Kung Hay Fat Choy

Kung Hay Fat Choy - intriguing in its unabashed straight-to-the point wish. Wish you will earn more money - not May you have more money.
Sure, wishes for good health, prosperity follows, but let’s start with money ;)
And why not?
Why beat around the bush -
Some of the customs are so close to those followed in India.
Firstly, the day is based on the Lunar calendar.
It marks a new beginning - 'when firecrackers are let off at the midnight of the New Year Day, whatever was bad and unhappy will vanish without trace'.
The stories, legends, myths, and celebrations differ from province to province - we are like that too.
Exchange of the 'wealth god' in little red packets.
Bright red lucky charms are used for deco.
Traditionally the older folks give coins to kids. These were tied with red string and hung around the neck of the children as a protection charm.
That sounds familiar to me.
Some follow the discipline not to have any meat on the day. The day being auspicious. This one really got me - I am now Curiouser and curiouser.
Celebration involved includes cleaning the house, firecrackers, visitations, money exchange, and great food.
Talking about food - there is similarity again.
Looking at the traditional tray, I see several familiarities.
Is that petha? And that chikki ? Oh, this is a groundnut chikki, and that is a sesame chikki.Lotus seeds coated with sugary stuff. And that - for a thousand sons ;) _ keep away from that one.
Provides enough fuel to start an argument about the origin of the content - Maybe these are really Indian foods, which are so adapted by our dear neighbors. Nah, you copied us, we are the first.
And so the argument continues...till we hit the origin of fortune cookies.

I like reading the messages - they are fun, and I have to know what everyone else in the table got too. I know someone who is very serious about that. She collects them without fail, and I can tell she believe in them too. I think I believe in the ones that agree with me. The not-so-nice ones is stupid marketing, and obscure ones, I gladly forget.
The Joy luck club has a conclusion that the papers contain 'bad instruction' and not wisdom. Lol !!

Dim Sum gives a family style food experience that is friendly, warm and enjoyable. Sharing food across the table, pouring green tea for the people next to you (always before yours). You can be oblivious of the noise around the other tables, and the 'smell' and the fear of biting into a scary food.
And no visits on the 3rd day of New Year - because it can cause arguments.
No sweeping - Brooms, brushes and any sweeping equipments are not allowed to be used after the New Year Eve dinner and during the first day of the New Year, otherwise it symbolizes wealth will be swept away.Don’t want to take a chance on that.
People go to midnight prayer service s.
On the New Year morning, firecrackers were traditionally set off to welcome the New Year. Family members and friends greet with "Kung Hay Fat Choy" (Wish you will earn more money) to each other, in return children and the unmarried receive "Red Packet Money".
And then there is the year of the Ox. And the year when everyone gains a year - intriguing stuff.
Every culture has its traditions. And coming from a rich, diverse one I am glad to partake in from another just as rich. Ok, Iam not grounded in mine. But mine defines me.Just like us, people, everywhere follow rituals and traditions sometimes without getting too deep into the whys.
So, some get rejected, others adapted, and the rest are taken as they are- face value.
The only problem with that is – it is a nagging thought - did the right ones get to the right queue?
How do you detect that ?
No one knows.
But what the heck!
Enjoy the festivity, and if you can share it around, you've rubbed a little cheer.
And the exchange itself helps break done the mental blocks and helps in increasing tolerance levels.

Shilpa's Science Project on "Camouflage in Leaf Butterfly - Diorama

Interesting project. The only annoying aspects of this is the forced participation of everyone at home. Of course, the result is gartifying.

As the year begins...

To Blessed to be stressed.

Is it just me, or are these being seen more lately ?

Now that's a thought.

Interesting

http://www.babelgum.com/index.php

Volunteering - at last!

I have a whole new respect for teachers now. And the system of education.
The very thought of being surrounded by 20 little brats - eh, kids terrifies me. And then the thought that Iam supposed to engage and teach them - now that's too far to picturize even.
Dharma had done it a couple of weeks ago. He thought it was nice. So, we have given to the school our dues. We could put away volunteering for a while.
Except that Rebecca thinks that it is Mommy's turn now. Today. Okay Tomorrow then.
I thought it is easier to simply go, do it instead of trying to beat around it with her.
kids!

So I emailed and said that I am available. And immediately started to agonize.
It is hard enough handling my own two kids.
Yet I braced myself, and ventured on.
And am glad that I did.
The whole idea is to get involved. And it is a great way to watch the kids. Sure, they amaze you by their questions, and keep you on your toes.
I started out with some paper work, and then watched them as they listened to instructions. The schedule is well packed and dynamically updated. 2 of the reading groups did not have a teacher? No, problem - this is what we'll do.
A problem seems to crop up every now, and then, and an immediate solution to it too.
This is exciting action every minute.
'I know you are Rebecca's mummy- but you don’t look like her at all' I know who you are, and other comments keep me amused.
The homework projects say that parents can fill in for their kids. That sounds like going the length of school all over again. And again, for me.
But this is time well spent indeed.

Note : I wrote this piece long ago, and forgot to post it. Anyway, here it is now :)

தமிழில் வலைப்பதித்தல்

என் முதல் வலைப்பதிப்பகம்! ம்ம்ம்ம் நன்றாக தான் உள்ளது.

Wonder why ?

See a picture with 2 people seemingly laughing / smiling, and the caption always says 'joking' ?

Little Flowers

Beth Barnard wrote a song, Little Flowers, and here are the lyrics. 

  

Little flowers never worry 

When the wind begins to blow. 

And they never, never cry 

When the rain begins to fall. 

  

Oh, it's wet and oh so cold, 

Soon the sun will shine again. 

Then they'll smile unto the world, 

For their beauty to behold. 

  

When the clouds begin to gather 

And the storm begins to blow, 

Little flowers don't complain, 

Though they're tossing to and fro. 

  

Oh, I guess they've learned the secret, 

They don't fret because they know, 

If it never, never rained, 

Then they'd never, never grow. 

  

So, let it rain, let it rain, let it pour, 

Little trouble keep on knocking at my door, 

If we'll learn the right from wrong, 

It will help to make us strong. 

  

Lord, please help us learn the secret, 

Even little flowers know, 

If it never, never rains 

Then we'll never, never grow. 

Its ringing in my head

plan.
set the schedule.
plan.
Set the timeline.
Plan.
set the deadline.
plan.

yuck ! yuck !

Make it happen

not so yuck !

Did you see that?

Just back from El Novillero for Brent's luncheon. the plate is plentiful there. When you are famished, its a good place to feast on.The sign near the door says - we provide shirts if needed.

hmm !

Do I have to return them back ?

The place is well furnished Mexican style, and somewhere on the lobby wall, there's a tiny ceramic plate that says - '.... now featuring restrooms'

You have to really look to spot that. !

A thought

There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it. - Mary Wilson Little

Like laundry, maybe ?

but can I get away with it ? Now, that's something else ;)

Cuil for knowledge , hmm !

Have you seen cuil yet?
Or better used Cuil to search something?
I think it is neat- check the search results - the results page is interesting. The search engine is still in its infancy - I could spot weird mistakes myself.
But who cares, I like the fact that it is attempting to stand up against biggies.
May the tribe increase :)

I know, the search is pathetic, it is slow, and it is almost silly and sometimes irrelevant and stupid. It seems amateurish. The links are broken.
If you think

Oops! We couldn’t find that page.
Please verify that the URL is correct and try again.


is cute, then you will get several of these all over the site.



The homepage reminds me of the first time I started to use Google. After using yahoo and msn for searches, Google had a clean, almost empty page. It has been quite a thing to see it leap ahead of the pack.

Whether Cuil survives slinging the Goliath of searches is yet to be seen. I am going to watch.

Peace of Mind - Josh Gracin

There's a hole in my heart
Seems like I've always been trying to fill with the treasures of life
The pleasures of the night but nothing ever will
There's a restlessness deep in my soul
And I know it's ruining me
All these regrets of mine haunt me all the time
They won't let me sleep

[chorus]
Oh but sooner or later I'm going to get some rest
Throw the world off my shoulders
Get this weight off my chest
Oh I know that it won't be tonight
But I 'm going to keep looking until I find
A little peace of mind, yeah

I don't know how you knew just what to say just what to do
To leave but still stay to walk away and keep me hanging on to you
Oh can't you see what your love has made of me
My feet keep pacing
It's you I'm still chasing
God I wish I could sleep

[chorus x2]
Oh but sooner or later I'm going to get some rest
Throw the world off my shoulders
Get this weight off my chest
Oh I know that it won't be tonight
but I'm going to keep looking until I find
A little peace of mind, yeah

Yeah, yeah, Oh, oh
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
A little peace of mind, yeah
A little peace of mind
A little peace of mind, yeah

[Fade]

I went to the woods

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. - H Thoreau

Octopus, anyone?

I had baby octopus yesterday.
For the first time.
I do try not to get too adventurous when it comes to food.
But, what the heck!
We were in a Japanese restaurant; the menu had octopus, baby octopus, and jellyfish, among others.
If they are wrapped up in a sushi, they wouldn't bite me, right?
So, I asked for it.
Fish eggs and eel were a challenge for me, last time. I got over it this time.
ew!
I still have to work on enjoying them. It was mostly pick, and gobble, instead of any slow chewing or savoring.
Octopuses are quite another story.
Looks creepy actually, since they were cut and put on top of the sushi roll, instead of inside the roll.
Tastes like rubber band, someone said.
Not bad.
The biggest step is to pick it and put it in your month. Then on, it is easy.
Once you chew, the challenge is already over.
I did it!
Dharma says octopuses are like humans, eating them is like eating a person.
That gets me thinking.
Would you eat people that you don’t like ? or those who give you the creeps ?

Helen Klein

I heard Helen Klein speak today afternoon.
What an amazing woman. Extraordinary athlete holds several world records....
The fascinating aspect of her story is that she started as late as her mid-fiftes to run.
Maybe when I am that old, I will try something ;)
She starts with a dateline clip of her 1995 Eco Challenge.
That is a 300+ miles of mountain biking, horseback riding, whitewater rafting, canoeing, and rock climbing and running.
Phew!
She was 72 then.
Watching the clip with her in the room, I thought - this lady lives in my neighborhood, and maybe I have passed by her some where on the American river trail. Just didn’t know she was this accomplished.
So, I came back, looking for her on the net. Surprisingly, couldn’t get through the complete picture.
Tried Wikipedia- drew a blank.
So, I think I'll start something there for her.

Read what Norman says about her in the last paragraph.


http://www.in-forum.com/articles/rss.cfm?id=127213

May 30th, 2008

We are human beings, not human doings.
Our hearts and souls shine through when we let passion and purpose lead our lives.

- Lisa Hammond

A Scary incident

I have to write this down.
Yesterday, after we finished with our dinner and stuff, we all went upstairs to retire. I came down a bit later to get some water and mid-night snacks.
Switched the kitchen light, got the water, and then I heard it.
A strange muffled noise.
I froze.
Is someone in there? I looked around. Maybe the garage? Or was it by the backyard? I tried to play it down - maybe I was simply imagining.
Then I heard it again.
No!
This time I am sure it was a languishing noise.
Was it a floating eerie thing?
So, I called out to Dharma.
When he came down, I doubted whether he would hear the same thing.
Maybe this was something only I could hear; maybe something was trying to communicate (or scare) to me alone.
Thankfully, it came again.
This time - a series of giggles, and then a child's voice.
The giggles were scary. Then we laughed with relief.
It came from Rebecca's laptop.
Her online games were still on. And that was the source.
Phew!
Lesson learnt - Never leave your applications on.

Words that wonder around...

Pet words – every one has a few.
They change over time.

Words or phrases that simply pop up repeatedly.

Phrases are easy to notice.

Some times intentionally, otherwise just so. They get so habitual, that are you would not even notice it.
Unless someone points the peculiarity of the usage.
Or maybe years later, it strikes you back. You could be amused even embarrassed, thinking about it wondering why that was lingering on.

Specially, teachers and bosses and preachers and the limelight hoarders – their words are easy to notice.

You would notice the peculiar ones, point it out, tease and laugh or even mimic someone effectively --simply by observing the words that they generally use.

I find them wander about my head, randomly. And so, I fish and utilize them randomly.
Sometimes, I find myself using words even when I know for a fact that they don’t fit exactly. Yet, I fish them again.

Why?

Heck, its convenient – why bother to hunt for some, when you have a few others ready, already?
Its part of the jargon.
Others use and understand them too,
They cool.
Whatever.

I try to consciously keep away from very common phrases simply because they were too common.

Like ‘timepass’ .

Eww!! – can’t stand that. That’s sounds too shallow and wasteful.

‘Rocks’ – don’t like that either.

Or ‘cute’

Don’t know what I had against cute- its seems okay now.

‘Bekaar’ – I don’t like, yet I use it.

‘Eccentric idiot’ ‘nutcase’ – Ah! Haven’t used that in ages. I have to find someone to use it against . Ha ha !!

‘Nut’ – overused it too many times to count. Currently in the archives.

I use ‘occasionally’ ‘obviously’ ‘absolutely fine’ ‘good so far’

That were sometimes peculiar lingo to

But then, what the heck, who cares?

Time and again, I think – What was I thinking?


I think Obama uses the word ‘notion’ while Hillary uses ‘motion’ quite peculiarly.

Heard that?

Jim

That’s all right, he would have said.

I don’t think so.