IyerTalks

Foster Home for 2 Year , Male, Fawn color Lab

2011-04-07T19:49:00.001+05:30

ABOUT DASH:

Dash is a very adorable, well behaved, intelligent huge dog with a very friendly temperament. He is trained and listens to commands, loves to be amongst people, but also can manage when left alone for a few hours. He has always been a house dog, in an apartment set up-adjusts well with the environment, barks only when it is required. He is an alert and playful dog but spends most of the time sleeping. Dash has been given all the required vaccination and has been a part of our family for the past 2 years. He loves being in the company of other dogs as well.

REASON WE ARE LOOKING FOR A FOSTER HOME:

Though Dash is a gem of a boy, he has a skin allergy problem (ATOPIC DERMATITIS) which we have found to be caused due to the environment. He seems to be allergic to pollens of plants like parthenium. Anywhere in Bangalore his skin condition remains the same. In places like Chennai (we take him when we go there) or any place which is hot seems to suit him and all his rashes go away. The rashes aren’t visible outwardly on his skin, yet they are present in his knees and near his stomach (bottom).We have been giving him medications, which gives visible result, but can’t continue to give him as it will affect his health . Our veterinarian also feels that he should be out of the medications for that he needs to be moved away from Bangalore .Hence we are left with an only option of finding him a loving home away from Bangalore, preferably Chennai or places without much of parthenium. Would prefer to see him under the loving care of already experienced dog owners who know about / owned labs.

45 Rules of Life

2011-03-07T14:54:00.001+05:30

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come...

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

Written by a 90 year old

Relationships are Easy

2011-03-02T15:57:00.001+05:30

You may have read or heard the opposite, that relationships are hard work. I used to believe that was true. Not anymore.

Relationships are easy.

I understand that making time for someone else or giving up some of the things you love or getting your own way create some struggles in life – but once again, relationships are easy.

Perhaps what people who believe relationships are hard work are actually referring to the difficulty of interacting and living with an immature, childish human.

Why would it be hard work to be in relationship with a mature, caring grown up?

Here’s a couple of other questions to ponder:

Why is it that we are sometimes nicer to strangers than we are to loved ones?

Shouldn’t marriage and relationships lighten our load, not add to our burden? Because if it were the latter, why in the world would any of us sign up for something like this?

Perhaps the problem is that many times we get bogged down in a lot of the unnecessary parts of relationships and lose focus on the essential parts. Or we lose sight of the fact that our significant other is a separate being who is capable of making their own decisions and charting their own path in life.

But this fact isn’t a bad thing at all as it frees you up to do the same! And it also frees you both to choose each other – not feel like you’re stuck in a monotonous existence together.

Why relationships are easy

It all boils down to how you view what goes on within your relationships, specifically your significant ones.

First and foremost, marriage is designed to help you grow up. It’s not about happiness. It’s not about becoming more complete, despite what Hollywood and popular press would like you to believe. Marriage is about growing. Happiness will accompany you at times along the way, but it’s not the ultimate goal.

And second: your growth – your responsibility; your spouse’s – theirs. When you keep this in mind you realize that all you can control in a relationship is yourself.

Many times couples have sought my help in working on their marriage. They come in thinking their relationship is an outside entity that can be fixed. The problem with this is they’ve got it backwards – the relationship is working on them! That’s the way relationships are designed.

When you acknowledge this and live accordingly, relationships are easy.

Here’s how.

How many times has something about your spouse’s behavior driven you crazy? Or how many heated discussions have come from your differences in beliefs?

The best way to combat this is found in this phrase: Rather than trying to adjust the wind, adjust your sails.

Focus on what you can control – and this begins and ends with you!

Simplify things in life so you can savor more of the goodness. This same idea can be applied to relationships.

And it starts by slowing down.

Do you have trouble remembering names when meeting someone new? Do you know why? Most of the time you’re too busy talking or thinking about what to say that you don’t even hear their name.

This happens in regular conversations as well. You’re busy or rushed thinking about something else and you miss the goodness of the moment with your spouse, or kids, or friends.

Slow down. Let their be pauses in the conversation while you think and respond. There doesn’t have to be a banter or speedy exchange of ideas in conversation.

Breathe. Listen. Breathe. Connect.

This will open you both up to more with each other.

Leo’s favorite guide works for most every aspect of relationships as well: “Smile, breathe, and go slowly.”

Just think how much better everything, and I mean everything (wink wink), will be when you follow this guide in your relationship?

Read more from Corey at his blog, Simple Marriage, or subscribe to his feed.

How the Lord Works

2011-03-02T11:30:00.001+05:30

Once there was a sweeper in the Well Known temple and he was very sincere and devoted. Every time he saw thousands of devotees coming to take darshan of the Lord, he thought that the Lord is standing all the time and giving darshan and He must be feeling very tired.

So one day very innocently he asked the Lord whether he can take the place of the Lord for a day so that the Lord can have some relief and rest. The Deity of Temple replied, "I do not mind taking a break. I will transform you like Myself, but you must do one thing. You must just stand here like Me, smile at everyone and just give benedictions. Do not interfere with anything and do not say anything. Remember you are the deity and you just have faith that I have a master plan for everything." The sweeper agreed to this.

The next day the sweeper took the position of the deity and a rich man came and prayed to the Lord. He offered a nice donation and prayed that his business should be prosperous. While going, the rich man inadvertently left his wallet full of money right there. Now the sweeper in the form of deity could not call him and so he decided to control himself and keep quiet.

Just then a poor man came and he put one coin in the Hundi and said that it was all he could afford and he prayed to the Lord that he should continue to be engaged in the Lord's service. He also said that his family was in dire need of some basic needs but he left it to the good hands of the Lord to give some solution. When he opened his eyes, he saw the wallet left by the rich man. The poor man thanked the Lord for His kindness and took the wallet very innocently. The sweeper in the form of the Deity could not say anything and he had to just keep smiling.

At that point a sailor walked in. He prayed for his safe journey as he was going on a long trip. Just then the rich man came with the police and said that somebody has stolen his wallet and seeing the sailor there, he asked the police to arrest him thinking that he might have taken it. Now the sweeper in the form of Deity wanted to say that the sailor is not the thief and he could not say and he was greatly frustrated. The sailor looked at the Lord and asked why he an innocent person is being punished. The rich man looked at the Lord and thanked Him for finding the thief. The sweeper in the deity form could no more tolerate and he thought that even if the real Lord had been here, he would have definitely interfered and hence he started speaking and said that the sailor is not the thief but it was the poor man who took away the wallet. The rich man was very thankful as also the sailor.

In the night, the real Lord came and He asked the sweeper how the day was. The sweeper said, "I thought it would be easy, but now I know that Your days are not easy, but I did one good thing." Then he explained the whole episode to the Lord. The Lord became very upset on hearing this whereas the sweeper thought the Lord would appreciate him for the good deed done.

The Lord asked, "Why did you not just stick to the plan? You had no faith in Me. Do you think that I do not understand the hearts of all those who come here? All the donation which the rich man gave was all stolen money and it is only a fraction of what he really has and he wants Me to reciprocate unlimitedly. The single coin offered by the poor man was the last coin he was having and he gave it to Me out of faith. The sailor might not have done anything wrong, but if the sailor were to go in the ship that night he was about to die because of bad weather and instead if he is arrested he would be in the jail and he would have been saved form a greater calamity. The wallet should go to the poor man because he will use it in My service. I was going to reduce the rich man's karma also by doing this and save the sailor also. But you cancelled everything because you thought you know My plan and you made your own plans."

God has plans and justice for everyone....we just have to have patience..............

(via Maddy)

The Burnt Biscuits

2011-02-27T08:05:00.001+05:30

The Burnt Biscuits (Story)

When I was a kid, my mom would prepare special breakfast every now and then. And I remember one night in particular, after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my mom and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that biscuit and eat every bite!

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I'll never forget what he said: "Honey, I love burned biscuits."

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned.

He wrapped me in his arms and said, "Your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides - a little burnt biscuit never hurt anyone!" You know, life is full of imperfect things.....and imperfect people. I'm not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else.

What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other’s faults - and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences - is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of God. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where a burnt biscuit isn't a deal-breaker!

We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!

"Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket - keep it in your own."

God Bless You..... Now, and always....

Via Email Forward.

You — Not Your Competitors — Define Your Destiny

2011-02-25T12:31:00.001+05:30

You — Not Your Competitors — Define Your Destiny

via GigaOM by Om Malik on 2/24/11

When I was a little boy, my grandfather gave me some advice: He suggested I always march to the rhythm of my own drum. While he said it made perfect sense for me to appreciate others and what they did, in the end what would make me unique was me. Of course, I was too little to quite understand what he meant. Soon thereafter, he passed away. But as I’ve grown older, I’ve started to appreciate his wisdom.

Why do I bring this up? Because I increasingly see companies, both big and small, often focusing too much on their competitors and not focusing on being unique. A few weeks ago, when I stopped by at the Square offices, COO Keith Rabois, in response to a question about his competition, succinctly said it was what he and his company does which will determine the outcome for the company.

If one sets the rules, then there is a distinct advantage when it comes to winning. However, if a company spends all its energy trying to be the same as another, it has already lost the game. It’s letting someone else define the agenda. Instead of trying to be great at what they do, companies start to come-up with reactive and mediocre strategies that are well, mediocre.

Let’s take this year’s big news: tablets, or rather, rivals of Apple’s iPad. HP announced its WebOS-based TouchPad. Motorola announced Xoom, which is powered by Google’s Honeycomb tablet-oriented Android OS. There are scores of others that have been announced and/or are waiting in the wings. They all have one thing in common: They are desperately trying to be the iPad. HP couldn’t resist using “pad” in the name. Others may not have the name, but are essentially trying to beat iPad on what was known in the PC world as “feeds and speeds.”

The problem is that the minute Apple announces its rumored iPad 2, all these devices are going to take on a look of last season’s couture. What Apple does so well is that it doesn’t pay too much attention to what others are doing, and instead, builds what it feels is the right product. Same goes for other iconic brands such as Mercedes.

The big companies can be excused for catching this “keep up with Joneses” disease, but what is inexcusable is startups spending all their energy on trying to keep tabs on their competitors, taking a cue from their rivals (and often copying them) and in the process, not focusing on what really matters: their product and strategy as it relates to their customers.

In my professional career, especially as an entrepreneur, I found that whenever I did things my way, I found not only great satisfaction, but also found an edge that was entirely my own. When I’ve deviated from that approach, I’ve found things have started to go wrong. Today, the world of news is commoditized and has turned into churnalism; the way we stand out is by focusing on analysis and our own unique twist on news. It might not be for everyone’s taste, but there are many who find that useful.

In my favorite TV show, House, Dr. Lisa Cuddy, when trying to convince Dr. House that they should be together, said that what they had was unique and not common. “Because common is just common.” Next time, remember that.

4 things about Home Loan you might not Know

2011-02-22T14:33:00.001+05:30

4 things about Home Loan you might not Know

via Jago Investor by Manish Chauhan on 2/22/11

Can you claim tax deduction for your under-constructed house? Can you claim tax for the home loan taken from your friend and not from Bank ? These are some of the questions which are not generally discussed over and lot of investors have no idea about actual rules. In the video below I will talk about four not so known rules of home loans . Keep reading ! . Readers on email can watch the video on this article.

1. Tax deductions for House under-construction

Can you claim tax benefits for home loan taken for under-construction house ? A lot of investors assume that they can claim tax deductions and without doing much research, they go ahead with the loan. However they should know the fact that claiming tax in case of under-construction house is different. You cannot claim the tax deductions for the principal amount for under-construction house. You need to have possession and certificate of ownership to claim tax under 80C. However Interest part is little different. You can not claim the interest amount, unless you get the possession of house . However you can always claim the deductions later in 5 equal installments for next 5 yrs from the end of financial year of possession.

Example : Suppose Ajay bought a house on loan on 5th June 2010 and he pays total 3 lacs as interest in next 2.5 yrs and gets possession on 7th Nov 2012 . He will be able to claim this 4 lacs Rs in equity installments in the next 5 yrs period , which is 80,000 per year in 2013 – 2017 . However the total limit for exemption will still be 1.5 lacs per year.

2. Selling the House before 5 yrs reverses the tax saved earlier

We think of saving tax, but once the tax is saved for a particular year, it does not mean the story ends here. The tax benefit under sec 80C is allowed for home loans considering the condition that it wont be sold before 5 yrs from the date of purchase. Read some nice tips for house buying from real buyers

If you sell your house before the expiry of 5 yrs, all the money you saved under sec 80C in earlier years will be deemed to be your income in the year of sale and added to your salary. For example, if you bought the flat in Oct 2010 and in next 4 yrs you saved 1 lac in tax under sec 80C, then this 1 lac will become your income in the year of sale and will be taxed . However interest component once saved is saved and it wont be reversed.

The tax benefit under section 80c is allowed subject to the condition that house property should not be sold before a period of 5 years. If you sell the house before the expiry of five years from the end of the financial year in which you obtained the possession, the deduction will be discontinued and the entire tax deduction claimed in earlier years under section 80c – for repayment of principal component of the home loan – will be deemed to be your income (in addition to capital gains) in the year in which you sell the property. However, the housing loan interest deduction claimed under section 24(b) won’t be reversed.

3. Loan taken from Friends and Family is eligible for Deductions (Interest)

Incase you want to take loan from your friends , parents or any other person , you can still claim the interest on the loan under sec 24 , which is upto 1.5 lacs per year . However you can not claim the principal amount under sec 80C, that’s applicable only if you take up the loan from some Bank or financial institution . So you don’t always need to take the loan from Bank. if you can take it from a friend or Family , you can still claim tax deductions on Interest part .

4. 80C is not allowed for loans taken for Extension or Renovation of House

If you take a loan for extension or renovation of your existing house, in that case you can not claim the principal part under sec 80C , but you will be able to claim interest amount under sec 24 , which is 1.5 lacs per annum .

10 Things I am Trying to Teach My Kids About Money Before They Reach Adulthood

2011-02-22T11:54:00.001+05:30

A Post by Frugal Dad

1. No one owes you a thing. Too many people go through their entire lives with the expectation they are owed something. This is not the case, or at least it shouldn’t be. All you should ever expect is to be judged, compensated and respected based on your work ethic and your ability to create, inspire and hustle.

2. Debt is a cancer. Debt is a cancer on our society, on households, and on us as individuals. It saps creativity. It creates pessimism. It robs your future dollars. It limits your freedom. Avoid debt like the plague. Remember the old adage:

“He who understands interest – earns it. He who doesn’t understand interest – pays it.

3. Save for emergencies…big emergencies. When you are young and many years from considering retirement (and not earning much), it’s tough to save money. But I have discovered no softer pillow than having money in the bank for emergencies. Aim to save about a year of your basic living expenses in a simple savings account (no risky investments here). With a one-year cushion, you’ll be able to weather storms many others will not.

4. Live simply. In 2011, life seems pretty complicated. By the time you are adults, I imagine it will be even more so. There will be new gadgets and toys and cool services and “got to haves.” The problem is, all these things compete for your earnings. I’m not advocating living like a pauper, but limit yourself to only a few of life’s luxuries.

5. Sleep on big financial decisions. When it comes time to buy a car, or a house, or book your first major vacation as a family, sleep on the plans for a couple nights. People selling you these things want you to act immediately to lock in their commission, as I would expect them to, but remember that you are the one who has to pay the bill. Some of my biggest financial regrets came because of a knee-jerk reaction. Be slow. Be methodical. Listen to your gut.

6. Protect your credit. Not because you hope to borrow money, but because you may find people extending a service to you may do so for less cost if they think you aren’t a big risk. And if those people don’t know you well, your credit score may be their only determining factor. It’s not necessarily fair, but it’s a part of life. Credit blemishes can hang around for a decade, so it’s best to avoid them in the first place.

7. Learn to do things yourself, but don’t be afraid to call in the experts. You may remember the time your dad rescued a toy from the toilet trap, saving us an expensive plumbing repair bill. Or the time I climbed up in the attic to unclog the air conditioner drain. But your dad knows his limitations, and calls in the experts when necessary. That’s what emergency savings are for.

8. Shallow people judge your things, real friends judge your character. Some of the saddest, loneliest people I’ve ever known have been surrounded by the nicest things money can buy. They often acquired these things to impress people they thought mattered, and in many cases it did – temporarily. Meaningful relationships are based on things money cannot buy: trust, respect, integrity, compassion, love.

9. Don’t trade the things you care about for a big salary. Remember what mattered to you most when you were a kid: Family, fun, dreams. These things should remain important to you as a grown-up, but often adults sacrifice these things to earn a big salary. Now, everyone has to sacrifice some to earn a living, but by learning to be content, you may be able to earn a comfortable living while still enjoying other things.

10. Start saving early. Remember those money games we used to play when you were a kid? One of them was an attempt to get you to understand one of the great financial wonders of the world: compound interest. You see, when you save money you earn interest on it. The next month you earn interest on the money you first put in, plus the interest you earned the month before. That’s right; you earn interest on interest. Now carry out that example for many years, even decades, and you can understand how some people are able to accumulate wealth. The trick is, you have to start early.

Finally, keep in mind something your great grandfather taught your dad about finding balance. Be frugal, but remember to occasionally stop and smell the roses. Life is short, and it is meant to be enjoyed. Take an expensive vacation every now and then. Buy something of your “heart’s desire,” even if it doesn’t make sense financially. Be frugal in other areas of your life to make room for things you truly enjoy.

The Habit of Being Honest

2011-02-17T23:34:00.001+05:30

The Habit of Being Honest

Atanu Dey on India's Development

A few days ago, a Pakistani singer by the name of Rahat was caught smuggling around $130,000 out of India. It does not matter what the prescribed penalties are for such an act but the interior minister of Pakistan called up the Home Minister of India, P. Chidambaram and thanked him for facilitating Rahat’s release. Thanks to Mr Chidambaram’s intervention in the matter, it all ended well for the singer. But not for the country.

I could not help but marvel at that incident, and it brought to mind another incident. That one also involved the breaking of a law by an expatriate and a call from an official of the home country. That matter ended differently. In the difference in the outcomes of those two apparently trivial incidents lies the explanation for the enormous differences in the fortunes of two states.

It was 1994. An American expatriate in Singapore was convicted of vandalizing property. Not a big deal in the overall scheme of things — an 18-year old doing what teenagers sometimes do — but the law in Singapore was clear on the matter of vandalism. The sentence was four months in jail, S$3,500 in fines, and caning — six lashes on bare buttocks.

The US president, Bill Clinton, appealed for clemency. Two dozen senators wrote to the Singaporean government for mercy. But the sentence was carried out. Michael Fay was convicted of a crime and he paid for it, which was the law of the land. (The lashes were reduced to four from six — out of respect for the US President’s appeal.)

Singapore and India are entirely different states. Though both were neck and neck economically around 50 years ago, today Singapore is a prosperous state while India is pathetically poor. In global rankings of corruption in nations, India ranks as one of the most corrupt and Singapore one of the least corrupt.

In Singapore, the powerful and the powerless are all equal before the law. In India, depending on who you know, you can get away with murder — literally. In Singapore, they have rule by law, and in India we have rule by people.

Yesterday Indians had the most impressive demonstration of how deep-rooted corruption is unavoidable in a system where things are done according to the whims and fancies of those in power, and not according to rules. The prime minister of India deflected all blame away from himself for the many multi-billion dollar corruptions he has enabled by saying that he is helpless.

What that says is that in a tussle between the law of the land and powerful but corrupt people, the corrupt win and the law is powerless.

What Mr Singh demonstrated is not just his personal moral turpitude but also that the nation is morally bankrupt. The people know that the corrupt rule the roost and yet they tolerate it. Honest people with any sense of right and wrong would be outraged enough to force the legal system to punish the guilty. But Indians don’t care and the corrupt flourish while the country sinks deeper into unimaginable poverty.

Alfred North Whitehead once observed that “Civilization advances by extending the number of important operations which we can perform without thinking of them.” If you ponder that for a bit, you see that to perform important operations without thinking about them requires learning, the acquisition of habits through repeated performance of that operation till it becomes second nature.

Honesty is a habit. Dishonesty is also a habit. There is a social compact which says that I recognize that you are dishonest, and you are at the top of the heap for now. It says that I aspire to someday get to your position and when I do, I will so exactly what you do and make my personal fortune. So I have to allow you to do what I hope to do myself when I get there. I cannot begrudge you what you do since I hope to there someday myself and do what you do.

We Indians tolerate corruption because we aspire to make our fortunes the same way if we ever get that chance.

There’s a cost, however. When you look into the eyes of the next malnourished child begging at a traffic light, you should know that it is your acceptance of gross corruption which enables that injustice. You make this state of affairs possible that the economy is so compromised that it accepts the starvation of children as a matter of fact.

We are all collectively responsible. We have not developed that habit of rule of law that makes a caring society possible. We have made it possible for the corrupt to flourish because we are ourselves corrupt.

What is it that distinguishes a person who is an alcoholic but knows that he is one, from another who is as much an alcoholic but steadfastly refuses to acknowledge his problem? The former has the possibility of seeking redemption but the latter will continue to sink further into oblivion. Who knows how long it will take for us to admit that we as a collective are dishonest and as a consequence of our collective dishonesty we are poor.

It is all karma, neh?

Related Posts:

The Ownership Society. October 2005.

The Tangled Web — Part 3. June 2007.

Sent with Reeder

Sent from my iPad

Koodalmanikyam - Nadavarambu - Bharathan Temple

2011-02-16T10:54:00.001+05:30

AFAIK this is the only temple in India for Bharathan who was the brother of Rama. A massive temple in Nadavarambu which celebrates it is festivals after the Thirssur Pooram.

via - http://www.koodalmanikyam.com/legend.htm

The official website of Sree Koodalmanikyam Temple inaugurated by
Devaswom Minister Sri G Karthikeyan (2004)

It is believed that thousands of years ago the entire area now known, as Irinjalakuda was a dense forest a number of Rishis under Kulipini Maharshi were engaged in an incessant Yagna offering severe penance to please Maha Vishnu. Ultimately pleased at the intensity and sincerity of their devotion, the Lord appeared before them and offered to satisfy their wish. All they wanted was his eternal presence at the place. The Lord readily agreed.

The Rishis now prayed to Deva Ganga to bless the sacred Yagabhoomi with her presence. As the springs of River Ganga fountained up and inundated the area the Rishis immersed themselves in the sacred waters and became one with the Lord. The presence of Ganga is believed to continue in the Kulipini Theertham named after the chief of Rishis. This tank on the Northern side is believed to be as sacred as Sanctum Sanctorum. Water snakes, frogs etc. commonly found in most temple tanks are totally absent here. Only fish grow freely and feeding them is considered to be of special merit. Water for preparation of Nivedyam is taken form this tank only. Archakas after bath at the outside pond have to take a dip in Kulipini Theertham before entering Sanctum Sanctorum.

The temple itself was not built immediately after the incident narrated above. The place was not inhabited for many hundred years probably. The folklore about how the temple came to be established here says that a local Chieftain, Vakkay Kaimal, had a dream one night in which some mysterious person appeared before him and told him that four idols have been washed ashore and that these idols are to be consecrated at such and such places. The Kaimal being an ardent devotee hastened to the sea shore there lay four idols as indicated in the dream. They were duly installed in four temples as directed in the dream. Rama at Thriprayar (22 Km North west of Irinjalakuda) Bharata at Irinjalakuda, Lakshmana at Moozhikulam (30 KM south west of Irinjalakuda) and Satrugna at Payammal (5 KM south of Irinjalakuda). It is believed that worship at all these four temples on the same day is especially meritorious. Ardent devotees used to make it even in those far off days when they had to cover the entire distance by foot or in bullock carts. It has become very easy now a day. In the Malayalam month of Karkidakam (July 15^th to August 15^th) – the Ramayana Masa, thousands of devotees do this special pilgrimge, which is popularly known as Nalambalam Tthozhal – a pilgrimage to the four temples.

Single Prathishta

The lord at Koodalmanikyam is Chathurbahu Vishnu with Conch, Chakra, Gada and Japamaala. The general belief, however, is that the Lord is Bharatha the brother of Sree Rama. He anxiously and devotedly awaited the return of Rama from exile for fourteen years and then learnt from Hanuman that Rama has reached the outskirts of Ayodhya. He was much relieved and happy. Baratha in that mood is worshipped here. Naturally Hanuman is also present at Thidappilly [the holy kitchen]

A distinctive feature of Koodalmanikyam temple is that there is only one single Prathista. Even Vigneswara, usually found in all temples dose not find place here. Usually when Thulasi leaves are offered to the diety, its seeds invariably sprouts in the premises. How this has not at any time happened in this temple is a mystery. One explanation is that Thulasi plant being sacred; it is worshipped wherever it is found. Probably it is to forbid even such an object of secondary worship in the temple precincts that Thulasi is not allowed to grow by some unforeseen power.

The Sangameswara

Irinjalakuda in former days is believed to have the confluence of two rivers, the place name suggesting such a conjecture. The Lord at the confluence is thus known as Sangameswara. Though the two rivers (Kurumali river and Chalakudy river) have changed course and Irinjalakuda is no longer on any river bank, Arattu – the holy dip of the idol at the close of the Annual Festival, is held alternatively in these two rivers suggesting a previous connection with these rivers.

There is a folklore relating to the name Samgameswara. One saintly person belonging to Taliparambu was on a strange mission. His objective was to collect the chaithanya of idols of important temples in Kerala for being transferred to the idol of the temple in his village. This he did by entering the Sanctum Sanctorum of the temples he visited and transferring the Chaithanya on to the conch in his possession. When he did the same in Irinjalakuda he accidentally fell down and the conch was broken instantly transferring the divinity of all idols he had acquired on to the idol at Irinjlakuda. Thus the idol in which merged the divine Chaithanya of several idols came to be known as Sangameswara. The Namboodiri Brahmins associated with the temple still make all their Sevaas in the name of Siva, Vishnu and Devi at Sangamesa Sannidhi itself.

Kannam Puzhai Baghavathy - Chalakudi - Suyambhu

2011-02-14T11:57:00.001+05:30

It is a suyambu ambal and the locals believe that there is immense power in this Ambal. The story goes that when a person was sharpening is knife on a stone the stone started bleeding and it was a suyambu and they built a temple around that. No Maps / Photos of this. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

Kodungallur Bagavathy - An amsam of Kannagi

2011-02-14T11:39:00.001+05:30

After kannagi burnt Madurai for erroneous judgement which killed her husbandn she came with lot of ugram and sat here. She is the amsam of all bghavathies and is sitting south facing. Diets always face the Sun either east or west and don't face south. In the same nada is another roopam of ambal and she is facing east. The temple also houses a balakan who is ever growing. It is said that when the balakan reaches the roof the earth will disintegrate. Updates with Map Location and photos to follow. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

Thiruvanchi Kolam - Temple to Solve wedding issues.

2011-02-14T11:26:00.001+05:30

Kodugalur temple famous for solving wedding woes. Only temple in INDIA AFAIK which has both sivan and parvathy in one nada. Here the sivan and parvathi arw sitting near to each other unlike in other places where they are in seperate sanadhis.

Even in the ever famous thirumamnancheri the ambal sits in her own sanadhi and only the utsava moorthi is a Kalyana kolam. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

Talking to God

2011-02-14T08:33:00.001+05:30

When you are born you are ordained to achieve something in this world, says the Gita.

Certain people have been born to lead a life of austerity and serve the god in turn they become the bridge between the god and the common man. These people due to their selfless service have that fragile thread of communication between the super power and self. Over a period of time they gain popularity and the word spreads and they start getting dakshina ( Guru Dakshina is an important part of our culture ), this dakshina is percentaged between the god/temple and him, lions share going to the temple and a little for his sustenance. This changes in due course and he starts to eye the money now more than god and at this point that fragile thread is cut loose and the communication stops. Unfortunately due to the requirement of the lifestyle change he is required to wear the mask and continue saying things that may not be relevant, the common man did not know about the communication break and continues to believe in him and ends up in a mess. Once he comes to know that the common man has become a conned man he starts to riot and spew vulgarities at the guru who was all the way leading him. The above is true for all the guru's of today, be it "Sri Sri Sri", Nithyananda, kanchi pedathipathi or the sai Baba in putaparthi. So what am I ordained to do ?
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Random Thoughts

2011-02-13T15:38:00.001+05:30

When you are really tired It is very difficult to sleep. I have an alarm at 0359 Hrs tomorrow and I am yet to sleep. SAT, FEB 12, 2011 23:23:24 Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

Sabarimala Darisanam

2011-02-13T15:37:00.001+05:30

Another trip to Sabarimala, this is with my in laws at Chalakudi and as always it is a small troupe (we are 6) as compared to my Mylapore troupe ( which usually runs to 80 odd).

It is nice to come in a small troupe and the experience is always different. A great Darshan, but the crowd was too much. As always I timed the Harivarasanam wrongly and missed it. The food in Sabarimala is daylight robbery and we need to live with that. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

Another trip starts.

2010-05-30T05:38:00.001+05:30

Early morning wakey wakey and a long drive to Madurai with imminent stops at dharmapuri and hogenakkal. We are on the way to the marriage of muktha's niece at palani with a halt at Madurai for a day and enroute see dada anjaneyar at dharmapuri. More to come. Sent from my iPad

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Patta for 1Re on a 99 year lease

2010-05-05T20:15:00.001+05:30

This is what has been promised to the slum dwellers in Kolkata as part of the civic body election. So we will have all the illegal immigrants getting a plot of land and settling down. How many people will turn against the own country which gave them land to settle down !!!

(via India Today - May 10 2010)

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The Crying Baby Syndrome.

2010-05-05T18:41:00.001+05:30

We are now travelling back. I have totally four kids near my Bay. I am going to love this.

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Goshala - Cow Shed

2010-05-05T12:07:00.001+05:30

Govindhapuram 12KM from Kumbakonam is the samathi of one of the Shankaracharya's. This place also hosts a Goshala, Goshala is the place where they keep and maintain cows in better Tamil terms "Mattu Thozhuvam". I have seen many such places but this is one of the best maintained. There are 200 cows here and maybe 50% of them are got from madhura and it is believed that their lineage is of the same cows that Krishna took care of. See their Ears. All the above/below photos were taken inside the Goshala. Will Tag these photos soon. -------------------------------------
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The Crying Baby Syndrome.

2010-05-03T21:13:00.001+05:30

Download now or listen on posterous

VN00002-20100503-2108.amr (15 KB)

My woes recorded.

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The Crying Baby Syndrome.

2010-05-03T21:00:00.001+05:30

DISCLAIMER :: I DON'T HATE KIDS. KIDS r KIDS and I love them. I do have it, I attract all kinds of babies the yelling, whining, yapping all through the night varieties. Travel in a flight and I have a baby sitting near me crying all through the flight, all through the 16 hours of flight and I just love it. Don't forget the five-year olds who walk all around ensuring nobody sleeps and the family double ensuring the same. Now on the train to Kumbakonam I have 3 kids aged between 1 and 5 who are yelling at the top of their lungs. One of the kid is walking around pulling the curtain with him so that he can see what is happening inside. Kids are Kids. :) The Family which is trying to pacify the kids are making More noise now I am not sure if it is the kids or the parents who are more disturbing. BTW upper berth is called Madi :) and the lower berth is called ground floor. So I am now going with a battalion of kids and noisy parents. Hope I get to sleep before 0400.
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On the way to Kumbakonam.

2010-05-03T20:16:00.001+05:30

So the next journey starts (OOTY was good) and this is the start of a few important functions at both my side and my wife's. Now we are going to kumbakonam to the Upanayanam of my Nephew. We did not have any inclination to leave the cool BANGALORE and get into the sultry heat of kumbakonam in the start of the Kathiri - May 4th to May 28th. The first week of June is my Wife's niece's marriage in Palani. Incidentally she is getting married to a classmate of my wife who remembers my wife but the other way round is zilch :) Followed by my Nephew's marriage in Chennai on the 5th and a get together of all the cousins in Chennai, the cousins are coming from the US and Èast Asia. Then we have MINORKUNJU's wedding http://www.twitter.com/minorkunju on the 21st of June in chennai. Apart from this we have multitude of visitors coming in all over May to BANGALORE which is going to keep us busy busy. Will keep posting my travelouge for the next two days.
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Self Discipline

2010-05-03T19:17:00.001+05:30

This is the reason Indians and India is considered as a dirty country. I should take back Indians here, if an Indian goes out of the country he is more cleanliness conscious than the locals. Maybe it is the fear of the fines or the police but it works. I am also not sure if we can police this and ensure everybody does it. IMHO Cleanliness cannot be enforced but has to be self imposed. One should think the country/state/city/council/street should be their house and keep it clean as they keep their houses clean. The above/below photo is at the cantonment station. -------------------------------------
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Comic: Reinventing the Wheel

2010-04-29T09:49:00.001+05:30

via willowgarage.com

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Excellence

2010-04-28T16:58:00.001+05:30

A German once visited a temple under construction where he saw a sculptor making an idol of God. Suddenly he noticed a similar idol lying nearby. Surprised, he asked the sculptor, "Do you need two statues of the same idol?" "No," said the sculptor without looking up, "We need only one, but the first one got damaged at the last stage." The gentleman examined the idol and found no apparent damage. "Where is the damage?" he asked. "There is a scratch on the nose of the idol." said the sculptor, still busy with his work. "Where are you going to install the idol?"

The sculptor replied that it would be installed on a pillar twenty feet high. "If the idol is that far, who is going to know that there is a scratch on the nose?" the gentleman asked. The sculptor stopped his work, looked up at the gentleman, smiled and said, "I will know it."

The desire to excel is exclusive of the fact whether someone else appreciates it or not. "Excellence" is a drive from inside, not outside. Excellence is not for someone else to notice but for your own satisfaction and efficiency.

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Truer Words...

2010-04-27T14:41:00.001+05:30

from blog without a library

Technorati Tags: Libraries

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Mainland China

2010-04-25T22:51:00.001+05:30

Right under the Domlur Flyover, this place as always been my favorite for Chinese food. Now with Viji my friend in Bangalore we felt it is a good time to go here. She has not eaten Chinese for more than 3 years so we felt it is good to also take her here. Great food their starters are so good that you stuff yourself without any place to have their main course, which is BTW super good. Don't miss their crackling spinach. We had a lettuce based starter which was also good. The image is a buddah which is kept in the foyer of the hotel. -------------------------------------
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Traffic Police in Bangalore - Shame

2010-04-23T11:23:00.001+05:30

Back from Chancery Pavilion I went straight on the Fm Carriappa Road and took a right without thinking near the Hayes Road. Realized my mistake and drove back on to the signal and i believe that was a one way and the policeman stopped me which i expected to happen. I moved to a corner and the policeman came forward, tried explaining to him in English but as usual he was talking in Kannada and finally i told him give me a receipt and i will pay the fine. He told me that the fine is 400 Rs and i can pay 100 rs to him and go. I got pissed and just drove off without paying anything.

Why is this happening in India only. When a citizen wants to go by the law the police wants to exhort money from him. I have checked a few times online to see if they have slapped a fine on me but till now i don't see anything.

These things should change if my country has to improve.

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Traffic Police in Bangalore - Shame

2010-04-23T11:15:00.001+05:30

These things should change if my country has to improve.

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ISV Event Sun Oracle

2010-04-23T10:40:00.001+05:30

This is an event happening live at the chancery pavilion in Bangalore. The event agenda is to understand how Oracle is going to Kill Sun slowly like what they did to Peoplesoft. Suprisingly the attendance is very less. A lady is reading right out of the paper without lifting her head. They discussed what the roadmap is for the solaris platform and how the ISV community is going to benefit by it. The ZFS volumes and storage boxes look promising in terms of speed and reliability. They also proposed a try and buy programme for this. The storage as a read and write ahead cache that is made of SSD and this will surely improve the performance of the NFS Storage. The chief technologist started explaining about the cool threads processes and the ideology behind the technology. Though we have already started to use the T2 processes it was good to know the details. Half way through that @minorkunju wanted to go home and we started. -------------------------------------
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Chennai Heat

2010-04-20T12:47:00.001+05:30

Unbearable - That is one word to describe this. It is not even proper summer yet and the heat is unbearable. Bangalore is also hot but we don't feel the heat as much as we feel in chennai. Even though we are born and bought up here it seems we will never get used to this climate, Maybe it is because we come from bangalore and we have got used to that climate that we are feeling this unbearable. -------------------------------------
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Pothys

2010-04-20T12:22:00.001+05:30

Trees for all. So how many trees will we get. Every 1000 we get a tree so we got a guva and chemburuthi.

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Pothys

2010-04-20T12:12:00.001+05:30

Reminds me of Angadi Theru the movie. A very touching movie about the pains of working in these garment super stores. Not sure how much is true of that movie but what they say about standing is all true. I don't see even one stool or chair in this whole store. Not even the lift has a chair where the lift operator ( Yes there is one ) can sit. Human rights where are you ???

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Kidney Treatment at Free of cost

2010-04-20T10:26:00.001+05:30

Tamilnadu Kidney Research Foundation, a foundation called TANKER (Tamilnadu kidney Research Foundation), where they treat all kidney related problems free of cost. They even do Dialysis free of cost. Please forward this message and let People utilize this opportunity. It can help people who are in need. Don't neglect. Please forward the message.

For further Details contact: 044 28273407 044 28273407 OR 044 28241635 044 28241635 .
TANKER FOUNDATION
C/o Mrs. Latha A. Kumaraswami
17, Wheatcrofts Road , Nungambakkam, Chennai - 600 034 INDIA. (Ph:(+91)-044- 28273407/

(+91)-044- 43090998 (+91)-044- 43090998 (+91)-044- 43090998 (+91)-044- 43090998 (+91)-044- 43090998 (+91)-044- 43090998 )
PLEASE DO FORWARD GENEROUSLY

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Ooty Chennai

2010-04-20T08:00:00.001+05:30

When we were planning our holiday we never thought we will drive from ooty to chennai. That is what fate is and we started doing that at 0900 hrs. Checked out and went to preethi cafe, the breakfast was good, better than the sunshine inn. Filled petrol and started on the conoor road back to chennai. My GPS was suggesting -

Connoor -> Metupalayam -> Coimbatore -> Karur -> Tiruchy -> Chennai Since we knew that the karur tiruchy via kulithalai road was being laid we decided to take Connoor -> Metupalayam -> Sathyamangalam -> Erode -> Namakal -> aathur -> perumbalur -> Ulundrupettai -> Chennai Man what roads these were impecable sate highways. Where does TN get so much infrastructure fund whereas karnataka keeps moaning about not getting any money even after it being the IT Hub. We stopped at Namakal to see the anjaneyar. We did not take any breaks after that and we reached chennai at 2000 hrs after driving for 10 hrs.

The one problem with this route is there is no decent eating/resting place on this route. Overall it was a great Ooty trip.

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At Ooty - Day 2

2010-04-20T02:07:00.001+05:30

We went to dottapetta first thing. The pathetic state in which our government maintains these tourist attractions pains us. People who have seen stonehenge and how the government there collects money to show a few stones and how they maintain it is a sight to see.

The Road leading to dodabetta was so bad I need to give the i10 for a wheel alignment at MRF.

Post dodabetta we went to Ooty lake which was not even properly marked. We finally managed to find it and took a rowing boat ride for 30 mnts. It was not all that great.

The boat man urged us to go to Pykarra and the kalathi water falls. So we drove down to the waterfalls, 16 hairpin bends later we learnt there is no water. So we ordered a tea and were assaulted by goats :)

The only thing good after the 16 hairpin bends is the great tea that we had at a tea stall on the road side. That lady was saying that it has not rained for a long time and hence no water in the water falls.

We went back all the 16 bends of hair and decided to go to conoor and also meet one of my wife's cousin who is there in Wellington, her hubby is a army major and he was attending course in the military college in wellington.

Decided not to go to Sim's park so that we can avoid a disappointment. Went straight to dolphin nose, lost our way and followed a taxi who took us to lamb's rock (Disappointment Galore) where we saw a tribal settlement ion a hillock.

Post that we went on our way to Dolphin nose. It was quite a scenic route with road winding through the tea plantations. The road was quite narrow but very good road.

After that we met the cousin at Orchid Square where we had a so so lunch at 1500 and due to the cousins persistence we had to go to her place.

The Cousin's place is on a hill top with a beautiful view of the surrounding hills and villages.

Spent time with them and then we started back to Ooty reached at 1730.

We decided to have dinner outside at commercial road. Did not feel like driving so decided to walk down the hill and get the rick. Fortunately one came in front of the hotel which we grabbed and went to Nihaar. Was suggested by the cousin.

The food was so so and by the time we left the hotel it was raining very hard. We took the rick back to the hotel and crashed. It rained all through the night.

So begins We leave ooty.

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Paiyaa @ Sathyam Cinemas

2010-04-20T01:34:00.001+05:30

After reading many not so rave reviews of the movie Paiyaa I am now sitting in the theatre for a night show of paiyaa. The main reason for this decision is not having anything else to do and no other good movie running in the halls. Will see if the movie stands upto the expectations set by other bloggers. Something about Sathyam : Every time we come here we're awed by how much this theatre has changed for the better. Starting from your online booking experience, which is a completely flash based ( Sorry Ipad ) [www.thecinema.in] snappy app that let's you buy even the food that you want in the interval. The way they maintain it and also the quality of sound and lighting is unparalleled. They have a gaming rink, a resturant and a cafe. That is a whole movie going experience. Somehow I feel that this theatre gives a run for the money for PVR kinds in bangalore. It is intermission time and till now I feel the movie is not bad. It is going good and it is a real masala flick. Maybe since I did not have a great expectation the movie is okay. Post Intermission the movie turned into a telugu flick where the hero hits 200 odd people after being hit several times by a iron pipe.

The climax was a clear bummer and the movie ended abruptly. One thing to note here - The first half had too many scenes in bangalore and me being a bangalorean for almost a year now have not seen places so free of traffic !!!

A final Question - Why was the movie named Paiyaa and not Ponnu !!!!

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At Ooty - Day 1

2010-04-17T08:06:00.001+05:30

It took us a while to find the sunshine inn. Though they had mentioned that it is near charring cross there were no clear markings and we ran around a few times and asked a few autos who directed us to the hotel. The room is clean and decent. They still have to improve a lot but it is okay. We had a room service lunch, which was good and then we took rest till three and then went to the botanical gardens. What a disappointment it was. After seeing kew gardens and the singapore botanical gardens, we felt The gardens are ill maintained and not live up to the hype. We walked around a bit took a few photos and then exited the park. Felt it prudent to take a rick so left the car at the hotel and took a rick to the commerical road, walked around.

Came back to the hotel and crashed @ 2100 Hrs !!!

Day 2 will start soon ....
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Off to Ooty - Take 3

2010-04-16T11:31:00.001+05:30

10:06:34 - Entering Bandipur Wildlife sanctuary. Hope to see a few wild animals. Monkeys sighted :) we are in the elephant zone. 10:22:51 - Following a car is better on this route since you will not hit those strip teasers at 40 KM/h. Karnataka state border, entering TN Tiger Reserve. 10:33:46 - At Mudhumalai. The roads are getting narower. We saw a
Trained elephant at the entry. A real tusker. 10:44:41 - The forest is over and we did not even see one wildlife :( 10:49:50 - The road from Manisangudi to ooty is a whole load of patch work. 11:02:42 - Entering Ghat section. More to come - OOTY is 20 Kms. We are at an elevation of 1072m. -------------------------------------
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Off to Ooty - Take 2

2010-04-16T10:02:00.001+05:30

We left Kamat Upahar at 07:28:28 and headed towards mysore. Muktha is driving now @ 0900. We took a short stretching break and now again on the road. The satnav was always asking me to get on to 212 near kannakapura good that we did not do that. The road to najangud from the mysore ring road NH212 is really riddled with pot holes. Filling petrol at an Indian Oil pump in nanjangud. The rate is 53.31 Per Litre. The station does not accept Credit Cards and not even a board that states that !!! Now on the lookout for an ATM. There are strip speed breakers every 1 KM and the i10 is taking its brunt. The road after nanjagud has become a lot better no strip teasers as well. It is quite difficult to differentiate between a trees shadow and the strip teaser. Muktha feels that everything is a speed breaker and slows down. More to come..... 100 Kms to OOTY. :)
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Off to Ooty - Take 1

2010-04-16T07:20:00.001+05:30

Keeping the alarm at 0400 got up switched the alarm off and reset it to 0415 and slept. Got up again at 0415 and was discussing if we can set the alarm to 0500 and start at 0600. Decided to set the alarm at 0500 and noticed that it was nearing 0500 so got up got ready and now getting out of the house @ 05:46:03 After passing a few bunch of jokers we are now at KAmat Upahar on the mysore Highway. I have ordered for Idly Vada and the vada looks delicious. My Garmin GPS is giving me a totally different route than what I got from Team-BHP. More to come soon. -------------------------------------
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My site

2010-04-15T00:27:00.001+05:30

Iyertalks.com and Posterous have got a new look and feel. Finally did something worthwhile.
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Amul Masti - A follow up.

2010-04-14T22:32:00.001+05:30

After the complaint I promptly received a mail asking for contact numbers. I gave the number and in minutes I got a call from a customer service officer who told that his assistant will collect the pack and they will ensure that this will not happen. At 8 in the evening the person came collected the pack and gave me the above :) and told they will get back to me soon.
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Vishu Kani @ Home

2010-04-14T22:26:00.001+05:30

So we have done the vishu kani and will see it tomorrow first thing before sunrise. Happy Vishu and hope the year brings all properity your way. -------------------------------------
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Amul Masti Spoilt

2010-04-13T23:47:00.001+05:30

Suprisingly the Amul Masti Tetra pack that i purchases yesterday from SPAR in bangalore bearing Batch Number :: GH070 01:05:57 seems to be spoiled.

We are big fans of Amul Masti and are saddned to see this. Have raised a complain that i have pasted below ...

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Extract iso file on Solaris

2010-04-12T12:51:00.001+05:30

# create a logical filesystem for the ISO file
lofiadm -a /ora/share/mira-rtm-oracle-dumps.iso /dev/lofi/1
# Create a temporary mount point for the ISO file
mkdir /dvd
# Mount logical filesystem into temporary mount point
mount -F hsfs /dev/lofi/1 /dvd
# Check the exploded files
cd /dvd
ls
# Make a directory to copy over exploded files from temporary mount
mkdir /software
cd /dvd
cp -R * /software
# delete logical file system and temporary mount directories.
umount /dvd
lofiadm -d /dev/lofi/1
rm -r /dvd

via blogs.sun.com

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Photo of the Day

2010-04-11T23:10:00.001+05:30

Photo of the Day
Posted by Shadi Hamid

(An Afghan man gives tea to a U.S soliders of 3rd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division patrol during a search operation to hunt members of Taliban in Nerkh district of Wardak province in west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, May 1, 2009. AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Via Ruminating Out Loud

April 09, 2010 at 08:02 AM | Permalink

via democracyarsenal.org

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Photo

2010-04-11T23:08:00.001+05:30

Check out this website I found at loveyourchaos.tumblr.com

Great Photo

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Bicycle storage in Japan

2010-04-09T12:13:00.001+05:30

via youtube.com

This a tooo good....

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The best 10-year-old hoops player in the U.S.?

2010-04-08T14:40:00.001+05:30

via youtube.com

This is Talent !!!

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Nissan Sentra SE-R Drift

2010-04-08T14:12:00.001+05:30

via youtube.com

Great Video ...

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Horrendous Holiday. I made a mistake going - End Of Post.

2009-05-20T22:55:00.001+05:30

Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

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Fire - The Integral Part of Hindu Religion.

2009-05-15T12:03:00.001+05:30

Fire - One among the pancha boothams (the 5 essential elements for sustaining life in this planet ). Fire has been worshiped and is being worshiped by all major religions in this world and in Hinduism Fire is prayed as God Agni and forms an integral part of any function. Starting from the first birthday then on to the upanayanam, marriage and finally death, we either sit in front of it or get burnt on it. Sacrificial items are offered to the phyre created, which range from Ghee to even cooked food. The food is cooked and then offered into the phyre during the chants of mantras by learned seers. Also various kinds of seeds and spice items are poured into the phyre which they say cure lot of aliments when inhaled or the smoke touches the body. What you see on the image is the phyre lit in a marriage, where in front the bride and the groom sit and do offerings. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

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Hotel Indraprastha @ Palakkad

2009-05-15T09:28:00.001+05:30

Not a Bad hotel. It is a 24 Hour check-out and I paid 1500 + tax. The hotel is listed on the google maps so no difficulty finding it. It's 2 Km from the railway station. The hotel serves good food but please be aware that unless you specify the make everything in Coconut oil. Even the Omlette are made in coconut oil :) Here is the address if you want to stay. Hotel Indraprastha English Church Road, Palakkad-678 001. Phone: 2534641 (7 lines) Fax:2539531. E-mail: info@hotelindraprastha.com
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A Group Photo of the Kids at the Marriage.

2009-05-14T20:47:00.001+05:30

Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

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Chitalancheri Kaavu.

2009-05-14T18:43:00.001+05:30

This is the ancestral temple of my wife's family. Each family line in india pray to a particular god. How they select this god is beyond me and I am sure somebody here can enlighten me. If I get to know this than I will update this post with details. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

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On a Week Long Vacation.

2009-05-14T17:32:00.001+05:30

After nearly a year I am taking a week long vacation and I am in Kerala till the 20th. I am now at Palakkad and then on to Guruvayoor, Thirssur and finally Trivandrum. We went to Neliampathy and also to our Kaavu(the ancestral temple). Have posted a few photos of the former on Facebook and will upload more photos on Facebook in the next 7 Days. Neliampathy is termed as the poor mans ooty and it was a great place though we did not go all the way up as Muktha was feeling a bit nauseous and we expecting the Jr did not want to take risks. More updates coming and in real time follow @iyertalks on twitter. Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

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A Visit from the Relatives.

2009-05-02T00:01:00.001+05:30

Another week gone by and this week i worked for 2 days [Mon & Tue] i.e. went to office. It is 5 Years since i have digested the fact that i don't have to be in Office to be working. I have been working from home for almost 3 years before i started going full time to office.

I had the privilege of experiencing a molten stomach and was bed ridden for the better part of Wednesday and Thursday and was sort of alright on Friday, this does not mean i was not working. On Thursday evening i had relatives from my Mom Side visiting us and it was a welcome to change to have around 7 People in the house for me and my wife. We live in a 3 BHK that is too big for two of us.

Unfortunately they had to leave today and in batches so had to go to Cantonment twice and ensured that they boarded the train safe and sound with ample things to et on the way.

The afternoon trip proved eventful. :)

I escorted my aunt who is 80+ to the cantonment station and in that process did not buy the platform ticket ... I am sure anybody can guess what happened after that :) I had to pay a fine of Rs 275 for that which i willingly paid since it was my mistake but people should see the look the policeman gave me, it was as though i have robbed him off his Rs 200, that he would have threatened me in paying him as "Mamool" and that was fun and priceless.

On the office front we have managed to get an Approva to spend 85K USD on a DELL HW and that is real good at a time when they are asking us to punch more holes into our belt to tighten it...

Ayan review coming your way soon ....

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My First Form 16

2009-05-01T21:37:00.001+05:30

I have received my First Form 16. Should i be thrilled ?

Yes in a way i am thrilled about this whole thing, have never filed taxes in India (Have never earned more than the Exempted Minimum in India), but seeing that i have paid a tax of more than 100K Rs makes me feel sick.

I am just not able to comprehend that i am paying taxes that are going to no improvements for the tax payers. It helps the elected to buy a new Scorpio whereas the tax payer has to think more than twice before he puts his money down for a Nano. (I am not even talking about the car but the Music Player)

Every citizen of India is mandated to get the basic needs of Good Roads & Good Water at a bare minimum from the government. I am sure there will be more than a few people to voice my opinion when i say that the basic needs of a common man are never satisfied in this country/state/city. Every politician here states that he is a Farmer and he is fighting for the farmers cause - Go on tell me have you seen one farmer who drives a Scorpio around, forget Scorpio, he does not even own a Cycle. The only vehicle he owns is a Tractor and that too is under hypothecation with the Bank or with the Local Money Lender.

Is somebody listening ... India is growing at a fast pace .. Lightning fast pace to be exact and only a segmented few are getting benefited by this growth and the majority (like us) are still fighting for those basic needs !!!

India instead of growing should start listening and listening hard to it's inner voices.

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Blackberry Pearl Flip

2009-04-30T22:36:00.001+05:30

via blackberrycool.com

Will This be My Next Phone ... I am really eyeing this as i see my Curve going to a Stale state. The phone is quite impressive and i am looking forward to get my hands dirty on a sure type. Let us see how things go.

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Posterous | Formatting.

2009-04-24T00:50:00.001+05:30

It is not a WYSWIG. I typed a huge blog post and it is not all that well formatted. Line breaks are applied only if the line ends with an exclamation. !!!

So I need to reformat the post to make it readable.

Sent from BlackBerry® on Airtel

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Trains running on time.

2009-04-24T00:33:00.001+05:30

Why can't trains in India run on time. It is only 3 out of 10 times I have boarded a train that started on time. Every time it is either delayed or cancelled. Today Fri, Apr 24, 2009 we planned at 1400 that we are going to chennai and I booked the tickets via IRTC and it got confirmed at 2000 hrs. Great, so we reached cantonment railway station in bangalore at 2230 hrs and the board was saying 2300 arrival for the Chennai Mail @ platform 2. We sort of asked around for the coach number and sat at a place where someone indicated that the coach will come. Here is what happened after that. 2300 No train. 2310. The display board changed to indicate that the train is coming on this platform and we were sitting at coach S13 so we left that place and walked over to a sign board which displayed B3. 2320 No train. Waiting tweeting and the wife is frustrated. Me checking on trainenquiry.com and it says no delay !!!

2335 No train. Me loosing the cool. Board still displays 2300 Hrs. I call 139 and the automated ladies voice tells me that the train is delayed by 50 minutes. WTF. 2345 The train comes, we board my wife is almost swooning. We manage to wake the mallu sleeping at a lower berth shift him to the middle and I wait for TTR. My wife sleeps. 2355 TTR comes. I don't have a printout so have to pay 50Rs fine. He checks my PAN card and says the name where my initial is expanded don't match with my pan card. Grrrrrr.
00:05 finally convinced him. Payed the fine and got on the top berth. 00:10 Getting your bed set is an art in itself on the upper berth stole a pillow from the opp berth ;) since my pillow was a wasted flatline. The ordeal of a train journey. I am not sure how people do it every weekend from bangalore to chennai and back. Hats off to you guys !!!!

Now I need to do this every month for 8 months. The next trip is Kerala on the 13th May and hope we won't be subjected to this again. Why Can't trains leave on time. !!!
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Is this an Answer !!!

2009-04-23T00:04:00.001+05:30

We have got this from a candidate who is contesting in our LS Polls. The place he is talking about does not have decent roads nor does it have street lights ... We are in the Baghdad of Bangalore and he claims to have done Electrification of Bangalore. This is what we get and do we have to live with this ???

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Oracle agrees to $7.4 billion Sun Microsystems acquisition

2009-04-21T00:14:00.001+05:30

via boygeniusreport.com

I would say this is one of the most beneficial take overs ever to happen. The DB as well as the Platform on which the DB Runs will all be bundled and we can see great things coming to Oracle and Sun via this overall.

For starters we should start seeing Databases that perform better on the SUN Hardware. A Single point of Customer Support for both the databases and Hardware/OS.

Oracle is all set to get a major chunk of the Database market if this is cleared by the anti-trust laws.

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Photo: Infinite Possibilities by Philip Perold

2009-04-21T00:03:00.001+05:30

via OneXprosure.com

Great Photo. Me and my wife were impressed.

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More than a Year !!!

2009-04-18T17:47:00.003+05:30

Whew ... I did not expect this ... Job Hunting, Moving back from Singapore, Getting settled down in Bangalore and here we go 1 year has run by ... I have been busy tweeting and never got around to blogging. Serious blogging has stopped now mainly due to fact that i am able to collate my random thoughts on to Tweets .. Let us see if i can continue blogging meanwhile follow me on Twitter - Iyertalks ...

House Hunt

2008-07-01T18:46:00.006+05:30

“All the best for your house hunt”

We first received this wish from one of my husband’s friend, when we informed him that we are going to purchase a house. We really didn’t understand the gravity of this statement our well wisher made. Being PR we are eligible to buy only houses that are at least 4-5 years of age.

Days turned to months and still we are getting the same wish from all our well wishers….and we are still on a look out for our dream home in this land which is full of houses and skyscrapers. We have indeed turned into literal hunters, and every time we go on an house hunting spree, we don’t find our kind of prey(house) at all or even if we do find one it escapes from our trap, and we stand there helpless.

Our initial enthusiasm has just become a sort of routine and has gone to an extend where, we have decided to take a break from viewings for at least another 2 weeks…

One good thing about house hunting is that; now we don’t postponed our important businesses to the weekends, since during the weekends we become nomads- Wandering around the whole of the country in search of a house with a bag with the street directory and the bus guide.

Now those who are reading this might think “you need to compromise on something”. Very valid point. But we had only one condition that there shouldn’t be a bathroom Inside the kitchen….which is a very common feature in the houses here, and we are still determined that we should not at any cost let go this condition we put.

Of course we saw few so called “renovated “ houses that met our criterion, but then unfortunately, one house has been renovated to look like a studio hotel apartment, one doesn’t have a master bedroom as it has been renovated to a walk in wardrobe. In some houses, two bedrooms had been converted into a mega huge bedroom, so eventually the house just had one bedroom. In such cases we can’t hang a “no entry overnight visitors” board in the main door of the house. Some houses had a platform with steps that led to the bed, so we being quite tall could touch the ceiling with ease.

There were houses which we liked a lot , but couldn’t justify the cost or even before we could give an offer , the house would have got sold.

Now when we hear an “all the best” , it is like we are going for an exam , and if we pass we get a house , we fail we don’t .

Our next phase of action is going on house hunt for Condominium, hope we will have luck at least this time….

“All the Best for your house hunt”

Hello

2008-06-30T20:43:00.002+05:30

HELLO

A word that we use maximum in day. But why do we have to use it so very often; be it in person or over a phone call. The reasons could be because……

It is the best courteous word that can be uttered by us without any bad consequence even at the worst of our moods

To hide our unhappiness to receive a call from a person , be it known or unknown at the wrong time of the day

You are simply being forced to since so many people are using it

When we feel “Come on ,you can start your blah blah blah and I am willing to or rather forcing myself to listen to you”

Genuinely happy to receive a call or meet that person J

Better way to address a person from behind, when you are not too sure of the who it is ( from his /her physical features of the back) , yet your brain cells try hard to make a connection, for some reason unknown and might break open if the correct personality is not found ….

Not too sure as to how to address the other person, standing in front of you

Easy way to break ice in the general atmosphere when in a group, even at the stage when it is beginning to form.

Just that you don’t want a revolution to start because of you, by addressing or greeting a person using a different style

Last but not the least , we need to begin a conversation at some point of time with someone , and it is this “magic 4 letter word” that helps us overcome the basic apprehensions and helps us in building a relationship that might turn out to be the longest lasting relationship a person could ever have…

Added a New Author to this Blog

2008-05-22T12:50:00.002+05:30

My Better half will also be posting into this blog. Hope we can revive it from the dead.

Movie Review :: Kireedom

2007-09-30T20:14:00.001+05:30

I missed to see this movie when in Singapore since i wanted to take my better half to this movie when i visited Chennai. But unfortunately we never managed to go to this movie and i missed it at both places. Finally managed to grab this movie at Cinenow a movie rental place in Singapore. Man was i glad that i saw this movie.

The Movie was very well done and there was not even one scene in the movie which made you feel "Aw Come on" the fight scenes were quite natural and it was great to see a movie in recent times where the proverbial 200 Pound villan is not swung like a rag doll by the proverbial 75 Pound hero !!!

The Movie is about a straight and honest Police man [Rajkiran] - who wants his son [Ajith] to become a Sub-Inspector - is transferred to a rowdy infested city since he did not apologize for hitting the MLA son. So there we have the Villan who hits the father the son hits the Villan which makes him a Target for the rowdy population and what problems he faces from the rowdies is the movie. The songs are too good and Vizhyil in my opinion is the best among the lot.

Worth Watching. My Rating ::

Image from :: Ayngaran

My New Phone

2007-09-28T09:05:00.001+05:30

It is a Week since i got the BlackBerry Curve 8300 .I have fallen in Love with this phone the ease of messaging, the quality of the calls and the build quality puts this phone right above a lot of other phones in the market in the same price category. I have gone for this phone on a 2 Year contract and this is the Longest i have thought before i purchased a phone. The main reason for the confusion was a 100$ rebate voucher which was offered and revoked and one of the sales agent saying that the BlackBerry will not work without a Blackberry plan, which made me rethink my decision on getting a BlackBerry. I did not need the Blackberry plan since i have a corporate one that will do all the tricks.

After 3 Weeks of fighting i have got the curve on my hands and i am in Love :)

Unfortunately BlackBerry came out with the 8320 which has WiFi on it but i am sure it is going to take close to 3 months to get it in Singapore. The Amount of International Messaging i am doing these days i felt i should get a phone with a QWERTY keyboard and i made a wise decision and i was not interested in waiting for the 8320. It usually becomes a Cat and Mouse game with these gadgets :)

Image Courtesy :: Rimarkable.com

Movie Review :: Sathum Podathey

2007-09-26T20:14:00.001+05:30

Another movie where Vasanth has scored. Thoroughly impressed with the movie and the cast. Everyone of the them have put their hard work into the movie and it clearly shows in the way the movie ensnares you for close to three hours. A well written script with lot of slap stick comedy and an excellent BG from Yuvan has given great strengths to the movie. I am not going to break the suspense by giving away the story. I would suggest you go and ensoy the movie in the theater.

My Rating for this movie ::

Office Politics

2007-09-26T19:56:00.001+05:30

Every office surely has politics but politics cannot be the way of life. That is what is happening in projects these days. It is difficult to be truthful and also have a straight face and work. Back stabbing and bickering have become a way of life and i think the IT profession is the most well known for this !!!

</RANT MODE OFF>

Engaged

2007-07-22T07:51:00.001+05:30

It is nearly a month since I got engaged. Unfortunately the photos came like a week back and me being the lazy bum never uploaded it so now it is all there in a Picasa Web Album. I have made it an Unlisted album. I have embedded a Flash movie below so if you are interested look below. :)

Harry Potter is Here...

2007-07-21T21:17:00.001+05:30

I have received the final volume will give you updates soon. Till then i am busy reading ... :)

Consumed Over the Last few Weeks.

2007-07-09T22:55:00.001+05:30

Michael Crichton's latest offering on Genetic Technology. A Nice book if you are interested in learning what is happening in the Genetic world. Talking Parrots and monkeys with the human gene in them. The Book was more towards urging governments to ban gene patents. As i told people will like this book if you like the MC style of writing.

Khaled Hosseini's first book it was recommended by a sales clerk in Landmark in chennai (Hats Off Sir). An excellent book about friendship and it's betrayal all set in Afghanistan Post Russia conquest and also talks about the Taliban Regime. Highly Recommended.

Drip ... Drip ... Drip ...

2007-07-09T21:37:00.001+05:30

My Kitchen was leaking from the roof before i went to Chennai 3 weeks back. The Management at my apartment tried in Vain to find the leak and they even redid the roof plastering and finally came to the conclusion that it was one of the Pipes that is leaking. The leak has spoiled the cabinets in the Kitchen and the smell of rotting wood Ugh !!!

The owner promised that he will have the whole thing replaced but unfortunately the Insurance company has not come back with the claim money and so my kitchen is still rotting and i need to keep the main water valve closed.

It is still leaking and the pains of not having water when you open the tap in toilet !!!

AirIndia Express

2007-07-09T18:30:00.001+05:30

How low can a Airline go ?

I have now made it a habbit to travel by this airline from Singapore Chennai and return. The reasons being that this is a "No Frills" airline and the prices are quite comptetive when compared to the other airlines in the same sector.

They have a few funny policies... When you travel from Singapore to Chennai you are allowed 30Kgs per Ticketed Passenger and while travelling from Chennai to Singapore the Luggage gets restricted to 20Kgs per person. Not sure what the Logic behind this restriction is. It is normal for people to carry more luggage when comming back from their home town and not the other way round. Even if they dont buy anything they should be allowed to carry back the same 30 they bought from the Origin city. Is this a cheap trick by the airline to collect the fare on a different head ?

The best part of the flight was the movie. They show a movie but dont provide you with headsets and they expect you to purchase these from them at a 2$ rate. I have travelled my share of "No Frill" Airlines but have not seen this.

Hope somebody reads this and atleast correct the Luggage policies.

POI !!!

2007-01-09T14:24:00.001+05:30

It is a POI if somebody says that the movie is good. Pathetic Movie and I am not sure why KB has stooped himself so much just to put a chappa in the industry after a Long silence (Duet if i am correct was his last

Prakash Raj and KB have tried to Introduce a New Hero and Heoine unfortunatley even with KB's severe training the hero's performance was very mediocore. The second heroine is the Girl from Madhavan Starrer "Nala Damayanti".

The scenes were KB and Prakash Raj appear is the worst scenes in the movie. Went with great expectations and sat thru the movie since i did not have anything much to do or else i would have scampered off !!! Avoid it even on a Home Screen !!!

To top all this waited 4 Hours loitering around in Yishun to watch this .... Have to blame self for that idiocy !!!

My Ratings ::

Singapore Show Times

Yishun Box Office for Tamil Movies :: +65.65544747

Wireless@SG

2007-01-03T17:43:00.001+05:30

Singapore Infocom Development Authority [IDA] have started an initiative where the better part of Singapore would be able to ensoy wireless Internet access for free. So a 512 Kbps wireless access for free and the only thing you need is a Wireless enabled Computer/PDA. This venture is being promoted in association with Singtel, ICell and QMax. Register at Wireless@SG and start surfing if you are visiting Singapore or Living here.

Seems to be a great initiative and they have promised three years of free Access and then .... Anyway's 3 Years is a Long time as such. I am currently typing this from a Hotel Lobby. Been here for almost an hour, shooting off now before somebody starts questioning. Cheers !!!!

Thiruvilayadal Arambam

2007-01-03T17:33:00.001+05:30

A Dhanush Shriya Prakash Raj Starer was a Okayish movie. I would not rate it very high, I would advice don't go with very high expectations. Dhanush was a lot like his mamanar (Father-In-Law) the super star both his actions and dress style resembled super star a lot. To top it all up there was the Remix of "Enama Kannu" from the Movie Bharath which drove that feeling right into the bone.

It is a general Time Pass and a Good family Entertainer with not many dirty scenes/words. I would say if you are single like me go to the Theaters if you are not then i would recommend a fast Forward watch of the movie on DVD/VCD.

My Ratings ::

Singapore Show Timings.

Consuming Now & Consumed

2007-01-02T14:44:00.001+05:30

Just finished Reading another Matthew Reilly Book. "Area 7" Another action Packed book a nice fast pacer but as I continue reading his books i feel that they all have the same plot not sure if i will continue reading his books. This was no different to "Ice Station".

I am now reading Paulo Coelho. His books have a great impact on the reader. I am now reading the "Fifth Mountain" and will provide you a review once i finish it.

Back In Singapore

2007-01-02T13:45:00.001+05:30

I am now Back in Singapore and have been very busy with the move. So was not able to blog but you will get regular updates from me. One of my resolutions for the new year. Hope I can keep it up.

The House Rent's in Singapore have increase tremendously and i had a serious problem finding a good apartment in Singapore. Now i have found one and it is quite Close to my work place and Little India, places i am usually found loitering. If anybody needs the Name of the House Agent please feel to drop a comment and i will mail you the Number.

I am moving in on the 15th of August - "Thai Porantha Vazhi Porakum" thingy and will post photos of the place.

Seasons Greetings

2007-01-01T13:13:00.000+05:30

All you out there Wish you a Happy New Year. Making this a Simple Post.

On Board Internet

2006-10-24T15:47:00.001+05:30

This is the best thing after sliced bread and I have been waiting for this for years.

Singapore Airlines on the Singapore London Sector and a few other sectors is giving access to Internet if you a Wireless Enabled Laptop. Now I don't have to waste 12 Hours of flying time staring at a Movie or a Book.

Unfortunately this is short lived since the service is being offered by Connexion from Boeing and they are taking it off air as of 31st December 2006. So if you are flying SIA from SIN => LHR would recommend you get a Fully charged Battery and surf away.

Consuming Now /Consumed ...

2006-10-09T02:51:00.001+05:30

I am currently reading "The Afghan" by Frederick Forsyth. More Reviews later but the first impression is it is good. Update :: Great Book was quite impressed that this book interests my father too (He is not even a reader!!!) My Rating ::

I just finished "The Ice Station" by Matthew Reilly. A very good book fast paced book. If you get a chance read it. My Rating ::

Update to My Vista Installation

2006-10-09T02:15:00.001+05:30

Had to Remove it from the computer and Install Red Hat Linux. I was fed up not even one publicly available product seems to work. The only thing that works is MS Office and Internet Explorer and that is useless to me unless I can install my VPN Client and none of the Clients seem to Work.

Went back to Good old Linux where everything works really great except for my Wireless Card. Need to figure out that, yes yes it is still open source and we do have teething issues.

All Said and done I would say if you are nota serious player go ahead and install Vista and give it a run.

Don't Flush...

2006-10-09T01:51:00.001+05:30

Don't Flush if it is just a pee. This is what the Mayor's office is advising to save on water. Throw Hygiene Out of the Window. Wonderful !!!!

A Linguist in the making

2006-10-05T03:36:00.001+05:30

A man was arrested in Seattle for speaking in Tamil says this news daily and this person has promised that he will not speak a foreign language in the Airport. Good so now how many languages should one learn if that person is traveling around the world. English is a Foreign Language to a lot of people in Europe so can we say it is threatening if I talk in English !!!

Windows Vista

2006-10-05T03:21:00.001+05:30

Have managed to grab a Laptop lying around in the office and install Windows Vista RC1 today. It is available as a Customer preview Program if you need to try it. I should say it is very good though i am not a big fan of Microsoft but it is nice to see that they have done an excellent job on the Interface but as usual it needs more power and more power and more power ....

It ate away a whooping 7 GB off my HDD which was astounding since it did not even ask me what i wanted to install. The Installation process has been greatly simplified a few dialogs and it starts copying away ... very nice. Would still prefer it to ask me more questions on what to Install and start.

If you have a spare PC and 512MB of RAM i would say give it a go maybe just for the fun of it.

The Apple Guys mocked at the Logo saying it has gone inside a Bubble like the Lepoard Interface logo ... Not sure why they choose this.

Google Reader

2006-09-30T21:45:00.001+05:30

A Blog aggregator created by google a year back has now become more mature. A Nice interface more keyboard shortcuts (very important for me) and does a very good job. As all Google sotware it is still in beta. Give it a try here it is - Google Reader.

Here is my Public Page that shows my favis from various Blogs.

Click

2006-09-30T05:01:00.001+05:30

Just back from this movie. A Very hilarious movie, throughly impressed. No Logic in the Movie but it is a good time pass. Gets across an important message that your Life is more important than your job. Would recommend it.

Official Web Site :: London Show Timings :: Reviews

I rate it at ::

Back Again

2006-09-30T04:48:00.001+05:30

Sorry for this continuous interruptions I have been having. This time it was due to Windows Live Writer which took the wrong turn because I upgraded to Blogger Beta. Here is a Fix for making it work.

Chennai Metro Map

2006-09-07T02:31:00.000+05:30

How many of you have seen this? For starters I have not.

Surprised that there is something like this available which displays the line and all the stops and the connections.

Have never felt a need to have this in Madras since we knew what is where and it is not all that complicated.

Would never be able to go on the Tube in London without the Tube Map. Amsterdam is not all that difficult pronouncing the names is the tough part. For the Size of Singapore they have an Impressive list of lines and it is indeed complicated.

This is a very nice site which display Metro Maps across the world :: UrbanRail.net

Windows Live Writer

2006-09-06T02:18:00.000+05:30

Has Stopped working with the Blogger Beta ... Will MS release a Fix for this. Until that time i am going to use the blogger to post it ... Not a Great way so there may be gaps !!!! (Again)

A Tribute ....

2006-09-05T03:28:00.000+05:30

A great naturalist has been taken away from us today by a Sting Ray. This is a real sad day for the Reptilian and Mammalian world.

Steve Irwin was a Great naturalist and I have always loved his shows on the Discovery channel and Animal Planet. I have enjoyed his crocodile files and many times i have felt he was a bit crazy.

He loved his animals so much that he even entered a crocodile pen with his baby in one hand !!!!

As somebody aptly put it he died doing what he liked the most.

The crocs are now shedding real tears !!!!!

To a great person who showed us that animals also have feelings and can be loved - Salutes to you ......

Instant MBA

2006-09-04T03:47:00.000+05:30

I got this mail this morning and it made me gawk out loud. An MBA in 7 Freaking Days. That is absolutely crazy and the cost of it is 50,000 INR or thereabouts.

So is there no body keeping tab on these autorocities. What about people who slog 2 years to get this degree !!!!

Boycott English - Why ?

2006-09-01T18:12:00.000+05:30

Okay Let us get this real straight. English is a Worldwide Language and that is a fact that people need to accept. How much ever you Rant and Rave about your mother tounge you will not be able to communicate in that once you leave your home town. Think about it Tamil (which happens to be my mother tounge) as a Language has more dialects than you can count and when i leave my home town and go to a different part of TamilNadu I end up in a state where i cannot understand half the spoken words :)

Now Karanataka (The ex-IT state of India) is all set to Boycott English or atleast Boycott schools which have gone from Karnataka as the Medium of Education to English.

So now we will have a spur of Toddlers who only know Kanadiga and cannot understand English and cannot Speak Fluent English. Where do they stand in the Global Market. Leave the Global Market where do they stand on the Indian Job Market.

The Next thing we are going to hear is MK comming with something as stupid to get Tamil as the state language.

Globalaization will become a thing of the Past !!!!

Based on :: IBN News Live

16 GB USB Stick

2006-08-31T20:26:00.000+05:30

How would you like to have 16GB of Data in your pocket. No I did not mistype it.

It is a 16GB Memory Stick to be Introduced by Toshiba in Late December and available from their online stores.

That is 4 DVD's Worth of Movies :: Almost 5000 Songs ripped to MP3 format.

This is awesome. Happy ripping guys ...

IyerTalks

Foster Home for 2 Year , Male, Fawn color Lab

45 Rules of Life

Relationships are Easy

Why relationships are easy

How the Lord Works

The Burnt Biscuits

You — Not Your Competitors — Define Your Destiny

4 things about Home Loan you might not Know

1. Tax deductions for House under-construction

2. Selling the House before 5 yrs reverses the tax saved earlier

3. Loan taken from Friends and Family is eligible for Deductions (Interest)

4. 80C is not allowed for loans taken for Extension or Renovation of House

10 Things I am Trying to Teach My Kids About Money Before They Reach Adulthood

The Habit of Being Honest

Koodalmanikyam - Nadavarambu - Bharathan Temple

Single Prathishta

The Sangameswara

Kannam Puzhai Baghavathy - Chalakudi - Suyambhu

Kodungallur Bagavathy - An amsam of Kannagi

Thiruvanchi Kolam - Temple to Solve wedding issues.

Talking to God

Random Thoughts

Sabarimala Darisanam

Another trip starts.

Patta for 1Re on a 99 year lease

The Crying Baby Syndrome.

Goshala - Cow Shed

The Crying Baby Syndrome.

The Crying Baby Syndrome.

On the way to Kumbakonam.

Self Discipline

Comic: Reinventing the Wheel

Excellence

Truer Words...

Mainland China

Traffic Police in Bangalore - Shame

Traffic Police in Bangalore - Shame

ISV Event Sun Oracle

Chennai Heat

Pothys

Pothys

Kidney Treatment at Free of cost

Ooty Chennai

At Ooty - Day 2

Paiyaa @ Sathyam Cinemas

At Ooty - Day 1

Off to Ooty - Take 3

Off to Ooty - Take 2

Off to Ooty - Take 1

My site

Amul Masti - A follow up.

Vishu Kani @ Home

Amul Masti Spoilt

Extract iso file on Solaris

Photo of the Day

Photo of the Day Posted by Shadi Hamid

Photo

Bicycle storage in Japan

The best 10-year-old hoops player in the U.S.?

Nissan Sentra SE-R Drift

Horrendous Holiday. I made a mistake going - End Of Post.

Fire - The Integral Part of Hindu Religion.

Hotel Indraprastha @ Palakkad

A Group Photo of the Kids at the Marriage.

Chitalancheri Kaavu.

On a Week Long Vacation.

A Visit from the Relatives.

My First Form 16

Blackberry Pearl Flip

Posterous | Formatting.

Trains running on time.

Is this an Answer !!!

Oracle agrees to $7.4 billion Sun Microsystems acquisition

Photo: Infinite Possibilities by Philip Perold

More than a Year !!!

House Hunt

Hello

Added a New Author to this Blog

Movie Review :: Kireedom

Photo of the Day
Posted by Shadi Hamid