This is funny…and time-consuming..and *goes back to clicking button*

Vending machine to dispense gold.

I found a link for an interesting??recipe??(thanks ParulBh) for a curried chickpea salad with alphonso mangoes. I had to give it a try, it being mango season and all that. (Watch this space for nice mango season!)

I gave it a shot and was fairly impressed with the results. I deviated a little away from the recipe itself.

End result: a delicious (and quite filling) salad. It could have used a bit more lemon for some extra zing, and I probably should have waited for it to chill before downing it.

EDIT: Part deux of this salad, by contributing blogger Neelofer.

Today’s XKCD has a font reference!

Anonymous:

I love the way you eat in relish;

I love the way you work in concentration’

I love the way you smile in happiness;

I the way you sleep next to me in peace.

And oh, I love you, too.

Definitely the big circular one, and the pacman one, and the console one, and and…please mommy, pleeeeease?!

Unique and creative bookshelves

A really good post on the current standard, or lack thereof, of browsers, and interesting insights into why things like iPhone apps seem to offer much better experiences.

Sachin:

The web as an application platform stinks, and I think this is even more apparent now as we see incredible iPad apps being released. Why are iPad apps, in their initial versions, so much better than websites that have existed for years?

When I started writing this post last week, it was going to declare the end of the web. I’m not quite ready to call it dead, but it’s on thin ice.

The web sucks. Browsers need to innovate

So here’s how Microsoft defines humor. I particularly enjoyed noticing the list of Recommended Readings. All Google needs to do is setup a similar definition and the world will be a better place.

What? Can’t take a joke?

Overview

Has a positive and constructive sense of humor. Can laugh at himself/herself and with others. Is appropriately funny and can use humor to ease tension.

…

To improve your proficiency, ask yourself the following questions on a regular basis:

• In a seemingly serious situation, what nuggets of humor or irony can I find?
• When faced with a potentially difficult situation, is there a way that humor could help? Could lead to a better outcome?
• Am I funnier than I think I am? Less funny? Who will give me an honest assessment of my sense of humor?
• Could I start my next meeting, presentation, or conversation by telling a funny story?
• What are the humorous situations in my life that have taught me something?

Microsoft Education Competencies: Humor

Watching @localarchade team argue on stage is more entertaining when you have @theregos’ diva-ing his phone :P

What did we learn today? When Etisalat says there’s no problem at their end, you shouldn’t believe them.

Okay, seriously, where do I begin?

Let me take you through my day today. At 10:30 a.m. I received a call from a customer of mine telling me they had lost all network access — the IP phones weren’t connecting, they couldn’t receive e-mail, etc. etc. Since no other engineer was available, I visited the site.

With an interconnectivity between Dubai and Germany and backup operations in Spain, this was a mildly cumbersome task, getting the right people on board to help diagnose the issue. I spent almost two hours trying to diagnose where the issue was coming from and of course, it was from Dubai.

Since the hardware had been checked already, I decided it was time to do the unthinkable — contact Etisalat. For those who follow this (people do?) and don’t know Etisalat (subtotal: 0.5 people), they’re our sole telecom provider in the UAE. Yes, DU, you’re there too, but honestly, the only thing you compete with are mobile phones. For anything else, we’re not given a choice, and for business requirements, we only have Etisalat. So yea, sole provider.

So I call Etisalat help, 101, who after running through some transfers, tell me, “Leased Line is a separate department, please call 04 xxx xxxx”. Right cool. In parallel, I might add, I’m trying to reach two separate account managers, both of whom are unreachable (which is okay, that happens).

So what happens when I call the number?

Attempt 1: <bad number>
Attempt 2: <bad number>
Attempt 3: Rings, rings, user busy.
Attempt 4: Rings, rings, user busy.
I call 101 again.

“What, that’s not the number, here’s the right number.” There’s 20 minutes I’m not getting back.

I reach some genius who tries to talk to me like I’m a 5 year old. “Oh dear, you’re having a problem? What is the problem?” Our leased line is friggin’ down, you moron.

“I’m checking from here and everything is okay. Your problem is definitely in the building. There is no problem from our side.”

“Are you sure, all the lights are not on, and there’s one red light on the modem.”

“No, no, here it is showing up.” (In technical terms, that means the link interface is up, ie, there are no problems). “The problem is in your building, someone must have cut the cable or something. Everything is okay upto and including our modem right now.”

“Sigh, allright.”

For the next 2 hours I waited for a building technician to show. In about 15 minutes, he traced every cable from the office down to the building telephone rooms and confirmed there were no issues at all.

I call the Leased Line help back.

“I’ve verified there is no problem in our cabling. I know there’s no problem in the link in Germany. I’ve confirmed that they’ve paid their bills through the account manager (whom I reached eventually in this hullabaloo). How do I sort this out?”

“Okay let me check, I’ll call you back.”

…

“You see the modem? What lights show on there.” “4 yellow, 1 red.”

“Okay, I’m going to reset the port, turn it off and when I say, turn it on again.”

Pretty much that’s what happens.

“What lights do you see on.” “4 yellow, 1 red.”

“When the WAN light came on, did it blink or just stabilize?” “Well, it just stabilized. Why? What should it be?”

“Oh it shouldn’t stabilize.” (WHAT?!) “Hmm, okay, well it did.”

“Okay let’s try it again and see if we get a different outcome.” Blimey. “Okay.”

Repeat performance.

“What do you see now?” “Oh, WAN link isn’t showing. Red light’s still there though.”

“Red light? Really. Hmm..” (YA THINK?!)

After putting me on hold for a bit…

“I think you have a faulty modem.” You think?!

“I’ll have someone sent over to you with a new modem.”

Yes, the new modem which arrived at 6 p.m. solved the problem. But nothing changed in the 4 hours since I first mentioned there was a red light. Or that we had a problem. Or…sigh, why do I bother.

You’d think I’d be done here don’t you? Yea, I’m not. I bring the sequel to my miff with Etisalat: The Twitter Wars.

So Etisalat recently joined Twitter, with much of the same hullabaloo mentioned earlier. News even filtered in that there were 12 people working the account (12? Gah. At least Dubai doesn’t have to worry about finding creative ways to employ people). Then came a huge furrow of “We’ll get back to you” tweets that didn’t seem to lead very far. And they were tweeting from the web.

However, when they started using CoTweet, I thought, okay, they’re trying.

I got a notification saying my year-long subscription for the iPhone was about to expire. Super, I thought. Let’s tweet.

So I asked Etisalat to help me understand what I needed to do to renew the iPhone subscription, and what plans I had available to me now that I’d completed a year.

On Apr 22, I received a call from a Sharjah number. I was at dinner and did not see the call. The message left behind was, “Hi I’m somebody incomprehensible calling from Etisalat. I’m following you up on your mail.” Er, what mail? (I realize now that this was related to the tweet).

I then received this, by DM:

Apr 23, EtisalatUAE: Would like to inform we will be unable to renew the current iPhone subscription. Please review our Iphone packages at http://twt.tl/qLQt2GI

Uhm. What? Yes, I’m aware that you have some iPhone packages on your Web site. Despite your rather disorienting Web site, I knew what that information was. But does that answer my question? No.

We will be unable to renew the subscription? What does that mean. Etisalat can’t renew subscriptions? That’s what I asked.

Response 2:

Apr 23, EtisalatUAE: Sorry for any confusion caused. To clarify, this is still the same company phone that you wish to renew, just with a different package?

Why did you not ask me that question before? I don’t get it. I told them that it was.

Then I got this:

Apr 25, EtisalatUAE: There may be crossover between my tweets and renewal requests u r sent. Pls bear with me. Am looking into it and will get back to u.

What is going on, exactly?

Apr 26, 5 p.m. I received a call from the same Sharjah number to discuss the iPhone dilemma. I’m told that Etisalat does not renew iPhone subscriptions and I just have to move to buying a regular data package.

One suggestion I received was to just buy a new iPhone and sell it on the market to keep the plan.

Apr 26, 8 p.m., I got another call from the same Sharjah number to tell me the same thing. I got another call at 8.30 p.m. which I ignored. I got another at 9 p.m. The person wanted to discuss my “mail” about my iPhone subscription, and started telling me how they don’t renew… “I already spoke to someone at 8?” “Oh I’m…” “No, seriously, it’s 9 p.m. and this is the third call for the same info.”

I hung up.

All this happened in one day. One bloody day. When I think about the fact that I’ve been a UAE-resident for 20+ years, I don’t think I could even begin to start listing the kind of instances I have been through, let alone people I know.

Why put it up with it?

Only, and only because we don’t really have a choice.

Brioche Dor??e??is a little cafe by the massive fountain structure at The Dubai Mall??that possesses a nice, quiet ambiance and a nice selection of breakfast food, along with sandwiches and salads.

While I didn’t snap it up, they make an excellent and delicious eggs platter — 3 eggs cooked to your choice, lettuce salad and grilled veggies — for a nice AED34.

A quick visit to Whittard of Chelsea??at Dubai Festival City??to have their delicious Mango Indica. I love the setup they have, with a very English feel to their crockery. Their menu can feel a little overwhelming due to the sheer choice (and they could have used better printer and fonts!), but they’re a must visit for any tea lover.

Think Mexican and you are immediately reminded of a vast array of dips from the chunky salsa to the healthy guacamole. Let’s not forget the crispy??nachos to go with them. Oh, and the fajitas, burritos, quesedillas smothered in cheese, beans and sour cream.??Divine.??

??

With??Spanish influences on their??cuisine, Mexican food uses a lot of corn (think nachos), peppers (think jalapeno) and beans in a variety of different ways. And??On The Border??doesn’t make it any easier to choose!

Guacamole Live, captured on video:??

[wpvideo s1gOqgtX]

With their varied menu concentrating on salads, appetisers, and different types of mexican wraps, you can be assured to spend a good amount of time pondering over what to order. Many of the dishes on the menu can be made into vegetarian options and they aren’t fussy about it.??It’s a must to try their guacamole live. Freshest ingredients, made to perfection live in front of you — it’s a treat for the eyes, and the tongue. Every dish is made with impeccable perfection, served in good time, and for sure you will not end up with??a soggy taco. The drinks and mocktails are refreshing and fruity, and the best for a hot summer’s day. Service is good, the staff is friendly and do dont hover over your table all the time, but are attentive and knowledgable.??

??

On The Border??is a great casual dining experience for all Mexican food lovers. Soak up the bright atmosphere, be the noisiest in the crowd and no one will mind, this place offers something for everyone. What sets??On The Border??apart from other Mexican restaurants is their ability to stick to true Mexican taste and yet provide their fun, quirky personal touches!

??

Oh, and we did not have place for dessert.. so another review once we get upto it.

??

As they say in Mexico, Buen provecho!

??

Notes: On The Border, a US chain, is located at Dubai Festival City. Pictured are Guacamole Live!, Chicken Fiesta Salad, Fiesta Taco Salad, and a pitcher of Aqua Fruta.??

??

Android vs iPhone

How to pick a typeface.

A flash mob is a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual and pointless act for a brief time, then quickly disperse.

Thanks Wikipedia!

The Dubai Flash Mob is an initiative to operate a flash mob in Dubai, started with one random tweet and is now backed some awesome tweeple, not to mention a pretty cool choreographer.

For starters, you can help them choose their logo, here are the options:

Join in on the fun! Follow their twitter handle and the twtvite page for updates.

Update:

Thanks for all your responses. Logo 1 was selected. DXB Flash Mob event is also up on Facebook now, with a tentative date of April 30.

??

I had an amazing type of ice-cream today from Cold Stone. 
It’s an ice-cream AND a cupcake. How awesome can that get? I’m not a fan of cupcakes primarily because of the dollops and dollops of unnecessary icing they put on the actual cake (HEY! I’m entitled to freedom of speech, okay?). The last time I had a cupcake, I had to cut off the 3 inch icing and eat the cake with chocolate bits in it. Happy I was.
 So anyways, getting back to the ice-cream cupcake. Deeeelicious. The flavor is Oreo Creme Filling. There are layers of ice-cream including chocolate and an extremely thin layer of cake that the ice-cream melts into. All this heavenly goodness is covered in a cupcake shape chocolate coating. Sigh. 
 I couldn’t take a pic of the actual ice-cream cupcake because I was too busy eating it but the one highlighted in red in the above image is what it looks like :) Try it out- they have different flavors.

Opening soon at Mirdiff City Center

This is the (in)famous paan, happily chewed by millions from Indian sub-continent.

There are different types of ‘Paan’. The one attached here is the most widely eaten- ‘Mitha Paan’. There are many different types of paan, some even containing certain type of weeds.

Apple’s upcoming inventions.

No Dubai food blog would be complete without a mention to our beloved Wildpeeta crew. That’s right, they’re baaaaaaaack!

A few scenes from the re-opened location in Healthcare City and the shawarmas taste bigger and better this time around. With a new branch coming up soon and some additions to the menu as well, we’re excited to have our regular tweetup hangout back :)

A gorgeous shot of iced mocha against mango iced tea from Caribou Coffee taken by??Devina Divecha.??

You’ve got to admit, the iced tea looks *way* cooler :)

It felt like stepping into Willy Wonka’s factory.??

My first time in the much hyped candy store, Candylicious located at Dubai Mall was nothing but sheer excitement at looking at everything candy and chocolate — from flavored lollipops to chocolate shaped stars to tubes filled with gummy bears reaching the ceiling — it was pure ecstasy. I’m a huge fan of desserts but particular ones and I love my candy. So going on an empty stomach to a candy store really made me go berserk and buy things I didn’t want. In other words — impulsive shopping.??

But hey, do go check out the store if you haven’t (because half of Dubai’s population can be located at that store). It’s just about awesome. :D

Not the best of cupcakes, but these are rich chocolatey goodness, with thick, chewy frosting. Who can say no to chocolate?

??

Oh and they photograph well!

Now that is some alarming attention to detail.

Turns out Apple’s keynote organizers think about this stuff right down to the tiniest detail — and this is certainly one of the tinier details. They rehearse the presentation with Steve Jobs, Phil Schiller, and whoever else will be speaking, and time it so the big announcement comes 40 minutes in. They add a couple minutes to be on the safe side.

That means that when Apple puts that most important slide up, the one introducing the new hardware, the time on the static image of the device will be damned close to the time the packed room of journalists sees it for the first time. It’s just one more example of how carefully Apple prepares everything — that’s a detail we didn’t know about until a couple days ago, and they’ve been doing it for years, with no fanfare. Very cool, right?

Why 9:41 is the official time of Apple product photos