The Flying Book Project

Published on May 2, 2012 in You and I. 0 Comments

A book lying idle on a shelf is wasted ammunition. Like money, books must be kept in constant circulation. A book is not only a friend, it makes friends for you. When you have possessed a book with mind and spirit, you are enriched. But when you pass it on you are enriched threefold. -Henry Miller

I love reading. And the things I love more than reading are books. The feel of a real book, printed on paper, its texture, and smell, make it a lone firm spot of sanity and solace in the ever changing world around us. In the last 5 years I accumulated a small collection, one by one, and dragged it with me, from city to city. It fits in a carton but weighs a ton, or so my back feels!!

The Flying Book Project

The Flying Book Project

Some of them are my best friends, soothing but curiously static. Some are the wise scholars I reach out to when I have questions; and they happen to have the answers every time. Some are nothing but pure mystery, but are they fun getting lost into?!

This raw power of books to influence human mind is the reason why I believe they should not be caged. They have so much potential and yet they are boxed. I regret being selfish so far, but I will correct my error. I am giving away every single book I own in the next 10 days. I hope the people who get these books will uphold the motive and let these books fly forever, from one reader to another.

Starting today I will post 5 books on my facebook wall. Anyone can claim a book by liking or commenting on the post first. And in an attempt to spread the windfall I am enforcing a one person one book rule. And, of course, we will have to meet to actually exchange the book with your smiles.

Happy Reading!!

Update [11th May, 2012 ]:

In the last 7 days I was able to give away 40 books to 32 friends and friends of friends. The participation was way above my original expectations. One particular night 10 books got claimed between 12 and 2 in the night!! Overall an amazing experience. And now begins the task of delivering these books to their new owners and en-cashing those digital smiles for real ones, as I meet all of them one by one.

This project was started as a one time activity. But I feel it will be impossible to stop something so amazingly beautiful. The Flying Book Project will live, it will breath every time these books exchange more hands, and hopefully the positivity created will foster the spirit of reading and sharing everywhere.

If you have a book which you want to give away please mail me or contact me on Facebook or Google+. Let’s make the world a better place, one book at a time.

Note: I held on to 10 books which will go to my nephews and niece in Jaipur. We have a strict no Facebook policy for them and hence they could not participate. :]

Update [15th May, 2012 ]:

[Thanking Joyeeta for the quote on top.]

6 Steps to rising early

Published on January 14, 2012 in Not So Funny and You and I. 8 Comments

Few weeks back I decided to finally become a morning person. My extensive experience at failing to wake up early coupled with some neat tips I stumbled onto on the web helped me achieve what I once only dreamed of. In here I make an attempt to summarize my lessons into a structured approach to rising early.

Step 0 : Sleep early

Retire to bed on schedule even if you are not sleepy. You can’t arm twist your body into waking up early if you do not give it enough sleep. I call this the 0th step, because all others are worthless without it.

This rule has another payoff; Since you already know that you do not have the luxury of waking up till late, you tend to focus on finishing up your tasks instead of stupid Facebook updates and senseless cat videos.

Step 1 : Moms are bad alarms

During my high school days, my mother used to wake me up for school somewhat like this: She would stand in the kitchen (busy preparing lunches for dad and us children), and yell my name, telling me that it’s 8 o’ clock and I should get my lazy bum out of the bed. This did not work, ever. Instead of doing her bidding, I would curl into a ball, shielding my ear with my pillow, more determined to stay in my bed. My dad, on the contrary, would walk up to my bed, sit by my side and just keep his warm hand on my forehead. This used to work like magic.  Continue reading ’6 Steps to rising early’

Super-Plus It!!

Published on July 10, 2011 in Veni Vidi Vici. 0 Comments

Hi Google,

Google Plus is great and I love it. Listing some areas where the product needs to get better:

Redundancy in the system:

Google has been aggregating my social data (contacts, pics, shares, etc) through its various services since almost 7-8 years now. It would be nice if I had the choice of moving this data to Plus, thus eliminating all redundancy. e.g.:

  1. Either integrate buzz with G+ or discontinue it. Why should I have two separate sharing streams? [Well, no more!!]
  2. I have tons of valuable pictures in my Orkut albums. Why can’t I export them to G+? [I can now, :) ]

Exploiting Current Google Infrastructure:

It’s nice to see Picassa, oops, Google Photos adapted to G+. It would be even better to see other Google services employed for few missing chunks in Plus: Continue reading ‘Super-Plus It!!’

Daddy’s Boy

Published on May 24, 2011 in Train of Thought. 0 Comments

If you consider the Amir Khan connection, Papa Kehte Hain and Bhaag Bhaag D. K. Bose are quite an antithesis couple.

What Next?

Published on May 23, 2011 in Train of Thought. 0 Comments

The siege at PNS Mehran is over but the worries of governments all over the world have no end. We are not talking about a civilian attack here. 10 terrorists entered a high security base and caused substantial damage. Is Pakistan capable of protecting it’s nuclear arsenal?