Premature birth is the leading cause of newborn death in the first month of life. It affects 1,305 babies a day in the United States. Those who survive may have lifelong health problems. And premature births are on the rise – up to 27% since 1981.

My daughter as well as I were born prematurely. Thankfully, both of us are doing well but, there are many who are not so fortunate.

I am hoping that you’ll support me in March of Dimes WalkAmerica. Premature birth can happen to any pregnant woman and in nearly half the cases, the causes are unknown. The March of Dimes is supporting research into the causes of premature birth. I’m joining the walk in Ann Arbor, MI on May 1st, and so can you!

Your support helps fund: -Research into stress and other factors that may trigger preterm labor. -Programs to educate pregnant women to recognize the warning signs of preterm labor. -Tools to help health care providers find better ways to detect women who may be at risk for preterm labor.

Please visit my webpage and sponsor me in the Walk that saves babies!

If you wish to participate in the walk visit Walk America website and find a walk in your area.

Thanks!

Over the weekend, we received another healthy dose of snow (about 8 inches). It was cloudy, foggy and snowing all the on and off on Sunday.



A perfect day to stay at home and do nothing. I took a nice 2 hour nap with Ashwini.

In the evening, the girls got bored and decided to make my most favorite Oatmeal-Raisin cookies.
They looked like this before going into the oven.



Tasted even better after coming out of the oven. Wouldn’t they, after all the hard work put in by her?








I recently bought a Nikon 50mm, f/1.8 lens for my D70. The shallow depth of field in the cookies photo is from the f/1.8 setting on the lens. The lens is so bright. I like that very much given my dislike for flash.

After seeing everyone’s collage, I had to put mine up too.

~parag~

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I had earlier posted about a show called ‘This American Life’ on NPR. I continue to like it more and more everytime I hear it.

Check out this show that was originally broadcast in Dec. 2003.

The first part is about the destruction of island nation of Naureau. It is quite a sad but interesting story.

If you ever have had a problem with MCI over-charging you and then, screwing you with refunds, you’ll understand the second story of the broadcast. These bastards still owe me more than $200. I hope Bernie Ebbers burns in hell.

It was a beautiful Saturday morning. If we could bottle it and sell it, we could become billionaires in a jiffy. A typical crisp and clear February winter day. About 30 degrees and not a cloud in sight. Such a diagonally opposite day compared to last weekend.

We took the opportunity to enjoy some fun-time in the snow. Ashwini plays in the snow everyday at her daycare but, we don’t get to get out in the snow. We bundled ourselves up, pulled out Ashwini’s sled and were excited to make some tracks in untouched snow.

It is so much fun to get pulled around in a sled. I should talk someone into doing this to me.

The snow wasn’t too deep and it was fun to walk around in the snow too.

Resting on a rock for a few minutes before getting more action.

Before returning inside, Ashwini helped her Aai make a snow angel.

After hearing praises from some unreliable sources, I decided to ignore my dear friend Vinayak’s admonitions about ‘Dhoom’. Within first 10 minutes, I knew that I had made a mistake. All this movie had was meaningless story with mindless stunts and action.

Children of bollywood stars shouldn’t get into acting just because their parents did. Abhishek Bachchan acts like a mannequin. Esha Deol definitely got the wrong sets of genes from her parents. It is quite sad for her that her mother looks more beautiful than her.

People who get into movies just because of connections are even worse. This Chopra chap who played Ali, is in the movies just because he is Yash Chopra’s son or nephew or something like that. My butt looks prettier than his face. Yes, I did go in the bathroom and checked in the mirror before writing this.

 The only redeeming qualities of the movie is its short length and the title song ‘Dhoom’. Stay away from Dhoom if you haven’t already suffered through it.

Sick of all the stupid, meaningless, commercialised, syrupy, slushy, gushy-mushy Valentine’s day crap? Send an anti-valentine to someone for a change.

Bob Dylan’s ‘It Ain’t me, Babe’ is probably the best response if you wish to reject someone’s ‘Be Mine’ request.

Go ‘way from my window, Leave at your own chosen speed. I’m not the one you want, babe, I’m not the one you need. You say you’re lookin’ for someone Never weak but always strong, To protect you an' defend you Whether you are right or wrong, Someone to open each and every door, But it ain’t me, babe, No, no, no, it ain’t me, babe, It ain’t me you’re lookin' for, babe.

Go melt back into the night, babe, Everything inside is made of stone. There’s nothing in here moving An' anyway I’m not alone. You say you’re looking for someone Who’ll pick you up each time you fall, To gather flowers constantly An' to come each time you call, A lover for your life an' nothing more, But it ain’t me, babe, No, no, no, it ain’t me, babe, It ain’t me you’re lookin' for, babe.

is probably the best response if you wish to reject someone’s ‘Be Mine’ request.

What is so offensive about seeing someone’s underwear? Don’t these idiotic legislators have anything better to do? Did the Taliban start out with making ridiculous laws like this in their early days? What’s next: ban skirts that don’t come down to knees?

I hope they amend the law to make it applicable only to men.

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginians who wear their pants so low their underwear shows may want to think about investing in a stronger belt.

The state’s House of Delegates passed a bill Tuesday authorizing a $50 fine for anyone who displays his or her underpants in a “lewd or indecent manner.” Delegate Lionell Spruill, a Democrat who opposed the bill, pleaded with his colleagues to remember their own youthful fashion follies.

During an extended monologue Monday, he talked about how they dressed or wore their hair in their teens. On Tuesday, he said the measure is an unconstitutional attack on young blacks that would force parents to take off work to accompany their children to court just for making a fashion statement.

“This is a foolish bill, Mr. Speaker, because it will hurt so many,” Spruill said before the measure was approved by a vote of 60-34. It now goes to the state Senate.

The bill’s sponsor, Delegate Algie Howell, has said constituents were offended by the exposed underwear. He did not speak on the floor Tuesday.

It is interesting to see how goal setting and performance evaluation policies are changed by HR.

From this year, goals should be written at a very high level; not too much detail. There is no such thing as a stretch goal. Every goal must be a stretch goal. One will not be penalised for not reaching the goal as long as there is documented proof of trying really hard.

So, it is possible for a person to not successfully complete even a single goal through the year but,  exceed expectations while doing that.

Huuh!!!

Some people have names that just sound so great. This NPR reporter is one of them. When she signs off at the end of the report, it is worth listening to. Whenever I hear her reporting, I stay in the car even after reaching my destination to hear her sign off at the end. Check out this report that appeared yesterday. If you don’t want to listen to the whole thing, just forward to about 3min 40sec. and have a listen to her say her own name. It is a treat, at least to my ears.

…. Aishwarya Rai on the Late Show with David Letterman tonight at 1130 pm ET.

Saturday was an extremely foggy day. Not just the morning but the whole day. Couldn’t see anything that was farther than 50 feet.

All the moisture condensed on branches of trees and formed crystals. It looked like all the trees grew white hair.

We were in India last month and missed posting her monthly progress report. Here is Ashwini’s current progress report.

• I can't walk while Ashwini runs and keep up with her pace anymore. The only problem is that she knows the accelerator but doesn't know where the brake is. Many times, she ends up on the floor or on the wall while turning a corner.
• As it is seen in the photo, most of her milk teeth have come in.
• 'Terrible twos' are here to stay and are going in full swing. As a baby, she hardly ever cried and we were used to the happy, smiley Ashwini. But, that has changed lately. She has become very stubborn and knows how to use her crying to get things done her way (it works with me, if not with her aai). It seemed like she cried more during last month or so than rest of her life combined. She has gotten very good at using the word 'nako' (means no) for everything.
• Her English and Marathi vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds. She confused her kaka by asking 'kaay aahe te?' (what is that?) in marathi and he kept scratching his head in search of english words that fit those sounds.
• Many times, even V and I get stumped with something that she says. She keeps repeating it till we get it. The joy on her face when we understand her words is just immeasurable.
• Her memory is developing more and more. She keeps remembering things and people from our India trip. Sometimes, she surprises us by mentioning smallest little details.
• She is good at making up things too. After coming back she still sees crows and parrots outside and when asked to point them out, she sticks her finger out in any general direction and goes 'right there'.
• She is learning more and more songs and memorizing more and more books. Her love for books is still unchanged.
• Another activity she likes very much is drawing. She always wants to draw Moon, stars and Saturn. And she properly recognizes Saturn. Wonder where that came from... ;).
• Ashwini is able to express her thoughts in words without us asking anything. I was very proud when she just stopped while playing with balls, turned to V and said "Aai, I like cheese."
• Her problem with opposites is going away. She is very assertive with her yes's and no's. Now she knows 'upstairs' and 'downstairs' along with just up and down. She still gets a little confused with the names of colors but, she picks out objects of the same color.
• Her counting skills need a little improvement. She goes one, two, six, nine, ten, four.... something like that.
• Ashwini is starting to pick out clothes/shoes that she wants to wear. She is very particular about her hair. Always wants to check in the mirror when we tie her hair to make sure it is properly done. Here is she in a ponytail in stead of usual pigtails.

The Qutub Minar in Delhi is the tallest freestanding stone tower in the world (approx. 250 feet).

After coming back from India, I am missing my parents and friends and then, all the good food. A close third behind that is all the great remix videos that are aired on MTV and channel V. I can’t say that the music is better than the original renditions; in most cases it is horrible. But, the videos are fabulous. While watching some of them, your ears don’t even hear any music. All these good-looking young girls showing off dance steps that may even shame Britney Spears and her friends. These videos are so much better than watching the likes of Asha Parekh, Waheeda Rahman etc. with their bird-nest hairstyles and atrocious makeup and dresses (not to mention their fat behinds). I was just addicted to them. I used to turn on MTV/channelV with my first cup of tea in the morning.

One of my most favorite songs was “Rangeela Re vs. Ho Ja Rangeela Re” by Babydoll. I was trying to find the name of the girl in that video. Finally, found her after googling a little bit. Her name is Deepal Shah (or Shaw).

I am sure all these remixes is just a fad and people will forget them pretty soon. Hopefully, they will keep making similar videos for new Indipop songs. :)

People that keep their home thermostats set at 75-80F. All that dry heat is so bad for health. It dries up your eyes, skin and breathing passages causing nose bleeds and scratchy throat. Any setting above 68F makes me very uncomfortable. When it is winter-time, people should dress appropraitely for it and not prance around in shorts and T-shirts with thermostat set so high.

We used to have this fight at home; me bringing the thermostat setting down and V increasing it. But, now with Ashwini, who is like me in terms of temperature preferance (and in many other ways), we have a majority. :)

Come here…. sit (on) balls…. play balls