tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77184158460785772742024-03-06T06:31:25.236+09:00Just About Anything...My life. And more. Digitalized.Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.comBlogger328125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-81383619697734105702014-06-04T17:24:00.003+09:002014-06-04T17:24:32.066+09:00The End<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Every good thing must come to an end. Dare I say it, this blog was good while it lasted; it lived with me through good times and bad, helped me express myself, and hopefully, provided some enjoyment to those others who read it.<br /><br />All that started after I moved to Japan with the beginning of a new life. Now that that chapter is about to be closed, and while good things are in waiting, it is time to give some closure to this blog as well.<br /><br />So, thank you all who stuck by me and this blog for... sticking by. You've been awesome!<br /><br />Farewell!</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-44245006164776250982014-04-18T12:01:00.001+09:002014-04-18T12:01:35.324+09:00Sach's Ultimate Non-Personal Bucket List<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
We all have those personal desires we <i>so</i> hope would come true; we would like to get 'busy' with the hot waitress at Starbucks, date that hot guy you can never take your eyes off, own all the video games every made, get married and have 11 babies - wait, no, NOBODY should want that - or find all by yourself a unified theory of everything, depending on what your thing is.<br /><br />But for me, there are other things that I would so dearly love to see come true before I die and thought I'd write them down. So here goes, Sach's Ultimate Non-Personal Bucket List.<br /><br />1. A Supernova Explosion<br />Know <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betelgeuse" target="_blank">Betelgeuse</a>? The big red star in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orion_%28constellation%29" target="_blank">Orion's right shoulder</a>? Yes that's a big ass star so much so that were it at the center of the Solar System its surface would extend to almost the orbit of Jupiter. And it's so big for a reason: the star has so much mass it burned up all its energy very quickly and is swollen to its red giant stage. Now all is set up for what is probably the coolest (not exactly the right choice of words though, given it's anything but cool over there) event in the night sky that we'd be able to see. Betelgeuse will eventually explode in a supernova, something that's so fiercely bright it can outshine an entire galaxy for a brief period, and given that it's <i>only</i> 640 light years from us, we should be able to see it with our naked eyes during the day. Nobody knows when it will happen, it could be in a million years, few centuries, decades or even tomorrow. I dearly hope it's tomorrow.<br /><br /><br />2. Artificial Intelligence<br />Not the Siri kind but the real deal. We've all heard about it, the Hollywood always think it'll spell doom for us, the Sci-Fi writers are marginally better and yet we have no idea how close or far away it would be. When it comes to technology, I think I have a soft spot, so I always like to give it the benefit of the doubt. I suppose we have to figure out what consciousness is if we are ever to construct an AI, and that's no mean feat; we probably know much more about Pluto than our own consciousness. But who are we to say that it won't evolve on it's own without any of us knowing?<br /><br /><br />3. Bring back the Dinos<br />If you were a kid and you didn't like dinosaurs there's something wrong with you. Like seriously. For all practical purposes it could be made a mental health test for children: you don't like the dinos, you get thrown in the mental asylum. But the fact is that even after you are grown up, which most men aren't, chances are you still like them. Big time. In all honesty it probably isn't a very good idea to bring them back, they had their shot and had to be wiped out to make way for us so humans walking alongside them dinos is just not meant to be unless you also believe the earth is 6,000 years old. But I'll be damned if I could bring them back and didn't.<br /><br /><br />4. Reboot the Space Program<br />I want to see a human on Mars! In the 60s if they could send humans to moon using microprocessors less powerful than my mobile phone today, we most certainly are capable of sending few people to Mras if we put our minds into it. Minds and money. How sad is it that the America's annual defense budget is larger than that of next ten countries' put together? So we are definitely capable of it, it's just we've got our priorities wrong, not just wrong but <i>very</i> wrong. But dreams are free and I dream the day we send someone to Mars. It'll be doubly sweet if it's a woman so they'll have to come up with something better than "it's a giant leap for <i>mankind</i>".<br /><br /><br />5. A World Without Religion<br />Organized religion to be specific. I have good reason to hope for it: most of the wars we fought throughout our human history had something to do with religion, whenever religion gathered even a little bit of power people were made to suffer, and science was made to go into hiding dragging whole civilizations back centuries, and despite the popular belief when there's religion doesn't have authority on morality (rather, morality precedes religion) and worst of all, nothing divide people like religion do. Like <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Weinberg" target="_blank">Steven Weinberg</a> once so eloquently put it, <i>"Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion."</i><br /><br /><br />6. Flying Cars<br />Hollywood promised us them by the 1980s. Seriously, where the hell are these!?!?!?!?<br /><br />And finally, with a drum-roll and all...<br /><br />7. Life Elsewhere!<br />Yes that deserved a drum-roll and an exclamation mark. It doesn't have to be fancy aliens with warp drives, I don't want spaceships, hell they can be exceptionally dumb for all I care, I'll just take single celled extraterrestrial life as long as it's... life. Should we discover single celled most primitive life hidden beneath the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martian_polar_ice_caps" target="_blank">Martian polar ice caps</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_%28moon%29" target="_blank">underground oceans in Europa</a>, it's gong to be the most profound discovery in the history of humankind. The implications of extraterrestrial life will reach far and wide, eventually, and it will force us to think again about our whole perspective of the universe while answering one of the oldest questions we ever asked; are we alone? It'll be insanely interesting to know about their biology, whether DNA based life is the only way around the problem of life (if the first form of extraterrestrial life we find is also DNA based, it's very unlikely that it's by chance, life will <i>have</i> to need DNA), whether it's also carbon based, will they share any similarities to terrestrial life. The list goes on. And with the amount of access we have to the outside world today, compared to a decade ago, we're in for a treat. Also, should we discover a different life form within our own Solar System, that'll all but confirm that the universe is teeming with life, that it's more common that Twilight jokes.<br /><br />While we're here, let me speculate a bit more. If we ever discover intelligent life, that'll be ten times awesome not to mention outrageously lucky. The universe is so hopelessly vast, unless wormhole like traveling is a possibility, there is a good chance that we'll never come in contact with other intelligent species during the entire duration of our species even if the universe is teeming with life. If we <i>do</i> make contact, it could very much be some sort of radio communication at first at least, like what's in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contact_%28novel%29" target="_blank">Carl Sagan's Contact</a>. Primes FTW! Or in the extremely unlikely event, if they appeared next to earth someday I wouldn't complain. Despite what Hollywood's hell bent on convincing us, I think they wouldn't really want to laser us to death or something. For starters, if they are capable of interstellar travel that would at least suggest they are a species capable of getting their shit together - unlike us - and thus they'd probably be friendly. At least until we start firing our nukes at them. But if we somehow were able to get past that, and establish some form of communication (they could very well be a species who communicate using echolocation like the bats) who fascinating would it be to learn from them. I'd have millions of questions; what's your biology, is it carbon based, did you discover the origins of life in your planet, what's your culture like, do you have something akin to religion or beliefs, how does your economy work, governance, is there something like the concept of countries, do you have music and art, have you met still other aliens, if so are there any hermaphrodites among them, are <i>you</i> hermaphrodites, do you have sports, will you stand a decent chance in cricket? Oh I could go on.<br /><br />Seriously, I could live with not having all the other six if I could have just one single celled alien. I could just die in peace.</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-75479894796801163792013-11-28T15:37:00.002+09:002013-11-28T15:37:17.289+09:00Get your shit together, Men!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
November 25th was the <a href="http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/in-focus/end-violence-against-women" target="_blank">International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women</a>. That's pretty sad; the fact that in this and day and age we still need such a day. If you're not convinced, try replacing 'women' with 'blacks' or 'Jews' and say it aloud, and you'll realize how horrible it sounds. Unfortunately, it doesn't have the same ring to it when it comes to violence against women. When in fact it should be as horrible if not more. This is half the population on earth we're talking about.<br /><br />Apollo program was ahead of its time. When the NASA was funded and the moon program was launched (despite it being a political game) we didn't have the technology to take a human being to moon and bring back in one piece, yet within a decade we had achieved that extraordinary feat. It was truly a triumph of not just America but the whole world, of all the people who ever lived. We needed every bit of knowledge and wisdom we as a species had gathered for millennia across cultures to make it happen. It was the culmination our species' brilliance; we were no longer bound by the planet we were born in. And yet in that historic moment we chose to utter the sad words <i>"that's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind"</i> and thus spit on the faces of half the entire species who contributed to that victory. One could argue that it isn't proper literary device to say 'humankind', but bollocks to that. If it isn't proper, it's time we make it proper. Language changes more than most and why are we still stuck with mankind instead of humankind and he instead of he or she? Just like calling a black person 'nigger' is something to be ashamed of today, same should go with 'he' and 'mankind'. <br /><br />The history of how men have treated women throughout the history across pretty much all cultures is something to be embarrassed about. Up until less than a century ago women were more or less glorified incubators all over the world. There were exceptions, but that's kind of is the point. All that was expected of them was to breed like rabbits and raise the bunch of them. Education was limited to only that which she needed to take care of her man and the children. Voting was out of the question. Even the progressive fields like science horribly discriminated against women. Of 826 individual Nobel Prize winners between 1901 and 2011, only 43 - a depressing 5% - are women. If the achievements of NASA are a celebration of how exceedingly brilliant we can be as a species - to burrow from Christopher Hitchens - the plight of women is a sad reminder that we are only a half a chromosome away from chimpanzees.<br /><br />But past is past, and there's not a thing we can do about it except to learn from it. Which brings us to the point of this rant (pretty lot of words to get to the point, yeah, but that's why this is a rant) that it's a sad day when we need a day to educate people not to hit women. That's like having a day to tell people not to murder or steal. But that's the kind of world we live in even today; according to a 2013 WHO global study, 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual violence. The figure raises to above 70% in some nations. Worst of all a large portion of this abuse is coming from their own partners. This happens irrespective of whether it's a developed world country or a third world nation, and it's only worse in the latter; in most of the the third world countries women put up with the abuse because the culture is such that a divorced woman is permanently damaged goods. In some parts of the world people are still being trafficked into prostitution and forced labor, a more than 80% of it being women. 80 percent of victims of hand-held weapons in war are women. About 17% of the world adult population is still illiterate, and a staggering 2/3 of it - which amounts to more than 500 million people - are women. <br /><br />All that needs to change and that's not up for debate.<br /><br />It's a universal rule of moral code that you take care of the weak, not abuse them, and women <i>are</i> physically weak. While women are in no way intellectually inferior to men (sometimes, you can make a good case for the other way round, though) the society is such that chances are they are not in a position to use their full potential. Even today, the powers that be are men, and it is upon them to set things right. Only if men take the initiative - not because they are superior but because they are in a position of power - the change can be made; in all honesty, some men aren't aware and some simply don't care. And this is a small attempt to make them aware - at least - if not care. </div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-87107007031069852642013-10-07T11:50:00.000+09:002013-10-11T16:57:39.948+09:00Farewell, KS!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This blog completed five years of its existence about three or four days ago. I meant to put up a customary post about it's been <i>that</i> long and how I don't blog enough anymore. Perhaps fittingly I even forgot to do that so I said screw it and decided not to. Later yesterday, though, I was reading through my RSS feed and found <a href="http://magerata.wordpress.com/2013/10/06/kalusudda-closure/" target="_blank">a post from Magerata</a> after about couple of years or so, so I gleefully headed there only to be shocked and depressed about the death of Kalu Sudda, or KS as we used to call him.<br />
<br />
So yeah, screw the happy birthday post, this is for you, KS.<br />
<br />
I've got to admit I was never the best pals with him. Nonetheless we had a few memorable chats during those days especially with the connection we had; I was living in Japan and his wife is Japanese and he had a great love for Japan. He used to talk so fondly of his wife, Miss Fukuoka, who had actually learnt of the existence of his blog only few days ago as it seems and <a href="http://kalusudda.wordpress.com/2013/10/05/closure/" target="_blank">was kind enough to let us know</a>. Apparently it has been about four years since KS passed away.<br />
<br />
As it happens, I still remember the last conversation we had, and it was about the very sea voyage that would turn out to be his last! I've always wanted to spend a few weeks on the sea and he was telling me that we should make it happen sometime. Then he said 'see you' but the bugger never kept his word. Life really isn't fair sometimes.<br />
<br />
All I can say is he was a fun bloke and the world will be poorer without him. May you rest in peace, KS.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-46837501882488461202013-05-15T20:51:00.000+09:002013-05-15T20:51:57.918+09:00MIXEDRICE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
Don't think I was going to bore you about my culinary skills although I
must say they are pretty good. Even if I say so myself. This is about
something much more timely, topical and dare I say, necessary.</div>
<br />
I
love our good old Paradise, but, sometimes the stuff that's going on
there is just ridiculous and embarrassing. You probably know what I'm
talking about by now, but in case you don't, I'm so pissed and
embarrassed about these bigots who have sprung up in Sri Lanka of late
who are trying to oppress other people's rights to live peacefully just
because they happened to be of other faiths and/or races.<br />
<br />
So I
and a bunch of good friends of mine have put together a web site and a social media campaign in order to invite you all to participate in
some sort of discussion and let the world see that not all of us are
fools. We just don't want to sit around and watch while these douchebags
ruin our motherland and the love we have for it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mixedrice.org/" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8j5fTVL-JPjJSfNdp9GEogJqBDAgKZFO7HrAIsz0C0UC3emkUyYoZnFVMPt_t1GnJf6_jEINOLt2OCVv3NbVHjOGTQL_kgtPwA4wDUPDzm76bJ7TLDu-g7jjw7Eyrg6JcnofMPbdXbrMq/s400/-2.png" title="Mixedrice, not about rice." width="331" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mixedrice.org/" target="_blank">Mixedrice, not about rice.</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
Please <a href="http://mixedrice.org/" target="_blank">visit the site</a>, subscribe via e-mail, like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/mixedrice.sl" target="_blank">Facebook</a>, follow us on <a href="https://twitter.com/_mixedrice/" target="_blank">Twitter</a> and help us spread the word. Even more importantly, please join us to take a stand against the forces that threaten the unity and peace in our motherland.</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-71544251316235788362012-12-27T10:58:00.000+09:002012-12-27T10:58:37.252+09:00Evil Humanlike Aliens. Seriously?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
What is Hollywood's obsession with 'evil' aliens? And what's with almost all Hollywood's 'intelligent' aliens having some kind of resemblance to humans? In fact this doesn't limit to Hollywood. Even most of the Sci-Fi writers are culprits of being stuck in this template so to speak. <br /><br />One could argue that a rocky planet, as opposed to a gassy one, is a must for life. One could also argue that having a set of free limbs is a necessity to evolve into being called intelligent. Or having a fairly large brain or being able to work with fire. But really, those are weak arguments for they are based on the assumption that life in the universe is life as we know it. However when you think of the scale and the diversity of the universe there is no reason why life elsewhere should be life as we know it. And theoretically there is no reason why life elsewhere should bear even the remotest resemblance to us let alone looking just like us. Think about it; <i>all</i> life on earth is related. Not just you and me, if we go far back enough we can find a common ancestor of you and the alpha male of a lion pride in Serengeti or of me and the first dinosaur to die on that unfortunate (or, rather fortunate) day where a meteor wiped them all out. Point is, all life on earth is related on some level and <i>yet</i> they look <i>so much</i> different to each other. Think of a cheetah, a dragonfly, a jellyfish, an amoeba, a bird, a dolphin, a tapeworm, a wasp, a spider and a woman. They look so different they might as well be from different planets. So why should we bear the remotest resemblance to aliens whom we have no relation whatsoever with?<br /><br />I have a theory as to why.<br /><br />I think the reason is that Hollywood and Sci-Fi writers take the easy way out. It is indeed such a difficult job to construct a new life form from scratch just by using your imagination. If you don't believe me, try describing an animal to a person whom never have seen it just by using words. You'll find that a mighty difficult job. I know I have. Conjuring up an alien is far more difficult. It's much easier to go with the shape you know best, stick an antenna here, change color there, a bigger head perhaps, probably bald as well and you're good to go. Alternate would be to think right from the beginning. What kind of a planet they live on? What is their biochemistry? What do they breath? Do they breath at all? Are they also DNA based or is it something entirely different? Would they fit the scaled we know of or would they be giants? Or microscopic for that matter. Will they have something equivalent of language as we know it or would they communicated in an entirely different way? Would they be single entities or would it be a collective intelligence? Would we even recognize it as life if we encountered it? Think of a tapeworm and a human, only, this time <i>we</i> are the tapeworm and aliens are the human. I'm pretty sure the tapeworm has no idea whatsoever who and what a human is. Who are we to argue that we are any different confronted with an intelligent alien race? There are all kinds of questions like these that the writers don't bother to answer. It's much easier to go with the little green men.<br /><br />The evil aliens of Hollywood is also due to this lack of imagination. It is far more easier to think of evil aliens who wants to kill you for no apparent reason and then fight them back than think of doing something constructive with them. After all you'd think that a species capable of traveling all this stellar distance is intelligent enough to put petty wars behind them. Technically earth should be of no interest to them. The earth is made out of most common stuff in the universe, and with the data we have now scientists think it is very likely that the planets outnumber stars in the universe. That's a <i>lot</i> of planets if you ask me and law of the averages says that there should be gazillion earths out there. Why should our earth be of so importance to them? Only plausible reason I can think of is as a research project for an alien PhD student. Lab rats might come to some people's minds, but really, I'm willing to take the risk. Maybe I'm an optimist but I'd like to think they'd be more civilized than evil warmongers the Hollywood like to portray them as. If we ever come into contact with intelligent aliens chances are that we'll probably learn something from them. In fact it's highly unlikely that they'll fly here in fleets of their super fast disc-like (why is it <i>always</i> a disc?) spaceships anyway. I'm not counting the possibility of interstellar travel out, just that it's more likely we'll come into contact with life elsewhere with something like radio signals first.<br /><br />So, Hollywood, and writers, I'm not impressed. Give me something better next time.</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-174859075039727812012-10-03T11:28:00.003+09:002012-10-03T11:28:55.798+09:00FOUR YEARS<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It's been 4 years, folks.<br />
<br />
That is all.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-2270004403811261402012-09-01T21:27:00.000+09:002016-11-30T07:48:48.249+09:00First time in a Brothel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It has been a while since you guys had a slice of my life. Ugh, that didn't sound right. What I mean is that it has been a while since I wrote something about my life. While things are mostly boring and mundane over here sometimes they do get spiced up, and when they do, they really do. This is the story of how I went looking for brothels in Tokyo and almost ended up with a prostitute. Well it looks a silly sentence for you go looking for brothels in order to find prostitutes, but there's a catch so read on. In case my children or their potential partners come across this post when they do a background check before the arranged marriage, note that the keyword here is <i>almost.</i> By the way, why I thought my children, if I had any, would need arranged marriages, baffles myself. I have no idea.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So couple of months back, there I was happily munching on a particularly good cookie while staring at the computer screen, i.e., browsing the Internet. Because that's what we software engineers do when we come home after staring at a screen for about 10 hours at work. Anyway, my Skype went 'blongg' and there was a chat from an old mate who lives abroad. Well the mate isn't particularly old, our friendship is. For reasons you will understand in a minute, I need to keep the identity of this friend concealed, so let me call him, let me think about it... Aladdin. Suffice to know that he lives in another country. Turns out he was thinking of spending a few days in Japan en route to somewhere from somewhere else. So Aladdin and I made plans to meet up since it's been a while since we saw each other and all.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Fast forward a couple of months, the bugger arrived in Japan. But we didn't meet at once for he had planned his trip so that he would arrive in Osaka (which is a few hundred kilometers south of Tokyo), travel around there with some of his relatives, then head towards Tokyo where he will eventually leave from. So after his stay in Osaka, Aladdin finally arrived in Tokyo a couple of days ago. I met up with him that evening, took him to see the Tokyo Tower and then had a good old Japanese dinner with a beer catching up with each other's news. It was good to see him after a long time (well, I didn't think the same next day though) and finally I took him to his hotel and we said goodbye. But it wasn't the final goodbye because we arranged to meet up the next day for a beer as well as he was to leave Japan on Saturday and didn't have much to do till then.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Next day we met up as decided and I took him to see the Shibuya junction (this is probably the only road crossing in the entire world that tourists go to see), then a bit of this and that before heading towards a sort of famous bar where you can get foreign beer. We ordered a couple of Guinness with 'Fish and Fries' and were chilling when Aladdin started a very odd conversation.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Aladdin :</b> <i>Dude... erm.. you see I need to ask you something... I dunno if you know... I mean maybe I should have told you before...</i><br />
<b>Me :</b> <i>Man, what the hell, are you going to propose to me or what? Don't fret if so, ask me out like a man.</i><br />
<b>A :</b> <i>Oh please... I have better better taste than that.</i><br />
<b>A :</b> <i>But it's kind of something like that too. I mean...</i><br />
<b>Me (<i>very</i> concerned) :</b> <i>....</i><br />
<b>A :</b> <i>Umm... do you like know any place around here... erm... I can like hook up with... you know... an escort or whatever you call that here?</i><br />
<b>Me :</b> <i>HOW THE FUCK ARE THOSE TWO THE SAME?</i><br />
<b>A :</b> <i>Okay maybe they aren't. Shut up that's not the point. Do you <i>know</i> any?</i><br />
<b>Me :</b> <i>You think I'm a pimp or what? Or that I frequent Tokyo brothels?</i><br />
<b>A :</b> <i>Oh okay sorry man...</i><br />
<b>Me (laughing) :</b> <i>Just kidding dude. Are you sure about this?</i><br />
<b>A :</b> <i>Yes you fuck, Jesus I thought I offended you. These Jap chicks are cute. Can you...?</i><br />
<b>Me :</b> <i>Well, I don't know any but if you really want to... I think I know where to look.</i></blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Now I'm not a fan of hookers, never been with one and never will be (I swear, my future daughter in law) but that's just me. If anybody wants to go to a prostitute that's quite fine by me. I'm not like the people who think two other men getting married affect <i>their</i> own marriage. I don't judge people. And to see the cup half full, some poor Japanese girl gets a few thousand bucks too. So I said yeah, and though I've never been to a brothel before I knew generally where to look for one. There are a couple of famous areas in and around Tokyo where you can supposedly get 'full service' if you know what I mean. Prostitution being illegal in Japan, they generally disguise it under various kind of massages so that's where you want to go. I took out the iPad and a couple of searches with safe search off told us the details we needed to know. Internet FTW! So we finished our beers and got on a train.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Several minutes later we got off the train in a station in the area where we needed to go. Normally if I want directions here I ask a Jap, but that was out of the question this time. However, Internet FTW again! This time Google maps told me where to go and a couple of minutes later we ended up facing a bit dodgy looking street. Usually, in evenings, business streets in city areas in Japan are buzzing with all kinds of people. You have colorful blinking lights, shop owners - especially in restaurants - employ people to go outside the shop with a menu and shout to attract people, you have street vendors; simply put an atmosphere I suspect you would not see in most if not all the other developed nations. These streets are like improved versions of Pettah if you catch my drift. But this street was a bit different. It had all the above but it also had a range of shops with advertising boards of bikini clad pretty chicks, and a bunch of thug-ish looking guys in front of every one of them, trying to snatch clients for their 'massage parlours'. Not to mention a couple of girls at the doors dressed not very different to those in the pictures. However, there's a catch. I've often heard that not every such place take foreigners in so I was kind of reluctant because though chances of that happening are very rare, getting stabbed in the back of a dodgy ally in Japan was not my favorite way to die. I also had a feeling this would not sit well with people close to me once I'm dead, especially with me not being able to tell them the story and all. So we walked to the end of the street, Aladdin ogling at the chicks and me listening to what the goons were shouting. I realized that a few guys asked us to come in too so we turned back and chose one shop my 'desperate' friend fancied. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Then I realized that there was another problem.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Aladdin doesn't speak a word of Japanese. And I was pretty sure the Japs who were there don't speak a word of English. Now this was a problem that I hadn't counted on. My initial plan was to leave the bugger there but now that option was fast flying out of the window. And almost immediately he realized it too.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>A :</b><i> Umm... so... how does this work now?</i><br />
<b>Me :</b><i> You son of a bitch, now do I have to go inside with you too?</i><br />
<b>A (grinning like an idiot) :</b><i> Can you?</i></blockquote>
By now the goons around us were also looking at us like are you going to go in or what?<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>A :</b><i> Oh well. Waren ithin. Mee haraka.</i></blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So for the first time in my life I stepped inside a brothel, even if it was a disguised one. I must admit here that I was kind of curious to know how this thing works as well, so actually I didn't mind. One of the two hotties at the door led us into a nicely lit room with a comfy sofa and a few flower vases, and beckoned us to sit. We did as asked and she brought us some Japanese tea. Looks like they are classy even at a brothel. While we were sipping the tea I explained to her that my friend doesn't speak Japanese so that I will have to translate to him everything and help him out. She was cool with that. The type of 'massage' they provide is called 'Soapland' (Google, with safe search off, if you want to know further details which I'm not going to go into here) which apparently is very popular in Japan. She went on to explain that we first needed to pick the 'course', meaning length of time, and then pay the relevant amount. We did so, then she said we can pick the girl if we wished so, to which Aladdin responded with an eager nod so we said yes. And then she went inside an adjacent room and a moment later returned with an album full of photos of ladies in clothes that left very little for imagination. However, here it popped up in my mind that slave trade must not have been very different from this except for the fact that the slaves were not wiling and that there were no photos back then. This just felt wrong. Anyway, Aladdin picked the girl he liked and he was led towards a corridor out of the room.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Then the cutie turned to me and said,</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>"So... would you also like to take the same course?"</i><br />
<b>Me (confused) :</b><i> What?</i><br />
<b>Cutie :</b><i> Umm... would you like the same course?</i></blockquote>
Then I realized that I never told her that only my friend was going get the massage, not me.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Me :</b><i> Oh... I'm sorry... it was only for my friend.</i><br />
<b>Cutie :</b><i> Oh... I thought you just wanted to first send your friend in and then pick one for you. Are you sure?</i></blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This was not at all what I had in mind an hour ago when my godforsaken friend asked for some help and I decided to help out a 'bro'. This whole bro-code thing is overrated I tell you.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Me :</b><i> Yeah... I'm sure.</i></blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Then I realized that I couldn't arrange to meet up with Aladdin once he's finished and I most certainly did not want to stay in there for an hour. So I asked her if she could tell him to come to a nearby coffee shop which was at the start of the street and she said she could do that. So then she proceeded to lead me to the door where she bid me farewell with a typical Japanese <i>"bye byeee"</i> and a wave.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I stepped onto the street and upon seeing me leave one of the earlier mentioned goons turned towards me.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Goon :</b><i> "Sir, what happened? Are you leaving?"</i><i><br /></i><b>Me :</b><i> Umm.. erm... never mind.</i></blockquote>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Explaining the whole story to a random pimp on a street seemed too much of a hassle, and even if I did the chances were that I was going to come out looking a bit silly anyway. I just shook my head and turned to leave.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
That, my friends, was how I almost ended up with a prostitute. Or as they call them, a 'massage therapist'.</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-67649113030003821062012-08-26T10:12:00.002+09:002012-08-26T10:14:42.502+09:00Thank you for that small step, Neil.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2iP0Dilern5USNG-OelzxM3eIMLXgMUu7apSDugGOzlR_9InVw9M1SpHJ-HYseMoy5yOcXvCACjXhiVMR9Ldk_cXTkvFq3WF05gM6-onDTkoauKJTckxMxMRNRua0Sn_HemrDGfO09LLm/s1600/c350b13e-caae-4ae8-8691-b30693db0788-Neil_03.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2iP0Dilern5USNG-OelzxM3eIMLXgMUu7apSDugGOzlR_9InVw9M1SpHJ-HYseMoy5yOcXvCACjXhiVMR9Ldk_cXTkvFq3WF05gM6-onDTkoauKJTckxMxMRNRua0Sn_HemrDGfO09LLm/s400/c350b13e-caae-4ae8-8691-b30693db0788-Neil_03.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
That small step did mark a great moment in our history, we were no longer bound by our own planet. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Thank you Neil, may you rest in peace.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-25699207081871739182012-08-20T13:28:00.000+09:002012-08-20T13:28:41.415+09:00End of Vacation : The Good, the Bad and the Worst<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>The Good</b><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>You actually get to do some productive work instead of sitting on your bum all day. Doesn't probably apply if you live in the good ol' Paradise, but other than that, yes it's applicable. And it's a good thing.</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Get back in the Internet. I suppose this is more of a personal habit. When on vacation I don't do much social networking, forums or even other Internet activities. So it's time to get back in touch with the world out there.</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Less stuffing yourself up with food. You stay at home, you eat like a pig. A lot of junk food too. No chance of that now.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Get back into blogging.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /><b>The Bad</b> </div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>While you actually get to do some work, not doing it. At least for a few days. Rendering the first point of 'good', null.</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Get back in the Internet. The world out there is stupid anyway, why would you want to get back in?</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Less stuffing yourself up with food. Ah, all those tasty hamburgers, steak, donuts and ice cream. Not to mention beer.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Get back into blogging. Because you should be working instead.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /><b>The Worst</b> </div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Feeling, at the first alarm, like snoozing it and go back to precious sleep.</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Actually doing it.</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Feeling, at the second alarm, like smashing the godforsaken alarm into pieces and then killing yourself. It's a good thing I live alone, or else the sequence would be smashing the alarm into pieces, killing the other person in the room and then killing yourself.</li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Having to get up and go to work instead of doing either of the above.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Once at work, feeling like killing everybody around you before killing yourself. Seriously, who invented work?</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-42997229083047349032012-08-07T11:14:00.000+09:002012-08-07T11:14:20.548+09:00Bitching Time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Yo peeps how have you been? I know you missed me terribly, sorry about that. But worry not, yours truly is here with a lot this time. A lot of bitching that is so get ready to listen. Let me bitch about things in an orderly manner, in point form, then.<br /></div>
<ol style="text-align: justify;">
<li>Olympic Games are awesome. Their coverage sucks. Living 9 hours in front of London means that I miss most of the top action unless I'm willing to doze off at work and risk my job. So the next best option is catching up with highlights, but guess what, the goddamn official YouTube Olympic channel thinks that they should only be available to UK and US. Not just YouTube, pretty much every source is the same. What the fuck? Isn't Olympic is a global event, probably the most famous and loved of them all? Shouldn't everybody get to see it without ridiculous country restrictions? I can understand if they want to put country restrictions to TV shows and such, but for Olympics? For Olympic <i>highlights</i>? You gotta be fucking kidding me. I could of course use a proxy, but that's too much trouble so I turned to the ever so faithful torrents and voila, there's just about everything. I downloaded a 1.4GB clip of Usain Bolt's 100m dash just for the fun of it. Take that, London. But then again you can't have very high expectations of organizers who chose a sketch of a man-on-man blow job as the Olympic logo.<br /></li>
<li>This isn't bitching, rather the opposite of it, but Bolt is awesome isn't he? This is probably the post #12,849,234 about him on the Internet, but hey, when I retell the stories of the great man to my grandchildren I better have some proof.<br /></li>
<li>American (and British) media can be such douchebags at times. The way they went on and on about that awesome little girl Ye Shewen (not exactly little though) of China is sick. Yes I get it you used to be the kings in the pool, you probably still are, but when she kicked ass the way she did, give her some respect. If she was proven to be doping, good, knock yourselves out, but she was cleared twice ffs! I read some disturbing stories about how she was trained, the ruling party even confiscated her cellphone allowing her to use it only in weekends, which sucks, but that's a different story. That's no excuse for accusing her of doping when she was simply brilliant. Of course there is the possibility that she (just like any other athlete) could be found guilty in future, but reserve your scathing remarks for then. Until then, STFU. It's not as if America has a clean record in this regard anyway.<br /></li>
<li>Talking about America, it really sucks. The bastards once refused me a tourist VISA - for which I really hate them - and I was like really? You really think that I'm going to leave such a good job and a life here in Japan, one of the most convenient places to live in whole world, and jump ship there in America? Seriously? Such vanity.<br /></li>
<li>I have been thinking of a move to Australia for some time now but unfortunately that's what it's all been about too; thinking. Sometimes I can be so lazy. I really need to get a move on things, and with 9 days of summer vacation coming up I think I will finally be able to do that. Hope I won't get all lazy and leave it till too late.<br /></li>
<li>Living abroad means you can end up with lot of free time on your hands and nothing to do with it. I don't make friends easily and even if I did there aren't many whom I can be true friends with anyway. So I tend to spend my time at home a lot, of which a whole lot dedicated to watching and reading. I love learning new stuff, the latest fascination being biology. Living in the country with the second fastest Internet in the world has its advantageous, one of which is being able to download gigabytes of stuff within hours. So I do download a lot indeed (not what you think though, perverts), mostly documentaries. Biology is my new passion, but I've been a huge astronomy enthusiast for a long time, and then I have general interest in science as well, and I can and have dedicated a lot of time to learn such things. So much so that, I took a general science quiz sort of thing the other day and ended up with a pretty high score which is a high percentile. Which got me thinking that it's kind of sad in a way; I don't have a life.<br /></li>
<li>The week before a long vacation really sucks. In sucky-ness, it is only second to the week after a long vacation I guess. Argh, enough already.</li>
</ol>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-69089763154142045422012-07-15T15:27:00.001+09:002012-07-15T15:27:24.674+09:00Perception<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Once, the great British philosopher <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_Wittgenstein" target="_blank">Ludwig Wittgenstein</a> was having a conversation with a friend.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Wittgenstein :</b> <i>Tell me, why do people always say that it was natural for men to assume that the sun went around the earth rather than the earth was rotating?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Friend :</b> <i>Well, obviously, because it just looks as if the sun is going around the earth.</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b>Wittgenstein :</b> <i>Well, what do you think it would look like if the earth was rotating?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This conversation, just like the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sach_s/7379049294/in/set-72157629079890899" target="_blank">Upside Down Map</a>, always managed to give me quite an eerie feeling every time I think about it. After all, we <i>know</i> that the concepts of 'up' and 'down' doesn't have meanings when it comes to earth, yet the said map kind of makes me feel strange whenever I look at it. Similarly, while it is perfectly reasonable to assume that sun goes around the earth because it looks that way, we never stop to think of the other possibility, that it would look exactly the same if the earth rotated. In fact, that is exactly what it does, only nobody bothered to think of it that way for a very very long time.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white;">This is why I have a framed photo of the said map in my room, and also why I will never forget the above conversation. Those always keep reminding me that things are not always what they seem and that after all, perception is everything.</span></div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-36051599299432455882012-06-19T20:52:00.002+09:002012-06-21T07:52:11.255+09:00Goodbye Friend<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
He was Jude, but we used to call him JNF, which were his initials.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I don't remember the day we first met, but he was a guy from the Tamil class in our grade at St. Anthony's, and we probably knew each other for about 25 years. We were not the closest of friends, but we at times ran into each other even after we left school and parted our ways, especially at Big Matches and rugby matches. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
However our friendship renewed when he joined an online forum which was like a cyber home for me for years. <span style="background-color: white;">There he was a favorite member, he used to troll at times just for fun, and he had an uncanny ability to come up with funny one liners. It is a cricket forum and we quietly shared our joy at coming from a school that produced Murali, the greatest Sri Lankan sportsman ever. We had our differences too; I'm a hardcore atheist and he was as religious as they come, and we had some lengthy arguments about God. </span><span style="background-color: white;">But above all, we loved him for the nice guy he was.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
We'll miss you bro.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-39027990162657768662012-06-15T22:15:00.000+09:002012-06-15T22:15:15.776+09:00Egg Laying Humans<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Imagine for a moment that humans were not mammals but an egg-laying class. Not reptilian though for that would bring in a whole set of new problems to the equation that gets in the way, what with being cold blooded and all. Instead imagine that these hypothetical humans were of a new class that are warm blooded, posses all the qualities of mammals except for the fact that they lay eggs instead of giving birth to an infant.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Now that would be disturbing yet fascinating, wouldn't it?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
For starters, a few days after the conception the mother would lay a huge ass egg. Judging by the size of a normal new born baby the egg would have to be about a foot and a bit in diameter. To add a bit of fun imagine that white parents' eggs would be white, black parents' eggs would be black, the Indians would lay brown eggs and the Asians sort of yellowish ones. Interracial marriages would generate more interesting patterns if one would let the imagination run wild a bit. A white dad and a black mom can expect to have sort of brownish eggs or else perhaps a patter of black and white dots or Zebra lines. Imagine how cool <i>that</i> would be. Asians and blacks; a yellow and black pattern. Asians and Indians; yellow and brown like a Giraffe. Or just plain beige sort of color. The parents would probably keep the shell as a souvenir after the hatching, and perhaps present the child with it when he or she comes of age. Along with family portraits the walls of houses would also have framed egg shells. In short, the possibilities are endless.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Just as the couples these days run to the hospital when the contractions start, the mom and dad would rush to the hospital where the mom will spend few days before and after the laying of the egg. The moment of laying the egg would probably be as hard as a childbirth or possibly harder. Once the egg is laid, the nurses will take it into their care, will check all the vitals by poking all kind of techie instruments into it and give an assessment on the health of the 'baby'. And then, possibly after cleaning it and wrapping it in a warm cloth the egg would be handed to the mother who is full of maternal love by now.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
And then only will the real pregnancy start.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In early days where the technology was not so advanced the mother would have kept the egg with her at all times while the father and other relatives would provide for her 24/7. Just like the moms in <this> universe go to regular checkups when they are pregnant, the moms in <i>that</i> imaginary universe would take their unhatched eggs to the clinics to regular checkups to ensure the health of the unborn baby. She would keep the egg close to her body and keep it warm till the baby is born for real which would be in about four or five months. This would have been a real difficult time in the early days of humankind with the need to keep the egg warm and away from water. Hence, just as the fatalities were so high at childbirth in the old days in <i>this</i> universe, only a few eggs would have gone on to produce a child in <i>that</i> imaginary universe. But with the advancement of the society and the advancement of science this would have been made easier for the parents. With the invention of air conditioning devices and such the mother would have been relieved of the hectic duties and the parents would have been able to stick the egg inside a some kind of hatching device and let it do the work. Of course the society would be divided on this matter; some would claim that even if the child is not yet born it is important that the mother be with the egg at all times providing maternal care while the others would argue that it's time to do away with the stupidities and embrace technology.</this></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Finally, a choice between a male or female child would be a piece of cake, at least with the advancement of technology. Like Turtle eggs would produce male of female hatchlings depending on the warmth (or lack thereof) it received before hatching, so would the human eggs. If you needed a son all you have to do is stick the egg in an oven, or if you needed a daughter just stick it inside a fridge. This would have given the term 'family planning' a whole new meaning.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Think about it.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-57243343559166650122012-03-30T23:25:00.003+09:002012-12-14T21:10:13.566+09:00Drunk Cricket Post<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><b>Disclaimer : This post was done in an extremely drunk state (the lack of spelling errors is completely thanks to the spell checker) and thus may contain factual errors.</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Today is Happy Friday. I don't think I need to explain why a Friday should be named 'happy'. So, today is the Happy Friday and after making myself a delicious dinner I went a step further and made myself a Martini cocktail (with some Grey Goose Vodka and Olives) and sat down to watch the highlights of the first Test between Sri Lanka and England at Galle. Which is pure bliss.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
You see, living in Japan is very bad news if you are a Test cricket fan and if the Test matches you are interested in happens to be in the subcontinent. Because that means you get to see live only the third session after coming home from work, and that is if you are lucky enough to be able to leave work at 6 p.m. I was indeed lucky enough to be able to do that, but still being the ultimate Test cricket fan that I am, being able to see only the third session live is just not enough. So, if I can't catch the live action, I must at least see the full highlights when I can, and what better to do on a 'Happy Friday' evening than to catch up with some Test cricket action (especially if it happens to be a match that Sri Lanka won) while sipping a perfect Martini.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
So then let me get into the cricket a bit. And that inevitably means talking about a certain off-spinner though it's been a while since he decided to call it quits. Yes you guessed it right, I am talking about Murali the Great. A lot has been said about how we, Sri Lanka, was unable to be a force in Test cricket since the retirement of Murali, but in my opinion that is just stating the obvious. That man is without a shadow of a doubt is one of the greatest bowlers in the 130-ish year long history of Test cricket, and his absence won't go unnoticed even if he happened to be a member of Bradman's invincibles, the mighty Windies of the 70s or Steve Waugh's awesome Aussies of recent years. So what chance does Sri Lanka, merely an okay Test team, stand once he retire? Obviously we were going to suck at Test cricket for a while.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Which is why this victory makes so much more invaluable. While I am a great fan of Murali (and having had the privilege of seeing him doing great things even before he played for Sri Lanka) I still think it was the right decision for him to quit cricket, and that we must move forward without him. Great players come and go, but the game remains as great as ever, and we must face that reality. So, when Rangana Herath, a mere mortal compared to Murali, take 12 wickets in one match and win us a match it only made my happy, not just happy, but like more happy than to see Murali doing it. That sounds almost like a contradiction, but it's not. It's a given that Murali is a genius, but the point is that it's easy for a genius to win us a match than for a mere mortal. And that makes me happy because, well, cricket must move on even when the greats of the game says goodbye, and from the looks of it, it does. So getting back to the match, it was solid as steel performance from Herath, and it makes me even more happier that he was only a part of the whole story. It was more like a true team performance. In the first innings it was all about Mahela; when he scored his 100 it was brilliant, but his last 80 runs which he practically added with the last two wickets was stuff of the legend. I rate this innings by Mahela as one of his best along with his 100 at Lords, or his first 100 at Galle where nobody else got a fifty, or his fourth innings 100 versus Saffers where we chased down a mammoth 350 (which to date remains the 6th highest successful run chase ever in Test cricket (this, as I stated in the disclaimer at the start of the post, could be wrong) if I am not mistaken) where he was simply brilliant. And equally is important the sixty odd runs the other Jayawardene, namely Prasanna, added in the second innings. In truth, while Herath took 12 wickets in the match there is not a single performance you can single out as <i>the most</i> crucial. I think it's bollocks that people who give away Man of the Match awards think that they have to give them away to only one man per match. How can you decide between MJ's 180, PJ's 60 or Herath's 12 wickets? I can't. Maybe they should start giving away the 'Man of the Match' award to more than one players.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Anyway, (by now, I have completely forgotten the start of this post, so I'm going to conclude it the way I want without bothering to read it twice) what I wanted to say is that I'm so fucking happy that we are able to win Test matches without Murali. I love the man to bits, but still we need to move on, and what better way to do that than by winning Test matches, especially against the number one ranked Test team in the world though the said rankings are often meaningless.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Well done guys, I guess.</div>
</div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-26635327635927000882012-01-01T13:32:00.000+09:002012-01-01T13:41:52.731+09:00Happy New Year Folks!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQjeHfRux6rq9Dni1QmZ2HrL8GOnugvbco3ZKZTaoxdQ8PGM-97vBqjRH7cOdeTmO0KvoUr9E4Mru0oig8Mx0O0L1-lmPk81wBMg70BCTmQ4_SZhdVMxwuByutBoD_ivD5ztCgx90_l2Lj/s1600/DPP_0001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQjeHfRux6rq9Dni1QmZ2HrL8GOnugvbco3ZKZTaoxdQ8PGM-97vBqjRH7cOdeTmO0KvoUr9E4Mru0oig8Mx0O0L1-lmPk81wBMg70BCTmQ4_SZhdVMxwuByutBoD_ivD5ztCgx90_l2Lj/s640/DPP_0001.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sydney Fireworks, New Year's Eve</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-27155515677169155632011-12-26T11:35:00.000+09:002011-12-26T11:54:51.650+09:00At 39,000 Feet<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At 39,000 feet and somewhere over South Pacific that is. Almost 3 in the morning, Sydney time. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Did I tell you I hate flying? Well I fucken hate it even more now. I'm at the window seat and in addition the aisle is vacant too. Yet after trying every imaginable position - which included normal seating position, curled up in two seats head to the window side and the other way around, facing seat back, the other way, up, etc - now I'm back to the original and sleepless. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Luckily I have the iPod - ever the faithful companion - with me. I have a feeling it knows me so well somehow. I kid you not, for about an hour it's continually playing my most favorite tracks even though it's set to random mode. Yes, most of the songs you put in your iPod are favorites, but it's been playing undoubtedly the best of the lot. Such a comforting feeling at this otherwise miserable moment. If this iPod was a girl I would marry her right now. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Alright then, there's nothing else to whine about. I've still got four and a bit hours to go and I'm debating whether I should brush my teeth on board or not. I must say I'm leaning towards 'later'. Don't judge me, I'm only human! Anyway once I land I shall do that and also find a WiFi and hit the post button. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
On other news, yesterday (or today depending on where you are) was (is) my mom's birthday which she shares with Jesus. Happy Birthday mom! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Update : So I'm hitting the post button.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com4Sydney NSW, Australia-33.873651 151.2068896-33.8868345 151.1871486 -33.860467500000006 151.22663060000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-45046064111692703382011-12-24T22:34:00.000+09:002011-12-27T18:03:06.092+09:00Sydney here I come!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I most definitely am <i><b>not</b></i> talking about a girl named Sydney and going to her. I will actually be going to Sydney, the Aussie city tomorrow though it'll be the Boxing Day when I actually arrive there. Which means twenty or so hours of <i>on-the-road</i> which isn't exactly the correct term but you know what I mean. Though I love travelling flying is the most disliked part of it. Even though it's unavoidable. I really do wish we had Harry Potter style disapparate and apparate technology. However it's a small price to pay compared to the awesomeness of travelling, so no complaints really. Just bitching.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I've not made very many specific plans though. Except the Australia vs India Sydney Test on 3rd January. Someone I know rolled her eyes complete 360 degrees hearing that I'll be going to a cricket match and sit there for 8 hours on my vacation. But she's such a cricket tragic what else can you expect? Anyway, this is one golden opportunity for me to see the legends of the game like Ponting, Sachin, Dravid and VVS probably for the last time. Not gonna miss it. I do wish Ponting would score a 100 there. Would be an added bonus if Sachin gets out in the nineties <i>again</i>.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Other than that I'm planning on going whale watching though not yet sure when and where. Probably because I'm staying at my sister's place (not my own, but probably better than my own if I had one) so guess I'm trusting her and her hubby to take me around. The only other fixed item in the list is the fireworks on new year's eve at Sydney Harbor. In between I guess I'll go here and there seeing stuff; probably Opera House, Harbor, some Kangaroos (hopefully eat one too) and, er, I don't know, I'll tell you when I know. I don't think I would be doing a post-a-day travel diary this time like I did for the <a href="http://sachtheone.blogspot.com/2011/08/beijing-diaries-day-1-getting-there.html" target="_blank">Beijing tour</a>, but hopefully I would get to write something of my accounts there. I don't think it would be as much adventurous as Beijing but you never know. Fingers crossed!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Okay then, later peeps!</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-38808625753664538272011-12-24T15:43:00.001+09:002011-12-24T15:43:58.407+09:00Inspiring<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I don't often post YouTube vids, but this I just had to share. She's such an inspirational and brave (you got to be brave to do what she did) woman. Loved every bit of this.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/N2QZM7azGoA?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-35907330253591363852011-12-16T11:07:00.003+09:002011-12-16T11:19:42.804+09:00Murali the Thief<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In yet another one of his <a href="http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/545330.html" target="_blank">boring and meaningless articles</a>, our articulate-with-the-bat, not-so-with-the-words ex-captain Mahela has insisted the need to play <i>our own brand of cricket</i> in order to achieve success in South Africa. If I got one rupee for every time I hear our cricketers talk about this so called our own brand of cricket I would be filthy rich. Only I don't and so I'm not. The point is none of them seem to understand that this phrase has become such a cliche now. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
Everybody seems to talk about it but nobody seems able to do it. It's like nobody knows where to find it anymore. The only possible explanation for this is somebody stole it. Our guys were playing this <i>our own brand of cricket</i> so happily, world was all rosy and sweet, and then all of a sudden, BOOM! Gone. Vanished. Now they have a problem. They are nothing without it. Success is only a distant dream. But of course they can't reveal it's gone; how can you come out and say this valued treasure is gone just like that? It would be like the king going out to the public and saying "I'm sorry guys, I seem to have lost the crown." Or Pamela Anderson announcing she seems to have lost her fake boobs last night. Not gonna happen.<br />
<br />
What would the king/Pamela do in this dire situation? He/she would probably make a fake crown/ fake fake boobs for the time being, use it/them pretending everything's fine while fanatically search for the real thing(s). This pretty much is what our poor cricketers are doing right now. They are writing an unnecessarily large amount of articles explaining the need to play <i>our own brand of cricket</i> while on the lookout for the real thing. Hoping, praying, they would come across it. And then they can start playing the real our own brand of cricket and attribute the current poor patch to a glitch in the matrix. Or something like that. Bottom line is somebody stole it and the poor guys are desperate now.<br />
<br />
So I decided to get to the bottom of this shit and find out what happened.<br />
<br />
First thing to do, re-trace the steps. Find out what went wrong, when and where. Obviously the right thing to do would be to go back to the last time we were playing this <i>our own brand of cricket</i>. Last significant (actually, any kind of) Test success; July 2010, against India. Last significant ODI success; reaching the World Cup final, April 2011. However those two events are some 8 months apart. While we looked like the desperate king/Pamela in Tests since July 2010 we still seemed okay in ODIs till April 2011. The only logical conclusion; we had not one but two our own brands of cricket one for each format. We lost the Test version back in July 2010, the ODI version April 2011. Now what is the other significant thing that happened in relation to our cricket on both these occasion? Of course. One off spinner called it quits in Test in 2010, and ODIs in 2011. It all fits, doesn't it? Everybody doesn't have access to king's crown/Pamela's boobs though one could argue that the latter is subject to dispute. However, chances are that only someone who's close enough can steal them. It's the same with <i>our own brand of cricket</i>. It's got to be somebody who had pretty good access to it. And who has better access to it than the very players who play the game with it? Dressing room is where they probably keep the <i>our own brand of cricket</i> and after the last time this player has access to it the our own brand of cricket vanishes. Same happens April 2011; he quits cricket, we lose <i>our own brand of cricket</i>. Coincidence? I think not.<br />
<br />
I always thought that fellow was a bit dodgy but this proves it beyond doubt. Yes, yes, he pretty much raised that <i>our own brand of cricket</i> baby by himself, but who is he to think that he owns it? Give it back, Murali, they need it!</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-91665866049349916472011-12-09T20:42:00.001+09:002011-12-09T20:53:50.715+09:00Business in Paradise<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
There's an inherent trust issue with business in Sri Lanka. To be more precise with the relationship between seller and buyer. This in turn leads to huge frustration and the want to kill each other in whenever the opportunity presents itself.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Perhaps it is the result of colonialism; back then the Brits were the businessmen and Sri Lankans were the customers and they more often than not fucked the customers. Sometimes literally but mostly figuratively. Or maybe it was the presence of the the lefties who continually influenced most of the governments after Independence. Or else it's just the way we Sri Lankans are. I'm not really sure why. But whichever the reason is, the general public has an unfavorable attitude towards business. Often business is considered as unethical or immoral. If not at least not as good as the government. Business is perceived as some sort of evil entity who's out there to get you. That it's only purpose of existence is to trick you and get every cent out of your pocket. Hardly is a business seen as something that's out there to provide you some good or service and get money for it. General conscience is they will only give you some cheap stuff and get a shitload of money out of you. It <i>always</i> is evil. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
On the other hand, not many businessmen, ranging from street vendors to multinational companies, are doing things to improve this either. Customer is often treated as a piece of shit. They are seen as cheap people who always rant about high prices, irresponsible and are looking to use every small opportunity available to make it so that the companies will lose something. You need to scream to get the attention of the Kadey Mudalali. Sri Lankan Airlines think that customers are at their mercy and that they can do whatever they please whenever they please. Dialog seems to think <i>So what if we lose one customer? There are so many more!</i> Only the other day I found out that they allocate phone numbers which were not in use for a few years to new customers even without letting the previous owners know about it. Taking your customers for granted much?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Simply neither party trusts the other. That is exactly what you don't want to happen in a healthy relationship. Compare this to that of a country like Japan. Well probably it is a little unfair comparing it to Japan, for Japan is one of the oddest countries in the world anyway. Nowhere else in the world is this relationship stronger than in Japan. But the truth of the matter is that is why they are so good at business. Companies genuinely try to offer customers something worth their every penny, and in turn the customers are ready to trust the companies to do their job well. Services are even better than goods if that's possible. I was at the dentist a few days back and it was close to 8 p.m. when we were finished. She prescribed me some meds and took the trouble to call the nearby pharmacy to ask them to not close it until I go there. That's even without me asking her to do so. Wonderful things is that it's not a surprise but the norm. Trains arrive in time, and in rare cases they don't people are ready to accept it for it is truly rare. If you go to Starbucks to buy a coffee but is sold out, cutie at the counter will apologize to you with a face similar to what she would use if she accidentally spilled the only remaining bottle of medicine in the world that would cure my terminal wife who's lying in her deathbed.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Really, if you want to be a customer, you want to be a customer in Japan. If not for anything else, just to see that face.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-66742588603699441302011-11-25T11:17:00.001+09:002011-11-25T11:20:34.742+09:00Late Arrival<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
For 30 years I had a fine set of teeth. Alright, they aren't the best in the world but they got the job done just fine which is what matters. I was perfectly happy with them. But then all of a sudden my mouth (or brain or genes or whatever it is that's responsible for your teeth-management) decided that they're not enough, so the bugger threw in another one to the mix just a day or two ago. Yes folks, at the ripe old age of 30 I have a tooth coming in! WTF! It's like you had fifteen or twenty kids who turned out to be just fine but at the age of seventy you think you need to have another one just for the sake of it.<br /><br />I don't really if it decided to come in just silently. But the goddamn thing fucking hurts like a bitch! I mean, it really REALLY hurts.<br /><br />AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRGGGHHH!!!<br /><br />Okay, rant over. I'm outta here.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-76372944470271146642011-11-22T21:52:00.001+09:002011-11-22T21:55:01.661+09:00A Month of Plant Eating<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ever since I can remember I was a meat-eater. A lot of people I know are the same. Though some of them tend to discriminate against cows and pigs, most of them don't. But as we all know there is yet another strange breed of people live among us who don't actually eat meat at all! You might not believe this but there are some reported cases of them not eating meat for as long as a year or two even. I swear I'm telling the truth. This always puzzled, baffled and intrigued me. Not me telling the truth, there never was any question about that, but people not eating meat. So I wanted to get to the bottom of this mystery. How on earth can someone go on for so long without tasting meat? I mean, let's face it. There's nothing like a well prepared steak, a lamb chop or a roasted chicken right? How can you even begin to think that any plant can substitute that? I like a good fried potato or a parippu curry, but comparing that to meat is like comparing a scooter to a Mercedes.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
However, like I said, I wanted to get to the bottom of it. Which in other words I wanted to see what the world looks like to these plant-eaters. It must be grey scale, boring and tasteless, I was sure. I mean, did I tell you how good the steak is? So I just threw all caution to the wind and decided to become a plant-eater for a month.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Adjusting, at first, wasn't easy. Adjusting in the sense adjusting my lifestyle. As you probably know I live in Japan, and I live alone. And despite me being quite good at cooking - take my word for it even though I myself say it - I'm too lazy for it most of the time. So the combination of not cooking and living in Japan naturally mean eating a lot of meat. Usually I eat my breakfast at a coffee shop which contains at least sausages or bacon. I don't usually have lunch, and the dinner is either eaten outside, bought from a shop or in rare cases made at home. Unless it is the rare case, this means dinner has a lot of meat too. So this left me with no option but to cook most of my meals. This, at first, was a bitch. How on earth am I going to cook so frequently? But yours truly isn't one to give up so easily. I started having breakfast at home. For dinner, instead of cooking same old Sri Lankan food every time I opted for more variety. Italian, French, Moroccan, Russian and Maldivian food were among many varieties I tried. Okay that's stretching it a bit far (Only two paras ago I said that my telling the truth was never in question. Jeez) but I really did prepare different food, particularly Italian style. Then after a few days it was all part of my daily routine. Cooking wasn't a pain in the arse anymore. In fact, I started loving it so much I started improvising even. And I made through that month without even realizing it!</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At first I thought I would not stand a chance, that I wouldn't last a week. Even if I did last a month by some miracle, I thought I'd run to a MacDonald's just when the clock hits midnight and gobble down dozen Big Macs. Well, it's been two days since the end of the month and I'm still to eat meat! Never did I think there would come a day I say this, but I actually enjoyed being vegetarian! When prepared well veggies taste as good, you feel guilt free since no more fatty stuff and unless you eat at fancy restaurants home cooked meals are always fresh and better. So much so that I started eating way too much I think I'm putting on again. Simply, you don't really need to eat dead animals it seems.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-27583100460832492782011-10-31T18:56:00.000+09:002011-10-31T18:56:59.733+09:00Side Effects of Recession<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Initially I thought of naming this post "Dumping Dilemmas". However that's not because I was going to reveal you the secrets of how to dump dilemmas. Rather because this post is about the dilemmas a man face when he is about to take a dump. But on second thoughts I named it as it is now for bloody recession is what caused all the dilemmas to begin with.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Let me give you a little background first. Before the recession the company I work for was spread across four buildings. One near Tokyo, three somewhere else. The one near Tokyo was the head office or the HQ as more educated, intelligent and important people would call it. I am well educated, intelligent and important, thus I would call it such. However the other three buildings play a more important part in this story so it would be easier I gave them names too. Well they already have names but for obvious reasons I am not at my liberty to reveal those names to you. Instead, taking your convenience into consideration as well, I will name them as follows. The first one, the one I work in right now, I'll refer to it as The Building I Work In Right Now. Then there is a second building next to The Building I Work In Right Now, but across the street. I will name it The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now. The last building is located across the street to The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now, hence I will give it the most logical name; The Building Across The Street To The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now. However The Building Across The Street To The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now and The Building I Work In Right Now aren't the same. So I assume that by now you must have realized there is a junction in the equation as well. Anyway, I hope I've made things crystal clear to you by now.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Moving on.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After we were hit by the recession as a means of cost-cutting the management decided to do away with the HQ. No, they didn't decide to destroy it, just move our company from there to The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now. But they didn't stop there. They also decided to move everyone who were originally in The Building Across The Street to The Building I Work In Right Now as well as The Building Across The Street To The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now to The Building I Work In Right Now. So to recap;</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<ol>
<li style="text-align: justify;">People who were originally in the HQ are now in The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now. </li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">People who were originally in The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now are now in The Building I Work In Right Now.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">People who were originally in The Building Across The Street To The Building Across The Street To The Building I Work In Right Now are now in The Building I Work In Right Now.</li>
</ol>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Now my story focus on only The Building I Work In Right Now. I hear you breathe a sigh of relief. Anyway because of all this mess now The Building I Work In Right Now has a population that roughly equal to the population of a small island. However it has only one men's room and only one ladies' room per floor each of which has 3 toilets. And that's where the fun begins. Imagine a perfectly normal scenario such as you want to take a dump and you proceed to the men's room. These floors are <i>so</i> crowded that it is very likely that at any given minute all three toilets are occupied. I am in the 8th floor which also happens to be the top floor. If the 8th floor is occupied the next best option is to hold it in or go to the 7th floor. But there's only so much holding a man can do. So I - or any random unfortunate guy in The Building I Work In Right Now - will have not option but to proceed to the 7th floor. However often the case is that all of it's toilets are occupied as well. In which case, 6th floor. Then the fifth. So on and so forth. You get the drift right? This is all nice and easy to say like this, but <i>doing</i> it is not so. Especially when holding is not an option anymore. Imagine going to the men's room in the 8th floor, finding it occupied, leaving it as quick as you can, going to the elevator and press the button to the 7th floor, waiting for it to arrive and getting in, getting out of the elevator on the 7th floor, go to the men's room in the 7th floor, finding it is occupied as well, leaving it even quicker, pressing the elevator button to the 6th floor, getting in, getting out on the 6th floor, entering the men's room, finding that occupied too, exiting that like a tracer bullet, pressing the elevator button to the 5th floor, getting in, getting out again, dash in to the 5th floor men's room, finding that occupied too, disappear from there, pressing elevator button to the 4th floor, getting in the elevator, getting out, entering the men's room in 4th floor only to find that it is occupied as well, run to the elevator, pressing the button to the 3rd floor, waiting...</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Damn I got tired of writing that. I think, nay, know you got tired or reading it. Imagine actually doing it! Recession is such a bitch I tell you.</div>
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7718415846078577274.post-35958092919699484902011-10-23T20:10:00.000+09:002011-10-23T21:29:02.267+09:00The Universe Returns to Normal<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgufZpuZwtOZhwP1oX9a8uKlGgnKxMhGXv4LKNlHNZeCiqQmTEG-uhdAtRW_83AyZgbhImFf3q1OD5zN8A2maEhRVEdniA5aQNv6ZgrIfw375IOWFaHItNgkhaHxZPh4hbMpcY5U1jmcNhg/s1600/21811.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="588" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgufZpuZwtOZhwP1oX9a8uKlGgnKxMhGXv4LKNlHNZeCiqQmTEG-uhdAtRW_83AyZgbhImFf3q1OD5zN8A2maEhRVEdniA5aQNv6ZgrIfw375IOWFaHItNgkhaHxZPh4hbMpcY5U1jmcNhg/s640/21811.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><a class="a2a_dd" href="http://www.addtoany.com/share_save"><img src="http://static.addtoany.com/buttons/share_save_171_16.gif" width="171" height="16" border="0" alt="Share/Save/Bookmark"/></a><script type="text/javascript">a2a_linkname=document.title;a2a_linkurl=location.href;</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.addtoany.com/menu/page.js"></script></div>Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09737205005592917145noreply@blogger.com0