Monthly Archives: April 2005

The Joys of Shuffle

For music on the go and having fun creating mixes (again) the iPod shuffle was a great recent purchase. I don’t always buy into the “enjoy uncertainty” or “life is random” concepts that Apple preaches though and find myself creating a smart playlist to autofill my shuffle that pick from higher rates songs in a number of other playlists that have a list of my favourite tracks. I’m not alone in this and I have noticed a few others sharing there ideas.
“Matt Haughey writes about the joys of a better

Simple Sneakers

Getting dressed in the morning means for me pulling on a pair of khakis or jeans, a dark t-shirt (likely black), and when on the way out the door a pair of sneakers. Except for various attempts at formalising my uniform and the years I wore a tux at night, essentially I dress the same now as I did 20 years ago. Despite some criticism that I don’t dress my age I like it very much; so much that my drawers are over-flowing with t-shirts and my front door is blocked by a growing number of shoes and sneakers.
crusher.gifThe latest addition to my growing collection of sneakers are called “Crusher” from Simple shoes in California. They aren’t available here in Taiwan but you can order them online from a number of retailers including REI where I ordered my pair from. They have suede and shiny leather combination upper “extra comfy” pig leather lining, I got mine in chocolate but they come in black and cognac as well.
Chientai recently told me, tongue cheek I presume, that a main consideration for his next job would be whether or not he could play table tennis at lunch time. Perhaps one of the questions I will ask at an interview is whether of not I can wear sneakers and jeans.
Simple Crusher’s

EVA air and Bangkok

I must have flown with EVA air about 14 times over the past year between Bangkok and Taipei and every single time the posted boarding time has been wrong. I know they have a schedule which they must post but what is the point of posting a schedule if you never keep it? The result is usually anxious agitated customers who at the first sign of any activity race to form and/or butt into the que. This being the information age is it not too much to expect real time delivery of this type of data? Would this not be an acceptable solution?
Of course this in no way compares to any of my experiences or others with the “new aeroflot” Air Canada. Delays, poor customer service, and lack of information are a hallmark of their brand.

Tape Timer

tape_timer.jpgBeautiful, beautiful product. The KT401 Tape Timer is an aluminum kitchen timer and looks to be about as easy to use as well … pulling a tape measure. “Pull the tape to set the time, and the visible tape shortens as time passes. Makes it really easy to see how much time is left from across the kitchen (or any room). svn”
Catalogue page

Stress and Relaxation: Ten Ways to Relax and Reduce Stress

Dr. Weil offers 10 tips on relaxation.
“The following are some wonderful ways to reduce anxiety, agitation and stress and promote relaxation, calm and peace within yourself. Some techniques take practice, and most require some commitment on your part to achieve results. However, the results are well worth any effort, as a calm and relaxed body and mind are less prone to health issues than an agitated body and mind.”