Dear friend,

Yes everyone, Valentine's Day is here again. However you feel about this day, there does not seem to be any avoiding it. Just after Christmas, that bright red and pink aisle appears in the middle of every store you go into. Enormous boxes of mediocre chocolate, shiny packages of sugary confections, obnoxious cards shedding glitter, and let's not forget, oversized furry teddy bears proclaiming that they "luv you" surround shoppers. Jewelry stores go into temporary crazed insanity tempting customers into sparkly deal making!

And cards? Well, cards are the biggest must-haves of all. One billion valentine’s cards are sent each year, according to the Greeting Cards Association. Valentine's trails only Christmas for the most high-volume card holiday. How did this madness start?

The theories associated with this day's origin are as old as they are varied. According to the History Channel, possibilities range from Valentine being a third century priest who performed illegal wedding ceremonies for soldiers, to Valentine being a Christian prisoner who signed a love letter "from your Valentine," to Valentine's Day being the feast day of a saint, positioned on February 14 to commemorate the Pagan Lupercalia Festival. This theory is juiciest, and therefore my favorite. The idea of February was, in Ancient Rome, the beginning of spring. Rituals called for purification, cleansing, and the fertility festival, Lupercalia. The ritual was dedicated to Faunus, the god of agriculture. In this ritual, the city's young women would gather in the streets and place their names in a large urn. The bachelors would then take turns drawing names and they would be paired for the year with whosever name they drew. Although the practice was later deemed un-Christian, many of the matches resulted in marriage.

CRAZY, ISNT IT?

Well all you lovers out there, enjoy this day coz “Lovers live longer!”

Have a loverly Valentines Day.

But I have a small request for you: “Just don’t go around breaking a young girl’s/guy’s heart!

MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL

You might have seen puppies.!!?? When we talk about puppies the one phrase comes in mind is that" wow, so cute". But have you watched them closely and watched them get along and play?

The more hurt and pain you have gone thru in life, the stronger and more beautiful your heart will be.....
One day a young man was standing in the middle of the town proclaiming that he had the most beautiful heart in the whole valley.

If you love to look after people, bring a smile to their faces, cook them a nice dish, and give them an experience to remember, then the hospitality industry is the place for you. Today, hospitality education is a coveted career and the National Council receives four times more applications than its fixed intake.

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

Making decisions is a skill that teens will need to learn to do well because the decisions they are making in this life stage can be life-altering. Whether or not to get a job, Statr Smoking, use drugs, go to college, start dating or have sex are decisions that teenagers are making everyday.

Rigel Fernandes of Mangalore, India wins 4 of the 6 tournaments played in the US Junior Tour this academic year, runner-up in other two, awarded HJGT Tour Champion of the year in the 13 – 15 year category.

YCS / YSM – Young Christian Students / Young Students Movement - is a movement of awareness, reflection and action for teenagers.

Jane has a boyfriend who grew up with her. His name is Jack. She always thought of him as a friend until last year, when they went to a trip from a club, she found out that she fell in love with him.

Next time you get asked an annoying Indian question, answer it like this...read on, it's funny!

Q: What does that red dot on women's forehead mean?
Well, in ancient times, Indian men used to practice archery skills by target practicing by aiming at their wife's red dot. In fact, that is one of the reasons why they had many wives. You see, once they mastered the art of archery and hit the target...

Though they're mentioned a lot in popular culture, especially science fiction, few people really understand what a black hole is. A black hole is a theoretical entity created when a super massive star gets compressed, as in a supernova, into a sufficiently dense point. The curvature of space-time that results under Einstein’s theory of general relativity is essentially infinite, making it so that even light cannot escape from its gravity.

Two little boys, ages 8 and 10, were excessively mischievous. They were always getting into trouble and their parents knew all about it. If any mischief occurred in their town, the two boys were probably involved.

It was a Saturday and the time was around 6.30pm. I was walking in the busy streets of the market. As I was walking, the smell of fried items was tempting me to eat something and I could see many people enjoying snacks like ‘Pani Puri’, ‘Samoa’ and all sorts of eatables.

She jumped up as soon as she saw the surgeon come out of the operating room.
She said: ''How is my little boy? Is he going to be all right? When can I see him?''
The surgeon said, ''I''m sorry. We did all we could, but your boy didn''t make it.''
Sally said, ''Why do little children get cancer? Doesn''t God care any more? Where were you, God, when my son needed you?''

A little old couple walked slowly into a McDonald's one cold winter evening. They looked out of place amid the young families and young couples eating there that night.

Some of the customers looked admiringly at them. You could tell what the admirers were thinking:

Where fear stalks the mind and the head hangs in shame, Where Knowledge is twisted . . . . .

Paddy's pregnant sister was in a terrible car accident and went into a deep coma. After being in the coma for nearly six months, she wakes up and sees that she is no longer pregnant. Frantically, she asks the doctor about her baby.

1. At the movies: When you meet acquaintances/friends...
Stupid Question:
Hey, what are you doing here?
Answer:
Don't u know, I sell tickets in black over here…

Mumbai : Purpose of the Announcement of Opportunity (AO)

Through this First Announcement of Opportunity (AO) in the series, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) solicits Proposals from International and Indian Scientific Community for participating in the mission by providing suitable scientific payloads for Chandrayaan-1.

Ladies... In light of the recent rape and murder of Pratibha Srikanth Murthy, an employee of the business process outsourcing arm of Hewlett Packard in Bangalore, I think it is important to read the following info for your own safety. .....

A very self important college freshman, attending a party, took it upon himself to explain to a senior citizen sitting next to him why it is impossible to the older generation to understand his generation

1. Guys don't actually look after good-looking girls. They prefer neat and presentable girls.
2. Guys hate flirts.
3. When a guy says he doesn't understand you, it simply means you're not thinking the way he is.
4. Guys may be flirting around all day but before they go to sleep, they always think about the girl they truly care about.

Media all over the world mourned the death of rock star Michael Jackson, Jacko as they fondly called him. It was on expected lines, given the fact that MJ had fan-following across continents. He has traveled through lengths and breaths of all continents popularising his brand of music and dance. It was also but natural that media celebrated the unique talent of MJ, hailing him as a born genius. No doubt, he was a born singer and musician and dancer. In fact, he is considered the creator of what is now known as the break dance.

The present scenario of Indian politics has been corrupted by the selfishness of political leaders. All leaders have a selfish motive, to promote him for the higher post or get recocognised by the public. Building of monuments, constructing huge buildings, temple and religious centers, donating luxurious gifts etc have become a fashion and consider as a symbol of prestige. Lavish spend of public money gives them an immense pleasure. Corruptions in public sectors keep them in a higher position also blindness of citizens raising their status among public.

An atheist professor of philosophy speaks to his class on the problem science has with God, the Almighty.
He asks one of his new students to stand and.....
Prof: So you believe in God?
Student: Absolutely, sir.

Prof: Is God good?
Student: Sure.

Prof: Is God all-powerful?
Student: Yes.

When you think of television, the faces that flash upon your mind are Dr Pranoy Roy, Barkha Dutt, Rajdeep Sardesai, Cyrus Broacha, Larry King, Oprah Winfrey, Rajat Sharma, Jaaved Jaffrey. Yes, television is a medium that spells glamour with a capital G, big money and instant fame. It’s also the medium that brings virtual reality into your home-events as they happen, when they happen. In fact, television creates its own reality by seizing the inner space of the viewer’s mind and dominating it.

A walk on our roads and you find a whole lot of ‘silent’ speakers. You must be wondering what I am talking about. How can someone who is silent speak? Well that’s precisely what all those billboards and posters on the roads of our cities are doing. ‘Eat me, drink me, try me, wear me,’ and so many more messages are poured into us- Welcome to the AD world. From Movies, to Tele Soaps, to beauty products or gadgets, ads do the business marketing for you

Corruption has always in a dirty world in our lives. But today, it has become the rule of the land. All of us experience this evil in one form or the other, whether we like it or not. They say - The Onus of the burden of corruption lies on the giver rather than the receiver. But the winner is the one who accepts corruption always.

Ms Trishma Pinto, III B. Com student of St Agnes College, Mangalore elected as President of the Student Council, elections were held on June 20th.

‘Fashion’ is such a catchy word which in itself means something new and trendy both connoting negative and positive meanings. Fashion is a change in cultural aspects may be food, clothes, lifestyle and also language, which is periodical. There is also negative meaning to this term where it is considered as extravaganza or materialism with fast disappearing fades.

AN IDEAL STUDENT
  
An ideal student is one who is fully conscious and aware of his duties and responsibilities. He paves the way for the younger generation to tread on. Every student should endeavor to be an ideal one. Students are the leaders of tomorrow. A nation can prosper and reach the zenith of glory If it has a disciplined army of students.

A student may well up in studies and capable of passing the examinations, but he may not necessarily be an ideal one. Such students though having a brilliant record throughout their school and college life, proves to be utter failure when they enter in the field of practical life.

An ideal student lives in accordance to the strict rules of conduct and discipline. This is the time of life when the foundation of character is laid. It is said that “If wealth is lost nothing is lost, if health is lost something is lost and if character is lost everything is lost”. An undisciplined student is like a ship without rudder. He must obey the rules of school and teachers and professors. He uses his discerning insight while selecting his companions. He is fully conscious of ensuring that not even a single evil force will tempt him, he knows that a single rotten apple spoils all the apples in the basket.

As we owe duty towards the family members, an ideal student tries to understand how much he owes to his parents, brothers and sisters. It is his duty to realize that he is under heavy debt to his parents. An ideal student is a servant of humility. He should share the worries and other problems of life with the members of his family. He should also take keen interest in social activites wherever possible. He should be active in finding out solutions of various complicated problems of the society.

AMAZING FACTS
  
A bald eagle makes a nest big enough for
a few people to hide inside.

A  humming bird’s nest is very small to
the size of a thumb.

When you cut a starfish into pieces each
piece grow into a whole starfish later.

The penguin hatches its single egg on its feet.

The bird palanquin feeds its young ones last
of its blood and dies.

A new born kangaroo is just  a few centimeters.

Most meteors are tiny bits of dust left by a
comet’s tail.

The light from a firefly produces no heat.

The ears of the grass hopper are situated near
its knees.

Grass hoppers and crickets existed even
before dinosaurs.