My Treasure: Family n Friends.

Dear family, oh my blood
A drop of your love is,
Stronger than the strongest flood

Dear Friends, oh my pals
Didn't realize how quickly
You have turned into my newest family I never had.

--Niral

Did you know?

What if everyone changed a light bulb?

Tourists, NYC and Directions..

So i had to share this with you guys...

My office is right across the big construction sit of WTC (a.k.a the hole). Where there are about 500 workers, about 3 dozen huge cranes and countless construction vehicles of all shapes and forms. So in all a gigantic construction site.. you guys get the idea.

So at 9 am on a Wednesday morning, rush hour @ Wall Street...i am walking behind a set of middle age tourists carrying a cell phone, shopping bags, SLR camera (with a tripod) and of course NYC map. Oh and they were walking at 0.0001 milli meter/hr . So this lady on the cell phone was giving directions to someone to meet up. (of course me being me, i was very interested in listening to it). So here is how she is giving directions

Lady: I am on the "other" side of WTC. (Me:Its a freaking big hole, which is the other side and which is the non-other side)

Lady: I am opposite a gray construction crane (Me:Mind you there are at least 20 cranes there)

Lady: There is a big crane, right ahead of the WTC hole and there is a red traffic light" (Me: Since when did a red light become a landmark)

Lady: Do you see a big construction vehicle standing outside a gate, i am diagonally across it just ahead of the red construction crane.

Lady: There is a group of construction workers working on something (its the WTC site, there are tons of people working)

Of course she was giving many more directions while i was walking behind her. But she conveniently chose to ignore famous store Century 21, Big Starbucks, Hilton Hotel, Church st or even the always busy burger King.

I am attaching the pic of the top view of a fraction of the WTC hole. Feel free to count the cranes and vehicles and people.

Aint that a treat :-)

Brand vs Generic Drugs

To Movies or To Shopping!

True Story. Absolutely original email chain.

Disclosure: All characters appearing in this email chain are NOT fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is NOT coincidental but intentional.
So here it goes......

A very good friend of mine emailed all the men in the group (and CCed the women) asking to see if we wanted to see the movie over the weekend.

(This is him)
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Guys -

Had a thought if everybody is up for it -

How about we go to the awsome movie (which came out today) (Lowes - next to our house) - Prince of Persia and the women can all get together and bitch about us during that time......

I am assuming that since this is a game/historical movie - they are not intrested (atleast I know my wife would peacefully sleep during such a movie)

Lazy Sunday afternoon is what I am thinking - any preferences/thoughts?

Thanks.
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PRINCE OF PERSIA !!! Of course i wanna go... Is that even a question? But I had already told my wife we will go baby shopping....So now what. Let me tell you that there is no subtle way to tell a pregnant women you don’t want to go baby shopping with her and you want to go to the movies instead.

But here is what I replied..........

(This is me)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hey buddy,

Nice idea. Here are my thoughts to it.

Read the lines 1 thru 9.

1. I love going to
2. Babies r us and Buy Buy Baby.
3. Movies
4. suck
5. and I would hate
6. to no end , not going to
7. to visit
8. baby shopping
9. at Ikea

Now just read alternate lines (1-3-5-7-9) and (2-4-6-8)

1. I love going to
2. Babies r us and Buy Buy Baby.
3. Movies
4. suck
5. and I would hate
6. to no end , not going to
7. to visit
8. baby shopping
9. at Ikea

You get the idea ...Dont you?

--Regards
Niral Jhaveri

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Alas, I score some brownie points for creativity . She replies to me

"Lolzzz!!! Good One Daddy-To-Be!! "

Ugly Duckling (revisited) by Software Geeks

My search story- The Pregnant Dad

So these days i have been "googling" different stuff....Not the usual google search on Java code or iPhone apps or Megan Fox....

These days its everything is about the baby......how-to's and what-if's

Anyways, So I thought why not use the same tool, which Google used to make their Super Bowl AD and make a video out of it.

Hopefully my humor will come across. Njoi.

Things we are addicted to....

Portable computers. The iPad might be the latest must-have gizmo, but the power of computers transcends trendiness. Shipments of notebooks have skyrocketed over the last three years, with sales in 2010 likely to be double what they were in 2007, according to the Consumer Electronics Association. Part of the jump comes from cheap netbooks, but portable computers of all sizes are becoming ubiquitous as we socialize, communicate, shop, get our news and increasingly live our lives online. Desktop sales, meanwhile, have been on a steady decline, as mobility trumps stability.

High-speed Internet access. Lots of people have cut back on cable TV, telephone service, and even gas and electricity usage. But once you've got high-speed Internet access, you don't go back. In a Pew Research Center survey from last year, high-speed Internet was one of only three things people said was more of a necessity in 2009 than in 2006. Appliances like microwaves, clothes dryers and dishwashers, by contrast, were considered less essential in 2009 than they used to be. And data from the Telecommunications Industry Association shows that the rapid increase in broadband Internet subscribers barely slowed in 2008 or 2009. By 2013, more than 90 percent of all Internet connections in the United States will be high-speed.

Smart phones. Overall sales of cell phones dipped for the first time ever in 2009. But sales of smart phones--which can handle email, browse the Internet and do a variety of other things--rose by 7 percent, according to TIA. And sales could surge by 25 percent this year, as people who have been putting off mobile upgrades finally nab the iPhone or Blackberry of their dreams. Like portable computers, smart phones have become a lifeline for the harried multitaskers we pretend we're not.

Movies. Ticket sales dipped in 2008 but bounced back in 2009, hitting a five-year high. One big reason was Avatar and other 3-D films, which accounted for 11 percent of the box office take in 2009, up from 2 percent the year before. Any box-office increase is a victory for movie theaters, which until last year had been losing viewers to home theater systems and an expanding lineup of movies on cable and the Internet.

TV. A recent survey by consulting firm Deloitte found that they typical American watches nearly 18 hours' worth of shows on a home TV each week, two hours more than a year earlier. One reason might be that more unemployed people are killing time at home. But TV might also seem like a cheap alternative to sports events, concerts and DVD purchases. And hard-core TV watchers can't be all that strapped, since sales of high-definition TV sets have risen steadily right through the recession.

Music downloads. The need for mobility applies to music, too. CD sales fell by 21 percent in 2009, but downloads of singles and entire albums rose by nearly as much. The Pew Survey comparing luxuries and necessities helps explain why: More people considered an iPod a necessity in 2009 than in 2006, despite the recession.

Booze. Smoking less doesn't make us entirely virtuous. Americans have backed off the high-end booze, but we're drinking enough cheap stuff to make up for it, which is the usual trend during recessions. Beer and wine sales have inched up as well over the last few years. With bar and restaurant sales down, that suggests more people are drinking at home--while they watch TV, probably.

Coffee. Americans have actually followed that penny-pinching advice, and cut back on the $5 daily lattes. But they're compensating by brewing more of their own coffee. About 56 percent of American adults drink coffee, a proportion that hasn't changed over the last few years. But a recent survey by the National Coffee Association found that 86 percent of coffee drinkers make their own at home, up from 82 percent a year earlier. And those drinking coffee made someplace else (think Starbucks) fell from 31 percent in 2009 to 26 percent in 2010. Of course, if people are drinking more booze at home, then it makes sense that they'd be dosing themselves with more coffee, too. If the economy improves, maybe we'll need less of each.

(Courtesy US News)

Oh Dear Mommy...

Oh Dear Mommy,

I know times are tough and it will last for a while
But remember what Mammu taught, live life always with a smile

I love my Nanni & Dadi & nanna & dadu
See how strong they are, just like my chote mammu

What can I say that hasn’t been said?
What can I do that Mammu hasn’t done?

He was loving like your mom and strong like your dad
He was the brother my dad never had.

Let’s end the pain and have no sorrow
Let’s bring a smile on your face for my better tomorrow

Don’t cry coz I cry with you
Don’t worry coz I know an angel is watching over you

I can’t see a fairy to make our wish come true
I can’t see a Genie to bring mammu back to you.

I can see a dream and when I do,
I dream that mammu is smiling with me and you.

God gives us strength to fight our fears
I promise my touch is going to wipe all your tears.

Love Your Baby.

P.S
No matter what…. please do smile,
Despite the pathetic attempt my Dad made to make things rhyme

In memory of my Brother-in-Law ...Manav Vora (1982-2010). Great son. Loving brother. True friend. You will be missed.

Will it be....

Will it like Pink or like Blue
I hope it’s like me and a bit like you…..

Will it play Barbie or have a huge football craze
Oh Gosh I am so scared with all the new tasks to face

Will it be hyper in the morning or be slow
Will it obsess over the kitchen sink or just let it go

Will it melt my heart with its smile
Look what its done, its already making my thoughts rhyme

I don’t care if it likes Pink or Blue
Truth be told, I want it to be little bit of me ….with a whole lotta you
Oh Gosh I can’t wait till July
That’s when my baby is due…

For my loving kid ..........................Niral