Spanish Drivers?

In the old days, the only inconvenience caused by Spanish drivers in Portugal was their flooding the roads during holiday periods and forming caravans in the middle lane on the motorway. But recently they are found overtaking aggressively on the right, double parking, driving excessively fast in urban areas, just like the locals!

Could it be that the quality of Spanish driving is plunging? More likely is that Chico Esperto Português has discovered that cars are cheaper in Spain and it's precisely that type of clever dick that likes to drive badly, encouraged by the authorities' difficulty in tracing the car to send it a ticket. Of course, he also has to manage to avoid being caught with the car in the country for more than six months, but what are the chances of that? I've heard that in the Alentejo the traffic police are alert to this loophole, but I can't see it happening in Lisbon.

Perhaps nuestros hermanos should think twice before selling to the Tugas - their reputation is at stake...

Bored

What to do when nothing inspires you? There are so many possible distractions, most of which arrived at Christmas - films to watch, books to read, games to play. And so many chores that are on the procrastination list. Even golf is uninspiring on a course waterlogged from so much rain.

At least the busy season at work is coming to an end and the days are getting lighter. Chin up! Things can only get better...

Accident & Emergency

What's the difference between private and public healthcare? As I understood it up to today, with private healthcare you're paying for a more timely and better presented service. Some private hospitals even offer an emergency walk-in-off-the-street service, which must surely be better than braving the conditions in Portuguese public hospitals.

That's what I thought until I took my wife to CUF Infante Santo this afternoon, in a state where her dizzy spells had reached the point where she could no longer stand, barely sit. I got her a wheelchair, checked her in and sat with her for an hour and a half in the waiting room without being seen. Everyone who was there when we arrived had been seen and had left. There were the queue jumpers, the "emergency consultations by appointment" slipped in front of us, and the usual State excuse: "One of the doctors didn't come in, so we only have one"! So what the hell was I paying for? We would have been better off at our local health centre!

The staff were shocked when we gave up and left. After all that time the dizziness had worn off. They even came after us into the car park: "The doctor will see you now". I don't suppose the 90€ emergency fee that they lost made any difference to them. After all, we were the strange ones, running away like that. I suppose I should have complained earlier, but it shouldn't be necessary.

It looks like José de Mello Saúde needs some competition, and then some doctors who take some pride in customer service, to set them apart from the public hospitals. You certainly won't find me setting foot there again.

Madison Who's Who

I had a merry half hour on the phone with a high pressure salesman from this organisation this afternoon. They claim to run an international directory of top professionals and try to get you to sign up for a full listing for 750€ (or only 989€ for lifetime membership!).

I was caught by an apparently identical organisation some years back: the International Who's Who Historical Society. The directory did eventually arrive, filled with the names of international professionals. The web site and contacts system also worked, for a while, until it suddenly stopped sending out the appeals for help, mostly from young Asians who had clearly been conned out of their life savings.

These guys are very good. They called my direct line, with my previous resumé in front of them, and made small talk about my business and the economy in an intelligent and informed fashion. Then, just as those years ago, they told me I had "passed" the interview, that I am clearly the kind of informed intelligent professional that would most benefit from signing up, and got round to talking about money.

Once bitten, twice shy, as they say. My advice is to keep away as you will not be able to confirm their authenticity. Note that a Google search brings up a number of identical positive references on the same hosting server and only one worried third-party query.

Oh, and on the basis that the FBI reads everything that is posted in the internet, I have a name and phone number if you would like to go after them for wire fraud!

Watch this!

I have always had a weakness for watches. My first paycheck from my first real job was spent on a watch which I still use more than any of the more recent acquisitions.

Swiss watchmaker Hublot is investing very heavily on advertising its "Bigger Bang" model, on the right, usually the red gold version, which I couldn't find a picture of. It's superb, with the mechanism all on display, made from gold, ceramic, kevlar and rubber. Strangely, I couldn't find this model on the manufacturer's site, perhaps because they have already sold the 18 limited edition pieces. For more details try The Watch Quote.

As for the price of the "Bigger Bang", if you need to ask, you can't afford it. The more practical and still stunning "Big Bang" is priced between 12,000€ and 16,000€. Maybe if I sell one of the cars...

CD of the Month (2)

I have to admit that I have not taken the time to find out anything about Lighthouse Family since my sister gave me this CD for Christmas (2003?), and according to Wikipedia, there's not really much to know.

Anyway, it's one of the great easy-listening albums and has been helping me endure my commute for the last month, so here it is.

Shoot the Publicist

The December issue of the SAP magazine had a full page advert from Hyfas (see the panel at the bottom of their homepage). What conclusions can we draw from that advert?

1. They do not speak English - "Be right!". This may be a problem when implementing SAP.
2. They don't know how to shoot an arrow, nor even how to hold a bow! What exactly are they expecting us to consult them about and how far will they take it?

The site is equally awful, with trite pseudo-English sound-bites in abundance. I hope their consultants are better than their publicists.

Telepac Stinks!

Coloquei o seguinte comentário no "feedback form" de apoio a clientes de Telepac esta manhã:

1. A resposta (ao pedido de assistência) foi "É favor voltar a ligar mais tarde porque estamos sem sistema". Assim o serviço ao cliente NÃO FUNCIONA!
2. Respondi "não" a perguntas 3 e 5. Uma vez que a página não aceita carácteres Portugueses (nem nas respostas pré-definidas pela Telepac), o impresso não pode ser entregue! Espero que Paulo Azevedo consegue dar a volta à incompetência sistemática demonstrada!!

Reacção do sistema: "A resposta à pergunta nº9 não pode ultrapassar 255 carácteres"!

Que idiotas!

Double Standards

It seems that my complaints about justice are always football related, but once again it's time to speak out about the ridiculous sentences handed out to footballers.

Twenty other drivers were caught in the police checks the other night, but none of them got off so lightly as Luisão. Why should he get special treatment? He wasn't just a little over the alcohol limit, he was so drunk that he was arrested on the spot! Imagine the court's treatment of any other Brazilian immigrant in these circumstances, or a person who drives for a living. An immediate ban would be automatically handed out.

Worse than the lack of punishment is the example given by Luisão himself. Footballers are the idols of the young. How is it possible that he sets such a poor example? The only professional footballer I have contact with is shadowed everywhere by an assistant/manager. Surely Luisão (or Benfica) has the money to hire a driver for nights out if he wants to drink.

Once again we see an example of what keeps this warm and welcoming country firmly in the past. Justice. For whom?

New Year, No Resolutions

Long time since my last post - simultaneously a sign of being busy and even having some other distractions; there is life beyond the net after all.

So I hope all(!) my faithful readers don't mind my wishing them a belated Merry Christmas (or equivalent) and a Happy New Year (if you happen to be using the same calendar as I do). Here's to a better 2007 than 2006.

High point of 2006: breaking 100 at golf for the first time. Low point: Grampy's abrupt demise. What will 2007 have in store? No resolutions, that's for sure, keep on flying by the seat of my pants for the moment.

As for the faithful, that's Jorge, Bev, Eme and sundry lurkers from Faro and Alhos Vedros (Telepac) or Carnaxide (Optimus), I hope I can find something minimally interesting to write about. Had plenty of ideas over the holiday season, but too much to do to sit at the computer and write. We'll see...