Myriad thoughts on a million things
Life
Life‘ville’ !
Aug 23rd
‘Farmville’ is the new thing on Facebook with tons of people playing the game. I’ve been on it for some time now. I am currently at the level 15! (That’s like the mid stage of the game). The more one plays the game, the more hooked one gets to it. It got me thinking that the designers of the game must know the human psychology quite well. How else can a game about repetitive planting, ploughing and harvesting become the new fad with almost everyone on Facebook?
Come to think of it, the game is very much like life itself. More >
Your Internet Presence
Aug 14th
I was reading an interesting update from silicon India. It said that 42% people in offices spy on their colleagues! Here is the link for the article
It got me thinking about how we leave a very personal imprint on the internet that is just waiting for anyone and everyone to look up. Social & professional networking profiles, blogs, tweets… there is so much out there about you that people have access to in order to know you better (if not spy!)
It made me also think about the impact of personal opinions that one expresses on the net on the way More >
WAR iN PEACE time!
Mar 11th
I got shot 8 times and lived to tell the tale. One can probably never say that in real life…. But with Paint ball all is possible!!
Paint ball is a relatively new phenomenon in India, so some of you might not know what it really is… for those who do know, please skip the next para!
Paint ball is a simulated battle game. Participants are divided into warring teams, given some armour (as in paintball proof vests), face masks, guns and some ammo (as in pellets made of paint). The paint bullets are organic, washable and edible (though please More >
Different kind of problems
Dec 22nd
A few minutes of telly watching in canada and one would get to see multiple adds on debt counselling, bankruptcy help, help with bad credit history and cash for jewellery! I mean I know there’s a global meltdown and people across the world are adversely affected… but this?!
Apparently this is ever quite so normal here…. People going bankrupt all the time, not being able to control their credit spend. From what I understand, medical costs can often spiral and cost people their livelihood. It’s quite the experience listening to cash man’ Joe go on about being able to give More >
The Real Moment of truth: People will do anything for Money
Oct 10th
As you might have gathered by now the three things I enjoy and write most about is going places, reading & TV shows!! So here’s a second blog on a TV show that is airing currently on star world. It’s called the Moment of truth and it runs with a tag line – ‘is there an Honest American left?’
For those unfamiliar with the show, let me lay out the format….The premise of the show basically is that Participants are asked to take a polygraphic test of 50 personal questions before the show. They don’t know if their answers to those More >
Smoke free partying…. Finally!
Sep 30th
October 2nd dawns and India is to go smoke free! Yayyee… finally!! Smoking is going to be illegal in all public spaces. Those include pubs, restaurants, stations, movie halls etc. (any place that requires more than 20 people to congregate in a closed space)
The effective implementation of this ban would enable non smokers to finally lead a normal life! Being a non smoker in a group with smokers is like suffering from some kind of handicap. When you crinkle up your nose, they look at you sympathetically (like they might be sorry that you’re missing the fun) and try and make you More >
Standing Babas!
Sep 30th
I’m currently reading Gregory David Robert’s ‘Shantaram’. It’s an interesting book, albeit slow and meandering, but interesting none the less. For me, having stayed in Mumbai for a bit, it is especially more interesting as it chronicles many fascinating things about Mumbai that I did not know / have never heard of. One of these being the Den of Standing Babas!
When I read the bit about them in the book, I was really intrigued! Babas or Sadhus as they are commonly known in India are religious men who renounce everything material in their search for nirvana. The book records More >
Instinctive Racism or Thought Through Typecasts?
Sep 29th
It’s been some time since I read Malcolm Galdwell’s ‘Blink’. At the time when I read it, I thought it was an eye opener. I especially liked his stories/ examples on how instinctively, without even knowing it, we make decisions about people, races, and things in the blink of an eye. In the book, some of his stories highlighted how black people in the US experience instinctive racism due to the type cast expectations/ views that white people have of them.
I didn’t think of the book again till a few days ago. I follow the show ‘Are you smarter More >
Living for today vs. building for tomorrow
Sep 4th
I’ve always wondered about this whole human life experience. We are born, have a few carefree years of childhood, a few anxious years of teenage, many stressful years of working and many blissful/cantankerous (depends on one is happily married or not) years of married/ single life and then we’re done. Heavenly gates are hopefully there to welcome us back to the realm. And in during this whole journey we go through this myriad emotions and experiences that hopefully make it all worth the effort.
Most of us, in our lives, are focused onto doing things that will make our tomorrow More >
The Power to Design our Lives
Aug 5th
As in all great designs, there is a very thought through carefulness to the whole randomness of life. At first glance it would appear arbitrary, random, but beneath it all is an intricate design waiting to be glanced upon, understood.
In terms of art, many would have experienced this with the great works of Woodsworth and Blake. For example, Blake’s most well know work ‘Tiger tiger burning bright’, on the surface would seem like a child’s nursery rhyme. But only a literature enthusiast who has spent time and energy to understand the true brilliance of the piece would be able More >
