BOSS, TELL ME... WHEN WILL I GET MY LADDER?

 



"It's better to under-promise and over-deliver

than to oversell and under-deliver."

Unknown

 

On FB, I have been getting these tempting ads from ‘Home Essentials’. For our newly-renovated Centre (THE DAWN CLUB CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE), we needed a simple, aesthetic ladder. ‘Home Essentials’ have been sending to my timeline a hundred ads about so many things, including beautifully-designed ladders. I booked a 3-step ladder (black colour) paying full amount. It’s close to ten days now… and, I haven’t received the ladder, yet. But, yes, I received a message confirming the order… and expressing regret on the delay… “Our delivery partner and the team are working on it… The delay is due to heavy rains”, I was told…

But, it’s very sunny and bright outside… It’s not raining at all. So, I tried to follow up… But, you know how the situation today is: You are served by robots and not humans… AI gives you prompt response; but, it takes you in circles… I got frustrated and yelled at the robot: “Boss, tell me... When will I get my ladder?”

The response was hilarious… crazy. I started pulling my hair!

Relentless reels, feeds and ads about everything that one does, creates, produces -– it’s so easy to produce, create and promote in today’s world. But, it’s outright overselling and underdelivering. Machines have no heart, no blood… only an artificial brain.





A young boy, who I had taught in class 12 last year, sent me a message: “Sir, I have written this story. Can you please go through and offer me your suggestions?”

This 16-year-old is bright, no doubt. But, after reading his long, well-written story, I was compelled to send him this suggestion:

“Beta, I loved the narrative and plot. Very imaginative… Just one caution: Don’t use Chat GPT/AI for creative writing. Rely on your God-given mind, heart and patience. Best wishes and keep writing.”

The boy replied, “Sir, I used little of AI.”

Trust, it was ‘little’!

Almost everybody -– from a vegetable vendor to a doctor, from a student to an institution –- yes, every one of them communicates via AI… Speed, yes, very quick. But, heart, sorry -– dead.

Trust is built slowly and steadily over a long, long time. What’s super-fast need not be equally trustworthy. Reels are very catchy… But, they are short-lived… gone even before you blink.

So has become our ‘trust’, na?

I don’t know…

People like me know only to ask some humans (and not robots) --  “Boss, tell me... When will I get my ladder?”



 

GERALD D’CUNHA

 

Pic.: 1. Modndo,com  2. Leticia Alvares

Video: Warner Bros. Entertainment

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

BUT, NOT INTO EACH OTHER'S KEEPING...

Image
"If you can not love yourself, You can not love another.” I meet many young college students who are head-over-heals in relationship. They call it ‘Love’. One of the most difficult things to deal with in such relationship, for most of them, is: the desperate clinging of the other partner. “Why didn’t you call? Why didn’t you meet? Where did you go? What did you do? Who was there with you? Why can’t we go out? Why did you wear this? Why did you go there? Why? What? When? Who? Where? Whose?... Yes, all the possible ‘W’s’ in the world. Yes, in the world of our ‘Love Birds’. What starts as some romantic sweet-nothings, now is marred with endless probing, judging, accusing, blaming, sulking, fighting and pain. Most of them are unprepared to deal with this volatile shift… They end up hurting each other; more importantly, they end up hurting themselves. They begin to wonder: Where has all the sweetness gone? Why am I feeling so lonely now? Why is this suffocation? This fear? T...
Read more

CHIKNI CHAMELI...

Image
If you have food in your fridge and clothes on your back, A roof over your head and a place to sleep, You are ‘richer’ than 75% of the entire world!  If you have money in your wallet and a little change, And can go anywhere you want, You are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy! If you woke up this morning, with more health than illness, You are more blessed than a million people Who won’t survive this week and die! If you can actually read this message, and understand it, You are more fortunate than the three-billion people in the world, Who can not see, don’t know English, or suffer being mentally retarded! LIFE is not about men/women who dumped you, Or whatever else that doesn’t matter… It is about a thousand other reasons to be Happy… So, ‘CHEERS!!!’ to this Life… Have a cheerful day!!!  Almost a month has passed since I received this Good-Morning message from my younger brother, Viva. Ev...
Read more

THE SPANISH DANCE

Image
I remember reading this little story, many years ago. It was in Shiv Khera’s famous book: ‘YOU CAN WIN’. A man had a dog with an unusually special gift: he could run over water! Now, what a special gift that was, in deed! This man, obviously, felt proud about his gifted dog… and many, many people complimented him on it. He, undoubtedly, felt good about it. Then, one day, this man happened to meet an old, dear friend. He wanted to show this friend the special talent of his dog and took him along for hunting. They went to the countryside. There, he proudly demonstrated to his friend the unique talent of his dog. Every time he shot down a bird from the sky, the gifted dog, like a missile, would speed over the water, and fetch back the bird to his master. It happened repeatedly. “Did you see, my friend?” the man asked with immense pride. “Yes, I did?” replied the friend. “What did you see?” the man wanted to be reassured. “That, your dog can not swim!” Last night, I proudly ...
Read more
THE WILD, WAYSIDE FLOWERS
There is, always, something extra-ordinary in the wild, wayside flowers...