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Tuesday, March 31, 2009
A few confessions... a few admissions... chalta hai
Oh.... I finally discovered SRK and I do have something in common after all - a rotary cuff. He prefers surgical solutions, I like mine to be non- intrusive. His shoulder is fixed. Mine is getting worse. Naazneen , an old friend and journo-colleague ( she's the person who does the Forbes' List out of India), came over this afternoon armed with various remedies - a rolling pin, some tape, a chinese herbal patch for pain, and a powerful gel. I was ordered to perform various tasks that involved my right arm. Naazneen was looking very grim and disapproving as I demonstrated the extent of the stiffness in the socket. '' This won't do, De," she pronounced firmly. The bad news is that my condition is likely to worsen if I don't get away from my lap top!! That's like telling me to stop breathing. But here comes the confession - I have to start work on a new project which involves hours and hours of concentrated writing. I HAVE TO CHOOSE.What do I do? I'll have to cut back on something. What?? The columns can't be dumped. Do I walk away from my beloved blog?
"Yessss!" said Naazneen sternly. " Rest that arm... or else." If any of you have a better idea, keep those comments flying. I am willing to try anything..... even hypnosis.
I watched the debate on Qasab ( whether or not he deserves to be defended) and felt it was going nowhere. On the other hand, the debate on Sanjay Dutt raised several interesting issues, with Abu Azmi insisting Sanjay was a ''gentleman and not a criminal," He also added Sanjay had committed a 'maamuli' offence. And asked, " Itne chhotisi galti ke liye itni badi sazaa?" I am speechless! Priya Dutt was more guarded in her response, while Sanjay himself risked a contempt of court notice with his irresponsible comments challenging the verdict that debars him from contesting the elections. From the looks of it, this is going to be India's bloodiest election. But one good thing has happened - people have been sufficiently galvanised to challenge the status quo and ask bold questions. For now, democracy itself faces no danger. But when my driver Choudhary mentions sadly that with all the talk of progress and development, his village in Bihar has no electricity and no road, I felt like hanging my head in shame. He pays Rs. 3000 as rent for a hole in the wall close to where I live. But, as he says with a resigned, wry laugh, at least he has electricity in that dump, and can watch tv. He blames Bihar's woes squarely on Lalu, and says India is currently in the grip of 'Goondas' and 'Maha Goondas.' Choudhary's prediction?? " There will be as many countries within India in the future as there are languages on our currency notes." Is Choudhary's other name Nostradamus??
54 comments:
- flygye12 said...
Joining SP was a fashion faux pas for Sanjoo Baba....what do you think of those revolting red Gandhi topis?
- March 31, 2009 at 11:23 PM
- Ankur Kakkar said...
hey ma'am i would advise you to take rest and give blogging a break....
after you recover, you can surely make up for all the columns you couldnt write while you were in bed..
but, we want our shobhaa ma'am to be FIT because everything looks shit when you're not fit !! - March 31, 2009 at 11:36 PM
Yes, I had right-hand pain that vanish 90% automatically one day because of proper rest.
OSO - never. - March 31, 2009 at 11:43 PM
One does not have to be a Notradamus to see what lies ahead of us. Your driver Choudhary's perdiction is the result of what he sees and hears in and around his surroundings. He may be reading too, and for all you know reading blogs.
In one of your earlier posts you rightly indicated that we are on auto pilot for years, God knows who is incharge, who calls the shots, and how we survived.
Yes there are plenty of good souls who are praying for the welfare of this Country and State, and are doing real good work and making a lot of sacrifices.
How else could we survive?
One has to read comments of some of these FL Bursts (we had one early on this site. Thankfully moved out)at the Indian Express, Times of India etc.to know what your driver is pointing out at.
First of all their language is deplorable, and then most of them, comment on what happened 100 of years ago. How one community suffered at the hands of another and so forth.
Why can't they think of the present and future. That this is my/our life we have to live now. Let us live in peace. Let us have a nice time, if not good time.
We cannot change what happened in the past, but surely we can change what will happen in future, especially when it will affect each and everyone of us.
Guess we do not like peace. We are not happy with our own selves. So we keep harping on and on on... of what happened in the past.
To make matters worse we have leaders who are from the scum of the earth. These leaders only think of one thing, gaining POWER by HOOK OR BY CROOK, playing with the people's Religion and so on and so forth. They have no real love for the Country and the People. That is the reason we are in this state even after 60 yrs. and will be maybe even after a 100.
We have to get the masses educated, inorder to see this change. We cannot afford to say Chalta Hai....
Jai Hind. Jai Maharashtra.
Norman - April 1, 2009 at 12:07 AM
- introspection said...
Keep writing Shobhaa. You have to breathe to be able to have your arm fixed. Pls ask Nazneen to find an alternative medicine for you.
It's ok to be or not to be on FB. but beware of why your children want you out. Think over. may be you wanna revive your FB account..!
No children feel comfortable having their parents on FB, but I insist on being on FB.
The Kasab fiasco is being played out for the masses. Neither pakistan nor India care what happens to him. We all know the Pakistan government cannot do anything about terrorism. They are trapped themselves.
I agree with your driver on his comments of the current 'goonda raj' Lalu yadav or Amar singh all are "Ek hii kheth kii mooli".
If it were not for Pakistan-our neighbours; who make us look good bcoz of their SuperTalibaan Raj, we would be looking like some horrible goonda country, as far as our goonda government is concerned. We have the Bhai raj, so eloquently and brilliantly portrayed by our Bollywood bhais & bahens that they call the shots in most of our elections. In fact our politicians themselves are the real bhais, so what can you expect from them.
anyways this was a fun read. Shobhaa do keep writing. That means you have to have your shoulder working. Come back with better news of your shoulder - herbal patch or SRK solution. Whatever works. good luck. - April 1, 2009 at 12:18 AM
- Anon said...
Oh no please no! If you disappear what will. So many of us do? There has to be a safer better option than FB use it please! Am relatively a newcomer to your blog but I can tell you one thing straight. I come home late exhausted get into my pyjamas grab my Blackberry read your blog. Its the best! But Shobhaa its finally your decision your happiness is No 1 that of your kids a close second. I for one will miss you sorely! God I'm addressing nothing else you wrote this for me is most important. Selfish maybe but that's me!
- April 1, 2009 at 12:32 AM
- Anon said...
Oh no please no! If you disappear what will. So many of us do? There has to be a safer better option than FB use it please! Am relatively a newcomer to your blog but I can tell you one thing straight. I come home late exhausted get into my pyjamas grab my Blackberry read your blog. Its the best! But Shobhaa its finally your decision your happiness is No 1 that of your kids a close second. I for one will miss you sorely! God I'm addressing nothing else you wrote this for me is most important. Selfish maybe but that's me! Hey I volunteer to actually do your posting if you so choose, seriously I do! Will help your shoulder na?
- April 1, 2009 at 12:36 AM
- Theyoginme said...
Shobhaa, You must try Iyengar Yoga medical therapy. I honestly sware by it. Mr. Iyengar has created one of the most scientific forms of yoga, which includes therapeutic yoga. If you want to stay away from surgery, you must give this a try. Mr. Iyengar is based in Pune on the beautiful holistic Hanuman Mandir Road in Shivaji Nagar, but there are several institutes in Mumbai, including on in Lower Parel and one in Bandra, run by Jawahar Banga, who is a very senior teacher and disciple of Guruji.
I will connect you with the best of the best. My personal yoga teacher here in Portland, Oregon is from Mumbai and she did medical therapy.
More in a personal email to you.
I have met so many people over the last 3 years since I started doing Iyengar yoga who have found relief from many different forms of such physical problems, aches and pains. I am serious our 3000 year old tradition of yoga offers more than you can ever imagine. I am a living breathing example of it.
Namaste - April 1, 2009 at 12:52 AM
- Anil Kumar said...
I tried to send following on Amitabh Bachhan's blog...But guess what happened...Moderator babu has decided that it's not allowed to criticize our beloved leader.
This is what I tried to sent on getting the 5th award in his family.
Dear AB,
You should be proud of first 4 awards...Just don't understand how does the latest one fits in. You all know the wave of cheap heriones who have joined the bollywood bandwagon in last decade. May be it's the best of the worst award this time when I look at the two individuals Akshaya and Aishwarya ...something similar to our political system.
Hope I am not making life tough for you. I have great regard for your work when you were young. Those were the days when there was no filthy, stupid media like NDTV, StarNews and others. The commercialization of news in these days which is not only biased but also lacks ethics of journalism.
Prannoy Roy who himself is a sensible reporter and if he happens to be the head at NDTV then I don't know why he has ALLOWED the commercialization of news. Just so that you are aware there is not a single mention of who else has won the award other than those in bollywood. Your daughter in law also got interviewed...rest of them not even mentioned in the NDTV news...If that makes you proud about NDTV then I am speechless.
I don't know if you have a lack of understanding or you need to be politically correct. But when you praise someone your judgement is wrong... I will just say it makes you LITTLE in the eyes of world. So please be careful who do you praise. - April 1, 2009 at 1:30 AM
- Anil Kumar said...
I too watched the Qasab debate on NDTV. And it surprises me that even respected lawyers have got it so WRONG. The approach of the government should be following.
There should be a trial and he should be given a public defense lawyer. But since this is a case of terrorism the trial should be similar to military trial where the trial should finish within 3 months. The world's greatest democracy USA follow similar pattern.
This will put to rest both arguments. This will be a fair trial with a public lawyer representing Qasabr and also provide fast outcome so that people like Shiv Sena DO NOT go and act like a mob.
What our respected lawyers don't know that every year on average 200 people are executed in USA on criminal charges. And the cases of terrorists are handled in military tribunals. That kind of judiciary sends a STRONG SIGNAL to terrorists as well as to rest of the world that judiciary is strong.
Dragging a case for 5 years creates an IMAGE OFSOFT STATE AND THIS HAS BEEN PROVED REPEATEDLY BY TERRORISTS...
Do they need any more proof?????? - April 1, 2009 at 2:03 AM
- Subhajit said...
Dear Ma'm,
I do not have any solution apart from my heartfelt wishes for you to be FIT again. Please have some rest and back SOON.
Choudhary's comments were nothing but the face our rural India today and we all can see it. Just like Kasab's case, this election is also going to take us nowhere.
Subhajit - April 1, 2009 at 2:14 AM
- muthu said...
I am sorry about your arm Ms.De and I think not blogging is not going to be a permanent solution for your arm.
I would suggest Isha Yoga. I have seen it work wonders with my own father. My father had severe back problems that did not allow him to sit at one place for more than 15 min and also suffered from insomnia. He took the classes and has been regularly practicing for about 4 years now and he says that he is now as good as new.
I myself attended the program but being the lazy bones of the family i never did try to keep doing the exercise that i was taught regularly.
I suggest that you visit the the web page - http://www.ishafoundation.org/
And take your shoulder seriously and attend the yoga program.
I think that the yoga guys conduct classes all over India though the institution is based in Coimbatore, South India.
The yoga is simple and doable and though they always dish out a lot of advice during these yoga classes(which almost got to my nerves), I think that its worth giving a try because this yoga when done regularly for two months gives results(I have seen the results on my father). And the yoga procedure needs only about 15 - 20 minutes everyday.
Do call the number given in the web page for more details.
And keep blogging. I love your candid blogs(though i have started reading recently only). So I insist on this thing once more. Take you shoulder seriously and do something about it(Trust me - Try Isha Yoga).
I myself do not find FB worthwhile and I think having a profile in it doesnt make a difference (atleast for me) but anyways thats for you decide.
And I believe every country's politics has its holes and moles and our's being an exhibitionist democracy that we are, our flaws are easily seen through.
Am I supporting our system. NO.... All I am saying is people are more aware about politics today than before 2 or 3 decades though awareness in what way is left to the people(like your driver - aware of the goondas in politics)
But I believe that when people complain, they actually try to justify themselves for not doing anything about it.
Quit complaining if you are not ready to go out there during the election day and vote for a good candidate.
People will change. Things will improve. - April 1, 2009 at 5:48 AM
- Easy : Classy by Shiva Karthik said...
Well ma'm!!
It is actually sad tat u have to go easy on ur writing.. but.. as they say.. health comes first.. But my brain is selfishly filled with a big loud "OH NOOOOOOOO... PLEASEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!"
feather touch keyboards? are there any? better hand poisitiong with a suppor perhaps? also i hear Manish Malhotra makes the most isshhthylish
slings in d world (Courtesy: King Khan).. any exquisite personalised creation.. :D.. lol..
Come on.. a weak arm and you just dont go together at all!!
All my silly attempts at joking apart, Wish u a speedy recovery ma'm.. :-)
And wish u years and years of fun and power packed writing ahead!! - April 1, 2009 at 8:19 AM
- sathish vasudevan said...
a day without your blog is like day with less O2.. never leave the blog.. beloved blog..there is a solution for every problem ..but leaving the blog???
Wish you a good health ...
Keep blogging
HAPPYBLOGGING! - April 1, 2009 at 8:33 AM
- Bindu Nayar said...
1.Shoulder pain is horrible De...why not try some traditional methods..like Ayurved/yoga..but do keep blogging...
2.I am on FB but not addicted to it at all...
3.Sanjay Dutt does not deserve to be on the electorals...gimme a dam break....
4.Qasab needs to be hanged..i dont know why they are delaying this whole process..In India its a case of justice delayed is justice denied..gimme a good reason why he needs to be defended...am for human rights and all..but this is rubbish
wish you well..cheers - April 1, 2009 at 9:22 AM
- Unknown said...
All good things have to come to an end. Try to relax and come back. Good luck and Good health.
- April 1, 2009 at 9:47 AM
- Ajai said...
I enjoy reading your articles in the Week Mrs De. And I've also been following your blog for some time now. I'm a big fan of your writing. :)
With regards to your last post and the comments of your driver, I'm surprised you had nothing to say back. We are a nation of cynics. We wallow in self-pity and enjoy degrading ourselves. And this negativity affects the way we look at life and our country.
This is not the truth. In these last 60 years we have made progress in each and every sphere including Women's lib and in eradicating poverty. We will continue to do so. The pace may not be to every1's liking. But I have no doubt we will get there. We need to believe in ourselves. Now is not the time for cynicism, especially with elections around the corner.
It's time to regain optimism. It's time to shape the future. - April 1, 2009 at 9:57 AM
- smalltown_girl said...
Not typing so frequently is likely to help ur arm. :) but what would we fans look forward to then? you type urself right?
And this election is marked by many many crazy things. Sanjay is one of them only. Why havent you written about Varun Gandhi? - April 1, 2009 at 10:35 AM
- Mehr said...
Ah...u were right,Ash is the worst dressed Indian celebrity,she proved it again at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan,receiving an undeserverd honour...dressed like a bollywood masala heroine...yuk....
- April 1, 2009 at 10:54 AM
- Arjun said...
This country is a microcosm of the planet.... too much diversity!
... also the fact that if the earth had been 1 degree here or there - life would not exist. The same story here - one lil change in history here or there and this country would not exist.
i think we'll do fine.... - April 1, 2009 at 11:30 AM
- Harish said...
NO ways. NO you should NOT stop blogging. And you are a part of us. You cant leave us this way. NAHII KABHI NAHI.
I empathize with your shoulder... But will sit in a dharna outside your home if you even think of quitting from blogs.
I have an idea. Hire a nice secy na... who can be with you and type for you... you can just proof read it before s/he publishes to the blog. Just log in and ask her/him to type.
Your new project will be wonderful and you will find the time for everything. Thats what you are na- ekdamich "Versatile". Pls pls pls dont go away. We love you BlogDost.
It is not whether Qasab needs to be defended or not... thats not the question. We need people to be matured and respect the law of teh land. Did the shivsainiks believe that any lawyer would be able to "SAVE" qasab? What he did was open and he has no way to escape. Had the trial begun, there would be a judgment about his fate. And a lot of OUR money spent in "securing" him would have been saved.
Is it that easy? You can barge into anyones house and threaten them? India is a democracy, Atleast thats what I learnt from Class 4-5. (I sincerely hope the protesters have atleast gone to primary school)
It seems we want our country in pieces, we dont want our country in peace.
Choudhary is right.
The recent debate that I saw oon CNN IBN was some netas are not comfortable exposing their parties Bank balances and investments... because the Donor has the right to keep it private. Right! we believe you Mr. Politician. You are JUST keeping it private to protect the DONORs Identity.
I was born in a India. I live in another. I will die in another. - April 1, 2009 at 11:40 AM
- Jogeshwar said...
Hi Maa'm,
I am sorry to hear about your arm, I would suggest you to take rest, typing further will not help, ofcourse we will miss your blog.
You could use a speech to text conversion software. I browsed some on the internet here are the links, hope you can check them out
look under Commercial software/middleware in above link
wish you a speedy recovery. - April 1, 2009 at 1:05 PM
- Unknown said...
Hey Shobha,
Reg fb...i wasnt comfy with it, dunno why...so de-activated recently, not planning to go back.So ur decision to do the same is understood. Thers something abt it that makes a lot of ppl uncomfy.
Reg ur shoulder, u gotta do something...yoga, medicines, whatever..!! But something, cos it wd become tough when u grow older !! At the same time it wd be a lil hard for us to go without reading ur blog on a daily basis. But thats life, nothing is permanent, and hopefully u wd be back soon..!! Or u cd ask someone else to type for u...u dictate and he/she types !! simple..!!
Reg Sanju Baba, yes what he did was wrong, but he cannot be hanged for it forever. Plus he seems like a decent guy, and much better then 90% of the politicians we have. Cos there are ppl in power who have organised cold blooded mass murder and running for elections again. They will be elected too.Will they ever pay for their crimes?? Never !!! So dont go on and on after Sanju !!
Reg Qasab, the b.....d, shd be tortured, slowly, a lil every day, kill him a thousand times and then some more. No debates on that !!!
U mentioned in one of ur previous blogs that Mumbai is on Auto-Pilot. So is India. God bless HER !!! JAI HIND !!! - April 1, 2009 at 1:23 PM
- Arch said...
About the shoulder, Try one Dr David Rajan (coimbatore)...he specializes in arthroscopy which has a very short recovery period as compared to surgery. think he comes to chennai once a week. Is a definite miracle worker.
I closed my facebook account long ago too and i suspect am held in awe because of that...it was too messy and i had more or less the same friends i had in orkut! BTW, totally enjoy your blog :) - April 1, 2009 at 1:23 PM
- athi said...
ohh.. this is sad news!! Will miss you but I guess you should take rest. Take care :) Aham's secy idea should be seriosly considered.
Well if Sanjay can contest I can understand Aishwarya getting the Padma Shri !! :P Imagine!! - April 1, 2009 at 1:25 PM
- Kush said...
I think you should decide that. Cant have yu not blogging and cant have that shoulder pain either. :(
All those debates i dont like them at all. They aint any better than porn, frankly. - April 1, 2009 at 1:27 PM
- kaleidoscope said...
Dear De,
Is that a case of "frozen shoulder?" From what I know, this read like a common problem in those living their glorious innings :)
Anyways, take care.
On the blogging front here's what I was thinking. As an alternative, you may consider moving from 24/7 bloggertage to (at least) once a week HARD TALK blogging. That way, your blogdosts won't be deprived.
How about, "Sunday with De" series? Oh! I am already beginning to miss you. - April 1, 2009 at 1:49 PM
- Pooja Rathore said...
Dear capricorn,
Take care of your health being a 7 person(your date of birth 7th january) physically you must not strain yourself ...go by your intution you will not go wrong..have lotus blossoms and water lillies around you it never fails to lift the spirit. try it
I wil pray for u.
warm regards. - April 1, 2009 at 2:16 PM
- चंद्रमौलेश्वर प्रसाद said...
A few confessions, a few admissions.....and a few concessions:) " ` I'm gone! There! That's done." IS THAT FINAL!???? No, I'm sure:)
- April 1, 2009 at 3:32 PM
- Nandini Rao said...
I would like to obey my conscience, & so I say, health comes first.
But then,I just love your articles! It's my comfort zone.
I think traditional medication will help relieve the pain.
Nostradamus' predictions mostly showcased life's inevitable tragedies. But how does one predict nonsense? Ridicule is the order of the day & will be the only weapon to success in these elections. - April 1, 2009 at 3:48 PM
- krish said...
Dear DE
Wish u all the good health ........the might of the blog.......is more than that of the sword ... so pz babe dont say bye bye...........luv u always.....
Krishna - April 1, 2009 at 4:27 PM
Hi sweet heart,
I wonder why you have taken off the option that allows Names & URLs. Hopefully it has nothing to do with my comments. I am prompted to ask you this as recently I got to read your article on 'Blogging..in some Mumbai newspaper. Well, I found the copy of the article in Big B's blog and you've stated that some comments are vile and abusive. Reading it, I could only think you're a real sweet heart.
Coming to what I want to say, take a comfortable position to write out whatever you have to in sheets of paper. You can employ someone to get it typed. that can help you dispense with your laptop. - April 1, 2009 at 4:33 PM
If only you'd want to listen to me, don't quit your blogging, pls!
- April 1, 2009 at 4:35 PM
- Unknown said...
In this condition, install speech to text converter onto your laptop on top priority. Not sure if it can recognise Hinglish!
- April 1, 2009 at 4:56 PM
- Darklover2009 said...
Shobhaa De...A very sexy name and a very sexy figure as well.....When i look at you i see a desperate angry cat...one who has not had a good decent fuck for a long long time....And all the sexual anger vomits its way out........
Tell me how can i help you......How can i fulfill your every increasing desire....your longing for intimacy..
Believe me you will function normal after a good time in bed. All your sarcasm, negativity and gossip instincts will be washed away in a flood of desire.
Will you allow me to help you horny lady??? - April 1, 2009 at 5:09 PM
- Another Kiran In NYC said...
I am sorry to hear about your shoulder troubles.
The Husband uses speech to type software to write emails and reports and pretty much all his work. It works great for him. Perhaps it will for you too. The only problem they say is that the Indian accent is not captured well on some of the software. Obviously that is not a problem for him and I am sure most people are able to work out the kinks.
Rolling pins and advice from well meaning friends aside, please dont neglect to see a proper doctor for diagnosis and help or physiotherapy. I am sure Ayurveda and Yoga can definately help in conjunction with regular medicine. Also, surgery is not all bad you know. I am very optimistic about state of the art medicine.
FB is fun for me. I have been reconnected with people I had not met in decades. It is also a timesaver for me to disseminate information enmasse.
About blogging, I would be sad if you did not. I like the way you write when you blog, and it is a very different flavor from your columns. Reading your blog makes me think! Thats important.
As for the perceived hopelessness of the Indian situation, I agree with one of the commentors above that India has made strides. Very, very slowly but the country has advanced in the ideals of democracy and a slightly more equitable economy. Not much, not fast, but there has been a change from the "bad old" days. If we cannot envision a bright future, how will we be able to forge a path there. Its not all bad!
Ofcourse Kasab should be given a trial. He should be given a lawyer and he should be allowed due process as long as classified information or sources are not revealed. The situation at hand and he, need an open trail as much as possible. Let this be a lesson in democracy to those who may harm us. It is not so much for India as it is for Pakistan. A trial for Kasab is for the benefit of slapping the Pakistani establishment in the face more than for the Indian public venting its rage. If the latter were the case, Kasab would have been publicly hanged in a football stadium full of howling citizens. We are better than that, are we not? Are we? I mean really, are we? - April 1, 2009 at 5:51 PM
I don't want my Dad on Facebook either. It's just weird when ur parents are on it. And I think you should have surgery for your shoulder. It's not a complex procedure :)
- April 1, 2009 at 6:28 PM
- Sidhusaaheb said...
I also registered on Facebook, but hardly ever use it. I prefer emails and instant messaging to interact with friends and family, besides blogging for...er...self-expression.
It seems that the Shiv Sena loves Ajmal Aamir Qasab and wants to protect him. Otherwise, why wouldn't it let his case go to trial by ensuring that he doesn't get a lawyer?
BTW, Sanjay Dutt has been convicted under the Arms Act for illegal possession of a gun,from which he is reported to never have fired even a single shot.
He is supposed to have said that he acquired the gun for self-defence after he and his family were threatened by Hindu fanatics, on account of his father having done relief work for Muslim victims of communal riots in Bombay.
As for the seriousness of his offence, it appears to pale against those like multiple murders, abductions, leading murderous mobs that hacked and burned hundreds of innocent people alive, having hoarded currency notes by the trunkload, having received kick-backs worth hundreds of crores of rupees that other politicians have been accused of. However, he has been convicted of his offence while the others have not been or have been acquitted despite their guilt being an 'open secret'. So, he can't contest elections, while the others can not only contest and win, but also become ministers in the central and various state governments.
It is small fry like Sanjay Dutt who are made an example of while the Sharks continue to swim unchallenged in India's political waters.
Hope your shoulder gets better soon! - April 1, 2009 at 9:59 PM
- Karan Bhardwaj said...
Take rest!
It can turn into worse!!
note how do u feel when u don't write! - April 1, 2009 at 11:24 PM
- Neha said...
Take rest, Shobhaa! Health comes first and I well understand the importance of rest after getting a near scare of CTS in my right hand wrist! Thankfully, we get to read you in newspapers and magazies too, though, we will miss your posts here.
Try some exercises or anything that gives you long-term relief and get back on this space as fit as a fiddle :)
Get well real soon! - April 2, 2009 at 1:59 AM
- amolsledge said...
Dear Shobha Ji,
I think your hand/shoulder pain definitely needs good rest & little therapy. Acu pressure or a massage ( usually works for me well)should work you thru to give good comfort. If it really doesn't work my advise is to go for proper medical checkup with xray and stuff to make sure things are not too bad.
I think 60 years post independence we as people of India are to be blamed to create and political situation what we see in our country. Although we have started awakening in pockets of the country.. extremism against each other's religion is also growing in other pockets of the country due to the evil minds of politician and who are purely power hungry.
It is high time for our country to realise our own potential of getting our nation on the forefront of development where we all forget our differences & work towards a single goal & that should be betterment of life for people of this country. Let's atleast give the basic amenities across the country for all and then decide on castes, religions, regions.. I stay out of India & during these recent times realise how things turn out when it comes to protectionism - due to the simple fact of survival..1st comes own country men then other countries but one shouldn't forget in today's world no single country can survive on its own. This holds true for states within India..we all know where Mr. Chowdhary's remarks come from specially in Maharashtra where in the past 6-8 months we have had situations of people from northern states being asked to leave the state.. well if tomorrow all of the countries decide to do the same for all Indians abroad we know what's going to happen..
So hope we can have 80-90% people turn out at the elections & people make a firm decision on who needs to lead the country and give a stable government for next 5 years at least & make sure the ruling party is made accountable for their deliverables. - April 2, 2009 at 2:06 AM
- Anil Kumar said...
Another example of how NEWS is MADE at the discretion of our elite TV news media editors on NDTV and others...
They only bothered to interview and report on Akshay Kumar and Aishwarya Rai.
Here is the complete list....You be the judge on where our elite news media's journalistic values stand!!
Barkha Dutt --- I think Buck stops with you :)
Those unfortunates who were never mentioned by OUR ELITE NEWS MEDIA and won the awards are listed below for the benefit of EF family…
PadamShree stands fourth in the hierarchy of civilian awards after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan.
The complete list of 2009 Padma Shri Awards recipients:
A total of 133 Padma awards were announced — 10 Padma Vibhushan, 30 Padma Bhushan and 93 Padma Shri.
A list of all Padma awardees for 2009:
Padma Vibhushan
1.Dr Chandrika Prasad Srivastava — Civil Service
2.Sunderlal Bahuguna — Environment
3.Prof D P Chattopadhyaya — Literature
4.Prof Jasbir Singh Bajaj — Medicine
5.Dr Purshotam Lal — Medicine
6.Govind Narain — Public Affairs
7Dr Anil Kakodkar — Science
8.G Madhavan Nair — Science
9.Sister Nirmala — Social Work
10.Dr A S Ganguly — Trade & Industry
Padma Bhushan
1:G Sivarama Krishna Murthy — Art
2:Prof Ramanlal C Mehta — Art
3:Shamshad Begum — Art
4:V P Dhananjayan & Shanta Dhananjayan — Art
5:Dr Vaidyanathan Ganapathi Sthapati — Art
6:S.K. Misra — Civil Service
7:Shekhar Gupta — Journalism
8:Prof. Alappat Sreedhara Menon — Literature
9:C.K. Prahlad — Literature
10:D. Jayakanthan — Literature
11:Dr. Isher Judge Ahluwalia — Literature
12:Kunwar Narain — Literature
13:Prof. Minoru Hara — Literature
14:Ramachandra Guha — Literature
15:Dr. Brijendra Kumar Rao — Medicine
16:Vaidya Devendra Triguna — Medicine
17:Dr. Khalid Hameed — Medicine
18:Lt.Gen. (Retd.) Satish Nambiar — Security Affairs
19:Dr. Inderjit Kaur Barthakur — Public Affairs
20:Dr. Kirit Shantilal Parikh — Public Affairs
21:Dr. Bhakta B. Rath — Science
22:Shri Conjeevaram Srirangachari Seshadri — Science
23:Dr. Gurdip Singh Randhawa — Science
24:Sam Pitroda — Science
25:Prof. (Dr.) Sarvagya Singh Katiyar — Science
26:Prof. Thomas Kailath — Science
27:Dr. Naganath Nayakawadi — Social Work
28:Dr. Sarojini Varadappan — Social Work
29:Abhinav Bindra — Sports
30:Anil Manibhai Naik — Trade & Industry
Padma Shri
1:Thilakan — Art
2:A. Vivekh — Art
3:Aishwarya Rai Bachchan — Art
4:Akshay Kumar — Art
5:Dr Ameena Ahmed Ahuja — Art
6:Aruna Sairam — Art
7:Devayani Chaymotty — Art
8:Geeta Kapur — Art
9:Govind Ram Nirmalkar — Art
10:Gurumayum Gourakishor Sharma — Art
11:Hashmat Ullah Khan — Art
12:Helan Khan — Art
13:Hemi Bawa — Art
14:Pandit Hridaynath Mangeshkar — Art
15:Iravatham Mahadevan — Art
16:K.P. Udayabhanu — Art
17:Dr Kanneganti Brahmanandam — Art
18:Prof. Kiran Seth — Art
19:Kumar Sanu Bhattacharjee — Art
20:Prof. Dr Leela Omchery — Art
21:Mattannoor Sankarankutty Marar – Art
22:Niranjan Goswami — Art
23:Bhai Nirmal Singh Khalsa — Art
24:Penaz Masani — Art
25:Prakash N. Dubey — Art
26:Dr. Pratapaditya Pal — Art
27:Ram Kishore Chhipa — Art
28:Saoli Mitra — Art
29:Shri Skendrowell Syiemlieh (Posthumous) — Art
30:Dr. Subrahmanyam Krishnaswamy — Art
31:Suresh Dutta — Art
32:Shri Tafazzul Ali (Posthumous) — Art
33:Udit Narayan — Art
34:Vadakka Manalath Govindan alias Kalamandalam Gopi — Art
35:S.B. Ghosh Dastidar — Civil Service
36:Ameen Sayani — Broadcasting
37:Abhay Chhajlani — Journalism
38:Dr. A. Sankara Reddy — Literature
39:Alok Mehta — Literature
40:Dr Bannanje Govindacharya — Literature
41:Dr Birendranath Datta — Literature
42:Prof. Geshe Ngawang Samten — Literature
43:Prof. Jalees Ahmed Khan Tareen — Literature
44:Jayanta Mahapatra — Literature
45:John Ralston Marr — Literature
46:Lalthangfala Sailo — Literature
47:Laxman Bapu Mane — Literature
48:Dr. Mathoor Krishnamurty — Literature
49:Norden Tshering — Literature
50:Dr. Panchapakesa Jayaraman — Literature
51:Prof. Ram Shankar Tripathi — Literature
52:Prof. Ranbir Chander Sobti — Literature
53:Dr. Ravindra Nath Srivastava — Literature
54:Shamsur Rahman Faruqi — Literature
55:Shashi Deshpande — Literature
56:Sunny Varkey — Literature
57:Suresh Gundu Amonkar — Literature
58:Dr. Utpal K. Banerjee — Literature
59:Dr. A.K. Gupta — Medicine
60:Dr. Alampur Saibaba Goud — Medicine
61:Dr. Arvind Lal — Medicine
62:Dr. Ashok K. Vaid — Medicine
63:Dr. Ashok Kumar Grover — Medicine
64:Dr. Balswarup Choubey — Medicine
65:Dr. D. S. Rana — Medicine
66:Dr. Govindan Vijayaraghavan — Medicine
67:Dr. Kalyan Banerjee — Medicine
68:P.R. Krishna Kumar — Medicine
69:Dr. R. Sivaraaman — Medicine
70:Dr. Shaik Khader Noordeen — Medicine
71:Prof. (Dr.) Thanikachalam Sadagopan — Medicine
72:Dr. Yash Gulati — Medicine
73:K. Asungba Sangtam — Public Affairs
74:Dr. Shyamlha Pappu — Public Affairs
75:Prof. Syed Iqbal Hasnain — Research on Himalayan Glaciers
76:Goriparthi Narasimha Raju Yadav — Science
77:Prof. Pramod Tandon — Science
78:Bansilal Rathi — Social Work
79:Begum Bilkees I. Latif — Social Work
80:Cheril Krishna Menon — Social Work
81:Rev. Joseph H. Pereira — Social Work
82:K. Viswanathan — Social Work
83:Keepu Tshering Lepcha — Social Work
84:Prof. Shyam Sunder Maheshwari — Social Work
85:Sunil Kanti Roy — Social Work
86:Balbir Singh Khullar — Sports
87:Harbhajan Singh — Sports
88:Mahendra Singh Dhoni — Sports
89:Pankaj Advani — Sports
90:Surinder Mehta — Technology Solutions
91:Arunmugam Sakthivel — Trade & Industry
92:Dr. Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty — Trade & Industry
93:Shri R.K. Krishna Kumar — Trade & Industry - April 2, 2009 at 2:39 AM
- Unknown said...
Please try a voice recognition software, it will give you some respite I hope..
- April 2, 2009 at 7:31 AM
- smita goyal said...
Hello De,
You would't be happy at all if you stop writing or blogging..that's your life..some have suggested voice recognition softwares but until that works out how about a typist or a family member who could type for you until you give your arm some rest..Health comes first so Take care..hope you'll recover soon! - April 2, 2009 at 7:47 AM
- athi said...
@Anil Kumar
Hey thanks for that list man. I had no idea! Some are definitely well deserved :) - April 2, 2009 at 10:18 AM
- Priyadarshini Karanjai said...
hey, ur blog is my newspaper! definately more informing than those daily ones we read with tea. reduce the frequency and maybe type with ur left hand only... if that helps. how desperate of me! ignore that and listen to nazneen. i think i'll read ur previous blogs and revive my general knowledge while u take some rest. see, win-win situation!
- April 2, 2009 at 11:00 AM
- Sameer said...
I read your blog more religiously than some of my work emails :) Jokes apart, writing is your passion and the kick that you get by connecting with blogdosts is definitely worth it -you recently said that. So, why don't have a typist or someone who can help you write. I think people like your views because you are straight in your face without any sugarcoating or political correctness. It is very refreshing. So, give it a thought about writing on blog space. I like this e-kaTTa where so many different topics are discussed by you and other blogdosts. I would hate for it to disappear.
- April 2, 2009 at 11:34 AM
- sanju ayyar said...
learn to type with your left hand alone. i can't think of a better idea that would balance both work and rest. ha!
- April 2, 2009 at 1:56 PM
- Nikita said...
I feel Chaudhary is right. We would one day become like the European Union. Many small countries tied together by a single currency.
- April 2, 2009 at 4:52 PM
- Unknown said...
i will pray hard for your good health ..."May allmighty gives you healthy arms and shoulder"......i am a student far away from home ........when ever i feel lonelly or missing home ....i Read your blog ........it makes me feel better........so ple. ple. ple. dont stop bloging.....although you'r quiting Facebook soon.......
till than A big salaam to you and your blog .....your blog rock's - April 3, 2009 at 3:39 PM
- Rajlakshmi said...
Choudhary could see what our dearest politicians try to un'see' ...
hope you will be fine soon... :) - April 3, 2009 at 4:33 PM
- Suchin Kerlapur said...
Shobhaa, use voice to text software to save your right hand. Even if your system has to learn a bit of your english pronounciations, its definitely worth it.
Also tell Choudary, that he is a true patriot simply because only one who can sense the pain of 'disintegration' of this country attempted in one and many ways, knows the end result and sure I understand it is painful to even imagine it.
If you are as detailed a reader as me (born on Jan 7th too) you will read upto here and other comments below this too :)
Have a great day (talking to your computer here after) - April 8, 2009 at 8:27 PM
- Unknown said...
nice posting....
Work from home India - November 9, 2009 at 3:59 PM
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080-32416570, 41719562 - February 16, 2010 at 11:00 AM


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You've heard about ebooks before. Chances are you've seen a famous professional share one on social media, or you've heard about a major company offering one up to their customers as part of a package deal. As a marketing professional, you may have even read an ebook or two before in your day. But the real question is: have you ever considered writing one?
That's right, no matter where you are in your business journey, you can—and should—write an ebook. While some people may think ebooks are an exclusive option out there on the Internet, available only to the most elite business professionals, this could not be further from the truth. The reality is, anyone can write an ebook, and ebooks can help improve revenue for practically any business. But don't just let us tell you why you should write an ebook; how about we show you? Here are the top six reasons to write an ebook.
1. Demonstrate your expertise.
First and foremost, writing an ebook establishes you and your business as the top expert in the field. You clearly demonstrate your expertise on the products and services you provide, and establish major credibility with your potential customers. Sharing knowledge through an ebook sets a business apart from other competitors because it establishes the company as the authority. Then, when consumers have questions or interests, they know who to go to.
2. Learn more about your field.
Have you ever heard about forced cognition? The more you think and write about something, the better you'll become at explaining it to others. Which means, when a business thinks and writes about its products or services in an ebook, it gets even better at explaining those products and services to others in the future. You know what they say: the best way to learn about something is by teaching it to someone else.
3. Gain consumers' trust.
Consumers appreciate information. If they want to buy a product or service, they want to be as informed as possible. By publishing an ebook, you're offering up information to consumers. Whether it's free or for purchase, you also gain consumers' trust through the content you share. And when consumers feel knowledgeable and trusting, sales rates easily soar through the roof.
4. Improve your future content.
One of the best parts of an ebook? You have future content to pull from for a multitude of blog posts, social media shares and email blasts. There's nothing easier than taking a large ebook and turning it into 25 unique blog posts for a company's website. Then what happens when a business has fresh, updated, interesting content on their website blog? You guessed it: increased website traffic. Content production is a vital part of marketing, and an ebook is the perfect place to start.
5. Broaden your customer scope.
What's the best thing about an ebook? It's online. Meaning the Internet. Meaning the entire world has access to it. This broadens your customer scope way past what a small storefront can reach. Not to mention, the ereader market is a significant source of potential customers for a business to reach out to, and chances are, it's only going to keep growing.
6. Grow your email list.
Finally, an ebook is also the perfect way to grow a business's email list. It's simple—just use your ebook as bait. If you want the ebook to be freely accessible, make it available to download from your website with just a buyer's name and email address needed to download it. Soon enough, you'll have a larger, more valuable email list, full of contacts who are actually interested in the product, service or knowledge your business can provide.
If you thought an ebook wasn't the right move for a business, think again. An ebook can be a valuable component in any marketing can strategy, and can make a sincere difference in your bottom line. Give it a try to see how publishing an ebook grows your marketing efforts.

subset: commoncrawl


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On This Day - 12 March 1916
Theatre definitions: Western Front comprises the Franco-German-Belgian front and any military action in Great Britain, Switzerland, Scandinavia and Holland. Eastern Front comprises the German-Russian, Austro-Russian and Austro-Romanian fronts. Southern Front comprises the Austro-Italian and Balkan (including Bulgaro-Romanian) fronts, and Dardanelles. Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres comprises Egypt, Tripoli, the Sudan, Asia Minor (including Transcaucasia), Arabia, Mesopotamia, Syria, Persia, Afghanistan, Turkestan, China, India, etc. Naval and Overseas Operations comprises operations on the seas (except where carried out in combination with troops on land) and in Colonial and Overseas theatres, America, etc. Political, etc. comprises political and internal events in all countries, including Notes, speeches, diplomatic, financial, economic and domestic matters. Source: Chronology of the War (1914-18, London; copyright expired)
Southern Front
Italian artillery active on Middle Isonzo.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theatres
General Gorringe succeeds General Aylmer.


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And the disputes over voter eligibility extend well beyond Florida. New voter ID laws, and other voting restrictions, have been enacted in a number of states since the last major election. And that has raised special concern among African-Americans, who feel they are being targeted.
Black church leaders and the Congressional Black Caucus met yesterday here in Washington, D.C., to discuss how to make sure African-American voters aren't discouraged from turning out in November.
Here's NPR's Pam Fessler.
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: (Singing) Leaning, oh, leaning...
PAM FESSLER, BYLINE: It was part church service, part political strategy session. A dozen lawmakers, and 200 pastors with the Conference of National Black Churches, gathered to talk about voting and what many African-Americans see as a threat to one of their most sacred rights. It was a hard-won right, congressman G.K. Butterfield told the crowd. But now...
REP. G.K. BUTTERFIELD: All of this progress that we have made is under assault. There is a right-wing conspiracy that is alive and well in this country, that is trying to take us back to 1900 - and even before.
FESSLER: Whether it's new state laws requiring voters to show government-issued photo ID at the polls, or restrictions on registration drives, or reduced hours for early voting. Butterfield, a North Carolina Democrat, says it's not so much an effort to take away the right to vote, but something more subtle.
BUTTERFIELD: If black voter participation can be diminished even by 10 percent, it will make that critical difference.
FESSLER: Especially in a close election. Of course, those behind the new laws - primarily Republicans - say they're absolutely not trying to discourage legitimate voters from going to the polls; that they're only trying to prevent voter fraud, and to clean up a registration system that almost everyone agrees is a mess. Whatever the motivation, there's little disagreement that African-Americans will be among the most affected.
NICOLE AUSTIN-HILLERY: They register to vote when the NAACP sets up voter registration tables. They register to vote when the League of Women Voters sets up registration tables.
FESSLER: Nicole Austin-Hillery is with the Brennan Center at NYU.
AUSTIN-HILLERY: So when those organizations are pulling out, that means those communities that have depended on them to do their voter registration, are being gravely impacted.
FESSLER: She says African-Americans are also less likely to have government-issued photo ID, and more likely to take advantage of early voting - especially on Sundays, a special concern for this crowd.
FESSLER: McKinley Young is the bishop of several hundred African Methodist Episcopal churches in Florida, a state that's just cut back Sunday voting. He says it's especially appealing for African-Americans.
BISHOP MCKINLEY YOUNG: They don't have the same job restrictions, travel restrictions that they would have during the week.
FESSLER: And many black churches conduct what are called Souls to the Polls drives, where they take parishioners to vote right after church. This year, says Young...
YOUNG: We only have one Sunday, in the early voting opportunities, this time. But we're going to use every, every, every minute of that to get our people out and to the polls, and to make certain that they vote.
FESSLER: And that was the main message yesterday: Pastors shouldn't retreat in the face of the new laws. Missouri Democrat Emanuel Cleaver is chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. He says one of the biggest problems is uncertainty about what people can and cannot do.
REP. EMANUEL CLEAVER: One of the ministers asked me this morning whether or not the churches can still do voter registration - as an example of how confusing things are during these threatening times.
FESSLER: Churches can, in fact, register voters. Cleaver says pastors will also be asked to take up collections - or love offerings - to help needy parishioners pay for documents they need to get photo ID, and to help educate parishioners about the new laws so that they don't hit stumbling blocks when they do go to the polls.
Pam Fessler, NPR News, Washington. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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Theophilus (Ionescu) of Sèvres
His Eminence Theophilus or Teofil (Ionescu) (1894-1975) was a bishop of Church of Romania and previously a bishop of Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia.
He was born on October 14, 1894 in Boboc, in the Buzău district of Romania. In 1910 he graduate from School of church singers in Buzău.
In 1915, he entered the Tismana Monastery and was tonsured and ordained hierodeacon that same year.
He appointed proto-psalte ('proto-reader') of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Bucharest in 1918 and ordained to the priesthood in 1921.
He appointed superior of the Patriarchal Chanting School and assistant priest at the Patriarchal Cathedral in Bucharest.
In 1925, he founded the Patriarch Miron Missionary Association (named after the first Romanian Patriarch, Miron (Elie Cristea, 1868-1939) and a religious journal "The Good Word". He also founded a home for the elderly and a canteen for the poor.
In 1928, he graduated from the Nifon Metropolitul Seminary in Bucharest, receiving his licentiate in Theology for his dissertation, "The Life and Work of Metropolitan Peter Mogila of Kiev" (Viaţa şi opera Mitropolitului Petru Movilă al Kievului).
He went on to receive his master's degree in Paris at the Protestant Faculty of Theology with the very same dissertation.
In 1938, Patriarch Miron (Cristea) appointed him rector of the Romanian Holy Archangels Parish in Paris, France.
In 1942, he was elevated to mitred archimandrite, a rare distinction in the Romanian Church.
In 1945, the communist hold on the church authorities in Romania forced them to remove Archimandrite Teofil from his position at the parish in Paris. He moved to the United States, and became priest at the Saint Symeon Romanian Church in Detroit. He was elected president of the Diocesan Council. The previous hierarch for the Romanian Orthodox in America, Polycarp (Moruşca) of Detroit {Pompei Morusca, 1883-1958}, had returned to Romania and was not allowed by the government to leave Romania and to return to the United States).
In 1951, Viorel D. Trifa (1914-1987), a Romanian Orthodox activist newly arrived in the United States, led his followers to the headquarters of the Patriarchal Romanian Church in Grass Lake, Michigan. The Romanian Patriarchate at that time was under the control of the communist Romanian government. Trifa and his followers chased out the Patriarchal party, and took over the headquarters. Then, Trifa was elected Bishop for Romanian parishes in the United States. Tonsured a monk and taking the name Valerian, he was then consecrated by members of an noncanonical Ukrainian Orthodox group. Archimandrite Teofil at that point was on good terms with Bishop Valerian and his Diocese.
In 1946, Metropolitan Visarion (Puiu, 1879-1964) of the Romanian Patriarchate, was sentenced to death by the communists in absentia. Metropolitan Visarion was in Western Europe at the time, and the Romanian government was never able to serve the arrest warrant. The Holy Archangels Parish in Paris became a center for Romanian refugees, and it was there that Metropolitan Visarion established the Romanian Orthodox Diocese for Western Europe. The efforts of the communist regime to take over the Holy Archangels parish in Paris obliged the faithful to break canonical relations with the Romanian Patriarchate, and to join, out of necessity, the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad. The Diocese followed the new calendar, as had the Romanian Church since 1925. This was allowed to continue by the Church Abroad for pastoral reasons.
In 1954, the aged Metropolitan Visarion chose Archimandrite Teofil as his successor, and he was consecrated to the episcopate by Metropolitan Visarion, Saint Archbishop John (Maximovitch) (1896-1966) of Brussels and Western Europe, and Bishop Nathaniel (Lvov) (1906-1986) of Carthage and Tunis. Metropolitan Visarion then retired. The consecration took place in the Saint Nicholas Church in Versailles on December 26, 1954.
Bishop Teofil was given the title 'of Sèvres' (Severineanul in Romanian), after a small town near Paris. His Diocese included the parishes in Western Europe and a few in the United States and Canada. After returning to the United States, Bishop Teofil then denounced Bishop Valerian (Trifa) as a 'self-ordained heretic,' and began a campaign to take over his Diocese. This ultimately failed miserably, as Bishop Teofil's Diocese never had more than a few parishes. Bishop Valerian's episcopal consecration was later regularized by Bishops of the North American Metropolia, and he joined his Diocese to the new Orthodox Church in America in 1970 as the Romanian Episcopate (the largest Romanian Church grouping in the United States.
In 1982, then Archbishop Valerian left the United States to avoid deportation for alleged fascist activities with the Iron Guard during World War II in Romania. He settled in Portugal, where he reposed in 1987.
Bishop Teofil assisted Archbishop Seraphim (Ivanov), 1897-1987) of Chicago, Detroit, and Midwest America consecrate a bishop for the Greek Old Calendar Church, Bishop Akakios (Pappas) the Elder, of Talantion, on December 19, 1960. He also assisted Archbishop John (Maximovich) to consecrate a bishop for the Western Rite French Orthodox Church in 1964, Bishop Jean-Nectaire (Evgraf Evgrafovich Kovalevsky, 1905-1970) of Saint Denis.
'Metropolitan' Pangratios (Vrionis, of ill repute) claims Bishop Teofil was one of his co-consecrators in 1970. However, there were no witnesses to this 'event' other than Pangratios and those he claimed consecrated him. Conveniently, all were deceased when Pangratios revealed their names. During the conference of the academic society Daco-Romania, on December 6, 1970, Bishop Teofil commemorated Pope Paul VI and the Romanian Uniate Bishop Basile Cristea, who attended the Liturgy, during the Great Entrance. He also commemorated among the reposed the deceased Romanian Uniate Bishop Jules Hossu of Cluj-Gherla.
When Metropolitan Philaret (Georgy Nikolaevich Voznesensky, 1903-1985), First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, demanded an explanation, Bishop Teofil attempted to justify his actions by claiming that he had done it "in the name of ecumenism and as part of the fight against the Patriarchs of Moscow and Bucharest, who have appropriated the point of view of the regime and are without faith and are even criminals, in that they have perpetuated the assassinations and the persecutions against the Greek Catholic [Uniate] Church of Romania, under the false pretext of aiding their integration into the Orthodox Church". Having been reproved by the Synod of the Church Abroad (it might be explained here that the Romanian Diocese of the Church Abroad, as well as the Bulgarian Diocese under Bishop Kyrill (Yonchev, later joined OCA, 1920-2007), and the American Orthodox Mission under Archbishop James (Toombs, +1970) of Manhattan, were all granted a wide ranging autonomy], Bishop Teofil "evolved in a manner more and more contradictory".
Which led him to the point where, on January 17, 1972, he petitioned Patriarch Justinian (Ioan Marina, 1901-1977) of Bucharest and Romania (whom he had condemned as without faith and a criminal a year and a half before) to be received into the Romanian Patriarchate. The Romanian Patriarchate accepted him on March 10, 1972.
On April 23, 1972, Bishop Teofil signed a pastoral letter in which he reaffirmed his faithfulness to the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad.
On May 8, 1972, he went to the Uniate Monastery at Chevetogne, France, to greet the visiting Patriarch Justinian, and on the following day, wrote to his diocese that he was, "henceforth, after years and years of going astray, once again in the bosom of the Mother Church". The Council at his Cathedral notified Bishop Teofil they "no longer depended on him", and on May 21, 1972, Metropolitan Philaret came from New York to celebrate the Liturgy and to announce that he had "received the Diocese and all its parishes under his direct authority". The Synod of the Church Abroad deposed Bishop Teofil and reduced him to the monastic state for participating in the consecration of a deposed priest, Bishop Germain (Gilles Bertrand Hardy), as a Bishop for the French Orthodox Church (two Hierarchs from Romania also participated in the consecration, Nicolae {Corneanu, b.1923; Met. Nicolae was the center of controversy in May 2008 when he received communion from a Romanian Uniate Bishop at the consecration of the new Uniate Queen of Peace church in Timisoara, Romania}, Archbishop of Timisoara and Metropolitan of Banat, and Bishop Anthony of Ploesti).
In December 1974, the Romanian Patriarchate elevated Bishop Teofil to Archbishop. Totally cut off from the Romanian emigre community in Paris, Teofil, was able to speak to one of his former priests, admitted he had committed a grave error in leaving the Church Abroad, and further, said that he had become a hostage of the Securitate, the Romanian equivalent of the KGB.
He died on May 9, 1975, and was buried, due to the efforts of Archpriest Michel Constandache, in the Parisian Cemetery of Montparnasse, next to the grave of Metropolitan Visarion (Puiu).


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From an old Michael Pollan essay comes more support for the idea that the mandatory residential setback, featured in the previous post, owes its origins in part to the 'pastoral' landscape aesthetic championed by such men as Central Park-planner Frederick Law Olmsted:
"If any individual can be said to have invented the American lawn, it is ... Olmsted. In 1868, he received a commission to design Riverside, outside of Chicago, one of the first planned suburban communities in America. Olmsted's design stipulated that each house be set back 30 feet from the road and it proscribed walls. ... In Riverside, each owner would maintain one or two trees and a lawn that would flow seamlessly into his neighbors', creating the impression that all lived together in a single park."
Rare honesty in advertising. |
- $40 billion spent annually on lawn care
- 800 million gallons of gas annually for lawnmowers (not much compared to cars, however)
- 25 hours per year spent on lawn care by average homeowner
- 21 million acres (an area the size of Maine) devoted to home lawns. The contribution to low-density growth should be self-evident.
Whether this reflects a continuing market preference is unclear, since nearly all municipal zoning codes in the United States require large setbacks (see, e.g., Charlotte), depriving homeowners of any choice in the matter. The pattern has been replicated so relentlessly across the North American continent that alternative single-family residential designs may simply have been scrubbed from the collective imagination. Yet, if any tourist were to wander outside the historic center of any European city and into the late 20th century suburbs, an entirely different picture would emerge. Let's explore, bearing in mind that these are all post-automobile era suburbs, most dating from after 1950:
Suburban Paris: A 14-foot roadway and 10-foot setbacks, with garages tastefully integrated into house facades. Setback areas have been enclosed by walls, fences or hedges, and made into functional patios ornamented by planter boxes. A spacious and private yard lies behind the home. There are no rear alleys. This simple design, of which there must be hundreds of thousands of examples in Paris alone, would be illegal under most American zoning codes.
Suburban Frankfurt: What appears to be a 1920s-era suburb, but vastly different from any American example from that time period. Away with the setbacks altogether! A hedge or two and some flower boxes in the windows provide all the front-facing "greenery" that is needed, at a fraction the cost and space of a front lawn.
Suburban Prague: Seeing a pattern yet? Small, well-maintained yards and gardens lie behind each of those houses.
BONUS - Suburban Rio De Janeiro: Myrtle trees, climbing vines, rooftop decks and trellises, embellished garages, with Cristo Redentor off in the distance.
If it's possible to create a single-family neighborhood of detached houses with backyards and universal car ownership while maintaining a density high enough to support urban life, the first five examples are interesting ones to consider — if the addiction to the idea of the front lawn can be broken.


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Spice up dinnertime with this simple, scrumptious buffalo chicken mac 'n cheese with veggies, whole grain pasta and a zesty kick!
Three days a week, I've been bounding out of bed and onto a treadmill, if for no other reason than because I love good food. And let's be real… it's about time to face the music and cut out some of my delicious vices. But! There's no reason a good granola eating girl can't indulge once in a while, and oh did I. With a few green things thrown in, of course.
With all these fabulous flavors in one dish, my inner fat girl rejoiced! Though my sensible skinny girl had a little self control and stopped at one serving.
A creamy mixture of blue cheese, buffalo sauce, garlic and cream cheese coated a bed of penne, vegetables, chicken and cheese, which was dusted with breadcrumbs and popped into the oven for just over half an hour. Hello, heaven? It's Buffalo Chicken Mac 'n Cheese calling.
Try this as a tasty weeknight meal that's easy and fast, or as a delicious dish to devour with fellow football lovers! It may be a little sinful, but it's totally heavenly for when you're craving something bad that's OH SO good!
Buffalo Chicken Mac 'n Cheese
- 13 oz. box whole grain pasta, penne, shells or rotini
- 1 lb. cooked chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 small bell peppers, red and yellow, seeded and chopped
- 1 bunch chopped green onions, divided
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1 cup blue cheese dressing, recommended: Wishbone
- 1/2 - 3/4 cup buffalo sauce, recommended: Frank's Red Hot
- 3 cups shredded cheese, divided (cheddar, mozzarella or a blend)
- 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Boil pasta in salted water according to package instructions. Drain and transfer to a 13 X 9 inch baking dish. Toss in cooked chicken, bell peppers, half of the green onions, and half of the shredded cheese. Mix well.
- Place the garlic, cream cheese, blue cheese dressing and 1/2 cup buffalo sauce in a food processor. Puree until smooth, taste and add another 1/4 cup buffalo sauce if needed. Pour over the pasta and toss.
- Mix the remaining 3/4 cup cheese and the panko together. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta.
- Bake until golden, approximately 30-40 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining green onions.
- Enjoy!


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Sergius Bulgakov
- This article is about the Russian theologian and philosopher by this name. For the author of the Handbook for Church Servers, see Sergius V. Bulgakov.
Fr. Sergius Nikolaevich Bulgakov was a priest of the Church of Russia in the early twentieth century. He was noted as an Orthodox theologian, philosopher, and economist. After an early interest in Marxism, he returned to his religious roots in Orthodox Christianity. He wrote extensively, and after being exiled by the new Communist government of Russia, he became part of the community of Russians in Paris, taking part in the founding the of St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris.
Sergius Bulgakov was in born Livny, Russia, on June 16, 1871, into the family of an Orthodox priest. He studied first at the Orel Seminary, followed by attending the Yelets Gymnasium. He then attended the Law School of the Moscow University where his studies included political economy. He graduated in 1894. While studying at the seminary, Bulgakov became interested in Marxism and took part in the Legal Marxism movement. After studying Marxism, Bulgakov became convinced in the impotence of the Marxist theory and returned to his religious beliefs, being influenced by the works of such Russian religious writers as Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Vladimir Solovyov.
He became well known among the Russian intelligentsia of the time. He contributed to many books and journals, including the New Way, Questions of Life, and Way, of which he was the publisher. He was elected to the Second Duma in 1906 as an independent Christian Socialist. As a writer, he wrote monographs, including Philosophy of Economy and Unfading Light. It was during this time that he began to develop his ideas that were based on a combination of the sophiology of Vladimir Solovyov and Pavel Florensky with ideas from the works of Schelling and his own ideas of Orthodoxy.
Bulgakov became prominent in the activities of the Church in Russia, taking part in the All-Russia Sobor of 1917 that elected Tikhon of Moscow to the restored position of Patriarch of Russia. In 1918, he was ordained to the diaconate and then to the priesthood. He continued to write even as the Russian Civil War tore apart his Russia. Living in Crimea he wrote the Philosophy of the Name and Tragedy of Philosophy where he revised his views about relations between philosophy and dogmatism.
On December 30, 1922, Bulgakov was among the approximately 160 prominent intellectuals, including also Nicholas Berdyaev, who were exiled by the Bolshevik government. Bulgakov initially settled in Prague, Czechoslovakia. In May 1923, he was named professor of Church Law and Theology at the Russian Research Institute in Prague. From Prague he moved to Paris, which was his home until his death. In 1925, he participated in the establishment of the St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute. He became the head of the institute, where he also was the professor of Dogmatic Theology.
In addition to his writing, he participated in the Anglican-Orthodox interchange that was formalized in the Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergius. Bulgakov remained active in the large community of Russian expatriates in Paris until his death on July 12, 1944, from throat cancer. His funeral was conducted at the Cathedral of St. Alexander Nevsky in Paris. He was buried at St. Geneviève-des-Bois near Paris.
Bulgakov's teaching on sophiology is highly controversial. The attempt to understand it properly is hindered by the highly political controversy surrounding it in the 1930's. [1] It should be noted that by 1931 there existed three separate Russian Orthodox jurisdictions in Europe: Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (Sremski Karlovtzy Synod) under Met. Anthony (Khrapovitsky); the 'Patriarchal' church answering ultimately to Met. Sergius (Stragorodsky) of Moscow (of which the young Vladimir Lossky was a member); and the Russian Church in Western Europe (Bulgakov's own jurisdiction as well as the church of Georges Florovsky) under Met. Evlogy (Georgievsky) that was under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Constantinople -- though in 1934, Metropolitan Evlogy was privately reconciled to Metropolitan Anthony, and in 1935 he went to Karlovtzy for a special reunion conference, at which time the schism betwen him and ROCOR was healed[2] In 1936, Metropolitan Evlogy again cut his ties with ROCOR, quite possibly because of the controversy over Sophianism.[3]
In an ukaz of 24 August, 1935 of Met. Sergius, Bulgakov's teaching on 'Sophia' was described as 'alien' to the Orthodox faith.[4] This ukaz was largely based on the epistolary reports of Alexis Stavrovsky, the president of the Brotherhood of St Photius (Vladimir Lossky, was the vice-president, and Evgraf Kovalevsky, Leonid Ouspensky and (later monk and famous iconographer) Gregory Krug were also amongst the 12-15 young laymen who made up its numbers) whose members had left the jurisdiction of Met. Evlogy for that of Met. Elevthery of Lithuania. This exodus was in reaction to Met. Sergius having removed, on 10 June, 1930, Met. Evlogy as the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in Western Europe (since Met. Evlogy had continually refused to agree to the 30 June, 1927 Declaration of Loyalty to the Soviet government) and named Elevthery as his replacement. In late 1935, Met. Evlogy appointed a commission to look into the charges of heresy leveled against Bulgakov.
The commission quickly broke into factions. In June of 1936 the majority report (prepared by Vasilii Zenkovskii, Anton Kartashev and others) rejected the charge of heresy but had serious objections about Sophiology. The minority report of 6 July, 1936 was prepared by Fr Sergei Chetverikov and signed by Fr Georges Florovsky, who despite his personal respect for Fr. Sergius, remained an ardent critic of Sophianism for the remainder of his life. Meanwhile, the Church Abroad formally accused Bulgakov of heresy in 1935.
The 1935 decision of the Church Abroad was based on Archbishop Seraphim (Sobolev) of Boguchar's Novoe uchenie o Sofii (Sofia, 1935), as well as on the arguments of St. John (Maximovitch).[5] St. John, in his book The Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God, discusses at length why the sophianism of Sergius Bulgakov is heresy, specifically one as destructive as Nestorianism. Speaking of those who attempt to deify the Theotokos, he wrote:
- In the words [of Fr. Sergius Bulgakov], when the Holy Spirit came to dwell in the Virgin Mary, she acquired "a dyadic life, human and divine; that is, She was completely deified, because in Her hypostatic being was manifest the living, creative revelation of the Holy Spirit" (Archpriest Sergei Bulgakov, The Unburnt Bush, 1927, p. 154). "She is a perfect manifestation of the Third Hypostasis" (Ibid., p. 175), "a creature, but also no longer a creature" (P. 19 1)....But we can say with the words of St. Epiphanius of Cyprus: "There is an equal harm in both these heresies, both when men demean the Virgin and when, on the contrary, they glorify Her beyond what is proper" (Panarion, "Against the Collyridians"). This Holy Father accuses those who give Her an almost divine worship: "Let Mary be in honor, but let worship be given to the Lord" (same source). "Although Mary is a chosen vessel, still she was a woman by nature, not to be distinguished at all from others. Although the history of Mary and Tradition relate that it was said to Her father Joachim in the desert, 'Thy wife hath conceived,' still this was done not without marital union and not without the seed of man" (same source). "One should not revere the saints above what is proper, but should revere their Master. Mary is not God, and did not receive a body from heaven, but from the joining of man and woman; and according to the promise, like Isaac, She was prepared to take part in the Divine Economy. But, on the other hand, let none dare foolishly to offend the Holy Virgin" (St. Epiphanius, "Against the Antidikomarionites"). The Orthodox Church, highly exalting the Mother of God in its hymns of praise, does not dare to ascribe to Her that which has not been communicated about Her by Sacred Scripture or Tradition. "Truth is foreign to all overstatements as well as to all understatements. It gives to everything a fitting measure and fitting place" (Bishop Ignatius Brianchaninov)."[6]
Bulgakov responded to the heresy accusation in his Dokladnaia zapiska Mitropolitu Evlogiiu prof. prot. Sergiia Bulgakova (Paris, 1936). Archbishop Seraphim then rebutted Bulgakov in his Zashchita sofianskoi eresi (Sofia, 1937). No final report was prepared on the sophiology controversy by the commission set up by Bulgakov's own jurisdiction. However, Met. Evlogy convoked a bishop's conference on 26-9 November 1937 to bring closure to the matter. The bishops in their statement were working from reports by Archimandrite Cassian (Bezobrazov) and Chetverikov and they concluded that the accusations of heresy against Bulgakov were unfounded but that his theological opinions showed serious flaws and needed correction. Vladimir Lossky responded to Bulgakov's self-apology in a large and deep study : Spor o Sofii (The Debate on Sophia, Paris, 1936), pointing out the various dogmatic errors of Bulgakov's theology.
Books in English
- The Bride of the Lamb. Eerdmans, 2001. (ISBN 978-0802839152)
- The Burning Bush: On the Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God. Eerdmans, 2009 (ISBN 0802845746)
- Churchly Joy: Orthodox Devotions for the Church Year. Eerdmans, 2008. (ISBN 0802848346)
- The Comforter. Eerdmans, 2004. (ISBN 978-0802821126)
- The Eucharistic Sacrifice. University of Notre Dame, 2021. (ISBN 0268201412)
- The Friend of the Bridegroom: On the Orthodox Veneration of the Forerunner. Eerdmans, 2003. (ISBN 978-0802849793)
- The Holy Grail and the Eucharist. Lindisfarne, 1997. (ISBN 978-0940262812)
- Icons and the Name of God. Eerdmans, 2012. (ISBN 0802866646)
- Jacob's Ladder: On Angels. Eerdmans, 2010. (ISBN 080286516X)
- The Lamb of God. Eerdmans, 2007. (ISBN 978-0802827791)
- The Orthodox Church. St Vladimir's, 1997. (ISBN 978-0881410518)
- Philosophy of Economy. Yale, 2000. (ISBN 978-0300079906)
- Relics need Miracles: Two Theological Essays. Eerdmans, 2011. (ISBN 0802865313)
- Sophia, the Wisdom of God: An Outline of Sophiology. Lindisfarne, 1993. (ISBN 978-0940262607)
- The Sophiology of Death: Essays on Eschatology: Personal, Political, Universal. Cascade, 2021. (ISBN 1532699654)
- Spiritual Diary. Angelico, 2022. (ISBN 16211388506)
- The Tragedy of Philosophy (Philosophy & Dogma). Angelico, 2020 (ISBN 1621385582)
- Unfading Light: Contemplations and Speculations. Eerdmans, 2012. (ISBN 0802867111)
- ↑ For commentary, texts and a fuller account of the sophiological controversy see Antoine Arjakovsky, Essai sur le père Serge Boulgakov (1871-1944), philosophe et théologien chrétien (Paris: Les Éditions Parole et Silence, 2006), pp.99-125 and La génération des penseurs religieux de l'émigration Russe: La Revue 'La Voie' (Put'), 1925-1940 (Kiev/Paris: L'Esprit et la Lettre, 2002), pp.433ff., N. T. Eneeva, Spor o sofiologii v russkom zarubezh'e 1920-1930 godov (Moscow: Institut vseobshchei istorii RAN, 2001), Igumen Gennadii (Eikalovich), Delo prot. Sergiia Bulgakova: Istoricheskaia kanva spora o Sofii (San Francisco: Globus Pub., 1980), Bryn Geffert, 'Sergii Bulgakov, The Fellowship of St Alban and St Sergius, Intercommunion and Sofiology', Revolutionary Russia, 17:1 (June 2004), pp.105-41, 'The Charges of Heresy Against Sergii Bulgakov: The Majority and Minority Reports of Evlogii's Commission and the Final Report of the Bishops' Conference', St Vladimir's Theological Quarterly, 49.1-2 (2005), pp.47-66 and especially Alexis Klimoff, 'Georges Florovsky and the Sophiological Controversy', St Vladimir's Theological Quarterly, 49.1-2 (2005), pp.67-100.
- ↑ Timothy Ware, The Orthodox Church (London: Penguin Books, 1964)p. 184.
- ↑ Protopresbyter George Grabbe, Toward a History of the Ecclesiastical Divisions Within the Russian Diaspora, Living Orthodoxy, Vol. XIV, No. 4, July-August, 1992, pp. 37-39
- ↑ Bulgakov responded to the ukaz in his O Sofii Premudrosti Bozhiei: Ukaz Moskovskoi Patriarkhii i dokladnye zapiski prot. Sergiia Bulgakova Mitropolitu Evlogiiu (Paris: YMCA, 1935), pp.20-51. Vladimir Lossky then published a well-known critical analysis of Bulgakov's response to the ukaz as Spor o Sofii (Paris, 1936).
- ↑ Protopresbyter George Grabbe, Toward a History of the Ecclesiastical Divisions Within the Russian Diaspora, Living Orthodoxy, Vol. XIV, No. 4, July-August, 1992, p. 38
- ↑ St. John Maximovitch, The Orthodox Veneration of the Mother of God, (Platina, Ca: St. Herman Press, 1978), p. 40f


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After a long hiatus, the Afghan and U.S. governments this week reopened talks on a strategic partnership that will determine how many American troops stay in Afghanistan past the end of the NATO mission in 2014.
The resumption of talks comes amid a flurry of contradictory statements from U.S. officials and NATO members about the shape of the foreign mission in Afghanistan. When President Obama first arrived at the White House, he said troops would begin pulling out in the summer of 2011. Then a NATO meeting pushed the end of the mission to 2014. Last week, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta muddied the waters further, suggesting that the U.S. combat mission might end by 2013.
U.S. officials have downplayed the mixed messages, and Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Janan Mosazai says Kabul is not concerned.
"Frankly, we're not confused about it," he says. "We have always maintained that Afghan security is an Afghan responsibility."
Mosazai says the transition will be "conditions-based" and gradual, to be completed by the end of 2014. If conditions allow foreign forces to leave sooner, that would be welcome news, he says, but Afghanistan will need international support for many years to come. The partnership agreement that Kabul and Washington are still hammering out will specify the type of support.
Until that deal is signed, though, it's hard for Afghans to know what's ahead, and the uncertainty may be helping the insurgents.
Confusion And Uncertainty
U.S. Marines are credited with pushing the Taliban out of the Marjah district of southern Helmand province. As the forces pull out now, tribal elder Haji Khalifa Mohammad Shah says a strategy for security hasn't been made clear.
Shah says he is hearing too many messages at once — from the Afghan government, from the U.S. and from other NATO governments.
He quotes an Afghan proverb: "With too many midwives, the baby comes out backward." Shah is blunt about what he's doing: His tribe is reaching out to both the Taliban and the government because he's not sure which one will prevail if and when American troops leave.
"It's very dangerous," says Gen. Abdul Hadi Khalid, Afghanistan's former deputy interior minister. "People start to deal [with the insurgents] for their own protection."
Khalid says the mixed messages leave many Afghans unable to feel confident about the future. Estimates about how many American troops will remain range from 5,000 to 30,000, he says. The size of the Afghan force after 2014 is also unknown; NATO governments recently began to lower the estimate of how large an Afghan army and police force they are willing to finance.
Khalid blames some of the confusion on election-year politics in the U.S. and elsewhere, which he says can make politicians say almost anything. In the meantime, he says, the Taliban are spreading the word about their planned return in 2014.
This week's resumption of talks is a step toward answering some of the many outstanding questions. Both sides are pushing for an agreement in time for a NATO summit in Chicago this May, at which point Afghans and Americans should have a much clearer picture of how many U.S. troops are staying in Afghanistan for the long term.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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Olympics Closing Ceremony: Both Well-Received And Anger-Inducing
The London 2012 Olympics are officially over. But people are still buzzing about Sunday's closing ceremony. As Krishnadev wrote last night, the closing gala was a "spectacular farewell" that included many of the highlights of British culture and history that didn't make it into the opening ceremony.
If you missed the closing show, the site Buzzfeed has posted a collection of animated GIF images that summarize "The 25 Most Absurd Moments Of The Olympic Closing Ceremonies."
The list includes Winston Churchill reciting Shakespeare, DJ-producer Fatboy Slim working the decks from atop a gigantic (translucent) octopus, and Victoria Beckham, a.k.a. Posh Spice, taking a pose-break as her bandmates sing and dance.
A different view of the ceremony comes from New York Magazine's Culture Vulture blog, where Matt Zoller Seitz calls the closing ceremony "both kitschy and irresistible" — sort of like a movie made from a musical made from an Abba song, I guess.
On The Daily Mail's story on the ending ceremony, the top-rated comment comes from an American, "Critch" from Missouri, who wrote: "You're Great Britain for a reason, excellent Olympics....congratulations." That sentiment was "liked" 3,513 times by the story's readers.
But in an unfortunate bookend to these Olympics' start, American audiences are raking NBC over the coals for the way it handled the finale. The Twitter hashtag #NBCfail has exploded with new activity. As the Poynter Institute's Andrew Beaujon wrote, "NBC enrages Olympics viewers one last time."
In the finale, NBC reportedly excised nine songs. Here are some of the network's least-loved decisions:
- Tape-delaying the extravaganza, and enforcing its usual no-cable no-access rule online.
- Promising music from The Who — and then chopping the end off the show, to shoe-horn a new show's premiere into the evening. The Who's performance was aired around midnight in most markets.
- Cutting music from Kate Bush ("Running Up that Hill"), The Kinks' Ray Davies ("Waterloo Sunset"), and Muse ("Survival"). Okay, some folks have actually thanked the network for cutting Muse. But that's not a universal view. And their song was the official anthem of the London Games.
You can see and/or purchase the full songlist via iTunes — it's being called a "Symphony of British Music."
Personally, I was floored that organizers found time to give Queen's Freddie Mercury a wonderful video tribute, and for his former bandmate Brian May to solo on guitar before launching into "We Will Rock You" with Jessie J — but that there wasn't room to include "We Are the Champions," which has long been paired with the other song.
And evidently, I'm not alone. One inagist user called it "heresy" to omit the second half of the Queen classic. The band played it as a medley as recently as last year, with Adam Lambert singing Mercury's vocals.
The athletes who filled the floor of Olympic Stadium surely know the words to "We Are the Champions," and its emotional range suits their sacrifices and experience — from "I've paid my dues" in failures and losses, and the perseverance of "I need to go on and on and on," to the proclamation, "We are the champions, my friends. And we'll keep on fighting til the end."
If you think the song's line "No time for losers" might cut too close to the bone, I'd answer that it doesn't cut very deep. Surely these athletes know by now that you're not a loser if you don't act like one. And what better way to move past self-pity than to stand with the people you beat, and with those you lost to, and belt out, "We are the Champions... of the world."
Because together, these nearly 11,000 athletes really are our champions. They're the world's best at what they do — and they should celebrate the fact that they made it to London, to compete with the handful of people alive who have a hope of beating them.
Still, most of my qualms with the night were largely obliterated by Eric Idle singing the Monty Python song "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life." Even amid prancing nuns, Roman centurions, and Indian Bhangra dancers, Idle kept it very real, not skirting the song's briefly scatological lyrics. Or, perhaps it's best to say Idle kept it surreal, as he often does.
The real shame is that the time-tested song "You'll Never Walk Alone" couldn't make it into the program. Since its debut in 1945, many have seen it as a hymn to post-war fortitude. But I guess it's too affiliated with Liverpool, and its soccer stadium (where it's sung before every game) to be endorsed in London.
Still, that's not a problem for Americans. And it's a good way to say goodbye to the Olympics, while looking toward the future.


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Before & After: Happy Kids' Art Wall
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39 comments:
- Barbara Matson said...
Love gallery walls filled with kids' art! I have a collection growing at my house too!
- December 5, 2011 at 9:43 AM
- Teresa said...
I may try this with my grandchildren's art- pinning away.
- December 5, 2011 at 9:46 AM
- Lisa @ Shine Your Light said...
Love it - so colorful and fun!
- December 5, 2011 at 9:57 AM
- Unknown said...
Charmingly happy
I love it! - December 5, 2011 at 9:59 AM
- Living It At Home said...
Wow, have always wanted a wall like this! Love everything about it! It adds so much character, color and it is personal too! Thank you for sharing all of your projects, it is so great to see what you are working on!
~jamilyn - December 5, 2011 at 9:59 AM
- Karen Davis said...
Love it!
- December 5, 2011 at 10:17 AM
- daninotes said...
Love that!
- December 5, 2011 at 10:21 AM
- Acquired Objects said...
What a great idea and I'm sure it makes the homeowner smile everyday!
- December 5, 2011 at 10:22 AM
- A Vintage Vine said...
Love that idea, the colorful wall really works so well against the black table and chairs! Great idea!
- December 5, 2011 at 10:36 AM
- Unknown said...
great! amazing what just ART does to a room, and COLOR...keeping it simple is often best...
www.powellbrower.blogspot.com - December 5, 2011 at 11:11 AM
- Mary said...
Amazing, Lauren!
- December 5, 2011 at 11:34 AM
- diane@onlinefabricstore said...
Great idea...I have collected and displayed my kids art for years. My favorite is our pumpkin chain of allthe construction pumpkins the kids have made over the years that comes out every halloween. Cant wait to see your boy's art wall!
- December 5, 2011 at 11:43 AM
That is so cheerful! I have my kids art framed throughout the house and I just love it! Adds a little whimsy and they are so proud when they see their work up! :)
Jennifer - December 5, 2011 at 12:00 PM
- elisabeth (bovagoods) said...
i absolutely love it. we have our babies in our homes for such a short time. then they go off and grow into people! i love this. live it up while they are living under your roof...it's not going to last forever. ;)
- December 5, 2011 at 12:48 PM
- Rachel said...
That just makes me smile! What a terrific way to brighten your day every time you see that!
- December 5, 2011 at 12:59 PM
- katyhollis said...
Oh, I love this!!!
- December 5, 2011 at 1:22 PM
- Danielle Sigwalt Interiors said...
Amazing how much lighting and color can make an image so pretty. Love kids artwork...have Charlie's all over my house! Hope you're feeling ok Lauren! xoxoxoxoxo Danielle
- December 5, 2011 at 1:37 PM
- Leslie said...
What a wonderful collage! It looks stunning. :)
- December 5, 2011 at 3:28 PM
- pve design said...
Wonderfully happy wall!
pve - December 5, 2011 at 3:34 PM
- Comeca Jones said...
I love that table set!
- December 5, 2011 at 5:14 PM
- Unknown said...
Love how the kids artwork looks in the dining room! We just hung our sons artwork above a mid century modern secretary desk I just refinished.
- December 5, 2011 at 5:22 PM
- Unknown said...
Looks awesome! LOVE the sconces! I have the same table and chairs so I am visualizing this in my kitchen. :)
- December 5, 2011 at 5:57 PM
- Kerry Steele- Design du Monde said...
The gallery wall is wonderful and wonderfully executed. I just love it!!!
- December 5, 2011 at 6:27 PM
- Karena said...
Lauren I adore seeing children's art featured and custom framed!! Can you imagine the joy for them!
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Art by Karena - December 5, 2011 at 8:41 PM
- Windlost said...
Gorgeous - bright and happy and fun! You are awesome.
xo Terri - December 5, 2011 at 10:10 PM
- Maureen Stevens said...
cheery, endearing & personal....love it!
- December 5, 2011 at 10:43 PM
- Ange Vanderheide said...
I love it! I'm SOOO glad you swapped out the light fixture. At first when I was scrolling down, I was a little worried when you said that you "started with this" because I thought you meant you were just going to add the art and maybe some accessories, but the modern drum shade totally brings together the gallery wall and the dining set. Whew, I totally gave out a sigh of relief when I saw the after!
- December 5, 2011 at 11:18 PM
- Rachael said...
This looks amazing. I really love all the pieces you chose to update with. A rug underfoot will be a nice eventual touch. I'm inspired!
- December 5, 2011 at 11:51 PM
- Marivic said...
omg, this is wonderful! "This is something I've been meaning to do forevah for my boys..." is exactly my thought. My kids will be adults buy the time I hang up their stuff! Thanks for the reminder. I'll post mine when it's done too...
- December 6, 2011 at 11:47 AM
- Emily Adamson said...
What a classy and fun way to show off your kids work - I love this!
- December 6, 2011 at 12:08 PM
- Megan said...
That looks so amazing. It's such a fun addition and the lighting really makes the space. Can't wait to see the finished product! Props!
- December 6, 2011 at 12:27 PM
- Jessica said...
This is freaking fantastic!!!! :) I love love love it!
- December 7, 2011 at 9:30 AM
- Jenna said...
Beautiful job! I love the curtains, they play so well with the fun art.
- December 7, 2011 at 11:34 PM
- Naomi@DesignManifest said...
LURVE! And the lighting fixtures are a wonderful improvement too.
- December 8, 2011 at 12:55 PM
- bevy said...
that artwork is actually really good! and i love what it does for the space along with the curtains!
- December 9, 2011 at 12:51 AM
- LindsB said...
love love love the idea of displaying kids artwork- such a fun happy space now!
- December 12, 2011 at 9:48 AM
- collision repair said...
I love the wall. I wouldn't have ever thought about something so awesome.
reo chicago - December 14, 2011 at 5:02 AM
- Holly Gruszka said...
I love these personal touches and it's even better when it's the kids artwork. Looks beautiful! And I also really like the curtain fabric too.
- December 28, 2011 at 8:16 AM
- Jenn said...
Love the fixture echo!
Awesome room! - February 20, 2013 at 12:48 PM