Facebook

Surfing the internet for me is not always Facebook Chat and GTalk. I like to browse through Google a lot, and even though friends have asked me several times how I chance upon some specific information, I never have an answer because one thing leads to the other and another and another and I keep finding things I'd never known, but would have loved to know!
The following link is one such thing that I thought I must share. It is stale news for people who already know about it, but my guess is most of us don't. It is not revolutionary, not breathtaking; just plainly interesting.

Hope you like it!

http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/4/20120205201202050200437491de277da/Man-who-painted-Facebook-office-set-to-get-%C2%A3125-mn.html


The whole idea of Facebook is unique and intriguing and now with the social networking site going public on NASDAQ, it won't be long before young adults will be trading in Facebook shares. After all, it is so cool to own shares of your favourite website.
People maybe putting up pictures of their 18th birthday on their wall, and behind the scenes, they might be shareholders of Facebook.

Your right over the site goes a little beyond your own wall!

Kudos to whoever coined the phrase: THINK BIG!

Forced hibernation

About a month ago, the internet connection I have in my house went off, and with it went my landline phone as well, because both the services were covered under one connection.
This was around the time when Kolkata was 'enjoying' regular thunderstorms and apparently in the breeze, the precious wires snapped and the connectivity was lost. Allowing nature so much control over us, we made amends with the situation, and after complaining to our service provider waited with patience for the services to be restored.
Alas! All this time has passed, the weather in the city has changed, the Sun God has shown face after those storms but it is oh! so difficult for the telecom company to send their personnel to fix the lines.
I went to their office to complain ( Note: Office, not outlet) but their replies were indifferent and callous. So much so, that when I threatened to surrender my connection, the gentleman replied in a nonchalant "Ok"!
And that is what we ultimately had to do.
So now Mentalfloss makes a refreshed start, not that my writing will change with a change in the company renderring its services, but unfortunately Reliance (my old service provider) did not live up to its name and caused me great distress and so much has passed within this time that one regular sized post is insufficient!

I have started my own business, a flower boutique, with my mother as partner, I've called it FloraDeli. We've sent out several orders and the bright little flowers have genuinely added colour and activity to my life. My favourite project was the one taken up for Ritu Kumar's signature store opening in Woodburn Court and my favourite piece is a bouquet made of Ferrero Rocher Chocolates alone! If I had the privilege of writing while all this was happening I could've shared my feelings at length, but now as time has passed, these moments have settled down and the experiences have lost their new and exciting flavour.
(Advertorial: http://floradeli-kol.blogspot.in/) !

Castle Season 4 is airing in India now and it was as if Star World were tempting us at first when they started with once-a-week telecast every Wednesday, and recently they've allowed the detectives to rule our screen through the week! Kate's hair is a different shade, but apart from that there aren't any changes. After all, how can one alter perfectionism!

I attended and volunteered for an American Center program called 'The Real Americans' featuring Dan Hoyle. It was a monologuist performance but yet so holistic. Dan, is an intelligent man and fun loving ( I got to spend some time off the show with him) and it was interesting to see his observation skills at work. It is always fun to see an artist's performance and then accompany him on his research it always gives us a deeper insight into what goes behind the 60 seconds act, about which we pass a judgement, almost unthinkingly! Commendable program, it was truly entertaining!

Vicky Donor was released and even though I didn't catch it in the theatre, I loved it when I saw it at home. A totally fresh plot. A storyline that hasn't been copied, and so far, not pasted! An amazing line of thought and quite overwhelmingly realistic. Neither of the protagonists are perfect and nor is their story laced with violins and white horses. An entertainer packed with awesome songs, as well as endowed with a moral lesson! Awesome!

Harley Davidson has come to Kolkata and I loved the pictures that featured in the next day's papers. What a feast for the eyes!

At Princep Ghat

The Kolkata store



There were myriad things that I had in mind but memory has failed me because it is at the spur of the moment that one wishes to write and for me, if the urge is not fulfilled it is lost.
Though many people (including my elder brother) felt that whether a fixed line internet connection or no, life should go on as usual, I disagree strongly. No one told me to make do WITHOUT the internet, but there are several ways of making your way through. For example, using the phone. However, in my opinion, to say the least, it is tough to blog or browse through the phone. Ask someone who does not have easy access to the computer and you'll know!
Today as I go to bed, I shall pray:

Thank you God for the world so sweet
Thank you God for the food we eat
Thank you God for the birds that sing
Thank you God for everything!
P.S: Thank you God for the internet services you've bestowed us with!
Thank your stars, you're lucky if you're comfortably reading this:)

From Sooooooouuuunnnnnd to song

MTV India is known for its out-of-the-box ideas in TV shows. They are the trend setters and there's no doubt that they have a niche, loyal and loving viewership.
Just as my interest in the idiot box was dwindling, MTV India launched Sound Trippin'.
And whoa! TV viewing for me took a turn for the good.I was impressed by the trailers for this particular show and it defined the word 'difference'. In this age of reality shows and behind the scenes shots, this show stands tall.

The anchor

Its about the journey from sound to song. Sneha Khanwalkar, the anchor is seen travelling to various parts of the country and she records sound bytes to make a song out of it, for each region.

The show brings to light, the fact that each place has its own identity and so far the visual images were cashed in by the producers. So much so that, the visual imagery has reached a point of saturation. Typical of the MTV think-tank they brought out a strategy which is truly run-off-the-mill and here we have this young lady going to beautiful places and recording sounds. Sounds that we like, we've heard before, ignored before, taken for granted and sometimes even considered them as 'noises', this show turns all of that into a beautiful song.

The show is very well planned and even though they use latest technology typical to the musical field, their working is transparent and one can tell exactly how the sound bytes are distinct from one another.

On seeing the work that goes behind it we realize how much hardwork goes into the songs that music directors compose, those that we download for free from the internet or casually listen to their creations on the radio while juggling between a couple of routine tasks.

The 'noise' of the heavy vehicle is recorded for a song!



My favourite sound clip: water drop

 A beautiful concept, beautiful show.It sure does leave a mark! Kudos to MTV!

Hypocritical

As a teen, I had a fancy for Slam Books and I'd get a lot of people to fill it in for me. Friends, relatives, acquaintances would all have to give me their 'autograph'.
It was then, that I first came across the word 'hypocrisy'. People wrote it in the field where they had to list things that they hate. (Now thats a hypocritic line in itself!) At that time I didn't quite understand it. I had to refer to the dictionary several times until I could remember the meaning.

But today, I know the meaning well enough. Thanks to the acts we indulge in, or the rules that are passed, or whatever the 'system' implements.

•  A recent rule( I don't think its a law) has made plastic bags chargeable in the big stores and malls. But what I don't understand is that why do they have to keep up with the plastic anyway? Whether paid for or free, plastic is equally damaging. People who shop for a couple of things or live far away from the point of purchase, have to buy the plastic bag. They cannot carry the things around in their hand sometimes. So unwillingly, they land up buying the plastic! Why can't we be given jute or stiff paper bags, instead?
• By 1 July, 2012 the Government wants all television viewers to buy the DTH services and use Tata Sky or Dish Tv or the like instead of the present cable wires which are bringing TV to our homes, today. This new service is more expensive and elaborate for the understanding of the lower classes. So do they lose the last straw of entertainment which had blessed their lives, so long? To know what they feel, take time out to engage in a conversation about this with your domestic help and you'll know where the anomaly lies!

• We are all afraid of natural calamities and earthquakes are no foreign fear now. On one hand we talk of technology and strategy to construct the buildings so that they do not sway easily. But these technologies are renderred useless when the construction is done on land revived from water bodies. The pre-existent wet-lands do not make the foundation of the building strong enough to survive inspite of the anti-earthquake measure taken. In such a scenario, the technology boils down to a gimmick and does no one any good!

• And the last thing on my mind is the safety of females in Kolkata, or in any city in general. We as citizens know and feel that the unsafety is caused by a few of us and the fear builds on one side of our hearts and the other side knows fully well that something must be done to ensure a safe environment for one and all. Through the day we read and see reports carried out on this issue and talk in a philanthropic tone saying, " Why shouldn't women wear what they like, do as they wish and go out as they please?" But as night falls, the women of our homes are to stay indoors, obeying their dear ones. In most cases, its not an 'order' issued against women in their households, but out of plain concern. However you, me and US are all held back and the predator hunts his prey fearlessly!

Add to the list, as you please I am sure you notice half a dozen such incidents around you, everyday. From those incidents you'll surely find people who can be awarded the following certificate:

Traffic jam in the highway of the mind

Its ironical that I am posting this on my blog which is also part of the online networking circuit, but I guess its all about knowing your limits, drawing the line somewhere and not to over-do things!

Hats off to the people who update their statuses (On Facebook, BBM orWhatsApp; and sometimes all of these!) when they sleep in for 15 more minutes than usual, when they enjoy the weather: they express their joy by typing a new status, when they enter a mall or a movie they check-in as if Facebook were a hostel matron!
This article printed in The Telegraph, Kolkata today is meant for all those whose brain cells are excessively greased with information: useful and useless, necessary and unnecessary, righ and wrong: all the same, they clutter our minds and its best you clear the Recycle Bin in your teeny-weeny sized brain, before its too late!




http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120408/jsp/7days/story_15348360.jsp

Baby Steps

When I started my own blog, I had no mentor in the blogosphere. I would sign in with anticipation and check my pageviews, the audience statistics and make it a point to write as often as possible.And in all this, I was alone. Those were my baby steps.

Supporting Rapture Group, in its period of babbles!


http://rapturegroup.blogspot.in/
They present Ustad Raahat Fateh Ali Khan live in concert on 12 May, 2012 at Music Hall, Detroit, Michigan.

If you are in U.S.A, I suggest this is truly going to be a wonderful experience!

Earth Hour 2012

I don't know whether I was less informed, or that I didn't take the effort to be informed; but I realized that Earth Hour was maintained on 31 March, starting from 8:30 p.m., only when I woke up next morning and read the papers.


I think it's a great idea of preserving the environment. On the one hand, it saves tonnes of units of electricity and on the other side, when we see things in a different light (pun intended!) we realize the value of it.

I Googled Earth Hour and got some wonderful images, I paste them  below for your pleasure. However, it's sad to know Kolkata, or even India, didn't top the search results page.

In today's times, Google's reach is wider than all the newspapers of the world, put together. It's statistically proven, not meant metaphorically. In such times, when India doesnt feature anywhere on the first few pages of Google search results, I think it denotes our ignorance and how disconnected we are from the rest of the world, because we didn't maintain it as stringently as the rest of the world.

Anyway, for the love of the images:



India Gate, Delhi





Hotel Marina Bay Sands, Singapore





Big Ben, London





New York City skyline




The Great Wall of China, China





Empire State Building, New York

A new car has hit the roads and it's tagline says 'It loves you back!'
If we believe that, I don't think there's much difficulty to believe:
"If you love your planet, it will love you back!"