Tim Hortons and the Value of the Canadian Five-Dollar Bill!

I found an old Canadian five-dollar bill from back in the day inside my old purse. At a Tim Hortons coffee shop in the city, I ordered a medium coffee. Since I didn't have any loose change, I handed over the old five-dollar bill I had on me.

The female worker there told me that they do not accept old notes.

Her response caught me by surprise.

Even though it is an old bill, I believe it still holds value. If the bill were torn, they wouldn't have to accept it, but this bill is not torn. Why didn't they accept it?

I have no intention of spending this old bill anymore; I plan to keep it as a collectible. Its true value will certainly be much higher than its face value.

What do you think?

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The Story of Kennedy (கென்னடியின் கதை) Published by Ananda Vikatan

Around the time of John F. Kennedy's death, Ananda Vikatan published a Tamil book on his life titled The Story of Kennedy. This is the cover of that book. It was written under the pen name Mayan. I believe "Mayan" was the pseudonym of the writer Maniyan, who was then one of Vikatan's editors and a popular serial novelist for the magazine.

I happened to come across an image of this book online recently, and it brought back a flood of childhood memories. This was the very first book I ever read about John F. Kennedy. I first noticed it hanging among the books displayed at the bookstore in the Jaffna Railway Station. Although I knew nothing about Kennedy at that age, I was captivated by his charimatic face on the cover and persuaded my mother to buy the book for me.

It was a beautifully produced volume, printed on glossy paper and filled with wonderful photographs of JFK and his family. I still remember the famous photograph of young John F. Kennedy Jr. hiding beneath the desk in the Oval Office while his father met with his officials, as well as the iconic image of the little boy saluting during his father's funeral procession. Those photographs left a lasting impression on me.

Bound by the Sweetness of Unni Menon's Voice!

Singer Unni Menon

I have absolutely no hesitation in saying that I am addicted to Unni Menon's voice. His voice, which caresses the heart, has the power to soothe and comfort the minds of those who listen to it. Try listening to this song from the movie Varushamellam Vasantham once with your eyes closed. You will understand what I mean.

Varushamellam Vasantham is the only hit movie of actor Manoj. Whenever I listen to this song, I often think that he could have been around for much longer. His calm acting and innocent smile captivated me. Music by Sirpy. Lyrics by R. Ravishankar. The lyricist has also passed away.

Poem: The Expanding Universe and the Searching Heart by V. N. Giritharan -

We exist within the vast, expanding universe,
Striving to comprehend, searching to know.

Distances of light-years leave us in awe.
Why does our existence remain like a mere drop?
In this immense space divided by vast distances,
We know of no other wandering life forms yet.

We exist within the vast, expanding universe,
Striving to comprehend, searching to know.

Is conquering vast distances possible or not?
We do not know if success will come in our lifetime.
Is this a universe devoid of other life?
Knowing the truth is not easy.

We exist within the vast, expanding universe,
Striving to comprehend, searching to know.

The barrier to finding the answer is the immense distance.
Increasing speed to transcend time
Is the only way to reach it,
butHow to achieve that? That is the question.

We exist within the vast, expanding universe,
Striving to comprehend, searching to know.

*digital art work using Google Nano Banana by VNG

"THE BLACK HOLE" Short Film Review / Thoughts:

["THE BLACK HOLE" Short Film Pick Featured by NineJunctions Written & Directed by Philip Sansom & Olly Williams (Phil and Olly) ]

I watched the short film "The Black Hole"! I lost myself in it too!  

Please watch this short film completely. It is an amazing short film. It is a scientific fact that a black hole is the end of spacetime, and anyone or anything that enters it can never return to this universe.

In our daily lives, we constantly see humans living in this spacetime getting trapped and suffering within the social, economic, and political systems they created, don't we? We see so many people struggling after getting caught up in excessive greed, don't we?

"The Black Hole" is a brilliantly crafted short film that blends this human psychology with scientific fact. Creativity is essential to make films like this.

The creativity of this short film leaves me amazed.

Watch this short film until the very end - youtu.be - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSmjqss0XKQ

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The Skylark Has Ceased Its Flight: Poet Puviarasu Passes Away!

Poet Puviarasu 

I learned the news of the passing of poet Puviarasu, who was affectionately called the patriarch of the Vaanambadi (Skylark) poetry movement, an outstanding poet, and an exceptional translator. He passed away at the age of 96. Although the demise of this Marxist poet due to old age was inevitable, it is a monumental loss. My deepest condolences to everyone grieving his passing.

In his memory, I am sharing the link to a documentary film about Poet Puviarasu, which was shared on Facebook by art and literary critic and poet, Indran - https://youtu.be/voUc3CTs4lI  

Additionally, I am sharing the note I previously wrote about The Brothers Karamazov, which was released in the poet's translation.

Nallur Rajadhani by K.S.Sivakumaran

[ Art and literary critic the late K. S. Sivakumaran wrote an English review article on my book "Nallur Rajadhani Nagar Amaippu" (The City Layout of the Nallur Capital) in his regular column in the Daily News newspaper published in Sri Lanka. The article appeared in the Daily News issue of 28 April 2004. It was later republished in Friday, a weekly newspaper, in its 7–15 November 2007 edition.]

Nallur Rajadhani by K.S.Sivakumaran

Lanka born Canadian Thamilian V.N. Giritharan writes fiction, poetry and prose writing in Thamil. Some of his creations are  truly remarkable. His books are of interest and in fact exposes of the pattern of living in foreign claims by former Lankans. An architect (from the Moratuwa University) he is also a qualified. electrical and electronic engineering Technologist. He has wide  interests in the sciences, history and children's literature. On top of it, he is serving a useful purpose in the Cyberspace.

While there are more than a dozen websites in Thamil promoting literary and cultural events of the Thamilians in Thamilnadu in India, it is Giritharan's 'Pathivukal' e-zine that gives almost exclusively a comprehensive coverage of the Lankan Thamil literary scene, apart from other subjects like politics.

One other Thamil website, also from Canada - the e-zine Kuviyam - also covers a larger area of Thamil studies and  related matters in a broader scope.

Thamil literature

But the accent in 'Pathivukal' is on contemporary Thamil literature including what is produced in India. Both Giritharan and Pon Kulendiren accommodate me with my contributions in  English in their e-zines. It must be also said that Giritharan's daughter has her own website,booktrain.ca, for the kids, in English. She, herself a 12 years old, writes to the Toronto newspapers.

My difficulty in writing in Thamil via the Internet is that I cannot  typein Thamil and also I don't know how to use any of the  fonts available. That is why I was unable to send any material in Thamil to Lankan newspapers and magazines via the Internet.  Thus my computer literacy is incomplete. But I am trying to master the technique.