"P" has gone on this health program, which consists of having muesli and low-fat milk for breakfast. He may have bak-kut-teh with us for lunch, but his breakfast will be a healthy bowl of cereal. I suppose he doesn't care if angles weep in the afternoon, as long as they sang in the morning when they saw him at breakfast.
I thought about it, and decided breakfast time was a good place in the schedule to start my own health program: a.k.a. "Loose some weight before none of my office pants fit around my jelly belly." I have been adding on the padding lately - actually, ever since NOV 2005 when mum passed away. No, I dont want to go into that now - back to the breakfast.
So over the weekend, I shopped for a couple or cartons of FULL CREAM MILK. Why not low fat you ask? Well, there was this health article I read once (sorry - no web references of the original article; it was hardcopy, and some time ago. But this might help.) that said the cream does not actually affect the body negatively, and the calcium is good for you.
Anyway - I got a couple of cartons - 2 litres total. Then I dug in my cupboard and unearthed those boxes of 'healthy cereal' that I bought months ago... (oops - 1 has expired. but only 1 month ago. OK, still edible by my standards.) What! you'd throw it away? check first man... its possible that it could still be good after the expiry date, just as its possible that it could have gone bad BEFORE the expiry date.
Anyway - I got the milk and the cereal, and loaded it into a duffle bag. A bright red one, so I would not miss it Monday morning. I put it at the front door, so that I would not miss it Monday morning.
Today (Monday, 04 Dec), I dressed, brushed my hair, combed my teeth, packed my office bag, and sailed out the door. 45 minutes later, leaving the car park and walking into the office, I remembered the red duffle bag.
Monday 4 December 2006
Tuesday 7 November 2006
Apple Ad's
Why dont they show these ad's in Malaysia?
These Apple ad's are so entertaining while maintaining an element of truth, it makes me wonder why we still use PC's.
Here's just one of the many in YOUTUBE.
These Apple ad's are so entertaining while maintaining an element of truth, it makes me wonder why we still use PC's.
Here's just one of the many in YOUTUBE.
Leaving a job
It is not an easy decision to leave a great company. And yet, people being people, there is no way anything could be perfect: even a great company will have areas that need improvement, or where things are simply not being done right. And so the question is;
“Would you stay in an environment that makes you unhappy, or would you go searching for a new environment in the hope that the future might be better than the past?”
That’s a tough question, and an important question, and like all important questions it has no simple, one-dimensional answer.
But we pick up the pieces, find a resolution or work-around, and things start moving again.
Sometimes, though, there is no resolution, no work-around. People want to do things in a certain way, and no amount of psychology or rationalization or cajoling from your favorite manager can make you forget that in your heart of hearts, this is wrong. Now - to quit for ONE reason seems petty. But things can start to add up, like a mountain of small boulders that finally becomes too tiresome or too stressful to scale day after day.
And so, I found one day that I was exhausted, wanting to go home, but staying in the office till 10pm putting together information that I really thought someone else should have done if they had done their jobs end-to-end and not just piecemeal. That was the day I seriously decided I would accept the next reasonable offer I got (I had already declined one job offer).
Friday 13 October 2006
Kill the blog!
Hello again.
My last update was 16Aug, and today is 13Oct.. almost 2 whole months, but it seems like 2 whole years. !!
There have been many changes in my life in just 2 months, but the big ones will have to wait till I have more time to formulate a coherent story.
For now, I only wish to mark the passing of a small yet somehow significant event:
I had another blog - "Absolute Rubbish" I called it, and in retrospect, I realise that my entries there were exactly that - absolute rubbish.
So it is now deleted - there are more important things to do than to dwell on absolute rubbish.
My last update was 16Aug, and today is 13Oct.. almost 2 whole months, but it seems like 2 whole years. !!
There have been many changes in my life in just 2 months, but the big ones will have to wait till I have more time to formulate a coherent story.
For now, I only wish to mark the passing of a small yet somehow significant event:
I had another blog - "Absolute Rubbish" I called it, and in retrospect, I realise that my entries there were exactly that - absolute rubbish.
So it is now deleted - there are more important things to do than to dwell on absolute rubbish.
Wednesday 16 August 2006
Company IDOL
They are doing it again.
The "Company IDOL" competiion.
Last time, I didn't quite crash and burn, but I didn't get through to the finals either. In fact, I was so terrified at the audition, I tough I'd turn blue from not breathing in enough oxygen.
This is a source of embarrasment. In other situations, as a volunteer, I have sung for free in front of audiences of several hundred, without batting an eyelid..... and here in front of 50 of my collegues, I was scared witless. Of course, the fact that I was being evaluated, and that there was a CASH PRIZE up for grabs did put on the preassure.
Well, this time, my friends, I have more realistic targets: I aim to sing my chosen song without getting too nervous. Ridiculous you say? Well, I would agree, except for my remembering my terror the last time. So forget about the finals, or the grand prize of a 32-inch TV. I aim to have fun, and maybe entertain some people while I am at it.
Any suggestions what I should sing?
The "Company IDOL" competiion.
Last time, I didn't quite crash and burn, but I didn't get through to the finals either. In fact, I was so terrified at the audition, I tough I'd turn blue from not breathing in enough oxygen.
This is a source of embarrasment. In other situations, as a volunteer, I have sung for free in front of audiences of several hundred, without batting an eyelid..... and here in front of 50 of my collegues, I was scared witless. Of course, the fact that I was being evaluated, and that there was a CASH PRIZE up for grabs did put on the preassure.
Well, this time, my friends, I have more realistic targets: I aim to sing my chosen song without getting too nervous. Ridiculous you say? Well, I would agree, except for my remembering my terror the last time. So forget about the finals, or the grand prize of a 32-inch TV. I aim to have fun, and maybe entertain some people while I am at it.
Any suggestions what I should sing?
Sunday 16 July 2006
JULY 11 at JPN
This was a day to be remembered:
July 11th 2006 - the day I went to the National Registration Department (Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara) to have my "race" changed from "Chinese" to what I really am.....
How on earth could they make a mistake like that? I brought my birth certificate as proof. What I learned was interesting and horrible.
"Your original record says you are Chinese sir" said the lady. How could that be, since my original (pre-MYKAD) i.c. listed my race correctly?
"Well, I am looking at your original record in the system, and it says you are Chinese. Before MYKAD, changes to your status were sometimes not updated into the system." Now how would a person be able to change his RACE to something else? And can you not see it written CLEARLY on my birth certificate what race I am?
She took my application and my Birth Certificate into a room, and came out a few minutes later - I believe this was to get approval from an officer to waive the RM10.00 charge for making changes to your MYKAD.
After me, 2 sisters were trying to change their religion from Buddhist to Christian. One had a certificate of baptism dating from 1 month after her birth. They said their parents were both Christian, and they both had been baptised within months of birth.
"Your original record says you are Buddhist. We will always follow your parents religion, and since you are Chinese you must be Buddhist." No, the sisters said, our parents were always Christian.
"Your registration was when you were still a baby - how can you know if your parents were Buddhist or someting else?"
I was so shocked at this senseless statement I had to pay attention. As it turned out, the sisters were asked to pay RM10 each for the change in MYKAD information. The JPN staff refused to accept that it was their error. If the sisters insisted, they would have to wait for "the officer". Where was this officer?
"He is attending a tribunal now. You can't expect him to come out to handle your problem. He maybe will be finished at 12 noon (thats in 2.5 hours). Otherwise, you have to pay the RM10."
I only escaped paying a penalty because I had a government document, my birth certificate, as proof. These ladies had a church certificate dating back to 196x and it was not accepted. The JPN has stated in the newspaprers that citizens need not pay the fee if the error is the fault of the JPN. But note well: your birth certificate does not document your religion. For all those with a wrong religion in their MYKAD (a church I know recorded about 30% of its people having MYKAD errors), a penalty will still be extracted, because JPN will not recognise your other documents.
Still worse: the counter staff insisted to both me and the 2 sisters that the MYKAD followed the original record. And yet, our old (pre-MYKAD) I.C. had no errors. This means that the JPN data was wrong from the point where it was converted from paper documents into computer records. Judging from the experience of the church I mentioned earlier, this means that for non Malays, we may have 30% of the population with MYKAD errors.
And another thing: If JPN was going to ignore everything we wrote in the form when we applied for our MYKAD, then why have a form at all? Why should we give the correct information, and still be provided with wrong information in our MYKAD? Was it so that people would believe that they were being given what they had written down?
The JPN office I was in had a machine in the corner that could read the MYKAD. Good, I thought, it helps people check the contents. But when I tried it, it only showed a scanned image of my MYKAD, not the encoded information or religion and race that is not printed on the card. This is not only useless, it borders on criminal negligence - giving citizens the impression that all is well, but hiding the information that might be (and for 30% of us, may well be) wrong.
JPN should change its operations IMMEDIATELY, and accept proof provided by citizens about their race and religion. JPN must establish a process to print ALL details of a MYKAD and provided them to the citizen at the point of collection of their MYKAD.
Our schools must STOP teaching this crap that a person's racr automatically fixes their religion. I have met children who have been told as much: an Indian is a Hindu, a Chinese is a Buddhist, a Malay is a Muslim. I dont know what the 'others' end up as; Christian I suppose. What about Ceylonese Buddhists? Chinese Taoists / Christians / Muslims? Ah - becoming a Muslim is "masuk Melayu". Wrong! And we must get that phrase out of our language. It says nothing that is true.
July 11th 2006 - the day I went to the National Registration Department (Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara) to have my "race" changed from "Chinese" to what I really am.....
How on earth could they make a mistake like that? I brought my birth certificate as proof. What I learned was interesting and horrible.
"Your original record says you are Chinese sir" said the lady. How could that be, since my original (pre-MYKAD) i.c. listed my race correctly?
"Well, I am looking at your original record in the system, and it says you are Chinese. Before MYKAD, changes to your status were sometimes not updated into the system." Now how would a person be able to change his RACE to something else? And can you not see it written CLEARLY on my birth certificate what race I am?
She took my application and my Birth Certificate into a room, and came out a few minutes later - I believe this was to get approval from an officer to waive the RM10.00 charge for making changes to your MYKAD.
After me, 2 sisters were trying to change their religion from Buddhist to Christian. One had a certificate of baptism dating from 1 month after her birth. They said their parents were both Christian, and they both had been baptised within months of birth.
"Your original record says you are Buddhist. We will always follow your parents religion, and since you are Chinese you must be Buddhist." No, the sisters said, our parents were always Christian.
"Your registration was when you were still a baby - how can you know if your parents were Buddhist or someting else?"
I was so shocked at this senseless statement I had to pay attention. As it turned out, the sisters were asked to pay RM10 each for the change in MYKAD information. The JPN staff refused to accept that it was their error. If the sisters insisted, they would have to wait for "the officer". Where was this officer?
"He is attending a tribunal now. You can't expect him to come out to handle your problem. He maybe will be finished at 12 noon (thats in 2.5 hours). Otherwise, you have to pay the RM10."
I only escaped paying a penalty because I had a government document, my birth certificate, as proof. These ladies had a church certificate dating back to 196x and it was not accepted. The JPN has stated in the newspaprers that citizens need not pay the fee if the error is the fault of the JPN. But note well: your birth certificate does not document your religion. For all those with a wrong religion in their MYKAD (a church I know recorded about 30% of its people having MYKAD errors), a penalty will still be extracted, because JPN will not recognise your other documents.
Still worse: the counter staff insisted to both me and the 2 sisters that the MYKAD followed the original record. And yet, our old (pre-MYKAD) I.C. had no errors. This means that the JPN data was wrong from the point where it was converted from paper documents into computer records. Judging from the experience of the church I mentioned earlier, this means that for non Malays, we may have 30% of the population with MYKAD errors.
And another thing: If JPN was going to ignore everything we wrote in the form when we applied for our MYKAD, then why have a form at all? Why should we give the correct information, and still be provided with wrong information in our MYKAD? Was it so that people would believe that they were being given what they had written down?
The JPN office I was in had a machine in the corner that could read the MYKAD. Good, I thought, it helps people check the contents. But when I tried it, it only showed a scanned image of my MYKAD, not the encoded information or religion and race that is not printed on the card. This is not only useless, it borders on criminal negligence - giving citizens the impression that all is well, but hiding the information that might be (and for 30% of us, may well be) wrong.
JPN should change its operations IMMEDIATELY, and accept proof provided by citizens about their race and religion. JPN must establish a process to print ALL details of a MYKAD and provided them to the citizen at the point of collection of their MYKAD.
Our schools must STOP teaching this crap that a person's racr automatically fixes their religion. I have met children who have been told as much: an Indian is a Hindu, a Chinese is a Buddhist, a Malay is a Muslim. I dont know what the 'others' end up as; Christian I suppose. What about Ceylonese Buddhists? Chinese Taoists / Christians / Muslims? Ah - becoming a Muslim is "masuk Melayu". Wrong! And we must get that phrase out of our language. It says nothing that is true.
Tuesday 27 June 2006
IT skills shortage — fact or fiction?
Here's an interesting article.... one of many I saw on digg.com. Thanks K for introducing me to the site.
Basically, Linda Musthaler makes a case - and a good one I think - for blaming the lack of available IT skills on the avarice of corporations. This is something close to my heart too. No, not because I got laid off, but because I believe it IS a cold blooded way to operate when the accountants look at the bottom line, and then tell the KL branch manager "Look, your GP isn't double digit - give 3% of your staff their walking papers."
Of course, the fault (if such a deep, systemic, fundamental can be called a fault) is not purely with the corporation or the accountants. Responsibility also is shared by us shareholders. Why? Because if a stock does not perform, you unload it of course.
"Dear stockholder. Despite a 30% growth in revenue, there are indications that the projected 33% growth in GP may not be achieved in the near term.
This will be corrected in the next reporting period, however, as the corporation is taking prudent steps to improve our control posture in expenses.
Your sister Mavis and uncle Martin are being laid off with 498 other employees next week."
Basically, Linda Musthaler makes a case - and a good one I think - for blaming the lack of available IT skills on the avarice of corporations. This is something close to my heart too. No, not because I got laid off, but because I believe it IS a cold blooded way to operate when the accountants look at the bottom line, and then tell the KL branch manager "Look, your GP isn't double digit - give 3% of your staff their walking papers."
Of course, the fault (if such a deep, systemic, fundamental can be called a fault) is not purely with the corporation or the accountants. Responsibility also is shared by us shareholders. Why? Because if a stock does not perform, you unload it of course.
"Dear stockholder. Despite a 30% growth in revenue, there are indications that the projected 33% growth in GP may not be achieved in the near term.
This will be corrected in the next reporting period, however, as the corporation is taking prudent steps to improve our control posture in expenses.
Your sister Mavis and uncle Martin are being laid off with 498 other employees next week."
iTalk: The New Mobile Phone from Apple?
What if Apple created a mobile phone?
What if it was also an iPOD?
What if it had a camera and PDA function?
UTUBE has an entry that breathes life into these "what-if's" . Let me tell you, it blew my mind! The simulated ad is remarkably Zen, and yet succeeds in delivering a dream of technology convergence that will make you drool from the corners of you mouth, or dribble from the tip of ... well, never mind.
Just remember to read the intro text - this is fiction. At least, until Apple works out the bugs......
What if it was also an iPOD?
What if it had a camera and PDA function?
UTUBE has an entry that breathes life into these "what-if's" . Let me tell you, it blew my mind! The simulated ad is remarkably Zen, and yet succeeds in delivering a dream of technology convergence that will make you drool from the corners of you mouth, or dribble from the tip of ... well, never mind.
Just remember to read the intro text - this is fiction. At least, until Apple works out the bugs......
Monday 26 June 2006
Procrastination #2, and a job interview.
This is better than the little verse i penned some time ago. But this time, it's not original. Thanks to the G-man for brightening up my day.
(the usual caveats - I do not own the rights to this, and I dont know if this is really public domain - i got it via email. If this infringes on anyone's copyright, please inform me and I will remove this picture immediately)
In other developments, I have (sort of) re-entered the job market - was called for an interview last Friday.
The guy was really friendly, partly because we had previously met (years ago) and he knew me by reputation (some of it good, judging from the way it went).
Anyway, this is a job that will throw me back into a purely technical job. And here I have been slowly learning how to think in terms of process and management.
Well - I will have to wait and see if they make an offer. Meantime, I should really think more deeply if I want to go back into being technical, or moving on into management.
Sweet dreams...
Friday 23 June 2006
Where email jokes come from.
Do you ever wonder where email jokes come from?
At least once a week, i get spammed by a friend with a joke that has been making the email circuit. Sometimes these are jokes I saw 2 or 3 years ago, but are rolling through new audiences.
Well, I may have found the home base of at least SOME of those old (yet undeniably funny - the 1st time you read them) jokes.
Here it is: the
The Bank of Canada's president's balls - love this one....
Special High Intensity Training - I read this before 1997. Thats how old this stuff can be.And here is something new (to me at least)
Student Bloopers — History of the World.
Enjoy....
At least once a week, i get spammed by a friend with a joke that has been making the email circuit. Sometimes these are jokes I saw 2 or 3 years ago, but are rolling through new audiences.
Well, I may have found the home base of at least SOME of those old (yet undeniably funny - the 1st time you read them) jokes.
Here it is: the
Owain F Carter
homepage. Below are a couple of jokes I remember reading in email:The Bank of Canada's president's balls - love this one....
Special High Intensity Training - I read this before 1997. Thats how old this stuff can be.And here is something new (to me at least)
Student Bloopers — History of the World.
Enjoy....
Thursday 8 June 2006
Why Is It Malaysians dont want to come home? #2
One more thing I thought I'd like to blog about.... below is an article from the SUN news service. To see the page I got it from, go [here].
==================start of paste===========================
An open letter to the PM
Updated: 04:32PM Thu, 01 Jun 2006
==================end of paste===========================
==================start of paste===========================
An open letter to the PM
Dear Prime Minister Abdullah, When you first came into power after the 2004 general election, you promised us that you would be prime minister for all Malaysians.
In fact, I still have the letter you sent out to voters before the elections that promised you would fulfill your duties with sincerity, integrity, efficiency and fairness.
It was a letter that moved people, including staunch Opposition supporters.
There was hope that a new leadership which was more conciliatory, more willing to listen to differing views and more just was in store for the country.
And people invested in that hope by voting the Barisan Nasional back into power with a clear majority.
But recent events, including your administration's reactions to these events, have been deeply troubling.
The most recent has been the disruption of a peaceful and legitimate public forum in Penang organised by a group of non-governmental organisations that wanted to help people reclaim their rights under the Federal Constitution.
It was unfortunate, but really no longer inconceivable, that those who opposed such a civil discussion should frame their opposition in ways that incite hostility, threaten violence and make false accusations in the name of Islam, a religion that in fact promotes peace and justice.
What is actually more troubling is that as prime minister, you have also publicly announced that these issues of Constitutional rights are "sensitive" and the organisers of such events must be careful not to tread on "dangerous ground", lest the government has to use the Sedition Act against them.
Why would you lend legitimacy to the argument that Malaysians should steer clear of discussing issues which affect us all as citizens, whether Muslim or non-Muslim?
By continuously telling Malaysians these issues are "sensitive" and "dangerous", isn't your administration really creating a self-fulfilling prophecy? Aren't you in fact supporting the argument that these issues should not be discussed?
Additionally, Malaysians have been reminded by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz that it's not for no reason that the word "amok" comes from the Malay community.
Non-Muslims - and that easily translates to non-Malays in this country - are told we cannot speak out about the way Islam is used to formulate laws and public policies in this country even though they affect all of us.
We are told that not just the Sedition Act can be used, so can the Internal Security Act which allows for detention without trial.
In fact, I found it deeply paradoxical that Nazri could repeat the threat of the ISA at an international meeting of experts on Islam and human rights last month.
How can an unjust law be Islamic? We know it cannot, and yet, it would seem your administration is wielding it as a way to silence citizens in a democracy.
The way I see it, naming something "sensitive" and "dangerous" is just a disingenuous way of saying, "This is not open for dialogue and discussion. We might tolerate your views but only to a certain extent."
What that extent is, is left to be seen. We hope your election promises will be kept for all Malaysians, but really, many of us are more fearful than reassured.
From a non-Muslim perspective, the events leading up to the need for public discussions such as the Article 11 forum in Penang, have been disconcerting and troubling.
The painful injustice suffered by S. Shamala who found that her estranged husband could unilaterally convert their children to Islam, and the widow of M. Moorthy who discovered she could not bury her husband according to Hindu rights, are real and frightening.
But those instances of injustice are not being framed as "sensitive" by non-Muslims. They are not being used to threaten violence or incite hostility in order to silence discussion of the issues at hand.
Additionally, when you upheld the decision for the tudung to be used in police parades, did you consider how it would make non-Muslims feel? How can it still be a surprise then that most non-Malays will not join the police force?
Really, I don't need to be a Muslim or a Malay to have a stake in this country. But even that might be delegitimised because in more ways than one, I'm a minority.
And I'm constantly reminded that my views and concerns must give way to the privileges and rights of the dominant race, and a specific interpretation of the faith they profess.
But really what I want to ask you is this: Why do I have to constantly feel afraid in my own country? Why am I continuously told I have less rights to discuss important issues affecting my community?
You promised to be prime minister for all Malaysians. We hope you will remember that promise.
A Malaysian citizen.
Jacqueline Ann Surin believes that you cannot be neutral on a moving train. She is an assistant news editor at theSun.
Updated: 04:32PM Thu, 01 Jun 2006
==================end of paste===========================
Monday 5 June 2006
Manigorament - Management from a position of ignorance.
Is this an ASEAN or Malaysian trend? Perhaps not, since DILBERT documents the same trends in corporate America.
I see management investing enthusiastically in the development of Managers, and managemet skills. All employees have been instructed to bone up on their 'core skills' of
1. communication
2. taking leadership
3. teamwork
Now the joke:
When a review was done in my location, and gaps were found in key implementation areas, we got the attention of powerful people all the way up to Asian HQ. There must be 5 levels of managers tracking our progress to close the gaps. More spreadsheets, more reports every week, more people calling or dropping by to check your progress.
But there has been not one mention, not one chirp, of technical skills training to make sure the technical grunts know exactly what is required of them, and how to achieve it. The excuse/mantra used is "you are the S.M.E. (subject matter expert) for that system, you should know how it's done". Yeah - right. But you gave me this checklist of system settings.... and your policy is not to know how to implement it?
ok, ok, to be fair, there was the telecon with the Australian who gave us a 1 hour overview of how to implement XXX and YYY. But what we need is a skilled person HERE, on site, to lead the project. We are still grappling with how the technology works.
I still feel we are recreating the wheel. And the reason we are doing that, is that there are more people telling us what gaps to close, than there are people who can show us exactly HOW to go about closing the gaps.
Corporate life sucks. If I had a million bucks, I might just quit and become a voluntary Sunday School Teacher.
I see management investing enthusiastically in the development of Managers, and managemet skills. All employees have been instructed to bone up on their 'core skills' of
1. communication
2. taking leadership
3. teamwork
Now the joke:
When a review was done in my location, and gaps were found in key implementation areas, we got the attention of powerful people all the way up to Asian HQ. There must be 5 levels of managers tracking our progress to close the gaps. More spreadsheets, more reports every week, more people calling or dropping by to check your progress.
But there has been not one mention, not one chirp, of technical skills training to make sure the technical grunts know exactly what is required of them, and how to achieve it. The excuse/mantra used is "you are the S.M.E. (subject matter expert) for that system, you should know how it's done". Yeah - right. But you gave me this checklist of system settings.... and your policy is not to know how to implement it?
ok, ok, to be fair, there was the telecon with the Australian who gave us a 1 hour overview of how to implement XXX and YYY. But what we need is a skilled person HERE, on site, to lead the project. We are still grappling with how the technology works.
I still feel we are recreating the wheel. And the reason we are doing that, is that there are more people telling us what gaps to close, than there are people who can show us exactly HOW to go about closing the gaps.
Corporate life sucks. If I had a million bucks, I might just quit and become a voluntary Sunday School Teacher.
Monday 29 May 2006
Why is it Malaysians dont want to come home?
This has been in the papers recently, not without the requisite self-righteous opinions hinting that people may be less than patriotic, or are greedy, or are lazy (yeah, sure - like lazy people have much easier lives in the US and UK).
But basically, for me, the reason people dont want to come home is in the papers every day.
Opaque government (and this is only a miniscule example).
Processes that victimise the people (rakyat), and protect incompetence.
The reported ability of some to ask customs to ignore illegal activities
( background on the above )
The ability of government to ignore the plight of the poor.
The triumph of narrow mindedness over rationality. (links are not in chronological order)
1. Film does not glorify Chin Peng
2. Government will decide on screening of film, not Umno
3. View screening of "Last Communist" with an open mind
4. Differing views after MPs watch The Last Communist
5. It’s the end for The Last Communist
All this appears in the papers on a daily basis - and yet we can not guess why Malaysians dont want to come home?
come ON.
But basically, for me, the reason people dont want to come home is in the papers every day.
Opaque government (and this is only a miniscule example).
Processes that victimise the people (rakyat), and protect incompetence.
The reported ability of some to ask customs to ignore illegal activities
( background on the above )
The ability of government to ignore the plight of the poor.
The triumph of narrow mindedness over rationality. (links are not in chronological order)
1. Film does not glorify Chin Peng
2. Government will decide on screening of film, not Umno
3. View screening of "Last Communist" with an open mind
4. Differing views after MPs watch The Last Communist
5. It’s the end for The Last Communist
All this appears in the papers on a daily basis - and yet we can not guess why Malaysians dont want to come home?
come ON.
Monday 8 May 2006
RSS settings
Updated RSS settings - now you get the full blog entry on RSS. Per request by 50% of my readership...
(he asked for it this afternoon)
:)
(he asked for it this afternoon)
:)
Sunday 7 May 2006
How to loose a friend
I guess we all have our own patented ways to loose a friend, and for the most part, these ways are all intended or willful.
My way is different. My way, I am trying to help, and to be a good friend, but I make such an ass of myself that it ends up pushing the other person away. This is how you can loose a friend:
Wait till he has a problem with someone else he knows. This will happen eventually, since every relationship goes through both good and bad times. Then, make it your business to 'resolve' the conflict. Offer to bring the 2 parties together. Perhaps over dinner or lunch. Offer to arbitrate and help them understand each other. Unless you are a psychologist, with a known track record for resolving conflict, your friend will likely decline to let you wash his dirty laundry for him...
Now here's the clincher...
Be persistent. If you can not convince him to let you solve his problems, then hint vaguely that he is too proud, or to stubborn, or whatever....
And there you have it - one friendship down the drain, and not because of him, but because you were an insensitive asshole and just assumed you could solve other peoples problems for them.
But there's more.....
Invite him over to join your family for a holiday celebration - say Christmas or Hari Raya or Chinese New Year.... the dynamics of such celebrations are always focussed on family, so making such an invitation is fraught with risk and assumptions. More likely than not, your 'good' intention will offend your friend for any number of reasons, and that would put the proverbial last nail into the coffin of your friendship.
How do I know all this? - well, I am guessing, but then he has not accepted my dinner invitations for a long time already, and I dont think it is purely because he is busy.
I'm sorry Al, I was an asshole. Twice. Forgive me?
My way is different. My way, I am trying to help, and to be a good friend, but I make such an ass of myself that it ends up pushing the other person away. This is how you can loose a friend:
Wait till he has a problem with someone else he knows. This will happen eventually, since every relationship goes through both good and bad times. Then, make it your business to 'resolve' the conflict. Offer to bring the 2 parties together. Perhaps over dinner or lunch. Offer to arbitrate and help them understand each other. Unless you are a psychologist, with a known track record for resolving conflict, your friend will likely decline to let you wash his dirty laundry for him...
Now here's the clincher...
Be persistent. If you can not convince him to let you solve his problems, then hint vaguely that he is too proud, or to stubborn, or whatever....
And there you have it - one friendship down the drain, and not because of him, but because you were an insensitive asshole and just assumed you could solve other peoples problems for them.
But there's more.....
Invite him over to join your family for a holiday celebration - say Christmas or Hari Raya or Chinese New Year.... the dynamics of such celebrations are always focussed on family, so making such an invitation is fraught with risk and assumptions. More likely than not, your 'good' intention will offend your friend for any number of reasons, and that would put the proverbial last nail into the coffin of your friendship.
How do I know all this? - well, I am guessing, but then he has not accepted my dinner invitations for a long time already, and I dont think it is purely because he is busy.
I'm sorry Al, I was an asshole. Twice. Forgive me?
Sunday 30 April 2006
Brokeback Mountain Weekly Grocery Lists
Brokeback
for
WEEK ONE
- Beans
- Bacon
- Coffee
- Whiskey
WEEK TWO
- Beans
- Ham
- Coffee
- Whiskey
- Beans al fresca
- Thin-sliced Bacon
- Hazelnut Coffee
- Sky vodka & Tanqueray gin
- K-Y gel
WEEK FOUR
- Beans en salade
- Pancetta
- Coffee (espresso grind)
- 5-6 bottles best Chardonnay
- 2 tubes K-Y gel
WEEK FIVE
- Fresh Fava beans
- Jasmine rice
- Prosciutto, approx. 8 ounces, thinly sliced
- Medallions of veal
- Porcini mushrooms
- 1/2 pint of heavy whipping cream
- 1 Cub Scout uniform, size 42 long
- 5-6 bottles French Bordeaux (Estate Reserve)
- 1 extra large bottle Astro-glide
WEEK SIX
- Yukon Gold potatoes
- Heavy whipping cream
- Asparagus (very thin)
- Organic Eggs
- Spanish Lemons
- Gruyere cheese (well aged)
- Crushed Walnuts
- Arborio Rice for Risotto
- Arugula
- Clarified Butter
- Extra Virgin Olive oil
- Pure Balsamic vinegar
- 6 yards white silk organdy
- 6 yards pale ivory taffeta
- 3 cases of Dom Perignon Masters Reserve
- Large tin Crisco
Thursday 27 April 2006
Dilberted (a.k.a. people you dont want help from, #1)
It was Friday afternoon when he dropped by to visit, carrying the tool of his new trade: an open spreadsheet in his laptop, crammed with action items in every cell.
Now I may never be the life and soul of any party I attend, but I am sociable enough to be happy to see a friend again after has left my department to find "new and different challenges" elsewhere.
My pleasure at seeing him again, however, was sort-lived. "I want to talk to you," he said carefully, as though weighing his words, and selecting the ones least likely to cause me to spontaneouly combust, "about your server security check."
My first reaction was "Oh no - more work."
But then I kicked myself: He's a friend, and what's more, he himself was working with a team doing security checks less than a month ago . . . surely he will have some practical tool that simplifies my team's work and/or increases our skill. After all - he's gone and joined the Security Compliance team. What else would he do?
Things are never really what they seem to be.
"How sure can you be," he said, "that when your teammate puts a 'YES' in the checklist, they really checked and found the setting to be as required?"
"Uuuuhhhhh" I said, totally flabbergasted.
"It has happened before," he said, "that for whatever reason, a person could have indicated 'YES' when the answer should have been 'NO'. We would like to make it so that we (the security section) can verify the security checks".
Ok, I'm open to any resonable suggestions....
"Well," he said, "can you write a program that prints to a file all the security settings in your system?"
Me? Write a program?
"Then can you indicate in each line of that output file, which question in the security check that that line satisfies?"
Excuse me? You want me to produce an output dumb enough for a total idiot to check? But our auditor to date has never asked for a clearly marked file... in fact, he asked for a dump file, which you would need tools to decipher.
"fine then," he said, "can you get those tools, and produce that output for the auditor...."
But - but - dont you security guys know what tools are out there? Don't you know what the auditor uses? Because I dont!!
Bottom line - and this is the point of this entry/blog/rant - is that he wanted me to 'enhance' my report so someone with no knowledge could check it. He was not offering to train me or my team in better managing our machines. He was not bringing a tool that helped us do our security checks faster and more accurately. He just wanted someone to write a program (who the heck is going to keep it current, and make changes everytime something on the machines changes?) and then spend hours marking up the report so that someone ignorant of the system could compare it to the security checklist.
No. Sorry. It does not work that way. A program that can pull security settings from dozens of places is not possible. We are not master programmers, we dont maintain complex applications.
No. Sorry. I will not spend my already insufficient time poring over a WORD document to hilight which line satisfies section A.1.2.1.17, and which line satisfies section A.1.3.1.21.
Go Away - you are not bringing any value to me. You call ourself a security specialist, but your team refuses to develop or acquire any skill in security implementation on any platform. Managing security gaps by spreadsheet makes you only a Project Manager, and a bad one at that. Knowing intimately how the Security Process works makes you just a Process Architect, and a limited one at that.
Come back when you can teach me to secure a Websphere server. Or how to verify TFTP is not exploitable.
Come back when you can do what it says you can do on your business card.
Now I may never be the life and soul of any party I attend, but I am sociable enough to be happy to see a friend again after has left my department to find "new and different challenges" elsewhere.
My pleasure at seeing him again, however, was sort-lived. "I want to talk to you," he said carefully, as though weighing his words, and selecting the ones least likely to cause me to spontaneouly combust, "about your server security check."
My first reaction was "Oh no - more work."
But then I kicked myself: He's a friend, and what's more, he himself was working with a team doing security checks less than a month ago . . . surely he will have some practical tool that simplifies my team's work and/or increases our skill. After all - he's gone and joined the Security Compliance team. What else would he do?
Things are never really what they seem to be.
"How sure can you be," he said, "that when your teammate puts a 'YES' in the checklist, they really checked and found the setting to be as required?"
"Uuuuhhhhh" I said, totally flabbergasted.
"It has happened before," he said, "that for whatever reason, a person could have indicated 'YES' when the answer should have been 'NO'. We would like to make it so that we (the security section) can verify the security checks".
Ok, I'm open to any resonable suggestions....
"Well," he said, "can you write a program that prints to a file all the security settings in your system?"
Me? Write a program?
"Then can you indicate in each line of that output file, which question in the security check that that line satisfies?"
Excuse me? You want me to produce an output dumb enough for a total idiot to check? But our auditor to date has never asked for a clearly marked file... in fact, he asked for a dump file, which you would need tools to decipher.
"fine then," he said, "can you get those tools, and produce that output for the auditor...."
But - but - dont you security guys know what tools are out there? Don't you know what the auditor uses? Because I dont!!
Bottom line - and this is the point of this entry/blog/rant - is that he wanted me to 'enhance' my report so someone with no knowledge could check it. He was not offering to train me or my team in better managing our machines. He was not bringing a tool that helped us do our security checks faster and more accurately. He just wanted someone to write a program (who the heck is going to keep it current, and make changes everytime something on the machines changes?) and then spend hours marking up the report so that someone ignorant of the system could compare it to the security checklist.
No. Sorry. It does not work that way. A program that can pull security settings from dozens of places is not possible. We are not master programmers, we dont maintain complex applications.
No. Sorry. I will not spend my already insufficient time poring over a WORD document to hilight which line satisfies section A.1.2.1.17, and which line satisfies section A.1.3.1.21.
Go Away - you are not bringing any value to me. You call ourself a security specialist, but your team refuses to develop or acquire any skill in security implementation on any platform. Managing security gaps by spreadsheet makes you only a Project Manager, and a bad one at that. Knowing intimately how the Security Process works makes you just a Process Architect, and a limited one at that.
Come back when you can teach me to secure a Websphere server. Or how to verify TFTP is not exploitable.
Come back when you can do what it says you can do on your business card.
Monday 17 April 2006
IKEA Canteen
Have you ever been to the IKEA centeen in Mutiara Damansara?
It serves hearty meals at resonable prices... well.. resonable if you consider the other eateries in IKANO.... the only place more resonable would be the food court, but not quite as hearty.
Anyway... IKEA's business model is interesting - keep costs as low as possible, and pass the savings to the customer. Result: pretty good furniture and home accessories for pretty aceptable prices. (This can't compare with Courts Mammoth though, where the business model is more of low quality for lower price.... but thats comparing apples to oranges I'd say).
The only problem is, we 'educated' Klang Valley managers, executives and consultants all can't seem to get the idea that we play a part in contributing to the lower cost of operation (and by extension, the lower price to the customer - us). In spite of clear signs in the canteen requesting patrons to pick up their own food trays, invariably there are monkeys who leave their trays on the tables and walk away.
What - when it was stacked with enough food to feed an African village for a month, it was light enough to carry, but now that you have polished off 90% of it, the remaining vegetables and gravy and half cup of coffee is too heavy for you?
So IKEA has to employ additional staff just to man the tables... to pick up scraps and trays, and put stuff away. These people could be used more constructively elsewhere. And DONT please someone say "Oh - we are creating employment by leaving the tray on the table" You wont deserve to be acknowledged with an answer.
Another sad waste is the 'sampling' that goes on. Sure, IKEA puts out toys and furniture to try out, and for our kids to play with, but you arent supposed to take stuff away !! Admittedly, it's a minority who stoop to stealing.... but there are also some parents who seem totally oblivious to the fact that their children are damaging goods.
Please people, read the signs, respect what is not yours. In the zoo, behave like a monkey if you want; in the office, dont let go till you have your pound of flesh; in Parliament, show your colours by putting down the minority opposition with fatuous non sequiturs; but in IKEA, why not be as civilised as a Swede?
It serves hearty meals at resonable prices... well.. resonable if you consider the other eateries in IKANO.... the only place more resonable would be the food court, but not quite as hearty.
Anyway... IKEA's business model is interesting - keep costs as low as possible, and pass the savings to the customer. Result: pretty good furniture and home accessories for pretty aceptable prices. (This can't compare with Courts Mammoth though, where the business model is more of low quality for lower price.... but thats comparing apples to oranges I'd say).
The only problem is, we 'educated' Klang Valley managers, executives and consultants all can't seem to get the idea that we play a part in contributing to the lower cost of operation (and by extension, the lower price to the customer - us). In spite of clear signs in the canteen requesting patrons to pick up their own food trays, invariably there are monkeys who leave their trays on the tables and walk away.
What - when it was stacked with enough food to feed an African village for a month, it was light enough to carry, but now that you have polished off 90% of it, the remaining vegetables and gravy and half cup of coffee is too heavy for you?
So IKEA has to employ additional staff just to man the tables... to pick up scraps and trays, and put stuff away. These people could be used more constructively elsewhere. And DONT please someone say "Oh - we are creating employment by leaving the tray on the table" You wont deserve to be acknowledged with an answer.
Another sad waste is the 'sampling' that goes on. Sure, IKEA puts out toys and furniture to try out, and for our kids to play with, but you arent supposed to take stuff away !! Admittedly, it's a minority who stoop to stealing.... but there are also some parents who seem totally oblivious to the fact that their children are damaging goods.
Please people, read the signs, respect what is not yours. In the zoo, behave like a monkey if you want; in the office, dont let go till you have your pound of flesh; in Parliament, show your colours by putting down the minority opposition with fatuous non sequiturs; but in IKEA, why not be as civilised as a Swede?
Wednesday 29 March 2006
Are You Successful?
Helped a friend of mine today.... no, it is neither rare nor remarkable that I help a friend, and that is not the reason for this blog. What is remarkable is that I helped him prepare a write-up for a job application.
He was supposed to say if he thought he is successful, and why... a daunting task to me, because for all I have achieved, my inferiority complexes and neuroses simply dont allow me to easily think of myself in the terms "successful" or "achiever".
But here is my friend, more than a decade my junior, and yet with a clear idea of what he has achieved, how much he has learned, and what abilities he can bring to bear when required. And all this articulated with a simple modesty both refreshing and endearing.
Unfortunately, his first attempt to put it in the written word dissolved into a soup of bombast and vague references..... but then, that was what I was there for.
"Tell me..." I said, "Do you think, for a person your age and with your experience, that you are successful?"
And he talked to me for a full minute in plain, simple truth, before realising that was exactly what he had to write.
Good luck my friend. I see a future leader in you.... would that the world not loose its chance.
He was supposed to say if he thought he is successful, and why... a daunting task to me, because for all I have achieved, my inferiority complexes and neuroses simply dont allow me to easily think of myself in the terms "successful" or "achiever".
But here is my friend, more than a decade my junior, and yet with a clear idea of what he has achieved, how much he has learned, and what abilities he can bring to bear when required. And all this articulated with a simple modesty both refreshing and endearing.
Unfortunately, his first attempt to put it in the written word dissolved into a soup of bombast and vague references..... but then, that was what I was there for.
"Tell me..." I said, "Do you think, for a person your age and with your experience, that you are successful?"
And he talked to me for a full minute in plain, simple truth, before realising that was exactly what he had to write.
Good luck my friend. I see a future leader in you.... would that the world not loose its chance.
Friday 24 March 2006
The Daily Motivator
Wednesday 8 March 2006
The Kelvinator
I was getting my afternoon cup of coffee when he came into the pantry and beamed at me.... a sure sign of trouble.
"I have decided," he said as he spooned coffee and sugar into his cup, "that I will call you The Kelvinator."
"My name is KELVIN," I said in as frosty a voice as I could manage, "and I do NOT manufacture refrigerators."
"No no no - don't jump to conclusions" he said, "hear me out. This will make people sit up and take notice of you."
"Its something like being called The Terminator, except....." and here I saw the deadly twinkle in his eye "cooler."
"I have decided," he said as he spooned coffee and sugar into his cup, "that I will call you The Kelvinator."
"My name is KELVIN," I said in as frosty a voice as I could manage, "and I do NOT manufacture refrigerators."
"No no no - don't jump to conclusions" he said, "hear me out. This will make people sit up and take notice of you."
"Its something like being called The Terminator, except....." and here I saw the deadly twinkle in his eye "cooler."
Tuesday 7 March 2006
Durian Party
(contextual information for non-Malaysians) The Durian (pictured right) is known in Malaysia as the King of fruits. It can be as large as a football, and smells like the sulphur pools of Rotorua on a bad day. Be that as it may, we love it for its buttery flesh and unique sweet taste. Occasionally, an employer will have a 'Durian Party', where baskets of the fruit are brought in to a convenient place and the office folk can stuff themselves silly...... this story happened at one such party.
I believe the supplier was trying to dispose of the smallest fruit first, so after I had patiently waited for my turn I was rewarded with two rather dissapointing specimens. I carried them back to the table where my collegues were waiting to tuck in, and immediately got flack from one of the ladies there:
"Why are your fruits so small?" She said, and looked me square in the eye.
What else can a man do in the face of such provocation?
"Madam," I intoned, "My fruits may be small, but they are exceedingly sweet."
Durian Parties are such fun.
Friday 24 February 2006
Procrastination
The great liar, the consummate thief, the slow killer.
Procrastination fools you into thinking there is more time than you need.
It lulls you to sleep, makes mediocre books seem facinating, enraptures you with inane sitcoms.
It whispers of sunny skies, laughing children, flying frisbees.
Procrastination steals your energy, channeling it into a thousand distractions.
It robs you of minutes, pockets your hours, gobbles up days.
It diverts your eyes, types url's in your browser, answers your mail.
Procrastination would be your end.
It alienates you from collegues, builds tension with your partner, chases away children.
It makes you work late into the night, increases your BP, triggers those migraines.
Oh why didn't I do this damn report earlier?
Procrastination fools you into thinking there is more time than you need.
It lulls you to sleep, makes mediocre books seem facinating, enraptures you with inane sitcoms.
It whispers of sunny skies, laughing children, flying frisbees.
Procrastination steals your energy, channeling it into a thousand distractions.
It robs you of minutes, pockets your hours, gobbles up days.
It diverts your eyes, types url's in your browser, answers your mail.
Procrastination would be your end.
It alienates you from collegues, builds tension with your partner, chases away children.
It makes you work late into the night, increases your BP, triggers those migraines.
Oh why didn't I do this damn report earlier?
Friday 3 February 2006
Good Bank, Bad Bank
There's a little ditty they're singing in the city.....
No, it doesn't go Om-pah-pah, it goes "Be rewarded, Feel rewarded"
I mention this because the bank advertising with that catchphrase gave me particularly fecal service (almost as bad a Citibank, but that's another story) when I took a car loan from them last year. So much for a so called 'anchor bank'.
My best experiences ever with banks were/are with;
[1] Phileo Allied
Alas, Phileo Allied was violated, pillaged, decimated and digested by a larger bank, and they (and their good service) are never to be seen again.
[2] Alliance Bank
Why do I like them? They know exactly where to invest so that the customer benefits. To be precise, they have a branch in IKANO that's open Sat and Sunday, when we working class drudges have some time to do banking. Even when the branch is closed, they have USEFUL (please note, Mr 'anchor bank') machines, such as cheque payment autotellers so you can pay your loan/credit card easily while doing your weekend shopping. Of course, the cash ATM's are also there.
Even the tiny Alliance branch in TTDI has a cheque payment machine. Certainly this is one bank I would prefer to do business with.
CAVEAT: Excellent impressions aside, one must note that all institutions have their share of dunderheads who make your life difficult. I am not saying Alliance won't botch up YOUR banking experience. What I am saying is; so far, I have had nothing but excellent service from them. Also note that there ARE other banks which have branches in shopping centres.
ASIDE: By the way... the ass who said that 'banks not working on Saturday' would encourage electronic and/or internet banking was thinking with his rectum.
Making my life harder is not 'encouraging' me to use electronic banking.
'Encouragement' would be:
No, it doesn't go Om-pah-pah, it goes "Be rewarded, Feel rewarded"
I mention this because the bank advertising with that catchphrase gave me particularly fecal service (almost as bad a Citibank, but that's another story) when I took a car loan from them last year. So much for a so called 'anchor bank'.
My best experiences ever with banks were/are with;
[1] Phileo Allied
Alas, Phileo Allied was violated, pillaged, decimated and digested by a larger bank, and they (and their good service) are never to be seen again.
[2] Alliance Bank
Why do I like them? They know exactly where to invest so that the customer benefits. To be precise, they have a branch in IKANO that's open Sat and Sunday, when we working class drudges have some time to do banking. Even when the branch is closed, they have USEFUL (please note, Mr 'anchor bank') machines, such as cheque payment autotellers so you can pay your loan/credit card easily while doing your weekend shopping. Of course, the cash ATM's are also there.
Even the tiny Alliance branch in TTDI has a cheque payment machine. Certainly this is one bank I would prefer to do business with.
CAVEAT: Excellent impressions aside, one must note that all institutions have their share of dunderheads who make your life difficult. I am not saying Alliance won't botch up YOUR banking experience. What I am saying is; so far, I have had nothing but excellent service from them. Also note that there ARE other banks which have branches in shopping centres.
ASIDE: By the way... the ass who said that 'banks not working on Saturday' would encourage electronic and/or internet banking was thinking with his rectum.
Making my life harder is not 'encouraging' me to use electronic banking.
'Encouragement' would be:
- Increasing the security and functions available in all banks' internet banking websites, so we have better facilities as well as more peace of mind.
- Making sure the banks take responsibility for their errors. We Malaysians should not have to accept financial institutions' legal disclaimer's that basically say "if ANYTHING goes wrong, it is the customers' fault".
- Instituting protocols for inter-bank transfers via internet transactions: why can't I pay my VISA bill from 'XYZ' bank using my savings account in 'ABC' bank? I can do this with a cheque, but not a networked computer.
- Increasing the competitiveness of our ISP's - I regret signing up for streamyx - by making them more service oriented & customer focussed.
- Improving the infrastructure: if the banks must close, perhaps they should setup kiosks in their ATM rooms so people have access to their internet banking facilities 24X7. I have seen this in one Maybank branch in KL, though I did not check to see if all MBB2U functions were available.
Friday 27 January 2006
Made-In-Malaysia Robot
Nothing like the monsters of Sci Fi horrors, though it is a horror of sorts,
Nothing like the helpful servants of Asimov's tales, though it tries to help.
Malaysia's robot is in a class of idiotic-horror all its own.
I could not do better than the writeup by Kenny Sia in his own blog.
go here
http://www.kennysia.com/archives/2006/01/made-in-malaysi.php
And thanks to Kenny for telling it as it is.!!
Nothing like the helpful servants of Asimov's tales, though it tries to help.
Malaysia's robot is in a class of idiotic-horror all its own.
I could not do better than the writeup by Kenny Sia in his own blog.
go here
http://www.kennysia.com/archives/2006/01/made-in-malaysi.php
And thanks to Kenny for telling it as it is.!!
Verbal Diarrhoea
This is part of an online chat I had one late night in the office just before Christmas 2005. Probably not as funny in retrospect as it was when I was typing, but some people might enjoy the word-play.... I must have been pumped full of caffeine that night.
...him: project plans to write
me....: did you see the note i sent ?
...him: status updates to give
...him: solutions to solve
...him: patches to download
...him: material to study
...him: today?
me....: :) you are soooooooooooo productive.
yes, i sent it just while ago
...him: oh.. lemme replicate
me....: cogitate, ruminate, replicate, abdicate
...him: coagulate
me....: fumigate, surrogate, expectorate
...him: agitate
...him: watergate
...him: oh yea. merry christmas!
me....: castigate, masturbate, vacillate, interrogate
me....: dont forget the vodka
...him: vodka cake!
...him: hmm.. vodka I have
me....: cake you can make
me....: vacillate, fluctuate, oscillate
...him: obfuscate
...him: the delicate
me....: escalate, marinate, urinate
...him: did u eat a dictionary or something?
me....: ?
me....: oh
me....: i am compensating for my constipation of ideas
with a diarrhoea of words
...him: diarrhoea of the mouth you have
...him: slow to download big big stuff
me....: what big stuff ?
...him: code and patches
...him: benson and hedges
...him: starsky and hutch
...him: wallace and gromit
...him: bonnie and clyde
me....: nescafe and coffee-mate
...him: samson and delilah
...him: thomas and guy?
me....: thomas and guyS
me....: cock and bull
me....: tooth and nail
me....: pooh and piglet
me....: tea and empathy
me....: coffee and doughnuts
me....: nuts and bolts
...him: this and that
...him: here and there
me....: rogers and hammerstein
me....: gilbert and sullivan
me....: princess and pea
me....: beer and pee
...him: short and sweet
...him: simple and nice
me....: short and curly
...him: tortoise and hare
me....: hare today, gnome tomorrow
me....: heading3, type in date of completion,
enter name of person completing checklist
me....: walter and gromit
...him: dead and buried
...him: heaven and earth
...him: heaven and hell
me....: hell and health checks
...him: blood and guts
...him: sweat and tears
...him: something and glory
...him: teach yourself shell programming in 24 hrs..
...him: hmm.. something I needed a long time ago
...him: money and you
me....: my left hand is cramping...
And it goes downhill from there.... Feedback please - are we really weird, or do other people have online chats remotely like this?
...him: project plans to write
me....: did you see the note i sent ?
...him: status updates to give
...him: solutions to solve
...him: patches to download
...him: material to study
...him: today?
me....: :) you are soooooooooooo productive.
yes, i sent it just while ago
...him: oh.. lemme replicate
me....: cogitate, ruminate, replicate, abdicate
...him: coagulate
me....: fumigate, surrogate, expectorate
...him: agitate
...him: watergate
...him: oh yea. merry christmas!
me....: castigate, masturbate, vacillate, interrogate
me....: dont forget the vodka
...him: vodka cake!
...him: hmm.. vodka I have
me....: cake you can make
me....: vacillate, fluctuate, oscillate
...him: obfuscate
...him: the delicate
me....: escalate, marinate, urinate
...him: did u eat a dictionary or something?
me....: ?
me....: oh
me....: i am compensating for my constipation of ideas
with a diarrhoea of words
...him: diarrhoea of the mouth you have
...him: slow to download big big stuff
me....: what big stuff ?
...him: code and patches
...him: benson and hedges
...him: starsky and hutch
...him: wallace and gromit
...him: bonnie and clyde
me....: nescafe and coffee-mate
...him: samson and delilah
...him: thomas and guy?
me....: thomas and guyS
me....: cock and bull
me....: tooth and nail
me....: pooh and piglet
me....: tea and empathy
me....: coffee and doughnuts
me....: nuts and bolts
...him: this and that
...him: here and there
me....: rogers and hammerstein
me....: gilbert and sullivan
me....: princess and pea
me....: beer and pee
...him: short and sweet
...him: simple and nice
me....: short and curly
...him: tortoise and hare
me....: hare today, gnome tomorrow
me....: heading3, type in date of completion,
enter name of person completing checklist
me....: walter and gromit
...him: dead and buried
...him: heaven and earth
...him: heaven and hell
me....: hell and health checks
...him: blood and guts
...him: sweat and tears
...him: something and glory
...him: teach yourself shell programming in 24 hrs..
...him: hmm.. something I needed a long time ago
...him: money and you
me....: my left hand is cramping...
And it goes downhill from there.... Feedback please - are we really weird, or do other people have online chats remotely like this?
Wednesday 25 January 2006
Silly Notices
#1 on 20060125. Except for the {company name}, the message below is verbatim from a notice a friend showed me. This notice was issued by his companies' General Counsel to be installed in all computer systems:
"This is {company name} computer system that is FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY. This system is subject to monitoring. Therefore, no expectation of privacy is to be assumed. Individuals found performing unauthorized activities are subject to disciplinary action including criminal prosecution"
They really should get someone who speaks English as a first language to work on that 1st sentance....
#2 on 20060208. This is the citation (again, verbatim) for the winner of a customer satisfaction survey:
He derives satisfaction by ensuring his clients requirements are contented. He's professional, courteous and quick to help. His skills are sharp and without prompting, he keeps them honed to a razor's edge.
He is a team player who is always willing to go the extra mile to manage his clients. He meticulously ensures every difficult situation seems easy to resolve.
Now how would I get my requirements to be contented?
"This is
They really should get someone who speaks English as a first language to work on that 1st sentance....
#2 on 20060208. This is the citation (again, verbatim) for the winner of a customer satisfaction survey:
He derives satisfaction by ensuring his clients requirements are contented. He's professional, courteous and quick to help. His skills are sharp and without prompting, he keeps them honed to a razor's edge.
He is a team player who is always willing to go the extra mile to manage his clients. He meticulously ensures every difficult situation seems easy to resolve.
Now how would I get my requirements to be contented?
Saturday 21 January 2006
Inauguration
An so it begins.
It has taken near to 2 months of hemming and hawing, and days of trying different names, and finally after a ridiculously long time to decide on whether I would blog, and if I did what I would call my blog, I commit to posterity this snippet from a line that perhaps has formed one of the major foundations of my development.
It is spoken by the Fox to The Little Prince after the Little Prince discovers why his rose is NOT like a million other roses in all the gardens of the world:
"And now, here's my secret. It is very simple. It is only with the heart that one can see clearly. What is essential is invisible to the eye."
The book is:The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (translator to English not noted, I am afraid)
And so this blog, this repository of my thoughts, begins on similar foundation as I myself did. See clearly - what is essential is invisible to the eye.
It has taken near to 2 months of hemming and hawing, and days of trying different names, and finally after a ridiculously long time to decide on whether I would blog, and if I did what I would call my blog, I commit to posterity this snippet from a line that perhaps has formed one of the major foundations of my development.
It is spoken by the Fox to The Little Prince after the Little Prince discovers why his rose is NOT like a million other roses in all the gardens of the world:
"And now, here's my secret. It is very simple. It is only with the heart that one can see clearly. What is essential is invisible to the eye."
The book is:The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (translator to English not noted, I am afraid)
And so this blog, this repository of my thoughts, begins on similar foundation as I myself did. See clearly - what is essential is invisible to the eye.
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