5 and Growing! Thank you once again!

Hi Guys,

5 years. 234 posts. 185000+ Views. Yes, it is my blog’s Birthday!

To think that this blog has been part of 1/5th of my life and has been existent across most of my college life, it is amazing. Thanks to everyone who has been reading my blog, spreading words about my blog and letting me know your valuable comments.

In the past one year, the number of posts I have written has been comparatively low. But I have spent quite a lot of time writing some of the posts compared to the earlier years. The posts I wrote last year has sometimes helped me when I attended interviews and I was asked questions on the economy. The feedbacks I got on some of the posts has also been very encouraging. I will try to write more such posts in the future.

The number of readers so far is a little more than 185,000. I never imagined these figures when I started writing way back in 2009. All of you readers have given me a great identity in the Internet space. It has come so handy for me in many situations when people have asked me what you have done apart from academics or when people ask for my hobby.

It has been a little more than two and half months since I entered into the phase of life called the corporate world and after that the number of posts has decreased. I had so many thoughts to write in between and never got the time to write. Today, I had a serious introspection on what I have been doing these days and realized that I should start spending more time on useful activities when I am at home. I will try to write more posts in the future similar to what I did in the past years.

If you are interested in knowing the history of my blog and the people who are behind this, you can read my previous Birthday Posts.

4th Birthday Post            3rd Birthday Post          2nd Birthday Post          1st Birthday Post

Thank you everyone who has been supporting me over the years! Keep Supporting!!!

Happy Reading!!!

P.S: August 12th is my blog's anniversary. Published a day later on August 13th

4 and Growing! Thank you once again!!!

Hi Guys,

Birthdays are always special and I actually feel my blog’s birthday more special than my Birthday! Maybe, because it’s my creation.

4 years – 212 posts – 132000 + views. This is a short snapshot of my blog stats. When I started my blog, I never dreamt of achieving these things. I thought it was just a hobby. I thought it was just fun. I never thought I could sustain it for this long. I never thought it would become a passion.

Thanks to each and every one of my readers for supporting my blog. You believed in me, more than what I believed in myself. The amount of confidence you guys instilled in me was a great source of energy.

Things have changed over time. I no longer write blogs sitting in front of my Desktop at home. I write in my Laptop sitting in my Hostel Room or at my college’s Resource Centre. I am no longer a student of Mechanical Engineering. I have become a Mechanical Engineer and a student of Management studies. I no longer write whatever comes into my mind. I have to think long about the consequences before touching on a post – one of the reasons, the number of posts have shrunken. The typical work filled days of B school life are also a reason for the reduction in number of posts.

A lot of people come and ask me, ‘Karthick, how did you get so many visitors?’ I wish I knew the answer. As I said in the beginning, I never dreamt of something like this. It has been a puzzle as to how it happened. People think I hide secrets. The reality is that there are no secrets. Many people ask me for tips on writing and it’s another question for which I do not know the answer. I myself consider I have a lot of scope to improve. Of late, I realized that I have become too complacent. For some time, I was not even proof reading the posts after the first draft. I realized it after a few comments and now I try to proof read twice before posting.

Looking at my posts in the last year, I am quite happy. Though the number of posts I have written has reduced to 30s, the content has been quite good. I have written posts relating to some Social issues. I was one of the Runner Ups, in a contest organized by Indiblogger and Surf Excel for writing about Corruption (you can see the badge at the bottom of the blog). It really feels good when people come back and appreciate for such efforts. I have written few book reviews and as a result, I receive requests for Book reviews in times of new releases (I haven’t accept any one so far as I cannot promise to write at the time of release). I receive requests for writing in other websites. It is quite startling.

I hope to continue writing good posts in the future and I hope my readers get something by reading my blog.

Over the past, I have thanked all my supporters over my Birthday posts and I do not want to mention all the names again. A big thanks to each and every one of you! I am posting the links of my previous Birthday posts, so that new readers can enjoy reading them.

3rd Birthday Post          2nd Birthday Post          1st Birthday Post

At this juncture, I welcome suggestions for my blog. I know there is a lot of scope for improvement. Do let me know your suggestions on my writing or the content or the design of my blog. Write a comment or drop a mail to karthicks_2005@rocketmail.com

Thank you very much for your support! Keep Supporting!

Happy Reading!!!

As a Butterfly flutters its wings...

Hi Guys,

A lot can happen when a Butterfly flutters its wings! The Butterfly Effect or Chaos Theory – A theory that fascinates me beyond limits whenever I think about it. One main reason why it fascinates me is that it makes me believe that our whole life is a chain of events where one event lead to the next event and at the end of the day we would do something, because of something that we did years back. It makes me believe another thought that is ‘Whatever happen, happens for a reason’

Butterfly Effect states that, ‘It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon half the way around the world’. This is very real in terms of real life too where a small decision or advice could turn the events in the future. It is more like a Decision Tree where you are provided with different choices. The first point is the Butterfly Wing and the direction in which you decide to flutter can alter your whole path.

The Tamil movie Dhasavatharam would be based on this theory. A king’s Superstitous belief and idiotic behaviour leads him to throw a statue in the sea, which ultimately creates movement of Tectonic plates and Tsunami centuries later saving thousands of people from a harmful virus.

Thinking a bit in my own life, I can see how Butterfly Effect has played a role in many of the things. I still remember the day when I sent the mail to my brother about an Industrial Visit. After typing all the content, I was hovering over the To Column. I wanted to send it to two of my friends and another part of my mind said not to send. It was good that I sent and that resulted in creation of my blog.

After a few months of writing blog, I was deserted. I had no ideas and I didn’t know where I was heading. A small little dog that lost its way came to my home, a few mischievous squirrels decided to play with my mother, Nat Geo was telecasting about Seals when I switched the TV on and my brother saw a few seals in Argentina. All this lead to the creation of Animal Week post and my brother was impressed with the post and that rejuvenated a lot of passion into me and that is what keeps me writing till now.

Many of the things we consider small and insignificant can have a huge impact in the latter part of life. As the famous proverb goes

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.

For want of a shoe the horse was lost.

For want of a horse the rider was lost.

For want of a rider the message was lost.

For want of a message the battle was lost.

For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.

And all for a want of a Horseshoe nail.

- Unknown

There is a movie known as The Butterfly Effect which is based on this theory. I have already written about the movie and also a few things about the theory two years back. To see the post, ClickHere.

Happy Reading!!!

3 and growing!!! Thank you once again!!!

Hi Guys,

3 Years – 181 posts – 85000+ hits - This is what my blog has received after it came to life.

3 years is something special. An age when a child starts going to school. An age at which some responsibility is pushed upon the kid. An age that means the kid has survived more than 1000 days. All this creates a sense of responsibility in me. My blog has crossed this stage. I should be more meaningful and provide a better sense to my readers.

Thanks to each and every one of you who believed in me and came to my blog and keep coming to my blog. Hope, I’m not disappointing my readers.

The credit of whatever I have done in my blog goes to three people. I have already said it during the first and second anniversary. I will keep saying it as long as I write. The first two persons, who inspired me and motivated me to write a blog – Vijay Dinesh and Nataraj Gandhi – a big thanks to you! These days we chat very rarely – our career and life has pulled us in its own streams. Hope to see you people soon!

The third person is my brother Narayanan – I think he must have read my blog more than anyone else. I still remember the days when he I used to send him posts and he used to correct them before I post. He was in Uruguay back then. Communicating from there was difficult and still he spent a lot of time with me to improve my blog.  Thanks bro! This year, I promise to write a post about you or your cute little daughter or if possible both. Also, I have to thank my sister in law too. She has helped me a lot by publicizing my photographs. Sometimes she exaggerates too much and sometimes the opposite happens. Apart from this,  thanks for the good food you prepare for me all the time I come to your home.

The other two persons, I have to thank – my dad and mom. My mom reads every post of mine as soon as I post. She enquires with me about what I am writing, what I had written and what my thought process is often. The only time she gets angry is whenever I write something about her (a good lesson for me – that’s why I generally avoid writing about known people). Dad reads some posts in my blog based on references. My mom handpicks some of my best posts and asks my dad to read. Sometimes, if the post is good (or if he feels so), he asks me for a hardcopy. My dad has been a great marketer for my blog. Whenever he introduces me to someone, he will introduce my blog too. Personally apart from dad and mom, I avoid discussing about my blog with anyone (I always stick to my blog, twitter, facebook and mail for my blog). It’s a very great feeling from when your family considers your work as a good one. Thanks Dad and Mom.

I must also thank my blogger friends. Arti, who keeps visiting my blog and encourage me to write better. She started writing blog a little late than me and now she has reached the pinnacle and I’m still in the base compared with her. A blogger who I respect the most. Also, thanks to the wonderful photographers Team G Square who frequently visits my blog and comment. Thanks to Abhishek Bhardwaj – my first reader and a great blogging friend – hope to see you in the blogging world soon.

Another two sincere readers and supporters of my blog –  Lakshmanan Periappa(my father’s brother ) and my cousin Anand anna. From the time they knew that I am blogging, they started supporting me and appreciated my work. Whenever I write a good post, my cousin sends me a mail and that’s when I realize I have written quite well. Thanks periappa and anna! Also Nana, my cousin despite his busy schedules preparing for CA reads my blogs and enquires about that now and then. It’s wonderful to have such readers!

Another person who is a big fan of my blog – my dear friend Vimal Raj. He has the same taste like me in books and movies. I discuss a lot of general stuffs with him. Hope you have wonderful days ahead! Also thanks to Santhosh, Jhaya Krishnan, Saravana Kumar, Ram Prasad (I won’t forget the way you started your blog – my facebook post and how you stopped later), Jothi Kameswaran, Jothi Vasanthan, Vijay Anguraj, Varatha Rajan, Ganesh, Siddiq, Dhasthaheer (remember the Sleepy Technology classes post) and all others who have been regular visitors of my blog.

Finally it’s time to thank my newer set of friends who knew about my blogging habit and started to appreciate straightaway. It’s always encouraging when someone comes to you and asks about the way you write. Many of you assume I spent lot of time writing. The truth is I spent very little time. Thanks to Santhosh, Vikas (thanks for marketing my blog), Tejas, Vijay, Saheel, Om, Nirav, Tarun, Bhavesh, Insha (I will write more posts about snakes), Alekhya, Shilpha, Anrav, Ankur (finally I got time to post this one) and many others (sorry if your name is not here – I don’t remember everyone who enquired me).

There are numerous people who I have not mentioned here. Thanks to every other reader whose name is not mentioned here!

Happy Reading!!!

2011 in my view!

Hi Guys,

I was thinking of writing a post about New Year celebrations for the past one week. Just then, I visited the archives of my blog to see what I have written during the past two years. During 2009, I had been writing a series on Holiday Activities and I wished my readers at the end of a series. Last year, I was in Chennai and I was busy as I underwent In-plant training and so I didn’t write any post for nearly 20 days.

So, what comes into my mind as I think of 2011?

Personal Life

First thing is my carrier. All these times, I had never felt myself as a matured guy and I had a sort of childish attitude (which I enjoyed very much). The final year of my Engineering began and all of a sudden I felt some pressure. I had responsibilities and I had to work for it (the same was the case for most of my classmates). July and August went past very quick and we worked the way we had never worked before. For some the next few months were sweeter and for most it was bitter. (read my interview experience here). Hope, they will get better opportunities for the wait. Personally, I am expecting 2012 to bring in more good news.

Blogging Life

As far as my blog is concerned, I have written 79 posts (including this one) this year. It is 20 more than last year (last year it was 59). Sometime in the middle of the year, I changed the URL of the blog and it lead to little confusion for some time. Towards the end of the year, I rebuilt my photo blog and introduced it again. It has received a very warm response and I am very happy about it. After a long time, I have added 14 photos this year and I am planning to do more with the photo blog. But, I was not able to expand the number of blogs I read drastically, though I read a few more blogs now. I am thinking of expanding my subscriptions this year. Many of my friends started to blog, but none were successful in continuing. Everyone stopped after writing one or two posts. Blogging requires passion.

Cricketing World

The next thing that comes into my mind is Cricket. It could be divided into four phases. In the first phase, Indians were facing huge expectations. Everyone wanted India to win World cup in front of the home crowd and the players exhibited brilliant team work and the dream became true. The second phase was the dullest IPL ever. Players didn’t have time to rejoice and they came back for IPL. People were exhausted and not many cared about it. The third phase was a very bad period for India. They went to England and came back without a single win. Probably India’s poorest performance in the recent times. The fourth phase was West Indies touring India and this series created waves just because of expectations on Sachin’s hundredth ton and it never happened. Now Indians have already lost the first match against Australia. Let’s see how Indians play in 2012.

Indian Politics

This year state elections were held for 5 states and there was of change of power in many states. In particular, in west Bengal a three decade rule came to an end and in Tamil Nadu, people closed the doors for a very corruptive government. Later, Anna Hazare stormed Delhi with his fast and pressured the government to introduce Lokpal (read my post on Support Anna Hazare here). The most important thing was that youngsters were very eager to participate in this movement. Now, there are lot of confusions and controversies over this movement and government’s attitude. Let’s hope 2012 will bring in solutions. There were lot of people’s movements and politicians creating controversies for their benefits.

That’s what I remember right now.

Wishing my readers a very Happy and prosperous New Year, I sign off this year’s blogging activities.

Happy New Year 2012!!!

Karthi

Through My Camera Lens V2.0

Hi Guys,

My photo blog was dormant for a long time. Today I sat around for 2 hours and worked with my photoblog to create a new look. I hope you like the style.

I will be updating the blog as frequently as possible.

My photo blog's URL is http://karthicksdays.wordpress.com

I have added it as a page too.

Happy Viewing!!!

2 and growing!!! Thank you again!

Hi Guys,

It has been two years since I started this blog. It is my blog's second birthday and I feel great at this moment. A Big Thanks to all the supporters.

I'm suffering from cold and its difficult to sit and write all the things. So, let me shorten some things.

Again I want to thank the 3 motivators ( you can find them at my 1st Birthday post).

Apart from that I want to thank all my blogging friends, who visit my blog frequently and help me a lot. You can visit their blog by clicking on their name.

To begin with, there is Arti, who doesn't miss even a single post of mine and gives comments. Then, there is Abhishek who was my first blogging friend. Don't know what happened to him as he doesn't blog these days.

There is Team G Square, two people brilliant in photography. There is Magic eye who is also a great photographer.

Apart from them there are enormous bloggers who leave comments quite often. Thanks to them too!

Two of my real friends inspired me started blogging. They are also great supporters of my blog. They are Vijay and Vimal.

I asked my friends to give opinions on my blog and it was quite a late request. Despite that one of my brother's friend, Nataraj Gandhi who is also an avid reader of my blog sent me a mail. This is what he sent.

It is always nice to see a person beginning a good hobby but more satisfying is when the hobby turns to a passion and the person continues it. It is really pleasing to see Karthick still continuing the good work he started two years back. kudos to him.

One of the reasons his blog interests me a lot is the variety of topics he manages to pen down his thoughts on. I particularly love his blogs on movies. Some of the movies he has talked about are real gems. Also the blog relating physics and health ( thermodynamics and dieting ) was really cool.

Well, i wish Karthick all the very best and hope he continues the good work!! All the best!

Thanks guys... Keep Supporting me!!!

Happy Reading!!!

Lessons I learnt Blogging!

Hi Guys,

This is my 100^th post and it’s really amazing that I have written 99 posts before this. It all started as a fun and now blogging has become an integral part of my life.

Early Days

I started this blog during the early days of my third semester. I already wrote the history of my blog during the blog’s first birthday. After I started my blog, I was not sure about what to write. I was just writing for the sake of posting something. If you look at my earlier posts, I would have written a lot about cricket and nothing else. There were nearly nil readers and it was maddening. Some of my classmates really helped then. They would read all the things I write and they cherished my efforts. I learnt the lesson – Everything appears simple, but nothing is easy. Consistent hard work and dedication is needed. 

Turning Point

Three months passed so and the thought of quitting the blog was slowly getting into me. I didn’t write for 3 weeks and suddenly some funny incidences that took place around me inspired me to write Animal Week. That night, my brother called me and he was very happy with what I wrote. He said it was too different from my previous posts and it was very captivating, despite the mistakes I had in my writing (he still does correct my mistakes and thanks for helping me bro). That night, he spoke with me for an hour about the post and how it could be improved and at the end of the conversation, there was a new spark inside me. So, I learnt the lesson – Never Give Up. You can never succeed without failing a few times.

Concentrating on Other Things

Another 5-6 months passed so. I was getting feedbacks from my brother and friends. But other than that there were not many readers. I started refining the appearance of my blog. I added my blog to many blog directories. I started following others and they started to follow me. The number of visitors started increasing day by day. Also reading other blogs meant that I learnt a lot from them. The lesson I learnt this time – You always need help from others to survive, no matter how strong you are.

Spreading Information

Around my blog’s first birthday, I came to know about the working of Nitrous Oxide boosters and wrote about it after some research. It was widely welcomed and it is one of the most popular posts till now. During the monsoon season, there was flood in the Vaigai River and the river was flooding after nearly 10 years. I decided to write on that and it was an instant success. All the visitors were native people of the city, but now residing outside the city. Some of the posts about much-admired movies were also instant hits and they continue to remain at the top of the most read posts. Lesson – Write about things people wish to know. They visit expecting new things.

So, I am writing my 100^th post today. Thanks for all your support and keep supporting.

Happy Reading!!!