Pavansut: The Monkey God

Food at this restaurant is nothing to get excited about but when in
New Orleans you are dying for the taste of Indian food, Taj Mahal is
one of the few options available to you.
Sunil Joshi
609-902-9108

From Kids & Toys B/W

Princeton is full of green spaces - one just has to look around to realize this. Yet, when it comes to outdoor recreation we tend to vear towards the true and tried. This resource is for any one who is interested in exploring the outdoor opportunities more broadly.

Website on Local flora and fauna

http://princetonnaturenotes.blogspot.com/

Local area trails

http://www.walkthetrails.org is a book published by Sophie Glover and describes local trails in detail and with pictures!

http://www.njtrails.org A local organization that maintains trails in the state of NJ. The website has trails by county making it easier to navigate and find what you are looking for.

http://www.dandrcanal.com/ The Delaware and Raritan Canal provides miles and miles of pleasurable walking across the 175 year old canal. Check out the website - its choke full of information. The canal also has a blog which provides timely information on upcoming activities. http://www.dandrcanal.blogspot.com/

Every once in a while you stumble upon a music that just makes your day. This is one of those times! I spent the afternoon listening and dancing to this music with my little 8 month old who was squealing with delight.

Listen and then download to listen some more.

Great work Alex!

For those interested, here is the soundcloud website
http://www.soundcloud.com/jinja-ninja

and here is Alex's website
http://www.jinja-ninha.co.uk

Clare Bear (June 2009)  by  Jinja Ninja

Ever since I have used the earliest of Macs, I had always had the question of who designed the Apple logo, and why? Today as I was browsing some exchanges on Tidbits, I came across this interview of Rob Janoff, the designer who gave the world the original Apple logo. Its interesting to learn how Rob came upon designing various aspects of the logo, and what he feels about the changes the logo has undergone in the last few years. I myself have been inspired by the simplicity of Apple logo and overall design in designing the logo for my wife's online tea business and her online bespoke shirts business.

Read the interview if you are fascinated by this stuff. Its a must read for marketers whose job it is to design communication tools that humanize our products.

I came across this impressive beetle on my trip to Panama. Any one know what beetle this is? It was about the size of a thumb with some impressive mandibles!!

Just a few months ago, pharmaceutical companies of all shapes and forms declared all sorts of "emerging markets" strategies centering around BRIC, or BRICT. Turns out, the gentleman who coined the term BRIC does not consider BRIC countries to be emerging markets any more! In a WSJ interview published today, John O'Neill said this...
Well, first of all, I should say that I don't really count the BRICs as emerging markets. They are too big for that.
Instead Goldman Sachs has identified 11 other countries that could replace the BRIC. Curiously, WSJ article only gives the names of Nigeria, Iran, Mexico, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Turkey. So I guess BRIC will be replaced soon by NIMVIT......

Of course, just a change in definition does not rob the markets of their potential. BRIC countries are going to dominate the world economic growth for a long time to come and companies would turn a blind eye to the raw potential of these economies at their own peril.

Besides, with pl…

Slovenian a cappella group Perpetuum Jazzile performing Toto's Africa. Close your eyes, turn up the volume and listen to thunderstorm cascade down the plains of Africa! Simply fantastic!

This is my summer reading - an old Tom Clancy book - which I found in a "for sale" bin at the local library. There were so many good books for almost buck-a-piece that in this recessionary economy I have no need to go to a book store. Besides rediscovering the library, I spent just $5 for three really good books, and I can always go back for more!

Fourth of July was a perfect day to discover this hidden pond right in the heart of Lawrenceville, just off Route 1! Its so beautifully tucked behind a strip mall that its almost impossible to discover unless you have some time on hand and wanter to the back of the mall. Can you guess where it is?

Hint: Its close to the old BMS facility - Nassau Park.

Today I was driving by the Rockingham site of General Washington's revolutionary war headquarters in Kingston, and at the traffic light saw a moment to capture the magic of the place in b/w. Jen Rinaldi has a lot many more beautiful pictures on her blog. Its a great place to do some summer photography!

I have to leave for a week long trip to Mexico and Colombia on a business trip. Which got me wondering, how come I don't have a ready list of things to take with me? Today we will change that, with this list of travel gear. This is what I have in my suite case:
Day Wear:
Long sleeve dress shirts - 4 per week
Suites - 2 per week
Dress pants - 1 (can be worn with dress shirt for a semi-formal dinner evening)
Ties - 4 per week
Belt - 1
Dress shoes - 1
Dress socks - 2 pairs
Reading Glasses
Sun Glasses

Casual wear, for evenings and other free time
Casual short sleeve shirts - 3 per week
Casual pants - 2 per week
Shorts - 1
Walking shoes - 1
Socks - 2 pairs
Flip flops - 1 pair
Swimming trunks & goggles

Other essential stuff
Office laptop & charger
Iphone/Cell phone & charger
Reading lightfor the long night flights
Noise reduction headphones (mine are panasonic RP-HC500)
A good travel book (hopefully soft bound)
Camera & lenses
Camera cable to transfer pictures to laptop
Portable tripod (cri…

George Bush's memorable speech moments, courtsey of David Letterman.

Many are aware of this annual meeting called TED where gifted people are invited to share their perspective on the things they do.  TED used to be, and still is, a "By Invitation Only" meeting.  But thanks to modern technology and the ability to share videos economically, TED has made several of their videos available to public for free. 

What a treat this is!  You can mosy over to http://www.ted.com/ and check out their collection of videos.  Its an amazing collection.  Here is a sample. 

Aimee Mullins is a double amputee below the knee and one of the fastest runners in the world.  In this video Aimee share her experiences as a double amputee.  Its a truly inspiring story.

Almost on cue, the right wing Hindu thugs operating under the name of Sri Ram Sena "Army of Lord Ram" has attacked a group of Indian women in the city of Mangalore. The attack was particularly ironical in that the men who were chasing and physically hitting the women were doing it in the name of the Hindu God who is often held up as a model of human behavior!

But such is the nature of religious bigotry. Whether it is the Hindu fanatics of the Army of Ram or Muslim fanatics of the Army of Muhammad (Jaiesh-e-muhammad), religious bigots are the latest threat to secularism and woman's rights in India. The outrage against Sri Ram Sena has been wide spread, but the response of the political class has been deplorable. BJP, which is the fountain head of such religious bigotry, has not condemned the violence - instead opting for the excuse of sending some one to Mangalore to investigate the issue. Congress' response has been tepid too, while other politicians have been …

If only we could bottle myths and sell them... well some one is doing it already!! And making Money at it!! Could it get more ridiculous?
"I am a pattern-finder. The mythologies are stars -- I point out the constellation," he said. "The world of business and the world of our mythological tales are not too different."
Really?? Thank you Mr. Devdutt Patnaik, for enlightening us. Now I can look up Ramayan and Mahabharat for answers to my business problems.

This is no different from the Mullahs suggesting Koran or an evangelist suggesting turning to "Jesus, CEO" for all the answers. Religious books and myths were created to sell stories to the gullible, the uneducated and susceptible. Mr. Patnaik must think that we are still as "anpadh" as the citizenry of the past. Soon, instead of Indian Institute of Management, Mr Patnaik will have us send our children to Indian Institute of Mythology to learn business skills.

India Inc looking for an Indian…

There is a myth perpetrated in India that the Muslim brethren are poorer than the Hindu brethren. It makes a lot of sense to propagate this myth for political purposes, so invariably you will hear this being brought up in the media. However, a recent (by recent I mean 2007) survey by National Council of Economic Research, this myth is blown out of water.
Truth be told, at the national level, Hindus and Muslims are closer than you thought as far as average household income, expenditure, savings and even ownership of select consumer goods go. The report further states that
Hindus and Muslims, at a national level, run neck-and-neck on average annual household income (AHI) of Rs 61, 423 and Rs 58,420, respectively. Or, to put it differently, an average Hindu household has an income of Rs 168 per day, while an average Muslim household earns Rs 160 a day. In rural India, an average Hindu AHI is Rs 49,077 with Muslim close behind with AHI of Rs 47,805. On income parameters, at least, Hind…

Indian Republic Day Celebrations | Credit: B. Mathur

A few moments from now, India will begin celebrations commemorating the adoption of the Indian constitution 59 years ago. Already it is clear that the event will be a somber one. As if Mumbai attacks were not sufficient, the enemies of democracy are once again rearing their ugly head. News reports indicate that last night a few attackers were killed in a fire fight with the police on the road to Delhi. Its being said that the attackers are from Pakistan. But there is little value in pointing this out - Pakistan is likely to deny it as it has always done - and mutual finger pointing will begin.

Indian Republic Day Celebrations | Credit: G. Osan

There is however little benefit in pointing fingers at Pakistan. News from Pakistan indicates that Pakistan is itself roiling in a spasm of militant violence which it is unable to control. The Swat valley, which is known for its natural beauty and cultural links to Buddhism and is …

From Cancun, Mexico | Credit: Sunil Joshi

Above a photo of a window I took in Isla Mujeres, Cancun. The image was modified to give it sepia tone, which some how brings out the "mexican" nature of the window.

I doubt if there is a soul in United States that has not heard of Cancun. Cancun is the playground of US, especially the US young who tend to flock to Cancun during Spring Break. Then, the beaches are filled with 18 to 22 year olds, who go about enjoying the beaches giving little thought to the real Cancun. For the only Cancun known to most Americans, is the strip of land that surrounds Laguna Nichupe and has some of the most beautiful beaches. This strip is nothing but a small section of paradise created in the image of American luxury for the tourists and does not at all give on the indication of the real life Cancunians live beyond this strip of Americanized land.

The town of Cancun is only 20 minutes away from the "strip", and has a pier where one c…

A PhD student Danah Michele Boyd has decided to make her PhD dissertation public. Makes for an interesting reading on the topic of Teenagers and their interaction on social networks like MySpace and Facebook. Download it for free here

TakenOutOfContext.pdf

There is something miraculous about birth of a baby. On January 16th, just such a miracle occurred when Jiya came into our lives. Tiny Jiya, weighing all of 4.4 lbs, came into this world 3 weeks early and immediately proceeded to raise quite a ruckus. Crying at the top of her lungs, Jiya declared to the world "I may be tiny, but I have giant ambitions!!"

From Birth of Jiya | Photo: Sunil Joshi

Mom Madhu, on the other hand, was quite exhausted. She had requested an epidural, but Jiya wasn't willing to wait for Dr. Williams to show up. So pain or no pain, Madhu had to bring Jiya into this world! Fortunately, the delivery was a swift affair - we reached the hospital at 3.30 AM, and Jiya arrived at 5 AM.

From Birth of Jiya | Photo: Sunil Joshi

Badi sister Jaya is THRILLED!! Jaya just does not want to leave Jiya alone! Last night I some how managed to convince her to return home to sleep. But tonight Jaya is not going any where. She wants to be in the hospital w…

I am posting an article by my wife Madhu that she wrote on her weblog Chaiwallah, on Jaya Teas website jayateas.com. Sankranti or Uttarayan is a great cultural aspect of India, and was celebrated just yesterday on 14th January.

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Kite Flying on Sankranti Day.
By Dr. Madhulika Pareek-Joshi

My sister Anuradha Flying Kite in Ahmedabad | Photo Credit: Bhadresh Shah |

This morning my mother, who is staying with us for a few months, called out from the kitchen, "Wake up Madhu, today is Sankranti".

Just the word "Sankranti" brought back memories of my childhood, flying kites. No, it wasn't kite flying really, it was more like kite fighting!

Kite Fighting or kite running as it is popularly called, is a sport that is enjoyed all over India, but especially so in Ahmedabad where I was born and raised. And Sankranti, which is also called Uttarayan, is a special day when the sky of the city is covered with colorful kites all over.

When I was growing up, m…

From Cancun, Mexico | Photo credit: Sunil Joshi |

From Madhu's Babyshower

You should read this and believe that not every one in Pakistan thinks and acts like the crazed militants. There is a large group of ordinary, educated Pakistanis who are sick and tired of being unable to live ordinary lives. Kamran Shafi takes the power brokers to task for making irresponsible statements and defending the undefendable actions of the militants.

Quoting Der Speigel, where ISI DG Pasha's comment that Taliban be allowed the "freedom of speech" to spout their message of militancy raised old suspicion that the ISI is playing a double game, Shafi responds like this...

As it should arouse suspicion, because the Taliban don’t only say what they ‘please’; they also behead and shoot as they ‘please’, and cut off other people’s ears as they ‘please’. Just as they cut off the ears of five tribal elders belonging to a peace committee in Khar the other day.

It is hardly a matter of their ‘freedom of opinion’, because their freedom of opinion extends to blowing up sch…

From Blogger Pictures

Indian Republic Day will be celebrated on 26th January

So we finally have the admission, that Ajmal Kasab, one of the terrorists who attacked Mumbai is indeed from Pakistan. And the man who shared this admission with the world, Pakistan's National Security Advisor (NSA) Mahmud Ali Durrani, paid dearly for his honesty. He was fired forthwith by Prime minister Gilani!

If there was a case of being in denial, none is clearer. For a country on the verge of implosion, it is astounding that Pakistan should still behave as though pronouncements of innocence will clear them of their responsibility. Durrani's firing is just the freshest example of the ongoing struggle within Pakistan about how to deal with India after Mumbai attacks.

Fortunately, there are a few in Pakistan who would like to move the country off its current disastrous course becoming an international pariah. On the other hand are the hard liners who view that Pakistan state's raison d'être is to stand against India - at any cost, including self destruction. …