Odd Encounters

I'm actually hoping "odd encounters" is a tag I use often.

Had a big day's work yesterday, most of it in my office:

Located here:

That thing to the right is a public cooker. Press a button on either of the panels on the side you see there, and a flame is lit that heats up one of two pancake cooker-type surfaces on the top. Brilliant, huh? (That thing in the background is the Pacific Ocean. Have I mentioned that I live next to the Pacific Ocean? I must have...)

While working here the other morning a big Aussie bloke came shuffling up, and began to cook breakfast. He asked me if I wanted a ham and egg sandwich. When he said I'd have to go across the street for a bun, I declined. Lazy of me, I know. It was a very nice gesture.

Then he asked if I was on the internet, and before I could reply he sat down and proceeded to go to the Commonwealth Bank website, and checked his bank account. When he finished he said, "Logged off," and went back to cooking his breakfast.

This, I thought, when I realized what had just happened, was one of the dumber things I've done on Aussie soil.

Note to self: Do not let strangers, who may be members of nefarious computer hacking societies—or worse—use you computer to check their (Swiss? Nigerian?) bank accounts. If they have a bank account worth checking, they can surely find a public computer—there are rows of them in the malls—or an actual bank, to do such things.

Now back to work.