India's National Flower comes under attack!!

Everything that is ancient, historical and related to Sanatana Dharma or Hinduism in India seems to be wrong in the opinion of scientists, secular politicians, forward thinking individuals. The media takes pleasure vicarious pleasure in bashing Hindus and Hindu practices at every possible pretext. Well this time it is India's National Flower and one of the most auspicious flowers for Hindus that is coming under attack. I read this newsreport on Times Of India in which the newspaper's reporters state that cultivation of Lotus plants are responsible for death of several tanks in the Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu.

According to the article the lotus flower has become a menace in Kanyakumari, causing havoc to dozens of ponds and tanks depleting the ground water and thus leading to unbalancing the fragile ecology of the district. And these facts were revealed by none other than the Chairman of Nature Trust and a former principal scientist of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, R S Lal Mohan.

Since it comes from an eminent scientist I would say these findings might be true. But with Sonia Gandhi at the helm of the central government and a pro-Christian, anti-Hindu government in place in Tamil Nadu, I wonder if the research has been fixed?

The newsreport goes further to say that there were 3,500 tanks in the district during 1960s and about 1,050 had perished due to weeds and that weed is Lotus. I never knew that Lotus was a weed, and why does the eminent scientist refer to this as a weed and say that it has been cultivated in the same breath. When a plant is cultivated it ceases to be a weed, this is common sense. Weeds which destroy lakes are species of Water Hyacinth which thrive on surface of water and destroy lakes by cutting out oxygen supply. Lotus leaves also cover surface of water but they don't grow so dense and thickly as Water Hyacinth.

I wonder why scientists, governments, politicians, missionaires always tend to pick on Hindu practices, icons and beliefs constantly?

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Empowering Women or Putting them in dangerous situations?

I came across this small newsreport on MSN with a screaming headling "HC allows women to work in bars, Karnataka to challenge order". Naturally interested in the happenings at my home state I started reading the article which spoke about a High Court judgement which clearly stated that women may be allowed to work in Bars as hostesses so long as they are not directly serving alcohol. Though employing women in bars has been prohibited in the Karnataka Excise Act, the High Court judges were of the opinion that this rule went against the constitution of India.

Quite expectedly the state government is not happy about the judgement. The government feels that women's safety is being compromised while working in places where alcohol was being served. The government has decided to move Supreme Court to challenge the High Court order.

There are several arguments in favour and against this issue. Conservative and traditional Indians would obviously be against the idea of women entering or going anywhere near places which serve or sell alcohol. While present generation of teenagers and young women happily guzzle mugs of Beer and shots of cocktails every evening or at least duing weekends. Moreover since the advent of call centers, BPOs and IT industry, women have become far more richer and financially independent than before. Women are taking up vocations such as driving an autorickshaw, buses, trucks etc, mechanics, and lot more. Several professions which were traditionally considered the preserve of men have been slowly but surely taken on by women.

Under such circumstances the government should act as a facilitator and help women storm another male bastian and take on jobs in bars. I would advocate providing women with self-defence training, offering them pepper sprays or even small fire arms such as revolvers and other protective equipment at reasonable prices and educating them about responsible use of these items. This way we will be empowering women rather than dumbing them down.

I am quite sure no man, sober or intoxicated will dare to misbehave with a woman who is physically fit, trained in self-defence and carries a deadly weapon. This is one way to make our society stronger and more balanced. And also like Neil Armstrong said after landing on moon: "One step by a man is a giant leap for mankind". This one step by few women initially would be a giant leap for the entire female population in India.

Well in an ultra-patriarchal society this is quite difficult. Especially when the society at large and government in particular continue to consider women as the "Weaker Sex".

Have phone number? Get all other details here!

When you have a missed call on your mobile phone or at your home phone what do you do? Typically we would look at the numbers and call back to those whose numbers we recognise and ignore the rest. But what if one of those calls we ignored were from someone important and dear to you and whose number you don't know or you have lost touch with? You can only hope that that person will call you back and you could connect. But in most cases people don't do that unless they are really desperate to speak to you.

In such a scenario it is important that we are equipped with something like a reverse phone book through which we could see who the owner of the telephone number from where you had a missed call. But how and where do we find a reverse phone book? It is easy, you just need to go on the internet and visit TraceNumber.com where you type in the telephone and get all the details you need. Details provided include owner's name and address, Phone location, Household members, Phone company and carrier, Line type - landline or mobile and much more. Isn't it a cool service?

You can trace irritating telemarketers, prank callers or people with whom you would rather not speak. Tracenumber services are available for telephone and mobile phone numbers in the US and Canada. And the company guarantees secure transactions, all lookups are 100 percent confidential and will remain between you and the company. So now you know if you want to track down someone and you know their phone number, you can get all the details you want.

Cycling in Castle Hills

Well, it has been quite some time since I sat down and blogged about what's happening in my life. Things are pretty routine, I go to school... or rather should I say "College" in the morning and return back in time for lunch. Then go back to school and finish evening classes and return late in the night. This is the routine for the first four days of the week. Then the weekend starts with Friday for me and it is busy time because there is loads of homework to catch up on, go for roller skating classes, house cleaning, grocery shopping and all kinds of mundane stuff. Last week I fixed the bicycle which we brought from Padma's niece in California and decided to take it out for a spin in the neighborhood. Inflated the tires, tightened the brakes and then wiped the bike clean and took it downstairs to get ready to ride. I had barely ridden half a mile when one of the gear cables snapped. I thought that was the end of cycling but luckily the bike didn't get crippled. We could ride lot more with just five gears instead of 15.

It has been years since I rode a bicycle and this was definitely a welcome change. For I have always loved bicycling and but since I didn't have any recent pictures of riding bicycles I decided to get some shot and here they are. Do let me know what you think... do I look like Lord Ganesha on little rat or normal?

Cycling along the side walk (foot path) in the neighborhood

Another view of cycling, closer this time

Getting closer to the camera

Goofing around on the bicycle

More fun and games

A Place to discuss Cell Phone Technologies

Technology has infiltrated our life so much that without possessing modern gadgetry it is almost impossible to lead a normal life. The Cellphone was the toy of the rich and famous when it was launched, but now everyone has his/ her own, some even have two one for business and one personal. In the past cellphones were only for tlaking but now cellphones do virtually everything, you can send e-mail, browse the internet, listen to music, watch movies, and do a host of other things.

While some technology-savvy folks have adapted themselves quickly to these new changes there are lot of us who are still struggling to learn how to use our fancy handhelds. A new internet website with Cell Phone Forums allows all cell phone users to get together on a single platform and discuss. The forums facilitate people to discuss technology, clarify doubts, exchange ideas and in short learn about how to optimally use their handhelds. This comes as a boon especially to those who were struggling with their ultra-modern cell phones trying to figure out how to do various tasks. Now all one has to do is to register on the forum and ask questions.

Wind Power: The future of power generation

In response to the worldwide fuel and power crisis, we are inventing newer methods of harnessing available sources of energy. Well one of the newer means of power generation which costs relatively lesser and is more environment friendly is Wind Power. Conversion of wind energy into electricity using wind turbines is how wind power is harnessed. I read in the wikipeia that last year (2007) 94.1 gigawatts of power was produced across the world and this is just 1% of the total electricity produced. We still have a long way to go if we have to stop or even considerably slow down use of fossil fuels. But considering the statistics of 2000 the global wind power generation has increased phenomenally (500%).

One of the major sources of wind power is at windy regions where corporations install large numbers of windmills which are connected to turbines which help convert the force of wind into electricity and transmit it to the grid for circulation.

Well why am I blogging about Wind Energy, when I am not even remotely connected to the industry? Let me come to the point now, during my recent California trip, I saw the two extremes of harnessing energy sources. In Texas I saw hundreds of oil and natural gas wells dotting both sides of the highway (I-20) and in California I saw hundreds of windmills in numerous windfarms along the highway. Texas also has potential to establish wind farms but the development has been slow.

Here are some pictures of wind farms I noticed while on road to California.

Wild Flowers of Arizona

One of nature's creations and human modifications that have astounded me, captured my imagination and caught my attention always is the Plant Kingdom. My interest in plants took me towards Botany in my teen and college years. Though I didn't make it my profession, the study of plants has continued to interest me. So whenever I travel I try to capture these subtle life forms and their beautiful inflorescences which are often the subject of poetic verses and descriptions of writers. Anyway I would not like to bore you with eloquent prose too much.

These pictures were shot in the Fort Bowie vicinity in Arizona which I visited couple of weeks ago when we drove to Los Angeles from Dallas.

A caterpillar which is the middle phase of the lifecycle of a butterfly

A flower yet to open up and soak in the light from the sun rays

Ready and receiving light from sun and waiting to germinate and give rise to offsprings

A bunch of bright yellow flowers succeeds in cheering you

The bud is slowly but surely blooming

Slowly and steadily, wider and wider the flower blooms

Bright yellow flowers are seen everywhere in the US during summer months

Enroute we stopped by a pista plantation. I had never seen a pista tree or the how the fruit looks like when raw

And here I am photographing the same for others who have not seen a pista tree laden with fruits or should I say 'nuts'

Great Vacations happen at Moreys Piers

During the recent labor day long weekend I vacationed at New Jersey and it was one hell of a holiday. Apart from the usual sight seeing and visiting shopping malls, hanging out at the watering holes, the best thing about this New Jersey Vacation was a visit to the Morey's Piers Amusement Park, the best in NJ. East coast of the US is quite different from the flat Texas I live in and visiting here was more than a welcome change for me.

Personally I like extreme sports and love to live life on the edge. And I found my nirvana at the Morey's Piers, the fast roller coasters, amazing rides, exciting fun games etc were the best of the New Jersey attractions. One of the unique features of the Morey's Piers is that there is something providing fun and excitement for the entire family, especially children!! The number of thrills, rides and attractions encompassed in the three piers and two waterparks is something that is amazing and even unbelievable until you see it for yourself.

And what is more, at Morey's piers everyday of the week has some special offer associated with it. For example I visited on Monday and there was the "Magical Monday" offer going on. And what happens is that every Monday of this year (the 40th in operation); some lucky Guests will be randomly picked and awarded fun prizes - such as wristband upgrades, free food and games and even special amenities and party packages. Other specials at Morey's Piers include Tues"Day" Time Special ($20); Xtreme Ride Wednesdays ($30); Thirty Dollar Thursdays and Fired up Friday deals for just $20. Now that is a bargain.

While at New Jersey I stayed with my family and so I didn't have to search for hotels, motels in the area. But if I had to I would have to just visit the Morey's piers website which has all the requirements to give you a great New Jersey Vacation. The site provides information on local hotels & motels, attractions, restaurants, nightlife etc.

Summing up I would say that Morey's Piers in New Jersey is one of the best places for not only individuals, youth groups and couples but it is a great location for a family beach vacation. And if you are planning to take a vacation before the winter sets in, Morey's piers should be on the top of your list of options.

Don't just wait and wonder book your tickets and head out for a fabulous, fun weekend at Morey's Piers.

General Patton Memorial Museum, California

During our recent road trip to California, I chanced upon this unique Museum on the freeway. Sited in Chiriaco Summit, California this museum has been put in place in association with the bureau of land management. The General Patton Memorial Museum was established in 1988 to honor all Vietnam War veterans. This unique monument serves multiple purposes for the US government. First the monument sited in the middle of nowhere amidst vast waste lands of US serves as a national tourist attraction and attracts people to stop in this small town. Otherwise nobody would have bothered to stop and take a look at the arid countryside here.

The General Patton Museum

Second since the museum celebrated veterans, the monument holds a special place in the hearts of those with families and friends in the forces. And most of all through this token gesture the government has ensured that war heroes are recognised and honored. This instills a sense of national in the people who visit the place. And every year on the Veterans Day the museum has a big celebration. Entry is free for all veterans that day and all outside entertainment is free for everyone.

Another view of the exterior of the museum

The museum contains two vast indoor exhibit rooms with memorabilia. One dedicated to the US Civil War and the other to the Iraqi Freedom (of course I'd call it US Destruction of Iraq). The museum's media room also shows a 26 minute movie which talks about desert training, General Patton’s life and WWII. Then there is the tank yard outdoor exhibit which displays several tanks and heavy artillary equipment. Notable among the exhibits are a Sherman Tank and Stuart Tank from WWII. And of course in line with US' commerce orientation the museum has a gift shop which sells books on Patton, T-shirts, caps, hats, coins, toys, magnets, patches, pins and more... all made in China.

Patton Tanks on display

The Museum is open on all days between 9.30 am and 4.30 pm; entry costs $4 (12-61 yrs) $3.50 (62 yrs and up). Military personnel in uniform are allowed inside free.

Who is General Patton?
Major General George Smith Patton Jr. U.S. Army, found the inhospitable landscape of Mohave desert enchanting and in early March of 1942 he surveyed the area and decided to establish a training center for desert warfare here. The Army’s rationale was that American forces soon would be required to fight the German enemy in North Africa.

So, Patton, enamored with the area’s endless terrain and superb suitability for armored combat training, established the Desert Training Center in late March, 1942, making his headquarters at Camp Young, near Shavers Summit, (now known as Chiriaco Summit), which today is the locale of the Patton Museum.

The Camps trained nearly 1 million American servicemen and women and was the world's largest military installation in both size and population. But two years after commissioning, on April 30, 1944, camps were ordered to be abandoned. But the legacy of General George S. Patton remains, as manifested in the General George S. Patton Memorial Museum.

Terrorists becoming braver or Indian government becoming more cowardly?

India has been at the receiving end of terrorist attacks since the past two decades, thanks to our hostile neighbors China and Pakistan and various other nations which are hell bent on destabilising our nation. In July 2008 the IT capital of India and my home town, Bangalore, suffered from serial blasts across the city. Luckily the terrorists had placed only low intensity explosives which caused only two deaths.

Within a weeks time another major city in India, Ahmedabad in the western seaboard state of Gujarat was rocked with a set of serial blasts. The Ahmedabad Blasts were by far the most deadly taking a toll of 45 people and leaving over 160 people injured.

And now after couple of months our national capital New Delhi has been attacked, early this morning there were five blasts in crowded areas in the city which has left 30 killed and 90 injured.

Isn't it time the union government took strong action against the root cause of terrorism. Which of course lies in our neighboring country and in the west? Of course people say now locally bred terrorists have taken over from foreign ones and are perpetrating these attacks.

Just imagine for a moment that the blasts had happened in the US capital instead of Indian capital. What would have been the result? US government would have acted immediately and sent their full force to destroy all the terrorist hideouts, suspected terrorists would either be incarcerated or killed. Isn't it time we Indians started to take action instead of just appealing for peace. We have been talking of peace for far too long, it is time to stand up and take action, if necessary use all means.

But then which politician or policy maker or for that matter civilian is bothered about the country. 99 percent of the country's billion plus population is bothered about themselves and their family. So long as the terrorist attacks don't affect their family they live blissfully unaware of what is happening elsewhere in the country. And for politicians more terrorists means more opportunities to appease minorities, create conflicts and make more money at the expense of the exchequer. Arms purchase, upgradation of the police, army etc means lucrative contracts to be awarded to favourite dealers and businessmen. And of course the businessmen will give generous kickbacks in the form of donations to their political parties or any NGOs the unscrupulous politicians are associated with.

I wonder if India will every become a strong and no-nonsense democracy which will be respected and feared by people and nations across the world. Or will this remain a dream of millions of Indians like me....

Smaller motorcycles from Harley Davidson???

Globalisation is changing things across the world and the impact is being felt in the US also. The most favored cult brand in the US or rather I would say the world, Harley Davidson is facing the brunt of the economic downturn in the US. During the 1990s when the US economy was booming the bike manufacturer was the most favoured company of bike dealerships and stock brokers in wall street. But a decade down the line, US is spending billions of $s in fighting two wars half-way across the world and domestically people are grappling with steep increase in gas prices, home mortgage crises, rising unemployment (6.5 percent) and sky-rocketing grocery and food prices. Historically the motorcycle has been a symbol of prestige; a vehicle of pleasure and entertainment in the US and now people are so strapped for money that they are just not riding lesser and lesser as the days pass. The first to be hit in this flagging economy has been the motorcycle behemoth, Harley Davidson. The company has been experiencing sales at snails pace and is planning to cutting back production and laying off workers. Harley-Davidson stock split four times during the 1990s, but the last split was eight years ago, and shares in end-August were priced at $38.78, down considerably from a 52-week high of $55.41 reached in September of last year.

Since the US markets are pretty much saturated Harley Davidson is looking at international markets for sustainance. They are opening dealerships in South American and Asian nations in the hope of drumming up flagging sales. But in Asian countries where roads are narrower than the sidewalks in the US it is difficult to ride the elephantine Harleys. And perhaps for the first time in the history of the company, Harley Davidson is contemplating manufacturing smaller motorcycles. It would be sad to see the big-daddy of motorcycles falling from grace like this.

Oliva's Adobe near Los Angeles

During our recent visit to Los Angeles we took a day off to look around and explore the beautiful countryside. As we drove towards Channel Islands we saw brown signs directing to "Olivas Adobe". The brown sign indicated that it was a state-recognised park or historic site. We decided to take a closer look and detoured off towards the Adobe.

Fountain at the Entrance to Olivas Adobe

Entrance to Olivas Adobe

Main entrance to Olivas Adobe - Another view

Main entrance to Olivas Adobe - Close up

According to the information onsite this is the one of the earliest two-storey Adobe (I guess home or abode) in the Santa Clara river valley. This was originally built in 1837 and expanded in 1849 by Don Raimundo Olivas, a prosperous cattle rancher. This is a California registered historical landmark. There is nothing special about the home/ building except that it is built of brick, mortar and mud and not wood, foam and shingles. The Olivas apparently had 21 children and I must say I admire the woman who spent 21 years of her life giving birth to offspring. She must have been one strong woman.
Antiquated Machinery at the Olivas Adobe

The home with large front, side and back yards is completely self contained, there are classrooms, bedrooms, entertainment rooms and a large playground too. So pretty much I would guess the children were schooled at home. What I found really impressive at the Olivas Adobe is two large plants: a grape vine and a fuchsia bush. According to signboards both these plants were planted in the 19th century and have survived more than 100 years and continue to thrive.

The fuchsia was planted by the 21st child of the Olivas in 1899 and is recognised by the British Fuchsia Society as the oldest, still flowering Fuchsia plant in the world. This plant belongs to the "Schiller" variety and has flowers with white petals around magenta sepals.
Fuchsia Plant

The Grape Arbor was apparently planted in 1860s and still bears bunches of purple grapes and we did pluck and taste a couple. They were sweet and juicy. I am definitely impressed by these plants and the way they have been preserved even after a hundred years.

Entrance to a Golf Course adjacent to Olivas Adobe

Happy Ganesha Chathurthi to all

Tomorrow or rather in a few minutes as the clock strikes 12.00 am the big day starts for adherents of Hinduism like me. It is the festival of Ganesha Chathurthi/ Ganesha Festival, the day when Lord Ganesha, son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati, comes down to earth and blesses his devotees. It is also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi.



Ganesha, the elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati, is widely worshipped as the supreme god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. Students worship Ganesha seeking knowledge, learning and wisdom. Adults worship Lord Ganesha for removal of obstacles in their life and to get good fortune.

Lord Ganesha is also known as Vighneshwara meaning the "removar of obstacles". Devout Hindus always perform a Ganesha pooja before starting any enterprise, work, contract etc, requesting the Lord to remove obstacles in the way and to help achieve their goal smoothly.

The festival begins by installtion and consecration of an idol of Lord Ganesha which is ceremonially worshipped by offerings of Modak (sweet made of jaggery and coconut), fruits and flowers.

While the festival is celebrated all over India, it is most popular in Maharashtra,Goa (Biggest festival for Konkani people all over the world), Gujarat, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Outside India, it is celebrated by Newars in Nepal.

A note of warning though, if anyone catches a glimpse of the Moon on this day, he/ she will face bad luck.

Clicksmart - the best online business directory

In this day and age of convergence there is an overload of information and not all of it is useful. For example a simple search on the internet for anything will throw up thousands of websites as possible matches. It is very difficult to find out which site has the information that you are looking for. I have found it very difficult to find the right property or real estate agent through a plain internet search.

During one of my searches on the internet I visited Click Smart, a unique online directory of professionals, businesses and service providers. On click smart I found the perfect Atlanta realtor who helped me identify and buy the home of my dreams. After that I have used the site for an array of searches and have found it very reliable everytime.

Recently I was looking for a company which executes Landscaping in Atlanta and guess where I went to search for the right option? You got it, I went to clicksmart.com and found the right Atlanta Landscaping company which helped me in my work.

I am completely convinced about the website now and will be depending upon it for any future requirement of real estate or landscaping or related services.

Fort Bowie, Arizona

During our road trip to Los Angeles we stopped by at Fort Bowie in Arizona. This used to be one of the key links in the days of rail road and when the white European invaders were fighting the Native Americans in a bid to take possession of this continent-sized country. Getting to Fort Bowie involves a 1.5 mile walk through a open grassland surrounded by mountains and one has to ford couple of streams too. Paucity of time prevented us from getting to the actual fort but nevertheless we did about 0.5 miles on the trail and retraced our steps. Here are some pictures of Fort Bowie trail..

At the beginning of the Fort Bowie Trail

According to the official site of Fort Bowie National Historical Site, this was the location of immense military action and a location which commemorates the "bitter conflict between Chiricahua Apaches and the U.S. military - a lasting monument to the bravery and endurance of U.S. soldiers in paving the way for settlement and the taming of the western frontier. It provides insight into a "clash of cultures," a young nation in pursuit of "manifest destiny," and the hunter/gatherer society fighting to preserve its existence."

The site further states that this site was the center of military operations between the Native Americans and the European Settlers. Quite expectedly the ill-equipped and simple native americans couldn't stand for long against the well equipped and cunning European forces who forced them to surrender in 1886. Did the Europeans leave the surrendered Native Americans alone? No way, in a bid to further humiliate them and alienate them from their land, the Chiricahuas were banished from Arizona to Florida and Alabama.

If I were to inherit this kind of legacy of ruthless murder, plundering and displacement of natives to take over their land and natural wealth to build settlements, I would be totally ashamed of my history. But here this kind of practice of annihilating entire civilisations, cultures and tribes is celebrated and praised. No wonder these people didn't bat an eyelid while dropping the Atom bomb on Japan during WW II or battering up Iraq recently or supporting Islamic militancy in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other parts of the world.

Anyway coming back to Fort Bowie and its serene nature friendly surroundings. Sited in the southeast corner of Arizona state, Fort Bowie's trails range from 4,550 to 5,250 ft asl, and hosts over 65 mammal, 30 reptile and 150 bird species in the area. The trail passes through tall hills and the vast plains are careted with bushes, shrubs and grasses. The entire national park area hosts 471 plant species including several uniquely different flowers, cacti etc. The highest point in the mountain range and national park is a mountain known as Helen's dome. This is a granite rock formation which was used as landmark by travellers during olden days to guide them to the fort.

The entire area is overrun by several streams which run during monsoon and dry up in the warm summer months. There are numerous boards which warn visitors not to go ahead if it is raining or if the road is flooded etc. Apparently when water flows it is quite dangerous.

The first stream which we crossed enroute Fort Bowie

Another stream crossing, there are boards advising people to turn back if these streams are flowing in full capacity

Beautiful flowering plants dot the trail

Arizona is the state of cacti and this is one of the unique varieties found here

Trail facade.... long way through the wilderness to Fort Bowie

Bright yellow flowers cheer the visitors soul

Another uniquely different cactus plant

A 100% dried up tree on the trail

Remains of old buildings along the fort bowie trail

Overview of the Fort Bowie Trail