Clarity
A bit closer to India
Posted 1 Dec 2008
Events, People, Places | Leave a Comment
In wake of the recent attacks on Mumbai, I found myself more concerned than I expected over the welfare of the victims, and especially of the local Indians. Not typically callous to or ignorant of woes and tragedies that befall my fellow humans around the world, but I was certainly more drawn to the news stories, to the many posts and to the general press coverage than anticipated.
Since those attacks, I have pondered the reasons for this. I think it must be because of chickenmonkeydog. As you may know, we have a readership that includes a number of individuals in or from India and Pakistan. And through their comments on this site and on their respective blogs, I have come to know more about and be more interested in India, Pakistan and the people in that corner of the world. No, I didn’t ignore it beforehand – one of my closest friend in the UK is a native Indian – but it certainly wasn’t in my ‘Top Corners of the World’.
Something similar happened years ago when I began to work with Survivors Fund, an organisation dedicated to assisting survivors of the Rwandan genocide. Suddenly, Africa became much more than a geographic location with places and peoples of the world. It became very human, a place filled with personal stories, personal histories, personal tragedies and, of course, personal futures.
With so many demands on our attention (family, friends, jobs, the economy in today’s market, homelands, etc.), it’s easy to overlook much of what is going on in the world. I don’t say this as a criticism, but more of a statement of practical reality. (The street riots in Jos, Nigeria, have barely made the news in the wake of the assault on Mumbai.)
The internet has given us the ability not only to learn about the comings and goings of people and places around world, but also to connect and interact with those with whom we might otherwise never have crossed paths. And that can only be a good thing.
Mountain of stairs
Posted 24 Nov 2008
Commuting, Daily Life, People | 3 Comments
Over the weekend, I was caring for a young child I know. The child had learned to walk in the previous months and so powering about on his feet was still very exciting to him. This child loved to climb the stairs in his house – just for fun. And I was watched him climb, making sure he didn’t tumble backwards to a painful crash, I was amazed at how much work it was for him to climb the stairs.
Each step just about came up to just below his waist. There were 13 steps leading from the ground floor to the next. So, this little fella was pulling and scrapping his way to the top, time and time again, for fun. He was giggling, laughing, talking and singing on each trip. It was a hoot.
As I watched on, I began to think about whether or I would climb proportionally sized steps for fun. I am 6′3″. Would I repeatedly climb 13, three-foot steps just for fun? For that matter, would I go back up almost 40 feet (close to a 3-story building) in stairs to collect whatever it was I forgot this morning as I ran down the stairs this morning, late for work? Could I even run down the stairs if each step was half my height?
Think clearly. Act quickly.
Posted 21 Nov 2008
Commuting, People, Places, Signs | 5 Comments
O’Hare Airport has many emergencies exits, and a number of these exits in Terminal 3 look like the one shown in the photo below:
(They may also look the same elsewhere at O’Hare, but this is where I’ve noticed them.)
I know it is hard to see in the pictures, but note that this door:
(1) Requires a security code input prior to use.
In case of an emergency, you’d better hope that you happen to be an airport employee with a security id code, and not just some Joe or Jane Traveller.
(2) Not using a security code would be a violation of both city and federal laws.
Break the law or stay put in an emergency – you can only choose one.
(3) Door can be opened in 15 seconds.
If this is a real emergency, fifteen seconds will seem like a really, really long time.
Guerillas threaten gorillas!
Posted 20 Nov 2008
Why all this guerilla on gorilla violence!? Won’t somebody please think of the homonyms?!?
Please note that the editors of chickenmonkeydog do not support violence and do not condone the endangerment of the mountain gorillas.
Thanks to a reader from Chicago for the contribution.
Dear Spammers: You’re barking up the wrong tree
Posted 17 Nov 2008
Daily Life, People, The Little Things | 4 Comments
This is an open letter from the editors of chickenmonkeydog to all spammers who leave comments on our blog:
Dear Spammers of Porn Advert Comments:
Please do not leave comments on our blog advertising videos of dog sex, even if those movies are available for free. In fact, please don’t leave us adverts for any sex movies. We’re just not interested. Furthermore, we’re fairly confident that our readers aren’t terribly interested either. (And if they are, I am sure they don’t need us to show them where to find such videos.)
To be perfectly honest, our technical editor is becoming frightened of discarding your spam of late as your video offers are growing increasingly violent and disturbing in nature. For the sake of our staff, please do stop sending us these ugly offers.
Thank you,
The Editors
chickenmonkeydog.com
NOTE: Our technical editor has used Photoshop to blur the swearword in the advert comment; otherwise it is as it was submitted.
