Walken And Lady Gaga
Posted by: agsharma on: November 6, 2009
I have always loved Walken’s comic timing. It never ever fails. Even when he is playing a bad ass, it seems his inner comic is just bubbling under the surface. Here he is reading out the lyrics of a song Poker Face by Lady Gaga. First the original :
and here’s Christopher Walken :
Isn’t that hilarious!!!
Yearning
Posted by: agsharma on: November 5, 2009
For some reason I am really missing India a lot these days. I guess not having visited my place of birth for 7 years would bring about the yearning. A part of it is because the places I used to love in India have gone through a drastic change (as everyone loves to tell me) and I want to compare the changes with the image in my mind. My hometown of Patiala, as my folks say is now unrecognisable. The places I used to hang as a youth have either been razed or have been altered drastically. Another place I really want to visit at my hometown is the engineering college I used to attend. I have a lot of wonderful memories of that place and visiting it after 7 years would surely bring all those memories rushing back into my mind. And to be able to share them with my daughter, who will be with me, is something I am looking forward to.
Delhi is another place where I want to spend some time. Again, a lot of memories. Delhi was the place where I really matured (stop snickering, mom and dad). I had a lot of tough decisions to make in Delhi and more often than not, I ended up making the wrong decisions. Those were moments that really taught me valuable lessons which I like to think I continue implementing to this day.
Hullabaloo Over Swine Flu Vaccination
Posted by: agsharma on: November 5, 2009
I am not really sure what the big noise is about NOT getting vaccinated against the swine flu. The argument seems to be that there are unknown dangers about the swine flu shot. But those risks seem to be unknown and the risk of getting swine flu and dying from it are very real.
So, once the rush at Ontario clinics die down a bit, I and my daughter will be getting the swine flu shot. Of course, convincing my daughter to get a shot is going to be herculean task.
Why We Should All Love The Onion
Posted by: agsharma on: November 4, 2009
This video demonstrates why The Onion is the best non-news news site out there.
Changes
Posted by: agsharma on: November 4, 2009
I am trying to take my blog into a new direction. I know I have not been posting for a little while but I had fallen into a rut and could not break out of it. Hopefully, my mood is now changing for the better and I will post more often.
Here’s what I want to focus on
- Music
- Running
- My life
- and everyday funnies.
I do want to talk about other stuff too but I prefer twitter for that….hopefully I will not lose too many readers!!
The “New” Music Industry
Posted by: agsharma on: October 15, 2009
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Before he signs a new band to his independent music label, Franz Schuller usually gives aspiring musicians bad news: They’re probably not going to be famous. This bitter pill is briskly followed by another: “Whatever they think they knew about the music industry from what they’ve heard, or read, or seen on television, that really doesn’t exist any more,” says Mr. Schuller. “It’s really, really hard for artists out there now. It’s an insanely huge challenge to actually make a decent living playing music these days. That’s the reality.”
Ok, I do not know much about the music industry but right away this statement by a music industry insider put me off. If this is true then all the musicians are doomed and it’s the end of the indie music industry and we will all be listening to manufactured pop from the major labels from now.
But wait. Is that what’s really happening? No. We consumers of indie music are not being forced to listen to manufactured music at all. There are tonnes and tonnes of choices of indie musicians who are creating superb music. I am a child of the 90s but I can say without any doubt in my mind that the indie music scene at the moment has been the best EVER.
Schuller thinks that bands will never make it in the real world.
“For all the massive opportunity that the Internet and mobile phones and devices give us by reaching millions and millions of people, there’s also a gazillion bands. It’s really hard to get noticed or to get anyone’s attention,” says Mr. Schuller. “It’s allowed people with absolutely no business competing in the same space to complicate the careers of people who do have a lot of talent. There’s way, way too much stuff out there.”
So, the reason you are not making money because untalented people are taking up your space??? What the fuck? That is one of the crappiest statements I have ever heard. You will get noticed if you are good and if you think you are destined to be famous then tap on the shoulder of your management not the technology. No one is asking you to be a technology genius. Just be smart about how to connect to people. If you can’t do it, ask your friends, family, your fans or just google it. I cannot believe that the reason why you are not successful is because you think someone else it taking up your space. What nonsense.
And then there is this :
This rings true for Tim Baker, lead singer of the burgeoning Newfoundland-based band Hey Rosetta!, which made the shortlist for this year’s Polaris Prize. As social networking technologies grow more popular, bands are put under pressure to communicate with their fans in a way that didn’t exist a decade ago.
“I just want to create a clone who actually enjoys being online,” he says with a laugh. “What a band is historically supposed to do is tour, and write music and put on shows. When you get home, your time off is actually way more work than being on the road.”
Again. What nonsense. If you do not like to spend time on line – Don’t. Please. Spare us.
Just make sure your music is easily accessible (iTunes, emusic, amazon) and put up shows in different parts of the country to stay in touch with your fans. Stay away from Twitter and facebook if it bugs you so much. I want to hear your music and I will pay for it and your shows/t-shirts. I do not want to hear about your life. I have no interest in it.
I think that’s what bugs some of the musicians these days. Gone are the days where a musician could define a fan, now it’s the fan who defines a musician.The fan decides what he/she wants to hear, what he/she wants to share and what he/she wants to spend money on. The musician should focus on what they do best, play music and leave the business of making money to the quality of their music.
Watch this video to learn the business model of the new music industry.
More (broken) Harper Promises
Posted by: agsharma on: October 15, 2009
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“What’s becoming apparent is that the Conservative stimulus program is biased, unfair, targeted to Conservative ridings and shameless in the way it uses party logos to promote a stimulus program that ought to benefit all of Canadians,” Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff said in Regina on Wednesday.
Conservative MPs have been orchestrating cheque-presentation ceremonies, in which the oversized ceremonial cheque contains the picture of the MP, the signature of the MP, Conservative Party logos or a combination of all three.
One of those MPs, Nova Scotia’s Gerald Keddy, said the $300,000 cheque he presented for an arena upgrade mistakenly contained his party’s logo and he could not explain how his signature ended up on the cheque.
“I think the member (of Parliament) in question admitted that was a mistake and should not be repeated,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Wednesday while visiting Edmonton.
“So Keddy’s not going to do it again, but what about the rest of them?” said NDP MP Peter Stoffer. Stoffer filed a complaint with the ethics commissioner this week. “It blows me away that they could be so blatant, using your tax dollars to promote themselves.”
And this is the same political party that howled incessantly on the Liberal Party sponsorship scandal. It’s one thing to try and win an election but this is blatantly politicising an infrastructure program. I hope Harper is investigated oh wait that can’t happen because of all the cronies now in place.
And this just proves why it’s so easy to detest the Harper adminsitration:
In one case, B.C. Conservative MP Colin Mayes handed over a cheque with the Conservative party logo and his own picture on it.
In Ontario, Conservative MPs Scott Reid and Larry Miller dispensed with party logos altogether, but put their own names in large print in the top left corner of ceremonial cheques they posed with, making it seem as if the cheques were drawn on their personal accounts.
“These are the tax dollars of Canadians,” said Easter. “They’re not Conservative dollars . . . just to be used for the Harper propaganda and messaging machine.”
Cartoon Of The Week!
Posted by: agsharma on: October 7, 2009
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Hockey
Posted by: agsharma on: October 2, 2009
- In: About Me| Hockey| Sport
- Leave a Comment
Well, I have been in Canada for 7 and a half years and I am finally going to give it a shot……developing an interest for Hockey (that’s Ice Hockey to you non-North Americans).
This season I promise to follow NHL……ok that would be too much. I promise to follow the Leafs this season. That’s how I learned to appreciate football (that’s American Football to non-North Americans). I forced myself to watch the games and over time, I realised that football requires a lot of skills and strategies which really appeals to me as a couch athlete.
So here are my thoughts on the Leafs’ game last night (which I was able to watch in peace and quiet on account of my wife and in-laws). Keep in mind that these thoughts are from someone who has never in his life watched an entire game of hockey.
Leafs and the Canadiens played quite an engaging game of hockey. Never was there a dull moment and when the fights started, it was even more entertaining!! I guess there is a fair amount of animosity between the two teams because they came to blows fairly regularly. I thought it was the Senators from Ottawa that the Leafs hated.
From what I can gather, the offense was top notch from the Leafs. They were playing hard and most of the time the puck was in Canadiens’ half. But it was their sloppy defense that basically lost the game for them. 3 of the 4 goals by Canadiens were from power plays in which, I swear, the scorers basically walked over to the goal and scored. It’s start of the season so let’s see how it unfolds.
I hope to watch more games (now that I have a PVR, it would be easier). I will not bore you with the details except to let you know from time to time if I have any passion developing for the game like most of my colleagues and friends do.
Later.
Thoughts On The Scotiabank Half Marathon In Toronto
Posted by: agsharma on: October 1, 2009
I have taken running half marathons in the last two years or so and I have never felt as alive as I do when I finish a 21 KM run. The delicious ache that flows through the body for a day or so is exhilarating although the the crash that follows is PAINFUL on the legs.
The thrill that one experiences as the run is about to start is pretty amazing!
- The leg muscles are tense.
- The crowd’s thrill starts to infect you.
- The iPod is switched on.
- Just before the start, you start focusing your mind towards the run.
- And the start……I feel as if I have just sprouted wings and am ready to fly.
I am usually able to maintain my enthusiasm until the 10 KM mark. After that for the next 3 – 4 KM it’s a struggle to gain back the momentum. I start popping more gummy bears, start drinking more water which is probably what I should stop doing. This stopping and starting kills me. Once I get my runner’s high back, I can run fairly well until the last 3 KM or so. I feel like I have bricks for legs and I start plopping to the finish line.
And that’s what happened on Scotiabank Marathon as well. I was sure I would crack the 2:15 hour mark but I finished with a pathetic 2:21 hour.
On the whole, I really enjoyed the run except the last 3 KM. Need to practice more.
I did have an issue with the organisation of the event. I mean, the organisers had done a superb job on the course but the approach to downtown (by car) where the event was to start from was absolutely pathetic. I had given myself enough time to reach the venue but because all the approaches to the downtown core were closed (and on the site there was no information that these approaches would be closed), I barely made it to the run on time.
Moreover, once the run was finished, the runners were carted to a cordoned area (understandable, as the organisers did not want anyone other than runner to eat food) where we were squeezed to the point where I was actually claustrophobic. I mean, we have just finished a run, we want to relax and enjoy some food but no, we were squeezed and had to go through back ways to get where we wanted after jostling with fellow runners. Very annoying.
But I will come back to the run again and maybe, just maybe, I will run the full marathon next time
:)
Abdelrazik Sues Ottawa
Posted by: agsharma on: September 24, 2009
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Abousfian Abdelrazik is suing the government – and Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon personally – for $27-million over Canada’s role in his arrest and alleged torture in Sudan and for violating his constitutional right to come home.
Mr. Abdelrazik, who spent nearly six years in prison or forced exile while his attempts to come home were thwarted, returned to Canada in June after Ottawa was ordered by a federal judge to repatriate the 47-year-old Sudanese-Canadian.
I knew it was a matter of time before Abdelrazik sued Ottawa but what’s surprising is the lawsuit includes Cannon! Good for Abdelrazik. Cannon has displayed over and over again that he is all about “CONservative compassion” – of course, he means only for the non-dark skinned folks.
I don’t know why some anglo-Canadians do not reconcile with the fact that Canada (and USA) is changing. Both these countries are now going to be different shades of colours and to stay fixated on “your own kind of folks” is small mindedness and stupid.
Having said that, this statement is also true for Canadian or other colours. I mean, we Canadians from north India are one of the most racist folks in the world!! Try having a conversation about south Indians (who are a shade darker than north Indians) amongst people from Delhi and Punjab (northern states in India). Oh boy, some of the things I have heard said are so politically incorrect that they would be down right hate speech!!
The Power Of Art
Posted by: agsharma on: September 22, 2009
This is so amazing.
I have no idea what the context is but the music and art does evoke a powerful response.
Dumb And Stupid
Posted by: agsharma on: September 21, 2009
Holy cow!!!
I have no idea where to go with this….
Creation, which opened the Toronto International Film Festival last week, might be winning favourable early reviews, but its still-controversial protagonist — naturalist Charles Darwin — has prevented the film from snagging U.S. distribution, according to one of its producers.
The Jon Amiel biographical drama stars real-life couple Paul Bettany and Jennifer Connelly as the evolution theorist and his devout wife, during the period when Darwin struggled with his faith, the loss of a beloved daughter and with the decision to publish his seminal On The Origin of Species.
Though Creation has scored deals to screen in movie theatres around the globe, U.S. distributors have been reluctant.
I guess progressives and liberals are really not controlling Hollywood? So, a graphically violent movie like The Passion Of The Christ based on a fairy tale is ok with the distributors but a biopic on one of the greatest scientist in the history of the world, is a big NO.
Absolutely pathetic.
The Tea Party Or Teh Stupid
Posted by: agsharma on: September 16, 2009
I hope this is just a representation of the idiots in the US and not really the whole population of The United States of America.
Bill O’Reilly Is A Douchebag
Posted by: agsharma on: September 16, 2009
Not only I do think that, Mike Conway, Assistant Professor at Indiana University says so after conducting a quantitative data based research to back up his and his partners’ claims.
The research team analyzed 105 segments of O’Reilly’s “Talking Points Memo,” a segment that opens his nightly show on Fox News Network. The segments were recorded from shows airing between the first week of January to the last week of June 2005.
In these segments, they looked for the seven elements of propaganda previously identified by the IPA: name calling, glittering generalities, transfer, testimonial, plain folks, card stacking and band wagon. Techniques were measured by the number of times they occurred in a minute, a strategy Conway said he thought would counteract the different lengths of the two men’s broadcasts.
The data shows that O’Reilly used all seven of these techniques. Most prominent in his verbiage is the use of name calling, occurring an average of 8.88 times per minute, or close to once every seven seconds.
A pattern also exists in the subjects of this name-calling. The “left-leaning media” led the pack, receiving 21.6 percent of the name calling during the studied time. Illegal aliens and terrorists also held prominence, receiving 26.8 percent and 21.4 percent respectively, with academics rounding out the top four, the study stated.
On the other hand, Americans, the U.S. military and the Bush administration were most commonly alluded to as victims in O’Reilly’s nightly commentary.
CONservative’s Hypocrisy At Display……
Posted by: agsharma on: September 16, 2009
….and this is why we make soooooo much fun of them.
Conservatives labeled Bloc Québécois “separatists, socialists, leftist” when the Bloc was part of the coalition to bring down the conservative government, but when the Bloc supports the Conservatives, they are partners!!!
Pathetic.
Miscellaneous Stuff
Posted by: agsharma on: September 13, 2009
- In: Misc
- Leave a Comment
- I hope to “god” this is not true : Charles Darwin film ‘too controversial for religious America’. The dumbing down of the USA continues.
- Looks like someone does not know how to handle competition.Steve Ballmer publicly ridicules Microsoft employee with iPhone, threatens to smash it.
- 7 thoughts that are bad for you. I would have ignored this list as nonsense if it was not on livescience.com
- Cynicism,
- Lack of Meaning,
- Fretting,
- Lack of Self-control,
- Anxiety,
- Gloom and Doom,
- Stress
- Ok, this is too much of a coincidence. Baby born at 9:09 on 9/9/09 weighs 9 lbs., 9 oz.
Been Away For A While But Am Back…..
Posted by: agsharma on: September 1, 2009
……so what’s happening in my life?
Well, went to Montreal for a visit. What an awesome place!!! I mean that whole town is geared for tourism. Everything screams “come have fun as long as you spend money here” and we were happy to oblige. Montreal to me is like New York’s alter ego. Fun, but not as fast paced and definitely not as dirty. The only bad experience we had there was when my wife’s purse was stolen from a restaurant when we were in Montreal for only a few hours! Wife was quite upset about it until she realised that she did not lose anything of value. Other than that, we had a great time!!
Montreal is a city that lives and breathes architecture. Beautiful cathedrals, beautiful waterfront, beautiful old Montreal and really, really beautiful Notre Dame. And the people are quite friendly too…..granted we met only the people from the tourism/service sector and never really the “common” folk but the outlook of everyone we met there was sunny (except for the bastards who stole my wife’s purse).
We had taken the VIA train to Montreal. The ride to Montreal was pretty lame because there was a jumper (a suicide!!) on the tracks so the train we were on came to a halt for 3 hours!! After that it was smooth sailing.
Why does one attempt suicide? I have no clue what would push someone to commit this act. Actually I would probably kill myself if anything happened to my daughter.Anyway, I hope this person now rests in peace.
Saw District 9 over the weekend and have named it one my top 10 movies of all time!!! I will not review the movie here as better people have done a better job elsewhere but the story, the presentation style and the excellent acting of the unknown cast is what sets this picture above the likes of other summer projects like G I Joe and Transformers.
Regular postings to follow!
Tim Hortons Playing Politics?
Posted by: agsharma on: August 11, 2009
<Link>
Tim Hortons is scrubbing its hands of a Rhode Island event opposing same-sex marriage after an online outcry went viral yesterday.
The iconic Canadian coffee shop was listed as a sponsor for a “Marriage and Family Day” hosted by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), an organization that campaigns against gay marriage.
Tim Hortons had agreed to provide free coffee for the Aug. 16 event in Warwick, R.I., but pulled out yesterday as the news spread and complaints came flooding in.
Tim Hortons said it would no longer be a sponsor, citing a policy not to sponsor events “representing religious groups, political affiliates or lobby groups.”
Well this is really good news. I was ready to ban Timmies from my life is they had not withdrawn the sponsorship. It would have been difficult but I would have done it. And here is a statement from the organisers :
“We had no idea that we would cause an international incident by having coffee donated,” said Chris Plante, director of the Rhode Island chapter of NOM.
They had planned for 250 cups of coffee, he said.
On the brochure, the iconic “Tim Hortons” signature is printed next to the event’s intended purpose: “To take a stand for marriage as it was created to be.”
“Oooooh, it’s just coffee”. “Why would anyone be offended by having coffee served to gay hating, homophobic people?” I am glad that the TDL corporation nixed in the bud (even though they took their own time to do it).
And for all those twitter naysayers :
News of the sponsorship set off a furious stream of angry “tweets” about what appeared to be the Canadian company’s partisan involvement in a controversial political battle.
Many of the comments, which were coming at a rate of a dozen every minute, were demanding the company pull the sponsorship. But others went further, accusing the company of homophobia and saying they would boycott the company.
Yesterday afternoon, Tim Hortons released a statement saying the sponsorship had been cancelled and that the franchise owner had run afoul of corporate policy. The company does not allow sponsorship of religious, political or lobby groups.
Why Twitter Rocks
Posted by: agsharma on: August 13, 2009
<Link>
Douglas’s article, What If Twitter Folds, is just awful. He basically compares twitter to cellphones and then goes on to explain how twitter is useless except for “the agoraphobic or the desperately lonely”. (I find it fascinating how morons who do not comprehend a technology immediately assume it’s for the losers of the society).
A brief rant about twitter.
The first thing you have to understand is that twitter is not new. It’s been around in the form of IRC (Internet Relay Channels) for quite a while now. Ask enterprising journalists how they got their news during the parliament troubles in USSR in 1991.
I agree that most of what’s on twitter is mindless chatter. But once you see signs of mindless chatter, it is your fault if you encourage it or participate in it. You can easily ignore the mindless chatter and if you do not do so, please don’t complain about being told what your friend had for breakfast. Mindless tweets are something that journalists love to brandish about again and again and I swear, it’s these journalists who encourage idiots to continue broadcasting their life.
What I find fascinating about twitter is the ability to streamline the tweets as per your requirement. I want to hear from some news organisations, from the popular bloggers, from close friends, from people who share my passion for running, passion for tennis, passion for formula 1 racing etc.
The company I work for is following the trends on twitter closely and wants to integrate it within the company platform. How that will work? No clue but the point is that companies are paying attention to this technology and just because 40.5% of tweets are about what one did a few minutes ago, does not mean that MSM dismiss the rest of the tweets which continue to inspire and entertain.
So, to go back to the question, what would happen if twitter folds? I can only answer that question with another question : Dougie boy, did you ask the Iranians that question, Douglas?
UPDATE : I just noticed the header on the article bashing twitter. FAIL……Hilarious!!!