Alka Dwivedi

Category: General

  • A Picture is Worth A Thousand Words

    Salute to a Mother On Mother’s Day.

    Mother
    Mother

    Image Source: rediff

  • Our Heroes : Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev

    Bhagat-Singh-Sukhdev-Rajguru
    Bhagat-Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru

    “Lovers, Lunatics and poets are made of same stuff.”
    — Bhagat Singh

    Today, March 23rd is the Martyrdom of Sardar Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev. When I read the above quote by Bhagat Singh, I thought he himself was made of that same stuff that’s why he was able to make supreme sacrifice for his motherland at the age of 24. If he was rational thinking he must have marketed “sacrifices done by his family” and ensured dynastic rule in the guise of democracy.

    I was wondering if they come back in today’s India what would they think of us? What would be their views on today’s politicians and bureaucrats? What would he think about today’s youth? What will Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru think about their ultimate sacrifice?

    Would BHagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev feel ashamed that we had given supreme sacrifice so that A. Raja can flourish, Klmadi can make us the laughing stock in front of the world? Not a single flat was allotted to the martyrs in Adarsh Housing Socity? Would Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev feel that their martyrdom has gone in vein? Now instead of Britishers, we are humiliated, looted and raped by our own politicians? Had they dreamed about today’s India?
    What was in Bhagat Singh’s mind when he willing went to gallows for us? We can see a glimpse here:
    “The aim of life is no more to control the mind, but to develop it harmoniously; not to achieve salvation here after, but to make the best use of it here below; and not to realise truth, beauty and good only in contemplation, but also in the actual experience of daily life; social progress depends not upon the ennoblement of the few but on the enrichment of democracy; universal brotherhood can be achieved only when there is an equality of opportunity – of opportunity in the social, political and individual life.— from Bhagat Singh’s prison diary, p. 124”

    After reading this, I know what our martyrs Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and SUkhdev will think. They will get up to fight again, this time the enemy is in our own house, no outsiders.
    Image Source: MIDHUN MAATALU

  • Tsunami in Japan

    Japanese are the true followers of Buuddha. Their calm and cool composer didn’t leave during recent Tsunami and earthquake. Imagine a monster in the form of Tsunami wave is chasing you to suck the life out of you and you are running for your dear life BUT STILL, STOP YOUR car when the traffic signal turns red! Can any force beat such people for long? Certainly not. So much grace and dignity in the face of so much adversity? When death is staring in their eyes, they care for rules and regulations. Even destructive forces of nature can’t cow down such people and bow to their will power and courage.

    I decided to write about doing one thing everyday that brings me happiness. Sometimes, being happy is not everything. Sometimes more than happiness one needs a strong resolve and great hope that I/we will pull through. I hope people of Japan will come out from the disastrous tsunami and rebuild their lives again.

    The visuals and videos of Japan hit by the earthquake of 8.9-magnitude which led to Tsunami were quite disturbing and heart wrenching. You feel so helpless and hopeless. Tsunami hitting Japan has claimed hundreds of lives. A ship carrying hundred passengers in the remote city of Ofunato got tossed like a toy by giant water waves. When nature unleashed its fury on us, it becomes quite mercilessness. A nuclear plant and petrochemical complex are on fire too.
    Hindustan Times says,

    “The monster wall of water generated by the 8.9-magnitude quake — the seventh biggest in history — pulverised the northeastern city of Sendai, where police reportedly said 200-300 bodies had been found.

    The 33-foot wave of black water sent shipping containers, cars and debris crashing through the streets of Sendai and across open farmland, while a tidal wave of debris-littered mud destroyed everything in its path.”

    The reports say they can’t tell now how much damage has been done by Tsunami in Japan in terms of loss of lives and property. The horrible thing is more than 50 countries are facing the threat of Tsunami.

    But Japanese are known for their will power and determination. They have survived Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear attacks. They rose to the occasion and rebuild their lives from the ashes. They are second to none in manpower, skill, dedication and professionalism. There is no doubt that they will rise again from the debris and come out as winner.

  • Interesting, Rawan Following Gandhiji’s Path

    I wish I could see the name of the company on the water bottle. 🙂

     

    paperscan2

    Image Source: Dainak Jagran ( 29/09/09)

  • What Defines An Indian?

    What Does It Mean To Be An Indian?  I copy pasted the whole thing without any shame. In fact, on the contrary I am feeling quite proud. 🙂 Please take your time and read the post without being cynical.

     

    A friend remarked to me that what defines America is its veneration of entrepreneurship. The French, he added, most admired style and elegance. What defines India? That was the challenge my American friend posed.
    Before I could speak a word, he admonished me, “Don’t give me the clichéd answer that anything one says about India is true and the opposite is equally true, that India is too complex and heterogeneous for a simple answer.”

    It was obvious to me that like any self respecting American, and a Harvard MBA to boot, he wanted a concrete answer. I told him that like any self respecting Indian I needed time to formulate my concrete views — a few weeks I told him. Unusual for an American, he agreed to meet me later on this point. As luck would have it I received an invitation to speak to a diverse audience in Washington DC, as part of the many farewell parties in my honour as I was packing my bags to return to India for good. I spoke on the topic: What Does It Mean To Be An Indian?

    Here’s the gist of my speech.
    It is always a difficult task to distil from the collective experience of a humungous civilization that single defining aspect of life that constitutes the character of India. I can only try ever so humbly. In trying to piece together my several thoughts on this subject, I was helped by a few incidents of a more recent vintage. These incidents perhaps highlight what it means to be an Indian.

    When I saw Ms Susan Boyle winning the hearts of the world with her talent and simple upbringing in the show Britain’s Got Talent, I asked myself whether a similar show in the Indian context might reveal to me what was perhaps hidden in the multiple images that India conjures in any mind. Sure enough I happened to receive an email forward by someone named Mary that stunned me. Here was a group of labourers performing a sensational dance relating to Lord Krishna in the wildly popular show India’s Got Talent. They called themselves The Prince Dance Group and had a physically challenged guy too. The amazing choreography, the use of traditional mythology, the perfect sense of timing and above all, the self confidence to perform before an urban audience — it was truly breathtaking.

    The judges were among the best known talents in India: film director Shekhar Kapoor, actress Kiron Kher, and actress Sonali Bendre. As the act came to a close I could see tears in the eyes of the judges. Though there were not many close-ups of the audience I suspect there was hardly a dry eye in the crowd. Even as the dance came to a close I could hear shouts of “BHARATR MATA KI JAI!”

    As the dance came to an end Kapoor actually wept and declared, “I have seen performers in the US,UK and Russia but believe me I have never seen anything like this . I am really proud to be an Indian.”The other judges just about managed to control their tears. Kher was ecstatic –“Fantastic, Fantastic!” she shouted .

    I really cried for more than one reason.. Not only did I find the talent stunning, I had found the answer to the question I had been asked to answer — What Does It Mean To Be An Indian?

    Here was a bunch of Oriya labourers — I have spent a decade in Orissa and am more than familiar with the extensive and degrading poverty there. These labourers live under inhuman conditions and as far as we urbanites can see they may have no hope of ever living a civilized life, even generations from now. Yet these guys had shown that one defining Indian characteristic ….Endurance… a quality that makes us not just put up with great odds but strive with the confidence that one day we will win — that every night is followed by the dawn, that all is never lost, that no matter how the international community jeers at our corruption, our idiotic politicians, our inept bureaucracy, our moribund education system, our abysmal health system, our crumbling infrastructure, our humungous population, we will come up triumphant.

    Of course we realize that these are lofty sentiments and unless they are translated into concrete action we will remain as a nation thriving on pious platitudes. Believe me, young India has clearly told the older, fading generation, “We have seen and tasted progress. We will go ahead no matter what. Not all our vile politicians or bumbling bureaucrats or corrupt policeman or judges can hold us down. We will rise despite you guys.” Indians have endured much over thousands of years but have now decided that if you can’t beat them just dexterously move around them.

    The evidence of a young India on the move is now seen in the far corners of the country as youngsters from small towns and remote villages display uncanny talent and ambition. I recall seeing a TV journalist asking a young boy in a remote village in Bihar about his role model. “Bill Gates” was the answer coming from a smiling cherubic face, even though it seemed to me that he had not eaten a fulsome meal all his life! He had endured hunger for years and his family had endured hunger for maybe generations but that did not prevent this youngster from aspiring to be the world’s richest man sometime in the future. The extraordinary confidence in that boy’s body language told me that he was aiming for the stars and at worst he may make it to the moon.

    My own family is a saga in the endurance that characterizes India. My grandfather was a laborer in a harbor in a small town in south India. He and his large family of 5 sons and a daughter endured a marginal existence. My father joined a private sector company during British rule in India. When the world went to war in 1939 my father lost his job. He told me much later that my mother had, at one stage, only one saree, the traditional Indian women’s wear. She would wash this lone saree at night and cover herself with a towel and quickly wear the saree at break of dawn. The family endured near poverty and yet I am an MBA from an ivy league Indian business school, and a modestly successful guy. My niece was ranked among the highest in GMAT scores in the world. She is a Harvard alumnus and works for the most admired consulting firm in the world at Wall Street. Her siblings are all highly qualified professionals, who in their early years endured a humble middle class existence but are now in the topmost income brackets in the USA — a far cry from their laborer great grand father.

    At this point of time I look at India as a genie that has come out of the bottle. The British denuded India over 200 years. Thereafter a rapacious polity and a repressive bureaucracy kept the lid tightly closed. But now a long suppressed people have decided to endure such atrocities no more. India’s time has come.

    BHARAT MATA KI JAI.’

    As I took my seat there were not a few wet eyes in the room. My eyes were wet too. If you believe in what I have said please forward this to your friends.

  • Dreaming Your Dream!

    Susan Boyle singing in Reality TV Show Britain's Got Talent

    Susan Boyle singing in Reality TV Show Britain’s Got Talent

    Today Amrit showed me this video and I was stunned for a while. PLEASE DO CLICK on this video and I promise you that you will not be disappointed. You will start believing that external beauty really doesn’t matter after few minutes and what counts is the inner beauty. Sometimes you believe that few things are good for textbooks only and practical life is entirely different. But this 47 years old Scottish lady Susan Boyle from a village dared NOT to forget her dream. Susan Boyle at the age of 47 has the courage to appear in a reality TV show Britain’s Got Talent. We all know that these days at reality TV shows you have to have that total package in you. You should have a ‘personality’, connect to the audience, a model like figure and a stunning face. A contestant like Susan Boyle, who is 47 year-old and not a very stunning figure and face to go with this type of reality shows, stood tall and held her dignity. Judges mocked her and but she took it all in her stride.
    If you are curious to know what happened when she started singing, please WATCH THE VIDEO. I can’t embed the video here because this feature was disabled by youtube. You might find the courage to rediscover your long forgotten dream. Watch the reactions of the judges when Susan Boyle completed the song.

    Hollywood star Demi Moore has reportedly revealed that she cried watching Susan Boyle’s audition on Britain’s Got Talent.

    Increased demand from music downloaders has sent the original cast recording of the song she performed up the iTunes singles chart, and to top it all off, Boyle has said she has already had a meeting with Sony BMG with a view to releasing an album. “I can’t say much about it. It’s early days and I’m taking baby steps.”

    Image Source: My Park Magazine

  • JAI HO!! A. R. Rahman Wins Oscar for Slumdog Millionaire!

    Music maestro A.R. Rahman has added another first in his cap. Rahman has become the first Indian composer to win an Oscar for his music in Slumdog Milllionaire. Rahman was nominated in the Best Original Score and the Best Original Song categories for the Oscars and he won both. He has won best original score along with lyricist Gulzar. Rahman has already received the Golden Globe Award for the same.

    Another Indian documentary film by Megan Mylan, “Smile Pinki” won an Oscar in the Best Short Documentary category.
    It seems the 24-hour news channels and Internet has really converted this planet into a small global village. Its not that we didn’t have great composers before Rehman or “Jai Ho” is Gulzar’s best creation. But these days we have better means of exposure, communication, transportation and event management companies. These things put concerned people at the right place at the right time with right people. A “JAI HO” for technocrats who make this connectivity possible!

  • Chief Minister of Delhi!

    Soumya Viswanathan, 27, who worked as a producer with Headlines Today, was returning home at three in the morning from office. She phoned her father to say that she would be home in fifteen minutes. But she was found dead in her car on Nelson Mandela Road in Vasant Kunj locality. Her car was rammed into the road divider and she had a bullet injury in her head. Soumya Viswanathan was taken to AIIMS where she was declared brought dead.
    What our learned Chief Minister has to say about the incident?

    “All by herself till 3 am at night in a city where people believe…you know…you should not be so adventurous.”

    What would our Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit would have said if she would have been murdered after coming out from a disc or pub? That such “type” of women deserve this kind of death. They are luring the criminals into killing them? What Sheila Dikshit have said about the outrage her remark caused, to a Congress News Network (CNN-IBN) programme “Devil’s Advocate” anchored by I can’t remember his name but only his English accent.

    “It horrified me enormously…I am a woman myself. I have three sisters; I have two grand daughters. I think what I said was really blown out of proportion,” Dikshit told Karan Thapar’s Devil’s Advocate programme on CNN-IBN.

    “I used the phrase adventurous in two ways that travelling at three in the morning is not a safe thing for anybody to do and above all I think even for boys, travelling after 9 in the evening. Companies employing young girls and boys 24 hours for that matter should provide escort for the safety of our girls and boys,” she said.

    Wow! You have sisters and granddaughters! But they have the blessings of a certain Madame from Congress party. Soumya Viswanathan didn’t chose to born to that dynasty! Too bad for her. And if the company have to ensure the safety on the roads of Delhi, then please step down as a Chief Minister and spare us the agony of your scholarly remarks.

  • Hail Internet! Hail Blogging!

    Sudipta Chatterjee says:

    Bloggers, wake up! For long the mainstream media has been plagiarising pictures from our blogs for long. And they seem to get away with it with impunity. Because they don’t respond to emails. They don’t publish letters sent to the editor about their reporters lifting images with impunity. How can they — these losers can’t stand up to own their mistakes; they don’t have the balls to do that.

    The question is, how do we fight it? And the answer is right here: we have our own blogs. Remember, united we stand and divided we fall. So on October 2nd, let us all post something about this plagiarism. It should only be fitting that we all stand together and lodge our protest against injustice on the day the one man who taught us this was born.

    I don’t have my pictures plagiarized by anyone. But my sister had gone through this problem. She did contact the PR person and editor of the magazine and extracted an apology and token compensation from them. 🙂 You can read the whole drama here: When You See a Picture Taken by You in an In Flight Magazine with a Credit to Someone Else!
    So thanks to internet and thanks to blogging which have given some power to us, the mere mortals! Hail Gandhiji who taught us to fight for our rights!

  • The Richest Man on This Planet!

    I came to know about this incredible fellow here. He ended Bill Gates’ 13-year reign as the richest man. He must be owning world’s biggest, largest, bestest … Whatever the money can buy must be under his belt. But I was sadly disappointed.

    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!
    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.
    He never travels by private jet, although he owns the world’s largest private jet company.

    But I was more interested in knowing how much he will leave for his children.

    His children will not inherit a significant proportion of his wealth. Buffettt says, “I want to give my kids just enough so that they would feel that they could do anything, but not so much that they would feel like doing nothing”.

    I wish all parents can read what the richest man on this planet thinks. This world will see few less spoiled brats!

  • Attention Male-kind!!!

    I got this from Ritu. Normally I don’t post forwarded materials from my mail box. But this one is different. 🙂

    Six married men will be dropped on an island with one car and 3 kids each for six weeks.

    Each kid will play
    Two sports
    And either take music
    Or dance classes.

    There is no fast food.

    Each man must
    Take care of his 3 kids;
    Keep his assigned house clean,
    Correct all homework,
    And complete science projects,
    Cook, do laundry,
    And pay a list of ‘pretend’ bills
    With not enough money.

    In addition, each man
    Will have to budget in money
    For groceries each week.

    Each man
    Must remember the birthdays
    Of all their friends and relatives,
    And send cards out
    On time–no Emailing.

    Each man must also
    Take each child to a doctor’s appointment,
    A dentist appointment
    And a haircut appointment.

    He must make
    One unscheduled and inconvenient
    Visit per child
    To the A & E.

    He must also
    Make biscuits or cakes
    For a social function.

    Each man will be responsible for
    Decorating his own assigned house,
    Planting flowers outside
    And keeping it presentable
    At all times.

    The men will only
    Have access to television
    When the kids are asleep
    And all chores are done.

    The men must
    Shave their legs,
    Wear makeup daily,
    Adorn himself with jewellery,
    Wear uncomfortable yet stylish shoes,
    Keep fingernails polished
    And eyebrows groomed.

    During one of the six weeks,
    The men will have to endure severe abdominal cramps, back aches,
    And have extreme, unexplained mood swings but never once complain or
    Slow down from other duties.

    They will need to
    Read a book to the kids
    Each night and in the morning,
    Feed them, dress them,
    Brush their teeth and
    Comb their hair by 8:00 am.

    A test will be given at the end of the six weeks, and each father will be required to know all of the following information:
    Each child’s birthday,
    Height, weight,
    Shoe size, clothes size
    And doctor’s name.
    Also the child’s weight at birth,
    Length, time of birth,
    And length of labour,
    Each child’s favourite colour,
    Middle name,
    Favourite snack,
    Favourite song,
    Favourite drink,
    Favourite toy,
    Biggest fear and
    What they want to be when they grow up.

    The kids vote them off the island
    Based on performance.
    The last man wins only if….
    He still has enough energy
    To be intimate with his spouse
    At a moment’s notice.

    If the last man does win,
    He can play the game over and over
    And over again for the next 18-25 years
    Eventually earning the right
    To be called Mum!

    .

  • Feeding the Wolf

    This is simply brilliant. I have read this on Paradox’s blog.

    One evening a Cherokee elder told his grandson about the battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between the two ‘wolves’ that live inside us all. One is Unhappiness. It is fear, worry, anger, jealousy, sorrow, self-pity, resentment, and inferiority. The other is Happiness. It is joy, love, hope, serenity, kindness, generosity, truth, and compassion.”

    The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf wins?”

    The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”

  • Field Marshal Manekshaw

    I am feeling too tired to put the scanned images of the front page of our newspapers. But if you want you can view it here, Field Marshal Manekshaw Vs. Sehwag

    Today when I picked up the newspapers and ran a cursory glance over headiness I was simply amazed. No doubt journalists and newspaper editors have stopped commanding the respect they used to few decades ago. But I still believe that an average Indian is (not ultra intelligent like journalists and newspaper editors) still able to differentiate who should have grabbed the headline, Virendra Sehwag or Field Marshal Manekshaw. Both have defeated Pakistan but with a difference. I wish that Field Marshal Manekshaw’s soul is resting in peace and he still has faith in the goodwill of an aam average Hindustani.

  • Teenage “pregnancy pact”

    I read this news yesterday, Teen “pregnancy pact” shocks Massachusetts city. They said:

    “A Massachusetts city is investigating an apparent teenage “pregnancy pact” that has at least 17 high-school girls expecting babies, four times more than last year, including many aged 16 or younger.

    A high school health clinic in the city of Gloucester became suspicious after seeing a surge in girls seeking pregnancy tests. Local officials said on Thursday nearly half of those who became pregnant appear to have entered into a pact to have their babies together over the year.

    “Some girls seemed more upset when they weren’t pregnant than when they were,” Gloucester High School principal Joseph Sullivan told Time magazine, which broke news of the pact on its Web site.”

    Wow! I don’t want to talk about girls (none of them are older than 16!) entering into pregnancy pact and ecstatic. Just thinking of how much parenting these girls received from their own parents? Were these parents following today’s mantra, “Be friends with your children”? Of course it’s so easy to be friends with your children. Drink beer with them. Go to movies. Discuss boys/girls. Give them fancy mobiles, cars and hep attires! But it’s so difficult to set deadlines. Define dos and don’ts. Setting personal examples. It’s so easy to create wanting machines and so difficult to resort to parenting.

  • Just A Few Thoughts!

    I was rewinding the track record of this honest, upright CBI official Arun Kumar. He took up Rizwan’s case and it became amply clear that it was a suicide and the haves father and uncle duo just abetted the crime. Rizwan committed suicide by throwing himself under a running train but the cutest thing was his cell phone was intact in his pocket. A socially and economically backward family couldn’t do much but tried to come to terms with the CBI theory.

    Next case, this same bright officer Arun Kumar was entrusted with was infamous “Nithari Killings.” Again everything was done by the have not servant. The have Sri Moninder Singh Pandher was totally clueless what his all powerful servant was upto in his helpless master’s house. Not one, not two, not three, not thirteen but officially acknowledged NINETEEN murders had taken place in Pandher’s house but he is totally unaware of each and every murder! How cute! How fascinating!

    Now the same clever CBI officer Arun Kumar is investigating the Arushi murder case. Compounder Krishna is already arrested and another domestic help is being interrogated. What do you say? Isn’t it obvious who might have committed the crime and who are totally innocent ?

  • WOW!!!

    I find an interesting comment here.
    This time I haven’t asked Tanmoy whether I can publish his comment on my blog. I know he won’t mind. 🙂

    I remembered a small incident at a very early professional life of mine. In those days, I had just joined as an Economist with Confederation of Indian Industry. While I was attending the CII World Economic Forum(CII’s flagship event attended by big names from industry), I met this elderly gentleman who has standing alone in one corner of the huge hotel room. I was just two months old in the profession perhaps and I thought I shall start by introducing myself to this man who appeared “not-so-posh”and “not-so-important” (actually many people attend CII meetings by paying huge sums just to come close with CII employees). Thus, I went up to him without any inhibitations and started talking to him about different topics. He was not very impressive while speaking and more than him I was the one who was speaking . I was immature to say the least, and I was very proud within, feeling as if I was telling an ignorant man – what all CII does and what all I generally do! I was foolish not to even remember how he introduced himself. After a while, I gave him my visiting card (the first ever person to whom I gave my first professional card) and told him that if he needs any help from CII he can contact me. He told me, he did not have his card in his pocket but asked me if I can give him a paper so that he can give me his contact details. I gave him another of my visiting card, on which he wrote his name and office phone numbers.

    As I thanked him and went away I looked at the card – he was Mr. Narayanmurthy – the then CEO of Infosys whom I could not recognize. I felt really silly but was amazed to see his modesty while listening to literally “stupid chatter” from a young executive like me. The entire day at the event I did not even come near to him. However, during the evening when I accidentally bumped into him he recognized me and told me; he liked listening to me and wishes that I do very well in my career.

    I shall forever remember this incident not because he is a wellknown executive but because in my early days in profession after meeting him I realized despite being an achiever one can remain grounded and one’s face can reflect that “Yes, I have toiled hard and have become an achiever”.

    I felt enriched after being touched by the sheer genuineness. I wish India has more professionals like him.

  • Say,”I Do” the Mittal Way

    I have read this article in “The Pioneer” months ago. It states,

    “Did you know that at least four to five weddings in Delhi equal the scale of the Chatwal and Mittal wedding every season? Just because their money is fatter than their name doesn’t mean that the big fat Indian wedding is not becoming chic, luxuriant and most importantly, high net worth. So what if you cannot get a Versailles, you can get married in a flotilla of Venetian gondolas, book an island and if your commitment is worth the wait, then even a space on galactic flights. Foreign brands, emeralds and rubies, theme weddings, exotic locations, multi-cuisine dinners, celebrity guests and star performances no longer make news. Not when a farmer is giving up his horse to pick up his bride in a helicopter. What does make news is whether the entire bouquet has had a designer upgrade. Even if the bride has pancaked her face with the latest of Chanel, is wearing the limited edition Jimmy Choos or the Calvin Klein bra, a wedding is nothing if each item of her trousseau isn’t a roll out edition of the latest from the fashion houses in Paris and Milan. And her gifts for the entire khandaan don’t empty out London’s Bond Street. Anyway what’s a wedding if you aren’t serving fresh fruits from Turkey’s Unifrutti and a playback video of the entire proceedings on a 50-inch Bang and Olufsen? And if you can trot out a firang wedding planner as your calling card, it will be more than the cherry icing on the cake. ”

    Fine. I keep hearing about these weddings. But someone please write about what happens after. Do such weddings help in bonding better between newly weds? Having theme weddings promote stronger and long lasting ties between husband and wife? If parents hire foreign wedding planner will it promote more love between the marrying couples? Can anyone shed some light on these insignificant facts?

  • Woman Seeking $500k+ Earning Man

    On craigslist you can put ad about anything. See what a woman was saying about herself and her pursuit. 🙂
    >>>>
    Okay, I’m tired of beating around the bush. I’m a beautiful (spectacularly beautiful) 25 year old girl. I’m articulate and classy. I’m not from New York. I’m looking to get married to a guy who makes at least half a million a year. I know how that sounds, but keep in mind that a million a year is middle class in New York City, so I don’t think I’m overreaching at all.

    Are there any guys who make 500K or more on this board? Any wives? Could you send me some tips? I dated a business man who makes average around 200 – 250. But that’s where I seem to hit a roadblock. 250,000 won’t get me to central park west. I know a woman in my yoga class who was married to an investment banker and lives in Tribeca, and she’s not as pretty as I am, nor is she a great genius. So what is she doing right? How do I get to her level?

    Here are my questions specifically:

    – Where do you single rich men hang out? Give me specifics- bars, restaurants, gyms

    -What are you looking for in a mate? Be honest guys, you won’t hurt my feelings

    -Is there an age range I should be targeting (I’m 25)?

    – Why are some of the women living lavish lifestyles on the upper east side so plain? I’ve seen really ‘plain jane’ boring types who have
    nothing to offer married to incredibly wealthy guys. I’ve seen drop dead gorgeous girls in singles bars in the east village. What’s the story
    there?

    – Jobs I should look out for? Everyone knows – lawyer, investment banker, doctor. How much do those guys really make? And where do they
    hang out? Where do the hedge fund guys hang out?

    – How you decide marriage vs. just a girlfriend? I am looking for MARRIAGE ONLY

    Please hold your insults – I’m putting myself out there in an honest way. Most beautiful women are superficial; at least I’m being up front about it. I wouldn’t be searching for these kind of guys if I wasn’t able to match them – in looks, culture, sophistication, and keeping a nice home and hearth.
    >>>
    Two Guys Answer:

    THE ANSWER
    Dear Pers-431649184:
    I read your posting with great interest and have thought meaningfully about your dilemma. I offer the following analysis of your predicament. Firstly, I’m not wasting your time, I qualify as a guy who fits your bill; that is I make more than $500K per year. That said here’s how I see it.

    Your offer, from the prospective of a guy like me, is plain and simple a cr@ppy business deal. Here’s why. Cutting through all the B.S., what you suggest is a simple trade: you bring your looks to the party and I bring my money. Fine, simple. But here’s the rub, your looks will fade and my
    money will likely continue into perpetuity…in fact, it is very likely that my income increases but it is an absolute certainty that you won’t
    be getting any more beautiful!

    Let me explain, you’re 25 now and will likely stay pretty hot for the next 5 years, but less so each year. Then the fade begins in earnest. By 35 stick a fork in you!

    So in Wall Street terms, we would call you a trading position, not a buy and hold…hence the rub…marriage. It doesn’t make good business sense to "buy you" (which is what you’re asking) so I’d rather lease. In case you think I’m being cruel, I would say the following. If my money were to go away, so would you, so when your beauty fades I need an out. It’s as simple as that. So a deal that makes sense is dating, not marriage.

    With all that said, I must say you’re going about it the right way. Classic "pump and dump." I hope this is helpful, and if you want to enter into some sort of lease, let me know.

    **********

    MY ADVICE:

    Dear Pers-431649184:

    I also came across your posting with great interest. I am a 28 year old Wall Street trader who qualifies as an eligible suitor under your $500k/yr rule. In fact, I make over a million and can usher a woman into a comfortable, true middle class lifestyle (not like those 500k lower-middle class chumps who have to make do with the junior two-bedroom).

    I am sympathetic to your goal in finding a rich man to marry. The milk needs to be sold by the expiration date. But since this is premium milk, why would you settle for less than premium prices? I would like to address some of the questions that were previously missed by the other gentleman and provide constructive advice on where to find your match.

    The culprit, I believe, may be that you are also looking for qualities aside from money – such as looks, personality, and a sense of humor. However, men who have those qualities learn at an early age that they do not need money to attract quality women. As the saying goes, if you can get the milk for free, why pay up for the cow?

    What you need to look for is someone who is long money, and short the other aspects. They are not easy to spot, since you are biologically wired to overlook and ignore them. However, the next time that you are at a expensive black tie event, and you are introduced to the short, bald, overweight man who fidgets nervously whilst making conversation with you, pay special attention to him.

    Here’s an inspirational story for you. An acquaintance of mine who was also an classy and articulate woman as yourself was able to land that guy – who also happens to be one of the top ten guys at Google. This is the type of stuff that gold-digging moms read to their gold-digging daughters at bedtime. Perhaps you need to make a location change to Silicon Valley – miracles like these happen almost everyday in a land where you can randomly throw a rock and hit a rich nerd squarely in his Kim-jong Il glasses.

    I wish the best of luck on your sales project. As for me, I am also available for a short-term lease. However, for marriage I wouldn’t consider a woman unless she can bring beauty, brains and self-motivation to the table. I do not want to dilute my gene pool and end up raising a bunch of Paris Hiltons.

  • Ragging

    Every year steps are announced by college administration to curb the menace of ragging but it continued unabated. Why people want to rag their juniors? The equation seems a bit like mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law. Since I was hounded by my mother-in-law, I will do the same to my daughter-in-law, though there is nothing personal. Just like that. What problems sisters-in-law have with the new entrant in the family is quite a mystery. So the nuisance continues. Ragging works on the same principle. Since I was ragged in my own time, I will do the same when my turn comes. Here none thinks about tackling or confronting the seniors. Or no one takes the first step to bell the cat. That will be so difficult. We are ever ready to follow the beaten path.

    But this ragging sometimes claim so many young and bright lives. The students are simply teenagers. Not even in their twenties.They are not equipped with enough wisdom to face this organized crime. No where in this world and in any organization established people behave like this to the newcomers. I remember my own time. I was extremely shy as a teenager. But somehow I confronted my seniors. They turned out to be good natured and nicknamed me “F-16” and “Mig Fighter” I saw this written on the admission list in front of my name later. The clerk had forgotten to take off the list from the notice board.

    But the good thing was when we were seniors, we never ragged our juniors. It was unsaid rule . Maybe we were not THAT much frustrated and desperate.

  • Too Young to Drive and Much Too Young to Die

    I have read the above line in Adnan Patrawala’s case. A spate of debate is being held on various forums about social networking site Orkut. Tomorrow if I plan a murder by using my cell phone will anyone blame Airtel or Reliance network? Should those networks be shut down because it is used by me to commit murder?

    Few years ago I worked in close proximity with young minds. A few session with their parents and one definitely feels like screaming at them and finally sterilizing them to prevent further damage. They simply don’t know how to be parents and how to be their children’s friends. They don’t even have a clue where to draw a line. Most working parents are wallowing in perpetual guilt.Whatever little time they have after work they don’t want to discipline their child. That time is used in indulging child’s every whim and fancy to negate their own guilt. The result is a child living in fast lane with no breaks. And when it causes tragedy as Adnan’s murder, we start a debate on Orkut‘s desirability in our children’s lives. We call us mature adults!!!