The year that was..2009 recap

Everyone is doing it and I won’t be the exception! 2009 has been an action packed year to me. Every year has its ups and downs..but 2009 is full of downs with few ups in the end. The amalgamation of the incidents happened through out the year just brings tears to my eyes. I never realized, I am so emotionally weak until I had to face them. I should say its been a roller coaster ride to me. I have seen everything in just one year, heartbreak, the pain in betrayal, the strength you need to face it, tears and tantrums, importance of your family. I know time moves on and sometimes we move so far that we don’t even see them as important any more. There is a whirlwind of memories flashing right in front of my eyes throwing light on those incidents. You feel like a crippled dog sometimes and a graceful flamingo at other times. In the end, its all just a matter of perception.

 

Few highlights of this year include, this year was when blogging became more than a monthly event, a kind of a hobby for me.. and i love it. I love the outlet for my writing, and i love sharing out my thoughts, personal lives (or at least a small part of it) with friends that may only get to see us every now and then. This year was when my extra curricular reading habits has improved drastically, and I can’t imagine myself without books now. My love affair with novels has brought a lot of change in the way I perceive things. Hyderabad 10K run, Never thought I would run for 21 Kms just for the heck of running. The immense amount of satisfaction you get after the run is just speechless. I loved the run. I have lost 10 kgs, Yes you heard it right. I have become fit again. Became an owner of a flat. I don’t know whether I should be proud of it or not, but its just a big milestone to me.

 

2010 looks exciting! I am not a person who believe in taking resolutions. But this time I am determined to take some resolutions and try to achieve them. So here comes the plan for the year 2010. Most of these will be on my personal front.

 

• Work out at GYM and stay fit.
• Eat natural food and stop junk food altogether.
• Be active in Blogging.
• Be calm and serene.
• Be aggressive in your job.
• Read at least 25 books.
• Visit Goa.
• Go for trekking.
• Improve your Hindi.
• Socialize with people and make new friends.
• Stay in touch with your old friends and expand your network.

 

And the most important resolution for the coming year would be to be happy, no matter what emotional ups and downs you face. I have been thinking about all that I have accomplished. It seems so little in front of all that I have to still achieve. Alright, I know its becoming yet another obligatory self centered whiney year end post. The main objective is that I have to be a better person, learn from all the mistakes I have made. I am sure it is going to be one hell of a ride! I have so many dreams to fulfill. Not sure If I have time for all of them. Year 2010 is going to be a crazy party for sure! Wish me luck.

 

I WISH A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!!!

Avatar : Movie Review

Once in a while you come out of the movie hall with such a marvelous feeling. It is not often that one gets to see such movies. I don't have much to add to the other glowing reviews out there. Although I hate to say that I didn’t watch this movie in Imax 3d, I loved this movie to the core. The story is classic, the acting is fine and may be dialogues are witty and cliché some times, but the effects, the narration and the presentation that dominates totally. It combines a special effect with great nature along with great sound effect and wonderful plot. Its kind of boring for the first 10 to 15 minutes, but later the avatar becomes the main characters in the movie. The background music is awesome, which has contributed to the Indian moods. It surely transports you to the dream world, the screenplay is captivating, the technical aspects and the visual effects are truly divine. The movie is a bit lengthy 2.45 Hrs. Pandora is a great world for a tour and the movie gives you more than satisfactory experience. Princess of Pandora falling in love with a stranger from another place is an age-old and commercially successful formula. It has great morals too. A perfect Story with humanity and lots of moral values( Preserving the nature).  I must say that the idea was brilliant and it requires lots of efforts to make them like this. I must give extra credits for the whole crew who make this happened. I'm not saying that Avatar was the greatest movie of all time. All I say is GO SEE AVATAR and let me know what you think?  If it doesn't blow you away I want to hear why.

 

Sunday Quote: Keep Running

Sunday Quote is an idea to share with you the thoughts I have heard, read or being quoted from books, movies or conversations. I am going to quote the thought and where I heard it or read it from. The thoughts could be quotes, anecdotes, excerpts and even passages from books. They will be mostly thought provoking and they would add some element to one’s understanding and thought process.

 

A lion wakes up everyday and starts running after a deer to survive. A deer wakes up everyday and starts running from a lion to survive. So the point is that it does not matter whether you are a lion or a deer. You just have to keep running.

-Anonymous

IIT Kanpur : 80% Attendance

This video is fucking awesome. As an alumni of IIT Kanpur, I personally know the pain of attending the class at 8 Am after staying late in the nights. Simply hilarious, and kudos to the guy who wrote the subtitles! Fantastic work. This is awesome video guys, Really missing iitk...no more of iitk.fun...  Anyways if this 80% attendance has been implemented, its going to be pathetic....

 

Kasab retracts his confession.

Mumbai bombing suspect Kasab claims he met David Headley, the alleged CIA agent. How convenient this could be. He also claims that he was not involved in the terror attacks at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station in Mumbai on 26 November 2008 and also denies that he entered India through the sea route in a dingy along with nine other terrorists.

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/i-came-to-work-in-films-was-framed-kasab/107343-3.html?from=tn

Kasab on Friday retracted his confession before a special Mumbai court and alleged that he came to Mumbai on a visa 20 days before the attacks on November 26 last year. He claimed he came to Mumbai to work in the film industry but was arrested on the night of November 25 and was implicated in the 26/11 case. Kasab's surprise retraction of his own confession made on February 20 this year before a magistrate came while his statement was being recorded at the start of the second phase of the terror attacks trial before Special Judge M L Tahilyani..

This is total mockery of Indian justice system. Even an illiterate terrorist can play tricks to delay the judiciary system. I was disgusted by the way Kasab is playing with Indian Justice system. Some times I wonder  Why Kasab needs a defending lawyer? This trail shouldn’t have taken more than 30 days. Is this  all spending crores & crores of rupees for his protection just to prove a neighboring country guilty. This also raises questions on capability of Indian Judges. One of the reasons trail in India takes a lot to time is because the system wants to let go 1000 criminals unpunished to avoid one innocent  person.

Kasab  told the court that he was in India prior to the Mumbai attacks. He said the police picked him up as he was walking around the city. Kasab says that he closely resembles one of the terrorists killed in the 26/11 attacks and therefore was forced by police to take his place. Kasab further claimed that "The police have killed the main accused who resembles me and they told me that his name was Abu Ali.". "I am his look alike. His height and face resembles mine," Kasab said. This reminds me one of the old joke on Indian police, knowing the capability of the Indian police. http://www.desiboyzmasala.com/article.asp?id=2529&at=1 Though the Kasab U turn is filmy,.I expect this doesn’t  become a parody element. There are people who have lost life and all shall be sensitive to it.

Emotional stability in work..

Once in a blue moon, you have a revelation. Something which makes you kick yourself and ask: "I can't believe I've been so blind! How could I have missed this?". It could be a simple bug, or a minor semicolon which you missed in your code which could have saved the entire world from extinction. There are days when you are high on one side, writing hundreds of lines of code and come out with a laughter, a giggle with a sense of satisfaction. There are days when you feel bad and sad, debugging a little tricky issue, mostly some one else code and then you come into a solemn seclusion with a heavy laden heart. Being close to 4 years in this profession the thrill of coding, the challenge in debugging, the fun in the work environment is coming down day by day and the frustration at being the same every day. And then you have this loan on your head which makes you feel every day that you are deep in this shit. And you wonder everyday thinking, Do I after all love what I do? and you end up having no answer for it. Each day you end up thinking, "The idea of spending the rest of your life in this profession" scares the hell out of you. And to end, with no exceptional clarity in your life, It is your duty to tune your mind to depict the emotion that you need to show to this profession with more hard work & discipline, and less inspiration & creativity. Till you get that clarity in your life, Let your thoughts vibrate with a stable emotional mind and continue to be just another brick in the wall.

Google Toilet

Now this is hilarious. Wait a second, Was it really funny. This would have been funny , if it was not a truth.. Although it is a  very funny animated clip about Google and how it is controlling our life now, I agree with it completely. I love google's applications, but I disapprove spying on average people personal life..

Telangana : A new State

Last night, P Chidambaram, Home Minister of India, has announced that the Central government will take steps towards creation of a new state called Telangana. It is subject to the resolution passing in AP assembly and parliament. But it looks like they’ll somehow pass it. KCR does 10 days fast in AC rooms under expert doctors observation to divide a state while our shameless central GOVT agrees.  Even then, it will take another 18 months for the new state to form.

At one time this was a nation of many small kingdoms, constantly warring with each other. The British knew how the situation could be exploited, and they used it to their advantage. It’s such a sorry state of affairs that one man with a few thousand supporters can hold a country to blackmail and get his own, when it was very clear from the last few elections that the Telangana people themselves don’t see any need for a separate state. Today’s the day I started feeling like an outsider in the city I’ve called it my own,  leaving loved ones and a job in bangalore.

What exactly will cutting up a state and spending crores making new admin setup, will bring to the people in AP. Central Government has to allocate separate funds to these states to establish all the new infrastructure needed to run the new system.  Ultimately we, the tax payer money goes in the process. I have not seen any state/people of the state make any progress after creation. Live example is state of Jharkand, Chattisgarh, and Uttaranchal. I guess in the name of development, political parties want to create 2 CM posts, 2 Ministerial posts in each dep…instead of one in united Andhra. Unnecessary waste of public money and more corruption. What public can gain, need to be seen?. I would stand anywhere and say that its going to make least difference to the actual people, prices are not going to come down, nothing is going to change.“

I don't see any reason, what made Telangana look like a backward place. I don't see any discrimination while awarding ranks in EAMCET, ICET etc..I don't think Wipro, Infosys will discriminate between telangana and andhra while recruiting.  Major industrial development has been concentrated around telangana state. Education wise, Telangana have OU, JNTU,NIT,Kakateeya, ISB. IIT is coming to Telangana. What about HCU, IIIT. Rest of the AP has only AU and SVU. All this development has been done without any regional feeling. NTR developed hyd more than Vijaywads, Chandrababu Naidu developed Hyderabad than chittoor. There are around 1,50,000 IT jobs in Hyderabad.

May be only Irrigation is neglected in Telangana, not sure why this has been done. Though krishna and Godavari flows through Telangana they are diverted to Andhra through dams. There are quiet a few reasons why Andhra got better irrigation than Telengana.

1) Andhra is at a place where rivers merge into sea.  At such places rivers split into multiple sub-rivers (payalu antaru telugulo) then they merge into sea.  Krishna and Godavari split into multiple branches and they flow through many parts of Andhra ending those areas as most fertile lands.  This makes them best suited for cultivation.

2) Telengana is mainly Deccan Plateau.   A region well above sea level; for this reason river water cannot be easily diverted into telengana region as for irrigating these lands only method is "lift irrigation" which is very costly.   Water can flow naturally into Andhra region and also there are fertile lands which gives added benefits for cultivation of Paddy.    Even lands in Telengana are not as well suited for cultivation as in Andhra (naturally fertile land).  This cannot form a major reason for ignoring irrigation in Telengana but a logical reason for a developing country.

3) Telengana is mainly suited for low water cropping but that is also not taken care well by government.  Processes like drip irrigation should have been encouraged.

I felt lot of area in Telegana which should have been used for better development of State and of Telengana.  For this people need leaders with vision; not separate state. 

When I was kid India had some 24+ states when I will have kids it might be 100+. New states are rarely formed for administrative convenience but more for satisfying personal egos of leaders who want to make it big and fill their pockets. We will end up more crooked idiots ruling the state for their own benefits. My stand is always "Telangana development in Combined Andhra Pradesh".

 

Value relationships

I came across this mail forward, not all of them I post it here. But this one gets the cake. This is a 30 second speech by Bryan Dyson( CEO of Coca cola ). The same thought has been lingering in my mind for quite some time, not an unsurprising one though. How often do we forget the value of Health, Family and Friends and become so much materialistic. How often do we forget the value of relationships and make them as a matter of convenience and then again forget after that. I am not advertising that materialism is necessarily bad, but when it comes at the expense of concrete values and relationships it just doesn't seem worth it. How often do we think that success is measured by money and bank balances. What is the point in having huge bank balances, when you don't have your loved ones to enjoy your very own success. We only think of following the society and attach ourselves with materialism and detach ourselves from our values and obligations as human beings who are part of our family and society. I know its easier to say than doing it, before I bore you too much with my gyan, just read the the following speech. Definitely worth a read. The CEO is exceptional in putting the crux of the matter precisely in few words.

"Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. You name them - Work, Family, Health, Friends and Spirit and you're keeping all of these in the Air.

You will soon understand that work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back.

But the other four Balls - Family, Health, Friends and Spirit - are made of glass. If you drop one of these; they will be irrevocably scuffed, marked, nicked, damaged or even shattered. They will never be the same. You must understand that and strive for it."

WORK EFFICIENTLY DURING OFFICE HOURS AND LEAVE ON TIME. GIVE THE REQUIRED TIME TO YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS & HAVE PROPER REST. "

Spread Love, Not AIDS

Its World's AIDS day today...Spread the Love, Not AIDS. Spread the Awareness, Not the disease. AIDS is preventable & treatable. Yet 33 million people in the world are infected with this disease. I really hope one day people would find medicine against AIDS. I really wish. Please support this vital and life changing, illness. So let's help save lives today. Spread the word. 

TRS: Political Drama

I am a very strong opponent of separate Telangana state. TRS , the main party behind this, with only one agenda , bringing separate statehood to the people. Why don't people understand that , Telangana is not TRS. The voters have clearly rejected TRS in the recent elections which happened. Majority of them do not want Telangana in Hyderabad or Secunderabad. KCR the main leader behind TRS, have started another drama this time, "Fast unto Death".  KCR is almost loosing his ground on Telengana sentiment. He meticulously planned this fasting event and people, even the very well educated, fell like pray to predator. He is trying to gain his political ground with this event and he did because of the immaturity of people.I request all TRS rebels, intellectuals and people who hate and criticize KCR should help KCR to do fasting so that he will die for good or bad. If Andhra people have done injustice to Telangana people, then what did Telangana leaders do to Telangana people all these years? This news seriously upsets me http://www.eenadu.net/homelink.asp?qry=cartoon . People who are well educated, why can't they think about their parents, while committing such things. At the end of the day, these people and their families are the losers. Politicians will live as usual. 

One year of 26/11: Any thing changed?

One year from the nation's worst / deadliest attack and nothing much has changed except from those few panel discussions. My earlier post about the documentary which is not shown by the Indian Media is here. You can get more details here . Some of the news traders and news manufactures got padmashree also. Following are the key excerpts.

“channels pumping testosterone and high on adrenaline went into overdrive providing non-stop 60 hours live orgasmic coverage of the 26th November Mumbai terror attack. I suspect no other event over the past decade and a half has had as much coverage by Indian media as 26/11.”

The Dan Reed documentary is thus, for them, the worst of news. It is embarrassing and damaging as it shows all too clearly the link between the media coverage and the actions of the terrorists and their handlers. And it almost casually leaves us with an elephant in the room, viz., the possibility that lives of hostages and members of the armed forces may have been lost or endangered on the altar of the fierce competition between channels for better TRPs and the need for exclusives in the midst of carnage and human tragedy.

Many have sacrificed their lives last year on the same day. Tributes to all the brave hearts who lost their lives saving thousands of people. RIP....And to the media who goes to any extent for their TRP ratings and Ad Revenues, Many people have stopped watching the hysterical news channels a long back. The Internet is a far more unbiased information.

Sunday Quote : Encouragement

Sunday Quote is an idea to share with you the thoughts I have heard, read or being quoted from books, movies or conversations. I am going to quote the thought and where I heard it or read it from. The thoughts could be quotes, anecdotes, excerpts and even passages from books. They will be mostly thought provoking and they would add some element to one’s understanding and thought process.

"Flatter me, and I may not believe you. 
Criticize me, and I may not like you. 
Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. 
Encourage me, and I may not forget you."

Thats the power of encouragement.

Google Chrome OS Revealed

Now that Google Chrome OS is revealed which is nothing but an OS 100% in a browser, do we really care about it. It means you won't be able to just download Chrome OS and go, you'll have to buy a chrome OS device approved by Google. This looks quite scary to me. Seems that this model works quite well for Apple, but to Google, I am quite not sure. Google one will have clean integration with Google Voice, maps, mail, etc… That will be a difficult choice if you just intend to use the machine for browsing. They pretty much admit that Chrome OS is not intended for offline usage. What about third party apps, I am sure they don't want thirdparty apps to run in their sandbox. I suppose Firefox (or Adblock) won’t be on the approved software list.

Though it all looked a bit odd to me, I liked how they attached a camera and the contents opened up in a new window. If that works with iPod, iPhone, and a couple other popular devices, they have nailed a pretty good scenario. I also liked how opening a document opens gDocs. I would have loved to see that happen on Windows, where if I do not have office installed, double-clicking an office doc opens it in office live and lastly 7 seconds to boot.. seems pretty good to me.

Let's say I walk in to the store and there are two netbooks side by side. One is running Windows 7 and the other is running ChromeOS. What are the benefits to me as a consumer of one over the other? I definitely like playing with chrome OS, but it is not something which I need or something to rely upon. I want your opinion on this.

You can watch all demo videos over here.

Use your finger!! Use it to VOTE!!

For those who consider polling day as a nice holiday..Don't use the finger to point at others. Use it to vote and make a difference. An animation which brings out the essence of the power of one. A simple but effective idea, executed well. Greater hyderabad elections are on Monday. Use your finger to vote.

Life at Orkut

Some parts of this are so true ! :)

Pappu (real name "Kashyap") opens an Orkut account.

Stage 1:

Pappu is called as "Pappu" and is 16 years old, have just cleared 10th standard exam. He opens an Orkut account.

About Me: Some "sher" explaining friendship and love.

Profile picture: Hritik or Shahid's photo

Album: Katrina, Ayesha Takia, Amrita Raos photos, Pics of Shah Rukh Khans home

Scraps: More "sher"s explaining all the philosophy in the world and claiming that Friendship and Love are the most important things in life.

Friends: Invitation sent to each and everyone on Orkut.

Communities: 10th standard batch community, Some brazilian community, Tendulkar / Federer fan community, Sunsign / Moonsign community

Testimonial: Messages like "hoz u" / "wch col" / "hi !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ... u thr ..... tc" will be in the testimonials.

Stage 2:

Pappu has completed his bachelors. He is now called as Kashyap by everyone. He has got a job in a good company.

About Me: Only in this stage about me is really "About me". Its full of what Kashyap likes, what he doesnt like, what he does in his spare time etc etc.

Profile pic: Kashyap wearing goggle on some fort / tourist spot.

Album: Kashyap and gang visiting each and every Multiplex / Fort / Water Fall in 100 km radius on bike.

Scraps: Mainly this scrap from Girls "Do I know you ?"

Friends: All the school, college batch mates, all the girls who are open to accept friend requests

Communities: "Name Beginning with", "Surname beginning with", Company community, College community

Testimonial: Testimonial claiming how is he the "GD" of at least three guys and how average he is and how he could be a good BF.

Stage 3:

Kashyap has now 5 years of work exp. He has been "onsite" once. His hair line is receding. And his parents are now "actively" looking for a girl for him.

About Me: A very formal about me. Telling everyone where he works and his age and his hobbies.

Profile pic: Kashyap in formals attending some cousins wedding / In front of some famous building in US

Album: Full of Onsite pics. This includes pics of the famous buildings, roads in US, bikes and cars in US, US hotel room photos

Scraps: Mainly scraps from girls looking for a good husband. Occasional scraps from school / college batch mates who are planning re union (which never happens)

Friends: Very few additions to the friend list. Mainly people from the company.

Communities: Community for his caste / sub caste

Testimonial: No new testimonials.

Stage 4

Kashyap is now married for 2 months.

About Me: No about me.

Profile pic: Kashyap and his wife on honeymoon. Holding each other on some hill top.

Album: Full of Marriage and Honeymoon pics. In all the pics the couple is standing extremely close to each other. Very rarely anything other than the couple is seen in the pics.

Scraps: Scrap by almost everyone in the friend list congratulating on his marriage.

Friends: Additions to the friend list are people from his wifes family. Typically a "Saali" or "Saala".

Communities: No addition to the communities.

Testimonial: "Saali" writes testimonial for her "Jiju".

Stage 5:

Kashyap is now married for 2 years.

About Me: Some management / Philosophical/ "Self Help" type of funda.

Profile pic: The marriage pic.

Album: School and college farewell party, pics with the friends from first company when Kashyaps waist was 28 (Now its 34 threatening to reach 36)

Scraps: Thank you scraps for the B'day wishes Kashyap has sent.

Friends: No additions to the friend list.

Communities: No addition to the communities.

Testimonial: No testimonials.

Stage 6:

Kashyap and his wife now have a baby.

About Me: Nothing.

Profile pic: Kids photo

Album: Only the kids snaps.

Scraps: "Congratulations for the Gods gift" type of scraps.

Friends: No additions.

Communities: No addition to the communities.

Testimonial: No testimonials.

And after this everything is about the Kid and Wife and Kashyap is not living for himself but he is living for his parents / wife / kids. Nowadays Kashyap spends more time on "LinkedIn" than on Orkut :)

Sixth Sense Technology

Most of this had been seen already...but its worth watching everytime...Main person behind this is Pranav Mistry, a MIT graduate. He worked with Microsoft as a UX researcher. This is simply mind blowing,  An update from an earlier TED Talk  http://bit.ly/5mHZJ. Check out he made a piece of paper an interactive screen. One of the most Fascinating TED talks. More news on the Pranav's technology http://bit.ly/g0cGn , Best Part is he is going to make it opensource.

1. Camera: A webcam captures an object in view and tracks the user's hand gestures. It sends the data to the smart phone.
2. Colored Markers: Marking the user's fingers with red, yellow, green, and blue tape helps the webcam recognize gestures. Mistry is working on gesture-recognition algorithms that could eliminate the need for the markers.
3. Projector: A tiny LED projector displays data sent from the smart phone on any surface in view--object, wall, or person. Mistry hopes to start using laser projectors to increase the brightness.
4. Smart Phone: A Web-enabled smart phone in the user's pocket processes the video data, using vision algorithms to identify the object. Other software searches the Web and interprets the hand gestures.

I am a sweet man

I am a sweet man. I am a distant relative of Bat Man, spider Man, He-Man, Super Man, Iron Man. Like all of them, I have super natural powers. I can jump over the buildings, dive across the oceans, run along with deers, ride on the tigers. I tried wearing my underwear outside. Since it is pink, I changed my mind to wear it inside.

For those who might be wondering what is he upto, You heard it right. I am sweet, sugar coated candy man. I will always be in love with everything nice and sweet. In fact, the way I crave for anything sugary is something inherent and inescapable. This craving for sweet pleasure is accompanied by eating too many calories in general which made me gain all the weight. If you cut my finger and examine the blood for 5 secs, you could see the ants fighting for my blood.

Earlier whenever there was injustice prevailing in the world, a superhero has been born.Sweet Man is born to stop the extremely annoying mails which you get saying "SWEETS AT MY DESK, PLEASE COME AND HELP YOURSELVES". Even more annoying is when they type all caps. As soon as I see this mail, I rush to the cubicles just like the way flood victims or the refugees in a drought rush for the food packets.  My coleagues yelled at me so many times, saying Man, you'll be fat from all those sweets. I never listened to them. All I do is attack the sweets.

I have experienced this so many times, that I feel ashamed of myself now. I know I have been under diet control, these mails kept breaking my diet control. I have taken a oath couple of weeks back in front of my coleagues, that I would stop eating sweets. Soon after that, there is a mail saying choclates at my desk. I went and had them shamelessly and when they asked about my oath, I told them I just meant sweets not choclates. And then biscuits, then came my friends marriage. When my coleagues asked Did you have sweets at your friends marriage, I told them I had Ice cream. Without even me giving an explanation, they started making fun saying we know Ice Cream is not sweet.

When I started going to gym, I asked my gym instructor, How do I reduce my weight drastically. He told me cut down on the Cokes, junk food and you might just lose that gut you are always complaining about! So I stopped having soft drinks, tea, coffee in office. I told myself that sweets are never called junk food. But these spoiler mails are making sweet man gain more and more calories .

There is not even a single occasion which is spared.

1. "Back from home. Sweets at my desk." I didn't know that we are supposed to bring sweets after we are back from home trip.
2. "Home Made and Biwi made sweets at desk. Eat at your own risk". Why do females want a fit man, with a nice body, but when they have them, they stuff them with sweets?
3. "Back from US. Choclates at my desk." I never knew American Chocolates were so popular that almost entire office would ogle at every flavor on display. Now a days they are available in every big grocery shop.
4. "Found a new soul mate. Sweets at my desk?". Literally, what happened to the old one.
5. "Bought a new car. Sweets at my desk." Not sure what they are trying to say with this mail. May be you should drop me daily with your new car.
6. "Got Engaged. Sweets at my desk". This mail always annoys me more than every other mail, for the reasons unknown.
7. "Blessed with a baby. Sweets at my desk" A genuine mail to celebrate.
8. "Teachers Day. Sweets my desk." Thank God, I didnt get this mail for children's day, yesterday.

The foremost task of a sweet man is to stop getting tempted to those mails. I’ve kept a rule in my outlook engine which would begin deleting emails that contain the words “at my desk”.Next task is to send a mail to wider audience saying, "I know you people are extremely happy in distributing sweets and making other people jealous. But please excuse me from the list. I’m neither interested in extra calories nor a Sweet deficient. I already have enough of them".

A Thousand Splendid Suns: Review

I loved this book as much as the Kite Runner. This is not an easy book to read over and over again. It is not a happy book at all. It is incredibly heartbreaking, tragic, painful, compelling and unusual.. The cruelty to women is incomprehensible. Khaled tells us the story of two women and their struggles for life in a society that thinks they  should not live. What I find ironic about such societies is the obvious  struggle between valuing women as life givers while depleting their worth because they are not men. The status of medical care during the rule of the Taliban is clinically detailed by the author and graphically described when Laila presents to the only hospital in Kabul which is allowed to treat women and has to undergo a Cesarean section without anesthesia because the Taliban won’t fund the women’s hospital.

A Thousand Splendid Suns tells the story of two women, Mariam and Laila, all of their pain, suffering and joy. This book was initially broken up into two different stories. The story of Miriam who was a harami child, and the story of Laila absorbed in young love. Entering part 3 of the book, it started to painfully yet beautifully wretch and tear my heart apart. Two women separated by a generation, bound to the same brutal man, will break your heart. They are brought together by unfortunate circumstances in war-torn Afghanistan. Their bond is truly heartwarming and completely incredible, unbreakable. The sacrifices of  Mariam and Laila are selfless and painful. I could not help but get choked up by the terrible conditions and situations they were faced with...especially those brought on by the evil Rasheed. This is surely going to take some time for me to digest.

My Rating :

55 Fiction: The Betrayal

55 Fiction is a form of micro fiction that refers to the works of fiction limited to a maximum of fifty-five words. Most 55 Fiction works are dramatized so as to get the effect in limited time.

 
 

The Betrayal

 
She said "You will probably take care of my career..You are the reason i have this career."
 
He replied "Is this all just about your career"
 
The words? "I think we should be just friends"
 
The moment she said those words, He knew its all over. They are inevitable. It simply had to be this way.
 
Playing with some one else emotions, in the form of disguise in love is nothing but the betrayal.
 
I don't even know if I'm doing this right but I'm giving it a go anyway. Any constructive criticism is most welcome.


 

Sunday Quote : Whose Life

Sunday Quote is an idea to share with you the thoughts I have heard, read or being quoted from books, movies or conversations. I am going to quote the thought and where I heard it or read it from. The thoughts could be quotes, anecdotes, excerpts and even passages from books. They will be mostly thought provoking and they would add some element to one’s understanding and thought process.

Its not the question of whose mistake,
Its the question of whose life.
Instead of taking yourself constant and expecting the world change.
Take the world as it is and U-turn (you change)
                        -- From Frozen Thoughts Magazine.

If Cricket is Religion, Sachin is God.

The Hyderabad stadium lives upto its expectation. No home team wins. But – what a pitch , what a ground and what a match. The other 10 people couldn’t give back a win to sachin. It was literally heart breaking and it took a long time for me to come out of it. I was certainly disappointed with what just happened in the last three overs of the match yesterday and no argument can console my broken heart.

Hats of to the little master. Here is a man with all of his 36 years giving everything he had and he could not get the help he needed from the younger, perceivably more fitter lot. Keeping his cool when chasing 350 with the top 4 back in the pavilion (with no contribution…) and getting so close is something out of the world.

I have been watching sachin playing cricket since 17 years, though he has been playing since 20 years.  I have been a part of the era – when stadiums were vacated once Sachin got out. I used to switch of the TV once he is out and get back to my work. Its not about win or lose. Except the last 3 overs I was watching my childhood hero displaying his sheer brilliance in all the shots he played all through his inning, what an attitude and temperament! That feeling was awesome, you seldom get these highs… while watching cricket these days.

Those who love Sachin and to all those who unnecessarily hate him, A must read for every cricket fan, Just read it till the end.

"Nothing bad can happen to us if we're on a plane in India with Sachin Tendulkar on it."
- Hashim Amla, the South African batsman, reassures himself as he boards a flight.
 

"Sometimes you get so engrossed in watching batsmen like Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar that you lose focus on your job."
- Yaseer Hameed in pakistani newspaper.

"To Sachin, the man we all want to be"
- Andrew Symonds wrote on an aussie t-shirt he autographed specially for Sachin.
 

“Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium,there is something we don't know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their TV sets and switch off their lives."
- BBC on Sachin
 

"Tuzhe pata hai tune kiska catch chhoda hai?" - Wasim Akram to Abdul Razzaq when the latter dropped Sachin's catch in 2003 WC.
 

Sachin is a genius. I'm a mere mortal.
- Brian Charles Lara

"We did not lose to a team called India...we lost to a man called Sachin."
- Mark Taylor, during the test match in Chennai (1997)

"The more I see of him the more confused I'm getting to which is his best knock."
- M. L. Jaisimha

"The joy he brings to the millions of his countrymen, the grace with which he handles all the adulation and the expectations and his innate humility - all make for a one-in-a-billion individual,"
-  Glen McGrath

"I can be hundred per cent sure that Sachin will not play for a minute longer when he is not enjoying himself. He is still so eager to go out there and play. He will play as long as he feels he can play,"
- Anjali Tendulkar

Question: Who do you think as most important celebrity ?
Shah Rukh Khan: There was a big party where stars from bollywood and cricket were invited. Suddenly, there was a big noise, all wanted to see approaching Amitabh Bachhan. Then Sachin entered the hall and Amitabh was leading the queue to get a grab of the GENIUS!!
-  Shah Rukh Khan in an interview.

“India me aap PrimeMinister ko ek Baar Katghare me khada kar sakte hain..Par Sachin Tendulkar par Ungli nahi utha Sakte.. “
- Navjot Singh Sidhu on TV

He can play that leg glance with a walking stick also.
- Waqar Younis

Sachin Tendulkar has often reminded me of a veteran army colonel who has many medals on his chest to show how he has conquered bowlers all over the world. I was bowling to Sachin and he hit me for two fours in a row. One from point and the other in between point and gully. That was the last two balls of the over and the over after that we (SA) took a wicket and during the group meeting i told Jonty (Rhodes) to be alert and i know a way to pin Sachin. And i delivered the first ball of my next over and it was a fuller length delevery outside offstump. And i shouted catch. To my astonishment the ball was hit to the cover boundary. Such was the brilliance of Sachin. His reflex time is the best i have ever seen. Its like 1/20th of a sec. To get his wicket better not prepare. Atleast u wont regret if he hits you for boundaries.
- Allan Donald

On a train from Shimla to Delhi, there was a halt in one of the stations. The train stopped by for few minutes as usual. Sachin was nearing century, batting on 98. The passengers, railway officials, everyone on the train waited for Sachin to complete the century. This Genius can stop time in India!!
- Peter Rebouck - Aussie journalist

"Sachin cannot cheat. He is to cricket what (Mahatma) Gandhiji was to politics. It's clear discrimination. "
- NKP Salve, former Union Minister when Sachin was accused of ball tempering

There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all the others.
- Andy Flower

"I have seen god, he bats at no.4 for India"
- Mathew Hayden

"Commit all your sins when Sachin is batting. They will go unnoticed coz even the GOD is watching"
- A hoarding in England

NOW THIS ONE IS PROBABLY THE BEST

"Even my father's name is Sachin Tendulkar."

- Tendulkar's daughter, Sara, tells her class her father's name after the teacher informs them of a restaurant of the same name in Mumbai.

Social Networking Specialist

Anything that puts someone's thoughts out there for others is social. Is it really called social networking? Probably not. It is nothing but creating a fake aura of  you for someone else. Social Networking refers to the process of actually hacking people instead of machines. How can you hack a person? Social networking will never let you hide! A Hacker probably may not want to waste loads of his valuable time. All the information is available is out there. Social networking is steadily turning everyone into a clinically insane. Your real conversations has been replaced by chat programs.  The drama of your love has been replaced by a single column in a social networking site, which is Relationship Status. Your pictures are invitations for someone to stalk on you. 

Are you using social networking or is social networking using you? Social networking is supposed to support your social life, not dominate it. Watch out people, Social Networking is dangerous. Be cautious on which personal information to share and which not. You are being watched. If you think you are a social networking specialist, there is no patch for your stupidity.

Why can't we just be Happy

Why cant we just be Happy. Is it because Unhappiness is what which Drives and Motivates people. Does it mean that it should be a never ending thing. Some people can always find something to complain about. Someone Like, they win the lottery, and all they can think about is the taxes they'll have to pay? They get a promotion, and all they can do is complain about how to report to the new boss or handle the new role. Do we really become happy after getting driven and motivated and working harder et all. May be not. Happiness is in state of mind. It is about reducing desires and enjoying what is there with contentment.

I saw this add recently. This guy has got a job, which millions and millions of guys dream about or fascinate about, yet he still complaints. I Just can't stop myself from posting it here. Sorry girls, just ignore this video. Do you know of someone, who always keep complaining about something. Write your experiences with them in comments.

Yet Another Tag: How Dumb are you

TAG : How DUMB are you?

The more [x]’ s the “dumber” you are.

[] Gum has fallen out of your mouth when you were talking
[] Gum has fallen out of your mouth when you were NOT talking
[x] You have ran into a glass/screen door
[] You have jumped out of a moving vehicle
[x] You have thought of something funny while walking by yourself
[x] Laughed, then watched people give you weird looks
[x] You have run into a tree/bush.
[] You know that it IS possible to lick your elbow
[] You have tried to lick your elbow… a few times
[x] You never knew that the Alphabet and Twinkle Twinkle Little star have the same rhythm.
[x] You just tried to sing them.

So far: 6

[] You have tripped on your shoelace and fallen.
[] You have choked on your own spit .
[] You have seen the Matrix and still don’t get it.
[] You’ve never seen the Matrix.
[x] You type only with two fingers.
[] You have accidentally caught something on fire.
[] You tried to drink out of a straw, but it went into your nose/eyes.
[x] You have caught yourself drooling.
[] You have fallen asleep in class and fell outta your chair

So far: 8

[x] Sometimes you just stop thinking .
[x] You are telling a story and forget what you were talking about.
[] People often shake their heads and walk away from you.
[x] You are often told to use your “inside voice”.
[] You use your fingers to do simple math.
[] You have eaten a bug.
[x] You are taking this test when you should be doing something more important.
[x] You have put your clothes on backwards or inside out, and didn’t realize it.
[] You’ve looked all over for something and realized it was in your hand.
[x] You have ran around naked in your house.

So far: 14

[] You repost bulletins because you are scared that what they say will happen to you if you didn’t.
[] You break a lot of things.
[x] Your friends know not to use big words around you.
[] You tilt your head when you’re confused.
[x] You have fallen out of your chair before.
[] When you’re lying in bed, you try to find pictures in the texture of the ceiling or wall.
[] The word “ummmmm” is used many times a day.

TOTAL: 16
Even I am (16/37)*100 = 43.24% DUMB !

I hope I haven't disappointed any one, and proved to be one among the star of Dumbo community.

I tag now Manoj for this.

55 Fiction : Love Destiny

55 Fiction is a form of micro fiction that refers to the works of fiction limited to a maximum of fifty-five words. Most 55 Fiction works are dramatized so as to get the effect in limited time.

Love Destiny

She said "No one likes me why?"

He replied, "It rains because whole world love you baby". There she smiled like a Spring of flowers.

A year later,  He ended his life. He loved her so much but he can never get her. He cannot live with the pain, because its either her or death.

This is my first try. Hope I conveyed the message. Love is not everything. Definitely not more than your life and your parents.

Sunday Quote : Future

Sunday Quote is an idea to share with you the thoughts I have heard, read or being quoted from books, movies or conversations. I am going to quote the thought and where I heard it or read it from. The thoughts could be quotes, anecdotes, excerpts and even passages from books. They will be mostly thought provoking and they would add some element to one’s understanding and thought process.
Future is not what we plan for tomorrow. It is the result of what we do today. Do the best in the present and enjoy the future. 

The Joy of a book is in the pages you haven't read.
The Glory of your life is in the days yet to be lived.

Go meet the person you will become in the future.                                                                                                            --Anonymous.

Windows 7 Logo : Domino Dhamaka

Unveiling of the Windows 7 logo by Microsoft Employees in Hyderabad using over ~ 7000 dominos. Every floor  of Building was crowded and overflowing.  They came from all over the campus to witness the event.  This video is recorded by a colleague standing next to me from the 4th floor of the building.  For the people who are familiar with my voice, see if you can recognize my voice in the background. I promise I will give you a chocolate for those who can identify my voice and the words which I am exactly speaking. 


Now stop making fun of the video saying, slow boot time it took a while to unveil the logo, the windows logo in the form of balloons got stuck at the roof, it needed a manual reboot in the middle. I have heard this enough, Its just a fun event. After all its fruit of our labor after the break.

This happens only in India...

Marketing Innovations have no limits...This is in Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park, Hinjewadi Pune.

Punishment for speaking in mother tongue

I came across this news in the regional news paper this morning.

http://eenadu.net/panelhtml.asp?qrystr=htm/panel14.htm

For those who don't understand Telugu, the intent of the article is children have been punished severely for speaking  in their mother tongue. This is one of the most disturbing trends in the current day schooling/education. Parents has to take lot of responsibility for this trend along with Government.   People take pride if their children call them dad, mummy.  I have seen many people teaching their kids to address direct relatives (attayya, mavayya, chinnanna, chinnamma etc.) as uncle, aunty.

Whatever the teachers did is very shameful on their part. I think the teacher is an educated illiterate.  This incident is a proof of their poor education, education in it's true sense.  It also gives an idea of how poor their general awareness and culture values are.  If this kind of teachers continue to educate our future generations then we will be left with no cultural or regional values once we have.  We will soon loose the real unity in diversity, for what once India is famous for, and end up with the idiotic western culture. It might be sheer stupidity on part of the teachers, but even parents are here to blame for. They feel proud when their kids talk good in English. But now the pressure is on the kids. The people conquered most in India are those who are good in their mother tongue. Future is Dark with this Attitude.

Bachelor Life

Bachelors are of different types.

• Single bachelors
• Committed bachelor
• Ready to be committed bachelors
• Desperate to be committed bachelors
• Ready to re commit bachelors
• And those who pass all these states become  “Sab Moh Maya” kind of bachelors.
  

You know you are enjoying your bachelor life

1) When you write such meaning less posts.
2) When you post such things at the odd hours of the day.
3) When you cook maggie for all three meals of the day.

So the question is which one is better bachelor's life or Married life? Which one is more enjoyable?

I had this argument with a friend of mine some time back. She is a married girl and says she enjoyed her single life more than her current marriage life. I personally feel single life is great and more enjoyable but both have their benefits. Being single is better for me than being part of a couple.  I like having my space and not always having to worry about splitting my time with someone else. When the time comes I'm sure I'll change my mind and think that married life is the greatest thing ever. I love companionship and will eventually want to share that aspect of my life with someone, but until that day comes I'm way more partial to the bachelor life.

I had a similar discussion 2 years back with my professor and his wife. They are wonderful people and you could learn many things just by their words. They shared lot of positives about marriage life. I want to put their thoughts as well.  It is wonderful  to have someone really care for how your health is!whether you ate today or not! Married life is difficult but it will help to gain you more knowledge and become wiser in life.  You will have a clear understanding of what life is really all about. You learn the meaning of unconditional love, patient and perseverance. Some say bachelors life, enjoying it to the fullest,, parties,, hang out with friends,, boozz, girls, adventures .. you name it, we have done it.

Single life has its period and in their opinion it takes about twenty five years. Every one at that age looks for friendship and study, but there is a period after that. Any one should look for marriage, to establish a family and have a good and smart children.

I want every one opinion on this topic in the comments section. Guys please post your thoughts on this.

Tagged: Innocent or Guilty

Welcome Change from posts I have been writing. I have been tagged to answer a few questions. Anyway, here is the questionnaire I had to fill.

TAG : Innocent… or Guilty?

RULE 1- You can only say Guilty or Innocent.

RULE 2- Copy and paste this into your notes , delete my answers, type in your answers and tag to your friends to answer this.

1. Asked someone to marry you? Guilty
2. Ever kissed someone of the same sex? Innocent.
3. Danced on a table in a bar? Innocent.
4. Ever told a lie? Guilty.
5. Had feelings for someone whom you can’t have back? Guilty.
6. Kissed a picture? Innocent
7. Slept in until 5 PM? Innocent
8. Fallen asleep at work/school? Innocent.
9. Held a snake? Innocent.
10. Been suspended from school? Innocent.
11. Worked at a fast food restaurant? Innocent.
12. Stolen from a store? Innocent .
13. Been fired from a job? Innocent.
14. Done something you regret? Guilty.
15. Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? Innocent.
16. Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Innocent.
17. Kissed in the rain? Innocent .
18. Sat on a roof top? Guilty.
19. Kissed someone you shouldn’t? Innocent
20. Sang in the shower? Guilty.
21. Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? Innocent.
22. Shaved your head? Innocent.
23. Had a boxing membership? Innocent.
24. Made a boyfriend cry? Innocent.
25. Been in a band? Innocent.
26. Shot a gun? Innocent.
27. Donated Blood? Innocent.
28. Eaten alligator meat? Innocent.
29. Eaten cheesecake? Guilty.
30. Still love someone you shouldn’t? Guilty
31. Have/had a tattoo? Innocent.
32. Liked someone, but will never tell who? Guilty.
33. Been too honest? Innocent.
34. Ruined a surprise?Guilty.
35. Ate in a restaurant and got really bloated that you couldn’t walk afterwards?Guilty.
36. Erased someone in your friends list? Guilty.
37. Dressed in a woman’s clothes (if you’re a guy) or man’s clothes (if you’re a girl)? Innocent.
38. Joined a pageant? Innocent.
39. Been told that you’re handsome or beautiful by someone who totally meant what they said? Guilty.
40. Had communication with your ex? Innocent.
41. Got totally drunk on the night before exam? Innocent.
42. Got totally angry that you cried so hard? Guilty.

Guilty for 14/42.

I am going to tag some of my friends. However, who ever wants to do this tag can take this up.