Re: Speaking of Canada...

[chrisw@fciad2.bsd.uchicago.edu (chris williams)]

David Zimmerly writes:
>
>Guess what, everybody - those Lost Betacam Tapes have arrived!  They
>landed on my doorstep on Monday after completing a nearly four-month
>journey all the way from Chicago to Ottawa!  I imagined champagne corks
>popping all over Canada Post for setting a new record for postal efficiency.

   Amazing! 

>The box was clearly opened by at least a couple of clueless drones at
>Canada Customs, who shredded the packaging material enough to leave lots
>of dust, fibres and crap all over (and even INSIDE) the tapes. I cleaned
>everything as best as I could and finally risked trying one at work.  I
>should not have worried so much, for the quality was fine.

    It's been so long since I sent them, I have forgotten what they
were packed in. Sheesh! They must employ gibbons to handle the packages.
Each tape was in a pretty solid library case. Well, at least your morals
were protected. 

>One thing worth noting was that the box was re-sealed with tons of - what
>else - GAFFA(er) TAPE!

   Well, at least you can take pride in the fact that your postal
service is using the finest and most expensive tape around.

>I read Peter Manchester's SON/DAUGHTER OF TAPETREE post soon after this
>and of course was struck by the typically Kate-like syncronicity of
>events. I know Peter's "offer" of a second-chance Tapetree printing has
>been limited to the U.S. for now, but since I finally have these
>wonderful, expensive tapes (thanks again, Chris), I would hate to see them
>collect even more dust.  I therefore (foolishly?) offer to stoke up my little
>combine again for a limited time for my Canadian friends who have not
>already partaken of the fruit of the Tree.  Same rules apply as before:
>e-mail me and I'll send you detailed ordering info. I'd extend the offer
>to non-Canadians, but I think the potential hassles just aren't worth it,
>especially for a relatively small "mopping-up" operation.

   Thanks for doing this. It's good to know that the difficult journey
of these tapes was not entirely in vain. 

>I wonder if those Customs guys ever got a chance to look at the tapes or
>if they gave up trying to find a Betacam deck to play them. I wonder if
>they DID see them and experience a life-changing revelation?
>Oh, who cares?  - I'm just glad they gave them back.

    They probably sent the tapes to Ottawa for viewing, the same place
all the dirty books go. This is an astonishing example. I really cannot
imagine why they don't just have a policy of sending the material *back*
rather than taking so much time, and almost destroying them in the
process.  

>There's definitely, definitely, definitely no logic to human behaviour...
>
>                                                           - Bjork
  
     How very, very true.


                          Chris Williams of
                             Chris'n'Vickie of Chicago
                               chrisw@fciad2.bsd.uchicago.edu (his)
                                 vickie@njin.rutgers.edu      (hers)