The Blogosphere Ecosystem

I added SquidBlog to N.Z.Bear's Blogosphere Ecosystem yesterday. Yesterday SquidBlog was an Insignificant Microbe, with a rank of 3617. Today, SquidBlog has jumped up the evolutionary ladder, to become a Crunchy Crustacean with a rank of 2657!

So... in a blatant attempt at self-promotion - join the Ecosystem, and link to my stuff. SquidBlog must evolve. Doesn't have to go all the way up - I'd be happy if SquidBlog makes it all the way up to Slimy Molluscs, as befits a cephalopod mollusc.

Customer Service?

The BogieBlog has an interesting article on the rather rude trend to interruption of the customer after every third word to confirm what they've just said, instead of waiting for the customer to finish. This is a general trend towards poor customer service. Who needs to train personel? If they suck, fire them and hire more minimum-wage bozos, right?

Good customer service is a thing of the past. The bottom line rarely allows for proper training anymore. When I started my first job, part time in a department store while I was still in highschool, we got a full three days of training, both in customer service and in cashiering, before we ever saw a customer. This included training in how to give change properly, one of my pet peeves.

Today's cashiers just take the amount of change due, conveniently calculated by the cash register, out of the cash drawer and dump it into your hand - coins sitting on top of bills and likely to be dropped - which you then have to count yourself to make sure it's the correct amount. In the department store job and the many jobs I had during my long career as a student, nobody ever complained that I'd short-changed them. I get short-changed all the time. I often get too much change, too.

It is very rare for someone to count change back properly, starting with the total of your purchase, up to the amount you gave them. I bought coffee at a Tim Hortons the other day and was so astonished when the lady there counted my change back to me that I commented on it. She laughed, and called herself a dinosaur. That's sad. And it's wrong.

This-or-That on hiatus

This-or-That is on hiatus. Tuesdays just won't be Tuesdays without Shake-n-Ba.. er, uh... I mean, without This-or-That!

We need help!

My wife and I are going to buy a digital camera. We've been busy looking up reviews of various models online, and comparing the differences.

We have a problem. We found this little beastie in a flyer, but can't find it anywhere online:

Perhaps you know something about it?

Yes, we know it's really a Minolta Dimage E223. :)

This is what happens when flyers are put together by people who nothing about the products.

Friday Five 2003 07 25

Today's Friday Five:

1. If your life were a movie, what would the title be? - What the -?!?

2. What songs would be on the soundtrack? - Probably lots of 70's and 80's stuff.. a bit of classical, maybe some children's stuff... eclectic. That's it. Eclectic...

3. Would it be a live-action film or animated? Why? - Live-action combined with animation. Because that's cool. And because my son would love it!

4. Casting: who would play you, members of your family, friends, etc? - Well... there'd be a Giant Squid (animated, of course) to play me. The cutest kid in the world would play my son (so... he'd play himself). I'll let my wife decide who plays her. And a cast of thousands would play my friends and the rest of my family. Although I don't know if the budget can handle any big names...

5. Describe the movie preview/trailer. - Opening sequence: theme from Jawz, played by The Happy Wanderers¹. Animated me rising from the depths to attack a three-master... much mayhem ensues...

¹Yes, I'm aware John Candy is, sadly, no longer with us... but you get the idea...

Despicable people

Michele over at a small victory is having a terrible time with trolls, who are looking for information and pictures of the young woman involved in the case against a certain young sports star in the US. I won't mention the name, or the type of case, because I do not want those trolls here. Sure, I'd love to have lots of traffic here, but not that traffic.

In Canada, her identity would never be revealed, nor would pictures of her be published. But in the US, where they have long allowed television into the courtroom, the court system has become a media circus, and celebrity rights outweigh those of the non-celebrity. "His identity is well known, as the accused, so hers should be, too!" shout some of the rabid fans. "His life is ruined! Why should she do any better?" is another line. Well, the simple answer is: if he didn't do it, his life shouldn't be ruined. If she is lying, then she should be punished. We don't have the facts, so we should just sit back, and let the justice system, such as it is, take its course.

Just for the record - I'm not a big sports fan. I had no idea who this person was before this story broke. Quite honestly, I don't care one way or the other. I just want justice done. And in the meantime, the victim should be protected, and the trolls should just stay in their caves and be quiet.

Sauron's dirty little secret

Found at Fembat.Net. With thanks, of course, to Dr. Fun.

This-or-That 2003 07 22

5) Women: 1-piece bathing suit or Bikini? - ?
6) To be fair--Men: Boxers or briefs? - ?
7) Beer or Liquor/Wine? - When it's hot, beer. When it's not, wine. Although I can't think the last time I had a glass of wine, and we still have a beer in the fridge from when my brother came to visit last summer. Note to self: throw out beer.
8) Coke or Mountain Dew? - I'm a cola drinker.
9) In honor of my 10/18/03 nuptials: Morning or Afternoon/Night Wedding? - Afternoon.
10) Carpet or Hardwood Floors? - Hardwood.
11) American cars or foreign? - My 1990 Toyota Corolla has 250,000 km (155000 miles) and is going strong.
12) Cutest TV Twin: Mary-Kate or Ashley Olsen? - Hey! I just ate breakfast, for cryin' out loud! You could warn me, before you mention those two! Yecch!
13) Coffee: Caffeinated or Decaf? - Full Caffeine, with sugar and cream. No sugar, no caffeine? What's the point?
14) Thought-Provoking Question of the Week: Computers: Do they make life better or worse? Why? - Yes. Because.

Today's Lunch

Leftover chili and the last hamburger from last night's BBQ.

It doesn't get much better than this, baby!

Friday Five 2003 07 18

Today's Friday Five:

1. When was the last time you cheated? - I peeked at the answers on a Cryptic Crossword a couple weeks ago. *hang head in shame*

2. When was the last time you stole? - when I was 16 I "liberated" some kite string from a Woodward's store¹. *hang head in shame*

3. When was the last time you lied? - I never lie! (actually, just now)

4. When was the last time you broke or vandalized another's property? - Never. Never never never. Not even when I was a dumb teenager.

5. When was the last time you hurt a loved one? - Last week, I had to tell my brother that we couldn't make it to his wedding this past weekend. He was hurt, but said he understood. I'm not certain he did. We need to sit down and talk it out, and this is the kind of discussion I can't do over the phone.

notes:
¹ Woodward's? - Western Canadians are going "Ahhh... the good ol' days. I miss Woodward's." Western Canadians miss Woodward's far more than we'll ever miss Eaton's. Just so you know.

Darwin Award Nominee

From the Amish Tech Support website:

"It's not often that someone goes from a Fullbright Scholarship to Darwin Award, you know."

Seems some silly Oxford students, members of an unofficial club, the Oxford Stunt Factory, were flinging each other from a replica of a midievel catapult. One of them came up shy of the target net.

Full Reuters account on Yahoo News [link now defunct]

In passing...

I've been meaning to mention this site, In Passing for awhile now... finally added it to my blogroll over there on the right.

An anonymous blogger, Eve S. Dropper - anonymous so her friends and classmates will continue to make interesting and bizarre smalltalk around her - takes snippets of conversation heard "in passing" and posts it to her blog, along with short and often witty commentary.

Some of these things are so bizarre, one is hard-pressed to find an acceptable context... so go read, and enjoy!

In passing...

I've been meaning to mention this site, In Passing for awhile now... finally added it to my blogroll over there on the right.

An anonymous blogger, Eve S. Dropper - anonymous so her friends and classmates will continue to make interesting and bizarre smalltalk around her - takes snippets of conversation heard "in passing" and posts it to her blog, along with short and often witty commentary.

Some of these things are so bizarre, one is hard-pressed to find an acceptable context... so go read, and enjoy!

This-or-That 2003 07 15

This-or-That for today:

1. Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck? - Bugs of course. Daffy's just a dolt.
2. Tom or Jerry? - Mighty mouse kicks both their asses!
3. Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck? - Donald, of course. Mickey's voice can kill flies at 1000 paces!
4. Rocky & Bullwinkle or Boris & Natasha? - R&B, baby!
5. Road Runner or Wile E. Coyote? - Wile E. Coyote, of course. He's single-handedly made me a fortune on my Acme shares!
6. Sylvester or Tweety? - Sylvester. Sufferin' Succotash!
7. Popeye or Bluto? - who? Just kidding. Popeye.
8. South Park or The Simpsons? - The Simpsons.
9. Jetsons or Flintstones? - Flintstones. How can you not like a show with so many geological puns?
10. And finally, the eternal question asked by all good Scooby-Doo fans: Velma or Daphne? - You're kidding, right? Please tell me you're kidding, and you're not some lame-ass toonophile...

Hitler vs Stalin - the Comic Book Edition

I came across this while perusing the always interesting stuff over at Simian Design:

Hitler vs Stalin, the Comic Book Edition (Authorized Annotated Translated version). It's possible it will offend some, but it's an interesting parody. If you're interested, give it a peek...

Friday Five 2003 07 11

Friday Five for today:

1. Do you remember your first best friend? Who was it? - Sure. Son of my parents' best friends in my home town. We started school together.

2. Are you still in touch with this person? - No. We moved away when I was 10, and we gradually lost touch. I haven't talked to him in over 20 years.

3. Do you have a current close friend? - Sure. He was Best Man at our wedding.

How did you become friends with this person? - We met at University, and played lots of table tennis when we should have been studying...

Is there a friend from your past that you wish you were still in contact with? Why? - There are a number of "best friends" I had over time. We moved lots, so I've lost contact with some really good people I wish I'd stayed in contact with. Why? Because I've had some really good friends over the years.

CWD, anyone?

Behold the beauty of Canadian World Domination, brought to you by General Claire and General Jenny.

I especially like this map: USA Rezoned for Canadian Rule. I'm not sure I agree with all the new names, but the boundaries work for me...

(site found at the Daily Rant)

This or That 2003 07 08

3. Hamburgers or hot dogs? - Hamburgers! Fresh off the BBQ!
4. Boating or hiking?- boating. if I had a boat.
5. Suntan lotion or sunblock? - sunblock, if I remember...
6. "Big Brother" or "The Amazing Race"? -Neither. Ickypoo. Yuck. "Help! Help! My brain is melting!"
7. Beach Boys or Jimmy Buffett? - Depends on mood.
8. Grow your own produce or buy from supermarket/greengrocer/farm stand? - Supermarket.
9. Drive with car windows/top down, or with air-conditioning on? - Windows down.
10. Go away for vacation, or stay at home? - Go away. No, I'm serious. Go. Get out of here. Now! I mean it. Just go...