Was That A Grammer Lesson Or Something Else - Still Confused...!!!

I would like to share a grammar school lesson I got in the sixth standard of my school.. I was in Culcutta (now known as Kolkata).. My English teacher was a Bengali lady.. She was pretty blunt and always use to take a pretty strong position on anything, especially about social equality.. We called her 'Mother Taresa', certainly not because of her nature, but because of sumthing, you will soon come to know.. She wrote 'all men are created equal'.. To these battle-hardened vets, there was nothing 'wrong' about this assertion.. Quizzically, she said, 'All men ARE created equal. But, all men are NOT born equal'..

She made a BIG deal out of that. You had to approach every person with an open mind.. With charity for all the people who weren't born with the advantages we had.. Report cards had things like 'respects the rights of others,' 'works well with others,' and my personal favorite: 'helps others reach their potential'..

There were a lot of funny lessons all designed to help us learn what she was trying to teach.. There was one activity that had envelopes with rewards and punishments in them at random - with random rewards and punishments written on the outside.. Lesson: Don't judge a book by its cover.. Tests where all the students' grades were equal to the lowest grade in the class.. Lesson: teamwork.. Classes were split into sections - smart, average, stupid, and dumb - with tests graded on improvement.. Lesson: Just because you're smart doesn't guarantee you'll win.. Halfway through a test, the rules were changed, no sympathy.. Lesson: Life throws curves..

And we had to adapt, live with it, and grow up..

So, there is a theoretical 'created,' like the theory of poker.. And then there is the 'born,' like playing the hand you're dealt..

"Hope this ramble makes some sense, and explains what I think she was trying to say.. Seems obvious to me, but then I was taught by some Marines about life.."

Cubical Missile Crises

Mortals..!! The USB slots' true purpose on our planet have been revealed - and a bloody purpose it is too..!! The USB Missile Launcher, straight from the desk of George Bush lets you bomb your neighbouring colleague if he refuses to pass the pen.. with the aid of the mouse, the launcher pans 180 degrees and tilts upto 45 degrees, a click and you will launch a harmless foam projectile, complete with the sound effect.. Go>>

Domained At Birth

She was born in Namibia, and is called Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt... her mother is of course Angelina Jolie, her father is, of course, Brad Pitt.. Now here's one baby who'll never have to lock horns with a typosquatter: Jolie (rather her lawyer ) regitered at least three domain names for her: ShilohNouvelJolie-Pitt.com, ShilohPitt.com, ShilohNouvel.com, and more.. Clumsy, but they will do the job.. (Actually, i think her name is clumsy in the first place..) Jolie seems to have learn her lesson: angelinajolie.com isn't hers..There is even a gag Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt Myspace page found, which says: "Shloh's interests: Africa, eating.. "

With all the unofficial fan sites out there anyway, what's this new fangled thing about celebrities and domain names...?????

3 Masterful Techniques...You Can Also Try....

Italian waiters are masterful salesmen.. Here are three sales techniques I noted at a few of the restaurants - techniques that you might be able to apply to your business also:

1. Use the Assumptive Close

During one of my favorite meals, the waiter used the "assumptive close" while taking our order.. This is a sales technique that assumes you already intend to buy something.. For instance, I asked for a recommendation on appetizers, and he mentioned that a mushroom and tomato dish was excellent.. Then he started writing and talking at the same time, "One mushroom and tomato for the lady, and one for the gentleman.."

He went on like that with the pastas and entrees, assuming we'd have two of everything.. (He happened to be wrong, but I'm sure the restaurant does a whole lot more business as a result..)

2. Proclaim to Be the Best

After the meal, the show continued.. When describing the dessert menu, he said, "We have the world's best cheesecake and Europe's number one chocolate cake.."
Who gave the restaurant those honors..?? I'm sure no one.. They just say it.. But how could we pass up a chance to eat the world's best cheesecake..??

3. Provide an Extraordinary Experience

It's the experience and not the food that takes center stage.. We sat down at an outdoor cafe and had a glass of wine, while listening to a band playing classical Italian music.. We sipped our drinks and watched people mill about.. The bill..?? A jaw-dropping **.. We were charged for music and bread in addition to the outrageous cost of our beverages. But it was okay - because we realized that it was the experience we were paying for and not the drinks.

When You Gotta Go.....

I am a bit late on this one, but at the JavaOne conference in San Francisco last month, former Sun CEO Scott McNealy engaged in a bit of rare humour..(He's the one who said infamously, "You already have zero privacy...get over it," in regard to customer privacy issues and shopping online. ) McNealy drew up a list of top ten great things about being CEO anymore, having handed over the baton to Jonathan Schwartz.. Here are some:

#10: "I don't have to apologize for the stuff I say to Wall Street, Jonathan does." (This is a little confusing: how can Schwartz apologise for what McNealy says? )
#9: "I'm no longer on the most overpaid CEO list." (Why doesn't he want to be?)
#8: "I just say, "See Jonathan on that." (Of course.)
#6: "I shave even less often." (He seemed pretty clean-shaven to us most of the time....)
#4: "I have someone to blame now." (We would all love this.)
#3: "I can sell my last business suit." (On eBay?)
#2: "Jonathan doesn't golf, so I guess I gotta do it. " (Good one..)
#1: "My new office is very close to the men's room." (No comment...!!!)

Just One Beautiful Thing

An exhibit of photos of "Old Paris" was being held..

There were about 100 photos by three photographers, all shot between 1930 and 1960. Most were black and white.. A few employed color, but minimally.. Many were nighttime shots. The overriding sentiment was nostalgia..

I am leery of nostalgic art because it can so easily be sentimentalized. But though these photos were beautiful and even wistful, they were also austere. There was one - a shot of an old building, illuminated by streetlights, in front of a rain-wet cobblestone road - that made me linger..

"I wish I could have taken that," I thought..

Then I thought, "But maybe one day I can do something like it. It isn't likely to happen anytime soon. But if I take a hundred or a thousand pictures, one of them might be great. So why not try?" ..

Point is, we are here for only a short time.. The candle is lit.. It flickers.. And it's out.. Wouldn't it be good to know that you have left something behind that is beautiful….???

Admit it. Wouldn't it good…??? You don't have to be an artist to have that ambition.. I am talking about leaving behind one beautiful thing.. Not a dozen masterpieces.. Not a body of solid, serious work.. Just one beautiful thing..

My Dreams Are Mine

Dreams...Everyone dreams, some dreams high and some bit low...But everyone does..and so i...

My dreams are mine....

Maybe yours includes fancy cars, big homes, flashy jewelry, vacations all over the world - or all of it...

Mine dream is much simpler..

In fact, it can be summed up in a single word "FREEDOM" ..

Oh, it's not that the "stuff" isn't exciting to me - because it is. But nothing is more important to me than being totally free. I mean...

• Free of all debt
• Free of bosses and the 9 to 5 rat race
• Free of the daily commute and rush-hour jammed freeways
• Free to do what I want, when I want
• Free to spend time - I mean real, stress free, quality time
• Free financially...and knowing my family will never have to worry about money

But here's the problem... that kind of real freedom is elusive..

In fact, for over 2 years I relentlessly pursued my dream.. I did everything I could get my hands on.. But nothing have got me the sought-after prize.. And im still going and will keep going untill i get it.....