How Apple beat Lenovo and Samsung- at least in our house

The kids watch Berenstain Bears regularly. We let them watch it because it teaches them the importance of cleaning up, listening to their parents, behaving etc.

Now the fact that they don't listen to us when we say "stop watching" or "go cleanup and stop watching" or simply say things like "I am going to punch you in the head if you pause it" (that from a five year old girl to her daddy) suggest that the benefits of watching these episodes may be overrated. Nevertheless, there is silence in the house when we need it and so they are allowed to watch!

They used to record it on the DVR when we were with Direct TV and watch it on the big wall mounted TV..

Then we switched to Dish and that channel is no longer available to us on our NEW plan. So the kids started watching "youtube" indefinite reruns on the laptop.

Now they have switched over to the iPad having figured out that youtube is available on the iPad!

We just got an iPad and lost it to the kids. All other options in front of them in bigger and better sizes are moot. I never get to use the iPad now when they are awake.

In other news blogging has taken a serious nose dive because of work, work, and more work. It feels like all the planets, sun and moon have aligned themselves into one straight line which points directly to my rear end.

Add to that, our old TV channels are all gone. Vijay TV apparently had a fall out with Direct TV and decided to pull out and that meant, we had to scram for an alternate Satellite provider with Tamil channels and ended up going through a roller coaster cable switch from Direct to ATT to Dish in a span of two weeks!

On the bright side, we have Netflix online now, thanks to the iPad and watch free movies in bed. We seem to be watching the first 15-20 minutes of many free movies and switch to another movie. What they need is a like a 30 minute fast edited version of most movies with only the highlights. Something like a "Thirai Malar" featuring Jackie Chan, Tom Cruise Harrison Ford and Clint Eastwood. That, would truly make my day!

The kids are keeping us busy and though there isn't much time to go out anywhere and enjoy the sun, there is the odd photo session every time the kids take a shower or wear anything pretty..

The hope is that February will give us more personal time. This level of intensity with two people working 16-18 hour days and taking all weekend to just catch some sleep so we can go do this all over again for another five days is not going to work for the kids.

San wants to start buying lottery tickets soon and I am this close to seconding that thought. Have not been a lottery ticket kind of guy, but why not?

Next weekend no matter how good or bad the weather is, we have decided to go on a short drive to someplace, take some photos and just get back to having some fun.

If we don't the little one might just "punch me in the head"!

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Emotions

Have been watching and listening to old vintage music videos recently, thanks to some tube-hopping? on Youtube!

While listening to some DD documentary on GNB, Balamurali Krishna mentioned Salaamat Ali and that took me to this..

part 2 is here..

Thanks to the person who uploaded this. The music is just divine and his "lecture demonstration" in the first video just speaks volume of his mastery over subject matter.

Have seen Salamat Ali perform on Doordarshan when in school and remember it. Never knew there were videos of him performing when he was this young.

Listening to this in the dark with headphones on, simultaneously brings a range of emotions up.. butterflies in my stomach, an intense urge to just go hug that guy and cry, memories of things long lost, questions like "why did you leave me?".. even without necessarily understanding the words or their meanings.

There is so much love and longing in the way he sings it!

If only DD and All India Radio took their old archives and put them on youtube.. that will be heaven!

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