Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Charity
Made my close to annual visit to Mr Sainsbury to empty my piggy bank into his change machine. Not a wonderful experience. Had to queue for all of five minutes to get at the thing. I then find it has upped the rate from 7% to 7.9% (ever the retailer - they know that 7.9 looks better than 8). Then had to queue at customer services with all the other odds and sods to get my money.
If we suppose that the cost of the machine over five years is £26,000 - although the footprint is only a couple of square metres next to the special porridge special offer, it is presumably quite expensive having to cope with heavy moving objects - and they want twice their money back - that is £52,000 - over that period. I make that £200 a week. My single transaction netted them around £15 so it looks as if they will make my target comfortably. So I think it would be much better public relations if the charity option was free. They could even hike the rate for the give me the money option and one would not mind so much. One might even give the money to charity.
Read of an interesting word shift in the TLS. It explains that inventing was once a word with a strongly positive ring. It was good to invent things because it made life better. Now the word is usually used in a more negative context. A need has been invented. An unecessary consumable has been invented. Heritage has been invented. Panic attacks have been invented (I believe the concept did not exist before the eighties of the last century). Poor old old-style inventors don't hardly get a look in. Perhaps the noisy Mr Dyson is the exception that proves the rule. Maybe Mr Sinclair was the writing on the wall.
Also been reading a biography of Napoleon by Frank McLynn who takes a great deal of interest in his subject's love life and sex life. Now while both appear to be very material to a life of Napoleon, I rather regret the passing of the day when we were rather less intrusive in these matters. Is it really decent or dignified to have the poor chap dissected and laid out on the block for all to view in this way? To be continued, as the finest bacon (at near 50p a slice) from Mr S is calling.
If we suppose that the cost of the machine over five years is £26,000 - although the footprint is only a couple of square metres next to the special porridge special offer, it is presumably quite expensive having to cope with heavy moving objects - and they want twice their money back - that is £52,000 - over that period. I make that £200 a week. My single transaction netted them around £15 so it looks as if they will make my target comfortably. So I think it would be much better public relations if the charity option was free. They could even hike the rate for the give me the money option and one would not mind so much. One might even give the money to charity.
Read of an interesting word shift in the TLS. It explains that inventing was once a word with a strongly positive ring. It was good to invent things because it made life better. Now the word is usually used in a more negative context. A need has been invented. An unecessary consumable has been invented. Heritage has been invented. Panic attacks have been invented (I believe the concept did not exist before the eighties of the last century). Poor old old-style inventors don't hardly get a look in. Perhaps the noisy Mr Dyson is the exception that proves the rule. Maybe Mr Sinclair was the writing on the wall.
Also been reading a biography of Napoleon by Frank McLynn who takes a great deal of interest in his subject's love life and sex life. Now while both appear to be very material to a life of Napoleon, I rather regret the passing of the day when we were rather less intrusive in these matters. Is it really decent or dignified to have the poor chap dissected and laid out on the block for all to view in this way? To be continued, as the finest bacon (at near 50p a slice) from Mr S is calling.
# posted by Jim @ 12:19 AM 
