Empowering Roots…

I saw “The Dark Knight” over this weekend and it was just awesome. Oh! Let me give some background here. I am a hard core, die hard Batman Fan since childhood. I used to always follow the Batman Series earlier when it used to be aired on some channel. I am not sure, but maybe because of my love for techs and gadgets may have got me hooked on to this particular super hero as he is the only one out of the lot that has the most amazing gadgets. 

I am so dead in love with the batmobile. It’s the most amazing beauty I have seen. How can I forget the suit, the mystic batman sign which has this air of mystery & eeriness to it! The Batman logo that gets flashed in the night over a dark sky has been a scene that I just adore. This is one particular scene that will always be there in each and every movie and every series. Another one, which I just love, is when he is on top of the building in the night - standing just at the edge, looking down and the camera swoons over him. Ooooo!! Such a cool shot. 

The movie was running house full and since we were smart enough to have already done our bookings online, we did not face any hassle in getting our choice of seats or the preference for the show timings as some of the people who were literally seen begging for the tickets. It was hilarious to see some mothers pleading with the theatre management to give them “just three” tickets for the show. Their desperation was so high that they were ready to even make their children sit on their laps or down below on the stairs if they had do. I am a nice human being most of the time, but my mood swings would make me sadist sometimes, and it was a lazy Sunday, so I was having fun standing and watching them - ah Na, it was fun watching that they were so desperate for the movie only AT that Show for THAT time. I was desperate too, and would have killed if I had to, to watch the movie, but wouldn’t have sat on any one’s lap let alone agreeing to sit on the floor to watch it. 

There was a lady, who literally was begging and pleading with the ticket guy so much that she also told him, to just span his look over at her 8 year old son’s innocent face and that he had come out to the movies after three years. How unjust would it be to him?
[Gaping Me! That FACE! I mean - "THAT INNOCENT FACE" was a mirror reflection of an innocence who would tear open the theatre seats and stick some chewing gum on them - takes one, to know one. Now, trust me, even I wouldn't have been able to come up with such a melodramatic scene.] 

The most irritating part for me is when the movie has just begun; there will be this fleet of people who will walk in to take their seats. Oh C’mon! I went for the movie so early to even catch the ads before the show. I had even checked it up on the net to see if the seats on my row were occupied already before leaving home, as I had booked the aisle seats. And as anticipated, we had to sit straight up to allow the late comers to pass through us to get into their seats. Some of them are so darn annoying - first, they enter late after intermission and to top it that they even forget their seats so much so that they start screaming their companion’s name in the dark as if to check if they are robbing the correct bank. Phew! And since I am destiny’s favorite child, he had to be seated in the same row as mine. So there again, I missed my valuable micro seconds of the film thanks to the screaming fat chimp.

Well, lesson learnt the hard way, will book the corner seats next time {much to the annoyance of my friends}. 

I succeeded my best by not allowing any of the above to dampen my excitement for the film and truly just was over the moon with this flick. Amazing Plot with an even more Amazing performance - especially by Heath Ledger who played the Joker. How tragic, that this was his last performance. 

Seems like Batman has done economically well over the past years. His cave door that earlier used to open to let his techie dark beauty out has been replaced with this huge space with multiple screens and better computers and techs. 

I somehow thought that the earlier version of the batmobile from its exterior’s was more sleeker with the predominant design that includ a large, dark-colored body and bat-like accessories, including large tailfins scalloped to resemble a bat’s wings. However much to my surprise this one was more sleeker from inside - in some of the scenes they give you a real good peek of the techs like the navigation, the use of joysticks, rocket boosts for increased speed and advanced automotive customization. 

 Bruce Wayne’s house is fantastic with a brilliant view having an attached helipad at the terrace. The action scenes take your breath away, how brilliantly and well thought off. I just loved some particular scenes in the movie, where the Batman’s car has been crashed out and he turns it into a bike and races off in the tunnel. Another was a plot to kill the joker who is driving a truck which the Batman entangles in some wires while riding his bike all the while they are racing on the road. 

And yes, my favorite scenes that I had mentioned above were so aesthetically shot. Christian Dale’s performance is just about ok as Bruce Wayne in comparison to Michael Caine & Heath Ledger. Morgan Freeman is at his usual best playing the Batman’s trusted Mr. Fox. Heath Ledger has definitely taken away the share of the biggest cake with his performance as the psychotic joker. I must commend the make up artists of this film, for giving Heath the look of an outstanding villain - annoying personality yet funny. Personally, I would still prefer Katie Holmes from Batman Begins to play Rachel Dawes in comparison to Maggie Gyllenhaal - Batman’s sweetheart. 

Overall, a must watch and an absolutely a brilliant film. I wish they have more of the Batman Series soon.

This one just had me rolling to pits on the floor with laughter.

The is the Highest Selling Pen Stand in IRAQ

And I am still Laughing…

For those who know me well, would account that I need changes in my life to keep me going. I need to change to grow. Also, I just get bored of being the old myself. I need to know where I have to improve to move on and move ahead in life. I want to change for my own betterment. 

A change for me is something that has to be positive all the time. I believe in having the faith that when you want good things to come in your life; they WILL - simply because you are positive about them coming to you. I understand and have experienced that sometimes it just hard to be positive continuously day in & day out in your life. There are times and minutes and seconds that you forget that you are being attracted towards negativity and you then get a constant flow of negative thoughts in your mind. Then what do you do? How do you come back to being positive, cheerful, satisfied and content during those times? 

A simple thing that has been working for me is music, my friends and a constant reminder of certain things that I keep in front of me. Now, I know, a lot of people may have tried this and said, that over a period of time this fades away, however I challenge that you come out and challenge your own self to avoid letting it fade away from your life. 

Now, my main intention for writing this post is to share what I have put up in front of me everyday. All that I ever believed in, I found it all consolidated on Website of “The Secret” {Previous posts on “The Secret Part - I” & “The Secret - A Review”}.

It is called the Optimist’s Creed which has been written by Christian D. Larson almost 100 years ago. It’s very strange or call it God’s will that I landed on that exact page and also had it delivered in my mail box couple of days ago. This one contains just about everything that I have always talked about with people, just about every word that I completely BELIEVE in to its very core. 

I now have its print out on my soft board on my desk where I see it everyday and all it helps me do is to remind me to make a Promise everyday. Make sure to use the words “I Promise” at the beginning of every statement.  

I am standing near the half opened door,
Turning back, looking
Searching for some signs from you…
I have been standing since a long time…
Searching for your heart…
Searching for your True Soul
Waiting for it to come back to speak to me
Waiting for it’s sound, waiting for its whisper…
Haven’t heard the whisper that I was hoping to hear
Haven’t got my sign that tells me to move away from the door
Alas! I have waited for too long…
Still Standing at the half closed door
Raising my right foot…
Taking up the first step to walk out…
The door closes…
Never to be opened again!

Here’s a copy of a real job application letter received this year by recruiters at one top Wall Street firm. (hereisthecity.com)  

‘Greetings from Takijistan!

I am wishing of coming to your great street in the wall to work in bank for investments. My experieence is nice. My uncle had freind who held golfing sticks for Jimmey the Cayne in rounds when bank was dying. My father knows Sir Eliot Spitzer’s girl nice well. Very, very preety, but worth nothing to lose big top job for. Big shame that. At school my teecher always siad that I know price of everytinge and value of nothinge, just like your traders of the subprime.

I never lie. I forget easy and in my country that is not for good. If they catch you in lie in Takijistan, they do terrable things too you with electric sticke. I had problam with the walkings for a little time, but I recover good now well. Not all do well after electric sticke, especial if many stickeings take.

I am wanting to be trader. In markeet, I always get good price. I never misprice, as I don’t know how to do math - see, I have much in commun with your risky peeple. If trader jobs are finished, I could do risky as good.

My friende says you have lost plenty money by your tradings. I am sorrey for that. Perhaps I come and trade nothing - then you lose no money. Already I have good ideas to run your bank. Tell traders to stop losings. I can bring electric sticke.

I here about your bare stearn. Good that your government covers it with much guarantee. In my countrie, the poorings people pay all the bills for the rich too, so your grate countrie is the same. It is good to be at top in your bank. I want to be near top. To take much money when there is none for the rest is my dream. God bless yourr aMERICA.

Your sytem is also good - the politic. A black and woman for top job is nicely. In Takijistan we love Oprah Winfrey to. Sometimes the fat girl, sometimes the thin is very good. You are true free peeple. Even I here your bankers are in streete with sign looking for good jobs. In your aMERICA they don’t knock on door in night if you beg on streete, and you are not taken away off to see family again never. americans just laugh ha-ha and call loser for poor the peeple with no jobs. I want to be loser in aMERICA some day. But now just I want job. If your jobs are finished, do you know place for job signs pleese ? I like ha-ha too.

I hope your bank is prosper and you have good job for me. My father says he knows you will give me good proper job. He says to tell you he now owns 15% of your stocke equity and will buy much more when you make more big losings soon. He has many electric sticke now and most money in all Takijistan .

I will be arrivings next weak. If no job, please send money immediately. Do not defer if I am not to make it in staff (like bonus, which now comes never). If cash is short just sell more housings of your trailer trash poorings people and send mee quick fast.

I am your servant, and my father is your boss top soon now.

Thanks to you for understandings.
—————————————————————————————————————
God save the Bank where he is hired him, especially in today’s times of Inflation and Job Cuts everywhere.

Don’t see a reason, why I would still stop being a complete Grown Up Child :

The following is said to be a real letter of resignation from an employee at a computer company, to her boss, who apparently resigned very soon afterwards! It’s funny, if a little harsh..

Dear Mr. X,

As a graduate of an institution of higher education, I have a few very basic expectations. Chief among these is that my direct superiors have an intellect that ranges above the common ground squirrel. After your consistent and annoying harassment of my co-workers and me during the commission of our duties, I can only surmise that you are one of the few true genetic wastes of our time.

Asking me, a network administrator, to explain every little nuance of everything I do each time you happen to stroll into my office is not only a waste of time, but also a waste of precious oxygen. I was hired because I know how to network computer systems, and you were apparently hired to provide amusement to myself and other employees, who watch you vainly attempt to understand the concept of “cut and paste” for the hundredth time.

You will never understand computers. Something as incredibly simple as binary still gives you too many options. You will also never understand why people hate you, but I am going to try and explain it to you………

You walk around the building all day, shiftlessly looking for fault in others. You have a sharp dressed useless look about you that may have worked for your interview, but now that you actually have responsibility, you pawn it off on overworked staff, hoping their talent will cover for your glaring ineptitude. In a world of managerial evolution, you are the blue-green algae that everyone else eats and laughs at. Managers like you are a sad proof of the Dilbert principle. Since this situation is unlikely to change without you getting a full frontal lobotomy reversal, I am forced to tender my resignation.

However, I have a few parting thoughts.

1. When someone calls you in reference to employment, it is illegal for you to give me a bad reference. The most you can say to hurt me is “I prefer not to comment.” I will have friends randomly call you over the next couple of years to keep you honest, because I know you would be unable to do it on your own.

2. I have all the passwords to every account on the system, and I know every password you have used for the last five years. If you decide to get cute, I am going to publish your “favorites list”, which I conveniently saved when you made me “back up” your useless files. I do believe that terms like “Lolita” are not usually viewed favorably by the company.

3. When you borrowed the digital camera to “take pictures of your Mother’s birthday,” you neglected to mention that you were going to take pictures of yourself in the mirror n.de. Then you forgot to erase them like the techno-moron you really are. Suffice it to say I have never seen such odd acts with a sauce bottle, but I assure you that those have been copied and kept in safe places pending the authoring of a glowing letter of reference. (Try to use a spell check please; I hate having to correct your mistakes.)

Thank you for your time, and I expect the reference on my desk by 8:00 am tomorrow. One word of this to anybody, and all of your little twisted repugnant obsessions will be open to the public. Never f*** with your systems administrator. Why? Because they know what you do with all that free time!

Wishing you a grand and glorious day’.

———————————————————————————————————————

If taken seriously, this can be an eye opener for any manager who needs to realise that as a Manager they are expected to manage resources like time, money, etc & “Lead People”; not vice-versa. Be it any field, if you don’t treat people with a certain amount of respect and dignity, they will never in return give you the performance that you would expect from them.

Let them know that you worried and concerned about their career, dig out opportunities to give them that they are motivated to perform for you, it will make you realise that its “YOU” in turn that will always go a long way.

When people under you decide to leave, they are not leaving the organisation in fact in turn they are leaving you. Being a “Mentor“ and “Selfless” is a far better and a challenging aspect within the role of any Manager. Managing people is never an easy task, but if we change our perspective that we are managing people who have emotions and are real human beings, we can be by far better human beings ourselves.

Story Time Folks,

Once upon a time there was a girl who had four boyfriends.

She loved the fourth boyfriend the most and adorned him with rich robes and treated him to the finest of delicacies. She gave him nothing but the best.

She also loved the third boyfriend very much and was always showing him off to neighboring kingdoms. However, she feared that one day he would leave her for another.

She also loved her second boyfriend. He was her confidant and was always kind, considerate and patient with her. Whenever this girl faced a problem, she could confide in him, and he would help her get through the difficult times.

The girl’s first boyfriend was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining her wealth and kingdom. However, she did not love the first boyfriend. Although he loved her deeply, she hardly took notice of him!

One day, the girl fell ill and she knew her time was short. She thought of her luxurious life and wondered, I now have four boyfriends with me, but when I die, I’ll be all alone.

Thus, she asked the fourth boyfriend, “I loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now, that I’m dying, will you follow me and keep me company?”

“No way!” replied the fourth boyfriend and he walked away without another word. His answer cut like a sharp knife right into her heart.

The sad girl then asked the third boyfriend, “I loved you all my life. Now that I’m dying, will you follow me and keep me company?”   

“No!” replied the third boyfriend. “Life is too good! When you die, I’m going to marry someone else!” Her heart sank and turned cold.

She then asked the second boyfriend, “I have always turned to you for help and you’ve always been there for me. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company”?

“I’m sorry, I can’t help you out this time!” replied the second boyfriend. “At the very most, I can only walk with you to your grave.” His answer struck her like a bolt of lightning, and the girl was devastated.

Then a voice called out: “I’ll go with you. I’ll follow you no matter where you go.”

The girl looked up, and there was her first boyfriend. He was very skinny as he suffered from malnutrition and neglect.

Greatly grieved, the girl said, “I should have taken much better care of you when I had the chance!”

In truth, we all have four boyfriends in our lives:

Our fourth boyfriend is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it will leave us when we die.

Our third boyfriend is our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, it will all go to others.

Our second boyfriend is our family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.

And our first boyfriend is our Spirit - which is often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world. It’s the spirit within us that often get let down and crushed. Its often we allow other people first to destroy this part of us which in turn should be strong enough to face any odds.

Our Spirit is the only thing that will follow us where ever we go. Cultivate, strengthen and cherish it now, for it is the only part of you that will continue with you throughout Eternity.

As promised in my previous blog “The Secret part - I” I started reviewing The Secret with a lot of curiosity. 

It starts with “Rhonda Byrne” giving a brief Introduction about how and when she came across the book. It describes some very hard times that she was facing, like her father’s death, her soured relationships with her work colleagues, her stress etc all in her life at the same time. Her daughter handed over this to her and she was very surprised to realize that the facts and the fundamentals of “The Secret” were already in existence and known. It dated back to the golden eras in history when Plato, Shakespeare, Newton, Lincoln, Emerson, Edison, Einstein had existed. 

She figured that as she had begun the journey she was caught on like a magnet. She realized that the fundamentals of Secret were working with her right at that time itself. When she discovered one teacher, it would automatically link her to the next, in a perfect chain. If she was on the wrong track, something else would catch her attention. If she accidentally pressed the wrong link on an internet search, she would be led to a vital piece of information. In a few short weeks she had traced “The Secret” back through the centuries, and she had discovered the modern-day practitioners of “The Secret”. 

She went on to embark on a mission to make a film. The most exciting part for her was that did not have a single teacher secured to film, but since she understood “The Secret” so well she flew from Australia to the United States where majority of the teachers were based. Seven weeks later The Secret team had filmed fifty-five of the greatest teachers across the United States, with over 120 hours of film. She just used “The Secret” to create the “The Secret”.

While still on her “Foreword” I was on the page reading the miracles of “The Secret” as a film had brought to the nation, it was really hard for me to believe. Rhonda speaks about people writing back to her about healing from chronic pain, depression, and disease; walking for the first time after an accident; even recovering from a deathbed; all by just using and putting in place with what the Secret is all about. If these fundamentals have such advantages then would we need medical science? I was amazed at her writing. It was passionate and it was confident. It was simple and easy to believe. I have read a lot of books, never a one, where it felt that the writer was talking to you so direct. It felt that she is sitting right across to the table and telling me all this. Her frequent words of using “You” and “You having the Power” emphasizes that we all have some thing within us that we haven’t explored yet.

Moving on, some lines in the book caught my eye as they were very strong, powerful and confident:  “There isn’t a single thing that you cannot do with this knowledge. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you are, The Secret can give you whatever you want.” How is this possible? How? Just How - were my questions?

Some of the other ones were: “You can have, do, or be anything you want”, “The Secret gives you anything you want: happiness, health, and wealth.”, “Many miracles take place in people’s lives. Financial miracles, miracles of physical healing, mental healing, healing of relationships.” Now, this increased my curiosity levels to such heights that I couldn’t take it anymore. I started spending more time with the book, reading and lapping it all at once.  

The Secret is based around a basic fundamental of “The Laws of Attraction”. It talks about having pre-dominant thoughts that you have in your mind that attracts what you want. The law of attraction doesn’t care whether you perceive something to be good or bad, or whether you want it or don’t want it. It’s responding to your thoughts. If it’s something bad on your mind, you will be attracting that and if it’s something good - that’s exactly what happens to you.
Examples from the book: If you say/think “I don’t want to spill something on this outfit”. The Laws of Attraction sees and reads it as “I want to spill something on this outfit and I want to spill more things.”
If you say/think “I don’t want to be delayed.” The Laws of Attraction sees and reads it as “I want delays.” 

The law of attraction will always give us what we are thinking about - period! The law of attraction doesn’t compute “don’t” or “not” or “no,” or any other words of negation. Laws of attraction work through thoughts & thoughts are magnetic which have a frequency. As we think, those thoughts are sent out into the Universe, and they magnetically attract all like things that are on the same frequency. Everything sent out returns to the source. And that source is “You”. Seems like a perfect Astronomy or Science lecture doesn’t it? Well, it’s truly a part of it as well. Our thoughts are seeds, and the harvest we reap will depend on the seeds we plant. 

The book goes on to talk about various examples of people whose life has transformed just because they have changed their thoughts and thinking. Another question that crossed my mind as I was reading was: If this was so powerful then how come people haven’t been able to get out of natural calamities or some that have gotten into accidents? Believe it or not, just within the next few pages, I found my answers. By the law of attraction, they had to be on the same frequency as the event. It doesn’t necessarily mean they thought of that exact event, but the frequency of their thoughts matched the frequency of the event.

If people believe they can be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and they have no control over outside circumstances, those thoughts of fear, separation, and powerlessness, if persistent, can attract them to being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The book goes on to preach some very strong sayings from the preachers of the Secret who have been practicing secret all these years. One strong line that really caught my attention was “when people become frightened of all the negative thoughts that they have. They need to be aware that it has been scientifically proven that an affirmative thought is hundreds of times more powerful than a negative thought. That eliminates a degree of worry right there”

Now, wasn’t this something that we all knew about right from the beginning? Wasn’t this something our parents, teachers, mentors would have told this right from our childhood? Do we really have control over our thoughts and is it that simple? - were again some of the questions running through my mind. The next couple of pages I found my answers again. I so could see myself nodding in agreement when it spoke about the connections between “Thoughts & Feelings”. This somehow turned out to be my favorite chapter as I could so relate to this topic. We all have good and bad feelings. It’s our thoughts that determine our frequency, and our feelings tell us immediately what frequency we are on. When we are feeling bad, we are on the frequency of drawing more bad things. As we feel bad, and if we don’t make any effort to change our thoughts to feel better, we are in effect saying, “Bring me more circumstances that will make me feel bad.” This chapter detailed on feelings and thoughts to a great length but the real basic was that the days we feel good, let’s seize those opportunities and attract good thoughts so that the good comes to us.

Where the negativity persists, the book goes on to talk about how we can change those negative thoughts into positive one and more so importantly the power of love which was a good read. “The Secret” is no doubt a truly inspiring and very positive book written in a very simple language. The real essence of the book can be best captured by those who believe in trying what it preaches. And even if you are one of those who believe that all that the book talks about cannot work or will not work for you - then firstly, you have already allowed the factor of doubt to overtake something that you haven’t even tried and second how would you know that it doesn’t work when you haven’t even started to practice just as a try to see if its beneficial for you. None of us will lose out on anything by just giving it our first and sincere shot at just being positive by trying and controlling our thoughts to allow the Laws of Attraction to work on us. Like the book mentions, let’s not reject the Law just because we don’t understand it. There is not going to be any loss if we try to practice it to see if it really changes anything for us. 

I admired Rhonda’s writing of making her readers use this book like an Aladdin’s Lamp where you just had three wishes. Through her writing I could understand why my best friends got so latched on to the book. I could see why they felt so empowered and why they were after me to read it.

She seemingly is giving her readers the power to make everything come true that everyone wishes for or would wish for. I must add that this book is not to be read just once and forgotten about it. It’s a book that needs multiple readings by everyone, for its fundamentals are such that most of us would tend to forget with time and stop practicing.

I recommend the book to anyone who needs some vibrant thoughts to drain that negativity of their mind. For those who think, that they don’t have any negative thoughts - this book is still a must read as you never know it may just help you say Amen to something that you may have wanted all along. Happy Reading!