Blog@GraceJunction

On most days, a racist attack, anti-abortion riots and a crucial national health plan would have automatically been the important news of the day. But June 11, 2009 was not one of them. Donald Trump, who owns the rights to Miss USA, the beauty pageant announced that Carrie Prejean, crowned Miss USA runner up was being sacked for breaking her contract with him and the furore that followed has divided the United States of America into two. (more…)

Finally Vodafone seems to have found the nemesis for the ‘Pug”. Hutch, the ex-name of Vodafone, was known for its pug, a dog that followed its owner everywhere, conveying the ‘where ever you go, our network follows’ punchline. The pug was such a hit that Hutch couldn’t keep the pug out of any of its strategies and ads! I mean literally, whatever Hutch did, the pug followed! The pug tried to enter the Vodafone camp after Hutch was bought by Vodafone. However, Ogilvy & Mather finally seem to have come to the rescue with a new mascot(s), thus paving the way for the last and final departure of the good old pug ‘Chika’. (more…)

When I was reading the newspaper the other day, it was carrying an article about the ‘the great down ageing syndrome’. It is all about how people in their middle age years are turning to youthful looks and they are doing everything possible to keep up with the changing times. (more…)

Every morning I approach the news papers with the fear of getting de-sensitized. Today for instance, The Times of India, Ahmedabad Edition carried news about an act of unnatural proportions – Man having sex with a calf! The matter was brought in to light due to the animal protection activists you may read the entire article here.

Thank God, there are at least some people in the society (People for Animal) who think that there is something called as evil / wrong and the matter was brought to light. A voiceless animal found some one who could fight for its cause; unfortunately our big mouthed society has none! (more…)

The credit cards and easily available loans made almost everything available to the common man. When the generation of the 50s-70s worked a good 25 plus years to buy a decent house with minimum facilties and bought a car after the age of 40, the new generation is buying a much costlier and better equipped (loaded) or rather luxurious house at a much earlier age (early 30s) and this generation is also buying a car much earlier too. Of course the myriad professional options have resulted in greater opportunities for earning, but the thrust has mainly come in from easier funding - credit. However, there are still things out there that even credit will not allow many of the big dreamers to acquire.

Satiated at a much earlier age, it takes much more to now challenge and satisfy these young turks. High ticket paraphrenalia, available at the malls and exclusive shops, or even in the high-end shops don’t catch their attention at all. They are aiming much higher, at things not even in the luxury list of the average citizen (muggles!). The boundaries have been pushed much higher (monetarily). Now, what’s enabling these proponents of “dare-to-dream” to fulfil their dreams and desires has nothing to do with wizarding, but its the age old business of ‘Hiring’ and ‘Renting’! (more…)

Every other Saturday, Joshua Haedelt leaves his home in Westchester County, NY, and makes the hour-long drive to Shotsie’s tattoo studio in Haledon, NJ. There, Joshua, a 28-year-old record executive, prostrates himself on a table for three hours while tattooist Juno Vassi pricks his back thousands of times with inky needles. For the next week, Joshua is miserable, bandaged, and sore. He won’t fully heal for two weeks and then it’s back to the drawing board.

It’s the most painful trend since whalebone corsets. Tattooing, the art of the primitive and the outlaw, has been moving steadily into mainstream. No longer are tattoos for the exclusive decoration of sailors, marines, and bikers. Tattoos are leaving a permanent mark on arms, legs, chests and other body parts of a growing number of celebrities and even normal people. (more…)

If a stranger asks for direction in most places of Gujarat, India, he is likely to encounter some strange words, especially English words. Two of these words strangely occur together-‘Round Circle’. I mean, what’s a ‘Round Circle’!? People here, usually use it to define a Round-about ahead on the road! But isn’t it a almost redundant usage of words. A circle is round and a round can be defined as a circle! However, be it right or wrong, it does serve the purpose. People won’t remain lost on the roads in Gujarat.

Now I was reminded of this odd usage when I read about the ‘Tobias’ family in the USA. For Keith and Tracy Tobias, the parents of three teenagers in La Quinta, California, turning an old workshop behind their house into a movie theater for their children was an obvious move. In fact, the couple’s reasons had to do with more than their love of fun. The Tobiases were looking for a way to keep their children at home! For parents determined to stay on top of their children’s social lives, a rec room, fitted out with a movie theater, a Ping-Pong table and a video game area, seemed an ideal solution. (more…)