Moment of Zen

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.”
– Aristotle

via zen habits

Disposable

It’s pretty amazing that our society has reached a point where the effort necessary to extract oil from the ground, ship it a refinery, turn it into plastic, shape it appropriately, truck it to a shore, buy it, and bring it home; is considered less effort than what it takes to just wash the spoon when you’re done with it.
-via TreeHugger

Mass production of disposable products for our convenience is the norm of the times. The more a society progresses the more the usage of disposable products. Look around you, probably 80% of products you use are the disposable kind. So, if we are waiting around for someone to solve environmental issues for us, then it’s not likely to happen. The problem is not someone else but us, unless we change our ways, the problems which have resulted from our desire for conveniences are not going away any time soon.

Each one of us could take a minute, review our dependency on disposable products, and cut back. Something as simple as washing and reusing a spoon can go along way. But remember karma, when we change our ways, it will impact things both in a good and a bad way. So if today we all stop using disposable spoons, then naturally, industries which produce these products will go out of business, people will lose jobs, and there will economic and social impacts. So when people say wash a spoon and reuse it, the impact of that action, in the big picture, is not as simple as it looks.

Another thing I have noticed is we sometimes justify use of disposable products by using recycling as an excuse. Well, when you get a chance, go to a landfill near you, and you will get a good idea of how much recycling actually goes on.

If you want to make a difference, make changes to your dependency on disposable products today, and show others that they can do it too.

Moment of Zen

“Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time.”
– Steven Wright

World’s Oldest Dad

Nanu Ram Jogi, a 90 year old farmer from Rajasthan, who already holds the world’s oldest father title, has fathered another child.

“Women love me,” Mr Jogi said. “I want to have more children. I can survive another few decades and want to have children till I am 100 – then maybe I will stop.”

With rock solid genes as that of Nanu Ram Jogi contributing, looks like we are going to be improving on our birthrate of—1 person born every 1.3 seconds!

via Daily Mail

India 60

When it comes to milestones, sushtipurthi or completion of 60 years, is special in India. Today, India has been independent from its brutal colonial rule for 60 years. In the grand scheme of things it’s a small time frame in contrast to a region rich with traditions, religions, languages and history whose lineage dates back thousands of years. But from our frame of reference, 60 years back; regardless of all our internal tussles and disagreements on various fronts, we have held ourselves together and are moving forward in gargantuan strides.

However, 60 years later, as we emulate and toil to be at par with developed nations, the real India seems to lurk in the background, whether knowingly or unknowingly, safeguarding the identity that makes us who we are. That real India of my childhood, that real India my grandfather–Marthandan Narayanan–fought the British on the battle fields of Rangoon for, and that real India which still exists in its numerous villages and towns.

A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.

60 years since Nehru spoke those words, it seems we are at another junction, where we step from the old to the new. Maybe 60 years from now that real India might not exist anymore; so for this 60th Independence Day, I have put together a wallpaper of images of people from all parts of India, in a way trying to see the real India in the faces of its people.

Happy 60th Independence Day Everyone, and enjoy the wallpaper.

Download: 1920×1200 | 1680×1050 | 1600×1000

All images used in the wallpaper were found on flickr. The only place I could not find a photo for was Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

I would like to thank the following photographers for having taken such striking images of India and its people, and especially for sharing and granting me the permission to include their images in this wallpaper. There are 40 photos used in this wallpaper, and I have 32 approvals for image use. For those photographers I haven’t heard back from, I apologize for jumping the gun and releasing the wallpaper prior to receiving consent, as I had to get it out today. If you have an issue with your image being in the wallpaper, do let me know and I will remove it immediately.

States
Andhara Pradesh РShreyans, Arunachal Pradesh РSandeep, Assam РSanzen, Bihar РKshitiz Anand, Chattigarh РKewal Raipur, Goa РDotspiral, Gujarat Рherv̩ Blandin, Haryana РRick Quesnberry, Himachal Pradesh РNaroki, Jammu and Kashmir РJaipal Singh Bandral, Jharkhand РPrema Sagar, Karnataka РEli Shams, Kerala РJules, Madhya Pradesh РAkshay Mahajan, Maharashtra РR K Menon, Manipur РMoruoak, Meghalaya РSeema K K, Mizoram РJohn Paite, Nagaland РWalter Callens, Orissa РAaron Ohlmann, Punjab РRaminder Pal Singh, Rajasthan РMirjan Letsch, Sikkim РAbhinav Toshniwal, Tamil Nadu РKangan Arora, Tripura РRodrigo Bravo, Uttar Pradesh РClaude Renault, Uttarakhand РMar00ned, West Bengal РAlberto Lizaralde

Union Territories
Andaman & Nicobar – Sebastin Iratuza, Chandigargh – Dey Alexander, Daman and Diu – Ikuko Yamada, Lakshadweep – Sam Akhtar, Delhi – Sam Stearman, Puducherry – Yan Seiler

National
Tiger – Kurian Jose, Peacock – Ju Urrutia, Mango – Mahesh Khanna, Banyan – Scott Weber, Lotus – Bryan McNair, Flag – Nav a

Moment of Zen

“The problems that exist in the world today cannot be solved by the level of thinking that created them.”
– Albert Einstein

I came across this quote in “It’s Easy Being Green: A Handbook for Earth-Friendly Living“

Go Green Tip: Storing Paint

If stored correctly, leftover paint can last for years. Here are 8 paint storage tips from Earth 911 to extend paint life.

Moment of Zen

“Work is love made visible. And if you can’t work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of the people who work with joy.”

– Kahlil Gibran

via avalonstar

Pillow Fight

What would it be like if all conflicts could be resolved with a pillow fight? I might be wishing for horses here, you know like the saying, “if wishes were horses, beggars would ride”, or as my friend Amit puts it, “if wishes were ponies, beggars children would ride!”

If you wondering about the French song, it’s Boum by Charles Trénet

Background

I was playing with blender, and here is one of the backgrounds I created for fun.

Download: 1400×1050