Contrary to popular opinion, it seems those boys and girls at much maligned CableVision can be quick off the mark.

Just moments after her house was struck by lightning last week, a friend of Hester's was on the phone quick as a flash to try and get her idiot box back up and running.

When her call was eventually answered, our fan of the small screen simply said: "I'm calling because we need to get our cable put back on because our house has just been hit by lightning."

A distant voice was equally quick with a response. "Ah yes, we're already working on that," came the reassuring reply.

"But I haven't even told you where my house is yet," shot back Hester's friend.

It would appear CableVision's customer service staff - like Pavlov's dogs - are conditioned to instantly say that a problem is under control - even when they don't know where or what the problem is.

Like most of us, Hester has been gripped by 9/11 nostalgia and read with interest the memories of what people were doing on that fateful day.

One person Hester would like to see interviewed was the girl at Total Fitness she sat next to on exercise bikes as the tragedy unfolded.

While everyone in the room stopped what they were doing and watched in horror as footage was shown of the first plane hitting the World Trade Center and live footage of the next one crashing, one patron nonchalantly carried on pedalling and reading her magazine.

Hester would like to know what sort of crisis would cause this girl to stop perusing the agony aunt column of Marie Claire and pay attention. World War Three? The second coming?

Or maybe she was just waiting for the next episode of Jerry Springer.

Ever willing to do her bit for the Island's ailing tourism industry, Hester recently gave a rich tourist friend a tour of Dockyard.

But while Hester's guest was more than keen to part with his hard-earned greenbacks in exchange for knik-knacks, trinkets and other mementoes of his stay in paradise, it seems Dockyard shopkeepers had other ideas.

Store number one was shut firm with a note on the door saying that sales staff would be back at 1.10 p.m. to resume service. The problem was it was already well past 1.10 when Hester came calling with no sign of any sales staff on the horizon.

Moving on, Hester's next port of call was also locked to the public. When Hester peered inside and caught sight of the shop assistant, she simply lifted up a mug and nodded, as though to explain why she would not unlock the door. Obviously Hester had disturbed the busy woman's coffee break.

Dockyard's businessmen and women often bemoan the lack of visitors on their patch, but with such shoddy service surely they only have themselves to blame.

Still at Dockyard, Hester was enjoying the laid-back rhythms of Diane Reeves, India. Arie and company at the climax of this year's Bermuda Jazz Festival on Saturday night - until that is a booming voice announced over the PA system that a certain van owned by Paget Drycleaners was illegally parked and had to be moved. Had some embarrassed deliveryman been caught out enjoying the jazz while he should have been making deliveries? Judging from the number of occasions the Master of Ceremonies mentioned the offending company's name, Hester isn't sure if it wasn't just a very cheeky way of getting some free publicity.