keskiviikko 18. maaliskuuta 2009

Superstition




Do you know what that thing in the photo is? The ugly plate on the right side of the photo.

Care to even guess?

Could it be...

...a small portion left of a prison wall?

...an only standing wall of a warehouse taken by a tornado? (Or some other grazy storm, I am not an expert.)

... an old, abandoned billboard?

...a slightly rusty climbing wall?

Nah, maybe not. I'll give you a hint. It has a purpose. It is being used all the time, even as we speak. It is on the "backyard" of the factory, where my other office is. It is beside a road coming from a river.

Maybe it is a huge backpane for equally huge dartboard (tikkataulu)?

Or, perhaps, it is a huge metal wall set up in the midst of "nowhere" to stop or mislead all the evil spirits before they reach our factory. Oh, you knew it right away? Why didn't you just say so! Because that's what it is. As you surely know (I don't even know why I bother to tell you this), the evil spirits live in (on?) the river. For reasons unknown to me, they like to get off the water at times, and try to reach our blessed site of employment. But aren't we just LUCKY someone was smart enough to set up a wall like this. Phiu. I don't know whom to thank for it, but indeed the person should be granted a medal (Valkoisen Ruusun Ritarikunnan risti, ihan vähintään).

I have been wondering how long we can fool the evil spirits so that they don't go and learn to go AROUND the wall. I find it hard to believe they would be that stupid, but I try not to voice my concerns. Who knows when the evil spirits are listening... I don't want to be found guilty of such a treasonous leakage.


Btw: Does anyone of you know if they can READ?


Where some westeners believe number 13 will cause you bad luck, for Chinese, number four (4) is evil. In Chinese, it sounds similar to the word "death", or "si" in mandarin. No one wants to have a phone number ending with four. Prices usually end with eight, never with four.

Due to this, there is no 14th, 24th, or 34th floor in our building. Maybe they have had some symphaties for westerners, as we also don't have 13th floor at all. I am not so particular about these number issues, but if it makes someone happy, what's that to me? Go ahead and skip all the fours.


But what I don't get is why we still have 4th floor?

(Apologies for the high quality pictures. I have excuses. First one was taken in a hurry with a mobile phone (and if the sky is grey, then the sky is grey, that cannot be helped) and in the second shot you can see my concentration reflecting from the mirror like elevator panel. There isn't much room to take photos, and the mirror kind of makes it a little difficult... Lame excuses, I can hear you say to yourself. But I ain't got any better ones right now.)



On a completely different note: can you but just love the spring?


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