4 ms·

The writing style is truly terrible - I'm not sure the author understands full-stops (/periods). However, I read enough to discover how the deportation started

by NLips 14y ago

The writing style is truly terrible - I'm not sure the author understands full-stops (/periods). However, I read enough to discover how the deportation started, and I can understand why an official would have difficulty believing that a professional singer would be performing publicly for no comercial gain, if not for a charity gig.

wpietri 14y ago
I think the style is appealing: conversational, casual, stream-of-consciousness. He's using full stops to indicate longer pauses, not normal sentence structure. I'm sure it's a choice; the guy's first book has 100 Amazon reviews, most very positive: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1905483902 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1905483902 That said, it's terrible for the typical HN purpose, which is to extract maximum information in minimum time. I skimmed a bit, said, "Wha?" and moved on.
- trickaduu 14y ago
  Good to know, maximum info in minimum time, cheers!
objclxt 14y ago
Yeah, I found it really, really hard to read. I suspect it won't get many up-votes here because of that.
Nursie 14y ago
Yeah, I think she probably tripped over the no-work stuff. So you're a professional singer? Going to be doing any singing? You are, but you just said you're not going to be working over here... There's really no need for the whole thing to be so damn Kafkaesque (shut in empty rooms, not told what's going on for hours), but in all likelihood that's more to do with the sheer incompetence of UK airport staff than any actual malice. And they really are incompetent. I saw a fight break out in the passport line at heathrow airport one day, over a racist slur. I was amazed how far the staff let it go, they seemed compltely disinterested. In fact other civilians had to restrain the two fighters and the staff still did nothing until some of us started shouting "Aren't you going to get off your arses and bloody do anything?" Useless bastards...
- wpietri 14y ago
  I don't know how the UK does it, but the rule in Mexico is that people without work visas can't do anything people normally get paid for. I think that's to minimize shenanigans. "No, officer, I just wait tables here for fun. Nope, no pay. Why would they pay me?"
  - unwind 14y ago
    So if I go to Mexico, I can't code for fun on my laptop? I hope that's not the case.
    - mynegation 14y ago
      You can, but you should not be paid for that by Mexican company or individual
    - wpietri 14y ago
      You can code for fun, but my understanding is you can't do it for a Mexican entity. E.g., if you're hanging out at cafe and say, "Hey, let me make a website for you guys," that would be illegal. Actual enforcement varies, of course.
  - Nursie 14y ago
    I know there are specific exemptions for some stuff in the UK - tech support is one of these. If you have sold hardware or software to a UK company, you're allowed to come into the country and fix it with no special visa. Anything other than directly fixing the problem would be considered consultancy and a visa violation. There are some other exceptions but most work or work-like activities you'd need a visa of some sort for.
  - theorique 14y ago
    That seems to be a strange criterion. The waiting tables example is "obvious", and while some activities are only compensated for a small elite (playing basketball, musical performance), there are a lot of activities that might be compensated and might not. Or be compensated indirectly. For example, speaking at an academic or professional conference is "work", but it is probably not compensated (except possibly for a keynote or lead speaker). An author giving a book tour is work, but they are not getting paid for talks - instead, they may be "paid" in greater exposure for their work and possible increased sales.
teffen 14y ago
I agree. He rambles incoherently and it's hard read his writing with much flow. He even said how mopey he was so the story felt mopey to read, not necessarily appropriate for a play by play of a man's botched trip to London.
eloisant 14y ago
Immigration 101: just say you come to see Big Ben and Tower Bridge.
- alexkus 14y ago
  Indeed. London 101 though: It's tricky to see Big Ben as it's one of the bells housed inside the tower. The tower is officially called "Elizabeth Tower" (recently changed from the "Clock Tower" in honour of the Jubilee). There are tours to see the bells (and Big Ben itself) but they seem to be only available to UK residents via their MPs. I've never bothered to try (I'd rather sort out a tour of Lord's cricket ground first).
trickaduu 14y ago
Apologies. I must learn how to. Write. I've realised a good analogy would be if a golfer was going somewhere on holidays and was going to play a few rounds of leisurely golf with friends while he was there. The thing with the woman officer who stopped my friend and then interviewed her was that woman lied saying that she phoned music venues and they told her how many thousands of pounds my friend was going to be making. Completely. Ridiculously. Fabricated. Just started making stuff up to back up her case.

by NLips 14y ago

wpietri 14y ago

I think the style is appealing: conversational, casual, stream-of-consciousness. He's using full stops to indicate longer pauses, not normal sentence structure. I'm sure it's a choice; the guy's first book has 100 Amazon reviews, most very positive: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1905483902 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1905483902 That said, it's terrible for the typical HN purpose, which is to extract maximum information in minimum time. I skimmed a bit, said, "Wha?" and moved on.

trickaduu 14y ago
Good to know, maximum info in minimum time, cheers!

objclxt 14y ago

Yeah, I found it really, really hard to read. I suspect it won't get many up-votes here because of that.

Nursie 14y ago

Yeah, I think she probably tripped over the no-work stuff. So you're a professional singer? Going to be doing any singing? You are, but you just said you're not going to be working over here... There's really no need for the whole thing to be so damn Kafkaesque (shut in empty rooms, not told what's going on for hours), but in all likelihood that's more to do with the sheer incompetence of UK airport staff than any actual malice. And they really are incompetent. I saw a fight break out in the passport line at heathrow airport one day, over a racist slur. I was amazed how far the staff let it go, they seemed compltely disinterested. In fact other civilians had to restrain the two fighters and the staff still did nothing until some of us started shouting "Aren't you going to get off your arses and bloody do anything?" Useless bastards...

wpietri 14y ago
I don't know how the UK does it, but the rule in Mexico is that people without work visas can't do anything people normally get paid for. I think that's to minimize shenanigans. "No, officer, I just wait tables here for fun. Nope, no pay. Why would they pay me?"
- unwind 14y ago
  So if I go to Mexico, I can't code for fun on my laptop? I hope that's not the case.
  - mynegation 14y ago
    You can, but you should not be paid for that by Mexican company or individual
  - wpietri 14y ago
    You can code for fun, but my understanding is you can't do it for a Mexican entity. E.g., if you're hanging out at cafe and say, "Hey, let me make a website for you guys," that would be illegal. Actual enforcement varies, of course.
- Nursie 14y ago
  I know there are specific exemptions for some stuff in the UK - tech support is one of these. If you have sold hardware or software to a UK company, you're allowed to come into the country and fix it with no special visa. Anything other than directly fixing the problem would be considered consultancy and a visa violation. There are some other exceptions but most work or work-like activities you'd need a visa of some sort for.
- theorique 14y ago
  That seems to be a strange criterion. The waiting tables example is "obvious", and while some activities are only compensated for a small elite (playing basketball, musical performance), there are a lot of activities that might be compensated and might not. Or be compensated indirectly. For example, speaking at an academic or professional conference is "work", but it is probably not compensated (except possibly for a keynote or lead speaker). An author giving a book tour is work, but they are not getting paid for talks - instead, they may be "paid" in greater exposure for their work and possible increased sales.

teffen 14y ago

I agree. He rambles incoherently and it's hard read his writing with much flow. He even said how mopey he was so the story felt mopey to read, not necessarily appropriate for a play by play of a man's botched trip to London.

eloisant 14y ago

Immigration 101: just say you come to see Big Ben and Tower Bridge.

alexkus 14y ago
Indeed. London 101 though: It's tricky to see Big Ben as it's one of the bells housed inside the tower. The tower is officially called "Elizabeth Tower" (recently changed from the "Clock Tower" in honour of the Jubilee). There are tours to see the bells (and Big Ben itself) but they seem to be only available to UK residents via their MPs. I've never bothered to try (I'd rather sort out a tour of Lord's cricket ground first).

trickaduu 14y ago

Apologies. I must learn how to. Write. I've realised a good analogy would be if a golfer was going somewhere on holidays and was going to play a few rounds of leisurely golf with friends while he was there. The thing with the woman officer who stopped my friend and then interviewed her was that woman lied saying that she phoned music venues and they told her how many thousands of pounds my friend was going to be making. Completely. Ridiculously. Fabricated. Just started making stuff up to back up her case.