Brown Motion

That rubbing two butts does not produce butter; Betting on this will not make it better; Rubbing two brats only makes it wurst; That is the rub! Now on a separate note - did you know that you could commence a Chiropractice outside Egypt?

Once in a while I get fixated on a word and try to understand why or how that word came to be. Dogma is one such. I mean coming from India its hilarious to see the possibility of this one. Dogma could translate to mother of Dog. Then there was a character in the famous Asterix cartoons called Dogmatix. Dogma can dog someone like me no end. If they clone a dog with a sheep maybe they will get a Dogma. Also tends to sound like a special form of Mediterranean food that comes on a stick. Or something wrapped in a grape leaf. Although defined as a belief held by religious principle this Dog just goes Ma - doggone it.

That's right. This blog is regarding the repeated reaming that the letters RE get and why that may be. We are not humming Do Re Me here. Rather trying to figure how I can explain the following words without Repeating myself - Peated Membered Quired Splendant Negade Jected Queim Someone I am sure knows what the above listed and many unlisted ones might be. I for one have no idea and while on the subject of strange language idiosyncracies there is this matter of DE. As in what is - Stroyed Jected Murred Canted Lusional Perhaps we are all Tarded.

I am not on narcotics. I have to clarify in case the reader wondered about the obtuse title of the blog and hastened to conclude that I must be in order to phrase these two concepts in the same breath. Obvious flaw in that 'same breath' assumption would be reader being unaware of my breathing rate - i.e. I could have exhaled few times (and consequently inhaled) before I came up with the title. More aptly it would imply I was doing some form of Pranayam as I came up with blog titles. Let me assure you that that is not the case. Having got the air flow dynamic out of the way let me proceed to explain this juxtaposition of ideas. More on what a 'juxta' is in another blog. The second law of thermodynamics ('thermo' who you ask - another blog) states that the Entropy of a closed system (think our planet with its dumbass sapiens inhabitants) always increases. In English it means that everything we see around us is a constant state of instability and therefore ...

Bombay is Mumbai - should Bollywood be Mumbailakdi? Madras is Chennai so what of Madurai? Could it be Charas? It would help to smoke some to get answers to these riddles. Who and why does someone mess with what is? Is it because someone had to? Since the ipad idea was taken there was nothing else to do? Because world hunger is a rhetorical issue to solve? If $100 bought only 1 INR (Rupee) would India ask Americans trying to get in to have an Orange Card? Would Americans want to get in? Will we face a veggie crisis with cows running amuck since many swear off of beef? Will Bajaj suddenly have monopoly over all Rickshaw sales in Manhattan? Would Geithner or his successor balk at allowing Bajaj to take over the Raj? Would Detroit reappoint Rick Wagoner as head of Government Motors and produce their own version of the Rick's Shaw II? Maybe brand it as S(h)awTooth akin to the new Corvette StingRay? How would traffic in Times Square look like with a steady supply of un...

Bernie that is. You know who I am talking about. The Ponzi Artist. Should he be called an artist? After all there are con artists, right? Who's to blame? The one who made off with the money or the gullibles that got made? The dupeworthy or the super duper? History repeated itself with the announcement, make that expression of guilt from the one who used all his strong arm tactics to convince the world to watch people ride cycles on a hill. You know who I am talking about. The one and only Lance who made people wear yellow rubber bands. Was that supposed to make us feel good about our postal service? Which although has vans to deliver mail seems to be slower like they were on a cycle? That would be India circa 1980s.. Are those that got taken to the rubber to blame or the one who rode on rubber wheels? I think frankly that for every scam there is a scamee waiting to be scammed. To take advantage of people's inevitable ability to get suckered is also equally hum...

For different folks. America, more specifically the State of California spent Millions on painting their Golden Gate Bridge it's signature international red. It looks stunning in its 75th anniversary coat. On the other side of the planet in Kolkatta, India people are trying to save another ancient architecture turning 70 next year. It's their equivalent of the Golden Gate.. Except this is of an indeterminate color made to look orange by the daily paint job it gets from the Gutkha spitting public. Gutkha is an amazing chemical concoction that contains variety of carcinogens and acids that is chewed as a cheap high and spit when done. These spit gobs are corroding this superstructure used by 90,000 vehicles daily. Someone said the world is an oyster but perhaps an apt title could be - the world is a spittoon so use it with gay abandon? Oh well..it's an agenda item for the Indian government to make it illegal in all states to sell and consume the dreaded substance. Th...

Although the name sounds rather harsh on the ear this dessert or as I call it 'main course' is sublime. Today we cranked out a batch for general consumption in the household. A specific recipe is followed. Involves the use of Dannon Yoghurt. Thank the Spaniard who founded this affair a century ago merged with the recipe from Maharashtra also a century old. By draining out the water from the yoghurt overnight by use of a cheese cloth the cheese or 'Chakka' is born. Essentially a de-wheyed ouput, its then briskly whisked with almost 2/3rds granulated sugar by volume till a white slurry with creamy consistency is derived. Beats going to the gym since its good cardio whilst sitting at home. Add to that a dash of toasted saffron (Stigma from a flowering bush that grows in extreme climates this Stigma you want) and stir - and you get one of the most amazing sweet concoctions ever to grace the earth. Certain twists on this recipe may include adding Mango puree (or Amra...

I am holding two. I have been tired of holding them. Can I let go? Frankly I have let go long ago and do not even know what holding them really meant. Some cost a lot too. Mine fortunately did not back in the day. Today people pay a lot to get one and to hold one. Some go beyond earning one by merely fabricating one or two. Even the glitziest of CEOs were found lacking - in that they were not holding on to anything and assumed they would have a smooth flight. When the turbulence did hit they were left with no lifeline - of sorts. They did have a backup parachute in some cases and have since landed and dusted off and gone off to make gobs of money that they felt entitled to. Again the correlation here is holding degrees to earning money. Money indeed is the life blood of today's dysfunction but hey you need ammo to fight the fight. Degrees also come with degrees of credibility. Some from well known institutions cost a lot in tuitions as your intuition would suggest. Th...

Who is this Quo? What of it? How is it relevant to me? Journalists and politicians often are seen bandying this phrase to sound erudite. 'We need to change the status quo' is the oft repeated line. To what I ask? What is the opposite of Quo? There needs to be a statute of limitations on the use of 'Status Quo'. You see 'Status Quo' is like a statue and if we need to change it we need to define what 'Quo' should be. Hence the statute. A quote Doris Day sang in the last century was 'Que Sera Sera' loosely translated to 'what will be will be'. Perhaps that is the answer to the question of 'Where do we go from Status Quo?' It is also a reflection of the poor intellectual quotient of humans in general when they resort to statuses and cliches simply to fill the space with something. If things are indeed in 'Status Quo' what is the point of stating the obvious? Nothing happens to the 'Quo' so why quote it?

It's proven beyond doubt in my mind that the human species is not the superior form of life on the planet. No one other than mankind still kills its fellow beings for reasons of emotional anguish. Or spite or chemically induced instability. Or financial and economic issues. Individual killing individual or a mass genocide, we are the only ones pursuing this style of survival. Other animals including birds and dolphins and salmon are taking immense pains to simply ensure survival of their species. They do so by performing amazing feats in travel planning and execution covering continents in their annual migrations. Ants and multitudes of insects build amazingly eco friendly colonies for inclement weather and all without resorting to man made silliness like higher education and subsequent student loans. With all our so called advancement and improved life expectancies there are bunch of us worried about after life and other abstract ideas like heaven and hell. So curious t...

Not At All!

When you think about what humans have managed to build there are some clear winners and clear losers. Winner column could include things like Electricity, Airplanes, Bacon, Sliced Bread, Farming, Vaccines etc. Loser column would contain things like Governments, National Holidays, National Monuments, Politicians, Taxes, Country, Flag, Anthems, Federal Reserve, World Bank, Any religion and its associated paraphernalia like holidays, costumes, prayer books, prayer halls, et al. I submit the thesis that all man made form of control should be immediately abolished. We can start with world governments. Government as defined by those who constitute it in the form of politicians. These happen to be a species that will likely not find a calling in another profession although a case can be made that film stars and ex CEO or C types have made forays back and forth. As far as movie stars go I think they are idiots anyway (at least those that make said forays) and should be ignored. As to th...

In America dating is big. It's so big there is an industry built to cater this part of social life. From dating sites to valentine day to candy to flowers the GDP benefits from this scam big. Add to this another industry making a killing - big pharma. If you watch any tv show for consecutive two hours you will likely see about four drug ads focused on parts of your anatomy you did not know existed. If you really get serious and track what they are pitching you realize that all those pretty girls and guys wandering about in bars are likely carrying one or two diseases. Fungus is most common but drugs that are sold to tackle it carry risks of lung inflammation, heart palpitation and liver failure so buyer beware. So anyway its scary to think that so much fungus on people could also affect innocent bystanders as it were due to spores flying off. Then there is copd. Not sure what symptoms are exhibited but again it makes for a potentially scary date. Regardless pharma companies...

To the uninformed the title would sound mysterious. If you google it you will discover an Indian cricket player that had tenacity to stay the course while the other wickets fell around him and walk home at sunset with a small pool of runs on the field. He was not known for his meteoric rise in the alums of batting or flamboyant performance against the bowlers. Far from it. He simply stayed put when out on the wicket and collected his ones and twos. Many of us are in that boat. We are not trail blazers of any sort but simply do what we must to earn our living. There is no major glory of being glam or in with the couture, but the metronomic tedium of moving to the next sunrise. That can be good. Its a matter of perspective. There is glamour in scarcity. Conversely ubiquity brings loss of the cool factor. That is how our society is programmed to operate. Vengsarkar was ubiquitous when it came to staying on... throw any bowler at him and he would stick to the wicket like a lea...

Progress (history), the idea that the world can become increasingly better in terms of science, technology, modernization, liberty, democracy, quality of life, etc. Social progress, the idea that societies can or do improve in terms of their social, political, and economic structures. Scientific progress, the idea that science increases its problem solving ability through the application of some scientific method. Philosophical progress, the idea that philosophy has solved or at least can solve some of the questions it studies. Defnitions of the term go on and on but ultimately its like someone said about unemployment rate - when you do not have a job the unemployment rate is 100%. Now to ponder about what is coming down the road is also not a new idea but from my vantage point of having been on the planet for four decades or so and reading about the first two thousand years of civilization (or what came to be known as such anyway, all the un-civil aspects notwithstanding) I am und...

It is amazing to see how food has gone beyond mere sustenance to wholesome entertainment to an art form across various geographies shaped by local economy, events and availability. After visiting several geographies and cultures and imbibing and consuming copious quantities of nutrition available it has dawned on me that good eating experience does not equate to high cost or high society living. 'Value' is definitely in the mouth of the beholder but identifying good eats takes time. Once you find it you stick with it. The challenge faced by a traveler to unknown lands is you know little of what to expect; but at times that clean palate can be the best ignorance. Preconception can be deterimental. What is oddly interesting is also how various cultures separated by geography have some food preparations that resemble each other. Breads of the world all have the rising yeast as a common denominator yet produce vastly varying outcomes from Naan to Bhaturas to Baguettes to P...

India has some unique fruits (or had - have not traveled in the local market to investigate current availability) that thrive in the tropics. Many bear strange names in the native language of the region they are found and have equally mysterious English names. Here is a sampling.. 1. Custard Apple - Nothing like an Apple in appearance or content this delicious custardy and seedy fruit is a delight when consumed at the right moment of ripeness. The kicker - natively called 'Sitaphal' aka the fruit of or belonging to Sita (one of the beauties of yesteryear mythology having been kidnapped - make that S(ita)napped by a demon called Ravana). This fruit naming makes no sense since Sita was the era's eye candy whilst the Phal or fruit named for her is basically ugly to look at. Blackish brown with texture like that of a pachyderm. 2. Ram Phal - Ram was allegedly Sita's spouse and again the association fails me. Lesser known fruit this and did not find much appeal i...

as fragrances go so does money. out of the fragrant person's pocket that is. have you seen how much these liquids in fancy bottles cost? then the scam aspect of them is the notion of creating them different for women vs men. what the heck is that supposed to mean? after all the wearing sex wears it to attract the opposite sex (in most cases). whereupon the wearer and the attractee get intimate. where further exposure to wearer causes the scent to rub off on the weary (wearee is not a word so thought of an alternate). so now that the perfume has worn off the wearer on to the other human that has rubbed against original wearer of opposite sex, how does the notion of having it designed for man or woman play out? I am confused. then there is the whole idea of designing amazing looking bottles to contain said liquids. some of them are indeed work of art. the bottles that is. but to showcase the bottle they again resort to using impossible to find in real life type of indiv...

Many ways to look at this cliched term. Unless you are wandering in a newly constructed high end property chances are the elevators in the building will make some sort of noise. Lets call it their pitch. Also, unless its an odd hour that you tend to wander in elevators you will always have company. To the point that someone's BO will cause you to flinch. Said flinching from a person of considerable dimensions (hence the elevator to move about) can cause the physical contraption to pitch (or yaw if you are an aviator who likes this sort of lingo). That would be another example of elevator pitch. But of course what most so called hiring managers and generally managers and directors and Veeps and so on are yamming about is your concise marketing campagin that can be delivered to someone with influence while riding vertically. Your elevator pitch. I have always been baffled by the amount of lingo and jargon and terminology that spews out of these so called A+ types. To actu...