Still have the WOW factor

If you look through the archives in this blog, maybe around three years (or more back), you'll come across a post where I talk about aiming for the WOW. I can't exactly recall whether my friend Jack D was sitting by my side that day or not, but he is right next to me now.

I like sitting with Mr. Daniels, he listens to me, doesn't talk back much - which I like - but at times I would appreciate if he would give me some feedback.

Even if it is that glimmer in the corner of the eye or the pat on the back, I would appreciate something...

Anyway, after a long time today, there was feedback from a different audience, it wasn't written or spoken, it was in the glimmer of the eyes, even if I did startle a friend... The glimmer in the eyes was good... I think there was the pat on the back as well... 'twas good...

The friend of Mr. Daniels still has the WOW factor in him...

'twas good...

The Giants?

It has been ever so common now that everytime I sit down with this window in front of me, I need to have Jack on my side, and gentlemen and ladies - this is not the Jack who goes off to pick a fight with a giant after climbing a beanstalk - this is my good and old friend Jack...

And while I am on this subject, why does Jack have to fight with the Giant? So what if the Giant is big and his feet smell? Take a moment out of your busy schedule gentlemen and ladies - the small sparrow hopping on the table to pick on a few grains of rice that fell of someone's plate... the poor thing was so scared that she (or he) slipped a few times, on its first pass, the sparrow did not even reach the rice, it was so scared that just one glance at me and it flew away - there was no way I was going to do anything to it.. It was only later that the poor tiny creature of God managed to muster enough strength and courage to actually come and peck on the rice (or maybe it was the compulsion of hunger that forced it). And to my great joy - it did, it ate the rice !

Now to this small creature, this small beautiful creature - I or anyone else (humans that is) is a giant, we are big and no doubt our feet smell! This poor beautiful creation of God does not come to pick a fight with us... then why does Jack (not my Jack) have to be this big "hero"? Why pick a fight with the giant? Why?

Insanity!!!

I am happy with my Jack - he doesn't talk much - he is quite fluid - likes to be in his bottle - until I pour him in a glass. He enjoys my company and at least we think alike, he's not a violent person, he doesn't like to pick fights for no reasons....

All for now... Jack's waiting....

Pictures: Live Tiger Cub Found in Luggage

From the website of National Geographic,
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/08/photogalleries/100826-baby-drugged-live-tiger-cub-luggage-smuggling-bangkok-pictures/#/tiger-cub-found-luggage-airport-face_25089_600x450.jpg
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To see the pictures, visit this link: Pictures: Live Tiger Cub Found in Luggage
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Tiger Cub: Freed, Fuzzy Headed

Photograph courtesy TRAFFIC

The cat's out of the bag—at least for a woman caught smuggling a live, two-month-old, drugged tiger cub in a suitcase full of toys (pictured) at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport on Sunday.

The 31-year-old Thai national, whose identity has not been revealed by Thai authorities, was scheduled to board a Mahan Air flight to Iran. But when she was seen struggling with a large bag at check-in, airport officials decided to x-ray her luggage.

The x-rays revealed the tranquilized tiger cub among stuffed-tiger toys, according to a statement released Thursday by TRAFFIC, a wildlife trade monitoring network. (Related video: "Tiger Trade Slashes Big Cats' Numbers.")

Officials are investigating whether the cub was wild caught or captive-bred, as well as where the woman intended to bring the tiger.

All Asian tigers are listed as endangered or worse by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), mostly due to the illegal trade in tiger parts. (Read about how to save tigers with National Geographic's Big Cats Initiative.)

Discrimination kills - Maternal mortality and human rights

Discrimination kills - Maternal mortality and human rights

Discrimination against women leads to preventable deaths and injuries during pregnancy and child birth. Each year hundred of thousands of women and girls die and millions more become disabled as a result of complications during pregnancy and child birth.

A study by United Nations Human Rights office (OHCHR) finds a clear relationship between maternal mortality and morbidity and violations of human rights.

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The study by the UN Human Rights office is produced under the request of the Human Rights Council.

The short documentary is the story of a widower whose wife died during childbirth. He speaks of how his wife's death could have been prevented. The UN human rights office says discrimination against women is causing unnecessary deaths and injuries during pregnancy and childbirth.

For more details on this and other works of OHCHR, visit their global website: www.ohchr.org or the website of its Nepal office: nepal.ohchr.org

Leadership (re- or un-)

Is Leadership important both - on the field and perhaps more in the dugout...

From the days of old... when life was simpler... when thoughts were anything but complex... when thoughts were As, Bs and Cs (and some increments)... mere placement of words didn't matter much... An un- here or a re- there:

A very simple illustration DO - was same as re-DO and un-DO... everything was in the MIND... one could easily re-MIND and un-MIND, BLINK your eyes and you're in the world of dream walkers, un-BLINK and in the world of dream walkers, what the heck — re-BLINK and in the world of dream walkers...

Ok guys - all for tonight... My friends Jack and Jonnie are here... I shall return soon - the moment I get sober and have re-gathered my senses or have un-gathered it...

Ok guys - all for tonight...

I say again...

Leadership is important both - on the field and perhaps more in the dugout...

Save Our tigers!

Ok guys, no more beer and no more just wasting my time. This is important, do visit Save Our Tigers! website and spread the word. From a page on the website, the following information:

Sign up here: http://www.saveourtigers.com/JoinTheRoar.php

Save Our Tigers website: www.saveourtigers.com
WWF: www.wwf.org
WWF India: www.wwfindia.org
WWF Nepal: www.wwfnepal.org

--- information from http://www.saveourtigers.com/WhatCanIDoLeadtheChange.php ---

What can you do?

Spread the Word
Let everyone know that our tigers are on the brink of extinction and that they need us. Now. You can start by joining the Save Our Tigers movement on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, and spreading the word wherever you go – online or offline.

SMS
A short message can go a long way to help save our tigers. Let all your friends know about the movement through SMS – just type in your message and ask them to visit SaveOurTigers.com to join the roar.

Write to Editors
Write a letter or an email to editors of popular newspapers and magazines, asking them to support the cause and highlight the urgency to save our tigers. The more people we can reach and inform, the louder our roar will be.

Donate
Organizations such as WWF and The Corbett Foundation work for tiger conservation and need our active support. If possible, you can chip in with funds, volunteer for work or donate clothes, etc. for the forest guards by tying up with such organizations.

Volunteer for Our Tigers
Your time is the most important contribution for our tigers. If you think you have the skills or the commitment to help the tigers on-site, do contact an NGO working for tiger conservation to volunteer for our tigers.

Preserve our Natural Resources
Loss of habitat is one of our tigers’ biggest problems. We can reduce pressure on forests by avoiding unnecessary use of forest-derived products, such as paper and timber.

Be a Responsible Tourist
Visit tiger sanctuaries and national parks and discover our country’s natural heritage. But please remember that the wilderness is to be experienced, not to be polluted by packets of chips, etc.

Lines of code

A few years back, a friend sent me a card, no matter how hard I try, I can't recollect the occasion (it most certainly wasn't my birthday), anyway, the card had written on it –

I am a software analyst
I am a software developer
I am a programmer
I am a person who writes code!

At the end of the day, anybody who worked on development of the graphic-rich ultra-cool games we play on the computer or the word processing applications we use to type and neatly present 200-pages long reports, are all people who write code.

The phrase "person who writes code" is no way as fancy as "analyst", or as intellectual as "developer" or as geeky as the "programmer", and this for sure will not get you any girls to go out with.

It is the poor person who writes code who does all the work and these analysts, developers and programmers who get all the glory and worse -- the girls!

Why so?

I have absolutely no idea!!!

Spending a Sunday trying – to understand a 20-thousand line of code application using code that is just copy-pasted from the internet and then optimize it to use memory and processor power to say 15% of what is is using right now – is definitely not what one should be doing!

I better get back or if I keep this up, I will write another paragraph and head to the chiller, grab a few bottles of beer and enjoy the cricket!

Yet another silly post!

silly |ˈsilē|
adjective ( -lier , -liest )
having or showing a lack of common sense or judgment; absurd and foolish : another of his silly jokes | “Don't be silly!” she said.
• ridiculously trivial or frivolous : he would brood about silly things.
• [as complement ] used to convey that an activity or process has been engaged in to such a degree that someone is no longer capable of thinking or acting sensibly : he often drank himself silly

This is yet another silly post, yasp if you prefer... A long time ago, there was yacc, for those of you hailing from the days of A's, B's and C's (or a few increments of it) — a time when life was much simpler — would know what this is... for others, this will be yet another silly post!

Nevertheless, had it not been for that silliness, a lot would not have been what they or it are today!

So, as I down my fifth bottle of beer after a long day's work, Cheers — here's to yacc!!!

Peace...