And you are too…
There it was sitting in the mailbox with a shiny glistening silver reflective computer monitor on the cover, a not so ingenious concept but compelling nevertheless, glare into it and it’s your own reflection. ‘Time’ has voted us the ‘Person of the Year’. Me for my ramblings and ranting on this blog, you for reading and commenting on my blog and them for posting on you-tube, flickr, mySpace, wikipedia…, didn’t find a mention of orkut yet, but its probably similar to what they had in mind too …
You may not agree with the content, especially since I do believe that what’s on the internet is not the real you or me!, it’s a really really small peek into my life and that’s the way it will stay but nevertheless Congratulations to ourselves, my second shot at fame!!!
And the next time you ask me why I blog, pick up the issue of ‘Time’ and look at your own picture for motivation!
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Out of bounds
Ever wonder why your weekends seem to be more hectic than working days? because they are! How much can you pack in 48 hours before you hear the drill or the drone or the drill and the drone of the alarm in your head on Monday morning?
Before I answer that I must answer the question ‘why does the girl blog?’ on personal demand!!
Lets talk about why people blog, I have read random blogs, people with exceptional writing skills, people with exceptional creative skills and then just ordinary folks like her, google doesn’t advertise on her blog so there’s no reason to increase readership, then why? She is a very busy girl, but she basically loves giving vent to her thoughts at times, and what better way than on her blog? It’s her open diary, a cool way of telling the world what she wants it to know, whatever she thinks, at whatever point she pleases and to whosoever may care to listen/read. Take it up with her!, you can give vent using comments.... As for me
And back to the hectic weekends, pennies and some cents on two totally contrasting movies, ‘The nativity story’ and ‘Blood Diamond’ coming up soon. The ‘soon’ is as unpredictable as the ‘rain’ in Antartica!
Hasta luego
Before I answer that I must answer the question ‘why does the girl blog?’ on personal demand!!
Lets talk about why people blog, I have read random blogs, people with exceptional writing skills, people with exceptional creative skills and then just ordinary folks like her, google doesn’t advertise on her blog so there’s no reason to increase readership, then why? She is a very busy girl, but she basically loves giving vent to her thoughts at times, and what better way than on her blog? It’s her open diary, a cool way of telling the world what she wants it to know, whatever she thinks, at whatever point she pleases and to whosoever may care to listen/read. Take it up with her!, you can give vent using comments.... As for me
And back to the hectic weekends, pennies and some cents on two totally contrasting movies, ‘The nativity story’ and ‘Blood Diamond’ coming up soon. The ‘soon’ is as unpredictable as the ‘rain’ in Antartica!
Hasta luego
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
That hour
What do you do when you have an hour to kill?, an hour of absolute ‘nothing to do’…? No mosquitoes to kill
And no, you can’t watch a movie, you can’t read a novel, you can’t watch a TV show, you can’t clean your house and you can’t sleep!
A few things you could do
-> write a post for your blog
-> don’t have a blog, never mind read posts on other’s blogs and comment
-> write a story, use your imagination
-> write a mail to your friends on last week’s activities
-> read and research on products you plan to buy in the next 1 to 5 years!
-> read and comment on technical forums!.. Welcome to the geek world!
-> make a lot of short phone calls after all, no one else is free when you are and versa vice
-> walk across to your neighbor’s cubicle and bore him to death talking about UFO’s
-> don’t use the elevators, walk up and down six floors to get to the vending machine for a pack of gum
-> pay your bills online
-> Sudoku – eureka! Make sure you have a printed copy and are not doing it online
Disclaimer: Use Extreme caution if your company monitors internet usage! This is not a consolidated list, addition to the above are welcome
And no, you can’t watch a movie, you can’t read a novel, you can’t watch a TV show, you can’t clean your house and you can’t sleep!
A few things you could do
-> write a post for your blog
-> don’t have a blog, never mind read posts on other’s blogs and comment
-> write a story, use your imagination
-> write a mail to your friends on last week’s activities
-> read and research on products you plan to buy in the next 1 to 5 years!
-> read and comment on technical forums!.. Welcome to the geek world!
-> make a lot of short phone calls after all, no one else is free when you are and versa vice
-> walk across to your neighbor’s cubicle and bore him to death talking about UFO’s
-> don’t use the elevators, walk up and down six floors to get to the vending machine for a pack of gum
-> pay your bills online
-> Sudoku – eureka! Make sure you have a printed copy and are not doing it online
Disclaimer: Use Extreme caution if your company monitors internet usage! This is not a consolidated list, addition to the above are welcome
Monday, December 04, 2006
la la LA
This is not a tour diary; I don’t think I can write a tour diary after a couple of unsuccessful attempts. Those were the days when I could write 5 page essays on a trip!
Back to the thanksgiving weekend with the two holidays and the fact that Binaisha was traveling to LA. LA is different, as is NY from Houston …. I can hear obviously! All unique and beautiful in their own way
We made it to the airport on time, well in time despite all the traffic snarls on the freeway. Traveling for the first time post the transatlantic air scare, and I had to dump a couple of containers in the thrash can, blame it on the manufacturing co. - travel size packs and exceeding 3 oz….huh!
Somehow Continental airlines always seem to land ahead of schedule and that meant a long wait at LAX for my pickup…. Catching up with Bin for the second time since I got here
The USC campus was our first stop followed by the thanksgiving dinner at Sandeep’s. What’s special about thanksgiving, leaving aside the traditional meaning, for us it meant shopping and what better than the Friday madness shopping, headed to Camarillo and partook in the madness, from midnight to about 10 AM… was truly maddening.
The rest of the Friday was for Hollywood , Rajesh drove all the way down from San Diego to meet us ;-) Hollywood here I come!
Hollywood Street is like any commercial street in the US , predominately of souvenir stores and eat out places with an occasional piece of ‘fame’, like the Kodak theater and the wax museum. Reminded me of the 6th street in Austin that’s full of pubs and tattoo stores! Ripley’s was our first stop and it lived upto expectations while I had to settle with Harrison Ford for a picture on the walk of fame star. We tried unsuccessfully to get below the Hollywood sign after a treacherous drive into the Hollywood hills! And that was the end of the day 2.
Universal Studios deserves a complete post but I’ll try my best here – simply amazing is all I can say. The Universal studio tour is a must-visit, well-organized and informative, we even saw the ‘desperate housewives’ set among others! Not a fan of those thrilling rides as they call it but these were something else. The ‘Mummy returns’ ride looked a lot similar to the setting in the movie ‘Final Destination 3’ but I didn’t let that jitter me. The rest of the rides and shows were all truly worthy of the time we spent waiting for our turn in winding queues. Water World truly deserves a mention here along with those photo ops with Zorro and Shrek :- )
The entertainment capital of LA totally appealed to me, with an excellent on the feedback form
Sunday was reserved for Mass, Promenade, Santa Monica Pier, Beverly Hills and a second unsuccessful attempt at getting to the Hollywood sign as the path leading to it from Griffith park was closed!.
Houston welcomes me back by with a huge downpour! Nice$@
Back to the thanksgiving weekend with the two holidays and the fact that Binaisha was traveling to LA. LA is different, as is NY from Houston …. I can hear obviously! All unique and beautiful in their own way
We made it to the airport on time, well in time despite all the traffic snarls on the freeway. Traveling for the first time post the transatlantic air scare, and I had to dump a couple of containers in the thrash can, blame it on the manufacturing co. - travel size packs and exceeding 3 oz….huh!
Somehow Continental airlines always seem to land ahead of schedule and that meant a long wait at LAX for my pickup…. Catching up with Bin for the second time since I got here
The USC campus was our first stop followed by the thanksgiving dinner at Sandeep’s. What’s special about thanksgiving, leaving aside the traditional meaning, for us it meant shopping and what better than the Friday madness shopping, headed to Camarillo and partook in the madness, from midnight to about 10 AM… was truly maddening.
The rest of the Friday was for Hollywood , Rajesh drove all the way down from San Diego to meet us ;-) Hollywood here I come!
Hollywood Street is like any commercial street in the US , predominately of souvenir stores and eat out places with an occasional piece of ‘fame’, like the Kodak theater and the wax museum. Reminded me of the 6th street in Austin that’s full of pubs and tattoo stores! Ripley’s was our first stop and it lived upto expectations while I had to settle with Harrison Ford for a picture on the walk of fame star. We tried unsuccessfully to get below the Hollywood sign after a treacherous drive into the Hollywood hills! And that was the end of the day 2.
Universal Studios deserves a complete post but I’ll try my best here – simply amazing is all I can say. The Universal studio tour is a must-visit, well-organized and informative, we even saw the ‘desperate housewives’ set among others! Not a fan of those thrilling rides as they call it but these were something else. The ‘Mummy returns’ ride looked a lot similar to the setting in the movie ‘Final Destination 3’ but I didn’t let that jitter me. The rest of the rides and shows were all truly worthy of the time we spent waiting for our turn in winding queues. Water World truly deserves a mention here along with those photo ops with Zorro and Shrek :- )
The entertainment capital of LA totally appealed to me, with an excellent on the feedback form
Sunday was reserved for Mass, Promenade, Santa Monica Pier, Beverly Hills and a second unsuccessful attempt at getting to the Hollywood sign as the path leading to it from Griffith park was closed!.
Houston welcomes me back by with a huge downpour! Nice$@
Monday, November 27, 2006
Ten Minute Email
You want to read a news story on some obscure web-site and they ask you to register yourself with a VALID email id. Reading the story is not the end of your association with the news site!!!... Open your email and will be bombarded with spam ‘Do you want to register for an Online course’?’ Do you want a free laptop?
No I don’t want a free laptop from you… my spam folder used to fill up faster than my inbox
10 Minute Email have tried it and it lasts exactly for 10 minutes with the default setting, a randomly generated email that you can use while registering for gototimbuktu.com
A novel concept indeed!
A lot of other sites have started offering this service too, try it at your own risk, I don’t really need it as I have another way to bypass all the spam!
No I don’t want a free laptop from you… my spam folder used to fill up faster than my inbox
10 Minute Email have tried it and it lasts exactly for 10 minutes with the default setting, a randomly generated email that you can use while registering for gototimbuktu.com
A novel concept indeed!
A lot of other sites have started offering this service too, try it at your own risk, I don’t really need it as I have another way to bypass all the spam!
Thursday, November 09, 2006
‘Twas a beautiful Sunday
This is from my drafts, outdated but nevertheless~. A lazy Thursday night and with nothing better within arms reach than ‘Deception Point’ and here I am!
‘Twas a beautiful Sunday
And before it only becomes only a passing blip on my memory’s radar, here is etching it on my blog…..
Woke up to the rain pounding against the window frame, it wasn’t really pounding, just an early morning exaggeration.
A three minute early morning walk to church was enough to drench you and make you regret your decision to wear those nice dressy shoes!, walking in the rain on a rainy morning in M’lore that was the picture in my head. But no, we weren’t going to walk to Church, there’s practically no place you can walk to here!, office doesn’t count!
As usual, despite breaking all the speed limits we still managed to reach late, the rains didn’t seem to deter anyone from attending Sunday service. St. John’s Vianney Catholic Church has become my temporary parish since the past few months that I’ve made my dwelling place in Houston. It is very unlike Prince of Peace, Plano… this one is more like a typical church, and very typical not in the sense that the choir if very operaish!... tough for alto singers…
Back to the beautiful Sunday which was getting better, Parineeta and yummy food, a nap and still no let up in the rain. This is the kind of Sunday, I want every week!
It has been a record of sorts for me, three hindi movies in one month!. First was Kosla ka Ghosla, huh the name itself is a letdown!.... but was watchable, I am still trying to remember the name of the hindi movie I watched prior to this… has to be back at home, but still can’t ( maybe one of those on the local cable channel, Sunday 2 PM TV!) and the second homecoming for AAA - Amar, Akbar, Antony after all those years….poles apart were all the three movies!
‘Twas a beautiful Sunday
And before it only becomes only a passing blip on my memory’s radar, here is etching it on my blog…..
Woke up to the rain pounding against the window frame, it wasn’t really pounding, just an early morning exaggeration.
A three minute early morning walk to church was enough to drench you and make you regret your decision to wear those nice dressy shoes!, walking in the rain on a rainy morning in M’lore that was the picture in my head. But no, we weren’t going to walk to Church, there’s practically no place you can walk to here!, office doesn’t count!
As usual, despite breaking all the speed limits we still managed to reach late, the rains didn’t seem to deter anyone from attending Sunday service. St. John’s Vianney Catholic Church has become my temporary parish since the past few months that I’ve made my dwelling place in Houston. It is very unlike Prince of Peace, Plano… this one is more like a typical church, and very typical not in the sense that the choir if very operaish!... tough for alto singers…
Back to the beautiful Sunday which was getting better, Parineeta and yummy food, a nap and still no let up in the rain. This is the kind of Sunday, I want every week!
It has been a record of sorts for me, three hindi movies in one month!. First was Kosla ka Ghosla, huh the name itself is a letdown!.... but was watchable, I am still trying to remember the name of the hindi movie I watched prior to this… has to be back at home, but still can’t ( maybe one of those on the local cable channel, Sunday 2 PM TV!) and the second homecoming for AAA - Amar, Akbar, Antony after all those years….poles apart were all the three movies!
Saturday, October 28, 2006
The Prestige is not so prestigious!
Time: Friday, 10:30 PM
Venue: Tinseltown
It was our date with 'The Prestige'. Hugh Jackman in the cast seemed like reason enough to watch the movie but it was not to be! This movie is about two magicians, Angier and Borden each trying to upstage the other in terms of their performances on stage and unseemingly offstage too. All this leads to a cat and mouse game in the awfully long 2 hours 10 minutes that the movie lasts.
The title refers to the last act of a magician, the Prestige or the final act, an act so spectacular it should leave the audience awe-inspired. It is their quest to achieve such a splendid act. It is a narrative movie but somehow midway loses focus and gets into confusing plots, there seems to be a very thin line between the narration and the story. The narration follows Angier and his quest and the rest of the plots are intermingled. It even has a reference to Thomas Edison trying to get hold of a formula for electricity? A plot that gets so hazy and messed up, it requires full concentration...take a few minutes off screen and it could be tough to follow.
Great acting by Christian Bale as Borden while was it a pretty ordinary performance by Jackman.
We somehow seem to pick all the wrong movies to watch as a team!
Venue: Tinseltown
It was our date with 'The Prestige'. Hugh Jackman in the cast seemed like reason enough to watch the movie but it was not to be! This movie is about two magicians, Angier and Borden each trying to upstage the other in terms of their performances on stage and unseemingly offstage too. All this leads to a cat and mouse game in the awfully long 2 hours 10 minutes that the movie lasts.
The title refers to the last act of a magician, the Prestige or the final act, an act so spectacular it should leave the audience awe-inspired. It is their quest to achieve such a splendid act. It is a narrative movie but somehow midway loses focus and gets into confusing plots, there seems to be a very thin line between the narration and the story. The narration follows Angier and his quest and the rest of the plots are intermingled. It even has a reference to Thomas Edison trying to get hold of a formula for electricity? A plot that gets so hazy and messed up, it requires full concentration...take a few minutes off screen and it could be tough to follow.
Great acting by Christian Bale as Borden while was it a pretty ordinary performance by Jackman.
We somehow seem to pick all the wrong movies to watch as a team!
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Can't seem to find it!
Apart from my previous post on M'lore, it’s been a long time, a long long time... The previous one doesn't count; it’s just a piece of news!!!
I can't even blame it on the uneventful life I've been leading....all the topics that were worthy of a post, starting from the Infy 25 year party at Buckhorn ranch, well maybe not this one, coz I couldn't even write a decent five lines on the party for ESsence, our ES newsletter...i was the editor of that one for a few issues and had to relinquish! or maybe I could talk about the certification I cleared with flying colors and talk on and on and try to make sense on all those 'MANDATORY' certifications we need to clear by whatever date and month.... it so reminds me of the mandatory mails we used to get to attend quarterly town halls, mandatory anyone? then there's the tender coconut drink and the impressive Italian restaurant and the cream Brule i wanted to write about, i guess i shouldn't talk about it much here, I might still someday in the wee hours of the morning after all the reviews are done, after all the issues I have no idea how to resolve are resolved still write about. And then the late night rendezvous at George Bush International airport, now that's something I think, would have made for some interesting piece of reading.
And finally my favorite shows on TV, and before you wonder, yes...I do find time to watch all of them... Grey's and CSI on the same time, big Thursday night... It was decision time and I had to go with Grey's, more on why I love this show coming up and Grey’s did beat CSI… yippee!, not that I care, but now its called the hottest show on television, even then why should I care???... LOST is back, season 3...seems as mysterious as before!
Some good songs I have been humming to recently... Amazed by Lonestar simply amazing, Sexy back - Justin timberlake catchy beat, Tonight - classic
All on this and more someday when I am awfully free and my mind is only thinking of my blog! Until then for all that is good in this world and for all that is not so good in this world?, does that cover the whole world?, ok, and also for all that is okay in this world
I can't even blame it on the uneventful life I've been leading....all the topics that were worthy of a post, starting from the Infy 25 year party at Buckhorn ranch, well maybe not this one, coz I couldn't even write a decent five lines on the party for ESsence, our ES newsletter...i was the editor of that one for a few issues and had to relinquish! or maybe I could talk about the certification I cleared with flying colors and talk on and on and try to make sense on all those 'MANDATORY' certifications we need to clear by whatever date and month.... it so reminds me of the mandatory mails we used to get to attend quarterly town halls, mandatory anyone? then there's the tender coconut drink and the impressive Italian restaurant and the cream Brule i wanted to write about, i guess i shouldn't talk about it much here, I might still someday in the wee hours of the morning after all the reviews are done, after all the issues I have no idea how to resolve are resolved still write about. And then the late night rendezvous at George Bush International airport, now that's something I think, would have made for some interesting piece of reading.
And finally my favorite shows on TV, and before you wonder, yes...I do find time to watch all of them... Grey's and CSI on the same time, big Thursday night... It was decision time and I had to go with Grey's, more on why I love this show coming up and Grey’s did beat CSI… yippee!, not that I care, but now its called the hottest show on television, even then why should I care???... LOST is back, season 3...seems as mysterious as before!
Some good songs I have been humming to recently... Amazed by Lonestar simply amazing, Sexy back - Justin timberlake catchy beat, Tonight - classic
All on this and more someday when I am awfully free and my mind is only thinking of my blog! Until then for all that is good in this world and for all that is not so good in this world?, does that cover the whole world?, ok, and also for all that is okay in this world
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Oh! Mangalore
Back, after a bit of a hiatus and disappointed by the events in Mlore...
Mangalore is on the front page of Times of India for all the wrong reasons. A relatively peaceful town, Mangalore is somehow also associated with being communally sensitive… these riots bring back memories of the communal riots that erupted in last few days of Dec 1998 and early Jan 1999, … Can’t remember the exact details, but tension flared up in Suratkal, spread on and was pretty bad.
Communal tension can escalate anywhere, especially when fuelled by politics. It may be surprising to some, Mangalore known for its education, literacy, being a pioneer in so many aspects… yet a small spark is enough!. It is sad really, heard that it seems like a ghost town since the past few days. Who benefits from all these insensible acts?, don't bother answering that one. …. It only hurts the image of a town and a town on the brink of something huge in terms of attracting large firms, a potential company may think twice….what if a curfew continues on and on for 3- 4 days, schedules could be messed up, revenue would be hit... This could happen anywhere in the world, but seems like it happens more often than not in India.
The latest update according to The Hindu, seems like we might have some life back into M'lore tomorrow. Fingers crossed!
Mangalore is on the front page of Times of India for all the wrong reasons. A relatively peaceful town, Mangalore is somehow also associated with being communally sensitive… these riots bring back memories of the communal riots that erupted in last few days of Dec 1998 and early Jan 1999, … Can’t remember the exact details, but tension flared up in Suratkal, spread on and was pretty bad.
Communal tension can escalate anywhere, especially when fuelled by politics. It may be surprising to some, Mangalore known for its education, literacy, being a pioneer in so many aspects… yet a small spark is enough!. It is sad really, heard that it seems like a ghost town since the past few days. Who benefits from all these insensible acts?, don't bother answering that one. …. It only hurts the image of a town and a town on the brink of something huge in terms of attracting large firms, a potential company may think twice….what if a curfew continues on and on for 3- 4 days, schedules could be messed up, revenue would be hit... This could happen anywhere in the world, but seems like it happens more often than not in India.
The latest update according to The Hindu, seems like we might have some life back into M'lore tomorrow. Fingers crossed!
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Random ramblings!
It’s been a few days and before I forget that I have a blog, here comes a little something, have a bit of time to kill before my offshore call,… Kinda glad it’s a holiday on 21st in our India offices, its like reverse psychology, if I can call it that…rather than looking forward to my own days off, I look forward to the days when my offshore team will not be in!. Lets not get into the question of ‘who will do the work’!!!, that’s another reverse ‘whatever’
Anyway before all the ‘reverse’ s make you want to reverse this post…
There was a book sale at office today, it was a fund raiser and had a variety of novels for 50C or 1$...quite a steal I must say… especially considering their almost brand new condition.
With all the parties gone by and the parties to look forward to and the certifications and the BoK’s!, there’s a sense of ‘awe’, for what there is and what’s not! The rage generated on Pope Benedict’s comments (he was only quoting right?), the death of Steve Irwin.
Two great giants have called it a day, not literally for Michael Schumi since he has a few more races to go but no doubt their departure will leave a huge void in their respective sports. Andre Agassi and Michael Schumacher born only a year apart seem like poles apart but they can’t be more alike!
Caught the last 5 min of the season premiere of Amazing Race, there was an Indian couple participating! And I don’t want to post any spoilers on how they fared!.... and a popular… hindi song was playing as background music for a new TV show ‘Smith’!!!. Cant say much about the show itself tho…just cant afford to get hooked onto another show!, not worth getting hooked onto anyway as on first glance.
Back to my daily dose of ‘welcome to Meeting Place @!!!!!####, ….’
Anyway before all the ‘reverse’ s make you want to reverse this post…
There was a book sale at office today, it was a fund raiser and had a variety of novels for 50C or 1$...quite a steal I must say… especially considering their almost brand new condition.
With all the parties gone by and the parties to look forward to and the certifications and the BoK’s!, there’s a sense of ‘awe’, for what there is and what’s not! The rage generated on Pope Benedict’s comments (he was only quoting right?), the death of Steve Irwin.
Two great giants have called it a day, not literally for Michael Schumi since he has a few more races to go but no doubt their departure will leave a huge void in their respective sports. Andre Agassi and Michael Schumacher born only a year apart seem like poles apart but they can’t be more alike!
Caught the last 5 min of the season premiere of Amazing Race, there was an Indian couple participating! And I don’t want to post any spoilers on how they fared!.... and a popular… hindi song was playing as background music for a new TV show ‘Smith’!!!. Cant say much about the show itself tho…just cant afford to get hooked onto another show!, not worth getting hooked onto anyway as on first glance.
Back to my daily dose of ‘welcome to Meeting Place @!!!!!####, ….’
Friday, September 08, 2006
Of finger licking!
The long weekend came and went with no fanfare, it officially marked the end of the summer and I must admit it seems to be getting just a wee bit chilly in the mornings…
Today is Nativity, the birthday of our Blessed Mother Mary and it’s celebrated back home with a typical local flavor… it‘s something like a harvest festival I guess, a family meal and traditionally with no meat. I will always have fond memories of this feast, not only the day but the nine days prior to this, in preparation with a 9 day novena. You could probably question the motives of kids with their flower baskets and the eager wait for the distribution of sweets thereafter but you can't question their enthusiasm, as grown-ups this event is somehow so beautiful. The procession, the blessed paddy stalks that’s distributed during the service and the sugarcane!
Back to what this post is all about!
I was never and will probably never be the ‘I love cooking’ kind of girl, but I do cook out of necessity. It is the routine cooking which bores me but when an opportunity presents to go a little out of the way even with cooking then its welcome. The expiry date on the pack of chicken beckoned me and as usual I looked up and found a simple recipe, despite it being a Thursday, CSI and Grey’s how could I manage to watch both these shows that are telecast at the same time and still cook? Anyway the new season has not yet started and hence I didn’t really mind….With a few changes to the recipe and a prompt entry into my recipe diary this concoction did turn out worthy of finger licking!
Today is Nativity, the birthday of our Blessed Mother Mary and it’s celebrated back home with a typical local flavor… it‘s something like a harvest festival I guess, a family meal and traditionally with no meat. I will always have fond memories of this feast, not only the day but the nine days prior to this, in preparation with a 9 day novena. You could probably question the motives of kids with their flower baskets and the eager wait for the distribution of sweets thereafter but you can't question their enthusiasm, as grown-ups this event is somehow so beautiful. The procession, the blessed paddy stalks that’s distributed during the service and the sugarcane!
Back to what this post is all about!
I was never and will probably never be the ‘I love cooking’ kind of girl, but I do cook out of necessity. It is the routine cooking which bores me but when an opportunity presents to go a little out of the way even with cooking then its welcome. The expiry date on the pack of chicken beckoned me and as usual I looked up and found a simple recipe, despite it being a Thursday, CSI and Grey’s how could I manage to watch both these shows that are telecast at the same time and still cook? Anyway the new season has not yet started and hence I didn’t really mind….With a few changes to the recipe and a prompt entry into my recipe diary this concoction did turn out worthy of finger licking!
Monday, September 04, 2006
RZD's Johari Window
Arena(known to self and others) dependable, knowledgeable, organised, self-conscious | Blind Spot(known only to others) adaptable, bold, calm, caring, cheerful, clever, complex, confident, dignified, energetic, friendly, helpful, independent, intelligent, introverted, kind, logical, loving, mature, modest, observant, quiet, reflective, religious, responsive, self-assertive, sensible, shy, spontaneous, trustworthy, wise |
Façade(known only to self) witty | Unknown(known to nobody) able, accepting, brave, extroverted, giving, happy, idealistic, ingenious, nervous, patient, powerful, proud, relaxed, searching, sentimental, silly, sympathetic, tense, warm |
All Percentages
able (0%) accepting (0%) adaptable (7%) bold (21%) brave (0%) calm (14%) caring (21%) cheerful (7%) clever (14%) complex (14%) confident (28%) dependable (14%) dignified (21%) energetic (14%) extroverted (0%) friendly (42%) giving (0%) happy (0%) helpful (28%) idealistic (0%) independent (14%) ingenious (0%) intelligent (21%) introverted (7%) kind (14%) knowledgeable (21%) logical (7%) loving (7%) mature (28%) modest (14%) nervous (0%) observant (7%) organised (35%) patient (0%) powerful (0%) proud (0%) quiet (14%) reflective (7%) relaxed (0%) religious (14%) responsive (7%) searching (0%) self-assertive (7%) self-conscious (7%) sensible (28%) sentimental (0%) shy (21%) silly (0%) spontaneous (7%) sympathetic (0%) tense (0%) trustworthy (21%) warm (0%) wise (14%) witty (0%)
Created by the Interactive Johari Window on 29.9.2006, using data from 14 respondents.
You can make your own Johari Window, or view RZD's full data.
You can make your own Johari Window, or view RZD's full data.
Monday, August 28, 2006
The end of an era
They used to be a fad, the cap with hair attached to it. I once saw it in a store a long long time ago and instantly associated it with andre agassi. Ever since I first started watching tennis on TV, my memories are of the oddly dressed guy, with the long hair and cap…don’t know why, somehow I thought he had a cap like with the hair attached!
Andre Agassi, has been my favorite tennis player since all these years, there have been a few others in that list including goran ivanesevic, Stefan Edberg and currently Marat Safin…who never seems to be on the tour often enough to rate him better but none as charismatic as andre.
Andre has got what it takes to be a public figure, he can be so innately funny at times; I was watching an exhibition match on CBS the other day, held at the USTA club, vs Roddick, where Ellen Degeneres was the chair umpire…. It was completely hilarious…..
I am obviously biased when it comes to talking about him, but it can’t be grudged that he has one of the best return of serve the game has ever seen and even at his age, he can move! Who could possibly forget the wonderful run he had at last year’s US open, the nerve racking match against James Blake, the semis vs Robby Ginepri and the consequent loss to Roger Federer... Picture is courtesy of Yahoo photos
His professional tennis career with all the colorful rings attached to it on and off court has certainly been fairy tale style. The most amazing comeback in 1999, wherein he came from a virtual 100+ ranking to win two major titles with absolute conviction, to get to be the numero uno player and that was the same year he started dating Steffi Graf, I guess her influence did make an impact…One quote from andre on steffi ‘As I attempt to find words worthy to introduce the person that has changed my life, I realize that the words have yet to be invented that are large enough, colorful enough or true enough to express the heart and soul of this woman that I love'.
Some of his best matches were against Pete Sampras, and somehow I can remember only the losses, he more often than not seemed to end up on the losing side….and with my sis being an ardent Sampras fan, I had my share of disappointments…. One match against Pat Rafter at Wimbledon was particularly heartbreaking!
Picture is courtesy of: http://www.southindia.com
One of the most familiar pictures for us Indians would be of the one where he won the Gold medal at the Atlanta Olympics, with Leander Paes in tow as the bronze medalist.
I can’t end this post without a word about his foundation, simply marvelous it is the work they do and the time he spends on the worthy causes.
This US open being his last tournament would be pretty emotional, of course and the expectation is to go out on a high, but whether he loses in the first round or goes on to win the title, he is already a legend. They ain’t calling him showman for nothing!!!!!
Andre Agassi, from rebel to legend
Andre Agassi, has been my favorite tennis player since all these years, there have been a few others in that list including goran ivanesevic, Stefan Edberg and currently Marat Safin…who never seems to be on the tour often enough to rate him better but none as charismatic as andre.
Andre has got what it takes to be a public figure, he can be so innately funny at times; I was watching an exhibition match on CBS the other day, held at the USTA club, vs Roddick, where Ellen Degeneres was the chair umpire…. It was completely hilarious…..
I am obviously biased when it comes to talking about him, but it can’t be grudged that he has one of the best return of serve the game has ever seen and even at his age, he can move! Who could possibly forget the wonderful run he had at last year’s US open, the nerve racking match against James Blake, the semis vs Robby Ginepri and the consequent loss to Roger Federer... Picture is courtesy of Yahoo photos
His professional tennis career with all the colorful rings attached to it on and off court has certainly been fairy tale style. The most amazing comeback in 1999, wherein he came from a virtual 100+ ranking to win two major titles with absolute conviction, to get to be the numero uno player and that was the same year he started dating Steffi Graf, I guess her influence did make an impact…One quote from andre on steffi ‘As I attempt to find words worthy to introduce the person that has changed my life, I realize that the words have yet to be invented that are large enough, colorful enough or true enough to express the heart and soul of this woman that I love'.
Some of his best matches were against Pete Sampras, and somehow I can remember only the losses, he more often than not seemed to end up on the losing side….and with my sis being an ardent Sampras fan, I had my share of disappointments…. One match against Pat Rafter at Wimbledon was particularly heartbreaking!
Picture is courtesy of: http://www.southindia.com One of the most familiar pictures for us Indians would be of the one where he won the Gold medal at the Atlanta Olympics, with Leander Paes in tow as the bronze medalist.
I can’t end this post without a word about his foundation, simply marvelous it is the work they do and the time he spends on the worthy causes.
This US open being his last tournament would be pretty emotional, of course and the expectation is to go out on a high, but whether he loses in the first round or goes on to win the title, he is already a legend. They ain’t calling him showman for nothing!!!!!
Andre Agassi, from rebel to legend
Thursday, August 24, 2006
My Very Educated Mother Just Showed Us Nine!
Redefine My Very Educated Mother Just Showed Us Nine Planets... for Pluto is no longer a planet. Pluto stripped!.
Shake the bag at the housie game and out comes the # 9, you can't say the planets anymore...All those science text books that need to be re-written.
Surprising new development, to say the least.
Shake the bag at the housie game and out comes the # 9, you can't say the planets anymore...All those science text books that need to be re-written.
Surprising new development, to say the least.
Not done!
This is a line I found in a report published on yahoo features, the story is about a newly opened Hitler eatery in Bombay, the controversy about the usage of Hitler and the Swastika symbol, to quote ‘Some Indians regard Hitler as just another historical figure and have little knowledge about the Holocaust, in which 6 million European Jews were systematically killed during World War II’
I don’t know…but this statement somehow caught me on the wrong foot, what’s with the ‘Some Indians’ theory? Why should the knowledge of Indians be any less than any other country not directly in the cross-fire during World War II? I mean it just can’t be said? Would you like to comment on our knowledge of PolPot or the regimes of Fidel Castro or Robert Mugabe too? What is the ‘level’ of knowledge of the rest of the world about the struggle for the Indian Independence?, the quote if nothing else sounds so clichéd.
On an vaguely related note, why do men think Women know very little history?, I do believe I can carry on a decent conversation on any significant event in history and I am sure a lot of my fellow women colleagues would be able to, leave out the historians and the archivists. Three gentlemen in an elevator were discussing World War II and Adolf Hitler and one of them blurted, ‘Women would probably not know much about Adolf Hitler... ‘. I was flabbergasted, if it wasn’t my floor to get off on, I would have tested his knowledge on the subject…maybe not since I don’t know those guys…anyway it was better to leave them in their make believe world.
I don’t know…but this statement somehow caught me on the wrong foot, what’s with the ‘Some Indians’ theory? Why should the knowledge of Indians be any less than any other country not directly in the cross-fire during World War II? I mean it just can’t be said? Would you like to comment on our knowledge of PolPot or the regimes of Fidel Castro or Robert Mugabe too? What is the ‘level’ of knowledge of the rest of the world about the struggle for the Indian Independence?, the quote if nothing else sounds so clichéd.
On an vaguely related note, why do men think Women know very little history?, I do believe I can carry on a decent conversation on any significant event in history and I am sure a lot of my fellow women colleagues would be able to, leave out the historians and the archivists. Three gentlemen in an elevator were discussing World War II and Adolf Hitler and one of them blurted, ‘Women would probably not know much about Adolf Hitler... ‘. I was flabbergasted, if it wasn’t my floor to get off on, I would have tested his knowledge on the subject…maybe not since I don’t know those guys…anyway it was better to leave them in their make believe world.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
The day will come!
I have confidence that the day will come when Indians will talk about and celebrate 15th of August as much as the Americans take pride in the 4th of July. You may say is it enough to celebrate with pomp and show, its not!, of course, but lets not dwell on that as yet.
I was vacationing in Danbury, CT during the July 4th weekend and the holiday spirit is truly amazing… We had a barbecue party on the day, complete with a 4th of July cake, the fireworks on the previous day were truly marvelous, crowds of people with picnic baskets, all awaiting the fireworks…
It’s not that we Indians are not patriotic, I think its just not been in our culture to celebrate Independence day, all I can remember of the day in India is the mass service tho in a different context, the parades and the political speeches and the flag hoisting which didn’t really mean anything and the most important of all, the holiday! We could argue that we haven’t had this phenomenon for long, India is only 59 years young and I think it is a valid reason. It will take time and with the growing expatriate population I believe the change should hasten.
I’ve heard of celebrations in Australia on the occasion on Indian Independence, there were a couple of parties here too… all steps in the right direction.
This post is not about how celebrating Independence could make India a better place (It is good already!!, just make it better than good)….but on the celebration of the Day!, let’s dwell with ‘it’ here… it’s not about the parties or the fireworks, but it does count, in the long run to imbibe a sense of patriotism… Its how the present generation identifies!, its going to make a difference!. I don’t want to talk about the problems in India due to which we can’t ‘celebrate’, you may say poverty, corruption…show me a country without all of these…
We are talking about the Indian population who has access to the world at the press of a key….
The day will surely come
I was vacationing in Danbury, CT during the July 4th weekend and the holiday spirit is truly amazing… We had a barbecue party on the day, complete with a 4th of July cake, the fireworks on the previous day were truly marvelous, crowds of people with picnic baskets, all awaiting the fireworks…
It’s not that we Indians are not patriotic, I think its just not been in our culture to celebrate Independence day, all I can remember of the day in India is the mass service tho in a different context, the parades and the political speeches and the flag hoisting which didn’t really mean anything and the most important of all, the holiday! We could argue that we haven’t had this phenomenon for long, India is only 59 years young and I think it is a valid reason. It will take time and with the growing expatriate population I believe the change should hasten.
I’ve heard of celebrations in Australia on the occasion on Indian Independence, there were a couple of parties here too… all steps in the right direction.
This post is not about how celebrating Independence could make India a better place (It is good already!!, just make it better than good)….but on the celebration of the Day!, let’s dwell with ‘it’ here… it’s not about the parties or the fireworks, but it does count, in the long run to imbibe a sense of patriotism… Its how the present generation identifies!, its going to make a difference!. I don’t want to talk about the problems in India due to which we can’t ‘celebrate’, you may say poverty, corruption…show me a country without all of these…
We are talking about the Indian population who has access to the world at the press of a key….
The day will surely come
Sunday, August 13, 2006
WTC
Not first day first show, but close enough!
WTC is the real life account of two port authority police officers, John (Nicholas Cage) and Will, their struggle as they survived the rubble of the twin towers and how their families cope with the events of the day.
The date is Sept. 11th, 2001, the movie starts with the officers heading out for their mundane patrols and on that particular day with special instructions to be on the lookout for a missing girl, why the line about the girl, it wasn’t taken up at all later on in the movie…
A shadow of an aircraft and seconds later, the officers are a part of a rescue team, to rescue people trapped inside tower 1. They show people walking, awfully slow I thought in a situation like that, some with injuries, some with a helping hand to others as they made their way out. Back to the officers, who at the concourse level get stuck, when the tower collapses, the focus of the story is on the officers pinned under piles of rubble and their families on that fateful day. That’s the complete storyline!
Don’t expect much out the movie, the name seems so inappropriate, I mean WTC should have signified something on a greater scale, the focus here is very very narrow.
Some of the dialogue is so clichéd, John and Will talking to each other on an almost dark screen, talking about not going off to sleep. It was as if they were telling the audience not to sleep, coz most of them did or some others just went out for long breaks…, humor at the most inappropriate times, its not a scene where you should laugh, but you did!
Most of the scenes are news footage, the pace real slow; the storyline generic to say the least, Ladder 49 was better.
One of the best moments was the scene at the hospital, John’s wife and another lady who was awaiting news about her son, the bonding of two complete strangers at a point like that was well brought out.
A complete disappointment
WTC is the real life account of two port authority police officers, John (Nicholas Cage) and Will, their struggle as they survived the rubble of the twin towers and how their families cope with the events of the day.
The date is Sept. 11th, 2001, the movie starts with the officers heading out for their mundane patrols and on that particular day with special instructions to be on the lookout for a missing girl, why the line about the girl, it wasn’t taken up at all later on in the movie…
A shadow of an aircraft and seconds later, the officers are a part of a rescue team, to rescue people trapped inside tower 1. They show people walking, awfully slow I thought in a situation like that, some with injuries, some with a helping hand to others as they made their way out. Back to the officers, who at the concourse level get stuck, when the tower collapses, the focus of the story is on the officers pinned under piles of rubble and their families on that fateful day. That’s the complete storyline!
Don’t expect much out the movie, the name seems so inappropriate, I mean WTC should have signified something on a greater scale, the focus here is very very narrow.
Some of the dialogue is so clichéd, John and Will talking to each other on an almost dark screen, talking about not going off to sleep. It was as if they were telling the audience not to sleep, coz most of them did or some others just went out for long breaks…, humor at the most inappropriate times, its not a scene where you should laugh, but you did!
Most of the scenes are news footage, the pace real slow; the storyline generic to say the least, Ladder 49 was better.
One of the best moments was the scene at the hospital, John’s wife and another lady who was awaiting news about her son, the bonding of two complete strangers at a point like that was well brought out.
A complete disappointment
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Liquid woes
No Shampoos and contact lens solutions on board, Toiletries in the trash?
What is the world coming to?
Liquid explosives, I’m not too sure it’s a completely new idea, seems like all concerned were caught off-balance as happens with any such terrorist attack or plan, and of course when the target is the either in the US or the UK, you’ve got to expect mountains to move. But in this world of volatility, is there any damage control worthy of thwarting such evil plans?
My experience at London, Heathrow was pretty painful, I had a very short stop-over at LHR… and had to run all the way to my departure terminal, yes it was tight, but the delay was at the security check in, the awfully long lines, the painful checks… I thought it was too much then, I can only imagine, what it’s gonna be like now. But what more can they do in times like these?, I mean you can’t personally frisk each person in and out? Or can you?
Can all these security measures be enough? My first thought when we got circulars on the new baggage rules wherein no cabin luggage would be allowed was that they needed to increase the baggage limit, 50 pounds if including hand baggage is way too little….
There is a list of items you can carry with you on board, a transparent bag with only those items mentioned, for how long this rule will be in effect, no one knows. The response to this inconvenience is hardly surprising. Of course I’d rather be safe than sorry, giving up my toothpaste to be alive, there’s hardly any choice there!!
We can only wait and see, all those sophisticated, criminals minds are going to find new ways to hack into the not so fool proof airport security system, they have proved it a number of times. We live in a complex world, the very fact that we talk about terrorism without breaking a sweat is proof enough of the fact that we have been infiltrated. A WTC could happen anywhere, you don’t have to be a diplomat to fear Al-Qaeda, we agree, terrorism has become a parcel of our being, each one of us vulnerable to this phenomenon wherever we may be.
What is the world coming to?
Liquid explosives, I’m not too sure it’s a completely new idea, seems like all concerned were caught off-balance as happens with any such terrorist attack or plan, and of course when the target is the either in the US or the UK, you’ve got to expect mountains to move. But in this world of volatility, is there any damage control worthy of thwarting such evil plans?
My experience at London, Heathrow was pretty painful, I had a very short stop-over at LHR… and had to run all the way to my departure terminal, yes it was tight, but the delay was at the security check in, the awfully long lines, the painful checks… I thought it was too much then, I can only imagine, what it’s gonna be like now. But what more can they do in times like these?, I mean you can’t personally frisk each person in and out? Or can you?
Can all these security measures be enough? My first thought when we got circulars on the new baggage rules wherein no cabin luggage would be allowed was that they needed to increase the baggage limit, 50 pounds if including hand baggage is way too little….
There is a list of items you can carry with you on board, a transparent bag with only those items mentioned, for how long this rule will be in effect, no one knows. The response to this inconvenience is hardly surprising. Of course I’d rather be safe than sorry, giving up my toothpaste to be alive, there’s hardly any choice there!!
We can only wait and see, all those sophisticated, criminals minds are going to find new ways to hack into the not so fool proof airport security system, they have proved it a number of times. We live in a complex world, the very fact that we talk about terrorism without breaking a sweat is proof enough of the fact that we have been infiltrated. A WTC could happen anywhere, you don’t have to be a diplomat to fear Al-Qaeda, we agree, terrorism has become a parcel of our being, each one of us vulnerable to this phenomenon wherever we may be.
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
So you think you can dance!
Can't believe I actually picked up the phone and voted for one of these guys, not once but twice!!!
Got hooked onto So you think when its new season premiered on fox, this show as cheesy as its name might sound is pretty decent and unlike all those other reality shows which so makes you want to turn/switch off after a couple of mundane episodes. Indian idol is one such example, a drama playing out on TV with all the cheap stunts for publicity! There was an Indian show Nacche Baliye, I guess ripped off from so you think, but the US version is so much better and the dance routines are refreshing and mesmerizing to watch, there's a pool of dancing talent out there.
While on the subject of reality television, haven't we had our fill?, right from the very controversial temptation island to the apprentices and idols of this world! The fall TV schedule is out and it does sound exciting and without reality. But I did the unthinkable this time, I called in, so there must be something to it after all!!!
My vote for the worst among the reality shows I've seen so far goes to Maury's show!....pathetic and a lousy excuse for reality TV.
Btw, voted for benji, will be crossing my fingers for him as the results are announced tomorrow
Got hooked onto So you think when its new season premiered on fox, this show as cheesy as its name might sound is pretty decent and unlike all those other reality shows which so makes you want to turn/switch off after a couple of mundane episodes. Indian idol is one such example, a drama playing out on TV with all the cheap stunts for publicity! There was an Indian show Nacche Baliye, I guess ripped off from so you think, but the US version is so much better and the dance routines are refreshing and mesmerizing to watch, there's a pool of dancing talent out there.
While on the subject of reality television, haven't we had our fill?, right from the very controversial temptation island to the apprentices and idols of this world! The fall TV schedule is out and it does sound exciting and without reality. But I did the unthinkable this time, I called in, so there must be something to it after all!!!
My vote for the worst among the reality shows I've seen so far goes to Maury's show!....pathetic and a lousy excuse for reality TV.
Btw, voted for benji, will be crossing my fingers for him as the results are announced tomorrow
Saturday, August 05, 2006
Blog jargon!
Frankly I don't understand the blog language, you are tagged!, ask me what it means...huh
okay, this is one of those old forwards, credit to Harsha, I don't know him, read his blog if there's a link from devz blog , don't know dev personally either, but i enjoy reading his blog, i could call him my colleague and he does write well, and a bit about M'lore too, which is what drew me intially...
Are you American or English?
Neither, am Indian
What are you listening to right now?
Carrie Underwood’s ‘Jesus take the wheel’
What are the last two digits of your phone number?
00
What was the last thing you ate?
Chicken wings from mcdee’s
If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Blue
How is the weather right now?
Hot, unlike what I said in the previous post, the storm has passed us!!
Last person you talked to on phone?
Heard binaisha on her voicemail, if it doesn't count, then my dad
First thing you notice about the opposite sex?
Dress sense
How are you today?
Good, after all the shopping!
Favorite Drink?
Hmm …maybe tea
Favorite Alcoholic Drink?
Twisters, Coolers, Breezers…you can call them whatever you want, Martini and wine (red, white and absolutely love port)
Favorite Sport?
Don’t really play any sport!, except for badminton
To watch, F1 and tennis
Hair Color?
Keeps changing, currently a light shade of auburn red
Eye Color?
Black
Do you wear contacts?
Yep
Siblings?
An elder sis, a younger sis and bro
Favorite food?
No preference, except for some un-namable leafy vegetables and egg-plant and bitter gourd and some more!!
Last movie you saw?
Rumor has it
Favorite Day of the Year?
I used to enjoy dec 3rd as a kid, sept. 8th now, but I need to be at home in M’lore!
Are you too shy ask someone out?
huh!
Summer or winter?
Winter
Hugs or Kisses?
Both
Chocolate or Vanilla?
Vanilla
What books are you reading?
Bid and won a collection of Mary Jane Clark books on ebay, will start reading one of them today!
What's on your mouse pad?
No mouse!!!!!,, only touchpad
Favorite board game
None
Favorite Smell
yeah, the mud smell, after the first rains
Can you touch your nose with your tongue?
Nope
Favourite flower?
Roses
What's the first thing you think when you wake up?
Brush my teeth…
What's the time?
3:55 PM
Ever been so drunk you blacked?
Hmmm...
Been in a car accident?
Yep, I could call it that
Been hurt emotionally?
hmm…who hasn’t been
Kept a secret from anyone?
Yep
Wanted to hook up with a friend?
Yep, not really a friend
Cried during a movie?
yep, maybe a couple of times
Had a crush on a teacher?
Nope
Ever thought an animated character was hot?
Nope
Had New Kids on The Block Tape?
Yep, love them
Been on stage?
Yep, Teen of the year 1999, being the most significant I guess
Fav Subject?
Mathematics, chemistry, history and geo
Fav person you talk to online?
Neville
Who have you known the longest of your friends?
Jean and Elmeena
Who's the shyest?
Elmeena of course
Worst feeling?
I get those a lot, have to figure them out…
Favourite word?
huh, chetan calls me the huh girl!
This was harder than i thought, have deleted the irrelevant ones....wish i had the one i filled in years ago! for comparison
okay, this is one of those old forwards, credit to Harsha, I don't know him, read his blog if there's a link from devz blog , don't know dev personally either, but i enjoy reading his blog, i could call him my colleague and he does write well, and a bit about M'lore too, which is what drew me intially...
Are you American or English?
Neither, am Indian
What are you listening to right now?
Carrie Underwood’s ‘Jesus take the wheel’
What are the last two digits of your phone number?
00
What was the last thing you ate?
Chicken wings from mcdee’s
If you were a crayon, what color would you be?
Blue
How is the weather right now?
Hot, unlike what I said in the previous post, the storm has passed us!!
Last person you talked to on phone?
Heard binaisha on her voicemail, if it doesn't count, then my dad
First thing you notice about the opposite sex?
Dress sense
How are you today?
Good, after all the shopping!
Favorite Drink?
Hmm …maybe tea
Favorite Alcoholic Drink?
Twisters, Coolers, Breezers…you can call them whatever you want, Martini and wine (red, white and absolutely love port)
Favorite Sport?
Don’t really play any sport!, except for badminton
To watch, F1 and tennis
Hair Color?
Keeps changing, currently a light shade of auburn red
Eye Color?
Black
Do you wear contacts?
Yep
Siblings?
An elder sis, a younger sis and bro
Favorite food?
No preference, except for some un-namable leafy vegetables and egg-plant and bitter gourd and some more!!
Last movie you saw?
Rumor has it
Favorite Day of the Year?
I used to enjoy dec 3rd as a kid, sept. 8th now, but I need to be at home in M’lore!
Are you too shy ask someone out?
huh!
Summer or winter?
Winter
Hugs or Kisses?
Both
Chocolate or Vanilla?
Vanilla
What books are you reading?
Bid and won a collection of Mary Jane Clark books on ebay, will start reading one of them today!
What's on your mouse pad?
No mouse!!!!!,, only touchpad
Favorite board game
None
Favorite Smell
yeah, the mud smell, after the first rains
Can you touch your nose with your tongue?
Nope
Favourite flower?
Roses
What's the first thing you think when you wake up?
Brush my teeth…
What's the time?
3:55 PM
Ever been so drunk you blacked?
Hmmm...
Been in a car accident?
Yep, I could call it that
Been hurt emotionally?
hmm…who hasn’t been
Kept a secret from anyone?
Yep
Wanted to hook up with a friend?
Yep, not really a friend
Cried during a movie?
yep, maybe a couple of times
Had a crush on a teacher?
Nope
Ever thought an animated character was hot?
Nope
Had New Kids on The Block Tape?
Yep, love them
Been on stage?
Yep, Teen of the year 1999, being the most significant I guess
Fav Subject?
Mathematics, chemistry, history and geo
Fav person you talk to online?
Neville
Who have you known the longest of your friends?
Jean and Elmeena
Who's the shyest?
Elmeena of course
Worst feeling?
I get those a lot, have to figure them out…
Favourite word?
huh, chetan calls me the huh girl!
This was harder than i thought, have deleted the irrelevant ones....wish i had the one i filled in years ago! for comparison
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
itsy bitsy teenie weenie thoughts
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Happy 25th birthday to Infosys
As I write this post, celebrations are underway in Infosys India centers to mark the 25th year of Infosys Technologies Ltd. It is indeed an achievement, the scales and heights Infosys has achieved. Celebrations are obviously subdued here in onsite locations but the remote ringing of the opening bell at NASDAQ from Mysore, and if Times Square comes into the picture, then it must be really cool.
Hats off to the founders of Infy, from ordinary people to people who can change society, the transformation of Infosys, of the board is marvelous, credit to the universities such as Mysore that helped in the formation of such thinking, some credit to the Karnataka government too I guess for harnessing and helping IT grow to the extent it has. All is not hunky dory as it sounds, and I know it never will be, but this is the moment, the time to appreciate all the good that has come along the way.
I have been personally involved in Prerana, the social service wing of Infosys, M'lore and it’s a special feeling when you can give back something to the society we live in. All the events that we have, its not really only about pumping in the funds to help the needy, more so I believe its the time that you can spend in such initiatives, there's a feeling of contentment. The Infosys Foundation's multi crore Wenlock hospital pediatrics project is another huge initiative and my hope is for it to turn into an example of corporate involvement and sustenance where needed. It is no wonder then that Infosys is the most admired Indian brand in the global market.
Hats off to the founders of Infy, from ordinary people to people who can change society, the transformation of Infosys, of the board is marvelous, credit to the universities such as Mysore that helped in the formation of such thinking, some credit to the Karnataka government too I guess for harnessing and helping IT grow to the extent it has. All is not hunky dory as it sounds, and I know it never will be, but this is the moment, the time to appreciate all the good that has come along the way.
I have been personally involved in Prerana, the social service wing of Infosys, M'lore and it’s a special feeling when you can give back something to the society we live in. All the events that we have, its not really only about pumping in the funds to help the needy, more so I believe its the time that you can spend in such initiatives, there's a feeling of contentment. The Infosys Foundation's multi crore Wenlock hospital pediatrics project is another huge initiative and my hope is for it to turn into an example of corporate involvement and sustenance where needed. It is no wonder then that Infosys is the most admired Indian brand in the global market.
Saturday, July 29, 2006
If IF's and BUT's
'If ifs and buts were pots and pans, there would be no tinkers!', I've heard this phrase repeated so many times…. If you follow cricket I guess you would know whose favorite phrase this is….yes none other than Mr. Sidhu, he is a pretty lousy commentator, but somehow this was the first sentence that popped into my head when I saw the
MetLife ad for the first time, not sure why the ad is in someone’s 'ads we hate list', felt it was pretty decent!
There are a lot of versions of this phrase, one goes with the ‘and’ instead of the but, 'If ifs and ands were pots and pans, we’d be washing up forever'.
lIFe is still all about those IF’s and BUT’s
MetLife ad for the first time, not sure why the ad is in someone’s 'ads we hate list', felt it was pretty decent!
There are a lot of versions of this phrase, one goes with the ‘and’ instead of the but, 'If ifs and ands were pots and pans, we’d be washing up forever'.
lIFe is still all about those IF’s and BUT’s
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Sleepless in Houston
She knocked on my window, a little girl with tiny curls in her hair, the wind lifting it in all directions, a small bag in her hand and I wondered briefly if it could hold anything more than a few loose change. Her blond hair and pale pink skin contrasted with the bright green frock she wore, I judged her to be about four. She knocked a second time jerking me from my thoughts.
It was only a couple of hours earlier that I parked my car and off we went on our regular weekend shopping escapades. Found myself drifting from the group and finally was alone with my thoughts when I heard the shrill ring of the phone, who could it be? dropped a couple of packages trying to reach my phone which always seems to find its way right to the bottom of the bag, 972-189-2222, unfamiliar number, and then it stopped as it started, gladly this brought an end to my shopping spree and that's where I am, sitting idly in the car, waiting for the rest of the girls to join me.
I rolled down my window and she just stood there, staring blankly and then again the shrill of the phone, I told myself a hundredth time, that I needed to change the ring tone, reached for the phone from the side-holder and could see the same number flashing, received it and there was no response from the other side. 'Hello', I said, with a feeble voice, still no response, and then before I decided to hang-up the line went dead. Sat there, contemplating if I should give a return call back when a gust of wind hit my face. Oh, the little girl, she was still there, I switched off the AC and looked at her, and she looked back at me. I said 'Hi, How are you doing', No reply. Rolling up the window and ignoring her seemed like an option but there was something in her look, like she wanted to tell me something. She was clutching her purse tight and slowly opened it, her small fingers pulling out something, and the shrill ring again, I silently swore, and she looked at me, this time with a firm 'Hello', and I could now hear voices in the background and a booming voice, 'Lady I'd like to order a chicken chopsuey with extra dumplings and a side order of, he droned on. I cut him short with ‘wrong number’, Is this the chinese deli at Legacy, Plano he asked?, Wrong number is all I said before I hung up on him.
My attention all the time was on the little girl, she seemed to hesitate, then finally pulled out a chain with a cross pendant, instant recognition dawned on me, when she held out her hand to me with the chain, I felt around my neck, Where did you find it, I asked her?, she didn't respond. I got out of the car and took the chain from her little hand, she was going to run off, 'Wait' I said, I reached and pulled out the key from the ignition, opened the trunk with my eyes still on her. I pulled out a couple of shopping bags, when I found it, the five large chocolate bars, Nestle crunch, I read and handed over the bar to her, she smiled, a pretty little smile, bye I said, she ran in the direction of another car parked in the corner, with a silhouette of a man in the driver's seat. She got into the back-seat and He waved as they drove by.
This is the outcome of a sleepless night waiting for my offshore call…Pure Fiction
It was only a couple of hours earlier that I parked my car and off we went on our regular weekend shopping escapades. Found myself drifting from the group and finally was alone with my thoughts when I heard the shrill ring of the phone, who could it be? dropped a couple of packages trying to reach my phone which always seems to find its way right to the bottom of the bag, 972-189-2222, unfamiliar number, and then it stopped as it started, gladly this brought an end to my shopping spree and that's where I am, sitting idly in the car, waiting for the rest of the girls to join me.
I rolled down my window and she just stood there, staring blankly and then again the shrill of the phone, I told myself a hundredth time, that I needed to change the ring tone, reached for the phone from the side-holder and could see the same number flashing, received it and there was no response from the other side. 'Hello', I said, with a feeble voice, still no response, and then before I decided to hang-up the line went dead. Sat there, contemplating if I should give a return call back when a gust of wind hit my face. Oh, the little girl, she was still there, I switched off the AC and looked at her, and she looked back at me. I said 'Hi, How are you doing', No reply. Rolling up the window and ignoring her seemed like an option but there was something in her look, like she wanted to tell me something. She was clutching her purse tight and slowly opened it, her small fingers pulling out something, and the shrill ring again, I silently swore, and she looked at me, this time with a firm 'Hello', and I could now hear voices in the background and a booming voice, 'Lady I'd like to order a chicken chopsuey with extra dumplings and a side order of, he droned on. I cut him short with ‘wrong number’, Is this the chinese deli at Legacy, Plano he asked?, Wrong number is all I said before I hung up on him.
My attention all the time was on the little girl, she seemed to hesitate, then finally pulled out a chain with a cross pendant, instant recognition dawned on me, when she held out her hand to me with the chain, I felt around my neck, Where did you find it, I asked her?, she didn't respond. I got out of the car and took the chain from her little hand, she was going to run off, 'Wait' I said, I reached and pulled out the key from the ignition, opened the trunk with my eyes still on her. I pulled out a couple of shopping bags, when I found it, the five large chocolate bars, Nestle crunch, I read and handed over the bar to her, she smiled, a pretty little smile, bye I said, she ran in the direction of another car parked in the corner, with a silhouette of a man in the driver's seat. She got into the back-seat and He waved as they drove by.
This is the outcome of a sleepless night waiting for my offshore call…Pure Fiction
Monday, July 17, 2006
DK Police
Mangalore police or more appropriately the DK police have a blog of their own and it is updated daily, awesome, way to go….
It’s a good start; hope that they keep it going…
It’s a good start; hope that they keep it going…
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Is your glass half-empty?
I think mine is in most cases, but does that make me a pessimist?, am not too sure about that…
It would depend on the state of the glass, of course; was it full or empty in the first place?… but yes, its true my inclination is towards half-empty!
What makes the glass half-empty and how to start making it half-full…
No, I don’t know the answers, this isn’t one of those self-help courses, and so I don’t want to dwell on the latter half of the question. I’ve learnt to expect the least out of life, out of people, out of situations….seems a rather illogical approach, but I must admit it works wonders. You go into a meeting with confidence of course, but not with the view that your thoughts will be appreciated, your ideas bought, so in any eventuality that you do get turned down there’s no disappointment…no sulking. Appraisals, Accolades, Awards, Relationships, Travel….yeah I know…the list is diverse and endless, but it applies in all these. It’s just my way, I could still end up in the lurch, and I know there’s no fool-proof way that can stop you from being hurt, from being trampled upon, from having regrets, from frustration.
And once in a while it feels good to see the glass half-full, don’t know what I started off with and what I ended up with anyway…me off to find a mug and fill it to half-full with my favorite drink….
It would depend on the state of the glass, of course; was it full or empty in the first place?… but yes, its true my inclination is towards half-empty!
What makes the glass half-empty and how to start making it half-full…
No, I don’t know the answers, this isn’t one of those self-help courses, and so I don’t want to dwell on the latter half of the question. I’ve learnt to expect the least out of life, out of people, out of situations….seems a rather illogical approach, but I must admit it works wonders. You go into a meeting with confidence of course, but not with the view that your thoughts will be appreciated, your ideas bought, so in any eventuality that you do get turned down there’s no disappointment…no sulking. Appraisals, Accolades, Awards, Relationships, Travel….yeah I know…the list is diverse and endless, but it applies in all these. It’s just my way, I could still end up in the lurch, and I know there’s no fool-proof way that can stop you from being hurt, from being trampled upon, from having regrets, from frustration.
And once in a while it feels good to see the glass half-full, don’t know what I started off with and what I ended up with anyway…me off to find a mug and fill it to half-full with my favorite drink….
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Mighty Mighty MIT
Manipal Institute of Technology, #37, thanks to Binaisha for the link.
Some other cool related links
This nostalgic video on Harsha’s…
The other MIT, a bit old, but excellent nevertheless….
On Arjun’s, we were in MIT then!
There's quite a bit on MIT, Manipal online, Enjoy relieving those good old days!
Proud to be an MITian
Some other cool related links
This nostalgic video on Harsha’s…
The other MIT, a bit old, but excellent nevertheless….
On Arjun’s, we were in MIT then!
There's quite a bit on MIT, Manipal online, Enjoy relieving those good old days!
Proud to be an MITian
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Busy and Lazy!
Seriously!...can't believe a couple of days off from work could make my schedule go so haywire, will need a couple of days to bring it back on track...huh
There’s no time to talk about my awesome NY trip, only time for a teeny weenie post with a promise to post…there’s a lot to write about…so long, until i can find the right track!
There’s no time to talk about my awesome NY trip, only time for a teeny weenie post with a promise to post…there’s a lot to write about…so long, until i can find the right track!
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Kemah
There’s not really much to talk about Kemah, Kemah the entrance to the bay area, was hoping to get my feet wet, but no chance of that. Parking space is a real issue here, took us about 20 minutes to find one. Kemah boardwalk is what it’s called, there’s the view of the bay, cruises and ski-jets line the bay area, there are a lot of amusement rides such as the Carousel, Aviator, pharaoh’s fury and stuff like that. We took a ride on the Boardwalk tower; the views from the top are breathtaking to say the least.
Spacey Saturday(06/24/06)
For a change, all went according to schedule, the rain God decided to bear with us too, we (my roomie; team-mate, his friend and myself) rented out a car for our visit to the Space Center and Kemah beach. A teeny weenie bit of a delay turned out to my advantage as I could catch Germany’s two goals against Sweden and they didn’t score anymore after that, so didn’t really miss much.
Back to our jaunt, it's about a two hour journey, with all the induced delays, so we were right on time for lunch which we had at an Indian restaurant close to NASA, buffet style, but too spicy for my liking. All the camera’s were loaded and we reached the Johnson Space Center, the Manned Spacecraft Center was renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1973. He during his tenure as President and VP supported the space program as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Aeronautical and Space Sciences. It was during this reign that the decision to land a man on the moon was made.
Since we had already booked our tickets online, we went right in. My first thought on entry was ‘Oh my God, we’ve come to the wrong place', lottsa kid rides around the entrance, lots of terminals with different astronaut themed games and stuff. Kids can basically have a good time here.
We sat through a demonstration on ‘Feel of space’; it was a demo of a day in the life of an astronaut/cosmonaut on the International space station (ISS). Its almost hilarious, I said almost … the mundane tasks such as eating or relieving oneself, seem, well, extraordinary.
ISS is pretty significant but of course, there’s a miniature model, along with a larger more detailed model suspended from the ceiling, you can also take a virtual tour of the ISS, and you don’t even have to worry about the laws of gravity!
The walls and ceilings are pretty much covered with dials, medallions and various other exhibits and a handful of astronauts suspended in air.
The astronaut gallery houses a whole lot of spacesuits (ejection suits and flight suits) complete with a detailed listing; the adjacent wall has portraits and crew photos of every US astronaut who has flown in space. There were a couple of paid rides, one was a sort of a Shuttle mock-up, Blast-Off. We also toured a section of a mock-up space ship complete with a hanger for the spacesuits, dials, controls and such stuff.
The tram tour was next; we were in the blue line, waiting endlessly, curving through a maze of rope dividers! The tour was within the gates of the space center, the real place where the people (astronauts too!) work, these are the people involved in all those numerous space missions, must be one exciting life!, this is the ‘Houston’ Neil Armstrong was referring to when Apollo 11 landed on the moon.
It was a three stop tour, the first one at the actual mission control room used for the Apollo missions. The tour narration was on a pre-recorded tape, but at the mission control center there was a guide who took us through the history of the MCC and the adjacent blue room which supports ISS.
Stop 2 was the Astronaut Memorial ground, Oak trees planted in honor of all the astronauts who have lost their lives for the space missions. The most recent addition was of seven oaks planted in honor of the crew members of the ill-fated Columbia which included India’s very own Kalpana Chawla, the moment was almost nostalgic, a minute silence was observed for all those souls, at last count it is 40.
Stop 3, Rocket park was an optional stop, a number of people in the group didn’t get off, coz the tram just goes on and we need to wait and get in the next one, the park has a couple of space rockets, engines and then there’s a long building at the corner of the park, we almost didn’t go in there…it was amazing….a Saturn V rocket sitting horizontally inside and boy was it huge, it stands almost 36 stories tall. Looked up some material, this is one of only three extant Saturn V’s..used to launch the apollo spacecraft, made up entirely of rocket stages intended for flight. It’s so huge that they built the building around it instead of moving it and is currently undergoing restoration, due to the damage caused by the weather.
That's about it, sadly we missed a few exhibits, significantly the Starship Gallery which features the largest collection of moon-rocks, it was buried in one corner, somehow the setting of the place is a little haphazard, quite easy to miss shows.
A suggestion, don't forget to pick up the 'Map & Show Schedule' at the entrance!
All said, a must-visit if you are in Houston, Kemah in the next post!
Some problem with uploading pics, will do that soon.
Back to our jaunt, it's about a two hour journey, with all the induced delays, so we were right on time for lunch which we had at an Indian restaurant close to NASA, buffet style, but too spicy for my liking. All the camera’s were loaded and we reached the Johnson Space Center, the Manned Spacecraft Center was renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1973. He during his tenure as President and VP supported the space program as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Aeronautical and Space Sciences. It was during this reign that the decision to land a man on the moon was made.
Since we had already booked our tickets online, we went right in. My first thought on entry was ‘Oh my God, we’ve come to the wrong place', lottsa kid rides around the entrance, lots of terminals with different astronaut themed games and stuff. Kids can basically have a good time here.
We sat through a demonstration on ‘Feel of space’; it was a demo of a day in the life of an astronaut/cosmonaut on the International space station (ISS). Its almost hilarious, I said almost … the mundane tasks such as eating or relieving oneself, seem, well, extraordinary.
ISS is pretty significant but of course, there’s a miniature model, along with a larger more detailed model suspended from the ceiling, you can also take a virtual tour of the ISS, and you don’t even have to worry about the laws of gravity!
The walls and ceilings are pretty much covered with dials, medallions and various other exhibits and a handful of astronauts suspended in air.
The astronaut gallery houses a whole lot of spacesuits (ejection suits and flight suits) complete with a detailed listing; the adjacent wall has portraits and crew photos of every US astronaut who has flown in space. There were a couple of paid rides, one was a sort of a Shuttle mock-up, Blast-Off. We also toured a section of a mock-up space ship complete with a hanger for the spacesuits, dials, controls and such stuff.
The tram tour was next; we were in the blue line, waiting endlessly, curving through a maze of rope dividers! The tour was within the gates of the space center, the real place where the people (astronauts too!) work, these are the people involved in all those numerous space missions, must be one exciting life!, this is the ‘Houston’ Neil Armstrong was referring to when Apollo 11 landed on the moon.
It was a three stop tour, the first one at the actual mission control room used for the Apollo missions. The tour narration was on a pre-recorded tape, but at the mission control center there was a guide who took us through the history of the MCC and the adjacent blue room which supports ISS.
Stop 2 was the Astronaut Memorial ground, Oak trees planted in honor of all the astronauts who have lost their lives for the space missions. The most recent addition was of seven oaks planted in honor of the crew members of the ill-fated Columbia which included India’s very own Kalpana Chawla, the moment was almost nostalgic, a minute silence was observed for all those souls, at last count it is 40.
Stop 3, Rocket park was an optional stop, a number of people in the group didn’t get off, coz the tram just goes on and we need to wait and get in the next one, the park has a couple of space rockets, engines and then there’s a long building at the corner of the park, we almost didn’t go in there…it was amazing….a Saturn V rocket sitting horizontally inside and boy was it huge, it stands almost 36 stories tall. Looked up some material, this is one of only three extant Saturn V’s..used to launch the apollo spacecraft, made up entirely of rocket stages intended for flight. It’s so huge that they built the building around it instead of moving it and is currently undergoing restoration, due to the damage caused by the weather.
That's about it, sadly we missed a few exhibits, significantly the Starship Gallery which features the largest collection of moon-rocks, it was buried in one corner, somehow the setting of the place is a little haphazard, quite easy to miss shows.
A suggestion, don't forget to pick up the 'Map & Show Schedule' at the entrance!
All said, a must-visit if you are in Houston, Kemah in the next post!
Some problem with uploading pics, will do that soon.
Friday, June 23, 2006
Huh! its appraisal time
Oh, how I hate appraisal time!, I really seriously have begun to hate it, is there any profession where there are no appraisals? anyway why I hate it so much is probably not something to discuss here.
For the record this was my fifth appraisal in a career span of 3 months short of 3 years and this was my only appraisal that was partly done by a male appraiser. hmmm ... food for thought! :- )
Sorry, don't know why I am even posting this, there's nothing much else I can say. Went well though.
For the record this was my fifth appraisal in a career span of 3 months short of 3 years and this was my only appraisal that was partly done by a male appraiser. hmmm ... food for thought! :- )
Sorry, don't know why I am even posting this, there's nothing much else I can say. Went well though.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Mangalore grows up!
Aravind Adiga in Life is Calling talks about the growth of Mangalore, from a sleepy coastal town to a bustling city, the time span for this transformation seems unprecedented but it’s not unexpected. IT and its dominance in Karnataka have obviously fuelled this growth to an extent. Read the full article, its worth the time, my cousin’s mentioned in it too. I know this link has been posted in a number of blogs, but I had to have it on mine, Mangalore in TIME, is reason enough!
'Mangalore Grows up' in pictures.
'Mangalore Grows up' in pictures.
Monday, June 19, 2006
Blog
Why blog?
A spelling error according to Microsoft, but WordWeb returns the meaning of blog as web log, a little bit of history here.
I can’t even remember why I created this blog, have never been an avid 'Dear Diary' person either; it was sometime in Feb this year, was on bench, the first time I actually had so much time on my hand. It was Rashmi Bansal's blog that caught my attention, my source of inspiration for this, have seen her participate in discussions on NDTV, very articulate and focused.
A sneak peek into your thoughts, events in life!. The day will probably come when the saturation point for blogging may arrive, until that to all us bloggers and our readers, a happy day!
A spelling error according to Microsoft, but WordWeb returns the meaning of blog as web log, a little bit of history here.
I can’t even remember why I created this blog, have never been an avid 'Dear Diary' person either; it was sometime in Feb this year, was on bench, the first time I actually had so much time on my hand. It was Rashmi Bansal's blog that caught my attention, my source of inspiration for this, have seen her participate in discussions on NDTV, very articulate and focused.
A sneak peek into your thoughts, events in life!. The day will probably come when the saturation point for blogging may arrive, until that to all us bloggers and our readers, a happy day!
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Time does fly!
Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success, ‘Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which you can do today’. This is the man who discovered electricity; you think more people would listen to what he had to say. I don't know why we put things off, she said it’s because of fear, I say it’s because we drift, we lose our focus. In her words ‘Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo?’In my words ‘there’s a lot you want to do, it’s just that there’s no time to do it all, effective time utilization is something we have to learn, obviously procrastination comes in too’.
The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. We've all heard the proverbs, warning us about wasted time, and heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves, we have to make our own mistakes. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beats the hell out of never trying.
P.S: She in the above is Meredith from Grey’s, some of the thoughts in her voice overs are so good, couldn’t help picking up some lines and modifying for this post!
It's one of those weekends, when I feel like I did nothing useful and wonder where did all those hours go?, I’m sitting in front of the TV with my laptop, watching the Brazil/Aus match. Have you ever felt that 24 hours in a day is way too little especially on weekends, go to sleep at 1:30 AM and get up at 8:00 AM and still there’s no time.
Finally!, got to watch football yesterday, thanks to ABC, a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for Harris county and true to the weather channel, it rained and thundered, it got so dark, made me want to go back to sleep, as usual was checking the TV schedule when I came across abc’s, so got to watching Czech vs Ghana, heard Czech is one of the stronger teams in the competition, but they hardly played like it, if not for their goal keeper, I think the score would have read something like 5-0. The commentators seemed overly excited with Ghana’s victory; I didn’t seem to understand why, until I got to know the impact of the result on the next match that was coming up, USA vs Italy, when there are two teams playing I always root for one, even though I really don't have a particular favorite and in this case, was rooting for Italy, if not for the self-goal they would have won! Again the commentary was totally one-sided, but to be expected.
Way too many red-cards and yellow cards in the games, even today, Rolando too, I personally think he is an over-rated player, maybe not as much as David Beckham, but he is. I know he’s got the stats to prove that he’s a great player, its half-time now score still reads 0-0 and they are discussing ‘USA-win or go home’, I don’t want to know, so taking a break to complete this post. Kinda feel guilty that I was watching this match when I should have been in church, will find a way, soon I hope for my sake!
Yesterday we went shopping to Kohl’s and then fiesta, malls is one place where the time just flies, I can spend hours together, reminded me of the days in Plano, week after week, but I guess I can never get tired of shopping, got back home around 10, had dinner around 11 and then the internet, this is another place where the time just flies, the blogs, the scraps, the news, the stories, the deals, the reviews, it's all about keeping up, this is life!
Forget the To-do’s lists that that never seem to have an entry marked ‘done’ week after week, only new additions, from 43 things to do to 86 things that must really be done. Procrastination at it's best, angels and demons lying there, bookmarked, since the Dallas to Houston flight!, when did I become like this, I love reading, some day in the near future I’m gonna open the list on a Friday and start completing each of those tasks, right on top will be ‘Finish reading angels and demons', good luck to me on that … back to the match and to find something else to do on this Sunday other than from the list.
The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. We've all heard the proverbs, warning us about wasted time, and heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves, we have to make our own mistakes. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beats the hell out of never trying.
P.S: She in the above is Meredith from Grey’s, some of the thoughts in her voice overs are so good, couldn’t help picking up some lines and modifying for this post!
It's one of those weekends, when I feel like I did nothing useful and wonder where did all those hours go?, I’m sitting in front of the TV with my laptop, watching the Brazil/Aus match. Have you ever felt that 24 hours in a day is way too little especially on weekends, go to sleep at 1:30 AM and get up at 8:00 AM and still there’s no time.
Finally!, got to watch football yesterday, thanks to ABC, a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for Harris county and true to the weather channel, it rained and thundered, it got so dark, made me want to go back to sleep, as usual was checking the TV schedule when I came across abc’s, so got to watching Czech vs Ghana, heard Czech is one of the stronger teams in the competition, but they hardly played like it, if not for their goal keeper, I think the score would have read something like 5-0. The commentators seemed overly excited with Ghana’s victory; I didn’t seem to understand why, until I got to know the impact of the result on the next match that was coming up, USA vs Italy, when there are two teams playing I always root for one, even though I really don't have a particular favorite and in this case, was rooting for Italy, if not for the self-goal they would have won! Again the commentary was totally one-sided, but to be expected.
Way too many red-cards and yellow cards in the games, even today, Rolando too, I personally think he is an over-rated player, maybe not as much as David Beckham, but he is. I know he’s got the stats to prove that he’s a great player, its half-time now score still reads 0-0 and they are discussing ‘USA-win or go home’, I don’t want to know, so taking a break to complete this post. Kinda feel guilty that I was watching this match when I should have been in church, will find a way, soon I hope for my sake!
Yesterday we went shopping to Kohl’s and then fiesta, malls is one place where the time just flies, I can spend hours together, reminded me of the days in Plano, week after week, but I guess I can never get tired of shopping, got back home around 10, had dinner around 11 and then the internet, this is another place where the time just flies, the blogs, the scraps, the news, the stories, the deals, the reviews, it's all about keeping up, this is life!
Forget the To-do’s lists that that never seem to have an entry marked ‘done’ week after week, only new additions, from 43 things to do to 86 things that must really be done. Procrastination at it's best, angels and demons lying there, bookmarked, since the Dallas to Houston flight!, when did I become like this, I love reading, some day in the near future I’m gonna open the list on a Friday and start completing each of those tasks, right on top will be ‘Finish reading angels and demons', good luck to me on that … back to the match and to find something else to do on this Sunday other than from the list.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Auburn Red 3.11
I used to think, I could write on anything under the sun or the moon or the dark dark sky, or the blue sky, just wanted to test that belief of mine. It’s only right to put your beliefs and faith to the test! Talking is equivalent to writing, a topic I once got at our bi-weekly toastmaster's meeting was 'white lies', how good a topic is that, won best table topic speaker that day, kudos to me and my white lies!
To give you a little background; the Roman Catholic loves the catholic traditions, going to church, the serenity of the church, chapels, basically I love being catholic if you know what I mean, even if you don’t please don’t ask me. Anyway what I am trying to say is that I am religious and spiritual if those are the right words to use.
And then there’s Dan Brown and the Da Vinci Code, I don’t know if he is religious, anyway he is an exceptional author, literally, I mean to come up with works of ‘fiction’ such as the Da Vinci Code is amazing, am trying to complete reading ‘Angels and Demons’ another of those utterly fascinating stories.
Watched the movie too and frankly I thought the movie was something like the last of the movies in the Harry Potter series, ‘Goblet of fire’ right? Lucky for me to have read the books, but I think in both these movies you need to have read the book to actually appreciate the movie…its only a view …a well made movie is one like ‘The Lord of the Rings’, have not read the book, but its so amazingly made, so easy to love!
Back to Dan Brown and his Da Vinci.., for what its worth, my two cents…it’s only a work of fiction; question, dwell, dissect it to whatever extent you may but at the end of the day or night will it/should it shake your faith, the beliefs you have built on for all the years…it doesn’t make sense, all these bans are only increasing the publicity, take it at face value… Da Vinci is the outcome of an amazing creative/fictional mind ….that’s it..
I’ll let my imaginative mind dwell on less controversial topics, like on this post….does Dan Brown have a blog somewhere, I think it would make an interesting read!
Back to the what the post is all about, my hair color…Auburn Red!
There used to be so many colors in this short crop of hair, I had lost track!, but then enter tone-up and 3.11. It seemed really nice and it turned out well or so I thought and still do, just one more experiment to thou who sits on top of my head, alas, though I didn't expect the reaction. Without the glare of the sun, it was still pretty much okay as they say, go out in the sun and I looked like one of those red-head yahoo avatars! hehe as Jean aptly put it.
Whichever way, it reminds me, it's time to give this mane of mine some color in life!
Till the next post, happy soccering, blogging, maning!
To give you a little background; the Roman Catholic loves the catholic traditions, going to church, the serenity of the church, chapels, basically I love being catholic if you know what I mean, even if you don’t please don’t ask me. Anyway what I am trying to say is that I am religious and spiritual if those are the right words to use.
And then there’s Dan Brown and the Da Vinci Code, I don’t know if he is religious, anyway he is an exceptional author, literally, I mean to come up with works of ‘fiction’ such as the Da Vinci Code is amazing, am trying to complete reading ‘Angels and Demons’ another of those utterly fascinating stories.
Watched the movie too and frankly I thought the movie was something like the last of the movies in the Harry Potter series, ‘Goblet of fire’ right? Lucky for me to have read the books, but I think in both these movies you need to have read the book to actually appreciate the movie…its only a view …a well made movie is one like ‘The Lord of the Rings’, have not read the book, but its so amazingly made, so easy to love!
Back to Dan Brown and his Da Vinci.., for what its worth, my two cents…it’s only a work of fiction; question, dwell, dissect it to whatever extent you may but at the end of the day or night will it/should it shake your faith, the beliefs you have built on for all the years…it doesn’t make sense, all these bans are only increasing the publicity, take it at face value… Da Vinci is the outcome of an amazing creative/fictional mind ….that’s it..
I’ll let my imaginative mind dwell on less controversial topics, like on this post….does Dan Brown have a blog somewhere, I think it would make an interesting read!
Back to the what the post is all about, my hair color…Auburn Red!
There used to be so many colors in this short crop of hair, I had lost track!, but then enter tone-up and 3.11. It seemed really nice and it turned out well or so I thought and still do, just one more experiment to thou who sits on top of my head, alas, though I didn't expect the reaction. Without the glare of the sun, it was still pretty much okay as they say, go out in the sun and I looked like one of those red-head yahoo avatars! hehe as Jean aptly put it.
Whichever way, it reminds me, it's time to give this mane of mine some color in life!
Till the next post, happy soccering, blogging, maning!
Friday, June 09, 2006
Lottsa sports!
It looks like football mania is in full swing. I personally have never been much of a football fan, don't ever watch EPL, can't name the players in the clubs, yet somehow I just love world cup football. We began watching since the 2002 world cup in South Korea, so am still pretty new to the game!
For the record, I am an avid German supporter, followed by Portugal, Brazil, England in that order… and Klose, Ballack, Figo, Owen are the guys! It’s amazing, the kind of following that soccer has, even back in India given that we practically have ‘No football team’. Have updated my favorite links too ... f1 and tennis will take a backseat for a while amidst the world cup.
If I was back home I would probably be glued to the TV, have to make do with keeping up with scores and results online here since I can’t watch it live, but that's a rather dull way, no excitement, no thrill, all I can say is something better than nothing!
Federer and Nadal fighting it out for the French open title, may the best man win (read Nadal) and at Silverstone too, may the best man/team win! will again be following both the scores online :(
Oh yes, am gonna update the previous post...haven't forgotten yet!
For the record, I am an avid German supporter, followed by Portugal, Brazil, England in that order… and Klose, Ballack, Figo, Owen are the guys! It’s amazing, the kind of following that soccer has, even back in India given that we practically have ‘No football team’. Have updated my favorite links too ... f1 and tennis will take a backseat for a while amidst the world cup.
If I was back home I would probably be glued to the TV, have to make do with keeping up with scores and results online here since I can’t watch it live, but that's a rather dull way, no excitement, no thrill, all I can say is something better than nothing!
Federer and Nadal fighting it out for the French open title, may the best man win (read Nadal) and at Silverstone too, may the best man/team win! will again be following both the scores online :(
Oh yes, am gonna update the previous post...haven't forgotten yet!
Monday, June 05, 2006
The weekend of June 3rd, 2006
No intellectual words or advice, only a bit of rambling, that seems like what I do best and most lately :- )
Binaisha was here!, she traveled from LA to Dallas and then to here, amazing don’t you think? To all who said this was a God-forsaken place, it's not true, it's not like I've changed my previous view but I do think there’s a lot that can be seen/done if you put your mind to it :- ) After all Houston is the 4th largest city in the US. Did some reading, might as well start TRYING to enjoy living here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston
Okay, back to the weekend. Downtown aquarium was our first stop in Downtown Houston; boy was that a long journey. The skyline is beautiful, the tall buildings running parallel and perpendicular all along the avenue almost made me feel claustrophobic. The aquarium itself was pretty small and seemed hyped, but it was beautiful and tastefully decorated, lunch in the company of the fishes I can’t even name!
The shark voyage, which was supposed to be thrilling somehow didn’t give me a thrill despite an enthralling experience with the creatures of the sea! However it’s as if we were doomed/jinxed when it came to transport, either the long wait or the non-arrival or the non-inclusion of routes huh! right until Sunday. We seemed to have it all. to be contd. finally the continuation!, has been some time coming, but think about it, it's more Binzi's story than mine, so will let her complete :)she would have a lot to say! all in all a great week with Binaisha :)
Binaisha was here!, she traveled from LA to Dallas and then to here, amazing don’t you think? To all who said this was a God-forsaken place, it's not true, it's not like I've changed my previous view but I do think there’s a lot that can be seen/done if you put your mind to it :- ) After all Houston is the 4th largest city in the US. Did some reading, might as well start TRYING to enjoy living here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston
Okay, back to the weekend. Downtown aquarium was our first stop in Downtown Houston; boy was that a long journey. The skyline is beautiful, the tall buildings running parallel and perpendicular all along the avenue almost made me feel claustrophobic. The aquarium itself was pretty small and seemed hyped, but it was beautiful and tastefully decorated, lunch in the company of the fishes I can’t even name!
The shark voyage, which was supposed to be thrilling somehow didn’t give me a thrill despite an enthralling experience with the creatures of the sea! However it’s as if we were doomed/jinxed when it came to transport, either the long wait or the non-arrival or the non-inclusion of routes huh! right until Sunday. We seemed to have it all. to be contd. finally the continuation!, has been some time coming, but think about it, it's more Binzi's story than mine, so will let her complete :)she would have a lot to say! all in all a great week with Binaisha :)
Friday, June 02, 2006
Plano to Houston
An hour in the air and much more than hours spent in DFW and yet there isn’t much change to the view, not that I expected it.
Okay, maybe I can point out the differences, or rather to the one striking difference!
Plano was much more refined, Houston just seems a little unkempt ... :- ) not sure if it’s the right word to use.
My apologies. It could be a harsh view since it’s not even been a week since I landed here and I’ve basically only been on the Enclave Pkwy, will write in when/if I change my mind. Oh, and how I am gonna miss Prince of Peace and the beautiful Sunday service there, the so typical mass, the melodious singing and yes and it pours here.
The weather is a talking issue, one minute it can be so hot and humid and the next it’s raining, guess it’s the wrong time of the year to be in Houston. Who can forget Rita (not my Ma, but God Bless her), the much talked about hurricane of 2005.
It so reminds me of Mangalore, where no surprise, it’s pouring.
My apologies. It could be a harsh view since it’s not even been a week since I landed here and I’ve basically only been on the Enclave Pkwy, will write in when/if I change my mind. Oh, and how I am gonna miss Prince of Peace and the beautiful Sunday service there, the so typical mass, the melodious singing and yes and it pours here.
The weather is a talking issue, one minute it can be so hot and humid and the next it’s raining, guess it’s the wrong time of the year to be in Houston. Who can forget Rita (not my Ma, but God Bless her), the much talked about hurricane of 2005.
It so reminds me of Mangalore, where no surprise, it’s pouring.
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
My favorite quote
Is from H.W Longfellow's 'The psalm of life'
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Footprints, that perhaps another
Sailing o'er life's solemn main
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother
Seeing, shall take heart again.
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Footprints, that perhaps another
Sailing o'er life's solemn main
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother
Seeing, shall take heart again.
Sunday, February 12, 2006
MIT Alumni Meet
Yep, this isn't really a musing, but I am so amazed by this place, have just got to get down to writing.
Feb. 12th was the day of the Alumni meet, apparently a number of people had registered, however only about a handful of people turned up. I am glad I was able to make it. Jeane was there too, so there was no dearth of company for me.
Met Mrs. Gowda, she comes across as a dynamic, charistmatic individual. After a short snack, we got right down to the formal function. T-shirts commemorating the Golden Jubilee of MIT, were sold at the venue (KMC Medical College, Lighthouse Hill, Mangalore). A new term has been coined as ManipalTech and was publicised so as to distingush our MIT from the many others that are cropping up.
Feb. 12th was the day of the Alumni meet, apparently a number of people had registered, however only about a handful of people turned up. I am glad I was able to make it. Jeane was there too, so there was no dearth of company for me.
Met Mrs. Gowda, she comes across as a dynamic, charistmatic individual. After a short snack, we got right down to the formal function. T-shirts commemorating the Golden Jubilee of MIT, were sold at the venue (KMC Medical College, Lighthouse Hill, Mangalore). A new term has been coined as ManipalTech and was publicised so as to distingush our MIT from the many others that are cropping up.
Saturday, February 11, 2006
Disclaimer
This is my personal weblog, all views expressed here are mine and mine only and in no way reflect those of my employer or anyone else's*
# My views and thoughts are bound to change over time and I am not liable if they do. If you find my views and posts offensive, please stop visiting this site, that is the only solution.
# As you can see/read, this blog is written in English, however you may occasionally find words from other languages I am well-versed in or not so well versed in. My Alma Mater, the educational institutions I attended, the teachers who taught me, the state government for deciding the course content, all* involved in my education in any way are not liable for any spelling or grammatical errors in my posts.
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* my father, mother, siblings, relatives, friends, neighbors, religious groups I may belong to or be affiliated with, social organizations I may be affiliated with, political parties I may support, fellow bloggers linked on my blog, blogger.com, affiliates of blogger.com, residents of the state I reside in or previously resided in, residents inclusive of aliens on earth, the stars, space, planets, the galaxies and the universe.
# My views and thoughts are bound to change over time and I am not liable if they do. If you find my views and posts offensive, please stop visiting this site, that is the only solution.
# As you can see/read, this blog is written in English, however you may occasionally find words from other languages I am well-versed in or not so well versed in. My Alma Mater, the educational institutions I attended, the teachers who taught me, the state government for deciding the course content, all* involved in my education in any way are not liable for any spelling or grammatical errors in my posts.
# Comments on this site are not moderated, however I will delete those in poor taste and offensive in any manner, the decision to categorize comments for deletion lies solely and solely with me.
# Data provided here is accurate to the best possible extent, but I provide no guarantees, prudence is the key to making any decisions, not only to those made based on the information in this blog. No requests or demands for compensation will be entertained if you ever happen to suffer a loss/inconvenience/damage because of/while making use of information in this blog or if your dish turns out bad because I forgot to mention to add salt in my recipe!
# Content on this blog including images, comments is copyright protected. Reproduction, reposting, modifying is prohibited by law without the written permission of the blog owner. Linkbacks are welcome.
# If you know me personally, that's great :) but please respect my privacy. If you don't know me, then you're good!
* my father, mother, siblings, relatives, friends, neighbors, religious groups I may belong to or be affiliated with, social organizations I may be affiliated with, political parties I may support, fellow bloggers linked on my blog, blogger.com, affiliates of blogger.com, residents of the state I reside in or previously resided in, residents inclusive of aliens on earth, the stars, space, planets, the galaxies and the universe.
Thursday, February 02, 2006
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