Weather Whether !

I have never experienced weather like this before !

Only a a day earlier I had walked a mile in hot sun all tired and wished I had a cap and a T-shirt on and the next day it rains and the temperature goes so low, with a cold breeze included, that it feels like God did a weather rewind and put us back in winter !! I had to take out my winter jacket again.

Weather here changes not only by the day but by the hour or even by the minute. Last year I remember walking on the Front street next to the library hoping to enjoy the warmth of the sun above when all of a sudden freezing cold breeze attacked us making me retreat into the library. On another occasion, rain pounded the pavement on Front street while a street parallel to it was all clear and sunny !!

There was even an attack by the sun god couple of years back when the power went out and many residents of the building I reside in sat in the lobby. Outside it was sweaty and hot wind ('loo') blew making one very uncomfortable. I have experienced such hot weather only in New Delhi, India. According to weather page in the local news paper, New Delhi is listed at 113 degrees Fahrenheit currently.

I live in Issaquah, Washington.

Piku - A movie review

Shit doesn't happen. That is the theme of this movie. Literally. Director Sircar continues his light hearted and humorous look at life. From the dilapidated ruins of old Lucknow in ‘Gulabo Sitabo’ he moves to the problems of old age in modern life in ‘Piku’. 

Mr. Banerjee, a 70 year old Bengali, and his 30 year old architect daughter Piku , live together in New Delhi, India. That they live together may seem very unusual in the USA but in busy North India this living arrangement is perfectly normal. As the daughter says to her boyfriend she can't just abandon her sick dad and marry someone unless the potential partner accepts the fact that the three will live together . India is a country where family members live together in a joint family arrangement, even if they occasionally argue and fight!

Mr. Banerjee suffers from chronic constipation and he is open about it with his daughter and the servants. There is discussion about the quality and quantity of his stool at the dinner table. He leaves messages with his daughter's secretary regarding gas and semi-liquid motion embarrassing her and amusing the audience. There is a suggestion given as to how Mr. Banerjee should mount the commode in Indian style so the stool release process becomes easier. Mr. Banerjee himself mentions, during one of his informal lunch conversations. that there is a mind-body connection and stress and frustration can cause constipation. The reverse is true as well !!

Mr. Banerjee decides to drive to Calcutta from New Delhi with his daughter, a driver and a servant. Among the luggage tied to the car’s roof is a wooden commode just in case…

In Calcutta, at their mansion where his brother lives the discussion about Mr. Banerjee's constipation continues and they argue whether it runs in their family. One day, Mr. Banerjee gets the urge to take a bike ride thru the city and vanishes alone causing much worry amongst the family members especially his frustrated daughter. But he returns after a while safely and has the best potty experience of his life!!!

Mr. Banerjee didn't want to die inside a hospital tied to tubes and instruments and so he passes away peacefully on his bed in his home. Close to his daughter. There is a budding romance between the daughter and the owner of a taxi service and so the boyfriend is omnipresent in her life in the second half of the movie.

A Prayer....

 There are wars in progress, people are vanishing from their homes, murders and potential assassination attempts are occurring according to news reports. To some people this might be business as usual, but is it ? In the lonely dark nights of winter it seems like evil has descended upon the planet if you add to this mix your own personal problems, but the warm sunlight of approaching summer makes this depressing state almost tolerable!

Therefore, it seems appropriate to repeat an ancient Hindu prayer:

Aum bhur bhuvah swaha….

May we meditate on the effulgent light of one who is worshipful and has given birth to all the worlds, may he guide the rays of our intelligence towards the path of good !

Circles & Squares: A new approach!

By,

Ravindra Loomba 

In high school, we learnt that the area of a circle is Pi (π) times square of its radius(r). I had no clue as to the origin of this formula (π• r squared). All of us learnt it by rote. It was a fundamental formula someone discovered, we rationalized.Just as the formula for the area of a square whose each side equals r is (r times r).

However, recently  I spent some time thinking upon this formula and the mystery unfolded. The formula doesn't seem that mysterious now. If you draw a square with each side equaling 2r, which contains four equal squares with each side r , then the area of the circle with radius r inscribed within will be slightly bigger than the area of three of these squares. Actually, the area of this circle will be 3.1416 times the area of a single square of side r! That is the original formula we mentioned in first para, where the number 3.1416 is represented by the special character π.

With this information we can deduce the areas of squares and circles much easily. If we know the area of square then the area of the circle inscribed within is 78.54 % of the area of that square.

Moved!

 The three movie reviews 'Twelve Angry Men', 'Andhadhun' and 'Chalo Dilli' have been moved to Movies Review blog accessible from the Menu option at the bottom of this blog.

The story 'Mr. Tan's Bicycle ' is now in the science fiction blog accessible from the main menu below.

About Social Security.....

by,

Ravindra Loomba

Social Security is a term interpreted differently in some parts of the world as compared to its implied definition within US. In plain English, the phrase simply means that people are secure in their 'social' environment!

Therefore, it is not surprising that when I mention to a relative outside USA that we have social security, his response is 'all of us are secure here as well' !. He is interpreting the phrase according to its meaning in plain English.

Within USA, Social Security is a government agency that provides financial security to retired, poor and disabled people by making funds available to them provided they meet certain criteria. The current working population pays taxes called FICA which is a flat tax of about 6.2% deducted from their salaries which funds all different programs of Social Security mentioned above.

A worker making USD 50,000  a year will pay about $3,100 as FICA in that year.

A worker making USD 100,000 a year will pay about $6,200 as FICA in that year.

I have paid fair share of  FICA during my working years as a software professional.....

                               MEDICARE 

[Note: FICA and MEDICARE taxes are in addition to the Federal and State Income taxes].

In addition to FICA (see previous post), there is an additional flat tax of 1.45%  for Medicare that each employee pays and is directly deducted from their salaries each pay period. The Medicare tax funds the health insurance benefits provided to retired and people with disabilities ! 

A person making USD 100,000 a year will pay $1450.00 in Medicare taxes in that year !

The total of FICA and Medicare taxes is 7.65 % .

M E N U

Messages From The Author - Please Read (updated May 25 , 2022)

Money, Credit Cards And Savings(October 19,2018)

My Views On Software And Computers

The Cosmos In My Own Words (Updated July 25, 2018)

Science Whys And Hows !

Hollywood And Bollywood Reviews (Updated Feb. 28,2023)

In The Hopper - Review Of Favorite Books, TV shows... (Updated June 13, 2021))

My Essays On Life(Updated Nov 22,2017)

My Poems(Updated Aug 22, 2019)

Humor And Cartoons

My Digital Art

My Digital Movies

Fables - Some Ancient Some New (Upuudated

My Science Fiction(updated November 16, 2018)

Tales From Splitsville! (updated  June 17,2018, 2018)

Notes On Immigrating To USA

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