Dear Friends

I am presenting you some of the beautiful flowers that I clicked. Like you all I too wish to know their names. But I realise that I won't be able to remember their names that easily, so I invite you all to name these flowers most appropriately and help me remember them for life.

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A Beautiful name to a flower will earn you a back-door entry to my friend's list. So, don't miss this oppurtunity. This offer is valid till stocks last (Chithra's stock). So, you should be knowing how fast you need to be.

P.S.: There are spoilers who will try to name all the flowers and block your way into my list of dear friends.

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Lets name one at a time
First Flower: 3 nominations so far
1. Crystal Star (Khushidey)
2. Lilac Star (Manisha_Bhattacharya)
3. Pink Butterfly (Sazzyme)
How about Lilac Pentagon?

I always think you can win, but that doesn't mean you can win Me. If you still feel you can, I can only feel pity, but that doesn't mean I am gonna let you win ME.

I am presenting this golden thought to you all and I am seeing how you people are gonna respond.

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Ooopsssssss! I don't understand, why some of you find this blog, nothing but an empty space! Why is that Chithra was unable to see the substance inside Men's head and sees only vaccuum blank? May be it is time for her to check her sight status..... pppppssssssttttttttt.......every one knows her interest on male friends!

   Last week, I happened to take my aunt for a blood test which is a routine affair for people in fifties. As the technician called her in, she was looking at me expecting me to go with her. But I stayed outside and while waiting in the bench, I was thinking why I restrained myself. 

   It was not like I am not used to blood. In fact as a child, I always let my blood come out in parole to have a look at my face on a weekly basis. There can be only two reasons if that failed to happen – either I was down with fever or cold that week or I was jailed myself into one of my aunt’s homes. Both cases I was missing the sweet utterance of the words “B +ive” from my blood. 

   Strange is the reason as my other aunt (maternal) has to wait for weeks for me to set foot at her place. Amongst her sweet nephews and nieces, I alone had the guts to prick her tender finger with the help of the sharp pin designed with springs and other things, that comes with the sugar testing device. 

   By the way, did I mention that I don’t need a machine to check sugar level in the blood. I can taste it and say too. I had that strange habit of sucking the blood that ooze out believing that they will go into my circulatory system directly – there by the blood never go waste. Also as a kid, I used to warn myself that I should never suck blood other than my group, to avoid unnecessary complications. 

   When talking about blood, I always felt I had no inhibitions seeing it before this particular incident happened. A couple of years back, we took our dad to a lab for a blood test and as usual I didn’t have my breakfast that morning. When we reached there a nurse came and took blood from a vein running through his left arm. It all happened so fast and suddenly I started feeling giddy and for the first time my vision got blurred. Soon I went blind and I had to cling to the nearby wall for support. I could feel that I am gonna die in few minutes and it is not because I was tired of hunger but the blood of my father I saw. I realised why my parents were hard on me when they see blood peeping through my skin. 

   Well, I feel this is enough, because some people can’t digest even the very mention of the word “BLOOD”. So, what is there in blood? Biologically, it contains Red Blood Cells, White Blood Cells, leukocytes, platelets, proteins, glucose, mineral ions and hormones and lot other things. But it does have more than that because of the origin. 

   Though it is just a fluid like a petrol or any fuel or lubricant, it contains LIFE in it, as it comes to us from our parents and ancestors. Our mothers and fathers have infused it and that runs through generations. It is an organic fluid that can transmit signals of love and affection through any medium, be it air or water or soil or even a vaccuum space. When you happened to see the blood of your loved ones, your own blood freezes over out of shock, your nerves go dead and all your sensory organs starts failing, leaving you dead for few seconds or minutes or hours or sometimes forever. 

   No wonder why people raise voice for their brothers and sisters suffering in far away lands. But, it is more strange with things getting political twists. Anyways, I wish you all a Happy Diwali and hope this will be the occasion that will put an end to those Narakasurans who thrive on others blood. 
                           
                                       HAPPY DEEPAVALI 

P.S.:- Well, one can easily gauge the love others have for you, by simply cuting your finger and show your blood to your loved one and see how he/she reacts. And please don’t try this with me as my sudden reaction on seeing the blood is to find the sugar level.

The sole reason of the current global financial turmoil is nothing but Greed, Greed and Greed! 

The scenario is common all over the world. There was always surplus fund floating in the market, which the banks, finance companies, insurance companies, mutual funds and investment banking companies were vying for. Their marketing team took unwieldy pay package to pull in as much money as possible into their system. Though the governing bodies didn’t allow them to promote their products without properly educating the investors about the potential risk, the greedy marketers always kept it forbidden, leaving the investor to read it leisurely after the damage has been done.
 
But then, the people greedy at seeing their friends, relatives and colleagues earn ransom investing in real estates, share markets, mutual funds and other high risk zones, played themselves in. When the economy surged ahead, they failed to realize that it is all because of the excessive fund they floated into the system. 

Then what triggers them all? Well, it is the Sub-prime crisis, that was revealed last year did trigger this year-long onslaught on the global economy. Sub-prime lending is nothing but offering loan or credit facility at higher interest rates to those who don’t deserve it based on their financial status, income level, credit history and the size of the down payment made,… The financial institutions indulged in this sort, partly because they had no option with the money they generated through their greedy marketers and partly for it had the potential to earn much more interest than lending to genuine candidates. Greedy again – isn’t it? But before one can start taking notice, the defaulters rose heavily and exposed the economy into bad light.
 
When the sub-prime crisis was brought up, every government in the world was aware of what was going to happen. Instead of busting the balloon there, they opted to blow it by giving wrong indications to the investors and pushing the share markets into phenomenal uptrends. They wanted to buy time to sort out, but unfortunately, they themselves were not aware of the number of greedy hawks with different plans.
 
With the bubble ready to burst, few more greedy people wished to play their part. The crude prices started skyrocketting suddenly taking cues from the middle-east crisis and rising chinese demand. But then it took an U-turn indicating that the US demand has fallen. Unbelievable!!!
 
With the equity markets started to travel southwards, the creeping crude rates pulled the attention of the failing financial institutions and analysts. They saw an oppurtunity to make amends but then it was nothing but a trap that is seeing a lot of bankers being gulped in and forced to file bankruptcy. 

Indian Scenario:
The indian scenario is nothing different. The banks spent most of their money into building their brand image which is not so necessary and were making hefty profits with the help of high interest rates and other charges levied on the consumers. 

Fate of Icici Bank: 
As the old saying goes, “There’s no smoke without fire”, and there is definitely something cooking up at the India’s biggest private bank. The bank should have announced a buy-back offer when their stocks plummeted in the market to keep the investors sentiments positive.

It is true that the bank has big exposure to international markets and in sub prime lending, still it is very negligible compared to its balance sheet. Their business strategy of aggressive lending domestically helped a lot for the cause of various business growth in India. But then when overseas loss was making holes in their financial statement, panic was triggered and as a result their genuine depositors started withdrawing their money leaving the system high and dry. Who is to be blamed - the People or the Bank?

Their share prices have fallen steeply as a result and this definitely will invite a lot of hostile takeover bids to acquire the bank with huge infrastructure. Because after one level they will not be able to withstand pressure. Will the pressure rise beyond this? Yes, definitely. With some IT companies planning to chop off heads, the banks will again face the heat as the quantum of loans provided to the IT, BPO and Bank employees (they possess good credit history) were so high. Unless some miracle happens, it is going to get tougher for the banks. 

And regarding the share market – Well… It will definitely bounce back, but not so quickly this time. As long as greed is there the markets will live thrive!

Please note that this blog is not suggesting or advocating any view that ICICI bank is heading towards bankruptcy. But, I am emphasising again that the depositors are creating the trouble by withdrawing their money thereby putting the bank into tight corner. In addition to that the speculators in share markets are also not helping to its cause. I myself hold an account with ICICI Bank and I haven't cleaned it off yet as I am in no hurry for the banking system in India protects the depositors very well. I also urge other depositors to stand by the bank that provides the best of the service and create good value for its investors.

The bucket list is the list of things you wish to do before you kick the bucket. The phrase “Kicking the Bucket” means to die. It was derived from the notion that people hanged themselves by standing on a bucket with a noose around their neck and then kicking the bucket away. 

Here is my Bucket List: 

1) Write a Novel
2) Hold for the longest term, the office of the hottest position in the coolest ever manner
3) Do something truly adventurous risking my life for some good cause
4) Win a Nobel prize and oscar in a calender year
5) Scalp 6 wickets in a over and hit a half century in less than 10 balls in the same match, playing my grandkids
6) Solve a decades or centuries-old homicide mystery or end a long-lasting conflict between rival Nations/States/Communities or atleast individuals
7) Spend a year or two to adjudge the most beautiful city of the world
8) Claim a spot in Forbe’s list of billionaires
9) Build a school just for the kids who hate to go to conventional schools and make sure they get whatever they want
10) Find my soulmate

Now I want my friends to write their bucket list. This is a very easy assignment and I am deleting my friends list and will start adding those who give me links to their own bucket list. So no escaping friends… If I am not to get any friends, I quit! Please limit the list to ten.  

uff...finally there is one...
Sazzyme

and another Novacaine - It needs a sazzy to kickstart everything 

and here comes my odieeee.... sgsweb