tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-227076972024-03-13T23:36:26.039+05:30Life in TaprobaneSerendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.comBlogger218125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-59946015530768851522011-04-11T01:07:00.006+05:302018-06-09T19:27:51.821+05:30Nothing else but...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I feel really bad about abandoning my digital child - this very blog. Nope, its not twitter, Facebook or Poken that has taken over my life, and it has nothing to do with a writer’s block either. <br />
Most of all, I feel really bad because I have promised many, that I would keep this blog alive. <br />
But then again, I’m busy scrambling my gray matter these days – trying to remember what I learnt from the advertising greats like Jeremy Bullmore, Richard Fowler and Brian Searle-Tripp at Ogilvy, long, long time ago. I’m trying to put together a series of presentations so that I could train my team – unfortunately it is not such an easy task. The thing is, advertising has evolved to become the art of communication; the world is changing so fast today that even Facebook has become a “traditional” medium. I feel I am too ‘old’ to keep up with this marathon – sometimes all I want to do is to sit under a coconut tree on a beautiful Sri Lankan beach, sip a nice <a href="http://wijitha.blogspot.com/2007/09/wild-elephant-reserve.html">Old Reserve with Wild Elephant</a>, put my legs up and enjoy the gorgeous sunset to the rhythm of the waves slashing against the white sands. <br />
Instead, I spend most of my time in a land where restaurants have two entrances: one for the “Single men” and the other for the “families” and women. My time in this country has become such a regular affair that I cannot even call my blog “Life in Taprobane” anymore – it might as well be re-christened as “Life in-between Mecca and Medina” I suppose. <br />
Not that I have a miserable life here - compared to most who live in Saudi Arabia. <br />
I have access to alcohol - albeit a bottle costs nearly 300 US dollars. I see women in bikinis if I peep from my front window at home. I live in a heavily fortified “compound” that’s similar to what’s seen in the movie “the Kingdom.” Every time I come home, I stop at the first gate manned by private security as well as the Army. Various warnings including “No Photos” and “Turn off the Headlights” stare at my face until a security guard scans the vehicle and raises the barrier. I usually wave at the guy and zig-zag through a maze of concrete barricades along a barbed-wire fenced wall, to the main gate where a guard sitting behind a bullet-proof window recognises me and presses a few buttons to lower the steel barrier as I wait for the red light to turn green. There’s another gate that opens immediately after the barrier, then I weave through another concrete jungle, bump over the humps at every 50 yards and slowly get to my home sweet home where I have unrestricted internet access and a bottle of Vodka in the fridge. <br />
Yes, the internet is censored to the public in the Kingdom and it is the “world outside the compound” that bothers me. <br />
There is a notice on our office door proclaiming that “Women Work Here” – and it reminds me of the signs we often see at home: “Beware of the Dog.” <br />
There are times that I find myself alone in an empty elevator, simple because some of the Saudi women refuse to enter because “there is a man inside.” I feel like a leper – but I know it is their loss, not mine. I KNOW they don’t get much opportunity to spend time with guys like me – so even a nano-second lost is a time gone to waste. For them. Besides, my breath could impregnate women – yes I have that gift – I guess that must be what those women are thinking. <br />
The social barricades here are unimaginable and unbelievable, women who live in Sri Lanka have absolutely no idea how blessed are they to be born in such a beautiful country. According to the <a href="http://www.weforum.org/issues/global-gender-gap">The World Economic Forum Gender Equality Survey</a>, women in Sri Lanka are treated better than the Australians, Canadians and even the Americans. Sri Lanka ranks at the 16 place, Saudi Arabia of course somewhere at the very bottom, barely keeping up with Chad, Mali and Benin. <br />
Women cannot drive in Saudi Arabia. Most women are at the mercy of their driver, even if they had to buy a Panadol for a headache (and, a woman needs a lot of those in this country!). They pay his salary, but the driver has the right to “pray” five times a day and the employer has to wait, no matter how important her needs are. <br />
There are quite a few, well-educated Saudi women who are joining the mainstream employment. These are the progressive women who know how to remain ‘progressive’ within the cultural and social norms, but the society isn’t ready for this. We have a client who employees around ten to fifteen thousand people across the Kingdom, but their head office does not have a single toilet dedicated for women. But, on the surface, this organisation is one of the most modern, forward-thinking businesses in the country that encourages the young Saudi females to lead the change. This is a minor detail compared to the other frustrations women have to put-up everyday at their workplace. Saudi men DO NOT look at a woman’s eyes when they talk to her – even in meetings and I find that very irritating. If she is friendly, they mis-read her. If she keeps her distance, they think she is a bitch. Some of them completely ignore her, as if she doesn’t exist. The religious extremism is so deep-rooted in their minds, they act as if they don’t have mothers or sisters. <br />
Saudi women are not allowed to be seen in public without a chaperone, they cannot travel without a male custodian, they are not allowed to represent themselves at a government office, in a police station or a Court without the male guardian. They cannot open a bank account for themselves on their own, even if they are employed and earning their own income. Rights of women, do not exist here. <br />
The society segregates the men and the women, they are not allowed to mix and mingle. We don’t usually ask our Saudi colleagues about their fiancés or wives – asking about someone else’s wife is like having an affair with her it seems. But, however, the lingerie shops in the Kingdom are manned by men who are allowed to measure a woman’s cup-size and talk to her about her underwear at length – because women are not allowed to work in shopping malls. Such is the beauty of this bowl of spaghetti of a country – they are all confused in their own religious laws and taboos. <br />
The other day, while chit-chatting about life of a woman in this country, one of my Saudi female friends put it in proper perspective: for a Saudi man, a woman is nothing else but a pussy!<br />
<i>*2012 UPDATE: The government encourages Saudi women joining the retail trade and now there are women serving at lingerie shops, cosmetics stores, supermarkets and even some restaurants.</i> </div>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com38tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-56583859978719401272011-03-02T01:53:00.004+05:302011-03-02T10:19:34.488+05:30Who Wants to See Mine?<p>Apparently, that IS the case: you show yours, on your anniversary. </p><p>Amongst the others, the <a href="http://londonlanka.blogspot.com/2011/02/ill-show-you-mine.html">drummer in the high tower</a> did it recently, so did <a href="http://cerno.wordpress.com/2011/02/06/four-years-of-blogging-1462-days-later/">Cerno</a>, our own <a href="http://not-so-pseudorandom.blogspot.com/2011/02/whoops.html">random girl Pseudo</a> and <a href="http://chavie101.blogspot.com/2011/02/oooh-yeah-edexcel-sucks.html">Chavie - the guy on the run</a>. </p><p>Which means, there is no escape – I have to show <a href="http://wijitha.blogspot.com/2006/02/welcome-to-my-life.html">mine</a>. </p><p>Sorry I’m late, completely forgot that I turned five, 10 days ago. I think I’ll blame Jessica - my gorgeous wing-man. Sorry, wing-woman. Oops, the wing-person. </p><p>And, I also realised that I haven’t answered my first comment on the first post. What a shame. </p><p>Sorry. Once again. </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-34075874314685644282011-02-18T21:22:00.004+05:302011-02-19T04:40:07.445+05:30I’m a Sucker for Sad StoriesIt’s Friday. The equivalent of Sunday in the other parts of the world. I got out of bed well past noon, had a cup of coffee and made a few calls to the ones that are dear to my heart. <p>Wandered around my little ‘house’ in my shorts and settled down to watch the American Idol Season 10 auditions. </p><p>There’s a girl from Kosovo who gets the nod. Her parents are delighted. The Idol does a little recap of the War in Yugoslavia and I think of home. And war. </p><p>While I disagree with <span style="font-style: italic;">Sirasa</span> TV copying the Idol, I salute the fact that these talent shows give hope to the hopeless people. Some of their sad stories bring tears to my eyes. </p><p>Especially this one: </p><p><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/f3wD54QAnzY?rel=0" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="390" width="640"></iframe> </p><p>I just love this girl. I love her voice, and most of all, her courage.</p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-13508159389241280752011-02-12T01:38:00.006+05:302011-02-12T02:11:45.089+05:30“I will die today, so Egypt can live tomorrow”<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhma6IlrSKeBPmTt99c3T4didL9V6uWChgMjOo-4A43kVpm9719sMgZ484JSB1nn4G-O6oJFMACmq0zx5RpcQQchjBETC_AdWOtP2rnu7aMaMctUi6xUItwApB-eDsfSjoz1hKW/s1600/tahrir_square_night_01.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhma6IlrSKeBPmTt99c3T4didL9V6uWChgMjOo-4A43kVpm9719sMgZ484JSB1nn4G-O6oJFMACmq0zx5RpcQQchjBETC_AdWOtP2rnu7aMaMctUi6xUItwApB-eDsfSjoz1hKW/s320/tahrir_square_night_01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5572528556426821746" border="0" /></a>“I will die today, so Egypt can live tomorrow” read a placard held by one of the protesters in Tahrir Square as I sat in front of my computer for the second consecutive day. A stream of pictures – of people waving flags and chanting – flashed nonstop on the television screen a couple of meters away from my desk. I was keen on knowing how my Egyptian friends looked at the unfolding drama, through their Facebook status messages and twitter feeds. <p>I was eager to know what was going to happen. </p><p>Then, there was the news of Mubarak’s address to the nation. But, alas, after a much-awaited speech, the Farewell Friday dawned with much anger and huge disappointment. </p><p>It was the third Friday, 18th consecutive day, for the thousands of protesters. As the day wearied away, I began to attend to other domestic affairs, losing interest in the on-going saga. I watched the Egyptians in Saudi Arabia, praising Mubarak and his 30-year regime on television. </p><p>The revolution seemed going nowhere. </p><p>I remember Hussain. My copywriter, a good 15 years ago, in Dubai. He had just joined the agency as my team-mate; it was his first time in the real world of advertising. We were pitching for KFC business. Sitting opposite in my office, he would occasionally pause to light his pipe and we would wander in to conversations that took me to the mysterious past of the Nile civilization. We would brag about our pasts and heritage, share our thoughts and agree on alien invasions – for one obvious reason: the intelligent people who built the pyramids or the flying machine that took <i>Ravana</i> to India, no longer existed. They were abducted: there was no other way to explain the common stupidity that prevailed in our countries. The chaos, the madness and the people’s optimism to rise beyond adversity, brought Egypt and my Paradise closer to each other. Hussain and I became very good friends. We had ancient civilizations to boast about and Western Empires to blame on everything that went wrong. </p><p>Sometimes, in the middle of a sentence that he was crafting, Hussain would stop to protest. “I cannot lie about this lump of lard. It’s unhealthy, horrible and shouldn’t be sold to kids. How dare you’d expect me to say that KFC is finger likin’ good..?” he would grumble. </p><p>Like many thousands of people who gathered at Tahrir Square today, my Egyptian friend was a God-fearing man. I had to brain-wash him and nurse him back to the deceitful and manipulative world of advertising, in many such occasions. </p><p>Then I remember the pretty ones from our network. Rezan and Yosr carried the evidence that Cleopatra or Nefertiti were, in fact, real people. They were gorgeous, beautiful people, inside and out. </p><p>Maya, Heba, Rania... my colleagues of yesteryear – they are very much like the Sri Lankans. They are happy people, who have learned to be optimistic amidst the constraints and restrictions. We faced common threats, we behaved in similar fashion in many ways. If their car bumped in to another – which is a common occurrence in jam-packed Cairo – they wouldn’t even bother getting the police involved. Their cops were as ‘good’ as ours. </p><p>In the last few days, leading to the events that brought down Hosni Mubarak, there was some unbelievable spirit of solidarity building up. The youth of the Arab World was with the people of Egypt. One of my dearest friends wrote “Viva La Revoluciona!!!” on her wall while another friend of mine sat sleepless throughout the nights, waiting for the change to happen. These were young Saudi women, supporting a cause. “I’m proud of my brothers and sisters of Egypt” read another message. There were many millions of similar sentiments expressed in Arabic, on Facebook, YouTube and every imaginable mode of communication. </p><p>Egypt, needed change. </p><p>And change has come to Egypt. In a most unprecedented manner, with minimum blood-shed, a revolution has taken place right before our eyes. </p><p>In the God-fearing, system-abiding, Arab World, this is much more significant than anywhere else. </p><p><span style="font-style: italic;">“There are many lessons behind the days, long hours, and the events that took us all through what seemed like a never ending emotional roller coaster... FAITH!! We never have to loose FAITH in JUSTICE, we need to take all those lessons along to next stage :)”</span> – wrote one of my Egyptian friends, on her wall as fireworks lit up the night sky in Tahrir Square. </p><p><span style="font-size:85%;">The picture is ‘stolen’ from here: http://kalamu.posterous.com/</span> </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-24420638366788224662011-02-11T21:48:00.004+05:302011-02-11T22:06:26.801+05:30Advertising: Graphic Design vs Art Direction<p>Advertising, is a mysterious business. In my mind at least, advertising is an industry that no longer exists – it has evolved to become the business – or rather the art of – communication. </p><p>In this mysteriously attractive industry, there are people with fancy titles. When I was an art director, my parents could not understand what it meant or what I did for a living. All I could say was that my dad was pissed at the fact that his would-have-been-engineer-son had become a hippie, a total disgrace to the family. </p><p>When I proudly presented my first ever job that was published, he was even more crossed and quite disappointedly remarked that he didn’t send his son to the best school in the country to do that kind of thing for a living. </p><p>I didn’t see my parents for about 3 years thereafter. </p><p>Nope, I didn’t leave the country, but in my rebellious heart I didn’t find a reason to visit them – even for the new year holidays. </p><p>Yes, I could be an arse, sometimes. But, that attitude helped me immensely in the business, in the years to come. </p><p>Anyhow, there is a huge misconception about the titles in this business. In many places, Graphic Designers get automatically promoted to Art Directors, sometimes by virtue of their presence in the agency, long enough. </p><p>Art Direction requires a different skill set to that of a designer. There are many who successfully acquire the above, but some fail miserably.<br /></p><p>Here’s an example of an ad that appeared in one of the industry magazines in the Middle East, clearly done by a designer:</p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2M1-3XxUc_uAgcN1hp3TsoWueXzg5O2KnDhAeUYTiVwyF5DqLi2_3xcbci1MaxovAlzSqyVe0g1xnU1QY4b_ntsFTOvfhsSHRaqB2bMSH1R1T3zUgQG-al7yMohqfpjiHyord/s1600/01_Desingers+Ad.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 278px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2M1-3XxUc_uAgcN1hp3TsoWueXzg5O2KnDhAeUYTiVwyF5DqLi2_3xcbci1MaxovAlzSqyVe0g1xnU1QY4b_ntsFTOvfhsSHRaqB2bMSH1R1T3zUgQG-al7yMohqfpjiHyord/s400/01_Desingers+Ad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5572468356056946850" border="0" /></a> </p><p>The same ad, if it were to be given a touch of quick “art direction” below: </p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw1TlDgsnfNki_tDIhfNIw0OsbzCXfCc5TGhGHaFIeWcyTwfy9wcmVqGDXu2umOxaQ4kCYOOevDkdQANkcWtka6vWzXeIHbuXdDQVjuNKkeVs0ohtyTCL0wd8b_dncwNq3aP_2/s1600/02_Art+Directors+ad.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 278px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw1TlDgsnfNki_tDIhfNIw0OsbzCXfCc5TGhGHaFIeWcyTwfy9wcmVqGDXu2umOxaQ4kCYOOevDkdQANkcWtka6vWzXeIHbuXdDQVjuNKkeVs0ohtyTCL0wd8b_dncwNq3aP_2/s400/02_Art+Directors+ad.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5572468655181812178" border="0" /></a> </p><p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-74530731463789206872011-02-06T02:18:00.004+05:302011-02-07T03:24:31.795+05:30Corned Beef<p>There was some fashion do in Colombo last evening and my wife got a free ticket. Thousands of miles and some time zones away from Paradise, I was bored staring at a computer screen that had a dimmed screen with a message that read “User Not Online.” Of course I knew she was not online, but sometimes, you just want to click the dial button for the heck of it. I think it is very <i>manly</i> to keep trying such things – like pressing the elevator button that is already pressed, knowing that’s already pressed by the man standing right in front of you. </p><p>Men do weird stuff like that, while women would just shut the computer and walk away to do their nails, or something much more fascinating – like yapping about Monica Bellucci’s cleavage with their besties. </p><p>So I was bored. And homesick. </p><p>I was hungry. </p><p>I was too lazy to drive-through my usual last resort in nourishment – and sustenance – the place where a clown sits in the front bench. I’m sick of the big macs, the royales and the big tasty ones. I usually buy a whole meal, pour the cola down the kitchen sink, eat the fries and forget the burger: two sachets of ketchup mixed with one sachet of mayo makes an amazing dip for the fries. <span style="font-style: italic;">By the way, I haven’t seen them serving mayo at McDonalds in paradise - have you?</span> </p><p>Anyhow. So I was hungry. Men come from a hunting and camping background – so I followed my instincts and decided to hunt for my prey, right within the perimeter of my kitchen. Mind you my humble abode is not a mansion with a huge kitchen that houses an army – its just a single bedroom joint where kitchen accommodates just one person. Not more, not less. While rummaging and foraging, I found an old can of corned beef, a quarter of a cabbage; and I knew there was some leftover rice in the fridge from the afternoon. So, I chopped-up some onions, garlic, and the cabbage that had been living in my fridge for a while. One more week and I would have had to adopt the cabbage or christen it with a suitable name. </p><p>Moments later, the lights were turned off, some candles were lit and yours truly was cooking a romantic meal for one, to the tune of Nina Simone and her Tomato Collection. </p><p>It was rather a quick one, but was much better than the pizzas, burgers and the localized Indian food available around the corner. <span style="font-style: italic;">I couldn’t say otherwise, for obvious reasons</span>. </p><p>Enjoyed my meal all alone, while watching some silly movie that I didn’t even pay much attention to. It would have been fantastic if I had a bottle of wine and some female company, but sometimes, life doesn’t let you enjoy the luxuries every single day of your life. </p><p>So this morning, while chatting to my charming wife, I shared my culinary adventure with her. </p><p>“What kind of a meal was that..?” was her prompt response, followed by a hearty laugh, and I am still wondering what’s wrong with eating <span style="font-style: italic;">corned beef and cabbage à la Sri Lankan style</span>, with some rice. </p><p>I am not at all disheartened by the reaction from the Minister of Domestic Affairs, I’m going to sell the recipe to Harpo’s or Barefoot as some fusion food – all I need is a fancy name that sells itself. :) </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-68594721819259647042011-01-31T19:32:00.004+05:302011-01-31T19:42:30.821+05:30Dear Anonymous...Dear Anon (and not so anon), <p>I was feeling like sh*t today, and then I saw your comment appear on my iPhone. I’m sorry I have let you down - I feel horrible for not updating my blog in a while. </p><p>Not that I didn’t want to, but every time I sat down with my laptop to write something down, I hit a wall. There were many brilliant topics - they <span style="font-style: italic;">sounded</span> brilliant in my head but looked like crap once I gathered them in words. Creative block, I assume. Had so much to say, simply didn’t know how. </p><p>Sometimes, words don’t come easy. </p><p>Hopefully, I will start writing again and keep this blog updated regularly. I have also promised my young (and gorgeous) prodigy, my señorita, that I will start writing again – so I have to keep her happy most of all. </p><p>Yes, it has been a while. </p><p>Yes, I missed you, terribly. </p><p>Yes, I missed reading your thoughts and blabber. Forgive me. </p><p>Once in a while I managed to randomly take a peek at your blogs – left a note here and there – but if I haven’t been fair or consistent, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be selective or choosy in reading your blogs or leaving behind any comments, it was a random act that perfectly suited the available 5-10-minute-slot in my hectic life. </p><p>So, I was busy. I travelled quite a bit. Went to Lebanon quite a few times for work – shot some beautiful commercials and partied like a pornstar. I was in and out of Sri Lanka – my paradise – almost a couple of times every month too. First, it was my little daughter who came back to live in Sri Lanka; you know how hard it is to find a suitable school and arrange everything in the middle of the year... Her relocation meant a lot of groundwork and sacrifice on a personal level, but then again, family comes first. </p><p>Then it was my dad. </p><p>Thank God – and thank you for all your wishes and prayers – he has recovered remarkably and now he is back on his feet again. It was just God’s way of asking him to slow down, it was also a moment for me to realize the value of life and appreciate the little things that we take for granted, everyday. </p><p>Dear Anon, thank you. Thank you for snapping me out of my miserable mood today and making me do something that I haven’t done in a while. </p><p>Hopefully, I will find my words and ways, again, and often.</p><p> Happy 2011 to you too. </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-88584648404254855302010-12-03T14:30:00.004+05:302010-12-03T14:41:46.453+05:30My Dad is Hairy...My dad is in the hospital. My wife wants to visit him and wants my daughter to take down the details. (For those who don’t know, I’m out of the country and my daughter has a mixed accent.) <p>“Paap, so what’s grandpa’s full name?”<br />“Its H. B. Wijesekera, H as in Harry and B as in Bravo…” </p><p>Then I hear her shout at the background: </p><p>“I got it… Grandpa’s name is Hairy Bravo Wijee-si-keyra..!” </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-26977513270528727232010-10-23T17:14:00.003+05:302010-10-23T17:19:09.841+05:30This one is for our Minister(s) of Education<object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zDZFcDGpL4U?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zDZFcDGpL4U?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br />BTW, why have I been quiet for a while? Too much to say, really. Until I gather my thoughts and find my way to creep back in to the Lankanosphere, enjoy the video and give it a thought. ;)Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-4160322130900322202010-06-23T04:14:00.014+05:302010-06-23T05:49:50.553+05:30Turning Knots into Bows...Spending quite a bit of time in Saudi Arabia where the entire country shuts down for prayer five times a day, I often wondered how religious they are compared to us – the Sri Lankans who take the religion quite liberally. Buddhism is a philosophy which has no strict rules of religious observations, and we also tend to visit each others places of worship without thinking much about betraying our own God. <p>Which led to some interesting research and I was quite flabbergasted to discover that we Sri Lankans are the World’s Second or the Third Religious nation, depending on the source.<br /></p><p>Below are some other factors that make us think of the brighter side and give us some hope in the middle of the chaos we live in...<br /></p><blockquote><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMD14lm6c4QzEIIojiknYIlXIC6MmldHwXyPACMhxB4YVSoFuuTO5Io-DyCaKQfiRCceIbpit9KX2hvScO2oGHMDzBSPOAgq1Yuu_zyrKpC0vIIUPvwCv-g8HUxeE0bYIeOdUU/s1600/Wijitha_Chart01.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 440px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMD14lm6c4QzEIIojiknYIlXIC6MmldHwXyPACMhxB4YVSoFuuTO5Io-DyCaKQfiRCceIbpit9KX2hvScO2oGHMDzBSPOAgq1Yuu_zyrKpC0vIIUPvwCv-g8HUxeE0bYIeOdUU/s400/Wijitha_Chart01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485746272153278610" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Religiosity Index measures is the measure of the importance of the religion for respondents and their self-reported attendance of religious services. For religions in which attendance at services is limited, care must be used in interpreting the data. </span></blockquote><blockquote><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzBfE4hSiAa8dR9pSKkM9ydT-4da2fA1YWSsUGwWb2BEufPamTZj95Cq8931pmz6FVc8CxmXKwt7EVNUD7XuOJ0gLB-H9TU-KZZVr5m4Vm9lHFyTS9iq02hT3s-PnqGMBvWm24/s1600/Wijitha_Chart02.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 440px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzBfE4hSiAa8dR9pSKkM9ydT-4da2fA1YWSsUGwWb2BEufPamTZj95Cq8931pmz6FVc8CxmXKwt7EVNUD7XuOJ0gLB-H9TU-KZZVr5m4Vm9lHFyTS9iq02hT3s-PnqGMBvWm24/s400/Wijitha_Chart02.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485746837775107650" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Optimism Index measures a respondent’s positive attitude for the future. Specifically, respondents are asked whether certain aspects of their life are getting better or getting worse. </span></blockquote><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggQOIUPetW7L2J_NJaaKx7nJ4eg0g_uSEPcrMPo2g3VndmBbUnxenl84WhStD13sZSTH9idt6JlivcHowjWutoepfaVH5wxUAHMHuSie6kD_7ofqvAIbErP71nzq0IDHnBhgBZ/s1600/Wijitha_Chart03.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 440px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggQOIUPetW7L2J_NJaaKx7nJ4eg0g_uSEPcrMPo2g3VndmBbUnxenl84WhStD13sZSTH9idt6JlivcHowjWutoepfaVH5wxUAHMHuSie6kD_7ofqvAIbErP71nzq0IDHnBhgBZ/s400/Wijitha_Chart03.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485751991594019042" border="0" /></a></p><p style="font-style: italic;"></p><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">Community Basics Index measures satisfaction with aspects of everyday life in a community, including education, environment, healthcare, housing and infrastructure.</blockquote><p></p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkEbItf-Y2MH41sI-vT4Uq73ueOSpeAkjIqBi08dSWXCCCwfZZwe1A1YmYCYnbL7h-vqcB7nTPAyv3q-Ot8SpbszmAF6t6RtCDPPb4i-2bDjhEAaqENzOv2oJuefRxSAPsaZ6k/s1600/Wijitha_Chart04.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 440px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkEbItf-Y2MH41sI-vT4Uq73ueOSpeAkjIqBi08dSWXCCCwfZZwe1A1YmYCYnbL7h-vqcB7nTPAyv3q-Ot8SpbszmAF6t6RtCDPPb4i-2bDjhEAaqENzOv2oJuefRxSAPsaZ6k/s400/Wijitha_Chart04.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485747517701502562" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><blockquote><span style="font-style: italic;">National Institutions Index measures confidence in key national institutions prominent in leading a country: the military, the judicial system, the national government and the honesty of elections.</span></blockquote><p></p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFEvO5cv6CNBV4OQ9LgIxOossHHuLRMluAJKNvqM-zNoqqK1u4ufc3kBiEQgdj8QK-8R_mlgO06YIvAyvHQ9bGaeuNimh9Mp0jDwfiGJ5WFLZRbMHY42dSeDH4vGMkBAmODnL/s1600/Wijitha_Chart05.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 440px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFEvO5cv6CNBV4OQ9LgIxOossHHuLRMluAJKNvqM-zNoqqK1u4ufc3kBiEQgdj8QK-8R_mlgO06YIvAyvHQ9bGaeuNimh9Mp0jDwfiGJ5WFLZRbMHY42dSeDH4vGMkBAmODnL/s400/Wijitha_Chart05.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485747832424986530" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><blockquote>Unemployment (% of total labour force). Shorter bars, the better. For once, we are doing really well, thanks to the global economic crisis!<br /></blockquote></span></p><p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilj2fphvdYIP3tvGaDdp0QvmY_rUMHlBI-e62kYczLjqBqPPGhtAhGI0gK3i0NZBKfYu3tkJq_2i6OujFJJKoeKnXwOGCcS48nZvy-AFProAnOOeLXZNBYctmpLz2D4iiSdrg3/s1600/Wijitha_Chart06.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 440px; height: 211px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilj2fphvdYIP3tvGaDdp0QvmY_rUMHlBI-e62kYczLjqBqPPGhtAhGI0gK3i0NZBKfYu3tkJq_2i6OujFJJKoeKnXwOGCcS48nZvy-AFProAnOOeLXZNBYctmpLz2D4iiSdrg3/s400/Wijitha_Chart06.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485748049299903938" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><blockquote>This entry records the cumulative total of all government borrowings less repayments that are denominated in a country’s home currency. Public debt should not be confused with external debt, which reflects the foreign currency liabilities of both the private and public sector and must be financed out of foreign exchange earnings.</blockquote></span></p><p><small>Sources: Gallup WorldView 2009 and CIA Factbook.</small></p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-52500087628275276682010-06-21T19:25:00.003+05:302010-06-21T19:32:43.772+05:30And you thought Colombo was Hot!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs1Uvfq1rVYQ556V9orMMouNuaHG29fFX3Y0Qv8-0Hii2vvVtBXfhf-OEx49buAvoklZYpFQniWWTp4XrpHWbkjpe1odH-JcFX-Csk579Pmn2_cDULkIDmSraRS7WT1AnMmPdS/s1600/Sizzling_Jeddah.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs1Uvfq1rVYQ556V9orMMouNuaHG29fFX3Y0Qv8-0Hii2vvVtBXfhf-OEx49buAvoklZYpFQniWWTp4XrpHWbkjpe1odH-JcFX-Csk579Pmn2_cDULkIDmSraRS7WT1AnMmPdS/s400/Sizzling_Jeddah.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485225578732367890" border="0" /></a>Colombo, as hot and sticky as it may feel, was still somewhere around 84° F around this time...Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-54393742475916867162010-04-13T00:53:00.003+05:302010-04-13T01:16:18.581+05:30Random Ad: Pedigree Dogs<object height="385" width="640"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/mUCRZzhbHH0&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/mUCRZzhbHH0&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="385" width="640"></embed></object><br /><br />A mundane task becomes amazing to watch, thanks to the technology. ;)<br /><br /><small>Credits: TBWA Toronto/Pedigree</small>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-20456128901127455182010-04-09T02:37:00.005+05:302010-04-09T03:20:16.419+05:30The Season of HopeI have stopped watching the news. There is nothing much on tv on Sri Lanka anymore. The war is over, an occasional finger-pointing hits the news and fades away like a ship sailing in the night. Unnoticed. <p>There is a lot of war-news. Bombs going off in Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan and <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/04/AR2010040401048.html" target="_blank">in Russia</a>. There is a lot of civilian casualty that Amnesty International or the Human Rights Watch is not interested in. The<a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article7088548.ece" target="_blank"> video footage of US Forces firing at Reuters reporters</a> has leaked out after three years, but we hear no <a href="http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6375044.ece" target="_blank">French or British voices wanting to take them to the UN Human Rights Council</a> for the war crimes they commit in foreign lands. </p><p>I’d say f-off to those hypocrites. </p><p>I’d say f-off to those who think that my country deserves to be labelled as a failed state. And to you Ranil, Mangala, Sarath and the lot who think that Sri Lanka has problems and the West is the answer, the saviour and the solution. </p><p>The war is over. For the first time in almost three decades, we are able to celebrate the Sinhala Hindu New Year without worrying about a bus bomb or an artillery fire. This year, there will be millions of homes celebrating the new year in whatever way they could afford. Grand or not, there will be a pot of milk-rice boiling in every kitchen, come mid April.</p><p>For the first time in thirty years, “Sinhala Hindu” new year has a meaning. For the first time in a generation, the Sinhalese and the Tamils are able to celebrate their traditions with a smile in their faces.<br /></p><p>Happy New Year and happy holidays everyone, may your life be filled with love, laughter, happiness and prosperity – always. </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-84309208232754036172010-04-02T01:23:00.001+05:302010-04-02T05:26:46.483+05:30Thousand Rupees, Hundred Mistakes.I came back from my previous holiday and handed over a new thousand rupee note to one of my buddies as a souvenir. “Maan, this tourist note looks so real, it’s even got a silver strip..!” he exclaimed, while thanking me for remembering him. <p>I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. (I had similar thoughts when I first got hold of the new note, I wasn’t sure if the note was genuine and legitimate. Besides, I was changing some dollars at a dodgy place in Welawatte.) </p><p>I told him that the note was not a ‘tourist souvenir’ but a real currency note. He honestly couldn't believe that we had such bad designs mass produced. </p><p>Currency notes are like stamps. Some people collect them, cherish them, save them and show them off occasionally. In their vast collections, these notes represent a nation and the level of intelligence of the natives. It’s like the Olympics of the currency notes and this time we have sent an imbecile to run the marathon for us. </p><p>The new note looks as if the designer had absolutely no understanding of the colour wheel, or any idea of complimentary/contrasting colours. There are floating objects all over the place, the colour combination looks like puke that comes out of an eighth grader at the Big Match. The designer has no sense of design, and he has no clue of scale or proportion. It is virtually impossible to find a human being with no imagination, how original is it to portray the raising of the flag this way? If the intention behind the design was to encourage someone sitting in a small print shop in Weeraketiya to produce counterfeits, the Central Bank has done a wonderful job. </p><p>Enough bashing the new note, <a href="http://indi.ca/2009/11/mahinda-money/" target="_blank">Indi’s post here</a> has done a good job of it, already. </p> <p>We have produced some fabulous notes in the past – the flora and fauna collection with the salmon-pink two rupee note being one of my favourites. We have also been progressive and innovative in our design – the plastic Rs 200 note even had the denomination imprinted in Braille. </p><p>So I took this ugly note to a beauty treatment, a quick 5 minute in Photoshop – only to manipulate the colours and make something decent out of it. I added a few touches like the shadow beneath the floating soldiers and fixed the sheath of rice and the pot <i>(pun-kalasa)</i> inside the outline of Sri Lanka. It was very clear to me that this could have been improved a hundred times, if there were people of <span style="font-style: italic;">some</span> intelligence taking care of the business. Easily.</p><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYfz8JiQ90LybCWGhPH_b-WeQcQ_KJk_Qg2nxlIpt5eokBEHXcyeC7hPcZetswOHYmqvzdH8FrEGjrF4W5SX3VAiFvhRg3wbATchaxmLcGNES-ZZ00mY0BDgg98B6eg2ygU9Dj/s1600/+Rs_1000_Front.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 525px; height: 143px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYfz8JiQ90LybCWGhPH_b-WeQcQ_KJk_Qg2nxlIpt5eokBEHXcyeC7hPcZetswOHYmqvzdH8FrEGjrF4W5SX3VAiFvhRg3wbATchaxmLcGNES-ZZ00mY0BDgg98B6eg2ygU9Dj/s400/+Rs_1000_Front.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455311585139791778" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl4pQOLFFvWl6wUCpLVi21zQadH0elSzDLV1gLKY9-QnLDiH1zuYh3cObSfIzTRZNBt-LPaA0y7ovQTT-8wjGeWPmIPw-cP0IALtfEzgSAB-3rwZZtbWVEmn-iWfGStgg3hhH4/s1600/+Rs_1000_Back.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 525px; height: 142px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl4pQOLFFvWl6wUCpLVi21zQadH0elSzDLV1gLKY9-QnLDiH1zuYh3cObSfIzTRZNBt-LPaA0y7ovQTT-8wjGeWPmIPw-cP0IALtfEzgSAB-3rwZZtbWVEmn-iWfGStgg3hhH4/s400/+Rs_1000_Back.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455311380393008066" border="0" /></a><br />Here’s glimpse of my favourite Sri Lankan currency collection from 1979:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlHSKNbq98tWp3DHpwwILEme0N4ibTgg2uO1N5OJZzLw5mpOWZgJ0-cFNrAbcfvnvmpo_BMnPZkoAtCQZcNRury-SbtzXLW-p4N3A9f3JTTyS8aN1EKi2da0I5Q53xqEUSkXD/s1600/1979_Rs2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 251px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHlHSKNbq98tWp3DHpwwILEme0N4ibTgg2uO1N5OJZzLw5mpOWZgJ0-cFNrAbcfvnvmpo_BMnPZkoAtCQZcNRury-SbtzXLW-p4N3A9f3JTTyS8aN1EKi2da0I5Q53xqEUSkXD/s200/1979_Rs2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455319653578752642" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib995xudLIzIsgV05QN0IjiBbFlfiFpw9K2ekhYjy6yEXbgefGyz1q3h7Nkliqnc3UpmW4ilvvM85otEXnpKHEaYdXE4gfD-psNQO0cFuLfbl6AFyMh8vbxUhjfe-vgyHBVclw/s1600/1979_Rs5.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 255px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib995xudLIzIsgV05QN0IjiBbFlfiFpw9K2ekhYjy6yEXbgefGyz1q3h7Nkliqnc3UpmW4ilvvM85otEXnpKHEaYdXE4gfD-psNQO0cFuLfbl6AFyMh8vbxUhjfe-vgyHBVclw/s320/1979_Rs5.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455319258815042066" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBRGYtrfPBVH4RF5K3l7pOlWwLH_RfFZ1-A_veMNUCuYQ_XVCJDdzNiMjQG5T9vJ9HKQgxDbGqc488pBLSU0_0SAmV_jfOlkV5mPtje1gc-W9G0BVKuKtzwVppFnXlmYSlzuK/s1600/1979_Rs10.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 255px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBRGYtrfPBVH4RF5K3l7pOlWwLH_RfFZ1-A_veMNUCuYQ_XVCJDdzNiMjQG5T9vJ9HKQgxDbGqc488pBLSU0_0SAmV_jfOlkV5mPtje1gc-W9G0BVKuKtzwVppFnXlmYSlzuK/s320/1979_Rs10.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455319251958620434" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCnEnyrifjYMXgZT67WWfwEKhXXG_NbS6Z-6KD5zDUs0yG18M5gUZaYwg0MulTqOLf6jTlFri5ZzaTkH8PWxFBWjcglYKI1vJDHxYhEf9jKwCsHS85cnELjHQyNk_wNVumRx72/s1600/1979_Rs20.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 269px; height: 269px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCnEnyrifjYMXgZT67WWfwEKhXXG_NbS6Z-6KD5zDUs0yG18M5gUZaYwg0MulTqOLf6jTlFri5ZzaTkH8PWxFBWjcglYKI1vJDHxYhEf9jKwCsHS85cnELjHQyNk_wNVumRx72/s320/1979_Rs20.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455319245607979858" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0zVvFa0odX6L3dVEKmZg23_7Z-VAYjoC9cseP2qyooAUL55vkeCMYr0mnN7utMlkfYMae9UrNRXPLxobASnrOZXGqyGibXcyuBVctx2B6AUu7SYjAgdu1zsejoGVx1y6hInT/s1600/1979_Rs50.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 264px; height: 259px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy0zVvFa0odX6L3dVEKmZg23_7Z-VAYjoC9cseP2qyooAUL55vkeCMYr0mnN7utMlkfYMae9UrNRXPLxobASnrOZXGqyGibXcyuBVctx2B6AUu7SYjAgdu1zsejoGVx1y6hInT/s320/1979_Rs50.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455319237502040338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjArtHMQyTrAFGe_zP08kyEt9oevqSYgrGJ7P2fzBCbivmaENXsH63IgH_iDihz-o9i1NQ7ukD80o0yzZMVZ_JWi0oYyLXNkoVcqEkuWOajvH3TZcR2s-hFPijPIl9mzaOczohU/s1600/1979_Rs100.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 266px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjArtHMQyTrAFGe_zP08kyEt9oevqSYgrGJ7P2fzBCbivmaENXsH63IgH_iDihz-o9i1NQ7ukD80o0yzZMVZ_JWi0oYyLXNkoVcqEkuWOajvH3TZcR2s-hFPijPIl9mzaOczohU/s320/1979_Rs100.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455319233257711458" border="0" /></a>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-61247252935042160812010-03-31T10:21:00.003+05:302010-03-31T11:23:13.810+05:30bX-gc7okd..? Oh, Blogger!Well, I have been receiving this error code that prevents me from comments moderation. It seems that <span style="font-style: italic;">some</span> of the comments you post get eaten by Heffalumps and Woozles at random. They ate a few, including Dandaleon’s comment this morning. Or, they just disappear in to comment heaven. Aaargh#$%%@!!<br /><br />Hopefully, Blogger should fix this problem soon.<br /><br />Oh by the way, how is Wordpress..? ;) Wondering if the grass is greener on the other side...Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-50111579241983538652010-03-30T23:36:00.000+05:302010-03-31T02:14:27.650+05:30I’m half Buddhist.“Pap, I’m half Buddhist” declares my son. There’s nothing surprising about this opening statement from a 12 year old, but then he continues to claim that his other half is Christian. I would’ve expected him to announce that he is half-Muslim – considering that his birth mother is of that faith. I certainly didn’t expect this. <p>When we moved to Colombo five years ago, he learnt the ABC’s of Buddhism. He used to go to the temple with my sister, he was fascinated by the little rituals. He loved to light the oil lamps and joss sticks, he liked arranging the flowers on the offering table at the temple and he loved to sit around the Bo tree scribbling in the sand, watching people chanting aloud. An occasional firefly or a bug would draw his attention and distract him, but he was a well behaved kid once set foot in the temple premises. </p><p>Then he moved to Dubai to live with the mother and came back an atheist a year later. </p><p>So I wondered how did he become a Christian, out of the blue. </p><p>Apparently, every evening he follows his boarding-school mates to the Chapel where he gets a chance to pray. He says he likes to kneel down and ask God for all his wishes to come true. </p><p>And he loves the fact that he gets blessed at the end of the service. “Paap, the father keeps his hand on my head and says <i>‘God Bless You my son, Rafael!’</i> and it makes me feel good...” he says in a cheerful voice over the telephone as I enquire about his new-found life in the boarding school. </p><p>As long as the religion teaches morals and provides him with guidance in life, as long as it gives him hope and instils faith in him, I wouldn’t care too much about the label it carries. </p><p>When it comes to one’s faith, does the label really matter? Either way, I’m just glad that my son is in safe hands. ;)</p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-65416332541765658082010-03-28T00:50:00.004+05:302010-03-28T01:56:15.930+05:30How an entire Country gave birth to an ElephantShe is a healthy one year old female ‘celebrity.’ She was born to a Thai mother, on the 17th of May last year at 8.45, weighing 80 kilos and was on her feet after 20 minutes of her birth.<br /><br /><object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/AZDNIJLedEw&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/AZDNIJLedEw&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="385" width="480"></embed></object><br /><br />Belgium’s favourite <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kai_mook_zoo_Antwerpen.jpg"" target="_blank">baby elephant Kai Mook</a> (Pearl in English) was famous from the moment the country saw the first ultra-sound scan. When her mother became pregnant, the Antwerp Zoological Gardens decided to leverage the pregnancy to drive more visitors to the zoo. So they decided to share the news with everyone, got them interested and engaged in the story, making the whole of Belgium feel as if they were involved in the pregnancy. <blockquote><p><i>“So just like any proud future parent, the zoo decided to show everyone the very first ultrasound. The scan was projected onto prominent buildings, along with a URL directing people to a central website, <a href="http://www.baby-olifant.be/"" target="_blank">www.baby-olifant.be</a>. On the site, the zoo not only invited people to suggest names for the baby elephant but also kept it updated with developments during the pregnancy. Daily news was posted onto the site, along with information about the mother and baby and a calendar countdown. </i></p><p><i>“The content was spread via social media with photos on Flickr and videos on YouTube. A tool was created to allow people to create a customized Facebook profile picture that featured their face with an elephant's trunk entering the frame and the message ”I’m also waiting for baby K.” </i></p><p><i>“When the labor started, interested parties were notified by SMS and invited to watch the birth live. Never before had so many Belgians watched a live event together online. More importantly, Antwerp Zoo welcomed 300,000 more visitors (200,000 paying) in 2009 than it did in 2008.”</i> reports <a href="http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=142957"" target="_blank">AdAge MediaWorks </a>on the success of the communication campaign. </p></blockquote><p></p><p>While ‘advertising’ in Sri Lanka is pretty much confined to traditional media, the rest of the world has moved on to ‘communication.’ It’s not one-way messaging on television, newspapers and radio anymore.<br /></p><p>‘Advertising’ has evolved into consumer engagement – two-way communication. The world has moved on from traditional advertising to brand activation, digital marketing and beyond. Now with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augmented_reality"" target="_blank">augmented reality</a>, one could experience true-to-life 3D holographic rendition of any product right in their own hands, at their own leisure, creating an amazing brand experience.<br /></p><p>At the same time, on this side of the Indian Ocean, we are led by agencies that are incapable of maintaining their own online presence (for example, JWT Colombo as not updated their blog in over 7 months!), let alone providing any brand with any sort of ground-breaking digital communication solutions.</p><p>We have a long way to go, don’t we?<br /></p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-61942627932439580312010-03-26T05:59:00.005+05:302010-03-26T07:33:08.905+05:30Corruption: An Appeal to the Sri Lankan MediaI googled “Sri Lanka Corruption” today and found out that most of the articles written on the web about corruption in Sri Lanka comes out of our own writing and our own newspapers. Not at all surprising, just as expected, one would say. Thereafter, one might find the international NGO’s, writing about corruption in our paradise isle completing the list. <p>For example, check out the <a href="http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2009/cpi_2009_table" target="_blank">Transparency International’s site</a> where they list the 2009 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) and we rank at 97, while USA ranks at 19, UK at 17, Australia at 8, France at 24, India at 84 and Saudi Arabia at 63. </p><p>According to <a href="http://www.worldaudit.org/corruption.htm" target="_blank">World Audit Organisation 2009 report</a>, we rank at 76, while USA ranks at 16, UK at 14, Australia at 8, France at 18, India at 64 and Saudi Arabia at 46. World Audit compiles their evaluations based on data coming from NGO’s such as Freedom House, Transparency International, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and The International Commission of Jurists etc. </p><p>According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gallup_Organization#Gallup_Poll" target="_blank">Gallup Poll</a> – often referred to as the most reliable source of public opinion – corruption index in the above countries paint a totally different picture. According to the poll, Sri Lanka’s corruption index is 54.4%, while USA scores a higher corruption rate at 63.4%, UK 48.1%, Australia 36%, France 49.6%, India 77.2% and Saudi Arabia scores the lowest corruption at 34.3%. Lower percentages are better. </p><p>Now comes the truth. People in India and the USA think that their countries are <span style="font-weight: bold;">more corrupt</span> than ours, while people in the UK and France think that their countries are <span style="font-weight: bold;">(almost) as corrupt as Sri Lanka</span>. </p><p>And occasionally, these countries even withhold aid, claiming that <span style="font-weight: bold;">WE</span> are a corrupt nation!</p><p>Who would you trust? The NGO’s or the most trusted source of public opinion? Please check out the chart below and you will see the gap between the NGO data and public opinion for the countries that usually fund the NGOs. Compare that to the data of Sri Lanka or Saudi Arabia where the public opinion reflects NGO data. </p><hr /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6_XU7RoUH4Mk3cUrI1W5o56YdL69iAU2_QywbwRSqVySVFQHhdQL2tCY9m9NgWAcfQPx56kcbCafln6EN_-l42Nu2YCk1UfSD0dbOKxkqw0JK7ua_Klt1k83pWJr8gh7YARZZ/s1600/Corruption+Index.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 429px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6_XU7RoUH4Mk3cUrI1W5o56YdL69iAU2_QywbwRSqVySVFQHhdQL2tCY9m9NgWAcfQPx56kcbCafln6EN_-l42Nu2YCk1UfSD0dbOKxkqw0JK7ua_Klt1k83pWJr8gh7YARZZ/s400/Corruption+Index.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5452746258614762258" border="0" /></a><hr /><p>Wouldn’t the American politicians invading Iraq for the control of oil business qualify for corruption? How would <a href="http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat/235197/blackwater_oil_and_the_colonial_enterprise" target="_blank">Bush+Cheney Business Enterprise that ran Halliburton and Blackwater etc</a> escape the NGO corruption rankings? How would USA remain at the top when the level of corruption in the US is monumental..? </p><p>The truth is that we wash our dirty linen in public while the West doesn’t. NGO’s need to keep their funds pouring-in; they are either run by, or controlled by the West. They paint a bleak picture of developing nations as the most corrupt countries in the world, while conveniently ignoring the billions of dollars that change hands under their own tables, in their air-conditioned comfort. A traffic cop taking a couple of dollars instead of issuing a ticket makes it to their list, while high profile incidents such as <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/world/former-uk-ministers-suspended-in-bribe-scandal-20100323-qtyl.html" target="_blank">the former British Transport Secretary who charged 5,000 pounds a day</a> (=Rs 845,000.00) escapes the list. That would be equal to 1,690 traffic cops taking a bribe of 500 rupees each, a day. Not only that, 5,000 pounds is a teeny weeny amount compared to the <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-23/u-s-accuses-daimler-ag-of-bribery-law-violations-update1-.html" target="_blank">millions</a> and <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-25/u-k-court-allows-extradition-in-kbr-bribery-case-update1-.html" target="_blank">millions</a> of dollars that change hands in the West everyday. </p><p>I’m not going to waste my time writing about NGO’s and how they manipulate facts for their own advantage. We’ve witnessed their antics as the Wanni region came out of the jungle. </p><p>Post war Sri Lanka is entering a new era. There is much hope and there are huge expectations. In our journey to recovery, our image plays a major role. I have written about what it means to maintain an image of a country – so let me finish this with a humble request to those who contribute to the mainstream media and citizen journalism. </p><p>Please, please don’t tarnish our image. Look beyond Sri Lanka, do a bit of research and follow independent, most reliable and trusted sources and look at our country from an international perspective. Sri Lanka is not as bad as you think. What you write goes out there in to the oblivion and it gets printed in an NGO report as “reliable information coming from Sri Lanka” – just like Amnesty International has “Sri Lanka Experts” when they don’t even have an office anywhere in the country. <span style="font-style: italic;">It doesn’t help when Minoli Frenandes says that “there are no independent reporters allowed in the frontline” when her Al Jazeera crew reports exclusively from the frontline.</span> </p><p>Please don’t feed those who are going to rip us apart. </p><p>Please be responsible. Focus on the positive side of our beautiful island, the image of Sri Lanka – our little paradise – is in your hands. </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-57338863387533382882010-03-25T18:33:00.005+05:302010-03-25T19:11:52.991+05:30Advertising: Logic vs MagicGentlemen,<br /><br />I felt like sh*t last evening, going home. I was drained, I wished I were sipping a beer somewhere on a beach. Like my home, in Sri Lanka. <p>Instead, I was driving along the Malek Road, depressed, and feeling dejected. </p><p>This morning, I was itching to write what I felt inside. </p><p>So I did. </p><p>Having been part of the team that worked on (X) Brand Campaign, I think I have the right to express what I felt. </p><p>For me, last night was an eye opener. </p><p>As an agency, we have reached a milestone. </p><p>We are beginning to see Science overtake Art.<br />We see Logic overtake Magic.<br />And Quantity overtake Quality. </p><p>Last night, there was no Passion evident.<br />Last night, we have lost Inspiration. </p><p>We have become slaves to the system.<br />We have become the robots of the 21st century that turn out “artwork” – not great advertising.<br />If I had an iota of a hope of producing something award winning at (X agency), it went down the gutter last night. </p><p>I do not know about you guys, but I am a man of integrity and pride.<br />Yes, pride, not price.<br />I take pride in what I do.<br />We create art. We create brands.<br />We are not growing potatoes.<br />We sell advertising. Not popcorn. </p><p>This agency needs to learn to treat itself with self-respect and dignity.<br />We need to learn to respect our work, and more importantly, the people behind the work. </p><p>Once we learn to respect our work and take pride in our work, we will be able to walk in to a meeting with confidence and sell some great advertising. </p><p>But that, begins here. </p><p>Learning to treat individuals with dignity and respect starts in front of the mirror.<br />Learning to treat their work with respect, starts within the agency. </p><p>We are not a production line. We are human.<br />We are humans that are running out of steam.<br />We are humans of integrity, we are slaves to none. </p><p>Creativity cannot be mass-produced, it needs to be inspired. </p><p>Going back, the most troubling questions that linger in my mind are:<br />Is it Science, or Art?<br />Is it Magic, or Logic?<br />Is it Quality, or Quantity?<br />Are we human, or just a production line? </p><p>The answer would define the future of the agency. </p><p>And when will we begin to believe in our work? </p><p>When will we begin to see a genuine smile on a face? </p><p>Yes, we are striving towards change: change for the better.<br />Yes, we are all supportive of the change. </p><p>But it should not be at the cost of a single smile. ;) </p><p style="text-align: center;">* * * * </p><p><i>This is a note I sent this morning, after sitting through an internal meeting that demonstrated how disjointed an advertising agency could be. Like every business, we are also aggressive and bullish, but in the process we were making two major blunders: too much marketing knowledge and theories were killing the passion in creativity, and quantity over quality was driving people insane.<br />And we were forgetting to appreciate the foot soldiers for their commitment and sacrifices they make in their everyday life for the betterment of the agency. </i></p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-86947412728567824572010-03-24T09:46:00.002+05:302010-03-24T09:52:49.297+05:30HomeworkMy son gets some homework in English Writing. <p>The task is to write a dialogue. </p><p>The scene is home, his room is supposedly (supposed to be?) messy. The mother wants everything back in it’s place and the room tidied. </p><p>You know kids, they could never keep a tidy room. And the teacher thought this would be a good exercise, the perfect setting for a good, 10 minute dialogue. </p><p>And Rafael does his homework: </p><p><i>Mother: “Rafael... will you please tidy the room, NOW!”<br />Rafael: “Ok.”</i></p><p>He gets 2 out of 10! </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-32063079020122658272010-03-21T10:25:00.006+05:302010-03-22T11:08:47.618+05:30Did You Know?Early this year, we were looking for an English Medium boarding school for my son. We found boarding schools. We found English medium schools. But there are no English Medium boarding schools in Sri Lanka. <p>In other words, if your child does not speak either Sinhala or Tamil, he cannot study in any government or private school in Sri Lanka. He would only be able to study in an “international” school – the kind that operates under business licences and not monitored or regulated by the ministry of education. </p><p>So why would schools such as Royal, St. Thomas’, St Joseph’s, Trinity or Museaus claim they have an “English” medium when half the subjects are taught in one of the native languages? What would someone who doesn’t speak Sinhala or Tamil do – go back to where they came from? </p><p>They say that the quality of a country’s workforce is a direct reflection of the standard of education. Ours, is in shambles. We boast of very high literacy rate, but send our kids overseas for higher education. As a country, we spend too much money in “purchasing knowledge” from the US, UK, Australia and Singapore (now India, Malaysia) etc, when, as a whole, we could have built fabulous universities with that money, right here, in our own land so that more and more generations could have reaped the results. </p><p>Our aging education module needs desperate change. It is the 21st century, yet we still don’t breed certain skill sets that are needed for today’s world. For example, the advertising industry needs creative professionals – but none of the universities actually produce them. I would love to hire a few art directors or graphic designers for our network overseas, but unfortunately, the Sri Lankans are not on par with the rest of the world. </p><p>Planners, stylists, animators and touch-point marketers etc will never come out of our universities. Jobs we do today should have been in our education system 10 years ago, not 10 year later. </p><p>Like this video claims, the top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010 did not exist in 2004. </p><p><object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/jpEnFwiqdx8&hl=en_US&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/jpEnFwiqdx8&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="385" width="480"></embed></object> </p><p>The radio took 38 years to reach an audience of 50 million, while Facebook did it in 2 years. </p><p>The number of internet devices in 1984 was 1,000. In 1992 it was a million and in 2008 it was a billion. Increased by a million times in just 24 years. When the world is moving at such speed, why are we stuck in yesteryear? </p><p>How will Sri Lanka cope when 2030 dawns..? Are we future ready..?<br /></p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-49586602722408432052010-03-19T03:39:00.004+05:302010-03-22T11:03:31.590+05:30Top 100 Global Brands of 2009 and their Slogans2009 was a terrible year, the year of the financial crisis. Only one third of the <a href="http://wijitha.blogspot.com/2009/01/top-100-global-brands-of-2008-and-their.html" target="_blank">top 100 brands of 2008</a> managed to post a positive growth, while some slipped off the list completely. The biggest performers of the year were Google (25% growth in 2009), Amazon.com (22%) and Zara (14%) and the biggest losers were UBS (-50%), Citigroup (-49%) and Harley Davidson (-43%).<br /><br />Coca-Cola remains the world’s biggest brand for yet another year – they have been so for the last 10 years and more. Japan’s top brand Toyota slipped a few notches and Apple jumped a few positions higher. Only the financial sector and automotive sector fell, while everything else – including luxury goods recorded an overall growth.<br /><hr /><center>TOP 100 GLOBAL BRANDS OF 2009<br /><i>Rank, Brand, Brand Value in US$ Millions, Country of Origin, Growth, 2008 Rank and Most Common Slogan</i></center><hr /><table border="0"><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>Coca-Cola</td><td>68,734</td><td>US</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(1)</td><td>Live on the Coke Side of Life</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>IBM</td><td>60,211</td><td>US</td><td><i>2%</i></td><td>(2)</td><td>Solutions for a Small Planet</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>Microsoft</td><td>56,647</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-4%</i></td><td>(3)</td><td>Your Potential. Our Passion.</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>GE</td><td>47,777</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-10%</i></td><td>(4)</td><td>Imagination at Work</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>Nokia</td><td>34,864</td><td>Finland</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-3%</i></td><td>(5)</td><td>Connecting People</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>McDonalds</td><td>32,275</td><td>US</td><td><i>4%</i></td><td>(8)</td><td>I’m Lovin’ It</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>Google</td><td>31,980</td><td>US</td><td><i>25%</i></td><td>(10)</td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>Toyota</td><td>31,330</td><td>Japan</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-8%</i></td><td>(6)</td><td>Moving Forward</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>Intel</td><td>30,636</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-2%</i></td><td>(7)</td><td>Leap Ahead</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td>Disney</td><td>28,447</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-3%</i></td><td>(9)</td><td>Where Dreams Come True</td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td>Hewlett-Packard</td><td>24,096</td><td>US</td><td><i>2%</i></td><td>(12)</td><td>Invent</td></tr><tr><td>12</td><td>Mercedes-Benz</td><td>23,867</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-7%</i></td><td>(11)</td><td>The Future of the Automobile</td></tr><tr><td>13</td><td>Gillette</td><td>22,841</td><td>US</td><td><i>4%</i></td><td>(14)</td><td>The Best a Man Can Get</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td>Cisco</td><td>22,030</td><td>US</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(17)</td><td>Welcome to the Human Network*</td></tr><tr><td>15</td><td>BMW</td><td>21,671</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-7%</i></td><td>(13)</td><td>The Ultimate Driving Machine*</td></tr><tr><td>16</td><td>Louis Vuitton</td><td>21,120</td><td>France</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-2%</i></td><td>(16)</td><td>The Spirit of Travel</td></tr><tr><td>17</td><td>Marlboro</td><td>19,010</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-11%</i></td><td>(18)</td><td>Welcome to the Marlboro Country</td></tr><tr><td>18</td><td>Honda</td><td>17,803</td><td>Japan</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-7%</i></td><td>(20)</td><td>The Power of Dreams</td></tr><tr><td>19</td><td>Samsung</td><td>17,518</td><td>S. Korea</td><td style="color: orange;">-1%</td><td>(21)</td><td>Everyone’s Invited</td></tr><tr><td>20</td><td>Apple</td><td>15,433</td><td>US</td><td><i>12%</i></td><td>(24)</td><td>Think Different</td></tr><tr><td>21</td><td>H&M</td><td>15,375</td><td>Sweden</td><td><i>11%</i></td><td>(22)</td><td>Fashion Available for Everybody</td></tr><tr><td>22</td><td>American Express</td><td>14,971</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-32%</i></td><td>(15)</td><td>Do More</td></tr><tr><td>23</td><td>Pepsi</td><td>13,706</td><td>US</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(26)</td><td>The Choice of the New Generation</td></tr><tr><td>24</td><td>Oracle</td><td>13,699</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-1%</i></td><td>(23)</td><td>Can’t Break It. Can’t Break In.</td></tr><tr><td>25</td><td>Nescafé</td><td>13,317</td><td>Switzerland</td><td><i>2%</i></td><td>(28)</td><td>Awaken Your Senses</td></tr><tr><td>26</td><td>Nike</td><td>13,179</td><td>US</td><td><i>4%</i></td><td>(29)</td><td>Just Do It</td></tr><tr><td>27</td><td>SAP</td><td>12,106</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-1%</i></td><td>(27)</td><td>The Best-run e-businesses Run SAP</td></tr><tr><td>28</td><td>IKEA</td><td>12,004</td><td>Sweden</td><td><i>10%</i></td><td>(35)</td><td>Make a House a Home</td></tr><tr><td>29</td><td>Sony</td><td>11,953</td><td>Japan</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-12%</i></td><td>(25)</td><td>It’s a Sony</td></tr><tr><td>30</td><td>Budweiser</td><td>11,833</td><td>US</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(33)</td><td>The King of Beers</td></tr><tr><td>31</td><td>UPS</td><td>11,594</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;">-8%</td><td>(30)</td><td>Deliver More</td></tr><tr><td>32</td><td>HSBC</td><td>10,510</td><td>UK</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-20%</i></td><td>(27)</td><td>The World’s Local Bank</td></tr><tr><td>33</td><td>Canon</td><td>10,441</td><td>Japan</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-4%</i></td><td>(36)</td><td>Image Anywhere</td></tr><tr><td>34</td><td>Kellogg’s</td><td>10,428</td><td>US</td><td><i>7%</i></td><td>(39)</td><td>They’re Great!</td></tr><tr><td>35</td><td>Dell</td><td>10,291</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-12%</i></td><td>(32)</td><td>Purely You</td></tr><tr><td>36</td><td>Citi</td><td>10,254</td><td>US</td><td style="color: red;"><i>-49%</i></td><td>(19)</td><td>The Citi Never Sleeps</td></tr><tr><td>37</td><td>JPMorgan</td><td>9,550</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-11%</i></td><td>(37)</td><td>Your Choice. Your Chase.</td></tr><tr><td>38</td><td>Goldman Sachs</td><td>9,428</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;">-10%</td><td>(38)</td><td>Our Client’s Interest Always Comes First</td></tr><tr><td>39</td><td>Nintendo</td><td>9,210</td><td>Japan</td><td><i>5%</i></td><td>(40)</td><td>Who Are You?</td></tr><tr><td>40</td><td>Thompson Reuters</td><td>8,434</td><td>UK</td><td>1%</td><td>(44)</td><td>For People in the Know</td></tr><tr><td>41</td><td>Gucci</td><td>8,182</td><td>Italy</td><td style="color: orange;">-1%</td><td>(45)</td><td>Quality is Remembered Long After the Price is Forgotten</td></tr><tr><td>42</td><td>Philips</td><td>8,121</td><td>Netherlands</td><td style="color: orange;">-2%</td><td>(43)</td><td>Sense and Simplicity</td></tr><tr><td>43</td><td>Amazon.com</td><td>7,858</td><td>US</td><td><i>22%</i></td><td>(58)</td><td>A Real Company in a Virtual World</td></tr><tr><td>44</td><td>L’Oreal</td><td>7,748</td><td>France</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(51)</td><td>Because You Are Worth It</td></tr><tr><td>45</td><td>Accenture</td><td>7,710</td><td>Bermuda</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-3%</i></td><td>(47)</td><td>High Performance, Delivered.</td></tr><tr><td>46</td><td>eBay</td><td>7,350</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-8%</i></td><td>(46)</td><td>The Power of All of Us</td></tr><tr><td>47</td><td>Siemens</td><td>7,308</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-8%</i></td><td>(47)</td><td>Be Inspired</td></tr><tr><td>48</td><td>Heinz</td><td>7,244</td><td>US</td><td><i>9%</i></td><td>(56)</td><td>57 Varieties</td></tr><tr><td>49</td><td>Ford</td><td>7,005</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-11%</i></td><td>(49)</td><td>Ford. Drive One.</td></tr><tr><td>50</td><td>Zara</td><td>6,780</td><td>Spain</td><td><i>14%</i></td><td>(62)</td><td>We Have a Dream</td></tr><tr><td>51</td><td>Wrigley’s</td><td>6,731</td><td>US</td><td>10%</td><td>(61)</td><td>Double Your Pleasure</td></tr><tr><td>52</td><td>Colgate</td><td>6,550</td><td>US</td><td><i>2%</i></td><td>(57)</td><td>The Colgate Ring of Confidence</td></tr><tr><td>53</td><td>AXA</td><td>6,525</td><td>France</td><td style="color: orange;">-7%</td><td>(55)</td><td>Be Life Confident</td></tr><tr><td>54</td><td>MTV</td><td>6,523</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-9%</i></td><td>(52)</td><td>Think MTV</td></tr><tr><td>55</td><td>Volkswagen</td><td>6,484</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-8</i></td><td>(53)</td><td>Das Auto</td></tr><tr><td>56</td><td>Xerox</td><td>6,431</td><td>US</td><td>1%</td><td>(59)</td><td>The Digital Document Company</td></tr><tr><td>57</td><td>Morgan Stanley</td><td>6,399</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-26%</i></td><td>(42)</td><td>One Client At a Time</td></tr><tr><td>58</td><td>Nestlé</td><td>6,319</td><td>Switzerland</td><td><i>13%</i></td><td>(63)</td><td>Good Food. Good Life.</td></tr><tr><td>59</td><td>Chanel</td><td>6,040</td><td>France</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(60)</td><td>Share the Fantasy</td></tr><tr><td>60</td><td>Danone</td><td>5,960</td><td>France</td><td><i>10%</i></td><td>(66)</td><td>A Little Everyday Goes a Long Long Way</td></tr><tr><td>61</td><td>KFC</td><td>5,722</td><td>US</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(64)</td><td>Finger Lickin’ Good</td></tr><tr><td>62</td><td>Adidas</td><td>5,397</td><td>Germany</td><td><i>6%</i></td><td>(70)</td><td>Impossible is Nothing</td></tr><tr><td>63</td><td>BlackBerry</td><td>5,138</td><td>Canada</td><td><i>7%</i></td><td>(73)</td><td>Life on Blackberry</td></tr><tr><td>64</td><td>Yahoo!</td><td>5,111</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-7%</i></td><td>(65)</td><td>Do You Yahoo!?</td></tr><tr><td>65</td><td>Audi</td><td>5,010</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-7%</i></td><td>(67)</td><td>Vorsprung Durch Technik</td></tr><tr><td>66</td><td>Caterpillar</td><td>5,004</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;">-5%</td><td>(68)</td><td>Earthmoving Solutions for Today’s Challenges</td></tr><tr><td>67</td><td>Avon</td><td>4,917</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;">-7%</td><td>(69)</td><td>Let’s Talk</td></tr><tr><td>68</td><td>Rolex</td><td>4,609</td><td>Switzerland</td><td style="color: orange;">-7%</td><td>(71)</td><td>Perpetual Spirit</td></tr><tr><td>69</td><td>Hyundai</td><td>4,604</td><td>S. Korea</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(72)</td><td>Drive Your Way</td></tr><tr><td>70</td><td>Hermés</td><td>4,598</td><td>France</td><td>1%</td><td>(76)</td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>71</td><td>Kleenex</td><td>4,404</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(74)</td><td>It’s Time to Let It Out</td></tr><tr><td>72</td><td>UBS</td><td>4,370</td><td>US</td><td><i><span style="color:red;">-50%</span></i></td><td>(41)</td><td>You & Us</td></tr><tr><td>73</td><td>Harley Davidson</td><td>4,337</td><td>US</td><td><i><span style="color:red;">-43%</span></i></td><td>(50)</td><td>The Legend Rolls On...</td></tr><tr><td>74</td><td>Porsche</td><td>4,234</td><td>Germany</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-8%</i></td><td>(75)</td><td>There is No Substitute</td></tr><tr><td>75</td><td>Panasonic</td><td>4,225</td><td>Japan</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-1%</i></td><td>(78)</td><td>Just Slightly Ahead of Our Time</td></tr><tr><td>76</td><td>Tiffany & Co.</td><td>4,000</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(80)</td><td>America’s House of Design Since 1837</td></tr><tr><td>77</td><td>Cartier</td><td>3,698</td><td>France</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-6%</i></td><td>(79)</td><td>The Jeweller of Kings</td></tr><tr><td>78</td><td>GAP</td><td>3,922</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-10%</i></td><td>(77)</td><td>For every Generation, there is a GAP</td></tr><tr><td>79</td><td>Pizza Hut</td><td>3,876</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(81)</td><td>Great Pizzas. Great Times.</td></tr><tr><td>80</td><td>Johnson & Johnson</td><td>3,847</td><td>US</td><td>7%</td><td>(92)</td><td>The Family Company</td></tr><tr><td>81</td><td>Allianz</td><td>3,831</td><td>France</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(82)</td><td>Financial Solutions from A to Z</td></tr><tr><td>82</td><td>Moët & Chandon</td><td>3,754</td><td>France</td><td style="color: orange;">-5%</td><td>(83)</td><td>Be Fabulous*</td></tr><tr><td>83</td><td>BP</td><td>3,716</td><td>UK</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(84)</td><td>Beyond Petroleum</td></tr><tr><td>84</td><td>Smirnoff</td><td>3,698</td><td>UK</td><td><i>3%</i></td><td>(89)</td><td>There’s Vodka. Then There’s Smirnoff.</td></tr><tr><td>85</td><td>Duracell</td><td>3,563</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-3%</i></td><td>(88)</td><td>Lasts Longer, Much Longer.</td></tr><tr><td>86</td><td>NIVEA</td><td>3,557</td><td>Germany</td><td><i>5%</i></td><td>(98)<i></i></td><td>Beauty Is...</td></tr><tr><td>87</td><td>Prada</td><td>3,530</td><td>Italy</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-2%</i></td><td>(91)</td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>88</td><td>Ferrari</td><td>3,527</td><td>Italy</td><td><i>0%</i></td><td>(93)</td><td>Art and Emotion</td></tr><tr><td>89</td><td>Armani</td><td>3,303</td><td>Italy</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-6%</i></td><td>(94)</td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>90</td><td>Starbucks</td><td>3,263</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-16%</i></td><td>(85)</td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>91</td><td>Lancôme</td><td>3,235</td><td>France</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>92</td><td>Shell</td><td>3,228</td><td>Netherlands</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-7%</i></td><td>(97)</td><td>You Can Be Sure of Shell</td></tr><tr><td>93</td><td>Burger King</td><td>3,223</td><td>US</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>Have it Your Way</td></tr><tr><td>94</td><td>VISA</td><td>3,170</td><td>US</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-5%</i></td><td>(100)</td><td>Life Takes Visa</td></tr><tr><td>95</td><td>Adobe</td><td>3,161</td><td>US</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>96</td><td>Lexus</td><td>3,158</td><td>Japan</td><td style="color: orange;"><i>-12%</i></td><td>(90)</td><td>Pursuit of Perfection</td></tr><tr><td>97</td><td>Puma</td><td>3,154</td><td>Germany</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>—</td></tr><tr><td>98</td><td>Burberry</td><td>3,095</td><td>UK</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>Luxury</td></tr><tr><td>99</td><td>Polo Ralph Lauren</td><td>3,094</td><td>US</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>Get Involved. Volunteer. Exceed.</td></tr><tr><td>100</td><td>Campbell’s</td><td>3,081</td><td>US</td><td><i>New</i></td><td><br /></td><td>Why Settle When You Can Select</td></tr></tbody></table><hr /><i>Source: <a href="http://www.interbrand.com/" target="_blank">Interbrand</a></i><br /><i>* Some brand positionings or slogans may vary from market to market. For example, BMW is moving towards “Joy” and it is no longer the “Ultimate Driving Machine.” </i>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-55988592256930601152010-03-15T03:43:00.000+05:302010-03-15T03:43:09.003+05:30Of Traffic and Get Well Soon’s...Yes, this goes to Sach - the guy with “<a href="http://sachtheone.blogspot.com/2010/03/skiing-nose-and-work.html" target="_blank">the worst cold a man has ever endured in the history of mankind</a>” over there, in Japan. Sach, get well soon.<br />
<br />
More than that, this goes to my good friend and former neighbour who now lies unconscious in a hospital bed in Medina, in an induced coma. He was travelling to Medina last Friday with three of his friends when a tyre blew in his vehicle, sending it rolling across the centre barrier to the oncoming traffic. Apparently, the tumbling vehicle rolled over five times and sent my friend D flying out of the window in the process, landing him on the asphalt hitting his head on the pavement. <br />
<br />
Apparently, his skull is fractured, and there are some serious concerns that the doctors are not so sure of, yet. His parents have flown in from Lebanon and I cannot even go see him since the road to Medina is only open to Muslims.<br />
<br />
I pray, and hope, that he recovers. Soon.<br />
<br />
***<br />
<br />
Saudi Arabia boasts of some of the worst drivers in the world. Looking at statistics in Saudi Arabia:<br />
<ul><li>more than 6,400 deaths every year from car accidents, which means, every 82 minutes one person dies of a road accident</li>
<li>over 50,000 deaths, 300,000 injuries and losses of over 100 billion Saudi Riyal (= 26.6 billion US$) from car accidents in the past 10 years. Compare that to only 200 casualties from terrorist activities..!</li>
<li>4.3 million car accidents causing 86,000 deaths and 611,000 injuries in the past 19 years.</li>
</ul>More over,<br />
<ul><li>85% of accidents are caused by drivers violating to traffic rules</li>
<li>7% of injuries end with complete or partial disability</li>
<li>and majority of hospital beds (up to 80% in some hospitals) are occupied by road accident victims, not people suffering from various medical conditions and illnesses.</li>
</ul>Saudi traffic rules are supposed to be strict, but at the same time, they are somewhat weird. For example, the passenger in the front seat could be penalised for mistakes of the driver – for not advising him to abide by the law. Wearing the seat belt is a must, but only for the front seat occupants. And if a woman is seated at the front, the Police will never issue a ticket for her for not wearing the seat belt: women sometimes do not exist in the eyes of the ‘system.’<br />
<br />
Using mobile phones while driving is ‘supposed to be’ prohibited, but no one cares. Not even the cops.<br />
<br />
There are no female drivers in Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to drive.<br />
<br />
The eldest son of the family could get the driving licence at 16 under special permission in order to support the family if he has lost his father. <br />
<br />
You can pretty much park anywhere during prayer time, just like the pavement opposite Odel.Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-86618598814315880452010-03-11T19:20:00.000+05:302010-03-11T19:20:00.037+05:30A New ChapterMonday was the d-day. <p>My son was beginning his life in a boarding school. The books bought, bags packed, long lists completed and every clothing item clearly marked with his initials. Stitching three initials each on six pairs of white socks was only the beginning of an arduous three days for his grandma, but she was glad to help with the heap of clothes that lay in front of her. </p><p><i>“You will be locked out of the dormitories from three-thirty to five-thirty everyday. It would be up to you to sit in a corner and bury your head in grief, or make the best – get involved in any game or sport of your choice...”</i> said the Warden, focusing his attention on the bemused child at the interview. There was a sparkle in Rafael’s eyes and I could see that he has taken an immediate liking to the idea of “compulsory playtime.” The little fella couldn’t believe that there are schools that encourage young boys to spend their time in the playgrounds, not only in libraries and study rooms. </p><p>At the end of the interview, he was smiling like a Cheshire cat and I knew he was going to like the place. One, there was a farm in the school. Two, there was a swimming pool. And there were many other reasons. </p><p>A week after the interview, with a heavy heart, my wife leaves him at the new school. He gives her a big hug and waves good bye. Not a tear in his eyes, he was ready to take on a new adventure in life. </p><p>24 hours pass-by, as we wait eagerly to hear from the new kid in school. He was supposed to call us back during his playtime Tuesday evening. </p><p>But there is no news and my wife begins to panic. She is worried if Rafael has slept well, if the old mattress was comfortable enough, or the food was good enough for his liking. She wants to know how he managed to wake up at 5.00 in the morning, when he is used to take a 5 minute nap on the bathroom carpet after waking up at 6.30 in the morning. </p><p>Finally, as the playtime ends, kids go back to their dorms and there is no news. My wife calls the school. <i>“Oh, we have seen him with the boys. For a new kid, he seems to have loads of friends...”</i> is the reply. </p><p>That, puts an end to our worries. </p><p>We leave a message with the school for him to call us back. </p><p>The next day, Rafael returns the call. He is bombarded with a barrage of questions on food, studies, living conditions etc., but every reply ends with the same sentence: <br />
<i>“...its all fine, I have to go, my friends are waiting...”<br />
“...its all great, I have to go, my friends are waiting...”<br />
“...its all okay, I have to go, my friends are waiting...”</i> </p><p>Looks like the young man is going to be just fine. </p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22707697.post-46726690596429608152010-03-08T00:58:00.001+05:302010-03-08T01:13:45.247+05:30The Sale of Chicken MurderSpent 10 hectic days in Paradise. <br />
Drove to the Immigration direct from the airport, literally, only to be disappointed by the fact that they were having a “half-day” in lieu of Milad-Un-Nabi, the next day. On top of that, being the last day of election nominations, Friday was a disaster in my calendar. Saturday the proper holiday, followed by the Poya (full moon) holiday the next day, I couldn’t have timed my trip any better..! Three days out of my precious 10 days in Paradise, gone without much achievement. <br />
***<br />
To top things off, I get stopped by the cops in a little alley-way near Paradise Gallery. They were bored stiff and randomly checking vehicles – and I have the uncanny ability to get picked more often than not. While pulling out the wallet I realise that I have forgotten my Silly Lankan driving licence in Saudi. Managed to negotiate a deal and escaped with a small “spot-fine.” <br />
***<br />
Went to the nearest police station like the good citizen I am, and shared my predicament. Told them that I must drive out of town – even though my wife could drive I have to take turns I said – and sought their advise on how to go about without the licence in possession. The ever helpful traffic police officer gave me a ticket that enabled me to drive for 14 days..! Upon my return, I gave him a thousand rupees to pay the fine (well, I was leaving the country the <i>next</i> day, weren’t I..?) and he obliged with much hesitance.<br />
I like the way things happen in Paradise. <br />
*** <br />
Had to drive to Nuwara Eliya on Monday morning but discovered a little “miss” in the car. Sunday bloody Sunday... Luckily, there were the “mobile unit” that could diagnose the problem, but the stores were closed and I had to postpone the trip by another day. Which meant, leaving Colombo at wee hours in the morning and return the same night, but the drive was quite pleasurable. <br />
*** <br />
Back to the immigration. No luck with my son’s residency, he needs to get a new passport. Let him be an alien in my country, I thought. <br />
*** <br />
Aah, PG Wodehouse is back at Makeen. <br />
While I was looking for the Alchemist, my son buys a book titled “1,000 most disgusting facts” for his birthday. And another equally off-putting book on puke, pee and poo or something like that. He loves the slimy, scaly creatures such as geckos, frogs and snakes – and I wonder what he would grow up to be one day. <br />
*** <br />
Ask for a gin n tonic aboard Emirates on the way back. The good man serves a cup-full-of-gin to his fellow countryman. A drink that was more like a gin n gin; and I wanted to tell him that my eyes were red due to lack of sleep, not alcohol.<br />
***<br />
Back in Jeddah. In a new abode. Just got the internet connection sorted, so here I am. <br />
*** <br />
And let me leave you with a taste of the Middle East, found in my inbox upon my return. ;) </p><p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vXRqJwbeVphxv_H6h-J7OJWE9EKlva555LQys0_8cBMlpPEYvNTalYQyr3CE436BjHiMDysWPimFERSDuArW5wL5ptHM_Htz9TZKQlkrelYO42L4-QVdt3BfrpbwdlRDKhZk/s1600-h/Chicken.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vXRqJwbeVphxv_H6h-J7OJWE9EKlva555LQys0_8cBMlpPEYvNTalYQyr3CE436BjHiMDysWPimFERSDuArW5wL5ptHM_Htz9TZKQlkrelYO42L4-QVdt3BfrpbwdlRDKhZk/s320/Chicken.jpg" /></a></div></p>Serendib_Islehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05762178709566907782noreply@blogger.com7