I have heard quiche before, but I got interested more after reading Jeff Smith’s “Bone”.
And it became my favorite ever since.
not a food blog
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Quiche
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Working around “planned obsolescence”
filed under: PersonalOne thing that I despise most after pocket-less dresses is a planned obsolescence.
As we use things around us, it’s expected to have them in a wear-and-tear condition. In the old times, a lot of equipments and belongings are manufactured and produced in such a way that they can withstand prolonged usage and stay in a good shape even after years.
Enter, the age of peace and communication, which brings forth: consumerism. Corporates started to find ways for the public to consume more and more. While consumption itself is, inherently, a good thing to boost economy, overconsumption is not. Unfortunately, overconsumption seems like a road that a lot of corporates are taking into. This birthed the idea of “Planned Obsolescence” — Purposely frail design, or make it “out of fashion/trend” by playing to the customers’ insecurity, so the customers have “no other choices” but to buy.
I started realized it when my Dyson vacuum “broke down.” I was in the middle of cleaning the vacuum’s dust container as people usually do, when I realized the seal no longer on its place. This caused the dust container unable to stay on its place, essentially making the vacuum as “useless.”
Mind you, the vacuum motor is still in a tip-top shape, and it still works well. It was the dust container that no longer work.
I checked Dyson Malaysia website, looking for spare parts, and imagine my confusion seeing none of them. I grew up with Electrolux vacuum cleaner, a behemoth of 5-7 kilograms, witnessed generations growing up, and I remember my parents got spare parts from the store when something broke, so naturally, I thought the same principal applied.
I then Googled it, and I found that the website USED TO sell spare parts, but not anymore. Instead, I got greeted by a promotional banner of the newest Dyson vacuum. Forget about your old, outdated vacuum! Get a new one! A shinier model!
“Pissed” was an understatement. I refused to believe that I need to buy a brand new vacuum just because a dust container breaks. I then entered another realm: Online marketplace. Surely someone sell it, right? Right?
And right yes they did.
They even have variations for different models. Okay, granted, it’s from China and the cost of international shipping might offset the whole spirit of “rejecting planned obsolescence and overconsumption”, but at the same time, HAH, TAKE THAT, YOU CORPORATE GREED.
The price was ~US$14, including shipping fee, and after 2 minutes of following a Youtube instruction, this one:
My Dyson vacuum (V11, BTW) felt like new again.
Another one that just recently happened is my Sony WH-1000XM3 headphones. The headphones still work perfectly, chef’s kiss, won’t trade it for the world. But the ear pads, as you who are using headphones know, displayed signs of wear-and-tear. It was so bad, I found black fallings on my ears area, my neck, and my shoulders.
With such an ugly situation, what we gotta do? Of course replacing the pads only.
I’m so proud of myself.
Looking good and fresh, right?
Also, I found out from a comment on the marketplace that while Sony Malaysia offers the pad replacements service, the headphones need to be left on the service center for a week and we need to pay the repair fee for ~US$50, whereas the pad sold on the marketplace only cost folks half of the price and 5 minutes to install.
At this point, honestly, I don’t care about “BUT THE ORIGINALITY—“ I started to believe that the concept of “original” is created and built by these corporates to keep us in the cage, and they make the replacements/fixing process even harder — and any attempt to fix/replace the spare parts from any place that outside their “official store” will create some kind of a nonexistent witch hunt. Their strategy is to make the fixing/repairing really scarce and difficult (or so, they want us to think) so the “only option” left is to buy a newer model. Yes, original spare parts are important, but only when the company provides it in the first place and make it easier for their customers to purchase.
Look, I’m not against in buying new products. At some points, we should. Newer products with newer technologies are safer and eco-friendlier. Some products might actually no longer have spare parts available in the market! With that in mind, it’s worth to gauge our needs — and differentiate them from our wants.
Also, when it’s time for you to buy new products, do take care of how you dispose of the old ones. They have been helping you, anyway! Check where you can process e-waste or recycle them.
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Sydney, Australia — September 2024
Some eagle-eyed folks might already realized that this blog looked quite different, and it is. I moved my blog’s hosts to Hostinger — along with my photoblog (https://photos.corianderinpho.com/), and, currently thinking, the Impromptu Journal (https://impromptujournal.com/) — BTW, Impromptu Journal has been on hiatus for months, now. I’m thinking of reviving it along with a new URL/subdomain name to streamline everything, hahah.
Right now, I’m in the middle of tidying things up. This is my first time having self-hosted WordPress website(s) after so many years, and I’m excited. I’m actually amazed remembering how I used to be so at ease with self-host, and now it feels like I’m relearning new things! Anyway, kudos to the Hostinger Support staff for answering my newbie questions patiently, hahah.
Anyway. Yeah, I made a new website for my photos because I’ve been thinking of moving out from social media. I will still be around on social media to stay in touch with families and friends, but it would be mostly lurking or firing off memes on Instagram Stories. I know my photography skill is a whack compared to, say, National Geographics level, but please let a girl dream.
Speaking about photography, I just came back from Sydney, Australia for a team meetup. During a team meetup, we usually have learnups and workshops, and they can range from technical skills to hobbies. One of my teammates, Yuki, shared his tips for taking pictures. Yuki has always been interested in photography, and he’s the kind of person that you would call “he took blurry pictures and it looks professional, whereas if it was me, it would look like pictures taken by a drunkard.”
One of his tips is: Try to work with B/W. Sometimes, colored pictures can feel “meh” while B/W pics can evoke more mood and “vibes”. His words stuck with me ever since, so I decided to give B/W a try. So, yeah, pictures incoming — along with some ramblings about Sydney.
We stayed in the Song Hotel, right in the middle of the Central Business District. This was proven as a great choice because it’s really near Hyde Park and the Chinatown area. When our Australian colleagues heard that we were staying at the Song Hotel, their immediate comment was, “Ah, you won’t have to go far to find food.” The area was busy, mostly by international students, and you can find an amazing array of food, from your regular cafés to Korean restaurant specializing in selling Korean street snacks such as tteokbokki. Considering the name, Chinatown, you can expect to see different types of Asian food. I was pleasantly surprised to see nasi campur place (mixed rice) brought to you by Malaysian-Thailand.
I have to be honest here: I found it… Slightly conflicted to see James Cook’s statue. While I admit that he has been one of the best explorers in history, his impact on the natives in the continent was not something that people usually remember fondly. That said, I was really happy to see a lot of Acknowledgment of Traditional Owners during my stay in Sydney.
Another aspect of Sydney that I find really amusing is the seagull.
Growing up with “Finding Nemo”, I always thought seagulls would sound like “mine, mine, mine.” I was wrong. They sounded more like a screech with such respite, hatred, and their strong intent to snatch your chips.
This was my first time in Sydney, and I quick realized that seagulls and the city come as a package. While the seagulls in the City Center was relatively “okay” (I know Sydneysiders will kick me for this), those in the Sydney Harbor and Opera House are vicious. We were on the square nearby the Harbour, enjoying muffins and coffee, along with this tourist couple. They walked to a nearby seat while holding the oh-so-familiar Hungry Jack’s paper bag (in case you are not familiar; Hungry Jack’s is the Australian franchise of the Burger King) and deep down, I have this tingling sense that these seagulls are trained to recognize the paperbag and what it entails.
They swooped down, and this couple — bless them — blissfully unaware of what would come, took out the burgers and the chips (since we are in Australia, I will defer to “chips” instead of “french fries”). As if under one inaudible command, the seagulls started to jump and hover around them, all while screaming and grabbing the chips. A man ran from the corner of the square while yelling, “HEY! HEY! NO! HEYYYY!” and waving his hands. The Good Samaritan shooed the birds, much to the birds’ protests (loudly). He tapped one of the tourist’s shoulder and asked, “you alright?” The tourist, visibly shocked because Getting Attacked by Seagulls might not be on his Bingo card, nodded while shared a nervous smile. The stranger nodded and walked past, as quick as his arrival. Not all heroes wear capes. Some of them wearing brown Billabong jacket and sneakers.
We were lucky because our snack was muffins, and I think seagulls dislike muffins. And no, I don’t have any intention to test my hypothesis. Ever.
Below are some pics that I took. Click for the original resolution display.
I know that the pictures I took are kind of a mish-mash. My focus has been unclear: Landscape? Urban? Food? That said, I hope you enjoy this post, though! ❤️
Nindya’s quick blurbs
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A month too late, but I just stumbled upon IKEA France’s Tiktok video, hinting a possible collab with Animal Crossing. Unfortunately, no further information about this other than IGN picked up this news when the video was posted.
