Impersonal Notes

Festival of Eats!

2005-09-08T00:41:00.000-07:00

Ganesh Chaturti it was yesterday. The preps for the day had started a week ago. Mom gets to her frantic cleaning. Every inch, spotlessly cleaned. I helped out a little. She wanted to make the traditional sweets, Kanji(Kadabu) and Moodak. They are the cutest little things. The shape is something i perfected in a few minutes:). These need infinite patience and skill which Ma seems to have. These were prepared a day in advance. Slept late. So I couldn't wake up as early as I hoped to. But Ma was up and about by 4!

We started the day with Nag puja. It is was nice to see so many youngsters at the temple. Some hip guys also:). Dressed in kurtas and jeans. Ok, I did notice them that's all. But I was piously praying also. Then came home and there was another round of puja. And food! There were guests in the evening and more sweets:).

Also some people taking home idols of Ganesh. Some in great splendour, some with a simple tinkling of a bell. I remember Ganesh Chaturti vividly when I was in the 5th/6th std. We lived in a different area then. There were huge idols which would pass by our house being taken for "visarjan." I know festivities in Pune and Mumbai must be on a much larger scale and I really hope I see that sometime.

I particularly remember my grandma during this time of the year. She would always have Kanjis ready for us. And loads of other snacks. My sis and i would wait weeks in advance to go to Grandma's house and stay there. If we were up early, she would take us along for shopping early in the morning. As early as 6 a.m. Yup, the market nearby is all set for the day's trade by then. The festive spirit would be everywhere. Of course, the prices would have sky-rocketted as well.

I think it is a wonderful tradition of installing a Ganesh. The ones that are held on a large scale are sometimes a nuisance. Sometimes, I hear "love-songs" from films being sung in front of God's idol. And not to mention the "chanda" collection that starts months in advance! So many turn out to be frauds.

Ganesh Chaturti also marks the beginning of the shopping season, esp in this part of town. It ends with Dussera. Loads of sales, contests and offers. Thanx to one, I got to buy myself a phone as well:).

Ghosts of the Past

2005-09-07T21:58:00.000-07:00

Here I stand at the threshold of something new.
Trying to forget the past.
But the Ghosts never leave.
I see them sometimes in broad daylight and the waking hours of the night.
They move slowly. They bring back with them flashes of yesteryears.
Bitter-sweet. Mostly sweet.
Ironic it is, for I thgt that looking back, I would remember only the pain.
The Ghosts tell me they remember the joy.
They were few and far between but they have lasted.
And I must confess, I recall them fondly.

I hear them often. Their voices cannot be forgotten.
Their words linger for awhile, floating before my eyes.

There is one among them who is most vivid, oldest of them all.
One who has lurked in the dark abysm of my mind.
One who appears in the most unexpected manner,
One who dawdles around much longer,
One who just refuses to be dead to me.

The Ghosts visit my dreams too.
I seem to be getting accustomed to the Vivid One.
So often have I seen this sight,
That it ceases to shock me any more.
What is striking is this Ghost never speaks to me.
Or is it that I stopped speaking first?
I hear conversations that don't include me.
They are loud enough to be heard by me.
But the words are directed to another. Not me. Never, me.

I am not afraid of them now.
They say "The truth shall set you free."
I think it did.
I have realised it is all in my head.
I retrace my steps in time when these Ghosts came into being.
I find it was my own folly from which they egressed.
So it is my duty to dispel them as well.

I have seen light in religion.
It is now clear to me, as daylight itself.
I kept drawing my strength from the Past.
Now it is time to let go.
I, now, atone but don't regret.
For it was a moment of weakness,
That caused me to digress.

Have you ever had a dream, that you were so sure was real?

2005-09-05T23:58:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a dream, Neo, that you were so sure was real? What if you were unable to wake from that dream, Neo? How would you know the difference between the dream world and the real world?

Everybody dreams. Almost everybody. This aint a thesis on what dreams are and aren't. I am writing about a confusion a face often because of my dreams. I am not an imsomniac and I sleep well. I am not too sound a sleeper, who can't be awoken by a sound. I dream almost every night, and well into the morning as well. They vary from fascinating tales to nightmares. But the morning dreams are the ones that causes disarray. I tend to dream of the day in advance. I dream of everything from my mom waking me up to breakfast. The highlights for the day also occur, like an exam, meeting friends, going to some place, etc. I dream till almost the end of the day and then my mom wakes me up. For real!

I wake up wondering what just happened? Didn't Ma already wake me? Didn't I already wish everybody Good Morning? Didn't I have something else for breakfast? The entire day passes with deja-vu! No big deal. But sometimes I am so certain that someone has told me something and they completely deny.:( I just attribute it to something I have dreamt, and let go.

ONE MONTH REMAINING!!!

2005-08-18T10:29:00.000-07:00

Tomo is 19th Aug! One more month to kill! This is really killing me! I am counting days! I have done everything I could to pass time...
My comp was screwed for one week. Got alright yesterday. Have lot of internet now and dunno what the hell to do with it!
Not in the Mood! for a nice long blog. Maybe later....

Some Redundant Questions!

2005-07-27T10:09:00.000-07:00

I was scurrying home in the rain today, with no umbrella and a guy on a bike calls out to me, "Excuse, what is the time?" He burst out laughing. His friend, behind him, slaps him on the back and says, "Chal yaar!" And they zip off sniggering! Yeah, it was time to run home! Idiots! There are so many questions I have come across like this. And not always coming from silly people. Even my folks ask me some redundant questions. Here are some.

1.What is the time???
This is the most pissing-off question. Why? So many people on the streets, who have nothing to do with you, ask this! Tatterdemalions, beggars, cheap road-romeos! These people have nothing to do with time! They are in no hurry to get anywhere, no appointments to keep...but still. And what puts me in an awkward position is, sometimes I do reply and the other person says, "Kannadalli hellakagallva??" (Can't you say that in Kannada!??) Then I embarass myself more trying to recall the numbers in kannada and I have to start from one! So these people, either stand there and grin or move on rebuffing aloud!

2. What are you doing?
This question reminds me about that Akbar-Birbal anecdote.

Akbar tells Birbal to survey his country and find out how many people are blind and how many deaf. So the next day, Birbal sits in the streets of the capital doing a "lowly" job of mending shoes or something. (I don't remember.) A lot of people, see the great Birbal in this way, approach him and ask, "Sir, what are you doing?!!" When Birbal tells them he is mending shoes, they exclaim "What??" in astonishment. The king also hears of this. And he asks his favorite courtier the same questions and receives the same answer. Birbal offers some consolation by saying "Jahan Panah, I will explain it to you in court soon. Please give me some time." After a couple of days, Birbal presents himself before the sultan and says "Your highness, you had told me to find out how many deaf and blind people are there in your kingdom. I have the figures. There are XXX deaf and blind people and you are one of them, jahanpanah!" The court is shocked to hear this! Akbar, fuming, orders Birbal to explain how. Birbal, was ready with his usual witty reply. "Your highness, people who saw what I was doing, came up to me and asked what I was doing! I counted them as blind people. When I did tell them what I was doing, they asked me again! Then this accounted for deaf people!" And the court bursts out laughing including the Jahanpanah and all is well! (Thank god they don't conduct surveys in this manner these days....Or do they??)

Sometimes, I am busy doing weird things. People ask me the same question. That's ok. And sometimes, I am in a real grouchy mood, engrossed in some work. People ask me this question, and I burst out laughing because I remember this story! Oh, who am I kidding? I also snap at them, depending on the degree of grouchiness.

3. You cut your hair???
I get this from a minimum of a dozen people when I get a hair-cut! Even my dad!(lols) No, like some of my friends put it, "I had an accident with the barber's scissors!" The next question which follows this can be even more redundant. "Why??" My hair! My wish!!

4. Where are you??
Nothing wrong with this. What with everybody having a cellphone and being,literally, everywhere! But sometimes, people absent-mindedly call me on the landline and ask this! (LOL! Of course, I do!)

5.Who, (my surname)?
You must know from my previous post, that I share my 1st name with a best friend of mine. In school, we were in the same class in the 7th, 11th and 12th std. Somebody calls either of us by our first name, both of us used to respond! You can imagine the commotion when both of us used to sit in the first row. The solution for this was I started playing deaf! I would never respond the 1st time the name was called! This wasn't always nice, coz people attributed this to my snobbishness! But what the hell!:D.But what makes this question redundant is this. Sometimes when I am chatting with another friend on the phone, and when i mention my friend's(our) 1st name, they immediately ask, "Who, (my surname!)?" Too funny! That is inevitable, coz in our friends' circle, we are addressed by our surnames to avoid confusion! So when they hear our first name, they inadvertently ask.

6. Where is T/(my sis)?
A little similar to the above question. This is by people who know both my sister and me. They call home and have the usual, hi-howru..and then ask this question! We sound alike sometimes. So they go on talking to me mistaking me for my sis and vice-versa. And sometimes we(my sister and I) play along and go on pretending to be the other person till the caller gets confused or we get caught! This even happens with our parents at times!

7. Who r you??
Sometimes people call and ask for so-and-so. Having received the call on my phone, I have a right to know who is calling. Some politely reply. Others ask me "Who are you?" Pah!

8. Do you play with a Cobra?
I am not kidding! When I used to play pool online, there was a firang who asked me this question. I was flabbergast! I asked him what made him think so! That guy plainly answered, "I was watching Discovery and they showed "people" in India, even children, playing with Cobras! Puff! I then had to give him a short lecture on the diversity and the humongous social differences found in our country.

9. Are you really a witchdoctor?
Many of you reading this (I think all) have asked me this. Answer? Yes! I am. I walk around with war-paint on my face, a long staff, a huge robe and feathers sticking out of my head. And yes I do a fierce dance around a sinster-looking fire...green in colour. And please note, though I originally meant the word to be a combination of witch and doctor, I am not a witch! Like some weird firangi teen went on telling everyone in the pool room online! In case you are still wondering...I am NOT a doctor either!

10. Are you related to Sachin??
I cry when I get this! Not becoz it was an ex-bf's name! I have been asked me this question since eternity! Just recently a new friend asked me this question.:P Believe me pal, you are not the 1st person to ask me this. It is usually the 2nd or 3rd question people ask me after knowing my surname. The first question being.."What?" and the second "How do you spell it?" (making doubly sure of what they heard!)

There are so many more. But these will do for a blog!

Riots!

2005-07-27T09:54:00.000-07:00

Angry mobs. A way of "fighting for your rights" or a herd of people consisting mostly of fools instigated by money or a multitude of misled innocent folk? The pictures were all over the news channels yesterday. Some were right in protesting against the inhuman treatment of their friends/relatives and co-workers by police the previous day. But why behave so violently? Even women were running after police-walahs with lathis! I am reading Gandhiji's autobiography for sometime now. It is very thought-provoking, like I said before. I have stopped so many times in the course of the book, which I am only half-way through. It definitely makes one stop and think. Does anyone understand the meaning of "ahimsa" and "satyagraha" these days? Are "times different" now? How? Gandhi was a man who stood up to a mob of hundreds for what he believed to be right, even in a foreign land. And he was no superman or hindi film hero to go bashing up these people. What is more important is that he didn't have the anger in him to do that to the perpetrators. Is it that men like him come around once in a million years? No one but the Mahatma can do what he did? Was he born just because of the bad times that had befallen our country? Isn't there anything worth fighting for now? In a peaceful way? I can't answer these questions myself. Somewhere deep inside is a feeling of guilty.

Bride and Prejudice!

2005-07-24T05:11:00.000-07:00

What a time pass! Gurinder Chaddha made a royal mess of the classic. And I don't mean by "Indianising" it. I can't think of a truly romantic moment or a really fully scene. I don't find Aish remarkable and Piya was plain annoying! The mother is Bend it... was so very funny. The one in this, is a cheap imitation. Anupam Kher should have been given more screen-time as he was the only one worth it.

The character of Lalita was to be that of an "ideal" Indian woman/girl. All the self-respect, self-confidence, intelligence, talent and fun..packaged into a perfect beauty. I would have admired such a character...but i found this really stupid in the movie. Compare it to the "Lolita" played by Vidya Balan in Parineeta...and it is miles away. Not only do I think Vidya Balan is a better actress, but she is a real Indian beauty and I think she would have done a better job in this movie.

The portrayal of Amritsar was too silly! Like the entire town breaks into a dance when the bride-to-be goes ashopping! Yeah you see that in Hindi movies all the time. But Mrs Chaddha should have made up her mind if she was to make a Hindi movie or an English one. I know she is an NRI and she did do a good job of Indians-in-UK movie with her debut. In this movie, there was Anu Malik giving his tunes to stupid lyrics like ..."we can't keep our shoulders down..." or something to that effect...(The actors were doing the bhangra in the market place, in case you are wondering!) And to think that the Bakshi family wasn't very well-to-do, why will anybody care! Oh! And best part, there were elephants for the baarat! I really dunno, but is this a new custom?? If not, is it prevalent in India? Another goofy thing was the snake dance! Come on now! That was supposed to be funny?

After this movie's hype, madam Aish was called on the Oprah Show! She is trying to dispel the myth about the Indian woman in the world. "Me staying with my family is such a taaapic!" She may be a good example. But I would rather have Sush be an ambassador for the cause. I am sure at least she wouldn't put on an accent! A fake American one and giggle pointlessly!:) Prejudice you say? Yup! (Good Job with the saree tho, Aish! And India mein, jyadatar 30+ aged ladkiyon ko ghar mein nahin rakthe! Shaadi karke bhagaa dete hain, nahi to woh khud bhaag jati hai!:D)

"Ram Dev Who?"

2005-07-24T04:52:00.000-07:00

Ram Dev Ji! He is my guru. Well, almost. He is a brahmachari from Hardwar. His mission in life is to teach Indians Yoga and perpetuate the true Hindu religion. He is tolerant of other religions too and he doesn't encourage/discourage conversion! No, he is not a new God-man! He tries to instill the feeling of patriotism in his countrymen. He is well versed in Hindu scriptures but he wont tell you to worship this God or that. He is an ascetic and is always dressed in saffron and wears wooden slippers! He is the real deal minus the naamas and garlands and maalas! He is not a very good singer when it comes to devotional songs.:) My entire family is enthralled by him. We even saw him in real life early this year. God bless him. So this should help you when you
come across allusions to him in my blogs. More about him, here

Me Teacher!

2005-07-22T12:54:00.000-07:00

This was the only useful thing I have done in hols so far! I volunteered to teach some people the basics of computers. It was at a new institution offering such training at costs affordable to less fortunate people. I had a look at the syllabus and it was pretty simple. The problem the principal and students were facing, I was told, was teachers. The course was one week old and the 1st teacher was on a make-shift basis. They had appointed a new one but the students weren't very happy, was the impression.
The place is situated just opposite my coll. So getting there was no prob. I met the princi 30 mins before the class. He spoke to only in Kannada. I am fine with it for 5 mins of conversation and then I am lost for words:(. Like I have told you guys, the Kannada that my classmates spoke consisted mainly of words like "Magaa", "Thu! Ninna!" "Kaththe!" "Baaro-Hogo!" I'd rather not tell you the other uncouth words I have picked up thanks to them:P. I asked the princi, who was a nice and polite man, what the prob was with the new teacher. He told me that some students didn't think he was up to the mark. But he also told me that since it was the 1st teaching experience of that chap, it would be better to give him more time to settle in. My dad told me to be an observer, if required.

Close to 3 p.m., some students came to ask for the classroom key. The princi then asked them (one girl and 2 guys), what they thought about the teacher and they seemed to be okay with him! I began to wonder what I was to do there. Ah, well! I was there. I might as well spend some time. The students thought I was just a visitor and didn't bother; left the room. "Let's go downstairs. The students have come" the princi said.As I descended the stairs, I was keeping myself from grinning because the students were much taller, the guys at least, and some looked older. The princi left me at the door and went to attend to some serious business. I lingered outside. Peeped in. Some students saw me. I went inside and looked around the place.

One boy came upto me said, "Are you here to be taught or teach??" I smiled and walked with him to the small group he was with before. "What do you think?" I asked. They looked at me and smiled. The boy replied, quite confidently "I think you are a new student here." "Then, I am!" I said and watched their expression. The girls then began to talk. Mind you, the conversation so far was only in Kannada. So those people must have been polite to not laugh at me. They got me a chair and I sat with them. We intro-ed ourselves to one another. The spirited young man's name was H. So was another's.:P. One of the girls was married. They told me they found it hard to make notes in English because it was so long ago that they wrote in English. They showed me their notes and all. They asked me what my educational qualification was. Caught! I told them I had done my engg from that coll and pointed out of the window. "Then you are not here to learn, are you?" observed a woman. "No, I am not." I grinned. "I am here to help you. I was told that there was a problem with lessons, so I am here to help you."

Now came the tough part. The girls said they had taken to me and began telling me that all they wanted was for someone to tell them things in their language, i.e. Kannada!!!! (Drat it!) One girl flattered me, saying, "Madam, the first teacher was just like you!" "How so?" I enquired. "He used to mingle with us and teach really well. The new teacher is not bad either, it is just that he is not very approachable." "Oh, that's okay. I am here to sort your doubts!:) But you have to bear with my language." I stammered. "That's okay, madam. This is good enough for us." All happy!:D

I later discovered that they were told to learn some typing on the comp using Wordpad. There were around 14 students and I went around sorting doubts and encouraging them. After 1 hour, the teacher enters. I sees someone else there. Panics. Without uttering a word, went straight to the princi. Having been assured that I was not there to steal his job, he started installing the Typing Tutor software on each of the comps. Still, didn't say a word to me! Fine! I should go speak to him, I thought. (Forget the rule abt "gentleman" introducing themselves first.) I went and intro-ed myself and reassured him that I was just helping. He is Mr. M. by the way. He was a teacher who knew what he was doing! I just went from one comp to the next helping around. H was a mischievous boy who found it hard to sit in one place for more than 2 mins! There were occasional jokes and pranks. This went on for somedays. Some boys were prankish. Asked doubts, the answers to which thay already knew! And then told me to sit with them and teach. Now now! I didn't. I had to be firm at times.

On my last day, I noticed that the princi was pretty competent to act as a assistant to the teacher! He would go around teaching people while I sat and stared out of the window!:P Also, their teacher told them there would be no theory classes. So I decided that i should leave. I wasn't needed:p. Thus ended my tenure.

Veggie!

2005-07-21T09:38:00.000-07:00

I have often toyed with the concept of vegetarianism. I love the taste of the Chinese Chilli Chicken that my mum used to prepare. And the curry that my grandmama used to prepare for me was heavenly. It used to be a kind of feast on sundays. Something similar to perhaps what the African-americans have. Remember the movie, Soul Food? My grandma would buy fresh chicken every week and she would prepare her famous curry just for me. But when she passed away a few years back, I stopped eating chicken all together. I was never fond of any other meat anyway.

I did get back to eating NV. Mum told me abt the "benefits," how good it was for health, etc. So I was back to relishing chicken. Most of my friends are also n-vegs. I also had this thought that Amma( my grandma) would have wanted me to go on eating chicken bcoz she knew i liked it.

Things changed recently. Mum was watching tv and saw the torture some calves were put through. She broke down. And swore never to touch NV again. I was touched too. I never liked NV made outside home. So if ma wasn't making it, I wasn't gonna eat it. This was a sort of a self-imposed restriction. That's all. I used to think of eating it sometimes, but I resolved not to.

Swami Ramdevji was also a motivation. He said that God dwelt within the human body. How can one feed such stuff to the God inside. That hit me like a ton of bricks. It irradicated the little craving I had for chicken.

I have just started reading My Experiments with Truth and Gandhiji seemed to have gone through similar dilemma. And what he says is this.

Manusmriti at any rate did not teach me ahimsa. I have told the story of my meat-eating. Manusmriti seemed to support it.

I read Salt's book from cover to cover and was very much impressed by it. From the date of reading this book, I may claim to have become a vegetarian by choice. I blessed the day on which I had taken the vow before my mother. I had all along abstained from meat in the interests of truth and of the vow I had taken, but wished at the same time that every Indian should be a meat-eater, and had looked forward to being one myself freely and openly some day, and to enlisting others in the cause. The choice was now made in favour of vegetarianism, the spread of which henceforward became my mission.

The book he is referring to is Henry Salt's Plea for Vegetarianism. I haven't read the book but I will take Gandhiji's word for it.

My mum also made me realise that the taste that I was so fond of wasn't of the meat but the masala and the other ingredients that went into the dish. She cooked me vegetables with the same ingredients and what do you know? They all tasted really good! There is a good substitute for NV-turned-Vs! Soya chunks! These are really yummy and health and 100% vegetarian. It is my favorite now. Mum makes the best pulao out of it as well. In order to make up for the "lost" nutrients, I include milk in my diet though I abhor the taste:(.

All's well. I don't think I will be tempted to switch sides again. God be with me:).

Pakistani Music.

2005-07-20T11:15:00.000-07:00

Just when I was looking for the song in my prev post, I came across this website that has all my favourite Pakistan Bands. I think I like Strings more than any other band. Even Indian!
Here is my choisest picks. Do give it a shot.
Dhaani
Sohniyae
Duur
Chaaye Chaaye

Fuzon seems to have a great influence of Hidustani Classical in their songs, so maybe that's y like their songs too.
Fuzon:
Aankhon ke Saagar
Ankhiyan

Hariharan in concert

2005-07-20T09:36:00.000-07:00

Since I didn't do anything remarkable today, I might as well tell you about the concert I went to 2 weeks back. It was kind of an-invitees-only event. It was to commemorate the anniversary of suviv, part of my dad's office. Mom was enthu abt it, so me jobless-girl, tagged along. I forgot exactly what date it was. As usual we were early. On that day, we were very early! The concert was scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. and we were seated at 5! The good thing was, the musicians came in. They were tuning their instruments and whatever other things they r supposed to do. The guy on the harmonium, Mr. something Pandit, sang this beautiful song by Fuzon called KhamujHe sang it well also. And if that was a treat for my ears, the guy on the keyboard was the youngest and the 2nd cutest:p. The guitarist was a Chintoo(no kidding) Singh. He was barely audible but I wasn't listening to him anyway.

The hostesses were very courteous. They offered snacks and coffee; as always, I burnt my tongue and lips when i sipped the coffee so I dunno wat anything tasted like!

Then arrived the dignitaries. The deputy chief minister was among them. Along with him, a herd of spoons, chumchas, I mean:D. Mr. Hariharan was apparently on time, but had to wait for the "big" people to arrive. So he entered. The audience clapped. There he was minus his long hair:). Thank Heavens! He looked more dignified. There was an accompaniment of a satrang and tabla. I had previous got to hear a sort of "jugalbandi" of these. I had already begun enjoying myself.:) Not to mention a sprinkling of good-looking guys. It was nice to see I wasn't the only "youngster" there.

He started with some ghazals. He has a very good voice, and his training in both Carnatik and Hindustani enhanced his talent. The audience loved it. He was mirthful and very interactive with the audience. He even obliged to some audience requests. Then he sang some popular numbers from movies as many young guys were shouting for them! He sang a ghazal and then smoothly drifted into the canorous title track of Roja. I had goosebumps. I was amazing! The satrang seemed to add more magic to Rahman's masterpiece.

Back!!!

2005-07-19T09:44:00.000-07:00

Yes. I am!:) Been so long! Here is a brief update:
4th June: Last theory exam of engg...was okay. Came to know my marks of internal assessment.
6th June: Last exam of engg! This was not bad...
25-27th : Trip to Horranadu
After this I lost track of time:P. Nowadays i have no idea what day it is, let alone the date! I wake up really late. Watch TV, play on the comp, watch more TV, sleep, eat, do nothing the entire day! Yeah this is the life!
I had made some major plans to learn something during these hols, but when u can while away time, why not! I aint gonna get this opportunity again.

Some highlights were meetings with friends. BB was here. So we met up and watched Paheli also. She left in the beginning of June for her job at Lehman Bros! Atta girl! NY and all!:)

Got results of engg in the first week of July. Pretty good. Raised my aggre as well. Lost the gold medal by 1%. Bad luck! But i am okay with it now.

SS went to Mysore last week. She is back already. The place is enthralling! How do I know? Been/getting in touch with people who are already there and who will be there with me. And so many pics from there! I cant wait to get there.

Watched some new releases. Paheli, War of the worlds, Sarkar, Parineeta.

Went for a Hariharan concert. He was good. Ghazals and all.

Now i am sleepy. Will blog later.......

I am beyond redemption!

2005-06-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

Here I am playing pool again! God bless!!!
Current Pool Rating : 1230

POOL!-addiction!!

2005-05-31T10:22:00.000-07:00

Yet another addiction of mine! Pool! Online, i.e. I learnt how to play just a couple of months back. Now i log on almost everyday to Yahoo! Games to play pool! I am not that great at the game but not bad either. Have been steadily improving, i must say. But rankings are not an indication of how well i play. When I get a lousy opponent, I win else i lose! Good fun all the same. I even get an opportunity to chat with complete strangers. I rarely initiate a conversation and I am almost always rude! I am over the phase of making friends with arbit people! I come across some indians too! What nuts! And some people who think the person on the other end of the line is as ignorant as he/she is and rattle away such nonsense that I would quit a game just to make them shut up!

Yesterday, I came across one such air-head. The convo starts with the usual, hi, hello, asl. So this was a boy, 16 yrs old he claimed from Canada. So I ask, "Ottawa?" He asks me are u from India or Ottawa???? I said, "No, no. I asked if you are from Ottawa!" He very cleverly replies. "No, I am from Ontario,Canada!" I thought I had my geography screwed! I clarified with the walking-talking atlas, i.e. my sis. I was pretty sure that Ottawa is the capital of Canada and I was right! Wikipedia ascertains it! What is even more surprising is that it is located in the Ottawa Valley in the eastern part of the province of Ontario. I go back to mr. smarty-pants and ask,"So, what is the capital of Canada?" He still doesn't get it and goes on chatting shamelessly! I gave up on him and went to another room!

Was chatting on the phone with PV a while ago. He was telling me how great his "road trip" to Kemmangundi was. Carefree fellas! What fun! I have been to Kemmangundi twice myself but I can imagine what it will be like to ride there by yourself. Imagine me asking my dad to let me go on an escapade like that! I have actually and he says that I can go with my husband! I really don't know why parents end all conversations with marriage! Nice trick to make your offspring shut up!:P

Oh! Btw, I have an exam in 3 days time and I can't be less bothered! Really difficult to motivate myself to study for one theory paper. Quite a bit to study. I haven't even picked up my hall ticket! I don't feel like stepping in to coll now. But Ani called today and told me to meet her in coll tomo. That reminds me! Ani, BS and I joined SS,VA, SN, SM and KJ to watch "Bunty aur Babli." DUH! Movie! We had lunch and we split. I don't think anyone liked it! Aishwarya Rai was looking so cheap! And AB Sr cheaper. And both father and son sport leather jackets! Rani Mukherjee ...don't like her one bit after the kiss in Black. And like SN said, she is one woman who can claim to have kissed both father and son! How gross! There are rumours that she and AB Jr. could be tying the knot! Imagine! They get married and seeking blessings from the groom's parents!! Aaaah!

I have made up my mind not to get online till 11th or 12th. For other semester exams i have abstained from the internet for a month or longer during exams. I think I week or 10 days at least is something I owe to my 8th sem:P.

P.S. Almost forgot! I have been reading a lot of random blogs lately. Just hitting the "Next Blog" button. And 2 OMG!!! blogs are Sex and Mumbai and Loves and Times. I am still gasping:p. Call me prudish if u will but all this in India!!!!???

Today's Pool Ranking: 1258

A lazy day...

2005-05-25T09:31:00.000-07:00

A nice quiet day spent at home! That's what I like best. Cancerians are known to be home-loving. I woke up late. Got ready, late. Did yoga after a really long time! Relished breakfast. Chatted with Mum, watched TV, tried solving a puzzle, watched "Collateral," etc.

Called T.A.N. It is her bday. I thgt about how much we have in common. We share more than just a first name! It is true that it has been ages since I saw her, but I think the friendship is as strong as ever. I will be by her side when she needs my help and I am sure she would be there for me as well. We were in the same class in KG. Her birth-number and mine is the same, 6. She is among the few Geminis I get along with. I can't help but mention that she shares her bday with one of the "rivals" in my class. But they couldn't be more different in character. So that sends astrology right out the window;). (Not that I lose faith in it becoz of this.) She will be there at Mys with me for majority of the training period. Hope it will be just like school days.
Happy Birthday T!

Tomo is SK's bday and I already wished her in advance:P. I always goof up! I remember TAN's bday and I know SK's bday is 1 day +/-. But greetings in advance is a good thing!

May has a lot of people's bday including Ani's.

I am very excited about Cancerians though. Great people u know;). Pricess Di, Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Me....:p I was drooling over Tom Cruise today in "Collateral." But I must say Jamie Foxx steals the show. Ani and I were planning to go for "Naina" tomo. No one else is coming. So we may have to postpone. I badly want to watch Star Wars though. Since Ani doesn't like/watch Eng movies, I dont wanna force. Moreover it will be more fun if I went with SS,VA,MM,etc. SS and VA are busy. I don't think we will meet up b4 10th. I think the movie mayn't be in theatres till then:(
I will read in the meantime then. No, no not Text Books! I managed to d/l quite a few e-books. Catch-22 is what I have started with. I hope to finish it this week. E-books do tend to take longer. Though the readability is better, it isn't good to sit in front of the comp for long hours, is it;)?
Dad was telling me to get LASIK done. I asked him, "Why, Pa? Difficulty in finding grooms?;)" He was caught off-guard:P. True, actually. But I think I will make him watch "Naina" and then he wont insist on me getting the operation done. Yoga is supposed to cure short-sightedness. I am neither regularly performing it, nor am I taking any care of my eyes! God Bless Me!

Like you would have noticed, I have nothing to blog about. Only a lot of time and patience today to type....I will stop now. Have a good 8 hrs sleep. Read more perhaps tomo.

All the best to all the students, (including myself!)....Ciao all.

Zippadeedoda~!

2005-05-22T08:11:00.000-07:00

I am ALMOST done! Finished the last presentation in front of my class and teachers! The proj presentation, i.e. It went ok. We also demo-ed our instrument. There was no questions this time. And don't ask me how the "others" did. I was actually feeling bad that "one" particular had not included me in their team in the 6th sem. NOW i am glad they didn't:P. I think i should learn to have a little more faith in myself.

I slogged for the report on Fri and Sat and finished it after hours of NON-STOP editing in front of the comp and 3 hours of sleep in 48 hours! Had to make a trip to our guide's office as well. All this took a toll on my health and today woke up feeling really sick. My head was spinning! So spent most of the morning, sleeping. I couldn't make it to MM's sis' engagement because of this. There was nobody at home also to drop me:(. But being the darlings that they are, the sisters dropped in.:D That was the high point of the day today.

It rained yesterday. Sorry it POURED! Hail storm! So many trees uprooted. The wind was furious! I returned home around 9:30 pm and the rain starts. Thanks to the rain, there was no power supply the whole day today. Nothing to do. No music! I read the Bhagwad Gita. Needed some spiritual help. I faced the worst side of college politics in the past couple of days. There is not ONE person i wont to meet again after i pass out. NOT EVEN ONE. Not even my own proj team mates! Back stabbing and conspiracy. Makes me want to throw up, Again.

The last Monday of College Life is tomo. In school, i used to think that i should do something that would leave an indelible mark. When I am leaving coll, I wish to be forgotten. Anyway the dept is also closing! In two years time, the new students wont even know that printing even existed! Somehow i can't make myself to feel sorry about it!

I haven't come up with any constructive plans for my vacs. Last working day is 28th May. Theory exam on 4th june and final external-evaluation proj presentation on 10th June. 10th June - 19th Sept....What do I do? I am thinking of joining music/dance classes. Want to feed my creative side with something Indian:). Hopefully I will come up with concrete plans by the end of the week. One thing is for sure. Will get some good sleep at least!!

Share My Torture!

2005-05-14T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here are the lyrics of the song that will mark my Farewell Party! I find the lyrics very stupid. For those of you who know Kannada, translate it and have fun! To think that Ani and I were actually thinking of singing a song! We got to sing during the Antakshari but I promise she and I would have put up a much better show!

Wo Lamhe, wo baatein,
Koi na jaane,
Thi kaisi raatein,
Hooo, barsaatein,
Wo bheegi bheegi yaadein,
Wo bheegi bheegi yaadein...
Na main jaanoun,
Na tu jaane,
(aaah)
Kaisa hai ye mausam,
Koi na jaane,
Kahi se hai fizaa aayi,
Ghamon ki dhoop sang laayi,
Khafaa hogaye hum,
Judaa hogaye hum,
Wo Lamhe, wo baatein,
Koi na jaane,
Thi kaisi raatein,
Hooo,
barsaatein,
Wo bheegi bheegi yaadein,
Wo bheegi bheegi yaadein...
(hoooo...)
Saagar ki,
Gehraayi se,
Gehra hai,
Apna pyaar,
Sehraoun ki,
In hawaon me,
Kaise aayeee-gi bahaar,
Kahan se ye hawa aayi,
Ghataayen kaali kyoun chhaayi,
Khafaa hogaye hum,
Judaa hogaye hum,
Wo Lamhe,
wo baatein,
Koi na jaane,
Thi kaisi raatein,
Hooo,
barsaatein,
Wo bheegi bheegi yaadein,
Wo bheegi bheegi yaadein...
(hooooo hooooooo)
(hoooo hoooo, hoo hooo, hooo ho, ho ho ho)
(hooooooooooooooo)(aaaaaaah)

P.S. The aaahs and hoooos that u see in the text above are part of the lyrics but they can be taken to be cries of agony! From the listener i.e:D.
Jaane Kahan Gaye Woh Din.....Really music in the hindi film industry is seeing very little talent these days and even less is shown on screen!

Two very different Saturdays and the days in between!

2005-05-14T11:15:00.000-07:00

I don't quite remember what happened the week after Vastu. I worked on proj, that's all i think. Running up and down. The next saturday was so much fun. Met up with some ppl from the Brainy Community. CP came to my place and we got to the meeting spot 15 mins early. So we sat and watched Queen Vicky(;)) for some time. Then J joined us. So we three ladies were in time and felt very happy abt it coz the guys came late and we had agreed that they shud be punished:D. They were to treat us for lunch and dinner and desserts and other refreshments in between! So we were joined by S, MMS and A. If I used the real name acronyms then there were a total of 3 SS. :p. A led us to the sacred grounds which happened to be a rock put inside the park by the Mining Dept. We discussed certain matters pertaining to the community and most of it was fun too. Everybody seemed to have a good sense of humour or at least we were all in the same wavelength. Then came lunch time. We chose a place a.k. for Fish and Chips. The a.c. room was a respite from the afternoon sun. Then A and S got talking on their fav book, Fountainhead. J joined in as she had read it too. The discussion was so intriguing and "intellectually stimulating" that made me regret not having read a book by Ayn Rand. And I almost forgot....MMS was kinda enough to lend me his music CDs. A wonderful collection. Makes up for most of my lost files:D. Ty! S and A offered to be "chivalrous" and paid the hefty bill and MMS bought us those famous yummy khulfis from a place close-by.
We walked back to Vicky's statue and split. A even dropped CP and me to certain place. Then CP dropped me closer to my home. It was a great day!
Sunday was spent working on my seminar. It was the following thurs and fri. I had so much background info to gather, make a report, get it printed and bound. The days from Mon to Wed were spent in hopping from one printing shop to the next. Finally my presentation was on Thurs. I had included an AVI file in my ppt and when i ran the ppt at home it opened fine. But when I go to coll and try to play it....it tells me the link is missing. Stupid me. Ani came home with me. I had to copy and run back to coll. We made it just in time. I did pretty okay I guess. I had only one question from a teacher and a clarification from the audience.
The next day, our "rivals" in class were presenting. They made personal assults on Ani's and my presentations and topics. We had had enough! They were picking on us even if our topics were completely unrelated to theirs. We fired them questions about basic stuff after their presentations to reveal the flaws in their work. They were busted. And their hatred grew!

So today was the saturday after all that tamasha! I walk into coll. Saw two of my juniors. They were dressed normally. I waved to em and walked on only to but struck by the fact that today was ethnic day! I was so caught up with the seminar the entire week that I conviniently forgot! It just slipped outta my mind! I was planning to wear jeans today but something told me to wear salwar and thank god for that. The entire coll was wearing traditional stuff! I get to class and Ani came in later. She was laughing. Even she had completely forgotten. But 2 other girls in my class hadn't forgotten! They were dressed up like X-mas trees. It was hinted throughout the week that our farewell party was being planned for 14th and we hadn't heard an official confirmation nor had we received an invitation!!! Our HOD comes into class and looks at the thin attendance and tells us to go home! Go home??? Ummmm aren't you forgetting something?? My classmates dont open their mouth as usual when they have to. I ask her abt the farewell and tell her we haven't heard anything about it! Finally the invitation came as a print out in black and white. It was stuck on our classroom board.....Wait it gets even better!
We were told the time of the party was 5 p.m. and Ani and I decide to be late for a change and be there by 5:45 giving our junies enough timet o set up the show. We are fools. We shud have come at 7! 1st of all the dress code being sari, she and I were most uncomfortable! We had teeter around trying not to trip! Most of our classmates turned up by 6:30. And we decided to go sit inside. I had met Anne before that. She was dressed for ethnic day:).
Even after sitting inside for sometime (till 7) the show did not start! Then the show starts with an invocation and ppl clap after that (Duh!) There were more bad songs and a game of antakshari which Ani and I lost to our "rivals" in a tie-breaker! it sucked but who cares! It was a lousy show all the while! I really got a headache becoz this one song was being played over and over again by the "DJ" and it was sung by 2 people. One guy sang it in Kannada as well to worsen the matter! It sounded more cheesy! It was a song called "Woh Lamhe, Woh Baatein!" As if that was not enough, one junie even dances to that tune. God! Talk abt lack of creativity and innovation! I will kill myself if i hear that song just one more time!!!
After this sad show which they liked to call "entertainment" they start distributing our "momentos" aka parting gifts. My name happened to be called 1st and my own classmates started Boo-ing me!!! That was the all-time low of the show. It was from our "rivals." Ah! Big Shit! Losers! I won't have a thing to do with them in less than a fortnight then they can go play their childish pranks on cows and buffaloes in their home towns for all i care! O Sorry. Looking at the obscure places they come from they will probably have only reptiles! Creepy-crawlies! All the better!

There were some "forgettable" last words from the students and teachers. Boring! Then came the dinner. Before that was my good deed for the day! I was told to buy chocolates for our junies for the "wonderful" party they were to throw for us! I announced about the chocolates and wheeeeeey...people were swarming to get it! Yuck! It just left a bad taste in my mouth! The food was good though. One junie, a particularly smart and sweet one, was the organizer of the entire show but he was so busy that he never got his share of the limelight. He was working continunously and tirelessly in the background. The poor guy had lost his voice as well! We congratulated him. Ani and I took a few snaps and then left! We had had enough! Came home and unwrapped the parting gift to find a very beautiful photo frame made of glass. I wondered whose pic i shud put in there. Photos from coll??? The only person I can call my friend in the entire gathering was probably only Ani and if I put a pic of Ani and I standing, it would look damn funny! So for now, it stays vacant. Maybe when some extraordinary event happens and I happen to get a snap of it,I will frame it. Or maybe a snap with all my friends! Let's see!

My proj presentation is next week. I start work on it from tomo after a tad of sleep now. Two more saturdays to bear and I will be OUT OF COLLEGE! FOR EVER!!!!

Manic Monday of May!

2005-05-02T09:40:00.000-07:00

That's the way my sis put it and rightly so! It was a bummer of a day! Had a test in the morning. It is a complete blank! Not that I did badly, just don't care! I know for sure now that the marks I get are in no way related to the efforts I put in.
Then later discovered that the electronics of my proj is not working!!!! PANIC ATTACK! All when the dates for the final presentation are announced! But I can't do anything till tomo. So I am praying and praying and praying!

Now about the weekend. Sunday was dull. I spent the almost the whole day in front of the books. No, not exactly studying. It is my way of day-dreaming! If I sit and gaze out of a window or stare into the emptiness, my mum will think I have lost it. So to keep myself from the mental asylum, I use my books:D.

Saturday was my idea of a good weekend. Spent the morning organising some stuff about the house and making phone calls for proj. PV was in coll at 9:30 a.m itself! SI and I joined him around 11 I think. The western music event had started. So we stood and listened for a while. Then MM joined us. SS, A, KJ and VA were late:P. Well, just in time for our coll band's performance. I personally, liked them. But my sis and MM weren't too interested in the loud "noise" made by most of the other bands. KJ was literally walking around with his fingers in his ears:p. That was too funny!
Then I took my pals around coll. Showed them my torture chamber..i.e my class and then we decided to go for lunch. We went to Jayka. Had a decent lunch. But it was good fun watching VA and PV mess with their nimboo pani! They were "trying" to sell the yummy taste of the drink but no one was buying;). Jal zera???? VA's secret ingredient:p. I am sure you are going to patent it, pal! And like one bad drink wasn't enough, they ordered another one each and their concoction was fizzing away eerily! Wonder how their stomach is today!?

Took all my friends home after that. It was a fun walk home. Mum made my fav drink, tomato juice:D!! I thought we'd watch Polar Express on the comp but VA and A were more interested in TV~! Plus most of us had already seen it, so we dropped that and went to Coffee Day.

After that, I went back to coll with PV. I had promised Ani I would come, so I had to go. Met some more seniors there. And PV met his "best friend" so he was ecstatic! Ani came and we went to see the rangoli contest. We met another character that and Ani and I couldn't stop laughing! That's coz PV was showering that fellow with compliments. And he got all misty-eyed and hugged him! Ah! What a sight for sore eyes!

The Fashion show started really late. Ani and I hade a tough time finding a place where we could catch a glimse of the stage. Met Anne, SJ, DC and C too. The junies were all over the place. And a pleasant surprise were two ppl from the Brainy Community as well! They weren't even alumini of my coll but they had come anyway.

In an attempt to get a view of the stage, PV, Ani and I were moving closer and closer to it. But no hope. It was packed with ppl dancing like tribals and making war sounds too! PV could see above most ppls' heads but Ani and I were standing and wishing we were inches taller! Then PV came up with the smart idea of sitting behind one of the LCD screens~! It felt like watching a BIG screen TV on which VASTU was being telecat live~! But everything was a mirror image:D. But printing students have no prob with it! Always have to deal with right reading and wrong reading stuff;).

The show was sad! It wasn't stylish at all! It was like a cheap flick! Too much skin shown and badly. The highlight of the show was a guy wearing almost transparent white lungi with Bright Orange shorts!!!!!!!!LOL! Kya scene! The girls were horrible! Some could pass for tarts! But they got the loudest whistles! One word rightly describes my coll ppl. "Porki!" I dunno which language it is, but it is the word I am looking for!

One coll actually had a theme of "love-making!" Duh! Cheap porn poses! Three of us were passing comments non-stop. Laughed our guts out! Stayed till 9. Then we bid goodbye to Ani and PV dropped me home. But the day hadn't come to an end yet. Anne came along! She was returning home from Coffee Day. And I laughed for 30 mins more. People on the deserted street thought we were 2 drunk females! One guy actually came up to us and asked if there was a security guy for my apartments! Then we realised it was too late. Anne refused to come upstairs. So chatted till 10 and then said gnite and left.

I slept like a log! I had walked too much that day! Thanx to VA!:P But seriously, a great plan and all credit goes to VA for taking the initiative! Make more such plans V and you guys can drop in anytime (if u don't get lost, i.e;)) Even if you do get lost, give me a tinkle and I will come and get you...just make sure it is before sunset:P.

A good end to April and a Terrible start for May! It is my least fav month after joining engg! For more reasons than one.

....And ends with a BANG!

2005-05-01T09:51:00.000-07:00

What an amazing Saturday! A whole day at Vastu!:D I will blog about it later. Thought I had the time but now i gtg;)....Got int tomo!

When the week passes in a flash....

2005-04-28T11:01:00.000-07:00

....and you wonder what u did? We had to go for proj....but our guide kept postponing the meeting and it is already fri! The coll fest starts tomo. Not taking part. Not interested! You know, when u get to the final sem, one feels completely detached! :D...vairagya!

Been to coll today. After class, we had to go for proj but that didn't work out. So Ani, LV and NBS sat and sang our guts out:D. I always like singing with Ani. She and I know the same songs, and we compliment each other. We would have loved to participate in Antakshari but we never find a third team mate. We had a particularly bad time last year, so this time we aint even trying! We can sit and sing for ourselves...what the hell!

The weekend's gonna be hectic again. Plus got internals on mon. Then seminar very soon. And weddings! A classmate's sis gets married next week and a senior from coll is getting married on the following sunday. I dunno if i can make it for both. Ani doesn't seem keen and it wont be fun if she aint coming....I am an outcast ...remember:P...No probs...the feeling is mutual!

I think I am really addicted to TV these days:(. Keep watching one movie after another whenever I find time! I watched face/off for the nth time! And some other vague movies! Sheesh! Just like in the hols before engg started! I should do something more productive though. I have started writing a story. But not something I want to publish I think. It is about the one person who inspires my very existence...my late grandma. A woman who was well ahead of her times. Someday, when the story is finished, maybe I will put it up for u guys only,to read.

Falling in Love Again! With Will Smith!!

2005-04-25T10:15:00.000-07:00

Oh yes!! My friends from school will remember how i drooled over the Prince. He is absolutely gorgeous! "Tall, dark and handsome!" Yes sireee, he is! And he is smart too! Said no to MIT scholarship for a career in showbiz! I think he is a great actor too. And an amazing singer as well! I watched Hitch on Sunday. It was hilarious! Only four of us went for the movie, MM, VA, SI and I. But I had a blast.

Will Smith has a new song too. It is called Switch . Yes, yes rhymes with Hitch!

Here's the lyrics....

Switch
Alright ready
Come on man,
this is what I do
Yo mic check, mic check, yeah here you go
Nah, he over here
Yeah, I heard he got that hot new thing
It's called "Switch" (switch)
Let's get it going

[chorus] Hey switch, turn it over and hit it
Turn around, now switch
Turn it over and hit it

Hey, vibe to vibe a second, it's a club girl why you arrived naked
Hear that, how the veteran glide the record
But don't download, go out and buy the record
Hey, something sexy bout her
Girl on the floor, all her friends around her
I mean real clean, ain't gotta touch or nothing
It ain't like I like a chick on chick or something
I'm just a sucker for a hot track
Gimme a drink and a chick to tell 'Stop that'
Dance is a hop and a clap, flip it round
Now bring it on back, break it down Now switch

[chorus]

Uh uh uh I gotta question, I need to ask somebody
Why is it that when y'all see me at the party
Y'all be looking like, "Ooh, he a movie star
He ain't supposed to be out on the floor with everybody"
But oh wait, whoa, y'all forgetting
When I was, amateur spitting before the scripts were written
First one in, last one out the club
Bursting in, passing out in the club
Back at it, this cat is the wit and the charm
Taking you higher, like a syringe hittin' ya arm
Bringing the fire, making your Benz ring the alarm
Let me see you clap, spin baby, come on Switch

[chorus]

Oh, you just gonna stand there, huh
What you too cute to dance, or you scared

It ain't really that hard to do and
I aint trying to be in love with you and
All I wanted was a moment or two to
See if you could do that switch-a-roo and
Shut your mouth fool, get your crew and
The thick body and the rear one too and
I'll be right hear waiting on you to
See if y'all can do that switch-a-roo

Hey, hey
That's what I'm talking bout, do that thing mama
That's what I'm talking bout, do that thing mama
That's what I'm talking bout, do that thing mama
That's what I'm talking bout, switch

[chorus]

Groovy, huh?;) The video, is damn stylish. Suits the Prince.

As if I hadn't had enough of Will Smith over the weekend, I saw him on Parkinson as well. Yummy! And entertaining as always! He was speaking about Ali and about the house he built for 7 years and the fancy Japanese toilets! He was spontaneous and oh-so-funny! And did i tell you I love the way he dances! I could go on and on about the Prince, but I won't bore you guys. So here ends my blog. ;)

When you don't feel that good about yourself....

2005-04-23T10:46:00.000-07:00

"The majority of us lead quiet, unheralded lives as we pass through this world. There will most likely be no ticker-tape parades for us, no monuments created in our honor. But that does not lessen our possible impact, for there are scores of people waiting for someone just like us to come along; people who will appreciate our compassion, our unique talents. Someone who will live a happier life merely because we took the time to share what we had to give. Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have a potential to turn a life around. It's overwhelming to consider the continuous opportunities there are to make our love felt."

Today, I really had a very tiresome day....And was an emotionally a low as well:(. No particular reason. Sometimes my mind just slips in to this mode... That's when friends come in handy! Esp the oldest ones. I called MM and felt so much better. Then NG was online and reminded about the good old days when we used to write to each other regularly. I remember how excited I used to be to get those letters from Delhi. NG also has one of the neatest handwritings, and would write on some really cute letterheads. I too have all the letters. I open them and read it sometime. I feel transported to another age. I am glad we are still in touch. After 8 years!

And of course, I found that quote online. It is by Leo Buscaglia.http://www.buscaglia.com/about.htm

It reiterated that doing my duty and being kind is the way to be. Sometimes people around can be rude and inconsiderate and I doubt if it is really worth being a nice person. Everytime the answer is YES! An emphatic one too....

Reading Hindi!

2005-04-22T11:46:00.000-07:00

Today was one laaaaaaazy day! I thought I would do something diff. No, i didn't work on my seminar or proj. I think I will be in serious trouble the following week, but I really couldn't care less:p. I will work sincerely for the proj but seminar, I am not very interested. I am sure I will screw it up because of this indifference, but I really can't get myself to work on it!

So what did I do? I read Hindi! Mum had bought books written by Ram Devji. Books on Yoga and Pranayam! I took 5 mins to read 2 sides of a page! I have completely lost touch! The book in english was better. I got really inspired by it. Starting next week, I adopt a new approach to life. A healthier one! I am not getting enough sleep, not eating right, working for really long hours on the comp and drink 500ml of water! It is taking its toll and I can sense it. Mum is really tired of telling me to mend my ways. And now I will listen to her. I resolve (yet again) to change.

But today had a good afternoon nap. Told my mum I had a headache! A good 3 hr siesta can be really refreshing! Then tried reading more hindi, but i got bored. Then went with mum to Jayanagar. That did me much good. I am usually reluctant to get out of the house. Cancerians are known to be home-loving people. I went out and got some polluted air into my lungs!:D

Mysore Again!

2005-04-21T10:10:00.000-07:00

I got a chance to go to Mysore again yesterday. Not as great as my last trip though. I went with my dept. I know most of you would love to go out of town with your dept people. But I ain't the sort. Firstly, most of my classmates didn't turn up because they were writing a test for campus recruitment. So three guys from my class accompanied me:p. Two of these, I can stand! Then there were the junies and the sub junies. I get along okay with them. But not people I can hang around with. Didn't learn a thing on the trip! It was supposed to be an industrial trip to CFTRI but very disappointing. Didn't see anything new. Nothing we couldn't have got off the net!

For fun, it was decided to stop by a stream. People soaked themselves from head to toe! There were a lot of other people there. Esp middle-aged men in their chaddis! Gross! That is not my idea of fun! No wonder I never learnt how to swim! Yuck! I want a clean pool to myself and it would have to be cleaned and the water changed everyday! At least the water should be changed everyday! I know that is a waste of water, so i don't learn how to swim! I have a HUGE problem with people pissing in the pool. The stream of course has flowing water. But that aint good enough for me! I was the only one in bus who hadn't got my clothes wet and I can't explain the stench of wet, sweaty people!

Told was a busy day. Went for proj work in the morning. Came back home and had lunch. CP and MMS came home and we discussed about what we shud do for our "Brainy Community" meet. But what fun we had. We could yap for hours! Still thinking of a nick for CP. Will find one soon. Very Soon! Hehe! (Run and hide, CP! (j/king))

Tomo is holiday!!! Yippee!! And I am going to S-L-E-E-P!
Starting now....zzzzzzzzzzzzz......

A breather!

2005-04-17T04:30:00.000-07:00

After two hectic weeks, this weekend, i am chilling! Not feeling too well though:(. I think it is the weather. I have a cold and a headache because of that! But otherwise all's well:). Haven't got blue books of ints yet. Guess they just start forgetting abt u once u r in the 8th sem. You are almost outta coll!
Done with the 1st presentation of my proj. Did ok in that. But got the next and final one coming up in 2 weeks time+2nd ints next week+ a trip to mysore (CFTRI)+seminar ....So loads of work!
I have just saved pages from the net for my seminar. I still haven't filtered the crap!
Last weekend i managed to watch a movie at least with my friends! Miss Congeniality 2. It was good fun! When we meet again i dunno. VA's and SS's seminar dates are different, so we have to see when we are all free.
My project has really slowed down! The fabrication is getting delayed. We still have to put it all together, connect the electronics and see if it does really work! Else i have no idea what i will do! Just hope it is not to late. I have no back up now. Too late for one anyway.

The fun part over the past few days were the late night chats with my friends. We even have guests from across the border (or so they claimed!) VA, PT and I just ragged them till they cried:D.KJ and SS joined us too. I have stayed up till 4 sometimes! I look like a panda now:D but the chats were too much fun to give up even at the crack of dawn! The dogs outside my house howl all night and when the cuckoos start singing, I know i should go sleep:).

I really wonder what life would be without the friends i have made over the past four years. Old friendships got stronger of course. And rediscover some friends. Sometimes you realise what a superficial image you form of a person without really knowing what they are inside. This can be positive or negative. When it is positive, you have one more friend. One more leaf to add to the book of life. One more gem to the wealth of friends.
And the greatest discovery was wat a great singer PT is. She is amazingly talented! Learnt Hindustani for 11yrs!
Here's a song I really. Can't sing half as well as you do, PT. So you sing it:)) for me when you can and send me the file. Only if you have the time, of course:)!

"What It feels Like For A Girl" By Madonna
[Spoken:]Girls can wear jeans
And cut their hair short
Wear shirts and boots
'Cause it's OK to be a boy
But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading
'Cause you think that being a girl is degrading
But secretly you'd love to know what it's like
Wouldn't youWhat it feels like for a girl
Silky smooth
Lips as sweet as candy, baby
Tight blue jeans
Skin that shows in patches
Strong inside but you don't know it
Good little girls they never show it
When you open up your mouth to speak
Could you be a little weak
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
For a girl
Hair that twirls on finger tips so gently, baby
Hands that rest on jutting hips repenting
Hurt that's not supposed to show
And tears that fall when no one knows
When you're trying hard to be your best
Could you be a little less
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
What it feels like for a girl
Strong inside but you don't know it
Good little girls they never show it
When you open up your mouth to speak
Could you be a little weak
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
For a girl
In this worldDo you know
Do you know
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
What it feels like in this world

Race against the clock! Panic! Panic!

2005-04-06T09:18:00.000-07:00

The first week of April is coming to an end! The proj progress is really slow. Finished first int and dunno how i did! If I pass, it would be all thanx to Ani. She told me so much, and I wrote all that in the book!:p God bless! Things are getting hectic with the internal guides getting more demanding. Weekly feedback and they tell us a whole lot of new things to find out. I need a break! I don't know when I will get it. Definitely not till the 15th I think. And if we have our proj presentation next week, then I will have no time to breathe! Hate this!
Hope this post gets published and not disappear like my last two posts! I have NO patience to type another one.

Test!

2005-04-02T08:46:00.000-08:00

Mon is my test.
I haven't studied a word.
My project is not progressing.
Have been watching too much TV.
Have been playing hours of Freecell.
Haven't played pool for a long time now.
I received my second letter from Infy today.
I am supposed to join on 19th September 2005.
I will be free to enjoy my holidays from June to Sept.
Getting shit scared about the training coz i know nothing.
The books are too thick and the stuff in them's too complex.
My classmates calculated that there are 57 days of college left.
I am more interested in watching Green Mile than typing tonight.
That's coz I love Tom Hanks and nothing remarkable happened today.
If you think this is a waste of time and space, I completely agree with you.

Attempt at an ode....(writer's block..remember?)

2005-04-01T09:06:00.000-08:00

I am an Imposter. I am a writer.

I wrote to make you laugh,
I wrote to make you cry,
I wrote to make you turn green,
I wrote to make you turn red.
Don't take my word for it,
I am an imposter
I am a writer.

I wrote you tales of glowing wealth,
I wrote them on the verge of death.
I wrote you tales of mirth and gait,
I wrote them when I was being tried by fate.
Don't believe a word I write.
I am an imposter.
I am a writer.

The words are mine, but not the thoughts.
The flavour is mine, but not the truth.
The syllables are fallacy I make you hear,
The story is a dream I weave for you to see.
Don't give into this facade.
I am an imposter.
I am a writer.

Another one I wrote....long back...a sonnet.

You Think You Know Me? Think Again.
You saw me smile,
But didn't see my glistening eyes.
You heard me laugh,
But didn't hear my stifled cries.
You saw that I wasn't alone,
But didn't see I was lonely.

I thought you would understand how I felt,
But you saw my insolence and not my affliction.
You say I let you down,
But don't know you were the cause.
You asked me why I am not myself,
I say you don't even know me to say so.
You think you know me?
Ha! Think Again.
(Time : 1:20-1:30 p.m. 19th Jan 2003)

Scenes from a BMTC Bus!

2005-03-31T17:12:00.000-08:00

Phew! What a day(31st march)! As usual, got ready to go to coll, saw that it was close to 9:30 am BST (our coll's standard time=IST+10mins), caught a rick, spent...sorry wasted 10 bucks on it. And the teacher doesn't come till 10:00 am IST, teaches for 15 mins. We learnt names of bacteria! You know those single-celled micro-organisms that can produce toxins that could kill you??? Complicated names for most of the guys but all the girls in the class today are from PCMB background, so no sweat:D.
When the class came to an end, I had a question. Not a doubt; I just wanted to know when our first proj presentation was going to be, as the HOD had said anytime after the 1st int. As the int is to be held on Mon, I need to know how long we have to prepare for the presentation, etc. The moment I asked the teacher, everybody shoots me a furious glance! Hehe, I get catty pleasures from these things, I confess:P. Not that I am super-prepared for my presentation or anything like that. I suggested the Monday following the test-day. I looked at my classmates for approval with an innocent look and they we were still getting over the shock! Now the teacher wont just forget about the presentation, will she? So instead of being informed about it just a day or two before, I want to be mentally prepared at least a week in advance! Whatever! Walked out of class smugly!( I really miss the laughing devil emoticon here!)
Then Lats and me had to go meet our external guide for the proj. The to-journey was not bad. But when we were returning, had to come back in the bus. Now I am pretty much used to travelling in bus, the crowd and the jolts! I again wish I was inches taller:(. I can just about grab the handle for balance! Today, the roads were pathetic! I felt like I was surfing and hanging from one arm! At the same time I had to fish out money for the ticket, grab the bar and keep myself from stepping onto some little kids' feet~! (Oh! As I am typing this, guess which song is playing on my playlist? Mission Impossible:D)
Finally I got a seat beside an old lady. It was a half-hour ride and I had been watching this old lady for sometime. She had a basket in her hand. She must have been returning from a visit to the temple. She had a SS box of fruits, some flowers and a packet of something(most probably the prasad.) I dunno if I made her uncomfortable or if she was just conscious...but she was sneaking out a few pieces of fruit (watermelon) from the box and popping them into her mouth. When she was done with that, she opened the packet and started munching. The effort that she was putting to conceal her eats almost tempted me to say "Granny, you can eat all you want. Your food. Your mouth, your tummy. Don't worry I wont grab it!" I swear I wasn't gawking at her. She was drawing a lot of attention to herself on her own! There were lot of kids around me. She being a typical granny was telling them to stop fidgeting and hold on firmly to the safety bars, etc, etc.
After I sat down beside her, a fight broke out at the rear end of the bus. Some gutsy ladies(2 of em) had chosen to sit among the men and picked a fight with them as well. From what I could get from the yelling and shouting is that the guy in question was sitting in the last seat and the lady was sitting some 3 rows ahead of him. He was calling her names, she was returning the compliments in equally glowing terms! I was very amused and trying hard to conceal my smile. The lady conductor of the bus was looking straight at my face and grinning! I was in a seat facing the rear of the bus. Now granny is all the more interested. The kids before us got on to the seat to catch their share of the excitement! Granny orders them to behave and sit down! It ain't no circus etc. She turns to me. "He must have put his hand somewhere...., right?" WHAT???? Okay, it is a common thing in buses, but the man was far away (or was he?) Now I pretended I did not hear Granny's question and continued to be a spectator. The noise was getting louder now. Harsher words, completely out of control of both the driver and the conductor! Then the enraged lady had enough! She gets up and starts marching to the rear of the bus to beat the hell out of the guy! "I wont take this anymore!" The men around tried to console her. Restrained her by holding her wrist and one gentleman actually left his seat and stopped her in her tracks and made her resume her seat! By this time Granny had repeated her previous question to me a dozen times already. It was awhile before I realised that she was actually talking to me. I didn't know how to reply. The innocent kids were looking at me, all scandalised! What the hell was Granny asking? Finally I nodded in consent and that seemed to satisfy her and she says "Ha! There! That is what I thought!" My stop finally came and I got off smiling to myself, just to meet the eyes of some road Romeo who thought I was blushing at him! Walked home as fast as I could!
What an inspiration!:D Kudos to the unrelenting spirit of the Indian Woman:). She shall take no nonsense!

The Open Couple????

2005-03-30T09:07:00.000-08:00

It seriously gave me a headache. Sorry guys, but I really didn't enjoy it that much! It was staged at Rangashankara. Had a hell of a day at coll and was hoping for some entertainment. It was a disappointment. "Open Couple." Now what the hell is that? I know what it means but i just don't get it. Either you are a "couple" or you are not. "You are free to sleep with anyone you like and I will do the same," isn't my idea of a relationship. I may sound like a Narendra Modi, but big shit! I really don't get it. Where does all this come from? Television? Books? The world is shrinking alright, but having an open mind doesn't necessarily have to go this far! I guess I have far too conservative thoughts. Actually, NO! My beliefs are strongly rooted in the Hindu culture but not completely against radical thoughts. I can respect them, but college drama being about 40-something couples effusing about their sex-life isn't all that entertaining and not mentally stimulating by any standards of mine.

Vix and I reached late. We were there at 7:36. 6 mins late and we didn't get in. Spent some boring time, looking at a ceiling and then sat in this rustic step-up called Ranga Cafe. I thought they have done a good job of it. Oh! And the most exciting part of today was this. Girish Karnad was sitting there, having an animated conversation with Arundhati Nag! Cool! So you can see I caught a glimse of his theatrical talent:D. I sure wish I could watch his plays, but obviously they will be more expensive. I think he is the real deal. Hopefully sometime I actually get to watch some of his movies as well. What i also like about Mr Karnad is that he writes in Kannada. I wish I was good at some Indian language. I can write hi-fi Hindi, but I think to write a literary piece you must have read masterpieces already written. I have read only what was in my text books in school. I think I have one or two books in Hindi at home.

This leads me to a question that I often think about. Has cultural growth ceased in India? India has been a land with exuberant literature, art and music. Has it stopped? Would you call the popular the best? M.F. Hussain's painting sells for millions! I think I could do a better job with my eyes closed!;). Come to music, Majority of the Indian public likes Bollywood songs. Is that bad? I like a couple of songs myself! And most often than not, only those books that a particular publisher likes get published. And those in turn become best-sellers, so who is the person deciding what is good and what is not? The publisher? The people? What I wonder is that everything that has come down to us through the ages has all been the popular stuff, that had a strong popular backing to exist in the "winds of change"? This is included on my list of "Things you will never know!":D (reference to PS's views on popular music! Good one dude!)

Back to what I did today. Paid the fee for reval. Got the form, filled and submitted. For this I had to literally walk the entire campus in the HOT sun! Gave the feedback to the HOD. Came home and made series of calls and fixed up the plan for the evening. Hectic day!

Tomo promises to be just as bad! So let's hope it rains!:D (to make things better or worse....dunno!)

I walk with the stars!

2005-03-29T09:12:00.000-08:00

I asked my friend, KJ, what I should blog about. He told me to blog about what I feel strongly about. That got me thinking. What are the things I feel strongly about? Food?:D Nah!
I love my country. I could right pages about it. Why I love it? Sooooo many reasons! I could write a book. I could tell you about yoga, pranayam and meditation. I could tell you about food as well! My mum's a great cook! So I have a lot of food for thought from that department:). I love music! I could tell you about my fav videos and music i swear by. I am all for girl power! So, MCPs watch out! Movies? Sure! And once in a while a fairy tale.

That's pretty much what you can expect from my blogs. If you think that would be dull and uninteresting, move on.

I was up till 2:30 am the night before. Chatting! Playing pool and downloading stuff. So got up late. Mum was furious! I had forgotten to do something she had told me the prevoius night and she didn't speak to me! I got about my work pretty late. Called Ani.Still hadn't received the all important circuit diagram! Waited and when I got it, didn't know in which software to open it coz i didn't have Corel Draw. PS to the rescue! He brought me the software...that too ver 12~! So opened the file and tried to make some sense of it. I went as far as identifying resistors and capacitors and the IC! Electronics, is so not for me!
(nor is this HTML thingy~!)

So when dad came home, he kinda told me wat each part was for. My dad is a real genius! I think engineers who passed out years back, really know a lot more. Everything from engg drawing to electronic circuits!

Mum made a yummy dessert from ice cream and mango pulp. Now, I think I am catching a cold:(.

I think it is that time of the year again. The kids around my house have started their noise. Summer vacations, you see! Shouting. I can tolerate all that, but they choose to play badmitton in front of my house. They send the shuttlecock flying into my balcony. Then they stand in the road and shout my sister's name. (no, they dare not call me!) It sounds like "Frooty Didi!"
Hooligans!

Our guides for proj are alloted and r group has to report to the HOD. Our first report is due tomo. She is very strict these days. We are planning to type out the report for her. We need to recap all the work over the past few days. Actually Ani and I started working for r proj from the beginning of last sem! But nuthin really took off, till a couple of weeks back. Like they say, "Jab jab jo jo hona hai, tab tab so so hota hai!" Nothing before its time!

Our ints keep on getting postponed! It was scheduled to be held last Sat. But since very little of the syllabus was covered, it was put off to the coming Sat. Now a certain VIP's birthday happens to be on that day and she begged us to postpone the test. You know, join forces with her as she bleats like a lamb...."Maaaaaaaa'am!" She won! I shudder when I remember who her b'day was celebrated last yr! Typical south indian movie! AAAA~! I bought the cake btw~!:P Stupid me!

Spoke Anne yesterday. It was a nice long chat after a long time! She is doing her proj in NAL. We had so much to catch up on. I hope I meet her sometime. Arch had left me an offline msg. All the pleasant memories of 1st came back to me. We were 3 giggling girls back then. Now we are all so different! In a matter of a few years! Drastic changes! Arch said she was disappointed with her results this time. Told Anne that and she said "Really? Arch? Can't believe it!" Arch was chilled out abt her results back then I think. Now she is not even happy with a 75+!:) Way to go, girl! Don't settle for n e thing but the best:D.

SS received her Infy letter last week. She was all excited. It would be really great if we could train together. But don't think they wud put an "A" branch with a "Z" branch, would they? It would have been soooo much fun if we were roomies!:)

Hope to meet SS and Vix. If we can make our way to Rangashankara, we'll watch some plays. It's been more than a month since I met my friends! To think that we haven't even started working yet! No, No. We will probably meet more often once coll is over:).

I think I have no more to blog now. Will figure out to modify the background hopefully! Jazz up the page and all;). Also how to put emoticons. Do tell me how u liked the "presentation" of the blog. If it sucks, tell me so..np. There is always scope for improvement:).
"That's All Folks!"

Anonymity is key!

2005-03-28T12:44:00.000-08:00

Those who know me, know me. Others don't bother. I am a very famous person. At least a 100 people know my name:). You guessed it right. It is really late and i am feeling extremely sleepy! More in my next post.