Petals!

Here are some terrific articles to read on Twitter for Teachers: 1. http://cooper-taylor.com/blog/2008/08/50-ideas-on-using-twitter-for-education/ 2. http://theory.isthereason.com/?p=2217 3. http://academhack.outsidethetext.com/home/2008/twitter-for-academia/ 4. http://skambalu.edublogs.org/2009/02/14/more-on-twitter/ 5. http://www.chrislott.org/tag/twitter/ 6. http://www.sciencebase.com/science-blog/100-scientific-twitter-friends 7. http://www.digitalang.com/blog/

The first time I heard the songs of Roja, I knew my life and the lives of millions of Indians would never be the same again. Just listening to the song brought alive vignettes of every day life, joys, heartbreaks and everything basically. The music made you connect you with yourself. It made you want to cry. It made you want to sing. It made you want to dive into your inner depths with joy and revisit every moment that made your life worth living. That's just the kind of beginning A.R. Rahman brought alive on celluloid through his music. Time Magazine called the songs in Roja as one of the top 10 sound tracks of all times. He didnt go the way many others did. He didnt swamp himself with people who praised him to the skies. He didnt go around showing off his newfound status. He didnt do anything but plunge more and more into music. In fact, Rahman has always stayed away from publicity. He has tried to be as 'invisible' as possible. At the same time, Rahman revolutionized the...

As some one who loves exotic wines, it is thrilling to see how wine boom is not confined to the Danielle Steel novels one gets glued to. At times, I used to read parts of her novels again and again to read about the wines she described. Another famous writer who loved wines was Ernest Hemingway, who said, "Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing." Let's face it. It's one of the most flavor filled and fulfilling naturall things in the world today. But I am not sure how many Indians really appreciate the exotic tones and textures of wine. Maybe price is an issue or maybe its pairing with Indian cuisine hasnt been in great favor. Whatever it is, there is such a small group of wine lovers that it's just recently that wine has soared in demand. Also, fi...

Recently, I was struck by the 'blog reading bug' and i think its fun to read what people around the world relate to things that are happening around. It makes the world a smaller and much closer place. It ushers in a level of intimacy that definitely breaks so many boundaries. Here is one that got my attention: http://www.blogs.marriott.com/archive/default.asp?item=2319978 No, before you suspect that I am promoting the Marriott, let me clarify. I am not a hospitality student or an employee hoping to move up the ladder in the Marriott but I definitely enjoy reading the blog by Bill Marriott, the CEO of Marriott group. His articles are so interesting without being boring. Nothing spells like a preachy business sermon. It makes sense. Yet, of course i am aware that he is promoting his brand in a most effective way. Still i like to relate to Bill's take on events that are happening around us, be it Obama's win or planning family holidays, things like that.

There is so much talk about the 'microblogging' potential of Twitter and how its just perfect for harnessing work opportunities. Frankly, it went over my head because when I joined Twitter, I didnt really understand how this helps me expand my work related connections. Also, I couldnt figure out why I am using Twitter in the first place. Leisa Reichelt called Twitter as a platform for "ambient intimacy" because it lets people connect with each other regularly without participating too closely in their lives. But when 26/11 happened in Mumbai, I saw how people and even eye witness accounts began to get "tweeted" with pictures even before newspapers got to track those stories. It was amazing how "citizen journalism" became so powerful through Twitter. People get to share the micro-banalities of life by stating what they are doing to the whole social networking world. More and more Twitterers come up with innovative inputs to share useful informati...