Unbalanced Vision

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Together, 21 July 2007

This weekend HY's room turned into a little card-making factory. We did everything ourselves: from designing the invitations, choosing paper, printing, cutting and folding. (Of course, HY will tell you that he's the sole designer, but we'll let him believe that.) The idea began whilst browsing through D.I.Y.: Design It Yourself at Magma. We also used a paper-folding method which I learnt at my bookbinding course at City Lit--a piece of A3 size paper can simply turn into a two-page (four-panel) pamphlet without using staplers nor stitches. We searched for quotes that were related to the theme 'together', and spent some time over the appropriate Chinese wording. It is a bilingual invitation, one that is also suitable for the Mandarin-speaking visitor. And red, being our favourite colour, and being ultimately Chinese, shall be the theme colour that lays before your eyes.

Two-wheeler, footy flavour

Wooly hat, loafer flavour

Now you can become one, too.

In order to receive fax, I registered for a free fax to email service. Yes, I've successfully received my document, but their notorious, non-existent customer service and daft on-line chats are most worrying! I read about a customer who desperately wanted to cancel his account, but had to spend 20 minutes trying to tell this cyber robot that all he wanted was to have nothing to do with eFax ever. Poor chap. I, on the other hand, am quite lucky. 'Brandon' did not give me a hard time at all. And there's an unnoticeable e-mail to which you can write:

1) helpuk@mail.efax.com

2)
Welcome to chat.
The session has been accepted.
{Brandon R.} Hello, Hao. Welcome to j2 Global online support. I am Brandon, your online Live Support Representative. How are you doing today?
{Hao Ning Lin} Hello
{Brandon R.} How may I assist you, today?
{Hao Ning Lin} I would like to cancel my free eFax account
{Brandon R.} I'm sorry to hear that you wish to cancel. Could you please provide me with your Fax number and PIN associated with your account?
{Hao Ning Lin} My fax number is 44 xxx xxx xxxx
{Hao Ning Lin} Pin number is xxxx
{Hao Ning Lin} Is that ok? Is it done?
{Brandon R.} Thank you for providing your information. Please give me a moment while I go through your records. In the meantime, please type the number corresponding to your reason for cancellation:

1) Moving to another provider
2) Bought a Fax machine
3) Business or role changed
4) Short term project completed
5) Financial reasons
6) Problems with Faxing or Billing
7) Dissatisfied with Quality of service
8) Too Costly
{Hao Ning Lin} 8
{Hao Ning Lin} Hello, is it done?
{Brandon R.} Hao, as per our records you have few more days left for your trial period to get over. I suggest you to make use of our service till the end of your trial period and then get back to us. We would very much like you to give our service a try at least during the trial period and let us know how did you find our service. There is absolutely no need for you to continue if you do not wish to, at the end of the free trial period. With valuable feedback from our customers we would be able to better our services if need be, wherever required. This is the reason why we are providing a free month's service, plus the ability to send up till 100 pages of fax for free.
{Hao Ning Lin} It's ok. I don't need a fax number anymore. I just want to cancel my account.
{Brandon R.} Okay. I will cancel your account immediately.
{Brandon R.} I'm sorry that you are leaving eFax. At eFax, we are continuously improving our products and services. Please do consider us if your faxing needs should change in the future.
{Brandon R.} Is there anything else I can assist you with today?
{Hao Ning Lin} No, no thank you. Thank you for your help.
{Brandon R.} Hao, we would appreciate if you could spare a minute in filling the survey form as it would give us your valuable feedback which would help us to improve our services. Here is the link where you can fill the Survey.
http://www.endusersurvey.com/default.asp?project_code=j2cxlc&code=7977
{Brandon R.} Thank you for contacting j2 Global online support. Good bye and have a nice time.
{Hao Ning Lin} So, is my account cancelled?
{Brandon R.} Yes, I have cancelled your account.
{Brandon R.} Is there anything else I can assist you with today?
{Hao Ning Lin} No. Thank you very much. Have a nice day!
{Brandon R.} Good bye and have a nice time.
The user has ended the session.

Print, cut and fold: for all us poor suckers who can't wait

After Jobs' inimitable speech and a product that speaks for itself, the tech-savvy are already oogling over Mac's new phone. Sadly, Brits have to wait a couple of more months till iPhone sails across the pond (yes, it's so cool it can swim as well). And HY, who already has a fairly new mobile phone in his hands, is already unsatisfied. I adore it, too, just as much as I like my MacBook. However, I've never spent a penny on mobile phones, and will stubbornly stick to that rule. People have given me their unwanted, second-hand mobiles, and what more do I need than a phone that allows me to answer and dial? Coloured screens with a camera and mp3 player? Nah, that's too complicated. Shock horror! I don't even know how to send texts. After four years in the UK, I am still using pay-as-you-go. There was a time when I was conned into a monthly payment contract, and after receiving a 60 quid monthly telephone bill, I am saying no to these monthly deals. Call me old-fashioned, yes, I'd rather use doves to send you messages. iPhone, nah, iNotBothered.

The hallway is so wide I can put my bed in it (yeah, right!)

Measure for measure

It's another day, another year.

To celebrate the end of 2006 in true suburbia fashion, we had roasted coffee ice cream and snuggled in front of HY dad's home cinema watching An Inconvenient Truth. By 23.30 we were already in sleep land. On a crisp New Year's morning we walked to our flat-to-be, imagining our lives there and inspecting the brick work. Just then a pale-legged Korean chap came out to his balcony for a cig--so that's what my future neighbour looks like. Note to future neighbour: I don't care if you smoke, but you better be quiet. We even timed ourselves walking from the property to the closest train station: it only takes 9 minutes 20 seconds. If one's to depart with that sum of money, one has to be sure that transportation isn't impossible.

Have a peaceful and rewarding 2007! If you're good enough, I'd like to invite you over.