What a week.
Over the next couple of days you’ll get more of an idea of why I think that Rottnest Island is one of the most wonderful places on earth.
I’ll be posting a little later today with a few photos so make sure you stay tuned.
Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Rottnest – Holiday – Family
Sorry that posting has been infrequent while I’ve been taking a break from work. There’s plenty to say and I promise I’ll start posting again.
In the meantime I should probably warn you that you’re unlikely to see any posts for the next week.
We’re off to Rottnest in the morning for a week’s holiday. I’ll let you know all about it and even show you some pictures when we return.
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Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Blogging – Rottnest – Holiday
You could hear it in her voice. Something was terribly wrong.
I don’t know her name or anything much else about her, apart from the fact that she had a slight European accent and that she had a daughter named Nadia.
Pauline and I were shopping in Target yesterday when a woman went rushing down an aisle near us calling for Nadia. She was looking behind racks of clothing, toys, books and whatever else was obscuring her view of the area. As she continued to call out for Nadia I could hear that she was becoming more and more distressed.
I was torn inside. There’s not a lot more heartbreaking than seeing a parent who has lost their child. I wanted to make things better. I wanted to find Nadia.
The mother saw a shop assistant and I overheard her describing her daughter and saying that Nadia was just two years old and wearing red. That’s all the information I needed.
I headed off around the store trying to find the little girl. I knew that if I found her I’d have to then find a shop assistant to approach the girl. A middle aged man talking to a young girl separated from her mother wouldn’t look too good, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me from joining the search.
As I continued around the shop I could hear Nadia’s mother still rushing around, now more frantic than ever, calling, “Nadia. Nadia. Nadia.”
I turned the corner into the ladies clothing area and spotted a cute little girl wearing red. A female shopper was there too. Just at that moment a shop assistant turned up and the female shopper told her that this little girl was lost. 30 seconds later Nadia’s mum came around the corner and hugged her little girl. All was well with the world.
What is it about other people’s pain that churns us up so much? I’ll probably never see Nadia or her mum again but for a few moments yesterday, finding Nadia was the only thing that mattered. I was so churned up inside. The feeling of relief when Nadia was found was huge.
Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Lost Child – Frantic – Shopping
I got more and more annoyed.
All I wanted to do was make a simple inquiry about my mobile phone account yet I got stuck talking to a far too pleasant sounding computer. I hate that.
“Are you calling to inquire about ……. ?” and on and on it went. It asked a series of questions and then I got to tell each answer to the voice recognition software on the other end of the phone. I wonder if it recognised the increased anger and frustration in my voice after the 8th or 9th question.
Finally after jumping through all their hoops I got put on hold for a considerable time.
After listening to some awful muzak and hearing another cheery voice telling me that all the customer service assistants are busy for some time, I finally got to talk to a human.
The human was cheery, pleasant and very helpful. She told me everything I needed to know and offered to provide further assistance. If only I could have skipped all the earlier steps and talked to a human from the start.
I like the phone company we’re with. We pay very little each month to operate two mobile phones. With such great products and their very helpful staff, why would they jeopardise it all by alienating people with their phone system?
Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Phones – Customer Service – On Hold
We’ve all read them and most of us have even written them at one time or another.
It’s the dreaded “I’m still alive” post.
My last post was on Friday after being released from Fremantle Prison. It’s now almost a week later and I haven’t posted for days.
Once Friday was over I started three weeks annual leave. I’ve been busy as well as taking some time to relax but it’s time to start posting again.
I’ve pulled computers apart, built a better computer for my sister, built a better ‘second’ computer for us and tried to install a better video card on our main home computer. (Did you know that the GeForce2 MX 400 doesn’t like Windows XP?)
I’ve also filled a bulk rubbish bin with branches from our garden and old computer bits.
There’s plenty more to say and I’ll hopefully be posting again a little later this morning … or maybe this afternoon … but it could be tonight … or tomorrow.
Posted by Rodney Olsen
Technorati Tags: Blogging – Annual Leave – Computers