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15 Desis Make it to Spelling Bee 2009 Semifinals

 America, Diaspora, General  No Responses »
May 272009
 
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Statistic of the Day – Desis in Spelling Bee 2009 

OK, folks.

We’re back from our beer-induced siesta and lo, what do we find – 15 desi kids made it to the 2009 Spelling Bee semifinals

15 out of 31 desi kids who cleared the early rounds of 2009 Spelling Bee are now in the elite category of top-spellers in America.

The 15 desi kids who made it to the semifinals:

* Speller No. 19, Ramya Auroprem
Age, Grade: 13, Eighth Grade
School: Joaquin Miller Middle School, San Jose, CA
Sponsor: San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco, CA Continue reading »

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 Posted by SearchIndia.com at 8:02 pm

Desis Fare Well in Spelling Bee 2009 Early Rounds

 America, General  2 Responses »
May 272009
 
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Update:
Kavya Shivashankar is Spelling Bee 2009 Champion

Folks, two rounds of the Spelling Bee 2009 are already over.

And so far, our desi kids have covered themselves with glory.

As we type this post, Round Three is going on in Washington DC .

There are at least 31 Desi students among the 293 contestants who cleared Round 2 of the 2009 Scripps Spelling Bee Contest.

Of the 30, 11 are girls.

Here are some other details about the 30 desi contestants - two contestants are nine-years-old, two are 10, one is 11, seven are 12-years-old, 17 are 13 and two are aged 14.

Siddharth Anand and Kavya ShivaShankar, who won the second place and fourth place respectively in the 2008 Spelling Bee contest, have cleared the Round 2 contest of 2009 Scripps Spelling Bee.

Kavya ShivaShankar is considered the hot favorite to win the 2009 Spelling Bee Championship. But you never can tell.

Here are details of the 28 desi kids who are now into Round Three:

1) Speller No. 19: Ramya Auroprem
Round 2 Spelling Bee Word: humorous
Age, Grade: 13, Eighth Grade
School: Joaquin Miller Middle School, San Jose, CA
Sponsor: San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco, CA Continue reading »

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 Posted by SearchIndia.com at 3:55 pm

Two Movies: Funny Games & Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

 Hollywood  4 Responses »
May 272009
 
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After a heavy desi lunch buffet at the Palace of Asia and then a Heineken, we’re in no mood to plug away at the keyboard.

So, we’re gonna read the latest issue of the New Yorker for a few minutes, take a siesta for a few hours and then watch two Hollywood movies back to back.

First, we’re going to watch the DVD of Funny Games (Naomi Watts and Tim Roth). SI reader ShikhariShambhu (yes, that pest) recommended Funny Games.

Then, we’re going to watch Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels via Netflix Instant Play.

Directed by Guy Ritchie (of Snatch and Mr.Madonna fame), the movie features Jason Flemyng and Dexter Fletcher in key roles. SI reader halfMonkHalfHitMan recommended Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

By the way, if you haven’t seen Snatch yet, boy you are missing something. One helluva movie.

We’ll update this post after we finish watching the two movies.

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 Posted by SearchIndia.com at 3:34 pm

Plight of Desi H1Bs – Beyond Tragedy

 America  7 Responses »
May 262009
 
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Many Americans (including us) on occasion get angry over the issue of H1B work visas at a time when unemployment in the U.S. is rising (11% in California now) and approaching 10% in other states.

But what seems like an abstract problem at a distance becomes a disturbing tragedy at close quarters.

Sad Story
We just returned from a visit to a desi grocery store.

As we were making small talk at the Indian grocery store with a desi stranger, we heard a sorry tale. The desi person’s spouse is an SAP consultant on H1B visa with the green card processing in the final stages.

Then disaster struck six months back. Our desi’s spouse was laid off and has been on the bench since.

Being on the bench usually means no salary until the consultant finds a new project.

But finding a new SAP project is easier said than done in the current economic climate. Despite sending over 100 resumes, our desi’s spouse has been unable to find a new project.

End result – Grim financial scenario on the home front.

Bad to Worse
Now add another disturbing element to the no-salary-for-six-months-situation – the desi and spouse are in the final stages of Green Card processing.

A bad situation now becomes terrible. Continue reading »

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 Posted by SearchIndia.com at 10:48 pm

Quote of the day – Paul Krugman

 Quotes  No Responses »
May 252009
 
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Who would have thought that America’s largest state [California], a state whose economy is larger than that of all but a few nations, could so easily become a banana republic?

- Nobel Laureate and Princeton University economist Paul Krugman, writing in the New York Times, May 25, 2009.

The state of California stands on the brink of a financial disaster and will most likely receive some form of bailout in the not-too-distant future.

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 Posted by SearchIndia.com at 10:33 pm

Watching Snatch; Must Watch Movie

 Hollywood  5 Responses »
May 252009
 
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It’s been a while since we went over to RedBox for our free movie fix.

So, we headed over to the nearby RedBox (the locations are increasing) today and picked up Snatch.

Directed by Guy Ritchie (ex-Mr.Madonna), the crime movie features Brad Pitt, Benicio del Toro and Vinnie Jones among others.

Apparently, Snatch met with a decent reception, both from the critics and at the box office.

We’ll try to update this post after watching the 103-minute movie.

Update:

Is Snatch a delicious comedy or a vicious crime movie?

You tell us.

An absolutely delightful movie with non-stop action that keeps you on the edge of your seat not merely because of the visually compelling images but also the power of its hilarious dialogs.

Simply marvellous.

Some nice lines from the movie:

Dicks have drive and clarity of view but they’re not clever.

You should never underestimate the predictability of stupidity.

Yes, we now know where the phrase “Greedy Pig” comes from.

Thank you, Guy Ritchie.

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 Posted by SearchIndia.com at 9:52 pm
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