The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]


You Know Those Maximum Number Of People Signs In Lifts?
March 26, 2007, 9:34 am
Filed under: Comment

Let me tell you, they were wholly and souly created for the Asian market – especially at lunch and home times!!!

You see in Asia, ‘personal space’ doesn’t really mean that much … and given many Asians are much, much smaller than their Western counterparts [a colleague of mine – a mother of 2 – shops for her clothes at ZARA Kids!!!] … they can – and do – cram more people into a lift than you’d think is feasibly reasonable.

Infact when the earthquake happened a few weeks ago, I was in a lift with 21 people!

TWENTY ONE … and the lift is only supposed to hold 17!

OK … so you could ask what the hell we were doing in a lift after an earthquake, but I was tired and 36 flights of steps is just too many for me to consider, ha!

However my favourite thing about lifts in Asia is that people are more than happy to check themselves out, do their make-up, look up their noses all while some bald headed, 4-eyed Nottingham bloke stands in the corner,looking on with a sort-of confused look in his eye.

It’s as if when those doors close, you – and anyone in the lift with you – occupy a new land where the normal rules of social convention cease to apply.

This all might sound weird and horrid to you lot in London, Sydney, New York, LA, Nottingham, Melbourne etc etc … but you know what, this whole weirdness is part of the quirky wonderfulness of the region and being here it as it metamorphosis into the World power it is to become is something quite special – especially when I meet arrogant Western business/adpeople who think the ‘Far East’ is never going to usurp them from their throne.

They have no idea …

21 Comments

21 Comments so far
Leave a comment

Im sure they also appreciate the confused Nottingham bloke taking their picture for his blog!

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 2:51 pm

Yes … I tried to take the pic without being seen except there were 3 fatal flaws in my plan ..

1. No one can hold their mobile phone up against their chest without drawing some attention to themselves.

2. The lift is surrounded by mirrors so people could see the phone screen and what I was actually seeing.

3. I forgot to take the bloody ‘shutter sound’ off.

DAMN!

Result?

A lift-full of Asian people wondering what the hell I was doing! No one can look at me in the eye anymore – but then they couldn’t anyway given they are all so small. Ahem. Whoops.

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 3:40 pm

Munich, too, is confused.

Comment by Marcus Brown March 26, 2007 @ 3:56 pm

Yes … I sort of regret that post altogether now!

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 3:58 pm

I loved it when I was in Hong Kong, we went to the Bank of China in Fanling, and I had to stay ducked so my head didnt hit the celing.

It was nearly very embarassing when I found out I was taller than the toilet cubicle walls as well…

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 4:47 pm

Are you talking about your physical height or are you bragging about your ‘you-know-what’?

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 4:51 pm

Haha, height Rob. Definitely height.
I stood up and realised I could see into the other cubicles, so I ducked sharpish.

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 4:55 pm

Oh yeah, and my google rant has been up for days and still no Microsoft rant from you!

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 4:59 pm

I am officially a slack shit. Which is funny as a client said that to me today, ha

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 8:08 pm

Tut!
No revenge tale either…

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 8:09 pm

I sent you an email – didn’t you get it? Telling you about the revenge on Friday and that you should tell FMS about Chris Jaques.

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 9:21 pm

Dont think so, ill go check; been swamped with junk mail, may have missed it.

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 9:40 pm

No, I definitely havent got it.

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 9:44 pm

Bollocks … I said I’d love you to put my name forward to Mr FMS [though which company I have to represent is an interesting issue, ha] however the person he should definitely have is Chris Jaques – the CEO who got us to help him out in the first place – because he is a true visionary and inspiration … and given to the bollocks-wrapped-up-in-marketing-spin spouted by Kevin Roberts, I reckon he’d be a revelation. Seriously, you’d love him.

I’ll try and find the email tomorrow – my laptop has been having mental sessions. BUM!

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 9:48 pm

Oh … Chris is no longer with WPP [www.robcampbell.wordpress.com/2007/02/08/398/] but if Mr FMS is interested, I can put him in touch.

Right, Mika time – even though you are screwing your face at him, ha

Comment by Rob March 26, 2007 @ 9:51 pm

Ah, well i’m emailing him tonight; so i’ll mention you both.

If we could get you, Chris, Richard Huntingdon AND Russell Davies there, that would brilliant.

Comment by Rob Mortimer March 26, 2007 @ 9:51 pm

In a mudbath? You perverted young man, ha!

Comment by Rob March 27, 2007 @ 7:19 am

Genius

Comment by Rob March 29, 2007 @ 8:40 am

there’s your solution to getting more space in the lift, rob – start wearing huge feathers on your collar.

Comment by lauren March 29, 2007 @ 9:23 am

I could be the new Libarace!

Comment by Rob March 29, 2007 @ 10:52 am


RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI


Leave a Reply