Chilligavva

Last week, I was excited to send a gazillion amount of invites to my email contacts asking them to join me on twitter. "Did you develop a new product called twitter" was the question I encounter in a phone conversation in response to my "join me on twitter email". I was shocked into silence. Especially since the person asking me this Q was a MCA and working in Oracle products in the USA, and not an average dude by any standards. I immediately switch to Telugu. "Kaadu, adi social networking site." [no its a ...] I get a "Ardham ayyindi, nuvvu edo chesavemo ani" [I figured it out (that it was a social...), but thought that you developed the site.] I stop this disgusting conversation with "Antha scene ledamma naaku.." [I dont have that kind of scene.] Naturally I was hopping mad, as I didnt expect this dumbness to emerge from a facebook generation. But I'm trying to come to grips with dealing with "people who dont get it.." After reading Matt Balara's article on Stowe Boyd's site "Why aren't you talking to me", I realize I am not alone.

Update as on 22 June 08: I accidentally

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Most of my readers know that my site ChilliGavva has a currency reference. if you don't, read the colophon in the about page! My good friend Bharath Raganathan is a walking wikipedia on history and trivia on a number of subjects. Lately I have been spending time at another interesting blog TuLu Studies run by Ravi Mundkur from my native Mangalore. Both of them expressed curiosity on shells as currency, and whether I knew anything about it. Today I spent some time on some internet research, and stumbled upon two references, which I have promptly added to my colophon. The read was very fascinating for me.

Long before our era the cowry shell was known as an instrument of payment and a symbol of wealth and power. This monetary usage continued until the 20th century. If we look a bit closer into these shells it is absolutely not astonishing that varieties as the cypraea moneta or cypraea annulus were beloved means of payments and eventually became in some cases huge competitors of metal currencies. All characteristics of money, i.e. durability, handiness or convenience,

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