For I am a man under authority

C.G. Mannerheim
Originally uploaded by Kirja-addikti.

I picked him up from the verteran's hospital in Kauninen, he was 85 if he was a day and came strutting out of the doorway, back as straight as a ramrod and a Mannerhiem hat on his head. A poor nurse came scuttling behind carrying his bags.

"To the airport"

was all he said. The drive was uneventful and silent. Apon arrival he got out of the taxi and said.

"Follow me and bring my bags"

He strode off, and never once looked back. He expected me to follow. I caught up with him in the departure lounge.

"Find out where the check-in for Kemi is"

and here am I thinking why don't you join the end of the queue and wait your turn, but since he is a war veteran I scurry to the front of the queue with his bags and ask the girl at the check-in if this is the queue for Kemi and she said that it was.

So I montioned to him that this was the Kemi queue and he strode passed everyone in the queue... just ignored them as if they were not there, and marched straight to the front of the queue, where he commanded the girl at the desk to check his bags in. She did. The people in the queue were gawping at the affrontery of the man. He did not flinch. It almost seemed that he considered it his right to be served first.

To me he clicked his heels together nodded his head as a sign of dismissal and said

"Thanks for you service you are dismissed"

Obviously he was a man who was used to giving orders and having them obeyed.

Obviously he was also oblivious to the needs of anybody else. He might have been a very dangerous man to be with in a war, or since he was still alive he may have been a very safe man to be with. Some people have the authority to command others do not.

The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.
For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

Auntie Bonker's Rice Noodles

Auntie Bonker's Rice Noodles
Originally uploaded by HyperBob.

I quite like the idea of designing packaging for non-existant products. Bonk Ltd already does it for non-existant machines that have absolutely no purpose or function, but nevertheless look good, and might just work if you were able to find the right switch to turn them on.

So what can you say about Auntie Bonker's Rice noodles. Well the colour scheme is the same as for Uncle Ben's rice and up there where Uncle Ben should be is Condolezza Rice.

The original slogan was "bringing more to the table" and that usually means bringing more to the US table and less to the other tables around the world.

The EU has a ban on American beef because they believe it is pumped full of growth hormones, and from the number of obese people in the USA, and their penchant for fast food hamburgers. the EU may have a point.

Britain at one time during the days of the Empire prohibited India from exporting cotton products. The could however export the raw cotton to the Lancshire mills where it was turned into textiles and sold back to India at exhorbitant prices. Ghandi spun his own cloth as a protest. and encouraged others to do the same.

The forest in Borneo is being cut down by Japanese loggers and a head-hunter when interviewed on the matter said, "The forest is our skin, and what man can live without his skin?" When asked what was his solution to the problem of the Japanese loggers, he said "We have a very simple plan. First we will kill them and then we will eat them."

Simple people have simple solutions.