Did You Bungee Jump Anytime?

Because, I wish I do that. Every time such an activity happens here in my town, there is too much of a crowd, and although I am not clausterophobic I become impatient to wait. I remember telling a friend's husband who's been on an office tour to Minneapolis to enjoy time there. I heard that he even tried skydiving which is something really exciting. So said bungee jumping is much different and I just loved to see people do (not in reality though). For those of you who want to know what it means, here it is ....

Bungee jumping is an activity that involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to a large elastic cord. The tall structure can usually be any fixed object, such as a building, bridge or a crane. Indeed it is also possible to jump from a movable object, such as from a hot-air-balloon or an helicopter, that has the ability to hover over one spot on the ground. So said, fixed-wing aircrafts are unsuitable because they only stay aloft when moving rapidly forward. The thrill comes as much from the free-falling as from the rebounds.

When the person jumps, the cord stretches to absorb the energy of the fall, then the jumper flies upwards again as the cord snaps back. The jumper oscillates up and down until all of the energy is used up.

Despite the inherent danger of jumping from a great height, several million successful jumps have taken place since 1980. This is attributable to bungee operators rigorously conforming to standards and guidelines governing jumps, such as checking calculations and fittings for each and every jump. The procedure includes rigorous double-check very much similar to pilots’ pre-flight check routines.
However a common mistake in fatality cases is to use a too long cord. Most bungee jumping cords are made from natural rubber. The common bungee cords like Euro and Mil Spec cords stretch 2 to 4 times the original length. The cord should be substantially shorter than the height of the jumping platform to allow it room to stretch. When the cord reaches its natural length the jumper either starts to slow down or keeps accelerating depending upon the speed of descent.
The average age of jumpers is between 16 and 40, but the limit is 14 to 50. Spectators of all ages stand in awe, witnessing the many people who like bunging up and down.

I didn't even get the privelege of watching the live bunging action. Did you by the way? Next time dont be a watcher, be a jumper. Happy bungee jumping!

Landmarks of Labor

I saw Sree Ram, my husband, calling her cousin yesterday night and wishing her a safe and healthy delivery. She’s in her last week of pregnancy and indeed today is her expected date of confinement.

But, I started wondering is she aware of the labor landmarks. I thought to post these in the interest of other expectant mothers.

Landmarks of Labor (Oh Dear! I never Experienced any of these. I had an emergent C-section)

Pre-labor: It is during this phase that the cervix that is beneath the womb that needs to soften and ripen (the membrane thins down). During this phase one may feel niggling contractions off and on. So one can’t be sure if this is real labor or is not, all you become is emotional. You just need to relax now. This phase may last for one day or max for 2 days. Don’t keep pondering about it, you need distraction. Watch your favorite movie on a DVD or listen to some cool and soothing music. If you are active and not bedridden you may want to become busy. So take a walk and hit the nearest grocery store or vegetable mandi. Better, visit friends. Take long bath in lukewarm water. Ask your husband or a close friend to give a massage (partner massaging his expectant wife is a new thing here, but ask him and he may not say no to your request). Take little and quite often to you’re your energy levels up.

Early Labor: The cervix starts dilating and opening up and the contractions are more regular by now and they are also definite. Take a shower or a bath. Talk to your husband for emotional reassurance and eat if you may want to. Practice relaxing breathing techniques.

Active Labor: The cervix dilates to up to 4 inches and the baby's head almost fits through this (unless otherwise it is a big baby). Just stay focused on each of the contraction (they become more frequent). Take help from whatever knowledge you have gained and endure the pain. This is followed by actual birth of the baby and then push off of the placenta.

But I advice all expectant moms to take some time before hand and attend antenatal classes where they teach you of the breathing techniques and pain relieving techniques. These classes also make one aware of the landmarks of labor and the active labor can really be a pleasure filled experience not a painful one.

S is for Snazzier in iPhone Terminology! So, make your iPhone Snazzier with these Apps

So, how many of you owned the iPhone? Me? No, I am definitely not a phone lover. But I am not jealous; in fact, I thought I would let you all know of how to make your iPhone snazzier by loading apps, in this post. Have you explored all of its features? So if you are contented with the load of features it has for a geek like you, stop and start thinking bigger, because it can get still better with the third party iPhone apps or applications and play it on! Believe me, you and your new iPhone are going to rock for a long long time!
To get started …What you need to do is hit a store where iPhone apps are available (there are online stores as well for your information…but read the reviews on the store to know if you have gone to a right place!) and look for the free and the paid stuff.

Music
Music and mobile have become inseparable entities these days and an 8GB or 16 GB may not be really big for real music fans who would want to store every bit of music. But there is what is called as SimplyfyMedia application which enables you to access iTunes on your PC from anywhere. If your PC is not net connected you can still have access playlists pf your buddies. The application also gives information on the artists as well as the lyrics. So try your hands on it if you’re a BIG music fan.

Social Networking
FaceBook has its iPhone app and so the MySpace as well to enable the members to send messages browse through one’s network of people, share and upload images from iPhone as well as allow members to post comments as well on others profiles and stay tuned with the site’s bulletins. With this app you will never have to stay out of your network anytime

Photography
Airme Application (sounds funny? To me Yes it did!) enables one to send pictures to social networking sites including Facebook and Flickr. What more? Users can opt to tag their respective images with geographic tags which give the location, weather, date and time information of the image. Sounds cool (not funny now) right?

Gaming
Spore, now this is one application majority of iPhone would love to try. Spore is a flagship brand from Electronic Arts and play it on iPhone platform to have real fun.

Notepad
Jott (is where you can jot) is a notepad app for iPhone and a lovely one indeed, it converts one’s voice to notes so you are always on toes with your must-dos list of the day! Worth a try definitely!

Let me know how much are they worth if you lay your hands on these iPhone apps. If you have something more, I would love to hear from you. Take care friends!

Difference between CAN'T and CAN

It's actually the letter 't' that sets off "can" from "can't" and, take it out from your vocabulary is my advice to my kid so many times. Whenever she feels something is achievable but with difficulty, she says, "amma I can't" and I simply hate to hear that from her. I say "there is nothing like can't and if you try you can.

I also like to interpret it this way! Maybe the 't' that sets off the two opposite terms is only try and if you try can't can become can. Ain't it?

So said, I was so let down for lack of jobs for the last week. I did try to get some jobs but with failure. It was then that I almost felt like giving up freelancing forever. Should I or should I not have been the two things that went in my mind. My best friend reminded me of what she always used to!

My dear ....
you are wiser than you believe...
stronger than you really know...
more than you really give yourself credit for...
more beautiful than you have been told...
just capable of anything ...whatever you dream of!!
Believe in you... and trust in thy GOD and rest assured you are there where your dreams can take YOU!

I just thought it's a lovely note that she has sent to me to alert me. It hit me where it should really, and I made up my mind and thought I will try to tide over all those hurdles that come across the path of a freelancer. Come what may, I will challenge the difficulties that may come in my way of realizing dreams. And, isn't life boring without challenges? So, let there be some and let me do some reinvention of me!

Tell you what? To 'dream big' has become a passe, and the young generation started dreaming bigger! Probably we can take a gut or two from them to dream at least big. Thanks to my two friends who keep alerting me!

And, lastly it would be meaningless if I ask sravi to TRY when I simply fail to!

My 2 cents to those GENTLEMEN who are seeking writers!

It's great to learn that you’ve become a webmaster by starting either a blog or a website or a forum site or a new ezine, or you just wanted to publish your book (to be ghost written by a writer of course). However, don’t you feel nervy to demand writers for free samples to know their commitment of writing articles? I fail to understand this ridiculous attitude of a majority of webmasters these days. Or, is this probably a new trend that I didn’t know...eeeiyo!!

I think this should be termed no less than begging. I believe YES! In any book it is begging or ripping off! In a webmasters marketplace, I saw a listing posted by a gentleman webmaster who was seeking responses from good writers for establishing a long-term relationship. The niches he wanted to promote are also good and interesting (not the otherwise shady). But the catch in the listing is that he said he would give preference to a person who can write 500-worder sample one for all of the niches (say about 10+ he is looking for). This means he's looking for 10+ free samples. Now what do you call him tell me? A beggar? Well I don't have any hesitation to call him so!

It was even more suprising to see some fish (so-called writers) that got attracted to the lure he placed (long-term relationship). I felt those writers did not have a respect for them as well as other writers even!

Let me honestly tell you. A professional writer doesn't require what is called 'exposure'. Does he? He/she has been writing already to make a living. Can you go to bakery asking for free stuff saying you would want a piece of cake so you promote the baker’s name? No, Right? If you have any such weird thoughts please refrain from doing so. Because, in all likelihood you would be at least mocked and made a fun piece if not thrashed.

Real professional writers don't want to use their writing time writing for free to establish a reputation. Finally, if you are thinking to hire a professional writer, be prepared to PAY THEM and pay them decently afterall it should be a win-win for you and the writer as well!
Just my 2 CENTS FOR all gentlemen webmasters who want articles for free!
P.S.
Whew....I never thought I had so much grief that when I penned down it came to a blog post size!

President-Hopeful John Mc Ca(i)n Tarnish the image of America’s Grand Ole’ Party

Today, I wanted to present my views on McCain, the global celebrity who's most talked about today!


Psst! From one conservative to another, I don’t trust McCain as far as I can see him. It may seem traitorous to the Party but I don’t have to believe everything he says just because he calls himself a member of the Grand Ol’ Party. My trust and belief is earned by unwavering convictions on our most important issues.

Consider this! Most companies have adopted the use of the behavioral interview because it questions and validates past behavior that is a good and reliable indicator of what a person will do going forward. As the American people, we act as the human resource department of the United States of America. This is what we know best.

John McCain admits to having an affair with his 2nd wife, Cindy, while married to his 1st wife, Carol. This is the reason numero uno that says do not trust him. Isn’t he a liar and a cheat? Didn’t he commit the moral sin of committing adultery while being still married to Carol? This is the true color of the president hopeful John McCain. A base adulterer at best! Isn’t one of the tenets of Republicanism being a forthright and upstanding individual? So if he will lie and cheat on the person supposedly closest to him, what makes us think he won’t lie to us – faceless Americans? A bunch of whiners as we were called by his top economic policy advisor, Phil Gramm.

We also know that John McCain is in favor of 100 more years; 100 more years? We allowed G. Dubya to remain in office a second term in good faith to allow him the opportunity so he could finish what he started Iraq. Seven years later, we are still deployed fighting a war, running up major debt (it recently reported that we are getting close to half a trillions in debts eek) and looking for phantom terrorists.

In an interview earlier this year, McCain clearly said that we could be spending the next century in Iraq. Then a few months later, after much of backlash, he reverse pedaled to “explain” that the war would be over soon; however, the insurgency would go on for years and years and years, handled by Iraqis, not Americans. Well, which one is it? Even the Iraqis want an answer to that question. They have started to ask for a withdrawal timetable as well. Aaahh, but I digress.

As a conservative, I would like to be able to speak about McCain with confidence but it has proven difficult with this type of double talk. Yes, we do need to finish what we started. Yes, we need to ensure that we get back the foreign policy of previous presidents, including that of Reagan and Roosevelt where other countries know that you can’t just step on Americans. However, I am not confident that McCain is the right republican to accomplish that. After all, he is no Roosevelt!

To be a man of conviction means that you state your stance, live by it and do not waiver. That doesn’t seem to be the case with McCain. He flip-flops, so it has become titles of various articles and websites. McCain’s has an economic plan to cut, no, eliminate our national deficit by the conclusion of his term. Huh! I need to see a copy of that plan because I find that VERY hard to believe. However, that won’t happen because his plan has no details provided at all. Although he says it does include using the savings from the Iraq and Afghanistan victories to pay down the debt. I could only interpret that to mean that he will be bringing home the troops; which is yet another flip flop. One month we are forecasting being there 100 years, the next interview we are saving money by quickly winning the war and bringing home our troops.

Trying to follow our candidate from one day to the next is getting me dizzy. One day I am with him and then the next he opens his mouth and nothing makes sense. Now, the tom foolery is coming out of the mouths of his advisors as well. I am getting to the point where I am considering staying home on Election Day. Hopefully, he selects a Vice President who will offer some balance and good stable conservative guidance to our hopeful. But for now, I will keep my eyes peeled for the light at the end of the tunnel.

iPhone is coming to India ! Did you book the gadget?

The iPhone launching is scheduled for the month of September 2008 and Vodafone takes the privilege of bringing it to India. Most of the gadget lovers and phone freaks are earnestly waiting to their lay hands on this gadget and own it. The wait is almost over and the good news for all is that the bookings have started too!

But how much do you know about iPhone? I thought of presenting an interesting feature on this most-sought after mobile.

All about the iPhone's multi-touch technology
Keeping with the cutting-edge nature of its parent company, the iPhone refuses to settle for the norms that have been created by the cellular phone industry. For one thing, the iPhone serves as the ultimate multimedia device, seamlessly changing from an Internet browser, to an iPod, to a cell phone. However, concerns have been raised about the process of navigating through these applications. While most devices would use buttons, the iPhone eschews these in favor of touch sensitive screen—or in this case, Apple’s own multi-touch technology.



One of the first questions that pop into people’s minds whenever they think of a touch-sensitive device is how the screen will hold up to the inevitable wear and tear. In this case, Apple is one step ahead of the crowd. As a safety measure, the iPhone’s (LCD) screen is covered with a scratch resistant glass that is optically sound, preventing any hindrance on the picture quality. Of course, while scratches might not pose a threat, what about the smudging of fingerprints? In actuality, the iPhone is designed exclusively to be operated by the fingers of the hands. So much so that the usual stylus operation method of many touch sensitive devices is rendered useless. This fingers-only technology is so extreme, that not of a gloved person can operate an iPhone.



As for how the iPhone responds to the touch-sensitive commands, the device is designed beautifully. For starters, the software loaded on the iPhone has been tailor-made for swift, dexterous movements in order to navigate at optimum efficiency. Icons on the screen serve as the buttons that control the machine. Also, pressing and moving items from one location to another is as easy as (in actuality, even easier than) than clicking your mouse and dragging items on your home computer.

What purpose does this technology serve, other than looking cutting edge? You might not believe it, but the multi-touch technology saves hordes of time. Have you ever spent minutes just trying to program a friend’s number into your cell phone’s address book? Now all you have to do is a few quick taps at the screen followed by the dragging of the information into the proper location. As you might guess, this technology also allows the creation of iTunes playlists at unprecedented rates of speed. The youtube links can be played as well as sent to friends in a jiffy.

That’s not all, though. Not only does the iPhone make formerly tedious tasks from old cell phones and mp3 players a breeze, the interface is unlike any other that has been seen on any handheld electronic device. It is not as if the iPhone adds touch functionality to an old-style electronic gadget. The iPhone has its own software that revamps how these functions are performed. In the vein of opening multiple windows on a desktop computer and navigating between multiple web pages, the iPhone’s interface has multiple ‘windows’ that allow you to slip and drag back and forth between to switch out items and perform certain tasks at never-before-seen speeds and ease.

All said and done the pricing of iPhone will be around 20,000 rupees and up. So, if you are not so keen on garage stuff and if you are an Apple lover get your iPhone booking done through a simple SMS. Message iPhone to 56789, you get a confirmation message back that you have booked your new gadget! I would love to hear all your iPhone romancing experiences.

An update: I have just posted some useful tips in a new post about iPhone in case you are planning to buy one. You can read it here http://liv2rite.blogspot.com/2009/01/contemplating-on-buying-iphone-check.html

Gnana Vahini, This Different School Should Have Been There in My Times

As a child I grew up in a not-so-crowded town, but as to my education (if I can say I'm educated at all) I got it within confinement of four walls of a crowded classroom where the teachers had all rights to tame us with a thick cane that danced on our backs quite often. There was no single instance that I seriously can recall where I have absorbed a concept in the rightful way! That's right! It was all wrong ways ....... and in fact, to be more precise, there was no conceptualisation during my learning days. And, tell you what? I don’t feel ashamed to say that I have mugged up my math book too……I know what expression you guys must be having as you read that!!

Okay....and years rolled by and I became a parent (without ever being taught the right way or the wrong way ...as to how I can become one....lolz)! Great! And, time came for me to hunt for a school for admitting my kid. But, I made up my mind; it should not be the same rot, crowded classrooms where children enter with alarming faces to see their mentors. Thankfully, we didn’t have to hunt for long. We received a flyer in our newspaper and we took time to go to that place the flyer advertized. It’s a different school and probably just the way I believed a school should really be. We spoke to the teachers there (so nice they didn’t like to be called as teachers or mams and they wanted the kids to call them aunts), and let me be honest!They are just an awesome few ladies there.

I thought surely an aunt would come closer to a child’s heart than a teacher/mam right? I appreciated their idea. The idea of this different school is that of an extended family, not crowded absolutely. Some would complain they did not promote their different school well enough, and yeah a school where there are not more than 25 children at a time (the school seems to have very well optimized on the human as well as spatial resources) where they grow up and learn as one community of budding learners. At strength so less as 10-12 per classroom the children be on nodding acquaintance with everyone including their aunt (or mentor).

Mentoring/learning with too many students at any one time becomes impersonal and mechanical. I know I am a product of impersonal and mechanical school. So, I fell in love with this so-called different school at the very first sight and without a second thought secured admission to our kid. After all, I believe one-on-one is the best way to impart education to a budding learner and I am convinced that this different school, Gnana Vahini(literally means carrier of knowledge) is going to do a world of good to the bundle of joy we are proud parents of!