I started blogging a few years back, a big thanks to my friend TP who motivated me…. Today Typepad had a message that I have blogged my 1000_th_ post. Did blogging help me? Its a resounding **yes** because I have understood things better once I had written them down, most relevant in this case are book summaries.

To Be of Use - Marge Piercy The people I love the best jump into work head first without dallying in the shallows and swim off with sure strokes almost out of sight. They seem to become natives of that element, the black sleek heads of seals bouncing like half-submerged balls I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart, who pull like water buffalo, with massive patience,

It has been almost 2 years since I have read any fiction book. Had to go to a nearby mall to get my weekly groceries, when I saw this book. Did not have any great inclination to pick up such a book but did an impulsive purchase .On Sunday evening, felt like taking a break and read this book in a few hrs time. Well, the book is a work of fiction where the protagonist meets his dead mother and has conversations with her , just when he decides to commit suicide.

Nice points about “working out” via Zen Habits Exercise: Do it 4 times per week for at least 30 minutes. Seriously, doesn’t matter. Basketball, jogging, weights, push ups, etc. Unless you have a specific goal just make sure to get it done! The two day rule! You can’t miss 2 days of working out in a row. You can skip one day. But not the next! Don’t let the “Exercise Monster” build up.

Recently I came across a nice illustration which captures the work of a data analyst. Each of the tasks mentioned below requires a specific set of skillsets and if one can work on learning at least 30-40% of skills from each of the disciplines mentioned, then data analysis becomes really interesting. One can walk through the entire task list and subsequently hope to understand things and probably build some useful models.