Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Here's a funny article from the newspaper today ...
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Bow before a divine boo-boo and honour gift of the gaffe
THE WRY SIDE
Emma Tom
February 21, 2007
TO err is human. To do it while breaking out of prison, robbing a bank or trying to guard a collection of antique children's toys with a teddy bear-obsessed doberman is divine.
Stuffing up continues to be one of the few human headaches technology just can't eliminate. Sure, we can reduce some of the wreckage by employing smoke alarms, anti-lock braking systems and those virtual pilots that keep aircraft aloft when plane drivers accidentally lock themselves out of cockpits during toilet breaks (more on this later).
But it's testimony to the joyous chaos and wonderful imperfection of human nature that a certain number of outlandish screw-ups are inevitable.
Here, then, are a few of the best "Oh, bugger" moments that have occurred around the world in recent times.
Medicine
* London, 2003: A cocky cosmetic surgeon is struck off the medical register after shortening a patient's penis during what is supposed to be an enlargement procedure. (Insert Homer Simpson-esque "d'oh" here.)
Drugs
* England, 2000: Thieves break into a house and try to snort a pot of powder they find on a mantelpiece because it looks like cocaine. Unfortunately the stash turns out to be the cremated remains of the owner's newfoundland dog, Charlie, whose ability to promote excited, self-centred soliloquies at celebrity parties turns out to be decidedly minimal.
* Germany, 2006: A 52-year-old marijuana connoisseur tries in vain to get a refund for $645 worth of crappy pot he buys from his dealer before turning to the police for help. He is charged with drug offences after telling officers that his purchase is unsmokable.
Crime
* Brazil, 2005: A gang of 67 prisoners spends months planning a break-out and digging anescape tunnel only to emerge in the prisonyard, where they are greeted by giggling guards.
* Austria, 2006: A man pockets a bunch of jewellery from a house before making the all-too-common mistake of drinking a bottle of vodka and taking a nap on one of the beds. The homeowner returns to find this Goldilocks fan still snoring and calls the cops.
* Japan, 2006: A Japanese bank robber asks tellers for advice on how best to proceed with his hold-up before meekly obeying a request to leave and accidentally stabbing himself in the leg with his knife during his nervous exit.
Culture
* England, 2006: A visitor to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge trips down some stairs and destroys a set of priceless 300-year-old Chinese vases on a window sill. He spends a long time yelling at his shoelaces.
* Cyberspace, 2006: The Movie Mistakes website finds nearly 300 errors in The Return of the King, the final instalment in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Among other continuity issues, eagle-eyed fans report that a scar on Frodo's face changes size and position and temporarily relocates from his right cheek to his left on the slopes of Mount Doom.
Animals
* England, 2006: A lively doberman pinscher called Barney shreds 100 stuffed bears - including a $113,000 teddy that belonged to Elvis - while helping guard a children's museum. Barney is relieved of his duties and now spends his time chicken guarding (also known as chicken chasing) on a farm.
Aviation
* The US, 2004: A National Guard fighter jet accidentally strafes the roof of a primary school near Atlantic City with gunfire. The embarrassed dude up in the pointy bit says he meant to shoot at a target in a military reservation near Washington.
* Canada, 2006: A pilot who needs to relieve himself mid-flight finds himself locked out of the cockpit while 50 horrified passengers watch on. After banging on the door for a while, he asks the crew to help him wrench the recalcitrant hatch off its hinges before returning to his allocated seat for landing.
Religion
* Scotland, 2006: A vicar forgets to disconnect his microphone during a mid-service loo break. After being heralded with a series of booms, splashes, groans and echoes, one of the parishioners confesses to letting out a wee laugh. Clearly this forgiving soul knew that, despite our best intentions, s--- really will continue to happen.
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Bow before a divine boo-boo and honour gift of the gaffe
THE WRY SIDE
Emma Tom
February 21, 2007
TO err is human. To do it while breaking out of prison, robbing a bank or trying to guard a collection of antique children's toys with a teddy bear-obsessed doberman is divine.
Stuffing up continues to be one of the few human headaches technology just can't eliminate. Sure, we can reduce some of the wreckage by employing smoke alarms, anti-lock braking systems and those virtual pilots that keep aircraft aloft when plane drivers accidentally lock themselves out of cockpits during toilet breaks (more on this later).
But it's testimony to the joyous chaos and wonderful imperfection of human nature that a certain number of outlandish screw-ups are inevitable.
Here, then, are a few of the best "Oh, bugger" moments that have occurred around the world in recent times.
Medicine
* London, 2003: A cocky cosmetic surgeon is struck off the medical register after shortening a patient's penis during what is supposed to be an enlargement procedure. (Insert Homer Simpson-esque "d'oh" here.)
Drugs
* England, 2000: Thieves break into a house and try to snort a pot of powder they find on a mantelpiece because it looks like cocaine. Unfortunately the stash turns out to be the cremated remains of the owner's newfoundland dog, Charlie, whose ability to promote excited, self-centred soliloquies at celebrity parties turns out to be decidedly minimal.
* Germany, 2006: A 52-year-old marijuana connoisseur tries in vain to get a refund for $645 worth of crappy pot he buys from his dealer before turning to the police for help. He is charged with drug offences after telling officers that his purchase is unsmokable.
Crime
* Brazil, 2005: A gang of 67 prisoners spends months planning a break-out and digging anescape tunnel only to emerge in the prisonyard, where they are greeted by giggling guards.
* Austria, 2006: A man pockets a bunch of jewellery from a house before making the all-too-common mistake of drinking a bottle of vodka and taking a nap on one of the beds. The homeowner returns to find this Goldilocks fan still snoring and calls the cops.
* Japan, 2006: A Japanese bank robber asks tellers for advice on how best to proceed with his hold-up before meekly obeying a request to leave and accidentally stabbing himself in the leg with his knife during his nervous exit.
Culture
* England, 2006: A visitor to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge trips down some stairs and destroys a set of priceless 300-year-old Chinese vases on a window sill. He spends a long time yelling at his shoelaces.
* Cyberspace, 2006: The Movie Mistakes website finds nearly 300 errors in The Return of the King, the final instalment in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Among other continuity issues, eagle-eyed fans report that a scar on Frodo's face changes size and position and temporarily relocates from his right cheek to his left on the slopes of Mount Doom.
Animals
* England, 2006: A lively doberman pinscher called Barney shreds 100 stuffed bears - including a $113,000 teddy that belonged to Elvis - while helping guard a children's museum. Barney is relieved of his duties and now spends his time chicken guarding (also known as chicken chasing) on a farm.
Aviation
* The US, 2004: A National Guard fighter jet accidentally strafes the roof of a primary school near Atlantic City with gunfire. The embarrassed dude up in the pointy bit says he meant to shoot at a target in a military reservation near Washington.
* Canada, 2006: A pilot who needs to relieve himself mid-flight finds himself locked out of the cockpit while 50 horrified passengers watch on. After banging on the door for a while, he asks the crew to help him wrench the recalcitrant hatch off its hinges before returning to his allocated seat for landing.
Religion
* Scotland, 2006: A vicar forgets to disconnect his microphone during a mid-service loo break. After being heralded with a series of booms, splashes, groans and echoes, one of the parishioners confesses to letting out a wee laugh. Clearly this forgiving soul knew that, despite our best intentions, s--- really will continue to happen.
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Saturday, February 17, 2007
Happy Chinese New Year!
Aya and Yee Harn
Aya and Yee Harn
Saturday, February 10, 2007
The Swarm - A Novel of the Deep
I've recently read the above novel by Frank Schatzing.
First off, it is a sci-fi book, so some of the details are purely fiction. But it contains large numbers of true facts and details in regards to our ecosystem, especially about the oceans. Oceans cover about 3 quarters (71%) of the Earth's surface, and nearly half of the world's marine waters are over 3,000 meters deep. Most of them still remain unexplorable. Who knows what can be found in the depths?
Anyway, the story talks about a global ecological disaster, which are brought about by the acts of man. And the world brings together a large group of scientists and engineers from a variety of backgrounds and areas, in order to solve the mysteries that may cause the destruction of mankind.
Here's a synopsis of the novel :
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Off the Peruvian coast a fisherman drowns, dragged to his death by a mysterious underwater current. He is not alone. Over the coming weeks, thousands like him will die each day - killed at sea, killed on beaches, killed by oceans that no longer behave in a way that mankind can predict.
These deaths are not coincidence - and from the moment an enormous unidentifiable form flashes across the radar of two North Sea scientists, it is clear they are being caused by a natural force more complex and more devastating than anything science is able to comprehend. Beheath the waves, something is wreaking havoc on the global ecosystem, bringing the world to the brink of destruction. It is ecological disaster on an unprecedented scale - disaster that some are determined to prevent, but others are determined to exploit in their pursuit of power.
Epic, intense and frighteningly real, Frank Schatzing's international bestseller THE SWARM is a thrilling cautionary tale for our age - a timely warning of the vulnerability of our existense in a fragile world.
__________________________________________________________________________
Highly recommended.
I've recently read the above novel by Frank Schatzing.
First off, it is a sci-fi book, so some of the details are purely fiction. But it contains large numbers of true facts and details in regards to our ecosystem, especially about the oceans. Oceans cover about 3 quarters (71%) of the Earth's surface, and nearly half of the world's marine waters are over 3,000 meters deep. Most of them still remain unexplorable. Who knows what can be found in the depths?
Anyway, the story talks about a global ecological disaster, which are brought about by the acts of man. And the world brings together a large group of scientists and engineers from a variety of backgrounds and areas, in order to solve the mysteries that may cause the destruction of mankind.
Here's a synopsis of the novel :
__________________________________________________________________________
Off the Peruvian coast a fisherman drowns, dragged to his death by a mysterious underwater current. He is not alone. Over the coming weeks, thousands like him will die each day - killed at sea, killed on beaches, killed by oceans that no longer behave in a way that mankind can predict.
These deaths are not coincidence - and from the moment an enormous unidentifiable form flashes across the radar of two North Sea scientists, it is clear they are being caused by a natural force more complex and more devastating than anything science is able to comprehend. Beheath the waves, something is wreaking havoc on the global ecosystem, bringing the world to the brink of destruction. It is ecological disaster on an unprecedented scale - disaster that some are determined to prevent, but others are determined to exploit in their pursuit of power.
Epic, intense and frighteningly real, Frank Schatzing's international bestseller THE SWARM is a thrilling cautionary tale for our age - a timely warning of the vulnerability of our existense in a fragile world.
__________________________________________________________________________
Highly recommended.
