Paul Baloche sings All the Earth

Will it blend?

How to create a viral video/content? I think these people know!

Just like every year, the two mad scientists at Blendtec had fun testing the effectiveness of their blenders smashing and crushing the newest Apple devices.

They usually do that with all the most popular electronic devices and also with the weirdest objects. It’s quite hypnotic watching 900 $ devices turning into crumbles in a few seconds.

Needless to say that’s a smart marketing tool on their side, as every time they publish a new video it invariably goes viral, getting thousands of visits to their site.

Have a nice day!

Thank you Sachin

Wordsworth said... "The child is the father of man".

A true disciple, rather student of cricket  mastered his art and showed today that dreams come true. #thankyousachin

What you saw today is success, adulation and honours. What don't see is the hours of arduous practice, injuries, pain, missed family time, friends, sleep and personal space.

Keep running, learning, be humble, stay true and love what you do, love your parents and success will chase you.

Sachin Tendulkar! Well left.

All the best.

Top 10 real estate trends for 2014

Ilyce Glink from CBS charts the top 10 real estate trends for 2014.

If the real estate recovery is a baseball game, we're in the fourth or fifth inning.

So what will the rest of the game look like?

Experts from the Urban Land Institute unveiled their view of how the rest of the recovery will play out in their Emerging Trends in Real Estate report, released this week at the land use and planning nonprofit's annual conference in Chicago.

The group highlighted a number of housing trends we can expect to see playing out over the next few years, based on surveys and interviews with real estate developers, investors, lenders, servicers and builders.

Millennials are moving the market, but not as homeowners

Though the so-called Millennial generation has been much-maligned in the media, real estate movers and shakers are increasingly interested in where this generation is headed -- quite literally. A number of the cities have seen increased economic activity in the real estate sector led by this generation, particularly Austin, Seattle, Portland and the Twin Cities in Minneapolis.

Minneapolis' place as number nine on a list of the top 10 cities for developers came as a surprise to Andrew Warren, director of PwC, a research and advising firm that co-authored the report with ULI.

"This is a city that's attractive to younger generations," he said, adding that its diverse economic base is helping to bring in a lot of college grads that don't want to leave the Midwest.

However, this same group isn't forming new households, and they're not buying as many homes as their parents' generation were at their age.

Second-tier cities will lead the recovery next year

Investors, developers and builders are losing some interest in the so-called 24-hour gateway cities -- San Francisco and New York City -- and have developed more interested in cities like Dallas and Portland, where there are more housing deals to be had.

For example, in 2011 only New York City and Washington, D.C. had good prospects for real estate investors and developers, according to the ULI report, but now Austin, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Miami, Orange County, Portland, San Francisco, San Jose and Seattle make that list -- and D.C. actually dropped out.

Real estate recovery still hinges on job growth

The slow pace of job growth as well as income and wage growth is still holding back the real estate recovery and that's not likely to change quickly.

Many cities in the Bay Area and in Texas have seen strong housing recoveries based on the strength of their economy, said Stephen Blank, ULI senior resident fellow for finance, so places with low unemployment can expect better recoveries next year, while places still haunted by economic issues won't.

The "smile investing" philosophy is back

Real estate developers are interested once again in a so-called smile investment philosophy, Warren said. According to the philosophy, developers and investors start looking at cities in the Northeast and moving south to cities along the Sun Belt -- Florida, Texas, Arizona -- and then coming back up to the Northwest -- Northern California, Oregon and Washington state. So expect to see more activity in those areas than in the Midwest.

Multi-family apartment building will wane

With rapidly rising demand for apartments during the recession -- boosted by increased demand from homeowners-turned-renters -- multi-family building surged. But that's likely to quiet down in 2014, as supply and demand have swapped places -- and there may actually have been too much multi-family building in 2013, Blank said.

Condo development is still on the back-burner

The recovery in the condo market hasn't matched that of the single-family market, and developers aren't willing to take the risk on putting up new condo buildings.

Instead, builders and developers are taking a dual-track option: They build a rental apartment building with an eye on switching it to condos in 12 to 16 months, depending on market conditions, Warren said.

High-end apartment buildings are also proving problematic for developers, as the interest from well-heeled potential renters simply hasn't been consistently strong.

Inventory is coming back

The experts at ULI are predicting that 2014 will be the last year that low inventory will aid property prices. Distressed inventory is drying up and sellers are looking at better profits than they have in years.

The buyer's market is long gone

Homes right now are priced to please sellers. "For buyers, they're priced to disappoint," Blank said.

Sellers now know they can squeeze buyers eager to buy before interest rates and home prices shoot up even further.

Shadow banking is emerging

There's optimism among those surveyed by ULI that lending standards will loosen next year, but Blank isn't as sure.

To fill the void, a concept called "shadow banking" has started to emerge and may take on a larger role in the lending market next year. Shadow banking is similar to traditional bank lending, but it's done outside banks and can therefore get around bank regulations.

Borrowers going this route will find a hodge-podge of private funds, wealthy individuals, family offices, and refugees from other lending markets, according to the report.

The suburban is going urban

There's not a lot of interest in developing suburban areas, Warren said. But where there is, it's surrounding more urban-minded projects located in spots where amenities and public transportation are easily accessible.

What you should be eating!

What are you eating?

I don't know! Why don't you check what you should be eating and gauge for yourself if you are eating right! Add some, reduce some, skip some and finally it is a healthy plate. Got this from Harvard School of public health!

Bon apetiet! 

Click on the image to enlarge

Massage naturally: Dabur lal tail review

If you are planning for a baby or trying to find medicines or natural cure for your baby, you must have come across natural cures and alternate medicine.

Ayurveda is the world’s oldest practiced system of medicine, and considered by many to be world’s best health care system. The global shift towards herbal and natural remedies opens up great opportunities for ayurveda across the world.

Dabur Lal Tail developed by Dabur India Limited contains all natural ingredients like Till Tail, Ratanjyot, Shankha Pushpi, Camphor and Urad. As per the literature, Till Tail or Sesame Oil improves growth and post-massage sleep, Ratanjyot protects against skin infection, Shankha Pushpi cures general weakness, Camphor improves blood circulation and Urad nourishes muscles & bones.

Here is the ad for the product from Dabur:




The product is not so oily and is very smooth. One of the advantages I found is that it doesn't get frozen in winter like other oils. Washing it off is easier as it is not so oily, so baby doesn't feel uneasy to keep it on for a long time and if there are so many health benefits like double the growth, both physical and behaviourial, I think you should give it a try to see if your baby likes it. The smell is a bit strong and I think it is because of the herbs in the product.

What do you think is the best oil for your baby?

Product rating: 3.5/5

Happy birthday yaara!

One of the best ads I have seen this year.

Has a simple story line which you can beat to the end and has even simpler music, simple acting and good editing then how did it succeed.

By taking the simplest gestures you choose to do during any day of your life and showing the impact you could see while harping on a sensitive lost friendship and regaining loved ones, this ad by Google tells you an amazing story - simplicity is the new success mantra.



I think this is a great take away for marketeers like me. Let me try and see if we can make something I like... a list!

• Keep it simple
• Keep it local, global and easy to follow
• Show simple controlled emotions
• Let people relate, give something usable, doable, real
• Use natural elements which don't need to dominate the theme
• Leave a clean branding image to carry on after the communique is done
• Yes, you need to advertise!

10 simple steps to great customer service

While there are many ways to improve service, here are the 10 simple ones on the top of my mind. Feel free to add on.

1. Deliver service on time
2. Respect the customer
3. Respect your team
4. Great service is service with a smile
5. Take a relatively broad approach, see the big picture
6. Recognize and embrace the relationship rather than the transaction
7. Great service is usually delivered as a team, not by an individual
8. Be the right person rather than saying I can't help you but someone else can
9. Non-verbal communication sometimes matters more than the verbal one
10. Build a blame free environment

Monday Blues: Fate, chance or choice

Don't blame your fate or chance but change your life by choice. One conscious decision and the will power to implement that decision no matter what, can change your destiny and fate. Make a small choice today to move forward, forget all the naysayers and move forward. One inch at a time and life will smile at you.

Sheena explains how important it is to move on and to make wise positive choices!

Monday Blues: Look at the positive

Enough of playing with your negatives. Now look at your positives and build them up. Make other people fall in love with you. Look at the people you are influencing, sometimes unintentionally. What will you be remembered as?
 

O God, open my eyes!

O God, open my eyes! Without Your touch I was blind. The god of this age had blinded my eyes (2 Cor 4:4). Now I need Your second touch (Mk 8:25). There are yet scales to fall off my eyes (Acts 9:18).

Open my eyes that I may see wondrous things from Your Word (Psa 119:18). I want not pebbles but pearls. Help me find the treasures hidden to the natural eyes (Prov 2:4). Give me a telescopic vision to look beyond to understand Your prophecies for tomorrow. Give me a microscopic vision to search the depths of Your wisdom. Fit me with a wide angle lens to grasp Your whole counsel.

Lift up thine eyes, O watchman; the armies of the Lord 

Are riding forth to conquest with buckler, shield, and sword; 

Glad tidings unto Zion that valiant host shall bring, 

And shout aloud, Hosanna! The Lord, the Lord is King! 

 (Fanny J. Crosby,1820-1915)

Plates loaded with pesticides

Stop feeding poison to your loved ones. Choose organic terrace gardens, kitchen gardens for healthy pesticide-chemical-free food.

Probably it's time to take a closer look at what's on your platter. Cypermethrin, heptachlor, quinalphos, aldrin, chlorodane, dichlorvas, cypermethrin — these banned pesticides could well be a part of your regular diet. Okras, leafy green cabbages and other vegetables, bananas or oranges and apples that you so relish may be overloaded with some of these harmful pesticides. 

A study by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India under the Union agriculture ministry threw up some unpalatable facts. Common food items contain banned pesticides in quantities a thousand times more than the permissible limits. The findings are based on random samples collected from across the country. 

From the vegetable basket, brinjal tops the chart with the level of banned pesticide at 860% above legal limits, followed by cauliflower and cabbage. Wheat and rice too had these dangerous chemicals. While the level of aldrin in wheat is 21,890 times more than the permissible level, that of chlorfenvinfos in rice was measured at 1,324% above the allowed limit. 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Plates-loaded-with-pesticides/articleshow/25405174.cms?#write

Be a batman

When small mosquitoes trouble you and sing, I-will-get-you song in a slow horrific lullaby then you take out the bat and feel like a ninja warrior. Don't you?

I think this mosquito bat is one of the best inventions that have really helped a common man. Especially in terms of usage(simple technology and very easily adaptable), availability(market penetration) and results. Should I call it the best example of buzz marketing? :)

And just think how powerful you feel once you have this bat in your hand? I for one feel like batman.

Pic is from here.

Illusions!

Do you believe what you see? Or should you?

Check this wonderful ad from Honda which uses forced perspective and anamorphic optical illusions to screw up your mind. No computer animation is involved—just clever camera work and paintings on the ground.

Watch the complete ad here. I don't think it adds anything to the brand value, but I am sure it adds a lot to brand recall.


Do you think creating a good brand image where you explain/impose your brand and the values it stands for is important or just creating eyeballs?

 

Contribute

Stop worrying and contribute.
Not because it is your job, but because you are good at it :)

Simple green living options

Simple steps to go green:

1. Go solar for your electricity supply, heating water, lighting and so on
2. Change mode of transportation: bicycle, walk, use public transport, travel by train, use an electric vehicle or carpooling
3. Change your food: Check for greener options(literally) or at least vegetarian, eat local, eat organic, buy food in bulk and avoid unnecessary packaging
4. Reduce, refuse, recycle and reuse
5. Be vocal about it

Know breath, know life

Pooja Venugopal sent this beautiful  piece.

One of the acharyas of Ayurveda has said, ‘‘Rase sidhe karishyami nirdaridryam idam jagath which means ‘‘I am giving this knowledge of Ayurveda to take away suffering from the world’’. So, the approach of Ayurveda towards life is wholistic.

Life has four characteristics, it exists, evolves, expresses and extinguishes. For this, it depends on five elements: the earth, water, air, ether and fire. To make it easier to understand we can bring in the five senses and its objects: sight, smell, taste, sound and touch. The study of life is Ayurveda (‘Ved’ means to know, ‘Ayur’ is life).

According to Ayurveda, life or existence is not a rigid compartment, but a harmonious flow. Even these five elements of which the whole universe is made of, are not tight compartments of defined objects. They flow into one another. Each one of the elements contains the other four.

The subtlest in us is space, which the mind is made up of, and the gross is the earth element, which our bones and marrows, and the skin and the structure is made of. This is further divided into three Doshas — Vata, Pitta and Kapha.

It is a way to understand the physiology, its characteristics and its reflection on the mind.

When an illness arises, it comes first in the thought form, the subtlest aspect, then the sound form, and then the light form, that is, in the aura. It is only then that the illness manifests in the body. Simple symptoms arise in the fluid form, which can be irradicated, and then it manifests in the most gross form, where it needs medication.

In treatments such as aromatherapy, an illness can be cured just through fragrance. It is mostly focussed on the preventive aspect. The holistic approach of Ayurveda includes exercise, breathing and meditation. It is very interesting to notice the relationship between breath and the different Doshas in the body, namely Vata, Pitta and Kapha. These three Doshas affect certain parts of the body more than the other parts.

For example, Vata Dosha is predominant in the lower part of the body — stomach, intestine, etc. Diseases like gastric problems and joint aches are caused due to the Vata imbalance. Kapha dosha is predominant in the middle part of the body. Cough is mainly a result of Kapha imbalance. (Perhaps the word cough has come from the sanskrit word Kapha). And Pitta, affects the upper part of the body ie, the head. Short temper is a sign of Pitta.

Yoga, or breathing techniques like Sudarshan Kriya (The Art Of Living Healing Breath Technique) and the three-stage pranayama (channelising Prana or life force to different parts of the body) have an effect on these three Doshas.

Among different pranayama and other breathing techniques, there are specific breathing exercises for the lower, middle and the upper parts of the body which help bring balance to the respective areas.

How do we bring good health to our system? First, by attending to the ether element — the mind. If your mind is bogged with too many impressions and thoughts, and it is draining you of your resistance power, that is where it is preparing your body for some illness. If the mind is clear, calm, meditative, and pleasant, the resistance in the body would increase. Because it would not allow an illness to come into the body.

The first remedy is calming the mind, coming from the subtlest aspect of creation, the ether. And then comes the air element, the breathing. Aromatherapy, etc comes in this category. Next is the light element; here comes the colour therapy. Before an illness manifests in the body you can see that in the aura of a person. And by energising our system with the prana or life energy one can clear the aura and prevent the illness.

That is what yoga does. The purpose of yoga is, ‘‘stopping the sorrow before it arises’’. To burn the seed of sorrow before it sprouts. And then comes the water element.

Fasting with water or purifying the system with water can bring a lot of balance in the system. And the final recourse is different medicinal herbs, medicines, and surgery. All this comes when everything else fails or when we neglect these other steps.

Our breath holds a lot of secrets because, for every emotion in the mind, there is a corresponding rhythm in the breath. And each rhythm affects certain parts of the body, physically. You only need to observe it to feel it. For instance, we feel a sense of expansion when we are happy and a sense of contraction when miserable. Though we feel that happiness or misery and the sensation, we fail to notice the connection.

Knowledge is knowing that which expands. What is that? This knowledge, this enquiry is the study of consciousness, is the study of life, that is the study of prana, the study of Ayurveda. Have you ever counted how many times you breathe in a minute? Breathing is the first act of life and it’s the last act of life. In between, the whole life we are breathing in and out, but not attending to the breath.

Ninety percent of the impurities in the body go out through the breath because we are breathing twenty-four hours a day. However, we are using only thirty percent of our lung capacity. We are not breathing enough.

See, the mind is like a kite and the breath, a thread. For the mind to go high the breath needs to be longer. You don’t have to take Prozac if you can attend to the breath.

In one minute we breathe nearly sixteen to seventeen times.

If you are upset it may go up to twenty, if you are extremely tense and angry, it could total twenty-five per minute. Ten if you are very calm and happy, two to three breaths if you are in meditation. Deep meditation can reduce the number of breaths you take.

If you observe an infant, you will be amazed at how balanced they breathe. They breathe from all the three sections of the body. As they breathe in their belly comes out, as they breathe out their belly moves in. But the more nervous and tense you are, you will do the reverse. When you breathe out your tummy will come out and when you breathe in, it goes in.

These things, you don’t have to go to a school or learn from anybody if you have the sharpness of mind. But our mind is so preoccupied with so many things, so many judgements, so many opinions, and so many impressions in the mind so we are unable to observe, perceive the refined things in nature.

So we need to study. The yoga asanas are something which everyone has done as a child. Have you seen a six month old baby lying on its back with its legs up. And it kicks its legs and head also up, almost like what you do with the ab (abdominal) machine. Then it goes on its back and does the ‘cobra’ posture in yoga. And if you observe a sleeping child, its thumb and the index finger slightly touch, a formation which is the ‘Chin mudra’.

Or go to a zoo and observe the monkeys. Even they do many of the asanas to keep themselves healthy. So these are the things that coordinate body, breath, mind and spirit. And Ayurveda attends to this holistic approach. There are so many points in the body which correspond with different sensations but these are reflections of something which is beyond all this. What is that something? That is the source of life.

Health is... Disease-free body/Quiver-free breath/Stress-free mind/Inhibition-free intellect/Obsession-free memory/Ego that includes all/And Soul which is free from sorrow

I ate your candy :)

I love this series. Don't you?

Monday Blues: Run the day

Either you run the day, or the day runs you. –Jim Rohn

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

I will wait for the Lord

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Cor 2:9)

Firm as a rock, though surges dash around us!

Firm as a rock, though trials dark may fall!

Yet shall we cling to Him, the Rock of Ages,

Jesus, the Holy One, our All in All! (Fanny J. Crosby, 1823-1915)

Silent diwali

For all those celebrating a noiseless diwali... Thank you.

5 rules of high impact content

The 5 rules of audience engagement

1. Embrace unconventional thinking: Don't stick to the text book rules. If you think something works, go ahead.
2. Never underestimate your audience: They are smarter than you. So don't teach. Even a kid should understand what you are trying to say.
3. Master the art of storytelling: Build a story.
4. Incorporate eye-popping visuals: Spend more time, cost and effort ont he design
5. Make customer-obsessed marketing a team sport: Build a team where everyone is responsible

Finding your happiness

What makes you happy? The simplest way is to stop being miserable and start being happy. Choose being happy. Find your happiness. Today!

Formation day!

Two of our states are celebrating formation day today. I am first an Indian. Then I belong to a state. India is a mighty glorious nation that I am extremely proud of. Doesn't matter which state you are in as long as you are working towards the growth of the nation. Staying united, as one, working with each other as a community, as a force is important.

We are not divided, all one body we
One in hope and doctrine, one in charity!
(Sabine Baring-Gould, 1834-1924)

Know-ember challenge

This November, I put myself to this test. Can I bring you 30 topics/arguments/opinions that would come one at a time? I hope to do that and I hope you would find it as interesting and captivating as I hope it would be. So here it goes the first one!

Kenaf or Gongura in Telugu is a famous ingredient in andhra. One of the most sought out dishes for pickles and curry, kenaf brings in a a soury tingle to the dishes while balancing the fibre content when cooked along high protein ingredients. Now you didn't know gongura is called Kenaf. Did you?

Link to the high res pic.

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Cheeni kitna lethi ho?

Till the day you stop and confront your oppressor, you wouldn't be free. Till the day you rise up and fight for yourself, no one would fight for you.

If you are the oppressor, look into yourself and see what is your problem. Get care and probably medication to sort your demons out. Because there is a force rising and once it rises, it will wash you away, naked, dry and hurt and you will not be able to look yourself in the mirror.

Kudos and praises to the numerous who face transgressions everyday and still come out expecting change. Time to take up change in your hands and  charge.

Here is a brilliant piece by Anurag. Watch, Share and spread like wild fire. For in this country we worship women as Godesses all powerful.

Focus on things that matter

Bother about things you can change, improve and make a difference. Lose focus on things that don't matter. 

Home buyer's sentiment across the country!

Economic times reports: Home buyers across the country expect real estate prices to fall over the next six months, according to the Housing Sentiment Index (HSI). Developed by IIM Bangalore and MagicBricks, the index is based on an online survey of prospective buyers. Here are the other findings of the survey:

Sentiment based on age The older buyers are more bearish on price than the younger ones.

 

Location Buyers across all cities expect the prices to drop. Hyderabad buyers anticipate the steepest fall, while Bangalore is the only city with a slightly positive sentiment.

 

Property Preference

Except for land buyers, all others expect the prices to fall in the next six months.

Budget The buyers who are on the lookout for more expensive property or land expect the prices to fall more.

Profession The sentiment for IT sector respondents and retirees has dropped this quarter.

Be a man

Found this on a friend's facebook page. Lovely it is :)

Dabur's An Immune India mission

There is disease everywhere and in everything. Or some how that is what we are made to believe. This is not just from what we find on doing some research but this scaring info is shared to us on all fronts. Face it you see it everywhere. In news, on tv and in ads and everywhere else. Starting from toothpaste, to soap to skin cream to paints. Everywhere there is disease and you have to guard yourself to be safe. Guard yourself, your family and children from everything possible. Are we paranoid?

While a lot of brands are supporting complete(with a star mark) protection there are very few which will actually help build your immunity. India being a traditionally blessed country with a variety of herbs and natural ingredients, we are also very knowledgeable in terms of traditional medicine. Ayurveda is a well known system of alternative medicine. While other types of medicine are invasive, Ayurveda helps the body gain strength naturally and fight out the disease causing germs and cleanses the human body. 

Building an immune body is important to stay healthy. Some of the well known ingredients to enhance immunity are as follows:

1. Ashwagandha - It has antistress, anti oxidant and immunomodulatory properties
2. Guduchi - It has antioxidant and immunomodulatory properties and helps to provide strength. It acts as rejuvenator too.
3. Satavari - It helps to promotes general health. It helps improve memory and is found to be beneficial for eyes.
4. Bala - It has anti oxidant properties and acts as a strength promoter
5. Vidarikand - Acts as a rejuvenator.

One of the few products that focuses on building immunity and actually claims three times more immunity is Dabur Chyawanprash. Simply put, immunity is the body’s most reliable defense against diseases and it can be made stronger. It's anti-oxidant properties and helps to strengthen your body's internal defence mechanism - the immune system - thereby protecting you from day to day infections such as cough, cold etc.



What do I think about the product?

• Safe as it only uses over 40 natural ingredients
• Sugar free option called Chyawanprakash makes it elderly-friendly
• Multiple flavours makes it kid-friendly (Mixed fruit, Orange and Mango)
• By addressing the question of immunity it is in the right attitude
• Easy availability with access to over 15 lakh outlets
• Improves memory
• Prevents general weakness
• Good for all seasons

Focus on healthy options for yourself and your kids and let us strive to build an immune India and make us a healthy nation. For more details look at Dabur's link here.

Monday blues: Bloom in diversity

Wait, is it Monday already? What the hell happened to my vacation and weekend? While everyone around are getting ready to celebrate festivals, I am working :) Guess what I am loving it. Whatever you say, the joy in knowing you are wanted and loved is the most important satisfaction in your life. When the going gets hard, the tough need to work harder to pass it through.

This Monday, turn your adversities, struggles in to joy. Look for a positive side and move on. You need to look to bloom, germinate and grow in adversity and the result, trust me, is amazing!

Smile because you are in adversity and while everyone expects you to fail, you can turn it to something beautiful.

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Commotion, confusion and chaos

There are times in all our lives when there is commotion, confusion and chaos all around. Then is the time when you feel helpless, forgotten and lost in eternity. This is the time when you ought to remember that your Lord remembers you and hold you in his palms and his caring, loving and ever gracious countenance is looking down upon you to give you strength and wisdom.

Be strong and wait upon the Lord to show you his grace.

 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; 

 I will be exalted among the nations, 

 I will be exalted in the earth.” 

 Psalm 46:10

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Happy Halloween

ESPN’s TMQ columnist Gregg Easterbrook suggests, the appeal of zombie movies and TV shows is more primal — and somewhat disturbing — that: “the heroes can kill, kill, kill without compunctions or consequences.”

That said, here’s my Top 10 zombie pictures:

1. “Night of the Living Dead.” George Romero’s 1968 ultra low-budget black-and-white creepfest that started the modern zombie film. The 1990 remake isn’t bad, either.

2. “Dawn of the Dead.” Romero’s 1978 second entry in what was originally a zombie trilogy might be even better than his first picture as the zombies take over a shopping mall. It was made for $650,000 and made $50 million worldwide.

3. “28 Days Later.” “Slumdog Millionaire” director Danny Boyle’s 2002 picture upset zombie purists — it’s a disease movie, like “World War Z.” But it was scary and the zombies are fast, not plodding.

4. “Shaun of the Dead.” The best zombie comedy ever, this 2004 British film starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost bitingly sends up the genre, forever bursting its bubble.

5. “Zombieland.” More fun, the 2009 picture feels like a video game with Woody Harrelson mowing down zombies right and left and features a memorable turn by Bill Murray.

6. “White Zombie.” The 1932 original belongs on this list, with Bela Lugosi at his best playing the evil zombie master. It's set in Haiti, where zombies are supposed to originate via voodoo.

7. “Dead Alive.” This bloody, gory, over-the-top 1992 mess comes from Peter Jackson, who, of course, went on to make “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, remake “King Kong,” etc.

8. “Return of the Living Dead.” The first film to have fast-moving zombies rather than the plodding variety, the 1978 picture was also the first to use the cry “Brains.”

9. “Day of the Dead.” The final installment in Romero’s original trilogy (he’s made two more forgettable zombie movies since) wasn’t well received when it came out in 1985. Watch it now.

10. “Planet Terror.” Half of “Grindhouse,” the 2007 exploitation picture, this one comes from Robert Rodriguez, who gets everything about zombie pictures right.

Honorable mention: “World War Z,” the high budget, highfalutin zombie picture that was a modest hit this summer and is now available for home viewing — just in time for Halloween.

Monday Blues: Adjust sails

The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails.

John Maxwell

Wait for the Lord

"I waited patiently for the Lord" (Psa 40:1a)

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Monday Blues: Stay patient

Patience is the secret! Doctors need patience to perform successful surgeries. Engineers need patience to build complex structures. Teachers need patience to produce distinguished scholars. Parents need patience to raise responsible children. Scientists need patience to explore shrouded mysteries. Spouses need patience to build harmonious families.

Stay patient as God has a plan. Wait and see what that is while he is working on you.

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Monday Blues: Try a different angle

This monday, try looking at your regular day's work with a different angle. Try finding a better way of doing it. Can you?

All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Seeking daily grace

I would not ask for earthly store — Thou wilt my need supply; 

But I would covet, more and more, the clear and single eye, 

To see my duty face to face, and trust Thee, Lord, for daily grace! 

 J.J. Maxfield


All pics displayed here can be downloaded and used for free. Just give a link here. You can find more pics here: t3i photography.

Guard my soul!

O let me hear Thee speaking in accents clear and still, 

Above the storms of passion the murmurs of self-will; 

O speak to reassure me to hasten or control; 

O speak and make me listen, Thou guardian of my soul ! 

(John E. Bode, 1816-1874)

Celebrating freedom

For years women had to adjust or live up to the fact that jeans are men's domain. Not any more. I am looking at this beautiful ad and am loving it just for the fact that the need is deciphered and conveyed to you. So even if you didn't know that it existed, you now know and you are now aware.

I love the way it is shot, in different elements, shaded, leaving a lot to imagination and mystique look. It would go to the top of my best ads list for this year.

As a marketer your job doesn't end in showing how better your product is in comparison to x, y and z brands but it is in deducing the requirement and the hidden need and highlight that to showcase how your product fits in. Isn't it the most important element of your job? Isn't it the only one?

Monday Blues: Lust for success

Lust is a typically sad word and is used in negative connotation but I guess it is justified when I use it to show how desperate and passionate you should be for success.

Lusting for success doesn't mean that you have to turn evil and do bad things to achieve success but it means be as stringent and strict to win and keep at it till you win. May God be with you in your endeavors :)