K Special Hai Bhaya ?

If you watch TV at all, and who doesn't, you've probably seen the commercials for Kellogg's special attempt at a special diet with their famed Special K products. Basically, they claim if you eat two 1 cup bowls of their cereal a day, you will lose six pounds in two weeks.* In short, the program instructs you to start your day with a piece of fruit, a cup of their cereal and skim milk. And then at lunch, you get to do the same thing. And then at dinner, you get to eat normally. Oh, yes, and you get two snacks a day that are Special K branded. Argh! This kind of marketing ploy makes me crazy! Why? Well for one, this is a very unhealthy, unbalanced diet approach. You aren't getting all the nutrients that you need to keep your body functioning properly. This is what you are getting:

• Little to no fiber. Fiber is important in that it makes you feel fuller longer. Further, it prevents or relieve constipation, as well as lowers risk of diabetes and heart disease. Without it, you can experience constipation, infrequent and hard stools and abdominal pains.
• Little to no healthy fat. Why is this a problem? Fat is bad, right? Wrong. Fat is essential for lubricating your joints and manufacturing hormones, and actually making you feel satisfied. Also, healthy fat (unsaturated fats and essential fatty acids) is important in keeping your cholesterol levels in check and your body systems functioning properly.
• High in Saturated fat. Special K non-cereal products tend to be high in saturated fat, which raises LDL, the bad type of cholesterol and therefore increases your risk of heart disease.
• You are getting a lot of sugar. Sugar is an enemy of a healthy diet. It is digested quickly and contains few essential vitamins and minerals.
• You get a decent amount of protein. This is a good thing...but when combined with all of the factors above, it isn't. You need fiber and healthy fat too.

Second, the Special K Diet doesn't teach the consumer (you) what is a healthy diet. It tells you what to do and doesn't explain the importance of a balanced diet and why eating right is the best, long-term strategy for reaching and maintaining a healthy weight. Third, you are consuming a good amount of processed foods throughout the day. Processed foods tend to have tons of additives, preservatives and chemicals...all bad for you. Our bodies are not designed to process these, and as a result, it is detrimental in the long duration. And lastly, well, it is all self-serving and about market share...corporate America finding a way to make more money while sacrificing the third world consumer's best interest...not something I'm all too fond of.

Look, resorting to quick fix strategies, where no thought is involved, is just not sustainable in the long run ...or...in any way. It is more detrimental than anything. If you see a fancy gimmick on TV about losing weight....there is a good chance it is just that...a gimmick.

Anupam Dutta, Managing Director, Kellogg’s India, says, “In today’s fast-paced environment, women are looking for a simple and tasty solution to their weight management concerns. Kellogg’s understands these concerns and for this reason has decided to introduce the new brand.”In fact, Kellogg’s has test-marketed the product in Bangalore to gauge its acceptability and the results were extremely positive.----Wake Up Bangalore !!! Watch out Women !!!

It is priced Rs 45 for a 140 gm pack and Rs 90 for a 290 gm pack. So its rather easy on the pockets, but then again even if its price was pegged to that of gold , the health conscious a.k.a. Dumbasses would still be buying it.


If you want a healthy, multi grain cereal, then opt for something else.
And.. let's be real. If you were to eat a bowl of ANY kind of dry cereal with low-fat milk and fruit for two of your meals per day, you'd lose weight, besides being insanely hungry all day. Cereal alone, especially one serving, is just not complete enough to serve as a meal twice a day.

And as Kellog's themselves say ---------------

* Weight loss may vary. (Oh Yes, that's the bottom Line)

Faarmoolah Of Success !!

If you started reading this expecting to get a Formula, sorry Faarmoola for becoming successful then Stop here and re-read the title. Aw'camon I cant tell how to get successful, im hardly successful myself (Read, Totally unsuccessful lazy slob who spends his time Blogging.)

A few days ago me and some friends (Read ,even bigger and lazier slobs then moi) had got together for Lunch, One of the few times someone else was paying so I had to go no?
Now usually these luncheons are limited to gawking at gals, eating till the esophagus refuses to admit even water, inventing new swear words and oh the most delightfully stupid conversations that if overheard are guaranteed to book us front row center seats at the local Asylum.

No one knows how the conversation turned towards it, mebe it was the lack of gals to gawk at, but the discussion started on, Who can be called successful ? AND How to measure Success ? And everyone looks at me, Ya right !! I'm supposed to answer what even the most powerfully philosophical minds are still grappling with.

So I think as long as the answer is not known, I cant be wrong. So why not try to quantify Success. Can't compare it if it can't be measured no ?

So now what is the cause of 99% (Practically 100%) the problems in the world ? Greed, Power, Poverty, or in one word MONEY. So is the one with more money more successful ???
Hell Yeah !! OF course he is.
Now you can equate success with happiness, and money brings happiness (please don't pretend otherwise, you are just kidding yourself.) And what about health? Well we all know how much money is being spent staying healthy, no doctor treats you for free and you all need to eat right to stay fit.
So we have one variable of the equation right here -- MONEY.

How do you get money ? you work. And work, is called work, cause its work and not play, right ?
We all would love to Play (enjoy) all day and be paid but that dose not happen. We all have to work. And the lesser you work the happier you are (All people who say otherwise can please work on Sundays and public holidays).
So here we get another variable TIME SPENT WORKING.

So then SUCCESS is directly proportional to the amount of MONEY you earn.
and inversely proportional to the TIME SPENT WORKING.

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THE FAARMOOLAH OF SUCCESS (aka SUCCESS QUOTIENT)

(k= The Minimum Amount you need for bare sustenance.)

There we have it, the elusive Faarmoolah is revealed. This Farmoola works on many levels eg. Students can Just substitute Money With Marks and K with passmarks and see for themselves.

Just looking to Answer Life's Big Questions in my own Small way.

So what is your SUCCESS QUOTIENT ???

Heads Up ---- Meter Down !!

Tap.. tap.. tap.. Tippity Tap......... Here is me again tapping away a happy melody on my well worn keyboard, Continuing in the spirit of Righting wrongs (Or bringing them to thy notice in the least.)

Now we all like to get around town but if you are (a) too poor to own a car or (b) just a lazy ass who wont learn to drive Or like me you fit into both the categories....... What are you gonna do but flag down a Cab ? Ya of course there are those red BEST monsters, but traveling in a single decker bus just ain't worth the trouble.

Now you reach your destination (provided you get a cab in the first place) and what do you do ? Ask White or Khaki 'Bhaiya' how much, juggle your wallet till he reverently holds up his tariff card and looks up the fare in a card so tattered and folded so many times that it looks like some parchment from a long forgotten age with a treasure map ? Just pay the amount quoted and Jump out ?

Mostly everyone does. No one bothers to look at the date of the tariff card or even cares to see if its been approved by the RTO or wither its just a cheap fake. That makes the tariff card a real treasure map for the taxi drivers and you a fool. (Ref - A fool and his money are easily parted.)

The Mumbai Regional Transport Office (RTO) had issued new tariff cards for taxis in April 2007. But, till today taxis continue to ply passengers using the old tariff cards. Using the old tariff card is an offence under the Motor Vehicles Act inviting a fine of Rs 500- 2500, along with the suspension of the driver’s license.

“The yellow taxi tariff card was introduced in April 2007 because most of the taxis were converted to compressed natural gas, which is cheaper than petrol. Hence, we reduced the fares by 50p,” says an RTO official.

Inspite of official tariff cards been introduced taxi drivers continue to use the old tariff cards. Most of us are unaware of the fact that we are being looted in broad daylight.

A brief insight into this fraud will show you the actual picture. Mr. Kumar, a taxi driver, upon inquiry explains this fraud, “A minimum distance of 200 kms can fetch me an amount of Rs 100. On an average a cab travels at least 200 - 500 kilometers in a span of eight hours. So using an old tariff card would amount to at least Rs 100-250 per day and Rs 3,000-7,000 per month.” And cheat you out of the same amount.

Earlier the minimum fare was Rs 13 for every 1.6 km and Rs 8.50p for every subsequent kilometer. The new tariff cards have the same minimum fare and for every subsequent kilometer the fare is Rs 8. In other words, if a taxi driver uses the old tariff card for a distance of two kilometer km he earns around 50p and for 10 kilometers around Rs 5. The cumulative money he earns hence depends on the distance traveled.

In order to make sure that you’re not being cheated, remember that an authentic tariff card bears the Regional Transport Authority’s (RTA) stamp along with the chairman’s and the secretary’s signature, one which is pale yellow in color.

What can the layman do in case he finds himself in a situation like this? The RTO official responds, ”If a taxi driver charges a wrong fare, or refuses to take you to your destination, a complaint can be registered against him mentioning his taxi number, the date, time, place, and the nature of the offense at the RTO of his respective area (Tardeo, Wadala or Andheri).
The complaint can even be lodged through our website www.rtomumbaicentral.com.
An independent inquiry will be carried out and if required his license will be suspended.”

Even better would be to print out the RTO tarrif card form the site and carry it in your wallet. http://www.rtomumbaicentral.org/About_Us.aspx

AND PLEASE NOTICE RTO IS NOT WITHOUT ITS FAULTS EITHER --- THE MIDNIGHT FARE FOR METER READING 9.30 SHOWS 1154.50 INSTEAD OF 154.50

Print out your copy and Save your money --- sure, I wouldn't mind receiving a gift out of the savings LOL

Let’s hope the traffic rules are implemented stringently and don’t get stuck in a traffic jam.---Cheers !!