I think

Read the sentence below carefully...

'I do not know where family doctors acquired illegibly perplexing handwriting nevertheless, extraordinary pharmaceutical intellectuality counterbalancing indecipherability, transcendentalizes intercommunications incomprehensibleness'.

This is a sentence where the 'Nth' word is 'N' letters long.

e.g. 3rd word is 3 letters long, 8th word is 8 letters long and so on....

How do you answer this question by a four-year-old:

Why do boys swim wearing only a "jatti" (*Panty) while girls have to wear a swim suit?

PS: I tried searching for  the picture of a nice swimsuit to use with this post, but I will pass, for the obvious results that came out of google images.

Ctrl-V (PCs) or Command-V (Macs) Time! Paste whatever text you copied last.

Xu, X; Matsunumura, Y; Stenberg, J; Antal, M.J; Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research; 35, 8, 2522-2530 [1996]

Ahem. Here is how I do the glass painting.  This is surely not the best and efficient way of doing it, but heck, it works for me..

1. Buy the pre-sketched glass from RS Supermarket, LB Road, Adyar.
2. Buy three stone colors: Red. blue. green.  You would ideally use a few drops per painting, so these paints will last for many many paintings.  Buy fabric colors. Buy gold paint (ideally, the gold powder mixed with thinner is used, but I find it too gaudy, the gold paint is a lot subtler.  All of these paints would last for at least five paintings.
3.  Warn everybody at home that you are not to be disturbed for the following may many hours, which will be ignored, especially by a four-and-half year old who would want to play frisbee or watch bugs life or bake a cake RIGHT NOW. 
4.  But the four-and-half year munchkin will also sit patiently beside you throughout the process, asking questions at the rate of 7/millisecond, which is fine with some moms, but drives some others up the wall while wanting to hug the kid at the same time.
5. After staring at the sketch trying to visualize the final product and finally giving up and deciding colors as you go on, you start with the stone colors.  So, fill up the stones in the ornaments and filigree in the picture.

6. Then fill in the gold around the stones.  Ideally you would need to paint AROUND the stones and not over them, but that requires skill, time and patience.  I merely fill up all regions that are supposed to look gold, even if it means painting over the stones.  If you painted around the stones, and you used silver foil when you framed the painting, the stones would glow, but I prefer the subdued look that comes out of covering the stones with gold paint.  This is also, the excuse for my sad lack of skill, time and patience.

It does not matter if the stones are not visible, because this is "reverse" glass painting, and they would be seen in the front side:

7. Fill in the other regions with fabric paint of appropriate color. It helps to know a bit of mythology, for example, the Goddess of Learning wears white and sits on a white lotus.

AT this point, the rear of the painting would look grotesque. 

But it is not the rear we would exhibit.  The front would look like

8. Frame it

9. Gift it to your parents-in-law who will most probably hang it in their prayer cupboard.

Vijay tagged me.  I usually never let go of tags, for they give my fingers an added excuse to yak.

The instructions are to summarize my life in a six word memoir, with optional photo illustration and to tag six others.

Vijay's was: Aiming for accuracy in grayscale images.

I should say, it should have been : "Aiming for accuracy in Lakshmi's weblife", considering that he has been my unofficial proof reader ever since he stumbled upon my online persona.  If ever he decides to quit his professon, he is welcome to be my official proof reader, and I am sure I will keep him busy.

Well, mine is obvious (to me) :  Let there be peace on earth

I usually do not pass on tags, but this time I will, and to some of my Vox neighbours and friends -
1. The Doug
2. Purplesque
3 Karen
4. karen
5. Tara
6. BrownSuga'

Take it up if you feel like it....

I usually do not use expletives in public domains.  But this one is an exception. 

A bl**dy b@$(@rd has this to say:

US President George Bush has joined his top diplomat in suggesting that the growing prosperity of India's large middle class is contributing to rising food prices around the world."...

The idiot has guts, I should say,  someone ought to run the following facts through his empty head.

U.S. Wastes $14 Billion in Food & Crops Every Year

Current figures show how half of food in the U.S. and a third of food in the UK goes to waste. In the U.S., this amounts to total losses of up to $100 billion per year, $20 billion of that occurring in the farm and processing sectors, and $30-40 billion occurring in the retail sector. Household losses account for a further $40 billion, reveals research conducted by Dr Jones.

Epidemics of Abundance: Overeating and Slimming in the USA and Britain since the 1950s

Body weight has risen in defiance of health and appearance norms. The social epidemics of overeating and slimming were driven by market forces and the psychology of eating: restrained eating is easily disinhibited by stress. For men, the rise in body weight was associated with the decline of family eating and exposure to greater food variety. For women, the ‘cult of slimming’ was associated with mating competition, driven initially by adverse sex ratios. Food abundance made a mockery of the rational consumer. Paradoxically, the costs of abundance fell more heavily on the poor, who have had less access to the resources of self-control.

U.S. Obesity Trends 1985–2006

During the past 20 years there has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States. [...]

In 2006, only four states had a prevalence of obesity less than 20%. Twenty-two states had a prevalence equal or greater than 25%; two of these states (Mississippi and West Virginia) had a prevalence of obesity equal to or greater than 30%.

DEVELOPMENT-U.S.: Food Waste and Hunger Exist Side by Side

Official surveys indicate that every year more than 350 billion pounds (160 billion kg) of edible food is available for human consumption in the United States. Of that total, nearly 100 billion pounds (45 billion kg) -- including fresh vegetables, fruits, milk, and grain products -- are lost to waste by retailers, restaurants, and consumers.

The World Hunger Map

Percentage population undernourished world map

Percentage poverty world map

India losing battle against hunger

Yet another report confirms India’s losing battle against hunger. In the Global Hunger Index, India ranks 117th for the prevalence of underweight children. Only Bangladesh and Nepal are worse-off.

I cannot believe it that we are taking this lying down.  Or do all of us know that this is a raving lunatic that should not be taken seriously?  No wonder the rest of the world hates the US.

All I can say is Amen to Keshav:

What are you most looking forward to this weekend?

Working.
Before you freak out at the nerd in me, let me gently inform you that I have the following jobs to do:
1. Write up at least 7 proposals within the next fortnight. 
2. Finish up two reviews before 10th.
3. Address one author rebuttal on earlier reviews before end of this month.
4. Read up clinical development program to write up the next feasibility report due on 14th.
5. Do some background study for next year's journal publication and get the quote done by end of this month.

And this need to be done in the midst of:
1. V's summer vacation entertainment
2. Gazillion weddings to attend over the weekend
3. The oppressive heat of Agni Nakshatram. (Aside: It seems after a few years of cold cold weather, I actually don't mind the Agni Nakshatram).

Erma bombeck

For years, I have studied the phenomenon of the mother who sits down for a moment to get off her feet.  From all I've been able to gather, a message goes out over an invisible network that flashes to the world "Mother is in sitting position, Proceed and de-sit".

At that moment, the doorbell will ring, children will appear holding vital parts of their anatomy, the dog will dig its paws insistently into a leg, the husband will call impatiently for hlep, a phone will register its fifteenth ring, a pot will boil over, a buzzer will sound, and faucets will go on all over the house and a loud voice will shriek "I/m telling".

Erma Bombeck is my God.

If you are the type that does not quite relate to sending the children off to summer camp, and the blazing sun precludes outdoor activities, here are some activities that I found V to enjoy.  These craft activities are suited better for 6-7 year olds, but with younger children, the parent needs to make them while the kids watch and help out.

1. Paper craft-