Colombo Desk

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2007-06-05T23:28:00.000+05:30

The sun, the Earabadu flowers and the cry of the Koha are synonymous with the Sinhala Avurudda, the Sinhalese New Year.

Are you addicted to email?

2007-02-06T12:29:00.000+05:30

(Published on 6 February 2007 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

This is a confession. I have to admit that I am addicted to email. The first thing I do in the morning before I even brush my teeth is to check my mail box. The last thing I do before jumping into bed at night is to quickly check on my email. If for some reason I am unable to get online before hitting the pillow – I am restless all through the night… believing that there’s something lurking in the shadows of the virtual world. A feeling of uncertainty at what awaits me in my mailbox engulfs me. An uneasy fear.

Before you guffaw and pass off this write up as just another writer whining and wanting to turn yet another non-issue into an issue… think again for I am not alone. Many people suffer with what psychiatrists call – addiction to email!

Dilbert, the comic strip character once complained to Dogbert, “I’m addicted to email. My endorphins spike when I get a message. And when there are no messages, loneliness and despair overcome me.” Though over-the-top, Dilbert’s feelings are quite common. A lot of internet users today look to the web for solace and company. According to a study, nearly 41 percent of adults in America clamber out of bed and check their email first thing in the morning. What’s even more amazing is that more and more people now believe that it is unthinkable to go beyond two or three days without a virtual fix!

Email addiction can be compared to drug addiction. All the symptoms of addiction are present. There is a rush when one hears the sound of an email alert… and withdrawal symptoms come into play in the form of depression when the inbox is empty. An email addict has a perpetual craving to be wired. How else would you explain travellers on transit rushing to internet cafes or to wi-fi enabled locations at an airport?

Office goers are known to work right through the day with their mail boxes open – with one eye (or ear in the case of an email alert) firmly planted on the inbox. This has resulted in chronic multi-tasking and as a result shrinking attention spans. What we fail to realise is that this addiction to email has a devastating effect on one essential thing: productivity. If you’d like to enhance your productivity, give up the tendency to multi-task—and stop checking and rechecking your email inbox in the midst of other assignments.

It is wise to look for rehabilitation to counter any addiction. Email addiction cannot be taken lightly. For email addiction there are solutions short of rehab. Here are some tips to help loosen the grip of the ‘web’ noose:

Emails are supposed to ease and streamline communication. Work with your email, not against it. Make the system you have chosen work in your favour and to suit your requirements.

Send certain messages, like greetings, thank you notes and congratulatory notes by snail mail. Alternatively, take the help of the organiser to pre- plan and send these messages at an earlier date.

Set a rigid email timeframe. This is difficult and requires immense will power. Enforce rules and convince yourself that email is not allowed before or after the set timings.

Turn off the ‘ding’ sound that alerts you to new messages. It can be distracting and an annoying interruption.

Try to close up email shop completely for a few days. As a rule not accessing your emails over week-ends is a good start.

I’ve made up my mind. I am going to turn a new leaf. I am not going to let myself turn into another internet junky! I am glad I have been able to extract myself before I got entangled in the vicious World Wide Web.

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

The goodness of honey...

2007-01-30T12:25:00.000+05:30

(Published on 30 January 2007 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Insomnia is something that many live with. A friend of mine was dousing herself with pills to keep from staying awake all night… but with not much relief. “Believe in grandmother's remedies?” I asked her on one of the many occasions when she seemed exhausted and frayed. I could have suggested just about anything – for she was ready to try whatever it would take to catch some shut eye. Old fashioned cures have been proven effective by modern medical research. The physicians of Rome, prescribed honey to their patients who had trouble sleeping. Even to this day, a glass of warm milk sweetened with honey is believed to help ensure a restful night. Honey acts as a sedative and is also very useful in bed wetting disorders.

In Ayurveda honey is called ‘madhu’. Various ingredients of honey have helped it to become a natural product with high nutritional and medicinal value. Honey is composed of sugars like glucose and fructose and minerals like magnesium, potassium, calcium, sodium chlorine, sulphur, iron and phosphate. It contains vitamins B1, B2, C, B6, B5 and B3 as well as small quantities of copper, iodine, and zinc. Several kinds of hormones are also present.

The medicinal quality, taste, colour and aroma of honey differs according to the geographical area and the species of plants from which it has been collected. As per Ayurveda there are eight types of honey depending on the type of bee which collects it. ‘Makshika,’ is honey collected by small honey bees and is considered as the best with immense medicinal properties. From time immemorial, honey has always played an important role in the pursuit of health and vitality. It is said that Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, realised the healing power of honey way back in the 1st century BC and prescribed it regularly to his patients. Honey has various therapeutic uses and is known to have the following qualities:

Healing quality
The most ancient use of honey is as a healing agent for wounds, burns and cuts. During the First World War, honey was mixed with cod liver oil to dress soldier’s wounds. Even today, medical professionals from Eastern European countries continue to dress wounds with honey. Honey prevents further infection of wounds and burns. Modern science acknowledges honey as an anti-microbial agent. This property enables it to arrest infection.

Remedy for sore throat and cold
Since honey arrests infection it is the best natural remedy for sore throats, coughs and general cold. Honey has long been used in various natural sore throat remedies. Even today many cough syrups and preparations for sore throats are honey based.

Contains antioxidants that support good health
Honey contains antioxidants that help to eliminate the free radicals in our bodies that contribute towards many chronic diseases. Antioxidants are non-nutritive agents that can decrease the activity of cell-damaging free radicals. The darker varieties of honey contain large quantities of a particular antioxidant called flavonoids. ‘Pinocembrin,’ a unique antioxidant is only found in honey.

Acts as a preservative
Honey does not spoil and is a preservative. Honey slows chemical reactions that cause foods to get rancid. This beneficial characteristic of honey is due to its antioxidant agents.

Energy provider
As honey contains sugars which are quickly absorbed by our digestive system and converted into energy, it can be used as an instant energiser. Honey is more energy-packed and sweeter than sugar. However it has a low calorie level. Honey rapidly diffuses through the blood. Its free sugar molecules make the brain function better since the brain is the largest consumer of sugar. Honey thus reduces mental fatigue.

Supports blood formation
Honey provides energy needed by the body for blood formation. In addition, it helps in cleansing the blood. It has some positive effects in regulating and facilitating blood circulation.

Enhances Skin
Honey is a wonderful beauty aid that nourishes the skin and the hair. Antioxidant-rich honey plays an important role in skin care and is used to produce alpha hydroxy acids, a vital ingredient in skin creams and moisturisers. These acids are said to help skin shed dead surface cells and increase the rate of cell renewal. Honey also helps the skin retain its moisture.

Honey restores the damaged skin and gives soft, young looks. Here are some great beauty tips from the desk of Miss Know-All. Now don’t complain that I did not share my beauty secrets with you my ‘dahlings.’

þ Honey mixed with ground almonds makes an excellent facial cleansing scrub.
þ Mix 1 teaspoon of honey, with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and a 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice to treat dry patches of skin.
þ Honey is good for chapped lips as well as for acne because it has antibacterial properties.
þ A tablespoon of honey whisked together with an egg white, 1 teaspoon of glycerine and 1/4 cup of flour makes a brilliant firming mask.
þ Mix 2 tablespoons of honey with 2 teaspoons of whole milk to create an effective moisturising pack.
þ For lustrous and shiny hair, mix 1 teaspoon of honey into 4 cups of warm water and use as hair rinse.

Ever doubted the goodness of honey?
To quote Martin Elkort: "Nobody disputes the role of the dog as man’s best friend, but a convincing argument can be also made for the honeybee."

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

Know your sunscreen - SPF and more!

2007-01-16T15:52:00.000+05:30

(Published on 16 January 2007 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

There is one thing we people living in this part of the world love – smothering ourselves with a whole lot of creams and lotions that promise to make us… “fair and lovely.” Donning layers of foundation to camouflage ourselves is another obsession. My Aunt has been using a whitening cream for years. I hesitate to tell her that it has made little or no difference. I bought her a bottle of a sunscreen lotion the last time I went overseas. She looked at the jar with great suspicion and it lay on her dresser for months. What she failed to realise is that what is more important than the bleaching cream is the regular use of a sunscreen lotion.

A sunscreen, also known as sun block is a substance that helps protect the skin from the sun's harmful rays. It reflects and absorbs ultraviolet radiation. Lotions or creams that contain sunscreens are used not just to protect the skin from tanning but to help protect the skin from premature aging and damage that may lead to skin cancer. The best sunscreens protect against both UVB (ultraviolet radiation with wavelength between 290 and 320 nanometres), which can cause sunburn, and UVA (between 320 and 400 nanometres), which damages the skin with more long-term effects, such as premature skin aging.

But does one go to a supermarket and pick up the sunscreen lotion that promises the world – or does one pick up something as per one’s complexion and requirements? Sun screen lotions are graded as per their SPF value. SPF or - sun protection factor is a number representing the amount of sun that the lotion has the ability to block. That is SPF is a scale for rating the level of sunburn protection that a sunscreen product can provide. The higher the SPF, the more sunburn protection it gives. A sunscreen with an SPF of 15 filters 92% of the UVB. In other words the SPF 15 sunscreen allows a person to stay out in the sun 15 times longer. Sunscreens with an SPF value of 2 - 11 give minimal protection against sunburns. While, sunscreens with an SPF of 12 - 29 give moderate protection. And those with an SPF of 30 or higher give maximum protection against sunburn.

This brings us to the next question. How would one choose the best suited sunscreen for oneself? The answer lies in the colour of your skin as well as the nature of your work. Other factors to be considered are the skin type (sensitive skin), the amount of sunscreen applied and frequency of re-application as well as activities in which one engages for example, swimming. If your work requires you to be out in the sun for longer periods - the best sunscreen would be one that blocks enough UV radiation to protect your skin for the longest possible time. The chart below can be used as a guideline to obtain the proper protection:

.SPF 30 – 50: Fair; blonde, light brown hair; unexposed skin is white; freckles. Tans lightly and usually develops a painful burn quickly.

.SPF 15 – 20: Average Caucasian; unexposed skin is white. Develops an average tan and moderately burns.

.SPF 6 - 15: Medium complexion; unexposed skin is light brown; usually with dark hair and dark eyes. Tans easily and burns minimally.

.SPF 2 – 10: Dark, unexposed skin is brown. Tans easily and rarely burns.

Most sunscreens work by containing either an organic chemical compound that absorbs ultraviolet light or an opaque material that reflects light, or a combination of both. Absorptive materials are referred to as chemical blocks, whereas opaque materials that reflect are called physical blocks. Research has shown that the best protection is achieved by application 15–30 minutes before exposure to the sun, followed by reapplication 15–30 minutes after the exposure begins. Further reapplication is only necessary after activities such as swimming or excessive sweating. However it is advisable to consult a skin specialist when choosing a proper sunscreen especially if you have sensitive skin and are prone to photosensitivity.

Interestingly, clothing also provides protection from the sun. The ‘protectiveness’ of clothing can also be measured by SPF. The following are SPF's of various types of clothing:
4Stockings - SPF 2
4Caps / Hats / Shade - SPF 3-6
4Light summer clothing - SPF 6.5
4Thick cottons/ sun-protective clothing - up to SPF 30

And to my Aunt who has just consumed yet another jar of whitening cream…
“Its beauty that captures your attention; personality which captures your heart.”
You need to start focussing more on enhancing your personality!

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

Netizen Speak

2007-01-09T00:42:00.000+05:30

(Published on 9 January 2007 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Netizens, referring to citizens belonging to the world of Internet come from a different planet for not only do they speak a strange language, they are also governed by their own set of rules and regulations. While we the citizens of mother earth are still coming to terms with what we call disputes, quarrels, clashes and battles, the netizens are fighting what they call a Flame War. While the rest of us think that Archie was a comic book, the Netizens believe that Archie is a tool (software) for finding files stored on anonymous FTP sites. While we, the ordinary are still trying to cope with cockroaches and mosquitoes, our netizen friends speak of spiders that they also call worms or crawlers.

Eddy Peters could not have been more correct when he said that: “Not only does the English Language borrow words from other languages; it sometimes chases them down dark alleys, hits them over the head, and goes through their pockets.” This holds true for the Netizen language as well. Except, that this time around, - it’s the English Language that’s at the receiving end.

If you by now are already fidgeting in your seat wondering what this is all about – here’s an opportunity for you to bring yourself up to speed on the various terms that are used online by the netizens.

Backbone: A high-speed line or series of connections, that forms a major pathway within a network.

Bandwidth: How much stuff you can send through a connection. Usually measured in bits-per-second.

Bit (Binary DigIT): The smallest unit of computerised data.

Browser: A software that is used to look at various kinds of Internet resources.

Byte: A set of Bits that represent a single character. Usually there are 8 Bits in a Byte.

Cookie: Refers to a piece of information sent by a Web Server to a Web Browser that the Browser software is expected to save and to send back to the Server whenever the browser makes additional requests from the Server.

Cyberpunk: Cyberpunk was originally a cultural sub-genre of science fiction taking place in a not-so-distant, dystopian, over-industrialized society. The term grew out of the work of William Gibson and Bruce Sterling and has evolved into a cultural label encompassing many different kinds of human, machine, and punk attitudes.

Cyberspace: Term originated by author William Gibson in his novel Neuromancer the word Cyberspace is currently used to describe the whole range of information resources available through computer networks.

Finger: An Internet software tool for locating people on other Internet sites. Finger is also sometimes used to give access to non-personal information, but the most common use is to see if a person has an account at a particular Internet site.

Fire Wall: A Fire Wall is a combination of hardware and software that separates a LAN into two or more parts for security purposes.

Flame War: A Flame War is when an online discussion degenerates into a series of personal attacks against the debaters, rather than discussion of their positions. A heated exchange.

HTML (HyperText Markup Language): The coding language used to create Hypertext documents for use on the World Wide Web.

IP Number: (Internet Protocol Number): Sometimes called a dotted quad. A unique number consisting of 4 parts separated by dots, e.g. 176.143.248.2. Every machine that is on the Internet has a unique IP number.

ISP (Internet Service Provider): An institution that provides access to the Internet in some form, usually for money.

Modem (MOdulator, DEModulator): A device that you connect to your computer and to a phone line that allows the computer to talk to other computers through the phone system.

Port: First and most generally, a port is a place where information goes into or out of a computer. A port also refers to a number that is part of a URL, appearing after a colon (:) right after the domain name. And finally, a port refers to translating a piece of software to bring it from one type of computer system to another.

Spam: An inappropriate attempt to use a mailing list, or other networked communications facility as if it was a broadcast medium by sending the same message to a large number of people who didn’t ask for it.

Spider: A software robot that serves a search engine by exploring the net, collecting web page addresses and page contents, and following links from them to other addresses to collect still more web information. Also known as a worm or crawler.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator): The standard way to give the address of any resource on the Internet that is part of the World Wide Web (WWW).

Words and terms from the Netizen language are now being embraced by the English language as they are now in common use. In the words of John French:

“Words are the leaves of the tree of language, of which, if some fall away, a new succession takes their place.”

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

From the desk of Miss Know-All: The significance of the Christmas Tree

2007-01-02T13:04:00.000+05:30

(Published on 2 January 2007 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Just attended a lovely Christmas party - an occasion that holds a special place in my heart right from when I was a child. The spirit was one of festive cheer and bonhomie. The MC on the mike asked the children if they knew the significance of the Christmas Tree. Surprisingly none of the kids had any idea. Then the question was put forward to the adults. Everyone shuffled uncomfortably in their chairs. A Christmas Tree is such an integral part of Christmas – but sadly nobody was really sure of its significance. Has it become just a decorative addition to the celebration?

The Master of Ceremony asked everyone to look at the Christmas Tree again with an open heart and listen to what it told us. He said the triangle shape denoted the trinity.
Further the tree pointed upwards towards God. Being an evergreen the tree indicated that life was eternal. The needles grew upwards like hands praising God. The lights on the tree represented heaven and the gifts around it represented charity, love and compassion. This was truly beautiful – and suddenly the Christmas Tree came to life and had a truly different meaning.

A tree is known to represent the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It is believed that the Christmas tree originated in Germany. The earliest record of an evergreen tree being used and decorated for Christmas is 1521 in the German region of Alsace. In the fourteenth century, churches held plays to tell the people in villages and towns stories from the Bible. The play that was held every December 24 was about the Garden of Eden and showed how Eve was tempted by the serpent and how she picked the apple from the forbidden tree. A major problem was to find an apple tree with needles on it in the middle of winter. A solution was found by cutting down an evergreen tree, probably a spruce or pine, and tying apples onto it. The tree was also decorated with round white wafers to remind that even though Adam and Eve were expelled from Paradise, the birth of baby Jesus would bring redemption. The idea of a Christmas tree decorated with apples enchanted people so much that before long many families were setting up Paradise trees, in their own homes. The custom persisted long after the plays were no longer performed.

Ever since, red and green, the colours of apples hanging on the tree have been the main colours of the festive season. History records that the first person who decorated an indoor Christmas tree was Martin Luther. The first Christmas tree in Windsor Castle was brought by Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria, in the year 1834.

As the years passed the trees were decorated by hanging gilded nuts, gingerbread cookies and marzipan candies, shaped like fruits and vegetables from the boughs. Brightly decorated eggshells, cut in half and filled with candies, were set in the tree. The wafers that once hung on the Paradise tree were replaced with cookies in the form of hearts, bells, angels and stars. With time, the cookies were replaced with decorations made out of thin, painted metal. When people combined the decorations with candles, they created the Christmas tree that we know of today.

Decorating the tree is a special task that is shared by everyone in the family and is supposed to bring about a special bonding between family members. These days sparkling ornaments, electric lights, and shining tinsel are used as decorations. Glittering with colour and light and topped with a star or an angel, the green Christmas tree symbolises that life is eternal. The presents below the tree are reminders of the love and close ties that are shared by families and friends.

"O Tannenbaum" – a German folk song says:
Not only in summer's glow,
But 'mid the winters frost and snow
O faithful pine, O faithful pine,
You're true and green forever.

Season’s greetings to all the readers of W@W. May the beauty of this joyous season fill your heart and home with peace and happiness.

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

RSVP - 'respondez, s'il vous plait'

2006-12-28T10:13:00.000+05:30

(Published on 26 December 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

The four little letters at the bottom of a wedding invitation card almost always go unnoticed. There is no doubt that the host sending out the invites must have put this acronym there with a purpose. Especially at a time when the cost of printing the card depends on the number of words being printed on it… the person sending the card most certainly would not add these four letters to heighten the aesthetic value of the invite or show-off his knowledge of the English language. Judith Martin, the author of many books on etiquette believes that ‘RSVP’ came about as a polite way of reminding people of something that they should already know: If you receive an invitation, you should reply.

Interestingly the acronym RSVP has numerous meanings:
m RSVP - Rotating Surveillance Vehicle Platform
m RSVP - Reading, Spelling, Vocabulary, Pronunciation
m RSVP - Rapid Service Voice Processing
m RSVP - Rating Site Value Points
m RSVP - Reinforcing Safety Values in People
m RSVP - Retrieve Sound Velocity Profile
m RSVP - Recognise Success via Implementation
m RSVP - Rapid Serial Visual Presentation
m RSVP - Rare Symmetry Violating Processes
m RSVP - Retired and Senior Volunteer Program
m RSVP - Research Society for Victorian Periodicals
m RSVP - Renewables for Sustainable Village Power
m RSVP - Restartable Solid Variable Pulse (rocket motor)

Now if you are a rocket scientist you might just confuse RSVP to stand for Restartable Solid Variable Pulse with reference to a rocket motor – but for you and me it really is quite simple. RSVP stands for a French phrase, "répondez, s'il vous plaît," which means ‘please reply.’ Implying that, the person sending the invitation would like you to tell him whether you accept or decline the invitation. Invitations carry the host's telephone number so you can call with your answer. However, under strict etiquette rules, a written invitation requires a written reply.

For hosts who are planning a dinner party, a wedding or a reception, this is important from a practical point of view. The host will need to know how many people to cater for, not just for planning food quantities but issues relating to appropriate seating, transportation, etc. among other administrative things. However what is more important is the simple courtesy of responding to someone who was nice enough to invite you, even if it is to say that you will not be able to attend. Nowadays, to make it more convenient for the guest, invitations often carry a request saying -‘regrets only.’ That means that the host will count on your being present unless you tell him otherwise.

There is lot of confusion in the minds of guests as to what exactly RSVP means. RSVP does not mean to respond only if you're coming, and it does not mean respond only if you're not coming (the expression ‘regrets only’ is used if that is what is to be conveyed). It means the host needs a definite head count for the planned event. It is considered as rude and a pointless exercise to respond and communicate on the very date of the event itself. Rather too late for the host to make changes and swing into action.

I’d like to believe that the decline in RSVP's is attributed to ignorance and people not really knowing what it means rather than rudeness. RSVP is a term given to us by the French and it would be thus appropriate to close with a line on etiquette by Colette, a French novelist: “It is wise to apply the oil of refined politeness to the mechanisms of friendship.”

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Dating Allowance! Staff retention... at what cost?

2006-12-12T15:03:00.000+05:30

(Published on 12 December 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Given the current demand for skill, HR heads of multinationals are getting their knickers in a twist about retaining a committed workforce. Finding and keeping good people is always a major concern. As corporate loyalty and commitment are in short supply, a great workplace culture is the need of the hour. Organisations are now looking at innovative changes in the workplace and work culture and improved ways to motivate their staff.

Recently, there was much hue and cry in the press when a leading Indian company was accused of giving its employees a ‘dating allowance’. One had heard of HRA, LTA, Medical, Transport and Dearness allowance... but what in the world was a ‘dating allowance’?

A case was filed by Tripti Nigam against Wipro, India's third-biggest software company under the new Domestic Violence Act alleging that her husband Gaurav Nigam had deserted her because the company paid him a ‘dating allowance’. Tripti, who lives in Kanpur, alleged that Wipro paid her husband an allowance for dating and this was leading to ‘moral degradation’. While Wipro officials went blue in the face denying that they gave employees ‘dating allowance’, the whole incident has brought to light something that is still very new to the Indian corporate world.

Dating Allowance is the latest to join the list of incentives being offered to employees. More of a trend in the US, this new allowance has now made its way to India as well. Believed to be an essential addition in times of long stressful work hours, a dating allowance is typically aimed at promoting inter-personal communication and possible long lasting relationships, within the office. The philosophy behind the initiative is to show that the company wants to participate in the lives of its employees. Whether a company should participate and interfere in the lives of their employees to such an extent is debatable… as well as a personal choice.

Staff turnover costs companies dearly. But staff retention… at what cost? A driving factor of the employee’s loyalty is the company’s well-planned and executed package of benefits. These days among the perks are on-campus fitness centres, lap pools, tennis courts, basketball courts, and volleyball courts. Company hosted events are organised to help build camaraderie. The benefit package includes flexible work hours. While recreational activities have nothing to do with improving the employee’s job performance, companies recognise that such activities help employees grow personally. Organisations actively encourage off-the-job activities, which include scuba classes, yoga classes, dance classes and ski-resort getaways.

However, employee retention efforts are not all focused on fun and games. Competitive compensation packages which include not just the salary but bonuses, stock options, and the traditional health and retirement package are other tools that help keep employees onboard. Both communication and staff development are crucial. A communication plan needs to be devised to keep employees apprised of company performance and business objectives. A company needs to be committed to employee education and respond effectively to their needs. Rewards and recognition can be powerful tools and are proving to be effective especially when recognition is linked to personal needs such as time off, job sharing, flex-time, office space, special tasks and public acknowledgment.

Attention to retention should be a constant, ongoing process. Nurturing staff should be a non-stop, day-to-day activity. We are no moral police to judge if this new perk called ‘dating allowance’ is appropriate or not... for at the end of the day isn’t it up to the employee to decide how he uses his allowance… irrespective of what name it is given.

Zig Ziglar makes an interesting observation on employee motivation - “People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily.”

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Yes! I've finally been 'mammographed'!

2006-12-06T12:06:00.000+05:30

(Published on 5 December 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Overcoming one’s fears is not easy. I have been wanting to get a mammography done for some years now… but was scared stiff. Friends are to be blamed for this – for they told me that it was a painful exercise that resulted in a lot of discomfort. But really – it was fear of the unknown. I was not even sure of what the procedure entailed. Was it an injection? Or was it a needle biopsy? Or was it just a plain ultrasound or an x-ray? Or do they put you in a ‘CAT scan’ like machine? I reached the hospital clueless. The only instruction given prior to the mammography was to avoid using any deodorant, talcum powder or lotion. The lady doctor was gentle and before she proceeded chose to explain the whole process to me.

Mammography is the process of examining the breast for different types of tumours and cysts by using low-dose X-rays. The process has been proven to reduce mortality from breast cancer as it results in early detection. During the procedure, the breast is compressed by two plates that are part of the machine, in order to even out the tissue and increase image quality. Both front and side images of the breast are taken. Radiologists then analyze the image for any abnormal growths. Self-breast examination is essential for regular breast care but mammography is a more reliable method. Routine mammography of older women is encouraged as a screening method to diagnose early breast cancer.

The doctor also explained that though mammography is the only screening method which has been shown to actually detect cancer, it is not always 100% accurate. 10 – 20% of cancers are missed by mammography. In every 100,000 women approximately 350 women suffer with breast cancer. Of these about 35-70 will not be seen and detected by mammography. The following myths about breast cancer need to be busted:
hOnly women get breast cancer
hOnly women with a family history of breast cancer are at risk
hOlder women are less likely to get breast cancer than younger women
hBreast cancer is contagious
hAll breast lumps are cancerous
hSmall-breasted women cannot get breast cancer
hDrinking coffee increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer
hAntiperspirants are a leading cause of breast cancer
hBreast-feeding causes breast cancer
hOral contraceptive pills cause breast cancer

The examination lasted for less than 30 minutes. While mammography does involve breast compression, which is temporarily uncomfortable, the procedure is not unbearably painful. It was over before I realised that it was. The compression lasts for a very short duration. My appeal to all my readers is to take out half an hour from their busy schedules and get a mammography done. And when you have taken the step – remember to talk about it to as many people as possible.

"Sickness comes on horseback and departs on foot." Dutch Proverb

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

From the desk of Miss Know All: Read the fine print - carefully!

2006-11-21T15:50:00.000+05:30

(Published on 21 November 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

The world out there is a nasty place. There are numerous wolves that you will come across as you plod along life’s way. Some, whom you will face head on – while others, who will in their camouflaged garb, take you by surprise. It’s not just about black and white. There are many greys that you will encounter. As a customer one has to be on the guard for there are often agreements in fine print that go unnoticed right under our noses.

Fine print refers to the practice of including necessary terms and conditions, legal stipulations, warnings and disclaimers in small writing on commercial or contractual documents and products. It is usually included at the bottom of a document or product, in a smaller font size with the hope that it goes undetected. Whether it is for opening a bank account or signing a loan agreement, or applying for a credit card or insurance, the customer is always eager to finish the documentation process quickly rather than understand the terms and conditions he has agreed to. Service providers use jargon in contractual small print to conceal terms disadvantageous to the customer, or to obscure legal rights and obligations.

As a customer, you should have an eye for fine print. Ask the service provider to give you all the details and run you through the contract. Taking a loan is not just about interest rates. More than often what is not mentioned is that pre-closing of a personal loan can cost you a penalty. A ‘free for life’ credit card offer from card issuers sounds attractive. But what is not disclosed is that most of these cards don’t allow you to earn reward points against your spend. This can be a disadvantage because these days there are a wide range of redemption options. Some countries require by law that certain information be included on advertisements or packaging. Advertisers and manufacturers include this information in fine print in order to meet the requirements but with the intention that it draws minimum attention.

It is not ethical to bury significant and crucial information within the fine print of an agreement and to rely upon the fact that most people will never read or comprehend its meaning. As if this is not enough lately there's even mouse print. Mouse print is now a common term in the marketing world and refers to legal terms being printed so small that it can only be read by someone the size of a mouse. One wonders how companies get away with it.

Knowledge is power! Awareness is more power! Before making any large purchase or commitment of any nature one should do research and read up what’s available in the market, and compare the alternatives. Then make the best choice to suit your needs. If you do your homework well you will know what exactly you have signed up for. In his album ‘Small Change’, Tom Waits said - "The large print giveth, and the small print taketh away." How very true.

Don’t forget Miss Know All, dahlings – always your well wisher. No hidden agendas here.

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

To chop, dice or slice? Cookery terms for the clueless!

2006-11-14T10:40:00.000+05:30

(Published on 14 November 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Although the art of cooking seems a daunting task at first, it’s not as challenging as it seems once you are armed with a little bit of know how and loads of confidence. As per Dr Bryan Miller: “the qualities of an exceptional cook are akin to those of a successful tightrope walker: an abiding passion for the task, courage to go out on a limb and an impeccable sense of balance.”

The great world cuisines came into being when people in diverse environments and geographic locations experimented with limited food resources and technologies over long periods of time. Today, you can prepare foods using different methods that have already been tried and tested, with a variety of equipment, ingredients and seasonings.

However, having said that, are you still clueless in the kitchen? Confidence in the kitchen begins with getting a grip on the various terms used to describe cooking methods. My experiment with this art started at the very bottom rung. I did not even butter my bread as I considered that cooking. It took me ages to fathom out the difference between a saucepan and a frying pan! As recipe terms such as simmer and sauté had me in a pickle, and I could not for the life of me know when to chop, or dice or slice – I created my own little book of common kitchen catchwords:

Al dente: An Italian term that refers to the desired texture of cooked pasta. It literally means "to the tooth". When the pasta is cooked al dente, there should be a slight resistance in the centre when the pasta is eaten. It should be cooked until tender but still firm to the bite.

Baste: To spoon liquid over a food while cooking to prevent it from drying out. The liquid is usually meat drippings, melted butter, or any other liquid such as a sauce. Basting flavours the meat and keeps it moist.

Beat: To make a mixture smooth or to introduce air by using a brisk, regular revolving motion that lifts the mixture over and over.

Blanch: To plunge foods into boiling water for a few seconds or a few minutes, then remove and place in ice water. This process sets the colour of vegetables and lets you easily slip the skins off.

Blend: To combine two or more ingredients so that the constituent parts are indistinguishable from one another.

Braise: To cook meat or vegetables by browning in fat, then simmering in a small quantity of liquid in a covered container.

Bread (as a verb): To roll or coat with bread crumbs.

Broil: To cook by exposing to direct heat.

Brown: To brown a meat means to cook until brown.

Chop: To cut into small pieces with sharp knife.

Coat the spoon: To cook until mixture sticks to the metal stirring spoon in a thin layer.

Cube (as a verb): To cut into small squares of more or less equal size.

De-bone (as a verb): To remove bones from meat, poultry or fish.

Dice: To cut into small cubes.

Dot: To scatter small pieces of butter or other fat over food before cooking.

Dredge: To coat or cover by sprinkling lightly with flour, sugar, etc.

Dust: To sprinkle food lightly with a dry ingredient, such as a seasoning.

Fold: To combine by cutting vertically through the mixture and turning over and over. It is usually accomplished with a spatula. The aim is to mix without losing the air.

Garnish: To embellish or decorate prepared food or drink to add contrasting flavour.

Glaze: A glaze is a coating of a glossy, often sweet, mixture applied to food. Egg whites and icing are both used for this purpose.

Grate: To cut food into very fine particles by rubbing on a grater.

Grease: To coat lightly with fat or butter to avoid sticking.

Grind: To cut food into tiny particles by pushing through a food grinder, or by crushing with a mortar and pestle.

Julienne: Julienne is a fancy word for a simple cut. Julienne means to cut something into long strips.

Knead: To repeatedly fold, turn and press down on dough with the hands until it becomes smooth and elastic.

Marinate: To let foods stand and soak in a liquid mixture, usually of vinegar, wine or oil with various spices and herbs.

Mince: To cut or chop into very small pieces.

Parboil: To cook partially by boiling briefly.

Pan-fry: To cook in a small amount of fat in a pan.

Poach: To cook in water or other liquid that is just below the boiling point.

Roast: To cook by dry heat in oven.

Sauté: To cook briskly in a small amount of fat.

Scald: Scald means to heat a liquid, usually a dairy product, just short of boiling.

Sear: To brown surfaces quickly over high heat, usually with a hot instrument.

Shred: To cut into fine pieces with a knife or sharp instrument.

Sift: To put dry ingredients through a sieve, to either incorporate them, or to remove large pieces.

Simmer: To cook in liquid at a low temperature.

Skim: To remove the fat or scum that rises to the surface of a liquid such as milk, soup or sauce.

Slice: To cut completely through an object. Think of slicing cheese, or bread. Same principle goes for veggies, meat and fruit.

Sliver: To slice into long, thin strips.

Steam (as a verb): To cook covered over a small amount of boiling liquid so the steam formed does the cooking.

Steep: Let stand in hot liquid to extract flavour, as in tea, or to hydrate dried vegetables or fruits.

Stew: To cook slowly in liquid.

Stir: To mix foods with a circular motion for the purpose of blending or obtaining uniform consistency.

Thin: To dilute by adding liquid.

Toss: To throw lightly or fling repeatedly about to mix (as in a salad) so as to cover with dressing.

Whisk: To blend ingredients smooth, or to incorporate air into a mixture, similar to whipping.

And as one ventures into this exciting arena, remember what Barbara Costikyan has to say – “In the childhood memories of every good cook, there's a large kitchen, a warm stove, a simmering pot and a mom.”

From the desk of Miss Know All: Dangers of a long flight - deep vein thrombosis!

2006-11-14T01:56:00.000+05:30

(Published on 14 November 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Awareness is critical to prepare oneself for all eventualities. Little did Panna Marfatia know when she boarded the British Airways flight BA-139 from London to Mumbai on 4th November 2006 that she would not step out of the plane alive. Panna complained of uneasiness on board and was given medical treatment by the in-flight staff. However, Panna collapsed and was declared dead by the Sahar Airport doctor after the flight landed. The post-mortem stated cardiac arrest as the cause of death but it was suspected that she had suffered deep vein thrombosis.

What is deep vein thrombosis? Why does it happen? How can it be prevented? These are just few of the questions that come to one’s mind. Long flights result in passengers sitting in a sedentary, cramped position for a long duration of time. As a consequence blood flow slows down and there is poor blood circulation. The constricted blood circulation often leads to swelling of the feet. In extreme cases a blood clot develops in a deep vein, usually in the lower leg. Unlike small clots that can be broken down by the body as time passes by, larger clots block blood flow in the vein. This is called deep vein thrombosis. Symptoms of deep vein thrombosis are swelling in the legs and pain in the calves.

People who are either over the age of forty, or those who suffer from diabetes or hypertension, pregnant women and women on contraceptive pills are more prone to get deep vein thrombosis and fall into the high-risk group. Other risk factors include obesity and recent surgery. As long-haul flights bring about prolonged immobility, it is advised that travellers are made aware of what deep vein thrombosis is all about and how they can avoid it. While heart patients, senior citizens and pregnant women are advised to visit their doctors and take professional advice before a flight - the following is recommended for all long distant passengers:

4On a long flight it is advised that you stretch your legs and perform leg exercises while seated. Most airline magazines diagrammatically explain how these exercises can be done.

4Every couple of hours, briefly walk up and down the aisle to enable blood circulation and to prevent cramps.

4Drink juices and water to keep hydrated.

4Avoid alcohol and caffeine drinks as they lead to dehydration which causes thickening of blood.

4Push back your seat so as to assume as much a horizontal position as possible to assist circulation of blood.

Having said that – I’d like to emphasise that good health is something one has to work towards. As quoted by Wayne Fields in ‘What the River Knows’:

“The best six doctors anywhere
And no one can deny it
Are sunshine, water, rest, and air
Exercise and diet.
These six will gladly you attend
If only you are willing
Your mind they'll ease
Your will they'll mend
And charge you not a shilling.”

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

From the desk of Miss Know All: Suffering from whitlow?

2006-11-07T10:31:00.000+05:30

(Published on 7 November 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Remember those ‘Tell me why’ series of encyclopaedias in the school library dahlings? Well I’m planning to come out with my own series. The ‘Tell me why Miss Know All’ series of books that are destined to be a sell out before they even go into print. The questions people ask me… I can’t help but find myself showing off – my knowledge that is.

Waiting for my turn at the beauty parlour for a facial (a meek and feeble attempt to slow down the aging process) – I found myself chatting with another client… young and pretty, may I add. While I’d give her an A++ for grooming – I noticed she suffered with a bad case of whitlow. Every opportunity to impart knowledge is seized… and here I was sitting amongst a group of hoity-toity make-up laden ladies telling them what to do when struck with this ailment.

A whitlow is an infection that occurs at the side or the base of a finger nail or a toe nail. The medical name for this is paronychia. This nail disease is a bacterial or fungal infection where the nail and skin meet at the side or the base of the nail. Patients suffer with characteristic vesicular lesions. Fluid within the vesicles is usually clear. It can also be chronic and people are known to have a tendency of getting it regularly. The cuticle, which is the skin at the base of the nail acts as a protective covering. If the cuticle is damaged then bacteria are able to enter the skin and cause infection. The skin becomes inflamed, red, and throbs continuously. Despite the small area affected these infections can be extremely painful.

Whitlows are very common amongst people who because of the nature of their work, have to repeatedly wash their hands. Excess water softens the cuticle and soaps or detergents remove the protective skin oils. This leaves the skin dry and more prone to split. Any damage to the cuticle allows infection to enter. Biting or picking at the cuticle or even damage through over enthusiastic manicuring can be the cause. Whitlow can be caused by either bacterial infection or a fungal one. When the infection comes on quickly it's usually caused by bacteria. This needs treatment with antibiotics. Usually a cream would suffice but in severe cases tablets would have to be taken. If the infection persists then a fungal infection is often the cause. An anti-fungal cream is the solution.

When someone is prone to whitlows it's advisable for them to use rubber gloves when washing things. It is also important to moisturise the skin well after drying your hands. Discourage over enthusiastic manicurists from digging around the cuticle when manicuring your nails.

‘Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.’ – Confucius
Real knowledge is to also accept that a Miss Know All has done her homework well and knows what she is talking about.

Miss Know-All
miss.know.all@gmail.com

From the desk of Miss Know All: Want to lose weight? Get your ears stapled!

2006-10-31T11:24:00.000+05:30

(Published on 31 October 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

There’s just no end to learning. A Miss Know-All needs to keep alert and vigilant. You need to keep yourself updated with what is latest in just about every field. I’d hate to be a ‘had-been’ – one needs to work hard to maintain one’s reputation of being a Miss Know-All. From maturing cataracts to bouquets n brick-bats… we the Miss Know All’s have an answer for everything!

Just when I thought that the only ways to lose weight and rev up your metabolism was to follow a high protein diet, catch enough sleep and indulge in high impact exercise – I was in for a surprise. Over the last few years, an alleged weight-loss method that is gaining ground and popularity is ear stapling. Stapling of the ear is a pretty simple procedure. A practitioner uses a specialised staple gun. The slightly protruding piece of cartilage close to the tragus is pierced. Tragus is a part of the external ear and is a small projection in front of the ear canal. A very thin staple remains in the ear from anywhere between six weeks to three months. The basic idea is that the pressure created suppresses the appetite. Once the body gets used to the staple, it needs to be repositioned. The person has to return to the practitioner to have the ear re-stapled in a slightly different position. Practitioners recommend stapling both the ears to achieve maximum weight loss.

The ancient Chinese practice of acupuncture is attributed as the source of this procedure. Stimulating specific points on the body using needles or finger pressure affects overall health and wellbeing. According to studies, the outer ear and the abdominal organs are right next to each other during foetal development in the womb. The physical connection between these body parts remains via nerve pathways even after they are no longer in close proximity. As per this explanation, stimulating a part of the external ear also stimulates the abdominal organs, including the stomach.

Ear-stapling is supposed to work wonders especially when combined with a good diet and exercise regimen. Believers in ear stapling claim that it can curb appetite reduce stress and increase metabolism. Whether you think it's going to work or not, what’s truly important to keep in mind is that weight loss works best if you focus on eating healthy and keeping active. It's possible that you'll achieve similar results if you leave out the staple and just focus on the food and exercise.

I’d like to close with the legendary entertainer Eartha Kitt’s words:
“I am learning all the time. The tombstone will be my diploma.”

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Triskaidekaphobia

2006-10-24T13:03:00.000+05:30

(Published on 24 October 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

My grandmother organised a family do on 13th September. Everyone graced the occasion except for an aunt who refused to turn up even though she lives just two houses down the lane. No amount of cajoling helped her change her mind. You see this aunt is a triskaidekaphobic and nothing in the world will make her step out of her house on the 13th day of any month. Besides, this September – 13th fell on a Friday… I wonder whether she got out of bed at all, that day.

Triskaidekaphobia is the fear of the number 13 as over a period of time this number has been associated with bad luck. The word ‘triskaidekaphobia’ has Greek origins: ‘tris’ means three; ‘kai’ means and; ‘deka’ means ten – thus adding up to the number thirteen. Phobia of course denotes fear. This superstition leads some people to fear or avoid anything involving the number 13 and leads to interesting practices such as omitting the number 13 when numbering floors in high-rise buildings.

The association of bad luck with the number 13 has been attributed to the fact there were 13 people at the Last Supper. The association has also been linked to that fact that luni-solar calendars such as the Hebrew and the Chinese calendars have to have 13 months in some years in order to synchronise the solar and lunar cycles. Triskaidekaphobia is also related to Norse mythology. God Odin invited eleven of his closest friends to a dinner party, only to have his party ruined by Loki, the god of evil. The total number of people added to 13. The legend further recounts how Balder, one of the most dearly loved gods, tried to throw Loki out of the party. A scuffle ensued and Balder was killed with a mistletoe-tipped arrow.

Fear of the number 13 also leads to fear of Friday the thirteenth. While the number 13 is associated with the number of people at the Last Supper, the crucifixion took place on a Friday. Thus, bad luck is associated with the combination of this number with this day. The year 1998 was a bad one for triskaidekaphobics. That year was one of the rare years in which Friday the 13th appeared thrice. Every year has at least one Friday the 13th. In a 28-year cycle, there are four years that have three ‘Friday the thirteenths’. The next being in: 2009, 2012 and 2015.

The only consolation I can offer triskaidekaphobics is that they are not alone and share their fears with other famous people. Napoleon, Richard Wagner, Franklin Roosevelt and Mark Twain were known to suffer with triskaidekaphobia. While there does not appear to be any hard evidence to support that the number thirteen is unlucky, it has been noted that a lot of money is lost each Friday the 13th as a result of people avoiding to start a new venture, begin a journey, get married, move and start a new job. Very rightly - Voltaire, one of the greatest French writers and philosophers observed that, "Superstition is to religion what astrology is to astronomy; the mad daughter of a wise mother"

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Paparazzi on the prowl...

2006-10-17T18:36:00.000+05:30

(Published on 17 October 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

It takes so little to excite the gentry ‘dahlings.’ The streets of Pune - a town 160 kilometres south of Mumbai, India's financial and entertainment capital, have been abuzz with excitement. Citizens of Pune woke up one morning to find Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie with their son Maddox riding an auto rickshaw down their crowded and cramped roads. Hollywood’s top couple are currently on a six-week trip to Pune along with their children - Maddox, Zahara and Shiloh-Nouvel. Angelina is in Pune, to shoot for 'A Mighty Heart' based on the real life story of Wall Street journalist Daniel Pearl, who was killed in Pakistan by Islamist terrorists in 2002. Jolie is to portray Mariane Pearl, wife of the slain journalist. Pune was chosen for the shooting as the landscape resembled Karachi.

Hollywood’s first couple have descended on this lethargic Indian town with an army of security guards. Also in tow are a mammoth number of paparazzi from around the world. While an average bloke on the street can’t fathom out why his hometown is at the centre of so much attention – the paparazzi is going ballistic trying to steal a glimpse. Paparazzi from across the world are monitoring every move of the stars. Photographers have mounted a 24/7 vigil of all possible exits and entries of the hotel. Recently Angelina’s private security guard manhandled a photographer. The beefy security personnel apparently roughed up British lens-man Sam Pelf. Eyewitnesses said he also used abusive language and threatened to thrash the photographer. While the incident raked up a debate on how far the paparazzi can be allowed to overstep on people’s privacy, I wondered what the origin of the word ‘paparazzi’ was.

Paparazzi - is plural of Paparazzo and comes from the name of a character in the movie ‘La Dolce Vita.’ Paparazzo was a photographer who would go to great lengths to take pictures of American movie stars. In 1960, this annoying freelance journalist was immortalised by the director Federico Fellini. The origin of the name Paparazzo is attributed to the Sicilian word for an oversize mosquito – papataceo. As per Fellini, paparazzo is a buzzing insect, hovering, darting and stinging. He goes further to describe it as a human-like figure that has no bone structure and resembles a vampire like insect that is a parasite. After the movie was released, the word paparazzi became synonymous with intrusive photographers. Time magazine introduced the word to the public in an article entitled, ‘Paparazzi on the Prowl’ and described them as a ravenous wolf pack of freelance photographers who stalk celebrities for a living and fire with flash guns at point-blank. The term soon gained popularity across the entertainment world.

But what is very clear is that no matter what the ‘celebrity bounty hunters’ achieve to capture, paparazzi is a derogatory term. However - each to his own opinion. For as per Anna Nicole Smith: “I love the paparazzi. They take pictures, and I just smile away. I've always liked attention. I didn't get it very much growing up, and I always wanted to be, you know, noticed.”

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Understanding deja vu...

2006-10-10T10:20:00.000+05:30

(Published on 10 October 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

My reputation as a Miss Know All is gaining speed for I now have total strangers come up to me and ask the weirdest of questions. Don’t mistake me for an agony aunt pretties… for I’m not here to hear you moan and solve your problems. I’m here to impart knowledge to the ignorant. From technical hitches to marital glitches – we the Miss Know Alls have an answer to everything.

Have you ever visited a park for the first time and felt that there was something strangely familiar about it? Or maybe you're in conversation with somebody and you suddenly get the feeling that you've had the exact conversation before. If you've ever experienced such situations, then you've experienced déjà vu. It can be triggered by sight, sound, taste or even smell. An admirer came over and asked me to explain what déjà vu is…

Déjà vu is a French term that literally means "already seen." It is described as the feeling that you've seen or experienced something before when you know you haven't. Defining types of déjà vu is very difficult. Déjà vu is extremely difficult to study because it occurs briefly, without any notice, only in certain people, and has no witnesses or physical manifestations. Because of this, there is little research and no explanations. Studies depend on personal descriptions. While about 60 percent of people say they have experienced déjà vu, the rates are highest among younger people. Researchers believe that déjà vu experiences decrease with age. There have also been higher reported occurrences among people with active imaginations.

Taking a very broad look at the research and resources available, we can put déjà vu experiences into two categories:

Associative déjà vu: The most common type of déjà vu experienced by normal people is associative in nature. You see, hear, smell or otherwise experience something that stirs a feeling that you associate with something you've seen, heard, smelled or experienced before. Many researchers think that this type of déjà vu is a memory-based experience and assume that the brain is responsible for it.

Biological déjà vu: Déjà vu also occurs among people suffering with epilepsy, psychiatric disorders, including anxiety, depression and schizophrenia. Just before having a seizure they often experience a strong feeling of déjà vu. Researchers have been able to identify the areas of the brain where these types of déjà vu signals originate. The person experiencing déjà vu may truly believe they've been through the exact situation before, rather than getting a feeling that quickly passes.

The mind is truly a strange organ for it can play games. I like what Elihu Burritt has said about the mind: “Our minds are like certain vehicles, when they have little to carry they make much noise, but when heavily loaded they run quietly.”

Ever wondered how the scarecrow knew that he didn't have a brain?

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

There's more to pastas than meets the eye...

2006-10-10T07:16:00.000+05:30

(Published on 10 October 2006 in 'Life' - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Going to Europe on a vacation calls for excitement, and a rush of adrenaline. For months… every conversation indulged in somehow trickles down to Europe. My friend was leaving on a three month sojourn to Italy… and as a result we were treated to an overdose of information on Europe for months on end prior to her date of departure. By the time she finally did leave our shores… we all were adept thanks to our proficient (and over-excited) mate.

The one good thing that did come about from her trip was that I learnt a lot about pastas. Earlier all pastas broadly fell into two broad categories. But I soon realised that there was more to pastas than met the eye.

Pastas are available in many different shapes and sizes. Majority of pasta forms that are available originated in Italy. They are available in shapes that resemble shells, bow ties, spirals and tubes. Pastas with basic shapes should be accompanied with a plain sauce, while most shaped pastas can be savoured with a chunkier sauce. Examples of shaped pastas are:

Farfalle - shaped like a bow tie
Fusilli – shaped like a spring
Gemelli – spiral shaped, two strands twisted together
Gnocchetti – shaped like a curved shell
Conchiglie – shaped like a conch
Gramigna – strand shaped like a comma
Lumaconi & Lumache – shaped like a snail
Orecchiette – ear shaped meaning little ear
Radiatori – small chunky pieces that resembles the grill of a radiator
Ruote – shaped like a six spoke cartwheel
Rotini – tightly twisted spring

Tubular pastas are in the shape of a tube. Some tubes are long and narrow while others are short and wide. Tubular pastas have either smooth or grooved exteriors and their ends could either be cut straight or at an angle. They are often served with a heavy sauce, which stays well in the hollows of the pasta tubes. Some of the larger tubes can be stuffed and then baked. Examples: Canneroni, penne, trenne, cannolicchi, cavatappi, garganelli, macaroni, maccheroncelli, manicotti, paccheri, rigatoni, tortiglioni, and ziti

Ribbon pastas consist of flat strands of pasta, which are available in different lengths, widths and thickness. Ribbon pasta can have straight or wavy edges. The dried ribbons are generally used with a thick, heavier sauce and the fresh ribbons are served with a more delicate sauce. Examples: Fettuccine, lasagne, linguine, pappardelle, riginette, tagliatelle, and trenette

Pasta strands are long rods of pasta. The basic difference from one variety to the next is the thickness of the strands. The thicker strands work well with a heavier sauce while the thin varieties are better with a more delicate sauce. Examples: Capellini, chitarra, fedelini, spaghetti, and vermicelli

Soup pastas consist of pasta shapes that range in size from small to very tiny. The larger of the soup pastas are used in thicker based soups. Soup pastas include many shapes, such as round balls, thin strands, tubes, rings, grain-shapes, bow ties and stars. Examples: Stortini, acini di pepe, orzo, anellini, conchigliette, ditali, farfalline, pastine and tubetti.

Stuffed pastas consist of fresh pasta sheets that are stuffed with a filling. Some sheets are folded over the filling and then twisted to form a little crown shaped pasta. Stuffed pastas are formed in different shapes, such as squares, circles, triangles and half moons. They are stuffed with a variety of fillings, such as meats, cheeses, herbs, mushrooms, and vegetables. Examples: Ravioli, agnolotti, pansotti, tortelli, and tortellini

The next time you visit an Italian restaurant – don’t just stick to pizzas and spaghetti to hide your ignorance. And remember, most Italian tables would be incomplete without wine!

And here’s a quick lesson to astonish your guests with some perfect Italian!

>Apri il vino (open the wine bottle): a good glass of wine to accompany your meal.

>Cin! or Alla Salute!: the Italian toast, like saying "Cheers!"

>Buon appetito (have a good meal): before a dinner say this to the whole company and expect the same answer in return.

>Complimenti alla cuoca (compliments to the cook): after enjoying an excellent meal, say this to compliment the lady chef to demonstrate your appreciation. The male version is "com-plee-men-tee al coo-oko".

Viva Italia!

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Looking for soft skills?

2006-10-03T09:31:00.000+05:30

(Published on 3 October 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

When a friend from Jakarta came down to Colombo on a job assignment – I was all set to help her find her feet and generally introduce her to the place. But the lady in question had done her homework well, for she carried with her a huge file with maps, contact addresses, list of associations, information on club memberships, directions to super-marts, web site URL’s of international schools and application forms of medical clinics and insurance companies. Impressed, I thought it best to step back and let her explore the beautiful country all on her own, till one fine day I got a call with a much exasperated voice at the other end.

“Will you just speak to the gentleman on the telephone line,” she requested. “He just does not seem to understand my requirements.” On the line was the manager of a placement agency equally frustrated and wound up who informed me that all he wanted to know was what skills she was looking for in her domestic help. And in turn all my friend kept answering was - “just someone with excellent soft skills!”

Here I was doing what I do best. Educating the public and coming to the rescue of the distressed. Soft skills are personality traits that do not require specialised training and practice. They refer to personal character and behaviour and include qualities of social graces, personal habits, and sense of responsibility, self-esteem, integrity and honesty, as well as communication skills and the ability to adapt to different cultures. Actually for any career, soft skills go hand in hand with hard skills, which are the technical requirements of a job. Hard skills have to be learned and require specialised training. For example: carpentry, plumbing, software programming, engineering, etc. However, to be successful in today’s complex job market it takes more than a sound technical background.

Soft skills play an important part in the success of any organisation and are what sets apart any organisation from its competitors. Every employer seeks a different mix of skills and experience from an employee. But soft skills are something that they look for consistently. Organisations dealing with customer interaction are generally more successful if their recruitment policy mainly focuses on soft skills. For this reason, soft skills are increasingly sought out by employers in addition to the required qualifications. Foremost amongst soft skills is interpersonal skills – the importance of which cannot be more emphasised irrespective of any job in any industry.

My friend has been here for over a year now – and extremely satisfied with the domestic help she has at home ever since. As for the placement agency – I saw their new advertisement in a national daily recently which read:
“Available: professional housemaids, drivers and nannies with excellent soft skills.”

A commendable display of soft skills… for the manager of the placement agency had the humility to follow and the drive to change!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Raising a toast to the queen of crime!

2006-09-26T00:04:00.000+05:30

(Published on 26 September 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

In the words of Washington Irving - “There is never jealousy where there is not strong regard.” How very true for I found myself besieged with envy as Mathew Prichard, Agatha Christie's only grandchild and Chairman of Agatha Christie Ltd. led the world in paying glorious tributes to his celebrated grandmother, Agatha Christie on her 126th birthday on 15 September.

And in case you are left wondering where I am coming from pretties, let me explain. No, it’s not Agatha Christie whom I envy. I wish I was in Mathew’s shoes. It must be truly wonderful to have a grandmother who could weave intriguing tales. How many of our grandmothers would tuck us into bed and concoct a story about a Belgian private detective based in London called Hercule Poirot who sported a black waxed moustache and wore patent leather shoes? Or conjure up St Mary’s Mead, the fictional village where the shrewd and intelligent Miss Jane Marple lived?

Agatha Christie remains the world’s best-selling fiction author, with more than over two billion books sold. It was claimed that Agatha Christie was outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. I guess that might have changed ever since but Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple continue to remain the most popular detectives. Many of Christie’s novels were released as movies. For her contribution to literature, Agatha Christie was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1971. The magic of her storytelling continues to reach a contemporary audience and she continues to be recognised as the undisputed 'Queen of Crime'. The Agatha Christie Theatre Company was launched with an immensely successful production of ‘The Hollow.’ This classic mystery was also innovatively adapted into the first ever Agatha Christie story to be a PC game. Kevin Elyot's stage adaptation of ‘And Then There Were None’ opened in the West End to outstanding reviews.

A truly grand old Dame who touched so many lives with her timeless stories of murder and deceit, Agatha Christie was a true woman of substance. One of her quotes, that’s a favourite of mine is - “The best time to plan a book is while you're doing the dishes.”

And to my dearest grandma – I love you a lot – but I wish you had been a little more creative and imaginative with your bed-time stories! The only consolation is that like Miss Marple you like gardening and are often seen carrying knitting needles and yarn!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: What!!! Pluto not a planet...

2006-09-19T10:22:00.000+05:30

(Published on 19 September 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Ever since I can remember… (and my Geography teacher, Miss Breganza was a great lady – who would tell me no lie) Pluto has been known as the ninth planet of our solar system since it was discovered by Clyde Tombaugh in 1930. The new announcement informing the world that Pluto does not fit in with the pattern of the other planets is being unkind to all the Geography teachers down the years. What teachers said in class was law – and one never ever thought of challenging what they said or taught.

Since 1992 small objects, made of rock and ice up to a few hundred kilometres in size, have been found orbiting at a great distance from the Sun. These are called Trans Neptunian Objects (TNOs). The information gathered on Pluto and the discovery of TNOs in the outer solar system with orbital characteristics very similar to those of Pluto, have led to this new deduction. The argument is that Pluto is so small and out of place in its distant orbit around the Sun that it cannot be classified as a proper planet. As a result, Pluto will now have the rare distinction of having dual classification as a planet and a TNO, at least for the time being. This dual classification for Pluto is a result of its remarkable nature.

The group who will decide the official status of Pluto for the professional astronomers is the International Astronomical Union. They will be informing the world of their decision shortly. The definition of a planet is rather arbitrary. Planets need a better definition rather than being known as an object that our ancestors saw moving in the sky. Until there is clarity and a consensus regarding the definition it is not right to either 'demote' Pluto or 'promote' Ceres. Since the discovery of the minor planet Ceres in 1801 astronomers have found thousands of minor planets orbiting the Sun, mainly between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Members of the IAU have been expressing their opinions on Pluto's status. There have been several votes with no clear-cut conclusion. Whatever the result it seems clear that Pluto is a special type of celestial object, which may well deserve a special status.

Well that temporarily puts to rest my belief in my Geography teacher who painstakingly taught us, seven year olds, the names of the nine planets with the help of a model. Miss Breganza – if you are reading this - I still believe that you were right and nothing will ever change that. Today even if the universe changes its views – I shall always remember what you taught me in Grade II. What rings in my mind is what Bertrand Russell has said “More important than the curriculum is the question of the methods of teaching and the spirit in which the teaching is given.”

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Holy smoke... now it's laptop batteries that are exploding!

2006-09-12T13:33:00.000+05:30

(Published on 12 September 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Ever heard of exploding laptops that suddenly burst into flames? Good lord. Laptops have now got a mind of their own. Handle yours with care for if you treat it with a little disdain, it will lose its cool – heat up – and just explode!

But this is no banter. Dell recently recalled 4.1 million laptops as they felt that the batteries of these could short-circuit. These Dell laptop batteries could overheat and catch fire or explode. This isn't the first time in the computer industry that laptops have been recalled. HP and Apple have recalled laptop batteries in the past. But the threat of the battery exploding or catching fire is something new.

This really got me worried dahlings. As I work late into the nights often leaving the laptop on for hours on end, it was important I understand the mechanism of how the battery worked and why there were chances of it catching fire. Batteries have two terminals - a negatively charged terminal and a positively charged terminal. Energy from electrochemical reactions causes negatively charged particles called electrons to collect at the battery's negatively charged pole. When a battery is connected to a circuit, the electrons flow from the negative pole to the battery's positively charged pole. In this way a flow of charge or electricity is generated. The cells of a lithium-ion battery also contain separators that keep the positive and negative poles called anodes and cathodes apart.

Depending on the type of battery, electrons are generated in different ways. In a lithium-ion battery, pressurized containers house a coil of metal and a flammable, lithium-based liquid. Tiny metal pieces float in the liquid. Manufacturers try their best to limit the size and number of these metal fragments. If the battery gets hot through excessive use or recharging, the pieces of metal begin to move around. If a piece of metal gets too close to the separator that separates the anode from the cathode, it can puncture the separator and cause a short circuit. In case of a short circuit, the spark created could ignite the flammable liquid causing a fire. On the other hand if the short circuit causes the temperature inside the battery to rise rapidly, the battery could explode due to the increased pressure. Conversely if the short circuit causes the temperature to rise slowly, the battery can melt, and the liquid inside can leak out.

As users, we want small, light laptops that we can use for long time periods. We also want our laptops to have lots of processing power. Laptop batteries have to be relatively small, but have the capacity to hold a lot of energy and last a long time. Making lithium-ion batteries that can hold more power for a longer period requires its components, specially the separators, to be small and thin. The reduction in size makes it more probable that the batteries will short circuit or leak.

The thought of your laptop bursting into flames is a scary one. I have started treating mine with a lot more respect honeys. Before I go to bed I cover it with a lace cloth and caress it goodnight… the truth is that I want to be sure it’s not too hot on touch. I’ve come to the firm conclusion that a laptop is a woman. For no one but its creator understands its complexity. Even the smallest errors are stored in long term memory for possible retrieval. And finally – only a woman could explode on losing her cool!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Fishing or Phishing?

2006-09-05T09:45:00.000+05:30

(Published on 5 September 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

I often walk into the public library… it’s always a good place to check out who is working hard and could be potential competition. There are so many who aspire to be Miss Know Alls…

Much to my surprise I bumped into a friend who teaches nine year olds at the local convent. What was even more surprising was when asked what she was doing at the library she said she was preparing for the next day’s class. Preparing to teach nine year olds? How much of a preparation would you need for that? On enquiring I learnt that the previous week she was taken to task by a student’s parent for cutting marks in a spelling test. The child had written ‘phishing’ – instead of fishing. The parent a computer engineer had given my friend an entire book on phishing – and the subtracted marks were duly added to the mark sheet.

In computing, phishing is an illegal activity where in fraudulent techniques are used to acquire sensitive information, such as passwords and credit card details. People who indulge in phishing are called phishers. These swindlers attempt to get confidential information by concealing their true identity and pretending to be a trustworthy person or business. Phishing is most often carried out using email or an instant message. More recent phishing attempts have targeted the customers of banks and online payment services. Typically, a phishing attempt would be disguised as an official email from a bank, and would attempt to trick the bank's members into giving away their account information.

Most methods of phishing use some form of technical deception designed to make a link in an email appear to belong to an organisation. Misspelled URLs are common tricks. Some phishing scams use JavaScript commands in order to alter the address bar. The damage caused by phishing ranges from loss of online access to financial loss. Unsuspecting people often divulge personal information with ease, including credit card numbers; I-card numbers, and address details. Once this information is acquired, the phishers may use a person's details to create fake accounts in a victim's name or even prevent victims from accessing their own accounts

These days legitimate email messages from organisations to their clients will contain an item of information that is confidential. Emails from banks and credit card companies will often include partial account numbers. One should always be suspicious if the message does not contain some personal information.

I left the library feeling sympathetic towards my friend. She sat with a list of all the words she was to give in the spelling test the next day… checking out all possible valid ways of spelling each word. “Don’t give the student an ‘F’ in his report card when he fails,” I advised. “Just give him a ‘PH’!!!!!!!”

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Being a good houseguest

2006-08-29T11:44:00.000+05:30

(Published on 29 August 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Ever had a painful houseguest pretties? A family is usually full of them – and instead of being a joyful family reunion – the occasion often turns out to be the lady of the house’s worst nightmare.

As a kid I remember frequently going for vacations to my grandmother’s house. A whole bunch of cousins would descend at her place and it would be one big party. Having said that there were strict house rules to be followed and even though we were so many of us – housework never got disrupted and everything else around us worked as it should when it should – like clockwork. We were repeatedly reminded by our parents that if we were good guests we would be welcomed over and over again.

Being a houseguest in another's home is a wonderful way to bond and share friendships. However, it takes special effort to be a good house guest whether it is at a relative’s or a friend’s house. I recollect an aunt and her bratty kids coming over one summer. By the time they left nerves were frayed and the whole family was in a cantankerous crabby mood. Our living room cushions were stained with chocolate, the garden hose had been twisted repetitively, the doorbell would not ring any more, the music system speakers had given up, the doormat had chewing gum and biscuit crumbs would appear from the most startling places.

The perfectionist that I am, I’ve always taken great care to be a good houseguest and formulated my own rules and regulations. Little bit of research on the people you are visiting always helps. After all it would be only appropriate to dress and behave as per what’s acceptable at your hosts. It’s a nice gesture to take the family something as a gift – even if it means a jar of home-made treacle. A small act, that will help you forge friendships. Keep observant and follow small hints that the hostess may drop. Usually the lady of the house wants the housework to proceed without a hitch. Flow with the tide. Don’t be a hindrance. Observe how people behave in their homes and follow suit. Pay attention to when people bathe, how frequently and for how long, when people get up and go to sleep and whether or not shoes are worn indoors.

And for heaven’s dahlings - if you want to remain popular, limit your stay to just a couple of days. As aptly put by Hubbard Kin, “making a long stay short is a great aid to popularity.” Your host may insist you stay longer, but its left for you to evaluate whether, your doing so would affect the host's life and budget. Additional house members are always an economic burden and a strain on the household budget. Paying for groceries, fruits, etc is a polite way of contributing. Give your host numerous opportunities to accept your offers of gifts or to make purchases for the household. Sending a thank-you note along with some photos that include the host family is a lovely and thoughtful way to ensure that your bond with the host family will last forever. Whether a close relative or a dear friend no relationship should be taken for granted.

Wonder why Miss Know All’s are so popular, sugars? It’s because we lead our lives by the book… perfectionists that we are.

In the words of Benjamin Franklin, “Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days.”

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: The difference between warranty and guarantee...

2006-08-22T14:00:00.000+05:30

(Published on 22 August 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

I bought an electric kettle as a gift for an old Aunt who resides in a hill station. It will be useful by her bedside, as she would not need to get up in the cold, to heat up water for herself. Though a favourite Aunt, one always hesitates to visit her. An acidic tongue, she always has lots to say… whether it is about my gaining too much weight or loosing too much weight… about my skin looking lifeless or my hair looking limp. At eighty five – one always let her take the liberty of passing remarks that would have otherwise been sternly dealt with.

I gave her a warm hug and settled by her rocking chair as I handed her the gift along with a bottle of brandy as I enquired after her arthritis. She chose not to reply as she read the text on the box of the electric kettle with great interest. “So does this have a guarantee card or a warranty card?” she enquired. I squirmed for I hadn’t a clue. I tried to glance at the box in her hand – for some telltale signs … but it was a futile exercise. The only way out was to admit I hadn’t a clue and was not even too sure about the difference between warranty and guarantee. What followed was a volley of accusations of being a careless and irresponsible consumer who was unaware of my consumer rights. I retrieved myself and my battered ego from there and went straight to a lawyer friend’s house. So what indeed is the difference between warranty and guarantee?

A warranty is a promise given and is usually a written assurance for a product and declares the manufacturer’s responsibility to repair or replace a defective product or its parts. It means that the service is perfect when the contract is performed and the manufacturer is liable for this. The period commences on the day of acceptance of the goods. A guarantee on the other hand is an agreement assuming responsibility to perform, execute, or complete something and offers security for that agreement. It is an assurance that attests to the quality or durability of a product or service, or a pledge that something will be performed in a specified manner.

Flummoxed? Well sweeties for once I must admit – so was I! My friend elaborated and slowly the difference dawned. The fundamental difference is that a guarantee is generally a short term pledge. “We guarantee that you will be satisfied or your money back”. While a warranty is a long term contract, it is generally based on the quality of the product and its longevity rather than just simple satisfaction. This means that if you do every thing the manufacturer tells you to do and do it in the specified time frame then they will repair a quality defect at no cost to the consumer. The other type of guarantee involves the financial aspect of the transaction rather than the quality. In this type of guarantee, the buyer is given a promise of getting his money back in the event of a failure in satisfaction over a longer term.

Well, it will be some time till I visit my old Aunt again. But if it wasn’t for her I would not be wiser today. Obeisance from one Miss Know All to a very senior and seasoned Miss Know All!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know All: The art of insulting

2006-08-15T12:00:00.000+05:30

(Published on 15 August 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

A friend gifted me a book on insults – a book that contained a compilation of insults, invectives and incivility hurled down through the ages. I wonder what prompted her to buy that book for me… nothing serious that I can recollect. She must have presumed that a person of my intellect would relish the delights of verbal warfare.

The book lay untouched for a while till I browsed through it more out of curiosity than the love of reading something so frivolous. Much to my amazement, on reading I discovered that there truly was an art of insulting. There were great men in history (and women, may I add) who had mastered this art and excelled in spewing insults at those who they felt deserved to be at the receiving end.

One person who has been known to be a connoisseur, and a specialist in the art of insulting was none other Winston Churchill himself. Lady Astor had once told Churchill, “Winston, if you were my husband, I should flavour your coffee with poison.” To which it is believed Churchill replied, “Madam if I were your husband, I should drink it.”

The quick witted responses of Winston Churchill have become legendary. On another occasion Bessie Braddock, an MP remarked, “Winston, you’re drunk!” Churchill retorted, “Bessie you are ugly. And tomorrow morning I shall be sober.”

Insulting is not for the weak hearted for only the brave can resort to such malicious pleasure. Bernard Shaw once sent Churchill two tickets for the opening of his new play, with the invitation: “Bring a friend – if you have one.” Churchill regretted that he was engaged, and asked for tickets for the second performance: “If there is one.”

Churchill’s razor wit and tongue in cheek remarks in the House of Commons created an electric environment. On Ramsay MacDonald he once remarked: “ I remember, when I was a child, being taken to the celebrated Barnum’s Circus, which contained an exhibition of freaks and monstrosities; but the exhibit on the programme which I most desired to see was the one described as – ‘The Boneless Wonder.’ My parents judged that the spectacle would be too revolting and demoralising for my youthful eyes, and I have waited fifty years to see The Boneless Wonder sitting on the Treasury Bench."

By the time I finished going through the book I was truly inspired to be more creative with the invectives that I used. The art of insulting needs imagination, wit and style… I’m practising… sharpening my claws and my tongue!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Gearing up to visit the spa...

2006-08-08T18:45:00.000+05:30

(Published in the July 2006 issue of Hi!! - Sri Lanka)

A visit to the spa can be quite an intimidating experience unless one is well versed and acquainted with the various treatments and jargon used at this luxurious wellbeing centre. Simply put a spa is a centre for healing and nourishing of not just the body but the mind and soul as well. People go to spas for fitness, stress management, peace of mind, pampering and pleasure, and overall health and wellness.

It is believed that the word spa comes from the Belgian town of Spa, known since Roman times for its baths. However the more common belief is that spa may be an acronym for the Latin phrase "sanitas per aquas" which means health through water. Although it seems as though spas have sprung up in the last couple of years - that is not the case. The use of water for therapeutic use can be traced back to early civilizations. The modern spa has descended from the ancient practice of bathing in hot springs and mineral waters. Social bathing was an important cultural process practiced by Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. With growing stress levels in today’s fast paced life the spas stepped in to make people realise the value of wellness of the mind body and soul.

Today’s spa is an interesting combination of ancient traditions and modern equipment. However, the heart of the modern spa remains water and the treatments that evolve around it. The proper sequence of the typical spa routine is cleaning, heating, treatment, and rest.

Tips to keep in mind!

The first trip to the spa can be a daunting experience. A spa center would usually have friendly therapists, who are geared towards customer care. However there are some things that you should keep in mind and exercise while visiting a spa. Here are some tips to help you make the most of your visit.

• Take out enough time from your daily routine for your treatment at the spa. There is no point being in a rush and not having enough time to unwind and relax.

• Run through the entire procedure with the therapist prior to the commencement of the treatment. That way you are not taken by surprise and expect what is to happen next.

• The biggest point of concern and the reason of hesitation to enter a spa is the fear of having to take off your clothes for a treatment. Do what you are most comfortable with. Share your concern with the therapist who will put your mind at ease.

• If you are uncomfortable with anything during your treatment – the pressure, the music, the temperature – voice it. The therapist will make suitable adjustments.

• Do remember to tell the therapist if you are allergic to anything in particular like honey, pollen, etc.

• You can talk during the treatment or stay quiet, as you choose. However, silence is relaxing and its best to let your body including your mind relax.

• On completion the therapist, as is procedure will ask you to take your time getting up. That usually means a few minutes. It's not a license to take a nap.

• And oh yes last but not the least… do not forget to turn off your mobile phone once the treatment commences. This is ‘me time’ and the world for once can wait!

Word Power - at the spa

A look at the spa menu can be overwhelming. Get familiar with terminology used at the spa and equip yourself with the knowledge that you will need. Gear up to visit the spa.

Aromatherapy: The use of volatile plant oils, including essential oils, for overall well-being.

Body Wrap: Treatment where a body mask made of algae, seaweed, mud, clay, lotion or cream, depending on the treatment is applied to the entire body, which is then wrapped to keep the body warm. Later the mask is rinsed off. Body wraps are treatments that either help rid the body of toxins through metabolic stimulation or are hydrating treatments geared towards softening the skin.

Detox: Short for detoxification, which is the removal of toxic substances from the body.

Exfoliate: The word exfoliate simply means to peel off the outer surface of something. The process involved helps remove the top layer of dead epidermis cells, and makes the skin appear smoother, less wrinkled and radiant.

Facial: Treatment of the face that involves deep cleansing, massage, extractions of blackheads and other impurities, toning, and moisturising.

Floatation Therapy: The Floatation therapy involves a tank containing water to a shallow depth that is treated with a very high concentration of Epsom salts. The resultant high density allows your body to float naturally and spontaneously without effort. The experience ultimately isolates an individual from external stimuli, enabling him to forget the body and concentrate on the mind.

Hydrate: Treatments that hydrate the skin enable the skin’s surface to restore elasticity, gently fortifying the skin with its moisturising effects, thereby minimising the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.

Hydrotherapy: or water therapy, is the use of water (hot, cold, steam, or ice) to relieve discomfort and promote physical well-being.

Invigorate: Refresh, stimulate and revitalise resulting in overall well being.

Jacuzzi: A trademark used for a whirlpool bath or a device that swirls water in a bath.

Masque: A facial masque will help you retexture and re-mineralise your skin and prevent wrinkles and other signs of aging. It allows you to deep cleanse your skin. Products vary to suit different skin types. Following application the masque is allowed to dry after which it is washed off.

Reflexology: A natural healing art, based on the principle that there are reflexes in the feet and hands which correspond to every part of the body. By stimulating and applying pressure to the feet or hands, one can increase circulation and promote specific bodily and muscular functions.

Rejuvenate: Treatments that renew, restore and make you feel younger

Scotch Hoses: A hydrotherapy treatment which entails alternating warm and cool water massage via a high velocity and intensity water wand controlled by a therapist. The Scotch Hose works to speed up the client’s metabolism through pressurised water being directed to the client’s specific points of pressure.

Scrub: An exfoliating treatment where the therapist rubs off the outermost layer of dead skin cells.

Swiss Showers: An enclosed shower with a large number of showerheads surrounding the client. Water temperature is controlled by the therapist.

Therapeutic massage: The manual manipulation of the body's muscles. Massage has been around for years and has a number of health benefits.

Vichy Showers: A shower designed with multiple showerheads providing an invigorating hydrotherapy experience. These can be either, wall-mounted, ceiling-mounted or stand-alone and have adaptable spray patterns and thermal controls.

Watsu: The word means WATer ShiatSU. Through gentle movement and acupressure, Watsu brings a deep sense of relaxation to all parts of the body while floating in water while the body is stretched, glided and gracefully turned and floated by the practitioner.

Wassertanzen: (pronounced vassertahn-sen) The treatment which in Swiss means ‘Water Dance’ is like a passive ballet. The therapist gently rocks and cradles the client in the water and guides the client to unwind. The treatment is a harmonising blend of timeless and weightless wonder.

Now that you are at speed with the A-Z of the spa vocabulary - step into the spa with confidence. There is nothing like giving yourself the gift of little pampering. And the next time you want to gift something to your mother, wife, sister or even a colleague – how about gifting them a visit to the spa. They will associate YOU with the most memorable and relaxing time they have ever had.

Need a stress buster? Just walk into the nearest spa and leave all your stress behind!

From the Desk of Miss Know All: Arouse the 'Kartini' within you...

2006-08-08T06:32:00.000+05:30

(Published on 8 August 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

April 21 is observed as “Hari Kartini” or Kartini Day in Indonesia and is remembered as the day of women’s emancipation that was initiated by a woman called Kartini. The day is an important date in the school calendar on which students explore the role of women within a family, within society and within history.

Kartini was born on 21April 1879 in the province of Central Java. Among the first Javanese to acquire some western education, Kartini realised that the choices it encouraged her to make, were also the right of all her people. Her voice was and still is heard through the written words of her letters. She used her strength as an educated woman to set about making changes in the life of women in her immediate vicinity through education.

In June 1902 Kartini wrote, “What I mean by a liberal education is firstly to nurture Javanese people to become real Javanese, awakening within them a deep love for their nation and country. We would like to share with them all the good things of Western culture, not to replace or erase the beauty of their own culture but rather to bring out the radiance of that culture.” Kartini demonstrated that change comes from within ourselves and from within our homes. Rather than reject, change respects and embraces tradition, while carrying forward a culture that has shaped the identity of a people over generations.

In 1903, Kartini obtained permission to open the first ever all-girls’ school in her own home. Unfortunately, Kartini died a year later and did not live to see the first of a series of Kartini Schools which was opened in 1916. These pioneering schools began to break down resistance to girls’ education. Co-education became possible and education as a whole began to expand in the influence of Kartini’s ideas.

Kartini’s life and work demonstrated to her people the need for self esteem as individuals and the need for an identity as a nation. The objective of celebrating Kartini Day is to ensure that this identity is born, reborn and develops down generations. Kartini has reinforced the belief that children need to bring the strengths of their own family traditions and culture with them as they experience cultures that are different to their own.

The need of the hour is to arouse the ‘Kartini’ that lives within us. Let us be true to ourselves and hold fast to that which is good, while embracing change as a positive growth factor. Let us not forget our roots.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know All: Anti-aging... with or without botox!

2006-07-25T18:36:00.000+05:30

(Published on 25 July 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

One of my favourite yesteryears Hollywood stars has been Lucille Ball. Her zest for life is admirable and worthy of praise. I love what Lucille says about aging… “The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age.”

Lucille Ball could not have put it better sweeties… a number of my friends have been forty for the past 5 to 6 years. Facelifts, chemical peels and microdermabrasion – nothing seems to work for too long. My friend was worried about her (now very noticeable) crow’s feet. Anti-aging cosmetics were liberally bought and liberally applied. But the adamant facial lines refused to budge and fade away. Finally a dermatologist was consulted and botox injections were suggested. We returned from the consultation with my friend looking even more concerned and confused. Forget crow’s feet, suddenly her frown, laughter lines and forehead expression lines all seemed more pronounced. I promised I’d get back to her with more details about botox.

Botox is the short form of Botulinism toxin. It is a form of a purified protein that is injected locally in the area that is to be treated. Botox paralyses the muscles that are responsible for the wrinkles by blocking signals from the brain to the nerve endings, hence preventing the muscle from contracting. Injections temporarily put the muscles asleep for a short duration of time. Results are known to last longer with repeated treatments. However the secret lies in adapting a good routine to keep the lines at bay. This would involve cutting down on smoking and alcohol, exercising regularly, using sunscreen, eating a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables and drinking lots and lots of water.

What better way to end than quote what Sophia Loren has to say about age: “There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.” Oomph is no longer the fiefdom of 20-year-old sirens. Age is not important, the attitude is. How else can one explain Sophia Loren posing in a slinky black dress for the International Pirelli Calendar at the age of 71!

May be to stay forever young - we need to smoothen out the wrinkles in our mind about aging. As for we Miss Know-All’s - we use the term aging for others and for wines – never for ourselves.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know All: Caviar... much overrated!

2006-07-11T18:40:00.000+05:30

(Published on 11 July 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

I had the opportunity to attend a cocktail party thrown by a waning socialite recently. It was yet another exhibition of Manolo Blahnik pointy toes and bling. The who’s- who arrived flashing their diamonds as well as their artificial smiles. As glasses clinked I did what you do best on these occasions – squeal… exclaim… flutter… and sigh! Everything seemed okay and bearable till the canapés laden with caviar came around. While the hostess went into great lengths to explain how the caviar was bought the last time they were abroad, and friends around her rolled their eyes savouring the delicacy – I could not refrain myself from exclaiming that I did not relish caviar one bit. Conversations felt silent as people absorbed what I had just said. Caviar makes my hair stand on end and no amount of false pretensions can get me to eat a morsel.

Caviar is the processed salted roe or eggs of various species of fish. It is considered a delicacy throughout the world. The name ‘caviar’ comes from Persian which means the sturgeon and its product, the roe. As it is expensive, caviar is synonymous with luxury and wealth. In the words of James Beard -"The roe of the Russian mother sturgeon has probably been present at more important international affairs than have all the Russian dignitaries of history combined. This seemingly simple article of diet has taken its place in the world along with pearls, sables, old silver, and Cellini cups."

The best caviar comes from sturgeon that is fished from the Caspian Sea. Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran are famous for their caviar and are leading exporters of this delicacy. Some of the highest prices are paid for Beluga, Ossetra, and Sevruga varieties. Golden Sterlet caviar is very rare and was once the favourite of tsars, shahs and emperors.

Diminishing yields due to over fishing have resulted in cheaper alternatives. Paddlefish and hackleback caviar have increased in popularity. Culturing of sturgeon has been increasing, especially in France, Uruguay and Southern California. In Scandinavia, a cheaper version of caviar is made from cod roe. Caviar from burbot, vendace, and whitefish can be bought in Finland in its natural form as an alternative to sturgeon caviar. Commercial caviar production normally involves extracting the ovaries of the fish, although a number of farmers are experimenting with surgical removal of the roe, allowing the fish to produce more eggs during its life span.

While my forthrightness got me disapproving looks from the hoity-toity – I sat sipping my sweet sherry and digging into a platter of kebabs and olives. Nah! Nobody lays the norms for a Miss Know-All. We don’t need to pretend and take the support of such crutches to exhibit style. We exude style… caviar or no caviar!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: A catch 22 situation!

2006-07-04T16:45:00.000+05:30

(Published on 4 July 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Look around you. The present day scenario reminds one of a ‘Catch-22’ situation! Similar to a ‘damned if I do, damned if I don't’ state of affairs. While all quarters struggle to bring some normalcy into our day to day lives – it unfortunately seems to be a no-win dilemma. But let us switch out of this pessimistic view. For words like pessimism do not exist in the dictionary of a Miss Know-All.

Having said that, do you know what ‘catch 22’ is? Interestingly, the term gained popularity as the title of a 1961 war novel by Joseph Heller, who referred to an Air Force rule whereby no sane pilot would be crazy enough to want to continue flying dangerous missions. The only way a pilot would be grounded is if he were truly crazy, but if he asked to be grounded; he was then considered sane and would not be grounded. Perplexed dahlings? Let us put it in lay man’s language for your benefit. A perfect example of this circumstance occurs when job searching for the first time. You can't get a job without experience, but you can't get experience unless you have a job—it's a Catch-22 situation! Got it?

A Catch-22 situation is a paradoxical situation that has no conclusive ending. It describes a situation in which an individual has to achieve two actions, both of which require that the other one be done first.

In his novel Heller considers the case of a U.S. Army Air Force bombardier who wishes to be excused from combat flight duty. In order to be excused, he must submit an official medical certificate demonstrating that he is unfit because he is insane. However, according to regulations, any sane person would naturally not want to fly combat missions because they are so dangerous. By requesting permission not to fly combat missions, on the grounds of insanity, the bombardier demonstrates that he is in fact sane and therefore fit to fly. On the other hand, any flyer who wished to fly on combat demonstrated that he was insane and was unfit to fly. Naturally, the ‘catch’ would assert itself, short-circuiting any such attempt.

Good lord! Writing this is almost driving me insane! In a Catch-22 problem one is placed into an unfavorable situation no matter what choice one makes. But as per Carol Pearson, heroes take journeys, confront dragons, and discover the treasure of their true selves. Situations are dealt with in the best possible way that comes to mind at that particular moment. Just remember to let your head rule over your heart at all times – and you would have made the right decision come what may.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: De-stressing... stress busters from an expert

2006-06-27T18:14:00.000+05:30

(Published on 27 June 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Stress can be triggered by just about anything… I recently had the most stressful time relocating from one country to another. My nerves were frayed and I was at my nastiest best, ready to bite off the head of whoever ventured close. Like all Miss Know-All’s I am a perfectionist. And if things don’t workout the way they are planned I get worked up and depressed. But the art is in mastering stress, getting a hold on oneself and snapping out of it.

From stress busters to facial lustre, we the Miss Know-Alls have an answer for everything.

But what is stress all about? Well pets, stress triggers the release of adrenaline and norepinephrine hormones into our blood stream. These with other stress hormones produce a number of effects on the body such as increase in heart rate, muscle tension and above all blood pressure. The digestive system too becomes sluggish resulting in retarded bowel movements. Rise in blood sugar is evident as the body tries to cope with the changes.

It is no secret that stress and aging are closely linked. Intense long-term emotional strain makes people age faster. Knowledge of how stress and aging were linked – made me sit up and take heed. Since I can’t help but get stressed about things that are beyond my control it’s time I looked at how to “De- stress”!

Ayurveda and Reflexology
There is no better way to de-stress than to take a massage. One has to learn to relax. Ayurvedic massages and medicines strengthen the mind and body. It is an old age science and applying pressure on certain pressure points of the body is known to release stress. It is not about pampering yourself – rather it is about giving your body the attention it needs. Like taking your car for regular servicing. A regular massage can do wonders.

Deep breathing
Deep breathing helps release stress and lower blood pressure. The breathing pattern in most people experiencing stress is shallow and rapid. Deep breathing helps calm the nerves and helps you to get a grip on yourself. I find it immensely helpful. Even at work – it is a good idea to step out to take in some deep breaths – rejuvenate – and then return to the problem at hand.

Spa and hydrotherapy
Hydrotherapy techniques are a wonderful way to de-stress. Steam bath, circular jet and soaking in water leads to dilation of peripheral blood vessels that stimulates blood circulation and soothes the nerves. Even simply soaking in the tub for a while can do wonders to your mental state. For that matter – a shower is equally de-stressing.

Yoga and meditation
Yoga and meditation have a soothing effect on the mind and help to combat stress. Besides, just sitting quietly and reflecting clears ones thoughts and enables one to think rationally. You might choose to do this in your prayer room. I prefer sitting in the garden amongst nature. For some, vigorous exercising helps. They can just sweat their stress out off their systems.

Friends and music
Friends are the biggest source of cheer. A simple sms from a close friend or family member can spread sunshine. They make you happy when times are grey. And if nothing else works listening to your favourite kind of music helps. Lilting music soothes the nerves. But, to each his own. If you find that rock music relaxes you… go ahead - so be it.

Diet control
A diet comprising of fresh fruits and vegetables rejuvenates the body. Of course people do have ‘comfort foods.’ Foods that, they probably associate with home or their childhood. But I must admit that what works best for me is chocolate. A big bite – and I am all set to take on the world once again. The only thing better than a friend – is a friend with chocolate!

De-stress my friends – leave your stress to the winds. No worry has ever been worth spending sleepless nights over. Till we meet again… take deep breathes and solace from a big bar of chocolate.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Fugu Fish - a poisonous delicacy!

2006-06-22T13:46:00.000+05:30

(Published on 13 June 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Buffets at a hotel are a ‘foodie’s’ dream come true! But I must admit I’m not much of a ‘foodie’ and the very sight of so much food sends my appetite flying out of the sparkling and well polished five-star hotel window. And then there is the unappetising sight of the over enthusiastic diner who piles up his plate – and mixes cuisines to create his own masterpiece! Baked vegetable lasagne floating in fish curry topped with Hoisin chicken! Wonder why no one tells the fervent patron that he could go instead for ten separate helpings to get his money’s worth.

The buffet table also seems a perfect place for people to show off their knowledge about different cuisines. Invariably, there will be this one wise guy who thinks he’s enlightening the gentry. Don’t mistake him for a Mr Know All, pretties, for in the words of Plato - "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." We call these people – ‘fugu’ originating from the blow fish called fugu since it blows its body up. The similarity? Well the person in question is an air bag for one and secondly his shallow knowledge could be ‘poisonous’ for a stupid few. Read on dahlings – I can see I need to explain this a bit more in detail.

From fanatical gluttons to soggy soup crotons, we, the Miss Know-Alls have an answer for everything.

Where people of most countries, would think of a poisonous fish, as best left alone, the Japanese regard the fugu fish as a delicacy. Even though, Fugu is a fish which contains deadly poison in the organs it is a wildly popular food in Japan that can be lethally poisonous if not prepared properly. Despite the risk, a whopping 10000 tons of blow fish are consumed each year. Fugu fish blow their body up to scare away enemies by gulping down water. The Chinese characters used to write fugu indicate "river pig."

Fugu dishes are usually expensive. One meal can cost $100 to $200 per person at a licensed and well known restaurant. Chefs undergo a rigorous and lengthy apprenticeship before they can prepare this particular dish. There are over 1,500 fugu restaurants in Tokyo, where an average of 100-200 people a year show signs of poisoning. Death rate is 61%. This hasn't stopped fugu connoisseurs from gambling with their lives. Without a doubt the biggest thrill is the risk-taking that involves so much for so little. Who cares what it tastes like as long as you live to tell the tale?

And if you are brave, adventurous (and may I add foolhardy) and would like to try out some Fugu – here are a few Fugu dishes:

Fugu-sushi - Thinly sliced raw fugu served with ponzu dipping sauce.
Fugu-chiri - Vegetables and fugu simmered in konbu dashi soup.
Fugu Kara-age - Floured and deep fried.
Fugu Hire-zake - Grilled fin served in hot sake drink.

So long. Until we meet again - or should I say IF we meet again… God speed.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Power of Colour

2006-06-22T13:42:00.000+05:30

(Published on 13 June 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Colour is life. One can’t imagine this world without colour. And the only way one can describe life – is in its many hues. Colour is the most magnificent experience we take for granted. Look around. Colour surrounds us and envelopes our entire being. We interpret life through colour. The power of colour is the very essence of life. Light is our energy source, and the entire spectrum of colours is derived from light. Light influences our entire complex biochemical system.

Each colour found in the visible light spectrum has its own wavelength and its own frequency, which produces a specific energy. Light is the only energy we can see and we see it, in the form of colour. Through colour we receive all the energies we need to maintain a health body, mind, and soul. Our mental health, behaviour, and general efficiency depend on colour balance. When something is out of balance, we can rectify it by the deliberate use of colour. Colour energy can be attained through the food we eat, the clothes we wear, our surroundings and use of gemstones.

Colour assists the body to balance itself and has been used for centuries by practitioners of the healing arts. Egyptian priests left manuscripts explaining their understanding of colour science. In ancient Egypt and Greece, colour temples were built with seven compartments, each containing one of the seven colours of the rainbow. People were put into different compartments, depending on their need, for physical healing and spiritual uplifting. As per colour therapy the following traits are connected with the following colours:

RED - Use for a demanding day, or when you feel drained of energy. Traits: Courageous, confident, determination, honest, and extroverted.

PINK – Traits: friendly, compassionate, faithful

ORANGE - Best emotional stimulant. It helps to remove inhibitions and makes us independent and social. Traits: Enthusiastic, happy, sociable, energetic, and successful.

GOLD – Traits: illumination, wisdom

YELLOW - Gives clarity of thought, increases awareness, and stimulates interest and curiosity. Traits: Optimistic, confident, practical, and intellectual.

BROWN – Traits: stability, earthy, reliable

GREEN - Helps relax muscles, nerves, and thoughts. Gives a feeling of peace and harmony. Traits: Understanding, growth, compassionate, vitality and nature loving.

BLUE – Mentally relaxing colour. Gives us wisdom and clarity enhancing communication and speech. Traits: Loyal, tranquil, affectionate and caring.

INDIGO - Strengthens intuition and imagination. Traits: Intuitive, fearless, power, integrity and wise.

VIOLET - Purifies our thoughts and brings wisdom and inner strength. Enhances creativity. Traits: humanitarians, creative, and mental strength.

PURPLE – Traits: spiritual, passionate, visionary

Colour can have a deep effect on our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual being. Psychologists have researched the effect of colour on patients. Depressive patients and hyperactive patients were calmed when put into rooms with red or bright yellow walls, and rooms with blue or green walls respectively. Black is a colour associated with tragedy. Blackfriars Bridge, in London, was a gloomy black structure known for its high rate of suicide. The suicide rate declined by one third after the bridge was painted green.

The use of colour has numerous applications in industry. Experiments have shown that red light heightens agility. The colours used on factory walls and machinery affect employee morale and efficiency. In sports, a locker room painted in colours on the red side of the spectrum is known to stimulate players. Uniform colour can also influence a team’s performance. Many professional football teams use red or orange as some part of the team colours. Colour is used extensively in interior design to create a certain feeling or mood, and to influence behaviour. Below is a table of colours with the effect they have on the human mind.

Studying the effect of each colour one can then select the colour best suited for each room in one’s home.

Violet : Calming for body and mind. Enhances purpose and dignity. Purifying.
Best suited for: Prayer Room

Indigo : Sedative. Helps to open up our intuition.
Best suited for: Veranda

Blue : Calming, relaxing and healing. Also the colour of communication.
Best suited for: Master Bedroom

Green: Balancing, harmonising and encourages tolerance and understanding.
Best suited for: Bedroom / Living Room

Yellow: Promotes feeling of confidence. Helpful for study as it helps us to stay alert.
Best suited for: Study Room / Library

Orange: Warming and can stimulate creativity. Orange is the colour of fun and sociability.
Best suited for: Teenager’s Room

Red: Energizing, exciting the emotions.
Best suited for: Children’s Room

Magenta: Balances spirit and matter and helps us to gain a feeling of completeness and fulfilment.
Best suited for: Senior Citizen’s Room

Turquoise: Cool and calming and good for the nervous system.
Best suited for: Dining Room

Pink: This colour soothes and nurtures. It helps to dissolve anger and encourages unconditional love.
Best suited for: Nursery

Black: Black enhances the energy of another colour. Black gives us the space for reflection.

White: White contains all the colours. It emphasises purity and gives us clarity.
Best suited for: Store / Kitchen

From the desk of Miss Know-All: How do barcodes work?

2006-06-06T13:57:00.000+05:30

(Published on 6 June 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Attending the ‘Chillies’ do, was a real high. The atmosphere was electric. A room full of creative geniuses is my kind of place. Creativity excites me. There were no losers – each campaign was a winner. It takes a Ms Know All to identify and recognise talent – and the Chillies was a sure display of Sri Lankan expertise.

Ever wondered whether a good advertisement can push an average product? The answer is no. One thing I must admit is that the customer is no fool – contrary to what I’d like to believe. No eye-wash and fancy advertising will sell a product if it’s not good enough. There is a shift in the market from selling to buying. Gone are the days when manufacturers used to sell. Today it’s the customer who buys. Observe people at a supermarket. They walk straight to the shelf they want… survey and then pick the product that best satisfies them.

From brilliant campaigns, retail chains to customer gains we, the Miss Know-Alls have an answer for everything.

Talking of supermarkets – have you often seen people staring blankly at products - turning them upside down and then figuring which of the price tags on the shelves matches the product they are holding. It’s very simple sweethearts. The barcode given on the product also has numbers below them. It’s usually a long 7-8 digit number. All you need to do is match the last three digits with the price label given on the shelf. You can’t go wrong with that one.

The technology is simple and easy to understand. Might take you a while – but you don’t have to be a genius to follow this one. A barcode is a machine readable representation of information in a visual format. Barcodes store data in the widths and spacing of printed parallel lines and can be read by optical scanners. That is what the lady uses when you finally bring your shopping cart to the counter. To be scanned, there must be accurate printing and adequate contrast between the bars and spaces. Scanners may be in a fixed position, like most supermarket checkout scanners, or hand-held devices, often used for the taking of inventories.

Since their invention in the 20th century, the use of barcodes is widespread and the technology behind barcodes is constantly improving. Practically every item purchased from a store has a barcode on it. This greatly helps in keeping track of the large number of items in a store and also reduces instances of shoplifting. Rental car companies keep track of their cars by means of bar codes on the car bumper. Even airlines track passenger luggage with barcodes, reducing the chance of loss. Even NASA uses them to keep track of maintenance.

Don’t get your knickers in a twist about this one. You can always walk up to an assistant and give your – ‘I am dumb, please help me’ - look. If it gives you some consolation – as per Aristotle - "There is a foolish corner in the brain of the wisest man."

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Sudoku - the puzzle of the 21st Century

2006-05-30T13:31:00.000+05:30

(Published on 30 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Evening walks at the Independence Memorial Square are a delight. It’s a good way to assess your own competency. One does not even have to make an effort to eavesdrop as everyone talks loud enough to rattle the foundations of the beautiful monument. Poor little souls. It’s their small opportunity to get heard by the masses. The release of adrenaline does wonders to the ordinary. It’s entertaining to hear them moan about their mundane daily chores. Didn’t expect anything else from them, did we? We the Miss Know-Alls, have no time for trivial issues. Bigger and more relevant concerns need our attention. From obnoxious bosses, derby horses to monetary losses we have an answer for everything.

Did you know that Sudoku is a good way of keeping your mind agile and ticking? In fact it is even supposed to keep Alzheimer at bay. For those in the dark - Sudoku is a logic-based placement puzzle. The Daily Mirror brings us our daily dose on page 13. The aim of the puzzle is to enter a number from 1 to 9 in each cell of a 9×9 grid made up of 3×3 sub-grids. Starting with various digits given in some cells, numbers are filled in such that each row, column, and region must contain only one instance of each number.

Foxed? Not surprised dahlings! Completing the puzzle requires patience and logical ability. Interestingly Sudoku has not been around for too long. The name "Sudoku" is the Japanese abbreviation of a longer phrase, "Suuji wa dokushin ni kagiru" meaning "the digits must remain single". However, it was an American architect called Howard Garns who first designed the puzzle which was published in a U.S. puzzle magazine in 1979. The puzzle was then introduced in Japan in 1986 where it became a craze. It finally attained international popularity in 2005.

Sudoku is therapeutic and has now become an addiction. Sudoku players report an increasing sense of satisfaction as a puzzle approaches completion. A daily tonic for the mind and the soul. The first Sudoku world championship was held in Italy in March 2006 and was won by Jana Tylova, a 31-year-old accountant from the Czech Republic.

Come on, give it a shot - don’t underestimate yourself. We might have a champion amongst you. In the words of Dr Nathaniel Branden, "The tragedy is that so many people look for self-confidence and self-respect everywhere except within themselves, and so they fail in their search."

May you achieve success in your search.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

Communicating Effectively

2006-05-30T12:37:00.000+05:30

(Published on 30 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

As a teacher in one of the reputed schools of Kathmandu, I had the opportunity to interact with 16-year-old adolescents. The experience was more than gratifying, for I learnt from them, as much as they learnt from me.

The subject was Value Education. We’d often end up in very thought provoking debates. The topic for the day was ‘Understanding parents and analysing their actions.’

‘No parents are perfect,’ they told me. ‘As a child, one feels one’s parents are the epitome of virtues. But slowly, one realises, that they have their flaws and you love them, in spite of their faults.’ I listened, as words of wisdom flowed from ones so young.

‘What qualities do you feel parents should have?’ asked one, addressing the class.

‘Parents should not differentiate between a son and a daughter. They should treat them equally,’ said one, vehemently.

‘They should comfort and support the child in times of failure,’ noted another.

‘Parents should rebuke a child when necessary, but never insult their child in front of others,’ said one, with hurt and bitterness.

The debate went on … the aim being to understand the parents’ point of view. The concluding speaker, left all present in deep thought, and left me wondering how much the parents’ can learn from their own wards.

‘Parents,’ he said, ‘should be frank about their financial status. They should not keep their children in the dark, or give them the wrong impression. This would help the child to realise and know where he stands and dissuade him from making unreasonable demands.’

Probably such debates should be held in the presence of parents. I’m sure; it would enable to inculcate a healthier relationship. If there is any one secret of a successful relationship, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle, as well as from your own.

Communication is the answer to making any relationship work. Whether it is a parent, a spouse, a boss or a friend – communication is what bonds and helps build bridges. The term – ‘effective communication’ is a very broad term and can be interpreted by different people in different ways.

Effective communication skill involves a number of specific strengths. Being open to listen is one of them. There is need for children to listen to their parents and it’s even more crucial for parents to give a patient hearing to their wards. Keep the following suggestions in mind the next time you deal with your children.

# Listen openly and with empathy.

# Respond in an interested way that shows you understand the problem and your child’s concern

# Pay attention to the body language, listen between the lines

# Don't react to emotional words, but interpret their purpose

# Judge the content; comprehend before you judge

# Use multiple ways to fully comprehend (ask, repeat, rephrase, etc.) Ask for as much detail as he/she can provide; paraphrase what your child is saying to make sure you understand it and check for understanding

#Communicate your feelings but don't act them out (that is tell your child that his behaviour really upsets you; don't get angry)

#Practice supportive listening, not one way listening

That days Value Education class had a double impact on me. It taught me to communicate effectively with my son as well as with my aging mother. In today's complex world, it's even more important to make sure you set aside time to talk. That doesn't mean you have to hold a formal meeting and be formally seated. Sometimes the best discussions take place while you're driving the car or tinkering around the kitchen.

What I learnt from my teenaged students was that whether dealing with my son or my mother I should often make an effort to use phrases like - tell me more, you can do it, how can I help, let's all pitch in, how about a hug, please, thank you, good job, I love you – and above all – I need your help.

Communication is not just about getting your thoughts across – it is about doing so effectively.

Brushing up in readiness for the World Cup!

2006-05-24T02:19:00.000+05:30

(Published on 23 May 2006 in 'Life' - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Well it’s time to brush up your knowledge about Football because the only thing you are going to be hearing about for the next couple of weeks is the FIFA World Cup. And you don’t want to be left out of any conversation. Whether at office, social gatherings, official meetings or the confines of your home – the conversation will positively veer towards football and the current greats on the football field.

So here goes – test your knowledge and more importantly remember the answers so that you can throw in a little information and sound knowledgeable.

1) Who designed the current FIFA World Cup Trophy?

2) Where and when was the last FIFA World Cup held? Name the two teams who played the finals at the last World Cup.

3) Name the player who won the ‘adidas Golden Shoe’ for scoring the maximum number of goals in the 2002 tournament.

4) Name the player who has scored the maximum ever in a single World Cup tournament.

5) Name the first man to play in three FIFA World Cup final matches.

6) What was the biggest debacle of the 2002 World Cup?

7) Name the goalkeeper who won the ‘adidas Golden Ball’ as well as the Yashin Award for the Best Goalkeeper

8) How many teams are participating in the 2006 FIFA World Cup?

9) Name the official mascot of the 2006 FIFA World Cup?

10) Where and when is the opening match of the 2006 tournament to be held?

11) Name the two teams who will be playing the opening match of the 2006 World Cup.

12) Name the new award that will be given to the best young player who will shine the brightest at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

13) What does the official emblem of the FIFA World Cup Germany 2006 represent?

14) What is the slogan of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany?

15) Name the only man to have won the World Cup both as a player and as a manager.

16) Name the current President of FIFA.

17) What is the full form of FIFA?

18) When and where was the first World Cup held?

19) Name the country that won the first World Cup. Who did they defeat in the finals?

20) What is the number of times the World Cup has been held since its inception?

Answers given below.

Answers to the FIFA World Cup Quiz

1) The FIFA World Cup Trophy is the work of Italian Artist Silvio Gazzaniga. The trophy is 36 cm high, made of solid 18-carat gold and weighs 6175 grams. The base of the Trophy bears the engraved year and name of each FIFA World Cup winner since 1974.

2) The last FIFA World Cup was held in Korea and Japan in the year 2002. Germany and Brazil played for the 2002 world championship, and it was the South Americans who won their unprecedented fifth FIFA World Cup.

3) Ronaldo from Brazil won the ‘adidas Golden shoe’ for having scored eight goals in the tournament. He was also the hero of the final match having scored both the goals in the 2-0 victory.

4) West Germany's goal machine Gerd Müller scored ten times at the Mexico 1970 tournament.

5) Brazilian captain Cafu became the first man to play in three FIFA World Cup final matches.

6) African debutantes Senegal shocked the holders France with an impressive 1-0 victory. France never really recovered from the loss, failing to escape Group A without even mustering a goal.

7) Oliver Kahn of Germany.

8) Thirty-two teams from across the globe make up the field for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Six past winners will take part, including hosts Germany, who head the 14-strong European contingent, and holders Brazil who lead the South American challenge.

9) GOLEO VI the loveable lion is the official mascot of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. GOLEO VI's constant companion, Pille the talking football, is always at his side.

10) Munich on 9 June 2006.

11) Germany and Costa Rica.

12) The Gillette Best Young Player Award has been created to recognise the impact made by young footballers in their first FIFA World Cup.

13) The official emblem represents three smiling 'Celebrating Faces' of the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

14) The slogan of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany is - A Time to Make Friends

15) Franz Beckenbauer is the only man to have won the World Cup both as a player and as a manager. He was the captain of West Germany when they won the World Cup in 1974.

16) Joseph S. Blatter from Switzerland was elected as the eighth FIFA President in 1998. Blatter, who had already served FIFA in various positions for the past 23 years, was elected at the 51^st FIFA Ordinary Congress in Paris.

17) Fédération Internationale de Football Association

18) The first World Cup was opened at the Centenary Stadium in Montevideo, Uruguay on 18 July 1930.

19) A total number of 13 teams participated. Uruguay won the finals defeating Argentina by 4-2.

20) Since 1930, 16 tournaments have been held. The 2006 one in Germany will be the seventeenth.

(Information sourced from the official FIFA World Cup website)

From the desk of Miss Know-All :Are green tea, white tea and red tea obtained from the same plant?

2006-05-23T22:03:00.000+05:30

(Published on 23 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

It’s wonderful to receive your fan mail. Thank you for taking out time for me from your boring monotonous lives. Spike up your day to day routine. Look for a mentor (I mean a Miss Know-All)… and things will never be dull any more.

A friend asked – if the ‘Know-All’ title was restricted only to the fairer sex. I hate to admit this one – but the world does have its fair share of Mr Know-All’s. Look around you. That ‘smart alecky’ colleague who thinks he’s God’s gift to mankind – or is it womankind! That obnoxious guy at the bar who thinks he’s a connoisseur on wines. That geek in college who rattled off formulas and the price of the oil barrel… suddenly the world seems full of my kind. The competition doesn’t ruffle me. It’s a tough world out there but I’m made of sterner stuff. From insufferable male friends to ridiculous fashion trends I have an answer for everything.

Let’s have a drink on that happy note. Iced tea anyone? Which by the way leads me on to my next question – are green tea, white tea and red tea from the same plant?

Drinking herbal teas has become a fad all over again. Green tea, white tea and red tea have become very popular over the last few years. The whole world is going gaga about their health benefits. But how are they different? Green tea and white tea come from the same plant. Like black tea they are considered ‘true’ teas. The differences in colour, flavour and antioxidant content come from differences in the harvesting and processing of the leaves. Both green tea and white tea have very mild flavours. White tea gives a very pale straw-coloured liquor and like green tea should be drunk without milk. All teas contain antioxidants that are believed to have numerous health benefits.

The teas produced in different areas have their own individual characteristics. Low-grown teas, produced at the foothills give good colour and strength but lack the distinctive flavour of the higher-grown teas. These are usually used in blending. Mid-grown teas, grown between 1,800 and 3,500 feet, are rich in flavour and give good colour. High-grown teas, from heights of between 3,500 and 7,500 feet, are the very best giving a lovely golden liquor and an intense powerful flavour.

Red tea, on the other hand, comes from a plant which grows in the mountains north of Cape Town, South Africa. Red tea has a sweeter, fruitier flavour than white and green tea and has different antioxidants than those present in green tea and white tea because it comes from a different plant.

You must be knowing that Sri Lanka is the 3rd largest tea producing country globally, and one of the world's leading exporters of tea. But did you know that the tea sector in Sri Lanka is the country's largest employer providing employment both directly and indirectly to over one million people. Let us raise a toast ( in this case - our tea cups ) in appreciation of those numerous people who help bring this morning ‘cuppa cheer’ to us every single day.

Salut! Slainte! Cheers!

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

PS: Salut and Slainte are Spanish and Scottish respectively for the word – Cheers! Could not leave without spreading some more light! J

Telephone Tyranny

2006-05-23T14:15:00.000+05:30

(Published on 23 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

When I first heard the term ‘Telephone Tyranny’ – it almost felt like the doctor had finally diagnosed and given a name to an old ailment I had been suffering from, for what seemed like eternity. As per the Oxford English Dictionary – tyranny is cruel and arbitrary exercise of power or control. And that really does sum up the meaning of the expression ‘telephone tyranny’. The total control and domination of our lives by a mere instrument called a cell phone.

I hate mobile phone calls. In fact, the sound of a mobile ring tone makes me cringe and cower. While the land phone allows you your share of space and privacy – a cellular phone is an absolute tyrant! Gone are the days when you could sit by the sea watching the sunset without being rattled by an annoying ring tone. Or go for a theatre performance without a neighbour suddenly bursting into a jig trying to fish out his noisy instrument.

People almost wear their prized possessions like badges of honour on their chests hanging by a string. And the look of pride on their faces as their tiny instrument belts out the most horrendous ring tone makes my insides want to turn inside out. Ever sat at a meeting or a solemn event and had a mobile phone burst into a mindless pop song or the ‘Crazy Frog’ ring tone?

Crazy Frog is actually a character used in the marketing of a ring tone based on "The Annoying Thing", a computer animation created by Erik Wernquist. They must have known it’s annoying – why else would they name it – The Annoying Thing! The animation was originally created to accompany a sound effect produced by Daniel Malmedahl while attempting to imitate the sound of a two-stroke moped engine. Mr Wernquist and Mr Malmedahl have caused me immense pain and mental torture. They are lucky they live across the seven seas and not anywhere near where I do. Jamba!, a mobile phone content provider, based in Germany have earned an estimated £14 million from this ring tone, making it the most commercially successful ring tone of all time. What is wrong with the world? While I squirm and burrow my head under my pillow to refrain from hearing this annoying, mindless ring tone people are actually revelling in its ingenuity.

Why there is apparently a universal compulsion to answer the cell phone, under any or all circumstances is beyond me. Yes, I’ve heard cell phone calls answered in the rest room and other inappropriate places including at a solemn funeral. I have visited a public rest room, where an occupant is having an animated conversation over the mobile phone oblivious of a restless audience waiting outside for their turn. Surely the people, who engage in this, must recognise how rude the practice is. But apparently they don't, as they proceed as if the behaviour is completely appropriate and normal.

The compulsion to play with their little prized possession is so great that if not a conversation, the owner will indulge in a noisy cell phone game. This is one of my major aggravations. Ever suffered at the hands of a co passenger on a train or bus ride or at an airport or a food court? Reeling in misery, I’ve often felt like jumping in front of the running train.

The telephone is an informal medium for communication and is primarily used for short information exchanges. At least that is what Alexander Graham Bell invented it for. The poor man must be turning in his grave – regretting having created the biggest source of noise pollution ever. People seem to talk louder when they’re using cell phones. This could be attributed either to connectivity issues or the static. Also, in most cases, users are in public places and are compelled to talk louder to get heard.

The critical thing to remember about talking to someone by phone is that it’s important to let your own line remain free for urgent exchanges rather than frivolous long drawn conversations. I think voicemail is one of the greatest inventions because it enables you to accomplish the task of communicating information to someone effectively without infringing and interrupting into their personal space. Voicemail also frees us from the tyranny of the ringing telephone.

Talking about tyranny, do you realise that by giving you a cell phone your employer (or your parent if you are a teenager) have actually given you a tracking device. And God help you if you do not answer the phone when it rings. If this is not tyranny what is? Gone are the carefree days when you could get someone to tell your office that you are not at home – and hence unavailable on the phone and not contactable.

What better way to express my disgust, despair and anguish than share my solidarity with A. P. Herbert the writer of the poem ‘At the Theatre: To the Lady behind Me’. The lines below have been written to beseech all those inconsiderate beings that walk this planet to be a little more thoughtful to others around them.

At the Theatre: To the creature behind Me!

Dear Sir, you have come to see
Like all of us, the matinee
You don’t seem to be interested in the plot,
But, let me tell you, I am, a lot.
The author seeks to unfold to me
His actors’ true identity,
And you are not a friend of his
If your mobile keeps ringing the way it is.
The actors in their funny way
Have several amusing things to say,
But they do not interest me more
If you talk on your mobile just before;
The merit of the movie lies,
In an element of some surprise;
But the surprise is now very small
As, I can’t hear the dialogues at all.
The lady you have brought with you
Is, I infer, an idiot too,
She prompts you as you talk aloud
Beaming at you, foolishly proud.
In short, dumb sir, it would suit
Me just as well if you were mute;
In fact, to make my meaning plain,
I hope you will never speak again.
And may I add one final word?
Your phone’s outdated, and not much worth.

(With due apologies to A. P. Herbert the original writer of the poem ‘At the Theatre: To the Lady behind Me’)

Bloopers from the world of Advertising...

2006-05-17T06:18:00.000+05:30

(Published on 17 May 2006 in 'Life' - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

As the country gears up to stage ‘Chillies’, the Sri Lankan Advertising Awards this week and the advertising fraternity gets together to applaud those that came out triumphant - one can’t help but acknowledge that at the end of it all it’s the customer, that is the market, that decides the fate of a campaign and further on the fate of a product or a brand.

Advertising greats have descended on the island from around the world to share their mantras on what makes a successful campaign. It would be daft for me to venture down that route as it’s the prerogative of the experts to throw light on what they know best.

However, it’s no brainer that an advertising campaign would be futile without a proper research of the market concerned. An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that make up an integrated marketing communication. For the marketing communication to be effective and have an impact – it is critical that the market be surveyed and cultural as well as local sensitivities be taken on board. When launching an advertising campaign, it is not enough to understand how the product is performing. It is crucial to know how the customer is responding to the communication.

Failure to grasp the specific needs of a new market can be costly, both financially and in terms of damage to the brand image. In volatile, ever-changing markets, goof-ups can mean wasted costs in advertising, distribution and production expenses, as well as negative impact on the brand itself. Here are some advertising bloopers that have caused immense embarrassment… and which have often had irrevocable effects. Even companies with far-flung international experience have found themselves committing marketing hara-kiri.

>> Electrolux, the Scandinavian vacuum cleaner manufacturer used the following in an American campaign – ‘Nothing sucks like an Electrolux’. They failed to take into consideration the fact that ‘sucks’ had become a derogatory word in the States.

>> The Coca-Cola name in China was first read as "Ke-kou-ke-la", meaning ‘Bite the wax tadpole’ or ‘female horse stuffed with wax’, depending on the dialect. The Coke folks didn't discover what the phrase meant until after numerous signs had been printed. Not a very thirst-quenching slogan! Coke then researched 40,000 characters to find a phonetic equivalent "ko-kou-ko-le", translating into ‘happiness in the mouth’.

>> A hair products company, Clairol, introduced the ‘Mist Stick’, a curling iron, into Germany only to find out that mist is slang for manure. Not too many people were convinced and had use for the ‘manure stick’.

>> Colgate introduced a toothpaste in France called Cue, the name of an infamous pornographic magazine.

>> Coors, the American brewer lost its fizz in Spain when their young and trendy phrase "Turn It Loose" came out as ‘Get Diarrhoea’.

>> General Motors made a marketing faux pas when they introduced the Chevrolet Nova in South America. GM was unaware that "no va" means "it won't go." After the company figured out why it wasn't selling any cars, it renamed the car in its Spanish markets as - Caribe.

>> Ford had a similar problem in Brazil with the Pinto. Pinto was Brazilian slang for ‘tiny male genitals’. Ford renamed the automobile Corcel, meaning, ‘horse’.

>> Frank Perdue's well known chicken slogan, ‘it takes a tough man to make a tender chicken’ got terribly mangled in a Spanish translation. A photo of Perdue with one of his birds appeared on billboards all over Mexico with a caption that explained "It takes a hard man to make a chicken aroused."

>> When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, they used the same packaging as in the US, with a beautiful baby on the label. Later they learned that in Africa, companies put pictures on the label of what's inside, since most people can't read English.

>> When McDonald's launched its popular Big Mac Attack ads in Canada, there arose one problem. In Canada, ‘Big Mac’ is slang for ‘large breasts.’ Not an image McDonald's wanted to project for their sandwich.

>> In Chinese, the Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan ‘finger-lickin good" read as ‘eat your fingers off".

>> When Parker Pen marketed a ballpoint pen in Mexico, its advertisement were supposed to have read, ‘it won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you’. Instead, the company thought that the word ‘embarazar’ (to impregnate) meant to embarrass, so the advert read - ‘It won't leak in your pocket and make you pregnant’.

>> When Pepsi started a marketing campaign in Taiwan, the translation of the Pepsi slogan "Come Alive with the Pepsi Generation" came out as "Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead."

>> In Italy, a campaign for Schweppes Tonic Water translated the name into "Schweppes Toilet Water".

>>A drug company marketed a new remedy in the United Arab Emirates. To avoid any mistakes they used pictures. The first picture was of someone ill, the next picture showed the person taking the medication, the last picture showed them looking well. What they forgot is that in the Arab world people read from right to left!

>>An American T-shirt maker in Miami printed shirts for the Spanish market which promoted the Pope's visit. Instead of "I saw the Pope" (el Papa), the shirts read "I saw the potato" (la papa).

~

2006-05-17T05:01:00.000+05:30

From the desk of Ms Know-All: How does the rice cooker know when to turn off?

2006-05-16T06:25:00.000+05:30

(Published on 16 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Having an identity crisis? You fit into a bracket called – ‘Homo Sapiens Ignoramus.’ Perplexed? Come to Mama. As per Wikipedia, ignoramus is an ‘unknowledgeable’ person and originates from a Latin word ignoramus meaning “we do not know.” Don’t cringe. Be around in my company darlings – and a little bit of aura will rub off on you too.

Remember, your mother’s advice – “always sit next to a smart kid in class...” She was talking about me, smarty pants. From silicon implants to menopausal aunts, we, the Miss Know-Alls have an answer for everything.

And if you are left wondering how I do muster up so much information – it’s because I have a curious mind. Day to day things intrigue me. Ever looked at a rice cooker and wondered how it knows when to turn off? No rocket science here. There are a number of appliances that "know" when they should turn off. A rice cooker is just one of them.

All such appliances use the same principle. We all know that the boiling point of water is 100 degrees C. (Remember your Chemistry class back in school?) If there is boiling water in a heated container, the container will maintain a constant temperature, which is the boiling temperature of water. On cooking for sometime all the liquid water will evaporate or, as in the case of the rice cooker, it will get absorbed by the rice. The temperature inside the container immediately rises. The appliance has a thermostat that can detect when the temperature rises above the set temperature in the container, and it turns itself off.

What’s a thermostat you ask? Oh lord – I think I’ve created a monster. Simply put, a thermostat is a temperature regulator.

And now that you have started using your grey cells here’s some fodder for your brain - courtesy “Five Frogs On A Log” by Mark L Feldman & Michael F Spratt.

Five frogs are sitting on a log. Four decide to jump off. How many are left?

There are still five, honey - because there’s a difference between deciding and doing. Leave you on that thought provoking note.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

!

2006-05-16T02:54:00.000+05:30

Redefining Customer Care

2006-05-16T02:01:00.000+05:30

(Published on 16 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

I always wondered what made my mother visit a small local grocery store in her neighbourhood rather than the big well stocked air-conditioned supermarket close by. Till I happened to accompany her one day and realised that what made all the difference was just plain customer care. The local grocer greeted her with a warm welcome, offered her a stool to sit on and a glass of water to quench her thirst, repositioned his old fashioned fan to face her, enquired after her arthritis and then fished out the stuff she had not found with him the previous week. All this to be traded for the cold greeting at the supermarket… I had never ever before realised the power of customer care as I did that particular day.

“The single most important thing to remember about any enterprise is that there are no results inside its walls. The result of a business is a satisfied customer.”- Management Guru Peter Drucker

Regardless of what business people are in, they are really in the business of satisfying customers. The degree of customer satisfaction they deliver determines the level of long-term success they will achieve in business. One small bad experience can leave an indelible impression and make a customer swear off some brands. My uncle will not visit a particular restaurant as he felt the manager was curt. My nephew won’t fly a particular airline as they misplaced his baggage. My sister won’t go to a particular salon as they nipped her toe during a pedicure and had not bothered to offer an apology. My friend won’t seek the services of a particular travel agent as they messed up her last holiday. And as for my boss, well the entire office has been made to pledge they will never ever use a particular vendor who failed to get back after a complaint was put in about service standards deteriorating.

It’s not just about making sales. It’s about creating customers - satisfied customers.
Handling customer complaints quickly and with a positive attitude is crucial to preserving a relationship with the complaining customer. Taking on board a customer’s complaint and acting on it immediately – however small or insignificant the complaint may be assures the customer that his satisfaction is foremost in the minds of the service provider. A clients’ complaint should never be underestimated, no matter how trivial it might seem. This real story happened between the customer of a well known motor car company and its customer-care executive.

The complaint received by the motor car company said, "This is the second time I have written to you, and I don't blame you for not answering me, because I sound crazy. We have a tradition in our family of ice cream for dessert after dinner each night. But the kind of ice cream varies so, every night, after we've eaten our dinner, the whole family votes on which kind of ice cream we should have and I drive down to the store to get it in the new motor I purchased from your esteemed company. The problem is that the car won’t start every time I buy a vanilla ice cream when I start back from the store. If I get any other kind of ice cream, the car starts just fine. I want you to know I'm serious about this complain, no matter how silly it sounds. What is there about your car that makes it not start when I get vanilla ice cream, and easy to start whenever I get any other kind?"

“Customers don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong.” - Donald Porter, VP British Airways

The customer-care executive was understandably unconvinced about the complaint, but sent an engineer to check it out anyway. The latter was surprised to be greeted by a well educated man in a decent neighbourhood. He had arranged to meet the customer just after dinner time. The two drove to the ice cream store. It was vanilla ice cream that night and, sure enough, after they came back to the car, it wouldn't start.

The engineer returned for three more nights. The first night, they got chocolate. The car started. The second night, the customer got strawberry. The car started. The third night he ordered vanilla. The car failed to start. The engineer, being a logical man, refused to believe that this customer's car was allergic to vanilla ice cream. He arranged, therefore, to continue his visits to get to the bottom of this problem. And toward this end he began to take notes. He jotted down all sorts of data: time of day, type of gas used, time to drive back and forth etc.In a short time, he had cracked the mystery. The customer took less time to buy vanilla than any other flavour. The answer was in the layout of the store. Vanilla, being the most popular flavour, was in a separate case at the front of the store for quick pickup. All the other flavours were kept in the back of the store at a different counter where it took considerably longer.

Now, the question for the engineer was why the car wouldn't start when it took less time. The engineer quickly came up with the answer – ‘vapour lock’. It was happening every night. But the extra time taken to get the other flavours allowed the engine to cool down sufficiently to restart. When the customer got vanilla, the engine was still too hot for the vapour lock to dissipate. Time was the problem, not the vanilla ice cream.

Even crazy looking problems are sometimes real and all problems seem to be simple only when we find the solution with logical thinking and reasoning. A customer’s complaint should never ever be ignored or considered too trivial.

“There is place in the world for any business that takes care of its customers – after the sale.” - Harvey MacKay

*

2006-05-16T00:36:00.000+05:30

From the desk of Ms Know-All: Why does the hair on your arm not grow long?

2006-05-09T18:02:00.000+05:30

(Published on 9 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

IQ, my dear admirers is Intelligence Quotient and it indicates a person's mental abilities relative to others of approximately the same age. But IQ levels of a Miss Know-All are way above the world and his wives – age no bar! Everyone has hundreds of specific mental abilities—but we my sweeties have it in thousands.

A Miss Know-All - knows all. Period. There is no debating that one. Whether it’s something in, or something out, something hip or something hot…. we are the one-stop-shop powerhouse of information. From laddered hoses to restructured noses, we have an answer for everything.

And before you pull out your hair with frustration at the thought of not being able to keep up with my level of competency – here’s a question. Why does the hair on your arms stay short, while the hair on your head grows long? You can scratch your head. They say it helps.

Each hair on your body grows from its own individual hair follicle. Pull out one hair from your head and check out the far end. You can actually see the hair follicle at the root of the hair shaft. That’s of course if you have good eyesight like I do my dearies. Inside the follicle, new hair cells form. These new cells push older cells out of the follicle. As they are pushed out, the cells die and become the hair we see.

A follicle will produce new cells for a certain period of time. This time period called the growth phase varies depending on where the hair is located on your body. This process will stop for a period of time, and then restart after a rest phase. When the hair follicle enters the rest phase the hair shaft breaks. The existing hair falls out and a new hair takes its place. Therefore, the length of time that the hair is able to spend growing during the growth phase controls the maximum length of the hair.

The hair follicles on your head, let hair grow for years at a time, so the hair can grow very long. While, the cells that make the hairs on your arms and legs stop growing every few months. On entering the rest phase they fall off. So the hair on your arms and legs stay short. (Thank God for little mercies.)

Take care lovelies – stop staring at your hairy arms and legs in wonder and here’s some friendly advice - keep them clear off hirsute.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

;

2006-05-09T03:55:00.000+05:30

Looking Beyond The Crystal Ball...

2006-05-09T01:54:00.000+05:30

(Published on 9 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

We have always wanted to know what the future has in store for us. To have an idea of what will happen in a few hours or days is immensely desirable as it lifts the cloud of uncertainty. But gone are the days when one took help from a local soothsayer also known by various names and forms: fortune-teller, oracle, seer, astrologer and clairvoyant. In today’s competitive world there are numerous other options. Though most of the sciences mentioned below have existed for numerous years – it’s only recently that it has become fashionable to take on some of these as a career preference or a hobby.

Reading the Runes
The runic alphabets are the sacred alphabets thought to be magical in nature and containing the secrets of the universe. They have their origin in an old German language, which was used in Northern Europe. Runes have always had a magic, prophetic meaning. Rune masters used them to practice magic on somebody and cure the ill. Runes also had an important role in making prophecies. From the very beginning each of the 24 runes in the alphabet had their own name. The rune masters made their runes by carving them in a rock, wood or leather. If they were consulted about a coming event, they spread the rune stones on the ground. Only the stones which landed with the rune side up were interpreted. The rune-stones just connect you to your intuitive process. Runic alphabets are called Futharks, and are so named because the first six letters of the alphabets spell it out.

Tarot Card Reading
The Tarot is a deck of 78 picture cards that has been used for centuries to reveal hidden truths. Tarot cards have been used since before 1400 to predict the future. They are a system of symbolic images on cards. Tarot is currently also used as tool for reflection on one's personal life, as well as an aid to meditation. The cards are used to connect the user with the collective unconscious in order to get information about a person or situation. The person is asked to focus and draw out cards from a pack. With a basic three card spread, the reader can examine the past, present, and future influences on an event in your life.

Face Reading
The ancient art of face reading has been used since the time of Confucius by Chinese doctors as an aid to diagnose ailments. Close observation of the face gives a deep knowledge of the personality of the patients. The Chinese understood the concept that the face represents the energies, health and fortune of a person and they wished to live in harmony with these, and with the prevailing energies of the five elements, yin and yang, and the seasons. Each face is a map of the past, present and future. The past would be described as our inherited constitution and our early years. The present reflects our health at the time of the reading. This is something we create ourselves. The facial zones affected are related to the internal organs under stress. The future is not predestined in Chinese philosophy. Taking greater care with health can resolve possible future symptoms.

I Ching
The I Ching is an ancient Chinese text used as an oracle to find out the answer to any question. The book consists of 64 hexagrams, which is the number of possible combinations of pairs of six broken or unbroken lines (trigrams). The lines represent the two primal cosmic principles in the universe, yin (the broken lines) and yang (the unbroken lines). The trigrams represent heaven, earth, thunder, water, mountain, wind, fire, and lake. The meanings of the hexagrams were divined many years ago by Chinese philosopher-priests in tune with the tao (path). One may consult the I Ching by flipping numbered coins and adding up the numbers to determine the hexagram. Another method involves dividing up bundles of yarrow stalks.

Numerology
Numbers also help tell you the future. To use numerology, you must first decide what you want to know about. Think of a question. You must not rephrase the question afterwards - that will give you the wrong answer! Numerology is just a tool to help you focus your mind. After the question is asked, the question is decoded. There are two steps: How many words in the question? How many letters in each word? Now the numbers are reduced to a single number. The number is then interpreted. We have two categories of numbers: Odd and even. Odd numbers indicates a negative answer; even numbers indicates a positive answer. The numbers can tell you both the time it will take before the question might be fulfilled, and how good (or bad) the result will be.

Tasseomancy - Tea Leaf Reading
The art of reading tea leaves is referred to as Tasseomancy. This form of foretelling the future is strongly associated with the Gypsies and was practiced in European countries. During a reading the client drinks a cup of tea but leaves a small amount in the bottom of the cup. The person whose leaves are being read should drink the tea. The cup is then turned upside down on a saucer. The tea leaf reader picks up the cup and reads the patterns formed by the tea leaves. Various symbols have certain meanings. Time frames are estimated by the proximity of the leaves to the rim. Leaves closest to the rim represent the immediate future.

Predictions may be right or wrong as they are based on probability. But is it possible to really look into the future? That is debatable. How else can one explain the 16th century Nostradamus’ mysterious quatrains that are claimed to conceal information about future events? Do these writings actually predict the death of great people, rise of tyrants, and natural catastrophes to come? Or are the quatrains ambiguous enough that they can be interpreted to predict any occurrence. On July 1, 1566 Nostradamus offered his final prediction to his priest. In response to the priest's farewell of "Until tomorrow," Nostradamus is said to have answered: "You will not find me alive at sunrise." Nostradamus died that night.

Prediction or coincidence? You decide.

x

2006-05-09T00:39:00.000+05:30

From the desk of Miss Know-All: How your mobile phone works - By Sangeeta Rana

2006-05-02T09:43:00.001+05:30

(Published on 2 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

How often have you stood dumb struck, impressed and overwhelmed by the sheer expanse of Miss Know-All’s knowledge and intelligence? I’ve gotten used to the adulation and the attention I get pets. Idolising someone superior is common amongst you mediocrities.

Ignorance is bliss they say – but for my tribe – having ignorant people around is bliss.Put us on a pedestal and we’ll thrive for we are God’s chosen one. Why else would He endow us and leave you all with the left-over, pretties? From bladder malfunctions to liposuctions, we have an answer for everything.

And now that you are flaunting the latest mobile phone model available in the market – let me ask you a simple question. Are you aware of how your mobile phone works? Or how sending an SMS works? Just when we finally got used to seeing everybody constantly talking on their mobile phones, it suddenly seems like no one is talking at all. Instead, they're typing away to send text messages. You belong to the ‘thumb generation’ - you should surely know how it works, you texters!

Millions of people around the world use cellular phones. You can now talk to anyone or send an SMS to anyone from just about anywhere! SMS stands for ‘short message service’. The cellular system actually functions by dividing a city into small cells(areas). Cells are normally thought of as hexagons on a big hexagonal grid. Each cell has a base station that consists of a tower. This allows extensive frequency re-use across a city. As a result millions of people can use mobile phones simultaneously.

Even if you are not talking on your cell phone, your phone is constantly exchanging information with its cell tower over a pathway called a control channel. The reason for this exchange is so that the cell phone system knows which cell (area) your phone is in, and so that your phone can change cells as you move around. When someone tries to call you, the tower sends your phone a message over the control channel that tells your phone to play its ring tone.

The control channel also provides the pathway for SMS messages. To avoid overloading the system, a 160-character maximum message size has been programmed. However, length limitations vary depending on the network, phone model and wireless carrier. Some phones don't allow you to keep typing once the 160-character limit is reached, while others will automatically break a long message you send into portions of 160 characters and deliver it in two parts or more.

Don’t tax yourselves too much darlings. Feeling snowed under? This must be an overflow of information for you… Did I mention – reading twice helps with comprehension? Until next week – keep those brain cells ticking – at least try.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

^

2006-05-02T09:42:00.000+05:30

Get the fires burning... rev up your metabolism! - By Sangeeta Rana

2006-05-02T09:41:00.000+05:30

(Published on 2 May 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

The world has blamed Napoleon for the Battle of Waterloo. And the world has blamed ‘Metabolism’ for the ‘Battle of the Bulge!’ While numerous generals down the ages have learnt from Napoleon’s mistakes not too many have been able to fathom out the intricacies and strategies that would lead them to vanquish the ‘Battle of the Bulge’.

I've blamed my metabolism my whole life without actually knowing what metabolism is all about. I’ve considered it my adversary… but have really never studied my opponent to overpower it. I finally looked for professional help. The Art of War by Sun TZu, a military genius was referred to:

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” - Sun Tzu

Armed with this new found wisdom – I set off on a war footing pace to know a little more about this monster called METABOLISM, rather than just surrender without a fight.

The word metabolism originates from the Greek word ‘metabole’ meaning change and stands for the chemical processes in a living organism by which food is used for tissue growth or energy production. For metabolism to take place calories are burnt. Everybody’s metabolic rate varies. Metabolic rate is the amount of calories a person burns at rest, or the amount of energy his body uses to function. This brings us to a simple conclusion. To lose weight a person would need to increase his metabolic rate so that he can burn more calories than what he normally does.

Extreme dieting or inactivity can slow the calorie burn even more. However there are numerous ways one can boost up one’s metabolism. Any activity, from washing clothes to shopping, speeds up the rate at which you burn calories. The best way of course is to exercise. Not only does the exercise itself burn calories, but a good workout creates muscle, which burns calories more quickly than any other tissue.

Refrain from over calorie cutting
Extreme dieting is a definite way of not losing weight. Your body is programmed to defend your usual weight. So a drastic drop in calories from your diet will make your resting metabolic rate plummet. The answer is to consume just a little less than your regular requirement of calories a day. This will depend on your level of activity.

Eat a solid breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Breakfast eaters lose more weight than breakfast skippers. Metabolic rate slows down while you sleep, and it doesn't get back to normal until you eat again. So if you skip breakfast, your body won't burn as many calories until lunch time. That's why it's smart to start the day with a solid breakfast.

Snack all day
It sounds strange that one should eat continually if one wants to lose weight. But eating five to six mini meals rather than three larger meals every day keeps the metabolism ticking. It will also prevent you from overeating due to hunger pangs. Not more than four hours should elapse between meals.

Pump weights
Weight training is the best way to pep up your resting metabolic rate. As you get older, your resting metabolic rate drops, but weight training can boost it right back on track once again. Muscle burns up much more calories than fat does. Regular strength training can increase your resting metabolic rate.

Break down your workouts into smaller sessions
Whenever possible, slice each of your workouts into two smaller sessions. Instead of 45 minute sessions split it into two surges of exercising. You'll burn more calories that way. Even small bursts of activity are enough to get your metabolism revved.

Pile on the protein
Getting plenty of protein can boost your metabolism, causing you to burn extra calories. Protein is made up mainly of amino acids, which are harder for your body to break down than fat and carbohydrates so you burn more calories digesting proteins. Aim to have a serving of protein, from fish, chicken, cheese, yogurt, legumes and nuts at every meal.

Say no to alcohol
Think twice before gulping down an alcoholic drink before a meal as it causes people to eat more. Drinking with dinner isn't such a good idea either. The body burns off alcohol first. This means that the calories in the rest of the meal are more likely to be stored as fat. If you must, then stick to wine, which packs fewer calories.

And say yes to milk
Load up on low-fat milk. People who consumed milk, yogurt and cheese three to four times a day lost more body fat than those who didn't. Calcium, research say, actually revs up your metabolism. Reap the largest fat-burning benefit by consuming dairy products and calcium supplement everyday.

Get enough sleep
Scrounging on sleep can slow down your metabolism. People who get four hours or less of sleep have more difficulty processing carbohydrates. When you're exhausted, your body lacks the energy to do its normal day-to-day functions, which includes burning calories. As a result metabolism automatically slows down.

De-stress and Chill out
Long term stress can make you fat. When you're perpetually stressed, your body is flooded with stress related hormones, which stimulate fat cells to increase in size and encourage fat storage. Besides, stress sparks your appetite, making you overeat.

As one grows older one’s metabolism slows down. It really does become more difficult to burn calories as efficiently as one could when one was younger. Don’t put it off for another day for until you are older. The time is now. It’s time to put the pedal to the metal and rev up your doddering metabolism.

For motivation read what Victor Hugo has to say about aging: “Forty is the old age of youth; fifty is the youth of old age.” So whatever your metabolism rate - you are in your youth anyway!

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2006-05-02T09:40:00.000+05:30

Lanka Woman 1 May 2006

2006-05-01T18:48:00.000+05:30

Let flowers do all the talking...

2006-05-01T18:16:00.000+05:30

(Published on 1 May 2006 in 'Lanka Woman' - Colombo, Sri Lanka)

At a loss for words… what better way to express your self than to say it with flowers. Flowers can express your emotions, thoughts, feelings and love for others better than anyone or anything else can ever do.

Many a beautiful story and legend is woven around flowers. According to a Roman legend, a number of suitors were keen on marrying a beautiful woman named Rodanthe, but she did not care for any of them. Despite her lack of interest, the suitors continued to woo Rodanthe so obsessively that they broke through the doors of her home. Angered by their actions and wanting to teach the suitors a lesson, the goddess Diana turned Rodanthe into a rose, and her suitors into thorns.

Another legend tells us that the Greek sun-god Helios. Helios was drowned by the Titans, and then raised to the sky, where he became the sun. He was loved by a mortal woman named Clytie, who died of her love for him. When she died she became a flower and followed Helios' daily journey through the sky. The sunflower's turning as it follows the sun symbolises her deep loyalty.

The Lotus is a very important symbol of Buddhism. It signifies the progress of the soul from the mud of materialism, through the waters of experience, and into the bright sunshine of enlightenment. An open blossom signifies full enlightenment; a closed blossom signifies the potential for enlightenment. That is why the Buddha sits on a lotus bloom. The colour of the lotus too has an important bearing. A white lotus represents the state of spiritual perfection and total mental purity. A red lotus signifies purity of the heart. It is the lotus of love, compassion, passion. A blue lotus is a symbol of the victory of the spirit over the senses, and signifies the wisdom of knowledge. A pink lotus is the supreme lotus, generally reserved for the highest deity, and thus associated with the Great Buddha.

Pink carnations have the most symbolic and historical significance. Carnations first appeared on Earth as Jesus carried the Cross. The Virgin Mary cried seeing Jesus suffer. And carnations sprang up from where her tears fell. Thus the pink carnation became the symbol of a mother's undying love and is now the emblem of Mother’s Day.

When you are in love the first thing that you think of is giving flowers to your loved one. There is a deep connection between flowers and love. Over a period of time, people have connected a specific meaning to each type of flower.

Flowers have spoken to me more than I can tell in written words. They are the hieroglyphics of angels, loved by all men for the beauty of the character, though few can decipher even fragments of their meaning. - Lydia M. Child

The world’s favourite – the rose

A rose is the most beautiful flower and no doubt everyone’s favourite. The name rose comes from the Latin word ‘rosa’, which means red. However, roses come in many different colours each of which have their own meaning. Exquisite and fragrant, the rose is the messenger of love. Besides, a rose teaches us life’s bitter lesson. It shows us how to stay beautiful and spread love and compassion even while living amidst thorns.

mRed roses - signify passion, romance and sensual love. Can also be given to convey congratulations on a job well done.

mPink roses - signify friendship, elegance and gentleness. Pink has long been associated with partnership and marriage.

mPeach roses - signify desire and excitement. The feelings expressed convey: anxious build up of love and a hurry to catch the romance.

mWhite roses - signify innocence and secrecy. The feelings expressed convey: purity and youthfulness.

mYellow roses - signify friendship, respect and gratitude. The feelings expressed convey: welcome back, remember me

mWhite and red roses together – signify unity.

mRed and yellow roses together - convey congratulations.

mYellow and orange roses together - imply passionate thoughts.

The colour of the rose is not all that matters – the next big question is the number! Confused as to how many roses to give - well read on.

1 rose denotes ‘Eternal love’
2 roses denote 'A commitment’
3 roses denote 'I Love You'.
7 roses denote 'I'm madly in love with you'.
10 roses denote 'You are mine'.
11 roses denote 'You are my treasured one'.
12 roses denote 'Promise to be always by your side'
13 roses denote 'We will be friends forever'.
15 roses denote 'I'm really sorry...'
20 roses denote 'I will be always faithful to you'
21 roses denote 'I'm committed to you'
36 roses denote 'I'll remember our romantic moments for as long as I live'
40 roses denote 'I love you with all my heart'
99 roses denote 'I'll love you till the day I die'
100 roses denote 'I will never leave you'
101 roses denote 'You are my one and only'
108 roses denote 'Will you marry me?'
999 roses denote 'My love will last till the end of time'

A morning glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books. – Walt Whitman

Carnations
Carnations signify fascination and love. In particular, pink carnations are used for saying "I will never forget you" while red carnations express admiration and love. White carnations are ideal for wishing good luck.

Chrysanthemum
Chrysanthemum is used to express friendship. Yellow chrysanthemum denotes friendship teamed with love and white chrysanthemum is used to denote truth. Red is also used to express love, good luck and best wishes.

Daffodil
The daffodil flowers in Spring - when the sun begins to shine. Thus this flower expresses the happiness one experiences in the presence of one’s loved one as if to say “the sun is always shinning when I’m with you”.

Gladiolus
Gladioli denote sincerity. Derived from the Latin word meaning “sword”, it expresses infatuation, telling the receiver that he or she "pierces the heart like a sword would."

Flowers are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty out-values all the utilities of the world. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Iris
An iris denotes the importance of friendship, help and faith.

Lily
Lilies denote the purity of the heart. While lilies come in a variety of colours, most people readily associate lilies with white, meaning innocence and sweetness. Yellow lilies express gratitude and happiness.

Tulip
Tulips are used as a declaration of love; a gift from a "perfect lover." Red tulips indicate an irresistible love, while yellow tulips denote a hopeless love with no chance of reconciliation.

Sunflower
The sunflower promises power, warmth, and nourishment — all the attributes of the sun.

Zinnia
The zinnia means 'I miss you very much' and teamed with roses can make a beautiful combination.

A flowerless room is a soulless room, to my way of thinking; but even one solitary little vase of a living flower may redeem it. - Vita Sackville-West

Irrespective of what a particular type of flower denotes – flowers always fill my heart with love and compassion. An offering of a flower at the altar seems like the ultimate expression of love and devotion for the Creator.

Roses may be the world’s favourite flower… as for me I would like to end with the words of Edward Paul Abbey – ‘For myself I hold no preferences among flowers, so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous.’

"

2006-05-01T17:12:00.000+05:30

Ten reasons I hate my spouse... - By Sangeeta Rana

2006-05-01T16:23:00.000+05:30

(Published on 1 May 2006 in 'Lanka Woman' - Colombo, Sri Lanka)

The above statement is bound to draw a lot of attention. It takes courage and fortitude to come out in the open. I’ve kept it under covers for years but the claustrophobia is killing me… and it’s time I let the world know.

While my old aunts are going to chuckle and their better halves (read bitter halves) going to shake their heads in disbelief - here it is… finally in black and white for the world to savour.

Mr Right! This one is addressed straight to you.

01) For heavens… stop being nice to my friends. I am finding it arduous to be nice to all of yours.

02) Peter out! Stop being such a terrific Dad. I’m finding it difficult to keep up with the high standards you are setting.

03) Cease having such a good sense of humour. Aren't we supposed to take our marriage a little more seriously?

04) Put an end to telling me everyday that you love me. I feel the need to work harder on looking better for you.

05) Cut encouraging me to take care of my health. There’s no point taking life too seriously. Is there? You can't come out of it alive anyway.

06) Curtail from pampering me silly with expensive gifts. The guilt is killing me… and if you must can I do the selecting!

07) Discontinue from keeping my picture on your office desk. I don't have the best figure in town – gosh and to have it on display!

08) Resist from placing me on a pedestal. It's unhealthy. I'm putting on weight due to the lack of exercise!

09) Bring to a halt perpetually adjusting with my needs. As per marriage counsellors it is unnatural to be in perfect sync.

10) STOP being such a perfect husband. I feel left out when other women sit and whine about their 'significant others' - or is it 'insignificant others?'

Why can’t you, like the millions around you - just be a normal Asian husband!

=

2006-05-01T14:39:00.000+05:30

From the desk of Miss Know-All: Origin of the term 'daylight robbery' - Sangeeta Rana

2006-04-25T09:27:00.000+05:30

(Published on 25 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

I need no introduction. Every family has one. Every office has one. Even a circle of friends has one. I am Miss Know-All. And I say it with great élan, as our breed of people are, a lot more smart, savvy, intelligent, intellectual, bright, sharp, able and gifted than you all, the rest that comprise the crowd.

Our reputation precedes us. Because we – well if you insist I spell it out – just know it all. It’s always a pleasure to share the wealth of knowledge that we have. And before you call it harping, sweeties – it’s called ‘enlightening the ignorant!’ From irregular bowel movements to quivering jowl movements, we have an answer for everything.

You may have often heard the term ‘daylight robbery’. It’s a term relevant to a lot of things these days. Have you ever wondered what the origins of this phrase must be? No silly. I wasn’t expecting an answer to that question. Just sit back and absorb. It’s interesting and I have to take you back to the 1500’s to Scotland.

It’s rumoured that the city council was close to bankruptcy and needed a way to generate funds. The only way to evaluate the wealth of a family was by taxing them as per the number of windows their house had. As it was the rich who had large street facing houses with numerous windows and the poor who had small windowless homes. Things haven’t changed much since then, have they?

This gave birth to the ‘Window Tax’. This tax was straightforward to assess and easy to collect as the subject of taxation was easy to see and difficult to hide. People of course came up with ways to avoid the tax especially after 1825 when houses with less than eight windows were exempt from paying the tax. Some people blocked up their windows and were as a result robbed off their daylight. Apparently that is how the common phrase – ‘daylight robbery’ came to be – and has it’s origins with the Window Tax.

Don’t rob your brain off daylight sweethearts – open the windows of your mind and let knowledge flow in. I’ll be around to inform and educate. Just soak in the sunshine.

Miss Know-All
wow@dailymirror.wnl.lk

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2006-04-25T09:05:00.000+05:30

Know your lipstick lady... I now know mine!

2006-04-18T09:32:00.000+05:30

(Published on 18 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

Almost every woman around the world involuntarily applies lipstick before leaving home. Lipstick in some shape or form has been around for a long time and has always been a part of dressing up and is a cosmetic ‘must have’. Women began to apply lipstick ages ago. But how many of us actually stop to think what we are applying on our lips? Why are some lipsticks so expensive while others so very cheap? Is it just the brand or something to do with the contents? Do some lipsticks contain harmful chemicals?

The flurry of questions that stormed my brain – made it difficult for me to just pick up a lipstick and apply it. I needed answers.

First a bit of history

Coloured clay or berry juice served as the very first lipstick. However, why primitive women applied lipstick is debatable. While some thought it was to attract men others conjectured it was to scare them away! Rock carvings discovered prove that women of primeval times actually did apply lipstick. A mixture of natural pigments and animal fats was the progenitor of contemporary lipstick in Ancient Egypt. Red lead, ferrous oxide was used to colour that lipstick which smelt of rust. To make the odour better, fragrant essences were added.

There is record of women applying juice of acrid plants, like the wild iris, to add colour to their lips. Such juices caused blood flow to the lips and they remained a blood red for a long period of time. Natural pigments were also widely applied. Lips coloured with henna remained bright for several days. Japanese women applied intensive makeup with faces that often looked like masks. Their makeup comprised of a thick layer of foundation and dark lipstick. It is known that the basic components of that lipstick were tar and beeswax. The beeswax made lipstick structural and thick. Even today beeswax is still one of the basic components of lipstick.

Women from Oceania coloured their lips with lipstick containing a dye obtained from under the mollusc shell. It made lipstick bright red and had unique moisturising substances. In Latin America women coloured lips with carmine, another dye of animal origin. Insects known as cochineal were dried out and then ground to get brick red powder. Cheaper options were beetroot or carrot juice. Some women even applied pounded orange clay. Women in Europe applied cinnabar as lipstick. That was vermilion which is dangerous for health.

It was only in 1915 that lipstick took the form we know today, a retractable stick. We now have a wide range of lipsticks in the market. All of them are improved versions of components used earlier in olden times.

The lipstick of today – the base

The chemical composition of lipstick varies greatly from brand to brand. Lipstick contains a variety of waxes, oils, pigments, and emollients. A high ratio of the lipstick is usually a solid waxy material mixed with non-volatile oil. This enables it to spread easily but remain stiff in the tube.

The wax gives lipstick its shape and ease of application. Among the waxes are beeswax, a substance obtained from bee honeycombs that consists of esters of monohydric alcohols and straight-chain acids. Other waxes include carnauba wax, obtained from the wax palm trees, and candelilla wax, which in turn is obtained from the plant Euphorbia antisyphilitica. The plant is immersed in boiling water containing sulphuric acid and the wax that rises to the surface is then skimmed off. A recently patented composition uses a solid silicone material with polyethylene solidifier, and silicone oil.

The oils and fats used in lipstick include olive oil, mineral oil, castor oil, cocoa butter, and lanolin. Majority of the lipstick brands contain substantial amounts of castor oil. It forms a tough, shiny film when it dries after application. In recent years, ingredients such as moisturisers, vitamin E, aloe vera, collagen, amino acids, and sunscreen have been added to lipstick. The extra components keep lips soft, moist, and protected from the sun and dryness. Ingredients added insure that the lipstick has the proper texture and melting point. Esters of fatty acids are sometimes added to give the lipstick 'stickiness'.

The lipstick of today – the colour

A lipstick gets its colour from a variety of added pigments. The dyes have to be insoluble in water, so the colour will last. Soluble dyes are first converted to insoluble particles by treatment with metal oxides. Eosin is a commonly used red dye.

Among other pigments used are bromo acid and insoluble dyes known as lakes. Pink shades are made by mixing titanium dioxide with various shades of red. Manufacturing lipstick is similar to making crayons. The process involves heating, mixing and stirring. Oils and lanolin are added for specific formula requirements. The hot liquid is poured into cold metal moulds where it solidifies and is then chilled. The formed lipstick is put through a flame for a split second to create a smooth and glossy finish.

Today we have a wide range of lipsticks. The customer has an array of products to choose from: frosted, mattes, sheers, stains, and long-lasting colour.

eFrosted lipsticks include an agent, often a bismuth compound that adds lustre to the colour. Bismuth ox chloride, which is synthetic pearl, imparts a frost or shine. Bismuth sub carbonate is used as a skin protective. Most bismuth compounds used in cosmetics are not toxic when ingested, but they may cause allergic reactions when applied to the skin.

eMatte lipsticks are heavy in wax and pigment but lighter in emollients. They have more texture than shine.

eCrèmes are a balance of shine and texture.

eGlosses have a high shine but are low in colour.

eSheers and stains contain a lot of oil and a medium amount of wax with a spot of colour.

eShimmers have extra glimmer, which comes from mica or silica particles.

eLong-lasting colour lipsticks contain silicone oil, which sticks down the colour to your lips.

eLip gloss usually comes in jars and contains different proportions of the same ingredients as lipstick but usually has less wax and more oil to make the lips shinier.

The flood of information had me stumped. Until today, I had never thought of reading the label on a lipstick or asking the assistant at the store for details. I am a convert now. I am not going to just walk into a store and pick a lipstick at random because I like the colour. I'm going to read every lipstick label before I purchase it.

Know your lipstick lady. I now know mine!

`

2006-04-18T08:24:00.000+05:30

This Avurudu... - Sangeeta Rana

2006-04-11T08:45:00.000+06:00

(Published on 11 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

A New Year heralds in the promise of a new beginning and the assurance of a future filled with hope and optimism. One looks back at the year gone by with contemplation and the year ahead with a new found zeal and enthusiasm. A New Year resolution is a promise you make to yourself. We thought of a novel idea to help the working woman of today to keep abreast with the goals she sets for herself in this fast paced age.

Here is a year planner to make the year ahead more meaningful. 52 weeks in the year ahead and 52 goals you could work towards. If you can accomplish even half of those listed below by the end of the year – you truly are a woman of substance and have reason enough to celebrate the next Avurudu with aplomb.

#Week 1: There is nothing more invigorating than starting the New Year on a healthy note. Start on the right foot. Go to the family doctor and get a thorough medical and dental check up done.

#Week 2: Pen in time for the elders in the family. There is no better way to teach children family values – than spending quality time with grandparents.

#Week 3: Quit smoking now. And if you are already a non-smoker help a friend to give up the habit.

#Week 4: Locate and get in touch with an old friend whom you have lost touch with. It is a joyous feeling and one that brings a flood of happy memories.

#Week 5: Donate old newspapers to an NGO or charity that recycles them. Though small it is your contribution towards preserving the environment and making a difference.

#Week 6: Read a book. With the invasion of television into our lives one has almost forgotten how it feels to read a book in bed.

#Week 7: ‘De-clutter’ your kitchen. Throw out things you have not used for over a year. These include old sauces and squashes that have lived way beyond their shelf life.

# Week 8: Spend quality time with the family. Switch off the television and play a game of monopoly or scrabble.

#Week 9: Save money. If you already are in the habit – there is no harm in pushing yourself that last stretch to save a little more for a well deserved family vacation.

#Week 10: Revisit work habits both at work and at home to increase efficiency and productivity. The key word here is time management.

#Week 11: Keep a count on calorie intake. Revisit daily diet but do be flexible to accommodate that occasional splurge.

#Week 12: Prepare mother-in-law’s or mum’s favourite dish and take it across to her place. You don’t have to wait until Mother’s Day or her birthday to make her feel special.

#Week 13: Go for an eye check up. Opt for glasses especially if you work long hours in front of the computer.

#Week 14: Visit your old school, your alma mater, and meet up with teachers who have helped you grow and develop into the person you are today.

#Week 15: Give away old and worn out shoes to a home that could pass it down to the needy.

#Week 16: Learn a new skill – whether driving, swimming, computer or tap dancing. Step out of line and do what you have most wanted to do or have been putting off for another day.

#Week 17: Drive out of the city. There is nothing more beautiful and pristine than the country side. Soak in the sunshine and the beauty that is God’s bounty.

# Week 18: Take time off to visit the spa or salon for some pampering. Relaxation works wonders on the well being of the mind, body and soul.

#Week 19: Partly pay off a loan taken – and feel the spirit soar. All the hard work finally seems to be worth while and paying off. (literally!)

#Week 20: Contemplate. Reflect on your strengths and weaknesses and identify ways to become a better wife, mother, daughter, employer and colleague.

#Week 21: Work on an exercise regimen that best suits your schedule. Leave no room for excuses. Get fit today and motivate others in the family as well.

#Week 22: Teach an old uncle or a senior citizen in your locality how to email. The excitement as well as gratitude they express on receiving an email from a loved one now based abroad will outweigh anything you have experienced in a while.

#Week 23: Drink less alcohol. Moderation is the key word. If you are a teetotaller drink an extra glass of fresh fruit juice to celebrate your good habit.

#Week 24: Visit a monument or building of national significance. It is essential for the family to appreciate the history of their motherland.

#Week 25: Sort out your medicine cabinet. Throw out medicines that have outlived their expiry dates. Other medicines which are no longer in use can be donated to an old people’s home.

#Week 26: Inculcate the habit of reading the newspaper in children. Discuss current news at the dinner table. It is a good way to keep abreast with current affairs and besides it also encourages healthy dialogue between family members.

#Week 27: Clear out your garage or store. You will be shocked at the amount of useless things one gathers. The rule is if you haven’t used it in a year – you never will.

#Week 28: Attend yoga and meditation classes. It is a good way to revitalise, refocus and rejuvenate ones being.

#Week 29: Get money-wise. Take out time to learn the tricks of safe investment and insurance. Ask a friend or colleague to share their expertise.

#Week 30: Help a stranger. For once listen to your heart and trust a person you have never met before. It helps to restore one’s faith in mankind.

#Week 31: By now it’s way past the middle of the year. It’s time to check whether your weight has been kept under check. Revisit your diet plan and exercise regimen to drop those last few stubborn kilos.

#Week 32: Take out time for your grandmother or an aging aunt. Take her a potted plant. Still better would be a moisturiser jar. You can never fail to please with that one.

#Week 33: A ‘say no to junk food and aerated cold drinks’ week. Not too popular with the family but a good way to keep healthy and fit.

#Week 34: When was the last time you witnessed a performance by Sri Lankan dancers? Keep in touch with your roots. Attend a traditional dance recital.

#Week 35: Say no to plastic bags. Carry a basket when you go shopping next. And if you do end up with some plastic packets at home – recycle them. Give them to your vegetable vendor.

#Week 36: Spread awareness. Whether it is about AIDS, bird flu, dengue or just malaria. You don’t need to go far. Start with your domestic help and staff.

#Week 37: Streamline your wardrobe. Give away clothes you have not worn in a while or have kept - hoping to lose the last couple of inches. Alter, dry-clean, darn and mend. There is no room for faded and worn out stuff. You need a great amount of will power for this one.

#Week 38: Plant a tree or simply get some potted plants. Nurturing plants and seeing them respond to your care is therapeutic.

#Week 39: Adopt a cause close to your heart. Participating in a sponsored walk or awareness drive requires nothing but the commitment of your time.

#Week 40: Organise a picnic or a party for your children and their friends. What better way to get to know their circle of friends. It also gives you an insight into the peer pressure they may be experiencing.

#Week 41: Go in for a mammography test especially if you are above 35 years of age. Know your body… and help yourself to remain fit and healthy for the sake of your family.

#Week 42: Go for an early morning or evening walk with your father. Talk to him and find out if retirement is treating him fine. The time spent together will do wonders to the father- daughter relationship.

#Week 43: Take out time for a family portrait taken by a professional at a studio. Pencil this down as a regular annual event. The pictures hold beautiful memories and are the best way to capture those precious moments.

#Week 44: Call up a friend going through a rough time – whether a divorce or a bad phase at work. All they need is a shoulder to cry on – and all that you need to offer is your time.

#Week 45: Donate old story books and toys to an orphanage. Inculcate the feeling of compassion for the needy and the less fortunate amongst your children.

#Week 46: Adopt a stray animal or feed the birds. Love and care for pets is a gratifying and rewarding experience.

#Week 47: Bake a cake together with the whole family. It is a fun exercise that develops bonhomie and special bonding.

#Week 48: Raise the self esteem of a colleague, employee or even a family member. Kind words and deeds are remembered for long and besides they help you to carve out a little nook in the hearts of others.

#Week 49: Make a difference to your community, locality or society. Stop being complacent and voice your concerns. Give your time to better the future of your children.

#Week 50: This is really a personal choice that needs fortitude and gumption. Pledge to donate your organs and your eyes. What a beautiful way to be remembered.

#Week 51: Attend an event put up by children with special needs. Encourage and cheer them on with your presence.

#Week 52: Review priorities and get ready for another year filled with challenges and triumphs.

This Avurudu, pledge to make a difference - not just in your life - but in the lives of those around you. May the coming year hold more promises and challenges that take you to new heights and enable you to test your potential to their limits.

Avurudu greetings to the readers of W@W.

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2006-04-11T07:35:00.000+06:00

The playing of the Rabana, a tradition to herald in the new year - Sinhala Avurudda

The Art of Desk Management - Sangeeta Rana

2006-04-09T19:21:00.000+06:00

(Published on 4 April 2006 in 'Women at Work' - W @ W - a supplement of the Daily Mirror, Colombo, Sri Lanka)

The desk they say speaks volumes and reveals all about the person who works on it. Imagine walking into an office…. and observing different work stations without their owners being around. Let us conduct what we could call an Executive Desk Health Check up! In general the specimens you will observe will fall into five main categories:

1) The ‘anorexic’ desk
2) The ‘malnutritioned’ desk
3) The ‘obese’ desk
4) The ‘healthy’ desk
5) The ‘constipated’ but clinically perfect desk

Usually a rare commodity, the ‘anorexic’ desk is a stark desk that is usually used by consultants and temporary staff who walk into the office once in a blue moon. Not used very often the desk is in one dull corner craving for action and attention. The telephone instrument usually has a layer of dust and the cord is often yanked out by frustrated neighbours who have had to often answer the phone calls to Mr Nobody.

The ‘malnutritioned’ desk belongs to the sapiens of this world who have really not much to do and their contribution to the bottom-line of the company is questionable. An odd pen stand, lies orphaned with a few occupants - couple of which do not work at all and have not seen the light of day. The telephone cord is twisted into a tight mangle divulging the hours spent on the line. The back of the chair leans backwards to a comfortable angle. Numerous post-its are stuck on the computer as reminders – some dating back to the last financial year. The only file that grabs attention is the leave folder. This desk spells disaster. The message going out is that if there is need for retrenchment the management don’t really need to look too far.

An ‘obese’ desk can be recognised from a mile. Splitting at the seams the drawers often don’t shut properly and chances are that some files are dumped under the desk on the floor. The user could shamelessly encroach on the neighbour’s space. The pile of files on both sides is almost supporting the computer as if to hold it up straight – and the evasive mouse has to be hunted down every time it is needed. In the midst lie an oily empty snack carton and a half eaten sweet distributed by a colleague on the birth of her daughter, who by now has already started kindergarten. One little hint for colleagues here. If you are looking for your staplers, punching machines, and even reading glasses – this is where you should start your search. The users of these desks often have days when they think it would be easier to quit their job and start over elsewhere than it would be to make sense out of the piles and stacks!

The ‘healthy desk’ is buzzing. Lots happening here. A diary and a file marked ‘for urgent attention’ lies at the centre. The family picture on the side clearly states priorities.
The money plant balances the ‘chis’ and sends the right vibrations. The board is neat and importantly all that’s pinned up is straight. The telephone lies at an easy reach with the name and number of the user clearly marked on it. A team photograph demonstrates the bonhomie that exists. Display of the last successful campaign is not to blow one’s trumpet but rather for the sake of motivation.

And finally, the ‘constipated, clinically perfect’ desk! Few and far between the users of these desks are obsessed perfectionists. The stationery is all lined up in a neat row height wise. The files have identical labels that are all marked in the same font. The objective and goals of the company are printed and pinned on the board. The contents of the in tray are numbered and the ones in the out tray are signed and bear a bold tick. The calendar looks like a piece of art with holidays marked in red, weekly meetings in green, deadlines in blue and bosses birthdays in pink!

If you look around an office many of the desks are overwhelming disasters. With perseverance, a hopeless mess can become a model of efficiency. Most people's problems are a result of poor space planning, poor time management and poor work habits. For a large number of people, the desk is where they spend most of their waking hours. However, more than often they do not give their desks a second thought as it just becomes an extension of their own being. Proper desk management could improve efficiency and production levels. It is as important as a surgeon having everything he requires readily available to him at an operation table.

Space Planning

Getting organised means more than just cleaning up your desk! Whether you spend one hour or eight at your desk every day, careful thought should go into how you use it. Make it functional. Know your work habits. If you like to spread out material as you work, provide yourself with enough space.

Space planning leads on to organising your desk area to best suit your kind of work. You must be able to find what you're looking for quickly. "A place for everything and everything in its place" is an important principle to follow. Clutter in the workplace is always detrimental. A cluttered work environment also projects an unfavourable image. When the desktop becomes a storage place rather than a workspace, it's time to reorganise.

Getting an appropriate desk to suit the demands of your work is crucial. Your personal work habits as well as your business activities will determine what style is appropriate for you. If you refer to books or publications regularly in your business, a work area with shelves would be suitable. If you use a computer consider an L-shaped desk so as to also have a large workspace. Shelves and wall boards are a great way to display personal items while keeping your work area clean and functional.

Time Management

Conscientiously improve on management of time. One of the simplest ways to make better use of your time is to rethink how long tasks will actually take, and schedule accordingly. Don’t plan meetings back to back. Designate time for regular paper work. Make it a habit to check your voice mail at a given time daily. Allocate an hour every Friday to file papers. There is nothing more energising than seeing a spotless desk on a Monday morning. Always allow for unexpected circumstances such as extended meetings, demanding clients or simply the boss having a bad day.

Establishing Better Work Habits

When it comes to desk organisation, stacks of paper are the single biggest problem. Prioritise your work. Keep separate folders for things that need urgent attention and for others that can wait. Mark out deadlines.

Paper is the largest contributor to clutter in an office environment. Many people accumulate paper clutter due to a fear of throwing away something important, or a concern that it may be needed later. The result is that they end up keeping everything and not being able to decide which things have value and which don’t. The reality is that most of the paper saved is never needed again, and if it is, the chances are that it can be obtained from another source. The key is to not let paper and piles keep multiplying. Process each paper as it comes in, and get it off your desk. Designate time once a week to clear, sort, file and trash.

If you have taken files out of an archive or storage for reference, gather them up when the work is completed and take the time to put them back where they belong.

Use your planner. It is invaluable for recording ideas in the working, conceptualising and developing stages. Instead of jotting down notes on scraps of paper and never knowing where to find them, you'll have one place to look when you want to refer back.

Don’t clear out the junk piles in a hurry in preparation for a visit from an important client or the top brass. For the next couple of weeks, you will pay a great price because you won’t be able to find much of the stuff you need and that won’t help efficiency levels anyway…. and those you aimed at impressing will be far from it.

Remember, there is no golden rule. No expert can advise you on what is best as you are the only person who can judge what is best suited to your work style. What works wonderfully for one person may not work for a person with a contrasting personality. It is important that we appreciate colleagues who need an opposite set of conditions to thrive. Your desk doesn't have to be either sparse or cluttered. With a little creativity, you can add interesting things and aesthetics to your desk. Some interesting visual tools and a few items can transform an ugly mess into an interesting collage of work-in-motion. If you can find most things in 3-5 minutes or less, your system is working. And when you find yourself lost in your own clutter, you'll know it's time to stop and revisit your strategy.

Getting organised is a process rather than an event. Don't expect miracles… work at it and you could soon pass the Executive Desk Health Check up with flying colours!

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2006-04-09T19:18:00.000+06:00