Oddly Enough - 2

Here's the next awesome find i've got from the Net.
Iraq has been in the news for quite some time now, but this time round, it's not due to the war.
There is a Genius from Iraq who has a theory, with proof, that the Earth is Flat and that the Sun moves around the Earth and that the Earth is Bigger than the Sun!!!
Want more - Modern science is all trash and is a heretic innovation! The Sun moves once every 24 hours!!
Laughing?? You Must!
The Iraqi 'Astronomer' Fadhel As-Said quotes everything from Quran to Opthalmology to prove his theory!! You must watch this one (taken from youtube) and hope this guy never teaches children in our country!! It comes with English Sub-titles, so prepare to be enlightened!!

Online Bookmarking - The new revolution!

Below each post in this blog, you'll see a small link saying 'Share This', which has a revolving logo. If you've not heard of it, you are certainly not abreast of the latest in the Internet!
After Social Networking, the next craze is Online Bookmarking. Ever heard of Digg, Del.icio.us, Reddit, Technorati, MySpace and a host of other sites?? Each of these are leaders in online bookmarking!
The practical success of these sites has spurred Biggies like Google, MSN and Yahoo into action, and now they've introduced their own bookmarking sites too!
Now, what's online bookmarking?? Like you bookmark sites you like in your browser, you do it online! Like with Digg, which is my favourite, you can just digg an article you like on the net and it'll be stored online. Not only that, but it is there for everyone to see! So, if you like an article, a news piece, a photo, a video or anything at all that someone else has dugg, you can just click on the digg link beside it and now, it'll show 2 Diggs!! There are articles on digg, which have thousands of Diggs!
So, this not only is an effective way to share interesting info, but also to advertise your stuff!
The popular ones like Digg and Del.icio.us have thousands of people online at any given point of time! So, it's a pretty cost effective way of getting readers to read what you found or created!
With everyone who's anyone getting a net presence, i guess services like these will have a greater part to play in the integration of the Internet into people's daily lives!
So, the next time you find something you like in this blog, click on 'Share This' and then choose where you'd like to bookmark it! Get a presence man!
Keep Digg-ing!

More about online Bookmarking here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_bookmarking

A Prisoner of Birth - My Review!

There is one sentence on the back cover of the book which i don't agree with. It says "Jeffery Archer's most powerful novel since Kane & Abel, with a cast of characters who will remain with you long after you've turned the last page" By no means is this the most powerful novel since Kane and Abel. Many more like 'As the Crow Flies', 'The Prodigal Daughter', 'The Fourth Estate' and 'Shall we tell the president' are much better reads.
Still, 'A Prisoner of Birth' is pretty good! It's a powerful book alright, with quite a few memorable characters. I Guess the Prison Syndrome remained with Archer as the bulk of this book revolves around Prison life!! To put it short, think about 'The Count of Monte Christo' + 'Not a penny more, Not a penny less' and you have 'A Prisoner of birth'
The story begins with a lot of excitement, where the Protagonist Danny Cartwright is imprisoned Wrongly for the murder of his best friend and meets Sir Nicholas Moncrieff in Prison. Archer leads us thru a colourful life in jail, with quite a few interesting characters, especially Big Al!
Thru a quirk of fate (which you must read), Danny comes out of Jail and how he takes revenge on the people who sent him in forms the rest of the story. Actually, it's a story within a story - that of Sir Nick and it's pretty engrossing too!
I won't try to let you in to the plot (what i've said above, you will anyway know once you've read the blurb of the book) but will tell you this much - there are quite a few surprises and twists and turns in the story to keep you up till you finish it (I slept at 130!) and though the ending is not as shocking as the book claims, it is still Archerous!
It's nice to see another fast paced thriller - Fiction from archer - after the prison series (which are good, but then...)
The edition i've read is a special one for the Indian Sub-Continent and the print should have been bigger.
Still, i guess i'll rate it at 3.5/5
Hope Archer gives us another 'Shall we tell the President' soon!

Serious Hobbying!

In most of our opinions, hobbies are for kids!! After we feel we've grown up, we let go and it just remains as a few words in our Resume!
For most of us, the regular hobbies would be what - Collecting stamps or coins / gardening / fishing / some sport / or even some art or craft!
My friend Eric has a hobby of making Paper Planes and he's gotten passionate about this hobby only a few months ago!!!
Now, Eric was gifted a diary and - why me, here's the story in his own words -

"For Christmas this year I got a page-a-day calendar about paper airplanes. Every day has a different paper airplane to build. It's very exciting. Each day (ish) I will take a picture of the plane-of-the-day and describe some of my feelings about it. Over the course of the year we'll build up quite the database of airplane pictures, and that way I don't have to save them all. It should be great fun. Feel free to share your thoughts and comments."

And true to his word, Eric almost makes a plane a day, takes a photo and with the description, puts it up on his blog - www.ericsplanes.blogspot.com!!!

I came across this blog when i logged onto blogger.com to access my blog. Blogger shows blogs of note each day and that day it was Eric's blog. Curious, i went to it and was sure impressed.
Eric surely has proved that Hobbies are beyond age and if you're serious about your hobby, you sure can enjoy it! The number of comments Eric's Blog gets each day shows what a loyal readership his blog has each day!

Making paper planes not sounding interesting? Check out his blog!!! It is not our regular paper planes! You'll see the best Fighter plane models on paper! You'll find the tiniest specification in place in each plane!! Yup. The pic here is of one of Eric's latest creations!
You must check that out! I'm writing this post just to show that i'm seriously impressed!
And i guess it's time to get serious about some Hobby of mine!!! Thanks Eric and keep going.

There's nothing Rajnikant can't!!

Superb!!! Read thru twice! The second time will be funnier :)
Click on the picture for a Bigger Image!
Thanks to Raji for sharing!

Web Eccentricities!!

The Internet has sparked off a whole new generation of Crazies!!
Wanna see some?
Here's some crazy stuff i found about the internet!



* Which is the longest website name???
http://www.llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwyll-llantysiliogogogoch.com/

It actually means "St Mary's church in the hollow of the white hazel near a rapid whirlpool and the Church of St Tysilio of the red cave" in Welsh!

* Craziest Website name -
http://www.gooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
oooogle.com

Don't count - There are 59 Zeroes in this!! And some guy paid 10$ to register this site!!

* Who Represents is where you can find the name of the agent that represents any celebrity. Their web site is http://www.whorepresents.com (No Comments!)

* There are many funnies on the net. Want proof?
www.haha.com is taken
www.hahaha.com is also taken
www.hahahaha.com is also taken
www.hahahahaha.com too isn't available
www.hahahahahaha.com isn't either
www.hahahahahahaha.com too is booked
www.hahahahahahahaha.com too is taken
www.hahahahahahahahaha.com too is parked
www.hahahahahahahahahaha.com also is an existing site
www.hahahahahahahahahahaha.com is taken too
www.hahahahahahahahahahahaha.com also exists
www.hahahahahahahahahahahahaha.com also has been parked
www.hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.com is a also
Phew!!
www.hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.com IS AVAILABLE!!!! My God!!!

Enough for one day!! Will be back with more funnies soon! ciao and God save The Internet!!!

Life's seasons! Super Story

There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to
judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go
and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.

The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in
summer, and the youngest son in the fall.

When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe
what they had seen. The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and
twisted. The second son said no it was covered with green buds and full
of promise.

The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled
so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had
ever seen.

The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping
with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they
had each seen but only one season in the tree's life.

He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one
season, and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and
love that come from that life can only be measured at the end, when all
the seasons are up.

If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring,
the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.


Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.

Don't judge life by one difficult season
__________________________________________
Thanks to Navin for sharing!!

Google's new toy! Grand Central

My Fascination with Google continues!
Google not only invents new applications, but also acquires the most promising ones in the cyber-world! It is thru this aggressive acquiring that they got Blogger, Google Docs etc etc!
The latest is a fabulous piece of software called Grand Central!
This Grand Central is One Phone number which is linked to all our phones. For those of us who have multiple phone numbers (which is most of the people in this world) and can't afford to miss home calls when at office and vice versa, Grand Central is your solution to link all the phones you have!
When we register with Grand Central (currently available only in the USA, but shortly expected to come the world over), we can choose a number which becomes ours for life. Then, proceed to link all your phones to it, When someone calls our Grand Central number, all the phones linked to it will ring!!! It means, if you've registered your home, office, and mobile phones, all 3 will ring! You can pick up whichever is close to you!! And you also get a Voice Mail account with this number! Sounds good? Read more on the Official Google Blog
Official Google Blog: All aboard

And Wait for it to be launched in our country!!

Googling ahead!!

Currently, i'm reading 'The Google Story' which talks about the meteoric rise of this awesome company! Now, this blog post is not to talk about Google and it's Brand image, but about how as an ordinary technologically-clueless internet user, Google has made a difference to all of us, why it will continue to do so and how!! This is real interesting stuff guys!
Trivia - Did you know that Google is a word in a Dictionary today?? Try this - http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Google
Interesting huh? Next time, we'll say i'm googling instead of i'm searching!!
The next time you visit Google.com, on top, you'll have images, news, orkut, gmail and more. Click on More and then on Even more. You'll see a huge list of Google applications!
Some of them like GMail, GTalk, Google Pack, Desktop search, Orkut, Blogger and Picasa, you might have heard of or used. That's hardly scratching the surface!! Try Notebook - It moves with your browser and is an online scribbling pad!! Whenever you are doing some research on the net, this is such a valuable tool!
Or, have you tried Translate?? This superb application lets you translate web pages in and to multiple languages and is pretty accurate too!! In fact, i wrote a testimonial for my friend Kishan on Orkut in Russian, using this tool! Check it out here (you need to be an Orkut member to read that)
Also try Specialized search, Scholar and Blog search for some interesting spin-offs on search!
Now to the best part - On the page, you will find Labs where all of the Beta products of Google are available for us to test and use first hand!! You must check that out!! And that page is customized to each country! So, we'll find Hindi translators and Indian labs products here!
What's the best thing? Everything to do with Google is FREE! Only God knows how they manage, but they do! And according to 'The Google Story', Larry Page and Sergey Binn (the founders) are among the Top billionaires in the world!
Want more info on them? Google them out :)

Oddly Enough - 1

There has never been a lack of oddities in this world!
With the advent of the internet, these eccentrics have found a new avenue of expression!
Not that i'm complaining, the world has become much more colourful now! And they add a much needed laugh to our lives!
Here's one among them -
This man in Australia has put up an auction on eBay to sell of his entire life!! Read this in his own words!
_____________________
A man in Australia is auctioning his life -- his house, his job, his clothes and his friends -- on eBay, after his marriage broke up, saying he wants to start a new life.

"It's time to move. A completely fresh start. I want to see where life takes me," Ian Usher, 44, told Australian television on Tuesday from Perth in Western Australia state.

Usher said he was auctioning his life as "a package" with his house in Perth valued at around A$420,000 (US$385,000).

"Hi there, my name is Ian Usher, and I have had enough of my life! I don't want it any more! You can have it if you like!," reads his Web site www.alife4sale.com, which has a link to eBay for bidders.

Usher said his life auction, which starts on June 22, included not only his house, a car, a motorbike, a jet ski and a spa, but also an introduction to "great friends" and a job at a rug shop in Perth for a trial two-week period.

"When it's over, I will just walk out the front door, take my wallet, my passport and start a new life," he said.

Usher said his ex-wife had heard of his auction.

"Her last comment was, 'it seems a bit mental to me'," he said.

Source - Reuters

______________________________
Nice, huh? As we were talking about earlier, there has never been a lack of weird things happening over the world, right from time immemorial! But with the internet taking over most of the things in our lives, these too have gone online!
Actually, Usher is not so crazy! We often hear the idiom - 'Start Afresh'- That's what he's doing too! But in a more pragmatic way!
Cheers, Usher and all the best with your new life!!
Know of some other crazy stuff? Do let me know!

Welcome to the Future - 1

Every single day, Science challenges the frontiers of Human imagination. It is this spirit of challenging the 'impossible ' that has made our life so much more comfortable with people-centric technology becoming the key word in today's inventions.
Hence, this column. Whenever i find something futuristic already happening today, i'll try and put it up here.
To start with is a phenomenal invention - The Audeo!
The Audeo is a kind of a mobile phone (it's a bad comparison actually, but there's nothing closer!) which works directly with the speech organs and synthesizes the neurological signals straight into speech!!! Think about it! For people who are diagnosed with disabilities such as ALS where the voice doesn't come out, this is a big boon! Like Stephen Hawking uses a Voice synthesizer to speak, this Audeo will enable us to speak without opening our mouth! It works via a Feather-Light device which will be positioned over the Vocal Chords. Whenever the person wants to speak, his Vocal chords automatically are sent a command from the Brain with the matter to be spoke. The Audeo immediately picks up these signals and Processes them through a Computer. The computer will in turn speak out these words! WOW!
More info here - The Audeo

Now, we can surely look forward to the day when every man and woman would be able to speak!

A History of Richness!

Trivia question - How many Indians are among the World's top 10 richest people??
Actually, in the current stock market scenario, none (excluding Lakshmi Mittal, who made his wealth elsewhere - he's at No.5)
Coming to History now, We've always known that India has been the richest nation in the World, prior to the looting which started many Centuries ago. Even after civilisation after civilisation has ravaged our nation, it still was VERY rich by the time Britishers took over the nation.
Now, i'm not writing here about Politics, but about Pure Wealth.
Forbes took up an experiment. It studied the entire history from Roman Senate right upto Bill Gates and compiled an all-time list of the wealthiest people in the world. Of course, the list has had it's critics, but then, how can someone be expected to assess the value of inflation exactly across Thousands of years??
But, Forbes has managed to do a splendid job and just browsing thru the list is Education! There is so much history in it's pages, you actually feel dwarfed!
Take a look at Forbes Wealthiest Historical Figures
Coming back to India, here's the moment of pride for all Indians. Look at Person No.5 on that list. Look and come back.
Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII, the Nizam of Hyderabad has been put up as the all time wealthiest man number 5 in the world!! That should tell us something right! The Last Nizam of Hyderabad, he was on the cover of Time Magazine as the richest man in the world during the 1940s and 1950s. In fact, it is this man, who used the famous 185 Carat Jacob Diamond as a paper-weight!! (By God!)
Bill Gates is No.20 and Mukesh Ambani is No.40 on that list! So, pretty good going for them too!
When you have the time, you must go thru that list in detail. It takes us thru the annals of wealth since Civilisation started in the world. And that in itself is such an en'rich'ing experience!!

The greatest Salesman in the world! - My Review

Here's a book review of one of my all time favourite books!
I had heard a lot about this book and was looking to buy it for a long time! However, the library did not stock it and Kiran did not have it (That means something!!)
By chance, one day i found a damaged copy at a bookstore and they sold it to me at 50% off!
(Not that the book is too costly - It costs just 125/- at full price)
Og Mandino, who authored this book, has written classics, that have sold over 50 Million copies Worldwide!!
This phenomenal book is placed in Ancient Egypt in a time before Christ. It starts off pretty mystically with an old mega-rich trader talking to his assistant about not having found someone with whom he could have shared his secrets of selling. Though the storyline is pretty engrossing, i won't keep you away from the actual reason why you should read this book - Selling!
There are 10 scrolls which the old man hands over to his new-found protege. Here they are -

• Scroll I - Commitment
• Scroll II - Love
• Scroll III - Persistence
• Scroll IV - Miracle
• Scroll V - Time
• Scroll VI - Emotion
• Scroll VII - Laughter
• Scroll VIII - Value
• Scroll IX - Action
• Scroll X - Guidance

There's a specific way in which Og Mandino recommends us to read this book, if we are serious about selling as a profession - Scroll 1 has to be read 3 times a day for 30 days straight!
Then, we are suggested to move on to scrolls 2 to 10.
Though i did not follow Mandino's suggestion (The book was too tempting!), still, the book a HUGE difference to my thought process!
This one's a small book (128 small pages), but packs a BIG punch! The best part is that nowhere in the book does Mandino (through the protagonist) talk about us improving our sales skills directly! The under current is that with the above mentioned 10 Human Values, Not only selling, anything in life is a Cakewalk! If you've not read this, you must! And if you have, do drop in a comment.
I'm now hunting for the next Mandino book to read!!

The Dog Story! Fantastic!

The
-- Dog Story --

Disclaimer:
The character (dog) and the story in this movie are just fictional.
If it resembles any of the real life character, it is purely co-incidental.

Once lived a dog named 'Pug' a.k.a Hutch dog.
His life was so happy when he was a kid...

Playing..... ..Laughing. .....Sleeping. ..... He grew up... One fine day he got a job in a company.. In... He became so famous... He was asked to follow a small boy where ever he goes... He was seen everywhere.. . on websites.... Roadside hoardings... desktops... etc... One fine day... A new company takes over the old.... Pug is panicked.. in a nail biting situation!!! ! It's been decided... & Pug was sent off... -- The End-- Moral: Never love your company, love your job, you never know when your company stops loving you. Awesome Story :) Thanks to Ajay for sharing!! Disclaimer - This is purely for entertainment and not to infringe any copyrights. _____________________________________________________________

Who would want one of those? - 2

Here's the second in this extremely interesting series! I'm having awesome fun compiling them!
This one is a headset for your mobile.
So, what's so surprising about it?
Look here!!!
When they said life comes full circle, i never thought it could apply to telephones too!!!
For those of us who miss the old fashioned phones, here's a Once-In-A-Lifetime opportunity to get that retro era back again!
For just 15$ (Plus shipping), you can own one of these slick headsets!!!
And they are even available in a choice of the 3 colours which were common for phones those days - White, Black and red!
It even comes complete with a coiled cord to give us that authentic feeling. So, kids who have'nt used the actual telephones, get them on (!)
More info? here - http://www.stupid.com/stat/PLEZ.html

The Winner! Awesome!!

I was watching some little kids play soccer. These kids were only five or six years old, but they were playing a real game, a serious game - two teams, complete with coaches, uniforms, and parents. I didn't know any of them, so I was able to enjoy the game without the distraction of being anxious about winning or losing.

I wished the parents and coaches could have done the same. The teams were pretty evenly matched. I will just call them Team One and Team Two. Nobody scored in the first period. The kids were hilarious. They were clumsy and terribly inefficient. They fell over their own feet, they stumbled over the ball, they kicked at the ball and missed it, but they didn't seem to care.
They were having fun.

In the second quarter, the Team One coach pulled out what must have been his first team, and put in the scrubs - except for his best player who now guarded the goal.

The game took a dramatic turn. I guess winning is important even when you're five years old, because the Team Two coach left his best players in, and the Team One scrubs were no match for them. Team Two swarmed around the little guy who was now the Team One goalie.

He was an outstanding athlete, but he was no match for three or four who were also very good. Team Two began to score. The lone goalie gave it everything he had, recklessly throwing his body in front of incoming balls, trying valiantly to stop them.

Team Two scored two goals in quick succession. It infuriated the young boy. He became a raging maniac, shouting, running, diving. With all the stamina he could muster, he covered the boy who now had the ball, but that boy kicked it to another boy twenty feet away, and by the time he repositioned himself, it was too late. Team Two scored a third goal.

I soon learned who the goalie's parents were. They were nice, decent-looking people. I could tell that his dad had just come from the office; he still had his suit and tie on. They yelled encouragement to their son. I became totally absorbed, watching the boy on the field and his
parents on the sidelines. After the third goal, the little kid changed. He could see it was no use; he couldn't stop them.

He didn't quit, but he became quiet. Desperate futility was written all over him. His father changed too. He had been urging his son to try harder, yelling advice and encouragement. But then he changed. He became anxious. He tried to say that it was okay - to hang in there. He grieved for the pain his son was feeling.

After the fourth goal, I knew what was going to happen. I've seen it before. The little boy needed help so badly, and there was no help to be had. He retrieved the ball from the net and handed it to the referee. And then he cried. He just stood there while huge tears rolled down both
cheeks. He went to his knees and put his fists to his eyes - and he cried the tears of the helpless and brokenhearted.

When the boy went to his knees, I saw the father start onto the field. His wife clutched his arm and said, "Jim, don't. You'll embarrass him." But he tore loose from her and ran onto the field with the game still in progress. With suit, tie, dress shoes, and all, he charged onto the field, and picked up his son so everybody would know that this was his boy, and he hugged him, held him, and cried with him. I've never been so proud of a man in my life.

He carried his son off the field, and when he got close to the sidelines I heard him say, "Scotty, I'm so proud of you. You were great out there. I want everybody to know that you are my son." "Daddy," the boy sobbed, "I couldn't stop them. I tried, Daddy, I tried and tried, and they scored on me."
"Scotty, it doesn't matter how many times they scored on you. You're my son, and I'm proud of you. I want you to go back out there and finish the game. I know you want to quit, but you can't. And, son, you're going to get scored on again, but it doesn't matter. Go on, now." It made a difference.
I could tell it did.

When you're all alone, and you're getting scored on - and you can't stop them - it means a lot to know that it doesn't matter to those who love you. The little guy ran back on to the field, and they scored two more times, but it was okay.

I get scored on every day. I try so hard. I recklessly throw my body in every direction. I fume, rage, and struggle. I could swear I hear the devil laughing. And he scores again, and the tears come, and I go to my knees, defeated and helpless.

And then the Maker of the World rushes onto the field - right in front of the whole crowd - the whole jeering world. He picks me up, hugs me, and says, "I'm so proud of you. You were great out there. I want everybody to know that you are my son, and because I control the outcome of this game,
I declare you the Winner!"
________________________________
An excerpt from a mail sent by a friend Navin. Thanks Navin!

General Motors Vs Microsoft - Laugh out Loud!! :)

Awesome Retort!!
Thanks to Mr GV Lu for sharing!!!
_______________________

Subject: General Motors vs Microsoft...

For all of us who feel only the deepest love & affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives,read on.

At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated,"If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25.00 cars that got 1,000 miles to the gallon."

In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued a press release stating: If GM had developed technology like Microsoft, we would all be driving cars with the following characteristics (and I just love this part, esp 10th point):

1. For no reason whatsoever, your car would crash twice a day.

2. Every time they repainted the lines in the road, you would have to buy a new car.

3. Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason.You would have to pull to the side of the road,close all of the windows, shut off the car,restart it,and reopen the windows before you could continue.For some reason you would simply accept this.

4. Occasionally, executing a maneuver such as a left turn would cause your car to shut down and refuse to restart,in which case you would have to reinstall the engine.

5.Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast and twice as easy to drive - but would run on only five percent of the roads.

6. The oil, water temperature, and alternator warning lights would all be replaced by a single "This Car Has Performed an Illegal Operation" warning light.

7. The airbag system would ask,"Are you sure?" before deploying.

8. Occasionally, for no reason whatsoever, your car would lock you out and refuse to let you in until you simultaneously lifted the door handle,turned the key and grabbed hold of the radio antenna.

9. Every time a new car was introduced car buyers would have to learn how to drive all over again because none of the controls would operate in the same manner as the old car.

10. You'd have to press the "Start" button to turn the engine off.

It Happened in India - My Review

I'm on a roll!!! Here's my third straight review!!
You know, even i'm amazed that i'm enjoying reading biographies! And i'm also sorry that i've avoided reading them for all these years! I guess it'll take quite some time to get to date reading that genre of books! After 2 international biographies, i came across this one at Big Bazaar (Obvoiously!), priced at 99/-!
And undoubtedly, it was worth much more! Kishore Biyani, who's the author of this book (in association with Dipayan Baishya) is the founder of Mega brands like Pantaloon, Big Bazaar, Central, Food Bazaar, Home Town, John Miller and now owns, among many more, Indian Terrain, aLL, Scullers, Planet Sports, Marks and Spencers in India, and many many more!!!! (I bet you did'nt know all this)
In fact, his Future Group (which sponsored the recent Cricket series) is now among the largest conglomerates in India with a wide range of interests ranging from Retail, Finance, Real Estate, Media, Brands, Space and Logistics!!
Now, all of this started off when a youngster went against the wishes of his family, who were in traditional business and ventured out on a leg to test the yet untested Indian retail scenario! And the rest as they say, is History!!!
Now, as KB says it in the first page itself, he is by no means a completed success story. However, his intention of writing this book, he says, is to take people thru a happening story rather than write a book after he's at the close of his accomplishments and that i think is a brave thing to do!!
The book is very exciting as the complete story was seen first hand by us! Yup! The share price of Pantaloons was 1.50/- in 1999!! Today, it is a multi-billion group! Just in 7 yrs, KB created so many brands! and he says he's not happy with the pace of growth!!!
This book is a true inspirational story for all Young Indians, especially the entrepreneurs.
The book is paced like a Novel and is the entertainment value is very high!
The best part about it is when KB's talking about lets say creating Central, there's an article by the CEO of Central! When he's talking about taking a new mall on rent, there's a page by the mall owner! All of these lend a lot of credibility to the story.
But as his consultant says, it is too soon to call him a success story. I guess that's with reference to time - as it's taken him only 7 yrs to create all these brands. But after reading the book, i feel KB's not only done work which normally people do in a lifetime, but has also paved the way to the entire Indian retail scenario.
Next time, i'm shopping at Big Bazaar.

How Starbucks Saved My Life - My Review

Here's another review! And this one's undoubtedly one of the most touching books i've ever read! Touching - not in the sense of touchy-feely weeping stuff, but touching in an inspirational sense.
How Starbucks saved my life!
My friend Kiran bought this book thinking it's the success story of Starbucks (Yup! He keeps buying success stories of everything and everyone) and the cover was so attractive (so was the name) that i picked it up from him.
I had just finished "Black like me" (look at my review on that book here) and was in the mood for Biographies.

Synopsis - The Author Michael Gates Gill is a high profile Advertising executive with J Walter Thompson and Company and puts in many many years of dedicated service to them. When he turns 62, He is fired by an executive whom he has recruited for the company! And life takes a downward turn. He gets a messy divorce, can't find money to pay college education bills for his 4 kids and has an affair to get a 5th kid! Everything that can go wrong did go wrong, and some more too! One day, sipping Coffee at Starbucks, (Starbucks is the orld's largest chain of Coffee shops) he is offered a job as a Barista (we call them waiters here) by a 26 yr old Afro-American Lady!! And he takes it up!
The book takes us thru his life at Starbucks and about what Life really is about! Gill narrates his story at such a fast clip that we can't put the book down once we begin. It is a real touching story of a 64 yr old man working in the midst of kids in a job, which was so different from his hi-fi one earlier and at the end of the story, we actually feel like standing up and applauding the author for his Guts and also for teaching us so much about life in 250 pages!
Now, my friend Ambika took the book from me (No, Kiran has'nt been given an opportunity to read it yet) and we'll ask her to write a rejoinder at the end of this article once she finishes.
PS - Check out the One-Liners at the beginning of each chapter - they are quotes taken from Starbucks Coffee Cups!
You MUST read this one! If you can't find it at a library, Buy it. Else, ask Kiran to lend it to you!
Fabulous!!
More info from Amazon here

Black Like Me - My Review.

For a very long time now, i've been reading only Fiction. And that was a natural progression from Hardy Boys to Sheldon and Archer. Somehow, the name "biography" seemed so boring!!
That was till a very highly rated friend recommended this book - Black Like Me.
Now, I'm not from the USA, never been there and was'nt even near being born by the time this book was written. Still, this book has been such an eye-opener!!
And so well paced, that you'll want to read thru it at one shot! Very unlike the other biography style of reading a chapter or less each day!

Plot Synopsis - It seems so unbelievable that the author John Howard Griffin undertook such a risky and seemingly insane task of colouring himself Black during the 1950's and went down into South America to live among the Blacks and experience their life firsthand!! During his 6 week journey among the states of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Georgia, Griffin maintained a diary, which ran to 188 pages. It is this diary which made up the book. Though controversial at that time, the book is exceptionally interesting, taking the reader first hand into the Black's USA of the 50s.
Having been written at a time when the Black USA was still discriminated against, the book went on to become a Modern Classic. I'm sure you'll find it at your nearest library. Else, it's bound to be there at any good Bookstore.
It's truly an eye opener! In fact, many things, we won't even believe - being born in a time and place where these situations can't even be imagined about!
Must Read!!
PS- A movie of the same name also was made in 1964 starring James Whitmore.
More info on the book at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Like_Me

Who would want one of those? - 1

Hi people.
As we go round the internet, we find a lot of stuff that actually serves no purpose!! I'm just going to put up a few of them on this blog (with due credits and apologies to the respective manufacturers / sellers).
These are bound to get us a good laugh!!
Here's the first -

Panic Button

If you have about 5.5$ extra in your pocket and don't know what to do with it, you must buy this Panic Button!
What does this button do, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!
It comes with a self adhesive sticker (Wow! What a USP!) and can be stuck on your keyboard. Remember, it does nothing!! So, it just sits there and if you feel like pressing a key which really does nothing (!) this key is ready and waiting!
There's more, if you want, this awesome Panic Button can be expressed couriered to reach you ASAP at just an extra 8$ (that must be because we can't live another single day without seeing this on our keyboard)
More details and more laughs on this? Check this out
http://www.iwantoneofthose.com/panic-button/index.html

Stay tuned for more!!!

A Frugal Billionaire!

This one's unbelievable! I was looking thru the most inspirational people in the world and came across the awesome Warren Buffet.
In fact, he's just pipped Bill Gates' 13 Yr reign at the top of the richest list, becoming the World's Richest Man as per the latest Forbes List!
But then, He's not inspirational just because he's the richest. Take a look at this brief!

Source Rediff.com Dt 10/3/08
______________________

A frugal billionaire

He bought his first share at age 11.

He bought a small farm at age 14 with savings from delivering newspapers.

He does not have a cellphone, has no computer on his desk, drives his own car and does not have security guard with him.

He is the world's richest man, the living legend, Warren Buffett!

One of the most successful investors the world has ever seen, Warren Buffett is today the richest man on the planet, according to Forbes magazine's annual list of billionaires.

Chairman of the Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett's wealth jumped by $10 billion jump to hit $62 billion during 2007. Buffett has beat friend -- and Microsoft boss -- Bill Gates' 13-year reign as the richest man. Buffett's journey to become the world's richest is truly inspirational.

A staunch follower of value investing, he started with an initial fund of $105,000 in 1956, the rest is history. Over the next five decades, Buffett's wealth rose to $62 billion.

But he is not the one to flaunt his riches, simple and down-to earth, Buffett continues to live in the same house in Omaha that he bought in 1958 for $31,500. He says that he has everything he needs in that house. His house does not have a wall or a fence.

____________________________________________

Now, isn't that truly awesome? In a world where money is spent much before it is earned, it is heartening to see such simplicity and such awesome earthly living!

Here's to many more people taking Buffet's cue.

Ok Tata!!

The latest India Today features it's power list with 50 most powerful people in the country. When the book came home, i immediately thought Mukesh Ambani would be heading the list with bro Anil coming in Second. Imagine my surprise (and delight) to see them placed 2 and 3 respectively.
So, who headed the list? Our very own Ratan Tata!!!!
Having worked with Tata group for a few years, i've been a great fan of the man ever since! It is truly heartening to see this fantastic individual heading the Magic Circle 50 Power people in India
http://indiatoday.digitaltoday.in/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&issueid=43&id=5173&Itemid=1&sectionid=30

When the government says India is Shining, it is because of scions like Tata that it is.
The first line in India today says "Because he makes us proud to be Indian". How true!! Here's a quick fact file

• Joined the Tata Group in December 1962, when he was sent to Jamshedpur to work at Tata Steel. He worked on the floor along with other blue-collar employees, shovelling limestone and handling the blast furnaces.
• Was named Chairman of Tata Industries in 1981
• Took over from JRD as Group Chairman in 1991
• In 1998, launched the first indigenious car in India, the Indica
• In 2000, bought out Tetley Tea UK for 432 Mn US$ to form the World's 2nd Largest Tea company! The largest deal then.
• Bought out the troubled Daewoo Commercial Vehicle company for 102 Mn $
• In 2007, Tata acquired Corus Steel- An Anglo-Dutch steel and aluminium producer for 52000 Crore!
• Lauched the Tata Nano on Jan 10 2008 at the Auto Expo at New Delhi!
• Among the 25 Most powerful people in Business according to Fortune Magazine Nov 2007
  
• Honorary Doctorate from the London School of Economics
  
• Over 50% of his 25 Billion $ Turnover comes from his international business!
  

And now to the truly exciting part!

• Tata has bid for a takeover of The world's best known super-car manufacturer Ferrari!!
• He has also finalised bids for 2 super brands - Landrover and Jaguar from Ford Motor Company, amounting to 2 Billion $!!
  

There are many many more!! For the complete list, take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Group#Tata_takeovers_and_targets

There are many things that make us feel proud to be an Indian. Ratan Tata gives us the same feeling!! Gone are the days when Indians were considered to be the best employees worldwide! Now, it is time for us to be the best Business owners worldwide! And Tata is paving the way!
I'm actually looking forward to seeing Tata takeover Ferrari!!!!
Jai Tata!

Big Blogging!!!

Since morning today, i've been absolutely jobless!!
So, I decided to explore Google and Wikipedia. Somewhere along the way, i stumbled across a top result which came in from a Blog!! Intrigued, i went on to research the most popular blogs!! And My God! What a treasure trove of information we have in the form of Blogs!!!
What i've realised today is that almost the entire internet is being fueled by amateurs! And gone are the days of people posting nonsense. Nowadays, bloggers pride themselves on posting genuine information which is almost as good as any certified encyclopedia we can buy in the market!!!
Still unconvinced? Think Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.com), which is edited and managed entirely by people like us! In fact, i went online today and edited a couple of articles which were out of date!!
Now, i searched Google for "most popular blogs" and the blogs which came up were - Amazing!!!
So, i won't rant on about them! Instead, i've put up links to the most popular blogs here in the links column on my blog!
Take a look, you're sure to be blown away!! Especially remember that each of these blogs was done up by one person each only!

The Rajasthan Effect!

This was to be expected!!
We just spent 10 beautiful days in the unbelievable state of Rajasthan! How can one not come back enchanted? When i look back at the trip, there's one thing that keeps striking me - The superb resilience of the Human spirit!
Living in a place which has been endowed by nature in multiple ways, it is easy for us to comment on life. In a state like Rajasthan, where more than 50% of the state is a desert, where the average rainfall is one of the lowest in the country, and where the weather is a constant enemy, the people are still unimaginably colourful!!
In fact, Rajasthan has been the state that's been attracting the maximum number of foreign tourists for a long long time (only recently has Kerala piqued it for the top spot). For a state that has the most impossibly bleak landscapes, attracting the max number of tourists itself is a matter of pride!
They say "if life gives you lemons, make lemonade". Rajasthan was given Sandstone and have they used it or what!! Wherever we look, even in the smallest village, we'll find some Fort, Haveli, Gate or even a small Bungalow made with Sandstone! No wonder, Jaipur's called the Pink City (Sandstone is naturally pink in colour)
Standing on top of Jaisalmer Fort, it is an experience in itself to see the whole city in uniform Pink!
Nature made Rajasthan in Mono Colour. So, the people made their own lives Multi-Colour. Where else can you imagine finding clothes in such varied hues and the weaves there have actually become a symbol of Indian Clothing the world over. It is a fantastic experience to see these brightly dresses people contrast against the bleak desert landscape!! Even the Camels and the Elephants are dressed colourfully!
Nature did not give the state a lot of land to farm upon. So, people, led by the kings there, built Huge Forts, which took up generations to construct and made gifted artisans out of ordinary people. It is a wonder to see Huge constructions in the middle of nowhere! When driving back to Delhi, we even saw winding long protective walls across the hills! God only knows what they were built to protect! Atleast, people had work to do and food to eat!!!
There's much more to write about this wonderful state, but i guess i'll do it in another article!
Overall, apart from increasing my faith in the Human Race, Rajasthan has treated us to sights that the eyes still have'nt got over, Food that the taste buds still gush about and Hospitality that makes me think when i can go back to it again!!