When operations come to a grinding halt.....

Ever hear of Murphy's Law? Well I experience everyday! But not only one thing goes wrong - lots of things go wrong!

Our workshop manager does not come to work, no one even knows where she is! She won't hand out the car papers so that we can sell that thing.

Without the manager we can't get goods shipped because she is the only one who can write and sign the invoice needed to ship the goods.

So I end up writing the invoice! Here in Germany I write an invoice for goods that need to be shipped from Jakarta to Germany. And then.... no one wants to sign the invoice. What is it with them??? Do they think they are signing off their life???

Geez...... and then: they (office and production workers) all just go home! The clock hits 5PM and they all go. No good bye or is there anything else. Gone! Do they ever stop to think that if I don't get my goods I have nothing to sell. If I have nothing to sell then I can't pay them???

No wonder some countries remain - Third World! In order for a country to develop the population needs to develop! If they always depend on others to take care of things how will they ever be independent!

Ok ... I need a coffee!

Slave of the machine.......

Sometime after 1:45 AM Central European time something went really wrong with my mail program. This morning after a slight computer freeze all my outgoing and ingoing mail had disappeared into thin(www)air! Gone!

My mail accounts - gone!

Thankfully I have been bitten by the crashing hard drive more than once in my life. So I have a back up - more than one!

Time Machine is great, but it took me the whole morning to locate the mail boxes that I had lost. I found them - saved and stored at 1:45 AM....

Now I realize that I am so dependent on this piece of machinery encased in white plastic called a computer that is scares me! And this got me thinking......!!! You buy a washing machine and if does not work.... You call the store you bought it at and raise hell! The same goes for a toaster, iron, car, phone (although I wonder about that one now too), stapler, copier..... anything!

The amount of shit we put up with when it comes to computers is amazing! And this is not the first time that I spent hours looking for solutions to a problem. A problem that a simple computer user cannot understand. Do you understand what this piece of machinery actually does? Do you know what processes (admittedly very complex and very fast) actually go in in there?

I sit here staring at the beautiful (but slightly dirty) keyboard thinking....... What does this thing do? Where is he storing all this information I feed him? What happens when information gets lost? Whole files disappear? Where did they go?

At least when you put something on a physical piece of paper and throw it out by mistake you know where to look! In the paper garbage! And if you are stuck in a streak of bad luck - you need to climb into the paper garbage head first to dig for that missing piece of paper. Thankfully we do separate our garbage here.

Can you imagine diving head first into your computer to look for something??

A little early.......

Better too early..... Good thing I thought of taking and posting these shots now!! And maybe I will just add more to decorate my web shop with Seasonal Photos....!

Most times though Christmas just whooshes past me! And I only realize on New Year's Eve that not only is there family to include in the well wishing but friends and customers too!!

This is but a start....

New camera.....

Marcus! I know you think I should have talked to you about my purchase first, but at the moment I am totally happy about my new DSLR!!!

Makes me want to cry.....!

On the way to my friends house to dog sit I was listening to the radio. There was a report about a guy that was beat up in the subway station - for no apparent reason! One guy started after asking him what he was looking at. This person - aggressive person - was joined by three others! For what???? What is society coming to????

It makes me want to cry.... be sick???

I could not believe what I heard. I tried to think of a situation in which I might want to beat someone up...... It drew a blank!

Sure I strongly dislike Ackermann and what he stands for - this guy along with many others who have lost touch with reality! But beat someone up??? Nope sorry - no one!

I would rather try to make them live off of minimum wage that is paid in a third world country! Make them eat what their minimum wage will pay! Make them "enjoy" the health care that minimum wage in third world country will pay.

But beating someone up??? No I can not think of one person, animal, insect or even electrical piece of equipment that I would want to beat up.

Ok !!! I am not an aggressive person!

Sorry... no photos?

To those who have asked.... nope no photos at the moment! I need to replace my camera power pack. But first I need to have money.... so work first!

US elections.....

With the beginning of September I became more and more interested in the US presidential campaign. I became active on some forums, voiced my opinion a few times, asked plenty of questions, shared my multicultural experiences and got attacked a lot of times.

I have been told that as a European I should mind my own business. I have been told to stop telling the Americans what to do. I have been told that I can't vote so it should not interest me.....

Whoa!!! Hello..... we live in a very very global world! And I needed to clear up some points....

I am not European! What does that mean anyway? My passport may states that I am Dutch, but I was not born there and did not grow up there. I was born in Taiwan - no I am not Chinese. I grew up in Indonesia and Singapore - no I am not Indonesian or Malay. Actually I have blond hair, green eyes and fair skin! I was raised on :

• Indonesian, Chinese, Indian and Western food
• American TV
• primarily the English language - leaning towards the American accent (much to the dismay of my English teachers at the school in Singapore)

Then there is this thing about my telling the Americans what to do??? I never did such a thing - I only voiced my hope! And in this global world we live in you will hear from people everywhere! We are connected not only via the internet, but by everything else! It is no longer one band one sound! It is one Earth one sound!!

Sure it is up to the Americans who they want to have as a leader. They are the ones that have to live with it in the first instance, but we "Europeans" will fell the effect too. As well as the rest of the non-European world.

And lastly - I love America!!! So why would I do something to hurt, insult or offend the Americans!!!

BUT I will keep a low profile now until November 5th!!