#like i am so greatful that my mody is mody 2 and can finally be controlled through diet (which well can get a little rough when i forget to

[the-sun-shining-on-thorki]

Warning: Mpreg

This is the whole story. Thank you for all the lovely support. Special thanks to @thorkified and @missleeismyname for their lovely tags in the previous chapters. 

Chapter 1

Between contractions and pain, lots of pain, Loki can hear the midwives muttering among themselves. He must have lost a lot of blood by that point, for their expressions are solemn whenever they check between his legs.

Loki has no time for their meddlings though, his body is telling him to push, and the impulse is hard to resist. Several pushes and an animalistic howl are all it takes to drive the creature out of his body, the shock to his body so great that Loki feels his surrounding becoming a blur. Loki wishes to summon his magic and heal himself, but his father has stripped him of the right to access his powers. As he lies there, with his legs still spread wide open and his blood staining the bedsheets, he hears a weak wail…

He surely does not inherit his father’s pair of lungs, the young prince thinks to himself before falling into unconsciousness.

When he wakes up, Loki instinctively looks to his side for his child but is disappointed to find Odin standing next to his bed, the baby not in sight. Loki feels terribly sore, and his throat still hurts from hours of cursing and dehydration. A day of sleep does not make him stronger, and he finds his strength lacking when he tries to sit up. He must have looked a mess in front of his father, or rather, adoptive father. Loki was only informed of his real heritage when he was found with child, and Asgardian men do not bear children. One night of revelation was all it took for his world to collapse; Loki found he is never considered as a potential king, he is not an Odinson and not even Asgardian, his belly carried the child of a man who was never his brother.

“Father,” he nods to the silent king. He had pleaded Odin, pledging his loyalty and when the method ceased to work, he spat out words like daggers as he accused his once-father of deception and cruelty. Nothing had changed the Allfather’s decision, and all that remains is just indifference between them.

“The babe is born dead,” Odin states, looking into the eyes of his estranged son, “The midwives gave it a proper burial. It is all for the best, you can return back to Court once you have recovered.”

Liar! Loki wants to scream, he had heard his infant’s cries before he submitted to exhaustion.

“Why couldn’t you at least let me have a glimpse of him before taking him away? Am I not good enough to bide farewell to your grandson?” He ought to question Odin in rage, but he is too tired at that point and sick of his own powerlessness. He asks plainly and expects an answer to the agony in his heart. He had anticipated the birth as the months drew closer, hoping for the day when he could bring his child back to Asgard and show him to his sire. Odin obviously deems him unworthy of this wish, and Loki knows it is too late. In his silent rage, he does not notice Odin referring to his child as “it”.

Odin bows his head, avoiding Loki’s accusative gaze as he utters these words, “It is not formed properly and will only upset you. The midwives were driven to hysteria when faced with its…abnormality. A quick burial was necessary to free us from the mistake. We can look past this unfortunate incident to a better future, my son.”

While Odin is walking away from the little cottage, located on the outskirts of Asgard, he can still remotely hear his son’s wail, the tearing of bedsheets and the breaking of furniture. The healers will calm him, the Allfather knows. Loki will understand his infant is dead. The cause of its death is no longer important to his son, he could have crushed the child’s neck in his sleep, and there is nothing Loki can do about it.

His children had bedded each other and brought the scandal to life with a bastard child. Odin has to be sure that nothing, no one, will upset the hierarchy he has consolidated for hundreds of years. Thor has a reputation to uphold as the future sovereign, and siring a bastard with his adoptive brother will set it to flame.

Especially when the child looks so much like his sire, slumbering in his little cradle. Cared for by a gentlewoman in Vanaheim, the babe with a crown of golden hair gurgled in his sleep and made little kicks with his chubby legs.

Chapter 2

According to father, Modi’s mother has died at birth, and he has no plan of remarrying.

Modi is a happy child, the beloved prince of Asgard. He knows that he is loved since birth, spoiled by his father and pampered by his grandmother, Queen Frigga. Even his one-eyed grandfather, the Allfather, smiles softly in his presence. He spends his days wandering in the palace, sneaking into the kitchen for cakes and following courtiers around as they move from one meeting to another.

His favourite person, however, is his uncle.

Uncle Loki is not someone he often sees, as he spends a lot of his time travelling between the nine realms. However, when he is back in Asgard, Modi has the best of time. It seems that Modi is the only one his uncle regards as important and takes up the centre of his attention during each visit.

Uncle Loki smells of oak trees and neroli, his embrace cool but comforting. In his earliest memory, Modi can recollect his uncle holding him as they picked flowers and fruit in the royal garden. Other adults usually tower over him, but the raven-haired man always makes sure to kneel down to his level as he speaks to him. The man brings Modi trinkets and gifts from his travels, narrating endless tales that leave the child excited for days. The visions he shows Modi, created by his powerful sorcery, are the most impressive things Modi has ever beheld. And unlike most adults, the God of Mischief tolerates his list of questions and knows the ways to sate his curiosity: He knows where the maids put the sweets jar and even told Modi the best hiding spot in the palace.

As Modi grows older, however, he can sense that their interaction is not welcomed. The Allfather frowns whenever Uncle Loki wants to speak to Modi and often finds ways to take the boy away from the room. Once or twice, Modi could see his uncle clenching his jaw and glaring at the one-eyed man when he thought Modi wasn’t looking.

One night, Modi secretly creeps into his uncle’s room, only to find him weeping in his father’s arms. When the blond god sees him, he shushes his uncle. Quickly wiping away the tears on his face, Uncle Loki immediately approaches Modi, embraces him and kisses him goodnight. 

The next day, Uncle Loki has departed Asgard in the early hours, and Modi did not even have a chance to say goodbye.

Chapter 3

The next time he sees the raven-haired god again is 50 years later. The Allfather fell into Odinsleep and Modi’s father, as a result, has ascended to the throne.

Modi jerks awake one early morning and gasps when he sees a silhouette sitting on his bed. A second later, the candles in the room are lit, and he beholds his uncle’s chiselled face.

“Uncle!” gasps Modi. It has been a long while, and he has so much to tell the man before him. He might be 550 years old, the equivalent to a child’s age in human standard, but he knows that the last few decades have brought him more knowledge and skills that he cannot wait to show the man. 

“Modi,” Loki smiles as he gently strokes his nephew’s face, “it has been a while.” 

Modi quickly crawls out from his covers as he moves closer to his uncle, his heart pounding with excitement. His mind is flooded with questions, but the main one is, “Why have you come to visit me at this hour, Uncle? You could have met me tomorrow morning at breakfast.”

Loki’s smile falters, but he quickly explains, “I want to take you somewhere, a secret mission. Your father and the others should not know, it is a surprise.”

Hours later, two cloaked figures quickly depart the palace. It isn’t difficult, after all, Loki knows how to shield himself from Heimdall’s eyes and his familiarity with the secret passages means Modi and he can escape without difficulty. 

The main question is, for how long? 

The trip has been eye-opening for Modi Thorson. For once, he is not shielded as a prince but allows to see the world outside the palace. He has finally experienced all the adventures Uncle Loki once told him about, the mystical creatures and the everchanging paths. They travel on, Modi holding onto his uncle’s hand as they make way to yet another strange land. During the day, they continue their travel and behold unseen sights. At night, his uncle always manages to find uninhabited caves nearby that are furnished for a good night’s sleep with his sorcery. The night’s coldness does not affect Modi much, as the slumbering boy is safely tugged into the arms of the raven-haired man. 

Time flies and soon the two reach the fifth month of their trip, and despite the excitement and discovery, the fatigue catches up with them. Modi falls ill one day, too weak to continue but his uncle insists on carrying the boy on his back as they continue their journey. The man seems persistent to keep moving, something that confuses Modi as he sees little reason to hurry. But days later, even Loki himself can no longer endure the hardship; Modi wakes up one morning and finds his uncle drenched in sweat and feverish in their little cave. 

They have no choice, they have to stay for another night. 

That evening, there is a storm raging as Modi huddles closer to his weak uncle. He is still a boy, after all, despite believing himself to be braver than one. The sound of thunder leaves the child shivering as he clings to Loki, who slowly runs his fingers through Modi’s golden hair. The two have developed a bond in the past few months, one that Modi hangs onto in such a stormy night. 

The newfound sense of security, however, is broken when the lightning strikes the ground outside the cave, bringing a strong vibration in the cave. When Modi opens his eyes again, he beholds the shape of a towering figure at the entrance.  

His uncle sees it too. 

Loki is frantic, throwing bolts of magic spells that proved to be futile to the man that approaches them. His illness must have weakened his invisibility spell, so Heimdall saw them and informed Thor of their location. Their escape has proven to be in vain. Drenched in the rain, Thor looks tired as he moves closer to his brother and child. 

When everything fails to work, Loki throws himself forward with a dagger in hand and shields Modi with his body. But his efforts are far too weak, almost pathetic in comparison to his brother whose stature casts large shadows in the cave. Modi sits frozen in the corner, like an actor who has forgotten his part. He knows his father has come for him, but he seems to be irrelevant in the confrontation unfolding before him.

The struggle before him ceases when the God of Mischief breaks down and weeps, holding onto the boy as he backs away from his brother, 

“I have no choice! Odin keeps everything for you when he is happy to take away everything from me! How dare he! How dare Odin keeps my child away from me? He would rather have our child be borne by a nameless wrench than his own son! The boy is mine! He has always been mine!” He howls as he clutches Modi closer to him, fearing that in a split second, the child will once again be taken away from him. 

It all makes sense now, why Modi has always felt close to his uncle, and why he chose to abandon his home to stay close to the man. Perhaps unconsciously, he has always known that Loki means more to him than he realises. The man crying before him might be the God of Lies, but Modi knows from his heart that what the man had said was no lie.

Clasped in Loki’s hold, Modi slowly lets his arms encircle his estranged parent, and he relaxes in the embrace. He turns around to meet his father’s gaze, with expectation in his eyes.  

Thor puts down Mjolnir, as he walks closer to the family he was forced to deny, “Brother, if only you had listened. I come here not to condemn you, but to take you home. Our father is now in Odinsleep, and I am now King. The time has come, Loki, for me to bring you back to the court. I can now show everyone the truth of Modi’s parentage.” 

Kneeling down before his lover and child, Thor kisses Loki’s shivering form, “You don’t have to hide in the shadows anymore, brother."

Embracing the two in his arms, Thor rests his forehead on them as he whispers, "Come home.” 

#thorki #thorki au #mpreg #loki #thor

[bigyack-com]

Priyanka Chopra shares beauty tips, makeup must-have, fashion choices and more in this exclusive interview - fashion and trends

The 15th edition of the Blenders Pride Fashion Tour rounded up after a larger-than-life finale, aptly titling it ‘The Pride of India’, in collaboration with FDCI. The fashion tour saw 15 eminent designers, namely, Abraham & Thakore, Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla, Anamika Khanna, Anju Modi, Ashish N Soni, Gaurav Gupta, JJ Valaya, Manish Malhotra, Monisha Jaising, Namrata Joshipura, Raghavendra Rathore, Rajesh Pratap Singh, Rohit Gandhi & Rahul Khanna and Suneet Varma. The prominent designer Wendell Rodricks was given a tribute at the fashion tour as well. The fashion tour’s brand ambassador Priyanka Chopra Jonas looked spectacular in a black dress as she walked the ramp at the starry affair.An artistic display of 82 iconic pieces made their way to The Collection Gallery at the four-city tour. Designers Alpana Neeraj, Akaaro by Gaurav Jai Gupta, Shantanu & Nikhil, Anavila Misra, Ikai by Ragini Ahuja, Kiran Uttam Ghosh, Shahab Durazi, Naushad Ali, Swati Kalsi, Payal Jain, Rahul Mishra, Pankaj & Nidhi and Dhruv Kapoor are some of the names who were showcased at the gallery.

We exclusively spoke with Priyanka Chopra Jonas ahead of the much-awaited grand finale of the Blenders Pride Fashion Tour in Mumbai about her fashion choices, beauty regimen, favourite sarees and more. Excerpts follow:1. How has your association experience with Blenders Pride Fashion Tour in the last 10 years?It’s been such an amazing association. When we set out on this journey together, the aim was always to support and promote the amazing talent we have in the Indian fashion industry. It’s so fulfilling to see the way the Blenders Pride Fashion Tour has grown over the years and the many talents it has showcased. I’m proud to work with this team who are so thoroughly professional and passionately committed to making this event bigger and better every year. I’ve seen their energy and enthusiasm first-hand to put this fabulous event together year-after-year.2. 5 steps in your beauty regimen that our readers can take inspiration from. - Take off make-up before going to bed- Have a daily moisturising routine for your skin – morning and night- Have lots of water- Less is more, when you wear make-up- Have confidence3. Your can’t-do-without make-up product and why?Mascara… because it opens and defines your eyes. It’s an instant pick-me-up.4. Do you believe in experimenting with your make-up? What’s your favourite kohl and lipstick shade?Of course! I love trying new colours and textures on my eyes and lips. It depends on what I am wearing and on my mood of the day. 5. Please throw some light on androgynous fashion that you’ve sported through blazer dresses, pantsuits, tuxedos and more in the last few years.I am super moody with my fashion and I love to play with different styles that go from effortless and low-key to super feminine girly pieces. I also really like to push the boundaries and explore fashion from all angles.6. We love your red carpet and street style - what do you prefer more? A gown, or a short dress for an outing? Street style - I’m a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl at heart. It also depends on the outing, but I love to show a little leg.7. From Desi Girl to Sky Is Pink promotions - which saree look was your personal favourite?That’s a tough one. I can’t pick one saree over the other because I absolutely love how I feel when I’m wearing a saree. It’s feminine, it’s elegant and it’s versatile. The drape, the fabric, it’s as traditional as it is modern.8. Could you tell us something about turning showstopper for the Grand Finale of Blenders Pride Fashion Tour 2020 - how was the experience?Being the showstopper for Blenders Pride Fashion Tour over the years has always been a great experience. This one is extra special because of my 10-year-long association with the brand. It was wonderful to see the best designers in the industry come together to showcase the Pride of India. It’s a milestone for all of us involved.Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter Read the full article

#1fashionbrand #1fashionschoolintheus #1fashionschoolintheworld #$1fashionjewelry #$8fashionoutlet #&0'sfashion #0degreefashion #0fashionsense #0limitfashion #0limitfashionwholesale #0wastefashion #1fashionclothing #1fashionclothingwholesale #1fashionglobal #1fashionstreet #1fashionstreetlondon #1fashionwaybaldwynms #2fashionhouse #2fashionshowlovenikki #2fashionstreet #3fashiondesigners #3fashioneyelashes #3fashioneyelashes3fauxcils #3fashiontheories #3fashiontrends #3fashiontrends2018 #3fashiontrends2019 #3fashiontrendsfromthe1960s #3fashiontrendsthisseason #3fashiontrendsthisseason2019

[tech-latest-blog]

The 'Aatma Nirbahr Bharat' campaign initiated by our honorable Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, many Indian applications are surfaced online, and getting millions of downloads just within a few days of launch. And participating in this campaign, India's leading telecom company, Reliance has released a video-conferencing app, an Indian alternative of Zoom, Google Meet, and other video-conferencing platforms.

After the successful launch of JioMeet, Reliance Jio launched another application, JioChat- which is said to be an Indian alternative of WhatsApp. So that's the topic of today's post, here we will discuss JioChat vs WhatsApp- Should you Replace?

Note- In this article, I have written my personal opinion. This post does not intend to hurt anyone's feeling toward any application

JioChat vs WhatsApp - Should You Replace?

JioChat is a primary messaging app from telecom giant Reliance. This was launched back in 2015 for the Jio mobile and sim cardholders, but after observing an immense increase in social-networking sites, due to ongoing COVID outbreak. Reliance Jio steps into social-networking and launched its JioChat for Android and iOS devices too. With the availability of JioChat for Android and iOS devices, it is said to be an Indian alternative of WhatsApp.

A few days back, Reliance digitals launched JioMeet which was almost a clone of Zoom, and now JioChat which looks like a carbon-copy of WhatsApp. Let's discuss JioChat vs WhatsApp and will cover all the similarities and differences between both messaging applications.

Also Read: Indian Govt. Banned 59 Chinese Apps; Here are Alternatives of All 59 Banned Chinese Apps

UI/UX

After installing and downloading the application, you will get a comparable setup or sign-up page as we get in WhatsApp. After setting up, JioChat's user interface is almost similar to WhatsApp, you get a camera, chats, stories, and calling icons placed at the same places as in WhatsApp. Settings and profile options are also placed at the same place, with almost similar icons. Moreover, adding or starting a new chat option is also placed in the same position.

I think Reliance Jio has a lack of good UI/UX developers, so they are preferring to clone the same interface as of there alternatives. They aren't even trying to make something more innovative and attractive. The company has done this cloning process with JioMeet, copied Zoom's UI and features, and now with JioChat.

Also Read: MX TakaTak, the Latest TikTok Clone from MX Player

Features

Well, if we talk about features of the JioChat vs WhatsApp, so somehow I feel JioChat has some additional features than WhatsApp, and at the same time, JioChat missing some important features too. In personal messaging section, JioChat is completely similar to WhatsApp, you will find same features (although some missing), like when you tap on three dots from the top, so in WhatsApp, you will find an option to directly export your chat and more options, but in JioChat it has few including chat information, block contact and two more.

Now, coming to Status, so JioChat has story features but I don't find any option to upload my own story, however, you can watch numerous videos there uploaded by some popular sites such as PinkVilla, etc. and you can also share those stories with others. So, this needs to be changed, we should have an option to upload our own JioChat story. WhatsApp is way better than JioChat in this aspect, you can upload your own story as well as setup controls who can view them, and who can't.

Also Read: Indian Govt Banned TikTok; Here are the Best TikTok Alternatives

Additional Features

And here in JioChat, we have one more additional option called Channels, which isn't useful for a messaging app. However, if you want to chat with different brands and companies (e.g Jockey, BBC Hindi, and a lot more) so you can use that feature. And Jio claimed that you can directly chat with particular brands and get an instant response, so it may be useful for some people.

Also Read: Indian Govt Banned UC Browser; Here are the Best UC Browser Alternatives

Moreover, JioChat offers another option, which is quite useful, i.e. Conferencing rooms, you can make a room up to four people and can organize a conference call quickly. And, therein WhatsApp we can call up to 8 people but we can't create a room, so we need to call each of them one by one by using the adding option.

JioChat provides a dedicated option for Stickers, namely called Sticker Store, you can download various Stickers and use them within chats.

It has an option of sending free messages, you can use it when you are not connected with the Internet. With free messages, you can send upto 100 SMS of a day between Indian numbers only. This will work as same as your device's normal messaging service.

You can use Voice assistant within the app, this uses Google Assistant to send messages or search any contact within JioMeet app in Android. But again, we can do the same task even without opening the app. Just say Hey Google! and say send message to XXX, so this will also work the same as JioChat's feature.

You can set up a delay in message sending.

You can add your Mood in the Profile Section.

Add Gender in the profile section.

Also Read: Know Why Google Took Down ‘Remove China Apps’ and ‘Mitron’ From Play Store

Missing Features

JioChat is missing a bunch of features, we get in WhatsApp. let's have a look

JioChat doesn't have many options for security and privacy, in WhatsApp, we can instantly lock WhatsApp with the fingerprint. In Jiochat, your messages are encrypted but it does not use end-to-end encryption.

Once you disable your last-seen you can't enable it before 24 hours.

You can't upload your own story (I don't found any option to do so).

It is only available in 12 regional languages.

Don't offer many settings and personalization options. Simply provided some toggle bars either you can enable a service or disable it (like it has Notification sound option, you can either enable it or disable it, you can't use any notification tone, it will use the system default).

In chats, it doesn't have Delete for Everyone feature, which is a pretty useful feature of WhatsApp (if the recipient doesn't use Message Recovery tool).

Also Read: 3+ Methods to Show Deleted Messages in WhatsApp

No option for Chat Backup and Recovery.

Also Read: 5 Ways to Send WhatsApp Message Without Saving the Contact

Dark Mode isn't available.

If you are adding anyone for chat, so it doesn't show whether the recipient also uses the JioChat or not. If I am sending any message to any contact, so it will use JioChat as an application from my end to send the message, and the recipient will receive the message through the default messaging app of their system.

A group can have a single admin.

Unstable sometimes.

Videos/photos took more time than WhatsApp.

There are so many small unstable bugs, which directly affect the user experience. The app doesn't have a finished touch and missing many important features, needs to be fixed.

Security

In terms of security, WhatsApp is way better and secure than JioChat. Chats, messages, and calls in WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted, but not in JioChat. However, JioChat provides encrypted chat but not end-to end-encrypted.

Also Read: How To Stop Others From Adding You To WhatsApp Groups

Download JioChat

Download WhatsApp

TechLatest's Opinion

JioChat vs WhatsApp, well, JioChat is missing many important serious features, which can't be ignored and if we want to switch completely from WhatsApp so as a user of WhatsApp from last 5-6 years it will be too tough for us (me at least) to adapt another application which doesn't have so many features.

Many Indians are just blindly replacing all of the applications with Indian alternatives, for them I would like to say, 'Please Pause for a while, Rethink, and then Replace'. Don't do things blindly for the sake of Nationalism. Application developers put the same amount of effort into developing an app either they are from India or other countries, it's appraising that we are supporting our country's products and people.

Also Read: Facebook is Working on Cross-Chat Support with WhatsApp

Think for a while before replacing any app, does that alternative have all the features according to your requirement? You are downloading any Indian app which is none of your use, Why? It's great to be nationalist but being a nationalist doesn't mean you are a fool, Right?

JioChat has the potential to be more effective and better than WhatsApp, but it needs to be reviewed and redesign only because of its so many missing features, and small bugs. It's good to opt for some useful features from any widely popular application or alternative, but you can't make a clone or carbon-copy of it. Put your efforts and design something more innovative. In the name of alternatives, Indian developers are just cloning primarily available apps, either we see Zoom's alternative JioChat or TikTok's alternative Mitron.

Final Verdict

Well, finally I would like to conclude that after using JioChat for 2-3 days, I don't think it can replace WhatsApp, however, our government can make this possible forcefully (by banning WhatsApp too) but no one (right now) will wish to leave and replace WhatsApp, its smooth performance, beloved features, simple and clean UI. WhatsApp comprises all useful features, nothing more and nothing less.

If Reliance digitals improve some of its features, so JioChat has the potential to be better than WhatsApp. Moreover, Reliance Telecom is an Indian company, and Indian's always love and support it, so it has major chances that people will accept the application and use it. Also, if we ignore missing features and copied UI, so JioChat offers some additional features, which make the app more powerful and attractive.

Also Read: How to Watch JioTV in Windows 10

via TechLatest

#IFTTT #TechLatest

[aumolc]

Source : Google photo of black mold that can release mito toxins

Synopsis : The world we live in brings us closer and brings with it problems like virus that can jump from people to people. But if we take simple precautions that the blog looks at then we can avoid most of the problems. 

A female passenger flying somewhere declared that she had just come from China and the whole plane was emptied because the passengers were so scared.  She sat alone in the plane bemoaning the fact that we now live so precariously in today’s connected world where a disaster in one part affects directly the other part quickly.

Source Google photo of Corona virus 1 and 2

Take the case of the Corona virus that started in Wuhan in China and now has spread to many countries killing numerous people who came in contact with an infected person. All countries are now worried and have put in strict measures to contain the virus by keeping the travelers in quarantine for 2 weeks to see if they develop the symptoms. The ships coming from China have been restricted off shores in many countries and the passengers or the crew are kept on the ships because of the fear that they may have the virus and may spread it among the unsuspecting people.

The scientists and medical people are working feverishly to find a vaccine to fight this latest menace while the bozos are claiming a cure by drinking cow urine or some such outlandish remedies as if it was that easy. I will not be surprised if some enterprising crooks are already selling the cow urine as a surefire cure at a premium price because panicked people will do anything.

It reminds me of the plague that broke out in London that killed 100000 people in just a few months. The Great Plague, lasting from 1665 to 1666, was the last major epidemic of the bubonic plague to occur in England. … The Great Plague killed an estimated 100,000 people—almost a quarter of London’s population—in 18 months. ( wikipedia)

Approximately 4 100 000 patients are estimated to acquire a healthcare-associated infection in the EU each year. The number of deaths occurring as a direct consequence of these infections is estimated to be at least 37 000 and these infections are thought to contribute to an additional 110 000 deaths each year. ( wikipedia)

Our body has a built in mechanism to fight infection if we are healthy so we may not even know what bacteria, virus or other harm causing things enter our nostrils everyday because our immune system quickly overpowers them and destroys them but the immune system works when we are healthy. When we are not healthy then a simple infection can cause major problems. Germs of all kinds are emanated by very sick people specially if they have tuberculosis or other infectious diseases so coming in contact with such people can land you in big trouble.

Although our nose is not as sensitive as that of a dog, we can smell a wide array of noxious things in the air. I can tell just by entering a house if someone is sick there because of the smell of sickness pervading the air. If the house is damp and not well ventilated or aired, it becomes a breeding ground for germs of all sorts specially the deadly ones like tuberculosis. Molds grow on walls in such houses that can be extremely toxic to breathe in. You will notice that people who keep dogs and cats and play with them all the time may develop severe forms of asthma because these animals constantly shed hair making the house very dirty.

The Chinese Feng Shui people are often laughed at and not taken seriously but they will tell you all sorts of things that are wrong in your house if you invite them. They will tell you that your house is wrongly oriented meaning it does not let natural sunshine and air enter your house or that your main door is placed in the wrong place meaning it blocks the natural flow of energy through your house etc. You may not believe in all they say but somethings do make sense.

Sunshine is a natural bacteria and mold killer as any doctor will tell you. So keeping your house well aerated, ventilated and dry is a major step to ward off infectious germs that are always in the air or brought by someone who is sick. Keeping your house spotlessly clean and washing drapes, sheets and covers regularly will make your home a healthy place to live in but I have seen how people suffer in Africa from malaria when it is so easy to prevent it. Walking bare feet on dirt like they do can land you in big trouble in Africa.

We lived in a village in Mali where I designed a 5 room round house interconnected to each other through covered passageways the villagers built for us. The round rooms were well ventilated through well placed windows and we screened the doors and all the windows to keep the mosquitos and flies out. We lived in a malaria endemic area but we never had any problem because we took such precautions. Our kids were given Nivaquine as a prophylactic measure and we always filtered our water. But the Africans in our village suffered from Malaria because their huts had open windows .

It is now known that coating our floors with cow dung paste once a week not only gave it a good hard dust free finish. it also killed germs. That is the power of cow dung that most people do not know anything about. A farmer in India has built a house in his village only using local materials found on his farm and coating his mud brick walls with cow dung that keeps his house cool in summer and warm in winter. His dung coated walls kill all germs that enter his house. I would like you to watch this video here that shows his award winning house that is so beautiful that it will take your breath away. It is in Hindi but you will understand how the farmer used only local materials in such an artistic way that won him numerous awards that the Prime Minister Modi himself praises.

Source U Tube video of a beautiful , clean and hygienic farm house in India.

It says the use of cow dung, urine and natural materials that were used to make this house in a village in India makes you feel like paradise. 

We all know that germs and virus spread through contact that may not be physical but just being near an infected person can infect you because the air he breathes out is full of virus that you may breathe in. It can happen in a closely packed train or metro or a bus or where there is a huge crowd milling around and spreading infectious germs and deadly virus. In such cases you must protect yourself with a face mask and avoid shaking hands with people you know or meet.

When people died in London in the bubonic plague outbreak there in 1665, people did not know that rats were the culprits. London in those days was a very dirty city giving rise to a huge rat population that carried the plague carrying tiny insect. But now the medical science has evolved to the point when the diseases and their source can be readily identified by thermal scanners in airports or other ports of entry.

It is a very unsettling fact that now a person carrying an infection of sorts caused by a deadly virus can travel to other parts in just a few hours and spread the disease there. That is how the Corona virus is spreading to so many countries. It is unsettling because until now they have not found a vaccine that works although doctors and scientists are feverishly looking for one.  Remember the Ebola crisis that started in Africa somewhere and killed so many people including the doctors and nurses who were treating the sick people ? It became a very serious problem that brought together many countries to fight it so eventually it was controlled.

Often the animals carry the sickness. It was found that monkeys were responsible for spreading Ebola but in other cases it may be other animals. We still do not know what started the spread of Corona virus. Some say that it was spread by bats that the Chinese eat but the Chinese eat all sorts of things that you and I may never do while the Europeans eat somethings that no Asian worth his salt will dare to eat. It is a fact that the humans are omnivorous that can bring in its own set of problems. In essence we are what we eat and of what quality. We should understand that food is not something universal. If we do not eat it, it is not food although others may call it so.

It is also known that the vegetarians are in general healthy people but we the non vegetarian people can’t have enough of animal protein that can bring in its own set of problems. Pork meat can carry tape worms or other types of worms while beef may carry tuberculosis germs . In many countries where people eat beef and pork , the animal hygiene is less than what is standard so people get sick. Chicken are not all that safe to eat if they are not raised in clean environment and with proper care.

I am particularly worried about the Western countries where half cooked beefsteaks are served because that is what the customer wants. Cooking any meat thoroughly kills all the germs it may carry but the restaurants will serve you raw meat if that is what you want. They don’t care. So it is up to us to examine what we eat and how our food is prepared under what conditions. I like to see how the cook prepares my meal. Once we were in a Mongolian restaurant near Orting where the cooks had a giant hot plate or a wok where they cooked your food in front of you which was very nice.

Another thing that often worries me is the practice of hugging and kissing to show friendliness that can transmit germs easily from person to person. I like the Indian way of greeting each other by bringing the palms together and saying Namaste but some imitate the Western culture so hugging and kissing on the cheek is also spreading among the younger generation.

Finally , it is all up to us to learn to live a healthy life, take precautions that are simple but very effective and keep our house and surroundings spotlessly clean. The world we live in is now more connected than ever bringing in all sorts of trouble from far places. We must not take anything for granted so should examine the expiry date of foods that we buy. Some people live on canned goods but that is a very unhealthy way of living because we all know that the canned goods are preserved with all sorts of preservatives that have long term health problems associated with them.

There is nothing better than fresh vegetables that are organic meaning they do not use pesticides on them and there is nothing better than fresh eggs from self supporting chickens. The deep orange colored yolks are the best. Live fish if you can find them is always better than dead fish and fresh cow milk with full cream is better than the refrigerated kind you buy in the grocery stores. Our Mother Nature provides us with all the good things to eat but the crooks adulterate them before selling them so that they can make money. Just don’t be taken in by their fancy advertising.

Fresh fruits like bananas , papayas, avocados, oranges and others are better if you can find them. Sometimes you have to go to a farmer’s market where you can buy all sorts of fresh farm produce like fruits, vegetables , milk , cheese etc.

The precarious living sounds awful but it does not have to be.

  Note : My blogs are also available in French, Spanish, German and Japanese languages at the following links as well as my biography. My blogs can be shared by anyone anytime in any social media.

Mes blogs en français.

Mis blogs en espagnol

Blogs von Anil in Deutsch

Blogs in Japanese

My blogs at Wix site

tumblr posts    

Blogger.com

Medium.com

Anil’s biography in English.

Biographie d’Anil en français

La biografía de anil en español.

Anil’s Biografie auf Deutsch

Anil’s biography in Japanese

Биография Анила по-русскиu

        Precarious living Source : Google photo of black mold that can release mito toxins Synopsis : The world we live in brings us closer and brings with it problems like virus that can jump from people to people.

[businessliveme]

Partnership is key to change

Speaking at the Powering Progress Together event at the Shell Technology Centre Bangalore in India, Harry Brekelmans, Shell Projects and Technology Director, says that partnership is the key to making lasting change

I am delighted to be back in India. Bangalore is such a thriving, vibrant, energising city… Where better to discuss the future of transport? Events like this are so important. They give us the chance to bring people together, exchange ideas and find solutions.

And we need to work together in this significant time of change… A time when the world is trying to address a growing demand for energy… at the same time as it moves to a cleaner, lower-carbon energy system. A time when everyone from countries… to companies… to individual consumers must play their part in reducing carbon emissions and improving air quality. We all have a chance to shape the future – and the outcomes will be even better if we work together.

A history of partnership

Indeed, Shell and India have a long history of partnership. And March 31, 2017, was a big day for this partnership. That was when we opened the Shell Technology Centre Bangalore – and it is one of Shell’s top centres for research and development across the world. We are proud of the work we do in India. And we see the country as a hub for innovation, a centre for the very best talent and a country that is a vital part of Shell’s future growth. Change is taking place in India at an extraordinary rate. Consider India’s significant economic growth, its rapid urbanisation and even its ambitious space programme.

At the UN Climate Summit in New York in September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to increase India’s renewable energy capacity, encourage the adoption of electric vehicles and increase the use of biofuels. He talked about the need for actions, not words.

India is already the world’s largest market for two and three-wheel vehicles… it is on its way to becoming the third-largest market for passenger vehicles by 2021… and it even has plans for a hyperloop system that would be a world first. Mumbai to Pune in just over 30 minutes. Think of that! This is just a glimpse of why Shell considers our partnership with India so important when it comes to the future of transport – and beyond.

Let me give you a sense of what that really means… let me give you an idea of what Shell is working on right here, behind these walls.

Three projects, one centre

I will start with one project, which, when I explain it, you might think is an unusual way of tackling pollution. But air quality is a challenge so pressing that we must come at it from all angles.

In March, Shell launched a product that is both practical and innovative. We have engineered a bitumen that reduces the emissions that cause pollution when a road surface is laid. And because it acts on odour-releasing molecules… it even smells better too. And if you want to see it for yourselves, we used it on the track for the Shell Eco-marathon. We are also working on advanced biofuels right here. With the IH2 technology, we aim to prove that agricultural residues and other wastes can be converted into lower-carbon transport fuels – at commercial scale.

And finally, we are developing the talent of the future here too. Our E4 programme helps entrepreneurs to build successful energy companies. This year, the businesses involved are all about shaping the future of transport.

One of these, igrenEnergi, has developed a system that improves the battery performance of electric vehicles. And I am sure that the founder Jiten Apte will tell us much more when he joins our panel later. This gives you a flavour of the many different types of projects Shell is working on in Bangalore… and the many fruits of our partnership with India… but what about Shell’s broader work on the future of transport?

The broader picture

Shell’s projects include liquefied natural gas, or LNG for trucking and shipping… hydrogen as a fuel with its potential for heavy freight, including rail… and digitalisation, which makes transport systems more efficient – as well as vehicles… and their drivers. Our projects also include the electrification of transport.

Now, I know that there is great debate in India about the potential of electric vehicles… About battery exchange stations… About electrifying the many city buses, the shared car fleets of Ola and Uber and all those two and three-wheel vehicles. Indeed, another of our panellists, Hemalatha Annamalai is doing just that with her company Ampere.

For Shell’s part, we are working globally with governments, across industry and with our customers as we increase our involvement in the electric vehicle market. And… we are not just focusing on charging electric vehicles. We want to help make them run better too. We are working with car manufacturers across the world, including Mahindra, on a range of fluids for electric vehicles. Shell E-fluids were launched in May and are designed to improve vehicle performance, extend battery range and increase the lifespan of crucial components.

We have a great collaborative partnership with Mahindra and many others here, today. And each of my examples comes from different kinds of partnerships. And we want to build and strengthen these.

Working across business

Indeed, Shell is seeking to help to establish a way of working with other businesses and across sectors at a significant scale. This is an attempt to marry the efforts of energy-supply companies with those of energy-use companies to decarbonise energy. There are three ways to do this.

First, improve energy efficiency. Second, turn to lower-carbon energy products. Third, offset or store away emissions that cannot be avoided. How these would be balanced and combined would be different for each sector, and all sectors would need all three. And that is not the end of the story. There is a fourth element. The world must also address consumption patterns.

But, in terms of transport, how would such a coalition work? Take the marine industry. This would mean ports and governments and ship builders and industry bodies working together to improve efficiency, pilot new fuels and offset any emissions that remain.

Coalition for the future

The Getting to Zero coalition is a good example of the type of action needed. It was announced at the UN Climate Summit – and it brings together Maersk, Citigroup, Shell and the Danish government, among others. The coalition is aiming to put a commercial ship to sea by 2030 that does not add greenhouse-gas emissions to the stock in the atmosphere. In other words, a net-zero emissions ship. Now that is a partnership that seeks to shape the future. And the future will come in many shapes. Whether this comes in the form of electric two- or three-wheelers… The LNG bus stationed at the centre’s entrance… Or even, hyperloop travel. Whatever forms the future of transport takes, we will all be able to influence them. By building and strengthening partnerships. By exchanging ideas. By finding solutions together. This is how we can shape the future of transport.

    The post Partnership is key to change appeared first on Businessliveme.com.

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[sreejith1980]

War, pride, peace and issues of social life..

Seeing India/Pak tension, which could even lead to war, i wanted to mention an incident.

My father and mother are great parents. I am proud and happy to born for my parents. My father did not ask for even a single paise from his parents during partition. He earned everything in his life due to hard work and love for family. He is an ultimate hard worker. He was a workshop owner and had the biggest workshop in Muvatyupuzha locality during Ambassador/contessa/premier-padmini car times. Due to the reason a workshop owner, he had good relationships with richest people in locality who owns car.

My house is partially on hill side. When i was studying at 8th or 9th standard i guess, i do not remember the time exactly, but during my teenage time having said now my age is 38, we called a JCB and leveled our land where house is located. My house and land had proper border with trees are planted on border and also with some stones placed on border. We already had a wall constructed on one side of house and my father wanted to construct wall in the front side of house where we share the border with neighbor family.

We had and have a good relationship with all neighbors, but on minimal aspects.

With the plan of constructing a wall, my father spoke to the neighbor and tried to decide on the border line. We had a real border with stones and trees on border. Though we had a good relationship with neighbor, when the issue of border came of deciding the border line, the neighbor told a brick length of my land border is their property, which actually is ours as per my father. My father argued it is the property of ours and there are stones laid on the border. But neighbor was making strong argument though there was stones put for border.

End of the day, my father lost a brick length of land across the border of house. My father told me, since he is busy with work at workshop, he did not go for a quarrel.

Here i wanted to remind you few points:

1. If my father was using his full scale connections in politics or police or governing authorities of locality, we might not have lost a brick length land on the border. But my father was busy and not interested for a quarrel.

2. If either me or my father was a rowdy, the neighbor would not even have dare to speak on the border line issue, because of fear.

3. If we were going for a quarrel using knife and gun like a ton of cases happening in Kerala on land property border line issues , we would not have lost a brick length border land across the border.

End of the day, my father did not go for a fight with neighbor and we still maintain a good relationship with all neighbors at the price of brick length border property.

But end of the day there is a question. WHAT DID MY FATHER LOST OR GAIN?. In simple words my father lost some land and gained constant happy relationship with neighbor.

IMAGINE WHAT MY FATHER COULD DO IN THIS SITUATION:

1. My father could use his relationship in politics and police and other government, politics to get involve and help us positively.

2. My father could take knife and gun and go for pucca rowdism. In this case, they may also do same. And do a war till we get our land back.

3. Keep quiet and maintain PEACE AT HOME, FAMILY AND NEIGHBOR HOOD.

In my family my father chose the last option. The neighbor of us are not very rich family and my father might have thought, let it go.

But I will say if father was using political or government authorities to help us solve our land border issues without taking gun and knife it was THE BEST CASE SCENARIO. We would not have lost some land on border.

NOW I WILL COME TO INDIA/PAK RELATIONSHIP. Every time, Pakistan driven and supported terrorist groups will come to india and will put bomb on heart of india. Few examples are 1. Pulwama attack 2. Parliament attack 3. Taj hotel Mumbai attack 4. Uri attack etc and list is endless

Since it’s terrorists, india will be puzzled who to blame. And the government authority in Pakistan primarily is army not even people elected prime minister of Pakistan. Terrorists supported army lead Pakistan government. Then what India will do?

1. India can not attack civilians of Pakistan in revenge 2. India can not go for war, because india has so much to lose 3. India can not even attack terrorists base working from borderline of india/Pakistan

MEANING INDIA IS BECOMING SPEECHLESS EVERY TIME TERRORISTS ATTACK HAPPENS JUST LIKE MY FATHER WAS SPEECHLESS ON BORDERLINE ISSUE OF MY HOUSE LAND, INDIA WAS ALSO SPEECHLESS ON TERRORISTS ATTACK JUST LIKE MY FATHER. FUNDAMENTALLY THEY DO NOT WANT TO RETALIATE TO KEEP PEACE.

India used to say, PEACE. India always lost things from mother land when talks about PEACE. Pakistan and terrorists had nothing to lose IF COMING TO INDIA FOR DOING A FIREWORKS SHOW EVEN IN CASE OF PARLIAMENT ATTACK.. I will say we were overwhelmed LITTLE BIT TOO MUCH.. What American would have done if White House is attacked?

One way PEACE is good. Say for example, if my father was a rowdy, with no sense of mind, taking a gun or knife going to attack neighbor for a piece of land, we might not have lost some land. But THERE IS A PROBLEM HERE. My father with this ATTITUDE OF TAKING GUN OR KNIFE IN LIFE ALL THE TIME FOR EVERY ISSUES WILL GET INTO SO MUCH PROBLEMS IN LIFE. IMAGINE INDIA IS GOING FOR WAR KIND OF SITUATION EVERY TIME A PULWAMA TERRORIST ATTACK KIND OF INCIDENT HAPPENS. HOW NIGHTMARE?. Imagine both my father and india has an attitude, FIRE, WAR, GUN, KNIFE ON EVERY ISSUES ON SITUATION LIKE THIS. It will spoil HAPPINESS AND PEACE OF FAMILY..

We need a solution THAT WILL SOLVE ONLY “THE PROBLEM OF COUNTRY OR FAMILY “ WITHOUT UNDER DOING OR OVER DOING..

If my father is taking knife/gun on every issues, people including neighbor will tell about my father, HALF CRACK PERSON AND DO NOT GO FOR A FIGHT WITH HIM. The same way, if INDIA is looking for WAR WITH PAKISTAN whenever terrorists attack happens, people will call INDIAN PRIME MINISTER A MANIAC OR HALF NUT. Global leadership will call Indian prime minister or Indian leadership a A WAR LOVING HITLER OF MODERN CENTURY.

But at the same time we have an issue in hand. Our neighbor is calling bad words to our family or country. They come for destroying our land. Our neighbor is cutting our land to piece. HOW WE CAN SOLVE THIS ISSUE?

That is the SAME SITUATION NOW INDIA HAS GOT. Till 2018 india was speaking only about PEACE, not forgetting wars between india Pakistan though.. But now in 2018, we talks different. We talk about PRIDE.. It is also a fact that PRIDE ABOVE A THRESHOLD IS MENTAL RETARDATION..imagine Indian leadership is mentally retarded..?

If INDIA PAKISTAN TENSIONS were leading to war, including me everybody would have called Indian prime minister a half nut or a WAR LOVING MANIAC.

But in the case of PULWAMA SURGICAL STRIKE 2.0 and subsequent issues even in the case of Abhinandan release shows the RIGHT DIRECTION OF global political diplomacy of our prime minister and his team... Global diplomatic leadership were convinced that 1. WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR WAR, 2. WE DID NOT KILL EVEN A SINGLE CIVILIAN OF PAKISTAN, 3. WE KILLED AND DESTROYED ONLY TERRORIST’S FASCILITIES INSIDE A JUNGLE IN PAKISTAN.. We don’t need WAR, but senseless retaliation ideas of Pakistan may even cause WAR..

After taking every steps to convince global diplomatic leadership and after we get every support from global leadership, if Pakistan is inviting WAR, I also will say WAR IS NOT BAD IDEA. DEFINITELY WAR IS BAD BUT IF WAR IS THE ONLY WAY 100%, ITS NOT REALLY A BAD IDEA..BUT WE SHOULD TRY TO STOP WAR SITUATIONS 100%..

IN CASE OF PULWAMA, INDIAN LEADERSHIP DID A GOOD JOB.. There may be attempts to use this WAR situation politically in the future connecting stating that its victory of only one or two political entities or parties .. But if without war, if Pulwama surgical strike ends, its victory of leadership..its victory of diplomacy.. But at the same time.. If today or tomorrow, if a WAR is starting, we will call all these leadership people CRACKS OR NUTS who use WAR for a cheap political gain..

But if war is not starting and could gain GLOBAL LEADERSHIP SUPPORT just like now, it’s so far awesome. So far so good..

Then WAR is bad.. Even I have people in army from family.. It’s hyper tension situation when we think about such situations of WAR..

But in situations like this, doing nothing is NOT THE SOLUTION.. Congress ruling always were looking for PEACE may be for the reason they know what is war between india and Pakistan.. But they always speak PEACE.. Just like my father did on a border line issue with neighbor.. Its great peace of mind and happiness one way.. WHY A FIGHT? WE ARE NOT GAINING ANYTHING IF ITS WAR AND HAS GOT LOT TO LOSE IN A WAR/FIGHT SITUATION..

But if someone can handle like prime minister Narendra Modi did in a way, till March first week, it’s GOOD, A REALLY NICE ****ing awesome good job. At the same time, he should not make it as a constant attitude or he should not become a fan of retaliation or surgical strikes..

Surgical strikes should have a PURPOSE... Retaliation should have a PURPOSE..

Say destroying fascilities of terrorist group in Balkot is a NICE PURPOSE in case of Pulwama attack. It’s a meaningful PURPOSE.. This entire tension is worth as long as we don’t kill civilians and not losing army soldiers..

The only thing is that JUST LIKE NOW HAPPENED, EVERY RETALIATION OR SURGICAL STRIKES SHOULD HAVE A PURPOSE THAT CAN BE MADE UNDERSTOOD TO GLOBAL DIPLOMATIC LEADERSHIP AND FINALLY GLOBAL LEADERSHIP SUPPORT US ON OUR ISSUES AND POINTS..

It should not be an act of killing civilians on both sides to WIN ON ELECTION IN INDIA..

But Pulwama is so far so good.. It’s diplomatic victory.. It’s about destroying terrorists army.. It’s not about killing civilians on both sides.. Even the way Abhinandan release handled is awesome..

GREAT JOB TEAM.. If Indian leadership is not making it as habitual for every attack, retaliation of this scale with a tension even a war can happen of this kind if not happening repeatedly.. So far so good.. Great job Indian leadership..

P.S: Being proud of country is good. But WAR is blood, family, stability of country etc. We have so much to lose on a war. We should be more sensible like my father did in the case of border line of my house for constructing a wall. It’s OK to lose small small things for peace OR if can avoid a war. When you are so much proud, think about longer term goals and your priorities in life. When a prestige issue comes, weight against the losses of war and decide. Fix your priorities..Happiness comes out of right kind of priorities not from heroism. But it’s OK to be bad as long as your arguments are valid, sensible and true.. No hurt feelings my dear neighbors.

[traveljaunts]

This time I touched upon a few parts of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. My route was Bangalore to Nagpur, Nagpur to Katni, Katni to Bandhavgarh, Bandhavgarh to Ajmer, Ajmer to Pushkar, Pushkar to Kumbhalgarh , Kumbhalgarh to Udaipur, and Udaipur to Kota. 15 days long tour and Mishra ji descended into our lives as our driver who picked us up from Ajmer.

As soon as I reached Ajmer, I asked Mishra Ji to take me to Ajmer Shareef Dargah without realizing that Mishra ji belonged to Allahabad (or is it Prayag Raj now?) and his Brahmin soul coupled with a Shiv Sena heart would be disappointed at my act.

Mishraji said, ‘We might get late, you really want to visit dargah’? I said, ‘Yes I want to visit Ajmer Dargah and Pushkar Brahma temple before we reach Kumbhalgarh.’

Mishraji, ’It’s difficult to take car near Dargah so will arrange for an auto (a 3-wheeler / tuk-tuk).’ I said, ‘fine’.

Now the Autowala enters the story. He too is a strict vegan but did take us till the Dargah entrance gate. That, is a confluence of narrow lanes with drainage on both sides leading to a comparatively thicker road, called the Dargah road. Definitely not a comfortable experience but the auto drivers sure have great skills.

It was a Friday (aka Jumme ka din) and I hadn’t realized what I was getting into. The road was overly crowded; everyone trying to jostle his/her way around to reach to the entrance. And in addition, there were plentiful beggars occupying their designated territories on the road.

Somehow and anyhow we entered. I bought a Chadar and some flowers. It was 3 pm and the main door was to open at 3.30pm so we waited as I wanted to really visit the main shrine that my hubby has often spoken to me about. Ajmer Shareef is the resting place of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, a Persian Sufi who had come to India in the early 13th century from Herat and stayed here forever.

  Like temples, here too we found some souls who consider themselves direct messengers of God. They usually position themselves near main gates, ready to bless you in return for the money you pay them. Below Rs 100 is not really respected, mind that.

My experience at the Dargah on a Jumma wasn’t great. I wasn’t able to pray peacefully for the same God send souls and my son had started crying inside due to the crowd almost at the verge of a stampede.

After we came out of Dargah, we called the Autowala to the same spot where he had left. We narrated our pain and spoke about the management in Dargah.

Autowala said, ’Madam even Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India didn’t go to the Dargah when he came to Ajmer, why did you go? You are a Brahmin. We Hindus bow down before everyone but others don’t. They don’t even take our prasad (religious offering). I am staying in Ajmer since long but not even once I have entered the Dargah.’

Hmmm…

Anyway, we shifted ourselves back to the waiting car. Our conversation also shifted from religion to politics.

I asked Mishraji, ‘Have you visited this Dargah? ‘

Mishraji ‘Yes, just once when one of my clients from Hyderabad insisted on it. I don’t like the energy. People are different.’

‘Energy is not dependent on religion. It is the person’, I said.

Mishraji to me ‘Madam, have you seen the communal riots in India?’

I, drawing into the conversation, egged on, ‘on TV but never been part of the scene.’

Mishraji ‘I have and I know how people are. Problem is we Hindus are not united. When something happens to us, we don’t take revenge the way others join hands and come out on roads to kill us.  We, on the other hand, visit their Dargahs and Pir Babas.’

I was quiet. Thought, let’s do Pushkar now to cool Mishra Ji down.

At Pushkar, life was peaceful, the crowd being less and manageable; however, we took more than the expected time and it was 6.30 pm already. By the time we came out, Mishraji said, ’I called many drivers and everyone suggested not to drive to Kumbhalgarh at this hour.

Mishraji suggested that we should halt for the night and drive in the morning. ‘It would take 6-7 hrs to reach Kumbhalgarh and roads are not good. There are wild animals. By the time we get out of Pushkar and then Ajmer to get to the highway, it would be 8-8.30 pm. Which means reaching Kumbhalgarh by 1.30 – 2 am. Very dangerous.’

I said, ‘It’s ok. We in fact keep visiting jungles to see wild animals but don’t get to find enough of them. If we have to go through the jungle road full of wild animals, it’s even better. And I checked google, it won’t take that long.’

‘One should be scared of humans these days and not animals. Other than animals, is there anything else that worries you Mishraji?’

Madam, ‘have you stayed in jungles? Not in hotels as in but in the interiors of jungles.’

‘In Bori jungle in Satpura with a family and friends group including a forest officer. But there were four walls to sleep in.’

‘Madamji, I have stayed in jungles and slept on top of my car. This was in jungles of Chhattisgarh. I was the driver who would take tribal workers in the jungle to collect stuff like Rubber, Mahua, wood etc. Everyday, at the gate they used to count people as not all were expected to come back.’

Mishra Ji continued, unabated, ‘Jungles has many things…’

‘You mean ghosts?’

‘Yeah…they are there on highways too. Have you experienced it madamji?’

‘Nope…’

‘I have many times.’ Thereafter, Mishraji proceeded to explain the difference between a Chudail (Witch) and Pretatma (Ghost). In between, Mishraji kept asking my mum questions on Geeta, Hindu Dharma, meditation, our purpose and about mythological characters assuming that she was an authentic Dadi Nani (Indian Granny) character straight from an ideal Hindu household.

As a result, both my mum and my son slept as soon as we hit the highway after Beawar leaving me and Mishraji to do the driving, navigation & figuring out part. My son was tired and my mom chose to snore rather than answering Mishraji’s mythological missiles.

It was getting late and Mishraji didn’t seem confident in the dark given his age (55+) so we both requested Sir Google to show us the route.  I was on the back seat with my son in my lap. Since my phone battery was low I needed to use Mishraji’s charger which only worked when I would bend a little as the wire was short. You can imagine my plight!

By God’s grace, my phone didn’t ditch me for the first time. We drove past the highway, then couple of small villages and then Mishra Ji’s dreaded Jungle all in the dark with just one headlight in the car as the other one had stopped working since Beawar.

A little tension, a little discomfort, a little belief and a little prayer made this ordinary journey thrilling. We finally reached Kumbhalgarh at 12.30 midnight having learnt about all sorts of ghosts and how to identify them apart from seminal discourses on religion, Moksha and meditation, courtesy Mishra Ji from Allahabad. My two partners woke up only when we reached the hotel in Kumbhalgarh. They were oblivious of what they had missed.

Here are next day’s pictures on a bright sunny day, but obviously without Mishra Ji.

Ajmer to Kumbhalgarh in conversation with Mishra ji from Allahabad This time I touched upon a few parts of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. My route was Bangalore to Nagpur, Nagpur to Katni, Katni to Bandhavgarh, Bandhavgarh to Ajmer, Ajmer to Pushkar, Pushkar to Kumbhalgarh , Kumbhalgarh to Udaipur, and Udaipur to Kota.

[nageshchandramishra]

Comments & Views on “Comical Bureau Of Intrigue “ ( By N.C. Mishra ) Dated 25/10/2018

🇮🇳👇Good Article 👏❗️

My Comments & Views 👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

The Timing Of All These Happenings In Central Bureau Of Investigation ...Should Be Observed Dispassionately in view of the following Developments :-

(1) #Rafale Matter To Be Heard by Hon. Chief Justice Bench In Supreme Court On 31/10/2018 ;

(2) Prior to that ...Best Legal Brains Of the Entire Opposition Parties & Anti- Modi Forces led by Prashant Bhushan , Arun Shourie & Yashwant Sinha ...Had Tried Their Level Best To #IGNITE & #Initiate #Formal_Inquiries #Rafale_Criminal_Complaint Through Meeting & Influencing #Alok_Verma , the erstwhile CBI Director ; Perhaps , Alok Verma had made up his mind to Order an Preliminary Inquires this week only before SC Hearing Scheduled On 31/10/2018 ❓If so Would have happened..then The Present Govt.’s Affidavits with regard to #Procurement_Process_Of_Rafales_Deals which has to be filed by 29/10/2018 in the Apex Court ...Would #Potentially Might Have Been #Questionable & #Damaging for the Present Govt. .

Perhaps...in order to Obviate such Ugly Situation & for #Diffusing the #Rafale_TIME_Bomb fitted by #Rahul_Gandhi & Anti_Modi Forces ...the Present Govt. Pushed the Panic Button to Remove Alok Verma ❓❓

(3) Now...when Alok Verma has filed Case Against his unceremonious Removal in the Bench Of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi who is known for his impeccable & Independent Judicial Brilliance ....it would be very interesting to Watch whether he #Reinstates Alok Verma as CBI Director Till his fixed Tenure ie 31st January, 2019 ❓❓❓

The matter would be heard on 26/10/2018 by Justice Ranjan Gogoi ie on Tomorrow...&..my Common Sense says...that ....ALOK VERMA Would Be Reinstated By Hon. Supreme Court ❗️The #Arun_Jetaily_Logic_Of Central Vigilance Commission’s #Power_Of_Superintendency Over CBI Director ( In the matter of CBI Director ‘s Removal ) Won’t Pass the Test Of Judicial Scrutiny In the Apex Court ‼️

( I am testing my own Common Sense as an ordinary citizen having very limited knowledge of these Legal Matters 🤞😀 ❓)

(4) My Sixth Sense ..also tells me that ...Hon. Chief Justice Court ...wouldn’t Unnecessarily Rake up #Rafale_Matter at the moment when they hear it on 31/10/2018 & Modi Govt’s Affidavits Would Be Accepted .

This Action Of SC would automatically #PUT_A_BRAKE On #The_Sinister_Design Of #Anti_Modi_Forces to Pin Him Down On #Rafales & It would simultaneously Provide #Guidance to CBI Director For #Keeping_Cool_And_Restraint & for #Avoiding_Unnecessary_Haste In #Initiating_Any_Action to #Inquire_Rafale_Probe At this stage keeping in view of #The_National_Security_on_TOP_PRIORITY 🇮🇳🤞‼️

(5) As Regards ..Rakesh Asthana ...perhaps, he Would have to go from CBI & would be facing Inquiry in Bribery Charges Matter relating to Sandesara’s Obligations during his daughter’s marriage ( though ..the charges are not that Grave . Moin Qureshi’ Angle Of Accepting Crores ...seems to be concocted & fabricated & wont pass Judicial Scrutiny ) ❓

(6) Like Subramanyan Swami ...I am inclined to believe in Alok Verma’s Integrity - it’s another matter that he might have been over enthusiastic in Rafale matters while speaking to Opposition Leaders ❓❓

I also hold the view like Dr. Swamy ...that ...Ravishankar Prasad , Arun Jetaily & many of Modi’s Blue Eyed Bureaucrats Have Common #Conduits With High & Mighty #UPA Stalwarts like P. Chidambaram, SG , RG etc. who are weakening the various High Powered Probes Against Political Rivals ❓❓❓❓

(7) Finally , I would be praying that Hon. Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi Would Catalyse , Motivate & Enforce Govt. In Reforming the Central Bureau Of Investigation As #STATUTORY_CONSTITUTIONAL_BODY so that this #Caged_Parrot May be Freed from #Political_Vulture_ism going on since Independence .

TIME HAS COME FOR AN INDEPENDENT CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION 🇮🇳Jai Hind 🇮🇳👏‼️

( The Views expressed by me ...May or May Not Prove Going in Such anticipated directions - so ..let me cross my fingers 🤞🤞🤞🤞At this stage : NC Mishra )

Comical Bureau of Intrigue: CBI looks like a joke. Will GoI finally make it a statutory body?

October 25, 2018, 2:00 AM IST Saubhik Chakrabarti in Open patent | Edit Page, India | TOI

What is the world’s most unenviable top cop job now? Interim chief, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Nageshwar Rao, picked by the Prime Minister-led Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, has the toughest remit in any public service – to stop people from laughing at the institution he leads.

The agency can now fairly be called the Comical Bureau of Intrigue, with its two erstwhile senior most officers, director Alok Verma and special director Rakesh Asthana, sent on leave, while different courts deal with disturbingly dramatic plaints made by both.

These are golden days for reporters on the CBI beat, as all sides will inevitably provide more strategic leaks. Those details will have a bearing on the specific controversies framing the CBI mess. But as people outside the government-media complex consume news reports on a Doon and St Stephens educated meat exporter alleged to be close to those in the opposition and a sent-on-leave CBI bigshot who is alleged to be close to those in power, to name only two characters in a multi-starrer burlesque, the general and justified response will be to laugh at the utter absurdity of it all.

Illustration: Arindam

The government is also squarely responsible because all of this has happened under its watch. Its decision to send away both warring CBI officers and ask a special investigation team (SIT) to probe allegations and counter-allegations, while entirely sensible, doesn’t even begin to address the question why the Verma vs Asthana dramedy was allowed to play out for as long as it did.

BJP has made a consistent claim since 2014, when it stormed into power, that one of the defining differences between its government and the one run by Congress is that the latter was prone to dysfunction while the former is always in charge. At least on the CBI question, that claim is in tatters.

The really troubling perceptional question for BJP here is not so much whether it was using CBI as a political tool. That charge has been made against Congress for far longer. What is hurting and will likely hurt BJP is popular perception that its government appeared helpless as the CBI story moved from chaos to farce.

Therefore, countering the Congress charge that Verma was “targeted” because he was apparently “thinking” of a Rafale probe may be politically necessary right now for BJP. It may also be relatively easy to do so – how does Congress know what Verma was thinking, is the obvious retort. But the bigger political job for BJP is to convince people that on the CBI issue, it is back in control. Because for the first time since 2014, and weeks away from the beginning of a long election cycle, the opposition has the chance, if it is minimally clever, to build a narrative that this government, too, is prone to dysfunction.

So, BJP will hope that the SIT will keep Verma and Asthana busy, that courts won’t upend its interim arrangement for CBI, that Rao will step up to the plate and appear as an officer in charge, and that CBI investigations into non-CBI corruption cases will make news.

Note, however, that there are many things here that the government does not control or may not be able to control. For example, one known unknown right now is how the Supreme Court will respond to the ex-CBI chief being sent on leave. The other problem can be whether the accused in various CBI high profile cases supervised by Asthana will benefit from corruption charges against him.

So, the perception of chaos may not necessarily go away. Therefore, BJP needs a politically solid and institutionally impeccable talking and action point, a real solution that will help restore CBI’s institutional credibility and prove that the government is back in charge.

That solution, as many ex-top cops and commentators with domain knowledge of law enforcement affairs have said multiple times, is to make CBI a statutory body through a fresh law. CBI functions under clauses that draw institutional validity from the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act. Many Supreme Court efforts to institute operational independence for CBI have essentially failed because the agency, as its status is now, is neither de jure nor de facto immune from political interference.

The Election Commission, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, the Comptroller and Auditor General are all constitutional or statutory bodies. That basically means political interference is difficult in these institutions. So should be the case for CBI.

CBI also draws its senior officers from the Indian Police Service (IPS) and many IPS officers who man CBI – let’s put it politely – have close encounters with politics. Therefore, CBI as a statutory body should also be mandated to draw its cadre from a wide pool of talent and given its own budget. That’s the best way to secure its future, make it a law-backed autonomous investigative agency that attracts quality candidates because the job offers enormous prestige, good pay and real professional independence.

Were the government to announce it is starting the process of writing such a law to create a new, improved CBI, and that its decision is directly related to the current mess at the agency, no matter how Verma vs Asthana plays out, BJP will always have a winning talking point. Every critic will applaud the decision. Congress will find it pretty much impossible to oppose the decision on principle.

But will it happen? Will this government, or any government run by other parties, want to make CBI a statutory body? Let’s put it this way. It would be great for India if it happens. It would also be greatly surprising if it does.

[tyrellvenning61-blog]

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Speech: A free, open, secure cyberspace for all

Introduction

Good morning and thank you, Minister, for your warm introduction.

I am delighted to be in India, and I am grateful to the Observer Research Foundation for this opportunity to address such an esteemed audience.

Before I begin to talk about our shared interests in the future of cyberspace, I’d like to take this opportunity to commend the work of my Indian counterparts.

Minister Prasad, like the UK you face vast and complex domestic, regional and global cyber security challenges and you work tirelessly to keep your citizens and businesses safe.

We both know that the threat of today will be dwarfed by the threat of tomorrow, and so our response too must be ever evolving.

At the same time we both recognise the internet’s great potential.

In both of our countries the digital economy forms a significant part of GDP, employs tens of thousands of people and continues to grow quickly.

In India, internet usage is growing at a phenomenal rate every year, and will grow faster still through Prime Minister Modi’s exciting vision for a Digital India.

So I turn to one of the most pressing international issues of our time: how to harness the power of the internet while ensuring our safety and security online.

Or to put it another way, how do we collectively continue to build a free, open and secure cyberspace for all?

Evolution of the Internet

I remember hearing about the ‘World Wide Web’ when I was just completing my law articles in 1990, but could not even begin to imagine the impact it would have.

No recent invention in human history has changed our lives so dramatically or so quickly. This extraordinary creation – the brainchild of a British engineer, Tim Berners Lee – has surely surpassed even his wildest expectations.

An internet worth protecting

Today the internet connects, informs and entertains nearly three billion people across the world. Thanks to mobile phones, we have access to its power virtually anywhere we want.

Never before have ideas, information and products been so universally available.

The internet has transformed vast swathes of the earth from communication black-spots to communication hotspots.

We can access one and a quarter billion websites from our phones, wristwatches, tablets or home computers.

We can control our bank accounts, adjust our heating – or more likely, here in India, your air conditioning - and we can shop for anything from health food to helicopters.

The Challenge

There is no doubt that the internet has spread knowledge and opportunity further and faster than ever before. It has powered extraordinary positive change.

However, the very features of the internet that make it a force for good – its low cost, its global reach and its easy accessibility – also make it attractive to those who wish us harm.

The threat is ever evolving.

From power stations to pace makers; dams to defibrillators; toasters to telecommunication networks, the growth in global connectivity is exposing us all to new risks in ways that could not have been conceived of in a world before the Internet.

We must face the fact that the more we use it and become reliant on it, the greater these risks becomes.

Last year, hackers breached the IT systems of almost half of UK businesses.

In recent months both our National Health Service and our Parliament have suffered cyber attacks.

The Costs of Cyber Crime

It’s easy with cyber security to get lost in the ones and the zeros, but for many in this room, these ones and zeros often come in the form of pounds, dollars and rupees, as they count the cost of cyber attacks.

In fact, cyber attacks have become a global industry in their own right, currently costing the world over $400 billion a year, a figure that is estimated to grow more than fivefold within the next 2 years.

The challenge that faces us all is how to respond to the spectrum of online threats, without restricting the benefits that we know the internet can bring.

It is important to recognise that much of the activity we see online is not actually “new”.

Attempts by rival powers to subvert democratic political processes can be traced back to Persia’s relations with

Athenian Democracy in the 5th and 6th Century BC.

The first documented instance of fraud was in 300BC when a Greek merchant called Hegestratos took out a large insurance policy against his ship and its cargo of corn with the express intention of sinking an empty vessel to defraud his backers.

And it wasn’t long after the advent of the printing press that the medium was being used to produce material that was viewed by the leading powers of the day as dangerous dissent or heresy.

Just as the behaviours we see online are not new, neither do we need to re-invent the solutions. Cyberspace is not a lawless space. Existing criminal and international laws apply online as they do offline, as do fundamental rights and freedoms.

However, while some online activities may be timeless, the scale, speed and anonymity the internet offers are very new indeed and present a uniquely modern challenge.

To address it, we should apply the same qualities that brought us cyberspace itself: energy, creativity and collaboration.

UK Collaborative Approach

This is what is at the heart of the UK approach – working collectively within the international system, with industry and civil society – a multi-stakeholder approach - to address the risks of the digital age while maximising the benefits.

That is why we launched the ‘London Process’ in 2011, to bring people together and further international understanding of how the “rules of the road” for cyberspace might be implemented in practice.

I am delighted that India will be hosting the fifth iteration of the Global Conference on Cyberspace here in Delhi in November.

We take this collaborative approach because the internet is a global resource, which not only stretches across international borders; it also reaches into our offices, our communities and even our children’s bedrooms.

Not only must the governance of the internet be truly global, it must also involve the full range of stakeholders represented here today.

The best analogy I can think of for the UK view of online safety and security is, as a team sport.

A sport where industry, academia, civil society, government, international partners and, above all, the public, play the part of wicketkeeper, slip, gully and deep square leg.

In other words, it is all about working together.

Responding to the cybersecurity challenge

This approach is perhaps seen most clearly in our response to the cybersecurity threat.

With the UK’s National Cyber Security Strategy we are seeking to defend our people, businesses and assets across the public and private sectors; to deter and disrupt our adversaries, whether states, criminals or hacktivists; to develop our critical capabilities and to strengthen our cybersecurity sector.

Central to delivery of this Strategy is our National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which celebrates its first birthday this week.

Bringing together all of the UK’s cyber security expertise into a single body, the NCSC works with UK organisations, businesses and individuals to provide authoritative and coherent cyber security advice and cyber incident management.

You will hear more about the NCSC’s achievements tomorrow, directly from members of the Centre, who have travelled here with me.

Another important part of delivering our strategy is international cooperation.

The UK is working to strengthen partnerships on a bilateral, regional and global level to collectively tackle threats, build confidence and transparency, and strengthen global cybersecurity.

Our partnership with India is a good example.

We have built cooperation at all levels, from heads of government to our excellent working relationship with Dr Rai and relevant parts of the Indian government through interaction between our tech sectors, think-tanks and NGOs. Together we are working to improve cyber security, combat cybercrime, and advance voluntary norms of responsible state behaviour and the application of international law to cyberspace.

We have built cooperation at all levels, from heads of government to our tech sectors and non-governmental organisations.

Terrorist Use of the Internet

This kind of multi-layered approach is vital for strengthening cybersecurity.

The same is true of tackling extremist content online.

This issue is a particular priority for the UK government because the UK is reported to have the biggest online audience in Europe for Jihadist propaganda, and the 5th biggest worldwide after Turkey, the US, Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

We all have a role to play.

First, national governments have a responsibility to provide the legal framework and the resources to stop material being disseminated within our borders. And we must cooperate across borders to stop material that originates overseas.

Secondly, internet service providers have a responsibility to stop terrorist material being uploaded and to take it down more quickly when it is.

Finally, families and community groups have a responsibility to be aware of the dangers and to do what they can to prevent people they know from falling prey to online extremism.

If I may, before I conclude, I would like to set out what action the UK government is taking to tackle this issue of terrorist use of the internet. As I said just now, it is a current priority for us and our Prime Minister Theresa May has been leading global efforts.

She was instrumental in establishing the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism – an industry-led initiative to close down online space for extremist material.

At the UN General Assembly last month, alongside President Macron of France and Prime Minister Gentiloni of Italy, she hosted an event for tech industry leaders and like-minded countries, including India, to find solutions to the threats we face.

She laid down an important challenge to internet service providers: to take down extremist content within two hours of it being posted.

At a national level we are also stepping up our response, using our counter extremism and counter-terrorism strategies to help us remove “safe spaces” for terrorists online.

We are determined to prevent extremists from using cyberspace to sow fear, hatred and division. However, we must also be alert to the fact that they also seek to undermine our values. We must at all costs avoid a response that restricts the very freedoms they seek to undermine, or we will be doing their work for them.

Conclusion

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, we must come together in the face of these and other threats.

We must hold fast to the values of decency, fair play and mutual respect.

We must defend the extraordinary opportunities that the internet brings.

Let us come together to keep it free, open and secure in equal measure.

Let us make sure that the internet of tomorrow is a force for good. Thank you.

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What’s Inside A Full-Time Traveler’s Suitcase

Wandering Earl

It turns out that a full-time traveler doesn’t really need much stuff.

One pair of ripped socks. Boxer shorts with a tear in the back (oh my, these are old). A yellow t-shirt with all kinds of Vietnamese soup stains on the front. Two small tin boxes I bought for no reason at an antique shop in India earlier this year. And a blue belt that I hadn’t seen in about 14 months.

That’s a quick glimpse of some of the stuff I just found when I gutted my suitcase this morning in preparation for this post.

In fact, I think it’s the first time I’ve taken absolutely everything out in about two years.

Did I say suitcase? Yes I did.

After spending my first 16 years or so as a full-time traveler using my trusty Kelty Redwing 44 liter backpack, I’ve now spent a good portion of the past 2 years traveling around with my Eagle Creek Load Warrior 42 liter rolling suitcase.

Have I gone mad? Perhaps.

All I know is that this little sturdy suitcase, which is indeed smaller than my Kelty backpack, helps me keep things more organized, it’s super easy to pull along wherever I go and it’s still compact enough to take as a carry-on. And as I get older, that all seems slightly more appealing than carrying my stuff on my back.

I still love my backpack but for the travel I do now, a 42-liter rolling suitcase suits my needs.

What I Pack as a Full-Time Traveler

After 18 years of travel, one might think that my possessions have gone through a series of transformations based on my travel style or needs. Well, apart from some more advanced technology that I carry today, things really aren’t too different now than from 1999 or 2003 and so on.

I’m not sure if I should be happy, embarrassed or sad about that.

Anyway, here is the complete list…

The Main Bag

3 pairs of shorts (one gray, one blue, one orange as I spend significant amounts of time in hot weather)

1 swimsuit (if there’s a beach nearby, I’m going…I actually had 2 swimsuits but some coconut oil leaked through my daypack last month and caused the red material of the bag to stain the swimsuit, so that one had to go)

2 pairs of jeans (1 blue, 1 black…I’ve tried wearing actual pants but always prefer my jeans in the end)

9 t-shirts (might sound like more than I need, but this full-time traveler spills a lot of soup on his t-shirts so I always need backups)

1 button down short sleeve shirt (I love this shirt but only really wear it when I need to look a tad more dressed up, which isn’t too often actually)

1 button down long sleeve shirt (I’ve been carrying this one around for the past 1.5 years and haven’t worn it once)

1 sweater (a recent purchase from when I was in Sweden last month and it was quite cold outside…haven’t used it since)

1 navy zipper hoodie (I wear this ALL the time…in fact, I probably should wash it soon)

Travel towel (I don’t know…about twice per year I find myself dripping with water and without a proper towel around…that’s when this thin travel towel comes to the rescue)

7 pairs of socks (you can’t wear flip-flops in European cities during the summer, you’ve got to put on some socks and shoes!)

8 underwear (yup, I do wear underwear and only one has a hole in it, I think)

1 pair of sandals (after spending many years only wearing Crocs Modi Flips or Hurley Phantom Free flip-flops, I recently purchased a pair of Sole sandals…oops, big mistake and when I get back to the US in a couple of weeks, I’ll be going back to one of my favorites)

1 pair of New Balance shoes (I’m a New Balance person – they’re comfortable, durable and they have an “N” for “nomad” on the side)

Sarong (the one thing I know I’ve carried with me from day 1 as a full-time traveler…it plays so many roles – sheet, beach blanket, bag, sweat rag, clothing, etc)

Amazon basics laundry bag (super sturdy, rolls up into nothing and well, pretty much does what you’d expect)

Shoe brush (with only 1 pair of shoes, they can get dirty, so from time to time I give them a scrub down…unfortunately, it doesn’t help remove the car oil stains that I somehow got on my shoes)

Bar of soap (some guesthouses/hotels/hostels/apartments don’t provide soap and I’ve realized this way too many times after getting under the water in the shower…so, I carry my own just in case)

Ohuhu toiletry bag (the best one I’ve found by far…fits everything, remains compact and is super easy to clean…why I need to carry around 3 things of deodorant is a different story)

Philips electric toothbrush (last year I made the switch to an electric toothbrush and naturally, it was a great decision… here’s a tip for travelers though…I went with Philips because it can be charged anywhere overseas…the ones from Braun require a voltage converter)

Contact lenses and contact lens solution (kind of a necessity)

Bag of money (not as exciting as that sounds…just a pile of currency from countries I think I might visit again soon…or just a pile of money that is getting dirtier and smellier as time goes on)

Small medicine pack (ibuprofen, Claritin, paracetamol…actually, I can’t find this thing right now so I might have lost it)

2 tiny tin boxes (no idea what I’m going to do with these things, probably just carry them around for a few years)

The Small Bag

In terms of a small bag, a couple of years ago I made the switch to a Timbuk2 messenger bag. For me, it’s more comfortable and holds everything I need in a more organized manner. And it’s red, which apparently nobody wants, because it was on sale for about 50% off the regular price.

Here’s what’s inside:

MacBook Pro laptop (can’t travel/work without it, and after 5 years, it’s still going strong)

Kindle (lately I haven’t been reading as much as I wish but do you have any book recommendations?)

Samsung Galaxy S7 (it’s my phone and my camera these days)

Credit card holders (I don’t use a wallet…I stuff money and the cards I need each day into my pocket…what I don’t need, I keep in these two things…no idea why I don’t use a different system…any good travel wallet recommendations?)

Pouch for SIM cards (when I saw this felt pouch in a tiny store in Karakol, Kyrgyzstan a few years ago, I thought to myself, “That would be a perfect SIM card holder”…well, not quite like that but I liked the pouch and that’s what it has become)

Symphonized NRG 3.0 earbuds (My Symphonized earbuds are one of my best ever gear purchases…for $25, the sound quality is simply awesome and as a bonus, I actually just used them last night as ear plugs due to the barking dogs and naying horses outside the window – don’t ask)

Business cards (Ah yes…I’ve been carrying around a couple of hundred business cards since 2012 and have probably handed out a grand total of 9)

ButterFox electronic gear case (it all fits inside – chargers, wireless mouse, small HDMI cable, plug adapters, laptop screen cleaner and these colorful little rubber twisty tie things that I thought would be useful but which I’ve never used)

And finally, I also carry around…

Passport (completely worn out, partly torn and with three extra sets of pages inside, two of which are sewn in and one which is taped in…talk about suspicious)

Yellow Fever certificate (only needed to use this once but good to have)

Sunglasses (for the first 35 years of my life, I never wore sunglasses but the last 5 years, I’ve worn them almost every day)

Pen (high-quality little pen I bought at a random pen shop in Singapore about 4 years ago)

USB stick (no idea what’s on this thing)

That’s everything!

Total weight:

Suitcase – 11 kg / 24 lbs Daypack – 5 kg / 13 lbs

And while all of the above might sound like a significant amount of stuff, here’s what it all looks like when nicely packed up:

Final Notes on Packing Carry on or checked luggage?

My current setup, whether with the backpack or suitcase, can always be taken as a carry-on. I usually take it as a carry-on if I am flying direct. If I have a layover somewhere, I check my backpack or suitcase simply because I don’t like to lug it around the airport. But I’ve never had any issues with size or weight when taking it as a carry-on, including on many budget airlines in Europe, Asia and Africa.

The good and the bad of packing light

Pros: My life fits into one small bag. It’s pretty simple, everything I need as a full-time traveler is right there and I can pack up and go in minutes if I’m being chased by local authorities …um, or I just suddenly decide to head to a new destination. There is also a sense of freedom involved with having such few possessions and having that ability to move around the globe so easily without having to think of what to do with excess stuff.

Cons: On the other hand, sometimes I wouldn’t mind some extra stuff. Another shirt or another pair of shoes, for example. I don’t need them but when you’re on the road for this long, some added variety wouldn’t hurt. Also, whenever I see something that I’d like to purchase, something that would look great in my home, I have to remind myself that I’m a full-time traveler that lives out of my suitcase and that there is no room in there for cool Moroccan lamps or a hand-woven Pakistani carpet.

Packing cubes

A friend and I have been going back and forth recently about the benefits of packing cubes. He sees a ton of benefits. I see zero benefits. I know they’re a popular thing but when a bag is all packed up with packing cubes, to me it just looks like my suitcase when it is all packed up, except that there are these cubes that now need to be opened in order for me to reach my stuff. Why have that extra step?

Is the above really all I own?

Pretty much, yes. I do have one box in a closet at my mom’s place that is filled with some extra clothes and a few gifts I’ve purchased for myself while traveling but I haven’t looked at it in a long time. It’s probably full of bugs. Apart from that, all of my possessions are literally in my suitcase and messenger bag.

So, the question is, could you live out of a suitcase? How do you pack, or think you’d pack, for your travels?