tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213596422989449432024-03-14T01:49:48.379-07:00The WandererSachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-63690243934904228802012-10-20T09:19:00.001-07:002012-10-20T09:20:05.981-07:00Visible Voices 7<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1q7v4OMHmsGZqFC5qI0_mmhaW5z-1vzFWBVL2kFybJTBWc64ICkmBuD-jy-miua8pmC9VseDJdaBvuBcFTHhPPz_4zLz05f59_U5FauLlVHZgyBnmChgYIgC4Tlf47g8eJkHQlC7pVvg/s1600/dumb.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1q7v4OMHmsGZqFC5qI0_mmhaW5z-1vzFWBVL2kFybJTBWc64ICkmBuD-jy-miua8pmC9VseDJdaBvuBcFTHhPPz_4zLz05f59_U5FauLlVHZgyBnmChgYIgC4Tlf47g8eJkHQlC7pVvg/s400/dumb.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-22826691936514757572012-10-12T23:23:00.001-07:002012-10-12T23:23:53.726-07:00Visible Voices 6<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPKACVzYdp69VQK5KI3Af1QM5jSiQK8WgV2OMdqmCbc8Z3EVwU18JdHzE0t5IG_xOB-F7Ku2SAeNqxaxAxTLBA54OzV37FTKlsv-G6uk49NOnCTJyJKmOOsFrxyM92AZMFRXBhRzwMrmc/s1600/comic.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPKACVzYdp69VQK5KI3Af1QM5jSiQK8WgV2OMdqmCbc8Z3EVwU18JdHzE0t5IG_xOB-F7Ku2SAeNqxaxAxTLBA54OzV37FTKlsv-G6uk49NOnCTJyJKmOOsFrxyM92AZMFRXBhRzwMrmc/s400/comic.png" width="361" /></a>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, what started with much gusto saw no end. RIP CSExpress!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-63822480137307557262012-10-02T07:58:00.000-07:002012-10-02T07:58:39.377-07:00Visible Voices 5I miss my confidante!
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxhf7vceBoibADVhmg4shucJTpTcINDuFSpn8ehsA7plnpY1pGyLctBJQQjqt8_aCObu-O7H2CO5X19cVHZ-fo67rQt7tIL6iZZAaRyMSqKO8wOm5qHbDg0cbXlA6rquWGirlnliiAV9Y/s1600/Nilmini.png" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="400" width="361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxhf7vceBoibADVhmg4shucJTpTcINDuFSpn8ehsA7plnpY1pGyLctBJQQjqt8_aCObu-O7H2CO5X19cVHZ-fo67rQt7tIL6iZZAaRyMSqKO8wOm5qHbDg0cbXlA6rquWGirlnliiAV9Y/s400/Nilmini.png" /></a>
Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-43563206802000884682012-10-02T06:49:00.000-07:002012-10-02T07:00:58.829-07:00Visible Voices 4I first ran into these guys way back in 2009, when I joined the <a href="http://www.cse.mrt.ac.lk">Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Moratuwa</a>, as an instructor.
We scattered (and grew old) when 2012 came!
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-omfRlE_g1q0SanDbPRQedoVfttEl37Z_IkIcjZpN8GU1mqPS7osuHUFLXjQJloE8q50lZW6caIoeNSEN3XkLNcJJzFp6DuSe6bYS7AmIul8DtqTVH2OVoD-_RXrabnh4WwJhgA8Pw-4/s1600/m3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="296" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-omfRlE_g1q0SanDbPRQedoVfttEl37Z_IkIcjZpN8GU1mqPS7osuHUFLXjQJloE8q50lZW6caIoeNSEN3XkLNcJJzFp6DuSe6bYS7AmIul8DtqTVH2OVoD-_RXrabnh4WwJhgA8Pw-4/s400/m3.jpg" /></a>
Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-27911388740151515652012-10-02T06:47:00.002-07:002012-10-02T06:59:00.913-07:00Visible Voices 3Srimal (my colleague at work) explains his master plan of buying a car from the UK. It goes something like this....
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvBRiapIOo7cG9TB3HgAvqXO2QgLyDViCCeG9xCrRX0boPyoq0nIkZ873bQ30Gyo-oAOKLNbQhgebEkn16u8-V2pxJ9Z31FhMRsxPbIjODixv_vuTFG4cenDAdC1J3ZBdsRRADgk0M4-s/s1600/m2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="400" width="361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvBRiapIOo7cG9TB3HgAvqXO2QgLyDViCCeG9xCrRX0boPyoq0nIkZ873bQ30Gyo-oAOKLNbQhgebEkn16u8-V2pxJ9Z31FhMRsxPbIjODixv_vuTFG4cenDAdC1J3ZBdsRRADgk0M4-s/s400/m2.jpg" /></a>
Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-79603444048836688572012-10-02T06:47:00.000-07:002012-10-02T07:03:46.997-07:00Visible Voices 2The local universities came down to a standstill when the academic staff decided to go on strike, demanding a hike in fund allocation for education. It has been 3+ months of an unofficial vacation for the kids until today.
My department, Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) has been defying the strike with gusto!
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapgWS9yEgzjD11yOgrtZceRuFIgs6aeWaDzqLk1J6BBSXwNChQYq41Btf5l19_ilz1GOGYFqULfWm-ivAVpeUs_XDpKH1Bhrfvekp9Xs3Vo-2UcH3X_eaNnwBEDcC9iI3_qahaTblbHk/s1600/m1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="400" width="361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapgWS9yEgzjD11yOgrtZceRuFIgs6aeWaDzqLk1J6BBSXwNChQYq41Btf5l19_ilz1GOGYFqULfWm-ivAVpeUs_XDpKH1Bhrfvekp9Xs3Vo-2UcH3X_eaNnwBEDcC9iI3_qahaTblbHk/s400/m1.jpg" /></a>
Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-34683971887073210302012-10-02T06:40:00.000-07:002012-10-02T07:04:59.242-07:00Visible Voices 1My colleague Sujith, learnt the acerbic side of waiting until the last moment, when he had to come to work 10 hours before his flight to get his visa ready!
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtM6tMMWZMoav3c2FKI-t4HlOgr1D-LDL8ELnyHioiGKHAwTGh9EEkfoLgPvu-XioKfLo0uhvyMPmRDZGb_3zSg3zU4wxe74AEcXRNluDStdidvHhE4Guvo0Uz1Dxw7Kqeu2kXXU8UqVU/s1600/Madness.png" imageanchor="1" style=""><img border="0" height="400" width="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtM6tMMWZMoav3c2FKI-t4HlOgr1D-LDL8ELnyHioiGKHAwTGh9EEkfoLgPvu-XioKfLo0uhvyMPmRDZGb_3zSg3zU4wxe74AEcXRNluDStdidvHhE4Guvo0Uz1Dxw7Kqeu2kXXU8UqVU/s400/Madness.png" /></a>
Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-22993030684879821612012-04-01T07:58:00.002-07:002012-04-01T08:01:09.214-07:00Miss MuffetAnd so we had a blast bidding farewell to March & sending the welcome wagon to April, the month of festivities. The Onions' Get-together got off to an extremely delayed yet as-happening-as-Sri-Lankan-weather start. However, the writer feels the get-together missed the icing on the cake because of Miss Muffet's absence.<br /><br />Since, Miss Muffet bought her motor bike, as warned by many concerned, her life has been extremely accident prone. Although to normal folk wheels provide infinite freedom, Miss Muffet finds herself a little too pressed for time and riding her scooter all over the streets of Colombo. Being the good Samaritan she is, Miss Muffet heart goes out to every living creature, which usually results in her riding off to adventure after adventure. However, the writer feels Miss Muffets problem is trying to juggle more balls than her small hands can accommodate.<br /><br />Miss Muffet has been happening for the past couple of years, since the cosmic powers at her workplace shifted in her favor. Although her progress had been slightly marred by a few stumbles in her way, one often sees Miss Muffet sitting at a corner waiting for the next earthquake to hit. The writer's recommendation is that Miss Muffet is the BEST sidekick one can ever ask for. As the writer herself has accompanied Miss Muffet on many of her own cut-throat-assignments and actually manged to come out in one piece, Miss Muffet's dependability can be 100% guaranteed.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwnaTQ9bSiOPK_dP8qnYELetmkhNDCp-GQLl87KjhZrHq-JhGQ-dy3gRx2N3P9-E3cJaG_-nSRyoA7qT4LZ4-ldPFTdzq9y2RfzBB4_nH8-Dn-LzX7e2cjzV-YrLVLr6EE6dLqRvLmyd4/s1600/Nilmins-2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 333px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwnaTQ9bSiOPK_dP8qnYELetmkhNDCp-GQLl87KjhZrHq-JhGQ-dy3gRx2N3P9-E3cJaG_-nSRyoA7qT4LZ4-ldPFTdzq9y2RfzBB4_nH8-Dn-LzX7e2cjzV-YrLVLr6EE6dLqRvLmyd4/s400/Nilmins-2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5726447257216954722" /></a><br /><br /><br />Nowadays, Miss Muffet is wanted by many at her workplace, perhaps more wanted than the HoD himself. However, Miss Muffet wants one person. A dependable man who moves her like her motor bike. Miss Muffet has had a few shots with regard to that aspect, according to the news the writer has received from Miss Muffet herself. Nevertheless, the man who moves her still remains elusive. For all goodness she had bestowed upon many around her, the writer hopes the man who moves her arrives sooner than later, preferably riding a Mini! :)<br /><br /><br />Helping people has always been Miss Muffet's strong trait. It is indeed very rare to see somebody who selflessly helps those around, and Miss Muffet is the best example of a person possessing that rare feature. Often subtitled as Goalee among her peers (for maintaining the solid record of catching all "balls passed" at her direction), Miss Muffet is a silent complainer who gets the job done regardless the piece of crap for whom she is doing the job.<br /><br />Rumor has it that Miss Muffet is soon to leave the place she had so laboriously held together. Like her compatriot, who left before her in search of pretty village divas, Miss Muffet has too grown weary of her surroundings and is now on the lookout for a change. The place will never be the same without Miss Muffet sitting at her corner or riding her scooter down the winding roads. For her sake, the writer dearly hopes the change will not only affect Miss Muffet's location but also her relationship status.<br /><br />We are sorry, she couldn't make it to the get-together, which rolled on nicely despite the limited turn out. Likewise, Miss Muffet's life will roll on, hopefully as nice as the person Miss Muffet is!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-75419279883568908692011-11-11T08:03:00.000-08:002011-11-11T08:05:36.394-08:00Why Do We Love You?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDqIUu9PNRVmFdCrZcmolP-CC7G2LZg2sSUnAZ9hjLNmkoLzhAf5JebW82wmrqsmvcnFSLWruV9t_0ouVUOf8BlZDyEzKe0E7-Tmea0968vTuWqS4_PNeX8LRNkf2efZFKYHXRxBluCGg/s1600/index.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 108px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDqIUu9PNRVmFdCrZcmolP-CC7G2LZg2sSUnAZ9hjLNmkoLzhAf5JebW82wmrqsmvcnFSLWruV9t_0ouVUOf8BlZDyEzKe0E7-Tmea0968vTuWqS4_PNeX8LRNkf2efZFKYHXRxBluCGg/s400/index.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673770027564957826" /></a><br />For me, farewells always ignite an aura of boredom; one reason because after the farewell you find yourself wondering how to adjust to the change. The other reason for this aura of boredom is the fact that you end up remembering all the good times, which will be hard, if not impossible to come by from now onwards.<br /><br />This note salutes, a friend we all love and will dearly miss. Although it is possible the man has gone in search of greener pastures and possibly better looking village divas, having given us the excuse of finding a better job, we all wish him well and very best of luck in either upgrading his status or his bank account balance!<br /><br />“<span style="font-style:italic;">We are all travellers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend</span>” , said Robert Louis Stevenson a Scottish Essayist, Poet and Author. It hardly matters if you have read any of RLS's work or not, for the point of this script is to highlight a remarkable individual who breezed into few of our groupies' lives and breezed out just as swiftly.<br /><br />For someone who has been in many soups other people just pushed toward me, a dependable person is quite hunky dory. I am indeed very grateful for this high priced individual to have been the salt, the pepper, the carrots and the leaks of all my soups, which not only ended up tasting great, but also made them other folks want it more! (yes this soup is vegetable because I don't eat meat!) If you ever have found yourself in a situation, where you would desperately want a person to say yes, you know the relief you feel when somebody pops up out of nowhere and says yes! This note is dedicated to such an individual who resisted the butterflies, the threats and most importantly the risks of failure just to stand up and say yes when needed. <br /><br />Deliverance is a strange thing! We often see deliverance loafing around places where it is redundant. The past few years has been a time which deliverance did not fail the few of us who needed it the most. If you ever wanted to see deliverance, packed in a spectacle-d, brown, fat belly package, our subject will be that package!<br /><br />People around the place I spend most of my time, have a lousy sense of humor. This is probably due the fact that most of them have spent 2/3s of their lives being geeks. Sadly, the few times one manages to strike a funny chord, us the normal folk actually feel sorry for the fellow for his/her tepid efforts. Our subject in discussion however, was never short of smiles and madness, which added the much needed life and color to a seemingly gloomy environment.<br /><br />During his time, this individual has got accustomed to this strange habit of hibernation. Unfortunately for him, his choice of hibernation location was as lousy as some of the decisions he has made in his life! We hope for his sake he finds a better hibernation joint than a data communication lab when he moves on to the brand new terrain. The fellow inhabitants of his designated work area, (especially Miss Muffet) was quite annoyed of this hibernation habit. Having witnessed the constant mid-hibernation interruptions, I am not sure our subject got the sleep he was looking for! Let Deliverance be upon him to bless him with a brand new hibernation joint, with comfortable chairs and air-conditioning and less of Miss Muffets.<br /><br />We hope the adventures ahead of him will be exciting. If he is lucky, those adventures will be as exciting as the adventures he is leaving behind. He leaves in the terminator style; with a loud flash and a "I-will-be-back". Having seen the predicament of his predecessors, we highly doubt if he will be able to keep up with this promise.<br /><br />The man hopes to fall into some track once he settles down in his new environment. Sometimes I wonder if this track is visible only to his type, for he has been falling into this track for ages and never seemed to finish falling into it. For all goodness he possesses and he shared with all his friends, let's pray he finds this track or the track finds him, which ever comes first! :)<br /><br />Adios friend. We shall not draw the curtains nor close doors. You are loved and will always be loved by more than just one person.Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-73537941274099334942011-10-26T08:33:00.001-07:002011-10-26T08:33:29.156-07:00Why Do I Need MoneyLoot, regardless the form and the source of its origin is a treasured commodity. People usually complain about big numbers if the numbers are about hip size, waist, or weight. Fortunately for loot, bigger is most definitely better. It is one of the few phenomenons in this world that one can not have enough of! Let's pick an everyday mortal and ask if he/she has money. I think I have a better chance shedding 20 kilos than that person giving a yes to that question! Loot requires respect and a whole lot of it! One would speculate, looking at the seemingly neutral bills and coins that its relatively harmless and is ready to execute whatever you demand. This is wrong! As far as loot is concerned, going from hero to zero is not decided on how many zeros are added where, but WHO adds how many zeros where.<br /><br /> <br /><br />According to social norms, the one possessing loot is a respected person. Now I see most of you jumping up and down vehemently trying to deny this statement. This denial is usually accompanied by philosophical outbursts such as "it is not money, it is the virtues that value", "people with money are usually morons and thieves" etc. Sadly for us, we are not governed by philosophy. One fine thing to note however is, neither is money! :)<br /><br /> <br /><br />So, why do I need money?<br /><br /> <br /><br />I need money to be a geek.<br /><br />Sure! To travel all over the world, attending this meeting, that convention, this presentation, that workshop, start a geeky business, spread the geeky love... the list is endless. Exhibiting geeky grandeur is a favorable trait, for many of us can not do that. I don't think geeks will rule, but I am sure with the truckload of money they own (doing similar geeky things), they are pretty close to ruling at some point in future.<br /><br /> <br /><br />I need money to be fun(ny).<br /><br />Entertaining people is hard work. The worst is entertaining old people. I think with age, like the other 206 bones we possess, the fun(ny) bone too turns brittle! Entertaining old folk, therefore is a costly adventure, which usually returns more complains than complements. It is an accepted fact that fun people spend to remain fun. Funny people on the other hand earn to remain funny!<br /><br /> <br /><br />I need money to be rich<br /><br />Loot brings riches. Unfortunately, the inflow of loot paves way to unthinkable out flows. Such is the bizarre properties of loot! It takes more than luck to be rich and remain rich. What do you need? More loot.<br /><br /> <br /><br />I need money to be in debt<br /><br />There is this friend of mine, who earns a salary, pays the debtors and still manages to be in debt. It is amazing how that person does that, and that specimen certainly is study-worthy. One hopes, one day that person will find the balance of loot as the Avatar found the balance of the four elements and defeated Fire Lord Ozai.<br /><br /> <br /><br />Come the day loot loses this talent to make us want to be one thing and the opposite of that thing at the same time, we will all lose interest, literally. Regardless, its loose ends, I love loot. I am not sure loot loves me, because it never seems to stick with me. Despite the rejection, my door is always open... for loot!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-3195532021469776772011-08-13T22:48:00.001-07:002011-08-13T22:50:26.794-07:00Big T and the Big Bee<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRJKDVWFjdlx1lF5E6t4c4oiK6-dleC42ne6tLRJtaBjgVZxoGoCHuZGNlN9klkSaNqHYQmx9BMWeOkWohsfuAi9iQ_SS4PSi2cA5gOFPK42KbGOjGZ7B67on6nKEJ8WmTD1f3MwQ_NNM/s1600/B.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 153px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRJKDVWFjdlx1lF5E6t4c4oiK6-dleC42ne6tLRJtaBjgVZxoGoCHuZGNlN9klkSaNqHYQmx9BMWeOkWohsfuAi9iQ_SS4PSi2cA5gOFPK42KbGOjGZ7B67on6nKEJ8WmTD1f3MwQ_NNM/s320/B.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640584818114661394" /></a>
<br />
<br />The room I used to stay in was a funny place and it still is. People crash land, people take off, and people like me just swing by hoping for some cheap entertainment & gozz!
<br />
<br />Come the day the newcomers arrive, people living in that room get overly excited. Is he/she good? Is he/she a moron? Is he/she like so & so?, countless questions pop in and out. In the dwellers' defense, it is quite fair any incoming foreign bodies create a lot of stir. The room had had more than its share of hooligans and baboons. Records show that, such foreign baboons create messy situations (note to reader: all apes are messy), cause issues and just take off when the other branch falls within reach (more notes to reader: recall ape-behavior).
<br />
<br />Miss. Muffet in particular, is one dweller who accepts all foreign bodies with open arms and most noticeably with an open mouth. Unlike the one who sat on a tuffet closer to the ground, Miss. Muffet can usually be seen sitting on anything, which places her higher than the elevation of a chair. Miss. Muffet is yet to take a fall from her high altitude existence, basically thanks to her great levels of friction and the forever-on-grin plastered to her face. However, falls have come from other avenues where friction had failed Miss. Muffet. We have to thank her bike for that! Thus we see in clear light as to why destiny left The Miss. Muffet eating her curds and whey on a tuffet and not on wheels.
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Big T was a breeze! T just flew in & flew out just like the modern day gust of polluted air. Miss. Muffet thought the T was her cup of tea, a breath of fresh air after a long period of dismal days and was particularly dismayed when T took off. T has earned a reputation among the gang for being quite the source of entertainment, fun, laughter and most of all bad luck. The writer has no idea the depth to which the roots of bad luck had run, thus will refrain from making larger than life comments. However, the writer does have an axe to grind with Big T, for she with a few others lost their personal retreats at work, 48 hours after Big T moved into her area in the building! Since this note is to celebrate the spirit of T, no further mentioning of T's desperate search of Leprechauns will be made! It seems luck has its ways of letting T know of its existence. It is just too bad the method of awareness raising luck has utilized has scared T out of his wits, so much so that he has turned to be a believer of hocus-pocus. While we all firmly believe a whole-vegetarian diet is good for anybody any day, we are skeptical of the effectiveness of results owing to its short (very short) life-span. In search of the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, T is venturing out into greener pastures. For all goodness as a human being he possessed, we hope and pray he finds only jump-able bumps in his road, and no rats or cockroaches in his brand new 5x5 cubicle.
<br />
<br />Miss. Muffet was heard missing Big T very recently. However, T's loss is inadequately filled by the Bee. Miss Muffet feels, T and Bee complemented each other to perfection. What Miss. Muffet is not aware of is the fact that she is inadvertently coupling two perfectly straight gentlemen in her head! The Big Bee is a little ball of spitfire! Contrary to popular belief, this Bee is usually seen being the comedian in the crowd. These days the Big Bee is busy making his hive in the Electrical Engineering department. Sadly, the Queen bee seems to be pissing him off. We all feel that the Queen bee should stop trying to run the Big Bee's honey dry, because if not her there are and will be plenty of other queens for him to drop his honey on!! The Big Bee has earned a reputation for being an athletic catch. The golden or the bronze chance the Big Bee had to exhibit his cricketing skills was rudely washed away in the rain. Since the talk in the town is to have the take two of the rain-dance equivalent pretty soon, we all would soon get to watch the swings & misses of the Big Bee.
<br />
<br />
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBilL-b0c663wrrMhYHbcBUEzy_88ndvCgm5EI-aD11C9TaV2BY9PsVxQ7Jzh6phyphenhyphenXlqRHwLeNjv0EFkG5rU7ckN98dMDv-gXAf8QHsf1hSu6AHY468d_ucnq1Oxj1yevLHKWTyywfJz8/s1600/T.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 303px; height: 228px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBilL-b0c663wrrMhYHbcBUEzy_88ndvCgm5EI-aD11C9TaV2BY9PsVxQ7Jzh6phyphenhyphenXlqRHwLeNjv0EFkG5rU7ckN98dMDv-gXAf8QHsf1hSu6AHY468d_ucnq1Oxj1yevLHKWTyywfJz8/s320/T.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640584661785049986" /></a>
<br />
<br />
<br />Since of Big T's departure, a strange attraction has developed between a certain chipmunk and the bee. The root of this peculiar animal coalition is nourished by pheromones coming in from the direction of the Electrical Engineering department. One should appreciate Big T's effort in not letting the Bee get into the wild side. Luckily for the Bee, freedom was available a hop, skip and a new system engineer job away. Now that the ball is in flight we hope this would be one swing the Bee won't miss. We further hope the chipmunk will be within reach, ready and waiting to catch the ball before it hits the ground!!
<br />
<br />And so we open the gates to the best zoo under the sun & moon!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-47765841980454134732011-05-17T08:30:00.000-07:002011-05-17T08:32:35.370-07:00Sil Today<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU3mIMw3VDal5ypPqO6j7VQ5LmyXcI8NOKp_iQvR8wKQBMR-RTTlnJBodQOn8eVTfpIdY8soSeecMB8WfjpE_mtwMY8HWYHs2Pddel1EY8GwTahzraEgwhXxDQ7NZ_QZxXhA3KYiN6oRg/s1600/Flag_Buddhism-6f972.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU3mIMw3VDal5ypPqO6j7VQ5LmyXcI8NOKp_iQvR8wKQBMR-RTTlnJBodQOn8eVTfpIdY8soSeecMB8WfjpE_mtwMY8HWYHs2Pddel1EY8GwTahzraEgwhXxDQ7NZ_QZxXhA3KYiN6oRg/s320/Flag_Buddhism-6f972.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5607708191004462690" /></a><br /><br /><br />It was the commemoration of the 2600th year since the Lord Buddha attained enlightenment. True enough, the day is special, the times are decisive and we as mortals must engage in something which can actually be carried forward to the next lifetime. So, instead of wasting my life doing what common place mortals do (tissue paper, paste & tidbits), I tagged along with my mother to observe sil.<br /><br />I must be getting old or nearing the D-day so to speak. Although staying put with 7000 others (stats quoted from an organizer) was grueling, it all paid off well eventually. I actually learned a lot, sighed to myself, burned under the sun, was ruthlessly woman-handled and also started hoping and praying I won't turn out to be some of them so called "upasikawo" when I turned 50+.<br /><br />The sermons: 6 or 5 of them if I counted correctly, all carried one message. We as Buddists are far from where we ought to be. We get to listen to preachings 24 x 7, yet we fail miserably at practicing what is preached for even a fraction of that time. Our brains are not developed (so it should be nearing THE END, according to one sermon), which usually means we do things out of practice & not because we truly understand the deeper meaning. Frankly, it was depressing to hear how the world is going to end, and what plight we mortals would be in when the world ends bla bla. The good news however is, being where we are in this space-time continuum, we already possess what's needed to prevent ourselves from plunging into doom. The bottom line: Time is now.<br /><br />Although 6 different bhikku's said the same thing in different words, not much seemed to have reached the active segments of people's brains. Sil day meant a whole lot of pushing and shoving, especially when it came to daane times. The 8 precepts, to some extent meant discipline I reckon. Sadly, discipline was one thing many lacked both verbally & physically. Once I was unfortunate enough to sit and bake in the sun, next to some "daayaka sabha activists", having a ball of a time enjoying other people's misery, gossiping about how a baas has done some construction without using iron & how the ven. nayaka thero was going to be upset at the baas and chasing people jumping over shrubs they laboriously grew and watered. Funny thing was the shrub was ok to be jumped over by their friends, and it was detrimental to be jumped over by some stranger. So much for self-discipline!<br /><br />One actually feels ashamed to be a part of an afternoon sermon. Apart from the fact that almost 60% of the crowd was female, a considerable proportion of that crowd was dozing off or completely out catching Zees right in front of the thero. The effort put in from the reverend's side is commendable, just to keep the ladies looking alive, but why they had to sleep right in front of his face is a question I seem not get!<br /><br />People are rude. Either that, or they have the urge to establish dominance. Most of the organizing folks seemed to be suffering from some disorder which caused them to haul crowd into all places and shapes they desired. "move or no food", "clear the road", "hurry up" bla bla... was all they could say the whole day. No "please", no respect nothing. One wonders what one must possess to become a dayaka sabha member; obviously a loud mouth and thug-like attitude!<br /><br />So, it has been 2600 years, since we have been shown the way. No wonder they say we have small and apparently useless brains. 2600 years and still we are groping about in the dark!<br /><br />Happy Vesak Everybody.<br /><br />May you all be one step closer next year!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-5216193275263856772011-03-10T09:39:00.000-08:002011-03-10T09:40:57.609-08:00When The Best Goes Missing!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh0JFCS4HKzGC9qZO2dQkJBFLI1yykinIcDx4PcKMrVWcJC7ZAAlFqEL6Nsi5im-eXafxRDscSRCagicFzKpB8Jl6ybFyJXWIfy1KNOugPuXcciWanya-pLAyLwMMfB88VRCQ-vhky6xM/s1600/041_maths_1.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 218px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh0JFCS4HKzGC9qZO2dQkJBFLI1yykinIcDx4PcKMrVWcJC7ZAAlFqEL6Nsi5im-eXafxRDscSRCagicFzKpB8Jl6ybFyJXWIfy1KNOugPuXcciWanya-pLAyLwMMfB88VRCQ-vhky6xM/s400/041_maths_1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5582507634874425570" /></a><br />It is true that one never starts missing the best until the best is out of the picture. It is also true that the replacement to the best is usually some busybody dropped out of nowhere, whose presence has become a painful experience to many in more ways than one. One would only hope the world would just stop spinning at the busybody's feet! On the contrary to most of our expectations, the world just loves proving the hope wrong. I for one am slowly becoming aware of the magnitude of the void the best has left behind. We hope for the best's sake that this bad patch will not last long, and at the end the best would come unto the living with blinding flashes and deafening noises.<br /><br />Silence is often a strength. Often people find it extremely difficult just to shut up when it is absolutely necessary. As has been proven so many times in the recent past, opening one's mouth at the worst possible moment gets many into trouble. The best is a person of few words. The best is aware of this danger, and often with the best's characteristic smooth moves manages to beautifully avoid unpleasant situations. We see the best's talents leave many wondering what they can't be like the best. Well, technically there can be only one best. :)<br /><br />The best knows about respect. I admit this word has become a common occurrence in many penning. But it is the very word that brings about many uncomfortable situations. Sadly many of these could easily have been avoided had the responsible loose-heads had the gnats of a brain to realize the importance of respect. It is the fact that the best knows how to respect the surroundings that has earned the best a lot of respect in return. People do not talk behind the best's back. When they do talk behind the best's back they usually do not regret the fact that they have met the best.<br /><br />The best is disciplined. A totally kick-ass disciplinary I might add. It is still awesome the best does not have to attend the so-called boot camps for discipline. In fact the boot campers themselves can learn a thing or two about what it means to be a disciplinary courtesy the best.<br /><br /><br /><br />The best is not a showoff. Showoffs are good people. They add such positivity to the world. Commonplace people can realize that there is still a level that everybody else can stoop so low without reaching the level of showoffs. This is one teeny-weeny incident where being a bad person can actually make you good! If the matters were discussed on the right ground, the best probably might have lots to flash. However, being the superior human being the best manages to find less catastrophic methods to keep the best entertained.<br /><br />The best has the best sense of humor. Jokes as a matter of fact can be both humorous and humorless at the same time. The person possessing the best's charisma would take the joke as a joke without shooting back venom in return. The best's lightheartedness is extremely commendable. You would see the best wearing a million dollar smile any time of day all days of the week. The best part about that smile is that it is not a smile of cynicism or sarcasm or insult, but an expression of the humane quality of an ordinary human being!<br /><br />May your goodness be long lived!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-11367423605935456172011-03-01T09:24:00.000-08:002011-03-01T09:25:47.320-08:00The Tea Maker, The Body Maker and The Rat<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGucz_NXLqRdl6PkkFqVeLRJ-pufkjCwL19oikySic6ieBKqf37SvwdGFw-rfwGxKMGQklS67ONEyl5iJ8Fd3eJFBwVNw-hEvaWkOiQoOwUZhXUfQCqpzgfgGABCG1aF9MVC_uFoUygSQ/s1600/boy-open-door-thumb2882641.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGucz_NXLqRdl6PkkFqVeLRJ-pufkjCwL19oikySic6ieBKqf37SvwdGFw-rfwGxKMGQklS67ONEyl5iJ8Fd3eJFBwVNw-hEvaWkOiQoOwUZhXUfQCqpzgfgGABCG1aF9MVC_uFoUygSQ/s320/boy-open-door-thumb2882641.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5579163976781363954" /></a><br />The room I stay in (will be for a tad bit longer) is a funny place. The moment one steps inside one is appalled by the plainness of the walls, the boring feeling the typist chairs exude and the dusty un-carpeted floor. People living in this room are sort of fancy-like. Fret not dear readers, the people living in this room are not in the least bit dusty, plain and boring! It is still funny to see another person trying to make a small room inside this room we live in. Since the person has apparently too many cupboards the small room he dreams of living has walls made of cupboards! Oh well... people and their visions!<br /><br /><br />This room serves two purposes: housing for six and pit-stop for four. Those who treat the room as a house are sour about those who are using the room as the pit-stop. The so-called "boarders" are a bunch of scavenging mortals who have developed a unique sense of smell. Their sense of smell has evolved to be so acute that one scavenger can sense a packet of biscuit being open from more than 50 feet away. The boarders basically come looking for food. And food, dear readers is found in abundance in this little space we call our room. A certain dear departed used his infinite brain power to drag in a rotting filing cabinet into the room, which basically houses all the goodies we have along with some other trash we have been too greedy to throw away. Discussions on making the rotting filing cabinet look not so pathetic were short lived. Truth be told, the cabinet has not failed us yet and continues to save the scavengers the food they would die without, from a certain other character which will soon be mentioned in this chronicle.<br /><br /><br />The guard boy who is stationed next to the door is a funny one. Infinitely talented but dead scared of his own verbal prowess. People revere the guard boy, because he picks up teeny-weeny things that keeps the fellow roomies entertained for days. The guard boy has the knack of picking on a certain other individual in the room. We term the person individual and not roomie because the individual has many refugee camps in which the person takes refuge. The tales of this individual may come on a separate note in the future. One wonders if it is the two eggs the guard boy consumes per day only affects his hearing, which of course is devastatingly sensitive.<br /><br /><br />Then cometh the tea-maker. A lady who seems to be lost but not lost for real (we hope). The tea maker, other than keeping a good track record of making tea, is also a killer singer. Sadly the tea maker suffers from a dubious disorder of wanting to climb on tables. Much as she is encouraged to do so, the desire is still dealt with, which leaves us wondering what next for the tea maker. The tea maker's latest passion involves a bike. We hope the tea maker finds her calling on a bicycle built for two very soon.<br /><br /><br />The body maker, the newest addition to the group is a wow factor. Extremely knowledgeable on bone structure, muscle structure, cell structure and Sri Lanka Postal System structure is simply a man who can not be moved. The writer has actually tried and realized how immobile this wow factor can become when it comes to pushing. One may fall for the cream complexion & the earthy look this individual carries, but reliable sources say that this man is a dangerous poker who knows how to poke equally dangerous places.<br /><br /><br />The rat is a rat. And has generated much wrath of all house inmates. Gnawing on gum bottles, soap and the most annoying habit of all, leaving poop all over the place, is looking at its imminent doom proudly sponsored by the diva in the room. We hope for everybody's sake that it will not suffer terribly at his demise. RIP.Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-71179975053155572392011-02-15T23:14:00.001-08:002011-02-15T23:15:59.562-08:00That Last Meeting<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvx7HeEEYaqamn5zbFAeAWZk10DAvJyxtCwq-YpJBJu66a7hHfNRgb-xBnpkkciqsurrmE45y9K0EhTP4he88pZtBbJ0WmVqRLKLuE-lOu-HdjBhJhEaOFrZc0lzoxKjOKJTBEInCNZEs/s1600/images.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 255px; height: 198px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvx7HeEEYaqamn5zbFAeAWZk10DAvJyxtCwq-YpJBJu66a7hHfNRgb-xBnpkkciqsurrmE45y9K0EhTP4he88pZtBbJ0WmVqRLKLuE-lOu-HdjBhJhEaOFrZc0lzoxKjOKJTBEInCNZEs/s320/images.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574182486839216802" /></a><br /><br />Last meetings... a phrase that can erupt euphoria, suspense, regret, hope, hatred, disgust, a fountain of other emotions and unthinkables is often used but seldom cared for. Being me, although the general preaching is to forget the past and move on, I go against the default. For me, the last meeting has always been THE meeting. To be honest, the first impression about anything or anyone does not get to my brain until the last meeting. Information influx to this little workplace atop my shoulders is extremely disturbed. Thus, the first impression usually takes a vacation during the time information is coming in through my senses, searches desperately for my brain and finally settles in. By the time the troops have settled in, "Bam!" it is the last meeting.<br /><br /> <br /><br />Speaking on the sunny side of life, reliving the last meetings is one way of procrastination as far as I am concerned. Good last meetings are, in short, good! Good last meetings are the kind of which you would think about when you have nothing important to do, stuck in traffic or when useless people start a conversation with you. I often regret the technological advances not being swift enough to come by. What I want for my 250th birthday is a time traveling device. So all you tagged readers of this note, start saving. You have a fat buffer during which you can work and get me that time traveling device. What would I do when eventually get the time traveling device? (Carefully note the WHEN and not the IF in that sentence.. *hint *hint). I would of course revisit those last meetings. The last meetings that were good. The last meetings that made everyone want to hug everyone else, but couldn't because it would seem inappropriate!<br /> <br /><br />The floating like effect has been a rare effect in my life. Well, weighing at 75Kg, it would be jaw-dropping just to see the act "float" in my list of to-dos. But you know, everyone comes across that time in which all impossible seem and feel possible. A good last meeting is something that gets me to that impossible-seems-possible moment. And believe me, floating feels good, although your feet is still touching the ground! :)<br /> <br /><br />Isn't it just too sad that some good last meetings are extremely short lived? True enough, good times have this weird knack of playing hard to get. But it is just not fair they have to just rush off when they eventually get there! But then again, good times must be worried about us getting bored of too much of a good thing! How thoughtful!<br /><br /><br />Regardless the form in which last meetings come, man-to-man, phone calls, and other forms of Web 2.0 methods they all carry the same level of emotion. Well, maybe some of the methods would of course leave more bitterness about than others. Last meeting or any meeting for that matter is about respect! Even if you happen to be in a meeting with a real sour sole, whose occupied space in this universe is a total waste, that person deserves respect. Respect carries neither bitterness nor regret. Attitude makes sure that when you close that door behind you, you are floating with feet on the ground.Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-14681135897866010042010-11-08T10:22:00.000-08:002010-11-08T10:23:52.958-08:00A Hole Digger Is a Gold Digger<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtlOTqLyAKYggKN8D5dcgXPuLZPTyF_NEitB4BghUQQSeu6QBk8kqMVkOpv6qSM5lPXPh_nMNkdmdAD7mvJYs43wcRXzSiU0qj7B-g4I33QUOVzbm3bP_5rdxP5puUBqKDov7mr2O8T5o/s1600/MoleCartoon3.gif"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtlOTqLyAKYggKN8D5dcgXPuLZPTyF_NEitB4BghUQQSeu6QBk8kqMVkOpv6qSM5lPXPh_nMNkdmdAD7mvJYs43wcRXzSiU0qj7B-g4I33QUOVzbm3bP_5rdxP5puUBqKDov7mr2O8T5o/s320/MoleCartoon3.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5537246269068235618" /></a><br /> <br /><br />Holes...a subject of euphoria for the tactful, conniving & ingenious souls which were put on earth by some miscalculated force, also happens to be a tender topic for many others with myriad taste sensations. A hole; an empty confined space characterized by its stuffy, musty, dark environment is not a place of merriment for many unless of course you happen to be a mole. In a mole's perspective, hole digging is a gift of nature. Sadly, those who are at the top of the food chain, supposedly with better intellectual powers try to outsmart the wise selections of mother nature & morph into hole diggers themselves.<br /><br /> <br /><br />A hole is often associated with dirt, or some other form of waste that must be put away. Like the mole goes in search of the delicate areas of land to create its curvy caves, human hole diggers go in search of "dirt". This "dirt" is meant to be meddled with, turned up, ploughed through and additionally shared among similar hole digging enthusiasts. Human moles are cheeky and have the knack of going off the radar for considerable periods of time. Unlike the moles of nature, these "moles" work round the clock, in rain and shine going in search of... yes.. dirt.<br /><br /> <br /><br />Moles of nature are harmless critters. They just make an exasperating mess that can easily be dealt with. Human moles on the other hand are walking time bombs. Oh wait, forget the time adjective. Human moles are just walking bombs, capable of irreparable disruptions, many a fixes and worst of all, loss of goodwill.<br /><br /> <br /><br />A good thing about a mole digging a hole, as I see is the fact that it is only the mole who is getting dirty at the end of the procedure. He does not create a big mess, except underground. Fellow moles do not go on strike, shun the poor critter, or expel him off the company. Everybody is happy. Unfortunately when human moles start poking about in the dirt everything from A to Z ends up in a soup and the soup is also in a bottomless bowl!<br /><br /> <br /><br />I wonder if a mole pats himself on the back when he finally emerges from his twisting trench. "Oi..I did a damn good hole" kind of a thing maybe? It is about time you moles started doing that because human moles regardless the significance of their work, just love to brag. Ever heard of "making a mountain out of a mole hill" proverb?<br /><br /> <br /><br />The hole digging process exposes a lot of hidden treasures. Now, for a mole the most valuable treasure would be some edible thingy, a vegetable or a grub worm. To human moles however the definition of the word "treasure" varies. Today it would refer to gold, tomorrow it could refer to dirt! Greed and desire lubricate the digging process in human moles. I am not sure what triggers the digging desire in moles though. Any clues anyone?<br /><br /> <br /><br />Moles are blind yet sensitive to darkness. Makes a lot of sense considering their natural habitat aka holes. Human moles, most of the time are not blind (although what they do sometimes raise serious questions with regard to their visibility). As for the sensitivity factor, well let's just not make a mountain out of a mole hill shall we? :)<br /><br /> <br /><br />Unguarded man-holes, often trigger public outcry. Why, for the obvious danger that is associated with it, a far steeper hazard for health in comparison to mole holes. You see... holes are dangerous, yet the digging continues...<br /><br /> <br /><br />And so we forget..<br /><br />Again...<br /><br />As to why we were put on this earth...Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-44976445547624697382010-09-06T08:38:00.001-07:002010-09-06T08:38:56.498-07:00To Fix The MatchOn my way home today I happened to hear the not so oooh aah news on the radio which said a certain player in our Sri Lankan Cricket Team has allegedly been involved in a match fixing scenario. Although the news is supposedly true, a lot of backfence talk is going on with regard to who the culprit behind the scandle is. The funny thing is despite being slow in catching up with the trends we Lankans sure find savvy ways to be under the spotlight albeit the thumbs-down. ;-)<br /><br /> <br /><br />I am thinking match fixing could happen both ways. Paying to win & paying to lose. Paying to win, we do not hear much. Even when we do hear paying to win scenarios, such events call for glamorous celebrations all over (e.g IPL?). Yet paying to lose is the situation that generates plenty of hullabaloo, in the big barracks, in the news, and in the streets.<br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br />To me, all these bookies (although commit a sin according to my religion) are a bunch of ingenious businessmen who know exactly how to exploit the human mind. It is just to plain bad that they decided to use the ingenuity to something that gets everybody into trouble. But then again had they opted to be righteous we would all lose on a good topic of discussion. So there... go be bad boys, but know what you gonna do when "they" come for you (hearing Bob Marley sing :D). We, humans all have a price tag atop our heads. Yet only a few entrepreneurs learn how to read that tag. Sadly for us the majority of the few are such illicit dealers! The moment one learns how to read it, the owner of the tag becomes a puppet. And there is nothing worse than being a puppet of a puppetmaster whose head is screwed. Money can do wonders to us human beings. We all like to claim how we value the work we do & how morally & principally just we are. Speaking bluntly the truth, money is one element in the world that can swing one into all sorts of directions despite the upholster we put on. People, with all the sophistication going around, have forgotten the fact that we all have had animal ancestors. Bait to an animal as we all have seen, can make it go into extremely unwholesome states, (e.g imprisonment, death) For us humans the only bait we have evolved to respond is money. :D<br /><br /> <br /><br />We are not hard workers. We all like to sit back, relax, do the bare minimum & live the life. Making a quick buck to most of us is an exciting venture. The essential clause in this service agreement is "do less". So if I were a sportsman & I was going to fix the match the best thing I would do is play lousy & hope that nobody would notice. Now that I have written that sentence, all of a sudden the concept of match fixing to win sounds extremely stupid. If I were somebody else other than a sportsman, then we all know the ends we reach trying to "do less". No need to gloat on that I reckon. ;-)<br /><br /> <br /><br />Thus the booky principle is economically ingenious. Exploit the trend & maximize the gain; win-win all around.<br /><br /> <br /><br />You walk along the street and pass a little brook. You see a person with a fishing rod sitting patiently on the bank waiting to get lucky. The immediate thought that would cross your head is that this man is committing a very bad sin. You go home. Hungry, you grab half a loaf of bread, ruffle through the pots and pans & stumble onto a fish curry. If a second person saw you eating fish & bread would you be questioned of your morality? :D<br /><br /> <br /><br />And match fixing goes on... inside this 3rd planet from the sun.Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-17896969523301931392010-08-13T22:37:00.000-07:002010-08-23T20:06:49.480-07:00Feeling Very Wiki-ish<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWUaPcYWYXMO1rBzSqJOF6oRbKQTUDE5G9TwaMr0-f7U44nb1_LnyxF_OCi_uQDvW8AIXnJKZbYritNCEXXATpyGCZxNO1zf8JmrBukvaHDXa1Kv95hneLMhVnARTA82GD-qcqDnMhWY/s1600/400px-P_wiki_letter_w.svg.png"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 288px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmWUaPcYWYXMO1rBzSqJOF6oRbKQTUDE5G9TwaMr0-f7U44nb1_LnyxF_OCi_uQDvW8AIXnJKZbYritNCEXXATpyGCZxNO1zf8JmrBukvaHDXa1Kv95hneLMhVnARTA82GD-qcqDnMhWY/s320/400px-P_wiki_letter_w.svg.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5505137473324145106" /></a><br />Despite the fact that I had tons of work pending, I just spent 2 hours of my morning creating my first wiki! <br /><br /><br />After 2 hours of googling, brain wrecking and writing content the child was spawned and christened <a href=http://writum.wikidot.com/>Writum Wiki</a>. I have to say that the effort was totally worth it. The wiki was born leaving me with the feeling of wanting to come back for more. :D <br /><br />It was amazing to see how easy it was to create the basic layout just after a few click hither and thither. All you need to have is a basic idea (a map in your head) of what you need to put in the wiki and presto...everything else will magically fall into place. There are tons of wiki hosting sites, some of them are generously free. I chose <a href="http://www.wikidot.com">Wikidot</a> to host my wiki. Wikidot has a great set of cool tools for content authoring, site management and user management. In order for you to create your own wiki, you first need to register with wikidot. After that you are meticulously guided through the creating of a wiki process. You may restrict authoring privileges of your wiki. The level of restriction may vary from one person to unlimited number of people (public wiki). In my case, I selected a set of people I would like to see contributing to Writum Wiki. These users will have to register with Wikidot first. In order to induce them to join the wiki, Wikidot has an inbuilt email notification system, which can be used to send emails to approximately 200 users. I have to say I was more than a little eager to use this feature! ;-)<br /><br />It is also possible for you to receive email notifications whenever content is updated. You can customize your notification settings along with other configs that are applicable to your user account.<br /><br />What I like the most about Wikis is the sense of community it exudes. Moreover, you are free to come up with a site that perfectly matches your style, your taste and your need. Wikidot also has a super community to assist you in case you found yourself in a bit of a soup with regard to your site.<br /><br />So, come, partake in the most wikish method to share knowledge.Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-78471460632426127192010-08-09T09:47:00.001-07:002010-08-09T09:50:07.255-07:00I LOVE YOU<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4ChemdZqOJ6p7M4KVCZs1l-6_DuAO2adFEdJcuNTf9CectQBbZB0QOzEDFLzhK8_1M9OpEH2BZdvwA5tPLkdeox5LoDWGViDUHncfcjupBNN9roDysDjHGSCSgTePwfpmKHGxJCqBwY/s1600/FMalhgIIoqwb3kcx8M0GHFE3o1_250.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs4ChemdZqOJ6p7M4KVCZs1l-6_DuAO2adFEdJcuNTf9CectQBbZB0QOzEDFLzhK8_1M9OpEH2BZdvwA5tPLkdeox5LoDWGViDUHncfcjupBNN9roDysDjHGSCSgTePwfpmKHGxJCqBwY/s320/FMalhgIIoqwb3kcx8M0GHFE3o1_250.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503453379281229858" /></a><br /><br />"Sach... have you ever said the three word sentence?" asks my female confidante. "oh yeah!" out comes the reply. And I let go of the flood gates, which harbor a whole deal of churning thoughts. The churning thoughts somehow magically find their way in to these notes; my surreal fortress of concession.<br /><br /><br /><br />This female confidante is one persistent little spitfire, who knows how to make me talk. Can't blame her though, for some weird twist of fate we are stuck to each other. I for one am feeling so mighty glad that we are stuck to each other!!! As taken over by instinct, she persists. As frank as I could get, I narrate. The Tale of Woo!<br /><br />So there, I have uttered the three word sentence. Quite uncanny it is that the first few times I had to say it, it came out of sheer politeness. :D Hence, no meaning, no feeling, no relevance... Debate arises with the question of my trying to mislead the unsuspecting recipient. But then again, if I sufficed the sentence with the phrase"I mean it" I would be cheating two people instead of one; myself and the recipient. True enough it is said that two is better than one, but me thinks the guy who said that must have been extremely pedantic.<br /><br />To me, the title phrase carries very little meaning. I feel a whole lot more comfortable for as long as I do not hear it. The moment I hear it I am caught in a limbo, not being totally sure if I should succumb to tradition or be unorthodox. Being unorthodox in romance does not have the best of histories, while the sugarcoated sweet talk could get you from point A to point B without a single hair being ruffled. It is just amazing to see advantages one could get with sweet talk should you happen to be with "a recipient" who possess a sweet tooth. It is still sad that supposedly the most prettiest sentences in the literature is brutally exploited by many of us, so much so that it has completely lost its fire and charm...<br /><br />And so, you the reader might already be squinting your eyes at this little inscription. Oh! you self conscious little miss righteous indignation... bla bla... So be it. Words alone will get me as far as the distance an ant could move me :D Don't I believe in infatuation? Of course I do. We all are bound to make that profound mistake at least once in our lives. When we do eventually commit the crime, time stands still, the earth stops spinning and we begin to see the world in colors we have never seen before.<br /><br />Respect; that be the word I would be replacing LOVE with. Not only the newer version is hard to mouth if you don't mean it, it sounds ridiculously stupid to the recipient if he/she does not see you behaving accordingly. As far as I am concerned, respect comes bundled with trust, honor, humility and a superior emotion compared to the sugar coated love! Plus one need not bother thinking too much when one says that one respects one. The state is entirely binary; either you respect or you don't! Unlike with regard to love, which has almost a million intermediate stages like "complicated" , "I do but he/she doesn't", "just a crush", "a thing for so & so", "a fling", "no strings attached.." etc. Respect is action-driven. As for love...well...y'all know what drives what!<br /><br />Actions always speak louder than words.<br /><br />- NOT OPEN FOR DISCUSSIONS -Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-39476723741786198672010-05-17T07:42:00.000-07:002010-05-17T07:45:20.074-07:00In The Back Seat Of Your Car!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUd22I8y_BwPJeTMEfIQUgZRRf0Zxo4-BYID_Z0OjERxpIUqA0ohEbIvDhNvpY_ZcpUvnE8vBVBHjL3voYsOsOvWU1gdePcmwvirb5V_KHjy_xGgoVVKrNraMCqAmqTT_8p3RZzKWXYE/s1600/301307.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 263px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfUd22I8y_BwPJeTMEfIQUgZRRf0Zxo4-BYID_Z0OjERxpIUqA0ohEbIvDhNvpY_ZcpUvnE8vBVBHjL3voYsOsOvWU1gdePcmwvirb5V_KHjy_xGgoVVKrNraMCqAmqTT_8p3RZzKWXYE/s320/301307.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5472250084788538850" /></a><br />The back seat of a ride is a place of excitement for people of many tastes & attitudes. There...a rather mundane opening for another one of mine self-generated, randomly inspired chronicles. Stories about maniacs, scum bags, screw ups, idiots, grown ups who have refused to grow up.... in other words, us!<br /><br />Rides with tinted shutters have always fascinated me. To be frank, I myself was toying with the idea of being the chauffeur of a tinted shuttered ride, but for some cause unknown to me(and to which I am so frikkin thankful for) the fantasy never materialized. Absence of light, to many people mean plenty of privacy. Absence of light also means security in the same context to the same group of people. Human beings tend to cut themselves lose when it is dark and the environment is closed up. Much like all those werewolves & vampires people have invented to vent out the darker sides of their inner selves. To me,<br />although those mythical beings are unreal, they are the most violated group of people ever to be spawned. How hopeless pedantic it is to be able to spring into "action" only when the full moon perches itself up on a cloudless sky? For all we know, it is full moon only once a month. It is not like those people<br />can hitch hike on a random form they happen to meet at a party, run into on streets or meet online....I am guessing it must be extremely boring when you know your self-inflicted curfew lifts itself only once a month!!!<br /><br /><br />Egad...a derailing!!! As usual!!!! Now let us break free from this temporary indulgence in werewolves and get back to tinted shutters....<br /><br />Cutting lose, more often than not leads to oneself being a little too careless & finding him/herself at the wrong place at the wrong time. Human beings have needs. Sadly for us, the most demanding of our needs usually require closed environments. Take peeing for example. I am not sure many of us will find it pleasing to relieve our bladders in public. We, somewhere down that long dismal time line of evolution been blessed (or cursed?) with the requirement of wanting darkness when it is time to let go. Once provided the seclusion required its winter wonderland to all of us...Like they say...when you gotta go, you gotta go!!!<br /><br />Takeaway point: Feelings are hard to put a lid on...<br /><br /><br />And so we crash down on our object of discussion; rides with tinted shutters. They come bundled with an assortment of VERY favorable properties for the "needy". It is mobile, it more often than not comes with just the right amount of space to do just the right type of things, it comes at zero cost, depending on where you decide to land...etc. and when you do find all properties smiling at you, beckoning you to loosen what you have been harnessing so laboriously in you, you just do nothing but giving in....O! sweet succumb...<br /><br />Takeaway point: Convenience is not always a blessing...<br /><br /><br />Who do you normally like to accompany into the seclusion a tinted-shuttered-ride provides? How dense can I get huh? Is that a question to ask? Well....If you are still questioning yourselves whether or not to answer that question in your heads let me help you. You don't need darkness to have tea parties!!!<br />*Wink*. The quality of the specimen who happens to accompany you into darkness matters a lot AFAIK. It can invariably be your lifeline if it be the right specimen. If not....well....then you can get down on your sorry ass & start hoping for the best. One thing that mustn't elude you though, is the fact that when it comes to the moment, hope sure has the knack of leaving you!<br /><br />Takeaway point: Beware of who you are with in the darkness...<br /><br /><br />Seclusion has two faces. It can provide you security. At the same time it can put your life on the line. Well, if you are somebody who happened to make a living out of being alone that is entirely a different story. But I doubt the majority of my audience is in that category. With all due respect, let us read on. One thing I have come to realize over the course of my life, is the fact that there is no such thing as "harmless fun". First of all, that phrase is not logical. Harm & fun should not be in the same sentence to begin with! It has also come into my realization that when fun comes tagged with the word harmless, there are 101 ways things can go hideously wrong. To an observant eye, it must have come into focus that excitement and seclusion go hand in hand in many a occasion. Human beings can excite one another in an assortment of ways. Be it from a gentle touch, a word, or by sharing some substance (coffee, juice, ahem ahem...). Excitement, like seclusion has two faces. It can make you feel good the moment the right buttons are pushed. However, the general case is such that, human beings tend to be extremely negligent when they reach the peak of excitement. Negligence, has a wild reputation on putting a damper on all your glorious moments. Aren't you just tired of my euphemisms!?!?<br /><br /><br />Takeaway point: Seclusion may provide opportunity and rob you of opportunity...<br /><br /><br />Opposites are a cocky invention of English language, I reckon. Simple words like give, take, up, down, can generate myriad of emotions in the reader's mind so effortlessly. The opposite of darkness is...yes...light. And such a delicious opposite it is don't you think? A sudden flash of a torch and you are jolted back into reality, out of darkness, into light. With light, strangers may infiltrate your tinted sanctuary. Light provides clarity & strength of mind to most of them who barge in. Does light really provide strength of mind? If you are afraid of the dark then I am sure you would "see" my point! Have you realized that, all Gods (in movies of course) appear amidst bright flashing lights? Good Gods in bright light, and bad Gods in ominous light. Where does this analogy take us? Light can accompany both your saviors and your destroyers. Scary thought don't you think? Light tends to make you see things in a whole new different perspective. Things that you have missed in the dark, you begin to see in haunting clarity when there is light. And then comes all should have s, could have s, and would have s, which usually make you feel even more miserable, should light happens to come on at the worst possible occasion for you. The question comes up; come unto light they say, but do you really want to?<br /><br />Takeaway point: You ought to be scared of light if you are in the dark for the wrong reasons...<br /><br /><br />Strangers who come with light usually carry questions. The usual "what" "who" "where" "how" that require you to answer regardless your willingness to open up. People are rather shy of "opening up" when there is light. *Grin* Hence they go in search of darkness! Unfortunately, answering questions in the light may prove to be more difficult than answering them in darkness. For instance, when you are in the dark a question like "what are you doing?" can safely be silenced in the most delicious ways imaginable. *Mondo Grin* However, when the same question comes up when there is light, delicious answers would probably be the last thing on your mind! Moreover, your questioners would not exactly be looking for delicious answers. When the questions are fired, no tinted shutter is going to be good enough to protect you from expectations of strangers.<br /><br />Takeaway point: Two is company and three (or four) is a crowd...<br /><br /><br />Then there is indignation! "This is my life, my game, why can I not do what I want? What is wrong with doing this?" etc. attitude. Well paley...that is just the way it is. There is no room to do what you want around here. This is not "the promised land". Nor there are good Gods wandering about us at your disposal to come in all their glory for your rescue. Should you happen to be somebody who has the "need" minus the "iron will" then you might as well take the chance and pray and hope lights will not come on before your party is over. You may not have been the first to break the rules. But somebody before you did break the rules and broke 'em bad. And now we all are doomed to be shackled by all these restrains until we get the green light. I myself have always been a fan of rules, hence I have no complains. A set of rules, like it or not, is a hideous guise to your perfect safety net.<br /><br />Takeaway point: Respect the rules & rules will respect you back...<br /><br /><br />And it all happens... in the back seat of your car!!!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-1218957873759430252010-03-20T23:05:00.000-07:002010-03-20T23:14:31.262-07:00Behind The Third EyeGiven the talented man/woman the right apparatus, he/she maketh magic. The ramblings of this soul today will feature the amazing traits of such talented individuals who have found their calling behind the third eye.<br /><br />Although the list of featured artists is limited to only 6, (not to mention this was all I could recall in the dismal abyss of my brain) that does not mean I think you suck if you happened to be good with the tools. People are entitled to their own comments & criticisms, I believe. Thus, should you happen to fall into the latter category I just mentioned about, you ought not have your feathers ruffled. Just brush the dampening thought away & be on your merry way.<br /><br />Since I am not sure all you readers of this script will be able to access the links I will be attaching here, I will take the pride in sharing a few masterpieces that tickled my fantasies. All credit goes to original artists<br /><br />Featured Artist #1<br />Srimal Samarasooriya<br />My good ol' crash pad, who has valiantly rescued me from many a mishaps, seen me through a plenty of bumpy rides is a gifted individual. The noteworthy fact is that the lad is gifted not just with the third eye but also with many a humane virtues. :-) This be a tribute to all the good times, the raised voices, arguments, most of all for being a very reliable cushion whenever a crisis arises. Depending on access privileges you should be able to see his work <a href="http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=127594&id=735119851">here</a>. Well if you are curious of his camera type, the tools & techniques he uses & what not, I suggest you not pester me with questions. Why? If ignorance is bliss, I am as happy as a clam with respect to his tool specifications. The picture of the passage you see here happened to be one of my personal favorites from his collection.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhETyvDQXXNH2Ix83f7F1B7PpNtpOhD8EU9yMNMKvQUp7UPbKlOqLvJKugFSudiX5Wmn8eIc6NM4gbj9_aySLyWHzxiWevwpjxjroCWQzZ18g0xUWN8BJFYmcteNcrkBnVdSwrQI2vC-Do/s1600-h/srimal.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhETyvDQXXNH2Ix83f7F1B7PpNtpOhD8EU9yMNMKvQUp7UPbKlOqLvJKugFSudiX5Wmn8eIc6NM4gbj9_aySLyWHzxiWevwpjxjroCWQzZ18g0xUWN8BJFYmcteNcrkBnVdSwrQI2vC-Do/s200/srimal.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450964961954258482" /></a><br /><br /><br />Featured Artist #2<br />Anjula De Silva<br />Aaah...from my days of learning relative velocity & dynamics & brain teasers of such like being leg tackled from under the table, comes this "fun" individual who knows how to push the lens to the limits. Given a few more clicks and you can surely rate him as a pro! The fella possess the most sophisticated camera gear I had ever laid eyes on. What is amazing is that the tools respond to his demands & they respond oh so well. A silent man by nature, but as you can see in the picture, you can see that he talks to millions behind the third eye. If you the reader is lucky enough there is more from where this masterpiece came from right <a href="http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=193100&id=747866082">this way</a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_IkhKhAYBU98D3WXFxjksPEpMNDpvYM0ZqXOEugzRyij3r1PS_AwFBgdOgwhwBP6rmRF9SQdd0yy31AFKF1H9yRHAqU4SXGIOvAxWAxDllDIIO0tGKzRL09yGyOdLJicvXYJIRTUHVc/s1600-h/anjula.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF_IkhKhAYBU98D3WXFxjksPEpMNDpvYM0ZqXOEugzRyij3r1PS_AwFBgdOgwhwBP6rmRF9SQdd0yy31AFKF1H9yRHAqU4SXGIOvAxWAxDllDIIO0tGKzRL09yGyOdLJicvXYJIRTUHVc/s320/anjula.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450965352638099282" /></a><br /><br />Featured Artist #3<br />Sachini Weerawardhane (erm..did I spell the surname right girl?)<br />Fret not dear readers, I am not gifted with the lens. But this awesome lady generates passion behind the third eye, as you will all see in a while. I might as well share a few funny facts that she & I have in common. First in the list comes the name, Sachini Weerawardhane (spelling??), second comes the birth month, third comes our Alma-mater, and now that I realize, the fourth in the list be the shortened forms of our names, e.g. sach, sachi etc :D Girl, do pitch in with a comment if you see anything I have missed regarding the list of similarities. ;-) From what I have seen, the subjects she sees through the lens is more often than not unorthodox. Want proof? <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWtkRXkKPgVJwqVcwQnOKHTpR-8uWdcWAFveqH9m0KNPQtc86Tc-Y0Bv3-niTlJ1EvKvQzGZO7yL8xIaOCFO4M-0N_CfJQDBPRKk_DYhLFBdRdX1JJevk_hjTI4zLCcYWsZxWzDx5CoU/s1600-h/such.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWtkRXkKPgVJwqVcwQnOKHTpR-8uWdcWAFveqH9m0KNPQtc86Tc-Y0Bv3-niTlJ1EvKvQzGZO7yL8xIaOCFO4M-0N_CfJQDBPRKk_DYhLFBdRdX1JJevk_hjTI4zLCcYWsZxWzDx5CoU/s320/such.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450965763263953202" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=193100&id=747866082">The source</a> from where this picture was excavated, drove many a ladies insane...<br /><br /><br />Featured Artist #4<br />Yajith Dayarathna<br />Well, since I am going to publish a picture I might as well publish a picture with a story behind it. :D And the picture is... (drum roll) <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinTUtevsj-W1YdgYcUuHvdj7pjbnhDK9C9F5pMxFH6SURVx_eaXBO-gBlny6IgNKbB0K2LfAP1OTnwY9F9-gS97ursJIv1YPZagvp5fUA_RJpzPVQALWjZwINQn01YD0JkB59rONwBY-A/s1600-h/yajith.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 254px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinTUtevsj-W1YdgYcUuHvdj7pjbnhDK9C9F5pMxFH6SURVx_eaXBO-gBlny6IgNKbB0K2LfAP1OTnwY9F9-gS97ursJIv1YPZagvp5fUA_RJpzPVQALWjZwINQn01YD0JkB59rONwBY-A/s320/yajith.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450966000495164866" /></a> More can be found on his <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/yajith/">Flicker photo stream</a> The story behind the picture involves, Crabs, YesFM ShoeBox Project, shopping on Christmas Eve (2009), a horrendous downpour, & a few good gift vouchers that never found the purpose of their existence. I am not sure the status of the vouchers that plunged into the darkness of his backpack, but every once in a while a petite camera pops out of it & voila...moments speak!!!<br /><br /><br />Featured Artist #5<br />Sasiri Wimalarathna<br />I remember the day he consulted me for some pointers toward buying a good third eye. I for one am so eternally grateful the good doctor realized his mistake, did not listen to me & trusted his gut instead. Pretty is all I can say. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbOCi0ucaeBZtS5DzEZ3ArSeA2lCEzjHMD-KasJBj343QiZMfDdFG4yxleQCQyUsO8ZmS5bpFOcbMw4Hpyn4E0T7PDx7o32S2SeMlalItdU1EAcl252ewJcp7CH2aZGX0t2xnD7uEbSC4/s1600-h/Sasiri.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbOCi0ucaeBZtS5DzEZ3ArSeA2lCEzjHMD-KasJBj343QiZMfDdFG4yxleQCQyUsO8ZmS5bpFOcbMw4Hpyn4E0T7PDx7o32S2SeMlalItdU1EAcl252ewJcp7CH2aZGX0t2xnD7uEbSC4/s320/Sasiri.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450966253388280306" /></a><br /> <a href=" http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=175976&id=629638614">More of his work</a> Here be a living example of what you can do if you have an open mind & open doors to limitless possibilities. Kudos Sasiri!!! :-)<br /><br /><br />Featured Artist #6<br />Charlie G. (Chathura)<br />Sorry mate.. I forget your last name! Perhaps if you had a surname as spectacular as your photography maybe none of this would have happened (LOL) One album I keep on revisiting on a regular basis is his <a href="http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=366967&id=846990303">Project 365 </a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMmlzs7IWY1fQLzcaEHwM8fO8IlfsrywKN_8Ym4JpKsPO0P-C7Gh6GrYdok9hWaxJUP_9qwKtbJgZ10vrNH7ZD8f82Q7UpQqMYZxWvEudxGFL_Yzqx7R_68oTP0rRW9ygHWwgUbPR65LM/s1600-h/Charlie.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 190px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMmlzs7IWY1fQLzcaEHwM8fO8IlfsrywKN_8Ym4JpKsPO0P-C7Gh6GrYdok9hWaxJUP_9qwKtbJgZ10vrNH7ZD8f82Q7UpQqMYZxWvEudxGFL_Yzqx7R_68oTP0rRW9ygHWwgUbPR65LM/s320/Charlie.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5450966477004378834" /></a> It is simply amazing to see the album being reborn with valor, fire & life every time a new picture is added. Dear readers, consult this man right here if you want to find out how to exploit a perfectly mundane moment & mold masterpiece out of it.<br /><br /><br />PS - The order of the list here has no relevance whatsoever with the level of skill each individual possesses. The note was just to voice an appreciation, as appreciation is always meant to be.<br /><br />Psychotic Work Guys!Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-84814830005540407322010-03-10T08:18:00.000-08:002010-03-10T08:21:37.300-08:00When I Am a Bike...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDwNDdX5zH-FdXaThNKEZzHAC0F1QPBocg38rh-X96uJHNqdpVQ139NAuYsH3YPN2r9b_YB8PDC0V31qi3EGemTOCZFQg6Vq3tSbl1n6HuxTngEa9tDkol7zLnoeGVL_KCdM4bEZIi8zQ/s1600-h/OuiCrazyFrogR_468x535.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 280px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDwNDdX5zH-FdXaThNKEZzHAC0F1QPBocg38rh-X96uJHNqdpVQ139NAuYsH3YPN2r9b_YB8PDC0V31qi3EGemTOCZFQg6Vq3tSbl1n6HuxTngEa9tDkol7zLnoeGVL_KCdM4bEZIi8zQ/s320/OuiCrazyFrogR_468x535.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5447041000118255778" /></a><br />I Am Free<br /><br />Why?<br />I feel the wind whizzing past me caressing my ears. The wind is a funny thing you see, creeping into the most cramped up locations & yet managing to freely wander about. One place she never fails to visit is underneath my riding jacket. Aah... such delights she gives me (choke)! Countless times, she has pushed me into states of extreme euphoria & all those times I profoundly forgot my latitude & longitude. Ma woman....purrrr....bless you!<br /><br />I Am Brave<br /><br />Why?<br />The bike undoubtedly gives you the best sitting position God has ever devised; legs on either side, slightly elevated from ground level. The position however has made me extremely lazy to put my feet on the ground, which in return makes stopping a nightmare! But who needs to stop with such hassle? I will just go & kiss somebody's bumper with my tires & voila, effortless stationing. I usually visualize myself as superman when I am riding my bike. Whoa...hold it...I said I "visualized" myself, does that necessarily require me to wear my undies over my pants? Well, if that is what you require for me to appear Mr. Invincible, then by God I shall wear my undies over my pants. The two wheels that spin so closely to my legs more often than not induce me to work magic on the road. Them all other losers on four-wheels plus, I laugh atcha suckers! I wag my tail feathers while I am on it & my ride responses. I wouldn't want to imagine y'all trying to do the same in your whack wagons. Trust me it will not work.<br /><br /><Photo 1><br />I Am Macho<br /><br />Why?<br />The road is mine & I am burning hot! Ho yeah baby!! Who gives a flying fig about the state of the person driving the carcass I am overtaking. It is just me & my hot-ride forever & ever. I will just squeeze myself past this 20 Ton contraption & people around me would look in awe & throw flowers & confetti! Awesomeness!! A brave idea suddenly hits my small brain! Perhaps I could show these motorists how maneuvering is done. A tweak here, a tug there, a brush here & a yank there & a-waaaaay weeee go!<br /><br />I Am Blind<br /><br />Why?<br />Whoever the egghead who decided to stick these side-view mirrors & signal lights & what not onto my cruise machine ought to be hanged. I need no stinkin' mirror or light or anything that remotely relates to highway safety. As long as I have my undies over my pants I ain't got nothin' to worry'bout, no sir!!! What...I can twist & turn & wriggle my way in & out a jam. It's just too damn bad that you have to just sit there & be jealous of me & perhaps commemorating my folks at home with such love & adoration! <br /><br />I Am An Idiot<br /><br />Why?<br />I see an 18-wheeler carrying cargo, making & precarious turn to the left. In my own drunken stupor I go try to over take the 18-wheeler from the left. I just love feeling so small & so drastically outnumbered in weight, height, length & also the wheel count! By some miracle the 18 wheeler keeps a hairbreadth distance between my hot-ride, my legs & a good deal of metal junk that could easily flatten me like ham! Am I disturbed? Hell no!! I go along as if nothing happened & meet a van again finding me on its left. Is it just me or is everybody heavily left-oriented today. This guy too is turning left & I am rammed between 2 feet of triangular space between a pavement & a big white bulky mess! Curses...let me just stop right here & curse the causes of putting this man on this earth. *#&@$(*&@#$<br /><br /><br />Brummmm....Brummmm....Aaang....Aannggg....Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-84107181478120116552010-03-04T06:25:00.000-08:002010-03-04T07:31:23.516-08:00The Earth Rumbles & Why Do We Have To Age Sooner! :-(<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhodaj1MTRYF9t_Q3s32xIpdACdijFHekptiWLRPczjPIpf-urSrfzl7LIcvFqghOkvZ3rxsc5ytTxCjGiY-sm3Z2y0qu8boS7K0fRMneH_D5EtWybsiAl04xFESieBe4sTFCeW8H5RQGo/s1600-h/chile-earthquake-axis.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhodaj1MTRYF9t_Q3s32xIpdACdijFHekptiWLRPczjPIpf-urSrfzl7LIcvFqghOkvZ3rxsc5ytTxCjGiY-sm3Z2y0qu8boS7K0fRMneH_D5EtWybsiAl04xFESieBe4sTFCeW8H5RQGo/s400/chile-earthquake-axis.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444801639699397362" /></a><br />There I was, trying to catch up with my daily reading & I run into this queer article in the newspaper. Few minutes after gloating over it I was engulfed with much respect for the Mayans for their premonition skills! <br /><br />Sources from NASA claim that the recent Chilean Earthquake was powerful enough to knock the Earth off its axis, resulting in shorter day time. The 8.8 magnitude quake struck massive blows to the city of Concepcion on February 27th, killing more than 700 people & most weirdly affection the geography of the planet.<br /><br />It is argued that since the Earthquake has affected in the distribution of mass of planet earth, it has in return had an impact on the rotation speed. Computer simulations done at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory - Pasadena, California, by geophysicists have revealed that due to the alteration to the Earth's axis, the day has gotten shorter by 1.27 microseconds. They further claim that the Earth's axis has been shifted 8cm from its orientation. How this rotation speed change occurs can be explained by a phenomena called "Ice Skater Effect". In layman's terms this means that the further the body mass is spread from the rotational axis of an ice skater the slower he can spin. If he wants to spin faster he can easily crouch his limbs, thus altering the distribution of body mass & as a result the rotational speed changes.<br /><br />However, since the change is quite insignificant, the geophysicists assure that no alteration to clock time has to be made. Nevertheless, it is noteworthy that the Sumatran quake (2004) which measured at 9.1 in the Richter scale, altered the orientation of the Earth's axis by 7cm despite the massive size of the quake! <br /><br />Perhaps a few quakes hither & thither & a million lives later I would get to celebrate my birthday a day quicker than I used to 10 years ago!!!<br /><br />On account of the number of natural disasters the world has had to withstand during the past couple of months, one could not help but wonder if the Mayans had been right about 2012.<br /><br />Hope is a good thing, don't you think? It is just too sad that when everything falls into place hope always has the knack of leaving you!<br /><br />-Source Bloomberg BusinessWeekSachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-26543246366077800532010-02-12T07:01:00.000-08:002010-02-12T08:14:21.657-08:00Fire<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidoUTAKzC9691gsERItdsM_YnaIeEI73DVlphNepp2Lv-VfAtlXOgS5fOr0HEXTpsKGJmqrsBG78td7wQahkA29jWwNAEq-fyqkNA79kzMLKJKQCgaiOkLGp7ryUeVNbDW0ODRwu6SpT4/s1600-h/fire-extinguisher-codes.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 292px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidoUTAKzC9691gsERItdsM_YnaIeEI73DVlphNepp2Lv-VfAtlXOgS5fOr0HEXTpsKGJmqrsBG78td7wQahkA29jWwNAEq-fyqkNA79kzMLKJKQCgaiOkLGp7ryUeVNbDW0ODRwu6SpT4/s400/fire-extinguisher-codes.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437384113090141634" /></a><br />This day in February, the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Moratuwa caught fire. We dwelling on the floor above had a wonderful time inhaling the foul fumes, watching the show & trying to sound like mr/ms Situational Analysts. Stories were flying around as to how the fire started, as the case is for many a such random accidents. The closest news to the truth, stated negligence on the part of some maintenance folks. The story had references to welding gear, electricity cables, the A/C & (surprise surprise) water!! Apparently in the excited state of mind or by sheer dumbness some soul had decided to use water to put the fire out. And by some long forgotten good karma that everybody failed to pay tribute to no one got hurt.<br /><br />Fire does require respect & plenty of it. The staff at the Electrical Engineering Department had their work cut out trying to curb the flames & minimize the damage while the fire brigade & the police took their own sweet time to arrive at the drama. Thankfully they eventually did & left almost as soon as they arrived! :D<br /><br />Accidents like these usually make you realize how vulnerable you are. Also it makes you wonder how well (or under) equipped we are tackling an emergency situation. It was quite appalling to see such so called educated people standing right outside the burning building watching the extravaganza, while glass was splintering in thousand one directions! I mean come on...curiosity did kill the cat, did it not? Since the electrical circuitry was damaged by the fire, the power supply was cut off for approximately an hour. When you say power was cut off due to a fault you don't expect to see certain areas within the same building remaining unaffected by the power cut. The engineering genius of these people is such that we in our working area had power despite the alleged "power cut", thanks to an "old power line" they had just generously left in tact!<br /><br />Luckily the incident took place when most of the students were away on their vacation. Had it been a normal work day with thousands of students attending lectures, we could have witnessed a retake of a blockbuster movie! :D People may argue, blame X, Y & Z, try to sound like mr/ms know-it-alls, but it is highly unlikely that the present loopholes will be addressed & undone in the near future. Why? we, the Sri Lankans have been graciously blessed with the gift of forgetfulness & with a lapse of a few days nobody would remember of the whole fiasco, until the next one takes us by surprise.<br /><br />Tomorrow...Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21359642298944943.post-45449569215149970282010-01-29T20:55:00.000-08:002010-01-30T00:12:05.044-08:00Promotion... or is it?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoPs8TJpSni-t6o8v5iOGEElndCsfWfTWdUMk1OsKhOReWe5zZtZrrEOcljSXvccvdSujOQaHQXNJiCDsovfbxlwRkI8h37rAi2bEkg04JdoeXcCx0eSZOEk7u0wRjMi6Hf61h7vMb1j4/s1600-h/80577385v9_225x225_Front.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 225px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoPs8TJpSni-t6o8v5iOGEElndCsfWfTWdUMk1OsKhOReWe5zZtZrrEOcljSXvccvdSujOQaHQXNJiCDsovfbxlwRkI8h37rAi2bEkg04JdoeXcCx0eSZOEk7u0wRjMi6Hf61h7vMb1j4/s400/80577385v9_225x225_Front.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432434277238179602" /></a><br />Aah....never a did word exist in the dictionary with such skepticism behind it. Come to think of it, evolution itself is a variation of you & I being promoted by mother nature. And I for one am so frikkin' glad she did not screw that up, or we would have ended up with 6 limbs a pair of antlers & hooves! :D<br /><br />Kiss ups, yes men/women, boot licks, suck ups are some of the very interesting definitions a thesaurus might throw at you, should you happen to look up for some definitions. What do all these phrases have in common? Plenty of drool, that's what. It is uncanny how such a source of exultation has evolved out from the honorary podium & into the rubble of repulsion. How many times have you in your heads wondered what the person did, that involved plenty of drool to be promoted? What is worse is that whenever you hear news of such nature, skills of that particular person falls mercilessly behind the drooling regardless how deep an impact skills themselves have made in helping the person in being promoted.<br /><br />IMHO the freedom of speech, here in Sri Lankan corporate world is just a juicy fabrication. If ever you are thinking of opening your mouth to voice your opinion on some injustice, you might as well dig yourself a hole & bury yourself in it. "What on earth were you thinking?", "Why do you want to go bang your head on a brick wall?", "Face it man, we sprats can in no way swim among those whales & sharks"...would be some of the colorful & brutally truthful comments you would receive from your peers, if by some unfortunate twist of fate you happened to find yourself trying to be a little too brave.<br /><br />It is natural for us humans to want more. More of everything & more than what we already have. It is just too sad to see people falling into such 3rd degree levels trying to get what they want. But then again, you just have to cut your cloth according to your coat do you not? After all, who wants to sit at the same place getting the same return for the next 15 years?? First of all your chair would rot. Second of all your butt would fall asleep & third of all your neighborhood will change & before you knew it would be surrounded by people who are calling u grand pa!!! :D Nothing doing!!!<br /><br />Let's be frank. Most of us would rather not have our incompetencies pointed out. A promotion to a peer is interpreted by such people as a constant reminder of your incompetency. To add salt to the wound, it is just there, right before you. Day in & day out, screaming at you "nah..na...na...naa..naa..you cant catch me!" Thus erupts the cycle of competition, trying to be the better boot lick. And it is all downhill from that point onwards.<br /><br />Makes you wonder, does it not? Why can't I just mind my own business?Sachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13273518379567620710noreply@blogger.com1