Work Internationally

i found the bit about the American lady working in Delhi very interesting. Further, there was this comment from an american who had settled in Thailand. Very interesting. I find it amazing that people are so entrepreneurial and take life altering decisions based on thoughts and possibilities and don't sit around in the comfort of familiarity. That is what perhaps makes great people and great societies.

http://features.csmonitor.com/economyrebuild/2009/03/26/for-laid-off-ibm-workers-a-job-in-india/

Financial blogs - indian

Given below are some interesting financial blogs.

 

http://www.jagoinvestor.com/

http://www.sudarshanonline.com/

 

Casino Capitalism

The word “Casino Capitalism” caught my attention. This is an interesting read in terms of why investing in the stock market for retail investors is like playing in a casino. It apparently is also penned as a book.

 

It additionally links to an interesting blog.

 

http://themoneybees.blogspot.com/2008/12/casino-capitalism-different-paradigm-to.html

 

Nerdy Joke

A desperate woman writes to the Technical support Guy,

Dear Tech Support,

Last year I upgraded from Boyfriend 5.0 to Husband 1.0 and I noticed a distinct slowdown in the overall system performance, particularly in the flower and jewellery applications, which operated flawlessly under Boyfriend 5.0.

In addition, Husband 1.0 uninstalled many other valuable programs, such as
Romance 9.5 and Personal Attention 6.5, and then installed undesirable programs such as  NEWS 5.0,   MONEY 3.0  and CRICKET 4.1.

Conversation 8.0 no longer runs, and Housecleaning 2.6 simply crashes the system.

Please note that I have tried running Nagging 5.3 to fix these problems, but to no avail.

What can I do?

Signed,
Desperate Woman

DEAR DESPERATE Madam,

First, keep in mind, Boyfriend 5.0 is an Entertainment Package, while Husband 1.0 is an operating system.

Please enter command: ithoughtyoulovedme. html and try to download Tears 6.2 and do not forget to install the Guilt 3.0 update.

If that application works as designed, Husband1.0 should then automatically run the applications Jewellery 2.0 and Flowers 3.5.

However, remember, overuse of the above application can cause Husband 1.0 to default to Silence 2.5 or Beer 6.1.
Please note that Beer 6. 1 is a very bad program that will download the Farting and Snoring Loudly Beta.

Whatever you do,
DO NOT under any circumstances install Mother-In-Law 1.0 (it runs a virus in the background that will eventually seize control of all your system resources.)

In addition, please do not attempt to reinstall the Boyfriend 5.0 program. These are unsupported applications and will crash Husband 1.0.

In summary, Husband 1.0 is a great program, but it does have limited memory and cannot learn new applications quickly.

You might consider buying additional software to improve memory and performance.
We recommend:  Cooking 3.0 and  Hot Looks 7.7.

Good Luck Madam!

Tech Support

 

Another interesting site..

www.yourtrustedtradesmen.com
BTTradespace.

Should investigate this more..

This excerpt is from linkedin

Hi everyone my names Michael & i own and run www.yourtrustedtradesmen.com , I have only been going 6 months or so and have already have a page rank 3 from google. We also have had over 130,000 visits to our site in that period. I have signed some 550 tradespersons or service providers. I have acheived all this by lots of hard graft by blogging everywhere joining related forums, press releases ect ect, also i only charge £40 a year or 60.00 dollars US for a ad on my site which is fully designed and worded by myself. That's enough about me i wanted to talk about a networking site run by BT called BTTradespace. I came across it some 5 months ago there you can advertise your business website to over 330,000 members for FREE you can create your own online community, they have a forum you can blog ,post videos, pictures of your products ,podcasts sell and loads besides. Since joining myself i have seen a increase in visitor numbers to my site grow by over 40% i have also have signed over 60 members from there wanting to advertise on my site. So i would highly reccomend it to anyone here to give it a go as another outlet to get their name out there. The link is http://tradebusiness.at/YTT12

Interesting website. Have to explore

http://eventful.com

Small businesses can easily plan, create and manage outdoor advertising in just a few clicks

Signposter.com , a new online service helping businesses in the UK buy and manage outdoor advertising, marks its official launch at the Grow Your Own Business event in London. Signposter.com is the first online service that makes cost-effective outdoor advertising accessible to small businesses in just a few clicks...

Read the full media release here...

http://blogit.realwire.com/?ReleaseID=11684

Living the map

I read about an interesting adventure by a Daniel Seddiqui. This person is traveling across 50 states in America (one every week) and holding a job in each state. So.. 50 states, 50 weeks, 50 Jobs.

 

www.livingthemap.com

 

Apparently, the inspiration is to see the different kind of jobs available at one’s disposal. Most of them are entry level jobs. Its quite an adventure. Could check up more details in the site above.

 

The Best Job in the World

This contest attracted a lot of attention. 34000 people applied for the job with 60 second clippings of who they are and why are they apt for the job.

 

The job involves being a caretaker for a few islands on the barrier reef for 6 months with a $150000 (Australian $) salary and all paid accommodation & perks.

 

http://www.islandreefjob.com/

 

Check out the site above for more info.  What I am interested in is seeing the 50 videos that were short-listed. I am sure it will give me tips on a short & sweet introduction that one should have for people.

 

 

 

Quote

“Too many of us are like Wheel Barrows --- Useful only when pushed and easily upset. “ - anonymous

 

I liked this quote a lot.  A very different kind of quote. I feel it is not the regular “gyan” kind.

 

 

Bailey's Irish Cream

Thought I will cover this wonderful liquer. It was suggested to me by Tushara. Had the first taste of it aboard a flight to Singapore (courtesy Singapore Airlines). It tastes like cold coffee with a pleasant twang of vodka as the sip goes down the throat. Very tasty for a liquer. Am quite hooked onto it. Got it for around 2000 yen from a “LAWSON” store here @ Shinagawa.

Well, some highlights:

• 17% alchohol

• Shelf life of 2 years

Check out for more info @:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baileys_Irish_Cream

Did i tell you?

Hey..

I don't think i told you that i am a father now. Have a son. Cute chap. He loves it when i sing. He gets pretty excited (obviously, negativists can get the impression that he is trying to run away from my song.. :) ). He doesn't trouble much. Normally, makes weird sounds slowly.. and then with a bit more volume.. spread over around say 10 mins.. when he wants something. If still no one pays attention, then comes the crying. Normally, our observation is that.. if he is crying.. there is something wrong.. like maybe he has drenched his clothes in his urine. Very cute chap. My day kinda sparks up when i see him smiling at me in the morning.

He is pretty shy too. Looks like i can write so much on my 3 month old kid. Of late, he has started looking like my wife. Initially, when people looked at him, they swore by the fact that he bears uncanny resemblance to me. Well, Tushara was kinda devastated. Was in tears that our son has no resemblance to her. Well, tables have turned now.. :).. she tries to console me.. not that i am worried or something.. phir bhee.. it is nice to see the turn of events.. :)

Some interesting Trivia

1. Einstein did not win Nobel Prize for his theory of relativity.
Yes, everyone's favorite patent clerk did win a Nobel Prize in Physics in 1921, but the award specifically cites his paper on the photoelectric effect—one of four papers that Einstein published during his "Year of Wonders" in 1905. The other three papers are on Brownian motion, special relativity, and energy and mass equivalence.
(Bonus trivia: Einstein's 1905 paper on special relativity, which specifies the unique breakdown of Newtonian mechanics at velocities near the speed of light, does not contain the famous E=MC2 equation; this appears in the energy and mass equivalence paper. Relativity and E=MC2 are intimately related, but the terms aren't interchangeable.)

2. Khadija, the wife of Prophet Mohammad and mother of his six children was renowned as a successful businesswoman

3. Before settling down to become the mother of Martin Luther King’s six children, Katherine Von Bora was a nun.

4. Sonia Gandhi has been described as India's best dressed politican, her trademark cotton handloom sarees being praised by many leading designers.

5. As a journalist, Maneka Gandhi is popular for her shocking publication in Surya Magazine of photos showing sexual intercourse between Suresh Ram (son of the then Defence Minister Babu Jagjivan Ram) and Sushma Chaudhury, a University of Delhi student. Her daring publication of the photos ran the risk of violation of obscenity laws. The revealing pictures were published apparently to discredit Jagjivan Ram, who defected from the Indira Gandhi government and helped bring Janata Party to power in 1977. He was one of the contenders for the post of Prime Minister of India.

Phobias

People in their natural diversity have diverse fears too. Why such strong fears? Some bad experiences in your childhood? Some tricks played by your mind? Some attributes of your past lives? Why such fears?

Some of them seem understandable such as the fear of darkness. With grannies telling you ghost stories in your childhood, any kid is quite spooked by the dark. In fact, even as a 10 year old, i was scared to go to the gate and lock it in the night. I would instead sent my sis who is around 5 years younger to me.. :)

Some of the fears of famous people is as given below:

Fear of flying: Former US president (& actor) Ronald Reagan. The famed country singer Johny Cash. Ray Bradbury.. now this is ironic as he made a living writing about space ships.

Fear of being buried alive: My oh my.. must be some really bad childhood experience. Composer Frederick Francois Chopin and author Hans Christian Anderson are examples. Anderson was so paranoid that while going to sleep he would place a sign adjacent to his bed saying that even if he looks dead, he was just sleeping.

Fear of closed spaces: This is quite understandable. In fact, even i feel quite claustrophobic in lifts and malls (esp in bangalore where malls on weekends resemble some railway station platform). Adolf Hitler is an example. An interesting story is that, his people has mirrored the large elevator leading to his Eagles nest in the Austrian Alps so that it would appear larger and more open. Well, Ronald Reagan is another entry here (god knows how many more.). The biggest surprise of all is Harry Houdini. This man's surname has become a word in english for someone who escapes from tight situations. This man made a living escaping from boxes that were locked in a matter of a few minutes. To think that this man had a morbid fear of closed spaces. Well, one must commend him for his will and self control.

Fear of Cats: This is the most amusing. One wonders if this is referring to the larger sized feline counterparts. However, the list is quite amusing: Bennito Musolini, Napolean Bonaparte, Alexander the Great, Julius Ceasar, Dwight Eisenhower. One begins to wonder if the fear of cats is a pre-condition to greatness. Well would a mere disdain for cats suffice for greatness?

Fear of Ferns: The famed spook - Sigmund Freud was human after all.

Fear of spiders: Guess he was watching too many movies. The biggest spider i have seen is from "King Solomon's Mines". Andre Agassi is the example here.

Fear of the dark: Understandable. But Mahatma Gandhi? Well.. he was human :). Author Anne Rice who writes supernatural novels also was scared of the dark.

Fear of eggs: He he he.. considering the example here is Alfred Hitchcock, it must be the morbid fear of being pelted with rotten eggs in case his movies were not so good.

Fear of Water: Have heard of lots of cases here. Some famous ones - Frederick the Great was so terrified of water that he could not wash himself with water. Instead his servants had to wash him with dry towels. Actress Natalie Wood (1938-1981) suffered from a fear of water (hydrophobia). She died by drowning.

Indo - SL Match

Looking forward to the Indo-SL world cup match with a lot of anticipation. Hope indians can pull it off. It would do a great deal of difference to the indians at large. Its not often, nowadays, that you see indians fighting with their backs to the wall and actually flattening the opposition. It used to happen several times during Ganguly's time. Some of my favourite memories in fact are that of India thrashing the Aussies in their own terrain. Even if we lost the series, beating the Aussies at their own game is something worth savouring. Another memorable match is the test turnaround in India (Hyd, i think) with Laxman and Dravid bringing out double centuries after 2 forgettable tests. That turnaround was amazing. Was a treat to watch the Aussie body language.. :)

I bet entire india is praying for the Dravid guys to win. Keeping fingers crossed. I bet lots of TVs will be running all night. In fact a friend of mine was even praying that the bookies should help india win. :)

Segway, the Scooter

Ever heard of Segway the scooter. Well, thought i'd do some reading up on this. It seems that this contraption was introduced in the 2000 with much hype and fanfare. It travels at a speed of 12mph.

I can see a lot of use for this vehicle:
* Mode of transport for old people
* Use in big campuses like the IT parks in India.
* Use in golf courses. A cheaper substitute to the immensely expensive golf carts. (come to think of it, the first golf cart that i saw was in the Infosys campus. It was being used to take customers around the huge campus. This was in 2003-04. The campus is much bigger now.)
* Use by the disabled.

Some interesting links on the same are given below. Do look up the one with the cartoons.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1980254.stm
http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/images/blbushsegway.htm
http://cagle.msnbc.com/news/GingertheScooter/2.asp

amusing .. but tacky poem

Can't even call it a poem.. got it from Khushwant Singh's jokebook... which usually carry such tacky jokes.. that it begins to feel like serious prose after some time..

"Please do not sent me to the hospital,
I know that will happen,
Hospital will grab my purse,
Switch me from nurse to nurse,
I'll go from bad to worse,
And end up in a hearse.. "

:) .. boring? it at least rhymes.

Hemis Manuscripts

Where was Jesus till the time he began to preach in Jerusalem?

I remember having a seen a book in 2003 in a library in Bangalore about Jesus having spent his time after his crucifiction in India. Could not find the time to get a hold on that book.

Recently chanced upon the mention of the Hemis Manuscripts. At the Hemis monastery in Ladakh, there is a book that mentions about Jesus’s visit to India. It is said that he spent time in India for almost 14 years (14 to 28 years..). Subsequent reading elsewhere, suggested that he spent time at the Jaganath Temple at Orissa, Benares and several other temples in India before spending around 6 years in Ladakh. It is also mentioned that he was widely respected and appreciated by the people wherever he went.

A lot of interesting reading. No point me repeating the information given in the links below. Happy reading.

http://markmason.net/ch4ex1.htm
http://www.utahkrishnas.com/main/page.asp?id=431
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaliprasad_Chandra
http://www.atmajyoti.org/ul_unknown_lives_07b.asp

Eugene Marais

Information about Eugene Marais is very interesting in itself. A journalist, a doctor and a lawyer who after the Boer war went into a secluded life to living with baboons. This obviously had to come to an end with the Boer farmers returning and chasing out the baboons from their habitat. He then researched into termites which was published in Afrikaans in South Africa. This was plagiarised by Maurice Maeterlinck in his work. This seems to have affected the health of Eugene. Subsequently he took his life.

Termitaries.

Interesting recount of observations by one Eugene Marais. He has seen huge termitaries to the size of 40 feet. They ground below them is not hollow. (Surprised? so where did the mud and water for this come from? Did they manufacture water?). There have been huge rocks found at different height of the termitory. How did they reach there? Another observation is the effect of magnetism on the construction of such termitories. Earth's magnetic field to be precise. Should read " The Soul of the White Ant" By Eugene Marais.