First Offcial Letter - A Flashback

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[This could be 'yet another' very boring post from me. Be aware.]

I distinctly remember the first ever official (professional) mail I had sent. In May 2005, when the HR of the company had sent a mail asking me to confirm that I would join the company, I had to send my first ever official mail. Not having any exposure and not knowing anything about the "so called software culture", I was wondering why would anyone turn down an offer?

The later had come from someone called Kanchan. With a lot of eager and enthusiasm, I clicked the 'Reply' button and for a long time, I couldn't type even a single word. How to address the person? Respected? or Dear? I was in a great dilemma, and even the bigger doubt is, is that a He or She? I asked my father and he was not sure.

So, I called my sister and asked 'Is Kanchan a female name?' and she was not sure. She said it is a female's name, but not confidently. I reasoned 'Kanchana is a female name... Kanchan should be a male name only... but is very odd...' After agreeing to join the company on the given date, I had the next big hesitation.

How to end the letter? All the training I had ever had was to finish the letter with 'Thanking You, Yours Obediently' or 'Yours Faithfully' or 'Yours Truly'. Nothing seemed right. So, I called my other friend who got placed in another company and asked him how to finish the letter. He said, "Start with Hi and end with Thanks..."

Not convinced with his answer, I started the letter with 'Respected Sir,' and ended the letter with 'Yours Sincerely'. The fact is, Kanchan was a female HR ;)

Good Morning

What do you think is the best way to start a day? Of course, it depends on a lot of things, and there would be a lot of many amazing ways you can start a day. Here I am just going to tell you one of the million possibilities to kick off a great day.

Some months ago, I stumbled on a youtube video, which does not fail to raise my energy level every time I watch it. It is true that music can control people's emotion and this one especially will increase your energy level.

Have a blast!

[Yet Another] Love Story

"The first time you asked me to listen to this song, I didn't like it, but I just told I liked it to make you happy. But after listening to it some more times, I really like it... Thanks for sharing the heavy metal song. If not for you, I wouldn't have gotten to know the song!", she told him enthusiastically, kissing him on his forehead and ruffled his hair. The fact is, she was still lying.

She hated the song and when he asked her to listen to it the first time, she couldn't even act, and thought he might have suspected that she lied. Accepting an earlier lie, and lying affirmatively is the best way to lie. She knew that. It was not just about the song. She would do anything in her power to keep him happy. After all, he didn't know why she was "super nice" to him.

He also did not take her for granted. He also loved her very much, more than anything or anyone in the world. He would strongly disagree to the old fashioned habits which treat women lowly, for example, wife should eat after husband, etc., and he would always eat with her even if she tried to give some fake excuse to eat afterward, but, I don't know why he would expect her to remove his shoes and socks after he returns home every day.

Eventually, he came to know why she treated him so special and the reason for her to be "super nice" to him no matter how sad or disappointed she was. It is after around thirty years, when his eight year old son played a heavy metal song he got from his friend, to his wife and asked 'how is this song, mom?', and when she told, "I don't like heavy metal songs, but after listening to this, I started liking them. Thanks for sharing. If not for you, I wouldn't have known about these kind of songs" and kissed him on his forehead and ruffled his hair.

[PS: Could this be a better alternative ending for this story? After the son asks 'how is this song, mom?': Start reading from the beginning of the post.]

Conversation with my friend [Tamil]

[Disclaimer: The author of this post is NOT responsible if the reader pukes after (or during) reading this. Continue reading under your own risk. Readers' discretion is required.]

[Background: We had a mutual friend who used to talk to us like us ("hi da machan... eppudi da irukka..."). He went to US and within a week, his style of talking had changed to (kadum peteru) 'dude... wazzup' :). So, me and my friend used to make fun of him, talking like that and we had continued talking like that for many days. So (taken from gTalk history; name masked)...]

1:29 PM Friend: hi dude

me: hi da machan

Friend: enna pannitu irrukeenga?

1:30 PM me: naan nalla iruken da naaye... nee eppudi da irukka panni?

Friend: en dude, indha kola veri

1:31 PM me: illa da mollamaari... vaanga poonganu pesuna relationshipla gap vilundhurum... adhan, vaada poodanu pesuna nerukam varumenu dhan...

romba naala vanga ponganu pesurooma... adhan, konjam vithiyaasam try pannen loosu :)

====== After a couple of days, in a weekend ========

12:16 PM me: Mr. Dude

thoonguneengala?

Friend: aman da mollamaari...ippa thaan elundhen loosu

12:17 PM :)

me: palikku pali vaangite... okay da...

:)

Friend: nee thoonginaya?

12:18 PM me: thoongunenda #@#$@!@ (sensored)

:D

12:19 PM Friend: :)

saptaacha vellakaenna

me: illa da mudichavikki

12:20 PM Friend: sarida koyalla

me: nee da punnakku?

12:21 PM Friend: innum brush'a pannalada en venkayam

me: sari da thakkali

12:22 PM Friend: onnum mudiala kena punnaku

:)

me: :D

I am thinking of making this as a blog

:)

12:23 PM Friend: :)

kulichitaya pannada

12:24 PM me: illa da mokka

12:26 PM Friend: sari da panni...naan kulika poren

12:27 PM me: sari da korangu... bye da....

Friend: :)

A Bloody Post

[Disclaimer: The post contains offensive language and is not recommended for everyone. Readers' discretion is required]

I have been having a post "Quitting this cruel blogging" in my draft for more than one and a half months. I just wanted to make sure that I will stick to the content of the post and have been waiting to make sure I have the commitment. But suddenly this thing happened and I couldn't control. So, the post goes like this...

Recently I went to my friend's marriage and I traveled with my close friends. When the bus stopped for dinner, one of my friend's vanished. We searched for him and was shocked to find him standing in dark and smoking. He was not a smoker, but he told that he just had one fag as his room mates were making fun of him, that, he can not smoke. Now, he wants to smoke as and when it is possible.

I had a senior in my college who used to smoke a lot. He was noisy also. Later, I had got to know that he started smoking because people made fun of his appearance (he looked a little girlish). So, to prove that he is a 'man', he started smoking. I don't know how in the fuck smoking makes people think masculine... Smoking was once done only by men long time (or sometime) ago, but nowadays, girls are also smoking. I am really sick of this 'hey... be a man... smoke...' attitude.

If you guys want to prove that you are man, go and join army... or get married and father a child. Why in the hell you had to smoke to prove that you are a man? Medically, I think, the more you smoke, the less 'man' you become. If you say, "I like smoking... it helps me go to loo without any troubles... it helps me forget about my hunger... it helps me relieve my tension..." something like that, it is okay. Of course, it is NOT okay, but still acceptable. But saying that "I am smoking because I want to prove to my friends that I am a man" is really pathetic. You have to feel pathetic to think like that, because you are pathetic.

I don't know whether I have to feel pity or angry on guys like that. Who am I to feel pity or angry on them? I don't care if men want to become impotent or get cancer and die on their own free will. But it really hurts when friends suddenly start to do it just because they feel weak or inferior and they were insulted by crooked people to start smoking. I really am NOT sorry if my friends get hurt by reading this, because I am hurt more...

Short Story - Inspired by true incidents

5) I would love to say something, but all I could do is to grin uncomfortably and leave the place with big strides

4) She smiles at me every time when it happens

3) I say 'damn' involuntarily and she could definitely hear it

2) This has been happening a lot of times in the past one week

1) I go to my old place accidentally forgetting about the change of my place in my office

0) Please read the points in order from 1 to 5.

Wishes!

I don't know when I became like that, but in recent years, I really lost the sense and taste of wishing New Year or Pongal or Birthday or Ramjan or Deepavali or Christmas, etc. What do we give or what do we get by uttering "Wish You A Happy *"? I don't know. Hmm... thinking deeply, I can deduce the following as the reasons.

• Having seen a lot of advertisement simply telling "Happy Bull Shit"
• Having seen a lot of people faking hearty wishes when they actually don't give a shit
• Lost the actual interest in any of the festivals and birthdays
• Getting a lot of spam mails sent for 100s or 1000s in BCC via a pre-created group, without even knowing who are all the people present in the group.
  

When I started seeing festivals as the reason for people to do heavy shopping and simply watching TV, I lost hope in that. All we need is an excuse to spend and shop. When the festivals were scarce, it was okay, but now, the consumerism has gone to such an extent that every month will have some festival or some day brothers day, sisters day, fathers day, mothers day, lovers days, atchaya-thrithi, aadi-month, kaarthigai-month, etc. hmm...

But it is not that I don't want to wish people good luck on special day for them. I would like to wish my friends a happy birthday or a happy anniversary day (if they are happy ;)). But, new year, or pongal, or etc. I lost interest.

But anyhow, I have to be a Roman when I am in Rome. For my friends, I wish them good luck in the coming year! I don't want to say the stereotypical "Wish You A Happy New Year". Have fun and enjoy!

Boys Vs Girls

[It is a cheap technique to have the title like this, I know, to attract audience (if at all there are any). But this is a genuine topic I wanted to blog about. This is just a conversation during a breakfast time with my colleague.]

"When I started learning swimming, there would be a lot of girls who would win me easily and I had felt ashamed", told my friend, during a chat about his victories in swimming competitions.
"But after you had mastered, you would have won them very easily right?", I asked.
"Yes, of course man"
"If there is a competition between a girl and a boy, both having the same level of practice and same age, who would win?"
"Obviously the boy, swimming needs a lot of muscular power which boys have more than girls"
"Hmm... I have always wondered, what is the sport or game or anything in which girls have more chances to beat boys?"
"Hmm... (thinking)"
"I think the world champions in carom are girls and that too from India and I think they are from south (no racist intention, but that was purely for information purpose and to prove that my guess would be approved to be right). Since carom does not need any physical power, I think they had won. But why not in chess? Why can't there be a woman world champion? Chess does not need physical strength..."
"Chess needs a lot of thinking, so women can't beat men"
"What? Why not? Is it that men or more intelligent than women"
"Not like that, but, Testosterone, a hormone required for mathematical calculation power, is present in men multiple times more than women" (Later we investigated about this aspect and found that this information is NOT correct. You can refer this link for more information)
"Hmm... too bad... Can you think of anything in which girls are better?... I think girls have more chances to be better in spirituality (completely my guess and could be 200% wrong)"
"Women are the best when it comes to counseling and consoling. Men don't stand a chance"
(by this time, we were done with our breakfast and we started to leave)
"So, is there anything in which you were beaten by a girl", my friend asked me.
"Hmm... during my school life when I was in co-education, I could never manage to get the first rank. It was always a girl who got the first rank"
(at this time, we both realized the fact)
"Man... how come we didn't think about this. Girls... they always beat boys in studies in school. Every year, the pass percentage, the top scorer, everything, girls would top", told my friend and was happy to have found a valid answer.
"It is because, boys spend most of the times thinking about girls rather than the studies :)", I told (in a completely funny note).
Laughing, we both went to start our work!

Evolution of Arranged Marriage - Based on true stories :)

<= 26:

1. Very Beautiful
2. Very Fair
3. Slim
4. Good family
   
5. B.E.
   
6. Non-Working (or Working, based on personal preference)
7. [People who think marriage as business] Should give X Gold, Car

27:

1. Beautiful
2. Fair or Wheatish
3. Decent family
4. B. Sc. Computer Science is okay
   
5. Non-Working (or Working, based on personal preference)
6. [People who think marriage as business] Should give X Gold

28:

1. Beautiful
2. Even if dark, should have good facial features
3. Decent family
4. B.Sc.
5. Working or Non-working, anything is okay
6. [People who think marriage as business] Should give X - Y Gold

29:

1. Decent looking
2. Decent family
3. Any Bachelor degree
4. [People who think marriage as business] Should give X - Z Gold

30:

1. Should be bearable to look at.
2. Decent family
3. At least Higher Secondary
   

31+:

• Only one condition. Should be a female.
  

Bad Time In My Past - Thirumadhi Selvam

Due to a problematic remote control, I had to watch a Tamil serial called "Thirumadi Selvam" for about 15 minutes. I have no words to describe about this junk one. But of course, no serial can come near the utter junk and a criminal offense serial called "Kolangal" which spams for years and years and which has seen many mega-serials' birth and death.

This is how 'Thirumadhi Selvam' went on that day I had to watch it.

A guy comes and asks his wife whether she had had her dinner. She says 'No' and asks him whether he had had it. He says 'No'. 'Aa Aaaa AAAAAAaaaaaa..... Vu Vuuu Vuuuuuuu...' etc. in the background suddenly... I got confused... why this music? it is just that he hadn't had his dinner... why in the hell such an elavu music for this? She looks at him for more than 2 minutes in this background music and after the full cycle is over, he says, 'come... we shall go and have dinner'

They go and have dinner. We have to see them having dinner for more than 3 minutes. Then, an old hag comes (his mother-in-law) and asks 'son, you are having dinner only now?' (what the dash... he is having it in front of her only... but she is asking the quesiton) and for the he replies 'Yes'. 'Aaa Aaaaaa AAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa' in a bass voice again and she was looking at him for more than 2 or 3 minutes in the music background.

At this point, I was about to throw the remote control and break it as it had made me watch this junk, to my surprise, the serial got over for that day!!!. What in the dash was that? Why would anyone watch it? I didn't know whether to appreciate the home makers to have such a great tolerance to watch these kind of bull shits. If everyone shows such tolerance towards real people, I think all the families will become an example of "ideal family" without any disputes.

God, save my people!

[PS: If you liked this post, click here to read a similar post. Thanks.]

A Joke I couldn't Stop Laughing For

[Disclaimer: Not advisable for all. Reader's discretion is required]

I read this joke in internet and I couldn't stop laughing for a long time. Of course, there were a lot of other jokes which made me laugh so hard, but this was one of the best and this is the only joke I could share in my blog ;) Here goes the joke:

Little Johnny is sitting in a biology class,and the teacher says that an interesting phenomenon of nature is that only humans stutter, no other animal in the world does this.

Johnny's hand shoots up. "Not correct, Miss!" he says.

"Please explain, Johnny," replies the teacher.

"Well, Miss, the other day I was playing with my cat on the veranda. The neighbors' Great Dane came around the corner, and my cat went "ffffffffff! ffffffffffff! ffffffffff!", and before he could say "F&%# OFF!", the dog ate him!"

A Help Needed

[If you thought I was going to ask a help and still wanted to read this, I have to appreciate you. This blog is not about asking help. This is just a topic about help.]

Asking for a help is an art, in my opinion. The chances of getting the request done is completely dependent on how you ask for the help, and of course, to whom you ask and how big is the help, etc. There are a lot of various parameters involved in the success of getting the help done.

I am quite sure that everyone would know how to ask for the help and to whom to ask that help. But, what I wanted to convey is, how mature you should be before asking the help. Generally, when I ask for a help, I would consider that it is going to be rejected. You should be completely prepared to get your request declined. If you are not ready to face this, you should not ask for the help.

If you are not ready to hear a NO for your help request, it would mean that it is not a help you are asking, but you are ordering your friend/relative to do something for you. So, whenever you are going to ask for a help, no matter how close your friend/relative is, you should be ready to accept a NO from them.

If you are asking for a big help, a very critical help, and yet your friend/relative is not in a position to help you, you should never point that out in your future meetings with that guy. If you have vengeance for the declination, it would surely spoil the friendship. So, next time when you are going to ask for a help, ask yourself, "Am I ready if he/she says NO? Would I be able to like him/her even if it is rejected?".

If the answer is YES, you can go ahead and ask for the help. If it is NO, it is better you don't ask for that help. Of course, if the situation is too desperate, you can give an attempt, but you should be mentally prepared and matured to accept it and continue with the friendship.

This is my thought. Any comments? Want to refute it? Want to tell something? Want to give an example? You can leave a comment. This is just a filler blog written in just ten minutes without even thinking about it, as I desperately wanted to post a topic before June starts. So, forgive me if this is junk :)

Puzzling PJ - Train Puzzle

When I was a small kid (which is only a few years ago), I would be too much interested in solving puzzles. My dad had invested a lot of his money for the puzzle books and almost 95% of the money was like it was invested in a share market. I didn't use many of the books.

But one of the earliest puzzles I was asked from a book is: *Suppose if A has a watch which is 10 minutes slower and B has a watch which is 10 minutes faster and if A thinks that his watch is 10 minutes faster and B thinks that his watch is 10 minutes slower, who would miss the train they have to catch?*

What is the answer? Have you found out the right answer? Yes, B would catch the train and A would miss the train, according to the puzzle. But now, if someone asks the same question to me, I would say, *Both would catch the train, as anyhow, the train would come 1 hours 30 minutes late on an average*. Almost everyone of my travel expereince could be written as a blog. Travelling is always a pain, giving so much of frustrating experience.

Every time the notorious Yashvandhpur Express (Bangalore to Chennai) would always come at 12:30 to 1:30 when it is supposed to come at 11:30. Surprisingly, last time when I and my friend were waiting for that, it came at 11:35. But the arrival of the train has satisfied its purpose, that is to disappoint us, because, just 5 minutes before 11:30, 3 girls (and one of them was pretty good) came and stood in front of us and the bloody train just came almost on time.