iMugged

Last month I was mugged and had my iPhone 4 stolen. In some sense I was lucky it wasn't worse, I didn't get beat up, they didn't take my wallet; they just threw me to the ground and asked me to give up my phone. In fact; my image doesn't really illustrate what happened at all. I was walking home late at night; not wearing white headphones, and I wasn't held up at gunpoint. But that's not the point. I was robbed; and then subsequently robbed again; when I went to replace my phone.

I went to the Apple store, and went right back to by the same 32GB iPhone 4 I had. I didn't want a different phone; I wanted the same one I had. Part of it was because I really enjoy the phone, but also I didn't want to be reminded every time I used my phone that I had an iPhone 4; and lost it. I had filed a police report that night; and was recommended by the officer to go to AT&T with my police paperwork (a flimsy white ticket not much larger than a bus ticket) and they would exclude me from the added fees. I was prepared to pay the $299 to buy a new one; but heres where the surprise was.

 It didn't cost the $299 I originally paid for it. It now cost $499. This was apparently 'good news' because it didn't cost me $699 instead. How lovely. AT&T's stance was that I was breaching my contract by being mugged, and now I had to sign a new contract; but was 'ineligible' for the 'new customer cost'. Apple people were sympathetic, but felt unable to change the price.

After talking to several people; Apple store managers, AT&T's store reps, AT&T customer services, AT&T Customer Services Managers; one thing is certain. It's the other guy's fault. Both AT&T and Apple made claims that the contract between them does not allow them to change this ruling; even though morally they conceited that they felt for me; and it was an 'unfortunate circumstance'. They felt powerless to make any concessions; and were playing by the rules.

What I don't get is this:
On the question of "who should pay for this?" the one logical answer to me is NOT the person who was mugged. I am the customer, and I am the victim; why am I being penalized? I have yet to get a satisfactory answer from anyone; and I welcome comments and suggestions.



The Apple Experience:
I love Apple products. My very first laptop that I purchased proved to me their consumer ethics, and had me coming back for more. In the fall of 2003, purchased a titanium Laptop; the last of its kind. There was speculation that a newer laptop would soon be arriving; but I could not be assured when. I called Apple, and bluntly asked the sales person if there was any word on when a new one would be coming; and their response was that they were not privy to this information.

I purchased a Titanium laptop that day; but I never got one.

Within 3 days of ordering my new computer, Apple announced a complete redesign of their laptops. The all new Aluminum G4, with 20 more gigabytes hard drive space. Two days later, I received an email from Apple, stating that my order was automatically upgraded to the new G4, at no extra cost.

This was Apple service at its finest. It may have cost them; but they were making an investment in their customer loyalty. Since then I have purchased a small arsenal of Apple gear:

4 iPods -
'02 touch wheel, '03 buttons on top, '03 iPod mini (for my sister), '06 iPod video

3 iPhones- 

'07 original, '10 iPhone 4, and iPhone 4 again after being mugged

3 laptops-
 the first Al as mentioned, Macbook Pro '05, and Macbook Pro '07

1 Tower-
 Mac Pro '09

1 iPad

Not to mention the software updates, accessories, etc. It's safe to say I'm a big fan, and a dedicated customer.

 I hope that my loyalty is not seen in vain, and that same set of ethics that I first experienced will have Apple reconsider this situation. I'm open to discussion, and I hope that if they feel these actions were the right ones, that they are able to show me their perspective.

Favorite TED Talks: Bonnie Bassler

http://www.ted.com/talks/bonnie_bassler_on_how_bacteria_communicate.html

One of my all-time favorite TED talks, Bonnie Bassler explains the system of bacteria, and gives us some perspective on what it is to be a 'mostly bacterial human'.

Textures of India

Continuing in the textures theme, these were some of the textures I saw in India.

A favorite of mine; a wall in Jaipur. Apparently the entire city was painted in a terra cotta-pink to celebrate the arrival of the King of England. This wall is what it looks like hundreds of years later.  

This was outside a rundown hotel in Alleppey. 

Textures of Hong Kong

What can textures tell you about a place? While I was in Hong Kong, I hiked around the peak parks to get a different perspective of the city; a place where natural and man made coexist.

 I was surprised to see familiar things like Moss in such bright colors.

The passing of time

New frontiers 

Man made and natural, living in harmony.

Dutch Vehicles

Little cars are  a growing trend. The Nano and Smart cars are the more recent in a long lineage of compacts. In The Netherlands I found even smaller cars; things that look like one person+bag movers. Even the larger 'truck' (bottom photo) was diminutive by most standards.

Preconceptions aside.

What I took away from this picture is that natural diversity can be more imaginative than what you would expect to find. Who would have thought that an animal would develop in such a way; and for what purpose? I took this picture at the Academy of Science; one of my favorite places to shoot (obviously without a flash, no need to blind the subject :)

International Trend: Environmental Graffiti

I'm always curious to see what people choose as subject matter in graffiti. This year I started to notice a new theme; Environmentalism. The top photo was taken in Amsterdam, and the bottom one in Hong Kong.

Spiders are beautiful.

While I do have a heightened sense of concern around them, spiders are something I have always enjoyed. They are a kingdom of creatures with tools of great sophistication (webs, venoms etc) how could you not appreciate them? The top one is one I found in Singapore, they're all over the jungles, intimidating in appearance but rather docile. They one below is an Orb Weaver from the Bay Area.

Seeing the little things.

One of my favorite activities is to photograph insects. I like to think of it as my observations into a smaller world that is often neglected. When you see something so small, be so intricate, so ingeniously designed; you can not help but appreciate it. It is easier to appreciate the classically more beautiful Butterflies, but if you look close enough to any insect there is something to admire. This praying mantis I found was less than one centimeter long, and almost perfectly blended into his 'natural' environment; a wrought iron fence in downtown Mumbai.

Inspiration can be found anywhere.

I was walking back to my apartment when I spotted a particularly interesting fire hydrant. While this everyday object may not warrant much attention, I have a fondness towards them. They are ever present in modern society, obediently standing on every corner. If you're careful enough to notice, they aren't all the same; in fact they can have character. Whether its a particular patina, or the juxtaposition of it to the road; theres always something.

Hong Kong Fire Hydrant

NYC Hydrant

I saw this on my way to work. I was amused by the caricature of the iconography; looked like a smiling fire hydrant :)