I copy this from my friend Ron's blog, based on a phone call he received. He lives in Taipei. Sounds like ID fraud is even worse there than it is here.
Case #2018
Phone rang
man: "are you XXX?"
me: "yes"
man: "this is the police department criminal investigation, section 165"
man: "we are investigating a case involving your home phone number"
man: "apparently the criminal had hijacked your phone number and used in a fraud scheme"
me: "ok"
man: "can you appear to the court in Kaohsung today?"
me: "not really" (Kaohsung city is about 4 hours drive from Taipei, and it was around 2:00PM)
man: "are you sure? this is last day of this court, we need your presence"
me: "sorry, I will go if I have been notified earlier"
man: "we have notified you on the phone twice already"
me: "sorry, I didn't get it. No messages left on the answering machine"
man: "ok, I can take your statement over the phone, can I record the conversation?"
me: "o...o..k..k.." (thinking)
man: "state your name"
me: "XXX"
man: "date of birth"
me: "...." (ding! red light came on in my head, I can't give this guy whom I have no ideas who he is any personal information)
me: "sorry, I can't give you anymore info over the phone, how would I know this is not the fraudulent calls we get so often?"
man: "are you insulting the police department?"
me: "no, but if you still want my statement, I can go to the court tomorrow"
man: "ok, no need to come, just wait for the summon in the mail"...(hung up)
I get all kinds of fraudulent calls at least once a week. Some tries to swindle for money, but this was the first. I even got a call from my "son" telling me that he was in a trouble, needed money to pay the bail. I told him to go to hell.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Jellyfish in the marina
We were up at the marina last weekend and as I strolled along the dock I spotted a beautiful little jellyfish pulsating up out of the depths, possibly to get some sunlight. At least that's what the jellyfish in Jellyfish Lake in Palau like to do. Anyway, I ran back to the boat, grabbed my camera, and here's what the little creature looked like:
At first I thought I'd lost it but nope, there it is...
And here's a closer shot...
Turn out it's a common species of bell jellies that like to hang out in harbors, bays and estuaries called Polyorchis penicillatus.
Just goes to show you, there's plenty to see if you care to look.
At first I thought I'd lost it but nope, there it is...
And here's a closer shot...
Turn out it's a common species of bell jellies that like to hang out in harbors, bays and estuaries called Polyorchis penicillatus.
Just goes to show you, there's plenty to see if you care to look.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Cool Co-worker George and his Rice Cooker Cuisine
I've ranted about a couple of co-workers, The Perv (previous post) and the extremely annoying Katherine who, by the way, continues to torture my boss and me with her relentless complaints and suggestions.
However today I have only have kudos for odd, original and wonderful George. George is easy to overlook, nerdy engineer, overweight, pants too short, in fact he rather looks like a Tweedle Dee of the new millenium. George doesn't talk, he expounds, usually stroking his scraggly beard and staring off into space as if speaking to an invisible alien audience.
George first got my attention when, in a discussion of our favorite beers, he let slip that he once entered a national home-brew beer contest and his stout won first place, beating even Guinness which was entered as a baseline. I knew then that still waters ran deep with this man.
Recently we started a book club at work, our first book being Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas Friedman. When we announced the title at the company meeting George exclaimed, "Hot, Flat and Crowded, that would be biography of Paris Hilton I assume. Count me in."
Last week it started to feel like Autumn in the SF Bay Area and George announced that it was rice cooker time. OK, I was interested. On Monday an hour before lunch he proudly carried his rice-cooker into the lunchroom and began his conconction of miso soup, smoked tofu, and squid. He was delighted when I admitted to fishing out all the tentacles for myself. "First come first served and let the devil take the hind end" was his response.
Every day George creates a new dish, usually distinctly Asian, but sometimes a veritable mixed-metaphor of cuisines such as his miso soup with mussels, shrimp, seaweed and tortellini. Sounds weird but it was quite tasty. On Friday he made brown basmati rice with shrimp balls, scallions and bok choy.
George says his wife doesn't like his cooking. She thinks it's too weird. I think he's rather ingenious.
However today I have only have kudos for odd, original and wonderful George. George is easy to overlook, nerdy engineer, overweight, pants too short, in fact he rather looks like a Tweedle Dee of the new millenium. George doesn't talk, he expounds, usually stroking his scraggly beard and staring off into space as if speaking to an invisible alien audience.
George first got my attention when, in a discussion of our favorite beers, he let slip that he once entered a national home-brew beer contest and his stout won first place, beating even Guinness which was entered as a baseline. I knew then that still waters ran deep with this man.
Recently we started a book club at work, our first book being Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas Friedman. When we announced the title at the company meeting George exclaimed, "Hot, Flat and Crowded, that would be biography of Paris Hilton I assume. Count me in."
Last week it started to feel like Autumn in the SF Bay Area and George announced that it was rice cooker time. OK, I was interested. On Monday an hour before lunch he proudly carried his rice-cooker into the lunchroom and began his conconction of miso soup, smoked tofu, and squid. He was delighted when I admitted to fishing out all the tentacles for myself. "First come first served and let the devil take the hind end" was his response.
Every day George creates a new dish, usually distinctly Asian, but sometimes a veritable mixed-metaphor of cuisines such as his miso soup with mussels, shrimp, seaweed and tortellini. Sounds weird but it was quite tasty. On Friday he made brown basmati rice with shrimp balls, scallions and bok choy.
George says his wife doesn't like his cooking. She thinks it's too weird. I think he's rather ingenious.
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