I feel like a mumbling idiot at Starbucks Coffee...literally. I am sorry Starbucks, I am not a regular at your stores, nor do I know exactly what I want the moment I walk in. Call me slow, but I need to go through the huge menu you have, figure out if I want a latte, a cappuccino, an espresso, a frappuccino, chai latte or a Tall, Grande or Venti size (wait a second, isn't that Italian? Of course I am smart enough to figure out which is which from the price tag but I need a moment). Please tell the person taking my order not to look at me like I descended from some alien spaceship that doesn't speak their language (whaaaat...you don't have a favorite?). I also think your drinks are overpriced although there is a distinct coolness to walking out with a starbucks or just lounging around in the store arising from the aforesaid pricey-ness.
Thank you but I am good with my humble instant Nescafe coffee.
If any of you don't believe me, there is a whole page dedicated to this at http://www.wikihow.com/Order-at-Starbucks. Really??
P.S: Pliss to = Cheesy way of saying "Please"
For the last few weeks now, I have been tucking myself in bed to the sound of ecstatic birds and the crash of strategically placed pieces of glass, wood and concrete. There is also the intermittent mutter of disgust, disappointment and occasionally grunt of grim satisfaction. In case you have not figured it out yet, the wife has fallen for the latest mobile game craze - angry birds.
Just so we are clear, my wife is no gamer. But for some reason angry birds has awakened her hidden urge to destroy egg-stealing hogs. So what is it that causes a person, who otherwise has disdain for all forms of gaming, to actually be addicted to one themselves?
There obviously is no formula, otherwise I'd be rich now, but I'd argue that we are now in a position where it is actually possible to create these mass-market game hits. There have been a lot of people making numerous breakthroughs before my wife could take immense pleasure in hurling birds at remorselessly idle pigs.
Availability: In the beginning gaming required that you have a desktop and no human friends. Or have a Playstation and know other people that had no friends. With the smart phone, now having a life is not detrimental to imaginary achievements. Zynga discovered this and has been unbelievably successful (hint Farmville). Mobile games take accessibility to a whole new level.
Believability: "Here, see this triangle - imagine that is a inter-Galactic fighter". Luckily we don't have to do that anymore. There is no need to appeal to the inner child - things in games look as they are supposed to. This isn't photo realism, and it is not expected to be. When the inexplicably flightless birds are raring to hurl themselves, you almost want to help them out. And that has involved a vast number of improvements - experience in making games to enough processing power to support it. Without the 1GHz processors in our mobiles, games would still be leaving a lot to the imagination.
Relateable: Getting things to seem natural is a very difficult task. Cause and effect, it seems, is not that easy with bits and bytes. Early games had to invent arcane rules to compensate. And keeping track of those rules led to the creation of the stereotypical nerd with his glasses and rule books. Angry birds is quite different. It has a flawlessly simple, natural physics engine that responds differently to even minute differences in action. That suddenly makes the game an extension of what people recognize otherwise - making it vastly more relateable.
"I finally understand Civil engineering ... and where to hit to cause the most damage" - this from my wife getting more proficient with her birds. And that is the crux of a good game. All she cares about are the birds, the physics and the app. Hiding the simple fact from my wife, that she is playing a game, has been the biggest success of angry birds. There is a lot that needs to happen, technologically, to be able to achieve that sleight of hand. I think we are there now. Which is why as I am writing this, it still sounds like a war zone in the next seat.
- For how you stay awake in the morning after the alarm goes off, just to make sure I wake up on time while I try to pretend the alarm never rang
- For how you don’t get mad or don’t even scream at me even though I made you late for many a 8 am meeting, some of them with your boss
- For how you are not vindictive towards anybody
- For how respectful you are towards everyone, no matter their position
- For how you are not obsessed with money and that you believe so strongly in the concept of karma and always want to give back more than what you have received from the universe
- For always how people from different cultures and age groups think you are cool and fun to hang out with
- For indulging all my cousins
- For how much my family loves you
- For how much your family looks up to you
- For the great relationship you have with your brother and how much you mentor him
- For being so amazing with kids and how much they love you instantly
- For being so excited about trying out new things
- For just being so patient when I am being plain obnoxious
- For introducing me to the wonderful world of movies and Battlestar Galactica
- For your photographs!!
- For being so creative and introducing me to the world of blogs & blogging.
- For being a jack of all trades – writing, art, tech, mech, photograpy, cooking everything
- For letting me be such a child sometimes
- For teaching me that shouting is not the way to get your work done or voice heard and that a smile goes a long way
- For making me learn that it is okay to let go sometimes
- For making me less stuck up, less prudish and just more fun
- For giving me the chance to travel so many fun, interesting places with you
- For showing me how to appreciate the simple pleasures of life and be thankful
- For indulging my crazy ever growing shoe collection
- For praising how wonderful my cooking is even if I just microwaved a frozen store bought meal (Can any woman get luckier??)
- For making me a special doughnut uttapam when I was not feeling well
- For making such wonderful dosas, sambhar & aloo masala :)