2 years already???

Wha the sui! I cant believe that its already been close to 2 years since I last updated this blog. A lot of things had happened between Oct 2007 till now. Too manys things took priority over the blog. Guess its about time I get back to doing what I started out doing. What the sui is BACK!

Deepavali Is Here

Its that time of the year again and with just a week left, Deepavali mood kicks in and its visible almost everywhere! Even Dell advertised a good Deepavali deal for its PCs and Notebooks in the papers today. What makes of that!

Anyway with all the busy schedule, we spared a few minutes yesterday to put up some festive stuffs in the office to reflect the mood. Although it was done in a rush and in a small scale, the impact was there anyway.

Spare a Thought

Its been over a week since my last post. Work is taking its toll on my social life! Dang and there isn't anything I can do about it. I have a dozen or so new projects am currently working on and some are running concurrently. I just need to get a few of the more important ones off the book and things should get better.
Either way Deeps is just one week away! Lots of things to be done in preparation. Its not like how it used to be those days but nevertheless its a celebration indeed. A few of us colleagues took some time off last Sunday morning to spent some time with the childrens at the Vision Home , First Garden Silibin Ipoh. Since its Deepavali time, we just wanted to share the festive mood with the less fortunate kids there as we most certainly wont be able to do so on the day itself.
Vision Home is a privately run shelter home for orphaned kids and kids with troubled family background.Though they have a few homes running, this particular one is for young boys only. The youngest kid here is aged 4 and the eldest is 16. They have kids from all sort of backgrounds. Some being orphaned, kids with medical conditions and the most disheartening - physically abused kids. Some of the kids had suffered serious injuries mostly by their own parents before being brought to this home! Why have childrens when they only end up being punching bags?? We are talking about kids below 6 years here. This kind of parents should be stoned to death in my personal opinion after looking at all the injuries. That's not to mention the mental torture the kids must've endured.
Either way looking at the kids , you would hardly notice their troubled past! They looked as normal as a kid can be and it was somewhat heart warming to see them running around just like how a normal kid would be. Some of the kids here are just plain fun to be with I should say. It makes you wonder , if they can swing around their life from all the hardship what makes of us the better offs! We can learn a thing or two from them on how we perceive life! They treat each other with respect and learn to share things. Be it food, toys, books....even prayers! You even get to see a mentally challenged Chinese kid talk in Tamil with his friends! The satisfaction when looking into their eyes when they received their new toys we bought for them is just unmeasurable. It worth every minute and every penny!
It was a very very satisfying moment that few hours we were there from morning till after lunch. It must've been some of the best spent hours in life for me. You get to play with them, read books, have lunch together and the best part is the interview sessions! You should see how open the kids are to the subject of discussion even at that young age. Plans are to take them all out for a day out on a picnic to Lost World , Sunway Lagoon, Tambun with our own families in December for Christmas and maybe a trip to the cinema if a nice animation movie comes out.
For all those reading this, please share some thoughts for all the unfortunate kids and humans in general when we celebrate the Festival of Light this year. Its the least we can do for them! And for those who have the means to do more, spread the festive joy around!

Adios Steve McClown

Finally! A good chance had presented itself to the English FA to sack Steve McClown and save England from going into further international football oblivion! Last nights loss to Russia in the crucial Euro 2008 qualifier is the final straw. Enter Moanrinho! hahahah fat hopes indeed. But then I do not see any other credible candidate out there to take over the helm for the 3 Lions. Terry Venebales you might say?? Yeah right! That would be like taking it from the lion's mouth and feedin it to the croc's mouth.

England will need a miracle now to qualify for the Euro 2008. Correction! They don't need 'a' miracle, they need a couple of miracles to happen. First miracle, Russia will have to loose or draw to Israel in the game at Tel Aviv. This is not far fetched but looks unlikely now that Israel is out of contention. Second miracle is for Andorra-who-you may-ask to beat or draw with Russia! Now, Andorra is pointless after 10 round of matches and sitting at the bottom of the table with just 2 goals scored and 39 against! Maybe David Blaine might lend a hand of help! With England only having 1 more match and that is against the group leader Croatia, even if they win(3rd miracle) this they will have to pray that Russia drops points at Andorra or Israel.

Personally I don't see that happening and looks like I will have one less team to support at Euro 2008 as it stands. That would probably make the tournament incomplete but it serves the English FA right. What were they thinking??? Steve McClown took the team backwards instead of forward. Heck even Sven did a good job in my opinion! I guess this is what get when you end up with the 3rd choice manager.

Darn! There goes my hopes for a peaceful Thursday morning! What the SUI!

Remembering Kavi Arasu Kannadasan

24th June 1927 - 17th October 1981

Its been 27 years today since Kavi Arasu Kannadasan left us to meet his creator. I cannot claim to know him very well but I am just like thousands if not millions out there who must've been touched by him in one way or another. Although he is also a known poet, for me his impact had been restricted to song lyrics for I have never been into poetry at all! That could partly be due to the fact that I don't write or read Tamil. Now, I see that more as handicape than an embarrassment. Its not too late yet to acquire the know how though I know . That is for another day.


What is important is today. And this post is a tribute to a man who in my personal opinion depicts the very basic and real face of an ordinary man although some do make him otherwise the opposite. What made him so special? There are notions that he is better than Barathi himself. But then it would be an unfair comparison as highlighted to me by Sara recently. Some how I agree with her. Now back to the question , whats so great about Kannadasan?


Kannadasan was an epitome of a man who lived his short lived life at the best of everything. He was 54 when he passed away at Chicago USA on the 17th October 1981. At such an age which could still be said young he had reached the height of his life in every aspect it had been said. His style of writing reached all level of masses. From the down trodden to even the elites. His simplicity and down right practicality in writing is what endeared him to the masses. Together with MSV he delivered what can be said a Golden Era of Tamil Music just as the latest(now might be defunct) successful partnership of AR Rahman and Vairamuthu. Some say he writes from his heart and not just for the commercial value. He represents his life and his surroundings in his songs. He might have his publicised shortcomings, but he remained true to his principles and worked his magic around it.

One do need to love the songs of that era to really understand the magic of Kannadasan, especially during the period of 50s to 70s and even early 80s. His first song lyric was Kalangathiru Maname in the movie Kanniyin Kadali in 1949. Even after his death in 1981, his lyrics was still used in Tamil songs. His last and one of the most famous lyric was for the song Kanne Kalaimane for the movie Moondram Pirai in 1983. What a song this is! Was it the lyrics?? Was it Raja's music?? Or Balu Mahendra's picturisation?? I dont even need to go as far as to Kamal or SriDevi do I? But this goes to show the influence of Kannadasan in the Tamil Movie Music industry.

From love songs to 'thathuvam' ones, he excelled at bringing out the best of words to carry the meaning of what he wanted to convey. But he kept it simple.Some of his 'thathuvam songs' that
I like are Paramasivan Kalethilyirenthu, Pirekum Pothum Aalugendray, Aaru Manameh Aaru, Atcham Yenbathu Madamay, Aatho Andhe Paravai, Ponal Pohgathum, Satti Suttathada and Oru Thai Makkal.

Some of his love song masterpieces that I love include songs like Kaadhal Siragai, Kanne Kalaimane, Naan Paarthethile, Paatu Padava, Pavadai Thavaniyil, Chippi Irekethe , Thanimayileh Inimaiy and Thangathileh Oru Kuurai.

Of course the small examples above cannot do justice to the approx 5000 song that he had written. But those songs above are some of his best in my opinion. I would love to have his total collection but that would be impossible. Thus far I only have about 100plus songs of his collection which I hope I can add to. That is just a fraction of what is out there!

All I want to say in the end... Thank You Kannadasan! May you rest in peace knowing your legacy will remain forever in our hearts!

Below are some Kannadasan based resources and further readings

This link HERE provides live streaming of some of Kannadasan's best songs

The link HERE provides some interesting snippets of him

The link HERE provides a brief intro for Kannadasan

The link HERE provides more details about him

History-Revisited

Its been over a week since my last post. Life been super duper hectic with work and other related matters that I hardly have any time to update the blog. Its gonna remain like this for the next few weeks or so. Too many projects in the office with the start of the new financial year. I am breaking my own promise of at least 2 posts a week.
Anyway, something really turned up during my usuall blog roll this morning. Origins of Malays! The two blogs I refer to is Unspun and BJ Thoughts. This is a very sensitive and dangerous topic and question to discuss and talk about in our country. The post at BJ Thoughts is a nice piece and as admitted by the blogger, a long piece as well. But then I suggest you to read it. It might shed some light to the biggest coverup in Malaysian history! hahahaha sorry Dan Brown!
Need to get a few more things done before I shoot back to Ipoh shortly.Not sure when will I be able to come back to my usuall routine in life. I just need to finish some very important long outstanding projects real soon. This means more work on the road and be travelling even more.

I have a dream

Finally after scouring the net I have found the complete text of the 'I Have a Dream' speech made Martin Luther King on the 28th August 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. This speech is regarded as one of the most important and finest speech ever in the history of United States.

After reading it, I was able to relate myself to the issues raised by King during his freedom struggles in US until his assassination. King was a well known Gandhi follower hence the non violence freedom movement.

In my opinion, this is a very important piece that every Malaysian should read and give a thought about. It might be written with the colored ppl struggle in mind but we can easily relate it to the current state of our country. Its a long piece but worth reading.

Reference :
Prepared by Gerald Murphy (The Cleveland Free-Net - aa300)
Distributed by the Cybercasting Services Division of the National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN).

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon of hope to millions of slaves, who had been seared in the flames of whithering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But one hundred years later, the colored America is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the colored American is still sadly crippled by the manacle of segregation and the chains of discrimination.

One hundred years later, the colored American lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the colored American is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our Nation's Capital to cash a check.When the architects of our great republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence,they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.

This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed to the inalienable rights of life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given its colored people a bad check, a check that has come back marked"insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and security of justice.

We have also come to his hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is not time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.

Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy.

Now it the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.

Now it the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.

Now is the time to make justice a reality to all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of it's colored citizens. This sweltering summer of the colored people's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end but a beginning. Those who hope that the colored Americans needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual.

There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the colored citizen is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.

We cannot be satisfied as long as the colored person's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one.

We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating "for white only."

We cannot be satisfied as long as a colored person in Mississippi cannot vote and a colored person in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote.

No, no we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of your trials and tribulations. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by storms of persecutions and staggered by the winds of police brutality.

You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our modern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you, my friends, we have the difficulties of today and tomorrow.

I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.

I have a dream that one day out in the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; that one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be engulfed,every hill shall be exalted and every mountain shall be made low,the rough places will be made plains and the crooked places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.

With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.

With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to climb up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning "My country 'this of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my father's died, land of the Pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!"

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.So let freedom ring from the hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that, let freedom, ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi and every mountainside.

When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every tenement and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children,black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old spiritual, "Free at last, free at last. Thank God Almighty, we are free at last."