New Year Musings!

Good morning all.

I take this opportunity to wish you a very Happy and Blissful New Year. May you get to create a zillion memories to cherish forever.

I am sure that for your perpetual enthusiasm any day of the year is like celebrating a special day in your own way and today also you would be rocking as ever. I am sure you had a gala evening to usher in a fresh dawn and you could make it rocking with all those who were lucky enough to be with you last night.

Wish you thousand times more success and peace in the years to come than what you have had until today.

I do hope the year ahead multiplies your happiness, contentment & accomplishments (not to forget your wealth) 20.24 times of their already accumulated levels. I also pray to the great Almighty to nourish you with HIS/HER choicest blessings and drench you with the sweetest, everlasting memories to cherish for life. Amen!

May the ensuing year bring with it the sweetness of accomplishments engulfing all your past sorrows.

May you rise to every occasion that merits your minutest of intervention.

May your wisdom evolve even further to handle all your familial and professional discords (I wish there are none) with the deftness and affection your mom did while handling your (possible) tantrums as a kid (if ever you had them in the first place).

I have a lot more to say as my heart is getting overwhelmed with emotions on this very special day for everyone but I keep them from getting penned for the next big occasion.

Have a blast, even if it’s a bit late for me to wish you. You anyway don’t have a reason to complain as you didn’t invite me to the party 😉

Stay healthy, wealthy, conscientious and compassionate, as ever. Amen!

Later,

Riteshh Gargg

(W)Rits Original @ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com 😃

Diwali Musings!

Diwali Musings!

They say, "Diwali is a festival of infinite lights and we celebrate it with gay abandon to commemorate the famous victory of good over evil (as it finds its maiden reference in the Hindu mythology when on the occasion of Lord Rama returning back to his constituency Ayodhya after a hiatus of 14 years and immediately after conquering the all mighty devil king Ravana his followers got jubilant and made merry while unleashing their quota of fun which was suppressed for all these years).

To me it is an opportunity to purge our whole being of all the impurities we have so (in)voluntarily stuffed in our systems in the last one year. It is also a chance we give to ourselves to let bygones be bygones and make a wish for a fresh beginning. For some of us who have had a remarkable last year we celebrate our happiness by bursting firecrackers and by distributing sweets among our near & dear ones. For others who didn't exactly have a noteworthy outing out there it is another fresh dawn today full of promises for the next twelve months (or so) allowing us to get the monkey off our shoulders and make a resolution that we shall strive hard to set the record straight as we bow our heads in uncompromised faith in front of the Elephant God Ganesh & Goddess of Wealth Lakshmi.

This is also one such festival which helps bonding the loosened strings as all family members make it a point to rush to a common reunion joint, mostly their parental homes. No matter where they are across the globe, they engineer their plans in such a way (months in advance) that on this day they get to greet each other. Of course, in the last couple of years, amidst the unprecedented pandemic times, it proved to be a real challenge to arrange for the logistics without being unduly stressed but yes, that itself has proved the significance of the moment for us all. This year, with the grace of God, we all can heave a sigh of relief from those tortuous times and be able to unite once again in the old-fashioned way with our near and dear ones.

I take this opportunity to wish all a very happy Diwali.
 
May the ensuing year of your life bring with it sweetness of accomplishments engulfing all your past sorrows, if any.
 
May you rise to every occasion that merits your minutest of intervention.
 
May your wisdom evolve to handle all your interpersonal and professional discords (I wish there are none) in the most deft manner.
 
I wish for you amazing blissful times. I do hope the year ahead multiplies your happiness, contentment & accomplishments (not to forget your wealth) ‘n’ times (‘n’ is a variable and its value is equivalent to your biological age) of their already accumulated levels. I also pray to the great Almighty to nourish you with his/her choicest blessings and drench you with the sweetest, everlasting memories to cherish for life. Amen!

To all those who couldn't find a reason to cherish today, "Go, find your happiness in the smallest pleasures of life. Just don't sulk or wander about with no purpose. Life is so full of surprises, and I am sure you can easily find at least a few pleasant ones to bring a cheer to your sombre mood. If not anything else, read this text at least once again along with the never-ending archives of the author on his blog but please...." and yes, make merry but do responsibly top it up by making it peacefully rocking!

:-)

Festively yours

Ritesh

(C) Rits Original

@ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com

Opening, Mid-game or End-game – Master your game!

 Power is a poison – that’s an often-quoted adage. That’s for lesser mortals who aren’t conscious of their own limitations and for whom there never would be any higher sphere. For them, power and its sinful intoxication, certainly, eventually turns into a deadly concoction. For the ones who already have tasted both power and all the attendant successes, which come as a necessary by-product, they always keep an antidote to power handy, just in case. They also know when exactly to take a jab of this antidote to poetically turn all the evil side-effects of irrational exuberance into an elixir.

 

Last 10 days (and as many nights) have indeed turned out to be a roller-coaster match between not two, but actually four Grand Masters (GMs), playing on all the edges of the chess-board that is Maharashtra. And yes, all four of them had absolute freedom to manoeuvre all 32 pieces as they wish (or at least they deemed they ‘did’). Some of them even had the privilege to add or subtract to this tally, suiting their convenience and more importantly, their style of play.

 

In this “Game of Throne”, it is very complicated to deduce as to who had opened, though with an all-white attire, the eventual, ‘providential’ king is widely alleged to be the one to set the pawns rolling himself. It’s another matter that all this while, he was unmistakably deemed to be playing the role of a 'kingmaker'.

 

The very pace and the manner with which the match opened on that fateful evening took at least two of the GMs by surprise as they were cosying up with each other in their post meal afternoon ‘power’ nap and wouldn’t in their wildest dreams expect one of their own protege to pose a sudden challenge to their self-appointed crowns as No. 1 and 2 in the state even as the popular vote didn’t allow them to take this liberty in the aftermath of Diwali cracker show three summers ago! At the best, it was a duopoly (yes, presence of their side-kick was just as a facilitator) for the crown-term but when it got threatened to be busted just mid-way through, heavens fell and how!

 

All through the duration of the game, there were many openings and a prolonged mid-game before many assumed that an end game was indeed in sight. In sight it surely was, just that the nature of the climax with the very end move by the king turned kingmaker made it into an anti-climax of sorts! Will there still be a sequel to this intriguing game? The jury is out. This is precisely the stuff Hollywood scriptwriters are always on the lookout for.

 

Life hacks for us. If life throws watermelons to you, make them all lemons. Who knows when a lemon would get costlier than a watermelon? The now king was threatened for life by none other than the right-hand of his previous boss but he firmly stood his ground and quite resiliently turned all the brickbats he was subjected to, into a beautiful pot-pourri of a bouquet any GM worth his appearance fee would be proud of. When it’s the moment of reckoning, make it count and count it REAL BIG!

 

© Rits Original @ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com

Parasitical Serendipity!

RCB going berserk at MI vs DC show!

Put that thesaurus aside already and close that Google window either, for you won't find such a catch phrase anywhere on any forum! But this is precisely what I could 'coin' after watching this video of the entire RCB gang making merry last night even as one of their otherwise fierce competitors in MI pummelled a hapless (and clueless DC), punch by punch. Such an irony of sorts, isn’t it?

If I contemplate about the context, this is a great life lesson for all. When we are put in a "complex matrix" like situation where unless we have been tenaciously methodical with our OWN approach, several factors and permutations / combinations have to all go in unison and fall in place together to produce the coveted solution for us. If we take it (relatively) easy and leave it to the last (when it’s already beyond our control), to such an extent that some benefactor has to bail us out we don't have a choice but to feverishly pray for that patron to do it for us. When it eventually comes through, we get to saviour those moments with the ecstasy which could only bless us, courtesy a philanthropist.

How often has life thrown such serendipitous moments to you? Have you taken a count of your such blessings? To be honest, I myself am unsure if I have ever been beneficiary of such a noble act by someone else for me even as I can certainly not rule out that there definitely must have been many such type of situations. I seek pardon for my ignorance to all my benefactors through my life and take this opportunity to express my gratitude towards such unknown / unidentified good Samaritans.

Do share your thoughts.

Cheers

Karma'tically yours

Ritesh

@ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com

The Mayonnaise Jar

How surreal the following story makes you feel waking up to on a beautiful Saturday morning! It is profound that all our life we struggle to identify our Golf Balls, Pebbles and Sand. Once we do, it is entirely up to us to ensure that we don't mess up with our selection again. Do you agree?

 

The Mayonnaise Jar

 

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee.

 

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and fills it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

 

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured it into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

 

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “YES”.

 

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

 

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and favourite passions. Things, that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else - the small stuff.” he said.

 

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “There is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you...” he told them. “So, pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Worship with your family. Play with your children. Take your partner out to dinner. Spend time with good friends. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping tap. Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

 

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled and said, “I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.

 

If you have come thus far and are in or around Mumbai, do let me know if you would cherish to have your coffee (or any other nectar of your choice) with your truly. I am sure I am still missing to collect some of my precious Golf Balls which I expect life to give me another opportunity by throwing them back to my sack, which I won't mind carrying with me through the 'course' of my life, of course, without depending on a caddie to piggyback my treasure for me :)

 

Do share this with other "Golf Balls".

 

Cheers

Ritesh Garg

@ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com

 

Escaro Royale - A true connection between a man's heart and his toe (ROPE Accredited)! - 30% flat discount coupon and more inside!

Escaro Royale - A true connection between a man's heart and his toe (ROPE Accredited)! - 30% flat discount coupon and more inside!

There are two things you can NEVER have too many of; Good friends and Good shoes because shoes speak louder than words! You can't buy happiness but you can buy SHOES and that's kind of the same thing. Life is too short to wear boring shoes.

Amy Adams famously said, "I like Cinderella, I really do. She has a good work ethic. I appreciate a good, hard-working gal. And she likes shoes. The fairy tale is all about the shoe at the end, and I'm a big shoe girl."

As a kid I always used to wonder as to why there wasn't a male 'Cinderella' for us all to fall in love with! Why those gleaming pair of shoes had to be immortalized for just about one half of the so called 'man'kind? What an irony they weren't meant for the 'Man' only!

All through my formative years quite fascinatingly I used to be in a perennial search of my own pair of 'Cinderella' for myself but never could I find one to create my own fairy tale which could have come true with the right shoe. I had a firm conviction in the dictum that, "Cinderella is proof that a new pair of shoes can change your life!"

When I was just about to enter my fourth decade of existence on this Earth I accidentally (or in the hindsight I should call it 'serendipitously') stumbled upon Escaro Royale whose designs just didn't allow me to take my eyes off. I kept browsing through the entire catalogue with a 'wow' written large in my eyes and for all the variety it had on offer I couldn't find a single piece of its creation that I could dare to discount as ordinary!

Then I went through the detailed description of some of the ones I could eventually filter (it indeed was a Herculean effort to find few gems from a mineful)! Lo and behold! It turned out to be icing on the cake that for every single item a personalized detailing has been immaculately articulated to highlight its fine leather material, styling, care about and what not. And guess what! They come with individualized shoe care kit!

I immediately ordered one for myself and after a near suffocating wait for few days when it did come the first thing that made my day was the packaging itself. I bet you won't have ever come across such a 'ROYALLY' packed pair anywhere in the world! With a childlike enthusiasm I opened the box and out came an astonishing piece of top drawer craftsmanship. I had to stop gazing at it after a while when I realized that I didn't still do what I was supposed to do - try them!

As expected by now, the fit and finish was just beyond expectation and after all these years I had finally figured what a true Nirvana for your feet could be like. As they say, "If you don't think shoes are important, just ask Dorothy and Cinderella!"

I got in touch with Mr Ambuj Sharma who is the proud entrepreneur to own this gem along with few others and he so very sweetly took time out to call me and explain at length about the technicalities of footwear. Our WhatsApp chat must have lasted for over an hour and I was not having enough of what he had to share - true wisdom and passion only a virtuoso who is so very confident about his own art could possess.

I told him that time has come for the world to see what Escaro Royale is all about. And to my astonishment just after few days he created a personalized coupon code viz. RITESH30 which anybody and everybody who is reading this could make use of to get an instant 30% discount on any product from the entire catalogue of Escaro Royale on www.escaro.in including and not limited to its new launches and bespoke collection! I must confess that I can die a contended soul now. Such a priceless honour to be bestowed upon with. Respect Sir. More power to you 

After careful consideration and personal experience I don't have any hesitation (like for very few other recommendations I have given in the past with the undisputed money back guarantee) this one unapologetically qualifies for the ROPE™* Accreditation! First up, get yourself a hefty upfront 30% discount on a luxury you should be able to afford. Then embark upon this Escaro Royale 'walk' and if for whatever reason, of course other than your own inadequacies to appreciate true craftsmanship, you feel that the Escaro Royale wasn't upto it to make it memorable for you do write in to me with all the relevant details and I shall oblige you with one half of the shoe price (yeah, from my own pocket!) you have paid to them. Like all good things in life this one also has a limited life and the offer is valid until 30th September 2019!

So dude, what are you still gazing at? Life doesn't come up with such "too good to be true" offers.

"If you are going to kick ass, you need kickass shoes!"

Everlastingly yours

Who else ;)

Ritesh Garg
(W)Rits Original

@ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com

*Rits Original Platinum Endorsement (ROPE) is a unique and pioneering concept and it indicates that the object under author's critique has qualified for his personal guarantee which though doesn't come with any caveats yet claims under it have to necessarily pass the commonly used yardsticks to establish the merits of individual case(s). The author reserves sole and exclusive rights to reject claims lacking objective and/or subjective propriety. While he hopes that he won't ever have to go for it, should he feel the program getting abused the author further keeps the rights to terminate the ROPE qualification accredited to any and all of the products/services without any further notice. As such in common public interest enjoy it responsibly. Of course, to be eligible for this program one needs to let it be known to the product manufacturer (PM) in advance that s/he is going for the same and the PM should send an email to the author to this effect at least 24 hours ahead of the scheduled delivery of its product.

Anti Gravity in Macau - World's Highest Bungee Jumping & Skywalk @ 233 Metres (ROPE Acredited)

And you think you know what all Macau offers!

Over the last several years I have lost count of my friends, colleagues and family members who have come to visit Macau just as a by-product of their trip to Hong Kong. It makes sense also as for a regular tourist it doesn't take more than 48-72 hours (and that too at a very relaxed pace) to thoroughly scan all the extravaganza Macau has to offer. Only those who would want to sinfully indulge in gambling wouldn't mind spending any more number of days in the ubiquetous casinos of Macau until either they go crazy with their bounty hunt or maybe have to put their house on sale!

For the third category of customers (and also for the ignorant ones from the first two) who constantly wish to set the bar higher in their wanderlust of exploring the lesser travelled path there is indeed a pleasant surprise in store. The very majestic Macau Tower houses one of the best names any well read and conscious thrill seeker would swear by and that is the Holy Grail of the industry viz. AJ Hackett!

So who exactly is AJ Hackett?

If you go to its official website https://www.ajhackett.com the welcome message profoundly screams into your eyes, "Everyday do something that reminds you you're still alive"! It also very proudly showcases The Eiffel Tower's image carrying a caption "Defying Gravity" and why not! It's at this place where all of this madness began three decades ago when the legendary Kiwi jumped from!! And that's how Bungee jumping was introduced to the world.

In the last 3 decades Hackett has done phenomenal job in lifting the standards of gravity based adventure sports across different parts of the world.

Macau Bungee

As Wikipedia would confirm, "On 17 December 2006, the Macau Tower started operating a proper bungee jump, which became the "Highest Commercial Bungee Jump In The World" according to the Guinness Book of Records. The Macau Tower Bungy has a "Guide cable" system that limits swing (the jump is very close to the structure of the tower itself) but does not have any effect on the speed of descent, so this still qualifies the jump for the World Record."

When I accidentally stumbled upon this piece of information nobody (I knew) else has ever remarked about, even in passing reference, my body and soul somehow got fixated to it. It was not on the cards and we had a packed schedule for our limited stay in Macau which got further hit by 24 hours as the level 8 typhoon warning in Hong Kong on the date of our travel to Macau meant we couldn't do anything else other than cursing mother nature for being at its annual worst!! I still had my fingers crossed for being able to make it to this extreme indulgence. It helped that not just Bungee but AJ Hackett also had Sky Walk on its menu which meant that it was going to be a thrill-some experience for the whole family, including for my six years old daughter!!

Sky Walk - The Preparations

The moment we landed on the 61st floor of the Macau Tower we knew that we were going to be in for something special as some pulsating music welcomed us. We were greeted by the ever so smiling crew members Tony and Jimmy who though didn't rush us through the motions still managed to make for quite a speedy ready reckoner cum "preparing yourself" set of activities like wearing proper shoes, harnessing, etc. They also provided us with the cute little cords to keep our glasses safe from accidentally falling off such heights. We were also provided with a locker to put all our stuff safely and let me tell you that I have never come across better quality lockers which you could just blindly trust with in your absence.

The fun begins!

What a joy it was for me to see my little one and her mommy getting as excited to walk on the edge of Macau Tower as I was! Our guide Jimmy was a very relaxed and happy go lucky guy who shooed away any stress and anxiety, if there was any of it left in us. What I couldn't help notice was the minutest detailing these guys have taken flawless care of to ensure that the safety of everyone involved in all of the activities through the entire duration is truly unmatched!

Basis our individual comfort Jimmy would ask us to pose at different places on the outer rim of the tower which was barely a metre in width. I obliged him by making for some of the craziest "thrill moments". At the end of it all of us had a sense of an amazing accomplishment and pride of doing what not many would ever even think about let alone eventually being able to do in their lives!

Macau Tower Skywalk - The Verdict

I would strongly recommend this activity for all the age groups. Trust me, whether you are with your family or friends you won't regret being part of this dare devilry which under the strictest of safety norms ensured by the AJ Hackett crew makes it a real "cake walk" and after the initial apprehensions / unease / scare / vertigo you can expect a truly exhilarating experience that you could expect to cherish for your life time. Just go for it and yeah, like very few other recommendations I have given with the undisputed money back guarantee this one unapologetically qualifies for the ROPE™ Acreditation! You just need to embark upon this 'walk' and if for whatever reason, of course other than your inherent fear, you feel that the AJ Hackett crew wasn't upto it to make it memorable for you do write in to me with all the relevant details and I shall oblige you with one third of the ticket price (yeah, from my own pocket!) you have paid for the activity. Like all good things in life this one also has a limited life and the offer is valid until 31st December 2017!

Bungee - how not to do it!!

I would always tell myself that I want to so very dearly do a bungee jumping before I die & four years ago in Pattaya I got this opportunity to jump from 50 metre. For all of my bravedo I knew it beforehand that it's not going to be easy by any stretch of imagination & it didn't help the way both of my legs got so tightly tied together. Before I could take the plunge the pain was getting increasingly unbearable for even my kind of tolerance. It certainly wasn't the best frame of mind if one is expected to jump unaided & with only that 'rope' as your saviour! Even before I could hold my breath to let the fresh air in & gather courage the trainer just pushed me from the platform! Here I first went down & then swung endlessly like a volatile pendulum for next few minutes. I must have screamed more in this activity alone more than all of what I did in my nearly three & a half decade of existence put together. To say it was a nasty & avoidable experience would be an understatement!

Bungee Jumping - The AJ Hackett Way!!

As they say, "keep the best for the last". After my first experience with this mind blowing adventure going bad it required lot of courage for me to be able to motivate myself into trying it again, especially for the top dollar it demands. But I didn't have to think about it too much after having seen the level of perfection AJ Hackett crew had put in my family's Sky Walk. In a flash I decided to just go for it, paid for my already discounted ticket and I promise you guys that it turned out to be the best decision of my life!

Sure, it doesn't come cheap but I am equally sure that for the kind of extra ordinary arrangements these guys have to put in, added with the fact that it could actually command a premium for it being the World's Highest Bungee Jumping one could and should definitely opt for this truly once in a lifetime opportunity.

The entire experience from the very moment you dress up in the gear & get introduced to the crew (assisting and motivating you in the most affable manner) till the time you actually jump from 233 metres above the ground level is beyond words. 

You don't even get to realize when you are already on the 'platform' to do it and when the crew gently starts the countdown, " Five, four, three, two, one...." all of the slowly built up anticipation giving you goose bumps comes refreshingly true.

On hearing "Go", quite inexplicably, feeling is that as if you are just about to get into the heaven! Wow, incredible! Now the real dive. For the initial fraction of seconds you don't even realize that you are free falling at 200 Kmph! You feel like remaining in that stage of tranquility forever. Oh so beautiful breeze around & then you see the land down there while your photographer is busy capturing your excitement & frenzy. All of a sudden the fall is curtailed as the cord recoils to slowly allow a rebound & you wonder for how long did you actually free fall and why can't that duration be prolonged! You don't trust when your trainer later tells you it was around 4-5 seconds. You gradually get down in a nice sitting posture! Oh my God...how i wish time stopped its haughtiness then just for few more moments to allow this poor, deprived soul enhale "the life"!

See it for yourself in the award winning short film of the Millennium (featuring yours truly) - World's highest bungee jumping in Macau. Here's yours truly's leap of faith to kiss the death :)

https://youtu.be/dFhywVrGBYA (light version, easy to load)

https://YouTu.be/23L8NlyN_Nk (High resolution clip)

Everlastingly yours

Ritesh Garg
(W)Rits Original
@ https://scorpiofury.blogspot.com

*Rits Original Platinum Endorsement (ROPE) is a unique and pioneering concept and it indicates that the object under author's critique has qualified for his personal guarantee which though doesn't come with any caveats yet claims under it have to necessarily pass the commonly used yardsticks to establish the merits of individual case(s). The author reserves sole and exclusive rights to reject claims lacking objective and/or subjective propriety. While he hopes that he won't ever have to go for it, should he feel the program getting abused the author further keeps the rights to terminate the ROPE qualification acredited to any and all of the products/services without any further notice. As such in common public interest enjoy it responsibly. Of course, to be eligible for this program one needs to let it be known to the service provider in advance that s/he is going for the same and the service provider should send an email to the author to this effect at least 24 hours ahead of the scheduled/booked activity.