Sep 28, 2007

Seagull becomes crisp shoplifter

A seagull has turned shoplifter by wandering into a shop and helping itself to crisps.

The bird walks into the RS McColl newsagents in Aberdeen when the door is open and makes off with cheese Doritos.

The seagull, nicknamed Sam, has now become so popular that locals have started paying for his crisps.

Shop assistant Sriaram Nagarajan said: "Everyone is amazed by the seagull. For some reason he only takes that one particular kind of crisps."

The bird first swooped in Aberdeen's Castlegate earlier this month and made off with the 55p crisps, and is now a regular.

Once outside, the crisps are ripped open and the seagull is joined by other birds.

'Fine art'

Mr Nagarajan said: "He's got it down to a fine art. He waits until there are no customers around and I'm standing behind the till, then he raids the place.

"At first I didn't believe a seagull was capable of stealing crisps. But I saw it with my own eyes and I was surprised. He's very good at it.

"He's becoming a bit of a celebrity. Seagulls are usually not that popular but Sam is a star because he's so funny."

A spokesman for RSPB Scotland said: "I've never heard of anything like this before.

"Perhaps it tried some crisps in a shiny packet in the street, and was just opportunistic one day at the shop when it saw what was inside.

"As everyone knows, gulls can be very quick and fearless, and clearly this one is no exception."

He added: "We'd discourage people from feeding gulls though, as gulls in towns generate lots of complaints every year, and the availability of food is the only reason they live in urban settings."

BBC News

17 Things That It Took Me 50 Years To Learn

1. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

2. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be "meetings."

3. There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

4. You should not confuse your career with your life.

5. No matter what happens, somebody will find a way to take it too seriously.

6. When trouble arises and things look bad, there is always one individual who perceives a solution and is willing to take command. Very often, that individual is crazy.

7. Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

8. Never lick a steak knife.

9. Take out the fortune before you eat the cookie.

10. The most powerful force in the universe is gossip.

11. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight savings time.

12. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests that you think she's pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.

13. There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is age eleven.

14. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above-average drivers.

15. The main accomplishment of almost all organized protests is to annoy people who are not in them.

16. A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person. (This is very important. Pay attention. It never fails.) “Very True”

17. Your friends love you anyway.

~by Dave Barry, Presidential Contender~

Don't die before you cancel your credit cards!!

Be sure & cancel credit cards before you die. This is so priceless, & so easy to see happening, Customer Service being what it is today.

A lady died this past January, & Citibank billed her for February & March for their annual service charges on her credit card, & added late fees and interest on the monthly charge. The balance had been $0.00, now somewhere around $60.00. A family member placed a call
to Citibank.

Here's the exchange:

Family Member: "I am calling to tell you she died in January."

Citibank: "The account was never closed & the Late Fees and Charges still apply!!

Family Member: "Maybe, you should turn it over to collections."

Citibank: "Since it is 2 months past due, it already has been."

Family Member: So, what will they do when they find out she is dead?"

Citibank: "Either report her account to frauds division or report her to the credit bureau, maybe both!"

Family Member: "Do you think God will be mad at her?"
(I really liked this part!!!!)

Citibank: "Excuse Me?"

Family Member: "Did you just get what I was telling you - the part about her being dead?"

Citibank: "Sir, you'll have to speak to my supervisor." (Duh!)
Supervisor gets on the phone:

Family Member: "I'm calling to tell you, she died in January."

Citibank: "The account was never closed, late fees & charges still apply."
(This must be a phrase taught by the bank!)

Family Member: "You mean you want to collect from her estate?"

Citibank: (Stammer) "Are you her lawyer?"

Family Member: "No, I'm her great nephew."

Citibank: "Could you fax us a certificate of death?"

Family Member: "Sure" (fax number is given)
After they get the fax:

Citibank: "Our system just isn't setup for death. I don't know what more I can do to help."

Family Member: "Well, if you figure it out, great! If not, you could just keep billing her. I don't think she will care."

Citibank: "Well, the late fees & charges do still apply." (What is wrong with these people?!?)

Family Member: "Would you like her new billing address?"

Citibank: "That might help."

Family Member: " Odessa Memorial Cemetery , Highway 129, Plot Number 69."

Citibank: "Sir, that's a cemetery!"

Family Member: "What do you do with dead people on YOUR planet?
(Priceless!!) <<...>>

Starbucks quality standard going down

Every person wants to get the best service from any one or place etc, but the quality, effectiveness and efficiency are the high priority. You won’t come back again if the standard goes down.

Starbucks café at Muscat City Centre got blown down with the quality of their product by trying to handle maximum number of customers, specially on a weekend and Ramadhan season.

Read my post ‘Starbucks can’t handle the peak’ at Oman Community Blog.

Sep 24, 2007

Because he is Osama bin Laden offspring

The marriage of Omar bin Laden to the British woman Jane Felix-Browne has been on international tabloids that attracted allot of people interest around the world just because he is the son of the most famous and most wanted Osama bin Laden.

First it was rumoured that she heals form the ruling family of Kuwait, then it was confirmed that she is British, other rumours came along and gone, until their marriage ended with a divorce because she is still married to someone else despite the separation, others say Omar and Jane feared to loose everything even their lives.

The Bin Laden members are under microscope because of Osama bin Laden and his organization ‘AlQaaeda’, which made most of their lives hell when they travel to East countries.

Spend 100 and donate 2.5

You may be obsessed in buying shoes that you may have over 20 pairs, or cloths, or gadgets, etc, then you feel guilty that you spend so much money that may be useful for other necessary staff, I give you a solution to ease your guilt, for every 100 dollars or what ever your currency, donate 2.5 or 2.5% of the total amount you spent to charity, that will help you to be more aware of your financial and how to control it.

Charity begins at home

The first thought of some people may seem religions by praying five time a day, do charity work and recite the holy book on a regular bases, but within their own family, they ill treat them badly or not take care of them, they forgot that the charity begins at home.

I personally feel they misinterpreted God’s message to boost them selves in front of people that they are devoted to God but for a simple miss treatment or Discriminate people can wipe out all your good deeds.

Inspired by my post ‘Family’.

Sep 16, 2007

Refresh your Blogger

From time to time, you need a new refreshing look, that makes you feel good, women tend to go to the hair stylist, or go and get a new pair of shoes or dress, etc. so your blog needs a new refreshing look.

Here are some Blogger templates for your blog that reflects your inner feeling.
blogger-templates.blogspot.com
www.geckoandfly.com/blogspot-templates/
www.bloggertemplates.org
blogspottemplates.blogspot.com
freetemplates.blogspot.com

Enjoy it

Sep 15, 2007

Freej 2

Freej is the first Arabic 3D animated mini series in the Middle East, that swooped the viewers around the world who watched it via Dubai TV and Sama Dubai. It is the brainchild of Mohammed Saeed Harib. The first season was aired in Ramadhan year 2006 and the 2nd season was aired in 13th September 2007.

Sep 14, 2007

Oman Community Blog

I just came across Oman Community Blog, and this is the announcement:


We at Oman Community Blog would like to announce that we are in need of active bloggers to contribute with us on our community blog. The door of membership is open to almost every nationality that can prove their creativity in writing and daily posts. If you're interested in joining us, please contact the blog's administrators; Muscati or: Amjad.


Around 35 bloggers have become members of this group, reflects the strong bond with in the Omani society.

RamadhanTV

Omani Bloggers have created ‘RamadhanTV’ blog that covers the Arabic TV shows during the month of Ramadhan, it started for the year 2007. The blog is in Arabic transcript.

My first day of Ramadhan

The first day of Ramadhan is the day the whole family gather at the head member of the family’s house, it was a nice gathering, some people I haven’t seen in months and years, some new members of the family and extended family.

People eat, talk, laugh, kids scream and run around the place. It was fun.

Sep 12, 2007

Ramadhan Greetings

I wish every person in this universe for the Holy month of Ramadhan.

Its a month of fasting, a month that has a spiritual and peaceful feeling from with in your self. A test for your faith in God in different levels, for honesty and believe in him; to be assertive to your self, God and everyone around you.

Sep 11, 2007

BankMuscat Hearts

BankMuscat Hearts team was birth by BanMuscat’s group of staff voluntarily from their hearts for the purpose for social initiatives and to support charitable causes. They spontaneous initiative had bought BankMuscat to be welcomed and embraced by the its own society, it gave Bank Muscat a whole new image and prospective.

For BankMuscat’s staff initiative for creating BankMuscat Hearts culture within its own oerganization, that shows how its own strong investment is payback to the society.

I love you BankMuscat Hearts team, and best wishes in your career and social life.

Here some breif infomation about it:

A time to give …BankMuscat Hearts’ Blood drive

Muscat, 10 February 2007: The BankMuscat Hearts team has conducted a blood collection drive event along with the blood bank in Sohar. The event took place in the Sohar main branch premises, where all the BankMuscat staff from Batina region gathered to donate blood. This is part of the Bank’s continuous investment in social and charitable activities under the BankMuscat Heart’s banner.

The BankMuscat Hearts movement started in the second half of 2006. There are currently twenty young employees from across different departments and branches of the Bank who have come together to successfully form the BankMuscat Hearts team. The objective of BankMuscat Hearts is to find ways to give to society --poor families, the needy, the unwell -- and even the environment. BankMuscat Hearts plans to continue to conduct charity and social activities throughout the year.


BankMuscat Hearts and Guno Cyclone

The BankMuscat Hearts Team, that works on social initiatives and supports charitable causes nationwide has also been very active in the cyclone victims rehabilitation process over the past one and half weeks. BankMuscat Hearts has launched an ongoing collection drive within the Bank, wherein essential commodities, clothing and food-stuff are collected from across the Bank’s branches and head office buildings and then distributed to cyclone victims. The Hearts team was also recently involved in a beach cleaning exercise at Al Ghubra and was also involved in the efforts to reach water to people immediately after the cyclone


Other activites:
BankMuscat Hearts supports Al Noor Association for the Blind sports day on June 2007.
'Reaching New Heights' was on 6 September 2007, event, with an aim to provide an entraining event along with an opportunity to give back to the society.

Tariq Hilal Al-Barwani

An answer from Tariq Al Barwani’ is an article about the future plans of Mr Tariq Al-Barwani, who won Microsoft's Most Valuable Professional (MVP) award in year 2007 as Visual Developer in ASP/ASP.NET area, and the reasons behind the cancellation of CyberTalk forum, posted by Al-Maawali on ‘Be In Oman’, a way to boost his popularity.

You have to feel the bitterness of failure in order to enjoy the sweetness of success

Random thoughts over the years of silence
was my previous motto that reflected how I felt, confused, struggling to unlock my thoughts out of my mind and to organize it.

Yesterday, while I was preparing for my presentation about ‘The successes and failures in my career’, I came up with new motto that reflects my experience:
You have to feel the bitterness of failure in order to enjoy the sweetness of success.


My new motto was clear statement how I felt and it was the drive that made succeed in my life as a whole person. And I thank God for that.

Sep 10, 2007

Kids

A boss wondered why one of his most valued employees had not phoned in sick one day. Having an urgent problem with one of the main computers, he dialled the employees home

phone number and was greeted with a Child's' whisper. "Hello"
"Is your daddy home?" he asked

"Yes" whispered the small voice

"May I talk with him?"

"No"

Surprised and wanting to talk with an adult, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?"

"Yes"

"May I talk with her?"

Again the small voice whispered, "No"

Hoping there was somebody with whom he could leave a message, the boss Asked, "Is anybody else there?"

"Yes, whispered the boy, "a policeman"

Wondering what a cop would be doing at his employee's home, the boss asked, "May I speak with the policeman?"

"No, he's busy", whispered the child

"Busy doing what?"

"Talking to daddy and mommy and the fireman", came the answer.

Growing more worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter, through the earpiece on the phone, the boss asked, "What's that noise?"

"A helicopter" answered the whispering voice.

"What is going on there?!", demanded the boss, now truly apprehensive.

Again whispering, the child answered, "The search team just landed The helicopter."

Alarmed, concerned and a little frustrated the boss asked, "What are they searching for?!!."

Still whispering, the young voice replied with a muffled giggle............

"ME".

Stop Being So Nice to Your Co-workers

By Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder.com Editor



Do nice guys finish last at work, too?

A study published in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology says yes. Dr. Nikos Bozionelos of the University of Sheffield in England researched personality and career success and found that white-collar workers who were the most agreeable, conscientious and sensitive to the needs of others were less likely to be promoted.


Bozionelos believes it's because they don't put their own needs first: "Agreeable people tend to self-sacrifice and compromise their own interests to make others happy." And because "nice" people do things just to please others, they often are given low-profile tasks no one else wants and wind up doing activities that don't enhance their careers. Because American culture celebrates forcefulness -- even aggression -- researcher and author Gary Namie says the altruistic have it just as rough here in the United States, where, "Nice gets you in trouble. Nice gets you exploited."


Author and executive coach Dr. Lois Frankel says there are a number of ways nice people undermine themselves. Here are five of the most common, along with tips for (pleasantly) breaking the cycle:


1. You Let Others' Mistakes Inconvenience You
Before rearranging your life to correct someone else's mistake, assess the risk versus the reward of meeting unreasonable expectations. At times you'll have no choice but to jump in to put out the fire. But there will also be times when you have the latitude to push back and say, "This isn't what we originally discussed and agreed to. Since I'll have to rethink the plan and put more time into it than anticipated, I won't be able to have it completed by the initially proposed deadline." Let the person know you want to provide the best service possible -- and ask for the time and resources needed.


2. You Let Others Take Credit For Your Ideas
Ever suggest an idea that seemed to fall flat, only to find out later it was implemented and someone else got the credit? To avoid having others steal your ideas, make sure you state them loudly and confidently or put them in writing. If you're at a meeting and someone proposes the same thing you've previously suggested, call attention to it by saying, "Sounds like you're building on my original suggestion, and I would certainly support that."


3. You Apologize Unnecessarily
Save your apologies for big-time bloopers. When you do make a mistake worth apologizing for, apologize only once, then move into problem-solving mode. Objectively assess what went wrong and ways to fix it. Always begin from a place of equality, for example: "Based on the information initially provided to me, I had no idea that was your expectation. Tell me more about what you had in mind and I'll make the necessary revisions."


4. You Work Without Breaks
Use your vacation days; take your lunch. Working non-stop can make you appear flustered, inefficient and incompetent. It also makes you less productive. To maintain maximum levels of concentration and accuracy, experts suggest you take a break every 90 minutes.


5. You Do Others' Work For Them
Recognize when people delegate inappropriately to you and avoid the inclination to solve everyone's problems for them. Practice saying unapologetically, "I'd love to help you out with this, but I'm swamped." Then stop talking. Of course being nice is not all bad. Dr. Bozionelos points out that it can be of great advantage as long as you are aware of and able to adjust your natural tendencies to undervalue yourself and compromise your personal interests. As Dr. Frankel puts it, "When all is said and done, do you really want written on your tombstone: "She Always Put the Needs of the Company Ahead of Her Own?"


Kate Lorenz is the article and advice editor for CareerBuilder.com. She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues. Other writers contributed to this article.

To all Employees

To all Employees:
Effective on 8th Aug,2007.

Dress Code

1. It is advised that you come to work dressed according to your salary.
If we see you wearing Prada shoes and carrying a Gucci bag, we assume you are doing well financially and therefore do not need a pay raise.

2. If you dress poorly, you need to learn to manage your money better, so that you may buy nicer clothes, and therefore you do not need a pay raise.

3. If you dress just right, you are right where you need to be and therefore you do not need a pay raise.


Sick Days

We will no longer accept a doctor's certificate as proof of sickness.

If you are able to go to the doctor, you are able to come to work.


Holiday Days

Each employee will receive 104 personal days a year. They are called Saturday & Sunday.

Compassionate Leave

This is no excuse for missing work. There is nothing you can do for dead friends, relatives or co-workers. Every effort should be made to have non-employees attend to the arrangements.
In rare cases where employee involvement is necessary, the funeral should be scheduled in the late afternoon. We will be glad to allow you to work through your lunch break and subsequently leave one hour early.

Toilet Use

1. Entirely too much time is being spent in the toilet. There is now a strict three-minute time limit in the cubicles.

2. At the end of three minutes, an alarm will sound, the toilet paper roll will retract, the cubicle door will open, and your picture will
be taken.

3. After your second offence, your picture will be posted on the company notice board under the "Chronic Offenders" category.

4. Anyone caught smiling in the picture will be sanctioned under the company's mental health policy.


Lunch Break

1. Skinny people get 30 minutes for lunch, as they need to eat more so that they can look healthy.

2. Normal size people get 15 minutes for lunch to get a balanced meal to maintain their average figure.

3. Chubby people get 5 minutes for lunch, because that's all the time needed to drink a Slim-Fast.


Thank you for your loyalty to our company. Remember we are an employer of choice and we are here to provide a positive employment experience.

Therefore, all questions, comments, concerns, complaints, frustrations, irritations, aggravations, insinuations, allegations, accusations, contemplations, consternation and input should be directed elsewhere.

Regards, Management.

Enjoy the coffee, not the cup

TheWeek - COFFEEBREAK - AUGUST 08 2007 ISSUE 231

A group of alumni, who were highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. The conversation soon turned into complaints about stress at work and life.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain looking, some expensive and some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

After all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal to want only the best, that is the source of your problems and stress. Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee.

In most cases, it's just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink.

"What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups and then began eyeing each other's cups. Now consider this:

Life is the coffee. The jobs, houses, cars, things, money, and position in society are the cups.

They are just used to hold and contain life. The type of cup we have does not define nor change the quality of the life we live.

Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us."

God brews the coffee, not the cups... enjoy your coffee. Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect. It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections. Live in peace and peace will live in you.

Sent by Maie al Baiat

Are you truly vegetarian?

I was searching for the term ‘Vegetarian’ in Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia in WWW, I found out that vegetarian is actually divided into 4 common types:
  • Lacto-ovo vegetarianism is a diet of only vegetables, Eggs, Dairy and Honey.
  • Lacto vegetarianism is a diet of only vegetables, Dairy and Honey
  • Ovo vegetarianism is a diet of only vegetables, Eggs, and Honey
  • Veganism is a diet of only vegetables.

F A M I L Y

I ran into a stranger as he passed by, "Oh excuse me please" was my reply.


He said, "Please excuse me too; I wasn't watching for you."

We were very polite, this stranger and I. We went on our way and we said goodbye.

But at home a different story is told, How we treat our loved ones, young and old.

Later that day, cooking the evening meal, My son stood beside me very still.

When I turned, I nearly knocked him down. "Move out of the way," I said with a frown.

He walked away, his little heart broken. I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken.

While I lay awake in bed, God's still small voice came to me and said, "While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use, but the family you love, you seem to abuse.

Go and look on the kitchen floor, You'll find some flowers there by the door.

Those are the flowers he brought for you. He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue.

He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise, you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes."

By this time, I felt very small, And now my tears began to fall.

I quietly went and knelt by his bed; "Wake up, little one, wake up," I said.

"Are these the flowers you picked for me?" He smiled, "I found 'em, out by the tree.


I picked 'em because they're pretty like you. I knew you'd like 'em, especially the blue."

I said, "Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today; I shouldn't have yelled at you that way."
He said, "Oh, Mom, that's okay. I love you anyway."

I said, "Son, I love you too, and I do like the flowers, especially the blue."

FAMILY Are you aware that if we died tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family we left behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than into our own family, an unwise investment indeed, don't you think? So what is behind the story?

Do you know what the word FAMILY means?
FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU

Microsoft crazy facts 1

Dear Microsoft Operating System user,

You can't either create folders with name LPT1, LPT2, COM1, COM2 These are reserved names (device names ? ) and CON is for console.

Open Microsoft Word and type =rand (200, 99) and then press ENTER.

I forgive you

I forgive you for the all fault statements and misleading that you have said and done to me, I know what you really meant but I thank God for giving me the right time to realise who you really are and your true intention.; if you are insecure for my successes, pleasant personality and purity, you have to deal with it, accept it, you are not the only one in this universe.
I forgive you for playing with my feelings.
I forgive you for your behaviour towards.
I forgive you for trying to destroy me, God has his way to repay me back.

A short announcement

On May 20, 2007, I posted ‘Moving all my blog into one’ topic that I’ll be moving all my posts from my various blogs into one blog irevere.blogspot.com, but today I deleted all my blog and did not move any post as I did not have the time and decided to start fresh.