Jun 19, 2009

A Peep into the Past 1


While adding some photos I had just taken my external hard drive I decided to take a little trip down the saved photos. It's crazy how fast Shivani (my brothers daughter) has grown and how big she has gotten. It seems like just last week I was holding her in my arms . They grow up so fast! She is truly a blessing to my brother n sister in law(bulli) .
While i am doing my engineering playing with her is one among my daily activities , At the time there is nothing much to do.sometimes she used to ask for a chocolate n the first thing to do is to clean my pockets to find atleast 5 bucks , But now i m busy with my work n away from them doing some different stuff(other than playing with children which i m expert in ...) and neglected the little things. Now she is 4 years n i saw her before 15 months , Hope she will recognize me.


Missing Home ....

An easy way to override Chrome bookmarks


It is quite easy to manually override Chrome “Other Bookmarks” with your Firefox bookmarks:
1) In Chrome, click on “Other Bookmarks” and, if you have any, right click on each bookmark and delete it.
2) Use “Import Bookmarks and Settings”, switch to import from Firefox, clear all checkboxes except ‘Bookmarks’ one and hit ‘Import’.
3) This will keep all imported bookmarks in one ‘folder’, which is actually good, because next time when you decide to override Chrome bookmarks, you will need to delete only one Other Bookamrks ‘folder’ by right-clicking on it.

(On WinXP machine Chrome keeps bookamrks in C:\Documents and Settings\-your-name-\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Bookmarks file. This is a text file which looks similar to XML. )

Jun 17, 2009

Paris Sewer Museum


The curious underground history of keeping Paris clean

"Paris has another Paris under it; a Paris of sewers; which has its streets, its crossings and roads almost the same as the upper view sans traffic

In 1805, before the advent of the modern sewers, Pierre Bruneseau, an adventurer of sorts, decided to map the ancient and aging sewer system. Although even the police were afraid to enter the sewers, Bruneseau did so, and along the way found lost medieval dungeons, jewels and the skeleton of an escaped orangutan. Bruneseau finished his survey in 1812. The ancient system was described by his friend Victor Hugo in Les Miserables as "fetid, wild, fierce . . . nothing could equal the horror of this old, waste crypt, the digestive apparatus of Babylon." Bruneseau was lauded by Paris as "the most intrepid man in your Empire" and "the Christopher Columbus of the cess-pool."

In 1850 Baron Haussmann and engineer EugËne Belgrand designed the modern Paris sewer system. By 1878 the sewer system was over 373 miles long and today the network extends 2,100 kilometers beneath the streets of Paris, or greater than the length from New York to Miami. Hugo said of the new system "The present sewer is a beautiful sewer; the pure style reigns there..."

The Parisian sewers are a kind of mirror to the streets above. All are large enough to accommodate a person and one could rather easily navigate their way around the entirety of Paris through the sewer system. Each sewer "street" has its own blue and white enamel street sign, and each building's outflow is identified by its real street number. The Parisian sewers have always fascinated tourists and the sewers were opened to the public during the World Exposition of 1867. Tourists were originally given tours on a small locomotive drawn wagon, and then, up until the 1970s, in boats, floating down the wide Parisian sewer canals - a sort of Parisian answer to the gondola. Today the Parisian sewer system is closed to all but the 800 egoutiers or sewer workers, with the exception of course of the Les Egouts de Paris, the sewer museum of Paris.

One of the more intriguing displays in the moderately odorous museum is a giant iron ball. The sewers are regularly cleaned using large wooden or metal spheres just smaller than the systemà­s tubular tunnels. The buildup of water pressure behind the balls forces them through the tunnel network until they emerge somewhere downstream pushing a mass of filthy sludge. Keep an eye out for packages whooshing through the "Pneu" or pneumatic tube system that still runs throughout the Parisian sewer.


Resources from:

Paris Sewer Museum
Pont de l'Alma
Place de la Résistance
Paris

Largest Man made Hole

The largest man-made hole in the world (surpassed only by the Bingham Copper Mine, UT, USA) is a diamond mine located on the outskirts of Mirny, a small town in eastern Siberia. Begun in 1955, the pit is now 525 meters deep and 1.25 kilometers across. The massive 20-foot tall rock-hauling trucks that service the mine travel along a road that spirals down from the lip of the hole to its basin. Round-trip travel time: two hours. Airspace above the mine is off-limits to helicopters, after "a few accidents when they were 'sucked in' by downward air flow..."


The Giant hole is actually a diamond mine in eastern Siberia near the town Mirna.It is 525m deep and 1.25 km in diameter

Best Book I've Ever Read -The DaVinci Code



I know that I had "The Game (Penetrating through the secrets of pick up artist)by Neill Strauss" as the book that I was reading next, but the library sent me a notice that I couldn't renew this one because there was a waiting list, so nothing much to do I took the DaVinci code as the only option to pass my time.

I saw this movie in the theaters and to be honest, didn't like it that much . I had some friends who read this book and they loved it. Those are the people who asked me to read some english books to improve my english and so I decided to read it. I just finished reading it and I really liked it. It was definitely one that kept my mind going like crazy through the whole thing So i read almost 13 chapters in the Louvre Garden, one chapter before Monalisa painting and two chapters in Saint sulpice Eglise. I loved all of the riddles and things they had to figure out through the process(anagram,templars of knight n cryptex). I actually wish that I hadn't seen it before I read the book because I wasn't surprised at the end. It would have been a huge surprise otherwise. This book is so great! Depending on your religious views you definitely have to take a lot of Courage to discuss. I actually watched the movie again and liked it much better because most of the scenes are incomplete because davinci code cannot be zipped into a 2 hours package because of its detailed script and which after reading the book was filled up with the new flavour information(just like a solved anagram) . When you don't know why they are doing things it projects the saint as a psycho, but after you read the book it isn't at all.
I would never have believed that this is my kind of thriller, but I'm going to tell you something--the more I read, the more I had to read. In The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown has built a world that is rich in fascinating detail, and I could not get enough of it.And the whole book is informative, I came across a lot of information.
Mr. Brown, I am your fan.

Jun 16, 2009

My Swiss Trip .....

Last month, two of my friends came to Paris from London , they had already came to Paris ,So we planned a trip to Switzerland.

Then we prepared the Requirment Chart

1)Three days of vacation (thats a long weekend)
2)A car (we hired one from Hertz)
3)Money (Managed to get some by using the negative balance )
4)Energy (Loads of it)
5)Perfect plan (It takes as much energy to wish as it does to plan. )

We started from paris at 6am n reached Zurich 8pm in Renault V3 5 seater with tom tom Gps, In Zurich we saw the lake with swarns , and also its channel which you can see here:


On the Second Day ...
Went to Luzern, and saw some Monuments, n this touching street ad:



After that we thought of taking a train to Pilatus, and found that the world's steepest railway was closed till july:



Lots of Photos , Which u can check in my Flickr Account ....


Visited the most disappearing waterfall ever in Lauterbrunnen:


had a snow fight with my friends ,and ate an ice cream which ended up in screwing my throat....



Saw the most beautiful Swiss lake:


In Lausanne, the city with the beautiful cathedral, is the smallest city in the world to have a metro system (details read in the train as u know i am weak in G.K), we passed the fully automated metro line(changed three different trains bcoz we took the train on the wrong direction ..):


At last we thought of crossing the swiss border to lay down for rest in a french hotel(bcoz hotels in swiss are damn xpensive..). After continous driving for 4 hrs and reached french border .


Last day ..

We had seen the Fountain which discharges 500 liters in a second with a speed of 200 km/h(read on the board):Evening we found ourselves in Bern, city, where The Lithium Flag waves over the main street , And had done some shopping (swiss blades n chocolates)

Concluded our(me,Kartheek, Ranjan,Fredric) three day swiss trip with lots of fun n action ....

SPEND ENOUGH TIME ALONE..

I like to be alone. It may sound weird but true. In our present culture, being alone is a sign of loneliness, depression or an outcast, but this isn't fair . Spending time alone can be good in terms of reflecting yourself or making decisions (especially personal and important ones). Though it is true that life is about meeting people along the way and the people that touch our lives, it is imperative to say that "no man is an island".

Spending time with yourself can be with different forms like, watching tv, playing video games, read book , etc.

I have read about an article about the positive side of spending time alone.

"Being alone isn't a statement about your relationships. Although I believe that relationships with others are a very important aspect to life and to our happiness, spending time alone is also extremely beneficial to our mental health and happiness. Here is why:

1. Self Discovery: Spending time alone gives you the ability to discover things about yourself and to get a real understanding of who you are. We have grown to appreciate the art of getting to know others, but in reality, it is even more important to get to know ourselves, our preferences, our likes and dislikes without other people's influences.
2. Higher Sense of Independence and Increased Self-Esteem: Being alone and getting comfortable with being alone gives you a higher sense of independence. Relying on yourself to make choices and decisions increases your self confidence, which then permeates other aspects of your life, including the times you are in the presence of others.
3. No Need to Compromise: Often, we compromise when we are in the presence of others. We usually work with one another to reach agreement on everything, from what we will have for dinner to what TV show to watch. Spending time alone allows you to indulge yourself with the things you want to do and the things you love, without any negotiation.
4. Rejuvenation for Your Soul: Getting away from others allows you to decompress and relax. It gives you a break from the have tos and allows you to focus on the want tos. It lets you address your own needs as opposed to everyone elses and gives you the opportunity to rejuvenate and push the 'restart' button.
5. A Fresh Perspective: Time alone gives you the opportunity to clear your mind and to weed through a lot of thoughts. This allows you to get to the heart of what YOU really think as opposed to being told or influenced by others and their opinions. It gives you time to reflect on what is important in your life and how you feel about every day situations that need to be addressed.
6. Higher Appreciation for Those You Love: Giving yourself the ability to be alone allows you to have a greater appreciation for the time you spend with others. If you never have time for yourself, you'll wish you did. It is important to find some balance in this; but once you do, you'll enjoy your relationships even more.

For some, being alone isn't really that simple (based on personal side). Actually it is not for everyone though especially for extrovert persons, but spending enough time alone may only be the time where you can truly live and discover other prospective in life.

LIFE BOOK 2009

An officemate of mine forwarded this email to us, hope it can inspire you too. cheers!

LIFEBOOK 2009

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants, and eat less food that is manufactured in plants
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy
5. Make time for prayer
6. Play more games
7. Read more books than you did in 2008
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours
10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day ---- and while you walk, smile


Personality:

11. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't over do ; keep your limits
14. Don't take yourself so seriously ; no one else does
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip
16. Dream more while you are awake
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

Community:

25. Call your family often
26. Each day give something good to others
27. Forgive everyone for everything
28. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day
30. What other people think of you is none of your business
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your family and friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:

32. Do the right things
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful
34. GOD heals everything
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up
37. The best is yet to come
38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it
39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

Roger Federer : New French Open 2009 (Roland Garros) Champion


Robin Soderling----------------------------Roger Federer

I just finished watching the French Open 2009 Tennis finals between Roger Federer and Robin Soderling and after the long wait and 4th consecutive Roland Garros Final, Roger Federer finally claimed his first French Open Title defeating Soderling in a 6-1 7-6 6-4 scoreline. Roger Federer dominated from the start of the match with a 6-1 win in the first set, then a tie break in the second which is the most tight part of the match and a nerve wracking third set.

As I watch in the final set and Roger Federer was serving for the match leading 5-4 in the third set. Roger just feel the tension and not serving at his best. Almost lost his serve but the Swiss hold on to his nerves and claim the title he has been chasing in his career. Not only he completed the 4 Grand Slam Titles, he equaled Pete Sampras' 14 Grand Slam Record Title which for me considered Federer the greatest Tennis Player of all time.