Blog & News

Month: October 2012

Message from a Hostel – Too Many Questions 2

Nora, can you help me with my homework, asked Alistair. Sure, what questions are you struggling with?, replied Nora.  Just these few questions Nora, said Alistair. Why do kamikaze pilots wear helmets? If you had a ball of steel wire could you knit yourself a bike? How fast do hotcakes sell? What time was it, when he got to Phoenix? What do the people in China call their good dinner and tea sets? I think you are on your own with those questions Alistair, replied Nora. Well Nora, I have my own question for you, if my good jumper shrank in the wash last week, why don’t sheep shrink when it rains?

Read More »

Message from a Hostel – Too Many Questions

Alistair, what are you up to with that book you are reading? Asked Nora.  I am trying to work out the answers to all these questions Nora, replied Alistair. What questions Alistair?  Well Nora, here are some of them, Do the people in Glocca Morra ever ask how we are doing? Does the 5 second rule applied, if you drop your pint of Guinness on the floor? If an apple a day keeps the Doctor away, what keeps the taxman away? It’s a long way to Tipperary, but from where – what if you live in Tipperary? Should the Guinness Book of Records, now be called the Guinness Book of CD’s And that’s only half of the questions Nora, there are too many questions you see, said Alistair

Read More »

The Key to Success is to look after your customers

To remind myself that it is important to continue to develop ones inner child skills, such as, curiosity, fun, honesty and imagination, I went to Canadian Tire and got a new front door key cut, with the image of Mickey Mouse on it. When I got home and tried my new key in the door, for some reason, it would not work.  So, I returned the following day back to Canadian Tire and asked for them to cut the key again from the original key.  That’s when the fun started, the guy cut the key from the wrong key, instead of the original key, now making the original key useless. I now had two keys that would not work and no way of getting back into my house.  To confirm my suspicion, I travelled back to the house and tried the two keys out in the lock. As I expected both keys would not work. I had to call over to the landlord and ask him for another key. Then go all the way back to Canadian Tire, to have the keys re-cut.  A Manager(John) who had seen what had happened earlier, came straight over to me when I returned back into the store. The Manager, could not have being nicer, apologising for the hassle it had caused me. He then re-cut the keys himself and just as I was leaving the store he handed me a gift card and again said, sorry for all the inconvenience caused. Well done John and Canadian Tire, the KEY to success, is looking after your customers

Read More »

Message from a hostel – Application Form for a Marriage Certificate

Alistair I have being asked to provide some details about us in this marriage application form, so this is what I have written. I am called Nora after my father’s cousin Nora who died when she was 6 years old from appendicitis. My grandmother had picked her name and no one ever picked up the name again until I was born and my mother surprised everyone at my baptism with Nora Peggy Joan – my two grannies are Peggy and Joan. Well the deceased Nora’s family always said they would come to my wedding – I really don’t know them at all – well (dead) Nora’s sister Alice came to the my wedding. I felt very honoured and moved. Interestingly when I was 12 I almost died from a burst appendicitis. My appendix was burst for maybe 12 hours before they operated on me. I remember lying in the hospital and thinking this was it – I was dying and being very happy – not at all upset that I would die. That experience gives me confidence that it’s not that big of a deal really. What will you write Alistair on your part of the application form, asked Nora. I will write I fell off my bike when I was 3 years old and my knee really hurt for 24 hours. I thought that my leg would fall off but did not really care as I had another one. I am called Alistair after a movie star Alistair Sim. When my granny heard my name she was shocked as she want to have me name Bruce – after my dead uncle Jack who died when he was 107. None of my parents or grandparent came to my wedding – so there is no point in mentioning this on the certificate as I might get upset. Sound good to me Alistair, replied Nora. I put the application in the post today.  

Read More »