Neha
We all want to learn.
We all want to achieve.
We all want to succeed.
We need to help those who can’t on their own.
Standing at a traffic light, several children approach us begging for alms. We shoo them away.

So many of us have maids and servants whose children are working for extra income in the family.

We all visit roadside dhabas and small restaurants for food and drinks and promptly call out to the small boy serving!

And we all say we wished that every child in our country received education, but such things remain in our talks only.

All of us think and feel the need to do our bit towards the society, and never know from where to begin. 24 hours a day are never enough and weekends are always too short. Yet, not always do we have to share our time as there are ways through which we can reach out to those who really need us.

But before we sit and curse the lack of time and energy for things we want to do, but cannot do; let's visit Vidya and Child. I urge you all to click here once and see for yourself what a big difference a small initiative can make. I agree we cannot change the world, but we can bring a difference to a small part of the world around us.

My cousin has been associated with Vidya and Child for over ten years now. I have visited a couple of their school functions and the calibre and capabilities of the children have always amazed me. Greeted with a cheerful 'Namaste', they go on to exhibit their talent so confidently!

Come forward to do your bit for those children who have every right to education, every right to fulfill their dreams, but lack resources.

Please support by clicking on the link below: http://www.giveindia.org/give/pledgepage/VidyaandChild01

This festive season, let's spread cheer & happiness in the lives of underprivileged children by giving them what they rightfully deserve – education. Let's support this institution, which is selflessly working towards the betterment of our society. Currently, Vidya & Child reaches out to over 800 children.

Come forward to gift a lifetime of joy to those little ones who have lost their smiles amidst poverty and illiteracy. For if we can't do the little bit that's within our means, we lose the right to shun the beggar boy asking him to go to a school the next time he taps on our car window.

I'm counting on those near and dear to me to help Vidya and Child achieve its dreams. Remember, every donation helps and no donation is too small. Is it too much I am asking of you blogdosts?

You can maximize your impact as Vidya & Child stands a chance to win a matching grant from GiveIndia to the tune of Rs 12 Lacs.

You will get 80G receipt via email soon after your transaction for tax deduction purposes (For donations coming in from bank accounts in India).

Five minutes of your precious time could be life changing for a child in need. So go for it and make a difference. Thank you in advance for your support, blogdosts! Let's spread more smiles this festival, bringing more lights in the lives of many!

Neha
A full-on weekend! Yes, that's what it was like this last Saturday and Sunday. A big trait of a Virgo woman is the meticulous planning she puts into every event, even a weekend! I decided to let go off it this time. A less-planned-more-impromptu trip to a friend's place had me all replenished to look forward to the coming week.

You know what happens when two friends meet after a long time. So much to talk about and you guessed it right, so much gossip!!! The subject may vary, but the core remains just that. So while, we women are obsessed with clothes and shoes and chocolates, we are equally obsessed with 'gossip'!

No wonder then that Sneha and I talked away the whole Saturday night. We talked about cooking, friends, family, shopping....the list can go on and on. Even the delicious chhole-bhature, which she cooked for dinner and which I overate could not let slumber fall on us while we pursued (over?) our bestest hobby - gossip!!! Poor soul had to go for an early morning lecture on Sunday and could barely get some sleep, while I slept through till noon!

Sunday was a bit planned though. And the planning was for lunch only. A big, healthy and delicious South Indian meal at the famous Laxmi's in Noida. I skipped breakfast to be able to enjoy each course. And it sure was heavenly!

I started gorging with this awesome dahi badas (lentil dumplings in curd)! Don't these look so appetizing!

The main course consisted of a Rawa Masala Dosa (pancake made of rice and black lentils stuffed with spicy mashed potatoes) and butter milk!


And then the best part - South Indian filtered coffee!

Don't these just look amazing. Of course, I could not have anything after all this the entire day! But it was worth every bite and spoon and sip!

Have a good week ahead, blogdosts! take care and stay precious :)

Neha
You all hate me, I know. And you have every reason to. After all, I have ignored this space for so long now. And these once-in-a-blue-moon posts with useless information will never suffice. Hang on, blogdosts, I am trying my best to get...uhhh spring back!

Bear with me just some more time....

Here's your next dose of Fundoo Fridays...
  • Dr. Samuel A. Mudd treated the leg of Abraham Lincoln’s assassin, John Wilkes Booth. His actions produced the expression "his name is Mudd," signifying utter disgrace.
  • With U.S. trademark No. 2,347,676, the sad emoticon ":-(" gets the same protection as a corporate logo or any similar intellectual property. Although seen on millions of e-mails, the mark is now officially owned by Despair- a "de-motivational" company that sells humorous posters about futility, failure, and depression to "pessimists, losers, and underachievers!
  • Boxing was the first sport to be filmed. Thomas A. Edison filmed a boxing match between Jack Cushing and Mike Leonard in 1894.
  • Basketball is a famous American sport invented by a Canadian who was working at a YMCA in the U.S.
  • According to manufacturer Spalding, the average life span of an NBA basketball is 10,000 bounces.
  • Although only 9 inches tall, an adult roadrunner can keep pace with a human sprinter.
  • A kangaroo mother holds a reserve embryo inside of her after her first baby has crawled into her pouch.This serves as an emergency back-up baby, should the first one die prematurely.
  • In 1982, young Sarah Michelle Gellar acted in the first commercial ever to mention a competitor by name. For Burger King, she claimed that the burgers of Burger King’s competitor were "smaller." McDonald’s sued her as well as Burger King. In the same commercial she claimed, "I only eat at Burger King." After that, Gellar couldn't eat at a McDonald’s unless she was in disguise.
  • Koalas and humans are the only animals with unique fingerprints. Koala prints cannot be distinguished from human fingerprints. Luckily, few koalas pursue a life of crime.
  • The footprints left by the Apollo astronauts will not erode since there is no wind or water on the Moon. They should last at least 10 million years.
  • Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney sang under the alias Apollo C. Vermouth.

Happy weekend, blogdosts!

Neha
It's almost a month since I wrote something and even now, I don't seem to have anything to write! Yet, to ignore this space for too long lurks on my conscience. So, I thought I'll share some more of the 'Useless Knowledge' updates I get :). And add it as a regular feature to my blog...under Fundoo Fridays!!! What say, blogdosts? Liked the idea?

The concept of this would be to post anything which qualifies the following parameters:
  • The post could be of pictures, words etc.
  • The content should not overwhelm the reader in any way.
  • It should prepare or gear them up for the upcoming weekend.
  • Humor will work best.

So here goes my first update on 'Fundoo Fridays'. Would love to see you taking this up too!

  • Bears can easily overtake even the fastest Olympic sprinter.
  • Ben Franklin wanted the turkey, not the eagle, to be the U.S. national symbol. He considered the eagle a "bird of bad moral character" because it lives "by sharping and robbing."
  • Australian scientists have identified some species of baby spiders that bite off the limbs of their mothers and slowly dine on them over a period of weeks. Researchers hypothesize that this maternal sacrifice keeps the young from eating one another.
  • The human tongue registers bitter tastes 10,000 times more strongly than sweet tastes. And that’s the bitter truth!
  • A cat’s jaw can’t move sideways.
  • Albert Einstein never learned how to drive a car.
  • On the psychology front, while you may know that agoraphobia is the fear of leaving home, so does everyone else. Replace that Useful Knowledge with a phobia that’s far more common - the fear of returning home, No, it’s not called homophobia; it’s called nostophobia. Lots of authors suffer from nostophobia, especially the fear of returning home and having to write a book chapter before their publisher asks for the advance back.
  • A kangaroo cannot jump if its tail is lifted off the ground. It needs its tail for pushing off.
  • Gatorade got its name from the Gators, the University of Florida football team who were the first to test it.
  • Beethoven poured cold water over his head when he sat down to compose music, believing that it stimulated his brain’s creative process.
  • Not that he was immature, but Napoleon concocted his battle strategies in a sandbox.

So much for this Friday. Take care, blogdosts! Have a great weekend!