Dream 35-Game Park

Dream 35-Game Park

This dream was bit strange.

I was on holiday (not New Year) and was in strange place which to me was a nature reserve.

I do not know (this is a true dream not made up) whether I was in Yala, Wasgamuwa or Wilpattu.

I had never been there and when I was proceeding, by strange coincidence I met one of my colleagues (he was true to life and I do not want to discover his identity and let me say he was our head of the department, I work.

He was dazed, looked as if he was pretty drunk and could not help me finding my way toward the nature reserve but he was demanding help from me, instead.

Knowing the chappy very well who enjoys a hard drink I had no option but to help him.

He asked me to find a urine bottle that he had collected and test it for alcohol.

He wanted to prove that he was not drunk and innocent.

I said, do not be stupid do not give urine for testing one can put something to it like what they do it when testing sports people, especially Sri-Lankan.

Besides, it is not the done thing for alcohol

He said, it is for drugs not alcohol.

I said wait a while till the effect of drug or alcohol to wear off and offer a sample of blood.

This is not a city, the periphery of the nature reserve and one can wait till one reaches a civilized station to test.

I could not convince him and he demanded I should find the urine bottle.

I asked where?

Then he pointed out to a place where I found a bottle which looked ancient artifact and was about to hand over the specimen and I was woken up.

Actually, I woke up because of the fire crackers and it was auspicious time for lighting the hearth.

I said to myself, it is very auspicious time for my dreams and my wife would do the necessary preparation and dropped to sleep instantaneously.

My dog was hovering with fear of fire crackers and I directed him under my bed.

Before, I could bat an eyelid I was in another dream mode.

This part had no relationship to the first part.

That’s what I thought.

It was very brief.

I saw a she elephant shot dead.

Then before she died she delivered her baby in good condition and took her last breath.

By some strange coincidence there was another nursing elephant mother nearby who took care of the placenta and the baby.

Having done obstetrics in my life delivery of a baby was no surprise but seeing an elephant baby coming out to this world was an exciting episode even in my dream.

There was no screaming, grunts or panic panting, as when women were delivering but she was in excruciating pain of the bullet wound that had pierced the chest not the belly fortunately.

I was woken up angry.

I immediately posted it to Maha Brahma since I also has a  request for a partner for the delinquent swift in our little garden.

He responded immediately.

Why were you so angry?

Did the bank officer gave you a call on the New Year Day asking you to pay the debts?

How is your new telephone extension?

How did you know, I asked?

I keep an eye on you these days and you were bit liberal on your cash?

Were n’t you?

How do you know?

Every time you do a good thing, I get a little tinkle here.

That is news to me.

It was nice of you to give a digital radio with a rechargeable battery to your blind friend.

I got a thump here and he was profusely thanking me, instead of you.

Did he?

YES.

Why did he, did not thank me?

Did he think that I was a god.

Sort of.

I was angry that a she elephant pregnant was shot at.

Can this happen in this blessed land?

YES all the time, he said.

I got more worked up.

Do not be so angry.

This is new year time, know.

I said I get worked up more on new year time.

Why?

Don’t you read my blog post about peanuts and cashew nuts.

But cashew nut are cheap in heaven, know.

But they are very expensive, here.

I bought a sample for a cake my daughter made and she did not put them on, since, she told me it was not enough to fill the cake.

I asked her what happened to cashew?

I ate them all, she said.

Did you give some to Mallie.

YES.

Not only cashew everything is expensive and this the time every household is hot with anger and they attribute it to things like chillies (as a scapegoat).

Even chillies are expansive.

I know all this but I was pulling your leg.

How did your new year go by.

It took the whole day for me to clean up my fish tanks.

This time only a few fish died due to warm weather.

I took all the precautions.

Only problem is when it rains it pours and fills up the tanks and with the overflow, fish slip out to the cement floor and I have to catch them and put them back.

Is that so?

YES.

When it is dry, the water level goes down rapidly and I have to fill them up with water

Besides, algal bloom take over in a few days.

Then the fish die of lack of oxygen.

It is no fun looking after fish now.

Soon I am going to give up caring for fish.

Do you eat fish now.

NO.

Are n’t you interested in the interpretation?

I am but I am bit confused.

Did you have some liquor?

Not even wine this time.

Why?

I cannot afford.

Why did you ask that question?

Just for my own sanity.

Why?

I had to put the two parts together and took a bit of pondering.

It was a bit of a brain teaser?

I thought you were drunk and was pulling a fast one to test my ability.

None of it.

I won’t do that even to a friend of mine.

I do not believe you.

Was it my Head?

What head, your nut?

The head of our department?

I see.

NO.

Were they connected?

YES.

How come?

Wait will you.

Can ask you a favor?

Fire on.

Can you find a partner for the little swift who has become a problem lately.

Would you mind waiting for the next season?

No problem.

Are you ready.

YES.

Interpretation.

This actually happened in the pretext of Eco-tourism.

They take children from hifi families to the wilderness for shooting wild animals.

Wild boar?

NO.

Big game animals and they stay there for weeks on end and have barbecue in the jungle.

My goodness.

Is it true?

Yes.

Do they shoot elephants?

Yes if they are tuskers.

But a she elephant?

That was an accident.

When they were shooting the game this she elephant came across.

The young guy had a direct hit at her.

Who is this young Guy?

I cannot tell you due to security concern.

Highly connected guy?

How do you know?

That is what is happening usually.

Let us skip that part.

Who is that guy drugged or drunk?

He was the chief of the conservation and not your head.

Thank God for that.

I cannot work under person like him, you know who is drunk.

If my head drinks or drugged like that, I probably will leave the university.

University guys are good at drinking, know?

Yes, but one must not go beyond one’s limit. then one loses, everything including status.

This guy actually videoed the whole incident.

He was caught by the son of the big shot and drugged to cover up the episode leaking to the media.

Then he was imprisoned and charged for use and abuse of drugs.

The jungle is the production factory for drugs from 1970s know?

It is not a big deal, know?

Yes, yes but one must not catch the culprits.

Both Games, Hunting and Drug cultivation should continue under the patronage of politicians.

That cannot be done now with the Bodu Balawegayain in full spring, know.

What nonsense?

It is only the front organization, the real organization is under full cover and protection.

What can one do? 

Practically nothing unless one changes the whole administrative thing.

Those heads are only figure heads and without any power. 

Real heads are politicians' sons and daughters.

They actually select headless and heedless people to run conservation and many more institutions including banks now.

Oh, I see.

What happened to the video.

It was sent to a film award in USA and got a Gold.

How come?

It was edited and dubbed to look as if they were really protecting the forest.

The son got a big post in the world wold life conservation.

Just like Prince Philip?

YES.

But Prince Philip does not do things like that, know?

That is the work of the foreign affairs.

Prince foolishly believed the protocol.

Oh, I see.

He is bit stupid know.

WHO?

Prince Philip.

Do you think intelligent guys are born to Royal Families.

I suppose not.

The guy (Head of Conservation) became insane and he was warded and he always ask for the bottle with urine sample when a nurse comes near him.

I was not a nurse, know.

You stupid, don’t you realize this is a dream?

I suppose, I have to take your stance.

That’s all.

In fifty or less years from now, there is no fuel for airbuses and vehicles.

Most of this country go to wilderness again.

That is good know.

The guy who was involved in Fun and Games was prosecuted for all the offenses he was involved in, while his father was in office and he slipped to the jungle when the father died and was living  in a jungle hut.

One day, the baby elephant now big, came in and did what he did to his mother to the guy.

What Karma is that?

That is the Karma that has effect in this life.

One does not have to wait for another life.

See, YOU SOON and he disappeared

Today is Earth Day.

You can do five simple things to help we save the planet.

1. Plant a tree on your birth day and look after it for the rest of your life.

Spend a few (5) minutes each day caring for it.

If you do not have a big garden go and buy a big pot to suit your needs and at least plant a jasmine and make sure once it is mature, that you make few more sapling from it's long branches into smaller pot and give it to a friend to care for it.

It flowers almost throughout the year.

There are three varieties.

Sri-Lankan variety which is difficult to care and is a slender plant, the Indian variety and the commoner garden one (needs a big pot) which is rugged and can withstand dry warm weather better. It flowers almost every day.

2. Eat veggies

3. Walk.

Do not drive your car but use the public transport.

4. Use reusable carrier bag and refuse to use polythene

5. Switch off all unnecessary bulbs in your house and change to energy saving bulbs.

Having done that make life digital and use electronic mail instead of paper mail.

Go digital and make your life paper free.

Birds in Paradise Lost and the Juvenile Delinquent

Birds in Paradise Lost and the Juvenile Delinquent

This piece was long overdue.

Sri-Lanka use to be a paradise for birds.

Not anymore.

It has many reason as I see them as a bird lover and a bird watcher but I have to highlight some recent developments ornithologist has not studied adequately.

I wrote a piece 2 years ago about a an Indian Oriole pair who did not migrate back for long period of time.

This coincided with the full operation of the Coal Power Plants.

I was obsessed to point out that the wind currents were effected by the commission of the Coal Power Plant and the it probably effected their detection of thermal range and the decision to migrate back to beyond Afghanistan.

They did remain for a prolong period and finally disappeared for good and never returned for the subsequent two years.

I was predicting that they would breed here but that prediction has no credible evidence to support by way of young ones.

Instead more of the local Oriole who prefers jungle habitat started vising our small garden.

Their was an unusual increase of local bird visiting our neighborhood for two reason.

1. Water.

2. The fruit tree they love to visit and partake its fruits.

During this period the remaining Bread fruit tree and another jack tree was consumed but they still have limited tree cover..

The other reason was that in the name of development and Eco-tours two reaming Kurulu Kales are being vandalized driving them to move out looking for safer places.(Kurulu Kale-Jungle reserved for  local habitat both fauna and flora, in fact what is left of, in and around Kandy city.) This development is going at full pace and they are even removing an overhead pass probably to make room for the Night Races which I will never watch.

Today story is more to do with the Buttichacha, the tiny bird that has made a point to take over out fruit tree for his delinquent acts.

For his size he is a hero of mine.

One day I was watching he was pecking a young bat who had lost his way and resting on another tree upside down on broad day light, like our politicians.

Their view about nature, coal power and anything scientific to me looks like upside down anyway.

Politics is not a science but a way of life and those guys/girls will never understand science in correct perspective anyway.

Those who cannot understand the value of live and let live and reconciliation won’t understand, science in their day to day life.

The next episode was this little guy has such a macho that he dare attack like a live bullet on the Ceylon Oriole whom I have now an special attraction after the episode with Indian Oriole.

Moment a Oriole comes he is airborne like a bullet and hit the big guy on the tummy with his long beak and the big guy won’t attack in return but shy away like a timid little boy and fly away without partaking any fruits.

When this happened, I went into my investigating gear to see whether he was protecting the young ones or the nest.

My investigation were negative.

He was a loner.

He has not found a bride but his instinct is to wait their for a good match and when he finds one to built a nest for his lover.

He is neurotic without a lover.

His pitch is belligerent and delinquent.

Now the Oriole expects the attack and cleverly avoid and direct hit and he was a peaceful guy and never retaliate.

The Butichcha now goes into pitch of defense (as if protecting the young ones) and as long as the big one is their makes a racketty noise in alarm mode. The big guy picks a fruits from the tree and quickly flies away.

The little one goes behind chasing the big guy but unfortunately it cannot catch up the flight of the Airbus body of the Oriole in comparison to the pocket size bird.

It reminds me of the rhetoric of our guys blasting the American.

I can remember in years gone by China used to have rhetoric against USA when its air space is violated by American spy planes.

They go to thousands of warning but the big guy the USA won’t stop the surveillance.

In the world of bird when paradise is lost and a partner is not available for mating what else a little bird can do?

Yelling in high pitch (like our politicians).

This one I am going to send to Maha Brahma asking him to intervene and produce one more (extra) female for this delinquent and boisterous BOY to pair with,

It just one more egg.

Let him not make it a Buddhist Egg and unfertilized.

When I asked a favor Maha Brahma promptly addressed my call for the lonely cuckoos and I have many pairs visiting the garden now.

THANK YOU.

If you oblige this time, the racketty noise will disappear in no time and his delinquency will be gone for good.

I am not sure our Butchittas come under Swifts or Cuckoos.

Either way he is a personality good enough to enter out parliament and make a big noise without substance like the Hela Urumaya.

PCLinux-KDE in 64 bits

PCLinux-KDE in 64 bits

Even, though I said I will stop downloading and testing Linux, I have to eat my words with the New Year Eve approaching.

It's FullMonty and PCLinux 64 bit version are out after long delay.

I think they have dedicate it to TextStar who stepped down few months ago.

I believe they did it with care and caution.

If one visit the forum, they guys/girls use to prick on the sore point, that was lack of 64 bit version.

I think those critics have to stomach the labor pains now.

It is my workhorse and favorite apart from Pinguy Linux.

Thanks Guys/Girls of the PCLinux for keeping the promise.

I hope you go up the Distrowatch ranking to Number One, now.

It has a monthly magazine online which I rarely read since I am more into the Linux Magazine which is celebrating 12 years and the May Magazine came with a DVD with all the 149 past editions in digital format.

I could not open with a Linux utility probably targeted for Windows Guys and Girls.

I will run it in a window BOX if Win guy or girl let me run it on a Window's idiot BOX. 

Ubuntu is also have a Magazine now and if you are running Ubuntu, it is a good idea to subscribe for the magazine.

I rarely use (mainly use it for demonstration) Ubuntu on a regular basis and with Unity and Magazine I may have to change my attitude towards Ubuntu.

It just I cannot break old habits and I am happy with PCLinux (Mandrake derivative from where I started the live CDs from which addition I will never be (LIVE CD/DVD) CURED.)

 This is a reproduction from New England Journal of Medicine, which is something one should read if you are one of the guys/girls who visit my blogpost and read my dreams.
In fact my book of dreams III is out now at Amazon.
I sometime feel what I dream are not dreams but real life situation acted on my relaxed and ACTIVE BRAIN WITH DIVINE INTERVENTION!

Made-to-Order Embryos for Sale — A Brave New World?

Embryo donation (also known as embryo adoption) is the compassionate gifting of residual cryopreserved embryos by consenting parents to infertile recipients. At present, only a limited number of such transactions occur. In 2010, the last year for which U.S. data were available, fewer than 1000 embryo donations were recorded. These acts of giving, unencumbered by federal law, are being guided by a limited number of state laws. Moreover, the practice is sanctioned by professional societies, such as the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, subject to the provision that “the selling of embryos per se is ethically unacceptable.” As such, the not-for-profit donation of existing embryos by consenting parents comports with a triad of commonly held ethical attributes. First, donated embryos are not sold for profit. Second, donated embryos are (by original intent) generated for self-use. Third, donated embryos are the product of an unambiguous parental unit and as such are transferable. All told, embryo donation constitutes an established if limited component of present-day assisted reproduction.

Embryo Banks

The proliferation of commercial gamete sources (e.g., sperm and oocyte banks) has opened the door to a made-to-order embryo industry in which embryos are generated with a commercial transaction in mind. This prospect of a for-profit embryo bank is no longer theoretical. Indeed, as recently as November 2012, the Los Angeles Times reported on one such clinic that “sharply cuts costs by creating a single batch of embryos from one oocyte donor and one sperm donor, then divvying it up among several patients.” The report went on to state that “the clinic, not the customer, controls the embryos, typically making babies for three or four patients while paying just once for the donors and the laboratory work.”
At present, the legal fabric relevant to the sale of embryos is limited. Since there is no federal law on the subject — the National Organ Transplant Act does not apply to gametes or embryos — the practice appears to be legal in all but two states (a third is more ambiguous). In Louisiana and Florida, the sale of embryos for reproductive purposes as “valuable consideration” (i.e., beyond reimbursement for costs) has been explicitly rendered illegal. New York, in turn, prohibits the creation of embryos from donor gametes for reproduction except on “the request of a specific patient who intends to use such embryos for her own treatment,” which might be read to prohibit made-to-order embryo banks, though the language is more ambiguous. In this Sounding Board article we examine the legal and ethical issues raised by made-to-order embryos for sale, evaluate arguments for and against the practice, and recommend that state legislatures and professional organizations collaborate to devise legislative solutions to the thorniest challenges herein identified.

For-Profit Embryo Sale versus Nonprofit Donation

The most obvious distinction between embryo donation and the sale of made-to-order embryos is the fact that the latter constitutes a for-profit transaction in which embryos are being treated as a profit-generating commodity. In light of the above, the ethics of selling made-to-order embryos could well be called into question. Indeed, it could be advanced that the sale of embryos is more troubling than the sale of gametes.
First, it might be postulated that the sale of embryos will crowd out embryo donation and in so doing exclude recipients of limited means. However, at present, there is no evidence that this will occur. Moreover, given the limited availability of donor embryos, further diminution of this pool appears to be inconsequential.
Second, it could be argued that individuals will be coerced or exploited or unduly induced into selling gametes in order to form embryos. However, these concerns seem largely the same regardless of whether gametes are used to create embryos at the behest of prospective parents or by a commercial entity.
Third, it could be posited that the sale of embryos denigrates the value of reproduction by turning it into a commercial enterprise. To differentiate the sale of embryos from the sale of gametes, one would need to show that it is more corrupting of our views of reproduction than is the sale of gametes. It is unclear, however whether this argument is an empirical claim about attitude modification (that prohibition is justified to avoid the undesirable consequence of changes of attitudes) or a principled argument (that prohibition is justified even if undesirable consequences do not follow, because the practice is intrinsically wrong) and how either might be proven. Furthermore, the argument that the sale of embryos denigrates reproduction may be incompatible with views held by supporters of reproductive rights and of human embryonic stem-cell therapies. In particular, it may be difficult to claim that respect for personhood requires that the sale of embryos be prohibited at a time when parentally sanctioned embryonic destruction (with or without the generation of a human embryonic stem-cell line) is being practiced. Even if one believes that embryos deserve special respect not granted to gametes, it is far from clear why the sale of embryos to facilitate family building is any more contrary to that respect than the destruction thereof.
Finally, it would be wrong to equate the sale of embryos with the patently illegal sale of children. The latter involves potential harm to an already existing child. The former involves choosing whether particular children will be produced or not, and the practice is more similar to the sale of gametes than the sale of children. Other issues — such as concern about accidental incest, in which children traceable to the same embryo batch later meet and become romantically involved — apply equally to embryo donation and to gamete sale more generally. In this context, the same potential solutions (e.g., registries, limitations on the number of children attributable to the same genetic parents) could be given consideration.

Existing versus Newly Created Embryos

Another important distinction between embryo donation and embryo sale is the reliance on existing surplus embryos as distinct from newly created counterparts. To some observers, the latter may prove unacceptable because it dehumanizes reproduction, either by turning it into manufacturing or by distorting the parent–child relationship by providing parents with overweening control over genetic traits with the oppressive psychological parenting pressures that go with such control. However, it is not immediately apparent whether the generation of new embryos (possibly with limited preselected traits) is all that different from ordering the constituent gametes replete with particular desired attributes. Indeed, there may be fewer eugenic overtones or concerns about oppressive parental expectations, in that parents are buying one embryo from a batch of already made embryos, as compared with the more bespoke practice of ordering specific desired gametes.
Furthermore, it is not clear how the sale of made-to-order embryos differs from the sale of oocytes for the manufacture of embryos by somatic-cell nuclear transfer for stem-cell derivation, as is presently sanctioned by New York State. Indeed, one might think that this practice — creating embryos for the purpose of destroying them to derive stem cells — is more ethically challenging than the notion of creating embryos for the purpose of alleviating infertility.

Legal Parentage of Made-to-Order Embryos

Finally, there is the question of the parentage of made-to-order embryos. Existing state (statutory and case) law establishes (if imperfectly) legal parentage in the context of gamete donation. Similar guidance has been provided (again imperfectly) for the disposition of cryopreserved embryos whose parentage is being contested in the course of a legal divorce. In contrast, however, state statutes relevant to embryo donation are few and far between. Oklahoma requires physicians to file with the court explicit consents from both the donor and recipient parties to ensure the orderly transfer of parental rights and obligations. Georgia, in turn, requires that the transfer of legal parentage be accomplished through a written contract and that the recipients petition the court for an order of adoption to formalize the transaction. It is unclear whether either of these schemes can be adapted to the transfer of the legal parentage of made-to-order embryos. Indeed, in this circumstance, the sole potential guardian is the very clinic responsible for the generation and the sale of the embryos in question.
However, uncertainties inevitably abound. What, for example, would happen to made-to-order embryos if the relevant clinic goes bankrupt? What would happen to such embryos if a gamete provider objects to the sale after fertilization or demands that the embryos be returned or destroyed? These unanswered legal questions give us the most pause about mainstreaming made-to-order embryos. Coordinated efforts by legislators and professionals will be required if this legal void is to be addressed.
It is readily apparent why the prospect of made-to-order embryos for sale may give rise to apprehension. However, viewed through a legal and ethical lens, the concerns raised by this potentiality appear to be similar to those associated with widely accepted and more common reproductive technologies, such as the sale of gametes. What is new and unique here is the lack of clear legal guidance as to the parentage of the embryos in question. Joint efforts by state legislatures and professional organizations will be required to forge appropriate legislation if made-to-order embryos for sale are to become a practicable reality.

Another Dream-Holy Water

Another Dream-Holy Water

Part of this is a dream and part of it is not a dream but I won’t tell which is which, one has to figure out which is which.

Let me dish it out.

There was a hermit levitating on a T-Junction in this country.

Which part of the country is a top secret (destination), only the defense establishment knows it.

Denomination of the hermit one has to guess and by higher order decree I am not supposed to declare (this order is not from Maha Brahma the Greatest).

This hermit is blind but has a wonderful ear for gossip.

Fortunately the story starts with a rabbit.

He was running and in full flight to escape from a funny fox called Lyon Fox of international repute.

This fox is four legged and certainly not two legged variety one sees in our parliament.

He was on full flight and suddenly came across the blind hermit sitting right across his path at the T-Junction.

He took a giant leap and had a direct spray of his number 1 on the face of the hermit in meditation mode.

A full blown watery paint packed with androids which one does not need even a brush to paint.

Jet spray of the rabbit did it. 

Oh, Holy Water said the hermit.

What nonsense, this hermit must be totally blind and then the rabbit said loudly, “the fox won’t catch not even my Ata Deaka” and thought to himself, I am lucky this hermit is blind lest he might reroute the fox in my direction.

In a little later, the fox came in fully exhausted put his Ferrodo Brake in front of the hermit and politely asked the hermit did you see a rabbit coming this way?

I would n’t know but what I know is that he is a male, the hermit replied.

What a revelation fox talked to himself and he sprayed his landmark paint on the hand of the hermit that was stretching downward (pointing to earth and not to right or left) expecting it to direct in the direction of the way the rabbit took.

The hermit said Oh, Holy Water for the second time, what a a lucky day for me in meditation.

The hermit took a little bit of “not so holy water” from the other hand and applied on his top thinking that in no time he will be in Jhana or Trance state.

Fox was bemused and looked up and sniffed to realize that the rabbit's urine was on the hermit’s face and not on the ground for him to trace the path of the rabbit.

He moved up confused not knowing that the hermit was blind or gone mad due to the scorching heat (due to global warming).

Then when the hermit was almost in trance state a very prominent Imam came with his hat in his hand and asked the hermit “could you hide my hat for a few minutes”.

Why should I hide your hat I probably would wear it and it is very hot know?

That is for you to decide and please be discreet about it.

Why?

There is a Buddhist monk and an army deserter is coming after me.

Why?

Simply because I am wearing this hat.

What will happen if I wear it for YOU.

I would not know but please be discreet about it.

Have you got Holy Water with you?

I had two incidents of “Holy Water, sprayed on my face and hand and if I get the third dose of Holy Water, I might even attain a higher level of meditation.

We are not supposed to drink Holy Water but you may ask the army deserter who is coming this way and he took his leave and entered the path which the fox took.

Then the army deserter came in and stopped at the T-Junction and asked the hermit directing his bayonet up “did you see a man wearing a hat”.

He said no.

Don’t con?

I am blind but he did come this way and left very quickly.

I see.

Shall I give you the HAT?

What HAT?

The hat he was wearing?

I do not want his hat but I want the man, the army deserter replied.

As he was leaving, the hermit asked for Holy Water and the ex-army man, said.

No problem, Sir, here is the pouch.

You can have all of it.

Thank you Sir, the hermit said.

Before he could sip a bit of the Holy Water, the monk with his saffron cloth tugged up came in.

Did you see a man wearing a HAT?

I would not know?

You Cheat said the monk and proceeded up.

As he was leaving the hermit said,

If you take the path the army deserter took you will have Non Halal Meat.

If you take the path the man without a HAT went, you are sure to get Halal Meat.

Confused the monk took the path which the army deserter took.

Then after a while a Catholic Priest came in looking for his Holy Water.

He stopped at the T-Junction.

Took his hat off.

Exchanged pleasantries and said he was coming after the ex-army man but he could not keep pace with him.

Which direction did he go.

I would not know?

But I can give you the Holy Water and the Pouch with the Inscribed (USA) Bottle.

How come?

He told him it was a very successful Meditation Day and he had Holy Water for the third time.

That calls for celebrations, said the priest.

They consumed what was left of the Holy Water and in a little while both of them were in high heaven without any meditative effort.

They parted in a little while and the Catholic Priest thank the hermit profusely for the company and the lost and found inscribed HOLY bottle.

In parting he said I would have lost the Diocese if I did not replace it by next Sunday.

No problem, said the hermit and if you drop in this way please bring some more Holy Water and I do not care in which bottle it comes in.

No problem said the Catholic Priest, shall I bring Ata Atack to go with it.

THANK YOU.

PS. 
This I did not want to send it to Maha Brahma but with some hindsight, I did send it for his perusal.
For the first time I had a barrage of questions from him and less of a interpretation.
Questions were;
1. What is this Halal?
2. Why do you wear a hat?
3. What is holy water?
4. What is Ata Deaka?
5. What is Ata Ata?
6. What is inscription?
7. What is T-junction?
8. What is Ferrodo Brake?
9. What is diocese
10.What is Holy Bottle?
And many more mundane questions.
This is the first time I got such a audience from Maha the Greatest, I decided to include the answers in my book, the third edition of Dreams and not in a blog post.
Only problem is I still have not found a proper cover photograph for the book.
After a little soul searching, I decided to put a photo of a Chameleon.
That foots the bill in my belief, since as a Sri-Lankan I have to change my colour instantly depending on to whom I relate my day to day problems.
I am going to wear several hats (not Prof De Bono's Hats) with multi-coloured layers (Skins) and shed layer by layer, like what reptiles do.
 Shedding a layer of skin from time to time.

Chameleon, The unexpected Visitor

Chameleon, The unexpected Visitor

I have not seen a Chameleon for ages except for the Chameleon Linux Desktop which is capable of changing its window screen.

ChameleonOS is crammed with a range of pre-configured ‘skins’ that will instantly alter the appearance of your desktop (panels, wallpaper, icon and GTK theme…).
The default skin is available in a range of colours and there are also skins providing the same look and feel as the Gnome Desktop, KDE 3 and Windows Vista / Windows 7.

In the animal kingdom, Chameleon belongs to any of the 160 lizards that can change the colour of the skin at will.

The chameleon, I saw today was in full flight mounted on a another chameleon.

My visit was not welcome (to collect the letters from the letter box) and the female parted the company and the exhausted male was very angry at my intrusion.

Even though, I was not psychopathic to catch a frame in action for my next book, I quickly fetched my digital camera but its battery was dead.

Last time, I got hold the camera was when two Geckos were in full heat in the middle of the night but before I could catch a frame the guy and  the girl  were smart enough to retreat to a crevice.

In nature psychopaths are not allowed, I said to myself and kept the camera (for its own safety) back in its case.

Let me tell you why they are breeding in my tiny garden.

The top most is my dog who does not allow any cats to venture into our tiny garden except his favorite cunning virile tiny cat without a tail (which does not interfere with his mating habits).
Unlike other cats, he expects cover from my dog for his own safety from other cats.

My assessment of this cat is that he is a cat-womanizer-feline-felonizer and except for mating he has no other obsessions in life and has all the tell tale marks of bite marks on his face and back.

My dog for some unknown reason gives cover for this cat.

The reason being (most probably) his childhood friend our cat disappeared on a Poya day in this blessed city and ended up as meat in Kandy hotel during Perehara, many moons ago.

They were god pals and soul mates.

My dog misses its soul mate and this ugly cat is his present decoy unwanted by all the cats and me too.

I am cat hater by default since they devour all the animals including lizards.

The other reason is that there is a little patch of land, let go wild a bit by my wife.
There is ample hiding and resting ground for tiny animals, including spiders.

That is again by default.

These spiders attract the humming birds too.

Having lost the opportunity to catch a frame, I did a little survey to see that there was little (puppy) lizard not yet mature.

I am going to see many of them in time to come if the guy was virile enough to fertilize and my rude interruption did not hinder the proper dissemination of its sperms.

I am going to have many more photo opportunities, if its act of fun was successful.

That is going to be my next book cover, if I catch a good frame.

I must charge my camera battery tonight.

Edited on 06-04-2013)
I managed to take few pictures toady and it looks like there are four of them (two little ones too) and they are territorial lizards and do not fear me but would like to retire to their own safety and cover.

PS

Chameleon-OS is based on Unity Linux 2010, which is in turn a fork of Mandriva.

(Not Ubuntu Unity Desktop)

Unity is specifically designed as a base for respins (or branches as they like to call it). The current window manager is Openbox with Lxpanel (but not full LXDE).

Holiday Mood and Booting and Rooting Problems

Holiday Mood and Booting and Rooting Problems

When one is on holiday mood one is more likely to make mistakes.

Today was one of those mornings.

We had a busy schedule throughout the week and also examination which were delayed due to our industrial action by almost 6 months (everybody was working hard and full time to get the system into new gear).

It was only yesterday afternoon I had a break.

Had a long evening  nap; missed my lunch too (but plenty of fluids going in due to heat wave and ?global warming) and had the dinner at midnight.

Switched on the computer after dinner.

Copied few images downloaded to an external laptop hard disk (removed since the battery was dead and I did not want to buy a new battery-not available in the local market freely and if I order one by mail order it will cost the price of a cheap tablet) and I am considering giving leave to all my computers doing my donkey work and buy a Kindle Fire (but I won’t be able to read any book since Sri-Lanka is the only airspace not available for Amazon due to wrong attitude of the people in IT business here and lack of political vision) and do some reading on the fly, in my twilight years and no more writing on Linux.

Then I woke up early, switched on the computer but could not boot to my hard disk.

Some bizarre Grub file is coming out instead of my desktop computer,

Put a live CD on the disk drive it wont boot.

Changed the boot menu several times and it won’t boot.

Now I was in my panic mood.

Considered reinstalling my favorite PCLinux Fullmonty.

Even that won’t boot.

More panic.

Then hit F12 and booted a live CD.

OK.

Another Live CD OK.

Hard disk boot up (by this time I had removed all hard disks from the boot menu except one) no boot menu.

Then pressed the fist boot option which was USB MODE.

Again coming to a bizarre GRUB file and then only I realized I had set the boot menu to boot from USB and it was booting from the laptop hard disk.

Presto!

My heart rate dipped and it went down to almost to cooling temperature (mind you morning is bit cold now but very dry) good enough for bypass surgery.

Mind you, I did not have my morning cup of coffee.

Removed the USB hard disk and changed the boot menu to my original configuration and desire and all is well now.

It took two hours and was a bit of entertainment for me due to holiday mood.

I love crisis with short notice.

All wells and ends well, was the outcome.

So my advice for young and old guys is if one is on holiday mood please switch off the computer/s for good and enjoy the sunshine and the freedom you have  earned deservedly.

Do not call the utility guy in panic he will charge you for the call.

I am gong for my morning coffee two hours late.

Without any notice power failure and could not put the kettle on and had to be satisfied with some ice tea.

The “Heladive Ice Tea” is making its appearance again; the current formula with an artificial flavour is not as good as when it was dispensed with the original flavour, especially the Peach Flavour.

I hope they get the formula for the flavour right with the flavour of light tea.

Strong tea leaves a little bitter taste and won’t go with the flavour added.

It is trial and error and customer feedback and one day we will have a very nice Ice Tea, much better than the Coca Cola.
Heladive has to work hard on it and consider increasing the price for Ice Tea with natural Flavour.
It looks that the artificial flavour spoils the taste of good tea flavour.

Arjuna, IPL, Dirty Indian Politics and Keeping Spirits High

Arjuna, IPL, Dirty Indian Politics and Keeping Spirits High

Well said Arjuna (I think Arjuna is a God in heaven) it is the god’s wisdom you have even though we as Buddhists do not go behind gods (bribe even gods like our politicians in high office and Indians who play cricket) for favours.

“All or none response” as in Science is the only option left for cricket.

IPL has taken cricket to very low level, even CEO.s of the ICC (British-it is happening in Football in UK) can be bribed now.

I have a good suggestion with Australian mentality.

All our players should go there and play only one over and come back home by the return flight.

This is to test the Indian Security Situation (ISS) and International Security Setup and then we can label State or the Country as a pariah state as far as Security is concerned.

In Indian politics it is tail wagging the (dog's) head. 
We will see very interesting politics, come next elections!

How to Play the Dirty Cricket.
The Australian Way.

The Baller should ball six under-arm balls and call it off for the TV and Media in India.

We will applaud it and Indian can or should HOOT.

The batman should duck and evade and should not use (Tony Lock's method of defending) the bat to play, at all cost and record the worse performance in a 20/20 outing and gracefully retire.

LBW should be gracefully accepted.
In any case. Indian punters have their leg before the ball/s.
It is called L.B.B.
One should not confuse this with Body/Boru/Bodu Balawegaya in Sri-Lanka.

It is of the same spiritual spirit of Indian influence where tail always wags the head of the institution / State or the Constitution.
 

We will applaud it and Indian can or should HOOT.

Cricket administration both in India and Sri-Lanka has gone to dogs and that is how I would play cricket in the month of April which is our New Year.

We should buy some Gal, Pol or Rata Arrackku (arrack) instead of air tickets to India and enjoy our favorite pastime with the Body or Bodu Balawegaya's Blessing.

Recent confiscation of spirits imported under the pretext of chemical use is what is actually happening in this country.

This industry had a Moral Boost from Chandrika administration and GL and Mahindha Chinthanaya is taking the baton forward with renewed vigour.
Thank YOU.

That is how we keep our spirits high in spite of rising cost of living.

Read my article on “The Alcohol the Miracle Cure” and follow its scientific and medical evaluation.

It is available somewhere in the web but I have removed it from the Sri-Lankan Server, keeping the Bodu Balawegaya activists actively looking for it and trying harder to destroy my academic work, writing and thinking.
Those guys have nothing else to do than destroying our ancient image of tolerance and coexistence. 
It is no different to Indian politics but at a time where there is no free elections for decades to come, unlike in India.

Dream 34

This was unusually short but scary dream.

I was woken up late afternoon at 3 P.M. by the dog barking, for me to open the door for my wife who had gone to see her doctor.

The flu that was going around in our house was not a total disaster as far as I was concerned. I was getting a big dose of dreams but unfortunately, I can remember only a few.

The plight or the outcome of the above dream could have been the same if the dog did not intervene in the thick of it, which is not his habit anyway.

I was the master of ceremony at a wedding reception. I was (unfortunately) invited to be one of the witnesses of the registration of the marriage.

I have the habit of refusing to do that (I wish I could have the option to refuse my actual ceremony, now that I am already writing a book on Myth, Mirage and Marriage for young ones who may or may not embark on this feat on an Airbus in Sri-Lankan Airspace. It looks like all Sri-Lankan flights are like Wedding on high space or stratosphere anyway.)

I cannot remember whether I was appearing for the bride or the bridegroom.

It does not matter.

I am going to send  this to Maha the, Greatest and I will get those minor details which I cannot remember from him, in the body of the interpretation.

I will be brief here since the interpretation from Maha was very, very long and interesting.

As as usual I was on site, on time and it did not look like a Airbus but a Skyscraper of many flights and almost touching the stratosphere and I was feeling dizzy having reached the dizzy heights.

I went to the toilet in case I throw my breakfast on the dancing floor and had a very light touch up of my personality and got seated on an easy chair with panoramic view (of all the invitees entering) of the lobby.

The idea was to take cover if any of my doctor friends or enemies (mainly politicians in low offices since they are jealous I occupy one of their tasks; for me it is no different whether I am signing a birth certificate, death certificate or a report of an untreatable cancer) would join the party.

I was an early bird and little while later the registrar came with a commando outfit giving him protection.

I thought to myself, this must be wedding of a son or daughter of a commanding officer.

Then an Imam came with his retinue which looked liked a guerrilla outfit and took up the position covering him from all directions.

He had a book which looked like Kuran in his hand.

The outfit had something like machetes or similar ancient battle outfits

I was not sure whether they were protecting the Kuran, the Imam or both.

I had a second look to see whether he was our veteran Fousi but he did not look liked him.

Little later an old Pusari came in with an outfit which looked no different from LTTE commando outfit in combat.

They were holding a banana leaf over his head and I could not see his face.

By this time I was feeling the thump in my heart wondering whether I landed on the wrong footage.

Then, in a little while  a personality who looked liked the Pope came in and he had Royal Air Force cover.

He was the only one who came in with his own seat which looked like an inclined flat boat with  three rockets like structures in front.

The bottom had a hovercraft type of cushion and it looked amazingly modern outfit, fit for a modern Pope.

The air force was in full attention not at ease.

Then a tiny chap came in with a huge elephantine wardrobe squarish, suitable for a library and it had four locks on all four sides but the guy did not have the keys in his hand but a remote control to control the wheels and a something similar to a tablet computer console.

Then, after some delay a Buddhist monk came in with a laptop in his hand and with no escort.

He also had a remote control which he pointed to the huge wardrobe and opened and closed each one of the locks as if he was checking integrity by a remote control and took up a high seat.

The look of him was very reassuring and I felt the pump in my heart easing off almost to a stall or standstill.

With all this entrees almost 50% of the floor was occupied and little by little invitees arrived filling the vacant seats.

Then of course before I could witness the arrival of the bride and the bridegroom, I was woken up and missed the full scenario.

I have to sent this to Maha for him to fill in the blanks in my memory and the appropriate interpretation and to reveal the missing second half of the dream.

As usual the Maha, the Greatest of all Gods responded almost instantly.

Why are you still sweating?

I said I had a thump in the heart which eased off with the arrival of the monk but with the global warming in full flight, the sweat does not dry up easily.

I asked him was it a funeral or a wedding.

A wedding, my boy.

I was there to witness the registration, was n’t it?

Wrong.

I was there to see that the proceeding went on smoothly.

No.

I was on official duty.

Sort of.

I had to be there to examine the putative couple for their correct sex.

No, why, Maha asked.

Now these guys wear Unisex Jeans, sometime it is difficult to say one is a boy or a girl.

Not like good old days.

Why on hell I was there?

It looked like hell anyway.

You were there to take blood samples.

To check the bride pregnant or not?

Urine sample would do it, know and a technician can do that without a doctor.

Why me?

You know this story is futuristic like all your previous ones.

There is a new wedding protocol.

By testing Blood?

I don’‘t get you.

It is called an ethnicity test.

Each ethnic group has to have a blood test and depending on the result the wedding ceremony takes its course.

That is why all the dignitaries are there.

When one announces the result there is the very drawn out deliberation to fit the guy and the girl into the ethnic protocol.

This is Greek to me.

Can you tell me you are pure Sinhala.

No sir.

Not a Tamil or Muslim.

No.

You don’t have Caucasian blood?

No.

Why?

We are a mixed race Sir, one cannot say by a blood test that on is Sinhala or Tamil and only by registration, descent and convention we are grouped to an ethnic group Sir.

That is the point.

Now learned geneticist had worked out a formula for the race in Sri-Lankan.

It goes like this.

1. A Muslim  = 80% Sinhala blood + 10 Tamil blood + 10% Arabian or Caucasian

2. A Tamil     = 60% Tamil blood + 30% Sinhala blood + 10 Arabic or Caucasian

3. A Sinhala man or woman = 30% Sinhala + 30 Tamil + 30 Muslim + 10 unknown, perhaps Caucasian in origin.

4. A Burgher man or woman = 85% Sinhala + 5% Tamil + 5% Muslim + 5% Caucasian

You mean to say Burghers (85%) and Muslim (80%) have more Sinhala blood.

Yes they are, they did not bring females when they settled first and they had several wives (5 for Muslims and 100 for Caucasians) and their male genes were diluted by 70% to almost 90%.

That is a scientifically establish fact, now.

What all this got to do with my participation at the wedding ceremony.

The result is anybody’s guess at the time of registration.

You have to look at the blood result and make a value judgment.

It is easy know?

One looks at the above formula and decide and a clerical staff can do that know?

Why a doctor involved? 

Wait a minute.

That is a working formula to guide a doctor but not foolproof or full proof and nobody tested from the time of the testing began had fitted exactly into any of the four categories and almost 99% were borderline cases.

Just, touch and go!

It is hair splitting and sometimes brain splitting exercise.

You know the little guy who came in.

He is a statistician.

He does some statistics and fit the guy or girl in the best fit Bell’s Curve and then decide how much skewed and on the skew score decides his or her ethnic group.

Sometimes they have to average the two scores, like the Z-Score average made by the Department of Education and then the panel sit together and decide how much Muslim, how much Sinhala, Tamil or Burgher traditions are to be enacted and incorporated in the ceremony.

Then, the Buddhist monk will decide in which book it should be registered.

Why is that?

The panel is the best for that decision, know.

When this ceremony is being held, the percentage of Buddhists have fallen to the lowest.

His duty is to increase the number of Sinhala Buddhists, so that ethnic harmony is maintained and a steady stream of guys and girls are allowed to enter the Sasana.

I do not understand.

The percentage dropped since most of the Buddhists have left the home front and joined the Sasana, like the Gautama Buddha and attained Nibbana, the Supreme.

The rest learned various foreign languages and went abroad on propagating Buddhism in the West and never returned to the motherland like an average Sri-Lankan.

 The Sinhala Buddhist population went down drastically due to their own good nature and goodwill.

The real threat is to the Buddha Sasana,

Buddhists monk cannot reverse his decision enter the lay life and procreate.

You meant to say making young ones to become a monks is a bad idea.

Not at all, since majority will attain Nibbana in one go, it is good for Buddhism.

It may be bad for heaven but on earth, by using the above formula and the panel discussion a certain quota is vested on Sinhala Buddha Sasana.

But, I thought, the Buddha Sasana is for everybody and their is no race attached to it.

That never works on earth or Sri-lanka, one has to have a political strategy, just to preserve pure Theravada or any Vada that may arise on earth.

Good Bye.

See you soon with another dream.