I love to try out new things (cuisines, books, articles, movies etc) and in other aspects I am inertia personified. There are certain things that I do not want to change. I do not mind living in oblivion of existence of those changes.
Technology is one such piece -- I still use a cell phone which I bought in 2005. According to S, the museums are going to bid for it soon because it is an antique piece which even Cavemen will refuse to use. Until a few years ago, I thought that Blackberry is just a company that makes amazing trousers. (Try those trousers in Lifestyle in Bangalore, you wont regret). I am very possessive about Windows and am not ready to move on to iMac. And from the days of Netscape Navigator, I was a staunch follower of IE.
On the other hand, S is pretty open to change. She toggles between Firefox, IE and Chrome just like switching between popcorn and soda during an movie. She is already bored with her smart phone and wants to try out Android now. And she has plans to gift me a Macbook (that she has craved for last 1 year) for my birthday.
Things are changing now though. I am switching over to a real Blackberry now. I love the Chrome browser and have dropped IE as my primary browser for good.
In the midst of this mini-tech revolution in my life, my laptop started acting really weird. It was running on Vista and I hated it. It was just so annoying, to say the least, and I was waiting for an opportunity to switch back to the old school XP.
Fortunately for me, my laptop did not recognize the XP bootable CD in my collection and it got so angry with the other XP bootable that I borrowed from Me2 that the OS crashed for good.
So, another friend of mine graciously offered me a Vista Ultimate and Windows7 Ultimate CD from his CD library. For once, going back a few years was not an option. So, I decided to take the leap forward. What the heck? Vista sucks so bad, so Windows7 can not be any worse. Taking the nothing-to-lose approach, I installed Windows 7.
And what a pleasant surprise it was!!!
The installation was done in about 30 minutes. Customization was very easy. And other than finding a valid antivirus program, I had everything working in about an hour -- with all installations done.
Everything looks good -- in fact, it looks great -- on the new OS. Some annoying features from XP and a lot of thorns from Vista have been dropped. The new features function better, faster and most importantly, there are no irritating popup messages.
For the layman -- I love the Chess game here, primarily because there are no hints and I have to rack my brain. The desktop changes its wallpapers on its own every few minutes and you can customize the pictures you want to see as your wallpaper. A lot of the options and features are customizable and very flexible.
From a techy angle, the only drawback I see is that it occupies too much space on the hard disk. But hey, HDD are so cheap nowadays, just grab an addon and you are good to go. So far, have not found any software incompatibility issues and drivers are easy to find. There are clear instructions if you want to upgrade from XP to Windows 7 without having to format the system.
As I play around more and more, I am sure there will be some flaws unearthed, but well begun is half done. Microsoft, for a change, has launched a very good product and made inert people like me embrace a big change. They are even giving the Home version to students for just $10 and about $25 to select organizations for a trial period of 6 months.
I have been working on XP for almost 6 years now and was very cozy on XP. But I do not feel out of place with Windows 7 and for that matter, I am liking it.
Now waiting for my workplace to switch over to Windows 7 as well ;-)
For my 4 readers, give it a shot. You will not regret it, even if you are old school like me.
REALLY WTF
Had a glimpse of Rahul Mahajan's show -- Swayam-vadhu -- and the only Q that popped in my brain was WTF?
Why would any girl think of marrying Rahul Mahajan? Who is he? What are his qualifications?
-- divorced within a year of getting married
-- Caught doing drugs and drinking champagne when he was on his way to immerse his father's ashes
-- Has behaved foolishly and cheaply on national television on another reality show
-- His only ticket to success (his father) is dead 5 years ago and his family has no political future
-- And all these are his known vices. No one knows how many skeletons are in that closet.
-- Most of the "candidates" are atleast 10-12 years younger than him. Some are even 15-16 years younger than him.
In spite of all this, I can not understand, why? Really, WTF!!!
Why would any girl think of marrying Rahul Mahajan? Who is he? What are his qualifications?
-- divorced within a year of getting married
-- Caught doing drugs and drinking champagne when he was on his way to immerse his father's ashes
-- Has behaved foolishly and cheaply on national television on another reality show
-- His only ticket to success (his father) is dead 5 years ago and his family has no political future
-- And all these are his known vices. No one knows how many skeletons are in that closet.
-- Most of the "candidates" are atleast 10-12 years younger than him. Some are even 15-16 years younger than him.
In spite of all this, I can not understand, why? Really, WTF!!!
Sachin Mania
Sachin finally scaled the once-unassailable peak of 200. He thoroughly deserved to scale the peak just way he planned his innings that day, just the way he managed his stamina that day and just how everyone else played around him that day. More impressively, he was back on the field in the second innings right from the first over.
But, I am really amazed how everyone went crazy writing anything and everything about him that day and for the entire week. Some called him "God", some called him "Sun" and so on...
There are no doubts that he is one of the best cricketers who have played the game. Sheer statistics prove it and the fact that he has been playing the game for 21 years without any major controversy seal the deal. But does that make him a god? He is a model player, probably the best India has ever produced and still so humble and down to earth. A thorough family man and an ideal citizen.
The Q is -- does this make him a god? If you ask me, plain No.
His achievements in the field of cricket are great and probably, no one might ever surpass him. But so are the achievements of Vishwanathan Anand in Chess, Leander in Tennis and probably Dhanraj Pillai in hockey. They have done so much to make India proud in their respective fields. They might not be the best in the world, but they are the best in India (or atleast "were the best"). Are Abhinav Bindra or the other Olympic Gold Medallists any less important?
Why do we make him a god? Because, he himself says it -- This is a game which I love to play. The day I think I am not enjoying it, I am going to stop playing it. -- So, are we going to make him a Mango Man (Aam Aadmi) once he retires?
Atleast he is enjoying what he is doing. And, even if he loses a match, a series or the World Cup Final, he is going to come back to his palace of comforts. If he does not earn even 1 penny more, his next 2-3 generations can live a life of luxury.
For me, the soldier who is facing crazy weather, deadly terrorists and weird international politics in Jammu Kashmir is more praiseworthy. He is doing something which he does not enjoy, would love to do something else any day, and still does it with utmost sincerity. He does not know if he is going to survive that day or if some bullet has his name written on it. If he dies, his immediate family gets 2 Lakh rupees (after paying half of it as a bribe) and then has to struggle for existence for ever.
What abt Sandeep Unnikrishnan who died in 26/11 Mumbai attacks? What abt so many soldiers who died in Kargil?
But still, I would not term the soldier as god. For all their great deeds, I would not call them a god. Because, the term GOD is too sacred.
So Sachin. Great? Oh, Yes. God? No way. And let him stay that way. Please!!!
But, I am really amazed how everyone went crazy writing anything and everything about him that day and for the entire week. Some called him "God", some called him "Sun" and so on...
There are no doubts that he is one of the best cricketers who have played the game. Sheer statistics prove it and the fact that he has been playing the game for 21 years without any major controversy seal the deal. But does that make him a god? He is a model player, probably the best India has ever produced and still so humble and down to earth. A thorough family man and an ideal citizen.
The Q is -- does this make him a god? If you ask me, plain No.
His achievements in the field of cricket are great and probably, no one might ever surpass him. But so are the achievements of Vishwanathan Anand in Chess, Leander in Tennis and probably Dhanraj Pillai in hockey. They have done so much to make India proud in their respective fields. They might not be the best in the world, but they are the best in India (or atleast "were the best"). Are Abhinav Bindra or the other Olympic Gold Medallists any less important?
Why do we make him a god? Because, he himself says it -- This is a game which I love to play. The day I think I am not enjoying it, I am going to stop playing it. -- So, are we going to make him a Mango Man (Aam Aadmi) once he retires?
Atleast he is enjoying what he is doing. And, even if he loses a match, a series or the World Cup Final, he is going to come back to his palace of comforts. If he does not earn even 1 penny more, his next 2-3 generations can live a life of luxury.
For me, the soldier who is facing crazy weather, deadly terrorists and weird international politics in Jammu Kashmir is more praiseworthy. He is doing something which he does not enjoy, would love to do something else any day, and still does it with utmost sincerity. He does not know if he is going to survive that day or if some bullet has his name written on it. If he dies, his immediate family gets 2 Lakh rupees (after paying half of it as a bribe) and then has to struggle for existence for ever.
What abt Sandeep Unnikrishnan who died in 26/11 Mumbai attacks? What abt so many soldiers who died in Kargil?
But still, I would not term the soldier as god. For all their great deeds, I would not call them a god. Because, the term GOD is too sacred.
So Sachin. Great? Oh, Yes. God? No way. And let him stay that way. Please!!!
The Loan...
There is this school going boy N and his elder sis M goes to the same school. M is elder than N by a couple of years or so, and is 2 classes ahead of him.
N is in 8th standard and M is in her 10th standard. She has to go to her coaching classes which is pretty far away (for a 15 year old to travel all alone), so her parents give her more pocket money than usual for a rainy day. N is wondering, what does M do with all her money?
N is now in 9th standard and M is in junior college (PUC). As a college kid, M gets more pocket money compared to N. M is a darling and always keeps on lending money to her kid bro N without ever asking it back. She even gets surprise gifts (pens / T-shirts) for N once in a while, and still manages to save some money. N always spends off all his cash and keeps wondering, what does M do with all her money?
N now goes to junior college (PUC) and M is now attending her graduation school in the University. Her pocket money is still more than N and she continues to be the darling money lender. Sometimes she gives money even without N asking for it. N's wallet is thicker miraculously to sponsor his Friendship day, Rose day and Annual day. M saves more and N spends more. N still wonders, what does M do with all her money?
N is now pursuing Engineering and M is working. She stops taking pocket money from her parents and instead, asks them to give all of it to N. N travels more than 70 km every day by train and hence is remunerated appropriately by his parents. Still, its not enough for him. M gives a good chunk of her salary to N and never mentions it to her parents. M is now saving more than ever and N is spending even more. And still he wonders, what does M do with all her money?
N now has a job and M is back in school, pursuing law. She manages her expenses very carefully with her pocket money and her savings. N does not make a lot but is very prompt on spending everything he earns within the first weekend. Every time he sees M with enough savings, he wonders what does M do with all her money?
N gets a very good job and earns more than he needs. Still, he does not save anything. He gets an opportunity to go abroad. M has just passed out of her law school and has purchased a T-shirt for N out of her first salary. At the airport, M gives him this T-shirt with her best wishes.
N learns a very valuable lesson. He saves everything he earned out of his onsite stint. His saving habit does not change even after he is back in India.
Within 1 year, M gets married. Anything and everything that M wanted in her wedding -- the wedding sari, the reception sharara, the mehendi lady, the make up lady, the food menu, the wedding hall, the decoration for the reception, the gifts to the guests -- was fulfilled. N exhausted all his savings till date for the wedding.
A couple of days after the wedding, when M met N, she said -- "N, I always wondered what does N do with all the money I give him? But today, you repaid everything back at the right time".
N replied "I just paid the interest back, the loan will stay with me forever".
N is in 8th standard and M is in her 10th standard. She has to go to her coaching classes which is pretty far away (for a 15 year old to travel all alone), so her parents give her more pocket money than usual for a rainy day. N is wondering, what does M do with all her money?
N is now in 9th standard and M is in junior college (PUC). As a college kid, M gets more pocket money compared to N. M is a darling and always keeps on lending money to her kid bro N without ever asking it back. She even gets surprise gifts (pens / T-shirts) for N once in a while, and still manages to save some money. N always spends off all his cash and keeps wondering, what does M do with all her money?
N now goes to junior college (PUC) and M is now attending her graduation school in the University. Her pocket money is still more than N and she continues to be the darling money lender. Sometimes she gives money even without N asking for it. N's wallet is thicker miraculously to sponsor his Friendship day, Rose day and Annual day. M saves more and N spends more. N still wonders, what does M do with all her money?
N is now pursuing Engineering and M is working. She stops taking pocket money from her parents and instead, asks them to give all of it to N. N travels more than 70 km every day by train and hence is remunerated appropriately by his parents. Still, its not enough for him. M gives a good chunk of her salary to N and never mentions it to her parents. M is now saving more than ever and N is spending even more. And still he wonders, what does M do with all her money?
N now has a job and M is back in school, pursuing law. She manages her expenses very carefully with her pocket money and her savings. N does not make a lot but is very prompt on spending everything he earns within the first weekend. Every time he sees M with enough savings, he wonders what does M do with all her money?
N gets a very good job and earns more than he needs. Still, he does not save anything. He gets an opportunity to go abroad. M has just passed out of her law school and has purchased a T-shirt for N out of her first salary. At the airport, M gives him this T-shirt with her best wishes.
N learns a very valuable lesson. He saves everything he earned out of his onsite stint. His saving habit does not change even after he is back in India.
Within 1 year, M gets married. Anything and everything that M wanted in her wedding -- the wedding sari, the reception sharara, the mehendi lady, the make up lady, the food menu, the wedding hall, the decoration for the reception, the gifts to the guests -- was fulfilled. N exhausted all his savings till date for the wedding.
A couple of days after the wedding, when M met N, she said -- "N, I always wondered what does N do with all the money I give him? But today, you repaid everything back at the right time".
N replied "I just paid the interest back, the loan will stay with me forever".
Something nice to see
There was a fire in Carlton Towers on Old Airport Rd in Bangalore. 9 people died and several injured. Blood is of utmost importance for a speedy recovery.
But in India, the hospitals require that the patient's relatives arrange for a replacement donor before any blood transfusion request is entertained (yes, thats true). If you can convince the authorities that you will get a replacement donor later, then they allow the blood transfusion to happen. Else, the clock keeps on ticking.
So, for the ppl injured in today's fire, there needed to be immediate blood donors available. Intelligently, there were lots of requests sent via twitter and responses were immediate. And within an hour, there were enough volunteer donors at all Bangalore Hospitals. Actually, more than enough, because soon enough, there were tweets sent to stop volunteers rushing to the blood banks.
Feels good to see technology used for a good cause for once. Instead of all MMS scandals, this is one instance of good usage of technology.
Reminds me of something similar by Shashi Tharoor. He met a kid who needed funds for education and instead of helping the kid himself, he just tweeted about it. In less than a day, there were more than enough funds for the kid to not only complete basic education, but even to do his post-graduation.
And the only tweets from Shashi Tharoor that received publicity were Cattle-class.
But in India, the hospitals require that the patient's relatives arrange for a replacement donor before any blood transfusion request is entertained (yes, thats true). If you can convince the authorities that you will get a replacement donor later, then they allow the blood transfusion to happen. Else, the clock keeps on ticking.
So, for the ppl injured in today's fire, there needed to be immediate blood donors available. Intelligently, there were lots of requests sent via twitter and responses were immediate. And within an hour, there were enough volunteer donors at all Bangalore Hospitals. Actually, more than enough, because soon enough, there were tweets sent to stop volunteers rushing to the blood banks.
Feels good to see technology used for a good cause for once. Instead of all MMS scandals, this is one instance of good usage of technology.
Reminds me of something similar by Shashi Tharoor. He met a kid who needed funds for education and instead of helping the kid himself, he just tweeted about it. In less than a day, there were more than enough funds for the kid to not only complete basic education, but even to do his post-graduation.
And the only tweets from Shashi Tharoor that received publicity were Cattle-class.
Contradiction theory
Ever wondered how some things contradict themselves? Here are a few examples which have kept me guessing every time I hear / see / read anything abt --
1 - Auto Insurance -- Every company who offers auto insurance always claims that they charge 200-300-400... even 1000 dollars less than its business rivals. Still, everyone thinks that they are overpaying on their auto insurance.
2 - Cosmetics -- Every cosmetics company in the world claims that their products make the user look younger and more beautiful. If women keep on using cosmetics every day, then by now, the only cosmetic products that would be needed would be baby skin products. Because every existing product makes a woman look even younger. So, after years of using these products, the skin should be like a baby's skin right?
Still, they keep on making newer products. To make the user look even younger.
3 - A SC Johnson Family company -- This company makes so many home use products -- room fresheners, candles, cleaning wipes, dusters and sprays. And they really have no competition. So, in most of their ads, they end up belittling their older products and prove how their newer products are better.
4 - US Government -- Every Councillor, governor, senator, congressman and president promises to cut spending across the ranks while campaigning for the election. Yet the federal budget continues to grow, leaps and bounds. Every time Mr. President makes an announcement with some initiative to add new jobs, the unemployment goes up by atleast 10 points.
Some things are so self-contradictory.
1 - Auto Insurance -- Every company who offers auto insurance always claims that they charge 200-300-400... even 1000 dollars less than its business rivals. Still, everyone thinks that they are overpaying on their auto insurance.
2 - Cosmetics -- Every cosmetics company in the world claims that their products make the user look younger and more beautiful. If women keep on using cosmetics every day, then by now, the only cosmetic products that would be needed would be baby skin products. Because every existing product makes a woman look even younger. So, after years of using these products, the skin should be like a baby's skin right?
Still, they keep on making newer products. To make the user look even younger.
3 - A SC Johnson Family company -- This company makes so many home use products -- room fresheners, candles, cleaning wipes, dusters and sprays. And they really have no competition. So, in most of their ads, they end up belittling their older products and prove how their newer products are better.
4 - US Government -- Every Councillor, governor, senator, congressman and president promises to cut spending across the ranks while campaigning for the election. Yet the federal budget continues to grow, leaps and bounds. Every time Mr. President makes an announcement with some initiative to add new jobs, the unemployment goes up by atleast 10 points.
Some things are so self-contradictory.
STRENGTH OR NUISANCE VALUE?
The Tiger is turning senile. Desperate to prove his clout, he is trying to flex his muscle to the point that it might snap.
It is difficult to accept the fact that you are no longer strong. Right, "no longer strong". The superlative forms of this word "stronger" and "strongest" do not apply to ShivSena any longer. Long gone are the heydays of mid-1990s when it was at its crowning glory with power in the state and center. Today it is a political party struggling hard to justify their existence. And Bal Thackeray is not helping by farting like a someone with an overdose of beans.
There were strong indications of his idiosyncracies when he named his son as his successor instead of his well-groomed nephew. Hey, if you want to run your organization as your home, feel free. But remember, Shivsena is a public company and, sooner or later, your shareholders are going to drop you like a hot potato if you fail to deliver. Remember, yeh public hai aur yeh sab jaanti hai...
Today, the only time Shivsena or MNS are heard of is when they create some sort of ruckus. Their tirade against North Indians or insistence of Marathi or ridiculous bans on movies or sports. Ask them to show even one constructive act in the last decade and the debate ends then and there.
It is very heart wrenching for someone who grew up as a hard core Shiv Sainik to write this blog. If someone would have foretold this to me 15 years ago, I would have never believed it. But today, a progressive India led by Manmohan Singh, P. Chidambaram and Montek Singh Ahluwalia feels more magnetic. Rahul Gandhi's educated speech is more charming than Udhhav Thackeray's artificially pumped argument.
Someone needs to explain the difference to Mr Thackeray (any of the 3 Thackerays) that there is a very subtle difference between strength and nuisance value. Strength is something that empowers weak people and brings them closer. Nuisance value is something that helps no one, makes the society weaker and alienates you from your followers.
Open your eyes and face the harsh reality before its too late.
It is difficult to accept the fact that you are no longer strong. Right, "no longer strong". The superlative forms of this word "stronger" and "strongest" do not apply to ShivSena any longer. Long gone are the heydays of mid-1990s when it was at its crowning glory with power in the state and center. Today it is a political party struggling hard to justify their existence. And Bal Thackeray is not helping by farting like a someone with an overdose of beans.
There were strong indications of his idiosyncracies when he named his son as his successor instead of his well-groomed nephew. Hey, if you want to run your organization as your home, feel free. But remember, Shivsena is a public company and, sooner or later, your shareholders are going to drop you like a hot potato if you fail to deliver. Remember, yeh public hai aur yeh sab jaanti hai...
Today, the only time Shivsena or MNS are heard of is when they create some sort of ruckus. Their tirade against North Indians or insistence of Marathi or ridiculous bans on movies or sports. Ask them to show even one constructive act in the last decade and the debate ends then and there.
It is very heart wrenching for someone who grew up as a hard core Shiv Sainik to write this blog. If someone would have foretold this to me 15 years ago, I would have never believed it. But today, a progressive India led by Manmohan Singh, P. Chidambaram and Montek Singh Ahluwalia feels more magnetic. Rahul Gandhi's educated speech is more charming than Udhhav Thackeray's artificially pumped argument.
Someone needs to explain the difference to Mr Thackeray (any of the 3 Thackerays) that there is a very subtle difference between strength and nuisance value. Strength is something that empowers weak people and brings them closer. Nuisance value is something that helps no one, makes the society weaker and alienates you from your followers.
Open your eyes and face the harsh reality before its too late.
SMELLS FISHY
(Heads up -- Pls do not click on any links until you read the entire posting. Click on the links after reading the posting once to reveal the hidden players.)
This is the story of a small village, one of the most prosperous, amongst all other villages in the vicinity. This village represented the stuff dreams are made of and everyone craved to eventually live in this village.
In this village, there were 3 doctors (Doc1, Doc2 and Doc3). These "original" doctors were born and brought up in this village, local "sons-of-the-soil". They lived together happily, taking care of the villagers whenever anyone needed help. They were loved by everyone and everyone was proud of them. They were considered icons of this prosperous village and served as an example to the rest of the villages.
Then slowly, as the "land of the dream" beckoned, more and more doctors came to this village to ply their trade. A few of them never made it big, a bunch of them cracked it big. The ones who cracked it big were "specialists", who mastered a particular branch of medicine.
Slowly, two specialists (One and Two) started encroaching the space owned by the originals. And why not, they gave better service for lesser fees. Whenever any patient visited the originals, they used to fall ill soon. But instead, if they visit these specialists, they never fell ill again or at least not for a long time.
Gradually, the reputation of these specialists overshadowed the love and pride for the originals. The specialists were icons of success and originals were the icons of failure. Villagers from far and wide used these examples in their day to day life to quote success and failure stories.
The originals were out of business and out of money. They eventually asked the villagers to get them some money so that their hospitals can survive for some time at least. They promised to work hard, charge less and give good service in return for the financial assistance. The villagers had no option but to lend a helping hand to their one-time pride icons.
But as soon as the money came in, the villagers started demanding a recovery plan. The doctors were threatened to shut shop unless a recovery plan was put in place and there were enough signs of the recovery plan working. The game was slipping away from the originals and something had to be done to restore parity.
And then, one of the super-successful specialists committed a mistake. It was something which was not as serious, but then the scavengers pounced on it. It was made to look way bigger than it actually was. The local news reporters played their part hype up the whole thing.
Suddenly it was found that the other super-successful specialists committed a mistake as well. The media feasted on these specialists with an aim to subdue these specialists and create enough space for the originals to grow again. Slowly, there will be equilibrium and all of them will graze in the green pastures of the village for next few years.
Until, the neo-specialists threaten the survial of the neo-originals and commit a mistake...
This is the story of a small village, one of the most prosperous, amongst all other villages in the vicinity. This village represented the stuff dreams are made of and everyone craved to eventually live in this village.
In this village, there were 3 doctors (Doc1, Doc2 and Doc3). These "original" doctors were born and brought up in this village, local "sons-of-the-soil". They lived together happily, taking care of the villagers whenever anyone needed help. They were loved by everyone and everyone was proud of them. They were considered icons of this prosperous village and served as an example to the rest of the villages.
Then slowly, as the "land of the dream" beckoned, more and more doctors came to this village to ply their trade. A few of them never made it big, a bunch of them cracked it big. The ones who cracked it big were "specialists", who mastered a particular branch of medicine.
Slowly, two specialists (One and Two) started encroaching the space owned by the originals. And why not, they gave better service for lesser fees. Whenever any patient visited the originals, they used to fall ill soon. But instead, if they visit these specialists, they never fell ill again or at least not for a long time.
Gradually, the reputation of these specialists overshadowed the love and pride for the originals. The specialists were icons of success and originals were the icons of failure. Villagers from far and wide used these examples in their day to day life to quote success and failure stories.
The originals were out of business and out of money. They eventually asked the villagers to get them some money so that their hospitals can survive for some time at least. They promised to work hard, charge less and give good service in return for the financial assistance. The villagers had no option but to lend a helping hand to their one-time pride icons.
But as soon as the money came in, the villagers started demanding a recovery plan. The doctors were threatened to shut shop unless a recovery plan was put in place and there were enough signs of the recovery plan working. The game was slipping away from the originals and something had to be done to restore parity.
And then, one of the super-successful specialists committed a mistake. It was something which was not as serious, but then the scavengers pounced on it. It was made to look way bigger than it actually was. The local news reporters played their part hype up the whole thing.
Suddenly it was found that the other super-successful specialists committed a mistake as well. The media feasted on these specialists with an aim to subdue these specialists and create enough space for the originals to grow again. Slowly, there will be equilibrium and all of them will graze in the green pastures of the village for next few years.
Until, the neo-specialists threaten the survial of the neo-originals and commit a mistake...
WELL SAID - 2
This one comes from Randy Pausch in his last lecture. The whole lecture qualifies under this series, but one sentence particularly captured the gist of the "last" lecture.
How apt in that scenario!!!
We can not change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.
How apt in that scenario!!!
Logged in to www.timesofindia.com to check out the latest news and this is how the page looked.
1 - Something terrible happened 14 months ago and even today we have not done anything about it. There is 1 fellow caught, he denies everything he was caught doing and we are spending crores to protect him.
2 - A person with dubious history of financial dealings gets Padma Bhushan simply because he supposedly facilitated a very important deal between India and US, though he did nothing really.
3 - A political party surviving for existence is trying to squeeze one more drop out of an issue which has already been chewed to death. Apparently with an election due in 2 years.
4 - A celebrity craved for publicity does another act, just to stay in the limelight.
5 - Tips to get a gun.
6 - Finally, one achievement for India -- and immediately someone else has to comment on it.
7 - Another publicity hungry celeb gives a "byte"
8 - No comment on children and pornography. They just dont fit in the same world.
9 - One stupid player bites the ball and creates news. Its called "Bite-gate".
10 - A home minister can not guarantee safety of the countrymen promises security for Australian cricketers.
11 - Stray dogs reach black bucks before Salman-Saif can.
12 - One family likes its d-i-l and it makes news. Thats 2 times in the day for the same family. Target achieved for the day, lets think abt making news tomorrow.
What is there to look forward to read when you open the website? (Read it as -- what is there to read when you get the newspaper in the morning?)
Reminds me of a very good article I had read many many years back. How true can an article be, even 10-15 years after it is published!!! How I wish I could get a picture of that article?
Those were the days when Yasser Arafat was alive and Israel-Palestine were going at each other fiercely. Just one day ago, there were 2 suicide bombings in Jerusalem claiming the lives of at least 20 odd civilians. Try taking a guess that the day's newspaper headline.
The headline was about how an old couple had grown a beautiful garden in their backyard in spite of the terrible summer that year. It had elaborate pictures of all the rare flowers they had grown in spite of all the water problems. A smiling picture of the old couple sharing was at the top center of the page.
And no, that newspaper did not live in denial. The details of the blasts from the previous day, the names of the victims and other grim details were listed on page 2.
But that article at the forefront of the newspaper ensured that anyone who opens the newspaper starts to read it with a sweet smile. The smile will survive the scars of page 2 for sure. More importantly, the reader will enjoy reading the newspaper. Even after the newspaper is folded and kept aside, the happy news will keep on showing up and continue to soothe even the quickest of glances. And most importantly, the reader will look forward to reading the newspaper the next day... every day...
How I wish I could get a picture of that article? Not only for my blog readers, but for the news reporters and newspaper editors of tomorrow.
1 - Something terrible happened 14 months ago and even today we have not done anything about it. There is 1 fellow caught, he denies everything he was caught doing and we are spending crores to protect him.
2 - A person with dubious history of financial dealings gets Padma Bhushan simply because he supposedly facilitated a very important deal between India and US, though he did nothing really.
3 - A political party surviving for existence is trying to squeeze one more drop out of an issue which has already been chewed to death. Apparently with an election due in 2 years.
4 - A celebrity craved for publicity does another act, just to stay in the limelight.
5 - Tips to get a gun.
6 - Finally, one achievement for India -- and immediately someone else has to comment on it.
7 - Another publicity hungry celeb gives a "byte"
8 - No comment on children and pornography. They just dont fit in the same world.
9 - One stupid player bites the ball and creates news. Its called "Bite-gate".
10 - A home minister can not guarantee safety of the countrymen promises security for Australian cricketers.
11 - Stray dogs reach black bucks before Salman-Saif can.
12 - One family likes its d-i-l and it makes news. Thats 2 times in the day for the same family. Target achieved for the day, lets think abt making news tomorrow.
What is there to look forward to read when you open the website? (Read it as -- what is there to read when you get the newspaper in the morning?)
Reminds me of a very good article I had read many many years back. How true can an article be, even 10-15 years after it is published!!! How I wish I could get a picture of that article?
Those were the days when Yasser Arafat was alive and Israel-Palestine were going at each other fiercely. Just one day ago, there were 2 suicide bombings in Jerusalem claiming the lives of at least 20 odd civilians. Try taking a guess that the day's newspaper headline.
The headline was about how an old couple had grown a beautiful garden in their backyard in spite of the terrible summer that year. It had elaborate pictures of all the rare flowers they had grown in spite of all the water problems. A smiling picture of the old couple sharing was at the top center of the page.
And no, that newspaper did not live in denial. The details of the blasts from the previous day, the names of the victims and other grim details were listed on page 2.
But that article at the forefront of the newspaper ensured that anyone who opens the newspaper starts to read it with a sweet smile. The smile will survive the scars of page 2 for sure. More importantly, the reader will enjoy reading the newspaper. Even after the newspaper is folded and kept aside, the happy news will keep on showing up and continue to soothe even the quickest of glances. And most importantly, the reader will look forward to reading the newspaper the next day... every day...
How I wish I could get a picture of that article? Not only for my blog readers, but for the news reporters and newspaper editors of tomorrow.
MORE FLICKS
S and I continued on our movie mania in the new year. This weekend we saw 2 new movies -- one which I wanted to see from some time and the other one was totally unexpected.
S and I were at a local grocery store when we accidentally bumped into a Red Box kiosk. We had been contemplating for a while to try it out. So, we start browsing on the movies available for pickup. After rejecting a bunch of unattractive ones and a few already seen, we zeroed in on this one.
This movie is a remake of a 1956 film noir movie. It was gripping from the start and never let the grip loosen. Every sequence kept us interested and the ending was very good. Considering that we had never heard of the movie and picked it out of the blue, it ended to be a very pleasant surprise.
Even though we knew the ending (at a high level), it was the "how" that kept us glued to the sofa. And that is the sign of a very good movie. If a movie has the capacity to hold you interested even when you know the ending, then the director has succeeded in his act.
After the movie, I read more about the movie online. It turned out that this movie has just a 4% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Something must be definitely wrong with the people who rated this movie. From my end though, totally recommended at least for one time viewing.
The second one was something which I wanted to see for some time. Have been hearing from many that this one is hilarious. And it did not disappoint even an ounce. Every minute of the movie ended up cracking us like crazy. Reminded me of my crazy adventures in Mumbai especially Saturday nights when we used to end up wasted at Carter Road near the Sea Face.
Today, coincidentally, I was talking to a friend and found this movie's DVD at her desk. The DVD mentioned in bold -- "KILLER FUNNY". Could not agree any more.
S and I were at a local grocery store when we accidentally bumped into a Red Box kiosk. We had been contemplating for a while to try it out. So, we start browsing on the movies available for pickup. After rejecting a bunch of unattractive ones and a few already seen, we zeroed in on this one.
This movie is a remake of a 1956 film noir movie. It was gripping from the start and never let the grip loosen. Every sequence kept us interested and the ending was very good. Considering that we had never heard of the movie and picked it out of the blue, it ended to be a very pleasant surprise.
After the movie, I read more about the movie online. It turned out that this movie has just a 4% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Something must be definitely wrong with the people who rated this movie. From my end though, totally recommended at least for one time viewing.
The second one was something which I wanted to see for some time. Have been hearing from many that this one is hilarious. And it did not disappoint even an ounce. Every minute of the movie ended up cracking us like crazy. Reminded me of my crazy adventures in Mumbai especially Saturday nights when we used to end up wasted at Carter Road near the Sea Face.
Today, coincidentally, I was talking to a friend and found this movie's DVD at her desk. The DVD mentioned in bold -- "KILLER FUNNY". Could not agree any more.
DIGITALLY ENABLED, MENTALLY DISABLED
S and I were at a birthday party at a friend's place. After the dinner was done, we were all yapping our way to glory when suddenly one of us noticed -- there were 3 kids in the room and there was absolutely no noise.
The kids were playing nicely -- on their respective parents cell phones. All the kids were sitting the same room but there were no toys around. They were not playing with each other, for that matter not even looking at each other. Each one was totally engrossed in their cell phones, playing some game. The parents were more than happy to lend their cell phones to the little ones as long as an hour of yap time was ensured.
Far from our days when meeting cousins or kids of the the same age was good enough a reason to raise hell. Playing outside in the backyard continued until parents threatened to break our legs.
That really reminded me of how much our day to day life is now dependent on the digital instruments. My nephew has very subtly captured it here. Today we have items to do some things which leave me totally stunned --
The kids were playing nicely -- on their respective parents cell phones. All the kids were sitting the same room but there were no toys around. They were not playing with each other, for that matter not even looking at each other. Each one was totally engrossed in their cell phones, playing some game. The parents were more than happy to lend their cell phones to the little ones as long as an hour of yap time was ensured.
Far from our days when meeting cousins or kids of the the same age was good enough a reason to raise hell. Playing outside in the backyard continued until parents threatened to break our legs.
That really reminded me of how much our day to day life is now dependent on the digital instruments. My nephew has very subtly captured it here. Today we have items to do some things which leave me totally stunned --
- Usage of digital toothbrush is one of them. How can one be so tired / bored of brushing their teeth that they need a tool to do that?
- Or for that matter, how many of us remember the route to the friend's new home that we visited a few days back? GPS and Mapquest has reduced the sense of direction to a mere history.
- The art of remembering TO-DO's has been made dispensable by presence of reminders on cell phones and organizers.
- Kids have forgotten what it meant to play like zombies during summer vacations and instead play uno / car racing and cricket online via internet, sitting in the cozy comforts of their rooms.
How ironical that digital inventions that were supposed to make our life better is actually making us dumb and obsolete?
ITS ALL OVER
Its all over now...
Just 6 days after S and I went and met M, I got a call today to inform that cruel fate eventually won over eternal hope. Alls the doctors and deities together could not pull off a miracle.
May P's soul rest in peace. May god give M and her family all the strength at this difficult moment.
Just 6 days after S and I went and met M, I got a call today to inform that cruel fate eventually won over eternal hope. Alls the doctors and deities together could not pull off a miracle.
May P's soul rest in peace. May god give M and her family all the strength at this difficult moment.
BAT UP BOY
Never realized that my last post was actually my 100th post.
Never thought that when I wrote my first post almost 3 1/2 years ago, that this blog will reach 3 figures. Actually, my blogging frequency is going up every year (7 posts in 2006, 18 posts in 2007, 25 posts in 2008 and 44 posts in 2009) and what more, I am really enjoying it. This is already my 4th post in 2010.
Just like we cheer up any batsman from our team when he hits a century, I am cheering up myself today -- BAT UP BOY!!!
Never thought that when I wrote my first post almost 3 1/2 years ago, that this blog will reach 3 figures. Actually, my blogging frequency is going up every year (7 posts in 2006, 18 posts in 2007, 25 posts in 2008 and 44 posts in 2009) and what more, I am really enjoying it. This is already my 4th post in 2010.
Just like we cheer up any batsman from our team when he hits a century, I am cheering up myself today -- BAT UP BOY!!!
AAL IS WELL? Really?
After almost 10 years, I went to a hospital on Sunday. Both S and I are fine by god's grace, we went there to see someone.
The last time I had been to a hospital was in early 2000 when my granny was not well. Every time I used to visit her and see her howling out of pain due to a broken pelvis, my heart used to bleed. I used to come out of the hospital helpless and forlorn.
Since then, the only time I had visited a hospital was to donate blood (twice actually, once to Jayadeva hospital and once to Narayana Hrudralaya) and actually came out satisfied both the times because I had a chance to meet the receipients of my donated blood. One was a IISC scientist and the other one was a farmer.
Other than these 2 chances, I never went to any hospital in the last 10 years. Not to see a newborn, not to see any accident victim or not for any good causes. So, last Sunday, when I had to visit Duke University Medical Center to see someone, I knew that it was not going to be some experience.
M is my colleague and good friend (both of us are Maharashtrians). M's husband P is seriously ill and admitted to Duke. The memories that I have of P are that of a tall, slim and handsome man. He brought a sense of calm to the room by his sheer presence. Always branded a smile which was very contagious. A very nice person to talk too as well. A loving father of a 4 year old son and a 1 year old daughter.
The long walk from the parking lot to the main hospital was unnerving. Took the elevator to the ward where P was admitted. M's father met us outside the ward and gave a pass which I could use to go in. Only 1 visitor is allowed in at a time, so S stayed outside with M's father.
I went in and saw P sleeping calmly. There were a bunch of tubes hooked on to his hand each one administering some sort of medicine which will try to bring his vital functions back to normalcy. His lame body had collapsed on that bed and was cutting a sad figure, entirely different from the smiling face we met first time at their son's birthday.
M saw me and her eyes said everything. She controlled hard not to shed a tear. She just closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Keeping aside the stotra book, which she was reading continuously, she came out of the room where P lay.
I tried to talk abt anything other than P, but was ridiculously short of words. Words deserted me at the most difficult moment. So I asked -- How is he?
Her reply was -- No improvement. Doctors detected a minor infection of pneumonia today. There is minor bleeding from the nose and blood pressure is abnormally high. Because of some medication he had taken, he cannot be operated for another 3 weeks and the doctors are not ready to keep him on the life support system for more than a week.
I just muttered -- keep faith, everything will be alright. Do not lose hope.
S never went inside the ward. I promised all the help that I could, within my limits. Then S and I left the corridor and took the uncomfortably long walk to the parking lot with very heavy feet and even heavier hearts. S was sobbing uncontrollably. We did not speak anything for some time.
I just felt like asking one Q to myself -- Can M try consoling her heart by saying "AAL IS WELL"?
The last time I had been to a hospital was in early 2000 when my granny was not well. Every time I used to visit her and see her howling out of pain due to a broken pelvis, my heart used to bleed. I used to come out of the hospital helpless and forlorn.
Since then, the only time I had visited a hospital was to donate blood (twice actually, once to Jayadeva hospital and once to Narayana Hrudralaya) and actually came out satisfied both the times because I had a chance to meet the receipients of my donated blood. One was a IISC scientist and the other one was a farmer.
Other than these 2 chances, I never went to any hospital in the last 10 years. Not to see a newborn, not to see any accident victim or not for any good causes. So, last Sunday, when I had to visit Duke University Medical Center to see someone, I knew that it was not going to be some experience.
M is my colleague and good friend (both of us are Maharashtrians). M's husband P is seriously ill and admitted to Duke. The memories that I have of P are that of a tall, slim and handsome man. He brought a sense of calm to the room by his sheer presence. Always branded a smile which was very contagious. A very nice person to talk too as well. A loving father of a 4 year old son and a 1 year old daughter.
I went in and saw P sleeping calmly. There were a bunch of tubes hooked on to his hand each one administering some sort of medicine which will try to bring his vital functions back to normalcy. His lame body had collapsed on that bed and was cutting a sad figure, entirely different from the smiling face we met first time at their son's birthday.
M saw me and her eyes said everything. She controlled hard not to shed a tear. She just closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Keeping aside the stotra book, which she was reading continuously, she came out of the room where P lay.
I tried to talk abt anything other than P, but was ridiculously short of words. Words deserted me at the most difficult moment. So I asked -- How is he?
Her reply was -- No improvement. Doctors detected a minor infection of pneumonia today. There is minor bleeding from the nose and blood pressure is abnormally high. Because of some medication he had taken, he cannot be operated for another 3 weeks and the doctors are not ready to keep him on the life support system for more than a week.
I just muttered -- keep faith, everything will be alright. Do not lose hope.
I tried to talk to M's father abt everything other than P and his health. He personified a dam with a wall full of cracks, just about to explode. Just M's presence in that corridor and a very wet handkerchief plugged the leaks.
S never went inside the ward. I promised all the help that I could, within my limits. Then S and I left the corridor and took the uncomfortably long walk to the parking lot with very heavy feet and even heavier hearts. S was sobbing uncontrollably. We did not speak anything for some time.
I just felt like asking one Q to myself -- Can M try consoling her heart by saying "AAL IS WELL"?
WELL SAID - 1
Everyone says religion is flawed. But that is because man is flawed, every one of them. Every one of us, including me.
-- From the movie Angels and Demons.
-- From the movie Angels and Demons.
FLICKS GALORE
Started the new year by watching 4 movies in the first 2 days. To exaggerate it, we saw 4 movies in 26 hours.
On 2nd Jan, we saw Avatar. And it was fully worth it. The graphics, the special effects, sound quality (IMAX) was really worth the cost. Even though we had to sit in the front row (gandhi class as we called it during college days) and ended up with a sore neck and bad headache, it was fully worth it.
Next day, saw De Dana Dan and 8x10 Tasveer in the morning. De Dana Dan was a typical Priyadarshan no-brainer. Not at all in the Hera Pheri class, not at all funny and strictly recommended to stay away from. If there was a negative rating, I would give this movie a negative rating.
8x10 Tasveer was surprisingly a very good movie. The suspense was held back very well until the climax. No one can guess the end although S did guess it partially correctly. Though I am not a big Akshay Kumar fan, I saw this movie only because it was directed by Nagesh Kukunoor. I was hoping that Nagesh will live up to his standards and he did not disappoint at all. Fully recommended for the mystery buffs. The way the movie reveals a strand of the plot reminded me of Vantage point, another must see IMO.
Last, in the evening, saw Sandra Bullock's Premonition. Very nice movie, keeps the viewer perplexed till the end. You can never figure out what is going on in the movie, until the last 15-20 minutes. S and I loved it.
Nice way to start the year. ;-)
On 2nd Jan, we saw Avatar. And it was fully worth it. The graphics, the special effects, sound quality (IMAX) was really worth the cost. Even though we had to sit in the front row (gandhi class as we called it during college days) and ended up with a sore neck and bad headache, it was fully worth it.
Next day, saw De Dana Dan and 8x10 Tasveer in the morning. De Dana Dan was a typical Priyadarshan no-brainer. Not at all in the Hera Pheri class, not at all funny and strictly recommended to stay away from. If there was a negative rating, I would give this movie a negative rating.
8x10 Tasveer was surprisingly a very good movie. The suspense was held back very well until the climax. No one can guess the end although S did guess it partially correctly. Though I am not a big Akshay Kumar fan, I saw this movie only because it was directed by Nagesh Kukunoor. I was hoping that Nagesh will live up to his standards and he did not disappoint at all. Fully recommended for the mystery buffs. The way the movie reveals a strand of the plot reminded me of Vantage point, another must see IMO.
Last, in the evening, saw Sandra Bullock's Premonition. Very nice movie, keeps the viewer perplexed till the end. You can never figure out what is going on in the movie, until the last 15-20 minutes. S and I loved it.
Nice way to start the year. ;-)
COUNT = COUNT + 1
Yep, thats what this means to a programmer. One more year over.
A lot of good things happened this year --
A lot of good things happened this year --
- S and I visited India for the first time after getting married. We had a blast for 1 full month.
- Clocked the 3-Oh. But consoled myself saying "30 is the new 25". S took it as "27 is the new 16".
- Worked probably the hardest since 2002. And as in 2002, I did not get the reward that I desired. Someone has said "You don't get what you desire. You get what you deserve." I have tweaked it to "You get what upper management thinks you deserve, as long as there are enough rewards allocated". ;-)
- Sucked at cricket, but ended the season on a winning note.
- Took my resolution seriously for once.
- A little one entered the lives of someone very dear to me. The last time I was so excited was when my sis gave birth to my nephew.
- Clocked the 3-Oh.
- Worked probably the hardest since 2002. And as in 2002, I did not get the reward that I desired.
- Sucked at cricket.
Oh!!! Yes, I forgot to mention one more good thing that happened this year. I decided to be more optimistic about life.
On that note, wish all my (4) readers a very happy and a prosperous new year. Cheers.
REPEAT
Yep, someone has said that history repeats itself. And we thought of proving the someone correct for once.
Just like the proverbial London bus, the second one followed immediately after the first one. We won the tournament again this year.
We started the tournament disastrously - losing miserably against the eventual runner-up. Not only that, there were a lot of words exchanged during that game, primarily because we were responsible behind ousting them in the semi-final last year (in a tense bowl-out). The other team were hurting and when they won convincingly, they gave us an earful abt what they felt.
The next game was against a kids team on a freezing day. We were too easy on the kids and eventually our skipper had to give us another piece of his mind to ensure that we win the game.
The 3rd game went till the last over. At one point, the opponent was down and dusted with 40/4 in 10 overs but recovered to make 139/2 in 20. We needed 42 off 3 overs with 6 wickets down and then smashed the hell out of 2 overs to win with 5 balls to spare.
Lost the 4th game by some stupid batting and had to depend on rains and other results to fall in place for us to make it to the quarterfinals.
Somehow, everything worked out for us from then onwards. Played out of our skins in the quarterfinal and won by just 2 runs. The opposing team put us under so much pressure but we just held firm, 1 ball at a time. Eventually, winning by just 2 runs.
Semifinal was even difficult. We were done with abt 5 down in 3 overs but smart batting by lower order got us a tricky total. We bowled like possessed bowlers and won the game by 20 runs.
I had tickets for Panthers-Falcons game at Charlotte, but eventually made the hard decisions to not let the team down. Played the semi-final instead and won it for the team. Could not play the final, but then, our team was well set by then.
Played the Final against the same team as the first game and won very convincingly. We did not utter a word in retaliation. The pictures say it all, more than a 1000 words this time.
Just like the proverbial London bus, the second one followed immediately after the first one. We won the tournament again this year.
We started the tournament disastrously - losing miserably against the eventual runner-up. Not only that, there were a lot of words exchanged during that game, primarily because we were responsible behind ousting them in the semi-final last year (in a tense bowl-out). The other team were hurting and when they won convincingly, they gave us an earful abt what they felt.
The next game was against a kids team on a freezing day. We were too easy on the kids and eventually our skipper had to give us another piece of his mind to ensure that we win the game.
The 3rd game went till the last over. At one point, the opponent was down and dusted with 40/4 in 10 overs but recovered to make 139/2 in 20. We needed 42 off 3 overs with 6 wickets down and then smashed the hell out of 2 overs to win with 5 balls to spare.
Lost the 4th game by some stupid batting and had to depend on rains and other results to fall in place for us to make it to the quarterfinals.
Somehow, everything worked out for us from then onwards. Played out of our skins in the quarterfinal and won by just 2 runs. The opposing team put us under so much pressure but we just held firm, 1 ball at a time. Eventually, winning by just 2 runs.
Semifinal was even difficult. We were done with abt 5 down in 3 overs but smart batting by lower order got us a tricky total. We bowled like possessed bowlers and won the game by 20 runs.
I had tickets for Panthers-Falcons game at Charlotte, but eventually made the hard decisions to not let the team down. Played the semi-final instead and won it for the team. Could not play the final, but then, our team was well set by then.
Played the Final against the same team as the first game and won very convincingly. We did not utter a word in retaliation. The pictures say it all, more than a 1000 words this time.
MATCH WINNER
This blog is about this cricketer RKH. When he was playing domestic cricket, there were lot of good things heard about him. He played in domestic cricket under the leadership of VVC. No one knew whether he was a batsman or a bowler or a good fielder. The only thing that was known was that he was a player of genuine match winning ability. And like so many domestic players, no one knew if he will even get a chance to play international cricket.
Then he got a chance to play international cricket, primarily due to the captain VVC. He was a unknown entity at the world stage at the time of his debut.
In his first match, he surprised everyone with his (comic) timing and his unusual approach to the game. No one expected that the game could be played that way. It was just so positively surprising that not only he won the game for the captain VVC, he also won the hearts of the viewers. Not just that, he actually resurrected the careers of 2 players SD and AW.
Everyone was then looking forward to see RKH play again. They thought that this new "feel-good"approach will not work again and wanted to see whether he can live up to his standards.
He played the next match, in the same series. Most of the players (AW, BI and SD) were the same this time around. This second game, he was really very very good. This time, it was his sensitive side which touched the spectators. He pulled out a very old tenet, which was deemed to be totally irrelevant and outdated, and presented it in such a beautiful gift wrapping that everyone who saw the game, started believing it in again. That way, he again won the game for the captain VVC, he also captured the hearts of everyone who saw the movie. The careers of players like SD, AW and BI really got the impetus it needed.
Everyone were looking forward to the third game of the series. It was unfortunately cancelled, because one of the players SD had problem. It was a huge disappointment and everyone was worried about the future of this partnership.
Then RKH played his third game in another series. VVC was still the captain. The regular players (SD, AW) were missing and a few others stepped in (AK, RM, SJ). But really, everyone wanted to know how the game goes. They knew that if RKH plays well, all other players will perform superbly.
And he did not disappoint at all. The game was really good. His timing was good, there were many a sensitive moments in the game, there were a lot of funny moments as well. He stressed on an idea which was long long lost, and illustrated how it can be achieved. He left many a people with teary eyes (due to touching scenes) and achy stomach (due to too much laughing). He hit the sixers when it mattered and won the game, again. No one who saw the game left the stadium unsatisfied.
So, if you have not seen the game yet, go and see it. You will love it.
And after you see the game, instead of worrying about which game was the best, understand that all the games were very good. The spirit of these games was so good. And most importantly, all the games were won.
RKH won all the games, handsomely for VVC. Looking forward to seeing him play and win many many more games.
Now, let me unravel the mystery --
RKH -- Raj Kumar Hirani
VVC -- Vidhu Vinod Chopra
AW -- Arshad Warsi
BI -- Boman Irani
SD -- Sanjay Dutt
AK -- Aamir Khan
SJ -- Sharman Joshi
RM -- R. Madhavan
First Match -- Munnabhai MBBS
Second Match -- Lage Raho
Third Match -- 3 Idiots
WELL SAID - 0
Whenever I read a good article or interview, I find some good quotes which make so much sense and impact me in a certain way. This old post is one such quote which I still remember. This series "WELL SAID" is an attempt to list them at an easily accessible location. I will also mention the source of the quote, so that the readers can find out more.
Read this one from Amit Verma's post where he gives tips on how to be a good blogger. I just love this line, it makes such an impact.
Style should be a slave to the substance -- while writing a blog, the focus should be on the WHAT of the message to be conveyed and not on the HOW of the message to be conveyed. But what a classic way of driving the message home.
Read this one from Amit Verma's post where he gives tips on how to be a good blogger. I just love this line, it makes such an impact.
Style should be a slave to the substance -- while writing a blog, the focus should be on the WHAT of the message to be conveyed and not on the HOW of the message to be conveyed. But what a classic way of driving the message home.
PLAYING WITHIN THE RULES
One of the reality shows followed by S and I is Amazing Race. The latest season of Amazing Race finished last weekend and this season lived up to the high standards of AR. No wonder this show has been voted the best reality shows for so many years.
AR tests the participants in multiple aspects -- capacity to handle pressure, physical strength, thinking out of the box, adjusting to different cultures and being prepared for the unexpected. It takes you around the world and shows unique aspects of cultures around the world. And, of course, India features in most of their seasons.
But S and I like this show for another reason -- this show leaves your fate in your hands. Of course, there are twisters like U-turn once in a while, but most of the time, you play well and you make it through. If you mess up, you ruin your chances of going through to the next leg. There is no nomination for elimination, no plotting and planning, no backstabbing like some other shows (e.g. Survivor or Big Brother). This keeps the whole vibe of the episode very positive. Everyone is bothered about their individual performances without bothering to trip the other person.
This season was different in another aspect as well. This time I saw teams collaborate with each other and achieve common goals. They solved puzzles together, gave tips and pointers so that everyone gained in tough roadblocks. They shared clues and cabs. They gave each other crucial hints which altered the dynamics in a matter of minutes. They competed WITH each other instead of competing AGAINST each other. And this was not a pre-decided strategy. All these were decisions taken on the fly. Teams helped each other and moved on without any expectations of favors in return.
And funnily, the organizers could not do anything about it because no rules were broken here. It was all within the books and totally legal.
And in a very strange way, the teams which gelled like this benefited in some way or other. All the 3 finalists played the game in the right spirit, without any pre-determined alliances, and benefited at crucial junctures of the journey.
Obviously, there were players who played dirty games and made it ahead. But, they lost the trust of the other teams and it hit them at the worst place and worst time. But most of the teams played it the good way.
And this made the whole experience of the season a very positive one. Sunday nights were never depressing. We actually looked forward to having a freshly cooked meal in front of 1 hour of positive entertainment.
And see this --
Please can someone explain to the participants of some of India's stupid reality shows what "playing within the rules" means.
AR tests the participants in multiple aspects -- capacity to handle pressure, physical strength, thinking out of the box, adjusting to different cultures and being prepared for the unexpected. It takes you around the world and shows unique aspects of cultures around the world. And, of course, India features in most of their seasons.
But S and I like this show for another reason -- this show leaves your fate in your hands. Of course, there are twisters like U-turn once in a while, but most of the time, you play well and you make it through. If you mess up, you ruin your chances of going through to the next leg. There is no nomination for elimination, no plotting and planning, no backstabbing like some other shows (e.g. Survivor or Big Brother). This keeps the whole vibe of the episode very positive. Everyone is bothered about their individual performances without bothering to trip the other person.
This season was different in another aspect as well. This time I saw teams collaborate with each other and achieve common goals. They solved puzzles together, gave tips and pointers so that everyone gained in tough roadblocks. They shared clues and cabs. They gave each other crucial hints which altered the dynamics in a matter of minutes. They competed WITH each other instead of competing AGAINST each other. And this was not a pre-decided strategy. All these were decisions taken on the fly. Teams helped each other and moved on without any expectations of favors in return.
And funnily, the organizers could not do anything about it because no rules were broken here. It was all within the books and totally legal.
And in a very strange way, the teams which gelled like this benefited in some way or other. All the 3 finalists played the game in the right spirit, without any pre-determined alliances, and benefited at crucial junctures of the journey.
Obviously, there were players who played dirty games and made it ahead. But, they lost the trust of the other teams and it hit them at the worst place and worst time. But most of the teams played it the good way.
And this made the whole experience of the season a very positive one. Sunday nights were never depressing. We actually looked forward to having a freshly cooked meal in front of 1 hour of positive entertainment.
And see this --
Please can someone explain to the participants of some of India's stupid reality shows what "playing within the rules" means.
TIGER in the WOODS?
Everyone knows whats going on with Tiger Woods. But I am totally surprised with the public reaction to these happenings.
Don't get me wrong. No way am I supporting or approving whatever he has done. He has let his family down. Period.
But what I am unable to understand is, who are we to question him, ridicule him, mock him and humiliate him. There is so much negative media spotlight on him. There are Christmas cards, Christmas carols and songs written on him. Every Tom, Dick and Harry is making fun of him on radio talk shows and TV shows.
Don't get me wrong. No way am I supporting or approving whatever he has done. He has let his family down. Period.
But what I am unable to understand is, who are we to question him, ridicule him, mock him and humiliate him. There is so much negative media spotlight on him. There are Christmas cards, Christmas carols and songs written on him. Every Tom, Dick and Harry is making fun of him on radio talk shows and TV shows.
He is one of the best golfers ever and someone who was a role model to millions until last month. He was regarded as one of the best sportsmen from the US. An able testament to his class was that he recently featured in a Gillette ad with Roger Federer, Derek Jeter and Rahul Dravid. He is a partner in Tag Heuer as well.
He was made a hero by the people because he was very good at his profession. He gave it back to the society as well with umpteen charities to the needy ones.
According to me, TW is answerable only to his family. Everyone else is immaterial.
Who are we to make fun of such a great player? What have we achieved to point fingers at such a legend? Probably, the answer to this Q lies in another Q -- How much media attention do you want when you do a mistake?
Top of the stack
So, the Indian team finally reaches the top of the stack called ranking system. There will be umpteen but's that the team may be ranked #1 but still is not the best or that how can we be #1 when we have not won any series in SA and AUS etc. etc.
Everything accepted. But for now, let us salute to the players and the support staff who made this possible. Hats Off and Thank You.
The best part about this achievement is that it was achieved in the longest format of the game. Ironically, success in this format takes the longest to achieve. Any team can win 20-20 World Cup by great performances by just 1 or 2 players over a period of a week or 2 (just like Afridi did it earlier this year). A good team can win the World Cup by just being in top form just that season (just like Pakistan did it in 1992 or Sri Lanka did it in 1996 or for that matter, India did it in 1983). But to do that in Test matches, it takes consistent performances for a period of years.
According to me, this journey started in 2001 when India defeated Australia in that epic series. We were a very young team (Fab Four and Kumble were just 28-29, Bhajji-Zaheer others were even younger) and that series made everyone believe that the right ingredients were in place. The right guidance and direction were going to make this a success.
The super performance in Australia in 2004, Pakistan in 2004, England in 2006, WI in 2007 and NZ in 2009 were just additional levels built on that excellent foundation. The core group stayed in place (Fab 4, Kumble, Zaheer, Bhajji, Sehwag etc) and the journeymen (Bangar, Gambhir, Pathan, RP Singh, Sreesanth, Yuvraj, Dhoni) supported them. Some of them excelled to be the core group (Gambhir, Dhoni) and some perished away to the grinds of domestic cricket.
But, as a result of consistent performances over the last few years, the crowning glory was achieved today. Today, at least due to this statistical achievement, the cricketing world will take a note. Today, we are not a team who are afraid to play SA at Kingsmead or Australia at Perth or England at Headingley. We actually look forward to challenge them at their fortresses. We are a team who expect to win away from home.
In a couple of years, most of the seniors, especially the batsmen will retire. Whether the replacements may or may not fill these huge voids remains to be seen. But for today, thank you for making us proud, once again.
Everything accepted. But for now, let us salute to the players and the support staff who made this possible. Hats Off and Thank You.
The best part about this achievement is that it was achieved in the longest format of the game. Ironically, success in this format takes the longest to achieve. Any team can win 20-20 World Cup by great performances by just 1 or 2 players over a period of a week or 2 (just like Afridi did it earlier this year). A good team can win the World Cup by just being in top form just that season (just like Pakistan did it in 1992 or Sri Lanka did it in 1996 or for that matter, India did it in 1983). But to do that in Test matches, it takes consistent performances for a period of years.
According to me, this journey started in 2001 when India defeated Australia in that epic series. We were a very young team (Fab Four and Kumble were just 28-29, Bhajji-Zaheer others were even younger) and that series made everyone believe that the right ingredients were in place. The right guidance and direction were going to make this a success.
The super performance in Australia in 2004, Pakistan in 2004, England in 2006, WI in 2007 and NZ in 2009 were just additional levels built on that excellent foundation. The core group stayed in place (Fab 4, Kumble, Zaheer, Bhajji, Sehwag etc) and the journeymen (Bangar, Gambhir, Pathan, RP Singh, Sreesanth, Yuvraj, Dhoni) supported them. Some of them excelled to be the core group (Gambhir, Dhoni) and some perished away to the grinds of domestic cricket.
But, as a result of consistent performances over the last few years, the crowning glory was achieved today. Today, at least due to this statistical achievement, the cricketing world will take a note. Today, we are not a team who are afraid to play SA at Kingsmead or Australia at Perth or England at Headingley. We actually look forward to challenge them at their fortresses. We are a team who expect to win away from home.
In a couple of years, most of the seniors, especially the batsmen will retire. Whether the replacements may or may not fill these huge voids remains to be seen. But for today, thank you for making us proud, once again.
CELEBRITY OBSESSION
What is this obsession that we commoners have with celebrities? I have been wondering about this for some time.
There are more pictures of Shilpa Shetty's wedding than about 26/11 in the last few days. Btw, can anyone name her last movie? There are more pics / articles of Rakhi Sawant, AB, SRK compared to everyone else combined.
This time, I had a hands-on experience of this manic behavior.
S and I are in LA and SFO for the Thanksgiving week and are visiting the various tourist spots in the vicinity. When at Alcatraz, I could see visitors sit on the toilet of the cell occupied by Robert "Birdman of Alcatraz" Stroud and click pictures. I could see others enter the cells of this jail and act as if they are prisoners of this cell and get some pictures clicked. This is probably the only time (i sincerely hope) that ppl pay to go to jail.
Then we were in Hollywood - BelAir - Beverly Hills and taking a guided tour of the area when the tour guide was pointing to different houses and identifying the celebrity who currently stays (or previously stayed) in those mansions. Not even 5-10% of those house could be seen due to the huge screening trees around the homes. But still, tourists were clicking their way to glory. Even worse, they even were clicking pictures of some parks where some celebs were caught breaking the law. There was no proof that these celebs actually stayed there or the crimes were actually broken there. But, the obsession towards celebs and their star studded lives made these ppl believe anything and everything narrated by the tour guide.
This reminds me of one funny incident that my uncle went through in Mumbai many years ago. For someone who came from a very small town and was visiting Mumbai for a month, he took the Mumbai Darshan bus. The biggest attraction of this bus ride was to see bollywood star's homes.
The guide showed a bungalow as AB's home. Next week, his wife and kids came to Mumbai and my uncle took them in the same bus with the same tour guide. This time, the guide showed an entirely different house as AB's home. My uncle immediately caught him red-handed and questioned him in front of the entire tourist group -- Hey, last week you showed me a different home as AB's home. This week you are showing me something new. Whats going on? The guide was smart -- ShaaNa, as they are called in Mumbai. He coolly replied -- AB moved over the weekend.
There are more pictures of Shilpa Shetty's wedding than about 26/11 in the last few days. Btw, can anyone name her last movie? There are more pics / articles of Rakhi Sawant, AB, SRK compared to everyone else combined.
This time, I had a hands-on experience of this manic behavior.
S and I are in LA and SFO for the Thanksgiving week and are visiting the various tourist spots in the vicinity. When at Alcatraz, I could see visitors sit on the toilet of the cell occupied by Robert "Birdman of Alcatraz" Stroud and click pictures. I could see others enter the cells of this jail and act as if they are prisoners of this cell and get some pictures clicked. This is probably the only time (i sincerely hope) that ppl pay to go to jail.
Then we were in Hollywood - BelAir - Beverly Hills and taking a guided tour of the area when the tour guide was pointing to different houses and identifying the celebrity who currently stays (or previously stayed) in those mansions. Not even 5-10% of those house could be seen due to the huge screening trees around the homes. But still, tourists were clicking their way to glory. Even worse, they even were clicking pictures of some parks where some celebs were caught breaking the law. There was no proof that these celebs actually stayed there or the crimes were actually broken there. But, the obsession towards celebs and their star studded lives made these ppl believe anything and everything narrated by the tour guide.
This reminds me of one funny incident that my uncle went through in Mumbai many years ago. For someone who came from a very small town and was visiting Mumbai for a month, he took the Mumbai Darshan bus. The biggest attraction of this bus ride was to see bollywood star's homes.
The guide showed a bungalow as AB's home. Next week, his wife and kids came to Mumbai and my uncle took them in the same bus with the same tour guide. This time, the guide showed an entirely different house as AB's home. My uncle immediately caught him red-handed and questioned him in front of the entire tourist group -- Hey, last week you showed me a different home as AB's home. This week you are showing me something new. Whats going on? The guide was smart -- ShaaNa, as they are called in Mumbai. He coolly replied -- AB moved over the weekend.
So, whats different in this one?
Yesterday, the marriage clock chimed 4 am. Its been 4 fabulous years full of fun and bliss. The near and dear ones called to wish and it was a day exactly as we would have wanted it to be. Morever, this was our first anniversary to fall on a weekend. All our prior anniversaries including the wedding day were weekdays.
So, to mark the occasion, I did what only insane or very rich or unmarried men dare to do. I took my girl on a shopping day out, to a place where there are 150+ factory outlets of any brand that you can name. We will do the math of the damage some other day.
But what surprised me was not her appetite to shop but the reasons to choose a dress. "The collar is different on this one.". "I do not have anything in this print". "The sleeves on this one is nice". "The color is different". -- Rather, if there is any reason to buy the dress, the lady decides to buy it.
On the other hand -- whenever I liked a shirt or a tee or jeans or jacket, I used to remember some garment which I already have which has something in similar to the new garment and would not proceed with the purchase. If there is any reason why I should not buy it, the man decides not to buy it.
Made me wonder -- is this an inherent difference between men and women? Are all the Martians like this and are all the Venetians like this?
Views most welcome.
So, to mark the occasion, I did what only insane or very rich or unmarried men dare to do. I took my girl on a shopping day out, to a place where there are 150+ factory outlets of any brand that you can name. We will do the math of the damage some other day.
But what surprised me was not her appetite to shop but the reasons to choose a dress. "The collar is different on this one.". "I do not have anything in this print". "The sleeves on this one is nice". "The color is different". -- Rather, if there is any reason to buy the dress, the lady decides to buy it.
On the other hand -- whenever I liked a shirt or a tee or jeans or jacket, I used to remember some garment which I already have which has something in similar to the new garment and would not proceed with the purchase. If there is any reason why I should not buy it, the man decides not to buy it.
Made me wonder -- is this an inherent difference between men and women? Are all the Martians like this and are all the Venetians like this?
Views most welcome.
Namaste
An awesome interpretation of the word "Namaste" which we have been using for years together. Worth a watch.
AMAZING CREATIVITY
Now here are 2 instances of amazing creativity. We all remember "Jack and Jill" from our childhood. Here are 2 takes of that nursery rhyme.
1. A Bhojpuri remix by Raju Srivastava --
2. If Jack and Jill really happened, how NDTV would report it -- http://india-in-my-nightie.blogspot.com/2009/10/two-persons-hurt-in-climbing-mishap.html
ps: The 2nd link is something which I got from Amit Verma's blog.
1. A Bhojpuri remix by Raju Srivastava --
2. If Jack and Jill really happened, how NDTV would report it -- http://india-in-my-nightie.blogspot.com/2009/10/two-persons-hurt-in-climbing-mishap.html
ps: The 2nd link is something which I got from Amit Verma's blog.
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