POINTLESS GLOBE

New Words

2010-09-07T16:44:00.002+04:00

I am an ardent follower of the Know Your English column that appears in The Hindu newspaper every Tuesday. Mr Upendran has been authoring this since ages. Every week I learn something new and interesting just that off-late my retention power has been plummeting.
This week I learnt some really cool words.
1. Postmodem depression - I first thought this might be something like Alzheimer's disease but later realised that you get postmodem depression if you are unable to access the internet.
2. Textual Satisfaction - It is a satisfaction that you get when you realize that you have a text message or a missed call. Wow ...
3. Textually challenged - You are textually challenged when you you find it difficult to text...
Coming to think of all this... tiny lifeless things have started playing major roles in our lives. There was once a time when we lived and breathed without the internet and the mobile phone but today we are handicapped sans these things . Sad but true ...

More Salt than Pepper

2010-08-04T18:27:00.002+04:00

I recently read this book " More Salt than Pepper" written by Karan Thapar. It is not a book per se but a compilation of his articles written under the column Sunday Sentiments in Hindustan Times. It was a good read. The language was a little sophisticated.
Since it was a compilation of articles the attention span required was very less. It was more like a roller coaster ride, by the time i started relishing an article it got over. He has covered different subjects but most of the articles are related to politics and his interviews with politicians. It was witty , sarcastic and critical in many occasions. On the whole it was a good experience reading this book . I got to know a little about many personalities. I feel this would be a good read while travelling.

Madharasapattinam

2010-06-23T19:43:00.004+04:00

I was listening to the songs from the film Madharasapattinam. Was Impressed by one son "Vamma Dhuraiamma" . Song was composed by GV Prakash and sung by Udit Narayanan, Late Cochin Hanifa and Amy Jackson.

This looks like a period film set during the pre-independence era. The song is a tri-logue . One of them sings in tamil about Indian Culture to an English lady. The other translates it literally. The best part of the song is the translation.
Click here to listen to the song.

Beatrice and Virgil

2010-06-21T14:31:00.003+04:00

I just finished reading Beatrice and Virgil written by Yann Martel. It was a different read. The content was very light and witty. There was not much take away from the book. Just a lazy Sunday read.

Few lines that caught my attention

Language is alphabets in disarray.
You don't eat an apple you conquer it.
A work of art works because it is true, not because it is real.

Raavanan

2010-06-19T20:29:00.003+04:00

I have not written another movie review . I have just penned a few words on the film 'Raavanan'.
I made a big mistake by watching the movie a day after the release. Too many people screaming and not allowing the rest of the audience relish the dialogues.

Coming to the movie. It was a visual treat. Cinematography at its best. The twist in the climax was very good. It was not just another movie where the hero and heroine run around a snow clad peak in Switzerland. A lot of subtle messages conveyed through the visuals and the dialogues. On the whole it was a good experience.

Full marks to the cast and crew.

Decisions Decisions

2010-05-30T20:33:00.002+04:00

I have come to that point in my life where I am no longer going to regret on the decisions I have made . Coming to think of it good or bad, we live by the decisions we make.

When a seed is sown in the ground it grows to become a tiny sapling. This sapling in turn gives leave. Leaves grow in different directions. They do not know if the chosen direction is the right one or not. They in turn grow into branches. They grow into sub branches. No mater in which direction it grows, every branch has its own share of fruits.

So why regret on the decisions we make ...

Search Strings

2010-02-06T21:35:00.006+04:00

The other day i was attending a session on e-commerce. During the session the presenter came up with an interesting observation. If you type the words click here in google search the first page that comes up is adobe acrobat reader.

No wonder why this happens. There are umpteen websites that have the word click here to download acrobat reader. I dont think this is anyway relevant to the search string.

I tried to use the same search string using bing and the the first page that appeared was clickhere.com . There was some relevance to the search.
Will google change the search algorithm to make it more relevant ?
I am not feeling lucky here ...

Of Matchwinners and Centurians ...

2009-12-22T23:27:00.003+04:00

I was watching the India - Sri Lanka third one day match. It was a treat to watch Sachin and Karthik finishing the game in a clinical fashion. Sachin was on the verge of another ton but still India won the match. What surprised me was some reactions that came out after the match. Everybody was criticizing Karthik for depriving Sachin from his century . I am not against Sachin scoring another century but in International cricket is winning a match more valuable than scoring a century?
I dont think so. Even Sachin would have felt that India won the match but people in between need an excuse to gossip.

A wonderful ad

2009-12-16T11:39:00.005+04:00

Discount !!!

2009-12-12T10:45:00.002+04:00

When a service provider says some service is discounted , do we really pay less than what was charged before ? I really doubt that statement.

I am using a prepaid card from a renown telecom service provider. I topped up my balance with a booster pack so that each call to any number from the same service provider is charged just 30 paise per minute. This went on for some time.

Once when i was making a call , I got a message that said " You will get a 10 % discount on this call ". Little did I know that the tariff would be increased and money would be discounted from that. I had to pay Re 1 for the call and got a 10 % discount. Effectively I have lost 60 paise. Finally I had to discount this money from my pocket .
Phew...

henry henry !!!

2009-11-29T18:27:00.002+04:00

Et tu henry ?
Never expected this from you ...

Diwali Wishes !!!

2009-10-16T16:57:00.004+04:00

I was surprised to see the diwali wishes from White House. President Obama made a very terse statement wishing all the folks from the sub continent on the festival of lights. I was also surprised to hear him giving the meaning of Asatoma Sadgamaya ... From darkness to Light ...

I dont remember any other American president wishing the Indians on Diwali.

On the one side Washington state declaring holiday on August 15 ... other side the Nobel Laureate wishing the people from the sub-continent on one of their most important festivals ... what does all this mean ?

What was once considered as a land of snake charmers has grown to become the most prominent counties in the world. The world has started recognizing the value of India and Indians.

I feel proud to be a part of this diaspora ...

HAPPY DIWALI !!!

Inglorious Bastards

2009-09-30T02:36:00.000+04:00

Quintessentially Tarantino !!!

Risk

2009-08-27T17:53:00.000+04:00

The greatest risk we take in our lives is not taking a risk ...

Jog

2009-08-26T23:21:00.003+04:00

Off late i have started jogging in the evenings ... I go around China and Morocco clusters of International City . I-city happens to be a concrete jungle in the outskirts of Dubai ... I normally jog after 7 PM when the air is a little cooler ... I jog for around half an hour ... do some exercise... this is keeping me fit and fresh ...

The other day i wanted to experiment something new ... experimenting meaning nothing new ... just that i wanted to jog a little faster... i was in full enthu when i started ... i overtook a guy who was walking as fast as i used to jog normally ... this motivated me to run ... i ran .. i ran ... and finally felt i cannot run anymore so started walking ... the guy who walked fast overtook me in a jiffy ... darn !!!!

Aadhavan Songs

2009-08-25T01:09:00.004+04:00

Just finished listening to songs from the movie " Aadhavan" ...

Quintessentially Harris Jayaraj Flicks ... Many songs sounded similar to his previous tunes ...

I liked two tracks

1. Dekho Dekho ... Good fusion

2. Hesile Fesilie ... This sounded more like Pudhu Pudhu song in the movie "Dham Dhoom"

Other songs are just ok ...

Cheeni Kum

2009-08-23T18:57:00.002+04:00

Good movie ...

Simple story... wonderfully directed ... stupendous photography ... great music ...

Hats off to the crew !!!

One Night at Museum 2

2009-08-22T04:00:00.000+04:00

Funny , creative but a little disappointing ...

Freedom

2009-08-15T17:23:00.002+04:00

Whenever I think of freedom the only thing that comes to my mind is the cry of William Wallace in the movie Braveheart.

" It's all for nothing if you don't have freedom. "

Quote

2009-08-15T00:28:00.002+04:00

My friend had the following quote in her gtalk status message

"The wise speak when they have to something to say, the foolish speak when they have to say something" ...

All I can infer from this quote is that I am a Wise Fool.

Life's Little Instruction book

2009-08-14T18:07:00.000+04:00

I got the following mail from my friend...

*** Life's Little Instruction Book ***

Always accept an outstretched hand.

Answer the phone with enthusiasm and energy in your voice.

Avoid sarcastic remarks.

Be a good loser. Be a good winner.

Be bold &courageous. When you look back on life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did.

Be confident. Even if you're not, pretend to be. No one can tell the difference.

Be modest. A lot was accomplished before you were born.

Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know.

Begin each day with some of your favorite music.

Believe that miracles happen everyday.

Beware of the person who has nothing to lose.

Choose your life's mate carefully. From this one decision will come 90% of all your happiness or misery.

Compliment the meal when you're a guest in someone's home.

Count your blessings.

Don't allow the phone to interrupt important moments. It's there for your convenience, not the caller's.

Don't burn bridges. You'll be surprised how many times you have to cross the same river.

Don't expect life to be fair.

Give people a second chance, but not a third.

Have a firm handshake.

If in a fight, hit first and hit hard.

Keep a note pad and pencil on your bed-side table. Million-dollar ideas sometimes strike at 3 a.m.

Keep secrets.

Life’s not as complicated as you make it out to be.

Live your life so that your epitaph could read, No Regrets.

Look people in the eye.

Loosen up. Relax. Except for rare life-and-death matters, nothing is as important as it seems.

Make it a habit to do nice things for people who will never find out.

Make someone's day by paying the toll for the person in the car behind you.

Never deprive someone of hope; it might be all that they have.

Never give up on anybody.

Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.

Once in a while, take the scenic route.

Own a great stereo system.

Remember no one makes it alone. Have a grateful heart and be quick to acknowledge those who helped you.

Remember that 80% of the success in any job is based on our ability to deal with people.

Send a lot of Valentine cards. Sign them, 'Someone who thinks you're terrific.'

Send your loved ones flowers. Think of a reason later.

Show respect for everyone who works for a living, regardless of how trivial their job.

Sing in the shower.

Take charge of your attitude. Don't let someone else choose it for you.

Think twice before burdening a friend with a secret.

Visit friends and relatives when they are in hospital; you need only stay a few minutes.

Wave at the children on a school bus.

When playing games with children, let them win.

When someone hugs you, let them be the first to let go.

Electric Ganesha Land

2009-07-24T16:06:00.003+04:00

I have become a fan of Guitarist Prasanna

Life

2009-07-12T23:42:00.001+04:00

Life is a very simple thing ... Men have complicated it ...

What is Life ?

2009-06-14T09:58:00.002+04:00

I have tried to find the answer but in vain ...

Finally realised that life is just another 4 letter word in the dictionary ...

Money Money

2009-03-21T15:38:00.001+04:00

There was once a time when the world existed without money ... Man did not know what money was ...

Today we cant imagine a world without money ...

What started as something generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts has taken center stage ...

All this reminds me of a famous quote on money

" God is on everyone's side … and in the last analysis, he is on the side with plenty of money and large armies"

--
VRam

Belief

2009-03-18T21:57:00.003+04:00

The other day i was reading a news article which said frogs married as Assam goes dry.

It was pretty interesting to note that the rain Gods would be pleased if frogs are married.

This might sound quaint in the 21st century but is this what they call "Butterfly Effect"?

Does the flap of a butterfly's wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas. To make it simple Small variations in the initial conditions of a dynamical system may produce large variations in the long term behaviour of the system.

Here the frog marriage is a small variation in the initial condition of the system and the large variation in the behaviour of the system is the change in the climate.

Just a thought ...

Interesting

2009-03-15T23:56:00.003+04:00

I was reading an article which appeared in The Hindu Magazine. It was an interview with Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev. He had made an interesting observation about industries today ...

“The biggest industry is armaments, next comes pharmaceuticals and then alcohol. The first puts you on the way to death, the second pretends to pull you back, and the third gets you there for sure!”

http://www.hindu.com/mag/2009/03/15/stories/2009031550330800.htm

Circle of Life

2009-03-14T19:36:00.002+04:00

Two friends A and B complete high school together. A joins medical college and B get into engineering. B completes engineering and joins an IT company with a big fat salary .

B: Hi dude ... How are u ?

A: Fine da .. just hangin in there ...

B: I am joining XYZ corp ... It is a US based company ... They would be processing my green card da ...

A: Thats awesome. My best wishes.

B:How are things at your end ?

A: Not too bad . I will be completing my course next year ... then think about super specialization

B: Boy .. i cannot study anymore ... i wil go to US ... marry a rich girl and settle down in life ...

You could have taken engineering dude ....

A: I was really not inclined towards that ...

B: Now you see the difference ... Anyways ... catch ya later ...

A: Bye . Good Luck.

After 5 years ... Recession hit the american market ... Our man B is jobless ...

While A has completed his specialization and joined a hospital and has a private clinic.

A: Wassup dude ?

B: Nothing is up man ...

A: What happened ?

B: Lost my job ... recession ....

A: I really feel sorry for you dood ... Dont worry .... things will improve ....

B: Yeah .. Let us hope for the best.

This scene reminds me of the movie badsha where rajini says the following dialogue ...

" Andavan nallavangala sodhippan ana kai vida mattan ...

Kettavangaluku nariya kudupan ana kai vitturuvan ..."

Obsession

2009-03-14T19:31:00.002+04:00

This is what happens when one is too obsessed with something ...

Imagine a guy passing out of B-School ... Fully loaded with Management Fundae ... Meeting a girl to who might become his life partner .... what would be his question ??

Guy :

Give me one reason why I should marry you ? What will be my value add if you become my life partner ??

Girl : " One tight slap !!! "

Delhi 6

2009-03-11T14:07:00.002+04:00

A good movie. A movie that has a good story, social message, music, sentiments and is a little bit bollywoodish. It talks about the bad ideologies we have in us and how it creates problems among us.

ப்லோக்

2009-03-02T18:59:00.000+04:00

ரொம்ப நாலா தமிழ் ல எழுதனும்னு அசை அனா சரியான சந்தர்பம் கடைகல இப்போ தன் கொஞ்சம் enthu போட்டு எழுதணும் நு பீல் பண்ணேன் ... தமிழ் நு சொல்லும் போது தன் 6 வது கிளாஸ் ல ந திருக்க்றல் படிச்சா ந்யபகம் விருது வையத்துள் வாழ்வாங்கு வழ்பாவன் வானுறையும் தேய்வதுள் வைக்க படும் ... நு படிக்கணும் ... அனா ந அதா மதி ... அனுரையும் தேய்வதுள் வைக்க படும் நு படிச்சிட்டேன் .... நாராயண நாராயண

Marriage and Economics

2009-03-02T14:51:00.001+04:00

The following content has been taken from dilbert blog ...

Found it pretty interesting ...

http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/marriage_and_economies/

Single people are free to take more economic risks than married people. It makes me wonder if there is a correlation between the average age of marriage in a particular area and its economy.

My hypothesis is that places where marriage happens early, by custom or religion, will also be the places with the slowest rate of development. In such places there might be fewer entrepreneurs and everyone would take fewer risks.

Exceptions would abound since economies are influenced by many factors, so if there is a correlation it would be on average and not apply to every region. And obviously the causation could work the other way too; a good economy provides the option of staying single longer.

On a similar theme, easy access to divorce, and a high divorce rate, might also contribute to entrepreneurial energy. And again this could work both ways because a risk-taking spouse is probably more likely to get a divorce.

Name three vibrant entrepreneurial countries where people also marry young.

UPDATE: Reader Brant provides a link to statistics that support this hypothesis:

www.un.org/esa/population/publications/worldmarriage/worldmarriagepatterns2000.pdf

Movie Marathon

2009-03-01T00:36:00.002+04:00

After two gruelling weeks of tests and assignments , got a chance to relax for a while ...

Watched two contrasting movies Pink Panther 2 and Naan Kadavul

Pink Panther was another slapstick comedy from Steve Martin. It was not as impressive as its prequel but had fun watching the movie ...

It was a treat to watch Steve Martin with his wonderful french accent...

Naan Kadavul was very contrasting ... The genre was far away from the customery movies where the guy chases the girl in some snow clad peak in switzerland . The movie was about the life of Aghoris. Got to know about that term only after the movie. It was a very heavy subject. Actor Arya has done a wonderful work.

Few more films in the pipeline before another gruelling week ....

India Shining

2009-02-23T15:20:00.002+04:00

A. R Rahman gleaming after winning two oscar awards with his usual unassuming speech ...

Resul Pookutty talking about "OM" and dedicating his oscar to the country ...

Indian MNCs showing profit during the recession ...

India defeating Sri Lanka in cricket convincingly in their home turf ...

India defeating Australia in Australia in the one day series ...

India winning the twenty 20 cricket world cup ...

Indian shooter winning the gold medal in Olympics ...

Vishwanathan Anand winning the world chess championship...

India launching the chandrayana ....

What next ?

India the next superpower ??

Delhi 6

2009-02-21T22:48:00.002+04:00

A.R. Rahman has taken bollywood music to a new dimension .
Everytime i listen to the songs ... be it the mellifluous Maula Maula or the fast paced delhi 6 , i get transcended to a new world ...
Rock on Rahman ...

Slumdog Millionaire

2009-02-21T21:46:00.002+04:00

It was nice to watch a good movie after a long time.
I liked every aspect of the movie. After reading a few negative reviews on the portrayal of the slums of Mumbai, i started forming opinions on the movie . But after watching the movie, I feel the director has done a stupendous work . Enough of watching karwa chauth and mehendi scenes , time for some change. Non-Indian directors have taken better films on Indian themes than Indian directors.

Hats off to the crew... wish you good luck for the oscars ...

Fraternity at Stake

2009-02-18T17:47:00.001+04:00

What do you get from an MBA?

One recent study found that MBAs acquire an enormous amount of self-confidence during their graduate education. They learn to believe that they are the best and the brightest.But this is creating a negative effect.

More in the following links

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_hassett&sid=a_ac69DqFutQ

http://www.theamericanscholar.org/the-disadvantages-of-an-elite-education/

VARANAM AYIRAM

2008-05-11T20:57:00.000+04:00

Varanam Ayiram meaning the strength of thousand elephants is the Surya-Gautam Menon duo's next project. I liked this song a lot.

INSPIRATION

2008-05-11T20:42:00.000+04:00

Inspiration is not what you draw from outside, it comes from within you. In the movie Bruce Almighty , Morgan Freeman(GOD) says " People want me to do everything for them. What they don't realize is that they have the power. You want to see a miracle? Be the miracle."

DASAVATHARAM

2008-05-10T16:56:00.000+04:00

Kamal Haasan's forth coming magnum opus .Eagerly awaiting to watch the movie.

Who Am I ?

2008-03-16T09:31:00.000+04:00

My parents named me after two of the Indian Gods, Lord Vinayak and Lord Rama. I had no problems with my name for the past 25 years but after coming to the states i have had people call me with million different names. During one of our team meetings , my clients were discussing about the next project release. Suddenly something sprang up in my manager's mind. He started taking about my name. All my colleagues were trying to pronounce my name. I did not want them butchering my name so I went to the board and gave the phonetics- " WIN-AHH-YUCK" . At first they got it right but later they called me Vinakak and finally all they could get was VIN. This country can't even spell my name correctly.
The best part was during a phone conversation. I was talking to a guy named JOE. I introduced myself as Vinayak. He replied," OK Mark" . For whatever I said , I got the following reply ,
"Auright Mark " .

Change

2008-01-19T10:26:00.000+04:00

It has been a year since I left my country. Lot of things have changed in me and around me. It was difficult to get used to this kinda change but later it has become a way of life . Right from food , clothes to thoughts everything has changed.
Diwali has changed , pongal has changed ...
For a change , let me experience this too ... :)

:O

2006-05-06T12:19:00.000+04:00

I found these words written behind a government bus.