Friday, May 30, 2008
What a waste (X2)
I am in the midst of attending a two day internal seminar on, to use something other than its official name, the digital future and how to milk more money out of it. Many of you know that I work for a division of a humongous conglomerate, one that is active on the Intertubes in many ways, yet is not seen as a thought leader in most. So they've organized this two day session and I get to attend. (I also attend many of the monthly Web Wednesday HK meetings, even though I myself don't get to do very much web stuff professionally any more.)
This morning had numerous presentations on Web 2.0. I sat there looking at examples of what other companies were doing, wishing I was doing some of that. During a workshop, in which we were called upon to come up with ideas for merging disparate data streams within our company and coming up with a marketable product, I came up with something within 2 minutes that had some people talking the rest of the day.
But during another workshop, in which we were asked to note what we've learned, what insights had hit us during the day, I realized that if I wrote down what I really felt I'd learned, I'd be fired on the spot.
It's even more frustrating when I think about my last job - one in which I had full charge of the company's internet, intranet and extranet web sites (as well as all internal applications) and I had the chance to do some serious design and architecture for them, with what at the time were, I believe, fairly cutting edge designs (that would have provided real business value across the board). I was really proud of what I was doing. It was work that I was excited about and that energized me. And then I realized, that job was 7 years ago.
I think I proved to myself, and to others there, that despite my advanced age, I'm pretty much on top of what's happening with the web now, and where it could be going. It's just that I don't have a chance to use any of that knowledge on my job. And the odds are that as long as I stay with this company, I never will.
The fact is, that within my division at least, all of the creative work and decision making has been centralized within the home office. Since I'm working in a "remote region," none of that even trickles down to me or my team. All of the development is done in L.A. or London.
Zip back almost exactly 20 years ago. I was working for a start-up, before these things were called start-ups. I was the first employee hired by the company. I was promised equity in that company but never got it in writing and so I never got it. I realized I had to get out of there but didn't know where to go.
As part of that job, I had taught myself DOS, dBASE III and Novell. I had designed a database, taught the staff, maintained the computers and the network. Yet what I didn't know was the value of the knowledge I had gained there. I actually had no idea that these were skills that were in demand and for which I could receive a more reasonable rate of pay than what I was getting. I really thought at the time that if I left that company, the only option available to me was to get a job as a clerk at Tower Records. Then, thanks to a variety of accidents and advice, I found out the value of my knowledge, got some additional training and certification, and within two years was somewhere else at double the salary.
I'm at that same stage now. Odd as this may sound, I don't think I'm cognizant of the full extent of my knowledge. I think I know more than I know, or more than I realize. But one thing I don't know is how to take that knowledge and not just monetize it (as marketing folks love to say), but actually get myself into a position where I can use it. I've always been bad at self-promotion, at least where my career is concerned.
And that's why I would have been fired if I'd written down what I'd learned today. I've learned that I'm wasting my life away, at least career-wise. I have no opportunity to use any of the technologies that were shown to me. I'm not doing work that's challenging, I'm not doing work that comes anywhere near the level that I'm capable of doing, and the time I have for doing it is rapidly slipping away. Sometimes it's just too easy to accept the status quo. I get a fairly fat pay check. I lead a pretty damned easy life. Some of my friends tell me that if I make changes, I'll actually have to work again. Sometimes that is a pretty daunting prospect. Because when you stay too long in a shitty job, you get demotivated, and if I didn't know it before, now I'm completely aware of it. I need to do something to keep what's left of my brain from atrophying.
I need to make changes. And to do that, I need to make a plan. And then take action. And I will. "There is no try, there is only do."
================================
Our meeting is at Cyberport. This is my third time here - the first time was to go to a movie, the second a concert. Now I'm here for two solid days, and staying at Le Meridien to boot.
Cyberport looks nice on the outside, and on the inside too. But it's a fucking ghost town. I went wandering through the halls at one point this afternoon. I should have seen hordes of bright young minds running down hallways, laptops under arms, faces glowing with ideas. But most of those hallways are empty. Most of the display and demo rooms are dark. Most of the conference rooms are dark. Ah, the brave new world as presented to us by Richard Li.
As for the shopping mall, it's practically a ghost town. The only busy place was the Park 'n Shop, filled with housewives and maids who live nearby. I needed something for a stuffy nose but this joint is so inconsequential that it doesn't even rate a Watson or a Manning, even though I believe there's a law stating that they have to have at least one in every shopping mall. Not even a 7-11. Just that "International" Park 'n Shop, which had the saddest pharmacy section I've ever seen.
The hotel is not bad for what it is, a 4 star hotel trying to be a 5 star or a boutique hotel but not quite succeeding. My room isn't bad - decent size, partial sea view, 42 inch plasma tv, rainforest shower (but no bathtub). While the hotel is booked solid, the 3/4s empty bar had a huge projection screen showing Korean music videos. The elevator has a monitor showing Mr. Bean videos - sound turned up to full. And while I was quoted a discount price for parking, the reservation agent had forgotten to note it in my reservation. It took 3 complaints and an email to get that straightened out. I'd forgotten a plug adapter and it took an hour and 3 phone calls to get one. No daily newspaper. A fruit bowl with no fruit. No bathrobes. $180 a day for internet. A hotel in Cyberport charing extra for internet for fuck's sake? The hotel needs to understand that minor foul-ups like that can color one's entire impression of the hotel.
Plus I hate the relentless way they try to upsell you. There's this huge lucite contraption on the desk with things you can buy ... candy, nuts, gum. And a teddy bear, baseball cap, t-shirt and flipflops. And a pack of condoms, which on the preprinted price list is listed as an "Intimacy Kit." If that's not bad enough, there's a big bottle of Evian right on the night stand, with a huge price sticker on it.
It all just feels so uninspired.
This morning had numerous presentations on Web 2.0. I sat there looking at examples of what other companies were doing, wishing I was doing some of that. During a workshop, in which we were called upon to come up with ideas for merging disparate data streams within our company and coming up with a marketable product, I came up with something within 2 minutes that had some people talking the rest of the day.
But during another workshop, in which we were asked to note what we've learned, what insights had hit us during the day, I realized that if I wrote down what I really felt I'd learned, I'd be fired on the spot.
It's even more frustrating when I think about my last job - one in which I had full charge of the company's internet, intranet and extranet web sites (as well as all internal applications) and I had the chance to do some serious design and architecture for them, with what at the time were, I believe, fairly cutting edge designs (that would have provided real business value across the board). I was really proud of what I was doing. It was work that I was excited about and that energized me. And then I realized, that job was 7 years ago.
I think I proved to myself, and to others there, that despite my advanced age, I'm pretty much on top of what's happening with the web now, and where it could be going. It's just that I don't have a chance to use any of that knowledge on my job. And the odds are that as long as I stay with this company, I never will.
The fact is, that within my division at least, all of the creative work and decision making has been centralized within the home office. Since I'm working in a "remote region," none of that even trickles down to me or my team. All of the development is done in L.A. or London.
Zip back almost exactly 20 years ago. I was working for a start-up, before these things were called start-ups. I was the first employee hired by the company. I was promised equity in that company but never got it in writing and so I never got it. I realized I had to get out of there but didn't know where to go.
As part of that job, I had taught myself DOS, dBASE III and Novell. I had designed a database, taught the staff, maintained the computers and the network. Yet what I didn't know was the value of the knowledge I had gained there. I actually had no idea that these were skills that were in demand and for which I could receive a more reasonable rate of pay than what I was getting. I really thought at the time that if I left that company, the only option available to me was to get a job as a clerk at Tower Records. Then, thanks to a variety of accidents and advice, I found out the value of my knowledge, got some additional training and certification, and within two years was somewhere else at double the salary.
I'm at that same stage now. Odd as this may sound, I don't think I'm cognizant of the full extent of my knowledge. I think I know more than I know, or more than I realize. But one thing I don't know is how to take that knowledge and not just monetize it (as marketing folks love to say), but actually get myself into a position where I can use it. I've always been bad at self-promotion, at least where my career is concerned.
And that's why I would have been fired if I'd written down what I'd learned today. I've learned that I'm wasting my life away, at least career-wise. I have no opportunity to use any of the technologies that were shown to me. I'm not doing work that's challenging, I'm not doing work that comes anywhere near the level that I'm capable of doing, and the time I have for doing it is rapidly slipping away. Sometimes it's just too easy to accept the status quo. I get a fairly fat pay check. I lead a pretty damned easy life. Some of my friends tell me that if I make changes, I'll actually have to work again. Sometimes that is a pretty daunting prospect. Because when you stay too long in a shitty job, you get demotivated, and if I didn't know it before, now I'm completely aware of it. I need to do something to keep what's left of my brain from atrophying.
I need to make changes. And to do that, I need to make a plan. And then take action. And I will. "There is no try, there is only do."
================================
Our meeting is at Cyberport. This is my third time here - the first time was to go to a movie, the second a concert. Now I'm here for two solid days, and staying at Le Meridien to boot.
Cyberport looks nice on the outside, and on the inside too. But it's a fucking ghost town. I went wandering through the halls at one point this afternoon. I should have seen hordes of bright young minds running down hallways, laptops under arms, faces glowing with ideas. But most of those hallways are empty. Most of the display and demo rooms are dark. Most of the conference rooms are dark. Ah, the brave new world as presented to us by Richard Li.
As for the shopping mall, it's practically a ghost town. The only busy place was the Park 'n Shop, filled with housewives and maids who live nearby. I needed something for a stuffy nose but this joint is so inconsequential that it doesn't even rate a Watson or a Manning, even though I believe there's a law stating that they have to have at least one in every shopping mall. Not even a 7-11. Just that "International" Park 'n Shop, which had the saddest pharmacy section I've ever seen.
The hotel is not bad for what it is, a 4 star hotel trying to be a 5 star or a boutique hotel but not quite succeeding. My room isn't bad - decent size, partial sea view, 42 inch plasma tv, rainforest shower (but no bathtub). While the hotel is booked solid, the 3/4s empty bar had a huge projection screen showing Korean music videos. The elevator has a monitor showing Mr. Bean videos - sound turned up to full. And while I was quoted a discount price for parking, the reservation agent had forgotten to note it in my reservation. It took 3 complaints and an email to get that straightened out. I'd forgotten a plug adapter and it took an hour and 3 phone calls to get one. No daily newspaper. A fruit bowl with no fruit. No bathrobes. $180 a day for internet. A hotel in Cyberport charing extra for internet for fuck's sake? The hotel needs to understand that minor foul-ups like that can color one's entire impression of the hotel.
Plus I hate the relentless way they try to upsell you. There's this huge lucite contraption on the desk with things you can buy ... candy, nuts, gum. And a teddy bear, baseball cap, t-shirt and flipflops. And a pack of condoms, which on the preprinted price list is listed as an "Intimacy Kit." If that's not bad enough, there's a big bottle of Evian right on the night stand, with a huge price sticker on it.
It all just feels so uninspired.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Parents' Grief Turns to Rage at Chinese Officials
It's a little bit funny how right after the Sichuan earthquake, some people were saying there should be investigations into shoddy construction while others were saying, basically, shut up and mourn. But now the former group is getting more vocal.
From the NY Times:
From the NY Times:
To my mind, aside from a thousand other things, this also points out the complete nonsense in Regina Ip's recent SCMP column, which I commented on a couple of items back. Because, first of all, it shows that Chinese do actually speak up and participate and protest when there is something that they care deeply about. And in no small part, the corruption that led to the shoddy construction, the unmitigated greed, the attitude of "fuck everyone else as long as I get rich" - is clearly a by-product of an appointed government that doesn't have to worry about keeping their jobs by standing for re-election. Construction standards were in place. They were purposely not followed and those who should have enforced them only cared about lining their own pockets. They are not answerable to the general population and don't need to worry about them ... until disaster strikes.
Bereaved parents whose children were crushed to death in their classrooms during the earthquake in Sichuan Province have turned mourning ceremonies into protests in recent days, forcing officials to address growing political repercussions over shoddy construction of public schools.
Parents of the estimated 10,000 children who lost their lives in the quake have grown so enraged about collapsed schools that they have overcome their usual caution about confronting Communist Party officials. Many say they are especially upset that some schools for poor students crumbled into rubble even though government offices and more elite schools not far away survived the May 12 quake largely intact.
On Tuesday, an informal gathering of parents at Juyuan Middle School in Dujiangyan to commemorate their children gave way to unbridled fury.
Some parents said local officials had known for years that the school was unsafe but refused to take action.The protests threaten to undermine the government’s attempts to promote its response to the quake as effective and to highlight heroic rescue efforts by the People’s Liberation Army, which has dispatched 150,000 soldiers to the region. Censors have blocked detailed reporting of the schools controversy by the state-run media, but a photo of Mr. Jiang kneeling before protesters has become a sensation on some Web forums, bringing national attention to the incident.
One of China’s boldest magazines, the business journal Caijing, used its main commentary article in its latest issue to call on the government to step up investigations of faulty school construction. Xinhua, the official news agency, also issued a commentary saying a speedy official response was warranted.
The authorities in Beijing appear to recognize the delicacy of the issue. On Monday, a spokesman for the Education Ministry, Wang Xuming, promised a reassessment of school buildings in quake zones, adding that those responsible for cutting corners on school construction would be “severely punished.”
Monday, May 26, 2008
Jealousy
Final post for today?
Hong Kong law mandates no smoking in restaurants. However, smoking is still allowed in bars until July 2009. But today, if you go to Wanchai bars and you smoke, there's a surprise in store for you. Devils Advocate, White Stag, Heat, Mes Ami, Delaney, Carnegie and other bars are suddenly all non-smoking.
What happened is that one of the nearby restaurants has complained to the authorities that these bars are really restaurants pretending to be bars. And the authorities then stepped in and decreed that these venues are restaurants and therefore must be smoke free.
Sure, these places all serve food. Some of the food is quite okay, too. Did you know that every Monday night at Devil's Advocate you can get a 12 inch pizza with your choice of topping, an appetizer and two standard drinks for just $89? And how many people know that Dusk Till Dawn has a dinner for $105 every night - 3 courses and a glass of house wine? So food is a steady part of their business, but definitely not the largest part.
These places all complied with the law a year ago that said they must prove they get over 60% (I think) of their revenue from drinks. But now some spoil sport took a look, figured he was losing business because he can't allow smoking and decided to ruin it for everyone. "If I can't have it, neither can you! Nyah, nyah, nyah!"
The bars in question are going to court tomorrow to appeal the decision.
Meanwhile, one is left to wonder, which restaurant is run by babies who would make such a petulant claim? No one is publicly saying, but there are only a few in that area (ones that cater to a primarily foreign clientèle) - Outback, Curry Pot, JoJo's Mess, a couple of others.
==========================
Years ago, something similar happened to me. In the mid 80s, I was manager and co-owner of a CD shop in New York's Greenwich Village. At the time, all the good rock stuff was only coming out on CD in the UK, or at least weeks in advance of US release. And I had a guy in the UK who would call me every Monday and read me the list of the week's new releases. I'd have them in hand by Thursday, same week, and at a wholesale price not too much higher than domestic releases.
Word got out and my business boomed. On Saturdays, people were coming from Philadelphia and Connecticut to my store. I was even starting a small wholesale business, selling these imports to other stores.
And some of the stores near me got jealous of the business I was doing. They were also selling UK imports, but they couldn't figure out how I was getting the stuff so fast and so cheap. One store figured out that the best way to complete with me was to report me to the RIAA, because at the time it was illegal to sell parallel imports (though everyone was doing it).
The RIAA sent detectives to my shop, they bought stuff, and soon I was the recipient of a cease and desist letter. My partner said we had to comply and, truth is, we didn't have the money to hire lawyers to fight this.
Overnight my business dropped by about 60%. And the hundreds of people who came to my shop every week had no new source for their weekly music fix. Everyone lost.
Luckily for me, one of my steady customers was a guy who worked in syndicated radio and had a vague idea about using my CD knowledge as the basis of a new syndicated series. But that's another story for another time ...
Of course these bars won't suffer a 60% drop-off if they have to remain non-smoking. Most are open to the street so it's just two steps to get outside and light up. Just another jealous asshole somewhere.
Hong Kong law mandates no smoking in restaurants. However, smoking is still allowed in bars until July 2009. But today, if you go to Wanchai bars and you smoke, there's a surprise in store for you. Devils Advocate, White Stag, Heat, Mes Ami, Delaney, Carnegie and other bars are suddenly all non-smoking.
What happened is that one of the nearby restaurants has complained to the authorities that these bars are really restaurants pretending to be bars. And the authorities then stepped in and decreed that these venues are restaurants and therefore must be smoke free.
Sure, these places all serve food. Some of the food is quite okay, too. Did you know that every Monday night at Devil's Advocate you can get a 12 inch pizza with your choice of topping, an appetizer and two standard drinks for just $89? And how many people know that Dusk Till Dawn has a dinner for $105 every night - 3 courses and a glass of house wine? So food is a steady part of their business, but definitely not the largest part.
These places all complied with the law a year ago that said they must prove they get over 60% (I think) of their revenue from drinks. But now some spoil sport took a look, figured he was losing business because he can't allow smoking and decided to ruin it for everyone. "If I can't have it, neither can you! Nyah, nyah, nyah!"
The bars in question are going to court tomorrow to appeal the decision.
Meanwhile, one is left to wonder, which restaurant is run by babies who would make such a petulant claim? No one is publicly saying, but there are only a few in that area (ones that cater to a primarily foreign clientèle) - Outback, Curry Pot, JoJo's Mess, a couple of others.
==========================
Years ago, something similar happened to me. In the mid 80s, I was manager and co-owner of a CD shop in New York's Greenwich Village. At the time, all the good rock stuff was only coming out on CD in the UK, or at least weeks in advance of US release. And I had a guy in the UK who would call me every Monday and read me the list of the week's new releases. I'd have them in hand by Thursday, same week, and at a wholesale price not too much higher than domestic releases.
Word got out and my business boomed. On Saturdays, people were coming from Philadelphia and Connecticut to my store. I was even starting a small wholesale business, selling these imports to other stores.
And some of the stores near me got jealous of the business I was doing. They were also selling UK imports, but they couldn't figure out how I was getting the stuff so fast and so cheap. One store figured out that the best way to complete with me was to report me to the RIAA, because at the time it was illegal to sell parallel imports (though everyone was doing it).
The RIAA sent detectives to my shop, they bought stuff, and soon I was the recipient of a cease and desist letter. My partner said we had to comply and, truth is, we didn't have the money to hire lawyers to fight this.
Overnight my business dropped by about 60%. And the hundreds of people who came to my shop every week had no new source for their weekly music fix. Everyone lost.
Luckily for me, one of my steady customers was a guy who worked in syndicated radio and had a vague idea about using my CD knowledge as the basis of a new syndicated series. But that's another story for another time ...
Of course these bars won't suffer a 60% drop-off if they have to remain non-smoking. Most are open to the street so it's just two steps to get outside and light up. Just another jealous asshole somewhere.
How low can you go? Watch Fox and find out
I wouldn't have thought Fox "News" could possibly go any lower than they already have. Yet they manage to find new depths to plumb.
On air, Fox "News" Channel contributor Liz Trotta wished for the assassination of Barack Obama and then laughed. The person interviewing her responded with a lame, "talk about how you really feel" while she was laughing.
You can see the clip here.
On air, Fox "News" Channel contributor Liz Trotta wished for the assassination of Barack Obama and then laughed. The person interviewing her responded with a lame, "talk about how you really feel" while she was laughing.
You can see the clip here.
When asked her opinion of the recent scandal surrounding some comments made by Sen. Hillary Clinton, which Trotta described by saying that, "some are reading [it] as a suggestion that somebody knock off Osama." Hemmer quickly corrected Trotta, having noticed that she had said "Osama" when she meant "Obama." At this point, Trotta said, "Obama. Well...both if we could!" Trotta then laughed gleefully.You can certainly make a case for Hilary just being unaware when she made her RFK comment but Trotta is unequivocal in her comment. Apparently this woman is so terrified of the possibility of a black president that she hopes someone kills him. Was she fired or even censured after making that deliberate comment on air? Of course not. This is Fox "News" - News For AmeriKKKans.
Regina Ip still thinks you're an idiot
The SCMP published another essay by Regina Ip today. Some excerpts:
In Ms. Ip's view, things like "universal sufferage" (which she deems a political right and not a human one) or "access to sources of information free of official bias" are Western concepts and not Chinese and so there is nothing wrong with dictatorship, censorship and all that go with them.
Also in the SCMP letters section today, a Mr. Richard Wright, presumably not the keyboard player from Pink Floyd, writes in to complain about height restrictions for new buildings in Mid Levels. Apparently he doesn't grasp the concept that filling a district of single lane streets with huge towers will result in increased traffic, noise, pollution and decreased quality of life for residents. More important is that he receive a decent return on his investment.
Well, it's Monday, you expect me to not be grumpy on a Monday?
Why does the west find it so hard to stomach China's Olympian ambition? A major source of the conflict must be China's radically different government system.Why "must" it be? If you're waiting for her to offer proof or examples, don't bother. Instead the rest of this is a defense for the continuation of government by tyranny.
Western liberal democracy, to use Yale political scientist Robert Dahl's polyarchy concept, is marked by political participation, opposition and contestation, and buttressed by such political rights as universal suffrage and access to sources of information free of official bias. Against this benchmark, a communist oligarchy lacks legitimacy. By western standards, such a system is bound to be detested by its people. Yet, by historical Chinese standards, and viewed in the context of China's traditional values, there is nothing fundamentally wrong with the way its government is organised today.According to Wikipedia's article on Polyarchy, "the fundamental democratic principle is that, when it comes to binding collective decisions, each person in a political community is entitled to have his or her interests be given equal consideration. A polyarchy is a nation-state that has certain procedures that are necessary conditions for following the democratic principle." These procedures boil down to everyone having a vote, voting results are final and laws passed by elected officials are enforced. Apparently this system would not work for China.
In Ms. Ip's view, things like "universal sufferage" (which she deems a political right and not a human one) or "access to sources of information free of official bias" are Western concepts and not Chinese and so there is nothing wrong with dictatorship, censorship and all that go with them.
... from early days, the Chinese people had always accepted the emperor, "the son of heaven", as the natural ruler. The business of government was left to the ruling elite of scholar-officials.(Presumably Ms. Ip sees herself as one of the "ruling elite.")
Embedded in the Taoist ideal is the notion of life free from meddling by, and knowledge of, government. Until the west started gatecrashing China in the 19th century, the masses had preferred "to live and let live" in blissful ignorance of state affairs, except when life became intolerable. The low rate of Chinese political participation in the west is an indication of this mentality.Did they prefer this? Or was it that anyone who didn't prefer it led a revolution, toppled a dynasty or was executed? And where are the statistics about "low rate of Chinese political participation in the west"?
Another important distinction is the fact that western liberal democracy revolves around the rights of the individual, while China's political system has, from early times, been built on the family as the basic unit. That is why modern political scientists never tire of talking about freedom as the first criterion of democratic quality, followed by others such as human rights, pluralism and transparency. In the case of China, Confucianism, with its heavy emphasis on family values, unity and social harmony, has been adopted as the state ideology since the time of Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty (157-87BC). The Chinese have always accepted government by "guardians", not dissimilar to Plato in ancient Athens, who are supposedly endowed with a superior art of government. Such a system might seem nightmarish to the west, but can you blame an apple for not being an orange?
Just another dingbat kowtowing to Beijing and offering up phony excuses for a non-elected non-representative government that oppresses and murders its own people. Ms. Ip likes running for elected office and having access to media to publish her views but she doesn't care if other people don't enjoy the same freedoms because she is a member of the elite and you're not.
Also in the SCMP letters section today, a Mr. Richard Wright, presumably not the keyboard player from Pink Floyd, writes in to complain about height restrictions for new buildings in Mid Levels. Apparently he doesn't grasp the concept that filling a district of single lane streets with huge towers will result in increased traffic, noise, pollution and decreased quality of life for residents. More important is that he receive a decent return on his investment.
Many owners in Mid-Levels purchased their flat because of redevelopment potential. Owners have the right to benefit from future redevelopment of old buildings.
The new proposed building height restrictions will negatively affect the value of many sites in Mid-Levels. The broad brush approach which imposes arbitrary height limits should be dropped and studied in detail so a fair and balanced plan can take shape. Hong Kong's reputation as a centre of investment depends on it.
Yes, right, Hong Kong's reputation depends on peoples' ability to replace 20 story buildings with 70 story ones? No, apparently it's Mr. Wright's investment portfolio that depends on this.
Well, it's Monday, you expect me to not be grumpy on a Monday?
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Just how batshit is she?
A year ago, if anyone had bothered to ask, I was supporting Hilary. Gender (and some troubling Senate votes aside), I thought she was someone whose beliefs somewhat aligned to mine and with enough knowledge of how Washington works to actually effect some change or at least undo some of the Damage done by Resident Tush.
One big reason that I've switched to supporting Obama has been the increasingly despicable way in which she has run her campaign this year. She has been bordering on downright evil. And as the nomination slips further and further from her grasp, she shows signs of seriously losing it. The latest being this quote:
If she can't control the crap coming out of her mouth now when she's just a candidate, if her judgment is so careless now, how would she handle herself if she actually got elected and the pressure was on her? It's a future I'd rather not contemplate.
Of course I'd sooner vote for a 1958 Studebaker than John McCain. And probably a Waring blender would do far less damage to the US than he would.
One big reason that I've switched to supporting Obama has been the increasingly despicable way in which she has run her campaign this year. She has been bordering on downright evil. And as the nomination slips further and further from her grasp, she shows signs of seriously losing it. The latest being this quote:
My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California.The New York Times makes the point that she basically said the same thing back in March:
Primary contests used to last a lot longer. We all remember the great tragedy of Bobby Kennedy being assassinated in June in L.A. My husband didn’t wrap up the nomination in 1992 until June. Having a primary contest go through June is nothing particularly unusual.There's a lot of different ways to read this, but none of them are good. Primary campaigns run as long as they need to run before someone locks up the nomination. The fact that sometimes it's a close race and goes all the way out to the convention isn't a given; that's just how it happens in some years. But the only example she can find of this is RFK? And she has to mention RFK's tragic murder in conjunction with Obama's run and the fear that the US is so filled with hate groups that some might stoop to any depths to stop him?
If she can't control the crap coming out of her mouth now when she's just a candidate, if her judgment is so careless now, how would she handle herself if she actually got elected and the pressure was on her? It's a future I'd rather not contemplate.
Of course I'd sooner vote for a 1958 Studebaker than John McCain. And probably a Waring blender would do far less damage to the US than he would.
Friday, May 23, 2008
To tell or not to tell
One thing I often grapple with, "behind the scenes," is how much of me to reveal in the blog. Of course in years past I was a lot more open, a lot more heart on my sleeve. There are several reasons that I don't do it any more, or at least I don't do it as often as I used to.
This extensive article from the NY Times magazine section by Emily Gould is a painfully honest first person account from a woman who blogs in NYC (her own blog and for awhile she worked for Gawker). For awhile she got a lot from blogging but she possibly lost even more.
Anyway, I will say I've made some very hard choices lately and in many cases have possibly made the wrong decisions, but in making those choices I've also unfortunately burned some bridges as well. I'm not amazed that it's so difficult for me to get what I want in life; I'm amazed that at such an advanced age and after having given so much thought to the topic, I still don't have a clue as to what it is I really want.
Oddly enough, a couple of recent evenings out - the first with my writer friend from L.A. who was in town for a bit, the second just last night with a longtime friend in Shanghai - have served to tell me that those are the kinds of evenings that I want more of.
I did gain a lot of useful information from last night's dinner. That friend has led a life of accomplishment and achievement. When I look at the list of things he's done, I always feel like I haven't even learned how to tie my shoes by comparison. I told him this and he said, if I can recall it correctly (he also said I should start to carry around a digital voice recorder for nights like that, wish I'd had one then), that we both possessed similar drive, energy and intellect, but we've focused our efforts in very different areas. I know he meant it as a compliment and yet it couldn't help but make me feel as if I've wasted my life in pursuit of things that provide only momentary pleasure, distraction or relief.
Add to this the break-up with my girlfriend last month. The dinner with my ex-wife last week. Followed by an unusually bad bar experience (even for me). The feeling that I'm just marking time at my job, trading my soul for a very nice paycheck each month, giving my life to a corporate entity that couldn't really care much either way. Yes, I know, I'm not unique. Most of the world has it far worse than I do. But these are things that tell me my life is on the wrong track right now.
And yet knowing all of that and actually doing something about it are two very different things.
It's sort of like that board room meeting scene in Monty Python's Meaning of Life, where one character says that studies have shown that man doesn't pursue meaning in his life because he is too easily distracted and also that people aren't wearing enough hats. And the next character asks, "What was that about hats?"
And it's also true that many of today's new hat styles don't look good on me. I look silly in those Ed Hardy hats, as one example. I've thought about going the Samuel L. Jackson route with the Kangol thing and I think it looks kind of okay but worry that others will think I'm a total prat. Perhaps paired with the proper sunglasses?
Oops.
This extensive article from the NY Times magazine section by Emily Gould is a painfully honest first person account from a woman who blogs in NYC (her own blog and for awhile she worked for Gawker). For awhile she got a lot from blogging but she possibly lost even more.
Anyway, I will say I've made some very hard choices lately and in many cases have possibly made the wrong decisions, but in making those choices I've also unfortunately burned some bridges as well. I'm not amazed that it's so difficult for me to get what I want in life; I'm amazed that at such an advanced age and after having given so much thought to the topic, I still don't have a clue as to what it is I really want.
Oddly enough, a couple of recent evenings out - the first with my writer friend from L.A. who was in town for a bit, the second just last night with a longtime friend in Shanghai - have served to tell me that those are the kinds of evenings that I want more of.
I did gain a lot of useful information from last night's dinner. That friend has led a life of accomplishment and achievement. When I look at the list of things he's done, I always feel like I haven't even learned how to tie my shoes by comparison. I told him this and he said, if I can recall it correctly (he also said I should start to carry around a digital voice recorder for nights like that, wish I'd had one then), that we both possessed similar drive, energy and intellect, but we've focused our efforts in very different areas. I know he meant it as a compliment and yet it couldn't help but make me feel as if I've wasted my life in pursuit of things that provide only momentary pleasure, distraction or relief.
Add to this the break-up with my girlfriend last month. The dinner with my ex-wife last week. Followed by an unusually bad bar experience (even for me). The feeling that I'm just marking time at my job, trading my soul for a very nice paycheck each month, giving my life to a corporate entity that couldn't really care much either way. Yes, I know, I'm not unique. Most of the world has it far worse than I do. But these are things that tell me my life is on the wrong track right now.
And yet knowing all of that and actually doing something about it are two very different things.
It's sort of like that board room meeting scene in Monty Python's Meaning of Life, where one character says that studies have shown that man doesn't pursue meaning in his life because he is too easily distracted and also that people aren't wearing enough hats. And the next character asks, "What was that about hats?"
And it's also true that many of today's new hat styles don't look good on me. I look silly in those Ed Hardy hats, as one example. I've thought about going the Samuel L. Jackson route with the Kangol thing and I think it looks kind of okay but worry that others will think I'm a total prat. Perhaps paired with the proper sunglasses?
Oops.
Wujiang Street, Shanghai
As promised ....
This shot taken around 8 PM, Tuesday night. You can see how the street fills up at dinner time.
Most places doing barbecue, and people are lined up at every shop for the goodies.
Just look at that mountain of prawns.
Here's one of the branches of Yang's (not Yan's, my bad), with people lined up.
Inside, they're working as fast as they can
That big bowl is minced pork, dumped out of a huge plastic bag
And here they are
Oh, I wish I was back there already!
This shot taken around 8 PM, Tuesday night. You can see how the street fills up at dinner time.
Most places doing barbecue, and people are lined up at every shop for the goodies.
Just look at that mountain of prawns.
Here's one of the branches of Yang's (not Yan's, my bad), with people lined up.
Inside, they're working as fast as they can
That big bowl is minced pork, dumped out of a huge plastic bag
And here they are
Oh, I wish I was back there already!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
duh
The Paul bakery has 20 branches in Japan. 330 in France. 20 in London. 6 in Florida. 5 in Shanghai, including one at the Shanghai Centre, right next to my hotel - didn't need to go all the way to Xintiandi for one of their chocolate tarts. All in all, they're in 16 countries.
But not in Hong Kong.
But not in Hong Kong.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
There Will Be Pie
I doubt anyone else remembers, but last year when I went to Paris, I had two enjoyable visits to the Paul patisserie. One commenter mentioned they also have a shop or shops in London.
And now they have a branch, or a franchise, or a something, at Xintiandi in Shanghai. (The sign says they can also be found in Casablanca, Dubai, Miami.) I want one in Hong Kong! Actually, strikes me a little weird that they went for Shanghai rather than Tokyo; I'd think they'd be huge in a spot like Midtown or Roppongi Hills.
And yes, I did buy a few things there. 'Scuze me, I'm about to get busy.
And now they have a branch, or a franchise, or a something, at Xintiandi in Shanghai. (The sign says they can also be found in Casablanca, Dubai, Miami.) I want one in Hong Kong! Actually, strikes me a little weird that they went for Shanghai rather than Tokyo; I'd think they'd be huge in a spot like Midtown or Roppongi Hills.
And yes, I did buy a few things there. 'Scuze me, I'm about to get busy.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
question
The question of the day is why is the street food in Shanghai so much better than the street food in Hong Kong?
Well, not exactly street food per se. But you know, you walk around HK and you come upon some hole in the wall joint that has some cookers in front and the choices are fish balls on a stick (guaranteed 10% fish), sausages wrapped in bacon, bits of green pepper with fish meat, deep fried chicken wings, other cheap greasy eats.
Tonight I was walking down Nanjing Road and remembered this side street, found it and strolled down. If I'm not mistaken, the name of the street is Wujiang Road and it can be found off the corner of Nanjing Road and Shimen No. 1 Road. At least a couple of dozen shops with counters open to the street. Lines at every shop at least 10 or 20 people deep. The most basic stuff was different barbecued meat and fish on sticks. There was one place that had heaps of barbecued prawns. Another place was taking barbecue shredded pork and shoving it into buns along with a bit of veggy.
And then I spotted Yan's Fry Dumpling around the middle of the street. They had two shops next to each other. People lined up all the way down the street for each shop. I looked inside and saw three women frantically putting minced pork onto squares of dough and wrapping them, filling up these huge pans with perhaps 50 dumplings each that someone else was then frying. As fast as these four people were working, they couldn't keep up with the demand. I had to try these.
Went to the cashier, four dumplings for four RMB. Got my ticket, got on line, waited 15 minutes to get to the window. And was rewarded with four of the best dumplings I ever had. Soup dumplings, like xiao long bao, but about twice the size. They don't get flipped over in the pan, so one side was brown and crispy, the other side white and soft. And loaded with soup inside that just exploded in my mouth. I wanted to go for some of the barbecue after that but I was just too full after eating all four of those beauties. Lots of photos but didn't bring my card reader along - perhaps will post after I get home.
As always, look for where the locals go. They know.
The thing is, if you go over to Dongmen in Shenzhen, you can find similar snacks on the street. Why not in Hong Kong? (Or can you find it some place that I haven't found yet?)
Well, not exactly street food per se. But you know, you walk around HK and you come upon some hole in the wall joint that has some cookers in front and the choices are fish balls on a stick (guaranteed 10% fish), sausages wrapped in bacon, bits of green pepper with fish meat, deep fried chicken wings, other cheap greasy eats.
Tonight I was walking down Nanjing Road and remembered this side street, found it and strolled down. If I'm not mistaken, the name of the street is Wujiang Road and it can be found off the corner of Nanjing Road and Shimen No. 1 Road. At least a couple of dozen shops with counters open to the street. Lines at every shop at least 10 or 20 people deep. The most basic stuff was different barbecued meat and fish on sticks. There was one place that had heaps of barbecued prawns. Another place was taking barbecue shredded pork and shoving it into buns along with a bit of veggy.
And then I spotted Yan's Fry Dumpling around the middle of the street. They had two shops next to each other. People lined up all the way down the street for each shop. I looked inside and saw three women frantically putting minced pork onto squares of dough and wrapping them, filling up these huge pans with perhaps 50 dumplings each that someone else was then frying. As fast as these four people were working, they couldn't keep up with the demand. I had to try these.
Went to the cashier, four dumplings for four RMB. Got my ticket, got on line, waited 15 minutes to get to the window. And was rewarded with four of the best dumplings I ever had. Soup dumplings, like xiao long bao, but about twice the size. They don't get flipped over in the pan, so one side was brown and crispy, the other side white and soft. And loaded with soup inside that just exploded in my mouth. I wanted to go for some of the barbecue after that but I was just too full after eating all four of those beauties. Lots of photos but didn't bring my card reader along - perhaps will post after I get home.
As always, look for where the locals go. They know.
The thing is, if you go over to Dongmen in Shenzhen, you can find similar snacks on the street. Why not in Hong Kong? (Or can you find it some place that I haven't found yet?)
The Great Firewall
Last night could connect to blogspot, today can only connect to blogger, so can't leave responses to comments at the moment except to say, on the last post ...
DBC, I agree with anon, just because the White House says it doesn't make it so. Bush's speech was a campaign speech in a most inappropriate venue, another blatant Republican swift boating attempt to use sound bites to twist the position of the opposition party. And the fact is that the only time there has been any advancement in the peace process has been when opposing parties talk to each other (with certain preconditions met, of course).
As for Soros, I'm only passingly familiar with him, but I do agree with some of the things he's said in the past. I've previously written that I think Bush's war and financial policies have negatively impacted the global economy, not just the US's. The drop in value of the US dollar, the massive amount of debt instruments owned by China, the further destabilization of the Middle East leading to massive increases in the price of oil ....
Let me put in a large bit from an article in Esquire by Charles P. Pierce, and for some reason cut and paste ain't working at the moment so no link and I will type this in:
DBC, I agree with anon, just because the White House says it doesn't make it so. Bush's speech was a campaign speech in a most inappropriate venue, another blatant Republican swift boating attempt to use sound bites to twist the position of the opposition party. And the fact is that the only time there has been any advancement in the peace process has been when opposing parties talk to each other (with certain preconditions met, of course).
As for Soros, I'm only passingly familiar with him, but I do agree with some of the things he's said in the past. I've previously written that I think Bush's war and financial policies have negatively impacted the global economy, not just the US's. The drop in value of the US dollar, the massive amount of debt instruments owned by China, the further destabilization of the Middle East leading to massive increases in the price of oil ....
Let me put in a large bit from an article in Esquire by Charles P. Pierce, and for some reason cut and paste ain't working at the moment so no link and I will type this in:
Someone will have to measure the wreckage. Someone will have to walk through the ruins. Someone will have to count the cost.
More than anything else, the presidential election ongoing is - or as a right, ought to be - about ending an era of complicity. There is no point anymore in blaming George Bush or the men he hired or the party he represented or the conservative movement that energized that party for what has happened to this country in the past seven years. They were all merely the vehicles through whome the fear and lassitude and the neglect and the dry rot that had been afflicting the democratic structures for decades came to a dramatic and disasterous crescendo. The Bill of Rights had been rendered a nullity by degrees long before a passel of apparatchik hired laywers found in its text enough gray space to allow a fecklessly incompetent president to command that torture be carried out in the country's name. The war powers of the Congress had been deeded wholesale to the executive long before Dick Cheney and Paul Wolfowitz and a passel of think-tank cowboys found within them the right of a fecklessly incompetent president to make war unilaterally on anyone, anywhere, forever. The war in Iraq is the powerful bastard child of the Iran-Contra scandal, which went unpunished.
The ownership of the people over their politics - and therefore, over their government - had been placed in quitclaim long before the towers fell, and the president told the people to be just afraid enough to let him take them to war and just afraid enough to reelect him, but not so afraid that they stayed out of malls.
It had been happening, bit by bit, over nearly forty years. Ronald Reagan sold the idea that "government" was something alien. The notion of a political commonwealth fell into a desuetude so profound that even Bill Clinton said, "The era of big government is over" and was cheered across the political spectrum, so that when an American city drowned and the president didn't care enough to leave a birthday party, and the disgraced former luxury-horse executive who'd been placed in charge of disaster relief behaved pretty much the way a disgraced former luxury-horse executive could be expected to behave in that situation, it could not have come as any kind of surprise to anyone honest enough to have watch the country steadily abandon self-government over the previous four decades. The catastrophe that is the administration of George W. Bush is not unprecedented. It was merely inevitable. The people of the United States have been accessorial in the murder of their country.
Someone will have to measure the wreckage. Someone will have to walk through the ruins. Someone will have to count the cost.
Monday, May 19, 2008
here I am
In Shanghai. First time back in slightly over a year and all I see different is the pollution is worse and that mega-tower going up next to Jin Mao seems to have topped out.
Landed at the new (to me, anyway) Pudong Terminal 2 and discovered the one questionable benefit of the China visa kerfuffle - long lines at immigration for Chinese citizens, practically no lines for foreigners. The immigration guy at the counter not only spoke English, he smiled! Maybe I landed some other place?
Traffic from the airport to Puxi was the worst I've ever experienced. We inched along the highway for about 90 minutes till the driver finally reached some semblance of a short cut, but it was over two hours from hotel to airport.
Dinner with a friend tonight at chain restaurant Lulu, the branch in Plaza 66. Pretty much what I had in mind - drunken chicken, crab meat with asparagus, the stewed pork in the heavy sweet brown sauce, reasonable hot and sour soup, horrible xiao long bao. But two hours to sit, relax, catch up with a friend I hadn't seen in a year (we've both been through some major changes), not a bad start to the trip.
It's the start of an official 3 day mourning period in China for the earthquake victims. The Shanghai Daily newspaper printed a notice that they wouldn't be running any ads during this period. And all of the non-news channels on TV, including international ones like HBO or Discovery, are blacked out. Only news channels.
Caught a news clip of Obama striking back at Resident Tush after his horrendous grandstanding attempt in Israel. Finally a Democrat who doesn't turn the other cheek.
And then saw this clip of Huckabee saying he'd be thrilled to run as VP with McCain. No indication of whether or not McCain wants a fringe bass playing evolution denying nutjob on his ticket.
Landed at the new (to me, anyway) Pudong Terminal 2 and discovered the one questionable benefit of the China visa kerfuffle - long lines at immigration for Chinese citizens, practically no lines for foreigners. The immigration guy at the counter not only spoke English, he smiled! Maybe I landed some other place?
Traffic from the airport to Puxi was the worst I've ever experienced. We inched along the highway for about 90 minutes till the driver finally reached some semblance of a short cut, but it was over two hours from hotel to airport.
Dinner with a friend tonight at chain restaurant Lulu, the branch in Plaza 66. Pretty much what I had in mind - drunken chicken, crab meat with asparagus, the stewed pork in the heavy sweet brown sauce, reasonable hot and sour soup, horrible xiao long bao. But two hours to sit, relax, catch up with a friend I hadn't seen in a year (we've both been through some major changes), not a bad start to the trip.
It's the start of an official 3 day mourning period in China for the earthquake victims. The Shanghai Daily newspaper printed a notice that they wouldn't be running any ads during this period. And all of the non-news channels on TV, including international ones like HBO or Discovery, are blacked out. Only news channels.
Caught a news clip of Obama striking back at Resident Tush after his horrendous grandstanding attempt in Israel. Finally a Democrat who doesn't turn the other cheek.
And then saw this clip of Huckabee saying he'd be thrilled to run as VP with McCain. No indication of whether or not McCain wants a fringe bass playing evolution denying nutjob on his ticket.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Another food post
So last night, my ex-wife is in town and she comes up here with a friend, wants to see the dogs for a bit. After that, we decide to go for dinner. Her friend wants hotpot and wants to do it somewhere around Causeway Bay. I suggest Little Sheep.
Little Sheep is a chain with dozens, if not hundreds of branches scattered across China. They have at least one branch in Hong Kong, in Causeway Bay Plaza 2. It's terrifically popular and I've been there a few times. It's always been worth the wait.
Last night the entry way is lined with bouquets. It's clearly not their grand opening, but the place has been renovated - perhaps new management?
We wait half an hour for a table.
Odd sight while waiting - the hostess at the front podium asks people to clear a path for one of the managers coming towards the restaurant. Not some rich guy coming to dine, not the big boss, just a guy in the uniform with the restaurant's logo on his lapel pin. As he enters the restaurant, the hostess bows to him several times with a look of fear in her eyes. He must be a fun guy to work for.
Once we're seated, we order drinks right away. We wait 10 minutes for a menu. The drinks have still not arrived.
They keep asking what kind of tea we want. We keep saying we don't want tea, just watermelon juice. Finally they tell us that they are going to charge us for tea whether we order it or not so we might as well order it. I'm not in a mood to make a stand on this point, though some would likely say that I should have.
We wait ten minutes for the bowl of soups to come out. We wait another ten minutes for food to start appearing. The cold appetizer we ordered because we wanted some food on the table fast ends up arriving after the raw food for cooking arrives.
The food itself is okay but nowhere near as good as I remember it from previous visits. The spicy soup is not too bad but the non-spicy soup is practically tasteless. Every time I try cooking something in the non-spicy side to cool my mouth down, I end up dipping it back into the spicy side so it will have some flavor. We get little bowls of sesame sauce for dipping and this has been thoroughly watered down.
We had some sort of spicy poached chicken appetizer, then some stuffed intestines, a plate of beef, a plate of mutton, a plate of meat balls, straw mushrooms, bok choi, cabbage, rice noodles, a plate of tofu, some of those big airy tofu balls. Half the dishes we order don't arrive until we bug the staff at least three times for them.
When I ask for the bill, it takes 10 minutes for that. The above food, plus two pitchers of watermelon juice and, yes, the tea and service charge, come out to $717. Not at all cheap for what we ordered.
As a former taxi driver, as someone who once depended on tips to earn a living, I almost never don't tip (except, of course, in places like Japan or Korea). So you can imagine how fed up I was to pay with a credit card and just pay the exact amount of the bill. Zero tip. I never do that. I did it here.
They offered us a voucher good for a discount on our next visit. We gave it to the people seated at the next table. I certainly don't intend to return there anymore.
Little Sheep is a chain with dozens, if not hundreds of branches scattered across China. They have at least one branch in Hong Kong, in Causeway Bay Plaza 2. It's terrifically popular and I've been there a few times. It's always been worth the wait.
Last night the entry way is lined with bouquets. It's clearly not their grand opening, but the place has been renovated - perhaps new management?
We wait half an hour for a table.
Odd sight while waiting - the hostess at the front podium asks people to clear a path for one of the managers coming towards the restaurant. Not some rich guy coming to dine, not the big boss, just a guy in the uniform with the restaurant's logo on his lapel pin. As he enters the restaurant, the hostess bows to him several times with a look of fear in her eyes. He must be a fun guy to work for.
Once we're seated, we order drinks right away. We wait 10 minutes for a menu. The drinks have still not arrived.
They keep asking what kind of tea we want. We keep saying we don't want tea, just watermelon juice. Finally they tell us that they are going to charge us for tea whether we order it or not so we might as well order it. I'm not in a mood to make a stand on this point, though some would likely say that I should have.
We wait ten minutes for the bowl of soups to come out. We wait another ten minutes for food to start appearing. The cold appetizer we ordered because we wanted some food on the table fast ends up arriving after the raw food for cooking arrives.
The food itself is okay but nowhere near as good as I remember it from previous visits. The spicy soup is not too bad but the non-spicy soup is practically tasteless. Every time I try cooking something in the non-spicy side to cool my mouth down, I end up dipping it back into the spicy side so it will have some flavor. We get little bowls of sesame sauce for dipping and this has been thoroughly watered down.
We had some sort of spicy poached chicken appetizer, then some stuffed intestines, a plate of beef, a plate of mutton, a plate of meat balls, straw mushrooms, bok choi, cabbage, rice noodles, a plate of tofu, some of those big airy tofu balls. Half the dishes we order don't arrive until we bug the staff at least three times for them.
When I ask for the bill, it takes 10 minutes for that. The above food, plus two pitchers of watermelon juice and, yes, the tea and service charge, come out to $717. Not at all cheap for what we ordered.
As a former taxi driver, as someone who once depended on tips to earn a living, I almost never don't tip (except, of course, in places like Japan or Korea). So you can imagine how fed up I was to pay with a credit card and just pay the exact amount of the bill. Zero tip. I never do that. I did it here.
They offered us a voucher good for a discount on our next visit. We gave it to the people seated at the next table. I certainly don't intend to return there anymore.
Friday, May 16, 2008
limping towards the weekend
Even with the holiday on Monday, this week feels like it's taking forever to come to an end.
Underground 59 Friday night at Cavern.
Two years ago CBS said they would not pay $1.6b for Youtube. Today they paid $1.8b for CNet. Go know.
Going to Shanghai on Monday for a few days. Presuming they don't find some quibbly reason to reject me at immigration. (I've got two months left on my current one year visa.)
Need to seriously consider booking some vacation time once I get back from that. Same ole same ole or someplace I ain't never been?
Yadda yadda yadda
Underground 59 Friday night at Cavern.
Two years ago CBS said they would not pay $1.6b for Youtube. Today they paid $1.8b for CNet. Go know.
Going to Shanghai on Monday for a few days. Presuming they don't find some quibbly reason to reject me at immigration. (I've got two months left on my current one year visa.)
Need to seriously consider booking some vacation time once I get back from that. Same ole same ole or someplace I ain't never been?
Yadda yadda yadda
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Only a pawn in their game
When it comes to free lunch, I'm there. And I wasn't going to miss a chance to try a new restaurant. In this case, The Pawn, at the corner of Johnston and Luard in Wanchai. This is run by the same people who run The Press Room over in Sheung Wan.
The building itself is one of those redeveloped ones, in this case where they kept and gutted the old facade and then built inside and on top of it. The corner shop had been a pawn shop for decades, hence the name of the restaurant (and they even use the traditional bat sign as part of their logo).
The first floor is the bar, with an open balcony. Second floor is the restaurant, again with balcony. And they are in the process of setting up the rooftop. The look of the place is fabulous - an attempt to look new and yet look ancient. So the ceilings and floors are made from these old wood beams found somewhere in Shenzhen. A lot of the furniture is antique stuff brought over from the UK, but not stuffy antiques, huge scuffed wood tables, comfortable heavy wood chairs. There's an open kitchen off to the side, surrounded by a marble counter with stools, for those who like to see what's going on. The fact that the place is divided into several smaller dining areas rather than one big room, combined with all of that wood, serves to keep the noise level down a bit. Like I said, the place is beautiful. They spent more than six months on the design and it shows, it's right out of Architectural Digest.
The menu. Modern British. We're told a few constant dishes but the bulk of the menu will change daily based on what the chef finds in the market that morning. Portions are generous and a lot of thought goes into presentation on the plate. But I thought the food was just okay; there wasn't really anything that made me feel like I had to run back there right away. I had pan roasted duck breast with wild berries and it was nice yet not nice enough that I'd rush to order it again. The quality of the meat for one friend's char-grilled rump steak was top notch. But the dish that seemed to come out the best was a fairly traditional fish and chips. On the other hand, the desserts were amazing. My British friends said that the apple and rhubarb crumble tasted exactly right and my chocolate souffle cake with fresh whipped cream and chocolate sauce was a major chocolate overdose, in a good sense.
Prices are also quite huge. There is no set lunch. Starters were averaging around $100, mains from about $160 up to $280. Desserts are $75. A 500 mL bottle of water was $60. Lunch for three - with no alcohol - would have run us $1,200. That's not a trivial amount. I assume dinner is the same or higher. This is a place for expense account lunches (and is it just a coincidence that someone at the next table looked a lot like Donald Tsang?)(no, it wasn't him, but close).
I'm really happy this place (and some other new places nearby) have opened up. I've been wanting some more upscale dining choices in easy walking distance of the Wanchai bars. Perhaps given a couple of months, things will come together more solidly. In the meantime, I 'll come back for the bar or the rooftop once it's open. But perhaps next time I take a walk in that direction for food I might give Himalaya or Asian Ghetto a try instead.
The building itself is one of those redeveloped ones, in this case where they kept and gutted the old facade and then built inside and on top of it. The corner shop had been a pawn shop for decades, hence the name of the restaurant (and they even use the traditional bat sign as part of their logo).
The first floor is the bar, with an open balcony. Second floor is the restaurant, again with balcony. And they are in the process of setting up the rooftop. The look of the place is fabulous - an attempt to look new and yet look ancient. So the ceilings and floors are made from these old wood beams found somewhere in Shenzhen. A lot of the furniture is antique stuff brought over from the UK, but not stuffy antiques, huge scuffed wood tables, comfortable heavy wood chairs. There's an open kitchen off to the side, surrounded by a marble counter with stools, for those who like to see what's going on. The fact that the place is divided into several smaller dining areas rather than one big room, combined with all of that wood, serves to keep the noise level down a bit. Like I said, the place is beautiful. They spent more than six months on the design and it shows, it's right out of Architectural Digest.
The menu. Modern British. We're told a few constant dishes but the bulk of the menu will change daily based on what the chef finds in the market that morning. Portions are generous and a lot of thought goes into presentation on the plate. But I thought the food was just okay; there wasn't really anything that made me feel like I had to run back there right away. I had pan roasted duck breast with wild berries and it was nice yet not nice enough that I'd rush to order it again. The quality of the meat for one friend's char-grilled rump steak was top notch. But the dish that seemed to come out the best was a fairly traditional fish and chips. On the other hand, the desserts were amazing. My British friends said that the apple and rhubarb crumble tasted exactly right and my chocolate souffle cake with fresh whipped cream and chocolate sauce was a major chocolate overdose, in a good sense.
Prices are also quite huge. There is no set lunch. Starters were averaging around $100, mains from about $160 up to $280. Desserts are $75. A 500 mL bottle of water was $60. Lunch for three - with no alcohol - would have run us $1,200. That's not a trivial amount. I assume dinner is the same or higher. This is a place for expense account lunches (and is it just a coincidence that someone at the next table looked a lot like Donald Tsang?)(no, it wasn't him, but close).
I'm really happy this place (and some other new places nearby) have opened up. I've been wanting some more upscale dining choices in easy walking distance of the Wanchai bars. Perhaps given a couple of months, things will come together more solidly. In the meantime, I 'll come back for the bar or the rooftop once it's open. But perhaps next time I take a walk in that direction for food I might give Himalaya or Asian Ghetto a try instead.
Smart and dumb at the same time
From money.co.uk via CrunchGear, a true Horatio Alger style tale. A 13 year old boy in Texas calls the bank, gets them to send him an extra credit card on his dad's account, and goes on a $30k spending spree which included hiring hookers - not for sex but to play XBOX with him.
These kids today, I'm telling you.
UPDATE: In a subsequent discussion on this post IRL, it has been suggested that the kid probably did a bit more than play XBOX with those ladies and that the whole videogame thing was cooked up as a story so that the women don't get charged with statutory rape. And thinking about it, if this kid was smart enough to come up with that circus performer bit, he could well have invented that bit as well.
These kids today, I'm telling you.
And here' s the kicker:Ralph Hardy, a 13 year old from Newark, Texas confessed to ordering an extra credit card from his father's existing credit card company, and took his friends on a $30,000 spending spree, culminating in playing "Halo" on an Xbox with a couple of hookers in a Texas motel.
Police said they were alerted to the motel by a concerned delivery clerk, whom after delivering supplies of Dr Pepper, Fritos and Oreos had been asked by the kids where they could score some chicks and were willing to pay.
Asked why he ordered two escorts, Ralph said he thought it was the thing to do when you win a "World of Warcraft" tournament. They told the suspicious working girls they were people of restricted growth working with a traveling circus, and as State law does not allow those with disabilities to be discriminated against they had no right to refuse them.
The $1,000 a night girls sensing something up played "Halo" on the Xbox with the kids, instead of selling their sexual services.
Ralph's ambition is to one day become a politician.Defrauding a bank. Stealing from your family. Hiring hookers. Pretending to be a circus midget. What else could he possibly grow up to be?
UPDATE: In a subsequent discussion on this post IRL, it has been suggested that the kid probably did a bit more than play XBOX with those ladies and that the whole videogame thing was cooked up as a story so that the women don't get charged with statutory rape. And thinking about it, if this kid was smart enough to come up with that circus performer bit, he could well have invented that bit as well.
Tuesday night
Nothing much to say about the horrific tragedies of the past week, except to note that the Myanmar junta continues to display its total lack of humanity by refusing entry to foreign aid workers and seizing aid shipments. And whatever else you want to say about China (and Buddha knows there's plenty wrong there), give them some kudos for practically killing themselves to get as many rescue workers and supplies on scene as quickly as possible. (Hell, compare what they're doing with the way George Tush handled Katrina .... )
On another subject, noted by me late this evening but reported a few days ago, PCCW has been dropped from the Hang Seng Index. As Hong Kong Telecom, it was a rock solid stock. As reported in the SCMP, the price soared to $28.50 in anticipation of Li Ka-Shing's son taking it over, regardless of the fact that he had lied about his academic accomplishments and his previous business ventures had been colossal money losing failures. And within two years of buying the company (based on huge bank loans that he most likely received because of who he was, not what he had done or was deemed capable of doing), the renamed PCCW became the first blue chip to go for under $1 per share. They then consolidated 5 shares into one and brought the stock price to $7. Today it trades at around $5. I can remember back in '02 when HSBC wouldn't give mortgages to PCCW employees because their jobs weren't deemed stable. Probably the biggest success for PCCW in the past several years has been NOW TV, but that's a project that was started back in the HKT days. And Cyberport? It is to laugh.
Today, Richard Li continues to live the lifestyle of a billionaire. But he has squandered the wealth of the thousands who trusted him. (And no, I never bought any PCCW stock. I did work on an early iteration of the NOW TV project.) Oh, and another company, Cheung Kong Infrastructure, run by another Li Ka-Shing baby, is also being kicked out of the index. Daddy must be so proud.
On another subject, noted by me late this evening but reported a few days ago, PCCW has been dropped from the Hang Seng Index. As Hong Kong Telecom, it was a rock solid stock. As reported in the SCMP, the price soared to $28.50 in anticipation of Li Ka-Shing's son taking it over, regardless of the fact that he had lied about his academic accomplishments and his previous business ventures had been colossal money losing failures. And within two years of buying the company (based on huge bank loans that he most likely received because of who he was, not what he had done or was deemed capable of doing), the renamed PCCW became the first blue chip to go for under $1 per share. They then consolidated 5 shares into one and brought the stock price to $7. Today it trades at around $5. I can remember back in '02 when HSBC wouldn't give mortgages to PCCW employees because their jobs weren't deemed stable. Probably the biggest success for PCCW in the past several years has been NOW TV, but that's a project that was started back in the HKT days. And Cyberport? It is to laugh.
Today, Richard Li continues to live the lifestyle of a billionaire. But he has squandered the wealth of the thousands who trusted him. (And no, I never bought any PCCW stock. I did work on an early iteration of the NOW TV project.) Oh, and another company, Cheung Kong Infrastructure, run by another Li Ka-Shing baby, is also being kicked out of the index. Daddy must be so proud.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
spicks 'n specks
Are they offering 1,953 chicks? Chicks vintage 1953?
Is "My Deer Noodle" a bit of Chinglish or is there something that just didn't translate well from the Chinese?
Test the limit of your taste - very chilli indeed!
Van with loudspeakers for voter registration drive. No further comment.
Washing away last night's sin.
Is "My Deer Noodle" a bit of Chinglish or is there something that just didn't translate well from the Chinese?
Test the limit of your taste - very chilli indeed!
Van with loudspeakers for voter registration drive. No further comment.
Washing away last night's sin.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Big Fish
As most of you already know, the harbor area of Sai Kung is lined with seafood restaurants. It's a popular dining spot for tourists and, I suppose for some locals who come up there on the weekends. But most people know that the cooking is indifferent at best and the prices are also tourist prices.
One of the ways a restaurant can attract attention is to have something really fugging big in its tanks. And last night there were big crowds gathered around to watch these really big momma fish - Super Garoupa? I doubt this actually translated to getting people to eat at this place. And anyway, if someone was going to actually get one of these to eat order one of these monsters, I'm sure it would cost tens of thousands. (And does the restaurant even have anything big enough to cook these guys in without chopping them up first?)
Got a friend visiting from L.A. and thought he'd appreciate seeing a different side of Hong Kong life. Fortunately he decided he just wanted to take a look at these places and not actually eat at them. So a relaxing dinner at Cru, a stroll along the harbor, and then back to my place to sit outside on the patio and talk until late.
As he's a somewhat well known writer, I got tales of what went wrong with the film Martian Child and what's going right with Star Trek Phase II. I actually hadn't heard of STPII before and was amazed to learn that they are getting some of the original cast to appear in these, use some of the original sets, props and costumes and have shooting budgets of up to $300k per episode.
One of the ways a restaurant can attract attention is to have something really fugging big in its tanks. And last night there were big crowds gathered around to watch these really big momma fish - Super Garoupa? I doubt this actually translated to getting people to eat at this place. And anyway, if someone was going to actually get one of these to eat order one of these monsters, I'm sure it would cost tens of thousands. (And does the restaurant even have anything big enough to cook these guys in without chopping them up first?)
Got a friend visiting from L.A. and thought he'd appreciate seeing a different side of Hong Kong life. Fortunately he decided he just wanted to take a look at these places and not actually eat at them. So a relaxing dinner at Cru, a stroll along the harbor, and then back to my place to sit outside on the patio and talk until late.
As he's a somewhat well known writer, I got tales of what went wrong with the film Martian Child and what's going right with Star Trek Phase II. I actually hadn't heard of STPII before and was amazed to learn that they are getting some of the original cast to appear in these, use some of the original sets, props and costumes and have shooting budgets of up to $300k per episode.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
a lesson many people need to learn
(click on the image to see it full size)
Saturday, May 10, 2008
the art of the movie poster
Maybe not the best movie poster ever, but you can look at this and then NOT want to see the film?
Eihi Shiina previously starred in Japanese cult classic Audition.
Trailer can be found here. Very, very, very bloody. But what else would you expect from a movie with this name?
Eihi Shiina previously starred in Japanese cult classic Audition.Trailer can be found here. Very, very, very bloody. But what else would you expect from a movie with this name?
Friday, May 09, 2008
A Tale of Two Newspapers and some other stuff
Hong Kong's tabloid newspaper The Standard has been loudly playing up the fact that its circulation is now double that of its only real competitor, the South China Morning Post. Of course, the fact that the SCMP charges for the paper and TS is free would account for a big part of the reason. But I suspect that TS's tabloid approach is also paying off.
Here's a story from today, one of those tales that impacts no one's life except those involved and their immediate family. This is the full article as posted in the SCMP:
Aside from that, you know the Chinese newspapers probably went into even greater detail on this. An earlier article in the SCMP did have the photo and a mention of prostitution and that the police feared her body may have been dismembered. But all of that disappeared from their latest update. Why?
And the SCMP seems to have missed this one in its entirety, something of particular interest to Fumier and other avid Hong Kong motorists.
So when this happened to journalist Richard Latker, he refused to provide the information. He said it was a violation of the very basic right of freedom against self-incrimination. And the judge agreed.
Another headline in TS today: Hu in Charm Offensive. I agree, I find Hu quite offensive.
====================
What's even more unspeakably offensive is the military junta that is ruling Myanmar. With 22,000 confirmed dead, up to 100,000 dead and who knows how many injured and homeless, the generals are not allowing any foreign relief workers into the country and have been seizing all shipments of food and relief equipment. As reported in the New York Times:
=================================
Not quite as offensive but still way up there would be U.S. Republican presidential candidate John "Boom Boom" McCain. At the end of April, McCain showed that there were no depths too low when it comes to his slavering thirst for power. In an interview session, the "man" actually said, "I think it's very clear who Hamas wants to be the next president of the United States." If he's sinking to the sewer level now, what subterranean depths will he plunge as the election gets closer?
And now that despite a firsthand account (corroborated by two witnesses) that at a dinner party McCain confessed that he did not vote for George Bush in the 2000 election, rather than 'fess up to it, McCain is allowing his attack dogs to make personal attacks on the writer who went public with this.
And, oh yeah, McCain's wife has said that come hell or high water, no way she's ever going to release her income taxes for public scrutiny. Wonder what she's hiding.
Here's what the NY Times recently had to say about Mr. Straight Talk: Senator John McCain is shaping up as Bush the Sequel — neverending war in Iraq, tax cuts for the rich while the middle class struggles, courts packed with right-wing activists intent on undoing decades of progress in civil rights, civil liberties and other vital areas.
Republicans. Scum and scummier.
Here's a story from today, one of those tales that impacts no one's life except those involved and their immediate family. This is the full article as posted in the SCMP:
A Hong Kong man appeared in the Kowloon City Magistrate’s Court on Friday charged with the murder of 16-year-old Wong Ka-mui.Transport worker Ting Kai-tai, 24, appeared in the court charged with killing the girl – who earlier this year had been attending secondary school. The man has been remanded in police custody and the case has been adjourned to May 15.
Another man – arrested in connection with the murder – has been released on bail pending further inquiries.
Police officers are continuing to investigate the case.
Early this year, Wong Ka-mui had been a top secondary school student.
She had been living in Tai Po with her mother, step-father and a sister, before the 16-year-old decided to leave school in January.
Zzzzzzzz. So boring, why bother to even print it. To find out, let's see just some excerpts from The Standard's coverage, starting with the lead paragraph:
Police have charged a transportation worker with the murder of Wong Ka- mui, 16, whose body was reportedly dismembered and her parts flushed down the toilet and others dumped at sea.Whoa! Body dismembered and flushed down the toilet! How did the SCMP miss that? The Standard also has a photo of the victim, taken from her blog. And there's more:
16 year old hooker! Drugs! And even more:According to a police source, Ting had used the internet to hire a prostitute.
When Wong arrived at his subleased flat on the second floor of Yan Fat Building on Shek Kip Mei Street, they both took ketamine.
The police said Ting had confessed to killing Wong when they were both high on ketamine and after Wong had expressed a desire to die.
Holy crap. This guy Ting is clearly a monster. What punishment could possibly fit this crime?Ting then allegedly chopped off her head and limbs and stripped off the flesh, some of which was flushed down the toilet and the rest dumped at Shek Kip Mei market.
The girl's head and limbs were allegedly weighted with bricks and thrown off Kowloon City Pier.
Aside from that, you know the Chinese newspapers probably went into even greater detail on this. An earlier article in the SCMP did have the photo and a mention of prostitution and that the police feared her body may have been dismembered. But all of that disappeared from their latest update. Why?
And the SCMP seems to have missed this one in its entirety, something of particular interest to Fumier and other avid Hong Kong motorists.
In a landmark ruling, a magistrate yesterday branded the Road Traffic Ordinance requiring the owner of a car to disclose the name of the driver involved in a traffic violation as both draconian and a breach of a persons right to silence.The way it works is there are traffic cameras, some hooked up to radar guns, they take a picture and then mail you something (I've never gotten one, by the way) and they then order you to tell them who was behind the wheel at the time.
So when this happened to journalist Richard Latker, he refused to provide the information. He said it was a violation of the very basic right of freedom against self-incrimination. And the judge agreed.
Another headline in TS today: Hu in Charm Offensive. I agree, I find Hu quite offensive.
====================
What's even more unspeakably offensive is the military junta that is ruling Myanmar. With 22,000 confirmed dead, up to 100,000 dead and who knows how many injured and homeless, the generals are not allowing any foreign relief workers into the country and have been seizing all shipments of food and relief equipment. As reported in the New York Times:
"The frustration caused by what appears to be a paperwork delay is unprecedented in modern humanitarian relief efforts," said the official, Paul Risley, a spokesman for the United Nations World Food Program, in Bangkok. "It’s astonishing."Who will rid me of these meddlesome generals?
=================================
Not quite as offensive but still way up there would be U.S. Republican presidential candidate John "Boom Boom" McCain. At the end of April, McCain showed that there were no depths too low when it comes to his slavering thirst for power. In an interview session, the "man" actually said, "I think it's very clear who Hamas wants to be the next president of the United States." If he's sinking to the sewer level now, what subterranean depths will he plunge as the election gets closer?
And now that despite a firsthand account (corroborated by two witnesses) that at a dinner party McCain confessed that he did not vote for George Bush in the 2000 election, rather than 'fess up to it, McCain is allowing his attack dogs to make personal attacks on the writer who went public with this.
And, oh yeah, McCain's wife has said that come hell or high water, no way she's ever going to release her income taxes for public scrutiny. Wonder what she's hiding.
Here's what the NY Times recently had to say about Mr. Straight Talk: Senator John McCain is shaping up as Bush the Sequel — neverending war in Iraq, tax cuts for the rich while the middle class struggles, courts packed with right-wing activists intent on undoing decades of progress in civil rights, civil liberties and other vital areas.
Republicans. Scum and scummier.
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Oh, what the hell
Saw this on Expat@Large and thought I'd give it a go ....
Put your iPod (or iRiver) on shuffle (unless it is an early version iPod, one that doesn't have shuffle) and press next for each question. Write down the song that's playing as an answer.
1) How would you describe yourself?
Don't Keep Me Wonderin' - The Allman Brothers Band
2) What do you like in a guy/girl?
You Got Lucky - Tom Petty (okay, this is getting funny, let's see where it goes next)
3) What is your motto?
Gettin' By - Jerry Jeff Walker (this is getting spooky)
4) What do your friends think of you?
Let's Make This Precious - Dexys Midnight Runners (possible)
5) What do you think about often?
Dog Shelter - Burial (I never knew that!)
6) What do your parents think of you?
Lovely 2 C U - Goldfrapp (my ipod is haunted)
7) What do you think of your best friend?
Fall On Me - R.E.M. (metaphorically of course)
8) What do you think of the person you like?
Shaft - Malik Adouane (yeah, depending on how you define "shaft")
9) What do you want to be when you grow up?
Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White - The Standells (that's me, I wear blue)
10) What do you think when you see the person you like?
Your Time Is Gonna Come - Led Zeppelin (I mean that in a good way of course)
11) What song will they play at your wedding?
Still Life - Van Der Graaf Generator (well, I'm so old, if I get married again I won't be moving all that much at that point)
12) What will they play at your funeral?
John Allyn Smith Sails - Okkervil River (oh no, they got my name wrong at my funeral?)
13) What is your hobby/interest?
Sly - Massive Attack (yes, I practice this every day)
14) What is your biggest fear?
Sexed Up - Robbie Williams (actually my biggest fear would be getting sexed up by Robbie Williams)
15) What is your biggest secret?
I Believe to My Soul - Van Morrison (no, no, I'm an atheist)
16) What do you think of your friends?
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress - Linda Ronstadt (I tripped and I missed my star)
17) What is your theme song?
Loose Fit - Happy Mondays (um, er, for shoes, yes)
18) What do you think of your family?
Nine Feet Underground - Caravan (I lurve my family)
19) What is your best friend's theme song?
4% Pantomime - The Band (he might agree)
20) What is your mood right now?
Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie - The Dirty Projectors (that's my mood all the time)
21) If your heart could talk what would it say?
Open To Ideas - Faces (truer than you know)
22) What do your co-workers think of you?
Untrue - Burial (no that can't be true)
23) What does your future look like?
Up On Cripple Creek - The Band (very possibly)
==================
I tag .... everyone. You're it.
Put your iPod (or iRiver) on shuffle (unless it is an early version iPod, one that doesn't have shuffle) and press next for each question. Write down the song that's playing as an answer.
1) How would you describe yourself?
Don't Keep Me Wonderin' - The Allman Brothers Band
2) What do you like in a guy/girl?
You Got Lucky - Tom Petty (okay, this is getting funny, let's see where it goes next)
3) What is your motto?
Gettin' By - Jerry Jeff Walker (this is getting spooky)
4) What do your friends think of you?
Let's Make This Precious - Dexys Midnight Runners (possible)
5) What do you think about often?
Dog Shelter - Burial (I never knew that!)
6) What do your parents think of you?
Lovely 2 C U - Goldfrapp (my ipod is haunted)
7) What do you think of your best friend?
Fall On Me - R.E.M. (metaphorically of course)
8) What do you think of the person you like?
Shaft - Malik Adouane (yeah, depending on how you define "shaft")
9) What do you want to be when you grow up?
Sometimes Good Guys Don't Wear White - The Standells (that's me, I wear blue)
10) What do you think when you see the person you like?
Your Time Is Gonna Come - Led Zeppelin (I mean that in a good way of course)
11) What song will they play at your wedding?
Still Life - Van Der Graaf Generator (well, I'm so old, if I get married again I won't be moving all that much at that point)
12) What will they play at your funeral?
John Allyn Smith Sails - Okkervil River (oh no, they got my name wrong at my funeral?)
13) What is your hobby/interest?
Sly - Massive Attack (yes, I practice this every day)
14) What is your biggest fear?
Sexed Up - Robbie Williams (actually my biggest fear would be getting sexed up by Robbie Williams)
15) What is your biggest secret?
I Believe to My Soul - Van Morrison (no, no, I'm an atheist)
16) What do you think of your friends?
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress - Linda Ronstadt (I tripped and I missed my star)
17) What is your theme song?
Loose Fit - Happy Mondays (um, er, for shoes, yes)
18) What do you think of your family?
Nine Feet Underground - Caravan (I lurve my family)
19) What is your best friend's theme song?
4% Pantomime - The Band (he might agree)
20) What is your mood right now?
Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie - The Dirty Projectors (that's my mood all the time)
21) If your heart could talk what would it say?
Open To Ideas - Faces (truer than you know)
22) What do your co-workers think of you?
Untrue - Burial (no that can't be true)
23) What does your future look like?
Up On Cripple Creek - The Band (very possibly)
==================
I tag .... everyone. You're it.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
oops i forgot to blog
Sorry, it's been a busy few days, with lots of annoying things on my mind. Garbage at work, car repairs, getting new glasses, blah blah blah, catching up on stuff in real life.
Distractions:
If George Bush has attained an historically low approval rating of 28% and John McCain is running on a platform of basically continuing Bush's policies, how come he's running at 48% in the polls?
If life was a movie directed by Frank Capra, following the devastating cyclone in Myanmar (notice how some TV news, such as Sky, continues to refer to it as Burma?), the psychopathic military junta running the country would hold a news conference and say, "Well, we thought we knew what we were doing, but it turns out we can't even protect our people from a little bit of wind so clearly we're unsuited to our jobs and we're going to hang ourselves for our crimes against our people."
New Steve Winwood album is kinda nice, very reminiscent of mid-70s Traffic (though I prefer the earlier stuff when Dave Mason was still in the band). Can't decide on the new Elvis Costello yet. And the new Aimee Mann sounds just like all the old Aimee Mann, which is fine by me ... plenty of her typically biting lyrics, distinctive voice.
Distractions:
If George Bush has attained an historically low approval rating of 28% and John McCain is running on a platform of basically continuing Bush's policies, how come he's running at 48% in the polls?
If life was a movie directed by Frank Capra, following the devastating cyclone in Myanmar (notice how some TV news, such as Sky, continues to refer to it as Burma?), the psychopathic military junta running the country would hold a news conference and say, "Well, we thought we knew what we were doing, but it turns out we can't even protect our people from a little bit of wind so clearly we're unsuited to our jobs and we're going to hang ourselves for our crimes against our people."
New Steve Winwood album is kinda nice, very reminiscent of mid-70s Traffic (though I prefer the earlier stuff when Dave Mason was still in the band). Can't decide on the new Elvis Costello yet. And the new Aimee Mann sounds just like all the old Aimee Mann, which is fine by me ... plenty of her typically biting lyrics, distinctive voice.
Saturday, May 03, 2008
booger
The hole could be patched, but you can't match the color, and it will really stand out in a bad way, would look horrible. The only real option is to replace the entire top. Which is going to cost HK$20,000. The guy said I could maybe save a little money by trying to get the top from someone in the US so I'll be browsing web sites this weekend. In the meantime, the hole is patched up with duct tape, which definitely means no parking on the street for me in the meantime.
The funny thing is, the guy did a relatively nice job with the slice - he cut only the minimum size hole he needed to get his arm through, he didn't cut through the liner underneath, didn't scratch up anything. He probably thought he was doing me a favor. But it would have been a bigger favor if he'd smashed the window, that would have been cheaper to fix - but I guess he figured that would be noisier. He just grabbed the bag - didn't touch the car stereo, didn't take the 50 bucks in change sitting in the center console, didn't find the slot where the ipod is hidden away. And when I think of all the things I might have put into that bag (DSLR instead of pocket camera, Bose headphones, etc.) I guess I got off relatively okay.
Anyway, lesson learned. Even in HK, don't leave stuff sitting in the car when parked on the street.
The funny thing is, the guy did a relatively nice job with the slice - he cut only the minimum size hole he needed to get his arm through, he didn't cut through the liner underneath, didn't scratch up anything. He probably thought he was doing me a favor. But it would have been a bigger favor if he'd smashed the window, that would have been cheaper to fix - but I guess he figured that would be noisier. He just grabbed the bag - didn't touch the car stereo, didn't take the 50 bucks in change sitting in the center console, didn't find the slot where the ipod is hidden away. And when I think of all the things I might have put into that bag (DSLR instead of pocket camera, Bose headphones, etc.) I guess I got off relatively okay.
Anyway, lesson learned. Even in HK, don't leave stuff sitting in the car when parked on the street.
the morning after
Turns out I did lock the car. Someone took a knife and sliced a hole in the top.
As for why I didn't see it last night, I plead a fifth ...
As for why I didn't see it last night, I plead a fifth ...
stupid is as stupid does
Getting robbed on one's birthday isn't fun. Though it's my fault.
Flew back from Manila this morning. Another upgrade to business, this time in one of the planes fitted with the "new" business class cubicle. The seats are distinctly narrower than the old ones and because of the partitions, it's impossible to have a conversation with anyone - which can be good, can be bad, depending on circumstances.
Anyway, drinks with a dozen friends at LKF and Wanchai tonight. I had a small shoulder bag which held my Panasonic camera, my prescription reading glasses, spare pack of smokes. When we went from LKF to Wanchai, I tossed the bag into the back seat. When we parked in Wanchai, I put the bag onto the front seat.
Now I distinctly remember locking the car. But when I returned to the car around 1:45 AM, I hit the unlock button on the key from some distance away. Normally I have to be almost on top of the car for it to work, but when I reached the car the doors were unlocked. And the bag was not on the front seat. So perhaps I didn't lock the car and the temptation was too great for someone to resist. Couldn't they have just taken the camera and left the glasses?
And I suppose the sign that said "I'm a fucking idiot, please rob me!" was much larger than the one that said, "Be nice, it's my birthday and I'm old and forgetful."
Sigh
Flew back from Manila this morning. Another upgrade to business, this time in one of the planes fitted with the "new" business class cubicle. The seats are distinctly narrower than the old ones and because of the partitions, it's impossible to have a conversation with anyone - which can be good, can be bad, depending on circumstances.
Anyway, drinks with a dozen friends at LKF and Wanchai tonight. I had a small shoulder bag which held my Panasonic camera, my prescription reading glasses, spare pack of smokes. When we went from LKF to Wanchai, I tossed the bag into the back seat. When we parked in Wanchai, I put the bag onto the front seat.
Now I distinctly remember locking the car. But when I returned to the car around 1:45 AM, I hit the unlock button on the key from some distance away. Normally I have to be almost on top of the car for it to work, but when I reached the car the doors were unlocked. And the bag was not on the front seat. So perhaps I didn't lock the car and the temptation was too great for someone to resist. Couldn't they have just taken the camera and left the glasses?
And I suppose the sign that said "I'm a fucking idiot, please rob me!" was much larger than the one that said, "Be nice, it's my birthday and I'm old and forgetful."
Sigh
Thursday, May 01, 2008
finishing up
Moving slowly, ever so slowly, eventually I got myself dressed, out of the room, and over to Serendra and Bonifacio High Street. BHS is a two block long outdoor shopping mall, with a large green promenade in the center.
The main draw there for me was unquestionably the four floor Fully Booked book store. While not as comprehensively stocked as, say Kinokuniya in Singapore, it is easily the best book store I have been to here. I didn't expect them to have the more obscure titles on my want list, but I did find Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss and Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson - maybe these books are available in HK, I confess I never really looked for them there. But beyond those two, I spent my time doing what one does in a bookstore, browsing through books I'd never heard of and picking half a dozen to try.
After that, I just wanted something simple like a non-fast-food burger, and ended up going into a restaurant with a name like Texas Barbecue Grill or something like that. The waitress, the very definition of cute, made a point of telling me her name and then leaving a comment card with me (and a pen). When the food came, before I could even take a bit, the manager was at my table asking me if everything was okay. And as I ate, two separate times other people came over to ask if my burger was okay. I know that Filipinos often bend over backwards to be helpful, but this to me falls under the heading of Trying Too Hard. On the other hand, they did refill my "bottomless" glass of soda before I even thought of asking for a refill.
(One thing I've noticed - if you eat in a highly rated restaurant, the staff will never come over and interrupt you in the middle of the meal to ask if you're happy with your food. They know what they're serving, they have confidence in it, they leave you alone to enjoy it. And in a cha chan teng, no one's gonna come over and ask either. Just these mid level franchise chain places seem to think that it shows some degree of caring but it never comes off that way to me.)
I think tonight I'll go for Filipino food - either the local chain Gerry's Grill which does nice Filipino style barbecue or a new place over at Greenbelt 5 recommended by a friend. And then over to Handlebar, which will have a band tonight and hopefully be jumping.
Oh, best t-shirt noticed on this trip: "Whip me, Beat me, Fuck me, Just don't mess up my hair!"
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Unbelievable to read about the bus tragedy in Sai Kung today. At least 15 people dead in a tour bus ("elderly passengers being carried to a religious event") that reports say was "dangerously overloaded" when, according to the driver, the brakes failed at the bottom of a steep hill. Drivers who are experienced in this area know that there is often a speed trap around a curve near the bottom of the hill. They proceed slowly until they reach that point, but many then put the pedal to the metal after that and often barely brake for the hard left into the traffic circle at the bottom. I note that the driver has been arrested but I wonder if the number of passengers or the lack of proper inspection to the vehicle was his fault.
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Any news about the torch procession in HK today? Haven't seen anything online, so I assume all is quiet, as expected since HK Immigration has been turning away people whom they think will incite protests, no regard for the part of the Basic Law that's supposed to guarantee freedom of speech. Mia Farrow did get in but I suppose she's too famous to reject; that would result in some uncomfortable global headlines.
I have a t-shirt with the poster for the Hitchcock movie Vertigo on it. The shirt is orange. Thinking about wearing it when traveling home tomorrow.
The main draw there for me was unquestionably the four floor Fully Booked book store. While not as comprehensively stocked as, say Kinokuniya in Singapore, it is easily the best book store I have been to here. I didn't expect them to have the more obscure titles on my want list, but I did find Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss and Tree of Smoke by Denis Johnson - maybe these books are available in HK, I confess I never really looked for them there. But beyond those two, I spent my time doing what one does in a bookstore, browsing through books I'd never heard of and picking half a dozen to try.
After that, I just wanted something simple like a non-fast-food burger, and ended up going into a restaurant with a name like Texas Barbecue Grill or something like that. The waitress, the very definition of cute, made a point of telling me her name and then leaving a comment card with me (and a pen). When the food came, before I could even take a bit, the manager was at my table asking me if everything was okay. And as I ate, two separate times other people came over to ask if my burger was okay. I know that Filipinos often bend over backwards to be helpful, but this to me falls under the heading of Trying Too Hard. On the other hand, they did refill my "bottomless" glass of soda before I even thought of asking for a refill.
(One thing I've noticed - if you eat in a highly rated restaurant, the staff will never come over and interrupt you in the middle of the meal to ask if you're happy with your food. They know what they're serving, they have confidence in it, they leave you alone to enjoy it. And in a cha chan teng, no one's gonna come over and ask either. Just these mid level franchise chain places seem to think that it shows some degree of caring but it never comes off that way to me.)
I think tonight I'll go for Filipino food - either the local chain Gerry's Grill which does nice Filipino style barbecue or a new place over at Greenbelt 5 recommended by a friend. And then over to Handlebar, which will have a band tonight and hopefully be jumping.
Oh, best t-shirt noticed on this trip: "Whip me, Beat me, Fuck me, Just don't mess up my hair!"
=========================
Unbelievable to read about the bus tragedy in Sai Kung today. At least 15 people dead in a tour bus ("elderly passengers being carried to a religious event") that reports say was "dangerously overloaded" when, according to the driver, the brakes failed at the bottom of a steep hill. Drivers who are experienced in this area know that there is often a speed trap around a curve near the bottom of the hill. They proceed slowly until they reach that point, but many then put the pedal to the metal after that and often barely brake for the hard left into the traffic circle at the bottom. I note that the driver has been arrested but I wonder if the number of passengers or the lack of proper inspection to the vehicle was his fault.
==========================
Any news about the torch procession in HK today? Haven't seen anything online, so I assume all is quiet, as expected since HK Immigration has been turning away people whom they think will incite protests, no regard for the part of the Basic Law that's supposed to guarantee freedom of speech. Mia Farrow did get in but I suppose she's too famous to reject; that would result in some uncomfortable global headlines.
I have a t-shirt with the poster for the Hitchcock movie Vertigo on it. The shirt is orange. Thinking about wearing it when traveling home tomorrow.
