Gmail: Inbox Size Growing !

You might have noticed the gmail welcome page (if you have not set it to automatically log you in every time you key in www.gmail.com). Among many other things, a number is printed somewhere in the left mid of the screen. For me, it says 2757.***** MB (and still counting) and soon it changes to a number 5200.***** MB (and still counting)

Why this happens everytime, shouldnt be a concern to us, coz we know the actual storage size we have is the bigger number. So we should be happy about it. Let google engineers figure out why it prints 2500 odd MB's short, in the first place :)

The interesting point is not this. Yesterday, after having finished all the 'required-to-be-read' mails, and having re-set the 'number of unread mails' to the reset value of '516', I logged out of gmail. There it is, the welcome screen. The ticking caught my attention. Now that I have got nothing else to do, counting the MB's getting added was a good enough thing to do. (Our ancestors used to spend time in a similar fashion - counting the waves at the seashore. Computer was an unfamiliar word then!)

So, the ticking rate....lets talk about that.
Forgetting the 'lower significant bits', and concentrating only the first 2 digits after the decimal point (5200.**), it increments by .01 MB every 30s
That is .02MB per minute
0.1MB per 5 minutes.
1MB per 50 minutes.

Lets be a little liberal, and give 10 more minutes for google to plug 1MB hard disk into our account.

Hence it becomes 1MB added per user for every 1 hour !
If you forget to check gmail one day, and check the next day, you should not be surprised to see 24 MB added to your account! Over a week, 100MB would get added without doubt.

It is Nov 25 today. 5 weeks to a new year.
And at the end of the year, your gmail would smile at you with 5700MB of storage space (if not more) at your disposal :-)
Lets see !

Tail:
1. At the gmail welcome page, even if you unplug your n/w cable (disconnect from internet), you still see the numbers ticking :-P
2. These pages may make an interesting read -> official , unofficial

Voice of India, Nach Balliye and Other Dramas

What is all black and blue, and makes you take out your gun ?
No no.. its not Saawariya.
I was referring to 'Voice of India'.

The cheerful lit-up face of Shaan used to be a good sight to watch. But off late, I dont know if this talented singer-turned-anchor is smiling or crying - seeing all the marketing gimmicks in front of him. Or......is he too a part of this boring dama? There is a Thick Fair Chance!

It was not very long ago, that I wrote about Abhijit - why he is a good singer, and better of behind a playback microphone, and why he shouldnt try his luck at other 'unfamiliar' territories. Is he sitting on those fancy black rotating chair to get an oscar for himself ?

And then there is the bubbly cheeky Alka Yagnik who is visibly not at ease delivering those funny lines in praise (or otherwise) about the contestants.

There are many other faces (I dont know their names). They sit disciplined on their allocated chairs while the singing goes on, but the moment it is over, one of them (they take turns) run to the stage (to get more audience visibility?) and lift the contestant (in an attempt to get India a gold at the next Asian Games Weightlifting Competition)

And once while surfing channels, I found this contestant (Ishmit) there on the stage with a slightly bent back and dropped head. He is sick and "Doctors have strictly advised him not to sing". Apparently, he has watched Shahrukh Khan's Kal Ho Na Ho, and tried to do best justice to his 'im-gonna-die' performance on the stage. Another Oscar nominee

These days, I find only 2 persons singing. Rest are eliminated, I guess. The contestant number 2 (Harshit?) has this expression on his face, which reminds me of a baby's discomfort in wet nappies. An ardent imitator of Babul Supriyo (who, in turn, is a xerox of Kumar Sanu (who, in turn, had been accused of a Kishore Kumar copy)) once forgot the lines of "Kya yehi pyaar hai". He got stuck at this line "Pehle mein samjhaa...". But to add to the drama, he made the orchestra team work for their money, and made them play the same music 4-5 times, till he got the lines correctly with help from Alka Yagnik etal. Interesting!

This reminded me of the stupid drama which had happened in Nach Balliye. As narrated to me by a friend of mine, the sure-shot first prize aspirants "forgot" the next step, and stood blank on the stage. Good that they (and others) are veteran serial/movie actors, they could have enacted it out very well. Total bakwaas.

And these days, Bipasha Basu and John Abraham have no other work, than to go and laugh, applaud and speak out already-rehearsed set of lines at these reality(?) shows. I saw them in a dance reality show (Nach Balliye) the other day, and then on Voice of India recently. And John forgot to put on his shirt. He had come in a banyan.

I should confess that the participants of VoI have real good talent. The drama part could have been done away with, but perhaps, the show packers thought otherwise.

One good thing that happened on TV recently was 'Kal Ho Na Ho'. Of course its an umpteenth re-telecast, but a good entertainer throughout.

I've got something to tell about Idea Star Singer (Asianet) and about the failed attempt by the competitor channel (Surya) by coming out with a similar show. Later...

Happy Diwali !

May your life be as lit up as the image above.
Let this Diwali be a special one. Have a nice vacation, every one.

I'm off to native today (Wednesday) evening.
Back on Tuesday morning.
5 days @home :-)

Diwali: Be An Angel

Festivals are about bringing joy to oneself and to the people around you. And this diwali would count among the most enjoyable celebrations I ever had. We spent half a day with cute little kids. Kids who do not crib. Kids who never complain. Kids who are happy, always.

Early at 9 in the morning, we, a team of 15, started off to "Annai Sandhya" - an orphanage close to Hosur. With us, we had a lot of goodies - school bags, water bottles, pencils, pencil boxes and other basic amenities - to be distributed among the kids. I thought, it would just be a give-and-come deal. But the half day spent there wasnt enough, in the end!

Annai Sandhya is the noble idea of Mr Alwin Thyagarajan and his wife Mrs Jayashree. They started this social venture as early as in 1993. "Annai Sandhya" is a registered NGO. But gets no help of any kind - financial or otherwise - from the Govt. The day-to-day activities of the orphanage run, courtesy of well-wishers and helping hands.

Kishore has been associated with Annai Sandhya since a long period of time. It is through him that we came to know about the NGO. And soon a mailer floated at our BU level. The BU-ites took it in good spirit, and contributed freely, with their time and money. Thanks to them and to
the volunteers, we collected a good amount. Bags and other goodies were bought over the weekend. And a charged up team of 15 reached Annai Sandhya, with hand-full of gifts and chocolates to the eagerly-waiting young lads.

We reached the place at 9.45. The image of an orphanage that I had in my mind was totally brought down when I saw the building. Soon I realised that the luxury of single room with attached rest-room is for the priveleged class. What we found there was a small house-converted-orphanage. A kitchen, a hall, a bed room. Thats all! The kids were nicely dressed up and seated in the hall.

We were greeted with a fresh "Good Morning Uncleeee" "Good Morning Auntyyyy" , sung in chorus :-)

It was a while, since I had heard this style of Good Morning, after the good old school days. The kids mingled very freely with us. Kishore uncle was very much familiar to them. They made friends with new 'uncles' and 'aunty's. Language was no bar, because it was a conversation between hearts.

The kids chanted their prayer song for us. After that, quickly, a cassette player was arranged, and two kids danced for their guests. A well choreographed performance ! Graceful and cheerful show...

Two hours went in quick time. All kids got their favorite color water bottles from Sruthi aunty and Swetha aunty. Nandha uncle cut and distributed the cakes. Nehal aunty gave gifts and chocolates to everyone. Everyone posed with full face smiles for a group photo.

When we came out, we realised, they were not to be tagged 'orphans'. They have their appa (Mr Thyagarajan) and amma (Mrs Jayashree). They have strong bonded friendship with each other. They enjoy playing inside the confined space of their small room, and jump up and down when friendly uncles come to visit them.

While parting, Prabhu held my hand with both his hands, and asked "Uncle, when will you come next time?". That was true innocent love. I couldnt but say "I'll come. I'll come for sure."

Tail:
1. It was my first visit to an orphanage. Offering anonymous financial support is good. But being there and spending time with them is better!
2. The kids get free education from a nearby Govt School. They say its not of any considerable standard. But something is better than nothing!
3. The kids who danced for us were elegant and smart! They gave a professional feel to the performance.
4. The youngest of the lot is 3 yr old and is the pet to all. His name is Sankara, but has a nick name 'Lalu Prasad' for his resemblence with a minister of the same name :-)
5. In case you feel like giving any aid, I can volunteer to co-ordinate.. Posting a comment here is all is required to initiate this..
6. The BU initiative was held in the name 'Be An Angel'. Hence the blog title! The mail that floated for 'Be An Angel' read something like this. "Every child has the right to be fed, to be educated, to be healthy... And you can make it happen! Be an angel to a child, this Diwali and light the diya of happiness in his life.."
7. A couple of pics..

The dancers


Innocent smiles :-)

What made my day today !

Details coming soon...

OPT: Jab We Met

I was still in a discussion with team, when Geo called up and shot this qn "Jab We Met, 10PM?"
Bang went the reply "Fixed"

Assigned the task of gathering the ppl to Bin. Reached Pluto by 8.30. Made sure we wont starve after the movie. Dinner was kept ready for a late serving. Started off by 9.40 for (yet-another) hi-speed drama to crashland into Innovative.*

Geo-Sha are already there, with the desparate look on Sha's face. Geo is smiling as always. Gas had also reached, flashing his nokia 1108 in one hand his nokia color phone on the other.

NO TICKETS for Jab We Met.

What next ?
'No Smoking' ? Nayyyyyyyyyyy
'Mumbai Salsa' ? Not enuff votes for it.
'Bhool Bulaiyya' ? Dint we watch that last week ? O hyeah !

So what next ?!

In a spontaneous instantaneous stump stuna stock move, Rat and Sow picked Geo and poised him horizontal to ground at a reasonable height. And even whle his wife was watching, banged him left write onto his back. Geo dint get a clue, and lost count after 10. It was only after Bin greeted him "Happy Birthday", that he realised, this 'sweet wish', in front of the thick-crowd gathered at the movies was for his Birthday. :-)
His Bday was on Oct28. The kicks were delayed a little bit. But then, he got it with "interest"
:-D

After this drama, packed back home.
Dinner..
TV..
Zz.......


*Tail:
1. Even while we were just a km from Pluto, Geo had called up to tell, "No Tickets" :-D But we decided not to apply brakes, just for the fun of it :-P