There was the Amazon Developer Conference last 2 days (Jan 16th and 17th ‘ 2008) – it’s yearly event… Among others was Tim O’Reilly presenting “The O’Reilly Radar” – basically talking about the new things in the internet/tech space!!!
I hope to write more about it and the other talks… but before that I have to tell you about this idea that I loved a lot: www.weatherbill.com
This thing startled me… It’s like an insurance on weather… on top of that… you can bet on the weather and if you win they pay you!!!
Go to the site and try the quoting thing. You put a condition (like I am saying it’s going to snow above 5 inches each day between 1/27 and 1/29 at Zip Code 07310 – if that happens you pay me $10 a day!!!)
Now it takes your details and uses its own weather predicting algorithm (at the minimum I would assume it to be very very complicated) and gives you a quote – you buy that quote and if it really snows above 5 inches each day in that period you get paid)… I am sure you got the analogy – it’s like an Option – but on weather!!!
That and much more – go to the site and read blogs about it!!!
BTW: Started by an ex-google guy…
More to come – watch this space…
Imagine living in an apartment full of strangers and not-so-friendly-doormen (add strict apartment regulations).
Now imagine you live alone (or maybe your roomie is away – unreachable for all practical purpose).
Next, imagine you never thought or felt it’s important to have a backup of your keys. Yeah now you know where I am going…
But, no, you didn’t drop it somewhere (that will be a real nightmare – and probably you won’t be in a position or mood to write a blog about it shortly afterwards) – you, being the big absent-minded buffoon you are, left it inside the apartment and locked the door. Huh… there you go…
Of course I can never do something like that. But it’s possible for anybody. And so, even though I never experienced the very same thing – let alone THREE times in the last ONE year, I still gained enough wisdom to educate the naive world about the problems that this comes with. If you read on, you will even find a grand solution to this problem.
I could rant on and on about the possible unfortunate situations you might be in. Let’s just name a few random ones, just for your sake:
1. You parents/sister might be temporarily visiting you. All their stuff could be inside the house. It might be 11 PM. It might even be the night before the grand long-awaited morning on which you take them for a vacation to Florida – the flight being at 5 AM. God save your parents/sister…
2. You might be too boozed to even walk properly (and that usually does not happen before around 2 AM – if you are like me). God save you…
3. The apartment rules say that you have to pay $100 for every unlock!!! Again, God save you man…
4. The doorman could be a real ***|hole – saying the guy who unlocks the room is unavailable till next morning (and you already read points 2 & 3 above right?). God save the doorman!!!
Anyway, I can think of at least another 1000 ***|*ed-up situations like this. But I never waste time. You can keep thinking though…
Of course, a man like me will never be caught in any of these situations… Because I have the perfect solution (rather a prevention) for this – my TWICKs!!!
And the best news – I am going to share that with you. Of course you will say (after reading) that you thought of this a long time ago – you already knew about it!!! What crap! Even I can say that – No one told me about this (not a guy named Rajesh Ramanathan anyway) – I thought of this solution myself.
But the real truth is, I really thought of this myself – and you just read it in my blog. However, I am generous enough not to apply for a US Patent for this method. So you can boast whatever you want.
Anyway, enough and more digressing. Let’s come back to the solution: You just need a simple formula to remind you before you get out of your house.
For those of you mathematically gifted, think of 5 (it could be less or for you. It’s 5 for me. As it is, for some very basic concepts – The 5 elements, The 5 sacred Sikh symbols, the 5 basics pillars of Islam, Maroon 5, The 5 oceans, The Pentium!!! Whatever, I am digressing again – 5 is for me).
For the rest of you, think “TWICK” (again it could be something else for you. And I could ramble on about very basic concepts evolving around “TWICK” – but the word does it for me).
Before leaving the room, I always count 5 things, the “TWICK”s. If the count or letters are missing – something’s missing. Very very simple.
What the hell is TWICK – Timepiece, Wallet, iPod, Cell and Keys (in no particular order)…
Now that you have read it all – go integrate this into your life.
Feel like killing me ? First do that to the doorman who did this to me!!!
I had written my first blog almost a year ago – August’06. I did have the pleasure of one person reading it too (thank Anurag!). And like most other things (people too :–)) I did manage to loose it somewhere (the internet is getting too big I guess). Don’t laugh – I manage to do that often (especially with people, again).
Now that I am about to start off a (yet another?) new life, I am pledging to myself that I will do it better this time!!! So here goes the first one…
Anyway, I somehow dug it up and hence you can yourself immensely fortunate to read it once again (I wish I could do that with people, again!!! Ok I’ll shut up now)…
Here you go:
My first blog is going to be about an unforgettable experience: The Kite Runner.
I am not an avid reader but I do read books & frequently get immersed in the characters…
Well I got this book just for a train journey… a journey from Bangalore to Chennai, lasts usually 6 hours… I was going for my VISA interview had this as a gift for Lavanya… her birthday had just passed…
I was told to read my petition papers & prepare for the interview… but a few moments with Amir & Hassan wrecked all that… and gave me one of the most moving books I have read… Call me a cry-baby or whatever, but I was (almost, this word added just to save my skin) moved to tears in the train… people were giving me such looks… as if they thought someone died…
I’m not going to (and I sincerely do not have the literary capability to) try to explain the book here… only advise: if you really want to know how hard life can be and how, after facing so much, you still can win, read this one…