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Suzanne Harrison

E:mail sharrison@scmp.com

It must be nice to work at a Public Enquiry Service Centre (PESC) or the Sub-Treasury.

The bodies have awarded 'front-line staff' annual awards for their contributions in serving the community.

And not just for long hours or efficient service either. It seems everyone gets a look-in.

Wong Tai Sin PESC won an award yesterday for enthusiasm. How does one measure a year's worth of enthusiasm? Still, it's better than the apathy award.

Kowloon City PESC was presented with the cleanliness award. Well done!

Dining out:  This may come as a surprise, but journalists like to eat.

They also like to eat when they are working.

Still, there are some organisations that prefer to pen journalists off while assembled guests eat three-course meals.

Last week, the General Chamber of Commerce held its seventh annual summit where business and government heads spoke of their belief that Hong Kong will remain the hub of Asia.

It started at 9am with Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa extolling the virtues of China's entry into the World Trade Organisation and was due to finish at 2.30pm after a lunch in the main dining room. Lovely.

So it was with pleasure that journalists sauntered into the dining room - but then Lai See  saw the dreaded stiff-chair line-up and several reporters shuffling their feet at the back of the room.

Another journalist went outside while the meal was being served and asked for a glass of water.

'This is a paying bar,' she was told. And we thought the economy was improving.

Drink debacle:  Air travel sounds like it is becoming increasingly hazardous and it has nothing to do with the aircraft, the pilots or even random bombings.

Passengers are now believed to be not only at risk of deep vein thrombosis, but liable to join in with group attacks on drunken passengers trying to break into the cockpit.

Someone else's air rage can also ruin your holiday and mess up the offender's Christmas plans.

On Monday, an Aeroflot flight was awaiting take-off from Singapore when a fight broke out between two Russians who had (surprise, surprise) drunk too much vodka, AFP reports.

On their way to Moscow, Valery Gusevskoy and Alexandre Konolorev got into an argument in which Valery accused Alexandre of making a pass at his wife. It led to a swing, a black eye and a two-hour delay.

The result: Valery gets eight weeks in a Singapore jail and Alexandre a S$1,000 fine.

Watch that drinks trolley on your Christmas jaunt.

Brief fracas: Teenagers today have their work cut out for them. Between study and sport, they still have time to picket their principals about important issues such as underwear.

That's right. Undies. Well, g-strings, or thongs, or whatever you want to call them, have caused a ruckus at Salinas High School in California.

Jody Lasda, 16, believes her school is violating First Amendment rights by apparently asking female students to wear nasty full briefs or get a dress code fine.

Principal Joseph Pawlick denies he or other staff have 'fined' girls for wearing the underwear that saved women the world over from the dreaded scourge of the visible panty line.

Ms Lasda is now hoping to be elected to the student government body to voice her admirable opinions to all who are listening or could be bothered going to school that day.

She could be a US president in the making. She wouldn't be the first US leader to be fond of the thong.

Charlotte Parsons is on holiday

Graphic: whee20gbz



Front-line troops clean up awards