Experience with X-Box

My friend wanted to buy a X-Box for his 5-year-old Nephew. My immediate reaction was to ask him “Why we spoil the kids nowadays with all these electronic gadgets?”

I feel that Nowadays kids are more glued to the computer and games like this and they don’t get enough sunshine. Many may complain that I am being very old-fashioned. But, I have seen my young cousin, who goes directly to his computer on returning from school and sits there playing for hours and hours, which is really shocking to me.

I still remember my good old days, when I was a kid, playing with my brother and other friends. I wont say, those days we were out playing in the sun, but still we were playing some interactive games and it increased our sense of belonging. Then, back to studies and homework. There were times when we sat before the Idiot box. Now, it has become an era of electronics.

Well, coming back to the main subject, I really had a wonderful experience with the X-Box. After complaining about “Electronic gadgets spoiling the kid”, I too became a kid after a long time. Its been ages since I played a game [I should not say ages, cos even last year I was playing computer games with my nephew and nieces, but anything more than an year becomes ages for me].

It started as simply as “Lets check the X-box and the DVDs that came free with it” and it never stopped. It was my first experience with X-Box although I have played several games with Playstation.

Tuesday, Jan 10, was holiday here cos of Id and the X-Box was purchased on Jan 9 midnight. After coming home, my friends were playing non-stop till 6 am. Then went to sleep and again got up @ 10.20 am and continued playing. My Goodness, its really addictive.. last night, all of us were up awake till 2 am playing “Racing Car” though we had to come to office today.

Now, I came to understand why the computer games and all these elec gadgets are very famous and popular among the kids. Next time somebody says that they wanna buy X-Box, I would the first person to say Yes !

Months...


I got this as a forward from one of my friends. Nowadays, we frequently get things like this and horsocope by mail. Whether these are true or not is another issue, but u feel good when you read them and find some which match. Hence, here it goes ...

JANUARY: Stubborn. Ambitious and serious. Loves to teach and betaught. Never looks at people's flaws or weaknesses. Hardworking and productive. Smart, neat and organized. Sensitive and has deep thoughts. Knows how to make others happy. Quiet unless excited or tense. Rather
reserved. Highly attentive. Resistant to illnesses but prone to colds. Loving and loyal. Loves children. Have great social abilities. Moneycautious, can budget successfully.

FEBRUARY: Abstract thoughts. Loves reality and abstract. Intelligent and clever. Changing personality. Attractive. Sexy. Temperamental. Quiet, shy and humble. Honest and loyal. Determined to reach goals. Loves freedom. Rebellious when restricted. Loves aggressiveness.
Too sensitive and easily hurt. Gets angry really easily but does not show it. Dislike unnecessary things. Loves making friends but rarely shows it. Daring and stubborn. Ambitious. Realizing
dreams and hopes. Sharp. Loves entertainment and leisure. Romantic on the inside not
outside. Superstitious and ludicrous. Spendthrift. Tries to learn to show emotions.

MARCH: Attractive personality. Sexy. Affectionate. Shy and reserved. Secretive. Naturally honest, generous and sympathetic. Loves peace and serenity. Sensitive to others. Loves to serve others. Easily angered. Trustworthy. Appreciative and returns kindness. Observant and
assesses others. Loves to dream and fantasize. Loves traveling. Loves attention. Loves home decor. Musically talented. Loves special things. Moody.

APRIL: Active and dynamic. Decisive and haste but tends to regret. Attractive and affectionate to oneself. Strong mentality. Loves attention. Diplomatic. Consoling, friendly and solves people's
problems. Brave and fearless. Adventurous. Loving and caring. Suave and generous. Emotional. Aggressive. Hasty. Good memory. Moving. Motivates oneself and others. Sickness usually of the head and chest. Sexy in a way that only their lover can see.

MAY: Stubborn and hard-hearted. Strong-willed and highly motivated. Sharp thoughts. Easily angered. Attracts others and loves attention. Deep feelings. Beautiful physically and mentally. Firm Standpoint. Needsno motivation. Easily consoled. Systematic (left brain). Loves
todream. Strong clairvoyance. Understanding. Sickness usually in the ear and neck. Good imagination. Good physical. Weak breathing. Loves literature and the arts. Loves traveling. Dislike being at home. Restless. Not having many children. Hardworking. High spirited. Spendthrift.

JUNE: Thinks far with vision. Easily influenced by kindness. Polite. Have lots of ideas. Sensitive. Active mind. Hesitates, tends to put things off. Choosy and always wants the best. Temperamental. Funny and humorous. Loves to joke. Good debating skills. Talkative.
Daydreamer. Friendly. Makes friends easily. Shows Character. Easily hurt. Prone to getting colds. Easily bored. Fussy and stubborn. Seldom shows emotions.Takes time to recoverwhen hurt. Brand conscious.

JULY: Fun to be with. Secretive. Sometimes difficult to understand. Quiet unless excited or tense. Takes pride in oneself. Has reputationfor hard work. Honest. Concerned about people's feelings. Tactful. Friendly, but not always approachable. Emotionally temperamental. Moody and easily hurt. Witty. Not mean or revengeful. Forgiving but never forgets. Dislikes nonsensical and illogical things. Sensitive and forms friendships carefully. Caring and loving. Treats others
equally. Strongsense of sympathy. Wary and sharp. Judges people through observations. No difficulties in studying. Loves to be alone. Broods about the past and misses old friends. Quiet, homey person. Has difficulty making new friends. Prone to having dieting problems. Loves to be loved. Easily hurt but takes long to recover.

AUGUST: Loves to joke. Attractive. Suave and caring. Brave and fearless. Firm and has leadership qualities. Knows how to console others. Too generous and egoistic. Takes high pride of
oneself. Thirstyfor praises. Extraordinary spirit. Easily angered. Angry when
provoked .Easily jealous. Observant. Careful and cautious. Thinks quickly. Independent thoughts. Loves to lead and to be led. Loves to dream. Talented in the arts, music and defense. Sensitive but not petty. Poor resistance against illnesses. Learns to relax. Hasty and
trusty.Romantic. Loving and caring. Loves to make friends.

SEPTEMBER: Suave and compromising. Careful, cautious and organized. Stubborn. Quiet. Uncomfortable if have to talk to a group. Calm. Sympathetic. Concerned and detailed. Loyal. Does work well. Very confident. Sensitive. Thinking generous. Good memory. Clever
and knowledgeable. Loves to look for information. Must control oneself when criticizing. Able to motivate oneself. Understanding. Secretive.Loves sports and leisure. Hardly shows emotions. Tends to bottle up feelings. Very choosy, especially in relationships.

OCTOBER: Loves to chat. Loves those who love them. Loves to takes things at the center. Inner and physical beauty. Sexy. Gets angry often.Treats friends importantly. Always making newfriends. Easily hurtbutrecovers easily. Daydreamer. Loyal. Opinionated. Does not
care of what others think. Emotional. Decisive. Strong clairvoyance. Loves
to travel,the arts and literature. Touchy and easily jealous. Honest, does not pretend. Concerned. Loves outdoors. Just and fair. Spendthrift. Easily influenced. Easily loses confidence. Loves children.

NOVEMBER: Has a lot of ideas. Difficult to fathom. Thinks forward. Unique and brilliant. Extraordinary ideas. Sharp thinking. Fine and strong clairvoyance. Can become good doctors. Dynamic in personality. Secretive. Inquisitive. Knows how to dig secrets. Always
thinking. Less talkative but amiable. Brave and generous. Patient. Stubborn and hard-hearted. If there is a will, there is a way. Determined. Never give up. Hardly becomes angry unless provoked. Loves to be alone. Thinks differently from others. Sharp-minded. Motivates oneself. Does not appreciates praises. High-spirited. Well-built and tough. Deep
love and emotions. Romantic. Uncertain in relationships. Homely. Hardworking. High abilities. Trustworthy. Honest and keeps secrets. Not able to control emotions. Unpredictable

DECEMBER: Loyal and generous. Sexy. Patriotic. Active in games and interactions. Impatient and hasty. Ambitious. Influential in organizations. Fun to be with. Loves to socialize. Loves praises. Loves attention. Loves to be loved. Honest and trustworthy.. Not
pretending. Short tempered. Changing personality. Not egoistic. Take high pride in oneself. Hates restrictions. Loves to joke. Good sense of humor. Logical.

Kovai speaks about A missed hero - "Zubin Mehta"


"Zubin Mehta performed in chennai music academy with his Bavarian orchestra"

Well...how many of u remember this name? i knew thisname since 95 when i was doing my Xth

Do u remember the UTV's "Shanthi" that was played inDD channels in 1995/96 ? If u're musically sensitiveyou would also remember the magical title score ofShanthi & the brilliant background scores for thatmega serial...that was very close to my heart for alonger time, "Zubin Mehta" read the Shanthi titleslides. I was wondering in that age as i never knewanything else about this name..nor in bollywood films,but that music was a perfect one from soul and couldhave been possible only by a genius.

That's all i knew about him all these days until i sawhis name figuring in newspapers during the christmasweek , came to know he is an NRI conducting orchestra's in the europe.

During his interviews to "The Hindu" he has mentionedhe never have heard of Rahman/illayaraaja...well"Rahman" is a name that bollywood celebrates andprojects as a "musical whizkid of india". I thinkIndia has missed a music director in Zubin ,his genius...if u really remember the Shanthi's titlescore you would atleast have a chance to appreciatethe genius in Zubin. We missed him.

Idhu en aadhangam.

Bedok Reservoir, Singapore

This photo was taken in Bedok Reservoir, Singapore, by my friend Prasad. The moment of capture was precious as just few seconds after the photo was taken, the sky darkened... [You never know when it will rain or shine here in Singapore.

That day was a memorable one as we went to the reservoir thinking of doing some cycling, but after going there we came to know that we have to bring our own cycles for that :-(

Recently, singapore governement has introduced several activites like boating in Bedok reservoir.

I.T. Returns

Pooof... yet another I.T. Returns filing and issues with that. I wish I am in India while filing the returns. As now I am in Singapore, but still get Indian Salary, I would have to file the returns, but from here.

Funny part is, I sent the Form 16 to my auditor as soon as I received it from my company. But, he kept postponding the filing. Now that he has started [well, high time], so many questions through mails and calls.

Thanks to my friend Praveen, I got several questions answered. Wish I am good in finance and can take care of these things by myself. Think high time I show interest in these money matters and start taking things into my hands.

Good learning experience... Welcome 2006 !!!