Tuesday, December 30, 2008

startdust



I liked this movie very much... people might think that its kids movie, but its not.
The locations that are shot in this movie are too good... almost kinda mesmerizing.
Also the graphics effect is too good... I loved the story in this movie.
One can go for it as a completely entertaining one...

It has got a love story, action scenes, comedy, witches, king and his sons... etc etc.
Good to watch :)

Monday, December 29, 2008

Someone to watch over me

Theres a saying old, says that love is blind
Still were often told, seek and ye shall find
So Im going to seek a certain lad Ive had in mind

Looking everywhere, havent found him yet
Hes the big affair I cannot forget
Only man I ever think of with regret

Id like to add his initial to my monogram
Tell me, where is the shepherd for this lost lamb?

Theres a somebody Im longin to see
I hope that he, turns out to be
Someone wholl watch over me

Im a little lamb whos lost in the wood
I know I could, always be good
To one wholl watch over me

Although he may not be the man some
Girls think of as handsome
To my heart he carries the key

Wont you tell him please to put on some speed
Follow my lead, oh, how I need
Someone to watch over me

(bridge)

Wont you tell him please to put on some speed
Follow my lead, oh, how I need
Someone to watch over me

Someone to watch over me

PS: This song made me cry and the lyrics are awesome. It shows how lonely can a woman be and her longing for love. Beautiful song...

Thursday, December 25, 2008

funeral services

Today while I was coming to office in bus, I saw something interesting.
Near the traffic signals, there was a Tata Winger standing.
Initially I thought its a BPO cab or something.
But I was wrong. I read the board on it as
"HEAVEN BOUND FUNERAL SERVICES
(Founded by Ft.....)"

I read it thrice to confirm what it meant.
Does the organization really meant it when they named it??
Would someone go to heaven if those services are taken?
Whats so special about the funeral treatment there??
I had upteen questions popping up in my mind during the 30seconds wait near the signal.
Well... i found it funny enough to laugh at myself.
We do bad/good deeds... so karma should be our part...
how can others give us moksha??

anywayz thats it for today....

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Visit to Jain temple at Kolanpaka

Visiting a jain temple was one of the best things I have done recently.

How does the temple look like?
Here is the image...


how to travel??
Catch any train that goes towards Kazipet(Warangal) which has a halt near a station called "ALERU". Roughly this place is about 80kms by road and 1hr travel by train. Early morning car drive would be ideal. Well... journey by train is also excellent provided you get seats in the train. One can have mesmerising view of the fog and greenery during the travel.
One can get autos to get to the temple. They charge about Rs.10/- per person.

History of the temple:
http://www.indiainfoweb.com/andhra-pradesh/pilgrimage/kolanpaka.html

Some of the beautiful snaps:

This is the side look of the temple

This is the main templee entrance with two elephants welcoming us :)

This is a beautiful marble design on the floor inside the temple

one of the side view of the temple

a prototype of the temple intended to be built i guess... i didnt find out much details

And thats me... looking bit funny with bag and frens stuff :P

I guess you all liked the images... one can plan for a one day trip for this place and come back. Breakfast is free in this temple. Make sure that you reach the temple before 8am in the morning. The main puja starts at that time and its good to see... The main Mahavir statue here is blue in color and very elegant...
It took 12 years to reconstruct this temple itseems... The sculpture and the statues are very beautiful in this temple. Very minute details are also caught in these statues...
This temple is quite different compared to most of the Hindu temples. There will not be any noise... chanting of mantras all the time... people pushing each other to have a look at god...
This place is beautiful with coconut trees and shade.
Also there is a museum itseems... but I didnt have a look at it.

Verdict: A place worth visiting to avoid the city chaos.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

co-incidence

Today(22-dec-2008) I was lazy enough to come to office... but there was some kind of freshness in my heart...
I got into a fully crowded bus near my house... that stupid driver has applied sudden break... I was about to fall down and regained my control...
I was irritated for few mins... and someone tapped my shoulder...
I turned to look at the girl... obviously it had to be a girl :)
She asked me " Are you deepa??"
I was staring at her for few seconds and replied "Yes. I am deepthi... i mean deepa".
All my relatives know me as Deepa... no one knows my name is "deepthi".
I love my name as "deepa" than "deepthi".
She asked "Do you remember me?? I am your navipet relative."
It took few mins to recollect this girl... I met her family exactly 15 years ago. I just know her grandmom...
But this girl recognized me in an instant even after 15 years...
maybe my facial features are not changed much and maybe because i still look like a kiddo...
gosh!!!! that was stupid...
anywayz she told me about all my relatives and that she is working here in Virtusa company.
Was glad that my family also has enough software engineers :D

But that simple gesture of recognizing me and smiling at me made my day...
i am very happy today.... btw her name is also "deepa"...
I guess life is being happy in that moment and happy in the present...
and that makes a perfect living
I could get that feeling...

Saturday, December 20, 2008

a simple thought

A simple thought came to my mind...
i guess i read it as a quote somewhere...
but i dont remember when and where..
Assume...
there is a very fine thread called friendship...
for some reason the thread breaks into two...
and later you try to mend it by tying a knot...

when you run through the thread again...
oops.. the knot still remains hurting us...
thats what happens when friendship is broken...
it never remains the same...
the sweetness is gone... the trust is gone...
you can never be the same with that person
i've experienced the same few days ago

gosh!!!!! the relationships are so complicated and stupid.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Fact of the day

I
AM
A
FOOL

MAYBE
BORN
TO
BECOME
AN
EMOTIONAL
FOOL

PS: what the ***k???????????

Monday, December 15, 2008

Kill Bill vol1, 2

WHOOOOOOO.... Its an awesome movie series... the best thriller movie I have ever seen.
I loved the story... the theme... the music... the characters... the action... everything...

The Bride - Uma Thurman at her best in martial arts... her physique suits the character very well in this movie...

Bill... He is an old fellow... perfectly suits the character of an masochistic killer...

I have seen the same directors movie "pulp fiction"... but i couldnt appreciate it becoz i couldnt understand it :(
but this one is cool... the way he tells the story is amazing... For sometime I was scared of all the blood bath in vol1 and resented it... but I was focusing mostly on Ms.Thurmans acting...

A must watch movie among the thriller categories... all these days i was watching all sorts of mushy movies and this was quite different... adding to my favourite list :)

good - bad/ right - wrong

Recently I had a tiff with one of my good fren. I was wrong at some point of the argument. I have apologized sincerely. The other one has also done some mistake in an emotion... which i found it to be very bad... only creatures who are completely out of their body control would say such things/do such things.
But otherwise if you have an insight into that persons life and behaviour... there is no doubt that that the persons character is good and almost flawless. But he is not ready to accept his mistake.

Well... I stopped talking to that person completely. I asked him to say sorry. But he is not willing to say that. As far as my conscience goes... it tells me that I did the right thing by not talking to him.
He has done many good things.
But does one bad act overlook all the innumerable good things he has done???
How far am i correct in this judgement??
I am not able to understand completely.

Well the whole point of thinking in me is... whether one bad act overlook all the good things a person has done in his/her life??? Is it okay to forgive and compromise for frenship??? What is the guarantee that such type of incidents will not happen in our frenship later?? Do we have to kill our self-esteem and go ahead for such relationship??

I dont have answers to all those questions. I am still trying to find answers for them by having a fight with my mind and heart.

Friday, December 12, 2008

My fav poem

Whenever I close my eyes to stop staring at this bad world
I see you....only you and nothing else my love
The world with you is so much different and blissful
I knew my prince created this world only for me
Everything over there is soo perfect for me..
The nature in all its glory, the kind of chores,
The attitude of people and above all YOU...just so perfect
After all its a dream I know
But deep inside I believe soon its gonna be true."
~~deeps~~

PS: I wrote this in good olden days!!! I want them back. I am sick and tired of the present.

Platy - the cuty







Her smile is a million dollar smile. She doesnt make noice, she doesnt cry much.... she does eat silently without giving pain to her mother. She knows only one word now "thatha...thatha" :)
I am longing to see her again... She is the real platinum in our lives... and there the name goes platy :)

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Myself n Shivani

Recently I took 3 days off from office to get some mental peace. And I was successful in that.
I have met my beautiful, naughty, chatterbox niece Shivani.
She would call me "pinni" as I am her pinni :P
I went to attend my cousin's marriage which was our common point of meeting.
There she was always beside me talking like a chatterbox.
She was singing all telugu songs, dancing to the tunes of the orchestra that was organised in the reception. And then she asked me a question
"Pinni camera teleda nuvvu?"
I answered, " no... marchipoyanu... hyderabad lo undi"
Shivani "Pinni, you dont know english?"
I answered in english " I dont know english"
Shivani, " I know all english,maths,science,social, all subjects!!!!!!!!"
For a moment I have opened my mouth and was watching her. My other cousins were laughing like hell for her instant reply.
And she promised me to teach english as a crash course within 48 hours.
Btw Shivani is still in UKG(upper kinder garden)
We were very much occupied with her cute words during the marriage.
The next morning when we had breakfast, she came to me and sat on my lap.
She watched me for 2mins or so... then started saying in telugu
"pinni... nuvvu appudu baaledu... ippudu baagunnavu"
I asked her, " eppudu baalenu?? baalenu ante enti??"
Shivani, " anitha pinni pelli lo baalevu... naaku teliyadu anthe"
I was again shocked for her small observations and memory power.
She is damn intelligent... has very good grasping power also... she knows all shlokas my heart... she knows all the SaiBaba bhajanas...
I am nothing infront of her with regards to all these matters...
Anywayz... I love her...
And I adore her sister Platy(pet name) who is just 8 months now...
Will tell platy's story in my next blog... :)

Monday, December 08, 2008

One more novel to my fav list

Doctors by Erich Segal is a very beautiful novel. I loved the character of Barney Livingston in the novel. I would die to have a best friend,philosopher and lover boy like him in my life. Most of the girls would like his character in this novel.
One can easily understand the hardships undergone by every doctor in USA. Its also observed if one would watch the TV series "Grey's Anatomy".
A good novel added to my collection.

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Worth of money - Adam Khoo(youngest millionaire)

Some of you may already know that I travel around the region pretty frequently, having to visit and conduct seminars at my offices in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Suzhou (China). I am in the airport almost every other week so I get to bump into many people who have attended my seminars or have read my books.

Recently, someone came up to me on a plane to KL and looked rather shocked. He asked, ‘How come a millionaire like you is travelling economy?’ My reply was, ‘That’s why I am a millionaire.’ He still looked pretty confused. This again confirms that greatest lie ever told about wealth (which I wrote about in my latest book ‘Secrets of Self Made Millionaires’). Many people have been brainwashed to think that millionaires have to wear Gucci, Hugo Boss, Rolex, and sit on first class in air travel. This is why so many people never become rich because the moment that earn more money, they think that it is only natural that they spend more, putting them back to square one.

The truth is that most self-made millionaires are frugal and only spend on what is necessary and of value. That is why they are able to accumulate and multiply their wealth so much faster. Over the last 7 years, I have saved about 80% of my income while today I save only about 60% (because I have my wife, mother in law, 2 maids, 2 kids, etc. to support). Still, it is way above most people who save 10% of their income (if they are lucky).I refuse to buy a first class ticket or to buy a $300 shirt because I think that it is a complete waste of money. However, I happily pay $1,300 to send my 2-year old daughter to Julia Gabriel Speech and Drama without thinking twice.

When I joined the YEO (Young Entrepreneur’s Organization) a few years back (YEO is an exclusive club open to those who are under 40 and make over $1m a year in their own business) I discovered that those who were self-made thought like me. Many of them with net worths well over $5m, travelled

economy class and some even drove Toyota’s and Nissans (not Audis, Mercs, BMWs).

I noticed that it was only those who never had to work hard to build their own wealth (there were also a few ministers’ and tycoons’ sons in the club) who spent like there was no tomorrow. Somehow, when you did not have to build everything from scratch, you do not really value money. This is precisely the reason why a family’s wealth (no matter how much) rarely lasts past the third generation. Thank God my rich dad (oh no! I sound like Kiyosaki) foresaw this terrible possibility and refused to give me a cent to start my business.

Then some people ask me, ‘What is the point in making so much money if you don’t enjoy it?’ The thing is that I don’t really find happiness in buying branded clothes, jewellery or sitting first class. Even if buying something makes me happy it is only for a while, it does not last.Material happiness never lasts, it just give you a quick fix. After a while you feel lousy again and have to buy the next thing which you think will make you happy. I always think that if you need material things to make you happy, then you live a pretty sad and unfulfilled life.

Instead, what makes me happy is when I see my children laughing and playing and learning so fast. What makes me happy is when I see by companies and trainers reaching more and more people every year in so many more countries. What makes me really happy is when I read all the emails about how my books and seminars have touched and inspired someone’s life. What makes me really happy is reading all your wonderful posts about how this BLOG is inspiring you. This happiness makes me feel really good for a long time, much much more than what a Rolex would do for me.

I think the point I want to put across is that happiness must come from doing your life’s work (be in teaching, building homes, designing, trading, winning tournaments etc.) and the money that comes is only a by-product. If you hate what you are doing and rely on the money you earn to make you happy by buying stuff, then I think that you are living a life of meaningless.

(Excerpt taken from a blog posted by Singapore 's youngest Millionaire - Adam Khoo)


Note: This stuff is sent by my good fren. Thanks sudha :)

Euthanasia

This words means "The act of killing someone painlessly (especially someone suffering from an incurable illness)"... also called "mercy killing".

Today morning in the bus I was reading "Doctors" novel. There it talks about mercy killing.... A doctor Seth, kills his brother Howie as he was suffering from brain damage.

How I wish it wasnt just about illness or something... it would be good if one kill oneself if they doesnt want to live anymore... many people suffer from depression and stress... they should make a law that a person can go ahead and do such thing...

and for terrorists and criminals and corrupted politicians... killing them should be mandatory instead of giving imprisonment for 5-7 years.

Monday, December 01, 2008

Interpretation of dreams

Well... last night I had a stupid dream... and the experience was quite shocking to me...
In my dream the dream goes like this...

I was near cyber gateway(that is where my office is at present)...some unknown man attacked me... i was trying to defend myself... i got a knife from somewhere(god knows where) :(
i made a scratch on his shirt with that knife... and then he run away from me...
i was happy.. but at the same time, he threw some sharp object at me...
that hit right in my right hand making a 10cm long injury( i could tell the exact length because i know where the scratch was exactly)... I had sharp pain in my right hand... i fell down on the ground shrieking with pain...
at the same exact moment....
i got up...
i had too much pain in my right hand...
i was wearing a turtle neck shirt made of wool...
i pulled up my sleeves to check if blood is oozing out...
but nothing was wrong...
my hand was perfectly alright...
but it was still aching for atleast 15 mins even after i woke up completely and was in my complete senses...

i couldnt understand this fact... there is some pain in my dream and i felt it in the present...
people say that if you dream something during the early hours of morning... it would come true...
i was dreaming this dream at around 5:30am ....
would this come true??????????????

I would like to read Freud's Interpretation of Dreams to understand dreams properly...
My hunt for this book will go on now....

Barney Livingston

I am already in love with the character of Barney in Doctors novel. I just read 258 pages over the weekend. I am yet to discover many things about the story.
~~deeps~~

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Fine evening in Hyderabad

Today was the most beautiful day of my life... I went with my good fren to eat outside... it was drizzling outside... there are beautiful trees and flowers just beside our office... all these 3 years i have not noticed... but today we felt like exploring... so went there and took some snaps... they turned out to be the most beautiful ones :)
have a look at them....



this is right in between rocks...

this is under a beautiful yello flower tree

Aroopi amidst beautiful lavender flowers

And this is me amidst lavender flowers

Physical abuse

With generations changing rapidly, the actual context abuse is also varying. We see many cases of such abuses in our society. Many people suffer silently especially women. At all stages of life, women are prone to such abuses either physically or sexually. If you are a kid or teenager, threat is there from the outside society if not family. If you are a home maker, the immediate threat is from her own husband and in-laws. If you are a old woman, living at the cost of her son, she would suffer from her daughter in law.
Why do such things happen in our society??In such male dominated society, they must be thinking its great to rule and dominate. How far is this justified? Just because they are 6 feet and 80kgs of weight, doesnt mean that they got right to treat others as slaves and trash them. Don't people have concern for others just like their loved ones. Why do we differentiate between same blood ones and others?? I faced some kind of similar situation when my cousin was staying at my house. My mother didnt like anything that girl did. I tried to explain my mother that she is part of our family. I will not say that my mother is bad. Its just that how my cousins family had treated her when she was young. She couldnt forget all the bad things done by them.
Even though we are good, some where our bruised hearts doesnt accept the bad ones. When we are hurt at a tender age, those impressions last for long. We have to live with them. The trust factor in us dies at that age.
Thats why people say that love is the most important factor in our lives. It has the healing factor... I am writing all of this because I saw one teenage girl being slapped by her fren left and right. I couldnt tolerate that sight. I hate men sometimes for their acts.
Physical abuse is much worse than bad words. You can forget those words, but the deeds give us a everlasting experience in our minds. You start developing hatred towards the community as such...
Love everyone. Share your bit of happiness with everyone. Bringing smile on the faces is important. Well... I am lost at this point of writing. Will write more later.

Doctors - Erich Segal

One of the deadliest evening was the evening of 27th november 2008. I was pissed off by a friend and was randomly walking. I saw a road side book seller and thought of diverting my mind with books. I took a look at the set of books he had. The name "Erich Segal" always attracts me. I read most of the books written by him.
Love story
Oliver story
Acts of faith
Man, Woman and child
The class

Now the turn was to read "Doctors". I have started reading this novel. I love this novel also.
A must read novel.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Times of india

Times of india news paper has started an innovative idea of teaching telugu to non-telugu people in hyderabad. Every day a small column appears in the "Hyderabad times". It has translated versions of telugu sentenses.
I felt its good and a nice approach. Though most of the hyderabadis are well versed in Hindi and non telugu guys can communicate with them, this approach is also good for people who doesnt know Hindi(eg...tamilians).

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

happenings

Anything that happens in our life is for our good. Everyone cribs about things that happen to them, but realize late that its for their own benefit.

Friday, November 07, 2008

somethings gotta give






Its a very beautiful love story... well after seeing movie we would try to believe much about love and stuff like that... but its crap...



this movie is about a famous playwriter and a famous record producer(Nicolson). he is the actor in the movie "Hannibal". His roles in most of the movies are cruel,cunning. But here in this movie its quite different...



The french background music is too good and romantic... I loved the beach scene in this movie where the couple go for a walk and collect stones.



The movie is also funny and makes you laugh most of the time.



A watch movie for just timepass... one can appreciate dialogues in the movie...



Some of the snaps are here...

Monday, October 20, 2008

Something the lord made



When my fren first gave this DVD as a gift along with many movies... i thought it would be a movie like "Gods must be crazy" by Spielberg... But I was totally wrong.
This is a very serious movie.

This movie is about a Cardiac surgeon and his assistant. Its a real life story about how first heart surgery was done by a black. Behind every invention or discovery there is huge effort... which is unseen most of the time... there are many failures. This movie conveys the message that one should love thys work. Sheer dedication is a must and only then one can expect successA must watch.
The actual doctors snap is this:


here is the link for more details about the movie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Something_the_Lord_Made

Saturday, October 11, 2008

The Hungry Tide



This is a book by Amitav Ghosh...

I never heard about this book untill I saw it with a road side seller. The title of the book attracted me the most. I heard about the author for his distinguished work.

I read few lines from the cover page of this book before buying it. It talks about Sunderbans... tigers... tidal waters... I bought this book...
Till now i read few chapters from this book... its interesting... its different from my usual style of books. As I read through this book, I could see a new anxiety in myself... to know whats gonna happen next...

Maybe this is common feeling among readers... A book worth reading i suppose... I can give my opinion in an unbiased way only after reading this book completely...

happy reading!!!!

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Provoked


This is an excellent movie... it gives insight about indian women living in foreign countries...
Its useless to marry an NRI or a software engineer and work for him like a slave.. or rather a maid who takes care of everything.
Every woman should be independent... educated enough to live on her own if something goes wrong. Fight for her rights if needed.

Monday, October 06, 2008

Atlas Shrugged

By Ayn Rand...

Its a great novel... of course this fact is proved by most of them in the world. I m just added to it.
I couldn't stop reading this book. It enhances your thought process towards society, economy of the country.
Its good... Worth reading.

A movie is going to be released based on this novel. Ms Jolie is going to play the role of Dagny Taggart here. I dont like this actress for some reason.
But I am waiting for the movie to be released.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

A quote - worth interpreting

"In order to live, man must act; in order to act, he must make choices; in order to make choices, he must define a code of values; in order to define a code of values, he must know what he is and where he is – i.e. he must know his own nature (including his means of knowledge) and the nature of the universe in which he acts – i.e. he needs metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, which means: philosophy. He cannot escape from this need; his only alternative is whether the philosophy guiding him is to be chosen by his mind or by chance."


mistake

i shouldnt have done the mistake of losing one close to heart...
i shouldnt have done the mistake of confessing this fact in front of a stranger
i shouldnt have done the mistake of underestimating my need and like

it shouldnt matter to me now...
but i have pain...
an unbearable one

Who is John Galt??

Saturday, August 02, 2008

Fire Safety

Off late there were many fire accidents. One of them being fire on 1st August 2008 Secunderabad-Goutami express.
One should really know how to handle fire accidents.
Should know what are the precautions that need to be taken.
People....please make an effort to learn some precautionary measures.
Its very important... you can save not only your life... but of people who are struck in fire.
Well... I thought its my duty to educate with some basic measures which I have learnt through a fire drill at my office.

Preferences to victims are to be given in this order:
1. Pregnant ladies and children
2. Physically handicapped people
3. Old people and ladies
4. Men

1. Whenever you are caught in fire with smoke around... plz cover your mouth,nose and run downstairs or run outside away from the smoke direction. Smoke always goes up and we better walk by kneeling on the ground. This act would save us from suffocation. Many people in Goutami express died of suffocation. Thats the first safety we can take.

2. If you see any person caught in fire, go to that person from behind and cover them with blanket or thick bedsheet and roll them on the plane ground. Pour cold water if its available. Please dont approach the person from front... the person would be in shock and can catch hold of you out of fear.

There is no guarantee for life these days. With bombs, fire accidents, road accidents, flyovers collapsing etc... with these kind of incidents LIFE has lost its guarantee. And better be insured :). You never know if you would return home safely or not. But we can always take precautions and learn to help others whenever needed.

Its even worst that we cant say goodbye to our dear ones in adverse conditions. So lets live happily in the present moment. Make family, friends happy and live in their hearts forever and ever.......
I would just like to say "LIVE IN THE PRESENT!!!!!!!" You never know what happens in the next moment.

Into the Wild



Its a spellbinding movie.
I was just shivering and tears in my eyes at the end of the movie. I also felt very weak at the end of the movie. I wanted to go and save him.
I loved the guy Chris in this movie.... the character especially.
The narration... his journey... beautiful places... makes the movie a master piece...
I didnt want him to die at the end of the movie...

Its a realy story which happened in 90s. Sean penn took lot of effort to direct this movie and he deserves a round applause from us. Its taken from the book "Into the wild". I would read it whenever i get time. But cant forget this movie all my life. It also gives inspiration to live a better life and truthful one. Material things are also very materialistic... it doesnt lead anywhere other than a great social circle. maybe we need to understand wat do we want to do in this so called beautiful life given by god.
i dont have answers to any of the questions posed by my inner self. But i will make effort to find them one day!!!!

Verdict of movie: Worth watching

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Dreams!!!!

Dreams are weird sometimes. You sleep in the night only to find out later that you are sweating out of fear or anxiety. It happened with me many times in the recent. Well those were dreadful...
But I will tell you a funny dream...

In my dream... I was in some other country.... like malaysia or australia... i went to a antique shop. I liked many things there. But one lady was after me showing beautiful handbags. I never saw such a beautiful design anywhere till now. I was very impressed by that bag... I asked the lady to show all the separations. She has shown me that and told me the price as $2000.
I was SHOCKED!!!!! WAT THE.... how can a bag be so costly!!!!!!!!!!!
I could imagine my mom and sister shouting at me for thinking of buying such a costly bag!!!!!!!
The next moment I woke up and saw my mom standing beside me.
I had a very strange feeling at that moment... how come my mom is standing beside when i was just scared of her in my dream!!!!!!!

Our imagination is great sometimes... I tried to draw the picture of that bag... but couldnt draw it good. The image is still in my mind :)

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

ARE YOU A CARROT, AN EGG, OR A COFFEE BEAN?

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as if as soon as one problem was solved a new one arose. Her mother took her to the kitchen.

The mother filled three pots with water.

In the first, she placed carrots.
In the second she placed eggs.
And the last she placed ground coffee beans.

She let them sit and boil without saying a word. About twenty minutes later, she turned off the burners.

She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl.

Turning to her daughter, she said, "Tell me what you see."

"Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied. (You known the tone of voice.)

She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did, and noted that they felt soft.

She then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg inside.

Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its rich aroma.

The daughter then asked, "So, what's the point, mother?" (Remember the tone of voice.)

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each reacted differently.

The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak.

The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid center. But, after sitting through the boiling water, its insides had become hardened.

The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water...they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your
door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot , an egg, or a coffee bean?"

Think of this: Which am I?

Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity, do I wilt
and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat?

Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial
hardship, or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my outer shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water - the very circumstances that bring the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor of the bean. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you instead of letting it change you.

When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level?

How do you handle Adversity?

ARE YOU A CARROT, AN EGG, OR A COFFEE BEAN?

PS: this is a nice article. I found in a magazine and thought of sharing with my frens.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Little Women



I got a splendid opportunity to read this beautiful novel "LITTLE WOMEN".
I couldnt drop the novel untill i read it completely. Its awesome. Its a story about 4 young gals... Meg,Jo,Beth and Amy. It shows how they live their life having very little money and abundance of love,happiness and mirth.
I love the character of Jo in this book. She is very sweet, got high temper and cools down very easily. Jo and Laurie pair is awesome. Btw this is one of the children's classic. I came to know about this book from "The Hindu" newspaper. A lady wrote about her life and told how important this book is in her life. Now it became a dearie to me. I plan to keep this book on my bedside all through my life. And turn pages whenever i get lost with my temper/arrogance.
I didnt get a chance to read this book when i was in teens. But I am glad I read this book now.
I could get lot to learn from this book.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Unaccustomed Earth - Jhumpa Lahari




On a cloudy day while going home, I saw a road side book seller. I saw this book and got the pirated version of it. This book is a collection of stories mostly about Indians living in USA. This is an awesome book. One is just spell bound by the stories.


They just make you live by them. I could visualise myself somewhere connected to all the stories. They are touching also. At the end of the story you are left with nothing but to think and wonder why this such a heartbreak ending!!! At the end of few stories tears were just rolling down my eyes, unable to control my emotions. God gave her such great talent of writing stories.




Ppl... plz read this book... and one can understand the realities of life and their intricacies.
The other book I have read from the same author is "Interpreter of Maladies". It also runs on the same lines as this. But there is little variation of level of emotions written and feelings put in that.

" Ducks Quack , Eagles Soar" !!

" No one can make you serve customers well. That's because great service is a choice. Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver that proved this point.

He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey.

He handed my friend a laminated card and said -'I'm Wally, your driver. While I'm loading your bags in the trunk I'd like you to read my mission statement.' Taken aback, Harvey read the card.

It said,"Wally's Mission Statement - To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment."

This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean!As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, 'Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.' My friend said jokingly, 'No, I'd prefer a soft drink.’ Wally smiled and said, 'No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice.’ Almost stuttering, Harvey said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.’ Handing him his drink, Wally said, 'If you'd like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.'

As they were pulling away, Wally handed my friend another laminated card. 'These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you'd like to listen to the radio.' And as if that weren't enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air-conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him. Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he'd be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts.

'Tell me, Wally,' my amazed friend asked the driver, 'have you always served customers like this?'

Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. 'No, not always. In fact, it's only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, Wayne Dyer, on the radio one day. He had just written a book called 'You'll See It When You Believe It'. Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you'll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, 'Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don't be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.'

'That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally. 'Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers. The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.'


'I take it that has paid off for you,' Harvey said. 'It sure has,' Wally replied. 'My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I'll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me today. I don't sit at cabstands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine. If I can't pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.'

Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I've probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn't do any of what I was suggesting.

Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles. How about us? Smile, and the whole world smiles with you. As they say 'The ball is in our hands'! "

This is one of the best stories I have read. Sent by my friend Sudha. Thanks Dear.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Being a VEGAN

I guess many of them are hearing the word VEGAN for the first time.... hahahahaa
I too belonged to the same category untill today :)
We all know that either its vegetarian or non-vegetarian. This term VEGAN symbolizes the following and it got definition.
Veganism is a philosophy and lifestyle which "seeks to exclude all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment." (wikipedia)
I got this very interesting piece of information from internet. Just gathered some pictures and putting them here for display. I realized the importance of saving the environment - Especially when we have done so bad to it and showed indifference all these days.

From the above picture, I think we can give our contribution by just practising and by thinking wisely.
There are also some diet rules which WE can do follow and be a VEGAN.


I guess its high time we change our lifestyle and be good to our environment.
At the end if we protect it... it shall protect us!!!!
Being a vegan we should refrain from using leather products, honey etc.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Once upon a time - Jhumpa Lahari

Last week I was talking to one of my friend Hema.
She was referring to her profound interest in novels and short stories. She gave me link for some of the short stories by Jhumpa Lahari. I took the printout of the story and read it at home...
The name of the short story is in the title :)
Its a very touching story by her... Once upon a time
The story is about a teen-age girl and her crush on Kaushik who comes to US from India. He confides some secrets with her. The narration is awesome...

I also read her book Interpreter of maladies... its a collection of short stories... each story is different in its own way and very closely resembles to our present life... it may not be exactly related to our life.. but our surroundings. Her stories leave some impressions in our hearts and make us think for a while.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Expectations...



Expectations... its such a nice word to hear and use. Its effects are realized only when one feels much about it...
Most of the time we expect only from our near very good frens...


we expect them to understand us
we expect them to know what we think of them at that moment and all the time
we expect them to be very close with us and don't mind for silly things
we expect them to take care of things when they go wrong
we expect them to be cheer our mood when it goes wrong
we expect them to share our happiness and feel good about it
we expect them to share their sorrows and worries
we expect them to know that we long for them if they are not around

but it really hurts when atleast one of the above fails.
Someone long long time back taught me not to have expectations in life... but its just as blur as a distant star in the sky...
Maybe its time we remember one thing "Dont expect". When we follow this rule... life would be so happy... for even small surprises we would be very elated and would remember it for a long time...

At the end i would like to say....
EXPECTATIONS..........
"lower them and you'll never be disappointed!!!!!"

Monday, May 05, 2008

some day

"Some day the wind will change and you will see me clearly
One day these dreams of mine will bring me to my time
Some day i will become what i am meant to be coming to
One day but that's a million some days from today

Lately the sunshine makes a different shape around
Lately my music has a different sound to show me
Lately i ask questions of the world but no one is listening
Tell me when i go to sleep what will the morning bring me?

Falling, falling, falling, or am i flying?
Flying, flying, flying, or am i falling?... "

just found these lyrics in net while i was searching something else...
they are so beautiful and makes so much sense in my life...

Friday, May 02, 2008

Calvin and hobbes






Here is something I can provide for stressed out people to laugh :)

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Manager and his/her caliber

Working in a software industry for the past three years I know that a team consists of a manager,team leader, team members. I learnt that a manager is responsible for the overall team performance and their lines of improvement. But CAN a manager be partial and overlook team members by showing favoritism?? I think this should not be allowed in companies or rather to dig deep... in a TEAM.
Generally a manager should be able to understand the abilities of a team member/lead infact. He should look at the professional and personal aspect i guess. I know that there are two ladders to choose from a team lead step... either Managerial or technical.
If one knows that they are much capable of contributing themselves to the technology, then they should go ahead in that path... Otherwise in the managerial perspective.
But some of the managers I have seen are very good technically... but they got very poor managerial skills... They are such a disaster and the morale of a team member is killed in such cases. A manager should be an inspiration of a team member and one should get the motivation to reach such good levels.... Alas!!!!!!!! nonetheless it doesn't happen everywhere.
Off late I realized that people play dirty politics for anything... they are willing to lick others a** for the sake of achieving them... sometimes drooling like a dog... whack!!!
its so nasty... Well thats my observation from the industry...
how i wish future managers are fairly impartial and only aim at team development.
Also team members should have little intellect in approaching such type of managers. When you dig down into the consequences, the most effected is the team member... becharaa it would be so embarrassing situation for him/her...
guys/galz... moving into software industry be BRAVE and STUBBORN!!!!

Monday, April 28, 2008

My plant



This plant is called "marvam"/"damanam" in telugu... its a scented plant...
I love the scent of the leaves... I got this plant for 20 rupees from nursery...
it was very small by then... now after 3-4 months its in this shape...
but one thing i dont understand about this plant... its growing in such a diversed way...
each of its twigs are growing in different directions.
As far as i have seen at other places it grows like a bush in a proper way. But this is strange about my plant... i dont know what it signifies...
also i have noticed that... some of its twigs have grown very tall and when the sun shines very brightly on it... they have faded away,dried and fallen down...
however it may grow... i just want it to be healthy and strong :)

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

An apple in the bag

A teacher teaching Maths to seven-year-old Arnav asked him, “If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?”Within a few seconds Arnav replied confidently, “Four!”

The dismayed teacher was expecting an effortless correct answer (three). She was disappointed. “Maybe the child did not listen properly,” she thought. She repeated, “Arnav, listen carefully. If I give you one apple and one apple and one apple, how many apples will you have?”

Arnav had seen the disappointment on his teacher’s face. He calculated again on his fingers. But within him he was also searching for the answer that will make the teacher happy. His search for the answer was not for the correct one, but the one that will make his teacher happy. This time hesitatingly he replied, “Four…”

The disappointment stayed on the teacher’s face. She remembered that Arnav liked strawberries. She thought maybe he doesn’t like apples and that is making him loose focus. This time with an exaggerated excitement and twinkling in her eyes she asked, “If I give you one strawberry and one strawberry and one strawberry, then how many you will have?”

Seeing the teacher happy, young Arnav calculated on his fingers again. There was no pressure on him, but a little on the teacher. She wanted her new approach to succeed. With a hesitating smile young Arnav enquired, “Three?”

The teacher now had a victorious smile. Her approach had succeeded. She wanted to congratulate herself. But one last thing remained. Once again she asked him, “Now if I give you one apple and one apple and one more apple how many will you have?”

Promptly Arnav answered, “Four!”

The teacher was aghast. “How Arnav, how?” she demanded in a little stern and irritated voice.

In a voice that was low and hesitating young Arnav replied, “Because I already have one apple in my bag.”

“When someone gives you an answer that is different from what you expect don't think they are wrong. There maybe an angle that you have not understood at all. You will have to listen and understand, but never listen with a predetermined notion.”


PS: This is forwarded one. I wanted to share with everyone :)