Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
— Sir Winston Churchill
Month: February 2011
Are You A Leader?
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.
— John Quincy Adams
In A Jiffy
First published on Monday, November 24, 2008, here’s another one for the files…
So, its been one of those days when my back’s been acting up again. Actually, the timing of this isn’t so bad really. I am currently taking a respite from work, and bad back or not, I am already predisposed to lying on it anyway! To read, to nap, to watch some TV, and of course, to just take it easy. But the fact remains that a bad back is a pain—in the back and in the mind. Because apart from the discomfort of the pain, there is the persistent fear that one might become confined to a bed or a chair to the point of becoming immobilized. Now, that is a painful thought!
So, it is with such thoughts in mind today that I initially told myself that I couldn’t make any dinner tonight. Well, that is what I thought I told myself, until, I told myself that I could. And so, with a stiff back and not too many sudden movements, I decided to put something together. And I did. In thirty-five minutes flat.
Now, the point that I’m trying to make here is two-fold: the capability to exercise one’s mind to control one’s body—and this is indeed an amazing thing when you think about how the mind can be such an effective tool when even modern medicine can sometimes prove ineffective. The second point I wish to make is to attribute certain personal characteristics to those that we imbibe them from—and I’m not going to get into the big nature vs. nurture debate here—in this case, my abilities to multitask with speed and efficiency can only be attributed directly to what I have picked up from my mother. 🙂
Bottom line for the day: I was able to put together this meal in a jiffy. Back pain and all notwithstanding. And I was told it wasn’t too shabby either– the meal, that is. Fact is, I saw for myself that it was literally finger-lickin’ good.
Here’s what took thirty-five minutes: masoor dal, palak sabzi and white rice. The chicken curry from yesterday took three minutes to reheat in the microwave.
Not bad, eh? 🙂
Invictus, 2009
Interesting account of Nelson Mandela's presidency and personal interest in supporting the sport of football, a national passion, and the first hosting of the World Cup in South Africa.
This is the poem that apparently inspired Mandela while in prison and was the inspiration for the name of the movie as well:
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Avatar, 2009
I came out overawed and underwhelmed.
No Need for the Human Touch: Scientists Develop “Cyberhug”
Oh REALLY?!!
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Humans have been chatting in cyberspace with loved ones for over a decade. Now, two Japanese scientists claim they’ve developed the human touch that has been missing from online communications: the cyberhug.
The married duo of scientists, Dzmitry Tsetserukou and Alena Neviarouskaya unveiled a network of connected straps resembling a harness, which they believe will add a human-like level of sensation to online conversations. Their prototype’s called “iFeel_IM!,” meaning “I feel therefore I am.”
“I am looking to create a deep immersive experience, not just a vibration in your shirt triggered by an SMS,” Tsetserukou said. “Emotion is what gives communication life.”
When the machine is attached to a computer, a series of sensors can mimic several types of heartbeats, tingling down the spine, and the sensation of having butterflies in one’s stomach.
Scientists have been working on developing a cyberhug for a while. Adrian Cheok of Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University developed a system for separated parents and children, involving a teddy bear, which parents would embrace, and a Hug-Shirt, which children would wear. His device never took off, although it won awards in 2005.
“For a while technology has been driving people apart, locking them in front of
Read more: http://techland.time.com/2011/02/03/no-need-for-the-human-touch-scientists-de…
Mary J. Blige, U2 – One
Fate Smiled At Destiny
Last summer I had the pleasure of watching Natalie Merchant perform at the local Borders bookstore.
She was promoting a new CD, but she did many of her older songs, one of which was Wonder, one of my all-time favorites. Here are some photos I took with my lowly phone at the time:
And here’s the video to the song:
