Which Watch?

I love a good printed watch ad.
There's something special about them.

They're elegant & aspirational.

They're 'All man' (or beautiful women). Tacky celebrities are not invited here.














Luxurious & sexy. I'd have to give up my first born to pay for it.

They are intriguing and a perfect example of old school craftsmanship.

Do you come with the watch?



Photos taken from:
http://gossip.rateometer.com/wp-content/plugins/auto-blogster/images/ash_22.jpg
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQjliwwYkdYnxLLgkhM7Hlo_86uMy-iVZYiYTs6FexhMSRNQn0u
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQtKZTdG_AbsrUSOb1DxhS2xLLMkQktKLf_LPGME7yweRpkgp0OcDWGlZh--Q

http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT9LLWp3y1MiLJ9EvuXqEhyfsxeNPe2iGNT2MBDpRKhC_IRDcWUlg

It's begining to look a lot like ...

Christmas for us, but while we in Sydney celebrate the arrival of Oprah, Bon Jovi, U2, Jay-Z, Guns N Roses bla bla bla ...
....  there are people in th eastern states of Australia who have experienced floods & damage.
.... there are refugees who are dying en route to Australia & Christmas Island.
.... there are people rioting in London.
.... the people in Greece are stuggling to earn and hold down their jobs.

Sometimes I feel so lucky and fortunate. There are so many interesting and positives in my life.

Shit-stirrer ...

 

 Take a bow Julian Assange.  

I belive in freedom of speech. However, when that information is released irresponsibly, is used for harm or could potentially harm someone, it should be managed responsibly.  Governments should be given the the right of reply and allowed time to secure those at risk.

The idea of Wikileaks is noble and infact, quite necessary in todays world. 

The execution ... needs improvement.

Image taken from:

http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/images/0728-aclassify-afghanistan-wikileaks/8384931-1-eng-US/0728-ACLASSIFY-Afghanistan-Wikileaks_full_600.jpg

Opt-in & out Marketing Emails

I like to subscribe to newsletters/feeds from my favourite blogs, stores, companies etc.
I opt-in to these newsletters in good faith, to hear about new ideas, products, discounts & new places.

Generally speaking, I will get emails from retail outlets once a week, if that.
There are some companies out there that I wish could do more online  ... hint hint, place where I work! However, there is one company now just plain annoying me with all their 'sales' & bombardment of e-newsletters ...

I'm now opting-out, permanently.

Image from:
http://doesmomhateme.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/delete-button.jpg

Names not Numbers

It's nice when colleagues and those higher-up remember details about you as a person, not you as your work persona.

Over the last week I have been listening to psychologists and other Happiness-at-work experts at the online Happiness at Work Summit.  The more I learn about it, the more I hear people talking about it, I really want to be part of something that creates a great atmosphere for people to go to work in. It's just so important and cannot be underestimated!

Now I know some initiatives to keep your employees engaged and happy cost money, but not everything costs money.   It can be as simple as your positive attitude to someone, your willingness to let someone speak their mind, your smile and acknowledgement of someone or in my case today, my manager's manager remembered I was going on leave and wanted to know why I was still present at a meeting.

It made me feel good for 2 reasons:

1. That he remembered. He's a busy guy and for him to remember, thats nice
2. He saw that I was committed and interested in the businesses goings-on.

Ofcourse, this then has a snowball effect on the rest of my day, talking with others, speaking with people I would normally not have spoken with and culminating in me speaking with the ANZ chairman of our company. Our company has a philosophy of small actions make big differences, today, (maybe not in the same way our company envisioned that but ...) I directly saw that put into action.

Values based Conundrum ...

I was recently booking accommodation in Japan for my upcoming trip when I came across one hotel that stated clearly (& multiple times) that ... "No 2 men can stay in the same room...".

What is a liberal & values driven person to do?

a) Boycott the place by staying elsewhere? And let them know it?
b) Dont stay there but accept that the world is not at the same level as us (not that we are a country to preach gay rights) and not be so ethnocentric?
c) Stay there and accept that the world is not the same everywhere?

d) Stay at the hotel and talk/discuss with hotel staff & other guests about the issue?

I went with b).
Conservative yes, but who am I to go to another country and preach my way? 
I would hate it if the reverse was done to us.

Driving AND Talking

I take a lot of things for granted, but once in a while I get a wake up call and realise how lucky I am.

Another action/activity is now acknowledged in my bank; We take talking to our fellow passengers for granted.

Everyday I drive past a Deaf & Blind school on my way to work.  Normally, it's just another school & another school zone I must slow down for.

Today was different. Today while driving to work, I saw a young-ish man wanting to take a right hand turn & while he was waiting for a gap in the traffic, I saw him communicating with his passenger in sign language.

It dawned on me a few seconds after, that it's only when the car is stationary (waiting at at traffic light, waiting to take a right hand turn, stuck in traffic) that a deaf person can be communicated to if they or the driver is driving.