Entries for August, 2007
August 9th, 2007
Avclub Inspiration
Posted by shaankhan at 03:16 AM on August 9, 2007 in Work.
In case you aren't familiar with the AV Club, it's affiliated with The Onion, everyone's favorite online fake news source, except they publish REAL articles/blogs/commentary/critiques/interviews about the arts, media, culture, etc.
Recently two of its writers, Tasha Robinson and Genevieve Koski, decided to blog in real-time as they voraciously tore through the final chapter of the Harry Potter series. Very cool idea I think!
So it inspired to write this, for anyone who stumbles across this blog (because I think all of six people, and they're all family and friends, read this), preferably someone I don't know and could never meet, to suggest a book we both would read over the same period of time and blog about it periodically in one shared blog, responding to each other and writing down our own thoughts as the book progresses.
Rules? None except it needs to be a book I can get (I'm in China, but I have access to Amazon, if you're willing to wait on me a few weeks), and no episodic literature like Nancy Drew, and no Harlequin romance... I think anything else should be okay--oh and it should be in English, of course. If anyone finds this interesting, let me know!
August 15th, 2007
Most interesting thing I've learned today
Posted by shaankhan at 05:04 AM on August 15, 2007.
Squirrels can heat their tails!
Currently listening to: Johnny Cash
Currently reading: Women Warriors (very slowly)
Currently feeling: complacent
August 16th, 2007
Most interesting thing I've learned today
Posted by shaankhan at 09:13 AM on August 16, 2007.
Chinese parents want to name their kid "@"
Mattel does PR good
Posted by shaankhan at 09:21 AM on August 16, 2007 in Work.
Mattel buys front page Yahoo space that links to a video of the CEO apologizing and announcing steps they're taking. Not too shabby, Mattel, considering. Companies really need to boycott Chinese manufacturers until they get their standards up!
August 17th, 2007
Most interesting thing I've learned today
Posted by shaankhan at 01:44 AM on August 17, 2007.
President Bush, in his 6 1/2 years in office, has visited 49 states. He went to Alaska. He even went to West Virginina! But not... not... VERMONT. What could he possibly be so terrified of? We have a Republican governor, after all...
[Ari] Fleischer predicted that Mr. Bush, now on vacation in sweltering Crawford, Texas, will go because it will be "healthy to hit all 50 states."
"But he sure saved a doozy for last," he said with a laugh.
August 20th, 2007
Mercedes-Benz enters Second Life
Posted by shaankhan at 04:12 AM on August 20, 2007 in Work.
For what it's worth, Mercedes-Benz has decided to join the fray in Second Life. Various reports have stated one way or another on the virtual world's business potential, but considering how much computing power it currently takes to run the thing, I would say not bloody likely. If I were British. I'll settle for "not a chance in hell." Still, you can see in the clip below, at least Mercedes-Benz has produced a pretty slick little piece of virtual PR.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myqwxc0YKwo
(tabulas can't seem to embed youtube videos... sigh)
Most interesting thing I've learned today
Posted by shaankhan at 05:11 AM on August 20, 2007.
That Germans aren't any less concerned with celebrity than Americans.
From a Reuters piece about an injury that occurred on the set of Tom Cruise's latest film in Germany:
"We have no findings to suggest anyone famous was involved in the accident," said a police spokesman, adding he did not know whether it would affect the shoot this week.
Reuters, not The Onion.
August 24th, 2007
Most interesting thing I've learned today
Posted by shaankhan at 04:57 AM on August 24, 2007.
Chinese instant messaging king Tencent has an interesting link on their main page.
Integrity is the most basic requirement for all employees of Tencent. We will not tolerate any violation of the laws and regulations or improper behaviors in commercial activities. If you notice any such issues in relation to Tencent employees, please don't hesitate to let us know through the following channels:
Voice mail hotline: +86-755-86013470
If you intend to provide the relevant information in hard copy format, please deliver to the following address by mail:
Internal Audit Department, Tencent Group
Floor 10, FIYTA Hi-tech Building, Gaoxinnanyi Avenue, Southern District of Hi-tech Park, Shenzhen, Guangdong, PRC
The above channels are designated only for lodging complaints in relation to suspected violations of laws and regulations or improper behaviors of Tencent employees in commercial activities. If you are to make complaints about Internet illegal information, our products or services, please refer to our customer service website (service.qq.com) or alternatively you can use the following channels:
For products or services inquiries and complaints:
Customer service hotline:+86-755-83765566
Please do choose the right channel so that your complaints will be followed up.
We will carry out the relevant investigation and obtain evidence in accordance with the information provided by you and to the extent permissible by applicable laws and company policies. We will contact you within 10 working days upon receipt of your complaint if you have provided your contact information to us which will be kept in strict confidence.
I was curious if they'd have this in Chinese too, and they do. Nice to see ONE Chinese company trying to do something about corruption, although Tencent is probably one we need least be concerned about.
Currently feeling: contemplative
In Memoriam
Posted by shaankhan at 10:36 AM on August 24, 2007.
Dad just messaged me that his aunt Adeeb Khala died. She was a pretty amazing woman, living for like the past forty years with MS and seeing everything that she saw. All of my Dad's family from that generation is like her, really, having lived through the independence and partitioning of their country, being members of a very small upper class that knew pretty much all of the leaders during that period of India and Pakistan's history. My dad has identical twin cousins born on India's independence day who ended up growing up across the border from one another, one in India the other in Pakistan. It's a family straight out of any number of epic Indian generational novels.
I never knew Adeeb Khala that well besides her relentlessly kind voice and a sly sense of humor. She had all sorts of stories bottled up inside her that now I'll never have the pleasure of hearing myself, but my mom was wise enough to bring a dictaphone with her on one trip and record some of those stories. Maybe when I go home in December I'll try to digitize them, listen to what else she had to say besides one innocuous rendezvous with Mahatma Gandhi.
August 29th, 2007
I'm going to the Olympics!
Posted by shaankhan at 04:47 AM on August 29, 2007.
I'll be at the opening ceremonies, yay! Just found out I won a ticket in the lottery, as well as a ticket for the women's final soccer match (why women's? why soccer? Soccer because it's the only event I'm even mildly interested in, and women's because the US men's team doesn't have a shot in hell at making it that far.)
Currently feeling: dorky