Enter the Dragon Year

(Today happens to be the Chinese New Year .. the year of Black Dragon. Decided to write something on China or the Chinese and this is what I could come up )


Once upon a time countries made goods for its own people. Today everything under the sun or the moon, well almost, is from the People’s Republic of China. From Diwali decorations to daily use gadgets – you name it and I’ll bet you dollars to dim sum that it’s been put together in some insidious factory by a faceless army of Chinese men and women.

Last year China replaced USA as the world’s leading manufacturing country with its quantity driven, low cost approach.  Everyday tons of material in the cargo ships leave the Chinese coast. I wonder what comes back in these ships?  My simple guess would be dollars? or gold? 


It is a dangerous situation and it will only a matter of time until the global economy collapsed entirely and we would be buying our Dal chaval from the Guangdong Province and trading our Gita or the Bible for the little red book, shark fin soup, unisex haircuts and ill-fitting Mao suits.  Not too difficult I guess, since we have already got used to Chilli Chicken, Gobi Manchurian and Feng shui


Part of the damned problem is that the youngsters in most countries don’t want to work in manufacturing anymore. All our young people want is to wear thick spectacles, skinny jeans, work at Facebook and be part of the ‘knowledge-based economy’. Well that’s just fine but what they fail to teach these pups at the Hipster University is that it’s hard to keep the GDP propped up if the only thing a country is producing is social media network addicts, cash crops on Farmville and narcissistic metrosexuals.


While millions of Chinese work on its assembly lines, sleep in the dormitories, eat from the cafeteria, the young adults elsewhere are busy munching on fast food and adding more chins to themselves than those found in a Chinese telephone directory!

Happy New Year

Do we or don't we deodorize?

Did you notice there is a flood of body spray ads these day. Most of them are racy and aimed purely to tickle libidinous male instincts. Though the website of Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI) does show an increase in the complaints lodged in the last 2 years, most of the adverts are still on air after family viewing hours. 

I am not being petty or whiney. But clearly the ad guys seem to have certain myths

Myth-1  Men stink ...( since most ads feature only men)

Myth-2  Women require to fragrance only their underarms

Myth-3  Women love to throw off their clothes off  .. ( or sometimes themselves)  for men sporting deodorants

We know that smell is an important part of attraction. Lower species have something called pheromones which signalled ‘come to me’ even from long distances. We ( ..the science people) are still not sure whether humans have that natural property to attract member of the opposite through smell. ( putting off people .. yes ) Customs showed that our ancestors did make attempts .. agarbathies were lit, rose petals were strewn on the bed during Suhaag raat. Our south Indian grandmas wore jasmine flowers to entice their men. Not sure what they did in the North...may be they didn’t require to use any olfactory stimulation since they were fair... and fairness sells even now.

Indians never used deodorant spray.  It is a totally acquired habit pushed relentlessly by these innumerable deo companies. We had daily bath and applied talcum powder .... and we reached the 1.2 billion mark. 

So do we now need to deodorize?

Oxen and asses

It was during last Christmas mass in Detroit, all silent and holy when my seven year old nephew reacted sharply and loudly to something which the priest was reading. ‘Mommy, why is the father using bad words?’. And here’s what the priest read from the Genesis 32.5  “I have oxen and asses  …. to win your favor”  My nephew wouldn’t stop till my sis explained. (Btw, the new international version of the Bible has replaced the terms with 'cattle and donkeys' ) 

It is easier to explain the young the older meaning of the slangs, but not vice versa. Consider this situation … My cousin’s innocent 45 year old wife once shouted excitedly seeing a cat  “ Hey, look at that p***y, its so cute and pretty’.  We had to hold back the laughter for fear of having to explain to her.

God knows since when this metamorphosis occurred and where it originated. My strong guess is North America and my question is why animals? … Donkeys. . Kittens…Roosters… Female dogs

A lot of things flashed through my mind while writing this blog. Here are some.. 

• Remember the harmless British phrase ‘Its raining cats and dogs’ I dread to think of the American equivalent, but it certainly will make a sex starved American happy.
• Do they still teach the nursery rhyme on how a certain cat went to London to see the queen?
• What would telling ‘cock and bull stories’ signify these days?

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Cock a doodle do!

My dame has lost her shoe,                                                                                             

My master's lost his fiddlestick,                                                                                              

And knows not what to do 

                           The master sure has problems and so does the maid!

Bien venido 2012

Good morning and Happy New Year 

Right now, while you still have some alcohol and fat in your body from last nights' New Year's Eve party, it's time to make your New Year’s resolutions. 

You may ask - Why make resolutions? You need to make them so that you can become a better you, a more-attractive you, an organized you, a healthier you,  in short - less like you.  Forget the reason, do it because it is customary to do so.

Making resolutions is easy, the problem is sticking to them. A group of psychologists wanted to study the reasons why people don't stick to their New Year resolutions. The first week they found 90% of the study people stuck to their resolutions. After 2 weeks, we have no idea what happened, because the scientists stopped monitoring!

Here are some suggestions to enable you to stick to your goals 

MAKE REALISTIC RESOLUTION - Here is an example of an unrealistic Goal ''I will lose 10 kgs this year ”. A realistic goal would be  “I will drink only 2 pegs in a party and gain only 5 kgs.”

MAKE INTERESTING ALTERNATE RESOLUTION

Typical Resolution 1       - Save money for the rainy day 

Interesting alternative  1  -  Enjoy the rain dance today 

Typical Resolution 2       - Spend more time with your family

Interesting alternative 2   - Spend more time with your secretary (male/female as applicable)

MAKE POSITIVE RESOLUTIONS - To succeed, you must believe in yourself. Write this motivational statement in large letters on a piece of paper and tape it someplace where you will see it often, such as on the inside of your eyeglasses   

     'I can do it, and I will do it , starting next year .. 2013'