A Wonderful Forwarded Email
----------------------------
I remember my dad teaching me the power of language at a very young age. Not only did my dad understand that specific words affect our mental pictures, but he understood words are a powerful programming factor in lifelong success.
One particularly interesting event occurred when I was eight. As a kid, I was always climbing trees, poles, and literally hanging around upside down from the rafters of our lake house. So, it came to no surprise for my dad to find me at the top of a 30-foot tree swinging back and forth. My little eight-year-old brain didn't realize the tree could break or I could get hurt. I just thought it was fun to be up so high.
My older cousin, Tammy, was also in the same tree. She was hanging on the first big limb, about ten feet below me. Tammy's mother also noticed us at the exact time my dad did. About that time a huge gust of wind came over the tree. I could hear the leaves start to rattle and the tree begin to sway. I remember my dad's voice over the wind yell, "Bart, Hold on tightly." So I did. The next thing I know, I heard Tammy screaming at the top of her lungs, laying flat on the ground. She had fallen out of the tree.
I scampered down the tree to safety. My dad later told me why she fell and I did not. Apparently, when Tammy's mother felt the gust of wind, she yelled out, "Tammy, don't fall!" And Tammy did. fall.
My dad then explained to me that the mind has a very difficult time processing a negative image. In fact, people who rely on internal pictures cannot see a negative at all. In order for Tammy to process the command of not falling, her nine-year-old brain had to first imagine falling, then try to tell the brain not to do what it just imagined. Whereas, my eight-year-old brain instantly had an internal image of me hanging on tightly.
This concept is especially useful when you are attempting to break a habit or set a goal. You can't visualize not doing something. The only way to properly visualize not doing something is to actually find a word for what you want to do and visualize that. For example, when I was thirteen years old, I played for my junior high school football team. I tried so hard to be good, but I just couldn't get it together at that age. I remember hearing the words run through my head as I was running out for a pass, "Don't drop it!" Naturally, I dropped the ball.
My coaches were not skilled enough to teach us proper "self-talk." They just thought some kids could catch and others couldn't. I'll never make it pro, but I'm now a pretty good Sunday afternoon football player, because all my internal dialogue is positive and encourages me to win. I wish my dad had coached me playing football instead of just climbing trees. I might have had a longer football career.
Here is a very easy demonstration to teach your kids and your friends the power of a toxic vocabulary. Ask them to hold a pen or pencil. Hand it to them. Now, follow my instructions carefully. Say to them, "Okay, try to drop the pencil." Observe what they do.
Most people release their hands and watch the pencil hit the floor. You respond, "You weren't paying attention. I said TRY to drop the pencil. Now please do it again." Most people then pick up the pencil and pretend to be in excruciating pain while their hand tries but fails to drop the pencil.
The point is made.
If you tell your brain you will "give it a try," you are actually telling your brain to fail. I have a "no try" rule in my house and with everyone I interact with. Either people will do it or they won't. Either they will be at the party or they won't. I'm brutal when people attempt to lie to me by using the word try. Do they think I don't know they are really telegraphing to the world they have no intention of doing it but they want me to give them brownie points for pretended effort? You will never hear the words "I'll try" come out of my mouth unless I'm teaching this concept in a seminar.
If you "try" and do something, your unconscious mind has permission not to succeed. If I truly can't make a decision I will tell the truth. "Sorry John. I'm not sure if I will be at your party or not. I've got an outstanding commitment. If that falls through, I will be here. Otherwise, I will not. Thanks for the invite."
People respect honesty. So remove the word "try" from your vocabulary.
My dad also told me that psychologists claim it takes seventeen positive statements to offset one negative statement. I have no idea if it is true, but the logic holds true. It might take up to seventeen compliments to offset the emotional damage of one harsh criticism.
These are concepts that are especially useful when raising children.
Ask yourself how many compliments you give yourself daily versus how many criticisms. Heck, I know you are talking to yourself all day long. We all have internal voices that give us direction.
So, are you giving yourself the 17:1 ratio or are you shortchanging yourself with toxic self-talk like, " I'm fat. Nobody will like me. I'll try this diet. I'm not good enough. I'm so stupid. I'm broke, etc. etc."
If our parents can set a lifetime of programming with one wrong statement, imagine the kind of programming you are doing on a daily basis with your own internal dialogue. Here is a list of Toxic Vocabulary words.
Notice when you or other people use them.
Ø But: Negates any words that are stated before it.
Ø Try: Presupposes failure.
Ø If: Presupposes that you may not.
Ø Might: It does nothing definite. It leaves options for your listener.
Ø Would Have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen.
Ø Should Have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen (and implies guilt.)
Ø Could Have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen but the person tries to take credit as if it did happen.
Ø Can't/Don't: These words force the listener to focus on exactly the opposite of what you want. This is a classic mistake that parents and coaches make without knowing the damage of this linguistic error.
Examples:
Toxic phrase: "Don't drop the ball!"
Likely result: Drops the ball
Better language: "Catch the ball!"
Toxic phrase: "You shouldn't watch so much television."
Likely result: Watches more television.
Better language: "I read too much television makes people stupid. You might find yourself turning that TV off and picking up one of those books more often!"
Exercise: Take a moment to write down all the phrases you use on a daily basis or any Toxic self-talk that you have noticed yourself using. Write these phrases down so you will begin to catch yourself as they occur and change them.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Go Green - Nice Short Article By Rahul
trashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrashtrash
You can take Rashtra out of trash. Or you can take trash out of a Rashtra. Either way ...
Well here's tips for micros steps on how to Go Green.
Tip #2 "Of course, pens are not just dime a dozen but free at your favorite stationery room at work. Be considerate and do not use another pen until you are done with the current one. Guard it with same love you would give to your iPod."
For the rest of it the article ... read here
http://in10cities.blogspot.com/2007/08/go-green.html
June 16th - Another Link I came across today:
http://earth911.org/blog/2008/06/16/8-ways-to-green-your-shopping/
Go to the home page http://earth911.org/ for more info.
You can take Rashtra out of trash. Or you can take trash out of a Rashtra. Either way ...
Well here's tips for micros steps on how to Go Green.
Tip #2 "Of course, pens are not just dime a dozen but free at your favorite stationery room at work. Be considerate and do not use another pen until you are done with the current one. Guard it with same love you would give to your iPod."
For the rest of it the article ... read here
http://in10cities.blogspot.com/2007/08/go-green.html
June 16th - Another Link I came across today:
http://earth911.org/blog/2008/06/16/8-ways-to-green-your-shopping/
Go to the home page http://earth911.org/ for more info.
MSG - A slow poison under the disguide of a Natural Flavoring
Source of Information:
Websites posted at the bottom of the article.
(Note: The following information about natural food additives is provided on this website as a public service.)
The not so new game is to label hydrolyzed proteins as pea protein, whey protein, corn protein, etc. If a pea, for example, were whole, it would be identified as a pea. Calling an ingredient pea protein indicates that the pea has been hydrolyzed, at least in part, and that processed free glutamic acid (MSG) is present. Relatively new to the list are wheat protein and soy protein.
Now that we know what Natural Flavoring means, lets go ahead with the main article on MSG:
~ Author Unknown
The food additive MSG (Mono-Sodium Glutamate) is a slow poison. MSG hides behind 25 or more names, such as Natural Flavoring.' MSG is even in your favorite coffee from Tim Horton's and Starbucks coffee shops!
I wondered if there could be an actual chemical causing the massive obesity epidemic, and so did a friend of mine, John Erb. He was a research assistant at the University of Waterloo in Ontario , Canada , and spent years working for the government. He made an amazing discovery while
going through scientific journals for a book he was writing called The Slow Poisoning of America.
In hundreds of studies around the world, scientists were creating obese mice and rats to use in diet or diabetes test studies. No strain of rat or mice is naturally obese, so scientists have to create them. They make these creatures morbidly obese by injecting them with MSG when they are first born.
The MSG triples the amount of insulin the pancreas creates, causing rats (and perhaps humans) to become obese. They even have a name for the fat rodents they create: 'MSG-Treated Rats.'
When I heard this, I was shocked. I went into my kitchen and checked the cupboards and the refrigerator. MSG was in everything -- the Campbell 's soups, the Hostess Doritos, the Lays flavored potato chips, Top Ramen, Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper, Heinz canned gravy, Swanson frozen prepared meals, and Kraft salad dressings, especially the 'healthy
low-fat' ones.
The items that didn't have MSG marked on the product label had something called 'Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein,' which is just another name for Monosodium Glutamate.
It was shocking to see just how many of the foods we feed our children everyday are filled with this stuff. MSG is hidden under many different names in order to fool those who read the ingredient list, so that they don't catch on. (Other names for MSG are 'Accent, 'Aginomoto,'
'Natural Meat Tenderizer,' etc.)
But it didn't stop there.
When our family went out to eat, we started asking at the restaurants what menu items contained MSG. Many employees, even the managers, swore they didn't use MSG.
But when we ask for the ingredient list, which they grudgingly provided, sure enough, MSG and Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein were everywhere.
Burger King, McDonald's, Wendy's, Taco Bell, every restaurant -- even the sit-down eateries like TGIF, Chili's, Applebee's, and Denny's -- use MSG in abundance. Kentucky Fried Chicken seemed to be the WORST offender:
MSG was in every chicken dish, salad dressing. and gravy. No wonder I loved to eat that coating on the skin -- their secret spice was MSG!
So why is MSG in so many of the foods we eat? Is it a preservative, or a vitamin?
Not according to my friend John Erb. In his book The Slow Poisoning of America , he said that MSG is added to food for the addictive effect it has on the human body.
Even the propaganda website sponsored by the food manufacturers lobby group supporting MSG explains that the reason they add it to food is to make people eat more.
A study of the elderly showed that older people eat more of the foods that it is added to. The Glutamate Association lobbying group says eating more is a benefit to the elderly, but what does it do to the rest of us?
'Betcha can't eat [just] one,' takes on a whole new meaning where MSG is concerned! And we wonder why the nation is overweight!
MSG manufacturers themselves admit that it addicts people to their products. It makes people choose their product over others, and makes people eat more of it than they would if MSG wasn't added.
Not only is MSG scientifically proven to cause obesity, it is an addictive substance. Since its introduction into the American food supply fifty years ago, MSG has been added in larger and larger doses to the pre-packaged meals, soups, snacks, and fast foods we are tempted to eat everyday.
The FDA has set no limits on how much of it can be added to food. They claim it's safe to eat in any amount. But how can they claim it's safe when there are hundreds of scientific studies with titles like these:
'The monosodium glutamate (MSG) obese rat as a model for the study of exercise in obesity.' Gobatto CA, Mello MA, Souza CT , Ribeiro IA. Res Commun Mol Pathol Pharmacol. 2002.
'Adrenalectomy abolishes the food-induced hypothalamic serotonin release in both normal and monosodium glutamate-obese rats.' Guimaraes RB, Telles MM, Coelho VB, Mori C, Nascimento CM, Ribeiro. Brain Res Bull. 2002 Aug.
'Obesity induced by neonatal monosodium glutamate treatment in spontaneously hypertensive rats: An animal model of multiple risk factors.' Iwase M, Yamamoto M, Iino K, Ichikawa K, Shinohara N, Yoshinari Fujishima. Hypertens Res. 1998 Mar.
'Hypothalamic lesion induced by injection of monosodium glutamate in suckling period and subsequent development of obesity.' Tanaka K, Shimada M, Nakao K Kusunoki. Exp Neurol. 1978 Oct.
No, the date of that last study was not a typo; it was published in 1978. Both the 'medical research community' and 'food manufacturers' have known about the side effects of MSG for decades.
Many more of the studies mentioned in John Erb's book link MSG to diabetes, migraines and headaches, autism, ADHD, and even Alzheimer's.
So what can we do to stop the food manufactures from dumping this fattening and addictive MSG into our food supply and causing the obesity epidemic we now see?
Several months ago, John Erb took his book and his concerns to one of the highest government health officials in Canada. While he was sitting in the government office, the official told him,
'Sure, I know how bad MSG is. I wouldn't touch the stuff.' But this top-level government official refuses to tell the public what he knows.
The big media doesn't want to tell the public either, fearing issues with their advertisers. It seems that the fallout on the fast food industry may hurt their profit margin. The food producers and restaurants have been addicting us to their products for years, and now we are paying
the price for it. Our children should not be cursed with obesity caused by an addictive food additive.
But what can I do about it? I'm just one voice! What can I do to stop the poisoning of our children, while our governments are insuring financial protection for the industry that is poisoning us?
This message is going out to everyone I know in an attempt to tell you the truth that the corporate-owned politicians and media won't tell you.
The best way you can help to save yourself and your children from this drug-induced epidemic is to forward this article to everyone. With any luck, it will circle the globe before politicians can pass the legislation protecting those who are poisoning us.
The food industry learned a lot from the tobacco industry. Imagine if big tobacco had a bill like this in place before someone blew the whistle on nicotine?
If you are one of the few who can still believe that MSG is good for us and you don't believe what John Erb has to say, see for yourself. Go to the National Library of Medicine at www.pubmed.com Type in the words 'MSG Obese' and read a few of the 115 medical studies that appear.
We the public do not want to be rats in one giant experiment, and we do not approve of food that makes us into a nation of obese, lethargic, addicted sheep, feeding the food industry's bottom line while waiting for the heart transplant, the diabetic-induced amputation, blindness, or other
obesity-induced, life-threatening disorders.
With your help we can put an end to this poison. Do your part in sending this message out by word of mouth, e-mail, or by distribution of this printout to your friends all over the world and stop this 'Slow Poisoning of Mankind' by the packaged food industry.
Blowing the whistle on MSG is our responsibility, so get the word out.
[End of Article]
----------
Read More Here:
1. http://www.sptimes.com/2005/09/25/Perspective/Want_full_disclosure_.shtml
The information above was picked up from the following websites:
1. http://www.rense.com/general52/msg.htm
2. http://www.shaysways.com/msg.html
3. http://www.sellingsalesmanship.com/natural.html
4. http://www.foodproductdesign.com/archive/1992/0992CS.html.
Websites posted at the bottom of the article.
(Note: The following information about natural food additives is provided on this website as a public service.)
Title 21, Section 101, part 22 of the Code of Federal Regulations defines natural flavorings & flavors as follows:
The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.
Under current regulations, food manufacturers can obscure a variety of products – including derivatives of meat, poultry, seafood, dairy products, and nuts – under the guise of "natural flavoring."
"Natural" does not mean it is not a harmful food additive. "Natural" only means that the natural flavor ingredient originated from a natural source. For example, "natural" can mean a type of food additive such as MSG which has been found to be a dangerous food additive ingredient for many of the people who consume this so-called natural additive.
The not so new game is to label hydrolyzed proteins as pea protein, whey protein, corn protein, etc. If a pea, for example, were whole, it would be identified as a pea. Calling an ingredient pea protein indicates that the pea has been hydrolyzed, at least in part, and that processed free glutamic acid (MSG) is present. Relatively new to the list are wheat protein and soy protein.
Now that we know what Natural Flavoring means, lets go ahead with the main article on MSG:
~ Author Unknown
The food additive MSG (Mono-Sodium Glutamate) is a slow poison. MSG hides behind 25 or more names, such as Natural Flavoring.' MSG is even in your favorite coffee from Tim Horton's and Starbucks coffee shops!
I wondered if there could be an actual chemical causing the massive obesity epidemic, and so did a friend of mine, John Erb. He was a research assistant at the University of Waterloo in Ontario , Canada , and spent years working for the government. He made an amazing discovery while
going through scientific journals for a book he was writing called The Slow Poisoning of America.
In hundreds of studies around the world, scientists were creating obese mice and rats to use in diet or diabetes test studies. No strain of rat or mice is naturally obese, so scientists have to create them. They make these creatures morbidly obese by injecting them with MSG when they are first born.
The MSG triples the amount of insulin the pancreas creates, causing rats (and perhaps humans) to become obese. They even have a name for the fat rodents they create: 'MSG-Treated Rats.'
When I heard this, I was shocked. I went into my kitchen and checked the cupboards and the refrigerator. MSG was in everything -- the Campbell 's soups, the Hostess Doritos, the Lays flavored potato chips, Top Ramen, Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper, Heinz canned gravy, Swanson frozen prepared meals, and Kraft salad dressings, especially the 'healthy
low-fat' ones.
The items that didn't have MSG marked on the product label had something called 'Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein,' which is just another name for Monosodium Glutamate.
It was shocking to see just how many of the foods we feed our children everyday are filled with this stuff. MSG is hidden under many different names in order to fool those who read the ingredient list, so that they don't catch on. (Other names for MSG are 'Accent, 'Aginomoto,'
'Natural Meat Tenderizer,' etc.)
But it didn't stop there.
When our family went out to eat, we started asking at the restaurants what menu items contained MSG. Many employees, even the managers, swore they didn't use MSG.
But when we ask for the ingredient list, which they grudgingly provided, sure enough, MSG and Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein were everywhere.
Burger King, McDonald's, Wendy's, Taco Bell, every restaurant -- even the sit-down eateries like TGIF, Chili's, Applebee's, and Denny's -- use MSG in abundance. Kentucky Fried Chicken seemed to be the WORST offender:
MSG was in every chicken dish, salad dressing. and gravy. No wonder I loved to eat that coating on the skin -- their secret spice was MSG!
So why is MSG in so many of the foods we eat? Is it a preservative, or a vitamin?
Not according to my friend John Erb. In his book The Slow Poisoning of America , he said that MSG is added to food for the addictive effect it has on the human body.
Even the propaganda website sponsored by the food manufacturers lobby group supporting MSG explains that the reason they add it to food is to make people eat more.
A study of the elderly showed that older people eat more of the foods that it is added to. The Glutamate Association lobbying group says eating more is a benefit to the elderly, but what does it do to the rest of us?
'Betcha can't eat [just] one,' takes on a whole new meaning where MSG is concerned! And we wonder why the nation is overweight!
MSG manufacturers themselves admit that it addicts people to their products. It makes people choose their product over others, and makes people eat more of it than they would if MSG wasn't added.
Not only is MSG scientifically proven to cause obesity, it is an addictive substance. Since its introduction into the American food supply fifty years ago, MSG has been added in larger and larger doses to the pre-packaged meals, soups, snacks, and fast foods we are tempted to eat everyday.
The FDA has set no limits on how much of it can be added to food. They claim it's safe to eat in any amount. But how can they claim it's safe when there are hundreds of scientific studies with titles like these:
'The monosodium glutamate (MSG) obese rat as a model for the study of exercise in obesity.' Gobatto CA, Mello MA, Souza CT , Ribeiro IA. Res Commun Mol Pathol Pharmacol. 2002.
'Adrenalectomy abolishes the food-induced hypothalamic serotonin release in both normal and monosodium glutamate-obese rats.' Guimaraes RB, Telles MM, Coelho VB, Mori C, Nascimento CM, Ribeiro. Brain Res Bull. 2002 Aug.
'Obesity induced by neonatal monosodium glutamate treatment in spontaneously hypertensive rats: An animal model of multiple risk factors.' Iwase M, Yamamoto M, Iino K, Ichikawa K, Shinohara N, Yoshinari Fujishima. Hypertens Res. 1998 Mar.
'Hypothalamic lesion induced by injection of monosodium glutamate in suckling period and subsequent development of obesity.' Tanaka K, Shimada M, Nakao K Kusunoki. Exp Neurol. 1978 Oct.
No, the date of that last study was not a typo; it was published in 1978. Both the 'medical research community' and 'food manufacturers' have known about the side effects of MSG for decades.
Many more of the studies mentioned in John Erb's book link MSG to diabetes, migraines and headaches, autism, ADHD, and even Alzheimer's.
So what can we do to stop the food manufactures from dumping this fattening and addictive MSG into our food supply and causing the obesity epidemic we now see?
Several months ago, John Erb took his book and his concerns to one of the highest government health officials in Canada. While he was sitting in the government office, the official told him,
'Sure, I know how bad MSG is. I wouldn't touch the stuff.' But this top-level government official refuses to tell the public what he knows.
The big media doesn't want to tell the public either, fearing issues with their advertisers. It seems that the fallout on the fast food industry may hurt their profit margin. The food producers and restaurants have been addicting us to their products for years, and now we are paying
the price for it. Our children should not be cursed with obesity caused by an addictive food additive.
But what can I do about it? I'm just one voice! What can I do to stop the poisoning of our children, while our governments are insuring financial protection for the industry that is poisoning us?
This message is going out to everyone I know in an attempt to tell you the truth that the corporate-owned politicians and media won't tell you.
The best way you can help to save yourself and your children from this drug-induced epidemic is to forward this article to everyone. With any luck, it will circle the globe before politicians can pass the legislation protecting those who are poisoning us.
The food industry learned a lot from the tobacco industry. Imagine if big tobacco had a bill like this in place before someone blew the whistle on nicotine?
If you are one of the few who can still believe that MSG is good for us and you don't believe what John Erb has to say, see for yourself. Go to the National Library of Medicine at www.pubmed.com Type in the words 'MSG Obese' and read a few of the 115 medical studies that appear.
We the public do not want to be rats in one giant experiment, and we do not approve of food that makes us into a nation of obese, lethargic, addicted sheep, feeding the food industry's bottom line while waiting for the heart transplant, the diabetic-induced amputation, blindness, or other
obesity-induced, life-threatening disorders.
With your help we can put an end to this poison. Do your part in sending this message out by word of mouth, e-mail, or by distribution of this printout to your friends all over the world and stop this 'Slow Poisoning of Mankind' by the packaged food industry.
Blowing the whistle on MSG is our responsibility, so get the word out.
[End of Article]
----------
Read More Here:
1. http://www.sptimes.com/2005/09/25/Perspective/Want_full_disclosure_.shtml
The information above was picked up from the following websites:
1. http://www.rense.com/general52/msg.htm
2. http://www.shaysways.com/msg.html
3. http://www.sellingsalesmanship.com/natural.html
4. http://www.foodproductdesign.com/archive/1992/0992CS.html.
Friday, April 11, 2008
How Big a Bed Do you Need
Though most of us need a bed just good enough to lie down, others may need much much more than that. For instance if you are Abhinav Shukla, you may like to take the entire space of a Queen size Bed (Refer: Standard Bed Sizes )
Looking at the bed you may feel that the bed looks just enough for one person. But if you got a chance to click at the link above, this Queen Size Bed is 60'' wide, which makes it f. i.v.e f.e.e.t wide. Frankly it is good enought for three normal sized girls side-by-side !!!
No jokes. The snap proves it all, how hard it was for the camera to capture his complete length, breath and width just this morning. Poor me, no wonder I sometimes end up on the floor and at other times, even outside the bedroom (from where I was trying to capture his unique sleeping posture). ...And wasn't it last night when he comes in at 2 am, only to wake me up in the middle of the night, to tell me that I was needed to get off from 'his' half of the bed and push myself to 'my own' half. Oh perhaps your focus stopped at the words 'comes in' and are wondering what was he doing away from home at that odd hour. Well to be honest with you, Abhinav rarely ever goes out of home. Normally any time between 12 am and 4 am, Abhinav leaves the company of... <>... in the hall and enters our bedroom, with the only caveat that while I am asleep, he enjoys all his time with his dear and beloved ... sob sob ... <>, which is also his second wife... the laptop!!! Abhinav not only gobbles and eats with her, but even cleans his nostrils with his index finger in front of her! His nostrils have now widened apart so much, that I sometimes get this idea of using them as for storage if we ever fall short of bins and boxes to keep our things. If nothing else, at least our first kids' clothes can at least be stored with in them.
Oh well, I was telling you my woes as being a wife. So while it's such a major effort on his part to spend more than 5 minutes sitting with me, this laptop has the potential to keep my husband's eyes glued to her electronically lighted stupid face for tens of hours at a stretch. Before marriage, my life's biggest irony was, that I presumed I knew Abhinav well before I agreed to marry him. Alas the biggest shock of my life came to me when I moved to his apartment after marriage, and the fact that Abhinav was already married was disclosed. That time his wife was the 'The Television'. As this revelation was not enough to end our honey moon period, there were more surprises for me in store ahead. An year later, when our company sent us to Seattle, and Abhinav announced he was in no mood to purchase a TV for our Seattle apartment; I finally felt relieved on the though of getting a lost husband back into my life for the first time. But who knew my dreams were short lived. Who knew, that Abhinav would soon forget his first love and fall in love with the laptop. Alas, sometimes I wish I was born in the dark ages !!!!
Coming back to storage problems, we don't have any kids yet, but eventually will have some day. Abhinav dreams of naming his kids, something irrelevant of their gender, so that he does not have to think again if the boy turns out instead of a girl, or vice-versa. He's already decided he will name his kids in this order:
1. Karmanye Vaadhika-raste,
2. Maa Phaleshu Kadachana,
3. Maa karma-phala-hetur-bhoorma,
4. MaTe sangostwakarmini.
Which means, some day when we will finally have two kids, and he will name all four of them; or rather bestow on them; long Sanskrit names. The whole idea behind this philosophy is that by the time their poor mummy would have ended calling out the complete names, they would have run 5 Kilometers away from their home, and would this way avoid eating their vegetables or cleaning the mess behind them. This way their papa can get all the credit for having protected his kids from mummy's tortures throughout their childhood. Oh my God! I wonder what does future hold for me.
Perhaps Abhinav is not bad after all. With my cyst troubling me since a couple of weeks and Abhinav being on vacation between his job switch; we had more time at home together. So I shared my idea of playing chess with this with the intention of trying to keep both of us together in the same room for more than 5 minutes at a stretch. Little did I know that this game will be so morally discouraging for me. In the 6 matches we have played in the past 3 days, Abhinav has been defecting me each and every time - the worst ever defeat I have ever faced in my entire lifetime.
I could have shared more about my mistakes in my moves, but I am now forced to get up, as the big buy just has just woke up from his sleep and expresses his desire to be with his <> for sometime. See you later friends.
Looking at the bed you may feel that the bed looks just enough for one person. But if you got a chance to click at the link above, this Queen Size Bed is 60'' wide, which makes it f. i.v.e f.e.e.t wide. Frankly it is good enought for three normal sized girls side-by-side !!!
No jokes. The snap proves it all, how hard it was for the camera to capture his complete length, breath and width just this morning. Poor me, no wonder I sometimes end up on the floor and at other times, even outside the bedroom (from where I was trying to capture his unique sleeping posture). ...And wasn't it last night when he comes in at 2 am, only to wake me up in the middle of the night, to tell me that I was needed to get off from 'his' half of the bed and push myself to 'my own' half. Oh perhaps your focus stopped at the words 'comes in' and are wondering what was he doing away from home at that odd hour. Well to be honest with you, Abhinav rarely ever goes out of home. Normally any time between 12 am and 4 am, Abhinav leaves the company of... <>... in the hall and enters our bedroom, with the only caveat that while I am asleep, he enjoys all his time with his dear and beloved ... sob sob ... <>, which is also his second wife... the laptop!!! Abhinav not only gobbles and eats with her, but even cleans his nostrils with his index finger in front of her! His nostrils have now widened apart so much, that I sometimes get this idea of using them as for storage if we ever fall short of bins and boxes to keep our things. If nothing else, at least our first kids' clothes can at least be stored with in them.
Oh well, I was telling you my woes as being a wife. So while it's such a major effort on his part to spend more than 5 minutes sitting with me, this laptop has the potential to keep my husband's eyes glued to her electronically lighted stupid face for tens of hours at a stretch. Before marriage, my life's biggest irony was, that I presumed I knew Abhinav well before I agreed to marry him. Alas the biggest shock of my life came to me when I moved to his apartment after marriage, and the fact that Abhinav was already married was disclosed. That time his wife was the 'The Television'. As this revelation was not enough to end our honey moon period, there were more surprises for me in store ahead. An year later, when our company sent us to Seattle, and Abhinav announced he was in no mood to purchase a TV for our Seattle apartment; I finally felt relieved on the though of getting a lost husband back into my life for the first time. But who knew my dreams were short lived. Who knew, that Abhinav would soon forget his first love and fall in love with the laptop. Alas, sometimes I wish I was born in the dark ages !!!!
Coming back to storage problems, we don't have any kids yet, but eventually will have some day. Abhinav dreams of naming his kids, something irrelevant of their gender, so that he does not have to think again if the boy turns out instead of a girl, or vice-versa. He's already decided he will name his kids in this order:
1. Karmanye Vaadhika-raste,
2. Maa Phaleshu Kadachana,
3. Maa karma-phala-hetur-bhoorma,
4. MaTe sangostwakarmini.
Which means, some day when we will finally have two kids, and he will name all four of them; or rather bestow on them; long Sanskrit names. The whole idea behind this philosophy is that by the time their poor mummy would have ended calling out the complete names, they would have run 5 Kilometers away from their home, and would this way avoid eating their vegetables or cleaning the mess behind them. This way their papa can get all the credit for having protected his kids from mummy's tortures throughout their childhood. Oh my God! I wonder what does future hold for me.
Perhaps Abhinav is not bad after all. With my cyst troubling me since a couple of weeks and Abhinav being on vacation between his job switch; we had more time at home together. So I shared my idea of playing chess with this with the intention of trying to keep both of us together in the same room for more than 5 minutes at a stretch. Little did I know that this game will be so morally discouraging for me. In the 6 matches we have played in the past 3 days, Abhinav has been defecting me each and every time - the worst ever defeat I have ever faced in my entire lifetime.
I could have shared more about my mistakes in my moves, but I am now forced to get up, as the big buy just has just woke up from his sleep and expresses his desire to be with his <> for sometime. See you later friends.
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Earth Hour - March 29th 2008
http://www2.earthhourus.org/
Hoping that Seattle along with many many more cities participates in this next year.
There is nothing more satisfying to the heart at this hour, than the fact the America is slowly realizing that energy comes at a cost; and that Americans and folks from other countries too, have started - not taking energy - for granted. !!!
All the best to this mission.
Hoping that Seattle along with many many more cities participates in this next year.
There is nothing more satisfying to the heart at this hour, than the fact the America is slowly realizing that energy comes at a cost; and that Americans and folks from other countries too, have started - not taking energy - for granted. !!!
All the best to this mission.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Vigyan Kumar Sharan is no longer with us
Vigyan Kumar Sharan (August 11th 1951 to January 21st 2008)
Today he is not with us and we are sad.
Vigyan Sharan, the 4th brother from the eldest among 5 brothers and 1 sister was born in Old Delhi to Atul Krishna Sharan and Sushila Sharan. As his brothers grew up and left abroad for higher studies and better job opportunities, Chachaji choose to stay close to his parents, to take care of them for the rest of his life. Chachaji in his twenties got married to Sandhya Goel who in the coming years gave birth to Ankur Sharan and Ankit Sharan.
Memoirs and Memories:
To say that Chacha ji was the most beloved member of entire family will not be an over statement. There was no one, I know of, who did not love or praise Chachaji. To add to that, his sense of humor was one of best in our entire family. The first fond memories of Chachaji date back to 18th April 1987. He and my cousins Ankur & Ankit had come to pick dad, mom and me at the airport. At this point of time, I fail to recollect any part of the entire discussion as he drive us back home in his white Ambassador. All I recollect is having met one of the most jovial people; and that how happy he made all of us feel that day.
In the next few months, we settled with Chachaji and grandparents in Kavi Nagar at Ghaziabad, and started staying together. One morning, I was in Chachiji's room cribbing about how badly the mosquitoes bit me all night. Pat came Chachaji's reply - "arey vo tumhara khoon peetey hain, tum unka khoon peelo." Phir apni hatheli pe ek mara hua machar dikhate huey kahate hain, "ye dekho, is macchar ne do din pahale mera khoon piya tha, to mainey issey ussi samay maar diya". Ye sunte hi, Chachiji maza lete huey kahati hain "chi, kitne gande hain aap. Do din se haath bhi nahin dhoye". Phat se Chachu bolte hain, "Areyy is macchar ko preserve karna tha na... abhi to main do din aur apna haath aaisey hi bina dhoye rahunga"... hum log unki baat sunte hi hasney lage. Us hasi mein mera machhar kate ka dard bhi khud se gayab ho jata hai. Abhi apney puraney din yaad karti hoon to yaad aata hai, Chachiji ne mujhe theek se us macchar ko dekhney nahin diya tha. Shayad unhoney jalsi se apni kale pen se ek gola banaya ho, dard se mera dhyan bhat-ka-ney ke liye.
Translated in English
Chachiji: "oho .. they drink [suck] your blood, you drink theirs.". Then as he showed a dead black mosquito on the corner of his palm hand, he we went on to say... "See this one? This one was sucking my blood two days back, so I crushed it between my hands then and there. On listening to our conversation Chachiji who was standing near teasingly asked - "Dirty you! you haven't even washed your hands since two days"; to which Chachu promptly replies - "...oh I had to preserve this mosquito ... and I don't plan to wash my hands for the next two days either ...". We all start laughing. In that laughter, my mosquito bite pain disappears automatically on its own. As I try to recollect, I remember that Chachu didn't allow to see the mosquito clearly enough. Perhaps he had quickly made a black dot with his pen, to divert me from that pain.
One evening we were all sitting in the drawing room and Ankit; who must have been 4 years then; was being naughty. Chachu was running after him and Ankit went hiding under the dining table. The next moment I hear, three big and loud bangs - and I most obviously conclude - these must be three loud smacks on poor Ankit's tiny little butt. At an stupid little age of eight it was pretty normal for me to be smacked or slapped each time I repeated one of my old mischiefs. And I thought, so how on earth could my cousin Ankit, who was even younger to me spare beating? Oh and I might add, I had never seen Chachu even scold anyone, so I was a little scared trying to imagine my cousin's embarrassment. With these thoughts in mind, I slowly opened my eyes only to find him giggling and cuddling in Chachaji's arm!!! Chachu had only pretended to hit, and had made all that loud notice by clapping his hands against each other to scare him from being naughty. That's when I learn this neat trick to scare kids myself from tearing books or playing with dangerous equipments at our home ... and believe me it has never failed till date.
In summers, sometimes we all would go for an evening walk after dinner. In those days, it was rather below my standard to approach people to make them listen to my magnificent self-made poetic compositions. So absolved was I in self admiration, that I used to compose them and later recite them to my own self. But who after all doesn't like to be appreciated, and so while I was desperately in search of someone to pay attention, during one of these walks Chachu catches me singing. The very first words of appreciation that I ever received for my childhood poems, or rather to say; the first person in my life to notice that 'hidden childhood talent' within me was none other than Chachaji himself.
After a couple of years, Chachaji moved to Allahabad. My grandparents moved with him. Daddy went on to construct a new house in Nehru Nagar in the same city. Now and then Chachaji would come and visit us, especially while going to and fro Delhi. On those trips, he always carried with him, a small magical briefcase. I called it magical since believe me, it used to contain everything that as a kid, I could have possibly dreamed to possess. As for my mumma she was so very proud of their respectful devar (brother-in-law). After Chachu left, I would hear her say in admiration, "just look at how systematic your Chachaji is, or see how well well managed is everything that Chachaji undertakes".
It was during one of these trips in 1997. I had been preparing for the Engineering entrance exams for an year at home. One day Chachu comes, and shares with my parents a small newspaper clipping. It was an advertisement for admission to the Institute of Engineering & Technology at Rohilkhand University. Over several years of shattering mumma's dreams of becoming an IPS, IFS officer, to getting selected in IIT; she had gradually stared coming to terms with my true form. Imagining her only child joining a merely two year college did not seem an attractive option; but upon re-evaluation of her child's dismal past performances, she agreed on allowing me to appear for the University's entrance exams. Later on it turned out that the only college Chachu had expressed his desire that I appear for, turned to be the one where I graduated from. Post admission, for my Chachu - I had taken the biggest step towards creating history - by becoming the first 'Lady' Engineer of our Sharan family. I initially counted how many times he said that he was proud of me, but then I have finally lost count now...
So as I mentioned IET was not an old college and obviously did not have an established girls hostel either at that time. My parents were pretty anxious about my accommodation at Bareilly. On the day of admission Chachaji was instructed to make sure that he doesn't submit the admission fees until he made sure that I had a safe and secure place to stay. Back in 1997, IET RU had a temporary girls hostel 2.5 kms away from the college, which was actually not easy to locate. In a country like India, where maps.google.com don't help, and directions on boards are installed only to mislead you, it was quite a pain to search for my hostel. So it was local help which came to our rescue, and that local help was a labor's boy playing in the that neighborhood. Born to a doctor, I learnt about diseases and precautions much before I learnt my ka, kha, ga (or my a, b, c's). My daddy would tell, what his medical books had taught him - how to keep yourself away from sources of infection. Staying away from untidy labor kids was one of those ways. As a practicing doctor, if ever my daddy would have to shake hands with someone of that demeanor, he would first sanitize his hands with an disinfectant before touching any thing else in his surgery. Oh well! coming back to my hostel's search; so after ensuring that the hostel and safe and secure; before leaving; Chachu did something I could least imagine him to do. To my utter surprise and horror, Chachu actually bent down to where that dirty kid wrapped in torn clothes was still playing in dirt and soil, shook hands with him, patted him on his back and even went on to thank him for providing directions . That day Chachu taught me the basic fundamentals of human existence - all of us are equal - something perhaps what all those medical books combined together have over the years failed to teach millions of medical doctors.
For the next four years of my graduation - from counseling, to admission, to paying regular visits to me at Bareilly, to help me pack up and send me back to my parents at the end of those four years; I just can't forget of what Chachu meant to me all those days. He was my source of my inspiration, strength and worldly knowledge - all bundled up in the form of my dear Chachu. His endless stories from his world of experience while escorting me in my trips were all too mesmerizing for me. Numerous times have I tried to question myself - what and where would I have been, had Chachu not taught me, what he had.
Four years of college end at Bareily. It was time for an admission to post-grad. I went to stay at Chachu's place seeking an admission to the Management College in Allahabad. On one those nights Chachu took me, Chachiji and my two cousins for a tasty masala dosa treat at a famous, under-the-sky eatery in Allahabad. Chachu had refrained himself from eating that day, however he helped himself with an ice cream. After dinner Chachiji left to pull her car closer to where all of us were seated and Ankur-Ankit followed her. Left at the table were me and Chachu. I too got up and started looking around. A couple of minutes later, the waiter comes carrying the bill in his hand. Here goes one of Chachu's usual pranks.
Chachu: "Ye bill to mera nahin hai"
Waiter: "Arey sa'b kya baat kar rahe hain, aap sab ne abhi issi table pe to baith ke khaya hai!"
C: "Arey bhai, main to keval yunhi baitha tha. Main to un charone mein se kisi ko janta bhi nahin hoon. Lagata hai vo log tumko paisey diye bina hi chale gaye. Mainey to bhai ek icecream zaroor khayi thee. Mujhe to tum keval uske hi paisey batao?"
W: (thora dukhi hokar): "Sa'b..."
C: (Poorey pasiey aage baDhate huey) Ye lo bhai, ginlo.
Waiter ginta hai. Khoob hasta hai, aur chala jata hai. Later when Chachu narrates this to Chachiji and Ankur-Ankit and we again burst into riots of laughter.
English Translation:
C: "This doesn't look like my bill"
W: "Sir that doesn't sound right. Just a short while ago, weren't all of you were sitting and eating at this same table?"
C: "I was sitting here just like that. I don't even know those four folks. Looks like they all left without paying your dues. Oh and yes, I just ate an ice cream; so could you please tell me how much much should I pay for that?"
W: (His voice going deeper)"Sirrr..."
C: (Handing over the entire money) Hey my brother, count this.
W: (Counts the money, laughs heartily and leaves)
A couple of years pass by. I did not take admission at Allahabad. I join Infosys and am now around 23-24 years old. At this age, my own dear Chachu starts conspiring against me with my parents to plan my wedding and ultimately my exit out of my own home. He is searching a good match for me. Chachu sometimes reaches out to his personal network, sometimes may have even scanned newspapers, consults Buaji and after all his research; prepares his own short listed version of prospective bridegrooms for me. Yeah all this work work was in addition to being a great son, husband and a fabulous papa to his own to two kids!
As a side note: During that same time, Abhinav and I meet at Infosys Bangalore. Abhinav's family accept me as their first Non-Brahamin daughter-in-law member. Sharan family stands by and accepts Abhinav too. The two families together blessed our marriage on Nov 28th 2004.
I was a grown up now. These days, I had started thinking that perhaps that magical briefcase no longer was a magical one after all. With a couple of months left for my and Abhinav's marriage, Chachu and Chachiji were at my parents place almost all the time now. From driving mumma daddy to different banquet halls, to deciding menu, publishing cards, to deciding my jewelery, to searching for the best fabric in town for their beloved brodegroom's suit .... and a never ending list of to do items in preparation of our wedding. Chachu and Chachiji just went on and on and on. So engrossed were they in the entire preparations, that at one point of time, not only my sari shop uncle, but even a recent new neighbor of ours has started confusing my Chachi with my mumma!!! While our families were busy with the preparations and arrangements, Abhinav and me were busy meeting project deadlines back at Bangalore. It's only now that I have realized, everyone in this industry is replaceable - and that includes you and me - who have been coined as the most critical resources by our managers. Anyways, back to marriage preparations; when we arrives home, I could feel that excitement everywhere. Our engagement day arrives and suddenly mummy runs out of her room; and addressing my daddy says - "Arey sunte ho, I was suppose to go to the bank today to get crisp new [Rupee] notes for the ceremony. All I have at home are old and used ones. How can we give them to her sasural waley [my would-be-family]??"... Before daddy even got a chance to console mummy with one of his standard, one-answer-fits-all-questions - 'theek hai, ab jo ho gaya so hoga', out of that same briefcase today came out; a bundle of crisp, out of the mint hundred rupee notes. Chachu went on to say "Arey Bhabhiji, main jab ghar [Bareilly] se nikal raha tha, to mainey socha ki shayad in noto-ne ki zarorat paDhey, to isliye main apney saath le aaya... ye leejiye."
I might have grown, but the magic was that briefcase had not faded!
Translated: Chachaji addresses mummy: "Bhabhiji, when I leaving home, I thought these bills may be required at some point of time, so I brought them along with me."
In this world full of people hungry for praise, it was just so very weird; not to hear Chachu say a word in self admiration; on this or any many more occasions before and after; when his foresightedness and maturity helped everyone whose lives he touched.
During those numerous ceremonies before and during the marriage, it was not a surprise to hear whispers from friends and on-lookers - 'Vigyan apney bhaisa'b ko kitna kyar karte hain. Lagta hai bilkul apney baDhey bhai ki akhein hain.' or 'Vigyan ne bas Deepti ko janam nahin diya hai, Shadi mein lekin pita ki zimmedariyan baDhi hi dakshata se nibhayi hai'
Translated: 'Vigyan loves his elder brother so much. It feels that he is surely Vinay's eyes and support.' or 'Vigyan wasn't Deepti's real father, but otherwise he had executed all responsibilities as that of a father with such dexterity.
When mouth cancer first struck Chacha ji, and he did not disclose it to anyone, these words were said about him "...so busy was he solving the problems of others, that when he needed help, he had no clue how to approach anyone himself. He kept his own griefs hiding then tight within himself; completely failing to realize that this time 'he' was the one was needed some support ... "
I was one of the unfortunate members of the family who wasn't with him, during his last days. When I begged to grant me and Abhinav leaves, to go and see him, Abhinav'as manager made excuses about Dovetail 3.4 releases (the then project's name); and postponed our trip, by a month. Chachu perhaps had already waited too long enough, to wait for me to come to India and allow me to see him. He now no longer had the strength to be able to take it any more.
In his last days, this is as it has been described to me. Chachaji could not eat with his mouth. He used to consume food through tubes. He could not speak. He used to communicate using pen and paper.
My colleague Tracy; fortunately a cancer survivor; suggested that the best I could do to make him feel better and tell him that I cared, was to write him a hand-written letter.
For a person who was in pain and distress; who might have been tired of taking care of anything and everything himself; who needed a break from his ever increasing responsibilities over his wearing shoulders. My Chachaji who was much more than just Chachaji has left us for ever today. Today he is not with us. I am wondering should we really be sad.
Bhagwan unki aatma to shanti dein. May his soul rest in peace. Please pray to God so that my family gains strength to bear this loss.
His is survived by his wife Sandhya Chachi and his sons Ankur Ankit and their wifes.
Left to Right - Sandhya Sharan (Chachiji), Savita Sharan (mummy), Deepti Sharan Shukla, Abhinav Shukla, Vinay Kumar Sharan (daddy), Vigyan Sharan (Chachu), Sushila Sharan (Dadiji)
Left to Right - Adarsh Kumar (Phuphaji), Vinay Kumar Sharan (Daddy) and Vigyan Kumar Sharan (Chachaji)
Left to Right - Vigyan's two sons Ankur & Ankit
Left to Right - Abhinav Shukla & his yonger brother Anand Shukla serving dinner to Vinay Sharan and his younger brother Vigyan Sharan; both at the same time
Glossary:
'Chachi ji' or ‘Chachu’ - dad’s younger brother
'Bua ji' - dad's elder or younger sister
'Devar' - husband's younger brother (brother-in-law younger to husband)
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Mobile Users ... Please Do This
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_case_of_emergency
Please Add ICE1 ICE2 ICE3 contacts .. at least a minimum of 5 ... in your mobile / cell phone
Please Add ICE1 ICE2 ICE3 contacts .. at least a minimum of 5 ... in your mobile / cell phone
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Gujrat and Narendra Modi
Mr. Sardesai, please see a physiatrist or best better run for your life. Your time is over now.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7301241430445637805
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7301241430445637805
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Recycle...
Fluorescent bulbs contain mercury and are prohibited in the garbage. Local stores will recycle your fluorescent bulbs and lamps. Visit www.takeitbacknetwork.org.
more recycle questions: mail askevelyn@seattle.gov
more recycle questions: mail askevelyn@seattle.gov
Monday, November 12, 2007
God is One
Nov 12th 2007
Friends,
I have had this idea in my mind since over years now - the idea that God is one. God is one, not just in Hinduism alone, but for all of us; all of us on this earth. Yes God is one. On the occasion of Diwali, I got the chance to share 'my' God's blessings in the form of prasad (Prasad: Is any vegetarian food that has been offered to God before consumed by any human being). I had prepared some sweet which I distributed to my few of my American colleagues at work. Each time I told them, what they were eating was something very special, since it had God's blessings in it. I was surprised not to hear questions about what I was sayingl; more so, since I was expecting a couple of raised eyebrows :); but later once I was out of the mode of Diwali clebrations; I questioned my own self... if asked, what would have been my reply? Perhaps this...
God is one.
1. CORELATION
You call him Lord Jesus. I call Shiv, Ram, Lakhsmi and perhaps by a couple of extra names than you do. To be able to associate with one, there is a need to hae something in common. The same principle applies when you are trying to associate with a supernaturanal power, whom you havn't seen. I have a brown skin, a milk white, fair skinned Lord doesn't really look like me! What do I do? There are bright chances that I wont a friend, a comfortor in Lord Jesus as soon as I would find one in Goddess Sarawati; the onely reason being; Goddess Saraswati looks just like me... same curved features, almost the same complextion, not too tall like the Britishers, not too stout like Chiness.... just the perfect... just like me... only a litle more devine... ofcource she is the one.. I think yes, I think yes I cam, I can correlate to her.. as she being my Goddess... So Shiv, Vishnu were all known supoer powers, but perahps the fairer classes did not really corelate to Shiv or Vishnu, so God had to take a different form, a form more appealing to the white masses, to make them realize His presence. The english - call him Jesus.
2. FAMILY
You say, Jesus is not the God, but the son of God. That makes me wonder, God must have a mother and father too? Perhaps, Jesus may not be God's only son? (Single child family... I dont find it the most ideal family. There should be more people in the home), so what about Jesus' dad? And who was Jesus, if not a God himself? Is a God's son, not the God himself? If the son has powers' to cure 'me' (remember I said God is one in the beggining - that means Jesus is just another form of that one God **), then imagine how powerful would his mom and dad be? Imagine how much more powerful would his grand pa, grand ma be? :) .. okay now thats confusing... right? For a moron mind like mine, I would rather be happy with the fact that God is one? He may have famlies, and extended families, but for me: God is one.
3. Before Jesus:
Before Jesus desceded on earth? Before Jesus desceded on earth, what was it like? what happended to the millions of people who came on this earth and went away?
Isn't is hard to beleive that before Jesus hismelf came to earth, God was so selfish, that he didn't think of us for so many years... or he didn't come himself or didn't send any one from His family to protect and save us before this? No!, He came... and he came to different parts of the world.. to those parts where people needed him most. The same God kept on taking human forms, sometimes like Rama, sometimes like Jesus... but descended from time to time, all for our benefit. God was always there and will continue to remain there for ever. People come, civilazations develop and get destroyed, but God remains. He was there before Jesus and will remain there after all of us are destroyed and not a single human being would exist on earth...
He has come on earth and showed His presence in different forms, walked on earth in different ways and continues to be with us forever, because God is one.
** Dislaimer: I believe in both Hindu Gods and in Jesus, and pray to both ... These are some of my personal thoughts, which the blogspot has given me the freedom to share with the world today. Thanks Blogspot. :)
Friends,
I have had this idea in my mind since over years now - the idea that God is one. God is one, not just in Hinduism alone, but for all of us; all of us on this earth. Yes God is one. On the occasion of Diwali, I got the chance to share 'my' God's blessings in the form of prasad (Prasad: Is any vegetarian food that has been offered to God before consumed by any human being). I had prepared some sweet which I distributed to my few of my American colleagues at work. Each time I told them, what they were eating was something very special, since it had God's blessings in it. I was surprised not to hear questions about what I was sayingl; more so, since I was expecting a couple of raised eyebrows :); but later once I was out of the mode of Diwali clebrations; I questioned my own self... if asked, what would have been my reply? Perhaps this...
God is one.
1. CORELATION
You call him Lord Jesus. I call Shiv, Ram, Lakhsmi and perhaps by a couple of extra names than you do. To be able to associate with one, there is a need to hae something in common. The same principle applies when you are trying to associate with a supernaturanal power, whom you havn't seen. I have a brown skin, a milk white, fair skinned Lord doesn't really look like me! What do I do? There are bright chances that I wont a friend, a comfortor in Lord Jesus as soon as I would find one in Goddess Sarawati; the onely reason being; Goddess Saraswati looks just like me... same curved features, almost the same complextion, not too tall like the Britishers, not too stout like Chiness.... just the perfect... just like me... only a litle more devine... ofcource she is the one.. I think yes, I think yes I cam, I can correlate to her.. as she being my Goddess... So Shiv, Vishnu were all known supoer powers, but perahps the fairer classes did not really corelate to Shiv or Vishnu, so God had to take a different form, a form more appealing to the white masses, to make them realize His presence. The english - call him Jesus.
2. FAMILY
You say, Jesus is not the God, but the son of God. That makes me wonder, God must have a mother and father too? Perhaps, Jesus may not be God's only son? (Single child family... I dont find it the most ideal family. There should be more people in the home), so what about Jesus' dad? And who was Jesus, if not a God himself? Is a God's son, not the God himself? If the son has powers' to cure 'me' (remember I said God is one in the beggining - that means Jesus is just another form of that one God **), then imagine how powerful would his mom and dad be? Imagine how much more powerful would his grand pa, grand ma be? :) .. okay now thats confusing... right? For a moron mind like mine, I would rather be happy with the fact that God is one? He may have famlies, and extended families, but for me: God is one.
3. Before Jesus:
Before Jesus desceded on earth? Before Jesus desceded on earth, what was it like? what happended to the millions of people who came on this earth and went away?
Isn't is hard to beleive that before Jesus hismelf came to earth, God was so selfish, that he didn't think of us for so many years... or he didn't come himself or didn't send any one from His family to protect and save us before this? No!, He came... and he came to different parts of the world.. to those parts where people needed him most. The same God kept on taking human forms, sometimes like Rama, sometimes like Jesus... but descended from time to time, all for our benefit. God was always there and will continue to remain there for ever. People come, civilazations develop and get destroyed, but God remains. He was there before Jesus and will remain there after all of us are destroyed and not a single human being would exist on earth...
He has come on earth and showed His presence in different forms, walked on earth in different ways and continues to be with us forever, because God is one.
** Dislaimer: I believe in both Hindu Gods and in Jesus, and pray to both ... These are some of my personal thoughts, which the blogspot has given me the freedom to share with the world today. Thanks Blogspot. :)
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Still Deciding Whether to Convert to a Veg Or Not
I might have consumed every possible living animal on earth as a kid, but way back in 2001, I finally decided to give up meat for good. That was one thing not hard for me to stick with.
My reasons were different... too scientific for some, crazy for others, weird for the rest who loved and continue to love non-veg.
But how about you? Are you in that dilemma about it, whether to take the first step towards eating poultry, fish, an animal's flesh, whether to leave non-veg today or tomorrow... still deciding whether to convert to a veg ... Check out the videos here ... you wont give it a second thought any longer: www.goveg.com/
Ever wonder what it’d be like to be a vegetarian? Do you think living without meat or animal products would be impossible?
Today, challenge yourself by putting your ideas to the test. Try a vegetarian diet for one day. Really embrace what this means by learning something about why vegetarians choose their lifestyle. It’ll be a great experience for both your palate and your beliefs.
Also Read This http://www.peta.org/
I promise to come back to this one, pretty soon with my own reasons, very different from the ones in those websites, of what made me leave non-veg.
Till then happy eating!
Added May 10th 2011.... More to add later...
On facebook I am a part of the group called the Indian Vegans... where I read a lot of folks write about the reason to turn to veganism as trying not to be cruel to animals. I want to add that's just one of the three main reasons we should NOT consume animal products. Plus instead of hating animal consumers, I pity them... since the biggest damage they do is to non other than 'themselves'!! The human body is not designed to consume meat in the first place. I want to write more about it now, but will come back later on this one. In addition the third biggest reason to condemn meat is that NOT environmentally friendly.
More to add later...
My reasons were different... too scientific for some, crazy for others, weird for the rest who loved and continue to love non-veg.
But how about you? Are you in that dilemma about it, whether to take the first step towards eating poultry, fish, an animal's flesh, whether to leave non-veg today or tomorrow... still deciding whether to convert to a veg ... Check out the videos here ... you wont give it a second thought any longer: www.goveg.com/
Ever wonder what it’d be like to be a vegetarian? Do you think living without meat or animal products would be impossible?
Today, challenge yourself by putting your ideas to the test. Try a vegetarian diet for one day. Really embrace what this means by learning something about why vegetarians choose their lifestyle. It’ll be a great experience for both your palate and your beliefs.
Also Read This http://www.peta.org/
I promise to come back to this one, pretty soon with my own reasons, very different from the ones in those websites, of what made me leave non-veg.
Till then happy eating!
Added May 10th 2011.... More to add later...
On facebook I am a part of the group called the Indian Vegans... where I read a lot of folks write about the reason to turn to veganism as trying not to be cruel to animals. I want to add that's just one of the three main reasons we should NOT consume animal products. Plus instead of hating animal consumers, I pity them... since the biggest damage they do is to non other than 'themselves'!! The human body is not designed to consume meat in the first place. I want to write more about it now, but will come back later on this one. In addition the third biggest reason to condemn meat is that NOT environmentally friendly.
More to add later...
Alopathy Versus Naturopathy / Home Remedies
Read this article below - This is the #one reason, why I dont believe on allopathic medicines
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1110ap_cold_medicine_removal.html
In reality it is not animals, but us human beings who are the target of experimentation of this stream of science. The article clearly mentions - "These medications were never designed to cure colds but only to treat cold symptoms, and in children under two there was little evidence they were effective anyway," said Tom-Revzon, who is pharmacy manager at the Children's Hospital at Mentefiore in New York City."
...When I asked the same question from my school friends these are some of the responses I got:
1.
"I depend and believe only on homeopathy and yoga for all cures and even on home remedies......and hardly take any medicine....My father practices homeopathy so I know quiet a lot about medicines... I have seen my father curing a person who use to hide under the bed fearing someone would kill him after sunset.....his medication took time but payed.....his is perfectly well now and working with Indian railways... I keep lots of homeopathey medicines at home...like if hurt then Arnica for gastric probs then carbovage,rustox,calcaria phos etc.....
it is without side effects.... "
2.
" I am to a big fan of homeopathy......it never has any side-effects.....my dad has passed on the knowledge of homeopathy.....
I'm a half doc(homeo ki [;d] )
I mostly give homeo to Srish [Deepti: My friends' kid] too....giving cold medicines for kids under 2 is not advisable at all....
Best option is to do a combination of home remedies + homeopathy.....both for adults n kids...(until unless u hve to take alopathy for chronic disease)
here read this
http://www.fitnesshigh.com/readarticles.php?id=84&title=Homoepathy%20:%20Patient%20Specific%20With%20No%20Side%20Effects
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1110ap_cold_medicine_removal.html
In reality it is not animals, but us human beings who are the target of experimentation of this stream of science. The article clearly mentions - "These medications were never designed to cure colds but only to treat cold symptoms, and in children under two there was little evidence they were effective anyway," said Tom-Revzon, who is pharmacy manager at the Children's Hospital at Mentefiore in New York City."
...When I asked the same question from my school friends these are some of the responses I got:
1.
"I depend and believe only on homeopathy and yoga for all cures and even on home remedies......and hardly take any medicine....My father practices homeopathy so I know quiet a lot about medicines... I have seen my father curing a person who use to hide under the bed fearing someone would kill him after sunset.....his medication took time but payed.....his is perfectly well now and working with Indian railways... I keep lots of homeopathey medicines at home...like if hurt then Arnica for gastric probs then carbovage,rustox,calcaria phos etc.....
it is without side effects.... "
2.
" I am to a big fan of homeopathy......it never has any side-effects.....my dad has passed on the knowledge of homeopathy.....
I'm a half doc(homeo ki [;d] )
I mostly give homeo to Srish [Deepti: My friends' kid] too....giving cold medicines for kids under 2 is not advisable at all....
Best option is to do a combination of home remedies + homeopathy.....both for adults n kids...(until unless u hve to take alopathy for chronic disease)
here read this
http://www.fitnesshigh.com/readarticles.php?id=84&title=Homoepathy%20:%20Patient%20Specific%20With%20No%20Side%20Effects
Friday, October 5, 2007
Dealing with rough / tough colleagues
Hi folks,
Here are some tips I learnt as a coordinator for Mainframe Migration of Sales Audit:
1. To decently enforce yourself while writing an email use funny language such as:
a.
[soapbox on]
your nasty thoughts
[soapbox off]
b. Tell clearly:
"Now I guess I would have to be the bad guy, and come out and say wont be possible."
2. When someone fails to understand your point repeatedly - tell him/her:
"I understand your point, but please give me a minute to explain my side of this explanation .... "
3. when some one repeatedly fails to do something:
"...it has occurred to me that I haven't told you, the next time you refuse to answer questions; I'll have to ask our boss to help get the information". (This makes it clear you speak softly, not nicely and carry big consequences)
4. Lastly and most important.
Nothing in life really matters. Projects come and go and you are released from the project, all in the sake of your own career growth, and then moved to a project with higher challenges, better visibility and more growth opportunities [read: kicked out, or thrown away, discarded - like a house-fly from a glass of milk as soon as you are not required]. Oh does that sound like something very familiar , Well welcome to the the IT world !.
Bottom-line: Just learn to chill and relax... yeah I am still learning, or I wouldn't have been writing all this myself !!
Here are some tips I learnt as a coordinator for Mainframe Migration of Sales Audit:
1. To decently enforce yourself while writing an email use funny language such as:
a.
[soapbox on]
your nasty thoughts
[soapbox off]
b. Tell clearly:
"Now I guess I would have to be the bad guy, and come out and say
2. When someone fails to understand your point repeatedly - tell him/her:
"I understand your point, but please give me a minute to explain my side of this explanation .... "
3. when some one repeatedly fails to do something:
"...it has occurred to me that I haven't told you, the next time you refuse to answer questions; I'll have to ask our boss to help get the information". (This makes it clear you speak softly, not nicely and carry big consequences)
4. Lastly and most important.
Nothing in life really matters. Projects come and go and you are released from the project, all in the sake of your own career growth, and then moved to a project with higher challenges, better visibility and more growth opportunities [read: kicked out, or thrown away, discarded - like a house-fly from a glass of milk as soon as you are not required]. Oh does that sound like something very familiar , Well welcome to the the IT world !.
Bottom-line: Just learn to chill and relax... yeah I am still learning, or I wouldn't have been writing all this myself !!
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Travel Advisory to a US based friend travelling to India
Hi Friends I am back - but with an incomplete post this time.
I learnt today that one of my friends was planning to visit India some time in the next couple of months - for the very first time and had purchased lots of travel guides which was indeed a great job - but there are tons and tons of things which the books sometimes forget to mention - the subtle differences in India from here in US. I thought of jotting those differences myself (I am sounding a little pessimistic here, but bear with me for a couple of days - and I will come up with the positive side too )
1. To randomly start with - for instance when you reach the airport, you wont see many informational pamphlets or instructions around you - the best way to get info would be to talk to people. You would be surprised to see for yourself - people in India love to talk, to help others and specially when it comes to foreigners :) - but to get correct info - it would be advisable to ask at least two person - for a confirmation of what was said by the first person :) - no one likes to say - I don't know the answer of what you just asked me :)))
2. As soon as you leave the airport - suddenly there would tens of people surrounding you - trying to grab your suitcase off your hands and trolley - to make you take a ride on their auto-rickshaw or taxi(cab) - be careful to take a prepaid auto, or other wise an auto-driver sensing you as some one new to the place - can make you travel all over the city and drop you at the same place from where you started - plus change you Rs100 for it :)) - if don't believe me - ask any one :( . However for the first few times taking a taxi would be advisable.
3. Do NOT even think - and yes even THINK of driving in India - no one follows traffic rules, especially from the point of view of someone - who has been born and brought up in US !!! Always use public transport, or hire a taxi, auto-rickshaw or anything, pool with someone, walk down or worst comes don't leave your place - or else only God can save you!
4. Bargaining in non-branded shops is not un-fashionable. A Rs.2000 male kurta might just be worth from anything between Rs 500 - Rs.1500 at a non-branded shop! and there are tons of them in India,
5. Be aware of pick-pocketing. Don't depend on police. I only depend on my friends, relatives and the public - yes absolutely - mostly the public is your best bet.
6. Be prepared for no electricity for hours, no internet, for free bumpy rides to office and back home, for traffic jams and delays up to 2 hours, for no freeways and long drives, for muddy clothes and black colored shirt collars; BUT at the same time - for the land full of loving people and friends - where the holy cow shares the same road with you - and the buffalo is given all the time in the world to cross before you on the road :) and also the place where there is God in everything you see and touch and smell and feel - where spirituality is not just a word but a way of living - rather a part of your life - where there is no restriction on what time you feel like going and chatting to your God in the temple - where you can walk in any direction - the way you like - the way you want - at your own pace - freedom in its purest form - where people are happy for no known reason - where life goes on, no matter what happens - it always goes on...
Oh by the way - am I scaring you too much. Oh gosh, I had not even started yet :( ... okay let me just shut up for now or else I would late for my 9:00 meeting tommorow - just say "Namestey" - you are bound to make plenty of friends who will share the brighter side with you. :)
India - a land of more than a 500 dialects
So it that true - oh yes, it is very much true. I am quoting my husband here - he say after every 10 kos of distance traveled in India - the dialect changes. India is a country with so much of variety of languages - including dialects that you can't even keep a count of them.
I do not when am I going to complete this one ... but check this website in the mean time... http://ileher.com/
~ Deepti :)
I learnt today that one of my friends was planning to visit India some time in the next couple of months - for the very first time and had purchased lots of travel guides which was indeed a great job - but there are tons and tons of things which the books sometimes forget to mention - the subtle differences in India from here in US. I thought of jotting those differences myself (I am sounding a little pessimistic here, but bear with me for a couple of days - and I will come up with the positive side too )
1. To randomly start with - for instance when you reach the airport, you wont see many informational pamphlets or instructions around you - the best way to get info would be to talk to people. You would be surprised to see for yourself - people in India love to talk, to help others and specially when it comes to foreigners :) - but to get correct info - it would be advisable to ask at least two person - for a confirmation of what was said by the first person :) - no one likes to say - I don't know the answer of what you just asked me :)))
2. As soon as you leave the airport - suddenly there would tens of people surrounding you - trying to grab your suitcase off your hands and trolley - to make you take a ride on their auto-rickshaw or taxi(cab) - be careful to take a prepaid auto, or other wise an auto-driver sensing you as some one new to the place - can make you travel all over the city and drop you at the same place from where you started - plus change you Rs100 for it :)) - if don't believe me - ask any one :( . However for the first few times taking a taxi would be advisable.
3. Do NOT even think - and yes even THINK of driving in India - no one follows traffic rules, especially from the point of view of someone - who has been born and brought up in US !!! Always use public transport, or hire a taxi, auto-rickshaw or anything, pool with someone, walk down or worst comes don't leave your place - or else only God can save you!
4. Bargaining in non-branded shops is not un-fashionable. A Rs.2000 male kurta might just be worth from anything between Rs 500 - Rs.1500 at a non-branded shop! and there are tons of them in India,
5. Be aware of pick-pocketing. Don't depend on police. I only depend on my friends, relatives and the public - yes absolutely - mostly the public is your best bet.
6. Be prepared for no electricity for hours, no internet, for free bumpy rides to office and back home, for traffic jams and delays up to 2 hours, for no freeways and long drives, for muddy clothes and black colored shirt collars; BUT at the same time - for the land full of loving people and friends - where the holy cow shares the same road with you - and the buffalo is given all the time in the world to cross before you on the road :) and also the place where there is God in everything you see and touch and smell and feel - where spirituality is not just a word but a way of living - rather a part of your life - where there is no restriction on what time you feel like going and chatting to your God in the temple - where you can walk in any direction - the way you like - the way you want - at your own pace - freedom in its purest form - where people are happy for no known reason - where life goes on, no matter what happens - it always goes on...
Oh by the way - am I scaring you too much. Oh gosh, I had not even started yet :( ... okay let me just shut up for now or else I would late for my 9:00 meeting tommorow - just say "Namestey" - you are bound to make plenty of friends who will share the brighter side with you. :)
India - a land of more than a 500 dialects
So it that true - oh yes, it is very much true. I am quoting my husband here - he say after every 10 kos of distance traveled in India - the dialect changes. India is a country with so much of variety of languages - including dialects that you can't even keep a count of them.
I do not when am I going to complete this one ... but check this website in the mean time... http://ileher.com/
~ Deepti :)
Monday, September 17, 2007
Our North Cascade Mountain Range Loop
Sep 14 to Sep 16 - 2007
Hey by the way - this particular blog was written by me here - due to lack of imagination on where to store my personal dairy ...
This was another unplanned trip - but with loads of fun. This is the track we took
I5 North -> 530 -> Arlington -> Arlington Darlington Road -> Darlington -> Whitman Rd -> SAuk Valley Road and then took 20 West to start on the North Cascade Highways and continued on the same road for a long time -> stopped several times at the side of the scenic Skagit River -> Then we enter the Cascade National Park @ the Visitor Center -> This center had trails called Newhalem Area Trails (did not get a chance to walk in any of the trails that time) -> -> climbed up to view the Gorge High Dam built over the Gorge river -> -> followed by strong and windy place where the directions of trees had all turned to one side and where we felt as if we would be blown away with the winds, yes this was the Diablo Road on the same Gorge River -> then we saw the Dialo Dam over built over the Diablo River -> Then we reached at a very point from where we could see the Diablo river kind of meeting from two different directions - with us standing in between them. The water was so very green due to dust from the adjoining rocks and there was lot a hostory behind how the senator works hard to give Cascades the status of the National Park . There were 8-9 different types of cascade rocks found there with a sample of each pf them. This was the last stop before we finally reached our resort where we were to spend the rest of the night - the Freestone Inn in the city of Mazama. That night we had dinner at their personal inn. It was quite an experience for me and Abhinav to stay all alone in the jungle which had no network connectivity, had no body staying adjascent enough to reach by a voice call and with this half baked info that even bears come to pay a causal visit to you sometimes !!! -> but I guess we had one of the best sleeps that night and got up real early next morning to be able to hit the road by 7:30 in the morning -> The first thing en-route was the small Chewuch River -> this was in the small 19th style maintained Winthrop town -> as we saw enjoyed walking on the wooden pavements, a town with no street lights and sign boards painted using chalk and piants raw on the building itself, I was reminded of old Mussoorie. -> The shops were all still closed as we drove towards Twisp, to see a hot air balloon full of people rising high in the air. -> Crossing Carlton & then Methow Valley via the 153 -> we stopped at Alta Lake. This was such a beautiful place where squirels were loud enough to be clearly heard in the busheisis and the water was so pure, clean and inviting. Abhinav was waiting up in the car and enjoying breakfast and I could not resist dipping my feet into the water. However Abhinav had other plans and we quickly moved towards Lake Chelan from there. -> Lake Chelan; was I must say; I must go place. The river water such seriously very refreshing and so transparent that you could clearly see the bed below you. The park at Chelan was one with swings and rides a perfect place in the lap of mountains to relax and unwind yourself. -> We were almost done with Lake Chelan when Abhinav spotted the visitor center before finally deciding to leave the place. Right there in the fresh vegetable market some one suggsted the Blueberry Hills. Oh what a restaraunt was it. The scene was such a beauty from the outside. And it you get a chance to visit it, do not forget to buy a bottle of their homemade blueberry jam.
We planned to next visit the next point in the Cascade Loop and planned to go to Wenatchee point. But reaching the visitor center at the huge and big Rocky Beach Dam we learnt that the river would have dried ahead from that point, since the dam's water would be opened by 9:00 pm.
We finally planned to leave for Leavenworth, when one wrong turn lands us up seeing beautiful man-made Ohme Gardens. a $7 ticket per head, but the money was worth being paid, in the pavement laid gardens.
Next was Leavenworth. -> Stay at night there at the Bed & Breakfast - Tumwater Mountain. -> Have dinner at Viscotis' an Italian Restaraunt -> have b/fast at the B&B -> roam and shop in the shops at Leavenworth and move towards Steven's Pass. There we by chance take a turn for the Tye river and end up being at the Cascade Highway - in the middle of a different type of jungle. -> This opened up in the Goat Trails , where we read about the North Railway system. However since it had already started raining, we foregoed the trail.
At the Doolittle Park, we got a chance to see the Muesum at Index - a muesum which opens just 6 hours a week. From there we moved to the adventure of adventures - the Reptile Zoo. This was virtually the last point.
Hey by the way - this particular blog was written by me here - due to lack of imagination on where to store my personal dairy ...
This was another unplanned trip - but with loads of fun. This is the track we took
I5 North -> 530 -> Arlington -> Arlington Darlington Road -> Darlington -> Whitman Rd -> SAuk Valley Road and then took 20 West to start on the North Cascade Highways and continued on the same road for a long time -> stopped several times at the side of the scenic Skagit River -> Then we enter the Cascade National Park @ the Visitor Center -> This center had trails called Newhalem Area Trails (did not get a chance to walk in any of the trails that time) ->
We planned to next visit the next point in the Cascade Loop and planned to go to Wenatchee point. But reaching the visitor center at the huge and big Rocky Beach Dam we learnt that the river would have dried ahead from that point, since the dam's water would be opened by 9:00 pm.
We finally planned to leave for Leavenworth, when one wrong turn lands us up seeing beautiful man-made Ohme Gardens. a $7 ticket per head, but the money was worth being paid, in the pavement laid gardens.
Next was Leavenworth. -> Stay at night there at the Bed & Breakfast - Tumwater Mountain. -> Have dinner at Viscotis' an Italian Restaraunt -> have b/fast at the B&B -> roam and shop in the shops at Leavenworth and move towards Steven's Pass. There we by chance take a turn for the Tye river and end up being at the Cascade Highway - in the middle of a different type of jungle. -> This opened up in the Goat Trails , where we read about the North Railway system. However since it had already started raining, we foregoed the trail.
At the Doolittle Park, we got a chance to see the Muesum at Index - a muesum which opens just 6 hours a week. From there we moved to the adventure of adventures - the Reptile Zoo. This was virtually the last point.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Some of the Best Moments in Life:
This is a part of a forwarded email. Some of them are so much a part of our life, that we dont even realise it... my fav is the last one.. off to sleep now :)
* To laugh until it hurts your stomach.
* To listen to your favorite song in the radio.
* To go to bed and listen to the rain outside.
* To clear your last exam.
* To receive a call from someone, you don't see a lot, but you want to.
* A good conversation when its you who does all the talking
* To find money in a pant that you haven't used since last year .
* To laugh at yourself looking at mirror, making faces.
* Calls at midnight that last for hours.
* To laugh without a reason.
* To accidentally hear somebody say something good about you.
* To wake up and realize its still possible to sleep for a couple of
hours.
[Pic taken from umairmirza album's]
* To laugh until it hurts your stomach.
* To listen to your favorite song in the radio.
* To go to bed and listen to the rain outside.
* To clear your last exam.
* To receive a call from someone, you don't see a lot, but you want to.
* A good conversation when its you who does all the talking
* To find money in a pant that you haven't used since last year .
* To laugh at yourself looking at mirror, making faces.
* Calls at midnight that last for hours.
* To laugh without a reason.
* To accidentally hear somebody say something good about you.
* To wake up and realize its still possible to sleep for a couple of
hours.
[Pic taken from umairmirza album's]
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Instumental Music without any Instruments !
Music is a Gift of God. It is not bound by language, country, religion... or even instruments for that matter!!! Yeahm thats true, you dont need to have expensive instruments to create good music. Watch this fellow who plays regularly near the Safeco Field (at Seattle).
This time, I was luckily carrying my camera and my hubby wasn't really in his usual hurry, which is how I got to capture this melodous combination of the beating of different sized buckets, broken glass, and what-not.
So enjoy...
This time, I was luckily carrying my camera and my hubby wasn't really in his usual hurry, which is how I got to capture this melodous combination of the beating of different sized buckets, broken glass, and what-not.
So enjoy...
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Baby has cold - Home Remedies
Hi Freinds,
Am back after a long time... I guess I am sure, I have already offended my (medical) doctor friends by the title... home remedies!!!! for a baby - I can hear you say.. have you gone nuts already ... what me!!? welllll n..... ooo, not exactly ... home remedies have a higher success rate and no side effects on a delicate kid... :) ... I know this isn't a good enought explaination to my doc freinds... but anyways here we are to have a small repository of home remedies for cold... for a small kid, or a baby.
So my friend wasn't in her best wits 2 weeks back, when her kid's cold went beyond the first couple of days... orkut and my Holy Child School Community, my mummy, mummy ji and all had a list of wonderful suggestions. Here they go:
Babies often sneeze, but this is not necessarily a sign of a cold. However, if your baby sounds congested, coughs and has some nasal drainage, a cold may have developed. Most colds are mild and don’t interfere with normal feedings and sleep.
Steps to make your baby more comfortable include:
1. Elevate the head of the crib – adjust the crib setting, place books under the head end of the mattress, or let baby sleep in the infant seat.
2. Ask your pharmacist to help you with saline drops and baby bulbs. (never seen them myself), but when you nose is stuffed with 'nosy', the saline water and bulb helps to pull out the nosy and makes its easier for the kid to breathe. Use an infant bulb syringe (aspirator) to gently suction mucus from the nose. Saline (salt water) drops may be helpful because they loosen the mucus. Add two to three drops in each nostril prior to suctioning. These drops may be purchased without a prescription or made at home by adding one teaspoon of salt to one cup of room temperature water.
3. Give only luke warm water to drink. Cold water - an absolute no no
4. In the smallest room in your home, put two spoons of vicks vaporub, in a steam vapouriser (or else even a room humidisor) . Place your baby wrapped in warm clothes, near the humidiser. The fumes thus generated in the air, would go into the lungs of the baby and help the lungs and nose to open.
5. Close the windows and door of the smallest room of your house. Warm some mustard oil, optionally add roasted garlic to the oil. Masage the baby with this warm oil. Once done, cover the baby in warm clothes and do not bath or expose to air, for at least the next 30-40 minutes.
6. Close the door and windows of your bathroom. Open all the hot water taps and let the baby have steam bath.
7. Give the baby as much as fluid as possible. Avoid yogurts or products directly out of the refrigerator.
8. Put desi ghee is one of the nostrils and make the baby rest on its stomach. The ghee comes out of the other nostril, clearing the nose and bringing out all the nosy finding inside.
9. Try out homeopathy* - Homeopathy is always easy on the body and has absolutely no side effects.
10. Jayfal - ghis ke dedo.
* If you are in US and are looking for some online homeopathy shops - try these:
http://abchomeopathy.com/shop.php
www.hmedicine.com
http://www.homeopathyworks.com/index.html
http://www.boironusa.com/consumer-caregiver/where-to-buy.html
- Courtsey: Piyush-Shuchi Bhaiya-Bhabs
List of other websites:
http://www.boironusa.com/store-finder/online.aspx
http://www.homeopathyovernight.com/ You can also call them and order over the phone and they'll send it to you - Phone number - 1-800-276- 4223 (Suggested by Pushpa Aunty)
Here is a consolidated list of replies I got for the benefit of the rest of us:
-------
You can check whole foods. I use to get homeopathy medicine from whole foods back in Austin, Tx. I havn't tried here but i am quite sure you'll get it there.
-------
Rainbow Natural Remedies
409 15th Ave E (Capitol Hill)
(206) 329-8979
http://www.rainbownatural.com/retailer/store_templates/shell_id_1.asp?storeID=RT8B0DM74FS92LR80G03N0ET9VF4105A
BEE WELL VITAMIN SHOPPE
1901 N 45th, Seattle
206-632-7040
THE HERBALIST
2106 NE 65th, Seattle
206-523-2600
www.theherbalist.com
Not all have everything, but Rainbow probably has the best selection.
-------
Rainbow sell a lot of homeopathic medicines and herbal as well. They have a naturopathic doctor on-site part of the time. You should call ahead to make sure that he/she will be there when you go.
-------
There is one in Fremont.
I can't remember the name exactly- Dandelion Co? They are across the street from the stone people that are by the bridge if you know where that is- if not let me know. They are great and I hope they can help you too!
------
You can order homeopathic medicines online at: www.hmedicine.com. They usually deliver within a few days.
-------
There is a place in Madison Park (on E Madison) called Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy. They have all kinds of herbal remedies - its like an herbal pharmacy.
--------------------
Alternate Remedies:
http://www.wanp.org/mc/page.do
http://www.bastyrcenter.org/
http://www.bastyr.edu/
http://www.lacetoleather.com/safnatcur.html
http://www.lacetoleather.com/safenaturalcures.html
http://www.lacetoleather.com/safenaturalcures2.html
E.g.
http://www.lacetoleather.com/fussybaby.html
http://www.lacetoleather.com/dandruff.html
--------------------
This is what GG takes in cold and fever and it works for her
1. Airborne
2. Vitamin C
3. Zinc
4. Spicy soup
5. Lots of fluids – water, juice, tea
6. Lots of sleep and rest
--------------------
Homeopathy Clinics in Seattle
http://www.google.com/search?q=seattle+homeopathy&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
--------------------
Recommendations for a Homeopathy Doctor
There is homeopathy clinic in Bellevue : http://www.childhomeopathy.com/contact.html
--------------------
PS:
1. I dont have a kid of my own today, but this blog is part of my social service :)
2. As usual your tips and suggestions and always a welcome to this blog... so keep mailing
Am back after a long time... I guess I am sure, I have already offended my (medical) doctor friends by the title... home remedies!!!! for a baby - I can hear you say.. have you gone nuts already ... what me!!? welllll n..... ooo, not exactly ... home remedies have a higher success rate and no side effects on a delicate kid... :) ... I know this isn't a good enought explaination to my doc freinds... but anyways here we are to have a small repository of home remedies for cold... for a small kid, or a baby.
So my friend wasn't in her best wits 2 weeks back, when her kid's cold went beyond the first couple of days... orkut and my Holy Child School Community, my mummy, mummy ji and all had a list of wonderful suggestions. Here they go:
Babies often sneeze, but this is not necessarily a sign of a cold. However, if your baby sounds congested, coughs and has some nasal drainage, a cold may have developed. Most colds are mild and don’t interfere with normal feedings and sleep.
Steps to make your baby more comfortable include:
1. Elevate the head of the crib – adjust the crib setting, place books under the head end of the mattress, or let baby sleep in the infant seat.
2. Ask your pharmacist to help you with saline drops and baby bulbs. (never seen them myself), but when you nose is stuffed with 'nosy', the saline water and bulb helps to pull out the nosy and makes its easier for the kid to breathe. Use an infant bulb syringe (aspirator) to gently suction mucus from the nose. Saline (salt water) drops may be helpful because they loosen the mucus. Add two to three drops in each nostril prior to suctioning. These drops may be purchased without a prescription or made at home by adding one teaspoon of salt to one cup of room temperature water.
3. Give only luke warm water to drink. Cold water - an absolute no no
4. In the smallest room in your home, put two spoons of vicks vaporub, in a steam vapouriser (or else even a room humidisor) . Place your baby wrapped in warm clothes, near the humidiser. The fumes thus generated in the air, would go into the lungs of the baby and help the lungs and nose to open.
5. Close the windows and door of the smallest room of your house. Warm some mustard oil, optionally add roasted garlic to the oil. Masage the baby with this warm oil. Once done, cover the baby in warm clothes and do not bath or expose to air, for at least the next 30-40 minutes.
6. Close the door and windows of your bathroom. Open all the hot water taps and let the baby have steam bath.
7. Give the baby as much as fluid as possible. Avoid yogurts or products directly out of the refrigerator.
8. Put desi ghee is one of the nostrils and make the baby rest on its stomach. The ghee comes out of the other nostril, clearing the nose and bringing out all the nosy finding inside.
9. Try out homeopathy* - Homeopathy is always easy on the body and has absolutely no side effects.
10. Jayfal - ghis ke dedo.
* If you are in US and are looking for some online homeopathy shops - try these:
http://abchomeopathy.com/shop.php
www.hmedicine.com
http://www.homeopathyworks.com/index.html
http://www.boironusa.com/consumer-caregiver/where-to-buy.html
- Courtsey: Piyush-Shuchi Bhaiya-Bhabs
List of other websites:
http://www.boironusa.com/store-finder/online.aspx
http://www.homeopathyovernight.com/ You can also call them and order over the phone and they'll send it to you - Phone number - 1-800-276- 4223 (Suggested by Pushpa Aunty)
Here is a consolidated list of replies I got for the benefit of the rest of us:
-------
You can check whole foods. I use to get homeopathy medicine from whole foods back in Austin, Tx. I havn't tried here but i am quite sure you'll get it there.
-------
Rainbow Natural Remedies
409 15th Ave E (Capitol Hill)
(206) 329-8979
http://www.rainbownatural.com/retailer/store_templates/shell_id_1.asp?storeID=RT8B0DM74FS92LR80G03N0ET9VF4105A
BEE WELL VITAMIN SHOPPE
1901 N 45th, Seattle
206-632-7040
THE HERBALIST
2106 NE 65th, Seattle
206-523-2600
www.theherbalist.com
Not all have everything, but Rainbow probably has the best selection.
-------
Rainbow sell a lot of homeopathic medicines and herbal as well. They have a naturopathic doctor on-site part of the time. You should call ahead to make sure that he/she will be there when you go.
-------
There is one in Fremont.
I can't remember the name exactly- Dandelion Co? They are across the street from the stone people that are by the bridge if you know where that is- if not let me know. They are great and I hope they can help you too!
------
You can order homeopathic medicines online at: www.hmedicine.com. They usually deliver within a few days.
-------
There is a place in Madison Park (on E Madison) called Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy. They have all kinds of herbal remedies - its like an herbal pharmacy.
--------------------
Alternate Remedies:
http://www.wanp.org/mc/page.do
http://www.bastyrcenter.org/
http://www.bastyr.edu/
http://www.lacetoleather.com/safnatcur.html
http://www.lacetoleather.com/safenaturalcures.html
http://www.lacetoleather.com/safenaturalcures2.html
E.g.
http://www.lacetoleather.com/fussybaby.html
http://www.lacetoleather.com/dandruff.html
--------------------
This is what GG takes in cold and fever and it works for her
1. Airborne
2. Vitamin C
3. Zinc
4. Spicy soup
5. Lots of fluids – water, juice, tea
6. Lots of sleep and rest
--------------------
Homeopathy Clinics in Seattle
http://www.google.com/search?q=seattle+homeopathy&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
--------------------
Recommendations for a Homeopathy Doctor
There is homeopathy clinic in Bellevue : http://www.childhomeopathy.com/contact.html
--------------------
PS:
1. I dont have a kid of my own today, but this blog is part of my social service :)
2. As usual your tips and suggestions and always a welcome to this blog... so keep mailing
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Useful Toll Free Numbers of India
Pasting here as a quick reference. Am not sure about the authenticity of these numbers, as I received them as a forwarded mail.
Airways
Indian Airlines - 1800 180 1407
Jet Airways - 1800 22 5522
SpiceJet - 1800 180 3333
Automobiles
Mahindra Scorpio - 1800 22 6006
Maruti - 1800 111 515
Tata Motors - 1800 22 5552
Windshield Experts - 1800 11 3636
Banks
ABN AMRO - 1800 11 2224
Canara Bank - 1800 44 6000
Citibank - 1800 44 2265
Corporatin Bank - 1800 443 555
Development Credit Bank - 1800 22 5769
HDFC Bank - 1800 227 227
ICICI Bank - 1800 333 499
ICICI Bank NRI - 1800 22 4848
IDBI Bank - 1800 11 6999
Indian Bank - 1800 425 1400
ING Vysya - 1800 44 9900
Kotak Mahindra Bank - 1800 22 6022
Lord Krishna Bank - 1800 11 2300
Punjab National Bank - 1800 122 222
State Bank of India - 1800 44 1955
Syndicate Bank - 1800 44 6655
Cell Phones
BenQ - 1800 22 08 08
Bird CellPhones - 1800 11 7700
Motorola MotoAssist - 1800 11 1211
Nokia - 3030 3838
Sony Ericsson - 3901 1111
Computers/IT
Adrenalin - 1800 444 445
AMD - 1800 425 6664
Apple Computers - 1800 444 683
Canon - 1800 333 366
Cisco Systems - 1800 221 777
Compaq - HP - 1800 444 999
Data One Broadband - 1800 424 1600
Dell - 1800 444 026
Epson - 1800 44 0011
eSys - 3970 0011
Genesis Tally Academy - 1800 444 888
HCL - 1800 180 8080
IBM - 1800 443 333
Lexmark - 1800 22 4477
Marshal's Point - 1800 33 4488
Microsoft - 1800 111 100
Microsoft Virus Update - 1901 333 334
Seagate - 1800 180 1104
Symantec - 1800 44 5533
TVS Electronics - 1800 444 566
WeP Peripherals - 1800 44 6446
Wipro - 1800 333 312
xerox - 1800 180 1225
Zenith - 1800 222 004
Couriers/Packers & Movers
ABT Courier - 1800 44 8585
AFL Wizz - 1800 22 9696
Agarwal Packers & Movers - 1800 11 4321
Associated Packers P Ltd - 1800 21 4560
DHL - 1800 111 345
FedEx - 1800 22 6161
Goel Packers & Movers - 1800 11 3456
UPS - 1800 22 7171
Education
Edu Plus - 1800 444 000
Hindustan College - 1800 33 4438
NCERT - 1800 11 1265
Vellore Institute of Technology - 1800 441 555
Healthcare
Best on Health - 1800 11 8899
Dr Batras - 1800 11 6767
GlaxoSmithKline - 1800 22 8797
Johnson & Johnson - 1800 22 8111
Kaya Skin Clinic - 1800 22 5292
LifeCell - 1800 44 5323
Manmar Technologies - 1800 33 4420
Pfizer - 1800 442 442
Roche Accu-Chek - 1800 11 45 46
Rudraksha - 1800 21 4708
Varilux Lenses - 1800 44 8383
VLCC - 1800 33 1262
Home Appliances
Aiwa/Sony - 1800 11 1188
Anchor Switches - 1800 22 7979
Blue Star - 1800 22 2200
Bose Audio - 1800 11 2673
Bru Coffee Vending Machines - 1800 44 7171
Daikin Air Conditioners - 1800 444 222
DishTV - 1800 12 3474
Faber Chimneys - 1800 21 4595
Godrej - 1800 22 5511
Grundfos Pumps - 1800 33 4555
LG - 1901 180 9999
Philips - 1800 22 4422
Samsung - 1800 113 444
Sanyo - 1800 11 0101
Voltas - 1800 33 4546
WorldSpace Satellite Radio - 1800 44 5432
Hotel Reservations
GRT Grand - 1800 44 5500
InterContinental Hotels Group - 1800 111 000
Marriott - 1800 22 0044
Sarovar Park Plaza - 1800 111 222
Taj Holidays - 1800 111 825
Insurance
AMP Sanmar - 1800 44 2200
Aviva - 1800 33 2244
Bajaj Allianz - 1800 22 5858
Chola MS General Insurance - 1800 44 5544
HDFC Standard Life - 1800 227 227
LIC - 1800 33 4433
Max New York Life - 1800 33 5577
Royal Sundaram - 1800 33 8899
SBI Life Insurance - 1800 22 9090
Mattresses
Kurl-on - 1800 44 0404
Sleepwell - 1800 11 2266
Investments/Finance
CAMS - 1800 44 2267
Chola Mutual Fund - 1800 22 2300
Easy IPO's - 3030 5757
Fidelity Investments - 1800 180 8000
Franklin Templeton Fund - 1800 425 4255
J M Morgan Stanley - 1800 22 0004
Kotak Mutual Fund - 1800 222 626
LIC Housing Finance - 1800 44 0005
SBI Mutual Fund - 1800 22 3040
Sharekhan - 1800 22 7500
Tata Mutual Fund - 1800 22 0101
Paints
Asian Paints Home Solutions - 1800 22 5678
Berger Paints Home Decor - 1800 33 8800
Teleshopping
Asian Sky Shop - 1800 22 1600
Jaipan Teleshoppe - 1800 11 5225
Tele Brands - 1800 11 8000
VMI Teleshopping - 1800 447 777
WWS Teleshopping - 1800 220 777
Travel
Club Mahindra Holidays - 1800 33 4539
Cox & Kings - 1800 22 1235
God TV Tours - 1800 442 777
Kerala Tourism - 1800 444 747
Kumarakom Lake Resort - 1800 44 5030
Raj Travels & Tours - 1800 22 9900
Sita Tours - 1800 111 911
SOTC Tours - 1800 22 3344
UPS
APC - 1800 44 4272
Numeric - 1800 44 3266
Others
Consumer Helpline - 1800 11 4000
L'Or?al, GARNIeR - 1800 223 000
KONE Elevator - 1800 444 666
Indane - 1800 44 51 15
Aavin - 1800 44 3300
Pedigree - 1800 11 2121
Kodak India - 1800 22 8877
Domino's Pizza - 1800 111 123
World Vision India - 1800 444 550
Telecom Monitoring Cell - 1800 110 420
So, did these numbers work? Do leave me comments in case a number does not work out for you ... :)
Airways
Indian Airlines - 1800 180 1407
Jet Airways - 1800 22 5522
SpiceJet - 1800 180 3333
Automobiles
Mahindra Scorpio - 1800 22 6006
Maruti - 1800 111 515
Tata Motors - 1800 22 5552
Windshield Experts - 1800 11 3636
Banks
ABN AMRO - 1800 11 2224
Canara Bank - 1800 44 6000
Citibank - 1800 44 2265
Corporatin Bank - 1800 443 555
Development Credit Bank - 1800 22 5769
HDFC Bank - 1800 227 227
ICICI Bank - 1800 333 499
ICICI Bank NRI - 1800 22 4848
IDBI Bank - 1800 11 6999
Indian Bank - 1800 425 1400
ING Vysya - 1800 44 9900
Kotak Mahindra Bank - 1800 22 6022
Lord Krishna Bank - 1800 11 2300
Punjab National Bank - 1800 122 222
State Bank of India - 1800 44 1955
Syndicate Bank - 1800 44 6655
Cell Phones
BenQ - 1800 22 08 08
Bird CellPhones - 1800 11 7700
Motorola MotoAssist - 1800 11 1211
Nokia - 3030 3838
Sony Ericsson - 3901 1111
Computers/IT
Adrenalin - 1800 444 445
AMD - 1800 425 6664
Apple Computers - 1800 444 683
Canon - 1800 333 366
Cisco Systems - 1800 221 777
Compaq - HP - 1800 444 999
Data One Broadband - 1800 424 1600
Dell - 1800 444 026
Epson - 1800 44 0011
eSys - 3970 0011
Genesis Tally Academy - 1800 444 888
HCL - 1800 180 8080
IBM - 1800 443 333
Lexmark - 1800 22 4477
Marshal's Point - 1800 33 4488
Microsoft - 1800 111 100
Microsoft Virus Update - 1901 333 334
Seagate - 1800 180 1104
Symantec - 1800 44 5533
TVS Electronics - 1800 444 566
WeP Peripherals - 1800 44 6446
Wipro - 1800 333 312
xerox - 1800 180 1225
Zenith - 1800 222 004
Couriers/Packers & Movers
ABT Courier - 1800 44 8585
AFL Wizz - 1800 22 9696
Agarwal Packers & Movers - 1800 11 4321
Associated Packers P Ltd - 1800 21 4560
DHL - 1800 111 345
FedEx - 1800 22 6161
Goel Packers & Movers - 1800 11 3456
UPS - 1800 22 7171
Education
Edu Plus - 1800 444 000
Hindustan College - 1800 33 4438
NCERT - 1800 11 1265
Vellore Institute of Technology - 1800 441 555
Healthcare
Best on Health - 1800 11 8899
Dr Batras - 1800 11 6767
GlaxoSmithKline - 1800 22 8797
Johnson & Johnson - 1800 22 8111
Kaya Skin Clinic - 1800 22 5292
LifeCell - 1800 44 5323
Manmar Technologies - 1800 33 4420
Pfizer - 1800 442 442
Roche Accu-Chek - 1800 11 45 46
Rudraksha - 1800 21 4708
Varilux Lenses - 1800 44 8383
VLCC - 1800 33 1262
Home Appliances
Aiwa/Sony - 1800 11 1188
Anchor Switches - 1800 22 7979
Blue Star - 1800 22 2200
Bose Audio - 1800 11 2673
Bru Coffee Vending Machines - 1800 44 7171
Daikin Air Conditioners - 1800 444 222
DishTV - 1800 12 3474
Faber Chimneys - 1800 21 4595
Godrej - 1800 22 5511
Grundfos Pumps - 1800 33 4555
LG - 1901 180 9999
Philips - 1800 22 4422
Samsung - 1800 113 444
Sanyo - 1800 11 0101
Voltas - 1800 33 4546
WorldSpace Satellite Radio - 1800 44 5432
Hotel Reservations
GRT Grand - 1800 44 5500
InterContinental Hotels Group - 1800 111 000
Marriott - 1800 22 0044
Sarovar Park Plaza - 1800 111 222
Taj Holidays - 1800 111 825
Insurance
AMP Sanmar - 1800 44 2200
Aviva - 1800 33 2244
Bajaj Allianz - 1800 22 5858
Chola MS General Insurance - 1800 44 5544
HDFC Standard Life - 1800 227 227
LIC - 1800 33 4433
Max New York Life - 1800 33 5577
Royal Sundaram - 1800 33 8899
SBI Life Insurance - 1800 22 9090
Mattresses
Kurl-on - 1800 44 0404
Sleepwell - 1800 11 2266
Investments/Finance
CAMS - 1800 44 2267
Chola Mutual Fund - 1800 22 2300
Easy IPO's - 3030 5757
Fidelity Investments - 1800 180 8000
Franklin Templeton Fund - 1800 425 4255
J M Morgan Stanley - 1800 22 0004
Kotak Mutual Fund - 1800 222 626
LIC Housing Finance - 1800 44 0005
SBI Mutual Fund - 1800 22 3040
Sharekhan - 1800 22 7500
Tata Mutual Fund - 1800 22 0101
Paints
Asian Paints Home Solutions - 1800 22 5678
Berger Paints Home Decor - 1800 33 8800
Teleshopping
Asian Sky Shop - 1800 22 1600
Jaipan Teleshoppe - 1800 11 5225
Tele Brands - 1800 11 8000
VMI Teleshopping - 1800 447 777
WWS Teleshopping - 1800 220 777
Travel
Club Mahindra Holidays - 1800 33 4539
Cox & Kings - 1800 22 1235
God TV Tours - 1800 442 777
Kerala Tourism - 1800 444 747
Kumarakom Lake Resort - 1800 44 5030
Raj Travels & Tours - 1800 22 9900
Sita Tours - 1800 111 911
SOTC Tours - 1800 22 3344
UPS
APC - 1800 44 4272
Numeric - 1800 44 3266
Others
Consumer Helpline - 1800 11 4000
L'Or?al, GARNIeR - 1800 223 000
KONE Elevator - 1800 444 666
Indane - 1800 44 51 15
Aavin - 1800 44 3300
Pedigree - 1800 11 2121
Kodak India - 1800 22 8877
Domino's Pizza - 1800 111 123
World Vision India - 1800 444 550
Telecom Monitoring Cell - 1800 110 420
So, did these numbers work? Do leave me comments in case a number does not work out for you ... :)
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