Fare-thee-well my friend...
Smokes a.k.a Smokey - August 19 1997 - September 1 2005
You will be missed.
I will always admire your stoic defiance of death and will forever cherish your final assist to us, the family - succumbing to the inevitable in peace in your sleep.
Adieu mon ami...mere words will never be able to express your life with us.
...the greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.
- Elbert Hubbard via The Quotations Page and Google Personalized Homepage
As a special considering the 58th anniversary of India's Independence, a side-by-side look at two songs written to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of our independence in 1997 - Maa Tujhe Salaam and Thai Mannae Vanakkam.
Yahan wahan sara jahan dekh liya hai ☼
Angum angum ingum ingum sutri sutri thirinthaen
Kahin bhi tere jaisa koi nahin hai ☼
Chinna chinna paravaippol disai engum paranthaen
Assi nahin sau din duniya ghuma hai ☼
Veyyililum mazhaiyilum vittu vittu alainthaen
Nahin kahin tera jaisa koi nahin ☼
Mugavari ethu endru mugam thulaithaen
Main gaya jahan bhi bas teri yaad thi ☼
Manam pitthai ponathae unnai kangal thaeduthae
Jo mere saath thi mujhko tadpaati rulati ☼
Thoda kaigal neeluthaey ithayam ithayam thudikkindrathae
Sabse pyaari teri soorath pyar hai bas tera pyaar hi ☼
Engum unpol vaasam illai aathalaal un madi thaedinaen
Maa Tujhe Salaam ☼
Thai Mannae Vanakkam
Jahaan tu wahaan main tera hoon diwana main ☼
Vanna vanna kanavugal karuvukkul valarthaai
Chupun na chup jaaon tere pyaar ka taraana main ☼
Vanthu mannil piranthathum malargalai koduththai
Chanda nahin sooraj nahin duniya ki daulat nahin ☼
Antha pakkam intha pakkam kadalgalai koduthai
Sirf lootoonga tera pyaar ka khazaana ☼
Nandavanam nattuvaikka nathi koduthai
Ek nazar jab teri, hoti hai pyaar ki ☼
Undhan maarbodu anaithaai, ennai aalaaki valarthai
Duniya tabto mere chamke damke mehke re ☼
Suga vaazhvondru koduthai pachchai vayalgalai nee parisaliththai
Tera chehra sooraj jaisa chaandi si thand hai pyaar mein ☼
Pongum inbam endrum thanthaai kangalum nandriyaal ponguthae
Tere paas hi main aa raha hoon apni bahaen khol de ☼
Thayae un peyar sollum pothae ithayathhil min alai paayumae
Zor se mujhko gale lagaalae mujhko phir woh pyaar de ☼
Inivarum kaalam ilaignanin kaalam un kadal mellisai paadumae
Tu hi zindagi hai, tu hi meri muhabbat hai ☼
Thai aval pol oru jeevanillai, aval kaaladi por sorgam veru illai
Tere pairon mein hi jannat hai, tu hi dil, tu jaan mama ☼
Thai mannai pol oru bhoomi illai, bhaaratham engalin swaasamae
Maa Tujhe Salaam ☼
Thai Mannae Vanakkam
t r u t h o u t - Paul Krugman | French Family Values
Originally appeared on the New York Times Op-Ed page on July 29, 2005. In itself, an interesting comparison. And it throws in a good measure of Republican-baiting to boot.
What hurts though is that the actual productivity of the French workforce, measured in terms of GDP per hour worked, is higher than in the US. Ouch. I am a part of the latter workforce.
Salient points raised in the article include the fact that the European workforce in general has the flexibility to barter extra time off for lesser pay. AFAIK (as far as I know) that is not even an option here in the States. I am not advocating a general reduction in work hours. But what I am advocating is an optional package that lets the employee take more time off if necassary especially when it concerns their family.
Oh sure, you can point to "vacation without pay" concept and say that it is essentially the same as the European one. But if you ever had to do that, good luck to your reputation in the workplace. And oh, try doing that every year and see what happens.
But considering the emphasis on the individual in our society here, as opposed to the family, is this ever going to be a feasible solution. Little wonder therefore, that it was the allegedly left-wing socio-liberal New York Times that cared to write this article.
I can't wait to see what baloney rhetoric will spew from the gutter-mouth of Ann Coulter and her fellow right-wing cronies.
20 great American drives
Just man up and go...car...truck...RV...bicycle :)
....to the March of the PenguinsSee Windows Media Video trailer here:
March of the Penguins (300kbps)
To quote from the trailer, as narrated by Morgan Freeman (who also narrates the movie)There is a mysterious ritual that dates back thousands of years. No living creature has survived it.
Filmed in the French Antartic territories, this documentary catalogues the life of the Emperor Penguin from the end of one summer to the beginning of the next. And because Antartic is in the southern hemisphere..this is just reverse of the weather pattern as we know it in the North.
Except.
The Penguin.
They have wings, but cannot fly. They are birds that think they are fish! And every year they embark on the nearly impossible journey to find a mate.
For 20 days and 20 nights, the emperor penguin will march to a place so extreme, it supports no other life.
In the harshest place on earth, love finds a way.
This is the incredible true story of a family's journey to bring life into earth. 
What this film tells is the story of the penguin. But what it makes you realize is the underlying unity in the general pattern of life on earth. And yes, that includes us humans as well. The urge to procreate being the common underlying theme. As also the maternal and paternal instincts. And the biggest common theme. Sacrifice. Especially in the face of constant hardships. And a sense of loss. That leads to surprising actions.
I have the urge to rant here about some people dismissing the story as presented by this movie as subjective and an attempt to humanize these animals. But that is a post for a different day.
If not for anything else, just go see this movie for its spectacular presentation of Earth's harshest continent. And to appreciate the efforts of the French crew in making this movie and enduring the same harsh climes that the penguins put up with on an annual basis.
One thing that I cannot help but wonder...what is it that causes Europeans to produce such fantastic nature documentaries at a better rate than Americans (or atleast, why does it seem so?). And what can be done to bridge this trans-Atlantic gap?
The dismantling of a team has begun..and yet again, the Phoenix Suns will live up to their esteemed name as a development team for players that then move on to other teams and prosper.
So, this guy Robert Sarver flaps his hands in an apparent imitation of chicken, mocking the San Antonio Spurs for not playing Duncan and Ginobili during a regular season game this past March (March 9, 2005 I think). Ah well, in the spirit of revealing secrets, I guess he just preceded the revelation of the man behind Deep Throat.
Where am I going with this rant? Here is where. I live in the Phoenix metropolitan area. And naturally it was assumed that I would be rooting for "your Phoenix Suns". And when I came out of the closet as a San Antonio Spurs fan..well...(insert shocked faces, disappointed faces, angry faces here).
And then the saner amongst them popped the question..Why?
I guess the recent wheelings and dealings of the Suns are the single largest proof that as a fan, this team is not worthy of my followings as a fan. I guess when the team owner goes from mocking others as chicken to being the chicken himself, it just makes for one terrible deal for the people that follow the team.
Of course, it was hilarious to see Sarver mock the Spurs as a Junior Varsity team before tipoff. But I guess he did not catch himself smiling when the JV team was within one point with under 2 mins left.
Yes, I understand sports is a business. And Sarver is being calculated in his decision making. But repeating the same mistake twice..well...you have your classic definition of chickening out. And here is why, amigos, the Suns did not inspire loyalty in me. They are not worth it.
It speaks volumes when one franchise (the Spurs) attracts players that are willing to sign for discounted prices to play and another (the Suns) bungle up the one real good thing they had going for them.
Make no mistake...I like the Suns...but I love the Spurs. And most of it lies in how that team reacts to its community, and how the community reacts to that team. See the Big 5 feature on the right side of this excellent article on ESPN.com
Interesting tribute to a Hall-of-Fame QB...
What is the Favre era cyclorama?
"It is a concept for a future museum installation documenting the entire career of Brett Favre.....circular bank of television screens surrounding an audience....over 200 screens one for each game of Favre's streak...entire games including commercials..."
Night Over Tempe.
Shot from the Fifth Floor of ASU's Ira Fulton School of Engineering's new building in Downtown Tempe. My first snap of lightning strikes. Canon S1-IS's work..
Tempe July 4th Festival.
Shot from about a mile away from the actual spot of the fireworks, from the sidewalk of a bridge over the Tempe Town Lake. Canon S1-IS's work..
