चिट्ठी जिज्जी को

सब रोते हैं तुम्हारे जाने के बाद
छुप छुप कर, मैं भी 
फूट ना पड़ें, इसलिए बात नहीं करते 
पापा भी रोते थे, छुप छुप कर 
कभी सामने नहीं 
अब पापा भी नहीं हैं 
मिली होगी ना?
क्या कहते हो एक दुसरे से?
गुस्सा करती हो? अभी भी?
मुझ पर क्यों नहीं किया?
मतलबी क्यों नहीं थी तुम?
मेरी तरह, छुप छुप कर?

इस बार एक कहानी

दो लोग अपने प्यारे घोड़े पर बैठ कर अपने गॉव जा रहे थे, तभी उनको एक नदी दिखाई दी| नदी में पानी का बहाव तेज़ था और जाना उस पार था, बाढ़ की वजह से पानी भी चढ़ा हुआ था| दोनों को एक छोटी सी नाव दिखाई दी, वहीँ दो बड़े बड़े पतवार भी थे| उन्होंने विमर्श किया, छोटी नाव में घोड़ा नहीं आ पाएगा पर वो दोनों बैठ जायेंगे, क्योंकि घोड़े को तैरना आता है, पर बहाव की वजह से कहीं बह ना जाए इसलिए उसकी लगाम नाव में बाँध देंगे।

नदी के मगरमच्छ ने देख लिया घोड़े को उतरते हुए, पर पतवार देख कर पास आने की हिम्मत नहीं जुटा पाया| उसने जुगत लगाया - देखो दोनों इंसानो को, कितना बुरा व्यवहार मेरे जैसे जानवरों पर करते हैं, बेचारे घोड़े को बाँध कर पानी के बहाव के विपरीत दिशा में खींच के ले जा रहे हैं| अगर लगाम हटा दें तो घोड़ा अपने आप ही पानी के सहारे जल्दी से किनारे पर आ जायेगा, ये इंसान बस केवल अपने गांव जाना चाहते हैं, चाहे घोड़े को कितना ही कष्ट हो जाए|

घोड़ा सोच में पड़ गया, बात तो मगरमच्छ ने सही कही है, लगाम की वजह से मैं आज़ादी के साथ तैर नहीं पा रहा हूँ|  तभी एक छोटी मछली ने घोड़े से कहा - इस मगरमच्छ ने इस नदी की सारी मछलियों को खा लिया है, मैं भी सोचती हूँ, मगर के साथ एक नदी से तो अच्छा था लगाम के साथ इंसानो के साथ रहती| तभी एक भीगा भीगा तोता घोड़े के पीठ पर आ कर बैठ गया - अरे मैं अभी इंसानो की क़ैद से छूट कर आया हूँ, अब तो मेरी हालत ये है की मैं कायदे से उड़ भी नहीं पा रहा हूँ, काश मैं मछली होता तो कम से कम मुझे पानी से डर तो न लगता

,मगरमच्छ घोड़े के साथ उसको परामर्श देने वाले दो और जानवरो को देख कर पीछा करना छोड़ दिया  और दूर चला  गया, उसको दूर जाता देख, मछली जल्दी से अपने खोह में चली गयी, और तोते ने इंसानो को इतने पास देख कर उड़ कर पेड़ में बैठ गया|  तब तक किनारा भी आ चुका था|

Save the humanity

This was so personal to me but I would share a story, a true story as we lived through it. Corona pandemic, its being out of control has inspired me to share it.

After completing her Phd in Sanskrut Literature my elder sister opted to do Masters in Acharya, Karmkand. Most of her batch mates were there for a professional reason, were associated to some religious group. She was the only one who seemed to be there to learn it, or learn it the way it is meant to be learned. Over the next few months she developed an uncanny ability to figure out which astrology sign a person belongs to without knowing their birthday, just by studying their behavior over a period of time. She would look at someone's palm and tell us what its in there, without telling the person what it was. Except us she never told anyone anything neither took a single penny for it. No one else in her batch had that kind of ability. She was not unusual either.

By the end of her Masters (late 90s) she told us that she would die by year 2018. After scolding her, being stupid and asking her to focus her energy on other things, she ended up qualifying UP State Civil Services and chose a role with enforcement duties. She was also the most athletic one who ran 4x100 and part of the basketball team in her high school. We would have never imagined anything could happen. 

As luck have it, She got diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer in 2012. The stupid talk now seemed more vicious. 2017, the cancer reoccurred in her liver but the medication seemed to have controlled it and slowed it progression. We prayed for year 2018 to just pass. 

For what seemingly appeared to be an unrelated issue, she had to go through a minor surgery in 2018. She left the house, rescheduled her meetings, to the hospital to be back next day. What could have been just a 15min surgery ended up nothing that we could have imagined. We lost her in 2018 just a few days after celebrating her 47th birthday. 

We still don't know, how to explain, what it was but it was something that we can't explain. How could she know when she would leave us so far out? Is there an entity that exists we are not aware of? Any science that we have failed to theorize? 

We continue to see people becoming rich making religion their livelihood, places of worship as their business address, astrology and palmistry as if they speak God, all 99% of them. None who can predict the time of their own death.

So does God exist? I think it does. It does exist, something exists, but its not the way we happen to perceive it as.

Don't mock this story, don't say its a lie, because we have lived through it. The only reason I shared is I am already emotionally overwhelmed by how this group that was created to celebrate union has ended up talking so many losses of life.


So I don't know if its Allah or Onkar Brahm, if we can connect with it through Namaaz or Ardaas or Tapasya. But if you are there, please save the humanity, save us from suffering.

दूर कहीं क्यों जाते हो?

तुम सर्वशक्ति तुम सार्वभौम,
तुम प्राण हृदय, तुम सब कुछ हो
तुम नारायण तुम भोले हो
तुम माँ दुर्गा तुम कण कण हो
पर कहाँ चले जाते हो तुम
जब सबसे अशक्त होते हम हैं
जब मृत्यु निकट होती अपनों की,
तुम विचरण को क्यूँ जाते हो?

गला गला कर व्रत रक्खा है
तुमको पूजा सहज भाव से,
तब छोड़ा जब अधर में हम हों
फिर ईश्वर क्या कहलाते हो?
दूर कहीं क्यों जाते हो?

 जिज्जी तुम बहुत याद आती हो बेटा 

Why do we offer Milk on Shivling?

I came across a video going viral on Internet when a young girl asked the same question to an Acharya. May be it was the right answer replied in a wrong way, or a wrong question asked the right way but it left a gap that neither was satisfied.

I will try to satisfy my own conundrum my own way:

What is that entity that is above all? Likely no one has seen but most find it somewhere near them that we turn to? Its the God, the ईश्वर, the energy that runs the whole World including what we have not been able to see and above all that impacts us, our lives every day every second. No matter which religion it tries to explain, it tries to find who this entity is.

Then comes what in an umbrella word I would call Channels. This channel could be Knowledge (ज्ञान), Devotion (भक्ति), Practice (साधना) or any other Yog or way. We use these to seek the God or try to explain who this God is?

Then comes the Manifestation (यही है). We derive a manifestation of that energy in to something - This could have no form (निराकार) or have a form (साकार). This यही है creates school of thoughts, religions, traditions and impacts cultures.

What happens after Manifestation is what impacts us, our behavior, our practices our beliefs.

After Manifestation comes Traditions and then comes places of Worship like a Temple. Temples could be of a few types - One that are believed to be जागृत (awake) where ईश्वर का अंश जागृत अवस्था में हो, Second - those that are constructed to assist Humans in Worship or ज्ञान or simply as cultural centers. The temples usually have Idols after their प्राण प्रतिष्ठा - A practice or belief to create an entity that is awakened.

After Temple comes the Society that they serve. Temples make sure the society is together, is on the right path and enables it to keep the beliefs persistent beyond a human life. Temples also serve as places that enables or gives humans an opportunity to introspect, to seek with in, help them gather their thoughts or associate what ever other asset valuable to them with the ईश्वर.

After society comes the Manners (आचरण) - the human values, the Rights and the Wrongs. Temples and Traditions and Practices keep the Human values on the right path.

Then comes Us the Humans. After the Manifestation of the God each layer of this chain impacts us morally and ethically. Prior to the यही है is completely independent has no impact on what we do. We may get judged at some point by this Power but our own behavior would not change the Ultimate Truth.


Now back to the original question of हम शिव जी को दूध क्यों चढ़ाते  हैं? Why do we offer Milk to Bhagwan Shiv at Temples?

First the Milk offered on Shiv Ji is not to waste it but it is to be distributed to all as a प्रसाद. It is often encouraged directly or indirectly for a भक्त to offer as much as he or she can afford. Why? Because Temples have responsibilities it is directly connected to a society that it runs in. A society is not equal to all even if the God is. The प्रसाद distribution makes sure every one gets a share equally even Milk that not every one could afford.

Second Milk is the most precious of all food. When a Baby is born it does not ask for Gold or Power, it asks for Milk. Milk is जीवन दायनी - A life source that could end a life without. Offering Milk is a way to associate our most precious thing as a living Human being to the God (अर्पण).

Third - Our Hindu Manifestation of God believes Shiv to have consumed Poison considered burning to protect the World from Evils. Milk considered to be implicitly cold is to pray Shiv and seek his Blessings.

Fourth - Milk is considered the Purest form of food purest form of Liquid. Remember after Sikhs considered an Army operation inside Golden Temple as objectionable they cleaned and washed the entire temple with Milk? Do you know Elders blessing "दूधो नहाओ"? Milk represents our supreme devotion (भक्ति) that we offer.

The Practice of offering Milk to Shiv Ji is a sign of Devotion to an entity Manifested into शिवलिंग रूप to be equally distributed among all believers of the faith the Temple is built to protect, preserve and spread.

Eklavya - from a new perspective

In India we have a mythical(?) character Eklavya who came from a poor background  not much resources at his disposal and definitely no prior credentials but all he wanted was to learn the art of war and knowledge to use the arms meant exclusively for Royalties of the time. An art so specialized and exclusive that its proliferation would have endangered the interests of the state and its Kings.

Eklavya approached Dronacharya the teacher of this art and was rejected assertively although politely. He did not have the background or any future responsibilities that could be meted out to him for him to learn the art of Dhanurvidya (Archery). In today's World its like teaching and giving capabilities of building a Nuclear bomb to a person or a nation not responsible enough with not much stake to lose in case of its wrongful use. With no prior context, no history of schooling and no background required to step up would also drain and unnecessarily diversions that will be caused by including him in the class, Dronacharya thought. Eklavya's passion and his hidden and unpolished talent was ignored, there was no need for a follow up.

But Eklavya was Eklavya he persisted. He knew he did not belong to that club but knew he belongs to that art. He started stalking the teacher to his class and started watching and learning by hiding under thick foliage. Have you downloaded a copyrighted material an exclusive content that you need to pay to use? Have you been using a software that requires a license to use? Eklavya was not doing it to challenge the others, he was using to gain the knowledge he was interested in.

Eklavya did not have the quality of bow and arrows required to implement the knowledge he was gaining but what he was able to do with a simple hand made archery that many Princesses could not do in the club with their sophisticated arms except one Arjun. Eklavya would go back practice all day all night what he saw Arjun do. He remembered every intricacies that Dronacharya talked about that many simply ignored in the class that he did not. Eklavya was learning what lies in the heart of that art, the best practices, how to make the best use of it, how to achieve your goal with minimal resources than to shoot to kill an ant. Eklavya was indirectly challenging Arjun. To learn how to avoid a war and keep your interests intact makes you a better fighter than those who know how to use Guns. Eklavya became a much better Archer than all and he gained that not working in a team, not getting anyother brain to pick - he did it by watching and practicing. He would fail to use the sophisticated arms but knew how to hit the target with his simple ones. He filled the gaps in his knowledge with better designs. He did not need the strength to stop an incoming train, he knew to build a road that does not intersect the path of it.

Cheating is always caught sooner or later. Eklavya was caught by Dronacharya when he filled the mouth of a dog with arrows just enough just deep enough to not hurt the dog but make him stop barking. Such a precision was only possible by Arjun and there can not be another Arjun. Whoever is that precise and not a brother of Arjun could potentially pose a threat to him later. Dronacharya could not trust Eklavya's loyalty. Indirect may be he did learn from him and had to pay Dronacharya said and he asked Eklavya's right thumb as his fee. He decapitated Eklavya for ever.

Eklavya was rejected. He was rejected because he was the son of a Father who worked for a King opposing Krishna the friend and spiritual Guru of Arjun. Dronacharya though was impressed by Eklavya's desire to learn but his background was not in line with the interests of Arjun. Eklavya even without a thumb remained a potent Archer better than many but later killed in a battle with Krishna. Later Arjun and his cousin brothers split and had a war what is known as Mahabharath one of the most devastating war the World had seen. Arjun won, his character won, his piousness won - but there was no Eklavya to challenge him. 

Tu Maane Ya Na Maane

Mummi's Interview on Indian Elections

I love you too

I love you

Cars and India

Twenty years ago if you had seen Cars on the Indian roads and compared it with some of the western countries you would have easily thought India be a third world country. Substandard cars, funny looking yesteryear models plying the polluted and overcrowded roads. You would imagine a poor country just a brush with relatively new found economic freedom with no money to import foreign cars or a market for its big middle class. What they would not know is its rich past history.

If this was India of early 20th century a scene on your left would have been quite common. India was a country of big and small 100s and thousands of princely states with Princes and Kings with huge disposable income. India was a British slave with more or less free princely states. What did they spend on? Rolls Royces. Cars were their passion and not just any cars the costliest of them all. All custom made for them looking different from anybody's else. A car to reflect their own personality, their own reflection - A status symbol. India of that time did not have many Millionaires but the number of its Ultra Rich were by large far more than any other country's. India's super rich were richer than most. India was not a poor nation. Only the money was not available to all. India was still a rich car market.
There was a parallel world then shaking the foundation of these riches and their masters - British.  But thanks to them India got access to cars meant for upper middle class - The mass produced cars of Fords and Chevrolet. By then Cars were made faster if not rugged than Elephants and our own political leaders loved to use them. There was no dearth of such cars - Indian businessmen, lawyers, politicians owned them. Our front line leaders came from this class of people. Educated, exposed to western world and its culture with a vision of their own for their own country free from the clutches of a western power.

Due to British presence in India and willing buyers of its upper middle class same cars were available in India that were available any place else. Same Fords that were sold in Chicago were also available in London and the same in Bombay. If you found Gandhi walking with a help of a long stick, pictures like on your right were not too rare either. If anything else other than perseverance of Indian people helped achieve India its independence then it must have been the mass produced cars. If Rolls Royce represented the oppressor, cheap Fords represented the leaders fighting them. India was still a big market for cars. Only the common Man was still not using it.
Then came India's independence. Fortunately WWII gave enough impetus to mechanized growth that cars and trucks and jeeps were not for a few but became a necessity. Collaborations, Assemblers, Franchises in auto industry increased. Enough of used Jeeps of WWII saw a new market in India. Indian defense and its new administration needed a mode of transportation. A transportation that was relatively cheap and rugged enough to enable them to reach far and undeveloped places. They also needed better city cars rugged but sleek enough for the new leaders of Independent India.

Then came a car that solved India's transportation problem and became so iconic with a cult following that barely anything major changed in its base design in the last 50/60 years - Hindustan Motor's Ambassador - An Indianized British Morris Oxford. This was a blessing and a curse to what was India's next three decades of no development in its car market. The car was good enough for streets of Mumbai to political broadening roads of Delhi to dirt roads of villages. If its manufacturer ever put any thoughts in its design then it was its rear seats and its suspension. Though today's car beat this car left and right but still envy its rear seats and legendary leg space it offers. While this was an Indian car almost monopolizing the Indian car market the market was still open for manufactures like General Motors before being shut in '70s. By then enough of celebrities had owned the then popular Chevy Impalas and you could see many Austins and Buicks in the rusting garages of Doctors, Administrators and Movie Celebrities.

Though these western cars were never cheap to own and Ambassadors seen as the Office car the car market remained unfulfilled for middle class that eagerly was waiting for affordable four wheels. And then came a car that remained likely the only challenger of Ambassador and made sure its hegemony in public sector was not extended to private buyers of the working class people.The Italian Fiat collaborated Premier Padminis put a smile on many families faces as they started to park these cars on the road sides of where they lived. Cars that they loved to drive themselves and did not need a cap wearing driver to be hired. Then came a decade that split the car market of India into two suppliers - Be it privately owned or Taxis either they were Ambassadors or Premiers. Though they were inefficient cars by today's standards but their big inner space and pig-iron body made sure they had enough space for the family and relatively safer. These cars extended their reach to middle class. But still they were seen not for everybody. They sure made your neighbor envy but the market of people who had more money than to buy scooters but not enough to go for Fiats just swelled. India saw consistent increase in its purchasing power and better city lives. It needed more, more than what they had with in the constraints of a closed economy.

Before Indian economy was re-opened in early 90's that allowed reentry of foreign brands and by then matured Indian manufacturers to compete with them came a car so iconic and game changer that changed how India traveled. It did not just challenge monopolistic Ambys and Premiers it destroyed them and reduced their market to small eroding segment of Taxis. A cheap, faster, light weight, easier to drive and the only car with non-English Indian name Maruti - A car for everyone. What happened in the next decade was an astonishing growth. The middle class got its Rolls Royce. 

** Thanks to Google and sites like Team-BHP for image downloads. 

My favorite Indian restaurants in Sunnyvale/Santa Clara area

In general Bay Area is pretty good in Indian food and thanks to a tough competition you will find decent Indian food in most places. But following are some and their some recipes that stands different and awesome:

Bikaner Sweets, Sunnyvale - Paneer Tikka Masala
Bengali Sweets, Sunnyvale - Chicken Biryani, Chhole Bhature
Dosa Place, Santa Clara - Uttappam
Chaat and Curry, Sunnyvale - Kadai Lamb
Kwality Sweets, Santa Clara - Sarson ka Saag
Shaalimar, Sunnyvale - Seekh Kabab
Madras Cafe, Sunnyvale - Masala Dosa
Appakadai, Santa Clara - Aappam

Sister certifying Electronic Voting Machines

It takes a lot more to conduct successful elections than turning up and casting your vote. I am happy to see my Sister contributing.

Speech on assault on rave parties in India

Thanks for giving me time to share my thoughts. India is a free nation. It is a free democracy and it is a free society. As a citizen of India either by birth or by anyway other, we get certain constitutional rights. Rights that are derived from core human and our centuries old traditional values. And one of those rights is to choose how we live.



That said, unlike many western societies our social security is still families. Families are at the core of our fabric. Our democracy derives its energy from it. Mahatma's dreams of Panchayati Raj is a clear indication that in India democracy flows bottom up. If we need support - financial, psychological or emotional we revert to our families, our parents our siblings, our Pind, our community. And these societies over the years form what I call soft laws including certain behavioral guidelines. These guidelines are not written by a few on a piece of paper but are passed down to them by generations over centuries. Its the cost of social security they provide. Then there sits a big Gorilla called Indian constitution that supersedes all such laws and allows anyone who feels threatened by such social laws to seek protection under it. Such social laws can not be used as a justification to perpetrate violence or assault on people and law must take strong action against whoever does that.
I abhor such people and act, but I do support the very intent of such protest against the so called Rave parties. Some of the news that I have read about are nothing but disgusting. For pete's sake some of them were found with packets of condoms lying around with free flowing alcohol and nakedness. Would as a Dad, as a Parent as a family I approve my kid to go to such parties? Of course not and so am sure a bulk of this audience would not too. As a father I would do everything to register my protest against such events if I see that happen that I feel threatens my family and my values. I would not take a gun and shoot them up or break in or slap them around but I will make sure my and many such voices are strongly heard. Unlike many misconceptions Parents even in many western countries feel the same anguish and anger when they hear their kid is drinking, taking drugs or involved in sexual partnerships. Its a parental instinct and I strongly support my rights to do so.
When we were young 18, 19 or 21 we believed behavioral guidelines can not be thrust upon us and this is something that a Generation dictates. Let me say to you in '70s we saw a hippie culture. Where is that now? Are they relevant anymore? A lifestyle evolved in one generation has been disapproved by subsequent ones. So over a few generations the guidelines put forth by societies broadly remains by and large the same. And a sustainable change requires it being slow and not contextual. At the end it is us who make changes or safeguard our beliefs.

Thank you

My Poems on Android

Just launched a collection of my poems as an Android application - also happens to be my first book. I am the author, I am the publisher, I am the designer and I am the distributor. The Android installable can be downloaded from My Android Apps

अब मेरे शेर अन्द्रोइड फ़ोन के अप्लिकेशन के रूप में प्रकाशित हैं। इसका शायर भी मैं हूँ, प्रकाशक भी मैं हूँ और वितरक भी। शेर का अप्लिकेशन यहाँ से डाउनलोड किया जा सकता है मेरे अन्द्रोइड एप्स

Anna (अन्ना)

We Indians needed a Guru to tell us what we already knew but tell us the same with Vinamrata (a must watch):

Happy Birth Day Shona

Recommend me a vacuum cleaner

I am in a vacuum cleaner market again. Would appreciate your honest suggestions. This is what I am looking for:

• Easy to use
• Must work on carpets, hardwood, vinyl and stone floorings
• After vacuuming I should feel 100% safer for my infant to crawl on
• Easier to maintain and long lasting

I have had varying experience with different cleaners I have owned so far.

1. Hoover canister - The plastic broke and lost suction otherwise loved it. Was too loud.
2. Brissell Upright with bag - Use to lose suction and frequent bag replacements.
3. Shark bag less - Absolutely loved it. But the one I had was relatively small.
4. iRobot Discovery - Loved it at first but then started giving problems till it almost broke.
5. Dirt Devil - Was tired of expensive vacuums so bought this one. It was okay at first but now loses suction and does not pick up hair or even small crumbs.

So? I am looking for one again and this time am more resilient and looking for one that I could own for the next 15 years without having to replace one. Suggest!

BTW: I bought a Shark Navigator from BBB (A real great store) and it just blew my expectations. Carpet feels like I just had it installed.

Scooters India Limited - A potential on sale

This is a part of an email conversation that I had with Scooters India Limited (now on sale) in the beginning of year 2001. Even then I was fascinated with electric vehicles and being from Lucknow I wanted SIL to take a head start at least in India as they had successfully launched an electric three wheeler then. I hear the company is on sale and Lohia auto who makes electric mopeds are interested in its stake. Even before Tata Nano I had envisioned a Vikram EV sized car run on electric to be launched and target a market segment that existed even then. That conversation ended in informal exchanges and "why would a company react on some enthusiast's email" thing. But now I wish if they had acted or if I had enough Money to buy them now. I still see a grand Indian market up for grabs.

25 weirdest interview questions - what would my responses be?

yahoo.com published this article - the-25-weirdest-interview-questions-of-2010 Even though these are meant to be instantaneous replies but what would my responses be (skipping those I would say no idea)?

1. If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?

=> I will have a "lead"ing scream!

3. What is the philosophy of martial arts?
=> To avoid fight as much as possible.

5. Rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10 how weird you are (Reportedly from Capital One (NYSE: COF - News))
=> 10 - not weird at all.

6. How many basketballs can you fit in this room? (Reportedly from Google (NasdaqGS: GOOG - News))

=> If this room is empty then atleast = lxhxw/(4/3*pi*r³) or practically infinite if you take the air out of the basket balls.

7. Out of 25 horses, pick the fastest 3 horses. In each race, only 5 horses can run at the same time. What is the minimum number of races required? (Reportedly from Bloomberg LP)

=> Minimum 5 races are needed. Measure the timings from each race and pick the first three.

9. You have a birthday cake and have exactly three slices to cut it into eight equal pieces. How do you do it? (Reportedly from Blackrock Portfolio Management (NYSE: BLK - News))

=> if three slices make one piece then cut it in eight equal pieces.

10. Given the numbers 1 to 1000, what is the minimum number of guesses needed to find a specific number if you are given the hint "higher" or "lower" for each guess you make? (Reportedly from Facebook)

=> 1 (The first guess is the right one)

11. If you had 5,623 participants in a tournament, how many games would need to be played to determine the winner? (Reportedly from Amazon (NasdaqGS: AMZN - News))

=> one

12. An apple costs 20 cents, an orange costs 40 cents, and a grapefruit costs 60 cents. How much is a pear? (Reportedly from Epic Systems)

=> A "pair" of what?

13. There are three boxes. One contains only apples, one contains only oranges, and one contains both apples and oranges. The boxes have been incorrectly labeled such that no label identifies the actual contents of its box. Opening just one box, and without looking in the box, you take out one piece of fruit. By looking at the fruit, how can you immediately label all of the boxes correctly? (Reportedly from Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL - News))

=> Pick the "Apples + Oranges". If the fruit is apple then relabel the Apple box to Apple and Oranges.

14. How many traffic lights are in Manhattan? (Reportedly from Argus Information and Advisory Services)

=> Three - Red, Yellow and Green

15. You are in a dark room with no light. You have 19 grey socks and 25 black socks. What are the chances you will get a matching pair? (Reportedly from Convergex)

=> pick three you will always get a matching pair.

16. What do wood and alcohol have in common? (Reportedly from Guardsmark)

=> Two o's

17. How do you weigh an elephant without using a weigh machine? (Reportedly from IBM (NYSE: IBM - News))

=> Put the elephant in a water tub completely filled with water. Measure how much water it displaced. measure the difference.

18. You have 8 pennies. Seven weigh the same, but one weighs less. You also have a judges scale. Find the penny that weighs less in three steps. (Reportedly from Intel (NasdaqGS: INTC - News))

=> Split in 4x4. find the four that weigh less. Split in two -> Find that weighs less. Split 1 and 1 and find the lightest.

19. Why do you think only a small portion of the population makes over $150,000? (Reportedly from New York Life)

=> labor report.

22. What's the square root of 2000? (Reportedly from UBS (NYSE: UBS - News))
=> 20 root 5

23. A train leaves San Antonio for Houston at 60 mph. Another train leaves Houson for San Antonio at 80 mph. Houston and San Antonio are 300 miles apart. If a bird leaves San Antonio at 100 mph, and turns around and flies back once it reaches the Houston train, and continues to fly between the two, how far will it have flown when they collide? (Reportedly from USAA)

=> 0 miles. The bird and houston train are at the same location

24. How are M&Ms made? (Reportedly from USBank)

=> with a machine

25. What would you do if you just inherited a pizzeria from your uncle?

=> I will ask my wife to run it.