JAWing On – Life on Okinawa

I just read this story about how food choices are changing in American youths towards a more ethnically diversified menu. Recently, I was noticing how that has already happened over here to KFC and Micky D’s. No longer is the chicken at KFC limited to a southern fried recipe. Now the Asian version of Tex-Mex chicken fajitas and a Chinese-style menu with chicken and soup are added. Micky D’s has always had (or at least that is what it seems like) some local flavors, such as the teriyaki burger, available. I wonder if any of these Asian-style additions to the menu have made it back stateside yet? And what flavors does one get a choice of in other cultures?

The behavior of these two is soooo ridiculous that I couldn’t help think that maybe someone should introduce this salesclerk and this customer. Then they could spend their time target practicing each other on dates!

I wonder what would happen if someone walked into a sushi bar and placed an order of raw fish fried with garlic and parsley? After all most sushi restaurants have fish, a stove, garlic, parsley, and some type of oil!!! If they have all the ingredients, why shouldn’t they be able to prepare it the way a customer requests?

That’s pretty much the premise of an article in the Washington Post from two years ago that I found while I was doing research on some of the more ridiculous customer requests that persons in the service industry face. Well, the owner of that restaurant, Gillian Clark, seems to understand the difference between a customer that is reasonable and someone who is on an ego trip. Perhaps the so-called experts in the customer service field could take a lesson from Gillain. Here is the latest info on her and her restaurant.

Recently I saw some articles concerning the subject of how dealing with persons who are less than gracious can jade even the most enthusiastic service personnel. And of course, there are articles on how if a person is not prepared to deal with ungrateful patrons then they should not be in the industry. Let’s be realistic, we have all had and heard horror stories on both sides of the topic. The thing to me is when is someone being unreasonable in a situation. What has happened to common sense and consideration for fellow human beings?

Out of curiosity, I was wondering what are some of the more ridiculous customer requests other people have seen or heard? And what ridiculous reactions to customer obnoxiousness by a service person have other people heard or seen?

In example, this weekend a customer at a drinking establishment that doesn’t charge a cover for live entertainment and, because it doesn’t have a running kitchen and understands that some people get the munchies when they are drinking, allows patrons to bring in their own snacks. (Not exactly what I would call an unreasonable place.) This particular customer bought one drink, pulled out his own snack, and then expected the drinking establishment to cover the cost of a disposable container in which to place the snack. If a person is going to bring their own eats somewhere, isn’t that person responsible for providing their own accompanying necessities (such as tableware, napkins, etc.)?

This story of a unique monkey who could gives a little inspiration to all of those who puff away like little a choo-choo.

I’m watching the eclipse on webcast, unbelievable. This is the first time I’ve seen such a thing on the web! While I watched the total eclipse, the moon actually had a bluish hue to it. It just blows my mind knowing that I am actually watching our living universe as it happens.

There is a report on CNN about a new coaster that signals a bartender when a beer mug is getting low on contents. I don’t know about other bars, but it isn’t uncommon for the patrons to move about through out the evening. That would make locating the depleted beverage holder difficult. Not only that, just because someone’s glass is emptying doesn’t necessarily mean they automatically want another beverage forced upon them. However, there are some promising possibilities for this product. Suppose the coasters were set into the tables. If each table had a small keg somewhere under it with an above table dispenser attached, and the coaster signaled the dispenser when a beverage was getting low, customers who did want to replenish their beverage could simply deposit a pre-purchased token into the dispenser and refill the container with a pre-specified quantity. This would help eliminate an unnecessary waste of time on the part of bartenders and waiters, as well as eliminate any waiting on the part of the patron.

With all the advances in modern technology, one has to wonder how long it will be before virtual tourism is a reality? I was watching ads on TV for ecotourism and the first thought that came to my mind was this isn’t a new thing but if hordes of people take these tours won’t that cause damage to the very environment that they are so eager to view? The same thing applies for the historic places such as the Parthenon. Literally millions of visitors trample over the grounds causing a wearing down and pollution that aids in the destruction of the very object of interest. In these cases wouldn’t it be better to be able to have the option of an all consuming interactive virtual tour?

Well it looks like we are actually going to luck out with Longwang. It has changed directions in the past day towards Taiwan. Because of the monster storm I finally gained some experience with several applications. The first being Google Earth and the current hurricane overlay. On the other side of things, I became interested in what was available to the novice as far as star gazing. I was able to locate two very interesting applications. One is a space similation named Celestia. This is sort of like viewing the universe in your own space craft for newbies. The other program is SkyChartIII. Although this is not a new program, it is a great way for newbies to experience the constellations as viewed from Earth . (The same company also offers an application for more advanced astronomers.)