Jack Russell goes eeling. Yuck.

What can I say?---I was walking along the Bay and the tide was out, leaving messy mucky pools that I like Perdy to 'ignore,' because she has this stinky habit of dunking herself in them, after having run around like a manic Jack Russell---oops she is one, so I guess I have to accept that. Today was one of those days when no amount of stern calling from me would fall upon obedient ears. NO---she was hot and needed a 'dunking' to cool off and too hell with the newly about to be acquired stink and new colouration that wouldn't necessarily be acceptable to me.
Not only did Perdy head towards the pool---she seemed to be most attracted to it---not for a dip, but for what it contained. yes, it had water, albeit it water infused with dark brown mud, but something big and wiggly. Such a scene was beyond temptation to a Jack Russell--hell in her world it looked like a barn filled with rats and if you have ever seen that YouTube video of a couple of Jack Russells sending a bunch of rats to 'ratatat heaven,' then you would know what I mean. Perdy was after the wiggly creature, a huge eel. She tired to catch it but at the same time wasn't sure what it was that she was hunting.  Fortunately, she did not succeed in 'bringing home the bacon,' and after a while and a good deal of pouncing and sniffing, she left off and returned to me, jumping up, fully intent on changing me to her idea od what a well dressed owner should look like. She wanted me to look dark brown and smell like her! Damn, Perdy---isn't that taking love just  a little too far!
www.authorneilcoleman.com

China 'burps' and the whole world faints!

OK, maybe that was a bit much for a ‘header,’ but I am merely making the point about how much the ‘worm had turned.’ Oops, there I go again. Once upon a time, the world plunged in to recession, or to be more blunt, the worst depression in the last century, when the USA ‘whacked the world’ with the stock market crash. The flow-on effect continued right up to (and some say beyond) WW2.

In the 21^st century, the USA still retains a massive influence on the world economy, but now, if China stops its economic catch-up to the USA, then something akin to what we saw in 1929 could easily happen again. Our near neighbour, Australia would just about shut up shop as the exports it digs from the ground dry up. For New Zealand, the same issue would cast doubt on our ability to pay our way in the world. While we do not export much in the way of mineral wealth (maybe the iron sands would come into that though) we are still overly dependent on China and those countries that trade with China.

So when China slows down, even by relatively small amounts, we shudder as we see our export figures take a tumble. If China continues to grows, be it at a more modest rate, then we will manage our way through the ups and downs of economic cycles, but there is little we can do, other than diversify as much as we can; hoping that the China-growth-syndrome,’ does not knock out our other markets.

The fact that China is now well and truly part of the ‘world economic order,; is good in that the threat of a real-gun-toting-bomb dropping war,’ is lessened, except for those regional ‘bushfires,’ that seem to fuel the ‘military-industrial- complexes of the ‘old order.’ They need instability in order to maintain their obscene profits.

So---please china---don’t burp! ---Just let it out kinda slowly---politely.

www.authorneilcoleman.com

An 'essential part of training, I would have thought. 'Leave a message why don't you'---but please use your brains!

I am sure most of you will have some form of technology that allows callers to leave you a message, be it on your landline or your cell phone---or any other type of communication ‘equipment’ that I am not familiar with. Messaging is a convenient way of keeping in touch, managing communication in general and helping to avoid missing out on the interactions that are important to.

Having this capability however, does not guarantee that everyone is on board with the ‘etiquette’ of leaving a message. ‘What,’ you say, ‘is there etiquette involved?’ Well yes there is, I say---but it is really common sense.

Think about this for a moment then cast your mind back to those occasions when you have been left a message by a colleague, a business acquaintance or anyone wishing to leave contact details, because they think you do not have their number. They ring and then leave a message about the details they require and right at the end, they leave their number. If they have had a particularly long ‘informative session’ and then only added the number at the end, in a garbled, ‘last second additional thought’ type message,’ then you are in trouble; not only because you didn’t quite get the number but because you have to roll through the message again in order to hear the garbled nonsense that is supposed to be a ‘contact’ detail.

What in earth do people do this—it is frustrating, annoying and downright bad etiquette and yes---business practice. Fir the life of me, why can’t those who train their ‘people’ make this a feature of their training induction programmes. I wonder how many vital pieces of information have been lost and new possibilities been put on hold, simply because the ‘caller’ is so damned stupid or ‘unprofessional.’

Having said the above, I better be damned careful that I live up to my words of ‘enlightenment.’ Oh----- here’s my contact details for responses and downloading my books. At least you can scroll down or up with this type on communication!

www.authorneilcoleman.com