A Sad Sad Day.... (10/05/2011)

Words can't express the sadness this day brought to the world. The legendary Steve Jobs passed away. In one way or other he impacted every one. His loss is a loss to all human race, especially for the world of technology.

RIP Mr. Steve Jobs. The World will Miss You.

Top 10 Funny Instructions on Packed Items

We come across a lot of funny instructions on the items that we buy.

Here are my TOP 10.

1. ON HAIRDRYER INSTRUCTIONS;
- Do not use while sleeping. (Really... While Sleeping.. lol)
2. ON A BAG OF FRITOS:
- You could be a winner! No purchase necessary. Details inside. (Are we supposed to open up the packs in the store and not buy??)
3. ON A FROZEN DINNER:
- Serving suggestion: Defrost. (Thanks for the Suggestion)
4. ON MARKS & SPENCER BREAD PUDDING
- Product will be hot after heating. (WOW.. now that is what I will not expect)
5. ON PACKAGING FOR A ROWENTA IRON
- Do not Iron clothes on body. (How about Iron clothes on "Some body")
6. ON NYTOL (A SLEEP AID)
- Warning: may cause drowsiness. (Take it with a Redbull and there will be no drowsiness.. Oh wait.. )
7. ON A KOREAN KITCHEN KNIFE
- Warning keep out of children. (WHAT.. WHAT.. WHAT??)
8. ON A STRING OF CHINESE MADE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS
- For indoor or outdoor use only. (Is there a 3rd door??)
9. ON A JAPANESE FOOD PROCESSOR
- Not to be used for the other use. (What other Use??)
10. ON AN AMERICAN AIRLINES PACKET OF NUTS
- Instructions: open packet, eat nuts. (And then be a nut case???)

What I don't understand is that how can they come up with such lines...

LOL..... Enjoy your Day!!!!!

The Top 10 - Places to go in Texas!!

Well guys,
Its been long since I have posted something on my blog. With life becoming busy and lot of things to do other than blogging :)... I could hardly find any time to update my blog frequently.

Anyway that said I will be regular to my blog from now on and try to post more frequently now onwards. I am starting 2 different trends in my blog. 1. The Top 10 and 2. 1000 places I went before I died.

Well since I have been in Texas for so long I wanted to start off with Texas. People say there are very less places to see in Texas but I differ.

Here are the Top 10 Places to see in Texas :

1. The Reunion Tower, Dallas : The main attraction is the Globe like look and the revolving restaurant on the top which takes 53 minutes to complete one rotation.
2. Cowboys Stadium, Arlington : The new Cowboy's stadium in Arlington is a Must-See. Doesn't matter if you are a football fan or not.
3. State Capitol, Austin : The largest State Capitol in United States.
4. Sea World, San Antonio : Shamu, the killer whale is the top attraction but the other attractions are very good too.
5. NASA Space Center, Houston : The place where u can actually touch a rock from Moon.
6. Fort Worth Zoo, Fort Worth : The best things I liked here was the Komodo, Silver-back and their Snakes collection.
7. Guadalupe Mountain National Park, West Texas : Yet to visit.
8. Dinosaur Valley State Park, Glen Rose : There are real dinosaur foot prints here in this state park.
9. Natural Bridge Caverns, New Braunfels : Such an amazing caves with formations. Its just mind blowing.
10. Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Canyon : Yet to visit.

There are lot more places to visit in Texas but these are the Top 10 that make my list. Do u have a list??

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Hello friends....
Wish you all a Happy Valentine's day!!! The time of the year is here again when the "Love is in the Air." Well folks.. Have a wonderful Valentine's day with your loved ones.

Happy New Year!!!!!

Hi Friends....
Wish you all a very happy and prosperous new year. May this new year rock your world. Wish you all the best in 2010.
Happy New Year....

My Trip to the WWE Monday Night RAW!!!!!

It was one of the things on my to-do list before I die. Yes, WWE (was WWF when I was a Kid) has always been a interesting entertainment for me and my brother from our childhood. As kids we always enjoyed watching it on TV and always wondered would it be possible for us to see this sport in real arena??

Well that day finally arrived on 9th dec when me and my brother went to the live WWE event in American Airline Center, Dallas. And I can just say it was awesome. Seeing all those superstars whom we used to watch on TV was just amazing.

The atmosphere was electrifying... So much crowd. The arena was packed. John Cena and the DX were the favorites. It was totally a different experience to see those guys in live. Though it is know that everything a fake and scripted but it was amazing to see people jumping from the top ropes, breaking tables, getting stunners.. It was just so awesome. Only thing I missed was the presence of Undertaker.

So now I can strike off "Watch WWE" from my to do list. :)...

UNT Home Coming!!!

Last weekend I went to a collage football game. UNT vs FAU. It was a home coming game. Never knew that the homecoming games are so much fun. There was a small size fair near the ground. There were games, food... and above all free t-shirts. (Well free t-shirts are like hot cakes.. ;)). Though I don't go to school at UNT but my brother goes to UNT and I was supporting his school's football team on their home coming.

This was the first football game I went to watch. The crowd was great. Though the game started at 7:00 pm, the celebrations began way before, at about 2:00 pm. There was a cool parade of cheerleaders, army trucks, vintage cars, scouts, veterans, cheerleaders, cheerleaders, cheerleaders ..... ;). It was a nice parade. Me along with my brother and his friends followed the parade to the fair grounds.

This is where the fun stated. The whole place was filled with people. Then there were fun games, food, people painting their faces. There were grills all over the place in the parking lots. It was like a celebration. I don't know what they were celebrating.. :) ... Well I too became a part of it. Spray painted my hair green, had a tattoo on my hand.. and went to the game.

For long time I wanted to go to a football game. Actually wanted to go to cowboys game but never got a chance. So finally went to a college football game. The kickoff was at 7:00 pm. The stadium was almost fully packed. So much noise. People shouting. I too shouted alot .... (After the game I had a sour throat..) .. Anyway the home team lost the game but I watched till half time only. Though I watched only half the game but still it was fun.

I had so much fun by just watching a school game. Now I am imagining watching a pro game... It will be a hell of an experience. Though I didn't had any knowledge of football before I came to US, now I love the sport. Though it hasn't reached the place in my heart that cricket holds, it is still one of the top 5 sports I like. Hopefully I will see cowboy's game this season.

♪♪ Engineering Rocks ♪♪

So after the school days then comes the engineering days.... well one more fun filled episode in ones life... Four years of engineering.... What wonderful days... Even though school days are the best... engineering days too constitute in the fun filled days of life... Once you are out of there.... The reality kicks in... Well I believe most of my friends are engineers and guess they will agree with most of the stuff in this post....

So well lets see .... The 25 common things in any engineering collage...

• 1. The lecturers don't teach. The students don't study. The only guy who benefits is the one who owns the 'dhaba' next to the college.. (S S S Hostel Dhaba).
• 2. Deadlines are made to be extended... (Always).
• 3. Promises are made to be broken... (Most of the times).
• 4. Guys always think the chicks in other department are more beautiful...(Kya pottiya hai rey CSE mein).
• 5. The nerds are the most pampered ones... (During mid-terms).
• 6. The lab assistants are the most respected ones.... (During the lab exams).
• 7. There is always a lecturer in the college who can't speak proper 'English'... ("Are you understand?").
• 8. There is always a lecturer who throws your lab report outside the window... ("Is that a transistor?").
• 9. The principal is the person most abused and insulted... (Of course behind his back).
• 10. Dropping subjects is the 'coolest' thing... (Really??).
• 11. Night-outs and one-day batting are the important tools to ace the exams.
• 12. Whereas the most important tool.... is the 'chit' in which the words can be understood only by the person who wrote them.
• 13. The freshers are the most sought after.... be it in the canteen, the 'free' periods or for completing the records, assignments.
• 14. The second-years are the ones with the 'I am the don-of-the-college' attitude.
• 15. The third years are the ones with the 'so-many-backlogs' feeling.
• 16. The fourth years have no connection with the college whatsoever... All they want is '1st-class' tag attached to their memo.
• 17. There is always a dumb fresher who asks a 2nd year where the canteen was, and even dumber one who follows that senior to canteen.
• 18. Practicals are mostly for 60-90 minutes in which a considerable amount of lab equipment is destroyed and finally the readings are copied from others.
• 19. The common dialogues after an exam are "70% of the paper was out of syllabus".. or "It was the worst set of paper I got".
• 20. There is always one girl in the collage who writes her cell number instead of the 10 digit hall ticket number.
• 21. Assignments are solved by a few and then... (Well you know what happens).
• 22. There is always 'Critical Calculation' after the exam to see if you can score 28 out of 80.. (The cut off).
  
• 23. The first three years are spent in cursing the college,the people there,the system.
• 24. The common feeling after completing engineering is....... "Thank God. Survived Engineering".
• 25. But on the farewell day, people tend to feel nostalgic about the pure unadulterated fun they have had for 4 years. Now the very system they disliked, the very canteen they cursed, the time that they spent there, the birthday bums they suffered.. all these seem like heaven.

To me personally, engineering was a fun filled 4 year holiday.. Though it had its ups and downs I had lots n lots of fun... Though the college was awful, but the memories that I look back to, the friends I made there and the degree that I obtained... will be cherished by me... always !!!! "Engineering Rocks" !!!

I dedicate this post to all my engineering buddies... Especially to 1999-2003 batch of SSIET.

Happy B'day Chinni (Rahul) !!!!

Dear Chinni,
Its your birthday today and I wish you a very Happy Birthday.. May all your dreams come true. Thought I missed a lot of your birthdays there were a few which I remember the sweetest being your 1st. Even though with time we became busy with our lives and may not be spending a lot of time together, I know we will be there for each other in the time of need... I am very grateful to have a brother like you.

May you enjoy this day to its fullest and and many more happiness that will come your way... Thanks for being a kido brother that you are...


There are three hundred and sixty-four days in a year when you get all kind of un-birthday presents.. And only one day for birthday presents... So here's a special present from me to you... Hope this is the best present you ever got on your birthday ;).. Have a wonderful time and may you celebrate lots more birthdays like this.


Here's you Birthday Present.. Have a blast !!! Once again wish you a very Happy Birthday!!!!

Gone are the Days !!!!!

I think the school days are the most memorable days that we have in our childhood... The days we miss the most... When I look back to my school days which I spent mostly in Tinsukia (Assam) and Jamshedpur (Jharkhand) I always miss those days.. It always makes me think....

Gone are the days.....

...When the school reopened after summer, and we settled in our new places in the ...new classroom.

...When we look for the best desks and benches in the class which is nearer to the ...exit door.

...When we queued up in book depot, and got our new books and notebooks with ...Ashwariya's picture on the cover.

...When we wanted no Mondays and every Saturday holiday not just 2nd, yet ...managed to be in the line daily for the morning assembly.

...When we learnt writing on slates, with pencils, progressed to fountain pens and ...ball pens.

...When we began drawing with crayons, colour pencils and moved on to sketch ...pens.

...When we started calculating first with our fingers, then tables and then with ...Clarke's tables and advanced to calculators, scientific calculators and computers.

...When we chased one another in the corridors in intervals, and returned to the ...classrooms drenched in sweat, yet wanted a longer reccess.

...When we had lunch in classrooms, corridors, playgrounds, under the trees.

...When we awaited P.T. period more eagerly than the monsoons.

...When we played cricket with long-books as bats, and socks rolled into balls.

...When we simply played "book cricket" in the history period..

...When we fought but had no conspiracies, competed but had seldom jealousy.

...When we listened to live cricket commentary in the last bench.

...When we rushed as soon as the bell rang to "Conquer" window seats in the school ...bus.

...When we had one-month long preparations for sports day, and the annual school ...day.

...When we spent almost the whole year of Xth an XIIth writing revision tests.

...When we studied just to pass.

With so much fun in them, so many friends, so much experience , all this and more... I still feel that... gone are the days, but not the memories, which will be Lingering in our hearts forever.

I think most of you have the same opinion..

25 Random Things About Me!!!!

25 random things about me.. Well these are the 25 random things that most of u guys don't know about me. Well this is the latest trend going on the facebook right now. So I decided to bend the rules a little bit and instead of posting in facebook I am posting it in my blog. In facebook you have to tag 5 friends and they have to write 25 random things about them. But in my blog I am tagging everyone who is reading my blog.. :) .. So go ahead and if you have a blog post 25 random things about yourself and leave me the link in the comment section.. ;) ... If you don't have a blog.. don't worry.. post the 25 things in the comment section of my blog.... ;) .....

So here we go....

1. My middle name is Kalyan. Though it was my first name, which my parents gave me, my grandmother named me Gokul. And my parents kept both the names.. Hence Gokul Kalyan Potluri.

2. The first day while learning how to drive I drove my Dad's car over the divider to the other side of the road.

3. I once drew a picture of a dinosaurs, named it "Our History Teacher", and stuck it to our Principal's saree but never got caught.

4. I can speak 5 different languages fluently and can understand 2 other languages.

5. The oldest memory I have is the one when my uncle slapped me for trying to light a cigarette from his pack.. I was 3.

6. I love trains. Real and toys. Always wanted to have a toy train setup at home.

7. I once accidentally set my maternal grandmother's house on fire.... I was 4.

8. I love to travel. I have been to 26 states in the United States and to places where I never thought I would.

9. I have a photographic memory. I don't easily forget anything.

10. The first time I went to a dentist when I was 8, I cried so loud when the dentist brought the syringe near my mouth, that 2 other kids who where next in line started crying and left. I also left without my tooth taken out.

11. I once broke my brother's chin while I was pushing him on a swing and the swing broke.

12. I am crazy about Angelina Jolie & Megan Fox.

13. I always wonder what was I in my past life, if there is one?

14. Pyramids have always amazed me. Want to go to Egypt atleast once before I die.

15. I am a Numismatist.

16. The first movie I ever saw in a theater was "Sholay". I was so scared when Gabbar cuts off Thakur's hands.

17. I never came across another Gokul till now in person.

18. I once held a loaded machine gun of an Indian Army Jawan when I was in school that was in an army base.

19. I love thrill rides.. The best being the ones I rode on the top of Stratosphere in Vegas and at the edge of the Royal Gorge in Colorado Springs.

20. I am Thanatophobic of a Heart Attack.

21. I am very careless when it comes to eating healthy and being fit.

22. I got 2nd prize in a healthy baby contest and I still have the car they gave me as the prize.

23. I have a hobby of collecting shot glasses. Its weird because I don't drink.

24. I want to get a tattoo but probably will never get one.

25. Lastly, I am a perfect Gemini.


So I bet these are some of the random things that people don't know about me ;)... So as now you read mine... you are now tagged.. so go ahead and post your 25 random things ....

Best Things in Life!!!!

Life is so short but yet there are so many cool good things that are there in life.. I thought of making a list of all the good things.. But the list seemed too big and never ending.. So with life so short and so many good things, I thought to take the time to live it... Life changes on day to day basis... And sometimes it comes at you fast.. :).. So I decided to make a shorter list and name it "Best Things in Life".Well experiences may vary but I guess lot of people will agree with me on this list.

So here's the list.....(Top 10)

• 1. Falling in Love.. (Hell of an experience..)..
• 2. To wake up and realize that you can sleep for another hour (But ended up sleeping for another 3)..
• 3. Smile at yourself and realize that people around you are looking at you.. (Oops..)..
• 4. To find money in the jacket you wore last winter... ( I bet everyone agrees)..
• 5. A phone call at the middle of the night.. (Of course depends on who calls..)..
• 6. Meet an old friend and see that they didn't change... (Some do change)..
• 7. Waiting to hear from someone special.... (Always one eye on the phone)..
• 8. Wake up everyday and see the sun rise... (Ok.. don't judge me..)..
• 9. A SMS that read "My sweetest memory - Our meeting."..(.....)..
• 10.Last but not the least... Spend time with someone who makes you forget time.. (why can't there be another 5 or 6 hours in a day)..

So this is my list for the best things in life... and of course they are free.... What are yours??

Happy Independence Day

Hi frnds..
Today is the 63nd Independence day of India. And celebrating it away from home sucks.. Been like 5 years since I was in India the last time it was August the 15th. There is no flag hosting here in US in the way it is in India... Missing India on this wonderful day!!!!!!

I still remember the days when I was in school and we had to go to school though it was a national holiday. We had to dress in white. Stand in line.. Either the chief guest or the principal will host the flag... We sang Jana Gana Mana... which is the National Anthem and then some programs.. and finally couple of sweets. It was such fun.

Though its not the same here but people celebrating this day in US try to bring back that home-like feeling. I have been in Dallas for 5 years and the Indian community in and around Dallas celebrate this day on the weekend. Its termed "Anand Bazaar Mela". It is always a pleasure to see the crowd in a mela style. But every year some thing came up and I wasn't able to go to see the Anand Bazaar. Hope fully will go this year.

Whether I am there or not... The day brings joy and happiness in me.... Wish you all a Happy Independence day !!!!! Jai Hind!!!!!

Happy Friendship Day !!!

The first Sunday of August is officially celebrated as the friendship day all over the world. And that day is today.. I wish all my friends Happy Friendship Day.. Thanks you all who know me, yet love me.. :) Enjoy the day guys... HAPPY FRIENDSHIP DAY...

A nice pictorial representation of why its important to have friends...

New World !!!!

Everyone on this planet needs a friend. Not only humans but all life forms on earth needs someone to be there for them when they need them. To share their happiness.. to share their sorrow... to be there for them.... We come across so many people in our life and we choose plenty people to be our friends... But we trust just a handful to be with us in our joy and pain... And just a couple who know everything about us.

We always want to pick friends with caution.... But sometimes end up picking the wrong type. But as its said... We never know whats in store for us. Either its good or bad. Sometimes the best of the kind are always next to us but we always look for them in the wrong place. But sometimes we pick someone who change everything around us.

I always wondered why we make so many friends... Well I figured out one thing with so many friends in my life that we keep so many friends only because if one is lost there is always someone else. I have been in so many places till now and I really have a big circle of friends. While moving from one place to another (I moved all over India when I was a kid), I lost many friends. But the new places always brought me new ones...

In those days when there was no Internet and we had to relay on postal service, we used to write letters a couple of times to friends... but slowly everything stops. And we are more involved in the new life. But now with Internet around... and emails... and instant delivery... its much easy to communicate with friends.. Not only communicate with present friends but finding the old ones whom we might have met long ago.. For me orkut was the savior. I found so many old friends whom I remembered but had no touch.

Out of all the friends, someone represents a different world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born, which changes our life..

Some Just Don't Worth It !!!!

I read a blog post somewhere and I do remember a couple of lines on a blog. I quote "Don't pay attention to people who don't pay attention to you. Don't give importance to those who don't give importance to you." I guess thats true sometimes, but all I can say is humans are sentimental fools. Sentiments run so high in humans that sometimes they do things for others embarrasing themselves.

Anyway one thing I learnt from people around me is that we shouldn't do things for people who don't know the importance of favor or have no gratitude for what you have done for them. For example, if someone helped me pack and ship my stuff because I am leaving town the next day, its a minimum courtesy on my part to tell them before leaving the next day. If I think its not necessary to tell them then I don't deserve their help.

One more thing that I learnt watching people around me is that never do things for people if they don't ask for it. Some people don't worth it. The more you do for them the more you become cheap to them. And by the time you realize it, you have already become a laughing stock. The more you do for them they just keep using you. And the most ridiculous is when they tell you that they never asked for it. And you just did it because you wanted to do.

So I think caring about people is well and good. But some just don't worth it. We just have to look out for the unworthy type before its too late. Or one day after 3 years you get screwed.

P.S. : The views of the author are mostly by observing others and not personal. :P

2012 - What's inside the Box?

December 21st, 2012..... The day set for the earth to expire as some say it, while some call it the doomsday, some call it time of transformation, etc., etc. But the real question is what really is going to happen on that day. Will earth see the 22nd of December, 2012? Or is it just a hoax and everything will be funny the next day just like Y2K?

So what going to happen?? There are many theories, The Mayan calender will end. The planet X will collide with earth, then there is the theory of pole reversal, and so on. I don't know what to believe. Well can wait 3 years and then know for sure. But why is this so focused on? Is it just a coincidence and 2012 is just a random number?

So whats to do? Just sit and wait for the day to come? Or do we have to prepare ourselves for the upcoming event? Here is the list of possible things that can happen in 2012 that I found in some 2012 websites....

HUMAN	FROM SPACE	FROM EARTH
Flu Pendamic	Nearby Supernova	Global Warming
Nuclear War/WW-3	Gamma Ray Burst	Ice Age
Nuclear Accident	Planet X Collision	Magnetic Pole Shift
Rise of the Machines	Solar System Falls Apart	Supervolcano
Religious Apocalypse	Cosmic Rays	Crustal Pole Shift

And there is also the possibility of nothing happening and we get up on 22nd Dec and just forget the whole thing. But if something is going to happen wouldn't we be already seeing signs? And if so how will be the signs appear? Will it rain fire? Will the water turn red? I am so confused.... And thinking of it just makes me to dig more.

Found a lot about it but this little piece of information from one site almost made me believe that its going to happen. Check what different cultures believe will happen in 2012.

• Hopi : End of Fourth World and beginning of the Fifth.
• Mayans : Call it the 'end days'.
• Maoris : Merging of the physical & spiritual worlds.
• Zulu : Whole world will be turned upside down.
• Hindus : Kali Yuga (end time of man).
  
• Incas : Age of Meeting Ourselves Again.
• Aztec : A time of transformation. Creation of new race.
• Dogon : Say that the spaceship of the visitors will return.
• Pueblo : Acknowledge it'll be the emergence into the Fifth World.
• Cherokee : Calendar ends exactly at 2012 as Mayan calendar.
• Tibetan : Prophesies left by Buddha about the Golden Age.
• Egypt : Present time cycle ends in year 2012 AD.
  

Don't know if the day will bring an end to earth or not but all I know is that life will go on like this. People who believe will keep believing and people who think this is non-sense will make fun. But I think I will just go on with my life as it takes me till the day and if nothing happens you guys can read my post on 22nd Dec, 2012.

Fireworks at UNT Stadium!!!

The fireworks video shot by my brother and group and edited by Raghav. Didn't knew my camera can record such nicely.. :)

4th of July fireworks!!!!

Well the 4th of July is the Independence day of USA. Its not about how the day begins.. its about how the day ends here.. well its holiday for sure.. called long weekend.. Then there are some events here and there.. people take a picnic basket and go out along with family and friends.. but the main attraction of the whole evening is the fireworks show.

The show is organized by the city hall or may be a university in the town. Well I was at the University of North Texas, Denton this 4th of July and was able to witness the fireworks. Well it started at around 9:30 and ended like for about 25 minutes. The UNT has a football stadium and the even took place in the stadium. By the time we went some music programs were going on.. After reaching there we found seats at the top of the arena. The lights went off... The whole stadium went dark.. And the show started.

I have to say for a small town like Denton it was a pretty nice show. The fireworks were awesome. This is my first firework show in 5 years. Never got a chance to see any 4th of July show before. It was nice to see so much crowd enjoying the Independence day watching the fireworks in the sky. Miss the Diwali days in India though. Its a totally different experience to watch the fireworks and to actually light up with our own hands.. Here everything is automated.

Anyway Happy Independence Day to USA.

Little Johnny Wants to Settle Down!!!

Little Johnny and Little Lisa are only 10 years old, but they know that they are in love. One day they decide that they want to get married, so Johnny goes to Lisa's father to ask for his blessing.

Johnny : Mr. Jones, me and Lisa are in love and I want to ask you for your blessing.
Mr. Jones : Well Johnny, you're only 10. Where will you two live?
Johnny : In Lisa's room.
Mr. Jones : Why in Lisa's room? Why not yours?
Johnny : It's bigger than mine and we can both fit there nicely.
Mr. Jones : Okay then how will you live? You're not old enough to get a job.
Johnny : Hmmmm...
Mr. Jones : How will you afford food and rent?
Johnny : With our allowance. Lisa gets 5 bucks a week and I get 10 bucks a week. That's about 60 bucks a month, and that should do us just fine.

By this time Mr. Jones is realizing that Johnny has put much thought into this. So, he thinks for a moment trying to come up with something that Johnny won't have an answer to.

Mr. Jones : Johnny, it seems like you've got everything all figured out.
Johnny : Yes I did.
Mr. Jones : I just have one more question for you.
Johnny : What is it?
Mr. Jones: What will you do if the two of you should kids of your own?
Johnny (shrugging his shoulders) : We've been lucky so far.

Mr. Jones faints.