ONE BEDROOM FLAT

  By Jit | October 8, 2011 - 9:31 am | Wise words
Comments Off

A Bitter Reality (written by an Indian ex-software engineer)

… As the dream of most parents I had acquired a degree in Software Engineering and joined a company based in USA, the land of braves and opportunity.

When I arrived in the USA, it was as if a dream had come true. Here at last I was in the place where I want to be. I decided I would be staying in this country for about five years in which time I would have earned enough money to settle down in India.

My father was a government employee and after his retirement, the only asset he could acquire was a decent one bedroom flat. I wanted to do some thing more than him.

I started feeling homesick and lonely as the time passed. I used to call home and speak to my parents every week using cheap international phonecards. Two years passed, two years of Burgers at McDonald’s and pizzas and discos and 2 years watching the foreign exchange rate getting happy whenever the Rupee value went down.

Finally, I decided to get married. Told my parents that I have only 10 days of holidays and everything must be done within these 10 days. I got my ticket booked in the cheapest flight. Was jubilant and was actually enjoying hopping for gifts for all my friends back home. If I miss anyone then there will be talks. After reaching home I spent home one week going through all the photographs of girls and as the time was getting shorter I was forced to select one candidate.

In-laws told me, to my surprise, that I would have to get married in 2-3 days, as I will not get anymore holidays. After the marriage, it was time to return to USA, after giving some money to my parents and telling the neighbors to look after them, we returned to USA.

My wife enjoyed this country for about two months and then she started feeling lonely. The frequency of calling India increased to twice in a week sometimes 3 times a week. Our savings started diminishing.

After two more years we started to have kids. Two lovely kids, a boy and a girl, were gifted to us by the almighty. Every time I spoke to my parents, they asked me to come to India so that they can see their grand-children.

Every year I decide to go to India… but part work part monetary conditions prevented it. Years went by and visiting India was a distant dream. Then suddenly one day I got a message that my parents were seriously sick. I tried but I couldn’t get any holidays and thus could not go to India. The next message I got was my parents had passed away and as there was no one to do the last rights the society members had done whatever they could. I was depressed. My parents had passed away without seeing their grand children.

After couple more years passed away, much to my children’s dislike and my wife’s joy we returned to India to settle down. I started to look for a suitable property, but to my dismay my savings were short and the property prices had gone up during all these years. I had to return to the USA.

My wife refused to come back with me and my children refused to stay in India. My 2 children and I returned to USA after promising my wife I would be back for good after two years.

Time passed by, my daughter decided to get married to an American and my son was happy living in USA. I decided that I had enough and wound-up every thing and returned to India. I had just enough money to buy a decent 2 bedroom flat in a well-developed locality.

Now I am 60 years old and the only time I go out of the flat is for the routine visit to the nearby temple. My faithful wife has also left me and gone to the holy abode.

Sometimes I wondered, was it worth all this?

My father, even after staying in India, had a house to his name and I too have the same nothing more.

I lost my parents and children for just ONE EXTRA BEDROOM.

Looking out from the window I see a lot of children dancing. This damned cable TV has spoiled our new generation and the children are losing their values and culture because of it. I get occasional cards from my children asking if I am alright. Well, at least they remember me.

Now perhaps after I die, it will be the neighbors again who will be performing my last rights, God Bless them.

But the question still remains…‘was all this worth it?’

I am still searching for an answer……………..!!!

START THINKING…

IS IT JUST FOR ONE EXTRA BED ROOM???

LIFE IS BEYOND THIS…

DON’T JUST LEAVE YOUR LIFE & PARENTS…

START LIVING IT….

BECAUSE, LIFE IS PRECIOUS!!!!

The Best Story of the Year

  By Jit | September 22, 2011 - 11:33 am | Humour
Comments Off

The pastor asked if anyone in the congregation would like to express praise for answered prayers.

Suzie Smith stood and walked to the podium…

She said, “I have a praise.  Two months ago, my husband, Tom, had a terrible bicycle wreck and his scrotum was completely crushed. The pain wasexcruciating and the doctors didn’t know if they could help him.”

You could hear a muffled gasp from the men in the congregation as they imagined the pain that poor Tom must have experienced.

“Tom was unable to hold me or the children,” she went on, “and every move caused him terrible pain.”

“We prayed as the doctors performed a delicate operation, and it turned out they were able to piece together the crushed remnants of Tom’s scrotum, and wrap wire around it to hold it in place.”

Again, the men in the congregation cringed and squirmed uncomfortably as they imagined the horrible surgery performed on Tom.

“Now,” she announced in a quivering voice, “thank the Lord, Tom is out of the hospital and the doctors say that with time, his scrotum should recover completely.”

All the men sighed with unified relief.

The pastor rose and tentatively asked if anyone else had something to say.

A man stood up and walked slowly to the podium.

He said, “I’m Tom Smith.”

The entire congregation held its breath.

“I just want to tell my wife the word is – STERNUM.”

My dog!

  By Jit | September 22, 2011 - 11:27 am | Humour
Comments Off

It’s just dawned on me!!

My dog sleeps about 20 hours a day. He has his food prepared for him. He can eat whenever he wants. His meals are provided at no cost to him.

He visits the Dr. once a year for his checkup, and again during the year if any medical needs arise. For this he pays nothing and nothing is required of him.

He lives in a nice neighborhood in a house that is much larger than he needs, but he is not required to do any upkeep. If he makes a mess, someone else cleans it up. He has his choice of luxurious places to sleep. He receives these accommodations absolutely free.

He is living like a King, and has absolutely no expenses whatsoever.

All of his costs are picked up by others who go out and earn a living everyday.

I was just thinking about all this, and suddenly it hit me like a brick……..

I think my dog is a member of the government!

Older women are great!!!

  By Jit | September 17, 2011 - 11:52 am | Humour
Comments Off

After being married for 40 years, I took a careful look at my wife one day and said…

“Forty years ago we had a cheap house, a junk car, slept on a sofa bed and watched a 10-inch black and white TV, but I got to sleep every night with a hot 23-year-old girl.

Now…I have a $500,000.00 home, a $35,000.00 car, a nice big bed and a large screen TV, but I’m sleeping with a 60-year-old woman. It seems to me that you’re not holding up your side of things.”

Now, my wife is a very reasonable woman…She told me to go out and find a hot 23-year-old girl and she would make sure that I would once again be living in a cheap house, driving a junk car, sleeping on a sofa bed and watching a 10-inch black and white TV.

Aren’t older women great?

They really know how to solve an old guy’s problems.

The Power of Higher Education

  By Jit | September 17, 2011 - 11:45 am | Humour
Comments Off

Three women go down to Mexico and, one night, get drunk.

They wake up in jail, only to find that they are to be executing in the morning, though none of them can remember what they did the night before.

The first one, a redhead, is strapped into the electric chair, and is asked if she has any last words.

She says, “I am from Grace University, and believe in the almighty power of God to intervene on the behalf of the innocent.”

They throw the switch and nothing happens. They all immediately prostrate themselves, beg her forgiveness and release her.

The second woman, a brunette, is strapped into the electric chair and asked if she has any last words.

“I am from the Creighton School of Law,” she says, “and I believe in the power of Justice to intervene on the part of the innocent.”

They throw the switch and, again, nothing happens. And again they all prostrate themselves, beg her forgiveness and set her free.

The last woman, a blonde, is strapped into the electric chair and asked if she has any last words.

“Well, I’m from the University of Alabama, Huntsville, and just graduated with B.S. in Electrical Engineering, and I’ll tell you right now, you ain’t gonna electrocute nobody if don’t plug this thing in.”

The New Plant Manager

  By Jit | September 17, 2011 - 11:35 am | Humour
Comments Off

Over at the local Coca Cola plant, feeling it was time for a shakeup, the newly hired Plant Manager was determined to rid the company of all slackers.

On a tour of the facilities, he noticed a guy leaning against a wall.  The room was full of workers and he wanted to let them know that he meant business.

He asked the guy, “How much money do you make a week?”

A little surprised, the young man looked at him and said, “I make $400 aWeek. Why?”

The Manager said, “Wait right here.”

He walked back to his office, came back in two minutes, and handed the guy $1,600 in cash and said, “Here’s four weeks’ pay. Now GET OUT and don’t come back.”

Feeling pretty good about himself, the Plant Manager looked around the room and asked, “Does anyone want to tell me what that goof-ball did here?”

From across the room a voice said, “Pizza delivery guy from Pizza Hut.”

Puns for Educated Minds

  By Jit | September 17, 2011 - 11:30 am | Humour
Comments Off

* The fattest knight at King Arthur’s Round Table was Sir Cumference – He acquired his size from too much pi.

* I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island – It turned out to be an optical Aleutian.

* She was only a whiskey maker, but he loved her still.

* A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class, because it was a weapon of math disruption.

* No matter how much you push the envelope, it’ll still be stationery.

* A dog gave birth to puppies near the road .. . . and was cited for littering.

* A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blown-apart.

* Two silk worms had a race.  They ended up in a tie.

* A hole has been found in the nudist camp wall.  The police are looking into it.

* Time flies like an arrow.  Fruit flies like a banana.

* Atheism is a non-prophet organization.

* Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway. One hat said to the other: ‘You stay here; I’ll go on a head.’

* I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.

* A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said:  ’Keep off the Grass.’

* The midget fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.

* The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.

* A backward poet writes in-verse.

* In a democracy it’s your vote that counts. In feudalism it’s your count that votes.

* When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.

* If you jumped off the bridge in Paris, you’d be in Seine.

* A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, ‘I’m sorry, sir, only one carri-on allowed per passenger.’

* Two fish swim into a concrete wall. One turns to the other and says ‘Dam!’

* Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can’t have your kayak and heat it too.

* Two hydrogen atoms meet.  One says, ‘I’ve lost my electron.’ The other says ‘Are you sure?’ The first replies, ‘Yes, I’m positive.’

Credit Card Scam – Alert

  By Jit | August 31, 2011 - 9:39 am | Information
Comments Off

Visa / MasterCard FRAUD

Just a heads up for everyone regarding the latest in Visa fraud. Royal Bank received this communication about the newest scam. This is happening in the Midwest right now and moving.

This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all the information, except the one piece they want.

Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they already have it.

This information is worth reading.

By understanding how the VISA & MasterCard telephone Credit Card Scam works, you’ll be better prepared to protect yourself.

The scam works like this:

Person calling says – ‘This is (name), and I’m calling from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. My Badge number is 12460, Your card has been flagged for an unusual purchase pattern, and I’m calling to verify. This would be on your VISA card which was issued by (name of bank). Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing Device for $497.99 from a marketing company based in Arizona ?’ When you say ‘No’, the caller continues with, ‘Then we will be issuing a credit to your account. This is a company we have been watching and the charges range from $297 to $497, just under the $500 purchase pattern that flags most cards. Before your next statement, the credit will be sent to (gives you your address), is that correct?’ You say ‘yes’.

The caller continues – ‘I will be starting a Fraud Investigation. If you have any questions, you should call the 1- 800 number listed on the back of your card (1-800-VISA) and ask for Security. You will need to refer to this Control Number. The caller then gives you a 6 digit number. ‘Do you need me to read it again?’

Here’s the IMPORTANT part on how the scam works – The caller then says, ‘I need to verify you are in possession of your card’. He’ll ask you to ‘turn your card over and look for some numbers’. There are 7 numbers; the first 4 are part of your card number, the last 3 are the Security Numbers that verify you are the possessor of the card. These are the numbers you sometimes use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the card. The caller will ask you to read the last 3 numbers to him. After you tell the caller the 3 numbers, he’ll say, ‘That is correct, I just needed to verify that the card has not been lost or stolen, and that you still have your card. Do you have any other questions?’

After you say no, the caller then thanks you and states, ‘Don’t hesitate to call back if you do’, and hangs up. You actually say very little, and they never ask for or tell you the card number. But after we were called on Wednesday, we called back. Within 20 minutes to ask a question. Are we were glad we did! The REAL VISA Security Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of $497.99 was charged to our card. We made a real fraud report and closed the VISA account. VISA is reissuing us a new number.

What the scammers want is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card. Don’t give it to them. Instead, tell them you’ll call VISA or Master Card directly for verification of their conversation.

The real VISA told us that they will never ask for anything on the card as they already know the information since they issued the card! If you give the scammers your 3 Digit PIN Number, you think you’re receiving a credit; however, by the time you get your statement you’ll see charges for purchases you didn’t make, and by then it’s almost too late and/or more difficult to actually file a fraud report.

What makes this more remarkable is that this appears to be a very active scam, and evidently quite successful.

Pass this on to all your family and friends.

Next Generation of Computer Chips

  By Jit | August 9, 2011 - 1:31 pm | Science & Technology
Comments Off

Stretching for thousands of miles beneath oceans, optical fibers now connect every continent except for Antarctica. With less data loss and higher bandwidth, optical-fiber technology allows information to zip around the world, bringing pictures, video, and other data from every corner of the globe to your computer in a split second. But although optical fibers are increasingly replacing copper wires, carrying information via photons instead of electrons, today’s computer technology still relies on electronic chips.Now, researchers led by engineers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) are paving the way for the next generation of computer-chip technology: photonic chips. With integrated circuits that use light instead of electricity, photonic chips will allow for faster computers and less data loss when connected to the global fiber-optic network.

“We want to take everything on an electronic chip and reproduce it on a photonic chip,” says Liang Feng, a postdoctoral scholar in electrical engineering and the lead author on a paper to be published in the August 5 issue of the journal Science. Feng is part of Caltech’s nanofabrication group, led by Axel Scherer, Bernard A. Neches Professor of Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, and Physics, and co-director of the Kavli Nanoscience Institute at Caltech.

In that paper, the researchers describe a new technique to isolate light signals on a silicon chip, solving a longstanding problem in engineering photonic chips.

An isolated light signal can only travel in one direction. If light weren’t isolated, signals sent and received between different components on a photonic circuit could interfere with one another, causing the chip to become unstable. In an electrical circuit, a device called a diode isolates electrical signals by allowing current to travel in one direction but not the other. The goal, then, is to create the photonic analog of a diode, a device called an optical isolator. “This is something scientists have been pursuing for 20 years,” Feng says.

Normally, a light beam has exactly the same properties when it moves forward as when it’s reflected backward. “If you can see me, then I can see you,” he says. In order to isolate light, its properties need to somehow change when going in the opposite direction. An optical isolator can then block light that has these changed properties, which allows light signals to travel only in one direction between devices on a chip.

“We want to build something where you can see me, but I can’t see you,” Feng explains. “That means there’s no signal from your side to me. The device on my side is isolated; it won’t be affected by my surroundings, so the functionality of my device will be stable.”

To isolate light, Feng and his colleagues designed a new type of optical waveguide, a 0.8-micron-wide silicon device that channels light. The waveguide allows light to go in one direction but changes the mode of the light when it travels in the opposite direction.A light wave’s mode corresponds to the pattern of the electromagnetic field lines that make up the wave. In the researchers’ new waveguide, the light travels in a symmetric mode in one direction, but changes to an asymmetric mode in the other. Because different light modes can’t interact with one another, the two beams of light thus pass through each other.