bigbitz-blog

A Love Letter

2012-03-07T15:34:00.000+05:30

Dear Doctor,

I have made up my mind to like you deeply and passionately. It's a kind of like that I have never liked anybody before. No, not love anyway. At least not yet. But I love the way I like you.

Last few days I spent with you, basking in the warmth of love and care, I swayed and slept in peace. It is only my faith in you that pulled me bold through the toughest times of my life that hung on a string until a few hours back.

Your mere proximity and soothing smile gave me the courage to go on and was as important as the concoctions you prescribed for my well being . Doc, did you know it was your healing touch that did wonders which you credited to the strongest analgesics?

Every word youuttered in that soft mid tone meant nothing less than life to me. Remember I once told you that you have a unique way of calling my name? When I did that, I really wished you knew a small secret that lingered behind my name.

Strange are the ways of the World. Isn't it my dear doc? Had it not been so, I would not have left so early. Even before telling you that I'm your little puckish, naughty childhood mate who you called Eish.

I know this will reach you very late. Because I want it to. Had this reached you early, I didn't know how you would react to my fate. I didn't have the energy to see you breakdown. It was your cheerful face that I wanted to see until I breath last.

But Ithink it's not that late. I can still see you read this. Perhaps youmay not. I can see your smile. I can hear your heart thumping fast. Ican see your hands tremble. I can see you sweat on your forehead justthe way it happened on the day you attended to my life in theemergency.

Are those tears, running down your face? I knew it. You are notthat tough as you appear. I wish I could be there to wipe that offand give you a tight hug. But doc, I've done that a thousand timesin my heart when it beat.

I accept that it was just for you I tried my best to step back into this world where love and hatred hurt me equally. Had that worked out, I would have run into your arms and told you everything my heart had to say with all the love I had preserved for you the last 20 yrs.

Now stop weeping like a kid and wipe off. I want you to know, your Eish was really happy when she left. Not that I wanted to leave but did I have a choice? You know it better doc.

I'm happy that you were a part of my life in the last few days and you made them as special as my childhood I spent with you. You have been the only man who really wished and tried to pull me back to life with all the heart you had. You did everything that you would do for your Eish if you had known it was me.

I could have just kept quiet and left without hurting you. But I know you will go searching for me one day and I don't want you to; for your Eish has nothing left over in this world except you and our story.

Once for all, let me ask you.

Doctor, will you be my valentine?

Love, Eish

Picture courtesy: Magadheera (Telugu movie)

There is a story behind this letter that I plan to share with you when I get some extra time to work on its draft.

From ".com" to ".in" - What a changeover mama ?

2012-02-23T21:59:00.000+05:30

After a series of events that surprised me with an unusual ".in" instead of ".com" on some Indian blog URLs (and finally mine), a fellow blogger clarified things today.

Google is migrating its Blogger Top Level Domains from ".com" to localized domains in some countries like India. This will help Google to filter/ block/ remove contents complying with the local law and regulatory.

Which indirectly means: We will not be able to read a blog that does not meet the criteria set forth by a censor board while it will be on net for the rest of the world.

We are soon going to have an on looker Big Brother closely watching and telling us what to read/write and what not to. :(

Sloth Bank Of India

2012-02-21T11:50:00.000+05:30

It was 10.00 when I reached. The bank was just open and thetransactions were about to be started.

The machine with a dirtyyellow button spat out TOKEN NO:55 on to my hand. I picked up the formto file a DD application and sat down on the waiting chair. It was nice to see allthe 15 multipurposecounters open and getting ready to start serving.

“TING TING...

token number 1- counternumber 2,

token number 2 -counter number 4,

token number 3 counternumber 6,

token number 4 counter number 7,

token number 5 counternumber 9 .”

In short, out of the 15 countersassigned, only 5 will function. That is one third of the total number.Still, that doesn't matter much to me. 5 counters and if each takes 5minutes, my turn will come in an 1 hour or so. I got back tofilling the DD application form.

As I finished filling, it was 10.15 andnumber 8 that was the last called token. Now I had some 60 minutes to kill and decided to find out what the non-functioning counters were up to.

Token number 9-counternumber 3
Token number 10--counter number 4
Token number 11-counter number 9

Counter number 1: A 120 something ladywho is busy talking over her phone. Well, 120 in not her age but weight in Kg . Looks like she fell directly into that cubicle from above like a jello. The fact is , she can't serve even if she wishes to.There is no space for anybody else in that cubicle.

Token number 12-counter number 6
Token number 13-counter number 3
Token number 14-counternumber 7

Counter number 3: It read "AssistAccounts Manager". This is again a lady. She is relaxing happily on her semi reclined officechair exposing her well fed belly and breathing the fresh morning air. I doubt if she was on audition for B grade Bollywood.

Token number 15-Counternumber 9

Token number 16 counternumber 5

Counter number 5: This man is reclining on his chair and talking over the phone with his right hand scratching his groin. You could make out the pleasure on his face when he did that. I think he should meet me in my clinic for treatment before he handles any currencies.

Token number 17-counternumber 6

Counter number 8: She must have crackeda dirty joke. This man sitting next to her is laughing his stomach out. Ok,here I see a 50 something uncle, sitting an chitchatting with apretty unpretty aunty in her 40s. They can't be blamed. They needs to vent theirfeeling too.

Counter number 10: Somebody had been put to fast at home I think. This young man is busy eating his nails. Once when he is done with one nail, he carefully palpates the rest of the nails for the best next option.

Token number 19 counternumber 6

Counter number 11: This 40 something man is really upto something. He is busy reading the news paper. He has his one hands on the table and the other underneath. Heseem to be shaking his leg vigorously or is he shivering?

Counter number 12: That's a dump yard of files. If I go stand near that counter, I'm pretty sure, I will be shorter than that pile of files on the right which read, “PENDING VERIFICATION”. In an office like this with heavy work load, and everybody busy attending to the customers form morn to eve, with too much of under-staffing, I'm not surprised to see that pile. They are doing a good job!!

Token number 21 counternumber 6

Counter number 13: This guy is busycounting. He picked up a bundle, counted it first, then themachine and then him again. Looks like he is expecting itto multiply each time they are counted.

Token number 22 counternumber 6

Counter number 14: “SPECIAL COUNTER”handled by a special lady. She is busy calculating and noting itdown. But what will a bank officer need to think so much and thenwrite down on multiple squares on a newspaper. I don't know. But she is at least playing with numbers.

Token number 23 counternumber 6

Counter number 15: She is busy working. Working her make up! With her bag wide open, she pulled out the lipstick, pushed back the ~~foreskin~~ cover and started rubbing it on to her lips with such passion that I felt she had her climax then and there.

I looked at my watch and it was already11.30. Now that I 've killed one solid hour, I was sure my time isgoing to be arriving soon.

But no, Token number 24 counter nummber6.

Oops, that meas all other countersother than 6 have closed. And not even half the token been called. What the bloody hell!!! Now what do I do? I badly want to leave. Butthings are nearing last date and they accept DD from this bank alone. I think I'll wait. After all, it's Sloth Bank of India.

image courtesy: http://www.prwatch.org/

Help Save A life. Will you?

2012-02-06T16:17:00.001+05:30

In my previous post (Last Words - An Unfinished Deathbed Talk), I did mention about C.P.R being done during a medical emergency. I thought I'll share this informative video on how to handle a cardiac emergency by yourself before the trained assistance arrives.

This video will take just take 3 minutes and you might be able to help save a life in emergency. Isn't that worth? So go ahead & ClicK "play" button.

-HOW TO PERFORM ADULT C.P.R (CARDIO-PULMONARY RESUSCITATION)-

Key Remarks :

Image courtesy: babble.com

(I'm sure you've seen the video by now. If not, please view it and then continue.)

a) Look around and ensure your safety before you begin.

b) Dial the local emergency number.

c) Clear any obstructing foreign body from the mouth/throat of the victim.

d) Don't hesitate, this is an emergency and you need to act quickly.

e) Initiate chest compression at the earliest. You need to deliver approx 100 compressions per minute.

f) You might break a rib or two. Don't let that stop you. His/Her life is more important than the ribs that can heal.

g) Don't practice it on normal people. If you need to get a virtual hands on experience, Click here (AHA- Learn CPR on the body you chose) or register for Basic Life Supports Course in your locality.

Video courtesy : American Red Cross & Howcast

-It's Worth Sharing & I Know You Will-

Last Words - An Unfinished Deathbed Talk.

2012-02-04T20:35:00.001+05:30

This is an excerpt from the diary entry I made on the morning after a busy duty, a few years back.

I'm about to finish my 24 hours duty. Will have to pull on till Dr X turns up and can return back to my quarters. Yesterday was hectic and not a single minute I could sleep last night. I had 4 patients in the ICU, 53 patients in the ward, 20 new admissions and 7 causality calls. God alone knows, how many hours it's going to take in handing over the previous night to Dr X.

Image courtesy: kevinmd.com

My dear diary, I'm sad. A patient admitted yesterday for close monitoring and evaluation in our FMW is no more. I know, this is not the first time we are losing patients. I have not mentioned about any of them after the first month of my clinical years. But this incident was unique and heart breaking.

Last night, after my causality call at 12.05 am, I was walking through the corridor of Female Medical Ward (FMW) when I saw light in the last cubical. As I crossed the nursing station, the ward sister woke up from her midnight trance and joined me thinking I was on a midnight rounds.

I kept walking and as I approached closer to the light, I heard somebody singing. Inside, I saw a lady in her late 40s, a patient, sitting on her bed and sewing designs on a piece of cloth and singing lullabies to herself. She was so absorbed at her work that she didn't seem to notice my presence. The nurse was more than happy to leave, when I signaled her to get back to her station.

I stood there for sometime listening and trying to decode her emotions at the same time. She looked worn out and there was some deep rooted sorrow lingering on her face. When I took a closer look, I could see tears running down her cheeks and could hear her weep between the lines she sung.

The moment she sensed my presence, she stopped singing, dropped the cloth on the bed and stood up. Wiping her tears with her pallu she threw a blank, curious stare at me. I smiled. "thookkam varamteendhu, athinalathan, koncham neram ethavuthu pudichathu panneetu padukkalam nu irunden. (Didn't feel sleepy. Thought I'll do something I like and then go back to bed)", she said. I smiled again.

I continued to walk until I reached the foot end of the bed and stood there looking at the beautiful embroidery she had being sewing on that kerchief. I picked it up and ran my hand across the design and I complemented her for the work.

For the first time since we met, she smiled and pulled out a chair and offered it to me. After introducing myself, I sat down on the chair and asked her to sit down pointing at her bed. She sat down and picked up the handkerchief and continued her work as we spoke.

She was Krishnaveni. She was admitted by a colleague of mine for further evaluation of her minor skin disease that kept recurring. She had 3 children all well settled. In few minutes she was comfortable talking to me and started to respond back with a maternal attitude.

Now, I really cared. I wanted to know what was bothering her. May be I could help her out. Psychologically or otherwise. May be she just needs to vent out her emotions and she may be alright.

I had already identified (unconsciously) her with someone very important in my life. I just experienced the phenomenon of countertransference at its peak.

I didn't think much. I just put it straight to her. Asked her if there was something that was bothering and if I can help. I left the option open by adding, "if it was too personal you can very well opt not to" .

She paused for a second and replied, "Thambee, nee yen pulle mathiri. En pullakitte sollame vere yarikkitte nan en kashtathe solrathu? Yarukitteyavuthu pesanal than en manasu sukamayidum nu ninakkarein. En ooru selam. En veetill ungala mathiriye.. (You are like my son. If not to my son who else will I share my difficulties. I need to share this with some one, and I think that will calm me down... My house is in Selam. At home, just like you..)"

The phone in the nursing station rang and the lady briefly paused. Before she could restart, the ward nurse screamed: "Sir, there is call from the ICU". "Bed 6- Mr Madhavan- Post MI has some new ECG changes. In-charge wants you there asap."

Without wasting any time, I told Krishnaveni that I'll be back in few minutes to listen to her and hurried out of the FMW. Just as I was about to step out, Kishnaveni said, "Intha kerchief ungalukku. Innum koncham nerathilu ready ayidun. vandu vangittu ponge. (This kerchief is for you. I'll finish working on it in few minutes. Please do come and collect it later)." I had no time to respond but flashed a brief smile at her and left.

Image courtesy: avikroy.org

I rushed to the ICU pushing open the glass doors. The ICU staff read out the case sheet as I took a look at the ECG monitor. She was excellent at her work. She had already initiated the therapy measures.

I took over from her and continued with the management. After about 20 minutes, having completed all preliminaries, I gave a call over to the cardiologist and was waiting for the patient to settle down when I got another call from the ward.

It was the same ward nurse over the phone. " Emergency in last cubical FMW - bed 27- patient collapsed." I handed charge of the ICU patient to the staff and rushed back to the ward. I knew where I had to go. If I'm not wrong it is the same patient, Krishnaveni, who I just met before the ICU call. I was hoping not.

When I reached there, Krishnaveni was already on the resuscitation table gasping for air. With all the gadgets, the pulse oxymeter, the BP cuff, the ECG leads, oxygen mask and 2 IV lines on her, I could hardly look at her.

I sent a call for the bystanders as the team was put on resuscitation mode. I had the ward sister read out the history and the medication as I promptly initiated C.P.R. "No medicines prescribed yet. Admitted for observation and evaluation only." she concluded.

The ward boys rushed in with the crash cart and the staff loaded the syringes and handed over the tray. The technician standing next to me got the DeFib ready. With no delay we sprung into action.

I knew I had not much of time left. I worked out all the basic life support measures and then moved up to advanced life supports. After 20 minuted of vigorous try, things were pretty sure, that we were failing. I didn't wan't to give up. I kept giving her chest compression and breathers.

As I did, I looked at her face, the expression of unfinished conversation and the urge to tell me all her sorrows have not vanished yet. I could feel the motherly warmth in her blunt, fixed stare. With every thump I gave, I could sense her receding away from my grip. I started to feel heavy inside me.

I don't know for how long, but we kept trying. I had forgotten about all the conventional protocols on when to stop hoping and conclude resuscitation. I only had one thing in mind, I just didn't want to lose her to fate.

The ward sister, tapped on my shoulder and said, " sir, I'm sorry, we have lost her already". I paused for a while. I could feel a tear trickle down my face and saw it drop down on her still chest.

Wiping off the sweat and tears from my face with the folded sleeve of my shirt, I took a last look at the lady who just left with a conversation unfinished. In her partly clenched fist was the handkerchief she had been sewing for me. That too left unfinished.

A Randy Noble Romance.

2012-01-21T14:53:00.000+05:30

---------------------------------------

Mighty was her reel of fame,
The noble ladies flexed in shame.
Men could only long to claim,
Was she wild a lioness tame.

When he tried his luck at fate,

Far she fled with hurting slate.

He did urge to opt her mate,

As she rooted deep in crate.

All though he did turned out quip,
Tougher grew his lusty gripe.
No more could she take him snip,
The best she could she tried to slip.

On that murky winter night,

She went yielding light and bright.

When they merged as one and tight,

They left no more time to blight.

Gaping was their land of ayre,
As though things were all that fair.
That means not that they can pair,
But she made it smart and spare.

Lovely was her despair moan,

Every time he pushed the horn.

They kept riding hard and lone,

As though they had no more home.

---------------------------------------

Picture courtesy: http://picfor.me/en/viewimg/1122671/tag/635/user/52275

Unexpressed Emotions - A friend's love story.

2012-01-04T17:30:00.000+05:30

Today, I accompanied an old friend to the beach. He is “meeting a special person” (that is the exact phrase he used) after a long gap of 10 years. She studied junior to him at pre-college, and after she got transferred, this is their first meeting.

My friend resides a bit far, around 4 hours drive from this town. Today morning he drove all the way to attend an event of 2 long sessions spanning 5 hours each. He chose this place because he knew she lived here and wanted a reason to come here. Though meeting her was itself a reason with much greater validity, he did not want it to appear so.

When he asked me to accompany him, I was not sure if I should really do it. But since this is one among the very few things he asked me, I didn’t want to deny it. So I came along to witness the reunion.

Exactly at 4.50 we reached here and we have been waiting for the past 20 minute or so. When I look at his face, I can clearly make out how harsh his day was. He did not seem to possess a third of the energy that he usually exudes. Ever since I know him, he has an excellent quality to contagiously sprout out quantum of energy to the people around him. Today, he is all drained out and it feels like being here with somebody else. Offering to meet her on a tight packed day like this itself reveals how damn important she is in his life.

From the flashback he narrated on our way, there were times when he did wait like this years ago just to see her. He said it was almost a routine and he lost count on hours spent waiting. It was on the second month of their meeting when he waited for her at the school gate to show her his arm on which he got her name scribbled with lasting tattoo. Unfortunately she did not turn up on time to see it and was caught by his teacher. He had to get that erased with the help of his chemistry tutor before the news reached the principal.

He seemed to be overjoyed when he explained how irresolute was their propinquity. Every tea breaks, he would stand at a particular place to meet her, making it so natural, for others won't get a clue. And as and when she moved around him in full glory, they would exchange quick furtive glances. When he said that I could see his tired eyes glitter with excitement.

Though his heart was craving, nothing was ever spoken about it between them. Those days, he neither had the courage to tell her all that he felt nor did he express any emotions completely. He always thought he would get a better opportunity to do it, wanting more time for his thoughts to mature. Only little did he knew that she would move out of sight soon.

One dreadful day, she was withdrawn from the institute and was being shifted to a farther land. This happened all of a sudden and it was too late when the news reached him. That instant he rushed to meet her, but she had already stepped out of the campus with her mother.

He was lucky enough to secretly ~~escort~~ follow her and her mother to the bus bay. After she got into the bus, he stood behind a car stealing the last few peeks before his love story ended. As the bus started to move, he felt left alone. His heart started to feel heavier with all the unexpressed emotions he had in stock for a life time.

He stood there until he felt it impossible to hold back his tears.The moment he felt a drop trickle down his cheek, he turned back. Like an blind mad man, he ran through the crowd and across the road until he reached spot where he usually met her. The rest of his school days, he would come down and wait there during the breaks reminiscing and waiting for his amateur love story.

With lots of things untold and emotions unexpressed a long time ago, he is meeting her again. But today, he feels sad, for he has nothing to tell her and nothing to express. He believes that it would make no sense if he spoke out all that an 18 year old had to say at the age of 28.

Though he treasures every single thing in that relationship, he has decided to let go. He said; “From tomorrow, she is going to be lost in the fast flowing river of this busy life. But today, evening is for her, just to untangle any tight knots if at all had ever existed. A non traumatizing conclusion for both.”

I did not ask him why, for I now know what she is to him. If he chose not to tell her, he will definitely have a valid reason. My only prayer for now is “God, give my friend the energy to elude his emotions when they meet."

I lost my wisdom!

2011-12-31T18:08:00.000+05:30

Today, let me tell you about my loss. I lost my wisdom at around 11.10 in the morning that too around 40 km away from home.

The procedure began at 11 in the morning. The shot of the local that knocked down the sensation on my right part of my mouth including the tip of my tongue, made me sense nothing other then a feeling of somebody trying to stick a tooth pick between my teeth.

The final two minutes, the time when the doc manipulated the tooth with pressure, I nearly screamed out aloud. I even thought I should just jump out of the table and run. But I knew there was no choice.

The verbal anesthesia he instilled, held me on to the chair. Every time his hands made a move I felt it deep in my jaw bone as if it’s going to split into two. Finally at the end of the second minute, I heard a “click” from some where near my right ear and that was it. He changed his instrument and with that he held my wisdom tooth on the right side and it was out in seconds.

I’ve had a dental extraction, that too the last molar which is supposed to be extremely painful post operative. I’m here blogging, absolutely painless (or at least I’m not ready to accept the pain) despite deliberately skipping the analgesic that I m prescribed.

May be it’s his expertise in the procedure that has made it possible. Or is it just because of the confidence that I have in him that’s masking the pain? But whatever be the reason, I m happy for having lost a problematic tooth with just two minutes of pain and discomfort.

So dear 2012, here I come in few hours into your arms without the so called wisdom, that hurt my cheeks for nearly a month.

Wish you all A Very Happy New Year!

Romantic Hypnosis

2011-12-20T11:34:00.000+05:30

It was one of those summer evening classes we attended at school, for additional tuition and better scores. Unlike the routine, my session got over early and I was waiting for my friends to start our evening cricket. The wait seemed to be very long. Secretly, through the window, I signaled my friends in the class that I would meet them at the regular place and walked towards the kindergarten block of the school.

Our school kindergarten block, being isolated from the main building is perhaps the most silent, less illuminated and less frequented area in the evening. The place had all the qualities for a bunch of high secondary boys to chose as their regular meeting place and so we did. It was almost our exclusive territory after class hours. In addition, I had another emotional attachment to that place. To lie down on the slides at kids play area there and dream endlessly looking at the beautiful sky was one of the favorite evening hobbies.

I walked through the path sandwiched between a pair of narrow lawns, past the science laboratory to the entrance of the Kindergarten section. At once I saw a movement in the kids play area. Somebody was already there. An intrusion into our territory, that too at this time of the day, has never happened before. I was curious and angry at the same time. I moved closer with an intention to drive them out of our private land.

As I walked closer to the interloper, I was dumbstruck with what I saw. Sitting on the merry-go-round, was a gorgeous girl, with the most striking features that have ever impressed me. Like a child who just witnessed a magician’s masterpiece, my jaw dropped. She was alone and deeply absorbed in her thoughts that she didn’t notice my presence.

As she sat elegant on the merry-go-round, resting her arms and her delicate fingers gently gripping the iron bar, she looked as alluring and tender as a blooming bud of lotus. Her beautiful face, under the thin moon light appeared as innocent as that of a new born baby. Her prominent nose and luscious lips dazzled with its sensuality. With undeniable charm emanating, no man would ever want to take eyes off her face.

Gracefully, she lowered her right leg to the ground and gave a mild thrust to move the wheel. When she did that, her body arched to reveal her physique and her perfect curves of muliebrity. The sight sent vibes down my nerves kindling every single hair follicles to rise.

As the merry-go-round started to move faster, I could make out the excitement on her face. Soon her supple lips widened to blossom into a vibrant smile. May be it was her thoughts that made her smile. But to me it was a smile that that touched the bottom of my heart, soothing and tranquilizing. Her cherubic face, seraphic smile and serene expression, like the placid waters of a lake, would calm down even an extremely traumatized heart.

The more I looked at her, I felt more susceptible as though surrendering myself to some magical spells. With a new sense of well being flooded in my mind, I wished the world paused at that point for I could spend the rest of my life in that hypnotic trance of her angelic beauty.I don’t know how long I stood there in the empty corner of the school, mesmerized, a few meters away from the most beautiful girl I ever saw on earth.

I knew it won’t be nice to get caught ogling at a girl in a place like this, but I couldn't stop myself. My mind had already drifted to a fascinating world of exquisite delicacy . Like in a dream, I started to feel light, I could sense my body dissolving into the thin air. Finally, I even had a doubt if I really existed then. If it was a dream, I prayed not to be woken up at all.

In the meantime, she surfaced back from her deep thoughts and I looked at my side with a blank stare. Initially she didn’t spot me for I was at a darker corner behind the peer tree. But it didn’t take long for her to sense my presence. In an instant her expression changed. Perhaps she felt insecure. She hardly knew I was not there to harm her, but merely struck by her beauty.

Once she realized that there was no way she could escape from my prying eyes, she stopped the Merry-go-round abruptly, stepped down and walked towards the main block. As though escaping from a haunted castle, I saw her turn back inquisitively to my side. I didn’t move. Not because I didn’t want to, I simply couldn’t.

As the golden glow of the lawn lamps bathed her on the way, she looked like a skillfully sculptured masterpiece that had come to life. She moved fast, even then with such grace that my heart skipped a beat with every soft step she took. I stood there spell bound until she disappeared from my view.

This was the first time I ever saw her, even then my heart felt so empty and distressed as she walked out of sight. I could sense a bewildering array of emotion engulf me with my mind fighting to reach a harmony with my hormones.

I was feeling so odd having missed this pretty face earlier until another possibility struck my mind. She could even be a visitor. In that case I may not get to meet her again. The very thought of it being that way was afflicting.

Not willing to take a chance, I hurried to the main building she just entered, hoping to meet her one more time before she leaves. I was determined to talk to her, ask her name at least. And if she didn’t mind I would get her contacts too.

I would have just crossed the path to science lab which is on my way, I heard a voice calling out my name from behind. I didn’t want to stop. But the sound felt so familiar and authoritative that I briefly paused. He called me again. Oh God! That was my Principal, who by now was standing just behind me. Having no choice, I turned around.

With him, I stood restless, partly listening, shifting myself from one feet to another. Every time I felt a pause in his speech, I nodded my head in acceptance and tried all that I could to slip away. But nothing worked, for he was determined to complete what he had begun. Typical army man!

He spoke to me for what I felt, the longest 15 minutes of my life, about the new responsibilities I have with the upcoming school event. The moment he was done with the percepts, without wasting any precious time, I hied down to the school building.

With a little hope left to spot that pretty face again, I went around the entire building, and then the entire campus. Until that day, I never knew I could survey the entire 3 story, 3 block school building in less than 10 minutes. I could feel my heart pounding inside my chest wall, partly because of the running and partly because of the foreseen anticlimax.

From a distance I saw somebody who looked similar, standing at the school entrance. I was too far away that I could hardly confirm if it was her. Like an athlete in his winning lap, I ran to the entrance. To my misfortune, she stepped out and disappeared into the back seat of the car parked in front of the gate. Within seconds, the car sped away even before I reached halfway.

To me it felt like the end of everything. Was it frustration, sorrow or anger that dominated in my mid? I don’t have an answer. Like a child who lost his best toy, my mind wept, but in silence. I tried my best to make myself believe that I would meet her again.

With a heavy heart, I walked towards KG section where my friends would meet me. As usual, I found myself reclining on the slide; this time not staring at the sky but at the empty merry-go-around on which one of the most baffling reverie was staged.

Image courtesy: Google

Paneer Coconut Incognito

2011-12-04T22:17:00.000+05:30

With an intention to prepare something out of paneer, a bunch of stumbling amateurs, me, my sister and cousin, entered the kitchen. Here's how we did it and what we finally got.

Ingredients

	Ingredients	Form	Quatity
1	Paneer	Cut into cubes	200g
2	Onion	Chopped	3 No.
3	Tomatoes	Chopped	3 No.
4	Garlic	Finely hopped	4 cloves
5	Ginger	Finely chopped	1 pc medium size
6	Green chilies	Chopped	4 no.
7	Coconut	Sieved milk	1 cup
8	Lemon	Juice	1/2 tsp
9	Badam	Paste	1/4 cup
10	Cumin seeds	-	1/2 tsp
11	Coriander Powder	-	1 . 1//2 tsp
12	Ghee	-	3 tsp + 1tsp
13	Milk powder	-	1 tsp
14	Coriander leaf	Chopped	Few
15	Salt	-	To taste
16	Red chili dry		2-3 no.
17	Mustard seeds	-	1/2 tsp

Preparation:

Heat 3tsp ghee in a vessel.
Add cumin seed and onion and fry till onion softens. Keep stirring regularly.
Now add chopped ginger and garlic and continue frying for 2 minutes.
Now add chopped tomatoes and green chili and continue frying in medium flame till tomatoes are cooked.
Add Coriander powder and red chilly powder and stir well.
Add badam paste and continue stirig.
Add Coconut milk and mix well.
Add Paneer cubes and a teaspoon of milk powder.
Add salt to taste
Cook with lid closed until panner is cooked. And then leave the mixture aside.

Garnishing: I

Heat 1 teaspoon of ghee in a separate deep pan.
Add mustard and wait until it settles.
Then add 2 dry red chilies (split into two) to it and stir.
Transfer the previous preparation to this vessel and mix well.

Garnishing: II

Add a teaspoon lemon juice and mix well.
Wither the finely chopped coriander leaves on top of the the dish.

-PANEER COCONUT INCOGNITO IS READY-

Signatures That Are Worth A Crore and More!

2011-11-30T11:43:00.000+05:30

I’m waiting outside a public official's chamber to get a document countersigned. Those of you who had an experience will know the agony and distress I'm currently undergoing.

In fact, it is not that bad as in the past. The officer who is about to sign my document is a responsible man and never keeps anything pending for the next day. That was a relief.

Let us not discus much on the struggles, delay and the hardships of getting things done from "some" officials who get their pay from our pockets. Instead, let me try to throw some light on that totally neglected aspect: The economic part.

If you were with me today, you would see 172 people (yes, I counted) waiting outside this office with me since morning. All of them have taken a day off from work and are here for some valid reasons.

Now, I'm going to stretch a little bit of my rusted basic mathematical skills to derive at some critical values.

Assuming average income lost per person standing here (I know its actually much more)	=Rs 400/day
Total income lost by 172 people per day	= 400 x 172 = Rs. 68,800

There are 8 such offices here in this building.
Assuming all the offices have the same strength outside;

Total Income lost by waiting outside these 8 offices per day

= 68,800 x 8
= Rs 5,50,400

Assuming the office works 20 days of the month;

Total income lost per month

= 5,50,400 x 20
= Rs. 1,10,08,000

Yes! ONE CRORE TEN LAKH AND EIGHT THOUSAND RUPEES PER MONTH.

Is that signature you get on that piece of paper worth the money?

To give you a contrast, 2 years back, I got the same document work done by a public official of a different country. There, sitting in my office, it just took 5 minutes to apply on-line and upload a few documents. The certificate arrived the third day by post without a single day loss of pay and manpower.

May be its high time we upgrade.

Urns

2011-11-23T16:04:00.001+05:30

----------------------

The yarn of a blest

Deep in the chest, holds our mourn

For the Ash of gone.

----------------------

This is my first ever try at poetry. So please leave your comments and suggestions to improve.

This post is linked to the HAIKU HEIGHTS weekly haiku prompts. Hope this follows Haiku, or Senryu norms.

Photo courtesy: Discarded clay urns, Bhag Nari,... by Ameer Hamza (flickr.com) via Goole Image Search.

P.S: Read on Burial urns.

It's Time for The Award Ceremony.

2011-11-22T02:52:00.000+05:30

Thank you for nominating me for the award and it is an honor to receive it from mastros like Deepak Doddamani(World of Deepbaazigar) and Sowmya Swaminathan(My Space)

_____________________________

Let me quote the rules that are passed on to me along with the award.

1. Nominate 15 Fellow Bloggers
2. Inform the Bloggers of their nomination
3. Share 7 random things about yourself
4. Thank the Blogger who nominated you
5. Add the Versatile Blog Award picture to your blog post

_____________________________

I have the privilege of passing on the award to the 15 wonderful fellow bloggers. It has always been a pleasant experience reading and following your blog. Cheers!!

The nominations are:

1. Sujatha Sathya for her straight from the heart Conversations.

2 Anshul Dutt for the sating Pixel Buffet.

3. Nisha for the Random thoughts & Kaleidospcope.

4. Aakash for expressing the Unexpressed Thoughts.

5. Dr Roshan for his theorem on Godyears triangle.

6. India's No: 1 Blog for pulling the Humor Unplugged.

7. Saru Singhal for sewing magic with Words.

8. Raj for his amazing skill at fu-ck-lo-ve.

9. Jane and John Doe for those Seven and Countin years.

10. Suzy for spreading Colours of My Thoughts .

11. Neelam Kamdar Bhamani for bringing out whimsical me.

12. Gargi Guptha for her magnetic G2.

13. Shanoj for sketching the Rainbow-the colour of life.

14. Alka Narula for her Random blog that is Deep From My Heart .

15. Apeetha Ravi for coating with Colour Soot.

Now the 7 random things about me:

1. I easily get lost in a new place but will never forget the place where I can find good food. Friends ask me for the best place to dine in town. Good food served with lots of love, that makes my day.

2. I once went on a date with a girl who was engaged to someone else. But we called it a treat. ;)

3. I walk really fast. At times people walking with me find it difficult to keep up the pace unless I consciously slow down for them.

4. LeoPaw is a pen name. If you can sleuth a little, you will be able to find my real name on this blog.

5. I can fix a lot of defective gadgets. But almost always, lot of parts remain outside in the end.

6. I had once gone up the stage unaware that my trouser zip was left open. That turned out to be one of my best orations.

7. I've spent ~5 hours at a stretch with a patient admitted in ward and she taught me how to craft a basket.

Now its time for rule 2 and rule 5. I'll be doing that in few minutes.

Once again thank you Deepak and Sowmya.

Congratulations dear fellow bloggers.

Love You All.

Can Sound Break Glass?

2011-11-21T16:13:00.000+05:30

When you read the title you must not presume that I’m an expert physicist. Though physics has always fascinated me, I chose a career which do not require physics in the main stream. So don’t expect this post to enlighten you with laws and theorems and authentically prove the facts.

Last year I was sharing a rented apartment with a friend. My land lady was so generous that she let us use all her furniture and her home appliances. Among them where an beautiful office table with a thin glass mounted atop wooden plank. The plank was a bit old with uneven shallow area in the middle. But the glass masked the defect and I was using it as a reading table.

I was using a HTC windows mobile which I had forgotten to switch on after a meeting that day. So, once I reached home, I pressed the power on button and placed it on the middle of the table and was keenly waiting for it to boot.

The moment a welcome tone was heard, I was stunned by what I saw. The glass on which the phone rested, split into two starting from beneath the speaker. I could clearly see the crack appearing and then extending across along the entire breath of the glass.

Now that was fascinating. I called my room mate and explained what happened. He gave me strange looks as though I was cooking up something. Though not convinced, after seeing me struggle to persuade, he offered to believe me.

I called a few of my friends, whom I thought might give me a valid explanation. Like my room mate, many of them didn’t believe what I said, some started laughing and some put the entire blame on the glass.

Then I moved on to the Internet and here is one of the videos that clarified things.

Internet sources say : When the frequency of the sound is equal or above the natural resonant frequency of the glass, it can break the glass. It is said that opera singers can break a wine glass by singing!

A Search For Sperm.

2011-11-16T21:07:00.001+05:30

This is something thatamused me a few minutes back when I Googled the word -SPERM-.Now, if you are the one like me who stretches imagination to everypossible extent, might have already thought I had a naughty ;-)agenda. But no, this is nothing of that sort, and for those of youwho thought you are about to read an adults only post, I'msorry to disappoint.

Without “beating around the bush", let mecome to the point straight. Ever heard of a sperm bike before? I didn't, until my image search for use in a lecture slide on infertility brought me to this picture on the left.

Now wait, you need not imagine much on the possibility of an ovum car waiting at the other end to receive the sperm bike. Things are simpler. They only transport it from your "place" to "some other place" for further use or storage.

If you "arose" in a place like Denmark or Seattle,your sperm would have had this unique opportunity to enjoy great worldlycomfort and pleasures. You only have to make a call andnotify your willingness to donate it. Once you are "equipped, after a call", a spermbike will be at your door to collect your load.

Isn't that a true luxury like getting your ~~meat~~ meal deliveredat home by just dialing the Mc Donalds (order your 'meal' and get anassured 'deal'!). I'm happy they didn't follow the fire force protocol. If that was the case, every time there is "fire " we might have someone knocking on the door.

While the biker "rides back", your V.I.P will be swimming in the comfort of the nitrogen basedcooling compartment of the bike (the head) getting prepared for the door die competition just ahead. Mean while the entire town will be glaring at the fast moving as though just emerged out of "a tunnel" sperm bike. In simple word. the sperm gets a royal ride like a national player on his way to the word cup. Isn't that the best youcan offer to your fellow, which in most cases is wasted in a rubber bagand then flushed.

I know you are curious about "theprocess involved in the middle", after they arrive and before theyleave. So am I. Nowhere do they mention about the “alternate”method of collection. Perhaps they have better a way for it too,depending on the “skill” of the biker (do we have an option tochose?).

But where on earth is the sperm ascarcity for much hard-work to go into "aggressive collection" and banking on alarge scale? If it was for ovum, you could at least say there is only 400 of themin the entire life span of a lady. In a man's case it's in millionsper climax, competing head on for the one soul-mate arriving once amonth.

Things are not that simple for the hero as it "appears". To qualify fit and be a sought after star, it needs a perfect owner. If it seems to be a product of a man with cleanmedical history, impressive personality trait, interests, looks(in his childhood) et al., he makes it to the “ring” for thefinals. If not, back to square one, into the drain. The only difference: here someoneelse pushes the flush button.

Well as of now, I'm only concerned aboutwhen this thing is going to ply on our roads? Are we going to have a sperm donation campaign as well? I'm eagerly waitingwith my “phone receiver" in hand. I can not stand a scam onthis one like we had with organ donation!

NB: If you can find a deeper meaning/different interpretation for those in "inverted commas", it is pure coincidental and your imagination. I hope that clears it all. :)

image courtesy: google , bikeradar gallery,

European Sperm Bank

All that they need is a hug. Give it to them.

2011-11-12T19:13:00.001+05:30

Have you ever thought about the life of unfortunate orphan children living in this world not knowing what it feels to be loved, cared or pampered? If you can and understand the pain, they need you.

A day from our life might turn out to be the most memorable day of their life. So consider keeping aside this Children's day. (14th November) for those children who have never felt the warmth of a hug.

image courtesy: http://www. dipity.com

Got nothing better to do

2011-11-11T05:00:00.000+05:30

I’m standing in a big queue at the ticket counter in one of the moderately busy railway stations of the country. Mine is the shortest queue among the 3 long zigzag ones, spanning across the entire room and then extending to the outside. Standing here for almost half an hour, it’s nice; the world around me seems to look better when I’m here, bored, irritated and helpless.

It’s nice to note that I’ll be standing in this queue for more time than I would need to travel to my destination. It’s even nice to note that the guy behind me would have reached his destination 15 minutes back if he chose to travel by bus.

It’s nice when you realize that you have nothing else to do but stand there endlessly behind the tall obese man who keeps swaying left and right to relieve his calf off his 100 kg weight, one at a time.

It’s nice when you realize the man behind you is trying his best to go forward even though the queue is stand still. When you move slightly to the left or right, he promptly fills the small gap you left, hoping to move an inch forward. Human instincts I should say.

It’s nice to see a man acting drained out and asking the guy in the front of the line to help him buy an extra ticket. It’s even nice when you see his request being rejected he trying his luck with another man in the queue.

It’s nice to listen to the soft humming music of the metro. Every now and then, you could hear somebody clapping to the tunes. It’s even nice to see people scratching their legs after the musician has had its blood meal.

It’s nice to see the group of guys in the parallel queue trying to attract attention of the pretty girl in tights and tank top. It’s even nice to see her blush and act irritated at the same time. But then she was a good looking girl, so you can’t blame the guys as well.

It’s nice to see a guy well ahead of me make funny faces at the kid lying peacefully on its mother’s shoulder. It’s even nice to see the mother stare at the guy irritated, when child let out a loud cry pointing at the monster face.

It’s nice to see those ladies fighting at the counter for a separate queue. It’s even nice to see them get directed to a sign board which says, “no separate queue for ladies”. But they would not bother to read it nor accept it. It’s their birth right to argue.

It’s nice to see the guy in the next queue repine about the inefficiency of the railway authorities. It’s even nice to see him lose his temper after a while and end up using those unfamiliar words that I have heard did exist.

It’s nice to see a ticket vendor instruct the guy at the front to check up some info with the information centre and return to buy his ticket. It’s even nice to see him hunt for the information centre which is in the other building 5 minutes walk from here. God alone knows the length of the queue there. Hope he will not have to stand at the back of this queue when he returns.

It’s nice to see a girl flirting with someone over the phone. It’s even nice to see her look around, make sure she is not noticed, and cover her mouth along with the cell phone using her left hand for something highly confidential. Is the guy on the other end also in a queue?

It’s nice to see a queue split into two as soon as a new counter is opened. It’s even nice to see them return when the vendor declares it a queue for disabled.

It’s nice to see the queue move faster. It’s even nice to see the man at the counter pull down the board that read “tea break”. They’ve got to have their tea on time even if the people who pay for it are waiting outside empty stomach. That’s democraZy.

You might also like :
1. Democracy to Demo"craZy" and then to "DemoNcraZy"

A Pen Mark

2011-11-10T03:34:00.000+05:30

“One of the best inventions of mankind is the PEN.” I’m sure this is a statement that anybody will accept without a second thought. Since the ancient Indians, way back in 500 BC or earlier, developed a writing material out of the naturally available bird feathers and bamboo sticks, it has been the most widely used innovation by human race.

Encyclopedia defines a pen (Latin penna, feather) as a device used to apply ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing .

But it fails to mention that pen has been the instrument that stood the test of time and prevailed for centuries, undergoing major changes as it itself being the first witness of all the other scientific innovations.

It evolved much faster than the human race itself from reed pens to quill pens, quill pens to dip pens, dip pens to nib pens, nib pens to fountain pens, fountain pens to ball point pens, and ball pint to touch pen stylus, Stylus to radiographic pens and many more.

Today we stand not far from the most revolutionary innovation that is going to stand out. I welcome you all to witness the scientific marvel when the world shrinks down to the size of a pen and fit in your pocket. (Please see the Video)

My Cuppy-cake

2011-11-10T00:41:00.000+05:30

The Cuppycake Song

#Singer: Amy Castle( 3yrs old)

#Lyrics and Music : Judianna Castle.

A simple (not really), yest so lovely piece of work by a cute little girl that takes you right back to your innocent childhood. Since I heard it first on my best friends mobile, 4 years back, it is among the most heard songs in my play-list. Amy's age when she sung this makes it all the more special and dear.

You're my Honeybunch,

Sugarplum Pumpy-umpy-umpkin,

You're my Sweetie Pie

You're my Cuppycake,

Gumdrop Snoogums-Boogums,

You're the Apple of my Eye

And I love you so and I want you to know

That I'll always be right here

And I love to sing sweet songs to you

Because you are so dear

Amy Castle

Amy castle, the little girl singer must be around 21 now. A singer, guitarist, actress, dancer, gymnast, film maker (short films & editing) and a FOODIE. The cuppycake girl is currently a youtube partner on her food and restaurant series, “What’s Amy Eating?”.

Rusted Lazy Brains.

2011-11-05T10:35:00.000+05:30

Oh ~~God~~ Google! What is happening to me? I am all distressed, depressed and debilitated. Being omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent you are the only one who can help me out of this crisis.

10 yrs back, when I left my school, I did not need an organizer tool to save my friend’s and teacher’s contacts. I had them all scribbled on my cortex. Though we had a phone register, I always felt it easier to remember and recollect them than note it and then hunt it down.

The same year, I got my digital organizer. Gradually I started to make entries in the organizer. But those entries were exclusively meant to confirm in doubtful infrequent contacts.

2 years down the line, I got my first mobile phone. The first day itself, I transferred all the contacts to the mobile. And in another 1 year, “BHUM”, my cortical registry blew off.

To make thing much more easier, I got my personal computer with an Internet access. Days passed enjoying the trill of having the entire world at the tip of my finger. Soon, I didn’t have to remember anything because it is always there with you online when I needed. I only have to connect and ask.

Then came the Wiki revolution. The entire collaborative web 2.0 interface was tough to understand. But in the long run, I started to use it more than any other on-line service. Then things became much more complicated. Every new information I got, instead of registering in my mind, I kept adding it on Wikipedia.

Today, I don’t even know my own phone number. I have been trying to memorize it for the past 2 months and it looks near to impossible. Every time i need to mention my number to some one, i hunt it down my mobile contacts and read it out.

My brain has turned chaotic and won't retain certain things. There is lots to remember in this world, but then, Internet retains them all. Why would I strain to memorize them when you can get it all in one click?

Having gone through both these phase of life, I feels worse than surrendering to dementia. Or should I categorize it as a type of dementia itself. I don’t have an answer because Google, you do not seem to know it yet.

A SHOCKING, AWARD-WINNING DOCUMENTARY

2011-11-02T14:46:00.000+05:30

Video Courtesy 180
I have watched “180”—now what?
CLICK HERE

A stuggle for digital freedom!

2011-10-26T10:37:00.000+05:30

You spend a lot of money, buy a computer; Then buy an operating system, an antivirus software and all that fancy titled softwares. Why?

Just to use your machine bought with your hard earned money, in a way those software millionaires tell you to. If you don't, get sued for breach of contract.

How ridiculous!

Man, It time you fight for your freedom in the digital world. Here's how I won my freedom.

Nine months back, the Operating system that I got installed (paying Rs.12,375) last year got corrupted. When I tried a repair, it denied doing. Then I knew I was left with no other choice but to format my hard drive. It was hard to accept that all my important documents, modified since failure of my back up system 6 days prior to the crash, were about to be lost.

Before I did anything harsh, I took a second opinion. I tried hunting on the Internet for all the possible solution. In the process, I came across a post that instructed on how I could recover the data on corrupt operating system using Ubuntu temporary installation. That was the first time I ever I stepped into this open source operating system community.

Once I did that, I was thrilled for having survived a software tragedy. After recovering up all the documents from the crashed PC, I went ahead with the format and re-installation. And then, I installed the Ubuntu Operating System side by side my regular one, as a part of disaster preparedness.

I didn’t stop there, I kept experimenting on Ubuntu. It has been 9 months of running Ubuntu on my machine and I’m happy. Ubuntu is a free Linux operating system that lets you do everything that you do on a proprietary Operating System. Though not a technical geek, I’m going to write down all those good things I felt as I moved to open source.

The speed at which it processes data is worth mentioning first. With Ubuntu on my PC, it takes 6 seconds to start my mini-laptop compared to to 30 seconds pre-Ubuntu. Its not just with booting up, its really fast with nearly everything it does.

Image: http://www.ubuntu.com/

When the proprietor OS makes their visual effects more appealing by feasting on the system resources to a debilitating extend, ubuntu achieves it by striking a positive balance. I discovered this amazing fact when I tried to revive an old PC that was dumped long ago. Ubuntu runs on my 10 year old PC pretty well with all the visual effects turned on. That was moved out into the attic in 2005 when my service man declared it too old to run an XP.

Post installation, I did not have to install another software to open my existing files. All the basic software were pre-installed and almost all the files got recognized within seconds of installation. The only problem I faced was with playing windows media(MP3,MP4,WMV,WMA etc) files on Ubuntu. But then, within minutes of posting my problem in Ubuntu Forum online, I got 23 possible solutions. They helped me install Ubuntu restricted extras and VLC player.

It feels really nice to be completely free from the holds and control of proprietors. I hardly saw a scary and lengthy legal license agreement page in the last 9 months. On Ubuntu, when I need a software, its always there in the software center. Not just one, but hundreds to chose the best I need without spending an extra penny. With no more annoying pop up message in the middle of a presentation telling me to register a new trial software/ Piracy warning, life is more peaceful.

There are comparable and sometimes much better Ubuntu alternatives to the regular proprietary software that I used previously. And for some rare ones, that I did not find an alternative, I got a free cross platform emulator (wine) installed. Now with this new powerful application, I can run many software and even play games, that are designed exclusively for the non-Ubuntu Operating System.

I even got a software modified according to my need partly by me and partly by my friends out there on the net who share the Ubuntu community with me. And to do this I did not have study programming or become an expert, I just used Ubuntu for some time and it is possible. That’s a fact that I never knew, before three months.

When I connect to the Internet, there is no other program running in the background trying for access/download and waste my available bandwidth. Apps go on-line, only if I want them to. When I’m not connected to the net for a long time, I’m still safe, because, there is no antivirus software(still no threat) to run a frequent update.

Linux, they say, is safer, I’m simply experiencing it. I did not have a security problem since I installed Ubuntu on my PC. With no antivirus, my system resources are all available for the task i do. with a light weight fire wall, linux security is robust with no security lapses till date on my system. If it was the proprietory one I used previously, things would have been different.

On open source platform, I’m never left behind. A new version of ubuntu was released on the second week of October 2011 and I was running it on my PC on the same day. The best part of it, I did not have to spend an extra rupee more than the Internet data charge for downloading it.

Like me, every human being on earth has the equal right to download, use, modify and distribute the new version free of cost without any restriction. That is what we call freedom.

To conclude, Ubuntu is stable, secure, simple, light for everyday computing. It’s unique feature, the community assistance, and the open-source license offers me the freedom to use the machine my way. My previous OS in comparison complicated every single stuff and told me about my restrictions even before I started using them.

NB:

I don't stand for or intend to promote or discredit a particular brand. This post is all about a common man's experience with the open source OS and software.

Definition of Ubuntu: “I am what I am because of who we all are.” (translation by Liberian peace activist Leymah Gbowee). A classical African Phylosophy focusing on people’s allegiances and relations with each other.

Trail On Empty Quarter

2011-10-12T13:38:00.003+05:30

A MUST VISIT Spot on Earth - Rub' al Khali or Empty Quarter.

Rub' al Khali, is one of the largest sand deserts in the world. Though Sparsely inhabited, the beauty of the desert, its sheer scale and its constantly changing shapes are entrancing.

That reminds me of the book "Arabian Sands" by Wilfred Thesiger on ~~crossing~~ surviving the Empty Quarter nearly 1/2 a century back with little food, no guide, no GPS and tired camels. A "must read" before the visit.

This photo was clicked 12 years back on a family tour. My uncle, who drove us to this destination is not with us anymore. This post is dedicated to the sweet memories and the trail he left behind.

*This photo was once published in a yearly magazine.

Small things that matter!

2011-10-08T00:09:00.000+05:30

#1. See a friend smile in sleep.

#2. Noting a loved one, admire you.

#3. Hearing your loved one’s heart beat.

# 4. The pleasure of scratching a moquito bite site.

#5. Comfort of being under a blanket in winter.

#6. The pleasure in scratching your back.

#7. Goose flesh you get when a loved one is praised.

#8. Snoozing an alarm clock.

#9. Last hour at work on a Friday.

#10. “sssChik” sound on opening a drink.

#11. Attempting the last question of the last exam.

#12. The smell of first rain soaking the dry sand.

#13. Getting wet in the rain.

#14. Getting out of a big traffic jam.

#15. Smell of a baby.

# 16. Finding your favorite dish on the menu.

#17. Splashing cold water on the face after a long tough day.

#18. A signal light turning green just as u approach it.

#19. Driving on a usually busy street empty at night.

#20. Peeing after holding on for an uncomfortably long time.

_______________________________

My inspiration to write this entry: The 10 Things that Make Me Feel Good on my favorite blog "Conversations".
_______________________________

Take Care - A World Heart Day Campaign.

2011-09-29T07:08:00.000+05:30

THEME 2011: ONE WORLD, ONE HOME, ONE HEART

As we celebrate “WORLD HEART DAY” (29 Sept) 2011, let me try to simplify the theme for you all.

ONE WORLD:

Image courtesy: World Heart Federation

"Number One" Killer Disease Worldwide.

_________________________________

ONE HOME: Take charge of the family's heart too by:

Image courtesy: World Heart Federation

1. Ban Tobacco at home

Image courtesy: World Heart Federation

2. Ensure adequate physical activity.

Image courtesy: Ozdoctor website

3. Promote and stock heart healthy foods at home.

Image courtesy :Big Butt Theory blog

4. Know your numbers : Get your blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose levels, together with waist-to-hip ratio and body mass index (BMI) measured.

Image Courtesy: Trusted Health Products

5. Know what to do and get help if heart disease is suspected in any member.

_________________________________

ONE HEART:

Image Courtesy: KLC Associates

Global awareness and emphasis on heart health.

Future of medicine is “too small”

2011-09-25T00:51:00.000+05:30

This is one of my old articles, dated ” 25th September 2009″ which had appeared in a publication before. Then it was completely unaccepted and was called a pure work of fiction. I’m re-posting it here, without making any modification to the original article. Lest us assess how far have we come in the last 2 years.

In the 70s a Science Fiction movie showcased the voyaging of medical clutch inside the body of a diseased person to refurbish the damages occurred. The fantasy was accepted well and the movie became a hit. Little did the crew behind the movie think that this will become a possibility years later, under the sophisticated domain called the nanotechnology. Imagine a world where nanoscopic (smaller than microscopic) medical implants measuring 10000 times smaller than a pinhead, patrol our arteries, diagnosing ailments and fighting disease.

Nanotechnology is science and engineering at the atomic and molecular dimensions. Nanomaterials measure between 0.1 and 100 nanometers (nm) in size. A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter.That’s like comparing the size of a marble to the size of Earth. A pinhead can be approximated to one million nanometers in diameter. Most of the atoms are 0.1 to 0.2 nm wide, strands of DNA are around 2 nm wide, red blood cells are approximately 7000 nm in diameter, while human hairs are typically 80,000 nm across.

The brilliant innovation of building things at the atomic and molecular scale was conceived by a physicist Richard Feynman way back in the year 1959. Despite the mastermind’s foresight, the idea did not materialize in any form for more than 2 decades. Then the discovery of The Scanning Tunnel Microscope in 1981 by IBM scientists marked the beginning of the Nano-era. Today nanotechnology is the area that is extensively researched. Many countries including India are diverting a major part of the income to the nanotechnology research, awaiting a Nano-revolution.

Like the micro-technology that has enriched diagnostic and therapeutic sphere, the promise that nanotechnology offers to the field of medicine are astounding. The first boon is believed to befall in the field of medical diagnostics with in-vivo and in-vitro study of the disease at the nano-dimensions. A nano capsule that is programmed to detect abnormal cells, cell expression and metabolite in blood and tissue can tell us what is actually happening in the molecular level during the disease.

In the arena of therapeutics we are already witnessing researches in directing of cytotoxic drugs to tumors with tiny “smart bombs”; “nano-bullets” that seek-and-destroy tumor cells; etc. In the long run it is expected that we can develop nanomachies to undertake cellular surgeries. This is expected to upheave the trends in oncology therapeutics as nanotechnology aided resection of even micro-implants of a tumor cell would be both effortless and flawless.

The day is not far when Nanopowered drugs would be available in vials for therapeutic use. The nano drug delivery system would be controlled by an inbuilt Nanoprocessor that is programmed to deliver the drug at the desired site, rate and duration. Imagine a diabetic taking once a month shot of Nano-powered Insulin that would control his blood sugar for the next 30 days.

The immune machines to assist the natural leucocytes in fighting infection would be another break through. With their onboard sensors and processors, they will be able to identify host cells and foreign antigens. These immune machines would sensitize the natural leucocytes to combat against the invaders they have detected. Before being sent into the body on their search-and-destroy mission, they can be programmed with a set of characteristics that lets them clearly distinguish their targets from everything else. What more they can be programmed to be deactivated with a stable oral drug and can be excreted via the natural means.

Exploiting the knowledge that human cells respond to intrinsic and extrinsic stimulus for healing and regeneration, the scientists are researching on the nanomachine aided wound healing. They are postulated to work by enhancing the local growth factors, retaining the anatomic integrity and mechanically assisting the body to lay the healing tissues at appropriate sites.

The cell herding machines will be a solution for alopecia and hirsutism. They will be equipped to transfer hair follicles from your thigh to your head without damaging the skin. They will be expert cosmetologists as these machines can delay ageing and sometimes, even prevent ageing by its exclusive cell concentrating, rejuvenating and drug delivery systems.

In the years to come we might have to archive the terminology of Myocardial infarction. Nano machines working in the blood stream will be able to nibble off the atherosclerotic plaques as and when it appears. It may even be able to repair the artery wall by bringing in the right tissue to be laid at the vessel wall.

May be in the next few years to come, we might come across a new discipline of medicine called Nano Orthopedics. Natural alignment is always a tiring and tricky task in orthopedics. But with the aid of nanomachineries, it would become as easy as sticking two pieces of paper together. The nano mechanism would give adequate support, fasten re-growth and control the remodeling procedure.

Like every day has a night to follow, the nanotechnology also has its darker side. The few experimental studies on biological safety of nanoparticles are not promising till date. One of the important studies reveals that high concentrations of nanotubes could damage the lungs of rats and mice. Another study in 2004 hinted that nanoparticles can accumulate and cause brain damage in fish. But it’s not yet time to lose hope in nanotechnology. The better is yet to come. The scientists are constantly on their toes to correct the flaws and bring about an environment friendly nano revolution. Or shall we call it the NANOMEDICINE?

Dating Tips!

2011-09-22T12:22:00.002+05:30

Top 10 things to do on a date that will ensure you a happy single life:

1. Dress odd, shabby and in-appropriate.

2. Reach at least 30 min late.

3. Become nervous. And then show it on your face. Let her realize you are insecure.

4. Storm her with boring questions, stories and talks that evokes least interest. May be you can consider repeating. Leave a big gap between conversation and appear to be thinking. Remember not to have any fun, flirt or be playful.

5. Keep repeating and drilling further over a joke that you picked up on a magazine recently (which you are sure she had also read).

6. Make sure you forget your ears at home before a date. Speak a lot about yourself and leave her with no option, but listen(only).

7. Make sure you stay vigil and identify few of her mistakes/foolishness and keep embarrassing her over it.

8. Try to do things out of the way and unnatural and let her realize you are struggling to impress her. Let her feel you are a “needy” creature.

9. Make sure you don’t look at her face (you may fix your gaze at anything else on her). But remember to keep complimenting her every 5 minutes.

10. When the menu arrives stop talking and start munching in one go until you finish. Don’t offer to share. Make as much sound as possible while you chew. A burp or two is desirable.

NB: Try it at your own risk. The author holds no responsibility in what soever loss incurred physical or mental on practical application of these tips. In simple words - step back and stay an arm distance away or more from her when you try #7 and #9.

Top 10 danger (sometimes really dangerous) signs that you are not doing well:

1. She takes up the upper hand and fills the gap in the conversation.

2. Listens to everything you say without getting bored.

3. Laughs at “your” jokes.

4. Touches you more.

5. Lean in or grind up against you.

6. Get jealous when you talk to other girls.

7. Compliments you for almost everything you say or do.

8. Asks you to walk her home.

9. Asks for a second date.

10. Gives you her phone number without even asking.

Did I go blind?

2011-09-17T20:31:00.000+05:30

What a tragedy is it when you simply go blind all of a sudden. It happens with almost anyone of us. Some go blind physically, while some mentally and the rest spuriously. No matter the type of blindness, it is for sure distressing.

Last week when I met Hari at a public meeting, there was a beautiful lady, Maya, looking her best, sitting next to him. At first instance, I thought they were friends. Her mannerism was such that one can never resist admiring and giving a second look.

In my case, it was not just a second look she got. I was looking at her every second. Well, you definitely need some time pass sitting a utterly boring session like that.

Seeing me turn my head now and then to look at her, my dear notorious friend G3, who sat beside me, hit me on my tummy and said " don't drool much, they are engaged".

Today, when I looked at Hari's side, I was surprised to see some other girl sitting next to him. They behaved so intimate that you could easily make out they were in a relationship.

Maya was not even in my vicinity. Now my mind went back to its detective mode, trying top figure out all the possible reasons why somebody else is in Maya's place. That kept me awake for some time.

Looked like almost every one in the room except me were deeply absorbed in the talk. Or where they sleeping? I don't know. How can people stand such boring ~~lectures~~ lullabies?

When I was about to doze off, G3 struck me on my shoulder and asked me out for a coffee. That was exactly what I wanted then and I walked out in relief to the cafe with her. I decided to ask G3 about Maya during the coffee but was a little reluctant because in the past inquiring about girls have always brought me trouble.

As we started to sip our coffee, to my surprise, Maya entered and occupied the seat right in front of us. G3 and Maya happens to be good friends. They studied together in the same college for almost 4 yrs.

We shook hands as G3 got us introduced. Maya placed her orders and we had a casual talk for a while. From her face it was evident that she just woke up like me from the lecture induced somnolence. Once when the waited rang the bell, she left for a separate table where her order was served.

The first impression she left, evoked a sense of admiration. From what I could make out in the 10 minutes of talk, she seemed to be very practical and very clear about her life. She was a perfect blend of looks, character, maturity, mannerism and style. In addition, I could make out from her appearance that she pays great attention to grooming, and clothes. She is what you call a woman!

Just as I finished my mental analysis, G3 gave me a shock. She said, "Maya and Hari broke up". The reason being, Hari felt it tough to adjust with her character. It seems she is too childish and irresponsible.

How on earth is it possible? A mis-adjustment problem with the picture she just painted in my mind is near to impossible. She had all the qualities you would expect in a lady. I'm confused.

G3, only you can help me on this. But I know, asking too much of questions about a girl to her friend can be dangerous. ;) .So I think that confusion is going to linger in my mind for quite some time.

It's for sure that one of us are blind in Maya's case. May be I did see something that Hari didn't see, or I didn't see what Hari did see.

Song of a captive.

2011-09-16T10:30:00.000+05:30

Today morning, when was hurrying down my lane to my work place, I heard a sweet cooing of a bird. I stopped for a while hoping to find the bird in some branch near me. After having looked around, I realized that it was not on any branch but at the house nearby. The more i stood listening to it, I couldn't resist but kept moving towards the house.

I was thrilled to spot the beautiful bird (I’ve no clue on what it’s called), like a performer on stage, head all thrown back, singing to glory. It is one of the best morning scenes that I’ve ever seen. I stood there, relishing the sequence of single notes fill the air with happiness.

But that feeling was ephemeral. The moment I realized the beautiful bird was in a cage, my heart sank. The song that spread happiness until now had turned out to be an intricate cry of a captive.

After all, how would one enjoy denying of its freedom? The justification to keep a captive is yet another enigma. The owner in this instance, claims to be the protector of the bird. She says, if let out, the bird will not survive. She is scared of it being predated. May be she cages her own children too because she protects them as well.

To deny of someone’s freedom and take control, I thought was barbaric. Though we hold on to the concept of freedom being our birth right, we still have captives like this poor little thing.

Futile enlightenment

2011-09-13T06:39:00.000+05:30

Here are few facts that will never get you grades but always good to know.

- Company of a man can make a woman look younger and more pretty. No wonder all pretty girls either have boyfriends or are already married.

- Femur (the thigh bone of human) is one of the strongest things you would find.

- It’s impossible to lick own your elbow. Now don’t try that, it looks gross.

- It’s impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.

- The roar (of ocean) that’s heard when a seashell is held close to the ear is the sound of blood rushing through the veins in the ear.

- Inside 2/3 of the cities in India, bicycles travel faster than car. Probably why France promote bicycles inside city.

- About 80% of a typical day is forgotten.

-The opposite sides of a dice cube always add up to seven.

- “Goodbye” came from “God bye” which came from “God be with you.” Do we really mean it when we say this?

- Farts are flammable. Next time stay away from fire.

- The chances of dying on the way to get a lottery tickets is greater than chances of winning the same lottery.

- The word “colorful”, is read on your lips by a deaf man as “I love you”.

These are the things that I’ve either heard from friends or read on the Internet. I have not researched on the facts for its authenticity. I just found them worth mentioning here.

Save a life - A Suicide Prevention Initiative

2011-09-10T22:28:00.000+05:30

"Suicide is preventable". Many of those who contemplate suicide, might just require an empathizing ear and a socio-emotional support to survive the tough phase of life. It could be lending a helping hand or motivating them to get a professional help.

In a country like India, where a lot of stigma revolves around mental health, it’s a tough job to motivate someone to visit a therapist.

Today when I advised a friend to visit a psychiatrist for some issues he was facing, he piked up a major fight. He claims that he was insulted by my words. How much ever hard I tried to justify my statement, he didn’t bother to listen. I had to end the conversation abruptly to ensure that we didn’t break our relationship.

When this is the case with a professional, holding a PhD in living science, what would it be with those outnumbering unfortunate people who don’t even know what science is all about?

Majority are scared of getting labeled as “mad person” by the community. To many, psychiatric illness is moral weakness or defects in their character. Though it is evident beyond any doubt that we have definitive treatment options for various psychiatric illness, some still believe that treatment is vague and uncertain, that patients invariably deteriorate and end up leading a hopeless and dependent life.

Because of all these, mental illness is considered a disgrace and visiting psychiatrist is one of the last things they would do in life. But nobody realizes the gravity of the problem till it reaches a point of no return.

In-spite of having good number of our population far ahead of the world in education, we still can’t untangle this intricacy. As a result, a lot of National Mental Health initiatives are not being utilized to full extend.

Its high time we should all join hands to wash the wrong notion off and reinforce mental well being. The best way is to realize and convince others that mental health is as important as health of any other system in the body.

Like we get our self checked and treated for our heart ailments, we should be prepared to get therapy for our mental illness too. A visit to a psychiatrist could be life saving just like a cardiology or neurology consultation.

Unless we succeed in overcoming this biggest hurdle, a lot of people will continue to suffer and loose lives in-spite of having a real solution for their problem.

_________________________________________________________

In the end, I would like you to take a look at few of the statistics:

1. “On average about 800 000 people commit suicide every year, 86% of them in low- and middle-income countries. More than half of the people who kill themselves are aged between 15 and 44. …. Mental disorders are one of the most prominent and treatable causes of suicide.”

2. “About half of mental disorders begin before the age of 14. Around 20% of the world’s children and adolescents are estimated to have mental disorders or problems, with similar types of disorders being reported across cultures. …. ”

3. “Indian suicide rate was 2009 (the latest statistics published) is 10.9.” ie, approximately 1 person in every 10,000 population commit suicide, which means, mental ill health is a major killer like any other disease.

The first two are the statements published by World Heath Organization under the title “Fact Files” and the third from the National crime record bureau- India.

When all these facts are read together, it’s evident that we must take into account the the mental health of the community as a priority. With life taking a faster pace and turning more stressful, we’ve got to be mentally fit to face the day today challenges.

“The name’s Bond, James Bond. But Indian Railways is stronger than James Bond!”

2011-09-09T12:22:00.000+05:30

I know what you are thinking. Its not that. It's stranger than what you can even imagine. Things are not going to stop with just a movie shoot on the rail-tracks of India. We are going far ahead by choosing an international figure as a brand ambassador for the state owned rail transport network.

They call it the 'image makeover'. When the world's largest railway network is hiring the world's best entertainer who cruises in high-speed MI6 vehicles fully kitted with most modern gizmos and gadgets, the former is believed to get a face lift by covering up the flaws. Daniel Craig is expected to draw a curtain and cover the over crowded, old, slow and hardly on schedule nature of the train with his bond image.

To fit in the techno-sophisticated Bond persona in a mammoth aged carriage is going to be the worst challenge the best ad-makers are going to face. To accomplish this, the only way I can figure out is taking bond back to the 60s.

With many key projects pending and kilometers of rail tracks remaining in blueprints for decades, may be we are taking a giant leap here by adopting James Bond. A risk free and low investment step, I should say.

When countries are improving on the 581km/hr (Japan-Maglev Transport) clocked speed of train, the worlds largest railway network is struggling to maintain a 120km/hr on its best tracks. Our rail tracks, I should say, are ancient and inefficient to support even a 200km/hr(Speed of an upgraded track in Europe) speed. In India,as of today, and plans for tomorrow, a high speed rail in nowhere in view.

But if you ask, we do have high speed trains. Like we got Bond, Indian Railways introduced Fast Express Trains like Duronto, Sadapdi, etc and called them 'High Speed Trains'. And the High Speed Train got redefined according to Indian standards. Isn't that easier than spending years in innovations and then spending money on developing rails that meet the demand?

Well the question is not on the speed, up-gradation, laying new track or the maintenance of the pre-independence railway track. Its all about do we need an eye wash now? Aren't we happy with what we have, what we dream and know the difference between the two?
Do we need Mr Bond to misguide us by dream-walking on the our railway tracks?

I love Brazil – A coffee log

2011-09-08T00:47:00.000+05:30

As I sit here at 6 in the evening, sipping a cup of coffee, I just realize how important Brazil is to us, or at least me. I’ve been having a hectic schedule for the last few days. We had a mass gathering organized at our institute for professional development and research.

As the chief organizing secretary of the event, my job starts at 6am coordinating the preset and then when the event starts at 8, ensure its smooth conduct until its wound up at 8 in the evening. After a 5 day marathon, we are about to call for the conclusion ceremony in about 2 hours.

You must be wondering why I like Brazil So much. It’s not because of its beautiful sun-kissed beaches nor Samba dancing and bossa-nova music. Not even because of Ronaldo and Pele for the best in the word football skills. It’s for the delicious, aromatic coffee that I m enjoying right now on my table.

Yes, I’m a coffee lover and a connoisseur. I just can’t even imagine a day in my life pass without a cup of coffee. And these few days, if not for that 236.5 millilitres (that’s the exact volume of my cup) of this aromatic drink, I would have been drained out by 4 in the evening every day.

History of coffee traces back to Ethiopia. We can’t miss the association of coffee with goats too. When a few rearing goats had coffee berries, their Sheppard found them to be more active and brisk. They then thought of trying it out themselves and that’s how coffee came into man’s diet.

Ever heard of coffee berry? That’s the fruit from which we get coffee beans. The bean when dried, peeled, roasted and ground we get coffee powder. Coffee can be of two types. Majority of the world drinks ARABICA (mild, aromatic and low on caffeine). The other variety is ROBUSTA (harsh, bitter and high in caffeine).

Espresso is the crude blend of coffee. You get that when boiling water is allowed to flow over finely powdered coffee bean. It is this espresso that forms the base for majority of your coffee drink you order at a café. And if its espresso you like, you are probably having the highly concentrated form of coffee.

Coffee is the second most traded commodity on earth. The first in the list is petroleum products. I’m not sure if a similar crisis would strike with coffee trade as with petroleum. A study says 80% of the workers, at least once a day, depend on coffee to stay more alert and concentrate at work. If coffee crisis occur, I presume, it will ultimately lead to manpower crisis.

Before I conclude this post, let me tell you why I love Brazil so much. Today Brazil is responsible for about a third of all coffee production, making it by far the heavyweight champion of the coffee-producing world. And those hardcore coffee lovers like me should be grateful to this country for if they reduce their export by a mere percentage, we might end up facing a huge economic strain as with petroleum.

OOps! I finished my coffee.

Sambar Recipe – For beginners

2011-09-06T10:23:00.001+05:30

Few years ago, when I was at college, few of us decided to prepare traditional Kerala lunch (sadhya) and invite rest our friends for lunch. On a Sunday, we all gathered together, and started the job without a single person knowing what to be done exactly.

We could somehow handle all the items except the Sambar which was the chief gravy we were planning to serve. So all of us collaboratively formulated a Samabar recipe for us to experiment. Then, that was confirmed with our mothers over phone before trying out.

So for those of you who are planning to experiment, here’s our contribution.

I. VEGETABLE AND DAL
1. Toor Dal dal – 1/3 cup
2. Mixed vegetables chopped– 4-5 cups
(Carrot, tomato, onion, Potato, brinjal, beans, drumstick etc.)
1. Add 1/3 teaspoon turmeric to 2 cups of water and soak dal in it for 1/2 hr.
2. Cook the dal mixture and chopped vegetables in a pressure cooker on medium flame for 20 min. Add a pich of salt before cooking to prevent vegetables from desicating if over cooked.

II. MASALA
1. Chickpeas dal – 2 Teaspoons
2. Blackgram dal – 1 Teaspoon
3. Coriander seeeds – 4 Teaspoons
(4. Cumin seeds – 1/2 Teaspoons
5. Fenugreek seeds – 10 grains
6. Mustard seeds – 1/3 Teaspoon
7. Pepper corns – 5-6
8. Asafoetida (soft) – Size of a peanut
9. Turmeric powder – 1/2 Teaspoon
10. Tamarind – small piece squeezd to paste in small amount of water.
11. Red chilly – 5-6 (Byadgi/Kashmiri)

Heat 3 teaspoons of cooking oil on medium flame. Fry Bengalgram dal, Blackgram dal. When done, add Coriander seeds, Cumin seeds,Fenugreek seeds, Asafoetida and Pepper together and stir. Then add Red chillies and Turmeric powder just before swithching off the flame. Cool the mixture and grind it in the dry mixer.

III. CONSTITUTING SAMBAR
Add the ground mixture to the vegetables in the cooker. Add required quantity of tamarind squeezed water. Then add plain water to bring it to the required consistency and add salt to taste. Cook in low flame with cooker lid open and stiring consistently. Once done, add chopped coriander leaves .

IV. SEASONING
Splutter mustand in 2 teaspoons of cooking oil on medium flame. Add red chilli pieces and a pinch of Asafoetida powder and curry leaves to it. season the dish with the mixture.

—THE SAMBAR IS READY TO BE SERVED—

Miles to go before we sleep

2011-09-03T22:33:00.000+05:30

Since the world leaders in the year 2000 established the goals to reduce extreme poverty, hunger, illiteracy and disease, governments across the world has been working hard to achieve these targets. It’s nice to note that we are in the correct grove with respect to some of the objectives. But at the same time its heart-breaking to see that there are a good number yet to cross the line.

Here, let me give you a bird’s eye view of THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOAL REPORT 2011 published by WHO.

Global

Achievements:

As per the current trend, by 2015 the poverty in the world will fall below 15% when the target is 23%
Excellent progress made by some of the poorest countries in basic education.
Decline in under-five deaths and Malaria deaths
Decline in new HIV infections and the rise in the number HIV infected on anti retroviral treatment.
Improved access to an improved drinking water source.

Challenges

The word is yet to move forward together. When some countries make considerable progress, some fail to even touch the base line.
Within a country, there exists a big disparity between the urban and rural development.
In poorer part of the county/world, being a female still could be a reason for not getting the basic education.
Though statistically we are improving, it is still evident that the poorer the income of the family, the higher the chance for a child to die before the age of 5, under-nutrition being the major cause.

What seems impossible as of today?

Ensuring women’s empowerment and equal opportunities for women in the developing world.

What got neglected in the long run?

Improving Sanitation and toilet facilities to the poor. In Southern Asia, there seem to be no improvement in this from 1995 to 2008.

South East Asia Region

(comprsing Bangladesh , Bhutan, DPR, Korea, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Timor-Leste.)
Targets already met or expected to meet by 2015

Reduce extreme poverty by half
Reduce extreme hunger by half
Equal girls’ enrolment in primary school
Halt and reverse spread of tuberculosis
Halve proportion of population without improved drinking water
Halve proportion of population without sanitation
Improve the lives of slum-dwellers

Progress insufficient to reach the target if prevailing trends persist.

Productive and decent employment
Universal primary schooling
Women’s share of paid employment
Women’s equal representation in national parliaments
Reduce mortality of under-five-year-olds by two thirds
Reduce maternal mortality by three quarters
Access to reproductive health
Halt and begin to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS
Internet usage

No Progress/Deterioration

Reverse loss of forests

With just 4 years left and the target seeming to recede, it is high time we look at these data with eyes wide open and get working. But it seems near to impossible as of today with a good number of people on the chair not knowing what Millennium Development Goal is all about.

The report is published with the following statement by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on the outer back cover which warns us on how devastating the consequences are.

“Between now and 2015, we must make sure
that promises made become promises kept.
The consequences of doing otherwise are
profound: death, illness and despair, needless
suffering, lost opportunities for millions upon
millions of people.”

A weird prologue

2011-09-02T10:26:00.000+05:30

Most of you who know me and my job, might think I’m gone nuts. Ideally I shouldn't be sitting here and keying these texts at 10 in the morning. All because of strange decisions I take in life that I know is good for the majority but not for me. And those who do not know me, its easy; I'm simplified as an odd youngster, confused with weird ideologies.

I always think I should stop following the majority. Even though the other side is equally nice, why do people like me don’t dare to take it up most of the time? May be this question will never get an answer as long as I remain a coward. But how do you expect a dedicated citizen of a democratic country to not follow the majority? I’ve got to disbelieve that the majority wins.

I’m not jobless, I'm a medical tutor on leave. After the so called hard work I did last year, like my colleagues, I took a break. Even after days, I don’t have a clue on why I chose to do so. After a lot of traveling and having loads of fun with family and friends, I'm still left with unplanned 2 more long days to kill. The worst part is I’ll have to spend it alone.

Every time I thought of the next two days, I drowned in agony until my search for a boredom buster brought me here. I hope this will keep me engaged for a while and in the process I’ll get to talk about my life and people around.

After I resume my work, I don’t know how often I will be able to do it. I love my job, I love to teach (poor students of mine). So when I work I prefer to be a workaholic, that’s were I’m a minority. And when others take a break I got to take it too, the majority part.

If you like my posts, pray that people around me should work hard so that they take breaks often. Every time God hears your prayer I’ll be here with you, hunting for each of the jumbled up alphabets on this keyboard. I really wish it was in order.

A beginning!

2011-09-01T10:59:00.000+05:30

Hurray! I made it! After a long 5 hours of struggle I finalized a layout and I’m publishing my first post. Never thought I would be able to do it this quickly .

I’ve heard people say “life would have been miserable if computers were not invented”. I just realized that for people like me, the misery continues even after years of its invention.

Every time I try to demystify it, I get lost. Even after a long session of memorizing commands and terminologies, many a times I fumble in front of this screen. After all, why is it named ‘command’ when you are actually choosing among the things what the computer wants to do? If you ask for something else it denies doing it!

Not to mention about the terminologies and language, they are mere nightmares for an average computer literate like me. Why did somebody want to frame a different language when ours is a much better one? I, in my first attempt to try designing a web page, 2 months back, I had to retype a complete page because I forgot to close a bracket before saving. Only now I realize the value of symbols and punctuation, which I often use at the wrong places.

I love to talk. I’ve been doing a lot of public talks for quiet some time. Only disappointing part is that it is almost always on a topic that others choose. From today onwards, that limitation disappears and here I can talk on any topic of my choice, no matter which number the short and long hand of my clock points to.

The Blogger's way of expression is new to me. As I continue to explore things, I’m falling in love with it. But to start off, I had a tough time fooling my brain that I’m actually talking with my ~~ten~~ fingers.

Post Index

2011-09-01T07:53:00.000+05:30

Please click on the category tab to expand.