Starbucks vs. IKEA
A brawl of epic proportions; two corporate giants, one goal: they want you to buy their stuff… as if making a new friend!
Starbucks and IKEA draw crowds like masochists to burning apartment buildings. They are hip, weapons of mass appeal which actually make consumerism appear like high tea with a long lost friend. They actually make consumption look great.
However, there may only be one winner among them. Among these heavyweights, who would you choose as your world consumerism champion?
Some blows and hooks to take into consideration:
+ IKEA is from Sweden. When you think of Sweden, you think of Europe. When you think of Europe, you think of wine, cheap beer and the Swiss Alps. Everyone knows Europe rocks so by default, IKEA rocks.
- Starbucks is from America. It’s almost an Obama to the Bush-like Macdonalds and Halliburton who wish to destroy humanity with their products. Ouch!
+ Starbucks induces orgasmic pleasure in the mouth. Bless their beverages which sooth the human heart and give people the will to survive mornings at work.
- You can’t bring IKEA products with you on the road. This is not good.
+ Starbucks only uses coffee beans. They are environmentally friendly!
- IKEA kills trees and brings poor cactus to places they should never be in. Scoundrels!
+ IKEA products have lots of funky names like BERGSBO, EXPIDIT and KARLSTAD. Buying one and placing it in your home is like having a new family member around to talk to! This helps with situations like “Hey! Don’t put your feet on TYLÖSAND!” instead of just “Hey! Don’t put your feet on my sofa!”
- Starbucks products have generic names. Green tea coffee? Fuck that! Give me my Grüner Tee Kaffee and we’ll talk premium prices. Those people obviously don’t give their products enough love.
Cute Owls
Adorable :~)
More interesting owl sites:
http://www.owlpages.com/sounds.php — Owl sound library
http://www.owling.com/Owling.htm — Pictures of cute grown-up and baby owls
Unpretty SMS exchange (or, how I learnt to not market a trap)
What started as an innocent invitation from an acquaintance to meet and view documents of a ‘potential career related boon’ turned into an unpretty exchange of text messages. The full correspondence is reproduced here unedited for your entertainment ^_^. Of course, names and other details which may lead to the person involved will be removed because I think he’s a decent guy and wish not to persecute him needlessly (and dude, if you ever read this, give it some reflection).
I: xxx, please send me details of the thing you wanna meet me for. I’m sure there’s a website or something. My msn is ________
He (next day): You know it really hard to explain the whole project over the net.it best that we meet up on thursday and we discuss
I: xxx, i don’t want to sound harsh but as a potential money payer i think i deserve to know more about what this is about before i commit anymore time to it. If your company has not provided you with necessary resources, demand them
He: Thx for sharing ur concerns brandon,appreciate it. 1stly let me clarify that it’s not that I’m inadequately “prepared” but I feel it wld be more professional n more effective if we talked face to face
2ndly, i dun need any commitment from u,definitely dun expect any when u don’t know anything yet rite?i’ll see u 7pm at paya lebar) ok? Regards, xxx
I: My name is bryan, xxx. I understand you wanting to observe professional code but the basic fact here is that i know absolutely nothing about what i’m about to be involved in. I need at least general details and scope. I don’t think that’s asking for too much
He: Of course not.in fact those are the right questions,which will be answered when we meet up.reason for it is this,i’m working on a number of projects rite now,and when we meet,i’m goin to ask a few questions n depending on your answers,it’ll determine which project I’ll offer ya? Regards.
I: Give me basic details of these projects even if it’s just ‘we’re trying to yyy with zzz.’ i have to know general details at least
He: Ok i email u tonight
(At this point, I was about to type a ‘Thank you’ response when…)
He: i’m working on a few projs,dealing with health n wellness, a v powerful concept called EFC where we provide a platform for one to be a “Prosumer” and many others.i’m goin to leave it at that.if u sincerely want more info we’ll talk when we meet.
(Nothing like a series of ambiguous terms to spoil interest! Nevertheless I persevered)
I: Ok xxx, but what type of people are they looking for? Marketters, professionals, stake holders?
I: And to fulfill what duties, to what ends?
He: Look bryan.like I said I’m goin to stop there n these questions no doubt are good questions,but like I said we’ll talk when we meet up.
(I sense the frustration, oh yeah.)
I: These are who, what, where, when, how questions, xxx. If i don’t even know these general basics i can’t consider whether i’m interested or not. If i meet you tomorrow without this prior knowledge and just say no, it’ll be wasting both our time for nothing. Tell me in your own words all the details.
He: Hi bryan, these are very good question but i don’t feel comfortable talknig over smses.i don’t want to discuss a bit here and a bit there like that i rather give the whole picture.if you are open enough and trust me enough tomorrow let meet up.
(Suddenly its a question of my political views and honour!)
I: I’m not doubting your character here. I just need to know what exactly all this is about before i invest time in it. Msn tonite or call when convenient
He: Ok.i’m sry but tis is hw I do things,if u insist,then I’d rather not show u anythin.at e end of the day I just want to ask u if u’re really open to meet me tml.
(The ultimatum is delievered in hellish fury.)
I: no, i’m not going to paya lebar tomorrow; which is why i need details of what you have to offer. If you don’t want to furnish me with basic details and shrug me off with ‘this is how i do things no other’ than i oblige and will disturb you no further. Good luck with whatever it is you’re doing.
(After dinner, xxx called. After a 10 minute conversation in which our ‘friendship’ was threatened and my expectations were again criticised of being nigh impossible to meet, I got several details from him amouting to what was like: “Projects helmed by ‘a group of professionals’, backed by ‘a group of companies’, seeking people to dedicate 3-4 hours a week headhunting more people to… headhunt.” I was also directed to this website for more information. Naturally, my balls cringed.)
I: xxx, i think i’ll skip on the offer. Thanks a lot though
He: Ok alright.don’t say got good things don’t care with you
I: Don’t worry i won’t
And here the curtains fall. *Laugh now*
Somehow it reminded me of the early half of this popular Dark Knight parody.
And the insignificant minute post award goes to…
USA automobile giants! whom hitherto believe with great resolve that their significance in the history of America grants them a safety net above the pits of disbandment.
Perhaps they forget that royal hierarchies, religions and even centuries-old civilizations have never been given such privilege to entrench themselves on the locomotive of human progress without a ticket. Good ideas survive through innovation and are born anew, not as bones in a dinosaur bone museum. People move forward, swinging not to the branches behind them but those in their sight.
Sometimes it’s better to take one’s place among the pages of history books than to cling onto futile existence.
NaNoWriMo
I’ve decided to try my hand at NaNoWriMo this year round. Having an easy to follow routine-like schedule certainly makes time planning easier.
Will be posting daily (or not so daily) practice excerpts here from time to time. Maybe I should read through Strunk and White again for their holy no nonsense guidance.
EDIT 28/10: I’ve given up on this 
Too busy. Priorities are priorities!
Prospect!
Seeded by professionals, delegated to me.
The task: Complete the dots.
The deadline: ASAP.
The catch: Invisible dots.
The rewards: A big smile on my face and a big step for Bra-kind.
This is going to be awesome.
So I’ve decided.
That the stagnation my life currently experiences has to go.
Why? Probably from a combined effect of age, empathy for my parents and minor jealousy borne from my obviously inflated ego. It’s driving me forward, and I am reluctant to step on the break pedal. I have to move forward; it’s for me, and the people who surround me.
Racism a convenience?
Within the shores of the dot, racism is transparent but not invisible. Like most of the world, we of the dot have terms to use to refer to, if not against, each other. Of course, because so many groups with more or less equal representation call the dot home here, the social fabric of the dot can be easily destroyed by tension between them, and as a protection racism is punishable by the law.
Racism is a part of any multi-ethnic society. It will never cease to exist because people fear those unlike them. It is as human it is disappointing. We throw insults at others to protect ourselves and inflate our egos—to reaffirm a status granted to us at birth. Could racism possibly be a convenient tool for us to use to impress ourselves with something we haven’t earned? To raise ourselves above others or simply to push others down with something we didn’t take with our own hands?
It is easier to curse a collective group than oneself, after all.
Pan’s Labyrinth made my day.
If I was asked to recommend a recent dark fantasy film to anyone, it’d be Pan’s Labyrinth for sure. Watching it made me feel like I was drowning with my eyes open, looking upwards at a kaleidoscope of sunlight and when finally fighting my way to the surface, wondering if I should go down once again just to see the display one last time.
Pan’s Labyrinth is a show which, while grounded closely to a story about the tragic circumstances of a girl and the people around her in Spain during World War II, also handled the fantasy aspects as fantastically as they could. It was magically done, as magic should be: mysterious and eye-opening. While the visuals astound the viewer, the plot takes the pivotal role of delivering Pan’s innate darkness in a real, cruel way.
One could say I found Pan’s to be close to perfect and I would not disagree. It’s rare that I come out satisfied from watching a show involving my favourite genre, and even less so to this degree. I am smiling with my eyebrows furrowed inward.
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