. I had wanted to open a bookstore in Berlin during COVID, but discovered that in addition to being a site for the dissemination of culture, the bookstore is to an even greater degree a question of logistics itself—about books as a medium for the culture of knowledge, about how they can circulate in a physical space, crossing various borders to arrive to a certain place, and about the means in which they are able to reach certain kinds of audiences. While writing this, I've been passing through various checkpoints within Hong Kong airport, have arrived to the boarding gate, and now waiting to board the flight to Taipei. My dispatch should currently be inside my luggage, having had airport ground personnel transport it aboard the plane via some other route that I am unable to witness. I think about all the procedures, checkpoints, routes, transfer stations, waiting rooms, and inspection stations we've grown accustomed to... The movement of people is logistics, and the movement of culture is also logistics.
These questions have completely occupied my brainspace, and every time I meet others working with the medium of publications, I always ask upfront about this question of logistics: how do you all have your books shipped over? Last year I spoke with Sam from Common Imprint, and he told me that every time he travels he lugs 100kg of luggage back, and he also mentioned Display Distribute, and since then the name has come up time and time again in different settings, until now, I've also become one of their couriers.
Coming to Taipei for the International Book Fair this time, I am still asking the people I encounter about how they deal with the issue of logistics. I realised that even today, despite the flourishing amount of information around, the independent publishing world still does not have a systematic means of distribution; most still rely upon small-scale, spontaneously organised means of moving books, the sharing of resources, and mutual support. The networked linkages here include some groups from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and overseas, Hong Kong-run bookshops. The thinking and praxis may not be entirely in line with LIGHT LOGISTICS, but it's all about the connections between people: "Each one doing their bit supports all."
2025-02-04，17:33：
慢遞員encounters已經交接好緩件號HQL-651，現在在香港國際機場等待飛往台北的航班；目前已經約好下一位台北慢遞員交接：「新年快樂：）好的，那我們8號下午書展會場見：）」
Courier ENCOUNTERS has picked up dispatch HQL-651 from MAHJONG, currently at Hong Kong International Airport waiting departure to Taipei; a loose appointment on the 8th has already been made with the Taipei courier: "Happy New Year：）OK, so see you at the book fair on the afternoon of the 8th：）"
初二. Lately I’ve been obsessed with finding the cheapest mode of transit, mostly just as a rule to streamline decision making and try different ways of moving around HK. Where I’m from, one doesn’t get the chance to think about stuff like this because you can fare evade (formerly quite easily) or it’s a flat rate no matter where you go in the city or you walk out of necessity. Usually, in HK, the buses (not including the night buses) are cheaper here but there is $2 MTR fare saver “doot doot” machine in my neighborhood so the MTR made more sense.
I wanted to see what other neighborhoods besides mine were like during Lunar New Year. I was really hoping to get a little chai and snack at a Pakistani snack shop close by pick-up point before getting the package but alas they were also closed. Though the desi market was open and I managed to get a large bag of split red lentils (which as a psa are perfect for depression/lazy/frugal cooking because it has same cook time as rice so they can go in together in the rice cooker). Before the market had a donation box for Palestine but today it wasn’t on the checkout counter. Unusually there were large tour buses and tourists from mainland milling around. I couldn’t figure out why they were touring the neighborhood though. As far as I know, pick-up point neighborhood isn’t a usual tourist spot. I found the package with some help from the dispatcher. I took a ferry from Kowloon to HK island side. The next courier and I successfully met up at our rendezvous time. Then I went off to my second rendezvous which was a 15-minute walk to return a broken electric blanket I got on Carousell.
Something about the whole experience made me miss when I was a weed delivery person in another city. There’s something really satisfying about calculating your route, where’s the best place to meet for both you and the person you’re meeting, and precisely what time you’d get there. Also, because you’re leaving your journey up to chance and what works for the other person, you get to experience the unexpected, like a fish market right outside the ferry terminal.
2025-01-31，12:34：
因為她也計畫到港島買米麴，香港慢遞員麻雀也可以飛過來土瓜灣幫忙，從土瓜灣轉運站攬件後直接坐船過維多利亞港
Courier MAHJONG swoops in for the small relay between the Tokwawan Relay Centre and the scheduled handover point in North Point, perfect since she's planned to go to Hong Kong island to buy koji
2025-01-24，日頭 daytime：
一個新的聊天群開通了，方便第一步在香港攬件轉給ENCOUNTERS；這一位慢遞員其實住在歐洲，剛好回到亞洲過年；期間除了香港也會去一趟台北，方便帶書給官太
A new group chat is made then to get the books from the Display Distribute distro to courier ENCOUNTERS, who actually lives in Europe but happens to be visiting Hong Kong and Taipei during the Lunar New Year holiday and generously able to courier to Taipei and meet Mrs. GUAN
2025-01-13，12:31 UTC+02：
慢遞員官太與她在鹿特丹的取件人建立了群組通訊，準備將書慢遞回亞洲，結果交接失敗，導致HQL-651改道官太的回程路線，讓五本《離開的舉動》能夠入官太最好的朋友在荷蘭南部開的小書店
A group communiqué is established between courier Mrs. GUAN and her pick-up in Rotterdam in preparation for bringing books back to Asia; unfortunately, the handover is unsuccessful, and HQL-651 is diverted for Mrs. GUAN's return flight, allowing five copies of Acts of Departure to find their way to Mrs. GUAN's bestie's small bookshop in the south of Holland
媒體記錄 TRACKING:
台北世界貿易中心 Taipei World Trade Center
13:59：「我在這裡」I am here
15:24：「1530-1630 在這裡」Will be here between 1530-1630
官太回覆：「我進到會場了，在這裡了～」 Mrs. GUAN replies：I’ve entered the exhibition hall, now here~
慢遞員encounters和官太合影紀錄HQL-651的台北轉接 Couriers ENCOUNTERS and Mrs. GUAN take a photo together to mark the handover of dispatch HQL-651
中山區 Zhongshan District
紅樹林站 Hongshulin Station
「北美館看展，貨物寄放在locker，下午再到台北書展」 At the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, goods are in a locker, will head to the Taipei Book Fair in the afternoon
路上 En route
北角 North Point
九龍城往北角的船上 Aboard the Kowloon City – North Point ferry
慢遞員ENCOUNTERS和麻雀跟緩件號HQL-651合影
Couriers ENCOUNTERS and MAHJONG take a selfie with dispatch HQL-651
