— mere funde

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Philosophy

I came to know about this person through Dcubed’s blog. Then again through Scoble.

I have read, heard and even seen some damn inspirational speeches, but this one by Prof. Randy Pausch has to be the most brilliant one. Ever.

I admit. I had tears in my eyes during the end. You rock man.

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Following the commandments by the FSM posted here, I find these very appealing (excerpts below). Dedicated to a journalist named Shakti – I did not know her, but know that she must have been brilliant. She had brilliant friends.

Rule One: Thou Shalt Get Off Thy Lazy Ass And Get A Life,
Thou shalt not moan or groan or bitch or throw thy toaster at thy wife.
Thou art definitely good at something, find it, use it, try and do thy best.
Do what makes thee happy, take an honest shot and screw the rest.

Rule Five is not so soppy: Thou Shalt Be Silly sums it up,
Life’s a joke, a laugh, a dream, a wine-glass, not a bitter cup,
Thou shalt perform most diverse acts of looniness; thou shalt be random,
Thou shalt make them giggle, thus earning glad, undying fandom.

Rule Six: Thou Shalt Listen. Thou Shalt Care, Thou Shalt Reply,
Be thou part of others’ lives, let them find thee standing by
In times of need, let them remember joyous smiles and soft-held hands.
Share their dreams, soothe their screams, be patient, try to understand.
I’m sorry if this sounds too pious; I’m no angel, but I try.
Won’t answer thy every text but there’s no harm in aiming high.

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“The things you own end up owning you.” - Tyler Durden

So true. Sometimes you have all that you want, but none that you need.

This article at lifehack (not to be confused with Lifehacker), tells us how to get rid of materialism from our lives.

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trustnoone321-thumb.jpg

From Gaping Void. Though it seems depressing, you should read the comments. I am quoting one good one.

trust someone + love someone = be someone  ~Leah

Another good one below.

070828singleguy-thumb.jpg

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I have to admit this.

I have long been a semi-atheist. I believe in God but hate any quarrels over religion. So, I have shifted. I am now a follower of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (FSM). I will now try to follow the The Eight “I’d Really Rather You Didn’ts”.

The most important amongst these, for me, would be:

  1. I’d really rather you didn’t act like a sanctimonious holier-than-thou ass when describing my noodly goodness. If some people don’t believe in me, that’s okay. Really, I’m not that vain. Besides, this isn’t about them so don’t change the subject.
  2. I’d really rather you didn’t judge people for the way they look, or how they dress, or the way they talk, or, well, just play nice, Okay? Oh, and get this into your thick heads: woman = person. man = person. Samey = Samey. One is not better than the other, unless we’re talking about fashion and I’m sorry, but I gave that to women and some guys who know the difference between teal and fuchsia [emphasis mine, and I believe he is talking of Karan Johar].
  3. I’d really rather you didn’t indulge in conduct that offends yourself, or your willing, consenting partner of legal age AND mental maturity. As for anyone who might object, I think the expression is go f*** yourself, unless they find that offensive in which case they can turn off the TV for once and go for a walk for a change.

All hail the FSM!

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Sometimes I think that humans are born for doing one thing – crib. We are never satisfied. And I am a shining example.

When I have work, which has been the case for the past one and a half months, I crib. In fact, the last month or two have been crazy, but extremely pleasing also. We have immense amount of work and a very very narrow deadline to meet. But then, there is the satisfaction of seeing our group at the top again. Right where it belongs. The entire team (minus me) has been working very very hard and I am so grateful that they are on the project, which makes my work so damn easy. Though I have not complimented them on their faces, I think (hope at least!!) they know that I appreciate their work a lot and that they have been great. Thanks guys, would not have been possible without your help and hard work!

When I don’t have work, like the last couple of days (due to shifting of places), I crib. I was almost bored to death today. Kuch nahi kiya din bhar and I was reminded of how horrible life would be without work. I mean weekends are fun because the week is hectic. So here I am writing a post to describe the extreme state of vettiness I am in, which might drastically change within a couple of days depending on a pending approval from one of the clients.

Anyways, I have also been doing a lot of other things. Watching Heroes, Studio 60,  Southpark, and a lot of movies.

Heroes is a series about normal guys with superpowers and their mission to save the world. However, it is only reccomended if you are a comic book fan. It is extremely well made and very engrossing. I watched close to 12, 40 mins, episodes over a span of two days. And now I need to download newer episodes :) Oh, by the way, Ali Larter is so damn sexy!!!

Studio 60, is a nice comedy series, starring Matt (Matthew Perry) and Jordan (Amanda Peet). Other major characters are Danny (Bradley Whitford) , Harriet (Sarah Paulson) and Simon Stiles (DL Hughley). Now Perry is at his sarcastic best and romance is brewing (once again) between him and Harriet. Meanwhile Jordan is the head of a broadcasting network and is a very nice person and Danny is in love with her. Man, you should check out the scene where he proposes to her (I saw it last night), very chic!!

Southpark is a totally kick ass comedy cartoon series, making fun of the American pop culture. Must watch!!

Coming to movies. I have finally seen Apocalypto – short review, nothing great. I have also seen The Last King of Scotland – awesome. Also, I saw this wierd movie called A Scanner Darkly, nice but wierd, and the rotoscoping is awesome.

All the movies and TV series courtesy Akshat, an awesome bloke in my group.

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Check out the Devil’s Dictionary and it’s definition of Web2.0. Pretty hilarious stuff out there. Particularly liked the definition of e-mail.

A method of electronic communication, primarily used to inform you that your penis is too small.

Also came across this collection of manifestos and other writings on entrepreneurship on the web at ChangeThis. This is what they say about themselves.

ChangeThis is creating a new kind of media. A form of media that uses existing tools (like PDFs, blogs and the web) to challenge the way ideas are created and spread.

Stuff by people like Hugh MacLeod, of Gaping Void fame, marketing guru Seth Godin, and Guy Kawasaki, a former Apple evangelist and entrepreneur par excellence. Damn nice stuff to read up there. I suggest you sure pay a visit.

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From Waiter Rant, a blog I love reading:

Outside my window it’s raining a hard cold rain. I feel sorry for the garbage men. I remember reading somewhere that rain droplets condense around particles of dust high in the atmosphere. No dust, no rain. No rain, no nothing.

I smile to myself. Sometimes you need a little dirt in order to live.

Two lines I like here. First, “…you need a little dirt in order to live” and second about the rain, “Outside my window it’s raining a hard cold rain“. I have always wondered how rain is soothing at times and at times harsh. Wierd, how words modify the same thing to represent two totally opposite emotions.

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Little did I realise when I started reading The Selfish Gene a couple of days back that Mr. Dawkins would be the man of the year 2006.

You can read a very interesting piece by him on God, titled “Why There Almost Certainly Is No God” here.

Meanwhile you can also check out the computer config on the top of my wishlist here. Only if someone could replace the Quad G5s with Quad-Quad Core Intels :)

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Hugh Macleod, of Gaping Void fame, has put up this “Nobody Cares” manifesto by Dennis Howlett. I agree with all of it, but find the below mentioned points very relevant.

* Adding value is the most important thing you have to do – nobody believes you. Clients can read a 1,000 websites and see that same vacuuous statement. Stuff your website with client stories, preferably written by clients and not some PR outfit.

* We work hard to earn letters behind our names – nobody cares. Importance isn’t derived from academic achievement but what you do for others.

Reminds me of the farewell mail of a dear friend who left the company for greener pastures. He asked in a company townhall, what is “Quality” and “Adding Value” which the management keeps talking about?? And no one had an answer!!

Maybe they should read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.

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