Teleportation

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Topic #35: When teleportation is finally possible, where will you beam yourself first? (Yes, you can assume you’d be able to teleport yourself back. It’d be a teleportation app for your phone of course, which you’d keep in your pocket.)

Taking this question literally, if I had a teleportation application on my iPod Touch (because I don’t have a cell phone that is able to use applications), the first place I would teleport myself is one meter across the room. I would test the application in my bedroom, and make sure I end up still inside my bedroom. Because the prompt implies that this is the first ever way someone is able to teleport his or herself, I want to make sure that this is something I am able to use successfully without any major side effects.

If I teleport myself a meter away and there are any problems, I would still be in a good position to recollect myself and make sure that I can get any help if there are any severe problems after the teleportation. Seeing as I would be in my bedroom, I would have all the resources I normally have to make sure everything is fine.

If the first teleportation is successful, I would keep testing the application little by little, with the next teleportation taking me several meters away, a couple hundred meters away, and about a kilometer away. If this works fine, I would initially only use the teleportation application to teleport myself to my classes and my workplace, all of which are within a few kilometers away from my apartment.

If I am able to do this and nothing bad happens for a while, I would start extending the reach of my teleportations to other locations farther away, like to different cities and states within the United States. Eventually, I would probably use it to travel around the world and take videos and pictures of various landmarks for my own entertainment. I never was a fan of traveling because of the time it takes to get to different places, and because I don’t really find different regions that exciting. However, if travel becomes this easy, I’m sure I can find some places that intrigue me enough for me to go there and visit.

 

So Far in 2011…

Number of Taco Bell tacos eaten: 13 (+3 on Feb 03, 2011 – I just realized I forgot to add them in)

Number of times I did my own laundry: 1

 

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Pizza Fail

by   •   General
 

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My views and opinions can change, and those that are expressed in this post may not necessarily reflect the ones I hold today.
 

I went to a nearby pizza store today to get some pizza for dinner, and a not-that-interesting-or-funny-but-sort-of-interesting-and-funny thing happened that I decided to share.

I placed my order online, and about 18 minutes after placing my order, I went next door to the pizza store to pick up my pizza.

When I got there, there was a man attempting to pay for his pizza with a gift card. The only problem was, when the employees scanned the gift card, the machine continued to reject it. After standing there for about ten minutes, the other customer said that this wasn’t the first time he had a problem with a gift card – apparently, the last time, when he initially received the gift card as a gift, it was supposed to have $50 on it but instead had $0. After proving that the payment was made to put the money on the gift card, he received a new gift card (that they discovered today wasn’t even a valid card).

Eventually, the other customer paid with a different form of payment, and I moved up in the line.

That’s when I noticed that they had two card readers, one separate for credit and debit cards, and one attached to the register.

I have a good feeling that the gift card wasn’t working because they were trying to swipe it in like a credit or debit card instead of using their own gift card reader.

I decided not to tell them because they made me wait for about 13 minutes.

 

So Far in 2011…

Number of Taco Bell tacos eaten: 10

Number of times I did my own laundry: 1

 

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Dell Support Chat Fail, Part IV

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My views and opinions can change, and those that are expressed in this post may not necessarily reflect the ones I hold today.
 

I know this may sound ridiculous, but my laptop has still not been repaired. When the technician came last time and failed to repair my laptop, he said that he would order a new motherboard for me, but I didn’t receive any contact from Dell about it, so I decided to chat with them to make sure that it was done. Here are some interesting excerpts from my chat conversation that took almost one hour to finish.

(05:34:17PM) Adam: Could you check to make sure that a motherboard was properly ordered for my system? A technician came to replace an LCD about two weeks ago but we realized that my laptop’s display problem was not a problem with the LCD, and he said that he would order a new motherboard so we could replace that, but I don’t think he did.

After waiting several minutes of waiting and verifying what machine I had, the support technician said:

(05:44:02PM) Saurabh: Adam, I apologize the dispatch for the motherboard has not been created. Please donot worry I will make the dispatch for the LCD and the motherboard now so that you donot face any issues.

(05:44:16PM) Adam: No, I don’t need another LCD. I already got a new LCD and got it replaced, but that wasn’t the problem. I just need a new motherboard, and possibly the cable that connects the upper screen area to the motherboard.

After another several minutes, we verified my address and phone number, and the chat support representative put in the request for a technician to come repair my laptop again. After getting that set up, I asked another question:

(05:51:32PM) Adam: I have one more question. This is the seventh or eighth time I’ve contacted chat support about this problem, and a technician has already been to my apartment twice before to attempt to fix this problem, so this is clearly a recurring problem. What is your return policy on products that have problems like this? Would I be able to get a Dell store credit so I can purchase an entirely different machine if this third repair still does not fully resolve the problem?

This is where mass chaos began. Instead of answering my question, he did everything possible to avoid it.

(05:54:07PM) Saurabh: Adam, I sincerely apologize for the past inconvenience. Please donot worry and be assured the issue will be fixed this time by the parts replacement. We will send all the required parts through the technician so that you donot face any issues further.

(05:54:40PM) Adam: I know, but in the case that this third repair still does not resolve the problem, would a return or exchange for a different Dell machine be an option?

(05:58:16PM) Saurabh: Adam, we will make sure that the correct parts are sent to you for the replacement so that you donot face any issues further. You will not have to come back again for the same issue.

(05:58:32PM) Adam: … You’re not answering my question. The first representative that I talked with for the first repair said the same thing that you’re saying now.

(06:06:15PM) Saurabh: Adam, we cannot promise the system exchange right now till the parts replacement are done to fix the issue but please donot worry the issue will be fixed after the parts replacement

(06:07:11PM) Adam: First of all, stop saying that the issue will be fixed after the replacement, because we all expected it to be fixed after the first repair but it didn’t work, and now we’re on the third repair. What are the conditions that make a product refund or exchange an option?

(06:17:31PM) Saurabh: I apologize for the delay. I really understand your concerns and apologize for the inconveniences caused to you. Please donot worry we will make sure that the system is fixed this time and if in case you face nay issues we will surely do the needful.

This is where I gave up on him.

(06:17:57PM) Adam: Are you even reading my questions, or are you just using canned responses and sending me random answers?

(06:18:17PM) Adam: The stuff you say is completely irrelevant to what I ask about 80% of the time. If you don’t know the answer, you could’ve just said “I don’t know” about 20 minutes ago and we could’ve all saved time.

(06:18:47PM) Adam: This is ridiculous, you’re wasting my life.

(06:18:56PM) Adam: Thanks for setting up the appointment for me, no thanks for not answering my questions.

(06:19:03PM) Adam: Have a nice day.

(06:19:05PM) Session Ended

 

So Far in 2011…

Number of Taco Bell tacos eaten: 10

Number of times I did my own laundry: 1

 

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Greatest Hero of All Time

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My views and opinions can change, and those that are expressed in this post may not necessarily reflect the ones I hold today.
 

 

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Topic #34: Who is your greatest hero of all time?

Most people would probably say their greatest hero of all time is Superman or Batman or some comic, or they may say that it’s a famous actor or other artist. When I think about their responses, they make no sense to me. I don’t understand how they would think a fake superhero is really their own greatest hero, because other than watching them in television shows for entertainment, these fake superheroes have never actually directly saved anybody’s life. As for actors and other performers, simply providing good entertainment doesn’t really mean they’re a hero.

Reading that, you can probably assume that the hero I am going to pick is someone real, and someone that actually benefits and saves many people on a daily basis. I can’t really pick one single greatest hero, but my greatest heroes are the people that work for law enforcement.

Without these people, the community would essentially be wild and unruly, and nobody would be able to lead a normal life as we know it. Without anyone there enforcing the law, there would be no real punishment for breaking the law. Most people don’t have a strong-enough sense of ethics to not break the law, and because there is no punishment, they see no reason to not break the law.

Law enforcement officials put their lives on the line on a daily basis to make sure everyone else can live a productive and fair life. The people that break the laws, and criminals in general, tend to be violent and/or mentally abnormal in one way or another, which makes them more volatile and more dangerous. The officials that place them under custody are risking bodily harm to do their jobs, and after they successfully arrest a criminal, they directly improve the tranquility of the community. Thus, I believe there is nobody more heroic than anyone involved with law enforcement.

 

So Far in 2011…

Number of Taco Bell tacos eaten: 10

Number of times I did my own laundry: 1

 

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NFL Superbowl XLV

by   •   General
 

This post is over 15 years old and may contain information that is incorrect, outdated, or no longer relevant.
My views and opinions can change, and those that are expressed in this post may not necessarily reflect the ones I hold today.
 

For those of you that don’t live in the United States of America (or for those Americans that live under a rock), the NFL Superbowl was on today, the Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers. As you may or may not know, I’m currently a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which is the home state of the Green Bay Packers.

Sure, it’s awesome and all that a local football team went to the Superbowl, the largest American football event in the nation. And sure, it’s awesome that they ended up winning. But the only problem is, Madison residents are too dedicated to American football that everyone went outside and started clogging up the streets.

If you don’t know already, I work at the Badger Herald, the newspaper for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. We publish an issue on Monday, which means I have to go to work on Sunday night. Because the Badger Herald office is about 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometers) away from my apartment, I take the bus. If you’ve been keeping up with my YouTube vlogs lately, you know that I have tons of issues with getting to and back from the office, and with buses in general.

The bus system in Madison is also particularly unreliable, especially the free bus routes. I try my best to take paid bus routes because I have a bus pass that lets me ride all Madison Metro routes for free. The only problem is, sometimes the times don’t work out very well and I end up having to take the free routes.

These free routes are usually very off time – they can be ten minutes early one round, then suddenly be fifteen minutes late the next round. I had set a personal record for waiting for the bus a few months back, where I had to wait about 32 minutes for the bus to come. I had a feeling that the bus just skipped a round because it was too late or something. Today, I beat my personal record.

Remember the American football fanatics I mentioned a while ago? These fanatics flooded the streets and clogged up a very important street called State St. Just about every bus route that I take that leads to the office passes through State St. I wasn’t there to witness it myself, but apparently, State St. was so packed that people could barely get through, let alone vehicles or buses.

I had no idea this was the case and waited for the bus, expecting it to be on time.

Forty-three minutes later, the bus came.

The bus route that I was waiting for is essentially a bus that goes around repeatedly in a circle for several hours, with each round (or “circle”) taking 30 minutes to complete. My having to wait 43 minutes implies that the bus must have randomly just given up on a route.

I can sort of picture the bus driver looking at the crowd in State St., sighing with a depressed look on his face, and just stopping the bus to wait for people to go away.

But the story doesn’t end there.

Even while I’m at the office, I constantly check the Madison Metro website in case there are emergency route terminations. I noticed that the last round for the bus route I was riding was at 11:46 PM, which is two hours earlier than the normal last round. I suspected that they just decided to end the routes early because of the massive crowd in State St., so I quickly packed everything up and left work early so I could catch the bus back to my apartment.

On the way back, I noticed that State St. was almost entirely empty of football fans. When I got back to my apartment, I checked the website and noticed that the remainder of the rounds were put back in service.

Apparently they thought it would be a good idea to update the website ten minutes after I left.

 

So Far in 2011…

Number of Taco Bell tacos eaten: 10

Number of times I did my own laundry: 1

 

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The Perfect Job

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My views and opinions can change, and those that are expressed in this post may not necessarily reflect the ones I hold today.
 

 

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Topic #33: If you could have any job in the world, what would it be? What is the worst job you’ve ever had? What did you learn from it?

If I could have any job in the world (and actually be good at it), I would pick an online entertainer, for many different reasons.

Many people waste significant portions of their lives and spend significant resources commuting to work. If I were to work online, I wouldn’t have to waste anything traveling anywhere to do my work. If I need to do something directly related to the Internet, I could go to a in-home office or a den to access my computer. If I need to actually produce content, I could go anywhere that has convenient access to produce content.

Once I actually start doing my work, I can essentially pick what I want to do on a daily basis. Most people have a set schedule for what they need to accomplish on a daily basis. Although I like structure and organization, I don’t like repetition and redundancy. If one day I want to put written work online, then I can sit down in front of my computer with a snack and start typing. If another day I want to put media work online, I can pull out a camera or camcorder and start shooting or filming. Even within the things I choose, I have more choices – I can pick the topic that I want to write about, and I can pick the style of video that I want to make. Once I decide what type of video to make, I can pick how much visual effects and editing I want to put into the video.

Another issue many people have is waking up in the morning to get to work on time. A lot of office jobs begin early in the morning, forcing people to wake up at 6 or 7 in the morning. If I were to work online, I wouldn’t have to wake up at any specific time, and I wouldn’t have to start working until I wanted to, or until I encounter something that would be interesting to put online. I generally tend to have more energy during the evening or night, so I can adjust my sleeping schedule to match my energy levels and optimize the work that I do.

Many people that work in offices or own businesses have to stay in one general area because of where their work is. If someone wanted to move to California, but their office job is in Chicago, they wouldn’t be able to live where they wanted to. However, if they worked as an online entertainer, they could essentially go anywhere they want and take a vacation whenever they want, as long as they bring their laptop or camcorder with them. Taking many vacations would actually be beneficial to their job as an online entertainer, as their fans would enjoy the variation and be able to experience different areas of the world with the entertainer.

Looking back at the prompt, I don’t think there actually is a worst job that I have ever had. All of the jobs that I had were either related to my family, were taken via a special invitation, or were done because I had a strong interest in what the job was about. I have never had to take a job simply because I had to make money; I am currently in university, and have received financial support from my parents for my entire life. There may be things within the jobs I have that aren’t the best, but I have still enjoyed the job as a whole.

 

So Far in 2011…

Number of Taco Bell tacos eaten: 10

Number of times I did my own laundry: 0

 

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