Hyderabad Times Party

Attended the Hyderabad Times (HT) Party at ITC Kakatiya on 16th,
Saturday.

Hmmmm, what can I say.

Having attended Bangalore Times parties, I have to say, Hyderabad was
nowhere near the mark of Bangalore, forget Bombay and Delhi.

Other than Azhar and Sangeetha, for a non-telugu movie watcher there
were no celebrities at all. Tollywood supposedly turned up in force
judging by the coverage in Hyderabad Times (HT)today but none of them
were recognisable to our group of 10.

There were the occasional designers and the rest of them, but for the
most it was compised of the Hyderabadi Reddy's whose names are dropped
so often in the same HT. We normally get to meet more celebrities at
each visit to Preetam Reddy's "Touch" than the whole of the HT party.

The entertainment was restricted to a couple of dancers from the Bombay
dance bars, 3 Russian women who danced what the MC called the Can-Can
but from my limited knowledge of music and dance it seemed more of a
Flamenco oriented, Spanish-Gypsy music and dance number. Except that
they did kick their legs up high which could be reminiscent of the
can-can I guess. Then there were these 2 males from bombay who were
supposed to be strippers, but they didnÂ’t take off anything other than
their shirts. And they were wearing jeans so totally unfair
entertainment policy I should say, given that the female dancers were
wearing the barest minimum of fabric.

The MC did an absolutely lousy job of it. She kept repeating "so is this
party going to rock" as if willing it to rock just by her constant
repetition. Sad fact being that the attendees were usually, actually
having a good time until she came on stage to ask her rocking question.

The MC then conducted a so called "Spot Prize" distribution and called
out names of tolly wood stars to receive gift vouchers worth Rs.3000/-
each. Neither the distributor or the distributees could be located for
quite awhile. Finally the distributor n his wife were duly located, but
only 2 of the distributees were to be found. Allu arjun for most
eligible bachelor and some other guy who couldnÂ’t speak English too well
for dressing Bollywood style. Guess he was going for the Sallu look
since he had most of his buttons open.

The Band "Tidal Waves" from Goa was great. Their English numbers were
quite good, but with the theme being Bollywood remixed, they were
compelled to play such numbers too which werent up to the mark.

DJ Ryan Beck was brought in to play some music post 2AM and that was
pretty decent too.

The bar tender who did some juggling with flaming bottles did a good job
but he was more interested in pouring shooters down the throats of the
PYT's around.

Having cribbed about all this, the brightest spot which overshone
everything else was the FOOD. Kakataiya's food in Hyderabad has to rank
among the best.

There were buffet tables for salad, Haleem(veg option on offer too),
Hyderabadi cuisine, Oriental cuisine, Lebanese cuisine, Frontier &
Awadhi cuisine, an Indian Grill section apart from the desserts.

Check out My pub & restaurant
review blog for a Detailed Review of the Food

Dublin rocked for a while too. But after the amazing meal, and the
flowing Chivas Reagal, sleep was the only interesting option. Totally
agree with href="http://kimelody.blogspot.com/2004/10/paanch.html">Dipta, that
we have reached the Uncle/Aunty phase in life.

NASA Mission on Bannerghatta Road

-----Original Message-----
From: Rohit Punnoose 

 

For one who travels to Electronics City every day on Bannerghatta Road, making each trip to and fro in atleast 1.5 to 2 excruciatingly painful hours, this certainly makes sense!!!! Conspiracy Theory anyone???!!! J

 

NASA Mission on Bannerghatta Road

Well, it was that time of the night when loneliness is your only companion, and shadows the only followers. It was around 2.00 AM in the morning.

I was bouncing away merrily on Bannerghatta road, when some bright lights stopped me. It took me a few minutes to realise that it was not a movie shooting. It took me a few more minutes to convince myself that this was not an alien landing either.

Though there was a modicum of clarity, there was a shade of doubt too. I proceeded to gamely question a well-clad man of foreign origin. "Shhh" he cautioned me.

Softly I asked him " What's happening brother". "NASA..."he whispered, "I am Dr. Morgan from The Lunar Exploration programme". Like all of us, I was sure I was drunk, or he was!

On watching a few men in spacesuits bumping around I realised he was speaking the truth. On further enquiry, he told me, that NASA had tried to create surroundings that would resemble the rocky, crater filled Moon's surface and had failed miserably. This led to a desperate search for test sites on planet earth.

Very few in earth qualified, only Iraq (An exploded Oil Well), Sri Lanka , and our own Bannerghatta road.

Of course, we were the lowest cost proposition, with Iraq ruled out as a high-risk venture, Sri Lanka because of the prevailing ceasefire, it was expected to have decent roads soon. What matched their needs best was the irreproducible surface that Bannerghatta road offered.

The Mars rover and Endeavour were bouncing away too, on the rugged surface.

Suddenly, I spotted the CM standing quietly in the distance. I walked up to him and smiled. He nodded, smiling softly. I looked at him enquiringly and asked him "Was this your idea"? My eyes gazed at the dilapidated piece of broken earth in front of me.

"Yes" he said almost humbly, too modest to acknowledge the enormity of his effort. "So, what's in it for us?" I probed. "Millions of dollars, that's what they have promised, once this gets approved as a broken earth site it will be used regularly. I also have plans of breaking up the other roads, which are happening under the guise of flyovers" he confided.

I shuddered at the enormity of the attempt. How all of us mortals, cribbed, raved and ranted every time we came across a broken road. How blind we have all been, eyes shut, we refused to view the big picture.

Every bad road is a million dollar opportunity. I bade quiet farewells to Dr. Morgan and the CM and quietly rode away.

As I reached the BTM flyover and my tyre went flat, I pushed my bike smiling softly.... a million dollars in every bad road I told myself...what do you think?  

Disclaimer --> any reference to any person dead or alive is purely intentional !!!

Grandma's operation successful

Thank you to everyone who prayed for my grandma. She was taken into the
operation theatre finally at 3:00PM IST today. She was brought out at
5:30 PM. The doctor has inserted 3 stents in her heart. The procedure
was successful. They will be removing the tube at midnight today and by
tomorrow, she will be brought to the room. If things move smoothly, we
can bring her home by Friday. There arent too many complications in post
operative in a case like this. So thanks to all ytour prayers, grandma
is doing well.

Thank you once again from everyone in the Aranha family.

Women 'better at holding drink'

Thanks to Ramnath Shenoy.





Women 'better at holding drink'



Some men may not want to hear this - but scientists have found women are
better at holding their drink.


Kentucky University researchers found men's loss of inhibition was three
times greater than women's with the same blood alcohol levels.


Writing in the journal Addiction, they said the finding might explain
why men are more likely to become aggressive.


It found men appeared to become more stimulated after drinking while
women became more relaxed.

The researchers gave 12 men and 12 women, all classed as "social
drinkers" a set amount of alcohol each. They then tested their ability
to hit a button at the right time when a symbol flashed up. Participants
had to hit a green button when a green symbol flashed up. If a blue
symbol appeared, they were told not to hit anything. People became less
able to prevent themselves hitting the green key when a blue symbol
appeared the more drunk they became.


But the men's performance was around three times worse than the women's.


The participants were then asked to evaluate the effect they thought
alcohol had on them, rating how well certain adjectives applied to them.


The men reported levels of stimulation, including aggression, confidence
and loss of inhibition, which were two and a half times higher than
women,
In contrast, the women reported a six times higher level of sedation
than the men.

Writing in Addition, the researchers led by psychologist Dr Mark
Fillimore, said: "The gender
difference in response inhibition could reflect differences in
alcohol-induced arousal in men and women. "Men reported increased
stimulation and women reported increased sedation in response to
alcohol."


They added: "Evidence that men report greater stimulation than women
could reflect a basic gender difference in the degree to which alcohol
increases arousal that might also contribute to disinhibited
behaviour."


The team suggested that biological and psychological differences could
explain why men and women respond to alcohol differently.

"Social and cultural learning cannot be ruled out as a causal factor.
For example, men and women differ in the types of effects that they
expect from alcohol, and such expectations could influence behaviour
under the drug."

Dr Fillimore added: "There is a general supposition that women don't
hold their liquor very well but our results show that it is men who
become uninhibited and get a high more quickly."

Jim Orford, professor of psychology at Birmingham University, told the
Sunday Times newspaper:
"Women on average are entering drinking situations a bit more
cautiously, whereas men have less reservation about how they are going
to behave, with more expectation that they're going to get stimulated."

He added: "If men go out in order to feel stimulated - they're 'up for
it' - then they're going to feel more stimulated. If women are going out
in order to relax, then at the same blood-alcohol level they're going to
feel more relaxed and sedated."

A spokeswoman for Alcohol Concern told BBC News Online: "We need to see
more evidence to back these conclusions up."


Sudz inference :

so the men who walk straight and drive straight aftur a drink are less
macho and more feminine and therefore more eligible to face the glass
ceiling..........and if "thats" the way women relax aftur a drink then
its safer to be just stimulated........

and women who do 'nautankee' aftur a drink are definately wearing menz
underwear..........

are u relaxing or am I stimulated ???? .............oooooo the futility
of this existence

sudz

Spiritual reading list.

This has been compiled by a friend of Prof Fenn. It seems extremely
comprehensive to me.

-----Original Message-----
From: Dr. Mathai Baker Fenn, XLRI

Sometime Ago I was asked to send out my spiritual reading list. My
friend collected results from many respondents like me and made this
list. I think its a wonderful exercise and would like to share it all
with you.

Mathai

Spiritual Read List:
Navaratri 2004

One day I was asked, ‘What are the best books to read on spirituality?’
I did not know how to answer this question forthwith. I said I would get
back. Then, for a start, I made a list of all the books that had made an
impact on me spiritually. I also discussed this with several people:
among them were my friends and fellow seekers, and people from all walks
of life; artists and littérateurs, scholars and philosophers, priests
and religious heads,
office-goers and men of commerce.

There was much deliberation about the criterion and inclusions to such a
list. Several opinions emerged, starting from ‘what is spirituality?’ to
‘what is the literature that can ennoble, initiate, start, transform and
convert one towards the felicity of the Spirit and benediction of the
Divine. Spirituality appeared to find its allies in varied kinds of
literature. I have edited the titles, which came up in this search in
the hope that they will benefit one and all.

So here are the books that have helped my spiritual journey and also
those dear to me.
The list has predominantly titles from Hinduism but it is in no way
limiting to one faith or belief. You may be surprised at the eclectic
list that has emerged.

A. BEGINNERÂ’S LIST

METAPHYSICAL POETRY
1.Sudha Dhara: Sitaramdas Omkarnath
2.Gitanjali: Rabindranath Tagore
3.Works of Kabir(Kabir Padavali, Bijak, Songs of Kabir: Rabindranath
Tagore)
4.Tulasidas(Ramcharitmanas, Gitavali, Kavitavali, Vinaya Patrika, Barvai
Ramayana,
Hanuman Chalisa)
5.The Essential Rumi: Jalaluddin Rumi
6.Songs of Ramprasad
7.Duino Elegies: Rainer Maria Rilke
8.Paradise Lost/ Paradise Regain: John Milton
9.A Book of Luminous Things (Anthology): Czeslaw Milosz
10.Religious Poems: John Donne

SPIRITUAL PROSE/ FICTION
11.Siddhartha: Herman Hesse
12.The Prophet: Khalil Gibran
13.Resurrection: Lev Tolstoy
14.The Plague: Albert Camus
15.The Outsider: Albert Camus
16.RazorÂ’s Edge: W. Saumerset Maugham
17.The Age of Reason: Jean Paul Sartre
18.Illusions: Richard Bach
19.The Way of All The Earth: John S Dunne
20.Stepenwolf: Herman Hesse
21.Demian: Herman Hesse
22.Night: Wiesel, Elie
23.Silence: Shusaku Endo
24.Care of the Soul: Thomas Moore
25.Potrait of An Artist As A Young Man: James Joyce
26.The Alchemist: Paulo Coelho
27.The Pilgimage: Pulo Coelho
28.By The River Of Madeira I Sat Down And Wept

BIOGRAPHICAL
29.The Autobiography/ My Experiments With Truth: M K Gandhi
30.My Guru & His Disciple: Christopher Isherwood
31."Leela Prashanga" - Life of Shri Ramakrishna: Swami Sharadananda
32.Among The Great: Conversations with Sri Aurobindo, Mahatma Gandhi,
Rabindranath Tagore, Romain Roland, Bertrand Russel. Dilip Kumar Roy.
33.Meetings With Remarkable Men: Gurdjieff, G.I.
34.Notes to myself: Hugh Prather

EXPLORATORY
35.The Eternal Festival: Kinkar Bitthal Ramanuja
36.Autobiography of a Yogi: Yogananda, Paramahansa
37.Living With The Himalayan Masters: Swami Rama
38.Search In Secret India: Paul Brunton
39.Hermit In The Himalayas: Paul Brunton
40.Teaching Beyond Yoga: Paul Brunton
41.Toward The Silver Crests Of The Himalayas: G P Pradhan
42.Many lives, many masters: Brian L Weiss
43.Wisdom of the Ancient Sages: Swami Rama
44.New Discovery - Swami Vivekananda in the West: Mary Louis Buck (Vol.
I - VI)

BASIC SPIRITUALITY
45.Amar Chitra Katha
46.Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna: Vol I & II. Swami Nikhilananda
47.Sai Sat Charitra
48.The Spiritual Teachings of Ramana Maharshi
49.Commentaries On The Bible: William Barclay
50.Prayers for the common man: William Barclay
51.The Good Heart: Dalai Lama
52.The Song Celestial: Edwin Arnold
53.Bhagwat Gita: Swami Chinmayananda
54.Bhagawat Gita: Dr. Radhakrishnan
55.The Message of the Upanishads (Ramakarishan Mission)
56.Krinshnavatara : C. Rajagopalacharya
57.Anashakti Yoga:MK Gandhi
58.Works of Vinoba Bhave
59.Am I a Hindu: Ed Vishwanathan(Gita Pravachane, Ahimsa Ki Khoj, Maha
Gufa Mein Pravesh)

CONTEMPLATIVE TREATISES
60.The Road Less Traveled: Peck, M. Scott.
61.Light On The Path: Mabel Collins
62.Wise Blood: O'Connor, Flannery
63.Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism: Chogyam Trungpa
64.The Seven Storey Mountain: Merton, Thomas.
65.Thoughts in Solitude: Merton, Thomas.
66.The Power of Now: A Guide To Spiritual Enlightenment: Eckhart Tolle
67.Stillness Speaks: Eckhart Tolle
68.The Inner Look: Silo (Mario Rodriguez)
69.Living Enlightenmment: Andrew Cohen
70.Embracing Heaven & Earth: Andrew Cohen
71.Works of Thich Nhat Nanh(Being Peace, The Blooming of Lotus, Breath!
You Are Alive)


B. ADVANCED LIST

TIMELESS CLASSICS
72.The Vedas
73.Upanishads
74.The Puranas
75.The Bible
76.The Kuran
77.Guru Granth Sahib
78.Mahabharata
79.Ramayana(Tulasi Ramayana, Valmiki Ramayana, Adhyatma Ramayana, Anand
Ramayana)
80.Works of Adi Shankara(Saundarya Lahiri, Vivekachudamani, Bhaja
Govindam, Adi Giri Nandini)
81.Manu Smriti
82.Patanjali Yoga Sutras (Aphorisms of Patanjali)
83.Imitation of Christ: Thomas aÂ’ Kempis
84.The Cloud of Unknowing and the Book of Privy Counselling: Author
Unknown, edited by William Johnston
85.The Gospel of Thomas: Anonymous; Marvin Meyer
86.The Sayings of Confucius
87.Tao Te Ching: Lao Tsu

GITAS
88.Avadhuta Gita: Dattatreya
89.Guru Gita
90.Ram Gita
91.Ashtavakra Gita
92.Uddhav Gita

WORKS OF/ ON SAINTS/ SEERS
93.Works of Sri Sri Sitaramdas Omkarnath:(Andhare Alo: Light in
Darkness, Maharasayana: The Great Elixir, Sudha Dhara:: Streams of
Nectar, Abhay Vani: Hope Abounding, Sri Sri Mahamantyra
Samkirtana: Chanting of the Name, Tri Ratna: Triple Gem, Amrit Bindu: A
Drop of Nectar, Birahinir Abhisar: The Maid In Quest of Her Beloved,
Naad Leelamrit, Naamamrit Lahari, Guru Puja, Bhakta Leela, Guru
Mahimamrit)
94.Chaitanya Charitamrit (Life of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu)
95.Sadhak Sanjeevani (On Bhagawat Gita): Swami Ramsukhdas
96.I Am That: Nisargadutt Maharaj
97.Chitshaktivilas: Play of Consciousness: Swami Muktananada, Paul Zweig
98.Churning of the Heart, Introduction to Spiritual Life (Vol. I-III):
Swami Shivom Tirth
99.A Guide to Shaktipath: Swami Shivom Tirth
100.Trek of Spirituality (Sadhan Path): Swami Shivom Tirth
101.Essays On The Gita: Sri Aurobindo
102.Hindu Dharma: Chandrashekharendra Saraswati Mahaswamiji
103.Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda Vol I Vol X
104.Works of Madhusudan Saraswati(Commentary on Gita, siddhaantabindu,
vedaantakalpalatika and bhakti rasaayana)
105.Sri Amritanandmayir Jibani
106.Mind, Its Mystery & Control: Swami Sivananda
107.Bharatiya Sanskriti Aur Sadhana: Mahamahopadhyaya Pandit Gopinathji
Kaviraj
108.Deeksha: Mahamahopadhyaya Pandit Gopinathji Kaviraj
109.Sadhu Darshan Evam Satprasanga: Mahamahopadhyaya Pandit Gopinathji
Kaviraj
110.Tapobhumi Narmada: Shailendra Narayan Ghoshal
111.Be Here Now: Ram Dass
112.Yoga Darshana (commentaries by Acharya Sharma)
113.Surya Namaskara by Appa Pant
114.The Holy Kural: Saint Tiruvalluvar
115.Works of Bhartrihari(vairagya satakam (hundred verses on
renunciation), niti-satakam and
sringara-satakam (hundred verses on worldly wisdom and love)
100.Periyapuranam compiled by Sekkizhar (life of 63 saints [nayanmars])
101.Ekanathi Bhagawat: Sant Ekanath
102.Jnaneshwari: Sant Jnaneshwar
103.Zero Experience: Swami Agehananda
104.The Truth Is: HWL Poonja
105.Purana Purush Yogiraj Sri Shama Churn Lahiree: Dr. Ashok Kumar
Chaterjee
106.The Eternal Sage: VR Prabhu (On Akkalkot Swami)

OTHERS
107.Hindu Shastra: Rameshchandra Dutta
108.Ved Vichinta: Vil I & II: Mahanaamvrata Brahmachari
109.Vaishnav Vedanta: Mahanaamvrata Brahmachari
110.Glimpses of Indian Culture: Dr. Dhyanesh Narayana Chakravarti
111.Dev Devi Udbhav Kramvikas: Hansanarayana Bhattacharya

SUFI
112.Caravan of Dreams: Idries Shah
113.The Way Of The Sufi: Idries Shah
114.Sufi Teachings: Hazrat Inayat Khan

CONTEMPLATIVE TREATISES
115.Pensees: Blaise Pascal
116.Meditations: Marcus Aurelius
117.The Varieties of Religious Experience: William James
118.Modern Man In Search of A Soul: Carl Jung
119.Memories, Dreams, Reflections: Carl Jung
120.Self Reliance & Other Essays: Ralph Waldo Emerson
121.The Nature & Destiny of Man: Niebuhr, Reinhold.
122.Mysticism: Underhill, Evelyn

PHILOSOPHIC
123.Perennial Philosophy: Aldous Huxley
124.Think on These Things: Jiddu Krishnamurthi
125.Freedom from the Known: Jiddu Krishnamurthi
126.In Search of Miraculous: Ouspensky, P.D.
127.The Fourth Way: Ouspensky, P.D.
128.The Idea of the Holy: Otto, Rudolf
129.Art of Loving: Erich Fromm
130.You Shall Be As Gods: Erich Fromm

ZEN THOUGHT/ BUDDHISM
131.The Way of Zen: Alan Watts
132.Behold The Spirit: Alan Watts
133.Feeling Buddha: David Frazer
134.Zen Mind, BeginnerÂ’s Mind: Suzuki, Shunryu
135.Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: Reps, Paul and Senzaki, Nyogan.
136.Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: Robert Pirsig
137.Guide to Bodhisattva Way of Life: Shantideva
138.The Way of The White Clouds: Lama Govinda
139.Essays In Zen Buddhism: Suzuki D.T
140.Awakening The Buddha Within: Lama Surya Das

BIHAR SCHOOL OF YOGA
(Kundalini Tantra, Prana Vidya, Yoga Nidra, Kriya Yoga, Swara Yoga,
Surya Namaskara, Asana, Mudra Bandha, Pranayama, Meditation and the
Tantras)

Thus ends the first Spiritual Read List edited by Raj Supe. This one is
Navratri 2004 edition and it will be revised and published every year.
Inclusions and comments to this list are kindly solicited from the host
of spiritual aspirants, practitioners and adepts from all quarters.

*****

Hyderabad Times Party

Attended the Hyderabad Times (HT) Party at ITC Kakatiya on 16th,
Saturday.

Hmmmm, what can I say.

Having attended Bangalore Times parties, I have to say, Hyderabad was
nowhere near the mark of Bangalore, forget Bombay and Delhi.

Other than Azhar and Sangeetha, for a non-telugu movie watcher there
were no celebrities at all. Tollywood supposedly turned up in force
judging by the coverage in Hyderabad Times (HT)today but none of them
were recognisable to our group of 10.

There were the occasional designers and the rest of them, but for the
most it was compised of the Hyderabadi Reddy's whose names are dropped
so often in the same HT. We normally get to meet more celebrities at
each visit to Preetam Reddy's "Touch" than the whole of the HT party.

The entertainment was restricted to a couple of dancers from the Bombay
dance bars, 3 Russian women who danced what the MC called the Can-Can
but from my limited knowledge of music and dance it seemed more of a
Flamenco oriented, Spanish-Gypsy music and dance number. Except that
they did kick their legs up high which could be reminiscent of the
can-can I guess. Then there were these 2 males from bombay who were
supposed to be strippers, but they didnÂ’t take off anything other than
their shirts. And they were wearing jeans so totally unfair
entertainment policy I should say, given that the female dancers were
wearing the barest minimum of fabric.

The MC did an absolutely lousy job of it. She kept repeating "so is this
party going to rock" as if willing it to rock just by her constant
repetition. Sad fact being that the attendees were usually, actually
having a good time until she came on stage to ask her rocking question.

The MC then conducted a so called "Spot Prize" distribution and called
out names of tolly wood stars to receive gift vouchers worth Rs.3000/-
each. Neither the distributor or the distributees could be located for
quite awhile. Finally the distributor n his wife were duly located, but
only 2 of the distributees were to be found. Allu arjun for most
eligible bachelor and some other guy who couldnÂ’t speak English too well
for dressing Bollywood style. Guess he was going for the Sallu look
since he had most of his buttons open.

The Band "Tidal Waves" from Goa was great. Their English numbers were
quite good, but with the theme being Bollywood remixed, they were
compelled to play such numbers too which werent up to the mark.

DJ Ryan Beck was brought in to play some music post 2AM and that was
pretty decent too.

The bar tender who did some juggling with flaming bottles did a good job
but he was more interested in pouring shooters down the throats of the
PYT's around.

Having cribbed about all this, the brightest spot which overshone
everything else was the FOOD. Kakataiya's food in Hyderabad has to rank
among the best.

There were buffet tables for salad, Haleem(veg option on offer too),
Hyderabadi cuisine, Oriental cuisine, Lebanese cuisine, Frontier &
Awadhi cuisine, an Indian Grill section apart from the desserts.

Check out My pub & restaurant
review blog for a Detailed Review of the Food

Dublin rocked for a while too. But after the amazing meal, and the
flowing Chivas Reagal, sleep was the only interesting option. Totally
agree with href="http://kimelody.blogspot.com/2004/10/paanch.html">Dipta, that
we have reached the Uncle/Aunty phase in life.

cricket fever in Chepauk...

CHENNAI, OCT. 17. The contest on Day four of the India-Australia Test Match at Chepauk was not on the field but in the stands.

``You might be FANATICS, but we Indians are LUNATICS,'' read the chart from the Indian fans sitting right below where the Australian cheerleading squad, Fanatics, was positioned in the Pepsi Stand.

The Australians responded with the thumbs down gesture and broke into one of their many songs, which, amidst the din in the stadium, was difficult to comprehend. But the tit-for-tat continued through the day.

Only a few rows away, another Indian fan sported a red-tee shirt that said: One good thing about bad reputation is that it is easy to maintain.

``Contribute Rs. 5 towards Gillespie's haircut fund,'' read another as the lanky paceman dropped anchor, steering the Aussies out of trouble in the company of Martyn.

Much later in the day, when Darren Lehman and Martin Clarke came together, the banter in the stand continued.

Just after tea, an Indian fan with a video camera rushed to the edge of the Terrace T-3 stand as if to cock-a-snook at the Australian `fanatics' in the nearby stand.

He challenged the Australians that India would win the Test tomorrow. Soon the Australians were cheering: ``Look at the scoreboard ... Look at the scoreboard'' punctuated by three claps, pointing to the giant screen.

The score was 347 for the loss of six wickets.

Anil Kumble answered the fan's call by claiming two wickets in three balls. Now it was the Indians' turn: ``Look at the scoreboard ... Look at the scoreboard.'' The sportive Fanatics rose from the seats to give the crowd a series of bows.

What's cooking?

Food at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium has been unbelievably good. Among the most popular food stalls were the ones managed by Fruit Shop on Greams Road, Galloping Gooseberry and Frankie's.

Back in the stands, there was a different kind of `cuisine' lined up.

The Australians put up a yellow banner that read: ``Today's menu: Butter Gloves Patel, Kumble No Tikka, Harbhajan Masala. Warning: Very Expensive. Will give Aussies the runs.''

After the loss of a couple of Australian wickets, the Indian fans struck back: ``Today's Indian Menu: Kangaroo Burger, McGrath Biriyani, Warne Pizza, Martyn Masala, Gilli Roast, Aussie Meals.''

Birthday boy

Indian and Australian fans found ways to wish Kumble on his 34th birthday today.

The Australians broke into a birthday song during a drinks break and completed their tribute with their trademark series of bows.

Another Indian fan, meanwhile, came up with a poster idea: ``How about Kangaroo Kabab for your birthday?''

Another person came up with a gift idea. The poster carried names of the Australian batsmen who fell victim to the spinner today, who ended with a match haul of 13 wickets.

The climax

The Indian celebrations were restricted to three small spells through the day — twice when two wickets fell in an over and once when Sehwag came out to bat.

The last 15 minutes of play, however, was what Indian fans hoped would be a sneak preview for the final day's play.

Passions of the Indian cricket fans were fuelled when the close-up of verbal exchange between Virender Sehwag and Glenn McGrath was flashed on the giant screen. The last ball of the day was smashed for a boundary.

As the fans were leaving, plenty of them were scheming how to stay away from offices on Monday.

Scoring Tech Gadgets At Work Is a Lot Easier Than Winning a Raise

Scoring Tech Gadgets At Work Is a Lot Easier Than Winning a Raise October 13, 2004 Jared Sandberg Wall Street Journal

When Andrew Zaeh was a photography agent a few years back, he begged his boss for a new Palm hand-held organizer. "Isn't it important that I have the contact numbers for every creative director, art director and art buyer with me at all times?" he asked her.

Mr. Zaeh recalls he was "foaming at the mouth" with desire for the device, daydreaming about its ability to synchronize and transmit photos wirelessly. At first, his boss told him no. But when he bought one himself and produced a receipt, she suggested he "just slip it in" to accounting.

Unfortunately, while that gambit worked, the Palm didn't. "It was a nightmare," says Mr. Zaeh. "Once I finally got it working, the battery died immediately." He's gotten along fine without the Palm at his current job, he concedes, but then he adds conspiratorially: "They're outfitting me with a BlackBerry."

Such is the endless quest that results from gadget envy, an affliction that appears to mainly affect men. Their insatiable need for the latest techno-doodad is compounded at the office, where other sufferers of male-pattern gearness have sparked an arms race. In an effort to win this contest -- and get the company to subsidize them -- gearniks employ wit, diplomacy and a sudden vocal dedication to "productivity" and "profits." Armed with a potential solution (wireless, color screen), they will spare no effort to find a problem.

After all, says banker Bob Lockwood, it's much easier to get work to authorize a gadget purchase than your wife. "You can do it via e-mail or request form, and there's no memory within the system," he points out. "Your wife will always remember."

In most cases, getting the company to pay for gadgets does require some skill and craft. Not true, though, if you worked for John Ellis, a former senior vice president of engineering at an Internet search company. "I was a pushover," he says. If there wasn't a productivity benefit, he reasoned, at least the recipients would be less grumpy.

When Mr. Ellis was a young researcher, his own pleas for new gear weren't dishonest but, he concedes, they did include "a little bit of puffery." Tactically, "you can criticize what you have or emphasize the advantages of the new machine, or do both," he confides.

Both was the tactic one top salesman employed with Chris O'Leary, chief financial officer at Phoseon Technology. In an e-mail in May, the salesman laid out the costs of a new BlackBerry, then proceeded to offset them: "I'm currently averaging $30 a month just for logons at Starbucks and airports to get e-mail. While this won't replace laptop e-mail completely (and some of that monthly cost), it will certainly make things easier on the road."

Then the salesman added that the CEO really should get a BlackBerry, too. And he closed with a nice hint of concern for the bottom line: "For an extra $100 you can get a color version, but they are still hard to come by and color doesn't add much to the functionality as far as I can tell."

Mr. O'Leary approved the purchase, but only on one condition: The salesman had to keep it quiet, lest there be an escalation of a costly arms race on the company's dime.

It's usually just a matter of time before the cycle begins again, leaving a device and its car chargers orphaned in some drawer. A signal that the honeymoon is ending is often an offer to lend out the device, usually with the hope that it won't be returned, providing a convenient excuse to upgrade.

For many, the gear quest is little more than "aesthetic technolust," theorizes Virginia Postrel, author of "Substance of Style," a treatise on the importance of aesthetics. "It's fun to have the latest technology," she says. "Rarely is it essential." Still, she says, doodads can be "a cheap investment in employee morale." What's a $500 device when a $500 yearly salary increase would cost the company more and force the employee to amortize instant gratification? "A one-time expense is easier to justify budgetarily," she says, adding that gadgets don't give the appearance of squandering shareholder resources the way renovating an office would.

Rank does have its gearhead privileges. When Air Force Lt. Col. Pete Whelan was stationed in England, he says, one of his technical sergeants persuaded some people in another squadron to allow their newly ordered Palm Pilots to be diverted to him and other top brass, arguing "that we were higher priority than some other guy on the base who really wanted one." Naturally, the technical sergeant, who didn't outrank the squadron members he raided, got a Palm for himself.

Nowadays, Lt. Col. Whelan, whose "gear" includes the F-15E jets he flies, is stationed at a U.S. facility where he has to unload his beloved gadgets before he enters the "vault," a secure area with classified materials. At first he felt naked, but now he enjoys the freedom. He might be considered a recovered gizmoholic except for the fact that at home, he has started collecting new power tools.

"I just bought a drywall screwdriver and a Roto-Zip spiral cutter," he says. "Want to borrow them sometime?"


--
Nitin Bajaj

www.nitinbajaj.net

Sergey Brin n Larry Page in Hyderabad

Google search fails to throw up monkeys

TIMES NEWS NETWORK[ WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2004 01:51:37 AM ]

HYDERABAD: Sergey Brin and Larry Page's search engine trawls 4.2 billion web pages to find just about anything in cyberspace. But the founders of Google—on a short trip to India—were not quite so diligent with their home work before coming to Hyderabad. "I was wanting to see some monkeys here but couldn't find one. I think I missed one on the road," said Brin.

Page and Brin are in the country to prepare a strategy for their India operations, but their activities have not been limited to business. Unlike the seriously earnest William Gates Jr., the two nerds behind the world's most effective search engine have been more like a couple of sophomore backpackers doing India.

In Delhi, they met Abdul Kalam. He was "extremely knowledgeable about Google. In fact, he knew more than us," says Brin.

Then they did some shopping, you know, the Connaught Circus kind, this and that. Brin bought, er, "some instrument" which, um, changes colours, like, you know. Unfortunately, he cannot remember what it's called but can certify that it's "too good."

Here in Hyderabad, they did autorickshaws. That was too good too. "They go on any road!" says Brin, expecting to surprise us.

Sophomore backpackers? So why aren't they at school? Why indeed? The youngest billionaires are trying to make Google a true global entity while on leave from their PhD programmes at Standford. "Yeah, we should be completing our PhDs," says Page.

Brin is worried about Mom's questions. "My mom keeps asking about it. I think I should complete it

A little prayer, please

My 82 year old grandmother was supposed to have an angioplasty done yesterday. Something went wrong with the machine and the procedure could not be completed. They left the tubes inside her saying they would complete the procedure today. The part of the machine they replaced worked fine but something else gave trouble.

We dont know when we can get this done next, because she insisted that the tubes (sheath) be taken out of her. So shes now resting peacefully but we have to complete this procedure sometime soon and she may not agree to it after all the pain she has been through.

If you are reading this page, then all we ask for is to say a little prayer for her. It doesnt matter whom you pray to. Just please spare a minute to pray for Maria Magdalene Aranha so that her angioplasty can be performed properly and that the blocks in her heart clear up. She is otherwise quite healthy and has a zest for life. All she needs is as many prayers as she can get.

Thank you
from every member of our family.

Son of Bengal vs Bengal Tiger

Thanks to Ambika Kaul for initially sending this.

Through the jungle I am went
On shooting Tiger I am bent
Bugger Tiger has eaten wife
I must revenge my dear one's life

Too much quiet, snakes and leeches
But I'm not afraid these sons of beeches
Hearing noise I am jump with start
But noise is coming from damn fool heart

Taking care not to be with fright
I am holding gun with eye to sight
If Tiger come I will fall him down
And like hero go back to native town

Then through the trees I'm seeing one cave
And telling self, "Bholanath, be brave"
I now proceed with too much care
From nonsense smell this Tiger's lair

My leg is shake, I start to pray
I think shoot Tiger some other day
Turning round I am going to go
But Tiger giving bloody roar

He leap from cave like shooting star
I commend my soul to Kali Ma
Through the jungle I am went
With bloody Tiger hot on scent

I swear to God that never in life
I will risk again for damn fool wife.

Spoiler for the Web Quest on Da Vinci

Now, My spoiler is below, dont look if u want to solve it for yourself.

These are the answers to solve the original Da Vinci Quest .
1. leonardo
2. the last supper
3. denon
4. go to www.robertlangdon.com
5. click 'contact'
6. send an e-mail to the address given (auto-response)
7. go to www.relic-bay.com as instructed by the email
8. search for 'LSPDV'
9. click the advert to the Zurich bank website
10. enter name 'marie denarnaud'
11. enter account number '1123581321'
12. call 1212-782-9920 for website address
13. go to www.doubleknightbooks.com
14. click 'enter our site' button
15. click 'employee message board' link
16. enter name 'jonas faukman'
17. enter password 'venice'
18. click 'Jonas, I've got the key!' message link
19. click the 'www.robertlangdon.com/secretpage.htm' link
20. enter password 'ankh'
21. enter 'the truth will be told in 2003'
22. call 1212-782-9932 for a message from Dan Brown, the author of 'Da Vinci Code'

Ok and here are the answers for the second quest:
1. the mona lisa
2. paris
3. the priory of sion
4. kryptos
5. ww
6. is there no help for the widows son
7. masons
8. e pluribus unum
9. click on the left eye of the face of mona lisa (her right, your left).

Da Vinci Code Web Quest

Guess most of you would have read the book. Have you visited the authors site. Really worth a visit. Especially if you would like to view the art and churches described in the Robert Langdon books.

If u do visit the site, try your hand and brain at the code deciphering.

Regarding what Dan Brown has to say about the deciphering problem :

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about The Web Quest

I've solved the Caesar Box, but I see nowhere to type the answer. Is something wrong with the page?
No, everything you need is there. Consider typing the answer somewhere ELSE.

I've reached Robert Langdon's site, but I don't know what to do.
You might consider writing Mr. Langdon an e-mail to ask him what to do. His address is on his website.

I've written Robert Langdon an E-mail, but he never wrote back.
Langdon ALWAYS writes back...immediately. If you have an automated spam filter, occasionally filters will block his response. You might try turning off your filtering. Also, Langdon will only respond to you once in every 24 hour period.

I need the password for the Swiss Bank account, but I don't have a copy of the novel. What should I do?
Well, aside from the obvious, you might consider stopping by a library, calling a friend who does have the book, or (if you're really impatient) you might try the first ten digits of the Fibonacci Sequence.

Part of the contest requires me to call a U.S. phone number, but I don't know the international access codes. What do I do?
Did we ever say this was going to be easy? You might check your phone book's international information page.

Did somebody actually win this contest? What was the prize?
Yes. That honor goes to Trent Anderson of Big Lake, Minnesota. Trent is the official winner of The Da Vinci Code Web Quest. His name was randomly selected from more than a thousand finalists who completed the quest within the April deadline. Dan Brown called Trent personally to give him the good news. As the winner, Trent will become a character in Dan's next novel. The only question is... will he be a hero or a villain?

I'm still having trouble solving the quest. Can you give me a hint regarding a specific area?
Sorry, no hints! We suggest you contact a friend and solve the contest together. It's more fun that way. We promise the solution exists. Thousands of people have now made it to the end.