Which one do I buy?

Well I was planning to buy a new camera and the obvious Question that popped in was... which one do you go for... CANON or NIKON...

So I went to many of the review sites... comparing the two entry level SLR camera... the Canon EOS1000D and a Nikon D 60...

The Standard Kit comes with an 18-55 mm lens... for Nikon it is a VR lens... and for Canon it is a ES lens...

The irony is that in most cases... you'd never be able to figure out which one... for both these brands are run very strongly by loyalists... if you used a Nikon before... you'd be stuck to one forever... and if you used a Canon... it's Canon for you

For me it was very important to be either Canon or Nikon, didn't matter any other manufacturer so I can't comment on the Sony or Olympus...

Now the only way out is to go into the shop and try them both...

So I went to couple a shops and tried both the 1000D and the D60... and I can say that the Nikon D60 felt the best in my hands and the built-in quality of the materials was higher than the others...

The only thing Canon is loaded is with the "Live View" feature whilst the Nikon offers you with the ability to store picture in multiple format and the "In Camera Image Editing with Retouch Menu"...

Anyways...

On the overall I preferred a Nikon D60...

The Unborn

I think Hollywood directors need to be re-trained on how horror movies are to be made... coz this one... is as bad as it can get... I was bored in the first 20 mins of the movie... and had to drag through the remaining...

To be honest, I was constantly telling myself... if ur not act at least act scared, that might help to add... but nah... the movie was as bad as it gets...

I'm still to find pace with the story... in fact I'm still searching for whatever the director wanted to show...

Such a waste of time...

Damn...

Rating : 1/10

Terminator Salvation

Before I start to write...

This is probably the only Action movie... (the only Terminator movie to be rated PG-13)...

Now that sets the tone... Call me biased if you wan to... but I don't think any of the four in the series can match what was in T2...

To be very honest... it was like watching the lost world after having watched the jurassic park for the first time... yes it bored me...

To begin with... the characters weren't strong enough to hold the story.... let alone... the story doesn't hold too strong for me... the plot too simple to create any interest... of the action scenes... probably just one or two things that I liked in the two hours of pain (the cyborg being casted out as Arnold was one amongst them)...

In simple words... disappointing for me

Overall rating: 3.5/10

The Legend

I've been a fan of this man ever since and this post has been long overdue... and by long I mean really long... coupla years may be...


Andre Agassi is one of the greatest tennis players of all time. A
professional player since the age of 16, Agassi has won many
tournaments. He will go down in history for winning all four Grand Slams.

I really want to write everything I know of him, everything I learnt, everything he stands for... but I'd let this picture do the talking






Click on the picture


His retirement Speech:
"The scoreboard said I lost today,” Agassi told the crowd. “But what the scoreboard doesn’t say is what it is I have found. Over the last 21 years, I have found loyalty. You have pulled for me on the court and also in life. I found inspiration. You have willed me to succeed, sometimes even in my lowest moments.

“And I’ve found generosity. You have given me your shoulders to stand on, to reach for my dreams, dreams I could never have reached without you. Over the last 21 years, I have found you, and I will take you and the memory of you with me for the rest of my life.”

AND THATS WHAT LEGENDS ARE MADE OFF...

What makes someone more special is, when you not only factor in for what you gain, but also of what you lose...

badass 1 for the day

Cpla lines that are stuck in my head today

Do you bury me when I'm gone?
Do you teach me while I'm here?
Just as soon as I belong,
Then it's time I disappear.

This above is a song by Metallica...

and this if rephrased is so in tune with my life...

Rephrased version:
Do u bin me when I'm gone
Do you pretend me, while I'm here?
Just as soon as I feel I belong,
Then it's time I disappear...

Another one of my million and more...

It is often said,
"Everything will be fine at the end of the story. And if it's not fine, it's not the end."

Just one question...
What about all those which are meant to be, "incomplete story"?

one for the day

"It isn't what you have, or who you are, or where you are, or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about."

Uninvited - Five minutes to heaven

It's been some time since I wrote a movie review, courtesy extended hours at workplace, but then again, the passion never dies off...

Coupla movies I saw in this busy days.. (keeping it short)

1.Five minutes to heaven


Not gonna say too much for this movie... I liked it... simple but yet so compelling...
one should watch...

Just one more line... the psyche of the protagonist and the victim has been shown so brilliantly... j

Raint:7.5/10


2. Uninvited:



In one line.... superb performances by everyone... but wasted in this movie...
I jsut learnt this that this one was supposed to be scary... I can buy in spooky... but scared... NAH...
I like the way it all began and also liked the ending... however, contextually, I missed out on everything in between... or may be the surprise ending is that did that missing out in the middle part... the middle looks so ordinary ... esp with that ending, may be everything in the middle looks so substandard... you just realise there is so much more that could have been done...

anyways...
my verdict: Watch it if you've got nothing else to do
Rating : 5/10

SARATH BABU

The following is a mail that was forwarded to me by my classmate... this is in refernce to one of his classmates contesting in LOK SABHA POLLS...

*************

Dear Friend,
A dorm-mate of mine from IIM Ahmedabad (2006 Batch), Mr. Sarathbabu is contesting the LOK SABHA polls from South Chennai. He announced this in a press meet held on 10th April. It was covered extensively by the print media and TV channels like NDTV, Vijay TV.
You can know all about him by visiting his site : www.sarathbabu.co.in
or directly get his brief profile here : Sarathbabu Profile (Best viewed in Internet Explorer 6.0 and above)
His election symbol is the SLATE. His symbol and picture are attached with this email.
He was born in a slum of Chennai. So on passing out of IIMA, he had set up a food business to create employment, and today his success stories can be found over the net. His business currently supports over 250 families.
All of us do our bit to support the country in some way or the other, he has decided to work towards changing the society at large by hoping to join politics as an independent candidate. I certainly believe here is an opportunity to change somethings in India.
His 10 missions are:

• Hunger free India
• Improved education for all by improving both curriculum / infrastructure and access to schools
• Strong youth forums to increase citizen awareness
• Effective government plans to develop slums and small scale enterprise
• Increase employment by conducting job fairs and encouraging entrepreneurship
• Women empowerment by opening bank accounts for all women
• Security and support programs including high quality healthcare facilities for senior citizens
• Enhanced town planning as per international standards
• Focus on improved water, sanitation and emergency facilities in all residential areas.
• Increase environment awareness by promoting campaign to plant 60 trees a day in Chennai South

You can have a look at his detailed and structured one-page manifesto here : http://sarathbabu.co.in/in/manifesto/

Request you to kindly provide Sarath (sarathbabu.southchennai@gmail.com) information about your contacts in South Chennai. This shall help him reach out and seek votes. I would request you to forward this mail address to all people who can help Sarath.
I support him in this drive and shall appreciate, if you could too.

Here is a snapshot about him:
"Developed Indians are what we need for a developed India" - E. Sarathbabu

SARATHBABU - NOMINEE FOR SOUTH CHENNAI LET'S CHANGE NOW!

- from my friend SOM

One for the day-

"if everything arnd you is f*cked up, imagine for the worst that could have happened and if you still unhappy... jackass(/female jackass)!!! you ain't thinkin hard..."

One for the day

"For most times, he does leave us with a silver lining, but we always have the option to paint it on the rest of them..."

(something i scribbled in a sms to a friend this morning)

Keep smiling...

B.O.D

benefit of Doubt...

helps u to let go of the unwanted... and hold on to... what is important...

IPL T20 - 2009

Y'day was the first day of IPL, and believe me I got bored... last yr it began with McCullum hitting as many sixes and the records began to topple... but y'day both the matches lacked fire power...

Sachin was being appluaded by everyone... for the balanced game he played and so was Rahul... but my friend... if I need a balanced game I'd see a 50 over match... If I want to see class, technique and patience... TEST Match... but when I see 20-20, I want to see BIG SHOTS... I don't want to see how well you can defend or judge a ball by letting it go past the off stump.... either the ball should be hit outside the rope or on to the stumps... else it's B-o-r-i-n-g.

Just hope it gets better as the season progresses...

Anyways I've decided to not waste too much time of mine on IPL's this season...

the accused are innocent...

I've worked in four companie and had the chance to travel through out India and a few countries outside as well... and of these four companies, different cities and the few countries... there has been one thing common...
"ppl accuse bongs for being too regionalisitic and the ones who leave a closed life amongst themselves"(bong-banagali ppl)

They'd break in to bengali at the first instance, irrespective of where they are, and who they are... all they need is the other person to be able slightly comprehend the language...

Why is it an issue... coz everyone who is not a bong has made it an issue... well ask anyone of this and there are atleast a few in every place who'd have this accusition on the tip of his/her tongue... I bet you'd agree with me of this... you cannot, cannot deny me of this... unless of course you are a bong and you've lived your entire life on the other side...

:)

By the way I agree of the fact too... they do break up in to bengali in split seconds...

But the why am I against the accusition... coz if it's true for a bong... it's true for everyone else too...

I'm surrounded by multi ethnic ppl... ppl from differnet countries... ppl from the same country but different regions... and we all do speak in our language of comfort the minute, they find a scope...
for eg. the amrathis only prefer to speak in marathi amongst themselves... the punjus do the same... forget everyone I prefer speakin in my mother tongue... but... undil a few days back... I'd also be amongst the many who'd call on on all the bongs for doing so... but not anymore...

:)

And they ask for ...

1 . "WHATEVER"

Men: What should we have for dinner?

Women: Whatever..

Men: Why dont we have Mexican?

Women: No not Mexican, the last time i got pimples on my face

Men: Alright, why dont we have Si Chuan cuisine

Women: Yesterday we ate Si Chuan, today too?

Men: Hmm..... I suggest we have seafood

Women: Seafood is not good

Men: Then what do you suggest?

Women : Whatever.. :-))

2. "ANYTHING"

Men: So what should we do now?

Women: Anything

Men: How about watching a movie? It's been a long time

Women: Watching movie is no good, it's a waste of time

Men: How about we go for bowling, or some exercises?

Women: Exercise on such a hot day?

Men: Then find a cafe' and have a drink

Women: I am off caffeine

Men: Then what do you suggest?

Women: Anything :-))

3. "YOU DECIDE"

Men: Then do we just go home

Women: You decide

Men: Lets take the bus, I will accompany you

Women: The Bus is dirty and crowded.

Men: Ok we will take a cab

Women: Not worth it... for such a short distance

Men: Alright, then we can walk. We can enjoy the weather

Women: I am hungry, can't walk?

Men: Then what do you suggest?

Women: You decideMen: Let's have dinner first

Women: Whatever...

Men: Eat what?

Women: Anything

:)

The Fast and the Furious (2009)

To begin with I liked what I saw...
It's may be due to multiple reasons... a) the movie was actually that good...b) dearth of good movies... still to decide...
But I liked it
A lot of action, a dash of drama, common-sense in dialogues... not so common these days...
Fast cars... is what I went to see and I saw them... the revving up of shelby was the best shot in the entire movie

The good part is, it does manage to marry off the trilogy together... only to a certain extent though but yes it does...
AS per the plot and all... don't bother questionnin me on all that... I dinn go to the movie for that... the movie makes sense only when viewd on a big screen with a dolby surround...

Rating: 7/10 in theatres and 5/10 if at home...

A song that was forwarded to me by my colleague...

http://video.google.co.uk/videoplay?docid=-3059808438996990499&hl=en

"Homer says and I speak"

A quote from Simpsons,
"The problem in the world today is communication. Too much communication."-Homer...

Precisely....
If you are a follower of Simpson's, you'd definitely know how SMART he really is... but for this one statement he made... though the context was completely different... I somehow do have to give the credit to him... ( by him, I mean MAT GROENING)...



Have you ever given a serious thought about this? What is really wrong with the world... is actually not you and me... it is the media... it is the communication... don't get me wrong... even write now, through this blog... M trying to communicate... M a big fan of communication...



but, what upsets me... are a few of the channels... few media sources... few magazines... the newspapers... everything which is limiting its own self and hence limiting our knowledge on the subject to mere interpretation of what they want to see... how they want us to see...


And yes the overkill they do on each every thing... just to make sure they hang on to the hype of "SENSATIONALISM"...



HAVEN'T YOU EVER HEARD 'TOO MUCH OF ANYTHING IS BAD'...
A few recent examples of what we hear in the name of 'Sensation'...
-a full day coverage on Pigeons who suffered coz of the 26-11 on India TV...
-a boy falling in a pit "the prince story"... oh cummon... haven't you fallen in a pit as a kid... and considering INDIA... this might as well be the story of every ten blocks... three days of national coverage... the boy's entire life (education etc.) is sponsored cause of the media hype... coz all everyone wanted to latch on to it in someway or another... ONE LUCKY FALL, I must say...
-Amitabh Bachchan falling sick and being admitted... god he's a 63+... Guys... no one guarantees a 100% health for a 25 yr old these days.... to bother so much about him...
beat this, a news flash reading, "Amitabh suffering from COLD"... who cares... man... really who cares... for all this crap...
-Aishwarya Rai spotted in a Temple... what the heck wass that... and Why should I know of it, when she visits the temple... when she goes for her honeymoon... how many times did she say I Love You on a V-day to Abhishek... or if she does a strip dance in public... (OK... about last one I need to know... but other than that... don't give a sh*t abt it/her)...
-Oh just remembered... there was a news coverage on a 'CAT' being stuck on a window roof... GOD...
-We have interviews of chai-wallas, rickshawwallas... anything and everything goes...

And these are just a few Top of Mind recalls... there are more of these... infact if u visit the recent archives of any news channel... or newspaper house... it is loaded with only these... and everyone who follows news would know... I hate the way they keep dumping us with more and more of this crap... on a daily basis... and we never get chance to react to the old ones...

For instance... we are still to take action against the 26-11... we are still to take action on the margao blasts... where is the corrective action for the train collisions...


Where is the news on... NORTH EAST INDIA... have we totally forgotten these places... specially when survival is next to impossible in these regions... CHINA is eating up on the entire north east... and we bloody don't care... army men dying on hourly basis... that doesn't get reported... Sikkim is a lost state... for most parts we need permission to move from the neighbouring country to visit... and we don't report of all this... I mean... wtf...


We are fed with absolute crap on a daily basis... an overdose... of every other thing, but of what is important in real...



We even have an entire day dedicated to who is dating Katrina Kaif... or why did Kareena leave whoever it was... and if Saif tatooed her name or not... I mean... giving us absolute bull shit to read... to view... I mean...


I remeber, about 15-20 years back... we had doordarshan... and the news then was so bland... with pure reporting of whatever is happening in plain terms.... with a follow up on what happened on what was reported the day before... I agree it was dead boring... but News is supposed to be boring... we had more streamlined process... u wanted to read about film world... pick up filmfare or glamour... and now... with all the technological upgrade... weren't we supposed to grow better...



With an overdose... on each topic... I think we are forcefully subjected to think in a manner... that they want us to... instead of letting us have/form an opinion on our own... we are being tamed to their beliefs... their ideas... and to react in a way they want us too...



Anyways... to THINK of it...
"we have 'TOO MUCH' of the 'TOO LITTLE' of what we ought to know"