Thought of this topic when I recollected the last few minutes of yesterday’s cricket match.. Even though I don’t know cricket, the last minute excitement around is fun to watch.. Ravi Shastri was announcing the man of the match.. He said this man has played in many world cup matches and the country has won in every such match since 1992.. Sachin Tendulkar.. As far as I can guess, the guy must be over 35 years of age.. Still plays with the same passion (or even more) that he possessed when he started playing cricket.. I vaguely remember reading somewhere that he was 16 when he started.. Pursuing something and giving it his fullest for almost 2 decades!! Woah!! That is something.. And the best part – he is absolutely down-to-earth and none of this gets into his head..

The whole thing was very exciting and inspiring.. At the same time it gave rise to a lot of questions.. How many of us have a passion? How many of us know what our passion is? How many of us have the courage to pursue our passion? How many of us are ready to give whatever it takes to pursue our passion and excel in it? Not many??

Honestly I am still confused as to what my passion is.. I thought it was music.. I also thought it was dance.. I even thought it was talking (many readers will agree, I know ).. Helping people – Of course this passion dies down very easily when people don’t respect what I do to help them.. (Unconditional way of helping? Sorry am no saint!!) I thought it was business… I always love to think it is business.. So, the search is still on.. But I do try to like what I am doing and it greatly depends upon my mentors and friends.. So as of now, I love what I am doing..

But people like Sachin had a passion that many did not have.. Even then, he had the courage to pursue it.. His parents could have easily asked him to continue his studies and go for employment.. Good they did not.. There are parents even now, who guide their children based on their experiences, both good and bad.. If the parent failed in what he did he is worried his son/daughter might also fail.. Very protective of them.. But what is the point? The son/daughter can succeed.. Even if they fail, it completely depends on the individual.. Maybe he/she will learn from the failure..

Similarly, people who have singing as a passion.. Dancing as a passion.. I am sure they all work hard for it and they love working hard.. Honestly if someone asks me to dance continuously for 2 days I wont even think of what to answer.. I will be too glad to do it.. Who will watch? That I don’t know.. Any mass murders I am not responsible..

I used to love organising get-togethers for people.. But now for some reason I don’t feel like it anymore.. I used to go out of the way to organise.. But now I somehow feel I’m done.. The frequency of me organising anything has immensely reduced.. And it will continue that way I guess..

But do passions keep changing?? If it changes, was it a passion at all?? GOK!!

Smiley Junction

1. Target day was smiley.. But to be honest, not smiley enough

2. Spoke to Mr.Ashok Dharmalingam.. A conversation that started on facebook and ended over phone.. I think he too had a good laugh.. Ashok Sir – I hope you read this and smile..

3. My colleague Vimala.. Never fails to amaze me with her hard work.. Especially today with so much work pressure, she just pulled off March 31st to her best.. In fact hard work is a bit of an under-statement.. Maybe the word passion will suit her best.. Such passion for her work.. I wonder if I’ll reach there ever.. Vimala, you simply rock..

4. Great response for Manasika foundation registration.. Felt nice when so many people who have not been in touch for a long while had congratulated and also liked and commented on my FB updates.. Thank you ppl.. You are all very kind

5. My dad told me that the apartment doggy was accompanying him to the temple everyday.. Then once he realised he was going to the same place everyday he got bored and he stopped going along with my dad.. The way my dad explained it was very funny.. He always refers to the doggy as avaru ivaru with a lot of respect..

6. Crisis management with a smile – Bala Sir!! Ungalukku nigar verevarum illai!!

The weekend is already here… Happy Friday.. And yes April 1st.. All of you have your share of harmless fun!! Until my next blog

My friend Jai and I had gone to the Sub-Registrar office this morning to register our Public Charitable Trust called ‘Manasika Foundations’.. We reached the office by 10 AM because we were informed that all documents for registration should be submitted to the authority before 12.30 PM.. Normally, they give importance to property registrations and only then they attend to Trust Registrations.. To be on the safer side, we decided to be there early.. The two people who were to sign as witnesses were also present by then.. In spite of all the preparation it was a pretty frustrating and agonising experience..

When we met the Sub-Registrar with the documents he said they have lost some file and they are searching for it.. He had said, “Only after we finish searching for the file we will look at your documents”.. We waited for almost 2 hours in that place which started to get crowded as time passed.. There was pretty less space to accommodate people considering the number of people who normally come.. Many aged people were standing for a long while without a place to sit.. I have noticed this in many sub-registrar offices.. Is the Government so miserly?? Is there something wrong in having spacious Government offices?? There was a bubble-top water can.. God knows how many years ago they replaced the can.. There was no means by which anybody could drink water.. We could only watch the can.. But i was surprised to see many people carrying their own water bottles.. Infact somebody had two bottles of orange juice.. Evalavu theliva irukaanga makkal

In spite of the fact the documents were given for proof reading, 5 days back, the sub-registrar asked us to change a few pages.. We had to go back to office and replace a few pages.. We had given all the documents that he asked for.. The actual Government fee for trust registration is Rs.110/-.. But it was shocking when he asked us for Rs.2000/-.. We had no choice but to give the money.. Once the signature process was done, while we were about to leave, there was another demand for Rs.1500/-.. It would have taken seconds to pick up a fight with him.. But I have heard that these people have discretionary powers and they can prevent you from registering a trust forever.. Shelled out that money as well keeping in mind that Jai really wanted to get this done and it was for a good cause..

Then came the worst part.. Somebody told us that even after giving the money (while there will not be a single mistake in the document) they ask people for personal favours such as dropping the sub-registrar at his residence or at any place that he wanted to go.. There can be nothing more cheap and atrocious..

When enquired I was told that the only way is to file a suit against the concerned person.. Obviously people wouldn’t do it considering the time to be spent, the monetary loss and the mental agony.. And yes, the plaintiff and the defendant may even die before the case is settled; it takes that long..

‘Pathetic’ was the only word i could think of.. Ya i cant blog about the other words I could think of!!!

On the lighter side, these were 2 notices that were displayed at the Sub-Registrar office

“Rs. 500 ku mel aluvalagathin ulle panamaaga vaithiruppadhai thavirukumaaru katchikaarargal anbudan ketukolla padugiraargal” (Irundha adha than neenga vaangi vechikareengale)

“Ivvaluvalaga valaagathirkul Rs.1000 ku mel vaithirupavargal saarpadhivaalarai anugi kuripettil padhivu seyyumaaru anbudal ketu kollapadugiraargal” (Apdi sonna? Adhayum vaangi vechika poreenga)

Anyway finally Jai was relieved that this got over.. Hopefully the trust should be active by the end of this month..

Smiley Junction:

1. Manasika Foundation – A Public Charitable Trust which is going to be managed by my good friend Jai was successfully registered today..

2. My office boy just called up my dad to tell India won the match. My dad started laughing and said “iru pa innum oru wicket iruku”. The office boy’s confidence. I was praying india should win

3. Got into an auto from the Sub-Registrar office.. Guess that was a very big mistake.. The driver was scolding almost everybody on the road.. Full a ketta vaartha dhaan.. My ears were bleeding.. Just to get some relief i updated this as a status in facebook.. One of my friends was very much interested in knowing what those words were.. I said I did not even understand many of it.. Was amused when she said, “You tell me, I will google search and let you know”..

4. As I am typing, India has won the match they were playing against Pakistan.. Indha match a pathi enaku avlodhaan theriyum.. Everybody at home is happy.. So, good….

5. Woke up to see my CEO‘s and CFO‘s comment on my blog.. It is really nice to know that people with hectic schedules take time to read my blog and also comment on it.. Thank you very much

6. Soniya contributed to the Hobby for the week.. But she will soon be arrested by Animal Rights Activists!! She grossly insulted the Panda Bear race!!

7. Tomorrow target day!!!!

8. Apartment doggy – was sleeping.. so no credits to him today..

Have a thoughtful thursday people.. Until my next blog!!

I thought of writing on this topic since I have been experiencing a lot of job interviews of late.. We are trying to recruit accounts executives and also expand our Business Development team.. Certain questions and behaviour of interview candidates are funny and sometimes shocking..

I felt most of the candidates are brand conscious.. They always look for opportunities in MNCs or big companies.. Even though they cannot be blamed for that in the beginning of their career, I feel they should be more concerned about their growth and the company’s growth.. Many of them think they should just go for a job and earn money.. I wonder how many experience actual job satisfaction.. Of course, factors like family situation and financial position will play an important role in many such cases and guess there is not much of a choice there.. But where people have a choice, they still do not seem to take advantage of that..

Like how it is crucial for a Company to find the right people I think it is equally important for an employee to work in a Company with the right superiors and colleagues.. It will be nice if youngsters would look for this factor (I call it the ‘people factor’) when they are job hunting rather than stressing only on the pay package and the brand.. Nowadays it seems to be very difficult to find superiors who intend to mentor their subordinates, colleagues who treat each other as equals with no unnecessary ego clashes and subordinates who take superiors’ guidance in the right spirit.. If you find all this in a company (or even one of these) join right away!! 

Many people complain about man-eater bosses, egoistic HR departments, disrespectful and lazy subordinates.. There are places where reasonably bright people are made to do mechanical work and their learning process stagnates at a level and never elevates.. Guess they are scared of their bosses and complete an assignment just because it has to be completed and in order not to get bombarded by their bosses.. When I ask an interview candidates the reason they want to shift from their current employment, these are the answers I normally get:

- Too much work-load

- Too less a pay

- Mechanical work – no scope for growth

- Behavioural issues

All said and done, you earn good money and there is no peace of mind, I don’t see the point.. A pay that you deserve, a good mentor as your superior who is interested in letting you grow along with the Company and friendly colleagues would make help you scale up your career as well as develop your personality..

Gyaan apart!! (Ennalaye mudiyala) The ‘Smiley Junction’

1. The day started off with the BNI meeting.. During the open networking session, one of the members was telling us how a kid had once hidden his car keys in the refrigerator and he had searched the whole house.. He had a very genuine point when he said he did not think of searching there for the keys.. This was continued by my CFO who had also experienced a similar incident where his 1 and a half year old niece hid his suitcase keys just before he was about to leave out of town.. The way he explained how he tried to explain to the kid who hadn’t started talking by then was simply hilarious!!

2. My apartment doggy.. Yay!! He is back on the list.. Actually my fault.. He seems to be pretty active early in the morning.. (Namakkudhan kaarthaala seekaram ezhundhu pazhakkame illiye) Met him at 7.15 in the morning.. Was as usual jumping up and down when he saw me.. Dad was reading newspaper downstairs.. The doggy went near him and sat next to his legs as if he was guarding his master.. Looked very sweet

3. Suganthi and I had a lot of client visits today.. It is always fun to do field visits with her.. The way she scolds bad drivers on the road is simply hilarious!!

4. And yes.. My CEO’s facebook status update:

“Oram nu per vechirukaravan lam nera ball a potu wicket edukaraan

Nehra nu per vechirukaravan oram a ball a potu uyira vaangaran”

5. My friend Ashwath finally commented on one of my blogs:

ashwath says:

Though we’ve shared loads of laughter and we experience it very often,it feels more good when you write about it .The smile now can be equated to all the laughter

6. My friend Vikram got engaged.. Congratulations!!

Have a wonderful wednesday!! Until my next blog

Was discussing ‘patience’ and ‘temper’ with one of my well-wishers this evening.. (Nalla vela topic kedachudhu ).. Of all the patient people I know, my dad always ranks No. 1. Have very very rarely seen him lose his temper and even then his words have always come out, measured.. I used to have my temper under control until college.. But then, for some reason I turned into a very short tempered person after graduation.. I have always felt guilty about this and I keep trying to keep myself calm when people get onto my nerves.. But many times even I get angry I try not to show it on the person.. But to be honest, getting angry itself is not warranted most of the time and I am the one who is affected always..

But certain people provoke you to that extent.. But I got a different view today.. If you don’t like the way somebody behaves you can afford to express it politely, but firmly; give the person another chance and once you realise it is not going to work, just move away.. Trust me it sounded very simple.. Implementation is going to require honest efforts and also a considerable level of maturity which comes by experience and age.. When you tell people politely and also give them a chance and they still don’t understand, leave it and move on, it is their problem from then on.. Sounds easy.. Even more easier to write about it..

I often lose my temper when I am riding.. Even today, these high beam headlights in cars.. They just literally blind you.. I have to halt for a brief moment until I can see clearly.. This lack of civic sense is unacceptable according to me and am I allowed to tell them politely.. And at the same time me losing my temper is not going to change them.. So why??

Taken these things seriously since my temper levels shoot up pretty often nowadays.. Sincerely trying to calm myself down and yes colleagues and friends are of great help..

Things that made me smile today: (I am thinking of naming this section- maybe something like smiley junction )

1. Went to the post office near my place after almost a decade to help my friend open a savings account.. While I was signing the form, a lady came up to me and asked me to fill up an address.. In Tamil.. To my surprise, even thought I haven’t written in Tamil for a really long time, all my spellings were right and my handwriting was just the same.. Once I filled up the address, she asked me to write a letter.. I asked her what should I write.. She was like “Summa edhaavadhu ezhudhunga”.. I went ???? “Vasama maatnoma?? I threw away all those question marks around my head and asked “Edhana na? Enna nu ezhudhardhu?? Ungaluku enna venumnu modhalla sollunga”.. She realised that I was a little petrified and then told me that the LPG people wanted a letter which was addressed to her.. (God knows why, but I did not dare to ask ).. Then she herself felt sympathetic that I was blinking so much, she dictated something and I wrote it and gave it to her..

2. My CFO read my blog and his comment really made me smile from this ear to that:

Bala_Cogzidel on March 28, 2011 12:49 PM Edit This

My mom also becomes uncontrollable whenever she sees bubble-sheet

And yes there was a column that displayed memorable statuses.. One of his was ‘Baby-sitting my mom’

3. Hobby for the week (TR videos) had a grand launch today.. Vimala posted two videos and everybody had blood in their eyes and ears.. But this will not stop..

4. Recollected an incident that happened a few days back at a restaurant.. Suganthi, Sowmya and I had gone out to eat.. While searching for a table I noticed that a group of people were having a dish that looked delicious.. Couldn’t figure out what exactly it was.. But it had toothpicks in it.. I called the waiter and tried to tell him something like I had a dish last time that had toothpicks in it…………..Suddenly, Suganthi told the waiter “Andha table la andha pasanga saapadrangalla, toothpick laam vechi, adhu engaluku venum”. Seriously i did not know where to go and keep my face.. Was completely embarassed and at the same time couldn’t control my laughter as well.. She was like “Enna Sangeetha idhuku poi izhuthu izhuthu edho solreenga, straight a keka vendidhaane”.. Mudiyala.. But it was great fun..

5. Today my CFO found time to blog.. Guess many of us wait for the day he will blog since he rarely finds time.. He writes interesting stuff which will inspire us in various ways.. So ‘kaaindha nilathil mazhai thuli pol’ oru blog.. And ya the phrase ‘Sincere Sigaamanis’ was the reason for me smiling.. There can be no word that is more apt..

6. Spoke to Sujatha’s mother after a pretty long time.. People do check out this group called ‘Inspirations by Sudhir Krishnan if you are interested in spirituality.. She contributes great articles to that page..

May the rest of the week be rocking.. Until my next blog

I wonder how various people  (not that my blog has a huge audience ) who read the title would have perceived it.. I don’t know what exactly people who read the title would expect from this blog..

I am generally a poor eater.. I sometimes eat as less as a 1 year old kid would, and survive the whole day.. Whenever I eat outside, I prefer eating little.. However whatever I order will be too much for me and I land up wasting food.. Once or twice I did try to eat beyond my limits and it resulted in disastrous consequences..

But I have always felt guilty whenever I waste food thinking of the large number of people across the world who starve.. I always keep cursing myself for wasting food.. When I eat at home I serve myself with only what I will be able to eat so that I don’t end up wasting food..

To take care of the Karma, I have felt like donating food to orphanages and other homes.. Or feed people who starve for unavoidable reasons, by some way or the other.. Actors and actresses do this pretty often.. And I’ve heard people complain that they do it for publicity.. But I guess even if they are doing it for publicity, the purpose is served.. Who cares about the intention??

My friend Jai has recently come up with the idea of starting a Charitable Organisation to help the needy! It is called Manasika Foundations.. I just loved the name.. It is actually his mother’s name.. We are registering the trust tomorrow and I will be serving as its General Secretary.. He intends to do a lot of stuff through the trust, namely feed the poor, provide clothes to people who need them, provide education to those who cannot afford one, etc.. I thought that is a great intention and was amazed at the way he was so concerned in registering the trust without any delay.. The guy works night shifts but keeps an alarm to wake up within few hours of sleep and calls me to find out about the bank account formalities, registrar office stuff, etc.. Good to see such commitment in helping others.. A rare find I would say..

He infact did not really inform me that I will be the General Secretary for the trust.. When I had asked him to mail the details for the purpose of drafting the trust deed, I found my name in it.. An of course, I was too glad.. He sent me another mail today containing a list of people who will be forming part of the trust in various positions such as accountant, treasurer, etc.. I asked him if he had spoken to all these people regarding this and he said no they all will be fine with it.. I felt nice that he has so much trust in his friends.. (this is the other trust I had intended to talk about)

It is wonderful to meet people who really trust their friends and also people who honour such trust.. And I am sure Jai has this great set of friends who will definitely honour this trust..

As for today, the usual useless Sunday.. Eat, sleep and eat.. But I should accept that the day started off with this wonderful song called ‘Poi solla koodadhu kaadhali’.. Fantastic lyrics..

“Poi solla koodadhu kaadhali

Poi Sonnaalum neeye en kaadhali

Kangalaal Kangalil dhaayamaadinaai

Kaigalal Kaigalin regai maatrinaai

Poi ondrai oppithai

Ayyayo thappithaai

Kan moodi thedathan, kanavellam thithithaai”

My friend Suja read my blog yesterday and had commented on it in facebook

Sujatha Subramanian Hey thanks a tonne for this..I read it this morning..Am flying.My day is made.;-)

And yes Vaijayanthi also read it and her comment was

Vaijayanthi N Chary hey I am floored by your compliments! very sweet of u! thanks a lot!

Thank you ladies!!

Things that made me smile today:

1. I woke up and the first thing I read was Suja’s comment.. So the smiling smiling started that time

2. Next was the song ‘Poi solla koodadhu kaadhali’

3. The architect and the builder of my residence had come to visit us.. We discussed a lot on home automation.. The architect is somehow a very playful man.. The way he answered some of my questions made me feel I was talking to a kid.. An intelligent kid..

4. Some people who were marketing Britannia Encyclopaedia had come home.. That girl spoke without taking a breath.. She handed over some 3 big parcels to me telling me they were free.. Then she handed over a fourth one and said the overall price was some 5ooo bucks for which I had to pay Rs.999 ONLY.. I said I am sorry I dont think I will read any of this.. She then said Ok madam and took everything back.. I was like “Adapaavingala”.. The funniest part was, the moment she saw me, she was like “Where are you studying??”.. I felt like asking her, “Idhellam ungaluke konjam overa therila??”

5. Saw the recorded version of the movie Aisha.. Nice movie.. Was good to watch.. Feel Good..

If any of you think that I have written this blog without a topic in mind, you are absolutely right.. But i thought atleast let me do something useful by creating some awareness about Jai’s trust

Take care.. Have a wonderful week ahead.. Until my next blog

Thought of this topic a second ago!! My friend Saranya could be the reason.. She called me just a few minutes back from the United States to tell me that I came in her dream yesterday with a couple of college friends.. Was nice to hear and thought it was sweet of her to make an ISD call just to tell me that as soon as she woke up.. Thanks Saru..

She was telling me that she liked my blog’s naaikutti theme.. Told her, check it out now it has become a poonakutti theme.. Our mokka conversation apart, I was telling her that I am racking my brain for a topic.. She said ok enjoy, instead of suggesting anything.. The moment she hung up, this topic struck me.. So here goes…..

My first good friend – Amirtha Priya… We met in school and I really don’t remember in which class we became real good friends.. She is still a good friend and she works in the United States.. We talk on Birthday’s and other special occasions.. It is very rare to find someone who doesn’t change over time.. She just hasn’t changed the way she thinks and the way she treats me… Most of my e-mail ids and usernames will be amirsang.. Madam is the reason behind it..

Got very few friends from school.. One other good friend is Meena.. We don’t meet or talk regularly.. But we both know that we value each other.. She got engaged last week.. I have always thought she will get into a love marriage because I strongly felt it is very easy for any guy to fall in love with her.. Such a lovely personality.. Congratulations Meena!! Happy for you..

And yes.. Madam Vaijayanthi – Her Highness!!! Before mentioning anything else about her I should mention that she is a ‘bookaholic’.. The word doesn’t exist but i guess it can be included in the English Dictionary just for her sake.. Padippu na apdi oru padippu.. I am still wondering how she became my friend.. Normally I prefer staying away from such people.. Of my best of friends, she will always be at the TOP.. She is a CA, CS.. Padichadhu poraadhu nu she’s doing her Masters in Economics now.. I know, ‘No Comments’.. Apart from that, she is an amazing blogger, great command over the English language (enakkudhaan paadhi neram enna ezhudhara nu puriyaadhu).. The best way to end this para would be – ‘Tommy Boy!!!!’ 

Then comes ‘Thala’ – Ashwath.. It is funny, the way we became friends.. We hadn’t met each other in the first couple of years of our friendship.. Finally we decided to meet at a stage play called ‘Aladdin’ for which he had done the background score.. According to me, the best musician in town.. Amazing sense of humour.. Is always there when his friends need him.. Values people and expresses it whenever necessary.. Been by best friend for over 6 years now.. Has one of the best sounding ‘laughs’ (very contagious).. Keep rocking and stay this way forever!!

Sujatha Subramanian – “A laughter racket”.. I cant say she has one of the best laughs.. But i can say she has got The Best Laugh in the whole wide world.. I can bet that nobody can ever see her laugh, and be without laughing.. We met at SNBA where we did our CA internship and we went through the CA journey together.. Did most of our audits together.. Encountered the very cruel corporate world together.. A very practical person.. Helps people who deserve it.. Values people who deserve it.. Very spritual.. Highly religious.. Has wonderful parents.. Appreciates when others value her and recognises when people help her.. A highly talented singer.. And yes, a very pretty young lady.. Keep smiling.. Keep laughing (Not that I have to tell you!!)

Mithra – It is rare to find people like this girl.. Someone who always thinks good for people.. My very good friend who has always been there when I needed her.. Was a major part of my CA journey.. She is also a CA, CS.. When something good happens to me, the first person to be very happy for it.. Stay this way, Mithra girl..

Got a lot of good friends in my circle.. Have always been pretty choosy about the friends I have.. The list is pretty long.. Wont be able to write about everybody.. Even if I list I could miss out on someone.. So, guess i need to leave it at this.. Thanks to all my friends who have brightened each stage of my life.. Some have always been there when I needed them the most and taught me to reciprocate the same.. Some haven’t been there when I need them the most and have still taught me even more valuable lessons..

That was a looooooooooooong blog.. But still cant afford to miss my favourite section..

Things that made me smile today:

1. My HR manager is a very very quiet person.. But i guess I spoke so much in office, he has also started talking.. Today he felt we were all very silent and came up with a thought that on Saturdays we should play some songs in office.. Just for people who were wondering about his taste in music, these are the songs he played today:

- Pala palakura agala nee – Ayan

- Vizhi Moodi yosithaal – Ayan

- Naane indhiran naane chandhiran – Singam ???

- Some song from the movie Sura – which he graciously dedicated to an ardent Vijay fan in office.. But since the rest of us started crying, he changed the song

- Pookal pookum tharunam – Madarasapattinam

- Arima arima – Endhiran

He was at his humorous best today also..

2. My mom and I were setting up the showcase in our new house.. Unpacked all the gift items that we received on various occasions.. My mom turned into a kid when she saw those packing materials in which you can burst those small bubbles using your fingers.. Had a tough time controlling her

3. My friend Saranya called and told me about the weird dream she had in which myself and a couple of college friends were part.. Was nice to talk to her after a long time..

4. The Cogzidel Technologies team created my webmail id – sangeetha@sangeethaarunachalam.com.. Thank you Mr.Balakrishnan

Have a wonderful Sunday, people.. Until my next blog

Happaaada!! Topic kedachaachu The whole day my mind goes like ‘blog blog blog blog’. Like the sound of soap bubbles. Finally thought of something to write on.

I’ve always been a music lover. Something that I just can’t live without. Am a shower singer even though I tried learning Carnatic music for a few years. Dint learn much of the technicality though.

I keep humming and singing all the time. Most of the time it happens within the head so that I don’t become a nuisance to others Civic sense!!!

Heard the song ‘Nalam vaazha’ from the movie ‘Marubadiyum’ after a long time. Lovely song. Superb lyrics.

“manidhargal silanaeram thadam maaralaam

manangalum avar gunangalum niram maaralaam

ilakkanam sila naeram pizhaiyaagalaam

ezhudhiya anbu ilakkiyam thavaraagalam”

Chance illa!!

There are a few songs which are real close to my heart for various reasons. The song ‘Uyire en uyire’ from the movie ‘Thotti Jaya’. Sung by Karthik, Anuradha and Bombay Jayshree. Such a beautiful blend of these voices, especially the two female voices. My friend who is a musician, knows that I like this song and had played it on his keyboard and sent me the file. Awesome surprise!! The file was named ‘Surprise’ Ashwath, Thala you rock!!

My recent favourite – ‘Yathe Yathe’ from ‘Aadukalam’. Today while coming back from office by car, this song started playing on the radio. Unfortunately I had neared my place. Was seriously wishing I had lived a little far away so that I could listen to the song fully.

The song ‘Ennamo Edho’. Difficult to name a particular line. The lyricist is gifted. I think it’s Vairamuthu’s son.

“Eno kuviyumilla kuviyumilla oru kaatchi pezhai.. oh ohh..uruvamilla uruvamilla naalai,

Muthamitta moochu kaatril, pattu pattu kettu ponen,
pakkam vanthu nirkum podhu, thittamittu etti ponen..

Nerungadhe penne endhan nenjellam nanjaagum,

azhaikadhe penne endhan achangal achagum.

Sirippal ennai nee sidhaithaai podhum”

Fantastic!! Can never get bored of this song.

Of course, there’s the other genre of music. Today my colleague Suganthi played a T.Rajendar song in her car. Oh god! I so wanted to jump out of the car!! A literal tribal song attempt. Adha kuda seriya pannala. Music massacre!!

And his son’s evandi unna pethan song!! Sorry, no comments!

Now for my favourite section. Things that made me smile today

1. Apartment doggy out of the list today. Sir was sleeping till I took the stairs.

2. Woke up early. The day started off with BNI meeting. Met all the members after a long while. Was fun even though the usual funny ppl were absent.

3. Prepared BNI launch invites for 20 ppl. The addresses had to be hand-written. had fun writing, as my HR manager was telling me lot of funny stories

4. Spoke to a few ppl, inviting them for the launch. It is amazing how ppl at the top are so down to earth. Everyone heard me out so patiently and answered me. Of course I gave an intro that I was calling from Mr.Bala’s office

5. My CFO, HR manager and I had a small chat in the evening. Hilarious!! They had a lot of fun experiences to share.

6. Mr.Anand Nataraj had come to office after a long time. He was as usual fun!! Discussing politics, etc.

So yup, that’s it. I can sleep peacefully today!! Have a wonderful weekend people!! Until my next blog.

Actually felt like doing a Google search – topics to blog on!! My CFO has loads of topics to write but has no time to blog.. Here I am.. Having time to write.. But no topic!! But cant stop blogging either..

Lot of random thoughts went through my head today.. Here is a list.. Maybe one of these could become a topic.. Lets see

1. People cracking jokes on Japan Tsunami.. “Japan Government calls on Actor Dhanush, yen na avaru tsunami la ye swimminga poduvaaru”.. Disgusting!!

2. Fairness cream ads, age miracle ads.. The fact that the fairest of all actresses is the model for a fairness cream has always puzzled me.. A very young actress is the model for age miracle ads… ??? Makkal edha sonnalum nambaraangala??

3. Off late I have been meeting and working with a lot of phenomenally hard working people.. Sometimes their commitment towards work is astounding and trust me , impossible to even follow.. But it’s worth trying..

4. I dont know cricket.. I dont follow cricket.. Facebook is full of cricket updates, bets, challenges, opinions polls, abuses, etc…. Infact one of my friends whom I met a couple of weeks back told me he doesnt like cricket.. Was surprised to find him frequently updating a lot about cricket.. But the cricket fever is fun to watch.. People go around asking for the score, scolding players, teasing followers of other players…..

5. Have always wondered what RSVP stands for.. Wikipedia says

“Répondez s’il vous plaît“, a French phrase that translates to “Please respond”.

I am not able to rack my little brain any more.. One more blog with no topic.. I think I seriously need help!!!

- Vimala’s hobby for the week idea – Everyone should share a T.Rajendar video everyday.. She said she will be the one who will start.. Felt great that someone finally came up with such a brilliant and hilarious idea.. Bet Mr.Anand Nataraj is gonna be the happiest of all.. Am definitely discussing this in tomorrow’s review meet..

Writing this blog as I was watching the recorded version of the movie ‘Wake up Sid’. Lovely movie so far. As of now haven’t been able to think of a topic to write of.

Today was just another day. Morning started off as usual. And yes, we finally closed the position of a business development executive, thanks to my hard working HR. Thanks Soniya!!

The candidate was pretty passionate about her job profile and was doubly happy to see our friendly office atmosphere.

My friend’s dad (whom I’ve never spoken to earlier) had called me today. He is a very famous ortho in the city. He called me by mistake instead of calling his patient who also is called Sangeetha. Nice man. He profusely apologised for having called me by mistake. I said it is nice that I could speak to him.

My friend sent me an sms today. A really looooooooong one. Here goes:

Section143

(A) This section is applicable to all individual assessees who are in love and has incurred expenses by way of recharge and any other monies spent on lover.
Provided that the assessee can avail deduction only if he
(i)has been in love for more than 2 years preceding the previous year
(ii)has not been in love for more than 3 times in anyone of the previous years
provided that the provisions of sub-clause(ii) of this section will not apply if the assessee had truely fallen in love

(B) This section also says that if the assessee has suffered any love failures in the previous year then he shall carry forward any unabsorbed expenses incurred by the way of recharge of booster and top-ups.

(C) This section will not apply to all the assessees who love for time pass(hereafter referred as “playboy” in this section)

Explanation to clause (C)- the word playboy doesnt mean that the assessee should be male.

Yaaro romba nondhu poi ezhudhirukaanga. patience personified.

Things that made me smile today:

1. The above sms forward

2. My apartment doggy as usual

3. Dr.K.M.Cherian’s tweet – there is a kid who refuses to get discharged. doesn’t want to go home. wants to play in the hospital. he has come to hide in my room now

4. Somebody had a very difficult looking signature. Asked him if the intention was that nobody should imitate it. He gave me a very funny reason. Saw him sign today. Recollected the reason and smiled.

Good. I started the blog five minutes back when my mind was blank. I could write so much. Nice

Smile away to glory….. Until my next blog

I started typing out this blog on my Blackberry (thanks to Mr.Anand Nataraj who told me this phone has a wordpress application) at 9.30 in the morning. I planned to list down things that made me smile today from morning till evening. Let us see whether this turns out to be a smiley day or a frowny day!! The list goes on like this

1. The Mahindra Ad on the first pages of Times of India – Every 2 minutes a Mahindra is born; we call it rise. I thought the idea was very sweet

2. My good friend Meena called me to inform that she is getting engaged day after tomorrow

3. Photograph in Times of India, of a meerkat cub drinking milk from a tiny feeding bottle.

4. A lot of sitcom at the office lunch table today. We all had lunch together after a long time. We had vellarika with salt and chilli powder.

5. The first scene of the movie ‘Wake up Sid’. The way Ranbir struggles to study

6. The apartment doggy came running to me, wagging it’s tail once I reached home.

7. The song ‘Ennamo Edho’ from the movie ‘Ko’. Heard it on FM today. Such a beautiful song with amazing lyrics. Always makes me smile

8. Being named as General Secretary for a Charitable Trust that will be registered through Cogzidel. The Trust by name Manasika Foundation is being started by my friend Jai Sarathy to help the needy. Bless you Jai!! Keep rocking.

9. The very fact that I was sitting and recollecting what made me smile today

I think I should make this a habit. Recollecting at the end of the day, the things that made me smile. It will be cool if everyone does that. Infact today was a lot of laughter in office. Thanks to my colleague Vimala.

Keep ….. Until my next blog!!