Search: “sti”

I was just given this link by a friend (Holla), the site helps you figure out how much of a salary you can make in a certain proffesion in a certain city. Its only meant to check US cities BUT, if you type a certain proffesion and for the city you put Kuwait you still get funny results. Here are some interesting ones we found:

What – Where – Average Salary
Creative Director – Kuwait – $84,000
Dentist – Kuwait – $128,000
Ministry – Kuwait – $34,000
Hooker – Kuwait – $41,000
Crack Whore – Kuwait – $208,000
Egyptian – Kuwait – $12,000
Black People – Kuwait – $89,000
Whitey – Kuwait – $72,000
Hot Chick – Kuwait – $48,000
Hot Guy – Kuwait – $16,000
Shark – Kuwait – $75,000

Try to find some cool ones and post them in the comments below [Link]

I don’t eat at home since I don’t know how to cook nor do I want to learn how to cook. I know how to make the basics which are sandwiches, omelets, burgers and cookies and I don’t see a need to learn how to make other dishes.

Since its ramadan all restaurants are closed till like 5:30PM, this means when I am done with work at 3 I have over 2 hours before I eat. The thing is I can’t go out to eat at 5:30 because my riding lessons are from like 5 to 6:30. Thats why I have to eat at home.

Yesterday while shopping at Sultan Center in Salmiya I decided to pick up 2 packs of Kobe Burger, I have been wanting to try it for a long time now but since I don’t eat at home I found no need to get it. After picking up the burgers I picked up a packet of sliced American white cheese loaves, 1 white onion, a bottle of Heinz Ketchup and some burger buns. Nat didn’t want Kobe Burgers since she doesn’t like thick burgers so I picked up a packet of regular frozen burgers for her.

I have a Kenwood grill at home and I use it mainly to grill my burgers on and this is how I do it:

– I grill the burger for 5 minutes, flip it, let it grill for another 5 minutes, flip it, let it grill for another 5 minutes and finally I flip it one last time for a final 5 minutes.

– Once I am done I put a slice of cheese on the burger, leave it on the grill for another minute then I take the burger with cheese and place it on the bottom half of my bun.

– I then place it in the microwave for 10 seconds so the cheese can melt.

– I then put some ketchup on the burger and top it off with diced white onions

– I cover my burger with the top half of the bun and my burger is ready to eat.

I am sure Gastronomica is better at making burgers then me since if you check out his website you will notice all his meals are very gourmet like. Hopefully he will be nice enough to share a tip or two in the comments below but until he does this is how I make my burgers.

How did the burgers come out? Fanfrigintastic! I like my burgers well done and I was expecting this burger to come out dry but it didn’t. It was soft, juicy and tasted like something you would find at a posh restaurant or hotel room service. It was surprisingly very good and it turned out to be the best burger I ever made.

Now the biggest problem with the Kobe Burger is the price. Each patty costs KD1.250 which isn’t cheap if you compare it to other frozen burgers. BUT without getting into the taste or quality of meat please look at the picture above of the burgers on the grill. Do you notice the 2 large patties on the left? Do you notice the tiny patty on the top right? Guess which patty is your average everyday frozen one? These kobe burgers are big and thick. Kobe beef also comes from Wagyu cattle which are “renowned for its flavor, tenderness, and fatty well-marbled texture”. So yes KD1.250 is worth it specially if you have a passion for burgers.

From now on if I ever need to make burgers at home this is the only burger I will get. I can no longer have those crappy frozen burgers that come 8 in a pack. I have been spoilt. Final score is a 4.5 out of 5. I would have given it a 5 but they are a lot messier to cook then the regular burgers because these are bigger and juicier so they spray more grease. This means more cleaning for me which always sucks.

Here is another really funny commercial. Since YouTube still doesn’t work right on Fasttelco just right click and save as the link to download it onto your computer. [WMV 1.5MB]

Ok here is another iPod Video for sale but this time it comes with some accessories. This is what the guy is selling:

– Black 60GB iPod Video (excellent condition)
– Original Packaging, CDs and Apple stickers
– Protective Soft Cover
– Logitech speakers with protective case
– FM Transmitter
– Retractable audio video cable for connecting iPod to TV

Asking price: KD95

If you are interested contact Rejoy on 9594835

Although Fasttelco have removed the YouTube and MySpace block, a ton of other sites are still blocked including LiveJournal.com!

This is a good deal and I would get it for myself but I already have more computers then I need. This item is a G4 1.25ghz Mac Mini with 256MB of RAM, a 40GB hard drive and a combo drive. Its in like new condition with no scratches at all.

Asking price is KD99 KD90

If you are interested contact Mohammed on 9381973
or email him at [email protected]

If you don’t know what an Apple Mac Mini is, its simply a very tiny computer. Around the size of 6 CD cases stacked. Check the Apple site for more info. [Link]

update: its only 2 weeks old, still has its 1 year warranty.

update 2: ITEM HAS BEEN SOLD

I was just reading Toomz’s post on the new show Nine when I figured I would post on my current TV experience. Yesterday I watched the season premiers for Gray’s Anatomy (S3E1) and CSI (S7E1) yesterday (not CSI Miami or NY, still haven’t watched those premiers yet) and between the two I have to say I enjoyed the CSI episode much more. Firstly, CSI’s plot intro (not the title sequence) was the best intro since LOST episode 1. I had the sound system at full blast and it was just really exciting and fast. After watching a pretty decent episode something big happens near the end and then they said “To be continued..”. So now I can’t wait till episode 2.

Gray’s Anatomy on the other hand was pretty slow and uneventful for a premier, hopefully things will pick up the next episode. The premier episode reminded me of season 2 of LOST, where its all flashbacks from the past, not something I enjoy.

I haven’t started watching any new shows. I am currently catching up on old Family Guy and American Dad episodes, also just downloaded 9 seasons of Seinfeld so need to go through those, I am also going to start catching up on the old episodes of CSI Miami and NY. Finally I am also watching season 2 of Weeds, season 18 of The Simpsons, Gumball 3000 2006 and Prison Break season 2 which really really kicks ass. Luckily its ramadan so I have a lot of free time to watch everything.

update: According to CNN, Gray did better then CSI. [Link]

Today I got set up with an old 650cc Kawasaki bike. Since I was doing so well on the smaller 180cc bike I got moved up to the bigger one. I don’t like this new bike though, its too tall and feels weird. I had two “special” moments with the bike one of which was really scary and strange.

I was turning a curb with the bike going a bit quickly when for some reason instead of pressing the brakes to slow down I pulled on the clutch, then when I realized my mistake I panicked and turned the throttle for more power.. I don’t know why I did that instead of pressing the brakes but my next move was even worse… I let go of the clutch. After that everything went really quick and blurry, I just remember I put my two feet on the ground, then front wheel of the bike lifted up and I did a wheelie and then somehow I managed to control the bike like a wild horse, I pulled it back under me and continued riding. I was in like total shock cuz I should have been thrown to the floor.

The second moment I had with the bike was when I was coming to a stand still and I don’t know what happened but I lost balance and the bike fell down on its side. The problem is this bike was big and heavy so to put it back up was really difficult, but I managed without any help.

Today was Nat’s first lesson, I can’t say anything about it because she threatened to shutdown the blog if I do.. so you can imagine how her lesson went.

I just watched the trailer to Frank Millers upcoming movie called 300. The trailer isn’t officially out and every site that hosts it are being forced to remove it by Warner Brothers including Google Videos and YouTube. I found a site that still has the trailer up so check it while it there. The movie so far looks amaaazzziiinggg! [Link]

I just came back from my first ride out in the public streets. I have been learning how to ride the whole week and I just wanted to get a feel of my Ducati and how much it differed from the Bajaj bike I am training on.

I strapped on my full gear, got on my bike and drove out of my underground parking lot out into the public streets. I circled the block and rode into the old Salmiya, it was around 4PM so there wasn’t much traffic, just a handful of cars but it still was very freaky. The bike is literally a monster. I have been training on the Bajaj Pulsar which is 180cc and pumps out 16.5HP. My Ducati is 618cc and pumps out 83.5HP. As you can imagine the jump between the two bikes is huge and I was prepared for it but it was still very shocking.

The bike stalled with me once and it was when I was nearly back home. Other then that I did fine. I don’t think my ride was very smooth though since I am still not used to the throttle. Just a small twist on the thing and the bike flys off leaving me hanging on like a mad man. The whole ride was just an incredible adrenaline rush but I was really glad when I got home. Next time I take it out it will be after I have more riding hours under my belt.

I know I said I will stop complaining but I can’t when there are companies like Fonz that still exist.

While at the airport the other day, my dad saw the Nokia N73 for the first time and he liked it. Today while flipping through the papers I found an ad for Fonz where they were selling the N73 for KD89 plus they were giving free stuff with it like a phone line, 6 months ART subscription and something else. So, I decided I would pass by and get him it as an early birthday present.

I went to the Fonz branch in front of Marina Mall next to Eastpak around 7pm. I went in and told the employee I wanted the N73. He replied telling its been out of stock for a couple of days. I was like yeah but I just saw the ad today in the paper. How could you advertise something you don’t have? I was like can you check on your computer and see if any of your other branches have it. He was like I can’t do that. I was like what the fuck, who can I call and complain about this? He told me the head office, he picked up the phone and called them up and handed me the phone.

A guy answers, I asked him if this was the head office. He was like why? I was like because I have a complaint. He was like about what? I told him that I saw an ad in the paper for a phone and I came in to buy it and the employee told me it was out of stock. When I asked him to check and see which other branch of Fonz had the phone he told me he couldn’t. The guy replied telling me they sometimes run out of stock. I was like fine, I understand that, but could you please tell me which other branch has the phone in stock? He replied telling me that he could give me the numbers of all their branches in Kuwait and I could call them all up and see which one still has it. I was like what the fuck? I am telling you I want the phone, and you are telling me go look for it, go try your luck and call every Fonz store in Kuwait? I told him YOU guys should be trying to find ME the phone because I am the customer and I want to buy it. YOU guys should be able to tell me which branch still carries the phone and YOU guys should make the phone calls if there are any to be made. He was like I am not free at the moment to do that. I shut the phone on his face, gave it back to the employee in the store and walked out.

How does a place that does business like that manage to survive? Am I asking for too much here, having the actual store find me a phone in one other their other branches? It can’t be too much to ask.

Interesting fact: Sailors who were crew members who often went above and below deck, used eye patches to have one eye adjusted for the top deck and the other eye already adjusted for the darkness when suddenly going below deck. The strong sunlight while above deck on an oceangoing vessel could require minutes of adjustment to the dim lighting below deck. With virtually no light sources below deck, sailors would have to rely heavily upon their eyes to adjust. In the critical moments of modifying the rigging, navigating, and especially during battle, those minutes were too precious. A simple switch of the patch from one eye to the other saved time and was more convenient than being temporarily blinded when going between decks. [Link]

Today was pretty straight forward. Just drove around the parking lot for an hour. Its was pretty uneventful until I had my first fall. Don’t think its counted as a fall since the bike fell while I was still left standing. I was turning a curve slowly, I think a bit too slowly and the bike just fell down right under me. Luckily it was dark so it wasn’t that embarrassing…

Yesterday night on my way to the airport I saw an accident on the 5th ring road just before exit 50. The accident was still fresh since the medics were still at the scene. Turns out a bus carrying works some how rammed into the back of a truck so it was pretty messed scene with a lot of injuries. Here are two pictures I managed to take as I was passing by.

update: Here is a good video shot at the scene by Zaina [Video]

Fuzz a blogger posted in the forum about how the 777 emergency service failed his uncle. According to Fuzz his uncle had a heart attack on Thursday and his cousin was the only person with hus uncle at the time and so his first reaction was to call for help by dialing 777. Problem is no one ever picked up. He tried calling them over and over and over but no one picked up the line.

How could no one be there to pick up an emergency phone call? A quick search online shows this has happened atleast one other time. CyberRowdy another blogger tried calling 777 to inform them of a safety problem when a traffic light at a major intersection stopped working. He called them 8 times and no one picked up. Another member in the forum posted that his Aunt passed away last year even though 777 did respond. According to the writer when the response team arrived they refused to touch his aunt because she was a woman and so did not perform CPR on her. They didn’t even help get his aunt into the Ambulance!

I am sure there are more examples where 777 failed to answer and the thing is, even if they don’t answer only one time that is still a MAJOR problem. Personally we used 777 once here at the office and the response time was fast so I myself never had a problem with 777. But, if there comes a time where I need them I would probably want someone to drive me to the hospital instead of waiting for 777.

Fuzz’s uncle passed away on Thursday because no one at 777 picked up the phone. Wouldn’t it have been better if the KD200 given out to every citizen was instead used to improve something as important as the medical service in Kuwait? Instead of donating money to rebuild Lebanon wouldn’t it have been better to first fix an important problem like the 777 emergency department?