(Copyright: www.liverpoolfc.tv forum 2007)
Rafa choses the team to play each match and asks Rick if he can have a new player.
Rick writes the name down, mumbles a bit and puts the phone down. He then spends the rest of the afternoon in Tie Rack with his phone switched off.
Foster's gone on holiday and thinks Rick is in charge, but as we know Rick's in Tie Rack and Rafa's wondering what's going on.
So Rafa decides to sort out transfer deals himself and lines a few up. At the back of his mind he wishes Foster was around because he was quite helpful when he went to South America and came back with Lucas.
Meanwhile, Rick has is torn between two ties and can't decide which one's best.
Rafa's now growing impatient because he wants to tie up deals and both Foster and Rick have gone awol. This is when he makes his big mistake: he rings Tom because George was out playing golf.
Rick still can't choose a tie and it's got worse. The shop's closing for the night, he refused to leave and they've threatened to call the fuzz.
Tom's in the middle of buying some players for whatever strange sport they have across the pond when Rafa rings. He's having a bad day because he's just realised the new stadium for that franchise in Limeyland is going to cost a fortune and he's trying to buy another rounders player. So he loses his rag with Rafa and tells him to focus on coaching the players he's got and that they'll sort it out in December.
Rick's now explaining to the police why he won't leave Tie Rack. And he's really put their backs up by asking them to choose between a snazzy green and purple paisley number and a really cool Snoopy one.
Rafa tries to ring Rick and Foster, but they're both still missing. George is still playing golf. Rafa repeats Toms words repeatedly at the press conference.
Rick is now sat in the cells with neither tie. He wastes his one phone call ringing Tie Rack to ask them to put both ties to one side so he can come in and buy them both, but as they've now closed he has to leave a message on the answerphone.
Things are now going badly wrong. Hearing of the press conference, Tom rings Rick, Foster and George and gets no reply. Furious, he sends .tv a ranting email to issue a press statement.
The duty sergeant comes into Rick's cell to confiscate his tie. Rick goes bananas and gets sedated by blunt instrument.
Finally, George comes back from golf to find messages from Tom and Rafa on his answerphone. He rings Tom, who's now gone off to a sports bar to rant about Rafa, Rick, Foster and George.
Rick's still asleep, dreaming about dancing giraffes wearing really cool ties.
Finally, George catches up with Foster, who's been surfing in Hawaii. He tells him to get on the next plane back to Liverpool and find Rick.
Rick's now woken up and doesn't know where he is. The walls are soft and he's wearing a tight jacket that seems to have the arms tied together. Behind his back.
Finally, George and Tom have a chat. They try to solve the problem by issuing another press release, although Tom is still adamant that he wants Rafa's head. The press release merely makes the problems worse and pressure mounts.
The one bit of good news concerns Rick. He's finally been found by the club and after a lot of arguing, he's taken back to his office. Someone is sent to Tie Rack to buy both ties and he invites Rafa round to his office in the evening to see which one he should wear for the Porto game. He cracks a joke about the Porto tie being vital to the club's future and Rafa storms out, vowing to win everything just to show them all.
By now, George is trying to figure out how to get rid of Tom; Tom wants rid of Rafa; Rafa wishes he'd never seen Tom; Foster is trying to figure out how to get of Rick; Rafa's decided Foster's a better bet than Rick; George is just waiting till he gets to Liverpool so he can thrash Foster for going awol; and Foster, he's still looking for that wave.
And Rick? Well, he's got two new ties, so he's happy.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
An organized twist to a familiar game
Today amidst studying and hanging out with friends, I attended a volleyball club event of sorts made up of both students and working professionals. Actually everyone plays for fun but the way we did it was so organized that I couldn't help comparing it to "American" and even "Singaporean" ways of organized sports activities.
The Japanese really take pains to emphasize group identity and fervor/passion in whatever they do. Why do I say that? Well at first I thought I was just going to join a pickup game like what happens in the States--whoever shows up will just join a random team and start playing. Nope. Before I arrived, my name was already registered in some appointed group leader's roster and they had take the trouble of dividing everyone into teams. We assembled in the court, two guys led a collective warm-up. For a fleeting second I thought I was back in my secondary school days in the volleyball club. Only that somehow I understood little of what the team captain was saying and resorted to "Monkey see monkey do."
Warmup over, time for the team talk. Everyone knew it was a recreational league, but still we huddled in a circle and discussed team tactics--who should play in which position, who prefers what type of movements, etc. Needless to say, I was duly impressed. One of the highlights was the "team pose/cheer". We concocted a specific dance routine; actually two--one for when a point was gained and the other for when a point was conceded! No matter what happens though, after each point, we huddle in a circle and the last person who touched the ball or should have touched the ball runs around giving everyone a high-five. Followed by the "win" or "loss" dance routine! Hahaha it was hilarious.
(Point gained)
*high-five*'s all round
"Yosh yosh yosh!" (fists pumping)
(Point lost)
*high-five*'s all round
"Bee one bee!" <- (at least that's what I heard) (clap your hand and clap the hand of the person on your left)
(Team-mate serving)
"XX-san!" (*clap*clap*)
"Goodo seervee!" (*clap*clap*)
Needless to say, I was grinning from ear to ear throughout. The games themselves were great fun. Everyone had fun and there was a box of chocolates for the winners. 4 teams rotated in-between matches and the fifth acted as the referee and linesmen. Superbly organized and efficient.
This Shanghai guy who was there told me how amazed he was when he first went. My Japanese friends all laughed and said this is pretty common. It is one thing knowing how important the group identity is here and seeing it in person.
Will go back next week.
The Japanese really take pains to emphasize group identity and fervor/passion in whatever they do. Why do I say that? Well at first I thought I was just going to join a pickup game like what happens in the States--whoever shows up will just join a random team and start playing. Nope. Before I arrived, my name was already registered in some appointed group leader's roster and they had take the trouble of dividing everyone into teams. We assembled in the court, two guys led a collective warm-up. For a fleeting second I thought I was back in my secondary school days in the volleyball club. Only that somehow I understood little of what the team captain was saying and resorted to "Monkey see monkey do."
Warmup over, time for the team talk. Everyone knew it was a recreational league, but still we huddled in a circle and discussed team tactics--who should play in which position, who prefers what type of movements, etc. Needless to say, I was duly impressed. One of the highlights was the "team pose/cheer". We concocted a specific dance routine; actually two--one for when a point was gained and the other for when a point was conceded! No matter what happens though, after each point, we huddle in a circle and the last person who touched the ball or should have touched the ball runs around giving everyone a high-five. Followed by the "win" or "loss" dance routine! Hahaha it was hilarious.
(Point gained)
*high-five*'s all round
"Yosh yosh yosh!" (fists pumping)
(Point lost)
*high-five*'s all round
"Bee one bee!" <- (at least that's what I heard) (clap your hand and clap the hand of the person on your left)
(Team-mate serving)
"XX-san!" (*clap*clap*)
"Goodo seervee!" (*clap*clap*)
Needless to say, I was grinning from ear to ear throughout. The games themselves were great fun. Everyone had fun and there was a box of chocolates for the winners. 4 teams rotated in-between matches and the fifth acted as the referee and linesmen. Superbly organized and efficient.
This Shanghai guy who was there told me how amazed he was when he first went. My Japanese friends all laughed and said this is pretty common. It is one thing knowing how important the group identity is here and seeing it in person.
Will go back next week.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Happy Thanksgiving!
Even though I've left the States, memories of happy Thanksgivings through the years linger on and I just want to wish all friends and family a very Happy Turkey Day!
Will get to eat turkey at a friend's place tonight and am looking forward to it!
Will get to eat turkey at a friend's place tonight and am looking forward to it!
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Jaunt to an olden capital
Probably nobody needs an introduction to Kyoto (京都), ancient capital of Japan and haven for cultural tourism. Memoirs of a Geisha, the Gion river, moonlit streets, temples are familiar images on Kyoto postcards. Backpackers abound and people from all over find ways to enjoy its food, onsen (hot springs) and overall relaxed atmosphere (compared to Tokyo anyway)
A half-man, half-machine friend of mine had a conference in nearby Nagoya (名古屋) and we decided to spend a few days in Kyoto catching up. So I took an evening bullet train or Shinkansen (新幹線) from Tokyo to Kyoto--about 2 hours but made rather uncomfortable by the fact that I had to stand almost the whole way, shifting occasionally to let people go to the bathroom.
First night we had a very good dinner of Kyoto cuisine, sort of a prix fixe menu in which a tongue-numbing fish was served with chazuke (お茶ずけ) or rice-in-tea. The unappreciative, nonchalant way we wolfed down the food probably didn't please the chef, but it was a pretty good meal.
A very good way to explore Kyoto is on bicycles so the following day we rented two from the hostel and set off for the temples. SB cycled the same way he drove--without regard for life and limb as he careened furiously along the roads. "We HAVE to get there before the crowds!" he insisted. Haha it was good to forget about everything else and simply relax with a good friend.
It was a crisp autumn day, perfect blue skies and fresh air. In the Imperial gardens, trees herald the onset of Fall with a chorus of flaming colors, their last hurrah for this year before sleeping for the winter. It felt good to leave the bustle of Tokyo behind and just be a tourist. Took lots of pictures, especially some of Kinkakji (金閣寺), one of which now serves as my cellphone's wallpaper.
1999 was the last time I saw Kyoto, and it was nice to renew acquaintances. Somehow I remember little of my previous trip but at the same time, I could hear echoes of myself trudging up the slope towards Kiyomizu Dera (清水寺). The restaurant with a turtle symbol whose picture I took for ltt back then seemed to be gone. A victim of the cutthroat food & beverage business, I guess.
Didn't have a chance to walk along the Gion river this time. Next time. Maybe on my next trip I'll even catch a glimpse of a Maiko-san (舞子さん) or trainee geisha.
A half-man, half-machine friend of mine had a conference in nearby Nagoya (名古屋) and we decided to spend a few days in Kyoto catching up. So I took an evening bullet train or Shinkansen (新幹線) from Tokyo to Kyoto--about 2 hours but made rather uncomfortable by the fact that I had to stand almost the whole way, shifting occasionally to let people go to the bathroom.
First night we had a very good dinner of Kyoto cuisine, sort of a prix fixe menu in which a tongue-numbing fish was served with chazuke (お茶ずけ) or rice-in-tea. The unappreciative, nonchalant way we wolfed down the food probably didn't please the chef, but it was a pretty good meal.
A very good way to explore Kyoto is on bicycles so the following day we rented two from the hostel and set off for the temples. SB cycled the same way he drove--without regard for life and limb as he careened furiously along the roads. "We HAVE to get there before the crowds!" he insisted. Haha it was good to forget about everything else and simply relax with a good friend.
It was a crisp autumn day, perfect blue skies and fresh air. In the Imperial gardens, trees herald the onset of Fall with a chorus of flaming colors, their last hurrah for this year before sleeping for the winter. It felt good to leave the bustle of Tokyo behind and just be a tourist. Took lots of pictures, especially some of Kinkakji (金閣寺), one of which now serves as my cellphone's wallpaper.
1999 was the last time I saw Kyoto, and it was nice to renew acquaintances. Somehow I remember little of my previous trip but at the same time, I could hear echoes of myself trudging up the slope towards Kiyomizu Dera (清水寺). The restaurant with a turtle symbol whose picture I took for ltt back then seemed to be gone. A victim of the cutthroat food & beverage business, I guess.
Didn't have a chance to walk along the Gion river this time. Next time. Maybe on my next trip I'll even catch a glimpse of a Maiko-san (舞子さん) or trainee geisha.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
How to fend off attention gently
LY aka The Fink uttered many pearls of wisdom over the years and one which she kindly imparted me today was for gently turning a girl down without making her feel bad. So if a girl keeps dropping hints like, "Oooh, that's a nice restaurant... if only you would take me there..." and you don't really feel like doing so, LY says:
:)
Apparently few things will put a girl more off than saying one has a boyfriend...
True or false? Let me know what you think!
well ... u cld tell her that u've tried that restaurant with ur bf .. and u liked it too, so if she wants, can join u and ur bf
:)
Apparently few things will put a girl more off than saying one has a boyfriend...
True or false? Let me know what you think!
Monday, November 19, 2007
Those electrons are flowing again
Ah... the electrifying rush of bits flowing in and out of the computer, of being connected to the outside world via 100Mbps optical fiber, of regaining my primary source of communication with friends and loved ones--the Internet :)
Kept thinking what the equivalent would be in times past. Maybe instead of a missing user account, messenger pigeons would be gone from their roost or perhaps the village postman would have fallen ill. My village would be cut off from the outside world...
In any case, I'm dying to talk about so many things, things that I suddenly think of on the train, words that pop up enroute to the yakitori store. Some reminders to myself here on what to write... so much to share, so little time:
- Roppongi sushi store
- Tokyo fashion
- Weather
- Takao san hiking
- Volleyball
- Work
Kept thinking what the equivalent would be in times past. Maybe instead of a missing user account, messenger pigeons would be gone from their roost or perhaps the village postman would have fallen ill. My village would be cut off from the outside world...
In any case, I'm dying to talk about so many things, things that I suddenly think of on the train, words that pop up enroute to the yakitori store. Some reminders to myself here on what to write... so much to share, so little time:
- Roppongi sushi store
- Tokyo fashion
- Weather
- Takao san hiking
- Volleyball
- Work
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Tokyo Motor Show 2007
One of the things Japan is known for is undoubtedly her automotive industry. I'm not too interested in cars, except for my favourite WRX of course :) but friends and coworkers kept asking me to go check out the once-in-2-years Tokyo Motor Show so finally on a rainy Saturday, a few of us went down to Makuhari (幕張) near Chiba (千葉).
Pictures speak louder than words. I liked Toyota's personal transporter (Segway clone?), the latest WRX, and the motorcycles.
Pictures speak louder than words. I liked Toyota's personal transporter (Segway clone?), the latest WRX, and the motorcycles.
Friday, November 02, 2007
Strange encounters of the restaurant kind
I promised to relate how some friends and I met Angel Wong, an actress / travel show host / singer ("Search for me in Wikipedia," she assured us) and her manager so here it is; a tale set in a restaurant under some train tracks in Yurakucho (有楽町), accompnied by some happy Japanese salarymen.
Tokyo's need for space is such as restaurants spring up everywhere, in this case, the JR Yurakucho station grew an extension and it became a restaurant. ZZ was on his monthly trip to Tokyo from Nagoya so we arranged to meet for dinner. Neither of us knew the area well so we picked a random table at that random restaurant ("Wah, never eaten under the train tracks before!") and started ordering. IC was to join us later.
Before long, two middle-aged salarymen in suits came along and sat at the next table. Since they were still dry, they still looked rather serious and tired. ZZ and I happily caught up and talked about the good old days.
It was probably around the 4th course when two girls came along and sat one table over. So it was them, the salarymen, and us. Both looked like students and one spoke in an Australian/American accent. One was more dressed up and the other bore the expression of a person who knows that the other person whom she hangs out with gets all the attention.
The two girls started ordering, and that was when the salarymen started paying attention, because it became apparent that (1) they didn't speak Japanese and (2) they were tourists. Naturally ZZ told me, "hey give them a hand lah" so I went over and helped them order some sashimi and sake ("Tell the waitress we want sake that goes with the sashimi ok?" the more dressed-up girl said.).
At this point the alcohol had boosted their courage so the salarymen loosened up and started chatting to everyone, including us. They were amused by the fact that we were all foreigners and wanted ZZ, IC and me to translate between them and the other two girls.
I'm like, great... I get to be an interpreter for two middle-aged salarymen hitting on two tourists. The commotion started when they found out that the dressed-up girl was a TV personality in Malaysia and had hosted a travel program that introduced the Tohoku (東北) region of Japan. You have no idea how many times I was asked to re-confirm the fact that "Oi, oi, is she really a celebrity?!" But it was all in good fun really. The other girl turned out to be her manager.
So yeah, go ahead and look "Angel Wong" (very Hong Kong-ish name eh?) on Google. Must be a tough life, being a celebrity...
Tokyo's need for space is such as restaurants spring up everywhere, in this case, the JR Yurakucho station grew an extension and it became a restaurant. ZZ was on his monthly trip to Tokyo from Nagoya so we arranged to meet for dinner. Neither of us knew the area well so we picked a random table at that random restaurant ("Wah, never eaten under the train tracks before!") and started ordering. IC was to join us later.
Before long, two middle-aged salarymen in suits came along and sat at the next table. Since they were still dry, they still looked rather serious and tired. ZZ and I happily caught up and talked about the good old days.
It was probably around the 4th course when two girls came along and sat one table over. So it was them, the salarymen, and us. Both looked like students and one spoke in an Australian/American accent. One was more dressed up and the other bore the expression of a person who knows that the other person whom she hangs out with gets all the attention.
The two girls started ordering, and that was when the salarymen started paying attention, because it became apparent that (1) they didn't speak Japanese and (2) they were tourists. Naturally ZZ told me, "hey give them a hand lah" so I went over and helped them order some sashimi and sake ("Tell the waitress we want sake that goes with the sashimi ok?" the more dressed-up girl said.).
At this point the alcohol had boosted their courage so the salarymen loosened up and started chatting to everyone, including us. They were amused by the fact that we were all foreigners and wanted ZZ, IC and me to translate between them and the other two girls.
I'm like, great... I get to be an interpreter for two middle-aged salarymen hitting on two tourists. The commotion started when they found out that the dressed-up girl was a TV personality in Malaysia and had hosted a travel program that introduced the Tohoku (東北) region of Japan. You have no idea how many times I was asked to re-confirm the fact that "Oi, oi, is she really a celebrity?!" But it was all in good fun really. The other girl turned out to be her manager.
So yeah, go ahead and look "Angel Wong" (very Hong Kong-ish name eh?) on Google. Must be a tough life, being a celebrity...
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Been out of it for a bit...
My apologies, dear readers for not making updates since Oct 17. The reason being that I moved to a new apartment and have been struck down by a nasty virus. Despite being in one of the more technologically-advanced countries, Internet access comes 3 weeks after one applies for it... albeit it will be optical fiber-based which gives me a cool 100MBit/sec duplex link.
I'm risking my livelihood by secretly blogging at work, so please understand and I promise I will post updates once Internet arrives on Nov 8. As much as I browse the web on my Mitsubishi D904i cellphone nowadays, it is still rather cumbersome to blog on a tiny screen ;)
Preview:
- Rave about being able to see Mt Fuji from my apartment on a clear day!
- Rant about buying furniture
- Walking around Shimokitazawa--nice area full of little shops and cafes
- Hiking Takao-san
- Getting a bank account in Japan
I'm risking my livelihood by secretly blogging at work, so please understand and I promise I will post updates once Internet arrives on Nov 8. As much as I browse the web on my Mitsubishi D904i cellphone nowadays, it is still rather cumbersome to blog on a tiny screen ;)
Preview:
- Rave about being able to see Mt Fuji from my apartment on a clear day!
- Rant about buying furniture
- Walking around Shimokitazawa--nice area full of little shops and cafes
- Hiking Takao-san
- Getting a bank account in Japan
小学生造句
I wish I had been so creative...
1.题目: 原来
小朋友写: 原来他是我爸爸。
老师评语: 妈妈关切一下
14.题目: 好 ... 又好..
小朋友写: 妈妈的腿 ,好细又好粗...
老师评语: 那到底是细还是粗？
15.题目: 陆陆续续
小朋友写 : 下班了，爸爸陆陆续续的回来。
老师评语: 你到底有几个爸爸呀?
22.题目: 谢谢....因为 ......
小朋友写: 我要谢谢妈妈,因为她每天都帮我写作业......
老师评语: 原来你的作业是妈妈写的!!!!!!!
23.题目: 难过
小朋友写: 我家门前有条水沟很难过。
老师评语: 老师更难过......
26.题目 : 天才
小朋友写: 我３天才洗一次澡。
老师评语: 要每天洗才干净~~
27.題目 : 一… 便…
小朋友写: 哥哥一吃完饭，就大便。
老师评语: 造句不要乱造...
31.題目: 又.....又.....
小朋友寫: 我的妈妈又矮又高又瘦又肥。
老师评语: 你妈妈......是怪物吗?
34.好吃
小朋友：好吃个屁
老师：………
35.况且
小朋友：一辆火车经过，况且况且况且况且．．．．．
老师：……………
1.题目: 原来
小朋友写: 原来他是我爸爸。
老师评语: 妈妈关切一下
14.题目: 好 ... 又好..
小朋友写: 妈妈的腿 ,好细又好粗...
老师评语: 那到底是细还是粗？
15.题目: 陆陆续续
小朋友写 : 下班了，爸爸陆陆续续的回来。
老师评语: 你到底有几个爸爸呀?
22.题目: 谢谢....因为 ......
小朋友写: 我要谢谢妈妈,因为她每天都帮我写作业......
老师评语: 原来你的作业是妈妈写的!!!!!!!
23.题目: 难过
小朋友写: 我家门前有条水沟很难过。
老师评语: 老师更难过......
26.题目 : 天才
小朋友写: 我３天才洗一次澡。
老师评语: 要每天洗才干净~~
27.題目 : 一… 便…
小朋友写: 哥哥一吃完饭，就大便。
老师评语: 造句不要乱造...
31.題目: 又.....又.....
小朋友寫: 我的妈妈又矮又高又瘦又肥。
老师评语: 你妈妈......是怪物吗?
34.好吃
小朋友：好吃个屁
老师：………
35.况且
小朋友：一辆火车经过，况且况且况且况且．．．．．
老师：……………
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