Month: April 2011

The Royal Wedding

Every wedding is special marking a new beginning for the bride and groom and the families involved. The Royal Wedding of Prince Williams and Catherine Middleton this morning created moments of joy and happiness for the Royall family as well as the entire world.

OK, Everybody gets married. So, What is so special about this particular wedding?  The wedding day is a national holiday in London to let the people enjoy the celebration going on at the wedding. Millions of people gathered around the Buckingham Palace and West Minister Abbey to catch a glimpse of the newly wedded couple apart from the royal family.

The Queen completed her eighty fifth birthday recently and is ruling the United Kingdom for the past sixty years. She is the monarch for the sixteen Commonwealth countries. Prince Williams, is the grand son of the Queen and the eldest son of Prince Charles, who in turn is the first son of Queen Elizabeth. Charles first wife and mother of Prince Williams, Diana, passed away in a car accident who is well known for her style and kindness.

Prince Williams served in military and attended college in St. Andrews university where he met Kate Middleton. Kate Middleton is the eldest daughter if the Middleton family who run a private business in the suburbs of London. In their eight years of dating, William and Kate’s relationship bloomed and their love flourished.

Their engagement was announced five months back and the preparations for the wedding began. Everything including the guest list, dress code, food, and the timings were planned meticulously and rehearsed. Today morning, when the world saw Catherine Middleton in her wedding dress, there was no doubt about how lucky the Prince was.

The wedding took place in a highly traditional manner at the West Minister Abbey church. Later, the couple drove in a horse carriage to the Buckingham Palace. The couple greeted millions of people from the famous balcony. The crowd cheered and applauded while the royal couple kissed and waved at the crowd. The Royal military aero planes  performed and bestowed their best wishes to the couple.

All the leaders of the Common wealth countries were invited along with all the relatives of the royal family. The couple were well balanced and in good spirits despite the traditions and tension surrounding the wedding. As the couple heads for the wedding parties and honey moon, the world wishes them long life and a happy married life.

The fairy tale wedding where a common woman becomes the Princess has come true. Kate Middleton may become the Queen in future when Prince Williams becomes the King. Everything about the wedding is so special and fairy!

Teen Maar: Movie Review

Teen Maar starring Pawan Kalyan and Trisha is another love story from a confused youth who is unable to decide his present and future. The movie fails to capture the audience as well as Pawan Kalyan’s acting talents to the fullest. Poor storyline and boring comedy are a major drawback for the film. You may watch it if you are a loyal fan of the Chiru’s family and get bored at your own risk. 🙂

Story

Pawan Kalyan plays the dual role of Michael Velayudum and Arjun Palwai (Funny names though). Arjun Palwai is the youth in past and Michael Velayudum is a youth in the modern ages. Arjun Palwai falls in love with a girl Vasumati. He follows and sticks to her faithfully while trying to win her. He believes that dating does not matter if they both love each other. Despite Vasumati’s family opposition and other differences, he succeeds in winning the girl at the end.

In contrast, Michael Velayudum is an upcoming youth who has high career aspirations and flexible life goals. He is good at flirting with women and dating them. He meets a girl named Meera and spends couple of years with her. Once she decides to relocate to another place, he breaks up with her as the long distance relationship would not work for him. Later, while he is dating another girl, he realizes that he misses Meera.

Meanwhile, Meera decides to get married another man in India. Michael Velayudum gets hurt to lose Meera and after her marriage he realizes that he indeed loves her and misses her. He decides to reconcile their relationship and discovers that Meera too broke the marriage as she missed him too. Finally, they both realize that they cannot live apart and decide to commit their lives to each other. (duh!)

Review

The main drawback of the movie is the story or lack of it. Mani Sharma’s music fails to capture the audience nor the comedy by the hero. Trisha and Pawan Kalyan have put up weight but have been shown gracefully. Pawan Kalyan is indeed a feast to watch in both the roles of Michael Velayudum and Arjun Palwai.

The locations of Varanasi, Madras, Australia, and Mauritius have some good scenes. The movie resembles many past movies including the recent ‘Orange’ or Pawan Kalyan’s own ‘Badri’. While watching the movie, the audience will hope that some good may come up at the end but will get disappointed by the predictability throughout. Everything about the movie is plain and predictable and so if you have high expectations due to the star cast, you will be frustrated. 🙂

Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR)

Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, also known as FBAR is a mandatory document to submitted to the Department of Treasury if you hold foreign accounts over $10,000. The IRS is questioning some HSBC and Swiss accounts which hold unaccounted money all over the world. The recent guilty pleas and discoveries may lead to huge penalties and criminal punishment.

FBAR

The United States government mandates that all tax payers must submit FBAR if they hold any foreign account in any other country. All citizens, residents, and visitors who pay tax to the United States government must submit FBAR if they hold a  foreign account exceeding $10000 in an year.

The tax payers need not submit with federal tax return but must send a separate mail to the Department of Treasury. FBAR form or the        TD F 90 -22.1 can be downloaded from the IRS website. The pdf file allows you to enter and save the data. The basic details which you need to fill include:

  1. Type of Filer
  2. First and Last Name
  3. SSN
  4. Date of birth
  5. Passport Number
  6. Country
  7. Address
  8. Bank account number and type
  9. Bank address and contact
  10. Maximum amount held in the account in the year

You may have to declare all the multiple accounts which you have under your spouse’s name or dependent’s name. Convert the exchange rate in that year and fill the amount in US dollars.

Exceptions and Disclosures

FBAR has some exceptions which need not be declared. For example, norso accounts – banks linked with your current account need not be declared. All the accounts that are owned by a government agency or retirement accounts need not be declared.

The IRS has extended voluntary disclosures if you missed submitting FBAR in the past. You may declare and pay any late penalties to avoid any criminal charges.

Filing

Filing the form is simple as downloading the form, entering all the details, printing., and signing the form. Mail the form to United States Department of the Treasury, P.O. Box 32621, Detroit, MI 48232-0621. You may call 800-800-2877 after ninety days to confirm the receipt of the form. Note that the deadline to submit an FBAR is June 30 in 2011. There is no extension.

Small businesses and Self-employed tax payers may have to follow separate forms and declarations. In any case, the IRS is watching all your accounts and be cautious! 🙂

Idli Recipe

Idli is one of the famous South Indian dishes which is savored by many people. However, the preparation needs careful practice otherwise they may turn rock hard. Here is the recipe for idlis.

Beans are a very healthy meal for strength. Dry beans can be soaked or cooked to prepare a variety of recipes. Idli is one of the recipes made of  urad dal or Vigna mungo, a special kind of beans grown in Asia. Follow these steps to make smooth idlis.

  1. Soak one cup of urad dal for overnight or five hours.
  2. Grind the soaked dal with little water to make a smooth batter.
  3. Wash three cups of idli rava (Cream of rice) in water.
  4. Drain all the water from the rava and mix in the urad dal batter.
  5. Add salt and mix the batter.
  6. Let the batter remain outside for three hours to five hours.
  7. Make idlis and store the rest of the batter in fridge.

Note that you may substitute cream of wheat or parboiled rice (soak and grind) along with the urad dal batter. You will also need muffin maker type vessel to pour the batter and steam them for about ten to fifteen minutes. Non-stick microwave or electric vessels also provide a fat-free method to prepare idlis.

Idlis go well with peanut chutney. Dry roast pea nuts and peel the skin off. Grind pea nuts, green chillis, dhaniya powder, and coriander. Add seasoning and serve. Coconut, coriander, or ginger chutney may be prepared to serve with idlis.

Idlis with sambar make a good dinner or breakfast. Enjoy. 🙂

Quad Cities Earth Week Fair – 2011

The QCCA Expo Center will be hosting the Earth Week Fair this Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm. The event is free for all visitors. The first two hundred visitors receive free goodies apart from special exhibits from all the local authorities. It is a good opportunity to learn about conserving the natural resources and waste reduction.

The Quad Cities Earth Week Fair will be held at the QCCA Expo Center this Saturday. To increase the awareness among the local residents, this event has several hands-on activities for children and interesting presentations for adults. The presentations will be about natural beauty products, edible plants,  and raising environmentally friendly pets.

In our daily lives, we can make small changes to make earth more green and eliminate hazardous materials that damage the environment. The different local institutions have set up booth activities such as:

  1. Recycling
  2. Environmental landscaping
  3. Leaving no trace
  4. Water quality
  5. Reusable products
  6. Sculptures from junk
  7. Earth friendly practices
  8. Reusing

All the local authorities will display the green practices followed by them and some booths will have free arts and crafts for children. If you are a earth friendly and a nature loving person, do visit the fair. In contrast, if you are not earth-friendly person, do visit the fair to realize the small steps we can take to make earth a better place for our future generations. 🙂

You can reach the QCCA Expo Center at 2621 4th Avenue Rock Island IL. 309 788 5912

Total Body Workout

Body pains, muscle cramps, neck stiffness, back pain are all some of the side effects of not working out and exercising your body. Hitting the gym may not be a total solution for the complete workout. Flexibility and stretching exercises must be practiced daily to enhance the body fitness and lessen the body aches.

Cardio Exercises

Exercises for your heart are a must to compensate the sedentary life style. The top cardio exercises that improve the heart rate and health include:

  1. Running
  2. Bicycling
  3. Swimming
  4. Walking
  5. Walking steps

The treadmill and the elliptical also might be good for cardio exercises. Typically, thirty minutes per day cardio is mandated for most of us. Out door sports such as tennis, soccer, base ball, basket ball, volley ball, jump rope and so on provide fun and exercise simultaneously. The cardio exercises reduce the risk for heart and also help in toning. Aerobics help in increasing the heart rate too.

Stretching Exercises

Stretching Exercises play a key role in preventing aches and pains in the body. Simple stretching exercises aiming at the following parts can provide a good balanced workout:

  1. Neck
  2. Back
  3. Shoulders
  4. Calf
  5. Thigh
  6. Waist
  7. Hands
  8. Fingers
  9. Wrist
  10. Upper arm
  11. Ankles

Stretching exercises help in working the muscles of the body and the body pains can be reduced  by practicing them daily for about ten minutes. Yoga is a perfect tool for stretching but must be practiced correctly according to the guidelines.

Whatever workout you chose, be it indoor or outdoor, or yoga or aerobics, make sure you do it regularly and in a proper manner. Note that even skinny people need to exercise to maintain the cardio and flexibility. 🙂

Spring Cleaning? Involve Everybody in the Family!

Spring is around after the long winters. Spring cleaning of the house is a mandatory to allow freshness and a clean house. It is a better to clean the house room-wise. Further, involving all the family members increases the ownership and the task becomes more fun. Of course, cleaning  must be a family affair, not a single person’s responsibility. 🙂

Spring Cleaning

Spring cleaning helps to allow bright light and cool air in to the house. It is better to clean:

  1. All the windows – mesh, glass, frame, blinds
  2. Kitchen – Rearranging the cabinets
  3. Floor – carpets, wooden floor, vinyl floor
  4. Clothes – Store the winter and bring out the light clothes
  5. Vacuum cleaner – Clean the bag and the filter
  6. Footwear – Store the snow shoes and rain boots and take out the flip flops
  7. Books – Dust and rearrange the book shelves
  8. Beddings – Wash all the blankets, pillow covers, comforters, bed skirts
  9. Garage – Check for water and rearrange all the boxes
  10. Car – Throw out the waster and wash

It is better to clean the house from top and vacuum all the dust on the floor at the end. Spring is also the time for throwing away old clothes and getting new ones! 🙂 While buying new clothes, keep the cost and style in mind. You may still need some light jackets due to the rains, storms, and winds.

Involving Entire Family

Mostly cleaning ends to be a one person’s job. It would be fun if all the people in the family are involved as increases the ownership making it less messy. Dividing the regular chores such as loading and emptying the dishwasher and laundry, grocery shopping, cooking and serving among the family members is good.

Spring cleaning involves throwing away all the waste and rearranging everything. Avoiding mess and clutter is a dream of every  home which is possible with a combined effort. Happy Spring Y’all 🙂

Arguing in front of Kids

We don’t often realize that the kids have grown up and what not to do when they are around. Arguing parents is one of the conditions which most kids confront in their childhood and may have created unnecessary thoughts. Most parents argue without actually realizing and some argue to prove their power in front of the kids. While negotiating and settling matters softly will prove as a good example to your child rather than calling names, insulting your partner, or hurting.

Arguing Couples

Most couples or in any relationship arguing is natural. Wife and husband do argue quite a few times. Be it a petty issue such as a messy toilet or a major financial issue, couples do tend to argue with each other. Sometimes, the arguments go over the board and result in screaming, yelling, pushing, physical attacks, calling names, swearing, and what  not.

Such powerful arguments do not necessarily result in divorce or a settlement for that matter. Arguments do not really produce results or a common agreement. They just increase the tension in the relationship.

Arguing in front of the kids

OK, we all grew up watching our parents argue. Didn’t we turn up alright? Perhaps, Yes or No. But, how are we making sure how our kids are going to tackle it in a proper manner. Avoiding arguments in front of the kids may not be possible all together. Sometimes, we do not really mean what we say to each other while we argue. But, the kids may take it in a real sense. Their small minds may stay confused who is right or whom to take sides with.

Some kids may undergo severe shock or depression when they confront arguing parents. They may get scared that their parents might hurt each other which they do not want. Often, they may find it amusing and may wait for a chance to use it back on parents. 🙂 Be mindful that how we behave in front of them may lay guidelines for them to behave with others.

Watch out

If you are caught arguing in front of the kids, apologize and say that you really don’t mean it. Sometimes, due to emotions, adults do forget the rules of fighting and set up a bad example. You can promote healthy argument by:

  1. Respecting your partner
  2. Facing your spouse while talking
  3. Making your point clear while listening
  4. Not involving in any other task while talking
  5. Repeating what the spouse said as an example
  6. Talking softly as you would talk in front of your neighbors
  7. Restating your expectations
  8. Agreeing or proposing an action plan for the resolution

Most of the things may seem ideal and unattainable, but there is  no harm in practicing once in a while. 🙂

Logitech Revue with Google TV

Google TV lets you watch television channels, internet websites, net flix, mobile apps and videos on your normal television. Logitech Revue, the wireless keyboard with a mouse lets you watch and surf right from your coach. The combo of Logitech Revue with Google TV might seem alluring in the beginning, but after a while you might feel crippled due to its limitations.

Google TV

Google TV comes with a box through which you can watch channels and browse the web on your television. Its installation is simple as connecting a couple of wires. It s unique features allow the users to browse the web, operate your mobile apps, search the channels, and so on. Google TV allows the users to control their television using any advanced smart phone.

You can watch multiple channels on the TV using the dual view feature. Using the DVR option, you can record or save the programs on your satellite dish. It is an open source software and easy to operate. The TV has certain drawbacks as it can sometimes fail to operate flash programs on the screen. Further, it is not compatible with your gaming systems such as Wii or XBox. Google TV allows you watch television and browse the internet all the time but is not suitable for worldwide operations.

Logitech Revue with Google TV

Logitech Revue with Google TV comes with a box to which you can connect to internet and television. the wireless keyboard has full keys on it including the volume controls and mouse. The Revue can be operated by operating an app on your smartphone. The listings on the Google television are found to be inaccurate. The Netflix app does not allow the browsing option and also does not work well. Major television channels such as ABC and NBS have blocked their channels on Google TV.

While  many have liked the Logitech’s keyboard, the combo does not work well with most channels. If you are looking for an all-in-one option, this may  not be the correct choice. You may have to wait for the upgrades to enjoy a less-flaw version.