The Narcissist Sparrows

Thankfully in Delhi there are still a lot of birds around (the feathery kind). I do my bit to make them feel at home with their morning supply of grains (and water in the summers). It's not that they don't trouble me once in a while.

Today, my friend pointed out that the some of the sparrows had developed a narcissist trait. They perched themselves on the mirror and continued to gaze at their own reflection, occasionally pecking at it, only to move away when disturbed.

I thought of recording it, but I (as always) forgot to charge the camera's batteries. Therefore had to opt for the poorer quality delivered by my cellphone, but there was only one then drooling at herself (just a guess). Here's a short clip.


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A Master's Pic from When He Was Little

The last time I discovered a cricketing hero's childhood photos, I was quite excited and passed it on to the readers of this blog. Today, I found another.



Continuing with the guessing game tradition, guess who? (and for those hooked to television comedy talent shows - pehchaan kaun?)

Not very tough I think, or maybe it is. I'm sure some of you would have seen this photo, even though it isn't as popular as that of a a wavy-haired little Sachin.

Got it? If not, this is the original Little Master when he was actually little.

This photo of Sunil Manohar Gavaskar is sourced from his 1976 autobiography Sunny Days. And the caption accompanying the photograph reads:

Gavaskar 'the baby' cricketer, in leg-guards stiched by his mother and sweater knitted by his grandmother.

And this photo is when he grew up a little more and tied the knot with Marshaniel.

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Incredible Colours of India

Incredible !ndia in a colourful packaging


Charcoal Grey
Have a thirty-six-course banquet cooked for you. Shop for over sixty kinds of tulips. Access e-mail round the clock. All without ever setting foot on land.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


Mustard Yellow
100% recyclable. 100% bio-degradable. 100% self-sufficient. 100% rural tourism.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


Born 563 BC. Enlightened in 528 BC. Great passing in 483 BC. Still lives in millions of hearts. Buddha, The Enlightened One.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


Revolutionary Green
All eyes on the world's fastest growing region. After all, one can't help but sit up and notice 130,000 species of flora and fauna, and almost 2 billion acres of forest.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


Technicolour
For centuries Indian spices were traded and smuggled over dangerous waters and routes. Now easily available in 50g, 100g and 500g packets.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


Water Colours
232 lakes. 273 rivers. 7,517 km of coastline. Incredible India. Choose your colour.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


Tea Green
Darjeeling is the champagne of teas, grown high in the valleys where the world's smallest train does its rounds. Assam is known for its full-bodied flavour, as robust as the one-horned rhino that roams in its plains. In Munnar, you could even get a taste of a planter's life in sprawling bunglows, British-era clubs with tennis, golf, bridge and of course high tea.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org


It took 20,000 workers, 1,000 elephants and 17 years to build the Taj Mahal. World heritage site. Ultimate symbol of love.
Incredible !ndia
www.incredibleindia.org

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Harley-Davidson: Live By It

Having relaxed emission norms for import of Harley Davidson motorcycles, India has informed the US that it cannot cut duties but will allow the American cult bike to be sold through dealers network.

This is partially good news.

"After all, the bike is going to be imported by rich people. Let them pay duty," the official said.

I want to own a Harley, but 'rich' I'm not. To fulfill this desire I'll have to pool in my life's savings for just the downpayment, the rest would have to be financed by some company, with me shelling out the EMI.

India imposes 60 per cent duty on import of motorcycles.

Now that makes it beyond my reach. Seems like I'll have to settle for some desi variant (provided I don't get myself a Nano).

But I can atleast enjoy The Creed Film (the government doesn't impose any taxes on this).


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Makes you feel like owning one.

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So long, Stage6

The news had been circulation on the online world for some time and finally the day arrived.

This is what you get to read on visiting the much loved website:

I'm Tom (aka Spinner), a Stage6 user and an employee of DivX, Inc., the company behind the service. I'm writing this message today to inform you that we plan to shut down Stage6 on February 28, 2008. Upload functionality has already been turned off, and you'll be able to view and download videos until Thursday.

I know this news will come as a shock and disappointment to many Stage6 users, and I'd like to take a few moments to explain the reasons behind our decision.

We created Stage6 with the mission of empowering content creators and viewers to discover a new kind of video experience. Stage6 began as an experiment, and we always knew there was a chance that it might not succeed.

In many ways, though, the service did succeed, beyond even our own initial expectations. Stage6 became very popular very quickly. We helped gain exposure for some talented filmmakers who brought great videos to the attention of an engaged community. We helped prove that it's possible to distribute true high definition video on the Internet. And we helped broaden the Internet video experience by offering content that is compatible with DVD players, mobile devices and other products beyond the PC.

So why are we shutting the service down? Well, the short answer is that the continued operation of Stage6 is a very expensive enterprise that requires an enormous amount of attention and resources that we are not in a position to continue to provide. There are a lot of other details involved, but at the end of the day it's really as simple as that...

Sometimes, popularity has a hefty price tag attached.

Update: Stage6 is promoting Veoh as the place where Stage6-ers can move to.

Stage6 is introducing Veoh Networks Inc. as a site that promises to offer our users a smooth transition. Millions of people use Veoh each month and we feel it is a great fit for our users.

Veoh enables you to upload, download, and watch high quality videos, including any DivX file.

...and this is Veoh's welcome message for disheartened Stage6 loyalists:

Veoh is pleased to welcome Stage6 users and publishers.

Veoh already has many of the features you have grown to love on Stage6, and we are constantly expanding our feature set.

Veoh lets you:

* Upload videos of any length (including DivX)
* Download videos to your PC and watch later (including DivX)
* Watch millions of videos from TV networks to independent publishers
* Communicate with over 23 million monthly users

We hope that you enjoy using Veoh, and welcome :-)

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