Tuesday, January 31, 2006
The tips that boomeranged
First it was Younis Khan who thanked Rahul Dravid for his tips that changed his batting fortunes. Now, rookie centurion Faisal Iqbal has expressed his gratitude for the Indian captain after scoring his maiden century.
I hope Dravid shares some of those tips with the Indian batsmen. They will need it to save the Test.
I hope Dravid shares some of those tips with the Indian batsmen. They will need it to save the Test.
Water cooler and other talk
Overheard in the Office publishes snatches of conversations heard in offices. Some of them are really funny. Like this:
Receptionist: What are the new shirts made out?
Clerk: They're 100% cotton.
Receptionist: Cotton? That's the stuff that grows on sheep, right?
Clerk: No, cotton comes from rabbits. That's why they're called cottontails.
Receptionist: What are the new shirts made out?
Clerk: They're 100% cotton.
Receptionist: Cotton? That's the stuff that grows on sheep, right?
Clerk: No, cotton comes from rabbits. That's why they're called cottontails.
The way of all flesh
A surgeon in a seaside town in New Zealand has closed his medical practice. His sugery will open as a brothel next month.
"It's about providing a private service and maintaining confidentiality, which is what my medical practice was about - so it's not a big leap, really," the good doctor said.
Link via Fark
"It's about providing a private service and maintaining confidentiality, which is what my medical practice was about - so it's not a big leap, really," the good doctor said.
Link via Fark
Friday, January 20, 2006
The secret art of earning the best pay package...
...that's the top story on the online edition of Economic Times at 4pm India time.
If people in the market for a job are not yet familiar with the 'secrets' revealed in the article, they deserve the salaries they are paid.
Economic Times is full of these stupid how-to articles that are badly written, poor in substance and even more poorly edited. But to make something like this a top story, running over six pages... well, what can I say, it's from the TOI after all.
If people in the market for a job are not yet familiar with the 'secrets' revealed in the article, they deserve the salaries they are paid.
Economic Times is full of these stupid how-to articles that are badly written, poor in substance and even more poorly edited. But to make something like this a top story, running over six pages... well, what can I say, it's from the TOI after all.
Thursday, January 19, 2006
Who will put out this fire?
A fire awareness promotional event in Japan ended with a fire at a fire station, and a lot of red faces among fire-fighters.
"I wanted to eat him, but I didn't want to kill him"
A cannibal in Germany claimed during his retrial that he was carrying out his victim's wishes to be eaten and had not wanted to kill him.
He was last year sentenced to eight and half years for manslaughter, but was spared a murder conviction and a life sentence. But the Supreme Court ordered a retrial.
Pretty gruesome stuff. Not for the faint of heart.
He was last year sentenced to eight and half years for manslaughter, but was spared a murder conviction and a life sentence. But the Supreme Court ordered a retrial.
Pretty gruesome stuff. Not for the faint of heart.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
No music for my ears
I have not been able to sleep much lately because my Worldspace channels are blocked even though my subscription is valid.
To crack the problem, I called up their toll free number. I was put on hold for an inordinately long time, then transferred to an answering machine and then cut off before I could leave a message. I tried again. Got the answering machine and left a message. Didn’t get the return call that was promised. I am persevering if nothing else. So I called again, and again, and again. Many messages later, I gave up on the toll-free number.
I went to their Web site and checked whether my password was valid. It was.
So I decided to try a different tack. I sent a mail to their customer care. I got a 5mb attachment with instructions on how to enter my password. I already knew that. But I tried to do as they said. No luck.
So I sent them another mail.
Their solution was simplicity itself:
“Thank you for writing to WorldSpace.
“With regard to your problem with the receiver, we suggest you to get the receiver repaired. You can send the receiver to our regional office at Mumbai or to our corporate office at Bangalore for repairs.
“Please note the servicing and ` is done at Bangalore and it would take 7-10 days for the repair.
“We hope you find the above information helpful.”
Even though I have no idea how a Worldspace receiver works, I had more common sense than whoever drafted that letter to realize that it was not a problem with the receiver.
So I called up their regional office in Mumbai (the one they asked me to send my receiver to). Thankfully, I got a human being, who gave me another number. I called the number. Another human being. I love talking to human beings. He heard me out patiently. And then gave me a new password.
Apparently, they change the password every six months to save my ears from damage resulting from excess exposure to good music.
If you own a Worldspace receiver, don’t bother calling the toll-free number or writing to customer care. Call 55022121 (it’s a Mumbai number by the way).
And I hope to sleep well tonight.
To crack the problem, I called up their toll free number. I was put on hold for an inordinately long time, then transferred to an answering machine and then cut off before I could leave a message. I tried again. Got the answering machine and left a message. Didn’t get the return call that was promised. I am persevering if nothing else. So I called again, and again, and again. Many messages later, I gave up on the toll-free number.
I went to their Web site and checked whether my password was valid. It was.
So I decided to try a different tack. I sent a mail to their customer care. I got a 5mb attachment with instructions on how to enter my password. I already knew that. But I tried to do as they said. No luck.
So I sent them another mail.
Their solution was simplicity itself:
“Thank you for writing to WorldSpace.
“With regard to your problem with the receiver, we suggest you to get the receiver repaired. You can send the receiver to our regional office at Mumbai or to our corporate office at Bangalore for repairs.
“Please note the servicing and ` is done at Bangalore and it would take 7-10 days for the repair.
“We hope you find the above information helpful.”
Even though I have no idea how a Worldspace receiver works, I had more common sense than whoever drafted that letter to realize that it was not a problem with the receiver.
So I called up their regional office in Mumbai (the one they asked me to send my receiver to). Thankfully, I got a human being, who gave me another number. I called the number. Another human being. I love talking to human beings. He heard me out patiently. And then gave me a new password.
Apparently, they change the password every six months to save my ears from damage resulting from excess exposure to good music.
If you own a Worldspace receiver, don’t bother calling the toll-free number or writing to customer care. Call 55022121 (it’s a Mumbai number by the way).
And I hope to sleep well tonight.
Monday, January 09, 2006
Golden Rules
Thursday, January 05, 2006
No Pigeon this!
Glenn McGrath was ordered to appear for an ICC hearing for "using language that is obscene, offensive or insulting and/or the making of an obscene gesture". Good move!
I wonder how Andre Nel has not yet been reported. Could it be his hail-fellow-well-met attitude towards the umps?
I wonder how Andre Nel has not yet been reported. Could it be his hail-fellow-well-met attitude towards the umps?
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Yeh kya jagah hain doston?
Sometimes I feel a bit like Rip Van Winkle. I took a long hiatus from blogging towards the end of 2002. I had been blogging for a year, and just didn’t have the bandwidth to continue posting. I completely switched off from the blogging circuit.
When I resumed blogging recently, I discovered a completely different world than I had left three years ago.
There were very few bloggers at that time... Anita, Sylvia, Codey, Madman, Nidhi, Mahesh, Kiruba (on whose account much curiosity and discussion ensues at my home), Anand, Floating Creeper… are some of the names I do remember. It was a small community, more like a group gathered around a campfire making small talk, rather than the blogosphere it has evolved into.
For me, blogging has lost much of its early innocence. It is far more self-important these days. Debates rage for days, across many blogs. There are comments long enough to fill up the entire TOI edit page. There are trackbacks, and cartels. And, yes, there are far more blogs to read; many of them with content that is compelling, fresh and engaging, adding new perspective to my worldview.
Sometimes, just sometimes, I feel a little out of place, like someone who has unwittingly gatecrashed a party and can't figure out what the fuss is all about.
When I resumed blogging recently, I discovered a completely different world than I had left three years ago.
There were very few bloggers at that time... Anita, Sylvia, Codey, Madman, Nidhi, Mahesh, Kiruba (on whose account much curiosity and discussion ensues at my home), Anand, Floating Creeper… are some of the names I do remember. It was a small community, more like a group gathered around a campfire making small talk, rather than the blogosphere it has evolved into.
For me, blogging has lost much of its early innocence. It is far more self-important these days. Debates rage for days, across many blogs. There are comments long enough to fill up the entire TOI edit page. There are trackbacks, and cartels. And, yes, there are far more blogs to read; many of them with content that is compelling, fresh and engaging, adding new perspective to my worldview.
Sometimes, just sometimes, I feel a little out of place, like someone who has unwittingly gatecrashed a party and can't figure out what the fuss is all about.
