Priti's septicemia is almost cured...she is talking and eating normally...

Priti's TLC count is now down to 14,300 - just 3,300 points away from absolute normalcy. At this rate, she should be cured and out of the hospital by Tuesday/Wednesday. Her HB count is a normal 9.3. Her platelet count is 1,20,000...which is also high enough and good.

Priti's urea and cretinine counts are high - her kidneys are still not doing the job they are supposed to do. Therefore, alternate day dialysis continues - the next one being today.

We are hoping and praying that her kidneys resume functioning in a week or two.

Update on my wife's condition...

Priti is making steady progress, thanks to the wishes and prayers of innumerable friends and well wishers. Her TLC is down to 17,100 - down from 80,000 over two weeks ago. The requirement is 11,000 - this will show that the septicemia (blood poisoning) is out of her system. Hopefully, she will reach this figure in 3/4 days. Her BP is steady at 130. Her platelet count is maintained at an excellent 1,50,000. Her HB count is 9.8 - better than her normal count of just 7.4 earlier. She has stopped vomiting out bile - her liver seems to have recovered and she has started eating reasonably from yesterday.

Priti was slightly depressed for a couple of days - she was not talking, eating or opening her eyes. This has changed a bit yesterday - she is responding to family and friends. All that is now needed is for her kidneys to resume functioning. Until then she is on alternate day dialysis - to remove toxins from her system.

If the TLC count comes down to 11,000 in 3/4 days, she could be discharged from hospital and return home by middle/end of next week.

Family, friends and well wishers (including the vast SOS family worldwide - the organisation I work for) have rallied behind my daughters and me in our hour of crisis with prayers, blood donations and even financial support. I would like to place on record my thanks to my law college friends, some of who are now leading judges and lawyers of India, who organised a collection drive to help meet a part of Priti's hospitalisation costs. May God bless all my family members and friends for caring so much.

Priti is out of ICU...

Priti being transferred to her room...

Priti has been moved out of ICU after a 13 day stay and is now comfortably settled in her own private room in Apollo Hospital.

The prayers and wishes of friends, relatives, office colleagues, neighbours, acquaintances and well wishers (not to mention the large numbers of blood donations) have ensured that she is out of danger - she is no longer critical.

Priti's TLC is down to 24,000 (it was 80,000+ last week). This means that the septicemia is slowly but surely receding.

Her platelet count has gone up from under 20,000 to 1,77,000 (without the support of any plasma or platelet transfusion in the last 3 days). Her blood pressure is finally stable (it has gone up to 120+ from under 70).

Priti's HB is 8.9 - it was only 7.4 yesterday, but a blood transfusion in the evening has pushed it up.

We are now waiting for her kidneys to start functioning again. A MR scan two days ago indicated that the collapse has been "acute" - so the recovery may take a little longer. She needs dialysis every alternate day. Please pray for her complete recovery.

I thank all friends, relatives, office colleagues, neighbours, acquaintances and well wishers for their support and prayers.

Priti is critical...

On Saturday, January 19th, Priti - my beloved wife of 18 years - underwent a minor gynecological operation in a reputed hospital near our home. The operation was a success. Priti was scheduled to return home the next morning.

While Priti rested in her room with my mother-in-law sitting by her bedside, my two daughters and I went to a nearby restaurant for a celebratory lunch.

Our happiness was terribly premature. Destiny has not been kind to us. On Saturday evening, hours after the operation, Priti had to be rushed to the ICU in a critical state. Apparantly, a blood transfusion post-surgery caused a severe reaction in Priti's body - some of her organs (kidneys and lungs) had shut down and her blood had got badly infected - she had become a victim of blood poisoning (septicemia).

On Sunday morning, she was shifted to one of the best hospitals in Delhi (Apollo) - and she has been in the ICU there ever since, on life-support. She remains extremely critical. Please please pray for her.

She may have a surgery this morning.

Friends, relatives and office colleagues have overwhelmed us with their support. We have received innumerable pints of blood - more has been committed.

Priti's life hangs on a thread - my daughters Piya and Panvi and I need your prayers.

The origin of the guitar...

It is very difficult to trace a line back to the exact birth of the instrument we know as the guitar today, as there is a lot of myth and uncertainty surrounding its origins.

This is mainly due to the fact there have been a number of similar instruments throughout the ages. Many historians claim the guitar originated at various points in time. Some believe the guitar in its earliest form dates back some 4000 years, however no-one really knows for sure. This is due to a number of artworks that depict guitar-like instruments being used at various times throughout history. Many ancient Egyptian paintings portray musical instruments that could be mistaken for the guitar.

A popular theory is that the guitar could have been invented by the classical-era Greeks. This is due to confusion, however, mainly with the similarity of its name with the Kithara. The Kithara was in fact a type of harp or lyra, which bares little resemblance with the guitar other than in name.

The guitar as we know today appears to be an ancestor of the lute. The lute had four strings which would be plucked, not strummed as with a guitar. The body was oval in shape and had a rounded back. The downside of this construction was that the lute was not a very loud instrument, meaning it could not be played along side other instruments. Although missing many of the elements of today’s guitar, it is an important step in the guitars evolution.

The first written mention of the guitar as a distinct instrument is from the 14th century. In this very early form the instrument had three double courses (or pairs) of strings plus a single string (tuned the highest in pitch), similar in comparison to the lute, as mentioned earlier.

The next step was in the vihuela, which originated in Spain sometime in the 15th century. The vihuela had a slightly ‘pinched’ waist – less pronounced than today’s guitar and a smaller body then the lute. It also had added treble strings, again arranged in pairs and was made to be strummed rather than plucked as the lute was.

It wasn’t until the 16th century that the two instruments were ‘combined’, in a manner of speaking, when an instrument was made with a body like that of the vihuela but closer in size to the lute.

The guitar became popular throughout Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries and by the late 17th century a fifth course of strings had been added below the other four.

By the mid-18th century the guitar began to take its modern form. The double courses were changed to single strings, and a sixth string was added above the existing five. It is very unclear whether this took place in France or in Italy, but the resulting instrument was very similar to that of which we know today.

World's weirdest sports...

Source:



On a safari in Nepal, Phil Noble discovered the sport of elephant polo.

Elephant polo is among the offbeat sports that Phil Noble has photographed.

“Incredible, absolutely incredible,” said Noble, who visited Nepal in 1999 to take photographs for a travel feature for the Press Association, the British wire service.

“There were seven elephant polo teams there from all over the world, and an umpire riding a massive bull elephant who rode around ensuring fair play,” said Noble, 32, who joined Reuters in 2006. “There were two other guys running around the field removing any elephant dung dropped on either goal line which could have prevented a goal from being scored.”

Through his camera lens, Noble has seen some of the wackiest sports on the planet.

In August 2006, he was in Wales to shoot the bog-snorkeling world championship, which featured 100 contestants — some wearing pajamas — with snorkels and flippers in a muddy trench about 150 feet long and 4 feet deep. Rules governing the sport forbid using conventional strokes.

“People of all ages, of all sizes, jumped into this smelly trench and tried to get from one end to the other as fast as they could,” Noble said. “Spectators were cheering wildly when a woman who weighed about 400 pounds jumped into the mud, and they cheered one man who jumped in wearing a fairy-godmother costume, and another who wore a Superman cape.”

One of Noble’s photographs of bog snorkeling is included in a recently published book, “Reuters Sports in the 21st Century” (Thames & Hudson).

“Like Phil, many of our photographers have a passion to cover the quirkier side of sports,” said Jassim Ahmad, a photo editor at Reuters who managed production of the book. “When we were putting this book together, it was unbelievable to learn of all the weird, wonderful sports going on in the world.”

Noble, who lives with his wife, Paula, and their two children in Manchester, England, has zoomed in on his share of oddball sports in his home country. He once covered a cheese-rolling championship in Summerbee, where participants clench large wheels of cheese between their legs before releasing them down a hill and giving chase.

“The cheese wheel is about the size of a soccer ball, and the first guy who catches his cheese wins,” Noble said. “But the hill is so steep, it’s actually quite dangerous. In fact, an ambulance crew waits at the bottom of the hill, just in case.”

Noble has also covered sheep racing in Wales and toe wrestling in England.

“Obviously, you cannot ride sheep,” Noble said. “So people knit jockeys out of wool and fasten the knitted jockeys to the sheep and race them on a course made out of bales of hay. It’s sort of like a rodeo, but on a smaller scale.”

Noble has his sights set on covering a number of other little-known championship events in England and beyond, including cricket matches on ice, lawn mower racing and desert golf.

“When I golf, I have a habit of finding bunkers,” Noble said, laughing. “As much time as I spend hitting out of sand traps, I would give Tiger Woods a run for his money in desert golf.”

Although he has photographed “everyone in England from Prince Charles to David Beckham,” Noble says he gets great satisfaction in “covering people you can actually relate to.”

“When it comes to covering mainstream politics or sports, you can’t get anywhere near most celebrities for a little conversation or to get to know them a bit, because they are always off limits,” he said. “One of the best parts of my job is that I do get to meet regular people, like the men and women who compete in these lesser-known sports.

“Take the winners of the bog-snorkeling and cheese-rolling events. Except for the fact that one of them dived into a smelly, muddy swamp and the other chased a cheese wheel down a steep hill in order to become world champions, they are really no different than you and me.”

Pak channel airs photos of Benazir Bhutto's assassins...

A Pakistani TV news channel has aired photographs of two men it said were involved in the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto after an election rally in Rawalpindi on Thursday, December 27th.

One of the two grainy photos -- which "Dawn News" channel said were clicked by an amateur photographer -- showed a youth wearing sunglasses aiming a pistol at Bhutto's back while she waved through the sun-roof of her bulletproof vehicle to her supporters.

The other picture, apparently taken before the shooting, showed the same youth standing next to another man who had a white cloth wrapped around his face. "Dawn News" described the second man as the "suspected suicide bomber".

The position of the youth with the pistol in the photo coincided with the position of the shooter seen in video footage of the attack on Bhutto released by the interior ministry yesterday. In that footage, the face of the shooter is obscured but his hand can be seen holding a pistol that is used to fire three to four shots towards Bhutto.

New Year celebration rehearsal...

People wearing animal masks march during a New Year celebration rehearsal in Taipei, Taiwan. Hundreds of people are expected to pour into the square near Taipei 101, the world's tallest skyscraper, in a gala on 31st December.

Go ahead, egg my Hummer...

A Hummer owner in Russia's second city St. Petersburg has given anti-globalists the green light to pelt his oversized vehicle with rotten eggs, Russian news agencies reported last week.

"Peter Antiglobalist" activists told news agency RIA they found a driver willing to let them express their dissatisfaction with consumerism by throwing things at his luxury sport utility vehicle, a spokesman said.

A Moscow car dealer puts the base price of a Hummer H3 at $49,500.

"Luxury is a false value, clouding modern society's vision. Advertising posters, TV shows and slick marketing constantly tells us that buying things is the most important value in our society," RIA quoted the spokesman as saying.

The anti-globalists said throwing eggs and tomatoes at the Hummer will help draw attention to their cause.

The vehicle's owner said he will then sell it and donate the proceeds to an orphanage.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year...

You are driving - and you get a heart attack...

Clever Definitions...

Definitions not in the dictionary...

ADULT: A person who has stopped growing at both ends and is now growing in the middle.

BEAUTY PARLOR: A place where women curl up and dye.

CANNIBAL: Someone who is fed up with people.

CHICKENS: The only animals you eat before they are born and after they are dead.

COMMITTEE: A body that keeps minutes and wastes hours.

DUST: Mud with the juice squeezed out.

EGOTIST: Someone who is usually me-deep in conversation.

HANDKERCHIEF: Cold Storage.

INFLATION: Cutting money in half without damaging the paper.

MOSQUITO: An insect that makes you like flies better.

RAISIN: Grape with a sunburn.

SECRET: Something you tell to one person at a time.

SKELETON: A bunch of bones with the person scraped off.

TOOTHACHE: The pain that drives you to extraction.

TOMORROW: One of the greatest labor saving devices of today.

YAWN: An honest opinion openly expressed.

WRINKLES: Something other people have. I have character lines.

'Don't tip too much'

Spaniards still have not fully understood the value of a euro and often tip too much, adding to the sense that life is more expensive, Economy Minister Pedro Solbes said on December 15th.

"I see people having a couple of coffees and calmly leaving a euro as a tip. That's 50 percent of the value of the product," Solbes said at a political rally to discuss economic issues ahead of next year's general elections.

"People haven't taken on board the value of a euro. 20 cents is 32 pesetas, a euro is 160," he said.

Before the euro hit the streets in 2002, leaving a 25 peseta tip was the norm. One euro was worth 166.386 pesetas.

Spain's inflation has outstripped other eurozone countries in the last years, partly fuelled by above-average growth.

In November, higher oil and food prices shot inflation up to a 22-month high of 4.1 percent year-on-year.

Overweight? Better buy two seats!

Most Australians believe obese airline passengers should pay for two seats so they don't take up space from the people sitting next to them, according to a survey released on December 11th.

Sixty-three per cent of the 2,810 respondents wanted "excessively overweight" people to be charged for an extra seat, according to the survey for travel company, totaltravel.com.

"This is a sensitive issue for all involved and forcing obese people to pay for two tickets raises a lot of ethical and legal dilemmas," said totaltravel.com global marketing manager Paul Fisher.

"The issue resonated strongly with travellers, especially because seat space was at a premium since the launch of low-cost carriers," he said.

"Airlines should be working out a solution to the problem, whether it is discounted second seats or specially-designed chairs for larger people," according to Fisher.

Some good ones...

Prison goes for sale

For sale in former city of popes: one mediaeval insane asylum and prison. Exceptional location next to papal palace. River views. Cell space for 700. Hoteliers only need apply.

As part of its programme to sell off unused state property, France's finance ministry has put on sale the Sainte-Anne prison in the centre of the southern town of Avignon, one of the country's most popular tourist destinations.

Classified as a historic monument, the prison began life as an asylum in the 13th century - around the same time that Avignon became the home of popes exiled from Rome. Up till 2003, it was a prison and regarded as one of France's least salubrious.

"When the prison was closed the municipality wanted to buy it and convert it into a hotel. Sadly the price was too high," said Avignon's mayor Marie-Josee Roig.

Instead, the rectangular three-story building around a central courtyard is open for bids. The only condition is that all or part must be turned into a top-class hotel with at least 110 rooms.

The ministry expects to obtain at least four million euros. Several other disused prisons are to be sold off in the coming years.

Expensive dog collar...

A dog named Ritchie models a dog collar worth 500,000 Pounds Sterling at Harrods Department Store, London. (AFP Photo)

The oldest hereditary monarchy in the world

The Japanese Imperial family is the oldest hereditary monarchy in the world. The family's lineage dates back to the sixth century BC, though the title of Tenno (emperor) or Sumera-Mikoto (heavenly sovereign) was assumed by rulers in the sixth or seventh century and has been used since. The family crest (above) is the kiku, or chrysanthemum.

The role of the Emperor (and occasionally the Empress - there have been 8 to date) has varied in importance. Considered a divine being until the end of World War II, the postwar Constitution made him the "Symbol of the state". He plays a largely ceremonial part in the life of the nation.

Origins and early history...

According to the historical chronicles of ancient Japan, the Kojiki (Record of Ancient Matters, AD712) and the Nihon Shoki (Chronicle of Japan, AD720), the sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami presented the sanshu no jingi or Imperial Regalia to her grandson, Ninigi no Mikoto. He in turn passed them on to his descendants, the emperors, the first of whom was Emperor Jimmu. The regalia, a mirror, a sword and a curved jewel are symbols of the legitimacy and authority of the emperor. These creation myths also form the foundations of the indigenous Shinto faith.

The emperor was thought to possess magical powers and to converse with the gods. It was therefore considered beneath him to become involved in the day-to-day running of the country. This was left to ministers and advisors. An exception was the period between the 7th and 8th centuries during which several emperors tried to bring the regional clans under central Imperial control. The first emperor to establish such direct imperial rule, modelled after the Chinese Tang dynasty, was Emperor Tenji who ruled between 661 and 672. Later during the Nara Period (710~794) Prince Shotoku, son of the Empress Suiko, created Japan's first constitution and established Buddhism as the country's dominant religion.

At the beginning of the Heian Period (794~1185), Emperor Kammu established a new capital in Kyoto, a city designed based on the Chinese capital. A combination of efforts to free the emperor from the web of entrenched bureaucracy and the court's increasing preoccupation with the pursuit of the arts and literature led to a situation where the real power was held by those occupying the posts of regent, for emperors not yet of age, and chief advisor. These posts were dominated by the Fujiwara and later the Taira families. While making no claim to the emperor's title or ritual role, the clans basically ruled in his name for several centuries.

Except for a period during the 14th century when the Emperor Godaigo briefly restored imperial rule, for almost the next 700 years, Japan was ruled by a succession of Shoguns, or military leaders. It wasn't until Tokugawa Ieyasu became Shogun of the recently reunited Japan at the beginning of the Edo Period (1600~1868) that the imperial institution regained some of its former glory, if not its power. While the Tokugawa's ruled from Edo (now Tokyo), the imperial court was in Kyoto and performed duties that, while important to the shogunate, were mostly religious rituals.

Early modern period...

During the Edo Period, a time of great cultural advancement but also of almost total isolation, a school of intellectuals known as kinno-ha, or imperial loyalists, developed their concept of Japanese identity with the emperor at its symbolic center. Faced with foreign pressure to 'open up' the country to foreign trade and diplomacy following the arrival of US Commodore Matthew C. Perry's 'Black Ships' in 1853, this concept was adopted as a rallying cry to defenders from the foreign threat. By 1868, they had succeeded in toppling the Tokugawa shogunate and establishing a new national government under direct imperial rule - the Meiji Restoration (analogies to this period of revolutionary change are often made by today's radical politicians).

The Meiji leaders spent the next twenty years experimenting with the imperial system before creating the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1889. The emperor was 'sacred and inviolable' and sovereignty rested with him as the Head of the Empire. He commanded the armed forces, declared war and concluded treaties. All laws required the his sanction and enforcement. And yet he had no real political power; his main role was to ratify and give the imperial stamp of approval to decisions made by his ministers.

Post World War II...

Following Japan's defeat in World War II, the occupation forces carried out radical reforms of the country's government and imperial systems. While there were calls for the emperor to stand trial at the 1946 Tokyo Tribunal and for the imperial system to be completely abolished, a more moderate approach was taken. The emperor had no political powers and under Article 1 of the new 'Showa' constitution he became 'the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people, deriving his position from the will of the people with whom resides sovereign power'. His role was purely symbolic and his functions subject to cabinet approval. The emperor himself declared in a New Year's Day radio broadcast that he was 'not divine'.

During the postwar period, efforts were made to bring the imperial family closer to the people, no longer his 'subjects' but citizens. Certainly there is great affection among Japanese people for their 'royals' as could be seen at the funeral of Emperor Hirohito in 1989 or the marriage of Crown Prince Naruhito to Princess Masako in 1993. The eagerly anticipated birth of a male heir to the Crown Prince was even thought of in terms of an event that could spark Japan's economic revival. The fact that his and Masako's first child was a girl (Aiko) and Masako was reaching an age where another child was increasingly unlikely, there were renewed moves to revise the Imperial House Law to allow female members of the family to ascend to the throne. This was proposed on the grounds of sexual equality and the fact that there have been 8 women on the throne in the past. The birth of a son to Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko in September 2006 may have put this issue on the shelf for another generation.

Talented bartenders...

Observe dogs for management lessons...

Homework for management students: Go home and observe your dog. If you don’t have one, get one immediately. Instead of spending hours pouring over case studies you would do better to just look at dogs and learn from them.

Surprised? Well, that’s the advice from leadership gurus Sherri McArdle and Jim Ramerman.

Dogs are cute, they drool and bark, and sometimes just loll around. But despite all these characteristics, our four-legged friends can teach us how to find happiness in any situation, including at the workplace.

After all, think about it: You never see dogs frowning, or stressed out, or most important, sitting in mindlessly long meetings. That’s why leaders can learn some new tricks from their pets, leadership gurus Sherri McArdle and Jim Ramerman were quoted as saying by Gannett News Service. “Finding happiness is a natural talent for dogs, but it’s not so easy for the rest of us,”

McArdle said. “For people, joyful things rarely happen effortlessly.”

McArdle and Ramerman wrote Why Dogs Wag Their Tails: Lessons Leaders Can Learn About Work, Joy, and Life. Both dog owners themselves, they know what they are talking about.

McArdle said, “I have learned a lot from my dog that applies to my professional life. For example, I learn better work-life balance from my pooch. He teaches me time management by whining at me when I work at home and he has to sit there and watch.”

Here are some dog-mas the duo feel people can implement in their working relationships:

Dogs are pack animals. “In order to manage dogs well you must pay close attention and provide them with the leadership they need,” she said. “Dogs need a leader to help them understand their role in the pack and to behave appropriately.” The same is true about organisations and performance, she said. People in companies need and want great leadership, sometimes without the tight leash.

Training is essential. The most effective leadership training comes from “on the job” growth experiences, being coached and mentored and getting feedback from peers, McArdle said. “Managing a dog is also an everyday growth experience, if we open ourselves up to the lessons we can learn,” she said.

Dogs give immediate feedback. Think about it. You know when dogs are happy with you - their tails go wild. And you know when they aren’t - their tails go between their legs.

“That’s the best way to learn - if only we all received such immediate feedback in the workplace, imagine the growth we could experience,” said McArdle.

Coin collection sells for $30 million

An anonymous buyer paid more than $30 million, on November 16th, for a collection of rare U.S. prototype coins, some from the 1700s, that never went into circulation, according to the dealer that brokered the deal.

The collection consists of about 1,000 coins that collectors refer to as pattern coins — trial designs that never went into production because the U.S. Mint chose other designs.

"This collection is an incredible collection. ... These were some of the first coins ever, ever struck by the United States government," said Laura Sperber, a partner in Legend Numismatics of Lincroft, New Jersey, which brokered the deal.

The seller wanted to remain anonymous, and the buyer, concerned about security, agreed to be identified only as "Mr. Simpson, a Western states collector," Sperber said.

"Both the buyer and the seller are very competitive people. And they're very successful in their careers, and they both love the romance and collectability of coins," Sperber said.

The coins span the period from 1792 to 1942. Highlights include test designs for the first pennies made in 1792 and six coins from 1872 that are often referred to as "Amazonian" patterns because the female figure portraying liberty is much stronger and regal looking than earlier versions.

It took the seller about 10 years to assemble the collection, Sperber said.

Gathering such a large collection of pattern coins is difficult because so few were created in the first place. And they were usually supposed to stay in the possession of the Mint — after all, these were the rejects.

"To accumulate as many patterns as there are in this collection, that's incredible," said Douglas A. Mudd, Curator of the American Numismatic Association Money Museum in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The coins could have made their way into private hands as gifts, or as trades with collectors for other coins that the Mint wanted to acquire, Sperber said.

Independent, third-party experts have verified the collection, Sperber said.

Many of the coins bear depictions of a woman representing liberty and not the profile of a former president, as displayed on coins currently circulating.

Until 1909, when Abraham Lincoln's face was placed on the penny, presidents weren't allowed on coins. At the time the first coins were minted in 1792, putting the nation's leader on a coin seemed too similar to the practice of kings being displayed on European coins. That wasn't considered the best example for a country less than a decade removed from the Revolutionary War.

"To put an individual on coinage was considered very unrepublican because the people have the power in a republic," Mudd said.

Sperber would not say how much her company earned for brokering the deal but said she hopes the magnitude of the sale will get more people interested in collecting coins.

"They're historical. They're beautiful works of art," Sperber said. "They're just plain neat."

'I'll be back" is the most used film line...

"I'll be back" is the line from a film most commonly used in everyday conversation, according to a recent British survey.

The words from the 1984 blockbuster The Terminator, uttered by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the title role, topped the poll.

"Frankly, my dear I don't give a damn," Rhett Butler's closing line in the 1939 epic Gone With The Wind, came second in the survey of 2,000 people conducted by the myfilms.com website, the UK Film Council's cinema and film finder.

"Beam me up, Scotty" from Star Trek is third, even though it was never actually said in any episode of the television series or the spin-off films.

All the top 10 most commonly used lines were spoken by men. Elsewhere in the survey, men said they would most like to have starred in the James Bond films and the Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings sagas.

Women opted for Dirty Dancing, Pretty Woman and Gone With The Wind.

Top 10 must used film lines are "I'll be back" (The Terminator), "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" (Gone With The Wind), "Beam me up, Scotty" (Star Trek), "May the force be with you" (Star Wars), "Life is like a box of chocolates" (Forrest Gump), "You talking to me?" (Taxi Driver), "Show me the money" (Jerry Maguire), "Do you feel lucky, punk?" (Dirty Harry), "Here's looking at you, kid" (Casablanca) and "Nobody puts Baby in the corner" (Dirty Dancing).

Happy Children's Day!

In India, November 14th, the birthday of the first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, is celebrated as "Children's Day"...

Teachers dressed as cartoon characters entertain kids on the occasion of Children's Day at a school in Bangalore, India.

Bears prefer Pepsi!

God at His computer...

Best wishes on the occasion of Diwali - the Festival of Lights...

Today, India celebrates Diwali - the Festival of Lights...



On this auspicious day, may you be blessed with peace and prosperity...

Man sets record with 87 snakes in tub...

Another day, another bizarre world record for Jackie Bibby, the "Texas Snake Man." Bibby spent about 45 minutes in a see-through bathtub with 87 rattlesnakes on Monday, November 5th, in Dallas, fully clothed, shattering his own record by 12 snakes, just in time for Guinness World Records Day, which is on Thursday, November 8th. A Guinness official certified the record.

The snakes crawled under his arms, between his legs and anywhere else they could slither, Bibby said. None bit him.

"They can go wherever they want as long as they don't start biting," Bibby said. "The key to not biting is for me to stay still. Rapid movement scares a rattlesnake. If you move real slow and gentle, that doesn't seem to bother them."

Bibby sat in the dry tub with a pillow behind him, wearing regular clothing. The snakes were not defanged and still contained their venom, he said.

The clear bathtub was specially made several years ago for Bibby by the Guinness folks for a televised segment. He has used it for subsequent attempts at the record for sitting in a tub with snakes.

"I have set several world records in that bathtub," Bibby said.

The record was Bibby's latest grab at glory. Last year he set a Guinness-certified record by holding 10 rattlesnakes by their tails in his mouth at once. He said he hopes to break that record shortly by squeezing in an 11th.

The Texas Snake Man also claims to hold non-sanctioned records for climbing into a sleeping bag head first with 20 rattlesnakes and going in feet first with 112.

'Best mom' to be face of new currency

South Korea's central bank has chosen the face of Korean motherhood as the first woman to be featured on its banknotes, but women's rights groups say the selection only reinforces sexist stereotypes.

Shin Saimdang, known for raising a famed Confucian scholar and having a deft hand in painting, will grace the new 50,000 won ($55) note when it debuts in early 2009, the Bank of Korea said.

Women's groups say her selection bolsters the idea that mothers should stay at home and devote their lives to their children's education.

Shin, whose nickname is "wise mother", gave birth to the 16th-century scholar Yi I, who is also known by his pen name Yulgok. She is celebrated for placing her son on the path to fame.

A paper on a government Web site describes Shin as "the best example of motherhood in Korean history", while the central bank said she was selected "to promote gender equality and women's participation in society".

Women's rights groups acknowledge Shin as an important figure but have been pushing for other female candidates, who have risen to positions of power and respect in a male-dominated society, to be placed on the new note. "Although women nowadays are highly capable and educated, the idea of 'wise mother and good wife' holds them down," said Kwon Hee-jung, secretary general of the women's rights group IF. More than a dozen women's rights groups plan to protest against the bank's decision.

Yulgok's face is already on the 5,000 won note. Shin will appear on the second-highest valued note after the new 100,000 bill is also issued in 2009.

Canine Walk of Fame unveiled in London

Famous dogs including Lassie and Oscar-winning animated pooch Gromit were inducted into the world's first canine Walk of Fame in London on Monday, November 5th, as the four-legged version of the Hollywood pantheon was unveiled.

Other top hounds included Fang from the "Harry Potter" films and Toto from "The Wizard of Oz", although, disappointingly for some, Tintin's sidekick Snowy failed to make the cut.

"Dogs play a very important role in our lives, through their companionship, unconditional love and rewarding relationship they give us," said Caroline Kisko of the Kennel Club at the unveiling near the famous Battersea Dogs' Home in south-west London.

"It is fantastic to see that this is felt the world over through the recognition given by the film industry, and the number of these films that are box office hits prove how much love the public have for dogs in general."

The six winners, who also included Bobby from "Greyfriars Bobby: The True Story Of A Dog", Bullseye from "Oliver!" and Chance and Shadow from the "Homeward Bound" films, were chosen from a shortlist of 15.

Those left out in the Top Dog stakes also included Pongo and Perdita from "101 Dalmatians", Hooch from "Turner and Hooch" and the four-legged stars of "Lady and the Tramp".

Panda's birthday...

Tao Tao, a 35-year-old female panda, eats her birthday cake at a zoo in Jinan, China. (Reuters Photo)

Heart facts...

A chat with Dr. Devi Shetty (Heart Specialist), Bangalore, India, was arranged by WIPRO Corporation for its employees.

The transcript of the chat is given below. Useful for everyone.

Qn: What are the thumb rules for a layman to take care of his heart?

Ans:
1. Diet - Less of carbohydrate, more of protein, less oil
2. Exercise - Half an hour's walk, at least five days a week; avoid lifts and avoid sitting for a long time
3. Quit smoking
4. Control weight
5. Control blood pressure and sugar

Qn: Is eating non-veg food (fish) good for the heart?

Ans: No

Qn: It's still a grave shock to hear that some apparently healthy person
gets a cardiac arrest. How do we understand it in perspective?

Ans: This is called silent attack; that is why we recommend everyone past the age of 30 to undergo routine health check-ups.

Qn: Are heart diseases hereditary?

Ans: Yes

Qn: What are the ways in which the heart is stressed? What practices do you suggest to de-stress?

Ans: Change your attitude towards life. Do not look for perfection in everything in life.

Qn: Is walking better than jogging or is more intensive exercise required to keep a healthy heart?

Ans: Walking is better than jogging since jogging leads to early fatigue and injury to joints

Qn: You have done so much for the poor and needy. What has inspired you to do so?

Ans: Mother Theresa, who was my patient

Qn: Can people with low blood pressure suffer heart diseases?

Ans: Extremely rare

Qn: Does cholesterol accumulate right from an early age (I'm currently only 22) or do you have to worry about it only after you are above 30 years of age?

Ans: Cholesterol accumulates from childhood.

Qn: How do irregular eating habits affect the heart ?

Ans: You tend to eat junk food when the habits are irregular and your body's enzyme release for digestion gets confused.

Qn: How can I control cholesterol content without using medicines?

Ans: Control diet, walk and eat walnut.

Qn: Can yoga prevent heart ailments?

Ans: Yoga helps.

Qn: Which is the best and worst food for the heart?

Ans: Fruits and vegetables are the best and the worst is oil.

Qn: Which oil is better - groundnut, sunflower, olive?

Ans: All oils are bad.

Qn: What is the routine check-up one should go through? Are there any specific test?

Ans: Routine blood test to ensure sugar, cholesterol is ok. Check BP, Treadmill test after an echo.

Qn: What are the first-aid steps to be taken on a heart attack?

Ans: Help the person into a sleeping position, place an aspirin tablet under the tongue with a sorbitrate tablet if available, and rush him to a coronary care unit since the maximum casualty takes place within the first hour.

Qn: How do you differentiate between pain caused by a heart attack and that caused due to gastric trouble?

Ans: Extremely difficult without ECG.

Qn: What is the main cause of a steep increase in heart problems amongst youngsters? I see people of about 30-40 yrs of age having heart attacks and serious heart problems.

Ans: Increased awareness has increased incidents. Also, sedentary lifestyles, smoking, junk food, lack of exercise in a country where people are genetically three times more vulnerable for heart attacks than Europeans and Americans.

Qn: Is it possible for a person to have BP outside the normal range of 120/80 and yet be perfectly healthy?

Ans: Yes.

Qn: Marriages within close relatives can lead to heart problems for the child. Is it true?

Ans : Yes, co-sanguinity leads to congenital abnormalities.

Qn: Many of us have an irregular daily routine and many a times we have to stay late nights in office. Does this affect our heart? What precautions would you recommend?

Ans : When you are young, nature protects you against all these irregularities. However, as you grow older, respect the biological clock.

Qn: Will taking anti-hypertensive drugs cause some other complications (short / long term)?

Ans : Yes, most drugs have some side effects. However, modern anti-hypertensive drugs are extremely safe.

Qn: Will consuming more coffee/tea lead to heart attacks?

Ans : No.

Qn: Are asthma patients more prone to heart disease?

Ans : No.

Qn: How would you define junk food?

Ans : Fried food like Kentucky Chicken, McDonalds Burgers, North Indian samosas, and even South Indian masala dosas.

Qn: You mentioned that Indians are three times more vulnerable. What is the reason for this, as Europeans and Americans also eat a lot of junk food?

Ans: Every race is vulnerable to some disease and unfortunately, Indians are vulnerable for the most expensive disease.

Qn: Does consuming bananas help reduce hypertension?

Ans : No.

Qn: Can a person help himself during a heart attack (we see a lot of forwarded emails on this)?

Ans : Yes. Lie down comfortably and put an aspirin tablet of any description under the tongue and ask someone to take you to the nearest coronary care unit without any delay and do not wait for the ambulance since most of the time, the ambulance does not turn up.

Qn: Do, in any way, low white blood cells and low hemoglobin count lead to heart problems?

Ans : No. But it is ideal to have normal hemoglobin level to increase your exercise capacity.

Qn: Sometimes, due to the hectic schedule we are not able to exercise. So, does walking while doing daily chores at home or climbing the stairs in the house, work as a substitute for exercise?

Ans : Certainly. Avoid sitting continuously for more than half an hour and even the act of getting out of the chair and going to another chair and sitting helps a lot.

Qn: Is there a relation between heart problems and blood sugar?

Ans: Yes. A strong relationship since diabetics are more vulnerable to heart attacks than non-diabetics.

Qn: What are the things one needs to take care of after a heart operation?

Ans : Diet, exercise, drugs on time , control cholesterol, BP, weight..

Qn: Are people working on night shifts more vulnerable to heart disease when compared to day shift workers?

Ans : No.

Qn: What are the modern anti-hypertensive drugs?

Ans : There are hundreds of drugs and your doctor will chose the right combination for your problem, but my suggestion is to avoid the drugs and go for natural ways of controlling blood pressure by walk, diet to reduce weight and changing attitudes towards lifestyles.

Qn: Does dispirin or similar headache pills increase the risk of heart attacks?

Ans : No.

Qn: Why is the rate of heart attacks more in men than in women?

Ans : Nature protects women till the age of 45.

Qn: How can one keep the heart in a good condition?

Ans : Eat a healthy diet, avoid junk food, exercise everyday, do not smoke and, go for health check-ups if you are past the age of 30 (once in six months recommended) ....

PROLONGED USE OF iPOD CAN LEAD TO AN ACOUSTIC SHOCK...

Doctors now reveal that headphones and earplugs can lead to a number of hearing problems.

More and more people are developing ear ailments due the increasing popularity of electronic gadgets like iPods, discmans and mobile phones with built in MP-3 players and radios.

Doctors say that nowadays their patients are from a younger age-group (19-29) mostly complaining about a severe pressure in the ear. This can sometimes lead to an ear attack which is like a heart attack, where the blood vessels and the oxygen supply to the ears get blocked.

Call center employees are highly under the risk of hearing defects, as they use headphones constantly. Constant headache and a sort of buzzing inside the ear are symptoms of an acoustic shock. Acoustic SHOCK is caused when you hear a sudden loud noise through your headphone. This makes one unable to handle loud noises for a short period after the shock. Acoustic shock can also lead to deafness. Sudden loud and high pitch noises can affect the eardrums and can lead to meniere disease (abnormal pressure in the ears.)

Therefore, according to doctors, the usage of iPods, discmans, headphones and earplugs should be regulated as they can cause hearing impairment, slowly leading to deafness.

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