Sunday, August 29, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Life takes pleasant turn !
"This morning, we are blessed with baby boy..... with God's grace and your good wishes...."
Friday, June 4, 2010
Notesworthy Innovations from Remote India
Coconut Tree climber
foot pedal washing machine
Remote Control Mobile
24 hour Battery on the go
You will find others in the Youtube
foot pedal washing machine
Remote Control Mobile
24 hour Battery on the go
You will find others in the Youtube
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Hamara Bachpan - Came across a lovely article
Came across a lovely article for those of Us Born between 1930 - 1979 in India.
First, we survived being born to mothers who worked and worked while they were pregnant.
They took aspirin, ate Ghee, and didn't get tested and tested 100 times in 9 months.
Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in cradles covered with brightly colored lead-based paints.
We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode our bicycles, we had
no helmets on our heads.
As infants & children, we would rarely ride in cars and if we did we had no seat belts, no air bags.
Only bald tires and sometimes no brakes.
Riding in a double-decker bus on the top floor was always a special treat.
We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle ( Forget Mineral water ).
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this.
We ate cake made with Fat, real butter. We sipped on gola and pepsi ice candy.
And, we weren't overweight. WHY?
Because we were always outside playing....that's why!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day & we were back only when the streetlights came on..
No one was able to reach us all day. And, we were OKAY.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scrap and then ride them down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After crashing into the bushes a few times, we learnt to solve the problems.
We did not have Play stations, Nintendo's and X-boxes.
There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable,
no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's,
no cell phones, no personal computers,
no Internet and no chat rooms.
WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and
found them! Never required a networking site.
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth
We would get spankings with belts, canes, or just a
bare hand and no one would call child services to
report abuse.
We ate imli, karbanda, kala namak made from dirt, and
the worms did not live in us forever.
We were given Bata shoes and 1 full pant for our 10th birthdays,
We made games with sticks, scrap and pebbles .
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.
Imagine that!!
These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.
If YOU are one of them, CONGRATULATIONS!
While you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave and lucky their parents were.
And dont forget to tell them that we had a subject called letter writing, they might grow up without writing a single letter in their life.
First, we survived being born to mothers who worked and worked while they were pregnant.
They took aspirin, ate Ghee, and didn't get tested and tested 100 times in 9 months.
Then after that trauma, we were put to sleep on our tummies in cradles covered with brightly colored lead-based paints.
We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets and when we rode our bicycles, we had
no helmets on our heads.
As infants & children, we would rarely ride in cars and if we did we had no seat belts, no air bags.
Only bald tires and sometimes no brakes.
Riding in a double-decker bus on the top floor was always a special treat.
We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle ( Forget Mineral water ).
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no one actually died from this.
We ate cake made with Fat, real butter. We sipped on gola and pepsi ice candy.
And, we weren't overweight. WHY?
Because we were always outside playing....that's why!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day & we were back only when the streetlights came on..
No one was able to reach us all day. And, we were OKAY.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scrap and then ride them down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After crashing into the bushes a few times, we learnt to solve the problems.
We did not have Play stations, Nintendo's and X-boxes.
There were no video games, no 150 channels on cable,
no video movies or DVD's, no surround-sound or CD's,
no cell phones, no personal computers,
no Internet and no chat rooms.
WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and
found them! Never required a networking site.
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth
We would get spankings with belts, canes, or just a
bare hand and no one would call child services to
report abuse.
We ate imli, karbanda, kala namak made from dirt, and
the worms did not live in us forever.
We were given Bata shoes and 1 full pant for our 10th birthdays,
We made games with sticks, scrap and pebbles .
We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.
Imagine that!!
These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.
If YOU are one of them, CONGRATULATIONS!
While you are at it, forward it to your kids so they will know how brave and lucky their parents were.
And dont forget to tell them that we had a subject called letter writing, they might grow up without writing a single letter in their life.
World of Hair Dye !
One more persistent thought goes away from my head.
Till now I thought Hair dye is for my Dad/Uncles and elders, but today i get away from this notion since I have also tried this for the first time in my life :) I never thought that one day I will also use and suddenly anything around me related to hair color/dye is not an alien thing.
Date : 9th May, Sunday evening, at age 32, I take this step in my full conscious leave the world of natural all black hairs :)
Thanks to my heredity, the hairs will first start turning grey starting with few, will then take over the complete head and then leave the ground for sun to shine bright on our heads :) when that happens will write again :)
Till now I thought Hair dye is for my Dad/Uncles and elders, but today i get away from this notion since I have also tried this for the first time in my life :) I never thought that one day I will also use and suddenly anything around me related to hair color/dye is not an alien thing.
Date : 9th May, Sunday evening, at age 32, I take this step in my full conscious leave the world of natural all black hairs :)
Thanks to my heredity, the hairs will first start turning grey starting with few, will then take over the complete head and then leave the ground for sun to shine bright on our heads :) when that happens will write again :)
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
[Fatherhood] Initial goodies for the coming Angel !
You thought selecting your own clothes/gadgets was hard. Come try what to buy for your coming baby and you will realize that you were thinking wrong. At least you know few parameters about shirt/pants/jeans/at to buy for yourself, but do you know how to buy a baby bed ? Or do you know what a Baby Car Seat comprise of and what parameter you should look into while buying ?
Its really fun to be a kid is realized by parents only. I do not remember what I used to do when from the time of birth to around 4 years old. What I know is just from what my parents say about me. Also after when I was between 5 years old to 10 years old, I remember few things as a flash of pictures in my memory. Same is the situation with us now. We don't know that our coming angel will even realize this now or not, but we are having fun in doing this for sure.
This weekend when we went to get first initial goodies for our coming angel, such memories/thoughts were gushing through my mind. Also started thinking that the kids who have born after Year 2000 or so will/is a separate breed of kids with lot of "prosperity" around them. I remember that we had B&W television in my conscience mind and saw it changing to Color, advent of telephone in our house, coming of mobile phone and then came computers/laptops recently. But post 2000 babies will remember all these things as we remember B&W TVs.
I must say More than baby, the parents can enjoy a lot when they go out for getting few things and doing arrangement for the new infant. Sometimes I think that are recent parents overdoing the things, since things were fine in our childhoods too. But saying that we enjoyed doing what we did :)
So we set out to buy
1. A Baby Bed with bed guard rails around it (Some are without wheels, with wheels, some are portable like made up of material of which bags are made up of)
2. A cushion for it (3 to 5 cms width is fine)
3. A cover over it with one side soft and plastic on the other side so that the cushion remains dry (5 mm to 1 cm is fine)
4. A soft cottony/towel like cover which will be in direct contact with baby (any soft material will do, mostly cotton) This should be prefrably printed with some cartoons so that the baby gets some good feelings. Not sure baby understands that or not :)
5. A soft blanket for the baby (they are of polyester also but mostly cotton is preferable)
6. A soft cushiony bed guard rail cover so that the baby does not come in direct contact with hard bed sides. (they are different sizes. Make sure the perimeter of the guard is covered). This also should have some design baby will stare at this all time...
7. Some initial clothes to be used immediately after birth (some are with buttons, zips, some are without buttons with strings) Strings are preferable
8. A Baby car seat (Some are small without stands, Some are reclining with stands, turnable, Can fit into seat belt from one side/both sides)
9. A baby carrying thing which enable to carry baby in 4 ways..(toughness of the straps, softness of the material and neck support for the baby should be prioritized)
For buying just those things we were shuttling between 3-4 shops for 3-4 times each and took 3 days to make a decision on what to buy :) since we started from understanding the parameters. But in the end the result of gratifying and pleased with the outcome.
We might be wrong in what we selected, but wanted to share what we settled for in the end.
Few months back I used to search of electronics gadget shops for new Apple goodies or new gadgets, but at the same time my eyes now look for baby shops also :) amazing...this is how the changes get into a person without even realizing it.....
Its really fun to be a kid is realized by parents only. I do not remember what I used to do when from the time of birth to around 4 years old. What I know is just from what my parents say about me. Also after when I was between 5 years old to 10 years old, I remember few things as a flash of pictures in my memory. Same is the situation with us now. We don't know that our coming angel will even realize this now or not, but we are having fun in doing this for sure.
This weekend when we went to get first initial goodies for our coming angel, such memories/thoughts were gushing through my mind. Also started thinking that the kids who have born after Year 2000 or so will/is a separate breed of kids with lot of "prosperity" around them. I remember that we had B&W television in my conscience mind and saw it changing to Color, advent of telephone in our house, coming of mobile phone and then came computers/laptops recently. But post 2000 babies will remember all these things as we remember B&W TVs.
I must say More than baby, the parents can enjoy a lot when they go out for getting few things and doing arrangement for the new infant. Sometimes I think that are recent parents overdoing the things, since things were fine in our childhoods too. But saying that we enjoyed doing what we did :)
So we set out to buy
1. A Baby Bed with bed guard rails around it (Some are without wheels, with wheels, some are portable like made up of material of which bags are made up of)
2. A cushion for it (3 to 5 cms width is fine)
3. A cover over it with one side soft and plastic on the other side so that the cushion remains dry (5 mm to 1 cm is fine)
4. A soft cottony/towel like cover which will be in direct contact with baby (any soft material will do, mostly cotton) This should be prefrably printed with some cartoons so that the baby gets some good feelings. Not sure baby understands that or not :)
5. A soft blanket for the baby (they are of polyester also but mostly cotton is preferable)
6. A soft cushiony bed guard rail cover so that the baby does not come in direct contact with hard bed sides. (they are different sizes. Make sure the perimeter of the guard is covered). This also should have some design baby will stare at this all time...
7. Some initial clothes to be used immediately after birth (some are with buttons, zips, some are without buttons with strings) Strings are preferable
8. A Baby car seat (Some are small without stands, Some are reclining with stands, turnable, Can fit into seat belt from one side/both sides)
9. A baby carrying thing which enable to carry baby in 4 ways..(toughness of the straps, softness of the material and neck support for the baby should be prioritized)
For buying just those things we were shuttling between 3-4 shops for 3-4 times each and took 3 days to make a decision on what to buy :) since we started from understanding the parameters. But in the end the result of gratifying and pleased with the outcome.
We might be wrong in what we selected, but wanted to share what we settled for in the end.
Few months back I used to search of electronics gadget shops for new Apple goodies or new gadgets, but at the same time my eyes now look for baby shops also :) amazing...this is how the changes get into a person without even realizing it.....
[Fatherhood]What to say during Labor and Delivery ?
Came across a rare video which talks about what not to say during labour and delivery, one of the things which was on my mind.
But at the end of the video it again left me thinking what should dad should say to mother if those were the things not to day :)
Do spread some light if already some sentences worked for you, or use your creativity to suggest one if not yet :)
Looks like there is a website dedicated to whats dads should support/do during this lovely period.
Link as follows:
http://www.dadlabs.com/
But at the end of the video it again left me thinking what should dad should say to mother if those were the things not to day :)
Do spread some light if already some sentences worked for you, or use your creativity to suggest one if not yet :)
Looks like there is a website dedicated to whats dads should support/do during this lovely period.
Link as follows:
http://www.dadlabs.com/
Sunday, April 25, 2010
[Fatherhood] A new Role !
This Saturday was different from regular ones. We opted to go for Parenting education arranged by our City Ward Office. This was more geared towards husbands and teach them how they can also contribute when a new born comes into this world. They also shared few more lessons with us.
1. They explained by showing a scientific basis that how a baby hears you from inside the womb. The video encouraged that dads also talk to the baby inside the womb so that he/she readily recognizes dad'S voice as soon as comes out of womb. They also shown that a baby opts for Mom in case of hunger and feels peace when mom speaks. In case of dad the baby is trying to say that I am ready to play with you and feels active and playful with Dads....Hence the dad should talk to the baby from 4 months onwards inside the womb....
2. A mother gains at least 10 KG (3 to 3.5 Kg of baby) when pregnant. Hence they made me tie a 10 KG weight over over my body and made me walk, lie down with head facing upwards, side by and asked me to get up.
Also told me to pick a fallen thing from ground with that weight on me. Really this made me think that its not that easy to be a mother and induced more respect towards women by this experience.
3. Then they introduced us how to bathe a baby. In Japan they encourage that this responsibility should be taken by dads which will give mothers some break. They first gave us the demonstrations and then asked dads to perform it with a baby doll exactly of same size/weight of a 1 month baby.
I must admit 7 min bathing nearly broke my back and made me realize that I must exercise more. Actually we were using a table and it a small bath tub. Because of my height I had to lean more at around 50 degrees which really strained my back. They also taught us how to change the baby diapers doing which was not comfortable for the first time :) . But it was a pleasing experience.
4. During the pregnancy period due to tremendous hormonal changes in the body, the feelings/emotions of to be mothers can change abruptly. She becomes more emotional hence this has to be understood by "to be fathers" and balance this accordingly.
This small 3 hour class helped us envisage what exact things we will be doing when this angel comes in our lives in couple of months. This goes as message to our angel "We are impatiently waiting for you and we are very excited to welcome you in this world". Few years back I couldn't even imagine in my dreams about what I am doing recently and I must admit this is a pleasant natural progression in my life from being a boy to being an adult/bachelor, husband and now towards parenthood. Sometimes doing these things looks silly but these are the things which are source of happiness in lives. More things to learn.
In the world where the nuclear families are increasing, these City Ward office initiatives and husbands also taking roles in parenting, would make lives of mothers a bit easier and will make this world a better place. Its cool to be a dude, its cooler to be a "ToBe Dad" :)
Thought of sharing this who already know and learn more and
thought of sharing with whom who will/should soon experience it :)
I am well aware that there is no single "manual" which can teach us parenthood, but sharing the real experiences can bring us good information which might help others too. In the world where everyone now turns up to Google First rather than asking someone, these kind of informations also should make way on the internet.
P.S
(Sorry for sharing silly photos above :))
Sunday, April 18, 2010
What is right education for your Kid ?
A debate has started in India about that should we overload our kids with weight of heavy books and ask them gulp all the possible things which even adults can remember in one shot. The suggestions are that there should not be pass or fail system. The education should be given but no exams to be taken. We should try to find out what the child's interest is and then try to explore that area.
I am couple of months away from being a parent myself for the first time and this debate is making me also think about "Really what is the right way to educate our kid ?", "Can a child really know what is right for him/her ?". "Should parents interfere in selecting that path for kid ?".
We are living in a very competitive world where "Survival of the fittest" is the bottom line when it comes to careers. In such scenario will the hobby of kid will lead him/her to live a modest life ? Yes Bill Gates/Sachin Tendulker never completed their education, but is it realistic in comparing their achievements with each kid ?
These are not opinions but some questions for which answers are to be given.
US has always embraced such open/fun education from the past. But recently their are debates in the US that the kids are lagging behind as compared to other countries. Hence now the US wants to improve their education system by making them more competitive. Even the schools there will get the financial benefit from the US government if they promote such competitiveness amongst the students. On the contrary eastern countries wants to take the US route.
May be "very open" or "very strict" both environment will fail in the end. It will make way for the golden mean between the two, where the eduction will be real fun too and the students will be made competitive also to move ahead in their career lives.
So what will you do when you realize your kid wants to play cricket/soccer or some other arts like music/dance/painting/writing for his life ? Would you encourage him/her to do that or will you force him/her to choose the regular career paths like Engineer/Doctor/CA/MBA etc... ? Do post your thoughts on this.
I am couple of months away from being a parent myself for the first time and this debate is making me also think about "Really what is the right way to educate our kid ?", "Can a child really know what is right for him/her ?". "Should parents interfere in selecting that path for kid ?".
We are living in a very competitive world where "Survival of the fittest" is the bottom line when it comes to careers. In such scenario will the hobby of kid will lead him/her to live a modest life ? Yes Bill Gates/Sachin Tendulker never completed their education, but is it realistic in comparing their achievements with each kid ?
These are not opinions but some questions for which answers are to be given.
US has always embraced such open/fun education from the past. But recently their are debates in the US that the kids are lagging behind as compared to other countries. Hence now the US wants to improve their education system by making them more competitive. Even the schools there will get the financial benefit from the US government if they promote such competitiveness amongst the students. On the contrary eastern countries wants to take the US route.
May be "very open" or "very strict" both environment will fail in the end. It will make way for the golden mean between the two, where the eduction will be real fun too and the students will be made competitive also to move ahead in their career lives.
So what will you do when you realize your kid wants to play cricket/soccer or some other arts like music/dance/painting/writing for his life ? Would you encourage him/her to do that or will you force him/her to choose the regular career paths like Engineer/Doctor/CA/MBA etc... ? Do post your thoughts on this.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
How many Indians in vancouver winter olympics ?
There is so much buzz about Vancouver winter olympics(VWO) which are planned to be held on February 12–28. In Japan media there is so much of talks about the players participating in the VWO. Was just checking the numbers, there are 95 players participating from Japan, 91 from China, 216 from US, to name few.
Quick search helped me to know that there are only 3 Indians participating. County like Iran has 4 players participating.
Details
1. Shiva Keshavan - 4th Olympics participation backed up by sponsors like Swissair, Limca Book of records, and Reebok
2. Tashi Lundup - employed by Indian Army in Gulmarg, Kashmir
3. Jamyang Namgyal - employed by Indian Army in Gulmarg, Kashmir
They are participating in 3 Categories out of 15 categories in Winter Olympics. Indians started participating in winter sports from 1988 with 1, 2 or 3 players till date.
There is still a big chance for Indian players participating in other categories too. This will of course require lot of infrastructure to be built. Also this will require corporate support to sponsor. Once we have the system in place of course we will have enthusiast players to participate into. In the country on 1 billion plus, just three players participating is really not enough. In the country where Cricket is the only poplar sport, options like these games can provide a good variety of sports for kids to opt for and also make name for country. Why not we can have IPL for winter sports ? If Dubai which is in midst of deserts can have a indoor skiing facility, what is stopping Indian Olympic Committee to start something like that and provide the facilities to players to prepare for such events. We can also make use of great Ski resorts which are picking up in India which are right now great tourist attractions. Also that is true for normal Summer Olympics. We also should start participating in world sports rather just concentrating on sports which have only local appeal.
What is your view on this ?
Quick search helped me to know that there are only 3 Indians participating. County like Iran has 4 players participating.
Details
1. Shiva Keshavan - 4th Olympics participation backed up by sponsors like Swissair, Limca Book of records, and Reebok
2. Tashi Lundup - employed by Indian Army in Gulmarg, Kashmir
3. Jamyang Namgyal - employed by Indian Army in Gulmarg, Kashmir
They are participating in 3 Categories out of 15 categories in Winter Olympics. Indians started participating in winter sports from 1988 with 1, 2 or 3 players till date.
There is still a big chance for Indian players participating in other categories too. This will of course require lot of infrastructure to be built. Also this will require corporate support to sponsor. Once we have the system in place of course we will have enthusiast players to participate into. In the country on 1 billion plus, just three players participating is really not enough. In the country where Cricket is the only poplar sport, options like these games can provide a good variety of sports for kids to opt for and also make name for country. Why not we can have IPL for winter sports ? If Dubai which is in midst of deserts can have a indoor skiing facility, what is stopping Indian Olympic Committee to start something like that and provide the facilities to players to prepare for such events. We can also make use of great Ski resorts which are picking up in India which are right now great tourist attractions. Also that is true for normal Summer Olympics. We also should start participating in world sports rather just concentrating on sports which have only local appeal.
What is your view on this ?
Sunday, January 31, 2010
1st independent drive in Japan
After a struggle of almost a year (will write separately) to obtain a driving license in a Japanese way on 4th of Jan,
today, I tried my hand on the first ever independent drive in Japan. It was real fun, lot of goof ups..but learnt what needs to be improved...Will keep on working on this in coming weeks.
Even though I was using Navigation Device, the technology is still not there to compensate Drivers weaknesses. Well thats not an excuse to improve on driving myself :) but really makes me think that Google's entry in the Car Navigation industry is still far away thought to be precise. The navigation should not only suggest great routes but also explain the when to enter right/left lane in the complex road routes today.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
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