Monday, January 14, 2013

Cityrail welcomes children of all ages

Sunday I went for an extended lunch in North Sydney with an old friend. Coming home a bit after six one of those things happened that make things worthwhile.

Shortly after joining the train for the city, the PA came on; a girl. This is the service to Richmond. Welcome ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls and children of all ages! The last was so unexpected that the woman sitting across the aisle and I simply looked at each other and burst out laughing.

It takes one child of all ages to know another! 

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Jim

Completely off topic, but just wanted to record the following somewhere:

Last night I got a call from "The Australian Cervical Cancer Foundation" (note the quotes; will come back to that) asking me to participate, yet again, in a fundraiser. Which I happily did, as I have done for over 10 years now. They are one of the few phone solicitations I let through my standard defences.

So they sent me a receipt via email and, because I was bored, I actually read it. Buried in very small grey-coloured type at the bottom is this:

"The raffle is conducted by Insight Holdings Consolidated Pty Ltd of 80 Cooper St, Surry Hills NSW 2010 phone: 1300 365 896 fax: 1300 733 121 email: c.service@insightcfs.com.au web: www.insightcfs.com.au on behalf of ACCF and receives 60% of the gross proceeds of the raffle from which they meet all the expenses of the raffle. The funds received by ACCF from the raffle are used for its charitable purposes."

- so my raffle/donation has been reduced to 40% of the amount pledged. Annoyed I looked up the accf.org.au website, and they are all very worthy people indeed, but as far as I can see, the major efforts of this "Australian" organisation are directed offshore.

I am sure it is all very worthy, and it probably shouldn't matter to me, but I feel somehow shortchanged that only 40% of my funds is going to the ACCF - and that they seem mostly to spend same overseas. I'm thinking the word "Australian" is very misleading in this sort of case - as was the initial "I'm ringing you on behalf of The A C C F" phone call.

But as I said: off topic.

kvd

Jim Belshaw said...

I can see why you might be annoyed, kvd. But a raffle inevitably involves prizes and selling costs. On the second, that's a little misleading.

Anonymous said...

Yes, I accept your comments Jim.

But this quite cuts to the quick as this particular organisation was one of the very few I retained after a 'watershed moment' some fifteen months after my wife had died. I was receiving 3-5 cold calls a week, mainly at night, soliciting these sorts of funds. And when I looked at my next Visa statement I had managed to donate $1860 that month to various large and small very worthy 'cold calls'. Flies (not bees) to a honeypot.

The cynic in me says 'they had my number' - and he is right, but I just thought they were somehow different.

kvd

Jim Belshaw said...

That's actually a very sad story, kvd. Given the context, I can see why you would be so upset.