Boston Snow

Had an opportunity to visit Boston a couple of months back. Among other memories, also had a fond encounter with beautiful fresh snow after a long time, as I wandered through downtown Boston in the middle of the night...

(Yep...I made my own snowman!)

I love my iPhone and it has been my primary camera for a while now. 90% of the pics I click these days are with my dear beloved iPhone. Thank you Mr. Jobs. RIP.

Panoramic Boston snow, just for grins..

The lady in red...

Been wanting to write about this for a few days but never got to it...but better now than never.

So, the other day, I was at Publix on my way home from work to pick up a few things. Publix is one of my favorite places to shop. I love their customer service, the cleanliness, the short line and oh yeah their bakery - they make some of the best cakes and breads around....but I digress.

So, I was at Publix to pickup a few things we had run out of. It was supposed to be a quick pit-stop - thing 1, thing 2, thing 3, ring, ring, out. While I was zipping through the aisles, I couldn't help but notice this lady - short, athletic, fair, dark dress and had a bright red lipstick on. For some reason, that red lipstick stood out but at the same time blended perfectly with the rest of her features.

I passed her once in aisle one as I picked up thing 1, when I noticed her for the first time. Then, couple of aisle down, we crossed again. But something weird happened....

"That red lipstick looks really good on you..." (+/- a couple more mumbles")

"Why, thank you very much!" (With a nice big smile)

I then proceeded to pick up my thing2, thing3, ring, ring, and continued on my home and never saw her again.

Was pretty surprised at the spontaneity though. Made me think:

- Liked something, complimented someone, with no strings attached.
- Went off-pattern from my day-to-day introverted lifestyle
- Probably made her day a few points better with my compliment
- Didn't come off as flirting, or getting slapped, or banned from Publix forever (Cakes!!!)

Also made me wonder:
- Do we compliment each other enough? Folks around us? Folks we know? Folks we don't?
- Why don't we?
- Would I like to get a compliment out of the blue from someone I know? from someone I don't?
- Why is it always: "GM, How are you", "I'm good, how are you?". Do we ever expect to hear how someone's actually doing? Do we ever share anything other than "I'm good" when anyone asks us how we are?

While I was wondering all this, I also wondered, Why did I stop posting on my blog? Thought of resurrecting it. It's been around a couple of weeks since this incident and the wonderings, and here I am today, posting on my blog after many months.

Do I really need another lady in red for my next post is yet to be seen!

What has the world come to???

Eh? Eh?? Eh???

I wonder if they have one for full size potty...

Camera calling

Camera's been calling but I've not been responding. Need to get it out, need to get out.

Soon...maybe soon!

Speaking about cameras, I love my iphone camera. It clicks better than most p&s cameras I've ever had, except for the lack of an optical zoom....or an image stabilizer. Love you Mr. Jobs!

No image this time but....

If one could use one's snot to butter their toast, I would have a year's supply generated within a week!!!

#@*$@#@ Allergies!

Simple Pleasures...

Pretty satisfying...

Reddit gems...

Daaamn nice Van!

Daaaaaamn nice commercial!

Deliberate acts of arrogance (or What grinds my gears...)

I just had to follow-up the Random acts of kindness post with this one.

Yes, I get it that you love your nice new expensive car.

Yes, I also get it that you don't want get a ding or a dent or a scratch on it.

But I just don't get why you don't park on ONE parking space like us mortals? Why your highness, can you not park in one of those empty spots in that back row where most of us lazy fatasses won't bother to park and dent your precious little car.

Random acts of kindness

So yesterday I was in a hurry, as usual, trying to get from point A to point B. As as usual, I was trying to time the lights and getting antsy over long reds and missed greens. At one of these lights that just turned red as I was approaching it, I saw something that kinda made me slow down a bit.

At the red light, this guy gets down from his truck, walks back to the couple riding a scooter stopped behind him and hands a pair of glasses to the girl on the backseat and just walks back to his truck. The girl puts on the glasses and the couple wave a thanks to him as he speeds away as the light turns green, to his point B.

I guess we all need these small little nudges now and then to remind us that everything is not just about getting from point A to point B...or just about going with the flow.

The Cubmaster...

This is a silhouette of Mr. Cubmaster. Great guy he is. Super friendly, very knowledgeable and always ready to help anyone with anything scouting. He has worked very hard over the last few years to make his pack a successful forum for all Cub Scouts new and old. He also makes some killer blueberry cobbler on his dutch oven over the coal.

This will be his last year with the pack. He will be moving on with kid to the Boy Scout troop from next year. He is an inspiration for others to be more involved in the activities in their neighborhood. His presence and leadership will be missed.

Thank you Mr. Cubmaster!

If you have the time, inclination, enthusiasm, etc., consider exploring he boy scout/girl scout/cub scout activities in your area. You may like what you find!

Gone Carving...

Carved a jack-o-lantern again this year with the kiddos. Nothing special at all 2 eyes, a nose, some teeth and a couple of fangs on an extra large pumpkin. Way too many candies this year - both leftovers and bounties brought in by the monsters. Cavities, come and get me!!

 

En Why See

Was in downtown New York a couple of weeks back after many many years. Reminded me of Bombay and how much I miss it sometimes. I'm not sure if I could ever commute 3 hours a day between work and home but that city energizes you like no other. Had a really great time there. Was too short of a trip. Some day, I need to go out somewhere on a discovery trip...

Where downtown is less than an hour away....

Had been to downtown around a month back. Spent a few minutes walking around and clicking with my iphone. I should go back there with more time in this hand and a camera in the other...

Gone Beaching....

Went to the beach with the folks a couple of weeks back and we had a really great time. This beach has one of the silkiest sands you can lay your feet on and it's 30 minutes from home and we rarely go out there.

Seems like a pattern for the night - Count your blessings, Cherish what you have, Do more of what you like doing!

Gone biking....

Must be thankful for where we live, work and play...
The water is never more than a few miles away.

Got a chance to bike a bit last week and today. Pics below from the hour and half between the two rides.

Temptation #1....Should I???


Temptation #2....Should I????


A bridge that connects two towns...




Don't be afraid to look into the sun...you'll never know what you'll find!

Validates the fact that I need to be out more often!

Gone camping, back with More...

Had gone camping this weekend with the kiddo and it made me realize a few things. Little things that matter much (not in any particular order)

MORE...

- I need to spend more time with the kiddo
- I like being outdoors and need to spend more time out there
- I need to make find more time to volunteer
- I love photography and I must carry my camera with me more often
- I need to lose more weight
- I need to leave work back at work more often
- I need to call/email my friends/family far away from me more often
- I need to open up more
- I need to appreciate folks around me more often

Noble professions...

Have this family I know of whom I meet quite regularly. The Mom is an Elementary school teacher and the Dad is cop at the Sheriff's department. Neither of the professions are known for their pay but both of them contribute positively to the enrichment of the lives of me, my family and others around me.

I've always wanted to be an Elementary school teacher but I don't think I'll ever have the guts to give up my job and take on that profession. It's a dream job that I can always only dream of. Least I can do is look at them and admire them for what they are (and what I'm not). 

Thank you Lizzy's and Lori's, Kris' and Jill's, Ramesh's and Jack's and everyone else out there who are their local hometown heroes. All you folks - cops, firemen, teachers, social workers and many other folks who take care of me and others like me. Here's a bow to you and a hug and a Big Thank You!

Love,

Shailesh

M U S T...D U S T...C O B W E B S....

M u s t d u s t o f f t h o s e c o b w e b s
o f f m y e s s e l l a r e a n d t a k e i t o u t
f o r a s h o o t o r t w o
s o m e t i m e s o o n ! ! ! ! !

From Zero to Fanboi in 300 days...

Until October of last year, only exposure to a bitten apple was my wife's phone that I used to install crappy apps on, sometimes just to bug her.

Got my first half bitten fruity phone last October and then it kept on going, pad, mini mad, maxi pad and now this pro. I'm starting to get a bit too used to these toys and at least one of these fruits are stuck to me 24 hours a day.

Ugggh...does this make a fanboi? an iSheep?? Hater of doors, windows and robots? Not really, I still like the hole in the wall gizmos as much as I like the robots. I like toys, period. But, there is some extra refinement to these fruits that one doesn't get with the others.

Shut up and....

Google Glass....

Shut up and....

Formula Won

It's been a long time since I watched Formula 1 races. Bumped into this link earlier today and it revived memories of how fast those guys actually go as compared to rest of the super cars of the world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2cNqaPSHv0

While following that link, I also bumped into this one from Top Gear, where this guy who has driven quite a few supercars, including the Veyron tries to tame this beast. I couldn't help but giggle in excitement while watching parts of this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGUZJVY-sHo

It's been a long time since I played some mean car racing games on my PC but even now occasionally I race some cars on XBox with the kiddo (and beat him at it muhuhuhahaha!!). But besides those thrilling clicks on the joystick, all I ride is my Odyssey, maxing out at 50mph on my daily commute.

Next life, I want be born as Schumacher's grandkid!!

TBD #426

TBDs....tbd some time in my life..

#426: Write/Post/Publish a set of children's story books.

Upgrading your Canon SLR lenses for free!

Found this on a post from David Hobby on Google Plus. Affirms why I should visit G+ at least once a month...

Photo courtesy: http://www.petapixel.com/2012/02/09/how-to-increase-the-performance-of-your-canon-kit-lens/

iRide, iBike, iClick, iJoy

Yet another nice hour and half of biking today with the kiddo. It was quite chilly in the morning but had warmed up quite well by around 3:30 PM. Today's route took us through John Chestnut Park. This park is a 15 minute bike ride (or 10 minute by car) from our place. It's one of the nicest parks around, with a lot of walking trails, picnic shelters, volleyball courts, play areas, etc.

One of the many wallking trails. Most of the trails don't all bikes but this one did.


This was a part of a walking trail without the "No Bikes" sign....so we took our chances...

Showing off my bike. I have had this bike for 7 years now. It is a cheapo Schwinn sub 200 dollar bike but still runs great to this day. Would like to buy a cyclocross one of these days.

Spent a few minutes on this swing. Fun times....


Finally time to head back home....