Complete the incomplete this Christmas, will you?

Complete the incomplete this Christmas, will you?, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

There is something magical about toys or about the (almost) unbiased imagination of children. Teddy bears become babies, stuffed dogs start to understand almost any language, toy cars start honking, robots become judgmental, elephants start riding baby prams and tears are shed when a stuffed cow's stitching starts coming off. Toys come to life.

Toys become part of the family. They become best friends with children who's both parents go to work and who's grand-parents are too old to become friends and who's hearts are almost constantly full of energy like there is Red-Bull flowing thru their systems instead of red blood.

For the kids in this photo, that doll is what they want to become. That doll is their sister who watches the world go by with them from the same sidewalk every day as the mother sells some street food all day long.

Look around. Don't you have spare toys that just decorate your office desk or toys that just collect dust in your room? Give 1 away this Christmas. Someone will bring it 'back' to life. Complete a family this Christmas, will you?

She thinks she is an entrepreneur

She thinks she is an entrepreneur, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I recently read that the difference between a freelancer and an entrepreneur is that freelancers make money when the work. Entrepreneurs, on the other hand, make money when they are asleep. They create an idea, use someone else's money, execute it well and let the idea create more money.

Selling apples sure is a great idea but she isn't executing it very well here or maybe she is in the middle of her power nap and will be back to her productive self very soon. :)

(clicked on the streets of Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam)

Patience (POTW #1)

Patience (POTW #1), originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I know you are thinking about the girl in the photo when you read "her secret is patience". Ralph Waldo Emerson was talking about nature when he wrote those words.

I clicked this photo at a fashion show last year. See how composed she looks. Like someone with a lot of patience. The message fits, right?

POTW = Post card of the week. I am going to try and link a great quote to a photo every week. This is week 1.

Take us spinning

Take us spinning, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

Hear this, according to the Tibetan Buddhism, spinning such a wheel will have much the same meritorious effect as orally reciting the prayers.

Interestingly, Wikipedia says "the idea of spinning mantras relates to numerous Tantric practices whereby the Tantric practitioner visualizes mantras revolving around the his heart and other chakras of the body. Therefore, prayer wheels are a visual aid for developing one's capacity for these types of Tantric visualizations." SHOCKER!!! I never knew those wheels had such a deep meaning.

Think about this the next time you go to a monastery!!!

140 my foot!

140 my foot!, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

Our generation is obsessed with documenting every thought and Twitter is the weapon of choice. I remember a time when 160 characters weren't enough for a text message and people wuld wrt lyk this to fit as much as possible. With Twitter, you only get 140 characters but people write really witty things in just 140 characters.

Some researchers are worried that our attention spans are growing shorter because of reading short content on social networks. According to them, I would have lost 90% of you by this point but I am sure you are reading so I will keep writing.

Remember to read books, newspaper articles, magazines, etc to keep your attention span in check. Also remember to get others around to do it too. Most importantly, remember to share this on Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest / any other social network of your choice now. Will you?

Why grow up?

Why grow up?, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I look at this little kid and I see happiness, joy, contentment too. The little boy is so happy by a fountain splashing water on him. That is all it takes for kids to be happy.

We grow up and everything changes. Materialistically, I have had my best year yet. I have the best computer, top of the line cell phone, I traveled, etc but if you ask me, right now, if I am happy, my answer will be "no. I don't think so.".

Isn't that reason enough not to grow up? Given a choice, I wouldn't want to grow up. I would rather be that child than the fat guy behind the camera.

Should I get a macro extender?

Should I get a macro extender?, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I clicked this photo using a macro extender that fits with my normal Nikon lens. I am wondering if it a good investment to buy this piece of equipment.

I love the effect this little piece of equipment created on that calculator.

What do you think?

Super power

Super power, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

This man had a superpower I wish I had. You know what? The ability to ignore sound waves. :)

A 'do not disturb' signboard was the only thing missing.

In the 10+ minutes that I spent there, at least 50 people walked up and down those flight of stairs but this guy did not move an inch.

Either he had too much on his mind or too little. Those are the only 2 scenarios that let a man sleep as peacefully as this.

Happy without 99% stuff you own

Happy without 99% stuff you own, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

"We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.”

This man, selling vegetables in a semi-temporary shop in a market in Chinatown did not look one bit sad. Tourists from all over the world walk past this man's store every single day with their fancy cameras and shopping bags and so many other things this man probably doesn't own but he seems happy with what he has and it shows on his face in this photo.

Bobby McFerrin would agree with my advice to you readers when I say "Don't worry! Be happy!" at this point. :)

Depressed

Depressed, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

Chinatown & Tiong Bahru have the highest number of senior citizens in Singapore.

This man, probably addicted to his inhaler, was sitting behind a Buddhist temple with a small bag of food and a big baggage of depression and memories I assume. He kept switching his inhaler from left to right every few minutes and nothing got him excited. He kept staring away every few minutes watching the world go by and then switched back to his memories and think back to the good old days of his youth I assume (again).

Do you ever wonder how your life will be when you are 65 - 70 years old? I do sometimes and it looks depressing. I think I would rather die young at my prime instead of fading away slowly one day at a time, one year at a time.

Multi-tasking

Multi-tasking, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

A photographer from the rival camp (Pentax) was taking a photo of the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown but couldn't resist a cigarette. I saw her take a few photos without the cigarette but then she lit this one up, took a photo or two, looked at the photos, and went back to chatting with her friends.

There is something about these artists who smoke cigarettes. They feel a lot more comfortable once they puff in a little smoke. I know a few who play their guitars and love their cigarettes and somehow once they start smoking they just get into their art and forget about the world.

This girl looked like someone from that camp.

Smoking is injurious to health. Please make your choices carefully.

Stress

Stress, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

Running your own business comes with a lot of stress. Especially, small business, where you rely on daily sales to put food on your table.

I captured this in Chinatown market where this couple was in the middle of a very serious discussion. The man was doing some work on the crystal snow man, Christmas tree and some other gift articles. He was probably preparing for the festive season that will bring a lot of tourists to Singapore and, hopefully, to his store.

The lady, smoking a cigarette, looks like the dominant of the two and was not doing any of the artsy work that made the man sweat on this hot Saturday afternoon.

Slow? Me? Really?

Slow? Me? Really?, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

Crocodiles defy science. Usually, anything that is heavy is supposed to be really slow. Heavier animals move slower than their lighter cousins. Lighter weighing animals find it easy to move around fast.

Crocodiles defy that theory. These cold-blooded predators are one of the fastest animals when it comes to snapping up their prey. Look at the water droplets you see so clearly. The photo was taken at 1/4000 shutter after the guy at this crocodile park provoked this giant with a stick.

Wikipedia says this about their danger to humans: The main danger that crocodiles pose is not their ability to run after a person but their ability to strike before the person can react.

Please don't buy any leather products made from crocodile skins. Their future generations will come back for revenge. Very FAST!!!

Angry Birds in real life

Angry Birds in real life, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I took multiple photos of this white rooster and trust you me, he looks angry in each and every one of those photos.

i think the green pig at the farm I saw sheltered with wood, ice and stone structures earlier that day stole this rooster's girlfriend's eggs. He asked me if I had a slingshot and I said "no" to which he said "Why do you use a Blackberry? Only if you had iOS or Android powered phone. I am so angry. Thanks anyways!" and turned away.

(I clicked this at a fruit farm in Desaru, Malaysia and love how the white hair on the red crown is so nicely captured by the 50mm prime lens I borrowed from a friend before the trip.)

I am not in love

I am not in love, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I clicked this at a recent trip to Desaru Fruit Farm. They give you a little tour of the farm when you go and make you sit thru a few sales presentation and serve lunch. This was clicked between the sales presentation and the lunch.

I was setting myself up to take a picture of the background and this girl magically appeared right when I hit the button on my camera. She walked by, checked herself out in the mirror, used the wash basin there and walked to where lunch was being served.

I love how the lens made the rough wall appear blur because the contrast with razor sharp clarity of the mirror gives it a nice effect.

I have a photo of me in that mirror too but I am sure this girl is a much better subject. :)

Fresh innovative ideas & vegetables

Fresh innovative ideas & vegetables, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

Necessity, historically, has been called the mother of invention. Costs, I think, can easily take the title of father.

A vegetable vendor in a wet market took a Sprite bottle and a mini pump and turned it into this.

The vegetables on sale looked so fresh and were probably gone in a few hours thanks to low cost innovation.

Re-using that plastic bottle is good for the environment too. Win-win-winnovation.

Dead & Alive (disturbia)

Dead & Alive (disturbia), originally uploaded by G2clicks.

One of the most distrubing photos (for me), this was taken at a wet market in Kuching (Malaysia). Look at how the alive chicken is looking at the dead chicken hanging upside down. It even took a stab at it with its beak in the next frame but that one is even more disturbing.

For humans, death is a very sad & scary moment and the only time people saw a lot of dead bodies was during a war.

Death is not that big a deal in the animal / bird world I guess. They learn to live with it without getting emotional.

Emotions make us humans. Don't they?

The Mahatma gone fishing

The Mahatma gone fishing, originally uploaded by G2clicks.

I can claim that I have seen the Mahatma.

Look at this man in the photo. He bears more than a striking resemblance to Mahatma Gandhi, India's non-violence champion. It would look like a photo from Gandhiji's real life when turned into black & white.

(clicked while touring Kuching river in a boat cruise last month)

Adam, Eve & lack of options...

I saw my brother put this joke on twitter. I shared it with my colleagues in the office who suggested I turn it into a comic. A quick 15 minutes with BitStrips and here it is. This is the funniest joke I have heard in recent history (last 6 months at least).

Imagine Russel Peters reading the joke if it doesn't sound funny with the characters below and remember to be creative. Always!!!

Dealing with Stupid!!!

Sharing a comic I made earlier instead of a photo today. I will leave the story out too. They say, a picture is worth a thousand words and you have 2 above so that is 2,000 words already. Don't complain that I talk too much now!!!

Hope you are not keeping your creativity inside. Let it go. Let it flow. I attended an advertising festival earlier this week and am inspired to be more creative every day.

Expect more. Expect different. Expect the unexpected.