Friday night

Yes, there is Flamenco in Hull!

We went for Roberto's leaving do, nice paella and music.

A nice environment in Roberto's shed. We saw many people who like Spanish paella and food.

A happy customer

Friday 17th of November. After looking for some months, I have decided to buy a laptop. This morning went to PC world to collect one and pay for it. Before getting to the customer service section, tried the same laptop which was exhibited..and did not like it. Did not feel right.

Escaped from there and came back to my office, and went onto the Internet. Had been browsing through the Dell's website (www.dell.co.uk). Wanted a laptop for home which could also bring to the office when needed.

After using their Dell's online shopping system (which allows you to configure some things from your desired laptop), I paid with my debit card. Felt very relieved to be honest, like having made a good purchase. Not that I am selling Dell here, but I felt I had invested the money well.

Nov 17th. I then printed a receipt and got a confirmation by email. The order specifies the type of payment (up front), the items being purchased (with quantities) and the guarantee conditions. Terms and conditions of sale came in a separate electronic file (what we can call the small print).

They also sent and acknowledgement of my order via email, giving a number and inviting me to track the delivery of my laptop. Estimated delivery was seven (7) days. To calm my anxiety, they suggested to look at www.dell.co.uk/orderstatus to see the progress of my order.

On Monday the 20th of November, I went on the Internet again to see how the Dell guys were doing (out of curiosity to trace the status of my order at www.dell.co.uk/orderstatus). To my surprise, they had already pre-produced, produced, prepared and delivered the laptop. Initially they said that it could take up to seven (7) days, but it appeared that they were going to do this quicker. I got excited!

So it happened. Dell's status tracking system had a link to another company (Walsh Western), who also allowed me to see the progress in the delivery.

From the 20th to the 23rd of November, I could see the progress in the delivery (the different stages of arrival and departure of my 5Kg box, it even went to Coventry from Ireland before coming to Hull!). The delivery company had scheduled the delivery for the 23rd. I phoned Dell to re-arrange a new delivery. They said to me:" The delivery company will deliver on the 23rd anyway, we have re-arranged the delivery for the 24th if you are not there". Interesting...

Finally, on the 23rd of November at 8:18am (also verified by Welsh Western's system), I got my delivery. This picture was taken by my wife before we opened the box. I had to phone Dell on the day to check the computer had the right components . In principle, it appeared it did not (disk of 120GB required), but finally I got advise from Dell's technical support in India (it was 120GB). Yes, India! The guys who answered my telephone queries were there.

So a happy ending for a happy customer. Lots of information resources on the way, some of them on the internet (shopping, production and delivery), some others elsewhere (reachable by phone to rearrange delivery or ask technical queries). Perhaps a bit more of care for the customer so we get a more integrated idea of the flow of information, and a friendlier outlook of the information systems can help making customers like me even happier!

And this is what a test says about me

It is confirmed, my favourite colour is blue According to a colour test:

You (JR) are caring and extroverted. You've made relationships your number one focus, and your lucky blue underwear can bring some balance to them. You thrive in one-on-one situations. You are a good listener and a natural born therapist. Sometimes you let the concerns of others become too important in your life, leading to stress and worry. If you want more balance, put on your blue underpants. They'll help you take care of yourself first.

What Color Is Your Lucky Underwear?

Call of Duty: Football !

Yes,

I am back again in the football market. This time with a group of English mates playing for the "Strongest" team.

We adopted Real Zaragoza's away t-shirt. For some strange reason, we are called the "Strongest", in honour of the Bolivian football team. Notice in the picture the shin-pads that I have to wear. At the first match, I was stopped by the referee who asked: "Where are your shin-pads?". I said "I do not need them". He said, "this is England mate, you better put them on!". He was right.

Since September 2006 we play every Tuesday evening in a tournament. We are doing enough to keep ourselves busy and entertained. The results could have been better, but hey, "The Strongest" is used to play at high altitude ground, and Hull is at the sea level (just another excuse for the team performance). Anyway I am a top scorer! . I celebrate like Bebeto and people ask me to stop cheering up (jaja).

The summer training was fun. We trained every Sunday at a park nearby where I live (Pearson Park). We trained with a lot of people from the Arab countries, Iran, Kosovo, Poland and the rest of Eastern Europe. Some of them are very friendly and very skillful (no wonder they like the Brazilian coaches). After a while we did not train with them anymore, we spent half of the time arguing who should be in which team. It is like Dis-United Nations (DUN). The other thing is that the level of injuries was increasing, so maybe we were in the wrong place.

Football is still my passion, I enjoyed it a lot, makes me feel connected to my close friends and keeps me a bit fit. And the wife is also happy as I am doing some sport!

JR

This is the car!

After living in Hull for nearly 10 years, I have got a car. Ford focus LX 2004, green vitro, 1600cc. Acquired in July 2006 with only 27292 miles (the UK standars is 12000 per year, so this one was not very much used).

It feels as if there is a new life. Takes us to do the shopping, to Leeds, York, Manchester and Uni. I do not know, it just feels that we can be normal people, go around and do what we like.

My last car was a Mazda 323 1300cc, had it only for 5 months (before coming to the UK) and really enjoyed it. Looked after it pretty well. The ford is not an exception, took it to the garage to check the breaks last week. Keep washing it (automatically), hoovering it, bought a small Black & Decker hoover to keep in the car.

Fall season is on its way, cold, but bearable: We have a car!

Attached to my country

Hi everyone.

I felt very happy to take part in a video conference with Universidad del Norte in Barranquilla, Colombia (Nov 3)

Invited my students Mu from China, Warren from Thailand, Jenni from UK, Yosa from Indonesia, Huilai from China, Yingmeng from China and Florie-Ann from France.

It was great! We shared some stuff on systems thinking, there were many questions. I could see students from there, and it brought so many nice memories.

This is a way for me to keep sharing what I do with my fellow country people.


Enjoy the image!