RangerSix

I had a similar situation with UPS back in October. Had it not happened to me, I never would have believed it. It felt like I was in a classic Seinfeld episode. Heres how it went down October 19th: A small shoebox sized package was shipped to me from Italy (contents valued at $3500). Mode of shipment was intended to be USPS mail because I am stationed overseas (South Korea). By mistake, the shipper mailed it using UPS without realizing that they cannot deliver to APO addresses. By the time I discovered that the package was shipped via UPS there was nothing I could do but reroute the package to my parents home in Virginia. October 21st: I called UPS requesting package be redirected to my parents home in Virginia. At this point the package is in Louisville. The UPS representative mentions that the package is being processed and to call back in 24 hours to make the address change. October 22nd: I contact UPS and the representative was very friendly and makes the address change. She mentions the package will be delivered to Virginia on 24 October. October 24th: The day comes and goes and no package. October 25th: I call to inquire package status. The lady mentions that the package will be delivered to Los Angeles today. I asked, Delivered to whom? I live in South Korea and I requested three days ago that the package be delivered to Virginia and not to some address in LA." Im assured the package is still in transit and will arrive in Virginia within the next few days. October 27th: After several days, the package is still in California. I call again to ask why the package is still sitting in CA. The customer rep mentions that it is scheduled for delivery in Los Angeles. For the third time, I mentioned that the package was never intended for LA, but to Virginia. He says there are no record of it going to Virginia and that maybe the previous customer reps processed the information wrong. He further requires a name and phone number to contact my parents to validate delivery of package to new location. He additionally sends a note to the LA hub to contact me. Two hours later I get a phone call from a lady in LA who promises me that she will track down my package and give me a call back once she has found it. She never calls back. Rather than being a nuisance I allow the system time to resolve the problem. Luckily, the package has now left LA and has arrived in Louisville. On the 31st of October, a lady from Louisville calls my parents to confirm new address. My mom answers and confirms location but now they (my dad and mom) will be going on vacation to attend the Notre Dame football game in Indiana and will not be around. My mom redirects the package to the new address in Indiana (my brother lives in South Bend). The lady on the phone was very nice and makes the address change and tells my mother that the package will be delivered to South Bend, Indiana within the next day or so. Incredibly, the package does not end up in Indiana, but back to California instead. UPS was still trying to deliver item to my APO address (which automatically redirects it back to LA). Needless to say, the phone calls went on for the next few days. With each call came lots of apologies were sorry of the inconvenience this has caused you blah blah blah, but efforts ultimately went on deaf ears with very little to nothing being done to resolve my package bouncing back and forth across the US. November 4th: I talk to a gentleman at the LA hub asking why my package was not delivered. He mentions that the APO address cannot be delivered. I mentioned that I was aware of that fact and steps to change the address was initiated over two weeks ago. Once more, I give the man the address in Indiana. He says hell take care of it and package will be delivered on November 7th. November 7th: No package is delivered. November 8th: Customer rep tells me that they are having a difficult time locating my package in the warehouse. November 9th: I call the representative assigned to my case (International Package Resolution Group) to inquire into the package status. She tells me that the LA hub was not successful in finding the package and regrets to inform me that it is now lost. I tell her the contents was valued at over $3000 and that losing this item was not an option. She promises me that she will to have the hubs continue to locate my package. It felt like I was kicked in the stomach. November 10th: I request a trace be placed on the item. November 11th: The UPS web tracker was now showing that my package was delivered to Virginia. However, my parents are still in Indiana and no one is home to retrieve package. The address was changed from Virginia to Indiana 12 days prior. UPS was notified of this address change no less than four times. Thankfully, my mom called a trusted neighbor to pick up package and secure it until their arrival home. Ultimately, it took over 22 phone calls and they still failed to deliver the package to the correct destination. See for yourself the rollercoaster ride it went on: Tracking #: M1180195587

Great movie! Hollywood did it right this time. One of the most historically accurate films that I have ever seen - EVER! The director took a few minor artistic licenses in telling the story, but overall I was very impressed. For those that are a history buff like me, play the movie a second time with commentaries on. Very interesting. I ended up appreciating the movie even more afterwards. I'm surprised it didn't do better at the box office. What a shame.

Anyaheseyo krustyoldsarge! Camp Red Cloud here!

---------------- On 8/12/2004 8:25:19 AM HDBRbuilder wrote: Now here is the clincher: When I worked at Klipsch in the late 1970's, AAFES was also offering some of the Klipsch line at its stateside PX/BX locations...and through its AAFES catalogs. Some of the dealers within the Klipsch dealer network got peeved that, since they were located close by military installations, the sales of Klipsch products at discounted prices nearby on those military installations was eating into their possible profit margins. So, Klipsch agreed to drop its sales through those stateside AAFES locations in favor of its civilian dealer network locations. IMHO, this was a MAJOR marketing screw-up! WHY? Simply because it no longer gave soldiers the opportunity to even HEAR Klipsch products on stateside bases, and forced them to go elsewhere to demo the products. It also forced them to pay non-discounted prices to dealer network stores off-base, which led many of these soldiers to buy other manufacturers' products instead of Klipsch products!...OTHER manufacturers who declined to kiss-up to their dealer networks in this matter, but who still reaped profits from military sales by refusing to cave-in to the whining by their dealer networks! ---------------- I agree, that was a MAJOR maketing screw-up. I did see an RF-III at the Camp Casey PX about six months ago. I havent seen any here since. Ive been in the Army for 16 years and can count the number of times with one hand that Ive seen Klipsch available for sale at BX/PXs. Yet, almost every major installation will have a snazzy Bose display to attract new generations of the uninformed. If dealer whining was the reason for Klipsch dropping their line of speakers, then shame on Klipsch!!! The main advantage for soldiers to purchase items on military exchanges was the tax break. Accessibility to such items was reserved solely for the military serviceperson and their dependants. To deny a soldier this small benefit in favor of local dealer greed and monopolizing the market by limiting product availability is deplorable.

The Last Samurai was a good fantasy movie. Just don't expect to learn anything about Japanese history from it. Hollywood has truly butchered the actual events in the telling of this story. The Meiji government was made out as the "bad guy" while the samurai was propped up as honorable and good. Hardly the case; the samurai was the ruling military class for almost a thousand years, but it ruthlessly existed on the blood, sweat and tears of the other classes. It was 250 years of peace, the rise of the merchant class, a desire to modernize and open its borders to foreigners, and a movement to place the emperor back into a central position of power with the elimination of the Tokugawa shogunate that ultimately lead to the samurai's fall. In reference to Tom Cruise. Well, Tom was still being Tom. Despite the disillusionment in himself and his government, Toms character was nonetheless a Congressional Medal of Honor winner and a war hero. In less than a year, his character somehow becomes the darling of the Meiji emperor, the rebellious daimyo Katsumoto, and the wife and children of the very samurai he kills in the beginning of the movie. Not only that, but he manages to miraculously survive a suicidal attack that wipes out everyone else. And we wont even go into how he, a person that fought against the Japanese government, could then limp in and interrupt a major policy meeting between Japan and the US and ultimately influence its outcome. As Dr. Evil would say: Riiiiiight.

---------------- On 8/1/2004 5:18:30 AM Audible Nectar wrote: I personally have no problem with celebrities (or anyone else, for that matter) expressing political opinions. It is the attempts to silence them that I find disturbing. ---------------- I disagree. I don't find it disturbing at all. No one has tried to silence her. She was able to freely express her political opinion. And in response, the public freely expressed their opinion as did the owner of the casino in his decision to let her go. What's good for the goose ...

Hey m00n, I lived on Hawaii for several years. I intend to retire there eventually. My wife is still living there with her family while Im here in Korea. As many have already mentioned, its a beautiful island(s). Oahu is typically the default spot for most tourists. Many of the usual points of interests are Waikiki, the North Shore, Pearl Harbor, Polynesian Cultural Center, Hanauma Bay, etc. All of them are good if vacation time is limited. If you want an awesome view of Honolulu, then I would also recommend walking up Diamond Head. If you are into surfing like I am, then the North Shore is the place, but Waikiki is nice also. If youre into scuba, then my favorite spot was Tigers Cove also on the North Shore. Pearl Harbor is a favorite spot of mine. Every time I had relatives or friends that visited me on the island, Pearl was always one of the places to go. To date, Ive been there nine times and have never lost my reverence for this place. I even had the honor of raising the flag over the Arizona one morning during a ceremony. A must see spot. Being a Navy vet, thats probably a no brainer for you. If youre into history, then there is the Nu'uanu Pali where King Kamehamehas army either pushed or forced the Oahu warriors over the cliff. Its also a great view of the windward side. If you have additional time, I would also recommend the Big Island. Its the newest of the island chain and it looks it. Its very different than Oahu. Two massive volcanoes Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, anchor the island. From the air, you can see huge tracts of old lava flows that cover the ground. Kilauea is currently active if you want to see a live volcano. A few soldiers and myself went to Kilauea in the 90s for sightseeing. From the roped off area in the distance you could see lava flowing into the ocean. Being the cocky dumb sonsof*****es that we were, we decided to go beyond the roped off area for a closer look. We got to within about 15 feet of actual lava flow. However, the heat was too intense to get any closer, not too mention the reality of how reckless we were finally caught up with us so we headed back to the rope line. Needless to say, the Park Ranger was waiting for us and gave us a huge lecture on how dumb we were. He threatened us with a fine, but let us off with a warning because of our military status. He was right, it was extremely foolish, but I have to admit it was an awesome experience. To the west of the Big Island, there is Kona that is very beautiful and great to scuba off. I had a friend that was an Army helicopter pilot that did range safety sweeps over a training area in the center of the island called PTA. One day he offered to fly me to a place called Kawaihae harbor for some logistical coordination in the area. The view of Mauna Kea and the north part of the island was fascinating. On approach to the harbor we noticed some construction going on. Upon landing, our arrival stirred up interest and concern as to why we were there. Turns out, the construction was the set of the Kevin Costner movie called Waterworld. Because we were in our uniforms and landed by aircraft, the set designer thought us important and gave us the royal tour of the place including seeing the Costners catamarans used in the movie. I never had the heart to tell them we were just wasting time and sightseeing. Too bad the movie turned out to be a flop. Well, Ive digressed enough. If you want to know some of the non-tourist spots frequented by locals you can contact me offline for further details.

Alien Face Hugger Iraqi Face Hugger

Fortunate Son - CCR Buffalo Soldiers - Bob Marley

On a lighter note, here is something we all can laugh at. http://www.plur.net/thisland.html

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones

Heil Moore! Leni Riefenstahl would be proud. I know, let's completely alter the truth, sling sh*t hoping something will stick, and make fun of the President at his expense for two hours and call it a powerful documentary. Move along little sheep, move along.

---------------- On 6/27/2004 7:52:25 AM Audible Nectar wrote: And with that, another rarity - agreeing with Ranger Six . But he is spot on here....the more one tries to apply control, the more complicated it becomes. It's like herding cats. ---------------- Damn, I don't know if I should kick your *** or shake your hand.

Sigh ... Its been a long time since Ive written here so I dont know what all the hullabaloo is about, but reading between the lines in other posts it seems pretty obvious that there is a lot of bad blood shed as of late. Moderators, I know this is your board and youve made it clear that you will rigidly enforce the house rules (that we all agreed too), but it seems to me that in your desire to keep things civil you have inadvertently sown the seeds of discontent through heavy-handed moderation. A long time ago, this forum was at its happiest when folks were freely allowed to discuss topics without constant fear of reprisal from moderators. Years ago, my ex gave me a book called Mars are from Venus or something to that effect and though I didnt completely read the entire book (maybe thats why we are not together ) I do recall a section about allowing your spouse rubber band time. In short, people need their space to stretch. Eventually, theyll snap back and everything will be back to normal. However, if you try to curtail their freedom (regardless of what that may be) then that is when all hell breaks out. This is what I see happening here. It reminds me of a quote I once heard, I cant remember who said it or exactly how it was said, but it went something like this: The more folks try to control the situation, the more likely it will slip through their fingers. Just some food for thought.

---------------- On 5/23/2004 10:07:48 PM m00n wrote: Anyone know if this is a TRUE story or not? I know there is a lot of Greek Mytholgy and what not written back then but I'm not sure if the story of Troy was mythology or real truth... ---------------- I haven't seen the movie yet, but this is what I do know about the story. The movie Troy is based on the epic tale called the Illiad by Homer (one of my favorite books). The existence of the city of Troy is real, but whether there was a great war between the Greeks and Trojans is still largely unproven. Personally, I believe the Trojan War actually did happen (minus the Gods). As with many tales of fiction, there often is a true story behind it. As far as the movie faithfully following the events of the book - NO! Too much artistic license went into adapting this story to the big screen. For one, the armor is complete fantasy. Two, in the book, Achilles was not present in the horse as it was pulled into the walls. And three, my favorite characters in the book are Achilles and Ajax, yet I hear that Ajax is killed by that puss Paris (not the case in the book) and Achilles who is played by Brad Pitt is poorly cast for this role (blue-eyed, blonde Greeks?) Puleeez! I've been waiting many many years for this story to come to the screen, but I'm not going into it with too many expectations.

HornEd, thank you for your comments. This trip was my first opportunity to use my recently purchased Canon L-series lens. It was pricey, but I felt my pictures improved dramatically from the cheap glass I was using prior. I still have a long way to go in improving my photos, but overall I was very satisfied with the results. Baby steps. As far as any more photo essays, naw, this is it for now. I think I've bored the Klipsch community enough with my ramblings. fini, yes I did see "Lost in Translation" and thought it was a great movie. I smile now in hindsight, because there were a lot of similarities between my experiences and those portrayed in the movie. While I believe I have a pretty good understanding of Japanese culture, history and its people, yet as a "gaigin" I still felt a strange isolation in my travels. The Japanese in very general terms are a closed society. They have never been too receptive to foreigners disrupting their harmony. There's a strange dichotomy at work here. On the one hand the Japanese love anything Western, and yet at the same time are very reluctant to allow foreigners into their inner circle. It's like using a "free pass" at an ultra-exclusive gym. You can use their swimming pools, exercise machines and saunas to your hearts content, but yet at the end of the day you still realize that you are not a member.

---------------- On 4/16/2004 2:36:06 PM J.4knee wrote: Did you see the Samurai Museum in Kamakura? ---------------- I was not aware of a samurai museum in Kamakura. Because time was limited, I went to some of the better known museums such as the Tokyo and Kyoto National Museums, the Tokugawa Art Museum in Nagoya, the Hikone Castle Museum and the Sword Museum sponsored by the NBTHK in Tokyo. In my study of the Japanese feudal military culture, my interest has specifically been in Nihon-to (Japanese swords). At these museums I saw works by some of the great masters such as Rai Kunimitsu, Kotetsu, Osafune Kagemitsu, Sadamune, Kanehira, Tadayoshi, and smiths from the Gassan school. My biggest treat though came when I visited one of the higher end nihonto dealers in Tokyo. For the window shoppers, the Japanese normally let the gaigin customers roam around the front part of the store where the cheaper merchandise (and thats a very relative term) is displayed. In the adjacent room is where the serious blades are kept. After a few minutes of chit-chat and establishing to them that I have a pretty good understanding of nihonto, they invited me to the back room. Wow!!! I stood inches away from works of art, in some cases over 800 years old that immediately humbled me and my most modest sword collection. Some of these blades were in excess of 100k dollars. After about 20 minutes, I felt guilty for taking up his time. I bowed, thanked him several times for the learning experience and left the store envious that I was not a Bill Gates or Donald Trump. Oh, how I wish I was rich. sigh Attached is a picture my favorite sword (tachi) from the whole trip. It was displayed at the Tokyo National Museum and is a National Treasure (meaning its priceless) from master swordsmith Osafune Kagemitsu. It was made in 1322 and is said to have been in the possession of Kusunoki Masashige (a VERY famous samurai from that time period). Later the blade was presented to the Emperor Meiji in 1873.

Hase Temple entrance. HIDDEN=true HEIGHT=100 WIDTH=195 AUTOSTART=false LOOP=true>

---------------- On 4/16/2004 2:36:06 PM J.4knee wrote: The Budda in Kamakura is some sight isn't it? Did you see the Hase Derra as well? Did you get a chance to go to the Aki Habarra district in Tokyo or actually just north of it? That is the famous Electronics ware Ginza. ---------------- Yes, the Buddha was an amazing sight. I spent quite a while on site trying to figure how someone from the 13th Century made an object of that size with such craftsmanship. N<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> o, I did not get a chance to go to Aki Habarra district. The closest thing was several visits to Shinjuku. And yes, I did visit Hase-dera immediately after the Great Buddha. Initially, I was not going into the temple because I was planning on visiting Engaku-ji and Kencho-ji instead. However, time was not on my side and Hase-dera was my final sightseeing location for the day. Im so glad I did. For those that dont know, the Hase temple is one of the saddest (as well as well as one of the most beautiful) places in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Kamakura. The temple grounds are covered with small statues of Jizo, one of the bodhisattvas in the Buddhist group that have deferred its own ascendance to help others instead reach salvation. Jizo, is the savior of small children, particularly the souls of the stillborn, aborted, and miscarried; the mothers of these small children dress the statues of Jizo in bright red bibs and leave them small offerings of food. Attached is a picture of one such statue.

---------------- On 4/15/2004 12:39:49 AM kenratboy wrote: My friend has a friend that lives on base near Tokyo, so hopefully we can get a tour guide! Do most people speak english, mainly in the city (not rural areas)? ---------------- While it doesn't hurt to have a contact in country it really isn't necessary. Once you get the hang of the subway and railway system it's really not that hard to get around. As far as the people speaking english. Well, within Tokyo most Japanese can speak just enough to get the point across. As with anywhere, some are more proficient than others. It also wouldn't hurt if you and your friend pick up a few useful Japanese words and phrases. It goes a long way with the locals that you make at least a modest attempt to speak their language. You'll find that many people, especially in the tourist areas, will automactically default to english even before you open your mouth. Normally, I just use my favorite universal communication device. My pointing finger.

---------------- On 4/13/2004 9:52:49 PM kenratboy wrote: I will go to Japan with my best friend, it is just a matter of when and for how long. ---------------- Kenratboy, If you and your friend plan on going to <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Japan, then by all means do it. You wont regret it. Unlike in the past, Japan is pushing hard to bring more tourist dollars into their economy. One of the most popular misconceptions is that Japan is very expensive. Not so. Folks on a budget, such as me, were able to function very well without worrying whether or not I was going to run out of money. Several recommendations though: 1) Develop a flexible itinerary. Pick certain locations or attractions that are must see and those that are maybes and then do a modest amount of research. It gave me a better appreciation of what I was looking at versus just observing pretty buildings. Plus, it will give your trip meaning versus just shooting from the hip. I done those before, and before you know it, youve wasted the time with nothing to show for it. Keep it flexible to adjust to weather conditions (i.e. museums for poor weather, cultural landmarks during sunny days, etc.). Finally, build into your itinerary a buffer zone (chill/low speed days) to allow for jetlag (for me I was lucky since Im stationed in South Korea and it didnt affect me, but if you are in the states your body will be approx. 12 hours off). 2) Be mindful of Mondays. A lot of museums and the like seem be closed on that day. I never did find out why, but just be aware of it as you begin to plan. 3) Get a JR Rail Pass! It may initially seem expensive, but if you want to see different parts of the country it will save you a ton of dough in the long run. Do some research and then do the math. Youll be amazed! Plus, it was a great feeling not having to worry about the hassle of buying tickets. All I did was show the gate my pass and I went on through to the Shinkansen (Bullet Train). Note: You have to pay for the rail pass BEFORE you get to Japan. They wont do it in country. Ive attached a picture of the Tokyo Station with a Shinkansen in the background. 4) Since you are into photography. Dont buy any expensive photo items (i.e. lens) in Tokyo. While the city may be the Mecca of camera gear, sadly their prices are much more expensive than in the states. 5) The best time to see Japan is in either the spring (Cherry Blossom time) or fall (leaves turning color). The weather is also optimal during those times (not too hot, not too cold). 6) Subway system is great. You can get to any part of Tokyo on the cheap and its efficient. I only required a taxi twice. Going to the hotel (from the bus point) and leaving the hotel (to the bus point). Oh dont take a taxi to or from the airport. It will cost over $200 for the trip! There are much cheaper alternatives (i.e. JR Express, airport bus, etc.). 7) Lastly, when it time to start shopping around from hotels and airfares I would suggest the package deals and by all means wait for a sale to pop up. I got both the package deal and waited for a sale and saved over $700 in the process. Well, thats about it. If you have any additional questions feel free to ask.

These two need a room.

Thanks to everyone for your kind comments.

---------------- On 4/13/2004 1:10:16 AM busterfree wrote: What model camera did you use? ---------------- Canon EOS D60, with Canon EF 24-70 mm 1:2.8 L USM Edited with Photoshop 7.0

The Great Buddha<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /> Located in the ancient capital city of <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Kamakura, the bronze statue was cast in 1252. The temple that once contained the Buddha blew away in a tidal wave in 1498, leaving the Buddha in its current state ever since. Like the Tori temple before it, the statue is HUGE! It is 13.35 meters tall and weighs 121 tons.