Q and A for 001 to 009— Quotidian — 010

(Transcript of video originally posted 10 Jan 2021)

Namaste!

The time has come for us to transition from one-digit to two-digits. We have reached the tenth episode of Quotidians. So, I thought, why not take a look back… Many of you had sent me messages on Whatsapp and Facebook and Messenger and Twitter and YouTube. Some of them were really interesting. I just wanted to pick and select a few of them and offer responses right here. Let’s get started!

One of them had written to me about the elephant-skin reference. I understand “thick skin”. But, what do you mean by “sensitivity”? Does that mean we should be aware of our weakness? — He wanted to know. No, that’s not what I meant. If you rerun it once carefully, you will realise. Specifically, all I am saying is the skin is so thick, but it is also hypersensitive. It can sense that a mosquito is sitting on it and it is going to suck blood. They had such a sensitive skin, that even though the skin was thick, they could sense the feet of a mosquito. So, just because people around you are being harsh, don’t just shut your ears! A well-meaning innocent customer will surely come along, and you will have to respond to them! So, always be sensitive to customer questions. That was the point I was trying to make.

Another viewer wondered:- “I had always thought it was the elephant in the room, I didn’t know that even a gorilla was used to refer to the unaddressed issue”. Yes, you are right. If you google for it, you will encounter both the elephant and the gorilla. Both are huge animals after all!

As you can see in this picture, there is an elephant that is being ignored here. And, we saw the gorilla being ignored, earlier. But, the reason I brought that gorilla instead of the elephant was, well, we were talking about the gorilla in the previous video, and here’s another gorilla… Just to bring a sense of continuity. :-) , I tried to use the gorilla here.

Another person had an intensely profound question for me. Amazing, it is really really unique. It was really good. But, I have a doubt. I am keen to know if people watch it fully. Are you using NVidia broadcast engine? Or, What tool are you really using? He had asked.

When he asked if people were really watching, I decided to go over to YouTube and check out the numbers. They have a really pretty statistics engine. So, it is quite apparent that about 50% is how much they see. That is, a six-minute video, for example, they watch at least three minutes of it.

If you want me to talk about the tools I use, well, behind me, I have a green screen. Which is why you see this as a black background. There is this amazing product called “Mmhmm” — a product we can run from an Apple Macintosh laptop. Mmhmm! And, then, I use a video editor tool called Camtasia. All three are quite simple to learn and use. I have a small bone to pick with the person who asked me this question about data. If you remember, I was baying out loud, only recently, please don’t bother about what others think, what others say, will they praise, will they criticise, just don’t bother! Don’t worry! Just go ahead, do it! That was my clarion call! I just feel bad that this person has made me look it all up so soon after I did that!!

Anyway.. talking about what others will say… Sharan Sharathi, one of my students from last year. He wrote to me and questioned me — I saw the word you had talked about. Allodoxaphobia. You had mentioned that “allo” means fear. Sorry, I don’t think that is right. Allo actually means “others”. It is “phobia” that means fear. Sir! Are you trying the usual trick that you do in class with us? Are you inserting a buggy puzzle occasionally just to check if we are listening or not?! Ouch — Sorry! No Not at all! I kinda got carried away. I made a mistake. Didn’t realise it. Thank you for pointing it out!

Many of you talked about this Olin Miller. They referred to my comment that no photo of that man was really available on the web. They said they searched for it. And, found out what he looked like! Nearly half a dozen of them — sent photos of Olin Miller. Two problems though! One:- EVERY photo that you sent me features the same guy in the same pose with the same smile and the baldy head. And, the same quotation too, sitting alongside. That, by itself, must have clarified to you that something was indeed wrong. Thing is, if somebody is indeed very famous, well, you shouldn’t say he is famous for this quotation, and show us that quotation. Instead, if somebody is very famous, we should point out how/why he is so famous, and then, highlight an interesting quotation among the many things he has said! Two:- Did you notice the website? SantaBanta.com?? It is a “joke collection” portal. So, Olin Miller is not like Albert Einstein. Not like Isaac Newton. Surely, there is a difference. Why should we dig deeper into this any way? He has said something profound. Let us just take it at face value, and leave it at that!

Thirty-Two years later, a person contacted me. Hey, do you remember me? I watched your video… A friend. An ex-classmate. So, what is the big deal? What have I achieved in this initiative? Well, in just nine days, I have been able to reconnect with somebody after thirty-two long years. That is an amazing opportunity! And I need to thank you all for that! Thanks a lot!

Many of you asked me — why are you wearing the same dress?!? Won’t you change the dress at all? What is the maths behind this? Some sequence? Some order? Well, I wondered if I should just let this be, change dress once a week, and just move on. I don’t have three hundred and sixty five sets of dresses anyway! To change daily! Of course not!

But one person even shot this point blank at me! Good, but one honest-serving man has only one question: Why same tee shirt? :-) So, let me respond to him, and to the others who asked this question too. There is no rhyme or reason in this. If you really want me to take a philosophical stance on this, focus on the message! What am I saying — that should be the thing you spend your mental energy on! Don’t look at what dress I am wearing! By the way, because I am speaking here via video-link, nobody can even guess what I am wearing (or not) below my belt, can they! So, why should we obsess about this… Just let things be.

Also, I have a little more to share about this interesting concept, I will talk about this on another day in the future, just remember this picture! Ask me later, about this picture! A shoe! With the letter N emblazoned on it. Not Z. But N. We will talk about this again, soon.

Many of you asked me why I am talking in Tamil. Why not in English. You could reach so many more people if you did it in English. That was the point so many of you made. Well.. hmmmm. Let us understand one thing.

In this world, English is a very popular language. And there are luminaries out there. Exponents of both philosophy and the art of presentation, out there. I am… I am nothing. I am a candle, when held against them. They are brilliant folks. We lack Tamil content. I felt I can be the good translator. There are so many things, amazing things, from around the world. I think it was Bhaarathiyaar who said… I am not able to recall the exact sentences from that poem. We will travel the world, and pick and choose those special gems from here and there, and introduce it in Tamil, Tamil Nadu. It had even appeared in a movie song — a Shivaji Ganesan movie song. So, that is what I want to do. I am not really creating content here. I just curate, cherrypick, and polish, and share it here with you after translation.

Another colleague quipped — My wife says you suddenly sound like Kamal Hassan when you start talking in Tamil — he laughed. Who needs any higher credit than this, really, I wonder. So, I am really happy.

When I talk about feeling happy, I need to share something that made me feel really contented and satisfied. Many of you pointed out how I was sharing much here as stuff I heard from my Dad. Some of them even knew my Dad. So, many of them wrote back saying it was like listening to him all over again. It was so calming and cooling to the mind and heart. Really happy. Even those who didn’t know why my Dad was were sharing that feedback.

That little boy is me, actually. That is my Dad. He is no longer with us. He passed away four years ago. But, he is still with me. Inside me. Because… the million pieces of advice.. And the gazillion pieces of experience that he has shared with me, I think that is what has made me who I am.

I am really thankful to him, and I would like to take this opportunity to say “Thank You, Dad!”. Namaste!