Wow. I really can't believe how stupid badminton sets are these days. The nets are bad, the racquets stink(not literally) , the birdies/shuttlecocks are HORRIBLE, and the instructions are not clear AT ALL. I think there are only, like, 3 good sets in the world. We've looked at various sets, in stores and online, and there were only a few that were actually good that didn't cost 7,000 dollars. Some were unstable, some were too short, some were way too complex and would take an hour to set up, some were just small, and some didn't even go into the ground more than an inch. Our last badminton set (from http://www.badmintonwarehouse.com) was finally good but it still had a flaw. The instructions suck. One side is in German, and the other side, we're pretty sure, was originally in German but someone put it in an English translator and pressed go. Here are the exact words from the instructions.
1.) Pull out the telescope poles like this
a.) Remove the screw fixture on the down part (A) and pull the
telescope poles out (till 3-4cm ca.)
b.) Now fix the crew fixture
c.) Remove the 2nd screw fixture to pull the rest of the telescope poles out (till 3-4cm ca.). Please care that both wholes (1+2) are visible
and open. Both wholes must be in the same direction.
d.) Now please fix the screw fixture
e.) The part with the black cap is on the top.
1.) For fixing the net, you have to put the strings through the wholes. After that please tie a knot. The white part of the net should be on top.
2.) Pull the string (D) on both poles through the first whole (2).
3.) Now you have to tighten the string (to the right and the left) and fix the string end with pegs in the ground.
Wh-- wh-- what? Okay, WHAT? It makes NO sense. Now the rest of the set is good, but the instructions, well, you saw.
Seriously though, how hard can it be to come out with a decent, inexpensive badminton set with good instructions? Maybe someday it will be easier to find a good, cheap badminton set.
Also, this last blogpost on my parents blog is really funny and so here's a link to it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Phillip--
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess I'm in a commenting mood today--
but I have to give you some credit, too, because when I read your post about badminton,
I became very emotional, and I knew I had to
have several drinks to calm down, and then,
after that, I said to myself, only just slightly slurring my words, "I have to give
this young man some badly needed perspective on his situation!"
Really, what you wrote sent me for a walk down
Memory Lane (ask your parents where that is).
As I strolled down it, smelling lilacs and whistling the "Barcarole"(ask your parents what that is), I remembered what badminton was like when I was a tadpole.
That was the period of my life just before I changed into a little boy, by the way. Didn't mean to confuse you!
Anyway, back then, we weren't sitting around
worrying about instruction sheets or the
cheapness of the equipment we were given, like
you whippersnappers today. No--this was in
the days before PETA and synthetic materials----we were forced to play not with plastic
"birdies," but with live birds.
Close your eyes and think about it--not for
long, because I don't want anything really bad to stay in your head. I'll just add that
we always had to dig a big trench near wherever we played, and keep a bucket of lime nearby. (Ask your parents what it was for.)
And afterwards, we always felt terrible--because in our little youthful hearts, we
had true love for all of God's creatures
(except our younger brothers and sisters),
and knew that the cruelty we had inflicted,
for a few moments of pleasure, was very, very
wrong. For me, it's something I have never, really, gotten over...
Wait a second...I just spilled my...wow, are
they making wine bottles smaller now, or...?
Anyway, I hope my comments have been helpful
to you. Put them under the heading of, "Count
Your Blessings." (Or as Ann Landers used to
say--ask your parents who she is--"Kwicherbitchin.")
This game you play now...well, let's just say
I think you should start calling it
"GOODminton," okay?
I'll keep following your work, young scribe.
Write on!
The Ancient Mariner
Philip--
ReplyDeleteHope you liked my first two responses to your
blog--but I wanted you to know that, in them,
I was just "fooling around." I can see that you have a very good sense of humor, which you got from your parents, so I wanted to entertain both you and them a bit, if I could. I hope I did. And it's okay if you didn't get all my jokes, because it only sharpens your young mind if you have to go
ask your Dad or Mom, "What did that mean?"
That's how I learned many things when I was nine, and I still remember most of them today.
But, no: I wasn't drinking alcohol when I wrote you. And no, to my knowledge, badminton
was never played with live birds instead of
"birdies." And, "Weekend at Bernie's" may not
be a movie you should be watching just yet.
When I was your age, I read two authors very
avidly--S.J. Perelman and Robert Benchley.
Not many nine-year-old boys read those authors, but like you, I was much smarter than most other nine-year-olds, and I loved
the way those two writers could use the English language--could construct a sentence--to make me laugh. I think when I
started reading your blog, I unconsciously
re-experienced reading their work, and so my first two responses to you were probably done with them in mind. I think you might like their writing a lot, too--being as bright as you are.
When they wrote, they weren't exactly themselves, like I am being with you here. Instead, they "adopted a comedic persona."
(Ask your parents what that means.)
I am in the process of reading all your blog
entries again, because they deserve specific
comment. But here, let me at least say that
I think all you say has a common theme--your sincere desire to see things that are not good become better.
That is just an outstanding quality in a young man, Phillip. The world always needs people who see what is wrong and are willing
to stand up and speak up about it. There are
never, never enough of those people. So to
see you being that kind of person at such an
early age--well, that's really inspiring to
me. And so, I also have to give your parents so much credit for raising you to be who you are.
I know you have many Bibles in your house, and I hope you will go look up a verse in
one of them that I think may very well describe you. It's Matthew 5:6. Ask your
parents about it if you don't at first know
what it means.
Okay, time for the Ol'Mariner to go. I'll
write again soon. Stay out of trouble--do
exactly what your parents say. Even if they
drag you everywhere, it would be a lot worse
if they never took you anywhere. They always
include you in everything because they are
keeping an eye on you to make sure you are
always okay, and because they just plain like
having you around. They love you.
So, that's pretty good, I think.
The Ancient Mariner
Philip--
ReplyDeleteTake a gander at internationalbadminton.org.
Impressive.
Best,
The Ol'M'ner
Philip--
ReplyDeleteAlso, feast your peepers on badmintonsetcentral.com.
Hard to believe such a place, let alone a
place by that name, exists: but, it does.
Smoke 'em if you got 'em,
TAM
best badminton sets
ReplyDelete