An eventful year is coming to an end. 2008 was an eventful year not only in my life but for the country itself. As India Today put it, the terrorist became the news maker of the year pipping Manmohan and Chandrayan Madhavan Nair.
2008 saw the worst financial crisis in my life time and the stock markets caved in. Fortunes reversed and every one started talking about the doom. However, we plunged in head on and started our new spacious office for retail broking services with great pomp and show. Not satisfied with that we also started another spacious office for wealth management services and yet another one for System Integration and Systems sales. Many wondered why we chose such times of distress to expand. Someone more intelligent than me has once said that times of distress is the time to invest. We did the same. Let us see how we fare by next year this time.
As far as I am concerned on a personal basis, I had a hectic year 2008. Peak of the Project with the expansion programs, frequent travels and chicken pox to boot! When I turn back, I am glad to note that I did manage to stick to my new year resolutions to a large extent. (May be old age is catching up with me.) I was able to control myself better, not reacting to provocations, tried to express myself more and found that the gesture is reciprocated. I did say I Love You more often to Usha and Kuttu. Kuttu, less, because he was upset with me most of the time for not getting him the Oakley, the PSP 2, Subaru car, new comp etc... His list is really endless.
Next year??? I plan a dangerous journey into the unknowns deviating from the well known path I have followed for the past 15 years. It is giving me some jitters, but I have decided to take a risk of a detour through an unknown path because life is getting boring.
Let us see where the road takes me...
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
SHOOTING DOGS
I just finished seeing a movie called "Shooting Dogs". It shook me so much so that I won\t be able to sleep this night. Can such senseless violence exist in this world? Can the world community turn the blind eye towards such crimes? This world where world powers spend billions of Dollars to fight wars in other countries for the flimsiest of reasons turn its back on such genocide? Unf...believable! I have no words to describe it. Please see it yourself.
You can get more info here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfilms/releases/shootingdogs.shtml and here http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0420901/
http://www.shootingdogsfilm.blogspot.com/
or download the torrent here : http://www.mininova.org/tor/1083939
Please do watch, but be careful not to watch in the presence of children or violence sensitive persons.
Ajith
Shooting Dogs
BBC Films and UK Film Council present a CrossDay Production
April 6th 1994: a bloody genocide in central Africa gets underway.
In just one hundred spring days, a million Rwandan Tutsis were massacred by their fellow Hutu countrymen and a small African country was turned into a charnel house. The barbarity was beyond imagination. But not beyond prevention. The UN was there, watching. Watching but not acting.
And at the heart of it all a British priest and his young acolyte were forced to confront the depths of their faith, the limits of their courage and, ultimately, to make a choice. To remain with their people or to run away.
Starring:
John Hurt, Hugh Dancy, Claire-Hope Ashitey, Dominique Horwitz
Director:
Michael Caton Jones
Screenplay:
David Wolstencroft
Producers:
David Belton, Pippa Cross, Jens Meurer
Executive Producers:
David M Thompson, Paul Trijbits, Ruth Caleb, Karsten Stoeter, Richard Alwyn
UK Distributor:
Metrodome
Website:
www.shootingdogsfilm.blogspot.com/
UK Release Date:
31st March 2006
CREDITS NOT CONTRACTUAL
You can get more info here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfilms/releases/shootingdogs.shtml and here http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0420901/
http://www.shootingdogsfilm.blogspot.com/
or download the torrent here : http://www.mininova.org/tor/1083939
Please do watch, but be careful not to watch in the presence of children or violence sensitive persons.
Ajith
Shooting Dogs
BBC Films and UK Film Council present a CrossDay Production
April 6th 1994: a bloody genocide in central Africa gets underway.
In just one hundred spring days, a million Rwandan Tutsis were massacred by their fellow Hutu countrymen and a small African country was turned into a charnel house. The barbarity was beyond imagination. But not beyond prevention. The UN was there, watching. Watching but not acting.
And at the heart of it all a British priest and his young acolyte were forced to confront the depths of their faith, the limits of their courage and, ultimately, to make a choice. To remain with their people or to run away.
Starring:
John Hurt, Hugh Dancy, Claire-Hope Ashitey, Dominique Horwitz
Director:
Michael Caton Jones
Screenplay:
David Wolstencroft
Producers:
David Belton, Pippa Cross, Jens Meurer
Executive Producers:
David M Thompson, Paul Trijbits, Ruth Caleb, Karsten Stoeter, Richard Alwyn
UK Distributor:
Metrodome
Website:
www.shootingdogsfilm.blogspot.com/
UK Release Date:
31st March 2006
CREDITS NOT CONTRACTUAL
Friday, December 5, 2008
Loss of a good friend
On 2nd December morning I checked for messages in my Asus and found one from Daniele. His message said " Massimo died this Friday. Aless would appreciate if you would inform our friends". I could not believe it.
Massimo and Alessandra are from Verbania, a village at the north west border of Italy. They are friends of Daniele and Valeria. Hearing a lot of praise for Kerala from Daniele, they decided to go and see for themselves in 2005. I was in Kerala after Libya and arranged for a 15 days trip for them in Kerala. They did not want to go to all the fancy places frequented by tourists, but wanted to see the real Kerala and interact with common people of Kerala. They arrived on 31st December in Kerala. The next 15 days, we (me, Charlie and Dr. Abraham taking turns) took them to new year celebration in Meridien, a hindu marriage, 4 temple festivals, Elephant farm, large veggie market, 2 church festivals, Wayanad, Kuttanad, Fort Cochin, Periyaar and finally, we said Arrividerci during a dinner in Brunton Boat Yard. They thoroughly enjoyed the trip and vowed to come back for their marriage in Kerala. Since then, I had been to Italy in May 2006 and visited them in Verbania. They have just bought an old house and was renovating it. They were also preparing for their first child. Lorenzo was born on 9th January 2008 and they were happily living in their new house.
They were a very adorable young couple. Massimo was into long distance running, cycling and swimming and was lean and healthy. Alessandra, being a pharmacist was also very conscious of health and was lean and healthy. When they came to Kerala they were friends of Daniele and Valeria. When they left they were our friends and friends of Kerala. During their stay in Kerala, they interacted with villagers, ate local food, used even local dress and stayed in homes. They were thoroughly taken in by Kerala and its people. They left after making a lot of friends.
Daniele called me later and explained the circumstances. Massimo attended his office as usual on Friday 28th November and during lunch break he went out to give swimming lessons. He came back to office and collapsed. None of us who have met Massimo could believe it. How could this happen to a person who runs 8-10 km in a stretch and swims regularly? He doesn't smoke or drink much. Unbelievable. Poor Aless and Lorenzo. I called her, but didn't know what to say. Such a lovely family, everything was looking bright and shining and suddenly.... But who said life is fair?
We can only pray for his soul and join Aless and Lorenzo in their grief.
Massimo and Alessandra are from Verbania, a village at the north west border of Italy. They are friends of Daniele and Valeria. Hearing a lot of praise for Kerala from Daniele, they decided to go and see for themselves in 2005. I was in Kerala after Libya and arranged for a 15 days trip for them in Kerala. They did not want to go to all the fancy places frequented by tourists, but wanted to see the real Kerala and interact with common people of Kerala. They arrived on 31st December in Kerala. The next 15 days, we (me, Charlie and Dr. Abraham taking turns) took them to new year celebration in Meridien, a hindu marriage, 4 temple festivals, Elephant farm, large veggie market, 2 church festivals, Wayanad, Kuttanad, Fort Cochin, Periyaar and finally, we said Arrividerci during a dinner in Brunton Boat Yard. They thoroughly enjoyed the trip and vowed to come back for their marriage in Kerala. Since then, I had been to Italy in May 2006 and visited them in Verbania. They have just bought an old house and was renovating it. They were also preparing for their first child. Lorenzo was born on 9th January 2008 and they were happily living in their new house.
They were a very adorable young couple. Massimo was into long distance running, cycling and swimming and was lean and healthy. Alessandra, being a pharmacist was also very conscious of health and was lean and healthy. When they came to Kerala they were friends of Daniele and Valeria. When they left they were our friends and friends of Kerala. During their stay in Kerala, they interacted with villagers, ate local food, used even local dress and stayed in homes. They were thoroughly taken in by Kerala and its people. They left after making a lot of friends.
Daniele called me later and explained the circumstances. Massimo attended his office as usual on Friday 28th November and during lunch break he went out to give swimming lessons. He came back to office and collapsed. None of us who have met Massimo could believe it. How could this happen to a person who runs 8-10 km in a stretch and swims regularly? He doesn't smoke or drink much. Unbelievable. Poor Aless and Lorenzo. I called her, but didn't know what to say. Such a lovely family, everything was looking bright and shining and suddenly.... But who said life is fair?
We can only pray for his soul and join Aless and Lorenzo in their grief.
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