Today's Word; Today's Fortune

in·do·lence
–noun
the or state of being indolent.

in·do·lent
–adjective
1. having or a disposition to avoid exertion; slothful: an indolent person.
2. little or no pain; inactive or relatively an ulcer that is not painful and is slow to heal.


Today's fortune:
Indolence is a delightful but distressing state; we must be doing something to be happy

Kidnapping Ganesha !!!

Wish you all a very happy Ganesha Chathurthi !!!!

Lord Ganesha has been worshipped by many as a God of Wisdom, Prosperity and Good Fortune. Ganesha Chathurthi is celebrated by Hindus marking the birth of Lord Ganesha. The ritual includes colourfully decorated clay models of the deity being made specifically for this event. Staunch followers observe a 11 day ritual of this chathurthi with the 10th day marking the Ananda Chathurthi and on the 11th day, deity is brought for procession in the streets and then taken to the nearby sea where it is immersed. Legend has it that during the procession, the lord takes away with him the sorrows of his followers. The event of sending off the lord to kailash is celebrated with lot of fanfare.


Mumbai is famous for its larger than life Ganesha idols made specifically for this day when the idols are immersed into the Arabian Sea !!



In smaller cities and inlands not close to sea, idols are alternatively immersed in Rivers, Lakes, Ponds or even wells.

However, what can one do if God refuses to take away the sorrows with him ? The idea is simple. Kidnap the Lord. Lock him up. This is what my grandma said. Lock up the God and promise to let him go only when he fulfills your demands. So thats exactly what I am going to do. Kidnapping a high profiled person and asking for a Ransom can never go wrong !! What say people ??

Rites of Passage

Wikipedia says , "A rite of passage is a ritual event that marks a person's progress from one status to another."

Rites of passage have three phases - separation, transition, and re-incorporation, as van Gennep described. 'I propose to call the rites of separation from a previous world, preliminal rites, those executed during the transitional stage liminal (or threshold) rites, and the ceremonies of incorporation into the new world postliminal rites '

Am already in my 3rd year of PhD. Wonder how I got here without acknowledging the rites of passage. I think I should transpire through all the three phases in one go..NOW !!!




Neways, Lets talk about Mandelbrot sets today. The above image is a computer generated fractal. The Mandelbrot set is a set of points in the complex plane with a fractal boundary. It consists of the set of complex points $c$ for which the orbit of $z_0=0$ under the the complex iteration formula $z_{n+1} = z_n^2 + c$ remains bounded. Mathematicians have played with this since computer graphics opened up the possibility of visualizing complex numbers. Fractals, though seemingly random has a natural geometry that many have tried to explore and exploit. One such interesting algorithm is the Escape Time Algorithm, one of the easiest implementation of Mandelbrot sets. MATLAB is amazing for such visualization and I tried a few very interesting patterns. Here is a dragon curve which is generated by complex numbers.



I tried to see patterns using sine, cosine, tan function. Ive put a page with few codes.

Please follow the link here if you fancy.
http://vasanthsingan.pbworks.com/Code I am trying to compile a set of useful codes which might probably be made public for the general good.

And time for a Punjabi Song !!!

Spiced Up !!!!

A numbness ensues, a despair, like a calmness after the storm wiping out a city....

And the Blog gets a facelift to spices up things now ! How do you like the new template and theme ? Any screams, neighs, grunts, cheers, applauses ??

...

How vain is it to sit down and write when you have not stood up to live.

- Henry David Thoreau

So Long...

So long to old posts...

no more cribbing...no more hurting...and I leave with some Yogi Berra's quotes..

"A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore."
"Congratulations. I knew the record would stand until it was broken."
"Half the lies they tell about me aren't true."
"I just want to thank everyone who made this day necessary."
"I never said most of the things I said."
"I wish I had an answer to that because I'm tired of answering that question."
"If the world was perfect, it wouldn't be."


And his best ever

"It ain't over till it's over." and...
"Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

And a personal favorite of many

"You should always go to other people's funerals, otherwise, they won't come to yours."
"When you arrive at a fork in the road, take it."

He seems to be really listening to me these days. Just when I wonder how bad can it possibly go from this point onwards, I get the answer! :|

Reminder to myself: Stop asking, even if ever so quietly to thyself!

Rathi Silk...

Gets its brand. Here are a few pics..








Check out the whole album here

RathiSilk

Do let me know what you think.

Sleepless nights..

They say: when the goal is so close that you can feel it, or the dream so over powering that you can visualize it even with open eyes, sleep is hard to come by...

And I wonder: is that so? :)

Investing - Emotionally !!!

One of the best investments I've ever made is this.



You might ask what is so special about this. Let me list it here.

1. Its all metal. Yes. An alloy with the best craftsman ship unlike many plastic earphones that distort music.
2. Its one of the lightest yet ! Weighing about 12g, its not heavy on the ears.
3. Its noise cancellation technology is unparalleled.
4. Priced at $100, its a worthy investment compared to Bose systems.
5. The sound is rich with amazing bass and treble. Trust me, you wont regret buying it. Its the V-moda vibe earphones.

The Secret - Revealed

In the end, life turns out just fine.. no matter how hard you try to screw yourself.

So stop trying! :)

Saajnaa

Hai dil ko teri arzoo...
Par main tujhe naa paa sakoon...
Hai dil ko teri justajoo...
Par main tujhe naa paa sakoon...

Main hoon shab tu subah...
Dono jud ke judaa...
Main hoon, Lab tu Dua..
Dono jud ke judaa...
Saajnaa... Saajnaa... Mahiya... Saajna Ve...

Kayi khwaab dil, tujhko lekar sajaye...
Par khauff yeh bhi kahin per sataye..
'Gar yeh bhi toote tho phir, hoga kya re...
Mujhe raas aati hain, khushiyan kya re....

For all the fellow nocturnal souls out there..
Sleep is for the weak.. :)

There is a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.
- Morpheus, The Matix

and so they fail to understand.. And my answer to them? A smile! coz' they ain't wearing my shoe, and they ain't walking my path.

:)

Here's why am not focused fellas..
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brain.html

It's not me.. It's the technology. But alas, it's still me! :|

Living easy, living free
Season ticket on a one-way ride
Asking nothing, leave me be
Taking everything in my stride
Don't need reason, don't need rhyme
Ain't nothing I would rather do
Going down, party time
My friends are gonna be there too

I'm on the highway to hell

No stop signs, speed limit
Nobody's gonna slow me down
Like a wheel, gonna spin it
Nobody's gonna mess me round
Hey Satan, payed my dues
Playing in a rocking band
Hey Momma, look at me
I'm on my way to the promised land

I'm on the highway to hell
(Don't stop me)

And I'm going down, all the way down
I'm on the highway to hell

almost! :)

Any second could be the second.
  Rethink possible! 

:)

My Declaration of Self-Esteem!

I am me.

In all the world, there is no one else exactly like me. There are persons who have some parts like me, but no one adds up exactly like me. Therefore, everything that comes out of me is authentically mine because I alone choose.

I own everything about me -- my body, including everything it does; my mind, including all its thoughts and ideas; my eyes, including the images of all they behold; my feelings, whatever they may be -- anger, joy, frustration, love, disappointment, excitement; my mouth, and all the words that come out of it, polite, sweet or rough, correct or incorrect; my voice, loud or soft; and all my actions, whether they be to others or to myself.

I own my fantasies, my dreams, my hopes, my fears.

I own all my triumphs and successes, all my failures and mistakes.

Because I own all of me, I can become intimately acquainted with me. By so doing I can love me and be friendly with me in all my parts. I can then make it possible for all of me to work in my best interests.

I know there are aspects about myself that puzzle me, and other aspects that I do not know. But as long as I am friendly and loving to myself, I can courageously and hopefully look for the solutions to the puzzles and for ways to find out more about me.

However I look and sound, whatever I say and do, and whatever I think and feel at a given moment in time is me. This is authentic and represents where I am at that moment in time.

When I review later how I looked and sounded, what I said and did, and how I thought and felt, some parts may turn out to be unfitting. I can discard that which is unfitting and keep that which proved fitting, and invent something new for that which I have discarded.

I can see, hear, feel, think, say, and do. I have the tools to survive, to be close to others, to be productive, and to make sense and order out of the world of people and things outside of me.

I own me, and therefore I can engineer me.

I am me and I am okay.


V. Satir, "A Goal of Living", ETCETERA, December 1970.

Just wondering.. how a small emoticon changes the expression! Take for example a simple everyday statement: what a day.

What a day! :*(
What a day! :(
What a day! :\
What a day! :s
What a day! :|
What a day! :)
What a day! :D
What a day! ;)
What a day! :3

Wanna add more meaning to it? Try adding a few precursors to the above statement: Ouch, Oooh, Aaah! Wanna have more fun? Use those in multiples..

:)

the most exciting new frontier is charting what's already here!
Look around..

past is where I might have gone wrong,
.. but future, is where I belong!

:)

want to break up? but afraid to do so? now you can..
just call an Allstate agent! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=tIyoMPvpYhk&feature=related

.. the best way to get rid of the girl you just met?
tell her you love her. :)

.. and the funny thing about destiny is that it happens, whether you like it.. or not!

:)

living up your dreams,
or dreaming about your life.
living your life to the fullest,
or dreaming even in your dreams.
ki fark penda hai ve..
when both life and dreams are nothing but beautiful! :)

Perspectives..

yahan sab log kehte hain meri aankhon mein aansu hai..
jo tu samajhe to moti hai,
jo na samajhe to paani hai..

:)

Friendship is polymorphic. Or rather all relationships are. Each of them can take up so many forms. A mother who means more than a friend, a father who is your guide and inspiration, or a friend who means more than a brother to you. You hang out with some friends so very often, and some you just want to meet once a month; and then some with whom you feel connected even if thousands of miles apart. Some relationships transcend boundaries to an extent that having one single name for the relationship is rather, pointless.

You don't have the choice in forming every relationship. And for the ones you do, you don't necessarily have to have a statement of purpose to enter those relationships. You don't need to define what form it should take, for each one of them has a potential to transform over time.. transform into something precious! It will either be there for a reason, season, or lifetime. And in all cases you'll figure it out, eventually.

But what if you want it to last a lifetime? What if you are looking for your soul-mate, the one who completes you in every fashion? How do you know if she is the one? How do you find the one, the right one? It just completely boggles my mind.

and I don't have any answers.. Do You??

ghosts of girlfriends past..

Mera Tumhara' Kya Rishta Hai?
Kuch Bhi Nahi..
Agar Jo Phir Hum' Kabhi Na Mile To,
Kya Tum Yaad Aao Gi, Nahi.
Kion K Tum Meri Koi Nahi!!

Main Janta Hoon,
magar... :)

Khabon Ka Din Hai, Dekhon Hawaein
Suna Rahi Hai Khushiyon Ki Dastaan,
Mein Chum Lunga Baahein Utha Kar
Khwahisho Ka Nila Nila Aasman

Jane Kahan Yeh Badal Chale Hai
Kis Aur Boondon Ki Mehfilein Hai
Bheegi Hai Rooh Meri... Kaisa Yeh Khumaar Chale

:)

Is there such a thing as an unwritten life?

A life ...
... where you make your own destiny.
... where the choices you make shape the life you live.
... where the events of your life are solely driven by your acts, kind or otherwise.
... where there is an equal probability of you ending up as the CEO of a big corporation and you ending up cleaning the office of the CEO.
... where there is hope and despair equally interspersed in the smoothie you have made yourself.
... where life is truly a box of chocolates, and you never know whatch you gonna get (unless of course you don't eat any, in which case you anyways don't care what you get!).

Is there such a thing as an unwritten life?
.. or is it just a badly written one!


:)

and to add a quote to my earlier post about fame..

"Fame is a fickle friend Harry. Celebrity is as celebrity does."

Source: IMDB

Just read somewhere..

Challenge yourself a little more. Every day.
Celebrate the little victories. They can lead to great accomplishments.

A recent thought by Mann struck me as odd.

"If you are doing what you can do, what's the big deal?"

I wanted to accept it on surface but didn't quite digest it. Afterall, one doesn't have to do something just by the virtue of his ability to do so. It is no big deal if he is doing what he can. But he is still doing above and beyond what he must. And that effort should not be undermined.

U gotta feel good about everything you do!

:)

From Wikipedia:
The law of averages is a lay term used to express a belief that outcomes of a random event shall "even out" within a small sample.

As invoked in everyday life, the "law" usually reflects bad statistics or wishful thinking rather than any mathematical principle.

So between you and me, what really counts is what YOU think and what I think. and then.. we just flip a coin! :)

Everything else is a bad statistic!

Five Ways to Become Happier Today..

Be Happy. Stay Happy! :)



Do explore the website http://bigthink.com as well. It has some very interesting articles/topics that you'll find worth thinking about.

Think BiG!

Use math to choose a wife..

alrite.. alrite.. the magic puzzle has finally been solved. It's easy to decide who you should marry now. Just use a little math, and you're done.

"So if you have a world of 26 potential life partners, simply divide by 2.72 and choose the next best one."

Now if I only knew the list of potential life partners.. :)

Source: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10309716-71.html

and while you're at it, you should also know that your wife should be 27% smarter than you for an optimal marriage. I am amazed how scientists come up with such precise numbers but never tell us how to measure them. :)

What's the price to fame? and can everyone take it, the fame, the price to achieve it and the whole shebang that comes along with it?

I suppose it's easy to judge for yourself. Do you ask if it is worth it, or do you say what's there to lose?

:)

For some reason a thought has been floating through my mind for a few days now..

Fear is only a weapon if you let it be!

Think about it..

The more you fear, the less risks you're gonna take. Fear of losing money will keep you from investing in the right vehicles. Fear of losing someone will keep you from proposing to someone you love. Fear of not meeting expectations will keep you from taking up a stretch goal. Fear of ruining your reputation will keep you from letting yourself loose. And unless you take that extra step, that extra risk, you're doomed to fail. So that very fear has worked against you, eh?

You're fully capable of deciding your own destiny.
The question is.. which path will you take?

Just to acknowledge your deepest fears is in itself an indication of your strength. Not to mention, it also does wonders to your heart. I chewed over one of my fears all along, never accepting it, never talking about it, and trying hard to let it linger along only in the subconscious; always fearing that even actively thinking about it will be a defeat and it'll drag me down. But now that I've accepted it, it feels wonderful.. :)

I suppose acknowledging a problem is the first step towards finding its solution, eh? What say?

A very strange anxiety setting in.. as if there is so much to do, so much to accomplish, so much to finish off, so much to gain, so much to give, so much to prove.. And yet, so little time! Faith still holding strong, but patience running low.

to what end, I ask.. to what end?


PS: I hate this post :)

Interesting advice from a wall street person..

That's why it's essential to adhere to the fourth principle...

Stay liquid and diversify.

And by that, I don't mean buying balanced mutual funds. I mean balancing your life. Investors should broaden their idea of what an investment is. Sure, real estate, stocks, bonds and commodities are investments, but so are education, art, spirituality, vacations, health and children. These are opportunities, too. Your broker may not talk about them much, but that doesn't make them potentially any less rewarding or beneficial.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/four-investing-principles-for-2010-and-beyond-2010-01-05