i guess that one of the triggers for creativity in an individual is when one has to come up with excuses.
not sure if excuses are created to get rid of one's guilt feeling or to escape additional comments from others.
in any case, i find that such situtations provide a lot of scope for creative excuses.
after some time, these could become expectations from others - like in my case, the excuses for not having green tea, have become expectations.
i am forced to come up with reasons why that is not the right time to have tea.
these excuses are not considered valid and i anyway end up drinking the green tea.
not that i do not like it - in fact, i like some of the flavors - it is just that i prefer if it is more like iced tea - chilled.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Daily speed limit
Do you have a daily speed limit?
i have noticed this while driving.
there are some days when i seem to be happy driving at 40.
and some other days, when anything less than 60 feels very slow.
this is irrespective of traffic conditions.
the same applies to some other tasks as well. long pending things are not necessarily big tasks that require a lot of effort. just that it gets postponed.
and when in a mood, many things seem to get done quickly.
this is from clearing the clutter in the drawers or rooms to clearing the mailbox!
i have noticed this while driving.
there are some days when i seem to be happy driving at 40.
and some other days, when anything less than 60 feels very slow.
this is irrespective of traffic conditions.
the same applies to some other tasks as well. long pending things are not necessarily big tasks that require a lot of effort. just that it gets postponed.
and when in a mood, many things seem to get done quickly.
this is from clearing the clutter in the drawers or rooms to clearing the mailbox!
Sunday, February 10, 2008
where peacocks danced
it was a long pending trip.
finding the right time that suited everyone in the family meant that it had to be taken as a power break in the middle of the week.
a day [and two consecutive night train journeys] trip to mayiladuthurai [earlier known as mayavaram] was mainly to visit the rare [the only?] saraswati temple in koothanoor [ http://www.hinduonnet.com/2001/10/25/stories/13250799.htm ].
we also visited a temple for lalitha, where the popular lalitha sahasranamam was supposed to have been chanted first as well as a rara temple for Ganesha in a normal human form - before his head was replaced with that of an elephant - the Adi Vinayaka temple. [a quick search before writing this post showed that there are a few other such temples in tamilnadu, in the same area].
our landing point was mayiladuthurai - where the station has been partly converted to broad gauge and the rest is still in meter gauge, under conversion.
the family that hosted us for breakfast lunch [and packed dinner for the night train] were very good family friends of my in-laws.
their affection was extremely touching. we were overwhelmed by the hospitality and the simple and surrounding affection.
i had written earlier on LoL. this obviously does not not apply to them - possibly for all non-urban families.
society and the close knit families still mean a lot and their lives spin around them. while having grown to have the benefits of modern technology and advancements, the basic values and the small-town atmosphere where almost everybody knows everybody else and genuinely cares about them are still to be seen and felt.
it was a refreshing power break. the trains were full, but did not feel crowded.
surely the temples were very quiet and we could spend undistrubed time in all the temples.
i was told that the crowds usually come in during the weekends.
in all this i could not see any peacocks - in the town where once peacocks danced - hence the name mayiladuthurai [or mayooram or mayavaram].
it is surely worth another, more leisurely visit to this part of the country.
finding the right time that suited everyone in the family meant that it had to be taken as a power break in the middle of the week.
a day [and two consecutive night train journeys] trip to mayiladuthurai [earlier known as mayavaram] was mainly to visit the rare [the only?] saraswati temple in koothanoor [ http://www.hinduonnet.com/2001/10/25/stories/13250799.htm ].
we also visited a temple for lalitha, where the popular lalitha sahasranamam was supposed to have been chanted first as well as a rara temple for Ganesha in a normal human form - before his head was replaced with that of an elephant - the Adi Vinayaka temple. [a quick search before writing this post showed that there are a few other such temples in tamilnadu, in the same area].
our landing point was mayiladuthurai - where the station has been partly converted to broad gauge and the rest is still in meter gauge, under conversion.
the family that hosted us for breakfast lunch [and packed dinner for the night train] were very good family friends of my in-laws.
their affection was extremely touching. we were overwhelmed by the hospitality and the simple and surrounding affection.
i had written earlier on LoL. this obviously does not not apply to them - possibly for all non-urban families.
society and the close knit families still mean a lot and their lives spin around them. while having grown to have the benefits of modern technology and advancements, the basic values and the small-town atmosphere where almost everybody knows everybody else and genuinely cares about them are still to be seen and felt.
it was a refreshing power break. the trains were full, but did not feel crowded.
surely the temples were very quiet and we could spend undistrubed time in all the temples.
i was told that the crowds usually come in during the weekends.
in all this i could not see any peacocks - in the town where once peacocks danced - hence the name mayiladuthurai [or mayooram or mayavaram].
it is surely worth another, more leisurely visit to this part of the country.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
waiting for zero
earlier this week, as i was packing for my travel to Delhi, saw the news update that Delhi was to hit zero degrees on friday.
amidst hectic, allday [and almot all night] meetings, thought i would step out to feel the cold.
the thursday papers carried reports from BBC that confirmed the prediction and those from the local met department that maintained that the temperature would drop to only about 2 degrees.
even more than the twenty-20 match this was the main topic of discussion that morning.
an interview on TV with a 6th standard student showed her as very unhappy, as the government had declared a holiday till class 5. her question was, we are just one more year older - why should we not have a holiday?
some of the questions by kids have no easy answers.
like the one from the child star of 'taare zameen par'. he was unhappy that he was adjudged the best child star. his question was - when i was the main character, why not best actor?
back to delhi and the wait for zero - the previous geological experience was the tremor recently, that i could feel - while @ Noida.
no entrepreneur had thought of making T-shirts or other accessories - that would proclaim something like 'I survived zero-degrees'.
after a late night meeting and some backlog to be cleared the next morning, i slept through the night for about 5 hours and thezero point must havce just passed by..
today, when i checked the papers, news etc - there was no mention of this record being reached.
guess i need to wait for the next winter.
amidst hectic, allday [and almot all night] meetings, thought i would step out to feel the cold.
the thursday papers carried reports from BBC that confirmed the prediction and those from the local met department that maintained that the temperature would drop to only about 2 degrees.
even more than the twenty-20 match this was the main topic of discussion that morning.
an interview on TV with a 6th standard student showed her as very unhappy, as the government had declared a holiday till class 5. her question was, we are just one more year older - why should we not have a holiday?
some of the questions by kids have no easy answers.
like the one from the child star of 'taare zameen par'. he was unhappy that he was adjudged the best child star. his question was - when i was the main character, why not best actor?
back to delhi and the wait for zero - the previous geological experience was the tremor recently, that i could feel - while @ Noida.
no entrepreneur had thought of making T-shirts or other accessories - that would proclaim something like 'I survived zero-degrees'.
after a late night meeting and some backlog to be cleared the next morning, i slept through the night for about 5 hours and thezero point must havce just passed by..
today, when i checked the papers, news etc - there was no mention of this record being reached.
guess i need to wait for the next winter.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Shtop Lights
Everyone talks about the retail boom in India.
it is overflowing to the streets as well.
i am sure you would have been approached by some hawkers at stop lights with a fairly large array of goods.
other than the traditional car wipe cloths, i have seen 'designer' sun glasses, magazines, sun shades, electric mosquito swatters and a range of seasonal items.
This week, there were Indian National Flags, stickers, and soem desktop displays of flags.
i am amazed at the distribution network and also the economics.
though i have not bought anything from these hawkers, i am sure there is sufficient business to make this viable.
Stop lights are becoming Shop Lights - or stoppers shops!
a recent sales pitch from a small boy raised a few doubts in my mind.
this boy was selling tissues. he wanted me to be his first customer - around 9 AM.
his offer was 5 packs for Rs. 100.
i had the window glass down a little, so he decided to engage in a harder sell.
when i responsed to his initial offer with a no, he must have felt that he had got my attention and interest.
he said, For you, sir, i will give you 6 packs for Rs. 100.
the sale was still not concluded.
the car started inching towards the light.
the next 'final offer' was for 7 packs for Rs. 100 and that i could never get that deal again, ever..
it was a false alarm, as the light was still red.
this time, he said, 'sir, last and final offer - 8 packs for Rs. 100'. i will give you all the boxes i have.. i am giving this only because you are my first customer.
as the car started moving, i started to wonder if i would have anyway felt bad and cheated anyway - either because the actual price would have been even lower or maybe the boxes were all empty or had a very low number of tissues.
i do not want to get the answer by buying from the street corner.
it is overflowing to the streets as well.
i am sure you would have been approached by some hawkers at stop lights with a fairly large array of goods.
other than the traditional car wipe cloths, i have seen 'designer' sun glasses, magazines, sun shades, electric mosquito swatters and a range of seasonal items.
This week, there were Indian National Flags, stickers, and soem desktop displays of flags.
i am amazed at the distribution network and also the economics.
though i have not bought anything from these hawkers, i am sure there is sufficient business to make this viable.
Stop lights are becoming Shop Lights - or stoppers shops!
a recent sales pitch from a small boy raised a few doubts in my mind.
this boy was selling tissues. he wanted me to be his first customer - around 9 AM.
his offer was 5 packs for Rs. 100.
i had the window glass down a little, so he decided to engage in a harder sell.
when i responsed to his initial offer with a no, he must have felt that he had got my attention and interest.
he said, For you, sir, i will give you 6 packs for Rs. 100.
the sale was still not concluded.
the car started inching towards the light.
the next 'final offer' was for 7 packs for Rs. 100 and that i could never get that deal again, ever..
it was a false alarm, as the light was still red.
this time, he said, 'sir, last and final offer - 8 packs for Rs. 100'. i will give you all the boxes i have.. i am giving this only because you are my first customer.
as the car started moving, i started to wonder if i would have anyway felt bad and cheated anyway - either because the actual price would have been even lower or maybe the boxes were all empty or had a very low number of tissues.
i do not want to get the answer by buying from the street corner.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
less is better
the last two days, most of the maxi-cabs and many private buses are off the roads in bangalore.
while they are protesting the mandate of fitting their vehicles with speed limiting devices, it has been better for the other drivers, as they are able to drive faster than usual, with less crowded roads.
i am sure that this is one of the reasons for this protest and reluctance.
i have some solutions for this issue:
make the speed limiting device active during peak hours only
have special drag races for these drivers who are forced to drive with limitations; these races to be held over the weekends in specially designated roads that have the normal number of potholes, cross traffic etc
like slow cycle races, have a slow-sumo race
offices should reward the drivers [and the employees, consequently] who come in late to work, due to slow driving
i shudder to think how long it would take to get to the new airport with a maximum speed of 15 kmph..
p.s. no idea mentioned above to be construed as the author directly or indirectly promoting rash driving!
while they are protesting the mandate of fitting their vehicles with speed limiting devices, it has been better for the other drivers, as they are able to drive faster than usual, with less crowded roads.
i am sure that this is one of the reasons for this protest and reluctance.
i have some solutions for this issue:
make the speed limiting device active during peak hours only
have special drag races for these drivers who are forced to drive with limitations; these races to be held over the weekends in specially designated roads that have the normal number of potholes, cross traffic etc
like slow cycle races, have a slow-sumo race
offices should reward the drivers [and the employees, consequently] who come in late to work, due to slow driving
i shudder to think how long it would take to get to the new airport with a maximum speed of 15 kmph..
p.s. no idea mentioned above to be construed as the author directly or indirectly promoting rash driving!
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Chinnovation
or Chinese innovation.
i visited a friend recently.
he had returned from a trip to the US, and was showing some of his shopping there.
these were Chinese products, LED based lamps.
of was a stick on - that could be put inside cupboards.
another was a hand charged torch light.
a third was a candle [wax] lamp.
the candle lamp had real was [vanilla fragrance] and an LED lamp.
the lamp would flicker and also create the illusion of a normal wick burning. if you did not know that it was electrically operated, you cannot tell the difference.
three interesting aspects of this:
1. the finish was very good. no ragged edges, pleasant colors and very low power consumption - LED lamps.
2. they were all Chinese made designs
3. they were very cheap. the candle lamp was about Rs. 20, the cupboard lamp was about Rs. 40. [USD 1.00]
i had read the book Tigers at your doorstep on Chinese innovation going beyond the cost / price based competition alone.
this was very interesting - to see that simple applications of simple technology. no risks on either front. but creating immediately appealing products and making them affordable.
consider this with the sharper image products..
something to think about.
i visited a friend recently.
he had returned from a trip to the US, and was showing some of his shopping there.
these were Chinese products, LED based lamps.
of was a stick on - that could be put inside cupboards.
another was a hand charged torch light.
a third was a candle [wax] lamp.
the candle lamp had real was [vanilla fragrance] and an LED lamp.
the lamp would flicker and also create the illusion of a normal wick burning. if you did not know that it was electrically operated, you cannot tell the difference.
three interesting aspects of this:
1. the finish was very good. no ragged edges, pleasant colors and very low power consumption - LED lamps.
2. they were all Chinese made designs
3. they were very cheap. the candle lamp was about Rs. 20, the cupboard lamp was about Rs. 40. [USD 1.00]
i had read the book Tigers at your doorstep on Chinese innovation going beyond the cost / price based competition alone.
this was very interesting - to see that simple applications of simple technology. no risks on either front. but creating immediately appealing products and making them affordable.
consider this with the sharper image products..
something to think about.
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