I.M.H.O Ash's weight gain!

Considering she's just going through a natural process, why all this fuss about a little weight gain ? Ugh!! It takes time to work off post-pregnancy weight. And it's only been 6 months since she delivered, so I am sure she'll get back into shape with time.
And people compare her with Lara Dutta who delivered at the same time. I dont know why people fail to realise that each and everone's pregnancy is unique. She has gone through a hard time getting pregnant & during pregnancy.Which means there is something more like getting just pregnant. It involves a lot of Harmonal changes, physical and emotional imbalances.  So, please refrain from getting judgmental.

Honestly to my eyes she has gotten more prettier than before.A rose is always a rose by whatever name may it be called!

Laugh out loudly

Lately i started writing in my mother tongue - Tamil. I am having more fun these days by commiting lots of mistakes and correcting them . well thats how we learn! I'd laught at my self :))
when we talk about laughter, everybody knows it is the best medicine.
When laughter is shared, it binds people together and increases happiness and intimacy. In addition to the domino effect of joy and amusement, laughter also triggers healthy physical changes in the body. Humor and laughter strengthen your immune system, boost your energy, diminish pain, and protect you from the damaging effects of stress. Best of all, this priceless medicine is fun, free, and easy to use.
Laughter, along with an active sense of humor, may help protect you against a heart attack, according to a recent study by cardiologists at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore. The study, which is the first to indicate that laughter may help prevent heart disease, found that people with heart disease were 40 percent less likely to laugh in a variety of situations compared to people of the same age without heart disease.
Doctors offer a simple prescription that won't bankrupt you and could save your life. "Thirty minutes of exercise three times a week, and 15 minutes of laughter on a daily basis is probably good for the vascular system"
So folks laugh out loudly everyday atleast a few mins!

Image courtesy : Internet

Classic Cinema Corner - Tamil

Athough im not a movie freak, some movies have def.ly touched my heart. And thats is gonna be the today's post.

1.Karnan :

வாழ்கையின் தத்துவத்தை சொல்லிகொடுக்கும் பாரதத்திலிருந்து ஒரு சிறு பகுதியை முழுநீளப் படமாக்கி இருகிறார்கள். மிக உயர்ந்த எண்ணங்களும், நோக்கங்களும், குணங்களும் உடையவனாய் இருப்பினும், தீயவரின் நட்பு நிச்சயம் நன்மை பயக்காது என்பது இப்படத்தின் கருத்து.

கர்ணன் என்றால் நம் எல்லோருக்கும் நினைவில் வருவது சிவாஜி கணேசன் தான். அதுவும், அந்த இறுதி கட்ட காட்சிகளில் என்.டி.ஆறும் நம்ப சிவாஜியும் சேர்ந்து எல்லோர் மனதையும் உருக்கி இருப்பார்கள்.
2.Rathakanneer :

வெள்ளி விழா கண்ட பல படங்களில் இப்படம் முன் வரிசையில் நிற்கும். ஆணவமும் அஹந்தையும் கொண்டவன் வாழ்கையின் அதலபாதாளத்தில் தள்ளப்படுவான் என்பது இப்படத்தின் கருத்து. எல்லோராலும் கவரப்பட வைக்கும் நடிப்பு கடினமானது தான் என்றாலும், எல்லோராலும் வெறுக்கப்பட வைக்கும் நடிப்பு சற்றே கடினமானது என்பது என் தாழ்மையான கருத்து. இப்படத்தில் எம்.ஆர்.ராதாவின் நடிப்பு, அற்புததம்! பாவம் மனிதர் எத்தனை பேருடைய சாபத்தை வாங்கி கட்டிக் கொண்டாரோ?! இன்னும் சொல்லவேண்டுமென்றால் எம்.ஆர்.ராதாவின் மேக்கப் ! படத்தின் முற்பகுதியில், அருமையான இளம் வயது, படித்த வாலிபனை போல் மிக அழகாக காட்டி இருப்பார்கள், பிறகு அவர் உடல் நிலை குறைந்து சிறிது சிறிதாக அவர் அழகு சிதைந்து போவதையும் மிக அழகாக காடியிருபார்கள்...
3.Navarathiri
இந்த படத்தை பற்றி சொல்லவே தேவை இல்லை. நடிகர் திலகம் சிவாஜி கணேசன் ஒன்பது வேடங்களில் அசத்தியிருப்பாறேன்றால் , நடிகையர் திலகம் சாவித்திரி ஒரே வேடத்தில்s கலக்கியிருப்பார். பற்றா குறைக்கு நம்ப நாகாஷ் வேறு ! வயிறு குலுங்க சிரிக்கவைக்கும் படம். அப்பப்பா.. எதனை முறைகள் வேண்டுமென்றாலும் சலிக்காமல் பார்க்கலாம்.

4. Aanpaavam :
Excellent rib ticking comedy movie. PLs enjoy some scenes from this movie:




5.Uthiripookal :
Driven by lust, a coldhearted married man plots to kill his wife so that he can marry her younger sister. But when the man's father-in-law refuses to grant him his surviving daughter's hand in marriage because she loves another man, the poor girl becomes an unwilling victim in a tragic chain of events. Ashwini, Vijayan and Charu Hassan co-star in this twisted Tamil love triangle directed by Mahendran.
Aswini in the lead role just melts everyone's heart with her humble and subtle role, being the poor wife for the greedy husband. A movie that should be watched for the sheer narrative style and honest story telling. A classic indeed!

6.vedampudithu
Alittle vague story and slightly boring towards the second half, the first half of the story where the little brahmin boy happens to stay at one of the richest man in the village who is a non-vegetarian, are the most beautiful scenes. Satyaraj excels in this film, as does Sarita. Amala (ummmmm) is simply celestial. another beautiful story by Bharathiraja.

7.Idayathai thiudaathe
Needless to say about his hit movie. The thing that most inspired me in this movie is the BGM score of our isai gnani Illayaraja! still rings in my ears... Pls enjoy this beautiful scene:


8.Annamalai
A movie based on friendship, which goes through several goodtimes and badtimes.At a point where Annamalai's best friend becoming his own rival , tries to come up in life and becomes an inspiring business icon and succeeds in his challenge. Also saves his old friend who falls in deep misery. good inspirational movie to watch. Pls enjoy the scene below:


9. Anniyan :
Another inspirational movie that has gained so much popularity lately is this movie where Vikram has played the lead role . Again needless to tell u about the story line. So pls enjoy my favourite climax scene



10.Bommalaatam


I liked this movie because its been so long that i watched a good movie. It was different from the other movies . Another Bharathiraja's good number.



Photos Source : Internet

Ajith - Thalai's daughter

And while we agree that ALL kids are adorable…you’ve got to admit that some are just more adorable than others. Right? :D Especially if they are celebrity kids, then we couldnt ask for more!
Lately I've just admired Actor Ajith's daughter Anoushka so much. I love how she’s always dressed in the prettiest of dresses and all the other accessories that go matching with her lovely face. I just love the first pictureof Anoushka being carried around by Daddy, It’s such a quintessential father-daughter picture. I can’t help but go Awwww!
Pls enjoy the picture below.

Photo Source : Internet

Quatrain Poetry (tamil):

This quartrain that i happen to read(in tamil) lately has become one of my favourite on the list of poetries i have heard so far. Since i love music its needless to say i also adore the lyrics part of it. My interest thus slowly started to peek on the so called "hi-koo" kavithaigal! I have have been a great fan to read those since long. I read this wonderful "rib-tickling" hi-koo kavithai from the popular magazine "Mangaiyar Malar" . so the poem that i have lately read is here for you :


பல்லவனில் இடிபாடு
பக்கத்தில் தடிமாடு
பெண்மை பெரும்பாடு
பண்பாடு படும்பாடு


Sorry for those who cant read tamil. I can translate the meaning of it for those who are interested upon request.

THanks for reading. Have fun!

Sarah the Cheetah - breaks the world record

Sarah an 8n year old female cheetah sets a new world record as the fastest running mamal on earth.

A male cheetah in South Africa covered 100 meters in 6.19 seconds. Sarah didn't beat that just once, but twice: She first clocked in at 6.16 seconds and then 6.13 secondsPerfectly designed for speed; small head, big torso, slender long legs with big paws, narrow hind quarters. AMAZING .

Way to go Sarah!! She is extraordinary, and the Cincinnati Zoo has an amazing cheetah program!!! Congratulations to everyone who has put in a lot of hard work on this project!!
An 8 year old smashed the record for the 100m set by a wild male cheetah in Africa. girls rock!

Please enjoy Sara's video . Thanks.

Resource courtesy: Yahoo
Image courtesy : Internet

Vaccation to Ocean City, Marryland.

We took a mini-vacation to Ocean City, Maryland and it was great. We had a fab time. Couple of days during end of summer, in Ocean City was hot, sunny, happy and crowded. Daytime highs in the 80’s, sometimes hitting 90. Nighttime lows 65 to 55 degrees which will little colder.Lots of exuberant children and relaxing parents. The welcome board with the flag at the entrance of the city was really a warm welcome to all the visitors visiting that place which is surrounded by the beautiful blue Atlantic ocean around . This place was busily engaged with ferries , mini boats, fishing activities and a lot more.


It was quite a pleasant scenic beauty to do the boardwalk along the seashore. Which wasn't much crowded . It has lot many shops on the walkway, which was really fun for the collectible freaks like me! At the dawn it was getting a bit colder & beauty of the moon, the ocean, and their reflections...was at its best shot! Wish i had a better camera...:( !!

Okay Arts & Craft Lovers...here you go with quite a few shops at the exhibition which was held in the convention center. Actually there weren't many shops when compared to Indian Exhibitions i have seen so far. But whatever shops that was present there had their best products. Products like quilted napkin covers, pillowcases, throws, books, ready-made dessert mix, gems and jewellery shops were being displayed.

One of the most important thing that you can notice once you are in ocean city would be the number of hotel resorts that are present there. I really doubt if a small town like this would have so many beach resorts. The Coastal highway stretch has more than 100 streets in it and you can see the resorts along the streets throughout the stretch which is interesting huh! And the architecture of all the buildings are really nice and pretty tall.

Now, a fun place for the kids called - "The Jolly Roger".
We our son to Jolly Rogers . On the plus side, there were a number of rides for his age ( 2 yrs) he did not have to wait for any rides. And the staff was reasonably helpful. On the downside, we spent more than $35 for the rides .

Note to parents with small children, watch out for the "point system". If you buy points, the each ride costs between $2 and $3.50 for a small child's ride. If your child plans to ride more than 5 rides, you are probably better off with the multi-park pass than the point system. The rides are carnival quality. While I felt ripped off by the point system, it was our fault for not doing the math and going with a pass.

It was as perfect a beach day with a perfect weather. Ocean City, Maryland, is filled to the brim with visitors. It’s the kind of classic, late-summer day that makes people love Ocean City. It inspired me to celebrate by posting a few photos of classic Ocean City.

See you all soon :))

Vaccation Vagueness!

The labor day holiday is nearing by and we had a usual talk about the vaccation. Where to go? Near or Far? Drive or Fly?...with so many Questions like these really puts us in a confused state, therefore you cannot decide all alone . Vacations don't happen unless you plan for them! Especially with a busy husband like mine. I usually plan things ahead yet will always end up in the last minute . Had been considering quite a few places in mind depending on our criterias. Still theres no definite answer.

Image courtesy - Internet.

Bye Bye Summer !!! :(( Welcome Fall 2009!!!

It is a bit sad that there wasn't much of real summer days this year, and the temperature hardly touched 96 which was the maximum . When compared to the previous years . Anyways, welcome to the Tricks & Treats Halloween/Fall 2009! I kind of like fall season of all the seasons here. As there are lots of things to do around my area. But i hate winters. Especially with a kid, you cant really do much of activities , and tend to get winter blues.

NewJersey is a great place to visit during the fall .Especially there is nothing like coming to the Southern parts of New Jersey . There are many fall festivals including craft shows, pumpkin festivals and more. While in town take notice of all the beautiful colorful leaves on the trees. Golds, oranges, bright reds, and deep greens make it known that it is fall in Southern New Jersey.

Things you do to enjoy Fall around NJ and the Tri-state areas :

• Check out your local newspaper or your county website for events such as fruit picking , like pumpkin picking , apple picking, and so on. Because its always fun for the kids.


• You can enjoy the country fruit festivals like the Chatsworth Cranberry Festival in Chatsworth, NJ, set in the colorful trees of the Pine Barrens. Enjoy the local cranberry harvest with homemade cranberry baked goods, cranberry salsa, cranberry dressing and so much more.


• I always love the South Jersey Pumpkin Show in early October . You'll enjoy a mini-haunted village, scarecrow displays, haunted hayrides, a fall art gallery, a fall garden, a music and food fest, free pumpkins for the kids, kiddy amusement rides, and over 200 craftsman displaying their wares. Various events take place at different times throughout the day. The Pumpkin show is located at: Cumberland County Fairground, 3001 Carmel Rd Millville NJ 08332.


• Delaware Water Gap : A River and its Valley For 40 miles the Middle Delaware River passes between low forested mountains with barely a house in sight. Then the river cuts through the mountain ridge to form the famed "Water Gap." Exiting the park, the river will run 200 miles more to Delaware Bay and the Atlantic Ocean at Wilmington, Delaware.There's still more to do; this valley has been a home for thousands of years, and dozens of historic structures dot the park's scenic byways. Source(s):
  http://www.nps.gov/dewa/index.htm
• Please check local website (of yours) for more information :
• September 13-15, 2009 Philadelphia Nat’l Candy Gift & Gourmet Show Atlantic City, New JerseyAmerica’s largest show dedicated to the retail confectioner, is sponsored by the Retail Confectioners Association of Philadelphia.
• September 20, 2009 Cognac and Chocolate TastingCranford, New JerseyChocolate & Spirits tasting event featuring artisanal chocolates to compliment Pour Moi
• October 27-28, 2009 KosherFestMeadowlands, New JerseyKosherfest is the #1 kosher food and beverage trade event serving the retail, foodservice, manufacturing and distribution industries. New Products Competition Oct 15 and 2nd Annual Kosherfest Culinary Competition Oct 27.
• September 9, 2009 WLIW21 Autumn Gourmet ClassicNew York, New YorkThe ultimate "foodie" event in an intimate setting! Lidia Bastianich, Jacques Pépin and John Barricelli team up for food, wine & culinary theater. Live demos, food tastings from around the New York metro area and wines from around the world.
• September 16, 2009 Taste of the VillageNew York, New YorkMake the 7th Anniversary of this event by inviting friends who love extraordinary food from award-winning chefs such as Dan Barbar, named the nation’s top chef in 2009 by the James Beard Foundation, Mario Batali of International Acclaim and Chef Akhtar Nawab of Elettaria.
• October 30-Nov 1, 2009 Chocolate ShowNew York, New YorkThe 12th Annual Chocolate Show in New York will, as years past, feature some of the most world renowned pastry chefs and chocolate makers from all over the world. As such, this show is one of the most exciting gastronomic events, enticing visitors from the entire United States to get a taste of their favorite sweet.

Thanks and have fun during this fall.

Resources :

Chatsworth Cranberry Festival

South Jersey Pumpkin Show

http://www.nj.com/

http://www.state.nj.us/

http://www.foodreference.com/

Image Courtesy :

Internet

Unleashing the iconic relationships

It has recently been discovered that Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin is a distant relative of the late Princess Diana as well as Franklin D. Roosevelt. The vice presidential hopeful and President Roosvelt are ninth cousins, while she and Princess Diana are tenth cousins, according to Utah-based genealogists Ancestry.com.

It was a bit funny when i read it at first but i then registered @ ancestry.com hoping to find my distant relatives ! :-)) or it might be helpful for my forthcoming generations.

But i've been wondering how far would this news be true? what do u guys think?

Pls feel free to inscribe your comments .

My Music Blog

As i mentioned in my previous email I just released my music blog which was under construction long since. Although it needs a lot of work , its not that bad to start a simple one if we have all the things necessary such as a blog ,mic,recrding software, good sound card... etc etc. Since there are already too many resources available on the internet about these stuffs im not going to explain in detail about it .

My husband helped me set up all these things and there you go, i couldnt get up from the chair. Kept on recording and exploring the recording softwares (which is a lot more difficult).

I have recorded just a couple of songs without music,that is just my voice, as i could not find a good karaoke track. Will post more , as we go ahead. Now you can listen to my voice from the url below or from my blogroll.

http://abismusicalmoments.blogspot.com/

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My favourite commercial jingles

Its been a while i posted anything. I had been lately focusing on my audioblog which is my long time ambition, and other blogs. So i was little busy with blogs and other things and with my daily routine. I find myself unable to concentrate sometimes. I end up loosing the focus, which is becoz i do too many things at a time. Although audio blog is my focus of interest, this is my first blog so i would continue to write in this.
Anyways, there had been this commercial since a while .... for the "free credit report.com". This particular jingle is very enjoyable and pretty catchy with interesting songs from the guy(the main vocalist) who comes along with his band.. I actually think the ad agency is doing a great job targeting young people who might be wondering what their credit score is. There are like 3 commercials i have seen so far, all of them are portrayed in an excellent manner. Especially the restaurant commercial which is is my favourite(i have posted below).
I have caught myself humming the tunes. I haven’t yet visited the site, but I have been tempted to. I think the agency has created something pretty effective!
Hope you all enjoy this video.









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Tamil Online FM Radio Staitons

Although the recent developments of technology has gotten into the 21st century many a tools for listening songs like ipods & MP3 Players, i personally prefer to listen songs from the live radio station. Despite of the fact thaat the quality of the song might be a bit compromising issue, i still like to listen to the radio a lot. Mostly becoz you do not know which song is gonna be played next, and theres always a kick in it. Apart from the musical prgrams of the radio, i usually enjoy other programs like talk shows, comedies, sports broadcast, news, etc etc...
Actually i have to thank my friend Sudha, who told me the information. So here you go, a live online tamil FM Radio stations, for people like me.

Please click the below links:

Suryan FM
50 Plus Live Tamil Radio Stations



Have fun!!!







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Sit back & Relax

I was thinking to write some article but lately i had been very busy. I heard this latest tamil song 'Anbe en Anbe' from movie called 'Dham Dhoom' . Music scored by Harris Jeyraj. Male vocal - Harish Ragavendra ; Female Vocal - Prasanna.
Certain songs would make us sing those first few lines again and again, and we become an addict (atleast) for sometime. This is one such song.
I liked 'dham dhoom' songs to be better than 'Sakkarai Katti' songs by ARR











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Celebrities : family pictures

Ajith Family:

Arjun Family:
Bhagyaraj Family:
Captain Family:
Chiranjeevi Family:
Simran Family :

Shalini Family :
Sachin Family :
Ganguly family :
Shahrukhan Family :

Trisha Family :
Vijay Family :
Vishal Family :

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Tamil TV serial - A nudnik headache

I have been waiting for a chance to express or articulate my thoughts about the Indian tv serials, or especially tamil tv serials . Although there are a couple of them to mention about , mostly 99% of the tv serials sucks!!! I seriously doubt that all the director's brains might have been vaporised. Becoz almost all the serials follow the same set of rules like :
1) A family story with lot of characters as relations and unrelated branched stories.
2) The lead role - always a woman, will have the best characteristic features that nobody can find one in reality.
3) The Anti-heroine/hero role - mostly a woman again,possess all the worst characteristic features, will take revenge on the woman who plays the main role.
4) A definite love track.
5) A useless husband / father / brother ... the male character!!!
6)A delay of time with the dialogue deliveries between the characters which makes obvious that they does not know ABC about acting.
7) The most horrible thing is the background music which really gets into my nerves.
8) Comedy series : in which somebody will always laugh behind the scenes.(Probably the director feels that it is a comedy)
9) Some suspense thrillers which are supposed to be scary are very funny,predictable and in fact you can see these type of serials if u wanna watch a good comedy serial.
10) Duration of a serial is 30 minutes. But is actually telecasted only for 15minutes. Rest of the time is for title song at the beginning and a 2 or 3 commercial breaks in between.
11)The commercials... oh my god! i could add another bunch of points about it. But i dont wanna bore u like these serials.
And the lists does not end here... :-))

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