Fifty And Still An Infant!

Bring out the bubbly and spread the cheer all over. My previous post, marked a milestone, albeit a small one, in my blogging history. It was my 50th blog post. Yada, yada, yada is now a Golden Jubilee Blog, well at least in terms of posts!

What started as a means to echo my voice through the abyss of the cyber-space has now become a hobby, nay a passion, one which has helped me channel not only my thoughts, but also my opinions. Although I am certain not many may have read nor even heard about this tiny little speck in the infinite universe that is the Internet, it matters not. After all, we as humans are but a speck of a speck in the totality of this universe (or the multiverse, if you want to be politically correct!). Yet to each of us, our minuscule lives and their inhabitants mean the world to us. The same is true for my personal blog.

But enough of this sentimental BS! After all, its also about keeping you engaged and entertained right! Well since this being a landmark for me, I thought I'd chronicle the evolution of my blog from the amateur attempts at literature to, well, continued amateur attempts at literature!

Many probably aren't aware that the blog was originally titled Neo's Blog. Yes i confess, I am a fan of "The Matrix". In fact, there was a time when almost every cyber-space presence of mine was in some way related to the Matrix Universe.

When the Matrix-fever subsided, it was time to re-christen the venture with a more appropriate and apt title. Being a fan of the television sitcoms, I was adamant to search for a worthy title from the colossal universe of the Idiot Box. After about an hour's search, George Costanza from an episode of Seinfeld gave me the answer I was looking for. Thus was born Yada, yada, yada...

The blogging venture began with a series of reviews, movie reviews that is. My passion for watching movies with a critic's eye is very obvious from the earlier set of blog posts. To give you a number, 15 out of the total 50 posts are movie reviews.

For a while blogging took a back seat. Actually it took the very last seat in a very crowded bus! But things really started looking up in the last year. In a way 2009, has a been the year that helped me reboot the blog. And if you happen to see the count of posts, well 2009 has witnessed the maximum number, especially the last quarter.

It is only very recently (read 2009) that I began blogging about topics other than movies. This move helped me expand my scope of topics exponentially and gave me tremendous latitude in my writing style. My range of topics spread across a wide spectrum including politics, news, reviews, awareness and even nostalgia! Some may argue that not focusing on any one genre indicates a lack of focus. To them I say, well being a human you cannot truly focus only on one aspect of your life and neglect the rest. My interests like my mood vary and as such are in constant competition to be penned by me!

Prominent in my diversity of topics was the inclusion, or as some have called it, blatant promotion of social networking sites, with one in particular-twitter! The twitter-critter series was aimed at creating awareness regarding the increasing popularity and usefulness of the soc-net site. As an avid twitter user myself,I began the series to help explain the many facets of twitter including clients and third-party applications. The process of explaining the concept to the readers helped me immensely in understanding the tool myself. So I'd say it was a win-win situation for me!

Another new series that I decided to focus on is what I call the Retro-Series. Being a child of the late 80s - early 90s almost everything that formed a part of my formative years are now considered "old-school". Which made me realize that there is a whole set of people who haven't seen or heard about the things that I and many like me considered staple. This new series is an attempt to introduce those fantastic items to a whole bunch of youngsters and re-introduce them to my fellow "old-schoolmates".

Then there are always those posts that are prompted by current-events and news. 2009 saw many events unfold such as the controversial re-election of the Congress government, the acquisition of the beleaguered IT firm Satyam, the H1N1 swine flu outbreak and the anniversary of the gruesome Mumbai terror attacks. Each topic found a space in my blog in some manner and helped me express my opinions.

And finally, some posts were simply the result of random thoughts pleading to be given a shape and structure. So these posts are completely random in occurrence and are really difficult to label with any one particular tag. But these are kind of posts I hope to churn our more often in the coming months, for they are truly food for thought, well at least for me!

So there you have it. My blog in a nutshell. Fifty posts-old and still an infant!
It may not be much, but like I said, it means the world to me! Here's hoping that my passion doesn't run out on me and I continue blogging far more diverse and soulful topics in the future.

Happy Reading!

Haiti Needs You

On Tuesday, January 12th 2010, the Caribbean island of Haiti was ravaged by a 7.0 earthquake. The natural calamity has claimed numerous lives and injured countless others. Additionally scores of government structures, hospitals, schools and homes have been devastated.

The nation of Haiti is an impoverished one and as such in dire need of global aid for rehabilitation programs. Charity organizations across the globe have started several programs to facilitate aid to the tragic stricken country. These noble causes require our participation to help make the effort a success.

For most of us the most valuable resource we can donate is money. Your contribution need not be equivalent to a huge lottery amount. Remember small drops form a mighty ocean.

There are several ways and many legitimate organizations that can accept your generous contribution. A few of the most prominent organizations have been listed below -

Google's Disaster Relief Program
Red Cross
World Vision International
UNICEF
Yele Haiti
Friends Of WFP


So let's come forward and help our fellow humans in Haiti.

Of Blue Skinned Aliens and Wise Cracking Idiots!

After a very long time (read eons), I've had the pleasure of watching two really great movies back to back. Each different from the other in terms of country of origin, genre, budgets and obviously stories, but each one an absolute gem.

The first movie is the sci-fi fantasy epic, Avatar. Visionary director, James Cameron has given us cinematic masterpieces such as Aliens, Terminator, Abyss and Titanic. With Avatar, Cameron has created nothing short of history.

Avatar is not about telling a very intricate story with layered characters and numerous subplots. In fact for the most part, the story is fairly predictable. If you've seen The Last Of The Mohicans or The Last Samurai you already know the plot. So if you are expecting a phenomenal story, well don't. In Fact you've probably even read this little piece that's been doing the rounds of the Internet, which points out some interesting and funny similarities between Avatar and Pocahontas.

But what Avatar is about is an entirely new level of visual effects, no strike that, the visuals are not effects, they are the movie! The CGI in this movie is beyond words, it is unreal! But then, Cameron is known for his use of technology to tell his story. The scene in Terminator-2 Judgment Day where the T-1000 rises from the floor is probably one of the most defining moments in cinematic history!

Not only has Cameron spawned an entire planet and ecology, but also an entirely new culture, that of the Na'Vi (the alien race shown in the movie, i.e. the blue skinned folks!). The spectrum of different species that he featured in the movie were so detailed that for a moment I felt that these creatures actually exist!

Avatar is a definite must watch for the stunning new level of CGI and visual effects that Cameron has introduced. Movie visuals are not going to remain the same after this!

The other movie that made me stand up and take note (not to mention shout "Encore, Encore") was Rajkumar Hirani's latest masterpiece, 3 Idiots. Adapted from Chetan Bhagat's best-seller, Five Point Someone, the movie stars Aamir Khan, Sharman Joshi and Madhavan.

For those who have read the book (myself included),don't expect a page-by-page adaptation, as the movie is quite different, with only certain subtle similarities, that do not have a huge bearing on the main plot. (Although there are those who disagree!)

3 Idiots, like Hirani's earlier movies, tackles a social topic. But in typical Hirani-Chopra style the message is not at all preachy and is loaded with tons of humor and punch. The topic this time around is that of the educational system of the country, particularly the graduate colleges.

The brilliance of the movie lies in it's witty dialogue and an absolute stellar performance by the three lead actors, Khan has once again claimed the crown of a true actor with his effortless portrayal of a twenty something college student. In fact I had already mentioned in an earlier post that this movie would be another feather in the already crowded hat of Aamir Khan.

If you've ever gone through the ordeal of being a student in the Indian education system or know someone who has, is or will bear this ordeal, 3 Idiots is a must watch. If not, still catch it for the sheer brilliant story-telling and absolutely hilarious comedy.

So there you have it, Avatar and 3 Idiots, the two movies that helped me end 2009 on a very positive note! if you haven't already caught these movies, get your tickets and watch them on the big screen...NOW!