DREAM THEATER !!

Nobody's hero, nobody's man
He is just a dreamer,
Dreaming dreams, singing songs,
of love, hope and peace.

Alas!they have stopped smiling now,
Into million pieces he can hear his own voice breaking now.
Sitting all alone in the night, he can see,

Those dreams shaking, his poor heart aching.

Inside the theater, standing in the ring of fire,
trying hard to ignite the lost fire, his desire.

Inside the theater, there is a lot of trouble now,

all his dreams could be reduced to a rubble now.

Nobody's hero, nobody's man

He is just a dreamer,

Dreaming dreams, singing songs

of love, hope and peace.

TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT !............ HAPPY DIWALI FELLOW EARTHLINGS!!

Let every house be a lighthouse tonight, guiding each one of us. Let's turn the night into a day tonight. Sacred Observatory wishes everyone out there a VERY HAPPY DIWALI !!

And please make it a smoke-free one. We have already inflicted irreparable damage to our environment, let's light the candles and not the crackers tonight.

CLASS OF SERVILE FLATTERERS 2009

Is it important to have an attitude ? My answer would be an obvious " YES". It's so important to underline your presence, to speak your mind, to be that somebody who thinks differently, acts differently.

It doesn't matter if it doesn't always pays, to be a special one. Real men should always be , real men. Recently someone told me about the famous ancient biblical proverb , that people who live by the sword, die by the sword. I turned around and said to this bloke, so what, so be it. It's hard, isn't it? to change ones personality, which has been built over the years on certain values, upbringing, education.

But this post isn't about the real heroes and their heroics, this post is about the class of servile flatterers, who not only survive but thrive successfully all over the place. I have seen obsequious idiots basking in the glory of nothing, yet enjoying the fruits borne out of the sweat of someone else's brow. I despise this race. These rascals have snuffed life out and killed promising career of many deserving candidates.

My piece of advice................BEWARE!! Fight it out and don't let mediocrity take centre stage and hold the real class to ransom.

BUSY NOTWORKING !! JACK IS HAPPY....AND SO IS JILL

No fetching a pail of water and no tumbling after. Jack and Jill are busy networking these days. Plenty of options to choose from , Facebook, Twitter,Orkut etc. Nothing wrong with that, isn't it ? I am in complete agreement, it's perfectly alright. In fact networking sites are cool . After all we live in a wired world. Technology has made it possible for circle of friends to stay in touch, share thoughts, ideas, so on and so forth.

But the trouble is, this "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy and Jill a dull girl " ( Apologies Mr. James Howell for tweaking the proverb) attitude, is costing the companies dearly across the corporate landscape. Companies precious productive time is being wasted by irresponsible, immature young executives who access these social networking sites from their office computers during office hours. I am sure, yours truly won't be able to stand for the presidentship of any of these cool sites after this post, but I am more than willing to take my chances, and raise my voice against this menace which is a major stumbling block in upping the performance bar in scores of companies all over the world.

I am all for blocking these sites during the office hours. A strict ban should be enforced and anyone caught logging on to these sites should be severely reprimanded.

Sorry Jack........Sorry Jill. I think it's time to do something constructive, something big. It's time to make one extra business call, send one extra mail soliciting new business, meet one more prospect before you call it a day at office.

O MAMA! IT'S TRUE, IT'S OBAMA

9 Months in the office and the most powerful leader has done enough for peace to stand along side the likes of Nelson Mandela, Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, and host of crusader's of peace since 1901. It doesn't matter what I think, if Nobel Fundation has chosen Barack Obama, I am sure they must have seen something which millions across the world haven't been able to see.

One thing is for sure, Mr. President will have to turn his great road map into reality within and outside of the United States of America to silence all his naysayers, who have criticized the decision of the Nobel Foundation in no uncertain terms. No one knows it better than the man himself that talking tough is one thing and walking the talk is another. The coming months and years would really test the character of this latest Nobel Laureate of peace . I HOPE HE KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING...........COZ EVERYBODY IS WATCHING CLOSELY and WITH LOT OF EXPECTATIONS.

IS THIS IT ??......I HOPE NOT

Nay! this isn't what you are thinking..... this post isn't about the 2001 debut album by the American Alternative Rock band The strokes . This is about the tough times in the Lifecyle of traditional media, especially print. This is about that big question, media experts all over the world have been talking about, for a while now. Can we survive this massive assault by this juggernaut called digital media ?? Are we ready to reinvent and adapt to the fast changing media landscape? Or are we fighting a lost cause?

Some time ago I had written how magazines in the throes of declining readership are finding it difficult to hold onto to their revenues. Despite that, I don't agree with lot of people, my esteemed friends in the advertising agencies included, who think magazines are on the brink of extinction. Trust me, don't carve your final verdict on that stone .......don't sound the death knell for print mediums future just yet. So what if Time Warner has decided to put TIME INC magazine portfolio up for sale, including the cult brand TIME and FORTUNE. I am sure, come the judgement day, in the boardrooms of print media behemoths around the world, some visionaries would definitely stand up and fight. And amidst the ruins we will still be able to hold, to see, to touch ........... to turn the pages of this fabulous thing called MAGAZINE.

HAPPY READING!!

CRASHING THRU' THE DOORS!.........TALK ABOUT MAKING A GRAND ENTRY !!

Today Tech has enabled creative minds to break new ground. With the help of cutting edge tech tools this gifted breed has ventured into the farthest corner of seamless cyber space in search of big ideas . Photo Manipulations Art is one of the most creative art forms to have mushroomed out of the digital age. Here's a sneak peek at a small sample. Thanks to Digg..................ABSOLUTELY MIND BLOWING !!

http://www.instantshift.com/2009/10/03/70-photo-manipulations-art-that-will-blow-you-away/

ABHI - AISH.............. COZ WHO HAS SEEN TOMORROW!!

GREAT GOOGLY MOOGLY !!! 25 crores for pampering yourself with a tiny piece of soap? Now that's what I call soaping oneself all the way to the bank. I guess the bad market has forced the leading Bollywood couple, Abhishek and Aishwarya to look at alternate revenue streams to keep their cash register ringing. Genuine Hits far and few between, I don't blame the pair.

And as far as the savvy marketeers of the dream soap are concerned, all I can say is, guys I sincerely hope you get your monies worth and more of Indian couples spend extra time in their bathrooms enacting the story board of your fabulous commercial.

HAPPY LATHERING !!

AHIMSA PARAMO DHARMA??

Believe me, we need this today more than ever before, "non-violence is the topmost duty ". On this day, 2nd October, Gandhi Jayanti , we need to introspect and ask ourselves, does this duty really supersedes all other? Do we really care??

Tempers tend to flare up at the slightest provocation. And I am sure this isn't news to people out there. We see it happening all the time, on the roads, in our neighbourhood, in our offices. We have become an impatient human race. The devil inside is tightening the screws and taking a hold on our sanity.

The morning papers echoes nothing but violent behaviour plenty. Trust me, the state today is beyond repair and it's rather ironical when President Obama says that US has its roots in the India of Mahatma Gandhi. Where is that India?? Today's India is not what Bapu had dreamt off.

I am nobody. I am just a self proclaimed pundit. You may or may not agree with my opinions. In the end, if we really wish to get back the India which Gandhi ji had thought off, we will have to find the Mahatma within each one of us...............THE QUESTION IS, DO WE REALLY WANT TO ? Think about it !!

A SKIPPER AND A GENTLEMAN !!

Daniel Vettori's run-out recall decision of colly, Paul Collingwood was the defining moment at New Wanderers Stadium Johannesburg, 29th Sept 09, the champions trophy dual between New Zealand and England. Though I couldn't follow the match, but I saw the highlights.....saw the great ambassador Daniel, yet again showing that the spirit of cricket is very much alive during these days of extreme commercialization of this lovely game.

This was a crucial do-or-die tie for New Zealand and a decision like that , had England won, could have proved costly for Daniel and his team. But you know what? Vettori is one of the few true sportsmen who play the game in the right spirit..............THE WAY IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE PLAYED..........THE WAY ONLY A GENTLEMAN CAN PLAY.......FAIR -N -SQUARE !!

Hats off to you Daniel ! I wish there were couple of more like you.

LOVE THAT GOOGLE DOODLE !!

I love what these guys do at Google with their logo to commemorate milestones, special dates related to people, occasions etc . Just like millions out there, even I look forward to the google doodle every time I log on to google.

We all know a still frame isn't half as exciting as a moving one. Unfortunately people who can drive change perched at the top of the ladder, seem to believe otherwise and few who think it's time, are too slow out of the blocks. In today's changing business dynamics you have to constantly look for new ways for attracting and engaging your prospects. Online companies like Google, Yahoo, Amazon have understood this very well and they have gone ahead and broken the stereotype . Traditional brick-and-mortar organisations have lot of catching up to do in order to survive and prosper in the coming years.