MetroSpiritual

7 kinds of sex

2010-09-09T17:35:00.001+04:00

Results of a recent research shows that there are 7 kinds of sex.

The 1st kind of sex is called: Smurf Sex.
* This kind of sex happens when you first meet someone and you both have sex until you are blue in the face

The 2nd kind of sex is called: Kitchen Sex.
* This is when you have been with your partner for a short time and you are so needy you will have sex anywhere, even in the kitchen.

The 3rd kind of sex is called: Bedroom Sex. * This is when you have been with your partner for a long time. Your sex has gotten routine and you usually have sex only in your bedroom.

The 4th kind of sex is called: Hallway Sex * This is when you have been with your partner for too long. When you pass each other in the hallway you both say 'screw you.'

The 5th kind of sex is called: Religious Sex. * Which means you get Nun in the morning, Nun in the afternoon and Nun at night.(Very Popular)

The 6th kind is called Courtroom Sex. * This is when you cannot stand your wife any more. She takes you to court and screws you in front of everyone.

And; Last, but not least,
The 7th kind of sex is called: Social Security Sex. * You get a little each month But not enough to enjoy your self.

Everyone loves these guys

2010-09-09T17:34:00.001+04:00

A driver is stuck in a traffic jam on the motor way. Nothing has moved for half an hour when suddenly a man knocks on the window. The driver rolls down his window and asks, - 'What's going on?'

'Terrorists down the road have kidnapped Bal Thakrey, Udav, Raj and few more ministers. They're asking for a 10 million ransom or they're going to douse them with petrol and set them on fire. We're going from car to car, taking up a collection.'

The driver asks, 'How much is everyone giving, on average?'

'Most people are giving about a litre.”

No sex tonight !!!

2010-09-09T17:33:00.002+04:00

One evening last week, my girlfriend and I were getting into bed. Well, the
passion starts to heat up, and she eventually says, 'I don't feel like it, I
just want you to hold me.' I said, 'WHAT??!! What was that?!'

So she says the words that every boyfriend on the planet dreads to hear...

'You're just not in touch with my emotional needs as a woman enough for me
to satisfy your physical needs as a man.'

She responded to my puzzled look by saying, 'Can't you just love me for who
I am and not what I do for you in the bedroom?'

Realizing that nothing was going to happen that night, I went to sleep.

The very next day I opted to take the day off of work to spend time with
her. We went out to a nice lunch and then went shopping at a big, big
unnamed department store. I walked around with her while she tried on
several different very expensive outfits. She couldn't decide which one to
take, so I told her we'd just buy them all. She wanted new shoes to
compliment her new clothes, so I said, 'Lets get a pair for each outfit.'

We went on to the jewelry department where she picked out a pair of diamond
earrings. Let me tell you... she was so excited. She must have thought I was
one wave short of a shipwreck. I started to think she was testing me because
she asked for a tennis bracelet when she doesn't even know how to play
tennis.

I think I threw her for a loop when I said, 'That's fine, honey.' She was
almost nearing sexual satisfaction from all of the excitement. Smiling with
excited anticipation, she finally said, 'I think this is all dear, let's go
to the cashier.'

I could hardly contain myself when I blurted out, 'No honey, I don't feel
like it.'

Her face just went completely blank as her jaw dropped with a baffled,
'WHAT?'

I then said, 'Honey! I just want you to HOLD this stuff for a while. You're
just not in touch with my financial needs as a man enough for me to satisfy
your shopping needs as a woman.'

And just when she had this look like she was going to kill me, I added, 'Why
can't you just love me for who I am and not for the things I buy you?'

Apparently I'm not having sex tonight either....but at least that bitch
knows I'm smarter than her.

40 Mumbai Foods we can't live without

2010-09-09T15:58:00.002+04:00

From street food spice bombs to favorite fasting foods and meat dishes fit for a Mughal invader, here are a selection of foods that any true Mumbaiker revels in.....

   The history of food in Mumbai is closely linked to the growth of this city from fishing village to megapolis. As wave after wave of immigrants from all over the country came with dreams of gold in their eyes, they brought their culinary treasures with them. The result? A smorgasbord of cooking styles and street food that reflects our cosmopolitanism as much as our carbohydrate-fueled work ethic.

  Here's a sampling of 40 must-try foods that define Mumbai's food culture, with Muslim, Gujarati, Goan, Coastal, South Indian, Parsi and of course local Maharashtran influences.

1. Akuri on toast
Move over scrambled eggs, the Parsi Akuri cometh. Rated as one of the great Parsi dishes, every family has its own special way of making this breakfast meal. Though variations of the ingredients are vociferously debated, Akuri is usually made by scrambling eggs with onions, tomatoes (or even raw mangoes when in season), red chilli powder, green chillies and topped with fresh coriander. Others add milk, jeera (cumin) powder, curry leaves and even ginger and garlic paste. Try the Akuri on Toast at Jimmy Boy, 11 Bank Street, Vikas Building, Off Horniman Circle, Fort. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2266 2503
2. Baida roti
This one is an interesting envelope. Spiced meat -- chicken or minced mutton, even bheja (brain) -- and whipped eggs with masala-fied fried onions enveloped in a square shaped dough and pan fried. Though served with sliced onion rings and green chutney, they're delicious even without accompaniment. A lot of people swear by the Baida Roti at Bade Mian, Tullock Road, Behind Taj Mahal Hotel, Apollo Bunder, evenings only. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2284 8038

3. Batata vada
Whether it's for breakfast, teatime, or anytime, one thing is for sure, Mumbaikars can’t live without the Batata Vada bite. This well-liked fast food dumpling is made by mashing boiled potatoes with green chilies, ginger, garlic, lime juice, turmeric, and fresh coriander, then dipped in a besan (gram flour) batter and deep fried. It's served either with a green chutney or fried green chillies. Virtually every street corner will have an outstanding Batata Vada seller but it’s hard to beat the ones made at Shrikrishna, near Chabildas High School, Dadar Market.

4. Butter chicken
This ubiquitous dish traces its roots to the days of the Mughals when calorie counting was a thing of the future. This must-order dish when Indian families go out for dinner is made from chunks of chicken, marinated overnight in a yogurt and spice mix that includes ginger garlic paste and lime juice. It is then grilled or pan-fried. An ultra rich sauce made with butter, tomato puree, cumin, garam masalas and fresh cream is then poured over it. Best had with Indian breads like rotis, naan or parathas. Don't confuse it with chicken tikka masala, which is a story for another day.
While available at every kind of eatery, the butter chicken at Punjab Grill is worth dying for. Level 3, Palladium Mall, Phoenix Mills, Lower Parel. Tel: +91 (0) 22 4347 3980

5. The Bombay sandwich
This street side invention is a combination of the most unlikely ingredients. Lavishly buttered white bread and sandwiched between them thin slices of beetroot, boiled potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes, onion rings, and mint chutney. Cut into four triangles so that you can handle all the layers without spilling them, you get the most refreshing tangy taste, after each bite. A toasted version steams up the vegetables inside and adds another dimension. Truly, there is no other sandwich quite like it in the world.
Though widely available through out the city, try it at Amar Juice Centre, near Cooper Hospital, opp. Juhu Galli. Or the Mafco Stall outside Worli Dairy on Worli Sea Face.

6. Bheja fry
Bheja, or goat brain, sautéed with tomatoes, onions, turmeric, green chillies, spices and garnished with fresh coriander, is a staple of all those with hardcore carnivorous leanings in the city. Eaten with a roti (Indian bread) or pao, this melt in the mouth dish has a rich Muslim heritage behind it and you often find that one plate is not enough.
Radio Restaurant, 10, Musafir Khana, Palton Road, Tel: +91 (0) 22 2261 7171, serves up a really good Bheja Fry.

7. Bombil fry
Bombil, or Bombay Duck, is a fish (and not a duck) found in plenty in the waters around Mumbai. A fisher folk favourite, Bombils are flattened, then dipped in a spice-filled besan (gram flour) batter and fried. This crunchy-on-the-outside and mushy-soft-on-the-inside fish dish can be eaten on its own as a starter, or as a main course with chapattis.
Gajalee restaurant does a mean Bombil Fry. They have branches at Hanuman Road, Vile Parle (E), Tel: +91 22 26114093. And at Phoenix Mills, Lower Parel, Tel: +91 22 2495 0667

8.. Brun maska
You may wonder how bread and butter can become such an iconic union. But it's not merely bread and this is not merely butter. It's brun or gutli pao -- a local bread that is unique to Mumbai -- and it's crisp and hard and crumbly on the outside and soft inside. The Brun is then sliced and lashings of butter are applied lavishly. Some even sprinkle quite a bit of sugar. It is usually accompanied by the sweet Irani chai. Dipping the brun maska in the chai is the only way to eat it.
Available at most Irani restaurants, the Brun Maska at Kyani & Co is historic. 657 Jer Mahal Estate, Opp. Metro Cinema, Dhobi Talao, Tel: +91 (0) 22 2201 1492. Also try it at B Merwan, Opp. Grant Road Station (E), Tel: +91 (0) 22 2309 3321

9. Bhel puri
The most commonly sold chaat on the streets of Mumbai, every bhel walla will have his own matchless blend and a considerable 7pm fan following. While the ingredients -- puffed rice, papadi (small crisp deep fried flour puris), sev, onions, potatoes, raw mango and sweet and sour chutney -- remain the same, it is the proportions in which they are thrown together on the street side that makes the difference.
Bhel puri is available everywhere. The stalls at Chowpatty and Juhu beaches draw throngs of die-hard fans. But if you want a bhel puri with ambience, try it at Sea Lounge, Taj Mahal Hotel, Apollo Bunder. Tel: +91 (0) 22 6665 3366

10. Chicken mayo roll
Almost every school or college canteen serves it. Most single screen cinema houses showing English movies display it during the interval. Most bakeries will have their version, neatly wrapped in cellophane, at the counter. Some grocery stores in up market areas stock it along with grain and rice. It's hard to believe that plain boiled chicken doused in sweet-ish mayonnaise with a celery leaf for dressing, all wrapped up in a bread roll can be so popular in a spice loving city. But it is.
One of the creamiest chicken mayo rolls can be had at Paradise, Sindh Chambers, Shahid Bhagat Singh Road, Colaba, Tel: +91 22 22832874. Or try it at Candies, Mac Ronells, 5A Pali Hill, St. Andrews Road, Bandra (W). Tel: +91 22 26424125

11. Chicken manchurian
Here's a dish that even the Chinese over on the mainland haven't heard about. Snigger, snigger. Yet it's on the menu of the roadside handcart Chinese food hawker and the Chinese restaurant in the fancy five-star hotel. Chicken manchurian, a phrase that has come to be the face of Chinese food in India, is nothing but deep-fried batter-coated chicken cubes in an onion, green chillies, garlic, vinegar and soy sauce gravy. Eaten with rice, it never fails to get a sigh of contentment from those partaking of this gastronomic oddity.
If you want to taste the real thing, try it where it was created, China Garden, Om Chambers, Kemps Corner. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2363 0841

12. Butter garlic crab
It doesn't trace its roots to Chinese, Continental or Indian cuisines. It comes from Butter Land, an imagined place that thrives on the premise that anything tastes great with melted butter. A delicious, simple dish, a big crab is drowned in tons of butter garlic sauce that seeps into every nook and cranny and coats every morsel of the flesh. Crack open the crab and take a bite. You’ll know immediately that sweet crabmeat and butter with a twist of garlic is a combination made by gods.
The best butter garlic crab can be found at Mumbai's most famous seafood restaurant. Trishna, Sai Baba Marg, Near Rhythm House, Kala Ghoda, Fort. Tel: +91 22 22703213

13. Dhoklas and farsaan
These popular snacks are so integral to food loving Gujaratis that no meal is complete without them. And when traveling abroad, they don’t leave home without a little parcel tucked away in their luggage. Dhoklas or 'khummun' are made from the fermented batter of chickpeas, steamed and then spiced with chillies and ginger and tempered with mustard seed.. Farsan, a broad term for savories encompassing sev and gathiya are crisp deep-fried spiced gram flour creations in pasta like shapes.
Several stores stock these popular snacks. But try them here: Chedda Dry Fruits & Snacks, 41 Ridge Road, Walkeshwar. Tel: +91 22 (0) 2369 9442. Dave Farsan Mart, 10 Babulnath Road, near Chowpatty. Tel: +91 (0) 22 6657 8311.. Go-Go Snacks, Bhavan’s College Lane, Chowpatty. Tel: +91 22 (0) 2361 9968.

14. Falooda
This adaptation of a Persian dessert was brought to India by the Mughals. A rich drink, Falooda is vermicelli mixed with milk, almonds, pistachios, a bit of rose syrup and the key ingredient -- sabza or basil seeds -- topped up with two scoops of ice cream. Refreshing, rosy, energizing, it's a great pick-me-up on a hot day.
Badshah, at 152/156 LT Marg, Opp. Crawford Market. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2342 1943, has a reputation for their falooda.

15. Fish and prawn curry
These two dishes are as old as Mumbai herself (remember, this city started off as a fishing village under various kings and sultanates until the Portuguese and English discovered it in 1534). This coconut-based light curry can be prepared using a variety of fish or prawn. But the most popular curries use surmai (kingfish), pomfret (butter fish), bangda (mackerel) or bombil (Bombay duck). And the only way to truly enjoy it is with par boiled country rice.
For Konkani and Malvani style fish curry go to Sadichha, B-5 Gandhi Nagar, Opp. MIG Club, Bandra (E), Tel: +91 (0) 22 2651 0175.. For Karwar style fish curry there's Fresh Catch, Lt. Kotnis Marg, Near Fire Brigade, Off L J Road, Mahim (W). Tel: +91 (0) 22 2444 8942

16. Frankie
Inspired by the Lebanese pita bread wrap and suitably Indianized, the Frankie, or should I say the Tibbs Frankie, has satiated hordes of the hungry in search of a quick lip-smacking snack. Basically, it's a juicy naan bread with an egg coating and stuffed with mutton or chicken, rolled up and sprinkled with a unique masala that gives it its special flavor. The vegetarian option does not use eggs and the stuffings include paneer or potatoes.
Available all over the city. For a Tibbs Frankie closest to you, call +91 (0) 22 2821 4698

17. Gujarati thaalis
In fast food terms think of this as a large, all-you-can-eat combo platter served on your table in unlimited quantities. Three types of farsan (fried snacky things with a plethora of chutneys). Two kinds of vegetables. Two kinds of lentils. Dal and kadhi (hot and spicy yoghurt based dish). A basket of different rotis and puris (deep fried breads). Two kinds of rice. Two desserts. And mango pulp which the purists pour all over the plate. All this for a modest price. Gasp! A note on Gujarati cuisine: most dishes tend to be on the sweet side and that makes an interesting combination with the spiciness of the food. Mumbaikers either love it or ignore it.
Try Golden Star Thali, 330 Raja Rammohan Roy Road, Opp. Charni Road Station, Girgaum, Tel: +91 (0) 22 2363 1983. Or, Chetana, 34 K Dubash Marg, Kala Ghoda, Fort. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2284 4968

18. Kheema pao
Minced mutton cooked with onions, garlic, tomatoes, chillies and spices takes on many avatars here. In its original form, it is refereed to as plain Kheema.. Topped with a crisply fried sunny side up egg, it is called kheema single fry. And scrambled with eggs, it is called ghotala. And all three are best eaten with Mumbai's signature pao bread bun. Traditionally a breakfast dish, it is now eaten at all times of the day or night.
Try it at Stadium Restaurant, IMC Building, Veer Nariman Road, Churchgate, Tel: +91 (0) 22 2204 6819. Or at Olympia, Rahim Mansion, 1 Shahid Bhagat Singh Road, Colaba, Tel: +91 (0) 22 2202 1043.

19. Kebabs
While the kebab per se may not be unique to Mumbai or the region, a few varieties that emerged from the Bohri Muslim community are truly unique. Gurda (kidney) and kaleji (liver) top this list. Charcoal grilled, they go great with freshly sliced onions and a squeeze of lime.
Try it at Ayubs, on the street behind Rhythm House, Kala Ghoda, open only in the evenings. The best beef kebabs are to be found at Sarvi, 184/196 Dimtimkar Road, opposite Nagpada Police Station, Byculla (W). Tel: +91 9833 533 305. And for some outstanding north west frontier style Kebabs, go to Peshawari, ITC Grand Maratha, Sahar Road, Andheri (E), Tel: +91 (0) 22 2830 3030

20. Kolhapuri mutton
The hotter the temperature of a city, the hotter the food. And it's true of this mutton dish that has its roots in Kolhapur, a city in the south of Maharashtra. It comes in two coconut based gravy variations. The nuclear strength version is called Tambda Rassa (a red chili spiced extravaganza). And the milder version is called Pandhara Rassa (yoghurt, cashew nuts and raisin embellished). Both go well with either rotis or rice when you're in the mood for a feast.
Taste the heat at Purepur Kolhapur, 1, Aditya Apartments, Parleshwar Road, Parleshwar Mandir, Vile Parle (E). Tel: +91 (0) 22 2613 4569

21. Kanda poha
A must-have in Maharashtrian families, you will rarely find a badly made kanda poha dish. This simple, easy to make snack is made with kanda (onions) and poha (flaked rice) mixed with chopped potatoes and green chillies, sometimes even peas. Tempered with mustard seeds and garnished with fresh coriander and a squeeze of lime, it lights up dull days. And cements the many days in a marriage together.
Try it at Aswad, L J Road, Opp. Shiv Sena Bhavan, Dadar (W). Tel: +91 (0) 22 2445 1871

22. Misal pao
Quintessentially from Pune, this rustic dish is made from a mix of curried sprouted lentils, topped with batata (potato) bhaji, poha (rice flakes), chivda, farsan, raw chopped onions and tomato. This hot and spicy dish is eaten with pao bread. To cut the fire, add some yogurt.
A good version can be found at Vinay Health Home, 71/83, Jawahar Mansion, Fanaswadi-Thakurdwar Corner, Girgaum. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2208 1211

23. Modak
A Maharashtrian sweet prepared during the Ganesh festival around August, modak is offered to Lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed god, because it is his favorite sweet. Wheat flour dough kneaded with milk, stuffed with grated coconut and mixed with sugar or jaggery. Shaped like a teardrop and steamed or fried. Typically 21 are made as an auspicious offering to the god and tons more for the rest of the family. It's a pity that it's made only once a year and in this region.
Some sweet shops do keep modak during the festival season but it is made of khoya (thickened milk) and is not the real thing. For that, you’ll have to drop into a home that is celebrating the festival.

24. Mutton dhansak
Representative of Parsi cuisine, the mutton dhansak falls in the category of soul food. It is mutton cooked till tender in a lentil dal laden with spices. And it is eaten with browned rice topped with deep fried onions, garnished with mutton kebabs and sprinkled with a crunchy mix of chopped raw onions, raw tomatoes and coriander. And the aftereffects are usually exhibited in a sound afternoon nap.
This rich dish, outside of a home, is best had at Ripon Club, 123A MG Road, Opp. Bombay University, Fountain. Find a member to take you there. Failing which, go to Britannia, Wakefield House, 11 Sprott Road, Ballard Estate. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2261 5264

25. Mutton sukke
Mumbaikers break out into sweat over this Malvani-style mutton dish. Chunks of mutton on the bone marinated in a hot Malvani masala and fried with onions and garlic and red chillies until everything browns and the meat is tender. It can be eaten with chapattis or wadé, rice flour pancakes.
Try it at Jai Hind Lunch Home, 6 Mantri Corner, Gokhale Road South, Dadar. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2431 4256

26.. Patra ni machhi
Another top of the line Parsi dish. This is freshly caught pomfret, marinated in a chutney that includes grated coconut, green chillies, fresh coriander and mint leaves, cumin, sugar, lime and salt. It is then wrapped in banana leaf and steamed for about ten minutes. Gently unwrap and consume quietly, close your eyes and savor the flavor of a culinary culture that will fill your senses.
A very good patra ni machhi can be had at Ideal Corner, 12/F/G, Hornby View, Gunbow Street, Fort. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2262 1930. Only available on Saturdays.

27. Pao bhaji
This specialty dish from the by-lanes of Mumbai has mashed steamed mixed vegetables (mainly potatoes, peas, tomatoes, onions and green pepper) cooked in spices and loads of butter. It is eaten with pao, which is shallow fried in even more butter and served with chopped onions.. Sometimes cheese and paneer (cottage cheese) are added. People from all over India come to Mumbai to eat pao bhaji.
Though widely available at local restaurants, try the sinful pao bhaji at Sardar, 166A Tardeo Road Junction, Opp. Bus Depot, Tardeo. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2353 0208

28. Prawns koliwada
Contrary to popular belief that this dish originated on the Konkan coast, it is actually a very Mumbai dish and the story goes that it was created in the Sion fishing village, or koliwada, by -- and here’s the twist -- a north Indian immigrant from Punjab. These deep-fried prawns marinated in a batter of flour, spices and ginger garlic paste can be identified by their signature red color. And they are crunchy yet melt in the mouth. Pick the smaller sized prawns, they taste better.
Try the real thing at Hazara, GTB Nagar, Near the Gurudwara, Sion (W). Tel: +91 (0) 22 2409 2617

29. Nalli nihari
The phrase "breakfast like a king" gets taken to another level when you dig into a plate of Muslim nalli nihari. You could probably fight a war after this power meal made of soft and tender mutton shanks in a rich, greasy gravy filled with marrow and steeped in spices, the flavors exploding with delight. A crisp roti makes for the perfect accompaniment. Can you stomach this for breakfast?
The best Nalli Nihari can be had at Noor Mohammadi, 179 Wazir Building, Abdul Hakim Noor Mohammadi Chowk, Bhendi Bazaar. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2347 6188. Just make sure you reach before noon or you may leave disappointed.

30. Puran poli
A festive dish made by Maharashtrians and Gujaratis especially during Holi (to celebrate the end of the winter season) and Dussehra (to celebrate the triumph of Lord Ram over the demon Raavan). It is made by simmering chana dal (yellow gram) with sugar or jaggery (molasses or gur) till it dries up, and then hand-ground to smoothen it out. Nutmeg and cardamom powders are the flavorings. Palm sized balls of this paste are stuffed into wheat flour dough and rolled out to be roasted on a tawa frying pan with a little ghee (clarified butter). Do add a lot of ghee when you're eating them, they taste tops then.
Puran polis can be found in some grocery stores but they are a poor mass produced version of the real thing. The real ones can only be found in a Maharashtrian or Gujarati home.

31. Ragda pattice
This twin delight is a combination of ragda, soft spicy rugged flavored chickpeas, and pattice, mashed potatoes shaped into fat patties and fried. The ideal way is to eat it is to crush the ragda with the pattice and pile on the accompaniments -- finely chopped onions, tangy tamarind sauce and fiery green chutney. Mash it all up and dig in for the true flavor of Mumbai.
A favorite street food, it is part of the chaat family and is commonly found all over. A good place to try it is Kailash Parbat, Sheela Mahal, 1st Pasta Lane, Colaba. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2284 1972

32. Sabudana vada
For Maharashtrians, sabudana vada is the traditional 'upvas' or fasting food and the really hardcore folk fast up to four times a week. And the good news is that the restaurants never fail to oblige with hot crisp sabudana vadas for those who don’t have the time to make it at home. Sago is soaked until it puffs up. Crushed boiled potatoes, green chillies, coriander leaves and salt are kneaded in. They are then fashioned into palm-sized patties and deep fried until they turn crisp and golden. And then one bite leads to another and another.
Sabudana vadas are available at most Udipi hotels and roadside stalls. But try the ones at the R K Studio Canteen, Chembur. They are really special.

33. Samosa
It's best to bite into a hot one, hiding under a street stall during a typical Mumbai monsoon downpour. When you go through the crisp crust, you meet the steaming and savory-with-a-hint-of-sour chunks of spiced potatoes and peas. Lovingly shaped into triangles and deep fried, these calorie busters are worth the one week that you’ll need on the treadmill to work it off. But a samosa can also give you heart at that last leg of your day when transport is not in sight, it's dark and there's a long way home.
You can ask for Guru Kripa samosas at many stores across Mumbai. Or go to the original Guru Kripa Hotel, 40, Guru Kripa Building, near SIES College, Sion. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2407 1237

34. Sizzlers
As kids, a sizzler was part of the "growing up in Mumbai" experience. The sight of a sizzler arriving at your table, like an old steam engine, sizzling and steaming and spluttering to a halt in front of you, was an exciting experience. A combination of grilled meats and vegetables served on what looks like a hot chunk of black iron, with a side of mashed potatoes or fries and gravy. Sizzlers come in several vegetarian options too. Long lines at restaurants are a testimony to its enduring popularity.
Give sizzlers a try at places synonymous with the word. Such as Kobe, 13/14 Sukh Sagar, Hughes Road, Opera House. Tel: +91 (0) 22 23632174. Or Yoko, West View, S V Road, near Akbarally’s, Santacruz (W). Tel: +91 (0) 22 2649 2313

35. Sorpatel and vindaloo
These Goan specialties set your taste buds on fire and grandmothers are rumored to pass out feni shots (a strong Goan brew made from palm or cashew nuts) to douse the flames. The sorpatel has all parts of the pig, including its blood, in the recipe. And the vindaloo is made with chunks of fatty pork meat cooked with spices, red chillies and lots of vinegar. Ideally, they are eaten the next day, after having spent the night soaking in all the juices and flavors.
Try sorpatel, vindaloo and other Goan delicacies at City Kitchen, 301 Shahid Bhagat Singh Road, Fort. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2261 0002. Or, New Martin Hotel, 11 Glamour House, Strand Cinema Road, Colaba. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2202 9606

36. South Indian 'meals'
"Meals Ready" is a common sign found outside South Indian restaurants. In front of Udipi hotels, a euphemism for all south Indian cuisine, it means vegetarian meals laid out on a thaali, a stainless steel plate, or on a traditional banana leaf. A couple of vegetables, sambar (spicy and sour lentils and vegetables boiled with masalas and spices), rasam (a hot and fiery lentil soup-like dish) and curds (yoghurt) served with heaps of rice and eaten in that order. A non-vegetarian version of the 'Meals' can be found in 'Military' hotels.
Try the 'meals' at this 68-year-old haven: Rama Nayak’s Udipi Shree Krishna Boarding, bang outside the Matunga (E) station. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2414 2422

37. Zhunka bhakar
This dish has deep roots in the farming and working class communities of interior Maharashtra. Considered the common man's food, a political decision was made at the highest echelons of government to make it available everywhere. Overnight, thousands of zhunka bhakar stalls opened, none pricing it more than Rs 10. Traditionally, the zhunka is made using chopped onions tempered with mustard seeds and kadipatta leaves mixed with chickpea flour and is dry. It is eaten with jowar (millet) bhakri or roti.
Try the stalls opposite Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (originally called Victoria Terminus) and BMC Headquarters.

38. Varan bhaat
If you wanted to name one truly soul satisfying food of Mumbai city, then this would be it. The simple and truly humble dish is made by lightly tempering cooked-till-soft toor dal (a lentil) with ghee (clarified butter), turmeric and cumin powder. Served over steaming hot rice, or bhaat, it assumes magical, mythical proportions.
A staple in Maharashtrian homes, that's really where you should be eating it. But do give Diva Maharashtracha a try. T H Kataria Marg, Mahim. Tel: +91 (0) 22 2445 4433.

39. South Indian tiffin (idlis and vadas)
What started as tiffin in British India -- a light meal that was had between meals -- has become a rage all over the country. And especially in hard working Mumbai. Here you will find a South Indian tiffin available every half a kilometer and at any time of day or night. These steamed (idlis) or fried (vadas) dumplings made with multi-grain lentil batter are best scooped up with coconut chutney or dunked into hot sambar (spicy and sour lentil and vegetable soup, boiled with masalas and spices).
The finest South Indian Tiffin can be found at Madras Café (+91 (0) 22 2401 4419), Anand Bhavan (+91 (0) 22 2401 5745) and Idli House (+91 (0) 22 3246 0111), all located around King’s Circle, Matunga.

40. Vada pao
In the vast fast food world of Mumbai, this is the tastiest "cutlet in a bun" by a mile. And no, it's not available at McDonald's. Every Mumbaiker's favorite on-the-go snack, the vada pao satiates millions every day. And the recipe, hard to duplicate because each stall owner has his own secret ingredient, uses a combination of boiled potatoes mashed with fresh coriander, green chillies, a bit of ginger and sometimes garlic, made into palm-sized balls, dipped in a chickpea flour batter and deep fried till golden. They are stuffed into a pao, which has been applied with a layer of spicy green chutney and a fiery red garlic crush. Tastes best when eaten hot.
It's a crime to eat vada pao anywhere else but on the street. Try Ashok Satam's Stall, on the Flora Fountain side of the Central Telegraph Office (CTO), Fort.

Training courses available ...

2010-09-09T15:52:00.003+04:00

CLASSES FOR WOMEN....

Training courses are now available for women on the following subjects:

Topic 1. Silence, the Final Frontier: Where No Woman Has Gone Before

Topic 2. The Undiscovered Side of Banking: Making Deposits

Topic 3. Parties: Going Without New Outfits

Topic 4. Bathroom Etiquette: Men Need Space in the Bathroom Cabinet Too

Topic 5. Communication Skills : Tears - The Last Resort, not the First

Topic 6. Communication Skills II: Getting What you Want Without Nagging

Topic 7. Driving a Car Safely: A Skill You CAN Acquire

Topic 8. Telephone Skills: How to Hang Up

Topic 9. Classic Footwear: Wearing Shoes You Already Have

Topic 10. Oil and Petrol: Your Car Needs Both

NEW EVENING CLASSES FOR MEN!!! ALL ARE WELCOME!!!

Note: due to the complexity and level of difficulty of their contents, each course will accept a maximum of eight participants each.

Topic 1. How to fill ice-cube trays: Step by step with slide presentation.

Topic 2. Toilet paper rolls: do they grow on the holders?: Round-table discussion.

Topic 3. Differences between the laundry basket and the floor: Pictures and explanatory graphics.

Topic 4. Learning how to find things, starting with looking in the right place instead of turning the house upside down while screaming. Open forum.

Topic 5. Health watch: bringing her flowers is not harmful to your health: Graphics and audio tape.

Topic 6. Real men ask for directions when lost: Real-life testimonials.

Topic 7. Is it genetically impossible to sit quietly as she parallel parks?: Driving simulation.

Topic 8. Learning to live: basic differences between mother and wife : Online class and role playing.

Topic 9. How to be the ideal shopping companion: Relaxation exercises, meditation and breathing techniques.

Topic 10. How to fight cerebral atrophy: remembering birthdays, anniversaries, other important dates and calling when you're going to be late : Cerebral shock therapy sessions

Why a glass a day WILL keep the doctor away...

2010-09-09T15:46:00.003+04:00

Health benefits: Women put on less weight if they stick to red wine rather than soft drinks or other beverages
The health benefits of red wine have long been a consolation to those who enjoy an occasional glass or two. But the news has got even better.
A study has shown that moderate women drinkers put on less weight than those who stick to soft drinks - and those who drank red wine put on the least weight. The findings by Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston suggest drinkers turn the calories into heat, not fat.
Here we look at the other surprising ways in which alcohol - when taken in moderation - may benefit your body. Men should not exceed three to four units a day and women should not exceed two to three units a day.
RED WINE
BENEFITS: Fights cancer, raises good cholesterol, boosts brain power, helps insomnia and protects against hearing and tooth decay.
The health benefits of red wine are down to resveratrol, a plant chemical in the skins and pips of grapes. Salicylate, an antioxidant in red wine, can help to prevent deafness by protecting the tiny hairs in the inner ear that are vital for hearing.
It can also sharpen your wits, says Dr Clinton Wright, professor of neurology at Columbia University , New York , who found moderate red wine drinkers score higher in mental agility tests than teetotallers. A team of U.S. researchers discovered that chemicals in the seeds and skins of grapes blocked the ability of corrosive bacteria to bind with tooth enamel, protecting teeth from decay.
Red wine can also help insomnia, according to the University of Milan . Grape skins contain melatonin, a hormone that keeps body clocks in check and induces sleep.
BEER
BENEFITS: Contains vitamins and minerals needed to protect the heart and bones, plus fibre.
A pint of ale contains more than a quarter of an adult’s recommended daily dose of vitamin B folate, which stops the build-up of homocysteine, linked to heart attacks.
Beer also contains boron, another trace mineral needed to maintain healthy bones. A pint supplies a tenth of the recommended daily allowance of niacin, which is needed to help release energy from food, as well as 10 per cent of an adult’s daily fibre needs.
A pint a day reduces the risk of kidney stones by up to 40 per cent because beer is low in calcium and high in magnesium - key factors in avoiding stone formation.
Like red wine, one beer a day cuts the risk of heart disease and strokes, thanks to its antioxidants.
But does it give you a beer belly? Martin Bobak, an epidemiologist at University College London, compared 2,000 beer drinkers with non- drinkers. There was little difference in their waist-hip ratios.
GIN
BENEFITS: Anti-inflammatory, diuretic.
Gin is a distilled form of pure alcohol with few chemical congeners - or impurities - to give you a hangover.
It is flavoured with juniper, a berry known for its diuretic properties and used in herbal medicine to treat kidney and bladder stones, and bloating.
Juniper has anti-inflammatory properties that help relieve arthritis, rheumatism and gout.
WHITE WINE
BENEFITS: Lowers cholesterol; benefits lungs; anti-inflammatory.
The grape flesh used in white wine contains the chemicals tyrosol and hydroxytyrosol, which lower artery-clogging LDL cholesterol.
When drunk moderately, white wine may help keep lungs healthy over a lifetime. Its antioxidants protect against harmful molecules that can damage lung tissues.
White wine also contains caffeic acid, which can help to suppress inflammation. This may help ease pain suffered by people with inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis.
BRANDY
BENEFITS: Protects against heart attacks and blood clots.
As a distillation of red wine, brandy contains high concentration of phenolics or antioxidants, which mop up free radicals that damage organs and tissues - 30ml provide the equivalent antioxidant potential as the daily recommended intake of vitamin C. The University of Bordeaux has shown that a regular tot of Armagnac has a similar effect to aspirin because it helps stave off heart attacks and blood clots. It is believed this is due to brandy being stored in oak casks, which are high in anti- oxidant plant compounds that mop up damaging free radicals in the body.
CHAMPAGNE
BENEFITS: Helps brain injuries.
Researchers triggered a stroke in two groups of mice. The group which had champagne - which is packed with antioxidants - had more protection against brain cell damage.
To our health! Champagne is packed with antioxidants and helps protect against brain cell damage
BAILEYS
BENEFITS: Protects against cancer.
This Irish liqueur contains whiskey, which has high levels of ellagic acid. This inhibits the growth of tumours caused by carcinogens and kills cancer cells without damaging healthy cells.
The Hollings Cancer Institute at the University of South Carolina carried out clinical trials on 500 cervical cancer patients over nine years. They found ellagic acid stopped cancer cells dividing.
SHERRY
BENEFITS: Protects heart.
Sherry shares many of the antiinflammatory benefits as red wine. It contains high levels of polyphenols, believed to reduce the risk of coronary artery disease.
These protect the heart by preventing ‘bad’ cholesterol from becoming sticky and building up as a deposit on blood vessel walls. They also increase the body’s production of ‘good’ cholesterol.
CIDER
BENEFITS: Protects against high blood pressure and heart disease; good for muscle control.
According to the Institute of Food Research at Norwich , cider has the same level of antioxidants as green tea, blackcurrant juice or red wine, helping to fight disease.
It is also high in potassium, needed for nerve function, muscle control and to regulate blood pressure. Low levels of potassium are linked to hypertension, diabetes, stroke and heart disease.
GUINESS
BENEFITS: Protects against blood clots and heart attacks.
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin found a daily Guinness with a meal reduced clots and the risk of heart attacks.
This is because it contains antioxidants - similar to those found in fruit

Little Bruce and Lucky Jenny ...

2010-09-09T15:30:00.000+04:00

Little Bruce and Jenny are only 10 years old, but they just know that they are in love. One day they decide that they want to get married, so Bruce goes to Jenny's father to ask him for her hand.

Bruce bravely walks up to him and says "Mr. Smith, me and Jenny are in love and I want to ask you for her hand in marriage."

Thinking that this was just the cutest thing, Mr. Smith replies, "Well Bruce, you are only 10. Where will you two live?"

Without even taking a moment to think about it, Bruce replies "In Jenny's room. It's bigger than mine and we can both fit there nicely."

Still thinking this is just adorable, Mr. Smith says with a huge grin, "Okay then how will you live? You're not old enough to get a job. You'll need to support Jenny."

Again, Bruce instantly replies, "Our allowance .. Jenny makes 5 bucks a week and I make 10 bucks a week That's about 60 bucks a Month and that should do us just fine."

By this time Mr. Smith is a little shocked that Bruce has put so much thought into this. He thinks for a moment trying to come up With something that Bruce won't have an answer to.

After a second, Mr. Smith says, "Well Bruce, it seems like you have got everything all figured out. I just have one more question for you. What will you do if the two of you should have little
ones of your own?"

Bruce just shrugs his shoulders and says "Well, we've been lucky so far."

Mr. Smith no longer thinks the little kid is adorable!

Million $ Questions!!!

2010-09-09T15:23:00.002+04:00

1-Q: Why are condoms transparent?
A: So that sperm can at least enjoy the scenery even if their entry is Restricted!

2-Signboard outside a prostitute's house:
Married MEN not allowed. We serve the needy, not the greedy...

3-New AIDS awareness slogan:
Try different positions with the same woman instead of same position with different women.

4-Why is $ex like shaving?
Well, because no matter how well you do it today... tomorrow you'll have to do it again...

5-Q: What will happen if earth rotates 30 times faster?
A: Men will get their salary everyday and women will bleed to death.

6-Q: Why do 90% gals have left boob bigger than right?
A: Bcoz 90% boys are right handed.

7-Q: What is the difference between a PANTY & a STAGE CURTAIN?
A: When you pull down the STAGE CURTAIN, the show is over, but when you pull down the PANTY..... it is SHOWTIME!

8-Q: What is the similarity between a wife and a chewing gum?
A: Both are sweet in the beginning but become tasteless and shapeless later

9-Advantages of having an affair with a married woman.
They give like hell.
They do not yell.
They do not tell.
They do not swell and there are no wedding bells!

10-My dad told me that if Adam and Eve were Chinese, we would be still in Paradise . Why?
Because they would have eaten the snake instead of the bloody apple!

An innocent prayer

2010-09-09T15:22:00.002+04:00

A teacher from Primary School asks her students to write an essay about what they would like God to do for them...At the end of the day, while marking the essays, she read one that made her very emotional.

Her husband, who had just walked in, saw her crying and asked her: 'What happened?'

She answered, 'Read this. It's one of my students' essays. Essay:' 'Oh God, tonight I ask you something very special: Make me into a television. I want to take its place. Live like the TV in my house. Have my own special place, And have my family around ME. To be taken seriously when I talk ... I want to be the centre of attention and be heard without interruptions or questions. I want to receive the same special care that the TV receives when it is not working. Have the company of my dad when he arrives home from work, even when he is tired. And I want my mom to want me when she is sad and upset, instead of ignoring me...And... I want my brothers to fight to be with me... I want to feel that family just leaves everything aside, every now and then, just to spend some time with me. And last but not least make it that I can make them all happy and entertain them...Lord I don't ask you for much... I just want to live like every TV.’

At that moment the husband said: 'My God, poor kid. What horrible parents!'

The wife looked up at him and said: 'That essay is written by our son' ...!!!

Cricket...

2010-09-09T15:21:00.002+04:00

A man watching a cricket game on TV kept switching channels to a dirty movie featuring a lusty couple.

"I don't know whether to watch them or the game," he said to his wife..

"For heaven's sake, watch them," his wife said. “You already know how to play cricket!”

Some useful facts

2010-09-09T15:20:00.002+04:00

The safest number of times to reuse a disposable razor is only 3. Disposable razors have thinner blades than other razors, and are thus more prone to producing microscopic cuts in the skin. The longer you keep using a disposable razor, the more germs it will collect, and the greater the chance that a nick will become infected.

When you walk uphill, the level of harmful fats in the bloodstream goes down. When you walk downhill, blood sugar levels are reduced. Alter your patterns of exercise depending on your health needs!

90% of the calories in cream cheese come from fat! It's the most fattening cheese.

Make sure your television set is securely supported if you have young children in your house. At least 28 kids were killed by toppling television sets in 1997.

If you have an impaired immune system, don't eat alfalfa sprouts. Some sprouts have caused outbreaks of E. Coli and salmonella!

Coffee does not increase the risk of heart attacks. A recent study showed that even 4 or more cups daily didn't increase heart attack risk.

Sweet potatoes contain no more calories than white potatoes, and virtually no fat.

As people age, they burn fewer calories. This often results in increased body fat and loss of muscle. All it takes, however, is a brisk 2 mile walk daily to balance energy intake and energy needs.

If you have symptoms of a heart attack, such as chest pain, chew and swallow one adult aspirin tablet (325 mg) immediately, while you seek medical help. If you have only baby aspirin at home, chew four of them.

The number one vegetable in the US is the potato. Per capita consumption is 84 pounds each year! One third of those end up as french fries. 5% are in the form of potato chips.

Knuckle cracking does NOT cause arthritis, enlarged joints or any other harm. It's just irritating to some people.

Many studies show that married people tend to be healthier than unmarried ones. One theory is that being married encourages healthy behavior, such as wearing seat belts, being physically active and having blood pressure checked.

Watch out for cars turning left at traffic lights! A high proportion of accidents (with other cars or pedestrians) involve a left-turning vehicle!

If you order a shake at a fast food restaurant, the good news is: a 16 ounce shake provides about 400 mg of calcium. The bad news: it also supplies about 400 to 600 calories and at least 9 grams of fat!

Measure your waist to find out if you are at risk for weight-related health problems. For women, a waist measurement of 34 1/2 inches signals a serious risk. For men, the cutoff point is 40 inches.

Watch out! Grapefruit juice can greatly boost the concentration of certain drugs in the bloodstream. These include some popular cholesterol-lowering drugs, calcium channel-blockers, tranquilizers and some antihistamines.

If you drive with a small child in your car, make sure you use the child safety seat properly! Only about 60% of children age 4 or younger ride in such seats! In addition, 80% of these safety seats are improperly used.

Per-capita Mozzarella cheese consumption has risen five-fold since 1972. Mozzarella is the second most popular cheese, next to cheddar.

Walkers and hikers who apply an aluminum-containing antiperspirant to their feet daily for at least three days before a long hike can reduce the risk of blisters!

If you take more than 500 mg of calcium supplements daily, take half later in the day. The body absorbs smaller amounts of calcium much more efficiently than large doses. Taking the calcium with meals also improves absorption.

Moderate exercise may reduce the risk of gallstone attacks by 20 to 40%! People who watch more than 40 hours of TV per week have double the risk of gallstone symptoms compared to those watching little TV.

Disinfect your loofah sponge occasionally with diluted bleach. Sponges like this can become contaminated with bacteria that can cause skin irritation.

High-fiber foods are recommended on weight-loss diets because they're filling and nutritious. In addition, boosting your fiber intake reduces the number of calories your body absorbs from the food you eat!

If all adult American smokers had quit five years ago, there would have been an estimated 15% fewer overall deaths in the United States since then, according to a study from Rutgers University.

An easy way to tell about your sun protection in the summer: if your shadow is shorter than your height, it's sunburn time. In most parts of the country, that's between 10 am and 4 pm.

If a lightning storm occurs, you are safe in a car with a solid metal top with the windows and doors shut, as long as you aren't touching a metal part of the car! A bad place to stand is right outside the car during the storm. Never stand under a lone tree in a lightning storm. A forest is safer.

Don't let the fact that you are using a tanning lotion give you a false sense of security in the sun. You need a sunscreen with an SPF (sun protection factor) of at least 15 in the summer for adequate protection.

A 1992 study found that men are much less likely to discover skin lesions than women, which may help explain why men are more likely to die from this dangerous type of skin cancer. Men should make a special effort to examine their skin, especially on their backs, for signs of melanoma.

Don't assume that darker sunglasses block more ultraviolet (UV) rays. A dark tint is desirable because it blocks more visible light, but the color in no guarantee to UV protection.

It is important to have an advance directive (including a living will) in case of medical emergency. It's also important to make sure it is accessible to your doctor and at least one close relative.

Be careful when using bungee cords this summer; elastic cords with metal hooks at each end. These cords can easily snap and hit you in the eye, causing serious injury.

Vitamin C and E pills may protect against sunburn and thus possibly reduce the risk of skin cancer. But it does not replace a good sunscreen.

If you take chewable Vitamin C tablets, make sure you brush your teeth afterwards, or at least rinse your mouth out. The tablets make your mouth acidic enough to start dissolving tooth enamel.

Don't expect pounds shed in a commercial weight loss program to stay off - they almost always come back. The strongest predictor of maintaining weight loss is regular exercise. The best predictor of weight regain: frequent television viewing!

Nasal dilators, those tape strips along the bridge of your nose (you often see athletes wearing these) will not boost your athletic performance. There's no scientific evidence that these strips help people play longer, better or harder.

Women trying to conceive improve their chances if they give up alcohol. In one study, women who had consumed only one to five drinks a week were 60% as likely to conceive as non-drinkers. At more than 10 drinks per week, the chances fell to 34%!

More than 500,000 Americans are injured and 300 die each year while using ladders. Keep in mind the 4-and-1 rule; for every 4 feet the ladder rises up the wall, the base of the ladder should extend 1 foot from the wall!

Licking a wound actually does promote healing. Saliva helps disinfect wounds and kills bacteria.

What you do during the first few hours after you've sprained your ankle or pulled a muscle can determine whether you're back to your normal routine quickly or still hobbling a week later. The key is ICE, applied as soon as possible.

It may be impossible for many people to attain a flat stomach. Even if you're very thin, your internal organs are inside your abdomen. The flatness of your stomach in many cases depends on your genes.

Remove the skin from chicken if you're counting fat calories. If you don't eat the skin, you can reduce the fat content of a chicken breast by 3/4, and it's half the calories. By the way, dark meat without the skin still has 2 to 3 times as much fat as a skinless chicken breast.

Even though the average life expectancy in Japan, France and other countries is longer than the United States, if you reach age 80, statistically you have a greater chance of living longer in the United States.

If you buy tofu, only buy commercially sealed packages. Tofu (soybean curd) is often sold floating in open, unrefrigerated trays of water, which invite bacteria to grow and puts you at risk for gastrointestinal illness.

A tight tie can affect a glaucoma exam; if you're having your eyes checked, you shouldn't wear a tie all day.

Don't use home tooth-bleaching kits. These contain ingredients that can injure gums and other soft tissue of the mouth. They also can make you sick if you swallow them.

To minimize crying while slicing onions, put a piece of bread in your mouth! This may absorb some of the fumes.

Smoking does NOT keep people thin, according to a study of 4,000 people ages 18 to 30. Weight gain was common (averaging 2 pounds per year), whether the person smokes or not!

20% of airline passengers catch a cold after a two-hour flight.

To test how much fat is in a cracker, rub it over a paper napkin. If the cracker leaves a grease mark, there's lots of oil in it. Even if the cracker contains unsaturated vegetable oil, you don't need that extra fat!

Swimming is a great fitness activity. One reason is the water cools the body very efficiently, allowing for more exercise and less fatigue.

Alcohol can be a double whammy for hip fractures in older people; not only does excessive drinking increase the risk of falls, but it also decreases bone density.

If you're taking a daily low-dose aspirin for heart protection, you should take a full-sized 325mg aspirin twice a month. This additional dose further reduces the risk of clots.

The incidence of Type 2 diabetes (the most common form of diabetes) has increased dramatically over the last ten years. This increase is due to the fact that Americans are living longer, are getting fatter and are less physically active.

Caregivers who take care of a spouse for long hours have an increased risk of heart disease. The emotional strain (as well as potential financial strain) often makes caregivers take less time to look after their own health.

It's estimated that 10 to 15 million Americans are allergic to cockroaches. Skin irritation, hay fever symptoms, or asthma are some of the problems associated with cockroach allergy.

Aspartame has been studied more than any other food additive.

Women have a keener sense of smell than men do, and it's particularly acute at the time of ovulation.

If you occasionally feel faint when standing up, try raising your arms over your head before you get up.

Only half of Americans with hypertension (high blood pressure) are being treated for it, and only half of those being treated have it under control. Nearly one third of those with high blood pressure don't even know they have it!

Second hand smoke is dangerous to people, but also to your pets. Cats and dogs are more likely to suffer from lung cancer and lymphoma if their owners smoke.

Most people cannot tell if and when they have bad breath unless someone tells them. If you often have bad breath, brush your tongue, especially if it looks coated. Be sure to brush the back of the tongue.

American men who turn 65 this year can expect to live another 16 years. Women, another 19 years.

Locally baked muffins, brownies and cookies almost always weigh more than their labels say, often 20% more! This may account for the often substantial underestimation of calories on the labels.

Brown eggs are not more nutritious than white eggs. The color of the egg shell is nothing more than indication of the breed from which it came.

A woman who starts smoking increases her risk of a heart attack twice as much as a man who starts. Woman have a lower risk of heart attack than men, especially in middle age, but smoking narrows this gender gap.

Chocolate may be a more effective cough remedy than cough medicine, according to a study at Imperial College London.

Though it has lots of calcium, yogurt contains no vitamin D. Milk is fortified with D, and is the major dietary source of it, but the milk that yogurt is made from isn't fortified. Vitamin D helps the body utilize calcium and build bone.

Skinless duck breast has less fat than skinless chicken breast, ounce for ounce.

Eat a potato with its skin - but pare away any green areas, trim visible blemishes and gouge out any sprouts. A potato's skin contains most of its iron, calcium and fiber. Ounce for ounce, the skin is the most nutritous part! The greenish hue on a potato is chlorophyll, a tip-off that too much solanine may be present. Solanine is bitter, and can produce headache, cramps and diarrhea if eaten in large quantities. Potato sprouts also contain lots of solanine, so avoid them.

To choose the best oranges, make sure it feels heavy for its size. That usually means more juice and more flavor.

Eating fruits and vegetables rich in antioxidants (such as vitamins C, E and beta carotene) may keep lungs healthy and thus reduces the risk of asthma, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis. This benefit is less for smokers.

Ounce for ounce, green peppers have three times more Vitamin C than oranges.

American MALE drivers are three times more likely to be killed in a car crash, but American FEMALE drivers are slightly more likely to be in a crash on a per-mile basis. Generally, men drive faster and take more risks, which may account for the average severity of crashes.

Corn, tomatoes and carrots actually have more nutrients after being canned than when raw.

Caffeine boosts the analgesic effect of aspirin or ibuprofen (Motrin). That's why it is added to some products (like Excedrin). But you can simply take a pain reliever with a caffeinated beverage such as coffee, tea or cola to get the same effect!

Both green and black tea have enough flouride to fight tooth decay. Some studies show that tea, if you drink it daily over a lifetime, may also prevent heart disease and cancer.

Do you know why eyes often turn red in a photograph? Blood. Really. The little black dot in the middle of your eye is not black. It’s clear, it only looks black because there’s no light coming from behind it for illumination. However, when a flash goes off, the light enters the eye and reflects off of what it finds. It finds blood vessels, blood is red, and that’s what reflects.

--
"Sometimes the cure for restlessness is rest.".

Lost his wife...

2010-09-09T15:19:00.002+04:00

A man went to police station for filing report for his missing wife:

Man:                      I lost my wife

Inspector:           What is her height

Man:                 I never noticed

Inspector:           Slim or healthy

Man:                    Not slim can be healthy

Inspector:           Colour of eyes

Man:                    Never noticed

Inspector:           Colour of hair

Man:                    Changes according to season

Inspector:           What was she wearing

Man:                    Saree/suit/ I don’t remember exactly

Inspector:           Was somebody with her ?????????

Man:                    Yes my Labrador dog, Romeo, tied with a golden chain, height 30 inches, healthy, blue eyes, blackish brown hair, his left foot thumb nail is slightly broken, he never barks, wearing a golden belt studded with blue balls, he likes non veg food, we eat together, we jog together…. And the man started crying…..

Inspector: Lets search for the dog first !!!!!!!

Bewada Movies

2010-09-09T14:57:00.000+04:00

Movies under making by famous 'Desi Daru Angrezi Tharra Productions '
Title of Movies will be:

seeta aur margarita
corona pyaar hai
soda akbar
do aur do scotch,
Jab we tunn
Jo peeta wohi sikandar
Love sex aur vodka
Bev D
Rab ne pila di thodi
Jo pilata wohi bartender
Passed out at lokhandwala
Rum de basanti
Kisme kitna hai rum
Hum tight ho chuke Sanam

Pin Drop Silence

2010-09-09T14:29:00.004+04:00

Field Marshal Sam Bahadur Maneckshaw once started addressing a public meeting in English at Ahmedabad .

The crowd started ," Speak in Gujarati. We will hear only in Gujarati."

Field Marshal Sam Bahadur Maneckshaw replied, " Friends, I have fought many a battle in my long career . I have learned Punjabi from officers of the Sikh Regiment; Marathi from the officers of the Maratha Regiment; Tamil from the officers of the Madras Sappers; Bengali from the officers of the Bengal Sappers , Hindi from the officers of the Bihar Regiment; and even Nepali from the officers of the Gurkha Regiment. Unfortunately there was no Army officer from Gujarat from whom I could have learned Gujarati."

....... and there was pin drop silence.

How a Son/Daughter Thinks of his/her DADDY at different ages

2010-09-09T14:29:00.003+04:00

At 4 Years
My daddy is great.
At 6 Years
My daddy knows everybody.
At 10 Years
My daddy is good but is short tempered.
At 12 Years
My daddy was very nice to me when I was young.
At 14 Years
My daddy is getting fastidious.
At 16 Years
My daddy is not in line with the current times.
At 18 Years
My daddy is becoming increasingly cranky.
At 20 Years
Oh! Its becoming difficult to tolerate daddy.
Wonder how Mother puts up with him.
At 25 Years
Daddy is objecting to everything.

At 30 Years
It's becoming difficult to manage my son.
I was so scared of my father when I was young.
At 40 Years
Daddy brought me up with so much discipline.
Even I should do the same.
At 45 Years
I am baffled as to how my daddy brought us up.
At 50 Years
My daddy faced so many hardships to bring us up.
I am unable to manage a single son.
At 55 Years
My daddy was so far sighted and planned so many things for us.
He is one of his kind and unique.
At 60 Years
My daddy is great.

Thus, it took 56 years to complete the cycle and come back to the 1st stage.

Indian head massage

2010-09-09T14:21:00.005+04:00

ROBOT

2010-09-09T13:59:00.000+04:00

The Costliest film ever made in the history of Indian cinema with a whooping 150 crores and produced Sun Pictures Kalanidhi Maran , Rajanikanth the box office King dons the main character with the beautiful doll Aishwarya Rai giving the company, the films is made in 3 languages, Hindi, Tamil, Telegu, and is to hit the theaters in the first week of September, K.Shankar the famous young director will done the microphone as a director and the Oscar Award winner A.R.Rahman doing justice with his tilting music, the visual effects and the stunt directors are hired abroad and the costumes of the Robot and Aishwarya rai are the highlight of the film, not to forget the brilliant locales of Peru, Brazil . The music has already roped in millions of rupees and half the investment earned that is the magic of A.R.Rahman and Super Star Rajani in the main character will definitely have the audiences throng towards the theaters and the advantage of this film is even though the CDs piracy cannot earn reap them capital as the special effects and visuals can be enjoyed only on the big screen rather than the pirated stuff.

K.Shankar has put in his heart and soul for the film as all are aware his films are strong theme based and ROBOT is sure to hit the bulls eye at the box office.

Karibu Kenya

2009-02-19T09:28:00.002+04:00

Jambo and Karibu Kenya - Hello and Welcome to Kenya in Swahili ... And that's what you will hear throughout your stay in Kenya.
We decided to take a week away from urban monotony and hit the safari trail all the way to Kenya - always been our dream destination.

So here is Kenya for you through our camera-lens or the week that we spent in the pages of National Geographic ...

Before we take you to the reserves, here are the many roads that lead you there. Be prepared for very dusty, hot and rocky roads - guaranteed to snap a few bones in your frame - however, when you reach the destination - the tiring journey is all forgotten. The roads are picturesque indeed ...
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Roads#

A 6 hour road trip from Nairobi takes you to Amboseli National Park. Home to elephants, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, lions, gazelles and more. And more importantly, a grand view of Mt.Kilimanjaro – Africa’s highest peak.
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/AmboseliNationalPark#

Amboseli means 'sand tornado' and there are plenty of them in this park. The many watering holes in this park is the meeting place for all the animals that live here. Catch them all here ...
Elephants - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Elephants#
Gazelles - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Gazelle#
Zebras - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Zebra#
Giraffes - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Giraffe#
Buffalos - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Buffalo#
Wildebeest - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Wildebeest#
Gazelles - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Gazelle#

Kilimanjaro is called 'Mountain Tricky' by the Masai ... And here's why ... Have captured a few of the 1000 faces of Kili ...
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Kilimanjaro#

The ethnic people of Kenya – the Masai – are very interesting to meet. A proud and largely aloof tribe, who have held on to their traditions and are mostly nomadic herders. They don’t like to be photographed without permission though. A slice of their life when we visited their community near Amboseli -
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Masai#

At Amboseli we stayed at the Amboseli Sopa Lodge – very good hospitality. However, the Serena Lodge is better recommended for its location in the centre of Amboseli National Park -
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/AmboseliSopaLodge#

Our next stop was Lake Nakuru – not too far from Nairobi. Lake Nakuru is considered ‘the greatest bird spectacle on earth’ and we discovered why. It was home to millions of flamingoes, pelicans and other birds – who feed on the algae of this alkaline Rift Valley lake. We were fortunate to spot the Black Rhino, Lions and the White Rhino as well here.
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/LakeNakuru#

Rhinos - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Rhinos#

Flamingoes - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Flamingos#
Over 400 species of Birds can be spotted here - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Birds#

We stayed at the Sarova Lion Hill – has a very scenic view of the Lake.
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/SarovaLionHill#

After a day here, it was off to Masai Mara – Kenya’s and probably the worlds best known game reserve. Mara roughly means ‘dotted great plain’ - and was grand enough to overfill our soul. Famous for its Lions, Cheetahs, Leopards, Rhinos, Elephants, Birds ... Voted one of the true Wonders of the Natural World – the Wildebeest migration – when they migrate from Serengeti to Mara.
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/MasaiMara#

Lions - http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Lions#

Some of our best moments were the sunrises and sunsets in Mara, the acacia forests and the open savannah -
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/StillLife#

A few images that we picked along the way -
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/Misc#

Stay at Masai Mara was at Sarova Mara Lodge – a cluster of tents –
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/SarovaMaraLodge#

Our next and last stop was Lake Naivasha – a boat ride across this Lake and one can spot Hippos, Monkeys, WaterBucks, Giraffes and several Birds. Visit the Crescent Island whilst there – where one can wander on foot amongst wild animals.
http://picasaweb.google.com/jayeshvijayan/LakeNaivasha#

Travel Tips:
Not one insect bit us. We had carried a supply of insect repellants.
No, we weren’t mugged! Don’t flash any bling on the streets of Nairobi though.
Kenyans will overwhelm you with their smile, warmth and hospitality. They are adorable.
Fruits, veggies and food are fresh and in plenty.
Don’t buy a thing at curio shops that dot the roads. They don’t have fixed price and can overcharge the tourist.
Buy all souvenirs at good stores in Nairobi. Fixed price. Good range.
Don’t visit Kenya if you can’t afford a good camera (300mm telephoto lense recommended) and a pair of binoculars.
Most places don’t have fans or aircon. Some Safari lodges have restricted usage of electricity.
Peak tourist season is when the Wildebeest migration happens. Check your nature calendar.

Our tour operator was www.habibtours.com – who did a good job. Definitely recommendable. Our guide was John – a walking-talking nature textbook.

Food from Kerala

2009-01-07T08:35:00.001+04:00

Andamans

2008-12-30T10:58:00.001+04:00

Monsoon in Kerala

2008-12-30T10:56:00.001+04:00

Wall Street lingo - new

2008-12-29T11:47:00.000+04:00

CEO- Chief Embezzlement Officer

CFO- Corporate Fraud Officer

Bull Market- A random market movement causing an investor to mistake himself for a financial genius.

Bear Market- A 6 to 18 month period when the kids get no allowance, the wife gets no jewellery and the husband gets no sex.

Value investing- The art of buying low and selling lower.

P/E Ratio- The percentage of investors wetting their pants as the market keeps crashing.

Broker- What my broker has made me.

Standard & Poor- Your life in a nutshell.

Stock analyst- Idiot who just downgraded your stock.

Stock split- When your ex-wife and her lawyer split your assets equally between themselves.

Market Correction- The day after you buy stocks.

Cash flow- The movement your money makes as it disappears down the toilet.

Yahoo- What you yell after selling it to some poor sucker for $240 per share.

Windows- What you jump out of when you're the sucker who bought Yahoo at $240 per share.

Institutional investor- Past year's investor who's now locked up in a nuthouse.

Profit- An archaic word no longer in use.

Three typical answers by women

2008-12-29T11:46:00.001+04:00

1. Whatever
Men: What to have for dinner?
Women: Whatever...
Men: Why not we have steamboat?
Women: Don't want, eat steamboat later got pimples in my face
Men: Alright, why not we have Si Chuan cuisine
Women: Yesterday ate Si Chuan, today eat again?
Men: Hmm..... I suggest we have seafood
Women: Seafood no good, later I got diarrhea
Men: Then what you suggest?
Women: Whatever...

2. Anything
Men: So what should we do now?
Women: Anything
Men: How about watching movie? Long time we didn't watch movie
Women: Watching movie no good, waste time only
Men: How about we play bowling, do some exercises?
Women: Exercise in such a hot day? No
Men: Then find a café and have drink
Women: Drink coffee will affect my sleep
Men: Then what you suggest?
Women: Anything

3. You decide
Men: Then we just go home
Women: You decide
Men: Let take bus, I will accompany you
Women: Bus is dirty and crowded. Don't want
Men: Ok we will take Taxi
Women: Not worth it... for such a short distance
Men: Alright, then we walk. Take a slow walk
Women: What to walk with empty stomach?
Men: Then what you suggest?
Women: You decide
Men: Let's have dinner first
Women: Whatever...
Men: Eat what?
Women: You decide

A quote you might appreciate

2008-12-29T11:37:00.000+04:00

"When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity; when many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion."
- Robert Pirsig (1948-)

Yellow expected as a bright spot for 2009

2008-12-29T11:33:00.001+04:00

-By SAMANTHA CRITCHELL, AP Fashion Writer – Wed Dec 3
Enough gloom and doom: There's a prediction from a leading color source that cheerful and sunny yellow will be the influential color of 2009.
Pantone, which provides color standards to design industries, specifically cites "mimosa," a vibrant shade of yellow illustrated by the flowers of some mimosa trees as well as the brunch-favorite cocktail, as its top shade of the new year. In general, Pantone expects the public to embrace many tones of optimistic yellow.
"I think it's just the most wonderful symbolic color of the future," says Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. "It's invariably connected to warmth, sunshine and cheer — all the good things we're in dire need of right now."
In the spring fashion collections previewed earlier in the fall for retailers and editors, pops of yellow brightened the runways of Carolina Herrera — who called her favorite shade marigold — Badgley Mischka, Zac Posen and Michael Kors, among others. Kors even included a retro yellow polka-dot bikini that clearly harkened back to a more upbeat time.
The fashion world first embraced orange a few years ago and that has evolved into yellow, which had already been gaining popularity in the home market, too.
"People know yellow lightens up the atmosphere," Eiseman says.
Home-goods companies based in Paris and Milan, Italy, have already been heavily influenced by yellow, says Tom Mirabile, vice president of global trends and design at Lifetime Brands, Inc., whose portfolio includes Cuisinart, Farberware and Pfaltzgraff.
It helps that it looks good in florals and has a close association with nature, a driving force in the marketplace right now, and it complements current favorites green and purple. (In 2008, "blue iris," a purple-tinged blue, was color of the year.)
"I'd say you should get used to seeing yellow in places you're not used to seeing it," Eiseman says.

The Dhammakaya Cetiya

2008-12-29T11:13:00.002+04:00

The Dhammakaya Cetiya is located on the compound of Wat Phra Dhammakaya, Pathumtani Province, north of Bangkok, Thailand. The Cetiya is approximately 16 kilometers from the former Bangkok International Airport.

The Dhammakaya Cetiya is built to last at least 1,000 years.

Luang Phor Dhammajayo desires to see the world having lasting peace through meditation. Since the Dhammakaya Cetiya serves as a symbol of peace through succeeding generations, it is architecturally designed to manifest world peace by their ancestors.

The architects and engineers of the Dhammakaya Cetiya project did extensive research on construction materials for the Cetiya. Based on historical evidence of the constructions that have lasted over thousands of years, the final conclusion was that the structural material to use in the project would be 'concrete' and 'iron.'

Why? From the ancient Pyramid of Egypt, the Egyptians at that time used white lime as a seal between the stones of the Pyramids. At present, the white lime still exists together with the Pyramid. Therefore, we have found that 'concrete' would be the most durable substance to support the Cetiya to last for 1,000 years.

Shiva temple near Coimbatore

2008-05-31T10:47:00.005+04:00

Follow the link http://www.dhyanalinga.org to possibly one of the most serene locations on this planet - Dhyanalinga.

Tom Friedman on India

2008-04-07T07:57:00.000+04:00

Speech by Thomas Friedman (foreign affairs columnist) in the New York Times.....

"When we were young kids growing up in America , we were told to eat our vegetables at dinner and not leave them. Mothers said, think of the starving children in India and finish the dinner.'

And now I tell my children: 'Finish your homework. Think of the children in India who would make you starve, if you don't.'?"

Beijing's Olympic Logo

2008-04-03T10:22:00.003+04:00

Nutritional coincidence!

2008-03-08T11:20:00.010+04:00

A sliced Carrot looks like the human eye. The pupil, iris and radiating lines look just like the human eye...and science shows that carrots greatly enhance blood flow to and function of the eyes.

A Tomato has four chambers and is red. The heart is red and has four chambers. All of the research shows tomatoes are indeed pure heart and blood food.

Grapes hang in a cluster that has the shape of the heart. Each grape looks like a blood cell and all of the research today shows that grapes are also profound heart and blood vitalizing food.

A Walnut looks like a little brain, a left and right hemisphere, upper cerebrums and lower cerebellums. Even the wrinkles or folds are on the nut just like the neo-cortex. We now know that walnuts help develop over 3 dozen neuron-transmitters for brain function.

Kidney Beans actually heal and help maintain kidney function and yes, they look exactly like the human kidneys.

Celery, Bok Choy, Rhubarb and more look just like bones. These foods specifically target bone strength. Bones are 23% sodium and these foods are 23% sodium. If you don't have enough sodium in your diet the body pulls it from the bones, making them weak. These foods replenish the skeletal needs of the body.

Eggplant, Avocadoes and Pears target the health and function of the womb and cervix of the female - they look just like these organs. Today's research shows that when a woman eats 1 avocado a week, it balances hormones, sheds unwanted birth weight and prevents cervical cancers. And how profound is this? .... It takes exactly 9 months to grow an avocado from blossom to ripened fruit. There are over 14,000 photolytic chemical constituents of nutrition in each one of these foods (modern science has only studied and named about 141 of them).

Sweet Potatoes look like the pancreas and actually balance the glycemic index of diabetics.

Olives assist the health and function of the ovaries.

Onions look like body cells. Today's research shows that onions help clear waste materials from all of the body cells They even produce tears which wash the epithelial layers of the eyes.

Olde English History

2008-03-08T11:14:00.003+04:00

The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be in England . Here are some facts about the 1500s and they are interesting . . . .

Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odour.Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.

Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the children and last of all the babies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it.Hence the saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water."

Houses had thatched roofs--thick straw piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm , so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof.Hence the saying "It's raining cats and dogs."

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection.That's how four-poster beds with canopies came into existence.

The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt.Hence the saying "Dirt poor."

The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on the floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until when you opened the door it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway.Hence the saying a "thresh hold"

(Getting quite an education, aren't you?)

In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. You never knew what you would get for the next meal from this pot - hence "pot luck".

Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while.Hence the rhyme, "Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old."

Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show it off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could "bring home the bacon." They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit around and "chew the fat."

Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous.

Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or "upper crust."

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up.
Hence the custom of holding a "wake."

England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a "bone-house" and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the "graveyard shift") to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be "saved by the bell" or was considered a "dead ringer."

Only one sheet of paper!

2008-03-08T10:53:00.008+04:00

Entries for an art contest at the Hirshhorn Modern Art Gallery in DC. The rule was that the artist could use only one sheet of paper.

When Julie Andrews turned 69

2008-03-08T10:48:00.002+04:00

To commemorate her 69th birthday on October 1, actress/vocalist, Julie Andrews made a special appearance at Manhattan 's Radio City Music Hall for the benefit of the AARP. One of the musical numbers she performed was " My Favorite Things" from the legendary movie "Sound Of Music."

Here are the actual lyrics she used:

Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting,
Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings,
Bundles of magazines tied up in string,
These are a few of my favorite things .

Cadillac's and cataracts, and hearing aids and glasses,
Polident and Fixodent and false teeth and glasses,
Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with swings,
These are a few of my favorite things .

When the pipes leak,
When the bones creak,
When the knees go bad,
I simply remember my favorite things,
And then I don't feel so bad.

Hot tea and crumpets and corn pads for bunions,
No spicy hot food or food cooked with onions,
Bathrobes and heating pads and hot meals they bring,
These are a few of my favorite things .

Back pains, confused brains, and no need for sinnin',
Thin bones and fractures and hair that is thinnin',
And we won't mention our short, shrunken frames,
When we remember our favorite things.

When the joints ache,
When the hips break,
When the eyes grow dim,
Then I remember the great life I've had,
And then I don't feel so bad.

(Ms. Andrews received a standing ovation from the crowd that lasted over four minutes and repeated encores.)

Things you don't want to hear from your surgeon:

2008-03-08T10:46:00.001+04:00

• Now where did I put that scalpel.... I KNOW I just had it a minute ago.....
• Ooooppppssss!!!!!
• I need that hooky thing, you know the one with the little.....
• AhhhhhhhhChooooooo!
• What the hell is THAT ???
• Ok, now where should I put this
• I'm sooooo tired I can hardly see straight
• Damn! lost one of my contact
• Wait a minute, if this is his spleen, then what's that?
• Accept this sacrifice, O Great Lord of Darkness
• Bo! Bo! Come back with that! Bad Dog!
• There go the lights again...
• Ya' know... there's big money in kidneys... and this guy's got two of 'em
• Are his relatives waiting outside?
• What do you mean, "You want a divorce"!!!
• FIRE! FIRE! Everyone get out!
• This scissor looks rusted
• Rats! Page 47 of the manual is missing!
• Isn't this the one with the really lousy insurance?
• Now where did this spider come in from
• Hmm!! Looks like I removed the wrong one!!!!!
• Yes, nurse, hand me the whatchamagigger and the doohickey and hold this whatchamicallit, while I get a hold of the thingamabob. Thanks

The Indic civilisation - The Shashi Tharoor Column

2008-03-08T10:40:00.003+04:00

YOU INDIANS have allowed yourself to forget that there is such a thing as Indic civilisation. And we are its last outpost.”

The words were spoken to me 25 years ago by the Khmer nationalist politician and one-time Prime Minister Son Sann, lamenting India’s support for Vietnam in its conquest of Cambodia in 1979. To Son Sann, Cambodia was an Indic civilization being overrun by the forces of a Sinic state, and he was bewildered that India, the fount of his country’s heritage, should
sympathise with a people as distinctly un-Indian as the Vietnamese.

Given that Vietnam’s invasion had put an end to the blood-soaked terror of the rule of the Khmers Rouges, I was more inclined to see the choice politically than in terms of civilizational heritage. But Son Sann’s words stayed with me.

They came back to mind during a recent visit to Angkor Wat, perhaps the greatest Hindu temple ever built anywhere in the world — and in Cambodia, not India. To walk past those exquisite sculptures recounting tales from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, to have my Cambodian guide tell me about the significance of the symbols protecting the shrine — the naga, the simha and the garuda, corresponding, he said earnestly, to today’s navy, army and air force! — and to marvel at the epic scale of a Hindu temple as impressive as the finest cathedral anywhere in the world, was also to marvel at the extraordinary reach of our culture beyond its own shores.

Hinduism was brought to Cambodia by merchants and travellers more than a millennium ago, and it has long since disappeared, supplanted by a Buddhism that was also an Indian export. But at its peak it profoundly influenced the culture, music, dance and mythology of the Cambodian people.

Even today my Cambodian guide at Bayon, a few minutes’ drive from Angkor Wat, speaks with admiration of a sensibility which, in the 16th century, saw Hindus and Buddhists worship side-by-side in adjoining shrines within the same temple complex. (If only we could do that at Ayodhya, I found myself thinking.)

Perhaps Son Sann was right, and Cambodia is indeed the last outpost of Indic civilization in a world increasingly Sinified. But what exactly does that mean?

At a time when the north of India was reeling under waves of conquest and cultural stagnation, our forefathers in the South were exporting Indianness to South-east Asia. It was an anonymous task, carried out not by warrior heroes blazing across the land bearing swords of conquest, but by individuals who had come in peace, to trade, to teach and to persuade.

Their impact was profound. To this day, the kings of Thailand are only crowned in the presence of Brahmin priests; the Muslims of Java still sport Sanskritic names, despite their conversion to Islam, a faith that normally requires its adherents to bear names originating in Arabia; Garuda is Indonesia’s national airline and Ramayana its best-selling brand of clove cigars; even the Philippines has produced a pop-dance ballet about Rama’s quest for his kidnapped queen.

But contemporary international politics has rendered all this much less significant than the modern indices of strategic thinking, economic interests and geopolitical affinities. India is far less important to the countries that still bear the stamp of “Indic” influence than, say, China, whose significance is contemporary, rather than civilizational.

Should we care, and is there anything we can do about it? Of course we should care: no great civilization can afford to be indifferent to the way in which it is perceived by others. But what, today, is Indic civilization? Can we afford to anchor ourselves in a purely atavistic view of ourselves, hailing the religious and cultural heritage of our forebears without recognising the extent to which we ourselves have changed?

Isn’t Indian civilization today an evolved hybrid, that draws as much from the influence of Islam, Christianity and Sikhism, not to mention two centuries of British colonial rule? Can we speak of Indian culture today without qawwali, the poetry of Ghalib, or for that matter the game of cricket, our de facto national sport?

When an Indian dons “national dress” for a formal event, he wears a variant of the sherwani, which did not exist before the Muslim invasions of India. When Indian Hindus voted recently in the cynical and contrived competition to select the “new seven wonders” of the modern world, they voted for the Taj Mahal constructed by a Mughal king, not for Angkor Wat, the most magnificent architectural product of their religion. So doesn’t Indianness come ahead of the classically Indic?

I would argue in the affirmative, which brings me to the second part of the question: what can we do about it? It seems to me that we ought to be pouring far more resources into our cultural diplomacy, to project the richness of our composite culture into lands which already have a predisposition for it.

I’m not a fan of propaganda, which most people tend to see for what it is: I believe the message that will really get through is of who we are, not what we want to show. But just as, in economic terms, the Government must provide the basic infrastructure and let the private sector get on with actual ventures, so too in the field of cultural promotion, the Government has to create the showcases which individual Indians can then proceed to fill.

The Nehru Centre in London is a great asset for India, but why on earth is there only one such centre? We should have them in Cambodia, in Indonesia, in Thailand, in Malaysia, and for that matter in South Africa, in Nigeria, in Brazil, in Canada. Once they exist, they can serve as a catalyst for locals and visiting Indians to perform, speak, sing, argue and screen their work, thus enabling others to see the products of our civilization, the multi-religious identities of our people, our linguistic diversity, the myriad manifestations of our creative energies.

Then we can speak of a civilization that is “Indic” in its heritage, Indian in its contemporary relevance.

Indian stand-up

2008-03-08T10:40:00.001+04:00

New words in 2008

2008-03-08T10:27:00.004+04:00

• SALAD DODGER - An excellent phrase for an overweight person.
• SWAMP-DONKEY - A deeply unattractive person.
• TESTICULATING - Waving your arms around and talking bollocks.
• BLAMESTORMING - Sitting round in a group, discussing why a deadline was missed or a project failed, and who was responsible.
• SEAGULL MANAGER - A manager who flies in, makes a lot of noise, craps on everything, and Then leaves.
• ASSMOSIS - The process by which people seem to absorb success and advancement by sucking up to the boss rather than working hard.
• SALMON DAY - The experience of spending an entire day swimming upstream only to get screwed and die.
• CUBE FARM - An office filled with cubicles.
• PRAIRIE DOGGING - When someone yells or drops something loudly in a cube farm, and people's heads pop up over the walls to see what's going on. (This also applies to applause for a promotion because there may be cake.)
• SITCOMs - Single Income, Two Children, Oppressive Mortgage. What yuppies turn into when they have children and one of them stops working to stay home with the kids or start a 'home business'.
• SINBAD - Single working girls. Single income, no boyfriend and desperate.
• AEROPLANE BLONDE - One who has bleached/dyed her hair but still has a 'black box'.
• PERCUSSIVE MAINTENANCE - The fine art of whacking the crap out of an electronic device to get it to work again.
• ADMINISPHERE - The rarefied organisational layers beginning just above the rank and file. Decisions that fall from the 'adminisphere' are often profoundly inappropriate or irrelevant to the problems they were designed to solve. This is often affiliated with the dreaded 'administrivia' - needless paperwork and processes.
• 404 - Someone who's clueless. From the World Wide Web error message '404 Not Found' meaning that the requested document could not be located.
• AUSSIE KISS - Similar to a French Kiss, but given down under.
• OH - NO SECOND - That minuscule fraction of time in which you realize that you've just made a BIG mistake (e.g. you've hit 'reply all').
• GREYHOUND - A very short skirt, only an inch from the hare.
• JOHNNY-NO-STARS - A young man of substandard intelligence, the typical adolescent who works in a burger restaurant. The 'no-stars' comes from the badges displaying stars that staff at fast-food rest au rants often wear to show their level of training.
• MILLENNIUM DOMES - The contents of a Wonderbra, i.e. extremely impressive when viewed from the outside, but there's actually naught in there worth seeing.
• MONKEY BATH - A bath so hot, that when lowering yourself in, you go: 'Oo! Oo! Oo! Aa! Aa! Aa!'.
• MYSTERY BUS - The bus that arrives at the pub on Friday night while you're in the toilet after your 10th pint, and whisks away all the unattractive people so the pub is suddenly packed with stunners when you come back in.
• MYSTERY TAXI - The taxi that arrives at your place on Saturday morning before you wake up, whisks away the stunner you slept with, and leaves a 10-Pinter in your bed instead.
• BEER COAT - The invisible but warm coat worn when walking home after a booze cruise At 3:00am .
• BEER COMPASS - The invisible device that ensures your safe arrival home after booze cruise, even though you're too drunk to remember where you live, how you got here, and where you've come from.
• BREAKING THE SEAL - Your first pee in the pub, usually after 2 hours of drinking. After breaking the seal of your bladder, repeat visits to the toilet will be required every 10 or 15 minutes for the rest of the night.
• TART FUEL - Bottled premixed spirits, regularly consumed by young women.
• TRAMP STAMP - Tattoo on a female
• PICASSO BUM - A woman whose knickers are too small for her, so she looks like she's got 4 buttocks

Wheels of life

2008-02-10T07:26:00.001+04:00

India: a century back - some rare photos

2008-02-02T14:42:00.000+04:00

How the stock market works...!!!

2008-01-28T16:14:00.000+04:00

It was autumn, and the Red Indians on the remote reservation asked their New Chief if the winter was going to be cold or mild. Since he was a Red Indian chief in a modern society, he couldn't tell what the weather was going to be. Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he replied to his Tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect wood to be prepared.

But also being a practical leader, after several days he got an idea. He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked "Is the coming winter going to be cold?" "It looks like this winter is Going to be quite cold indeed," the meteorologist at the weather service Responded.

So the Chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more Wood. A week later, he called the National Weather Service again. "Is it going to be a very cold winter?" "Yes," the man at National Weather Service again replied, "It's definitely going to be a very cold winter."

The Chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of wood they could find. Two weeks later, he called the National Weather Service again. "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?" "Absolutely," The Man replied. "It's going to be one of the coldest winters ever."

"How can you be so sure?" the Chief asked. The weatherman replied, "The Red Indians are collecting wood like Crazy."

This is how stock markets work!!!

Day 1: 19th December '07 – Fort Cochin, Athirapally and Sholayar

2007-12-31T11:40:00.000+04:00

We reached the Queen of Arabian Sea - Cochin (or Kochi) on the eve of Google listing Kerala the most searched destination! (http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=14577503) The weather was perfect at 23ºC and this season was definitely the best time of the year to visit Kerala – which has earned the title ‘God’s own country’ and we were here to check in person why it had won the label.

The second round of monsoon had come and left. The festivity of Christmas was in the air. The itinerary was a 8-day journey starting from Fort Cochin, through the backwaters, then up the hill stations and ending at the capital. And this is how it went for my wife and me.

We started the day at Fort Cochin (or Fort Kochi). This man-made island represents colonial India with Dutch, Portuguese and British presence in its own unique architectural way – bungalows, churches and forts.

Our first stop was the neo-classical Santa Cruz Basilica - built in 1505! Adjacent to the cathedral is the Bishop House. There was a volunteer who showed us around the basilica and elaborated on its history. A short drive away was The Dutch Cemetery, which was consecrated in 1724 and is located against the sea. Walk along the coast and you can spot the Chinese fishing nets – evidence that this was an ancient fishing hamlet. The nets operate even to this day.

Many old bungalows in Fort Cochin have been converted to heritage hotels. Our favourite was the Malabar House (www.malabarhouse.com)

A short rickshaw ride takes you to St.Francis Church – probably one of the oldest churches in India. This is where Vasco Da Gama was buried in 1524 – until his remains were moved to Lisbon.

Fort Cochin can be a treasure trove if you looking for handicrafts, antiques, paintings, sculptures, etc. – however hone your bargaining skills before venturing out. There are hundreds of shops selling wares for the art hunter. I did manage to spot a few good original paintings for as less as Rs.4,000.

Art Café’s are a must during a visit to Fort Cochin. There are many of them in the island like the Kashi Art Café (Chocolate cake and cold coffee for me please!). This is where culture vultures meet over a cuppa. The ambience in these art café’s is so vibrant and this gives the life and color to this island. There are events happening every evening in Fort Cochin – dance performances, kalaripayattu demonstrations, art workshops and music concerts.

The Jew Town in Fort Cochin is a very historical part of Fort Cochin. You walk into a narrow lane of Jewish shops and the street ends at a Synagogue, which was built in 1568. Photography is prohibited inside the synagogue.

Our last stop in Fort Cochin was the Dutch Palace – built by the Dutch and gifted to the Raja family of Cochin. Though photography is prohibited inside, the mythological murals depicting Ramayana and Mahabharata and portrait paintings of the royal family is breathtaking.

Fort Cochin has so much more to offer – culturally, spiritually and emotionally. We wished for another two whole days to spend here. We had to move on and reach Aathirapally waterfalls – a 2 hour drive from Fort Cochin.

Aarthirapally is located on the edge of the Sholayar forest range and the Chalakkudy river plunges more than 80 ft. at this fall. The walk to the fall is the most exciting part - a gradient path winding through a thick forest – the fall by itself is not a stunner. By the time we finished with the fall it was almost 6 pm. Then, after obtaining special permission at the forest range, we entered the Sholayar forest. This drive is not one for the weak-hearted. The forest is home to several types of deer, elephants, bears and leopards – besides several tribals who find home in these jungles. After a 3 hour drive through the black forest, we were lucky to spot deers against the headlights on 3 separate occasions.

Day 2: 20th December '07 – Alleppey (or Alappuzha)

2007-12-31T11:30:00.000+04:00

Alleppey is called the Venice of the East for its vast network for canals or backwaters. This region had been drawing a lot of tourist attention with houseboats - a slow-moving rice barge - reworked models of Kettuvallams (kettu means ‘tied with ropes’ and vallam means ‘boat’). The next 24 hours was special – we get to spend it in a houseboat! Wow!

Our houseboat by M/s River Homes (www.houseboattourism.com) was well constructed and maintained. The owner Mr.Narayana Swamy was there personally to welcome us onboard. There was a 3 member crew to accompany us through the trip – a captain, a helper and a cook. Our boat had a pair of 2-bedroom suites with attached baths, a sit-out, a well-equipped kitchen (squeaky clean!), TV with DVD player for entertainment – and the Vembanad Lake for placidity. The plan was to take a 35 km cruise at a gentle pace of 6 km/h along the backwaters (there is approx 900 kms of navigable shoreline). We planned to anchor at the middle of the vast Vembanad Lake overnight!

The stay in the houseboat and the cruise through these backwaters turned out to be an unforgettable experience for us – but at a cost. A trip can put you back by Rs.15,000 to Rs.25,000 per day depending on the houseboat and its facilities. There are cheaper options available – such as day cruises by the hour, small motorboats, etc. Our crew was very courteous and hospitable. We had a spread of local cuisine – all freshly made – very tasty indeed.

There are many resorts along these backwaters, and if one can dig deep into the pocket, the experience can be heavenly. Most of these resorts have their own houseboats and will toss in an ayurvedic spa experience as well in the package. I felt that some of these packages might have been overpriced. This was peak season and the resorts were not occupied to full capacity. Not all houseboats had tenants. Reason to lower the tariff?!

Day 3: 21st December '07 – Kumarakom and Thanneermukkom

2007-12-31T11:22:00.001+04:00

The day was red-letter – my wife’s birthday. The carte I had planned – wake up in the houseboat, dock at an ayurvedic resort, pamper her to a complete spa ritual, followed by a trip to a bird sanctuary (she is a nature freak!) and the evening go spiritual at a local temple.

We woke to the gentle slapping of water against the body of the houseboat. The fishermen were recovering their nets laid out for the overnight catch. The sun reflected its beam against the Vembanad Lake. Our breakfast was ready and we will soon be cruising a short distance to dock at the jetty of an ayurvedic resort.

Thanneermukkom is a small hamlet that skirts the Vembanad Lake. The resort was state owned – well located with excellent facilities and with potential to be marketed better. The architecture was very local and the cottages were spread out. The view from the window was the lake – overwhelming. The resort has a ayurvedic spa which has its own small herbarium.

Once the ayurvedic ceremonial was done, we rested for a while and took off on the 15-minute drive to Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary. There are two options to experience the sanctuary – the 5 km trek by foot or a half hour motorboat ride along the edge. We decided to go for both. The sanctuary oversees the Vembanad Lake and the marshy shoreline was an ornithologist's paradise is a favourite haunt of millions of migratory birds from Siberia! The local avian fare included kingfishers, morehens, storks, paddybirds, cormorants, waterducks and waterfowls. A camera with zoom is a must here.

Day 4: 22nd December '07 – Thekkady, Idduky

2007-12-31T11:14:00.002+04:00

A 3-hour drive through rubber plantations takes you to the hill station of Thekkady - a melting pot for tourists. Spice plantations surround Thekkady in Idduky district. The Periyar Tiger Reserve is located here. Tourists flock Thekkady throughout the year – many foreigners had made this home and set up lodges for backpackers. There is much for the tourist here – elephant rides, treks, kathakali & kalaripayattu demonstrations (not to be missed), handicraft & spice shopping, ayurvedic massages (cannot guarantee for their authenticity) and restaurants serving an international cuisine. The weather is mostly cold and damp. The local population had done much for the tourist. However, the local government did not seem to acknowledge the tourist presence – roads and civic amenities were a mess and needed urgent repair. A trip to any one of the spice gardens around Thekkady is truly captivating. The evening was spent at a Kathakali demonstration – one that was tuned to educate the tourist about this ancient temple dancing art.

Day 5: 23rd December '07 – Periyar Tiger Reserve and Vagamon

2007-12-31T10:57:00.000+04:00

7:00 am – time for the 2 hour boat drive through the Periyar Lake – home to elephants, the rare Tiger, bisons, deer and hundreds of types of birds. This was another special awe-inspiring experience as our motorboat weaved through the waters of Periyar. The stillness of the scenery was tranquil. This was not exactly the season to spot wild-animals – they mostly come out in the summer months to quench their thirst at the lake. Besides the bird population, we were lucky to spot wild bisons grazing in the hills. Remember to carry binoculars and a camera with zoom while on this trip.

By noon, we left Thekkady for a 2 hour drive to Vagamon – an untouched hill station surrounded by grasslands – this is the perfect location for shooting a music video. After we checked in at Thrisangu Haven – we quickly set out on a drive through tea plantations to Kurisimala – a monastery tucked away in the hills near Peermedu. This spot could easily define a ‘at peace’ moment. The monastery was uphill – a 20 minute walk through a path that winds through grass fields where cows nibbled in complete leisure. The monks ran a small diary farm – with around 200 cows. The diary was self contained with a pasteurizing and bottling plant.

On our drive back – we stopped at Pine Valley – this was one that needs to be experienced to be believed. Vagamon has many tea factories in the vicinity and they are more than happy to show you around how tea is grown, plucked, leaves cut, toasted and processed. Very educative.

Day 6: 24th December '07 – drive to Trivandrum

2007-12-31T10:56:00.000+04:00

The 6-hour drive brought us to Trivandrum, the state capital. Talk about heat, humidity, car exhaust, blaring horns, pollution and people rushing for last minute Christmas shopping. With barely enough energy to venture into the city streets, we signed off early into the hotel room.

Day 7: 25th December '07 – Trivandrum

2007-12-31T10:38:00.000+04:00

Merry Christmas. We set out morning to the Trivandrum Zoo. For an entry fee of mere Rs.10, we were treated to some of the most exotic and rare animals from this planet. Vultures, leopards, tigers, lions, jaguars, snakes, bares, langurs, deers, birds, elephants and more …. All in a very well designed landscaping.

Right next to the zoo is the Napier Museum and Sri Chitra Art Gallery – which showcase the history and art of the rulers of Travancore – the royal Varma family were patrons of art, music and culture. The Kovalam beach is close to Trivandrum – but we let it skip – considering that it would be overcrowded on a holiday.

We visited the Padmanabha Swamy temple in the evening. The Lord Vishnu is sanctified in a resting position at this temple and has a strict dress code for entry.

In a few hours, we pack off to the airport – a return journey to our metropolis – carrying with us cherished memories from the past week in Kerala.

Kerala Trip 2007 : The Verdict

2007-12-31T10:33:00.000+04:00

Kerala was truly an enriching experience, though we had only seen a slice of the state. It had something for everyone. The pilgrim. The art hunter. The culture vulture. The backpacker. The leisure traveler. The wildlife explorer. The historian. The political commentator. The sociologist.

Food was fairly inexpensive, freshly cooked and tasty – besides cleanliness in preparation. People were environmentally aware and organic farming was the order of the day. Plastics were banned at most places. The local community boasts of high literacy levels - which was evident everywhere we went in professional service and courteous hospitality. Healthcare is easily available - besides there are many reputed ayurvedic hospitals in every city.

We thank the team at Drizzle Holidays (www.drizzleholidays.com) who organized the trip to precision.

Chanakya's words

2007-08-29T08:19:00.000+04:00

Chanakya (c. 350-283 BC) was a strategist and writer as well as the prime minister to the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta (c. 340-293 BC) of India.

"A person should not be too honest. Straight trees are cut first and Honest people are screwed first."

"Even if a snake is not poisonous, it should pretend to be venomous."

"There is some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interests. This is a bitter truth."

"Before you start some work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it, What the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead."

"As soon as the fear approaches near, attack and destroy it."

"The world's biggest power is the youth and beauty of a woman."

"Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest."

"The fragrance of flowers spreads only in the direction of the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all direction."

"Whore’s don't live in company of poor men, citizens never support a weak company and birds don't build nests on a tree that doesn't bear fruits."

"God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple."

"A man is great by deeds, not by birth."

"Never make friends with people who are above or below you in status. Such friendships will never give you any happiness."

"Treat your kid like a darling for the first five years. For the next five years, scold them. By the time they turn sixteen, treat them like a friend. Your grown up children are your best friends."

"Books are as useful to a stupid person as a mirror is useful to a blind person."

"Education is the best friend. An educated person is respected everywhere. Education beats the beauty and the youth."

George Carlin on religion!

2007-08-29T08:17:00.001+04:00

Cinnamon - the wonder herb

2007-08-29T08:13:00.001+04:00

Botanical Name - Cinnamon zeylanicum
Sanskrit Name - Tvaka, Utkaöa
Taste/Rasa - Pungent, bitter, sweet
Quality/Guna - Light, dry, sharp
Potency/Virya - Hot
Vipaka - Pungent
Alleviates - Kapha, Vata
Habitat - Cinnamon is native to Asia and grows in tropical or sub-tropical environments.
Medicinal Part - Inner bark, powder from dried leaves and oil from leaves, roots or bark.
Appearance - The tree can grow 20–25 feet high. The bark is rough, brown and brittle. Leaves are glossy and dark-green, 4–7 inches long with several veins running parallel along them. The flowers are small and grow in hairy clusters.

Remedies

Coughs, bronchitis
Mix 1 tsp each of cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, cardamom and clove. Add 3 tbsp of raw sugar and grind together to make a fine powder. Take ½–1 tsp of this powder mixed with honey twice per day.

Cold, flu
Boil 1 tsp of cinnamon in 1 cup of water. Simmer until it is half the volume, strain, add honey and drink warm.

Diarrhea
Mix 1 tsp each of cinnamon, ginger and cumin powder with honey to make a paste. Take 1 tsp three times a day

Insomnia
Add ½ tsp of cinnamon powder and 1 tsp of honey to 1 cup of warm milk. Drink before going to bed.

Mouth Purifier
• Boil 1 tsp of cinnamon in 1 cup of water. Cool and use as a gargle.
• Mix equal parts (1 tsp) of cinnamon, cardamom and dried bay leaf in 1 cup of hot water and drink twice daily.

Nervous tension
Take a pinch of cinnamon powder mixed with honey before bed.

Skin disorders
Apply a paste of cinnamon and lime juice daily.

Toothache
Put 1–2 drops of cinnamon oil on a cotton ball and press around the tooth.

Vomiting/Nausea
Eat a pinch of cinnamon powder.

Other uses
Cinnamon is used for flavoring cakes, breads, desserts, drinks and confectionary. It is also used for making incense and perfumes. Taking cinnamon once a day (mixed with warm water, milk or eaten directly) can assist in lactation for nursing mothers.

Women in film industry

2007-08-29T08:12:00.000+04:00

Inspiring story

2007-08-29T08:09:00.000+04:00

Tribute to a great Indian voice!

2007-08-29T08:02:00.000+04:00

http://img184.imageshack.us/my.php?image=wolfek5.swf

The Modern Man - George Carlin

2007-07-14T15:28:00.000+04:00

I'm a modern man,
A man for the millennium,
Digital and smoke free.
A diversified multicultural postmodern deconstructionist,
Politically anatomically and ecologically incorrect.
I've been uplinked and downloaded.
I've been inputted and outsourced.
I know the upside of downsizing.
I know the downside of upgrading.
I'm a high tech lowlife.
A cutting edge state-of-the-art bicoastal multitasker,
And I can give you a gigabyte in a nanosecond.
I'm new wave but I'm old school,
And my inner child is outward bound.
I'm a hot wired heat seeking warm hearted cool customer,
Voice activated and biodegradable.
I interface from a database,
And my database is in cyberspace,
So I'm interactive,
I'm hyperactive,
And from time-to-time,
I'm radioactive.
Behind the eight ball,
Ahead of the curve,
Riding the wave,
Dodging a bullet,
Pushing the envelope.
I'm on point,
On task,
On message,
And off drugs.
I got no need for coke and speed,
I got no urge to binge and purge.
I'm in the moment,
On the edge,
Over the top,
But under the radar.
A high concept,
Low profile,
Medium range ballistic missionary.
A street-wise smart bomb.
A top gun bottom feeder.
I wear power ties,
I tell power lies,
I take power naps,
I run victory laps.
I'm a totally ongoing bigfoot slam dunk rainmaker with a proactive outreach.
A raging workaholic.
A working ragaholic.
Out of rehab,
And in denial.
I got a personal trainer,
A personal shopper,
A personal assistant,
And a personal agenda.
You can't shut me up,
You can't dumb me down.
'Cause I'm tireless,
And I'm wireless.
I'm an alpha male on beta blockers.
I'm a non-believer and an over-achiever.
Laid back but fashion forward.
Up front,
Down home,
Low rent,
High maintenance.
Super size,
Long lasting,
High definition,
Fast acting,
Oven ready,
And built to last.
I'm a hands on,
Foot loose,
Knee jerk,
Head case.
Prematurely post traumatic,
And I have a love child who sends me hate mail.
But I'm feeling,
I'm caring,
I'm healing,
I'm sharing.
A supportive bonding nurturing primary care giver.
My output is down,
But my income is up.
I take a short position on the long bond,
And my revenue stream has its own cash flow.
I read junk mail,
I eat junk food,
I buy junk bonds,
I watch trash sports.
I'm gender specific,
Capital intensive,
User friendly,
And lactose intolerant.
I like rough sex.
I like rough sex.
I like tough love.
I use the f word in my email,
And the software on my hard drive is hard core, no soft porn.
I bought a microwave at a mini mall.
I bought a mini van in a mega store.
I eat fast food in the slow lane.
I'm toll free,
Bite sized,
Ready to wear,
And I come in all sizes.
A fully equipped,
Factory authorized,
Hospital tested,
Clinically proven,
Scientifically formulated medical miracle.
I've been pre-washed,
Pre-cooked,
Pre-heated,
Pre-screened,
Pre-approved,
Pre-packaged,
Post-dated,
Freeze-dried,
Double-wrapped,
Vacuum-packed,
And I have an unlimited broadband capacity.
I'm a rude dude,
But I'm the real deal.
Lean and mean.
Cocked, locked and ready to rock.
Rough tough and hard to bluff.
I take it slow.
I go with the flow.
I ride with the tide.
I got glide in my stride.
Drivin' and movin',
Sailin' and spinnin',
Jivin' and groovin',
Wailin' and winnin'.
I don't snooze,
So I don't lose.
I keep the pedal to the metal,
And the rubber on the road.
I party hearty,
And lunch time is crunch time.
I'm hanging in,
There ain't no doubt.
And I'm hanging tough,
Over and out.

Drawing of a woman

2007-07-11T14:47:00.000+04:00

Drawing a woman from the inside out. Someone put a lot of work into this.
Click here

Trippy movies

2007-07-11T14:37:00.000+04:00

Here's a list of some very psychedelic flicks ... have a good trip.
Click here

Huge list of funny one-liners

2007-06-20T14:45:00.000+04:00

You wouldn't be needing any more one liners after reading this massive list!!

100,000 sperm and you were the fastest?
42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot.
99 percent of lawyers give the rest a bad name.
A bartender is just a pharmacist with a limited inventory.
A clean desk is a sign of a cluttered desk drawer.
A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
A closed mouth gathers no foot.
A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.
A day without sunshine is like, night.
A diplomat is someone who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you will look forward to the trip.
A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.
All generalizations are false, including this one.
All men are idiots, and I married their King.
Always remember you're unique, just like everyone else.
Always try to be modest and be proud of it!
Anything worth taking seriously is worth making fun of.
Artificial Intelligence usually beats real stupidity.
Assassins do it from behind.
Atheism is a non-prophet organization.
Auntie Em, Hate you, hate Kansas, taking the dog. Dorothy.
Be nice to your kids. They'll choose your nursing home.
Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.
Beer: It's not just for breakfast anymore.
Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.
Better to understand a little than to misunderstand a lot.
Bills travel through the mail at twice the speed of checks
Borrow money from a pessimist, they don't expect it back.
Boycott shampoo! Demand the REAL poo!
C program run. C program crash. C programmer quit.
Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
Chocolate: the OTHER major food group.
Consciousness: That annoying time between naps.
Corduroy pillows: They're making headlines!
Could you drive any better if I shoved that cell phone up your ass?
Criminal Lawyer is a redundancy.
Daddy, why doesn't this magnet pick up this floppy disk?
Death is hereditary.
Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how popular it remains?
Did anyone see my lost carrier?
Diplomacy is the art of saying good doggie while looking for a bigger stick.
Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me, either. Just leave me alone.
Don't be irreplaceable; if you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.
Don't drink and drive. You might hit a bump and spill your drink.
Don't piss me off! I'm running out of places to hide the bodies.
Don't take life too seriously, you won't get out alive.
Double your drive space. Delete Windows!
Duct tape is like the force, it has a light side and a dark side and it holds the universe together.
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
Energizer Bunny arrested and charged with battery.
Error, no keyboard. Press F1 to continue.
Ever notice how fast Windows runs? Neither did I.
Ever stop to think, and forget to start again?
Everyone has a photographic memory. Some don't have film.
Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted.
Few women admit their age. Few men act theirs.
For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism.
For Sale: Parachute. Only used once, never opened, small stain.
Forget world peace. Visualize using your turn signal.
Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.
Friends may come and go, but enemies tend to accumulate.
Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your mouth is moving.
Genius does what it must, talent does what it can, and you had best do what you're told.
Get a new car for your spouse; it'll be a great trade!
Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.
Give me ambiguity or give me something else.
Good judgment comes from bad experience and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.
Hard work has a future payoff. Laziness pays off now.
He who laughs last thinks slowest.
Honk if you love peace and quiet.
Honk if you want to see my finger.
How do you tell when you run out of invisible ink?
How does Teflon stick to the pan?
How many of you believe in telekinesis? Raise my hand.
I am not a vegetarian because I love animals. I am a vegetarian because I hate plants.
I couldn't repair your brakes, so I made your horn louder.
I didn't say it was your fault. I said I was going to blame you.
I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.
I feel like I'm diagonally parked in a parallel universe.
I get enough exercise just pushing my luck.
I just got lost in thought. It was unfamiliar territory.
I need someone really bad. Are you really bad?
I poured Spot remover on my dog. Now he's gone.
I took an IQ test and the results were negative.
I tried sniffing Coke once, but the ice cubes got stuck in my nose.
I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not sure.
I used to have a handle on life, and then it broke.
I used to have an open mind but my brains kept falling out.
I won't rise to the occasion, but I'll slide over to it.
I wouldn't be caught dead with a necrophiliac.
I'm as confused as a baby in a topless bar.
I'm not a complete idiot, some parts are missing!
I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done.
If at first you don't succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.
If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.
If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?
If ignorance is bliss, you must be orgasmic.
If you can read this, I can slam on my brakes and sue you!
If you can't convince them, confuse them.
If you choke a smurf, what color does it turn?
If you get to it and you can't do it, well there you jolly well are, aren't you.
If you haven't much education you must use your brain.
If you lend someone $20, and never see that person again; it was probably worth it.
If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything.
If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car payments.
IRS: We've got what it takes to take what you've got.
It IS as bad as you think, and they ARE out to get you.
It is far more impressive when others discover your good qualities without your help.
It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.
It's always darkest before dawn. So if you're going to steal the neighbor's newspaper, that's the time to do it.
It's lonely at the top, but you eat better.
Jack Kevorkian for White House Physician.
Jesus loves you, but everyone else thinks you're an asshole.
Join the Army, meet interesting people, and kill them.
Keep honking. I'm reloading.
Laughing stock: cattle with a sense of humor.
Learn from your parents' mistakes: use birth control.
Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.
Love may be blind but marriage is a real eye-opener.
Make it idiot proof and someone will make a better idiot.
Monday is an awful way to spend 1/7th of your life.
Montana: At least our cows are sane!
More hay, Trigger? No thanks, Roy, I'm stuffed!
Multitasking means screwing up several things at once.
My hockey mom can beat up your soccer mom.
My mind is like a steel trap, rusty and illegal in 37 states.
Never ask a barber if he thinks you need a haircut.
Never do card tricks for the group you play poker with.
Never mess up an apology with an excuse.
Never miss a good chance to shut up.
Never test the depth of the water with both feet.
Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.
No one is listening until you make a mistake.
Oh Lord, give me patience, and GIVE IT TO ME NOW!
Okay, who put a stop payment on my reality check?
On the other hand, you have different fingers.
Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.
Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.
Pentiums melt in your PC, not in your hand.
Plan to be spontaneous, tomorrow.
Pride is what we have. Vanity is what others have.
Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere may be happy.
Quantum mechanics: The dreams stuff is made of.
Quickly, I must hurry, for there go my people and I am their leader.
Reality is a crutch for people who can't handle drugs.
Remember half the people you know are below average.
Save the whales. Collect the whole set
Save your breath. You'll need it to blow up your date!
Sex is like air; it's not important unless you aren't getting any.
Shin: a device for finding furniture in the dark.
Smile, it's the second best thing you can do with your lips.
Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface.
Some days you are the bug, some days you are the windshield.
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
Some people are only alive because it is illegal to shoot them.
Success always occurs in private and failure in full view.
Suicidal twin kills sister by mistake!
Support bacteria, they're the only culture some people have.
The Bermuda Triangle got tired of warm weather. It moved to Finland. Now Santa Claus is missing.
The colder the x-ray table, the more of your body is required on it.
The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
The hardness of butter is directly proportional to the softness of the bread.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and a flat tire.
The more you complain, the longer God makes you live.
The only substitute for good manners is fast reflexes.
The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.
The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.
The secret of the universe is @*&^^^ NO CARRIER
The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the ability to reach it.
The sex was so good that even the neighbors had a cigarette.
The shortest distance between two points is under construction.
The sooner you fall behind the more time you'll have to catch up.
The universe is a figment of its own imagination. There's no future in time travel.
There are 3 kinds of people: those who can count & those who can't.
There are two theories to arguing with women. Neither one works.
There's too much blood in my caffeine system.
Things are more like they are now than they ever were before.
Time is the best teacher; unfortunately it kills all of its students.
Time is what keeps everything from happening at once.
Timing has an awful lot to do with the outcome of a rain dance.
To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.
To succeed in politics, it is often necessary to rise above your principles.
Very funny Scotty, now beam down my clothes.
Wanted: Meaningful overnight relationship.
Warning: Dates in calendar are closer than they appear.
We have enough youth, how about a fountain of smart?
We were born naked, wet and hungry. Then things got worse.
Wear short sleeves! Support your right to bare arms!
What happens if you get scared half to death twice?
What is a free gift? Aren't all gifts free?
What's the speed of dark?
When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane and going the wrong way.
When there's a will, I want to be in it.
When you don't know what you are doing, do it neatly.
Who is General Failure and why is he reading my hard disk?
Who stopped payment on my reality check?
Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
Why is abbreviation such a long word?
Why isn't phonetic spelled the way it sounds?
Women who seek to be equal to men lack ambition.
You are depriving some poor village of its idiot.
You can do more with a kind word and a gun than with just a kind word.
You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted then used against you.
You're just jealous because the voices are talking to me and not you!
Your gene pool could use a little chlorine.
Your kid may be an honors student, but you're still an idiot.

Count on a friend ...

2007-06-16T11:48:00.000+04:00

A man is walking along the road & falls in a hole. He can't get out.

A priest walks by "Can I help you?"
"Yes, help me get out!"
"Ok", so he writes a prayer & throws it down to the man.

A doctor comes by "Can I help you?"
"Yes, help me get out"
"Ok", so he writes a prescription & throws it down the hole.

A friend comes by, asks "Can I help you?"
"Yes, help me get out of here!"
"Ok" and he jumps in the hole with the man.
"Hey, why did you do that? Now we're both in the hole!"
"Yeah" says the friend, "but I've been here before & know how to get out."

'Rumi'niscing

2007-06-14T11:16:00.000+04:00

Upon a proposal by Culture and Tourism Ministry of Turkey, the year 2007 was proposed as the "International Rumi Year" to UNESCO, but has not yet been confirmed.

"You were born with greatness
You were born with wings..."

“Conventional opinion is the ruin of our souls.”

“Everything in the universe is a pitcher brimming with wisdom and beauty.”

“If you are irritated by every rub, how will you be polished?”

“Looking up gives light, although at first it makes you dizzy.”

“Loosen the bonds of avarice from your hands and neck.”

“Revile those who flatter you.”

“The intelligent want self-control; children want candy.”

“The middle path is the way to wisdom.”

“…one cannot lodge in ‘if.’”

Conundrums

2007-06-14T09:27:00.000+04:00

1. If you take an Oriental person and spin him around several times, does he become disoriented?

2. If people from Poland are called Poles, why aren't People from Holland called Holes?

3. Do infants enjoy infancy as much as adults enjoy adultery?

4. If a pig loses its voice, is it disgruntled?

5. If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?

6. Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?

7. When cheese gets its picture taken, what does it say?

8. Why is a person who plays the piano called a pianist but a person who drives a race car not called a racist?

9. Why are a wise man and a wise guy opposites?

10. Why do overlook and oversee mean opposite things?

11. Why isn't the number 11 pronounced onety one?

12. "I am" is reportedly the shortest sentence in the English language. Could it be that "I do" is the longest sentence?

13. If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked, and dry cleaners depressed?

14. What hair colour do they put on the driver's licenses of Bald men?

16. I thought about how mothers feed their babies with tiny little spoons and forks so I wondered what do Chinese mothers use? Toothpicks?

17. Why do they put pictures of criminals up in the Post Office? What are we supposed to do, write to them? Why don't they just put their pictures on the postage stamps so the mailmen can look for them while they deliver the mail?

18. You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive.

19. No one ever says, "It's only a game" when their team is winning.

20. Last night I played a blank tape at full blast. The mime next door went nuts.

21. Ever wonder about those people who spend $2.00 apiece on those little bottles of Evian water? Try spelling Evian backwards: NAIVE

22. Isn't making a smoking section in a restaurant like making a peeing section in a swimming pool?

23. OK. so if the Jacksonville Jaguars are known as the "Jags" and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are known as the "Bucs," what does that make the Tennessee Titans?

24. If 4 out of 5 people SUFFER from diarrhoea does that mean that one out of five enjoys it?

And may the sun shine on us!

2007-06-14T09:17:00.000+04:00

Those who jump off a bridge in Paris are in Seine.
A backward poet writes inverse.
A man's home is his castle, in a manor of speaking.
Dijon vu: the same mustard as before.
Practice safe eating -- always use condiments.
Shotgun wedding: a case of wife or death.
A man needs a mistress just to break the monogamy.
A hangover is the wrath of grapes.
Dancing cheek-to-cheek is really a form of floor play.
Does the name Pavlov ring a bell?
Condoms should be used on every conceivable occasion.
Reading while sunbathing makes you well-red.
When two egotists meet, it's an I for an I.
A bicycle can't stand on its own because it is two-tired.
What's the definition of a will? (It's a dead giveaway.)
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.
In democracy, your vote counts. In feudalism, your count votes.
She was engaged to a boyfriend with a wooden leg but broke it off.
A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.
If you don't pay your exorcist, you get repossessed.
With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.
When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.
The man who fell into an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
You feel stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.
Local Area Network in Australia: the LAN down under.
He often broke into song because he couldn't find the key.
Every calendar's days are numbered.
A lot of money is tainted: It taint yours and it taint mine.
A boiled egg in the morning is hard to beat.
He had a photographic memory that was never developed.
A plateau is a high form of flattery.
A midget fortune-teller who escapes from prison is a small medium at large.
Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.
Once you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.
Bakers trade bread recipes on a knead-to-know basis.
Santa's helpers are subordinate clauses.
Acupuncture is a jab well done.

Take 5

2007-06-14T09:16:00.000+04:00

10 most beautiful Indian roads

2007-06-14T08:55:00.001+04:00

Numaligarh, Assam
Ooty
Patratu valley, Jharkhand
Corbert Park Pathway
Dalhousie
Gulmarg
Manali Pass
Nainital, Uttaranchal
Almora, Uttaranchal
Ahtong, Sikkim

Don’t Google ... Blackle .... and save energy

2007-05-30T14:45:00.000+04:00

Blackle is the energy-saving version of Google. Apparently, your monitor saves power by displaying the black screen of Blackle. Check it out ....

http://www.blackle.com

How is Blackle saving energy?
Blackle saves energy because the screen is predominantly black. "Image displayed is primarily a function of the user's color settings and desktop graphics, as well as the color and size of open application windows; a given black (or dark) screen." Roberson et al, 2002

How can you help?
We encourage you to set Blackle as your home page. This way every time you load your Internet browser you will save a little bit of energy. Remember every bit counts! You will also be reminded about the need to save energy each time you see the Blackle page load.

A peek at Indian cricket commercialism

2007-04-28T11:36:00.000+04:00

Creation explained

2007-03-13T10:06:00.000+04:00

In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth and populated the Earth with broccoli, cauliflower and spinach, green and yellow and red vegetables of all kinds, so Man and Woman would live long and healthy lives.

Then using God's great gifts, Satan created Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Krispy Creme Donuts. And Satan said, "You want chocolate with that?"

And Man said, "Yes!" and Woman said, "and as long as you're at it, add some sprinkles." And they gained 10 pounds. And Satan smiled.

And God created the healthful yogurt that Woman might keep the figure that Man found so fair. And Satan brought forth white flour from the wheat, and sugar from the cane and combined them. And Woman went from size 6 to size 14.

So God said, "Try my fresh green salad." And Satan presented Thousand-Island Dressing, buttery croutons and garlic toast on the side. And Man and Woman unfastened their belts following the repast.

God then said, "I have sent you heart healthy vegetables and olive oil in which to cook them." And Satan brought forth deep fried fish and chicken-fried steak so big it needed its own platter. And Man gained more weight and his cholesterol went through the roof.

God then created a light, fluffy white cake, named it "Angel Food Cake," said, "It is good." Satan then created chocolate cake and named it "Devil's Food."

God then brought forth running shoes so that His children might lose those extra pounds. And Satan gave cable TV with a remote control so Man would not have to toil changing the channels. And Man and Woman laughed and cried before the flickering blue light and gained pounds.

Then God brought forth the potato, naturally low in fat and brimming with nutrition. And Satan peeled off the healthful skin and sliced the starchy into chips and deep-fried them. And Man gained pounds.

God then gave lean beef so that Man might consume fewer calories and still satisfy his appetite. And Satan created McDonald's and its 99-cent double cheeseburger. Then said, "You want fries with that?" And Man replied, "Yes! And super size them!" And Satan said, "It is good." And Man went into cardiac arrest.

God sighed and created quadruple bypass surgery.

Then Satan created HMOs.

Al Gebra

2007-01-13T09:49:00.000+04:00

A public school teacher was arrested today at John F Kennedy International Airport as he attempted to board a flight while in possession of a ruler, a protractor, a set square, a slide rule and a calculator.

At a morning press conference, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said he believes the man is a member of the notorious Al-gebra movement. He did not identify the man, who has been charged by the FBI with carrying weapons of math instruction.

"Al-gebra is a problem for us," Gonzales said. "They desire solutions by means and extremes, and sometimes go off on tangents in search of absolute values. They use secret code names like 'x' and 'y' and refer to themselves as 'unknowns', but we have determined they belong to a common denominator of the axis of medieval with coordinates in every country. As the Greek philanderer Isosceles used to say, 'There are 3 sides to every triangle'."

When asked to comment on the arrest, President Bush said, "If God had wanted us to have better weapons of math instruction, He would have given us more fingers and toes."

White House aides told reporters they could not recall a more intelligent or profound statement by the President.

How you made them feel ...

2007-01-13T09:28:00.000+04:00

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."
Maya Angelou

Dussehra vs. Burning Man

2007-01-12T18:10:00.000+04:00

Dussehra: The Hindu festival is mainly associated with the story of Rama based on the Ramayana, one of the two great Indian epics. Said to be set around 1000 BC in India, this epic attempts to establish the social ideals and modeled Rama as the main hero and Sita, his wife as the heroine of the whole narration. It falls in September or October and lasts ten days. Large effigies of the ten-headed Ravana, the king of Lanka who abducted Rama's wife, Sita, and was subsequently vanquished in battle, are burnt as the sun goes down. This symbolises the forces 'good' winning over the forces of 'evil'. This is followed by professional dance companies and amateur troupes. Crackers are burnt, and huge fetes are organised. Dussehra literally means ‘that which takes away ten sins.’

Burning Man: In 1986 Larry Harvey founded Burning Man at a local beach in San Francisco, and has guided its progress ever since. From its early days on a small beach through its evolution into the bustling city of some 25,000+ people that the Burning Man event has become today. These people make the journey to the Black Rock Desert for one week out of the year to be part of an experimental community, which challenges its members to express themselves and rely on themselves to a degree that is not normally encountered in one's day-to-day life. Burning Man happens in September, on the last day of the summer solstice. The event takes its name from the ritual of burning a large wooden sculpture of a man on the sixth day.

Dussehra: The ten heads of Ravana represent loathing, desire, envy, selfishness, dishonesty, obsession, gluttony, rage, passion and pride.

Burning Man: The 10 principles of Burning Man are radical inclusion, gifting, decommodification, radical self-reliance, radical self-expression, communal effort, civic responsibility, leaving no trace, participation, and immediacy.

Q: Do you see the Burning Man on a mythic level?
Larry Harvey: Myth and ritual tend to deal with primordial experience, primal experience, and our ways of rehearsing, recreating such primal events and reenacting them in a way that sort of transcends rationality, and I see it that way very much. It seems to me, that if you're talking about ritual around the man himself, it seems to me that that recapitulates certain kinds of primordial experience, certainly preverbal experience on an individual level, that more or less transcends culture. I'm talking about experiences that happen before we could speak and before we knew who we are, or while we were in the process of defining who we are.

Toyota for the tipsy

2007-01-04T13:23:00.000+04:00

Confucious says: Man who drives like hell bound to get there.

Toyota have announced that they would be installing a fail-safe system for cars that detects drunken drivers and automatically shuts the vehicle down if sensors pick up signs of excessive alcohol consumption. Cars fitted with the detection system will not start if sweat sensors in the driving wheel detect high levels of alcohol in the driver's bloodstream. This is commendable and would be interesting to see how the system works once launched.

Meanwhile, for those of us with no system to check if the bloke on the highway is drunk or not, here are a few tips to spot the tipsy behind a wheel –
• Makes wide turns.
• Straddles the center line or weaves back and forth.
• Exceeds the speed limit or drives unusually slow.
• Comes close to hitting another vehicle or object.
• Drives off the road or into an oncoming lane of traffic.
• Swerves, drifts or follows too closely.
• Stops for no reason or turn abruptly or illegally.
• Signals inconsistently or drives at night with no headlights.

Here's your typical drunk driver!

Remember, drunk drivers are dangerous and may not be avoidable. If you suspect someone is driving drunk, keep your distance, jot down the license plate number and call the authorities.

View this video of a drunk driver who has been hauled up! He could be driving on the very road that you are on!

And here's a test for those who've poured their 'one for the road'...

THINGS THAT ARE DIFFICULT TO SAY WHEN YOU'RE DRUNK:
• Indubitably
• Innovative
• Preliminary
• Proliferation
• Cinnamon

THINGS THAT ARE VERY DIFFICULT TO SAY WHEN YOU'RE DRUNK:
• Specificity
• British Constitution
• Passive-aggressive disorder
• Loquacious Transubstantiate

THINGS THAT ARE DOWNRIGHT IMPOSSIBLE TO SAY WHEN YOU'RE DRUNK:
• Thanks, but I don't want to have sex.
• Nope, no more booze for me.
• Sorry, but you're not really my type.
• Good evening officer, isn't it lovely out tonight.

While we live
Let’s live.

If they can be friends ...

2007-01-03T09:25:00.000+04:00

Happiness ...

2007-01-02T21:53:00.000+04:00

Happiness is not having what you want. It is wanting what you have.

Adrift in vibrations

2007-01-02T16:20:00.000+04:00

Sound Therapy is the relatively new idea of healing, comforting, curing and inspiring with music and sound. Vibrations are considered the first cosmic manifestation and scientists view the universe as a continuum of movement expressing itself as an interplay of vibrations and that all things in existence are made up at their most essential level of vibrating, pulsing energy. Sonic rhythms have a definite effect on both physical and mental health. Just as much as sound played at very high frequencies can shatter glass, music can heal our wounds and replenish our life force.

Music such as those of Mozart's has a temporary IQ up sizing and effect the creative development of children. Music can help you overcome obstacles of everyday life - from pain to procrastination, relaxation to romance. Music in this context does not necessarily just meet the ear, but has profound implications for enhancing human abilities and energies. Let us see how the music that envelops us can have an effect on our wellness.

Since times immemorial, kings have employed musicians to soothe and heal them during times of stress and illness. Bach composed his Goldberg Variations for the Russian envoy Count Kayserling who complained of insomnia. The composition was played every night by a harpsichordist and soon the nobleman was snoring. Baroque music from the 17th century has always helped people learn faster.

Pythagoras, Plato and Aristotle related music to the mathematical structure of the cosmos. Music, through harps and flutes, chants and folk songs has always mellowed the soul. A mother always comforts a tired child with a lullaby. Reading poetry with a well-modulated voice, with beautiful words and pleasing meter, could restore balance to the soul. Places of worship always resonate with audio waves. Music is an integral part of most forms of Meditation. All of them 'heal' with the spirituality of sonic energy.

No matter what the form of music they are all therapeutic, uplifting, relaxing, creative, energising, beautiful and affirmative. The mind is easiest absorbed in music. Medical science has recognised the autonomic, immune, endocrine and neuropeptide effect that music has on the human body - music is today used to help relieve pain and stress in hospitals. Research into the subject has given birth to Cymatics - a study of patterns evoked by sound and its influence on matter.

Vibrations are believed to be absorbed by the bones of the skull and not alone by the middle ear. The auditory nerve is connected directly with most of the cranial nerves, including the vagus which reaches the back muscles, larynx, lungs, heart and other organs - thus sonic vibrations give the body an electrical charge. Chanting with its focus on the higher and middle frequencies, combined with attentive listening energises the body. Tibetian chanting aims to collect the energy from the cosmos through the ear and harness this energy which gives life to man and helps see his vitality and to awaken the higher consciousness.

Infinite thoughts

2007-01-02T14:23:00.000+04:00

Just a Second
A man was walking through a forest pondering life. He walked, pondered, walked, and pondered. He felt very close to nature and even close to God. He felt so close to God that he felt if he spoke God would listen.
So he asked, "God, are you listening?"
And God replied, "Yes my son, I am here."
The man stopped and pondered some more.
He looked towards the sky and said, "God, what is a million years to you?"
God replied, "Well my son, a second to me is like a million years to you."
So the man continued to walk and to ponder... walk and ponder... Then he looked to the sky again and said, "God, what is a million dollars to you?"
And God replied, "My son, my son...a penny to me is like a million dollars to you. It means almost nothing to me. It does not even have a value it is so little."
The man looked down, pondered a bit and then looked up to the sky and said, "God, can I have a million dollars?"
And God replied, "In a second."

Men are Four
He who knows and knows that he knows,
He is wise - follow him.

He who knows and knows not that he knows,
He is asleep - awaken him.

He who knows not and knows that he knows not,
He is simple - teach him.

He who knows not and knows not that he knows not,
He is a fool - shun him.

Man to God : "O Lord, I want peace".
God to Man : "When you remove yourself of 'I' and the 'want' you will automatically have peace."

When two psychic friends met, one said: "You are fine. How am I ?"

When the Yogi got the pizza, he gave the waiter a $20 bill.
The waiter pocketed the bill.
The Yogi said "Don't I get change?"
The waiter said, "Change must come from within."

"Procrastinate now"
"My Karma ran over my Dogma!!"
"Never drive faster than your angel can fly!!"
"I'd rather be in Samadhi"
"Out of body. Will be back in 15 minutes!"
"Time is the best teacher; unfortunately it kills all its students!"
"Warning: Dates in Calendar are closer than they appear."
"As long as there are tests, there will be prayer in public schools"

I've learned....
That everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you're climbing it.
Living on Earth is expensive, but it does include a free trip around the sun every year.
Ever notice that the people who are late are often much jollier than the people who have to wait for them?

The Torah says,"Love thy neighbor as thyself."
The Buddha says there is no "self."

Adult literacy ad

2006-12-30T14:37:00.000+04:00

What's your web-affliction?

2006-12-26T22:57:00.000+04:00

The internet has been accused of several modern day maladies. Here are some that came up:

• Arachnerd: One who spends way too much time surfing or fussing with their home page
• Blog-streaking: Urge to publish secrets online
• Cheesepodding: Downloading songs “so cheesy that you could cover it in plastic wrap and sell it at the deli counter"
• Crackberry: An obsessed gizmo geek
• Cyberbalkanization: Individuals who dislike or have little patience for outsiders
• Cybergriping: Griping about a company and its products using a website
• Cybervigilantism: Exposure or punishment of online lawbreakers by individuals
• Cyberchondria: Research tells you it must be cancer
• Cyber-Monday: Online retailers experiencing a surge in purchases
• Ego-surfing: Googling your name to check popularity
• Empty-spamming: Messaging passages from classic literature, with no discernible advertisement
• Google-stalking: Snoop about people on your love/hate list
• Domainer: Domain name speculator
• Dot con artist: Internet-based scamster
• Netlag: When response times and download times are slow
• Photolurking: Flipping through albums, even though you dont know who they are
• Pierre Salinger syndrome: To assume any information published on the Internet is automatically true
• Web-rage: Anger caused by slow downloads and nonexistent links
• Wikipediholism: Devotion to contributing to the online encyclopedia

Stress and your spouse's hand

2006-12-21T16:52:00.000+04:00

Even if some of you choose to laugh it off, psychology experts from the University of Virginia have concluded that the wives in the best marriages appeared to have the calmest brains - while holding their husbands' hands under threat.

Holding the stranger's hand was better than holding no hand at all but holding their husband's hand was best, the researchers found.

In Andhra ... + = —

2006-12-21T16:48:00.000+04:00

The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has been on the spotlight for many firsts in technology, reforms, etc. However, this one is going to be a tough one to implement. They plan to introduce a legislation to make HIV test mandatory for couples who intend to marry.

India has the highest HIV infection population in the world and Andhra Pradesh one of its worst hit states. Commendable if the government feels it can pull the legislation through. Considering the social structure and stigmas in India, especially in rural areas, I wonder how the authorities intend to handle a typical situation when either of the couple is found HIV+! Given that fake degree certificates are easy to buy, how difficult will it be to get a fake test report!

Are you a Metrospiritual?

2006-12-18T13:21:00.000+04:00

Take this quiz.

I scored a 29.

"A metrospiritual leads a lifestyle that promotes inner peace, health, and environmental awareness as well as endorses virtuous behavior"

Robbing Robin

2006-12-18T00:00:00.000+04:00

Reading through to the last page of Robin Sharma's 'The Greatness Guide', I could only hear myself repeating his words 'It's never too late to become the person you have always dreamed of being.'

Here are a few quotables -

The thing about martyrs is that most of them get burned at the stake.

What distinguishes people with an extraordinary character from the rest of us is how they respond when life sends one of its inevitable curves.

It's amazing how far you will get by just staying with something long enough. Most people give up too early. Their fears are bigger than their faith.

Try not to teach your fears to your kids. Introduce your children to what's possible.

When you get back to doing those things that lifted your spirit and sent you soaring, you reconnect with that state of happiness that you may have lost.

Ciao Metrosexual; Hello Metrospiritual

2006-12-04T14:43:00.000+04:00

Find out 'What's In and What's Out' and whether you're leaning toward Metrospirituality:
Metrospiritual	Not Metrospiritual
Wu wei Indian yogi Localized cuisine Machu Picchu Organic wine Home altar Surfing Angelina Jolie Lexus or Toyota hybrid Wellbutrin Whole Foods Anthropologie Tea salons Ayurvedic therapies	Feng shui Personal trainer Nouvelle cuisine Prague Beaujolais Nouveau Sweat lodge Golf Demi Moore Hummer Prozac Ben & Jerry's Pottery Barn Espresso bars Shiatsu massage
Source:www.holisticbulletin.com

Midlife Stew

2006-12-04T11:32:00.000+04:00

According to research, middle-aged men who went on to live the longest and healthiest lives had these nine things in common ....

• They were not overweight
• They had low blood pressure
• Had low blood sugar
• Had low bad cholesterol
• Drank moderate amounts of alcohol
• Did not smoke
• Had high hand-grip strength
• Had higher education levels
• Were married (!!!)

Warm water after a meal ...

2006-12-04T11:19:00.000+04:00

The Chinese and Japanese drink hot tea with their meals...not cold water... maybe it is time we adopt their drinking habit while eating!!! Nothing to lose, everything to gain...
For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you. It is nice to have a cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion. Once this "sludge" reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine.
Very soon, this will turn into fats and can lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm tea/water after a meal.

Zen Sarcasm

2006-12-04T11:17:00.000+04:00

1. Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me either. Just pretty much leave me the hell alone.
2. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and leaky tire.
3. It's always darkest before dawn. So if you're going to steal your neighbor's newspaper, that's the time to do it.
4. Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.
5. Always remember that you're unique. Just like everyone else.
6. Never test the depth of the water with both feet.
7. If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car payments.
8. Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes.
9. If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you.
10. Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day.
11. If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.
12. If you tell the truth, you don 't have to remember anything.
13. Some days you're the bug; some days you're the windshield.
14. Everyone seems normal until you get to know them.
15. The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.
16. A closed mouth gathers no foot.
17. There are two theories to arguing with women. Neither one works.
18. Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your lips are moving.
19. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
20. Never miss a good chance to shut up.
21. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

Auto-suggestion

2006-12-03T23:38:00.000+04:00

auto-suggestion (self-suggestion): Form of verbal therapy wherein one repeats affirmations or suggestions until one's body-mind begins to act accordingly.

Most of us never realise that the best way to heal oneself is a gentle tap on the sub-conscious. But none of us know how to do that. Do we?

The machine is; your brain. Your brain is made up of two parts, your conscious and sub-conscious and they work together. We know a lot about the conscious, but the sub-conscious is still a vast unknown territory. One of the greatest powers of the sub-conscious is its ability to use the power of auto-suggestion. Conscious suggestion is the mechanism of feeding the sub-conscious mind thoughts of a creative nature. I.e. Positive affirmations that make their way into the deep fertile ground of the sub-conscious. Or, through neglect and inertia permit thoughts that are destructive to the desires of your heart.

When you read out loud a written statement of your desire for whatever you want, everyday, several times everyday, and do it with emotion and concentration on your desire, and, see and feel yourself already in possession of what you want, then you are communicating (self-suggesting) your desire directly to your sub-conscious.

Once you have decided what you want to use in suggestions, spend a little time working out a form of words for each suggestion that is short, positive, and powerful. Repeat this to yourself.

Effective use of suggestion can:

Build confidence
Reinforce goals by etching them into your mind
Reduce stress
Motivate and energise when you are feeling sluggish.

A full circle ...

2006-12-03T23:25:00.000+04:00

Felt a sense of pride to read that Infosys would be recruiting 25 graduates from 12 UK universities for training in their Mysore facility. And that they have 126 graduates from the US already onboard!

Wasnt it just few years ago that we scrambled to embassies to get a visa to what we thought was el dorado. Infosys has long been considered one of the best organisations in the world to work for and for sure these graduates are going to land the experience of a lifetime with Infosys in India.

Why oh why!

2006-08-06T10:59:00.000+04:00

Why isn't phonetic spelled the way it sounds?
Have you ever imagined a world with no hypothetical situations?
Why do we drive on parkways and park on driveways?
Why is it that when you transport something by car, it's called a shipment, but when you transport something by ship, it's called cargo?
Why is it that when you're driving and looking for an address, you turn down the volume on the radio?
How did a fool and his money get together?
What's another word for thesaurus?
Why do they sterilize the needles for lethal injections?
Why is abbreviation such a long word?
Why did kamikaze pilots wear helmets?
Does fuzzy logic tickle?
Why do they call it a TV set when you only get one?
What was the best thing before sliced bread?
"Experience is what you get when you didn't get what you wanted."
If a book about failures doesn't sell, is it a success?
What do you do when you see an endangered animal that eats only endangered plants?
Is it possible to be totally partial?
Can you be a closet claustrophobic?
Why do people who know the least know it the loudest?
Why is the word abbreviation so long?

The blogger ....

2006-08-06T10:46:00.000+04:00

... is a geek ... sculpting a life out of a design studio in Dubai.