sukku

2nd Anniversary of my CABG

2011-09-17T18:45:00.001+08:00

How time flies and it is my 2nd Anniversary since I had my heart by pass. Just thought of writing a few words in my blog as I know there are some of you who read my blog and recently I got a query from someone with regards to the by pass surgery. I said don't worry as everything will be fine. So I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Good Lord for his blessings and in giving me a second chance in life....THANK YOU

My morning walk at Danga Bay, J.B

2011-09-14T22:01:00.000+08:00

This morning I did my walk at a new surrounding i.e. about 350 km from Kuala Lumpur (I just love the sight and smell of the sea). I was in Danga Bay , Johor Bahru at my job site since Sunday night and back to KL this evening (Wednesday). The place is at the Southern tip of Malaysia, facing Singapore. I enjoyed my morning walk there and since I had my phone (HTC Desire) with me while walking, I took some pictures to share with you. I love the boats or yacht parked at Danga Bay. I bet it is a nice place to chill out in the evening overlooking the Bay with a nice drink and they have a seafood restaurant too, maybe I should check it out....

STOP SLEEPING TOO MUCH (PLEASE)

2011-09-02T22:20:00.000+08:00

Robin Sharma

I know I'm unpopular on this point. But I owe you my truth: most people sleep more than they need to. They fall into the trap of spending some of the best hours of their lives on a mattress. They squander their potentially breathtaking gifts under the covers. They lose The Battle of The Bed. They trade their greatness for a snooze button.
Here's an insight I invite you to consider: sleep begets sleep. The more sleep you take, the more you need. Ever noticed that as you sleep more, you feel sleepier? Strange isn't it.
But it's true.
Yes, I get that sleep is essential to keep us bright and renewed and healthy. My fear is too much sleep. The kind that keeps great people small. The kind that minimizes high-potential lives. The kind that sucks the living out of human beings destined to shine (and you know who you are). Happens to a lot of us. Because we fall in love with a pillow.
Too much to do and too many great places to explore and too many Big Hairy Audacious Goals (thanks Jim Collins) to get to sleep too much. Life is for the living. I need to repeat that again: “life is for the living.” You and I have been given a gift today: to have the opportunity to make a difference and exercise our talents and have a brilliantly fun time doing it. And we need to seize (and respect) that gift.
So sleep less. Live more. And as Benjamin Franklin observed: “there will be plenty of time to sleep when you're dead.” (I've always liked that guy)

FUNNY ENGLISH NOTICES AROUND THE WORLD!

2011-09-01T08:56:00.000+08:00

Here are some signs and notices written in English that were
         discovered throughout the world.  You have to give the writers an
         'E' for Effort.  We hope you enjoy them.
 
  In a Tokyo Hotel:
         Is forbidden to steal hotel towels please.  If you are not a 
         person to do such thing is please not to read notis.
 
  In a Bucharest hotel lobby:
         The lift is being fixed for the next day.  During that time we
         regret that you will be unbearable.
 
  In a Leipzig elevator:
         Do not enter the lift backwards, and only when lit up.
 
  In a Belgrade hotel elevator:
         To move the cabin, push button for wishing floor.  If the cabin
         should enter more persons, each one should press a number of
         wishing floor.  Driving is then going alphabetically by
         national order.
 
  In a Paris hotel elevator:
         Please leave your values at the front desk.
 
  In a hotel in Athens:
         Visitors are expected to complain at the office between the
         hours of 9 and 11 A.M. daily.
 
  In a Yugoslavian hotel:
         The flattening of underwear with pleasure is the job of the
         chambermaid.
 
  In a Japanese hotel:
         You are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid.
 
  In the lobby of a Moscow hotel across from a Russian Orthodox
     monastery:
         You are welcome to visit the cemetery where famous Russian and
         Soviet composers, artists, and writers are buried daily except
         Thursday.
 
  In an Austrian hotel catering to skiers:
         Not to perambulate the corridors in the hours of repose in the
         boots of ascension.
 
  On the menu of a Swiss restaurant:
         Our wines leave you nothing to hope for.
 
  On the menu of a Polish hotel:
         Salad a firm's own make; limpid red beet soup with cheesy
         dumplings in the form of a finger; roasted duck let loose;
         beef rashers beaten up in the country people's fashion.
 
  Outside a Hong Kong tailor shop:
         Ladies may have a fit upstairs.
 
  In a Bangkok dry cleaner's:
         Drop your trousers here for best results.
 
  Outside a Paris dress shop:
         Dresses for street walking.
 
  In a Rhodes tailor shop:
         Order your summers suit.  Because is big rush we will execute
         customers in strict rotation.
 
  A sign posted in Germany's Black forest:
         It is strictly forbidden on our black forest camping site that
         people of different sex, for instance, men and women, live
         together in one tent unless they are married with each other 
         for that purpose.
 
  In a Zurich hotel:
         Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the
         opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested that the lobby 
         be used for this purpose.
 
  In an advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist:
         Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists.
 
  In a Rome laundry:
         Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon 
         having a good time.
 
  In a Czechoslovakian tourist agency:
         Take one of our horse-driven city tours - we guarantee no
         miscarriages.
 
  Advertisement for donkey rides in Thailand:
         Would you like to ride on your own ass?
 
  In a Swiss mountain inn:
         Special today -- no ice cream.
 
  In a Bangkok temple:
         It is forbidden to enter a woman even a foreigner if dressed
         as a man.
 
  In a Tokyo bar:
         Special cocktails for the ladies with nuts.
 
  In a Copenhagen airline ticket office:
         We take your bags and send them in all directions.
 
  On the door of a Moscow hotel room:
         If this is your first visit to the USSR, you are welcome to
         it.
 
  In a Norwegian cocktail lounge:
         Ladies are requested not to have children in the bar.
 
  In a Budapest zoo:
         Please do not feed the animals.  If you have any suitable
         food, give it to the guard on duty.
 
  In the office of a Roman doctor:
         Specialist in women and other diseases.
 
  In an Acapulco hotel:
         The manager has personally passed all the water served here.
 
  In a Tokyo shop:
         Our nylons cost more than common, but you'll find they are
         best in the long run.
 
   From a Japanese information booklet about using a hotel air
      conditioner:
         Cooles and Heates:  If you want just condition of warm in your
         room, please control yourself.
 
   From a brochure of a car rental firm in Tokyo:
         When passenger of foot heave in sight, tootle the horn.
         Trumpet him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles 
         your passage then tootle him with vigor.
 
  Two signs from a Majorcan shop entrance:
         -   English well talking.
         -   Here speeching American.

My morning walk

2011-08-31T17:46:00.000+08:00

After my by-pass heart surgery about 2 years ago, my early morning ritual includes the daily 1 hour walk as per the surgeons advice. I have been walking alone in the morning and I get up at 5.15 am during working days and a bit later during public holidays and weekends , the walk lasts about an hour from 5.30 am to 6.30 am.
Since we have a long week due to the holidays (27.08.11 to 04.09.11), I took some pictures to share with you on my route which looks pretty green and hilly. The pictures were taken just after sunrise and hence it is dark but what I love during my walk is the fresh air, the surrounding forest and solitude. Do let me know about your morning walks or you still haven't started walking yet? My word of advice is " It's better late then never" to start.

View from the top of the Hill

Walk down from the Hill

Retention pond where you can hear the sound of gushing water

Air Hitam Forest Reserve, lush and green.

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri

2011-08-29T21:25:00.000+08:00

Wishing all Muslims, in Malaysia and beyond,

Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri.

May we all continue to live in harmony.

Let us build bridges that connect and not walls that divide.

Have a great day!

Taken from the Internet

Another year has passed and I still remember my childhood when my neighbours would send us ketupat, kuih, chicken rendang, malay biscuits and a lot of stuff early in the morning and I would have all this stuff for breakfast.

But things have changed now, we live in the city where we don't even know who our neighbours are. And the city is empty during the festival season as everyone travels to their hometown or is it that I am staying in an affluent neighbourhood where everyone is busy with their work and too busy making money.

Tell me how was your childhood memories of festivals were?

My New Home at Bandar Puteri Klang

2011-08-27T22:22:00.000+08:00

These are snap shots taken at my new home which is still under construction. The keys would be handed over to us by next year May 2012. After that I will do some renovation on the house and that would take about maybe 2 months and then only would I be able to move in. Got a lot of things planned and this time around I am going to supervise the work....

Front View - wide enough to park 2 cars

View from our front porch

Backyard and MacD is just behind

View from the Hall

Bathroom at Master Bedroom

So what do you think?

It's been awhile...

2011-08-24T22:44:00.002+08:00

Yes it has indeed been awhile since I had last posted anything here. My New Year's resolution is still intact. Not drinking enough water, had to visit the Doctor yesterday due to my prevailing kidney stones I guess as I had a lit bit of blood in the piss.

I have reduced on my snacking and I just started on my blog much to my surprise. Out of the blues while I was chatting with my college buddy, I got my close friends phone Elvis, and we had a change to chat for awhile. He is in South Africa and it was a nice feeling talking to someone after a long while.

Let me see, what else is there in the resolution, gee I can't remember....before I forget...I am back with Econpile (M) Sdn Bhd...

My New Year 2011 Resolution

2011-01-01T23:44:00.000+08:00

Every year I have something to say about my New Year's resolution and this year I am going to do the same and give you a list so that I will be reminded off my list...

1. I have to lose 3 kgs as advised by my heart surgeon.
2. I will stop snacking on peanuts.
3. I will reduce my intake of rice at night.
4. I will find time to read books every night.
5. I will find time to travel within Malaysia.
6. I will keep my table free from clutter.
7. I will blog regularly.
8. I will increase my intake of water to 2-3 liters a day

What about you, do you want to share your list with me.

My Sunday writing 28.11. 2010

2010-11-28T21:03:00.003+08:00

Had a bad toothache for the whole of last week and I thought I was getting old and all my teeth are going to fall off. Lucky me, it was only my wisdom tooth, it was slanting and the pain it was causing around that area was unbearable. I say the Dentist last week and she told me that I should remove the wisdom tooth and she told me it was kinda shaky and besides that the wisdom tooth causes more problems then being beneficial. I tend to agree with her and if you ask me I will recommend that you remove it. She couldn't do the extraction last week because I told her that I was on Claspirin, a blood thinner that I take after my CABG. So I had to stop taking this drug for the last 4 days, she didn't want me to bleed profusely after the extraction.
This morning I was at the Dentist and the whole affair of pulling out the tooth took about less then 10 minutes. First she gave me a jab on my gums, Anestassia so that it would be a painless procedure. It was indeed a painless affair, after that she used a plier to extract the tooth and voila before I could realize it, I saw the tooth on the table. She gave me a gauze to place in between the gums where the tooth was extracted and she prescribed some pain killers and anti-biotics.
I had chicken soup with soft nice, all mashed up by my wife along with mix vegetable for lunch which was about an hour after the extraction. Had a good nap in the afternoon and I was expecting the pain to set in after 2 hours of the wearing off, of the Anestassia, but nothing of that sort happened.

The moral of the story here is ....as you get older...you tend to lose some parts of your body....but the good part is that ....hey what the heck...I am still ok....still working with less parts...value for money...

If you had gone through a similar experience, please do share with me...

My Photo's

2010-11-17T21:59:00.000+08:00

What I have below is a collection of photos taken at Kuala Lumpur. Today being a holiday, I was in Town and it was rather deserted due to the Muslim festival called "Hari Raya Haji". I hope you would comment on the photos that I took with my HTC Desire.

Dinner at Telok Gong, Klang

Bazaar at Masjid India, Kuala Lumpur

Lunch at a German Bistro at Puchong

Wet market at Sri Kembangan

Masjid India at Kuala Lumpur

Indian shops at Leboh Ampang and I should try eating at Bakti Woodland

Week to remember

2010-11-08T17:56:00.002+08:00

How do I start this? Well a lot had happened last week and to top the list for me is that I got my new car, Toyota Altis 1.8 G with the new engine Dual VVTi. The car looks sporty and the interior is just fantastic. I am surely enjoying my ride to the office and also the smell of the new car. It did cost me a bomb to purchase this new car, but sometimes I say to myself, don’t I deserve to be rewarded for all the hard work that I have put in all these years.

I am already 50 years old now, and how many years do I have left? Well with my CABG done, I reckon I should be having another 10-15 years without any heart problems! But if it is something else then I wont be able to say.

I had a nice long weekend holidays due to Deepavali(Diwali) and I really took things easy. I had a weeding dinner that I attended on 06.11.2010, my ex-collegue got married and the dinner reception was held at the Chinese Restaurant. I have a picture of the suckling pig that was served as one of the dishes, but I had to skip it as it is not good for my health after my CABG. I had a couple of glasses of red wine, tried sitting on it for awhile as they keep topping it up as though we were drinking water.

I was with my close friend at the wedding dinner and he drove back from Penang. And I had a chance to meet up with all my ex-collegues too. The food was good and I guess most of them would have got drunk with the liquor, what more would anyone ask for?

I took my Sunday easy and I didn’t go for my morning walk, guess I was tired after the wedding dinner and the wine. And in the evening I was watching Inception and I still haven’t finished watching the movie yet. Got to watch it slowly as it is a movie which has a lot of dreams within dreams.

My new Toyota Altis 1.8G

Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall

My birthday cake at office. What a surprise!!!

Suckling Piglet served at the wedding dinner. It looked sad...

My Sunday writing

2010-10-24T11:27:00.000+08:00

A lot has changed in my life over the last few days.
1. I have left Econpile (M) Sdn. Bhd as a General Manager and my last day of work was on 13.10.2010
2. I joined Borneo Geotechnic as a Senior Manager and started work on 15.10.2010
3. My office is in Damanasara Perdana and the office block is new and the area is very presentable.
4. I have booked for a brand new Toyota Altis 1.8G and hopefully I should take delivery by the end of this week or 1st week of November 2010.
5. Sad to leave my old friends at Econpile.
6. It was like a reunion at Borneo Geotechnic as most the staff were my friends about 10 to 15 years ago.
7. I am relaxed now and my stress level has decreased.
8. Company had issued a new laptop by Dell Inspiron i.3
9. I am contemplating on deactivating my facebook account.
10. Should spend more time on Blogger blogging.

A lot of changes in my life and I know we are destined to follow what is laid down for us. And I have entered the new phase in my life and I know that I have to start slowing down and take things easy. Btw my birthday is just around the corner.

It's about a year now after my CABG

2010-09-11T09:46:00.000+08:00

How time flies and I am sitting on my bed with my laptop and composing this article on what happened about a year back. On the 6th of September 2009 I had a heart attack and I admitted myself to the Johor Specialist Center.
I was at my site in the morning but I somehow felt uneasy and decided to see the nearest Doctor to my site at Danga Bay in Johor(City close to Singapore). But this Doctor wasn't just any Doctor, as he was my family Doctor when my first son was born about 19 years ago. And by God's Grace I was working in Johor from June 16th 2009 as I had joined my new company and all the while after my return from Hyderabad in July 2008, I was in Kuala Lumpur.
I can still remember vividly, how in the morning of my heart attack, I was having ENO fruit salt for indigestion at 5.00 a.m. and when I saw the Doctor, he prescribed medicines for flux and indigestion. As I was collecting the medicines after paying at the counter, something made him ask me for my ECG, which I had taken earlier (2 days back) at another clinic, I told him that the clinic was far to collect the report and asked him how much does it cost to do another ECG? He said RM 35 and I said ...why not?
Thank God for this timely intervention and fair enough my ECG was bad and he told me to get admitted into a heart specialist Hospital immediately without wasting time...that's when I drove to the Hospital ...I had my safety officer from site to direct me to the Hospital. I thought I was okay but the Doctor in charge at the Hospital was of a different opinion...I was stabilized and I was worried about the impact or the damage done to my heart but as I said earlier...it was a timely intervention by the Doctor suggesting me to go a heart specialist. While they were doing all sorts of tests on me, I had informed my family and my wife took the evening bus to reach the Hospital as she wasn't used to driving long distance and with the bad news too. I was in ICU and by evening they had stabilized my condition. My wife wanted me to be transferred to Kuala Lumpur and to be admitted at Sime Darby Medical Center at Subang (again Thank God for this decision as I was under one of the top surgeon in the country).
So the following day, I had the most expensive ride on an ambulance with 2 paramedics and my wife by my side...it's was a nice feeling being back home...and the rest was .....history....for me now....Thank God....I can sit and reflect on it...and life has turned for the better for me....I lead a healthy lifestyle....and I appreciate the little things in life now....remember...."LIFE IS SHORT"....so count your blessings....and believe me everything has it's path chartered out for us....so just sit back and enjoy the ride....

My Sunday writing

2010-08-22T21:02:00.001+08:00

The template design at blogger has improved a lot and my blog looks pretty professional. And whatever I post here, you would see it at facebook too, but then you wont be able to see the actual blog if you don't visit my blog at blogger.

Yesterday I was at a wedding, my cousin's wedding and next week it's my other cousin's engagement, looks like it is a good season for weddings and other auspicious stuff for Hindu's and for the Chinese I am not so sure as it is the Hungry Ghost festival that is being celebrated. And for the Malays, it is their fasting month, and I guess there isn't any wedding bells for them for this month. So I guess different culture, different views and on 31st August all of us would be celebrating our Independence day. And on September 10th & 11th, it is the muslim festival of I'd or they call it Hari Raya Aidil Fitri, well that would be a long break for everyone in Malaysia,as it is a long weekend. Things will be out of gear for at least 1 week and what you have in Malaysia is the "Balik Kampung" ritual, where everyone travels back to their hometown irrespective of religion. You can see that the death toll on the highways would increase and it's the same year after year, but the number of fatality increases every year.God only knows, why the drivers speed and some of them sleep on the wheels and kill themselves on the highways along with thier loved ones...so guys, please drive safely.
I will post some pictures that I took with my latest toy, HTC Desire and the camera is pretty good with sharp images.
Before I forget, I see a lot of hits at my blogs, but the sad part is that not many wants to comment on my blogs. People please do say a few words, so that I can improve on my blogs or give me some ideas on what to write. Currently I am having writers block.... So are you game enough to take up my challenge?

Bird's eye view of my new site at Kuala Lumpur, Menara Hap Seng

Where is my breakfast?....taken at Lotus, Jalan Gasing

After a long break from Blogger

2010-08-15T21:05:00.001+08:00

My last posting in blogger was in January 2010, when I had gone to Hanoi on a business trip. After that I was busy with facebook and finally the novelty has worn off and voila, I am back in blogger. It's nice to be back here and I hope my friends would drop by to say hello to me.
I see there are a lot of new settings in blogger and I guess it makes the blog way more professional in outlook. I have been busy with work most of the time and only this week I am feeling relieved as I had tendered my resignation to my present company. I have to serve my 2 months notice.
Besides that it is going to be almost a year since I had undergone my CABG that is my bypass heart surgery. I am doing fine and a lot has happened over the months. My second son got his Government scholarship to do Medicine and he is doing his pre-med in Cyberjaya Medical College.
I was promoted to a General Manager in my company and things have been looking great here in the construction sector.
Before I sign off, I am posting a picture taken from my bedroom window this afternoon, when it was raining pretty heavily. I like to watch the rain and I am sure you would too.

My first trip to Hanoi

2010-01-21T22:19:00.000+08:00

It came as a shock to me as to how backward Hanoi is? Anyway I was on an official trip to access the viability of a project here so who am I to complain. My flight landed at the Hanoi Airport and we had our Korean friends to pick up from the Airport and we went straight to the site which was about 30 minutes drive or more from the Airport. We were at the Korean Contractors office and after a short meeting left for the actual site, it was 19 bridges and foundation works for 4 bridges had started. We looked at the contractors who were doing their work. And by the time we finished the work it was pretty late in the evening but the watch showed otherwise, my watch was still set at Malaysian time and it is about 1 hour difference in Hanoi. So it wasn’t that late and work finished at 5.30 p.m. but it was pretty dark outside due to winter.

Our partner brought us to the Hotel that we were suppose to stay and boy, was I disappointed. Maybe it is partly due to the location, we are at the outskirts I believe and the Hotel was really run down. Dinner was something and I really couldn’t eat any stuff except the rice with a little fish, oh how I miss home food, I never felt like this in Hyderabad though.

The first room I had, there wasn’t any light in the bathroom and when I informed the Hotel management, they spent about 10 minutes trying to get the light fixed and finally gave up. So I had to change my room from the 3^rd floor to the 2^nd floor. I had asked the girl who was in charge to bring me an adaptor for my phone and laptop power cord which is 3 pin to the 2 pin and to my surprise, she brought another telephone charger and I tried explaining in English to her that I don’t need my phone to be charged in English, but I guess she didn’t understood a single word and she took my phone and got it charged. Bless her but I guess if you can’t communicate, this is what happens.

The climate in Hanoi is pretty cold, and I am freezing in my room as we are not prepared for the winter season. Anyway lucky me, I brought my jacket and it is saving me now from the fiery cold night. Thank God for the little mercies as I have managed to switch my laptop from Acer to the power saving mode so that I can write this blog and I have 6 hrs 36 minutes left and after this I can read my eBooks. I will try to post this when I get back, in fact I had written 2 blogs, one on last Saturday but didn’t have the time to post it and in that I had written about my New Year resolution.

The other funny thing happened to me in the morning at the hotel after they had served me my breakfast of chicken rice noodles, I was very thirsty and I asked the bell boy for some water, I had to show him the motion of drinking water as he doesn’t understand a word of English and to my surprise, he uttered an English word...”Vodka”...I guess Vodka must be very popular in Vietnam...but having it at breakfast.....

Having said all of the above, I believe getting away from home and being in another alien country is a good experience and it makes me miss on stuff that I had taken for granted.

©sukku

Moment to pause and reflect...

2009-11-01T08:34:00.000+08:00

How time flies and it is already November now and we have just another month for this year to end. I know some of you would be thinking, what it's almost that year of the time, where you have a choice of finishing your holidays or leave that you have accumulated from the beginning of the year. Take my advice, life is short and spend the well deserved time with your family and loved ones unlike me, where I worked through out the year and what do I have as a reward....a triple CABG bypass. Not that I am angry or regretting it, but I am just advising some of you who feel that career comes first above all and everything else...well it doesn't if you know what the trade off is.

It's always lecture time from me when I blog, why can't I write something different. Think outside the box....sukku....

Ok make a list of what you have achieved this year and what impact it had on you and did you learn anything from it...go ahead just make a list....or make a list of 10 items or things that you would like to change in your life or if you are daring enough....start with 5 things that you would like to change on your spouse....(don't get me wrong and change her)...just imagine if you had the magic wand....what would you like to change...better still transform....in your life...

Have a fruitful Sunday and do think about what I had just said...

My Happy Birthday Post

2009-10-28T17:38:00.001+08:00

This is what I wrote 2 years ago and when I read what I had written, I guess nothing much has changed except the fact that I am lucky to celebrate my 49th birthday with my loved ones and now I know for sure that I would be able to spend many more Birthdays without any heart problems but other problems I wouldn't be able to guarantee. Now let me see, over the years I have removed my appendix, my gall bladder and recently a bypass with an open heart surgery (I guess the mother of all operations). This will keep me ticking for many years as I will be following a strict diet and having a healthy life style as I know what it is to go through whole thing.

I am going to post the article that I had posted on Opera below and also I have a birthday photo of me taken when I was 1 year old. Don't I look sweet with the knife in my hand waiting to do justice to the cake.

Happy Birthday post

Monday, 29. October 2007, 02:44:57

Today is my birthday and with me turning a different age every year it is a time of reflection. Not that I don’t do it often enough but this special day really makes me feel nostalgic and makes me feel that I am getting closer to home(heaven or hell as you may please). But looking back what I did a year ago I have noticed quite a bit of growth (getting more grey hairs) and determination. I am influenced by the books that I read and the feeling that age is finally catching up, I have also became more of an introvert finding solace in my solitude. I have accepted to accept things in life as they pass by and not to worry about it too much as I know I don't possess the power to alter or change it. But that doesn't mean; I let my life pass by. Now I just become the observer and let my heart do the thinking and guide me. Something which I guess I didn't have the capacity to do before as I was reacting then with my ego (my little voice). I have begun to realise the folly that this little voice did to me; fear, fright, anger, jealousy,worries etc. Been through many turbulent times in life and I have risen against all odds and I am thankful to God for seeing me through. And by God's grace I know I would have many more birthdays to sit and ponder about the new challenges that life would have to offer and the lessons it would enrich me with so that I could share it with others.

My birthday wish for this year is that both my boys do well in their public exams and also not forgetting my wife who is taking care of them while I am away working abroad. My final wish is that I should be back home soon with the family as I had enough of working abroad and brooding over it with my blogs.

By the way I am posting this one day in advance as my birthday is tomorrow and I honestly would like to thank God for whatever he has done in my life and for giving me this chance to post this blog and share it with my family and friends. God Bless you all.

Blast from the Past

2009-10-26T09:54:00.000+08:00

My first trip abroad (Twilight Zone).

Saturday, 3. May 2008, 13:47:35

The surrounding was a little strange as the plane landed at the airport. I can glance from the window that the landscape looked very parched and the grass was brown. I can also see the mirage on the runway. As the pilot announced the local time at the airport that I was about to land, I changed the time at my watch and this was a brand new watch that I got as a gift for my overseas trip for my studies. I had to wind two and half hours back from the place where I was flying from.
To my surprise I saw some workers working at the airport, their skin tanned working under the blazing heat and they were wearing only loin cloths. They were doing manual work, just like a scene from a movie where you find jailbirds toiling away breaking rocks in some hill with a sledge hammer.
Now this was about thirty years ago, when I was a student in pursue of higher education to be a Doctor (now that I am engineer). Sitting alone on the flight and looking at the scenes unfolding before me was a cultural shock to me. This is the very first time that I am ever leaving my home, my comfort zone not knowing what the outside world really looks like.
I enjoyed the flight though, I had my share of the free drinks and I had managed to smoke onboard too (those were the days). But reality hit me right at my face, what am I doing in a country which looked like it was still in the stone ages. Who am I to complain as I was seeking my higher education in this so called stone aged country?
The airport was run down and there were queues a mile long everywhere for the immigration clearance. I guess I was one the last to get my passport stamped from that flight. The custom clearance was a piece of cake as I looked at it, no queue and I carried my luggage to the counter to open it for the custom officer to check it. But it was a rather embarrassing moment for me. The officer shouted at me to take my place at the queue, I was thinking to myself, what queue? Little did I realise that there was actually a queue, the passengers were very tired standing for ages and they had decided to place the luggage in line and they were seating on the benches.
Who do I know in this strange land? My guardian was fixed by my uncle who was studying his engineering in the northern part of the country. Have I seen this so called guardian or do I have a clue how he looks like? The only description that I had of him was that he is short, dark and has big round eyes. When I looked at the stream of people who were waiting on the reception hall, almost all of them fit that description. Was I doomed?
I look at my watch for the local time and to my surprise; the watch had stopped at the precise moment when the plane landed at the airport. My hair on my back was standing and I had goose bumps just thinking about it. Am I alive or did the plane crash and I am in another world or dimension so to speak.
Just before I left for my overseas trip, I had watched twilight zone on the telly and there was this episode about how the passengers on a plane were flying and the plane had encountered some turbulence due to air pockets, and after that there was calm and the plane was still flying through with an eerie silence and when some of the passengers had looked at their watches, it had all stopped at the precise moment when the plane had crashed (due to bad weather) and they were all flying in a different dimension.
I woke up from that eerie moment or feeling as in front of me was that short, dark and those big round eyes man calling my name and he had my photograph with him.

To be continued.....

©sukku2008

This was my posting at Opera and I didn't know why I had written ....to be continued...was I waiting for response from the other bloggers so that I can pen the sequel....
So do you want a sequel...it's a nice feeling when you read your old blogs....it's like a time capsule...

Blast from the past...

2009-10-25T11:29:00.000+08:00

Why do you blog?

Wednesday, 24. October 2007, 13:34:54

I am sitting here pondering on the reasons why do I blog? Has this thought ever crossed your mind too?

Could it be to keep track of my moods,feelings and my state of being at that particular moment in time captured like a photograph but in my case its a photograph of my thoughts and my feelings.

A blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. The activity of updating a blog is “blogging” and someone who keeps a blog is a “blogger.” Blogs are typically updated daily using software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain the blog. Postings on a blog are almost always arranged in cronological order with the most recent additions featured most prominantly. Blogs use a conversational style of documentation.

This is what I blogged on 18.10.2006 about a year back and it transported me back to that very day:

You know as I read my previous blogs, I see a pattern emerging based on the situation and circumstances. One year back my priorities were different and I guess it all depends on the present state of the mind.

I had my fair share of ups and downs and character is built by the sufferings that we undergo and on how we react to these situations. Fear is another factor that alters the way we perceive things and people. Fear is also imaginary and if you write your fear down and read it aloud, you would see that it is nothing but a story. You tend to see the folly in the fear and as they say, the greatest fear is that of fear itself.

The other thing that you realize by reading your older blogs is how you transform yourself from ideas and beliefs that you hold on too. We just have to let go of the old ideas or beliefs. In order to progress I guess we have to learn how to let go and let live. Is this really possible?

Let me pen down what I feel at this moment and capture it in my blog. Actually I can’t feel anything now as when I make myself come up with the next thought, it doesn’t work. Thoughts are random and they are an entity and they possess life. I have also learned on how to control my thoughts and not let the thoughts dictate my action. When you wake up in the morning, what are your thoughts like? How would you want your day to be? Sometimes we get up feeling lazy and we just don’t have the mood. I have that feeling these days and it’s a dreadful thing actually. Like they say, an idle mind is the devils workshop.

What are devils? Don’t you think that Devils are the figment of our imagination? What is bad or what is good. We know black from white and bad from evil. But why is there so much of evil in this world. People fight over right or wrong and they kill each other. Why can’t we just co-exist peacefully? Why do people hold grudges? Why can’t they just forgive and forget.

I am just writing, whatever that comes in my mind and composing it without giving it a thought. Does all this make sense? Does our life on earth make sense? Why is there disparity in this world? Why do I feel sad when I see the beggars with babies in their arms begging at the traffic lights(in Hyderabad)? Why are they doing it? Why can’t we be equal? What did they do to deserve this pitiful life? Sometimes I tell myself, hey you are just begging without any worries in this world but we in the comfort of our cars are the actual beggars with so much misery and sadness.

Let me end my blog with a paragraph from OSHO’s book on awareness:

“Yesterday you were thinking about today because then it was tomorrow; now it is today and you are thinking about tomorrow, and when tomorrow comes, it will be today – because anything that exists, exists here and now, it cannot exist otherwise. And if you have a fixed mode of functioning such that your mind always looks at tomorrow, then when will you live? Tomorrow never comes. Then you will go on missing. The moment the future enters, time enters. You have missed. And this has become a fixed pattern: robot like, you go on missing".

So remember one thing: whenever you realize that you have gone into the past or into the future, don’t create a problem out of it. Simply come to the present, not creating any problem. It’s okay! Simply bring back your awareness.

Whenever you feel you have missed, come back, that’s all. Don’t feel guilty.

Has my state of being changed much from then? I still have the same feelings about inequality and maybe I have become wiser on the fear part but it still daunts me...the past is always there...even now and I keep telling myself to let go but it still attaches to me like a leech....and it will fall off eventually(I guess once it has sucked enough and caused enough misery). Ah...the future....another ball game altogether....

I hope my blog has stirred the passion on your blogging and the philosophy behind it...so happy blogging...bloggers...

7 Rules for a Life Worth Living

2009-10-25T08:59:00.001+08:00

Rule One: Never let another person dictate the terms for living your life.

Not your parents. Not your spouse. Not your kids. Leading your life means you can accept the input of other people, but the final decision is yours. This means that career choice, relationships, beliefs and way of life are to be judged by you, not anyone else.

This rule holds especially when you have doubts. Don’t let your moment of doubt become a weakness to be exploited by others. Not sure what you want to do with your life? Don’t sit passively and let other people decide for you.

Rule Two: Don’t allow yourself to be chained by consumerism.

The world is filled with stuff. Don’t let stuff get in the way of what is important. When you become chained to your stuff, you are no longer leading your life. Ask yourself: if you had to give up 90% of your net worth tomorrow to pursue your dream, could you do it effortlessly? If you hesitated, perhaps your ability to lead your own life has been weakened by your attachment to stuff.

Rule Three: Rule money. Don’t let money rule you.

Money is a resource that can be applied when leading your life. You can use it to reduce discomforts, focus on meaningful work and apply it to help you learn and improve. But if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, the money is in control.

Here are some goals to put yourself in a position to rule the money in your life:

Maintain one year of emergency funds in the bank.
Your lifestyle should expand at a slower rate than your income grows.
Be able to drastically reduce your expenditures if needed.

Financial freedom doesn’t mean the ability to buy everything you could desire or live in luxury. It means that money becomes a tool and not a distraction in leading your life.

Rule Four: You come first in relationships.

Do you know people that can’t stand being single? They get out of one bad relationship only to jump into the next.

Why? Because they put too much of their needs dependent on that other person. Without emotional and possibly financial support, they can’t survive.

In any relationship you need to be the person that comes first. That means that while you might enjoy the relationship, it doesn’t become the major purpose in your life.

Your purpose and leading your life must come before any relationship you enter. The surprising fact is that when you do this, you are able to have healthier personal and intimate relationships because there is no need for jealousy or possession.

Rule Five: Never outsource your thinking.

“You can split up food between men, but each man must digest it individually.” – Howard Roark in The Fountainhead.

Leading your own life means leading your own beliefs. It means never accepting anything unless you can filter it through your reasoning and find it to be true. Think critically about everything in life. Chances are there are a lot of indigested thoughts floating around trying to bypass your mind and go straight to your gut.

Rule Six: Anything you lack can be trained.

Never accept a fatalistic view of life. So you’ve been told you lack the intelligence, willpower, strength or charisma to do something? Ignore them. So you’ve told yourself that you lack the talent? Ignore yourself.

Begin with the assumption that anything can be trained and you’ll find few exceptions. I used to be a shy, introverted kid. Recently some friends described me as an extreme extrovert, being unafraid to meet new people and having honed my abilities to speak in front of crowds. Begin with the belief that you have no idea where your talents are until you train them.

Rule Seven: Purpose comes from your creative faculties.

Want to know what your purpose in life is? Simple. Hold your hands in front of you. Now look at them. There is your purpose and means to do it.

Purpose is your ability to take the creative energies you have and communicating them with the world. You and I might pick different mediums, but the act of purpose is exactly the same. You could be a manager crafting the art of dealing with people, a programmer crafting the knowledge of algorithms or an entrepreneur crafting the art of a business.

Don’t worry if you haven’t found the right medium. Once you feel that great purpose for your life and it comes from within, that is your greatest asset. With that belief you are the leader of your own life.

Steve Jobs' 20 rules of success

2009-10-24T16:12:00.000+08:00

Steve Jobs' rules for success:

First thing: As soon as you join/start a company, make a list of strengths and weaknesses of yourself and your company on a piece of paper.

Don't hesitate in throwing bad apples out of the company.

Don't worry about too many things at once. Take a handful of simple things to begin with, and then progress to more complex ones.

People judge you by your performance, so focus on the outcome.

Success generates more success. So be hungry for it. "I've always wanted to own and control the primary technology in everything we do."

Ask for feedback, from people with diverse backgrounds. Each one will tell you one useful thing.

If you're at the top of the chain, sometimes people won't give you honest feedback because they're afraid. In this case, disguise yourself, or get feedback from other sources (Steve Jobs actually called Apple Customer Care disguising himself as a customer, just to check on them).

Focus on those who will use your product - listen to your customers first.

Advertise. If they don't know it, they won't buy your product.

Pay attention to design. "We made the buttons on the screen look so good you'll want to lick them." "Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works."

"Innovation distinguishes a leader from a follower." If there's a better technology available, use it no matter if anyone else is not using it. Be the first, and make it an industry standard. “I think this is the start of something really big. Sometimes that first step is the hardest one, and we've just taken it.”

“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected.”

Learn to criticize your enemies openly, but honestly.

If you partner someone whom you don't like, learn to like them - praise them and benefit from them - "Ecosystem approach"

Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations.

Do your best at every job. No sleep!

Think about not just tomorrow, but the future. “I want to put a ding in the universe.”

There's always "one more thing" to learn!

"Better be a pirate than to join the navy"

"Think different"

Bill Gates Rules of Life

2009-10-24T06:55:00.000+08:00

Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it.
Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3: You will not make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait until you get a boss.
Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping. They called it opportunity.
Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes, and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forests from the parasites of your parents' generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not. In some schools, they may have abolished failing grades, and they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to anything in real life.
Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you find yourself. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is not real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.
Author: Jennifer Nodwell

I hope you enjoy my series on living and all this are taken from the internet.

Rules to Live By

2009-10-23T10:48:00.000+08:00

Some say rules were made to be broken. If we make an effort to follow a few simple rules life would be so much easier. Here’s 15 Rules To Live By:
»If you move it, put it back.
»If you don’t know how to operate it, leave it alone.
»If it belongs to someone else and you want to use it, get permission.
»If you borrow it, return it.
»If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
»If you broke it, admit it.
»If you can’t fix it, call in someone who can.
»If you open it, close it.
»If you turn it on, turn it off.
»If you unlock it, lock it up.
»If you value it, take care of it.
»If you make a mess, clean it up.
»If it will brighten someone’s day, say it, do it!
»If it’s none of your business, don’t ask questions.
»If it will tarnish someone’s reputation, keep it to yourself.
(Author Unknown)

10 Rules To Live By

2009-10-22T06:36:00.000+08:00

There’s really no way to sum up the game of life with a simple set of rules, but I’ve come up with a set of guidelines that have served me pretty good. I would love to hear your own.
1. Focus on what you want: Do you focus on the road ahead or in the rearview mirror filled with the past? By focusing on the past, you tend to worry about the future because your focus carries the negative experiences from your past into your present. “Hold a picture of yourself long and steadily enough in your mind’s eye, and you will be drawn toward it.” - Napoleon Hill
2. Never give up: Thomas Edison said it best — “”Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
3. One day at a time: We achieve our dreams one day at a time, so set goals for each day that will take you, step by step, toward your desire. The pyramids weren’t built in a week so learn to be patient. Do the best you can, enjoy this day, and be satisfied with what you’ve accomplished.
4. True happiness lies within you: Don’t waste time and effort searching for happiness, peace and contentment in the world outside. Reach inside yourself and pull out the better angels of your nature and give to someone else.
5. Learn to be grateful: “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity…. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” - Melodie Beattie
6. Expand your comfort zone: Not a whole lot can change or happen when we stop challenging ourselves. Bob Parson’s probably said it best when someone told him they we’re concerned about they’re security. His response was, “Security is for cadavers.”
7. Your closer than you think: There’s an old Chinese proverb that goes something like this: “The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed.”
8. Don’t take yourself seriously: Learn to lighten up. Life is a game. Don’t sweat the little stuff…. ’cause it’s all little stuff.
9. Be nice: What is that old saying? You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Just another way of saying you can win people to your side more easily by gentle persuasion and flattery than by hostile confrontation.
10. Get out of your way: As Warren Buffet said to a University of Washington audience several years ago regarding how he and Bill Gates became so successful: “Everybody here has the ability to do anything I do and much beyond. Some of you will, and some of you won’t. For those who won’t, it will be because you get in your own way, not because the world doesn’t allow you to.”
Written by R. H.
http://myselfdevelopment.net/index.php/2007/02/19/10-rules-to-live-by/

Cherie Carter-Scott's rules of life

2009-10-20T14:19:00.000+08:00

(Carter Scott references this quotation:) "Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood." (Helen Keller)

Rule One - You will receive a body. Whether you love it or hate it, it's yours for life, so accept it. What counts is what's inside.

Rule Two - You will be presented with lessons. Life is a constant learning experience, which every day provides opportunities for you to learn more. These lessons specific to you, and learning them 'is the key to discovering and fulfilling the meaning and relevance of your own life'.

Rule Three - There are no mistakes, only lessons. Your development towards wisdom is a process of experimentation, trial and error, so it's inevitable things will not always go to plan or turn out how you'd want. Compassion is the remedy for harsh judgement - of ourselves and others. Forgiveness is not only divine - it's also 'the act of erasing an emotional debt'. Behaving ethically, with integrity, and with humour - especially the ability to laugh at yourself and your own mishaps - are central to the perspective that 'mistakes' are simply lessons we must learn.

Rule Four - The lesson is repeated until learned. Lessons repeat until learned. What manifest as problems and challenges, irritations and frustrations are more lessons - they will repeat until you see them as such and learn from them. Your own awareness and your ability to change are requisites of executing this rule. Also fundamental is the acceptance that you are not a victim of fate or circumstance - 'causality' must be acknowledged; that is to say: things happen to you because of how you are and what you do. To blame anyone or anything else for your misfortunes is an escape and a denial; you yourself are responsible for you, and what happens to you. Patience is required - change doesn't happen overnight, so give change time to happen.

Rule Five - Learning does not end. While you are alive there are always lessons to be learned. Surrender to the 'rhythm of life', don't struggle against it. Commit to the process of constant learning and change - be humble enough to always acknowledge your own weaknesses, and be flexible enough to adapt from what you may be accustomed to, because rigidity will deny you the freedom of new possibilities.

Rule Six - "There" is no better than "here". The other side of the hill may be greener than your own, but being there is not the key to endless happiness. Be grateful for and enjoy what you have, and where you are on your journey. Appreciate the abundance of what's good in your life, rather than measure and amass things that do not actually lead to happiness. Living in the present helps you attain peace.

Rule Seven - Others are only mirrors of you. You love or hate something about another person according to what love or hate about yourself. Be tolerant; accept others as they are, and strive for clarity of self-awareness; strive to truly understand and have an objective perception of your own self, your thoughts and feelings. Negative experiences are opportunities to heal the wounds that you carry. Support others, and by doing so you support yourself. Where you are unable to support others it is a sign that you are not adequately attending to your own needs.

Rule Eight - What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. Take responsibility for yourself. Learn to let go when you cannot change things. Don't get angry about things - bitter memories clutter your mind. Courage resides in all of us - use it when you need to do what's right for you. We all possess a strong natural power and adventurous spirit, which you should draw on to embrace what lies ahead.

Rule Nine - Your answers lie inside of you. Trust your instincts and your innermost feelings, whether you hear them as a little voice or a flash of inspiration. Listen to feelings as well as sounds. Look, listen, and trust. Draw on your natural inspiration.

Rule Ten - You will forget all this at birth. We are all born with all of these capabilities - our early experiences lead us into a physical world, away from our spiritual selves, so that we become doubtful, cynical and lacking belief and confidence. The ten Rules are not commandments, they are universal truths that apply to us all. When you lose your way, call upon them. Have faith in the strength of your spirit. Aspire to be wise - wisdom the ultimate path of your life, and it knows no limits other than those you impose on yourself.

This summary is merely a brief outline and simply does not do the book justice, nor the wisdom within it. If you are interested in making the most of your life, and helping others do the same, buy Cherie Carter-Scott's book 'If Life Is A Game, These Are The Rules'.

Quotes of the Week

2009-10-19T16:06:00.000+08:00

"So many assume the truth is either black or white... It's all evolution or it's totally creation, for example. Reality creates consciousness; consciousness creates reality. Actually truth is inclusive, neither black nor white, nor a shade of grey. Indeed, truth is a multicolored spectrum, a beautiful hologram!" --Peter Shepherd

"Freedom is actually a bigger game than power. Power is about what you can control. Freedom is about what you can unleash." --Harriet Rubin

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life and don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. Most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become." --Steve Jobs

The Six Mistakes of Man

2009-10-18T08:32:00.002+08:00

This is a chapter from Dr. Wayne Dyer's book entitled "Wisdom of the Ages". Let me copy down the 6 mistakes so that you can ponder and reflect on your mistakes.

The illusion that personal gain is made up of crushing others.
The tendency to worry about things that cannot be changed or corrected.
Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it.
Refusing to set aside trivial preferences.
Neglecting development and refinement of the mind, and not acquiring the habit of reading and study.
Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do.

MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO (106 B.C. – 43 B.C.)

Let me dwell on No. 2, as "First it makes no sense t worry about the things you have no control over, because if you have no control over them, it makes no sense to worry about them. Second, it makes no sense to about the things you do have control over, because if you have control, it makes no sense to worry."

I am sure you would be having your favourites and if you want me to explain the ones that you like, please let me know.

For further reading, please visit this site http://www.spiritsite.com/writing/waydye/

A Paradigm For Nothing

2009-10-16T17:20:00.002+08:00

This is taken from my collection of conversations for transformation by Landmark Education. I just wanted to share this with you and please read between the lines to appreciate the deep philosophy involved here.

This essay is the a collection of six on Nothing:

1. Nothing

2. There Is Nothing To Get

3. High Class Zen

4. Joshua Is Doing Nothing

5. A Paradigm For Nothing

6. Nothing We Can Achieve

Keep your fingers out of the machinery. Notice your tendency to want to fix the machine. That is your most human quality. But the machine is already fixed. Actually it never was broken. It doesn't need you to fix it. The machine is OK the way it is.
This is the way it turned out. It turned out this way whether you have an opinion or not that it should have turned out this way or differently. Be gracious with the outcome. Your energy is better spent being with it rather than resisting it or arguing with it.
Life is a roller coaster. You can ride it with joy and deliberation. Or you can resist riding it and simply be taken along held captive for the ride. But you can't avoid riding it because being born you already chose to ride it. Choosing again newly what you already chose is an opening allowing you to move on.
Some experiences are unpleasant. Some experiences are pleasant. We avoid unpleasant experiences and we prefer pleasant experiences. Consider that both avoidance and preference are machinery and therefore automatic. Choosing the experience you are experiencing, whatever it is, and being with it is mastery.
You have no access to knowing what drives another to do what they do. None. Everything anyone does occurs for you the way it occurs for you because of who you are not because of who they are and not because of what they do and especially not because of what they do to you.
Arguably the damnedest trap of being human is the futility of pretending that there is an "out there" out there. All righteousness is enslaved to that. What there is for you is a world occurring congruent with who you are being. Owning the occurring world gives choice in the matter, in all matters.
Disclaimer: This is not my work.

It takes time to heal

2009-10-14T17:41:00.003+08:00

I have been rather impatient with the progress of my healing; not realizing that I had a major surgery (open heart) where they had cut my sternum and it takes time to heal. I came to terms that I have be patient after I read this chapter on Patience from the book titled "Wisdom of the Ages" by Wayne W. Dyer.

Do not be desirous of having
things done quickly. Do not
look at small advantages.
Desire to have things done
quickly prevents their being
done thoroughly. Looking
at small advantages prevents
great affairs from being
accomplished.

Confucius (551 B.C – 479 B.C)

I am feeling restless as I want to get back to normal life but if I apply my impatience, then I will be preventing the healing process. There is another proverb from the book, "With time and patience the mulberry leaf becomes a silk gown", and also he says that impatience breeds fear, stress and discouragement. So let nature take its own course and have a stress free existence.

Quotes from "The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari" by Robin Sharma

2009-10-13T10:14:00.002+08:00

I would love to share the following quotes by Robin Sharma from his book "The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari". I have read this book a couple of times but what got me was when I was in the Hospital after my heart attack waiting for my surgery, the book had a profound impact as I could identify myself with Julian on how he had valued work more then life and had neglected it...until he had a heart attack...and that gave him a second lease of life...where he changed ....in life we never treasure anything as we take things for granted...until we are hit by "the lightning" or given a shock treatment....thats when we wake up...like I did ....so please "WAKE UP"....before it is too late...enjoy the little pleasures in life...take time to see the sunset...

Here are the Quotes:

# "Blaming others is nothing more than excusing yourself.."

# "Learn More to Earn More"

# "We receive from life not what we want but who we are".

# "Good people strengthen themself ceaselessly"

# "The most satisfied and enlightened people realize that successful and dynamic living starts from within. Before you can care for others, you must care for yourself."

# "SOW THINKING REAP ACTION, SOW ACTION REAP HABIT, SOW HABIT REAP CHARACTER,SOW CHARACTER REAP DESTINY"

# "Everything that happens in your life is beautiful"

# "The mind is a wonderful servant, but a terrible master"

# "It's not what you will get out of the books that is so enriching ,it is what the books will get out of you that will ultimately change your life"

# "Those who don't make time for exercise will eventually have to make time for illness"

# "What you resist will persist; what you befriend, you will transcend"

# "Before someone will lend you a hand, you must touch their heart"

# "Be the change that u wish to see most in your world"

# "Your Schedule Doesn't Lie"

# "I am more than I appear to be, all the worlds strength & power rests inside me"

# "We don't laugh because we are happy. We are happy because we laugh".

# "Wake-up Early, Life is Short ,what if today is the last night of my life, so enjoy life to the full" !!

# Become a Will-Power Warrior!!!

# "Pain is a wonderful teacher"

# "Those who find shall seek"

# "Never overlook the power of simplicity"

# "The less you focus on the result sooner it will come"

# "The difference between your planning and action is the measure of your lack of perfection". They keep making their today better than yesterday. The best stars have infinite energy and appetite for stretching their personal frontiers and improve each and every area of their lives."

# "A man is as old he feels, the energy to keep improving keeps them young at heart and provides positive thinking mind body and soul."

# "Health is very important part of the whole system of causing immortality and longevity."

# "Perfect health is physical, mental, social and economic well being"

# "Wealth is not only measured by how much money you have, it is also measured by how much you are at peace within"

# "Kindness is the rent we must pay for occupying space on this little planet"

# "I am an artist at living - my work of art is my life"

# "The Price of Discipline is higher than the Pain of Regret"

# "Clarity precedes mastery, unless u r clear about what exactly u want to accomplish in life you are always running behind a mirage and u fret and fume on yourself and this is just a process of self destruction.

# "AWARENESS PRECEDES CHOICE,CHOICE PRECEDES RESULTS".

# "Winners have two types of courage – the courage to act and the courage to endure – and they never quit regardless of the circumstances. Understanding that they are bigger than their circumstances is what gives them the courage to succeed"

# "When you were born, you cried while the world rejoiced. Live your life in such a way that when you die, the world cries while you rejoice.

# "We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark. The real tragedy of life is when an adult is afraid of the light."

# "Learn to say NO Learn to say NO back when you are saying YES to an unimportant thing, you are saying NO to an important one"

# "Work hard & get lucky"

# "I like that thing that he says on FEAR in Monk book..... its really inspiring..do things that u fear....do things that u r comfortable....get out of your comfort zone"

# "Here are no limits for a person who accepts no limits."

# "When one door closes another opens. But we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we fail to see the one that has opened for us."

# "Either you set your goals and, in doing so, have your life governed by choice or you do nothing and gave your life governed by chance."

# "When u were born u cried while d world rejoiced....live life in a way such that when you die...the world cries while u rejoice in peace"

# The PURPOSE of life is life of Purpose!!!

# You are meant to Shine!

# This is Robins Ultimate Quote

# When You were Born,You Cried while the World Rejoiced,Live your life in such a way that when u die,the world cries while you rejoice.

# You Can be a Fool for Five Minutes if you ask a Question, however u r a FOOL for A LIFETIME if you hesitate to ask a question!!!!

# On your deathbed you will never wish,you spent more time at the office.

# Destiny unfolds according to the choices one makes

# Sow a character,you reap your destiny

# We are all here for some special reason. Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future.

# The most noble thing you can do is to give to others. Start focusing on your higher purpose.

# Time slips through our hands like grains of sand, never to return again. Those who use time wisely from an early age are rewarded with rich, productive and satisfying lives.

# Wage war against the weaker thoughts that have crept into the palace of your mind. They will see that they are unwanted and leave like unwelcome visitors.

# The Universe favors the brave. When you resolve to lift your life to its highest level, the strength of your soul will guide you to a magical place with magnificent treasures.

# Never forget the importance of living with unbridled exhilaration. Never neglect to see the exquisite beauty in all living things. Today, and this very moment, is a gift. Stayfocused on your purpose. The Universe will take care of everything else.

# The secret of happiness is simple: find out what you truly love to do and then direct all of your energy towards doing it. Once you do this, abundance flows into your life and all your desires are filled with ease and grace.

# DO YOUR BEST AND LET LIFE DO THE REST!!!

# NOTHING FAILS LIKE SUCCESS - From the Greatness Guide

# The bow too tightly strung is easily broken.

# Clarity precedes mastery.

# Every action is the offspring of a thought.

# Your thinking will create your reality.

# The price of greatness is responsibility."

# When you give your best to life, life gives it's best to you".

# The last one percent most people keep in reserve is the extra percent champions have the courage to burn.

# Live life as you would not be live tomorrow.

# You can't do good if you don't feel good. - Plato

# -adding value to others (from clients and co-workers to people in our communities)

# "Remember that we become our conversations. Our lives eventually look like the people we associate with. Surround yourself with people who are innovative, passionate, interesting, provocative, caring and doing great things and your life cannot help but get better."

# You Find What You Seek
# Every second you spend thinking about what you don't want in your life is a second denying focus and energy from getting what you do want. Every minute you worry about what's not working is a minute drawn away from creating what will work. And every hour spent reflecting on the disappointments of the past is an hour stolen from seeing the possibilities that your future holds.

# What I've discovered in my own life is that I see more of what I look for. Clarity precedes mastery (big idea there) and the more clearly I look for what I want, the more powerfully I generate that result in my life.

Quotes of the Week

2009-10-12T16:50:00.004+08:00

"Many of our fears are tissue paper thin, and a single courageous step would carry us clear through them." --Brendan Francis

"Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood." --Marie Curie

"Love is what we were born with. Fear is what we learned here. The spiritual journey is the relinquishment, or unlearning, of fear and the acceptance of love back into our hearts." --Marianne Williamson

Quit Smoking

2009-10-11T20:27:00.001+08:00

Just felt like sharing this article and also as a reminder for those who are still smoking....for heaven's safe ...please stop.

When smokers quit, within twenty minutes of smoking that last cigarette the body begins a series of changes.

At 20 minutes after quitting:

blood pressure decreases
pulse rate drops
body temperature of hands and feet increases

At 8 hours:

carbon monoxide level in blood drops to normal
oxygen level in blood increases to normal

At 24 hours:

chance of a heart attack decreases

At 48 hours:

nerve endings start regrowing
ability to smell and taste is enhanced

The first year after quitting:

At 2 weeks to 3 months:

circulation improves
walking becomes easier
lung function increases

1 to 9 months:

coughing, sinus congestion, fatigue, shortness of breath decreases

1 year:

excess risk of coronary heart disease is decreased to half that of a smoker

Long-term Benefits of Quitting

At 5 years:

from 5 to 15 years after quitting, stroke risk is reduced to that of people who have never smoked.

At 10 years:

risk of lung cancer drops to as little as one-half that of continuing smokers
risk of cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas decreases
risk of ulcer decreases

At 15 years:

risk of coronary heart disease is now similar to that of people who have never smoked
risk of death returns to nearly the level of people who have never smoked

See also:

www.ffsonline.org

A VERY TOUCHING AND EMOTIONAL POEM....PLS PASS IT ON!!

2009-10-10T20:41:00.006+08:00

I went to a party Mom,
I remembered what you said.
You told me not to drink, Mom,
So I drank soda instead.

I really felt proud inside, Mom,
The way you said I would.
I didn't drink and drive, Mom,
Even though the others said I should.

I know I did the right thing, Mom,
I know you are always right.
Now the party is finally ending, Mom,
As everyone is driving out of sight.

As I got into my car, Mom,
I knew I'd get home in one piece.
Because of the way you raised me,
So responsible and sweet.

I started to drive away, Mom,
But as I pulled out into the road,
The other car didn't see me, Mom,
And hit me like a load.

As I lay there on the pavement, Mom,
I hear the policeman say,
"The other guy is drunk," Mom,
And now I'm the one who will pay.

I'm lying here dying, Mom.....
I wish you'd get here soon.
How could this happen to me, Mom?
My life just burst like a balloon.

There is blood all around me, Mom,
And most of it is mine.
I hear the medic say, Mom,
I'll die in a short time.

I just wanted to tell you, Mom,
I swear I didn't drink.
It was the others, Mom.
The others didn't think.

He was probably at the same party as I.
The only difference is, he drank
And I will die.

Why do people drink, Mom?
It can ruin your whole life.
I'm feeling sharp pains now.
Pains just like a knife.

The guy who hit me is walking, Mom,
And I don't think it's fair.
I'm lying here dying
And all he can do is stare.

Tell my brother not to cry, Mom.
Tell Daddy to be brave.
And when I go to heaven, Mom,
Put "GOOD BOY " on my grave.

Someone should have told him, Mom,
Not to drink and drive.
If only they had told him, Mom,
I would still be alive.

My breath is getting shorter, Mom.
I'm becoming very scared.
Please don't cry for me, Mom.
When I needed you, you were always there.

I have one last question, Mom.
Before I say good bye.
I didn't drink and drive,
So why am I the one to die?

Someone took the effort to write this poem. So please, forward this
to as many people as you can. And see if we can get a chain going
around the world that will make people understand that don't mix drinking
and driving.

PLEASE DO THE FAVOR

What it takes to get the crowd in....

2009-10-10T20:02:00.003+08:00

Sounds like a restaurant or a shopping mall? No I was talking about my blogs and I don't see many bloggers commenting on what I write. I do see a lot of visitors but they could be window shopping or they must have wandered into my blog accidentally. So what does it really takes to pull the crowd?

I guess by now you must have been sick of reading stuff about my heart attack and all the minute details that I am giving you. Now who in the hell would actually have a heart attack and have the time to blog? Beats me!!! So can I list down my suggestions to get the crowd in and not that I have so many of them at my blogs that I don't have time replying.

Write controversial articles.
Visit other bloggers and leave your comments.
Have an interesting template.
Update your blogs on a regular basis.
Post a lot of photos.
Be as witty as possible.
Think before you write.
Have a camera handy so that you can take candid photos for your blogs.
I am out of ideas....at this stage.

So spare me the agony....and if you visit my blog...just write anything ....to leave your footprint....

Looking back into the past and seeking what is in store for me?

2009-10-08T23:07:00.002+08:00

I was going through my blog on what I was doing at about the same time last year. I was with Ho Hup Construction Company Berhad and was in charge of Bukit Jalil project. I came back from India by the end of July 2008 and made a few trips after that to sort out the litigation with the Housing Board.

Was I dissatisfied with my work? I guess so and being stuck at a housing development project was not my cup of tea. Now the excitement came back into my life when I left Ho Hup and joined Econpile and took charge of a project in Johor and the pressure was really exciting and I got my adrenaline pumping back. Maybe the problem was that I was pushing myself very hard and wanted to complete the job in record time with savings for the company.

Now that I had my heart attack on site and I am to take rest until middle of November 2009, I have to relook at all my options. Where would I be next year from now? The answer is very simple, I wouldn't know. But if I have my way, I would like to be back doing what I was doing before. Take charge of a site but this time around I would like to be in Kuala Lumpur and no more outstation jobs (but that doesn't give me that much options huh).

And there is no ifs and buts for me to take care of my health and also my diet as I know what I was filling myself in Johor. They say God only gives you a chance and I have used that up and I have to last at least another 15 to 20 years. I want to see my grandchildren and maybe want to play with them.

They say that the best medicine after the CABG is a positive attitude and I guess I have plenty of it at the present moment. Anyway I am thankful to the almighty that I am still alive and kicking.

I haven't really answered my question.....more of looking into the past....well I have to get out of this rut....and start putting this heart attack thing in the past....

It’s been a month since my heart attack

2009-10-06T11:12:00.003+08:00

How time flies and it is my first month anniversary since my heart attack. It happened on a Sunday in Johor Bahru, which is about 350 km from Kuala Lumpur. I was in charge of the Iskandar Waterfront Development project comprising of foundation works, bored piles and spun piles. The contract duration was 5 months and I managed to get ahead of schedule and things wer moving on smoothly until I had a heart attack.

I guess the heart attack was slotted for me from upstairs but only the timing. I guess I am lucky with the timing as I had it just before the Id or the Muslim festival of Idulfitri, otherwise things would have been pretty messy with the entire highway jammed with travellers and the hospitals working on half strength. The worst case scenario would be I might be travelling on the highway and God only knows what I would have done if I had the attack while I was on the highway, maybe pop in a few anti-acid tablets and maybe get a one way ticket to heaven.

What has changed in my life ever since the heart? I feel the same but I know there are certain things that I have to give up for good. Maybe I will list them down:

Smoking
Drinking(maybe moderate)
Cut down on salt
Eliminate fried food
No more fast food
Reduce the oil
Avoid outstation job
Avoid stressful working conditions

But then there are quite a few things that I have to strictly follow up which includes:

Exercise
Avoid eating outside
Learn to relax
Lose weight

I have to take rest until November 15^th and I have to recover well so that I can get back to normal life.

Quotes of the Week

2009-10-05T18:04:00.000+08:00

"We have to do the best we can. This is our sacred human responsibility." --Albert Einstein

"Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were and ask why not." --George Bernard Shaw

"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." --T. S. Eliot

My Sunday writing on CABG

2009-10-04T09:45:00.002+08:00

It's about 8.00 am and I have already finished my breakfast of oats and a cup of tea with skim milk (it really taste awful). Now what shall I write or share with you that would be helpful. And the best topic that I can think of at the moment is sharing with you my experience of undergoing a CABG operation. I have been searching for blogs which can help me clear all my doubts that I have on my mind and there don't seem to be much on the web.

For those who has been diagnosed with heart problems or had a heart attack and the Doctor has informed you after angiogram, boy you sure do have a lot of blockages and we can't do angioplasty due to blah....blah....blah... and they refer you to a surgeon. He will talk to you on what he is going to do....so to say the best option based on the reports and the condition that you are in. In my case I was relieved to know that I had 3 major blocks and look at the bright side, I was in a position to discuss with the Doctor on the CABG and I didn't just existed off this face of the earth on 06.09.09 (that's when I had my heart attack). Anyway getting down to business, he told me that there was a risk factor of 3% etc... etc... but I just asked him what his fatality was? And my Doctor told me it was zero out of 400 odd operations that he had performed. So that settled it and the other thing that I asked him was the cost of the operation? I had my savings and I guess I don't have a choice and when it comes to the matter of the heart, I rather spend what it takes and that too I am having a surgeon who had operated on our ex-Prime Minister twice, so what more credentials do I need?

So the date was fixed by my surgeon and it was on 17.09.09. I was discharged 1 week before the surgery and was told to take rest. How could I take rest, when I knew that I had 3 blogs and I was a walking time bomb? Anyway I manage to get things done, went to Putrajaya to get my wife's citizenship done and the following day, to sort things out with EPF and later y banking works.

On 16^th of September 2009, I checked in to Subang Jaya Medical Centre, we took a cab and the driver was very kind to wish me all the best. The Doctor explained the whole procedure and the nurses also showed the ICU, where I would be placed after the surgery. It was all like a dream and I just let everything flow by and I never doubted my operation and the Doctor. I know that I would be fine.

The operation went on schedule at 9.30 am and I was wheeled out by 4 pm. I did manage to say something to my wife. It was like a dream, I remembered nothing, just went to sleep and when I woke up everything was done. I was on morphine and it really took away my pain. For the next 2 ½ days I was in the ICU and the nurses took very good care of me and I was on my way to recovery. I was transferred to the normal ward on the 3^rd day. I had solid food minus the salt and oil but it was a good feeling that I was alive.

After the 7^th day I was discharged from the Hospital and I was at home. I was uncomfortable at first but then I got better and I could move around. I started my 30 minutes walk from the first day I was at home and my diet was like this:

Breakfast

2 slice of wholemeal bread with a little olive oil margarine or iddly sambar

A cup of tea with skimmed milk

Half bowl of oats

10.00 am

Tea – black

Low salt biscuits

Lunch

Brown rice

Chicken curry with less oil and no coconut/Fish curry/Tofu/Dhall

Vegetable

Fruits

3.00 pm

Tea- with skimmed milk

Low salt biscuits

Dinner

Same as lunch

9.00pm

Skimmed milk

Oats

So that gives you an idea of what I am eating. I read on the net that we should use maximum 1 tablespoon of cooking oil per day and cook with less salt. I had to take it easy with the fruits as I am a diabetic too and fruits that you should avoid would be:

Mangoes
Dragon fruit
Red apple
Grapes
Orange

I guess green apple and guava in moderation is ok but you have to check your blood sugar on a daily basis so that you can decide what to eat and what not to eat.

Above all I think what is important is that you have to take complete rest. And before I forget, for 3 weeks after surgery, please make sure that you don't wet your incisions, only have a sponge bath. Walk for 30 minutes and do your breathing exercise for your lungs.

Is there any questions that you have, please feel free to ask....

Blogging from Microsoft Word

2009-10-03T11:02:00.005+08:00

Ever since I am recuperating at home, I am looking at various ways whereby I can work on my blog and I always felt restricted when I work on blogger web page. You can do the blogging on Microsoft Word by pressing the Microsoft Button and open the new blank document and blog template. After that you have to register your blog i.e. mine was blogger and I keyed in the username and then the password and voila I am in for business.

I am waiting for a special day that is one week from today and it is when Nokia N97 releases its latest upgrade software V 2.0 which would bring the phones performance on par with iphone. Now if the upgrade is so important, why in the hell did they market the phone with version V 1.0 in the first place? Maybe it is to take suckers like us for a ride.

I have tried everything possible to make my stay at home as comfortable as possible and I just don't want to think about what is in store after November 15^th. I know something good would happen and I am going to take rest until next year 2010 as we would be shifting our house by December 15^th 2009. The present house is sold and this would really ease my financial situation as I have a son who is studying medicine in Moscow, MMA 2^nd year.

You life is a strange thing, I could have disappeared from the face of this earth on 06.09.09 as I had 3 major blocks but somehow God was kind to me. I actually had asked the Doctor to do an ECG on me and based on that result he had concluded that I was having a heart attack otherwise it would be business as usual and I would have collapsed somewhere with a major attack.

I had bought at least 6 DVD's a couple of days ago and so far I had watched 3 of them. I really love watching movies as it transports me back to a different dimension or world. It's like being enlightened.

So here goes....my blog from MS Word....

My walking area

2009-10-01T20:21:00.000+08:00

This is where I walk, at my residence and it is called Canal Gardens. You can see the oversized drain where the water is stagnant, whereby the surface runoff water from the highway is channelled to this so called Canal.
And we paid a premium for the Canal Gardens, in terms of view, it looks nice and green, and I guess with plenty of mosquitoes.

Anyway I shouldn't be complaining, I at least have an area to walk everyday sheltered from the traffic and pollutants. Thank God for the little mercies...and Thank God that I still could walk in the evening.

2 weeks after CABG Triple bypass

2009-09-30T15:54:00.000+08:00

Both the pictures were taken today as I had to make a trip to Subang Jaya Medical Center to sort out some issues and also to make a trip to the Pharmacist. I am feeling much better now compared to last week and I have a good appetite too minus the junk food. I have lost 6 kilo after the surgery and hope to lose another 5 kilo by the 15th of November 2009.

Quotes of the Week

2009-09-28T18:33:00.002+08:00

"True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose." --Helen Keller

"If you have made mistakes there is always another chance for you... you may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call failure is not the falling down, but the staying down." --Mary Pickford

"The truth in you remains as radiant as a star, as pure as light, as innocent as love itself." --James Lane Allen

What it feels like being at home...after a long journey with.....

2009-09-26T06:43:00.001+08:00

Taken with Dato' Dr. Rozali on 24.09.09

Has it ever occur to you that when you have an heart attack, the worst would be coming upon you and you are not in control of your life at that moment. Well that was what I felt on 06.09.09 as I lay in the emergency bed and knowing that I am having a heart attack. But at that moment everything seemed fine, I was on the phone calling my wife and later my boss. I didn't grasp the seriousness of the situation until the Doctor, knocked some sense into me and when I asked him when I can get back to work....he said...not for a long time...

The next question was....I want to get back to my home town in KL...and he said a flat no as I was not in a condition to travel....well that was some consolation..being 400 km away from Kuala Lumpur...

Anyway my BP and other stuff was stabilized by the evening but I was still at the CCU/ICU and they allowed me to be transferred to Subang Medical Center by an ambulance with 2 paramedics in it.

I was happy to be transferred and I slept through the journey and then it was back to square one, they put me in CCU and started all the tests and they prepared me for angiogram when I was stabilized the following day.

Now that was an eye opener for me, all the junk food, cigarettes, drinks, rich fat laden food along with my stress related work and being away alone all the time did show up....

I HAD 3 MAJOR BLOCKS.....thus the heart attack.....my Doctor Jeyamalar couldn't do her magic of angioplasty as my blocks were almost 100%....my wife cried...she asked what was next.....

I was referred to Dato' Dr. Rozali, the top notch surgeon who was involved for the CABG done on our former Prime Minister Dr. M....he explained the risks and the procedure to us....I only had one question to ask him...

"What is your fatality rate"....he replied he has done about 400 CABG...and "zero"...and I told him that was enough.......and I thanked God as I knew I was in good hands...

I was discharged and I had to spent a week at home before the surgery...they can't operate immediately after a heart attack ....now that was the tense part...I am waiting at home with a potential time bomb in my chest...

I was admitted again to the Hospital....and operated on 17.09.09 and on 19.09.09 was brought back to the normal ward...and I was discharged on 24.09.09, exactly one week after the Surgery....

I am feeling fine...otherwise I won't be blogging at 6.30 am....Thank God....now I am to take rest until 15th November 2009...

Recovering at the ward

2009-09-22T19:28:00.001+08:00

I had my triple bypass surgery on 17.09.09. I would be discharged on Thursday if everything goes well. They removed my bandage this morning and the incision on my arms are healing and also at the chest.
I was walking on the link bridge and enjoying the view thinking to myself...how lucky I am to be alive!
I would like to Thank God on his mercy shown upon me.

Out of action

2009-09-15T09:49:00.004+08:00

My outgoing phone line is temporarily deactivated by my company (as I had exceeded the budget allocated) and I still haven't gone for my surgery yet. Anyway...I have got a new mobile number....so that I am still in existence..

Anyway the bad thing is that I don't have any donors for the blood for me yet and the blood bank had called me on the seriousness of it. Anyway I hope all will be sorted out. I am sitting in my house alone and my phone is practically useless and my wife has gone to the post office to collect a very important registered letter.

A short blog just to inform what I am going through at the moment...

My wish list

2009-09-14T18:06:00.003+08:00

My operation day is getting closer by the day. I know it is something that I shouldn't be worried as the operation is for my own good. There are certain things that I have on my head which I would like to put it down in writing, so that I can reflect on what I was thinking before the triple bypass and how I would look at things later:

1. Would I be able to sustain myself with the same position with any company?

2. Do I have to slow down my activities?

3. Would I be able to earn as much as I am earning now?

4. I would love to live for at least another 20 years after my bypass.

5. I would love to be there for my son's graduation in Moscow.

6. I would love to buy another house as I am selling the present house.

7. Would I be successful if I start my own company so that I can work at my own pace.

8. Would I be happy if I change my line of work?

9. Would I stay away from the junk food, cigarettes, drinks, etc...

10. Would I be a wiser person after all this and offer help and advise to others?

To many questions....but let me answer them maybe 6 months from today......what do you say?

The week that wasn't

2009-09-13T09:16:00.006+08:00

The whole week was moving at a snails pace and it is a turning point in my life. The top photo was taken at my site, and below that was me at my office, guess I wasn't in the pink of health. Just above was a picture taken at KL International Airport, my son Prasad was leaving for Moscow and in the middle is my second son Nirmal. He seemed pretty upset when he heard that I had suffered a heart attack.

Just felt like sharing these photos and I am feeling kind of restless. Just about a week ago, it was a matter of life and death for me. Sometimes I wonder, life is actually a very fine thin line between death. I am grateful to God that he took care of me and .......it's just so difficult to express it.

It is going to be awhile after surgery for me to blog again as they say the pain takes time to heal. I have a lot of stuff in my head, now that I have to educate my son in Moscow and I have to send my second son to USA and would I be employed.....

Like they say....don't worry....God will Bless me.....

6 days after the heart attack

2009-09-12T10:33:00.001+08:00

I was discharged from Subang Jaya Medical Center on Thursday afternoon after my Doctor had reviewed the echo reading. It was okay for me to be discharged but that doesn't mean that I am ok per se.

I went to the Citizenship department with the help of my friends yesterday with a Doctor's letter in my hand to speed things up, they drove me and my wife there so that my wife could swore for her citizenship....a nice occasion but at a trying situation...so no celebrations after that....

Been on the net from yesterday and started reading Robin Sharma's "The Monk who sold his Ferrari" for the 3rd time but now I see the relevance of Julian Mantle....work, work, work and more work....anyway I won't get into the details...

The other reason that I was on the net is that I wanted to know what to eat after a heart attack and I have to be careful until my surgery date in order not to get another attack....

I hope and pray that everything works out well.....

I survived an heart attack this Sunday

2009-09-10T18:38:00.006+08:00

Surprised as it may sound....I had an heart attack on 06.09.09 on my site, I was about to get into my site but however I was feeling rather uneasy under my arms and chest. I thought it was indigestion based on the sumptuous meal that I had as then too I had the same discomfort. So I went to the nearest Doctor whom I had known many years back.

He gave me gastric medicines and I was not very happy with it and hence informed him about the ECG that I had done last Friday and the Doctor had mentioned that there was some irregularities in it. So this Doctor asked me whether I can bring over the results and since this clinic was far away, I asked the Doctor whether I can do another ECG at his clinic (now this probably saved my life).......

So he did one and after that he immediately asked me to get admitted into a heart hospital. So there I was with my safety officer tagging along (another person who was a saviour) and driving the car myself and walking in to inform the Specialist center with a heart attack.

I called my wife who was 400 km away and she started crying and after that they hooked me up on a lot of wires, my BP was stabilized and a lot of stuff was running through my mind....I thought this can't be it....life can't be this short...I have 2 boys....one to put through med school....

The Doctor said that I just didn't know what I had gone through and that I should this matter seriously. I insisted on being transferred to my hometown and my wife came over that night from KL.

The next day my condition was stabilized and I was transported to Kuala Lumpur by ambulance to Subang Medical Center which is very close to my house with my wife and two paramedics tagging along to make sure that I had a safe and comfortable journey....my blessings to them.

I was under the care of Dr. Jeyamalar and after they did my angiography, they found that I have 3 blocks and I am slotted for a by pass on 17.09.09. The Doctor who would operate me is Dato' Dr. Rozali Wathooth, who is a top heart surgeon in Malaysia.

So please pray for me....and I will blog after my surgery, when the health permits....till then my love to all who reads this blog.....my life had been one big roller coaster ride..... hope to enjoy many more rides.....

A sumptuous meal

2009-09-03T17:47:00.010+08:00

Pictures don't lie....had American Oyster, followed by steamed fish, steamed chicken, vege and mangoes at a Chinese restaurant near to my working site for lunch. And also they had this huge collection of eatables in the tanks and you'd be amazed with it.

So you can really select what you want to eat and it is really fresh.....like moving .....and the next moment it is right on the plate that they serve you...

Wet Monday morning

2009-09-02T15:45:00.000+08:00

The top picture was taken on a Monday morning in KL, you can see the Twin Towers amongst the jam and the 2nd picture was taken from my car, as I was on my way to my site which is about 400 km away from Kuala Lumpur and it was a very wet drive. Anyway I reached my site in one piece but my site was in a bad shape due to the rain. I had to wear my wellington boots to walk in the site and progress was down.

Wow !!! a Nokia Netbook

2009-08-27T16:24:00.000+08:00

Embrace Imperfection

2009-08-26T11:41:00.000+08:00

By Claudette Rowley

Does perfectionism plague you?
Do you wish you could loosen up and embrace "good enough"?
Do you procrastinate?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions, I encourage you to consider the merits of imperfection. In our culture, we are steeped in the idea that if it's not perfect, we've failed, something's flawed or just gone wrong. In fact, the dictionary definition of imperfection talks about flaws, weaknesses and a state of faultiness. I agree, on the surface, that's what imperfection looks like. But here's the truth: imperfection can be liberating.

The magic of imperfection lies in looking below the surface. Because we all know, at some level, that life is a deeply imperfect enterprise. It always has been, and I suspect that it always will be. Once we embrace that truth, many of our structures, beliefs and myths about perfection fall away like the scaffolding around a space shuttle.

What stops us from embracing imperfection? I've noticed that two basic beliefs are the main culprits. The first belief is "things should look a certain way and if they don't, there's a problem." The second belief follows closely on the heels of the first: "there's one right way to do things".

These beliefs obscure our ability to adjust our view. When you shift your lens to look beneath the surface of imperfection, you may notice an overlooked detail, beautiful vision or new possibility. It is this perspective that allows us to listen to ourselves, to see how the pieces of our lives fit together differently than we might have expected and that shifts our focus into one of clarity. If you watch what's really going on in your life, you'd be amazed. In our quest for perfection and our desire to meet our expectations, we miss much of what's available to us at any moment.

For example, good ideas often come to me in the shower. During a recent morning shower, an idea for another book popped into my head. My process was interesting to observe: I was upset that I hadn't received an email that I'd been waiting for, I was stressed and I was invested in the fact that things should look a certain way. I knew that I was attached to an outcome and yet still couldn't let it go. Then in the middle of my shower, several thoughts converged in my mind and sparked the next book idea. I was ecstatic. If I hadn't experienced that set of "imperfect" circumstances, I wouldn't have gotten the idea.

How can you embrace imperfection in your life? Instead of asking why, ask what and how. In other words, when faced with a situation that's less than ideal or you want something you're not sure how to attain, determine what you want and how you can get it. Understand the power of letting life unfold of its own accord; allow yourself to notice the energetic flow around you and choose to step into it.

Here are some signs that you've embraced imperfection:

You find yourself laughing more often
You experience more creativity in your life, more passion and greater sense of well-being
Your life has a richness, possibility or sense of joy previously limited
You've come to understand that being messy is a good thing

Learn to discern what can be "good enough" in your life, what can be imperfect and when excellence is required. Learn to distinguish between your true standards of excellence and your standards of perfection. Lift the veil of your expectations and see more clearly the beauty, joy and trust that were there all along.

Harness the power of imperfection.

Copyright © 2009 Claudette Rowley
Claudette Rowley, coach and author, helps professionals identify and pursue their true purpose and calling in life. Contact her today for a complimentary consultation at 781-316-1923 or by email[1]. Sign up for her free newsletter "Insights for the Savvy" at www.metavoice.org[2].

Quotes of the Week

2009-08-26T11:31:00.000+08:00

"Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending." --Carl Bard

"You will recognize your own path when you come upon it, because you will suddenly have all the energy and imagination you will ever need." --Jerry Gillies

"To be ignorant of one's ignorance is the malady of the ignorant." --Amos Bronson Alcott

Son leaves for Moscow

2009-08-24T15:29:00.001+08:00

How time flies so fast and I can remember he came back for holidays on 18.06.09 and I was posted to Johor Bahru with a new company. And before I can realize it, he left for Moscow yesterday for his 2nd year Medicine. I can count the number of times that I had come home to be with him, but he somehow seem to be on the computer all the time and he really relaxed during his break.

I see one year in Moscow had really changed him from the boy he was when he left and transformed him into a man. But to me he is always the little boy that I knew when he was growing up. I am posting a photo that I took with my latest gadget, Nokia N97. I always wanted a good camera phone and I guess I got no complains with this new acquisition.

Another year for him to come back .....

Taken at KLIA on 23.08.09

Quotes of the Week

2009-08-11T10:24:00.000+08:00

"To lead people, walk beside them... As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence. The next best, the people honor and praise. The next, the people fear; and the next, the people hate. When the best leader's work is done the people say, 'We did it ourselves'." --Lao Tzu

"Money like health, love, happiness, and all forms of success that you want to create for yourself is the result of living purposefully. It is not a goal unto itself." --Dr. Wayne Dyer

"Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to divine a purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: that man is here for the sake of other men." --Albert Einstein

Finally settled at my new job in JB

2009-08-05T18:26:00.001+08:00

All my hectic days have paid off as I am finally settled here with my new job. Things are moving on fine and my progress is in the positive zone. My meeting with the clients are ok and I am also making new friends at this state where I am working.

I have set up my office and also a routine for my staff and things are less hectic these days. But I know all good things doesn't last that long and so I might as well enjoy myself while I can.

Below is a snap shot of my site and you would understand what I do for a living....foundations....bored piles. And you can see a sea of machinery....

Quotes of the Week

2009-07-21T18:10:00.000+08:00

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow." --Melody Beattie

"Generosity is another quality which, like patience, letting go, non-judging, and trust, provides a solid foundation for mindfulness practice." --Jon Kabat Zinn

"Any person capable of angering you becomes your master; he can anger you only when you permit yourself to be disturbed by him." --Epictetus

Quotes of the Week

2009-06-24T14:08:00.000+08:00

"The consequence of living our lives at warp speed is that we rarely take time to reflect on what we value most deeply or to keep these priorities front and center. Most of us spend more time reacting to immediate crises and responding to expectations from others than we do making considered choices guided by what matters most to us." --Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz, The Power Of Full Engagement

"A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is ultimately to be at peace with himself." --Glenn Close

"Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, "This is the real me," and when you have found that attitude, follow it." --William James

Quotes of the Week

2009-06-15T21:22:00.000+08:00

"Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference. They bless the one who receives them, and they bless you, the giver." --Barbara De Angelis

"A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is ultimately to be at peace with himself." --Abraham Maslow

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." --Mark Twain

Last day of work

2009-06-15T14:14:00.002+08:00

Well today is finally my last day in my office. How does it feel to part with something that has been a part of life for the past 18 years? I have a sinking feeling feeling in my stomach and I am thinking to myself, 18 years of my life was wasted on a company that doesn't give a damn whether you exist or not. I have handed over my files and in the afternoon would be handing over my phone SIM card and my Toyota HiLux. Does it have to end this way? I have made millions for the company and the sort of gratitude that is shown here, my advice to others is ....detach yourself from the company as everything boils down to money and if you have found a better offer or if you feel that the company doesn't care for you, then leave and jump to a company that offers you better working atmosphere. Loyality doesn't pay these days and see what the other side is offering you and you make the best out of it.

Tomorrow I will drive down to the Southern State of Johor to start work and it's the same life for me all over again, away from home and back to travelling and living a bachelors life. I guess it's back to my books and my blogs again.

So wish me luck.

After 18 years

2009-06-10T08:45:00.003+08:00

Time just flies and it was just like yesterday that I joined my company. But as the saying goes, "All good things must come to an end", so my marriage with my company has come to the end of the road. Well don't get me wrong, the rule applies to other stuff besides marriage (I am happily married for the past 25 years).

I was very reluctant to hand over my resignation but with the change of management in my company and the shift from our core competency, I think it was time for me to move along. Like what M. K. Gandhi had said, "If you can't change the World, then you have to change yourself". So why should I go against the flow, best thing that I can do is look for another river.

In this modern day, loyalty does not exist and I know how hard I worked making money for the company and had completed some of the prestigious projects for them and in the end it all boils down to dollar and cents. Maybe they feel that I am a liability as over the years I have worked myself to the current position and also have accumulated a fat pay. Now with the economic downturn, I guess they can get a couple of fresh Engineers for my pay.

So I part the company with 18 years of experience and in terms of monetary loss for them based on the information that I had gained over the years is very difficult to quantify, as when I leave them to join another company, it would be my final goodbye.

And the best part of my resignation is that, I can say that I am still marketable and there are company's that even in bad times, have to recruit senior staff and what a relief it was for me, now that I have joined a company that does work which suits my experience and my options are open now and I am not tied to anyone or company.

Quotes of the Week

2009-06-08T21:04:00.000+08:00

"When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds: Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great, and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be." --Patanjali

"You will recognize your own path when you come upon it, because you will suddenly have all the energy and imagination you will ever need." --Jerry Gillies

"Wise and strong is he who leaves his heart open and searches without fear." --The Monna

Guy Walks Into a Bar...

2009-06-07T22:56:00.000+08:00

LEE CHILD

SHE was about 19. No older. Maybe younger. An insurance company would have given her 60 more years to live. I figured a more accurate projection was 36 hours, or 36 minutes if things went wrong from the get-go.

She was blond and blue-eyed, but not American. American girls have a glow, a smoothness, from many generations of plenty. This girl was different. Her ancestors had known hardship and fear. That inheritance was in her face and her movements. Her eyes were wary. Her body was lean. Not the kind of lean you get from a diet, but the Darwinian kind of lean you get when your grandparents had no food — and either starved or didn’t. Her movements were fragile and tense, a little alert, a little nervous, though on the face of it she was having as good a time as a girl could get.

She was in a New York bar, drinking beer, listening to a band, and she was in love with the guitar player. That was clear. The part of her gaze that wasn’t wary was filled with adoration, and it was all aimed in his direction. She was probably Russian. She was rich. She was alone at a table near the stage and she had a pile of A.T.M.-fresh twenties in front of her and she was paying for each new bottle with one of them and she wasn’t asking for change. The waitresses loved her.

There was a guy further back in the room, wedged on an upholstered bench, staring at her. Her bodyguard, presumably. He was a tall, wide man with a shaved head and a black T-shirt under a black suit. He was part of the reason she was drinking beer in a city bar at the age of 19 or less. It wasn’t the kind of glossy place that had a policy about under-age rich girls, either for or against. It was a scruffy dive on Bleecker Street, staffed by skinny kids trying to make tuition money, and I guessed they had looked at her and her minder and made a snap decision against trouble and in favor of tips.

I watched her for a minute, and then I looked away. My name is Jack Reacher, and once I was a military cop, with heavy emphasis on the past tense. I have been out nearly as long as I was in. But old habits die hard. I had stepped into the bar the same way I always step anywhere, which is carefully. One-thirty in the morning. I had ridden the A train to West Fourth and walked south on Sixth Avenue and made the left on Bleecker and checked the sidewalks. I wanted music, but not the kind that drives large numbers of patrons outside to smoke.

The smallest knot of people stood next to a place with half a flight of stairs leading up to its door. There was a shiny black Mercedes sedan parked on the curb, with a driver behind the wheel. The music coming out of the place was filtered and dulled by the walls but I could hear an agile bass line and some snappy drumming. So I walked up the stairs and paid a $5 cover and shouldered my way inside.

Two exits. One the door I had just come through, the other at the end of a long dark restroom corridor way in back. The room was narrow and about 90 feet deep. A bar on the left at the front, then some upholstered horseshoe benches, then a cluster of freestanding tables on what, on other nights, might have been a dance floor. Then the stage, with the band on it.

The band looked as if it had been put together by accident after a misfiling incident at a talent agency. The bass player was a stout old black guy in a suit with a vest. He was plucking away at an upright bass fiddle. The drummer could have been his uncle. He was a big old guy sprawled comfortably behind a small, simple kit. The singer was also a harmonica player and was older than the bass player and younger than the drummer and bigger than either one.

The guitarist was completely different. He was young and white and small. Maybe 20, maybe 5-foot-6, maybe 130 pounds. He had a fancy blue guitar wired to a crisp new amplifier and together the instrument and the electronics made sharp sounds full of space and echoes. The amp must have been turned up to 11. The sound was incredibly loud. It was as if the air in the room was locked solid. It had no more capacity for volume.

But the music was good. The three black guys were old pros, and the white kid knew all the notes, and when and how and in what order to play them. He was wearing a red T-shirt and black pants and white tennis shoes. He had a very serious expression on his face. He looked foreign. Maybe Russian, too.

I spent the first half of the first song checking the room, counting people, scanning faces, parsing body language. Old habits die hard. There were two guys facing each other across a table with their hands underneath it. One selling, one buying, obviously, the deal done by feel and confirmed with furtive glances. The bar staff was scamming the owner by selling store-bought beer out of an ice chest. Two out of three domestic bottles were legit, from the refrigerator cabinets, and then the third came from their own cooler. I got one of them. A wet label and a big margin. I carried the bottle to a corner seat and sat down with my back to the wall.

It was at that point that I saw the girl alone at her table, and her bodyguard on his bench. I guessed the Mercedes outside was theirs. I guessed Daddy was a B-grade oligarch, millions but not billions, indulging his daughter with four years at N.Y.U. and a credit card that never stopped working.

Just two people out of 80 in the room. No big deal.

Until I saw two other guys.

They were a pair. Tall young white men, cheap tight leather jackets, heads shaved by blunt razors that had left nicks and scabs. More Russians, probably. Operators, no question. Connected, no doubt. Probably not the best the world has ever seen, but probably not the worst, either. They were sitting far apart from each other but their twin gazes were trained on the girl alone at the table. They were tense, determined, to some degree nervous. I recognized the signs. Many times I had felt the same way myself. They were about to go into action.

So two B-grade oligarchs had a beef, and one was protecting his kid with drivers and bodyguards, and the other was sending guys around the world to snatch her. Then would come ransom, and extortion, and demands, and fortunes would change hands, or uranium leases, or oil rights, or coal or gas.

Business, Moscow-style.

But not usually successful business. Kidnappings have a thousand different dynamics and go wrong a thousand different ways. In my experience, average life expectancy for a kidnap victim is 36 hours. Some survive, but most don’t. Some die right away, in the initial panic.

The girl’s pile of twenties was attracting waitresses like wasps at a picnic. And she wasn’t shooing any of them away. She was taking one fresh bottle after another. And beer is beer. She was going to have to visit the restroom, soon and often. And the restroom corridor was long and dark, and it had a street exit at the end of it.

I watched her in the gaudy, reflected light, with the music shrieking and pounding all around me. The two guys watched her. Her bodyguard watched her. She watched the guitarist. He was concentrating hard, key changes and choruses, but from time to time he would lift his head and smile, mostly at the glory of being up on the stage, but twice directly at the girl. The first of those smiles was shy, and the second was a little wider.

The girl stood up. She butted the lip of her table with her thighs and shuffled out from behind it and headed for the corridor in back. I got there first. The sound from the band howled through it. The ladies’ room was halfway down. The men’s room was all the way at the end. I leaned on the wall and watched the girl walk toward me. She was up on high heels and she was wearing tight pants and her steps were short and precise. Not drunk yet. She was Russian. She put a pale palm on the restroom door and pushed. She went inside.

Less than 10 seconds later the two guys stepped into the corridor. I guessed they would wait there for her. But they didn’t. They glanced at me like I was a part of the architecture and shouldered in through the ladies’ room door. One after the other. The door slammed behind them. The music played on.

I went in after them. Every day brings something new. I had never been in a women’s bathroom before. Stalls on the right, sinks on the left. Bright light and the smell of perfume. The girl was standing near the back wall. The two guys were facing her. Their backs were to me. I said, “Hey,” but they didn’t hear. Too much noise. I caught them by the elbows, one in each hand. They spun around, ready to fight, but then they stopped. I am bigger than the Frigidaires they had been dreaming about back home. They stood still for a second and then pushed past me and pulled the door and headed out.

The girl looked at me for a moment with an emotion I couldn’t read, and then I left her to do what she needed to do. I went back to my seat. The two guys were already back in theirs. The bodyguard was impassive. He was watching the stage. The band was finishing up. The girl was still in the bathroom.

The music stopped. The two guys got up and headed back toward the corridor. The room was suddenly crowded with people standing and moving. I went over to the bodyguard and tapped him on the shoulder and pointed. He took no notice. He didn’t move at all, until the guitar player started backing away off the stage. Then he got up, the two movements perfectly synchronized, and I knew I had gotten it all wrong.

Not an indulged daughter. An indulged son. Daddy had bought the guitar and the amp and hired backup musicians. The boy’s dream. Out of the bedroom, onto the stage. His driver at the curb, his bodyguard watching all the way. Not a team of two from his rival, but a team of three. An adoring groupie. The boy’s dream. A classic honey trap. A last-minute tactical conference in the bathroom, and then action.

I shoved my way through to the back and got to the street well ahead of the bodyguard, just as the girl was hugging the boy and turning him through a half circle and pushing him toward the two guys. I hit the first one hard and the second one harder and got blood from his mouth all over my shirt. The two guys went down and the girl fled and then the bodyguard showed up. I made him give me his T-shirt. Bloodstains attract attention. Then I left through the front.

The obvious move would have been to turn right, so I turned left, and I got the 6 train at Bleecker and Lafayette, heading north, the last-but-one car. I settled in and checked the faces. Old habits die hard.

Lee Child is the author, most recently, of “Gone Tomorrow.”

This is a work of fiction.

Wise Words to Reflect on

2009-06-06T19:03:00.001+08:00

Wise Words To Reflect On

View more OpenOffice presentations from Oh Teik bin.

Quotes of the Week

2009-06-02T21:46:00.001+08:00

"If you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. And if they don't, they never were." --Kahlil Gibran

"Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens." --Carl Jung

"Friendship with one's self is all important, because without it one cannot be friends with anyone else in the world." --Eleanor Roosevelt

IN CONVERSATION WITH THE ALCHEMIST

2009-05-31T12:44:00.000+08:00

The creative process must be revered as a spiritual search, says Paulo Coelho, one of the world’s best-known authors. His quest straddled the conventional pilgrimage and hippiedom. But the answer was to be found in a basic humanity and social entrepreneurship, he tells Bachi Karkaria

Where do get your spiritual underpinnings? How much of this influences the way you are and the way you write? How much of Paulo Coelho, the man, and Paulo Coelho, the writer, can be attributed to your Roman Catholic upbringing?
I grew up, like almost all Brazilians, in a strictly Catholic family. Later, at the age of rebellion, I doubted Catholicism, and felt that I must try something new. Then I became a hippie. During this time, I travelled a lot, met people of different backgrounds, and learnt different paths to come closer to spirituality. After I did a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, I returned to the Catholic faith – just because it is in my blood, not because it is the best religion. I am a Catholic, but I don’t think you can put God in a church.
In the end, all religions tend to point to the same light. In between the light and us, sometimes there are too many rules. Some of these rules are important, other should not blind us or diminish the intensity of this light, the soul of the world.
You write a book once every three years. Do you spend the intervening time on researching the book or doing other things? For instance, how long did you take to pick up all the details of the film and fashion world which make your latest, The Winner Stands Alone, almost a work of faction?
Regarding the creative process, I only allow myself to write every two years because I feel that I’ve gathered enough emotional energy to come up with a story. Every time that I write a new book, I am experiencing the sensations of death and rebirth. When I write, I am a woman. I get pregnant from life, and I don’t know what the baby will look like.
My pregnancy cycle is what takes two years. During this time I don’t take notes, I don’t make plans. The only thing that I know is that life put inside me a seed that will grow when time comes. Then, when the time comes, I sit and write. Every creative act demands a respect for mystery, and I respect the mystery, without trying to understand it. For my latest book, The Winner Stands Alone, I was inspired by the Cannes Film Festival that I attend every year. There I had the possibility to understand the “behind-the-scenes” mechanism of the movie and fashion industries.
You’ve described yourself as an “internet junkie”. Is that a hip term or just New Age egotism?
An internet junkie is neither a hip term of a new age egotistical thing – it’s just a realization. I spend hours in front of the computer surfing the web and chatting with friends and readers.
To what do you attribute the huge success of The
Alchemist? (At 67 languages, it holds the Guinness record for being the world’s mosttranslated book). Given this,
are you weighed down by its baggage?
I really don't know why my characters are so popular in different parts of the world and in different cultures. I don’t have a ready-made formula to apply when I embark on a new book, but I’m always controlled by many elements: discipline, compassion and a sincere eagerness to understand myself. When I start a new book, I try to approach myself from a different angle. In The Alchemist, for example, I was trying to explain to myself what writing meant to me. The way I found to do this was through a metaphor. In Eleven Minutes, I started with the question of why sexuality is considered one of the major issues in life. But I had my doubts. And that’s why the hero asks if it's true that the world could revolve around 11 minutes. In The Zahir, there is a kind of a snapshot of my present moment as a famous writer. In The Winner Stands Alone, I wanted to explore the world of fashion and unravel why we tend to adopt dreams that are not our own so easily.
What difference does a book, even one that has sold millions of copies and is the most
translated, make to the
scheme of things?
First, I think you should define “the scheme of things” — what for you is the scheme of things.
For me, the scheme of things is to share my soul through writing. Books have always made a lot of difference in my world. They set me free when all those around me said that life had to be in a certain way and not in another. They enabled me to dream when all around me was trying to lure me to the great illusion of “security”.
For some people, music holds this sacred place, for others, medicine or gardening or cooking or religion… At the end of the day, the great scheme of things is the consequence of every individual choice.
In India, even mainstream
media is obsessed with celebrity culture, and the public, while pretending to be
snobbish about it, laps it up.
What does this say about a
society more interested in the divorce of a distant singer
called Madonna than in the
poverty it sees under its nose? Do you think “celebrification” is seen as part of a nation’s
entry into the Big League?
I am not here to judge the priorities of any given society. What I don’t understand in your question is the correlation between “celebrification” and “Big League Nations”. I don’t see how buying gossip magazines may raise the GDP of a country…
Furthermore, I don’t subscribe to the view that there are “Big League Nations” and “Minor League ones”. I grant that there are huge disparities but I think there is also an international community (despite the constant effort of the media to diminish this reality) that thinks and operates beyond this simplistic way of seeing the world. Not mentioning the string of social entrepreneurs that actively work towards a better equilibrium inside their societies.
Rio de Janeiro, like many big Indian cities, is undergoing
major change, physical and
social. Which of these disturbs you and which do you
celebrate?
In today’s world, disparities cross every single city (may it be in Brazil, India, the US or Europe). So in regards to the changes we see in all great cities of the world, I would say that:

• What disturbs me the most is the violence — which is the consequence of a profound rift in society: when those who are at its base are denied their intrinsic dignity.

• What I celebrate is the constant battle of the warriors of light that work without rest to shorten the disparities.
I met in the 90’s a mother and a daughter who were taking care of underprivileged children in a slum next to my house in Rio. They firmly believed that by granting these children chances they were changing the spiralling-down dynamic of poverty. I decided to join them in their fight to bring hope and change to these children and their families. The project today, called Solar Meninos da Luz, grants to more than 450 children education and many extra-curricular activities.
I think that changes start at the individual level and slowly tend to gain a social one: at my level, I’m trying to make a difference and this in my eyes, is reason enough for celebration.

I'm employed

2009-05-28T21:36:00.004+08:00

Yes... I got another job with the same pay and perks as my present job. Thank God for the miracle and the only snag is that I have join this company by the 16th of June 2009 and my notice period is up to 01st July 2009. Looks like I have to go for a pay cut and I can't afford to miss this opportunity as this is my dream job. I would be on a 6 months contract but I guess it shouldn't be a problem as I just want to get out from my present company.

I'm so happy today.

Holy smoke!

2009-05-25T15:02:00.003+08:00

Photo was taken from my site and God only knows what was burning as the sky turned dark.

Is this good news?

2009-05-20T22:11:00.000+08:00

Global economy to recover by year-end

Madrid: The pace of contraction in world economic output appears to be easing and recovery could begin at the end of this year, World Bank president Robert Zoellick said on Tuesday. “I’m neither an optimist nor a pessimist, I am uncertain, a realist. Clearly the fall has been interrupted. I think there’s a good chance that while we face declines, they will be smaller in size. The majority expect a recovery at the end of this year, at the beginning of next year,” Zoellick said.
Speaking ahead of a meeting with Spanish president Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Zoellick said financial market conditions were improving and urged developed countries to boost support to poorer states toensure a truly global recovery. “What you’ve seen is financial markets clearly showing signs of recovery in developed countries,” said Zoellick. “It’s not enough to focus on markets. If we don’t look at unused capacity in the global economy the recovery will be slower, so we have to make enough resources available to those who are weakest.” REUTERS

Do as your wife says to be happy: SC

2009-05-20T22:01:00.001+08:00

Dhananjay Mahapatra | TNN

New Delhi: Husbands wanting to lead a happy married life can rely on some useful tips given by the Supreme Court, the most important being: “Do what the wife tells you and never question her authority.”
The words of wisdom came from two ‘Bhuktbhogi’ judges — Justices Markandey Katju and Deepak Verma — during the inconclusive hearing of a 17-year-old divorce litigation between a serving lieutenant colonel and his wife. The vacation bench comprising these two judges asked the counsel whether there was any scope of compromise between the two and both in unison gave different reasons to say that there was no possibility for a happy ending to their dispute.
The wife’s counsel said that the Rs 10 lakh offered by the husband for complete settlement of the dispute and divorce was too little as it was not easy to bring up a teenaged daughter. While the trial court dismissed his divorce plea, the HC had allowed judicial separation. But on her appeal against this order, a division bench of the HC had granted divorce to him. Terming this order as erroneous, she had moved the apex court.
Justice Katju, while adjourning hearing on the case, decided that it was time for the husband to get a few tips from him about how to lead a happy married life.
“You should always agree with her. When you agree to what she says, you will always remain happy. If she tells you to look this way, do that. And if she tells you the next moment to look the other way, again do that,” Justice Katju said much to the amusement of the lawyers who were waiting to argue their cases before the vacation bench.
And to convince them about the usefulness of his advice, Justice Katju said: “We are talking from experience (Hum sab bhuktbhogi hain).”

Started my Earthwork

2009-05-18T20:07:00.007+08:00

Yes, this is my last project for my company. I have started the earthworks and it was my first day of site clearance. It seems they had seen a long cobra while clearing the site. Anyway I have taken some snap shots to share with you and the first photo is of a baby snake, dead though but it looked cute. It had black with white strips and could you guess what type of snake it is?

Going Through Suffering In Anticipation Of Joy

2009-05-15T22:35:00.001+08:00

Satsang: Swami Sukhabodhananda

Where and how do we search for God?
Remember that God is within you, but you don’t see Him because the one place you will never look is inside yourself. You will search everywhere, but never within yourself. Paradoxically, you lose sight of God because He is in you.
Now look at what God has given us. Our intelligence, buddhi, is a precious gift. Yet, are we loving and grateful enough to God who has given us all these?
Do we have even a little of the gratitude a dog has towards its master? No! That is why Dattatreya considers the dog as one of his gurus. Dattatreya draws four lessons from the dog.
A dog doesn’t count its misfortunes or grieve over them. A dog doesn’t live in the past. It doesn’t make long-term plans either. It doesn’t live in the future. It lives instinctively, from moment to moment.
A dog’s life is one unbroken straight line marked by love, devotion and gratitude to the one who sustains it. Devotion is its defining property.
Can we, like the dog, be always grateful to our Creator and Sustainer? Can we give up being miserable about our past misfortunes and mistakes?
These are disciplines we impose on ourselves. When we reach this stage, we will have achieved a mental state that looks with equal ease at happiness and sorrow, at misery and luxury; in short, we will have seen God in ourselves. This is the essence of the Sanskrit saying, Tat Tvam Asi, You are That. That is, you are the object of your search.
Why do you say we should learn to enjoy adversity?
When something is inevitable, when its occurrence cannot be prevented, it is better to go along with it rather than to resist it. The word “enjoy” here means, “make the best out of” something. Let me illustrate with an example.
A person is walking along a mountain ridge. He stumbles and falls. As he tumbles down the cliff, he sees the branch of a tree projecting from the cliff-face. He catches hold of that branch. As he is hanging there precariously, he sees his Guru standing on the top of the mountain. He asks the guru what he should do. There is no way the guru can help him physically. Instead, he tells him, “The left side of the valley below you is dry and thorny. The right side is lush and green. Look to the right and try to fall there. Now that the fall is inevitable, and you may be plunging to your death, enjoy the scenery during your last leap.”
Your assessment of any situation should be realistic. You must muster all your resources in protecting your interests. Understand the strengths and weaknesses of your adversary and be prepared to put up the stiffest resistance you can. At the same time, if you find yourself overpowered, try to work out the best bargain. In corporate parlance, for example, try your best to fend off a hostile takeover bid against your company. But if you see that it is unavoidable, try to get the best terms of a takeover.
At least some kinds of enjoyment involve a willingness to suffer some unpleasantness. You go for an Ayurvedic or any other kind of massage. Massage is good for health. Sometimes the masseurs use foot massage, using their body weight to apply different degrees of pressure on your body. It might be uncomfortable or even painful, but later, you feel refreshed and rejuvenated. You are bearing the unpleasantness in anticipation of the joy.

I finally did it

2009-05-12T20:43:00.003+08:00

After careful consideration and contemplation, I did what I ought to have done quite sometime back....I handed my resignation letter yesterday to my HR Manager. Boy what a relief it was, I got up bright and cheerful at 5.00 a.m. this morning, no baggage to carry or worries about work, delays or datelines. Later in the day I sent out faxes to my company secretary to relinquish my post as a Director for two companies and I have one more to write in too.

I know the economy is not good and I still haven't bagged my next job and my resignation notice is three months and I can offset it with one month of my leave. I took the bold step of resigning as I felt that dignity comes first and I am not going to elaborate on this but the fact is I did it finally.

What's next? I am sure that something good will come along the way if I start to look for it.

If anyone has a job for me....I'm available and willing to travel....anything in Project Management for a Civil Engineer with MBA....with 20 years experience....

I'm releasing my intention.....and I hope the Universe would respond.....

The Power of Belief

2009-05-05T21:53:00.000+08:00

By Peter Shepherd

Our beliefs strongly influence our behavior. They motivate us and shape what we do. For instance, it is difficult to learn anything without the belief that it will be pleasant and to our advantage. What are beliefs? How are they formed and how do we maintain them?

Beliefs are our guiding principles, the inner maps we use to make sense of the world. They give stability and continuity; they are stable data that helps us to make order out of confusion. Shared beliefs give a deeper sense of rapport and community.

Our Map of Reality
Beliefs come from many sources - upbringing, imitation of significant others, conclusions as a result of past traumas, and repetitive experiences. We build beliefs by generalizing from our experiences of the world and those of other people. Some beliefs come to us ready made from the culture and environment we are born into. When we are young, we believe what we are told about ourselves and the world, because we have no way of testing, and these beliefs may persist unmodified by our later achievements, because they had parental authority.

We become predisposed to believing what we are told, what we read and what we see on television, and try to adapt new information to fit our existing system of beliefs if we can. If we cannot fit information to the existing pathways, we refuse to believe the information. These are the filters and biases through which we perceive our reality.

When we believe something we act as if it is true; we have then made an investment of effort. This makes it difficult to disprove; beliefs act as perceptual filters - events are interpreted in terms of the belief, and 'exceptions prove the rule.' Beliefs are not just maps of what has happened, but blueprints for future actions.

Positive beliefs are permissions that turn on our capabilities; they are permissions to play and explore in the world of possibility. Limiting beliefs on the other hand, usually center around, 'I can't...' This may have seemed a valid statement at the past moment in time, but believing it is a description of your capability now and in the future will program your mind to fail, as it will prevent you finding out your potential capability.

Beliefs can be a matter of choice. They change and develop; we have new peers that we listen to, new authority figures and influences. We think of ourselves differently, we marry, divorce, change friendships and act differently because our beliefs change. We can create new limiting beliefs or we can create new empowering ones; our life is not fixed in stone - we retain our freedom to choose. We have each created many beliefs about our possibilities and what is important in life, and we can change them.

Beliefs do not of course just apply to other people's statements or to dogma, they may apply to our own judgments about other people and situations... "This is intolerable!" "I can't stand this any longer!" "She is simply awful to be that way!" "Everybody's against me!" When they are exaggerated and over-generalized, they are irrational and harmful beliefs to hold. In particular, they are self-defeating.

Our interpretations drive our emotions. When we have habitual interpretations they become beliefs that we identify with, and then our emotional responses become equally fixed and often highly stressful and inappropriate, and our actions follow suit.

Yes, We All Make Mistakes
We all do things we aren't proud of, we wouldn't be human if we didn't. Something that affects others in a way that we wouldn't be willing to experience ourselves. Sometimes we chose to act in a way that we know at the time isn't being true to ourselves, but it seems like a solution to our situation. Or maybe we are tempted to put our own interests first. Other times we may be carried away by emotions of anger or jealousy and do something out of spite we may later regret.

Or we don't do something, like helping a friend in need, which we know we really wanted to. Alternatively we may have the best of intentions, but things don't go as predicted, we make a mistake or realize something we have done was harmful, even though we didn't mean it to be.

These sorts of actions can leave us feeling ashamed and depressed, and we can end up carrying our guilt for years, but if we want to live happy lives, we need to take responsibility for the consequences of our behavior and move on.

Taking Responsibility
Feeling guilty shouldn't be confused with taking responsibility for our past. Responsibility means that we make a concerted effort to change the behavior pattern that resulted in the mistaken choice, and the beliefs and feelings that empowered it. We need to move on by making peace with the past.

The natural tendency when we do something without integrity is to try to justify our actions, to make ourselves right. Or we may say the action was deserved, making the other person wrong. Both of these are avoiding the reality, by denying our own sense of truth and our own responsibility for our actions. We avoid our feelings of guilt by pretending it wasn't a mistake or misconceived choice that we acted on, indeed it was 'right.' We avoid our feelings of shame (feeling bad about how others perceive us) by pretending that it is the other who should be ashamed.

The problem isn't the harmful action or making a mistake - that's happened and can't be undone. The problem is what we tell ourselves afterward. Whether we are honest or if we lie to ourselves. It is that lie which causes all the damage to our own integrity and to further relationships with the other we have wronged. We need to drop our defenses, drop the lies we may have told ourselves to hide the truth, face up to the reality of our actions and their consequences - and forgive ourselves.

There is a big bonus to being realistic and truthful - we can learn the valuable lesson that the experience offers us. Indeed, it's only when we have learned that lesson that we can let go of the past error and live our life as truly ourselves in the present. To forgive ourselves we need to learn the lesson. Forgiveness has nothing to do with feeling sorry or apologizing, neither of which actually changes anything. From a higher perspective there is no right or wrong. There are choices and experiences. There is cause and effect. And neither can forgiveness be given by another; it has to be granted by ourselves. Unless we can truly forgive ourselves, we can never really move on and be free of the past.

What gets in the way of this forgiveness is judgment that I am a bad person. I need to separate my inherent worth from my actions. I am basically a loving being, I know that. We all are. Actually I am not even my thoughts and feelings. I create these and sometimes through ignorance or misguidedly I create them inappropriately, and my consequent actions can result in hurt for others. Then the best I can do is to learn from that so in the future I can create more truly to my nature. I need to realize that my earlier choice was a result of my ignorance - I didn't know what I can now see to be the lesson from the experience.

Moving Forward
Personal transformation occurs when we free ourselves to reflect upon and revise our beliefs. This becomes easier to do when existing solutions, assumed truths and past decisions have been exposed as unrealistic and self-defeating. That's why each error, mistake or failure that we make presents an ideal learning opportunity.

Life is a journey of learning and the most worthwhile learning is derived from our personal experiences. When things go as we want, because we have good information and appropriate beliefs, then our learning is reinforced by this positive feedback. When things go astray, because we have faulty information and inappropriate beliefs, then we and those at the effect of our actions suffer. But here we have a chance to learn something new. Much of our new learning and personal growth does therefore come about as a result of painful experiences; provided we are willing and open to learn those lessons.

If we wish to grow and to use our experiences beneficially, it is vital that we focus on what we can learn rather than resisting the reality of what occurred. Find something you did (or failed to do) that you still feel bad about, which you regret, or that makes you feel ashamed. Now begin to take meaning and value out of this experience. Ask yourself: "What has this taught me about myself, about others, and about my life?" Based on this lesson, work out what beliefs you need to change, what fixed ideas you can let go of, what assumptions you made before that are no longer helpful.

S U B V E R S E SECOND OPINION

2009-05-04T21:26:00.000+08:00

Times of fear

Jug Suraiya

Beware. This newspaper that you are reading is a carrier of the most infectious and contagious, as well as the oldest, disease known to humankind: fear. Thanks to the so-called swine flu — now renamed H1N1 by the World Health Organisation (WHO) — fear is having a field day. Newspaper and television headlines blazon the dire prognosis: the world could be facing the gravest health threat ever since the influenza epidemic of 1918-19 which claimed over 50 million lives, more than the death toll of both World Wars combined. With 13 countries — from Mexico and the US to Switzerland and New Zealand — having reported cases of the disease, WHO has raised the global health alert to a phase five level, just one short of a pandemic. The Mexican government has virtually shut the entire country down for five days in a bid to stem the spread of the disease.
It’s enough to scare the living daylights out of anyone. And even if H1N1 blows over with little or no real damage done, as happened in the case of the almostequally dreaded SARS, the media is full of ancillary stories of the financial harm it’s doing to an already ailing global economy. In other words, even if H1N1 doesn’t get you directly, it’ll get you indirectly, through your bank account. Or rather, your lack of it.
If all that still doesn’t scare you, don’t worry. There’s even more fearful news. Taliban militants in Pakistan could seize control of that country’s nuclear weapons with catastrophic consequences, not just for the subcontinent but for the whole world. And that’s so scary that for a moment we forget to be scared by H1N1, or the global economy.
Fear — of anything, of disease, death, destruction, financial ruin — is the biggest, oldest and most self-sustaining epidemic of them all. There is a popular conception that the media create this fear and pander to it to propagate themselves on the basis of the dictum that bad news sells and worse news sells even better. This is not true. While the H1N1 health scare is indeed being exploited on the internet by peddlers of quack medications claiming to cure everything from impotence to baldness, mainstream media by and large have long realised that while bad news certainly can sell more copies of a newspaper or attract larger viewership of a news channel for a while, scare-mongering is a losing proposition in the long run. This is because those who cry ‘Wolf !’ too loudly and too often are subject to the law of not only diminishing credibility but also — and more importantly — diminishing advertising revenues. Advertisers don’t like their products to be associated in the public mind with doom and gloom. It’s bad for business.
Fear doesn’t sell because of the media; fear sells despite the media. Fear sells because all of us want to buy it. We are programmed to do so, not by media-generated paranoia but through millions of years of evolution, which favoured the survival of those of our proto-human ancestors who were swiftest in their flight-or-fight response from any real or anticipated threat. Fear is genetically encoded into us as the key to survival and the continuation of the species; evolution has always selected in favour of the fearful, those who had the sharpest antennae to sense danger and avoid it.
That said, the fear instinct does make us vulnerable to political chauvinism (Scared of Pak nukes? Let’s bomb them before they can bomb us!), religious hocus-pocus (Sign up for the True Faith and make H1N1 your passport to Heaven!) and pseudo-medical mumbojumbo (Take Brand X Snake Oil and protect yourself from all ailments, from rhinitis to recession!). We need to choose our fears as carefully as we choose our enemies. In fact, our choice of fear determines who our enemy is: Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, or H1N1. Or both. Or neither, but our fearful dependence on fear itself.

Did swine flu originate in Mexico-based US pig farm?

2009-05-03T22:39:00.001+08:00

Farm Authority Denies, But Says Samples Are Under Test

Subodh Varma | TIG

Till a few days ago, Edgar Hernandez was an unknown four-year-old boy living in a Mexican village. Today his innocent face is known the world over — he is the first confirmed case of swine flu. But how did Edgar get the swine flu virus? If you ask the villagers of La Gloria, where Edgar lives, they will point to the gigantic pig farm some 12 miles away.
This pig farm is part of a chain of similar farms controlled by one of the world’s biggest pig breeders and pork processors, Smithfield. Each of these has over 50,000 pigs. Reports appearing in the local press say that Smithfield owns 950,000 pigs in Mexico.
After the outbreak, Smithfield, based in Virginia, US, issued a statement saying that their facilities were not the origin of the current swine flu epidemic. But it admitted that its samples were under testing at the University of Mexico. So, the jury is still out.
Is a mega pig farm susceptible to generation of such new virus strains? Professor Vincent Racaniello, a virus expert from Columbia University, told STOI that it is very difficult to identify the exact source of origin of the virus. “The larger the farm, more the presence of swine viruses, and more the chances for contact between pigs and humans, hence more virus transfer likely from pig to human,” he said.
Last year, a report by the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health had also pointed out the dangers of new mutant viruses arising from industrial farms. These pig farms, or Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) as they are known in the trade, are not your tiny mom-and-pop farms — they are gigantic cradle-to-grave machines. The animals are packed in huge pens, fattened on a high calorie diet and shot full with all kinds of antibiotics to keep them alive.
The average sow in one of these farms produces 20 piglets rather than the normal six to seven because of artificial insemination and hormonal treatment.
Smithfield’s facility at Tar Heel, North Carolina, could slaughter and convert 2,000 pigs into tinned product per day.
Each pig also produces about 3 gallons of excreta per day. So, an average farm churns out about 150,000 gallons of toxic poop daily. Toxic not just because it contains all kinds of bacteria and viruses, but also because it is a cocktail of chemicals pumped into the hapless pigs as well as those used to clean up their pens. The excreta, along with dead piglets, is stored in huge lagoons surrounding the farms, causing an unbearable stench. It seeps into the ground water and often overflows during rains.
Such mega factory-farms emerged after the hog industry in the US went through a phase of dizzy consolidation in the 1990s. In 1980, there were 667,000 hog farms with an average of 101 hogs each. In 2006, there were less than 50,000 hog farms with an average of 1,701 hogs each. Smithfield rode the wave and emerged the tops. It owns an estimated 10 million hogs in the US alone and has a market share of 26% in the processed pork industry. It had revenues of over $12 billion in 2008.
Smithfield also holds the dubious distinction of having had to pay up one of the biggest ever penalties for environmental pollution — $12.6 million, in 2000. It was charged with 23 counts of violation including destruction of several river systems in North Carolina. “The processed meats industry is committed to a low-cost, high volume business model,” says writer Paul Roberts, who has studied the sector at length.

CONTAMINATING INNOCENCE : File photo of Edgar Hernandez, the first confirmed case of swine flu, playing at La Gloria, Mexico, about 12 miles away from a pig firm owned by Smithfield

Drying up

2009-05-02T14:55:00.005+08:00

My blog feed is drying up and the number of postings has dwindled like a pond facing the summer sun and there are crack lines all over the pond (even myself).

How life can be torcherous like the scorching sun, I am facing that currently with my new management. They just don't give a damn and we are expected to execute the work without any soldiers(downline staff) or like the pond which doesn't have any inflow of water to prevent it from cracking.

Started calling for other openings but things are pretty slow, earlier I wanted to get a new job with a higher pay but now I am so desperate that anything would do. My wife told me that in Oprah (TV show), she had siad there are two myths that we adhere to:

1. That our salary would rise with time

2. That the selling price of house would increase with time

I guess right now, that myth is busted. Our salary is shrinking with the economy and the price of house is also shrinking like our salary but the prices of essential commodities are not. Looks like we are drying up .....like the pond

Quote

2009-05-01T21:59:00.001+08:00

Listen to the Exhortation of the Dawn!
Look to this Day!
For it is Life, the very Life of Life.
In its brief course lie all the
Verities and Realities of your Existence.
The Bliss of Growth,
The Glory of Action,
The Splendor of Beauty;
For Yesterday is but a Dream,
And To-morrow is only a Vision;
But To-day well lived makes
Every Yesterday a Dream of Happiness,
And every Tomorrow a Vision of Hope.
Look well therefore to this Day!
Such is the Salutation of the Dawn!

Kalidasa

My Sunday writing

2009-04-19T21:44:00.006+08:00

Sorry I couldn't write as often as I wished I could, like the good old days when I was in Hyderabad India. Being home is fine but time is a rare commodity and what with the way the work is going on in my site/office and thanks to my nerdy boss who keeps loading me with work without realizing that the company is so lean that at days we have to make our own coffee in the office. and clean up after that.

I was in the supermarket this morning and I was standing at the 10 or less items queue but what I saw was a lady with a trolley full of stuff. I asked the counter girl, what happens if someone has more then 10 items, she told me that she would ask them to go to a regular counter. I reminded her that she didn't do that and made us wait. So much so for rules.

Just finished reading the book "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch. It was a good book and there are some good points that we can pick up from the book. It's like when you know that you only have a couple of months left to live, what would you really do? Have you ever given any thought about it? We live like we are going to live forever and only others die but not us. Do you have that feeling? Now since you don't know when you would die, how long do you wish to live?

I have started snacking on peanuts lately and I have to put a stop to it. It has become an addiction that I have to have fried peanuts after dinner and if there aren't any packet around I would then take a drive to the supermarket to get some. Now I guess that is going over the limit right. Besides peanuts is making me put on weight and at my age it is no good.

Hoping to hear from you guys, now since I had started to write ...

My Easter Shopping trip to Sunway Pyramid

2009-04-13T21:24:00.007+08:00

The above picture is taken from my car as we were getting into the car park on a rainy day. Had our dinner at Kenny Rogers ("you can see the chics grilling" ...) and there was an ice hockey practice going on in the skating ring. Bought a pair of shoes for my son and I nearly got myself a netbook but changed my mind at the last moment. Anyone would want to share with me your experience with your net book? Do you think it is worth buying?

Escaping the Matrix

2009-04-01T22:32:00.001+08:00

By Edwin Harkness Spina

The Matrix was one of the most popular and thought-provoking movies of all time. Viewers all over the world were captivated by the film's primary message: People get into deep trouble when they mistake what they perceive for reality. What most viewers do not realize is that prior to the release of this groundbreaking film, western intelligence agencies were already using the term "the Matrix" to describe today's world. This was in contrast to their work with remote viewers, who would "escape the matrix" to gather intelligence. Art truly does imitate life.

In the movie, the Matrix is an elaborate Artificial Intelligence computer simulation that's so captivating that people mistake it for reality. People perceive they are walking about and interacting with others, but their physical bodies are actually submerged in fluid-filled pods, "plugged into" the Matrix, while their vital life force is harnessed to power the Matrix.

After Neo (Keanu Reaves) learns the truth, with the help of Morpheus's (Lawrence Fishburne) training, he is able to overcome his misconception that the Matrix is reality. Neo rebels against the machines that create his false reality and, eventually, he escapes the limitations of the Matrix. To others, he has developed superhuman abilities, but, "in reality," he has merely recognized the truth.

"Escaping the Matrix" is a metaphor for the mystic path to enlightenment.

The Matrix can be defined as the world that we perceive, which includes the physical world, as well as higher planes of emotions and thoughts, which also affect us.

Within the Matrix, are countless fear-based thoughts and emotions that condition us to accept limitations. We are taught that we have little power, and what little power we do have, we are advised to delegate to authority figures and experts. Swimming in a sea of negative thoughts, we are prompted to use our creative ability to imagine even more negative thoughts. Without introspection, the Matrix gets darker and more dense.

Anyone who blindly accepts these prevalent, negative thoughts will have his or her life path dictated by the Matrix.

But those who recognize that it is our collective thoughts and beliefs that power the Matrix will recognize the way out.

When we incarnate on earth, we temporarily forget the higher truth of who we are. Our life mission is to remember, to connect with our innermost self, so that we may transcend the Matrix.

The reality we perceive with our senses is not the true reality, but merely a small portion of reality, masquerading as the whole. But, unlike the "alternate reality" that Neo must extricate himself from, in our "reality," there is no need to rebel. Rather, our goal should be to transcend. We want to "be in this world, but not of it."

The outer world is a reflection of our inner thoughts and beliefs, whether individual or collective, which have been conditioned by our experience in the Matrix. Consequently, the Matrix is a learning environment, where we get feedback on how our thoughts manifest. Thankfully, our negative thoughts do not (typically) manifest instantaneously. Otherwise, we would risk the spontaneous destruction of our world by thinking negative thoughts.

Clearing yourself of negative energies through daily meditation can provide a direct link to the "ultimate reality," i.e., the pure consciousness residing within each of us. As your negative beliefs are purified through regular contact with the "light" of your divine nature, unhealthy emotions, such as fear and anger, will naturally begin to diminish, and you'll be free to transcend to higher states of consciousness. You will "download" more of your own true self, while simultaneously and automatically attracting others of similar vibration.

Your world will become more synchronistic. You will repel angry, fearful people, and those who stick around will become calmer and more centered. You will radiate love. By simply being in higher consciousness, you will have a greater effect on the world than the most gifted orators and political leaders.

The higher your consciousness and energy are vibrating, the faster your thoughts will manifest. When you align with your innermost self, you are aligned more closely with the Source of all creation. At the apex of your individual consciousness, you are connected with The One. You then have at your disposal the entire universe to help you manifest the highest good for all.

In actuality, we are single points of awareness in the Oneness that is Reality. What we interpret as the physical world is the projection of this awareness, which is taking place in the Mind of God. We are, as Shakespeare pointed out, merely "actors" in a divine play.

When we wake up to this knowledge, the play does not stop. We are free to act or interact, in bliss and peace, unattached to the Matrix. We have within us the power to create "heaven on earth."

Nano?

2009-03-29T22:11:00.006+08:00

Look at the picture, do you think that India needs a Nano or more cheaper bikes? I bet the bike can seat 5 comfortably without the air-conditioner switched on and look no one is wearing a helmet (additional cost savings). They seem to be bonding very well and that's why they are sticking together without falling off from the bike.

Do let me have your comments.

End Of The End Of History

2009-03-26T22:31:00.000+08:00

Climate change challenge will reshape the way we live

Anthony Giddens

Climate change and how to respond to it are everywhere in the news at the moment. So, of course, is economic recession, just as global in scope and itself deeply worrying. But what is the relationship between them likely to turn out to be?
Every crisis, Sigmund Freud said, is potentially a stimulus to the positive side of the personality — it is an opportunity to start afresh. The point has not gone unnoticed by political leaders. Following the example of President Barack Obama in the US, many have signed up to the idea of a climate change New Deal. Investment in low-carbon technologies, the insulation of buildings and public transport, it is reasoned, can make a key contribution to getting the economy moving again.
Nick Stern, the author of the celebrated Stern Review of the economics of climate change, argues that such measures should make up at least 20 per cent of the funding provided for recovery plans. Obama’s proposals fall some way short of that. But some countries are allocating much more. South Korea, for instance, is devoting no less than two-thirds of its recovery package to such ends.
We are on the cusp of a major revolution, the coming demise of the fossil-fuel economy; now is the time to try to think through its likely implications. These range from the nitty-gritty and mundane through to the more far-reaching and speculative.
On the nitty-gritty side, a major concern has to be with jobs. A climate change New Deal, its proponents argue, will create new jobs in and of itself. I’m not so sure of this, if it means, as it has to, net jobs — that is to say, larger numbers than existed before. As more energy is produced from low-carbon sources, and energy efficiency increases, some workers in the fossil fuel-based industries, such as coal-mining, will be put out of work. Most forms of technological innovation reduce rather than increase the need for labour power.
Jobs will be created not so much through renewable technologies themselves, as through the lifestyle changes that coping with climate change and energy security will bring about. Sensibilities will change and with them tastes. The new economy that will emerge will be even more radically post-industrial than the one we have now. It will be up to entrepreneurs to spot the economic opportunities that will come about as it expands — much in the same way as ways were found to revitalise dockland areas where shipping industry has evaporated away.
Pondering what form recovery from recession should take should cause us to think
seriously about the nature of economic growth itself, at least in the rich countries. It has been known for a long while that, above a certain level of prosperity, growth does not necessarily lead to greater personal and social welfare. Now is the time to introduce more rounded measures of welfare alongside GDP and give them real political resonance. Now is the time for a sustained and positive critique of consumerism which can be made to count politically. Now is the time to work out how to ensure that recovery does not mean a reversion to the loads-of-money society.
The period of Thatcherite deregulation is over. The state is back. We will need active industrial policy and planning, in respect of economic institutions but for climate change and energy policy too. The mistakes made by previous generations of planners, however, have to be avoided. Many issues present themselves here too. Take the very example of renewable technologies. Technological breakthroughs are required if at some point fossil fuels are to become history. Yet how should governments decide which ones to back? How can they cope with the fact that the most radical technological innovations — such as the internet — are often not foreseen by anybody?
We have to find a new role for government but also for market-based mechanisms. Complex financial instruments have suddenly gone out of fashion, blamed for market collapse. Yet we will have need of them because, properly regulated, they are actually sometimes the key to long-term investment rather than a force against it.
Consider the issue of insurance against extreme weather events, such as hurricanes in the Caribbean. Such episodes will become both more frequent and more intense, since climate change up to some level will almost certainly occur. Providing insurance against damage incurred will be one main way of adapting to them — especially so far as poorer people are concerned. The private insurance industry will have to supply most of the capital, since given its many other obligations it can only be the insurer of last resort.
And then, well, there’s the grand-daddy of the whole thing, globalisation, which has proceeded apace without adequate international controls. Effective regulation of world financial markets is essential for the future. Perhaps it could help pave the way for the collaboration essential to coping with climate change — a great deal of rethinking needed here too as some 200 nations prepare for the meetings in Copenhagen in December. The financial crisis and its aftermath have given a jolt to established ways of thinking that could and should prove massively important. We’re at the end of the end of history.
The writer is a former director of the London School of Economics.

LIQUID LIFE

2009-03-22T09:35:00.002+08:00

H2 O

In an irony worthy a Greek tragedian, the first act in the drama of water crisis is going to be a global flooding. Global warming will result in a rise in sea levels as the glaciers and ice caps melt, thereby depleting the earth's crucial reservoir of clean, non-saline water

Nilakshi Sharma

Frogs are being wedded to frogs in elaborate; ritually correct weddings in Assam in an effort to appease Varun, the rain god, because there has been no rain in Assam in the past few months and the ground water is drying up. Quillagua, a Chilean city that holds the distinction of being the driest place on this earth, is dying a parched death. Their lifeline, the river is dying. What the water companies have not taken away, far in excess of what they were supposed to take, the mining companies have polluted to unsustainable levels. In Chamoli, Uttarakhand, the smaller glaciers have disappeared and the largest one has retreated by many miles. United Nations Development reports are warning the world that 'Water Wars' are on the horizon in Africa. Australia is a decade into the worst drought it has witnessed in a century. And in the latest instalment of arguably the world's sexiest spy, James Bond, the villain is not hoarding gold or oil or even arms, the traditional choices of villains the world over, but water. And that, I suppose really tells the story as it is despite all the deniers of climate change.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the new world, a drier world. Today water is fast becoming a resource that is all set to rival oil for value. 71 per cent of earth's surface is covered with water. But of that, only 3 per cent is non saline. And that 3 per cent is distributed across the forms; glaciers, rivers, lakes and ground water. Not only is the human body composed primarily of water but water is one of the fundamental premises for life on earth across life forms, birds, bees and all things that breathe need water. Unfortunately, so do all other things such as agriculture and industry. Simply put, life is water intensive.
Possibly the biggest problem we face is one that is entirely man made: pollution of water sources. Urban centres in India and in many other countries are faced with the mammoth task of not only providing access to clean drinking water but of dealing with the waste that is generated. In our country, despite the stringent environmental laws (all of which are obviously flouted), nearly all of our river systems are heavily polluted and many, like the Yamuna, are literally dying. From industrial effluents to human waste, we dump it all in the rivers and lakes. One of the greatest developmental challenges around the world today is access to clean water for consumption. Its lack equals a whole lot of diseases. A disproportionately large number of deaths can be related to water: lack of clean drinking water and sanitation is now the single largest cause of illness worldwide. It is estimated that by 2020, more people will have died due to water borne diseases and the lack of clean water than the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Currently the planet earth is home to nearly six and a half billion people. And going by current trends, the figure will soon reach eight billion. And each human being needs a basic minimum quantity of water just to ensure survival. An increase in population equals a surge in demand for food, both livestock and agriculture are water intensive.
The water crisis, which might well become the defining parameter for future generations, has been precipitated by a host of complex, interlocking problems. It is simplistic and convenient to file the water crisis under the larger heading of Global Wa r m i n g and leave it at that. But it is at once, more complicated than that and simpler than that. Water consumption patterns that are rooted more in lifestyle choices than pragmatism, a lack of appreciation for the complex interlinking of co-dependant ecosystems as well as a callous disregard for the consequences of polluting our water sources are all contributory factors. And every time we act with a narrowness of vision we exacerbate the problem. Overdrawing of water from underground sources causes depletion to an extent that disrupts the water cycle. As the rivers and lakes begin to shrink, there is less precipitation. And that means more droughts. And that means drawing more water out of the ground with the use of technology. It is a vicious cycle the end result of which is a water crisis because essentially we are disrupting the global eco system, of which the water cycle is an integral part.
In an irony worthy a Greek tragedian, the first act in the drama of water crisis is going to be a global flooding. Global warming will result in a rise in sea levels as the glaciers and ice caps melt, thereby depleting the earth's crucial reservoir of clean, non-saline water. Once the ice melts and becomes saline, not only is the earth going to get a lot hotter because the ice caps and the glaciers act as cooling units, the rivers and streams are going to run dry. And then the groundwater becomes more precious than oil because it is then a finite commodity since the water cycle will no longer replenish the earth's water table.
Already, the process has begun but right now, at this moment we can still do something about it. An environmental awareness coupled with individual contributions today can make all the difference tomorrow. The technology to make our water consumption more efficient need not be high end. Making sure that no taps in your house drip can conserve more water than you realise. As will air drying your clothes instead of using a dryer. On a larger scale be aware of water pollution and contamination. Be vigilant, that factory discharging its effluents into the river is sucking the water out of your future. But most of all realise that water is truly the elixir of life and pretty soon it will run out.

This article is taken from Sunday Times of India Hyderabad Edition dated 22.03.09 as a tribute to World Water Day.

Why do we suffer?

2009-03-14T22:54:00.004+08:00

I was in a discussion with my colleague and he wanted to know why GOD makes us suffer. He said that if GOD is ever loving, why then do you find people born with deformities, why can't GOD make all of equal and good. I told him that we have to reap what we sow and also the Law of Karma. So what do you think on why we suffer and why some are born with the silver spoon. Please do help me out so that I can answer him.

Quotes of the Week

2009-03-09T22:09:00.000+08:00

"If you concentrate on finding whatever is good in every situation, you will discover that your life will suddenly be filled with gratitude, a feeling that nurtures the soul." --Rabbi Harold Kushner

"Much of the stress that people feel doesn't come from having too much to do. It comes from not finishing what they've started." --David Allen

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful." --Herman Cain

T'is what's happening to me

2009-03-08T23:02:00.003+08:00

Here's my tribute to India at the Oscars - Jai Ho

2009-02-24T22:08:00.000+08:00

Busy Schedule in Hyderabad

2009-02-21T00:16:00.003+08:00

Flew in from Mumbai yesterday evening, was in the Mumbai Airport reading a book titled "Jesus" by Deepak Chopra. Didn't do much last night as I checked by dinner time, had some RC whisky at the Cocktail hour at the Hotel F.O.C.

Woke up pretty early as my body was still following Malaysian time and after that it was a busy schedule with the Auditor and then the Lawyer. Bought some more books at Walden first thing in the morning. Picked the following books:

1. The Associate by John Grisham

2. Outliers by Malcom Gladwell

3. What Got You here Won't Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith

4. It's not how Good you are, It's how Good you want to be by Paul Arden

5. The Rules of Management by Richard Templar

Looks like I have a lot to read when I get back. And guess what I had for lunch, the famous Hyderabati Dum Briyani and for breakfast I had super soft idly with chutney. It's been awhile since I had all these goodies.

Well tomorrow is going to be equally hectic as I have lined up a few meetings and I got a little bit of shopping to do. And on Sunday midnight I will be flying back to Kuala Lumpur. Yeah before I forget my office guys had screwed up with my phone bill and they just paid it today, but it's to late as my calls are barred, only incoming and it's getting a bit difficult moving around now without that wonderful creation called "mobile" phone...which has immobilized me here....

Leaving for Mumbai on 18.02.09

2009-02-17T22:33:00.003+08:00

Yes all of a sudden my boss had informed me that I have to make a trip to Mumbai tomorrow and I would be with him for day there and then fly to Hyderabad for some work with my Auditor and Lawyer. I hardly had any time to prepare for the trip and I have a presentation to make to my company board of directors on my objective for the trip tomorrow afternoon before flying off.

It's like jumping from the frying pan to fire as I have no answers as regards to my objective but I know I have a lot of work to do when I am there with regards to tidying up the company accounts and other matters.

Besides the work, I should be able to do some shopping with regards to stocking my medicines, get a few books namely the best sellers, Indian sweets for my wife and finally get to bring back some of the things like my DVD, books etc, that I had left in Hyderabad.

I hope to meet up with friends too and finally get to relish the famous "Hyderabad Dum Briyani" and the kebabs.

Bad day at work

2009-02-10T21:55:00.004+08:00

I guess it is one of those days where I won't forget as I had the pleasure of meeting up with a car repossessor. It was a cool affair, he was waiting beside my car Nissan X-Trail (Company Car) and informed me that I haven't paid 3 months instalment, I told him that my company must have forgotten as there are some new guys in the accounts department. But he was polite and I told him that I want to drive the car to my office which was close to the site and then talk to my accountant. He told me to sit down next to him as he had the keys and he drove me to my office.

At my office I informed them about the car being repossessed and so I was told to negotiate with them and finally we agreed to a certain sum, for them not to take the car and I assured them that the company would pay up the amount owed to the Bank.

In the evening, my accountant got the cheque prepared and had to look for my Director for his signature and tomorrow after another signature on the cheque and he will be in the bank to pay and lift the order for repossessing the car.

I guess they were a decent bunch of car repossessers as they waited with me and they left without the car. I could imagine, how difficult it would be for me to travel back and also to come to office without a car. But then who am I to complain on the company's blunder. Let this be a lesson for them, for me it is very simple, no car....no work at site.

The 11 Rules To Change Our World

2009-02-09T18:07:00.001+08:00

Taken from Robin Sharma's blog and please pass this around......

1. You be the change you dream of seeing (Thanks Mahatma Gandhi). "If everyone of us would sweep their own doorstep, the whole world would be clean," observed Mother Teresa. She was right.

2. Make time every day to reconnect to your highest ideals and boldest dreams. Without hope, people perish.

3. Leave every person you meet better than you found them. Life's too short to withhold encouragement and kindness.

4. As I wrote in 'The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari", see every setback as a stepping stone and every problem as a blessing in disguise. Contrary to what critics might say, these are NOT corny aphorisms. They are timeless truths of humanity. (And critics are just people too scared to grow their dreams anyway - pay no attention to them. The world needs more people lifting people up rather than putting people down).

5. Go the extra mile in everything you do - you don't need a title to be a leader. And on your deathbed, you'll never regret expressing the best within you

6. Do what's right rather than what's easy. Being a great person isn't a popularity contest. Many of the greatest leaders were disliked because they refused to bend to the winds of public opinion. That's called Strength of Character

7. Care for your health. You elevate the world by elevating yourself and your health really matters. Why be the richest person in the graveyard?

8. Tell your kids they are geniuses - and how much you adore them. Each of us are born geniuses but lose that gift within the first 6 years of our lives as we adopt the fears and limiting beliefs of those around us. Your kids are the leaders of the future. Grow their potential. Now.

9. Learn something new every day. As you grow, you begin to see possibilities you didn't have the eyes to see before. Read from an inspiring book, listen to an audio program, visit a good blog, go to a powerful workshop or have a conversation with an elder. One idea is all it takes to transform your life.

10. Keep your life simple. Please. The secret to success and happiness is building your life around a few important things. The person who tries to do everything accomplishes nothing. As I recently mentioned on my blog, "What's the point in being busy doing the wrong things?"

11. Remember that life is a mirror and we receive what we give out. To get more joy, give more joy. To have more respect, give more respect. To realize your dreams, help others realize theirs.

P.S. I've written these lessons to help you make this year the single best year of your life yet. And to do my part to improve things. I need your help!

If you were inspired by The 11 Rules To Change Our World, you can inspire others - and do YOUR part to improve our world. My goal is to circulate this list across the world via The Net within the next few hours. TOGETHER we can touch so many people. Just circulate The 11 Rules to all those you know. Let's change the world by spreading good ideals rather than celebrating negative ones. Thank you.

When God invented law

2009-02-08T11:31:00.002+08:00

Paulo Coelho

I AM someone who believes in the judicial system. Despite all the drawbacks, we see — for example — the US Supreme Court disqualifying torture as a method of interrogation, even when the President and his vice have, through legal artifices, tried to justify it.

Nonetheless, my belief is not shared by many people. A lawyer friend said to me, “The law is not made to solve problems, but to prolong them indefinitely”. Just to exercise my imagination, I decided to use his theory analysing Genesis, first book of the Bible.

If God were alive today, we would all still be in Paradise, while He would still be replying to pleas, appeals, letters rogatory, court injunctions or writs — and would have to explain at countless hearings his decision to expel Adam and Eve from Paradise — just for breaking an arbitrary law, without any legal grounds: not to eat the fruit of good and evil.

If he hadn’t wanted that to happen, why did he put that tree in the middle of the Garden — and not outside the walls of Paradise? If he were called to defend the couple, an experienced lawyer could allege the theory of “administrative omission”; besides putting the tree in the wrong place, he didn’t surround it with notices and fences, failing to take the minimum safety measures and exposing all who passed by to danger.

Another lawyer might accuse him of “inducement to crime”: he drew the attention of Adam and Eve to the exact place where it was growing. If he had not said anything, generations and generations would have passed through this earth without anyone being interested in the forbidden fruit — considering that it should have been in a forest, full of similar trees, and, therefore lacking any specific merit.

But Genesis happened before the judicial system and, therefore, allowed God to have full freedom of action. He wrote a single law, and found a way of convincing someone to break it, just to be able to invent punishment. He knew that Adam and Eve would end up bored with so many perfect things, and — sooner or later — would try His patience. He stayed there waiting, because also He — Almighty God — was bored with things working perfectly: if Eve had not eaten the apple, what would have happened that was interesting in these billions of years?

Nothing.

When the law was broken, God managed to get what he wanted. He expelled the couple, and their children ended up paying for the crime (as happens until today with the children of criminals), and the judicial system had been invented: law, breaking the law, judgement and punishment.

Taken from Deccan Chronicle 08.02.2009 Hyderabad Edition

Doctor jailed for Rs 25 (USD 0.50)bribe taken 24 years ago

2009-02-05T21:49:00.004+08:00

Taken from Times of India Hyderabad Edition dated 05.02.2009.

Patna: A court here sentenced a 75-year-old doctor to jail for accepting 25 rupees (USD 0.50) as bribe nearly a quarter of a century ago, officials said on Wednesday.
The police had arrested Balgovind Prasad for accepting 25 rupees (USD 0.50) from a sweeper in 1985 for issuing a fake medical certificate.
The case dragged on for years and Prasad was convicted in 1992 and given a one-year jail term. However, he was freed after he appealed against the sentence. On Tuesday, a higher court in Bihar reduced the one-year term to three months, saying the bribe amount was too small, but directed the police to take Prasad into custody as he was guilty of the crime.
“The case was dragging and the bribe money was too small, so Prasad thought he would get a reprieve from the court,” prosecution lawyer Vipin Kumar Sinha told reporters after the verdict. “But all the charges has been proved against him.” REUTERS

I bet the lawyers fees and time spent in running between courts would be much higher than the bribe amount. The Government was actually spending more money in terms of court machinery and time in getting this case prosecuted. Why can't they just slap a fine or throw him into jail for a couple of days as punishment instead of wasting tax payers money in the name of justice and by the way "Justice delayed is Justice denied".

Man fined for drunken driving – on a horse!

2009-02-03T22:41:00.004+08:00

A British man has been fined 185 pounds (approximately 13,000 rupees) for riding a horse while drunk. Godfrey Blacklin pleaded guilty for being drunk while riding the animal bareback,through the streets of Newcastle, England.

The Newcastle magistrates heard that cops found that Blacklin was slurring his words, and was unsteady on his feet. The large horse, called Bart, was held by a police officer for more than an hour near Wellbeck Road, while Blacklin was taken to a police station. “It is not a charge you see everyday. The police had concerns about him and, in the process of speaking to him, became aware of his intoxication,” a daily quoted constable David Thompson as saying. “The concern was that he was in control of a large animal where there were other road users. It was clear that he was drunk and that is definitely an offense,” he added.

Defending the charges, Blacklin said that he rode the horse as he knew it needed some exercise. “It is ridiculous. No one seems to have heard about a case like this,” he said. “I had been at my grandmother’s house before I went over to the stables, and I had drunk only a couple of cans of beer. Bart needed some exercise, so I took him out and let him have a loose rein, so it looked like I wasn’t in control,” he added. ANI

Sounds rather bizzare, getting fined for drunken driving a horse and what could be next....

Things that I have to do

2009-02-02T11:26:00.003+08:00

Yes I started the New Year with some resolution but I can see now that it is like a distant past. I have broken all my resolution. One of the things that I want to do is cut down on snacking, my passion for fried peanuts. I know I am putting on weight around my waist and that has to stop (I mean the munching of peanuts) and also my passion for beer....

As they say as you get older it is that difficult to lose weight and I know how true the statement is. What else I have to do....I told myself I have to look for another job....and I am slipping away...

I just got a call from my friend on a job opening in East Malaysia...and I am going to send my resume afterwards...and hopefully attend the interview within the next couple of days.

So I guess I have to tackle my resolution one at a time....

Chinese New Year Shopping

2009-01-28T22:49:00.007+08:00

The shopping mall was empty as the crowd is still away on a long extended holiday until 01.02.2009. Anyway I managed to get the snap shot of the stage for the cultural show and also a man dressed up in ancient Chinese attire like one of those opera actors or singers. If I had got any closer to him, I should control myself from pulling his beard.