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Golden News
Volume 16, Number 02 - Monday 8 July 2002
The official bulletin of the Rotary Club of Kowloon Golden Mile is published
every Monday and is distributed to all club members, District officials and many other "friends of KGM". Winner "Best English Club Bulletin" in District 3450, 2001/2002
The Don:
We have a new President and I'm already in deep doo-doo.
Our Fearless Leader Nanu "Don Corleone" Lachman was not a happy camper when he saw the photograph of him I used in last
week's bulletin, because he said it was too dark and it didn't do justice to his natural charm and boyish good looks, so he gave me a thorough tongue lashing.
Of course I would have preferred a regular "fishnet and handcuffs" lashing from Sergeant Susie "Madam Lash" Misini (who is continuing in her post this year, because she obviously loves her work), but sadly Susie has been absent recently. Hmmm. I wonder if she's implicated in the Fetish Fashion court case? Whip me, whip me!
Anyway our Fearless Leader was in excellent form at the recent District Snore-A-Thon, er sorry, I mean District Installation, held at the HKCEC on 4 July. KGM fielded two tables of masochists, who only attended to support our Fearless Leader (and to take turns at
keeping him awake).
This is the event where at least $500,000 is collectively spent by clubs on mutual back-slapping. I wonder how many schools we could build in China with that much money? Personally I prefer more intimate installation ceremonies held at club level, which cost nothing. Then again, I've been told before I have no Rotary spirit, and this is probably yet another example. Shame on me. Anyway, despite such displays of extravagance, we now have our first female district leader in DG Gloria Chan, and I'm hopeful that this highly educated and intelligent lady will work wonders for District 3450. Let's hope she can break the mould and reinvigorate our dozy District.
This Week's Meeting:
Our speaker this week is Ms. Susan McAteer, and the topic of her presentation is "Street Children In Asia".
Milestones:
1) Birthday greetings for 9 July to Notan "Tick Tock" Tolani, who shares his birthday with actor Tom Hanks, who starred in "Forrest Gump", "You've Got Mail" and numerous other successful movies.
2) Belated congratulations to PDG Moses Cheng, who was recently given a Service Above Self
Award by Rotary International.
3) We are saddened to report the sudden death of IPP Michael Yuen, from RC Tsimshatsui East, who suffered a fatal heart attack while playing golf in China on 1 July, the day after he retired as President. Obviously the news came as a shock to
all who knew Michael, a youthful and highly respected Rotarian.
We extend our heartfelt condolences to Michael's family, and to the members of RC Tsimshatsui East, who have lost a dedicated member and good friend. Member Updates: Although we stumbled across it by accident, our old mate Terrence Annamunthodo has a new website. Check it out! Board Meeting:
The first KGM BOD meeting of the new Rotary year will be held this Thursday 11 July at 6:30 p.m.
All Club Directors are expected to present a summary of their committee's plans and objectives for the year.
Unless advised to the contrary, all BOD meetings for the 2002/2003 Rotary year will be held on the 2nd Thursday of each month, at Jade Suite II, 2/F, Holiday Inn Golden Mile. Although the hapless male Directors of KGM are still outnumbered by the females, at least we have a man in the chair, which is necessarily industrial strength.
Fellowship News:
New KGM Fellowship Director Miranda "King" Kong is apparently deserting us and leaving town for long holiday, so she has passed the fellowship buck, er, baton to our old mate David "Party Dude" Harilela.
Hopefully we will have details of the KGM fellowship function for July soon.
Semi-Annual Dues: Club Secretary David "Show Me The Money" Harilela reminds members that the next tranche of semi-annual dues for the period 1 July to 31 December 2002 is now payable.
Cheques in the amount of $1,500 payable to Rotary Club of Kowloon Golden Mile should be handed to David or sent to his attention, care of P.O. Box 98129,
Tsimshatsui.
And remember to write your name on the rear of your cheque if you're paying by company cheque.
District 3450 News:
1) ATTENDANCE:
According to the numbers published in the last District newsletter for the month of May, KGM is the 4th largest club in District
3450 with 56 members. The three larger clubs are RC Hong Kong (134), RC Kowloon (74) and RC Hong Kong Island West (60).
KGM recorded an average attendance of 73.64% and is 10th out of 49 clubs on a YTD
basis. The top club for attendance is RC Hong Kong Sunrise, because their 10 members recorded 100%
attendance. Wow.
2) BID FOR 2009 RI CONVENTION:
District 3450 has submitted a formal bid to host the Rotary International Convention in Hong Kong in 2009. The other bidders are Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur, Manila and Bangkok. The
bid Chairman is PDG Moses Cheng.
This will be our fourth bid after failing in previous bids for 1994, 1999 and 2004.
I have no idea why we didn't bid for the 2008 RI Convention, which would have coincided with the Olympics in Beijing, given that Beijing were the hot favorites at the time, but I'm sure there must be a good reason (i.e. Huh?).
Rotary International News:
1) Speaking of RI conventions, the next RI Convention will be held in Brisbane, Australia from 1-4 June 2003. KGM has previously threatened our old mate Charter President Chandru Parmanand, who lives in Brisbane, that the great unwashed masses at KGM plan to descend upon him for an enormous barbeque steak, washed down by copious quantities of Hunter Valley red wine. Watch this space for further announcements. In the meantime, check out the Brisbane convention website. (Gee, they have a kangaroo in their logo!) 2) The RI Presidential Conference of Peace & Development will be held from Friday to Sunday, 9-11 August 2002 at the Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Malaysia.
Web Side Story:
This year the KGM website will undergo a total revamp, although members are unlikely to see the changes for a few months.
The KGM website consists of over 300 pages of information. If we discount the 3 year archive of bulletins which comprises
some 150 pages, there are still another 150 pages of other archives, including the club and district history, Rotary information and so on.
Hence a revamp is a major undertaking, however your beloved Web Monster doesn't have a life, so he has agreed to do the
revamp. What a good chap!
Isn't this exciting stuff? Hello? HELLO? Dear Geek: Is there anyway I can test whether my computer security features are defending me properly against attacks from hackers, crackers, jackers and other people with excessive body odours? Yours, Bobby Sox.
Dear Bobby, Yes, you can use the free on-line service provided by Nanoprobe.
If you visit their website and click on "Test My Shields" and "Probe My Ports" (hmmm, sounds kinda saucy), they will send a non-intrusive probe to your computer to see how it holds up against an external threat. Yours, Da Geek.
Who Am I?
What is the more common name of opera singer Maria Anna Sofia Cecilia Kalogeropoulou?
The answer appears at the bottom of this issue.
Cunning Linguist:
Are you curious about the origins of the word "Sabotage" ?
Sabotage comes from the practice by striking French railway workers of cutting the sabot
that held railroad tracks in place. The word appears in English in 1910 and early use specifically refers to the French railroad strikers.
Golden Smile:
A Police officer observed a car puttering along the highway at 19 mph. He turned on his lights and pulled the car over. Approaching the vehicle, he noticed that it contained five old ladies - two of them were in the front seat, and the three in the back were wide-eyed and white as ghosts.
The driver, obviously confused, said, "Officer, I don't understand why you stopped me. I was doing exactly the speed limit. What's the problem?"
"Madam," the officer replied, "You weren't speeding, but you should know that driving much slower than the speed limit can also be a danger to other
drivers."
"Slower than the speed limit? I'm following the posted speed exactly!"
The officer, trying to contain a chuckle, explained that "19" was the route number, not the speed limit.
Embarrassed, the woman smiled and thanked him for pointing out her error.
Before letting her go, the officer asked, "Is everyone in this car okay? Your friends in the back seem awfully shaken and they haven't muttered a single word."
"Oh, they'll be alright in a minute, officer. We just got off Route 135."
Quotable Quotes:
"The nice thing about meditation is that it makes doing nothing quite respectable."
-- Paul Dean --
The Phantom |
| "Who Am I?" answer: Maria Callas. |
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